Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Disney/Dreamworks/Game of Thrones characters, locations, and/or terms. I am just a humble weaver unraveling cloths of stories to thread together and create a new pattern. If you would like to read the info and details of this fic, or if you are confused about some characters' names, you may go to the Preface section. Thank you!
PO
It was a strange thing, life was. One moment he was running the streets, trying to survive off whatever money he had working at the pub, and now here he was, overlooking the great green valley that was his home, and, eventually, his land.
"Po."
"It's such a beautiful place, uncle," Po breathed. "Why would father ever leave?"
"Your father wanted more to his life than being stuck in a castle responsible for the lives of his people, so he left. Now please, focus."
"I still cannot believe I will be the lord of this wonderful Valley."
"I cannot either."
"I always dreamt of being a knight, but a lord?" Po inhaled the fresh air. Even after four moons he could not find a single experience he was tired of. Training under his uncle was grueling, and every single day he would find himself with bruises and scratches he never remembered having, yet he would be willing to go through it again and again. "Me!" Po looked at himself, huge belly and all. "Of all people!"
"Your father was my older brother, and you are his son. It is your birthright."
"How did you know I was his son? You never met me before."
"You look like him."
"But you and he look nothing alike-"
"We had different mothers. Are you done, Po? Shall we get back to your defense drills or would you rather have a history lesson? I would gladly send you to Maester Oogway for that."
His uncle glared at him. Po recoiled. Shifu Mu may be three heads shorter than his nephew, with a broken leg, graying black hair, and an oddly long moustache, but just one look with that determined gaze of his was enough to send Po running to the other end of the Valley. Shifu's intense eyes were the reasons no one underestimated him.
"I apologize for my rudeness, uncle. I-I meant no disrespect."
"Bring your staff up." Shifu rapped his own staff on Po's knuckles. Po flinched and returned to the starting position. Shifu grumbled something unintelligible then said, "Feet apart! There! Now staff up!"
Po did the best he could. He did not know if it was from his weight or from his utter lack of coordination but he always kept getting the steps wrong, his uncle's staff quickly finding its way to the offending body part to correct him. Shifu may be crippled on one leg but was still more agile.
"Left. Right. Lunge, then parry. Lunge again, and again. Then spin left and thrust!"
Spinning on the spot, Po lost his footing and crashed to the ground. Shifu clicked his tongue as he stood over him. "We have been at this routine for nearly a moon's turn now. Do you have any intention of learning it?"
A soft crunching of the grass interrupted Po's answer. Uncle and nephew turned to see who the newcomer was. A hunched old man leaning on a walking stick hobbled his way up the hill.
"Maester Oogway," Shifu said. "What brings you here?"
The Maester held out a folded piece of paper bearing the crossed sword sigil of House Mu. "A letter from your children, my lord."
Shifu took the unopened letter and broke the seal. Po watched from his place as his uncle's eyes flitted across the paper. "Shikoba has won the joust. Hamza placed fourth. And Chanda still wishes to join the melee."
"I do not doubt she will win that." Maester Oogway said, sitting down beside Po. "She is as bullheaded as her father." Po chuckled at that, but stopped upon seeing the look on his uncle's face.
"I shall personally send them a letter of congratulations." Shifu tucked his staff under his arm. "Po desires to have a history lesson anyway. Please do indulge him." And limped away.
Po waited until his uncle had gone to speak. "I disappoint him because I do not deserve to be the heir." he sat up, shoulders slouching.
"I think you disappoint him because you think you do not deserve to be the heir."
Po looked at Maester Oogway in puzzlement. The old man was wrinkled all over, from his face, to his hands, to his feet sticking out of his sandals, and even his balding head; from what Po knew he was the maester even when Shifu was a boy. The metal links that signified Oogway's status as a maester rang softly as he shifted his sitting position.
"Maester…" Po did not know how to word his question, so he let his voice trail off and die.
"Lord Shifu mentioned that you wish to have a history lesson," the maester said brightly. "Do not be afraid to speak, young lord. The past holds a lot of answers to questions in the future."
Scratching his head, Po thought of what he wanted to know first. There were many questions he had, such as about his father, and his uncle, even his cousins. They were all mysteries to him. All he had in life before this one was the pub in Jun, for two and twenty long years.
"Maybe we could start from the beginning?" Po asked, and then immediately wondered if he had spoken right. "And by beginning, perhaps when my father was a boy, his childhood here, his family."
Maester Oogway smiled, as if he had been back to that time. "Ah yes. Your father. He was the eldest, born of an arranged marriage between your grandmother and grandfather. A marriage that was full of love, mind you, but it did not last long. When your father was only three, he, then your grandmother, fell ill. She died, and we thought he would not survive. He did, and your grandfather was resentful. When Lusine had proposed another marriage, your grandfather agreed, and out of that marriage was Shifu. Your father was left to his whims, and your uncle was the one who was trained in combat.
Your uncle adored your father. They were close, but there was always a rift between them, one created by your grandfather. Nothing was done to bridge it. When your father turned eighteen, he left the valley, and never returned since. We knew nothing of what had happened to him, until you were found."
Po felt like the burden in his chest was easing little by little. "Did what uncle say is true? Do I truly look like my father?"
"Oh yes, strikingly so. You have his big black eyes full of wonder, his round, robust face, and his even rounder belly." Maester Oogway poked Po's belly with his walking stick. "And by the looks of it, you also have his appetite."
"Then what of my uncle? What happened after father left?"
"Oh, he took on the responsibility of being the heir presumptive," the maester waved his hand dismissively. "We could not tell if your grandfather was delighted or not at your father's disappearance, but he was proud that his heir was worthy of Mu and the valley. Behind your grandfather's back, Shifu told me that if your father chose to return, he would turn over the lordship to him, as is the birthright of the eldest son."
"But father is gone," the burden felt heavy again. "And now I am the heir."
"That is right. And that is why you should follow your uncle and train harder."
"But I am!" Po retorted, then cupped his hand to his mouth. "I apologize for the outburst."
"He returns," Maester Oogway tried standing up, but wobbled and sat back down. He laughed. "If it is not a bother…"
"Of course not!" Po got to his feet in one fluid motion and gently helped the old maester up. "Would you like me to escort you back to the keep?"
The maester lightly hit him on the head. "I am not fully incapacitated, my boy. I can manage. But thank you, for your concern."
Po bowed in respect, and the maester gave him a nod in return. Shifu passed him with a stern look before turning to his nephew.
"Have you had your fill of history now?"
With a smile Po picked up his staff. "Yes uncle. I am ready to try once again."
A/N: Reviews would be lovely :) Thanks!