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百合
Title: 百合 (Lily)
Author: Dark Puck
Fandom: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Rating: G/K
Summary: General How's aide buys flowers for his lover.
Warning: Original Character Zone
氜武馬年五月十一日
(The 11th day of the 5th month of the Superior Military Horse Year)*
A man quietly disembarked from the South-Eastern Monorail, a slate held tightly to his side. He dressed like a soldier and kept his feet bare like an earthbender; his reddish-brown hair was cropped unusually close to his skull. He took no notice of the milling crowds, weaving through them with the ease of much practise until he found a flower shop.
This was Kiet, the aide of General How.
The owner was busy with some people who, by the look of their clothing, were nobles from the Upper Ring. With a silent sigh, he shifted position to wait for the nobles to finish making their selection. Luckily, they seemed to have already been looking through the flowers for a long time; they had completed their selection and purchased it within ten minutes of Kiet's entry into the building.
The shopkeeper then turned to the aide and asked, "How may I help you?"
Offering a small smile and a bow, for that was only polite, Kiet silently proffered his slate.
Visibly startled, the shopkeeper accepted the slate and skimmed it quickly -- not that there was much there to read, of course. Startlement shifted to relief; Kiet could only assume that was because he already knew what he wanted and therefore would not take up hours of the man's time.
"Three lilies, huh?" the shopkeeper asked, returning the slate. He then turned around, clearly searching for the requested flowers. Kiet had to step to one side to keep the man's lips in view. "A little gift for the missus?"
Kiet hesitated, then wrote simply, 'Yes.'
The transaction was completed, and the aide silently left the shop, slate tucked under his arm once more. He returned to the Monorail, but rather than head back to the inner portions of the Middle Ring, he boarded the train heading to the Agrarian Zone.
He would have largely preferred to do this near his home, but after what had happened the year before--
Kiet's fist clenched around the lily stems, and he closed his eyes. Deep breath, hold for seven seconds, exhale through the mouth. Technically it was a bending exercise, but it also worked as a calming technique - the last thing Kiet needed was a tension headache.
Little by little, he relaxed, until he was no longer in danger of worrying the other passengers in his car on the train. Last year had been a misunderstanding, that was all. And Lake Laogai was better for this anyway.
It took some time for the train to reach the station near Lake Laogai. There were enough farms in the area that anyone getting off here wasn't unusual, but Kiet had covered his rank regardless. Rumour could tear a man apart in Ba Sing Se.
He took the walk to Lake Laogai sedately, letting his thoughts drift to the past, to a time before Ba Sing Se.
To Bai He.
By the time he made it to the lake the sun was setting, and his walk had slowed perciptibly. Kiet stood on the shore for a long time, simply watching the water lap against the muddy shore. Finally, as the last rays of light faded into darkness, the man walked into the lake, not stopping until the water was at his waist.
A noiseless sigh passed his lips, and he gently set the lilies atop the water and pushed them from him, watching as the breeze and the lake itself carried them farther away. Kiet reached up to wipe lake spray from his eyes, then trudged back to the shore.
*roughly May 11th, 98 ASC. So, two years before canon.
Current Location: my bed
Current Mood:  calm
Tags: avatar, fanfic, 百合
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