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Post by Seek on Mar 9, 2011 5:17:26 GMT 10
Title: Duty Rating: G Word Count: 217 words Pairing: Jon/Zahir - Team Bend-A-Lot Round/Fight: 1/A Summary: Duty: where it is, in the end, duty which drives Zahir to the palace, into his knight-master’s chambers, and into the Chamber.
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It is duty that sends Zahir ibn Alhaz to the palace in Corus, far from the desert where his father and forefathers have lived for generations. It is duty that sends him among a people who regard his kind as common, sand lice, and unworthy. It is duty (and the pride of a son of the Bazhir) which straightens his back to the jibes and he stands fast.
It is duty which sends Zahir ibn Alhaz into the chambers of Jonathan of Conte, which has him surrendering his obedience to the king. For Jonathan of Conte is not just the king of Tortall but the Voice of the Tribes and while Bazhir pride will not allow him to bend knee to the Northern King, the same Bazhir traditions require of him his duty to the Voice.
He is not a servant; the Bazhir are brothers and not servants to the Voice. Yet duty binds him, time and again, in chains far stronger than servitude and it is his duty to the Voice and to his knight-master that send him walking, steel-backed into the Chamber to face his destiny.
And if death takes him, he will meet it on his feet, as a man, and as the man this Northern King, this Voice, his king – has made him.
QC by: jazzyjess
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Post by journeycat on Mar 9, 2011 5:27:45 GMT 10
Oh, Seek, this is hands-down beautiful. I love how you've portrayed Zahir's pride, and his Bazhir ancestry, and how Jon turned him into a man who would die on his feet. Gorgeously done!
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Post by emberrose on Mar 9, 2011 6:43:10 GMT 10
I absolutely the last line.
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luinae
Rider Trainee
crazy girl
Posts: 89
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Post by luinae on Mar 9, 2011 9:10:40 GMT 10
I am loving this series. I really love the line: "while Bazhir pride will not allow him to bend knee to the Northern King, the same Bazhir traditions require of him his duty to the Voice." That's just so CLEVER.
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Post by ubiquitous on Mar 9, 2011 11:16:12 GMT 10
I love this!! The last line is all sorts of awesome. I also love his internal conflict, and the way you show his pride and sense of duty. Wonderful fic!
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Post by wordy on Mar 9, 2011 11:47:40 GMT 10
Love this! I like how politically-minded Zahir is, and how mature.
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Post by Seek on Mar 10, 2011 21:08:13 GMT 10
Thanks, guys!
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