This kid should really be an orphan.

[Bramandin]

They're not always the chosen one, but usually a child protagonist is an orphan because it dodges questions about what sort of irresponsible parent would let their kid go on some sort of crazy adventure where they could get killed. Sometimes the parent is just clueless.

My prompt is to write a story where the parent or parents are present enough to be aware of what's going on or trying to go on with their child.

Spoiler

Parent or child is an obvious POV, Obi-Wan or an opinionated neighbor are less obvious.

 

[Astro Pen]

Do you want us to read the spoiler before or after we write the passage?

 

[Bramandin]

Do you want us to read the spoiler before or after we write the passage?

You can read the spoiler, it was just extraneous info.

 

[Fiberglass Cyborg]

That night was damp, foreboding and swelteringly hot. Not long afer she finally got to sleep, Sarah was woken by the familiar rustling in the ivy. She tried to act asleep for a bit, but gave it up when Ghionwy began coughing sarcastically.

"All right, all right!" Sarah hissed under her breath. She extracted herself from the tangled sheets, put her pink bunny slippers on and padded over to the window. She had to stand on tip-toe in order to lean over the sill and look down. "I'm sorry, OK?"

Ghionwy's amber eyes gleamed within the foliage. "You did not come to the Rec. The war goes hard with us," the dryad whispered. "We need you, Sarah Cooper. And we need the Sword of Demeter."

"My mum has it." Sarah dropped her head onto her arms in shame. "I'm grounded. She called it a, a bowlie knife or something? Said I was a wicked child for carrying it. I'm not allowed out, 'sept for school."

"Then you will have to run away from school. It will be hard, for the Privet King's minions watch that place closely. I will send Reynard Reynardsson to help you."

"But what about the sword? I lost the sword!" Sarah's voice rose. There was a noise on the other side of the bedroom wall as her mother rolled over in her sleep. They both froze.

"You must take it back," said Ghionwy after a while.

"Mum's gonna kill me!"

"You must. Sarah Cooper, you are the Summer Queen. Only you can save Albion."

 

[paranoid marvin]

To make it believable, I think you have to put the child in a situation where they are in physical danger if they do nothing. It also helps if they are passed into the hands of people more capable of protecting them than the parents themselves.

Anakin was handed over because his mother wanted to give him a better life than that of a slave, knowing that he was being put in the custody of two Jedi knights who would care for him and hone his skills. Why didn't Qui-Gon Jinn simply take his mother with them? Because it would have caused issues with his training, and it was far easier to use the excuse that they couldn't free them both - which was nonsense.

 

[Bramandin]

To make it believable, I think you have to put the child in a situation where they are in physical danger if they do nothing. It also helps if they are passed into the hands of people more capable of protecting them than the parents themselves.

Anakin was handed over because his mother wanted to give him a better life than that of a slave, knowing that he was being put in the custody of two Jedi knights who would care for him and hone his skills. Why didn't Qui-Gon Jinn simply take his mother with them? Because it would have caused issues with his training, and it was far easier to use the excuse that they couldn't free them both - which was nonsense.

So Anakin was as good as an orphan because his mother was unavailable. I wonder how they get ahold of the other Jedi children; probably seized with government support when they're too young to remember their real parents.

I really need to do this prompt with Keturah. She was a Kamikaze that survived being shot down, and because of her culture she doesn't interfere with her son's grand destiny no matter how much it hurts. These are snippets that made it into the stupid fanfiction that I'm dropping.

As they got into the bath, Keturah grabbed her son’s wing to get a better look at the damage. “Are you ready to tell me what stupidity caused this?”

“They have a rule in Letestadt that men can duel over a woman and she has to go with the winner,” Catullus said. “I am so glad that I made one of their leaders, actually Birney’s father, curious about the rules I wanted to follow instead. Archimedes said that he’d arrange the meeting.”

“Caldwell is just as bad as the one you killed,” Lailah spat. “I feel sorry for anyone who has to get near him.”

Keturah frowned in worry at Catallus. He looked away and said, “It was to the death. Considering that Archimedes had to keep us both from murdering the other… He wanted me to just walk away, warned me that I might die for nothing, but win or lose, that way no one else would get hurt.”

Keturah sat in stony silence for a moment. “I’m angry and I’m trying to decide if you did the right thing. You have responsibilities beyond one person, and I would have chosen differently in your place.”

“I don’t want to argue with you about it.” Catullus turned to Lailah. “My mother follows carponus e donadi, the concept of duty and selflessness, more strongly than myself, as does Archimedes. It might be for the best considering the weight of their responsibilities, but I’m not sure that it’s good for ordinary people. Part of preparing me for my purpose made me aware of that enough to examine it.”

“You want to know more about her?” Keturah’s tea had been left in the kitchen-area for her to retrieve herself, and she clutched the mug with both talons. “This isn’t the first time Sarah put herself at risk when she didn’t need to. This also isn’t the first time my sons have followed her example. I know it’s unfair that the others could talk to their predecessors when you had to hear about yours second-hand, but once I had seen what she did to my boys, I was against it happening again.”

Tanyanika reeled as if struck. “But what about duty?”

Keturah took a deep breath, forcing herself to calm. “I left the past as a [pincushion] that accepted that it would cause my return to the Wheel, but hers is a foolishness that goes beyond that. She doesn’t stop to think, doesn’t even seem to realize that she’s taking a risk. Even after the fact, only Archimedes seems to have any comprehension of being in danger and still he keeps disregarding his own safety in defiance of his duty. I know that they can see it in each other.”

In Valeholm, the first thing Catullus did was to visit his mother. She ran out onto the porch and hugged him so tightly that he thought that she would squeeze the life from his body.

Keturah began shaking and asked, “Why do I keep letting you do things like this?”

“Mom, please.” Catullus squirmed until she shifted to holding him at arm’s length. “I’m not the type of person who ignores what needs to be done, and neither are you. I helped saved a life tonight.”

“I saw. It’s just…” Keturah sniffled. “That man might have decided to just kill you.”

 

[Fiberglass Cyborg]

"I have some concerns," said the Vizier of Qmp. "Your Timmy may fit the description of the Cluflack Aggumnan who shall save Qmp in its hour of need, but is he really going to be able to deliver?"

"Oh, relax, he's the best in the business!" said Mrs Jones. "Tons of experience. He's the Chosen One of Gh'tarrrh on Wednesdays, the Risen King of Gongbor on Thursdays, and he's just finished a stint as the Ascendant Lawyer of Oub."

"See, that's what I'm worried about. It's a big commitment, being Cluflack Aggumnan. How will he have time if he's being all these other saviours too?"

"He's a hard-working lad. I see to that."