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rontheweaselqueen · 2 days ago

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Spirit of the Season

The sparks of yet-made memories crackled gently in the waning fire as it warmed the hearth. Its dance was a meticulous yet carefree cadence that begged him to allow it to continue its tenured existence, instead of wicking itself out with the lack of fresh fuel. As he sat in the comfort of the flickering light’s warmth, he could hear the frigid winds outside whispering a request against the window’s frosted panes. Let me in. Allow me to feel the warmth. The glass summarily denied its appeal for entry into the warm home, keeping to its duty of staving off the weather. Sitting in this quiet place, surrounded by throws, cushions, a waning fire, books, and more decorations than he ever could imagine to place, he was happily contented.

As the light waned in the fireplace, no shiver could be found in his presence. And while he was used to the cold, it could never touch him. Not with her so near. So, he could handle the fireplace going out. But, there was a spark of flame that would never expire. The one in his heart, his being, his soul. It would always burn, and this time of year? In this place? It was a warm blaze within and it was all her fault. It was her soothing caress, after all, that calmed the raging inferno into a placid ember years ago. Oh, how he was thankful for it. Without her, he’d be nothing but ash. He smiled at the trimmings hung atop the mantle of the fireplace, then turned his gaze to his right.

She laid next to him, legs reaching across his lap with an open book facedown on her chest. Even breaths and heavy-lidded closed eyes had taken her. She had passed out an hour ago, exhausted from the day's busy affairs. And, he hadn’t moved since. When open, her eyes were oceans with all the ferocity and beauty of the open sea, but shut? Her face held a demure calm, and he found his breath taken away as the firelight reflected on her cheeks. Even now, asleep, she was perfect. The woman he fell in love with years ago had only grown more beautiful by the year, the day, even the hour. Perhaps it was the season, but he felt himself so incredibly lucky to be trapped while she slept. He certainly wasn’t going to be the one to wake her.

The fire sputtered and crackled once more in its home, and for all the flame that coursed through him, even he couldn't breathe life into a struggling hearth without fuel. For the last hour, he watched the flame struggle, surge, and then dwindle, its companion logs sitting aside waiting for their time of glory. But, alas it seemed that time would not come. He could never disturb her. Her and this moment of silence.

A quiet defined by soft breaths. The snap and sputter of a fizzling fire. The scrape of a branch on the window. The wind’s whisper. Her sleepy sigh. No. He could never disturb such a perfect melody. The fire will wane. The wind will die. And the house will become dark. But the spirit of the season that had grown within him will remain. He’ll keep her warm, as he always has. As she has always tempered him.

They'd come such a long way together, but there was so much farther to go. He smiled softly as he imagined the future. Their future. He was so thankful for everything, and couldn’t hope for anything different. With a whispered dismissal, he willed the flame in the fireplace to rest in darkness and leaned his head against the cushion.

Then she shifted against him, and he felt her arms slip round him as sleep overtook his eyes.

“Happy Solstice, Zuko.” She whispered into his ear.

And with the last of his draining energy, he pushed the sleepy words from his lips, “Happy Solstice, Katara.”

His conscious thoughts fled into a world of dreams. Of dancing celestial lights. Of loving Uncles who smelled of tea. Of a warm home. Of a life together. Of happiness. Of Love. Of solace. Together.

A gift to you on this Christmas Eve/Christmas Day.

Happy Holidays everyone. <3

#zutara #fanfiction

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rontheweaselqueen · 3 days ago

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LOOK WHAT OOMF SAID ON TWITTER YALL- OH MY SHAYLAAAAA ZK STEAMBABY LUTEN

#the baba 😭#ugh #zutara

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rontheweaselqueen · 3 days ago

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loosened hair Ranma has been on my mind for a while yall I have to let it out-

#ranma 1/2

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rontheweaselqueen · 4 days ago

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It's impossible to put into words how much I love designing characters, especially for AU.

Yes, I recently had an avatar AU, and I really wanted to draw Katara from there (and also Zuko). I usually draw a static pose in order to display all the details of the clothes. This is such a kind of character sheet that helps me to better imagine the scenes in my head.

If you're interested in reading about the AU itself, then there will be some information about it.

I apologize in advance for mistakes in the text, English is not my native language. But, I hope, this will not interfere with understanding.

In general, my AU concerns the ending of the series, because at some point it seemed unrealistic to me. There is too much positivity with the obvious problems of the post-military space, as well as little logic in some moments (for example, I don't understand what Zuko was doing in Ba Sing Se. Did he abandon his newfound throne to the mercy of fate with the risk of a palace coup? Did he not feel the effects of a lightning strike? The longer I think about it, the surreal it seems to me).

At some point I thought, "this is all like Aang's dream, in which everything is intentionally good. As if this is the ending he wants, but it's unattainable." And then it dawned on me. But it really looks like his fantasy about the future after defeating the root of evil. This explains why Zuko recovered so easily, why everyone is just relaxing and having fun without a drop of post-trauma. Because Aang wants everything to be so naive and simple after defeating the Fire Lord. Because he's dreaming about it.

I know this is a very hackneyed narrative technique. It's pretty easy to say "this is someone's dream" to deny any events. But I found it curious, especially against the background of the episode "Nightmares and Daydreams", where Aang's dreams already simplified the reality around him. For me, it's like a lead-up to the finale, where he actually sleeps.

You ask, "but why is he sleeping?". I also asked this question, and the answer to it killed me. Because during the battle with Ozai, when the stone hit Aang in the wound, he fell into a coma. His body was paralyzed because his brain perceived it as a repeated lightning strike, again fatal. The avatar's state was the only one that did not allow Aang to die, but only to fall into a coma. And instead of an epic battle, we have a little helpless boy spending a huge amount of energy just to maintain his life.

The second Aang collapsed, he disappeared, leaving Ozai alone with the remnants of his temporary power. And no one else saw the avatar…

I'll leave the intrigue for you about this, but for now I'll tell you about the concepts from the art.

Naturally, everyone searched for Aang, and, naturally, they did not find him. Katara and Zuko were the only ones who did not participate in the search, for several reasons:

Zuko was rehabilitated for a very long time after being struck by lightning, and Katara nursed him (I'm sure there are a lot of fics about this topic. The only difference is that there is no romance here. The focus of my AU is not on it, but on the problems of the consequences of the war). He survived, but he had major problems with his heart, digestive system and spine. Who noticed the cane in his hands? Yes, Zuko couldn't walk without it. From now on and forever. He was physically unable to leave the palace, and Katara maintained at least some of his condition.

Even after Zuko's rehabilitation, it was necessary to keep the power in his hands. Imagine what a shock the Fire Nation experienced when not just the former Fire Lord was overthrown, but the country's policy changed dramatically. Now Zuko needed to keep power in his hands and establish a new regime as soon as possible, before his opponents raised armies and people against him. This boy, who recently sat quietly at a military meeting, needed to show unprecedented strength and power to everyone: both officials sought to turn the situation in their favor, and the people who wanted stability and prosperity. But how to do this if Zuko couldn't even breathe normally, and getting out of bed required tremendous effort? It was impossible… Anyone else would have given up, but not Zuko. He has never given up without a fight and has never turned his back on danger, even if he risks dying.

It hurts me a lot for him, too. Fate has never stopped pushing Zuko against obstacles, but this time he couldn't rely on himself. He almost couldn't bend, his body almost didn't obey. He was an easy target and there was nothing he could do about it. This helplessness irritated him, saddened him, oppressed him. The only thing that wasn't broken yet was his spirit, and Zuko was barely able to maintain it in such conditions. If it wasn't for Katara, I don't know if he would have coped in the end. She was now his only support, his only ally in these cold oppressive walls, the only rational grain in his doubts.

You ask, "Where is Iroh? Where is Mai?"

Iroh, along with the White Lotus, took on a mission to liberate the Earth Kingdom from the Fire Army and establish relations with the kingdom. In fact, Iroh now shared power with Zuko: uncle was engaged in foreign policy so that his nephew could focus on domestic policy.

With Mai, everything was much simpler: after getting out of prison, she was completely disappointed in the guy who always left her. She sent him a letter, where she finally ended their relationship, and left with her family somewhere far away. Perhaps she and Zuko will cross paths again and will be able to establish a relationship. But not now.

Katara remained to help Zuko not only with treatment, but also with his policy. As a resident of an almost disappearing tribe, as well as an able leader, she helped him with projects and plans to improve the quality of life of the population and actively participates in them. She performed those missions that Zuko can only entrust to her. After all, she was a friend he could rely on and to whom he could open his feelings.

In her design, I wanted to reflect the combination of two cultures: Fire and Water. I was based on the designs of the "12 Kingdoms" (if you haven't watched this gorgeous anime or haven't read ranobe, I strongly recommend doing it. This universe is no less interesting than the avatar's world, I'm sure you'll like it), because the palace intrigues and the plot with winning the respect of the court reminds me very much of the story from there.

One day Zuko's legs finally gave up, he could not get up. All the stress he was going through was breaking his body so much that at some point the Katara's treatment stopped working.

It was a very difficult moment for both of them. Zuko has just started to promote his ideas and defend his rights to the throne, and Katara sincerely did not know what to do. If the truth about the true state of the Fire Lord had come out, all the ill-wishers would not leave this opportunity and attack, this couldn't be allowed. They urgently needed to create the appearance that everything is in order, but how?

Zuko came up with a very brazen idea. He asked Katara to use bloodbending on him to simulate walking. It was a very difficult request for her, because this skill represented the worst face of the war, it was created to torture people. And the last thing she wanted was to torment Zuko. She hesitated for a long time, he saw it, but he couldn't wait. He couldn't stop, it wasn't a luxury he could afford. Therefore, he went out, trying not to get up and move much.

Naturally, at some point his weakness was noticed at the most inopportune moment. Naturally, at this moment Katara couldn't let Zuko fall. Imperceptibly under her sleeves, she moved her friend's body like a puppet, causing him as much unbearable pain as most would not stand. But Zuko was not like that. He stood it.

It looked like this to me somehow:

They were both very depressed that day. He was suffering physically because of Katara's bending, and she could not believe that she had caused the suffering of a person dear to her. It broke and scared her, she opened the way to the Hama's madness, and was very afraid to fall into it.

Zuko assured her that it was impossible. Hama didn't have people to guide her, while Katara has friends. Maybe Zuko didn't consider himself the best moral mentor, but he promised to be there in the most difficult moments for Katara, and now he won't leave her.

This encouraged her and opened her eyes to her own cowardice. She was afraid of the darkness of Hama, and instead of curbing it, Katara hid it in herself, ignored it. And that's what it led to: the person who needed her help suffered. But she didn't want to run away anymore. She wasn't going to give up without a fight and turn her back on those who needed her.

At the beginning, Katara trained on herself, experiencing the same pain as the victims of bloodbending. Careless movement of blood through the vessels could cause internal bleeding at any time, it was very dangerous. The Hama's voice in her head pressed on her conscience, saying that innocent people felt all this pain, and only Katara was to blame for this.

Later, she learned to control the flow of water on puppets, like Hama. The point was to pass water through the threads without bursting them. Absolute control was required here, and Zuko taught her the techniques of firebending for self-control. This was necessary for Katara, because the Hama's voice in her head did not subside and did not allow her to correctly distribute her forces. It seemed like Katara was about to stumble, but Zuko wouldn't let her do it.

Gradually, Katara mastered this skill and tried to draw blood on Zuko's legs. The effect was unexpected. Her great willpower and desire to help him resulted in healing. Zuko began to feel his legs, and Katara discovered the reverse side of this bending. No, she didn't heal him completely, it's too early for him to get rid of the cane. But maybe one day she will become so strong that she can do it.

Katara realized that there was no evil magic, there was only evil intent. This was her first step towards learning to look inner demons in the face, and not to hide them in herself when it was possible to hurt others.

But what about the other design?

Katara's father sent her a letter asking her to return. Her family needed her help, because she was the last waterbender, a carrier of culture and skills, as well as a healer of a new level, the daughter of a tribal leader.

At home, everything was not the same as before, moreover, everything taked shape as a Northern Tribe. I really like the idea of the comic "North and South" about the problem of assimilation. Only here has Katara accepted all aspects of its culture, even the most unpleasant ones, and she would not give up so easily when this newfound knowledge was in danger of disappearing.

Actually, I wanted to draw her outfit of this arch. I wanted to redesign the costume for myself, because I like to do it. I kept the front strands of Katara, we don't talk much about them.

I would really like to describe the path of the rest of the team and what they do, of Aang and what happens to him. But I'm already tired of typing, and you probably read.

After all, the post is more about designs, and not about the AU itself, so the goal to reveal some of my ideas has been achieved in principle. Maybe sometime later.

Hope you enjoyed reading this :3

#katara #zuko #zuko x katara

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rontheweaselqueen · 4 days ago

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Hello my fellow Zutarians!

I wanted to make an announcement for some things that I have been working on and if they sound interesting to you, please let me know and also please keep an eye out for my posts.

Part 9 of my meta analysis on whether or not Katara and Zuko are an iteration of Psyche and Eros is in a rough outline stage, but I still have more research to do before I’m ready to post my conclusion on this.

I’ve been working out some ideas for fanfics with these two and have some vague ideas and some that I will definitely be posting to my AO3 account at some point.

Vague Concepts: I may not write these, but feel free to take these ideas and run with them if they sound interesting to you. Just send me the link so I can read them if you do write a fic based on it please and thank you!

1. Currently called “Werewolves and Yakuza” Real World AU where Zuko escapes the life of a Yakuza heir and starts a rural life in a small American town with his uncle only to meet a local girl who may be a werewolf. (Think Wolf Children where the transformation is not so much a horror/painful transformation but just another natural state of being for the shapeshifter) I’m currently thinking it may be somewhat gritty, and dark. I have a vague idea about where I want the basic plot to go and I’m thinking the first half of the fic will be from Zuko’s perspective as he’s trying to figure out Katara and then it will flip flop after they’ve established a bound right before Zuko’s past catches up to him.

2. Currently called “Time Shuffle AU”: Where I was pondering, “What if Aang got released from the ice while the rest of the Gaang are still younger than him?” So far the set-up for this one includes Ursa dying mysteriously and Zuko getting banished much earlier and ending up in the South Pole right before the last attack from the Southern Raiders. With a bender with the ability to dissipate flames on the Southern Water Tribe’s side, maybe Kya won’t meet an untimely end in this AU…

I’ve got a basic idea for the start of this fic. Heavily inspired from the fic Tempest in a Teacup by akaVertigo on AO3 except location reversal.

BTW: If you haven’t read Tempest in a Teacup, please go read it, it is amazing!

3. Currently called “A Critique from Avatar Aang”: An AU where the “cast” of the original series is getting ready for the Book 3 finally. The scripts have been delivered and everyone is set on memorizing their lines, but Aang can’t quite get his head around the writers’ choice for the ending. This one is a fourth wall breaking meta commentary from the cast of characters themselves, where the biggest critic of the show's ending is none other than the Avatar himself.

Things I am most likely going to post eventually…

4. “Echoes” Chapter 2: The Date from Katara’s POV. It’s currently marked as a one shot, but I thought of another cute fluffy chapter from Katara’s perspective so I think I will be continuing this one whenever I feel like putting these characters in funny situations. This idea comes about from the “What if the Gaang met each other in a different order from the original series?” The catch; although it's an AU some of the Gaang still have odd memories from the cannon material.

4. Currently “My Silly Little Headcanon”: @suzzettemirunette I thought about it, I got a pretty good plot for it and I’m definitely going to continue it now. (It may actually be 10 chapters or so hahah!) It won’t be my first priority out of my fics, but I will be working on it eventually. Based on my version of the newest comic run Ashes of the Academy I’m going to call this fic The Painted Lady of the Academy. And I’ll leave it at that for now to avoid spoilers.

And Finally…My super secret project that I’ve been working on since April!

Push & Pull: A retelling of Book 1 Water from Katara and Zuko’s perspectives. This thing is currently over 500 pages long and I am about 75-80% done with it. Most of the fic is written out as I’m more or less in the proofreading / editing phase, and I will start posting on a weekly / biweekly basis once I’m completely done with the fic. (I’m hoping that I’ll be ready in another two months or so, so please be patient with me!) This one is a sweeping action adventure where Katara is going to come into her own abilities as a waterbender and will totally kick-butt, and Zuko is begrudgingly going to end up doing some heroic stuff too. Oh, and they just happen to share the same dream of wondering about a dark cave covered in glowing crystals.

Inspired by fanart from @hayleynwong from another fic You Are Half of This World by @formerlygoldilocks, the image depicted both Katara and Zuko waking up from a dream in their respective homes, and I was struck with the thought, “What were they dreaming about…”

Shout-out also to @demaparbat-hp Your art is truly amazing, and I get so happy whenever you post another new piece. I happened upon your work on Zuko’s crew for your work For the Spirits and I was amazed at how your cook looked like what I was picturing mine to be. Then I looked at the rest of your OC’s and facepalmed, “Of course the ship would have a doctor! Why doesn’t my story have a doctor?” So thank you for inspiring not one but three new OC’s that I had to integrate into the beginning of the fic! No hate, I think it’s going to be better for it, so thank you for the inspiration!

Also wanted to give a general shot out to all the meta analysis writers on tumblr, reading your posts really helped me keep these two in character, (I hope!). Also, also, thank you to all you wonderful fanartist and your beautiful works and fic writers who keep coming up with amazing AUs!

Anyway, I’m really excited to finish up this last one and will be posting links here on my blog once I have the chapters up on A03.

#zutara #fanfic

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