#i wany them badly

[zznsthetic]

THESE TROPES FIT SO WELL?!???!?!?!?

VAMPIRE JJUN WHO CAN'T GET ENOUGH OF YOU-?!(!*@**@,@,# LIA STOP GIVING IDEAS

BEOMGYU AND YANDERE ALWAYS THE BEST TROPE AND COWBOY TYUN?!?!?!??!?!?

VIRGIN SOOBIN?!!??!?

KAI AS A WEREWOLF!??!?! RAWRRRRR

sexy cowboy tyun or obsessed yandere prince beomgyu or dark romantic vampire yeonjun or gentle sweet werewolf kai or blushing nervous virgin incubus soobin

[noroi-amaraciune]

I think I've gotten over the insanity of the past ten days and since I wasn't dissociating and I have found new levels of self awareness I didn't know could exist I'm gonna examine all my behaviours, understand what the fuck triggered me this bad and describe it in detail to my psych because it hasn't been this bad in four whole years

[muffinlance]

Wait, what’s going on with Embers???? That fic has been on my read later list since 2021, what’s happened with it???

Brief overview, then I'm likely never touching this topic again, because this is not a Drama Blog:

Context: Embers is a super old AtLA fic that was written during the early fandom days, read widely at the time, and was the origin of the widely-used fanon name of "Wani" for Zuko's ship (kind of by default that it was one of the first popular fics to give his ship a name, I think?), even though most fic writers don't seem to realize it's from there anymore.

"What's Going On": I used to include a link in all my stories to it, because I believe in crediting other writers for borrowed elements, and I was using "Wani" in all my fics. But BOY did I not want to be sending readers that way anymore, so I've adopted a new name for Zuko's ship, and removed all Embers links.

None of the criticisms about Embers itself are new; I'm assuming they date back to when the fic was being written, because this isn't an "it aged badly" thing, this is an "actually yeah this gets worse the longer you think about it and I shouldn't have ignored my bad feelings just because some of the worldbuilding was interesting" thing.

An Incomplete List of Why I Made the Change:

I don't actually like the story that much anymore, and don't want to rec it

I tried to re-read it recently to see if some things were as bad as I remembered and it turns out they were So Much Worse Oh Yikes. More specifically, the treatment of Katara and Aang and their respective cultures has... rather a lot going on. One example: The Fire Nation and Air Nomads are both given multiple backstory elements in an attempt to make the average Fire Nation soldier's participation in the genocide/war in large part the fault of the Avatar and the Air Nomads themselves, and also fully justified from the Fire Nation perspective. And I do mean fully. One of its core tenants is "People from the Fire Nation (and only people from the Fire Nation) who don't follow orders Literally Die, therefore murdering pacifists and babies and continuing the war (and their regularly scheduled war crimes) is the only thing it is physically possible for them to do". I cannot emphasize enough how literal that is.

Also the name "Wani" means "Alligator" and is... objectively a pretty lame name for Zuko's ship? Where's the personality, where's the deeper meaning, where's the resonance with Zuko's themes? @tuktukpodfics initially thought I was calling the ship "Wanyi", and that's what I've switched to, because it is Objectively So Much Better. In their words: “Wànyī (萬一): Literally ‘one in ten thousand,’ ‘perchance.’ Used grammatically in Chinese to mean ‘what if’ or ‘just in case.’ I think a ship called ‘The Perchance’ is perfect for a boy clinging to false hope.”

TL:DR; I don't rec Embers anymore, because I don't actually like the story anymore, and there are things about it that get worse the more I think on them. I've removed links to it and renamed Zuko's ship to "Wanyi" ("The Perchance") because our boy deserves a ship name that reflects his character arc.

[ronnieannroyals1]

Does anyone else purely for the funsies want a Hazbin Hotel high school au, like I want so badly

Charlie running some kind of club or something like a Random Acts of Kindness club, but no one except her and Vaggie join it so its just the two of them trying to do nice things like they put up little hearts for valentines day on all the walls and they put up insprising auotes sometimes and for teacher appreciation day they handmake gifts for all the teachers they can, Lucifer the principal of Hazbin High School and Charlie's dad sees how hard she's working but knows she can't do it on her own so he does some recruiting

Now theres some kids Lucifer cannot deal with like that creepy radio kid who seems to have blackmail on EVERYONE and is rivals WITH LITERALLY EVERYONE he's always stirring up trouble, but never gets caught and everyone knows it and theirs also Sir Pentious whose convinced hes like a fucking snake and those short kids that chirp and follow him around and their so short like they can't be in high school and leaves Lucifer absolutely baffled

Theirs also the kid whose always breaking school dress code and so many people are in love with him that the students go on strike whenever Lucifer tries to tell him off, and then their's the little demons that follow around the radio head, the bigger one named after like a furry?? who Lucifer is sure must be the one fighting for Alastor the most, but the tiny one is even scarier

Lucifier decides to send these delinquents to Charlie's club rather than detention to help her for the big thing her and Vaggie are planning.

Charlie is on board immediately, She practically begs to her dad to let them keep skippong detention because she wants them to be kind

Unlike Lucifer, Charlie WANTS them! She wanys them to do fun little acts of kindness and maybe she could even help them be more kind

Also the power structure is literally the same just a high school heirarchy and eveyone has their demon forms and all the same kinds of powers

[katsigian]

𝙏𝙃𝙀 𝙏𝙍𝘼𝙂𝙄𝘾 𝙇𝙊𝙑𝙀 𝘼𝙍𝘾𝙃𝙀𝙏𝙔𝙋𝙀 ⋆.𖥔 ݁ ˖

This quiz was sent to me and it hurt good bad so I figured maybe the mutuals would also wany to do it, too ♡ While my OCs are CP77 and BG3 based, you can do this for any OC from any setting. I'm going to tag some people, but if you'd rather not share your results, there's no pressure to do so! There's also no pressure to interact with this post

────────── Find the quiz here

@rindemption @noirapocalypto @spicyraeman @alphanight-vp @swanfey @quickhacked @westealtoys @mercymaker @vanoefucks @hazellblogs @seluned @kharonion @nncc77 @peaches-n-screem @balverine2077 @humberg @strafethesesinners @envergothash @duskfey @mrdekarios @feykiller @aggravateddurian @dameayliins @wilxfyre @opaleyedprince @daedricshrine @ncytiri @nokstella @ruinbringer @cyberneutral @yharnams @thedeadthree @shellibisshe @hibernationsuit @aelyosos @wistereia @leota-nexus @baldurians @togepies @florbelles @ronqueesha @roarmoreau @molochka-koshka @devilbrakers @elvenbeard @zyana-wyvern @estevnys @gortash @vayneoc

𝙑𝘼𝙇𝙀𝙉 // 06. 𝘿𝙀𝙑𝙊𝙐𝙍𝙀𝙍 ⋆.𖥔 ݁ ˖

❝ Love's a knife to skin to you, a vein to woven muscle, a blood puddle before you. You listened to all the promises of a stranger's relief and feel the drain of a shower head running it all down again. You committed another murder; kissed and bruised skin with a clench to a quivering wrist and went home in the defeaning quiet of a taxi. There's mold covered rage within you. If to take a heart home with you, you'd bite your way through muscle and ribcage first. Pleasure comes, but there will be no devouring past it. There is fear in settling down and being seen. There is a glass screen between these bodies and you. Relax your tight jaw and feel the real canine fear beneath that scabbed up cavity. The sacrifice of opening up is needed if to be loved as you deeply wish is inside. Desire doesn't discriminate between hands or spoken word. Why should you? ❞

I really liked this one for Valen specifically because it talks about how lonely he once was; how he'd find the most temporary comfort within a stranger and then go home alone to have to face the quiet again. I love how it compares love-making to a murder because there's not many things Valen likes more than leaving loving bruises behind on soft skin from kissing too roughly. He also felt like for the longest time like he had a thick glass barrier between him and everyone else - you can look, but don't get too close to me. He wanted so badly to be loved for so long in spite of how he'd keep everyone at arms' length. It was a safety measure, because the past kept coming back to remind him that when he let others inside, past the walls, all they did was grab his heart and twist. Imagine wanting to be loved so badly you ached but at the same time feared it. All Valen wants is to be devoured by another who'll keep him safe within themselves.

𝙑𝙀𝙎𝙋𝙀𝙍 // 01. 𝙈𝘼𝙐𝘿𝙇𝙄𝙉 𝙈𝘼𝙂𝘿𝘼𝙇𝙀𝙉𝙀 ⋆.𖥔 ݁ ˖

❝ An embrace with the shivering figure of a ghost. You cut your hair at 3 a.m. to change it all but it is no use. Love is a war to endure to you. You comfort and hold, kiss pressed to temple and cheek while feeling the numbness filling your nights to brim. What used to feel honorable has now become chore of breathing to sustain another. What else is love, but your lap to lay another's head into? Your fingers turn blue in the announcing dawn, the cold figure of what you used to know of yourself remains asleep next to them. Another version of you has crept out of your old body, has ripped and eaten itself out of a cast that was fused into the position of nurturing comfort. Remove yourself from your lovers before they become part of you, conjoined with your arms to anothers head you have no life apart of maudlin magdalene. You have given endlessly, but this isn't all there is to you. Acknowledge the good that has been done and let yourself be free. You deserve to feel held as well, you are more than what you can give of yourself before breaking down. ❞

This one again feels pretty fitting for Vesper. He's not like his brother Valen - he gives much more easily than he does and is more open with what he truly wishes for. But it's become more of a burden for Vesper to keep opening up his heart and not getting those things he really wants. He gives very easily, tries to support the people he's let inside, but it gets tiring when he gets not enough in return. Eventually, he does find someone who will give him all he needs and more, but everything up until that point was Vesper thinking that he had to be a giver, whether it was his body or his affection or anything else.

[catfishofoldin99colours]

gonna talk about ofmd cos i watched s2 today, discussion under cut and NOT spoiler free

i truly don't know what to think or feel? on one hand it feels like it went SO fast but i did also binge it all in an entire afternoon. but then, i couldn't binge the first season in an afternoon cos i remember being like no i need time to PROCESS and this didn't *quite* have the same grip????? it may be that its been a While since i switched to hermitcraft and i am still deeply in that and also i watched it whike tryna finish a cosplay tonight so im a Bit preoccupied???

i don't know. maybe the first season just had to Sell us on the characters and the premise so much and succeeded so well that the second falls flat compared to that?

maybe it's just been so long and i had so many ideas it did fall flat - but then i don't think it did. episode 5 was lovely, i really loved it. i was INVESTED by episode 3, i wanyed to see stede and ed make it!

i think. it was obvious izzy was going to die. not from the first scene of episode 1. but because he was just not as big a character. and episode 6 was his send off.

i don't know. it wasn't done badly. but i knew he deserved more. and i wanted more.

i want to bring in my oc swordfish and. i had them have a tumultuous relationship filled with horny dangerous fucking and an antagonistic eventual enemies to hate-fucking to coworkers to???? lovers??????

now i want them be real lovers and focus on them having a real relationship. as that naruto fic says, they deserve a soft epilogue, they deserve love and safety and kindness.

i don't know.

i understand everyone upset with izzy's death. i also think it was deeply moving and a fitting end to his story this season.

maybe i just don't have the energy to be angry anymore. maybe i'm scared to.

for now i will listen to con o'neill singing la vie en rose on loop and cry for izzy, my beloved bastard man who i will miss so so much.

ce la vie. my fandom curse strikes again </3

[mrswhymrhow]

can we talk aby funeral directors can we PLEASE talk abt funeral directors

[redrobin-detective]

Okay so there I was barbecue sauce on my titties half asleep when I violently flashbacked to baby’s first ATLA fic attempt circa 2008* (as in the bare bones of the story are the same but I’ve fleshed it out further)

It was an AU where Azula and Zuko were really close siblings and she learned a lot from him about humanity and care while he developed a bit of a backbone and a pinch of self respect. When the Agni Kai comes, when Ozai goes for the strike, Azula jumps onto the platform and tries to redirect the flames but they’re too powerful. Her hands get pretty badly burned and Zuko is still scarred but not as bad. Ozai, furious with both of his children banishes them together to hunt for the Avatar.

Flash forward 3 years later, Zuko and Azula (no Iroh, I can’t remember my explanation why) are still at see. Zuko is very similar to his S1 self: bitter, angry, a huge blindspot about his father/country. Azula is also angry but harnesses it by trying to fire bend again which is hard with burned hands. Instead she learns and develops lightning bending so she just constantly uses lightning/electricity. Her goal is to convince Zuko to forget the Avatar and amass an army to overthrow Ozai, Zuko is still loyal and refuses. 

It is they who find the boy in the iceberg. Aang’s a little confused why royal firebenders are all the way in the South Pole but new friends! Zuko sees this as a chance to redeem him and his sister. Azula sees the power the Avatar offers. Aang wants to penguin sled. But! Two water tribe siblings notice the fire nation taking an airbender onto their ship. “It’s the Avatar” Katara cries, “we have to save him!” So they begin chasing the fire siblings.

The main points would be:

- Aang knows about the war but Zuko works so so hard to justify it to Aang but as time passes, the more he realizes how fake and flimsy his arguments are. He starts to properly think about who and what he fights for. Its slightly hilarious the crew trying to keep the full extent of the war away from the ‘prisoner’

- Also Wani crew members and Aang = great combo. They don’t know if they shoulder treat him like the prisoner he technically is or their little brother. Appa chills on the deck sunning unless the kids need him for special adventuring. 

- Aang helps Azula process her anger into something more beneficial. He gives her something worth fighting for and makes her want to defend the goodness in her that caused her to save her brother. Azulaang was endgame mostly bc I remember wanting to play with the idea of two characters who are so opposed in canon becoming a couple. Always scheming even as a child. 

- Sokka/Katara take S1 Zuko’s place chasing after them only they don’t have Appa OR a ship so they’re........ super far behind. The Fire/Air gaang either leaves before Sokka/Katara arrive or they show up......... way late. They have no absolutely idea why these random water tribe kids keep chasing them. Aang wants to ask but Zuko has “better things to do” than listen to peasants. Katara learns waterbending through sheer will to force their small boat across the water to catch the damn firebenders. Her bending is raw and entirely unique. 

- Zuko/Azula/Wani crew end up saving the day time after time and they’re like “is this allowed??? can we do this??” Villages praise the “good firebenders” and they just kinda shrug.

- Aang still goes to the North Pole for water bending, Zuko and Azula keep their heads waaaaaay down and pretend to be normal folks. Really is a reality check not to be treated like royalty. Idk, maybe this is when Sokka and Katara show up and join? (Sokka, panting as he staggers through the door: we *phew* we finally caught you fire scum. Zuko, screaming: who ARE you people? Aang: I’ve been wanting to ask that all season but thats none of my business)

- Toph and Azula get on like a stone house on fire. Literally. Everyone is afraid.

- Finale would end with Day of Black Sun where Zuko and Azula defeat their father with Aang as support. Its them reclaiming their destiny from their abuser. Aang is there to promote peace and finally declare the end of the war.

[ibijau]

Worst engagement AU! What lxc uncle think nhs behavior?

Worst engagement AU

I could have just answered but I’m procrastinating on stuff so...

1 Qingheng-Jun does not like the idea of an arranged match, but Lan Qiren insists. He points out the need for a strong alliance, the old friendship with Qinghe Nie, the casual aggressions of Qishan Wen against its neighbours, the mounting disrespect against its allies. 

He does not mention that, left to their own devices, people in their family have a tendency to choose horrible spouses for themselves. He doesn't say that he wants something safer for his nephew, one of the boys he's raising because their father decided to shroud himself in guilt and sorrow rather than do his duty to them and his sect. 

He knows he doesn't need to voice it to be understood. 

Qingheng-Jun does not like this, but he agrees to take Lan Xichen to Qinghe. When he comes back, he has an engagement contract in hand. Lan Xichen's future is set, and he will be protected from his own passions. 

It does not occur to Lan Qiren to ask for details about that Nie boy. He doesn't really matter. 

2 Lan Qiren is simply not prepared for his sweet, hard-working, obedient nephew of thirteen to go through teenagehood and all the moods it entails. He keeps hoping to be spared from it, but it's all in vain.

While returning from a visit to Yunmeng Jiang where Lan Xichen was brought along to learn the ropes of his future duties, they stop at an inn. Lan Xichen was pensive all day but it's when they retire for the night that he finally explodes into teenagehood. 

“There must have been better options,” Lan Xuchen says as they get ready for sleep, and while they were not talking about anything, it's easy to guess what he means. “If we need an alliance with Qinghe Nie so badly, why not Nie Mingjue?”

“It would be inconvenient for two sect leaders to marry,” Lan Qiren patiently points out.

Thankfully, Lan Xichen sees the logic of this. He also gets that this eliminates Jiang Wanying, who will someday rule his own sect. The same goes for Jin Zixuan, although since he’s in his own arranged engagement since longer than Lan Xichen, he could never have been an option anyway.

“Sect Leader Jiang’s ward then?” Lan Xichen suggests, removing the last of his outer layers. “If they adopted him, it would have been a perfectly respectable union.”

That idea gives Lan Qiren pause. Wei Wuxian was mostly kept at a distance for their visit, but he's heard rumours. He is not looking forward to teaching that child, and he would not want him to permanently live in the Cloud Recesses, not if he's anything like his mother.

“The Jiangs would never have adopted him,” Lan Qiren explains in a dry voice, unwilling to share certain details to his nephew of just thirteen. “And without a formal adoption, he is not a fitting spouse for a sect leader. He’s just a servant’s son.”

“Nie Huaisang is the son of a… a dancer! At least Wei Wuxian’s parents were both cultivators, shouldn’t that count more?”

“Nie Huaisang is the legitimate son of a sect leader. His mother’s weaker blood is unfortunate, but compensated by his father’s.”

Lan Xichen ragefully folds his clothes. He’s doing such a poor job of it that they’re sure to be wrinkled in the morning. Rebellion. Teenagehood. 

“Then… then the Wens! Why not…”

“The Wens only marry within their own sect, or with their most faithful dependant,” Lan Qiren cuts him, getting impatient. “Gusu Lan will not submit itself to their authority. They were never an option. Neither is anyone else. You will marry Nie Huaisang, secure us a good alliance with the second strongest sect in the country, and that’s it.”

“I don’t like him.”

Lan Qiren sits on his bed, glaring at his nephew. Why do young boys always make things so hard? 

“This is not about personal affections, Xichen,” he scolds. “You’re old enough to understand these things now. We need a strong alliance with another sect. It should fall on your father, he should remarry but… you know how he is.”

Lan Xichen looks struck, but nods. If Lan Qiren feels the absence of his brother, the burden of a duty that should not be his, he can only imagine what the situation is like for Lan Xichen, always kept at arm's length by his surviving parent. 

Lan Qiren sighs, and motions for his nephew to come sit next to him. Lan Xichen obeys. Teenagehood has not fully gotten him yet. 

“The Wens are starting to have dangerous ideas,” Lan Qiren explains patiently. “There is no way of knowing if it will come to a war or not, nor when that war might happen. But Gusu Lan cannot be left without friends, and Qinghe Nie wants to have support from somewhere that would be less exposed to Qishan Wen so they have a place to fall back to if they are attacked. You can see why that would be important, can’t you?”

“Why me? Why not Wangji?”

“His time will come as well, but for now you have to do your duty. The marriage will not happen for many years and even when it does, it will not have to impact you so much. You will continue living as you had before, with Nie Huaisang in your house… or not. If it turns out you two are too incompatible, we will give him his own quarters far from you, and you will see him no more than a guest. But this is important, Xichen. Our sect needs you to accept your responsibility so we can all live a little safer. It is a small price to pay.”

It is a lot to ask a boy of thirteen, but in spite of his newly discovered capacity for rebellion, Lan Xichen eventually nods. 

Lan Qiren feels proud of the boy. If they can kill any sentimentality in him, he'll be a great sect leader someday, unlike his father. 

3 Although Nie Huaisang is now a guest in the Cloud Recesses, Lan Qiren has given him as little thought as if the boy were still in Qinghe. There is simply too much to take care of, between helping Nie Mingjue find his footing, keeping an eye on Wen Ruohan, internal affairs in Gusu Lan, pleas for help against evil, and his current batch of students. 

Once or twice, Lan Qiren does check on the boy, if only because his work is abysmal. Each time, Nie Huaisang trembles like a leaf and swears he'll try harder. It's a little concerning, a sect leader's spouse should have a little more backbone than this, but he's still young and there are also advantages to a quiet, obedient husband. 

They are well into the second half of the school year when Lan Xichen comes to find his uncle and tells him that Nie Huaisang is being bullied by some of the other boys, possibly quite violently. 

"Jin Zixun had his sword near his face!" Lan Xichen explains. "Nie gongzi says they were just playing but he'd been crying! I tried to make him complain against them, but he protected them!" 

"If he doesn't ask for justice, there's little we can do," Lan Qiren points out.

"He's an idiot. Does he think I'll come save him each time?" 

Lan Qiren shoots his nephew a warning look. It's no secret that Lan Xichen bears his fiancé little affection, but until now he's always been smart enough not to devolve into insults. This is a worrying development, even more than whatever cruel game Jin Zixun has invented this time. 

"Be kind, Xichen." 

"I'm trying. It's just hard to be kind to him. Whether I'm nice or not, he still looks at me with fear, so what's the point?" 

"If kindness were always easy, we would not need so many rules about it." 

His nephew pinches his lips and keeps silent, which is apparently the latest expression of teenagehood in him. Certainly it is better to say nothing than to speak unnecessarily, but Lan Xichen pushes that a little too far lately. 

That day Lan Qiren is too busy to deal with such rebellion, so he just dismisses his nephew. But the situation is concerning, and he starts paying more attention to what's happening with Nie Huaisang. 

It quickly becomes clear that, indeed, Jin Zixun has chosen the boy as his victim. It is equally clear that Nie Huaisang is aware of it, and flees from him as much as possible. The boy is not completely stupid. 

It is more alarming to see Lan Xichen consistently avoiding his fiancé, often going out of his way not to cross his path and have to so much as greet him. No wonder then that someone like Jin Zixun feels free to act however he likes with Nie Huaisang.

Lan Xichen, when confronted about it, denies it. He says he does not want to create problems for Nie Huaisang by showing him too much favour, so nobody will be able to say he only passed his year because the Gusu Lan Sect was treating him more kindly than other students.

A flimsy excuse if Lan Qiren ever heard one. 

It's a shame, almost, that Nie Huaisang’s efforts are starting to pay off. If he failed his exams, he'd have to stay another year in the Cloud Recesses. It would give Lan Qiren time to devise something so those children learn to somewhat get along. Love is neither expected nor desired for their match, but they need to be able to work together. 

It is really too bad that Nie Huaisang is doing better in class lately. 

Deceit is against every rule of Gusu Lan of course, but rules have been bent before. Nie Huaisang is clearly used to failure. How bad could it be if he failed again? 

4 Bad. 

It’s very bad.

At least now, they know that Nie Huaisang can show some character when needed.

5 It is evident, from the moment he steps again into the Cloud Recesses, that something has changed in Nie Huaisang during the few weeks he returned to Qinghe.

Some of the change is physical. He’s gotten a bit of a growth spurt, even if he’s still fairly short. The way he carries himself seems to hint that he has gained some muscle as well, meaning his brother probably punished his failure and outburst by making him train intensively. He no longer looks like such easy picking for whoever will be the chief bully this year, though perhaps that has less to do with teenagehood finally catching him and more with the way he looks at everyone and everything around him as if he’s ready to fight them if they say one single wrong word.

It’s not a bad development, Lan Qiren decides. After all, that’s an attitude very typical of Qinghe Nie, so it’s only normal that Nie Huaisang is giving signs he will develop into the same sort of strong man as his father and brother. And considering how well Lan Xichen gets along with Nie Mingjue, it’s certain that he will start liking his fiancé a little better now that he isn’t so meek. Combined with the weekly meetings that Lan Qiren has ordered for them, everything will sort itself out.

6 Nie Huaisang refuses to meet with Lan Xichen until Lan Qiren orders him to in person, and then debates how long those meetings are supposed to last until lan Qiren tells him that he has to stay for a incense stick’s time.

Later, Lan Xichen tells him that Nie Huaisang left the instant the stick finished burning up. His barely contained indignation is rather amusing, considering just days before he was complaining he did not want to spend any time with Nie Huaisang.

7 Somehow, Nie Huaisang appears to have become friends with Jiang Wanyin, which is excellent. Intersect friendships will serve them well in the future, if (when) the Wens make their move, and Lan Xichen has never been the best at making friends. If Nie Huaisang can do that for the both of them, he’ll already have done his part in the marriage that is to come.

It’s a little more concerning that Nie Huaisang seems to get along even better with Wei Wuxian, who is quite likely the worst trouble maker that Lan Qiren has ever had the displeasure to teach. But Nie Huaisang has shown in the past that he is a good, obedient, dutiful boy, so nothing bad should come out of this.

8 “Alcohol? In the Cloud Recesses?”

Nie Huaisang manages to stay as emotionless as his two friends, but his heavy blush betrays him.

9 “Breaking curfew to go to Gusu?”

Nie Huaisang blushes less this time.

10 “An indecent book!”

Nie Huaisang schools his features into perfect surprise, and doesn’t blush at all.

“Really? Who would dare?”

“You, apparently. The person from whom it was confiscated said it actually belonged to you.”

Nie Huaisang gasps, one hand on his heart, the very picture of wounded innocence.

“Master, I would never! I know the rules of the Cloud Recesses too well, and I know as well that my brother would never approve of me owning such books.”

“So it is no concern to you if it is destroyed?”

The half second of hesitation on the boy’s face is enough to confirm that he is, in fact, guilty of being the owner. Books like this don’t come cheap. And yet, Nie Huaisang manages to smile as he gets into a passionate discourse about the need to protect the youth, and how he simply doesn’t understand how anyone could ever taint their own mind with that filth.

Lan Qiren is more impressed than he would care to admit. 

11 Lan Xichen looks so shaken when he returns from the river that his uncle worries something went wrong.

“What were they doing, then?” he asks.

His nephew startles at the question and opens his mouth a few times, but can’t seem to get any sound out. He’s looking rather like a fish. A goldfish, with the way he starts blushing.

“They were just playing,” Lan Xichen eventually manages to say, carefully avoiding his uncle’s eyes.

“Playing… how, exactly?” Lan Qiren insists, doubt creeping in his mind.

Lan Xichen’s blush deepens.

“Just swimming and splashing each other,” he squeaks in a very odd voice. “Nothing forbidden, or I would have intervened.”

Ah.

So that means all this blushing and awkwardness is Lan Xichen’s own fault rather than that of Nie Huaisang and his two friends.

Teenagehood. 

It always ruins the best people and turns them stupid for a few months, a few years if they’re unlucky. Lan Qiren had hoped that his nephew, like him, would be spared the most embarrassing parts of it, now that the rebellion phase has calmed. 

That’s not a mess Lan Qiren wants to deal with. He sends his nephew away, reminding him to not skip his mediation time.

He’s going to need all the meditation he can get to survive that mess.

12 Wei Wuxian leaves the Cloud Recesses in disgrace. While it is always annoying to have failed as a teacher, Lan Qiren is glad to see him go. Without his bad influence, Nie Huaisang and Jiang Wanyin are sure to get in less trouble now.

13 Well, at least Jiang Wanyin gets in less trouble.

14 Lan Qiren notices how Lan Xichen looks at Nie Huaisang when he thinks nobody is paying attention, how he now makes subtle efforts to find himself on his fiancé’s path when possible.  He notices as well that Lan Xichen has bought some different incense sticks during his last trip to Gusu, sticks that burn a little more slowly than the old ones.

If Lan Xichen has to start falling prey to the sentimentality that plagues their family, Nie Huaisang is perhaps not the worst option out there. For one thing, they are already engaged, Qinghe Nie is a strong ally, Nie Huaisang is smart even if he has a strong aversion to cultivation matters, he is on friendly terms with the young masters of several sects small and big at this point.

It would be fine, if Lan Qiren didn’t see how Nie Huaisang is now the one who’ll walk away if he spots Lan Xichen nearby, how he instead exchanges looks with some of the other guest disciples (sometimes even with Lan disciples).

Lan Qiren thinks of his brother, so many years ago, constantly watching a girl who never spared him a second glance until he became her only chance to stay alive. He had hoped to spare his nephews from this pain. He tried so hard to make them reasonable, to teach them to put their feelings aside, all for nothing. Lan Xichen somehow manages to have unrequited feelings for his own future husband, and Lan Wangji… the least is said on that matter, the better.

Lan Qiren wonders how he managed to fail those boys.

Perhaps there’s just a curse on their family. He’ll have to seriously look into that.

15 Lan Qiren takes his poor, inebriated nephew by the shoulders. It takes a few seconds for Nie Huaisang to let go of Lan Xichen’s hand, and there’s something unusually serious to his expression.

“You won’t punish him, right?” Nie Huaisang asks after some hesitation. “It’s not his fault. We tried to make it so he didn’t drink anything, but somebody spiked his tea and tricked him. It’d be unfair to punish him.”

“I’m surprised you care,” Lan Qiren states, perhaps more abruptly than he should, but… it’s been a long day, and seeing his nephew in this state is not helping.

“Of course I care,” Nie Huaisang replies after checking around. They are, in fact, alone, but he’s right to be prudent.

Lan Xichen startles at the answer, and smiles so brightly that Lan Qiren feels a little embarrassed on his behalf.

“You really do?” Lan Xichen asks, trying to get closer to his fiancé, only to be kept in place by his uncle. He doesn’t appear to notice. “I’m so glad! I care about you so much, Huaisang!”

Nie Huaisang’s eyes go wide at the enthusiastic declaration. Lan Qiren has dealt with that boy enough to tell that for once, his surprise seems genuine.

Who knows, there might still be hope for this to not be a complete disaster after all. They still have a few years to sort themselves out, if they’re not too stupid, if they can just stop behaving like such teenagers...

But that’s a consideration for later. Right now, Lan Qiren’s only problem is to get his drunk nephew to bed before he embarrasses himself any further. He thanks Nie Huaisang and starts pulling Lan Xichen away, grumbling against the boy’s lack of cooperation and coordination.

When he looks behind as they turn around a corner, he sees that Nie Huaisang still hasn’t moved one inch. It’s hard to say from so far, but his expression seems serious once more.

With a little hope, a little luck…

Only time will tell.

[fairydraws04]

This kid just called my pins "badges" and her mom said that i probably have one for every place I've been. In the family behind them, the daughter was saying her drawing looked "ugly" and i wanyed so badly to turn around and say something like "everyone starts somewhere!" Or practice makes perfect

Anyways i love animal kingdom

[cokez3ro]

Havnt written on here in a while because it’s all depressing as fuck and I’m trying my hardest now. I don’t know what changed. Maybe the meds helped and I didn’t realise idk. I just want to get better now. I see now that even if I am a monster by nature I can deny that nature and make the air that I take up worth it. If I can improve the life of even just one person then surely it doesn’t matter whether I want to live or not. Right now I don’t but I am determined to bear it for the people that I love and that somehow, despite who I am, love me. I can make a positive difference to their lives if I’m here I just need to be better and I’m not and it’s fucking me off so badly because I’m trying. I’m seeking all the help I can which makes me feel like shit because I don’t deserve it. Other people need it more and so many of the issues are stuff I created for myself I shouldn’t need help and it’s weak of me to but I need to be ok to be a good thing for those around me. I’m writing this just after **** has left and I don’t know how a person like me. A person with so little moral and general value can be loved by a person so simply fucking good and pure. I’m baffled by it but I’m grateful for it and it’s helping me to see that the other relationships in my life are the same. I’m a burden because I’ve chosen to be. Maybe not conciously I don’t know but yeah. I was just thinking and feeling guilty as usual because the whole time he was here I was on benzos. I want to remember every second with him I wany to be able to show him love sober. I want to be able to be soft sober because I want to be able to make my time with him real time. But If im partially on the benzos because I like who I am more on them then surely if i sort the issues that caused me to take benzos in the first place then I’ll like myself that little bit more or be Able to stand myself at least since when I’m sober I never can. Not just when it comes to ****, generally as well but it’s more obvious when affection is a thing idk. Maybe it’s a vulnerability thing? Pushing people away and being horrible? I’m not trying to excuse my behaviour I’m trying to work it out because I’d don’t know who the fuck I was but I’ve changed and I don’t know who the fuck I am still I only know it’s different but idk who I am and if I can change then maybe I can change into the person that I like or could live with. The person who makes other peoples lives better and is a positive influence on those around me idk. I jusy think maybe the softness /xanax thing is something to explore and also probably the identity thing but also that could be benzos idk. There’s a lot more on my mind rn. The rest of it much less positive and much more self hateful and I used to write that stuff on here and I guess it’s helpful to know I was thinking that stuff but surely me hating this is enough I’m trying. I don’t want to be alone because everything is so much all the time I feel suxh crushing guilt all the time idk yeah there’s lots of bad stuff there too but I wanted to rlly be able to look back on the softness thing. That’s something maybe that has roots idk? Anyway yeah

[covid19updater]

COVID19 Updates: 08/11/2021

Malaysia:  A month after she was considered recovered from COVID-19, musician and copywriter Wani Ardy found herself brushing her teeth with facial cleanser. LINK

India:  India in talks to buy 50 million doses of Pfizer vaccine - WSJ LINK

UK:  Covid sceptic who has been hospitalised with the virus urges people to get vaccine LINK

Louisiana:  Dr. Mark Kline, physician and chief of Children's Hospital in New Orleans, says there are currently six children in Intensive Care with COVID at his hospital. Three require a ventilator. A 3-month-old baby is one of the patients on a ventilator. LINK

Iceland:  Iceland’s Health bureaucrats say vaccine has NOT led to the herd immunity that experts had hoped for They ALSO say that it’s become clear that vaccinated people can EASILY contract the Delta variant as well as spread it to others NOT SURPRISING. Vaccine narrative is IMPLODING LINK

Brazil:  RatoPati: Brazil reports 1,211 more COVID-19 deaths LINK

Argentina:  In Argentina, more than 12 thousand cases of COVID-19 were recorded in past day LINK

US:  A COVID-19 variant ‘more infectious than the delta variant’ will hit U.S. in 2-4 monthsDr. Robert Redfield, the former director of the CDC, suggested a new variant could come this fall LINK

France:  French President Macron said that France’s overseas territories, especially the Caribbean islands of Martinique and Guadeloupe, are being badly hit by the pandemic. “The situation is dramatic,” he said in opening comments at a virtual meeting with senior cabinet ministers;

UK:  UK Government Scientific Adviser Prof Adam Finn said a third jab will be “quite likely” for people with a weak immune system, but it’s still uncertain that over-50s will be offered one;

China:  China’s tighter curbs to fight its latest covid outbreak, in its 4th week and more than a dozen cities, are hitting travel & hospitality hard.  has refrained from full LDs of major cities such as those seen during the early days of the Covid-19 outbreak in Hubei province;

China:  Chinese institutes accuse US of being source of Covid-19 and ‘failing to take responsibility’ Chinese think tanks accuse the US of engaging in ‘virus origin tracing terrorism’ LINK

Florida: Baptist Health Hospital System:  COVID-19 Update for August 11, 2021: - 582 COVID patients in our health system, 118 in ICU - 13 of these are at @WolfsonChildren, 4 in ICU We admitted 75 new COVID-19 positive patients yesterday, 2 were children.

Tennessee:  IT'S GETTING BAD! #COVID19 hospitalizations in Tennessee nearing the 2,000 mark - up from 195 on July 4th. Just ***138*** ICU beds left in the entire state! #GetVaccinatedNow #WearAMask @nc5

World: Op/Ed:   What am I seeing here B.1.621 (Columbian Variant) looks monstrous It has the following characteristic S Gene Mutations T95I Y144S Y145N R346K E484K N501Y D614G P681H D950N.  To my untrained eye this looks like it has taken all the best bits from B.117 (501&Undel Y) & B.1.1.318.  This is genuinely nightmarish. It has just about every major transmission advantage and immune escape mutation going. Unless we knock it on the head it could be worse than Delta. I'm frankly gobsmacked at how bad it is.

World:  "Currently, the Iota variant is a variant of interest. We are actively monitoring this one, as we are all of the other variants of interest & concern. But as we understand, the Delta variant seems to be out-competing the Iota variant." -@mvankerkhove at 11 Aug #COVID19 briefing

Florida:  15,449 Floridians are being treated for COVID-19 in 238 hospitals across Florida right now, the most ever. 90% of our ICU beds are currently occupied — 47.6% with COVID-19 patients.

Canada:  Breaking! 52% of people hospitalized with covid19 in Ontario are vaccinated.

Indiana:  COVID-19 spread prompts closure of Helmsburg Elementary School in Brown County for rest of week LINK

Iran:  #Iran breaks its all time high daily case record yet again 42,541 new #Covid19 infections diagnosed in the last 24 hours and another 536 deaths

US:  Here are the artists canceling shows as COVID-19 cases rise LINK

China:  Latest for @Independent: the rise of domestic #COVID19 cases in #China over the last two weeks has renewed the debate about whether China’s Covid-zero strategy will be sufficient to deal with the more contagious #DeltaVariant. LINK

US:  Nearly 94,000 Kids Got COVID-19 Last Week. They Were 15% Of All New Cases LINK

UK:  NHS summer crisis: Hospitals declare ‘black alerts’ as more operations are cancelled ‘We now have some trust chief executives ... telling us this is the busiest it has ever been’ LINK

California:  Dueling demonstrations occurred Monday outside the Rady Children's Hospital in San Diego over their new policy requiring staff to be vaccinated.

World:  PFIZER AND U.S.-LISTED SHARES OF BIONTECH DOWN 3.6% AND 13.8% ; EU DRUG REGULATOR LOOKING INTO NEW POSSIBLE SIDE-EFFECTS OF MRNA COVID-19 SHOTS

World:  As Topol also notes, the efficacy of vaccines against any symptomatic infection by Delta is not great--maybe 50%. So is  efficacy against severe disease also going to evaporate? That's why everyone watching the hosp figures.

US:  * WHITE HOUSE SAYS U.S. HAS STARTED TO SEE SOME LEVELING OFF OF COVID-19 INFECTIONS IN STATES SEEING SURGE (Where?)

Hawaii:  Hawaii reinstating COVID-19 restrictions in wake of surge in delta variant cases LINK

Germany:  Anti-vax nurse injects 8,600 with saline instead of COVID vaccine: police LINK

RUMINT (Florida):  The 7 month old grand daughter of my son’s girlfriend was rushed to the hospital last night and was diagnosed with Covid. She is doing okay but has to be watched carefully. They had to drive her to an Orlando children’s hospital. Lot’s of babies in emergency room with COVID.

World:  Thrombosis after covid-19 vaccination LINK

Tennessee:  Medical professionals are threatened and besieged by an angry mob in Franklin, TN after they testified in favor of masks at school board mtg. They needed police to get them out of the parking lot safely. These are organized, not isolated, and getting worse.  The parking lot after a school board meeting last night in Franklin, the wealthiest place in Tennessee. Parents harassed medical professionals who had spoken in favor of masks in schools. “We know who you are. You can leave freely, but we will find you.”

Canada:  There are 38 million Canadians. So why did Trudeau order 400 million doses of vaccines? That works out to ten shots for every man, woman child and baby. What's up with that? LINK

Montana:  Most of the anti-mask proponents at last night's @McpsMT meeting said that masks weren't necessary in schools because no child in Montana had died from #COVID19. As of today, that's no longer the case.

Georgia:  Fifth graders at one suburban Atlanta elementary school were sent home Wednesday for virtual learning due to high numbers of positive Covid-19 cases, according to a school district email sent to parents LINK

India:  11 Aug 2021: Over 40K 'breakthrough' COVID-19 cases in Kerala; Centre flags concern. Kerala has reported more than 40,000 "breakthrough" COVID-19 cases. Breakthrough infections involve cases where individuals contracted the pathogen for a second time or after being vaccinated against it. The Union Health Ministry has reportedly raised concerns about this worrying trend in Kerala, which is currently leading India's outbreak. The Centre has reportedly asked the Kerala government to send all such cases for genome sequencing. Details: Does it indicate a new mutant variant? Speaking to India Today, a source in the Union Health Ministry—who visited Kerala—did not rule out the possibility of a new variant. "The rise in the number of breakthrough infections and re-infections is possibly due to a variant which is escaping immunity," the source said. It is suspected this may not be a further mutation of the Delta variant, rather a new variant altogether. LINK

Iowa:  Iowa’s seven-day average of new #COVID19 cases is 16 times higher than it was four weeks ago, showing the largest rate of increase since the peak of the pandemic last November. LINK

Florida:  Brevard County, Florida's 10th largest county, urges residents to stop calling 911 unless they have “urgent medical needs” because hospitals and ICUs are at overcapacity due to the Delta variant. LINK

Mississippi:  BREAKING: Short-staffed and overwhelmed with COVID-19 patients, the University of Mississippi Medical Center is requesting emergency federal aid as it erects a field hospital in its parking garage for the first time since April 2020. LINK

Mississippi:  Mississippi, this is where we are. Fifty beds will be installed here in a concrete garage. The federal government will send overflow medical professionals to staff it. One of the last stopgaps between Mississippi and hospital system failure.

Iowa:  Polk County's epidemiologist, Dr. Schaeffer, roughly estimates Iowa State Fair could have 600 active COVID cases walking around per day. Each could infect up to 4 others. I asked her if she would attend the fair. "No. Absolutely not," she said, even though she's vaccinated.  ... Dr. Meghan Schaeffer, an epidemiologist working for Polk County, said Iowa appears to be headed where Missouri and Arkansas went last month with COVID. “There is zero reason to believe we will not surge just like they did,” she said.

Iran:  From @TWMCLtd  - “Iran breaks its all time high daily case record yet again. 42,541 new #Covid19 infections diagnosed in the last 24 hours and another 536 deaths;

Texas:  Breaking Bad in Dallas ! Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins signs an EA today, requiring masks in schools & businesses. Judge Jenkins becomes the latest becoming public official to ignore Gov Abbott's edict on local mask mandates.

West Virginia:  Gov. Jim Justice (R-WV) hints at statewide school mask mandate: “If this thing continues the way it’s going … we will have to adjust, and we probably will end up having to move in this direction.”

Israel:  Israel: +7,668 cases in past 24 hrs. 

US:  Breaking NBC: The FDA is poised to amend the emergency use authorizations for the Pfizer and Moderna Covid-19 vaccines Thursday to allow people with compromised immune systems to get a third dose. LINK

Texas: Governor:  NEW: Over 2,500 out-of-state medical personnel are being deployed across Texas to help hospitals mitigate the recent rise in #COVID19 cases. This first deployment of personnel will be fully funded by the state through September 30. @TexasDSHS LINK

Arkansas:  At Arkansas Children’s tonight: 27 total patients with #COVID19, 24 in Little Rock and three in Springdale. 13 #COVID19 patients are in ICU while seven are on a ventilator.

Arizona:  THIRTY SCHOOL OUTBREAKS: One week ago @Maricopahealth had 9 active  #COVID19 outbreaks in schools. 7 days later there are 30 active outbreaks. Schools with outbreaks not listed publicly. Spox says, "For privacy reasons, we cannot publicly release that information."

Iowa:  On average, the state of Iowa reported nearly one new COVID-19 case every two minutes over the past week. LINK

US: Op/Ed:  The South will close schools for a little ice on the road but not for a pandemic

World: Doctor:  There needs to be truth-telling about the reduced protection of mRNA vaccines vs symptomatic Delta infections. It was 95% pre-Delta. Many are claiming it's still ~80%. It isn't. 50-60% is best estimate from all sources

World:  MIT & Harvard Study Suggests mRNA Vaccine Might Permanently Alter DNA After All LINK

Israel:  SERIOUS COVID CASES IN ISRAEL SPIKE -- 90% OF SERIOUS CASES ARE PEOPLE OVER 50. FUN FACT: 95% OF PEOPLE OVER 50 ARE VACCINATED

World:  ‘We Made a Big Mistake’ — COVID Vaccine Spike Protein Travels From Injection Site, Can Cause Organ Damage LINK

US:  U.S. COVID update: - New cases: 159,714 - Average: 122,546 (+5,146) - In hospital: 76,863 (+2,957) - In ICU: 18,616 (+774) - New deaths: 721

[bangtanficrecs]

Lost & Found Batch #10

Here’s the new lost and found batch! If you happen to know the fic the ask is looking for, reply to this post or send us an ask with the request number and title/author. If you happen to know any fics from Past Batches, those are more than welcome as well. Thank you!! ~ Admin P

1)  OK I've been looking for forever. It's some sort of band AU with abo dynamics, jungkook is a drummer not currently in the band but someone (yoongi?) tries to recruit him. Pretty sure it's vkook with not really traditional abo, dominant omega and submissive alpha? Maybe PWP but there's definitely smut. I can try to remember other stuff? I found it on ao3 but I can't find it since, might be deleted? Idk, thanks!

collection by rix, chapter 4

2)  Hi! I'm looking for a fic that I remember liking but don't even remember the main pair. I thought it was hoseok/yoongi but the side pair is Jim/namjoon and i literally only remember the very end of the fic and Jin ends up confessing and telling Namjoon that he doesn't wany to steal the spotlight (cause the main pair just got together)but he is in love with him and that Namjoon is an idiot. Then jins hat falls off and namjoon tries to put it back on. Idk I just know it was real cute.

same damn hunger by marienadine

3)  I'm trying to find this fic again (I keep coming back to it but I've lost it again), I found it when looking for mer aus but I now can't figure out what tag it was in. It's rather weird, quite short... set in the future?? Seokjin (and Namjoon?) is a scientist and Taehyung is some kind of merperson creature and he is being studied or something. Taehyung does some kind of kissy face at SJ & NJ says he's just mimicking what he sees. Thanks!

4)  I'm looking for a fic I read but I don't remember the main pair! I swear it was hoseok/jungkook or maybe yoongi. But I can't find it. The secondary pairing was namjin. And at the end at a new years eve party the main pair confess and then jin confesses to namjoon and is like: not to steal the moment but I love you then calls him and idiot, namjoon apologizes ect. Jins beanie falls off, namjoon puts it back on everything is adorable. I've searched the namjin tag but it's so big. Any ideas?

same damn hunger by marienadine

5)  hi! I'm looking for a fic, do you mind helping? it takes place in the a/b/o universe. Jin is an alpha looking for his own pack i think, and he finds Yoongi, whos an omega, they start dating and yoongi gets pregnant, and then slowly the pack starts growing. Other parings come into the picture but i dont remember them clearly. is this enough information? thank you for your time!

I’ve bloomed in the direction of you but I keep becoming thirsty by xsxuxgxax

6)  HI! I'm looking for a fic about yoongi having bad moods or a bad day. I think its a rm/suga fic (but could be wrong) where they have a number system to indicate how yoongi feels like 1=good 5=really bad and joonie (i think) helps him through the day? thanks x Note: Please be patient anon, you asked about the same fic twice in less than 24hrs. Next time, keep in mind question #3 of our FAQ, and please be patient with us admins, who run this blog on our free time

The Last by junglec0re

7)  hi! <3 i'm here, asking, if you have any idea of a name of this story i can't find for MONTHS. i tried literally everything. i'm 100% sure it was posted on AO3 and it was yoonkook with hoseok somewhere in the background. it was yoonkook established relationship, they lived together. jungkook was badly injured, i believe he was sick with his leg, going through rehabilitation, his leg really giving him bas pain. it was really angsty, jungkook wanted to die, yoongi took care of him. THANK YOU

Let Me Know by TheOrgasmicSeke

8)  hiii, ive been dying to reread a fanfic where yn is at the library studying chemistry but jungkook and his friends were so noisy there? yn came to confront them for being so loud and jungkook basically knows everything abt chemistry and they started getting closer?THANK THANK THANK YOUUUU ❤

9)  hey! im looking for a jikook abo fic where jungkook was turning to into an alpha for his group or so i think?? and jimin stumbled upon while he was under heat n he was under jungkook's window sill when the latter found him,,,,at the end jk's mom agreed to jimin becoming his mate and all that. ive looked for it everywhere but cant find it, pls send help

10)  Hi!! I’m sorry if I’m bothering you guys but I was wondering if you found anything about a high school! au yoonjin fic where yoongi has a big crush on seokjin and hoseok, as a good best friend, encourages yoongi to ask if they could walk home together. thank you!!

Walk with me by ceokjin

[marcelkat]

Ya know I love jerza and I love that even though fairy tail has ended Mashima sensei still draws art. I may complain that I want more gruvia however I would never harras Mashima directly for shipping art. The most I do is make comments about how I wish he would draw more of them but I know that they're his characters and if he doesn't want to be doesn't have to! Be shouldnt have to be harrased every time he posts art about what ships fans wany him to draw. I just think that is so disrespectful and if you're one of thw fans who do that I think you should reevaluate how you view these characters and Mashima. If you want shipper art so badly draw it yourself. I shouldnt have to go on one of the pictures Mashima sensei posts and just see floods of comments complaining about the ship he drew and demanding he draw a "better" ship. Be happy with what we do get because by no meams does sensei even HAVE to draw ANY art for us. This is all for fans of fairy tail as extra content and for that he deserves far more respect than he's given #fairytail #fandom #shipping #jerza #jellal #erza

[diannaphantomfiction]

The Mission of War: Book One: Water

Chapter 1 of ? 

Fandom(s): Young Justice and Avatar: the Last Airbender

Rating: K+

Summery: The team is assigned their most difficult mission yet, help a hero known as the Avatar stop the war on a far off planet. But things never go as planned. When Kaldur loses his memory in an accident and is rescued by Zuko's ship, things get complicanted for the team. 

Date Uploaded: April 1st, 2017 

On Ao3: Here

On FanFiction: Here

Previous (This is Chapter 1) 

Next (Coming Soon)

Zatanna shivered in the polar air as she trudged behind Kaldur. She honestly had no idea how anyone could live at a planetary pole. Zatanna herself was a Great Lakes girl, it could and did get cold up there, but nothing anywhere near this. Kaldur on the other hand didn't seem bothered in the least. In fact, he almost looked uncomfortable in his parka. Zatanna couldn't help but wonder how cold it was in Alantious. The two didn't talk much as they walked, Zatanna was focusing on a continuous warming spell on herself and Kaldur was focusing on keeping them from getting lost. This part of the tundra looked mostly the same to Zatanna, but Kaldur seemed to be able to tell his way around, so she trusted her teammate.

"We've got about a day and a half left until we reach the village," Kaldur announced as he slipped his map back into his leather satchel. Everything they owned had to be things that the Water Tribe people could make, and important things (such as Kaldur's water bearers) had to be disguised with long lasting glamor charms.

Zatanna just nodded in response. She was exhausted. Why that crazy spirit Roku had dropped them off so far from the village, she didn't understand. Every member of their team had their own missions, but she assumed that the others members hadn't spent their days walking and munching on dried strips of fish. Plus, it was midnight sun at the South Pole right now, so her sleep patterns were all thrown off. To top it all off, she had to make seven glamour charms before they left. Seven! It would be days before she got her mana back up to normal levels. Dr. Fate should have been able to make some of them, but he gave some crap explanation about his magic not being able to work between dimensions unless he was in said dimension. So instead he had instructed her on how to make the glamor charms also be some sort of memory balancer. Once again he'd spouted off some jargon about the dimensions and how crossing them was dangerous to the soul and mind without the proper protection.

"Kaldur? Could we sit down for a little bit?"

Kaldur nodded and froze the two a fairly solid chunk of ice to sit on. He reached in the bag and pulled out their bundle of dried fish, offering her a piece. Zatanna thanked him before taking a piece. Kaldur looked up at the sky with a worried look on his face, Zatanna followed his gaze and saw what had him concerned. The clouds were dark grey.

"A storm?"

Kaldur nodded, "A big one. We might not be able to stop for the night."

"That's alright. Should we keep a look out for shelter?"

"Probably, but I don't think there will be anything until we get to the village. If worst comes to worst, I'll improvise something." Kaldur took a bite of the dried fish and stared out over the ongoing expanse of white. The ocean was to their left; they'd been following the coast, presumably not to get lost. Like Zatanna said, polar navigation was not her strong suit. After a couple more minutes Kaldur packed up the fish, melted the ice block, and they started walking again.

Unfortunately, the storm came on a lot sooner than Kaldur had predicted. Kaldur had tried to protect them from the on slot of hail and rain, but between the lack of shelter and the increasingly strong winds, even Kaldur's hydrokinesis couldn't do much good. In the end, they had tied a piece of rope around their wrists and held hands. That wasn't working very well either.

Zatanna couldn't see very much, but she did feel the rope snap and their hands separate. The young magician yelled and reached out for Kaldur, but found herself unable to find him. Usually she would have used a spell the sense Kaldur's magic core, but she was so tired. She didn't know if she could even muster up a drying spell. Maybe it would better to stop now and try to wait out the storm.

Iroh watched as Ensigns Adair and Desta were pulled back up onto the boat. Unsurprisingly, there were no fish in their two-man boat. (Honestly, Zuko needed to leave the food stores to someone who understood the living patterns of fish better.) What was a surprise was that there was a third person in the boat. A young man, about Zuko's age, wearing Water Tribe blues, he was unconscious, but he didn't appear to be frost bitten and his chi was flowing strongly. How odd. He should be dead or at least frostbitten.

"We're sorry, General Iroh. We didn't know what to do. Leaving him there to freeze to death seemed wrong, even if he is a savage. Desta and I will take full responsibility with Prince Zuko."

"That won't be necessary, Adair. Take him down to the infirmary and make sure someone looks him over. I'll deal with my nephew."

Zuko was convinced his Uncle had gone completely senile. Taking a hurt Water Tribesman as a ward?! Seriously? The only solace came in the fact that the boy probably wouldn't last much longer. He had been found unconscious at sea after all.

"Prince Zuko…"

Zuko let out a frustrated puff of smoke, "Uncle, if you want to take this… savage in, I can't stop you. If he gets in the way of my quest though, if he causes problems… I will take action against him."

Zuko couldn't help but feel a spark of happiness as his Uncle beamed. He had suffered a lot after losing Lu Ten and might make him at least a little happier. Zuko had always felt a little guilty for his Uncle feeling the need to tag along with him. Sure, he could get annoying with all his cryptic advice and worrying, but he was still Zuko's uncle. Zuko still wanted him to be happy.

"Thank you nephew! I shall speak to him once he awakens, perhaps we can return him to his tribe."

Iroh left with quickened steps and Zuko returned to his scrolls, though he couldn't get rid of the feeling of dread in his stomach. Even if this made Uncle happy, Zuko couldn't think of any way this could play out that wasn't a disaster.

Iroh sat next to the cot holding the young Water Tribe boy, sipping on a cup of tea. The boy had been stripped down to his under wraps and wrapped in a pile of blankets, even though the chill to his body appeared to be in no danger of causing him frostbite. The ship's healer (though he only really knew emergency medicine) had been in shock. Stating that even the Water Tribe could fall ill to frostbite within a couple minutes and that the boy had been at sea for at least a couple days, the healer had set the boy next to a fire and wrapped him in blankets. His only explanation was that the boy had to be a powerful water bender and Iroh had to say he agreed. The young man's chi was strong, flowing like a river despite his possible days at sea without food or water.

The young man certainty looked Water Tribe, with dark skin, short black hair with a single braid hanging beside his face, a well-built physique from years of physical labor, and while he hadn't woken up, Iroh was fairly sure his eyes would be blue. One thing that had stuck itself in Iroh's mind was the bone charm pendent the young man was wearing. Iroh had found himself unwilling to remove it for some reason, even though it was obviously broken, split down the middle into two pieces.Suddenly, the boy groaned and started to sit up. Iroh sat up straighter and set aside his tea. He didn't say anything, but rather let the boy come around at his own turns. The first thing the boy did once he was fully conscious was throw the blankets off, panting for breath. Only then did Iroh see that he was sweating, badly. Iroh grabbed a chilled towel out of the medical icebox. As soon as Iroh handed the boy the towel he pressed it to his face and neck. Iroh gave him another towel once he had calmed down a little and found his bearings.

"Thank you," the boy said softly, turning to look at Iroh. Sure enough his eyes were blue.

"Are you okay?" Iroh asked watching the young man with concern.

"Yes, I think so, a little dizzy."

Iroh handed him a sugar water, they were a little gross, but they help those in need regain both energy and hydration. The boy opened the canteen and took a big swing of the drink.

"My name is Iroh."

"I'm Kaldur," the boy said, taking another sip of the sugar water.

Iroh nodded, watching the young man. He seemed far more concerned by the canteen of sugar water than where he actually was. Iroh was sure that would end quickly, so he let the young man sip on the water, waiting patiently until Kaldur was ready to speak. Once he finished off the canteen, it wasn't fear or hatred that filled Kaldur's face, but curiosity.

"Where am I?" Kaldur asked looking around.

"The medical bay aboard a Fire Nation ship, the Wani."

Kaldur nodded, playing with his pendent unconsciously.

Iroh cleared his throat and pulled a map out of his sleeve, "Kaldur perhaps you could show me where your tribe is so we can drop you off there?"

Kaldur looked at the map, a confused look on his face. After a couple minutes he looked up Iroh, absolutely terrified, "I don't remember. I can't remember anything about my tribe. I don't even know if I belong to a tribe."

[sweet-palpitations]

Srsly. Some people think saying "sorry" is enough and will say forget it didn't happen.

To you it is easy, to us it is traumatizing. It will forever hunt our minds. Yes, we could not take things back but it will forever leave a scar on our bodies.

This happened to me twice already. First I was in Highschool and second was just last year. Not mention the countless harassments happened in tricycle, jeepney, van and even buses. And people will ask me why I don't wany to travel alone? I badly and desperately wanted too. But those predators are everywhere and in our patriacrhal society they would pull the blame to the victim. "Why did you go outside late at night?" "Why are you wearing skirt?" "Why were you traveling alone?" And other stupid questions acting like I was inviting them.

I. didn't. ask.for. it.

And for that 2 I mentioned before hurted me most because they were not strangers. They were one of my closest friends. And... They just told me to forgot it. One even get mad on why I kept bringing it up.

It all happened in the past and so on. FVXK YOU. BECAUSE YOU CUT AN UNHEALING WOUND DEEPLY IN MY SOUL. I DON'T WANT TO REMEBER ANY OF IT BUT IT HURTS. IT IS HAUNTING ME. YOU'LL NEVER UNDERSTAND.