#i'm doing it

[liltaireissocute]

[PERC'ILDAN]

"Do I look cute in your glasses, Freddie?"

[ventique18]

Bro's gonna be farming so much potatoes

[sassaffrassa]

*squishing their faces together*

on ao3 here x

[seyaryminamoto]

Azula's most overlooked characterization element

Why, hello there.

It is I.

And I'm back on my bullshit.

I didn't WANT to be. But a bunch of factors pulled me back in.

For the record: I'm not here to start any fights or light the fuse of arguments that I most likely won't have time or interest in responding to. What I AM here for... is to prove that there's something out there a bunch of people are delighted to sleep on because acknowledging it would render maaaany simplistic interpretations entirely invalid...

That group of people includes the fandom, of course. And the original show's staff. And the liveaction's staff, to a fault. Surely the TTRPG ones too. And absolutely, the comic book writers.

Hell, I'll even include MYSELF in that group, even though I'm making this post right now.

I found it really curious that I very recently saw this element mentioned in a pretty neat blog I follow, @atla-lore-archive, I absolutely advise anyone who hasn't checked out said archive to do it if you wish to understand a lot of the "extra lore" the fandom had access to, back in the old days when the turbonick ATLA site still existed and used to be the only source of deeper knowledge about the fandom besides the occasional interview that most people didn't even know where to track down.

But the funny thing is that the post I'm talking about proved that even Turbonick forgot about the people this post is about :')

And that would beeeeeeee...

*cue drumroll*

Lo and Li!

What makes Lo and Li an important subject to discuss?

Why, a lot of things. Among them, the fact that almost nobody brings them into the core focus of any analysis made about Azula's character. I've personally mentioned them once or twice I believe, mostly as negatives, there's but ONE positive aspect I've ever found of them: them being non-benders MIGHT be a reason why Azula isn't shown as being quite so obsessive with firebending supremacy as Zuko was supposed to be.

But that's very much the sole good thing I can think to say about them and it's completely subjective, as good as a headcanon, because we don't even KNOW if they influenced Azula in that sense!

Why do they seem to get overlooked quite as much? Why... let's start thinking about it, shall we?

Lo and Li are Azula's firebending teachers. As far as anyone can tell, they're also her advisors. These two people should be an essential part of Azula's life... but ironically, we seldom see them with her. Most times, Azula isn't around these two. Whenever she is? It doesn't usually look like she's having a good time.

And that's no surprise, considering her first scene with those two very much puts forward a dynamic of cold distance between Azula and her mentors: Azula is bending LIGHTNING. We have not heard of other lightningbenders until that point, and once the full show wraps up, there's only THREE (Azula, Ozai, Iroh). Out of those three? Only one is a fourteen-year-old girl. It's very easy to assume Azula's lightning is actually a skill she mastered unusually early in life, perhaps relatively recently, hence the practicing... but she's pulling it off. She's succeeding. She's doing something that genuinely catches a first-time viewer off-guard!

And Lo and Li's entire opinion of what she did is: "Almost perfect. One hair out of place."

This tells you the Fire Nation's idea of "imperfection" is... insane. Strict. Imposing. Unyielding. Unforgiving. Azula's reaction isn't to get angry at Lo and Li for saying what they did: it's to get angry at herself and try again.

But... that's not the only instance where we see Azula getting angry around Lo and Li.

The next few times Azula is around them, she doesn't seem to have much of an emotional reaction (one is when they tell her to find other allies, the other when they herald her as a great hero who returned home from Ba Sing Se). In the second of these scenes, Lo and Li are praising Azula as incredible, beautiful, all sorts of grand things...! And Azula smiles. She smiles at the crowd. She's not smiling at the old ladies who are praising her... she's mostly just happy to know her people are welcoming her as a hero indeed! Most the fandom would go "true! what an ungrateful bitch! She should've been happy that Lo and Li complimented her that way!!" Me? I wouldn't say that at all. Not just because I love Azula to pieces? But because the only information we have of Azula's dynamics with these two... doesn't seem compatible with the idea that what Lo and Li are saying here is for AZULA'S benefit.

Anyone who's had a hypocritical parent/caretaker/teacher must have endured awkward, horrible, unpleasant moments where this adult figure treats you like shit in private but in public holds you as this grand example, and a perfect child, and they never seem to stop saying they're soooo proud of you even though you NEVER felt that what they're saying is true. Maybe the first few times, you're naive enough to believe it. By the tenth time of incongruent messages? You start to realize they're talking you up as a way to make themselves look better. They're trying to show they're doing their job at raising you/training you, be it whatever it may. The praises are not FOR you... they're for a third person to hear and think "Oh, this adult's so cool, saying nice things about this kid they're responsible for! Nice!"

... You're starting to get the picture now, I'm sure.

Lo and Li reappear in the Beach. Azula is notably chill, enjoying the ride, talking casually with Ty Lee, telling Zuko to lighten up and to stop taking Ozai's choices personally, right? She seems... content. Relaxed.

Then, everything changed when Lo and Li attacked.

We don't even see why Azula is making this face at first. But she does it AT ONCE when their ship reaches the dock.

Who is there indeed...?

The stars of our post! :') if it isn't our elderly twin ladies... who brought Azula to a very disappoting beach house. And when Azula sees the house in question, she makes THIS face.

Judge however you may... even Ty Lee is weirded out by the beach house, going by that expression. Zuko and Mai aren't impressed either. But Azula? The look on her face isn't merely disappointment if you ask me... part of it looks a bit like embarrassment too? This isn't at all what she was expecting when she arrived (she has her old beach house for standards, which makes this extra underwhelming, I'm sure). She counts on Lo and Li to provide them with a place to stay, it goes implicit... and then this is what they do. It most likely isn't what she promised the other three in terms of where they'd stay, hence, I'd dare say there's a component of embarrassment here.

Shortly afterwards, we have our well known scene with Azula being utterly unconcerned with Lo and Li's apparent wisdom to the point of yawning over it. This, too, tells you she's just not interested in whatever those two have to say or bring to the table. Then, they show up again at mealtime and I think Azula just ignores them the whole scene.

After this? Lo and Li vanish until the finale. And what do they do in the finale? Why... it's the first time anyone expresses a verbal concern over Azula's wellbeing! Ah! A sign that Lo and Li have SOME affection for Azula! This time, you pesky Azula fans, you CAN'T twist this into a bad thing! For sure!

... Can't we, tho? :')

What IS Azula's reaction to: "We are concerned for your wellbeing"?

"My father asked you to come here and talk to me, didn't he‌? He thinks I can't handle the responsibility of being Fire Lord. But I will be the greatest leader in Fire Nation history."

And here, my friends, is when we have finally hit the jackpot.

Lo and Li could have been Azula's Irohs. She could've had TWO of him! Then you'd say: "hey! Ozai is such a dick he let Azula have two elderly wise ladies guiding her but only gave one old wise dude to Zuko! Rude!" and it would be further proof of Ozai's favoritism of Azula, right?

... But actually?

Lo and Li are no such thing. Lo and Li aren't moral compasses for Azula in the least. Lo and Li are not beacons of wisdom that genuinely help her sort her way through life. Worth noting: THEY COULD HAVE BEEN WRITTEN THAT WAY. They're not. They're not part of mysterious secret societies, they don't help Azula in any objective, significant, tangible way... there's very much nothing to say they EVER fulfilled the role Iroh did for Zuko. What role, then, were they fulfilling instead?

Why... I think we ought to listen to Azula, shouldn't we?

My take: Lo and Li are OZAI'S STAND-INS.

Someone's going to say "hey why would you assume that when Azula said this in the middle of a breakdown?? Surely she was just DELUSIONAL and PARANOID and ashdgkadhsgkjgh...!"

... Let me counter that one with a fun little analysis excercise:

WHY are Lo and Li Azula's firebending teachers and advisors?

The finale very directly tells us these two are not benders. We could've assumed they were! They're not: Azula's teachers are non-benders.

Has a single person out there ever asked themselves WHY this is the case?

How the hell is Azula, prodigy of the blue fire, epic lightning, cruel and powerful and precise and deadly bending... training under two elderly nonbenders?

Bringing this to a real-life example: do you remember what it was like when you were in P.E. classes and your teacher told you to spend 20 minutes jogging, and if you ever stopped you had to do 20 crunches and then get back to the jogging, and every time you stopped he'd tell you the same thing and you'd want that guy to vanish from the face of the planet? I don't know if that was only my experience, but I rather doubt it.

What did kids typically think/say when that happened?

"I wanna see that old fart doing the same shit he's making us do..."

It's a headcanon indeed to say that this is how Azula must have felt over Lo and Li, but it's VERY likely to be the case. But I'd dare say, in Azula's case, it's even worse because, to put it in another way? It's like taking programming lessons from someone who's never learned a programming language. They'll tell you you're getting things wrong without knowing how to help you get them right because they just DON'T KNOW what you're doing, and are outright INCAPABLE of what you're trying to achieve. They can't offer good guidance based on experience because they have ZERO experience on that subject! And yet they want PERFECTION from you! They expect it!

Lo and Li are these teachers for Azula. We only see them in one scene? And yet everything in the rest of the show suggests that they bring nothing important to the table for Azula, be it professionally, be it personally, be it emotionally... not in any aspect of life.

And this, if you ask me, is why the OG show barely ever brings them into scenes. Why the comics flat-out forgot they existed and even featured people like Sozin and Azulon in Azula's beach hallucinations but NOT the two ladies who looked after her and trained her. Why the live-action didn't even FEATURE them.

And us? The fandom? The fic writers?

I HAVE NO IDEA WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME I READ A FIC THAT HAD LO AND LI INVOLVED IN IT.

I'm not even saying as main characters, I don't even know if that exists, frankly: I mean as minor, or background characters. I have NOT seen those two be used in basically ANY fics I've read. I've scarcely used them in mine! In fact, I PURPOSEFULLY got rid of them early on in Gladiator because I didn't want them to sabotage and get in the way of Azula's progress as a character and I believed they'd do exactly that. They were an obstacle rather than anything useful, so I did away with them and then realized they could still occasionally serve some purpose in certain situations: I even had Azula visit them once and they were actually helpful! Fancy that! But... that's it. That's as far as I could go with them. I can't do MORE with those two because they're not characters one particularly feels compelled to work with.

And from what I've seen? That's the case for everyone.

So, I ask again:

WHY ARE THEY THERE?

WHAT IS THEIR ROLE?

WHAT IS THE POINT OF AZULA HAVING NON-BENDING TEACHERS?

Let's go further and further into logical thinking here, shall we?

Azula is a child. Fourteen years of age at the time she's introduced in the OG show.

Azula has no power over many things around her, particularly, her upbringing. That's in the hands of the adults around her. Her mother, up until she vanished, had some hand in it, then, it all falls to Ozai.

Ozai has been Azula's sole parental figure since Ursa left.

Ozai is the one who would reasonably call the shots regarding Azula's education, as all parents are wont to do... ESPECIALLY when he's a king with absolute power over his children.

... so, Lo and Li? Ozai either gave them the position as Azula's teachers personally, or someone else (Ursa) did, and Ozai either didn't WANT to remove them from the role (cue "Ozai being sentimental over Ursa" theories), or Ozai didn't give a flying fuck about who was training his daughter (cue "Ozai is an abusive dick without a heart or a brain" theories).

Anyone, of course, would likely interject here to say surely Ozai ALSO trained Azula himself because that's what he'd do with his favorite kid, right? See. I don't even disagree with that notion.

BUT IT'S A HEADCANON.

We have zero evidence that Ozai trained her! None! I totally will write that into Azula's backstory in many of my stories, but there's NOTHING in canon to suggest this actually happened and that Ozai was genuinely, actively, frequently involved in her progress as a firebender. Assuming he HAD to be is, still, a headcanon. You can't say that with any more certainty than mine when I say I believe Azula loves spicy foods. Does it seem to be something that would fit with her character? I think so! But if eventually canon goes "AZULA CAN'T STAND SPICY FOODS LOL JOKE'S ON YOU!" I... can't even say a thing about it. People's food tastes aren't reflective of their personalities. They really could do whatever they want in that respect. And that's the case for ANYTHING that isn't part of the show's storytelling or the character backgrounds or any texts we consider canon!

POINT BEING: Ozai, regardless of what you want to headcanon, had Lo and Li as Azula's teachers. HIS FAVORITE CHILD... and her only official instructors are two non-benders. Yang added Kunyo as an old instructor of Azula's when she was young, sure! But Kunyo was sooooo qualified that baby Azula was already kicking his ass. So, for that matter? He doesn't really seem to have been a cornerstone of her firebending development and the only other known teachers for Azula are Lo and Li.

For the last time: Azula's teachers are NON-BENDERS. AS CHOSEN, SANCTIONED, APPROVED AND ACCEPTED BY OZAI.

And with those two remarking on absolutely STUPID stuff like "one hair out of place"? Azula still became the incredible firebender she was.

Cue, now, the irony where Zuko was stuck in the basics 3 years after setting out of the Fire Nation... WITH IROH ACTIVELY SERVING AS HIS MENTOR.

You're not gonna tell me that Lo and Li would EVER be better instructors than Iroh, or are you? Because that makes no sense. Full-stop. Iroh is supposed to be the most profound and complete firebender thorughout the show because he's spiritually enlightened even though I admit I think that's bullshit and he doesn't just teach Zuko how to set things on fire, he actually makes him learn theory and spirituality and his teachings are more profound than just "ONE HAIR OUT OF PLACE".

So.

Banished as he is, disgraced and seen as trash by Ozai, Zuko STILL has a better teacher than Azula does.

... Is this LOGICAL? Is this NORMAL? Does this make SENSE?

If you think Ozai's favoritism of Azula takes the shape of "I'll give you every little thing you ask for, sweetheart, I love you very much, here, have ten million doll houses so you can set them on fire, and all the ponies you ask for and on your next birthday I'll buy you a baby dragon and you'll get your own region of the Fire Nation to govern and a fancy title..."?

Then Lo and Li, unfortunately, are right here to be a HUGE contradiction with your interpretation of Ozai and Azula's relationship.

Azula should have THE BEST teachers. Azula does not. Azula doesn't even LIKE them. Azula is openly shown to dislike them! To be annoyed around them, ANGRY when they're teaching her, she feels they're here to keep tabs on her for her father! In a sense, they're Ozai's SPIES on her! :')

Hence? Ozai's favoritism of Azula MIGHT not be what everyone keeps pretending it is. Maybe Ozai didn't do everything to make Azula get things EASILY... and to be fair? That's not what Zuko said anyway. People interpreted it that way... but that's not REALLY what he says:

"Everything always came easy to her. She's a firebending prodigy, and everyone adores her. My father says she was born lucky. "

Every line in this statement is absolutely questionable and all of it sounds like buuuuullshit to me. This is ZUKO'S perspective. And sorry not sorry, but it's tell-don't-show. People swear by his opinion of Azula and pretend he's absolutely objective about it. He's not.

But "Everything always came easy to her," does not mean "EVERYTHING WAS ALWAYS HANDED OVER TO HER ON A SILVER PLATTER." And yet this is what the fandom has constantly interpreted it as.

Azula might just be a prodigy. Maybe she started out ten steps ahead of her brother: this does not mean she needs no guidance, no training, no help. She's seen training herself over perfectionism in her very second scene of Book 2. And the guidance she gets in order to achieve perfection is actually, objectively, stupid.

This is what Ozai chose for her. This is an OBSTACLE for her growth, just as much as Lo and Li were obstacles for me when I was starting with Gladiator! Azula doesn't have it EASY: she just works herself so damn hard that even shit that should HINDER her does NOT do that. And even when her brother objectively has spent THREE YEARS with an advantage in the shape of being trained by one of the VERY BEST firebenders out there? Azula is still beating Zuko at it. With two non-benders as her teachers.

Where am I going with all this?

To the fact that Lo and Li are overlooked in just about every instance of the fandom.

To the fact that nobody includes them, and their influence on Azula, in their analyses of who Azula is.

I've seen a shitstorm rising over the Netflix characterization of Azula: SHE'S TOO ANGRY, they say. Non-stop. She's sooooo hysterical, all the time! She's just pissed perpetually!

Well. I haven't finished the show yet. But the scenes I've seen Azula in so far? They don't fit the fandom's view of Azula because...

... they're not taking Lo and Li into account.

As usual.

:')

Azula's reactions around Lo and Li being frustration, anger, irritation EVEN in scenes like The Beach, where Azula was FINE until she sees them? That shit is storytelling that went over sooooooo many heads, EVEN MINE! When I saw people going on about how canon Azula is... not insecure? Not angry? Has no frustrations and was only ever smirking 24/7? I... didn't feel that was right. I knew it wasn't right. And when I thought about it hard enough? I realized that one reason why this interpretation of Azula is IMMEDIATELY dismissable is because of Lo and Li: those two constantly made Azula angry. Even if that wasn't their intent, it's nonetheless the effect they'd have on her. And Azula didn't like having them around. She CLEARLY didn't appreciate them the way Zuko does Iroh, for instance! And this could be taken as a flaw on Azula's part... if we EVER saw evidence that these two ladies actually love Azula as a grandchild, or so. If we had any evidence that they actually have cared for her in ways nobody else ever did. If maybe the ones Zuko talks about, upon saying "EVERYONE LOVES AZULA" were these two! And maybe he was jealous of them! Maybe he wanted two old ladies to watch his every move and tell him his every flaw!

... Clearly I'm joking about that last thing, but anyway...

There's nothing to tell us Lo and Li were anything but Ozai's assigned watchdogs to keep control and tabs over Azula. That Azula's immediate reaction upon hearing that someone cares about her is "Oh fuck off, my dad sent you here because he doesn't trust me!" is... telling. It's not just paranoia speaking, even if it sure can be read that way! It's actually Azula's perception of those two, which is 100% supported by what we saw of the twins throughout the show, WHENEVER we did see them: their roles in Azula's life are indeed to keep tabs on her, to keep her under control, to pressure her into perfection, AS OZAI'S AGENTS! Seen this way, it MAKES SENSE for Azula to disregard their concern and immediately assume it's FAKE. She isn't even shown to doubt it, never questions that MAYBE they did care about her! She assumes they don't...

... And considering that, as far as I know, the official concept is that they BOTH LEFT when Azula banished one of them only? That they didn't contest her command, staying to look after her even if she only wanted one? I mean, clearly Azula can't tell them apart, so they could've taken turns: one watches over Azula for 12 hours and the other for the next 12 hours, I don't goddamn know! But they didn't do that. They LEFT. And if they left? It means they don't care remotely as much as they say they do. Not to the point where they'd challenge Azula's orders and help her when they KNOW she's not okay.

And all of this further supports my point.

When we see Azula in the liveaction being angry, bitter, irritable at Ozai's choices?

I see a reflection of the same dynamics that the OG too subtly weaved into Azula's relationship with Lo and Li. I see Azula reacting against Ozai's control over her because she feels it's DISTRUST. She feels it means her father STILL needs to be convinced that she's competent, powerful, ready to do his bidding. It isn't a case where Azula's irritation comes from wanting to rebel against her father... it's Azula wanting her father to UNDERSTAND that she's 100% his supporter and will put everything on the line to serve him and the Fire Nation.

And it's very damn easy to read that exact same thing into Azula's dynamics with Lo and Li as it is to see it EXPLICITLY STATED in the liveaction.

My point?

What the liveaction did is not nearly as much of a distant characterization choice as people think it is.

Ozai is Azula's Achilles' Heel. Everything she became, everything she grew up to be, was for his sake. He molded her to become those things and simply didn't give a shit about raising a daughter, he treated her as a weapon, and absolutely pitted his children against each other, just as much as OTHER adults in their lives did. But the impact of Ozai on Azula in the OG is easy to ignore. Why? Because we SELDOM see them interacting. Because we don't get that side of Azula's character fully explored. Because they didn't want to explore Ozai's character either! They were as cheap as they could be with all these aspects and so, only the people who really got into analyzing things on a deeper level would be able to say, without a doubt, that Ozai abused Azula emotionally with all the expectations and demands he put on his own child. Through the golden child-scapegoat dynamic that people have been bringing up non-stop in the past years.

So, proving herself to her father is what Azula wants to do, more than anything. Proving worthy of his favor, of his approval, is the closest thing she can get to feeling loved. Which is depressing as fuck. Azula gets zero affection: it's not even conditional affection, there's NOTHING for her besides approving words if she gets anything right. And this show's work with Azula's character? It was meant to make these things less invisible to all the fans who like to pretend none of it exists. And yes, I've seen them, crawling all over Twitter shitting themselves in fits of rage because how dare that show pretend Azula EVER had a bad time in her perfect flawless life!!

Well, the irony is that the OG gives you a smidge of evidence -- and yet that's enough -- to show that Ozai was doing very similar things to Azula in ATLA, and her reactions to it?

Huh. No smirks for Lo and Li.

No smirks for the symbols of Ozai's control over her life.

It's almost like the confidence, the smirks, the apparent ease with which she handles everything? Is a front that crumbles easily whenever it concerns the ONE PERSON with power over her life.

I don't believe, worth noting, that Azula's power comes from rage. I've seen people say that in fandom in the past and I find it a completely absurd take when Iroh himself spells out that her bending is about control, about precision, and it's Azula's FURY that makes her a sloppy mess in the finale. It's even INTENTIONAL that when she shoots lightning a second time, in her second establishing scene, THAT SAME HAIR FALLS OUT OF PLACE. She's still angry. She didn't get it "right" this time either. She's imperfect and she's trying NOT to be, but she cannot succeed. And upon bending lightning with emotions (rage/frustration)? That hair falls YET AGAIN out of place. Proof that she's not going to achieve the perfection she's being FORCED (indeed, by her father and the people who are here to represent him, Lo and Li) to strive for.

The liveaction had Ozai pushing Azula for a perfection she couldn't attain either. She's perfectly content in her cruelty at Ozai's side, right until she hears the Avatar was found and that Zuko has a shot at taking away the privileges she's been basking in so far. That she WASN'T nervous about this in canon is pretty damn obvious: OZAI SENT HER TO HUNT ZUKO DOWN FOR BEING A FAILURE. We never saw her reaction to learning that the Avatar was out and about. We have noooo idea what was canonically going on with her back then. The first time we see her besides the flashback is Azula receiving a mission that tells her she's STILL #1 and Zuko is no threat to her because Ozai thinks he's a failure. Thus? She had nothing to fear. Here? Ozai is actively using Zuko as bait to pressure Azula further. And if you're so confident in Ozai's good parenting skills as to believe he somehow WOULDN'T do that? Sounds like you don't understand the very basic and simplistic Fire Lord Ozai from ATLA, and that's not something to be proud of. So probably stop screaming your bad takes at the top of your lungs, because being incapable of understanding Ozai in canon is not a badge of pride, just saying...

FINAL POINT...

This post is not written expressly in the defense of the liveaction and its characterization of Azula. To this point, what I've seen of it doesn't feel WRONG or OFF unless you're the kind of person who thinks Azula is only capable of smirking and if she stops doing that she stops existing or something. Only people who cannot understand the depth, nuance, subtleties in Azula's story would ever be claiming that Azula's relationship with Ozai COUDLN'T be like this, or that Azula couldn't possibly be frustrated with her father or his choices when it's soooo clear what Ozai is going for, and why it's working. But in order to read Azula as a character capable of this range of emotion, frustration and ambition, all at once? You have to be able to treat this character, be it in the liveaction or the OG show, as a human being.

And that's what most the people criticizing this specific change are determined not to do. It's what makes them uncomfy. It's what rustles their jimmies.

Yes. I'm saying it in this very demeaning way because I actually find it quite ridiculous to be this insecure over the portrayal of a fictional 14yo in two TV shows. Whether the liveaction sticks the landing or fails catastrophically, I do not know... but I do know that if it's forcing a bunch of people to rethink Azula's character, and making them panic at the idea that she could EVER have human emotions, even if they're AWFUL human emotions?

Then I'm afraid you're only convincing me that, as bad as that show could ever get? It's getting SOMETHING right. I do love to see misinterpretations of Azula getting slammed in the face by the reality that all those beliefs, headcanons and takes in bad faith are actively, categorically untrue: none of which makes Azula a fundamentally good person, worth noting! But it makes it very clear that reading her as a one-dimensional basic villain, which is what the anti-Azula-redemption crowd actively does, is literally only possible if you overlook, ignore and fail to understand her character and her complexities, be it in the liveaction or in the original show.

There. I said my piece.

Another post, regarding the rest of the liveaction, is bound to come later. I'd say stay tuned but it might take me a while to write it at all. So... wait around and maybe you'll see it someday!

[fohatic]

new WIP game idea: tease whatever you're working on by dropping up to five of the most obscure topics you've looked up lately for background research, either in the tags, replies, or a post!

i'll go first:

defunct coney island railway connections

19th century mortar recipes (masonry)

civil war battles in which large numbers of soldiers went MIA

demon names that begin with "Ma_"

[seraphim-s]

And what if I did draw godzilla and mothra as lesbians? What's the worst thing that could happen?

[thewideawakechronicles]

Fuck it we ball

[brooklynisher]

I pulled a Jenny on Chair

*Runs away sobbing.*

[iamsweden]

WE GET POSSESSED? | Ghost Hunting with Friends! Pt. 1 Before the Hunt

Summary: 

While filming what should be a routine “ghost hunting” urban exploration video with her friends, Tressa uncovers old secrets that should have stayed hidden.

A/N:

Celebrate Halloween with me by reading this obscure Octopath Ghost Hunting Youtuber parody AU?

This is really just a fun little thing I wanted to do, so I’ll posting chapters as soon as I finish them! That means minimal editing, so I apologize for any errors! I just want to get as much done as possible before Halloween hits tomorrow :)

I’m also cross-posting this fic on AO3 but without the extra formatting. Click HERE to read! 

All chapters will be tagged with #ghosthuntingwfriends if you'd like to follow along!

Enjoy!

WE GET POSSESSED? | Ghost Hunting with Friends!

515,962 views | Oct 31, 2024

For this week’s treasure hunt, I take my friends on a Spooky Halloween Adventure to the HAUNTED Old Royal Academy in Atlasdam! 

Featuring: 

Ophilia (@AskSisterOphilia)

Cyrus (@historywithcyrus)

Therion & Alfyn (@GrabBagGames, @DontTalkToMe, @thatherbguy)

Primrose (@primroseazelhart)

Olberic

H’aanit & Linde

Follow me!

IG and X: @TressaColzione

Edited by Noa (@wyndyseagull)

Time Stamps:

0:00 - Before the hunt

3:30 - FIRST FLOOR

8:50 - SECOND FLOOR

19:51 - THIRD FLOOR

25:02 - HEADMASTER’S OFFICE

33:28 - TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES

38:02 - History Lesson Break

46:57 - THE H4TCH

48:36 - B4SEM3N+

66:66:66 - F4LL1NG IN+0 +H3 A8Y5S

1:19:58 - CALLING THE EXORCIST

1:24:20 - NVM WE’RE GOOD

1:36:21 - REFLECTION

—

BEFORE THE HUNT

Since diving headfirst into her steller youtube career, Tressa has learned several valuable lessons: avoid drama, thoroughly vet and research any potential sponsorships, create backups of all her files and videos, etc. You know, the stuff anyone in the business will tell you to watch out for. And even though Tressa hasn’t been on the scene very long, at least compared to some of her peers, she really feels as though she’s gotten the hang of this youtube vlogger thing.

So when she rolls up to the looming, imposing facade of the abandoned Old Royal Academy in northern Atlasdam, Tressa doesn’t have a worry in the world. Tonight is gonna go off without a hitch. Once all of her friends get here, she’s sure they’ll be having too much fun exploring the old place to get scared.

Tressa can’t think of anyone else she’d want to guest star in her next big video than these guys. Even if they all make different kinds of content (or no content at all, in Olberic and H’aanit’s cases), everyone is guaranteed to come out of this venture with a special video of their own.

Cyrus and Olberic are here first, of course. They live in Atlasdam for one, and Cyrus specifically helped her nab permission to shoot on the premises tonight. His set up is frighteningly simple and devastatingly slapstick: a cheap video camera and likely even cheaper clip-on microphone. Olberic holds the camera steady with the fortitude of a statue. Cyrus barely pauses his agonizing ramble about the history of the college to wave at her in greeting.

“...thereby earning itself the new descriptor ‘old’ in 1847. However, the Old Royal Academy’s doors would remain open for several years yet, producing such austere minds as esteemed poet and playwright Simeon Ventus and Atlasdam native Yvon Baudelaire, who earned the title of second president of the (new) Royal Academy in 1864. Shortly after his inauguration, his alma mater would mysteriously catch fire, destroying a large part of the northern part of campus and compromising the structural integrity of the building as a whole. Regrettably, the fire claimed the lives of forty-eight students, teachers, and staff. The school closed, never to open again. As you can clearly see behind me, however, the Atlasdam Historical Society restored the building with the intent of transforming it into a protected historical landmark. While repairs were completed in 1962, a series of logistical mishaps stagnated the effort, leading to the project’s abandonment in 1970.”

With his very interesting and not at all boring monologue finished (for now), Cyrus claps his hands and spins on his heel towards Tressa, donning a mighty grin. “And here is our intrepid adventurer now, come to lead us on a journey through this stunning piece of history! How have you been, my dear?”

“Good!” she says, dragging her last duffle bag out of the back of her car. She brought more than enough gadgets and gizmos for everyone to use tonight. 

Tressa has REM pods. EVPs. A bunch of different radios. This weird little teddy bear that talks to ghosts and records spooky sounds. A deck of tarot cards–though they’re mostly for show instead of, like, actual use in studying the paranormal. If there are ghosts and ghouls and demons lurking in that old spooky place, Tressa will find them.

And if not, because, let’s be real, ghosts aren’t real, she’ll have a ton of stuff she can use to edit spooks and scares in post! Her editor Noa always knows how to turn a boring video into something wild and interesting.

While Cyrus paws through her gear, critically examining each piece of probable junk, Olberic hums. “And these… items are supposed to help you do what, exactly?” he asks.

Tressa counts on her fingers: “Pick up weird ghost noises, talk to ghosts, catch apparitions, detect temperature fluctuations–oh, and this thing senses movement!”

“Ghosts are said to manifest as fluctuating energy,” Cyrus explains, holding the Boo Buddy teddy bear out at length. He pokes at its button nose. Then Cyrus hands the bear to his husband, who gingerly accepts it. “Paranormal investigators use sensitive equipment to measure that energy. I read through the wikipedia article last night.”

“I see,” Olberic evenly says.

Yes, their first real skeptic of the night! Cyrus is going to take this investigation so seriously, but she’s really counting on Olberic to keep realistic expectations! It’ll create a nice narrative for the evening, especially when everyone else gets here.

And speaking of the rest of their friends–

Next pulls up a real rust bucket of a truck, the back of which is covered in faded bumper stickers. Most of the decals are meme-y stickers from their own store, but there’s more than a couple hippy environmental messages thrown into the mix. The second the truck clunks into park, Therion tears out of his seat, indignantly hissing, “We’re fucking over.”

“Huh?” Tressa asks right as Alfyn calls through the still open door, “He broke up with me because my swag is–”

Therion slams the door shut.

“I’m done,” he reiterates, daring anyone to challenge him.

Tressa rolls her eyes. They’ll be back together within the hour. 

Or so she thinks, until Alfyn joins the group, proudly standing before them while looking like an absolute idiot. Tressa doesn’t know what’s more egregious, the hat that says Paranormal Investigator or the shirt that says, This is my Ghost Hunting Buddy! with a big arrow pointed to the left. Presumably the shirt is half of a matching set. If Therion didn’t set fire to his shirt, it probably got thrown out the window to rot in a ditch somewhere.

(At least that’s what he’ll likely tell them–Tressa wouldn’t be surprised if he’s wearing it right now, kept hidden by his stupid hoodie.)

Tressa reminds herself that she loves Alfyn and Therion and values their friendship. She really does. She really, really does.

“I’m gonna text Prim and see where they’re at,” Tressa mutters, abandoning Cyrus and Olberic to deal with whatever that is.

She quickly rounds the corner, using her phone as a light. The academy rises high into the sky, blocking out the moon from this side and bathing the street in stolid darkness. Dead leaves sweep across the broken sidewalk and crunch underfoot. The gothic metal fence lining the property is painted a chipped black. The Halloween vibes are off the chart out here. If she hadn’t come out earlier to shoot some B-roll, this would be the perfect time.

the girlssssss 4 people Thursday 8:07 PM tressa Whats you guys’s ETA Alf and therion just got here Therions already throwing a fit prim we’re about 6 mins out. phili Oh no! What happened? tressa they broke up bc Alf looks stupid. prim I swear to sealctige. Sorry Phili. phili I’m sure he looks fine :) tressa He really doesn’t tho. prim well we’ll be there soon. hold fast soldier. tressa o7

Before Tressa heads back to the guys, she pauses for a moment. The air is cool but not uncomfortably so, yet a shiver still snakes its way up her spine. She zips up her vest and tugs the cuffs of her sweater over her fingers.

It’s pretty out here, sure, but it is genuinely pretty creepy, too. There are no street lights around the academy–save a large spotlight out front, illuminating the main front gate. The fence isn’t that high either. Even if it’s topped with ornate spikes, that wouldn’t be enough to stop any ne'er do wells from entering. Yet when Tressa was here earlier to film, she didn’t see any graffiti on the walls or trash strewn about the yard. The academy is in tiptop shape. Well, as in-shape as any old, abandoned building can be.

But it’s still weird that it’s so abandoned, right? Like, there’s not a lot of security around the building either. The front gate is padlocked shut, with the key held solely by some up and up from the (new) Royal Academy.

Tressa warily eyes the dark facade, half expecting to see something looking back at her from one of the windows.

But the place is as empty and lifeless as ever.

She’s psyching herself out for no reason. Ghosts aren’t real, and they’re not in any kind of danger. If they do happen to run into someone unsavory inside, they’ll surely turn tail and run at the sight of Olberic and H’aanit.

Tressa shakes her head. Prim, H’aanit, and Phili will be here soon. She needs to head back out front and–

Darkness swoops in as her phone’s flashlight turns off. Tressa flails in surprise, nearly throwing her phone–but self preservation keeps her fingers locked tight around it. She taps on the screen to turn it back on, but it’s like frozen or something, stuck on the background image of her, Ali, and Noa at the fair this summer. The time reads 8:88.

Wait. What? She looks closer, squinting at the dimmed brightness. Okay, yeah, she just misread it. It’s 8:14. 

That’s still… weird, though. It wasn’t that late before when she texted Primrose and Ophilia, right? Is her phone on the fritz? Damn Apple, making crappy, overpriced products. Tressa smacks the side of it, clicking the buttons over and over, trying to force it to restart.

Eventually, it unfreezes and the screen goes black. She keeps holding the buttons, waiting for that stupid little apple to pop up and show it’s restarting, but it never shows. Instead, her lock screen flashes back on. It shows a couple missed calls and new texts:

dumdum did you fall in a manhole or smthn — phili Hello? Where are you? Are you okay? — Missed Call from alf — alf Everything ok? where’d you go for real tress we’re gettin worried — dumdum shortstack where did you go if ur doing a prank video i’ll kill you i’ll seriously do it. — Missed Call from alf Missed Call from phili

Before Tressa can respond or even figure out what everyone’s talking about, a blurred, unflattering picture of Therion fills the screen. Her ringtone blares, cutting through the silence like a jagged knife. She answers. “Hey–”

“It’s about damn time!” he interrupts, sounding breathless. “Where the hell did you go? Did you get kidnapped?”

“I’m like twenty feet away from you, just around the corner of the building,” she snaps, marching back down the sidewalk towards the main gate. “I stepped away to text Prim.”

“Yeah, like ten minutes ago! They’ve been asking us where you are.”

Ten minutes? But that’s….

Tressa rounds the corner, stepping back into the buzzing fluorescent light. Cyrus and Olberic still stand by the gate next to her ghost hunting equipment, but now they’re joined by Primrose, trying to convince them that this isn’t something we need to call the cops over, calm down.

“Perhaps she took a wronge turn and lost her way,” H’aanit suggests, though her brow pinches in concern as she scans the street–and then finds Tressa.

“Okay, well, bye,” Tressa mutters before hanging up on Therion. To the rest of her friends, she says, “I had some phone trouble and I think I zoned out for a bit! I’m good though!”

Everyone breathes a collective sigh of relief. Primrose’s thumbs fly across her phone screen as she texts Alfyn and Therion–missing from the group–that Tressa is back.

Tressa becomes a broken record as she assures her friends she’s fine, that she just lost track of time, that nothing happened. No, she didn’t get lost. Yes, she’s really okay. No, she didn’t see Alfyn or Therion–

“I don’t see how you didn’t,” Primrose says, giving her a thorough scan for–what, any injuries Tressa may be hiding from them? “They both went looking for you. You’re sure you just walked around the corner? Kept to the sidewalk?”

Tressa nods. “Yeah, I stood beside the fence the whole time. I don’t know what else to say. I didn’t go anywhere, I swear.”

“What matters is that you’re safe,” Ophilia decides, descending upon the interrogation with all the grace of a saint. She wears a beatific smile that completely unravels the tension. “Let’s head inside. When Alfyn and Therion rejoin us, we can begin filming.”

[its-a-queer-thing]

Gallavich Songfic Challenge

I've had another random idea!

Instead of three randomized tropes, you get a randomized song. Now, do these songs necessarily have anything to do with Gallavich? Nah.

Though some Gallavich classics will be mixed in there! I've broken down songs into "themes," so if it will make you more comfortable to participate, you may pick a theme. Otherwise, I'll "spin" for a theme and then "spin" for three song choices from there. You only need to choose one song, I just want to give options, though I will need the final choice selected to avoid overlap with other participants.

For the next week I'll be collecting song suggestions through Asks. Then I will start the sigh-up process! Further timeline is to be determined, but the challenge is open to writers, artists, and video editors!

I hope y'all are as excited for this as I am, I think it's going to be fun!

Below are the themes I have determined:

00s Pop

00s Rock/Metal

90s hits

90s grunge

80s classics

70s vibes

60s feels

Love songs

Gallavich Icons

Fuckin' Taylor Swift

[shieldofiron]

Nothing beats the feeling of finally writing more of that WIP that's been bullying you from the back of your brain with the guilt of not adding to it. Take that you beloved story I'm writing out of joy and love for the fandom. And by 'that' I mean another chapter.

[aziraphalalala]

Just sitting around wondering if today is the day my sexual tension Good Omens fic turns into a smut fic. 😇

[blitzy-blitzwing]

I'mma stream now...

[lunamond]

By far the best thing about Vinland saga is and has always been the complicated character dynamics/relationships.

(I mean just look at the mess that is Askeladd and Thorfinn... literal enemies to father-son)

I adore how layered the whole relationships between Thorfinn, Einar, Arnheid and Snake are just in the past two Episodes (season2ep13&14)

They all bring just so many complicated motivations to the table, which makes the current story arc super compelling:

Thorfinn is so reluctant to commit any sort of violence, which is super important for his own healing, but is simultaneously keeping him from taking any action during the current crisis.

Einar's fierce desire to help Arnheid win her freedom no matter if it is to be with himself or with her husband is faced with his inability to actually change anything about their situation.

Arnheid is torn between her desire to protect her unborn child and the love she has for her husband, but ultimately she has to face the reality that her home and child are gone and that Gardar is fighting a futile battle.

And Snake, whose character is still a very mystery in lot of ways, but who we seen built a camraderie with the other characters over the past few episodes and is now seemingly diminishing them as mere slaves