#i. ❝ ... now i'm free. ❞ ﹕⠀ zhao.

[syoul]

rants rambles etc are going to be over on @luziun from now on for organizing reasons!

[hunxi-guilai]

so I know that a lot of chinese names are references to specific poems. Is there a way to determine this (vs general auspicious meaning) and which poem specifically? I'd love to be able to figure this out for character names and I haven't been able to find any resources (in case it's helpful, I'd say I'm my understanding is maybe HSK4-level so I can clumsily make my way through the chinese internet with the help of a dictionary)

feel free to make this public so that others can benefit if you have any suggestions

oof... unfortunately I suspect that this, along with one's repertoire of chengyu, is something that one simply Just Learns with reading more. my personal repertoire of poetry is embarrassingly thin, so the horrible horrible process I've been going through is, well, throwing the name into a search bar and hoping for the best.

here's an example of how I (think I) went about doing this for Xiao Xingchen's name, way back when I wrote this post:

I went ahead and dropped "星尘 诗词" ("Xingchen poetry") into the search bar, which turned up this:

Generally speaking, I'll only put the name (minus the surname) because putting the character's full name into a search bar will probably turn up the character themselves, and if someone's name is being derived from a poem, it's usually independent of the surname anyway.

Xiao Xingchen's name is an interesting example because it doesn't quite come from a poem, but it doesn't not come from a poem. you can see that the search engine has automatically assumed that I am looking for poems about constellations, as "星辰" and "星尘" are homonyms, and one of these is more commonly seen. I usually consider that a solid indication that "星尘" (the name) is a novel formation of characters in a name, and not likely a poetic reference.

but! in for a penny, etc. I'm a huge fan of the first search result, gushicimingju, since it's a solid database of poetry and some prose. clicking into that listing informs me that gushicimingju is turning up. oh my. 119 possible matches:

note that these are matches for "星辰" (constellation), not actually our character's name. still! you can click in and peruse the selection if you'd like.

now that you're on gushicimingju's site, you can also use the search function within the site to search for more exact matches, without worrying that you'll accidentally activate the fandom itself.

looks like there's a few matches for "晓星," but nothing for the full name.

so! gushicimingju is a solid database I like to refer to most of the time. if for some reason I'm feeling particularly academically rigorous, I might also do some searches on ctext as sometimes names will come out of famous turns of phrases (a la Zhao Yun 赵云 / Zhao Zilong 赵子龙 from that post I linked earlier) rather than poems. searching the dictionary sometimes (Pleco, or zdic) doesn't hurt either. basically, I throw spaghetti at the search engine wall to see what results come back for these characters in this particular order to try and get the original referent (if any) to show up; I'll probably give up after a few permutations of search terms if nothing is actively jumping out at me

but back to the search results: sometimes, if your character is famous enough, straight up searching for "what poem is this character's name from?" will help you find like-minded people on baidu zhidao (basically yahoo answers):

although of course, take baidu zhidao result with all of the salt you would take with any yahoo answers (look for alternate sources to validate, good for a laugh most of the time)

best of luck!

[system-to-the-madness]

Hello, Zuko here - Zuko x Reader

Word Count: 4 919 Warnings: mentions of: burn wounds, war, death, looting Summary: Zuko attempts to join Team Avatar to teach Aang firebending A/N: Can be read as a oneshot; Part Four of the series Perfect (10 times Zuko thought you were perfect and the first time he told you) Dividers: original by @thecutestgrotto edit by me (colour only)

“Hello, Zuko here.”

He had never seen anyone draw their weapon as quickly as you in that moment. Not even Azula or any of the special divisions he had trained with as a child. Impressive. And slightly scary considering you were fully prepared to all-out attack him.

No, now was not the moment to think about his stupid little crush on you. Stupid because he had never even really had a conversation with you yet. When he had rescued the Avatar and you from Admiral Zhao, he had not talked, when he had run into you at the north pole, you had only threatened him, and when he had gone to rescue the Sky Bison, you had not exactly had a conversation either and instead focused on saving the Sky Bison, which now, with slow and surprisingly light-weight steps walked over to him.

No, no, no, he had to stop getting distracted. The reason why he had come here was far bigger, far more important than just you or him. This was about helping the Avatar save the world.

“Hey, I heard you guys flying around down there, so, I just thought I'd wait for you here,” Zuko’s eyes helplessly flickered over to you, as if he expected you to help him out. He jumped, startled, when the Sky Bison roared at him, irritated when it suddenly licked him along his whole side. The second lick was only focused on Zuko’s face, and he surprised himself with the realization, that he didn’t really mind the warm salvia that was now sticking to his skin, and only wiped it away so it wouldn’t run into his eyes or mouth. “I know you must be surprised to see me here.”

“Not really, since you've followed us all over the world.” The reply came from the Water Tribe boy.

“Right.” Zuko averted his gaze. “Well, uhhh ... anyway ... what I wanted to tell you about is that I've changed.” He looked back up, finally feeling like he was actually able to say what he had come here for. Your eyes were narrowed at him, but you seemed willing to listen, more willing than the others anyway. “And I, uhhh, I'm good now, and well I think I should join your group, oh, and I can teach Fire Bending. To you.”

The surprise at the offer was openly displayed in the Avatar’s face.

“See, I uhhh-”

“You wanna what now?” The little girl in green, probably the Earth Bender of the group, had spoken, immediately backed up by the Water Tribe girl.

“You can't possibly think that any of us would trust you, can you? I mean, how stupid do you think we are?”

“I think we should hear him out,” you interrupted, making Zuko hopefully look over to you. But unlike he had hoped your expression was not soft or gentle, only calculating. Yeah, okay, he deserved that.

“Are you crazy,” the Water Tribe boy asked. “All he’s ever done is hunt us down and try to capture Aang!”

So, the Avatar’s name was Aang?

“I've done some good things,” Zuko quickly spoke up. “I mean, I could have stolen your bison in Ba Sing Se, but I helped to set him free. That's something!”

The Sky Bison licked him again, this time over the back. He wondered how long it would take to get the salvia washed out of his clothes again. Was it even worth the time trying? Would that bison keep licking him if he got to join the group? Maybe he should just get a raincoat.

“Appa does seem to like him,” the Earth Kingdom girl pointed out.

“You didn’t exactly do a lot to help,” you accused, ignoring the girl’s comment, taking a challenging step forward. “You mostly argued with your uncle about… what was it? Honour? Destiny?”

Zuko groaned quietly, but also couldn’t pretend you were wrong; he hadn’t been exactly helpful that day.

“He probably just covered himself in honey or something,” the Water Tribe boy claimed, ignoring your words entirely. “So that Appa would lick him. I'm not buying it.”

“I can understand why you wouldn't trust me,” Zuko agreed, seeing little sense in focusing on your words. It seemed like you were the most willing to give him a chance, so he had to work on convincing the others first. “And I know I've made some mistakes in the past.”

“Like when you attacked our village,” the Water Tribe boy asked.

“Or when you stole my mother's necklace and used it to track us down and capture us,” the Water Tribe girl – was she the boy’s sister? – shouted.

“Look, I admit I've done some awful things,” Zuko lowered his head, clasping his hand in his hair. Really though, what had he been thinking that whole time? Never once questioning his own actions, only stubbornly, naively, focused on his goal to capture the Avatar. “I was wrong to try to capture you, and I'm sorry that I attacked the Water Tribe. And I never should have sent that Fire Nation assassin after you. I'm going to try and stop-”

“Wait,” the Water Tribe boy interrupted him, pulling out his boomerang. “You sent Combustion Man after us?”

Zuko looked back up, with the distinct feeling he had just somehow said the exactly wrong thing. “Well, that’s not his name, but-”

“Oh, sorry,” the boy spit sarcastically. “I didn’t mean to insult your friend!”

“He’s not my friend,” Zuko shouted angrily. Why was this conversation going so, so differently from how he had imagined it to go? Why couldn’t they see he just wanted to make up for his past mistakes and help them? They didn’t have to like or even trust him. They just had to let him teach the Avatar – Aang – whatever he knew about Fire Bending so he would stand a chance against Ozai!

“If he’s not your friend,” you asked, the anger in your eyes blazing dangerously, making Zuko take a step back. “Then tell him to back off!”

“That guy locked me and Katara in jail and tried to blow us all up,” the Earth Kingdom girl shouted.

Zuko took a deep breath before turning towards Aang.

“Why aren't you saying anything?” In the end, it came down to the Avatar’s – Aang’s – decision. Zuko was sure that if the- if Aang decided he’d accept him as a teacher, the other’s might argue, but ultimately not object to his decision. “You once said you thought we could be friends. You know I have good in me.”

Aang looked over to his friends, the Water Tribe girl staring at Zuko hostilely, the Earth Kingdom girl focusing at a point on the floor, the Water Tribe boy shaking his head and you, you still watching Zuko as if you could read his thoughts if you only tried hard enough.

“There’s no way we can trust you after everything you’ve done,” the Avatar – Aang – decided. “We’ll never let you join us.”

Somehow it felt like the fragile ground of the Air Temple was giving way underneath Zuko’s feet. After all he had done, after all the battles he had fought, all the pain and rejection and self-hatred he had lived through, not even the people he had put his last bit of hope in seemed to see any chance of redemption for him.

“You need to get out of here,” the Water Tribe girl commanded. “Now.”

“I’m trying to explain that I’m not that person anymore,” Zuko shouted desperately, trying not to let the hurt and disappointment overwhelm him, his eyes helplessly searching for yours. You were still watching him, but something in your gaze had changed. That cold, calculating glimmer was gone, instead replaced by something that almost resembled pity.

It seemed like you were taking a deep breath in, getting ready to speak up, but the Water Tribe boy interrupted you before you even opened your mouth.

“Either you leave, or we attack.” The boy took a threatening step forward, pointing his boomerang at Zuko, his sharp and deadly looking boomerang.

“If you won't accept me as a friend,” Zuko knelt down on the ground, holding his hands over his head while facing the ground, offering them his wrists to bind them, “then maybe you'll take me as a prisoner.”

It was the only thing he could think of to do. He couldn’t go back home, not after he had very clearly declared himself as his father’s enemy. He didn’t know where his uncle had gone to, after breaking out of that prison cell before Zuko had tried to free him. And if the Avatar and his friends rejected him as a new member of their group, then he had nowhere to go. He had always felt alone, from a young age on, having grown up without any other boys to play with, only his cruel sister and her friends. Then his mother had disappeared, and he had felt even lonelier. That had been before his father, his own father, had exiled him. Back then he had thought he had lost everything, never realizing just how important his uncle had been to him, how he had looked out for him like a father was supposed to. He had never appreciated his uncle, and now he was gone, too. Zuko would rather be a prisoner than walk out of here and have no place to go, nowhere to belong, nobody to go home to.

“No, we won't!” The Water Tribe girl threw a wave of water at him, throwing him backwards, where he sat up in a puddle, drenched and with the distinct feeling that there simply was no end to this endless string of rejections he had lived through all his life. “Get out of here, and don't come back!”

Zuko turned around, laying in the puddle on the floor, staring up at the group. Aang and the two Water Tribe kids were staring him down with unveiled hatred in their eyes, the Earth Kingdom girl having taken a similar stance.

Only you seemed to be uncertain. It was not hard to tell that you were torn between agreeing with your friends and giving him a chance. But if he were in your position… he wouldn’t give himself a chance either. In fact, he probably long would have agreed with the others.

 “And if we ever see you again-” The Water Tribe girl seemed to try thinking of a good threat, but being unable to come up with anything, she continued: “Well, we'd better not see you again!”

Her brother took another threatening step towards Zuko, who quickly averted his gaze. Crawling backwards a bit, he slowly, carefully, got up, so they wouldn’t think he might try attacking them, before turning his back on them and walking away, each of his steps making his boots squelch from the water the girl’s attack had washed into them.

Had never felt as awkward in his life as the moment he was approaching the team around the Avatar in the ruins of the Western Air Temple. The setting sun was painting everything golden, drawing long shadows over the floors. His hands were tender from where he had caught the vine, after the Fire Nation assassin had kicked him over the ledge. Small scraps littered his palms, and he knew they would keep burning for a while.

He wasn’t disillusioned enough to hope that the Avatar would accept him into his group now, or that the Water Tribe girl might heal those scraps, as she had offered to try with his scar.

All he wanted… he just wanted them to give him a chance. He had tried to prove himself, that he was different now. That he had burnt the Earth Bender girl’s feet by accident obviously didn’t exactly speak in his favour. But still- a sense of silent pride washed over him as he looked up and found you were watching him approach with a small smile on your lips.

“I can’t believe I’m saying this, but-” the Avatar – Aang, his name was Aang – took a deep breath. “Thanks, Zuko.”

“Hey, what about me?” The Water Tribe boy immediately began complaining. “I did the boomerang thing.”

“Listen, I know I didn't explain myself very well yesterday,” Zuko began, hoping this time his explanation was somewhat more coherent than the previous one. He searched for your eyes, finding you were watching him expectantly. “I've been through a lot in the last few years, and it's been hard. But I'm realizing that I had to go through all those things to learn the truth. I thought I had lost my honour, and that somehow my father could return it to me.” He looked over the others. Aang listening with an almost determined expression, the two water tribe members frowning at him, the Earth Bending girl sitting on a rock. “But I know now that no one can give you your honour. It's something you earn for yourself, by choosing to do what's right.” He took a deep breath. “All I want to do now is play my part in ending this war, and I know my destiny is to help you restore balance to the world.”

It felt like he had never meant anything as much as this. Far too long had he tried to play along to his father’s rules, far too long had he been fooled into believing that only the reign of the Fire Nation over the world could mean a peaceful world. But if he had learnt anything in the past three, almost four years, then it was that the attack of the Fire Nation on the other nations had disturbed the balance, that all nations needed to exist in peace for there to be balance. And he was ready to help restore that balance.

It felt like the thick fog clouding his mind had finally lifted. And if he wanted to help, he had to start making up for the mistakes of his past self. Turning to the Earth Bending girl, he said: “I'm sorry for what I did to you.” Placing his right fist against his left hand, he bowed to her. “It was an accident. Fire can be dangerous and wild, so as a Fire Bender, I need to be more careful and control my bending, so I don't hurt people unintentionally.”

“I think you are supposed to be my Fire Bending teacher.”

Zuko’s eyes snapped over to the- to Aang. Did he actually mean that? Was he really going to accept Zuko’s offer?

“When I first tried to learn Fire Bending,” Aang continued, even though the two Water Tribe siblings seemed shocked, “I burned Katara.” So that was the Water Bending girl’s name. Katara. “And after that, I never wanted to Fire Bend again. But now I know you understand how easy it is to hurt the people you love. I'd like you to teach me.”

Aang bowed deeply before Zuko, who had listened attentively, unable to believe the boy’s words. Were his efforts really paying off?

Quickly Zuko bowed back. “Thank you,” Zuko smiled relieved. “I’m so happy you’ve accepted me into your group.” For once in his life, he’d get to be part of a group he actually wanted to belong to, a group he was part of because he had asked to be part of, not because he had been assigned a part in it.

“Not so fast,” Aang disagreed. Maybe Zuko had let excitement and relief take over too quickly. “I still have to ask my friends if it’s okay with them.”

Oh no, that would probably not end well for Zuko. Yesterday, before he had hurt the Earth Bender, it might have been two against two, the Water Tribe siblings against you and the Earth Bender. But after he had hurt that girl, there was no way she would speak in his favour now.

“Toph,” Aang turned to the Earth Bender. Toph? Another name to add to the list. (y/n), Aang, Toph and Katara. “You're the one that Zuko burned. What do you think?”

Zuko held his breath, feeling his heart pick up speed. If she denied-

“Go ahead and let him join,” the girl answered in an almost indifferent tone. “It'll give me plenty of time to get back at him for burning my feet,” she added, pounding her fist against her palm and Zuko could only hope she’d go easy on him. She was a powerful Earth Bender after all, and there was only so much he could do against a boulder crashing down on him.

Aang nodded at the Earth Bender’s words before turning to the Water Tribe boy.

“Sokka?”

So that was the boy’s name. Now Zuko only had to memorise the names.

Sokka glared at Zuko for a moment before shrugging. “Hey, all I want is to defeat the Fire Lord. If you think this is the way to do it, then, I'm all for it.”

Zuko released a breath he didn’t realise he had been holding, before his eyes moved onto the next person in the group. The Water Tribe girl.

“Katara?”

Zuko tensed up under her intense stare and he was only glad she couldn’t shoot fire from her eyes, otherwise he’d be well done by now.

“I'll go along with whatever you think is right,” she finally declared reluctantly.

“(y/n),” Aang turned to you. “What do you think? You said he tried to free Appa, but you were right about what you said earlier about his uncle.”

Zuko, who had almost dared relaxing, certain you wouldn’t object to him joining the group, froze. What had you said about him and his uncle? After he had convinced all the others that he could teach the Avatar Fire Bending, would you veto their decision?

With bated breath he turned to you. Your smile from before had disappeared entirely and instead you were chewing on your bottom lip, mustering Zuko with a gaze as cold as ice.

“You betrayed your own uncle,” you accused, watching his face carefully. “We were beginning to think we might be able to trust you and you betrayed your uncle, who accompanied you all this time. We can't know you won’t do the same to us as well.”

Zuko stared at you, horrified. The problem was you were not wrong. He had betrayed his uncle. He wanted to explain that he had clung to the stupid and naïve idea that he could go back home to his father and sister, and finally be accepted, be loved. But it felt like his tongue was as heavy as lead, making it impossible for him to speak and explain himself. But it didn’t seem like you were expecting an explanation anyway, because after a short moment you continued.

“We can’t know you won’t betray us. But I trust you won’t, so you better not let me down.” Zuko lifted his head, staring at you in disbelief. What did this mean? Did this mean you really- “Welcome to Team Avatar,” you finished.

Zuko felt like a weight was falling off his shoulders. “I won’t let you down,” he exclaimed excitedly, approaching the group. “I promise!”

Before he could reach them, they turned away, walking towards the inside of the temple, Sokka carrying Toph. You were the only one who shot him a last glance over your shoulder, and suddenly Zuko realized that this had only been the first step. He might have been accepted into the group, but he still was not a part of it. He still had to prove himself first. By all the spirits, he was tired. All this time he had done nothing but trying to prove himself, first to his father, now to the Avatar’s team. Well, he could still hold out a little longer, put in a little more work.

Zuko sat on his bed, holding the portrait of his uncle in his hands. Katara’s threat from before still echoed in his mind. The light outside had dimmed enough for the room to be covered in a mysterious twilight, blurring the lines of the simple portrait enough that if he hadn’t known Uncle Iroh’s face as well as he did, he might not have recognized it.

Was he ever going to see him again? Where was he now? And if he saw him again, would he forgive him? Zuko shook his head. There were other things to worry about right now.

He had to show the others that he was loyal to them. Whatever it took for them to believe him, he had to do it. No matter how dangerous or risky or stupid it might seem, he had to prove himself to them. And he had to find a good way to teach Aang Fire Bending. After all, that was why they had accepted him in the first place: Because he was their best chance at Aang learning Fire Bending. If he couldn’t do that, he wouldn’t earn his stay in the group.

A knock on the closed door startled him, and quickly he sat up straight.

“Yes,” he called, curious to see who had come to look for him.

Much to his delight, it was you, who poked her head into his spacious room. A smile pulled at his lips, and Zuko realized having joined the Avatar had the previously unconsidered advantage that he’d get to see you now every day.

Zuko’s happiness was only short lived though, because a moment later he remembered your words from before, how you had reminded everybody, how you had reminded him – of his betrayal of his uncle. You were not the person he had begun imagining throughout all these nights in which he had felt so lonely and desperate for the faintest slither of approval and sympathy.

You were a young girl who had joined the Avatar, for whatever reason, and spent the past months fearlessly facing off against the most capable Fire Benders and the biggest army in the world, determined to defend your friends. You were so much more than whatever he had conjured up for his own comfort.

Your brows furrowed as you watched his smile fall, tilting your head at him.

“You okay,” you asked, making Zuko flinch.

“Yeah,” he quickly answered, “I’m fine, what’s up.”

“Dinner’s almost ready,” you let him know, clearly not believing his answer. Considering he had lived undercover as Lee from his uncle’s tea shop, he was still a surprisingly bad liar. “But… I wanted to talk to you before that. Can I come in?”

A mixture of excitement and anxiety settled in Zuko’s stomach, but he nodded, jumping up from his bed to invite you in.

“What did you want to talk about,” he asked, hoping he wasn’t digging his own grave.

“Just-” you shrugged, stepping into the room and closing the door behind you. “I know I was pretty hard on you earlier. You saved our lives out there. I shouldn’t have brought your uncle back up.”

“You had every right to,” Zuko denied. “I know you are taking a risk by giving me a chance. For all you know, I could just send a messenger hawk and give your location away to my father.”

“Will you?”

Zuko stared at you for a moment. Did you really think he would do that?

“No,” he answered incredulously. “I told you: I’m with you now. I want to help the Avatar bring down my father and end this war, so the world can shift back into balance.”

You shrugged. “I got no choice but to believe you.”

“That’s not true,” Zuko disagreed. “You could have said you don’t trust me. Earlier, you could have told the others you don’t want me in your group.”

“And send away the best chance we have, to teach Aang Fire Bending? I don’t think so. Besides,” you sighed and leant against the wall by the door, “I believe you. That you want this war to end, I mean.”

“Why?”

You shrugged, taking in Zuko’s form as he was helplessly standing in the middle of the room. “There’s something different about you. Makes me want to give you a chance.”

Zuko nodded, watching as you absentmindedly reached for the fire pendant on the leather strap around your neck. He had seen you wear it before, that time he had gotten you out of Zhao’s prison.

“Are you Fire Nation,” he asked before he had even thought his question through.

“What makes you say that,” you asked back, almost defensively now.

“The pendant,” he explained. “You wore it when I got you and the Avatar out of Zhao’s prison.”

“His name’s Aang.”

“What?”

“The Avatar’s name. It’s Aang,” you repeated.

“Oh, yeah. I know.”

“Then use it. But you’re right. I’m Fire Nation,” you answered. “Or at least I was born as Fire Nation. My family moved to one of the new colonies when I was very little, but my dad died shortly after.”

“I’m sorry,” Zuko mumbled. He knew what it was like to lose a parent.

“It was awful,” you agreed. “He got very sick, and there was nothing the doctors could do. A while after, my mum remarried, a man from the Earth Kingdom, and we moved away from the colony. We had to hide we were Fire Nation, but we were happy. At least until my brother died. He died in the war. He stayed behind in Yu Dao and joined the Fire Nation army.”

Zuko watched how you tensed up, your hand tightly closed around the pendent now. “He gave me this,” you added, lifting your fist. “It’s the only thing I have left of my family. And he died for nothing.”

“Don’t say that,” Zuko disagreed. “I’m sure that through his sacrifice he saved others. It’s little comfort but-”

“No,” you shook your head. “His whole unit got wiped out. The whole 41rst.”

Zuko froze. The 41rst? The unit he had tried to speak up for in his father’s war council? The unit he had tried to protect and been sent to an Agni Kai for, been exiled for? He wanted to tell you, wanted to tell you that he had tried to speak up against the unit’s sacrifice, but he kept the knowledge to himself. It made no difference whether you knew or not. And even if you would believe him, it was too early to share this fact with you. Instead, he just swallowed thickly.

“I’m sorry,” he repeated.

“You weren’t the one slaughtering him, were you,” you asked, shaking your head with a sigh. “It only got worse after that. Last year the Fire Nation attacked out village. I was in the forest, so I wasn’t there when they burnt down the house. They killed both my mother and my stepfather. I don’t know what happened to my sister.”

“You have a sister?”

“Have, had, I don’t know. She might be dead for all I know. If she’s not, she’s probably with the Fire Nation now. She’s my half-sister. If she’s alive, she’d be six now.”

“Why did the Fire Nation attack your village,” Zuko asked, trying not to picture what the Fire Nation would do to the children of the enemy.

“I think they were just claiming new territory. They never cared how many people they had to kill in order to advance with their plan to take over the world.”

Zuko lowered his head. He had been so oblivious all these years, never caring about anybody other than himself, refusing to see the destruction his father’s plans rained on the world.

“You’ve been through a lot,” he admitted, lifting his head again to look at you. Your hair was falling down past your shoulders, unbound now and reflecting the blue light of the evening. You looked eternal in the twilight, and even though pain was swimming in your eyes, Zuko could also see the strength it had taken you to keep fighting all the time. He admired your resilience, he admired you. You were perfect in his eyes, strong and still gentle, hurt so many times but never bitter, a fighter, who after all the evil you had seen still believed in the good in people. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have given him a chance.

“We all have been through a lot,” you replied. “You too, you said so yourself.”

Zuko nodded. “But it feels like all the bad things in my life were something I caused myself. Your family has been a playball of my father’s.”

“I don’t believe that you are to blame for all the bad things that happened to you,” you disagreed. “You – just like all of us – are just a product of the adults who raised you. And-”

You got interrupted by a voice shouting for you.

“Dinner’s ready!”

“That’s Sokka,” you concluded. “Let’s go, before he and Aang finish everything before we even get a chance.” You pushed away from the wall and opened the door before turning to Zuko again. “Don’t be too harsh on yourself,” you told him. “And don’t focus too much on the past. There’s nothing you can change about it now. Help us change the future instead.”

And with those words you slipped out of the room, leaving Zuko wondering whether his uncle’s spirit had possessed you there for a moment before he quickly hurried after you, looking forward to whatever there would be served for dinner.

Tags (it seems like some of the tags aren't working, sorry...): @ghoststookourlifes

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[dumbkiri]

𝐁𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐃 𝐒𝐈𝐁𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐒 𝟐

Highly requested and I am so sorry it took forever to get this out. I'm still a bit unhappy with this work and I need to get back into the Batboys and their behaviors lol

For now enjoy this part two of Blood Siblings

"You need to strike with more force, [Name]. I haven't seen you this bored since Damian left," Her instructor, Ali, looked at her with his dark brown eyes. His arms fell down at his sides and he set the bottom of his staff down. “Is there anything you-”

“I saw my brother when I left for that short period of time,” [Name] said with her head held down in shame. Her eyes had shown conflict swirling around in the light of the early sun. Her mind was elsewhere and not in her morning training. Her hands wrapped up in white tape screamed at her to use them to fight. 

Her hands knew nothing besides fighting and killing.

Not even the feeling of someone holding it with care and security. 

“And I saw my father. Zhao was going to kill them, but I put a stop to it.” 

She looked up at her instructor and he had his mouth wide open. Then he walked up to her at a brisk pace and set his hands on her shoulder, he whispered, “Does your mother know about this? If she finds out—“ 

“I can handle her punishment, Ali, so there’s no need to worry.” [Name] said looking up at Ali to reassure him. Talia wasn’t the greatest mother, she rarely showed any affection toward her. But she did have her moments. “Damian looked at me in disgust as if I was the one who did something bad. I killed our enemy and saved them by being overrun. So why?” 

Ali moved back and set his hands on his hips in thought. He put his hand under his chin and said, “It’s because he doesn’t have that drive to kill anymore. We don’t have to fight our enemies over and over again because we put an end to their lives. Damian fights in a different way, one that doesn’t really benefit him.” 

“But killing is wrong to him and…” [Name] looked at Ali and whispered to him, “My father said that I was welcomed. That I could be there with him, with my brother.”The hopeful look in her eyes shattered upon seeing her instructor’s face.  

Ali’s eyes grew big and wide as saucers. He shook his head in denial and replied to her ridiculous statement, “You can’t do that, [Name]. Your mother will hunt you down and punish you. Talia will not forgive you for running away, she already gave up on one of her children. She won’t give up on you.” 

[Name] knew Ali was right, maybe that’s why she had this terrible feeling in her gut. She could never be free. She felt like a lioness trapped in a cage pacing back and forth memorizing the perimeter. “I know that, Ali.”

“You know what?” A curt voice cut through their conversation.

[Name] and Ali turned their attention to Talia who stood at the entrance of the training area. The daughter sighed and showed her bandaged hands to her mother, “Ali was reminding me that I should strike with more force. But I don’t know how hard I’m hitting when I can’t feel the pain.”

“Obviously not hard enough if your instructor is telling you,” Talia put her hands on her hips leaning on her right leg. Her eyes were dead set on [Name] and the younger female felt suspicious of her mother. Ali noticed the tension and he brought out some tape taking [Name]’s shaky hands in his. “[Name] let me rewrap your hands. It seems the ones you are wearing are too bloody.” 

[Name] pulled her hand back and said, “I’m fine, Ali. Let’s continue with-”

“No.” Talia said sternly. The older female walked down the stairs with a dark look across her face. Ali immediately took a step back feeling the wrath from Talia come off in waves. [Name] felt it too, but she stood her ground. She wasn’t going to back down from her mother. She would go through torture to keep her pride. Not that the beating did anything to her when she couldn’t feel pain. 

[Name] didn’t dare speak first to her mother and waited for the woman to speak her mind. To ask her questions.

“I know you killed Zhao, many of the assassins that accompanied you two mentioned how you were the one who brought him down.”

“I had a perfect reason to stop him, “ [Name] stated looking at her mother with determined eyes. 

“And what was that reason?” Talia asked with gritted teeth. Her anger showed and it was as if she wasn’t trying to hide it. 

[Name] swallowed the lump in her throat, “Zhao was planning to kill Damian. I stopped him from committing that treason. I won’t allow scum like Zhao to end my brother.” The bracelet she wore around her ankle while training reminded her of her bond with her brother. Despite not helping her a lot himself, she would do anything for Damian. Anything for approval because she knew life with the League wasn’t worth it. 

Obviously Damian thought the same because he never returned. 

Talia raised her hand and back handed the girl with a scowl on her face. “Zhao was ordered to kill Damian, you stupid girl. He had to do it to show his loyalty to you and you killed the man who was going to be your husband.” 

[Name] spit some blood on the cement floor and glared back at her mother. Talia wiped her hand and the scowl on her face never disappeared. “That look,” Talia muttered, “that’s how your father and brother stare at me.”

[Name] straightened out her back and said, “I understand why they do. You’re a monster.” 

Talia laughed and replied back, “My daughter, you will receive that same look from them when you show them your true colors.”

Then everything happened so fast. Ali yelled out her name and [Name] saw many assassins attack Ali with incredible speed coming out of their hiding spots. [Name] took a giant leap toward her mentor, but she was tackled by two other assassins. Quickly, one had sedated her, stabbing her arm with the needle of the syringe. 

She watched as Ali defended himself from his once comrades. 

Talia stepped over to [Name]’s slumped body and said, “I will break your spirit and you’ll become a ghost again. You brought this pain and suffering onto yourself.” 

[Name] could hear Ali’s grunts of pain and suffering. The kicks and punches the assassins delivered. They were merciless. They were demons. Ali’s blood was…everywhere. On his clothing, his body, on their fists and shoes, on the cement floor. She could only watch as she was pinned down. [Name] stopped struggling seeing the life leave Ali’s eyes and his body fell to the floor with a thump. Her heart raced from the disgusting sight. 

Her mentor, the only one who cared for her in this godforsaken place, had died right in front of her. She was woken from her sad state when Talia struck her face with her shoe. Blood leaving her nose and a bruise formed on her cheek. “Don’t worry, darling,” Talia crouched down in front of her and [Name] stared at her with a heated look, “Ali is in a better place now. But you, your punishment starts here and you’re working for me.” 

……

“You are going to pose as a captive of Joker.”

[Name] sat strapped onto a wooden chair. Bruises decorated her body in various places, but that didn’t bother her. The thing that irritated her was the mucky environment and the stench of dead bodies at her feet. 

“We need him to lure out your father and your brother.”

She looked around the living room she was stuck in for 4 days and began counting the seconds in her head, never stopping. It was how she kept track of the time, how much longer that psychotic man and his even crazier girlfriend would walk in with a bottle of water for her. 

“This…man…you will not lay a hand on him. You will need to keep him in front of you and bring your father into the light. Make him vulnerable and when the moment is right, kill him.”

[Name] heard the creak of the door first before it slammed open revealing the green haired man and his crooked smile. He held a bottle of water in his right hand and he dragged a mallet in his left. She knew that the mallet belonged to his woman; Harley Quinn. 

She waited for him to smack that thing across her face like he did to the dead ones at her feet. But Joker had something else in mind as the mallet glided across the wood floor. He set it up against the wall and chuckled, sitting down right next to it. 

“It’s been two days, little killer,” Joker taunted, holding the water bottle in the air, “two days since you’ve drank your last sip of water and four days since you’ve eaten.”

[Name] knew that, but kept her mouth closed. She hated talking in general, most of all this guy wasn’t someone she wanted to talk to. Her eyes flitted across the room and to the wall opposite of Joker. Another body, most recent, was a woman wearing a pale pink pencil skirt and a white button up shirt. Her heels were on the floor that were kicked off in her struggle to keep the largest of thugs Joker owned off her. 

But she wasn’t much of a warrior. She was an innocent woman that worked for the wrong man, Bruce Wayne. [Name] remembers her screams and the sound she made when the thug slammed her body on the wooden table that matched the small decorations of the chair she was strapped to. 

She remembered the sound of her skull being crushed by Harley Quinn’s evil swing of the malicious mallet. They all laughed when the table broke from the force and the smashed brains scattered in that area. 

The flashbacks of it all came to a stop when thunder rolled and lightning flashed lighting the small apartment up more. “You’re just like him, you know?” Joker said as he put his hand underneath his chin and his elbow rested on his knee. He scrutinized her. 

[Name] just hummed in response and Joker jumped up excitedly. He pointed the water bottle in her direction with a maniacal laugh, “There! Right there, little killer! That hum you made as a response to my statement sent shivers down my spine. That look you give when you want water too! Oh my, I just want to carve you up for him!”

Just like that, Joker dropped the water bottle on the floor and strode over to her with quickened steps. He pulled out a pocket knife from his purple blazer and pointed the blade at her lips. He grabbed her neck in his gloved hand and slipped upward to her chin. [Name] didn’t move or show fear in her eyes and that made Joker all the more ecstatic. 

“Now smile for me, little killer. Show me what you got,” The purr he let out as he let his fingers glide across her flushed lips was disgusting. [Name] wanted to shove that knife into his eye so badly. “I said,” Joker used both of his thumbs to spread her lips open, showing her pearly white teeth, “to show me your smile.”

“I don’t smile,” [Name] pulled her head away from him and replied coolly and to her surprise, Joker relaxed his tense shoulders. His hands retracted to his sides and he backed up with a less than pleased expression, “He would have shown a smile, I knew he would have. I know him, but you,” Joker drawled out angrily, pointing the knife at her, “I don’t know you. Not yet, at least!” He laughed into the air and he spread his arms out wide. 

“Come in, boys. I wanna see if this little killer can put on the same show he does!”

Ten thugs walked in some holding bats and wrenches in their hands as they filtered in the living room. They stood in a horizontal line behind Joker showing their ugly faces and terrible outfits. They really were crazy people in this awful city. Why would she want to live with her brother and father in this city of filth? 

“Clean up any other mess that tries to dirty you, my girl.”

Then a switch went off, [Name] moved on autopilot. She removed the rope around her torso the day the loonies tied her up there and it felt good when it slid off her body. Joker smiled and began to bow in front of her, “I present to you…the little killer of the desert.”

……

“This is!” Damian slammed his fist on the wall and glared angrily at the Bat Computer. He was enraged seeing the sight on the big screen. A picture of his twin sister tied up to a chair seemingly unconscious and beaten bloody. 

Bruce was just as angry as his son, but he couldn’t let that cloud his judgment. Just what was Talia thinking? “Joker sent this to Gordon stating that he caught an assassin from the League,” Tim piped up looking at Damian who was seething in the corner. 

“What is she doing back in Gotham?” Damian asked himself, removing his fist from the wall. He stalked over to the computer and analyzed the photo closer. “I know she can get out of those ropes, maybe she escaped already. But if that’s true, she wouldn’t hesitate to kill Joker.” 

“Finally, we have someone in the family willing to kill that psychotic clown you call a human being,” Jason, donned in his Red Hood costume, crossed his arms over his chest. Everyone looked back at him and he shrugged his shoulders carelessly, “What? I’m just saying that maybe if you just kill the guy, the city can finally get back on its feet. I died because of him, so cut me some slack when your “morality” is on the line.” 

Bruce stood up and grabbed his cowl, speed walking to the Batmobile. “I want everyone searching for her right now.” Damian followed Bruce, right on his tail and said, “Do you think she came back to live with us?”

Bruce jumped into the Batmobile and Damian did the same. Then Bruce pulled out of the Batcave with Jason and Tim trailing behind on their motorcycles. They were driving anywhere and everywhere for clues on where she could be. The rain slapped the earth with a rageful night of fighting. And Damian had to think, question why his sister came back if not for the first reason he gave out. 

“Your mother wouldn’t have let her go that easily, Damian.” Batman replied after a while of thinking.

“I know that, but I got out. [Name] can do the same and I think she only got caught by Joker to get us out,” Damian speculated with his eyes looking at the streets his father sped by. 

Bruce hummed and opened his mouth to say something, but a man wearing a clown mask jumped in front of the Batmobile with his gun raised high in surrender. Immediately, Bruce yanked the wheel to the left and narrowly dodged the masked man. The Batmobile spun out of control before Bruce used the boosters of the vehicle to spin it in the other direction regaining traction.

It worked and Damian looked at his father with a glare, “And you say I can’t drive.” 

……

“W-we need help,” The clown thug pressed his gun closer to his chest, not wanting Batman or his sidekicks to take the only weapon that can protect him away. “She…she’s killing everyone and she’s too fast. Everything we did…she can’t feel it! Her blood, their blood…it’s everywhere!” The thug cried out and pointed toward the alleyway that he popped out from. 

“Who are you talking about?” Batman asked, but he knew full well who the man was speaking about. [Name] was skilled, maybe even more than Damian. He heard the stories of his daughter and felt guilt for not taking her with him. She must have been on the verge of breaking and tonight Joker broke her. 

“Joker called her The Little Killer of the Desert,” The thug looked around to make sure she wasn’t around to hear him. “And she went on this rampage! We hit her with our best shots and she’s still running around killing all of us!” 

“And what about Joker?” Damian walked up after giving his brothers a heads up about their location and status. 

The thug shook his head and scoffed, “That crazy bastard laughed and for some reason, she left him alone even though he instigated her! I’m telling you, you guys won’t even stand a chance against her.”

Damian rolled his eyes and began walking into the alley filled with determination to save his sister. Their mother must have brainwashed her with a mission and keywords to have her perform a massacre on Joker’s men. 

Damian wasn’t surprised to see a factory in Joker and Harley’s style the more they walked into the area. Neon lights were everywhere as well as clown faces and diamond shapes all over the walls. Then there was a chorus of hoots and hollers from a radio, a fake audience. 

A miniature fighting pit had been made in the center of the apartment complex and right in front of the factory. Then a cry of help was heard before the man choked on a heap of his blood. A katana dug deep into his back, the tip of it connecting with his heart of black. Then it protruded out of his chest covered in blood and rain.

“Oh, come on! Is there anyone out there able to stop her! This is getting boring!” Joker’s voice shouted watching the teenage girl swiftly take her katana back. The body in front of her dropped joining with other dead ones surrounding her. 

Joker stood up from his makeshift throne and pointed over at Damian, “The Boy Wonder! What a crazy match up against my little killer! Come on in and take your best shot, be careful though she has been-” He cackled and gestured to the bodies, “killing all of her opponents!” 

Damian cursed under his breath and looked back at Batman, “I can take her on while you catch Joker na question him on why he had her in the first place.” 

Batman silently stared at Damian and mulled over his words. Then he looked over at Joker saying to the teen, “I’ll be back as soon as I can.” 

…

Soon felt like forever especially when Damian struggled to capture his sister. “Is this what Grayson felt like when I first met him?” Damian grunted out when [Name]’s fist made contact with his nose. In his daze, [Name] jumped at him and straddled his waist. Quickly she swiped a kunai from her vest and aimed it at his heart. 

“Snap out of it!” Damian shouted, his hands holding back her own which held tightly onto her kunai. The tip of it touched the tip of his padded armor and he felt her weight pushing forward to drive it into him. She said nothing the entire time she fought him and she still said nothing trying to end his life. 

“This isn’t you!” Damian grunted out, holding her back as much as he could. “I am your brother! You are my sister! Wake up, [Name]!”

She didn’t relent. His words weren’t reaching her. Their mother, their cruel mother must have spent weeks breaking her mind in order for her to forget about him. He yelled out as he forced the kunai away from his chest where his heart lay. His eyes blinked away the rain that fell on his face and her face drowned out in the background. 

Instead his eyes focused on the bracelet he tied around his wrist today. The little charm on it with the button inside gave him some sort of hope. Maybe this could wake her up from this nightmare. Making quick work, Damian let the kunai dig into his right palm and he cried out while pressing the button on the bracelet. 

His blood dripped onto his face as the sound of a small beeping came from her ankle. It beeps continuously and he looked up at her this time, seeing his distraught sister. Not the killer their mother made her to be. The noise, this certain beep, has been her saving grace for a while now. 

“Brother, did you know?” She asked quietly, afraid that somewhere their mother was watching them from afar. She pressed the dagger closer to his chest, keeping up this charade. When Damian subtly shook his head in disagreement, she went on to explain, “Mother brainwashed me with certain words and methods. I killed so many people under the guise of Little Killer of the Desert and I woke up in their blood with their bodies surrounding me. So Ali used the beeps of this charm to snap me out of it. It took trial and error because it had to be activated by you in order for it to ring.” 

[Name] snatched her hands away from Damian’s grasp and with a flash of lightning above their heads, he felt the sharp blade at his neck. “The bracelet went missing for a year, do you remember that? Ali stole it one night and we began training my mind to listen for it. I was sent with Zhao to kill you. But you pressed this charm and snapped me out of my mission. And here I am, on the same mission.”

She backed up and pushed herself off of Damian’s body. She couldn’t look him in the eyes, not when she failed again. “One of us has to die in order for the other to live, Damian,” She dropped her kunai onto the floor and cried, her tears mixing with the rain. She can’t kill her brother, he has a life to live and it’s a fulfilling one. While she…she’s always been a ghost, no one on this planet knows she lives. 

Damian has a family, he has friends and he has enemies that know of him. 

Now [Name] has her brother, only Damian knows how she laughs or how she used to pull pranks on him when they were younger. He knows that she likes to read books, to dive into different worlds that aren't always just about fighting. Damian knows she likes to dream, to dream of a life where she’s in control. 

“It’s me or you, brother,” She swallowed thickly and brought her eyes up to him, “Do you understand?” 

“I understand.” He solemnly whispers and with another flash of lightning, she attacked him. In his defense, Damian picked up the kunai off the floor and raised it up. His instinct had been faster than what his father taught him. The kunai she slipped from her hip didn’t even make it to his heart. But his did with a nasty squelch. 

He refused to move, but she pressed it further into her chest and smiled softly. The relief, it was such a relief to feel the weight of all the ones she killed off her shoulders and back. Blood leaked from the corner of her lips as she said, “Better you than her.” [Name] looked up from his teary eyes and at the woman standing about ten feet away from them. She rather die in her brother’s arms than the woman who claimed to be their mother. 

“Live long, Damian.” [Name] gazed down at his trembling hand that caused her death. Yes, her death would haunt him forever. But he understood what she meant. He had to be the one to end her life. She held his hand tightly in hers and she slumped forward in his sitting position. Her head hit his shoulder and he sat paralyzed in his spot. 

His beating heart pounded louder than the rain hitting the cement. He struggled to breathe because he felt the breath leaving her lungs. He felt her tight grip weakening and her heart slowing down. “No, wait,” Damian pleaded and shoved her backwards, her eyes already closed, “no, this wasn’t- Why! Why would you make me do that!” He shouted in anguish. 

Then the clicking of calculated steps from behind him got louder. Talia was here to collect his sister’s body, probably to drop her in the pit. He couldn’t let that happen. [Name] belonged with him, finally put to rest and to move on. 

Before Talia could reach any closer to her children, a clang of metal pierced the air. A batarang stuck out from the cement, warning Talia not to step any closer to the twins. 

“Back away from them,” A deep voice warned with anger laced in his threatening tone. 

Damian looked up from [Name]’s fatal wound and saw his father emerge from the shadows with a beaten Joker and Harley Quinn. Both criminals were knocked out and captured, his bloody knuckles holding tight onto their leashes. 

“I’m taking her back, she belongs with me” Talia said with a click of her tongue.

Batman dropped the criminals onto the floor and walked with an aura of darkness shrouding him. He stepped right in front of a crouching Damian who held tightly onto [Name]’s dead body. 

“She’s going home with us and having a proper burial. She deserves it,” Batman said.

“You don’t know what the girl deserves!” Talia lashed out, her nails digging into her palms. 

“She’s not your daughter, Talia!” He snapped back. 

“You ruined that the moment she died and you resurrected her in the pit. You forced her into becoming a killing machine, making her forget who she truly was. A girl who loved playing tricks on her brother, a girl who read books to escape her reality and a girl who dreamed of a life that belonged to her. You stripped away my right to being her father and supporting her like I did for her brother. She’s going home where she belongs.”

Talia faltered and looked down at her children. Damian was still in a stump, never moved away from the feuding parents. “How much did he tell you about her?” 

“Everything,” Bruce said with a stern voice, “I wanted to know what my daughter was like. If she had any hobbies or interests besides what you made her do. I wanted to know her just in case she came back with us, just in case she wanted my help getting away from you. I may not have been the greatest father or the best at times, but hearing about you and what you did to [Name]...” 

Bruce wanted to ask how Talia could mistreat [Name] like that. But one look at Damian and he knew he needed to get his son home before he completely broke. 

“She’s an assassin to you, but she’ll be a daughter to me most and foremost.” Bruce declared and Talia scoffed at his words before turning on her heel. If Talia had the League with her, maybe she stood a chance against Batman, but she didn’t. 

With Talia gone, Bruce knelt down in front of his grieving son and placed a hand onto his shoulder to ground him. 

“Damian,” Bruce called out gently, “it’s time to go home.” 

Damian looked down at [Name] and pressed his face into the crook of her neck and let out a wail of sadness. Those words should have been for [Name] too. It was always what she wanted to hear. Instead she lived a life as a ghost. Her name will be remembered only by him and their father. 

He didn't understand why this had to end like this. So why did he tell her he understood?

[alipeeps]

Episode 16

I'm ready for the pain. *whimpers* Bring it on...

.......

Whyyyy is Zhu Yan's (much shorter) hair fully grey when he was younger? Is my boy vain? Did he start colouring it as he got older? 😂

Okay so young Li Lun is a sulky bitch. I'm getting "teenager forced to come on a family holiday and determined to hate it just because" vibes...

Why do I feel like I know the dragon mountain god somewhere?

*goes to check MDL*

Meh, he's done this and My Journey to You (which I only got a few eps into before getting distracted) and two movies that I've not seen. So, no idea why he seems familiar.

Though for some reason (his styling maybe - with the braids and the hint of moustache?) he is giving me Nie Mingjue vibes...

Ahahahaaaa they knew in advance that Zhu Yin was skanky!! 😁

Gotta say (I have mentioned it before) I am loving the narrative device they keep using in this show where they flash back to a previous scene and show more of it/detail that we didn't get shown the first time around that completely reframes the current scene and shows that they were expecting this and had stuff planned in advance...

But wherrrre is my boy Bai Jui during all this? Ying Lei asked this earlier and Zhuo Yichen said he should be with Pei Sijing... I took that at the time to mean they still had no idea that Sijing is the spy and thought he was somewhere safe with her... but could it mean that they do know/suspect and they maybe sent Bai Jiu after her, knowing she would spot him and (trusting she wouldn't actually hurt or kill him - which is a big risk tbh?) would have to stay and guard him, thus keeping Bai Jiu away from the fight *and* taking Sijing out of the fight?

Aiya... Ying Lei living up to his potential as a mountain god...

Uhoh, dragon boy is fighting back with his weather-controlling powers.

And Li Lun is just standing there not doing shit. 😂 Like... dude... they are all occupied with either holding the area or spell-casting inside it. You could just walk up and stab em and they wouldn't be able to do much to fight you off...

Oh shit no... dragon dude is not controlling the weather... he's making it night time rather than day...

Which means... blood moon

Oh SHIT!

Welp Zhu Yan pulling in all the malicious qi has at least dealt with the creatures outside the gate... but on the other hand you've now got a MUCH bigger problem!!

Well fuck

So the Baize token was what was shackling Li Lun and that's why he wanted it broken... bullshit about breaking the barrier between the wasteland and the mortal world so demons could be free was just the lie he sold Zhu Yin to get him on board (just like the lie he sold Qing Geng - this is his modus operandi)

God this is glorious imagery...

Goddamit though, Zhu Yan has absorbed all the malicious qi and very clearly lost control but all he does for the longest time is just hover there... he doesn't immediately go on an indiscriminate rampage. I can only imagine him spending all that time hovering just... trying to cling to control...?

And the first person he *does* go for is Zhu Yin, who betrayed him and his friends.

Ugh the dismissive ease with which he shrugs off the mountain god's power...

Oh man, the slow deliberate malice in the way he moves...

I shouldn't be finding this expression hot AF, right?

OMG look at how distressed he is - even after everything Li Lun has done - at seeing his friend be sealed...

So... it was *again* a blood moon that caused Zhu Yan to kill Zhao Wan'er? But... where did the blood moon suddenly come from? Or did it appear *because* Zhu Yan started absorbing malicious qi?

The *sound* in this scene... no music at all... just silence and the over-loud, almost distorted-sounding sounds - slosh of the water from Wan'er's footsteps, her breathing, the washing of the waves....

So. Fucking. Atmospheric.

But wait, in this memory he attacks Wen Xiao and (it looks like?) ?breaks her neck? (Or does he just knock her unconscious?) That didn't happen though in the other depictions we've seen of this scene? Is this memory faked/altered? In fact... how the fuck can Li Lun be showing her a "memory" of shit that went down after he was sealed? He wasn't there to see any of this? I call bullshit! Unless... he somehow stole this memory from Zhu Yan?

Oh SHIT is the blood moon where he killed Wan'er the same one in which he attacked Demon Hunting Bureau?!!

This song by Hou Minghao is so melancholy and haunting... and even more playing over this scene...

Oh what the fuck Sijing actually fighting on the side of the good guys? Or is she...?

Also wtf happened to her boss who was outside the gate. Why has he not gotten involved in the latest shenanigans... he wants Zhu Yan's core still, doesn't he?

Oooh baby bro enters the fray!!

Using Ying Lei's blood to fire up the sword?!

Oooh divine blood, demon blood & the Bingyi clan blood on the sword = maximum effort!

Ooooooh is he faking? I've been slightly spoiled about Zhu Yan giving him immunity to his one word spell... are we gonna get another flashback showing that that already happened and Zhuo Yichen is once again pretending to be in a coma to get the upper hand?

Fuck WHAT?!! You end it THERE?!!!

And it's fucking 3am, I cannot watch another episode, I will have to go to bed and SUFFER until tomorrow!!

[onmyo-jin]

ZYZ + ZYC = 20. Kiss on a scar ♥️

Amazing choice, thank you! This one went a little maudling...

I'm still taking prompts! You can find the full list here, or feel free to make up a fun addition to the list~

Zhao Yuanzhou forgets at times how easily humans scar. How they carry the visual, visceral evidence of their defeats or their victories on their bodies for the entirety of their short lifespans. He shudders at the thought: if one had to wear one's scars for life, at his age he might be covered in scars. It's probably for the best he can heal himself as well as he can.

Next to him on the bed Zhou Yichen sleeps on, unaware he is being watched so carefully. He claims he sleeps better when someone is with him, and to his credit Zhao Yuanzhou hasn't seen him have any nightmares on any of the nights they spent together. If he makes sure to thoroughly exhaust Zhou Yichen before he falls asleep, well, one does what one must to help a friend avoid nightmares.

The sweat they worked up together has since dried on Yichen's skin, but the smell of them still lingers in the room. These quiet moments feel like a luxury, and he would wake Yichen to share the moment, but waking him would break the moment too, and Yichen would not appreciate being woken for anything other than an emergency.

So Zhao Yuanzhou luxuriates in the peace alone, remembering the scars that cross Yichen's shoulders, the one round arrow scar next to his navel, the barely-visible scars on his hands. To say Zhou Yichen isn't self conscious about them would be a lie, but he forgets to hide himself between moans and sighs as they spend an evening in each other's company. It is only afterwards that he remembers, and they both pretend Zhao Yuanzhou hasn't long seen the past Yichen carries with him on his skin, like he didn't kiss the same expanse of flesh moments or hours ago.

Zhou Yichen rolls onto his side, his back now to Zhao Yuanzhou. Normally Zhao Yuanzhou would take this opportunity to lie down beside him, to pull him close, and fit them together in a way that will help him trap Yichen in bed come morning. Tonight, instead, he sits up, leaning on one hand as he reaches out and slides Yichen's shirt off his shoulder.

Lean muscles shrug in response to the cold, but Zhou Yichen doesn't wake. Instead he curls in on himself, pushing his back closer to Zhao Yuanzhou's warmth. In the moonlight the visible scars gleam like pearls, like treasures instead of imperfections.

Zhao Yuanzhou can't help himself– and why should he? He is a demon, after all. He leans in close, running a hand under Yichen's arm and to his chest to hold him in place (to hold him close), and presses a soft trail of kisses along one ridged scar, and down another. Zhou Yichen stirs, but wakes only slowly. Still languid from their earlier efforts, he only moves far enough to open one eye and stare balefully but sleepily and Zhao Yuanzhou.

"What are you doing, you ridiculous demon?"

"Hmm, I'm having my wicked way with you, can't you tell, Xiao Zhuo-daren?" Zhao Yuanzhou teases, lips barely releasing the marked skin under them to form the words.

"Why do you like them so much?" Yichen doesn't even respond to the teasing. It's no fun, except for the fact that Zhao Yuanzhou vividly remembers how he caused his current exhaustion. He finally relents his kisses, and settles down with his chest to Yichen's back, head propped up on one arm to lean over him- to be able to kiss him properly.

"I find it fascinating, the way you humans carry your past with you." 

Judging by his frown, Yichen is not moved by his kiss. "And must you enact this fascination in the middle of the night?"

"Would you prefer I do it during the day instead?" He replies in mock-surprise. They both know the answer to that, and Yichen pulls him into a rough kiss just to shut him up.

"No. Now sleep, you great ape."

[zuko-always-lies]

In defense of Admiral Zhao and how he treats Zuko (or he's still a dick and an imperialist, but this is why/how his actions made sense to him).

So the first time we see Zhao chronologically is in this scene, when he watched Ozai burn Zuko with a smirk on his face:

Obviously this doesn't speak highly of Zhao, but the context was that Zuko was refusing to defend his honor by fighting back and thus, under Fire Nation culture, getting "what was coming to him." It's pretty like that Zhao didn't particularly hate Zuko before that.

Then almost three years pass, and Zuko and Iroh show up acting all suspicious at Zhao's base with a damaged ship. Zuko offers an extremely unconvincing story, so naturally Zhao investigates further.

Zhao gives Zuko a chance to come clean and Zuko refuses to, solely out Zuko's self-interest. Zuko is willing to screw over the Fire Nation just to have a slightly better chance at going home. That just confirms all of Zhao's negative opinions about Zuko.

Zhao: My search party is ready. Once I'm out to sea, [Cut to a shot from over Zhao's head to reveal Iroh and Zuko sitting in two chairs in front of him in the middle of the tent.] my guards will escort you back to your ship and [Close-up of Zuko, who angrily looks down.] you'll be free to go.

Zhao is willing to overlook this and let Zuko go.

Zhao is being a dick here, but he's also telling Zuko the truth, the same truth Iroh has refused to tell him. And Zuko challenges him to an Agni Kai over it.

Zuko and Zhao fight, and Zuko clearly wins. Zhao, recognizing his defeat, tells Zuko to burn Zhao.

There's two things we need to understand here. First, Agni Kai's can only end with one participant being burned or killed. Second, by burning Zhao, Zuko would show his adherence to the Fire Nation's norms and culture, show he's "manly enough" to adhere and be a "man of honor" within the code of honor. By refusing to end the duel, Zuko disrespects the very practice of dueling.

Then Zuko turns his back and walks away, Zhao tries to attack Zuko, and Iroh stops Zhao and claims that "Even in exile, my nephew is more honorable than you." The thing to understand here is that the duel was not actually over, at least from Zhao's perspective. That's why he tried to attack Zuko, because Zuko had refused to end it.

Let us fast forward a few episodes. The next time we see Zhao is in "Avatar Roku," where Aang is trying to reach Roku's temple and Zuko is trying to stop him. Zhao is commanding a blockade fleet in their way. This exchange provides important context:

Iroh: [Close-up.] Sailing into Fire Nation waters ... Of all the foolish things you've done in your sixteen years, Prince Zuko, this is the most foolish! Zuko: I have no choice, Uncle. Iroh: [Angrily.] Have you completely forgotten that the Fire Lord banished you? [Fearfully.] What if you're caught? Zuko: [Breaks away from telescope to talk to his uncle.] I'm chasing the Avatar! My father will understand why I am returning home!

By chasing after the Avatar into the Fire Nation, Zuko is violating the terms of his banishment.

Anyways, this happens:

To be clear, what Zhao does here is 100% a dick move. But from Zhao's perspective, Zuko demonstrated his lack of loyalty earlier, and is now also trying to violate the terms of his banishment.

So Zhao chases after Zuko and Aang and doesn't manage to hang onto them since Avatar Roku goes super-saiyan on him.

After that, we get this exchange:

Zhao: [Turns angrily, snapping.] No Prince, no Avatar! Apparently, the only thing I do have is five traitors! Great Fire Sage: [Interjects.] But Commander! Only Shyu helped the Avatar. Zhao: [Close-up.] Save your stories for the Fire Lord. As far as I'm concerned, you are all guilty! [Orders.] Take them to the prison hold!

Again, total dick move. However, it's worth pointing out what Zhao's justification is likely to be: the Fire Sages violated the law by refusing to apprehend and instead helping a banished fugitive, Zuko, who was illegally in the Fire Nation.

The next time Zhao and Zuko interact is when the Blue Spirit breaks Aang out, but nothing particularly interesting happens there.

Finally, in "The Waterbending Master," we get to see Zuko and Zhao's final arc. As Zhao prepares his expedition to the Northern Water Tribe, he shows up and takes Zuko's crew:

Zhao realizes that Zuko is that Blue Spirit and a total traitor, and that just confirms everything Zhao already thought about him. So Zhao tries to have Zuko assassinated by the pirates. It doesn't work.

The next time Zhao encounters Zuko is in the Siege of the North Part II:

Again, Zhao's contempt and hatred for Zuko is driven by Zuko's treasonous behavior.

Of course, the Ocean Spirit shows up, and then this is what happens:

Zhao is consumed by the energy in the shape of a hand and dragged toward the water. Zuko: Take my hand! Zhao considers it for a moment before retracting his hand. The energy plummets into the water, Zhao dragged along with it, and dissipates.

Whatever else you can say about Zhao, he's consistent to the end.

So again, my main point is not that Zhao is a good person. Zhao is a terrible person, an utter jerk, and an imperialist with delusions of grandeur.

However, with regards to Zuko in specific, Zhao's treatment of Zuko is almost always reactive to a degree to Zuko's actions and has a certain logic behind it. Zhao treats Zuko so poorly largely because Zuko keeps confirming Zhao's worst opinions about Zuko.

That doesn't mean that Zhao is right to be a jerk to Zuko, who again is a banished teenager, just that Zhao's actions make logical sense within his cultural context and considering Zuko's actions.

[randomingoftherandomness]

Heyy, loved your last FOF fics!!😭If you’re still taking requests, may I humbly request ZYZ getting injured(somehow), and ZYC actually being worried and the one helping him/nursing him back to health, and ZYZ being surprised(because he doesn’t think he deserves it)? Or something fluffy and angsty like this? (^.^) Sorry it’s not very detailed…

A/N: Okay, let's try this :)

🎀 currently still accepting fic requests 🎀

--

The hum of the demon-seal overhead is as annoying to Zhao Yuanzhou's senses as a persistent fly. It's nothing to write home about in terms of things that actually do register as an annoyance to him, but with his healing abilities being out of reach, it's not something he can discount.

He had taken the blow that landed them in this trap and shielded Xiao Zhuo from the worst of the fall. Breathing hurts, so is just existing right now, but there's absolutely nothing to do about it until they get out of this place.

"Take off your clothes."

Zhao Yuanzhou tilts his head towards where Xiao Zhuo is standing just out of reach. His usually dour face is unreadable to him and the thought that he can't pick out what this man is thinking, rankles him somehow.

"I'm fine. I promise." He tries, holding out a hand to the mortal, feeling strangely mollified when the man takes it without any complaint or huffing. "I'll be better once we get out of here."

Xiao Zhuo blinks rapidly, jaw working as if he is physically biting his words back. "Can I see?" He asks softly. "Please?"

Running his thumb over the arc that connects the thumb to the wrist. "I would rather you didn't, Xiao Chen ah..." He smiles, almost apologetic.

With an elegant fold of his body, as he sits down next to his demon, knocking their knees together, Xiao Zhuo inhales deeply, reaching a hand to carefully caress Zhao Yuanzhou by the cheek.

"Just because you'll be fine once we get out of here, does not mean you're fine now." The corner of his perfectly kissable rosebud lips lift tremulously and in an instant, Zhao Yuanzhou hates that he's the reason his darling boy is on the verge of tears like so. Yet another thing to add to the very long list of sins he must atone for.

Their palms slide together and Zhao Yuanzhou doesn't fight it when Xiao Zhuo tucks himself carefully close. "Stupid great demon... Why can't you just let me care for you?"

Smiling sadly to himself where his Xiao Zhuo cannot see, he presses his lips to the crown of his head. "Because it's rotten work."

Xiao Zhuo pulls back, a free hand right over his heart. "Not to me. Not if it's you." His clear gaze flickers down to where his demon heart beats for this man. "So, please, let me."

Zhao Yuanzhou feels like a battered ship coming back into a safe harbour when Xiao Zhuo leans in to tenderly kiss his brow. Slumping forward, no longer having the will to fight the exhaustion and pain that threatens to unravel him from the inside out.

His Xiao Zhuo is there to catch him when he falls.

[tamaruaart]

Honestly I want you to go more into detail about the dynamic your ocs share:>

Hohohoho thank you doppel, ama have FUN with this one!

So for this, I decided to Choose Wukong and Zhaoyan's dynamic, mostly because it's really lore heavy.

The whole shtick of their dynamic is:

"Opposites who you'd think could never be similar to one another, until you realize how similar they actually are when you start reading in between the lines."

From the surface, yeah, they'd never get along (again). Zhao's a relaxed magic lady. While Wukong is a loud demon. And also, the Chinese Zodiacs of the monkey and tiger are specifically stated not to get along very well haha

(Not to mention fashion wise they're also supposed to be opposites, with Zhao's fashion being elegant and feminine while Wukong's literally in armour most of the time)

And just the fact they get on each other's nerves a lot. Zhao's bitch-y-ness and hypocrisy (reasonably) get on Wukong's nerves. And Wukong's recklessness and just the general fact he's pretty frustrating, get on Zhao's nerves.

But they're actually a lot more similar.

Both in looks (orange hair, golden eyes), association with the sun (Wukong's aesthetic with the sun and the tiger's association with weather elements in Chinese culture. Zhao's being the sun), but also in their flaws.

Both run away when they make mistakes. And it's gotten to the point where they're even running togheter methinks.

But the difference is, Wukong stops running and actually starts facing his flaws. While Zhao just chooses to live her life alone, as the witch doesn't have the will to try and rekindle everything that's happened.

But when MK comes along, she HAS to face her problems. And though she doesn't realize it, it's the best thing that has happened to her. Because it also gets her closer to Wukong, and they start realizing their shared flaws internally and they become one of my fave duos

Because they still dislike each other of course- But now it's more lighthearted. But that development is SLOW, I think in Zhao's story they only start progressing in like, late season 3.

I also love their dynamic in general- The wine aunt and Apple Juice uncle as I love to call it! It's my favorite trope afjjfkfmkfk be it platonic or romantic (Zhao and Wukong AREN'T supposed to be in love but I'm actually neutral about it because some of my irl friends ship it)

And yeah that's it about em lololol, there's a LOT of (admittedly poorly executed) symbolism in their dynamic and I really like talking about them :D

Feel free to send in more asks lmao

[syoul]

anyways i have. something for syoul tonight. not the profiles (booooooo) but smth else that'll introduce them a bit lmao

[hyog-blog]

The Story of Pearl Girl (ep. 35 - ep. 40) [end of series][spoilers]

Out of all the show's tropes, this one did it for me - knowing that you will die soon, for sure, and spending your last days with the person you love the most, cherishing each and every bit of it. This was just heart-wrenching to watch, mostly due to Liu Yuning's and Zhao Lusi's stellar acting. I mean the TORMENT is not just real, it's almost unbearable, but also, somehow, you can feel so much love and appreciation and, actually, light during those last days of Yan Zijin.

Probably because of his attitude. Like, it hurts, more than anything, but there's also one more hour you can spend with the woman you love, and then a whole day, and maybe one day more. Isn't that all that we could really ask for? The most precious moments line up like pearls to form a beautiful necklace. But then, eventually, everything fades away, both good and bad.

Of course, she knew he was poisoned. With her level of intelligence, I'd be surprised if she didn't. The fall of the bad guys was a bit meh, I mean, yes, that's what Yan Zijing was killing himself for, but in the end, that was not what truly mattered. But his family's name did get cleared, so he achieved his life's mission. Alas, he didn't have the time to enjoy the ordinary, simple pleasure of a life surrounded by the people you love and care about. it's kind of a happy ending for Yan Zijing, but with a very dramatic twist, which was obvious from the start, no one even tried to hide it. The poison was there, I just hoped for some ridiculous miraculous last-minute saving. Which didn't happen, but like with most things in life - we get some good stuff, we get some bad stuff, it's a mix.

I can see how ep. 40 could inspire a few depressions out there, but the message is still surprisingly hopeful. Justice prevailed, the bad guys got what they deserved, and the good guys, well, they took whatever happiness came their way, just like we do in real life. Su Muzhe did become the free-spirited trader she always dreamed of being, traveling far and wide just like Yan Zijing did. Cui Shijiu rose from the ashes and finally got her shit together XD Becoming a smart and cool girl we knew she could be, but for some reason, it just wasn't happening.

I have to admit there was a moment between Su Muzhe and Cui Shijiu, when our girl called the other one zhiji and all that wine-drinking was happening. I mean, I could totally see things going more than a little bit queer if the show wanted to go there. With all those powerful female characters, it would have totally worked. It was a lovely hint, though, which I enjoyed immensely :D

I need to go and watch some kittens now XD And remember there's more to life than torturous romance and people in love who can't be with each other. Still, I appreciate this show very, very much. I ended up loving every bit of it, surprisingly. It's very realistic in many aspects, maybe less so in others, but when put together, everything works great. Zhao Lusi's and Liu Yuning's acting is just 5 stars, they are both seriously amazing actors and their chemistry in both happiness and suffering and everything in between is truly top-notch.

I can see how this show might not be everyone's cup of tea, but we're all different, so it's okay. But I'm happy I watched it and that it was made, and I wish ZL and LYN much happiness and more great roles in the future.

Yep, he doesn't know it yet, but she knows already. And you can see it by the way she treats him, just playing along to keep the illusion of happiness going. They're such a bittersweet couple.

And not Kang Ju working as a model for female jewelry))) That moment just made me giggle, he's such a cutie))

Everyone posing for a family portrait. I almost thought they were foreshadowing another one of Li Kui's attacks that would kill half of the cast, but I was wrong. It was just a sweet happy moment shared between friends and co-workers.

And not Kang Ju asking whether he's actually so pretty in real life, too XD

More heartbreaking moments hide behind the seemingly happy surface. You can literally see it in her eyes that she already knows everything.

Some girl-to-girl romance, happily celebrating the fall of the Zheng family. All smiles and cutesy talk. Effortlessly qeer-ish.

Then back to the emotional torment of being unable to say goodbye to each other. YZJ cooking for her continuously to show his love. And Su Muzhe asking Yan Zijing not to leave, finally showing her true feelings. Pure 100% heartbreak.

It's been a nice, although a bit hectic ride 💖

[oneatlatime]

Atla season two predictions

We're halfway through season 2! I did a post on my thoughts on the show and its characters when I reached the halfway point of season one. My thoughts are mostly the same, and there's only one new character of note (all hail Toph!), so I thought this time I'd mark the halfway point by taking wild stabs at predicting where the rest of the season is going to go. I'm going to try to do at least one prediction per character. This is entirely guesswork. Once the season is done I'll come back to this post and see how prescient/stupid I was. Without further ado...

The season finale will have Azula as the Big Bad and introduce the Fire Lord as the Big Bad for season three. This is exactly what happened in the finale of season one: Zhao was big bad and Azula was introduced. So less prediction, more extrapolating based on existing data. It was a winning formula in season one, so I'm hoping the writers will do it again. I'm also hoping that Azula will follow Zhao's fate because quite frankly I don't like her very much. Tl;dr, Azula and her crew will get swallowed by a giant badger mole spirit.

Toph is getting a subplot. She feels like a character with nothing left to work on, and now that Aang can earthbend, her purpose is accomplished. So she needs another purpose in the story. That, or they're going to leave her behind at some point. I wonder if she's in season three? She'd better be. So either Toph is going to remain a character with no need of an arc, in which case her subplot will revolve around something she already excels at, or the writers are going to throw a curve ball and reveal a heretofore unknown weakness that she's going to have to work around. If it's the former, my money is on one of the idiots from the pro-bending tournament hunting her down to avenge their humiliating defeat at her hands. If it's the latter, my guess would be something intellectual that plays on her high society background. Political intrigue? Spy work? A cult? Maybe she finds out that her parents are colluding with the fire nation? Tl;dr SuperToph, somehow.

Appa comes back. This is not a prediction, this is a DEMAND. He breaks free of his captors (seriously, he went down way too easy), runs away into the wilds of the earth kingdom, and following some innate air bison sense, stumbles upon a lost colony of his fellow bison who escaped Sozin's genocide. (and have somehow remained entirely undiscovered for a century despite being each the size of a house and able to fly to boot well the earth kingdom's got a lot of empty spaces just go with it) They spend a few weeks chilling until Appa gets found. Season three can end with Appa's Air Bison Hunny showing up with a baby sky bison. Tl;dr Papa Appa.

Project Make Zuko Decent gets a new CEO. The current one sucks. Some new character is going to be introduced to provide Zuko with both the motivation and the guidance to become a decent person. Iroh's had a season and a half and made pretty much no progress; Zuko's spent all of season two trying, and has made himself somehow worse. Maybe not worse, but certainly more worn out. Time for new blood. I'd like to think that this show is above cliche, but let's be honest, it's going to be a love interest. They tried it with a kid brother in Zuko Alone and it didn't work. So some nice earth kingdom girl. Like Song, but with more backbone. Maybe she's really good at swords. They can bond over that. I feel like Zuko would be easier to connect with over something he knows he's good at. It would be less fraught than bonding over bending. She also lost her mother to the fire nation; they can bond over that too. The writers laid the groundwork in Zuko Alone, might as well use it. The more Zuko can empathise, the faster he'll get decent. I hate to see a character who exists solely for 'Man Pain' or 'Man Growth,' but let's be honest, Zuko is not self-aware enough to grow without some major hand-holding, and Iroh isn't volunteering. I know that Zuko is on the cover of my season three DVD so his 'get decent' arc has to be complete by the end of season two. Tl;dr Zuko gets schooled.

Sokka has been underutilised this season (as has Katara), so he's going to get something major. The Library set him up to lead the gang to that Earth Kingdom town who's name I forget so they can share the date of the eclipse with the king, but you know Aang isn't budging until they get Appa back. So for the next few episodes, Sokka will be in Master Tracker Mode, using all the skills he learned at the South Pole and more to rescue Appa. There can be flashbacks to him learning the skill from his dad/grandfather/uncles/Bato, then flash forward to see him applying that skill successfully, adapting it to a different climate and incorporating insights he's gained since the show started. We had Zuko Alone, now I want Sokka Alone with the ghosts of his family. Although I don't think Aang would be willing to sit out on Appa retrieval, so Aang's going to have to be urgently needed for Avatar reasons right when Sokka stumbles on the clue that is the key to finding Appa. The group splits and reunites to see the earth kingdom king, Sokka triumphant and Appa in tow. Tl;dr Sokka channels Liam Neeson with probably a lower body count.

Momo is going along with Sokka for aerial reconnaissance.

Katara needs something juicy too. She's mastered waterbending, so her growth has to be personal rather than skills-based. Maybe she gets her world view challenged? Maybe she meets an evil earth kingdom or water tribe person? Evil to the core; she's already met bunches from both nations who are stupid/malicious. Hang on - I forgot about Jet. So she meets an evil water tribe person. In the earth Kindgom. Somehow. Maybe she meets a good fire nation person? How about a fire nation healer/doctor/army medic? Someone who can show her that firebending isn't all bad. Can you heal with any element other than water? I have no idea, but it would be cool if you could. If you really want to challenge her, a fire nation firebending healer who is genuinely compassionate to people of all nations, but who is also proud to be a fire nation citizen and fond of their nation. That would REALLY confuse her. Doubly so if there's some healing technique that she desperately needs to learn from this person. Katara seems like the type to think that one person = one opinion, and that there is only one right opinion, ever, in all things, and that is hers. Show her someone complex, hypocritical, layered, but still a force for overall good. Tl;dr let's torture Katara.

Aang! It's been a while since his duties as Avatar have conflicted with his personal convictions. Actually, it's been a while since his duties as Avatar have come up at all, apart from training and getting chased for being the Avatar. Aang is going to encounter some problem that can only be fixed by an Avatar, likely something like the giant panda from season one. Maybe pissing off the Owl spirit causes unrest in the spirit world? Maybe Aang's going to have to fight a war on two fronts: fire nation v. other nations and spirit world v. physical world? Or maybe Aang's going to have to mediate in a spirit world civil war? Aang's got enough friends in the spirit world that maybe the giant panda and his friends take offence to the owl mouthing off about the avatar and it snowballs from there? It seems to me that pissing off a spirit is the kind of mistake that should have consequences beyond that spirit's episode. And this need for the Avatar comes up just when there's a solid lead on Appa, so Aang has to learn to delegate the Appa-finding to his friends while he's off saving the world. Tl;dr Aang has to do some Avataring.

Iroh needs to get his act together and come up with a better plan than following Zuko at a safe distance. This is more of a wish than a prediction, because Iroh's still very much a big old question mark to me. It's easier to predict what the child/teenage characters are going to do, because apart from maybe Toph, they have limited and already defined means. But Iroh's lived decades. He could very easily have resources, skills, connections, knowledge etc. that viewers haven't seen yet that he could call on at any time. He could pull anything out of the blue and I'd believe it, because that's how the world works when you're a sociable person who knows how to talk your way into things and has spent decades doing so. There have to be some earth kingdom collaborators around from his invading days who could be blackmailed/flattered into helping Iroh and Zuko get back on their feet. Tl;dr Iroh phones a friend. I can see the plot for the rest of the season ending in three ways:

A)Sokka's news about the eclipse causes the earth king to arrange a direct strike on the fire nation capital, killing Azula in the finale. The fire lord escapes, Azula gets promoted to fire nation martyr, and the war enters a new, worse, heightened, far more scorched earth/bloodthirsty state at the start of season three.

B) The Earth King says "yeah kid, we've had star charts for millennia, we know about the eclipse, they know about the eclipse, it'll be the one time their defences are at their absolute highest, this plan is dumb as hell, go away." This is the one I think is most likely.

C) News of the eclipse never reaches the earth king, because it turns out that unless the local king is your nonagenarian former best friend, getting a royal audience is hard if you're a water tribe nobody, and maybe his friend is the Avatar, but he's also twelve, and even in a kid's cartoon letting twelve year olds have a say in national policy is a bit of a stretch. The eclipse nonsense remains a one-episode occurrence that was just the set up required for Appa's Appa-napping, and the rest of the season is spent de-Appa-napping Appa, until a surprise appearance by Zuko jr. and her girlies in the finale.

[sendhearthhome]

Zuko and Who's Afraid of Little Old Me?

“The who's who of who's that? / Is poised for the attack / But my bare hands paved their paths / You don't get to tell me about sad / If you wanted me dead, you should've just said / Nothing makes me feel more alive / So I leap from the gallows and I levitate down your street / Crash the party like a record scratch as I scream / Who's afraid of little old me? / You should be”

This whole first chunk, to me, is Zuko confronting Ozai in Book 3 episode 11 The Day of the Black Sun Pt 2

“The scandal was contained”

Book 1 E12 The Storm, Zuko’s crew thought Zuko had been burned in a training accident, not by his own father

“The bullet had just grazed”

Within the theme of abuse, Ozai and Azula minimise the abuse Zuko endured, Ozai just 'grazed' Zuko’s face

“At all costs, keep your good name / You don't get to tell me you feel bad”

Ozai keeps his reputation, while Zuko is banished to spend over 3 years trying to get his honour back (which he never truly lost)

“Is it a wonder I broke? Let's hear one more joke / Then we could all just laugh until I cry / So I leap from the gallows and I levitate down your street / Crash the party like a record scratch as I scream / Who's afraid of little old me?”

“I was tame, I was gentle 'til the circus life made me mean”

Zuko was a gentle child, but Ozai thought he was too soft. The circus life can connect to the pageantry and brutality of the Fire Nation Empire

“Don't you worry folks, we took out all her teeth”

In Book 2, when he’s a refugee, Zuko feels humiliated and powerless, having gone from a prince to a ‘nobody’, his shame critically culminates here in Ba Sing Se

“Who's afraid of little old me? / Well, you should be (you should be) / So tell me everything is not about me / But what if it is?”

“Then say they didn't do it to hurt me / But what if they did?”

Ozai burned Zuko to “teach him respect” but really, it was just abuse

“I wanna snarl and show you just how disturbed this has made me / You wouldn't last an hour in the asylum where they raised me”

These two lines truly encapsulate the rage of realising how fucked up your childhood was only once you’re out of it. You couldn’t see it when you were in it but you survived hell, and now that you understand that, you’re so fucking angry

“So all you kids can sneak into my house with all the cobwebs / I'm always drunk on my own tears, isn't that what they all say? / That I'll sue you if you step on my lawn / That I'm fearsome and I'm wretched and I'm wrong / Putting narcotics into all of my songs / And that's why you're still singing along”

People have preconceived notions about Zuko: he’s spoiled, selfish, and volatile. While these are areas where Zuko has genuine growth in the series, it is important to remember that they’re used by adults in the Fire Nation (ex. Ozai and Zhao) to discredit and demean him

“So I leap from the gallows and I levitate down your street / Crash the party like a record scratch as I scream / Who's afraid of little old me? / I was tame, I was gentle 'til the circus life made me mean / Don't you worry folks, we took out all her teeth / Who's afraid of little old me? / Well, you should be (you should be)”

“'Cause you lured me / And you hurt me / And you taught me / You caged me and then you called me crazy / I am what I am 'cause you trained me”

 Zuko’s autonomy and free will are really what led him to join the Gaang. He realises he never deserved Ozai’s abuse, never lost his honour, and his actions are his own. 

But you can’t deny the poetry of ‘you created the thing that destroyed you in the end’

“So who's afraid of me? / Who's afraid of little old me? / Who's afraid of little old me?”

I lowkey want to write a zuko-centric song fic...

Let me know what you think and if you interpret the song differently!! <3

[one-vivid-judgment]

Hello. Could I please request some comfort headcanons with Joon-gi, Seonhee, Zhao and Tesso with a verbally domestically abused s/o? Tbh your headcanons and just any random post are kinda soul healing and even therapeutic. They give me strength to mentally deal with any unpleasant situation. So, um, thank you.

I'm so glad my posts give you strength, anon! Tbh I picked up writing myself for therapeutic purposes, so it's good to know someone else is getting something out of this as well! I genuinely wish you the best!

Joongi Han

He can relate, actually. He didn’t exactly have a normal childhood: mom passed away when he was still too young to know any better, and his dad who was already abusive before, turned to drinking and his behavior only got worse. He wouldn’t wish that on his worst enemy, much less someone he loves as much as you.

Thankfully, he is no longer in that stage where he will get queasy talking about the subject because the wound is still too fresh. He would have probably had a breakdown if you had brought up the subject a few years earlier, but now he’s... grown used to it. Any pain is dulled out by now, so you can freely talk to him about your situation. He knows you need someone to turn to, and if he is not that person for you, what kind of boyfriend would that make him?

Will hold you silently and just let you talk, hands running up and down your back. He’ll suggest using the Geomijul surveillance system to keep you safe—even if you say no, he will probably go through with it anyway because he can’t stand seeing you like that. If not the entire Geomijul, just himself is enough. He can free up hours of his schedule to watch over you; Seonhee will understand. It will also be her who suggests he brings you over to the Geomijul to stay for good. They have enough bowguns left and are still a threatening enough presence around Ijincho to know no one would dare mess with them.

Seonhee

Unlike Joongi, she hasn’t gone through abuse herself. She’s heard the horror stories from Yeonsu though, so she has some idea of just how bad it can get. Enough to be absolutely fucking fumming by the time you are done telling her about your situation. You can be sure she will take matters into her own hands, even if you try to stop her.

Don’t worry, it won’t be anything like straight up murdering your abuser (though, why lie, she really wants to, and the Geomijul has the means to do that; she can ask Zhao for help disposing of the body, too. Meat bun filling). She will, however, make sure there is always someone watching over you. Most likely Joongi, but if he is out of comission, then it will be anyone else. If it gets too bad, she will do the watching herself. And if it gets real bad? Seonhee is outright snatching you away. She can make extra room for you in the Geomijul HQ, to make sure that person is too scared to come get you.

Not a day goes by where she doesn’t ask you how you are holding up. She’s seen what abuse can do to a person (see, Yeonsu, and to an extent, Zhao), and she has learned the importance of asking those questions. You can come to her with whatever is troubling you, you know that, but she still makes sure to remind you.

Zhao Tianyou

It will take you some time to convince him not to do anything that could potentially land him in jail. You’ve never seen Zhao so mad in your life, and he doesn’t usually yell for no good reason, but man, does he want to kill the bastard that’s putting you through all this. But he also knows it wouldn’t be useful (albeit pretty satisfactory) to get thrown in the slammer and leave you alone.

You Tian is your new home. You can stay for as long as you want: hours, days if you want to. Anything that doesn’t involve you going home to your abuser sounds great in his book. His Liumang loyalists are now basically your full time bodyguards, and if that doesn’t work to intimidate the asshole in question, he’ll have to give them a very stern talking-to. Full of death threats and intimidation tactics. It will prove hard to not take his saber with him though.

He makes sure to be extra sweet to you. Always cooking your favorite dishes, always making sure you are feeling okay. He’ll introduce you to Kasuga and the others if you are up for it, and they’ll quickly become your biggest and best support network. To be honest, Zhao may have grown a little paranoid after the whole ordeal and might need to have you within eyeshot to make sure you are safe. He knows, he knows. But he won’t let it go too far to the point it gets unhealthy.

Tesso

Honestly, he wants to get angry. Hell, he should get angry! But all he can muster is hug you.  He is at the verge of crying when he does. He’s a sensitive man, these things affect him, and the fact that you are going through that when you don’t deserve it at all? Well, you bet your ass it upsets him.

It’s not professional of him, but he’ll admit he sometimes skips Liumang work to go check on you. Like Zhao, he might get a little paranoid about what happens to you when you are out of his sight. He might have hired Tsukumo and Sugiura (Yagami too, if he happens to be in Yokohama) to keep an eye on you; as far as he’s concerned, that’s money well spent. He wishes he could do more—he’ll suggest you run away and stay at his apartment in Restaurant Row. It’s deep enough in Liumang turf that it’s pretty much guarateed your abuser won’t chase after you, if they have half a brain.

His hugs are therapy in and of itself. Helps that he’s a cuddler and pretty much can’t sleep if he isn’t hugging you. Now that he knows what you’ve had to go through, he has all the more reason to do that. He can’t help the smile when he wakes up and sees that you are by his side and not back at that shitty home you grew up in.

[onmyo-jin]

Kiss: 46 Yuanyi

Thank you for the prompt anon! I'm still taking prompts! You can find the full list here, or feel free to make up a fun addition to the list~

It reminds him of that afternoon that seems so long ago now, when Wen Xiao sat on her swing– back when he didn't realize the roiling mess inside his gut was not hatred, but a different feeling altogether.

It is an ugly beast, those feelings, and every so often it rears its ugly head inside Zhou Yichen. It takes his thoughts without asking, and twists them into things he will barely recognize as his own afterwards. In the moment they still feel like his own thoughts, and the jealousy of not being the one receiving Zhao Yuanzhou's attention eats him up. All of that seems ridiculous, when they fall in bed later, fall asleep side by side later, wake up together when the sun has poked her rays far enough into the bedroom to wake even Zhao Yuanzhou.

He walked away from dinner angry, angry for no reason, angry to see Zhao Yuanzhou sharing the tastiest bits of food with Wen Xiao, with Pei-daren, with everyone except with Yichen. Now, sitting down in the night-quiet garden behind the hall, Yichen feels ridiculous. They are his friends! But something inside him hisses, and whispers that Zhao Yuanzhou should be his, should only look at him–

"If you keep frowning like that your face will stay that way," a demonic voice lilts next to his ear, and Zhou Yichen jumps near out of his skin.

"I wasn't frowning," he frowns, denial falling easily from his lips.

"No?" Zhao Yuanzhou pokes a long finger at his forehead, and drapes himself over Yichen's shoulders. "Then what do humans call this?"

"I was…"

"Yes?"

How can he explain it to a demon, when he can barely explain it to himself? It makes no sense, and now and every previous time he sees that afterwards, but he has not yet found a way to stop the beast in his chest from wanting to keep the beast lounging against his back to himself.

Instead of looking for words he doesn't know, he twists towards Zhao Yuanzhou, a hand on his neck to keep the demon while his human perch shifts. The kiss he bites against that infernal smirk is not a nice one, teeth first and tongue second, taking no time to sooth the stings. Zhao Yuanzhou doesn't even try to keep his balance, but lets himself fall forward until he is practically lying in Zhou Yichen's lap. Annoyingly, this makes it hard to kiss him properly– amazingly, this lets Zhou Yichen admire the way his lips have swollen under the assault, red and glistening and abused. Zhao Yuanzhou's tongue darts out to feel at a particularly tender spot, and then glances up at Yichen like he doesn't know exactly what he is doing.

"Your friends were concerned for you, Xiao Zhuo-daren," the demon smirks up at him. He cannot be comfortable like this, but he makes no attempt to move away.

"That's very kind of them," he looks away from the sight before him. The words sound angry even to his own ears, but he means them quite earnestly: it is kind of them, and Zhou Yichen is not so sure he deserves their kindness just now.

Zhao Yuanzhou reaches out, and turns Zhou Yichen's face back towards himself: "I was concerned." Yichen clamps his mouth shut, stopping himself from saying something scathing like 'were you?' or 'no need'. The great demon seems to read the words behind his eyes anyway, and Yichen quickly averts his eyes.

"I was," the demon hums.  He lets his hand fall to Yichen's robe, adjusting the already perfect outer layer, running his hand distractingly across the fabric that covers his chest. "You left before I could give you anything." It takes Zhou Yichen several moments to remember what he might be talking about. Right, dinner! Why did that seem so important before? It feels ridiculous now.

"So I came here to bring you your treat," a beatific smile lights up Zhao Yuanzhou's face, and underneath the suspicion that he is up to something (and when is he not), Yichen is moved. The demon came all the way back here, leaving the others and his own dinner, just to bring Yichen his… A surprisingly touching gesture from someone whose reputation for evil is quite ancient.

Zhou Yichen looks around to where presumably Zhao Yuanzhou has left his dinner, only to see nothing. Too late he notices the errant fingers have started undoing the buttons on his outer robe, the demons other hand tugging at his belt, and he looks down at the down to ask– but the question dies on his lips when he sees the demon's smirk, lips still red from earlier, and he knows exactly what kind of treat Zhao Yuanzhou meant.

[mvsicinthedvrk]

i'm not doing a super extensive plot/starter call this time around, and i'll be banking on the event memes on wednesday 10/2 for most of my event threads.

but if you have a specific pairing or two you'd like to plot something out for, hit this plot call and i'll send you a dm to discuss details & we can work something out, and i'll get a starter or two queued for you for start-of-event.

**this is not a starter call! if you request starters without having plotted with me, i will not be writing them!! send me a dm with ideas and i will be happy to write starters, however!**

basic details below, but subject to change if better plot ideas arise during discussion--

muses who think they've lived in european-renn-style d.c. the whole time since arriving (& their job):

wei wuxian (has been living his best life as a farmer for the last few years) now closed for plotting/starters

xie lian (peddler who sells mostly junk <3)

he xuan (decided to settle in as a scholar/scribe)

sha hualing (has become a knight throughout her time here but also wants to invade/overthrow the castle) now closed for plotting/starters

dongfang qingcang (formerly imprisoned convict who has recently been set free; relatively pissed off about his lack of standing)

chu wanning (nobleman who studies this world's alchemy & invention/private tutor on the side)

qi yan (undercover as a prince on a diplomatic mission)

kaz brekker (basically still the head of the crows but renaissance version)

xiao chiye (still fully unaware; head of a castle's guard) now closed for plotting/starters

martin blackwood (npc howl's wizard's apprentice/servant)

muses who know something's up and that we've shifted in time/universe:

mo xi (tired of this nonsense)

feng yu (will be trying to stay calm and find other senators/government officials to get this sorted out)

kaul hilo (will not be dealing well with whatever this bullshit is)

zhao yunlan (dragons? nice. hey time to party it up in the tavern) now closed for plotting/starters