#probably 2025
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WIP EXCERPT- HEIRESS UNDERGROUND (PKA 'Barely Innocent' and 'Erasure'.)
My heart wouldn’t stop pounding, even though we switched out our car for a dark blue Dodge of my dad’s. I haven’t ridden in this car in months, but it still rides just as well as I remember. It doesn’t squeak when you turn or catch as you go on a hill wrong. It’s perfect.
A chunk of hair strains against my finger as I pull, wincing from the pain. I tighten my grip on Zander’s hand while my brother drives, hoping neither of them comment on the tears pooling in my eyes. But I think the boys are both too nervous to cast their gazes towards me. My boyfriend’s pulse races beneath his skin, palm slippery with a cool, thin layer of sweat. I hope my thumb strokes reassure him because they’re doing nothing to ease my own anxiety.
Outside, the sun is setting, the few people that pass us probably heading home from long days at work or school. Will I ever be able to go to campus again, to take a class without fearing for my life or the lives of those around me? All I want is for everything to go back to normal, for this whole mess to go away and the truth- the entire truth- to be revealed. But it’s clear to me now that simply asking questions isn’t going to give me the information we’re after. I need to pay attention, to gather clues. I can’t let my guard down, not even for a moment.
When a phone rings, signaling a new text, I turn my head to Dalton, who takes his phone from his pocket. After scanning the message and pointing towards an exit for Zander to turn onto, he faces me. “Dad got us a room at a motel that’s off this exit. We should eat, then get some sleep. There aren’t many police around now, but we should also look at the footage again, see if there’s anything that we can use if they decide to take you in out of nowhere. He said he left a package for us at the front desk with a laptop in it. We need to be prepared for anything, and I know you’re scared out of your mind, but we’re one step closer to finding answers,” my brother promises. I don’t believe him, and everyone in this car knows it, but I do my best to shove my fear down. He’s protecting me, taking care of me just like he’s done from the day I was born. I owe him my life.
So I nod, doing my best to act like I appreciate what everyone is doing for me, because I do. I’m not going to say that they’re ruining me, because someone else is going to take the blame for that… we just haven’t figured out who that person is just yet. Every time I think we’re learning something, it feels like we jump back to square one with a set of new tasks, like a video game you can’t win. So when will we reach the final battle? When will all of these separate pieces start to fit together?
Paranoia ticks through my veins like a bomb waiting to explode. But no one seems to notice us, to point at us. That’s a good sign, and it means our current tactics are working. I pull my hair back, then move around in my seat until I find a comfortable position to sit back and close my eyes for a moment. Headphones slipping into my ears, I pick a song on the portable player my dad slipped me and hope it does enough to distance me from this, at least until we get to wherever we’re going.
#amwriting#writersontumblr#just wrote this#spilled ink#my story#coming to amazon#probably 2025#had this in my head for so long#hope you like it#haven't done a post like this in a while#also 'between the bars' is making me cry#elliot smith
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vanity
#cassandra cain#cass cain#batgirl#batgirl 2000#cassandra cain batgirl#dc#dc comics#batman#barbara gordon#spoiler dc#dc spoiler#stephanie brown#this was inspired by the soul arc of batgirl (46-50?) with the bad trip and the babsgirl costume and all that.....#i dont want to overexplain this but i wanna mention the columbo cass is “detective cass” and also “cass that watches a lot of tv” lmao#that bit should make a comeback. it was so funny and good characterization. i wanna see cass oneshotting people with unexpected#pop culture references. anyway i also like the detail that the phone numbers postit is visibly older. also babs wrote that i imagine.#cass cant read at all at this point but i think if she had a phone in front of her she could match the numbers in an emergency.#and probably she could remember which is which between the two of them but the little doodles just to be safe. bruce's number isnt there#bc she doesnt need to call him (lol)#illustration#digital art#portrait#2025#(happy new year lol)#id in alt
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I’m going to be so hot this year but more than that I’m going to be so intentional w my time
#I am sooo ready for 2025 like actually#ppl are probably so sick of my hopecore posting but why do you guys not want me to hype myself up#For 2025#like SO much will be happening I literally need to post these affirmations daily to keep it together#I’m going to be sickeningly hopeful this January#January 2024 I was negative asf and that’s what catalyzed a mediocre year#I am sinking my TEETH into 2025#Going to be so type A ab this#<- to clarify I will be positive but not toxic positive like I will also accept setbacks#But I am also going to shoot high this year#Literally nobody cares anyway HAPPY new year .
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tw: non-con, somno, fingering & cunnilingus ( r!receiving ), reader cries just a little, praising, overstimulation, abby being the sweetest girl ever ( pretty ironic ) | 1.6k words.
having long nails is great.
they look cute, you can match them with your outfit and your makeup, you get some compliments, they're amazing at scratching and all that.
“wanna know what's frustrating though?” you start, mindlessly scrolling on your phone while abby looks at your new set of nails, her own unmanicured hand holding yours. “not to be, you know, nasty but I feel like I'm gonna slash my pussy open if I try to stick a finger in there the wrong way.”
only a low hum of agreement can be heard from the blonde as she leans back against the couch of your shared apartment, tracing the design that's beautifully decorating the nail on your middle finger. yeah, that looks like it would hurt real bad.
“then get a toy. there is more stuff you can use.”
“of course I know that, but I don't have time either. at this point I feel like a nun!” a ( kinda whiny ) sigh escaping your lips at the mere thought of all the weeks spent unsatisfied. coming home late and tired didn't give you much time to even grab a toy like abby suggested.
but luckily, you have a very thoughtful roommate!
this woman would do anything—and I mean anything—to see you happy because that's what friends are for. helping and supporting each other during tough times and, let me tell you, being sexually frustrated definitely counts as one.
“abby? what the fu—mhggm” her hand quickly went over your mouth to stop your protests to get louder and more panicked while the other worked to keep your legs and arms from pushing her face away. why are you acting so surprised to see her in between your legs when she's just trying to help? it's not like you would be able to push her away but jeez, didn't expect such an ungrateful response.
yes, she woke you up by making out with your pussy but you were basically asking for it earlier.
“gonna make you feel good.” she promised before she kept lapping at your cunt like a starved woman. slurping you up like you're her favorite dish. feeling the vibration of your desperate, muffled sounds against her palm made her speak again. “shh, I won't hurt you.”
taking off your underwear while you sleep, holding you down, forcing your mouth shut and your legs open doesn't hurt! not if you stay still, at least.
her plan was simple.
if she made you feel good by eating you out, using her own fingers to reach places you currently couldn't ( and probably have never been able to ) reach while you slept then you would surely wake up in a good mood and thank her with that precious smile of yours and maybe even a kiss.
but noooo, you decided to wake up in the middle of it and panic. ugh, just when your body was responding so well to her touch. she had seen the way your cunt was glistening when she started to slowly kiss it. the moonlight slipping through your curtains making the sight even prettier, and she'll be lying if she said the thought of taking a picture didn't cross her mind.
but a little crying from you won't stop her, even if she feels the hot tears against her skin.
she's still holding your legs open so she can continue to suck and lick at your clit, tongue tracing each fold and sensitive bit. your hips bucking into her face—but she's not sure if you're liking it and want more or you're trying to push her away.
“don't scream, okay baby?” she whispered against the soft skin on your inner thigh, peppering small kisses, while looking up at your watery eyes, “I'll be so gentle. trust me.”
actually, what other choice do you have? this woman can literally bench press 205 lbs. you get on her bad side and a single smack takes you back to your mother's womb. she has a mean right hook too, those punching bags stand no chance.
but again, it's abby who we're talking about.
the blondie that cuddles you to sleep anytime your bed feels too cold, who makes stupid jokes to cheer you up even if she cringes so fucking hard immediately after, who lets you try to count every freckle on her skin without even asking why, who can listen to you talk for hours and pay attention to every word, the one that drunkenly tells you how glad she is that you're her roommate and friend while kissing your shoulder even if deep down she wishes for more than that and stares at you as if you are the most important thing in the world—because to her you truly are.
so maybe she really just wants to make you feel good...
the second the fear and confusion in your eyes turns into something more calm, seeing the slow nod of your head, the small hiccup and your legs no longer struggling, she pulls her hand away from your mouth to trace the other set of lips, gathering the mixture of her saliva and your fluids on her fingertips before gently pushing one inside. “there we go…nice and slow.”
she might've been wrong for not asking first but how was she supposed to resist the feeling of your warm, tight walls squeezing her fingers just right as she curls them inside. soaking her knuckles in a shiny coat of stickiness that makes her want to dive in face first again and taste it until it becomes the only flavor she'll ever remember.
once she's sure that you're wet and comfortable enough, another thick digit slides in, the stretch earning a moan from you that has abby feeling like angels are singing and welcoming her to heaven. god, she has waited for so long to hear those sounds out of your lips—sounds caused by her, not your vibrator nor whoever you used to invite over thinking you two were quiet. ( she could hear you every.single.time… and honestly? it was so good to get a free show. )
even if her pace was somewhat slow, the thrusts of her fingers still managed to produce soft, wet noises that filled the room as they combined with your heavy breathing.
“told you I'd be gentle.” she cooed against your abdomen, trailing her kisses up your torso until she finally reached your lips. the same lips she has been dreaming of kissing since she moved in, since she first saw you smile, since you finally laughed at something she said, since the first time she saw them in a pretty shade of lipgloss. it's better than she ever imagined and she knows she'll ask ( beg ) for more from now on.
she's head over heels if you couldn't tell already.
“a warning would've been nice.” your quiet words bring a sheepish smile to abby’s face as she sighs, pulling her face away just a little, “sorry, you looked so stressed lately, I figured you wouldn't mind…”
abby aims to please even if she doesn't realize how bad her impulsive thoughts are before she acts on them. but look at the bright side; from now on you have a girl who's willing to drop to her knees and bury her face between your thighs at your own home almost 24/7!
after a bit, she starts to notice that the clenching and throbbing around her fingers gets more frequent and your moans louder, meaning she can finally speed up the pace. burying herself deep into your cunt to reach all the perfect spots she knows you've been missing. “fuck, you're so pretty. I wish you could see yourself…dripping all over the bed.”
she’s breathless as if she was the one getting touched, her own underwear damp just from seeing and pleasing you. can you blame her? she feels like a child on christmas morning.
“that's it, doing so good.”
oh, how she adores the way your hips tremble underneath her. making a mess on your bed sheets as you throw your head back—which she takes as an invitation and buries her face there. inhaling your scent like it's the only thing keeping her alive, like you're the oxygen she needs.
“gonna come? I can barely move my fingers with how tight you are.” liar. no matter how much you squeeze she's pumping them in and out without a single bit of effort. working out daily really pays off in the most satisfying ways. plus, you're too wet and it slides in and out very easily.
and god, her words make the flutter in your lower belly even worse. your hand gripping at her forearm, nails digging so hard she takes it as “it's too much.” when in reality she had fucked you so dumb with her fingers that reaching for abby was purely out of instinct.
she can't even understand the words ( babbles ) coming out of your mouth, all her pussy-drunk mind is able to register is the whiny tone tone in your voice because yes, she's as fucked out as you are.
the loud cry that escaped your puffy lips while repeating her name over and over definitely woke up a neighbor or two and just the thought of it makes abby's ego go up to the roof. who's making the prettiest girl in the building come? abigail motherfucking anderson.
her fingers continue their movements, a bit sloppier than before, but they keep going nonetheless. thumb circling your sensitive clit to add more stimulation.
she shushed your whimpers with soft kisses on your your temple and held you still to keep the overstimulated jerking off hips from pushing her away.
“you can take a little more, you're a big girl.”
and she's an insatiable woman.
masterlist ♡ taglist — @1ckyporcelainbunny @patronagrona
#pupi writes ᝰ#proud of this ngl#abby anderson x reader smut#tlou abby#abby anderson x reader#abby anderson#abby tlou#abby x reader#abby the last of us#abby anderson x female reader#abby smut#tw.noncon#tw.somnophilia#ooc probably#sapphic#sapphic smut#kinda proofread ok#FIRST FIC OF 2025 HELLO
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the dichotomy between Lee and Jim talking about Stone/Robotnik is hilarious because on one hand we've got Lee coming up with thoughtful, heartbreaking headcanons for Stone, giving genuine emotional depth to their relationship, first-naming Ivo and practically writing his own 500k found family to lovers fic. and then Jim's like "yeah they're toxic. probably boning too"
#stobotnik#agent stone#jimbotnik#sonic movie 3#this is of course an exaggeration/oversimplification. but not by That much lmao#right after posting that clip where lee says stone was probably an orphan and ivo really sees him#i saw the interview where they ask jim if they're. Yknow. and he's like 'yea sure why not' skfjkds it's so funny#not to mention all the straight up character roleplay lee posts on his twitter pining all sadly for robotnik#they're both insane <3#jan 2025#sonic
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After seeing that shitty frenchamerican movie about mexicans without mexicans in the main cast winning so many awards im glad Brazil winned this! I dont even care about oscar, this is HUGE!!!!
"I'm still here" isnt just a random film. It is about the military dictatorship, which on the contrary of countries like Argentina and Chile, Brazil didnt punished most part of the people that did and colaborated for all the deaths, crimes and opressions, and many families still and probably wont ever know where their family members were "buried/disposed".
And not only historic value and resistance against military coups (which are a constant threat with the rise of extreme right in Brazilian politics and military), this is a win for the lack of support and acknowledgement brazilian cinema has, by our own government and by gringos, that keep on pretending the world is just hollywood and some few european countries
My position is that gringo awards arent the reason we make films. But it does help a lot. It attracts investment, international film companies, something continents like latin america doesnt have compared to japan, korea, china, india and european countries own independent film and shows productions, so much they even have prestigious relevant cinema and tv show awards season.
#I'm still here#Fernanda torres#Ainda estou aqui#Golden globes#golden globes 2025#Awards season#Brazil#Brasil#Brblr#Brazilian cinema#Wrote this shaking so probably has many grammar mistakes#Cinema#Films#I havent watched emilia perez still i will finish my oscar watchlist until march but its reputation isnt great#with the directors saying mexican actors werent good enough for their film and they didnt research nothing about mexican culture politics
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HOLIDAY SEASON WITH SKZ ▸ 1/❆ ↳ Hyunjin for Versace Holiday
#skz#stray kids#hwang hyunjin#hyunjin#bystay#staydaily#dancerachasource#hyunjinsource#kpopedit#kpopccc#malegroupsnet#malegroupsedit#dailybg#boyidoledit#dailymusicians#skzholidays#by01ino#less than a week till december so I think it's fair to start this series#besides I'm probably in a more festive mood now than I'll be at the end of december#cause the end of the year is so stressful#can you guys believe that we are only a month away from 2025#wtf my mind is still like in 2019#how we got here#maybe the world did end in 2012 and we're in hell#who knows
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INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE (2022–)
1.05 — A Vile Hunger for Your Hammering Heart
#interview with the vampire#iwtv#iwtvedit#usershelby#perioddramaedit#userstream#tvedit#claudia#claudia de pointe du lac#claudia de lioncourt#*#myedit#T.T#bye wait LMDMDMDMD me in 2022 losing my mind and realizing i have no one#me again in 2024#me in 2025 probably smh#<<< omg this is dani from.the future YOU WERE RIGHTT
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something something forza something
#this was pretty 🤷🏾♀️#bring on 2025#lewis hamilton#charles leclerc#f1#qatar gp 2024#was probably the only exiting moment of the whole sprint too lmao
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David Tennant Year in Review - 2024
David’s television, film, convention, charity, and other appearances from 2024, all in one convenient photoset - with extra special thanks to Georgia and her excellent Instagram posts
Please see my [ David Tennant Year In Review tag ] for prior year-end posts dating back to 2014
#david tennant#year in review#georgia tennant#macbeth#michael sheen#bafta 2024#comic relief#olivier awards#pub in the park#multibank#lgbt awards#conventions#rivals#doctor who#huyang#star wars young jedi adventures#stuff i posted#long post#ty tennant#olive tennant#entirely too much to tag#really really long post#at I look forward to 2025 with much trepidation#may david and his work and lovely family and friends#all continue to share joy and happiness#(and some excellent acting)#I did not include all the tennant vacation and various family fun photos#but did scatter some throughout#goodness but this post took a long time to make!#and I'm still probably forgetting things
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what a freaking year
thank you all as always for liking my shit for yet another 365 days, here’s to many more :-)
☆ prints | patreon | comics ☆
#art zone#eye strain#? probably#happy new year everybody!!#tma#magprotocol#pandorica radio tag#dunmeshi#deltrarune#loz#doctor who#mp100#disco elysium#i think thats all of em lol#anyways! thanks again! excited for projects planned for 2025 :-))
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post battle, one last short rest
#calliope petrichor#solum bufo#calder kilde#naddpod#ba2mia#ba2umia#posts by me dot com#i was rlly . not ... satisfied w this piece but i know its probably .. fine so im shoving it out there#but . hehe . aa ....#im a lil busy but . wanted to do at least one last little send off art for duck team bcus uh.#well tag ramble but . this campaign has meant a lot to me and i am... really really sad to see it go#im glad we got the ending we did and overall this campaign has absolutely been my favourites start to finish#but still. gonna miss it a lot.#it was really fun making art w all a yall and talking abt duck team together :-]#hehe . im being sappy over here but u know what its YOUR FAULT reading the tags is OPTIONAL . WHATEVER LOSER . *skateboards away*#thanks to everyone whos responded so positively n enthusiastically to the silly lil drawings ive made ^_^ .!!!!! <3 u#its been a great year >:] to get really fucking hyperfixated in this bitch. anyway. yeehaw . omnomnom. happy hoglidays#anyway um. HASHTAG 2025 GRINCH DUCKTEAM ONE SHOT CMON CMON LETS GOOO PLEEASE.
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well enough alone
[Print Store]
#jinx#isha#arcane#arcane season two#first art of 2025 let's gooooo#aaaand i still haven't rewatched season two yet 🙂 at this rate ill probably never rewatch it because it hits too close to home#finished art#clip studio paint#january2025#jinx fanart#my art#silco#claggor#mylo
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what a year for doomed & tragic (& toxic) mlm ship enjoyers
#ivantill#jayvik#satosugu#poolverine#billford#I'm probably forgetting some#but this was a WILD year to be in some of these fandoms#doomed yaoi#toxic yaoi#hopefully next year will be just as delightful. with the summer hikaru died getting an anime release in 2025 we have one win already.
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your Viktor looks a lot like your Will
i mean…
#it’s probably the exact same mole placement and big sad eyes#i don’t think my older viktor looks much like will tho#wills face is round and soft. viktor has a long face and sharp angles#either way they’re the same archetype of characters that’s why they’re my favs#first ask of 2025 let’s goooooo#anonymous#askovna
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Clouds, Fog and Mists
The scholars and archeologists that Aang had been working with had come out of their museum basements and dimly lit studies with a wealth of Air Nomad histories and artifacts that had been lost during the war. Aang now had access to recipes he hadn't tasted in years, scrolls that gave historical context to the things he had just begun learning at age 12, and objects he had never seen, but was excited to learn the use of. At 22, he was just now learning that the Air Nomads had a variety of subcultures and customs he'd never encountered, even though he had visited every Air Temple that existed back then.
"Did you know..." became as common to his vocabulary as "hello" and "custard tart". Every day, he approached his wife with some new bit of lore he'd learned.
"Did you know that the Southern Air Nomads had a Festival of Remembrance?" he'd excitedly asked as Katara was hanging the laundry out to try. She was only half listening while she tried to keep Bumi, their nearly three year old son out of the basket of wet sheets, but she gave a polite hum of encouragement.
"For a whole week," Aang continued needing no further prompting, "no one was allowed to play music or speak. They even wore velvet over their feet so their footsteps wouldn't be too loud. Then, at the end of it, there was a huge party! Loud as anything with music and plays and games. I think I remember going one of those ending parties, but I didn't know about the vow of silence before it."
"That's fascinating, sweetie," Katara said, rubbing her heavy belly with a look of discomfort. She was seven months along with their second child, and this one was very active. "Bumi, last warning. Do not touch the clean clothes!"
"Okay, Mommy!" Bumi said before swatting at one of the sheets Katara had hung on the line. She sighed and turned to her husband.
"Can you take him?" she asked. "I'm tired, and I'd like to take a nap after I finish this."
"Oh," Aang said reluctantly. "I was going to have an afternoon session with the Acolytes. I'm dying to tell them what I've been learning."
"Aang, please?" Katara sagged tiredly, taking Bumi's hand and pulling him away from all her hard work.
"Alright," Aang sighed. "I'll watch him for a bit. Come on, Bumi! Let's go practice some air katas! I want you to be ready when your airbending kicks in!"
-:-:-:-:-:-
All Air Nomads were airbenders. That's what Aang had always been taught. He had to account for late bloomers, of course, but at age four, going on five, if Bumi was going to be an airbender, there would've been signs by now. Kya was a lost cause. She had started waterbending just before her second birthday, and despite the fact that her father was the Avatar, there was no chance that she would inherit the ability to control more than one element.
"Well, maybe it's not true that all Air Nomads were benders," Katara said with a shrug. "After all, not every Water Tribesman is a waterbender, and not everyone in the Earth Kingdom is an earthbender."
"It's different," Aang insisted. "The monks told me that all Air Nomads were benders because we have a unique connection with our spirituality." Katara didn't quite manage to hide her annoyance from him.
"Then explain our kids," she said. "Unless you're the first Air Nomad in history to have children with a non-Air Nomad, someone somewhere got something wrong." Aang went quiet after that. He had no response.
"Just because the Air Nomads may have had children with people from other nations doesn't mean that their children were Air Nomads," an acolyte named Qiao said. She was one of the most apt and studious of Aang's Air Acolytes, and they had spent many hours together pouring over the newly discovered texts. Sometimes, Aang thought that she had a better grasp of Air Nomad culture than even he did.
"I suppose....I suppose that's true," Aang said thoughtfully, taking a sip of his tea.
"The Air Nomads were mostly not monogamous," Qiao pointed out. "I'm sure there were a lot of Nomads who had understandings with their lovers from other nations. Especially among the Air Acolytes of the day."
Aang pondered that for the rest of the day. Then the next. Then the rest of the week before he finally approached Katara. He found her by the fountain with Kya and Bumi. Kya was busy making imperfect little shapes with the water while Katara was teaching Bumi how to put his hair into a warrior's wolf tail.
"You look just like your uncle Sokka," she laughed, pressing a kiss on her son's cheek. "I bet you'll be a great warrior just like him, too." That twisted Aang's gut uncomfortably. He cleared his throat to get Katara's attention.
"Hey, sweetie," he said.
"Hey," Katara smiled at him. "We're just about to have story time. Do you want to stick around for How Umiak Rowed Her Boat to the Stars?"
"Oh, um..."Aang shifted uncomfortably on his feet. "Sure. I was just...thinking of something."
"Yeah?" Katara raised her brow at him. "What?"
"I was just thinking of how all the Air Nomads were benders." Katara didn't bother trying to hide her disgusted snort or the rolling of her eyes.
"Okay, and?" she huffed. "Did you draw any new conclusions?"
"I can't have been the only Air Nomad to have children with someone from a different culture," he said. Katara stared at him blankly for a long moment.
"I told you that," she responded finally. "It's just now sinking in?'
"No, I understood you," Aang told her. He kicked at the ground. There was a loose pebble under his toe and he focused on rolling it back and forth. "It's just...well, the Air Nomads, they weren't strictly monogamous."
"Monogamous," Katara scoffed. "That's a big word for you." Aang bristled a bit at that, but he took a breath and let it go.
"I was just reading," Aang said with a shrug. "It occurred to me that maybe because the Air Nomads weren't monogamous, they just didn't bring their non-bending kids into the Air Nomad society." Katara looked up at Aang with her eyes wide.
"That's awful!" she said. "So because their kids didn't bend the right elements, they had to be cut off from one of their parents?"
"No, I'm sure it wasn't as bad as all that-" Aang started to protest.
"What exactly are you saying, Aang?" There was a dangerous edge to Katara's voice. A warning.
"Nothing, nothing!" he scrambled back, tripping over his tongue, trying to call back his words, and cursing himself for trying to bring up the subject without a plan. Katara eyed him coldly. She was angry and trying not to show it.
"It's time for lunch," she told her children. "Let's go inside and fix something to eat."
"But Mommy," Bumi protested. "I want to hear about Umiak!" Katara turned to him with a tight smile.
"That's okay, sweetie," she said. "I'll tell you while you help me fix lunch." With one last scowl at Aang, she took Bumi's hand and swung Kya up onto her hip and went inside.
-:-:-:-:-:-
Aang felt vindicated when it was discovered that he and Qiao were right. The Air Nomads would often leave non-airbending children with their non-Nomad parents. Sometimes the Air Nomad parent would stay with their non-Nomad partners and build a life with them and their children (something he made a note to tell Katara about). Then it was discovered that they were only partially right.
Some of the Air Nomads stayed and raised mixed heritage families. Some left their non-airbending children behind with their non-Nomad partners. That was expected. Reasonable, even. What Aang was not expecting, however, were the accounts of non-airbending children being given away. Some were adopted, and those adoptions were traceable through documents and letters. Others were sold. Those transactions were traceable, too. By most accounts, those children went into indentured servitude and many of them learned trades and were able to start businesses once their indenture was up. Aang tried to focus on the positives. Katara, however, was horrified.
"What right did they have to sell those children into...into slavery?" she demanded hotly while they were getting ready for bed.
"I'm sure it wasn't that bad," Aang insisted. "After all, the Air Nomads wouldn't have put children into situations where they could've been hurt."
"Yes," Katara sneered. "I'm sure their new owners were very gentle with their exploitation."
"That isn't fair!" Aang protested. "Do you know how difficult it would've been for those kids to live among the Nomads?"
"Probably about as easy as it's been for our kids." Katara glared at Aang meaningly. He felt his cheeks heat as he looked away, pretending not to understand.
Bumi was going on eight now, and Kya was five. They were both old enough to ask questions about why it was so difficult for them to move around their own home. Katara and the Acolytes had an easier time being adults and able to maneuver obstacles that short legs and small hands couldn't without help, but it was still a regular challenge to get around the Air Temple for them. Aang was in the process of building a complex near Republic City where non-airbending Acolytes could live and learn with more ease, but it wouldn't be ready for anyone to move into for another year or so. It would be safer for children with no airbending ability, too. Aang glanced over at Katara from the corner of his eye, at the soft swell of her stomach, already showing signs of pregnancy at her second month.
-:-:-:-:-:-
Tenzin was the last of Aang's children with Katara, and the only airbender. When he was almost one, he airbent for the first time, and Aang couldn't stop celebrating for an entire week. When Tenzin was two, the first of the burial mounds were discovered.
Archaeologists working at the mostly restored Northern Air Temple found it at the base of the mountain. There were several layers to the grave, suggesting generations' worth of use. Most of the bones were small. Infant and toddler sized. The largest bones were about the size of an average eight year old. The bones were all jumbled together, as if they had been tossed in a heap. Some of them wore the clothes they were buried in, but most of the bones were too broken to hang on to any frabric. There were also no signs of any shrouds or anything indicating that they had been given any of the customary funeral rites of the Air Nomads. The fact that they were found at the base of the mountain in itself was unusual. All the different groups of Air Nomads had their own unique funeral customs, but one thing that remained the same was that they were laid to rest as close to the sky as possible.
When the first reports of how the children came to be at the base of the mountain came out, Aang was certain it was the rankest propaganda. None of the Air Nomads, no matter how stringent they were about non-airbenders living among them, would ever harm a child. For a while, he seemed to be right, as all the proof was from secondary and tertiary sources.
"Lies the Fire Nation used to justify genocide," Aang said confidently.
"But how did the children get there?" Katara asked. Aang had no answer for her. Yet. There must have been a good one, though. Maybe a plague had run through the Air Temple, forcing them to bury the bodies at the bottom of the mountain to prevent contamination, or something equally tragic. Aang began talking to the archaeologists about giving the bones a proper burial as soon as they could be sorted. The count at that time was 700 bodies in the pile and there were still so many more to go.
A few months after that, the oldest of the Air Nomad accounts were uncovered. It went back a good 300 years, and it spoke about a surplus of infants born without the gift of airbending. There were too many to be disposed of the normal ways, and many of the non-bending parents were unwilling or unable to raise the children themselves. The anonymous monk wrote of a meeting to discuss the crisis. They wouldn't be able to care for so many that couldn't get around the temple, or travel with the Nomads. There was a food shortage. A water shortage. An everything shortage. So the head monk suggested giving the children to the air. That had been the first time the practice had been recorded, near as anyone could tell. But some of the bones were older than that.
That's what they called it. It sounded lovely. Poetic even. In practice, though, the babies were carried to the edge of the temple grounds and held in the air. A short prayer was said for the souls of the children, and then they just...let go. They were so high up, they probably couldn't hear the children hit the ground.
The public began to call them the Fog Children. They were babies born to Air Nomad parents, but without airbending abilities themselves. People clung to the term and it soon spread all over the world in hushed whispers. Aang hated it. Katara hated it. It was the only thing they could agree on by that time.
"It isn't fair!" Aang bemoaned. "It's like people are using it to justify the Fire Nation killing all the Air Nomads."
"If it bothers you so much," Katara said after she'd put the kids to bed, "then speak up! Condemn what they did."
"I do!" Aang insisted. He had protested, loudly that all of the Air Nomads shouldn't be judged by what one fringe sect did.
"Not just them," Katara said. "All of it. It's just like with the Fire Nation. Remember what Zuko said? You can't expect to move forward without acknowledging the past. All of it was wrong. The Air Nomads treated their non-bending children as if they had no value. Condemn the adoptions and abandonings and the selling of the children!"
"How is it my responsibility to make up for all of that?" Aang demanded.
"You're the only one left," Katara reminded him, trying to be gentle. "I'm not saying you have to call the Air Nomads monsters. They did something wrong. They were human. You can acknowledge that and commit to being better than that."
"How?"
"Start with your children."
It had been a frequent argument between Katara and Aang how Aang treated their children. Bumi was 13 now, well on his way to becoming a man. Kya was 11 and Tenzin was five. Often, Katara would quiz Aang on his children- what Kya's favorite color was, or the name of Bumi's best friend. Aang could admit that he was correct about Tenzin more often than the others, but it was only because Aang had so much he had to teach his youngest. Katara should've understood that. After all, there were things she did with Kya that she couldn't do with Bumi or Tenzin.
"It's not the same," Katara told him. Aang could never remember why, though.
For the next year or so, Aang spent much of his time doing damage control. He did his best to separate the practices at the Northern Air Temple and the particular sect of Air Nomad culture that grew around it from the rest of the Air Nomads. Every criticism of the culture was met sharply by Aang's rebuttals and justifications. Penning article after article espousing the virtues of the Air Nomads at large became his full time job, and obsession. It took him two weeks to notice that Katara had left with all three of his children, and another month for him to find the letter Katara had left in his bedside table telling him she was seeking a divorce.
He got Tenzin three months of the year. It was all he could manage, being completely unused to parenting alone. Aang taught his son what he could of airbending and the Nomad philosophy he could in that time, and did his best to ignore the people whispering fog children in the same breath as his oldest children.
#HAPPY NEW YEAR#atla#anti kataang#anti aang#air nomad critical#air nomad lore#a lil' sprinkle of aang salt to kick 2025 off#poor kya and bumi#although since it's canon that they aren't known to be aang's kids in lok the whispering probably stopped pretty soon#especially after their mother remarried and they became known for their connection with their stepfather#zutara#a lil' sneaky sneak zutara in the tags#fan fic
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