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likealittleheartbeat · 4 months

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I try to generally be constructive and engaged with the show I love on here, so on this day, I’ll just say that one of the most thematically important aspects for me from the original ATLA is Aang’s emotional core of real shame for running away when he was hurt by the monk’s decision to send him away. People who feel the kind of deep-seated shame that Aang feels from this decision can understand how that kind of all-encompassing shame is not built around a simple failure or a lie they tell themselves; it’s constructed from real misbehaviors and transgressions of their own sense of ethics—lashing out, telling lies, attempting to hurt others intentionally—that then have consequences (abuses, abandonments, or deaths) which seem to far exceed their expectations or even basic logic.

The combination of the misbehavior with exaggerated existential punishments (along with a lack of support and amend-making in the immediate wake of the events) is what transforms a sense of guilt (I fucked up) into shame (I am a forever fuck-up). Then shame, that sense of being a secret monster ‘no matter what I do or how good everyone thinks I am,’ invites all the avoidance strategies (Aang puts on big smiles, makes lots of jokes, constantly tries to make everyone happy, hops from town to town without building deeper connections). One doesn’t want to acknowledge one’s true feelings or let others in to see those feelings and experiences because it’s too painful to face the grief at the same time that you have to look at yourself for being responsible—even when you recognize it wasn’t totally your fault. It’s just that if you had just been good, less emotional, less human, then maybe the world wouldn’t be so messed up. Of course, in a zen view of things, the world will always be messed up in the same way it will always be beautiful. These are constant facts that always coexist in balance, and this is the truth that Aang learns and that undergirds the whole series.

So I always loved that Aang ran away. It was his sin and his salvation. And it becomes this constant tension for the series—he gets hurt in Bato of the Water Tribe and starts to run away from Katara and Sokka, he runs away to the Guru in the Crossroads of Destiny and his best friend is attacked, he and the gaang retreat after the Day of the Black Sun failure, he runs away to meditation in Sozin’s Comet when everyone wants him preparing for war. Aang’s reluctance to be a hero and the attachments and petulance for which he gets criticized are what metamorphasize to become his most noble attributes. They allow him to empathize with others shame and, ultimately, wield the kind of compassion that can deconstruct the power and perfectionism of imperialism.

So yes, Aang ran away from his temple 100 years ago. It wasn’t the mentally healthy choice. It wasn’t the ethical choice. It wasn’t the wise choice. It was human and emotional and shameful and real. Aang is a better character for it. ATLA is a better show because of it. And we are better people when we understand these kind of tragic emotional experiences that people are trying so hard to grow through.

#aanglove #vague posting about the nf adaptation lol #I won’t go off in my posts but I will in my comments #only 17 minutes in tbh #and already amazed at realizing how cool it was that the of series wasn’t told in a linear style lol #I do think the casting department went off for the nf series tho #the kid playing aang is so perf #and all the actors fit their parts so well #but the show doesn’t understand or seem interested in depicting colonial violence at alllll #and the language of the fire nation wanting to ‘take over the world’ is so much more marvel than a colonial rhetoric #and then aang just wanting to ‘go get some air’ to clear his head…😑#we aren’t allowed to have problematic protagonists anymore I guess #only people with perfect mental health strategies allowed in young adult fiction #because we view fiction from a moralistic standpoint now instead of an empathetic one #but 🤷🏻‍♀️

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theloveinc · 4 months

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secret affair with mafia!bakugo… you’re a waitress at one of his cover restaurants and he’s constantly leaving his meetings to make out with you in the staff bathroom.

#Bakugo #you know like they talk business is their own restaurant and when he’s not leading he doesn’t wanna listen to anyone else #so he’s in the single stall bathroom in his suit and tie with your little apron hung up on the door #now I’m imagining toxic workplace bc the head host wants to fire u but technically Bakugo won’t let them LMAO #it’s not ur fault u have a hot mysterious dude into you!!!#he’s the one letting you slack not YOU #anyway #think abt this #shii posts #gen

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muffinlance · 2 years

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Prompt: Azula joins Zuko on his Avatar hunt instead of Iroh. I don't know why, I don't know how, but I'm certain to be entertained by whatever follows.

Ozai and Ursa were already dead by the time Iroh arrived home. He stepped from his ship into the palanquin, and rode past the places of their execution, holding the urn of his son’s ashes.

He had no time to entrust them to the Fire Sages before his father summoned him. He brought them along, because this was an easier thing than setting them down. And perhaps Lu Ten’s grandfather would like to see him once more, outside of the family shrine. Iroh would have given anything—

He placed the urn on the floor next to him. It did not kneel when he did. Fire Lord Azulon surveyed him from behind the flames.

“Rise, my son. It is good to have you home.”

They did not speak of Lu Ten. His father had always been a man to look to the flames of the future, rather than the ashes of the past.

* * *

They hanged Ursa, as befitted her attempted crime, and her past station.

They burned Ozai, as befitted his. A child of Agni should always return to the flames.

The children of the traitors had been stricken from the family line. Had been placed in the capital prison; bait for the trap. Azulon was keeping close eye on those who expressed concern for the offspring of regicides. Ozai had expected support for his position; it would be Iroh’s second task to sift through the court, and discard the chaff.

His first task was a more practical resowing. Azulon had already selected a handful of candidates: women of suitable birth and known loyalties. The wedding date had been set, pending selection of the bride.

“Thank you, father,” Iroh said.

Lu Ten held his silence.

* * *

Azula had never liked the servants who’d fussed at her hair and clothes, who’d pulled and tugged until she was perfect, like perfect was a thing outside of her for others to bestow. She only had to look at Zuko to know how far tailored robes and well-oiled hair could take one.

She couldn’t see Zuzu from her cell. Her robes were too cold against the stone and every tug to wrap them tighter just made them worse, she could see it in the guards’ faces, the way they’d stared when she’d first arrived and looked a few days after and now they barely even saw. No one would talk to her, no matter her demands. They didn’t even stop their own conversations anymore; just slid in her food and kept walking and batted away her fires and it was cold here.

There were things crawling in her hair that her nails couldn’t dig out. Sometimes she thought she heard Zuzu yelling, but she couldn’t be sure. And it would have been undignified to yell back. She was a princess. She was fifth in line for the dragon throne.

Fourth, now that Lu Ten was dead.

Third, because father was, too.

He’d yelled and then he’d screamed and it hadn’t done anything but make the crowd jeer. Fire Lord Azulon had been silent. Poised. In control. She was his namesake and she would be too.

She was nine.

* * *

Zuko yelled until his throat burned. The guards didn’t care, they didn’t listen to him, which was nothing new. He shouted and shouted and his own ears hurt. Maybe that’s why he never heard Azula calling back.

Grandfather had made them watch when he’d killed father and, and—

If grandfather had Azula killed, he would have made Zuko watch that, too. Azula was probably just better at being a prisoner than he was. Maybe the guards even talked to her.

He was eleven.

* * *

Iroh’s new wife was a third his age. A flower just coming to bloom. She looked like his first wife; Azulon knew his preferences. She was young enough to be Lu Ten’s sister. She smiled and laughed each day with the other court wives, and came to his room with lists of possible dissenters to discuss in their marital bed. It was not the pillow talk he was used to, but it was charming, in its way. She liked to lay on her stomach and kick her feet above her as they traced the web of treachery with his dead brother at its center. She was here to have his children—a task at which she worked with admirable diligence—and to be the acting Fire Lady. She had not had to struggle and flaunt herself for his affections; she had been picked from a line-up, her expectations realistic, her motives aligned with his. It was the least romantic relationship Iroh had ever been part of. It was… refreshing.

On the day the palace doctor confirmed their newly budded line of succession, the Fire Lord called them both in for congratulations. And for pruning.

* * *

Zuko had turned twelve, but had not realized it. Azula had turned ten. She’d counted the days.

Iroh had not been able to visit them in prison; only to inquire as to their treatment. Individual cells, regular meals of reasonable quality, no abuses. He’d moved his own people into position to ensure the last.

Azulon had moved them back, after a delay for his soft-hearted son’s conscience. They could not waste loyal men on cuckoo-vipers. And Iroh could not waste his father’s good will. Not when it would be needed in the future, for the most important request.

* * *

“And your wife agrees to this?” asked the Fire Lord, behind his flames.

Iroh’s wife had not been directly addressed, and so did not reply. She sat in polite and perfect seiza, her head raised, as befitted the woman currently running her half of the court. Azulon had never seen fit to replace his own wife, after all.

“She does,” Iroh spoke for her. “We have spoken on the issue at length, and believe it best. Our family is small, and cannot afford to be smaller. The children are young; too young to have been in their parents’ confidences. With proper guidance—”

“And how would they place in the line of succession?” Azulon asked. “How would they chafe, how would they plot, with a decade’s experience over your eldest?”

Lu Ten’s own connections at court had been built while his cousins were still in diapers. But he was no longer Iroh’s eldest.

“We believe—”

“No,” his father interrupted again. “I will not allow their adoption. Not by you, where they could smother your own babe in the cradle, and certainly not by someone I trust less.”

Which was everyone, since the night his daughter-in-law had served him tea sent by his son.

“Father,” Iroh began, and his wife shifted her elbow just so, the only indication that she wished to dig it into his ribcage. “They are young, and innocent. They are my beloved nephew and niece. Your grandchildren. We cannot in good conscience—”

‘Good conscience’ had never factored into his father’s policies. Iroh had… begun to realize that, of late. His wife let out a small sigh, deliberately audible only to the man next to her. She had cautioned very strongly against a—how had she put it?—a feelings-based approach to this situation. Feelings rarely factored into her own decisions. She had been hand-selected by his father, after all.

His wife went into a half-bow, her head lowered. “May I speak, my lord?”

The flames crackled. The shadow of his father inclined its head, just slightly.

“To kill the children is wise, and I admit, would set my mind at ease for my own child’s sake. But my husband feels strongly on this matter, and so I support him, for his happiness is my own. May I suggest a compromise? To place them outside the court, where they cannot build influence, nor harm your son’s heirs. A position from which you can judge their characters and value to the nation as they grow.”

“You suggest banishment,” the Fire Lord said.

“Not unstructured, of course. To leave them roaming freely would invite those that would take them in. Perhaps a military commission? As they are commoners, they should begin from a rank befitting their station, of course. Let them prove their worth on their own merit.”

Iroh could not see through the flames, but he knew his wife’s small smile was reflected on his father’s face.

“A naval position,” the Fire Lord said. “On a ship that does not frequently make port. The frontlines would be the best place for them to prove themselves, wouldn’t you agree?”

Iroh closed his eyes.

“Father,” he said. “Please,” and he could feel his wife willing him to stop talking. The Fire Lord had already agreed to spare their lives. A banishment could be undone, so long as he and the children both outlived the man before them. “I… thank you for your wisdom in this ruling. But perhaps, if they complete some feat worthy of our line, they could be allowed to return?”

The flames were hot against his face. His new wife was still and silent against his side. His father… his father laughed, a low exhalation, the wheeze of a humorless old man.

“Let them bring me the Avatar,” Fire Lord Azulon said, “and I will welcome them home with honor.”

* * *

Zuko didn’t know why they’d pulled him from his cell or scrubbed him down or taken his old clothes. They’d been dirty but they could have been cleaned. His new clothes were scratchy, and too big, and they looked like a common soldier’s, and… and—

And they’d shaved his hair.

* * *

It had gotten rid of the bugs, Azula admitted, in the privacy of her own mind. Still. She memorized the faces of the woman who’d held her down and the man who’d shorn her. For future reference.

They hadn’t bothered sizing her new outfit for a child. Azula noted the quartermaster’s face, as well.

* * *

They were put on a ship. It was the first time they’d seen each other in nearly a year.

Zuzu looked at her head, and wisely said nothing.

She raised an eyebrow at his, and graciously granted him the same.

It was hard to tell them apart. They had their mother’s face. And their father’s.

* * *

Their captain’s name was Zhao. He invited them to dinner in his private quarters, once the Fire Nation was behind them. Zuko fidgeted. Azula didn’t.

The captain spoke on how much potential he saw in them, under a commander who saw their true value.

Together, they could go far. Very far, indeed.

Azula smiled and said all the things she thought father would have said. Zuko scowled.

Zhao brushed over their arms with his own while reaching for things. He served them more when they said they were already full. He squeezed their shoulders when he brought them back to their rooms, which were next to his, even though the rest of the lower crewmen slept together in the same big cabin. Zuko scowled harder.

Azula was invited back. Zuko wasn’t.

* * *

Zhao was… Zhao wasn’t a good person.

“I know that, dum-dum. But do you want to stay banished forever?”

“Uncle said—”

“Uncle’s going to change his mind, when he has his own heir and a spare. We’re threats, Zuzu. And Zhao knows father’s old friends. He’s one of the smart ones.”

The dumb ones had already been executed.

“I… I think he wants to—to tie himself to the royal line.”

“Eww,” she said. “I’m ten. If he wants to get engaged, I’ll just break it when we’ve got the throne. It will be too late for him to retract his support, then.”

They’d barely left port before Zhao had made his first move. He didn’t seem like a man who waited.

Azula was ten, but Zuko was twelve. Being twelve was almost thirteen, which was almost a teenager, which was almost an adult, and adults understood things that ten year olds didn’t.

They had to get off this ship. They had to go home.

Zuko had to find the Avatar.

* * *

(This ficlet is now posted on AO3.)

#are you not entertained?#eventually this one will be a Fire Lord Iroh AU #better hope he gets that throne quick <3 #Happy Ending: and then they joined the southern raiders just as Hakoda was setting sail #and Hakoda was unprepared for these feral fuzzy-headed children suddenly on his ship #Bad Ending: and then they joined the southern raiders when Zuko was sixteen and Azula was fourteen #after four years with Zhao #Zuko: *shakes Aang until he glows then yeets him at Zhao like a grenade*#Azula: that's a good first step to being my favorite brother #but I still don't have a crown in my hair Zuzu #Avatar The Last Airbender #atla #Zuko #Azula #Iroh #I actually really like Iroh's new wife?#RIP one-off OC I'll probably never use again #you are the politically climbing aro-ace rep we deserve #New Wife: sure I'll exchange my firstborn for ultimate power in my nation #wait I can keep the kid too?#sweet deal #ficlet #Cuckoo-Vipers

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ryanthel0ser · 6 months

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Okay, I am not that far into One Piece yet but I have to share this image in my head of the ASL brothers

So we've got Luffy right, feral creature but cute sometimes, very much a goober. You think his brothers would look similar to him in terms of feral creature-ness.

Then you meet Ace who is a very handsome, very charming guy and your brain short circuits a bit. Like him??? You're Luffy's brother??? He does have a bit of cringefail to him though, but overall he's quite the looker and it's hard to imagine this handsome guy grew up with Luffy.

Then you find out there's another brother, surely he'd be more like Luffy. But then Sabo shows up and is so pretty you have to double take to make sure you didn't walk into some kind of fashion shoot and run into a supermodel. Now you're short circuiting even more cause how the hell did this guy also grow up with the feral creature that is Luffy??? Although, his eyes do have a slight crazed look in them that unsettles you a bit.

#its just a funny lineup in my head #feral creature Luffy next to charming and handsome Ace next to supermodel with the scary look in his eyes Sabo #the confusion looking at these three and being told they're brothers is funny to me #obviously their behaviors and personalities give away they're brothers but at first glance it's a jarring image #one piece #asl brothers #revolutionary sabo #portgas d ace #monkey d. luffy #sabo #ace #luffy #straw hat luffy #fire fist ace #flame emperor sabo

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kastillia · 21 days

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#jeritza von hrym #emile von bartels #death knight #fire emblem #fire emblem three houses #fe3h #everyone always says timeskip hubert has vampire vibes and they're right but you know who else has vampire vibes? h i m #they should've given him more insane portraits i think #i love pretty boys :) and if they're a little insane that's just a bonus #this applies to fictional characters ONLY thanks #another one i could've saved for spooktober... ah well #also hi if you've made it this far into the tags: thanks for reading!#just a heads up i'm prrrrrobably not gonna be posting for the rest of the month #i'm in the process of moving so it's very hands-on-deck right now #i mean my creative brain likes to defy me a lot so there is still a chance... but i am very busy so probably not #anyway that's all. thanks for being here #my art

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insertsomthinawesome · 6 months

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⚜ L u o c h a ⚜

#Honkai Star Rail #Luocha #Luocha honkai star rail #luocha hsr #isa's fanart #insertsomthinawesome #December2023 #No thoughts. wanted to draw luocha #this is my campaign to fight against my art perfectionism #which yeah i've said that before aldjglasdg #but i'm trying to get more serious about it cause its been bad #i mean its been bad for over half a decade at this point (heck maybe an actual decade #yikes)#but i wanna start really putting my foot down with it. its not going to actually change otherwise (or at least its unlikely)#i hecking love black fire so much.#black fire is so cool. its so neat. what vibes. what awesome #happy accidents were had with the glow light around his head HAHA #me double posting art in one night? In a row? Its more likely than you think

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sprinklethetangerine · 24 days

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Hey, I just watched Dead Poets Society for the first time ever! Now, if you guys don't mind, I'm gonna go sit in the corner of my room and scream!

#me very politely asking whoever made this movie to revive Neil (i am holding them at gunpoint)#NO BECAUSE WHAT THE FUCK #what about my anderperry you cant do that... my anderperry you killed it... why ☹️#no but literally i usually cling onto one character in every show or movie and the rest i could care less about guess who it was for dps?#NEIL IT WAS FUCKING NEIL AND THEY KILLED HIM #i am rotating his father on a fire like a rotisserie chicken and feeding him to dogs.#i hope his father dies a slow agonizing death. i will boil him alive.#me at the end of the movie waiting for someone to say psyche or people to jump out with cameras and tell me i was being pranked #me before: “haha people seem to like this movie a lot it sure seems interesting ill check it out”#me after: “what is life...”#no but all of them standing kn the desks was so AHHHHHH #and i qant to fucking fight that bitch whatever his face was idk i forgot most of their names #the chatterbox tattletale snitchy bitch #thats his name now forget his actual name #dps #dead poets society #anderperry #since i mentioned it in the tags #nuwanda literally was like “sure yeah ill get expelled but i wont rat you guys out”#but chatterbox tattletale snitchy bitch mister “you forgot about the homework” over here is like “yeah so i told them everything”#i am exploding his head with my fucking mind #he deserved that punch so fucking bad

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soaqrudyz · 8 months

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soap who takes mood stabilizers but no one takes it serious until his prescription runs out.

suddenly he can’t get out of bed. he’s crying on and off all day, only broken up by an hour or two of frantic skin picking before he collapses into sobs and sleeps for thirty-three consecutive hours. he either won’t eat, or he’ll complain about being starving even though he just cleaned his and gaz’s plates. one minute he looks lifeless, staring off into space, sitting stock still, and the next he’s talking a mile a minute about a topic no one brought up.

when they fill his meds it takes a full week before he goes back to normal, and he refuses to talk about his behavior when he’s off them. he can still fire a weapon can’t he? so what’s the big fucking deal?

he never has to refill his meds again, they’re just always magically filled when he needs them (the 141 are terrified of seeing him like that again, they don’t know how to make it all stop no matter how hard soap begs them to).

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rhaenin-time · 3 months

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#hotd #asoiaf #hotd critical #team black #fire and blood #anti team green #asoiaf fandom #these people love to cite daenerys this one time #as if “a dragon is not a slave” doesn't just mean you can't FORCE a bond #not that it's a fucking free-for-all game of finders keepers #targs derive their power from their monopoly over dragons because they have the power to enforce that monopoly #that's how ownership works #Rhaenyra was not just the heir to the throne she was also the future head of the family + highest ranking dragonrider #If she didn't want Aemond to have Vhagar and if she would have had Viserys say NO had Aemond asked then yes he did indeed “STEAL” Vhagar #again because he knew he would be told NO #a non-misogynistic jaehaerys would have sent his ass to the wall #the whole point of that scene in F&B was the important matter (vhagar) was pushed aside because viserys didn't want to deal with 'drama'#and because of aemond's eye rhaenyra was not in a position to push #So yes actually it was a pretty good trade for aemond

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multifandom-nerds-blog · 2 months

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More thoughts on Kai stuck in the never space : (possible AU)

I'm no definitely stuck on the idea that time passes differently there. Ergo, he's been there for a few years, at minimum a decade when finally does get out again at some point

There isn't really lots of common food there (The banished five don't need food to survive in my opinion) so he got used to eating anything eadible. So moss, insects, whatever he can find really

Bonzle is also sharing some of her magical energy with him, so it's easier for him to survive without much food or water. You can imagine it as Kai carrying one of her eyes on a necklace like a blue orb.

Since Bonzle also doesn't have a need for sleep like Kai does, she usually covers guard duty. Without her Kai would probably barely sleep at all (he already does)

At one point Kai ends up picking up magic. Though I'm not sure how exactly yet, he probably goes by gut feeling and a combination of things that Bonzle knows and his experiences with magic users.

Inside the neverspace, there are some other creatures as well. Mostly of magical/mystical nature. Now or then Kai either fights them for practicing magic, or even hunts them for food. (Safe to say, eating magical creatures has some effects on his body as well.)

He then combines his elemental fire with his magic, and through that gets a more flexible fighting style. This definitely helps as he's basically trying to hunt down the other forbidden five inside the neverspace

Bonzle obviously tries to stop him but Kai is to stubborn so she ends up following him anyways to pull him out if a situation gets to dangerous

Kai and Bonzle definitely form a sort of codependency

Bonzle at some point also told Kai about an agent walker she met right before the blood moon, and he figured out the rest

About his looks

You can imagine it, but his clothes are pretty thrown together after so many years, with scraps he can find somehow. His main red is still but barely present after time, but he ends up combining the colors of the other ninja in to remember them better. (When you use magical energy needed for your survival to dye your clothes in other colors.)

His hair grows out, and when it's open Kai pretty much looks like his mom. Most of the time however it's braided with on of Nyas hair ties he still had in his pockets. At one point he also ripped up his ninja mask for some bandaids, and is using the rest of it now as a bandana

He also gets several new scars, be it from experemening with magic, or fights with either the remaining forbidden or other creatures existing in the never space.

That's it for now. I don't wanna put to much stuff in one post, but please tell me if you want more or have ideas foe your own. I also still don't have a proper name idea for this AU/canon divergence, unless I'm somehow predicting s2 part 2 but that would be wild.

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