#edge lord Korra

[girlbosswar]

ROUND 1 MASTERLIST

So uh… yea

No I didn’t actually include everybody submitted but I included most of them

Polls will go up around tomorrow at 4:00 PM CST

If you make any edits or art or whatever make sure to tag this account

SIDE ONE

Sharpay Evans (High School Musical) Vs. Misako Montgomery Garmadon (Ninjago: Masters of Spinjitzu)

Queen (deltarune) Vs. Tanya Degurechaff (Youjo Senki)

Reko Yabusame (Your Turn To Die -Death Game By Majority-) Vs. Mai Zenin (Jujutsu Kaisen)

Sunset Shimmer (My Little Pony: Equestria Girls) Vs. Scheherazade (One Thousand and One Nights)

Megaera (Hades) Vs. Clementine (The Walking Dead)

Agent 8 (Splatoon 2: Octo Expansion) Vs. Palutena (Kid Icarus)

Nobara Kugisaki (Jujutsu Kaisen) Vs. Amy Rose (Sonic the Hedgehog CD)

Lucretia (The Adventure Zone) Vs. Maya Fey (Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney)

Phi (Zero Escape: Virtue’s Last Reward) Vs. Morganthe (Wizard 101)

Bo Peep (Toy Story) Vs. The Administrator (Team Fortress 2)

Audria Rose (Descendants) Vs. Chandrelle Stormblaze (The Hex)

Mion Sonozaki (Higurashi No Naku Koro Ni) Vs. Motoko Kusanagi (Ghost in the Shell)

F!Nefarious Tropy (Crash Bandicoot) Vs. Toriel (UNDERTALE)

Nagisa Misumi (Futari wa Precure) Vs. Aspheera (Ninjago)

Sara Chidouin (Your Turn To Die -Death Game By Majority-) Vs. Renée Minkowski (Wolf 359)

Callie (Splatoon) Vs. Romana (Doctor Who)

Marina (Splatoon 2) Vs. Junko Enoshima (Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc)

Jolyne Cujoh (Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure) Vs. Kagami Tsurugi (Miraculous Ladybug)

Ema Skye (Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney) Vs. Maki Zenin (Jujutsu Kaisen)

Edelgard von Hresvelg (Fire Emblem: Three Houses) Vs. Daisy (Super Mario Land)

Hinomori Shiso (Project Sekai: Colorful Stage) Vs. Nyota Uhura (Star Trek)

Regina George (Mean Girls) Vs. Lisa Lisa (Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure)

Olivier Mira Armstrong (Fullmetal Alchemist) Vs. Yor Forger (Spy x Family)

Lady Iron Fan (Monkie Kid) Vs. Claire Elford (Witch’s Heart)

MEIKO (Vocaloid) Vs. Hornet (Hollow Night)

Franziska von Karma (Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Justice for All) Vs. Prudence (Papa Louie)

Ningguang (Genshin Impact) Vs. Eleanor Shellstrop (The Good Place)

Buffy Anne Summers (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) Vs. Kokomi Teruhashi (The Disastrous Life of Saiki K)

Gertrude Robinson (The Magnus Archives) Vs. Larxene (Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories)

Tohru Honda (Fruits Basket) Vs. April O’Neil (ROTTMNT)

Sasha Waybright (Amphibia) Vs. Princess Carolyn (Bojack Horseman)

Madoka Kaname (Mahou Shoujo Madoka★Magica) Vs. Zora Salazar (Epithet Erased)

Reagan Ridley (Inside Job) Vs. Vera Oberlin (Monster Prom)

Jay Ferin (Just Roll With It) Vs. P.I.X.A.L (Ninjago)

Katherine Pierce (The Vampire Diaries) Vs. Monika (Doki Doki Literature Club)

Lumine (Genshin Impact) Vs. Korra (The Legend of Korra)

Bulma (Dragon Ball) Vs. Siobhan Roy (Succession)

Lady Macbeth (Macbeth) Vs. Alice (Zero Escape: Virtue’s Last Reward)

Susie (deltarune) Vs. Kim Wexler (Better Call Saul)

Fairy Godmother (Shrek 2) Vs. Kanaya Maryam (Homestuck)

Rumi Usagiyama (My Hero Academia) Vs. Jess Valenzuela (National Treasure: Edge of History)

Lauren Mallard (Welcome to Night Vale) Vs. Hitori Gotoh (Bocchi the Rock!)

Bayonetta (Bayonetta) Vs. Erza Scarlett (Fairy Tail)

Azula (Avatar: The Last Airbender) Vs. Banica Conchita (The Evillious Chronicles)

Frye (Splatoon 3) Vs. Piper McLean (Heroes of Olympus)

Ann Takamaki (Persona 5) Vs. Haru Okumura (Persona 5)

GLaDOS (Portal) Vs. Princess Leia (Star Wars)

Kyoko Sakura (Mahou Shoujo Madoka★Magica) Vs. Poison (Street Fighter)

Beidou (Genshin Impact) Vs. Gertrude Robinson (The Magnus Archives)

Clawdeen Wolf (Monster High) Vs. Chiemi Serizawa (Raging Loop)

Alcina Dimitrescu (Resident Evil) Vs. Lois Lane (DC)

Miss Piggy (The Muppets) Vs. Starlight Glimmer (My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic)

Lord Dominator (Wander Over Yonder) Vs. Homura Akemi (Mahou Shoujo Madoka★Magica)

Aradia Megido (Homestuck) Vs. Maika Halfwolf (Monstress)

Dahlia Hawthorne (Ace Attorney) Vs. Shiva (Final Fantasy)

Lucina (Fire Emblem) Vs. Jade Claymore (Willow)

Makima (Chainsaw Man) Vs. Marie (Splatoon)

Loona (Helluva Boss) Vs. Toph Beifong (Avatar: The Last Airbender)

SIDE TWO

Hatsune Miku (Vocaloid) Vs. Misa Amane (Death Note)

Opal Koboi (Artemis Fowl) Vs. Solar Flare (Plants vs. Zombies)

Mia Fey (Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney) Vs. Fleabag (Fleabag)

Adagio Dazzle (My Little Pony: Equestria Girls – Rainbow Rocks) Vs. Agent 3 (Splatoon)

Yashiro Uzuki (The World Ends With You) Vs. Isabelle (Animal Crossing: New Leaf)

Panty Anarchy (Panty & Stocking with Garterbelt) Vs. Tabitha Chrysanthemum Scarlet (Scarlet Hollow)

Rosemaster (Cucumber Quest) Vs. Astrid Hofferson (How To Train Your Dragon)

Athena Cykes (Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Dual Destinies) Vs. Lucifer (Helltaker)

Rapunzel (Tangled) Vs. Alana Bloom (Hannibal)

Nami (One Piece) Vs. Yukina Minato (BanG Dream!)

Nadja (What We Do in the Shadows) Vs. Kathryn Janeway (Star Trek)

Bridget (Guilty Gear) Vs. Liezel (Papa Louie)

Vriska Serket (Homestuck) Vs. Fish Mooney (Gotham)

Nina Cortex (Crash Bandicoot) Vs. Yosano Akiko (Bungo Stray Dogs)

Celestia Ludenberg (Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc) Vs. Chloé Bourgeois (Miraculous Ladybug)

Tsunade (Naruto) Vs. Helen Richardson (The Magnus Archives)

Akane Kurushiki (Zero Escape: 9 Hours 9 Persons 9 Doors) Vs. Violet Muller (Court of Darkness)

Mikasa Ackerman (Attack on Titan) Vs. Clementine (Stray)

Nancy Wheeler (Stranger Things) Vs. Katelyn (Aphmau)

Annabeth Chase (Heroes of Olympus) Vs. Test Tube (Inanimate Insanity)

Tifa Lockheart (Final Fantasy VII) Vs. Jinx (League of Legends)

Jude Duarte (The Folk of the Air) Vs. Lotus (Zero Escape: 9 Hours 9 Persons 9 Doors)

Yang Xiao Long (RWBY) Vs. Dark Noël (Shadows Over Loathing)

Her Imperious Condescension (Homestuck) Vs. Kitty Softpaws (Puss and Boots)

Boss (AI: The Somnium Files) Vs. Nathalie Sancoeur (Miraculous Ladybug)

Coco Adel (RWBY) Vs. Mary Katherine Blackwood (We Have Always Lived in the Castle)

Harumi (Ninjago) Vs. Tina Templeton (The Boss Baby: Family Business)

Nya (NInjago) Vs. Lady with an Ermine (Leonardo da Vinci)

Edalyn Clawthorne (The Owl House) Vs. Leslie Barbara Knope (Parks and Recreation)

Kanon Tachibana (NEO: The World Ends With You) Vs. Darling Charming (Ever After High)

Pearl (Splatoon 2) Vs. Amelia (The Amelia Project)

Mira (Zero Escape: Zero Time Dilemma) Vs. Carmelita Montoya Fox (Sly Cooper)

Hollyberry Cookie (Cookie Run) Vs. Vex’ahlia (Critical Role)

Yumeko Jabami (Kakegurui) Vs. Queen (Chess)

Lup (The Adventure Zone) Vs. Moonshine Cybin (Not Another D&D Podcast)

Taiga Aisaka (Toradora!) Vs. Sweetheart (OMORI)

Sister Beatrice (Warrior Nun) Vs. Millie (Helluva Boss)

Katara (Avatar: The Last Airbender) Vs. Kyoko Kirigiri (Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc)

Samus Aran (Metroid) Vs. Amelia Hughes (Infinity Train)

Mari Ohara (Love Live!) Vs. Clover (Zero Escape: 9 Hours 9 Persons 9 Doors)

Pomegranate Cookie (Cookie Run) Vs. Jessie (Pokémon)

Fiona (Shrek) Vs. Asuka Langley Soryu (Neon Genesis Evangelion)

Dana Cardinal (Welcome to Night Vale) Vs. Zakuro Fujiwara (Tokyo Mew Mew)

Aqua (Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep) Vs. Rose Lalonde (Homestuck)

Nadia Vulvokov (Russian Doll) Vs. Tron Bonne (Megaman)

Lucille Sharpe (Crimson Peak) Vs. Ocean O'Connell Rosenberg (Ride the Cyclone)

Statue of Liberty (USA) Vs. Undyne (UNDERTALE)

Ryūko Matoi (Kill la Kill) Vs. Bea Bottom (Something Rotten)

Mari (OMORI) Vs. Petra (Minecraft: Story Mode)

The Manger (The Hotel) Vs. Rosalina (Super Mario Galaxy)

Mamimi Samejima (FLCL) Vs. Weiss Schnee (RWBY)

Miriam Maisel (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel) Vs. Elizabert Megafig (Bugsnax)

Cleo de Nile (Monster High) Vs. Green Shadow (Plants vs. Zombies)

Quinn (Papa Louie) Vs. Skylor Chen (Ninjago)

Barbie (Barbie) Vs. Shiver (Splatoon 3)

Cynthia (Pokémon) Vs. Kaede Akamatsu (Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony)

[lily-orchard-gossip-blog]

Obligatory "I haven't watched Avatar", but it feels really ableist of Lily to say that disabling a character is more evil than removing their bodily autonomy. It just bothers me and I don't really have the words to properly explain why.

(Also, I don't even think not having bending powers in Avatar is a disability since there are characters who don't have bending abilities. I have watched the first two Avatar episodes and it actually seems like being a bender is uncommon, and characters without bending powers don't seem to have difficulties or limitations. But again, haven't watched Avatar so if anyone who has watched the show wants to correct me, please do so!)

I have seen the show, and while there are non benders, the benders themselves are shown to be very linked with their elements.

We actually see this in the legend of Korra, where a lot of benders lose their bending temporarily. They were fine, but obviously losing access to something they had their whole lives left an impact on them.

Think of bending as being like a fifth limb of sorts. Not a lot of people have that limb, so you'll be fine, but you'll be painfully aware of what was lost, as you've lived your whole life with that limb.

Which is why it's so poetic to use it against the fire lord. A man, use to towering over everyone with such power, ends up losing the thing that he values the most. (Outside the fire nation.)

HOWEVER, and here is the thing that makes what Lily's whole "blood bending is superior to energy bending" thing stupid (or stupider, from anyone's point of view).

Energy bending is a long term solution to dealing with someone who is a danger to everyone around them, peacefully. Is it an amazing solution? No. But it is an alternative to killing people.

It's also double-edged sword. If you want to use it, you have to be willing to risk your own bending in the process. It's a technique that demands you think your actions through, because the risks are incredibly high.

Blood bending only works if you KEEP BLOOD BENDING. It stops being useful against someone if the bender loses concentration, isn't around, or has the bending broken through by another skilled practitioner.

As for Lily thinking energy bending is worst the blood bending, well, of course she would think that.

Energy bending takes away your cool powers, after all.

Anything that makes you a normal person just has to be worse than the thing that lets you control and violate people's bodies.

Wait, that last line reads weird... Eh, whatever.

[randomwritingguy]

The Myth of Y/N (Korra x Reader) Part 34

Earth. Fire. Air. Water.

For three long years, Korra and I were separated. While she was recovering and recuperating at the South Pole, I started my training as an Air Nomad.

I trained and trained and trained. Trained until my bones threatened to shatter and my heart was a beat away from bursting. I vowed to never let anyone I love to get hurt again.

But as I grew in power, so did our enemies.

Like the Great Uniter.

And what she did set everything into motion.

We just didn’t know it yet.

BOOK FOUR: BALANCE

THREE YEARS LATER – PART ONE

NO-ONE’S POV

“Come on, Jerik!” A rough, heavy voice called out across the field. “Hurry up!”

Jerik rolls his eyes in annoyance. I’m working as fast as I can, he thought to himself. But he knew his father was right to urge him to go faster. The sun was nearly setting.

Placing the remaining crops onto his basket, he carefully lifted it up and started his journey back. The sun blinds his eyes in the angle he is at, but he doesn’t falter. He’s used to it. He keeps on going.

Jerik has been a farmer for a good few years now. His father pressed him into doing it to continue the family tradition or whatever. At least it keeps him busy.

On the other hand, it keeps him too busy. Too busy to really live his life to the fullest. Then again, that’s not really his father’s fault. It’s not his fault their village is barely keeping it together. It’s just the way life is.

The village known as Roku’s Beard has been standing still for years near the edge of the Fire Nation. It isn’t anything special. It isn’t unique. It’s just a small spec on the great and powerful nation from above.

The small collection of buildings and fields have been around since the end of the Hundred Year War. It was once called “Sozin’s Pride” when the tyrannical Fire Lords spread their narcissistic evil across their land and the world for their goals of power and conquest. The villagers named it this to show their support of their ruler or, at least, make it appear like they support them.

Under the reign of Fire Lord Ozai, their village lived in despair. Their crops were failing, their houses were crumbling apart, and sickness was growing. Jerik’s grandfather once told him that when he was his age, he thought the war was going to bring about their end…as well as the world’s.

And then Avatar Aang returned.

And then he defeated Ozai.

And then Prince Zuko, the once banished royal, became Fire Lord.

And then balance was restored.

The world had been saved.

With the war finally at an end after a hundred long years, the villagers restored their home’s original name “Roku’s Beard,” before Sozin started the conflict.

For seventy years, the world continued to prosper. All the nations became intertwined, and the United Republic of Nations was established. Avatar Aang and Fire Lord Zuko continued to improve the lives of many and even after the former’s death and the latter’s abdication, their legacies of peace and balance lived on.

However, like in all nations, there is still poverty.

Poverty that Roku’s Beard is suffering from.

Fire Lord Izumi is a mostly a good leader. She’s kind but stern. Giving but harsh when needed. However, she can’t do everything. She can make mistakes.

Roku’s Beard was one of them.

Although it isn’t as bad as it once was, their village still lives in decay. And now, it’s gotten worse.

Because of Azulon’s Flames.

Every week at midday, the scum and villainy turn up to their homes and force them to give them their food and supplies or they will burn Roku’s Beard to cinders. Jerik has seen it all too much. He can’t remember the last time his stomach was full…if there even was a time.

And their arrival is soon.

“Jerik!”

“I’m coming, I’m coming.” Jerik barks out, his irritation growing. “They won’t be here for another hour or two.”

Finally, he sees his father at the edge of the field, the grass blowing gently in the wind. A large man with a thick belly and thick arms crossed, he gazes at his son with steel. His gesture doesn’t contain a hint of panic that was in his words just earlier. Perhaps, he’s trying to brave.

When Jerik finally reaches up to him, the harsh glare softens.

“How much have we got?” He asks him, glancing at the basket in the son’s hands.

Breathing out a deep sigh of disappointment, the younger man glances down at the small amount of crops. “Not enough. I’m sorry, Dad.”

A gentle hand is placed on his shoulder, squeezing it tightly in comfort, and Jerik looks up to see his father giving him a sad smile. “It’s okay, son. Come on.”

Swallowing, he nods.

They begin to walk back to their village and then-

“-They’re here!”

The shout freezes Jerik to the bone.

What?! Azulon’s Flames don’t usually arrive this early!

“Shit!” His father splutters out. “Where?!”

The woman who first shouted rushes up to them and points in their direction. “Behind you!”

WHAT?!

“Jerik, run!”

He doesn’t. Instead, he turns to look.

None of this is making sense. It can’t be them. This isn’t like them.

His suspicions and doubt grow further with what he sees.

Instead of seeing dozens of the violent criminals wearing their torn clothes and slick black leather jackets. He doesn’t see the ostrich horses that usually accompany them. He sees none of them.

Deep far in the orange fields, he sees a single figure...walking to their village.

What?

“Jerik!” His father shouts. “Come on!”

“It’s not them!” He barks back. “Look!”

His father rushes up to his side and he sees what he’s talking about.

The figure stands tall and proud, covered in red and orange. They wear a powerful cape that is blowing powerfully in the wind. They move slowly in elegant steps, so elegant in fact that they make the figure look like a spirit moving with the wind.

“Who is it?” The father asks, his confusion replacing his panic.

As the walking figure gets closer and closer, Jerik sees more of its features. He sees dark skin, hair flowing slightly in the wind with their cape, and, most importantly, he sees the big, bright blue arrow tattoo on their forehead.

“It’s an Air Nomad!” Jerik exclaims, hope filling his entire body. “I can’t believe it!”

“What’s an Air Nomad doing in a place like this?” His dad asks, more to himself than to the others, and Jerik can hear the cautiousness in his tone.

Before Jerik can even open his mouth, the figure rushes forward in a speed greater than humanly possible and stops dead in front of the two villagers, wind blowing violently towards them.

Hands clasped behind their back, the Air Nomad gazes at Jerek’s father, and Jerek himself When they lock eyes with him, he sees a small smile form on their lips. Then, the smile fades away and replaced with complete professionalism and gazes at the older man.

“Are you the leader of the village Roku’s Beard?” The monk asks him, their voice loud and powerful.

At the corner of his eye, Jerek can see his father visibly swallow. Then, after a brief moment of hesitation, he answers the question. “I am. My name is Tukim.”

Then, to everyone’s shock, the Nomad’s smile returns, even bigger than the one before. “Greetings. I am Master Y/N of the Air Nation. It is an honour to meet you.”

The monk proceeds to bow briefly in respect which prompts Jerek’s father to do the same.

“It is, uh, an honour to meet you, Master Y/N.” He says, not really knowing what to say. “I must admit, I am surprised by your presence.”

Master Y/N chuckles. “I would be even more surprised if you weren’t. I hadn’t intended to arrive, actually.”

They weren’t planning on showing up? Jerek thinks to himself, tilting his head slightly to the left. “Why are you here then?”

“Jerek.” His father harshly whispers, scolding him for the blunt and rude question.

Instead of being offended, the airbending master raises their right hand which silences him. “No, no. It’s fine. You have the right to know.”

Master Y/N shifts their gaze to Jerek. “To be perfectly honest, Jerek-I can call you Jerek, right?”

Jerek nods.

“To be perfectly honest, Jerek,” Master Y/N repeats, “I was on my way home after completing a task I had and saw your village. I had a gut feeling I should pop by and have a look.”

Then, almost immediately after the monk finishes their story, a giant air bison land right behind them! Its striking white fur, big black eyes and shiny teeth freezing Jerek to the bone.

His father, on the other hand, jumped back in surprise.

Master Y/N didn’t even flinch. Instead, they turn around and cross their arms to appear displeased. “Spectre, what did I tell you about scaring people like this?”

The air bison, Spectre, lets out a series of grumbles that seems like its way of chuckling in amusement.

Turning back to the villagers, Master Y/N gives them a bashful smile. “I apologise on behalf of my bison. He likes to do this sometimes.”

“It’s okay.” The oldest of the three replies, finally regaining their confidence and posture. “So, you’re here on a whim?”

They chuckle. “Pretty much. While I am here, is there anything I can do for you?”

“Can you stop Azulon’s Flames?”

Jerek’s eyes widen in surprise when he realises its HIS voice asking that question.

Master Y/N narrows their eyes slightly in confusion. “Azulon’s Flames?”

Tukim looks around frantically as if the mere mention of the gang will summon them from the shadows. Then, he leans forward to the airbender and lets out a whisper, “I think it’s best we discuss this quickly inside. Follow me.”

As they all turn around, they notice a growing number of villagers staring at the newcomer with mystery and intrigue. They haven’t had new visitors in so long.

As the three individuals walk across the village, Jerek can hear mutterings and gossip from the crowd. Mentions of “Air Nomad,” “That’s an air bison!” and “Why are they here?” spread across the area like flies.

Jerek turns to the airbender and sees that they are looking around at the buildings of the village with a slight frown, obviously finding the sight to be unpleasant.

What’s their problem? Jerek thinks to himself, a growing irritation filling him. Do they not like our village?

Finally, after a minute of walking, they arrive. With the ear-piercing creak of the opening wooden door, Tukim walks into his home, followed by Jerek and Master Y/N.

Greeted by the all too familiar site of his dirty, dilapidated, claustrophobic place that was their living room, Jerek lets out a tiny sigh of relief. Finally, they are back inside.

The room wasn’t much. In fact, the square-like area was nearly empty with the exception of a small wooden table and chairs with a little primitive stove in the corner for cooking.

It isn’t much, but it’s home.

“Please, have a seat.” Tukim tells the Air Nomad, and they all sit down. For a few seconds, no-one speaks. Jerek can feel his throat tighten with suspense as he glances between the monk and his father, the former looking around the room with the same frown.

“You have a problem with our home?!” Jerek speaks up with a slight snarl, finally fed up with the nomad’s seemingly disgust at where they were at.

“Jerek!” His father growled out and begins to apologise to their guest, they raise their hand.

“Not at all.” Master Y/N tells them with a genuine look of sadness. “I was just surprised. I assumed the reign of Fire Lord Zuko and the current reign of Fire Lord Izumi eliminated poverty of this extent.”

This makes Tukim let out a bitter chuckle. “I would be surprised if Fire Lord Izumi even knows we exist.”

“Have you not tried contacting someone about it?” They continue, leaning forward slightly in engagement. “I’m sure she would help you if she was aware.”

“Oh, we tried, all right.” The old man says as he leans back in his chair and shifts his gaze downwards, his eyes going dark as he remembers all the vain attempts to bring a positive change to his village. “We tried sending letters to the places of power, but it seems like we are insignificant to them because they never responded to our calls for help.”

“How many letters have you sent?”

“Thirteen.”

Jerek sees the master’s eyes narrow with lines at the edges and their fists clench.

“I’m sorry. I will have a word with Fire Lord Izumi about this when I’m done here.”

This causes father and son to leap forward in complete shock, eyes widened, and jaw dropped. The leap was so fast and sudden that it pushed the table by a few inches!

“You can do that?!” Jerek speaks up, breathless.

Master Y/N nods slowly. “I can’t guarantee anything other than I will make her aware of your situation. All I can do is advise but the decision is up to the Fire Lord.”

Surprisingly, Jerek briefly sees the Air Nomad’s eyes flicker with anger before quickly being covered up. It was for a single second, but it was there.

Were they angry with the Fire Lord? He thinks to himself but doesn’t press the issue. Whatever problem they have, its clear they didn’t want to address it.

“With that out of the way,” Master Y/N continues, not giving Tukim or his son a chance to thank them, “what are Azulon’s Flames?”

The hope that filled the atmosphere vanishes.

“A monstrous gang.” Tukim finally answered, tightness and discomfort in his posture and voice. “They’ve been coming here and stealing what little crops and supplies we have. They’ve been harassing us for a good few years.”

“And you’ve mentioned them in your letters as well?”

“We have.”

The fists of the monk clench tighter.

“I see.”

No-one says anything for a while, the room so dead silent that it could make the bravest nervous.

Then, finally, the monk responds.

“I’ll take care of it.”

Huh?

“You will?!” Tukim and Jerek both let out, even more shocked than before.

They nod. “When do they come?”

Tukim opens his mouth to answer but what comes out isn’t his voice. Instead, a rough voice of another male echoes across the entire village.

“They’re here!”

What?!

“They don’t normally come this early!” Tukim splutters, shrinking back slightly in nervousness. “They usually show up much later!”

“Great…” Jerek mutters under his breath. “Just great.”

Master Y/N rises to their feet and starts walking to the door, not responding to either of the men’s comments. “Stay here. I will deal with them.”

“Not without me!” Tukim tells them, rising to his feet and stands tall to appear confident. “I lead this village. What happens to it is my responsibility.”

The Air Nomad freezes in their tracks. Then, they turn their head slightly to the left. “Very well. Come.”

Jerek begins to follow too but a rough hand land on his shoulder, stopping him in his tracks.

“Jerek, you stay here.” His father tells him with sterness. “No arguments.”

“But-“

“Listen to your father, Jerek.” Master Y/N adds, this time turning completely to give them a serious look. “Please.”

After a few seconds of an intense stare off between him, his father, and the monk, Jerek finally concedes but not before giving Tukim a loving hug. “Be careful, Dad.”

“I will, son.”

Then, they are off.

Now, if Jerek was any other kid, he would have obeyed to his father’s wishes and stay behind.

But Jerek wasn’t any other kid.

And so, a few minutes after his two seniors left the home, he follows suite. He notices how everyone else has gone back to their own places of solitude, consumed by fear so badly that they can’t even take a foot outside.

Great. That means Jerek can easily hide without anyone ratting him out.

Crouching slightly, the young man shuffles from house to house, occasionally pausing to make sure he isn’t potentially spotted by anyone, until he eventually reaches to the edge of the village with a building as his cover.

There, his father is standing tall to appear confident. The performance isn’t the most convincing but he is trying.

Master Y/N, on the other hand, is a completely different story. Standing beside Tukim, stands someone with authority. Hands clasped behind their back, cape blowing gently in the wind, they radiate extreme power as if that with a flick of a wrist they can wipe out all their enemies in a single stroke.

And, now, the Azulon’s Flames are here.

He sees multiple ostrich horses charging toward the village, arranged in their standard triangular formation. There he can see the infamous black jackets, roughed up and torn clothes, and muscular builds of the Roku’s Beard’s damnation.

However, while in every other day they would rode their ostrich horses to the very centre of the village, this time they freeze at the very entrance at the sight of the newcomer.

At Master Y/N.

Jerek’s blood freezes to ice as the rider at the very front hops off his transport and marches towards the two individuals with his followers behind him.

Karak. Leader of the Azulon’s Flames.

Jerek has never spoken to the infamous man before but he has definitely seen him more than enough. He remembers the all too familiar red and blue dragon tatoos wrapped around his bulky arms, his brown dagger beard and a mismatched pair of gold and white eyes, the latter most likely a result of a gruesome fight. That isn’t even mentioning the fact that Karak was inhumanely tall, as tall of seven feet. He was a giant with giant ambitions.

And as he marched towards them, Master Y/N didn’t even flinch.

“Whatta you doing here, monk?” Karak spits out, voice booming with rage and hatred. “This is none your business!”

His father understandably moves back slightly at the commanding presence the gang leader radiates. The airbending master stays where they are.

“On the contrary,” Master Y/N smoothly replies in a neutral tone, “the moment when innocent lives are harassed and threatened is exactly when it becomes my business. You, on the other hand, are unwelcome here.”

Karak lets out a humourless laugh, head thrown back. All the while, his followers stare at the two with sadistic grins.

When the laughter dies down, Karak stares down at the airbender. “I don’t think you understand, nomad. We are the Azulon’s Flames. We don’t care what others think! We take what we want, when we want! That’s what’s we been doing for years in this dump and its gonna stay that way.”

“I’m afraid not.” Master Y/N responds, not sounding sorry at all in the slightest. “Your days of robbing and ruining these people’s lives are over. You and your gang will turn around and leave and will never return. Am I clear?”

This amused smile on Karak’s face is gone now. “Didn’t you hear what I said? We gonna keep on taking what we want from here no matter what anyone thinks. You must be having bad memory. I suppose that’s what happens when you monks’ heads stay in the clouds for too long.”

The insult doesn’t waver the monk’s confidence. “Perhaps you’re the one who needs to have their memory checked. You will leave and never come back. I will not repeat myself a third time.”

“Or what?”

“Or I will make sure you all will never see the sunlight again.”

In a blaze of fury, Karak launches a powerful thrust of flames right towards Tukim and the Air Nomad!

Before Jerek can even process what happened or let alone rush in and try to help, the nomad reacts faster than their opponent did as they summon a powerful air shield which easily blocks the attack!

“Tukim, stand far away!” they demand in a tone that left no argument. The leader of the village does just that, walking backwards to create some distance.

Before Karak and his goons could retaliate, Master Y/N twirls in a 360 motion at a speed so fast it would look like a blur to the naked eye and flings their arm to the direction of the criminals, knocking all of them back by a good feet and scaring the ostrich horses away and causing them to scatter!

Not giving them the chance to recover from the attack, they proceed to swing and fling their arms around the front of their body like they were made of liquid which causes all of them to float right into the air and spin around. A tornado of men.

Screams of pure terror echo throughout the village as they rise and rise and rise further away from the ground, their shouts so loud and full of fear that it would put a child’s scream to shame. One by one, Jerek sees the villagers slowly exit their homes and advance towards the main event and they begin clapping and cheering, their overwhelming joy of their harassers’ misery so unashamedly obvious.

Their joy must be infectious as Jerek, overcome by it as well, walks towards them as well. His father spots them immediately, eyes widened slightly for a split second before frowning harshly in a disapproval look.

“I told you to stay behind.” He growls, though now it holds no bite.

Jerek shrugs. “Couldn’t help myself. Besides, they seem to be doing just fine.”

Then, finally, Master Y/N stops his motion and the tornado of man falls transforms into a rain of men as they all fall to the ground with a loud THUMP!

When the rain is over, the men lie still. Breathing but unconscious. Alive but their pride now destroyed.

Master Y/N turns to the crowd, a proud smile on their face. “You won’t have to worry about Azulon’s Flames anymore. You can live your lives in peace!”

The crowd erupts into thunderous applause and Tukim gives them a grateful smile. “Thank you! Thank you so much Master Y/N! We will forever be in your debt!”

The Air Nomad raises their hands in a calming gesture, chuckling slightly. “There is no debt to pay. I am merely doing what is right.”

Jerek stares at the airbending master. One person defeated an entire gang by themselves and they didn’t even break a sweat.

“There must be something we can do to thank you.” He speaks up, overwhelmed with relief and gratitude. “Anything at all.”

The Air Nomad glances at Jerek, then the defeated Azulon’s Flames, and then back at Jerek again.

“I could use some rope.”

TIME SKIP

Y/N’S POV

“On behalf of all the people of the Fire Nation, I thank you Master Y/N.”

I bow slightly in response to the grateful voice of Fire Lord Izumi. Her voice radiates professionalism and authority, two crucial characteristics for one with such power. Rising to stand straight, I gaze right at daughter of Lord Zuko a good distance away.

When the Hundred Year War ended over seventy years ago, Fire Lord Zuko made a lot of changes to the policies that his forefathers implemented onto the nation both small and large. One of the former, I observed when I walked into the palace, was the throne room itself.

The infamous fire curtain that brought fear into the hearts of anyone who were brave enough to walk in that stretched from one end of the room to the other was gone. In fact, any trace of the old throne room had been vanquished and replaced with a more welcoming atmosphere, a symbolisation of the new Fire Nation. Now, standing in that very same room, I see the paintings and sculptures of dragons and iconography of the culture that I cannot recognise. It is a rich of culture and I can feel it.

Sitting on a soft cushion, legs crossed like Fire Lords before Sozin had done, was the one and only Fire Lord Izumi, her golden pupils staring right into my own eyes with spectacles creating a slight shine to them, her silver hair neatly tided with her crown fitted gently into it like it was destined to be there.

And she is thanking me.

“There is no need, your majesty.” I formally tell her. “As I said, I merely did what was right.”

I can hear the satisfaction in my own voice. It’s true. The scum who have been stealing from the poor will never see the sunlight again in their jail cells. Some say I might have been acting a bit too aggressive for an Air Nomad when I was interacting with them but who cares what they think. I gave them a chance to surrender, twice actually, and they refused to listen. It was really satisfying to hear their screams of terror and their shouts of frustration when they all woke up tied up together when I brought them to the palace.

“Of course.” She smoothly replies, nodding gently. “Still, your assistance is greatly appreciated. Azulon’s Flames would face the proper consequences for their crimes against us.”

Us.

I frown slightly at that word. Us. Like, they are all a unified force.

And yet, Tukim’s comments still linger in the back of my mind.

“I would be surprised if Fire Lord Izumi even knows we exist.”

Pushing them to the back of my mind for now, I give her a smile. “I am glad to hear it.” I tell her gratefully. Then, my smile fades slightly. “However, I did not come here just to bring you petty thieves, your majesty. You are far more important than that. I wish to discuss with you another matter if you have the time.

The Fire Lord raises her right eyebrow slightly in curiosity. “I do. Please, continue.”

Taking in a big swallow and clenching my fists, I proceed. “As I spent my time in the Roku’s Beard, I noticed the extreme levels of poverty and low standard of life present. When I asked the leader of the village, he told me he has made several requests in the past for help only to get no response. I merely desire to bring this to your attention in hopes of being dealt with.”

As I finish my story, I see the Fire Lord’s features soften in what appears to be sympathy. It seems like she wasn’t aware of the problem, after all.

“I see.” She finally replies after a few moments of silence. “I had no knowledge of this. I will make sure assistance will be provided to them. Thank you for making me aware of the issue, Master Y/N.”

Letting out a tense breath that I didn’t know I was holding, I bow. “Thank you, your majesty.”

The sound of doors from behind echo across the throne room and we are greeted by two visitors. One of them I know all too well, with their long pointy beard, and silver long hair and the burnt patch of skin around his left eye. The other is much younger, around my age, and she walks freely like all the troubles in the world are irrelevant. Her black hair swinging back and forth in her walks, her golden eyes relaxed, and pink lips in a similar fashioned smile. I also see a crown similar to the Fire Lord’s on her head. Another royal?

“This is unexpected.” Izumi speaks up with a trace of humour.

Now, standing before us, Lord Zuko gives his daughter a warm smile. “I’m sorry, Izumi. Your daughter insisted.”

“Why am I not surprised?” The Fire Lord replies. She then glances at me and gestures to the two visitors. “Master Y/N, I believe you are familiar with my father, Lord Zuko?”

I nod and I bow before him, giving him my complete respect. The last time I saw him was three years ago and we never really spoke. Now, though, I have that luxury. It’s amazing to meet someone as legendary and noble as the man in front of me.

“I am. It is an absolute honour to meet you, Lord Zuko.”

The elder bows in respect in return. “The honour is mine. It is a pleasure to meet you again, Master Y/N.”

“Aren’t you a little short to be an Air Nomad?”

Huh?

I look at Lord Zuko’s right and I see the young woman gazing at me up and down without any attempt to hiding it. Then, she looks right into my eyes. “I thought you would be taller.”

…Huh?

“Um.” I mutter but that’s all I can say. How can I respond to that?

“Azula.” Fire Lord Izumi chastises.

Wait, Azula?

“I was just messing with them, mum.” The daughter replies with a roll of her eyes. Then, surprisingly, she stretches out her hand. “Pleased to meet you, uh, Y/N, was it?”

Still confused slightly, I stretch out and take her hand. “Yes, that is correct. You’re General Iroh’s younger sister. Princess Azula, right?”

“Glad to know I’m only known as “General Iroh’s younger sister.”

“Oh, uh, no! That-That wasn’t what I mea-“

Azula chuckles at my embarrassed state. “Just messing with you.”’

Beside her, Lord Zuko chuckles at the scene before him. “Don’t embarrass our guest, Azula. I’m sure they have had enough.”

“They don’t mind, Grandpa Zuko.”

“If I may interrupt,” Fire Lord Izumi speaks up trying to get the topic back on hand, though a smile is present on her lips. “I believe Master Y/N has other business to attend such as getting home. They’ve had a long day. Give my thanks to Tenzin.”

Hearing the kind dismissal, I bow once more. “I will. Thank you for your time, Fire Lord Izumi.”

Giving Lord Zuko and Princess Azula nods of their own, I begin walking to the exit.

“Wait!”

The voice of the princess makes me stop and I turn.

She continues. “Give Tenzin my thanks too. It’s great that the Air Nation are helping the world while Avatar Korra is recovering.”

Her name makes time stop, my face sweating, and fists clenched. I can hear the lightning fast pounding of my heart.

Korra.

Forcing myself to focus on reality, I blink a few times rapidly and give her a weak “Your welcome.” Then, I tun and quickly leave.

Dammit, dammit, dammit.

Korra.

Marching out of the palace in quick succession, I see Spectre waiting right outside the doors clearly impatient and tired of waiting.

Good. Time to get out of here.

“It wasn’t your fault.”

The soothing gentle voice of Lord Zuko brings me to a halt. As I turn, I see his sympathetic gaze aimed right at me.

“What?” I manage to get out.

“It wasn’t your fault.” He repeats softly. “What happened with Korra. There was nothing you could have done to stop it.”

This isn’t the first time I’ve heard that, and it certainly won’t be the last. The intended effects fail each and every time they are spoken to me.

He’s wrong. They all are.

“I know you think I’m mistaken.” He continues as if he has read my mind. “But you are in a prison of your own making. It’s time for you to be free of the guilt and regret that have been plaguing your mind for these past three years. I know all too well how it feels, Y/N. If you don’t learn to forgive yourself, they will consume you.

They already have. A long, long, time ago.

“Thank you, Lord Zuko.” I tell him abruptly. “I must take my leave.”

I start walking to Spectre immediately afterwards, not allowing the royal to retort or continue the discussion further, and hop onto him.

“Let’s go, Spectre.” I gently tell him. “Yip yip.”

Without making sound Spectre leaps into the air and winds and clouds, leaving me all alone to my thoughts.

Korra.

Leaning backwards and lying on my back on the warm and fuzzy fur, I gaze up into the blue sky.

Three years. It’s been three long years since I’ve seen let alone spoken to my best friend.

If she even is my best friend anymore.

Sighing heavily, I close my eyes.

Three years.

How much longer do we have to wait?

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

And that's it!

I hope you all enjoyed it!

Feedback is appreciated! :D

See you all in the next chapter!

[foundfamilyappreciation]

Hello and welcome to the second Found Family Face-off! This time it's siblings! As mentioned in the intro post, this is for siblings of different genders, as there will future tournaments for brothers and sisters respectively to give as many found siblings as possible to be included! Anyway, please meet your contestants and round 1 match ups below:

*Please don't clown on this post and argue against why certain characters can't be found siblings (aside from if they're in an explicitly canon romantic relationship that I missed while trying to vet them). Please respect that these are people's headcanons and they might not align with yours (heck, some of these even I don't agree with but again, that's just my opinion) and that this is just for fun etc.

Group A

Ahsoka Tano & Rex VS Ahsoka Tano & Anakin Skywalker (Star Wars)

Garrazeb Orrelios, Sabine Wren & Ezra Bridger VS Cassian Andor, Jyn Erso & Bodhi Rook (Star Wars)

Kilindi Matako & Maul VS Cal Kestis & Merrin (Star Wars)

Michael Burnham & Saru (Star Trek: Discovery) VS Mako Mori & Raleigh Beckett (Pacific Rim)

Tegan Jovanka & Vislor Turlough VS 10th Doctor & Donna Noble (Doctor Who)

Luke Smith & Sky Smith VS Luke Smith & Maria Jackson (The Sarah Jane Adventures)

Aidan Waite, Josh Levison & Sally Malik (Being Human U.S.) VS Steve Jinks & Claudia Donovan (Warehouse 13)

Amanda Brotzman & Vogel (Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency) VS Wednesday Addams & Eugene Ottinger (Wednesday)

Group B

Parker & Eliot Spencer (Leverage) VS Inej Ghafa & Jesper Fahey (Six of Crows/Shadow and Bone)

Duke Thomas & Cassandra Cain (DC Comics) VS Will Byers & Jane "El" Hopper (Stranger Things)

Angus MacGyver, Wilt Bozer, Riley Davis & Sam Cage (MacGyver 2016) VS Josh Lyman, Toby Ziegler, CJ Cregg, Sam Seaborn & Charlie Young (The West Wing)

Malcolm Bright, J.T. Tarmell & Dani Powell (Prodigal Son) VS Kate Beckett, Javier Esposito & Kevin Ryan (Castle)

Jake Peralta + Rosa Diaz (Brooklyn Nine-Nine) VS Meredith Grey + Alex Karev (Grey's Anatomy)

Fig Faeth, Adaine Abernant, Fabian Aramais Seacaster, Gorgug Thistlespring, Riz Gukgak & Kristen Applebees (Dimension 20: Fantasy High) VS Travis Killian & The Doctor (The Game of Rassilon)

Meriadoc Brandybuck & Eowyn (The Lord of the Rings) VS Lester Papadopoulos & Meg McCaffrey (Trials of Apollo)

Alanna of Trebond, Gareth of Naxen & Raoul of Goldenlake (Song of the Lioness) VS Keladry of Mindelan, Neal of Queenscove (Protector of the Small) VS Sandry fa Toren, Tris Chandler, Daja Kisubo & Briar Moss (Circle of Magic)

Group C

Katara & Zuko VS Toph & Zuko (Avatar: The Last Airbender)

Sokka & Toph VS Aang & Toph (Avatar: The Last Airbender)

Korra & the Air kids (The Legend of Korra) VS April O'Neil + the Ninja Turtles (Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles)

Sprig Plantar & Anne Boonchuy (Amphibia) VS Hiccup Haddock & Heather (How to Train Your Dragon: Race to the Edge)

Luz Noceda & Hunter VS Luz Noceda & Gus Porter & Willow Park (The Owl House)

Luz Noceda & King Clawthorne (The Owl House) VS Rayla & Ezran (The Dragon Prince)

Lilo Pelekai & Stitch (Lilo and Stitch) VS Luca Paguro, Giulia Marcovaldo & Alberto Scorfano (Luca)

Hisirdoux "Douxie" Casperan & Claire Nuñez VS Hisirdoux "Douxie" Casperan & Nari (Tales of Arcadia)

Group D

Roronoa Zoro & Nami VS Roronoa Zoro & Perona (One Piece)

Kyōka Izumi & Atsushi Nakajima (Bungo Stray Dogs) VS Phoenix Wright & Maya Fey (Ace Attorney)

Miles Edgeworth & Franziska Von Karma VS Miles Edgeworth & Kay Faraday (Ace Attorney)

Sento Kiryu & Misora Isurugi (Kamen Rider Build) VS Mikasa Ackermann and Armin Arlett (Attack on Titan)

Shadow the Hedgehog & Maria Robotnik (Sonic the Hedgehog) VS Lucas, Kumatora & Duster (MOTHER 3)

Junpei Iori & Female protagonist/Kotone Shiomi (Persona 3) VS Ren Amamiya/Akira Kurusu & Futaba Sakura (Persona 5)

Sombra & Cassidy VS Baptist & Sombra (Overwatch)

Beauregard Lionett & Fjord VS Beauregard Lionett & Caleb Widogast (Critical Role)

Also! To help me out and get the brackets done and published sooner, here's a list of contestants that I haven't found picture for and would super appreciate help in tracking them down. Massive shout out to those who sent in pics with their submissions, yall are MVPs.

(Need the ones that aren't highlighted)

Feel free to submit them via ask, submission or by reblogging and adding them to this post. Thanks in advance!

[lifblogs]

Tagged by: @evilwriter37

Favorite video game?

The Sims 4.

Favorite video game character?

No idea. Probably my dad’s video game OC blorbos.

Favorite movie or TV series?

Movies

The Lord of the Rings

The Avengers

Megamind

Kung Fu Panda 2

How to Train Your Dragon

Star Wars

Harry Potter (no one @ me)

If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power (yes, I’m counting this)

TV Series

The 100 (in it for the whump, and some ships, only ever watch it up to the end of season 6)

Supernatural

Teen Wolf

Doctor Who

Rebels

The Clone Wars

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Lucifer

Never Have I Ever

Avatar: The Last Airbender

The Legend of Korra

Trollhunters

Race to the Edge

Game of Thrones (season 8 doesn’t exist, okay?)

Reign

Favorite movie or TV series character?

I’m on a Frodo Baggins kick right now, but am still obsessed with a ton of other characters.

Hobbies:

Thanks to injuries, COVID stealing my singing voice 3 years ago, and my clarinet being broken my hobbies have definitely diminished. Right now it’s basically just reading, and watching shows and movies, maybe a smidge of writing. Does getting obsessive and anxious about the internet/social media count as a hobby?

Obsessions:

Sam Winchester, Star Wars, Supernatural, The Lord of the Rings, Never Have I Ever. Background obsessions are everywhere, like Doctor Who, Teen Wolf. Mention it and I’ll be talking for hours.

Favorite genre/type of background music for whump daydreams?

Cinematic alternative.

What is your favorite whump trope?

Captivity! Once read the second half of a book in a day because the main character got captured.

What is your favorite whump pairing?

S

A

M

I

F

E

R

Sorry, had to write it like that because I’m so excited.

What was (one of) the first time(s) you experienced whumperflies?

The first was probably either while reading the Gone series by Michael Grant, or watching Teen Wolf. I vividly remember some of my first whumperflies being from watching season 7 of Supernatural and realizing what Lucifer had done to Sam in the Cage. Now ANY of their scenes give me whumperflies.

What’s your favorite whump scene from a piece of media?

Episode 3x18 “Riddled” from Teen Wolf. Everything with Stiles in that episode!! I have watched this over and over again just to see Stiles missing and getting tortured in his sleep. His SCREAMS. I’d recognize them anywhere. He’s getting hypothermia, and there’s a fucking steel jaw trap on his leg!!!

GIFS INCLUDED

What’s a book you would recommend, whump or not?

Hmm, this is tough because I read so much. Probably the Throne of Glass series by Sarah J. Maas because of it being epic fantasy with most of the last book being battles, and there is definitely a lot of whump.

What’s your favorite whump fic?

Some of them are definitely my own. Sorry. But damn, can we praise Infernal Fascination? Would get a link, but you know, AO3 is going through it.

Added Question: Who is your favorite author?

Damn, too hard. Time to list a few:

Brandon Sanderson

J. R. R. Tolkien

Robert Jordan

Sarah J. Maas

Michael Grant

R. F. Kuang, apparently, since I have all her books

Jennifer L. Armentrout

Kristen Britain

Rick Riordan

Jim Butcher

And add your own question:

What is your favorite whumpy book?

Not sure who to tag. Maybe @suncaptor would be interested in this?

[evilwriter37]

Favorite TV shows/movies/books/video games. I want to see answers for all of these. Super curious since you seem to have some things I don’t know about you.

TV Shows:

DreamWorks Dragons (Rider of Berk, Defenders of Berk, Race to the Edge)

Tales of Arcadia

Teen Wolf

Good Omens

Star Wars Rebels (even though I haven’t sat down and watched it in full)

Doctor Who (specifically 11th and 12th doctors)

Phineas and Ferb

Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra

The Witcher (even though I haven’t finished season 2)

Movies:

How to Train Your Dragon

The Lord of the Rings

The Hobbit

Megamind

The Avengers

Pacific Rim (I love Guillermo del Toro’s directing so much)

The Fall

Rogue One

The Last Jedi

Books

2920, Last Year of the First Era. Okay, this one needs some explaining. There are books in The Elder Scrolls universe that were written for the game, maybe to make it more immersive and add to the lore. Well, this one was literally a multichapter fiction story written in prose. Fiction within fiction. Fictionception. Anyway, it was really good and I love it so much! I have it bookmarked in the collection so I can go back to it.

The Prose Edda

Good Omens by Neil Gaiman

Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman

Eon by Alison Goodman

Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson

The Wheel of Time by Robert Jordan

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

Honestly? Anything by Agatha Christie. I love her writing and need to read that big collection dad got me.

Video Games

Minecraft

The Sims

Skyrim

The Elder Scrolls Online

Portal and Portal 2 (I finished those pretty quick.)

Valheim is a newer edition to favorite video games!

[80sbrainmatter]

Alright, I went out on a whim and wrote this, cause fuck it. Lowkey cringe to me. Features my oc: The Red Plague. Lol, what fuckin cringe.

A Troubling Smell

Riiiiip.

These goddamn, pieces of fucking paper.

Korra growled to herself as she crumbled up yet another fake-out, "Slenderman Page" that plagued her woods. The woods she promised the said faceless, bastard man that she'd look after after he gave her a home. A small cabin, surrounded by out of place snow that was only a mile away from the mansion the 'King' resided in. It wasn't enough for the woods to be called: "the Slender Forest" to ward off the humans that lived outside them, no; there was still many, too many, of them still trying to tread into these cursed woods. That's why she was given a cabin, a cabin in the woods. To help further protect the safety of their home and the woods the faceless man was so fond of...

And it would be a lot fuckin' easier if these damn kids would fucking knock it off with this fuckin' "Slender Challenge!" Korra growled deeply as she ripped another page off, leaving scratch marks in the bark as she did so.

"Stop fucking littering! First it was the shitty, "Save The Animals" propaganda that PETA kept leaving. Now, as soon as it turns fall, it's this damn challenge again! This town ain't gonna have much of a population if they keep on doin' this shit!" She ranted outloud, scaring nearby birds off, probably a bear too. She shoved the crumpled up pieces into her hooded-jacket pockets and stalked off further down the trail, towards the tiny, old construction sight that was left abandoned. For once, not caused by Slenderman or his kin. The city, maybe.

"Who's gonna notice a few missing rabbits anyways?" She grumbled.

The dusk breeze swayed strains of her deep red hair as she walked (more or so stomped,) kicking up sticks and leaves as she went. Her hostile mood was definitely radiating, sending whatever waited for her ahead, scampering off, not ready to face the demonic entity. As she spotted yet another, crudely made up page, laughter echoed throughout the trees. It made one of her elfish ears twitch.

Were they responsible for this? She questioned to herself bitterly. She didn't care if they were or if they weren't; they showed up at an unfortunate time and will deal with the repercussions made for who drew these.

Korra marched towards the group, their smells over taking her senses. It was too much for her, so much so that she had to stop and fan the air around her, coughing while doing so.

"If they weren't going to pay for the," a series of coughs cut her off, "drawings, they definently are paying for that smell. Holy fuck! What Smile dug up in my backyard smelled better than this."

Feeling a headache starting a form, Korra decided to teleport to them, wanting to get this over with already before her nose melted off.

Dramatic as always.

Appearing only a few feet from the group, the smell became stronger. She wasn't sure if she wanted to kill them. That smell could stick with her for a month! Her coughing got the groups attention. Through her watery eyes, she could make out three males and two females. The smell was coming from the guys.

Human boys and their fuckin' Axe Body Spray. She coughed to herself.

"You– you fucks! Are you responsible for these?" She asked, wiping one of her eyes as she pulled out one of the paper balls.

"Uh, that's just paper? Weirdo." One of the guys laughed, the others joining in. Korra groaned and blinked away oncoming tears.

"No, you fucking idiots! God, that smell! All of you! You smell like a NFL Football party!" She doubled over and coughed. "God, what did you do? Dump the cans on each other and fuck the night away? I've smelled corpses better than you. Oh God, it's in my lungs."

She stood up, her eyes looking like they've been through a terrible cry. The men seemed offended while the two girls laughed. Korra waved her hand in a dismissive way.

"God, I don't care. You're killing the trees with your odor. Just take these and beat it!" She threw the three balls at them, two of them hitting the middle guys chest.

"Who are you to tell us what to do... freakshow! You look like you shop at Hottopic." One of the girls sneered, clearly upset for whatever reason. Korra gave them a blank stare, as best as she could with burning eyes and the sniffles.

"What the fuck is a Hottopic?" She asked. She shook her head. "Never mind. Leave or die." She crossed her arms, trying to focus her vision.

"No, freak. What, are you one of "Slender's Proxies?" Are you here to protect the woods?" The same male from before asked in a very, whiny tone. Korra felt deeply offended, and this really was her job. Though, she wasn't a proxy. More like a human guard dog; she could admit that.

"Christ, I don't have time for this!" She yelled. "Your smells are overwhelming. Goodbye and let's never meet again!" It all happened to fast for the group to process it. A strange, dried up, red substance covered the ground below them and swallowed them whole. Korra has no idea where they go when she performs this move, nor does she care. The smell was gone.

...

"Fuck, I didn't find out if they were responsible."

[guys-in-distress-database]

GID Masterlist

In honour of 300 entries, I have decided to compile every entry up to this point in one post by genre to make it easier for people to find whatever they’re looking for. 

Enjoy!

Anime

Adventures of the Little Mermaid

Akame ga Kill!

Akira

Arata the Legend

Attack on Titan (final season) (part 2)

Attack on Titan: No Regrets

Bakumatsu

Banana Fish

Be Boy Kidnappin’ Idol

Black Butler

Brave Story

Bungou Stray Dogs

Castle in the Sky

Chaika the Coffin Princess

Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion

Cuticle Detective Inaba

Death Note

Detective Conan

Deltora Quest

Eureka Seven: Astral Ocean

Fairy Tail

Farewell, My Dear Cramer: First Touch

Fate/Stay Night

Fullmetal Alchemist 

Garo the Animation

Giant Gorg

Girly Air Force

Hanasakeru Seishonen

Hakata Tonkotsu Ramens

Hitori no Shita: The Outcast

Kamisama Dolls

Kekkaishi

Libra of Nil Admirari

Magical Girl Ore

Midori no Hibi

My Hero Academia

Nabari no Ou

Naruto (OVA)

Naruto Shippuden the Movie: Blood Prison

Natsume’s Book of Friends

One Piece

Persona 5: The Animation

Psychic Detective Yakumo

Rewrite

Rurouni Kenshin

Sands of Destruction

Seraph of the End: Battle of Nagoya

Spice and Wolf

Tales from Earthsea

The Ambition of Oda Nobuna

The Lost Village

The Royal Tutors

Tokyo Ghoul

Uninhabited Planet Survive

Valvrave the Liberator

Western Animation (television)

Arcane

Avatar: The Last Airbender

Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes

Batman the Animated Series

Ben 10

Ben 10: Alien Force

Ben 10: Ultimate Alien

Ben 10: Omniverse

Blood of Zeus

Captain Planet and the Planeteers

Carmen Sandiego

Castlevania

Coke Lyoko

Descendants: Wicked World

Dreamworks Dragons

He-Man and the Masters of the Universe

Human Resources

Iron Man: Armored Adventures

Lego Ninjago

Martin Mystery

Masters of the Universe: Revelations

Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir

Neo Yokio

Peter Pan and the Pirates

Phineas and Ferb

Robotboy

She-Ra and the Princesses of Power

Sissi the Young Empress

Spirou and Fantasio

Star Wars: The Clone Wars

Star Wars: Rebels

Superman the Animated Series

Tales of the Jedi

Tangled the Series

The Amazing Spiez

The Bad Batch

The Dragon Prince

The Legend of Korra

The Legend of Vox Machina season 2

The Legend of Zelda: The Animated Series

The New Batman Adventures

Totally Spies

Voltron: Legendary Defender

What If

W.I.T.C.H.

Young Justice

Western Animation (film)

101 Dalmatians II: Patch’s London Adventure

Aladdin

Aladdin and the King of Thieves

All Dogs Go to Heaven

Asterix and the Secret of the Magic Potion

Astro Boy

Atlantis: Milo’s Return

Barbie: Mermaidia

Barbie and the Three Musketeers

Barbie as Rapunzel

Barbie as the Princess and the Pauper

Bartok the Magnificent

Batman: Return of the Caped Crusaders

Batman: Under the Red Hood

Early Man

Fantastic Mr. Fox

Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio 

Hotel Transylvania

How To Train Your Dragon 2

Joseph: King of Dreams

Lightyear

Lord of the Rings

Madagascar 3

Peter Pan (1988)

Pocahontas

Ratatouille 

Red Shoes and the Seven Dwarfs

Resident Evil Damnation

Return to Neverland

Rio 2

Scoob!

Shark Tale

Sleeping Beauty

Son of Batman

Space Jam: A New Legacy

Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse

Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron

The Spongebob Movie: Sponge on the Run

Tangled

The Adventures of Tintin

The Black Cauldron

The Boxtrolls

The Hunchback of Notre Dame

The Incredibles

The Jetsons Movie

The Last Unicorn

The Nightmare Before Christmas

The Rescuers Down Under

The Road to El Dorado

The Super Mario Bros Movie

The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf

Tintin and the Lake of Sharks

Tony Hawk in Boom Boom Sabotage

Totally Spies Movie

Toy Story 3

Treasure Planet

Wendell and Wild

Television (live action)

Agent Carter

Alex Rider

Alice in Borderland

Andor

Batman 66

Blossom

Breaking Bad

Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Bulgasal: Immortal Souls

Cobra Kai

Cowboy Bebop

Criminal Minds

Duel

Game of Thrones

Hawkeye

Hostages

Hunters

Into the Badlands

La Brea

Legend of the Seeker

Looking For Alaska

Merlin

Moon Knight

My Himalayan Embrace

National Treasure: Edge of History

Once Upon a Time

Outlander

Pan

Peter Pan Live!

Ratched

Riverdale

Shadow and Bone

Sherlock

Squid Game

Star Trek Picard

Star Trek Voyager

Stranger Things season 4

Supernatural

The 100

The Boys

The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance

The Flash

The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries

The Shannara Chronicles

The Walking Dead

The Witcher

Titans

Toy Boy

Vincenzo

Films (live action)

A Recipe for Seduction

Air Force One

Aladdin

Aliens in the Attic

An American Werewolf in Paris

Ant-Man and the Wasp

Attack of the Clones

Attack on Titan Part 2

Avatar

Avatar: The Way of Water

Avengers Infinity War

Babes in Toyland

Batman Forever

Ben-Hur

Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

Bullet Train

Bumblebee

Chaos Walking

Charlie’s Angels

Charlie’s Angels (2000)

Cirque du Soleil: World’s Away

Con Air

Cruella

Deadpool 2

Descendants 2

Dune (1984)

Dune (2021)

Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves

Edge of Tomorrow

Elysium

Enter the Dragon

Family Ties Vacation

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore

Fast Five

Game Night

Girls’ Night Out

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Hop

Inception

Indiana Jones

Inglourious Basterds

Iron Man 3

James Bond

John Carter

John Wick

John Wick Chapter 4

Jungle Cruise

Knock at the Cabin

Ladyhawke

Loki’s MCU Scenes

Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

Love and Monsters

Mad Max: Fury Road

Masters of the Universe

Muppet Treasure Island

Murder Party

Ninja Assassin

Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters

Peter Pan (2003)

Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales

Pokemon Detective Pikachu

Poker Face

Power Rangers

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time

Ready Player One

Red Sparrow

Return of the Jedi

Reservoir Dogs

Saw IV

Scream

Scream 2

Scream 3

Scream 4

Scrooged

Snow White and the Huntsman

Solo

Sonic the Hedgehog 2

Spider-Man 2

Teen Beach Movie

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze

The 24th Day

The Amazing Spider-Man

The Crimson Pirate

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian

The Chronicles of Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader

The Dark Knight

The Departed

The Expendables 2

The Fast and the Furious

The Green Knight

The Killing of a Sacred Deer

The Last Jedi

The Man in the Iron Mask

The Mask

The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones

The Mummy (1999)

The Old Guard

The Pacifier

The Prestige

The Princess Bride

The Ref

The Secrets We Keep

The Smurfs

The Young Country

Thor: Love and Thunder

Titanic

Titus

Unbroken

Willy’s Wonderland

X-Men: Dark Phoenix

X-Men Origins: Wolverine

Stage Productions

Banana Fish

Literature

Arsene Lupin vs Countess Cagliostro

Crown of Midnight

Eragon

Inheritance

Dune

Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child

Kidnapped

Looking for Alaska

Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children

Percy Jackson and the Battle of the Labyrinth

Ready Player One

Rebel Spring

Son of a Trickster

Star Wars: Young Jedi Knights: Heirs of the Force

Star Wars: The New Jedi Order: Dark Tide II: Ruin

Tales of Magic

The Ask and the Answer

The Cruel Prince

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

The Lost Hero

The Mark of Athena

The Fiery Cross

The Hardy Boys: While the Clock Ticked

The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones

The Spiderwick Chronicles

Comic Books

Asterix and Obelix

Attack on Titan

Avatar Comics

Batman: Slayride

Lux

Obi-Wan and Anakin

Ocarina of Time Manga

Oracle of Ages Manga

Star Wars: A Long Time Ago

Suske and Wiske

Tintin

Vox Machina Origins

Zed

Colouring Books

Throne of Glass

Music Videos

Agust D

Be Mine

Bloody Valentine

Centuries

Cheese

Crescent Rise

Criminal

Daechwita

Easier

Freeze

Going Crazy

Goodbye Mr A

Haegeum

How Deep is Your Love

Laura Palmer

Maverick

Miserable

Monster

Montero (Call Me By Your Name)

On

Other People

Press Your Number

Pretty Baby

Puma

Punishment

Red Lights

South of the Border

Stephen

Sweet but Pyscho

Tomboy

What Do You Mean

Venom

The Youngblood Chronicles

Zutter

Webseries

Critical Role

Dead by Daylight the Parody

Devil’s Candy

Helluva Boss

Stray Souls

Short Films

Indigo Ignited

Video Games

Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth 2

A Plague Tale: Innocence

Assassin’s Creed III

Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag

Attack on Titan 2

Batman: Arkham Knight

Bendy and the Ink Machine

Bendy and the Dark Revival

Blazblue: Chrono Phantasma

Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc

Danganronpa: V3 Killing Harmony

Dayz

Dead by Daylight

Dead Rising

Dead Space

Dishonored

Dishonored: Death of the Outsider

Dragon Quest XI

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

Far Cry 3

Final Fantasy V

Final Fantasy VIII

Final Fantasy XV

Fire Emblem: Shadow Decoy

Fire Emblem: Three Houses DLC

For Honor

Genshin Impact

Ghost of Tsushima

Golden Axe: The Revenge of the Death Adder

Golden Sun

Horizon Zero Dawn

House of Ashes

Jedi Fallen Order

Jedi Survivor

Judgement

Kingdom Hearts 2

King’s Quest V

Layton Brothers: Mystery Room

Legend of Kyrandia 2: Hand of Fate

Life is Strange 2

Man of Medan

Mario & Luigi Superstar Saga

Marvel’s Spider-Man

Metal Gear Solid 2

Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor

Middle Earth: Shadow of War

Mortal Kombat 11

Mystic Warriors

Nier Automata

Payday 2

Pokemon: Shadows of Almia

Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box

Professor Layton and the Unwound Future

Red Dead Online

Red Dead Redemption

Resident Evil 4

Resident Evil 4 Remake

Resident Evil Village

River City Girls

Spider-Man Miles Morales

Star Wars: Rebellion

Super Princess Peach

Telltale’s The Walking Dead: Season 2

Terraria

The Devil in Me

The Joy of Creation: Story Mode

The Last Express

The Last Window: The Secret of Cape West

The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess

The Quarry

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

Titanfall 2

Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception

Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End

Until Dawn

Welcome to the Game

Yandere Simulator

[mohluskiepedard]

Rating ATLA Characters literally only from what I’ve seen in fandom

or: posts that probably shouldn’t be on my writeblr except I don’t have a sideblog

the context here is it’s half midnight and I have never seen ATLA except I have opinions now apparently so here we go whoop de do- 

I’m also not actually rating them like numerically that’s too much work i’m just stating opinions I know I’m a fraud

AANG

- A child?  - A son?  - he is Baby. but also. he has had It Rough  - would make the updog joke - has unspeakable power or smth and everyone says he’s better than the Korra girl who comes after him but honestly tastes like sexism to me - doesn’t kill people because he’s like twelve, right? he’s like twelve so he refuses to kill people - I stan honestly - less twelve year olds should kill people - Some people say his name WRONG and they are BAD but i don’t actually know what the right way or the wrong way is so. have fun w that yall - lived in peace unTIL THE FIRE NATION ATTACKED 

KATARA

- She is also like twelve???  - Is everyone here twelve - Cortana?? Katana?? Catbug??  - She has good hair, - Her mother is dead??? her mother is dead n she has a brother but she cares about her mother being dead WAY more than him (or apparently the entire fandom??) - Badass - She seems soft. good. sweet - she’s a water breather or whatever??? her brother is NOT but he is a meme - I love her 

SOKKA

- NGL looks like a fuckboy  - The meme brother! does not do the water things, but he has an aXe???  - dates BAMF lady - ngl until I talked to my ATLA watching friend I thought he canonically dated Zuko  - kinda mad he doesn’t - I haven’t actually seen anything about him except like. in zuko ship posts and also Suki appreciation posts - joined the white lotus not-a-cult by accident???  - dark ATLA tumblr show me more Sokka posts - is his name prounounced the same way as Soccer or isn’t it I need to know - HIS FIRST GIRLFRIEND TURNED INTO THE MOON - (AND THAT’S ROUGH, BUDDY) - He and Suki are a good ship, but also, Sokka Has Two Hands

SUKI

- the BAMF herself - she says STOP in that photo but also to sexism - Rlly all I see of her in fanon is abt her teaching Sokka to drink his respect women juice and I appreciate her doing that but also it’s sad she never gets talked about outside of what she did for a man - I hope she has other badass moments w/o him it would suck if she didn’t - she is NOT the girlfriend who turned into the moon, she is the one who didn’t - I don’t know much else about her ATLA Fandom y’all should appreciate her more

ZUKO

- Look at him... my son... - He has a good redemption arc - he and his sister are evil lesbian and redeemed gay guy??? - has a straight canon ship but should’ve been with Sokka this boy is gay - I Want To Protect Him - That’s literally it - he has a cool uncle and his dad sucks  - people ship him with Katara and I Do Not Get It that’s his sister in law except not really - “We don’t trust Zuko’s change of heart” [the next day] “so Zuko is my closest friend now,”  - His dad was like “fuck up the avatar to prove your worth to me” and Aang was like “counter argument you already have worth and we should fuck up your dad” and I think that’s beautiful - he becomes the fire man and he’s very good at it - Zuko for President 2020 - in the words of myself, half an hour ago: “ I was like "that kid with the burn on his face seems like a sad but then happy mlm who needs found family" and I was RIGHT” - took too long to find a happy picture of him :( Zuko rights NOW please - His mother’s story got compared to an OC of mine and all I can say is oh no and they deserve better based on that alone - I have had Zuko for five minutes but if anything else happens to him I will kill everyone in this throne room and then myself

TOPH

- She is badass but like also will murder you while laughing maniacally? - for some reason reminds me of Nott from Critical Role, another show I Have Not Seen - Is blind but gets more out of making jokes abt being blind than she would from being able to see - “Sight is just a cheap tactic to make weak benders stronger!!!” - Literally the opposite of Aang and has killed many people?? - She Can Tell When You’re Lying. But I do not know how and Am simply mildly threatened by this - Therapist: Toph’s ability to know if you’re lying isn’t real and can’t hurt you. Toph’s ability to know if I’m lying:  - She and Zuko.... buddies???  - if not they should be - tiny sad boy needs friends like toph

AZULA

- Evil Lesbian Culture - [BDG Voice] You committed a war crime! Oopsie! - took be gay do crime too literally - her and Zuko have accurate sibling writin except instead of “you ever want to murder your sibling for breathing in the same space as you,” being a Joke Azula took it seriously - okay but with a name like azula she should be the blue bender this ANNOYS me she should NOT be red bender - AZULa  - AZUL - IT MEANS BLUE - She was half of y’alls gay awakenings and it SHOWS - Should have maybe been redeemed too??? Jury is out no one knows - Was she gay for Ty Lee or wasn’t she I can’t tell how much of that Audio is a joke - IS SHE ALSO TWELVE??? IS EVERYONE HERE TWELVE?? IS THIS TWELVE YEAR OLD COMITTING ATROCITIES? 

UNCLE IROH

- A Good Man - Finally, Some Good Fucking [Adult Figures]  - he has the tea. literally and figuratively - Ozai is like “and I will permanently disfigure my son and throw him out” and Iroh is like “What The Fuck, Ozai,” thus voicing the entire audience’s thoughts - Literally the only adult in this that I trust - I? I love him. this is all I have to say. my love for him is unending. Some1 protect this man from all harm   - he’s Zuko’s uncle (and also Azula ig) but he does not seem related to Ozai. is it just a theme in this family that one sibling is chill and one sibling commits horrendous atrocities against your fellow human beings or  - something happened to his son???? :((((( I Don’t Want Him To Have Suffered Like This

OZAI

- A BAD MAN - Uh Oh (stinky)  - THE WORST OF THE MEN  - I do not like him - Bastard man. nasty. committed war crimes and then went “but what if - get this - i also abused my son,”  - I would like him to Not Be Like This - by Like This I mean present and alive  - :/ 

TY LEE

- She’s NOT the There Is No War In Ba Sing Se lady and I don’t know why i thought she WAS but until I looked up her photo I thought that was her  - She looks like a sweetheart tho - I hope nothing bad happens to her????  - talks about auras??? or smth??? let her vibe - She would talk animatedly to me about warrior cats if she was in my year seven class and I was sat alone and I would understand none of it but appreciate her anyway - if azula bullies her I’ll be :( at Azula and Azula will not care because she has Mommy Issues and therefore is slightly unhinged - She seems like that one kid with no trauma vibing at the edge of [every other kid having trauma] and not really getting it but trying her best - Is she also twelve?????? She maybe looks twelve

CABBAGE MAN 

- HIS CABBAGES - fulfills my favourite trope: ordinary person repeatedly has life disrupted by the inconveniences of relying on actual children to save the world - probably has a campaign post canon for letting trained adults fix the worlds’ problems in the future - or sets up the Very First Cabbage Insurance Company - look at him. he loves his cabbages so much. you go you funky lil cabbage man

ALSO THE MOST IMPORTANT ONES MOMO

- LOOK AT HIM HE’S SO GOOD - small. fluffy. big ears - Lord Momo of the Momo Dynasty: his Momoness - a Good Boy...

APPA

- he looks so soft... - he can fly but he just does it by??? vibing through the air?? motionless??? iconic - I saw that one post about mishearing it as Abba and thinking he was Aang’s dad and he looks like he would be a good stand in dad ngl - he’s so LORGE - a chonky boy - love him

that is everyone I have heard of it and if I left someone out it’s a sign that y’all should talk about em more bc I have no clue they exist put more ATLA On my Dash ig I’ll do Legend of Korra ig maybe apparently that one has canon wlw and i love me some canon wlw

[spasmsofthought]

fractures. (zuko x reader)

This is totally a free for all because I haven’t read any of the comics or watched Legend of Korra at all. Part 2 maybe, if you all think it’s worth it?? 

Kinda angsty, and mostly political - but y’all, I think Zuko learned how to be a politican as Fire Lord. This is me trying to explore that a little bit. 

Like, comment, reblog! Thank you for your support, as always! xo 

+ + + 

The first time you see him, he is touring the Earth kingdom as the Fire Lord. 

It’s been at least two years since he’s been crowned. It’s been two years since a Fire Nation flag last hung over the arches of every town entrance in the Earth kingdom. It’s been two years since a lot of things. 

Peace is a hard custom to keep when all you have known is war. Peace is a foreign language when all people know how to communicate is its opposite. 

The Fire Nation colonies are no longer known as such. Instead, villages and previous colonies outside of the former Earth Kingdom walls have formed into clans of their own. With the Earth King travelling during the latter part of the war, leadership has been thrown up in the air. There was no one to trust; especially after the Fire Nation invasion of Ba Sing Se. In all the chaos of the war, though, the de facto mantle of leadership among the small number of people in your village fell onto your family. You aren’t aware of the reason why, but being raised in a Fire Nation colony by a mother from the Northern Water Tribe and a father from the edges of the Earth Kingdom makes people feel something like safety in a land subjugated by an unrelenting and ever-growing superpower.

When the crowning of Zuko the Fire Lord happens, with Avatar Aang right by his side, the news spreads rapidly, even across the broken networks of communication established among the clan leaders. But even in the middle of developing a new world, there is still brokenness. There is still pain. There is still suffering. 

The world does not seem to heal the way people want it to: very slowly, in pieces rather than in a whole. There is still prejudice and hatred. Very little is still solved with words. 

It is the first time a foreigner has walked the land your people call home in two years.

It is the first time people see the color red on someone in two years; before, during the Invasion, red was what everyone saw on every passerby. Travel was severely limited and people mostly kept to their homes in fear of what Fire Nation guards would do to them on top of the restrictions and heavily imposed taxes. 

When he is directed to your doorstep by everyone in the village, the only one out of your family able to host him is you. Your father died in a skirmish near Ba Sing Se’s walls on his yearly pilgrimage to trade in a way that would have helped support your village during a time of scarcity two and a half years ago, right before the conquering of Ba Sing Se. Your mother is a figure made up only of stories. A figure who passed soon after your entrance into the world. 

For such an imposing figure, he wears very little ceremonial garb. It seems that he understands there is little need for formal ceremonial clothing in this community of people simply trying to survive in a world clawing back from the brink of total destruction. 

“It’s nice to finally meet you,” He begins with, bowing with hands formed in a traditional Fire Nation greeting. 

You bow back similarly, using a specific form of ceremonial bow used by formal authority figures here in the Earth Kingdom. Your hands move in a sweeping motion, directing the Fire Lord to a low table in the middle of the small living room your house has. The table settings are sparse and there is no fancy silverware, but there seems to be something in his countenance that relaxes slightly for some reason. 

“Please make yourself at home,” You try to make yourself seem soft. Yielding. Compliant. “Would you like any tea?” 

He nods, holding the simple cup up off the wooden structure slightly as you lift the tea pot and fill it halfway with the steaming liquid. You set it back down and it is then that Zuko surprises you for the first time. He nods his head towards your own cup. There is a pause, your mind trying to process the simple action, before you are moving your cup up off the table as well, watching the jasmine tea slowly fill up space that was previously empty. 

He gestures a toast to you, holding his cup close to yours while nodding, before he takes a sip. Out of respect, you take a swallow as well before you set your cup back down on the small coaster you were told your mother knit while pregnant with you. Blue and green repeat each other in a circular pattern, reminding you of how beautiful the two colors look together. Reminding you of your own roots face-to-face with someone who carries a vast and rich legacy of his own.

“If it’s alright, I would like to skip the formality of small talk and get to the real conversation. What is the purpose of your visit here?” For such an abrupt change in tone, he doesn’t seem surprised. He sets his cup down, too. 

“We would like to begin discussions with your clan about officially coming under the government of the Earth kingdom again.” 

You have to take a deep breath in. 

When you were little, your father always told you tales of his land’s history; of its vastness and proud strength. As you grew older, however, the tales turned into lessons of caution. He taught you to not trust the central government of the Earth kingdom for a reason. A reason you had soon found out had little to do with his own faith in the people he belonged to and more to do with the fact that the governing body had been crumbling for a long time. There had been a reason there was local autonomy among so many cities and villages, especially during the War. Despite the belief shared among many that the Earth kingdom remained a single political entity, the vastness of land kept that belief more of an idea than something that was practically applied. 

“I would love to see the Earth kingdom become the nation it was before the War, but there is a reason my people remain wary of allying ourselves under a central government again. We know about the details of the Coup of Ba Sing Se; we know the corruption that spread vast and wide among politicians, generals, and other administrators.” 

“I have been working with the Earth king very closely these past two years. It is our plan to host a gathering at the palace in Ba Sing Se with all local clan and tribe leaders to truly take your input into account while we finalize the development of the Earth kingdom’s government after this long period of strife. That is why I am here, to formally invite you...” 

You stop him before he can go any further, “Thank you, but my place is with my people.” 

“The Earth king desires that his nation once again be strong and united and at peace once again.” You want to know if he has always been an apt politican, or if this has something he has had to learn in these past two years. You wonder how he mediates both the needs of his own people and those of the world without faltering. 

“My experiences have taught me many lessons, as I am sure yours have taught you specific lessons as well. I have very little trust in a central government that before has previously become so easily fractured by whispers of greed and silent grabs for power, and can become so again.” 

“There are specific checks and balances in place so that never happens again. I have personally seen to these assurances in the formal writing of the government documents that have been extensively drawn up.” 

“How can I even trust you?” 

“I-” His mouth opens but more words from your mouth stop him before he can even begin. So much for being compliant. 

“I know the legacy of your family. I have witnessed the destruction your family has caused on this land; on the entire world. I do not know you personally. I only know that you have come to ask me to join a government I have little interest in letting rule my people once more when I am right here to make sure they are provided for and kept safe. There is very little about the world I can trust right now.” 

You begin to wonder, in the seconds of silence that linger afterward, if you have officially screwed up any chance at the peace people have been so longing for: here and abroad. You want to seem strong, but there always seems to be the chance to second-guess yourself. To back-up and take a new route. 

“I only know what it is like to be a new leader. I cannot offer you trust you are unwilling to take, but I can offer you the assurance that the Earth king, the Avatar and I will do whatever it takes to make sure the world is whole again.” 

You know he means it. Despite the solemnness of his face and his scar as a reminder to you of the stories of his own life that have yet to be told, there is a fire in his amber eyes that contains no violence, only the longing for the same thing you want: peace.

“My uncle would praise your tea-making skills,” A small corner of his mouth lifts up. Your eyes track the movement for a small second before you are staring down at his cup, too. 

“I could give you a bag to take to him to give the next time you see him,” An olive branch, maybe, in light of your previous words. 

War has its own effects on everyone, including yourself. Trusting others has not been a virtue of yours for quite some time. 

“I’m sure he would love that.” It is a brief glimpse into something about himself, you are sure, that he smiles slightly. A genuine smile. Despite the title he holds, there is nothing but humility. You tuck that observation into you heart to ponder on later.

How can the Fire Lord be so at home in this run-down mill of a home? How can he be so comfortable in the presence of a stranger; a stranger who opposes him in his objective to make peace in a way that he seeks but you do not want? 

You find yourself reaching for a stored bag of tea leaves before you can think about it.

As you hold the bag out in the palm of your right hand, your left resting in your lap, his fingers brush yours. He takes the bag and tucks it into what you assume is a pocket on the inside of his simple cloak. The warmth fades as quickly as it came, and for a moment you want to reach out for more of it. 

You stop yourself before you actually do such a ridiculous thing as reach out for the hand of the Fire Lord. 

But the feeling stays with you long after you tentatively promise to keep in touch with him as he graciously exits for the day. It stays with you for a long, long time. 

[tragcdysewn]

y’all know the drill, under the cut is where my muses are at/what happened to them during the event! just let me know who you want for, no caps because i will be dropping a decent chunk of pre event stuff, so go crazy go stupid!

abi mckinnon

girl is thrilled to have her magic back and will absolutely be abusing it this week to make up for her shit weeks with awful luck

ahsoka tano

she has realized that she is incredibly codependent on the force, and now that it’s back, she doesn’t need to worry about dealing with that

allana solo

she was neutral on preferring one power over the other, so them swapping back is really not that big of a deal. she could still help her family either way, so it doesn’t really matter

anastasia romanova

anya really loved having magic while she did, but she’s also very happy it’s gone back to its original owner, and she’s totally fine being normal

ariana dumbledore

well, magic is back, but the force is gone and she no longer has to feel her familys vibes 24/7, so this is actually cool with her, but she’s kind of wishing she was a muggle ngl

bellatrix black - narcissa black

will be torturing people in the street to make up for lost time, run far and fast if you see her she’s insane

cassie lang

superspeed was fun, but she’s missed her own powers, so she’s totally fine going back to growing and shrinking

clary fray

being spiderman was very fun, but clary does not need the extra responsibility of superpowers on top of shadowhunting, so you know? this is okay

darcy lewis

darcy is fully aware she is not responsible enough for superpowers, so she’s totally fine with this being a fun little experience that’s over now

davina claire - hope mikaelson

she really thought she’d be fine without her magic, but she was going a little crazy after the first week tbh. she’s v happy it’s back now

elphaba thropp

look elphaba is just relieved she didn’t cause a huge witch hunt this time after accidentally torturing like two different people

feyre archeron

she’s just happy her family is all back to normal and safe, but also is pretty relieved to have powers she knows how to use again

hallie parker

girl is pretty bummed out that she doesn’t have superpowers anymore, but she can also acknowledge that she is a menace and this is probs for the best

howl jenkins pendragon

he’s doing fine, and fun fact : he got his full memories back and is therefore actually v happy now. he’s a lil confused/concerned how easy his head was messed with but he remembers now and that’s what matters

jaime lannister - myrcella baratheon

thank god this is done jaime is an old man who does not want to be dealing with this bullshit any more than he has to please let him chill

james potter - lily evans

unfortunately, james got involved in a power malfunction accident, and died, so now he’s completely unaware. be ready for billionaire playboy james potter it’ll be a fun time

jin zixuan - lan jingyi

he was already mildly concerned about this place now he is so very worried he is just major Concerned Dad™️ vibes man needs a drink

jeyne westerling

her biggest concern is the paperwork she is going to have to do because dear lord it’s a lot. she’s doing fine though just dreading going to work

korra

thank god she has her bending back because as cool as she thought flying would be it was hard and wings are heavy and she really just had a terrible time

lan wangji - lan jingyi

he did get some peace and quiet for once though he is more concerned about the juniors than ever (mostly jingyi but all of them a little) and is on edge now that he knows how weird shit can get

lumine

she had an absolutely awful time and would like to never do that again please shit was awful and she’s totally fine being totally powerless (she is not powerless but shhh)

lyanna stark

she was kind of freaked out taking other peoples faces, so she wasn’t really using her powers much. she’s absolutely fine being back to normal

marinette dupain-cheng

mari is THRILLED this is over, oh my god. she likes her shoes, she likes her fuzzy carpet, she likes leaving her fabric swatches all over the floor, and her feet really fucked up all that for a few weeks

mj jones

mj is also fully aware now, she experimented with some magic with peter, and saw some memories she shouldn’t have, and immediately went home and worked on unlocking her own until she did it

mya stone

she literally only used this to flirt with her girlfriend and she’s pretty good at that without magic so she’s fine with it being gone now lol

nie mingjue

honestly kind of bummed the ability to vanish from annoying conversations was his ideal superpower but he’ll deal he’s a big boy

renesmee cullen

her actual powers seem so boring now? she liked her flowers and shit what real benefit does showing people your thoughts really have?

rose weasley

she was doing fine with her new powers, but she did miss her magic a little bit, and it felt weird not having it, even in situations she wouldn’t use it anyways

sheev palpatine

he killed multiple people he’s in his element and everything is fine but also he’s still in an awful mood so beware unless you’re his mom or sibling

shen qingqiu - luo binghe, shang qinghua

man found out his best friend is severely anxious and depressed, and that his roommate that he thought wanted him dead is in love with him. he is THRILLED this is done literally never fucking again

thanatos

he is immortal again and that’s how he likes it. man has missed being able to teleport because he has discovered he hates walking places and he hates public transport more

ty lee - katara

she can acknowledge she was not using her powers responsibly and probably was at risk of hurting herself, so she’s fine with it being gone, and she got a cute new apartment layout so

wanda maximoff

honestly kind of a bummer that she’s back to chaos magic after druid magic was so peaceful. kind of tempted to try making her chaos magic do some of the druid stuff though

wen qing - wen ning, luo qingyang

she unfortunately killed someone in an unfortunate accident while trying to figure out her powers, and considering her whole life has been about saving people and avoiding bloodshed, girl is not doing okay at all

[mooshfluff]

🎥shows for smols🎬

⭐= my personal favorites

❤️Netflix: 

Shera⭐⭐⭐⭐

Miraculous Ladybug⭐

Winx Club⭐⭐

Kipo & The Age of Wonderbeasts

Voltron

Little Witch Academia⭐⭐⭐

The Dragon Prince⭐⭐

Green Eggs & Ham

Sophia the First

Molang

Pokemon⭐⭐

Trollhunters

Wizards: Tales of Arcadia

3below: Tales of Arcadia

Avatar The Last Airbender⭐⭐⭐

Legend of Korra⭐⭐

Dragons: Race to the edge

Pocoyo

My Little Pony⭐⭐⭐

The Magic School Bus

Pucca

Hilda⭐⭐⭐⭐

Octonauts

Superhero Girls

Gabby’s Dollhouse

Hotel Transylvania: The Series

The Epic Tales of Captain Underpants

💙Disney+:

Bluey⭐⭐⭐

Mickey Mouse Clubhouse

Doc Mcstuffins

Winnie the Pooh⭐⭐⭐

PJ masks

Star vs The Forces of Evil⭐⭐⭐⭐

Big Hero 6: The Series

Tangles: The Series⭐⭐⭐⭐

Gravity Falls⭐⭐

Amphibia⭐⭐

The Owl House⭐

Big City Greens⭐

Duck Tales

The Lion Guard

Sophia the First

Sheriff Callie’s Wild West

Muppet Babies

T.O.T.S.

Henry Hugglemonster

Vampirina

💗Youtube TV:

Over The Garden Wall⭐⭐⭐

Infinity Train

Spongebob Squarepants

Wild Kratts⭐⭐

Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood

Sesame Street⭐

Max & Ruby⭐⭐

Octonauts

Bubble Guppies

Craig of the Creek⭐⭐⭐⭐

🧡VRV: (mostly anime)

Bee & Puppycat⭐⭐⭐

Bravest Warriors⭐⭐⭐

Usagi Drop⭐⭐

Poco’s Udon World

Hanamaru Kindergarten⭐⭐

Sweetness & Lightning⭐⭐

School Babysitters

If It’s For my Daughter, I’d Even Defeat a Demon Lord⭐⭐⭐⭐

My Roommate is a Cat

How to Keep a Mummy

Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Helpful Fox Senko-San

Himouto! Umaru-Chan⭐

Toradora!⭐

💚Other:

Adventure Time⭐⭐⭐⭐

Curious George

Trolls: Trolltopia

Trolls: The Beat Goes On

Clarence

The Amazing World Of Gumball⭐⭐

Steven Universe⭐⭐⭐⭐

We Bare Bears

My Little Pony⭐⭐⭐

Powderpuff Girls

Wonder over Yonder

[bronyinabottle]

G5 MOVIE THOUGHTS FOLLOWUP - THE ANCIENT EQUESTRIAN ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM

SPOILER WARNING: THIS WILL GET INTO SPOILERS FOR THE G5 MOVIE EVEN BEFORE THE BREAK. IT HAS BEEN JUST OVER A WEEK SINCE THE MOVIE PREMIERED. BUT IF YOU STILL HAVEN'T SEEN IT, PLEASE SCROLL PAST THIS.

This is something of a follow-up to my thoughts on the movie. My thoughts on the movie were generally positive. Though much like the movie itself, the positive thoughts were on what it’s doing on it’s own merit as the start of a new generation of pony media. As someone who had followed Generation 4 from all the way in the middle of Season 1 to the ending of Season 9, the connection the G5 movie makes with the previous generation in the opening scenes are enough that it’s necessary to give a perspective from a G4 fan’s point of view. Again, I do want to say that G5 will be within it’s right to not have to answer so many plot things at once and try to stand on it’s own by exploring the characters and this new Equestria first.

That said, it shouldn’t be a surprise that the longer none of the questions G4 fans will have are answered. There is a huge elephant in the room with the unanswered questions from G4. And It is Hasbro’s fault in the first place for telling us it’s the same Equestria, There will be fans that are annoying about it from multiple angles, and there will probably be times where people who just want to enjoy G5 on it’s own just outright snap at anyone who wants their answers about what happened in between G4 and G5. Even if the person who asks the question is just genuinely curious and not being demanding there be answers. This is just the kind of thing that all fandoms that have timeskip sequels, especially ones where it overrides a happy ending where discussing with other friends can get dicey.

HAPPY ENDING OVERRIDES AND ALICORNS

Until we get an official answer from the show itself, we can only theorize with each other. Though theorizing about a happy ending override, regardless of how long it’s been and/or how sensible the theory is can start some heated discussions, Cause many were content with the happy ending of the original. While no realistic story ever has a happily ever after, a story within a fantasy land such as MLP’s can be an exception.

Let me give something of a comparison by bringing up another show. Avatar: The Last Airbender is perhaps my favorite show of all-time. And while it’s true I didn’t like the sequel series Korra as much as A:TLA. It wasn’t because of some happy ending override with at least half of the main cast from the previous series deceased. The Avatars themselves are just as human as the other characters in the world. Avatar’s still a fantasy world when all is said and done, but the way the world building is done still made it feel like it it was possible for the world to be in danger again by the time the next Avatar is grown up, most known Avatars had challenges they had to face. The Avatar series blends some form of realism but still manages to provide a fun fantasy world. It’s a case where it’s believable that the main legacy of Aang’s time as the Avatar aside from defeating the Fire Lord where he created Republic City would have it’s own fair share of problems that would be left to his successor to solve. Aang in turn was finishing the war that Roku failed to stop. So while I have my criticisms about Korra, none of those are related to the way the world is after the timeskip. It reasonably makes sense in the context of the Avatar universe.

In contrast, there isn’t much we know about the past of G4 and it’s a much more idealistic setting then in Avatar. Yes, ponies die with what I assume are human-esque lifespans for the exception of the Alicorns. But Friendship is Magic is a setting where the power of friendship is literal magic power that can save the day even when things look bleak. As a result it can get very sappy, but FiM is the kind of show you watch to put a smile on your face rather then go to for a multi-faceted plot. Most episodes of FiM are the kind of thing you see in a lot of other shows. But what brings most of it’s fans back even for the most overdone plots is the characters and their interactions. FiM’s lore is a lot less straight forward, and sometimes may feel not as consistent given there were so many different writers over the long span of time. That said, there is something about the series that sort of ties in heading into G5 and that’s G4’s history, and especially Alicorn lore. We don’t get a lot of either even back in G4, as the most we get is the founding of Equestria was through the Hearth’s Warming Eve story, and the knowledge that Alicorns like Celestia and Luna are at least older then 1000. Which is a huge gap compared to the Avatars that no matter how powerful, have similar mortality to our own. Throughout G4’s time, the debate about Alicorns have raged throughout the whole time even before things got really heated upon Twilight becoming an Alicorn in Magical Mystery Cure. Some went with Celestia and Luna being the only immortal Alicorns while Cadence and Twilight were somehow lesser Alicorns that aren’t immortal but maybe at least still a longer lifespan then their normal pony friends and family. Though as of Season 9, that may be turned on it’s head when in The Last Problem. Twilight eventually grows to Celestia-size as Celestia and Luna even retire to let Twilight succeed them. If Twilight is somehow a lesser Alicorn, why did she grow to Celestia’s size? Why did Celestia and Luna retire in the first place if they knew Twilight will not be as long lived as they are? Perhaps part of the reason G5 has as many questions as it does is because G4 itself created questions it never promised to answer.

That said, the implied length of Celestia and Luna’s rule still presents G5 with a problem that will be asked everywhere. Even if we go with the possibility that most of the Mane 6 have passed from old age, you still have to answer something about Twilight. If Twilight is also dead, how long did she live? Did she at least have an over-1000 year reign as Celestia did? Was perhaps Luster Dawn chosen to be her younger co-ruler if Luster herself ascended at some point? The kind of things that might actually force G5 into a corner when it comes to Alicorns despite the fact G4 never had to, especially now that Sunny may have just become one herself. This is once again, another of the traps Hasbro put the writing team through by having them put it in the same world. G5 thus not only adds questions about what happened in between the Generations, but also now has to inherit what remained unanswered in G4. That is a VERY tall task on a team that will likely just want to do their own little fun pony show. It’ll raise expectations too high, and there will be annoyed fans regardless how they spin it. Which could have all been avoided if they set it up that this was an entirely new world, or made G4 a fictional story (With all the references to it being mainly merchandise for a really meta look at things) in the G5 universe. You’d still have people complaining about it not being as good as G4 probably, but the approach they went with added more gasoline to the fire whenever G4 Vs. G5 debates happen in the MLP fandom. And inter-fandom generation fights are never fun, just ask the Pokemon and the Sonic fandoms how that turns out (Even though there’s no Generation number count for the Sonic franchise. You could say Gen 1 of Sonic was the classic era. Gen 2 was the Sonic Adventure Era. Gen 3 was the “Dark Age” Sonic 2006-Sonic Unleashed era. Gen 4 the Sonic Colors and Generations era. and Gen 5 the current Sonic Forces and Team Sonic Racing era. And then of course there’s also the different TV shows and comic books that also have their own fans that can be at each other’s throats).

There isn’t going to be an easy solution to something that will no doubt have fans on the edge on their seat even if they will be left to hang on that edge for a longtime before G5 starts to give some answers. I think I’ll at least bring up 3 things that will probably be part of the discussions of just what happened between G4 and G5

(More after the break)

1. AND THEN EVERYTHING CHANGED WHEN THE FIRE NATION AN UNKNOWN THREAT ATTACKED

With G4 being considered Ancient Equestria. It’s probably safe to assume this is at least 1,000 years after G4. And 1,000 or more is a really, really, long time. Where anything could of happened, including *GASP* a villain actually winning at some point (Or at least, did some lasting damage even if they were ultimately defeated). Though I think even with that possibility, there has to be a sense that the villain didn’t defeat the Mane 6 while the other members aside from Twilight were still alive. If Twilight was at some point defeated. Perhaps the villain struck when Twilight was most vulnerable. You could also have it that Twilight somehow sacrificed herself to defeat a large threat. She saved Equestria one last time, but at the cost of even her long-lasting alicorn life. With the populace left on their own to continue life without Twilight, but the loss of their longtime leader too much for Equestria. Thus a slow decline happened.

As for who the threat was it’ll probably be a while if we ever know. Perhaps the real Grogar showed up at some point and was truly a harrowing threat to deal with. Or something entirely new. Maybe it wasn’t even a villain, but a catastrophic natural disaster. Whatever it is, if this is the case. We’d have to deal with the sad thought of something being too much for even Twilight to handle

2. TWILIGHT BECAME DEPRESSED/JADED AFTER HER FRIENDS PASSED. POSSIBLY EVIL TOO?

This would basically be the cliche sadfic ending. Where after everyone of the Mane 6 has passed. Twilight just never felt the same afterward. Though I do feel like there is the slight counterpoint that maybe Twilight would still have Celestia and/or Luna (maybe, again we’ve never ever gotten full confirmation of how long Alicorns live. Just assured that it’s more then 1000 years) and she’d most certainly still have a full grown Spike and any of her friends descendants. Death is always a sad reality, but you have to wonder if Twilight would have prepared herself by the time that comes. Twilight would have not gone as far as she did without the rest of the Mane 6. But while I’m sure it would be a tearjerking moment, it’s not like Twilight wouldn’t have other friends she made throughout the generations. Celestia and Luna also must of gone through the same thing living for more then 1000 years, yet they seem pretty fine. So while the subject of “immortality blues” is prime for sadfic material in the fandom. It feels like there’d have to be more nuance then that, if this were the reason the time between G4 and G5 led into each other.

Supposedly, this theory is picking up some form of steam. To the point that a head canon is rolling around is that it was actually Twilight who sealed the magic away in the first place for one reason or another. Essentially making Twilight, in a huge plot twist, a villain in G5 or at the very least someone who took the magic with them into some form of Limbo very similar to Starswirl and the other founders during the Season 7 finale. I… personally don’t know how I’d feel about that. They’d have to be very careful with the execution of such a twist. And I’d want more nuance then simply Twilight getting sad about the deaths of her friends. At the very least, it’d likely eventually get to a point where this villainous incarnation of Twilight is reformed and probably becomes a recurring character from then on. But the writers will have to tread very carefully if this is the direction they take.

3. G5 IS AN ENTIRELY DIFFERENT UNIVERSE/TIMELINE. JUST FOR THE MOST PART THE MAJOR EVENTS OF "ANCIENT EQUESTRIA" STILL HAPPENED

Perhaps this last one really gets into a more desperate side to deflect any possibility that the ending of G4 could of deteriorated into what the world becomes at the start of G5. I know there will be plenty that will be too frustrated with the lack of satisfactory answers that they annoy people in the comment sections, getting into situations where sometimes the only answer to those people will be others that just want to watch G5 as a fun show with a “cope”, “read a history book”, or “deal with it”. But honestly, there can be a case here. As I mentioned in my thoughts in the movie. There are visual details on characters and/or lore that while they may seem minor, to the point that even if they do ever answer important questions such as what caused magic to disappear and/or what happened to Alicorns like Twilight. That the staff may ignore completely because they think it’s too small of a detail to bother including. But the most nitpicky fan can and will latch on small excuses into why it can’t be the same.

Let’s begin with the one-sided Cutie Mark. Again, while it’s true that previous generations made this a tradition. And it was only on one side on the G4 toys as well, as the actual reason it was on both sides in the G4 show was because it was easier for the flash animators. That said, it’s still a big pony design inconsistency. Because regardless of it was only to make things easier, it became a staple because of how long G4 lasted. So it was still so weird to see early screenshot and artwork of G5 characters with grown ponies with no mark. When that wasn’t possible in G4, as it turned out it was because the one-sided cutie mark returned. But one side as opposed to both sides is still a significant difference. Similarly, the horns and wingtips being a different color then the coat may also be a significant difference. Of course I know it can be just waved off as art style difference, as the art direction is no longer based on what Faust wanted the ponies to look like. It’s still plausible enough for someone to discredit it as truly in continuity with G4. Cause even for those that are on the side of “More then 1000 years is a long time, anything could of happened” it’s a lot harder to argue against inconsistencies such as cutie marks only being on one side unless they switch gears to the meta explanation of “G4’s double sided cutie mark was not intentional, at least at first”. But from what most people saw in the G4 show, G4 ponies had marks on both sides. And the G5 ponies don’t. It’s again, quite nitpicky. But it’s enough to start a case that at the very least, the ancient past of G4 is not 100% the same G4 we saw in the show.

Speaking of not the same G4 we saw in the show, another possibility is that G5 actually came out of an alternate timeline. Where perhaps the last two seasons did not happen. If perhaps it’s a timeline where major events in the show either ended anywhere between the end of Season 4 or the end of Season 7, then it starts to feel a little more possible. (Supposedly, the tree of harmony in it’s Season 9 form that might counteract it. But then again it had none of the treehouse architecture and was all wood. Which ironically may lead into it leaning more that the G4 show isn’t the same continuity). If the events of the Friendship School nor everything else that leads to the ending we saw in The Last Problem. It’d be a lot more palatable because the pretty much implied world peace ending with non-ponies in the mix included is discounted. There’d still be questions even in this scenario, like did Celestia and Luna still retire in this timeline then. And regardless if they did or not, the show would still be burdened with the question of what happened to the Alicorns. But it’d at least solve the most pressing question with the peace of The Last Problem being squandered. Because perhaps in this timeline, the Mane 6 never went that far. Perhaps it would imply some sort of indirect failure in that case. But this is perhaps a scenario they had a similar foreign policy as Celestia did. Not really hostile to anyone, but not intervening even in ways that could be helpful. Heck, if we go far enough in saying that G5\s G4 (As confusing as that may sound) was different from what we saw in Friendship is Magic, what if there were differences even early on for one reason or another? With how vague the connection is, we only know that the Mane 6 were friends and Twilight still became a princess at some point. From there. potentially a lot of other things may have gone differently other then that.

Again, saying G5 is a completely different universe/timeline is probably always going to sound like a desperate way for people who cannot possibly believe the ending of G4 eventually led to the start of G5. And I’d understand why that’ll annoy people who just want to watch the G5 series on it’s own merits. But it really wouldn’t be entirely the fans to blame for that attitude. G4 lasted a whole decade, many got attached to the characters/world we saw that had about the happiest ending it could possibly be. It should naturally make people unhappy that in a few ways it’s stomping over a happy ending for this fantasy world that many watched to escape from the realities of the real world.

Even with the long time allotted of 1000+ years or more, that’s made complicated by the implied long lives of the Alicorns from G4. Only opening up that can of worms further by seemingly making Sunny an alicorn. There’s a debate on whether this form is permanent, but if it’s NOT permanent. That arguably adds yet another addition to the list of reasons it may fall out of continuity. The only time we had a temporary Alicorn transformation (outside of Animation errors, or dream sequences like Big Mac’s) was when Cozy was an Alicorn after receiving some of the magic from Grogar’s bell. But even in that case, Cozy’s wings were not more like a glowy hologram like Sunny’s wings seem to be. And even if it is permanently on Sunny now, the design for Alicorns is too different. Adding onto the one-sided cutie marks, and different colored wings and horns. So the G5 writers may actually be stuck in a lose/lose situation when it comes to Alicorns after the ending of the movie. I think whether Sunny is permanently an Alicorn or not, they may not elaborate enough about it. And it’ll be among the headaches in the comment section (Though may at least be a reprieve from the political discussions G5 are going to have on occasion I imagine.)

Hasbro chose to try to say this is the same Equestria, and a new show needs conflicts to solve. But from the perspective of some G4 fans… it forces a world they loved, to get torn down into arguably a more divided world then even the Hearth’s Warming tale. Which said tale seems to have been implied to be from before Princess Celestia and Luna were around (Based on the lore of the unicorns being the one to raise the sun and moon) and thus yes. Somehow, if everything that happened in G4 is canon to G5. Then the world peace in The Last Problem in just a thousand years or so become worse then even Celestia’s sole rule.

RESPONDING TO “READ A HISTORY BOOK”

I’ve mentioned before, you can try to point to World History to point why this is a realistic take. But again, we don’t have an ancient civilization from 1000 years ago that we look up to as the pinnacle of peace in the world (Like I said, the Golden age of Ancient Greece and/or Rome still had slavery and brutal wars). That has literally never happened. What was shown in the Last Problem very much looked like it was that for Equestria. I feel it’s a terrible interpretation of time, especially in regards to the context that the leaders of Equestria tend to live for at least more then 1000 years to imply things would just go backward like that.

CONCLUSION

The movie on it’s own merits is a good start for the generation, though at the same time. It’s going to have some hard questions that’ll often be no-win situations for the writers. They can choose to ignore the G4 questions, understandably trying to tiptoe around as many cans of worms as possible which would allow them to do whatever the heck they want with G5. Maybe even getting a few stragglers frustrated with no answers to just shrug and continue watching anyway if the show entertains them enough. Or they can certainly try to at least give some answers on the biggest questions (What happened to the magic, and/or what was the fate of G4’s alicorns) but risk having an answer that just adds even more questions.

The movie is a decent start for a new generation if you only view it as a pilot for a new series, but if you view it as a sequel to Friendship is Magic. There are certainly problematic issues with that currently. Maybe the special in Spring, or the eventual Series will cover some of this but it does leave fans waiting a while for answers that they’re not promised to get, or at least not as quickly as they’d like. Remember when I mentioned that I may view some of this similarly to how I was about Starlight Glimmer after her sudden redemption at the end of Season 5? With many questions I wanted to know about Starlight before I could really accept her as a recurring character? (And not really fully coming into terms with her until I expanded on her myself in a story for I Dream of Twilight Sparkle) This may be how I have to view the connection of G4 and G5.

They can go one of two routes: At least try to give as much of a clear explanation as possible. Even if it’s one that doesn’t exactly answer everything, at least giving a good try may help with those who have questions remaining in relation to G4. If instead however, they go the Season 6 Starlight route of just about ignoring all the questions fans have, it’ll make things frustrating for many. At least with Starlight, she wasn’t the major focus in every episode. That said, Season 6’s job was to endear us more to her reformed character. Now with G5’s setup, it may be running well into a corner where they must try to answer what happened in between G4 and G5 or else you end up making a lot of fans lukewarm or worse to your series. Starlight’s reformation and then lack of ability of Season 6 to explain more about Starlight to us was a divisive moment. And G5 involving G4 brings over the same kind of feeling but on a larger scale because now it’s in the very premise of the generation’s plot, it’s less avoidable compared to one character. Because even when it comes to episodes that will not further the plot and it’s just a fun friendly moment between the members of the mane 5, this movie is how they met and thus the not fully explained premise would always be looming over like a large shadow. It probably doesn’t help that they’re basically starting with a reformed Starlight-esque moment when it comes to introducing it’s premise AND on top of that something similar although certainly with at least a lot less backlash then with Alicorn Twilight since it came so soon. Though I do have to think there will be people who think this was way too soon to be ascending Sunny, since at least we got to see Twilight’s journey to Alicornhood (Even if you weren’t a fan of the episode she ascended in). Sunny arguably does earn her Alicornhood through implied years of working to unite the ponies. But it can still feel too soon when you had 2 1/2 seasons worth of episodes before Twilight did, while Sunny did so within one movie.

Someone’s ultimate thoughts on G5 might end up being what they are looking for in this new generation. If they’re looking for just about everything new. The movie provides plenty of that with new characters, new locations, and a more modernized world compared to G4 Equestria (Even if G4 Equestria had it’s own fair share of electronics it looked like, such as video game machines). If you’re in this for the G4 references. Aside from the very beginning of the movie, you’re kind of stuck doing a where’s waldo for most of the movie. And no guarantees you’ll get much more then that later. As I said in the trailer thoughts, the G4 stuff could very much be just Hasbro trying to bake it’s cake and eat it too. With a world that feels like it should be it’s own thing, but they didn’t want to commit entirely to that. So they shoehorn G4 in as the ancient past without giving a proper explanation to how point A (the end of G4) got to point B (the start of G5). It’s only been about a week since the movie premiered, but there is just so much to digest. And for those looking for answers to the G4 elephant in the room, may feel like they get nothing but metaphorical tummy aches for a long time.

I’ll end this off by having a message to both people who already feel like they’ll be fans of G5, as well as people like me who were fans of G4 and have concerns about where G5 may be doing to it’s legacy.

For the G5 fans, as I mentioned in the trailer thoughts. I still hope that it turns out ultimately good. I don’t know where things will go from here but the G5 movie taking in context that it’s basically a really long series premiere, had some genuinely enjoyable moments. At the same time, I hope anyone in the G5 fanbase can try to understand why G4 fans have the concerns that they do. I’ll repeat, G4 lasted a decade and was the absolute peak of MLP’s popularity. There will be a lot of people attached to that world, and understandably upset about the implication that it got torn down into how the world is at the start of G5. If they’re really annoying about it, I can understand why you couldn’t hold the urge to snap at them to “Get over it” just try not to snap at the ones who are just asking curiously. I’m personally not going to spam comment threads with “THIS DOESN’T FIT WITH G4!” or “HASBRO ANSWER THESE QUESTIONS PLEASE”, but I would be lying if I were to say I’m not just as curious about what those type of fans want to know too.

And as for G4 fans like me, if G5 ever upsets you in some fashion. It’s ok to stop watching and just stay quiet whenever you find yourself in a conversation about G5 and only participate in G4 matters in the fandom. This is a natural evolution of a fandom’s lifecycle where eventually a direction a franchise is taken to a place some others don’t like. So you’re only left to mainly talk with those who prefer an older generation and/or incarnation. Just because G5 has started and even though Hasbro says it’s the same world as G4. You can still do G4 content by itself and ignore G5. If you still have the inclination to do stuff with G4, do it. Generation 5 is not stopping people from still drawing the G4 characters, or writing more stories about them, or even if you don’t feel you’re that creative. Support artists who are still drawing G4 ponies, and/or rewatch some of your favorite episodes of Friendship is Magic that give you a smile. MLP has lasted since the 80s, and while for the most part to Hasbro it’s to sell toys. Toys, and the shows surrounding them’s purpose is to make the people watching or playing with them smile. From the little girls in the 80s to the much more diverse both gender-wise and age-wise fandom that came out of G4. The cute ponies are supposed to make us happy, and it’s ok to get back into a comfort zone if perhaps a different part of Ponies don’t give you the same feeling or even upset you in some way. Also as a vice versa to my message to G5 fans, try as best you can not to provoke those enjoying G5. If the G5 movie and/or episodes makes them as happy as your favorite G4 episodes/movies you should let them be. Many of us had to deal with that crap just for daring liking a pony show at all early on in the fandom. Try not to add to the toxicity as best you can. G4 is not going to be forgotten, the fact Hasbro decided to try to make it in the same universe actually has the side effect of making sure of that. Cause maybe you have fans that enter the MLP franchise through G5 curious about what happened in the past. And thus, they can be led to watch the previous generation. New G5 fans could potentially also become new G4 fans and friends. In other words, friendship… is still magic!

[randomwritingguy]

The Myth of Y/N (Korra x Reader UNREQUITED) Part 7

REVELATIONS

It has been a couple of days since the Equalist attack on the Pro-Bending arena. I still cannot believe that Amon was able to orchestrate all of it right under our noses. I'm just thankful none of us were severely hurt. Despite the depressing situation, my capture of the Lieutenant gave us at least an ounce of hope. If we're lucky he will crack under interrogation and will tell us everything we need to know about the Equalists and what they are planning.

My victory over the Lieutenant also made the news too. I would be happy if it wasn't for the fact that I'm still a bit frustrated over the situation. Still, I guess it does help to see that my accomplishments are being recognised.

Like on the newspaper that I am just reading:

CHI-BLOCKER CAPTURES EQUALIST LIUETENANT AT PRO-BENDING ATTACK!

Despite the declaration of war by the Equalists which has struck fear into the hearts of the benders of Republic City, there is still hope! During the attack at the Pro-Bending arena, just after the championship tournament, childhood friend of Avatar Korra and former Depute in Councilman Tarrlok's task force, the chi-blocker Y/N, was able to subdue and capture the Equalists' Lieutenant! Chief Beifong has stated that the extremist will be facing constant interrogation in order to find any useful information that could help them bring an end to this war. When asked about the situation, Councilman Tarrlok had this to say:

"I applaud the brave and heroic actions of my former depute. Because of them, we are edging closer towards the final defeat of Amon and the Equalists. It is a shame, however, that they were able to bring more success in this conflict than our current Chief of Police, whose arrogance risked the lives of many, and Avatar Korra, who was more focused on playing a game than being the hero the city needed."

I frown at the harsh criticism Tarrlok gave towards Chief Beifong and Korra. I can't believe I worked for that asshole. There has been an increasing amount of critics for the daughter of Toph and Aang's successor since the attack, with there being claims that they have failed Republic City. Even as I turn the page on the newspaper, I see an article slamming on my best friend:

AVATAR KORRA: MASTER OF ELEMENTS OR MASTER OF FAILURE?

When Avatar Korra first arrived Republic City, there were hopes that she would save the citizens from the extremists known as the Equalists and their ruthless leader, Amon, and protect the place that her predecessor and Fire Lord Zuko poured blood, sweat, and tears into creating. However, since her arrival there has been an increasing amount of doubts and criticism of the young Avatar and her actions. While there is still a substantial amount of supporters of the woman, it cannot be denied that the debate of her effectiveness is controversial.

"She is supposed to be stopping Amon, not playing some stupid game!" - Citizen of Republic City.

Doubts of Avatar Korra's abilities have been called into question even more due to the actions of her childhood friend and former Depute of Councilman Tarrlok's taskforce, Y/N. From the consensus, it appears that the young chi-blocker has received nothing but praise, both from normal citizens and well-known figures alike.

"That chi-blocker has done some real good! Are we sure they're not the Avatar? They've done more for us than she has so far!" - Citizen of Republic City.

"I met the young chi-blocker at the gala in the honour of Avatar Korra, and they were really kind to my daughter and I. I said it to them before and I'll say it again, they are a hero and the perfect representation for the non-benders of Republic City." - Hiroshi Sato.

Has Avatar Korra acted as the hero the city needs in this time of crisis? Or has her fame got to her head and she has forced her responsibilities onto her chi-blocking best friend? Only time will tell.

I close the newspaper and chuck it in the trash. I think it will be best if Korra doesn't see this, if she hasn't already. I don't want her to worry even more.

"Oh, hey Y/N!"

Speak of the devil.

I look to my right and I see Korra, looking cheery as ever. From her getup, it looks like she is about to head out.

"Hi, Korra." I respond with a smile. "You going somewhere?"

She nods frantically, a big grin plastered on her face. "I'm going to visit Mako and Bolin. I talked to Tenzin and he said they can live with us on Air Temple Island!"

Oh yeah, since the attack the Pro-Bending arena has been shut down. That means the two brothers have to leave. It would be nice for them to live here with us.

My smile grows wider. "That's great Korra, that's very sweet of you."

My best friend blushes in embarrassment. "Thanks. You want to come with me?"

I nod. "Sure, let's go."

LATER

We finally made it to the Pro-Bending arena, and as we enter Mako and Bolin's place we see them packing their stuff.

"Guys! Great news!" Korra tells them with joy, "You don't have to go back on the streets. I talked to Tenzin and made all the arrangements. You can come live on Air Temple Island with me and Y/N!"

Mako's face flashes with worry. "Oh...well, we'd love to, but-"

"-Asami already invited us to live in her dad's giant mansion! From here on out, it's gonna be the lap of luxury for us." Bolin cheerily interrupts his brother.

Oh wow, seriously? Awesome!

"That's really nice of her!" I reply. I'm just glad they don't have to go back on the streets like they did when they were children.

"Thanks, Y/N!"

"Ah!" I sputter out in surprise as I jump back a bit. I turn around to see her on a platform, holding Pabu. "Hey, Asami. You nearly gave me a heart attack!"

Asami chuckles at my reaction and goes down a ladder. "Sorry about that. It's good to see you two! I was hoping you and Korra would stop by."

Before I could respond, Korra beats me to it.

"I was just leaving. So, I guess I'll see you guys around...sometime." she tells Asami and the brothers, her voice once full of enthusiasm now gone.

Why do I have the feeling it has something to do with the firebender?

Despite her words, Asami continues. "Why not tomorrow?" I'd love to have you and Y/N come visit the estate. I also invited Kyuni too."

I smile at that last bit. It's good to hear Kyuni and Asami are becoming good friends.

Korra seems unconvinced on going. "I don't know. I have some...Avatar stuff to do."

Suurrreee, Korra, surrreeee.

Before my best friend can run off, I see Bolin lift Pabu in the air at the corner of my eye. "Come on, Korra." the earthbender says in a high-pitched voice, trying his hardest to impersonate Pabu, "We all deserve a little rest and relaxation after all this craziness. We could swim in Asami's pool. It'll be fun."

Korra and I both laugh at the scene before us. Looks like "Pabu's" argument worked as Korra has a big smile on her face now. "All right, Pabu."

"Yeah, Pabu, you're right. It will be fun. I have to head off too." I say to "Pabu" and the rest whilst chuckling.

"Okay, we'll see you two tomorrow." Asami cheerly replies as Korra and I make our leave.

As we're riding on Naga toward the docks, I decide to speak up.

"Hey, Korra?"

My best friend turns her head slightly to the right. "Yeah, Y/N?"

"Something tells me that you're upset that Mako and Bolin are living with Asami?" I knowingly point out.

Korra sighs heavily. That pretty much answers my question right there.

"Yes." she replies with melancholy, "I'm happy they found a place to live, really I am, but..."

She trails off. Time for me to fill in the gaps.

"You were hoping to spend more time with Mako?"

My best friend nods slowly. "I know he's dating Asami, and I am happy for him, but I still really like him. Part of me even wants to get closer to him out of hope he'll eventually want to be with me. I know that sounds bad, but its what I'm feeling. Does that make me a bad person?"

What?! Is she really asking that?!

"No, Korra. Not at all" I reply with complete honesty. "You're an amazing person. Remember what you've done in these past couple months? Not only you helped save Bolin when he was captured, but you've been fighting the Equalists. All of that gives me the impression that you are definitely not a bad person. Good people are not going to be amazing all the time. There are going to be times when you mess up or do something bad. It is natural. But it's whether we learn or not from our flaws and past actions is what makes us who we are. I know how hurt you were when Mako rejected you and how sad Bolin must have felt when he saw you kiss his brother. Do you want you and your friends to experience that again?"

Korra shakes her head frantically. "Never."

I reply immediately. "Then you know what to do then. Or rather what not to do. Though to be fair since Mako told you that he likes both you and Asami and he's confused, then he should have really tried and figure it out before doing anything, but still."

My best friend chuckles at the comment. "Yeah. Thanks, Y/N. Romance is complicated."

"Tell me about it." I slip out. My brain catches up to what I just said and my eyes widen.

Korra noticed my comment and turns her head to look at me from the corner of her eye. "Oh, really? You having romance trouble too?"

Shit!

"Pssh, no. Of course not." I weakly reply back, the pitch of my voice rising each second.

Korra doesn't buy my answer at all, and a smug smile forms on her face. "It's Kyuni, isn't it? I knew you liked her!"

What?! For real?!

"No!" I say loudly, surprising both myself and Korra. "It's not like that. Kyuni and I are just friends, I don't even like her like that."

My friend tilts her head slightly in confusion. "Well, who do you like then?"

You.

"No-one." I reply almost immediately, trying my hardest to sound calm.

Coward.

Korra stares at me for a few seconds, her eyes narrowing slightly. I can feel my insides shaking from her gaze.

After a tense few seconds, she turns to look at the path in front of us. "Okay, if you say so."

I sigh internally.

Coward. What a fucking coward.

THE NEXT DAY

Korra and I finally arrived at Asami's mansion. And spirits, it's huge! I've never seen a building so big before! I hear my best friend chuckle at my amazed look on my face as a butler leads us to the swimming pool where everyone else is.

"Avatar Korra and Y/N have arrived." the butler blandly announces.

"Hey, Korra. Hey, Y/N." Mako greets us from the pool.

"Glad you guys could make it!" Asami adds on.

Bolin emerges from the water and puts on a pose. "Welcome to paradise."

Kyuni swims closer to us. "Hey guys!"

I chuckle at the scenery and wave. "Looks like you are all having fun."

Korra hums in agreement. "Yeah, looks like you guys settled in."

"Pretty much." Mako agrees. "Except someone forgot to ask her father if Bolin and I could stay here."

Uh oh. I would never "forget" to ask my parents something like that!

Asami doesn't seem bothered by it though. "Yeah, but I smoothed it over with him. It's easier to ask for forgiveness than permission."

As I snicker at her carefree attitude, Bolin climbs out of the pool.

"This is the greatest place in the world. Watch this, watch this. Fetch me my towel, good sir."

The butler, not moving an inch since we entered the room, obliges to the command. "Yes...Master Bolin."

The title seems to get the earthbender excited. "Master Bolin! I love this guy! Now pat me dry."

In a blink of an eye, the butler proceeds to nearly completely dry Bolin (and Pabu). Before I acknowledge how cool that was, the earthbender jumps back into the pool, rendering the butler's work useless.

I cover my mouth to hold in my snickers as Asami approaches Korra and I from the pool.

Korra, who appears to be in that mood again, looks towards Asami with dread. "So, what do you have planned for us today? Let me guess, shopping, makeovers..."

Asami, unfazed by my best friend's lack of enthusiasm, gets out of the pool. "I have something a little more exciting in mind."

I raise my right eyebrow in curiosity.

Exciting?

What does she mean by exciting?

I get my answer 30 minutes later, as we are on the front row seats to a race between two sato-mobiles!

"Pretty cool, huh?" Asami asks us.

"Way cooler than a makeover." Korra agrees.

"Yeah, this is awesome!" I add on. "Is this for testing or something?"

"Yes, exactly," Asami confirms, "this is where Future Industries test drive their sato-mobiles. Have you two ever been behind the wheel?

Korra responds first. "The only thing I know how to drive is a polar-bear dog."

I chuckle at her comment. "I'm sorry, but now I have images of you having road-rage in the middle of the city."

Korra playfully shoves me, a smile on her face. "Shut up, you can't drive too!"

"Well, if you want, I can take one of you for a spin." Asami tells us once our playful fight is over.

Korra whips her head to the other woman. "Let's do it!"

I chuckle again at Korra's enthusiasm. "Well, I hope you two have fun."

"I can drive." Kyuni announces, joining in on our conversation. "You can ride with me Y/N. It can be a race!

I turn to look at her, a bright smile on her face. "Okay, sure!"

I look back towards Korra and a grin slowly forms on my face. "You hear that, almighty Avatar? Sounds like its gonna be a race between you and Asami, and Kyuni and I. I hope you're ready for defeat!"

Korra puts on a teasing grin of her own. "Oh yeah, "Depute Y/N"? I think you're the ones who are gonna taste defeat today! Let's do this!"

Oh, they are so going down.

TIME SKIP

We lost.

Whelp, turns out it wasn't a good idea to challenge Asami as she completely annihilated me and Kyuni.

We all walk back towards the Sato mansion, me dealing with Korra's teasing for 30 minutes (though honestly I always found it charming). As soon as the doors open, Bolin rushes towards the bathroom. Looks like someone forgot to pee before leaving. Korra heads to the bathroom upstairs as the rest of us just stand and wait for their return.

I walk up to Kyuni. "Hey, you alright?"

The firebender looks at me with a raised eyebrow. "Yeah, why?"

I shrug. "I don't know. I know I already asked but I just wanted to check to make sure you were fine after what happened at the arena.

Kyuni sighs. "Yeah, I'm fine, really. I just can't believe people would actually do something so terrible."

I nod slowly. "I know, but soon they will be sorry for what they did. I can promise you that."

A small smile forms on her face. I can feel a smile appearing on me to.

Suddenly, Korra appears out of nowhere and grabs my hand, luring me away from the rest of the group. I feel my cheeks warming up as I feel my hand engulfed by hers.

Dammit, Y/N, now is not the time! Why is Korra dragging me away?

"You two are leaving?" Asami asks us with a trace of surprise in her voice. "But I thought-"

"-Sorry, Y/N and I forgot. We're supposed to be airsit, I mean babybend, I mean babysit the airbender kids. See you later!" Korra interrupts Asami as she drags me out of the mansion with her.

As we exit the building, Korra lets go of my hand.

I ignore the disappointment in my stomach and focus on the situation. "Korra, what on Earth was that all about?"

Korra turns to me, a serious look painted across her face. "I think Hiroshi Sato is an Equalist."

What?!

I feel my eyes widen at the claim. Hiroshi Sato, an Equalist?!

"What?! I breathe out. "Are you sure? Where's the proof?"

Korra looks down on the ground. "I don't have proof, but I heard Hiroshi speaking on the phone. He said that the closing of Cabbage Corp bought "them" enough time to prepare for a strike. I think he built those Equalist weapons and framed them."

I put my hand on my chin and stroke it gently. "That's a pretty wild accusation, but are you sure?"

My best friend nods immediately. "Absolutely. This must be investigated at least."

I frown in concentration. "Okay, I trust you. We gotta tell Master Tenzin and Chief Beifong about this."

Korra nods in agreement. "Let's go."

I really hope all of this isn't true...for Asami's sake.

LATER

We just met up with the airbender and chief of police and Korra has just explained what she heard and what she believes. From the looks on their faces, it appears that they are finding it hard to believe.

Tenzin speaks first. "So you think Mr. Sato manufactured those gloves for the Equalists, then framed Cabbage Corp?"

"That's a bold accusation." Chief Beifong adds on, her voice dripping with doubt. "But what proof do you have?"

Korra's face remains confident despite the hesitance. "Well, I don't exactly have proof, but I know what I heard. Sato's up to something."

I add my own thoughts about this. "I trust Korra. From what she heard, it does sound pretty suspicious. It wouldn't hurt to at least investigate this."

From the look of the earthebender's face, it seems that she is slowly beginning to believe us. "Yes, it does sound odd. He does have the means. And he has a motive."

"That's right." Tenzin agrees.

A motive? What motive?

Korra beats me to it to ask them this supposed motive Hiroshi has. "A motive? What is it?"

Tenzin's face immediately shifts to sadness, his eyes full of grief. "Twelve years ago, the Agni Kai Triad robbed Sato's mansion. A firebender killed Sato's wife during the break-in."

I feel my heart shatter at the revelation. That's horrible. No-one should have gone through that.

"That's terrible." Korra comments.

"It was tragic." the airbender agrees. "It's possible he's been harbouring anti-bending sentiment all this time."

That would make sense. It's possible he wants to avenge his wife in the form of helping the Equalists.

The chief's face hardens at Tenzin's claim. "Maybe we should look at Mr. Sato a little more closely."

I sigh, my shoulders dropping and my gaze focused on the ground. Poor Asami, I really hope all of this doesn't come true. It will break her heart.

THE NEXT DAY

I'm with Korra, Tenzin, and Beifong as the butler of Sato's mansion opens the door. We all walk in without introductions.

As Tenzin and Beifong walk to Hiroshi's office, Mako and Asami approach Korra and I.

"What's going on?" the firebender asks with worry. "Why are they asking Hiroshi more questions?"

Korra doesn't beat around the bush. "I overheard him on the phone yesterday. Asami, I don't know how to tell you this, but I think your father might be involved with the Equalists."

"What?!" Asami immediately barks out, her face shifting into anger. "I don't believe this."

As the daughter of Hiroshi walks away in frustration, Mako turns towards us, his face full of rage. "You spied on Hiroshi? What's your problem?"

The firebender begins walking, but I speak up before he gets away.

"Mako, I'm sure Korra didn't mean to spy on Hiroshi." I calmly explain to him. "Hopefully this is just one big misunderstanding."

Apparently my comment angered Mako even more as he looks back at me, his frustration intensifying. "You're taking Korra's side?!"

I feel my own frustration growing as well. "I trust Korra. If she thinks she heard something then I'm gonna believe her."

Mako scoffs in disbelief. "I don't believe this."

As he walks away, Korra and I exchange concerned looks.

This isn't going to end well.

We eventually made it to Hiroshi's office as I hear the man talking to Beifong and Tenzin, his daughter beside him.

"Equalists? Is that what this is about? I can assure you, I have nothing to do with those radicals." the Future Industries founder passionately defends himself.

Ah, looks like Asami told him what Korra said.

"Yeah, you don't know what you're talking about, Korra and Y/N." Mako tells us, his anger still present.

This doesn't deter my best friend, as she points at Hiroshi. "I overheard you on the phone. You said the Cabbage Corp investigation bought you time, and you're getting ready to strike. Explain that."

Surprisingly, Hiroshi begins chuckling at Korra's demand.

Uh oh.

"This is all just a misunderstanding, resulting from a young Avatar's over-active imagination." he calmly explains. I frown at the man's condescending tone when talking about Korra. "My number one competitor was knocked out of the game. It's providing me an opportunity to strike the market with a new line of Sato-mobiles. It's just business, nothing nefarious."

Hm. Seems reasonable. But something doesn't feel right.

Tenzin speaks up after a few seconds of intense silence. "In order to put all suspicions to rest, might we have a look into your factories and warehouses?"

Asami sighs at the request, but her father remains calm. "If you feel it's necessary, you're welcome to search all of Future Industries."

Well then. Time to learn the truth once and for all.

TIMESKIP

Nothing. After hours of searching we found nothing. No Equalist weapons, nothing. It looks like Hiroshi is innocent.

Korra looks defeated. "I can't believe we didn't find anything." she says melancholy as we approach the Chief and Tenzin.

It seems the earthbender came to the same conclusion as I did. "It would appear Hiroshi is innocent."

Asami and Mako approach us, their faces still the same as before: full of frustration.

"Okay, you did your search." Asami tells Tenzin and Beifong, "Now you can all leave."

Mako shoots Korra and I a look, and we all move away from them. Looks like an argument is about to go down.

"So?" the firebender asks us, "I hope you two are convinced now."

"No, I'm not." Korra immediately replies, her voice full of confidence. "I don't care how cooperative Hiroshi is being. I know he's lying."

I frown slightly. I trust Korra with anything. But what if she is wro-

"-Why are you doing this? Are you that jealous of me and Asami?"

My eyes widen as Korra gasps.

Did he just...?

Asshole.

Does he really think of Korra like that?

Fucking asshole!

Before my best friend could respond to that accusation, I beat her to it. "That is fucking stupid, Mako. Do you seriously think Korra would do this out of jealously?" I ask the firebender, my rage leaking out as I spoke.

Mako and Korra jump up slightly at my outburst, but the former remains determined. "At this point, I wouldn't put it past her."

I grit my teeth harshly, as I clench my fists tightly.

He has the audacity to claim that Korra is that low, that petty?!

"Then you don't know Korra at all!" I loudly exclaim. "Come on Korra, lets get away from him."

I grab my best friend's hand and drag her away from the firebender.

After I created some distance from Mako and us, I stop. My gaze is stuck to the ground.

After a few seconds of silence, Korra speaks up.

"Y/N, it's okay-"

-"It's not okay!" I angrily reply as I bring my sight towards my best friend, her shining blue eyes full of concern. "He accused you of framing Hiroshi out of jealousy! He thinks you're being low and petty! How are you fine with this?!"

Korra remains calm at my outburst, her gaze never leaving my own. "I'm not fine with it," she admits and she sighs sadly, "but I understand why he's angry. I did accuse his girlfriend's dad that he was working with extremists. I'm grateful you stood up for me, it was really nice of you, but its not worth it. He's not going to believe us."

After a long silence, I sigh heavily, my anger slowly fading away. "Okay...I'm sorry I got angry."

Korra gently smiles at me. "You have nothing to apologise for."

We look into each other's eyes for a few seconds. I can stare at them forever.

I look down and notice I'm still holding Korra's hand.

Shit!

I let go of her hand immediately, as if I was touching something boiling hot. "Sorry."

Korra chuckles. "It's cool, don't wo-"

Her sentence is cut off by her making a quiet gasp.

"What is it?" I ask her.

She holds her right hand up. It looks like she's holding a note.

"Someone gave this to me." she tells me, looking around in an attempt to spot the person responsible but being unsuccessful. "I have to show Tenzin and Beifong this."

We approach them, with Mako and Asami being long gone from the area.

Good riddance.

I shake my head to get rid of that insidious thought, as Korra speaks up. "Guys, I think you should hear this. "If you want to find the truth, meet me under the north end of the silk road bridge at midnight."

This is it...this could be the lead we have been looking for.

"We gotta head there!" I exclaim, "This might be our one and only chance to find out more about the Equalists!"

"I agree." Chief Beifong replies. "Let's just hope it won't be a trap."

Korra and I look at eachother, determined looks painted on our faces.

We're going to get to the bottom of this...now.

LATER

We made it to the bridge dead on midnight...but I can't see anyone.

"Psst, over here."

We look to our left, and a man wearing a trench coat emerges from the darkness.

"Listen," the man quietly tells us, as if he's afraid that someone is watching us, "I joined the Equalists because I believed in what Amon said. I thought he could make life better for us non-benders. But I didn't sign for this--this war."

I feel a wave of sympathy for the man. He's just an ordinary guy wanting to make life better for non-benders. Not a monster like Amon.

"What do you have on Hiroshi Sato?" Chief Beifong asks the stranger, not wanting to drag this conversation out.

The man focuses his gaze on the chief. "He manufactured those gloves for the Equalists."

I gasp quietly. It's true....Korra was right. Hiroshi is working with the Equalists.

"I knew it!" Korra exclaims.

The stranger isn't done apparently. "And there are rumours he's working on something even bigger; some new kind of weapon."

A new weapon? That can't be good. But where?

"Where is it?" I speak up. "We searched everywhere and came up empty."

The man focuses his attention towards me. "That's because he has a secret factory...right underneath the Sato mansion."

We all gasp at the revelation. It was right under our noses all this time and we didn't even notice?

I look towards the others. "We have to get there immediately!"

They all nod as Chief Beifong calls a airship for us.

I bring my gaze back to the stranger and give him a smile. "Thank you."

He nods, and slowly walks away, once again being engulfed by the darkness.

So Hiroshi Sato has been an Equalist all along....

Then only one question remains.

How is Asami going to react to this?

LATER

We waste no time in knocking this time. We and some of Beifong's men burst into the mansion.

When we arrive at the room Asami, Mako, and Bolin walk in, Asami's face shifts into anger. "What are you doing here?!"

The chief of police wastes no time in answering her. "We have reason to believe there's a factory hidden below the mansion."

Despite this, Asami refuses to listen. "I think I would have noticed if there were a factory underneath my house. The lies you people come up with just to persecute my father..."

"Where is your father?" the airbender asks her, unfazed by the woman's latter comment.

After Asami tells us that Hiroshi is apparently in his workshop behind the house, we all travel there, only to find it completely empty.

"Dad? Hello?" the daughter of Sato asks, confusion and concern clearly evident.

An officer tells the Chief that no-one has left the workshop since we arrived, but she is unconvinced. She walks towards the centre of the workshop, rises her left leg and using metalbending to remove the cover underneath her foot, and slams it on the ground. It looks like she's using her seismic sense.

After a few seconds, the Chief's face hardens. Looks like she found something.

"There's a tunnel beneath the workshop. Running deep into the mountainside."

Yep. She definitely found something.

Asami protests at this claim, but is quickly disproved when Beifong uses her metalbending to reveal the aforementioned tunnel.

I look at Asami, and I see her face full of confusion and...sadness. "I don't understand. There must be an explanation." she weakly replies.

I place my hand on her shoulder. "I'm so sorry Asami, but I think your father has been hiding stuff from you."

"I'm sorry too." Korra adds on, her face full of despair.

The Chief, Tenzin, Korra, and I travel further into the tunnel while Bolin, Mako, and Asami are forced to stay put. I guess my former status as depute of Tarrlok's taskforce and my capture of the Lieutenant allowed me to join them.

My best friend and I look back to see our friends. Mako's face especially has traces of guilt on it.

I sigh as I look back forward and step onto the platform, and we begin to travel downwards.

I place my hand on Korra's shoulder. "You okay?"

She sighs heavily. "Yeah...I just...I feel bad for Asami."

I sigh again. "Me too."

When we finally reach the end, we all walk forward into a bright room, full of Equalist banners and weapons...and....

And....

What?

Throughout the room there are loads and loads of giant metal suits. They have big metal claws ready to strike and tracks as feet. They look like something from fiction and yet...they're right in front of me.

I guess these...things...are Hiroshi's new secret weapon.

Suddenly a wall emerges from the floor out of nowhere, covering the entrance to the room and trapping us inside.

Beifong attempts to metal bend the wall....but nothing happens.

A loud, booming voice invades our ears.

"I'm afraid you won't be able to to metalbend that wall, Chief Beifong. It's solid platinum."

Hiroshi Sato.

As he is talking, the metal "things" power up, and begin approaching us.

"My mecha-tanks are platinum as well. Not even your renowned mother could bend a metal so pure."

Despite the danger, Korra remains confident. "Hiroshi, I knew you were a lying, no-good Equalist. Come out here and -"

"-And do what, young Avatar? Face the wrath of your bending?" Hiroshi interrupts, his voice dripping with a condescending tone. "No. I think I'll fight from inside here, where my odds are a little more...equal."

"That source was a setup." Chief Beifong realises, "You lured us down here!"

"Guilty as charged."

Dammit! We were tricked!

Then, in a blink of an eye, Hiroshi strikes.

I jump out of the way, barely missing the cable that was ejected from the arm.

Korra, Tenzin, and I rush toward Hiroshi in his Mecha-Tank. As my best friend firebends at him, followed by gusts of wind from the airbender, I jump high and flip onto the the tank. I punch the glass, attempting to attack Hiroshi or shut down the machine, but before I can feel getting engulfed by a claw and thrown into a wall. The force of the impact sent shockwaves throughout my body, and before I know it I can feel myself being shrouded by blackness.

TIMESKIP

I slowly open my eyes, the pain from the impact still overwhelming. I can feel myself being carried by someone. I focus my gaze and realise that Mako is carrying me, with Korra on top of me. I look around me and see that the others have been defeated too. Dammit.

I see Bolin attempting to grab Chief Beifong from the corner of my eye and-

"-Not so fast, boys."

Shit.

Hiroshi is wearing two Equalist gloves, a massive grin on his face.

Bolin, being Bolin, attempts to play innocent. Attempts.

"Hello, Mr. Sato. Wow. What a really...swell, scary factory you have here under your giant mansion."

Mako, however, continues staring at Hiroshi. "Sponsoring our team. Supporting the Avatar and Y/N. It was all just a big cover."

"Yes," Hiroshi proudly states, "and the most difficult part was watching my daughter traipse around with a firebending street rat like you!"

He slowly approaches us...is this it?

"Dad, stop!"

Asami?

Hiroshi turns around, and sees his daughter, a horrified expression painted across her features.

"Why?"

Hiroshi calms down, and approaches her. "Sweetie...I wanted to keep you out of this for as long as I could, but now that you know the truth, please forgive me. These people, these...benders, they took away your mother, the love of my life. They've ruined the world! But with Amon, we can fix it and build a perfect world together. We can help people like us everywhere. Join me, Asami."

The silence that comes afterwards feels like an eternity. No-one moves an inch.

After the eternal silence, Asami steps foward...and puts on the glove.

No...

She betrayed us...

I-

"I love you, Dad."

Suddenly, Asami shocks Hiroshi with his own invention, knocking him unconscious.

We all stare at Asami in shock, my own jaw heading towards the ground.

The victory is short lived however, as the mecha-tanks take notice of what just happened and begin approaching us.

Korra and I get off Mako, and we all quickly rush towards the exit, with Bolin sealing it so no-one could follow us.

TIMESKIP

We escaped them...but just barely.

And not without consequence.

Not only some of us are injured but Chief Beifong's men have been captured by the Equalists. Dammit.

Korra and I are looking through the windows of the airship, completely silent. At the corner of my eye, I see Mako approaching us.

"Korra, Y/N," the firebender says, guilt obvious in his voice, "I'm sorry I didn't trust you two, but Asami's dad being an Equalist is not an easy thing to believe, even now."

I agree. He seemed like such a kind and honest man. Little did we know.

"I know." Korra agrees, "I'm sorry this whole thing happened."

"I'm sorry too." I add on. "I'm also sorry about what I said to you earlier Mako, I was just angry."

A sad smile forms on the firebender's face. "It's fine, I understand. Does your offer to live at the Air Temple still stand?"

Korra responds immediately. "Of course it does. And Asami's welcome too."

Mako's face flashes with relief. "Thank you so much." he responds with complete gratitude.

My best friend is not done though. "After everything she's been through, she's going to need you, Mako."

I nod in agreement. "Go to her. She needs you now more than ever."

Mako nods and walks to Asami, with both of them embracing into a comforting hug.  

I turn to look at Korra. Her eyes are so dim, so sad. "Are you okay?"

She sighs at my question. "No."

I pull her into a tight hug. Korra reciprocates immediately, her grip as tight as mine.

"It's going to be alright, Korra. I promise."

She doesn't say anything. She doesn't have to.

I close my eyes...and succumb to the embrace.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

And that's it! I hope you enjoyed the latest chapter! I'm sorry if the fight scenes so far have been too short or disappointing. I'm not sure on how to write them at the moment, but I will try and get better!

Constructive criticism is always appreciated!

See you all in the next chapter! :D

[guiltysecretpasttime]

Consider the idea of Lin /Bumi badly timed proposals"? (just a humble linumi shipper loving your fanfics)

Note: Here's my belated response to this prompt. It ran away from me again until I struggled to close the story out. Hope you like it!

One-shot Post-canon AU Lin x Bumi II

Also on AO3. 

---

Outside of the military, Bumi was known to be the spontaneous one. The Avatar’s child who was the most likely to get into trouble. Or get into an adventure, as his grinning father would correct. He was the kid who took quickly to throwing fruit pies to the air acolytes. He was the teen who travelled to the next city because there was a Pro-bending competition happening there. As an adult, he was also the one who tried (and succeeded in) applying for the United Forces on a whim.

It was not often that Bumi would plan for anything linked to his personal life.

This was why, on the weeks leading up to that Night (with a capital N), he felt out of his depth. He did what he did best and tried to plan as he would regarding a military campaign.

This was why he thought he was assured of success.

What he did not count on was the extraneous factors, which was their extended family and social circle.

That – and the weather.

---

“Booms -I’m sorry, it’s not going to work out.” Iroh’s voice crackled over the telephone. “That downpour wouldn’t make anything stick long enough to be legible.”

Bumi sighed as he peered at the window of Tenzin’s study. The waves did crash unpleasantly against the edge of Air Temple Island as the rain fell. “Well, we can still move it tomorrow, right? You and the boys are still free?”

“Of course, provided that the weather is better. As for our availability - ,” Whatever Iroh said was lost as the line crackled again as it was wont to do when the weather was poor. Bumi clicked his tongue. Tenzin really needed to have some repairs made in this temple. “- So after that, we can definitely pick it up for you.”

“Great!” Bumi could care less if they need to adjust the timing a bit – as long as it pushesthrough.

He did not need the details.

---

Or maybe, he should have probed for more details.

The retired commander saw that now as he watched visitors mill around Air Temple Island.

Various air acolytes and airbenders from the different temples now crowd the usually empty courtyard.

How was he to know that it was time for the anniversary of the return of the airbenders? He did not even know there was an identified datefor that.

Or maybe, he would have known had he listened to Tenzin’s lectures.

He scratched his chin, pensively, wondering if this might change anything when something cold and wet lashed at his behind.

“Hello, Bumi.” His sister walked over, a water whip formed at her side, grinning as she usually did.

“Mother said you shouldn’t hit people.”

“Mother said a lot of things that you didn’t follow.” Kya crossed her arms mockingly. She nodded to the entrance of the residential building where their mother stood, surrounded by her youngest grandchildren.

He understood. They never could begrudge their mother anything, especially now with her waning health.

A sea of green passed in the periphery.

“I see Suyin and her brood are here.” Bumi contemplated briefly if it would have any impact to his plans.

Kya commented. “Did they really have to be always in green?”

“Did you always have to be in blue?”

“Touche.” Kya shrugged. “Though, I needed to be blue to occasionally camouflage in the South Pole if I needed to be stealthy.”

“For what?”

From afar, they see Katara beckoning Kya forward from where she and Pema stood by the stoop of the house. “I’ll go get settled now.”

Bumi excused himself, citing some reason to check on something, which, technically he needed to do.

“Tenzin said nothing formal; nothing big. Just a small gathering.” The loud voice of the Avatar grumbled.

The clinking of metal was heard next before Bumi rounded the corner. “And yet, everyone is here.”

“Chief Beifong!”

“Avatar.” Lin inclined her head in greeting, with blank politeness on her face.

Bumi knew better though – the slight tightening of her jaw and the grip she had on her belt: oh, Lin was irritated.

“What’s up?” Korra toyed with the sleeves of her formal wear, obviously uncomfortable.

“How are your travels?” Bumi interjected, popping beside Lin before she manages any acerbic remark.

“We are travelling in style! I think I could get used to it.”

“I think you already are.” Asami looked on with amusement.

“You’re lucky,” Bumi pointed towards where Oogi and the younger bison were flying around. “Dad had to travel on a sky bison.”

“Mom said it wasn’t pleasant.” Lin wrinkled her nose.

“There! You! Are!” Bolin ran and huffed as he arrived before them, doubling over in the effort. “Wing and Wei just found where the food was being prepared, we can sneak off to get some before the– oh hello Chief Beifong!”

“I did not hear anything.” Lin looked skyward and waved her hand at them.

“Beifong!” Bumi quickly caught up with Lin, who strode off quickly when the teenagers started talking about food. “Are you on duty?”

“Yes.” Lin sighed, putting her hand on her hips then stomping, doing a seismic perimeter check. “I know, but I have to.”

“I’ll look for you later.”

“Alright. We’re a bit stretched – Tenzin did not give us the correct numbers of attendees, as usual.” Her forehead crinkled as she concentrated on the perimeter check. “Good thing the Fire Lord sent General Iroh and some of his men to represent their nation.”

“Oh, that’s what he meant.” Bumi murmured to himself.

Lin glanced at him in askance.

“Iroh.” Bumi did not want to expound further. Lin had a way of ferreting out the truth from him without seismic sense anyway.

Bumi accompanied her like a silent sentinel as Chief Beifong went about doing check to her team and on the island.

They have finally arrived at the main courtyard where the usually unflappable master airbender was fluttering about like a bright orange butterfly, holding several sheets of paper, which no doubt was the program for the day.

Lin groaned when Tenzin noticed them.

“Lin!”

“I better go ahead.” With one final eye-rolling, Lin left Bumi’s side before he could even ask where she will be stationed at the end of the program.

“Trouble in paradise?”

Bumi jumped a bit, startled by Kya once again. “Of course not, my meddling gossipy sister.”

She offered him a drink, which he rightly declined. “What’s Tenzin up to?”

The man was now talking rapidly to the chief of police. They were far enough not to hear them but near enough to see what was going on.

“He’s quite excitable.” The retired military man shrugged. “Thank the spirits for Pema, that woman is a saint.”

“You mean, thank the spirits for Lin,” Kya nodded towards the pair as she took a sip of her drink. “Pema was just about ready to rip her hair off these past days. She was looking quite frazzled earlier and after a drink or two, bam! Out tumbled everything - Tenzin was anxious and has been driving her nuts with all the prep for today’s celebration.” She raised a glass to the earthbender and airbender on the main event area. “But look over there – just a few words from our dear Chief of Police and the man calms down.”

Bumi could not help but tense up as he observed Lin and Tenzin on the platform.

As Lin continued to converse with his younger brother, Tenzin began to slowly deflate. A smile started to form on the earlier stressed airbender’s face and the corner of Lin’s lips upturned, a ghost of a smile.

“I swear – those two, I wonder how it would have turned out for them had they known this was going to happen anyway…” Kya trails off, as though suddenly realizing who she was talking to. “I mean – hey, they’re both in happy relationships and it’s perfect and -.”

Bumi swallowed drily, drowning out his sister’s voice.

He had thought about that occasionally, really. There was nothing to go on and Lin had been upfront about, well, everything so he knew where her heart is.

But, looking at the pair now, at the anniversary of the return of the airbenders, supposedly the pinnacle of all their arguments…

“Booms – don’t do anything stupid.”

Now that snapped him from his maudlin thoughts. “Why is it that everyone thinks I’m gonna do something stupid when I keep quiet? It’s a bit offensive, you know.”

“Bumi, I didn’t mean -.”

No matter, Bumi was adamant that his Plan pushes through.

---

“POP! POP! BOOOM! BOOOM POP! Whiiiizzz! BOOM!”

Everyone on Air Temple Island (and even those at the edge of Republic City) looked up to see fireworks littering the night sky.

“BEIFONG… WILL…YOU… ohmy sweet - is that a ring??? .. ME.” Suyin squealed as she read what the fireworks were spelling out.

There was a cacophony from the courtyard of Air Temple Island as everyone sought to find which Beifong was being proposed to.

From their perches around the island, Iroh and the UF men whooped in success of their mission tonight – deploying the firework proposal.

“OH-MY-BOLIIIIN!”

All eyes were on Opal who was clutching at a wide-eyed earthbender.

“What?!”

Various voices added to the din, shouting different things.

“Bolin did you really?!” Mako pointed up to the sky.

“What – no I did not. I’m not marrying – I mean,” Bolin swiftly turned to Opal. “I would like to marry you.” Then he shouted at Su and Baatar Senior’s direction. “But not now. One day but not now – I mean, I need to talk to Su and Baat – oh shit Su’s gonna kill me.”

Attention turned to Baatar and Suyin.

“Um no,” Baatar shrugged casually, an arm around his wife. “It’s not our anniversary anytime soon.”

Suyin was still being antsy. “Wing! Wei! Did any of you -?” She saw her twins wave up their arms in surrender, wildly shaking their heads as they each held a plate of food. “If that’s not you…”

“Kuvira and Junior –.” Wei.

“That is unlikely.” Wing.

“Huan?” Both Wing and Wei asked, everyone’s heads swiveled to the artistic Beifong.

“Excuse me.” Huan looked very offended, as though it was an insult that someone would be proposing to him in public.

Bumi’s face fell as the Beifongs present began arguing as to who the firework proposal was for and the actual Beifong who the proposal was meant for was nowhere to be seen.

Just then a soft squeal and a sniffle came from Kya’s side.

Pema was holding to her arm. “No-no-no – it’s for Lin, don’t you see? That’s why – Tenzin is leaving me.” Every other word was punctuated with a sniffle. “That’s why they’ve been talking over plans and that’s why – I saw them talk to Jinora the other day. Oh-airbenders-Tenzin is -leaaving me.”

“Ahem, I have an announcement!”

Now, everyone turned to stare back at the platform where Tenzin stood. Behind him, stood two more people - Lin Beifong stood in his shadows, arms crossed, a guard observing the proceedings, while Jinora stood to the side with a nervous smile, hands at her back.

“Ooohhhh!” Pema let out a wail.

“Shh, Pema!”

Bumi froze. There have been still some lingering insecurities that were in relation to his brother that would take a long time to tamp down. With the man’s whimpering wife at the side and his own significant other beside said man, it did not take much to wear Bumi down to his insecurities.

“This has been a long time coming and before anything else,” Tenzin paused at this to throw a significant look at his back. “I would like to say that this is no split second decision, we’ve talked about it and well –.”

No way he was going to let Tenzin take over his plan tonight.

“I will be stepping down soon with Jinora as my successor.”

“LinBeifong, will you marry me?”

Two voices rang into the night, clearly silencing any other words that might have been going on.

Bumi did not care for or did not mind what the reactions of the people around them were. He only had eyes for the earthbender who was gaping at him then looking back at the sky then back at him.

He worried the longer it took for Lin to react.

From his side, Pema sagged in relief against her sister-in-law while Jinora and Tenzin stood at the platform, greeting well-wishers.

Lin, meanwhile, was yet to do anything other than stand still.

“OH – we forgot the most eligible Beifong of today!” Bolin stated the obvious, pointing to the sky and back at Chief Beifong on the stage.

“What are you doing, go get her.” Kya nudged him from the back.

Bumi ran to the stage, almost tripping on his formal robes. “Lin – I’m so sorry – I didn’t think it would be this public – I -.” Lin hated public displays. “I ain’t doing this to pressure, I -.”

Lin gripped his arm to stop him from speaking.

The crowd went silent as Suyin could be heard shushing everyone (“Quiet! We need to hear what her answer is!”).

Bumi’s heart sank as Lin pulled away from him.

This is it. The Rejection.

He could only look to the ground, unwilling to face family, friends and even his former colleagues in the UF.

Suddenly there was a rumble on the ground as Lin extended a leg in front of her and she raised her arms slowly with a grunt.

“YES – BUMI – I – WILL – dear Agni – Liiiin is marrying Bumi!” Su’s shrill voice read out the words etched on the courtyard.

Tenzin groaned, mumbling about the destruction of his courtyard.

“Shut it, airhead. That courtyard has seen worse when you broke up with -.”

Nope, he did not want to hear about their break-up and so Bumi took Lin in his arms and planted a nice long kiss to seal the deal.

He pulled back and was met with a large grin on Lin’s face.

It might not have worked as he expected or planned it to be but at least, he could honestly say that it was -

Mission accomplished.

[balsa-margarita]

A little excerpt from a new project of mine

“Stop that-”

Korra looked up just in time to see Azula hit the water with a loud splash - a moment later, she surfaced, sputtering. At the edge of the pool, Naga looked back at her with an expression of mock innocence on her face. 

What just happened?

“I was sunbathing, you - you bitch!”

A moment of silence - then Korra got the pun, and started laughing uproariously, making sure to keep her head above water. She could hear Asami giggling next to her, too.

Did she plan that out?

“Maybe you shouldn’t be sunbathing, then,” the young Water Tribe woman replied, still chuckling. “You spent all morning sparring with Fire Lord Izumi, and she’s swimming too now.”

After a moment, Azula huffed, then tried to splash her. Most of the water didn’t even make it the few meters to Korra, a scatter of droplets landing on her and her fiancee. The Avatar responded with a much larger spray, but her adopted sibling dove completely under the water rather than be hit.

A moment later, the young firebender surfaced, her hair now soaked. “Well, if I’m already wet I might as well stay wet.”

Exactly!