#fire nation sibs

[ap-kinda-lit]

Zuko: You don't wanna mess with my sister. She'll wear down your self-esteem over a period of years.

[phoenix-king-ozai]

Ozai and Fire Family Headcanon!

My headcanon is that Ozai served as the Fire Lord’s Wrath for Fire Lord Azulon. He was his father’s personal enforcer and executioner.

Ozai was called the Demon Prince of the Fire Nation by his nation’s enemies. Also nicknamed Ozai the Oni or Ozai the Obliterator.

There is a 15-year age gap difference between Iroh and Ozai. Azulon resents Ozai for causing Ilah’s death in childbirth despite wanting another child to age into their prime for the return of Sozin’s Comet.

Ozai as second in line for the throne went on hunts looking for the Avatar as stated in Book 1 Episode 1. Ozai was the Grand Admiral for the Fire Nation’s Navy whereas Iroh was the Grand General for the Fire Nation Army. Azulon as Fire Lord of course was the Supreme Commander of the Entire Fire Nation Military.

Personality wise Ozai is very introverted and egotistical kinda like Aizen and Madara. Ozai doesn’t really care about having a romantic relationship and is very much asexual.

Ozai is actually very religious an Agni fanatic acutely. Ozai worships Agni as the Spirit of the Sun known as the Almighty, Glorious, and Divine Spirit of Flame along with Agni’s spirit animals known as Dragons and Phoenixes.

Iroh even gave Ozai his own Dragon egg to raise after he “slayed” the last dragon. Both Iroh and Ozai’s dragons were killed in the previous Seige of Ba Sing Se (there were probably many sieges of that city). However, Ozai came across a Phoenix and her eggs during his childhood and raised them.

Ozai’s teenage dream when Iroh becomes the Fire Lord in the future was to become the Head Fire Sage of the Fire Isles. Ozai also committed human sacrifices in Agni’s name of Earth Kingdom and Water Tribe troops and civilians after razing a town, village, or city that resisted Azulon’s reign. The torture method is called Blood Phoenix and is similar to Blood Eagle from the Vikings in real history. Ozai does this because ancient Fire Nation customs and traditions of human sacrifice in Agni's name go as far back as the Sun Warriors and the ripping out of their enemy's hearts. This is based on ancient Aztec traditions.

Ozai truly did care for Ursa, Zuko, and Azula just like he used to for Azulon and Iroh in his teenage years. Ozai used to worship Iroh as the Dragon of the West and the famed Iroh as the Negotiator. However, Iroh and Ozai had a massive falling out during his teenage years.

Ozai deeply respects Azula as his heiress and apprentice. Ozai banished Ursa because she made him “weak” and “soft” regarding their children and his expectations of them as Fire Prince and Fire Princess of the Fire Nation.

[sage-nebula]

> opens the official TDP discord

> immediately sees people mocking how M. Night corrected Bryke's mispronunciation of Asian names in the live-action ATLA movie

> closes official TDP discord

[ljf613]

On Cognitive Bias

A while back, I wrote a couple of posts about memory bias. (Actually, two posts.) And I just realized that I made a crucial mistake. I didn't define my terminology. This is something I try to do any time I make an argument relying on specific wording. You cannot have a conversation with someone who doesn't understand what you mean by the words you're trying to say.

For some reason I assumed that anyone reading the post would recognize the term "memory bias," which I know is not something most people are familiar with. Which means a lot of people saw the word "bias" and assumed I was using this definition:

[ID: Dictionary definition of the word “Bias”:

Noun 1. prejudice in favor of or against one thing, person, or group compared with another, usually in a way considered to be unfair. End ID] 

This is not what I meant, and I should have expressed that better.

The term I used was "memory bias". This is also known as "cognitive bias" and "recall bias."

The best definition I can find is this one from TechTarget:

[ID: What is cognitive bias?

Cognitive bias is a systematic thought process caused by the tendency of the human brain to simplify information processing through a filter of personal experience and preferences. The filtering process is a coping mechanism that enables the brain to prioritize and process large amounts of information quickly. While the mechanism is effective, its limitations can cause errors in thought. 

Essentially, cognitive biases help humans find mental shortcuts to assist in the navigation of daily life, but may often cause irrational interpretations and judgments. End ID]

All of us do this. We're not robots-- our memories and priorities are colored by our emotions. We use mental shortcuts.

And this is especially true of our childhood memories. Most people don't accurately remember their entire childhood. (For example, one of the only things I remember about middle school is sitting in the bathroom crying. Intellectually, I know other things happened during that time, that there were also positive things, but my emotion-based memory only really remembers the hormone-induced angst.)

(Cognitive bias is not necessarily negative. One of the most common kinds of recall bias is known as "rosy retrospection"-- that's when you remember things as being better than they actually were.)

Important thing to understand: victims of abuse-- especially childhood and/or domestic abuse-- are some of the most prone to cognitive bias. (I initially encoutered the term when dealing with kids in foster care.)

They have to be. It's a defense mechanism. The human brain cannot comprehend this kind of trauma without some kind of shield. And the idea that "this person who is supposed to love and care for me doesn't" is something that's really hard to understand or accept, particularly for children (whose brains are still developing and look to the adults in their lives for guidance).

And so their brains will do anything to avoid it. And the more your brain does something, the better it gets. (There was a child I knew whose brain processed traumatic events by literally erasing any memory that was too hard/frustrating to understand. This was a problem when the kid needed to pass middle-school math and could not remember ever learning the material.)

This is not the victim's fault. They didn't choose this, and it was what they needed to do in order to survive. Think of it as a form of psychological frostbite-- the body deprives the extremities of needed heat in order to protect the vital organs. Frostbite saves lives-- but in prolonged cases, it has harmful and often permanent side effects, and sometimes, you end up losing some toes.

Or, you know, limbs.

[ariaterramoon]

Watch me make an Arcane AU for the Shane Sibs

Totally not because I've been seeing clips and thus my interest in making this au resurfaced and came full force.

Long post prolly so watch me cook below the cut haha

First thoughts

Eli — Vi

Man's going to prison and gonna leave his sister behind. sobbing crying

Sarai — Powder/Jinx

Cue abandonment issues to the max—

Dana & Twist— Ekko

Dana's gonna be helping her dad in his shop, and since her father is friends with Eli's father, they are friends now. Yay!

Twist be an orphan and Tom adopted him uwu No betrayal Twist mayhaps???? 👀👀 He is Eli's best friend and was close with Sarai and watched her change CRYING

Kord and Trixie fill up Milo and Clagger

They're gonna die—AAAA

Pronto is gonna be that dude that Vander helped negotiate with the Bildgewater traders and then got hooked on Shimmer 😭😭😭

He took his twin brother's role as a trader sooo he lowkey sucks at it, but he gets help from the Hound of the Underground ofc uwu

Will — Vander

SOB sorry Will, you gonna die and worse. Your once old friend is going to come after you and your family 😭😭😭

Hmmm. The Shane's originally came from Piltover but were kicked out by the academy. Will is a second gen Underworlder, so still has quite some understanding of Piltover and their culture. His kids, however, have no clue. They're underworlders through and through.

Tom — Benzo

Him and Will best buds forever 😤😤😤 Tom loves his shop and his kids, even if they often get in trouble alongside Will's kids lmao

Very loyal to Will 💜

Dr. Blakk — Silco + Singed but mostly Silco

Ohhhh BOY here we go (tldr below)

Also a second gen Underworlder.

His father was kicked out by the Academy for forbidden/nonethical research. He landed in the Underground but was blessed to find a woman that he settled with. She died in childbirth, and he blames his son for her death. He still very much held an anger towards Piltover and swore to find a way back and get his life back and wanted to go back to his research there.

Thaddius was born, and when he learned about his father being kicked out, he felt bad for him and tried to comfort his father. Instead, he was met with anger and distain. His father still saw himself as a Piltovian, and he saw his son as Underworld trash, and although he never said it out loud, Thaddius knew what his father thought of him.

One day, a man came to talk with Thaddius' father and sure enough, his father had found a golden ticket back to Piltover. Only one golden ticket. Thaddius watched as his father exchanged him for a one way ticket to Piltover, abandoning him for a more lavish life.

Something broke in Thaddius that day, and since then, he has a disgust and hatred for Piltover. Why must the Underworld be less? They were Twin-Cities, supposed to be equals and yet... it was clear they were not. So Thaddius embraced his identity as an Underworlder, become zealous and created the Nation of Zaun. Will was against it, he knew that was not the solution and their friendship was broken because of it.

But now with Will gone, Dr. Blakk is one step closer to getting his Nation of Zaun.

But, what he never expected, was for Will's crying daughter to leap into his arms, sobbing about being left behind by her bother, her dead father right behind her...

TL;DR Papa Blakk abandoned Thaddius bc he was Underworld trash and Thaddius embraced being an Underworlder and created the Nation of Zaun. He then adopted stole Sarai and she is now his daughter.

Quentin — Singed

Hmmm, Blakk also takes on the role of Singed. He created Shimmer and takes on Quentin as his assistant. So now Quentin is in charge of further Shimmer research and he is the one who gets burned by the fire.

Maurice — Sevika

Man is loyal to the Underworld, he knew when to switch teams. He fought alongside Will when Piltover and the Underworld were at war. Eli knew him to be close to his father and feels betrayed when he learns Maurice. betrayed him and is now working with Dr. Blakk

Shanai is the very nice brothel lady that Vi gets info from.

She was like a grandma to the kids and is heartbroken by their deaths, and is tormented by the fact that Dr. Blakk has Sarai now.

And thus concludes my first thoughts about my Arcane AU. Lmk when yalll think 😭😭😭 my hearts gonna break when I draw for this au AAAA

[alolanlan]

ideas for a mdzs ATLA au

- the Lan as the air nomads except instead of a flowy, go-wherever lifestyle, they have rules to keep them “tethered to the earth”. the lan forehead ribbons work in the same way, with them only releasing their earthly tie to the one who they can trust to bring them back - spouse and family. the colors would swap to the typical cloud recesses colors instead of yellow, orange, and dark red.

- the Nie and Jin taking up the earth kingdom. ba sing se could be where the jins have walled themselves in to protect themselves from the war, while the rest can be nie territory.

- the Jiang as the water tribe except instead of replacing the north and south pole tribes, they replace the swampbenders. so yk how the tribes at the poles are seen as the main waterbending groups while swampbenders are seen as a subculture hidden away in the earth kingdom? yeah, switch the status of the groups. the Jiang sect can live in Lotus Pier and have the combined prestige as the canon north and south waterbending tribes and while there are waterbending tribes at the poles, they’re isolated and closed off from the rest of the world (intentionally; im thinking baoshan sanren is the leader of the southern water tribe in this au).

- the Wen as the Fire Nation, obv. that’s pretty much all I have to say.

- Cangse Sanren was the last avatar. Baoshan Sanren took her in to the Southern Water Tribe after finding Cangse living on the streets of an earth kingdom port city. Cangse Sanren was trained in waterbending first, then traveled around the world to master other forms of bending. She’s taught airbending by the Lans, earthbending by the Nie, and learns waterbending by the Jiangs (and falls in love with a nonbender Jiang sect servant, Wei Changze, in the process).

- Wei Wuxian is born a waterbender. When his parents die in a hunt for a resentful spirit, he grows up on the streets. He’s eventually found and taken in by the Jiang sect to teach him waterbending.

- Jiang Yanli is a nonbender and Jiang Cheng is a waterbender. Instead of becoming a whip, Zidian could send an electric charge thru the water and make his water whip extra dangerous?? idk if that would work scientifically but it would be neat

- Lan Wangji and Lan Xichen are airbenders that channel their bending thru musical instruments

- Nie Mingjue is the general of the earthbending army and he sends Nie Huaisang to the island of Kyoshi to keep him safe, unaware he’d become a Kyoshi Warrior (i think they’d make an exception for him gender wise??)

- Wen Qing is a nonbender in the Wen sect that found a new way of healing that focuses on chi points, similar to how waterbending healing works but using acupuncture needles instead. Wen Ning is a rather weak firebender but his aim with a bow and arrow is amazing

- the Jin are either a clan of metalbenders or nonbenders. Jin Zixuan and Meng Yao would both be nonbenders i think.

- anyway, onto the plot.

- the cloud recesses arc is pretty much the same except everyone is there to learn more about airbending culture and spirituality and see how it can be applied to their own bending.

- just like in mdzs canon, the Wen end up attacking the Lan sect first and it’s devastating. not to the point of total genocide like in atla canon, but a shit ton of people die. Lan Xichen flees with ancient airbending scrolls and Lan Wangji is captured at the temple he’d been defending.

- Xuanwu of slaughter is a rlly angry spirit creature kept prisoner in a cave, wangxian once again defeat it

- Lotus Pier is burned but there are more survivors considering they have waterbending to put out the fires. Jiang Fengmian and Yu Ziyuan are both killed in direct combat with the Wens and Jiang Cheng gets his bending taken away by Wen Zhuliu (a bloodbender like Amon in tlok that can block people’s bending abilities).

- Wen Qing and Wen Ning help the Yunmeng sibs escape Lotus Pier but there’s nothing anyone can do to help him. Wen Qing puts him in a medically induced coma to keep him from putting strain on his injuries but then she and her brother have to go, leaving Jiang Yanli and Wei Wuxian. When they hear Wen Chao is hunting them down, Wei Wuxian takes off to lead them away but is running on fumes to the point where he gets captured. Jiang Yanli, meanwhile, takes her brother to the Golden Carp Tower in Ba Sing Se, where her connections allow them to take refuge.

- He’s thrown in the Burial Mounds, a place where resentful spirits roam freely, devouring anyone who dares step foot in their territory. He spends a few days hiding for his life before he’s discovered by a spirit.

- the spirit looks deep into his heart and sees that all he truly desires is to help Jiang Cheng and everyone else. the spirit takes pity on him and makes an offer: it will teach him the bending technique needed to help his brother, but in return he has to gift the spirit his ability to waterbend normally. he accepts and the spirit teaches him bloodbending.

- through the spirit’s teachings, Wei Wuxian is able to master the art of bloodbending (Wen Zhuliu is a bloodbender already, but he’s no master). The cost, however, is high - bloodbending deteriorates the bender’s mind, body, and spirit and if he’s not careful it will consume him.

- three months after being thrown in, he leaves the Burial Mounds. first thing he does is find Jiang Cheng in Ba Sing Se and use his bloodbending to unblock his waterbending. he leaves before Jiang Cheng wakes up or Jiang Yanli spots him and the return of JC’s bending is seen as a miracle.

- Anyway. Sunshot Campaign happens!! Wei Wuxian is a BAMF that controls the blood in recently dead bodies to create a zombie army! Lan Wangji is Concerned but also uncomfortably turned on! Meng Yao goes undercover and kills Wen Ruohan!

- to be continued. probably

[apollosgiftofprophecy]

Welcome to the Cave of Delphi!

I promote love, not hate on this blog.

Apollo love (platonic) in particular.

If 1,000 people love Apollo, I am one of those people. If 100 people love Apollo, I am one of those people. If 10 people love Apollo, I am one of those people. If only 1 person loves Apollo, I AM that person. If nobody loves Apollo, than I have left this world. If the world is against Apollo, I am against the world.

New followers, Please:

Change your profile picture;

Add a description to your blog; and/or

REBLOG!!!! THINGS!!!! :D

So I know you aren't a bot and I won't block you :3

Tumblr thrives on reblogs :3 as do us other bloggers :3

thank u <3

About Me

Age: 19

Nationality: American

Religion: Roman Catholic

Pronouns: She/Her

Romantic Orientation: Demiromantic (sometimes I use Panromantic)

Sexual Orientation: Asexual

Current Obsessions: Greek Mythology, Apollo, Trials of Apollo, Apollo, Ancient Greece, Apollo, Roman Empire, & Apollo

My Cohost

My Youtube Videos

My Posts

Favorite Posts

The Copollo Fic Masterlist

Fic Recs

🏹➳~My Fanfics~➳🏹

Fanfic Update Order

The Works of Apollo - RRverse Canon Compliant

Adventures in (Grand)Parenting: Featuring Koios - Our favorite grandpa and his many trials and errors at grandparenting

Alder's Mess of ToA AUs - RRverse Canon Divergent AUs within the series

The Crew of Dodona - ToA Pirate AU

Mythology Fics - The OG myths

Tag List:

#ramblings of an oracle - me spouting whatever i what

#the oracle speaks - asks i have answered <3

#my incorrect quotes - IQs from my own fanfics, not from the myths or ToA

#my art - self-explanatory lmao

#fic asks - asks about my fanfics <3

#ask game - responses to an ask game

Mythology

#apollo love

Duos

#sun n moon twins - Apollo n Artemis <3

#truth n lies - Apollo & Hermes

#logic n chaos - Apollo & Dionysus

#knowledge & wisdom - Apollo & Athena

#theives' hunt - Hermes & Artemis

#poetry and love - Apollo & Aphrodite

#light and fire - Apollo & Hephaestus

#plague and war - Apollo & Ares

#stepduo - Apollo & Hera

#harmony & order - Apollo & Zeus (mainly ToA)

Groups

#the disaster trio - Apollo, Artemis, & Hermes

#queer quartet - Apollo, Artemis, Hermes, & Dionysus

#troublesome triad - Apollo, Hermes, & Dionysus

#raggamuffin kids - all of the second-gen Olympian sibs

#civilization trio - Apollo, Hermes, & Athena

#the music gang - Apollo & the Muses

#chaotic crew - Apollo, Dionysus, Hermes, & Persephone

#tasteful trio - Apollo, Dionysus, & Aphrodite

#delphic triad - Leto and her babies <3

#regal trio - Zeus and the twins

#raggamuffin parents - 1st gen Olympians AKA the children of Kronos

#delphic fam - the maternal side of the twins' family <3

The Stuff

#greek mythology analysis

#incorrect greek mythology quotes

#mythology aus

#greek myths

#greek myth fanart

#greek myth memes

#greek myth headcanons

#greek myth vines

#greek fam tree

#greek history

#apollocinthus - Apollo & Hyacinthus Supremacy Here

#apoly - Apollo's polycule because he is <3

Then just type in a god/goddess to find stuff with them in it. I can reassure you i will have plenty of stuff with Apollo, Artemis, & Hermes.

sometime tho i will put extra stuff behind it (ex: #pan the god)

for reference: I classify a "meme" as a funny post with pictures or something like that. A "quote" would be, well, quotes.

The Trials of Apollo (RiordanVerse)

*stuff that is exclusively from ToA*

#sunflower siblings - apollo & meg

#sibling shenanigans - apollo, artemis, thalia, & jason

#triumvirite holdings - the three nasty emperors

#prophecy pair - apollo & rachel

#incorrect trials of apollo quotes

#nero

#commodus

#caligula

#meg mccaffery

#python

#copollo - the guilty-pleasure, absolute TRAINWRECK of a ship between Apollo and Commodus. *slaps ship* i can fit so many ISSUES into this ship!

#toa fanart

#toa theory

#riordanverse headcanons

#toa memes

#toa polls

#toa fanfiction

#apollo fanfiction

#if i was a demigod

ToA Fanfics

#tsari: eclipse

Epics

#the iliad

#the odyssey

#the aeneid

#the trojan war

#trojan war memes

#incorrect trojan war quotes

then just type in a character's name (Ex: #diomedes) and it should pop up. However, some characters I've put extra stuff with like:

#prince hector

#helen of sparta

#jason the argonaut

so as i go/find those names with extras in them i'll place them above

Other

#not myths but it's related

#rome

#poetry

#music

#the haiku bot

#resources

#blood of zeus

#roman emperors

#sacred animals

#statues

#paintings

#notes for later

#not myths

#rhymes

i have a tag for other deities so just type in their name and then what religion they are (Example: #frey norse god; thoth egyptian god; bast egyptian goddess; ect.) <- all one tag

i won't do it often, but i also may reblog stuff from other mythologies like norse or egyptian (HA I SPELT IT RIGHT FIRST TIME WHOOP)

[dragomer]

I’ve got a Zucest/Kacest idea I wanted to run by ya.

Say during a battle in the chase Azula, Zuko, Katara, and Sokka are battling while Aang is fighting Mai and Ty Lee. The 4 suddenly fight near a cave. In this cave they accidentally disturb a spirit. The spirit pissed off to all hell sends them into the spirit world.

So now, the Fire/Water siblings have to go on life changing adventure while working together to escape the spirit world and get back home.

Over the course of the story we find that Azula is jealous of Zuko and Mai’s relationship. Katara is jealous of Sokka and Suki’s/Yue’s relationship. Neither master bender quite understand their feelings. This a journey of realization and giving into desires.

Various spirits play tricks and pranks on Katara and Azula to get them to 1 realize their feelings and 2 accept them. Both Zuko and Sokka remain complete oblivious to Azula and Katara’s feelings though.

The 4 also find moon spirit Yue while wondering the spirit world. As a powerful spirt Yue is able to exist simultaneously in both the world and spirit world. As a fish and a spirit. Her presence reignites Katara’s jealousy. Yue points the quartet words a portal that can take the 4 of them home. The Fire/Water 4 decide to stay for the night.

Yue talks to Sokka and Zuko on the night. In her talk with Sokka she tells him he needs to “move on from her” and go after where his head truly lies. Yue gets Sokka to realize and accept his feelings for Katara.

Yue also talks about the siege of the north with Zuko. The conversation is a heavy one, it leads to Zuko apologizing for his involvement during the siege. Specifically about how his insolvent led to Yue’s death/apotheosis. Yue forgives Zuko after this.

After the difficult conversation, Yue decides to plow right into another difficult conversation. Yue prefaces by telling Zuko that she is the manifestation of the moon. So she knows what drives mortals. She can look down into their hearts and perceive their truths. With that out of the way, Yue confront Zuko about his feelings for Azula directly.

Zuko of course sputters a denial that was conning to no one. Least of all to him and to the omniscient moon spirit. Like with Sokka about Katara, she convinces Zuko to accept his feelings for Azula.

After this, Sokka and Zuko bond over their respective feelings for Katara and Azula.

Azula and Katara also stay up late at night and converse. The conversation is hostile in places and friendly in others. Until Azula accidentally slips up and reveals her feelings for Zuko. In a bout of compassion Katara tells Azula about her own feelings for Sokka. The two commiserate on their seemingly “unrequited” feelings for their idiot older brothers. It ends with Azula and Katara agreeing to make a move for better or worse before leaving the spirit world.

So Azula and Katara become friends. kinda. Of a sort from bonding over their desires.

All in all, the course of their journey took around 20 days’s in the spirit world and about 4 days in the human/mortal world. In that time thw 4 had to realize brief feelings for their respective love. Additionally, Zuko and Azula had grapple with the truth of the Fire Nations injustices. Spirits also forced Azula and Zuko to confront the realities of their father’s abuses over them.

Once Azula, Katara, Zuko, and Sokka reach the portal door the 4 have a “heart to heart” before going through. The conversation ends with Azula and Zuko deciding to join the Gaang and fight against Ozai.

At the last second before going into the portal, Azula and Katar look each other in the eye and they both nod. As if hearing themselves up to run a marathon.

Azula pulls Zuko’s head down and whispers into his ear. Katara does the same with Sokka. Then the two sets are kissing, get carried away and trip into the portal. Landing as a jumbled heap into the human/mortal world. But the Fire/Water sibs are all back in their world and in their bodies.

The war proceeds quickly and rather easily now that Azula and Zuko (with Mai and Ty Lee by extension) are on side. For his part Aang is upset about Katara and Sokka’s new relationship. But he doesn’t let them him distract from his duty as the Avatar. Aang eventually moves on from Katara and is happy for the couple.

The plan for the day of Black Sun works and Ozai is ousted. With Zuko becoming Fire Lord in his stead.

Azula and Zuko, and Katara and Sokka keep their taboo relationships under raps for several years. Azula and Sokka come up with a plan, Zuko would marry Katara publicly and Azula would marry Sokka publicly. They would all live in the Fire Nation palace. This way, they can keep their true relationships under wraps and keep the public from going insane over the taboo relationship(s).

I hoped you liked the Zucest/Kacest idea/ouline!

It's pretty neat, I'm not a superfan of Watercest like I am of Zucest but I still think it's a cool pairing.

I love your idea and think you should totally write it. Except the ending, that part make no sense. Zuko and Azula have no reason to have pretend marriages with other people, they are the supreme authority of their country. If genocide didn't make the Fire Nation rebel, some incest won't either.

Same for Katara and Sokka, they saved the world and are BFFs with the Avatar, it's the kind of status where you kinda do what you want.

Also I don't like Zutara and can't stand Sokkla so anything resembling it is a no go to me.

Thanks for the ask and neat idea ^^

[musashi]

going to go on record saying i do not like it when people compare the prosecutor sibs to the fire nation sibs however tonight i said "zuko alone is like if sound the turnabout melody was evil" and i think im right

[sarshattack]

fire nation sibs🔥💫

[ap-kinda-lit]

Sokka: I was just talking to her [Azula] just a couple minutes ago, and she was totally ready to kill any of us. Aang: She did try to kill me. Zuko: Yeah, me too. On many, MANY occasions. Like this one time when we were kids, she disguised herself as a turtleduck because she knows I love turtleducks, so I went to pick it up and admire it and she turned back into herself, like, "Bleh! It's me!" and then she stabbed me. I was ten and she was eight at the time. Everyone: ...

[asocial-inkblot]

Anonymous asked:

“When will Zuko realize that he and Azula can end both Fire Imperialism and Fire Royal Family Animosity?” It would probably take awhile. He spent so long casting (and being encouraged to cast) Azula in the role of main obstacle to what he wants even after turning away from Ozai. Even if, as per Bryke, he pitied her upon seeing her chained and sobbing, I’m not sure that translates into full comprehension of how she also suffered. (1/3)

Not helped by his Uncle dumping him, a traumatized 16 year-old with no training, on the throne. Zuko still has so much healing and growing left to do at the end of the series. Who knows when he’d get the chance to do so, when he know has a nation to run and deradicalize? (2/3)

The worst part is even if he does one day come to the conclusion that they can work together and offers, Azula could still be justified in rejecting him. Especially if her condition and treatment post-war were influenced by either Zuko’s resentment or lack of caring. (Like imprisonment, or throwing in an abusive asylum and never following up.) So, yeah. (3/3)

Anyway, still how things work on tumblr. I know this is the ask box, and if it’s inappropriate to use for a response like that, I won’t do so in the future. Or just get an account finally. (4/3)

Thank you for your insight Anon. I agree with you and I completely support you getting an account in the future. Oh and if it’ll help, you can submit your thoughts to other users through the submissions feature. I’m unsure if people without accounts can use it though (I didn’t even realize you can send asks without an account).

[firelxrdsdaughter]

something to tide myself and everyone else over while I work on homework and commissions. 

FIRESIBS! I’ve been trying to get this one out for a while. Finally got the poses to work on paper and imported them into the procreate file. xDD Sometimes you’ve just gotta draw on paper first.

premise: Kind of like Obon, it’s a lantern festival to guide spirits to the afterlife -- Zuko and Azula light a lantern for their mother and place it in a wreath of waterlilies to float out to sea along with the lanterns of the thousands of Fire Nation citizens who lost loved ones during the war. 

The ceremony is started by Fire Lord Zuko, and is majorly an act of remembering the dead of all the other nations as well, and acknowledging the Fire Nation’s fault and role in the loss of life.

(aside: in the version of events as they happened in my head, Ozai had Ursa murdered the night that she disappeared/Azulon died so that she couldn’t make any trouble for him. Zuko finds out some years later, and some years after that is also able to tell Azula.)

[ljf613]

Zuko’s Memory Bias

I’ve talked about Azula’s potential memory bias towards her mother. In that same thread, I mentioned that Zuko also has memory bias towards his parents. What I didn’t think about until I was writing my recent post on his relationship with Azula is how those same biases may have affected the way he perceives her. 

(Warning: This is a very complex topic, and I suggest not reading/engaging if you find it potentially triggering or are unable to deal with it in a nuanced way. I am NOT trying to downplay abuse, nor am I trying to gaslight those who’ve been victimized by it.) 

Azula the Liar 

In “Zuko Alone,” we get a good sense of what Zuko’s life was like as a child. We see him interacting with his mother, sister, and (briefly) his father. And we get some insight into a line from “The Avatar State.” 

[ID: Excerpt from the transcript of the ATLA episode “The Avatar State.” Zuko: “You lied to me! [Cut to Azula, who appears confident.]” Azula: “[Smugly.] Like I've never done that before.”/ End ID] 

There are two scenes in “Zuko Alone” where Zuko accuses Azula of lying to him. Look at these lines, and see if you notice a common denominator. 

[ID: Excerpt from the transcript of the ATLA episode “Zuko Alone.” Young Azula: “[Sing-songy.] Dad's going to kill you! [Seriously.] Really, he is.” Young Zuko: “Ha-ha, Azula. Nice try.” Young Azula: “Fine, don't believe me. But I heard everything. Grandfather said Dad's punishment should fit his crime. [Imitates Azulon.] ‘You must know the pain of losing a first-born son. By sacrificing your own!’“ Young Zuko: “Liar!” Young Azula: “I'm only telling you for your own good. I know! Maybe you could find a nice Earth Kingdom family to adopt you!” Young Zuko: “Stop it! You're lying! Dad would never do that to me!”/ End ID]

[ID: Excerpt from the transcript of the ATLA episode “Zuko Alone.” Young Zuko: “Where's Mom?” Young Azula: “No one knows. Oh, and last night, Grandpa passed away.” Young Zuko: “Not funny, Azula! You're sick. And I want my knife back, now. [Zuko tries to grab it, but misses as Azula quickly moves out of the way, and loudly grunts.]”/ End ID]

Do you see it yet? Twice Zuko thinks Azula is making some kind of joke, and both times (as far as canon shows us, though I’ve seen headcanons that argue differently) Azula is actually telling the truth. 

Azula has no qualms about lying to acheive her goals. We see this multiple times over the course of the series. But if all we had to go by was these two scenes, we might paint a very different picture. 

Because there’s another, more subtle thing that both of these scenes have in common: both times, Zuko chooses to believe that Azula is lying, rather than accept that a parent (read: Ozai, because both of these things are really his fault) has failed him. 

The Beast 

There’s a kind of cognitive bias that often occurs with victims of abuse. Rather than try to explain it, I’ll give an example of a fictional character from a different story who is a very clear example of how and why it happens. 

In book one of Trials of Apollo (The Hidden Oracle), we’re introduced to a girl named Meg McCaffrey. Meg is strong, tough, and great in a fight. She explains that it’s all because of her stepfather, who took her in off the streets and trained her. She seems to genuinely care about him, and talks about him affectionately. 

But there’s another man in Meg’s life: The Beast. The Beast is a constant presence in her nightmares. He killed her first father, and we soon learn that he’s one of the primary antagonists of the story, and planning on destroying the world. 

But eventually, we discover the truth: The Beast and Meg’s stepfather are the same person. 

Meg’s stepfather is an abuser, one who’s used a common tool of abusers everywhere-- detatching from the tool he uses to abuse her and anthromorphizing it. “Don’t make me angry,” he says, “or you’ll wake up The Beast, and then whatever happens is on your head.” 

And because Meg needs to believe that her stepfather cares about her, she projects all her negative feelings about him towards this figmentary “Beast” and blaming him for all the problems in her life. 

Are we noticing the connection to Zuko and his relationship with his father yet? 

My Father Loves Me 

For the first two and a half seasons (especially in season 1), Zuko is convinced that deep down, his father loves him, cares about him, wants him back home. He has to believe that, because if he doesn’t, then what has been the point of everything he’s done until now? 

Which means that tricking him into an Agni Kai and then burning his face must have been justified. It means that capturing the Avatar really will get him back his honor. It means that everything that’s gone wrong in his life is his own fault. 

Or, at least, almost everything. 

You’re Like My Sister 

The first time we ever hear of Azula (other than that shot of her smiling at the Agni Kai in “The Storm”) is when Zuko is talking to (unconcious) Aang after he captures him in “The Siege of the North, Part 2.” 

[ID: Excerpt from the transcript of the ATLA episode “The Siege of the North, Part 2.” Zuko: “I finally have you, but I can't get you home because of this blizzard. [Stands up and looks outside the cave.] There's always something. Not that you would understand. You're like my sister. Everything always came easy to her. She's a firebending prodigy, and everyone adores her. My father says she was born lucky. He says I was lucky to be born. I don't need luck, though. I don't want it. I've always had to struggle and fight and that's made me strong. It's made me who I am.”/ End ID] 

There’s something interesting happening here. This is the first time Zuko’s been able to be totally honest about his feelings around Aang, and what does he do? He starts comparing Aang to, of all people, Azula. He’s projecting. He clearly has all of these negative feelings towards Azula, but he can’t do anything about them. So instead, he’s taking it out on Aang. 

Take every single interaction between Aang and Zuko in season one. Now realize that from Zuko’s perspective, he was dealing with his sister. 

Taking Aang prisoner on his ship? Azula. Constantly trying to capture Aang, only to be outsmarted by him? Azula. Shooting a blast of fire when Aang extends a potential hand of friendship? Azula. 

Because Aang, like Azula, is a perceived obstacle between himself and his father’s love. 

Father Says She Was Born Lucky 

Ozai didn’t just belittle Zuko-- he pitted his children against each other. He made it clear to Zuko that, even from the moment he was born, he would never, ever be as good at his sister. 

And all of this has caused a lot of rage and turmoil inside of Zuko. As self-depricating as he is, he does realize that not everything that’s gone wrong in his life is his fault. But we’ve already established that blaming his father would shatter his worldview. 

So who else does he have to blame? 

Azula. 

Azula, who was born lucky. Azula, who’s just so perfect. Azula, the prodigy. Azula, who everyone adores. Azula, who got everything. Azula, who always lies.  

Azula Always Lies 

Zuko talks a lot about honor. He talks a lot about capturing the Avatar. But when he’s stressed, when he’s feeling pressured, when he’s thinking about all the ways his life has gone wrong, he uses a different mantra. 

[ID: Excerpt from the transcript of the ATLA episode “Zuko Alone.” Young Zuko: “[Chanting in a low voice.] Azula always lies. Azula always lies.” Cut to the older Zuko, lying in green grass, holding his traveler's hat to his chest. Zuko: “Azula always lies.”/ End ID]

Azula always lies. 

”Azula always lies” is comforting. It means “father doesn’t really consider me a miserable failure.” It means “he was never really going to kill me.” 

Instead of getting angry at all the ways his father has failed him, Zuko can just blame it on Azula’s lies. That way he doesn’t ever have to admit the real problem. 

Now, I’m not saying that Azula was a perfect sister, or even a particularly good one. I’m not saying that she never lied, because we know she did. I’m not saying she didn’t hurt him, or trick him, or manipulate him. What I’m saying is that Zuko’s skewed perception has lead him to blame her not only for all the ways she hurt him, but also all the ways Ozai failed him. 

“Okay,” you’re saying. “Say I agree with you. Say we assume that all of his negative feelings that really should have been directed at Ozai were instead directed at Azula. But that doesn’t matter now. Zuko eventually did realize that his father was wrong. They had a whole dramatic confrontation where Zuko told him what a horrible father he was and everything! He’s not projecting anymore, and his current feelings towards his sister should only be indicative of her actions and behaviors. Right?” 

Wrong. 

How Cognitive Bias Works 

Cognitive bias is insidious. It doesn’t just affect one memory, it ripples outwards, affecting all of them. And the vast majority of the time, we don’t even notice it happening. 

Zuko called Ozai out for two things, and two things only. 

[ID: Excerpt from the transcript of the ATLA episode “The Day of Black Sun, Part 2: The Eclipse.” Zuko: “For so long, all I wanted was for you to love me, to accept me. I thought it was my honor I wanted, but really, I was just trying to please you. You, my father, who banished me just for talking out of turn. [Points a broadsword at his father.] My father, who challenged me, a thirteen-year-old boy, to an Agni Kai. [Cuts to shot of Ozai, looking angered.] How could you possibly justify a duel with a child?”/ End ID]

Zuko blames Ozai for his banishment, and for the Agni Kai. That is it. 

To be clear, I am not saying that Zuko thinks Ozai was a perfect father before all of this. Not at all. Zuko is aware that Ozai is “the worst father in the history of fathers.” 

But it isn’t like he’s gone back and inspected every single memory that involved Ozai and pinpointed all of the ways Ozai abuzed, manipulated, and gaslit him. He can’t. That requires both a level of objectivity he hasn’t reached, as well as a frame of reference for what normal looks like. Any victim of abuse-- especially childhood abuse-- will tell you that even though they know they were abused, they will often have or witness random interactions that will leave them thinking, “wait, this is what normally happens in this kind of situation? You mean [x] was also part of the abuse?” 

Not to mention that while Zuko didn’t examine his feelings towards Azula at any point before the finale. He had his epiphany about Ozai, and realized that his father had been wrong, but he’d always thought Azula was wrong. 

So while Zuko is aware that he had a bad father, he hasn’t actually stopped to consider how much of his anger towards his sister is actually about his father. 

(Again, I’m not blaming Zuko. None of this is his fault, any more than he’s at fault for the Air Nomad Genocide or the war. It’s just the reality of his situation.) 

Conclusion 

So what am I saying here? 

I’m saying that Zuko’s perception of his sister-- his anger, his frustration, his understanding of who she is-- is fundamentally biased. I’m saying Zuko isn’t viewing her from her own merits. I’m saying that Zuko doesn’t actually know her. He thinks he does, but he’s wrong. 

I’m adding another thing to the list of reasons why Zuko is not the person to try and help Azula through her trauma. 

I’m giving yet another example of how the fandom’s perception of Azula is also biased-- because the vast majority of our understanding of Azula’s character comes from Zuko. 

And unlike Zuko, we can detach ourselves from the narrative enough to realize that it might be worthwhile to re-examine our view of her.

[mrsmiroir]

azula rarely looks in the mirror. she crosses the glittering hallways of the palace without pausing to catch a glimpse of herself in the polished metal, she averts her eyes as the servants brush her hair, she resists the urge to lock eyes with her reflection as she gazes out of windows. there was a time when she was obsessed with her reflection, picking apart each and every feature until the looked imperfect and smoothing over each and every hair until it lay flat, until it looked perfect (until she was perfect). now, when she looks in the mirror, she does not see herself (she sees her). her features are sharp and her eyes are cold and harsh, like her father’s, but she looks unmistakably like her mother. even when ursa is gone, azula still sees her face everywhere (she has abandoned her, and yet her grip never fades).

[recovery-zine]

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