rustystars · 2 years ago
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jabitha romantic psychological thriller. opens with the two of them on the road, driving from town to town chasing mysteries. she drives, he writes. she keeps hitting birds. they're making a map of diners in the area based on how good their milkshakes are. archie's pissed & won't call them. jughead keeps repeating himself. new greasy spoon but the waitress already knows them. blood on the tires. they call & no one picks up. he swears they've been here before. he's better at sign than he used to be. his hands know the movements. there's a star in the sky and they're back on the road. they've been here before. she says she'll handle the birds, just stay in the car, head in your hands. she drags rafael's newest body off the road. they've been here before because they can't leave: they can have a lifetime together in a timeloop, but if he remembers they'll have to go back home. so he can't figure it out. riverdale loses a second for their every hour. rafael's got wings of a bird & a deadline to meet & a comet looming closer, closer. no one notices they're gone so long as they keep on driving. a day infinitum. a lifetime together. so long as she keeps resetting & pressing her foot to the pedal. so long as he never remembers.
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BNHA X DP Crossover HCs
After the long wait and finals, here are my ideas for all the quirks/occupations and other concepts I devised for the DP characters in the BNHA universe. This was just for fun and for inspiration towards others interested in this crossover au in general. 
Tagging the people that were looking forward to this post based on the replies: @qoinq-qhost, @floralflowerpower, @tgfangirl4eva @goodfish-bowl, @whitehairglowinggreeneyedcrush and more. 
Anyways, happy reading, folks!
Mr. Lancer
Hero name: Mr. Scholastic
Quirk: Bookworm
Involves his iconic usage of literature titles & quotes for swears to become abilities corresponding to the novel’s contents/themes. Course, he is limited to only books he has read and can quote accurately. Additionally, his voice gets very raspy past two or three quotes as well.
Occupation: Homeroom Teacher for Class 1- A; He’s very dedicated to his new students and teaching the fundamentals of being a pro hero and more! Course, I don’t think his chamomile tea with a wedge of lemon is enough to help him relax from his students (*cough* Danny, Tucker and Poindexter) from their antics at times. 
Danny
Hero name: Phantom 
Quirk: Ghost core (Ok, @coffeecakecafe had the best name for this one gotta give credit here)
Able to do anything a ghost is perceived to do. Go through walls, disappear and fly. This is a one of a kind quirk as it was obtained from Danny’s old quirk being altered by a machine his parents made that would repurpose/alter an individual’s quirk based on their past family members' own metahuman genetics.
Danny is doing his best and trying to understand his new quirk without causing too much attention to himself while doing so but it seems like its been doing the opposite as of late. Thankfully, he won’t be doing it alone with all his classmates around to help him!
Sam
Hero Name: Black Dahlia 
Quirk: Overgrown 
Able to create any plant that she knows the biological makeup and content of in almost any environment. However, it is important for her to drink lots of nutrient rich water and take in enough sun if she plans to create larger versions of these plants.
Tucker
Hero name: Tech Master
Quirk: Tech Core
Located on his chest/heart area is a special energy core capable of powering electronics at a rate faster than anything made-man could ever hope to achieve. As a kid, Tucker would tinker away in his family’s garage on a suit that would harness his power to the fullest extent and lead a new era of support tech in the hero world.
Valerie
Hero name: Red Huntress
Quirk: Electromagnetism (Someone I’ve been trying to find their post on my blog had posted this idea and I fell in love with it ever since)
She’s like Static Shock but with a dash of magenta/ruby lasers she can create through focusing her electromagnetism through her finger tips. She is an expert with her quirk and has the best handle of her quirk than most of her peers. She is the most frequent visitor in the support equipment workshop next to Tucker, Poindexter and Danny. It’s how she built the hoverboard she has in the show that utilizes her electromagnetic abilities for both offensive and defensive maneuvers. (Also, I enjoy the idea that Bullet is Val’s uncle on her mom’s side and is her biggest supporter alongside her dad, Damien Gray).
Jazz 
Quirk: Serenity 
Helps calm individuals and give them a sense of safety/security when they’re around her in a 10 feet radius. Though, anyone out of range cannot be affected by her quirk and she needs to be conscious in order to use it.
She planned on becoming a pro hero but felt her powers were best suited for her dream profession as a psychologist. She has used her quirk a lot when Danny was overwhelmed with his studies prior to UA. Course, a phone call and sibling chat over the phone certainly does the job for Danny now when it comes to preparing material for exams. (Course, its up to you guys to decide)
Dash
Hero name: Rager
Quirk: Strength Magnification
Improves his physique and stamina by a large percentage for a set amount of time. Needs to be careful of how much/long he magnifies his body or else his body will become immensely sore. 
Kwan
Hero name: Rallier 
Quirk: Team Rally (50/50)
Able to duplicate himself 3-4 times while being able to power-up allies’ quirks or stamina with a rally chant to help the team. The more duplicates there are the rally effect multiplies/stacks on the individual but it can lead to dangerous outcomes for their quirk output. 
Kwan is the class representative for 1-A, he’s the best at the job and was more than thrilled to be the one leading his class in more ways than one.  
Paulina
Hero name: Enchantress
Quirk: Charm
If the opponent is flustered by her taunts or flirting, their vision will become altered and start seeing things that are not there. It works better on men than women and the opponent can snap out of it with enough willpower or if they’re not interested in her.
Star
Hero name: Ms. Meteorite
Quirk: Comet
Similar to Gran Torino’s Jet quirk except faster and she can create an explosive impact on where she lands. Similar to a meteorite landing on earth, she also learns to use this as a long distance move by punching fast enough as she descends to create wind pressure punches.
Poindexter
Hero name: Tex (like in Tex Avery; Danny gave him the idea!) 
Quirk: Slapstick
His appearance is black and white just like an old timey cartoon character as well as having the durability and cartoon powers of one. However, his quirk can only work as long as what he does with it is funny in the circumstance it’s used for. Sort of like “Who Framed Roger Rabbit” rules in a sense. 
Sidney is part of Class 1-A just saying, I don’t care, this is Poindexter’s time to shine here to be the coolest/funniest person in the class. Also, Tucker’s most loyal friend/tester for new support items. 
Wes Weston
Hero name: Vigilance
Quirk: Deduction
He is able to deduct people’s identities to flaws/weak points for him to use against them and  exploit against problems. 
Class 1-B Representative and the most annoying/terrifying person that Danny has dealt with in his life. He was able to figure out that Danny’s quirk is not his own or more so that it's not natural and takes every opportunity to state this regardless if anyone is listening or not. 
Amber Mclain
Hero Name: Ember
Quirk: Fiery voice (50/50)
Her quirk uses the vibrations in her sining voice to conduct intense heat waves onto opponents or utilize to rumble the structures around here and even put out the flames from her quirk. Its like a combination of Present Mic and Endevours quirk but it leaves her with a strained or inflamed vocal cords with overuse. 
Third year student or an upcoming rock star that has certainly gain huge popularity after her song “Remember” was a nationwide hit amongst the younger generation. She’s striving to be the top hero while making her next hit to become the 1# song on the listings. 
Dani
Hero name: Phantwo (lol jk; unsure what her name would be)
Quirk: Poltergeist 
Similar to Danny’s quirk “Ghost”, except she has the additional ability to melt herself to a slimy puddle and use her ectoplasmic slime to trap or surprise opponents.
Clockwork
Hero Name: Clockwork
Quirk: Time Keeper
Clockwork’s quirk allows him to stop time for 5 to 15 minutes and be able to rewind it in the same amount of time. It can be one to multiple objects as long as he touches them in order to interact with them.
Principle of UA in this au. He’s quite a reserved man but still manages to visit and congregate with students throughout the school during lunch period. 
Flynn Fenton/Flynn Walker
Hero Name: The Green Knight
Quirk: Mineralization 
His quirk allows him to manipulate the minerals and inorganic materials in the atmosphere to create into crystalized constructs that are almost stronger than diamond. Luckily, the crystals have no value so he doesn’t have to worry about that aspect of his quirk. He does have to worry about his skin becoming dried out as a result of his quirk usage. 
Flynn is a third year student that loves to check up on his cousin, Danny, any chance he gets bc of the amount of work he does with his internships.
James Walker (or James W. Hausermann)
Hero name: Warden Wraith
Quirk: Plasma Apparatus
His quirk ionizes the electrolytes in the blood system into plasma. His entire body is composed of plasma giving him his skeletal appearance. He can create plasma chains, teleport from point A to B and more as long as he focuses and has enough energy at use. Course, he can have minor to severe dehydration and imbalance in his electrolyte levels from overuse. 
Occupation: CEO of an infrastructure security company/Provisional License Examiner just like Gang Orca.The ghost prison guards become his backup/helpers for the exam phases. (They’re just trained stuntmen with combat or military experience for the occasion).
Also, I like to think Walker has kids in this au who are in the Class 1-A group; they’re not hard to spot they take after their father with their skeletal complexion. 
Skulker
Villain name: Quirk Hunter
Quirk: Tracker
The moment Skulker makes eye contact with his target he will be able to hunt them down and find them anywhere no matter how good they are at covering their tracks. He can lock on to only one target, but he will be able to know their heart beat, quirk, be able to place a tracking/scent line that only he can see and will lead him to his target’s location. It lasts for over a day or a half.
Occupation: Skulker is known for capturing, info-detailing or “retiring” newcomer pros or specific quirk users for his clients that pay him handsomely for their targets, dead or alive. Thanks to Vlad, Danny was strictly intended to be captured alive by Skulker but sometimes he gets too thrilled by the hunt to not have a memento. Trust me, it's more of a dangerous 
Nicolai Technus 
Villain Name: Technus 
Quirk: Technopathy
A genius in his own right, even if he’s a little crazy, with the best ability possible for a man of science and innovation. As long as he knows the makeup and attributes of the machine, Technus is able to completely repurpose or change a machine’s qualities for offensive and defensive qualities. Whenever that be for a mech suit or hacking a high tech system for entry, he’s able to do it as long as he knows what it is and how it functions. An example is repurposing a slot machine into a submachine gun that shoots coins at the target. 
Vlad Masters
Name: Vlad Plasmius
Quirk: Vampire
Can do anything a vampire can supposedly do. However, he was able to manifest an additional aspect of this quirk which is the ability to copy any quirk users ability. Based on the type of blood he ingests decides the amount of time he can use the copied quirk for.
Occupation: CEO of his own hero firm, he is extremely selective with the interns he has that there is a major waitlist to be even consider for Masters Inc. Course, imagine the surprise Danny must of felt when he received an offer from Vlad right off the bat after the Sports festival. 
Bruce Guiles (Bullet)
Hero Name: Bullet 
Quirk: Sphyraena or Chimera Fish
Able to do anything a barracuda can do or the quirk is a 50/50 mutant quirk in which he has both the traits of a barracuda, Chimaeras and a touch of piranha from his parents being of one of these fish species hence Chimera. Bullet can do anything those fish can do overall but he can’t go too long without hydration from water. Water quality and its oxygen content also affect his abilities by a noticeable percentage but he still remains quite formidable as a quirk user.
Occupation: Captain of a coast guard team, he’s a strict military man with an amazing record of saving people from any disasters both on land and sea. Him and Walker are best buddies ever since they went to school together. 
Vortex
Hero Name: Vortex
Quirk: Storm Warning
Vortex can utilize any variation of a natural disaster depending on the environment he’s in. Hurricanes, tornadoes, thunderstorms, you name it he can create it for his use. However, despite his amazing control over his quirk it is still possible for him to create these disasters if he lost control or magnify another pre-existing one if he loses focus. 
Occupation: Storm-chaser/Forecaster; His control and knowledge in combating/predicting these natural disasters has led to him to be part of a storm chasing crew and they’re the best in helping disaster prevention teams evacuate citizens as a result.
Petra Eris
Hero name: Pandora
Quirk: Butterfly Effect
Can manipulate or prevent a chaotic event to happen if she was in proximity and present to prevent it to happen. Or even give a little chaos to the opponent to deal with during battle. 
One of the top ten heroes and most beloved heroes in the country. She is the best strategist in any team and has a way to predict any event before they happen given the necessity of it for her quirk to work in her favor. 
Johnny 
Vigilante name: Johnny 13
Quirk: Unlucky
Johnny manifests his bad luck into a shadow that will latch onto opponents and cause unfortunate events to occur more for that individual as a result. However, the shadow cannot exist in complete sunlight; it can only remain if there are already shadows in his general area or it’s nighttime and its effects are strongest at that time obviously.
Occupation: Johnny is the leader of a biker gang or de-facto leader of said biker gang who loves to raise hell and helping folks that need saving whenever he’s around or is up to the task. Kitty tags along with him to help him out of jams and bc she loves him. :3
Kitty
Vigilante name: Kitty
Quirk: Lovesick
Kitty sends a smooch towards her opponent which if it makes contact causes the individual to have nausea or become disoriented for around 10 minutes. It can also have a chance of lasting longer if the individual was sort of infatuated with her regardless of gender. 
Pariah Dark
Villain name: King Pariah
Quirk: Ultimate Adaptation 
Similar to all for one except with the unpredictability for both the user and opponents. Pariah can manifest any type of quirk needed to defeat anyone that stands in his way both one-on-one and in groups. Course, drawbacks are the learning curve to some of the quirks and that multiple adaptions he utilizes at once will destroy his cells in the process. 
Pariah is a former follower of all for one who had unique quirk that All for one augmented to help him succeed if both Shigaraki and Tomura failed in their own conquest for the world. But now Pariah has his own plans to succeed where they failed and become the leader who shapes a new world order with an iron fist. 
Frederick Kingsmen
Villain/vigilante name: Fright Knight
Quirk: Burning Energy Infusion
Able to form/infuse objects with his own burning energy life force that is capable of burning or slicing through any in his sight. The sweat he gives off is what provides the material needed to ignite his unnatural flames despite it causing his body to overheat still. 
Fright Knight is Pariah’s second-in-command with a loyalty to him as strong as his control over his power. Fright Knight has faced many pro-heros as he carried out the smaller phases of Pariah’s plans and most of them barely came close towards defeating or leaving as much as  scratch on the knight. 
Rodolfo Gonzalo  
Hero name: Wulf
Quirk: Werewolf + Portal creation (50/50?)
Can do anything a werewolf can supposedly do; somehow it allows him to create portals with his claws to locations he has marked with them or visited in the past. 
Wulf was abducted on by Pariah’s forces and sent into the Nomu labs for experimentation to force on another quirk and instill complete allegiance to their cause. Course, Wulf broke free as a result of that new additional quirk allowing him to escape their clutches and his previous one helping him survive the endeavor. However, he lost his memories in the process and could only remember his native language, Spanish, and his hero name Wulf. 
Overgrown
Villain/vigilante Name: Overgrown
Quirk: Plant Manipulation
Can manipulate any pre-existing plant matter or create new vegetation if water and soil is present for the process or he understand the biological makeup of the plant in question. 
Occupation: Pro-hero or eco-terrorist who is tired of humanity from abusing the environment from quirk battles to industries using the land for their own benefits and none others.
That’s all I have for now! I hope this was worth the wait, guys. As well as, inspire ideas for your takes with a DP x BNHA Crossover! 
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melzula · 4 years ago
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Life Changing Field Trip
*part of the Fire Lililes series
pairing: Zuko x Princess!reader
warnings: heavy angst, lots of tears, fluff, 3.6k words in length so it’s a doozy
notes: it’s finally here! I’ve had so much fun writing this piece and I hope you enjoy
summary: “You cannot bend something that is broken, but you can heal something that is hurt.”
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“You can’t just show up like that, give me a location, and then not tell me why or where I’m going,” you grumble to the moon as you load your bags onto Appa’s saddle. You’re not sure how long you’ll be gone or how far you’ll be traveling, but’s it better to be prepared.
Your bending had dwindled ever since Zuko’s arrival, and no amount of training or meditation ever seemed to help you get back on track. Zuko was a part of your team now, and you hadn’t forgiven him yet, not by a long shot, but you had been good about keeping your rage and your fury locked away inside of you. Scaring Zuko off and creating unnecessary tension wouldn’t help Aang with his fire bending, and so you kept to yourself and avoided the boy at all costs. When he entered a room you exited, if he tried to start a conversation you gifted him your silence as a response, and when he tried to apologize or chase after you you’d freeze his feet to the floor. It was simple and effective and, unlike your water bending, it worked.
But Zuko wasn’t the only obstacle in your life, and you knew you had to figure out your bending issue soon before the comet arrived. Your struggle must have been great enough to draw attention from the spiritual realm, because sure enough that night you were visited by the Moon Spirit in your sleep.
Even in your dream-like state your first instinct upon seeing her was to fetch Sokka, but she made it clear that she didn’t have much time. She gave you a location and stressed the urgency of your arrival to the coordinates. She gave no real explanation and no real direction, just some weird proverb like piece of advice that you were too tired and too dense to understand.
“You cannot bend something that is broken, but you can heal something that is hurt.”
You weren’t sure what exactly Princess Yue meant by that or how it would help you, and for a fleeting moment you wished Iroh were there to help you understand; all you really knew was that there was no time to waste. Whatever this location was and whatever importance it held, you were going, and nothing was going to stop you.
“What are you doing?”
Okay, maybe someone was going to stop you.
“It’s none of your business,” you retort harshly, glaring at Zuko who stands before you with bead head and drowsiness present upon his features. “Go back to sleep.”
“Y/n, come on,” Zuko begs earnestly. “You really expect me to just go back to bed when you’re about to sneak off with Appa in the middle of the night?”
“Yes, I do. Now go,” you scowl whilst settling yourself in the saddle and taking hold of the reigns. Your gaze is fixed straight ahead, but you make no move to go. It’s almost as if something is holding you back from leaving Zuko behind, anchoring you to him in a way that makes you nervous.
“Let me come with you.”
“I have to do this by myself. You wouldn’t understand, you never have,” you argue.
“Then let me try to,” Zuko pleads. “Princess, you’re the only one who hasn’t forgiven me yet. Neither of us can be happy until we at least try to fix it.”
A tense silence washes over the two of you as you mull over Zuko’s words. Princess Yue’s voice echoes in the back of your mind: You cannot bend something that is broken. Your resistance to mend your broken bond only seemed to make things worse for the both of you. You couldn’t sleep, you couldn’t eat, you couldn’t bend, you couldn’t feel at peace with yourself knowing that each day you pushed him away only led to more heartache. Your stubbornness and your pride kept you from accepting his apologies, but your heart cried out to you every time you found yourself missing him, and that was often.
It seemed your decision was made up for you before you were even able to decide it yourself.
“Fine. But I’m in charge, and just because I’m letting you come doesn’t mean we’re friends now,” you answer sternly, your tough exterior crumbling slightly at the sight of Zuko’s hopeful smile. Curse him and his stupid charm.
“Thank you,” he breathes in relief before climbing onto Appa’s back and settling down amongst the many bags of food you packed. A gentle utterance of the words yip yip and you’re off into the skies, truly alone with Zuko for the first time since Ba Sing Se before everything fell apart.
The stars twinkle brilliantly as they watch over your little group in the sky, the night breeze gently flowing through your loose locks and sending your sweet scent straight to Zuko’s senses. Despite being Princess of the Southern Water Tribe, you always smelled of fire lilies. You were sweet and warm and familiar, and being close enough to smell the scent of lilies reminded the prince of your nights together in Ba Sing Se. He had been a fool to throw it all away.
“So where are we going?” He asks finally to break the silence. Without turning to face him you toss your map over your shoulder for him to see. ”The Earth Kingdom? This spot isn’t even marked on a regular map. Why?”
“The Moon Spirit came to me in a dream and gave me those coordinates so that’s where I’m going.”
“The Moon Spirit? Wasn’t she a Princess?” Zuko asks, recalling the story Sokka had told him on their way to the Boiling Rock.
“Of the Northern Water Tribe,” you nod, and before you can stop yourself an admission tumbles past your lips. “You know, I almost left you during the Siege of the North.”
“What?”
“I was homesick and lonely, and you were always occupied with hunting the Avatar. When I saw what the Princess did to save her people I soon felt guilty too. Yue sacrificed her own life, her own happiness, to help her people, and what did I do? I ran away with the boy who was trying to destroy the world’s only hope for peace among Nations. But my love for you overcame my guilt, and so I stayed.”
“Wow...” Zuko murmurs in astonishment. “I didn’t know...”
“Yeah, well, there’s a lot of things you don’t know,” you grumble, immediately closing yourself off again. Zuko sighs sinking further into the saddle, and the scent of fire lilies consumes him.
After three tense hours of flying Appa begins to tire, and you’re left with no choice but to stop for the night and rest. There’s probably only four hours of darkness remaining until sunrise, so you’ll be able to get a decent amount of sleep before you have to resume your travels. You say nothing to Zuko as you roll out your sleeping bag and immediately tuck yourself in for the night. However, due to the cool and frigid air, you find that you’re much to cold to be comfortable, and so you toss and turn for a good ten minutes.
“Cold?” Zuko asks gently.
“No, I just like to shiver in my sleeping bag for fun,” you retort sarcastically, and Zuko rolls his eyes. A small huff of air falls past your lips and it takes you a minute to muster up the will to apologize. “Sorry,” you grumble. “I’m very cold and tired.”
“Would you like me to help?” He offers carefully. A beat passes before he hears the sound of you shuffling around and pulling back the covers of your sleeping bag.
“This doesn’t mean anything,” you point out firmly, and the Prince bites back a smile as he crawls in beside you. Already you can feel the warmth that radiates off of his body, and you can’t stop the little sigh of contentment that escapes you when Zuko wraps his arms around your trembling figure and brings you into his chest.
“Better?”
“Much,” you hum softly, face nuzzling into the crook of his neck as you try to soak up as much heat as you can.
You hate to admit it, but you really missed being in Zuko’s embrace. He was warm and safe, and it reminded you of the times before when you had still been together. During the first few weeks of your separation you had struggled to fall asleep, not used to being on your own and definitely not used to the absence of warmth that often slept beside you. Sometimes you’d wonder if Zuko also lied awake at night seeking your comfort, but your anger was quick to remind you that he was the one who had left you in the first place. It was Zuko who made you second priority to the Avatar, and it was Zuko who chose to turn against you in Ba Sing Se. Shivers tingle down your spine, and this time it isn’t the cold that has you trembling. He betrayed you once, and he could betray you again.
Zuko falls fast asleep with you in his embrace, but you find that you can’t sleep at all.
~~~
The snowfall is light outside as you anxiously sit through your healing class, constantly glancing towards the doorway in hopes of spotting a Fire Nation ship. The Fire Lord was due for another visit today, and that meant you’d get to spend the day with Prince Zuko.
“Princess, pay attention,” the healer chides, and you sheepishly turn your gaze back to the old woman before you.
“Water is a powerful tool for benders, used to hurt and to heal,” she explains. “Water benders fight to protect themselves and those around them. Soldiers with this gift learn how to use their power to defend our home. But these same soldiers cannot use the bending they would use in a fight to heal a wound.“
The little girls around her watch in awe as the water in her palms glows a gentle hue. She smiles, gracefully swirling the water through the air.
“A rough hand will only bring more pain and heartache. But a gentle hand? A gentle hand can mend even the deepest of wounds. As healers you must remember this: You cannot bend something that is broken, but you can heal something that is hurt.”
You wake slowly, eyes gradually adjusting to the sunlight that shines against your fatigued face. The ground underneath you has been replaced by the leather of Appa’s saddle, and you find yourself warmly wrapped in Zuko’s cloak. The boy in question is seated at the reigns, navigating his way through the clouds and towards the abandoned colony.
“Zuko?” You yawn, catching the prince’s attention. He smiles faintly at the sight of you sleepily wrapping his cloak tighter around your form.
“Good morning,” he says. “I didn’t want to wake you but I know how important it is that we get to the Earth Kingdom as soon as possible. I hope you don’t mind.”
“I... I guess I don’t,” you mumble as you rub the sleep from your eyes before digging into your bag for some breakfast.
“We should be there in about an hour.”
You only nod, looking down at the peach in your hand contemplatively. What awaits you at the abandoned colony? Will it help you regain your bending? Will you like what you find?
The journey goes by quickly when you’re lost in your thoughts, and before you even realize it Appa has landed on the ground and Zuko is helping you off the saddle.
“Good boy, Appa,” you murmur affectionately, gently combing your fingers through his fur as you feed him an entire bag of fruit. “You can stay here for now.”
Leaving the flying bison behind Zuko and yourself walk the rest of the way, finally stumbling upon the exact location the Moon Spirit had given you: a cave entrance.
“Spirits, not another cave,” you groan, and from beside you Zuko blushes in uncomfortable embarrassment. With a heavy sigh you grab Zuko’s wrist and give it a shake until he gets the message, a small flame igniting in the palm of his hand. Holding onto his arm as if he’s your personal torch, you begin your descent through the cave. This better be good.
Unlike your secret tunnel, there’s nothing seemingly special about this cave. It’s dark and dirty not romantic whatsoever, which you figure is good because this isn’t a romantic trip anyway. You’re here per Princess Yue’s instructions only and nothing else, and if Zuko doesn’t like it you have no problem freezing his feet to the floor for what will probably be the thousandth time.
“What do you think you’ll find?”
“I’m not sure, but I’m hoping that whatever it is, it‘ll help my bending,” you murmur thoughtfully.
“Maybe we’ll find another secret tunnel,” Zuko jokes with a quiet laugh that immediately fizzles out at your unamused glare. “Sorry.”
“I doubt that stupid tunnel is even there anymore,” you grumble.
“It is... I checked,” the boy murmurs thoughtfully, causing you to halt in your tracks.
“What?”
“When I returned home from Ba Sing Se I went to Elza’s end of the tunnel and found it still intact. I knew there was no way you’d be there, but I traveled to our meeting point and stayed there,” he confesses quietly, eyes soft and apologetic as they turn to face you. You shift uncomfortably under his gaze and look forward, continuing your pace through the tunnel. “I’m really sorry for how much I’ve hurt you, y/n.”
“Why did you do it?” You question. Your voice is weak and frail and your eyes glisten with tears, and Zuko doesn’t think his heart can hurt any more than it does now. “After everything we’d been through and everything we’d accomplished together, why would you betray me like that? I loved you Zuko.”
“I-“
“And then to betray Iroh? Your own flesh and blood?”
“I know it was wrong, and I wish I could take everything back. I never stopped thinking about you y/n. Even when I was with Mai, all I could see was your face in the cave looking at me with disappointment and-“
“Wait a minute, who’s Mai?” You retort, pulling away from the fire bender to look up at him with furrowed brows. Zuko’s face flushes and immediate regret fills him at having mentioned the girl.
“I umm.. After we broke up, I kind of started seeing someone else,” he admits sheepishly whilst nervously grasping at the back of his neck. The sight of your complete rage and fury makes him wish he was being swallowed whole by an unagi instead of having to face an angry Princess.
“I can’t believe you!” You cry in outrage. “I spent weeks crying over you and you just moved on to another girl like nothing!”
“She didn’t mean anything, I promise-“
“I don’t want to hear it, get away from me!” You demand, picking up your pace to try and get away from him as quickly as you can, but Zuko is hot on your heels.
“Princess, please!” You try to freeze his feet to the floor and let out a frustrated growl as your bending fails you yet again. “Just let me explain!”
“No! I’m going to talk and you’re going to listen!” You command, angrily jabbing a finger at his chest. “I left my people, my family, for you. When you pushed me aside on your hunt for the Avatar, I stayed even though I was unhappy. I stood by you despite all the mean and cruel things you did because I knew deep in my heart that you were still the same Prince I fell in love with. And when we got to Ba Sing Se I thought we could finally have the life we had planned together. Working in your uncle’s tea shop, taking walks through the upper ring at night, being able to enjoy myself without having to worry about what terrible thing you’d do next made me the happiest I’d ever been.”
“And then you threw it all away. For what? Honor? Approval from the man who abused you? Using my bending against you was the hardest thing I’d ever done in my entire life, yet you seemed to have no problem with fighting me the minute Azula asked you to. I knew then that you weren’t Zuko, not the Zuko I fell in love with.”
Tears steadily stream down both of your faces, your throat is raw and sore from yelling but you don’t care. You’re angry, you’re upset, you’re hurt, and you’re afraid of the emotions festering inside of you. But you also feel good, like a weight is slowly being lifted off of you.
“And then to hear you moved on to someone else so quick as if I meant nothing to you?!”
“I’m sorry,” Zuko offers weakly.
“You betrayed me, you broke my trust, you broke my heart, but no matter how hard I try I can’t bring myself to hate you because I love you Zuko! Despite it all I love you more than I’ve ever loved anything or anyone, and when I think about where we came from and where we are now I-I just...”
You burst into a fit of tears and welcome Zuko’s comforting arms that wrap around your figure and squeeze you so tightly to his chest. Your shoulders shake with each sob that falls past your lips, your hands clutch tightly at the fabric of his robes, and you bury your face into his chest to muffle your sobs. The boy says nothing for a long time, only holding you and soothing you to the best of his abilities as you let out all of your hurt, anger, and sorrow.
“I’m sorry I never realized how special you were and how much I truly needed you. Nothing I say can ever undo the hurt I’ve caused you, but I’ll do anything to show you just how much you mean to me. I love you y/n, you’re my other half. Uncle always said our love was a balance of yin and yang, and he was right.” You watch through your tears as Zuko takes both of your hands in his own and gives them a gentle squeeze. “Please, Princess.”
You sniffle, blinking away the tears as you gaze up at Zuko’a pleading gaze. The tricky proverb comes to mind again, only this time it isn’t as tricky. Ever since Zuko joined the Gaang you’d done everything in your power to keep him away to protect yourself, but it only made your heartbreak worse. Defensive maneuvers wouldn’t ease your pain, but offensive would. You cannot bend something that is broken, but you can heal something that is hurt. The water bender in you wanted to push him out, but the healer inside of you knew that this moment in the cave was exactly what you needed to finally feel okay again.
Without responding, you simply lean up and press your lips against Zuko’s in a loving kiss. His hands come to rest upon your tear stained cheeks as he bring you closer, kissing you so desperately it’s almost as if he’ll die if he doesn’t have his lips upon yours. The tunnel around you begins to glow, but you don’t realize this until after you’ve pulled away from each other. A tearful smile graces your lips and Zuko finds himself swooping in for another quick kiss.
“I know why the Moon Spirit sent us here,” you sniffle. “I know where we are now.”
“You do?”
“When I was younger my mother would threaten to send me to the cave of truths whenever I told a lie. It was a magical cave said to not only pull out the most personal truths of anyone who set foot inside but also grant them a lesson in exchange for their truth. My truth was my love for you, Zuko, and I learned that shutting you out is never going to fix things. Only by letting you in again, by allowing you the chance to redeem yourself, will we be able to fix our broken hearts.”
With a gentle smile, you pull the droplets of water from the air that surrounds you and swirl them gently in the palm of your hand until they freeze into snowflakes. Zuko watches in awe as the snow takes the shape of a butterfly, its wings flapping elegantly as it lands on the tip of his nose.
“My bending is back.” Zuko smiles.
“And so are you.”
~~~
The Gaang is waiting for you when you return, astonished at the sight of your intertwined hands and happy smiles on your features.
“What happened to you two?” Suki asks.
“Life changing field trip,” you reply with a simple shrug, smiling as Zuko wraps an arm around your waist and presses a kiss to the top of your head.
“Aw man, you guys are giving me the oogies,” Sokka groans only for Katara to elbow his side.
“What changed?” Aang asks, prompting you and Zuko to exchange glances.
“Our relationship has a really good track record with secret tunnels,” you giggle.
“We’re both ready to start over,” Zuko says. “It’s going to take some time for things to be normal again, but we’ll get there.”
“I’m really happy for you guys,” Katara smiles gently.
“Yeah, I was getting kind of sick of the two of you moping around,” Toph grins, and you can’t help but return the smile.
You’ve got a long journey of healing ahead of you, but with Zuko finally back by your side you know you can accomplish anything.
| tags: @titaniafire @dekahg @emberislandplayers @kikaninchen-2 @multi-fandomstan @eridanuswave @royahllty @lozzybowe @izzieserra @melacholy @music-geek19 @thia-aep @thyunnamed @kittenthekat1234567890 @haylaansmi @nataliahaslosthershit @coldlilheart @idkdude776 @aangsupremacy @thirstyforsometea @ihaveaproblem98 |
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cmrp7 · 4 years ago
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FANFIC Sozin's Comet- Katara POV (zutara begins)
Hello there, I have always wanted to rewrite the story as I wish it would happen, I figure I share it for those Zatura shippers out there. This is the turning point for me, so this is when everything begins. Also, in my mind the gang is not the same age, add up three years to everyone. So Katara is 17, Zuko 19, Sokka 18, Suki 18, Azula 17, Aang and Toph 15.
.
The sun was already rising and I barely had some minutes of sleep. Today was going to be the day, by nightfall we either will be dead or we will have defeated the fire lord. I feel so tired and I haven't even fight yet. Where was Aang? Was he okay? He must be having a very hard time thinking he has to kill a man, he is very young, I know he is the avatar but it breaks my heart that he is facing such difficult choices alone.
"Katara, are you awake?" Toph whispered behind me. "I am" I answer letting out a breath, turning to face her.
"What are we supposed to do without Aang?" she asked, her arms behind her head, her empty eyes facing our tent's ceiling. We were given a tent by the Order of the White Lotus just for girls, Suki was here too but I heard her leave during the night, I am sure she is with Sokka, Zuko must be with his uncle.
"He will be back, but until then we must keep going. Let's hear what Iroh have to say before anything else, Zuko seems to think that he can help."
..............................................
"Today, destiny is our friend. I know it." General Iroh claimed I watch my brother one last time, Toph hugging him and Suki behind her. I nod, he nods back. I love you, brother.
Tears run down my cheeks as the Eel hound carry them away and Zuko pulls Appa's reins and we took to the sky.
The clouds seem to be tainted with blood, the air was hot and tick. Sweat running down the side of my face, I swallow a tick knot of feelings.
"What is going on thru your head?" Zuko asked to my left. I turn to face him, his golden eyes shining as never before, the air making his long hair move around his sharp edges.
I felt the need to touch his face, as I did once before…
"I cannot believe how many things have happened this year, here I am with you of all people, on Appa flying to your home to fight your sister." I said, turning my head to see the devastating landscape in front of us.
"I know, I cannot believe it either. So many things have happened. I never believed I would have the straight to fight the need to please my father or my sister, to be one of them, to be accepted." He said, I could feel his stare on me, but I didn't have the courage to face him, every time I think of his sister, I remember what happened in Ba Sing Se.
She KILLED Aang, every time I think in the possibility of what would have happened if I would have used the water of the Spirit Oasis to heal Zuko I want to vomit. Aang would be dead. Dead.
"You know," he said "I've been thinking of what happened in Lake Laogai when we were imprisoned…" that made me turn around to face him, but he wasn't looking at me. "I… I care about you Katara, I respect you, even before we were friends. You are very strong, fierce and at the same time one of the kindest persons I know. You have the power to hurt anyone you want, but you don't do it, even to those who deserve it." My heart was beating so fast, I could hear my blood rushing in my ears. He raised his head, and his eyes looked into mine. "I don't think that I would have been able to betray my uncle if you had been there, watching me do it. You are like a rock to me, a rock of my ideals, and it sounds stupid, and makes me weak I believe, but is the only way I can describe it."
I didn't know what to said so I said nothing, I don't know what he was implying. And honestly, I didn't have the courage to open that door right now.
"When I am with my father or my sister, something overcomes me…" he continues, his expression looks pain and I immediately want it to go away, "they are my family, I want them to love me, and I love them even though they do not deserve it. I don't know why, I want them so bad to accept me, and I believe that is the main reason of my behavior, the way to obtain that embrace, was getting back my honor, by getting my honor back, I would get the love of my family. That is why I asked you to help me, because even after everything that has happened, facing my sister is very hard for me, and having you there will make it way easier." He let out a very sad laugh "I sound like such an idiot."
I reached toward his hand and take it in mine, "You are not an idiot Zuko, you are a good person. Your heart is pure, that could only be a good thing."
He smiles at me, caressing my hand with his thumb. "You see, even after everything I did to you, you take my hand and make me feel better."
"Zuko…" I answered letting his hand on mine because it felt right, "I hated you, you know? I had so much anger after Lake Laogai, for your sister, for you. Aang died because of you, you betray ME, If I would have healed your scar, Aang will be long dead by now." I actually shiver at the thought. "Do you understand it?" I asked forcing all my feeling into my words, his eyes were hurt and he tried to let my hand go but I didn't let him, because I needed it. "Ang was really hurt, he took a long time to wake up, and every night I cry myself to sleep because it was my fault, and I talked to no one about it, it was eating me alive Zuko, everyone believed that I was sad, and I was, but more that everything, I felt guilt. I can't imagine how anyone stands me back then, I even punished my own father for my guilt. It was awful, I felt so useless... "
"I am sorry Katara, I don't know what to say I…"
"But you also understand me more than anyone else Zuko, you know who I am and accept me as such. I discover that when we travel to find the man who murders my mother, I was about to kill him in front of you, and if I would have you wouldn't hold it against me, I thank you for that. You have been to hell and back, turning the way you have is a testament of your kind heart, we are growing and learning, and whatever happened before it let is to this moment. Aang is alive, I am sure he is going to defeat your father, and you and I will defeat your sister, together.
Everything was happening so fast, words tumbling out of my mouth without even thinking of what I was really saying. I wanted to let that out for a long time, I felt lighter, the anger becoming acceptance of my path and a guide to my future.
"Together." Zuko said looking into my eyes, and a new determination was showing in there, we are going to build a new beginning, and today will be the day we will place the first rock.
Appa roar as we descend into the palace. A pit was forming in my stomach, anticipation, excitement…
People were gathered in the courtyard, a loud sound marked the beginning of the ceremony. Appa landed between two walls near the place, but not enough to be seen or heard. Zuko let a breath out and dismounted in one agile movement, I follow him, he looked at me, I couldn't understand what he was thinking.
"I better try this before I can't" he said closing the distance. He grabs my waist with one arm pulling me to him, grab the back of my neck with the other and place his lips on mine. My eyes went wide with surprise, but soon a warm feeling spread to my body and I was aware of his soft and warm lips on mine, I felt like someone punches me in my stomach, it literally hurt. Feelings, a mountain of them. His kiss deepened and I kiss him back, pulling him to me desperately. We pulled apart and look at each other, panting.
"I wasn't expecting that" he said, still so close that his breath caressed the tip of my nose.
Me neither, I was trembling, I am sure he is the one caring my weight.
"We need to go" he said, trying to pull away, but I grab on to him harder.
I didn't want him to go, I wanted to stay like this forever. What if we go and die? Panic begins to overpower my thoughts.
"Together, remember?" He smiled with full teeth, "There is no way we are not coming out of this one after this."
Hell yeah, we are coming out of this one. We smiled at each other like two maniacs, confidence shattering the panic and filling me with anticipation. I feel like I am drunk...
"Together" I reply, with a smile, and we run.
................................................................
"Sorry, but you are not going to become fire lord today. I am." Zuko declares as we arrived.
Azula rise with a scary smile "you are hilarious" she said. Stopping the man who was about to place the crown on her head. "Fine, let's settle this just you and me brother, the showdown that was always meant to be, Agni Kai."
Her hair was messed up, her eyes crazier than ever, something was not right.
"You're on" I heard Zuko answer, to my surprise.
"What are you doing? She is playing with you. She knows she can't take both of us." What about together, idiot?
"I know, but I can take her this time." He said looking at me, and my heart gave a jump of happiness. I smile at him, and nod. I trust him.
By the time the people left the sky was even darker, red shadows dancing above us, Azula looks awful, broken. I took my mother's necklace on my hand, and wait. He can do this, he can do this…
Their power was unbelievable, blue and red flames rising 30ft from the ground, the heat was unbearable. Zuko moved like never before, Azula getting more frustrated by the second, he was winning. Zuko made a fire kick that resonated 20 ft in front of him, making Azula stumble to the ground. I lean forward, trying to run but I stop myself. Not yet...
"No lightning today? What's the matter, afraid I'll redirect it?" Zuko taunted her.
I swallow, I don't think that is a good idea to play games with her right now.
"I'll show you lightning" She promised, her movements like a living nightmare coming to get you.
Zuko breathed, preparing himself to redirect it. His confidence is palpable.
Then I see it, at the last second. She was looking at me, my eyes widened and I prepare myself to move when I see Zuko placing himself in front of it. The monstrous lightning hitting him straight in the chest. I heard myself letting out a horrible scream. His body felt to the ground trembling with electricity, combusting in horrible angles.
I ran to him, but a holt of energy land in front of me. Azula was coming to get me. I looked one last time at Zuko, hold on, please hold on… I need to finish her first.
Fear becomes energy and will to survive, comet or no comet, I will stop her.
I glanced one more time at Zuko, and move just in time to dodge a bolt of blue fire. I could smell the heat roasting my hair. It made me sick.
Azula laughs wildly behind me, a predator hunting its prey. She was having fun. I could only run for now, she was behind me, she had the advantage. I move as fast as I can, bending ice to be faster I glance back at her, she was on the roof. I felt water nearby, move in that direction, and hide behind a pillar. Yes, water. I took a wave and blast it thru the roof, but she was gone already. I glance back once more and she burst out of now where, preparing lighting, that's it, if she hits me, I will die. I raise my hands, she was close enough, the water in her blood was mine and she stops, her eyes widening in complete terror. That's right you idiot. Her power was too great, I wouldn't be able to hold her one more second, the point of her fingers almost touching my nose, I will the water under us to cover us and support our bodies, I let out a breath, letting my body free and hold her with a chain I grabbed minutes before. I needed air. I finally let the water go, and we both fall to the ground gasping for air.
Zuko… I get up and run to him, my lungs still aching for air. His body was facing down, not moving. I was trembling as I kneel and turn his body, Azula was screaming like she was being tortured, his chest was badly burnt, I force the water to obey me and placed everything I have left in me to heal him, my fingers were shaking so bad. The water glowed and I feel his skin, his muscles, his organs… Please, please… I begged.
His eyes opened and looked at me, I let out a cry and hold him to me, I was crying tears of pain and happiness, my heart exhausted and bursting with joy. I kiss him, and our tears met each other.
"Thank you, Katara" he said, very softly.
"You are an idiot, don't ever do that." I threat.
He turns his face, hearing his sister's screams. I swallow and got up cleaning my tears with the side of my arm. I offer my hand and he took it, together we walked toward her.
Watching her like this bring me no pleasant feelings, she was crying with rage, pulling the chains, and spitting fire. Zuko's face was miserable, and my chest hurt for him. I surround him with my arm and place my head on his shoulder. He loves his sister, despite all.
"I am here for you, you will never be alone," I promise, graving his hand with my free hand, he looked at me and smile sadly.
"Thank you Katara," he said raising our hands and kissing mine, "thank you for being here with me."
Note: Hello, I wrote this because lately I rewatch avatar and I love them together. English is not my first lenguaje, if something needs correction please let me know♥
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redrobin-detective · 5 years ago
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*sees your posts on Zukka* You. Keep talking. (Listen I love this a lot)
Listen, the Sokka/Zuko friendship was always one of my favorite platonic relationships in the series but in my latest dip into atla, my brain suddenly decided to focus on Zukka.
The boys start out shy, neither really willing to admit that they may be feeling that sort of thing for another boy, for a friend, for a former enemy. But as time passes and reality that they may very well die fighting the Fire Lord closes in on them, they decide to take the risk and take the plunge. Their love is subtle, it’s found in extended sword practices that end with gentle touches to bruised skin, its seen when Sokka grabs Zuko’s hand to show him something and “forgets” to let go, its that comfortable, slightly dreamy eyed look Zuko gets when Sokka begins going into one of his crazy plans. Despite the threat of looming death over them, they feel happy and content in each others company.
But then Sozins Comet blazes, Fire Lord Ozai falls and Fire Lord Zuko rises. Suddenly they’re not two dumb runaway teen boys in the woods where no one else can see them, now they’re leaders and war heroes standing there on the world’s stage. Now the gentle relationship, one that’s just getting onto its feet, is no longer a source of comfort but of stress and anxiety. Zuko only wants what’s best for his Nation and falling in love with a Water Tribe Chief’s son is not what was needed for stability in a wartorn nation. Sokka feels strangled by Zuko’s new position (a painful reminder of Yue’s own entrapment prior to her death) not to mention his terror when he realizes just how many people want to new Fire Lord dead.
They bicker back and forth about what to do. Sokka, for once, is the emotional one. He loves Zuko and he won’t let war or peace or anything in-between keep them apart. “I’ll just move to the Fire Nation and be your Fire Lady” Sokka says flippantly but his eyes are dead serious. Zuko is torn apart because the idea of waking up every day to Sokka sleeping next to him tangled in silken red sheets is as close to heaven as he can imagine. But the Fire Nation needs to be united now more than ever, he needs a noble woman by his side and legitimate heirs to secure his position. As much as his heart wants to be with Sokka, he knows it cannot be. “Maybe if it were a hundred years ago, or a hundred years from now,” Zuko responds exhausted from carrying the weight of disappointment in his heart. “But things are delicate right now, we can’t start another war.”
They go back and forth for months, Sokka slaves over a betrothal necklace made of volcanic glass and offers it to Zuko on bended knee. With all the willpower of someone who is all too used to self-inflicted suffering, Zuko turns down the offer but keeps the necklace. He stores it in the locked drawer by his desk and pulls it out during moments when he can’t help but ask ‘what if’. Eventually it comes to a head, both men sit down and take each others hands and discuss their future.
“I know you want this now but imagine in 2, 5, 10 years,” Zuko pleads, stroking his thumb across Sokka’s tanned hands. “You’ll see the Fire Nation as it is, with all the warts that have grown in the past 100 years without the fond tolerance of someone who grew up there. You’d remember that we are the people who killed your mother, tried to kill your entire culture. One day, you’ll look at me and remember that I am one of them and suddenly find yourself trapped in a country you hate but promised to serve and all because of me. I can’t let you do that, to yourself or to my people.” It’s a heartbreaking but eye-opening conversation. Zuko cannot leave his position and Sokka would be miserable as a Lord in the Fire Nation. They hold each other one last night, their last kiss long and meaningful to imprint the taste of each other on their lips and then pull back for the final time.
Zuko marries first, a woman he really likes and can help solidify his nation. Sokka is there the whole time, sad but also weirdly happy at the dopey loving look on Zuko’s face that used to be only for him. He thinks its called healing. They imagined the break-up being so much worse but they simply shifted back to their sword fighting without kisses afterward and gentle teasing though not draped across one another. Suddenly it was less of a burden to be together, no more worrying about being caught doing something compromising or the fate of their future. They were free to be Zuko and Sokka again, people who really, really enjoyed the others company. 
They remain the best of friends for the rest of their days. Sure they look at each sometimes with more heart than they need to and sometimes Chief Sokka will still reach for Fire Lord Zuko’s hand and “forget” to let it go for an extra few seconds, as if his muscle memory still thought they were dirty kids in a dirty war. Their wives and friends will exchange fond looks when these slip-ups happen, love that strong never quite goes away, simply finds new ways to blossom. So maybe the servants are extra attentive to the Southern Water Chief when he visits and former Chief Hakoda slaps the Fire Lord warmly on the back as he would his own son. 
Zuko is there the day Sokka dies, young and far too soon. The Lord of Fire cries as he hadn’t since his Uncle had passed not too long before. He tries not to cry too often, not just for appearances but because the tears that run from his burnt eye sear and sting with unimaginable pain. But that pain seems paltry compared to the beating ache of his heart as his best friend and one of the loves of his life lays dying. 
“I thought you bent fire not water,” Sokka quips, still following their usual script even at the end. He suddenly breaks pretense and holds Zuko’s pale hand to his cheek, leaning in to kiss the worn and wrinkled palm. Its a ghost of what could have been and even decades later both men still wondered what would have happened if Zuko had chosen to wear that necklace instead of hiding it away in a drawer. “Thank you for letting me love you.”
“I’m sorry I turned you down, I wanted it so badly, back then you were all I ever wanted-” Zuko says through shaking sobbing tears, all breath control, and control in general, lost in the face of the inevitable.
“You walrus-seal brain,” Sokka smirks, “I loved you when we were friends, when we were lovers, when we were fellow rulers, when we were husbands and fathers; I love you now when you’re gross and dripping snot everywhere. We didn’t lose anything Zuko, we still had each other and we were still happy. Not a bad way to live a life.”
“No, I guess not,” Zuko responds, leaning down to brush his lips against Sokka’s forehead. He no longer had claim to the other man’s lips but it felt less like a tragedy compared to the decades they’d had side by side as friends. One form of love wasn’t superior to another, it just meant you got to be with someone in a whole new way. “I’ll send your wife and daughters in. Goodbye my love, say hi to Aang and Uncle for me.” 
He spent that night huddled beside Suki, Katara and Toph as another of their own left them. He grieved the loss of large hands grabbing his arm, the clang of clashing swords, that sarcastic southern drawl Sokka never quite grew out of. But he did not lament the past. They had, in the end, made the best choice for themselves and their respective countries. When they’d been young, love had been about giggling kisses and wandering hands but love, real love, was not defined by its physicality. It grew when two souls drifted together and in the space between them built a home. And so long as he breathed, that home he’d made in his heart between himself and Sokka would always be lit and warm.
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hereticaloracles · 5 years ago
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TNO Watch: Eris
Helios on Eris– So, somehow in my accounting of the Transneptunians, I managed to overlook the biggest, most prolific of them all (however not the first to be discovered past Pluto!)- Eris! Now I can’t rightly finish off the archive without her, now can I? So without further ado, let me formally welcome back the most controversial dwarf planet back into the party! Gird your loins, y’all
The Astronomy– Eris is the most massive and second-largest (by volume) dwarf planet (and plutoid) known in the Solar System. Eris was discovered in January 2005, and in September 2006 it was named after Eris, the Greek goddess of strife and discord. Eris is the ninth most massive object directly orbiting the Sun, and the 16th most massive overall, because seven moons are more massive than all known dwarf planets. It is also the largest which has not yet been visited by a spacecraft. Eris was measured to be 2,326 ± 12 kilometers (1,445.3 ± 7.5 mi) in diameter. Eris’s mass is about 0.27% of the Earth mass, about 27% more than dwarf planet Pluto, although Pluto is slightly larger by volume.
Eris is a trans-Neptunian object (TNO) and a member of a high-eccentricity population known as the scattered disk. It has one known moon, Dysnomia. As of February 2016, its distance from the Sun was 96.3 astronomical units (1.441×1010 km; 8.95×109 mi), roughly three times that of Pluto. With the exception of some long-period comets, until 2018 VG18 was discovered on December 17, 2018, Eris and Dysnomia were the most distant known natural objects in the Solar System.[
Because Eris appeared to be larger than Pluto, NASA initially described it as the Solar System’s tenth planet. This, along with the prospect of other objects of similar size being discovered in the future, motivated the International Astronomical Union (IAU) to define the term planet for the first time. Under the IAU definition approved on August 24, 2006, Eris is a “dwarf planet”, along with objects such as Pluto, Ceres, Haumea and Makemake thereby reducing the number of known planets in the Solar System to eight, the same as before Pluto’s discovery in 1930. Observations of a stellar occultation by Eris in 2010 showed that its diameter was 2,326 ± 12 kilometers (1,445.3 ± 7.5 mi), very slightly less than Pluto, which was measured by New Horizons in July 2015.
The Myth– Eris is the Greek goddess of strife and discord. The most famous tale of Eris recounts her initiating the Trojan War by causing the Judgement of Paris. The goddesses Hera, Athena and Aphrodite had been invited along with the rest of Olympus to the forced wedding of Peleus and Thetis, who would become the parents of Achilles, but Eris had been snubbed because of her troublemaking inclinations.
She, therefore (as mentioned at the Kypria according to Proclus as part of a plan hatched by Zeus and Themis) tossed into the party the Apple of Discord, a golden apple inscribed Ancient Greek: τῇ καλλίστῃ, “For the most beautiful one”, or “To the Fairest One” – provoking the goddesses to begin quarreling about the appropriate recipient. The hapless Paris, Prince of Troy, was appointed to select the fairest by Zeus. The goddesses stripped naked to try to win Paris’s decision and also attempted to bribe him. Hera offered political power; Athena promised infinite wisdom; and Aphrodite tempted him with the most beautiful woman in the world: Helen, wife of Menelaus of Sparta. While Greek culture placed a greater emphasis on prowess and power, Paris chose to award the apple to Aphrodite, thereby dooming his city, which was destroyed in the war that ensued.
Another story of Eris includes Hera and the love of Polytekhnos and Aedon. They claimed to love each other more than Hera and Zeus were in love. This angered Hera, so she sent Eris to wreak discord upon them. Polytekhnos was finishing off a chariot board, and Aedon a web she had been weaving. Eris said to them, “Whosoever finishes thine task last shall have to present the other with a female servant!” Aedon won. But Polytekhnos was not happy by his defeat, so he came to Khelidon, Aedon’s sister, and raped her. He then disguised her as a slave, presenting her to Aedon. When Aedon discovered this was indeed her sister, she chopped up Polytekhnos’s son and fed him to Polytekhnos. The gods were not pleased, so they turned them all into birds.
Eris has been adopted as the patron deity of the modern Discordian religion, which was begun in the late 1950s by Gregory Hill and Kerry Wendell Thornley under the pen names of “Malaclypse the Younger” and “Omar Khayyam Ravenhurst”. The Discordian version of Eris is considerably lighter in comparison to the rather malevolent Graeco-Roman original, wherein she is depicted as a positive (albeit mischievous) force of chaotic creation.
A quote from the Principia Discordia, the first holy book of Discordianism, attempts to clear up the matter: One day Mal-2 consulted his Pineal Gland and asked Eris if She really created all of those terrible things. She told him that She had always liked the Old Greeks, but that they cannot be trusted with historical matters. “They were,” She added, “victims of indigestion, you know.” Suffice it to say that Eris is not hateful or malicious. But she is mischievous and does get a little bitchy at times.
The story of Eris being snubbed and indirectly starting the Trojan War is recorded in the Principia and is referred to as the Original Snub. The Principia Discordia states that her parents may be as described in Greek legend, or that she may be the daughter of Void. She is the Goddess of Disorder and Being, whereas her sister Aneris (called the equivalent of Harmonia by the Mythics of Harmonia) is the goddess of Order and Non-Being. Their brother is Spirituality.
Discordian Eris is looked upon as a foil to the preoccupation of western philosophy in attempting to find order in the chaos of reality, in prescribing order to be synonymous with truth. Discordian Eris teaches us that the only truth is chaos and that order and disorder are simply temporary filters applied to the lenses through which we view the chaos. This is known as the Aneristic Illusion.
Why She Matters– Okay, its no secret that Eris is fantastic and I love her. Yes, Eris is chaos, but you know what? So is life. You can try and plan and make things nice and neat, but then the Universe comes through like a toddler who just learned how to walk, hellbent on getting to the other side of the room- consequences be damned. Eris is that universal action. Make no mistake, she is a destroyer and lives for the battlefield, but she also loves to dance, finding the beat in the deaths of men clamoring to prove that they are right to unseen forces (but most of all, themselves). If Mars ever did drag, she would look like Eris (and you bet your ass there would be death drops and shablams like you’ve never seen before!)
When people (read: hecklers) try to come at me with proof that astrology works (but who don’t have their birth time handy for me to utterly eviscerate them) I point to Eris. I remember when she was discovered, and the excitement that her unveiling brought to all of us. And then I remember, quite vividly, the fallout from the IAU decision after she was named but then relegated to dwarf planet status. It was a repeat of the Judgement of Paris myth! She was snubbed, yet again, by the authority, and Pluto was caught up in the fallout as collateral damage just because she was bigger than him (men and size issues, amirite?). And the authority paid for it in the end! Even total luddites who don’t follow the whirling and twirling of the planets (dwarf or otherwise) have a strong opinion about the decision. It made people care about these crazy space rocks, which brings me great happiness.
We aren’t all running around fighting all the time in this modern age, so how do we look at Eris now? A primal force of chaos doesn’t really mesh with our modern sensibilities- or does it? One of the more enlightening views on Eris comes when we consider her in terms of Justice, especially against any kind of oppressive authority. This can be seen in almost every major social movement to demand better treatment, to deny an oppressive ruling class its ability to exploit those below it- Stonewall, May Day, Ferguson, Rodney King, The Arab Spring…. Hell, even the Boston Tea Party! Eris is that urge we feel to stand our ground and refuse to roll over to the bad guys. Eris is the urge to fight for our rights. Yes, it can get violent- but better short violence that changes things for the better than the long, slow violence of inaction. Far better to live boldly and bravely. More commonly though, Eris spurs us on to fight with our racist uncles on Facebook or send petty gifs in the group chats calling out our friends for being slutty… but like, in an endearing way. In fact you could solidly call Eris the Goddess of Shade. Hey, not every action can be a revolutionary one after all- sometimes you just want to get brunch with your girls.
Eris isnt just Chaos, by the way- she also represents Strife. More specifically, what you are striving for. What do you want out of this life? If you are lost, look to Eris and she can help you find your way when you’ve lost it. Mind you, you’ll be in for a HELL of a trip with her (more Thelma and Louise than Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas- That’s solidly Arawn territory) and you might not survive, but at least you’ll know!
Now, we all have all of these planets and asteroids SOMEWHERE in our chart, so in you is the seed of chaos- even the most holier-than-thou Libra. As with all of the Transneptunians, look at her house placement, not necessarily the sign, to see her effect. To find out where she shows up in your chart, go to astro.com, put in your birth details and in the extended options, all the way at the bottom of the next page, there will be a menu of additional objects. Under that is a blank space where you can enter the number 136199, for Eris. Once you have it entered, generate the chart! Where does Eris affect your life? Let us know in the comments below!
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TNO Watch: Eris was originally published on Heretical Oracles
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wickedwitch1997 · 7 years ago
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Katara of the Fire Nation - Chapter 13
Sorry it took so long to finish, been busy and couldn’t think of what i wanted to write.
Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5, Chapter 6, Chapter 7, Chapter 8, Chapter 9, Chapter 10, Chapter 11, Chapter 12 
Zuko gets everything he’s ever wanted, he has his honour, his home, and his father, yet he still feels like something is missing.
He becomes withdrawn into himself as the days go on, anger boils in him as it did before, but this time he does not have his uncle to help him understand or move past the anger.
Zuko finds comfort with Mai, he ‘falls in love’ with her and he convinces himself that she makes him happy. But she doesn’t. She distracts him from the one he really longs for.
“Father, what is to become of the water tribe girl?” Zuko asks one day.
“The water tribe girl?” Ozai asks, raising an eyebrow at his son.
“Katara,” Zuko says, ignoring how his heart skips at the mention of her name.
“What about her?” Ozai asks, Zuko considers his words carefully, making sure his father cannot read into his intentions.
“Should we be looking for her?” he asks, “She is a traitor to the Fire Nation, she should be brought back.”
Ozai regards his son,
“Why worry about her?” Azula asks, “She’s useless and not a threat.”
Ozai rubs his beard in thought as Zuko stares in shock at his sister.
“She’s only a water tribe girl,” Azula continues, “Why bother wasting resources to track her down?”
“She was brought here for a reason,” Zuko says, looking back to his father, “You had her brought here when she was a girl, you had her trained for a reason. Shouldn’t we try to get her back?”
“She has no purpose or value to me,” Ozai says, nodding to his daughter, “Azula is right, why waste resources to track down one girl.”
Zuko bows his head. Afterwards, he walks through the gardens and sits by the pond, feeding the turtle ducks and thinking of his mother.
“What in Agni were you doing in there?” Azula asks, standing in front of her brother and glaring down at him, “One would think that you wanted to protect the water girl.”
“You don’t know what you’re talking about,” Zuko scoffs, standing to his feet.
“Really?” Azula asks, putting her hand on her hips and raising an eyebrow at Zuko.
“I want her back here, safe,” Zuko says, the last word slips past his lips in a whisper, “She was my friend.”
“She was my friend too,” Azula hisses, “What makes you think that she’d be safe here?”
Zuko’s eyes widen as Azula grabs her brother’s arm and leads him further away from the palace.
“Do you forget that father wants her dead?” Azula asks, “He wants to kill her and make you watch, there are still wanted posters littered through the fire nation with her face plastered on them!”
“I don’t understand,” Zuko says, pulling out of Azula’s hold, “You wanted her dead in Ba Sing Se.”
“I never said that,” Azula says, “But if we were to meet again, yes, I will kill her. Because my nation and my family come first. So, get over your little water bender bed mate and take Mai, she’s dying to have you in her bed. Pray that we never see the water girl again, because she is a traitor, and I will burn her alive, but I don’t want to.”
Azula lease Zuko in the gardens, she walks away as if she hadn’t just shown a crack, a weakness in her armour.
Zuko pushes Katara out of his mind, he takes Mai to bed when he needs comfort, and showers her with attention and power.
Zuko is included in his father’s war meeting, he sits by his father’s side and listens to the plans for the comet. After the war meeting, Zuko realises that he is terrified of what he is becoming, he makes the decision to change, that he cannot be the prince his father wants him to be.
His mother always told him to follow his heart, to do the right thing.
Zuko confronts his father on the day of the black sun as the invasion begins, he and Zuko feel her, she is close; she gives him the strength to do what he needs to.
“I’m going to join the Avatar,” Zuko says, “And I’m going to help him take you down.”
His father is enraged, he keeps Zuko distracted with talks of his mother until the eclipse passes. When he attacks Zuko, he doesn’t expect his son to redirect his lightning.
Zuko manages to get away, running to the war balloon he’s kept hidden for the past week.
Zuko follows after the Avatar as he escapes on his bison while the rest of the avatar’s army is taken captive, he follows the avatar to the western air temple. He arrives before they do and lowers himself down to the temples, reminiscing about the first time he came here, how different he was, how badly he treated his uncle and Katara, and he can still hear her begging him to heal his scar.
Zuko hides as the Avatar and his group fly down to the temples, he overhears their conversation on how Aang needs a fire bending master and comes up with a plan.
By the end of the day, Zuko is kneeling before Katara, asking to be their prisoner. But what Zuko didn’t expect, was Katara attacking him, she blasted him with water and pushed him back.
“Katara!” Aang gapes as Katara forms a sharp icicle in her hand, intending for it to find Zuko’s heart.
Katara doesn’t listen to Aang, she screams a battle cry and then throws herself towards Zuko.
But Katara doesn’t reach Zuko, her feet become trapped in rock and she almost hits the ground.
“Enough,” Toph says, “We ought to hear what he has to say.”
“We can’t trust him!” Katara snarls, pulling her feet from the rock, “He is the enemy, he is probably here to trap us!”
“He’s offering to be our prisoner,” Toph says, trapping Katara’s feet again as she turns back to Zuko, “Calm down.”
“Perhaps you should take a walk,” Sokka says, placing a hand on Katara’s shoulder.
Katara glares at her brother and pulls her feet from the rocks, she looks back to Zuko one more time before leaving, walking away like a storm, thundering in anger.
Zuko gets to his knees again and stays in front of the gang, now re-joined by Kiki, she too agrees with Katara in not letting Zuko stay. But the other three question themselves more, in the end, after Zuko helps them from Combustion-Man, the gang agree to let Zuko join them.
Katara thunders around the temple while Zuko bends over backwards to please the gang, he takes Aang to the sun sages and Sokka to the boiling rock.
“Katara,” Zuko says, calling for the water bender as she walks away from him.
Katara stops, she can’t help herself, the sound of Zuko’s voice sends a chill down her spine, a chill which she wishes she could ignore.
“What?” she asks, not turning to face the fire prince.
“I want to talk,” Zuko says, his voice soft, weak, as his father would say, “Please,” Zuko says, “Please, just look at me.”
Katara sighs and turns to face Zuko, her heart skips a beat when she recognises the look on Zuko’s face, the same look that was on his face when his father burnt his face.
Zuko is in pain, he misses Katara, he hates not being able to talk to her, he hates that he’s mad at her.
“What do you want, Zuko?” Katara asks, pushing aside her bleeding heart.
Zuko opens his mouth to talk, but an explosion cuts him off and the entire temples shake.
“What was that?” Katara gapes, running out of the closed hall and out to where the team stand in shock.
“Azula,” Zuko breathes, watching the air ship raise in the sky.
“I won’t make him go into the dark again!” Aang says, “The rest of you go ahead.”
“I have to go,” Zuko says, not looking away from Azula’s ship, “I have to stop this!”
“NO!” Katara gapes, but it’s too late, Zuko is racing away from her, she watches in horror as he leaps out of the temple and lands on the air ship, firing blasts of fire at his sister.
“We have to go,” Sokka says, climbing up onto Appa and then helping Toph up.
“We won’t all fit on Appa,” Katara says, joining Sokka and the group down below.
“The adults will go that way,” Sokka says, “We’re going to go with Aang.”
“NO!” Katara snaps, “We can’t split up, we can’t let them separate us again! Dad!”
“Katara,” her father says, taking his daughter by the shoulders, “Katara, it will be alright.”
“Then I’m coming with you!” Katara says, keeping her back to the rest.
The temple shakes and rumbles as another blast hits, Katara looks over her shoulder and when she sees Zuko her heart races.
“You have to go with them,” Hakoda says, cupping his daughter’s face, “I’ll be fine, Aang needs you.”
Katara blinks away the tears and then looks back to the gang, she hangs her head and then wraps her arms around her father, holding him tightly as she allows herself a few tears.
“It will be ok,” Hakoda says, the temples shudder again and Sokka urges that they must leave.
Katara lets her father go and then climbs up on Appa, as they take off Katara spares one last look at the temples as they crumble, covering the hole that Hakoda and the others are escaping through.
“Look!” Kiki shouts.
Katara turns her head and finds Zuko falling, Katara’s heart leaps into her throat as he just falls, she reaches up, reacting before anyone else.
Zuko sees Katara and he reaches for her too, Katara’s hand grabs onto his and she pulls him to her, the pair collapsing into Appa’s saddle, their breaths heavy and raggered.
“That doesn’t mean anything,” Karara says, more to herself as she moves away from Zuko.
And so, the gang find themselves camping again, out on a grassy cliff where the wind blows cold.
Katara sits with the group, but when Zuko makes an ill received joke, she storms away and stands out on the cliff, the wind blowing in her hair as she stares out across the ocean, as if she was looking for her father.
“Everybody else seems trusts me now,” Zuko says, approaching Katara on the cliff, “What is it with you?”
“Oh, everyone trust you now?” Katara snaps, turning back to Zuko with fire in her eyes, “I was the first person to trust you, remember, Back in Ba Sing Se? And you turned around turned around and… and you stabbed me in the back.”
Zuko looks to the ground, ashamed at his past actions, but the wind drowns out the rest of Katara’s words.
“Like father, like son,” Katara had said, he voice hard and dripped in poison, poison that never reached Zuko’s ears.
“What can I do to make it up to you?” Zuko asks, his eyes pleading for redemption.
“You really wanna know?” Katara asks, shouting over the wind as it pushes against her, blowing the grass around her, Katara clenches her fists and then takes several steps towards Zuko, “Maybe you could conquer Ba Sing Se in the name of the earth king!”
Zuko takes a step back as Katara gets in his face.
“Or, I know, you could bring back my mother!” she snaps, Katara stays in front of Zuko, her whole body tense and square, a fighter’s stance.
Zuko doesn’t say a word, instead he lets Katara shoulder her way past him. Zuko looks back at Katara, watching her leave, watching her hair blow in the wind, he notices her knuckles, how white they are from being clenched.
So while Katara returns to her tent, Zuko goes to Sokka, hoping to find more information about Katara’s mother. Their mother seems to be a touchy subject, Sokka goes quiet as he retells his story, how the day started normal until the Sea Ravens came, and how everything changed when they left.
Zuko spends the rest of the night outside of Katara’s tent, waiting for her, to tell her his plan.
“You look horrible,” she quips the next morning, jolting Zuko out of his rest.
“I’ve been waiting for you,” Zuko says, running a hand down his face, “Katara, I think I can lead you to the man you killed your mother.”
Katara’s heart races as she looks back to Zuko in shock, he tells her of his plan, to find the sea ravens and their captain, the captain who took Katara away.
“Why?” Katara asks, her voice quivering as she wraps her arms around herself, “Why did they take me away?”
“I don’t know,” Zuko admits, “My father never told me, but the captain, he will know. He was paid a sizeable amount to keep quiet about the whole thing, my father trusted him.”
“Let’s go.”
“Do you have anything black?” Zuko asks, looking Katara up and down, “The blue will stick out in the dark.”
Katara shakes her head and Zuko goes to his tent and returns with some black clothes for Katara and after some difficulty with Aang, Katara and Zuko leave on Appa to find the Sea Raven ship.
Katara changes her clothes in the air, allowing Zuko to take the reins.
“You look good in black,” Zuko says as Katara takes over.
“Shut up,” She snaps, “Just because I’m letting you help me, doesn’t mean that I trust you.”
Zuko keeps his mouth shut and then points Katara in the right direction.
“It wasn’t all bad, was it?” Zuko asks, leaning on the front of the saddle and looking at Katara’s back.
“It was,” Katara says through gritted teeth as her hands grip the reins tighter.
Zuko doesn’t say another word until they arrive at the Fire Nation’s tower of communications. Zuko and Katara work in perfectly together, they don’t have to say a word to each other, they know each other too well; Katara and Zuko work together like a well-oiled machine, not a step out of place.
They were in and gone before anyone could realise, then they were on their way to the ship, the ship which was in the middle of the ocean, all alone and defenceless. Zuko didn’t even have to come up with a plan, Katara didn’t have to come up with a plan; they just knew what to do, they knew what each other needed.
When Katara and Zuko landed on the ship, they stayed by each other’s sided, they had each other’s backs and didn’t need to say a word. Zuko breaks down the captain’s door and shoots away the second in command.
Katara charges in and before Zuko could even turn to the captain, Katara had him on the ground. But the thing was, there was no water, somehow Katara had manipulated the captain onto the ground, from the other side of the room, without bending a drop of water. Zuko looks to Katara, her eyes are hard and focused, and inside them he can see the fire that his father was obsessed with.
Zuko shakes himself out of his stunned gaze and then looked back to the captain.
“Do you remember her?” Zuko demands, grabbing the captain by the collar of his shirt, “You will.”
Katara looks the captain in the eyes, but he isn’t who she thought.
“It’s not him,” Katara says, her heart sinking into her stomach, “He’s not the one.”
Zuko interrogates the captain, and finds out that Yon Rha has retired to a village in the colonies. Katara and Zuko fly to the colonies and find Yon Rha in the market place, they follow him at a distance and when he is in between his home and the market place, they jump.
“Do you know who I am?” Katara asks, stepping forward.
“No,” Yon Rha stammers, “Wait, you’re the water tribe girl.”
“You killed my mother,” Katara snarls, Katara bends the rain to form a dome overhead, “You took me away from my family. I want to know why.”
Yon Rha looks to Zuko and then back to Katara in fear, his whole body trembles in fear of the water tribe girl.
“Why?” Katara snarls again, “Why did you take me?”
“The… the Fire Lord, he told me to,” Yon Rha stammers, “We… we were told… we were told of a water tribe girl, the sages told us that next avatar would be a southern water girl, then we heard of you, the rumours were that you’d be powerful.”
Katara takes a step back and looks to Zuko, but Zuko is as surprised as Katara.
“We had orders, orders to take you back to the Fire Lord,” Yon Rha continues, “He wanted to train you, to keep you and turn you into his weapon… he told us to destroy anyone who got in our way.”
“You killed my mother,” Katara says, her hand’s clenching by her side, “You took me from my home. You ruined my life!”
Katara turns the dome into a thousand sharp icicles, Zuko expects Katara to stop the icicles before they reach Yon, but Katara’s stare is hard and unforgiving. The icicles stab into Yon Rha, turning red with his blood.
Katara stands in shock, the rain resumes to pour over her and Zuko, making their clothes stick to their skin.
“He’s dead,” Katara says, staring at Yon Rha’s body.
A wave of relief washes over Katara, she lets out the breath she was holding and turns her face towards the sky, letting the rain wash over her face, cleaning her and making her new.
“Kat,” Zuko breathes, “Are you alright?”
“I am,” Katara says, opening her eyes and turning to Zuko, “I am.”
“Alright,” Zuko soothes, he holds out his hand and says, “Let’s go.”
Katara nods her head, then she nods again and takes Zuko’s hand, walking with him back to Appa.
“YOU DID WHAT?!” Aang gapes when Katara tells him that Yon Rha is no longer a problem.
“He’s gone,” Sokka gapes in disbelief, “he’s really gone.”
Katara nods her head and then lets her brother wraps his arms around her, Katara smiles and then squeezes him tightly.
“How could you do that?!” Aang asks, judging Katara, then he turns to Zuko, “How could you let her do that?”
“Shut up, Aang,” Zuko grumbles, pushing past the avatar, “She did what she needed to do.”
Aang goes on a rant for the next hour, judging Katara and her choices, he only stops to let Zuko know that he burnt his tent during fire practices.
“I’ll sleep outside,” Zuko says, “It’s fine.”
“Don’t be stupid,” Katara says, not looking up from her food, “You can share my tent.”
Zuko looks to Katara with wide eyes as she offers her tent, Katara looks to Zuko and shrugs before putting her bowl aside and standing.
“We need to start thinking of where we will go next,” Aang says, changing the conversation as Katara walks away.
Katara goes to her tent as the sun sets, her back aches, her scars throbbing in pain from sleeping on the hard ground. Katara shrugs off her top and unwraps her chest, she then bends her water out of the skin, she bends it in her hand until it glows, she then places one had over her shoulder and one at the low of her back. Katara spends the next ten minutes passing the water from hand to hand, making water run over her skin, over her scars.
“Kat…”
Zuko’s voice sends a bolt of lightning to her heart, Katara’s heart races as the water slips through her fingers, the cold air hits her skin, and she shivers as she covers her breasts. Katara turns and looks over her shoulder and there he is, the Fire Prince is staring at Katara’s back, his jaw slack and his face pale as he stares at her scars.
@squishysuho @the-weird-fob-fangirl @thegaang6 @pepewntz@solidaritree @waitingtillthesmilescomeback @miraculoushipping@auzlon @tiernanka @lovelylittleladyl
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yukiwrites · 7 years ago
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The Light He Loves the Most
My SecretAnna wassss *drumroll* @nayuun-fanart! Happy Holidays, friend! ;D I was so excited to get you, since it’s been a while I wrote GaiMari ^v^)v hope you have an amazing time this end of year and here’s for a lot more years of friendship ;D
It's commonplace for the nobility of Ylisse to regard the end-of-year as the busiest time for their houses: Alongside the crown, they have to prepare for the Winter Solstice, New Years and Exalt's Day all at the same time.
And, for the Duchess of House Themis, it was an even busier time -- not only she was close friends with Ylisse's second princess, her Exam for the Royal Judiciary was finally just around the corner. Maribelle had to cram her studies, her appearances at court as well as donations, schedules, fundings and paper-signing for the seemingly never-ending festivities during her limited time.
"Oh, why doesn't the day have more hours?" She complained one night while she took off her capelet, "even for someone high-bred like myself, this end of year rush takes a toll on the body." She sighed.
"Maybe don't take that off after all, Sweetheart," Gaius picked up her garment and attached it over her shoulders once again. "Now that I'm the cock of the walk, all proper and all that," the former thief (he's not above taking one or two requests, though. Old habits and all that) smirked, tying the ribbon back, "I don't suppose you'll allow me to take you for a night out?" He bowed, trying his hardest not to laugh.
Knowing her husband, Maribelle immediately caught on that he was simply mocking the good mannerisms of a noble and turned her face to the side. "You may not. I have to review some materials tonight, and Geoffrey is still to send me a few papers to sig-- eek! What kind of madness is this? Let me down at once!" She was interrupted by Gaius picking her up on his arms and enjoying as she kicked her feet.
"Well, I just asked first to be polite just how you like, but remember: I've always been good to sweep people and things away!" He chuckled and walked towards the window.
"Darling-- Stop this madness--" Maribelle kicked her feet and hit her husband's chest, "I cannot afford to take a single night off!" She huffed, stress piled up through every pore of her being.
Gaius put one foot over the parapet, placing Maribelle's legs over his thigh, using his now free hand to take the lollipop out of his mouth. "That's EXACTLY why you need a night out, Sweetheart," he tapped the candy over her lips, "we've done this before and everything turned out fine, didn't it? So we're doing it again."
Pouting, the noblewoman grasped at her beloved's shirt and opened her mouth to take the lollipop he persistently booped on her lips. She remembered how much fun she had that night -- and how caringly Gaius looked after her throughout the festivities.
The anxiety of leaving her work undone wouldn't leave her chest, however, which translated to her gripping more strongly to his shirt.
"C'mon, Sweetheart," Gaius held her hand, making Maribelle look up at him, conflicted. "If you don't wanna do this for you, at least do it for me! I've been dying here being all proper! Do you know how MUCH my back hurts from standing straight all the time?"
"Humph," Maribelle took the candy out of her mouth, "it behooves one of your new status to look at least presentable, darling. The slouch you are accustomed to is only fit for the unwashed masses whence you came."
Gaius smiled. There she was, the sharp-tongued, high-nosed woman he married. He's been worried about her running herself ragged lately, so he kept tabs at the events happening in town. That night, the light's show would surely bring her spirits back up.
"Besides," Maribelle kept on, now pointing the candy to Gaius, "I shall do it for myself, not for the lazy cat I call husband."
"Oho?" He licked his lips and snatched the lollipop from her fingers, "then you gotta enjoy yourself to the fullest, yeah?"
"So I shall, darling." The noblewoman nodded, wrapping her arms around his neck, "now go on; take me to this commoner's event you are so fond of." She said, then added: "at least take the door, darling. Going out through the window hardly befits one such as myself--"
Before she ended the sentence, Gaius jumped, laughing at her unamused sigh and oh-why-do-I-bother face.
Luckily, the town they were headed to was close to the Themis residence (as Gaius had planned), so the walk did not take long. The weather, however, took a turn to the cold side as it started to snow, surprising the noblewoman.
"Am I to freeze to death in this commoner's hole? What a sleazy end for Duchess Maribelle of Themis," she trembled, holding Gaius' arm with everything she had.
Snorting, the former outlaw placed one hand over her gloved one, "relax, Sweetheart, we're almost there." He pointed with his chin to the round plaza, its fountain frozen and surrounded by flickering lights.
"My, what a wonderful sight hidden in such a backwater place!" Maribelle mused, looking around the plaza whence they entered: much like the travelling circus from before, it had food and game stalls, though it lacked the fire-breathing and juggling people.
It had, however, a light show -- mages placed strategically around town threw what seemed to be a comet of light one towards the other: upon closer inspection, the comet was composed of hundreds of thousands star-shaped dots of light, all of which flickered much like the ones decorating the fountain.
A group of people danced in front of a band which played peppy and folk songs (a more popular version of the Fell Dragon's March among them), all wearing thick wool clothing. Not knowing where to look (the mages? the dance? the poor quality of their clothes? 'How would they even survive winter with such fabrics?' she bemused), Maribelle failed to notice when her husband purchased a woolen scarf and only realized what he had done after he wrapped it around her neck.
To top it off, he even bought a matching ushanka in bright pink, snorting at her reaction.
"Oh, darling, it's lovely that you wish for me to break out in hives due to this base fabric, but I do hope you do not plan on letting me wear this throughout the night." She frowned, adamant.
Gaius tried, he really did, to hold her gaze, but the contrast of her own clothes' 'proper' pink and the woolen bright pink made him burst out in laughter. "It-- ahaha... it looks great," he snorted, "it looks great on you, Sweetheart!"
"Gaius!" Maribelle hissed. If she had her parasol, she would've snapped it in half at that moment.
"Relax, Sweetheart! No one's gonna recognize you or anything," he took her hand and pulled her to follow the approaching group of dancers. "Didn't you say you're gonna enjoy yourself to the max tonight?"
Maribelle's heart beat in unison with the gods-forsaken ear worm of a song. It was rather endearing in its own way, she could admit, and seeing her husband look eager to at least start a few steps of dance made her simply pout and frown her irritation away. "When we go back home, do get ready for another lady lesson, darling! You will not get away with these," she looked at her hat and scarf, "unscathed!" She winked, getting into the rhythm and following the band.
Despite her snob attitude at first, Maribelle always shone whenever she was taken into a commoner's event -- she would absorb their customs, be amused at them and immediately use them in their 'proper habitat' so to say. Her smile shone the brightest that night, taking the air away from many a passerby, but especially from her beloved.
Yeah, seeing her having fun like that, surrounded by the masses, was what truly made Gaius the happiest -- making her taste a bit of his own world and enjoy it... He had no eyes for the light's show that night, only for his Sweetheart.
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minijenn · 8 years ago
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Universe Falls Cryptograms
K, so here is the complete list of the translated cryptograms that appear at the beginning of each chapter of UF. I’ll update this post every time I finish an arc. And to save space, I’ll put them all below the cut (and note, some of these are updated here and not in the story itself. But be aware that the ones in this post are correct (I plan on updating them in story later). Enjoy!
Arc 1
Prologue: Welcome to Gravity Falls:  WELCOME TO UNIVERSE FALLS
Chapter 1: The Shack Below MYSTERY HIDES IN THE SHACK BELOW EVEN MORE THAN WHAT YOU KNOW
Chapter 2: The Temple Above MAGIC ABIDES IN THE TEMPLE ABOVE AND GEMS WHO ARE LEARNING HOW TO LOVE
Chapter 3: First Meeting. MAGIC AND MYSTERY MEET AGAIN
Chapter 4: The Journal. SOME TRUST NO ONE OTHERS TRUST EVERYONE FINDING OUT WHO YOU CAN TRUST IS ALL PART OF THE FUN
Chapter 5: Gem Glow. THE ROSE QUARTZ GEM SHINES AGAIN A STURDY SHIELD TO PROTECT NEW FRIENDS
Chapter 6: The Legend of the Giant Woman. ALL I WANNA DO IS SEE YOU TURN INTO A GIANT ROBOTIC LAKE MONSTER
Chapter 7: Headhunters. MISPLACED SHARDS MIGHT HAVE YOU SEEING RED BUT THAT’S NO REASON TO LOSE YOUR HEAD
Chapter 8: The Cool Kids ROSE QUARTZ SAW BEAUTY IN EVERYTHING INCLUDING THE SICK BEATS THAT RAPPERS SING
Chapter 9: Strong the Real Way. BRUTE STRENGTH IS RATHER UNREFINED TRUE WARRIORS CHERISH STRENGTH OF MIND
Chapter 10: Magic and Mystery, Part 1. IF WE LOOK OUT OF PLACE WELL BABY THAT'S OKAY I'LL DRIVE US INTO OUTER SPACE WHERE WE CAN'T HEAR WHAT PEOPLE SAY
Magic and Mystery, Part 2. AN EYE IN THE SKY ONLY MEANS TO PRY WATCHING FROM OUT IN SPACE WAITING TO RETURN TO THIS PLACE
Arc 2
Chapter 11: Lil' Gideon. BE WARY OF WHOM YOU BELITTLE BIG PROBLEMS CAN START OUT WIDDLE
Chapter 12: Copies and Clones DUPLICATES OF DIPPER A SURPLUS OF STEVEN WITH SO MANY CLONES ITS HARD TO BREAK EVEN
Chapter 13: Bottomless Pit UP NEXT: PURPLE PUMA VS. FOOTBOT RUMBLE IN THE GLOW OF THE LUMINOUS ORB OF THE NIGHT
Chapter 14: Lion and Waddles THE PAST, IN STONE, CANNOT BE CHANGED THE PRESENT, THOUGH, IS KNOWN TO REARRANGE THE FUTURE, AFAR, IS DISTANT AND STRANGE
Chapter 15: Arcade Mania SHAKE IT, SHAKE IT, TO THE BEAT FOLLOW THE RHYTHM OF THE MEAT THE THRILL AND FUN IS IN THE GRILL FIGHT UNTIL YOU'VE HAD YOUR FILL
Chapter 16: Summerween TRICK OR TREAT OR BE EAT A TRAGIC FATE YOU WILL MEET IF YOU DON'T, THEN BEWARE THE TRICKSTER WILL FIND YOU THERE
Chapter 17: An Indirect Kiss HEALING HANDS ARE HARD TO FIND BUT HEALING SPIT IS ONE OF A KIND
Chapter 18: Measure Up THE LONG AND THE SHORT THE TALL AND THE SMALL THERE'S ENOUGH WATERMELON STEVENS TO GO AROUND FOR US ALL
Chapter 19: Gems and Journals FADED PAGES FORGOTTEN WORDS SOMETHING IS MISSING REMEMBER WHAT YOU'VE HEARD
Chapter 20, Part 1: Mirror Gem TRAPPED AND LOST SO LONG AGO AT LONG LAST SHE IS FREE HOME IS WHERE SHE WANTS TO GO HER NAME IS LAPIS LAZULI
Chapter 20, Part 2: Waterfall Gem ON WATER WINGS SHE FLEW AWAY MAYBE SHE'LL RETURN SOMEDAY
Arc 3
Chapter 21: Irrational Treasure QUENTIN TREMBLY GOT KICKED OUT OF THE WHITE HOUSE HALLS RODE HIS HORSE INTO A VALE AND CALLED IT GRAVITY FALLS
Chapter 22: Space Race SOMEWHERE BEYOND THE STARS WHERE WE CAN HEAL FROM OUR SCARS YOU ALREADY HAVE ALL THAT YOU ARE YOU DON'T HAVE TO STRAY SO FAR
Chapter 23: The Deep End IN THE SUMMER HEAT, WE'LL TURN THE TIDE WITH A LITTLE ROMANCE BY THE POOLSIDE
Chapter 24: Future Vision THE FLOW OF TIME IS LIKE A STREAM ALWAYS TWISTING, FAR AND WIDE ESCAPING IT MAY BE YOUR DREAM BUT THERE'S NO PLACE YOU CAN HIDE
Chapter 25: Miss Mystery GREET THE TOURISTS COUNT THE FUNDS CATCH THE MONSTER AND THE BET IS WON
Chapter 26: On the Run THEY CAME TO HOLLOW OUT THE EARTH IN KINDERGARTENS, GEMS SAW THEIR BIRTH YET EVEN NOW ITS HARDLY DONE THE DANGER'S ONLY JUST BEGUN
Chapter 27: Land Before Swine JURASSIC PIG: VOLUME ONE HOW TO TRAIN YOUR CENTIPEEDLE
Chapter 28: Straight to Video A TAPE, A CHEST, A FLAG, A SWORD, A SHIRT, A GEM, AND MEMORIES STORED ALL INSIDE THE LION'S MANE WHERE ROSE INTENDED THEY REMAIN
Chapter 29: Revenge Trip NEVER EVER UNDERESTIMATE WHAT JUST MIGHT BE GREAT THEY SEE THEMSELVES WITH LITTLE WORTH BUT WHAT THEY'LL DO COULD SAVE THE EARTH
Chapter 30, Part 1: Dreamscaperers SAW HIS OWN DIMENSION BURN MISSES HOME AND CAN'T RETURN SAYS HE'S HAPPY, HE'S A LIAR BLAME THE ARSON FOR THE FIRE
Chapter 30, Part 2: Gideon Rises THE TIME FOR FUN AND GAMES IS DONE THE TRUE MYSTERIES HAVE AT LAST BEGUN SECRETS, FUSIONS, INVASIONS, AND MORE ALL OF THIS AWAITS IN FOUR
Arc 4
Chapter 31: Scary-oke BENEATH THE STARS, A SONG BENEATH THE GROUND ARE ZOMS BENEATH THE SHACK, A DREA BUT NOTHING’S EVER AS IT SEEMS
Chapter 32: The Golf War A RIVAL NOW MIGHT SOMEDAY BE A CLOSER FRIEND THAN ENEMY
Chapter 33: Marble Madness PERIDOT FACET-2F5L CUT-5XG  MISSION: EARTH SUBJECT: CLUSTER STATUS: ONGOING
Chapter 34: Into the Bunker THE FORMS WE WEAR ARE EVERYWHERE SLIP INTO A NEW ONE IF YOU DARE
Chapter 35, Part 1: Alone Together HALF OF BOTH ALL OF NONE THIS EXPERIENCE HAS ONLY JUST BEGUN
Chapter 35, Part 2: Together Forever TWO FREE SPIRITS TOGETHER AS ONE WHY WOULD THE WANT TO END ALL THE FUN?
Chapter 35, Part 3: Forever Alone OPPOSITES UNITE TO GET THE JOB DONE BUT CAN ONLY SURVIVE ONCE HARMONY IS WON
Chapter 36: Rose’s Scabbard PANICKED DESPERATION A DEAL MADE YEARS AGO ROSE KEPT MANY SECRETS THAT THE GEMS MAY NEVER KNOW 
Chapter 37: Blendin’s Game IN A GLOBNAR BATTLE ONE CANNOT WAVER ONLY HOPE THAT THE ODDS ARE EVER IN YOUR FAVOR
Chapter 38: The Dinner Shack WHEN YOU COME TO SIT AND DINE THERE’S NO NEED TO MAKE A SCENE JUST ENJOY A DINNER SO DIVINE OUR OWN DELICIOUS FUSION CUISINE
Chapter 39: Dipper and Lapis A FRIENDSHIP FORMED OUT NEAR THE LAKE WILL TAKE MORE THAN COMING DANGER TO BREAK WHAT’S PICTURES, TALK, AND LAUGHTER NOW WILL SOON BECOME A TWOFOLD VOW
Chapter 40, Part 1: The Return THE EARTH, ONCE SAVED FROM PLOTTING GEMS WITH THE HOPE THAT PEACE WOULD FINALLY STEM BUT THINGS HAVE CHANGED AND YEARS HAVE PASSED AND HOMEWORLD IS FINALLY RETURNING AT LAST
Chapter 40, Part 2: Jailbreak RUBY AND SAPPHIRE, FIRE AND ICE, WHEN FUSED INTO GARNET THEIR LOVE WILL SUFFICE
Arc 5
Chapter 41: Full Disclosure THE HAND THAT FELL FROM OUTER SPACE LEAVES A LASTING EMPTINESS IN ITS PLACE BE LUCKY TO COUNT YOURSELF ALIVE FOR ALL THAT COULD CHANGE HERE IN ARC FIVE
Chapter 42: Joy Ride THEY'RE FAR TOO YOUNG TO BEAR THIS WEIGHT OF SUCH A DAUNTING CHARGE OF FATE THEY DIDN'T ASK, THEY DIDN'T KNOW JUST HOW DEEP THE DANGER WOULD GO
Chapter 43: Sock Opera, Part 1 HE CLAIMS TO SEE ALL WITH HIS ANCIENT EYE HE DEALS IN FLATTERY, DECEPTION, AND LIES DON'T TAKE HIS DEALS OR PLAY HIS GAMES OR ALL YOU KNOW COULD GO UP IN FLAMES
Chapter 43: Sock Opera, Part 2 A PINE TREE HAS BURNED A SHOOTING STAR'S FALLING A SWORD SWINGER'S BEEN SPURNED A ROSEBUD'S REMORSEFULLY CALLING
Chapter 44: Do It For Them THE BLADE, THE WEAPON OF HEROES AND KINGS TO WIELD IT, YOU MUST GIVE UP EVERYTHING A HEART ON YOUR SLEEVE IS BETTER OFF DEAD AFTER ALL, NOTHING MATTERS WHEN YOU'VE ALREADY BLED
Chapter 45: Soos and the Real Girl A MIND OF BITS, A HEART OF BYTES HER PIXELY SMILE IS A BEAUTIFUL SIGHT BUT SOMETHING ABOUT HER ISN'T QUITE RIGHT STAND HER UP AND YOU'RE IN FOR A FRIGHT
Chapter 46: Keeping It Together NO MIND, NO CHOICE, NO WAY TO ESCAPE HOMEWORLD CAN GIVE, AND HOMEWORLD CAN TAKE ITS ENOUGH TO MAKE THE BRAVEST GEMS COWER UNDER THE MASSIVE WEIGHT OF THE DIAMONDS' POWER
Chapter 47: Society of the Blind Eye SOMETHING IS MISSING THE GEMS ARE NOT BLIND BUT WHAT WILL THEY THINK OF WHAT'S HIDDEN BEHIND?
Chapter 48, Part 1: Like a Comet LIKE A COMET HE SOARED RIGHT INTO HER ARMS FELL IN LOVE WITH HER SMILE HER BEAUTIFUL CHARM
Chapter 48, Part 2: We Need to Talk A GEM AND A MAN A SURPRISING DUET TOGETHER THEY CAN MAKE SOMETHING INCREDIBLE YET
Chapter 49: Northwest Mansion Nightmare A BUDDING AFFECTION CAN SILENCE A RINGING BELL OR GHOSTLY VIOLENCE A ROMANCE THEY THOUGHT THEY'D NEVER SEE MIGHT SOMEDAY SOON JUST COME TO BE
Chapter 50, Part 1: Not What He Seems THE DAY HAS COME, THE TIME IS HERE THE FEARLESS CONMAN'S GREATEST FEAR FOR THEM TO LEARN HIS SECRET SO STRANGE FOR EVERYTHING IS ABOUT TO CHANGE
Chapter 50, Part 2: A Tale of Two Stans TWO BROTHERS, A TRAGEDY, THIRTY YEARS IN THE MAKING THREE GEMS, WITH PAITENCE STEADILY BREAKING THREE KIDS WITH HEARTS AND MINDS STILL SHAKING TWO FAMILES BOTH OF THEM EQUALLY ACHING
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