#or turning a blind eye on a lot of stuff also instead of enjoying things the way you simply want to like everyone else

[bloggingboutburgers]

My main fandom is actually mainly aroace characters, sex or romance are never even brought up. Unfortunately that comes from them all being robots and, according to the lore guy, "robots cannot reproduce therefore they have no need for romantic attraction". So yea, not the most optimal circumstance. In addition it's also a toy theme so it's not for everyone's taste. Of course the fandom still ships and there are people creating overtly horny character designs, so there's really no winning there. I used to be more on board with shipping but have recently realised that I don't actually like it much anymore.

...God I could make a bingo out of this

Characters are only "aroace" by circumstance and are not humans because it truly takes being a machine or an alien to not feel romantic or sexual attractions, no way a human can be that way? Check.

There being a possibility that the author themselves don't know the concept of aro people and ace people and just made things that way by accident and definitely not for rep? Check.

People not caring and lewding/romanticizing them anyway? Dingdingdingdingding

Every time

[irislikeswriting]

Finally, an imagine. I am working through all the requests, slowly but surely, as well as a few other ideas of my own.

This was a request by @alannnina for a halstead!sister who is in an abuse warning.

This is a heavy one and there’s a few big TWs. So tw for graphic scenes of psychical and verbal abuse. Mentions/hints of rape and sexual assault to minors, as well as a description of what rape is. Lots of misogyny towards women and misogynistic language is used.

I do have ideas for a part two if people enjoy this. It’s also not fully edited so any mistake please point them out! And without further ado, enjoy!!

"You're late."

You jumped at the sudden intrusion of the silence, knowing it was just Jay, and so let the door slam shut, not bothering to close it quietly anymore.

"I know," You were uncomfortable, you always were when Jay took the authority role, way more so than with Will, "Sorry."

Jay would use his police voice on you, some sort of an attempt to psych you out, or to scare you. You didn't know which was more important to him but you did know it wouldn't necessarily stop you from doing whatever you'd done again. Not know that you knew why he'd use that voice. And, it was Jay, you brother, who you were never scared of because you knew him. You trusted him.

"Jesus, Y/N, where were you? I was worried," Jay dropped the bad-cop act and instead let his voice show emotion, "I tell you a time and you've gotta be back by then."

"I know," You shrugged, "Time just got away from me, I guess."

"Time just got away from you? You're sixteen. That's not an excuse."

"Sorry." You shrugged again, what else were you meant to do?

It was just something that happened to every teenager, a bit of healthy rebellion or just having fun. God knows that Jay must've done that, even if you weren't privy to that stuff.

Jay searched your face, just standing there slightly illuminated by the moonlight coming through the window. Jay hadn't shut the blinds in the living room, he never did.

It was a few more beats until Jay spoke again, "Go to bed. We can talk about it more in the morning. And I mean go to bed, no sitting on your phone or whatever you think I don't know that you do."

You couldn't help but smirk a bit at that one, because you did know that Jay knew, you were way too confident in his detective abilities to assume anything else. But he never told you off.

“You want me to turn the light on?" Jay asked, his hand reaching up the light switch.

“No!" You said, a bit too quickly and a bit too loudly and Jay furrowed his eyebrows at you, "No. It's fine. I'm used to the dark."

Jay knew something was up, of course he would now, how could he not? He wasn't going to let it go, and it was going to become harder and Jack was going to become meaner and it was all more things that you'd have to deal with when you were already dealing with enough-

Suddenly the light was blinding your eyes, and causing a headache to begin to pulse in your head.

"Jay, no. I said no!" You tried to turn away from Jay before he could see your face, even if it was pointless because he'd see it anyway, he wouldn't let it go now.

"Y/N," Jay's voice suddenly sounded very, very old, "What happened?"

"You're not angry?" Was the first thing you could think to say. You'd spent so long being angry at recently.

“It was Jack." Jay said, not a shake in his voice.

“No," You shook her head, suddenly feeling a very deep need to explain it all before it could get out of hand, "I mean, yes, it was but Jay you don't understand. It's not what it seems like."

“What does it seem like?"

“Abuse." It was the first time you had said that word out loud.

“If it's not then why did you say that?"

You felt hopeless, you felt that returning feeling rising up from your stomach, numbing your body, "It's what it looks like, I guess. But that's not the case, I swear."

“Will needs to look at your face," It wasn't phrased like a question, but Jay was still watching you, and you knew he was waiting for permission.

“Okay but can we- can you not tell him anything. I don't want him to get the wrong idea or anything."

Jay just looked at you.

—————————

"So, I've heard you're having a bit of a tough time recently. You want to talk about it?"

You were sat opposite Dr Charles, it'd been a week since you'd come home to Jay waiting in the dark for her. You hadn't been able to see Jack during that week and so you'd refused to go to school. You'd see him there, is what you said. Really, you just didn't want to go. You hated it and you'd hate it even more with a massive bruise on you face.

Jay had relented almost immediately, and you had your way. You had your phone and you could just leave the apartment during the day. Jack would skip, and then you could explain this all to him and he would understand and it'd all be fine. Some big misunderstanding.

That hadn't happened. Instead, Jay took your phone and when you got it back you couldn't find Jack's contact, nor could you add anyone new to message. Not just on your texts, on anything. And to be honest, you were shocked. You didn't think Jay knew about any of these apps, or at least not enough that he'd know to do all this.

But it was whatever, it was fine. You could still go and meet Jack during the day.

Except Jay had other plans for that. So you went and sat in the break room at the precinct and did work online. You couldn't even leave the room because of all the stuff the team were doing outside. However, true to his word, Jay hadn't told anyone about it. The team were confused, sure, but no one looked at you any differently. Even if they were trying to hide it.

Will, however, had known almost immediately. You had told him he had it wrong, and he didn't argue. Just fixed your face and told you to get some rest. No doubt so he could sit and talk to Jay about you.

"Y/N?" Dr Charles said again, "You with me?"

“Sorry," You said, you didn't want or need to be here but you liked Dr Charles and so you would play along, "Just got a lot on my mind."

“I bet," Dr Charles smiled lightly, "So, Will didn't tell me too much. You want to fill me in?"

“Sure," You sat forward slightly, putting your hands under your thighs, "It's not a big deal or anything, though. Just so you know."

“That's fine," Dr Charles smiled again, "Just take you time."

“Uuuh," You shrugged slightly, "They think my boyfriend, Jack, is abusing me."

“But he's not?"

“No," You shook your head, "It's not abuse. I'd know."

"And, if you don't mind me asking, how would you be able to tell if it was abuse?"

“I'd be scared. Of Jack."

“You aren't scared?"

You shook your head, "I'm not scared of Jack. I'm scared of the way he acts when his brother is around."

“Is that not the same thing?" Dr Charles asked.

“No." You said, because it wasn't and you knew that even if Dr Charles didn't.

“Alright," Dr Charles smiled, "I want to talk about Jack and his brother some more, is that okay?"

“Do I have a choice?" You asked.

“Yes. Of course," Dr Charles said, "If you don't want to we can have a game of chess, how about that? I already talked with your brothers and I'll see you every week but it will all be at your pace, Y/N."

“Okay," You knew Jay or Will would probably be pissed but Dr Charles was the psychiatrist, not them, "Let's have that game of chess."

————————

The team had been gone for a while and you were bored. You'd been left with school work to complete, Geography, and you had finished hours ago.

Normally, you'd wander downstairs, maybe say hi to Trudy. But today something felt wrong, deep in your stomach you could just feel that something bad had happened.

Your fears were confirmed when everyone arrived back and Jay had that look on your face and he was trying not to look at you but he still was. And so he was talking about you.

He came towards the door of the break room and you almost wanted to ignore him, pretend you were annoyed with him so he'd go away and wouldn't tell you whatever bad news he had.

“Y/N, I need to talk to you." Jay shut the door behind him, so it was just the two of them.

“What?" You asked, ready to try and delay things, "Now? I'm, like, busy."

“You need to sit down," Jay pulled another chair out, opposite yours and so you listened to him and sat.

“It's about Jack. Y/N, I need you to listen to me."

You nodded, sick of hearing about Jack but the tone of Jay's voice almost made you feel sick.

“He has a younger sister, right? Sarah."

You nodded, "Yeah. She's 11 I think. I went to her last birthday."

Jay nodded but you knew he wasn't fully listening, "Jack, he hurt Sarah. She's in the hospital."

“Hurt? What do you mean he... hurt her? Like he hit her or?"

“He did something much worse, Y/N. I can't tell you the details but he hurt her."

“It was because of those videos, right?" You couldn't stop the words from spilling out because if you had just told someone then maybe Sarah wouldn't be hurt.

You had known the videos were bad news but you'd just say and watched them and nodded and agreed to what Jack said to appease him.

Maybe he hasn't abused you. But he'd hurt Sarah and he had hurt you. Even if that wasn't him. It wasn't the Jack before his brother showed him videos. It wasn't the Jack that you knew Jack was.

But it had been Jack who had hit and punched and strangled and apparently really hurt his sister.

“Videos?" Jay frowned, leaning in closer to you, "What videos."

“Um. He used to show me these videos that his brother shared to him," You said slowly, not looking at Jay, "They were of these men and they were saying stuff about how your girlfriends should behave. How women should behave. I just, I thought that, that..." You trailed off because you didn't know what you thought. You didn't fucking know.

Jay paused for a second before talking, obviously realising this was progressing to something that may need to be recorded, “Y/N, Kim is going to join us." Jay said and you nodded. That was fine. Kim was fine.

Jay gestured through the window on the door and Kim came in, smiling at you and pulling a chair up. Jay spoke to her in a low voice and she nodded

“Y/N, can you tell me what the men in these videos said?" Kim asked, "You can stop if you feel uncomfortable."

You bit the inside of your lip, "I guess. For Sarah."

“Y/N, you don't have to do anything you don't want to. But it would help."

You nodded, "I know, so I'll tell you."

You didn't know where to begin because the videos were all so long and the men in them all had their own ideas and opinions but you just said what you remembered. Starting slowly and it all came tumbling out afterwards.

“They said your girlfriend should do what you want. If she didn't, you should punish her. Like, hit her or slap her. If she misbehaved too often then you should get her to count the bruises. Tell you what they were for. If you want to kiss, she should kiss. If you want to.. have sex, then she owes it to you. You shouldn't let her speak out of turn, or be rude to you. You shouldn't let her mock you in public and she should just let you show her off."

Jay had written most of it down, but you could see where his handwriting had gone weird, or messy. Presumably because of the things you were saying.

“That's really helpful, Y/N. If it's okay could you tell us about an instance of where Jack hurt you?" Kim asked, smiling at you.

You shrugged, "I guess."

Kim nodded for you to go ahead and so you did, but not before taking a deep breath.

“We went to a party. One of those massive house parties you see in the films. I was 15 so it was like, 6 months ago I guess..."

“I didn't know these actually existed!" Y/N clung on to Jack's hand, looking around the room.

There were people everywhere, they were even holding those little red cups that the teens do in the movies. Fuck yeah. You were one of those teens now.

You and Jack both grabbed your own red cups, filled with some nondescript alcohol that burned your throat when you drank it.

After saying hello to your friends, Jack led you over to a group of boys on the sofa. You recognised a few of them, being Jack's older brother and his friends.

They whistled lowly when they saw you, one going as far to wolf whistle. It made you feel uncomfortable and you went to look at Jack to let him now but he wasn't looking at you. Instead he was beaming over to the group of boys. Looking like he was showing off a trophy.

And so you didn't say anything, letting Jack pull you down on to his lap. You tried to move off, to have your own space but he held on to you tightly and tilted your face over to his.

“Gimme a kiss, baby." He said, tapping his cheek.

You did as he asked but it was weird. He'd never called you baby and he'd never asked you to do that and he had never acted like this with you in front of his brother.

After giving him a kiss he pulled you back down, kissing you. His hands made their way to your dress straps, pulling them down and there was whoops on the background and what the fuck was Jack doing?

You pushed him off of you, "Jack," You hissed, "What are you doing?"

“He, like, shoved me off his lap then and his brother said something to him. But I was trying to pull my dress back down and fix it so I didn't really hear. But then Jack dragged me away and I let him because I wanted to get away from all those boys. They scared me."

“I just didn't want to sit on your lap and make out in front of all those people, Jack. They're older than us, it just freaked me out!" You stepped away from him when he shut the door to the room he had dragged you in.

“So my brother and his friends freak you out?" Jack's eyes were little slits and you would be lying if you said you weren't a little bit scared. But you were mostly annoyed, very annoyed.

“That isn't what I said and you know it." You shook your head, "I'm going to go find Katie or someone, I'll see you later. There's no point us hiding down here fighting."

Jack grabbed onto you wrist and you turned around, your eyes already rolling, "Jack, c'mon."

Suddenly your back was smacking against the wall and you couldn't even cry out because you were so fucking shocked. You didn't know what had happened.

“Jack?" You was staring, wide eyed and his name was the only thing you could get out because what the fuck? And your hands were shaking and your voice was, too. And you felt a bit sick.

Jack pressed his forearm against your throat, cutting off your air supply slightly, "When I want to make out, we make out."

“Jack?" You said again, it was all you could say and you instantly wished you hadn't when Jack pressed his arm harder and okay, now you couldn't actually breathe. At all.

“I could knock you out, right here. I'm in charge, bitch."

You didn't know what to do and your entire body was pulsing with fear because you were so fucking scared. You'd never been so fucking scared before in your life and all you could think was that you were scared.

“Do you understand. Y/N!" Jack barked your name at the end and you opened your mouth to speak but you couldn't because he was pressing against your throat too hard.

Jack laughed then, and let his arm come away from your throat a bit, "Stupid bitch."

“Yes," You gasped out, "Yes, Jack."

Jack smiled then and stepped away, "Good girl, Y/N. I'm sorry I had to do that but you embarrassed me, y'know. My brother and his friends, they'll laugh at me if you don't listen to me. They barely believe I have a girlfriend, it hurts."

You held your throat, trying to ignore the pain in it and the ache in your chest from the lack of air and listened to what Jack was saying to take your mind off it.

“Please don't tell anyone. I was just scared. I act out when I'm scared and I'm sorry....."

"... I won't do it again. I promise. I'm sorry." Y/N recited the words Jack had told her that night, still avoiding looking at Kim or Jay.

“I knew then I wasn't going to tell anyone."

“Why, Y/N?" Jay said from beside you.

You stiffened slightly, "Because he was right, his brother was a dick to him. And it was easier. I loved him. I really did, and I didn't want to lose him."

“How often do you think these events took place?" Kim asked, still not looking at you any differently.

“It wasn't like... regular or anything, it was just here and there."

“Could you tell us a few more of the instances? What he did and what happened before and after?" Kim asked gently.

“Yeah, I guess," You didn't know where to start, what would be most helpful to Sarah's case, "Uh, the night I got back late. We... I just told him I had to go, because it was late. But I'd told him I'd ask Jay if I could stay round, even though I knew he was going to say no. Jack got mad that I couldn't, I guess. I said I had to go and started to leave but Jack followed me downstairs and we argued for a bit. Then his brother, Aidan, was stood in the kitchen right next to us. He was laughing, or smirking, I think. And then Jack got angry. I mean, so angry."

“Why do you love to make me into an idiot, huh? What the fuck is wrong with you?" Jack was in your face and you wanted to get away from him but there was no room.

“Jack, I don't- I don't do that. I just, Jay he'll be angry I can't stay." You spoke as quick as you could, needing to get the words out.

“Wow. I wouldn't let my girl speak to me like that, Jack. Mine would be apologising." Aidan called from the back of the room.

You closed your eyes, wanting to get out of this situation.

“He's right. You love to make me look like a fool, why are you denying it?"

“I'm not-"

The slap came so quickly you ended up hitting the wall behind you harshly, biting your lip to stop yourself from crying out.

“You are, you bitch." Jack hissed, spit hitting your face.

“I'm sorry," You forced out, "I'm sorry I don't think you're stupid. I love you, Jack. I'm sorry. You're right, I do."

“I am right," Jack nodded, "You should be grovelling."

Aidan started towards the two of you, talking as he came, "She admitted it. So she needs to be punished, little brother."

“I'm sorry." You said again.

“How many bruises does she have this week?" You heard Aidan say to Jack.

“I don't know," Jack turned to you, "How many bruises do you have, bitch?"

The number was burned into your memory, it always was, "Seven. I have seven. I'm sorry. I swear, I'm so sorry."

Neither boy listened to your apologies, "It's eight now, I guess." Aidan shrugged and then clapped his little brother on the should, "You're the boss." He said before smirking at you and walking away.

You shrunk away from Jack, "I'm sorry, I won't do it again."

He rubbed a hand over his face, "I don't want to do this, Y/N! But I have to. You have to be better, okay? You understand that?"

You nodded, "I understand." You sniffed, preparing for the hits to come.

Jay looked like he was ready to leave, whether to cry or to kill Jack, you didn't know. But he was on the edge of his seat, his eyes small and his leg moving. He never jogged his leg unless he was seriously upset.

Kim was hiding her true feelings, you had no doubt, "That's really helpful. And I'm sorry that happened."

You shrugged, not replying.

“I need to ask you a quick question, okay Y/N," Kim said, and you nodded, half knowing what Kim was doing to say anyway, "Did he ever force you to have sexual intercourse against your will?"

“No," You shook you head, "We did, uh have sex but it wasn't rape. He didn't, like hit me to make me." Y/N almost blanched at the word rape and the fact that Jay was sat right next to you as you were saying all this.

Kim leant forward, ever so slightly, "Did he ever pressure you into having sex, and I don't mean did he hit you. I mean did he tell you you owed it to him, because you were his girlfriend? Or did he just keep saying he wanted you to make him feel good? Maybe you refused at first but eventually agreed because Jack seemed like he really wanted you to?"

You clenched your jaw, "That's not rape, okay? It wasn't rape it was just a girlfriend helping out her boyfriend. And I don't want to," You turned to Jay, "Can we stop? I'm finished I don't want to do this anymore?"

Kim stood up before Jay replied, "I'll leave you two here. You did great, Y/N. It will really help Sarah."

Kim left and you and Jay sat in silence for a few seconds, and you knew he was going to say something but you had to first.

“I don't want to talk about it right now, Jay, okay? You can send me back to Dr Charles and I'll took to him tomorrow but right now I just- I just want to ask you something and then I want to go home. I don't want to think about this anymore today." The tears were coming to your face and you wiped them away angrily, "Why did Jack do it? To Sarah? To... me?"

“We can't know for sure yet, Y/N but those videos you described? It sounds like they radicalised him." Jay answered, focusing on your question and for that you were grateful.

“He's just a kid. How can a kid do all this?"

Jay took your hand suddenly, squeezing it tight, “What he did wasn't okay, Y/N and we will get to the bottom of it. But you don't need to worry about him anymore."

“But there's going to be a trial, right? For Sarah. Maybe for me. This is going to be hanging over my head for years until it's done. And I just want for Jack to be gone. I don't want this to have happened to me, Jay."

Jay pulled you into a hug and you clung on to him, the sobs coming so suddenly you could barely breathe.

“You don't think these things, do you? That the men said?" You had to ask him, you had to know.

“What those men said is wrong. It's not true. I will never, ever expect anything from you or from Hailey. Or from any other women. I will never look down on you. I will never punish you, or Hailey. I swear to you, Y/N."

You believed him, you'd always believed that. But you had to ask because you had to be sure. You had to know that there were men like your brothers out there, among all the bad.

You'd have to face Jack and a trial. You'd have to tell people what he'd done and what you hadn't done. You didn't have a choice.

But you did have two brothers who loved you and who didn't blame you. Not only did you have them, you had people they worked with who were basically a family. Who would all fight to support you.

Nothing was okay right now, but with the love from the people surrounding you, you believed it could be.

[spaceyflowerswriting]

Hey i came across your lookism stuff today thought you write beautifully. I saw that the requests are open and I'd like to request vasco x reader relationship headcanons. stuff like how they fell for each and came to be in relationship and how vasco is as a boyfriend. all of their first times with each other. (First date, first kiss, first fight and first time sleeping together [last one this is optional])

thank you 🌸

vasco relationship headcanons

details: gender neutral reader, general canon au

warning: very minor spice below the read more cut! (i'm so sorry if you meant "sleeping together" in an innocent way but i assumed you didnt ??? 😭😭😭)

a/n: beautifully is such a nice word to use thank u,,, T_T and also thanks for this request <3

×

> i'd imagine the most likely scenario would be for you to be a student of j high and just encountering vasco often! lots of short meetings that eventually turn into long convos and hanging together outside of school; the classic friends to lovers <3

> everyone in vasco's eyes are good unless he hears or see that someone's done bad things, but you can bet the second jace notices you with vasco often, he's going to do a little background checking

> after jace confirms everything is well, he tries to stay out of yours and vasco's relationship because really it's none of his business but y'know how it is... he's vasco's babysitter. i gotta say tho eventually it turns into him trying to save you from vasco's antics LMAO

> anyways yeah once you're involved with vasco, you're involved with burn knuckles. whether you commit to joining or not, you're a part of the family!

> while you have your own reasons and timing for falling for vasco, his process is rather slow and yes, he is dense to any signs you might show. for him, it's all the little things that build up over time (acts of kindness, sharing snacks, hand holding) and the realization hits him like a truck at 2 am as he sits up in bed and thinks, "are friends supposed to feel this way???"

> with the help and encouragement of his buddies, he comes to the conclusion he loves you, and eventually with their cheering, he's able to confess (unless you beat him to it, of course, in which case he would reply the same by scooping you up into a hug and spinning you around <3)

> dating him in the beginning... he's like. a perfect mix of a nervous wreck and a very confident man. some days he's a stuttering mess, other days he's leading you by the hand with a shiny grin ✨

> what you can always expect, though, is him being a supportive golden retriever boyfriend 💖 he'd do anything for you, whether it be running to a store late at night to get something for you or literally running to your house 123456789 miles away just to take care of you if you're sick

> other things he'd keep consistent: being physically affectionate with you, being proud to be your boyfriend and proud to call you his partner, and his chivalry/gentlemanly acts (this has more to do with how he feels as a man rather than anything with your gender!)

> by the time he grows comfortable with dating, he's honestly just like your best friend and boyfriend ^_^ always taking you on fun dates and making sure you're smiling, even if it's from laughing at him doing dumb stuff <3 also would bring up marriage pretty early and whatever happens is up to u lol

bonus first times bc i think u wrote fun prompts 💘

first date: considering you've been his friend for a while, vasco would've already taken you to the restaurant he eats at with his friends that he took that one blind date girl to so he'd try something new like an interactive zoo :] if you're afraid of aninals, hopefully you would enjoy a nice walk around a lake instead!

first kiss: ever since vasco began dating you, this was what he anticipated the most. it'd keep him up many nights because of how nervous it made him and he'd google "how to kiss someone" and "when to kiss someone," as well as ask all his friends and others for advice, but eventually the kiss came naturally--and by accident. he had kissed you out of excitement and because you returned the energy, he hadn't even realized what he did until jace teased him for it. after that, he shyly asked if he could continue kissing your lips, and that was that <3

first fight: it's absolutely devasting for poor vasco. he knew relationships had ups and downs but he never imagined a fight would happen with him and you. but if anything, after patching up, it taught him to stop putting you on a pedestal and to be more realistic if he wanted to make the relationship work, rather than continue to live in a romanticist's daydream.

first time sleeping together: vasco never even once thought about sleeping with you simply because it's not something on his mind, but that one time you sat a little too comfortably in his lap, he Remembered™ That Thing Lovers Do and felt super embarrassed. there's a low chance this would happen naturally, but if it does, he'd be super awkward but very gentle, making sure to constantly check for your consent; otherwise you'd have to lead the way!

[ishgard]

Rambly first impressions but I'll probably be turning DT around in my head for a while still. Spoilers obviously touched on but I try to be vague about it as much as possible X'D

Overall I enjoyed it! imo it was far from their strongest expac and is admittedly pretty low on my mental expac tierlist (fittingly, about equal with ARR, which isn't a bad thing per se), but it did a decent enough job at what it did, especially so in the first half. I'm in love with Tural and the people, the cast of characters, the lore - it was all delightful!

I absolutely understand peoples complaints about their presence feeling kind of pointless at times, but I also didn't mind taking a side/mentor role either (I've had potential plot/headcanons for Ahru doing as much for a long time now, so it works for me). I don't think they always balanced it well at all, though.

I also would have loved to see more interactions between, say, the Scions and Lamaty'i, but it was nice taking things at a slow steady pace and just enjoying the world building. They had a lot on their plate to show us, and they did it well.

The second half... played with some themes I enjoyed well enough, but suffered from some questionable writing that often gave me whiplash.

I love!! the aesthetics of Solution 9, it was another one of the few things that piqued my interest for DT initially. The overall lore and story was enjoyable, just kind of an echo of things we've dealt with before which isn't a criticism exactly.

I'm typically pretty good at immersing myself and smoothing over rough edges in my mind as I go, filling in blanks and grounding myself in my characters' reactions, but there were a number of times I felt kicked in the teeth and taken out by some of the choices. There were definitely more than a few scenes I immediately had to be like "well Ahru is just not here for this because that just would not have happened" lmao I'd be groaning and rolling my eyes one minute, only to be balling my eyes out the next, so just a lot of whiplash 😂

I kept feeling like the second half would have benefited from more time building some of that stuff up, but instead we got a lot of things repeated to us multiple times and obvious things drawn out for us.

Also though they got their moments in some of the very final quests, I had really hoped to see more of Erenville and Krile's stories throughout the overall MSQ. (THAT scene with Erenville got me ugly crying though omfg.)

I feel like I'm mostly complaining but this is probably one of my most 'mixed feelings' expansions in the ten+ years I've been playing. Like, that's fine though, SHB and EW were ALL up my alley and delicious, this can be a little less 'for me', and it was enjoyable enough I don't feel entirely disconnected from the game I love. The high notes it hit really well, I'm in love with Tural and the lore, and I'm super excited and interested to see where they take us next - and what we do with Azem's key. 👀

I was utterly blind-sided by a certain two-headed mamool ja so now I guess I'm a Bakool Ja Ja fucker. 🤷‍♀️ Also I have a new son and if anything happens to him I'll kill everyone and myself. (p.s. trial 2's boss was the worst villain I've ever suffered and this is coming from a lifelong villain fucker, they were a big detractor from my enjoyment at times tbh)

I am begging for another adventure with Erenville because that snippet was hands-down one of the highlights for me for purely biased reasons. Admittedly, there were a number of times I was the 'do it for him' meme with Erenville's face plastered all over it. I'll probably need to do a whole other rant about him tbh

My slightly joking prediction is chemist for 8.0 just on account of his whole two times mentioning he had potions on him to help the wounded.

[mythicalmagical-monkeyman]

I just realized I can leave asks to moots and make them rant- I mean, let them answer at length if they want to

Thinking about lmk lately, got any headcanons u haven't shared yet? Or some that u really like? could we have some? Pretty please?

yes, u can do that :3 anyways I was going to post some stuff about shadowpeach at some point so anon sorry if u don't like shadowpeach (also sorry if anon is @fellow-fandom-fruitifier bc honestly a lot of these we've already talked about)

anyways here's some shadowpeach headcanons ... actually this is more like wukong & macaque (basically shadowpeach) things i don't see often at all but they still live free rent in my head

or whatever:

Because he's blind in one eye Macaque has really bad depth perception so he needs glasses and because of the trigram furnace Wukong also needs glasses but he doesn't want to admit that he does. Later however Macaque starts wearing glasses, (and Wukong's a total simp over it) so wukong finally admits he needs them too and now both monkies have glasses except a lot of the time when Macaque and Wukong try to kiss now the glasses get the way :3

Because: shapeshifting, Wukong can always be whatever height he wants to be. If he wants to be the little spoon? well now he's short. If he wants to rest his chin on top of Macaque's head? Well now he's tall. And so on and so forth.

They have those "I'm stupid/I'm with stupid" shirts that they'll often wear to crowded places to help keep track of each other.

Wukong also has a white shirt with sharpied words on it that say "Macaque come pick me up I'm scared" and it's his favorite shirt.

They love to pick each other up, both are strong enough to so honestly it's second nature to them also both are very clingy/touch starved/touchy so picking each other up helps with that. They also love piggyback rides, holding tails/hands/feet, lying/sitting on top of each other, hugs, feet rubs, biting each other, and nuzzling each other.

Another thing they love to do is tickle each other with their tails.

However due to ✨ the horrors ✨ they don't like having the other touch their face very much (or most ppl touching their face tbh)

Anyways, Wukong is utter shit at pick up lines, but they somehow work on Macaque

In turn Macaque is a horrible dancer (u can try & pry this headcanon from my cold dead hands) but Wukong loves and enjoys it when Macaque does dance

The pair have two beds in their bed room instead of just one just in case they fight / they just don't want to sleep in the bed so when they sleep together every square of space counts because the beds are smaller to fit the room

These monkies also have matching onesies and they also buy/win stuffies for each other so they have a collection

These two are also a very competitive couple, weather if it's with each other or other people

Macaque has a set number of pet names he will always use, (ex. three pet names), and whenever he doesn't use one of said three it means something is wrong/he's pissed/etc. However Wukong will usually use just the first pet name/nick name that pops into mind.

If you ever happen to watch a disney/pixar/dreamworks movie with them they'll sing the songs at the top of their lungs, especially if it's a love song

Wukong likes Macaque's drawings and thinks they're awesome, he's like "LOOK! LOOK AT MY BOYFRIEND'S BEAUTIFUL DRAWINGS! LOOK AT THEM!!"

A lot of times they send pictures to each other of monkeys or things somewhat similar to the other always captioned with "this you?" (they love teasing each other)

Wukong likes showing affection with a lot of the 72 transformations so Macaque has been tackled by dog Wukong many times, or had cat Wukong fall asleep on him, or has had hamster Wukong hide in his scarf, etc.

Wukong drools and Macaque snores when they sleep

Because of Macaque being a night owl and Wukong being an early bird (or vice versa) the two are always dragging each other to bed/lying on top of each other to try and get them to sleep while the other tries to escape

Macaque can wax poetry until the cows come home but every once and awhile Wukong says some poetic bullshit that just kills Macaque

Macaque is a baby magnet so whenever they go out in public children are always going up to him or staring at him but Macaque is horrible with/very not interested in children so it leads to funny predicaments that Wukong has to keep himself from laughing at

Many of their dates are just them going "lets see what the fuck happens" before heading out and letting the way of the universe (and their own adhd) decide what they are going to do today

They are old gay ass men that still call each other 'boyfriend' like their 17

And last but not least the monkies have a special sign language they created when they first met (and later perfected over the years) because when they first met Wukong was very bad at controlling the volume of his voice and Macaque was still perfecting his ear deafening spells for his six ears so they came up with hand signals/sign language they could use instead. They still use the hand signals but they later got so good at reading each other that they have a kind of telepathy with each other that they don't have with anyone else.

[essie007]

Wheel of Time Season 2 Thoughts

Now that the season is over and I’ve had a few days to process I thought I’d put some of my thoughts about the season. No major book spoilers but I do make mention to some of the changes they’ve made while adapting the first two books. I might make a more book spoilery post later.

-Overall I really enjoyed the season. I think it was well written, tight and delivered both storywise and character wise. The costuming, special effects and art direction continues to be top tier and I found the season highly watchable and compelling. I did not love absolutely every moment and decision and definitely have a few nitpicks but as a whole I really liked it. I will say that I think a lot of the issues I did have with the season can be boiled down to the limited amount of time they had to tell the story they needed to tell. I really think this show would benefit from at least 10 episodes and season if not more, and I know that’s an opinion many have echoed.

- I loved all the White Tower stuff in the first half of the season. It was a good set-up for tower politics, different factions, how The One Power works and it introduced us to a lot of important characters.

-Hi Elayne! I love you and you are perfect girl!

-Nyneave’s Tower story and block was A+

-I personally didn’t mind Siuan’s book scenes being given to Liandrin. I think it was necessary to tell the story they needed to tell in the time they needed to tell it. And I thought Liandrin’s whole story, the explanation of why she turned to the Black Ajah was interesting both to make her a more compelling villain and to set up the stakes of the universe. We need to be worried that our heroes will choose the dark at some point, and for that to be a real threat we need good reasons why other have. All of her scenes were great. Loved her scenes with Nyneave, Egwene and Lanfear. And her petty fighting with Suroth. *chef’s kiss*

-I’m just gonna say it ok? Are you ready? I LOVE show!Alanna. Book fans can give me the stink eye if they want, but as she’s been portrayed on screen so far she rocks. The actress is incredible and the writing has done an excellent job as setting her up as a genuine, moral, strong and honestly necessary pillar of light in the dark. You really feel she is fighting on the side of good with everything she has, no matter what it costs her. She’s also a genuinely good teacher in the Tower! The way she fights for the girls, and for Moiraine, and later for Rand. We love to see it. Her story in many ways mirrors Moraine’s. The show has done a very good job of making her a character that you are strongly empathizing with and rooting for. And honestly book knowledge has only made me feel that more strongly. Knowing how many darkfriends she is holding the line against, you FEEL how necessary and important the work she does is. And I am starting to understand how she, like Moiraine and Siuan this season, and Rand in the story to come, might start feeling weighed down by that. My girl fits right in with the themes of the story. Sorry not sorry. I am weak for MILFs.

-Egwene’s entire storyline this season kicked ass. I think she had, hands down, the best story arc from beginning to end. I have very little to say about it because it was all perfectly done. And when she killed Rena, instead of sparing her like you’re expecting, oh boy did I cheer.

-Rand’s storyline, if you knew who Lanfear was from the outset was fun all the way through. Though I have it on good authority from @steel-wings that if you went in blind, it was quite slow in the beginning. I do have to say that the introduction to Rand this season being “he’s sleeping with an innkeeper for room and board” was the funniest and best thing I have ever seen. Dana The Darkfired from last season continues to give. No honestly, this is genuine foreshadowing (Selene is also *gasp* a Darkfriend) and character work. They decided to show Rand’s declining mental state and self esteem by contrasting how willing he was to sugarbaby this season with how against it he was last season. 10/10 no notes.

-Rand is a Mental Health Worker! I’m going to cry! Yes I know he has reasons for doing this but watching Rand with that old man, knowing he’s been doing this job for almost a year. Excuse me I need a moment.

-The Lanfear reveal kicked ass. She is so crazy and so evil and so manipulative. Love to see it in a villain. The scene where she “learns” Rand can channel was honestly hilarious. Although this was the moment that @steel-wings lost her patience with the storyline.

Steelwings: Ugh. This is so boring. She’s just there for his manpain. I can’t watch any more of this. It would have been better if she was evil.

Me knowing my wife is at the end of her patience and is about to abandon this show I love but not knowing how long they’re planning to draw the reveal out, pausing the tv: Do you want me to spoil you?

Steelwings: Yes! Spoil me! PLEASE tell me she’s evil.

Me: She’s evil :D She’s the most evil bitch whose ever lived. She’s so evil and so crazy and so manipulative. She’s Oppenheimer if he worshipped the devil and *horrifying spoilers*

Steelwings settling back in to watch: Love that for her. 🙂

-Perrin’s storyline was the least ineteresting and slowest of the mains but with the rest of the show so jam packed it felt like a nice break in some ways to have some breathing room with Perrin. We’ve got Egwene being tortured by the Seanchan and Mat being tortured by the Forsaken and Rand being imprisoned by the Amyrlin. Meanwhile, Perrin has met a cute girl and a dog. Good for him.

-MAAAAT. MAT! My baby boy Mat Cauthon. You are having a no good very bad life huh? And it’s only season 2 *cries* I did love the way he turned the dagger into a spear there at the end and also…HE’S A HERO OF THE HORN! I thought that was a perfect choice. Really made sense with his storyline and character arc. It also gives them a really good plot excuse for him to suddenly know how to fight with his big stick. Mat’s “I remember” and his Old Tongue and his immediate military Glow Up. So good. So fun. I will be screaming forever.

-Speaking of screaming forever the Cauthor reunion had me screaming and crying and dying. I will never be the same. It was giving big stars fading (but i linger on) by @butterflydm vibes. If you haven’t read it, it’s a fic that also adapts The Great Hunt as season 2 by saying “what if Rand just hung around Carhein playing Sugar Baby and getting dicked down while everyone else hunted for the horn?” (It’s really good and you should read it.) Hey @butterflydm how does it feel to be so smart and correct all the time?

-I was expecting the Mat stabs Rand moment to be caused by Compulsion, not friendly fire. It would have given him a really good reason to go searching for something to protect him from the OP in the future. But I’m not mad. We got some top tier cradling out of it. Although this is the second time Ishy has pulled that move (the first was with Rand at the Eye). Boy is not an original thinker.

-I know a lot of people were sad that Rand did not get cool sword battles this season. And look, I get it, the books lean hard in to the cool power fantasy moments with Rand, so if that’s your thing and what you came for, this show probably is letting you down. But I gotta say, as someone who has always been here for the characters and themes and narrative, I LOVE what they did with the battle here. AND with Rand’s learning curve.

-I love that Rand knows exactly one weave at this point, and that that weave is “make knife.” I LOVE that Lan is the one who taught it to him. (Miss me with your Lan hate.) I love that the first thing he did with it wasn’t fight an enemy but free Moiraine from her bonds, heal her, even though he’s not a healer. A knife is a tool and you can use it to heal or to fight. Just as Ryma used her healing weaves to rip Damane bodies apart, Rand uses his knife weaves to “heal.” I love that the second thing he uses that weave for IS to destroy Turak’s fighting force. I did not at all feel I had been robbed of a sword fight. I cheered! Excellent little Indiana Jones moment, right there. Rand WAS badass. And most of all I love that he wasn’t able to to defeat Ishmael on his own, that he needed Egwene and Perrin and Mat and Moiraine and Elayne and Nyneave. Like that’s the point! Lanfear is running around the city trying to dump the other Forsaken in the ocean. Ishmael is standing on that tower alone and betrayed with no allies. But Rand has friends! He has people who come to help him! And that is why he wins. That’s whole point. Hello theme of friendship and connection, I love you, never go anywhere.

-Also Moiraine being like I would kill thousands of people to help Rand made me snort and go “Ok Mom.” Yeah yeah scorched earth morality. Ruthlessness. She is on a mission to save the world even if she has to destroy the world in the process. But also Moiraine IS that meme from Parks and Rec. She has only had Rand Al’Thor for a year but if anything happens to him she will kill everyone in this room and then herself. Now fly the Dragon Banner.

-All that being said, there was one storyline this season that really did not hit for me, and I am sorry to say it was the Siuan Sanche of it all. I have spent a lot of time turning that episode over in my head and I still haven’t put all my thoughts together but ultimately I will say this. Yes, if you were expecting Siuan from the books her actions were definitely character assassination. She makes the exact opposite choices in the show. However, I understand why, both narratively and time wise those changes were made so I’m going to do my best to react to the story they told and the character they wrote, not the one I was expecting. The real problem I think with the story they told is that they didn’t give us enough time in Siuan’s POV and with Siuan’s story to really truly empathize with the decisions she’s making. We spend the episode in Rand and Moiraine’s POVs and honestly I think that’s a big mistake, because we don’t learn any new information about either of them. But in order for that moment at the end with Moiraine to truly be heartbreaking, in order for us to really understand why she’s imprisoning Rand at all we need to see her struggles and her fears and her beliefs. I talked earlier about how they do a good job showing what Alanna and Moiraine are up against but they needed to give us that with Siuan. We’re told she has enemies in the tower, we’re told she’s been depending on Moiraine and Rand to be the ace up her sleeve in the last battle, but we don’t see the emotional toll of that. And at the end there I think the writing needed to make it perfectly crystal clear that Siuan believes that Moiraine is black ajah. A casual viewer should understand and feel for Siuan who is doing this terrible thing because she believes she is saving the world, saving Rand, from a Forsaken and a darkfriend who has lied to her and betrayed her. But it's just not there. I understand that this plot point and this story serves a narrative purpose. It sets up Rand's relationship with the White Tower and the Aes Sedai as a whole. It draws a thematic parallel between the three Oaths and the Seanchan oaths and damane system. It brings up the theme of how power corrupts, how even good people who are doing their best to help the many, can use their power to do horrifying things when they believe it is necessary. But I think it still needed more set up and more character development and more room to breathe. I have…a lot more to say on the subject but I might need to make it it’s own post. I definitely think the writers have set themselves up for a headache when it comes to next season but that’s spoilers so I’ll end this here.

[purefandomonium]

Connection: Part 16-Shapes

Leann sat on the back swing, rocking gently, as she held the GameBoy in her lap and enjoyed the calm breeze. The fresh air did wonders for the weight in her chest. Red was silent, neither text boxes or sounds coming from the device. The only sounds at all were those of cars, birds, bugs, and the faint creak of the metal swing. The warmth of the setting sun was fading as the sky turned from pinkish-orange to blue.

The peace was lulling her to sleep, yet she didn’t want to drum up a conversation with Red to stay awake. For one thing, it wasn’t like she was behind closed doors where no one would hear her, and for another, Red seemed absolutely serene. She noted the way he sat in the white void, eyes closed and form appearing calmer than a still lake.

Deciding it couldn’t cause any harm, she propped the GameBoy open in the usual manner and closed her eyes for a little nap. She knew it would make falling asleep some hours later more difficult, but she was tired now so…

Despite the many new sounds surrounding him, Red could still hear Leann’s faint breaths. It seemed she’d finally relaxed after their prior fight, if it could even be called that. He was just happy to know she was finally at ease, however temporary. He refocused on the rest of the environment.

He could hear so many things! And they were all so clear! Most of the noises were unfamiliar to him; there was metallic clanking from somewhere nearby. Perhaps… inside a house? It sounded irregular, like something was being hit different ways. The clanking and scraping suddenly shifted into stuff being… He couldn’t tell because the sound was suddenly drowned out by multiple footsteps as people entered the space it was taking place in. Someone—a man, as the voice was much deeper than Leann’s or her mother’s—made a comment about how ‘you two are always so quick for dinner’ followed by a pair of giggles.

In another direction, somewhere in the distance, there was a constant drone. Leann had told him about cars and engines, and the sound seemed similar but also very different. It never got any closer or farther and he didn’t hear a rush of air accompanying it. It occasionally let out a sort of sputter, like something was giving it a hard time.

In another house, he could hear a young child playing with a toy. The thing was singing songs about the alphabet and numbers. He heard laughing and the harsh clicking of buttons being pounded. He only recognized it because it was similar to an advertisement he’d heard once when Leann was flipping though channels for something to watch. Apparently, it was normal for entire scripts to be written and acted out in an effort to get people to buy things.

Then there were the bugs. Crickets, he believed. No, wait. Crickets made the chirping sounds. June bugs made the high pitched and annoying buzzing sounds. Leann told him about the two after he’d freaked out upon hearing them the first time when she’d left her window open.

He couldn’t stand to focus on any one thing for too long. There were just so many sounds! He felt like he had the day Leann first hooked up the mic and he could hear her voice. It was both enthralling and a lot to take in. If only he could see. If he had a face to the sounds, he’d have an easier time processing them. Of that he was certain. Leann went into such detail on describing things whenever he asked, but stories weren’t good enough. If he could just see them. If only he could know what they looked like.

He sighed. All he’d ever see was this white void or the broken world he lived in. He opened his eyes to glare at it, as though it were alive and could understand how much he despised it.

Instead of blinding white, he saw blurry, undefined colors he couldn’t hope to describe. He recognized some form of green at the bottom, although it was much darker than what he was used to. The rest were visual overload. All thoughts ground to a halt.

Red screamed.

Leann jolted and nearly fell out of the swing at the high pitched shriek emitting from the GameBoy. Without hesitation, she swiftly scooped it up and smothered the speakers with her shirt. She brought it back out once the noise stopped.

Peeking around the yard before noticing how dark it was getting, she stood up and wordlessly went back inside. She shut the GameBoy and stuffed it in her back pocket before passing by her parents, letting out an acknowledgment as she went up to her room.

After noting the time and briefly wondering why she was still so tired after an hour long nap, she removed the game from her pocket. “Alright. What was that? Are you okay?”

Red was unable to respond as he was too busy trying to keep his emotions in check. He couldn’t just hear the worry in her voice—he could nearly see it on her face! He assumed that was her face. She seemed to be holding him pretty close, and the vague blur of undefined color had a similar semblance to a head. At least, he guessed that’s what real people’s heads looked like. No one would make a game with a world similar to theirs but use unnatural people designs… Right?

“Red?” Leann watched as he shook from visible panic, the edges of his form distorting and glitching. He appeared to be hyperventilating, breathing erratically with his hands gripping the side of his head as he stared at her, eyes wide as plates.

It was then she heard the faint static that synced frighteningly well with his heavy breaths. Her own eyes widened.

A text box appeared, though the font was blurry and pixelated, and smaller than usual.

I can… see you. I think that’s you. I don’t know. But I can see something. Colors but I can’t tell what they are. So many colors… Why are there so many?!?! What’s happening? Leann?! That’s you right?! This isn’t a glitch? I’m not imagining this am I?!?!

The text box lacked its usual attributes and went on and on and on with no end in sight. Red’s mouth was still moving but the screen had long run out of room for the distorted words.

Sentient game character or not, Leann knew a nervous breakdown when she saw one. “Take it easy, Red. Breathe, or whatever it is you do that looks like breathing. Just… close your eyes and focus on your breaths.” She kept her voice steady, hoping to coax him out of it. She felt her heart rate lower when he followed her instruction. “That’s it, just try to calm down. I know it’s a lot but it’s ok.” Now would be a very bad time for one of her parents to barge in. She hoped her voice was too quiet to pass through the door.

Red kept his eyes held shut as he reigned his breathing in. Eventually, the panic faded and he no longer needed Leann’s comfort. However, he refused to open his eyes until he got some answers.

“Do you wanna tell me what all that was about?” she asked his scrunched face.

I… I think I saw… outside earlier. I was just sitting with my eyes closed while you were napping, taking in all the sounds. Then I opened them and saw… well… everything.

The lack of the character tag attached to Red’s words was the least of her worries. “You saw what? The yard?” She thought back to the way she’d positioned the game before drifting off and noted that the yard leading up to the privacy fence would’ve been the only thing he’d have seen.

As well as the flowers, and the little decorative garden fountain, and the cutesy little bird spinner she’d picked out. The sky. All of that would be overwhelming for someone both unfamiliar with color and detail.

The sound she’d heard must’ve been the game portraying him screaming. She held back a shiver.

I guess that’s what it was.

He said nothing for several moments as he carefully opened his eyes. Leann must’ve moved to a different spot in the room, as the space behind her appeared a bit different. She even looked a bit different. He could make out more of her face now. Or could he before and he was too panicked to notice?

Leann tried to keep her expression neutral as bright red eyes stared at her through the tiny screen. She could feel him analyzing her, no doubt trying to make sense of what he was seeing. She pondered what the world must look from his perspective; how he saw his own glitched realm. She knew the game had very limited colors compared to real life, yet it had never really dawned on her what that would mean.

Seeing a cacophony of familiar yet different tones would freak her out too.

Your eyes have color.

She blinked at the random statement. “Um, yeah? Yours do too.”

It was his turn to be taken aback.

They do?

“What? You… didn’t know you had eye color?” She watched the way his head tilted, lips pursed as he thought.

I’ve never seen my own face. I can see myself when I look down. I know what I’m wearing, but I’ve never seen my face.

His hand absently went to his cap to adjust it. Now that he thought, he wasn’t really sure what it looked like but was too stressed to even think about removing it to see.

“You don’t have mirrors? Do you know what a mirror and a reflection are?” This was too much for her fatigued mind to handle. Still, she couldn’t go to sleep until she gave him some sort of closure on this. Otherwise he’d dwell on it all night and all day tomorrow.

Red contemplated. He knew the basic idea of a mirror was to show a reflection, somehow. If it was something he’d known about before gaining a mind of his own, he had no recollection of it. He hadn’t properly interacted much with his broken world upon gaining sentience, so if he’d encountered a mirror before, he only understood it because the game told him what it was. Just like with dreams, he understood the gist of it, but the rest was a mystery. Just like his own face.

He shrugged.

“I… I have no idea how I’m gonna explain that to you,” she said, struggling more and more to grasp the right words. She fought back a yawn. “Maybe we can go over this tomorrow, when I’m less tired and when you’ve… gathered your thoughts or something.” The yawn returned with a vengeance.

…Right…

He seemed to deflate and she managed to fumble together a better response. “Hey, cheer up. I know it’s overwhelming now, but so was the hearing thing and look at how that turned out. This is a good thing, right?”

He gave a soft smile and nodded.

“Who knows? By tomorrow you may be able to see even clearer and then that’ll make everything much easier. As long as you know the basic colors, we can totally figure this out.” She’d be damned if she had to explain the very concept of color to him in addition to the reflection thing.

Okay. You look tired anyway.

Leann was too exhausted to be perturbed by that comment. Instead, she let out a small chuckle. “See? You’re already talkin’ shit and everything. You’ll be just fine.”

Go to bed, Leann. Goodnight.

“Goodnight.” She set the GameBoy on its usual spot on the nightstand and went about her nightly routine. After dodging some questioning from her parents about why she was hitting the sack so early, she cozied up under the covers and fell asleep immediately.

Part 15: here

Part 17: TBD

[sschmendrick]

ok i've been meaning to send this ask all day but never caught the time. I see so much haikyuu on your blog lately! Tell me more! (funny thing is we are doing a rewatch at home too!) tell me your story and EVERYTHING you want. And also!!!! i can see you shipping hinata and kenma?

OK ok, strap yourself in because I cannot guarantee that this will make any sense. But I’ll do my best.

To be off to a great start, I do not remember how I got into Haikyuu. One day it wasn’t and the next it was. From pictures I have I can say that I was into Haikyuu in my last year of middle school (so 2015-2016). By then I already had mangas but I’m pretty sure I was first attracted to it by the anime so I’d already seen the first season (and maybe the second too) and I had started buying the mangas.

(I shall put a read more here cause this post is LONG, beware!!)

Pictured below is one of my productions during my mandatory stage de troisième. I was in a graphic design agency and I was shy so I’d eat real fast at lunch time and use the rest of the time drawing and my supervisor saw me one day and offered to give me an exercise around it that would make me both enjoy what I was doing and also understand more stuff about graphic design. He was awesome. He really went with all my little cringe interests and encouraged me. The exercise he gave me was to create a cover for Haikyuu. I had a lot of fun with the lettering, understanding the dimensions and everything. He then made me create a brand, understanding why brands are called what they are, making my own logo, and then I worked on one of their (maybe) projects.

(top is the cover I did, the second one is what I was working on when he gave me the assignment, last on is me being crazy and drawing yaoi in a room full of adults at 14 and them going good job, you wanna keep drawing ?)

Yes I already had a favourite character but it will become more apparent soon. I got really into volleyball because Haikyuu made it look so cool. I was never a sports guy so it was really hard to want to have fun while being so bad with endurance and athleticism. All I had to my name was my flexibility because of dancing for years. Once again I think I was very lucky with the people I met. My PE teacher was really nice and could have just let me skip the class but he didn’t. Wait no, this needs more context. I didn’t have many friends in middle school. I spent the first year with nobody. The second year someone approached me and more or less dragged me in the world of people and friends (once again, I met an amazing person that was just selflessly nice to me). She got me speaking to people and I met my friends through her. My best friend from elementary had abandoned me in a matter of days after we started middle school so I felt very awkward in all situations. Anyway, I had a few people I hung out with but that was about it. I wasn’t exactly the bestest of friends with them but they accepted me even if I was awkward and didn’t talk much. They all knew each other for a while and were much closer (and popular), so when PE would come around I didn’t have anyone to pair up with. SO, my teacher instead of turning a blind eye offered to help me with the volley practice (this was in quatrième (before last year of middle school) if I remember right ? but it must not have been before I learned about haikyuu). He took the time to make me practice everything and explain everything and honestly I think that helped a lot with my general technique cause otherwise there’s a lot I would not have understood or just learned wrong and would have to readjust when I got to high school.

Back to last year of middle school. My mind has been overtaken by Haikyuu cause it’s brilliant. I dabble in cosplay and I have no money I can use to buy an aliexpress one (yes the dreaded website but we would go there at the time haha) but I want to cosplay Haikyuu. Lucky me, I have found a group of cosplayer on Paris for the next Paris Manga that’s doing Haikyuu ! I was so pumped up. And they didn’t have my character but they did have his partner so we were all excited about it :) My parents were not very thrilled about it all because I was still just 14 and they were mostly adults but my mom still helped me make my own jersey! I still have it but I’m 100% sure it doesn’t fit anymore :’) Here is me starting to fall for the sport and the cosplay progress pictures I still have

(still so proud of it, I did everything by hand !! and last pic is me with a volley ball cause I was a little deranged already)

Yes I was Akaashi, I loved that character. Acting all polite but an overthinker much with a dash of mischievous and admiration for the people around him. Also nothing grand about him like so many of the characters, but he could still hold up with them. I think I have somewhere on my computer a picture of our group but first I don’t know where it is and second you can only see my face on it so I have no picture of my finished cosplay haha. The con was amazing, I had so much fun with these people, we started hanging out a little more often and going to all the anime cons around Paris as a group and we did more group cosplays. I loved it. However at this con I lost my phone and it was in February so when I needed my dad to come pick me up I had to wait for 45 minutes in short shorts and a thin jersey :’)

After that I kept enjoying Haikyuu as one does, and high school started. Oh high school, a lot happened there. First thing I did was being reborn ! And even though it wasn’t much and only social it helped me be a little more free already. Free enough to allow myself to pursue a certain sport I was looking forward to. Yeah I got the volleyball bug. I was so happy my high school had a volleyball “club” and the first day of it we were only two. It was me and another guy, even smaller than me, who had also loved Haikyuu but we didn’t talk much about it. He was just as fired up about it as I was and we really pushed each other to become better. I don’t know what he’s become now but I hope he kept playing volleyball.

Anyway we were off to a great start with…two players. But still our coach/PE teacher was kind enough to teach us. We managed to have a few more people to come now and then but it was rough the first year. In my three years (well two but that’ll come later) we never had 6 “full time” people in the club so any kind of competition, even to get completely massacred by the other teams, was out of the question sadly. We would play on a concrete court ! It was REALLY rough haha ! But these courts were situated in a sort of closed courtyard space that was surrounded by school buildings and on the top floor were the Prepa classes (preparatory classes to get in higher education schools like engineering private schools for anyone not French reading this). Unlike the rest of my classmates, they liked playing volleyball. They were soooo tall compared to us but they would play with us and teach us some stuff and they were really good compared to us. Thanks to them we got the actual practice we needed cause you can’t learn enough by just playing 3x3 or worse 2x2 with people who can barely keep the ball in play (I was one of these people, I get to trash talk past me).

In my first year of high school I was taking riding lessons at the military school since we wouldn’t be able to go to our family’s house village with the more apparent divorce and moving out and other difficulties. It was an experience and I don’t regret doing it but it wasn’t a great place. I stopped the next year. And then…then I have memory problems. I cannot remember if it was during my second or last year of high school that I did it, but I would say it was during my second year of high school, that I entered an outside volleyball club. It was a Sunday lesson, it was all adults and it was for beginners. We would mostly do matches but sometimes they would focus on serves or hitting (I only remember one lesson about it though lol). It was super cool, I got to play volleyball on the Wednesday with my school club, whenever at lunch break when the Prepa were playing, and the Sundays at my outside club. By then, I don’t think I was reading or watching much of Haikyuu. I think I might have gotten my adhd ass hooked on something else while waiting for the next season and I had fallen in love with volleyball for the playing not just Haikyuu by then. Also something that I’m working on (and I’ve noticed it has gotten better already) is that I have a hard time appreciating watching people do something I love (usually a sport) as much as I appreciate doing the sport. For example, I never enjoyed watching any horse jumping competition even though I love doing it. I think it might come from the fact that I am bad at the things I love and therefore cannot truly appreciate what’s going on. As of right now I watch volleyball matches and rallies and really enjoy it.

Last year of high school rolls around the corner and…our PE teacher/coach tells us that they are closing the club down cause we aren’t enough and she would rather not run from our practice to the badminton’s practice (that she also coaches) and only work with the badminton’s club. After all they had the regional and potential national champions there meanwhile we had no hope of ever participating in a competition. And I had learned at my last lesson at my outside club that since we weren’t enough coming to the practice they would close down their beginner lesson. It was a bit of a shock to go from two practice per week to none at all. I missed volleyball. I accepted to participate at the badminton’s practices (cause it’s also a sport I like but at leisure, not on a competitive level, and less than volleyball) but it was just to keep me doing something. What happened though is I got to choose which sports I wanted for my BAC (high school diploma) since I was in a club the year prior and I chose the one with volleyball and I aced that. I only resented the top players of our group a little cause it wasn’t their sport at all but since they were pretty athletic and good at sports in general they had no problem being good at it when it took me sooooo long :’) yes I am petty.

Then I don’t know what the heck happened. Well yes I know but I don’t know why when I arrived in Montreal in my school I didn’t try to get into the volleyball club. Anyway, I didn’t play for a whiiiiile, years ! And the only reason I did again was because my best friend’s parents ( @nyaoi-warrior ) invited me to play with them and their friends when I visited. I was bad at communicating when I was playing in France (I often forget to say “j’ai”) but this was in Czech Rep, and we couldn’t communicate in English. It was HARD but I had so much fun !! My team lost all of the sets but it was so cool :D

Recently I was looking for something in my old stuff in the basement of the building. I didn’t find it but what I did find were my old Haikyuu manga. And oh god the flame it awoken in me. So anyway here is me a few weeks later with a volley ball in my hands, I’ve found a place I can sneak in just for the end of the year and I’ve been looking at clubs I can enter (and hopefully get better and then do some competition).

Now more about Haikyuu. What an amazing sports manga/anime it is. Of course, with the protagonist being a spiker most people when they start volleyball because of Haikyuu want to spike. I was lucky enough to be in the tall half of my year in high school but now I am tiny compared to most volleyball players. And a thing I love in volleyball I quickly discovered is diving for the ball. I’d be running far back or on the side, sliding until my knees burn to keep that ball in play. I thank Haikyuu for giving each role a time in the spotlight in almost every game they play, cause with what we learned in my school club or outside club I would never have heard of the libero. Ofc when you play for leisure having a libero is a bit meh but now I know that if I ever want to play competitive this is the role I should gun for (or maybe setter but I’m still pretty small so idk).

I just finished watching the season 4 recently and I’m on my way to catch up, and then finish with the scans (and then buying the mangas too). I got spoiled about what happens at the nationals after season 4 and what happens after, the time skip etc but just in the grand lines and I’m fine with that. I don’t think that it takes away from it too much. And (IF YOU DON’T WANT TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENS AFTER/DURING TIME SKIP DON’T READ BUT ALSO WE WON’T HAVE A FULL TIME SKIP ANIMATED SO IF YOU’RE JUST WATCHING THE ANIME I’D SAY MIGHT AS WELL READ IT BUT ALSO IT’S EVERYWHERE SO YOU MIGHT KNOW IT ALREADY) I freaking love Hinata in Brazil. It’s very funny to me too cause here is this little dude who got me into volleyball, with whom I had an anime-level betrayal and tragedy with my clubs, and now I’m learning Portuguese because of my Brazilian friends and I wanna go to Brazil and HE WENT TOO ?? That was hilarious to me. Maybe I should look into beach volleyball hehehe.

About the ships; I started with the “basic” ones, the most obvious ones that come from the strong bonds and non-stop interactions and how they are shown as more or less pairs by the manga/anime (so kagehina, asanoya, daisuga, bokuaka, etc etc etc) but I am a multi shipper now. I don’t know I have a much more relaxed approach to shipping now, especially for big casts where there isn’t clear cut villains, same with one piece. They all have great relationships with everyone around them and I like many of them. And yeah I stumbled upon kenhina recently and I really like their dynamic. I love kagehina just as much, and also the hilarious way Hinata seems to fascinate all setters. I have seen some really funny tsukkihina fanarts too. I’ve put a lot of stuff in my queue so you got some yakunoya coming soon as well haha. Also from what I’ve heard (haven’t got to see it yet) (yes the premiere was Sunday and it’s only out today) that the movie has big kenhina energy so I’m here for it.

This little red-head guy just makes me so happy. I’m so glad I got to discover one of, if not my favourite sport out there (and that says a lot coming from a horsegirl) and I want to keep it in my life. I’m asking around for clubs and selections and I hope I am accepted. And I’ll be celebrating my birthday watching Olympic volleyball matches :D

OH ! Another thing. During my intensive studying period for my current school’s diploma, I was with friends and before we started studying each morning we would put on music or some kind of stuff, and we put anime opening blind tests and one of them had the first Haikyuu opening (which is still my favourite cause yk…it’s the one that started it all) and I was hit with a wall of memories…yeah :’)

I think that’s all I might have forgotten a few things, I don’t know at this point.

I can’t believe you got me writing more about volleyball, in English, in 2 hrs than I’ve written for my THESIS in a WEEK. This is 5 word pages WITHOUT THE PICTURES.

[bonesandthebees]

It's very funny to see my dash filled with QSMP stuff yet not being into it myself. I think now I understand how all those people felt when they were exposed to DSMP content/discourse, because the stuff I see now sounds absolutely insane sometimes (I dropped off after Juanaflippa died and haven't been up to date ever since).

Anyway, the Halloween story! I really liked what you did with leading us to believe that Wilbur was the guilty one (the conversation in the bar really sold that idea) and then slowly letting us realise that maybe things aren't the way we think they are. Small towns hold so many secrets..

Burning down the corn somehow felt like the last punch they could pull and in a way it was very poetic. A nice sense of closure.

I also wonder what was Phil's reaction when the boys told him the story. Could you tell us more about it? (or redirect me to a post if this was already answered)

-🌹

LMAO I'm so sorry for filling your dash with qsmp I'm sure that's gotta be wild to experience. qsmp is insane enough when you know what's going on, the outside POVs have gotta feel so wild

I don't blame you for dropping off after juanaflippa died I definitely considered dipping but then the wilbur soot tallulah week happened and I was revitalized and became extremely invested in that beanie wearing egg with hair. then I got highkey attached to everyone else and now I rotate q!phil in my mind constantly he's soooooo :)

(general reminder to my followers: if something I post a lot of and don't tag is annoying you feel free to ask me to tag it so you can block the posts! I stopped tagging my qsmp posts a while ago but I can go back to doing that or create a new tag for them if you don't wanna see them)

anyway moving on

aw thank you I'm so glad you enjoyed!! I had a lot of fun playing around with the misdirection in the foreshadowing. that conversation in the bar was especially fun to write because quackity holds the same assumption as the readers: that wilbur killed their father. wilbur knows this is what quackity thinks and doesn't do a whole lot to dissuade that notion, thus further cementing the idea to the readers as well. it was a lot of fun wordplay for me

ngl I've just always wanted to write a midwestern gothic type thing that ended with a cornfield burning down the mental image is just too cool. also like you pointed out I thought it gave the story a nice sense of closure :)

okay so this ask doesn't get too long (and so people can keep things vague if they want) i'll put the 'what happens when phil finds out' bit under the cut

so I wanted to leave things with phil vague so the readers could make their own interpretations, but I'd like to think that phil actually suspected that wilbur and tommy had something to do with their father's disappearance from the start. he never put too much stock into it though because he always thought they would've told him if they did actually have a hand in it. so instead he just kind of purposefully turned a blind eye to all the signs and imagined their father probably went and pissed the wrong person off at the wrong time while drunk and got a bullet between the eyes as a result. it wasn't exactly wrong.

anyway, finding out that his original gut feeling was right and they were the ones to kill him hurts phil a lot. not because his brothers murdered their father, but because they didn't tell him about it for ten years. when more details get revealed and he learns that tommy was the one to shoot him and not wilbur, he understands a little more why wilbur was so reluctant to tell him but still, the hurt is there. at the very least, he understands why wilbur left now, and that's been an open wound for him for years at this point. so that bit of closure, combined with knowing for sure that their father is never coming back, makes up for the pain of knowing how long his little brothers lied to him.

basically the conversation ends with phil reassuring tommy a lot while scolding wilbur for leaving for eight years instead of telling him the truth. hours later though, probably once the sun has risen and tommy has passed out in his room, phil sees wilbur sitting at the dining table staring blankly into his coffee mug. he thinks about what wilbur told him before about how he learned to run away from him, and that phil wasn't there when they needed him. he thinks about the guilt in wilbur's eyes when he told phil that tommy had to shoot their dad because he just couldn't pull the trigger himself.

and phil goes and hugs his younger brother, and tells him that it wasn't his fault. that he did the best he could. that it's okay that he couldn't pull the trigger. and wilbur hugs him back, feeling like a little kid again wrapped up in his big brother's arms.

it's not okay yet. it might not ever be fully okay. but they're dealing with it. as a family this time.

[leaflovingal]

Sorry for inundating you with questions but I'm fascinated by the new knowledge that Cawl is committing tech heresy. Well, I knew that, who isn't, but I didn't know that he was actually called a heretek, I just assumed everyone put up with/turned a blind eye to his bullshit because he made cool stuff.

So yeah onto actual questions, what deeds specifically is Cawl happily whistling All The Things She Said to while sections of the Imperium shit their pants in the background, which sections we talking, are they shitting their pants for a good reason and if so do they know that good reason or are they just being the Imperium

Well firstly, heretek can be used by us the fans far more accurately on a case-by-case basis, so while i and others say "cawl commits tech heresy all the time, therefore he counts as a heretek" he has no been decried as one by the synod of mars as far as i know. Plenty of people still want him dead as hell though.

Cawl is kinda untouchable right now so people have to put a blind eye to him, but once that wears off i would not be surprised if he has major issues with the imperium. Gulliman needs him though, so while people can say "you made new space marines, eg, you took the emperor/omnissiahs design and 'improved' upon it therefore you're a heretek", he doesnt have to anwer for any of that.

For things that he's done, well. He's made at least two AI and gulliman knows about one. Because cawl fucking gave it to him. So gulliman is probably at least a little afraid of cawl. Other than that, i havent read enough lore and also cawl is a major "fuck you" to admech storytelling because he doesnt have much fluff beyond being the ultimate plot device.

Cawl isnt healthy for admech because he's our only living major character and also gos so far against the actual beliefs of the faction while being its poster boy by virtue of being our only major character that is relevent. How many factions have their *main guy* go entirely against what a lot of the faction stands for. If you want a cool series that has nothing to do with cawl, read the Forges of Mars omnibus.

Feel free to ask questions too, i enjoy being made to think about this stuff instead of letting it rot in my head

[itwoodbeprefect]

💖💥📚 ✅

💖 What made you start writing?

i answered this one here. (but after you sent this, so thank you!)

💥 How do you feel about criticism?

mostly i feel that i should probably look for it more. i don’t think it’s a great idea to dole it out in ao3 comments, even if it’s the extremely well-intentioned constructive kind, unless the author specifically says somewhere that they welcome that kind of feedback. i also, honestly, don’t think that’s how i’d like to receive (con)crit, because fic that’s on ao3 is generally fic i consider done, so i probably won’t be making any changes anyway. (unless it’s small stuff that’s an actual factual mistake! eye colors. i’ve gotten so many eye colors wrong in my day, somehow.)

but also... i should maybe start asking people for beta reading, sometimes. at least with longer stuff, because it’s so easy to stare yourself blind on the words and to weave a web that keeps catching continuity errors instead of flies. on top of which, i am curious! i’d like to know what people think i could do better or more effectively and how to step up my writing game, it’s just that it has to come from people whose judgment in these matters i trust.

📚 Would you ever want to turn writing into a career?

i mean, it sounds cool! in theory that would be amazing! i’m just not entirely sure it would still be cool in reality - self-promotion is often an expected part of that job these days, and deadlines, hoo boy. i’m such a flighty writer, jumping from project A to B to Z and maybe back to B again, that i’m honestly not sure i could work on a schedule and not start to dread the thing i used to enjoy. on top of which, well, i’ve written almost exclusively fanfic over the last... half decade, maybe. i know some people have multiple casts of meticulously crafted OCs they really love, but i’ve never had that, and i also don’t particularly relish plotting. which. you’d have to do at least some of those things to turn writing into a profession, so, i don’t know.

✅ What’s something that appears in your fics over and over and over again, even if you don’t mean to?

recently i’ve noticed that i keep describing characters laughing and then cutting themselves off, or barking a short laugh, or realizing mid-laugh that it wasn’t funny after all, or any variation on that theme. it’s a problem! i’ve been trying to edit it out wherever possible, because i don’t want to rely on the same responses or gestures over and over, but oh, i do love a suddenly halted laugh, it seems.

also... guinea pigs? that was never entirely the plan. i don’t have plot bunnies, i have plot potatoes on legs, and i have a specific weakness that means i can’t not pick them up and feed them parsley.

... and characters just keep doing the dishes. which i’m not intentionally editing out, because in life a lot of dishes need to be washed, but they just keep going and going and i should maybe write them a dish washer at some point. their fingers are going to get so wrinkled.

send me emojis (if you want)! 🌈  

[motherofmabari]

Thank you @gvnseylike for the tag! I enjoy doing these 🥰

Share your wallpaper

I use a wallpaper changer lol. Currently there's 271 in rotation, some are my own art, some are from various fandoms, some are my pets, stuff like that. It's biphobic to make me choose 😘

The last song you listened to:

😅 Take Me Away from the Lindsay Lohan/Jamie Lee Curtis Freaky Friday movie, actually. Best fictional song imo

Currently reading:

Bookclub with my dad - All About Love by bell hooks

Book buddies with my best friend- Shadow and Bone/working our way through the Grishaverse by Leigh Bardugo

I also listen to a fuckload of audiobooks at work, just finished The Sharper Your Knife, the Less You Cry by Kathleen Flinn. Now I'm revisiting Arc 8 of Unprepared Casters, will prolly finish that by Friday and idk what's after that. Reccs literally ALWAYS welcome I have headphones on a solid 6 hours a day minimum

Last Movie:

I think it was Glass Onion? Been on more of a TV kick lately

Craving:

It is so close to strawberry season and I am *dying* for some good strawberries. There's a strawberry farm 2 minutes from work and every day I look to see if their sign is up cause the second it is I'm buying a pallet

What are you wearing right now?

Black bandeau and comfy shorts, basically my jammies

How tall are you:

5'4. I am short and squishy.

Piercings:

I had my ears pierced as a kid, suffered for years trying all the different earring materials until I finally gave up and accepted that my body doesn't like being pierced and will die mad about it

Tattoos:

One on my back right hip, of my late pet rat Mungojerrie. I've had a total of 12 rats in my life (usually 4-5 at once) and adored them all, but Mungo's pattern was most suited to a tattoo so she represents my lil mischief. I want more tattoos but those cost money I don't have rn, so someday

Glasses? Contacts?

Either! Depending on the outfit. Wearing glasses a lot lately because I got some really cute glasses chains

Last drink:

Currently have two on my end table, water for hydration and Dr pepper cause it's tasty

Last show:

Bob's Burgers, the episode where Teddy pretends to be into hurling and Louise attempts to turn herself into an Avatar of the Buried by sacrificing Tina to a watery grave for a gd rusty ball jfc that was stressful my anxiety was through the ROOF

Last thing you ate:

McDonald's chicken nuggets. Is a lazy kind of night

Favorite color:

Green

Current obsession:

Mild hyperfixation on the grishaverse after season 2 of the entflix adaptation prompted a series reread

Unrelated obsession:

Dragon Age, specifically Dragon Age 2. It's my never ending hyperfixation lol

Any pets:

Two dogs, two cats, and a leopard gecko. The dogs are Ruby, a Doberman mix from a local rescue with separation anxiety that the rescue was not up front about, love my boy but I am *mad* at that rescue, and Angel, a byb min pin adopted from a friend's grandpa when he had to go into assisted living. The cats are Boris, an orange tabby adopted as a kitten from our vet, and Rangi, a calico adopted as an adolescent from the same vet a year later, after our first cat Natasha passed away. Last there's Heihei, the leopard gecko I adopted from the petsmart where I worked at the time after he was blinded by an eye infection and they couldn't sell him. He's a cool little dude.

Do you have a crush on anyone?

I am in a happy long term relationship lol

Favorite fictional character:

See answer one and don't be biphobic 😇, you get two - Fenris from Dragon Age 2 and Keladry of Mindelan from Protector of the Small. I adore them both and honestly for very similar reasons despite their vastly different backgrounds and personalities.

The last place you traveled:

Day trip, I went about an hour and a half away to ~nearby largeish city~ to see Hadestown and it was *incredible*. Overnight, I honestly have no idea, it's been like 7 years at least but it'd probably have been the last time I visited my Florida grandparents instead of the other way around, they've been spending half the year in our state lately and I can't afford to travel to visit them there. Yay adulthood.

Blank -

Share your wallpaper

The last song you listened to:

Currently reading:

Last Movie:

Craving:

What are you wearing right now?

How tall are you:

Piercings:

Tattoos:

Glasses? Contacts?

Last drink:

Last show:

Last thing you ate:

Favorite color:

Current obsession:

Unrelated obsession:

Any pets:

Do you have a crush on anyone?

Favorite fictional character:

The last place you traveled:

Tagging @dragongeek1, @becauseanders, and @silly-goofy-mood no pressure or anything, just if y'all wanna! 🥰

[cervidaedalus]

Had the sporadic idea this morning to create a Discord for disabled FFxiv players (I don't know if one exists already but I haven't seen it promoted). Some ideas and thoughts below the cut:

Overall I would want it to be a community that removes the stigma that you can't play these games if you have a limiting physical disability, or that you can't be accepted in a social group if you have certain mental health conditions. I knew an Ele Shaman in WoW who raided with mild palsy, and some of our raid group was bitter she was holding us back. I don't want anyone to feel like they can't do endgame content because they might not be able to do end game content because they have a much different skill cap. I knew a Nelf Hunter who was blind (could see, but very, very poorly) who had a friend as his "seeing eye Gnome" in voice comms helping lead him places. I don't want anyone to feel like they're alone and can't enjoy something because their limitations provide a significant block. This can include people who suffer from fatigue, ADHD, or brain fog for any reason and can't focus or have the energy to utilize their full Job skillset or boss mechanics. This can include people with severe anxiety that makes them worry about doing group content. If it routinely hinders your ability to play and fully enjoy the game as an abled person would, the server would be for you.

Content: The usual chat, entertainment, and art channels, but also channels for disability aids, guides, and advice (both game and real life) like how to use that Xbox modular controller thing on PC and Playstation. A category of channels for people to advertise FCs, Linkshells, and Statics either by and for disabled players, or those that have leadership who are properly educated and accepting. Basically anywhere disabled players can go to enjoy the game without feeling judged or ostracized. A category for content runs with other disabled players from across datacenters, like maps, deep dungeons, etc. If people want to create their own disability-friendly statics they can use the other channel, because statics can become their own individual thing and I don't want any bad things that may happen to become the server's responsibility. A venting channel in order to keep the space from becoming Depression Central. A lot of disability communities I've been in seem to sway towards venting about treatment from doctors or the general public, or how the conditions impact your life and relationships. I don't want this server to become just that, but these frustrations are valid and shouldn't be shut out, so instead they'll have a containment space. Likewise, a channel for people to share positive experiences. Maybe you finally got that diagnosis you were looking for, maybe someone in a random dungeon was super cool even when you were struggling. Category for other MMOs so people can find guilds and groups in those as well, I just don't want the server to be a broad disabled MMO server since that means potentially thousands of members, and from entirely different social communities. Moderation: Obviously all the usual "no bigotry" rules will apply. There is significant overlap of disability and queer community, for example, as well as mental health disabilities from other marginalized ethnic or religious groups put through political or generational trauma. I'd like to build a relaxed moderation team- no one with a history of any recent public or game drama. I'd like to build a team that spreads across the entire spectrum of representation not just in disabilities themselves, but culture. This isn't purely about representation, but also having someone to turn to for knowledge on any issues of an ethnic, religious, or queer culture as they pertain to disability. Absolutely no gatekeeping, no negative or "ableist" speech putting down any disabilities or purporting someone "isn't disabled enough" or "such and such isn't a disability". The next stuff will largely revolve around moderation for mental health conditions but- This will include vilified conditions and those that can cause unintended social conflict, like ASDs, cluster B's, bipolar. All moderators need to be on the same page with not assuming the worst from someone who might slip up. Helping lead a large FC has taught me how to give people chances and work with them over social abrasions due to disabilities and mental health, but that there is a hard limit. In case of any crisis or severe meltdowns, server mutes will be utilized via a special role which will hide or lock all channels except one with the moderation team to allow the person place to speak and cool off, and for the team to determine if the person is unfit for the server or just needed some time (repeat occurrences of this may necessitate a ban). People who continue to cause problems after being spoken to and excuse it with their disability will need to be removed. Have a plan in place if this leads to public lambasting on Twitter or otherwise. We absolutely will not engage with counter callouts, simply ignore most cases and maintain our overall MO of creating and maintaining a health and safe space for disabled players, which inevitably may not be for everyone.

We will allow ban appeals, to give people who pursue treatment and improvement the chance to come back after a minimum of 6 months to a year depending on severity.

[just-jayy]

If the fandom hates you and continues to harass you, why are you still in it?

Because this show, as stupid as it is, has made me feel seen in a way that nobody can understand. It's very personal so I'm not getting into the specifics, but it's the first time I've seen something I've struggled with (mental health and addiction; pills for me, alcohol in the show) be handled carefully and respectfully. Especially for Kaeloo, the character.

Kaeloo the character I see so very clearly as myself, a reflection of what it feels like being not "normal". Gender identity stuff, dissociation, memory lapses, emotional instability... These are things you'd never expect from a cartoon, especially nowadays.

My favorite episode will always be Beautiful Words. It spoke to me and continues to make me cry when I watch it because of how very real it is for me. Because I've been there in Kaeloo's shoes. I know how it feels to be so stuck emotionally when something sets you off, or even arguing with other parts for rationality only to find out that there is no rationale.

Mr. Cat (and QQ to a lesser extent) has issues with addiction and finding a reason to live. His world has been a constant slap in the face of multiple forms of abuse, which leads to him seeking for a bit of respite from this harsh reality. Even with friends, he still resigns himself to a lifestyle of parties and dosing himself in booze.

Stumpy is neglected by his mother, but he pretends to always be happy. He has to for his little sister's, who are all products of emotional stunted growth because of his mother's abuse.

To me, this cartoon isn't just a cartoon, it's a show and a story that takes very real struggles and handles them with respect that the topics deserve. Mental health is the key focus behind the characters, which I have a lot of respect for. People on this fandom, even the adults, can't see that. Instead they focus on blatantly hating an episode purely because a character appears or has a spot in it. They hate moments of the show that give us depth because their prefrontal cortex isn't developed to understand nuance yet. But I and many others can see the love and care that gets put into this, and we love the routes the storytelling can take us.

This is why I find it so funny when that half of the fandom says I'm not a real fan. People enjoy Bluey, an actual preschool cartoon, but they find a problem with someone like me enjoying a show that isn't even strictly for children, it's for kids and adults. That's why S1 has the humor it does. They don't like me in this fandom because I ship something they don't like.

That's it.

They've all convinced themselves it has to do with that document (which was a critique on fandom spaces and dysfunctionality as well as toxic cult behavior, which they see as a harassment campaign which just... you guys are actually not mentally okay) and can't use their critical thinking skills to listen to reason, purposely turning a blind eye and deaf ear to very real things that happened.

There's no other reason for these people to dislike me so much.

Edit post-publication: they also hate me bc the fandomhead took a very simple situation and twisted the story as they do.

They listen to that little voice of, "well if jay is right then I'd have to apologize and then I'll be ostracized from the group", because that's the kind of toxic culture that side of the fandom culminates. They try to bait me to respond when they send me messages (some of them forget to hit anon or the app glitches, that's always funny), or reblog my posts with incomprehensible walls of text, but I don't give in nor do I reply to people who should have no stake in this matter and purely exist to come to the fandomhead 's aide bc she isn't an adult who can handle her own problems.

Keep in mind, we're talking about adults with the minds of babies who think their opinions matter on the internet. They firmly believe that I send myself messages, that I post what makes me happy to spite them and not because I actually enjoy it, and whatever other batshit reasoning they want to say.

Keep in mind x2: I've had these people blocked since that doc was posted. I don't go on their accounts, I don't stalk their pages, I don't send them asks, I don't do shit. LIterally, what would I have to gain by doing any of that?

I guess what I'm saying can be answered with a counterargument: why in the world would anyone want to be in a fandom that is so hostile at the moment? If anything, people have been more happy that I've been posting what I want because they're sick of the repetition in the tag. I don't see anything in the tag other than Ink and my stuff because I have every single person and sock account blocked there, so I can't imagine what's been going on.

TL;DR: I don't give into bullies who hide behind anonymous or spam me with how much they don't like me. I still like the show because I like it. I don't associate with the fandom because the fandom is a horrible place for people. It's a toxic cesspool of idiots so stuck in 2019-proship-v-anti-mindset who will castrate you if you dare to open up about what you like. It's just a bad place, which is why I'm not in it.

I'm just a dude who likes the ships and content I make with my friends. I'm allowed to exist just as much as the fandom and the people in it are.

Anyway, free Palestine and go support vetted gfms!

[ghcstvalleychief]

To be honest, it feels like a lot of people have been rather questionable and almost entitled in the last few days. Ignoring the fact that half of the fandom doesn’t seem to understand intricacy or politics of a company or industry, my question is where’s your enjoyment and love of/for MA? Why are you upset at people who have decided to stay? Are you so blinded by your hatred that you forgot/forget enjoyment? (Yes, people are allowed to feel what they want. You do come first. No one is obligated ever. And BOC absolutely will/do deserve criticism) BUT. Some of the things being said. LOL. It’s coming across as being “owed” too. And honestly..just a bit parasocial too.

It’s also not “giving in” considering people have been doing the same thing for months with (MA only!) It’s still a valid point. Those who are self-aware know what the reality is with BOC and the intricacies of employees and bosses. Even the most..weird companies. This also applies to multiple fandoms with shitty showrunners and kpop companies and idols. It’s actually not MA’s fault.

And I enjoy poking fun at BBB’s fans and BOC sometimes but I don’t let it consume me. Sometimes it seems like that all there ever is on this side of things. Like..maybe some of us want to just retweet and make tweets about a MA hug or whatever? It’s enjoyable to me and to other people.

There is a latter.

Idk maybe it’s helps that I am in multiple fandoms. And I know from experience lol. And honestly? No fandom is perfect and there’s often issues with x y or z thing. There really isn’t a perfect thing and different issues do arise.

Just…hmm, a lot of eye-opening stuff.

Anon, you appear to know a LOT about what's goin on over in the Twitter sphere of this fandom so I assume you've also seen the most recent shenanigans, yes? See, this entire mole situation is a result of everything you've just said. Yes, the fandom is annoying and exhausting with their bullshit. However, there's something to be said about a person who embarks on a smear campaign against Mile or Apo just to get back at the idiots in this fandom and BOC. In what world can you justify doing that to them just to get back at BOC or the idiots in this fandom you considered to be bullies? But somehow, these idiots were your 'friends' once upon a time. So, what's the truth? I'm confused.

I say all of that to say this - people have a tendency to allow their hatred for Pond and this company to turn into resentment and bitterness against Mile and Apo. That's unjustifiable and inexcusable. That's not something that's going to get you any sympathy. I find Pond to be an incredibly unprofessional and incompetent CEO. You won't get any rebuttals from me on that perspective. However, why would any of that suddenly turn you into a person who is willing to drag MA down with the fandom and Pond/BOC just because you're angry? What's the reason? You claimed to love them but now you hate them? Sure, hate and love are both incredibly deep and strong emotions but it just goes to show how seriously and personally some of these people take all of this fandom shit. People assume that I'm being stuck-up and arrogant when I say stuff like that. And yet, the people in this fandom haven't proved me wrong yet. The people are immature, naïve, and gullible and they are extremely sensitive about literally everything. It's not all of them but there's enough of them where it won't take long for you to notice it.

But I'm like you - I'm in multiple fandoms, as well. I still enjoy MA (and always will) but my interests are quite varied these days so I'm not very affected by any of that anymore. The fandom nonsense doesn't get to me anymore because it's not the only fandom I'm in. I can take a break from that drama as much and as often as I would like. The only good thing that I hope comes from all of what's happened in the last couple of days is that it will finally get rid of the bad seeds. Hopefully, it will make those people leave for good instead of causing issues in this fandom by leading the fandom into an unnecessary battle every single time Pond breathes wrong. I hope it finally dismantles the group of people I mentioned in my text post a little while ago. If you know, you know.

[atlabeth]

everything happens for a reason part 18 - zuko x fem!reader

Don't speak, I know just what you're thinking

part 17 | masterlist | part 19

a/n: and yn is finally reunited with her friends!!! as much as im sure you all enjoyed yn being constantly sad and depressed in prison i am so glad that i get to write her w the gaang again as well as suki in a more normal situation. those girlies are bonded for life

wc: 9.2k lmao OOPS

warning(s): some angst regarding zuko ofc but pretty tame; minor injuries, fighting, canon stuff from the boiling rock ep

chapter title comes from don't speak by no doubt!

“You’ve got to be kidding me.” 

After a restless night, Y/N was looking forward to meeting with Sokka and Suki again and formulating their plan for escape. Instead, she was met with the sight of not only Zuko, but Zuko in his very own set of prison rags. 

“We, uh—” he glanced down at his outfit, “—we ran into some issues last night.”

“Didn’t take you long to mess up, did it?” she commented as she grabbed a mop from one of the buckets at the corner of the room. “I’m not surprised.” 

“Y/N—” Zuko started, but she shook her head. 

“Save it.” She gestured across the way with the stick of her mop where Suki stood, inconspicuously speaking with Sokka who was still in his guard disguise. Not even bothering to look at Zuko, she started on her way. 

“Hey,” she said, offering nods of greeting to both Sokka and Suki. They returned them, and after ensuring that no actual guards were around to hear them, she turned back to them. “Are you guys okay?” 

“I’m fine,” Suki said, and she smiled at Sokka. “A lot better knowing that you’re here.” 

Y/N smiled inwardly at the faint blush on his cheeks as he spoke up. “We’re good too. Zuko ended up getting caught last night, but they still don’t know about me. But I’ve had a lot of time to polish my idea since I last saw you, and I can make it work in our favor. I think I’ve got a pretty solid plan, guys.” 

“Please, spill,” Y/N said. “I am more than ready to get out of here.” 

“Same,” Suki muttered. 

Sokka looked behind him one last time to ensure that no guards were nearby, and then he ushered them into the corner next to the stairs for maximum privacy. Y/N and Suki set their mops against the wall and the four of them squatted down, Sokka lowering his voice. 

“So, you know how when a firebender misbehaves or uses their bending, they get sent to the coolers?” They all nodded, and Sokka pushed up the visor of his helmet. “Well, I checked them out again — the whole point of them is to keep firebenders contained, which means they’re completely insulated and sealed to keep the cold in. And to keep the cold in, it also has to keep the heat out, right?” 

Suki frowned. “Just get to the point, Sokka.” 

“We’ve clearly been apart for too long,” he sighed, shaking his head. “You have no appreciation for my dramatics anymore.” 

Suki rolled her eyes but couldn’t stifle her smile. “Whatever.” 

He smiled as well as he continued. “Because of its insulation, it’s a perfect boat to get through the boiling water!”

Zuko’s eyes widened. “The cooler as a boat? Are you sure?” 

“I’m telling you,” Sokka said, “it’ll work.” 

Y/N frowned. “What about the guards? They have watchtowers around the perimeter—they’d spot us in a second.” 

Sokka shook his head. “I walked it this morning. There’s a blind spot between two of the guard towers—we can launch the cooler there. The current will take us right through, and as long as we stay quiet, no one will notice a thing. Not until we’re long gone.”

“That sounds great,” Suki said. “But how are you gonna get the cooler out? None of us will be able to help you, and surely you can’t do all that work alone.” 

Sokka opened his mouth to respond, but a different, unfamiliar voice rang out instead. 

“Yeah. How are you going to get the cooler out?” 

Y/N immediately grabbed her mop out of instinct—not that it would do much help if a guard had caught them plotting an escape—but when they all looked up, it was just another prisoner. He hopped down from the railing and landed next to them, ignoring their bewildered expressions. So much for privacy. 

“What?” Sokka immediately started panicking as he tugged at his collar. “We— we didn’t say that!”

Zuko nodded. “Yeah. You heard wrong.” 

His face remained impassive. “I heard you hatching an escape plan. I want in.” 

“There’s nothing to get in on,” Zuko said.

“We’re just having a normal conversation,” Y/N said, her grip on the handle of her mop tightening. “Nothing you need to be involved in.” 

“Yeah,” Sokka spoke up, “the only thing we’re hatching is… an egg.” 

Suki gave him a disappointed look, Zuko groaned, and Y/N just sighed. Sokka was a genius, but he really needed to work on his improv. 

The prisoner shrugged. “Either I come with you, or the warden hears about this egg.” 

The four of them looked at each other, speaking with each other just through minute changes in their expressions, until they finally settled on what they knew they had to do. 

Suki broke away first, relenting with a sigh. “I guess we have no choice.” 

“Fine,” Sokka said, looking at the prisoner, “you’re in. But you follow our lead on everything, or you’re out just as quickly.” 

“As long as you get me off this rock, I don’t care what my part is,” he said. 

Sokka nodded. “Okay. Back to getting the cooler out. Obviously, Suki’s right, and I can’t do it alone, especially from the outside. But,” he looked at Zuko, “we can get someone to unscrew it from the inside.”

It took Zuko a second to understand, but then he nodded. “I can do that.” 

“Good.” Sokka took a wrench out from his back pocket and handed it to Zuko, and he tucked it into his tunic. 

“You’re gonna have to use your firebending,” Suki said. “We see it happen all the time— a guard baits a prisoner into a fight, they use their bending, and they get locked in the cooler for a week for something that isn’t even their fault. If you’re seen blasting at Sokka, you’ll definitely get thrown in.”

Sokka shook his head. “As much as I’d love to fight Zuko, I shouldn’t be seen causing a scene with him again. We were already caught together last night—if that happens again, someone up top might get suspicious.” 

“Zuko and I can fight,” Y/N spoke up. “I know how to dodge his attacks.” And to be honest… she wanted to throw a couple punches at him. She was still angry she had to work with him to get out of here. 

Zuko frowned. “No way. I’m not fighting you for this, and I’m not gonna burn you.”

She snorted. “You had no qualms about doing it before.”

Zuko winced at the barb, and she couldn’t help but feel a sick sort of gratification. He should feel bad about what he did to her. She wasn’t just going to let him off the hook because they needed to work together for a day. 

“Don’t worry, princess. You two don’t have to fight,” the prisoner spoke up, and he looked at Zuko with a smile. “I can get you inside.” 

-

Getting Zuko in trouble turned out to be the easiest thing they’d done during their time here. He and the prisoner—Chit Sang, he finally told them—staged a fight, and the second Zuko sent a blast of firebending, Sokka called for backup and he got taken away. Y/N had to admit—it was nice seeing Zuko get shoved around, even if it was just pretend. 

They were sent back to their cells a few minutes later for “security reasons”, and since then, Y/N had just been playing the waiting game. She sat on the edge of her bed, staring at the blue beads in her hands as she rolled them between her fingers. Thankfully they hadn’t been confiscated after she became a prisoner here, but it had only taken a week for her to remove them from her braids and secure them in the safety of her cell. The last thing Y/N needed was for an even bigger target to be placed on her back, and so she made the difficult decision to take them out. 

But now—tonight—they were escaping. She was going to get her life back. No more hiding who she was. 

Y/N had just finished braiding the beads back into her hair when her cell door opened, and she smiled when the guard flipped up his visor and revealed his blue eyes. 

“Sokka,” she breathed, darting up to her feet, “is everything okay?” 

He nodded. “Everything’s going according to plan. I got Suki and Chit Sang out of their cells a few minutes ago—I’m on the way to get Zuko out of the cooler.” Sokka paused. “Do you want to come with me? 

“No.” 

“Y/N—”

“No, Sokka.” She shook her head. “I told you I would work with him just enough to get out of here. I don’t need to come with you.” 

He stared at her for a moment before relenting with a sigh. “Okay. You know your way down to the shore?” 

“Yeah. I’ll meet them there.” 

“Good. Don’t get caught.” 

Y/N smiled. “Take your own advice.” 

Sokka chuckled as he pulled her in for a hug, stepping away after a good long moment. “I’ll see you on the other side?” 

She nodded. “You know it.” 

-

“Oh, thank Kyoshi you made it.” 

Suki ran over and tackled her into a gopher bear hug the second Y/N emerged from around the building, instantly knocking the air out of her. 

She laughed breathlessly and patted her on the back, extracting herself from Suki’s arms so they could walk back over to where Chit Sang was waiting. “Of course I made it—you think I’m gonna let something go wrong this close to our escape?” 

“I have total faith in you,” Suki said. “It just took you a little longer to get here, and I immediately thought the worst.” 

“It’s true,” Chit Sang spoke up. “She wouldn’t stop pacing.” 

“Well, I’m here now,” Y/N said, “and Sokka’s on the way to get the cooler. Hopefully he’ll be here soon.” 

It was then that she spotted two other people sitting on the rocks near them, a man and a woman. 

“Um,” she said, “who are they?” 

“Oh, yeah.” Chit Sang gestured at them with his head. “That’s my girl and my buddy. They’re coming with us.”  

“What?” Y/N looked at him incredulously. “The deal was that you got to come—this plan’s already risky enough with only the five of us. You don’t get to bring in your own people when you’re only here as a liability.” 

He raised his eyebrows. “This liability is fully willing to tell the warden about your plan. So either they escape with us, or we all get thrown back in the slammer.” 

Y/N glared at him, fire simmering just beneath the surface, only quelled when Suki spoke up. 

“I told him that,” she sighed, “but it should be okay. More people getting out of this place, the better, right?” 

“Fine,” Y/N said, and she looked over at the two, “but you don’t do anything to mess this up, or I’ll throw you into the lake myself—okay?” 

They both nodded, and she felt the slightest bit of gratification at their widened eyes. 

Y/N sighed herself and sat down on a rock next to Suki. Now, all they could really do was wait. 

And wait they did. It was another harrowing, anxious ten minutes until they heard noises—when Y/N looked behind them, they were greeted with the sight of Sokka and Zuko rolling down the cooler. They all immediately rushed up to support them, and with the strength of the five of them combined, it was a far easier effort.

“It’s about time you got here,” Chit Sang said , and he pulled the same thing on Sokka as he did on Y/N. “I brought my girl and my best buddy—they’re coming too.” 

And Sokka reacted the same way she did—annoyance underneath, but cooperation above it. 

“Fine,” he grumbled. “Stop it here.” 

Y/N grimaced as she dug her heels into the rock, and they managed to stop the cooler just before the shore. Together, they turned it around, the edge of it just barely in the boiling water. 

“Get in,” Sokka said. “It’s better we’re out before the guards can realize any of us are gone.” 

Chit Sang’s people nodded and began to get in the cooler, but Y/N’s gaze followed Sokka as he walked over to a large boulder. He picked it up to reveal his Water Tribe clothes, and she was able to see his longing stare as he stood there. 

“Are you sure you want to go?” Zuko asked, folding his arms as he and Suki joined them. “You’re the one that said you wanted to redeem yourself, redeem your honor. Rescuing your dad is your chance.” 

Y/N’s eyes widened as Sokka slipped his sword over his back. “Your father could be here?” 

“They’re getting a new shipment of prisoners in tonight,” Sokka said quietly, staring at the ground. “We overheard the guards talking about it—there are some war prisoners, which means my dad could be one of them.” 

The meaning of it dawned on her—either they left and lost their chance at saving Sokka’s dad, or they stayed and lost their chance of escaping, possibly for nothing. It was an impossible situation, but Y/N knew Sokka—and for someone like him, the answer was obvious. Of course, his version of the answer would be to make the rest of them escape and leave him here alone—if it went wrong, only he would suffer the consequences. But that wasn’t going to happen. 

“If I had just cut my losses at the invasion, maybe we wouldn’t be in this mess.” Sokka looked up at them. “Maybe sometimes it’s just better to call it quits before you fail.” 

“No,” Zuko insisted, “it’s not. You’re going to fail, Sokka, and you’re gonna do it a lot before things work out.”

Sokka stood up from his crouch, frowning as he looked at Zuko. “That’s supposed to make me feel better?” 

“No, it’s not. But it’s reality.” Zuko followed him as Sokka started going towards the coast. “Even though you’ll probably fail over and over and over again—” 

“Seriously,” Sokka grumbled, “not helping.” 

“—You have to try every time. You can’t quit because you’re afraid you might fail.”

“I can’t believe I’m saying this… but I agree with Zuko,” Y/N said. “You can’t leave your dad, Sokka—you don’t even want to, I know that. But whatever happened at the invasion won’t happen again—we’re here to back you up, no matter what.” 

Zuko looked at her in disbelief—whether it was the fact that she actually said his name, agreed with him, or even just entertained his presence, she wasn’t exactly sure—but she glanced away just as quickly. He sighed, and focused back on Sokka. 

“So,” he finished, “what’s your decision?” 

“If you’re all done cuddling back there, can we get a move on?” Chit Sang spoke up, holding the cooler on the coast with his hand. 

Sokka looked out into the boiling lake, then back at Y/N and Suki, and finally at Zuko. He took a deep breath and shook his head. “No. I’m staying.” 

He set the sack holding his clothes on the ground and looked at the three of them. “You guys go—especially you two, Y/N and Suki. You’ve been here long enough. I can’t keep you here for something that might be nothing.” 

“Are you kidding me?” Y/N asked. “We’re not going anywhere, Sokka. Like I said—we’re right beside you.” 

Suki nodded. “I’m not leaving without you, Sokka.” 

“I’m staying too,” Zuko said with a small smile. 

Just once, for Sokka, Y/N managed to bite back her remark. But their moment together was ruined by Chit Sang, who hopped into the cooler along with his friends. 

“Not me,” he said. “I’m out.” 

“We gave up our only chance of escaping.” Sokka sighed as he watched the cooler float away, his throat bobbing as he swallowed hard. “I hope we haven’t just made a huge mistake.” 

“We haven’t,” Y/N said. “I know it.” 

-

Y/N watched the cooler float through the boiling waters, the mostly stagnant lake doing little to help aside from the occasional currents. With the new arrivals coming in at dawn and the fact that they couldn’t go back to their cells, the four of them were left to their own devices on the shore. Sokka and Suki sat together, her head resting on his shoulder with his arm around her waist, talking quietly with each other. Zuko stood a few meters away from them, his attention focused on the sunrise. Y/N was occupying her time by keeping an eye on the cooler and kicking a small rock around with her foot. They’d been there for an hour now, just trying to pass the time until dawn. 

The sun was slowly, slowly rising—she swore that it was purposefully going at a more lethargic pace just to spite them—and she sighed as she kicked the rock into the lake. It sank beneath the boiling water, sizzling the whole way down, and she felt that tightness in her chest again. Spirits, she wished she had her bending. She would’ve been able to get them all out without a second thought—instead, all she could do was sit on the shore, useless. 

Y/N heard footsteps behind her and she glanced over, figuring it was Suki or Sokka—instead, she was met with Zuko sitting down on the ground next to her. 

She rolled her eyes and looked back out onto the lake. “Go away.” 

“I just want to talk.” 

“Well, I don’t.” 

“You don’t have to,” Zuko said. “I just… need to say some things.” 

Y/N kept her attention trained on the horizon, staying silent. There was nothing she could do if Zuko wanted to talk, but that didn’t mean she had to listen. 

“I could tell you how sorry I am again, but… I don’t know how much weight that has. Especially right now, when we’re here. I— I am sorry, more than you could ever possibly know, but you probably don’t want to listen to me wallow. So I’m offering my help instead.” 

She frowned a bit at that, but Zuko continued. 

“Sokka told me you lost your bending. I lost mine too, when I first started helping Aang. It was because, before all of this, for as long as I had been bending, the source of it was my anger. But when I realized I was on the wrong side of it all, that anger went away, and my bending along with it. I had to find a different source for it; find the true meaning of firebending. If you figure out how your source was lost, then you can figure out how to get it back. And I want to help you get it back.” 

Y/N huffed a mirthless laugh. “If that’s the reason I lost my bending, then I think I have a pretty good idea what caused it.” 

“What—” Zuko started to say, but he was interrupted by Sokka.  

“The gondola’s moving,” he said, and Y/N turned around to see him and Suki standing up. He pointed at the line that the gondola rode over to the prison, and sure enough, it was going across. 

“Let’s move,” Y/N said. 

The four of them rushed over to the ledge that went around the walls of the prison—Sokka gave Suki, Y/N, and Zuko a boost up by making a platform with his hands, and then climbed up himself with a little help from Zuko. They edged around the wall, being careful not to lose their balance, when all of a sudden there was a deafening scream from out in the lake. 

Y/N’s eyes darted over and she saw Chit Sang standing up in the cooler, clutching his hand—by the splash next to the cooler, she took it he got a little too close to the boiling water. The distant commands of a guard could be heard as the alarm bell clanged on repeat, and Sokka’s eyes widened. 

“The plan failed,” he said, horrified. “They’re caught!” 

“Keep going,” Suki whispered. 

They continued to edge around the platform together, and Y/N winced as she saw a bolt being fired, and after it caught hold of the cooler it began hauling them back in. 

“Looks like we made the right choice by staying,” Y/N murmured. 

“The gondola’s moving,” Sokka interrupted, and they picked up the pace as they finally reached the edge of the yard. They had a view of the gondola as it finally landed after what felt like an eternity, and they all fell silent, waiting with bated breath. “This is it. If my dad’s not here, then we risked everything for nothing.” 

“We had to,” Suki said, and she squeezed Sokka’s hand. Y/N nodded. 

The doors were opened by one of the guards, and prisoners began filing out. After the first man, Zuko looked over at Sokka. 

“Is that him?” 

Sokka scoffed. “My dad doesn’t have a nose ring.” 

Prisoners continued to walk off the gondola until there were no more left, but not a single one of them looked like Sokka. 

“Is… is that it?” Sokka shook his head. “No— no, that can’t be it. Where is he?” 

“I’m so sorry,” Suki said quietly. 

Sokka screwed his eyes shut as he let himself fall back against the wall. “He’s not here.” 

But then a guard spoke up. 

“Hey, you! Get off the gondola.” 

Sokka’s eyes shot open, and their attention immediately went to the gondola. A man walked out after another moment—his dark brown hair was tied into the same kind of wolf tail Sokka had and Y/N saw every day back in the Northern Tribe, and two braided strands moved in the slight breeze. Sokka let out a haggard breath of relief as his eyes widened, full of hope, and Y/N knew immediately.  

“That’s him,” he whispered. “Dad.” 

-

They were able to sneak their way back without detection by melting back into the crowd of prisoners in the yard, Sokka joining the guards a few minutes after they made themselves scarce. There was a renewed energy in their group, knowing that Sokka’s father was there. It wasn’t all for nothing. 

Zuko, however, wasn’t doing too great at the moment. 

“Mai,” he breathed, his eyes wide as he stared at the girl he had left behind in the Fire Nation. Whereas he was used to seeing her completely emotionless, there was a hardened glint in her eye. It, to be completely honest, terrified him. 

“How did you know I was here?” he asked. 

“Because I know you so well,” she said. 

Zuko frowned. “But, how—” 

“The warden’s my uncle, you idiot,” Mai interrupted as she glanced off to the side. It was hard seeing her like this, seeing her here—now that he’d been reunited with Y/N, it only served to make things more complicated. “He sent a messenger hawk telling me you were here, and Azula intercepted it. You’re lucky I’m the one talking to you now instead of her.” 

Zuko stilled. “Azula’s here?” 

She rolled her eyes. “Of course she is. When you betrayed the whole country, you betrayed her, too. You have a lot to answer for, Zuko.” Mai took a roll of paper out of the folds of her robes and let it unravel in front of him—it was the letter that he wrote her before he left to go join the Avatar. “I guess I don’t know you at all. I mean, all I get is a letter?” She scoffed. “You could’ve at least looked me in the eyes when you ripped out my heart.” 

Zuko felt guilty, hoping that Mai felt the same way about him that he did about her. He loved her—of course he did, she was one of his only friends in the Fire Nation after Y/N had been forced to leave, and they grew closer than ever—but he’d come to realize it was solely platonic. He had no choice but to leave the Fire Nation, but maybe he could’ve broken the news in a lighter way to the girl who’d been by his side since he returned home. 

“I’m sorry,” he murmured. “I… I didn’t want to hurt you. I didn’t mean—” 

“You didn’t mean to what?” Mai interrupted, and he winced. She opened up the scroll with her other hand and walked behind him as she read. “‘Dear Mai, I’m sorry that you have to find out this way, but I’m leaving.’ You might as well have added, good luck dealing with the wrath of my sister alone, hopefully she doesn’t blame you for the fact that I’m gone!” The paper snapped as she shut it and shoved it back into her tunic. “You don’t ever think about anyone other than yourself.” 

“This isn’t about you!” Zuko snapped. “It’s not even about me, Mai! I left the Fire Nation to help the Avatar learn firebending because it’s my destiny to help him on his journey—I did this to save the world, not because I thought it would be fun to— to annoy you. I’m trying to stop my father from hurting anyone else.” He sat up from his hunched over position and looked right at Mai. “You of all people should understand that.” 

“You don’t get to use that line on me,” she fumed. Mai might not have been a bender, but there was a lot of fire simmering just beneath the surface. “It really makes me feel better, knowing that you actually couldn’t have cared less about me.” Her expression sobered slightly and she turned away. “You just wrote a letter and left—I had to fix the mess that you made.” 

“What was I supposed to do?” he defended. “You’re best friends with Azula—you probably would’ve told her what I was planning to do and gotten me thrown in jail.” 

Mai’s eyes flashed with anger. “You can’t seriously believe that.” 

“Why wouldn’t I?” Zuko marveled. “You’ve been attached to her side for as long as I can remember. I mean, you’re here now with her. It’s not that hard to think you’d turn me in.” 

“You really don’t know anything about me,” she murmured.

That caught him off guard. “What?” 

Mai didn’t have the chance to answer him as a guard stopped in front of the cell. “Ma’am, there’s a riot going on. I’m here to protect you.” 

A riot—that must’ve been the distraction Sokka mentioned. It was now or never for him to get out of here; if he didn’t, Zuko was sure his next visitor would be his sister, there to take him back to the Fire Nation in chains. That wasn’t really an option. 

Mai looked over at the guard, her expression once again impassive. “I don’t need any protection.” 

Zuko chuckled. “Believe me; she doesn’t.” 

“I’m sorry, I’m under direct orders from your uncle to make sure nothing happens.” The guard began walking into the cell, and Zuko took it as his chance. 

He shot a blast of fire at the guard’s feet and ran past him and Mai in their shock, and he shut the door just as Mai slammed her fists against the metal. 

“What are you doing?” she yelled. For maybe the third time in Zuko’s life, her eyes were filled with nothing but pure emotion—hatred, anger, confusion, he didn’t know. All he knew was that he had to get to the yard. 

“I’m sorry, Mai,” he murmured. “You’ll understand someday.” 

And Zuko ran. 

-

Once again, Y/N was left to wait in her cell for Sokka. Before they dispersed in the courtyard, he told them he would find his dad first and then get back to them when he figured out a plan. It was tedious, but she didn’t mind it—after today, she would never see the inside of this cell again. 

The door finally slid open, and though she tensed out of instinct at the guard uniform, it dissolved when he opened his visor. 

“Did you find him?” she asked. 

Sokka nodded and smiled. “Yeah. I found my dad and we talked—we have another plan, but… it’s risky.” 

“We don’t have many options that wouldn’t be risky,” she said. “Let’s hear it.” 

“We’re escaping today,” Sokka said, “but… we’re using the gondola.” 

Y/N frowned. “The gondola? How?” 

“We’ll commandeer it, and we’ll take a hostage with us to make sure we can get across without them cutting the line."

She frowned. “It’ll never work. There’s too many guards around the station.” 

“That’s exactly what Suki said!” Sokka exclaimed. “Spirits, we need to get you two out of here—you’ve been spending way too much time together.” 

Y/N smiled. “Keep going with the plan, buddy.” 

“Right,” he nodded. “My dad figured that out—we’ll cause a distraction, a prison riot, so the guards will be occupied and we’ll be able to make it.”

“Even if we can get to the gondola, we’ll never make it across the lake,” Y/N said. “The warden prides himself on being in charge of an inescapable prison so much that he puts it in every speech—he’ll tell them to cut the line no matter what, and then we’re screwed.” 

Sokka grinned. “That’s the thing. We’re gonna take the warden as our prisoner—that way, they’ll have to let us across, and they’ll be too scared to even risk cutting the line.” 

“That is… an insane plan. But I think it might be our only shot.” She chuckled as she shook her head. “You certainly haven’t lost your spark as the plan guy.” 

He laughed. “Like I could ever lose that spark.” 

-

When Y/N’s cell door slid open, she could hardly believe it. Yeah, she trusted Sokka, but this was the beginning of the end. She was really going to get out of this dreaded place—she was going to see Toph, Aang, Katara again. The promise of seeing her friends again was enough to push her through anything this escape would take. 

She joined the flow of prisoners into the courtyard—they had all been released, not just in blocks, so it was easy to blend in. Y/N kept her eyes peeled, and she eventually caught sight of Sokka, his dad, and Suki. 

“You guys made it,” she breathed as she came to a stop in the loose circle, and then she looked up at Sokka’s dad, her eyes widening slightly. “Um, it’s nice to meet you, sir.” 

He smiled. “There’s no need to call me sir—a friend of Sokka’s is a friend of mine. I’m Hakoda.” His eyes fell on the beads in her hair and his smile grew. “Another member of the Water Tribe? Looks like this place can’t keep any of us locked up.” 

She grinned—she definitely saw where Sokka got it all from. “I’m Y/N—I’m from the Northern Tribe. I guess they really can’t.” 

“As fun as it is introducing you to my dad, we’re in the middle of something,” Sokka said pointedly. Y/N just smiled and nodded, letting him continue. “We’re trying to start a prison riot, but apparently the bad guys in here are actually… learning to control their anger. It’s weird. Do you know what to do?” 

Y/N shook her head. “I’ve only managed to get in fights by being really unlucky. Have you tried… yelling?” 

It was at that moment that a gruff voice rang out behind them, a big hand slamming down on Sokka’s shoulder. 

“Hey, you! You’re lucky I didn’t rat you out!” Chit Sang glared down at Sokka, but then he smiled a bit. “My generosity comes with a price, though—I know you’re planning another escape attempt, and I want in.” 

“Can you start a riot?” Y/N spoke up. 

He nodded. “Easily.” 

“Do it, and you’re in,” she said. 

Chit Sang walked forward and grabbed a prisoner by his cuff, lifting him up over his head as he yelled out to the whole yard. “Hey! Riot!” 

To Y/N’s surprise, it actually worked. The prisoners immediately dissolved into chaos, fighting one another, shooting off blasts of fire, and just generally creating a mess as dust from the ruckus created large clouds all over. It was the perfect distraction. 

Hakoda’s eyebrows shot up. “Impressive.” 

They all took refuge by one of the walls, and Y/N looked at Sokka. “We have to get the warden now, right?” 

“Yeah, but—” he looked around anxiously— “we can’t leave without Zuko. What is taking him so long?” 

She resisted the urge to say they could leave him here, but it was imperfect timing, because Zuko showed up right as they mentioned him, fighting off a guard on the way before he settled into their circle. It was a shame.

“Zuko!” Sokka exclaimed. “You’re finally here! Now we can grab the warden and get to the gondolas.”  

“How do we do that?” he asked. 

“I, uh… I’m not sure.” 

Zuko groaned. “I thought you thought this through!” 

“And I thought you told me it’s okay not to think everything through!” 

“Maybe not everything, but don’t you think this is important?” 

“Hey,” Chit Sang spoke up, and he gestured over with his hand, “looks like your girlfriends are taking care of it.” 

When Sokka and Zuko looked where he was pointing, they were both shocked. 

Y/N and Suki ran through the crowd together, effortlessly dodging between the rioting prisoners. When they reached the wall, Y/N laced her fingers together and gave Suki a boost up. She grabbed onto makeshift handholds and footholds from deep grooves and missing pieces of metal in the wall, and when she was secure she reached down for Y/N. She jumped and grabbed one of her hands, and Suki grunted as she pulled her up just enough for her to get her hands on the wall as well. They began scaling it together, moving faster once they found easier purchase on the balcony railings. 

Suki hopped over the rail and Y/N slid under, and together they ran down the pathway. Suki took down the first guard as she kicked him against the wall, but then three more came around the corner poised to fight. 

“Get the warden!” Suki yelled at her. “I’ll take care of them!” 

She nodded and got back up on the railing, the extra height giving her enough air to grab onto the ridge of the arched doorway and continue to climb. She hopped over the railing, and sure enough, the warden was standing at the end of the pathway with a single guard in front of him. 

Y/N used her momentum to slide through the guard’s legs, landing right in front of the warden as she popped up. He tried to throw a punch but she caught his wrist and held it tight, the way Suki had taught her, and allowed herself a smug smile. 

“You wouldn’t dare,” he growled. 

Y/N stared at the man who was responsible for her months of imprisonment, and she couldn’t help but huff a laugh. “Try me.” 

She yanked his arm down and twisted him around, untying the cord cinched around her waist to bind his wrists together. She then pulled down his headband to gag him, letting out her first sigh of relief since the whole plan had begun. 

“Nice work.” She turned around to see Suki catching up to her with a huge smile on her face, the guard from before knocked out on the ground. “Looks like all those makeshift lessons in the courtyard worked out, huh?” 

Y/N grinned. “I guess they did.” 

She slammed the warden against the wall and tightened his bonds, unable to resist mocking him. “Sorry, warden,” she taunted. “Looks like you’re our prisoner now.” 

Behind her, the rest of the guys were finally catching up, their heads hung as they sucked in deep breaths. 

“Took you long enough to join us!” Y/N called, and she gestured to the warden with her head. “I got our hostage.” 

Hakoda shook his head as he looked at them, a proud smile on his face despite being completely out of breath.  “Those are some girls.” 

Sokka and Zuko both spoke in unison. “Tell me about it.” 

-

Chit Sang hauled the warden over his shoulder and they started on the final leg of their sprint. All they had to do was get to the gondola, and they would be home free. 

“We’re almost there!” Y/N yelled, but she had just glanced back at the rest of the group to say it when she heard the sound of fire blasts, her head snapping back to see the guards firebending at her. 

She didn’t even have the chance to move before Zuko shoved her out of the way, jumping in front of them—in front of her—to block the firebending. His movements were smoother, more fluid than the last time she’d seen him bend. Apparently his trip with Aang had done him some good. 

Y/N shook her head. Now wasn’t the time to think about his bending, of all things. Just because he saved her once didn’t make up for anything else. 

“Back off!” Zuko yelled, taking up a defensive position as more guards ran over. He pointed at Chit Sang and the man over his shoulder. “We’ve got the warden!” The guards paused for a moment, but then they cleared the way. “Let’s go!” 

They cautiously walked through all the guards, poised for a fight in case one of them broke, but once they got through them all they began their run again. Suki was the first to make it to the gondola, and she slid the door open. “Everyone in!” 

Y/N filed in after Sokka, but she looked out the window and saw that Zuko was starting the gondola—what in Kuruk’s name was he doing? 

But then he broke the lever off after a few kicks, and he sprinted to the edge of the railing. Zuko jumped, and he was just barely able to make it as Sokka caught his arm and pulled him in through the window. 

“What was that?” she scoffed. 

Zuko shifted under her scrutiny. “I was making it so they couldn’t follow us.” 

“That wasn’t your best idea, genius,” she muttered. “You nearly got left behind.” 

Sokka and Zuko met each other’s eyes, both with the same thought. Sokka covered it up with a cough and patted him on the shoulder. “Way to think ahead.” 

“This is it,” Suki smiled, nudging Y/N’s shoulder. “We’re actually getting out of here.” 

“Wait,” Hakoda interrupted, “who’s that?” 

Y/N, Suki, Sokka, and Zuko all moved to the window to look where he pointed, and she felt her heart drop. 

“Azula,” she whispered. 

“That’s a problem,” Zuko said. “It’s my sister and her friend—Mai said she was here, but now that she’s really here…” He shook his head. “I hope you all are ready for a fight, because that’s the only way we’re getting out of here.” 

Ty Lee hopped onto the cable lines and began running across them with impossible grace, while Azula propelled herself up to them with fire. They were closing in fast. 

“Oh boy,” Sokka lamented. “Guess we’ve got no choice, huh?” 

“I don’t mind,” Suki said, cracking her knuckles. “This is a rematch I’ve been waiting for.” 

“Me too,” Y/N murmured. After all, Azula was the reason why she was here. She willingly signed her death warrant. A rematch was a long time coming. 

“Dad, Chit Sang, stay down here,” Sokka said. “We’ll take care of this.” 

Hakoda nodded. “Be careful, son.” 

The four of them climbed up to the top of the gondola, making it there just as Azula and Ty Lee landed, Suki and Sokka on the side of the chi-blocker leaving Zuko and Y/N to deal with the princess. 

“How lovely to see you both again,” she said mockingly. “It’s just like our childhood all over again, isn’t it?” 

Once again, Y/N wished she had her waterbending—she nearly went to flip open the cap of her waterskin before remembering she had neither the container nor her bending. It was frustrating beyond belief—especially when her enemy was one of the best firebenders in the world and their arena was a shaky gondola a hundred meters above a boiling lake. 

So instead she eased into a grounded stance, the way Suki had taught her, and put her fists up. “Let’s skip the pleasantries.” 

Azula smiled, sickeningly sweet with a glint of danger in her eye. “Gladly.” 

She shot a blast of fire at them and Zuko blocked it, giving Y/N a chance to lunge forward and take a swing. Azula caught her wrist and twisted her arm, but she tore free and kicked her in the chest. Azula stumbled backwards, right on the edge of the gondola—Y/N was about to make a move, but Zuko’s voice stopped her in her tracks. 

“Move!” he shouted, and when Y/N backed out of the way Zuko shot fire at her with both fists. Azula regained her balance at just the right moment and dispersed both blasts by moving her palms in a circle. 

Y/N didn’t wait for Zuko—she was on Azula as soon as the fire cleared, kicking and swinging with all of her might. Her attacks were anything but clean, but it was a constant onslaught of attacks, and she could tell by the way Azula blocked them that she wasn’t as skilled at hand to hand combat as she was at firebending. 

Everything was coming back to her, fueling the anger inside of her—from the cruel jabs at her when she was still a servant in the palace, to killing Aang, to sending her to the Boiling Rock to die. Red colored her vision, and it was what made her swing a little too hard allowing Azula to catch her off guard and knock her down. 

Y/N fell hard, her head slamming into the edge of the gondola’s roof. The top half of her head hung over the open air, and she was just able to haul herself into a sitting position to avoid the certain death that a free fall would provide—now, as Azula stalked towards her, she was only facing almost certain death. 

“I should’ve killed you back in the prisons when I had the chance,” she snarled, and she raised her fist. 

“Yeah,” Y/N grit out, “you really should have.” 

Before Azula got the chance to turn her to ashes, Zuko shot a huge blast of fire at her, knocking her off balance and forcing her back on the defensive. Y/N scrambled away from the edge, her vision still slightly blurred from her fall, but her heart was beating again. That was far too close for comfort. 

“Get away from her,” he growled, and Azula just laughed. 

“Even after all this, you still can’t let go of her. You really are pathetic, Zuko.” 

Even from the ground Y/N could see the fire blazing in Zuko’s eyes, offset completely by the mirth in Azula’s. She saw this as a game—nothing more. 

Suddenly, the gondola swung back and forth, tossing everyone off balance. Y/N grabbed onto one of the metal plates and held on for dear life—in the corner of her vision, she saw Sokka nearly fall off, just barely saved by Zuko catching his hand. 

Ty Lee, from her vantage point at the top of the metal support, yelled down at Azula. “They’re about to cut the line!” 

“Then it’s time to leave,” she said decisively. “Goodbye, Zuko.” 

She blasted herself up with fire as Ty Lee backflipped across to the other gondola, and Y/N was finally granted a moment of respite. Even if they were about to fall to their boiling hot deaths. 

A hand was extended in her vision and she took it without thinking, wincing a little bit as she stood up. 

“Thanks,” she murmured, lifting her free hand to her head. There was no blood, but she wagered she would have a nasty bruise where her head had slammed against the hard edge. 

“Are you okay?” It was Zuko that asked the question, and Zuko that helped her up. She ripped her hand out of his immediately, suddenly more than okay to walk on her own. 

“I’m fine,” she grumbled. 

“You did a good job against Azula,” he said. “We fought really well together.” 

Y/N ignored his attempt at conversation, focusing on the more imminent threat as she swung back into the gondola through the window. Sokka and Suki were already there, and Zuko followed shortly after her. 

“They’re cutting the line,” he said. “The gondola’s about to go.” 

Hakoda blew out a loose sigh. “I hope this thing floats.” 

But the gondola kept moving—no falling to their deaths at all. Y/N squinted as she moved to the window, able to see a distant fight happening but not able to distinguish anything in particular. “What’s going on?” 

“Someone’s fighting the guards,” Sokka marveled. “Who is that?” 

Zuko’s eyes widened. “...It’s Mai.” 

Y/N frowned. “What in Kyoshi’s name is she doing helping us?” 

“I don’t know,” he murmured. 

The rest of the ride was smooth, and before she knew it they had arrived at the other side. They all ran out of the gondola, and Chit Sang tossed the warden back in. 

“Sorry, warden,” Hakoda said. “Your record is officially broken.” 

The rest of the group continued running away, but Y/N couldn’t help but stand there, looking at the prison from a distance. 

“What are you doing?” Sokka questioned urgently, and she turned her head to see him waiting for her. “We need to get out of here before our luck runs out.” 

“I know,” she murmured. “I just… can’t believe we did it.” 

Sokka smiled. “Well, you better believe it, because we did. And now we need to finish the job.” 

Y/N nodded and took Sokka’s extended hand, and the two of them ran to catch up to the rest of the group. 

“Well, we made it out,” Suki said, directing it at Sokka as the two of them came over the hill. “What now?” 

“My sister was on that island,” Zuko said. “That means she had to get here somehow.” 

Sokka’s eyes lit up, and together the three of them crested the volcano. Docked at a landing in the water was the most beautiful thing Y/N had ever seen. 

Zuko smiled as he pointed at the airship. “That’s how we’ll get out of here.” 

-

It was a careful but quick descent down the side of the volcano to reach the airship, and after some firebending from Zuko and navigating between him and Sokka, they were on their way. Y/N took the chance to settle on a cushioned seat, the comfort a luxury she had sorely missed. 

She could still hardly believe she was really free—the last time she was on an airship like this, it was to be transferred to the Boiling Rock. Months of her life had been stolen by the Fire Nation, and she couldn’t wait to see her friends again, to be around nature, to be free. 

Y/N let out a content sigh, and she looked up at the sound of footsteps. Sokka had turned the corner, a folded map in his hands that he quickly stuffed into the folds of his uniform. 

“How are you doing?” he asked. “I saw you take a nasty fall—are you okay?” 

“Yeah,” she nodded, “I’m fine. Once I get back to Katara and she heals it up, I’ll be good to go.” 

“That’s good. Maybe she can also, uh—” Sokka gestured at her black eye using his own face as a guide— “fix that up for you.” 

“Are you saying I don’t look like a super cool warrior with it?” she asked with mock disdain. 

Sokka laughed. “You look like a super cool warrior anyways. Y/N, you did amazing out there. The way you and Suki got the warden, your fighting against Azula—I’ve never seen you like that, except maybe when we fought through the whole Dai Li to talk to the Earth King.” 

She smiled grimly. “That’s what a couple months in this place does to you. Suki’s combat lessons in our yard time didn’t hurt.” 

Sokka went silent, and when Y/N looked over at him she saw that his face had fallen. “Sokka?” 

“I’m so sorry you had to go through all that,” he murmured. “The Fire Nation, and the Boiling Rock, and—” he glanced over his shoulder, “well, Zuko. I can’t even imagine what this has been like for you, and— and I’m sorry, Y/N.”

“You don’t have to do this, Sokka.” Y/N could hardly keep track of how many times Sokka had apologized to her, trying to absolve himself of a deep-rooted guilt that he didn’t deserve to have. “It’s not your fault, and I don’t blame you for it in any way. I mean— you’re the one that got me and Suki out!” 

“I just feel like I should’ve been able to protect you,” he murmured as he crossed his arms, “both of you, then you wouldn’t have been in here in the first place. But I couldn’t.” 

Her eyes softened and she patted the spot next to her. Sokka sat down after a moment’s hesitation, and she pulled up and folded one of her legs on the platform, allowing the other to hang off the side to sit more comfortably. 

“Since we’re baring our souls to each other here, I guess it’s my turn,” she said with a slight laugh before her expression sobered. “Sokka, the honest truth is that I… I honestly thought that I was going to die in there. Princess Azula was the only person that even knew I was at the Boiling Rock, and the way things were, as a weak, non-bending fifteen year old girl who was known for working with the Avatar…” Y/N shook her head. “Let’s just say the warden wouldn’t have been surprised if he suddenly had an empty cell.”

Sokka’s face fell even further, and she took his hand in an effort to lift his spirits. “But I’m not dead,” she said earnestly, “and that’s because of you. Sokka, you risked everything to get us out—you came for your father, and you ended up saving him and Suki and me. You’re a hero, and you should feel like one!”

Y/N squeezed his hand, trying to get all of her emotions across in a simple action. “I love you, Sokka, really. You’re the brother I never had, and I can’t imagine living without you now. So thank you.” She smiled. “I owe you everything. I owe you my life.”

Sokka stared at her with slightly wide eyes for a moment before he moved forward and pulled her into a hug. 

“I know I already said this, but I’m never letting you out of my sight again,” he whispered. “And I think Katara will join me.”

Y/N laughed a bit. “You’re gonna get tired of me before I even think about going somewhere. I’ve been away from you all for way too long.”

Sokka pulled away, his blue eyes shimmering with tears but a grateful smile showing how he really felt. 

“I love you too,” he said. “I’m so glad we found you.”

“So am I,” she whispered. “So am I.”

-

After talking with Suki and Sokka some more and very pointedly avoiding Zuko, Y/N dozed off. The events of the past two days had left her exhausted, and now that she didn’t have to constantly have her guard up, her body practically demanded a break. 

She was woken up when she heard Sokka shouting something about landing, and she rubbed the sleep out of her eyes as she sat up. Normally she would’ve gotten a knot in her back or shoulders from sleeping on the barely padded bed—the airships had small rooms for the guards for overnight trips, and they each chose their own—but after spending so many nights sleeping on concrete, her body had adjusted accordingly. Besides, this bed had a mattress, however thin it might’ve been. After the Boiling Rock, it was the height of luxury. 

She pushed the door open and wandered into the main room, where she saw that the loading deck was open. She could hear Sokka and Zuko talking, while Suki, Hakoda, and Chit Sang waited a few meters behind them. 

“Sokka’s explaining it all to them,” Suki whispered as she stopped next to her. “So they don’t freak out about the giant Fire Nation airship.” 

“Smart,” she said, nodding sagely. 

“—I caught the best meat of all; the meat of friendship and fatherhood.” 

Sokka turned his head and gestured for them to come out, and when Y/N saw her friends she nearly burst into tears. 

Aang had gotten taller since the last time she’d seen him, and he carried himself completely differently. From what Sokka said, he was in the process of mastering firebending—maybe that was why he looked so confident. He was also alive, which meant that a flurry of her worst fears dissolved, lifting a huge weight off her shoulders in the process. 

Toph looked the same, and she was almost thankful for it. She’d always been a grounding presence for Y/N, mirroring her element, and knowing that she hadn’t missed everything made her feel slightly better about it all. 

Katara’s hair was down and her outfit was new, but she had a different air about her, a steelier glint in her eye. But when she saw her father and Y/N, it completely disappeared as they widened in surprise. 

“Dad?” she gasped, her eyes already starting to glimmer with tears. She ran over to him, embracing him tightly as she buried her face in his chest. 

“Hi, Katara,” he smiled, patting her on the back as he pulled her in closer. “It’s so good to see you again.” 

She picked her head up and looked at Y/N, shaking her head in disbelief. “And— and Y/N? You’re alive, a-and you’re here! This is like a dream!” 

Y/N grinned. “I feel— woah!” 

It was her turn to get attacked with love, and she fully welcomed it as her and Katara hugged each other so tight the other could barely breathe. “I feel the same,” she managed to get out, and she closed her eyes in contentment. She had missed them all so much. 

“How did you do this?” she asked, looking over at Sokka. “How are you all here? Where did you go?” 

Sokka smiled bashfully at her, scratching his neck. “We… kind of went to a Fire Nation prison and broke them all out.” 

A laugh bubbled out of Katara, and she let go of Y/N to pull Sokka and her dad into a group hug. “Of course you did.” 

And as Y/N looked at the three of them, then Aang absolutely beaming and Toph’s own smile at the ground, she couldn’t help the tears that welled up in her eyes. But this time, they were tears of joy. 

She was finally home.

-

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