#ursa hawke

[whoisnotmyname]

Ursa Hawke and Isabela on the red carpet for @storybookhawke 's da met gala !

They used the evening to see who could get the closest to lingerie while still be on theme. Clearly they took too long deciding who was the horniest won and missed the gala

[trevelyanaccord]

//

[babushkatty]

Tranquil SAGAU - Part 5

-> Part 1

-> Part 4

-> Part 6

Crepus Ragnvindr had been ready to die.

Ursa the Drake was a living legend amongst people of Mondstadt, a terror beyond comprehension that left destruction and death in its' wake for a millenia, with no equal to threaten it.

Utterly uncontested and utterly beyond control.

The only way to survive Ursa the Drake was to never cross path with it at all, he knew that, but it did nothing to quell his resolve.

Crepus had already been reaching for his Delusion, ready to lay down his life to protect the caravan, to protect his son with everything he had despite how hopelessly outmatched he was, despite swearing to himself to never use the Delusion at all--

His sons were worth so much more than any personal values he swore to uphold.

But he hesitated.

He didn't know why he hesitated. Ursa was right there, playing around with his son like he wasn't one of the strongest Knights of Favonius Mondstadt had, like he wasn't one of the strongest people he knew, like he wasn't trying his best to protect everyone, despite being so terribly young and undeserving of such a heavy burden that should have been his instead. The drake could have chosen any moment to get serious, to stop playing with its' food, to kill his son without even so much as trying, so why was he hesitating?

Something deep inside told him to wait.

He didn't know if it was mere instinct, if it was a higher power staying his hand or something else entirely -- but he hesitated just long enough to hear a roar from the distance.

He had to dig his feet into the ground and brace himself so the sudden storm wouldn't sweep him off his feet as it did Diluc.

His eyes watered as he tried to keep them open.

Ursa screeches a horrible sound that has his ears ringing as a dragon the color of the sky itself landed roughly on the drake -- pinning it to the ground even while it trashed and tried to throw the dragon off.

Faintly, he remembered the tales his Opa shared over a candle when they both couldn't sleep. Stories of a brilliant azure dragon blessed by Anemo itself, a dear friend of Lord Barbatos that has supposedly fallen when valiantly defending Mondstadt from a danger many centuries past.

And then a person he hadn't noticed beforehand at all slipped down from the dragon's (one of the Four Winds, he couldn't help but think hysterically, high on adrenaline and hope both) back, looking as casual as casual one could be despite the grand entrance and the dangerous drake still wiggling around underneath the dragon.

Off-handedly, he noted that they looked like they rolled out of bed and didn't bother changing. It was such a contrast against the majesty of the dragon it brought a little clarity to his mind and finally let him think a little.

He didn't reach for the Delusion again.

The conversation between the two flew over his head almost entirely as he worked on centering himself. He caught bits and pieces, of course, something about stalling and about being able to put Ursa down permamently (which he noted to himself so he could ask later, far too shaken to really focus on it now, but knowing it was too important to Mondstadt, to himself, to the safety of his sons to simply forget).

He only really got back to himself when he was mid-handshake with the mystery dragon raider, a wave of calm washing over him and the fog he hadn't even realized was muddling his senses lifting from his mind. The weird feeling of hesitation that stopped him from using the Delusion seemed to almost purr at him in satisfaction like a smug cat, before it slipped away like the wind.

He couldn't help but grin brightly at the newly introduced (Name), feeling an invisible weight lift off his shoulders.

The Knights of Favonius came with Kaeya at their helm soon after, most likely having assembled in a hurry after getting Diluc's hawk and hurrying all the way here as much as the horses and the armor allowed.

Kaeya was frazzled, worried and looking like he'd collapse from relief when he saw everyone was fine.

Kaeya was fine.

Healthy.

Uninjured.

Logically, he knew he would be fine. He knew Kaeya was far from the danger and that he was surrounded by other talented, strong Knights, but the physical reminder as he hugged both his sons tightly was appreciated.

Crepus Ragnvindr had been ready to die, but he was glad it hadn't come to that.

He had a feeling that had it not been for (Name), things would not have ended so favorably though.

A feeling of warm, soft gratitude swelled up in his heart and he couldn't help but invite them for dinner to show his thanks, at least partly. A bit of food hardly made a dent in the debt he owed them, but it was a start.

He'd think how to possibly thank the Dragon of the East at a later date.

Perhaps Elzer or Adeline would have some ideas?

☆(ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ* ✨ Author Note✨

Some Crepus POV as a lil treat for everyone, to show that this truly isn't a cult fic. There is no obsession, no immediate recognition, just a bunch of really nice feelings when you're around All-Mother.

Though Crepus was a bit busy freaking out about Ursa and his sons and the assumed KIA Dvalin popping back into existence only to skeedadle immediatelly after (honestly, we should all aspire to be like Dvalin, what a damn diva), so those nice feelings didn't exactly get a front row performance XD

Guess who's gonna be really suspectible to All-Mother's presence? There are multiple answers, one of them we've already met!

Well, we met two, but one was more prevalent. Semantics, semantics~ *waving hand dismissively*

I'm getting a lot of comments and repost tags and I love each and every single one, I promise I read everything even if I don't respond to it ❤✨

✨Taglist✨

@game-savvy @chaoticfivesworld @mmeatt @avalordream @ymechi @andromeda-gay @naynayaa @undecidingfate @thedevioussmirk @tumb3ld0wn

Yell at me if I missed you!

[polkadotmotmot]

Zoe Hawk - Ursa, 2024 - Oil on panel

[m1ckeyb3rry]

── THE GLASS PRINCESS // TWO

Series Synopsis: You wake up in a strange room with no memories, broken glass at your bedside, and a prince named Zuko as your only chance at figuring out who you really are.

Chapter Synopsis: You arrive at the Royal Fire Academy for Girls and meet your roommate.

Series Masterlist

Pairing: Zuko x Reader

Chapter Word Count: 5.1k

Content Warnings: complicated relationships (strangers to friends to lovers to enemies to strangers to lovers to enemies to lovers), amnesia, alternate universe, lots of secrets and lying and mystery

A/N: oc warning from this chapter onwards ig?? i had to make up students for the fire academy so if you don’t like that then idk what to tell you except that you should probably read something else 😔 but even though jia-li and kaho are not canon characters their brothers are!! we will meet them eventually HAHA although i’m sure some of you might be able to guess who they are based on that

To His Royal Highness The Prince,

I have arrived at the Academy safely. Ty Lee and I were given leave from classes today, to allow us to acclimate to the environment of the school, but tomorrow, we will join the others in our year for lessons. I promise that I will work hard, so that Your Highness’s good name is not sullied by poor performance on my part.

If it does not trouble Your Highness greatly, and if it is not presumptuous of me to make a request like this, please feed Bian a treat when she reaches the palace. She is working hard, too.

Ever Your Highness’s humble and obedient servant, Ursa

P.S. Regretfully, I must report that I have still regained nothing in the way of my memories.

The messenger hawk that Prince Zuko had given you was a beautiful animal, almost draconian in appearance, with eyes like amber and a queenly crest of russet feathers. She had an enormous wingspan and talons so large that if you handed her a scroll, she would be able to take it between them and then fly away without waiting for you to strap it to her back.

“Woah, so pretty!” Ty Lee said as the Royal Falconer wheeled the caged bird into your room, vocalizing your exact thoughts at seeing the magnificent hawk. “I’ve never seen one so big.”

“Pretty’s one word for it,” the falconer said, shaking his head. “She’s likely the finest bird Agni’s ever seen. Actually, she was meant to be a coronation gift for Prince Zuko, but he came to the aviary the other day and told me to give her to you.”

You were so enraptured by the hawk that you almost did not notice what the man had said, but when his words registered, you immediately straightened your back and gave him an incredulous look.

“This bird was meant to be the prince’s?” you said.

“She was, but like I said, she’s yours now,” the falconer said. “By order of that very prince himself.”

You bit your tongue, feeling equal parts embarrassed and guilty about the gift. Although you knew he was doing it for his own reasons, you still thought it was strange for Prince Zuko to be paying so much attention to you. Even if he had saved you, what cause was there to give you such a grand bird? A normal one would’ve been fine. A smaller, more average messenger hawk was probably more fitting for who you were, so why instead was the finest bird Agni had ever seen sitting before you?

“Does she have a name?” you said.

“We don’t name the hawks,” the falconer said. “You’re her owner now, though, so if you want to, you can.”

You thought about it for a second. “Bian.”

The falconer wrinkled his nose, giving Bian a look that she ignored entirely, too busy preening her feathers to notice. You waited for him to say something, anything, but it took him a while before he did.

“It’s an interesting name,” he said.

“Is something wrong with it?” you said. “I don’t know why I chose it. I can change it, if you’d like.”

“It’s not my place to be demanding you change your own hawk’s name,” he said, bowing at you.

“Wait,” you said. “Before you leave — must I keep her caged all of the time?”

“It’s not really common for anyone to do otherwise,” the falconer said. “But I suppose she won’t go anywhere unless you tell her to, so it’s fine if you let her out.”

Although he was obviously hinting that you should not do it, you leaned over and unlatched the door to Bian’s cage. You weren’t sure why, but something about seeing her trapped like that made you feel claustrophobic yourself, like the metal bars were encroaching on your neck, like it was your flight which was restricted.

Bian did not move for a bit, and then hesitantly, she peeked her head out of the door. When she realized that she was free, that the door was open, she flapped her wings, and with a great gust of wind, she took off and perched on your windowsill.

“They should know how to take care of her at the school, since most students bring their own messenger hawks, so you won’t have to worry about her there,” the falconer said. “And if you ever come to the palace again, you can leave her with me.”

“As you say, sir,” you said. “I don’t know enough about messenger hawks and their care or keeping, so I will defer to your expertise when it comes down to it.”

“Good,” he said. “Have a nice day, Miss Ursa.”

“And you as well,” you said, waving at him before racing to the windowsill to admire the roosting Bian. She peered at you suspiciously, but when you raised your fingers and rested them on the space between her eyes, she did not so much as snap her beak at you.

“Be careful!” Ty Lee said. “Messenger hawks usually aren’t that friendly. They’re a postal service, not pets.”

“It’s alright,” you said, stroking Bian’s head, smiling as she closed her eyes and crooned at you. “I think she’s different. Well, at least, I don’t think she’ll bite me or anything like that. She’s nice.”

“If you say so,” Ty Lee said. “Though I think I will stay far away, if that’s okay with you.”

“That’s your prerogative,” you said. “But I’m not putting her back in that cage, so don’t expect that.”

“Sure, I won’t! Anyways, she’ll live in the school’s aviary while we’re there, so it’s not a big deal,” she said.

“Oh, true,” you said. “Do you think they’ll let me visit her still?”

“They wouldn’t stop you. How else would you send letters? Although, I can’t really understand why Zuko even gave you a hawk in the first place. Who are you going to be writing to?” she said, picking her bag in one hand and yours in the other.

“I think he wanted me to write to him,” you said, whistling at Bian, who whistled back before she realized you were actually calling her, at which she rustled herself alert. “Bian, do you know where the Royal Fire Academy is? That’s where we’re going. You can either come with us or fly there on your own.”

Bian cocked her head before diving back into her cage, landing on the perch and tucking her head under her wing. You glanced at Ty Lee, who shrugged, obviously as confused as you were.

“I guess I won’t close the door, but if she wants to be in there of her own volition, then I can’t take the decision from her,” you said.

“At least it’ll be easier to take her to the academy,” Ty Lee said. “Speaking of which, we should hurry up and go — I think the carriage driver is waiting for us.”

The carriage was covered in gold and brandished with the emblem of the Fire Nation. A dragon moose was in the harness, dozing off, its ears drooping lazily as it napped. The driver himself was in a similar state, resting his chin in his hands, his hat low over his head to protect him from the sun.

“Sorry we’re so late!” Ty Lee chirped at him. He awoke in a flurry of flailing limbs, looking around wildly before letting out a deep breath when he noticed that it was just you and Ty Lee. “The falconer came to give Ursa a messenger hawk, so that took a bit of time, but we’re here now!”

“It’s not an issue,” the driver said, patting the dragon moose on the rump and swinging off his bench, taking the bags from Ty Lee’s hands. She relinquished them easily, watching as he put them under your seats in the carriage, and then she turned to you.

“Give him Bian’s cage, so that he can put her in there as well,” she said.

“He won’t put her under the seat, right?” you fretted, gripping the bars of the open cage.

“Of course not, silly! He’ll just put her on the carriage floor or something, and we’ll have to sit around her,” she said.

“Okay, if you say so,” you said. “Sir Driver, please take the utmost of care with Bian when you put her away.”

“You don’t have to be that formal with him,” Ty Lee whispered to you as the driver gave you a strange look before grabbing Bian’s cage, though he did gentle his movements when you frowned at how rough he was being. “He’s just a driver.”

“Sorry,” you whispered back. “I would just feel bad if I didn’t address him politely.”

“They’re used to it,” she said, leaping into the carriage once the driver had left and extending her hand out to you to help you in. You grabbed onto it and let her pull you in beside her. Bian squawked indignantly when you narrowly avoided kicking her cage over, and you muttered an apology to her as you sat across from Ty Lee, folding your hands in your lap and crossing your legs at the ankles.

“Is the academy far from here?” you said.

“Not by much. It’s a quick journey, since it’s inside of the volcano as well,” she said.

“Volcano?” you said.

“Oh, sorry, I forgot you wouldn’t have known much about that! The Fire Nation’s capital is inside of a dormant volcano, but of course, the entire city isn’t actually located in the main crater. Only the most high-status dwellings and government buildings are here; everything else is on the sides of the volcano, just because there isn’t enough space for them here,” she said.

“The Royal Fire Academy is included in that?” you said.

“It’s where all the children of the Fire Nation elite go to school,” she said. “Naturally, it’d be in here, too!”

“Ah, that’s sensible,” you said, for you hadn’t thought that through until she had mentioned it. In fairness, you also hadn’t known that the inner circle of the Fire Nation was located inside the crater of a dormant volcano, but then again, what could be a greater representation of the nation’s pride than the subjugation of nature’s own version of fire?

“It’s a very beautiful building,” Ty Lee said. “From what I remember, anyways. Nothing’s as beautiful as the palace, but the academy comes close. And the grounds…you’ll love them, Ursa! Even though I didn’t like my time there that much, I still have some good memories of just how amazing the gardens were. I can’t wait to show you around!”

“I can’t wait to see everything,” you said. “Is there a library?”

“Duh,” Ty Lee said. “It’s a school. Of course there’s a library. Do you like reading or something?”

“I don’t know. I can’t remember, but I’m sure that I’ll be much behind everyone else, so I’ll probably need to do a lot of catching up so that I can still get good marks. A library is my best bet at finding the information I need,” you said.

“You’re so studious,” Ty Lee said. “I’ve always just thought to myself that as long as I pass, it’s fine!”

“The prince has gone through so much effort to ensure my acceptance in the academy,” you said. “The least I can do for him is prove that it wasn’t a waste.”

Ty Lee beamed at you. “You’re amazing! I bet he’ll be really grateful that you’re so dedicated.”

“It’s good to hear that,” you said. “Besides, maybe it’ll help jog my memory if I read about history and science and other such things. According to Prince Zuko, I was a soldier before he found me, but I doubt he knows anything about my hobbies or preferences, so there’s no telling what might spark something in my mind.”

This was the true reason. Though it wasn’t a lie to say that you wanted to make the prince happy, your own identity was more important to you. The memories of the girl named Ursa, who she had been, who she had loved…you wanted to know all of it. You wanted to know who you were, not in anyone else’s words but in your own.

Ty Lee did not seem to judge you. She only smiled sadly before turning to look out the window, an obvious sign that the conversation was over.

She had been right; the journey to the academy did not take much longer than the duration of your conversation. You were there before you knew it, before you were really prepared for what that meant, but it was irrelevant. Your personal feelings on the matter weren’t important, because this was where you would now spend your time. You were going to be a proper Fire Nation girl, a lady, one who could rejoin society as someone that even a prince might be proud of.

Bian was carted off to the academy’s aviary before you could even think to wish her farewell, but beyond promising yourself you would visit her later, there was nothing you could do about it. That was because a tall, stately woman before you was now commanding all of your attention, her pinched face souring when she saw your plain clothes and meager possessions.

“So you are the Ursa that the prince insisted attend my school,” the woman, who must’ve been the Headmistress, said. “And here we have the infamous dropout of the academy, Ty Lee.”

Something about the Headmistress seemed to cow even the perpetually sunny Ty Lee, for she only ducked her head and folded her hands behind her back in deference.

“Yes, Headmistress,” she said. Following her example, you hoped you were doing it correctly.

“Yes, Headmistress,” you said.

“You two are probably the most sorry students I’ve seen in all my years at this institution,” she said. “You’re lucky that you are who you are and that you know who you know. If it weren’t for the royal family’s interference, then mark my words: you would not be standing here now. Neither of you.”

“Thank you, Headmistress,” Ty Lee said.

“Thank you, Headmistress,” you echoed.

“Luckily, two of our students still don’t have roommates, so there’s at least space for you both to stay. For as long as you can bear to, anyways,” the Headmistress said, the latter part of her statement pointed at Ty Lee, who did not even argue. “Ty Lee, you will room with Kaho, and Ursa, you will be with Jia-Li.”

You had been hoping that you would get to stay with Ty Lee, but there was only so much that you could expect to go your way. Although you had no idea who Jia-Li was, you hoped that she would at least be friendly enough that you could live with her without much complaint.

Ty Lee did not seem optimistic about the proposition of rooming with Kaho. Her sweet face crumpled, but she did not speak up. You wondered what kind of person Kaho could be, if even Ty Lee did not want to live with her.

“Yes, Headmistress,” you said, speaking for the both of you when it became evident that Ty Lee was far too distressed to say anything.

“I will show you to your rooms. You arrived too late to attend today’s classes, so you will be excused, but I expect the both of you to be present tomorrow. At this school, education is our priority, and special admission or not, no one is exempt from this,” the Headmistress said.

“Of course, Headmistress,” you said once again. “I am eager to begin learning.”

She glanced at you out of the corner of her eye before turning away. “Good. Enthusiasm is the first step to success. We’ll see; maybe we can make something halfway respectable out of you after all.”

The room you were to share with Jia-Li had a heavy, plain door, though two placards hung on it, the left emblazoned with the characters of your name, the right with hers. The Headmistress did not even wait for you to enter before marching off with Ty Lee, presumably to where Kaho’s room was.

You opened the door gingerly, cringing back preemptively in case Jia-Li was of an easily startled temperament. When there was no blast of fire in your direction, you stepped in, admiring the small room and getting your first glance at your new roommate.

She had long, silky hair tied in a ponytail with a red ribbon, and her eyes, which were trained on a scroll, were the same color as volcano-glass. The bed on the left of the room was clearly hers, as its blankets were messy instead of neatly made, and she was sitting at the desk by its foot. There were paintings hung on her side of the room, but the side that must’ve been yours was noticeably bare, likely in preparation for your arrival.

“Are you Jia-Li?” you said when she did not look up. She dropped the scroll in her hands and sprang to her feet, her cheeks flushed and her palms clasped together in apology.

“Yes, I am! I’m sorry, I didn’t notice you coming in. Are you Ursa?” she said. You wanted to say no, because you still didn’t feel very much like that was who you were, but you just nodded your head.

“It’s nice to meet you. I think we’re going to be roommates?” you said.

“Yes, they brought your things up just now. It’s nice to meet you, too! My last roommate left after losing an Agni Kai, so I’ve been living on my own for a bit. It’ll be nice to have someone here with me again,” she said.

“Do you get kicked out if you lose an Agni Kai?” you said.

“No?” Jia-Li said. “It’s just a dishonorable thing. She got so embarrassed she had to leave, but it’s not like anyone made her go. Actually, she lost to Kaho, so no one was even judging her for losing. Kaho’s only lost an Agni Kai once, and that was to Princess Azula, so it doesn’t even count.”

There it was again: Princess Azula. She must’ve been Prince Zuko’s sister, but everyone said her name differently. Almost reverently, though they never said the prince’s name like that. It was strange. You weren’t sure if you ever wanted to meet the princess, if she inspired this kind of terror in people.

“Sorry,” you said. “I probably should’ve known that. Actually, I probably did know that, but — I’m not sure if they told you or anything, but I don’t have any memories.”

Jia-Li blinked. “They didn’t mention it, but that’s good to know. Who are you the daughter of? They must be pretty distraught that you’re like this.”

“I don’t know. I’m not the daughter of anyone,” you said. “If I have parents or siblings or a family, they are lost somewhere in my mind, along with everything else I cannot recall.”

“Not the daughter of anyone? Then how’d you end up in the academy? It’s infamous for being selective and only open to the children of the nobility,” Jia-Li said. It didn’t seem like she was upset or scandalized by the fact that you, her new roommate, were just some ordinary girl — she just appeared to be confused.

“Actually, I was found by Prince Zuko while injured and taken to the palace to be healed,” you said. “Now that I am in a somewhat better shape, he arranged for me to attend the academy so that I can rejoin Fire Nation society in a proper way and understand what kind of world I am living in.”

Jia-Li’s jaw dropped. “You’re the one here on the royal family’s scholarship?”

“I didn’t know that was a well-known thing…” you said, rubbing the back of your neck sheepishly, stepping into the room fully. Jia-Li’s face lit up as you opened the bags Mai had packed for you and began to shake out your things to set them up in the room.

“Kaho’s been furious since she heard about it!” she said. “She’s always tried to gain favor from the royal family and failed, so to hear that a girl is coming to the academy that has the very thing she lacks has had her in knots.”

The name Kaho was familiar to you, and not just because Jia-Li had mentioned her earlier. You tried to think about where you might know her from, and then you realized that she was Ty Lee’s roommate, the one that she had been upset about.

“Is she someone dangerous?” you said.

“Depends. Are you talented with bending?” Jia-Li said.

“I’m not even a bender,” you said. Jia-Li winced.

“Then yes, she’s dangerous,” she said. “If I were you, I’d steer clear of her.”

“Are you a Firebender?” you said. Jia-Li smiled, holding out her palm, where a small flame blossomed.

“I’m passable enough. Certainly, I’m no prodigy, but I can do most of the intermediate forms, and I’m starting to try some of the more advanced ones, too,” she said. “That, combined with my brother’s friendship with Kaho’s, is enough for her to mostly leave me alone.”

“I’ll do my best to avoid her,” you said. “Though I don’t even know who she is, so it’ll be difficult.”

“I’ll look out for you,” Jia-Li promised. “Actually, my best advice would be to avoid people you don’t know in general. Most girls here aren’t that nice.”

“But I only know you and Ty Lee,” you said. Jia-Li nodded.

“That’s enough. Two friends is more than most people have, and it’s better to have two actual friends than ten false ones,” she said.

“How do I know that you’re an actual friend?” you said before clapping your hand over your mouth. “I’m sorry. I don’t know why I said that.”

She laughed. “It’s okay. That’s a good question; one whose answer you will have to determine for yourself. However, whether you think I’m a true friend or not, you’ll have to live with me, so for both our sakes, I hope you come to a more positive conclusion. In the meantime, though, I have to go to afternoon lessons. I’m assuming you’ve been excused from them?”

“Yes, I have been,” you said. “I’m to start with classes tomorrow.”

Jia-Li made a face. “Lucky. You should try to get some rest while you can.”

“I already can’t. I need to spend some time reviewing so that I’m prepared for class tomorrow. I’m already starting off at a disadvantage; I have to do what I can to close the gap between me and everyone else, so that my performance does not reflect poorly on the prince,” you said.

Jia-Li looked impressed. “I’ll leave you to it, then. If you ever need help with your homework or studying or anything, let me know. I’m not the top student at the academy or anything, but my grades are decent.”

“Who’s the top student?” you said. Jia-Li gave you a knowing look.

“It was Princess Azula, before she left, and ever since, it’s been Kaho,” she said.

“Not exactly a person I should be asking for tutoring, then,” you said in defeat.

“Not exactly,” Jia-Li agreed. “Anyways, see you tonight!”

“Tonight? Is something happening?” you said.

“Yeah,” she said. “We’re sleeping. In the same room. As we will be, until the end of the term.”

“Oh, right. I forgot,” you said. Jia-Li smiled, patting you on the shoulder as she walked out.

“Bye, Ursa,” she said.

Once your things were unpacked, you thought about trying to find Ty Lee, but Jia-Li’s warning about Kaho still rang in your head, and considering Kaho was Ty Lee’s roommate, it would probably be best if you avoided that area overall. Besides, you didn’t know where their room was, so even if you weren’t afraid of meeting Kaho, you wouldn’t be able to find Ty Lee anyways.

You were just about sitting down to write a letter to Prince Zuko, telling him about your first day, when someone burst into your room. It wasn’t Jia-Li — you didn’t think she possessed that much energy — but it was still someone familiar to you: Ty Lee.

“You must’ve read my mind,” you said. “I was thinking about how I’d like to meet you.”

“Ursa, things are just horrid! My roommate is Kaho, and she’s just like I remember her being!” Ty Lee wailed, throwing herself into your arms. You barely had the self-possession or advance warning to catch her, and then the only thing you could do was awkwardly pat her on the back, looking around and wishing there was someone else here to help.

“Do you know Kaho from before you left the academy?” you said.

“Do I ever,” Ty Lee muttered. “She’s the reason I’m even friends with Azula.”

“How does that work?” you said.

“She’s insane, that’s how,” Ty Lee said. “Kaho, I mean. She was jealous of how much attention the boys at the Royal Fire Academy for Boys were giving me, so she challenged me to an Agni Kai! Mind you, I’m not even a Firebender.”

“I thought you could only participate in an Agni Kai if you were one, though,” you said.

“Yes, that’s right. She knows that, too. It doesn’t stop her from going around and calling one for at any inconvenience, no matter her opponent’s bending status. The thing is, technically, nonbenders are allowed to call someone else — namely, a Firebender — to represent them in the match,” Ty Lee said.

“Is it common to do that?” you said.

“It’s not really a rule that’s put into practice often, as most people wouldn’t challenge a nonbender to an Agni Kai — excepting Kaho, of course. Anyways, Kaho was the best Firebender in the academy, so no one dared to stand against her, even with that rule in place; no one, that is, but Azula.

“She agreed to be my proxy, though I think that’s just because she was annoyed with how Kaho liked to lord her prowess over everyone. Of course, she won, because she’s the most talented Firebender in the world, and ever since then, she’s been my friend,” Ty Lee finished.

“That’s great,” you said. “Though I’d expect it doesn’t endear you to Kaho any.”

“Not at all!” Ty Lee said. “And now you’re telling me I have to live with her? The Headmistress did this on purpose!”

“How can you know that? Kaho and Jia-Li were probably the only ones needing roommates. It was either me or you,” you said, leaving out the fact that you were secretly pleased that it was her and not you.

“Why didn’t she just make those two stay together and let us be roommates?” Ty Lee said. “I mean, really! Kaho leaves Jia-Li alone, something about their brothers being friends, I think, so they would’ve been fine as a pair, and of course we would’ve had so much fun together. But no. I swear, the Headmistress is punishing me!”

“What for? We just got here,” you said. She gave you a dull look.

“Well, I mean, I did drop out and run away to join the circus, you know…” she said. “It wasn’t the best look for the academy, that’s for sure. She definitely hates me for it.”

“That’s true,” you said. “You should just spend as much time as possible in my room.”

“Sure thing!” she said, like she had been planning on doing that anyways but was pleased to have an official invitation.

“I hope Jia-Li doesn’t mind you being here too much. Did you happen to know her, too?” you said.

“Not that well,” Ty Lee said, tapping her chin in thought. “But I think she was nice. I can’t seem to remember anything about her that particularly stood out, which could be good or bad, depending on how you look at it.”

“Hm,” you said. “She did seem to say that she was pretty mediocre all around, so it checks out.”

“Sounds about right! But forget about our disappointing roommates. Do you know what time it is?” she said, raising her pointer fingers.

“I still don’t understand why it’s that time, but yes, I do know what you’re about to do,” you said.

It was something like a ritual for you two, now. Every day, without fail, Ty Lee would jab you with her pointer fingers, always causing your knees to feel weak and your pulse to grow shallow for a moment. You always asked her what she was doing, but she refused to elaborate, promising that she’d tell you one day.

Not today. Not tomorrow. But one day.

To my dear Ursa,

You don’t have to follow such strict protocols and rules of etiquette when you write to me. I know that I am a prince, but in truth I rarely ever feel like one, so it is strange for me when you act as if I am royalty. You may pity me for saying it, but since I know you so well am your benefactor, I will disclose that the habits of my banishment have yet to fade. And in those days, I was never referred to by such titles, so please stop. It is especially strange to hear you calling me such things.

I am glad that you were given time to settle in. Mai told me she was not sure that the two of you would be afforded such grace, but we are both pleased to hear that you were. I hope that your lessons go well, and that your classmates are kind and helpful. I also hope that, if you cannot have Ty Lee as your roommate, you get someone who is friendly to you.

You needn’t fret about doing well in your classes. I am confident you will, and that you will uphold my good name if I even still have one. Worry only for yourself. Try to avoid trouble, if at all possible, but write to me if it finds you anyways. I will do what I can to help you. I will always do what I can to help you.

I gave Bian a treat, as you asked. She was happy. I give you leave to make requests of me freely. It is not a problem for me to oblige you.

Yours,  Zuko

P.S. I am sorry to hear that you still remember nothing. Please write to me if that changes.

P.P.S. Do not sign your letters off like that again. You are not my servant.

[wileycap]

[spoilers for ATLA]

I have this fanfic story idea for Avatar, and I want to write some of it out.

The basic premise is: What if Iroh had gone the other way after his son's death, becoming more warlike instead of more peaceful - but Ozai still executes his power grab, and they essentially end up ruling two opposing kingdoms?

After Lu Ten dies, Iroh subjugates Ba Sing Se in grief. He doesn't go full villain, no massacring the civilians on purpose or anything, but he does lay waste to the city, takes the young King Kuei hostage and, as a treat, kills Long Feng. (I really dislike Long Feng.)

Meanwhile, Ozai goes ahead with his plan. Azulon reacts much the same, but he does the ever-popular fic thing of giving Ozai's heirs to Iroh. "You must know the pain of losing a firstborn son!" And, furthermore, he manages to get a hawk out to Iroh, that both of Ozai's children have been written out of his lineage and into Iroh's.

Ozai conspires to kill Azulon by blackmailing Ursa. For her treason, Ursa is banished, as in canon, and Ozai takes the throne.

But the balance of power has shifted. The Earth Kingdom, bolstered by Iroh's legions, is now a contender for total world domination - and that's not exactly a disagreeable state of affairs for a lot of Earth Kingdom kings and generals, who pledge loyalty to Iroh.

Meanwhile, Ozai's Fire Nation controls the seas, but they are quickly losing ground in the Earth Kingdom. The newly crowned Ozai is facing immense amounts of domestic pressure, and responds by cracking down on the homeland, making the already totalitarian state even more totalitarian. The Fire Nation still holds the advantage in the war, but their edge is shrinking more and more by the moment, as many of their best legions were in the Earth Kingdom and are now loyal to Iroh.

To legitimize his rule, Ozai spreads the story that Ursa had been working with Iroh to murder Azulon, and that rather than being a conqueror and a ruler, Iroh is now a hostage for the Earth Kingdom - a puppet to exert influence over the Fire Nation. And furthermore, as she fled, the traitor Ursa had done the unthinkable - kidnapped a member of the royal family!

Meanwhile, Ursa does make it to the Earth Kingdom and to Iroh. And true to the story being spread in the Fire Nation, she does have one of her children with her...

Azula.

Who, upon seeing the Earth Kingdom subjugated under Iroh, isn't actually very upset about the whole thing. In fact, she's excited: with Zuko stuck in the homeland and her here at the side of the leader whom she now views as the stronger one, with Azulon's letter proving that she is meant to be Iroh's heir... her prospects of becoming the ruler of the entire world, not just the Fire Nation, are beginning to look pretty good. And all she has to do is make sure to kill dear old Dad and Zuzu at some point. And help Iroh win the war. And stay in Iroh's favour, because if Iroh is anything like her father (he isn't, but Azula doesn't know that), he's more than ready to cast her aside if she proves unsatisfactory. So, bring on the tea and Pai Sho: Azula is both patient and an excellent liar.

Iroh, however, is beginning to feel his character development. He would now be content with pushing the Fire Nation back and ruling the Earth Kingdom in the name of his lost son. But Ursa pleads with him: Zuko is still in the Fire Nation. He is in danger. They have to win the war, or at least rescue Zuko.

And what about Zuko? Zuko looks at the situation: his mother and sister disappear, his uncle and father are at war, his dad probably had his grandpa killed, the Fire Nation is slowly going to hell and now his dad is acting suspiciously nice to him. (Well, he is the only heir Ozai has left.) He thinks about it for a while, and decides to get going while the going is good, and just so happens to run into a recently disgraced Lieutenant named Jee, who thinks he might be able to get them a ship and a crew, and hey, the areas near the South Pole are supposed to be pretty far from the war, and what's that huge beam of light on the horizon?

Any thoughts?

[ultfreakme]

Because I’m on an identity porn kick for Zukka, here’s some recommendations!

Blue by blacklipscurse(bealiciphers) Words: 190k- Complete This is THE classic identity porn fic for Zukka. Sokka runs into Zuko as the Blue Spirit in Ba Sing Se, and mistakes him for someone from the Southern Water Tribe. Cue feelings

Burning Bright by Erisenyo This is a 3-part series, each is approximately 250k words- Complete Long-fic slow, SLOW burn lovers would enjoy this, this is behemoth of a fic and is mostly canon-compliant for the key events. Premise is Zuko vents about his feelings on a letter and accidentally send it on a messenger hawk. Sokka gets it because the hawk gets injured and the two start exchanging letters anonymously. 

Zuko’s Lost Days by AndyBoy, backatpatrickpark Words: 60k- Complete The Dai Li get Zuko during his fight with Jet and brainwash him into thinking he’s just a regular Ba Sing Se earth kingdom citizen named Li. Sokka runs into him and accdientally falls for him knowing that it’s Zuko. ANGST AND FLUFF YESSS

Chained by BlueEyedArcher Words: 360k- Ongoing No Bending AU where the SWT attacks a Fire Nation encampment and take Zuko as prisoner. Except Zuko was in disguise as a regular old Private under the false name Li, so they don’t know he’s the literal Prince of the Fire Nation. SLOOOOOW burn, it has a lot of stuff on SWT culture. Zuko’s a little different because Ursa’s around, Lu Ten is alive and Iroh is firelord.

someone else by lesmiserablol Words 3k- Complete Sokka figures out Zuko knows the Blue Spirit in Ba Sing Se and is using him to talk to the Blue Spirit, completely unaware that Zuko IS the Blue Spirit. That’s all I can remember for now, if anyone else has got anything else, I’d love to know!    

[attackfish]

5 headcanon for Azula is significantly older than Zuko. What happens when Aang is forced? Obviously Zuko would be too young to be banished. But does something happen to Azula? Does she turn to the Avatar to help protect her brother from their father?

Continued from: [Link], [Link], [Link], and [Link].

I presume you mean when Aang is found?

1. When Ursa leaves, her son is a babe in arms. When Aang is found, that same boy is a six year old, learning his first lessons in firebending, and learning to write his first characters. But something is already apparent. He isn't leaping ahead with the lightning speed of his sister at that same age. And that might not have been remarked upon, if not for something else. Little Zuko is... soft. He gets angry and upset when birds of prey kill turtle-crabs on the beach. He tries to sneek abandoned owl cat chicks under his bed, and is distraught when they don't make it, because they were too young. He puts himself on the side of the weak and vulnerable, and tries to protect them from the powerful and from the uncaring universe. And in doing so, he earns his father's scorn.

2. Azula couldn't tell you if it happened gradually or suddenly. She remembers both a sense of sudden dislocation, and change to a new reality, with new rules, and also a gradual creeping dread, as the world, their father's world, shifted around them. All she knows for sure is that one of her very woest fears has come to pass. Zuko is no longer a little ball of potential that she is being measured against at all times. Now he is weak, and pathetic, and she promised. She promised she would protect him, and teach him what he needed to know, and how can she, when their father is so big, and so powerful, and Zuko doesn't even understand what she's trying to teach him, and it makea her so angry, when he just doesn't get it... And she feels like he must have, the day on the beach, with the turtle-crab and the hawk, and she can't help worry that someday her dad will realize she's pathetic and weak too.

3. When the Avatar is first found, he is Zhao's problem. Azula never thought much of Zhao, but by all reports, the Avatar is a twelve year old child with training in only one element. It doesn't occur to her that Zhao will fail to capture him. But he does. Again and again. And after the debacle at the North Pole, Azula finds herself kneeling at her father's feet, telling her it is her turn. She must find and capture the Avatar.

4. And she must capture, or preferably, in her father's eyes, kill, her uncle. Because her uncle disappeared a less than a month ago, and showed right back up, at the North Pole, helping the Avatar and opposing Zhao. Her father is of course outraged at his brother's treason. Azula's thoughts are more tangled. And more wounded. He would leave to help the Avatar, a stranger and an enemy to her people, when he barely deigned to notice his own niece and nephew. And that's the thing, isn't it? Azula's whole life has been marked by the presence of so many people, so many adults, who either didn't notice what her father did to his children, or just let it happen. Her uncle is just one more. Only her mother ever tried to protect her.

5. Azula has to leave her brother behind, in her father's care. Which is why, for her, the goal isn't just to capture the Avatar and deal with her uncle, it's to do it as fast as possible. Which is why she goes to Mai and Ty Lee. And if she has qualms about threatening Mai's baby brother to remind her of what she has to lose? Well, it's her own baby brother on the line.

[princess-of-the-corner]

So, I know you have an AtLa au for Miraculous Ladybug, but do you have the reverse? Like.

(THIS GOT LONG SO)

Aang is Ladybug. Zuko is Chat Noir. Ozai is Hawk Moth. Azula is Mayura. That kind of thing. cause my brain wouldn’t stop spinning this idea around last night, so like. All the random shit I came up with:

- Gyatso, who here is actually an old member of the Order that dipped out cause the Order kind of sucked, actually. He found and adopted Aang. Owns his own bakery. Also does martial arts. Is less than thrilled that his kid was chosen to be the Ladybug.

- half-baked idea that Gyatso replaces Fu here? But like. Still raising Aang. Also, he’s a touch less paranoid? Maybe?

- or, we have that random monk who was supposed to help Aang master the Avatar State be Fu? Or Roku, Roku could be Fu.

- Toph kind of has Corner!Chloé’s Aura Vision. She gets the Turtle.

- Toph’s dad is the mayor. Her mom runs a charity.

- Sokka gets the Fox. The flute doubles as both a boomerang and a sword.

- so like. By process of elimination, Katara SHOULD get the Bee? But. I know I said “Azula as Mayura” but instead, I think Azula should have the Bee & Katara should get the Peacock. Like. Either there’s a swap at some point, or the Bee got lost instead of the Peacock. Bee lost instead is probably easiest.

- You could also do Sokka as the Ladybug, Aang as the Fox.

- Or Aang has the Cat, Zuko the Ladybug. So many options.

- Suki with the Tiger? The Dragon?

- Sokka with the Dragon?

- ZUKO WITH THE DRAGON.

- Zuko with the Dragon. Sokka has the Ladybug. Katara has the Cat. Aang has the Fox. Toph has the Turtle. Suki has the Bee?

- Ty Lee and Mai are here, what Miraculous do they get?

- wait, Yue wouldn’t be dead, she’s here too. The Rabbit?

- Or Teo, the Kid with the flying wheelchair.

- the match-ups are too many.

- … in so many ways, actually.

- no one is straight.

- Zuko absolutely still has the big, F-off scar. It was absolutely inflicted by Ozai.

- Piandao as the school’s teacher, also coach of the local fencing/sword-fighting club.

- Pakku’s the principal.

- Bumi’s the gym teacher.

- Hakoda, Kya, and Bato live together on a boat in the Seine. Katara and Sokka have grown up on the water. I see boat tours, or maybe their job is to clean the river? Fishing? (Can you fish in the Seine?)

- Katara wants to be a doctor. Or therapist? No, Doctor.

- Sokka will probably be an engineer? Inventor isn’t a profession, is it? He’s also the DM anytime they do a D&D campaign.

- Iroh has a roving tea & pastry cart. He’s well known for giving out delicious tea, and sage advice. He has an ongoing rivalry with that annoying ice cream man, who Iroh is CONVINCED hasn’t ever heard of a health inspection, and who he constantly gets into fights with about his supposed “soulmate ice cream”.

- Azulon knew about the Miraculous, spent most of his life hunting for them. Imparted the knowledge and desire into his kids.

- Iroh and Ozai spent a lot of time when they were young adults looking for the Miraculous, but eventually Iroh met someone, fell in love, and had Lu Ten, so stopped caring as much for the Miraculous. When a car accident killed his wife, and crippled his son, Ozai tried to dangle the possibility of bringing Iroh’s wife back, or healing Lu Ten, to get him to help again, and Iroh shot him down. The pair are now quite tense with one another. (other idea, wife dies, so Iroh DOES agree to try and search for the Miraculous, but the resulting search ends with Lu Ten dying, so Iroh gives up the Miraculous entirely)

- (if we don’t go with option two, or sort of combine them) Lu Ten is still around here, he’s in a wheelchair from a car accident. He can TECHNICALLY walk, but it causes him so much pain if he tries for long periods, the wheelchair is easier.

- this is definitely a Team Miraculous Sort of vibe.

- Azula has a heel-turn, obviously.

then, I can’t decide between:

- Ursa and Ozai are divorced, which was a HUGE scandal for Ozai’s company. Ursa took Zuko, and tried her best to get Azula too, but Ozai “Won” that one, so Zuko and Azula don’t see each other much. Ursa and Zuko live with Iroh, who supported them during the divorce. Ursa has since remarried, and had another child, Zuko and Azula’s half-sister.

OR

- Ursa is dead, it’s a tossup whether Ozai killed her or not, but he wants to revive her, so is seeking out the Miraculous. Azula eventually either gets told, or figures it out, but Zuko doesn’t. Ozai’s desire to revive Ursa is less “I miss my wife” and more “How dare you try and get away from me”/Show of power. He’s used the Butterfly for years to make his company blossom, but he wants more power.

OR

- Ursa is either dead or missing, and Zuko lives with Iroh rather than Ozai. Iroh filed for custody after the Scar Incident, but while he managed to get custody of Zuko, he couldn’t get custody of Azula. 

Thoughts, feelings, Opinions? New Ideas?

-

Okay okay okay:

Love the idea of Gyatso taking Fu’s role. I think he wouldn’t choose Aang at first but Aang would get involved later.

Sokka as Ladybug is 100% perfect and beautiful.

Zuko I feel comfortable narrowing down to the Cat or Dragon. I think it kiiiiinda depends on where his mindset is at but we’ll come back to that because I did have Thoughts™ on a S1/2: Atla Edition before so I have ideas on the family.

obvs Ozai has to be Hawkmoth but I think his motives are more pure wanting more power. Maybe add in like. Instead of ruler of a nation he’s just head of a company. The family business he ‘inherited’. Except he’s running it into the ground because he fucking sucks at making good business decisions. I’ll come back to my thoughts on Ursa later.

Toph as the turtle seems like a decent idea, but idk if it fits her right. I think the Ox would be better for her.

Aang with the Turtle though! Both in reference to the Lion Turtle but also how he’s very protective?

Katara has to get involved…. hm. I’m not sure there’s a Miraculous that would fit her. I think having a sibling LB/CN duo could work if I don’t give Zuko the cat. On the flipside the Dragon could ironically work as the ML Dragon is more Water than Fire.

Suki, on the other hand, has so many options. The Tiger if Toph doesn’t get it. I could see her with the Snake (she’s a leader and good strategist in her own right, so she’d do well with it.). Tempted to leave the Peacock on the Heroes’ team and give it to her because ya know fans but idk how she’d handle the Sentis.

Yue 100% gets the Rabbit. Both have Moon Connections™

Azula - I get where you’re going with Bee and that works but she’s also on board for the Dragon. Or the Monkey because she knows the art of Derision.

Ty Lee - BEE. Hands down she gets the Bee. Paralysis motherfucker!!!

Mai - I actually think I’d give her the mouse? Like, her hair. Quiet as a mouse. She’s the one person on this crew with multiple tiny weapons.

I’m bringing Jin back in and giving her the Pig!!

I love how we’re letting most people live lmao. But yeah without a war or spirit nonsense our only options are like. Gang violence? But yeah anyway

Gyatso is being low-key. Idk how exactly he got Aang. Like Aang probably has less trauma in that I’m not gonna be like ‘ah yes he was in an orphanage that was victim to arson’ but like. Does he have parents that he lost and were presumably friends with Gyatso to leave Aang in his custody, or did Gyatso just find an abandoned baby on the doorstep?

Aang could actually have the Adrien plot of wanting to go to school! Like, he was homeschooled by Gyatso for most of his life because while Gyatso isn’t /as/ paranoid as Fu, he’s still a touch ‘let’s err on the side of caution’. But Aang decides he wants to socialize more and school is a great place for that!

I think most of the various leaders are going to be part of the City Council. The Earth King is the City Mayor, and yeah he’s being manipulated by half the council. Long Feng is chief of police ofc. While I have Ozai as owning some mega company rather than directly in politics, he does fund the city to get what he wants and has Mai’s father on city council to essentially be his proxy as he can’t be bothered. Tbh probably the only sane and good council members are Hakoda and Arnook like bruh. The other good but not sane one is Bumi and no one’s sure he’s actually on the council he just shows up to meetings and the mayor counts his vote.

the Kya/Hakoda/Bato polycule? Beautiful. And yes they get the houseboat lmao. You mentioned cleaning the river so I think I’m gonna give Hakoda a bit of a lean into trying to make environmental changes to the city.

Toph’s parents are still rich af. And yes they still both baby her and want her to be this demure debutante when she’s here to throw hands with anyone and everyone. Does trade Earthbending for Magic Synesthesia

Okay now the Fire Royals because let’s have fun with them:

Search for the Miraculous probs started with Sozin. Passed the torch and the company to Azulon.

No idea why Ozai and Ursa married but it probably wasn’t a good reason.

Switching up the stuff with Lu Ten so he’s alive. But he’s in a coma and the doctors know that even if he does recover he’s not going to go 100% back to normal. (he wakes up after a few months. And while physical therapy goes well, he’s mostly in a wheelchair. Can use a cane for short distances if needed.). But yeah while it’s unsure if he’s gonna make it Iroh’s a wreck.

Which leads to a similar to canon thing of Ozai going ‘hey how about I inherit the company instead?’ and then having Ursa kill Azulon. Still similar in part of the deal is her leaving and Ozai tries to have her killed but she disappears too well.

With Ozai getting all the inheritence, Iroh just low-key cuts all losses in the family and  opens his own tea shop. Technically he could retire and live a grand lifestyle, but he likes doing things. So Jasmine Dragon it is!

You know that post like ‘you correct your dad on his zoom meeting so he kicks you out and says you can only come home if you find Bigfoot’? That’s kinda what goes down for the Agni Kai situation. Zuko gets burned and Ozai throws him out. 

Zuko goes to Iroh’s place because he has nowhere else to go. Due to this being  a modern au thing there’s some of a custody battle deal. But like. Ozai  is a manipulative little shit who frames it as ‘oh I didn’t kick him out, he ran away! such a bad kid. If he wants to live with an uncle that coddles him then fine!’.

I’m gonna shift from canon slightly in the sense of that Zuko and Azula never cut contact. It’s easier because they’re still in the same city, in the same school, and have technology. Ofc Ozai forbids it, but while Azula is scared of him the differences in the AU mean that she’s not fully cut off from them regardless of anyone’s wants. (this gets even easier with the Miraculous when they can hang out as Heroes together)

Neither Zuko nor Azula know about the Miraculous stuff in the family history. Because Ozai either doesn’t think they’ll be helpful, or doesn’t want to risk them double crossing him. He does use Azula to set up secnarios for Akumas tho

I don’t know why Iroh wouldn’t go ‘oh a butterfly villain? Probably Ozai being a fucker’.

[waterfire1848]

Urzai headcanon - Distance - Part of Ursa's deal for Zuko's life is that she receives yearly updates and proof of life about her children. Ozai sends messenger hawks to a secret location and Ursa gets the letters then returns the hawk. When Ursa gets nothing for Zuko after his fourteenth birthday, she sets out to find him.

[whoisnotmyname]

Ursa Hawke! Armor is a mesh of the Hawke Armor[TM] and one of my all time favorite da2 concept armor designs.

[mugentakeda]

as soon as ursa registered that the person that just stepped into the garden was a messenger dressed in white, she knew her nephew was dead.

he'd only departed for ba sing se a few weeks ago. she'd gotten one hawk from him while he was still on his way to the faraway city- passionate descriptions about the beautiful earth kingdom terrain and scenery, his nervousness and dread, how much he already missed the kids and her and home.

she already knew he didn't want to go. just a month shy of 600 days did lu ten manage to hold off on joining his father in his divine quest, to get the capital of the earth kingdom to finally surrender. holding strong to his decision, despite pressure and badgering from every direction. ursa never cared. she knew ozai cared, firelord azulon cared, the whole council and nobility cared- but ursa has always cursed the council and nobility anyway. she knows her nephew's heart is true and hardworking even if he's not the most open about his patriotism, and knows that he's always been stubborn and independent. spirits, if she was a prince, she isn't sure that she'd want to spend her first big military venture in her father's shadow either. iroh had respected his son's wishes without a fight, just like ursa knew her honorable brother-in-law would, and left for ba sing se alone. that should've been the end of that.

azula told her (rather sourly) that the strange navy fellow that lu ten had been peers with while training under admiral jeong jeong managed to convince him otherwise. how, her daughter wasn't sure, and wasn't pleased. ursa had asked lu ten about it not much later, easily confessing to her nephew that she heard through the lychee-grape vine that he'd changed his mind about ba sing se- but he'd been cagey and evasive, and offered no real explanation. the evening later, he promptly announced at dinner that he'd be departing from the fire nation in the next couple days to join his father. and looked like he wanted to vomit afterwards, as firelord azulon put a weathered hand on his shoulder and shook him with satisfaction. she waited up late that night, praying he'd sneak to her chambers, so they could discuss the matter in whispers. but he never showed.

ursa had found him early the next morning, before agni even peeked over the horizon, tending to his beloved jogekama yari.

he sat up straight at the sound of her footsteps on the tile, and sighed heavily. as usual, lu ten knew it was his aunt without looking (unbeknownst to ursa, over the previous years, he'd been memorizing the sound of everyone in the family's footsteps. that way, he could mentally prepare himself for the interaction- lest the footsteps belong to ozai.).

I don't feel like being interrogated right now, auntie, he'd muttered. the young prince didn't sound angry, but terribly drained, and terribly defeated. the days where she could take one look at him and know exactly what was going through his head were long gone, sadly.

i'm sorry, she'd replied sadly. I just wanted to make sure you were truly alright. because… well, ever since I married your uncle….

his face pinched and he looked back down at his spear in silence. the hot morning air was heavy with foreboding. the rest went unspoken, as such things usually do in this suffocating palace they both call home. I think of you as my own.

she'd watched him grow up. she'd been there when his voice dropped, when he started growing sideburns, when he came home from shu jing armed with a mighty staff and bursting in pride, when the first sparks of lightning erupted from his hands and he made history. lu ten had been the only one to check in on her after she gave birth to zuko, and then the same with azula. he held them in his arms before ozai did. he'd been the one to choose azula's wet nurse when ursa was too sickened and depressed to eat well enough to breastfeed her baby girl. he was the one present for azula's first words and first steps- which is all now a secret between them that he's literally taken to the grave. her children's big brother in spirit, ursa's little brother and son from another mother.

the hands clutching the scroll tremble in despair and rage. what will happen now? her only teammate is gone. the one person in the whole world that truly went out of his way to look out for her and hers is gone. i'm not strong enough to hold him off on my own, my nephew, she thinks.

ursa bites the inside of her cheek until it bleeds to quell the tears welling up. you won't ever see him again. you're going to have to get used to living without him. he's never coming home. his father didn't keep him safe. it's over.

[ex-textura]

Okay yes obviously now I'm thinking about Gale meeting Calec's family after the game is done and getting fully swept up in(and let's be honest completely overwhelmed by) the chaos of them all.

Gale getting immediately flirted with by Caelestia and when Calec clarifies, "Mom this is my fiancé, Gale" she simply bats her beautiful long lashes and says "He got his good looks from me 😘"

Getting bowled over in the kitchen by a dire wolf with the zoomies, followed by a brown bear, and then a ~10 year old ginger playing tag.

Items constantly missing from his pack and even pockets (and one time from around his neck) and Calec having to explain that's just Jules' way of showing she likes him but also "Jules if you don't give him back his stuff I promise I'll shave your head while you're asleep DON'T THINK I WON'T!"

Freya forever handing him mysterious concoctions and asking him to drink. Sometimes it's a potion, sometimes it's just carrot juice. Nothing is labeled and her expression never changes.

Cooking meals with Thorin, where Gale tries and tries to pull him into friendly conversation to no avail. Gale starts to think maybe he doesn't like him, till Thorin says, "Pass me the salt would you son?" And Gale realizes that oh. He's just Like That.

Little Milo following him everywhere, asking a million and one questions ranging everywhere from how to cast fireball, to what's your favourite colour, to "Can you help me with my homework, Mister Gale?" (Calec gets especially misty eyed about that)

Watching Calec tune up his dad's prosthetics, gently berating the older man for being too rough on them and his dad smiling at him proudly all the while.

Trying to share Calec's single bed in his shared bedroom. Trying to have an intimate moment together only to be interrupted by a hawk landing on his shoulder and screaming.

Watching Calec tussle with Fenn and snuggle with Ursa and help Milo with his maths and Freya design tattoos and banter with Jules and get hugged and kissed by his mom and just. Falling so much deeper in love every time.

This family is big and loud and kinda weird and exhausting as the hells but they're his now, too.

(the wedding is gonna be fun)

[triscribe]

WIP Tag Game

Tagged by @crystalshard, which may prove to be a miscalculation, 'cause boy-howdy do I have a lot of works in progress...

Rules: In a new post, list the names of all the files in your WIP folder, regardless of how non-descriptive or ridiculous. Let people send you an ask with the title that most intrigues them and then post a little snippet of it or tell them something about it! And then tag as many people as you have WIPs.

/cracks knuckles

Star Wars: -Fulcrum & Family, the new Tano & Twins re-write -Dreamwalkers Luke and Leia -History Reversed with sequel trilogy Ahsoka, Luke, Ezra and students dropped back in the Clone Wars -Birds Fly sequel Can We Start Over, Bly's pov -Something Big is Happening (Misc/Understudies crossover) -Clone Wars Cass (DC/Batman crossover)

Marvel -The Big One (5+1 Spidey saves Morgan, Pepper meets Doc Strange, Another Chance conclusion with Wanda) -Kids Club, post-Civil War kidnapping fixit -MCU Miles Morales, title tbd -Spider Assassins AU, multi-continuity-combination -X-Fire, Laura/Wolverine, Gabby/Honeybadger, and Rachel/Phoenix -Heroes of Tomorrow re-write with way more kids from different superhero groups/families

DC -Pantheon AU -the revised Alf-verse (22 Bat-grandkids and counting) -Rotten Luck re-vamp (Young Justice season one Team in the Justice League Unlimited universe) -Continuations: The Batman "seasons six and seven" if I ever get around to re-writing the early stuff (my very first fan fic ever, I've improved a lot since those high school days) -Teen Titans meet Robin's horde of younger siblings (original cartoon) -Battorian AU (Diana is human, Clark's a demigod, Bruce came from another planet) -Mandalorian/Star Wars AU (Mando Alfred adopts orphaned Bruce. This is the Way.)

HP -Pair of Potters sequel, year two for Heather, official year one for Harry, the beginning of a long headache for Dumbledore -Founder Foundlings, reincarnation fic -Cheers to the Wish, more Guardian Ghosts Lily and James -Philosopher's Mirror, canon-divergence of the unintended resurrection variety -the third effing chapter of Muggle is as Muggle Does -Thief!Harry AU, my all-out middle finger to the Author Who Shall Not Be Named

Transformers -Terratron AU (Bee meets Dragonfly, Elita makes Artemis, Bee and Fly stumble across Megatron and Rion, Prowl and Beats, Beats finds Jazz, accidental babysitter Serrate, Hornet and her big race, etc etc) -Hard Facts and Simple Truths, humanformers AU -TFAnimated swapped 'verse, with Elita Prime and her team of spacebridge technicians: Arcee, Ironhide, Wasp, and Jazz -G1 sparkling-Starlane AU -TFPrime crossover with Hot Wheels: Battle Force Five

Atla -follow-up to A Small Condition, aka the "Monk Gyatso goes into the iceberg with Aang and Zuko assumes *he* is the Avatar" AU -continuation of Ursa leaving royal life and stumbling across a dying dragon who entrusts her with a baby and two unhatched eggs -Avatar!Yue learns airbending from Aang's grandkids and that whole big mess of world-altering changes

My Hero Academia -Doubles AU (finishing Brand New Day and getting a move on with Double Take as a canon re-write with Pro Hero Shimura Tenko) -continuation for Great Beasts of the Mountain -third chapter of Instinct, my first A/B/O attempt -more next generation fluff, the Archive and Guardian saga

Misc -Sea Beast fic where Crow gets injured, suffers total amnesia, the doctor who patches him up sends for Jacob, and there's a very awkward dance between them and Maisie and Blue as the old man slowly gets his memories back -The Faceless Wolf, a mildly (make that incredibly) ambitious Game of Thrones canon-divergence attempt -Jamie Reagan and the Terrible Horrible No-Good Very Bad Day, a Blue Bloods whump idea I've had rattling around for a while -Milo and Claggor Survived AU from LoL Arcane -Grandboss Gibbs, a bittersweet NCIS fic that would, in my opinion, have been a better end to the series than trying to go on without the main character of the show -Storm Hawks past-and-present-collide idea with some previous generation OCs -Edge Chronicles TWIG GETS TO MEET HIS MOTHER DAGNABIT -may as well throw in what will be my second self-published book, Trials of Youth, because the current draft is definitely a work in progress

Aaand we'll call that good. Now to see if I get any nibbles...

(I know the game says tag a person for each WIP but I don't think I've got that many writing acquaintances on here, so instead I've got one person per fandom grouping)

@wafflesrisa @eirianerisdar @jinxquickfoot @theredscreech @resamille @tarisilmarwen @icarussmicarus @gallusrostromegalus

[iluvzuko]

Jazmine Dragon

So I wanna set a little background first: 

→ I do not own any of ATLA’s characters nor story, I just own my own characters and the thoughts on my mind, ofc I do not own all of you hot babes <3 I just wanted to write something that hopefully helped all of your hearts that love Zuko just as mine; some events are not exactly as portrayed on the show but ofc I had to shake things up as we need to get ourselves on the storyline, but I´mma try to make it the most organic as possible; any suggestions are accepted 

→ Yes, there are going to be some nsfw chapters, but in all of them are going to be warnings so that no one under 18 reads them, also in those chapters all characters involved are going to be +18 yo <3 

→ AAAAAND that's all, hope you all enjoy and hold on tight because this is a long story, if you don't like long storylines I’m sorry but this is more like a low heat cooking rather than a burning flame; I was not going to publish this, but I thought that maybe some of y’all may like it (or not), and even if no one reads this it is a good exercise as to not lose this story and remember it on the future. 

Our story begins waaaaaay back, before Katara and Sokka found Aang on that giant iceberg. 

Y/n L/n 

→ Waterbender (some extra ‘cos we deserve it: healing, bloodbending) 

→ Beautiful as you are baby, your beauty is a weapon <3 

Mom

→ Waterbender from the North Pole tribe (some extra spice: healing) 

→ Daughter of Pakku and Kanna (yes, gran gran herself haha, I had to adjust some family trees in order to make a more interesting story) 

Dad (here is were the trouble begins) 

→ Firebender, one of Ozai’s best generals (c’mon, we know where this is going, gotta add more drama) (extra: nothing, he’s already cool enough) 

“Zuko, the banished prince, even when he was born he couldn't fulfill his father’s expectations on what a prince should look like, afraid of him not being a firebender, born without the fire nation spark on his eyes his father tried to kill him when he was born, and he could have gotten away with it if not for his mother that begged for his life… But not everything was bad, he also used to play with his uncle and cousin, as well as with his mother Ursa, his sister Azula and his father Ozai on Ember Island; once when he was about 3yo, Zuko saw a hawk that was about to attack a turtlecrab, he tried to save the small animal but soon realized that by saving him he condemned the hawk to starvation, he was confused as to what to do but before he could make his mind on this, a wave hoovered over him, his father saved him and he spend the rest of the day coughing water and on his mother arms”

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Meanwhile on the North Pole (*on your birth day, happy birthday Yn/Ln!) 

Mom: What? What is it? Let me see her! *she said with pure happiness tears rolling down her eyes 

Midfive: She’s a little girl *said with a soft tone on her voice while handing the baby to her mother 

Mom: *grabs the baby in her arms with love and care* She’s beautiful… Look at her…

Dad: *stands by his wife and looks down to see the baby* 

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Her dad thought that Y/n was going to be a great firebender…he certainly hoped so. When he fell for a water nation girl back in his youth and took her to the fire nation to marry her, he was scared as to what would happen if they had a child, he even told her that he never wanted to have kids of his own, that they could always adopt a little boy or girl from the colonies of the fire nation…but it finally happened, she got pregnant and even when he was scared, the joy was simply overwhelming. He didn't care if the baby turned out to be a waterbender or a firebender, or none (well, he preferred firebender or none), he sweard that he was going to protect that child with his life even… but as everything, it is easier said than done, and now here he stands, looking at a little baby girl with eyes as blue as the deep sea…definitely a child of the watertribe, he stands there looking at those pretty orbs that were so painfully beautiful, eyes that were going to see how the entire nation turns their back on her because of her origins, because of her roots… a girl that would even be noble on the water tribe of the north, but here, here she would be a problem.. 

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[undercoverbisexualfrog]

So. Today is my account’s one year anniversary. To celebrate, I present an OC I’ve been working on for a while now. This is my first time posting art and I may or may not have used a template to draw most of her.

Name: Yasmin Nayak Nationality: Indian-American Age: 21 Occupation/Affiliation: Foot Clan, Kunoichi Gender: Female, she/her Sexuality: Bisexual Voice Claim: Maya Hawke (Robin Buckley - Stranger Things) Backstory: Yasmin was born in New York. She was orphaned as a kid when her parents were killed in a car crash. As a teenager she joined one of the Bradford Dojos, and eventually trained to be a member of the Foot Clan. There, she met Xever, who was her boyfriend for a while. They broke up and became best friends instead.

Extras: - Her initials are YN. This is because she started out as a replacement for a self insert in x reader fics - Xever is really her only friend. She hates most other people - The mark over her eye is from falling off her bike as a kid (she says it’s from a fight) - She’s into space, which is why she has sun and moon earrings, a gift from Xever while they were dating - She fights with a kamayari - She’s a high-ranking Foot soldier, like above the normal ones but still below Xever and Chris - Favourite show is Steven Universe, which she watches with Xever - She’s never actually been to India - Eyes are naturally purple but hair is dyed

So. Uh. Yeah. I’ll be doing more content for her now but not necessarily art :)

My Other OCs - Ursa Major, Yasmin Nayak, Diamonte Vizioso, and Envy