Can you imagine the idea of Sushi in Salvage, she latches onto Zuko when he falls over board and then the SWT finds both Zuko and this random cursed cat thing, now Hakoda has to deal w a feral teen AND said teens cryptid horror of a cat
“WHAT IS THAT?” asks Sokka, moments after stepping foot on the ship.
“That,” winces the chief, his father, the traitorous Zuko-adopter, “is--”
---
“What,” Bato says, as he’s distracted from the Fire Prince aboard their wooden ship by the tentacles writhing out of the glaring teenager’s shirt collar.
Hakoda, his best friend, the competent idiot Bato clearly left alone for too long, drags a hand down down his face. “That’s--”
---
On the second day, General Fong’s representative refuses to step foot aboard Hakoda’s ship for negotiations. In light of yesterday, Hakoda finds that fair.
“To be clear,” the man says, “we are only negotiating for the prince. Not his... pet.”
“...What will you give me to make sure it doesn’t follow?”
The man huffs. “Come now, Chief, I was only jesting.”
“It can swim,” Hakoda says. “As fast as our ship.”
Which, he does not have to point out, is faster than the ship in which the man is proposing to haul away their princely problem.
The man’s laughter is nervous, and not at all in jest.
---
“So,” Panuk says, leaning against the rail next to Hakoda with the casualness of a man living a spirit tale. One that doesn’t end well for the humans. “The thing can camouflage itself. Almost perfectly. And crawl across ceilings. Also, the prince is on some kind of hunger strike, though he’s fine with letting it eat.”
Across the deck, the prince was, indeed, glaring at the platter of food directly in front of him. The food that was... moving independent of any visible hands. And disappearing, into the air, with noises Hakoda was glad he could only vaguely hear from here.
---
“It’s medicinal,” said Healer Kustaa, his lips twitching under his beard.
Hakoda stared down at the young soldier he was supposed to hug. With only a non-dramatic sigh, he settled under the covers to do so.
Kustaa kept watching. So did Aake. Hakoda wrapped his arms around the ice cube of a boy, eyeing the two of them with all due distrust.
Eight arms rose from the tangle of blankets to hug him back.
---
“--Son of Ursa and Fire Lord Ozai. Kill me if you can, you cowards, but if you touch my cat I’ll kill you.”
“Your what?” Hakoda asked.
Which was when the thing emerged over their railing, dripping water and madness from its tenta-paws, flashing blue rings of deadly warning across its pelt. And plucked the sword right out of Aake’s hand, and dropped it into the prince’s waiting one, as if this were a practiced thing.
---
In the tumult after the prince went overboard, Sushi’s departure went unnoticed for hours.
In the coming days, weeks, months, this would be a great comfort to Iroh. Catopi were submersible in a way that nephews were not. Perhaps, just perhaps...
(Treason was a great comfort, as well.)
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hiii mimi voiceofsword it's me back with another random line because it's been a while 🫶 i thought this one was cute . he brings up other people so often like okay girl we get it you love everyone ! i love the idea of him seeing anzu and being like "omg anzu let's go on a picnic to this really gorgeous place and Of Course i'll get niki to make us food and tag along"
( don't repost w/o creds etc tyty )
i like that rinne's the oldest in the cast but man hes so excitable, like idk how people can think hes entirely self centered when he looks for things that make him happy and could make his friends happy too and wants to share it with everyone (thinking about this tl and him showing beetles to kohaku thinking itd make him happy too, rinnes the best...)
also love that he has to include niki in his plans too dbfhgbdfh they couldve easily just made this into him hanging out with anzu but thinking about rinne being like oh it was so beautiful i have to share it with niki too :) makes me tear up a little (like u said, oh Of Course — to rinne, niki being there is a given!!!) (even tho most likely the implication is simply just him hounding niki to make the food, which ig is valid but why would he ask niki to make bento and not have him come with, rinne's a bit of a romantic, come on!!)
spoiler he did not look at any blossoms, he looked at niki the whole time. and when niki turned to look at him he'd deflect by grabbing a shit ton of petals and dropping them on nikis head and making fun of him for it. nikis nagging continues to be like music to his ears
anzu looking at them like are these really grown men? oh my god
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