#in the lok rewrite that lives in my head this is a prominent subplot and is explored with the full depth it deserves

[comradekatara]

Who first suggested the book club: Mako or Jinora? And who picks the books?

i think it probably started organically as a natural progression of jinora getting to know mako better. they're on a roadtrip (airtrip?) across the earth kingdom in search of new airbenders and they're both a little bored and irritated. mako has no escape from the budding bestieship of his two gorgeous ex-girlfriends who he fumbled. badly. jinora has no escape from her generally chaotic extended family. they're both introverts who need space that they cannot find on a relatively large but still altogether much too cramped airship. mako walks in on jinora reading a book on the history of ba sing se. he apologizes for interrupting her, but then he's like "is that book interesting?" and before he knows it, jinora is rambling about the history of dai li and the various earth dynasties, and mako is listening intently trying to absorb all of it. normally jinora's interests are shot down as being (ikki and meelo) "too nerdy" or (tenzin and pema) "extraneous to her air nomad studies" (even though, she argues, air nomads have historically been very worldly, and besides, she's part water tribe!) so when mako seems to actually appreciate knowledge for the sake of knowledge, she lends him her book after she's done with it. and for a while, that's how it goes: jinora finishes one of her books, and then she gives it to mako to read, and they discuss it. their conversations primarily focus on their literary pursuits; neither has an interest in discussing the interpersonal drama currently surrounding them.

then, jinora develops a crush on one of the new airbenders. and suddenly jinora regrets befriending this teenage boy who won't stop barraging her with his motherly concern and disapproval. "he's not good enough for you," "he's untrustworthy," etc. etc. everything they read somehow turns into a didactic lesson, even as jinora directs them to books on the most mundane, innocuous topics possible (mako is actually fascinated by the mechanics of the omashu mailchute system, but he still somehow manages to turn it into a moralizing tale about how careless disregard for authority can lead to life-ruining danger). eventually, the red lotus becomes more of a threat than mako's obnoxious presumption that he knows what's best for her, and their attentions are diverted elsewhere. gradually, mako's opinion on kai turns around, and he gives jinora his approval (not that she needed it, he's literally just some guy?), so they can once more go back to reading and discussing literature without any distractions.

jinora is usually the one selecting the books, since she has more free time to read, but mako lends her some books of his own. there is no obligation for it to be a formal thing, since mako is on air temple island frequently enough that they don't need to create an official schedule to plan for their meetings, but for some reason they still do because mako prefers to live a highly structured, ordered life. they meet on the second and sixteenth of every month, and exchange notes on their primary takeaways from each book – what they were most interested to learn, whether the author was convincing in their rhetorical style – and then they deliberate over which book to read next while drinking tea. they have a strict "no 'personal life' talk" rule. occasionally jinora ventures to suggest that they read a work of fiction together next, but mako always swiftly shoots her down. he is here to expand his mind, not to rot it with fluff! jinora would be annoyed if she didn't find it charming being friends with the world's most boring guy. and eventually she does manage to tease out his entire convoluted backstory with korra and asami, as well as some of the least unpalatable details of his childhood, and some of his more exciting moments as a detective. jinora's just like "damn, no wonder you don't read fiction. your life is already five different genres of insanity." and mako's just like "yeah. do you have any more of those plain, unsalted rice crackers? they're my favorite food."

#loopy777 #asks #mako #jinora #jinora&mako #idk if that's a tag i've ever used but they're my favorite implied totally offscreen friendship in lok #they share books and he disapproves of her boyfriend!!! it's adorable!!!!! #in the lok rewrite that lives in my head this is a prominent subplot and is explored with the full depth it deserves