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yellow-faerie · 3 months

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Tell us about the fires of agni 👀

[From this post of my current WIPs, if anyone is curious ;)]

Ah yes, (one of) my Lu Ten lives AU which finally has a name!

The basic premise is that Lu Ten gets really, terribly injured at the siege of Ba Sing Se and ends up being returned to the Capital to recover; meanwhile, Firelord Azulon refuses to let Iroh return as well and so Iroh deserts with the intention of returning anyway and absconding with his son but ends up having a journey of self-discovery where he realises that the Fire Nation is shit, actually, and he has a new goal of Reformation TM.

In the capital, Lu Ten is recovering and also watching Shit Go Down TM as Ozai is a piece of shit. Too injured, he can't do much while everything happens very similarly to canon. Ozai says that Iroh is a traitor for leaving (which Azulon may grudgingly agree with) and that his line should take the throne; but then Azulon is like...Lu Ten is still alive and I like him more than you, to prove that you are actually still loyal, I want you to kill your daughter (and remove a potential threat).

Azula overhears - so does Ursa - and then things Go Down, as Ursa leaves the Capital after protecting her children in the best way she can.

Now Lu Ten is the only reasonably responsible adult in the area and he's like...twenty two, he should not be put in charge of children.

He gets on better with Zuko, but he is probably closer with Azula; he sees a lot of himself in her, especially the pressure that she obviously feels that she is under (although the pressure on him as a child was a little less intentional). He also has Complicated Feelings TM over his own father.

He has a fiancée drifting about, and there will definitely be a few more OCs of varying importances, but the end result of the palace is that when Zuko is banished, Lu Ten goes with him at Ozai's request, and Azula sneaks aboard too - for character reasons I have yet to properly establish, but the point of this fic is that the three potential heirs to the throne are on a ship, in the middle of the ocean, and they are varying degrees of angry at pretty much everything.

And have some shit to deal with.

Iroh is doing White Lotus shit everywhere and making up for War Crimes TM while Mai and Ty Lee are in the Capital being specially trained as Ozai's special operatives since his daughter ran away and refuses to appear again. He gets married again and probably has a baby kid with the poor woman, because both his heirs are currently Missing In Action and he can't have that (but, then again, he might also think that this means he won't be usurped because he's a bit doolally)

Lu Ten might be a nonbender, or he might be a prodigious firebender, I vacillate between the two ideas on the regular. Either way, he definitely know all the theory and he and his fiancée (her name is Hai Lien and she's one of the Imperial Firebenders and I could talk about her All Day) train the two younger firebenders.

Then plot happens? The vibes are vague, they keep coming across the White Lotus because Iroh is definitely keeping tabs on them. Season 2 is probably where the canon diverges properly - they end up on the run from Ozai who wants the both of them dead as he has his new heir and doesn't see the use in having any of them still alive, and they are both Convinced TM that they can be the one their father wants back.

Ty Lee and Mai are the ones sent after them, lead by Ozai's new wife - no name yet, just a terrifying bender with a lot of power and little precision; there is a lot of accidental arson that she does not feel sorry for - and like, the amount of effort they put in is Very Minimal; all of Ozai's attempts to make them loyal agents of the Fire Nation have made them go actually, no, not this thanks and loyalty to their old friends outweighs their loyalty to him.

Which means that Ba Sing Se goes hella different. First of all, the Jasmine Dragon still exists but Iroh created it like two years ago as a place for the White Lotus to meet up and this is where the fam all meet back with Iroh.

Second of all, no betrayal. Azula's not there to be all manipulative, it's only Long Feng and the wife who is a) not an emotionally significant figure for either of them and b) evidence that Ozai has really moved on from them - so when she's like you could come home :) neither Zuko nor Azula need Iroh to convince them not to go (although, I've been playing around with the idea that one of them might choose to go - either Zuko because he wants to believe his father, or Azula because she wants to believe her father - and the other staying but I shall see when I get there).

The walls still fall but I think Aang probably doesn't die - unless I make Ozai's wife go apeshit (as in, crazy firestorm that will Kill Everything which I might do) - and the Gaang gets the bedraggled remnants of the Fire Nation royal family (although Iroh peaces out to go do White Lotus stuff - noteably before getting told about the Day of Black Sun because I still want that to fail? I love AUs but I hate diverging too much apparently lol

Anyway; Lu Ten and Hai Lien stay with the Water Tribe fleet while the others go off with the Avatar. Things follow along as they do; Lu Ten and Hai Lien get captured by the Fire Nation after the failed invasion but they escape together, helping out a few other prisoners as well, if either Zuko or Azula go back to the Fire Nation (an idea I'm tempted by just so that the Gaang has a reason to know about the airships) then they return soon after the invasion.

The finale: Fire Fam feat. Katara go off to defeat Ozai's wife (left behind to Defend the Homeland). Lu Ten and Hai Lien meet the others at the airships, having used their escape to hijack one and cause chaos.

Zuko gets crowned because Iroh is like I sure as ain't having that, and Lu Ten is like...I have never wanted something less in my life (which is the end to some of his arc, where he's trying not to let everyone else's pressure get to him, kinda, it's very vague), but they're all very supportive to him, he has a whole family of people ready to help rule the country, he's just the guy officially in charge.

Ozai's in prison; his wife is either dead because accident or dead because she refused to be put in prison; the baby they had is probably barely a year or two old at this point so they are raised almost entirely by their weirdo family.

If I continued the fic, I'd probably rewrite some of The Search, so that Ursa hasn't lost her memories and now that the war is over, she returns to the palace. There's a lot of hurt feelings but they make up and they gain a Proper Parental Figure in her.

Also Kiyi exists because I think she's cute, but Ikem might not because I did not vibe with him. I kind of like the idea of Ursa and Hakoda hitting it off but nothing much happening because separate responsibilities, they just make sure to see each other a bit.

Anyway? Those are the vibes? That's kinda the plot?

There's a lot more character in between the lines, and I would like to add more of the Gaang to it because they're great; I also would like to make a disclaimer that Ozai's wife is not like Azula lite, just to replace her because she's good in this fic.

When I added her, I was slightly worried that that was how she would come across but I think she's very much a separate character - Ozai married her for her raw power but she is young and simply doesn't have the discipline to control it, showing a very important lesson about the uncontrollability of fire; she is also an avid imperialist, beyond the societal imperialism built into the Fire Lord system. Again, vibes - hopefully when I do eventually write this, she doesn't come off as Azula lite.

As for the other OCs! The only important ones I can think of now are Hai Lien (who is there through most of it as she is both a) an avid defender of Lu Ten as a person (either because she's in love with him or they're besties) and b) an avid defender of Lu Ten as the True Heir to the Throne, which is an entire thing going on - she goes through her own anti-imperialism arc herself as they're travelling, which probably ends in her joining the White Lotus; Lu Ten doesn't because he is determined to retire before thirty, that becomes like his entire life goal) and also the little sibling, but they probably become more important in a post series fic/writing.

I honestly don't have much for them, other than that they exist as a necessity for what Ozai is doing.

Anyway, once again, these are the vibes! Specific questions are very welcomed, I get far too distractable and I can miss this in my descriptions.

Here's a little snippet from what I've written already:

Lu Ten doesn’t wake up so much as drift through different states of consciousness until he’s more awake than not.

Everything hurts – a stabbing, rough pain from every slight movement he makes – so he focuses on his breath. Each one comes in deep into the stomach and out with a slow control, a pattern that’s been ingrained from a decade and a half of training under the Dragon of the West.

There’s a soft gasp beside him and he realises someone is holding his hand as it’s squeezed.

“Lu?” Hai Lien whispers, almost disbelieving, and Lu Ten forces his eyes open.

It’s dim, the candles few and each a cool red, but he has to squint all the same to get used to it. It takes him a moment to gather his wits about him, before he realises that this isn’t the eight person tent in the siege camp that he had begun to call home but is instead a cabin within a navy ship.

“You’re awake,” she says, disbelief shining in her dark eyes as her voice shakes. “You’re - oh spirits.”

She runs a hand through her hair (the one not tangled with Lu Ten’s upon the sheets) which is down and more dishevelled than he thinks he’s ever seen it.

“Oh-” She stands from her seiza at his bedside to call through the half open door. “Hey, go get the healers, tell them his highness has woken.”

“Hai?” Lu tries to say as her expression starts to get frenzied; if the dark bags beneath her eyes are anything to go by, she must be exhausted, but he could tell that just from how she was acting. He wants to tell her to go find somewhere to sleep, to get rest for both their sakes, but just trying to say her name alone hurts.

“No, no, don’t try and speak,” she says, her attention focussing entirely on him as she strokes back a lock of hair. “Just...try and stay awake for me, while the healers come. They’ll need to do some more tests, work out what they missed while you were...out of it.”

He wants to nod, wants to agree in some way but the longer he stays conscious, the more everything starts to blur together and hurt.

“And no dying either,” she continues, her voice getting wet with uncried tears, “I don’t want to write to your father if you do.”

So his father was still alive.

Oh that was good.

Everything is too fuzzy in his head to think straight, he can’t even work out why or how he’s even here.

There was a battle, that was right. They were taking advantage of the breach in the wall to take more of the agrarian zone and push into the lower ring and he had been distracted-

And he’d had tea and Pai Sho with his father the night before; he’d been planning the conversation for weeks, pacing anxiously around camp with Hai Lien at his side, but he’d been a coward in the end and didn’t manage to tell him the truth.

The door to the cabin opens and two healers file in.

“Your highness!” One exclaims, their voice wavery and thin over the rushing in Lu Ten’s ears, and Hai Lien’s warm hand in his falls away.

The healer’s fingers are cold, is the last cognisant thought he has before he falls back into the streams of unconsciousness.

#thank you so much for the ask :)#I love talking about my fic probably even more than I like writing my fic #It's so much easier to just vomit ideas onto the page than trying to create a cognisant narrative lol #anyway this fic is dear to me I have thought and developed this a lot over the years #Lu Ten Lives AU #Lu Ten #Fire Nation Royal Family #OC: Hai Lien #AtLA #Avatar #The Fires of Agni #Ask #Ask Game #Anonymous

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zuko-always-lies · 2 years

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I’m imagining an AU where Ozai ends up exiled due to his desire for the throne...and the Gaang take one look at him and go “he’s an excellent candidate to replace Firelord Iroh, the archimperialist Dragon of the West!”

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likeabxrdinflight · 2 months

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I want to talk more about the way the characters have been adapted for the live action adaptation, because character writing is the thing I care about the most and as a psychologist it's probably the aspect of any story that I'm most invested in. I can get around pretty much any plot contrivance or weird maguffin or even shitty pacing if the characters of a story are engaging enough. This is my bread and butter, so to speak.

And I want to start with Iroh, because I think he is by far the best adapted character from the original. But I suspect I think this for different reasons than other people might, because the beloved Saint Iroh from the animated show this man is not.

See the thing with animated Iroh is that he's just...a bit too perfect. We know he's been complicit in the war in the past. We know he laid siege to Ba Sing Se, we know he had a complicated past. But we never really see it, we only barely hear about it, and more often than not there are other aspects of Iroh's past that serve to further deify him. He was a general in the war, but then he goes on to protect the last dragons and learn the true meaning of firebending. He led a 600-day siege and lost his son but he came out of that experience Enlightened, having journeyed to and from the spirit world. He joins up with the White Lotus (at some point) and becomes the wise old sage we know and love.

Except most of that is revealed in later seasons and is inconsistent with his actions alongside Zuko in season one. Season one animated Iroh is kind of a passive character, largely existing for comic relief and as a support to Zuko. But there's very little to suggest he's disloyal to the Fire Nation or their cause. He says it himself- "I'm no traitor, Zhao!" Now you can certainly interpret that line in several different ways, but I suppose that's the point- there's a lot left up to interpretation with animated Iroh. We get a sense of who he is in relation to Zuko, but his own development largely happens off-screen. And because to Zuko he's a wise, caring uncle and mentor, that's largely how we, the audience, see Iroh. We love him because Zuko loves him. And that's fine for what it is, and clearly it was effective- Uncle Iroh is almost universally beloved. But it does leave a lot of questions about him up in the air.

Live action Iroh is a very different character. This Iroh is a deeply broken man who was been profoundly impacted by the war and what he has lost because of it. I do not get the sense that the loss of Lu Ten has led to any spiritual enlightenment for this Iroh- there's no indication that he can see spirits, for example, or that he has ever traveled to the spirit world himself (he does still oppose the killing the moon thing, though.)

Right out the gate, we get the sense that this Iroh has lost faith in what the Fire Nation is trying to achieve with the war. He explains to Aang fairly early on what the Fire Nation's goal and perspective is, and can rattle off this dogma quite easily. But when questioned by Aang if these beliefs are also his beliefs, he dodges them rather un-deftly. So you know immediately that this Iroh doesn't really support the war. Later you see him somewhat bluntly telling Zuko that the throne may not be all it's cracked up to be, and he's fairly openly critical of Ozai in other moments. So you know from the jump that Iroh's not really on Team Fire Nation.

And yet this is also not a truly repentant man. When he is captured in Omashu, Iroh gets another brief scene with Aang while they are both imprisoned there (this is before Aang meets with Bumi). And in this scene, Aang tries to convince Iroh to help Zuko stop being The Bad Guy. And Iroh defends Zuko to Aang and stresses the point that it is not Zuko who owes him any great debt, but he who owes Zuko. Later, when he is confronted (and hit several times) by an Earth Kingdom soldier who lost his brother during the siege, Iroh does not apologize. He does not flinch at the man's accusations, nor does he deny them. He defends himself, albeit weakly, by stating he was a soldier, and it was a war. He has the audacity to accuse this soldier (somewhat obliquely) of having been made dishonorable by the effects of war. It's kinda messed up, honestly.

But then this man accuses Iroh of knowing nothing of loss. He leaves the shot, and we saw Iroh's face just crumble, and the scene cuts directly to Lu Ten's funeral, where Zuko chooses to sit with his uncle and support him through what must have been the darkest moment of his life. Back in the present, it is only later, after Zuko has come to rescue Iroh, that he speaks more honestly to the Earth Kingdom soldier- he shows mercy and states that they've all "seen enough death."

So what we have here is an Iroh who is deeply disenchanted by the war and does not support it or the goals of the Fire Nation, but who has continued to stand alongside Zuko and support him in his goals. We have a man who doesn't necessarily regret his actions as a soldier in the war but who very much does regret what those actions have cost. We see a man who is profoundly impacted by loss and grief and has become emotionally reliant on his nephew as a source of support. Not that he's parentifying Zuko or anything, he's very much not, but he is rather obviously channeling all the love he once felt for his son into Zuko instead. Zuko is his lifeline, he needs Zuko and you get the sense that without him, Iroh would truly fall apart. I mean the man is on the verge of tears more often than not when Zuko is in even the slightest bit of danger in a way that animated Iroh was not.

This is what I think is different here. Animated Iroh seemed to turn against the war because it was morally wrong, it had thrown the world out of balance, and imperialism is bad. Live action Iroh seems against the war because it wasn't worth it. It wasn't worth the cost, or the death, or the grief. He couldn't see that until he lost Lu Ten, but now he sees it everywhere. I get the sense that this Iroh just wants it all to stop, and I'm not sure he cares how that happens.

The White Lotus is definitely hinted at, but I suspect that was his motivation for joining it. It's not about restoring balance to the world for this Iroh. It's about restoring peace, so that he won't have to lose Zuko like he lost Lu Ten. So that the death and destruction stops. So he can just live a quiet life and put the past behind him.

It's a different take. And it's not that he doesn't still have a lot of wisdom to him, that he's not still a gentle, caring person. But he's a much sadder person, and he's lost that sense of "enlightenment" that his animated counterpart had. There's a selfishness you can read into to this version of his character that's much more apparent than the animated version.

I think a lot of people are gonna hate this, because it's a darker take on a much loved character. But I love it. This Iroh is human, this Iroh is flawed, and this Iroh has a lot more growing left to do. And that's awesome. If we get to actually see more of a character arc for him too, if we get to see him also growing and changing alongside Zuko? Please. It's not like he needs a total redemption arc, per se, but if in his journey with Zuko throughout the Earth Kingdom we can see Iroh gain some of his fortitude back, we can see when he decides he needs to push Zuko down a certain path, to take a side in the war, to see that it's not just the death and destruction that makes it wrong? God there's so much potential with that.

Now, maybe this isn't what will happen with seasons two and three. Maybe they'll back track and try to make him more similar to the animated version. I don't know. But for now? Live action Iroh is fantastic, and Paul Sun-Hyung Lee is giving a hell of a performance. He's warm and tender when he needs to be, fierce when he has to, and just profoundly sad throughout it all. And I love him so much more for that.

I'll be controversial here and say it. So far, live action Iroh is a better character than animated Iroh.

#I never disliked animated Iroh to be clear but perfect can be boring #this Iroh is not perfect and that is so much more interesting to me #natla spoilers #natla #iroh

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narrativelysignificantturtleduck · 1 year

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my initial reaction to this new princess zeisan character was just to say her design was weird but honestly the problems with her design don't bode well for her writing. like already the premise of "fire nation royalty joins the air nomads" is kinda weird bc someone from a nation's royal family is probably one of the people LEAST able to break free from the propaganda. like it only happened to iroh and zuko because of major life-changing events (losing lu ten & being banished) and you wouldn't include their transformations in a short description of their characters bc iroh's is slowly revealed and zuko's happens over the course of the story. and her design is just an air nomad necklace and sash on top of a fire nation royal outfit so like...where's the transformation? and how are zuko and iroh notable for breaking free if someone barely two generations earlier was able to?

like are we supposed to believe everything was totally chill between the fire nation and the air nomads before the sozin's comet genocide? bc that's not how genocide works. how could sozin have justified sending all those soldiers to the air temples if there wasn't already a concerted anti-air nomad propaganda effort in the fire nation? not all fire nation citizens bought into it obviously (kuzon) but a member of the royal family? a member of the royal family wearing the whole fucking shoulderpads and hairpiece get-up? where's the treason haircut? the rags from living among the people for years unlearning what she was raised with? the visual reflection of her turning her back on her culture?

creating a new character that's an existing character's previously-unmentioned sibling is already hokey and fanfiction-y, having her be the air nomad convert sister of the Guy Who Committed Genocide Against The Air Nomads strains believability, and the laziness of her design means that i have little faith in her writers' ability to make anything good out of this

#nina's personal log

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five-rivers · 1 month

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Just One Day (Chapter 1)

During times like this, Iroh glimpses what Zuko could have been if Lu Ten lived.

It’s easy, almost painfully so, for Iroh to see what he himself would have been. He wouldn’t have had any reason to change, after all, and he had already been old by the time he’d breached the walls of Ba Sing Se. But for Zuko? That’s harder.

Zuko had been a child, still forming, still being formed, when Lu Ten died. Zuko’s training would have taken a very different path, if he had been allowed to remain a mere cousin to the crown prince.

Looking at what could have been for Zuko is like looking into a kaleidoscope. Even within the confines of the royal house, there are a thousand paths Zuko could have walked. A diplomat, a priest, a soldier, a scholar, an artist, an advisor. A spy. An assassin.

It’s the way Zuko pours himself out of the ventilation shaft, utilizing a economy of motion that could be called graceful that does it. The utter silence of his movements, the color of his clothes, the brightness in his eyes… Yes. Iroh sees what Zuko might have been. What he might have been used for, in another world. What even Iroh himself might have been encouraged.

But if Iroh would imagine that world, he might as well imagine any of the dozen others that have crossed his mind over the years. That countless myriad of what-ifs set on him like a spirit plague. If he imagines that world, he could instead picture kinder ones. Ones where the war was over, where Zuko was happy.

It was immaterial. What mattered was the here and now. Here and now, Zuko is none of those things. Zuko is an exile, a desperate one, chasing after a rapidly narrowing beam of hope that had more in common with the lure of an angler-shark than anything good.

“Uncle?” asks Zuko, voice quiet and rough. Burnt.

“My apologies, Nephew,” says Iroh. “You must forgive an old man his woolgathering.”

Zuko’s pinched expression says that no, he doesn’t have to do that and probably won’t. “You have to focus if-- if we’re doing this. You can’t be distracted when Zhao is looking over your shoulder.” His tone is angry. At least, that is how most people would interpret it.

“It’s alright, it’s alright, I’ve made sure we’re alone. We’re as safe as we can be. In the meantime, food! And more importantly, tea.”

Zuko scrunches his face into an expression that is both delightfully teenage and undoubtedly painful. His face is covered in bruises and small cuts. “Uncle…”

“You may wrinkle your nose, Prince Zuko, but every person in the world has at least one virtue, and Admiral Zhao’s is excellent taste in tea.” He smiles as he sits down and reaches for the pot. “Although, I am sorry to say that his virtue is a very lonely one.”

Sadly, this does not get the laugh Iroh was hoping for. Zuko’s scowl may, however, become slightly less pronounced. He also, once Iroh sits down, falls on the food like a starving man. He might very well be. Iroh’s position on the ship and in Admiral Zhao’s retinue has the unfortunate requirement of being in Zhao’s presence, or that of his trusted subordinates, most of the day. This means that he cannot help his nephew nearly as much as he would like.

So. It is, in fact, very likely that this is Zuko’s first meal today.

Although, Zuko is quite capable of theft, when it serves his purposes and sense of honor. Maybe he is just being a teenager. Teenagers are hungry.

Iroh would ask, but he doubts he would receive an honest answer, either way.

Then, Zuko stops, mid-bite. “Uncle,” he says around a dumpling, “have you eaten?”

Then again, Iroh is, perhaps, not a bastion of honesty himself. “Of course!” He pats his stomach. “Have you ever known me to miss a free meal?”

Zuko squints at this, then looks back down at his food. He doesn’t start eating again.

“Do you ever…” he starts, before pursing his lips together.

“Yes?” prompts Iroh, hopefully.

“Do you ever wish,” says Zuko, quickly, the words tumbling over each other, crowding to get out of his mouth, “that you were someone else?” He freezes, then, jaw clenched tightly, as if he fears that he has spoken out of turn.

“No,” says Iroh, glad that, at least, this is a familiar fear. “No. Prince Zuko, I do not regret my decision to be with you.”

“That’s not what I mean,” says Zuko, clearly frustrated but keeping his voice at a near whisper. “I mean… Do you ever wish that you weren’t-- That you didn’t-- That you were a, I don’t know, a poet, or a priest, or a-- a normal person. Somewhere. Someone who didn’t… didn’t have to…” He shrugged.

Iroh blinks. Not a fear, then, perhaps. Well, if Zuko wants to stop his hunt, to disappear from the eye of the Fire Nation and more importantly the Fire Lord, Iroh will do his best to make that happen, and with a glad heart. Although, it would have been far more convenient if Zuko had his change of heart before he snuck onto this ship…

“I suppose all men do so at times, especially men of power. Otherwise, why would there be so many stories of kings and lords in disguise? Why would there be actors, or the masks of the Fire Festival? I confess, even I have, hm, occasionally pretended to be someone who is not Prince Iroh of the Fire Nation, General and Dragon of the West.” He paused. “Do you wish for such a thing, Nephew?” best to not use his title and remind him of the responsibilities attached to it.

“I… I have, uncle.” He looks up, alarm clear on his face. “Not permanently! Not forever! Not-- Not even for very long! But sometimes…” He looks down again, a blush spreading across skin that is alternately pale, scarred, burned, bruised, and scraped. “I wish,” he says, very quietly indeed, “I could be someone else, anyone else, just for a day.”

In that moment, Iroh can see all the things that Zuko wishes not to be, not to have. He wishes not to hurt, not to be hurt, not to have this weight upon him, not to have this duty, not to be banished, not to be so far from home, not to be part of this war, not to have these memories, this history, not to be betrayed over and over again.

Although, that is probably not the way Zuko is thinking about it.

“But just for a day,” says Zuko. He swallows. “Just for a day. I know my duty, Uncle. I love our people. It’s my honor to serve them.”

Ah. Perhaps Zuko is not, quite, ready to run away with him to become nameless, faceless Earth Kingdom peasants, then. Well, Iroh always knew this was going to be, how should he put it, a work in progress. Or, no, that probably wasn’t the best way to put that. He’d have to think on it.

Metaphors took a lot of work that the youth of today just didn’t appreciate.

Iroh put his hand on Zuko’s shoulder and squeezed it as tightly as he dared. “I understand, Prince Zuko,” he said. “But I hope that someday, the spirits will grant your wish.”

Zuko blinked hard, then went back to inhaling his meal. A few minutes later, he was climbing - practically levitating - his way back up into the vents.

Iroh leaned back, sighing. They really shouldn’t make those things as big as they did.

Zuko crawled to the bend in the ventilation shaft that he’d been sleeping in while Zhao sailed north. It was near the showers, so while it was unpleasantly damp, it was warm and he could sometimes overhear the officers talking.

He curled up, tucking in his knees and pillowing his head on the small bag of necessities he’d been able to put together. He should sleep. He needed to sleep.

But to sleep, he’d have to forget all the stupid things he had said to his uncle. What had he been thinking? Ugh. He’d hit something, if that wouldn’t give away his position and therefore his presence.

Well. It might not, at that. Ships were noisy. Still.

Still.

Still, he hadn’t been lying. But he knew better than to just say things like that. That’s what got him exiled in the first place.

He forcefully closed his eyes. He would sleep. He had to be rested, to break into the north pole and capture the Avatar.

The sun slowly rose over the arctic horizon, waking all of the fleet’s firebenders, even if for only a moment, depending on their shift. In his stateroom, Admiral Zhao woke slowly, and called for his aides to brief him. Decks below, General Iroh, already awake, ran through a set of katas he had not yet taught his nephew. In a ventilation duct near the officer’s showers, a teenage firebender gasped, coming awake all at once. But this teenager wasn’t Prince Zuko. Prince Zuko wasn’t on the ship. Prince Zuko wasn’t anywhere.

In the ventilation duct, Kuzon of Hing Wa sat up.

(The moral of the story is ‘don’t make wishes when you’re in a spirit tale.’)

#atla #avatar the last airbender #fic

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bluewithpurplepolkadots · 4 months

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I have the probably deeply unpopular headcanon that if Lu Ten had lived he’d be an Iroh who could never EVER (no matter what he saw or went through) see anyone outside the Fire Nation as people.

If he was around during Atla he’d deeply care for both Zuko and Azula and all (kids, they’re just kids! How could Uncle Ozai do that to them!)

But he would see nothing wrong in killing other kids like Aang/Katara/Sokka/Toph etc: to him they are nothing more than vermin. He was the perfect Fire Nation soldier.

In my headcanon he’d be a smiling monster and Azula in fact far more likely to make a turn around and make other nation friends than he ever would. In my head: He’d be terrifying if he suddenly returned from the dead somehow and Iroh (especially Iroh) and Zuko would feel heart broken and deeply disturbed because they’ve moved on in a direction he’d never be able to follow.

Lu Ten to me would be a distorted and disturbing mirror of how Iroh once was. All with a friendly pat on his younger cousins’ head and a smile towards them as he commits the worst crimes man can commit against others. Like an Iroh laughing about Ba Sing Se being burned to the ground. Frozen in a moment. Never moving on.

In canon perhaps Iroh living in Ba Sing Se, as certain things come to light and looks back, has to contend with the fact whichever Earth Kingdom soldier killed his son perhaps did the right thing.

#Atla #Iroh #Lu ten #Zuko #I want a person in the family who loves Zuko and Iroh but is horrible #It’s a little easy that everyone nice to Zuko either by fanon or canon can eventually be a good person #I’m sorry but lu ten lives aus where he’s just so lovely and basically intuitive like that about the humanity of other people aren’t needed #Not to me anyway #there’s no point in making aus where he lives if you’re just going to make him like that because there’s no story there and nothing to say #Iroh is already in any role he could ever have

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yletylyf · 3 months

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Mysterious Lotus Casebook timeline

I put this together for my own use while writing my fic, but haven't seen anyone else share one, so here goes!

This is live-drama canon, not novel canon. I don't speak much Chinese; I followed iqiyi's subtitles which are rather awful. Additions/suggestions/comments/corrections more than welcome!

As should be expected for a comprehensive timeline of all pre-canon events, this is not spoiler free. Below the cut, as it's long:

Timeline

130 years ago:

Princess Longxuan is born, in the year of Ren Yin, Wu Shen month, Geng Jia day, at the hour of Geng Chen. [It could be any year of Ren Yin, but since it has to be more than a hundred years ago, this one is the only one that makes sense.]

100 years ago:

The night before Nanyin was overturned, Princess Longxuan marries Crown Prince Fangji, the eldest son of Emperor Xicheng, granduncle of the current emperor. Princess Longxuan becomes Consort Xuan. Consort Xuan secretly initiates the revival of Nanyin and plots to use the Rama Vessel.

Prince Fangji conspires against Emperor Xicheng and fails. He is ordered to commit suicide. Consort Xuan is sentenced to be buried with Prince Fangji.

Princess Longxuan writes a letter to magician Feng A-Lu asking him to save her son at the bamboo forest. She tells him to contact Jin Yu Huang Quan and revive Nanyin.

Nanyin craftsmen build their tomb and Nanyin sorcery hides it for 100 years.

The throne passes to Emperor Guanqing.

Feng A-Lu does not meet Princess Longxuan's son. He goes to kill the imperial family and falls in love with Consort Ying instead. They have a son who Consort Ying passes off as the emperor's son. Feng A-Lu is buried in the collapse of the Pagoda of Bliss.

Jin Yu Huang Quan did not revive Nanyin. They used the amassed wealth for themselves and passed the Rama ices onto the next generations.

Unknown time:

Li Xiangyi's parents save Qi Mushan.

Bandits attack the Li family; Li Xiangyi and his older brother are the only survivors.

25 years ago:

Teenage Shan Gudao finds four-year old Li Xiangyi and his older brother on the streets. Older brother dies.

Qi Mushan rescues Shan Gudao and Li Xiangyi and brings them to Yunyin mountain.

20 years ago:

The Feng clan, having searched for Princess Longxuan's descendant for over a hundred years, learns that her grandson had a ten-year-old son who is presently studying under Qi Mushan.

[Note Shan Gudao is over twenty and Li Xiangyi is nine or ten at this time, but anyway:]

The Feng clan takes Shan Gudao as the long-lost descendant of Princess Longxuan.

Ostensibly 18 years ago, but probably more like 21 or 20:

[Note there is some debate about how old Fang Duobing is supposed to be. Di Feisheng claims he has a letter showing that Fang Duobing's parents broke up 18 years ago while He Xialan was pregnant, but other sources state he is 20 at the time of the show]

He Xialan was in a relationship with Shan Gudao. They break up while she is pregnant. Fang Duobing is born a few months later, and Tianji Hall announces Xialan has died of illness. Fang Duobing is raised by Xialan's older sister and her husband as their own.

15 years ago:

The Demon of the Blood Realm challenges Li Xiangyi and Qiao Wanmian begs him to give Li Xiangyi one more year.

14 years ago:

Li Xiangyi passes Qi Mushan's test. He receives the Shaoshi sword. He departs the mountain for the first time.

Shan Gudao and Li Xiangyi go to rescue the He family of the Changma Blade sect, who was massacred by Dongling Three Gang for the cloud iron. They find one survivor, a child, and take him to Louyang. Shan Gudao ditches Li Xiangyi and kills the kid.

Li Xiangyi defeats the Demon of the Blood Realm.

At an unknown time between 15 and 10 years ago:

Di Feisheng, Wuyan, King Bai of Fire, Four-faced Qingzun, and King Zunming of Yama found the Jinyuan alliance. Di Feisheng makes his first famous kill: the Monk of the Blood Realm, Kuang Jiezi. He removes the Golden Jade hoops from his staff and hangs them on his dao as a trophy.

Li Xiangyi fights with Wuyou and nicks the Shaoshi sword to avoid killing him.

The 12 Guardians join the Jinyuan alliance just before Jiao Liqiao does.

Jiao Liqiao was following Li Xiangyi around. A girl from Fengling Sword Sect provoked Jiao Liqiao and she massacres the Fengling Sword sect. Li Xiangyi stops her and attempts to kill her, but Di Feisheng saves Jiao Liqiao.

13 years ago:

Li Xiangyi establishes the Sigu Sect. Sigu sect makes an agreement with the court dividing the affairs of the people and the affairs of the jianghu. Everyone agrees to follow the legal code of Da Xi.

Scholar Sushou robs the imperial mausoleum in the south of the capital.

Di Feisheng rescues Jiao Liqiao from a gang led by Guishou Fenglie, whose martial arts techniques she tried to steal. Di Feisheng was just there to challenge the gang leader for his spot on the martial arts rankings.

12 or 11 years ago:

Just before Li Xiangyi turns 18, Shan Gudao gives him the Wenjing sword as a birthday present.

At the age of 18, Li Xiangyi acquires Yangzhouman.

11 years ago:

Sigu sect destroys the cult in Mobei and the sect's vitality is damaged. The Jinyuan alliance becomes more powerful. Di Feisheng and Li Xiangyi make a peace treaty: they won't interfere with each other or draw a war in five years.

The royal court agrees to ally with Shan Gudao.

Ten years ago:

[Depending on how old you think Fang Duobing is; he says this happened when he was ten] Madam He introduces Shan Gudao to Fang Duobing as her long-lost brother. Shan Gudao teaches Fang Duobing martial arts in secret before he can walk. Fang Duobing briefly meets Li Xiangyi, who gives him a wooden sword.

Li Xiangyi trespasses into the Royal Palace grounds on Mid-Autumn night to watch the Epiphyllum festival.

Lian Quan, Lord Of The Netherworld, is last seen in Shishou Village.

Shan Gudao tries to break into the Yipin tomb but cannot get past the Bagua (eight trigrams) Formation. The 14 Thieves of the Netherworld break into the tomb and die inside.

Li Xiangyi receives a message that the three kings of the Jinyuan alliance have besieged Shan Gudao in the Yangsha valley, the Jinyuan alliance's secret hideout. Meanwhile, the three kings receive a challenge from Shan Gudao but the letter was not his handwriting. The three kings arrive at the valley to find Shan Gudao already dead. Other members of the Sigu sect claim: they followed Shan Gudao to run some errands but were suddenly attacked by the three kings; Shan Gudao sent someone to go for help; Shan Gudao lured the three kings away to protect his subordinates.

Li Xiangyi cradles his shixiong's body and vows revenge. Shan Gudao's body is stolen in an ambush by the Jinyuan alliance. Li Xiangyi declares war on the Jinyuan alliance.

Li Xiangyi gathers Shan Gudao's belongings into a box in his room at the Sigu sect headquarters.

Yun Biqiu, at Jiao Liqiao's direction, administers Bicha poison to Li Xiangyi.

Jiao Liqiao and Fang Qing are working together. Someone from Nanyin purchases gunpowder from Thunder Hall in Jiangnan with funds from the Wansheng clan. Ding Yun, Wind and Thunder Emissary and Wan Renshan, Star and Moon Emissary used thundering fire bombs to trap the Sigu Sect and blow up the Jinyuan alliance headquarters. The 12 guardians of the Jinyuan alliance die. 58 heroes of the Sigu sect die.

27th day of the 12th lunar month, year of Xin Chou: Li Xiangyi and Di Feisheng battle at the East Sea.

Someone alters a corpse to look like Shan Gudao. He survives, under the influence of wuxin huai. Shan Gudao kills Qi Mushan and takes his inner power.

Li Xiangyi fakes his death and disappears. The Sigu sect disbands. Its surviving arm, Baichuan Court, rounds up the remnants of the Jinyuan alliance. Di Feisheng goes into seclusion for ten years.

Ten or nine years ago:

Xin Lie, Thunder Chaser of Jinyuan alliance, Five Poison Palm, escapes from prison.

28th day of the 5th month, year of Ren Yin: Shi Hun writes a letter to the Sigu sect to thank them for releasing him.

Unknown, between ten years ago and present day:

The Jinyuan Alliance surrounds Lian Quan's mansion for the Rama Heavenly Ice, he escapes with Li Xiao and Li Xiong to Xiaoyuan City to live in hiding.

Li Lianhua finds Scholar Sushou, helps him and lets him stay with him. Scholar Sushou passes away.

Li Lianhua saves Tiexiao, who jumped off a cliff and was buried; Li Lianhua heard him shouting.

Four-faced Qingzun dies in prison and gives the Rama ice shard to his wife, Liangyi Xianzi.

Fang Duobing takes bitter medicine; bathes in cold springs; pierces his 12 major acupoints every day and faints many times but refuses to cry. He can stand up, walk, and learn martial arts.

Five years ago:

The Hall of Wind and Flame took the Shi family's secret book as their own. This includes Qi Mushan's recipes.

Three years ago:

Fang Duobing takes the Baichuan Court entrance examination, but they refuse to accept him.

One year ago:

"Last March": Li Lianhua saved Shi Wenjue, third son of the Shi family (he faked his suicide because he wanted a career in public service and his family didn't approve, Li Lianhua saw it). The Shi family in Weapons Valley were the ones who forged Cloud Iron armor and the wind sword.

Present day:

The show begins sometime after the sixth day of the fourth month of Ren Zi year. [We know this because in episode 2, Wangfu is sixteen and we are given his birthday as April 6th of Bing Shen Year]

Red Mountains (Girls' Mansion episode arc) takes place on month 9 day 9 of Ren Zi Year.

Episode 37/38 is the ten-year anniversary of the dong hai duel, so it takes place on the 27th day of 12th month of Ren Zi Year.

#mysterious lotus casebook #reference guide #timeline

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hadesisqueer · 11 months

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Hey so, one thought about the Beach that gets more painful when you know how Azula's story ends in the finale: She ALMOST opens up to the others, but then IMMEDIATELY puts her metaphorical mask back on the second she realizes this.

She very clearly DESIRES a genuine bond with her companions, but thanks to Ozai, she has no idea HOW to function like a normal person!

It's HEARTBREAKING to see her so clearly aware that there's SOMETHING wrong with her, but having no idea how to actually RESOLVE that. So she just defaults to appeasing her father. To being the monster people expect her to be.

Azula is such a tragic character because in another environment she could have been great. She was a firebending prodigy and her father favored her because of that, enabling her worst traits instead of trying to correct them so she could turn out to be just like him. Since Zuko wasn't as favored, her mother in turn paid more attention to him so he wouldn't feel left out, and you can see in the novels that she tried to get Ursa to also pay attention to her by doing the same things Ozai would usually praise her for, which caused Ursa to reasonably scold her; however, Ursa usually didn't scold her in the same way she scolded Zuko sometimes, by guiding him into doing the right thing. Instead, she scolded Azula by shutting her down, which caused Azula to rely more on Ozai than Ursa, thinking her mother didn't love her and showed favoritism for her brother, which isn't entirely wrong (although Ursa did love her; she simply connected more with Zuko because he reminder her of her first love, while subsconciously Azula reminded her more of Ozai).

Iroh seemed to have a similar relationship with them when they were kids, sending them both presents, although he seemed to get along more with Zuko, partly because he reminded Iroh of Lu Ten and partly because again, Azula relied a lot on her father who openly disliked Iroh. Then, Zuko was banished, and obviously, Iroh went with him; Zuko was a 13yo broken hearted child with half of his face burnt and sent away from home on his own to complete an impossible task. His abuse was more apparent and Iroh went with him because at the time, it seemed like he had it the worst (and also, again, because he was closer to him). I do think that if that had been Azula sent away, though—if she had somehow offended Ozai enough for him to burn her and banish her—Iroh would have probably tried to go with her regardless of how bad their relationship would have been, trying to show her the same guidance he showed Zuko. Damn, maybe even Zuko would have chosen to go with her, since that's his younger sister (and because he would have prefered going with his uncle and his younger sister who he doesn't get along with rather than staying completely alone with his father, maybe). Maybe it'd have worked, spending years in a different environment with someone who tried to help her and didn't treat her like a living weapon who could easily be disposed of whenever she no longer was useful to him. Zuko himself said that the best thing Ozai did for him was banishing him. Maybe it would have been the best thing for Azula too.

#atla #avatar the last airbender #zuko #azula #uncle iroh

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weirdlotiel · 2 months

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Okay. So I watched the Avatar live action show out of curiosity.

To be fair, I don’t feel as much connection to it as to the oroginal animated series. Visually it’s really nice. I really enjoyed watching Iroh and Zuko. Yue and Suki were really good too in my opinion. Heck, I liked Azula, even if she’s a broken “psycho”. But Aang and his friends? Just… I like them, but it’s not enough, if you understand what I mean. It may be because of not enough development as some pointed out. I know the actors did their best (probably 😂), but it’s weird for me to watch a show and be unable to connect with the main characters. Especially when I knew those characters earlier.

I enjoyed watching the flashbacks. That idea was great, especially that there are parts we didn’t saw before like Lu Ten’s funeral. And the fact that Zuko’s crew are the people he saved by standing up to his father.

I also liked the fact that Yue had some more connection to the spirit’s world than just being saved by and then returning the life to Tui.

I wish things were a bit harder for Aang. With getting in touch with his past selves. With understanding the spirit world. Hah, with guessing that Bumi is Bumi. (Though I liked Bumi himself, even if he was a bit different than in the animation.)

If there is second season, I will definitely watch it, if only for more of Iroh aand Zuko, and because I want to see Toph. The series is not that bad, it’s good… but it’s not awesome or whatever. I’m sort of glad I didn’t have high expectations, because I think I would be more disappointed.

#avatar #avatar the last airbender #atla #aang #zuko #iroh #netflix #live action #show #katara #yue #sokka #suki #toph

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gardenlollipop · 1 month

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Why Ozai is not a bad character

This seems like an outrageous take but hear me out.

My first topic of discussion is how horrible ozai's childhood must have been. His father was Azulon and the way he treated Zuko and Azura was probably has a direct correlation to how his own childhood must have been. Like that scene where his dad slapped for spilling a cup of water. He also has burns all over his body from his father, you just don't see them in the show. Or the comics. Trust me. Because there's evidence that clearly points to this.

Second, about Zuko's whole scar. 13 year old Zuko is a known deceptive, manipulative, evil worm. Think about how quickly he switched sides from the "evil" side to team avatar (suspicious). Also, it's so obvious that his scar is fake and that he reapplies it every morning and night. You can even see cosmetics in the background, and there's one scene where it's not even on his face. like could they have made it any more obvious, yet all you LOVE manipulative and lying Zuko.

Next let's talk about URSA. OH MY GOD URSA. When firebird ozai threatened to mistreat Zuko to Ursa, he was just trying to defend himself from his evil manipulative child to his equally manipulative wife. She mistreated her children and him and escaped the second she saw the chance, without a second thought towards her family. Also, the thing that's most ignored by this ignorant fandom, is how she threatened his parents that she would release fire nation noble secrets unless she could marry their son, Ozai, who was terrified of her. Also, the way he proved his love by sacrificing his own parents for her in the comic "North and South".

For Azula, I think it goes without saying how insane Azula is, not to mention how ungrateful she is towards her father in the last episode after she's made firelord even though she's not even that talented, Ozai's words not mine. Ozai also had a good reason to mistreat Azula, seeing how much she mistreated the one he loved, Mai. Even in Azula's childhood she would lie to her parents, even her father even though he clearly cared about her and was a very good parent.

Not much can be said about Iron, considering we don't see much of their relationship. Consider how negligent and uncaring Iron was towards his brother after he lost his nephew, Lu Ten. Iron instead used this to bring attention to himself. He also betrayed Ozai, putting his manipulative nephew Zuko over his own brother.

Next is Mai, she lied to the firelord to get on his good side, and in the end just betrayed him to go with Zuko and avatar. Mai might be the worst character in the show, seeing as she betrayed not only one of her closest friends, but also Ozai, the man who truly loved her. Not to mention, the only reason she liked Zuko was because he joined the avatar and she believed his side would win in the end. Because all she ever cared about was making herself look good.

AANG!! Despite the fact that he had unresolved feelings for the firelord, he still took down his love and deep down should feel ultimately guilty.

Finally, Ozai is extremely attractive. Let's start with his lovely, clear skin and his high sculpted cheekbones and beautiful glossy olive skin. Not to mention his beautiful golden shining eyes, sculpted into the perfect almond shape. He was especially attractive in the New live action. Considering his beautiful ribbed abs, his long Lucious, black locks, and even in the final battle how he still looks put together and attractive and HOT.

We need to talk about one final point, how he just wanted his kingdom and his people to be the best it could possibly. All of his actions were just him looking out for his people. He mistreated some people but he could have been a lot worse. And he was a good king. He's just very patriotic in his love for Agni kai, his people, and the color red. and bonfires. and birds. He especially loved the beautiful sight of grey smoke falling over the beautiful, white, melting snow whenever he attacked the southern water tribe.

Also he is a good king.

Thank you for coming to my ted talk

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mugentakeda · 1 month

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WELL. I had an anon that was kindly asking me background info on my oc jiro and whatever he had going on with lu ten. I had the Fawking response all done and had it saved as a draft right. and i just needed to switch it to post but tumblr Wouldnt Let Me (it was saying something "went wrong" idfk) so I deleted the draft and was gonna try posting it again thinking the ask would reappear in my inbox but it DIDNT it just deleted the whole ask along with the draft :((( so i'm just gonna post it all here anyway and hope that the anon sees it fhkdndncmxbc,dndkzhnx

-basic stuff: 27 (<-when he meets lu ten), nonbender (<-doesnt need bending lol)

-finest jewelry maker in the fire nation. he also does metal art like embossing and figures and shit. he collaborates closely with famous potters and tailors in the FN to make stuff for the royal family and their special occasions (like holiday and celebration banquet jewelry and bedazzled outfits and shit). he also works with fire nation theaters, to help with their costumes for their more pricey productions. he's made MANY crowns for the royal family as well.

-oldest of 3 brothers. the business he owns was passed down in the family thru generations. jiro inherited (usurped?) it when he was 23, after he beat his father to death for smacking their mother around. their mother lives with the middle brother and his family on one of the outer FN islands. the youngest is estranged and started his own (less successful) business out of jealousy towards jiro.

-neutral on the war in the same way june the bounty hunter is- money is money to him. and when I say neutral I mean neutral. he obviously doesn't get clients or customers from other nations due to the war but if he did then he'd be more than happy to serve them. but his business still wouldn't be affected no matter the outcome of the war because even without international clients his wallet is thick, so he doesn't really care what the outcome ends up being. he believes a true businessman goes wherever the wind takes him and is good at adapting. not a "stuck in his ways" type of guy. the royal family is his top priority client obviously, but it's simply because they pay the most for the finest pieces. it's not out of any kind of loyalty or patriotism.

-jiro likes material things and having money, but he's genuinely super passionate about his craft and the arts in general. he does a lot of other crimes (<- lol) but counterfeiting isn't one of them. all his products and art are genuine, handcrafted, made to detail. he's probably kinda disgusted by the idea of counterfeit and scamming because he genuinely looks forward to the reaction of his clients when they receive what they paid for. he does the act of service, he gets the praise and the money, he's a happy camper.

-despite all of the above, his demeanor is the definition of greasy and sleazy- but he also can be genuinely suave when he wants. he'll charm the pants off your granny. but not sleazy in the same way zhao is, though (cus zhao is no real charmer lol). cus zhao is high in the navy so he's Very stuck up, and he's also an otl (<-???) ass-kisser. he's a slimy douchebag, but still one that adamantly adheres to and enforces fire nation law. he's a guy that has goals and will do anything to get there. meanwhile jiro, you look at him and you know he does criminal shit. he just gives the danger vibe, and he flaunts it with confidence. and you must reach at least level 4 friend to unlock the gentlemanly, white-knight-syndrome side of jiro.

-what jiro DOES do for criminal activity is that as he has most of all the fire nation nobility and high court (along with the Literal royal family) in his pocket. he has eyes and ears in a LOTTTT of people's business. sensitive business. criminal business. blackmail on top of blackmail. he's only loyal to people he personally gives a shit about, and whatever the people he cares about gives a shit about. he's got the love in his heart to make those extensions because he really is thoughtful in nature. but anything outside of that is not his problem so yes he WILL sell your ass out. the most dependable man in the world if he loves you, but the most venomous, backstabbing scorpion-viper if he doesn't care about you.

-and he doesn't hire goons- the business and its dealings are done all by him, and him alone. so if you air out his business or try to fuck with him, he will show up in your house alone and kill you in the next 24 hours i PROMISE you. preferred form of doing so is beating to death. and them is workers arms baby so you aren't getting out of it alive!!! jiro isn't very tall but he is strong as FUCK. and because of the fact that he knows everybody's dirty laundry he gets away with all of it lol. jiro is not afraid of jackkkkk SHIT (<- which is why he's very dependable if he loves you. he's unflinching and dedicated)

-as for him and lu ten: he and lu ten met by chance (they quite literally ran into each other in the palace and toppled over each other), and ended up being twin flames. lu ten's like the orange cat to jiro's black cat. they balanced each other out and jiro was exactly what lu ten needed at the perfect time. their first date or whatever (Doing An Activity Together) was having lunch and tea together in the palace gardens, and it kinda spurred from there. they spent time together like an old retired couple basically lol??? lunches, dinners, long walks from evening to night, doing their tasks in silence but they're next to each other so it's fun (<-parallel play for adults), sitting on benches for hours and just talking and bird watching. two people with tough jobs, so they sometimes forget to stop and smell the roses, but they reserve time for each other so they can stop and smell the roses together.

-it isn't ALWAYS them acting like a retired old couple though cus like I said jiro is a sleaze bag and a flirt. azula was the only one that really noticed and she was very disgusted by them and would constantly swear lu ten has a thing for losers. but then again she'd claim any person lu ten messes with to be a gross loser so there's that

-as soon as they got close to tension hitting a boiling point the siege situation rolled around (<-AVERAGE COCKBLOCKER IROH MOMENT) and lu ten obviously didn't come back. and jiro never let go of it because of all the "what ifs" and how there was something there that was mutual but it never became official or was put into words. so there's more regret rather than bitterness about lu ten's absence in jiro's life. like "right person, wrong time" trope??? but this is the dai li au so they'll be fine eventually lol

-after lu ten died and ozai took over, jiro was silently cut off from the royal family. ozai didn't directly order that or anything but he didn't commission or hire jiro for anything the way azulon always did. jiro also quietly removed himself from the whole political ring and just focused on his work. didn't have a reason to stop and smell the roses anymore, but the work never quits and the world didn't stop turning

-once azula got old enough to be let loose into the playing field, she hired jiro under the table due to her knowing how close he'd been with lu ten (which makes him someone she felt that she could trust), and he got put back into the political game (<- to everyone elses dismay). since her first rodeo was outside of the fire nation, he became her eyes and ears back home.

-and he wasn't forced by her or intimidated by her- he was brought back to life by finally having a real reason to get back in action again. at first, azula being the kid lu ten personally took care of for the first little portion of her life (<-which is a secret jiro knows from lu ten. azula doesn't know about that, and it's gonna stay that way. it's more to be a driving force for jiro. cus jiro has a "whats yours is mine" mindset when he loves someone. so what lu ten loved, jiro also loves. so whatever azula wants from jiro, jiro will provide it to her.) was what made being her guy so easy, but he ends up taking a genuinely liking to the crazy kid. he feels like they get along pretty well cus they're like-minded when it comes to their methods

#I'm so sorry anon.#I'm holding anon like Ivan the terrible and his son rn.#for some reason putting jiro into words is way harder for me than with fuhua #idk why. he's just weird and difficult #that's why it took forever to write all this outnshjsbcjkxn #dai li lu ten #original character #alicias writing stuff

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fabdante · 2 years

Photo

@zutaraweek day 4: meeting

this one got slightly out of hand but i think i stopped it from getting entirely out of hand. but here’s a little comic about a subtle little au i’ve been drawing for a few zutara weeks now where the war ended early and kya lives (also is chief).

being a comic and having a short deadline (and also adding a page after I thought I was done), I may have taken a few short cuts and it could have been a little less messy structure wise but it’s fine

transcript, and brief image descriptions, under the cut incase it’s hard to read!

Page 1: Kya and Katara arrive to the Fire Nation, the four panel’s on this page show establishing shots of the Fire Nation. Kya: Oh it’s so nice to be be able to really stretch your legs, don’t you think? Katara: Maybe. Kya: Come on now, this is exciting! You’ve never been to the Fire Nation before! Katara: Am I even going to know anyone at the accords? Kya: Yue might be coming this year. And Fire Lord Iroh has a nephew and niece about your age. Maybe you can be friends. Kya: You’ll love the garden’s, I promise.

Page 2: Kya and Katara talk as they walk Katara: I don’t see why we had to come. The other nations rarely come to us. And the foods probably bad. Kya: The peace accords cycle through every nation every year, Katara. It’s how it’s always been done. Katara: You could have brought Sokka. Kya: My darling, you begged to come. And he wasn’t sure how he felt about raw Fire Nation sea slug tentacles. Katara: Do I have to eat that?

Page 3: We switch to Zuko and Ozai talking, presumably waiting to meet Kya and Katara at the gardens. Text at the top of the page reads ‘meawhile in the Royal Gardens’ Zuko: I don’t see why we had to come. This is supposed to be Uncles job, couldn’t he have sent Lu Ten- Ozai: Your uncle and your cousin are preoccupied doing something with the Earth Kingdom delegates this morning. This is an opportunity to do something above your status, be grateful I chose you.

Page 4: Kya and Katara continue talking Katara: It’s just that these talks always feel pointless. Everything’s still tense. And it’s warmer then you’d said it’d be and I…I already miss home. Kya: It’s natural to be homesick, we’re far from home. But the peace accords between nations are important if we intend to have lasting peace. We need to have a presence each year or else the Fire Nation will forget what stopped the last war. It’s important. Kya: And it’s late fall. The summers are much worse. Katara: There’s worse??

Page 5: Ozai continues to berate Zuko, who is uncomfortable about this. But they get interrupted as Kya and Katara arrive, and we get a shot of the turtle duck pond Ozai: Rarely do we get the opportunity to step from your uncles shadow. Especially you. You forget too easily because your uncle is kind. But not all of us are satisfied being third in line for the throne- Kya, interrupting: Prince Ozai. I wasn’t expecting you.

Page 6: Kya is less then impressed with Ozai but their conversation get’s tuned out by both teens as Katara waves at Zuko and goes to give him a Southern Water Tribe forearm shake as a greeting. Kya: I was told we would be meeting your brother, the Fire Lord, this morning. Ozai: Chief Kya! Iroh had unexpected business. How was your voya-

#zutara #zutara week #zutara week 2022 #atla #avatar the last airbender #prince zuko #zuko #katara #atla ozai #atla kya #my art #tw child abuse #child abuse #tw canon typical ozai behavior #i wasn't sure how much ozai related warning was needed

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phoeeling · 1 year

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honestly, ursa and Iroh’s relationship with Azula is interesting specifically because of how many mistakes were made by the aforementioned adults. Some claim Azula rejected them, and I don’t believe that’s supported by canon.

In Zuko Alone, flashback Azula actually enjoys the letter Iroh wrote and laughs at his joke (alongside Ursa and Zuko). It isn’t until Iroh hurts her feelings that she starts talking badly about him.

So for Zuko, a heartfelt gift with significance. Messed up significance, but still. And for Azula: an afterthought. That’s what it says.

I talked about Iroh’s gift here to Azula to my sister, and she pointed out that it also kinda says: hey look at this doll. it probably belonged to a different little girl. isn’t it cool how she probably had humanity, and feelings, and prospects? She probably got happy about things, and laughed about things and cried about things. There was a lot of things about her, she was a fully realized 3D person. She got tummy aches, she got nervous. And she’s dead now. Little tiny girl. Just like you. Lots of things that she went through.

like. seriously. I always assumed they took it from a shop, but it’s never actually stated where they got it.

Weird to try and humanize the people you are actively murdering to your niece, regardless.

This whole interaction is so very telling. Azula’s feelings get hurt, so in very typical 6-7 year old fashion, she talks about Iroh dying. That’s how kids tend to express hurt feelings. I’ve already talked about her and Ursa’s parts in this, so I won’t repeat myself.

The next time she’s mean regarding Iroh, she seems hurt that Lu Ten died and Iroh is giving up instead of going for vengeance. Objectively, what Iroh is doing makes him a bad general. Iroh didn’t care about all the lives sacrificed until it was Lu Ten. It was his siege, he was leading it. It didn’t matter until it was personal for him.

Of course Azula isn’t going to have a high opinion on him: the only reason that Zuko does is because the writers wanted to make Zuko look more sympathetic, despite the fact Zuko insults Iroh more than any other character.

Granted, she does call him a loser in addition to being a quitter. It’s unclear how long she’s felt that way but given her previous enjoyment of his letter, I’m guessing she’s still mad about the doll.

#atla #Azula #ursa #Iroh #Zuko #avatar the last airbender

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