蘇 hello, fire lord zuko here. (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
atoned) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
eachdraidh2014-10-01 12:05 am
atoned) wrote in eachdraidh2014-10-01 12:05 am
Entry tags:
2 ☼ video / open to both courts
[ zuko is not going to tearbend. ]
[ he may have found toph's shard, tucked safely away where no one, not even reynard, would be able to steal it, and her metal bracelet, worn around his thin wrist, but he will not tearbend. he knows what it means. toph never abandons him, not even when he's annoyed her until she starts calling him sparky just to see him grit his teeth and steam pour from his ears. toph's the one thing in drabwurld that actually stayed — and it's his fault she's gone. even though it's completely and utterly irrational, guilt eats away at him for leaving her alone, believing his own treachery to the unseelie court would only require him to complete a personal quest to see to it his honour is restored. but toph's gone — save for her metal bracelet, the one he never really had seen her take off. had they stripped her of that before they'd taken her, too? he doesn't plan on keeping her bracelet, determined to give it back to her once he finds her again. but it's better to be worn on his person than to be left in his suite, the imps' feet running closer and closer to his door with each passing day he lingers in drabwurld — either at the station or in caer scima. ]
[ his expression is a permanent scowl. two imps can be seen running from him outside the castle of caer scima, their behinds burnt and some of their hair still caught aflame. they keep shouting we don't know where toph is!, but it only seems to make zuko angrier, hands balling into tight fists. in toph's honour, he sends a blast of fire along the grass, slithering quickly toward them like a serpent, to see to it they shriek and jump high into the air. ]
Toph's gone. The imps didn't take her, but I don't believe them.
[ he's not sure what to even believe anymore. he can barely believe in himself, and that's already a can of worms he's trying to shove the lid back on. ]
[ petulantly, he utters, ] Whatever. [ it's not like it matters; he doesn't even know if anyone outside of those in the unseelie even know toph. do they just think he's saying tough? she'd laugh at that; he grits his teeth. anyone would find their life was made ten times better just by her being around. they'd arrived in drabwurld together, they were meant to leave together. ]
[ it appears as though he's about to blast a tree, or even his own locket, held as though another is merely directing it, but he doesn't. much louder, ] I hate this place.
[ and he leans forward to grab his locket and tosses it as far as he can, shooting a thick burst of flame at it as the imp that had been recording him scampers away, its body seen blurred by the camera tumbling into darkness. ]
[ for anyone at caer scima, zuko's in the bailey, sitting against a willow tree, sulking. either he wears his frown, arms crossed against his chest, or he's looking at his locket, as if contemplating burning it until it's ash, even though it seems almost indestructible against his fire. if toph were here ... well, she's not. and he's not chasing any imps or playing practical jokes (nor is he going to the feast later today to do such a thing) on anyone because of that very reason. ]
[ he may have found toph's shard, tucked safely away where no one, not even reynard, would be able to steal it, and her metal bracelet, worn around his thin wrist, but he will not tearbend. he knows what it means. toph never abandons him, not even when he's annoyed her until she starts calling him sparky just to see him grit his teeth and steam pour from his ears. toph's the one thing in drabwurld that actually stayed — and it's his fault she's gone. even though it's completely and utterly irrational, guilt eats away at him for leaving her alone, believing his own treachery to the unseelie court would only require him to complete a personal quest to see to it his honour is restored. but toph's gone — save for her metal bracelet, the one he never really had seen her take off. had they stripped her of that before they'd taken her, too? he doesn't plan on keeping her bracelet, determined to give it back to her once he finds her again. but it's better to be worn on his person than to be left in his suite, the imps' feet running closer and closer to his door with each passing day he lingers in drabwurld — either at the station or in caer scima. ]
[ his expression is a permanent scowl. two imps can be seen running from him outside the castle of caer scima, their behinds burnt and some of their hair still caught aflame. they keep shouting we don't know where toph is!, but it only seems to make zuko angrier, hands balling into tight fists. in toph's honour, he sends a blast of fire along the grass, slithering quickly toward them like a serpent, to see to it they shriek and jump high into the air. ]
Toph's gone. The imps didn't take her, but I don't believe them.
[ he's not sure what to even believe anymore. he can barely believe in himself, and that's already a can of worms he's trying to shove the lid back on. ]
[ petulantly, he utters, ] Whatever. [ it's not like it matters; he doesn't even know if anyone outside of those in the unseelie even know toph. do they just think he's saying tough? she'd laugh at that; he grits his teeth. anyone would find their life was made ten times better just by her being around. they'd arrived in drabwurld together, they were meant to leave together. ]
[ it appears as though he's about to blast a tree, or even his own locket, held as though another is merely directing it, but he doesn't. much louder, ] I hate this place.
[ and he leans forward to grab his locket and tosses it as far as he can, shooting a thick burst of flame at it as the imp that had been recording him scampers away, its body seen blurred by the camera tumbling into darkness. ]
[ for anyone at caer scima, zuko's in the bailey, sitting against a willow tree, sulking. either he wears his frown, arms crossed against his chest, or he's looking at his locket, as if contemplating burning it until it's ash, even though it seems almost indestructible against his fire. if toph were here ... well, she's not. and he's not chasing any imps or playing practical jokes (nor is he going to the feast later today to do such a thing) on anyone because of that very reason. ]
video;
she would have liked to know him better. ]
They didn't take her. [ and she wishes she could do something more for him, something to reassure him that this is a good thing. truthfully, korra's not even sure of that much. no one seems to know what happens when people go missing from the drabwurld which makes korra a lot more uneasy than she knows she has any right to be.
it seems silly to ask if zuko's okay because he's obviously not, and korra watches the feed for a few moments more before she lets out a sigh. ] The offer to come with us is still open.
video;
[ as quickly as the anger flares up, it simmers right back down. it's an offer he hadn't really thought about when toph had disappeared. all he could think of was trying to find her. was she hidden in a rock? was she beneath the earth, creating a tunnel for them to travel through? he sighs, defeated, ] I'm not good company. [ he is when toph's around; she has a knack for making him laugh at himself. she'd also disperse any tension he created by being too angry to properly exist. without her, he's just alone. ]
[ or safe company. as he's unseelie, travelling with seelie folk would only damn them to the same fate he has to bear until he can somehow appease high queen morla. maybe she's been taken for his treason; maybe she'd been taken for her own. it's all too up in the air and his imagination is running as rampant as sokka's on a good meat day. she'd dispersed his worries as if they were air molecules, but they've returned to cling to him tightly and stubbornly; he doesn't want any of them to suffer because of him simply tagging along. ]
video; 1/2
I don't know. But — ... It's possible she was just sent home.
[ there are statues of her in republic city; there are tales of what she did for the police. how she got it all started. lin bei fong. metalbenders. she can't be lost to the universes because korra knows toph did a lot of amazing things in the city, just like aang. ]
video;
yeah, being around zuko would make keeping the avatar thing a secret a lot more difficult, but he's going to find out at some point. maybe by getting to know her he'll be more ready to accept it...
she still remembers the fear in aang's eyes when she mentioned it before. she almost lost the chance to be his friend. she has to do better here. ]
Says you. [ mm'hm, just gonna turn that right back around on him there. ] But I don't really wanna leave you to just sulk and burn more imps alone. [ she offers him a small, gentle smile. ] C'mon, Hotman. Let's get into some trouble.
video;
[ contrary to everything toph's told him about himself, he still doesn't know what she's going home to. she has her school, and her lilly livers, but he doesn't know anything. he's the fire lord, leaving his (good) footprint upon the world, rebuilding his life and his family in the manner he wants to. but he hadn't thought to ask toph about herself — of her parents, of her school, if she's still the blind bandit in underground matches. toph going home brings him very little comfort. but at least she's safe from the beings who wish to hurt them here. ]
[ at least she's with their friends. that's all that counts. ]
[ but he finds that one still lingers, even if unintentionally. ]
[ it's instinct to shout: ] Stop calling me that! [ but then he realises it misses the sifu and the tiny boy attached to it, innocently calling him sifu hotman as though it's a title worthy of respect. pressing the heel of his palm to his forehead, he tries to shift the anger of missing aang, too, away. ] I'm sorry. I'm just ... [ missing my friends today. he'd prefer to sulk, but zuko doesn't particularly want to linger in caer scima, alone. he may not have been as alone as he had thought for three long years, but it's that quiet company he craves now. perhaps korra and her friends are capable of giving it to him. ]
[ he sighs, relenting. ] Fine. But I'm burning any imps who follow us. [ toph would bury them beneath the ground; it's only fair he continues their tradition. ]
video;
perhaps she should be doing less of that. even if she can't share the true fact about who she is, that doesn't mean she has to keep the whole future of their world under wraps, does it? what if tenzin showed up? or lin? what about jinora? that could bring everything crashing down on zuko's head and he's got it bad enough as it is, alone now in his court and far across the map. it would be better to ease him into the idea, she thinks, even if that means waiting to tell him things at just the right moment.
she wants to say something to bring him comfort, but maybe once they're face to face. it feels impersonal saying it over the lockets. ]
Sounds like a good idea to me. [ there's an urge for her to say "and i'll bury them" but without mentioning her earthbending, there's little reason to give into the urge, so she lets it go. ] If you want, I can meet you in the Station in a couple days, bring you here?
video;
Isn't that out of your way? [ he feels guilty at the thought. people going out of their way for him is a hard fire flake to swallow sometimes. he's so used to doing things himself, even if there happened to be guards who would've fetched him a fruit tart with petals on top. but when it really counted, he had no one to depend on but himself. ] I have a boon. [ albeit, temporary, and, if he's not smart, the last he'll ever receive. ] It can take me to Caer Glaem quicker than a sky bison. [ in a blink of an eye, apparently. zuko had used it to get both he and toph from the station to caer scima, but he still doesn't quite believe in it. it's the magic cassie's always talking about, the bending that doesn't make any sense to him. not even aang can teleport using the air molecules to somehow make him disappear. ]
video;
and yeah, sure, it's out of her way but you know what, appa enjoys the time he gets to spend outside flying around. he sleeps in the open bailey sometimes because korra will absolutely not keep the poor thing cooped up in a barn stall if she can help it. unless it's raining. then appa gets to stay clean and dry.
she perks up at the mention of a boon (her own tucked safely inside one of her pouches), her eyebrows lifting in curiosity. ] Oh hey, that's great! [ not that she would have had a problem flying out, but this is so much easier. ] Yeah, if you want to use that to get here, that's fine too!
video;
[ he guesses they're trying to be friendly. katara would do the same thing for him, be met with the same walls, his feet refusing to lift from the ground, even if toph were to bend it out from beneath him. maybe that's why he reacts the way he does, not completely shutting himself off or refusing to take up her offer. ]
[ despite drabwurld not being home, and the monarchs being unlike ozai, he still doesn't want them to get into trouble because of him. he'd put sokka, suki, and his father in danger at the boiling rock by stupidly leaving mai a letter and forgetting her uncle happened to be the warden of the prison he was breaking into. it's dumb paranoia that drives him now; without the reason for why toph's gone being anywhere close to being unearthed, all he can do is believe it had been because of their actions two months ago. ]
It'd probably be safer. [ for her, at least. if the fairies, or any other creature, happened to spy her taking him in ... ] I can meet you somewhere. Wherever. I don't know the place so I don't really care where.
video;
the more she thinks on it, however, the more she starts to feel that maybe they should. especially if she wants to bring an end to this war. this world is completely out of balance and she should do her best to usher it into an age of peace.
korra presses her lips together in thought, pulling out her map. did zuko mean... outside the castle, or off the property? if she brought him in from off territory she could always claim zuko was a prisoner to keep the guards from asking too many questions, make a seemingly "false" claim of being the avatar and this being her world's problem and not something she was willing to drag the monarchs into... ]
I'll meet you outside the castle gates? [ actually, now that she thinks about it— ] How does your boon work? Is it like the fairy rings, or what?
video;
[ but as for how his boon works, he doesn't think he'll ever really understand it. bending is all he really knows; how can anyone be a ring bender? a token bender? the little token he has holds so much power, yet, it's just a token. it's kind of like his ring, it being able to leech the energy from sozin's comet and somehow seep into his skin to see his own bending amplified. he's beginning to learn tiny little objects hold great power in this world. ]
[ his mouth hangs open, uncertain, drawing out: ] Uh. [ he doesn't really know? ] Magic? [ he sounds so convincing. ] It's a small token. I thought about coming back here and ... we were here. [ he also clicked his heels and chanted there's no place like home three times. ]