Cold Beboots was cold

[beboots]

The final evening at Christmas Reflections at Fort Edmonton! It ended up being like -27C in the river valley... The poor draft horses had frost all over their coats, and were brought into the stables (switched out for tractors AKA "mechanical horses" ;) ) halfway through the evening. I took a shower right before I left for work, and I put my hair in braids while wet. So after I lit the bonfires, and I realized about an hour into my shift that my braids had frozen. SOLID. Like, icicle cores. D: 

CHECK IT OUT



PIPI LONGSTOCKING COSPLAYS = NOW RIDICULOUSLY EASY. 

And for comparison purposes, here is what it looks like defrosted. SO FLOPPY



Here is a shot of the glorious bonfire I made yesterday, to warm you up wherever you are. :)

Comments

[beboots.livejournal.com]

Thank you very much for the details! This was just what I was curious about.

I seriously think that this scar HAS to explain some of his attitude/actions. I mean, from what we see of the young and naive Zuko.... He must be terribly self-conscious about his car... and that's indicated a few times in the series, like in the crystal catacombs when Katara's comments about the face of evil makes him immediately assume she's talking about his scar. It's also not going to help his relationships with girls, one of the reasons I think he was so confused about Jin.

[feral-shrew.livejournal.com]

The scar also happened right around the age when boys start to notice that girls are kinda cool. Before, they were weird, but then they work out that they might eventually think about kissing them.

His dad scars a quarter of his face and banishes him on a snipe hunt. (The best phrasing I've seen was that Zuko was sent on a snipe hunt "and found the goddamn snipe.") He doesn't see anybody his age until Sokka makes his batshit-crazy charge with a spear, the Avatar is a little boy, Zuko has various zany adventures...

And right. When Katara mentions that she pictured his face, he's immediately thinking that it's because of the scar. He doesn't seem to think that anybody would be interested, he seems confused that his uncle cares even after three years... They needed five more minutes, and Azula wouldn't have been able to touch him no matter what she promised (and then actually gave, no further conditions) him.

In the end, though, I don't think he would have let Katara heal the scar. It would have been a huge moment for him (she offered to heal something that's caused way deeper scars), but I think he would have told her to save it for something more important. It's been three years, and that's long enough. I realistically think that he could have an epiphany right there and realize that maybe he doesn't want to go home. He wasn't happy there after his mom left, except when it was Iroh or Mai, his father's a monster... he can tell Katara that he's done chasing the Avatar, whatever else happens. If that was when Aang burst in, it's a very different scene. Azula needed Zuko to win that fight, and then canon twists around and Zuko and Katara might just end up together (because she never, ever struck me as enthusiastic about Aang).

[beboots.livejournal.com]

I think it's quite telling, too, that the only people Zuko's age that you ever actually see him hang around with are his sister and her friends. Did he ever even play with boys his own age? Unlikely. Lu Ten was so much older, too. A lot of his social awkwardness probably has to do with a lack of peer companionship as a child, too. :P

Oh man... I would love to read a fic with that scenario: five minutes longer in the crystal catacombs. ;) Awesome.

[feral-shrew.livejournal.com]

He was the older boy playing with his little sister's friends. That's all kinds of unhappy, there, and Lu Ten was probably the absolutely awesome older cousin that wasn't around much. He only really interacted with Ty Lee, Mai, and Azula-- and as much as I like them, none of them are guides for interacting with the rest of the world.

Ugh. I think I'm writing it. I already had the absolutely-no-writing-it-bad-bad-story thing where Zuko goes with Katara, he faces down Azula, and she kills him three minutes after Zuko's epiphany after lots of romantic (in the classic sense, not hearts and flowers and attraction) descriptions and hope and then he's dead. I have no idea why that happened in my head, but I still won't write the story.

In the ACTUAL "Katara had five more minutes," she's about four seconds from healing the scar when he pushes her wrist away and tells her to save it for something more important. He manage a (very awkward, but earnest/cute) joke that Aang always finds trouble, she smiles, and he has his big epiphany about honor. Ozai isn't honorable, and actually capturing a child and handing him into Fire Nation custody isn't honorable, the war isn't honorable... big, big long chain that boils down to "Katara is honorable, and Ozai is not." Most of that is in his head (luckily, or he'd sound completely crazy), but it would end with "I'm not going to chase Aang anymore."

Sokka is the suspicious one, Aang's jealous but reluctantly happy, Iroh's thrilled, and four days later Iroh vanishes on (White Lotus) errands because "two cooks spoil the soup" and Zuko is suddenly Aang's firebending master. (And when Katara decides to claim herself a firebending prince, it takes her weeks, but it's worth it. He has no idea that he IS being claimed, but that's okay. When he does find out he doesn't mind. Really, the phrasing only ends up that way because Katara is territorial and saw him too many times with the shirt off)

[beboots.livejournal.com]

Damn, if Azula DID end up killing Zuko after his change of heart... DAAAMN... D:

"she's about four seconds from healing the scar when he pushes her wrist away and tells her to save it for something more important. He manage a (very awkward, but earnest/cute) joke that Aang always finds trouble, she smiles, and he has his big epiphany about honor." Very nice! And he's totally right about Aang, too. >_>

"Really, the phrasing only ends up that way because Katara is territorial and saw him too many times with the shirt off." XDD

[feral-shrew.livejournal.com]

"Damn, if Azula DID end up killing Zuko after his change of heart... DAAAMN... D: "

That's why I refuse to write it. It would be all puppies and unicorns and starry-eyed hints of Zutara to come, Aang's jealous but Zuko's kinda cute when completely bemused about what he's doing (and Pohuai, so okay maybe this can work), Sokka doesn't particularly care because they have bigger problems... and then he's dead and the entire thing is just like some theme park ride where you have fun until the roller coaster stops dead while you're upside-down. Only point of the story, because I can't get past that scene.

In the NON-depressing-as-fuck version (I think she heals his scar in that one, and in the one that could conceivably be a story he stops her)-- then we're in business. She has a few gigantic hints about why he's screwed up beyond all reason, and Zuko might let Iroh tell the story. Zuko's not going to listen/watch reactions, but he doesn't want to talk about it, and Iroh did a good job last time.

Aang is a sad, sad little panda, but I think Toph gradually decides that if Sokka is going to go get involved with somebody that made him wear a dress, she'll have to go somewhere else, and... Aang's going to be awesome when he grows up a bit, and he's doing that right now.

(Also, Sokka and Suki, ///what are you doing./// The show quite obviously implies that they're going to have sex in Sokka's tent in Southern Raiders. No biggie, they're consenting teens that are otherwise busy saving the world and I'm sure one of them knows about baby-prevention.

The very biggie: they are in a camp with Toph. They are on the ground. Their entire bodies are on the ground unless one of them can levitate, and Toph can "see" them. That's not how you want to have the talk with somebody, and she can't even go running to Katara or Zuko because they went away to be ninja. Sokka and Suki were responsible for the show, Aang's a bit too young for this... no idea who she talked to, but not the best way to learn about sex. I think she's heard all the jokes, but never encountered people in the act before.)

[beboots.livejournal.com]

I'm sure reading it would feel like a punch to the chest, and I don't think that it would endear you to readers who were hoping for some AU Zutara fluff. ;)

I like the idea of Iroh being the storyteller. Zuko just isn't good at telling stories, I think. >_>

"Aang's going to be awesome when he grows up a bit, and he's doing that right now." Very much agreed! :D

Oh man... I've never even thought of the implications of that scene for Toph before! D: That's kind of... horrifying, in a way. D:

[feral-shrew.livejournal.com]

Half the point of the way-too-unhappy story is that it starts out all sweet and light and hopeful and then everybody's angry and upset (except the people that hate Zuko for no real reason, who tend to ship Kataang a wee bit too hard. If your pairing relies on bad characterization of somebody else, it's a terrible pairing).

So I'm not letting myself write it. I'll write the story where Zuko is dead for the entire plot before I do that one. (And before it sounds too morbid-- he's a zombie/ghost/spirit story, essentially. Sometimes, when someone has a purpose so all-encompassing that it takes up all of who they are, death won't stop them from completing it-- so the story is flashes of the canon, with a very low-tempered Zuko and it's creepy and... yeah, also not writing that one because there isn't really a redeeming bit of plot. When actually dying is an improvement, the story is bad. It's true horror, my version, but Sixth Sense stole the main twist. What if you don't know that you're dead?)

Yeah. I thought of that while writing out a scene with a friend. I had Toph, she was ragging on Sokka, and then... waitasecond. She was teasing him about sex, then I remembered that "Sokka" and "sex" make me jump to the time Zuko walked in on the seduction (and luckily not the actual event), for sex that would be ON THE GROUND. None of the above seems particularly articulate, but she's twelve, and WTF Sokka you know how she sees. One blanket is not enough muffling.)

Iroh is a much better storyteller. It's not among Zuko's talents (just remember the tea joke), and Zuko never, EVER uses his past to benefit himself. He could have (if he realized that his past is nightmare-inducing and crazy). Katara still doesn't trust him, they're not going to take him-- his dad threw lightning at him, he can't go home. (His dad gave him the scar.) Zuko heard Iroh's explanation last time, and it would be past time that Aang-and-company realized that the scar isn't from a training accident.

If I can get the rest of the story, it would be worth it just for that scene. Iroh looks about twenty years older, "in your travels, have you encountered any other firebenders with a burn scar?" I saw that one from the start, but I got into the fandom by reading an Avatar story my friend was raving about. Zuko was in his full bratty/elitist Season One glory, and I liked him anyway. I think he's still my favorite character. I also adore me some Toph and Sokka (together or not, they're both a blast to write, and Sokka is one of the best POVs ever).

[beboots.livejournal.com]

"If your pairing relies on bad characterization of somebody else, it's a terrible pairing." I totally agree. As you said earlier, Katara never seemed too fussed about Aang. Sure, she's devoted to him, but I read their relationship as more really close friends and allies, plus teacher-student. Aang still comes across as a kid to me, and to a certain extent so does canon!Katara. Pre-pubescent dating = not necessarily the basis for twu wuv, forever amen.

"And before it sounds too morbid-- he's a zombie/ghost/spirit story, essentially. Sometimes, when someone has a purpose so all-encompassing that it takes up all of who they are, death won't stop them from completing it" !!! AWESOME IDEA. I loved the Sixth Sense, and I think that that could totally work in the case of this fic idea. Would Iroh, as a person who has had extensive experience with the Spirit World, realize what happened to his nephew? Or is he not present until later?

Perhaps Suki and Sokka could have, ah, shacked up on Appa to avoid giving Toph a non-literal eyeful? Would that have made a difference? But then again, I'm not sure how Appa would have taken it... ;)

"It's not among Zuko's talents (just remember the tea joke), and Zuko never, EVER uses his past to benefit himself." That is very true, isn't it? Interesting! I have to wonder... do you remember if the Gaang ever found out Zuko's backstory with his father on-screen in canon?

"in your travels, have you encountered any other firebenders with a burn scar?" Ooh... I really, really like that line. It has a lot of impact.

Hey, can you recommend those fics to me? I'm always searching for more awesome season one!Zuko. He is a very rare animal to find in a fanfic. ;)

[feral-shrew.livejournal.com]

"I totally agree. As you said earlier, Katara never seemed too fussed about Aang. Sure, she's devoted to him, but I read their relationship as more really close friends and allies, plus teacher-student. Aang still comes across as a kid to me, and to a certain extent so does canon!Katara. Pre-pubescent dating = not necessarily the basis for twu wuv, forever amen."

She acts like his MOM. That is never-ever-ever-ever a good basis for a relationship. She fusses over him and lets him have his way, she interferes when Toph tries to toughen him up and make him start facing responsibility head-on... you don't have to find your twoo wuv at twelve. Seriously. You don't. I still think the most convincing love story in the series was Sokka and Yue. They had the time to meet, and go "wow," and they had the "let's just play Whole New World while you're up on Appa" date, the "we can't do this but I still want to"...

Maybe Katara and Zuko were cliche, but they had all of the fire and passion and back-and-forth that Aang and Katara are never going to. It's like... Aang and Ty Lee. Ooh, look, two happy righteous people that never, ever need to work to be just a little bit better. Katara wants to be better and stronger and to pull people along with her, Zuko starts out mediocre at best and works until he's awesome. The two of them would constantly push the other to be better.

I can't find the link. I used to find it from my friend's favorites, but it's a season one fic written in response to the capture cliches. Katara catches Zuko, and Things Happen. For another really, really good Zuko-centric fic-- this one is lots of whumping, but it's a way to take Zuko from season one to absolutely stone-cold badass. http://www.fanfiction.net/s/5145003/1/Second_Nature

" AWESOME IDEA. I loved the Sixth Sense, and I think that that could totally work in the case of this fic idea. Would Iroh, as a person who has had extensive experience with the Spirit World, realize what happened to his nephew? Or is he not present until later?"

Iroh knows that Zuko is dead, and that replaces his story in The Storm. The biggest (only?) rule is that you cannot tell the person that they're dead. For Zuko, he's changed his entire worldview. He needs to catch the Avatar to have honor/family/love/worth. Zuko has a very muted temper, here, and it comes out slowly. Aang realizes first that Zuko isn't breathing. He only breathes to talk or firebend, and then it all comes to a head at Ba Sing Se. Azula is freaked, and starts saying "you're dead," and I think the ending is all on Aang. He lets Zuko capture him, because Zuko's more honorable than Azula--and that's all that it takes. Zuko succeeded, Uncle is proud of him, the Avatar thinks he has honor, and I think it's the only story I have where the main character fades to nothing and it's almost happy.

"Perhaps Suki and Sokka could have, ah, shacked up on Appa to avoid giving Toph a non-literal eyeful? Would that have made a difference? But then again, I'm not sure how Appa would have taken it... ;)"

They could have waited for Ember Island (not that they knew it was an option). As it was, I think after a few minutes of "eep" Toph probably curled up on Appa for the night (until Zuko and Katara stole her fuzzy bed).

[beboots.livejournal.com]

Sokka and Yue's relationship was adorable. :) Again, it felt a bit more real - they can go for walks and talk together and such. :) I totally agree with you about Zuko and Katara: they actually have dramatic tension in canon. Their relationship changes over time as they grow to understand each other. I think that they'll always have fights, but...

"Aang realizes first that Zuko isn't breathing. He only breathes to talk or firebend, and then it all comes to a head at Ba Sing Se. Azula is freaked, and starts saying "you're dead," and I think the ending is all on Aang. He lets Zuko capture him, because Zuko's more honorable than Azula--and that's all that it takes. Zuko succeeded, Uncle is proud of him, the Avatar thinks he has honor, and I think it's the only story I have where the main character fades to nothing and it's almost happy." I... I LOVE this idea. Of course, once Zuko fades, there will, in all likelihood, be a freakout moment from at least Sokka (who never really had a firm grasp on magic/bending anyway) and possibly Katara (who perhaps didn't realize/believe Aang when he tried to tell her Zuko was dead? I mean, she was JUST talking to him down in the caves...). It would be interesting to see Azula riled up at the sight of her dead but still walking brother...

[feral-shrew.livejournal.com]

Sokka and Yue had a real connection. Sure, Sokka had some "wow she's pretty" at first sight, but that wasn't the entire reason behind their relationship. (If Aang moved beyond "guh she's purty" I didn't see it in his crush-like interactions.) Zuko and Katara have the always-moving relationship, and she'd be a perfect fit in Fire Nation for all of the arguing and constant passion. They're actually between their elements-- Zuko has to learn to change and to not fight everything that comes his way, Katara learns how to use her emotions.

"I... I LOVE this idea. Of course, once Zuko fades, there will, in all likelihood, be a freakout moment from at least Sokka (who never really had a firm grasp on magic/bending anyway) and possibly Katara (who perhaps didn't realize/believe Aang when he tried to tell her Zuko was dead? I mean, she was JUST talking to him down in the caves...). It would be interesting to see Azula riled up at the sight of her dead but still walking brother..."

Katara didn't realize that Zuko wasn't alive. She thought he was just cursed or something, and he could get better. Azula is absolutely freaked-- he's not supposed to be alive. Dad killed him, he needs to go away so she can forget. Aang and Iroh are the calmest people in that cave, and Aang's probably the one that cries. Iroh's been waiting three years for whatever it was that would finally be able to let his nephew rest, and there were probably quite a few sweet moments through the second season. Zuko honestly doesn't need to eat, not that he thinks about it, so Iroh does alright food-wise.

(I think Katara also has the chance of making him move on. She can heal minds after the mindbenders squiggled around in there, she has the spirit-oasis water... it might even be better, if I can delay the healing. She has the best chance at healing him in the literal sense.)

[beboots.livejournal.com]

You put that so well. :)

"Azula is absolutely freaked-- he's not supposed to be alive. Dad killed him, he needs to go away so she can forget." I wonder if this incident actually shook up her confidence in her father at all... Probably. I mean, if Ozai can just literally get rid of the useless one... if she stops being useful...

I can also see MYSELF crying along with Aang when I read this. ;_;

[feral-shrew.livejournal.com]

"I wonder if this incident actually shook up her confidence in her father at all... Probably. I mean, if Ozai can just literally get rid of the useless one... if she stops being useful..."

I think she's always had that fear. Zuko is afraid that no one will like him, I think, and that's the heart of a lot of what he does. (Sokka is afraid he won't be able to protect people, I think Aang is afraid that he only knows how to run.) Azula is afraid of being weak, and she knows that she can't defeat her father, so she has to compensate by being the best damn princess he could even dream of having around. She's useful and a prodigy and smart and BETTER THAN ZUKO, and Ozai's all she has. (In canon-- "You can't treat me like this. You can't treat me like Zuko.") If he's so ready to murder his son (at eight and then at thirteen), then what if she isn't enough? She doesn't have her mother or her uncle. They both think she's a monster. She only understands how to control people through fear, but beneath that she's too smart to not see that fear won't last forever.

I am far from an expert, but I had a few really, really good psych professors. (And one penis length-obsessed evolutionary psychologist that taught the Psychology and Biology of Human Sexuality course, but hey. I know things and eventually they'll be useful. Probably.) The real point-- I have a few great lists of CHILD psychology/development, and Ursa and Iroh gave up on Azula when she was six. I could go on for entire essays about Azula's seeming lack of empathy and what it really meant if a little kid was throwing rocks at turtle-ducks, but... maybe I'll save it for a post when somebody yet again makes a big deal of Zuko's horrible childhood environment and then turns around and makes Azula irredeemable from her very birth.

I've made the assumption from the very start that Azula is a fantastic mimic, hence her very early understanding of bending. She has a nice grasp of the theory and fire, but she also can watch people move and then repeat them-- attention to detail that would let her replicate Kyoshi makeup perfectly, move the right ways, and do drill-based fighting very effortlessly. Long story short, those skills should make her a natural at empathy... but she's not. Something weird happened, and I thought less of Ursa for the few scenes that I've seen. Little kids like Azula can be turned around in two weeks, if you give them the chance and forgive all past misdeeds from the start.

"I can also see MYSELF crying along with Aang when I read this. ;_;"

I'll be there with you. Plotting this out makes me tear up sometimes, and... yeah. One of the worst parts for me is how relieved Iroh is that his nephew can finally move on to be at peace. Aang's more serene than most of the others, because he understands, but it still hurts to know that he could have figured it out months ago, and that even the best outcome is Zuko "dying."

[beboots.livejournal.com]

"You can't treat me like this. You can't treat me like Zuko." I absolutely loved that line for all that it said about Azula, and, well, interactions within the Fire Nation royal family. ;_;

You are very right about Azula's childhood. I mean, it takes two to raise a child, and Ursa WAS there...

"I've made the assumption from the very start that Azula is a fantastic mimic, hence her very early understanding of bending. She has a nice grasp of the theory and fire, but she also can watch people move and then repeat them-- attention to detail that would let her replicate Kyoshi makeup perfectly, move the right ways, and do drill-based fighting very effortlessly. Long story short, those skills should make her a natural at empathy... but she's not." Oh man, I've never thought about it that way before! It makes excellent sense, I think. Perfectionists, by their very nature, have a close eye to details...

[feral-shrew.livejournal.com]

My friend's aunt adopted a little girl that really makes me think of Azula. The little girl was too small to hurt the horses, exactly, but she yelled and screamed and scared the daylights out of the skittish little Thoroughbred (rescued ex-race horse). It took years of being patient and explaining things that seem perfectly obvious, but it worked. There are studies that children with worldviews that look just like anti-social personality disorder/sociopathy just don't understand things that the rest of the world takes for granted. The example the article used was "when you return a car you borrowed, you should fill the tank with gas"-- social contract things that are implied, never stated, so then they come off even worse.

"Oh man, I've never thought about it that way before! It makes excellent sense, I think. Perfectionists, by their very nature, have a close eye to details..."

The best part is that the exact part of her brain/skill set that lets her manipulate people so well and copy things perfectly SHOULD let her understand exactly what people are feeling, but she doesn't. She would need a very new therapy where they coach children through appropriate emotions and responses and seeing from someone else's perspective. It sounds way too basic to some people, but that's how far away some kids are. Azula needed someone to stay with her, and no child throws rocks at turtle-ducks without some reason. I went to school with someone that used to play hacky-sack with frogs, and it took me two years to figure him out a little. He was really, really smart, but people ignored him unless he was being horrible. Something as small as talking to him every day in Criminal Justice class actually made him friendlier. I hated the thing he'd done with the frogs, but when I didn't react to it, we actually talked about the reading and then the news from the last week and... Ursa gave up on Azula, and then there was a line right around the Chase.

Paraphrased: Zuko says "I guess you're going to tell me that I shouldn't think that, because she's my sister." Iroh: "No. She's crazy and she needs to go down." Iroh's part is almost exact. Azula is crazy, okay fine that's debatable, but does she need to go down? She lost her mom when she was six, and you ignored her entirely. Her grandfather is dead, her cousin is dead, you ignore her... that leaves Ozai. Congratulations, Iroh. You let your brother create a "monster." (And Azula's smart enough to know exactly how the world sees her.)

[beboots.livejournal.com]

I'm mostly just nodding to myself as I read what you've written here. ;)

When I was younger, I saw kids my age squish worms on the sidewalk just for fun, but I always felt uncomfortable about it because even worm blood looks red like ours.

I think that Iroh's line in The Chase is too often played up just for laughs (he DID just nearly get killed by his fourteen year old niece) but if you actually stop to think about what he was saying... D:

[feral-shrew.livejournal.com]

At church, a lady with a stroller ran over an earthworm that was at least eight inches long. I immediately ran over to pick the poor thing up and put it over on the grass where it wouldn't happen again. I liked worms, and I still feel bad if I cut off a piece of a worm for going fishing. (I always do it from the back so that if I don't end up using a whole worm, the head end has a chance at still living.)

I do think Iroh's line was meant to be funny, yes, but... eesh. I honestly think Azula made the best choice about who she was going to hit, because how would they have reacted if she had shot the other likely candidates? Aang, Zuko, and Iroh had the most defenses against her attacks. Katara can shield, maybe, Sokka has no real defense (yet) against fire, and Toph might have gotten really hurt if she didn't realize in time.

Sure, she could have not blasted somebody with fire, but they had her cornered and she's not a nice person. She might have seen it as a morally superior choice, because that's how her world works.

[beboots.livejournal.com]

Oh yeah... I suppose that Iroh was a logical choice. Also, I don't get the feeling that she respects him, at all. ;)

[feral-shrew.livejournal.com]

He's old, he's overweight, he talks about tea and nonsense, and he used to be the best general in centuries (and somebody she could respect). He also sent her a doll when she was young.

He's her only uncle, but that doesn't mean that she wants him. It's not like he spent time with her when she was little. He took over for Zuko, because Ozai wouldn't, but the series implies that she and Iroh never had much use for each other.

[beboots.livejournal.com]

Very true. I know it's sort of implied that Li and Lo were Azula's mentors, but they never seemed much use except as mouthpieces for Ozai. :P

[feral-shrew.livejournal.com]

Plus, imagine Li and Lo as the sources of sex ed. Ick. The only other option is Ozai or Ty Lee, really, so... yeah. No illegitimate heirs from Azula.