Dreams and Swords

It feels so good to write something just for myself.

Title: There Is Now War in Ba Sing Se
Characters: Ichiro, Yui, Kouji, Liu, Azula, Qin, assorted unnamed Earthfolk
Rating: G
Word Count: 1500+
Summary: And the walls came tumbling down.
Author's Notes: Yui, Kouji, and Ichiro belong to dark_puck and are used with her permission and encouragement. This fic is a sequel to Goldeneye and Beyond a Shadow.

( There Is Now War in Ba Sing Se )

I just finished a very frustrating project last night, and I want to write one of my favorite characters. So. Ten slots.

I shouldn't have to say this, but if you haven't watched AtLA, don't make a request.

MEME IS CLOSED.

Ten slots, three prompts, I only guarantee I'll write one. Your prompts must be pictures from my Avatar dA Favorites. Alternatively, Traditional Art or Digital Art.

ETA: If you pick this, you can have four prompts. First come, first serve. Claimed!

Meme is CLOSED.

Daimyo Akio stood at the other end of the courtyard, his Fire Sage at his side. His son stood nearby, a girl just old enough to braid her own hair clutching his belt and staring at her grandfather in awe. The daimyo wore no tunic, merely a pair of thick red arm-bands and a small red vest. His boots stood empty nearby while the daimyo ran through a series of slow katas to stretch his muscles. As the sun rose, faded scars were revealed in the changing light.

At the other end of the courtyard, Long Feng looked annoyed as Joo Dee held a similar pair of arm-bands and vest out to him. In-Su couldn't hear her from here, but she was Joo Dee. It was her job to the know the protocol when no one else did, and the protocol for an Agni Kai obviously called for ritual clothes. As she was no doubt explaining to the minister.

As he watched, Long Feng reached up and undid the clasps of his robe. It fell, and Joo Dee dove to sweep it up before it could hit the ground.

Mazaru wolf-whistled as the robe came off. "Ash and spark, they grow them fine out there in the Earth Kingdom!"

In-Su sighed and swung his elbow as hard as possible into the firebender's ribs. "Pervert."

Long Feng pulled the arm-bands up over his biceps. He flexed, obviously testing if the bands impaired his movement at all. From what In-Su could tell, they did not.

He'd never realized the minister had plague scars. From the looks of Kyung and Myung-Dae, neither had they.

Joo Dee held out the vest, and Long Feng put it on irritably. With a gesture that was pure Thanh, he flipped his braid out from underneath it, then stepped forward to the line marking his edge of the battlefield.

Daimyo Akio stepped up to his line.

"So," In-Su said in a low voice, "how exactly do one of these duels work?"

"They fight until one yields," Mazaru said, eyes flicking towards him. "You worried about your man?"

In-Su shook his head. He wasn't worried about Long Feng at all.

The minister and the daimyo knelt facing away from each other, Long Feng with one hand on the ground. Three breaths, then both stood nearly together. A murmur ran through the Firefolk; In-Su tilted his head slightly. Hands could feel more than feet, he recalled from long-ago anatomy lessons. It seemed to hold true with earthsight as well.

Knowing Long Feng, he would never even allude to his earthbending if someone brought up their near-synchronicity.

Both men shrugged off their vests and took one step forward. They eyed each other across the expanse of the courtyard, then at the signal, both slid into a ready-stance. In-Su blinked; he had never seen such an obvious example of how different firebending and earthbending truly were.

Title: Cultural Protectors
Characters: Aang, Joo Dee, assorted Dai Li OCs, assorted past Avatars
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 1800+ words
Summary: Over a few weeks in Ba Sing Se, Aang keeps running into Dai Li in unusual situations.
Author's Notes: In order of appearance, the Dai Li in this story are Thanh, Bae, Qin, Tai, and Duyi. The story Bae is telling is "The Black General" as translated by Moss Roberts.

( Cultural Protectors )

Quick meme! Long Feng quick meme! One request only. Meme is open until I go to bed tonight. go to work tomorrow.

Still open, not-quick memes:
- AU meme
- OC meme

Not open, not-quick meme:
- Smut meme

MEME IS CLOSED.

The icon on this entry has almost nothing to do with the story. I just like multi-colored four-horned sheep. A lot.

I'm writing a lot of original or near-original (wild AUs, original fan characters) stories for story_lottery this time around. This particular set of prompts really encourages it, as the prompts are for places. I'm taking the opportunity to 'practice' writing original settings and characters without worrying too much about getting it 'right'.

That being said, I would really appreciate feedback on certain things. Am I providing enough background information for you to get an understanding of the world? Am I overloading on the background information? Are the characters engaging and interesting? What can you figure out about the characters based on what I've said about them in the story?

Title: The Boy With the Steel Arm
'Verse: Avatar AU: Cyberpunk
Characters: Ichiro, Liu, Alak
Word Count: 1200+
Rating: G
Summary: Ichiro wakes up in an Earthborn medical lab. Very, very not good.
Author's Notes: This is actually Pux's 'verse, but she let me borrow it to play with.

( The Boy With the Steel Arm )

Well, of my recent fandom commissions. I've gotten a few original characters recently, but a) not all of them are finished, and b) I'm not sure how many people care.


Commish - Ketu for Chaos2112 by =AnimantX on deviantART

Ketu Reference Sheet by foxysquid, which includes both his normal'verse self and his Lightning at Sea self.



Chaturaji by LaviRavi: The four Dai Li captains (Xiang, Qin, Jae, and Liu) playing a game of four-person chess.

I love nagas. I love nagas a lot. (Actually, I like all kinds of human-animal hybrids, as my mermaid, octomaid, selkie, drider, and scorpionman obsessions attest. HOWEVER. Today we are concentratining on nagas.)

This is an Avatar'verse AU where the Firefolk are nagas. For people who need references to what nagas are, I direct you here and here. Yes, the Firefolk are going to be that big 'cause I love massive long snake-coils.

Known Facts of the AU
- Most Firefolk are constrictors. Some are rattlesnakes. The royals are constrictors, though.
- Firefolk are the only nagas in the 'verse, and they don't cross-breed with non-Firefolk. They're just incompatible with humans.
- They still 'bend. They also possess some limited illusion abilities.
- Nagas generally don't have sex. They cuddleslut, but sex pretty much always results in children. So cuddleslutting. A lot. It's also really difficult for them to have sex with humans, but some of them might be willing to try.

So! Ask for as many requests as you want. I only guarantee I'll fill out one, and I guarantee I won't fill out more than that if you don't comment on that initial one. I will not fill out requests for Person Who is Dead During Canon/Person Who is Alive During Canon, unless it's like Gyatso/Bumi or some other pairing that could conceivably have met while alive. (Exception: Sozin/Song. 'Cause.)

MEME IS CLOSED.