#trying to catch up rip

[zukosdualdao]

stage kiss

zutara month, day 8: actors au, @zutaramonth

summary: katara just needs to earn enough to make passage to the northern water tribe, so she begins working as a seamstress for an acting troupe in ba sing se. fine enough work in theory, until the leading actress is out sick and katara is asked to step into the role.

other notes: au in which the avatar never returns, and the war is still going on. katara is 16 and just left home, zuko is 18 and let go of his search for the avatar two years ago.

Katara doesn’t believe this is happening.

Well, alright, she mostly does, but. Come on.

All she’d wanted when she came here was to find work that let her earn enough to book passage to the Northern Water Tribe. She had known it would be difficult—her own tribe hadn’t had contact with them in many years, for much longer than she’d been alive—but she hadn’t expected there would be no official transport there when she got to Ba Sing Se. 

It had quickly become apparent that her options were to either book passage through a sketchy crowd of characters—sketchy mainly in that she didn’t like the way they looked her up and down, so she’d have to decide which ones she ‘trusted’ the most—or to… purchase a ship herself. And get a crew. And probably learn how to steer it.

She’s still figuring it out.

In any case, she had to earn one way or another, so she was relieved to find the acting troupe when she did, as the director seemed eager for a seamstress right away. Apparently, the last one had quit with barely a word.

Guiltily, Katara does not mention her plans to leave as soon as she has enough money to make passage.

It goes well for several weeks. A lot of the troupe is friendly, if a bit rowdy for her tastes—one earthbending boy has broken so many props she doesn’t know how he hasn’t been fired for it yet—but she’s met some really wonderful people too. Some of the girls her age have taken to talking to her about things like boys and far-off places they’d like to see and makeup and fights with their families, and it makes Katara feel a little choked up. She’d had Gran Gran, of course, and Sokka, and all the little kids she adored and the elders she respected, but she’d never really had someone who was a friend her own age.

The one person she hasn’t made much headway with is a boy a tall boy with dark hair and a scar that clearly came from a burn over his left eye. She’d come to understand quickly that most of the war refugees were blocked off in the lower ring, and they’re in a sort of in-between state, where artisans and food stallers live—it all makes her feel sick to her stomach if she thought about it too hard—but she can’t help but wonder if that’s how he got it. 

Zuko, the girls tell Katara his name is. He’s quiet and snappish and glares a lot, only seeming to come alive, to become softer, in those moments on stage when he’s being someone else.

Katara finds herself a little fascinated, despite herself, but it’s nothing to pay any mind to. In the weeks ahead, she’s just got to focus on her work.

It goes well. Until it doesn’t.

“Xiu Bao has fallen ill,” the director says as he implores Katara to take the lead’s place. “We would be ever-indebted to you.”

“But I’m not an actress!” Katara exclaims, feeling her heartbeat grow ever faster.

All she’d wanted was to learn waterbending. Now, she’s being asked to join an acting troupe. Temporarily. But still.

“It’s no matter,” he says. “You’ve seen the play many times over by now—and you don’t have to say the lines exactly,” he adds, a bit urgently. It is, after all, only a few hours until the show is meant to begin. “Just… to the best of your memory.”

Katara purses her lips. She’s not an actress, but her storytelling was well-regarded in a way that always made her proud, if a little squirmy—just like your mother, the elders in her village used to say—so maybe that could translate.

“And I’ll be paid?” she asks.

“Of course,” he assures her. “Yes—thank you, Katara,” he adds, turning heel before she can point out that she hasn’t technically agreed yet. 

Probably smart of him.

When she finds herself on stage that evening, made up and in Earth Kingdom robes, she tries to tell herself it’s just like telling a story. Mostly, it works. She remembers the lines surprisingly well.

Something else surprises her, too—the way it barely feels like acting as she stands across from Zuko. His role is still quiet, surly, a romantic lead of few words, but there’s a charm to him, an openness, and she doesn’t know where she possibly draws it from.

It’s near the end of the thing when she remembers with sudden clarity—they’re supposed to kiss here. 

How did she find herself in this situation?

When he strides toward her, placing his hands on her waist, Katara’s breath stutters, and that… that isn't acting.

He looks at her searchingly for a moment—does the scene always take this long?—and when she gives a slight nod of her head, he leans forward. Their lips meet, and it feels like the world around them just… stops. His lips are soft and gentle against her own, and from this close, Katara can tell he smells of firewood and cinnamon. 

When he pulls back, they rest their foreheads together. Katara breathes in shakily. Zuko is supposed to have a line, Katara’s pretty sure, but he's looking at her with a swell of emotion. The director clears his throat from the front row, and it's only then that Zuko remembers this fact as well.

Katara smiles to herself a little as the scene goes on. Maybe acting wouldn't be such a bad way to earn her keep and save for her travels while she stays here in Ba Sing Se.

#zutaramonth2024 #zutaramonth #zutara month #day 8: actors au #zutara #atla #stage kiss #trying to catch up rip #not super happy with this tbh but ! oh well! #don't ask me how she got to the earth kingdom. she figured it out. shhshsh #my fic

[paranoiias]

does anyone have an updated reading order for warrior cats with regards to the chronological events of the series?? I had one from a discord server I was in, but that server is long gone and only went up to a vision of shadows, so I'd need updates for anything released after that

#sal speaks #Warrior Cats #trying to catch up rip

[bamsara]

ngl ever since this post, im designing and cutting out these stickers out at home which is a very time consuming and repetitive labor process only to know that there's thieves out there selling my designs at a fraction of the cost is extremely discouraging like. what is the point. what is even the fucking point.

#sticker sales and patreon is how im paying bills and buying groceries rn so it just fucking winded me #and im trying to catch up on send backs and junes stuff but im sitting her wondering how long itll be until these designs are stolen too #what is the point in trying to make art for a living if all thats ever gonna happen is that it gets stolen #i cannot beat the price of big box names like amazon and other rip offs stealing designs and selling them for pennies #when it cost me a good chunk of the a $5 sticker cost to actaully make the sticker like its not all take home that includes shipping #and ink and paper and ect #i literally cannot compete with big box stores that steal shit i cannot #so what even is the point #sara shush #tw vent #art theft

[wavesoutbeingtossed]

I know it’s been talked about ad nauseam, but I think one of the things that got lost in the discourse about TTPD and the muses and whatnot is how one of, if not the core trigger points of the album is the yearning for commitment and perhaps even more poignantly, motherhood.

The reason she was so susceptible to falling for the “conman’s get love quick schemes” is because she was grieving that imagined life with the person she had long assumed would be the one to give her that. What has been beyond clear in several albums, let alone interviews etc, is that those plans for building a family were very much real and top of mind for years, and she kept holding on and shifting her world in service of making that happen. And when whatever happened happened that pulled that rug out from under her, it left her bereft not just for the relationship that had once been her world but also the imagined family she had been hoping for and sticking out the hard times for.

And that’s likely why she was swayed by and trusting of the promises of someone who knew her history and knew how unmooring that loss was to her. It may have been partially about the person himself or lust or whatever, but the core issue was the pain of giving up the dream, and sublimating that dream into this new opportunity in front of her, because she was so desperate to hold onto the last scraps of that imagined life she wanted so badly. (And I don’t mean desperate as in pathetic or negative, I mean as in fighting within the last ounce of energy and hope she had.) It wasn’t rational and it wasn’t love, it was grief, not just for a relationship but even more so for the family it represented.

So to me the core issue of TTPD isn’t just the Joe vs. Matty or whoever of it all: it’s Taylor and her yearning. She wanted a family badly and a life that was theirs and was processing losing that in all kinds of ways. It’s all over the album in overt and subtle lyrics. It may not have been grieving a literal death but I’d bet it felt pretty darn close.

And I’d also bet that’s why we’re seeing… what we’re seeing now.

(I have so many more thoughts about womanhood and motherhood on TTPD but that is another post being worked on piecemeal in my drafts… this is just a little Saturday morning post-zoomies reflection)

#I’m trying to be delicate about all this on main #if you catch my drift #obviously I don’t know any of these people #I’m just using my ears with the music and my eyeballs on the screen #honestly think she’d almost gotten to the point where she would have given up almost anything #(including marriage) #if it meant having kids and a commitment #let alone all the career stuff she was willing to let slide #but in the end none of that mattered #writing letters addressed to the fire #the tortured poets department #and like.. #this is also why she was so clear minded about what she wanted in a partner when she started dating killa #and not as in opportunist but as in she knew what she wouldn’t compromise on anymore #and luckily for her he was on the same page #and tbh why this isn’t all that fast #ugh I wish my brain would let me finish the other post I was working on #like I know we’ve kind of been dancing around this in recent years in discussion #even if we all had our own assumptions #but she kind of ripped the bandaid off in ttpd #and with ~everything~ now happening #I think it’s ok to talk about? respectfully? lol

[royalarchivist]

Aimsey: Next question... is- are- is Teaduo one of the most popular ships?

Aimsey: And if they're not, I will make sure they become one of the most popular ships. Thank you.

#AimseyTV #Aimsey #QSMP #Thank you for being an eternal lesbian defender Aimsey o7 God's strongest warrior #EDIT: AS I WAS TYPING THIS AIMSEY SHOWED UP IN MY TWITTER NOTIFS THAT GAVE ME A DAMN HEART ATTACK LMAO #I just. Forget that creators use social media and check their tag sometimes lol #Aimsey's a delight I wish I could catch their streams more #but I DID really like their Purgatory POV it was so funny #I also just realized Royal Archivist isn't following them RIP #I use my main to follow CCs but I've been trying to remember to follow them on Royal Archivist too #I only just followed Mouse the other day orz

[kit-kat-jo]

WHAT THE FUCCCKKK WHY DID IT END LIKE THAT??? 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

#…..yeah u alrwady know whats up #the amazing digital circus #spoilers in the next tags now ofc #ragatha…….. my dear ragatha trying her absolute fucking hardest to cheer pomni up #we all saw it coming a mile away bless her soul #and the entire scene under the map #pomni immediately latching onto gummy goo’s misery and being so soft and comforting made me want to THROW UP AND BAWL MY EYES OUT #bc….. rags doesnt know that if she just stopped trying to act overly positive and push everything that happened to her aside #and instead was real with her and tried to find ways they felt similar about being trapped #she would have been so much more successful in helping her like she wanted #FUUUCKKK!!!!!!!! #and the FUCKING FUNERAL FOR KAUFMO????? #jaw dropped when zooble came in saying that #that whole fucking end scene makes me want to throw up and BAWL #THE HANDS REACHING OUT TO POMNI AND CATCHING HER #OUGHDHFHFHHHH #the ragapom enjoyers have been fed. #btw #i have been fed #rewatching throwing up shitting and crying #two big rips to gummy goo and gangles happy mask only being on for 4 minutes and 7 seconds (yeah i checked) #anyway ragatha and pomnis voices are so nice inlove women #and jax showing an emotion for a 000000.00001th of a frame #the jax fans are gonna go crazy over that i can tell #yall can have him but also that facial expression couldve been abt queenie just my hunch tho #SPEAKING OF kinger having a split second of clarity talkin to rags in that scene? #he was absolutely fatherly to her when she first appeared #wish we could see this so bad #time to be normal now alr buhbye #slaps a lesbian sticker on ragatha for doing like 4 finger guns and flirting with the queen

[ylvaisawolf]

I haven't touched QSMP in forever but someone I know irl has made me want some answers

As of right now what egg admitns do we know are gone

Or any other admins?

#qsmp eggs #qsmp #really not great timing for me as my mental health has been ehh for the last week #nothing bad! just anxiety #from what it sound like it seems like most of my favorites are leaving:/ #Edit from 4 days latre: Oh so qsmp is basically dead ok! #*later #well rip #well not really but the eggs were the main reason a lot of people watched i believe #i mean I was mostly there for the eggs even though cellbit clips were what got me to watch/try to catch up #(like his and roier engagement is what got me into qsmp and then i stayed for the eggs and him and roier and foolish

[saturnsorbits]

Thinking about the boys getting stuck in their suits…

About Sero, who’s suit is so damn tight, sometimes he struggles to prise it far enough away from his skin to unzip.

Or, Bakugo, who waddles into your office at least twice a month having bust his shirt or pants bc he’s added an extra weight to his daily routine.

… And then there’s Denki. Who sometimes misalignes the zip on his jacket and needs helping out of it like a toddler.

#Denki’s cringing. The jacket is stuck somewhere around his middle; pulling up his T-shirt to expose his stomach underneath. #The same stomach he knows is bright red; a consequence of the blush that has sunken there. #‘Arms up.’ #He’s thankful he can’t see your face. See the amusement that must swim in your eyes right now as you tug and twist at him - #trying to free him from his leather prison. #He doesn’t think he’s ever embarrassed himself so throughly. #How the fuck is supposed to ask you out now… #Vs: #Bakugo who cocks an eyebrow at you when he catches you staring at where his inner seam has ripped. #‘Like what you see?’ #And it’s you that’s blushing up a storm trying to tread the line between professionalism and wanting to see exactly what those pants hide.

[girlwiththegreenhat]

having just made it to KITT vs KARR i stand by my point that KARR has done nothing wrong ever in his life

#liz blogs #karr #kr #knight rider #knight rider spoilers #goofy tag to use for a 40 year old show but listen. #uh. i do what i want FDBHJGSBHJDFGBJHDSFG #BRO WAS DEALT SUUUUUCH A DIRTY HAND IN LIFE. GOD. HE CANNOT CATCH A BREAK #maybe if people were nice to him and everyone wasnt always using/abandoning him for no reason he wouldn't be mean :( #listen if i was a robot and i was programmed poorly/Evil and then blamed for it shut down and left to rot in a warehouse #I WOULD BE PISSED OFF TOO !!!! UNFAIR. MEAN TO HIM. RUDE. Y'ALL ARE ASSHOLES !!!!!!!!!!! #and then you get woken up and try to Leave and everyones calling you evil for it. like. bruh he has consistently been the victim of bullshi #leave him aloooooooone hes scared :( #karr haters do not interact. he is misunderstood #like yeah maybe he almost did a little homicide and a fuckton of theft but. i could fix him #i think if he had One (1) friend he would be normal. one guy on his side that isn't trying to do crimes #rip this is the 1980s my man is NOT getting understanding and a redemption arc but he DESERVES one #WE *CAN* STEVEN UNlVERSE OUR WAY OUT OF THIS ONE GUYS. TRUST ME #also love that he drove off a cliff and EXPLODED in his first ep and now hes just. there. under the sand. in one piece. for some reason #built like the iron giant he literally pulled himself together but could not pull himself outta the sand #making a get-along shirt the size of a two car garage and shoving kitt and karr both into it. be nice. make up. right now

[tobjo]

the way he’s literally putting his idol mentoring him and being friends with kacchan on the same level. and i mean wbk but i just love when horikoshi spells it out like this

#like. can he be more obvious #rip to ppl trying to downplay kacchan’s importance in his life #catching up with bnha #bnha #bkdk #txt

[undertheknightwing]

I loved their short-lived "I hate this fucking family" scenes

#they switched back to default 'nice' mode afterwards obviously #but still #both were allowed to be upset and yell about it imo #gar's always trying to help everyone but always ends up being the one hurt #not only that but when he's the one needing help the titans couldn't care any less and just give him a lame hug or shoulder pat #then never talk to him again about what's bothering him #they didn't even care when he disappeared #it was just *shrugs* 'well at least he's not dead he'll show up sometime i guess' #then jon's the only one in true danger and his family does not seem to understand he's being hunted down by jon-el #i'd be scared and pissed off too if my dad who's superman just let the guy who's deadset on kidnapping and merging with me go #the only reason jon-el even took lana was to get clark away from jon he doesn't care about her or anything else really #he just wants jon and will do anything to get him #so yeah i'd be scared as SHIT that he's on the loose and now even more that he stole my dad's friend to purposely lure him away #(also once jon said where jon-el was clark REALLY should have switched into his suit since he knew he'd be public #and probably would have had to use his powers to catch jon-el) #(lara or not clark shouldn't have been using his powers in front of a crowded diner anyway) #the titans didn't care because it was gar who was missing #and the kents didn't care because it was jon who was in danger #dick would've been ripping apart the multiverse once he could if someone else was missing #and if jordan was in danger clois would have hid him at the fortress with some x-k to protect himself just in case #titans #superman and lois #gar logan #jonathan kent

[goldkirk]

this is a TRIGGERING AND FRUSTRATING DAY and I am being SO GODDAMN BRAVE ABOUT IT

#work crisis on the one morning I’m out at a médical thing #and the work crisis is at least half my fault #and involves like 9 hours of work to fix #rip #rip rip rip #IT WILL BE OKAY THOUGH #personal #and I still don’t have enough money and I’m being very mean to myself most of the time #even though I’m trying to speak more nicely to myself #and I’m gonna do better goddamnit #I’m going to be kind to myself through the work crisis and the money problems and all the chores and my hip pain and thumb pain and #etc etc #objective number one when I get off this bus is cooking actual food while I catch up on the work crisis situation #shh katie

[laura-de-milf]

🕯🕯MANIFUCKINGFESTING DOOM PATROL S4P2 THIS YEAR BECAUSE HOLY SHIT WHAT THE FUCK HBO mAxX🕯🕯

#im not okay abt this can u tell #just went on a roller coaster trying to catch up here #doom patrol #give laura back to me *rips into drywall* #GIVE ME MY 6 PRECIOUS IDIOTS

[cinnabeat]

wow.........i wonder why you have such perfect memory of a book series you read five volumes of............thats such a mystery........im sure this will never come up again later.........

#im reading tcf again now #or well im gonna try #we'll see how far i get before i get bored #not bc it sucks bc it doesnt its just very hard for me to reread things #especially if i like them and theyre long lmao #but we'll see #im just excited to see how many hints of cales fucked up everything are scattered in here lmao #and also i need to remember the plot #and also catch up to pt2 #i think cjs actually finally homest to god showed up and im excited to see it #but also i need my alberu (and by extension taerang) crumbs #which is so tragic that taerang is so far away rip #michi tag #this is so funny tho like lmao i love how cale mentions weird shit like this and i just??? NEVER NOTICED???? #i think i was partially blinded by the fact most isekai stories i find arent as intricate #but also i just genuienly dont notice shit like rhis it does not register as odd in my head

[pristine-starlight]

trying really hard to apply the idea of Make Bad Art to amigurumi

the problem is that it's hammered in really hard that you Absolutely Cannot let Any filling show through, and keeping that kinda tension completely destroys my hands. like to the point where i haven't been able to do anything for the past week and i Know my current amigurumi project is partly to blame for that bc it has been Exhausting

but i wanna make things. and in this case it means i gotta make them badly

#rip current project youre gonna get tension switched halfway through #at least its assembled from pieces so #im gonna finish the current piece someday with tight tension #and then loosen up for the rest #and just deal with how it ends up looking #chatter tag #'oh just go down a hook size then!' if i go down another hook size the yarn literally wont stay on the hook anymore #i was not made to crochet aran weight yarn with a 3mm hook. i am not doing that #i have a love-hate relationship with amigurumi but my current project is so cute and i want it to exist #i have both my current projects just sitting on my desk and theyre haunting me #even when my hands recover i wont be able to work on them bc i need to catch up on homework :( #this is mainly me trying to untangle my thoughts tbh #(other current project is a shawl with very gay motivations behind it)

[chipjrwibignaturals]

need to get stronger autism about something again

#I have been slowly weening on jr/wi since. tbh like a year ago? #and I’m now Hella Behind on pd and riptide #but. it doesn’t peak me enough to like. watch? compared to the length #I def still want to eventually catch up but. idk!!!!!! haven’t hit the mood #maybe it’s bc I was in a slow part of pd and. based solely on dashboard content #I’m not sure how much I Personally Dig how I know rip is going???? idk!!!!!! #anyway. might try and shove some interests together and see what happens #< I’m stalling at work w nothing to do btw. that’s what’s prompting this