avalaughs | TEST DRIVE MEME ⚔️️ 5

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TEST DRIVE MEME ⚔️️ 5

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A ⦿ Soaking in Your Arrival

KERPLUNK, SPLASH!

Regardless of what you were in the middle of, you and your familiar have been magically pulled into the world of Avalon just above the Bay's slightly chilled waters. After a brief plunge into the Bay, the rush of water filling your ears and soaking up into every creak and crevice of your body, you may need to cough to clear your airways when you rise above the surface. It's still chilly, but not enough that you can't manage on your own. The Lady of the Lake is swimming around under the water, but seems to be focusing on coordinating a band of chia manatees to help rescue any wayward new arrivals. Chia manatees are a special Avalonian manatee that is green in color and has what appears to be a patches of grass or other short plantlife growing on its back. While some are fully green, others sport small flower blossoms that haven't yet grown in or various types of mushrooms.

If anyone tries to ask the Lady of the Lake for directions, she will direct you to Archimedes at the Rent-a-Ride. Those with animal magic may get their info from the manatees, though may notice that they're really overly friendly and have zero concept of personal boundaries. Everyone may notice they have no concept of personal space, as they will happily run right into someone's belly for a snoot squishing. The shores themselves are littered with new arrivals complaining their way up a staircase carved into the walls of the White Cliffs. There is no railing, so be careful, but if you do fall, be prepared for a mysterious sand hand to reach out of the side of the cliffs to catch you. The hand will pat you atop the head twice before retreating back into the wall. This is the Cliff Beast; despite the name, he is quite friendly.

*Reminder: Your character's familiar may or may not be with your character in their initial plunge. If the familiar isn't partial to water, it may meet your character on the beach or sit atop their head while they swim. Or if they are, they might splash about and swim alongside your character. Familiars have different personalities and body specs and we leave those up to the players.

B ⦿ The Caravan to Camelot

Once everyone is wrangled up to the top of the White Cliffs, the handsome owner of the Rent-a-Ride, Archimedes, will distribute smart phones and a pair of earbuds and tell them to "Check the Shit Box." The "Shit Box" refers to wardrobe more formally known as the Wardrobe of Finding, a hammerspace-like wardrobe that opens to each person's items and pets when the person touches the handle. It was recently enchanted by Merlin to prevent people from having to fish their waterlogged possessions and pets out of the water with them. From there, Archimedes directs everyone to settle in groups into modernized carriages pulled by horses and gives them a basic explanation of why and how they've been brought to Avalon: The rest of the universe is frozen in time and your character has been brought here by a familiar that was able to bond with them. They'll have to learn magic to help save their own world from destruction, but first they've got to get them to Camelot. It is here that you have the first opportunity to decide who they will be in their new home. You'll have about an hour to wander around here, meet and greet, and pet the horses before it's time to go.

These carriages use fae technology that combats weight, so your character will be able to get in regardless of whether they're light as a feather or weigh two tons. The carts have air conditioning when it's hot, heating when it's cold, and a mystical shield to protect from bugs. There is also a mini-bar that pops out of the console with nip bottles. Characters can use their smartphones to connect to Camelot's internet service,

avalononline (AOL), to chat with other characters, watch dumb videos, learn about the world, contact Camelot Support (they'll answer any questions they can for you, from how to use a smart phone to where to find quests and resources to learn more about your magic). Be careful if you decide to use your phones while in the caravan-- if you don't use those earbuds and start forcing everyone to listen to your nonsense, Archimedes may make you walk.

C ⦿ The Red Spring

The journey from the White Cliffs to the City of Camelot is a long one, and the first evening you arrive you'll end up spending at the Red Spring, a booming resort town. Because of the volume of new arrivals and vacationers, inn rooms are assigned two-to-a-room. The rooms have two twin beds, a bathroom, a mini-fridge and microwave, and a TV equipped with a couple of entertaining video games and a few free movies.

If you don't want to relax in the room, try taking a dip in the spring for another chance to meet your fellow travelers. The waters have restorative properties that help horses and travelers recover quickly when drunk. It is known to relieve stress, improve energy levels, and mildly accelerate healing. It may be a little chilly when you get out though, so make sure you don't slip rushing back indoors when you get out!

The springs are also home to a large training grounds just outside town limits, where there are teachers who will teach basic magic safety and help you discover what kind of magic you have together with other new arrivals. Try target practice, obstacle courses, meditation circles, and other ways to try to figure out just what you can do... if you didn't already have an accidental discovery on the ride there.

The Isle of Avalon is abuzz with excitement for the upcoming Spring Equinox (though some of the more posh citizens will insist it's the Vernal Equinox, tut tut). Unlike the very specific rituals of the Winter Solstice that require much preparation, the Spring is welcomed throughout the month through a variety of small rituals to help the world along as it renews itself, growing new plants and allowing nature to make new life.

A ⦿ The Lesser Banishing of Frost Fairies

perform a ritual called the Lesser Banishing of Frost Fairies

create bait

adorable little moon rabbit kits

find a stranger to perform the ritual

challenge you and your summoning partner to a duel

B ⦿ The Language of Flowers

flowers are the treasures that they want to hoard

baby dragons need to be brought back to their mother's cave in the Ash Mountains

Use the language of flowers to communicate with the dragons and try to get them to follow you by wearing a flower crown that matches one you offer to the dragon

fighting alongside the baby dragons to fight off the Land of Rot creatures

C ⦿ Spiritual Cleansing

The frost is gone, the flowers are free, and rabbits are running around town like they own the place. All of the physical and symbolic spring equinox preparations are made, now it's time to look within. As the season of renewal and rebirth, a huge part of that is personal reflection and growth. As such, outdoor meditation and yoga flash parties are all the rage right now. Get caught it one and you and anyone around you will be stuck in a barrier until you complete at least 5 yoga poses and hold them for 30 seconds each. Some of them are a little challenging.. thankfully, no one is going to stop you from getting help holding them from someone else who's stuck with you.

A plague of smoothie hockers has also cropped up around town, which means portable carts offering different magical smoothies is going around selling their fruity and flowery spring flavors for a refreshing boost of your spirit. No, really boost it. The magical effects are in small text underneath the flavors, so they may be easy to miss.

Hibiscus-Berry: Vanity Spirit (person may become temporarily obsessed with appearance, finding cute clothes, getting their hair and nails done, needing to be their ideal of attractive)
Strawberry-Rose: Romantic Spirit (flirtiness, desire to be romantic with someone)
Jasmine-Peach: Friendship Spirit (go out of your way to make new friends, make grand friendship gestures to people you've already befriended or have known for five minutes and want to befriend)
Lavender-Mulberry: Distrusting Spirit (paranoid, may start fights because they think someone is out to get them)
Butterfly Pea-Lemon Tea: Meditative Spirit (fall asleep easily, peaceful/relaxed about alarming things, sudden penchant for Big Thoughts about the universe)
Dandelion-Apple-Banana: Surivival Spirit (sudden desire to do everything yourself, whether that's hunting/gathering food, getting really into DIY projects like making your own soap or building your own chicken hutch because you're going to get your own eggs, or really wanting to live outside for a while)

The effects only last for an hour or two, so it's unlikely any real damage can be done (hopefully) but it'll certainly give you a new outlook on life!

Spring is in the air, the Equinox is coming, and prep is underway. But all work and no play can get a little boring, right? Avalonians have come together and set up a few activities for Adventurers. While all of these activities can be completed and enjoyed without using magic, participants will be encouraged do to so, don’t worry if it goes a little haywire. There are magical force fields around the play zones to contain any mishaps.

A ⦿ Keep it Rollin' Rollin'

The first area set up for fun and games is a barrel rolling contest. Participants are split into pairs to compete against each other to see who can roll their partner inside the barrel down the hill and across the finish line the fastest. Springtime is when geysers start bursting around the bottom of the hill though, so you'll have to watch out for those and any boulders to make sure your barrel doesn't burst before you reach the bottom!

To make things a little more interesting, the planners had a bit of mischief with the barrels... As barrels reach a quarter of a way down the hill, the outside will burst into flames. Surprise! While they are enchanted so that the flames aren't actually hot, participants are not aware of this. Sorry, the guys running this game aren’t that big on explaining; after all, it’s just rolling a fire barrel down the hill; what’s so complicated? Fire makes it look like it's going faster and is way more exciting to watch!

B ⦿ Hop Skip and a Jump

Everyone loves hopscotch, right? Well, whether you do or don’t, that next zone is all about the hop, the skip, and the jump. Two hopscotch boards about the size of a basketball court each are laid out side by side for participants. The object again, to see who can complete the task that fastest. If you reach a spot with a magic symbol, you have to cast a spell at your opponent or you can't proceed. This is combat hopscotch!

Of course, once more, the folks running the show forgot to mention one tiny thing, a quarter of the way into the board, random spots will drop away as you go, leaving holes in the ground! Yikes, better take that leap! Don’t worry, if you miss, the bottom of the hole is filled with marshmallow fluff in bright pink, yellow, and pastel purple. (Kind of reminds you of something, huh...?) Down in the hole are rungs and footholds to get yourself back out, but boy, will that put you behind the other guy if they didn’t fall. Well, guess victory will have to be a little sweeter than you planned!

C ⦿ Gettin' Brewy With It

Now, this activity probably seems a little safer. Welcome to the “Brew” tent. Participants will be given ingredients, space, and set up in pairs to brew up a tasty drink! A variety of ingredients are available and with it, participants will be taught the Recipe: Brewery. This spell can be used to accelerate brewing and distilling processes for alcoholic drinks. Of course, if someone who is too young to drink according to their world's rules, any alcohol in the drink will evaporate, so it's really only a spell that's useful for adults... but everyone can participate in making drinks.

You can pick any ingredients you want, but all participants are instructed that a sprinkle of that magic at just the right time will make it perfect. When asked what the right time is, all they will be told is they’ll know when. Some may get it right, depending on instinct. Others might sprinkle too much and cause the drink to burst all over them and their partner, and their workstation or have some other silly side effect, like make them hiccup uncontrollably or catch a case of the giggles. Or maybe they cast for too long or too short a time and the drink turns sour, turns to ash, grows wings on the cup, and flies away. Brewery magic can be fickle, so there's lots that can go wrong.. but get it right, and you can have one heck of a drink to enjoy!

MOD NOTES:
• All test drive prompts are open to anyone in the game at any time to create your own logs with, but this post should have top-levels by potential new characters only. Current characters may reply to any threads, but should not top-level comment on this post.
• If your application is accepted, you may accept TDM threads as game canon as long as both players consent. Characters may begin threading as soon as their journal is accepted to the communities.
• If nothing here tickles your fancy, try one of this month's Quests for your TDM prompt.
• The first "Arrival" prompts are present on every TDM, but contain seasonal tweaks for flavor. All other prompts will change monthly.
• Questions about this TDM's content? Comment here! If you have a question about the game at-large, please head over to the FAQ.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"I don't know, but it is. Right now, we're not missing from home — it's as if destiny has been frozen, rather than interrupted. Time is not linear. There's some kind of... plurality, too," he says with an uncertain glance to the side, before meeting his uncle's eyes again with more resolve.

"Before this, I was on another planet for six months — kind of similar, but totally different. You were there for a couple months, too, Uncle — but you don't remember this, right? I had a friend from another world there who's here, too, but he doesn't remember being on that planet with me — and here, he's younger than he was there. But for me time's passed like normal. My other friend I met in that world is here too and remembers everything — but his brother says he was here a month alone before my friend arrived too, even though they never parted. Azula is here... She was on that planet with me; we both remember everything. But the Avatar's friends — Sokka, Katara, Toph, Suki... They're all here and came straight from home. But everyone's a little different: Katara's a few days older than me and Sokka, Toph a year or two, while Azula's now my older sister, technically... None of it makes any sense, Uncle. But whatever the case, we've been told our fates are frozen, that nothing that happens here will impact our lives at home. Think of it like a deviation from destiny. A side life. I know it's a lot to take in at once, Uncle..." he adds with an empathetic note, watching the older man's face as he speaks, trying to read his reaction.

As he listened, he wished he had his tea already. This was the kind of story that clearly needed tea. Iroh had lived through a lot of things that others might have found odd or even unbelievable. This was, for him, a reminder of how they might feel hearing his stories. Odd and unbelievable. But his face was as polite as he listened. Normally he was more expressive with Zuko in general, but listening to important things, he wanted to keep his thoughts inside until he had a chance to process them. He did not want Zuko to misinterpret his surprise as disbelief.

"It sounds as though you have learned a lot in your time here, and in that other world, Prince Zuko," he said after he absorbed all of that.

With all the rest of the oddness one thing stood out above all else. Azula was here too. That that especially would require special handling.

He was about to say more when their tea came. He thanked the lovely young woman who brought it. She assure them that the food would be out shortly and left.

Iroh poured the three cups of tea as he continued to think. "How is it exactly that the ages are so different?"

He had one question that he knew he could never ask Zuko, but perhaps the questions he could would lead him to knowing who he should be asking. Because he was not about to ask his nephew what would happen to their world if one of them should die here. He did not care to admit it out loud, but he was not a young man, nor was he prone to sitting back safe and away from danger. He wanted to. He was more than ready to retire. Bt if his nephew needed him, he would be there with the boy.

Also, as much as it pained him to admit it, but if Azula and Zuko were both here, there was the chance that one of them would not survive. He did not want either of them to die, but he would do whatever he had to, to keep Zuko safe. And if need be, to keep the world safe from their family. Their line had done enough damage to their own world. And that shame was on all of them. Would always be on them, even those who, like Azula, like his brother, chose not to see it. Iroh would not allow it to continue.

Which was another reason he was realistic enough to know that he might not make it home at the end of all of this.

Edited (Ignore the subject line. Nothing to see here >.>) 2021-03-08 21:33 (UTC)

Zuko shakes his head, his eyes drifting to the tabletop sheepishly, as if seeing through it, not seeing it at all in his thoughts.

"I don't know... This is all just hearsay. I don't know as much about this world yet. But I suppose we're all just— plucked at random from the branches of time..."

He'd not learned as much as he'd like to, but he's certainly spent much time thinking, many sleepless nights pondering his fate, staring holes through the ceiling for hours on end. He'd not considered what's on Iroh's mind, however, being so young, and so brazen. And he'd be loath to consider it with his uncle in mind now, much better off for Iroh choosing to bite his tongue. Spirited away, Zuko lives a more or less normal life, even hides the fact that he's a prince from most people; but that doesn't mean he's forgotten his duties to his people, his pride in his nation — nor his shame for it.

He reaches for his tea, bringing the warm cup to his lips slowly. The dragon on the windowsill turns its head when the waitress approaches, but takes no interest. Zuko's glad for the tea, himself. It's a good palate cleanser, literally and figuratively.

"But none of us have ever mentioned this place back home that I know of." He stroked his beard. "That bears thinking about." And sipped his tea.

Edited 2021-03-10 18:57 (UTC)

"It's true. So maybe we do forget. Or maybe we know other people would think we're crazy and never talk about it."

There's little humor in his voice; it's perhaps a joke, but a sincere, factual one.

"Uncle, can you imagine if I went back and spoke about something like this as Fire Lord? I'd be committed! And if you or Azula spoke of these things, too, the whole royal family would be dishonored!"

He speaks with a hint more heat, a bit more desperation, gesturing as he talks. He's clearly given this a lot of thought, though maybe questionable if it's productive thought or not. He's spent many a wakeful night turning over every angle.

...As Fire Lord...? Well, that perhaps answered a few questions. But it raised other ones, since he mentioned Azula going back as well. Yes, he had much to think about, and much still to learn. But some topics were like skittish animals, you could not come at them directly if you want to get closer.

"I would think that there would be some people you could speak to, that would believe you if you were honest." And know if you were not.

"Maybe... The Avatar's friends are used to weird stuff with him anyway, I guess, so if they all remember this place when we go back... But— we're from different time periods... I don't know how that'd work. I guess it'd just be me and Sokka who could confide in each other..."

He looks concerned, musing on this. Without even a group of trusted political advisors, it's not like he has any other friends back home in any case. Mai wasn't even on board for normal freaky stuff like a coup; he could only imagine she'd think he'd lost it if he tried to explain he lived on an alien planet and then in another dimension but never disappeared. It's not like he's ever been the shining image of sanity and mental health. For political opponents, such bizarre information would be a weapon to prove his incompetence as new ruler; any leak could spell disgrace and even deposition. The thought of which, although a different scenario than he'd been terrified of when he'd first arrived in the other world, now that he's been spirited away for so long, still just brings him back to his initial fear of Azula becoming Fire Lord in his stead, whether he's there or not. He has no idea yet what her fate is, though Toph filled him in that they had an agni kai; but Azula is certainly the last to tell him anything that happened after. She'd not even told him that much.

"Uncle, I don't want to remember this. Any of this."

The weight of the past several months can be heard in his voice. He'd exacted how he hopes his memories will turn out, but he has no proof or expectations anymore.

"It'd be too hard to remember my friends in other worlds... And maybe I'd start to think I went crazy after a while. If I could keep all the knowledge I've gained, the useful ideas I've learned for when I'm Fire Lord someday; if I could just keep the effects without the memories—... but I don't know anymore. I doubt it works like that... I hope we forget."

Meantime Iroh's just arrived, Zuko, c'mon, give the old man a break. Good thing he's always been a well of patience to hear about Zuko's problems and feelings. They're limitless no matter what pocket of the universe Iroh finds his nephew in.

In the future. Much to think about. But later.

He shook his head. "No, Zuko. Our past shapes us. To forget would be losing a part of ourselves. Good memories and bad, those are what make us who we are. Missing the people you love is an honor to the love you shared. You would be doing a disservice to forget them. To you, and to them. What have I told you before about avoiding things, just because they are hard, Zuko? Sometimes the path of adversity is what makes us into the people we need to be. If you avoid all things that are difficult, what you are avoiding is life. But life happens even if you wish it didn't."

He reached out and touched his nephew's hand. "In your own way, prince Zuko, you have been running away from things on and off for most of your life. If you are truly to be the Fire Lord our people need, then it is time to stop running and be the man I know that you can be."

"Uncle, how can I do that if I'm not even there — what if we never return?! This is my second time in another world! Nothing makes sense! Things were hard before, but at least they made sense! Now— Now I don't know what to think, even less than before...!"

He turns his hand over to grasp his uncle's after a moment, holding it tightly as his thoughts began to swirl, emotion in his voice. It was an unusually affectionate and open act for the prince, to willingly hold his uncle's hand casually, for comfort, one that perhaps the Zuko Iroh had last seen would not do so readily. But after half a year on a planet where you had to touch to survive... he's at least opened up somewhat, it seems. No doubt, though, it's also due to an extra need for comfort, with such heavy, vast thoughts and questions plaguing him. These are questions Iroh could easily worry for himself, as a new arrival, and even after so long, Zuko clearly had not found his own answers, either.

Edited 2021-03-25 02:17 (UTC)

HE closed his fingers around those of his nephew.

"I do not have the answers to those questions, Zuko. But I suspect that we will find them together. But we will find them by going forward, not by forgetting that the road forward came from somewhere else. We will learn because of what we have already learned. Every step on the path shapes who we are, and who we shall be."

"I know you're right, Uncle... It's just— you know my life can never be like this at home... Calm. Boring. Fun. Normal... I've made friends, Uncle. Boys my age, from another world. I like them a lot. I'll never be able to see them again," he muses, holding hands with his uncle with eyes downcast toward the table at the final note, giving Iroh's hand a little unconscious squeeze. His friends are all technically aliens — from another planet, entirely different than theirs, but all from the same world seemingly (if not different versions of it), even all from the same country — and it's a world Zuko's now learned a lot about, surprisingly. But something in Zuko's life has become better adjusted, a miraculous opportunity to just be a teenager that he never had and never will have, even if his inner life is not so well-adjusted. But it's no wonder he doesn't want to mourn such a fantastical life with fantastic people, the ability to just hang out with the guys seeming indeed like a miraculous daydream he'd never dared to dream. He's too logical to entertain such a flight of fancy until it finally happened. It's good news. But of course Zuko can't process his good fortune as such, not wholly. Always a catch to dwell on and torture himself with. Being happy is hard even when you're technically happy.

"If that is true, then that is all the more reason to want to hold onto the memories and treasure them. How often does life give us the gift of a wholly new experience? You know how I learned to redirect lightning, Zuko. Think of how much you can learn here and apply it to what you must do in the future. And friends are never to be regretted, even when they are in the past. Trust in your own heart, it knows what it is that you most need."

Zuko's silent for a long moment, letting his uncle's words sink in without letting go of his hand, even if he can't meet his eye. What does his heart need most...? Without pressing urgent peril, it's hard to discern clearly what his heart is telling him. He's just been... living. Getting by. Prioritizing his social life, just spends his spare time talking deeply with the people closest to him. Like most anyone might. That in itself bears considering, then...

"...I really have learned a lot since I've been gone, Uncle. Extraordinary things. My friend— ah, Gokudera, I need you to meet him, it's complicated but he's really important to me...! He's taught me a lot. There's this war that happened on his planet — it's fascinating, there's a lot of parallels to our world's war, lessons to be gleaned, I think..."

Iroh's lucky, perhaps, that Zuko's mind, for once, wanders somewhere more positive and encouraging than talking about this, um, genocide and global tragedy that he has studied extensively with no particular business knowing about any of this, as a proper alien? His new special interest in World War II thankfully takes backseat to his unwavering fondness for Gokudera, though, so Iroh's spared further details on this war Zuko's become so fixated on. Surely hearing a little about his friend is a better topic, he figures.

"Oh, and! He's really clever, too! He came up with his own secret code he writes important things in that only he can decipher. But he showed it to me; I can write my name in it. Wouldn't that be so useful for me as Fire Lord? To protect against political opponents or spies? I would've never thought of it on my own, but I want to adopt it now..."

Well. Uh. The subtext there is that Zuko's best friend is clearly as paranoid, or as at risk, as Zuko himself is, apparently. Birds of a feather...? At least he's having fun planning for his paranoia. That's what matters, at the end of the day, maybe...

"There you go then," he said simply as their food finally arrived. He smiled and thanked the sever, who walked off happily. Then he turned to Zuko again. "These times we have now, these memories we will make are a gift, Zuko. Do not be so quick to throw away the present that is your present with both hands."

'The present that is your present...' Oh, Zuko can't help but roll his eyes slightly as he looks away, but the ghost of a smile traces his lips.

"Yes, Uncle Iroh..." He wears that endeared, endearing tone, yet still with some vague pinch of attitude, that tone only sixteen-year-olds can make best. He'd missed his uncle. And his schmaltzy wisdoms.

The arrival of the food quite immediately interrupts Zunyan's patient people-watching, who rushes over to the table again, scrambling over Zuko's shoulder to get there. The prince doesn't react much to it, though, barely a flinch, seemingly used to being climbed on clumsily like that. The little dragon jumps right onto the dinner table, making a beeline for the plate of food, but Zuko quickly catches it before it can make its mark, releasing his hand from Iroh's. He needs one hand and then the other to capture the slinky thing, and sets it down in his lap, a hand gently pressing its back to keep it still. Zuko just... lets his dragon eat at the table at home, but somehow it doesn't seem appropriate in a restaurant — he'd never taken the thing out to eat, after all... He lets it do what it wants in general, really, which is maybe why it causes him so much trouble. But who's he to tell a dragon what to do, he figures?

He picks up his pair of chopsticks, breaking them apart, and deftly reaches over to pick a bit off to place in his teacup's saucer for the dragon to nibble on, setting it at the very edge of the table for it. He can smile more openly at the little creature, getting the smile over his uncle being here he can't suppress out of his system as he watches it in all its silliness. Zuko's needed a genuine smile for a long time. Who better to bring it than his uncle and his familiar, two dragons in their own right?

He watched all of that, seemingly amused. "So," he said after Zuko had the Familiar calmed down some. "Is this what I should expect when you have children of your own?" The question sounded so innocent, like he hadn't waited for Zuko to take a bite before he got to the word children. He even sipped his tea, to look all the more innocent.

Zuko had been about to take a bite, and the question completely catches him off-guard, chopsticks paused in mid-air. His face falls and blanches and then turns pink all at once.

"U-Uncle!"

Zunyan looks between the two of them. Wait, is it the practice child?! It hadn't considered this possibility?! The familiar is devoted to helping Zuko become the best version of himself he can be, whatever is needed... And indeed, parenthood is in his future. He doesn't really have an option about it; he's Fire Lord. Zuko will surely confuse his children someday with his unique brand of affection... They'll need therapy. But if the dragon can help him mature in these regards, too...? The wheels in the creature's head are silently turning, unbeknownst to either party. Zuko stuffs a bite in his mouth bashfully to avoid saying anything, glancing to the side uneasily, his face feeling hot. A less encumbered Zuko is certainly a delight, like the rare moments he ever allowed himself to act like a thirteen-, fourteen-, fifteen-year-old in their travels, candid and open and natural like he should be, like Iroh knows so well how to coax out of him, despite the prince's perpetual seriousness. The shake-up is good for him. If he's blushing then it's good it's got his blood going, right?

"Yes?" he asked, casually as he started eating.

"I won't have children for a long time..."

Yes, that's the best response, surely. Mumbling into his meal. He imagines Iroh will be around to know his children, naturally, so it's not ages off, but... it's on the horizon yet. He doesn't even know who he'll marry — if he'll be blessed enough by Mai's mercy to take him back upon his return, and upon his ascension to the throne he helped usurp. He may marry someone else entirely, someone he may not have even met yet. How should he know? He's young. And that's his point. C'mon, man... Parenthood is not on the forefront of his mind while playing with his dumb dragon. Dumb Dragon's about to make things a lot harder for him from now on in attempts to help him practice at it, though, now that Iroh's raised the issue...

"Time moves faster than you think, prince Zuko." And since he will never have actual grandkids, your kids will have to do. He misses helping a loved one raise a child.

The remark just earns an awkward pout from his nephew, who merely stuffs another bite in his mouth to avoid saying anything. It makes him wonder, though, after a beat...

"Uncle— are you saying you know something I don't...? From my future? Or are you just— wishfully thinking...?" His eyes dart to the side, trying to find the right phrasing.

His uncle had taken interest in his love life plenty before this moment, after all; it's only natural to. And he seemed to get a small kick out of needling Zuko about it, as fondly and encouragingly as he did. Zuko's had crushes since parting from him, too, and that was no more comfortable to talk about than not having crushes before this... Could it be Iroh knows something about him and Mai getting back together? That's his first thought. Maybe he's fancied others since then but no one he can have children with for many different reasons, alien worlds being a big one.

"One does not need to see the future, to know aspects of it," he said, simply. He reached out and patted Zuko's hand gently again.

That, of course, was not actually an answer. He resumed eating.

Zuko's face falls at the response, watching the old man eat to avoid a real answer now, himself. That was... annoyingly cryptic. Yup. Uncle Iroh's back. And the nut doesn't fall far from the tree, somehow.

He gives half a sigh, loading Zun up with another helping of food, which is readily accepted with a little happy flutter of its wings.

"Really, though, Uncle... When did you come from? Azula— She's a couple years older than me now... But Sokka's from the same day as me. What's the last thing you remember?"

Can't dodge that direct of a question, he figures, right?

"Perhaps it would be better to start with what you recall then. And what you have learned from Azula." Because he had to be honest. She was a threat and if she was from further ahead if them... that did not bode well. At all.

So yes, one can dodge that direct a question...

Zuko's never met someone so talented at speaking directly to the point and yet talking in circles at once as his uncle could. He shakes his head, a bit wearily; he's quiet troubled by how vague an answer he has for the man in return.

"Nothing... She won't tell me anything — except that we get along better in the future. And— we get along better in the present now, too... But that was not the case when I left home. I left home the morning of Sozin's Comet. Right after parting with you and the White Lotus at the camp. I was on Appa with Katara headed to the Fire Nation Capital, rested, and woke up... in another world. A planet called Prismatica. I didn't know how the war ended for a long time, but— now I know more. And Toph is from a couple years in the future as well, so she told me a little more than Azula had told me, too. Something important. But— do you remember these things, Uncle?"

Zuko's careful about what he shares to some degree. After he'd approached his best friend who'd forgotten him and spoke too freely about their past together, which turned out to be his friend's future, though one that never happened, and it'd landed them in a literally explosive fight, Zuko's watching his words more carefully. He doesn't want to upset the balance of whatever Iroh's knowledge was up until this point. That's something delicate and visceral, not to be tampered with accidentally.

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omg this is 22 years late i'm so sorry, back in the saddle!!! o9

No worries, welcome back.

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perfect icon lmao /steals his plate

Re: perfect icon lmao /steals his plate

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