tushanshu_logs | April Catch All

Entry tags:

April Catch All

Characters: Zuko and You!
Date: The month of April
Location: Just about anywhere. Mostly the palace gardens.
Situation: Zuko is missing Wan again and looking for Aang's soul gem.
Warnings/Rating: None

[Closed to Gene]
This was not good. One of his best friends had his soul gem stolen, and he didn't have the first clue on where to look for it. Sure he had already scoped out the place where Aang said he'd been attacked, but he didn't really find anything there.

So now Zuko is roaming the streets, looking for any clue as to the whereabouts of that soul gem. And without much luck. Druk is following along, walking at Zuko's side and now big enough to keep up with him. The dragon still earns him a few glances, and a few Kedan keeping their distance, but no one says anything about it. Any potential muggers will probably think twice about attacking him with a dragon at his side.

[Open to all]
It's been no secret that Wan has been gone, having gone out camping to be alone. Plus its no secret that Zuko is not exactly happy about it. First the quarantine, and now this. No, he doesn't blame his boyfriend for wanting some time alone, but that doesn't mean he has to like it. In otherwords, he's lonely, and could probably use some companionship.

He did promise to look after the gardens during construction, which he is. During the day when construction is happening, he can usually be found there. He had also promised to keep an eye on Valdis, so will be visiting her from time to time. Other than that, he's mostly just by himself, unless someone decides to give him some company.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Zuko saw the flinch, and the subtle signs of pain in Valdis' expression. For a moment he was horrified, and felt a stab of guilt for causing her such torment. All because of a stupid little emotion that was petty and stupid.

"I'm so sorry," he apologized quietly, despite her attempts to dismiss it.

"Maybe I should go."

He didn't want to stand there and cause her further pain. This isn't what Wan wanted.

Edited 2015-04-19 21:04 (UTC)

She pulled the blade up and sat it in her lap, one hand laying gently on the blade as it glowed softly.

"No," she said quietly, "Revelations will help keep the pain at bay. I am sorry for hurting you, I didn't realize that Wan hadn't told you about our connection."

Well... if she was sure, then okay, he would stay. And sat himself down wherever it was convenient.

"He doesn't talk about you much," Zuko admitted.

But he decided he would try to be positive, even if he didn't feel like it. So he mustered a small smile.

"He'll be back soon. I'm sure of it."

"He probably didn't think it would be important to you," she replied, "Wan is odd that way. He doesn't always realize how darkness seeps in."

She hoped that he was right. She need to speak to Wan, to explain that it wasn't his fault, to make sure that he wasn't feeling her pain.

"I don't know about that. I think he just might want to respect your privacy."

But then, both were just speculation. Only Wan could say for sure one way or the other.

"Whatever it is, I'm sure he's doing what he thinks is best for you."

"He always has," She said, looking at her sword, "and I haven't done anything to deserve his care, or the care of anyone else. This world is so strange, they ask nothing of me, they do not care about my darkness, they just care about me, and that is a gift I cannot repay."

"I know what you mean," Zuko says carefully, trying to keep his emotions in check. He's trying Valdis, he really is.

"I don't always understand it either. But it doesn't have anything to do with deserving. Sometimes people will love you just for being you."

It was something that was hard for him to learn, and sometimes he still forgot it. He thinks that's what Katara was trying to tell him.

"I suppose." She shifted the blade in her hands, once again wondering how she was even able to use it.

With that, Zuko wasn't sure what else to say. Instead letting his gaze fall down to the sword that she held in her lap.

"Where did you get that sword?"

"I found it on Evidet," she replied, "But that wasn't the first time I've seen it. It is a blade from my homeworld."

"That's where I found Druk."

Weird how things from their own worlds can just show up like that.

"Is there something special about it?"

The sword flashed brightly in response to his question, the blade a soft gold and the gem bright red.

"Yes," she replied, "It has the ability to purge darkness...It the the blade that pulled my soul out of Oblivion and restored it to me."

Zuko's eyes widened in surprise and awe as the sword reacted and began to glow.

"A sword can do that?"

They don't have magic swords where he's from, so this is a foreign thing to him. But nonetheless, he was certainly intrigued.

"This one can," she smiled sadly, "Revelations is a holy blade, infused with the power of light. It was created for the sole purpose of purging evil from the world." The smile was followed by a brief laugh, "It is also considered to be a failed experiment."

"Failed? Why?"

That didn't make any sense to him. Seemed to be working just fine. But then he's never seen this sort of sword before, so its not like he really knew anything.

"Because it failed to kill me," she replied, not bothering to soften the answer to his question. Dancing around the issue would help no one.

Okay... he wasn't expecting that answer at all.

"What? Why would anyone want to kill you?"

Forget why it failed to kill her. He was more concerned with why anyone would want to end Valdis.

She laughed bitterly, Wan really had kept Zuko in the dark. She appreciated how he wanted to protect her privacy, to protect her in general, but it was moments like this that she hated explaining.

"I used to be a monster," she replied, "I had no soul, no morality, no virtues. I thrived on creating chaos and death. The Angels, I suppose you could call them warriors of light and defenders of mankind, sought to destroy me in order to, not just kill me, but to ruin my brethren. They believed that, without a Queen, the Hellhounds would cease to be a threat."

She took a breath, "So they created this sword and gave it to one of their best warriors. However, when he plunged it into my heart, it did not destroy me. So it was considered a failure."

Yes, Wan had kept him in the dark. Though at her explanation about how she used to be, it almost sounded familiar. Not in a literal sense, but a figurative one.

"So if it didn't destroy you, what did it do?"

Zuko was glad it hadn't destroyed her, but she was obviously different now than she apparently was before. Had the sword changed her?

She smiled softly, "It restored my soul and thus the light that Wan senses I possess. It returned my morality, my ability to feel emotions, my compassion and empathy for others, my sense of justice...everything that my brethren lacked." Her smile faded, "So then, they too, sought to destroy me."

"So that's what you meant. When you said everyone in your world was trying to destroy you."

She was caught between two worlds and accepted by neither. That must be hard. And yet, again, Zuko could somewhat relate.

"Yes..." It wasn't the whole story, but she wasn't going to give him the whole story, especially not when even Wan hadn't heard it.

"I sense that you too are struggling," she said softly, "Care to talk about it?"

She could sense that too? Zuko sighed and ran a hand through his hair before mustering a small smile.

"Most of it is behind me. But you shared your past with me, so it won't hurt to do the same for you."

But where to start? That was the tricky part wasn't it?

"You know that Wan is the Avatar, right? Aang is one of his future lives. He's the Avatar in my time. Before we were friends, I chased him around the world, trying to capture him. So that I could restore my honor."

She had heard of reincarnation, it was a part of one of the many religions in her world, but she had not heard Wan speak of any future lives.

"I know a bit," She replied, one eyebrow raised, "Did you restore you honor?"

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

April Catch All

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject