Avatar: And When the Gauntlet's Down: Chapter Two

[artemisrae]

Title: And When the Gauntlet’s Down
Rating: T
Characters: Zuko, Azula
Summary: Zuko makes sure his guest of honor is comfortable and updates her on the status quo.
A/N: And we get our first look at Crazy Fire Lord Zuko. This chapter is meant to take place a couple weeks before Chapter 1, which means Zuko is 23, and Azula 21.

Chapter 2 - You Say You Don

Comments

[greedyslayer]

...Crazy!Zuko=Ozai.

Gratified by the reverse of which sibling's lying....

[greedyslayer]

And even with him being all crazy--dear God, I'm likin' this Zuko better than canon currently (personality-wise) because he is visibly giving a damn about Iroh. (And supports what I think; Iroh's death will harm Zuko a lot more than propelling him into any sort of decisive action--well, maybe decisive completely-gone-insane action.)

[artemisrae]

Thank you! Zuko's in firm denial, but his uncle knows him better than he does, and in my AU Iroh is pretty much Zuko's most trusted companion - you have a lot of advisors interested only in their best interests, and you tend to rely a lot on the one person who you know has been honest with you since Day 1.

And I knew from the beginning I wanted to switch Zuko's and Azula's places... I'm really looking forward into delving into what's happened in their separate lives since Ozai died.

[greedyslayer]

And I knew from the beginning I wanted to switch Zuko's and Azula's places...

Ooh, you have no idea--been wondering about what it would've been like if Zuko was the prodigy and favored one, while Azula was scarred and banished down the line, and I'm pretty sure that Iroh would stick with the sibling's that the most kicked-down-puppy.... *shrug*

[artemisrae]

Ooooh yes, the question of nature vs. nurture in regards to Zuko and Azula's personalities. I personally believe that Azula's always been a schemer, and Zuko's always been.... I don't want to use the word hapless, because that's the wrong word, but I thnk even if Zuko were the prodigy, then Azula were merely work harder to undermine him, where right now it's just kinda effortless. It's a fun thing to picture! (...Which does beg the question of Iroh - would he love a lesser favored Azula who's still a schemer?)

[greedyslayer]

Would Azula come to feel something for Iroh?

[artemisrae]

She would certainly see him as a useful tool to get a let up on Zuko - imagine her bugging him to teach her his little Dragon trick - but I think it would depend on how good an actress she is?

Unless this is one of those AUs where EVERYONE is evil, including Iroh?