Fic: Finding A Way (NC16) -- End notes for Part 2
Title: Finding A Way
Author: dark_malignity
Rating: NC16
Main Characters: Mai, Zuko, Azula
Supporting Characters: Ty Lee, Iroh, the gAang.
Pairing: Mai/Zuko
Pairings:Katara/Aang, Sokka/Suki. Absolutely minute traces of Zuko/Katara if you squint like mad and turn your head sideways.
Warnings: Spoilers to the end of the series. Occasional foul language.(highlight to reveal) Graphic foreplay, dry humping, oral sex, concubinage, implied S/M, relatively graphic birth sequence.
Summary: Zuko wants to get married, but Mai is reluctant because all signs point to a possibility of her being barren. Her rejection hurts and baffles him until she eventually comes clean. Together, they embark on an extensive, five-year search for a solution that would involve everything from concubinage, to ritual superstition, to rediscovering lost fire bending lore.
============
End notes for Part II
Prologue
It really bugged me how fire and water are portrayed as polar opposites, especially when Book 1’s ending had the yin/yang symbol featured so prominently. IMO, that goes against everything the yin/yang duality stands for.
Kinda pissed off about how fire was always linked to destruction as well, when fire is so obviously the source of a lot of real-world traditional healing. So yeah ;D
Chapter 1
Women’s work: based on the continental European tradition… I have no idea how Asian royal households used to operate in the past.
Rubbing a bruise with hot cloth: an Island Southeast Asian practice.
Pressing down on a bruise with an ice pack: apparently the more western counterpart to hot cloth. Thought it would be suitable since ice is supposed to be opposite to fire, and since Katara’s water bending world is surrounded by ice.
Being too cold to have babies: An Island Southeast Asian belief. A cold body apparently interferes in a woman’s ability to conceive. Traditionally, their solution would be to warm her up through heaty foods and body massage.
Achieving good health by heating the body/ cooling it down: basically a Traditional Chinese Medicine approach to general wellbeing. In a nutshell, TCM works by restoring the body’s natural balance of hot and cold.
Chapter 2
Master Cheung: named after the TCM practitioner in my neighbourhood… hurhur! Doctor Cheung was a real help when writing this fic.
Master Cheung’s tapping treatment: based on acupuncture. In the past, acupuncture was poking needles into the body and flicking them simultaneously to stimulate the acupuncture points. Nowadays, TCM practitioners pass small jolts of electricity through the needles instead. It’s supposed to be a lot more controlled and painless than the old method of flicking the needles. Thus came the idea of lightning healing.
Mai’s heat treatment: The would be to acupuncture points which stimulate blood flow, thus warming the body. First links both feet to each other for balance. Second and third links the base of the foot to the top near the knee on each leg. Forth links the base of the hand to the top near the elbow. When done together, this can help to eradicate the problem of cold hands and feet.
Earth Rumble X: Because four years would have passed since the Earth Rumble which Aang went to.
Zuko’s heat treatment (tapping): I don’t know how the acupuncture needle-between-the-eyebrow-and-one-to-the-crown-of-the-head thing works, but it sure as hell is effective. I’ve had it done twice, and when I woke up, my mind was just really alert.
Zuko’s heat treatment (cupping): Also a real-world practice. This isn’t just restricted to TCM, there are equivalents in Island Southeast Asian tradition as well as middle eastern tradition. The cups apparently “suck out” the toxins/ bad blood/ other negative substances in the body. I’m a bit skeptical about this one, but my grandmother swears by it. She says it makes her body lighter and more agile, so… *shrug*.
Mai wearing a shawl every night: Reference to her more-covered-up beach outfit at Ember Island, and her shawl-covered shoulders during the evening party. Also referencing the fur-trimmed cloak she wore on the ship home and to the picnic with Zuko.
Firelord Azula: Well, technically, Zuko didn’t win the Agni kai…
Banning pregnant women from knives: One of many Chinese superstitions. I can’t remember what’s supposed to happen if she does handle knives, but I think it might be that they believed the baby will be born with a cleft lip.
Zuko’s inner child: some psychiatrists do that… they literally try to get you connected with your inner child.
“All he needed was to believe in the child who had faith in him”: Paraphrase of an epic quote from Gurren Lagan; “Don’t believe in yourself. Believe in me, who believes in you!”
Chapter 3
Bedrest taboo: Honestly, I don’t know which culture that came from, I just know it exists somewhere. *hides*
Throw dead corpses over the wall: Yeah, once upon a time, battles were gross like that. But then again, war is always gross…
Katara’s toddler: Cos the baby would be about one year old by now.
Reincarnation/ bound through seven lifetimes: Hindu marriage belief. Usually, people hope to reincarnate upwards of their current social class, but so many of the obstacles Mai and Zuko face are because of their high social standing, so it would be natural for them to have a romanticized view of a commoner’s married life.
Chapter 4
Zuko liking Katara: Had to pay tribute to Zutara somehow… not my cuppa, but its still the most shipped pairing in the fandom.
Village north of the slopes: According to Avatar Wiki, there is one. ^^
Lord Agni choosing the victor: At least, that was the impression I got from Book 1. It really did feel like a proper sacred duel, and the name itself suggests it.
Hot bath: my own Avatar-universe spin on a waterbirth. The water tribes obviously don’t practice it, because in Book 2 we see how Katara helps a woman to deliver, and although she tells Sokka to bring her some water, there’s no sight of a tub anywhere. (I’m assuming the water there is to wipe the mother’s face/ clean the baby?)
High temperature is also a feature of waterbirths, so I gave this one to Fire Nation. I mean, they live on volcanic soil. Hot springs has to be a common feature, and I’m sure someone would have discovered the relief that a hot bath brings during labour.
Besides, I thought this would be a great way to unite the two healing forces of water and fire.
Bending energy: Hey, if he can bend Ozai’s fire bending away (I assume by blocking his chi?) then maybe he can bend the chi to not leave the body...?
First aid by Master Cheung: Inspired by stories of how WWII patients sometimes got their guts sealed up with duct tape while waiting proper medical attention. *shudder*.
Pressing a cold cloth: Some midwives do it, and I thought it would be a nice contrast to the heat of the fire nation bath.
Opening doors/windows/drawers: Such a superstition really exists in Island Southeast Asia. *jawdrops*. My own aunt swears by it. The fat woman’s story is more or less what my aunt tells everyone the moment the subject of childbirth comes up.
The universe would guide his footsteps: the same The Universe that just loves proving Sokka wrong. ;)
And if you’re still here, thanks so much for reading! It was amazing and a half to write, zomg!
~The End~
Return to Main Page
Author: dark_malignity
Rating: NC16
Main Characters: Mai, Zuko, Azula
Supporting Characters: Ty Lee, Iroh, the gAang.
Pairing: Mai/Zuko
Pairings:Katara/Aang, Sokka/Suki. Absolutely minute traces of Zuko/Katara if you squint like mad and turn your head sideways.
Warnings: Spoilers to the end of the series. Occasional foul language.(highlight to reveal) Graphic foreplay, dry humping, oral sex, concubinage, implied S/M, relatively graphic birth sequence.
Summary: Zuko wants to get married, but Mai is reluctant because all signs point to a possibility of her being barren. Her rejection hurts and baffles him until she eventually comes clean. Together, they embark on an extensive, five-year search for a solution that would involve everything from concubinage, to ritual superstition, to rediscovering lost fire bending lore.
============
End notes for Part II
Prologue
It really bugged me how fire and water are portrayed as polar opposites, especially when Book 1’s ending had the yin/yang symbol featured so prominently. IMO, that goes against everything the yin/yang duality stands for.
Kinda pissed off about how fire was always linked to destruction as well, when fire is so obviously the source of a lot of real-world traditional healing. So yeah ;D
Chapter 1
Women’s work: based on the continental European tradition… I have no idea how Asian royal households used to operate in the past.
Rubbing a bruise with hot cloth: an Island Southeast Asian practice.
Pressing down on a bruise with an ice pack: apparently the more western counterpart to hot cloth. Thought it would be suitable since ice is supposed to be opposite to fire, and since Katara’s water bending world is surrounded by ice.
Being too cold to have babies: An Island Southeast Asian belief. A cold body apparently interferes in a woman’s ability to conceive. Traditionally, their solution would be to warm her up through heaty foods and body massage.
Achieving good health by heating the body/ cooling it down: basically a Traditional Chinese Medicine approach to general wellbeing. In a nutshell, TCM works by restoring the body’s natural balance of hot and cold.
Chapter 2
Master Cheung: named after the TCM practitioner in my neighbourhood… hurhur! Doctor Cheung was a real help when writing this fic.
Master Cheung’s tapping treatment: based on acupuncture. In the past, acupuncture was poking needles into the body and flicking them simultaneously to stimulate the acupuncture points. Nowadays, TCM practitioners pass small jolts of electricity through the needles instead. It’s supposed to be a lot more controlled and painless than the old method of flicking the needles. Thus came the idea of lightning healing.
Mai’s heat treatment: The would be to acupuncture points which stimulate blood flow, thus warming the body. First links both feet to each other for balance. Second and third links the base of the foot to the top near the knee on each leg. Forth links the base of the hand to the top near the elbow. When done together, this can help to eradicate the problem of cold hands and feet.
Earth Rumble X: Because four years would have passed since the Earth Rumble which Aang went to.
Zuko’s heat treatment (tapping): I don’t know how the acupuncture needle-between-the-eyebrow-and-one-to-the-crown-of-the-head thing works, but it sure as hell is effective. I’ve had it done twice, and when I woke up, my mind was just really alert.
Zuko’s heat treatment (cupping): Also a real-world practice. This isn’t just restricted to TCM, there are equivalents in Island Southeast Asian tradition as well as middle eastern tradition. The cups apparently “suck out” the toxins/ bad blood/ other negative substances in the body. I’m a bit skeptical about this one, but my grandmother swears by it. She says it makes her body lighter and more agile, so… *shrug*.
Mai wearing a shawl every night: Reference to her more-covered-up beach outfit at Ember Island, and her shawl-covered shoulders during the evening party. Also referencing the fur-trimmed cloak she wore on the ship home and to the picnic with Zuko.
Firelord Azula: Well, technically, Zuko didn’t win the Agni kai…
Banning pregnant women from knives: One of many Chinese superstitions. I can’t remember what’s supposed to happen if she does handle knives, but I think it might be that they believed the baby will be born with a cleft lip.
Zuko’s inner child: some psychiatrists do that… they literally try to get you connected with your inner child.
“All he needed was to believe in the child who had faith in him”: Paraphrase of an epic quote from Gurren Lagan; “Don’t believe in yourself. Believe in me, who believes in you!”
Chapter 3
Bedrest taboo: Honestly, I don’t know which culture that came from, I just know it exists somewhere. *hides*
Throw dead corpses over the wall: Yeah, once upon a time, battles were gross like that. But then again, war is always gross…
Katara’s toddler: Cos the baby would be about one year old by now.
Reincarnation/ bound through seven lifetimes: Hindu marriage belief. Usually, people hope to reincarnate upwards of their current social class, but so many of the obstacles Mai and Zuko face are because of their high social standing, so it would be natural for them to have a romanticized view of a commoner’s married life.
Chapter 4
Zuko liking Katara: Had to pay tribute to Zutara somehow… not my cuppa, but its still the most shipped pairing in the fandom.
Village north of the slopes: According to Avatar Wiki, there is one. ^^
Lord Agni choosing the victor: At least, that was the impression I got from Book 1. It really did feel like a proper sacred duel, and the name itself suggests it.
Hot bath: my own Avatar-universe spin on a waterbirth. The water tribes obviously don’t practice it, because in Book 2 we see how Katara helps a woman to deliver, and although she tells Sokka to bring her some water, there’s no sight of a tub anywhere. (I’m assuming the water there is to wipe the mother’s face/ clean the baby?)
High temperature is also a feature of waterbirths, so I gave this one to Fire Nation. I mean, they live on volcanic soil. Hot springs has to be a common feature, and I’m sure someone would have discovered the relief that a hot bath brings during labour.
Besides, I thought this would be a great way to unite the two healing forces of water and fire.
Bending energy: Hey, if he can bend Ozai’s fire bending away (I assume by blocking his chi?) then maybe he can bend the chi to not leave the body...?
First aid by Master Cheung: Inspired by stories of how WWII patients sometimes got their guts sealed up with duct tape while waiting proper medical attention. *shudder*.
Pressing a cold cloth: Some midwives do it, and I thought it would be a nice contrast to the heat of the fire nation bath.
Opening doors/windows/drawers: Such a superstition really exists in Island Southeast Asia. *jawdrops*. My own aunt swears by it. The fat woman’s story is more or less what my aunt tells everyone the moment the subject of childbirth comes up.
The universe would guide his footsteps: the same The Universe that just loves proving Sokka wrong. ;)
And if you’re still here, thanks so much for reading! It was amazing and a half to write, zomg!
~The End~
Return to Main Page