Am I The Only One In The Fandom Who Developed Complete Indifference To Michaela After A Few Minutes Of

Am I the only one in the fandom who developed complete indifference to Michaela after a few minutes of adjusting to the idea, even though she loved Francesca and thinks her book is one of the best in the series?

Like, okay, I'll just ship a book! Francesca with Michael and a show! Francesca and Michaela, their personalities are quite different anyway.

The only thing that would bother me would be people claiming that she didn't love John romantically (some bisexuals are sexually attracted to only one gender and that's fine!) and the lack of Franchel fic, and I'm already bothered by how it cuts the fandom in half. Let me enjoy Francesca's content without being exposed to your arguments

I have only one problem with it, and that is: what do you mean, they have a hunger for power and a mad ambition in their blood? Fighting and backstabbing makes sense if your nation is on the brink of collapse and you're trying your best to survive. Are you saying that Fire Nation people are… just born bad? This is an interesting opinion, which makes me wonder about the prejudices about the Fire Nation after the Hundred Years War. We know that firebenders killed Asami's mother, and Mako and Bolin's parents. In the world of The Legend of Korra, are firebenders, especially if they come from the Fire Nation, considered evil until proven innocent? Does the Fire Nation, like today's Germany, carry enormous burdens of guilt, and every citizen in it is forced to deal with their legacy as a descendant or relative of a soldier in the army who killed the waterbenders of the Southern Water Tribe and committed total genocide against the Air Nomads? Is this something that the avatar after Korra, or the avatar of fire after him, will have to deal with? If Avatar Roku and Avatar Szeto are remembered as bad Avatars, how much pressure will the next Fire Nation Avatar have to deal with? How many prejudices? How many people just assume he'll be a bad avatar, because fire nation avatars are always bad? In the world of the Avatar, are firebenders considered evil, suspicious, threatening? How does it feel to live in a nation that is responsible for such a great and terrible war, and even though you, as an individual, have never harmed another person, people expect you to bear the blame of your entire nation? People expect you to be power hungry and violent? What is it like to be a Fire Nation citizen in the modern era of the Avatar world? How will a Fire Nation Avatar deal with the fact that the two Fire Nation Avatars before him are remembered as bad by history, and that people will always assume the worst for everything he does?

This guy.

Let's talk this guy.

This is Szeto, the Avatar immediately predating Yangchen. Szeto was the first person we ever saw lavabend in the show and quite potentially one of the worst Avatars to have ever lived.

Potentially.

If you've read this far, you're interested enough in Avatar lore to know that it's cyclical. These humans are (un)lucky enough to be born with every elemental power available in their world and that elects them to a position they never asked for.

Korra lost her bending because Aang wasn't diligent in staying on top of Yakone. Aang's people were wiped out because Roku let his power-crazy jilted ex run around freely. Kyoshi created the Dai Li who became secret police terrorizing Ba Sing Se. Kuruk neglected his diplomatic Avatar duties leaving the world in political shambles by Kyoshi's time. And Yangchen gave humanity everything it wanted at the cost of the spirits because Szeto spent his whole career increasing the Fire Nation's power.

What would drive the Avatar, master of all four elements and bridge between the physical and spirital worlds, to leave everyone outside his home country to fend for themselves?

I posit, dear reader, that Szeto was worried for the very Avatar Cycle itself.

In my eyes, it becomes clear pretty immediately from what we learn in Kyoshi why he may have - again, potentially - done so. The Fire Nation is actually comprised of a series of differently-sized landmasses called the Fire Islands. For whatever reason, in Szeto's time, these Fire Islands were on the brink of collapse. Kyoshi shows us that being ambitious and power-hungry wasn't something Sozin started, but that Fire Nationals have it in their blood.

Infighting, backstabbing, and so much more would have been commonplace. Szeto would have been born into a Fire Nation on the brink of collapse. And sure, he was the Avatar, everyone's Avatar, but if he gave the other parts of the world equal attention, and the Fire Nation implodes, would another Fire Avatar ever even be born?

In Yangchen's second book we see he had a room at the Air Temple, so while he wasn't in his home country 100% of the time, judging by his reputation it had to have been 90% or more. Szeto had to leave the world in such a mess for Yangchen. Because if he hadn't given the Fire Nation as much attention as he did, the possibility must have existed, or at least been real enough in his mind, that it wouldn't last much longer.

An Avatar world without the Fire Nation is one in a state of permanent imbalance. One where the cycle is broken and the Avatar has nowhere to be born. Szeto had to have felt that it was: give his all to the Fire Nation, or else be the Avatar responsible for the literal end of their world with no chance of a savior being born to fix it.

I've heard you accept beans as an offering? I have a premature bean..it's still growing..do you accept premature beans?

For exchange for a baby/chibi/kid circe♡

Hmm, yes I do accept little beans as well. Thank you for the offering.

this kid Circe is entirely based on the book btw

Quick babby Jason sketches

"my grand plan" ( Anabeth's song) make me so sad for absolutely no reason

Wait, she have more then three books? They translated to my language, right? THEY HAVE TO

Frances Hardinge is a criminally underrated author. If you've never heard of her, I'm not surprised. Even though I'm in several fantasy book groups on Facebook with thousands of members, I've only ever seen one or two other members post about her. And yet, since I first read one of her books in 2020, I've bought every book she's published and read most of them.

Frances Hardinge, for those who've missed out, writes fantasy young adult books. Her books are extremely well written, romance free, unfailingly unique, and somewhat dark, all of which are qualities I find to be more and more rare in today's YA fantasy market (not to hate on YA, I've read tons of it). If you need a comparison, I would say aspects of her books remind me of YA/middle grade books by T. Kingfisher or Neil Gaiman.

If I haven't convinced you yet, here's a little preview of some of her books that I've read:

A Face Like Glass (my personal favorite): A girl named Neverfell lives in a world where people have to be taught how to show emotion in their facial expressions. She has to wear a mask at all times because, mysteriously, she naturally shows facial expressions and if people found out they would freak. If that's not unique enough, this society is underground and produces magical artisinal goods, such as cheeses, wines, and perfumes that can do some wild things. If that still hasn't convinced you, the book critiques the privelege of the wealthy, as in this world only the rich can afford to hire Facesmiths to teach them expression, while the poor languish along with one or two facial expressions for their entire lives.

Fly by Night and Fly Trap (these might have different titles depending on where you are in the world): In a world where reading is illegal and seen as revolutionary activity, Mosca Mye escapes her awful life with her aunt and uncle by forcing an infamous conman (Eponymous Clent, this world has cool naming conventions) to take her under his wing. Joining them is Mosca's only friend, Saracen, the murderous goose. Yeah, you read that right. Highlights of the series include a heartwarming found family tale, an accidental revolution, a city that literally changes its population, personality, and shape when day changes to night, and, of course, an extremely violent goose. I mean, if you've read Pratchett, Saracen the goose is basically the Luggage. There's more than one scene in these books where all hope seems lost, and Mosca is like, "I guess it's up to you now Saracen," and she just straight up lobs her goose at the enemy and he utterly wrecks their shit. If I recall correctly, this happens once during a pitched river boat battle over an illegal printing press.

The Lie Tree: Faith's father, who refused to recognize her potential as a scientist, mysteriously dies. Faith discovers a tree he kept hidden that grows when you tell lies and reveals secrets in its fruit. The bigger the lie you tell the world, the bigger the secret that will be revealed. You can imagine the chaos that eventually ensues. This book critiques gender roles and discrimination, and tackles both the dangers and the necessity of telling lies.

Cuckoo Song: When Triss wakes up after apparently falling in a lake, everything seems wrong. She's missing memories, she has an insatiable hunger, dead leaves are mysteriously appearing in her room, and her sister claims she's a monster. Triss must piece together what's happening to her before it's too late. This book deals with the complexities of life with overbearing parents, siblings who've been pitted against one another, and families that have been torn apart by tragedy.

Verdigris Deep (another one that goes by different titles): A group of friends are cursed by a well witch after they take some coins from her well. She forces them to work for her by granting her wishes. Working with the witch gives them powers, but the wishes are getting increasingly complex. Does that guy really want a motorcycle or does he want to be someone else? And if he wants to be someone else, does that mean what he really wants is not to exist at all? This book deals with issues of self worth, power and control, and toxic friendships.

She has a bunch of other great books as well. So if you're looking for a unique fantasy story with adventure and no romance, definitely check some of Frances Hardinge's books out!