video; un:mako

[arclightning]

Uh, hey. Mako here.

[ Nailing it so far, right? Mako's standing in front of a half-blue, half-green wall, dotted with small lunar sconces. Everything looks kind of dusty and half-finished, and the watery afternoon light illuminates yet more dust drifting around him.

Notably, a small dragon, red-scaled and content, is draped over his shoulders like a scarf, watching the Omni with bright eyes.

Mako glances momentarily off the screen, mouths something, and then looks back, clearing his throat. ]

It's come to my attention that a lot of you have been setting things on fire left and right since we washed up here. Obviously, this is dangerous to you and the people around you. If that's you, you need to make an effort to control it immediately before something worse than singeing your clothes happens.

For those of you who just washed up, I'm a firebender. That means I can do—

[ He holds up his left hand (scarred with strange marks) in front of himself and splays his fingers, making a small puff of fire appear and hold over his palm. It flickers there like a candle flame, dancing between Mako's fingers, before he drags it in a small arc and lets it go out. ]

—that, and—

[ Another flick of his fingers, this time producing little purple-bright sparks that zap between the tips and then dissipate. ]

—that. And a lot more.

So. If you need help learning to control your powers, and you do, come to the Raccoon Room in Cellar Door on Wednesdays. You'll see the sign. I've been doing this since I was a kid. Anyone else who wants to help, feel free to drop by too.

[ Finally, he looks up, his serious expression dropping just slightly. ]

Trust me. If a bunch of snotty six-year-olds back home can learn how to do it, you can.

[ The little dragon huffs in agreement, fire puffing out of its nose, and Mako reaches forward to cut the feed. ]

Comments

[cuddlery]

Breath! Calm! Candles!

[She just repeats those words frantically as she tries to calm down! Her nervousness feeds the flame, for a moment, but then she closes her eyes as she tries to focus on the image of a candle.]

O-okay... Take that, candle! [The fireball has stopped growing and is practically in stasis. Scorpia still has her eyes closed.] ... Did it work?

[arclightning]

Whatever you're doing, keep that up. It's working.

[ Wow really a hands-on test of his new job, huh! Mako didn't think it would be so nervewracking. It's fine. He can do this. He's been bending practically since he could walk. ]

Just... breathe, slow and calm, alright? Slowly close your—uh—claw, and think of a candle going out.

[cuddlery]

It is? [She looks at the stabilized fireball.] It is. Good, that's great!

[She takes a breath, and then takes another, slowly. And she closes her eyes.]

Okay. Okay, candle, time to... time for lights out. Lights out please! [She slowly closes her pincer - while fireball shrinks down.] Good night, candle!

[And her pincer closes.]

[arclightning]

[ It's not exactly the technique Mako would use—in fact, it's a lot closer to what he imagines Wu would probably try if Wu could firebend, which is a horrifying thought—but clearly it's working, and that's kind of a small boost to his confidence. ]

Good! That worked, whatever you were doing. If you notice it again, do that. How'd that feel? Could you tell what you were doing?

And. Definitely come by on Wednesday.

[cuddlery]

[Scorpia opens her eyes and sighs in relief as she realizes the fire is out.]

Ohhh, thank goodness! [She gives a small smile.] It felt... more natural than I expected, I guess? Like... it really felt like I was controlling a part of my body. I- I think I got everything that was going on!

Thanks for that. You can bet I'll be there! Now I'm kinda... really, really eager to learn as much of this stuff as possible!

[arclightning]

[ Somehow, that's the most positive feedback Mako's gotten, and the combination of relief and surprise is very evident on his face. It worked? It worked! He actually helped.

Maybe this won't be such a disaster. ]

That's exactly how it should feel. If you're feeling that already, you have a good shot of learning fast. Keep an eye on that claw until Wednesday. You don't want to light your house on fire. You can use the same thing to put out fires that aren't attached to you.

[cuddlery]

I am really, really glad to hear that! I'm more used to ending up with the "slow and steady" approach to learning, so this, I'm hoping this will be a nice change of pace!

[She takes a breath and smiles.]

I'll remember all this candle stuff, and I'll be super careful. [To even put out fires...] This... this can be good. This can be fun! Thank you again, Mako, I'll see you at the first lesson! Or maybe it'd count as a second lesson... or one and a half?

[arclightning]

Slow and steady out of necessity, or just because you learn better that way?

[ Mako's met a few people like that. He's a quick learner, himself—and he's fairly sure he's always been that way, that this is one of the few things the streets didn't have to teach him—but he knows not everyone is that way, and he's trying so hard to be patient with those people. Scaring them off isn't going to do anyone favors. ]

Let's call it one and a half. You'll have a leg up on everyone else.

Or, you know.

A claw up.

[cuddlery]

It's just the way that seems right to me? I mean, sometimes things can come naturally to me, and that's a great surprise! But mostly, things seem to take time.

[She smiles, appreciating how understanding Mako sounds. Still, in this case, she wants to get the hang of these powers as quickly as possible, before she hurts someone.]

Yes! Extra half-lesson achieved! [A beat.] If we're really talking here, it's actually more of a pincer? But I- I appreciate the sentiment, of course! And I'm thankful for this bonus lesson. I can't wait for the real thing!

[arclightning]

Pincer. Got it.

[ Mako doesn't want to go around calling her body parts the wrong thing, no matter how many questions he has about it. Honestly, maybe it'll help with her bending. ]

See you on Wednesday. Get some practice in before that, alright? Especially with focusing on... not accidentally making fire.

[cuddlery]

[She won't really have a problem with calling it a claw, but she just had to be technical in that moment.]

Aye aye, Teacher! I will be there, and I will try to make as few fires as possible! [Most preferably none.]