Work Text:
Growing up, I never gave much thought to my favorite color. It was always red, anyway. Red - the color of power. Of a dynasty built upon the blood of innocents. Red - the color of the sky, as the sun sets and rises across the sky - always wanting to have the last word. Red - the color of my childhood, austere and detached. Red - the color of royal robes dyed by blistered hands. Red - the color of painful welts and burns that coat every firebender’s form. Red - the only thing I see as my father’s hand brands my face as I kneel before him. Everything was always red.
Once the red faded to black, I woke into a world turned onto its head. Now red was the color of fear. The color of sleepless nights and a failed legacy. Red was the color to remind me of my ruined existence; setting me apart from everyone else, constantly reminding me I could never go home. Red became the color of my nightmares, and yet also the color of my most lofty dream: a reconciliation, restored honor, respect.
Now, though. When I think of my favorite color, red doesn't even come into the picture. Now, everything is blue.
Blue is the color of soft hands, clothed in water healing my wounds from the inside out. Both physical and emotional. Blue is the color of laughter, the cadence of my chosen family’s voices as we sit around the fire. Blue is the color of tears that flow down my cheeks as I grovel in repentance before those who have been harmed by my family. Blue is the color of joy, as I recognize the imprints of my friends upon my life. Blue is the color of acceptance that I see in her expression whenever our eyes meet.
Blue is the color of love. Unashamed, unrepentant love that I know is on full display whenever she looks my way. Thankful and humble love that builds within my chest whenever she speaks to me. Soothing and soft is the feel of love, but as powerful and unending as the ocean’s waves. Blue is the color of shining moonlight that skitters across her chocolate skin in the darkness of night. Blue is the feeling of my heart breaking open as I pour out my devotion to her, and instantly refilling with the steady confidence of her words.
Before, I always thought of blue as the color of sadness - but sadness is the opposite of what I feel when in her presence. Blue will never resemble sadness and grief to me anymore; now it is the color of cherished memories and dreams yet to be realized.