? Author’s Preface to a Totally Legitimate Cultural Exchange Fic

  by Lev Tanel

  There comes a time in every man’s life when he must stare into the yawning chasm of official documentation and say, “No. Not like that.”

  This fic is my “no.”

  Some people respond to narrative injustice with long complaints in the comments section. That may have been my previous self. Others, apparently, become Archivists. I, however, have chosen the nobler path: interdimensional cultural diplomacy through fanfiction.

  It is, as the scholars say, emotionally correct.

  Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

  Let me be clear: this is not escapism. This is resistance. The Archivist wrote my life like a case study in bad decision-making and pastry addiction. So naturally, I’m retaliating with a cross-dimensional buddy adventure featuring martial arts children, questionable physics, and my (maybe fictional, I’m not telling) cat.

  If you are looking for realism, I recommend the Archive. They have realism in sterile abundance. If you are looking for truth—the kind that sings, occasionally trips over its own metaphors, and lands in another universe looking stunning—you’re in the right place.

  Genre boundaries are porous. Metaphorically, so am I.

  Anyway, Teorin is here against his will (he says “for factual balance,” I say “because he’s funny when confused”), and the world we fell into is very educational. There are flying bison, elemental superpowers, and—most importantly—no Archivist to tell me I am too obsessed with pastries.

  Please enjoy this exploration of portals, pressure, and personality. It begins with a fall, as all the best things do.

  — Lev Tanel

  Self-appointed cultural ambassador,

  Unwilling subject of narrative malpractice,

  And future award-winning crossover author

  Lev's FAn Fic

  No prior knowledge of Avatar: The Last Airbender required.

  - Lev: chaos incarnate, jokes through every injury.

  - Teorin: calm, sharp, and maybe something more dangerous than an Airbender.

  - A cat. Just… Cat. Don’t ask.

  - Zuko, deciding one of them might be an Airbender.

  Don't let Lev's jokes fool you. He hides as much as he says.

  [Lev] Who is winning the war: me or the Archivist?