sid_guardian | Focus on: Zhu Hong

Entry tags:

type: character discussion

Focus on: Zhu Hong

Snake Tribe princess, SID team big sister, and future leader of the ~~free world~~ Yashou Tribes -- Zhu Hong!

In the drama, Zhu Hong is an orphan of the Snake Tribe of the Yashou, raised (and spoiled) by her Fourth Uncle, their leader. She joins the SID with a secret crush on Zhao Yunlan, and works hard on fitting in with the human world. She's everyone's big sister, from taking care of people when they're sick to threatening them when they misbehave (Lin Jing especially!)

Zhu Hong practicing her mesmerism on the unsuspecting delivery guy.

Zhu Hong practicing her mesmerism on the unsuspecting delivery guy.

Zhu Hong practicing Snake Tribe mesmerism on the unsuspecting delivery guy.

Zhu Hong threatening to punch Lin Jing. In a friendly way, of course.

a montage of images of Zhu Hong confronting Zhao Yunlan on the street.

"Just one question -- is there anyone who wants me to stay?"

a montage of images of Zhu Hong and Zhao Yunlan in the dream.

"I like it here. In here, you won't tell me that you're willing to die for Shen Wei, but won't even give me the chance to face trouble beside you."

(montage images aren't mine; both link to original post)

A few Zhu Hong recs:

- Power, by

abyss_valkyrie (image links to original post)

The Marriage of Lightning and the Lake (7462 words) by Branch
Relationships: Yā Qīng/Zhù Hóng
Summary: Zhu Hong works on how to be Chief Elder, and falls hard for Ya Qing in the process. (Her uncle may have a point about her terrible taste.)

Protect your heart, protect your head (9603 words) by china_shop
Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Time Travel, Fix-It
Summary: Damn the Hallows! They should have given her instructions, instead of dumping her outside the SID without so much as a hint she was in the past. She didn’t know how much longer she had before they stole her away again, and she’d wasted precious time coming to the Snake village when she could have gone straight to lao-Zhao and Shen Wei. They were the ones who would know what to do. They were the leaders.

Except, oh. Zhu Hong was a leader, too.

Falling for You (406 words) by ExtraPenguin
Relationships: Chéng Xīnyán/Zhù Hóng
Summary: Zhu Hong goes to intimidate Da Qing after his doctor's appointment, but ends up falling into the arms of the pretty doctor instead.

Things I adore about Zhu Hong, in no particular order:

- When she announces that she's going to play the decoy in the face-stealer plot, Da Qing and Lin Jing pretend to ignore her. She doesn't let them. She knows how dangerous this is, and she knows she's not typically a field agent. But she doesn't let them keep her out of it.

- The look on her face when Zhao Yunlan sends her to Shen Wei's office with a laptop so he can videoconference with his ~~boyfriend~~ consultant. She's so done with all of this.

- Pretty much every outfit she wears in the entire series. She's so well-dressed, even in the mountains.

- Casually stealing all the snacks.

- The way she doesn't let Zhao Yunlan weasel out of answering her, once she's decided to confront him. (No matter how hard he tries!)

- Her rallying speech to Chu Shuzi and the others during the battle in Dragon City.

Discussion starters:

1. Unlike most of the other SID members, Zhu Hong doesn't have a clearly defined role in their usual investigations. What do you think she brings to the team?

2. It's mentioned at several points that Zhu Hong's father went out into the human world. How do you think that influenced her decision to leave the forest?

3. Where does Zhu Hong get her fashion advice? It's clearly not from anyone in the SID.

4. Do you think Zhu Hong is ready to be Yashou leader? What will she be like, as a leader?

5. Do you have any ships with Zhu Hong?

So - come and talk about Zhu Hong! Share links to meta, picspams, and related fanworks, new or old! Self-recs whole-heartedly encouraged. Basically, this is the place for anything you want to say or link to about Zhu Hong.

Important: If you're commenting with meta/discussion/thoughts, please say whether you're coming from a novel perspective, a drama perspective, or a blend of the two, so we don't end up talking past each other. Thanks!

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(Drama only here.)

1. Unlike most of the other SID members, Zhu Hong doesn't have a clearly defined role in their usual investigations. What do you think she brings to the team?
Officially, she's their human resources, but I think Zhao Yunlan got her with the dual purpose of having a back channel to the Snake Tribe Yashou. Currently, she's a sort of back-up field agent with Da Qing, and she's also one of the people holding the ship together and making people do their actual jobs. (Unlike Da Qing.)

(No opinion on #2 and #3.)

4. Do you think Zhu Hong is ready to be Yashou leader? What will she be like, as a leader?
She's to me a bit insecure in the present of the show, though she does have a spine and a lot of her moments of insecurity are related to Zhao Yunlan at least tangentially. I think it's something she can grow into, aided by not being her crush's subordinate.

5. Do you have any ships with Zhu Hong?
Cheng Xinyan/Zhu Hong (thank you for the rec!) and Wang Zheng/Zhu Hong. I can also read about her with Ya Qing, but I ship that less.

Edited 2020-04-10 21:04 (UTC)

Currently, she's a sort of back-up field agent with Da Qing, and she's also one of the people holding the ship together and making people do their actual jobs. (Unlike Da Qing.)

Yeah, with Zhao Yunlan and Da Qing as the office role models and official authorities, someone has to keep people on task. I think Zhu Hong ends up handling a lot of the interpersonal/emotional drama.

Cheng Xinyan/Zhu Hong (thank you for the rec!) and Wang Zheng/Zhu Hong. I can also read about her with Ya Qing, but I ship that less.

You're welcome!

I have a soft spot for shipping her with Li Qian. I read

china_shop 's like sunlight on scales last year, and really liked the way they work together.

I think Zhu Hong ends up handling a lot of the interpersonal/emotional drama.

(Still only talking drama canon) At the beginning of the show, Zhao Yunlan calls on her to do emotional work sometimes, like being supportive of Teacher Zhang in ep 3, and Zhu Hong performs this stiffly, without really feeling it. I think she gets better and more confident at that kind of thing over time?

♥ ♥ ♥

At the beginning of the show, Zhao Yunlan calls on her to do emotional work sometimes, like being supportive of Teacher Zhang in ep 3, and Zhu Hong performs this stiffly, without really feeling it.

Compared to Da Qing and Guo Changcheng in the Zhou Weiwei plot, Zhu Hong is soooo much more empathetic. I'm not sure anyone in the SID is universally good at it.

Ha, good point.

Yeah, with Zhao Yunlan and Da Qing as the office role models and official authorities, someone has to keep people on task. I think Zhu Hong ends up handling a lot of the interpersonal/emotional drama.
Yes, though I'd guess she handles it more in a whip-wielding "stop slacking off!" way than a nicey-nice consensus-creation way. If there were actual interpersonal/emotional drama, I think Zhao Yunlan would be the one to handle it – he's better at it, after all.

I have a soft spot for shipping her with Li Qian.
Lots of people seem to agree. (It's one of the more popular femslash ships on AO3, though that's not saying much – nothing involving the canon women has over 4 fics.) Alas, I find it squicky.

It's Wang Zheng who's human resources, isn't she? Not that the SID really needs a human resources department. *g*

I actually recall Wang Zheng as the secretary (which would make sense, as she's the one answering all the phones all the time) and Zhu Hong as HR. The little intro section of episode 1 doesn't say anything. Where's it stated?

When Guo Changcheng's position is confirmed at the beginning of ep 8, Zhu Hong presents flowers and says, "Welcome to the SID," but it's Wang Zheng who gives him his contract and does the red stamp business.

Based on that, I'd still say Wang Zheng is the secretary? *g* (The secretary does all the actual paperwork-signature gathering and shit, HR is higher up the totem pole and gets to give the flowers while the secretary does the work of printing out the contract and ensuring it's signed. Though I assume a smaller department would have more leeway in who's doing what than the organizational entities I've interacted with.) I'm also pretty sure that it's been explicitly stated in the show, and was hoping someone would have timestamps/an episode.

I don't remember off the top of my head if it's stated out loud, but Wang Zheng's position is identified as "人事" in this cap:

SID wall

ETA: That's from episode 7, 38:47, for reference.

Edited 2020-04-12 20:34 (UTC)

Huh! Why is she doing all the secretary stuff, then? /o\ (I'm also 99% sure that someone once stated what Zhu Hong's job was out loud, but damn if I can remember where. I guess it was enough of an offhand mention it didn't make an impression on its location.)

Going to come back later with actual thoughts, but I wanted to drop a link to some gorgeous Zhu Hong art before I forget:

https://bahoreal.tumblr.com/post/614026489785090048/i-am-literally-obsessed-with-this-art-i-did-of-zhu

Oh, wow! ♥

Great post, yay! (And thanks for the rec! ♥)

Drama canon thoughts:

1. Unlike most of the other SID members, Zhu Hong doesn't have a clearly defined role in their usual investigations. What do you think she brings to the team?
Wikipedia says she's a secretary, so I guess before she started doing fieldwork, she did all the admin that wasn't HR?

2. It's mentioned at several points that Zhu Hong's father went out into the human world. How do you think that influenced her decision to leave the forest?
I don't know (I'm so curious about her father, and who her mother was!), but I do love that despite being brought up by Fourth Uncle to be isolationist, Zhu Hong chose her own path and found her own politics. I wonder whether Zhao Yunlan's SID advertised among the Yashou for staff, and she was the only one who responded. Or whether she showed up uninvited and declared they needed another Yashou on the team for balance and she wanted a job. Or whether Da Qing has ties with the Yashou tribes, and (deliberately or inadvertently) recruited her.

3. Where does Zhu Hong get her fashion advice? It's clearly not from anyone in the SID.
Hee! I think she follows her heart. (And is maybe somewhat influenced by Zhao Yunlan's penchant for leather jackets.)

4. Do you think Zhu Hong is ready to be Yashou leader? What will she be like, as a leader?
I think she still has some growing to do, but she'll listen to the wisdom of her elders and tell them off when they're talking rubbish. She's in the unique position of bringing a progressive agenda, aligned with humans and Dixingren without bowing to them. I like that she's proud of her roots.

5. Do you have any ships with Zhu Hong?
Zhu Hong/Li Qian -- I keep meaning to write more of them. I enjoy how, post-canon, they do and don't mirror Zhao Yunlan and Shen Wei, while still being very much themselves. (I'm currently working on another Zhu Hong ship fic, but I don't want to mention it yet.)

Some other things about Zhu Hong:

Her hypocrisy during the sex doll scene. She's giggling away with Lin Jing and Da Qing, but as soon as ~~Zhao Yunlan disapproves~~ it's brought to her attention that it's hurting Wang Zheng, she flips sides, puts her arm around Wang Zheng and gets judgy at the others without ever admitting her own fault.
Despite some drunken "What's wrong with me?" wallowing, her self-esteem is just fine -- maybe because she was brought up with half the young Snake Tribe men in love with her.
In ep 25, she attends one of Shen Wei's lectures to try to "narrow the gap" between between her mind and Zhao Yunlan's -- as if Zhao Yunlan's attraction to Shen Wei is all about the science. *pets her* (I do love that, though. It's so fanficcy!)
I love how distressed she is when everyone bows to her, after she becomes Yashou leader. I think she'll find her feet quickly, but she does have that vertigo moment of "everyone I respect is bowing to me, meep!!"

I have a couple of other Zhu Hong centric stories: like scales on sunlight (7700 words, Zhu Hong/Li Qian, post-canon, in which the Yashou need a vaccine, Zhu Hong comes to terms with her new role, Li Qian has a plan, and there is a feast.) and to recognise the heart in every person that you see (3000 words, a girls' night out for Zhu Hong & Wang Zheng, set during eps 9 & 11).

I also want to rec your Zhu Hong chapter of spoilers don't do as they're told. Smart, aggressive Zhu Hong FTW! :-)

Edited (Fixing typos -- sorry, I am pre-breakfast /o\ Last edit, I swear!) 2020-04-10 21:34 (UTC)

Thanks for the rec!

(still drama only)

I wonder whether Zhao Yunlan's SID advertised among the Yashou for staff, and she was the only one who responded. Or whether she showed up uninvited and declared they needed another Yashou on the team for balance and she wanted a job. Or whether Da Qing has ties with the Yashou tribes, and (deliberately or inadvertently) recruited her.

I keep thinking about this, and about her falling in love with Zhao Yunlan at their first meeting. Did he go out to talk to her Fourth Uncle, and she pushed until she was allowed to join the SID? It would make sense to me of some of her interactions with Fourth Uncle, who clearly thinks her only reason to be there is her crush on Zhao Yunlan.

But I don't think we ever get an answer on how she joined the SID, do we?

and about her falling in love with Zhao Yunlan at their first meeting.

Oh, do they say first meeting? I don't remember that. But that would make a huge amount of sense.

(And now I'm thinking about Zhao Yunlan, taking his father's old position and determined to do it differently/better, going out recruiting because hey, Da Qing worked at the SID under Zhao Xinci so there's precedent! He'll square it with the DoS later, once it's a fait accompli! *g*)

But I don't think we ever get an answer on how she joined the SID, do we?

Not that I recall. Nor how long she's been there...?

Edited 2020-04-10 22:00 (UTC)

I love all the things you love about Zhu Hong! Excellent post. I think a lot of them boil down to: she knows exactly what she wants to do and/or has to do, and does not back down or fuss about her methods; whether it's a decoy operation or making her heart clear to Zhao Yunlan in her dream, she gets it done. And she dresses better than just about anyone, except maybe Shen Wei :).

It's interesting to me that Zhu Hong is very clearly shown as not empathetic/nurturing/any other similar female stereotype; she gets forced into this role several times (with Wang Zheng, with the bride at the wedding, I forget where else), and obviously finds it unnatural and difficult. (If anybody at the SID is actually good at comfort/empathy I think it's Guo Changcheng, once he finds his feet a little.) She's a woman of action and down-to-earth practical competence, in whatever sense (I'm always struck by the way Zhao Yunlan gives his gun to her in the Hanga arc when he's struggling with it, because he knows she can handle it). There's a little glimpse of her at the end of episode 33 that I like, after Chu Shuzhi has carried Guo Changcheng away and Zhao Yunlan has escorted Shen Wei home, with a wonderful expression: it's partly a "But Not for Me" moment, but also you can see her thinking, well, all the men are out of commission, that would be me in charge for the moment, somebody has to be coping. And she does.

I do think she will be a good leader, although I think it's going to be a rocky road for her, because she's young and inexperienced, and because the Yashou are not exactly compliant and of one mind (nor should they be) and the world in general is kind of a mess; but she's smart and strong and I think she will go down in history as the next Fu You.

Apart from the fics recced above, all of which I like a lot, my favorite Zhu Hong fic is this one by galaxysoup, in which Zhu Hong and Shen Wei, both somewhat exhausted by dreams and Dixing, have a conversation.

It's interesting to me that Zhu Hong is very clearly shown as not empathetic/nurturing/any other similar female stereotype; she gets forced into this role several times (with Wang Zheng, with the bride at the wedding, I forget where else), and obviously finds it unnatural and difficult.

Yes! I really like that about her. (With Teacher Zhang in episode 3, too.) Though I didn't feel like she was forced into it with Wang Zheng, except insofar as Zhao Yunlan was disapproving of the giggling over the sex doll and Zhu Hong wanted his approval, you know?

I feel like she got more natural with people as the show progressed, but that's true of most of the team. :-)

Yes--I was thinking of the scene where Wang Zheng faints after seeing the Hanga mark, and Zhu Hong has to sort of pat her hand while she comes to? Which might be the same one, I can't remember and will trust your memory.

I feel like she got more natural with people as the show progressed, but that's true of most of the team. :-)
Very true! A different tagline for the series: Assorted societal misfits find their groove and develop true friendships and self-possession during a difficult time. Oh yes, also with implicit True Love in the foreground :)

I was thinking of the scene where Wang Zheng faints after seeing the Hanga mark, and Zhu Hong has to sort of pat her hand while she comes to? Which might be the same one, I can't remember and will trust your memory.

Ooh, no, those are different, though they're quite close together (end of ep 8, beginning of ep 9). *rewatches* Zhu Hong's almost shaking her awake by her shoulder, there. I wonder if that's because you can't have a man manhandling an unconscious woman without it having unfortunate connotations. /entirely speculation

A different tagline for the series: Assorted societal misfits find their groove and develop true friendships and self-possession during a difficult time. Oh yes, also with implicit True Love in the foreground :)

Yesssss! ♥____♥

It's interesting to me that Zhu Hong is very clearly shown as not empathetic/nurturing/any other similar female stereotype; she gets forced into this role several times (with Wang Zheng, with the bride at the wedding, I forget where else),
WRT Wang Zheng, I think it's that Zhu Hong is protective, but not nurturing. So she's not soft cuddles and emotional chats, but when Wang Zheng gets upset about the sex doll, she immediately goes for "Jiejie will take care of you!" and then basically holds on to Wang Zheng for the entire Hanga arc daytime walking bit (lest Wang Zheng float off?).

That's a good way to put it. Zhu Hong is big-sisterly to most of the SID, and she seems to consider Wang Zheng under her wing (sorry, wrong Yashou tribe) that way too.

Drama only.

1. I thought formally she was the secretary, until Wang Zheng became secretary, and now she's maybe the office manager? She's definitely the one who keeps the others doing their job.

2. At least it would have given her a sense that it's possible - even though Uncle Four always paints it in a negative light. She strikes me as very curious so I could imagine that she's want to go for a look-see... but what made her decide to stay was probably her crush on Zhao Yunlan.

3. Once Zhu Hong decided she wanted to be a proper human female for Zhao Yunlan, she bought all the fashion magazines. Also, natural good taste.

4. I think she is ready, and I think we see that in her final scene. She's been through a war now, she's been to Dixing and back, she was part of taking down the biggest threat to Haixing... that brings added confidence.

5. I'm afraid I don't really ship her with anyone. I don't see any het interests for her in the surviving crop of characters, and I'm not really a femslasher except in the platonic way. Platonically, I'd find Ya Qing the most interesting because she's also classy and there is a history of conflict.

One of the things I like most about Zhu Hong is that despite her deliberate feminity and her crush on Zhao Yunlan, she's also very much 'one of the guys', there's no hint whatsoever that she can't do things as well as they can, and she can have the same inappropriate sense of humour. :)

One of the things I like most about Zhu Hong is that despite her deliberate feminity and her crush on Zhao Yunlan, she's also very much 'one of the guys', there's no hint whatsoever that she can't do things as well as they can, and she can have the same inappropriate sense of humour. :)

Yeah, she's a distinct contrast with Wang Zheng in that way, isn't she? I like that too. I had her ride Zhao Yunlan's motorbike in one of my fics, and I was really pleased with that idea -- I think she'd be totally into it. :-)

Yes, abht this is why - beyond some sympathy for her plight back then - I find Wang Zhen utterly uninteresting.

She'd totally ride that bike!

I'm surprised she doesn't have a bike of her own! :-)

Drama only – I have no idea about Zhu Hong in the novel, though I'd be interested to hear about her!

Unlike most of the other SID members, Zhu Hong doesn't have a clearly defined role in their usual investigations. What do you think she brings to the team?

Zhu Hong seems to have been doing administrative stuff initially, but I'm not sure what the SID actually did in the years before the show started. They had exactly one field agent (Chu Shuzhi), and I guess Lin Jing was busy inventing dark energy-related things (and popcorn machines), but what did everyone else fill their time with? Hard to say.

By the end of the show they've all become field agents, and Zhu Hong is good at it. She's also very task-oriented and good at keeping people focussed on the job.

It's mentioned at several points that Zhu Hong's father went out into the human world. How do you think that influenced her decision to leave the forest?

I'm not sure – I think falling in love with Zhao Yunlan played the greater part, but her parents' story would have meant she was always aware of it as an option. Even if it was portrayed to her as a bad choice, it wasn't something totally out there and unthinkable. So maybe she was more ready for it than most Yashou. And I love that she ultimately found her place with the SID, no matter how she got there.

(I'm extremely curious about Zhu Hong's parents! But I don't remember any fic that went into detail about them.)

Where does Zhu Hong get her fashion advice? It's clearly not from anyone in the SID.

I don't know, but she has excellent taste. And she presumably started out learning how to look like an attractive human woman, but she also has a distinctive style – one I like a lot. (I would totally dress like her if I could pull it off!)

Which is actually an interesting parallel to Shen Wei, whose choice of professor outfits is in the same ambiguous territory between a created image and personal taste. In both cases, despite the artifice involved I prefer to think they enjoy the clothes they've chosen.

Do you think Zhu Hong is ready to be Yashou leader? What will she be like, as a leader?

Ready to get started, I'd say. She's got a lot to learn, but by the end of the show she's at a point where I have no doubts that she'll be able to do it, and do it well. And as a SID member, as someone who's part of a found family of humans, Yashou and Dixingren, she's got a different perspective to the rather isolationist tribes, which will hopefully do them good.

Do you have any ships with Zhu Hong?

I ship her with Ya Qing. I think Ya Qing might be just Zhu Hong's type – she's got the superficial cockiness and the seemingly cold-hearted behaviour, but also sincere intentions underneath, no matter how misguided. And it would be so interesting to see how the two of them dealt with each other after the end of the drama. So many trust issues, but also so much they could learn from each other, and it could be such a fascinating journey.

(I guess when it comes to Zhu Hong and shipping, the fundamental question is that whether after having been in love with Zhao Yunlan, she would be attracted to someone with similar characteristics, or someone completely different ...)

Which is actually an interesting parallel to Shen Wei, whose choice of professor outfits is in the same ambiguous territory between a created image and personal taste. In both cases, despite the artifice involved I prefer to think they enjoy the clothes they've chosen.

Yes, absolutely. Choosing clothes you don't like and that don't make you feel good seems counterproductive, and I can't imagine Shen Wei or Zhu Hong would have any time for that. (Well, obviously it took Zhu Hong a while to find her feet, literally, but still.)

I guess when it comes to Zhu Hong and shipping, the fundamental question is that whether after having been in love with Zhao Yunlan, she would be attracted to someone with similar characteristics, or someone completely different ...\

Oh, that's an interesting approach to shipping. I don't tend to think of it that way -- I think people can have more than one type (I do!), so I don't come at it so much "what does this person have in common with other people she's liked" as "what potential for chemistry/connection/shared meaning is there with this person?"

(I mean, everyone's different in every relationship: as a friend, Zhu Hong interacts with Lin Jing completely differently from how she interacts with Wang Zheng. You know? So who she dreamed of being in a relationship with Zhao Yunlan isn't necessarily who she'd be (or want to be) in a relationship with anyone else, especially since she seems unlikely to go to those lengths to change herself again.)

Hmm, now I'm wondering what other Snake women are like, in contemporary times. Are they all leather-clad and fighty, or are some of them more like Fu You? We know Zhu Hong is unusual in her decision to live among humans, but how typical a Snake is she in other ways? /random musing

Choosing clothes you don't like and that don't make you feel good seems counterproductive, and I can't imagine Shen Wei or Zhu Hong would have any time for that.

Completely agreed!

Oh, that's an interesting approach to shipping. I don't tend to think of it that way -- I think people can have more than one type (I do!), so I don't come at it so much "what does this person have in common with other people she's liked" as "what potential for chemistry/connection/shared meaning is there with this person?"

I don't think those are mutually exclusive! But I do think it's an interesting question to consider whether what Zhu Hong sees in Zhao Yunlan is a) something she wants from a partner in general, or b) something she likes in him but not something she's generally looking for, or c) something she thought she wanted but eventually realised she doesn't want at all.

Good question about Snake women in general! Zhu Hong and Fu You are the only ones we know anything about, right?

But I do think it's an interesting question to consider whether what Zhu Hong sees in Zhao Yunlan is a) something she wants from a partner in general, or b) something she likes in him but not something she's generally looking for, or c) something she thought she wanted but eventually realised she doesn't want at all.

*nodnodnod* Or d) something she genuinely wanted then but has since grown out of, given how much she's grown by the end of the show. Possibly even seeing Zhao Yunlan and Shen Wei together has shown her she wants someone who views her as an equal and wants her for who she is, rather than someone whose affection and respect she feels she has to go out of her way to win? (Or not!)

I feel like, especially to start off with in their acquaintanceship, Zhu Hong looked up to Zhao Yunlan a lot, and she tried so hard to fit what she thought he wanted; maybe she'd enjoy being looked up to, next time, especially in a f/f relationship (assuming some level of internalised sexism, since you know, people). Also, there's the politics of getting involved with anyone non-Yashou now she's the Yashou Chief. Presumably things get complicated (from an appearance viewpoint, if nothing else) if it's someone who has a vested interest in Yashou politics but isn't of them.

Good question about Snake women in general! Zhu Hong and Fu You are the only ones we know anything about, right?

I think we only ever saw Fourth Uncle and the male guards/Zhu Hong fanboys at the Snake village in contemporary era, yeah. Some of the snakes in trees were probably female -- maybe female snakes mostly prefer to stay in reptile form?

Or d) something she genuinely wanted then but has since grown out of, given how much she's grown by the end of the show.

Or that, yes!

maybe she'd enjoy being looked up to, next time, especially in a f/f relationship

Maybe? But I could also see her disinterest in the Snake Tribe boys who were all half in love with her transferring to f/f relationships - maybe she doesn't want easy; maybe she wants something that feels like a victory. You could make it work in a lot of different ways, in fic!

But I could also see her disinterest in the Snake Tribe boys who were all half in love with her transferring to f/f relationships - maybe she doesn't want easy; maybe she wants something that feels like a victory.

Yeah, that totally works too. (And also, what one consciously wants, or what one feels one should want, is often besides the point: the heart loves what it loves.)

Gorgeous Zhu Hong art! Putting this here so I can find it again. :)

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