attackfish

And then if you do make a distinction between types of AUs, comes the question of where you draw the line between canon-divergence and AR. For example, I have a fic in the White Collar fandom, where Neal is secretly a dragon. Nothing else is different, and no one knows until after Neal is out with the anklet, but it presupposes a world in which dragons exist. Is this a really out there canon divergence, or is it an AR? What about if canon characters switched places, say Ozai is the chief of the Southern Water Tribe, and Hakota is the second son of Azulon, father to the non-bending Sokka and firebending prodigy, Katara? What about if Korra instead of Aang were the frozen Air Avatar who had to save the world from the hundred year war, would this be a fusion, since they are technically different shows?

(As for Azula,I tend to really dislike AUs focused around her, because they tend to be written by people who think her psychopathy is because of how she was raised, whereas my experience with my first stalker, and knowing how young my stalker started, started, I think it's inborn. However, would not being a bender and prodigy, and not having the favor of a powerful adult to give her license to operate change the expression of her lack of empathy and willingness to use others? Hell yes. Also, I think Ozai would till become Firelord, because his ambition was for himself, and he was only ambitious for his children only so far as it served him and fed his ego.)