#Izumi's just like that in general though lmfao | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

firelxdykatara · 4 years

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I just wanted to ask this since I came across a k/ataang blog claiming that zutarians never even consider zuko abdicating and moving to the swt, instead pushing the firelady narrative and that katara would have been more free to travel and do what she wanted as aang’s wife. Do you have any thoughts on that particular outcome, because I would personally love an au with zuko and katara in the swt together, even though the main obstacle to that is that zuko has no one he trusts to take over the throne except iroh, who doesn’t want it (as far as I can remember, anyway)

First of all, the claim that ‘zutarians never even consider x’ is factually inaccurate since I have seen, with my very own eyes, zutarians making these AUs themselves lmfao. Zuko abdicating the throne and moving to the SWT with Katara isn’t super popular, but it absolutely exists in our content. And the funny thing is, I bet those same kataang shippers would blow the biggest bubbles if you tried to get them to explain why Katara was so sad and lonely in canon, and why she was left home alone to raise two of her kids while Aang went gallivanting around the word with his airbending child, and why she was evidently chained to the South Pole to the point where Kya thought it was a sacrifice because she had to move back home to take care of her (and Katara wasn’t even able to attend her own granddaughter’s airmaster ceremony)--if marrying Aang was such a freeing experience and she was able to ‘travel and do what she wanted’.

But anyway. This isn’t about Kataang, this is about the ‘Zuko moves to the SWT’ AU--and honestly, I love it! It has a lot of potential. Even in my own canonverse I headcanon that Izumi, as the oldest steambaby, is raised and groomed for leadership from a young age, and rather than continue the tradition of holding onto the crown until death (often violent), he passes down the crown once she is old enough and feels ready to rule, and winds up spending most of the rest of his life in the SWT with Katara, where she had a waterbending academy set up (and they lead the White Lotus together, helping to raise Korra after Aang’s passing), though they still traveled all over the world quite a bit even into old age.

I will say, though, that having Zuko abdicate the throne young is a very tricky prospect. Because as it stands, the only people in line for the crown are Iroh--who has no heir and, as you pointed out, did not want it and probably feels like he is not deserving of the trust of the world in that manner, given his history as a FN general--and Azula (or Ozai, if the New Ozai Society managed to bust him out of prison and put him back on the throne), who is a terrible choice for obvious reasons, especially immediately post canon. (But I don’t think even redeemed!Azula should have that position of power, even years after the war--I think being put in that position would do a lot more damage to her than she could do good with it.)

However, I think this could work really well with a Lu Ten Lives AU--I’ve seen a lot of headcanons about how Iroh and Zuko probably kept almost-meeting a brainwashed Lu Ten in BSS and never quite realizing it, and how easy it would be to find him post-war, help him heal--and i could see this expanding to then allow him to take his rightful place on the throne, with Zuko’s and Iroh’s help, maybe even Ursa’s if you work in Zuko-finds-his-mom to that (not at all like the search though, I hate the way the comics did it for a lot or reasons), and then Zuko being free to go wherever his heart leads (to Katara, it always leads him to Katara), which would honestly be a fic I’d be really interested in reading!

Or writing......I’m actually really into this idea holy shit. What do you think, anon??? Or anyone else reading, I’ve never actually thought of doing a Lu Ten Lives canon divergence myself but it would be so fun to explore =000

#atla #zutara #zuko #katara #lu ten lives au #asked #kataang salt #just a bit at the beginning but just in case #Anonymous

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derireo · 4 years

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a3! as part-timers

I FINALLY FINISHED IT AGAIN. Thank you all for being patient with me because I really liked these headcanons and Tumblr just decided to delete them all <3

WARNING: rookie Chikage Utsuki will be included! (this means spoilers for Act 5 are present throughout).

It's canon that Sakuya works with Misumi, but I have no clue as to what their jobs are. Let's safely assume that Sakuya works at a cafe! His bright disposition and cheerful smile is bound to put a smile on customer's face, but he's a little clumsy when it comes to making drinks so his co-workers always tell him to stick to the cash register. It suits him anyways, being able to talk to different people of different walks of life. He mostly works in the mornings, only after he manages to get Masumi to school on time. He is a customer favourite no doubt, and he brings in a lot of tips for all of the workers to share! Many of the children that come by love him, and especially teachers who are running late to work deem him the sunshine in their life.

Masumi would work at a music shop. Not to be obvious or anything, but music is possibly one of the only constants in his life and he grew a deep bond with it while staying alone at home for most of his life. So when he manages to get a job at shop in inside Veludo Mall, he's ecstatic. Although he gets to spend less time in the dorm (which means less time with the Director), Masumi absolutely loves perusing the endless aisles of music cds, vinyl records, posters, and so much more. He's also very diligent at his job, organizing things perfectly and on time and even helping out customers even though he doesn't really want to. His coworkers grow so fond of him to the point that they let him listen to his own music while doing his job, headphones on while he reorganizes things on the shelves.

I don't really know what part-time job Citron would have, but I know he hangs around the Veludo markets a lot. He's there all the time, helping out the lovely ladies at their food stalls by actively advertising their products of the day and even charming young couples into buying some trinkets at another stall. His charm is very effective, smile so dazzling and eyes so hypnotizing that you can't help but follow him towards a stall where they're selling handmade mochi or fresh produce. This is all volunteering though, Citron doesn't get paid with money. What he does get paid with is lots of hugs and groceries to bring home to the dorm-- much to the delight of Izumi and Omi! Citron's so popular at the markets that he receives a greeting from every single stall while he passes by. And he never leaves empty handed!

Tsuzuru tends to boast about the countless number of part-time jobs he's had. From gas station worker, to waiter, to library work, he has done a lot of things. I don't really think it's something to brag about because if I had that many jobs I would probably d-word. But working at Mankai as a playwright, that's already his dream come true. I don't think he'd want to work anywhere else when he's writing stories and bringing them to life like he has always wanted and it makes me happy to see that he's living out his dream. If anything, if he does work a part-time job, it's probably to get extra money to spend on his younger and older brothers since he's such a family man. And because his stories bring so much attention to Mankai, Sakyo compensates Tsuzuru very generously.

Gaming is Itaru's part-time job. Taruchi is a mysterious persona who is crazy good at video games and has a soothing voice. The kick is that nobody knows what he looks like and Itaru would like to keep it that way. He's a popular streamer and Let's Player so there's no doubt that he is raking in a lot of cash. How he finds time to juggle an office job, Mankai, and streaming is beyond me, but it is absolutely impressive because despite how lazy he seems to be, he is a diligent worker who is very good at entertaining people. Plus, nobody knowing what his face looks like brings in a lot of intrigue and fans. Itaru always baits his fans that just maybe he'll reveal his face to them, but never does. Everyone loves his teasing and Itaru loves messing with people. One of the top streamers on his platform and he's proud of it. The appearance of Banri's NEO also helps a lot with bringing in viewers. (The extra money he makes is donated to the Mankai fund box)

Not gonna lie, but with Chikage being a spy as well as an office worker, I don't think he has enough time to have another job on top of that. As we saw in Act 5, he worked tirelessly on his computer, rarely sleeping. Being a spy is hard work, and now that he realizes that Hisoka may not have betrayed the organization, he now has to work to keep Hisoka's location hidden from enemies. Can you imagine being an office worker tho.... could never be me. Sry Chikage and Itaru lmfao but that sounds painful. Anyways, if Chikage isn't actively working for the organization and isn't posting on his curry blog, maybe he's doing tech support? He's always sitting at his computer so he might as well you know lmfaoo

"I'm too famous to work a part-time job" he says while at the same time applying to work at a bonsai shop. Who are you kidding, Tenma? Also pretty sure the owners don't really care so he gets the job right away since they're in desperate need of help. Tenma acts kind of bratty as it is his first time having a job that isn't acting, but he gets knocked down a few pegs when he has to carry around heavy bags of soil and nutrients for the bonsai trees. Eventually, he comes to love his job, seeing the owners as part of his family as they take great care of him while he works at their shop. Unfortunately, there will still be those fans who will watch him as he works at the bonsai shop, but Tenma uses it to his advantage, saying that if they want to look a little more, they're going to have to buy a bonsai tree. The owners are like ??? wtf tenma ??? but inevitably, it brings in a lot of business;;;

Yuki would definitely work at a boutique as an apprentice!! Working with different types of fabric and body shapes and frills, god, what a dream come true for him! Sure, making costumes for Mankai is one thing, but those are costumes, not actual clothes you would wear outside on the daily. His skill in clothes is amazing and it amazes his mentor who watches on proudly as Yuki sews something gorgeous every single time he comes to help. And Yuki absolutely loves being there too, getting to work on normal every day people who aren't huge hulking men that manage to ruin their measurements every time Yuki makes something for them. Plus, using this experience from his apprenticeship helps him a lot if he so chooses to go to a school for fashion. I'm rooting for you, Yuki!

Working at a manga store, Muku is absolutely in love. He's already in the Library Committee at school so might as well work somewhere book related, right? The boy was lucky to get the job at his favourite manga shop at the mall, and he doesn't even need to wear a uniform! As long as he wears his employee lanyard and name tag, he is all good to go! Being surrounded with his favourite book series and figurines and posters alike is very exciting for Muku, and he works extremely well with customers who need help looking for recommendations or gifts. His enthusiasm charms everyone he talks to and he becomes a customer and workplace favourite after a couple of days. His avid hobby of reading manga is apparent to everyone he comes across, and when he meets another customer who is just as dedicated to manga as he, they have long talks while Muku convinces them to buy more books.

Kazunari would definitely work at an arts store. Cliche, I know, but he wouldn't want to be anywhere else! Michaels would be a good place to start, but knowing how great he is at aesthetics, I think a paint store would do him well too. Both places would mostly have university students as their workers anyways so Kazunari would fit in right away! Popular with customers due to his enthusiasm with art, Kazunari gets a lot of requests for help when choosing certain pigments and wallpapers for bedrooms and large scale art projects. His knowledge with the subject of art is deep and wide, so he is able to answer any questions thrown his way. He is so loved at his job that when he eventually quits to achieve bigger things, they throw a party for him and all promise to visit and watch his next play!

It's canon that Misumi is a freelancer, which means he works any type of odd job and never sticks to one for too long. The job that he has kept the longest is the cafe one where he's with Sakuya. He actually helped Sakuya get this job at the first place, and when they work together, they're a force to be reckoned with! They bring in a lot of tips together and since Misumi is so quick on his feet and speedy with his hands, there's never a line up for drinks. Everything goes out the door just as fast as they had come in and his co-workers love him for it. He is also very popular for his fanged tooth and eye crinkling smile! Many regulars give him triangles as their tips! And if Misumi isn't working at the cafe, he's helping out as a mover because he's quick and strong (like we saw in HaGT), or he is helping out the local mailman. Because the mailman is growing older in age, Misumi takes it upon himself to help him deliver the rest of the mail so that the sweet old man can go home early. Misumi is always seen running around the neighbourhood with the mailbag!

I know this will sound weird, but I think Banri would fare well as a tutor. Knowing that he can just flip through a textbook once and immediately know what to do, I think it would do everyone good if he helped tutor those who struggle. Although I bash Banri a lot (as a joke) I am still able to see that he cares very much for others. He has rarely struggled in his life and clearly doesn't understand the hardships of the other members when they can't seem to do this or that, so he does his best to put himself in their shoes so he knows what he can do to help others who are struggling much the same. So Tsumugi helps him get a tutoring gig, and he hits it off right away. It's impressive really, how he's able to help students understand concepts they once thought they would never be able to get and it makes Banri happy. Banri is someone who wishes to help others-- he even says that he wants to help Mankai grow by bringing back the knowledge he learns at Veludo Arts. And I don't think he'd need the money, so he donates most of it to the Mankai funds.

Is it cliche of me to put Juza in a bakery? You know, sweets, confectionaries. BREAD. God, knowing how Juza grew up with a loving mom who almost always baked sweets for him and Kumon makes me want to cry. I love them so much. Anyways, he'd be a little clumsy in the back kitchen so I think he would just stick to decorating pastries and mini cakes and all that. It's a very curious thing to watch as a customer, a young, mean looking man scrunching his eyebrows as he puts a smiley face on a cupcake. It's cute. There's also another part of me that wants to see him work as an apprentice for shūji, or traditional Japanese calligraphy. Knowing that Juza studied it when he was younger (and that's why his signature is nice), it would definitely be pretty cool for him to do scrolls and stuff. It's a tough job though, considering the art of Japanese calligraphy is an important thing, and every stroke and word you write counts. It's a beautiful art form though, and Juza could make a pretty penny out of commissions.

After learning about journalling from Izumi, Taichi most definitely applied to work at a stationary shop. He's a bit clumsy with it, but he's got the spirit and that's all that matters! Strangely enough, this is one of the rare times where he isn't actively vying for attention, but for some reason he gets it a lot here. It's not like he minds or anything, but please, ladies, quiet down ^^; He is a favourite in the workplace though since he's so energetic and is always eager to help out customers; especially the old grandmas who are looking for gifts to give their grandchildren. The old ladies love him too, and they pamper him a lot much to his bashful enjoyment. And since his coworkers know that he loves journalling so much, they give him a lot of extra stock to bring home so that he can share it with Izumi and Omi! On a less serious note, he'd probably do public dance battles outside with his friends to get a quick buck.

Man... Omi would work at a bakery too. Most likely he would work with Juza because that would make sense, and both of their presences at the bakery shop would attract a lot of attention. Two, hulking dudes working at a bakery shop? Count me in pls. He'd be the one working at the back kitchen, baking everything and such. I would have also liked to put him in a restaurant, but considering that you can't become a sous chef or even a head chef until years later (due to the hierarchy and training), I don't think I want him to do that. He's already studying to become a business major after all so it would be difficult to juggle two separate things to study for. He would also work great as a photographer, but he doesn't do any taxing jobs unless it's for Mankai or very close friends. His friends always pay him too much, but they insist he keeps the money (which he puts into Mankai funds) and as compensation from Sakyo, the older man lets Omi indulge in buying expensive ingredients for that night's dinner.

Why is Sakyo working so hard? I'm getting worried. He works as Mankai's accountant and is part of the Yakuza; those are already two stressful things to work for. He has so much to do and there's always a lot of plate considering he manages a lot of Mankai with Matsukawa and Izumi, and on top of that he always acts as Mankai's Papa, Accountant, and Grumpy Old Man at the End of the Street. And when he isn't doing anything at Mankai, Patriarch Izumida calls him in for a task to do at Ginsenkai or the area they patrol. He also owns a freakin' diner that is under Ginsenkai's care like?? wtf Sakyo. He works so hard, spends tireless days to help keep Mankai afloat and it makes my heart hurty </3 Sakyo was my first crush so I can't help but worry a little and he's my comfort character whenever I'm way too engrossed at looking at Omi's huge bahonkerz so pls... Sakyo take care of urself I'm begging. Also most of the money he earns goes to his family, and the rest is for Mankai's funds.

Tsumugi on the other hand would stay as a tutor since it's canon! Sure, he has a bit of competition now that he's helped Banri enter the tutoring scene, but he's still got his loyal students to take care of. He is a very diligent worker and is very smart so working out problems is nothing too hard for him. He cares for each and every student he has, writing personalized study outlines for them as well as keeping notes on them with what they're struggling on, what they're excelling at, and even takes notes on their study habits and how long their attention lasts for until they need to take a break. Tsumugi makes sure that he is teaching his students properly and cares for them a lot. If not tutoring, he is helping at the local Veludo flower boutique and is very popular there. He helps create a lot of bouquets with deep meanings, but sometimes those bouquets he makes are gifting to him right after, lmao

Ugh as for Tasuku, knowing how good he is at fixing things, he would be great at an electronics store or a mechanics shop. He has a natural talent at fixing things and I can only assume it's because as a child, he really loved tinkering with items that were laying around the house. Plus, knowing that he has an older brother, he probably had a lot of Gundam sets laying around that sparked his interest in building things. You've seen him fix a lot of things right? To his motorcycle, his car, the television, my heart, omfg he can do it all like wtf. He becomes so skilled at fixing cars that he somehow acquires the skill to soup them up too?? When did those big ass rims get there? Where the hell did those damn hydraulics come from? That sort of thing. God he would look so sexy in a classic Ford Mustang </3 On the other hand, I think he would be great at becoming an acting coach. He might give Yuzo a run for his money.

It's canon that Hisoka has a job, but no one really knows what it is I think. I believe he would be a mattress tester! Remember that backstage story with the All Male Lap Pillow Competition or whatever? Hisoka is basically a connoisseur at all things soft and comfortable because he chose Izumi's lap as the most comfortable. He said it was so soft (god I wish I were him) that he could fall asleep and he did!!! Absolutely amazing. With his picky sleeping choices, Hisoka is able to tell whether this or that mattress prototype is good to go or needs some working on. The benefits to this job is that he gets to sleep a lot too because of course, they need to see if the mattress is good enough to sleep on!! Of course he gets paid in money, but since his managers know that he loves marshmallows, they pay him in that too.

Does Homare really need a part-time job? He's basically a renowned writer, it's just that Mankai seems ignorant to the fact. Tsuzuru and Muku has found a whole bunch of his books in the library for goodness sake so of course he's making mad bank! In HaGT he had a business meeting with a publisher/editor so you can't really tell me that he isn't good at his job because if he's having international meetings?? UHM. Of course he's famous literally what is he at Mankai for? The Found Family??? GOD OF COURSE you can stay Homare I love you so much. But seriously, he is super rich, and because he loves Mankai so much, he helps out and chips in to fill the Mankai funds so that they can stay afloat.

And here we have Azuma. I am not going to lie, but I am very protective over Azuma when it comes to his part-time job. Azuma was lonely for a huge chunk of life, unable to fill the void where his family used to sit in his heart. So he picked up skincare, and then he picked up cuddling/escort. His job in the past was full of false security and fake love that would never seal the cracks in his body, but when he found Mankai, something was different. He felt like he belonged somewhere. Especially after Nocturnality, it's obvious that Azuma has finally found his home. So I don't want him to go back to his cuddling/escort job;;; but if he wants to work again, I think being a skincare consultant would be really good! Since his skin is so flawless, many customers would flock to him for advice and the best products to use. His gentle voice and soothing caress as he rubs cream into his customer's skin is hypnotizing, and he shares his skincare routine with anyone who is willing to spend the time, effort, and money into making their skin look pretty like his.

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dolcetters · 3 years

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i’ve been watching a lot of true crime during the work day and it’s had me thinking for whatever reason so here’s a random... thought... piece... THING.

obviously, i continue to not defend/excuse/condone the whole kidnapping al, wanting to hurt him, wanting to kill izumi, wanting to break ed’s arm, etc etc, dol’s an asshole and violent and i’m having none of that. i hope my wording won’t come off like that, but know i’m stating that now and i’m firmly still on that stance. because he is: a fucking asshole.

i guess what i wanna just spew into the ether is, like, the general stance toward children as a whole and his reasoning behind being totally chill with knowing al was 14 and still being like “lmfao if only i could cut him in half but i have orders”. once again: you fucking asshole.

by the point violence “became an option”, al had made it clear that he wasn’t helpless--he could defend himself. ergo, any “child armor” was gone in dol’s mind. they’d already tried just coaxing al into coming with them on his own will (very stupidly you absolute walnut), he threw the first “punch”--and dol’s been in plenty fights before so no doubt he knew the strike hadn’t just been a random blow but one targeted to send a message without causing severe harm, he knows the difference--so cards were off the table.

ed, had their fight lasted any longer than a blunt “YEET”, would have fallen into the same category of ah shit, he knows what he’s doing. ed and al aren’t your average scamp teenagers, those boys are in a different league in a multitude of ways. ...still not an excuse, you goddamn soggy soc--

dolcetto, in MOST cases and regardless of age, responds fairly. if this had been some teenager flailing around with a pocket knife, he likely would have disarmed them, knocked them down as a warning, and--unless the kid tried to escalate it--that’d be it, he’d be on his way and minding his own business. if a tween ran up to him and kicked him in the shin, he’d probably just yell at them enough to scare them off. the point would strictly be to send the message “don’t fuck around with me”... and if you keep poking the bear, that’s on you.

ALL OF THIS TO SAY, however, that children tend to be exempt from dol’s usual mentality of “that’s your problem, not mine, i’m staying out of it” when it comes to things happening around him--and especially toward children who’re obviously unable to defend themselves.

an asshole absolutely WILL sprint into the street to snatch a toddler out of the way of a vehicle, absolutely will be watching your kid like a hawk in the market if the parents are clearly not doing their damn job, and will become enraged with anyone who’s harmed a child. ...to say tucker would have been dead if dol had anything to say about it would be an understatement... more like he would have first lost his fingers. then his feet. and just. generally been cut out of existence--quite literally--in the slowest way possible.

... dol was in the labs for 14 years, he’s learned how to torture by experience and observation...

ANYWAY YEAH I DON’T REALLY KNOW HOW TO END THIS.

just... dol doesn’t hate children and he won’t show total apathy toward child-related tragedy, nor will he be violent toward them “without reason”--even though that “reason” is still questionable at best. he may not want to be around them a lot (he doesn’t consider himself “good” with them and, in a lot of cases, he’s not wrong in thinking that), but he’s still exceptionally protective toward them. they’re the only type of stranger that he’ll go out of his way to look out for and will bump him from his strict “true neutral” standing to more of a “chaotic good”.

#♦: ooc .#[ i should probably write this as a proper headcanon eventually but for now: here it is ]#[ I HOPE THIS MADE A LICK OF SENSE ]#[ hell yeah mental and moral gymnastics ]#[ i gotta go to work now BE BACK THIS EVENING ]

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firelxdykatara · 5 years

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If Zutara were to be canon,thanks to Aaron Ehasz,how will this affect Legend Of Korra?

This is a difficult question to answer, mostly because it would of necessity rely on a whole lot of assumptions and biases, and without asking Aaron himself (in private, where he wouldn’t have to worry about kicking off another fandom war), it’s impossible to answer with any degree of certainty.

Now, I can talk about how I, personally, think things would have been different if Zutara had been canon–which, for me, means that the epilogue of book 3 was just the tea shop scene, and we got a book 4 where, as Aaron briefly mentioned on twitter and in various interviews, the consequences of energy-bending were explored, the lost Air Nomads were found, Azula had her redemption arc (which would probably have tied into the search for Ursa, which I would’ve loved to see Aaron’s take on in book 4, especially considering the crap the comics handed to us), and Zuko and Katara grew closer and entered into a relationship by the end of the season.

(Before I start exploring this in more depth, I want to head off ‘delusional Zutarian’ arguments at the pass–I’m not saying it’s 100% confirmed that Aaron was planning to make ZK canon in book 4. I am saying (as I’ve said before) that, given the set up and development in canon, and the way Aaron himself has talked about how he develops characters and relationships, I believe he (and other writers/artists/crew members) was leaning heavily towards that particular relationship and would have explored it further in book 4 had he been allowed to.)

Putting the rest under a read more cause this got long.

We know some of what Aaron had plans for–Azula’s redemption, the consequences of energybending, the lost Air Nomads–but nothing super concrete. Going from that, then, I believe that in Book 4, the Gaang would have split up for a good chunk of it. (Please note that most of the rest of this is pure speculation.) There’s a lot of ground Book 4 would’ve had to cover–the Gaang in the beginning would’ve split off to head to their respective homes (Sokka and Katara to the SWT, Suki to Kyoshi Island, Toph… ok, Toph probably just stuck around Caldera and this would’ve been a great time to have the Toph&Zuko life-changing-field-trip episode we were denied in canon) to touch base with the families and friends they’d left behind to go on their save-the-world tour.

For his part, Aang would’ve returned to Guru Pathik. While he got a last-second Hail Mary (in the form of a conveniently placed rock, which still boggles my mind, but whatever) when fighting Ozai, he still was not a fully realized Avatar, and since I’m bitter that the Guru Pathik/chakras plot was almost entirely dropped after the book 2 finale, I’m saying he’d have gone back to finally finish that training because it makes sense and because I can. Anyway, he returns to the Guru, and by this point he has accepted that Katara doesn’t return his feelings the way he’d like her to (a call back to The Fortuneteller, which should have been foreshadowing for Aang’s emotional growth, barring the last twenty seconds of the episode).

Furthermore, he’s learned that ‘letting her go’ doesn’t mean he can’t care about her or want her in his life to be the Avatar (after all, previous Avatars have had love and even been married–Kuruk isn’t that great of an example, given that his love life got him killed, but Kyoshi lived over two centuries and had multiple loves over her incredibly long life, and Roku was married and had descendants of his own), it just means letting go of his expectations–letting go of the selfish aspects of his love, the parts that lead him to nod in agreement when actors on a play told fake!Katara ‘I thought you were the Avatar’s girl’, and that lead him to expect her to return his feelings and push against her boundaries when she told him she wasn’t sure and was confused. (He said “We kissed at the invasion and I thought we were gonna be together, but we’re not.” even though a) he kissed her without any warning, she did not kiss him, and she looked away and frowned afterwards, and b) she never once brought up the kiss again or hinted that her feelings towards him had changed and become romantic, so he had no reason to believe they’d ‘be together’.)

Ok that was a bit of a tangent, but the upshot is, Guru Pathik helps Aang fully master the Avatar State. While on that particular journey, Aang has to deal with the consequences of energybending–he pulled Ozai’s energy into himself, and he has to deal with the sudden darkness that was absorbed into his spirit. He also receives some sort of hint, possibly from a dream or meeting with a spirit, that with balance returning to the world, the Air Nomads can start to return, too.

Sokka, Suki, and Toph wind up going with Aang on his journey to figure out just what the spirits meant by that. They discover that the Air Nomads weren’t totally eradicated by Sozin (which would’ve been impossible, since we already know that inter-nation relationships happened in the past [Avatar Kyoshi’s mother was an airbender], and they were, well… nomads), but those who survived (because they weren’t at the temples at the time, or some who hadn’t attained mastery managed to escape) assimilated into the Earth Kingdom and even some in the Fire Nation. Because the world was incredibly out of balance following the decimation of the Air Nomad population, and because many of them were suddenly in a situation where showing they were airbenders was a death sentence, their spirit as a population was almost completely broken, and they stopped being able to airbend. In the present, Aang finds descendants of Air Nomad survivors, including Ty Lee (and, in my HC, Jet, who shows up alive bc I want him to get the healing arc he didn’t get in canon) who are beginning to discover they can airbend.

Meanwhile, Zuko asked Katara to accompany him on his journey to find his mother–it’s a callback to TSR, when he helped her gain closure for her mother’s murder, and since he wants to bring Azula too, he asked for Katara’s help sister-wrangling. They eventually find Ursa (who did not willingly forget her children, and who did not send a letter to her former lover to make Ozai question Zuko’s paternity, because in the show she was not a horrible person and she loved her children more than anything tyvm), as well as Kiyi (the only good thing to come out of that comic), and Azula finally gets the sort of closure she could never have before, and there is a heavy focus on her emotional journey. Zuko is there to support her, and Katara is there to support Zuko. In the process, Katara winds up with an odd sort of mildly antagonistic friendship with Azula, who gets to a point where she can good-naturedly tease Katara about her growing feelings for Zuko.

ANYWAY. I realize you were asking primarily how it would affect LoK, and I went on a whole ass book 4 tangent. So here’s how I see it changing the landscape in LoK.

First of all, Katara is granted the importance she is due. She has a statue in most major cities, including both Caldera and Republic City. Katara married Zuko and became one of the most beloved Fire Ladies in Fire Nation history, partly because she didn’t assimilate and give up her own home and culture, and she never hesitated to speak her mind during council meetings. It put off much of the nobility, especially in the first few years of their marriage, but Zuko had survived many an assassination attempt by then, and he valued his wife’s input above his closest advisors and never made a secret of it. The nobles could either accept it or risk losing their titles, which several of them did because they figured the Fire Lord was bluffing, only to find out he wasn’t in the slightest.

Katara was also active in the White Lotus, which she wound up leading along with Sokka and Zuko (who’d passed the mantle of Fire Lord onto their eldest daughter, Izumi, once they felt she was ready to lead), and when Aang passed away, they immediately began the search for the next Avatar.

Most of Korra’s early life would’ve been the same, Katara and Sokka saved her from the Red Lotus’ kidnapping attempt, and she wound up raised at the White Lotus compound where she learned waterbending, firebending, and earthbending, and was on the cusp of learning airbending from Tenzin (who was Aang’s kid with someone else–given his design, his mother could’ve been literally anyone, Toph or one of the returned Air Nomads or someone else entirely) when he got called back to Republic City, and she followed.

From here, well… ok, there’s a lot I would change about LoK just in general. Thinking specifically of how Zutara would have affected things, and with the stipulation that Aaron was still the head writer for LoK, I like to think that Katara wouldn’t have been rendered weak and useless (seriously, a bloodbender locked away Korra’s bending, but Katara–allegedly the most powerful waterbender alive, and the one who single-handedly got bloodbending outlawed–couldn’t undo it with bloodbending???), and would have been allowed to, for example, fight to protect her family (while Tenzin and his children wouldn’t have been her direct relations [unless, instead of Pema, he wound up marrying Zuko and Katara’s youngest daughter??? that’s an idea], they would still have been family, as Aang’s only living descendants) and taken a more active part in the water tribe civil war (which would have been given the narrative arc it was due instead of being a half-assed vehicle for ridiculous spirit world shenanigans). And besides, a gaang reunion episode where Zuko, Katara, Suki (because screw LoK for having her just up and disappear lmfao) and Toph fight the Red Lotus together just like old times??? That would’ve been fucking amazing.

(We got to see old ass men in AtLA fight like they were in their prime, including one who was over a century old. What was LoK’s excuse???)

Since we got the return of the Air Nomads in book 4 of LoK there would be no need for the spirit portals or the ‘harmonic convergence’, and instead Korra’s spiritual journey hinges on her trauma from the end of Book 1. The biggest difference, here, is that I have always been incredibly dissatisfied with the fact that Korra just stared sadly over the edge of a cliff and was suddenly able to unlock the Avatar State and get her bending back. Keeping in mind the way Aaron Ehasz excelled at character journeys in the original show, I think she should have ended book 1 with her bending locked completely. Katara was able to reverse whatever it was Amon did to her (and Amon, by the way, didn’t get killed–the Equalists also didn’t just disappear, and the thread of nonbender oppression carries through the rest of the series, to be revisited and finally resolved in book 4), but it didn’t give Korra her bending back, because the trauma she suffered was just as psychological as it was a physical block to her bending.

Book 2, therefore, would’ve included a narrative thread of Korra needing to go on her own spiritual journey to unlock her chakras and regain her bending, finally able to reac the Avatar State when the civil war between the water tribes reached a head, and she is finally able to broker peace, having learned a great deal about herself and her connection to the past avatars.

I realize that I’ve kind of derailed pretty far off the original point, so I’ll stop here with a general note that while Zutara, as a relationship, doesn’t affect a whole lot of this directly (for the most part it would just affect the parentage of the Gaang kids who showed up, the designs of some, and their relationships with each other and possibly with Korra)–however, with the addition of Book 4 and keeping Aaron’s writing talents for LoK, the landscape of the entire sequel would be altered. I’d like to think that he would’ve preferred writing a coherent narrative that did justice to the characters even if it meant ending the show with unresolved plot threads (especially since they could wrap things up with comics which, in this alternate timeline, are actually good and in character because I want to have my cake and eat it too), so rather than being disconnected plots that didn’t make much sense when each individual villain could’ve served as the entire series Big Bad, much of books 2 and 3 would’ve involved smaller scale plots and villains, with Amon returning for book 4 and everything getting wrapped up far more neatly than it did in canon.

TL;DR: while Zutara itself wouldn’t necessarily change a whole lot (it would affect Book 4 and the post-atla comics more) outside of the different Gaang kids and their dynamics, the show as a whole would’ve been vastly different if the writing team for LoK had been the same–including Aaron as head writer–as the writing team for AtLA.

Bryke were great Big Picture guys, great vision and visual guys, I’ve never disputed that. But they sucked at not missing the forest for the trees. They sucked at romance. And they really sucked at coherent plot and character development, especially in the small scale.

#atla #zutara #lok #bryke salt #kinda sorta #just covering my bases really #fantasticanimefan #asked

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