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livrere-green · 5 months

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ATLA x Omegaverse AU

Part 1 | Part 2

I've been thinking about an omegaverse atla au a lot recently, so I'm gonna vent about it cuz it's getting tiring just to have it spiralling in my head ngl

So, the only thing that I need to mention now it's that the standard age at which someone presents is around 13 to 14 years old. Knowing that, lets talk about the main characters.

Aang (12) would be unpresented by the time of the show. Also, I don't believe that being the avatar makes him an alpha perse. I mean, there's a possibility he presents as one (but he could also be a beta), and it wouldn't have anything to do with his avatar status (historically there could be a higher rate of avatars being alphas/betas, but there are some important exceptions... iykwim). Well, I think he'd present at age 13 almost 14.

Katara (14) is one of the characters that confuses me the most in this aspect, but just to add fuel to her fury and her personality, I'll make her an omega, not the kind that rejects her nature but the kind that embraces it and doesn't see it as something that makes her inferior or helpless. Katara would fight against the life society wants to impose on her in the same way she does in canon, maybe even more. She would resent the people who doesn't respect her because of her gender and at some point, she'd get frustrated about it, but she would think that hating herself would mean letting her oppressors win. About her presentation, there's two option: 1. She presented some months before they found Aang, 2. She presented during the first months they were traveling to the NWT (in this case, I think the ideal place would've been Kyoshi Island, because there's people able to take care of her there).

Sokka (15) would be an alpha, he probably presented after Hakoda left (14), he fits the type and the stereotypical personality at the beginning of the show. But I think he would get over it sooner rather than later, because the why he acts has to do more with his perception of himself and the expectations set upon his shoulders than with unshakeable beliefs about the ability of betas and omegas. He would learnt to respect and don't underestimate them quickly. Also, I think that Sokka would scent the Gaang to protect them and particularly to cover Katara's scent as they travel or run away from trouble.

Toph (12) would be unpresented by the time of the show. She'd present as an alpha some time after the end of the war (13). There's not a lot to explain here (talking about her at that age, except for the fact that even during her time with the Gaang, she probably hated Sokka's essence, just as an early hint about her gender). I consider that there's a lot to discuss about her as an adult and how she managed her relationships, but that's a discussion for another time.

Zuko (16) would be an omega, and also a late bloomer, probably presented a couple of years after his banishment (15).. Zuko would be determined to hide his true nature under any circumstances, letting only his Uncle know about it. Ozai would've been informed that his son is a beta, which was already a disappointment for the Royal Family (historically alphas), but it wasn't nearly as negative as being reduced to be treated as an omega. Zuko would end up causing himself a lot of damage in order to disguise as a beta, either by using too many suppressants or other medications, or even hurting himself. He would stop hiding after joining the Gaang but It'll be complicated, since he'd be distressed all the time and even Aang and Toph would be able to notice (their senses are not totally develop, so it'll be kinda alarming).

Suki (15) would be a beta, presented at 14. In her case, the characteristics of its gender would be especially helpful to mediate conflict or get out of it. The scent of a beta has calming effects in both alphas and omegas, so she would use it with her friends, or even in battle, to make her opponents lose focus, particularly if they are driven by rage. The fans are particularly helpful for that.

Azula (14) would present early as an alpha (12/13). At that age, one of the traits she would manifest the most is assuming the position of head of the pact with her friends, she'd probably scent them with the intention of establishing superiority and control over them. In this context, Mai would be a beta and Ty Lee an omega or a beta as well.

That's all for now, I still have some things in mind for this, but I'll share that later, and if you have questions, I'll be happy to answer!

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bluespiritshonour · 1 month

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Somethings I noticed:

Katara, Suki and Azula are the only ones who haven't ever expressed any sort of misogynistic sentiment.

Aang would come a close second with minor mishaps here and there.

First, the girls:

Ty Lee, while fighting the Kyoshi Warriors: you're not prettier than we are.

Girl, where did that come from?

Mai has several instances of this when she says the Kyoshi Warriors’ uniforms are too girly (I don't mind her not liking how colourful they are; that's totally different) and later lowkey slut-shaming Ty Lee. And while she's rightfully unimpressed with Zuko's seashell (she's right Zuko, step-up your game) she could easily have countered his “Don't girls like these stuff?” the way Suki did with Sokka’s ideas about gendered generalisation. Also, you must have noticed that Mai's feminine too. She's just dark feminine to Ty Lee's light feminine.

Toph: she has absorbed a lot of toxic masculinity that's for sure. She isn't feminine, she light-heartedly teases Katara for being feminine and Aang too. She does give off the “one of the guys” vibes. You know which ones I'm talking about. “Are we going to watch two little girls fighting?” and later mocking Aang for his passivity.

But it is to be noted that Toph manages to do this without being racist to Aang. She's the one who mocks him the most about his pacifist beliefs (which are cultural to him) and she's kinda misogynistic the way she goes about it. But she's never racist to him. (I guess she is in the comics but fuck the comics). Even when Aang was really really nasty to her when Appa was stolen and she had every right to be mad at him—she wasn't. Given her age and her sheltered upbringing Toph's surprisingly mature. But I digress. Among the comics, I love the Lost Adventures only—and I love the spa day Katara and Toph have both in those comics and in the show. It feels like Toph's healing from that internalised misogyny? My reading of it is that just like girls in real world, Toph derides femininity because it has always been a chain to her. Her parents forced her to confirm so she hates it. But being friends with Katara probably let her heal that part of her. She's still not as feminine as Katara and mind you, nor should she be—let some girls never want to be feminine—it’s fine. But she learns to not to act out of a place of hurt.

Sokka: Sokka's misogyny was literally a plot point and he overcomes it. Also he and Aang have actually done drag and not been mocked for it. It's rare to see in media. The only other example I can think of is Good Omens.

His misogyny also feels kinda surface level (as opposed to Zuko in whom it's less obvious but seems more deeply ingrained).

Also. Zuko never did drag. Shame on him.

Aang: is the least misogynistic of the boys. The only instances I can think of are either kinda vague: when he tells Sokka that “It's nice dress!” It's kinda ambiguous if his tone was mocking or complimentary but it upsets Sokka nonetheless. And when he's upset at being played by a woman in Ember Island Players. The first time I watched it I felt it was OOC. But he was also kind of justified as it was racism and misogyny combined on behalf of the Fire Nation in portraying him that way.

Phew. These were purely my own opinions simply by the virtue of gender expression meaning different things to different people. I might say Mai is actually quite feminine while Toph isn't... But what even is considered masculine or feminine?

I love Katara and Toph's spa day because Toph learns that being girly wouldn't kill her—but she also doesn't suddenly become Ty Lee levels of feminine either. Some women just don't wanna be feminine. Oftentimes it's because femininity is derided by society itself—and that's something that one needs to heal from, like Toph did with Katara’s friendship—but everytime I've seen a story like that, the girl, upon realising that femininity isn't a bad thing is suddenly hyper-feminine.

Like, can we have them heal from internalised misogyny and still not wanna be feminine—even though they don't consider it bad or embarassing or fickle anymore?

Toph and Katara’s spa days do it perfectly.

When those girls mock Toph and Katara tells her she's pretty, I can't tell you much I loved it. The same feelings toward Suki’s “I am a warrior, but I'm a girl too.”

#avatar the last airbender #atla #i just felt like word vomiting #toph #ty lee #mai #sokka #zuko #aang

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coolbeansnico · 2 months

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I've caved. Here's my Avatar The Last Airbender uni au and modern/non bender au headcanons.

Here's what I think the main kids uni majors/minors would be:

Aang: wildlife conservation with a minor in political sciences

Katara: medicine, education minor

Sokka: engineering, polisci minor

Toph: geology with a martial arts minor (changed my mind, education minor)

Zuko: forced to do law & politics by his family but switches to history/anthropology, keeping politics as a minor

Azula: law w a psychology minor

Mai: forced to do politics by family but wants to do art, history minor

Ty Lee: training in acrobatics and performance at a performing arts school and works at the circus

Suki: human relations and activism, martial arts minor

Yue: Dance major (same school as Ty Lee, polisci minor

☆

Living situations:

Katara and Sokka flat together and eventually Aang becomes a permanent resident

Toph lives right across from them, she likes her own space and independence but she'd never want to be too far from her friends

Zuko lives with Iroh above his teashop and works there part time

Suki has a sharehouse with the kyoshi warriors (her hockey team)

Ty Lee and Yue get assigned room-mates first year and became pretty quick friends, they continue to live together afterwards

Azula has her own apartment (of course). So does Mai, but she spends so much time at Azulas she basically lives there. Neither of them would admit it but they much prefer it to having whole houses to themselves.

---

General modern au/non bender au hcs:

(Pretty obvious) Ethnicity n nationality hcs:

Sokka and Katara r Inuit and from Alaska

Azula, Zuko and Mai are all Japanese American

Ty Lee is Japanese and Mongolian

Toph is Chinese and Singaporean (born in Singapore)

Aang is Bhutanese (so is Gyatso), but he grew up in Singapore. Him and Toph were childhood friends

Yue is Inuit and Sámi and her family lives in north-east Canada

Suki is mixed Chinese, Thai and French-Canadian and live in an island off of Quebec

Have not decided where the uni would be but probably BSSU (Ba Sing Se uni) cause I know a lot of ppl use that as the uni name

I don't know a ton about US and Canadian geography so if y'all have ideas for what states or provinces the characters would hail from (especially what state/city Zuko, Azula, Mai and Ty Lee grew up in) I would def appreciate the suggestions

☆

Aang has a Tibetan Mastiff called Appa and Sokka has a Siamese cat called Momo (he found him behind a dumpster looking for food scraps and Sokka knew he'd found a kindred spirit,,, much to Kataras initial dismay)

Aang grew up in a sort of hippie/alternative living foster home that taughtbuddist beliefs, he never knew his real parents but he was okay with that.

I'm a fan of bigcorp ceo Ozai but also political tyrant Ozai works as well so I'm srsly torn on that. Politician Ozai would either have to be a nation ruler or American ambassador because I like to think Zuko and Azula moved around a lot as kids so he couldn't have a job that keeps him in ine place. That's why I like the idea of ceo Ozai. He would still have a lot of political power and it would still mean moving around a lot plus him being super corrupt and exploiting his workers is fun for angst.

Oh and!! Zuko and Azula lived in Singapore for part of highschool and their family visited a lot for holidays. Since Tophs parents and Ozai worked together, Zuko and Azula were around at The Beifongs a lot and entertained themselves by making fun of Toph for hanging out with a "poor tree hugging commoner" like Aang

---

I may add more to this so look out for a part 2

♡♡

I'm currently working on drawing them (and maybe chara profiles with sexualities, pronouns, character aesthetics/how I think they'd dress, interests ect) :] I've done the boys and the (non fire nation) gals are next!!

#avatar: the last airbender #avatar #kataang #zukka #atla zukka #maizula #avatar the last airbender uni au #atla uni au #avatar fanart #atla fanart

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narrativelysignificantturtleduck · 7 months

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okay things i liked about the live action:

the southern water tribe being bigger. it's still small but less unrealistically so

gyatso saying he's aang's friend

suki chafing against kyoshi island's isolationism. mostly bc it reminded me of "suki alone". you should read that instead probably

all the avatars serving as spirit guides instead of just showing up at the end. relatedly, incorporating kyoshi novel lore with kyoshi & kuruk

zuko throwing a fit bc aang stole his diary Manly Avatar Journal

zhao being a lower-status guy who just benefitted from right place right time

sebastian amaroso jet. he is so beautiful and perfect and that he was a mama's boy like katara's a mama's girl really worked

smellerbee and longshot existing. like they were obviously gonna be there but i got a little excited when they came on screen

moving the mechanist storyline to omashu. i thought his mad scientist energy fit well with eccentric omashu and it fixed the problems i had with his episode in atla. also he has a name now!

the idea that bumi, after living so many years as a leader during a war and losing his friend, may be bitter and upset with aang. his tests seem to have real meaning now instead of just being pranks and i like that eventually he softens when aang reminds him of friendship. like really gets at that theme of aang bringing hope back into the world

bumi's new design & omashu's general south asian feel

the one woman who started beating zuko's ass in the middle of the fight in omashu

OMA AND SHU LESBIANS!!!!

cameo by secret tunnel hippies

cameo by cabbage man

the guys in the bar referencing "the great divide" and "the waterbending scroll"

the way the spirit world works, responding to your emotions and shaping the environment around you. i know that idea's not exclusive to this show (it was in lok) but it's a concept i enjoy nonetheless

aang hugging gyatso and katara hugging kya in the spirit world got me a little teary

yagoda kind of a milf

yue making an actual cultural dish (it's called akutaq and often referred to as "alaskan ice cream")

katara responding to zuko saying "you found a master" by saying that she's the master

sokka's little plan to take down the fire nation ship where he went in and bashed in all their machinery. that was very in-character

sokka/hahn

unfortunately so much of what happened around those things was clumsily written but there WERE some decent ideas and good moments. idk i just wanted to be a little less negative

#nina's personal log #natla blogging #natla spoilers

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the-power-of-stuff · 7 months

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The Live-Action Sukka Manifesto that I Just Couldn't Keep in My Head

So I've been marinating in my live-action Sukka thoughts for the past three days, and when someone sent me an anon asking if I had any thoughts about the changes, at first I went, "DO I EVER?!" and proceeded to dump my entire brain on the page.

But then I worried maybe the anon wouldn't want to see my entire brain and figured I'd make my own post with my Many, Many Thoughts, and reel it in a bit when I answer the ask. And then link here if they're interested in the dissertation.

I'll put all the excessive details and spoilery stuff under a cut, but I'll start by saying, I didn't hate it! And I was afraid that I would.

There were things that I was bummed or had mixed feelings about, but there was also a lot that I genuinely enjoyed. All the Sukka interactions were cute and still had some decent character development, and I had fun with the episode overall (I've watched it thrice mind you, and definitely have not given the rest of the series that kind of attention). And I didn't necessarily dislike the differences from the original; I think I've just taken more of a "that was an interesting interpretation" approach.

But I better start that cut now, because I'm about to go on and on about this. I'd love to know what others think, though!! Even if the opinions aren't the same as mine! Please feel free to comment, reblog, shoot me an ask. If nothing else, I'm excited that the LA has gotten people talking about ATLA again.

So, I want to start with Suki’s characterization, which overall I found to be delightful, even if it was a bit of a watered-down version of her animated self.

In the original show, Suki is confident, sassy, and doesn’t take shit from anybody. She’s proud to the point of almost being arrogant, and even a little mean. What we get in the LA is someone who’s still confident in terms of her status and her skills, and still proud of her heritage and her role in her community, but with significantly less sass. And while LA Suki still seems like someone who wouldn’t take anyone’s shit, we don’t actually see LA Suki deal with that much shit from anyone (because Sokka isn’t really giving her any).

There is one moment in the show where her interaction with Sokka is a little contentious, which is when he tries to relate to her as a fellow guardian of his people. I think Suki’s question to Sokka about how is he protecting his village if he’s not there is meant to be a challenge to his swagger. However, the line is delivered with a softness that makes it seem as though Suki is, at least in part, genuinely curious. (This curiosity makes even more sense when we consider the fact that Suki’s eventually going to leave Kyoshi Island so she and her Warriors can take part in the war effort, and that she will have to contend with the question of “how do you do that without abandoning your people?” when coming to that decision. The LA lays a lot more of this groundwork than the animated show did: Suki outwardly expressing her desire to see the world, her mother’s secretive looks every time Suki gazes longingly at Sokka the possibilities…)

Compare these two moments, for example. These are both scenes where Suki expresses disbelief at Sokka's claims about his warrior-hood. But in the LA, Suki speaks rather quietly and mildly, in contrast to the brash sarcasm of her animated counterpart. LA Suki is also tilting her head down and away, looking at Sokka indirectly. OG Suki is leaning in close, getting in his face, smirking derisively with her hands on her hips.

I think there’s something to be said about the LA in general smoothing away certain personality traits that could be seen as negatives but that are actually strengths that are so narratively well-developed they occasionally show up as flaws (for instance, Katara’s fury, or lack thereof). Animated Suki is prideful and stubborn; she berates Sokka until he gives her sad puppy-dog eyes and has zero hesitation about making an example of him in front of her whole class. It’s a little ruthless, but these traits are also 1) what gets through Sokka’s thick skull (he, too, is prideful and stubborn), and 2) what makes her such a dedicated ambassador of Kyoshi and such a strong leader of the island’s Warriors at such a young age. I feel like the LA writers were afraid of making any of the protagonists seem too abrasive—everyone in the LA has had their edges sanded down, including Zuko, including Aang—and in general this tends to lead to less realistic representations of humanity and conflict, less satisfying character development arcs, and fewer opportunities for reflection and learning.

That being said! I went into watching the LA with negative expectations about what we would see in terms of character development, and thus was pleasantly surprised.

The LA removed the need for Suki to be as ruthlessly stubborn as she is in the animated show because LA Sokka’s skull is not so thick (and I'll get into that a bit more later). So what we get instead is a sheltered Suki with a helicopter mom who is so hilariously awkward that she has no idea how to interact with other humans. And, to be honest, I enjoyed this version of her so much that I even thought to myself, “I wish I’d thought of that!”

Suki is a straight-up weirdo in the LA and I love that for her. The way she puts Sokka in a chokehold and then looks at him after she sets him free like, “That was good flirting, yes? Would you like to be my boyfriend now?” And then her disappointment when Sokka walks away as if she’s thinking, “Why didn’t that go well, I thought boys loved getting put in chokeholds?” She is so precious, I just want to put her in my pocket. And this characterization might even be more broadly relatable than a super-confident Suki brimming with sass. Who among us hasn’t made a complete fool of ourselves in front of a crush by coming on way too strong and having no idea how to flirt? I mean…real.

And because Sokka is also mostly just making a fool of himself trying to impress a pretty and talented peer (instead of covering up his insecurities by wrapping himself in misogyny) this leaves room for the two of them to be attracted to each other right off the bat and for their interactions to be more overtly romantic throughout the entire episode. Which, avid shipper that I am, I have to admit I have been gobbling up for the past three days straight. This episode was an IV drip of romantic tropes hooked straight to every Sukka shipper’s veins.

Shy glances from across the room? Check.

Walking in on the other person half-naked? Check. (Y’all, Suki looks Sokka up and down for a FULL TWENTY SECONDS yes I timed it from the moment she appears in the background, yes you should count it to see how long that really is. Talk about awkward.)

Tripping so they end up falling into each other’s arms? Check.

Wide-eyed shock that turns into surprise thirst after being pinned to the ground? Check.

Shooting each other satisfied smirks as they kick ass side-by-side? Check.

Jumping in front of literal fire for each other? Check and check!

Like, I could live off this for the rest of the year.

But look, there’s a lot that I love about the way Sokka and Suki’s relationship is portrayed in this episode besides those romantically indulgent tension-creating moments, and it has to do with Suki’s admiration and validation of Sokka.

Suki really looked at this boy with his mouth stuffed half-full of steamed bun and went, “Must have.”

With the removal of overt sexism from this episode (for better or worse), the story focused much more heavily on Sokka’s development as a leader. He still has that sort of posturing display of self-confidence that comes from inexperience and trying too hard to prove oneself (“Ferociously…deadly tiger whales…”), and while at first Suki seems put off by this and his attempts to liken himself to her (“I’m not just a warrior, I’m a Kyoshi warrior”) it doesn’t take her long to decide (*cough*after seeing him shirtless*cough*) that she doesn’t actually mind this behavior (and in fact maybe she kind of likes it because maybe it means he likes her and maybe it means she can show him how much she likes him by slicing the tops off all those melons with her fan). She seems genuinely interested in his boomerang and impressed that he hunts, and then later, she immediately takes interest in training him in the Kyoshi Warrior style.

After they spar, she casually refers back to the fact that he’s his village’s protector, and this time, she does it without the disbelief and defensiveness. Because he’s finally stopped posturing. He opened himself up and gave himself over to Suki’s expertise, and in that way he proved that he has the will and desire—the heart—of a warrior. And Suki tells him so while touching him gently and gazing at him longingly in the soft golden glow of the late-afternoon sun. And as a die-hard Sokka stan, I love seeing him loved and appreciated like this. Adamantly. Ardently. The Sokka cheerleader in my head is going wild. “YEESSSS!! Our boy deserves this!!” Because we know that, in the animated show, he goes through a lot more struggle and self-doubt before he receives this kind of external validation. And while we also know that this makes for an incredibly satisfying growth arc, I gotta admit that it’s a fun bit of indulgence to watch Suki talk Sokka up directly to his face and then want to kiss him really bad. Y’know. As a treat.

That said, I'm very attached to and appreciative of the way their relationship is framed in the animated series. I love that their respect and affection for each other grows even after the disaster that is their first few interactions. In the LA, they are drawn to each other immediately, and the only barrier seems to be a bit of awkward stepping-in-it-ness. In the original, they have legitimate conflict, and they both have to give a little—Sokka becomes more humble, Suki becomes more tender—before they get to that point of potential romantic interest. And I think it says a lot about Sokka’s character and his desire to learn and grow that he is willing to humble himself in front of someone who, as far as he’s seen, has very little regard for him (slash has a good deal of animosity towards him). Giving himself over to Suki’s expertise costs him more in the animated show. But once he does, he and Suki learn and grow together. He shows Suki who he really is, shows her how dedicated and determined (and fun and a quick learner) he is, to the point that, by the end of the episode, she can allow herself to be vulnerable with him. And she does validate him in the original Kyoshi Warriors episode, just less directly than the LA. Her kiss on his cheek and “...but I’m a girl, too” is about forgiveness and acceptance and acknowledgement and respect, as much as or even more than it is about affection. There’s a little bit of romance, too, but it’s just little baby seeds of it, and it feels very natural to let those seeds germinate over time until we see Suki again later in the series.

Which brings me to the live-action kiss.

I’ll be honest, I was a little on the fence about the kiss. I want Sokka and Suki to kiss as much as possible in every conceivable universe. So there’s a part of me that was banging on the table and whistling with obscene joy. But the other part of me thought it was too much too soon. However, my hesitance pre-supposes some things about the second season (not least of which that there will be one), namely that it will handle the reunion with Suki and crossing the Serpent’s Pass anything like how it was done in the original. (Of course, one thing we now know for certain can't happen in a hypothetical LA season 2 is Suki pranking Sokka at the ferry station because he doesn't recognize her without her makeup. Do I love the expression on LA Sokka's face the first time he sees Suki's? Yes. Am I sad that this completely ruins their whole "You don't remember me? Maybe you'll remember this!" game? Also yes. But truthfully, I don't know if LA Suki would've been up to the prank, anyway. Not sassy enough. ;))

The Serpent’s Pass is one of my favorite episodes of all time, and that moment on the bluffs when Sokka and Suki are talking around Sokka’s loss, with the moon shining down on them all the while, and they almost kiss with the moon hanging between them in the background, and then Sokka pulls away without any other explanation besides, “I can’t”? That scene is so absurdly powerful and beautiful and an amazing moment of character development for them both, and I feel like it loses a lot of impact if they’ve already made out once. The fact that they kiss for the first time after that moonlit moment, when Sokka realizes that Suki doesn’t need protecting the way he thought she did, and in fact she was there to protect him, and he can finally just let go of this burden that he’s been carrying with him since Suki first mentioned she was joining them (slash since his dad put him in charge of an entire village at 13), and then and only then can he open his heart to what he feels for Suki, and in fact opens it so wide that he just cannot help but jam his mouth onto hers before she’s even finished talking…? I mean. C’mon. That’s poetry. But, again…loses impact if they’ve already had a first kiss.

But who knows what, if anything, they’ll actually do with that storyline. So for now, I’ll just enjoy my live-action Sukka kiss because, honestly, dream come true.

Or almost a dream come true. Because there's a huge camelephant in the room that I haven't addressed yet, isn't there? The lack of Sokka in the Kyoshi Warrior uniform...

And I don’t think we can talk about the omission of Sokka’s Kyoshi Warrior uniform without talking about the omission of Sokka’s sexism. Because if Sokka isn’t sexist, then why do you have to put him in the dress and makeup of traditionally female warriors to make a point about how women are strong and capable, too? So here’s what I’ll say about that (and I know there’s a lot that people have said already, so I’ll try not to belabor the point.) I don’t think leaving out Sokka’s sexism was necessarily a detriment to his character arc. I do think, however, that leaving out Sokka’s sexism was a detriment to the message the show was trying to convey about sexism.

Now, in the Northern Water Tribe episodes, the LA still gives us a message about fighting against the kind of systemic, institutionalized sexism that you might not be surprised to encounter within a very old-fashioned society or from a very old-fashioned gray-haired man. But what about the off-the-cuff, everyday kind of sexism that you might experience from an otherwise good person who is close to you? A person who loves you and would do anything for you but who gets carried away teasing you about “girly” things because of intrinsically-held biases that they’re not even that conscious of having?

I think it’s important and meaningful for male and female audiences alike, and everyone in between, to see these different forms of sexism and misogyny—to see them, to recognize those behaviors in others and in ourselves, to be able to name them, and to have examples of fighting against them. We see the former kind—institutionalized, systemic—in Pakku. And we did see the latter kind—familiar, personal—in Sokka. And now that’s lost.

Not only that, but there’s the form of sexism that says boys aren’t allowed to do feminine things lest they relinquish their maleness. And in the animated show, we got to see Sokka combating this form of sexism, too. Not only does Suki show him that girls can be fierce warriors as well as boys, but he learns that wearing makeup and a dress does not make him any less of a young man.

So, yes, I think the lack of Sokka in Kyoshi Warrior garb was a missed opportunity. And not just because Sokka looked really good in uniform and we all should have had the chance to see that, including and especially Suki.

Alright, this is more than long enough, so I'll leave off with a moment from the LA that gave me great pleasure.

I needed this moment, y'all. And I was so afraid it wouldn't happen. I needed Sokka being protective, I needed him using his newfound Kyoshi Warrior skills to fight, and I needed him jumping in front of fire for the girl who'd taught him. If we couldn't have Sokka in the Kyoshi Warrior uniform, at least we had this.

#natla #natla spoilers #sukka #live action atla #netflix atla #spoilers #sokka x suki #suki x sokka #gifs #my gifs #sukka gifs #meta #sukka meta #analysis

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ghanjrho · 1 year

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A:TLA; how it should have ended.

Recently, I've been on a deep dive into the A:tLA fandom, specifically the Zutara sphere. And that means I've found a lot of long-form meta on the show, it's ending, LoK, script final drafts, you name it. That's all gone in the brain blender, and here's what came out the other side.

Sozin's Comet honestly doesn't change that much; only two real differences.

The magic rock is gone. Instead, we get a flashback to Guru Pathik, and Aang realizes that he has to let go of his attachment to Katara.

The Maiko/Kataang victory laps in the last 5 minutes are gone. Mai and Zuko get a scene where they wish each other well, but acknowledge that they're over. Katara and Aang have a nice moment where they choose friendship. There's love there, but it's Philia, not Eros.

@burst-of-iridescent has a delightful essay series on Zutara, and the part that sticks in my head is that in the run-up to the finale, Aang and Katara are at their least unified. To wit:

In "The Southern Raiders" Aang is preachy, condescending, and more than a little hypocritical about Katara's plan to take vengeance for her mother. The episode ends with Katara explicitly rejecting Aang's belief that Yon Rha was forgiven.

In "The Ember Island Players" Aang is distraught at the idea that EIP!Katara's statements, namely that Aang is like her brother and she's attracted to Zuko, are true. When he questions Real!Katara about this, he responds to her statement that she's confused about her feelings by kissing her. The kiss is not returned. Again, no resolution is had.

Finally, in "Sozin's Comet Part 1" Katara is part of the chorus condemning Aang for refusing to even consider killing Ozai, no matter how many people are at stake. He runs off from the group, and from there disappears into the Spirit World to get Lion-Turtled. Yet again, no resolution, and the two don't reunite until the tea shop.

Now speaking of the Lion Turtles, I'm actually not opposed to them. Yes, they come out of nowhere to deliver an 11th Hour Superpower that handily spares Aang from having to actually make a choice he disagrees with, but at the end of the day it is a kid's show. Nickelodeon was never going to approve a script where Aang killed Ozai. Throw in a little bit of foreshadowing, and I'm good. It's worth noting here that the story of Avatar Wan was supposed to be covered in A:tLA, which would handily cover that requirement.

Now, for the post-canon. We'll start with Fire.

Zuko is NOT left alone in the Fire Nation. Similarly, Iroh does NOT fuck off back to Ba Sing Se.

Toph and Suki stick around. Suki in her canon role as commander of Zuko's Kyoshi Warrior bodyguard, while Toph and Mai use Toph's lie-detection and Mai's insider knowledge to purge threats to the new peace.

Toph eventually goes back to the Earth Kingdom to start a metalbending academy, but first she needs to make sure that her Sparky lives to be the grumpy old man he was born to be.

While Iroh is correct that for political and diplomatic reasons Zuko needs to be Fire Lord, he also bows to the reality that Zuko is plain and simply not ready to be the Fire Lord.

Zuko went from 4th in line to 1st in line basically overnight, and the 5-ish years he spent as Crown Prince were clearly not spent preparing him to succeed Ozai.

So a teenager with a fairly surface-level understanding of "how to monarch" has to self-Reconstruction the Fire Nation, while paying reparations, without having been militarily conquered.

This is how idealists get assassinated. New Plan!

Zuko is crowned Fire Lord. Iroh is his Prince Regent. It's very clear to all involved that Zuko is the one charting the course forward for the Fire Nation, while Iroh is there to convert intent to action, while teaching Zuko how it's done.

It doesn't hurt that Iroh is one of the Fire Nation's most successful military commanders, so the civil war route is a lot riskier for anyone to attempt.

Next, Sokka

Sokka honestly has a pretty good arc in the post-canon. Nothing I really feel the need to correct.

Eventually, Suki is able to hand off her duties in the Fire Nation to someone else and goes home to Kyoshi Island

It’s still home, but it isn’t the same. Or rather, she isn’t the same.

She never leaves the island behind, but it’s usually a stop on the journey from Wolf Cove to Republic City.

Then, Aang

Aang divides his time between Avatar duties and Last Airbender duties.

Avatar duties involve a lot of sitting in on meetings and reminding people that the ultimate goal is peace.

Last Airbender duties involve a lot of teaching Air Acolytes everything he remembers from his childhood. He gets lucky here, though.

The Airbender Genocide wasn't complete. More than a few Air Nomads escaped the Genocide, and hid themselves away. Some in small villages built in remote mountain valleys, others blended into Earth Kingdom settlements.

Plenty of quarter- or eighth-Air Nomad kids running around with airbending potential they never had the knowledge to develop. Think very early Book 1 Katara here.

The result is that a resurgent Air Nation is being formed, with a culture woven from the threads that survived through relics, the refugees, and Aang himself.

Airbenders are still rare, and it's over a decade before another airbender earns their mastery, but it's not his son and his grandkids when Korra comes around.

Finally, Katara

Katara spends a lot of time traveling. She spends time in the South Pole, helping to rebuild and learning Southern Style Waterbending from the released waterbenders. She also travels the Fire Nation and Earth Kingdom, doing what she can to solve problems.

There are a lot of problems to solve.

Her travels in the Fire Nation are particularly fruitful; word of the Last Agni Kai has spread, so she is known to be the one that the Fire Lord sacrificed himself for, and who healed his wound.

She and Zuko stay in contact, allowing themselves to have a slow-burn courtship.

After a couple of years she moves to Caldera City and starts getting down to seriously courting Zuko, preparing herself for Fire Ladydom.

The year before Iroh is set to retire as Regent, she and Zuko start thinking about the wedding.

There are a lot of potential traditions to uphold, even just between the Southern Water Tribe and the Fire Nation

This goes double for the daughter of the head chieftain of the Southern Water Tribe, and the Fire Lord himself.

They decide to have fun with it and do everything.

Aang presides over a private ceremony, family/close friends only, that is really just a mutual declaration of love and friendship.

Then come the Southern Water traditions. It's the full gamut, with ice-dodging, sacred hunts and more. In the end, Zuko is an honorary member of the Southern Water Tribe, and he and Katara are wed (again).

There's a diplomatic tour through the Earth Kingdom, stopping at Kyoshi, Gaoling, Omashu, Ba Sing Se, the Foggy Swamp the former Fire Colonies, and ending at the Northern Water Tribe. The language used artfully slides over whether the couple is newly married or about to be married, but overall it works well for the Fire Nation's reputation abroad.

The final act is in the Fire Nation. A full Royal Wedding, a grand affair of state, held at high noon on the day of the summer solstice. When all is said and done, Zuko and Katara now rule alone as Fire Lord and Fire Lady.

Alright, I have more, but I'm tired. Tune in next time for the Fire Nation (extended) Royal Family! featuring Steambabies (Found here)

#atla #zutara #fixit #fire nation politics #all the weddings #zuko definitely has the mark of the too stubborn to die #its not called that #but still #avatar the last airbender

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waterfire1848 · 21 days

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AU where Ozai wins the spirit battle against Aang during Sozin Comet and becomes the new Avatar.

Hello, @stardust948 !!! (This could have been a lot darker but I’m in a comedy mood)

1. When Aang loses, no one knows that he’s now not the Avatar. They just know he’s lost and was forced to flee with Sokka, Suki and Toph. Katara, Zuko and Azula are still at the palace and know something is wrong. They try to flee without Azula but she actually asks to go with them because she was beaten and she really doesn’t want to be alone to face Ozai (she doesn’t know why but she has a feeling he won). They get on Appa and fly to where Sokka, Suki and Toph were supposed to be and get the four. Since Aang is tapped out, they’re forced to fly off and regroup. They decide to head back to Ember Island for the time being so they can think over what to do. In this time, everyone tends to their wounds, Azula stays pretty much on her own, and Aang grows angry about how he failed. Katara, trying to help, offers a waterbending training sessions which Aang agrees to. When they try to bend a simple waterball back and forth, Aang finds that he can’t. In fact, he can’t bend anything aside from air. (Aang: What happened?! Katara: You’re sure you can’t bend anything besides air? Aang: Positive! It’s like the other three forms just disappeared! Katara: Well, if you’re not the Avatar anymore…then who is?)

2. Ozai is weakened very much by the Avatar’s attack and his airships have been damaged. He tells those who remain to stay put (cause he can’t be there and he’d die if he wasn’t center stage during Sozin’s Comet). It’s a set back but they’ll destroy the Earth Kingdom later. Ozai is brought aboard one of the ships for a medical examination and nothing is found to be wrong but Ozai, internally, feels off. He tells everyone to leave and remains in the room by himself, eventually falling asleep until they return to the palace. He receives word that Azula is gone but just takes the title back himself and is Fire Lord and Phoenix King at the same time. That night, he’s meditating when he decides to get some water. Getting up, he accidentally trips and waterbends. (Ozai is like 99% sure he’s not a waterbender). He tries firebending, but he also takes a wack at waterbending, earthbending and airbending and can do all of them. Ozai doesn’t know how but he’s the Avatar now. (Not only that, but there are a lot of angry voices in his head. He can’t explain it but once sounds like a very pissed off Earth Kingdom woman and the other a very, very pissed off Air Nomad woman).

3. The Gaang is trying to understand how Aang isn’t the Avatar anymore. Does this mean there’s a new Avatar? Who is it? Is there some new baby in the South Pole? Did Aang somehow start all over with his bending progress? While everyone else is freaking out and trying to find a solution, Sokka is trying to decide what they should do since Sozin’s Comet wasn’t the victory or defeat any of them suspected. They heard that Ozai didn’t continue with the attack so BSS is still standing but that doesn’t make any sense to them at all. (Sokka: He had the perfect opportunity to get rid of the city, why not do it? Aang: Maybe he realized he could choose another path? Everyone:… Sokka: Normally, I wouldn’t consider that but that might be a possible scenario here. Azula, off to the side: Ha! My father would sooner give up his bending than not use Sozin’s Comet. Katara: Then why is Ba Sing Se still standing? Azula:… Suki: Could something have happened to Ozai during that big light beam show? Aang….Huh?)

4. Ozai can hardly move without bending another element and, of course, he doesn’t want anyone to know he somehow can bend all four elements. Under normal circumstances, he’d be very proud to show off his new power but anytime he even considers using his bending in that way, Kyoshi is on him. (He’s 70% sure she can read his thoughts and it’s so annoying). This being said, I kinda want a Roku & Ozai friendship. Roku knew Azulon, a younger version but still, and Ozai has no fond memories of his father. (Kyoshi: Ah, daddy issues. Why does everyone in this family have daddy issues? Yangchen: Says mommy issues. Kyoshi: I do not have- Yangchen: Let’s not go back and forth right now….but you totally do. Kuruk: And it’s not everyone in the Royal Family who has daddy issues, Azula’s got mommy issues. Kyoshi: Oh, yeah, I forgot about her. Szeto: You and the comics). Roku and Ozai talk frequently after everything that happens. They develop kind of an older brother & younger brother relationship with Roku trying to give Ozai good life advice and Ozai saying “I’m gonna do the opposite of that.”

5. The Gaang decides to leave Ember Island and try to regroup with the White Lotus. While heading to the EK, they’re captured by FN soldiers and brought to the capital (without the Avatar and being tired from the comet both physically and mentally they aren’t on their best game). Everyone is put in prison, including Azula who is internally having a heart attack, when Ozai comes and demands to see Aang. Everyone, minus Azula, starts going crazy because they think Ozai is about to kill Aang. Instead, Ozai takes him to a private room and just starts yelling at him (Ozai: What did you do to me?!? Aang: What do you mean what did I do to you?! Ozai: I didn’t know being the Avatar was contagious!) Aang learning that Ozai is the Avatar now would probably make him both laugh, cry and nervously be like ‘what spirits in the spirit world okayed tbis’. (Aang: What do you want me to do? Ozai: I want you to teach me how to keep these other inferior bending forms under control. I can’t move my wrist without throwing water at something. Aang: Why should I help you? You were just trying to kill me a week ago. Ozai: I won’t let all your friends die. Aang: But then I really won’t help you and you’re back at where you started but now three masters down. Ozai:…What do you want?) Spoiler Alert: Aang wants his friends to be free but they find the knowledge that Ozai is the new Avatar way too terrifying and hilarious to just leave. Which is how Ozai gets Katara, Toph and Aang as his new teachers and maybe a “not as big a jerk as you could have been” award.

#ask #send me an au and I’ll write five headcanons for it #Ozai #Aang #zuko #katara #sokka #toph beifong #azula #Suki #avatar the last airbender #atla

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highfantasy-soul · 7 months

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I could talk forever about how much I loved the writing of the women in NATLA, but I think in this post I'll focus on Suki - a character who I've seen criticisms about the changes made to her in the live-action.

Suki didn't start swooning over Sokka and so lost all her agency - she was actually given a character herself in the live-action rather than being a character whose only purpose was to prove Sokka wrong about the whole 'girls can't fight' thing. In the animated series, that's her entire purpose: she was just the 'strong warrior woman' who made fun of the sexist man and taught him not to be sexist.

In the live-action, she is her own person with her own wants and own flaws as well as her strengths. She's a warrior, proud and strong and steeped in her village's history. She's also a girl who was kept secluded from the world and longed to know more than her island. She's extremely confident, but that leads to some awkward social interactions as she has no idea how to interact with a guy she finds intriguing. Here's another warrior from another culture - what can she learn from him about being an even better fighter (because it's really not being weak to understand that you can always learn and get better, that's actually a very good thing) or what differences can she spot between them? She wants to make connections to the outside world and when she learns that Sokka doesn't really know much traditional fighting, she's quick to offer to train him.

Yes, I'd have loved to see Sokka in full Kyoshi dress and makeup, but I don't think the choice to exclude it was malicious on the part of the showrunners (seriously, y'all need to stop attributing malicious intent to every single thing you don't like in media). Suki and Sokka have a connection and he learns to be a better warrior from her while she gets to know a bit more about the outside world from him.

Now, it makes sense that Suki leaves the island to help refugees in the Earth Kingdom - where we see her in season 2. She's already told us, before Sokka even showed up, that she wanted to see the world, so it's not like this man showing up is the only reason she changed up her life - she already had desires for herself.

I think the 'girl is mean to you because she has a crush on you because you were sexist to her' trope is ok to leave in the past. It worked for the cartoon - it made sense for the time. But I like the additional depth the live-action gave to Suki and I felt it completely in line with her character. After all, her whole point was "Yes, I'm a warrior. But I'm a girl, too." and I think the live-action really encapsulated that.

#natla #atla netflix #netflix avatar the last airbender #avatar the last airbender #suki #sokka

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zvtara-was-never-canon · 9 months

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There's a common theme in Zutara fics where they put Zuko and aang against each other... Mostly to fill some fantasy of two guys fighting over a girl

They always forget that Zuko and aang are like, really close friends post canon (there's a whole monologue of Zuko talking about how much of an influence aang had on him in the legacy of the fire nation I think).

Also aang isn't one to dictate who Katara likes? When Katara was crushing on Jet (and possibly haru if you wanna go there) he just let it be. He wasnt jealous or angry, just sort of went on his business

I give them a pass when it's done in good fun - as in genuinely going "I'm just gonna have this happen because I like the drama". I also excuse it when Aang is given actual reason to feel insecure/like he's losing the girl he liked to someone else (remember, he only took the Ember Island stuff to heart because he had assumed he and Katara would get together after their kiss during the invasion, while during the Jet and Haru things he did not seem to believe he'd have a chance with Katara either way so he wasn't really losing anything).

What I cannot stand is the "This is totally what would happen in canon" or worse "This is exactly the same as that scene in which Aang wants to sit next to Katara, but Zuko won't let him because he' wants her too/is trying to protect her from Aang"

My guy. My dude. My pal. Aang was not really mad at Zuko on that scene. He wasn't happy about not sitting next to his crush, or about the play forcing to ackowledge his anxiety that the reason he and Katara are not together yet is because she doesn't think of him that way - but he doesn't take it out on Zuko. Hell, when he confronts Katara about it, he asks if it's true that she thinks of him as a little brother, not if it's true she's into Zuko because he knows that part isn't true.

As for the idea that Zuko either felt he needed to "protect Katara from Aang" or was into her, and that's why he doesn't give up his seat to Aang, we need to remember that this is ZUKO we're talking about here.

The guy who saw the same girl coming to his uncle's tea shop repeatedly and assumed "She must know we're Fire Nation is planning to take us down by ordering tea!" before he went "Maybe she's into me, or just likes the tea."

The guy who shouted "SHE'S NOT MY GIRLFRIEND!" in the middle of his date because he felt awkward about acknowledging he liked a girl, and didn't even register she could take it as him not enjoying their date. The guy who interrupted their kiss at the end of said date because he just had to give her a freaking cupon.

The guy who saw Suki trying to sneak into her boyfriend's tent, in the middle of the night, and acting all sus when she was caught and then went to talk to Sokka without having a damn clue that he interrupted their romantic night until he saw Sokka with a rose on his mouth, practically telling Suki to draw him like one of her frenc-I mean Kyoshi girls.

The guy that is related to miss "That's a sharp outfit, Chan"

That boy cannot read the room to save his life. When he told Aang "Just sit somewhere else, what's the big deal?" it wasn't him being passive-aggressive, or possessive, or jealous, or trying to do literally anything. He just didn't realize that Aang wanted to sit there because it was the seat next to Katara's. Hell, he probably didn't even know about Aang's crush on her.

#anti zutara

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iwritenarrativesandstuff · 7 months

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started watching the new live action avatar

it’s. It’s pretty ok I guess? But there’s a lot of things I’m not altogether happy about. It feels very. Generic. Which is kind of sad.

I’m only two episodes in though, so I won’t be too harsh. But there are a few things that I really don’t like, and number one was Aang going into the Avatar State in front of Sokka and Katara for the first time when seeing Monk Gyatso instead of when escaping Zuko, and that moment being isolated instead of the moment everyone in the world knew the Avatar had returned

in the original series, Aang goes into the Avatar State when confronted by irrefutable proof in the form of the skeleton of his best friend and mentor - the airbenders really were massacred and he can no longer deny it.

every statue of the Avatar around the globe lights up in a single moment. the legendary figure’s destined return is announced to the world by an overwhelming outpouring of grief and rage from a young child who just discovered that everyone he ever knew and loved is gone. it’s poignant. the Avatar’s return in that moment is not a triumph. that terrifying show of strength and power, enough to light up the world in its glow, is pure emotional anguish from a small twelve year old, who just saw the dead body of his mentor and now believes he is all alone

and Katara and Sokka having seen the Avatar State before means that there is less of the shock and “what is happening” in this pivotal scene (which was the main focus in the live action). of course Sokka is still concerned about them potentially getting flung off the mountain. but both of them know this reaction for what it is - mysterious power, sure, but primarily, they see and recognize his grief.

I just. what happened to “we’re your family now” and “neither of us are gonna let anything happen to you”??? :(

on a side note, I do feel like Katara and Sokka themselves have been heavily (heh) watered down. it’s a shame. Sokka’s my favourite, and I just think that I. Don’t trust writers with Katara now. (Why is her waterbending a secret? The whole reason she didn’t learn was because there was no one to teach her and she couldn’t leave… also where is her instant connection with Aang… where is their silliness… where did it go…)

however! I did like a couple things that were done and I want to be a bit positive so here

love Zuko and Suki’s actors. they did a great job

Sokka and Suki’s training together was cute ☺️ (though I wish he had worn the uniform of the Kyoshi Warriors…)

Aang himself is adorable :) (wish he got to be a little more silly but Netflix adaptations always are more serious for some reason)

I actually kind of enjoyed getting to see some of the scenes from the war’s outbreak. I prefer the way the original show portrays it, with a lot of info being learned reverse chronologically, but it was cool to see Sozin, and some of the airbenders, and a little more of Gyatso (who I also really enjoyed :’) )

Katara bending water at Aang and it reducing to them splashing each other without even trying to bend. Rare sillies!

I thought Kyoshi herself coming to defend her island was pretty sweet!!!

Katara getting flashbacks to her mother’s death on seeing firebending. Well I don’t like this, obviously, but it clearly shows how her mother’s death haunts her, and if they have Katara face off against Zuko again at the North Pole, it’ll be all the more triumphant.

Suki’s mom!!! Damn she was so cool!!!!!!

#also whyyy was Katara not the first person Aang saw??? this is really important!!!#and what is Katara’s role here. She didn’t even seem to break the iceberg. That’s. That’s her whole. That’s. She. She kickstarts it. Gah.#Katara my beloved my sweetie I don’t know why your writing got fucked up in the comics and now here #you deserve so much better #also why no Aang and Zuko confrontation? hello? that’s really important???#they had him meet Iroh though. so that was actually pretty interesting #no agni kai between Zhao and Zuko either? maybe it’ll happen next episode?#ugh. I actually don’t like a lot of things. But I’ve only watched two episode so I’ll be chill and wait for more #storyrambles #atla #also this is just me being nitpicky but if we were going to actually see gyatso’s death (which. Idk it was more impactful not seeing it tbh #there’s this implication that gyatso may have broken his vow of pacifism since his skeleton was surrounded by tons of fire nation soldiers #implying he may have killed them #it wouldn’t have fit or made sense at the beginning of the show #but if they were going to show his death scene. Idk. Guess I just expected something more substantial #personally from what little we knew of Gyatso it actually does seem likely he’d break his vow if he really did die protecting the children #also. he was supposed to be the strongest airbender at the time. come on now. he just gets roasted?

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bard-llama · 6 months

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WiP Friday: Scene from To Weave a Tangled Web

So, the premise of this story is essentially that Zukaang are together post-canon and they're working with Kuei to try to repair the world and Aang has the brilliant idea of uniting the Fire Nation and the Earth Kingdom by having Zuko and Kuei get married. Problem is, he's currently dating Zuko and failed to actually talk to him about what that could mean. So now we get Aang talking to the Gaang after getting kicked out by Zuko, who is rather understandably upset.

Aang was panicking. He knew he was panicking, but he didn’t know how to stop.

“What happened?” Katara asked immediately, coming to his side the moment he stepped into their room.

Aang sniffled, not quite able to manage speech.

Toph frowned, forehead creasing. “You weren’t able to talk?”

He shook his head, trying to hold back tears. He didn’t know how to fix this. He didn’t know how to get Zuko back.

But he had to! He didn’t want to lose Zuko!

But he had and he needed to figure out how to repair things, or – or – what would he do if Zuko never forgave him? What would he do without Zuko at his side?

Nose running, he sniffed hard and managed to say, “he kicked me out.”

“What? Why?” Suki asked, face scrunching in confusion. “What happened?”

Aang’s eyes welled up with tears again and he rubbed his face, unable to answer.

Toph sighed heavily, but though she sounded put upon, her expression was concerned. “Zuko’s upset because Aang told him to marry Kuei without explaining what that meant for them.”

“Oh.” Sokka blinked. “Wait, you didn’t talk to him about it!?”

“I didn’t think to!” Aang defended. “I forgot monogamy was a thing!” His friends stared at him and he ducked his head, face red. Hugging himself he added, “I know I messed up. But how do I fix it!? He won’t talk to me!”

“Well, what did he say?” Katara asked softly, putting a hand on his shoulder.

“He thinks – he thinks I want him to be a ‘side piece’,” he quoted. “What does that even mean!?” It certainly didn’t sound like a good thing.

“Seriously?” Sokka asked, sounding surprised.

“It’s – you know,” Suki tried to answer, “um, it’s like when someone – has someone on the side.”

“The side of what?”

“Of their main squeeze,” Toph filled in.

Aang frowned. “What do you mean ‘main’? Relationships don’t fall into a hierarchy.”

“...maybe not for Air Nomads,” Toph acknowledged, “but for the other nations? Yeah, they totally do.”

“Really?” Aang blinked. “But – but what does that mean?”

Toph’s mouth twisted as she searched for words. “In the Earth Kingdom, it’s pretty common for powerful men to have wives – their ‘main squeeze’ – and also to have a mistress on the side. I’d imagine something similar happens in the Fire Nation, though they hide it better. But we’re both – both nations have hereditary inheritance.”

“What?” Aang was not alone in asking.

“Like – like when my parents die, as their child, I would inherit everything. Likewise, Zuko’s family is royal, and so because he is part of that bloodline, he was able to inherit the throne. So for us, it matters who your ‘main’ person is, because that’s who gets inheritance rights. But you guys aren’t like that.”

Aang shook his head, as did Katara and Sokka.

“I mean, it’s not that we don’t have inheritance,” Katara clarified. “But we define things by family, not by blood.”

“How’s that different?” Suki asked.

“You can have family that’s not related to you by blood,” Sokka pointed out. “Like all of us.”

“Hmm,” Suki nodded in consideration. “Kyoshi Island is more like the Earth Kingdom, but um. Kind of reversed? It’s – it’s more common for women to have others on the side, because there’s more of us.”

“Huh,” Sokka said. “How did none of us ever talk about this sooner?”

“Because you’re all idiots,” Toph said.

“Hey, you never brought it up either!”

“I’m exempt from idiot status,” Toph sniffed haughtily and Aang couldn’t help but giggle, though it petered out quickly.

“What do I do?” he asked. “How – how do I make him see?”

“Well,” Katara chewed on her lip. “Maybe start by trying to express what you want and how it’s different from what he thinks.”

“I just want to be with him,” Aang said, rubbing his eyes. “I – I thought marrying Kuei was a good idea, but not if it means losing him!”

“It doesn’t have to be all or nothing,” Sokka said. “I mean, multiple people can be together at the same time.”

“I know!” Aang huffed in frustration. “Air Nomads – we don’t believe in possessions. We don’t have inheritance. We’re – we’re all about freedom. About – about what you choose. That’s what family is – the people you choose to have in your life.”

“Huh,” Toph clicked her tongue. “You guys are more family than my parents ever were.”

“Exactly!” Aang said. “What does blood matter? Your values and what you choose are more important. That’s what ties people together.”

“So what does that mean for romance?” Katara asked. “In – in the Southern Water Tribes… it’s not uncommon for someone to have more than one partner. But they’re all equals. Like – like Mom and Dad and Bato. They were always together but no one comes ‘first’, you know?”

Toph’s brow furrowed. “But if you call one ‘Dad’ and one ‘Bato’... doesn’t that kind of imply that Dad comes first?”

“Why?” Katara asked, surprised.

“Well, like… who would you inherit from? Your Dad or Bato?”

Katara shared a look with her brother. “Both of them? We’re a family. A unit. Everything we own is shared.”

“Okay, but a family has a lot of different relationships in it. But like… there’s still one that comes first romantically, right?”

“...no?”

“Why is there a hierarchy?” Aang asked. “All relationships serve a purpose in your life. All love is different, but none of it is lesser.”

“I mean… you put some people first, don’t you?”

“Yeah, but that comes back to family. You guys are my family, of course I put you first. But it’s not like Zuko’s well-being is more important than any of yours. You’re all my family.”

“Hmm,” Toph hummed. “So in your mind, what does a relationship between you and Zuko and Zuko and Kuei look like?”

“Like… normal?” Aang shrugged, slightly helpless. “It’s like – it’s like having friends! No one would say that because Katara is my friend, then obviously Sokka can’t be! So why would you do that with romance!? Everyone loves multiple people! It would be super unhealthy otherwise!”

“...what?”

Aang bit his lip, trying to figure out how to explain. “Sokka, you love Suki, yeah? But you also love Katara and me and Toph and everyone. So why is that different?”

“Yeah, but I’m only romantic with Suki,” Sokka pointed out. “Also, Katara’s my sister.”

“Every relationship is different,” Aang agreed. “Not just the difference between romantic and platonic, but like – like, all our friendships are different! You have a different dynamic with Zuko than I have, just like me and Katara have a different relationship than you and Katara.”

Sokka’s mouth twisted as he thought on that. “I mean… it’s still kinda different? Like – like romance is… you know… romance!”

“But who decides if something is romantic or platonic?” Aang asked. “Why is it that when I hold hands with you, it’s platonic, but when I hold hands with Zuko, it’s romantic?”

“Uh…”

“It’s ‘cause we decide! Every relationship has a different dynamic and only the people involved can define it. There’s no behavior that’s inherently romantic or inherently platonic.”

“What about kissing?” Toph asked.

“Didn’t your parents ever kiss you?”

“Oh. Huh. Yeah, I guess.”

“But what about sex?” Sokka asked. “I mean…”

“People have sex without being romantically involved,” Aang pointed out. “And sexual attraction and romantic attraction don’t always align. Like, who you want to have sex with is not necessarily who you want to build a family with, right?”

“Hmm,” Suki hummed. “Yeah, I guess that makes sense. But so what does that mean?”

“Well, I guess it raises the question,” Katara said, “what do you want your relationship with Zuko to be? What does he want? It sounds like you two need to talk about that.”

“Yeah, but he won’t talk to me!” Aang said, biting his lip in distress.

“Breathe, Twinkletoes,” Toph said, poking him. “We’ll help you talk to Zuko. But you gotta figure out what you wanna say, because you’re gonna need to be as clear as possible.”

“I just – I just wanna be with him,” Aang whispered. “I thought the marriage was a good idea, but not if it means losing him!”

#atla #polyamory #zukaang #zuko x aang #zuko x kuei #wip wednesday

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