#avatar the last

[my-cabbages-gorl]

Mercy and Lightning- tiny lil zukaang ficlet by @my-cabbages-gorl

General Audiences, hurt/comfort, zukaang

inspired by this post from @that-boomerang-guy

~

Sun-warmed moisture wrapped its relentless arms around their weary bodies. The damp air clung to their skin, even on the shaded side of the courtyard. With only a few days until the comet, they were bone-tired from training; body and spirit. 

“I’m sorry- I need a break. We’ve been at this for hours,” Aang huffed between breaths. He turned his back to walk toward the steps to sit down. The sight of pinkish boiled flesh in the center of his back stabbed Zuko with an uncomfortable urgency. Before Aang could take his next step, he felt a hand close tightly around his wrist. “Zuko, wh--”  

“You need to master this technique,” the command of his teaching voice faded, replaced now only with pleading. “Please, Aang. We don’t have much time for rest.”  

“Even if you think I’m ready,” he didn’t pull his wrist from Zuko's grasp as he looked up into his golden eyes, “how can we be sure I can do it if we don’t even have lightning to redirect?” he sounded exhausted, “Is there any way to make sure that I can do it? That I don’t- ” his voice pitched in exasperation before his gaze fell to the stone floor.     Die, again? Is what he wanted to say. But, he couldn’t ask that. Not to the person who watched his limp body convulsing with electricity, gasping for his last breath. The same person who sent an assassin to make sure he stayed dead.  

In the way Aang’s wrist slumped in Zuko’s hand, he could feel the memory washing over him; as if it was flowing into his skin with every heartbeat fluttering in the veins under his fingertips. He wanted to wrap Aang in his arms, promise he’d protect him; that he’d do everything in his power to keep him safe; beg him to master this because he couldn’t afford to lose him, the only person who showed him mercy and believed in who he really was. He wanted to crush his palms against Aang’s jaw, drag him close and say next time, I’ll kill for you; next time, I’ll die for you. 

Instead, he said, “I should have stopped her, but I didn’t,” their hands still tethering them together.  

Aang turned to face him, the stern set of his narrowed eyes meeting Zuko’s. “But, you didn’t,” he tilted his face away, seeing a dragonfly-hummingbird flitting between the trees lining the courtyard. As he noticed the scales of it’s wings glinting in the sunlight, Zuko watched the lines of his face soften.  

“Aang, I’m so, so-” his grip slackening as he spoke. 

“Zuko, it’s...” okay? But, it wasn’t. Not yet, at least. But somehow, somewhere between the feeling of Zuko's fingers on his wrist and the tenderness in his amber eyes, Aang knew it would be okay. He shook his head, the corner of his mouth lifting from a frown into a hard line. “Let’s go over the forms again," their eyes locking with a nod, "sifu.” 

Breaking apart, they bowed to one another in the hallowed air. Their feet slid across the sun-warmed stone as they assumed fighting positions. As the hours wore on, Aang watched in silence as Zuko shifted, mirroring his body with his own. When the sun had sagged down behind the horizon, Aang lit a fire so he could keep following Zuko's movements in the fading light. They moved together through their stances into the night; dancing to the charged, mysterious harmony of death and rebirth.

~

[zuko-always-lies]

Please put your rationale in the tags.

[assiraphales]

genuinely one of the worst things that’s happened to television in the last few years (exacerbated by streaming services) is death of Filler. going from 20 episodes to 8 because “we didn’t really need that episode where the main characters went to the beach right? it had no long lasting effect” but we DID!!! we needed to see how they act without the Big Bad Plot and to establish the dynamics between the characters and lay in the sun (do they forget sunscreen? how do they react to a thieving seagull? do they get buried in the sand or do they do the burying?). the plot isn’t everything. the action doesn’t hit as hard without the quiet moments. give us character development and our little scenes back

[mostly-funnytwittertweets]

[animentality]

[the-overanalyst]

it's always so fascinating and heartbreaking when a character in a story is simultaneously idolized and abused. a chosen prophet destined for martyrdom. a child prodigy forced to grow up too fast. a powerful warrior raised as nothing but a weapon. there's just something so uniquely messed up about singing someone's praises whilst destroying them.

[io-lu-art]

A tale of Ba Sing Se.

[bendgineer]

[mashithamel]

Pardon me as I enter my ATLA phase…

[hellowsallow]

my father is the worst man alive and i am his favorite daughter

[sylvleon]

watching atla for the first time

[eerna]

I love her bad temper and mean words <3<3 rip every spinoff and adaptation but I'm different

[aangarchy]

Alright now this pissed me off

What do you MEAN you're going to remove one of the most important aspects of Sokka's character arc in the first season? What do you MEAN you're going to remove Sokka unlearning misogyny, accepting change and embracing his role as a fighter and protector of the Avatar in order to end the war? What do you MEAN???

[locuas642]

The thing about Katara is that she was angry.

She was angry that the Fire Nation killed her mother.

She was angry that her father left them.

She was angry that she was the only Waterbender left in the south pole.

She was angry that the only person her age was her brother, who constantly disregarded her interests and her role in the tribe.

She was angry that what little waterbending she knew, had to be self-taught and how she struggled with that.

she was angry that a twelve year old instantly picked up what had taken her a long time to learn.

she was also angry that her tribe wanted to kick that twelve year old into the wilderness over a mistake.

she was angry over the earth-benders the fire nation had captured and put into a metal box.

she was angry.

And she knew she was angry.

Because she knew her own anger, she was the first to empathize with Aang when he got angry.

And it was because of it she could tell Aang forcing himself to lock his emotions up was not the answer.

Because she knew her own anger, she kept herself under control in the dessert, when everyone else was a mess.

Her anger empowered her. where anger was a tool of self-destruction for firebenders, for her it was what helped her push forward.

It was her anger that freed Aang.

It was her anger that helped her stand to Pakku.

Her anger was her strenght.

She was angry. And this was neither a mistake, nor a writing flaw.

[we-are-all-nobodies18]

Damn right we're gonna get blueberry slushy .

[animentality]