#but also are more equals than zuko and aang being both the same age and the same power level

[moodlemcdoodle]

Read some Dark/Chaos Avatar Zuko AU fics a while back and those AUs are VERY GOOD but then I had a brain blast so. Dark/Chaos Avatar Toph AU

[sokkastyles]

I knew there was discourse again about Katara being reduced to only a healer in LOK because I got harassed by multiple people on an old post for daring to say that Katara can be a compassionate healer and also love fighting, and that the only reason she "changed" in LOK is because that's what we expect of women once they reach a certain age (which is also why teenagers on tumblr think women should lose all their interests after thirty), but I do want to address something I saw yesterday, a question posed by the "aren't you being sexist for expecting more of this female character" crowd, which was "did Katara love fighting, or did she love bending?"

With the obvious implication that she loved healing just as much as she loved fighting, if not more since she apparently doesn't fight at all once she becomes a mother, and not only is this claim demonstrably not true, but here's the thing about that:

Katara loves bending, she loves learning to bend, she clearly loves the competition, she loves taking pride in bending as a skill and being recognized for her accomplishments. And I would argue that she would find equal joy in learning new healing techniques and being able to show how good she is at it IF using bending to heal were EVER presented that way by the show.

Part of the problem is that the depiction of healing is inconsistent. It's introduced to us as a rare ability that is innate rather than learned. Katara did not have to get any instruction to know it or become better at it, the way she does with using her bending to fight. In its introduction scene it is associated with "the great benders" but then when we get to the North we learn that healing is treated as a lesser art, and women are actively taught to only focus their bending on healing. You can chalk this up to a sexist society, but the problem is that the show itself doesn't do anything to challenge this view of healing.

Katara snubs the healing huts but unlike with combat bending, she doesn't need to learn anything to be a great healer. Her healing is enhanced by the spirit water but even without it, she's able to bring Zuko back from the brink of death without developing this skill at all.

Healing bending SHOULD require skill. It should be an ability that requires study and practice just like anything else, and in the real world, healing is just as much of an art as fighting. But the show doesn't portray it this way, ever.

That's why it comes across as condescending when LOK does not allow Katara to fight, when they tell us she's the greatest healer in the world but don't treat healing like it's something she needed to develop. Even when she uses healing in LOK, as @fireladykatara pointed out, it's only as a plot point to show us how bad an injury is that even Katara can't heal it. This isn't just a problem with LOK itself, which is why the argument that Katara isn't a main character there also rings false. It has to do with the way healing is treated in both series.

So I'm sorry, but the accusation that people who take issue with this depiction don't value healing as an art rings false primarily because the show doesn't value it as an art. This is a consistent problem with the way female characters are often depicted in media. It's reducing the character because the things we are told she is known for are informed abilities that don't seem to require any skill to learn, even when they should. People get mad about Katara not getting a statue because of the same issue. Katara in ATLA is someone who would have been THRILLED to have a statue. LOK tells us that women should be content to not be recognized for their talents, despite that being the norm in our society, and the talents they do have are so often treated as innate feminine abilities. It takes work to be a healer! It takes work to be a mother! It's not just something that comes naturally, although our society thinks it does. Women are historically devalued by society no matter what they choose and Katara not getting a statue despite a large part of her character revolving around fighting to be recognized as just as capable as the boys is just another reflection of that.

That's also why many people write fic about Katara incorporating bloodbending into healing, because it is a skill that Katara was required to learn through hard work. I love fics where Katara uses her bloodbending knowledge to hone her healing abilities, because they focus on it as a skill rather than an innate quality, something that Katara can take pride in. If Katara was going to outlaw bloodbending, the law should have been against using it as a weapon or without consent, because that's where the problem with it lies.

And like many people have also said, it's not just that Katara is relegated to stereotypically feminine or informed abilities, it's that even within that sphere she is not allowed to be relevant where she rightfully should have been. She could have easily been shown at Yakone's trial, even if she was only standing there in one shot. She wasn't there not because she "changed" but because it literally did not occur to the writers that she should be anywhere other than at home keeping house. It's not that being a stay at home mother is bad, it's that writers get mysteriously, suddenly uncreative when it comes to writing women, even if those same women are allowed to challenge the status quo as little girls. The assumption is that they will eventually grow out of it because that's what is expected of women in our society.

And if this were really about fans just being sexist by not valuing healing enough, then why is it that Aang never is shown learning waterbending healing? Why is healing so important for Katara - more important than the combat moves she spent all of ATLA mastering - but not good enough for the Avatar to even try to learn? If you want a character who never wanted to use bending to fight, look no further than Aang. But the show NEVER suggests that this is something Aang should learn, and it's because the writers coded it as a feminine trait and simultaneously did not think it was important enough. I doubt it even occurred to them. So no, don’t come at fans for pointing out the double standards here.

Of course Katara doesn't hate healing, her whole deal was wanting a choice, but If ATLA were a modern show and we saw Katara tell Pakku she didn't want to heal, she wanted to fight - without LOK reassuring us that Katara grew up to become a good little housewife - some of y'all would be screaming about "internalized misogyny" because that's what pop faux feminism wants you to think about women who challenge the status quo.

[ara-line]

I think I realized something here

I’m currently rewatching Batman: The Animated Series and now that I’m on The New Batman Adventures, I’ve realized that having Bruce and Barbara be together romantically is a lot like having Katara and Aang be together in ATLA.

 1. POWER DYNAMICS. Katara is sort of a mother figure to Aang throughout ATLA. For this reason she’s less likely to call him out on his bullshit, like keeping the map to their father in season one for example. Bruce and Barbara have a different dynamic, but there’s still a power imbalance. The BTAS canon suggests Bruce knew Barbara since she was a teenager due to his friendship with her father, and when we first meet Barbara in the show proper, she’s in university while Bruce is in his mid to late thirties. These two factors alone mean Barbara is less likely to call Bruce out when he’s cold and dickish to the people around him. It gets worse when you take into account she dated his adopted son Dick before him. 

2. MALE FANTASY. Katara and Aang is pretty much the male fantasy of a junior high school boy ending up with an older girl who is light years ahead of him in development and therefore, has to baby him throughout their romantic relationship. Bruce and Barbara is the male fantasy of an older man having a younger woman who lacks the life and romantic experience to see that they’re in different places in life and be able to properly assert herself in the relationship.

3. BOTH KATARA AND BARBARA HAVE BETTER ALTERNATIVES IF THEY MUST BE IN A ROMANTIC RELATIONSHIP. Katara could be with Zuko, who she’s on equal footing with. She’s able to banter with Zuko in a way she can’t with Aang, and she can speak her mind with him too. She’s able to have a life outside of him in the form of her being a powerful waterbender and being involved in Fire Nation-Water Tribe diplomacy. This allows for a much healthier relationship and it lets Katara grow as a character. 

The same thing applies to Barbara as well. If she has to be in a romantic relationship with someone, why not Dick? At most, there’s probably a couple of years in age difference between them, and much like with Katara and Zuko, both can banter with each other in a way neither can with Aang and Bruce. Barbara can get more room to grow if she’s with Dick than she could if she were to be with Bruce simply because both of them are in the same place in life.

4. AND FOR SOME REASON, THE CREATORS OF BOTH SERIES SEEM TO HATE THE BETTER ALTERNATIVE. With the ATLA comics, you have Zuko ruling the Fire Nation on his own and dealing with the pro Ozai faction while going through Mai’s bullshit and having Azula to help heal. Zuko also ends having Aang promise to kill him if he ever turns out like Ozai and there’s a whole bunch of other stuff I don’t remember but he basically goes through all of this with no support from his friends OR Iroh.  

Meanwhile, in the Batman Beyond comics, there’s this whole subplot with Bruce getting Barbara pregnant shortly before Dick comes back in town and all so that’s why Dick and Bruce never reconcile. Like dude, Bruce Timm, why do you hate Dick that much? And Barbara too? What did they do to you? If you wanted to convince the audience that Bruce and Dick never reconcile, wouldn’t it be better if Bruce simply drove everyone away after the Joker kidnapped Tim? It would at least make more sense.

So yeah. That’s it for this post. Even when I first B:TAS as a ten year old, the whole Bruce-Barbara romantic relationship bothered me. It’s just now that I’ve watched both ATLA and BTAS, I’ve sort of seen some parallels between these two pairings. Funny, isn’t it. When a show is as good as these two, it makes the flaws all the more apparent in comparison to an average show. 

[fire-lady-ilah]

I would be fascinated in any ideas you had about how the hunt for Aang would go with 'good parent Ozai' AU!

Ask and ye shall receive! (@tiktokonaclock, here’s that part two you asked about). This continues from where I left off in part 1.

At first, Ozai says no. He has good reason to do so, Zuko is the Crown Prince, should he and Azula die then he will be heirless— he doesn’t know if Ursa would be able to bear another child, nor does he wish for another. In a less logical way, his mind protests because that is his son. Sixteen, yes, but still very much a child. That isn’t even the age of conscription.

He knows that the Avatar is a child, Commander Zhao’s report said that he appeared to be twelve, travelling with two other children that were closer to Azula’s age. He knows that his children make a formidable pair, he has no doubt that, together, they could be able to take on entire battalions of soldiers.

They are his children and they are Ursa’s children. How could he just let them go out to face an enemy such as the Avatar?

Zuko has Ozai’s charisma and awkwardness (as they come together, though few remember the way the Fire Lord used to stumble over his words as a teenager). Zuko looks so much like his father that sometimes older servants even refer to him by his name. But Zuko is equal parts his mother. He has his mother’s kinder nature, and he has her drive. Ursa’s persistence is one of the only reasons the Fire Nation is flourishing as it is now. Ozai knows that it had been suffering near the end of his father’s rule, he knows that he is an amazing military leader, just as he knows that it is better to leave his wife in charge of the majority of domestic policies.

It is that persistence combined with Azula’s carefully crafted wording that she also got from her mother that makes both Ozai and Ursa cave and give permission for their children to hunt the Avatar. Sometimes, Ozai wonders if his life would be easier if he didn’t love his family so much.

Zuko and Azula leave the Fire Nation together. Zuko is sixteen and looks the very image of a Crown Prince, even if a few hairs escape his top knot and fall across his face. Azula is fourteen and looks every bit the Princess she is. A single hair escapes it’s place and she leaves it be. She would not dare call attention to imperfections, just as Ozai himself wouldn’t. He is full of pride as he watches his children board the ship (the second newest design, as advanced as possible while having already been tested. He would not let untested technology take his children from him permanently). Captain Jee stands on the deck, greeting them. Apparently he had been demoted from his position at some point for assaulting an Admiral.

(He remembers the day he discovered the Captain’s existence well. Zuko had been eleven and helping him look over military documentation that had been sent to him to approve. One of such documents had been Jee’s demotion to lieutenant.

“I remember him. He was Lu Ten’s friend.” He heard his son mumble as he touched the included portrait of Jee. Closer examination showed that it had been drawn by his nephew himself. His son had loved his cousin, and he was not against doing things to make him happy. If Jee was loyal to Lu Ten, it only meant he would be more likely to be loyal to Zuko.

“I will have him transferred to the palace guard.”)

He proved to be honourable in the guard and had quickly been promoted back to captain after Ozai heard the true reasoning of the assault through Zuko’s horrified voice. He himself cared little for the affairs of military officers, but if it made his son happy to sign the papers for the Admiral’s dishonourable discharge and imprisonment, so be it.

That action had only solidified Jee’s loyalty to his son (and by extension, his daughter).

Now, I’m conflicted on whether or not Iroh would go with them. I’m leaning toward yes. Neither of them have been hurt by their father, but Zuko is still the most naturally kindhearted person in the royal family and he is destined to be Fire Lord. Azula has more empathy than she does in canon (although that’s not saying much), I doubt Iroh would comment that she’s “crazy and needs to go down”. After all, Ozai loves both his children here. That means that he doesn’t intentionally harm their mental health, nor does he encourage competition between them. They both want to make both their parents proud. If nothing else, Iroh would go with them so that he could stop them.

Thus, shortly after the Crown Prince and Princess of the Fire Nation step onto the ship, the Dragon of the West follows. It is filled with the best of the Fire Nation to seek the only bender of all four elements.

A stark contrast to canon, no?

The hunt progresses somewhat like in canon, though not. Lo and Li instruct further Zuko and Azula in lightning bending.

(“Only a hair out of place, Princess Azula.”

“That means I shall achieve perfection soon.”)

Iroh takes over his nephew and niece’s firebending training, though Azula is a master in her own right and Zuko is nearly a master as well. He forces them back to their basics.

Zuko yells and stomps and Iroh is reminded of his brother at the same age, back before his brother became the monster he is now. The same brother he sees glimpses of when Ozai is alone with his wife and children, the same brother that he sees none of in the Fire Lord. Azula is silent and moves to do her basics without complaint. She unnerves him, but he still loves her.

He loves them both. And he loves what remains of his brother in Ozai, even if he would choose the balance of the world over the Fire Lord in an instant.

They visit Admiral Zhao first. He declares that he has already captured the Avatar and that he would be more than willing to transfer his prisoner onto the royal family’s better equipped ship.

The siblings visit the chained Avatar. Zhao speaks of what he plans to do.

That is the thing about Ozai loving his children. Loving them means protecting them from certain cruelties, at least more than he did in canon. Zuko and Azula both see the Avatar, only twelve, and Zhao’s words overlap with Azulon’s orders to their father when Lu Ten dies. After all, Zuko had been only a year younger then.

That night, the Blue Spirit and the Dragon Emperor break the Avatar out of the stronghold with dual dao and twin daggers as the Prince and Princess sleep in their luxurious cabins. If that isn’t completely the truth, no one says anything to suggest as such. The Blue Spirit is knocked out by an arrow to the forehead. The Dragon Emperor does not allow the Avatar to remove the mask.

(“How did you not see that coming, Zuzu?”

“In my defence, you were supposed to be watching my back while I pulled the Avatar away.”)

They meet the Avatar’s companions briefly before the Emperor gestures to the rising sun and they disappear.

It is only after the escape of the Avatar that Iroh begins to consider the siblings further.

They pen a letter to their father.

Ozai reads between the lines and wonders, just once, if perhaps he had sheltered his children from the reality of war too much. He does not wonder again because he knows the alternative would have been far worse.

Instead, Ozai speaks with his wife. Ursa is a complex woman, but the Avatar is the reincarnation of her grandfather and she has an actress’s mind (and thus she has a politician’s mind).

As their children chase the Avatar, the Fire Lord and Lady put their own plan into motion. Canon Ozai may be content to lay all responsibility on his children, but this Ozai is actually a decent dad.

The siblings are free to enter Fire Nation territory as they wish and have no reason to sneak into the temple, even still they do. They watch as a Fire Sage, one of the highest religious authorities in the Fire Nation, disobeys the Fire Lord to help the Avatar.

Zuko’s quick fingers undo the water tribe boy’s restraints as Azula’s undo the girl’s. They share playful smirks, after all, neither of them are in any danger. They are a powerful team and they have their father’s unwavering support.

(“Why did you just untie us?”

“Zhao’s a dick.”)

Avatar Roku emerges in place of Avatar Aang. He pauses in front of the children, the girl that has Rina’s smile, the boy that has her hair (his own hair), always trying to escape from its confines.

They do not waver. They do, however, run when the Avatar begins to destroy the temple.

The siblings believe the Fire Nation is the greatest in the world. They believe that it is their duty to spread their glory to the other nations. But, late at night, taking tea together, they consider that perhaps Fire Lord Sozin went about it in the wrong way.

(Great-grandfather says hi, Ursa reads aloud from their children’s letter. Not for the first time, Ozai regrets sending his children on such a dangerous mission. He knew that Avatar Roku had been spotted on Crescent Island, he knew that he had blown up the temple. How close had his children come to being blown up?)

The Avatar sets course for Omashu. The siblings make a stop in the Fire Nation while they’re nearby. They have a friend to pick up.

Parts: [1] [3] [4]

[parcai]

do you have any thoughts about toph? maybe her backstory, running away, bending, relationships with the gaang, idk anything toph?

having her call a perhaps more "feminine" boy (even tho he's literally not lol) twinkle toes was certainly a...choice 💀

making her aang's age was really fun + a good choice imo. it's just fun to see her be one of the better teachers for aang (imo at least) and also just straight up be a metal bending crazy prodigy 😭 entertainment off the charts in that sense.

i also think making her 12 was smart bc i think we should have more female characters that are immature and act like kids are just straight up stupid and stubborn at times 🤩😭 ik you've seen me talk abt this a lot, but i'm sick and tired of the female characters being written into mom-like roles and being serious and wise and girlboss when women aren't inherently more mature than men or nonbinary friends but are rather just forced to take that role to babysit the male protags. which is. gross and boring lol. so YEAH man!!! toph doing stupid shit that'd piss me off if i was there too, fuck yes!!! she's 12 let her BE twelve holy shit 😭💔

speaking if gender, i like that she's not stereotypically feminine OR masculine. 🤔 in fact i like that abt the whole show in general, but toph is def one of the handful that it esp. stands out in. she has little kid crushes on both zuko and sokka LMFAO (which like yeah i think most kids in her position would feel the same) but then she also goes and beats up people in arenas and encourages violence ndhdkdhsk and wears dresses and speaks all properly and then probably cusses (except it's nickelodeon but those r the vibes u feel?) and feels insecure abt appearances idk bro u know what i mean

her backstory is fun to me also bc i think it's super relatable for the intended demographic and even the older demographic that continues to enjoy it after their childhood. that whole idea of not having autonomy over your life resonates w a wide range of people, and her using defiance and pushing away from restraining environments is an important counterpart to sokka/katara who were shoved into responsibility and are super close w their families. (in general atla does an EXCELLENT job w making points from pure juxtaposition). while sokka/katara/others teach that family is important, toph reminds of the importance of trusting yourself first as well and knowing your own limits. i think that's an often underrated and overlooked concept, esp. in children's media.

i'm not physically disabled obviously but i've seen people talk about how it's a good starting place for expanding rep in that particular minority and i can see why. there is little belittling and babying off disability alone and i imagine that's super empowering. plus her connection w the earth is just straight up cool, even without the blindness, and her sense of humor is MDHDKSHSKSJK her + sokka = peak jesting at all times. her making blind jokes just really makes her whole personality 10x better 💀

i LOVE that she's one of the more nuanced characters, ESP. in the gaang (besides aang and before zuko joined). like TRUE earth in the elements and in horoscopes and religions and whatever else, right and wrong are always interlaced and to be the best you have to operate in shades of grey. toph making a case for zuko and then also for iroh, toph unafraid to criticize ignorance in the gaang, toph hailing from the rigid earth kingdom and understanding that cruelty is not always indicated on the surface, toph KNOWING that she rubs people the wrong way by hating and loving everyone equally. fucking legend behavior. fuck them up my dude!! 😤💖 put them in their place!

obsessed w seeing her interact w either aang or katara at all times. those were her best gaang relationships hands down

[autisticzukka]

what is this hakoda zuko arranged marriage you speak of? i am intrigued

okay so the long story short is that it’s a slight rebuttal of a popular post that is very fun but i find like... unrealistic in a really intriguing way like, how would this ACTUALLY play out. I’ve talked about it at length in my server a few times, and it’s one of those AU’s -- like the genderbend zukka ATLA rewrite or the zukki fic that starts with sokka failing to assassinate zuko -- that lives rent free in my head and I’ve written a couple thousand words for.

tw for like VERY unrequited zuko in love with hakoda and the inherent comedy of sokka being in love with his fire nation stepmom.

so here’s hakoda, chief of the southern water tribe, happily not-married to Bato. and here is a more balanced war, where the north and the south are actually  allies, rather than whatever the fuck they were in ATLA. Yue already has a fiance and the Northern chief refuses to remarry. that leaves hakoda responsible for biting the bullet and doing a political marriage even though, as he points out at length, he is an elected official and if he stops being elected it’s no longer a marriage with the chief of the south pole. intelligently but mostly selfishly motivated (yue’s fiance is his nephew, after all) pakku points out that its not like the fire nation knows... that. the fire nation is dumb. ozai’s stupid.

faced with such inarguable points hakoda stiffens his upper lip, pre-emptively ends things with bato on the understanding that if this is another kya situation they’ll get back together and that he’s still the most important person to him but the tribe comes first yada yada, and deals with katara throwing the mother of all tantrums. it is slightly softened by the fact that in return for him marrying the fire nation noble, a thing everyone can agree isn’t traditional, the north has finally agreed to train katara. she heads out before the wedding, in protest but also so as to not cause an international incident.

(on her way, she’ll find aang. with the war less dire, katara will be sympathetic towards his desire to live without committing violence, even if she deeply can’t relate. they’ll have a hot girl romcom summer of self discovery and coming to terms with the dichotomy between duty and love as they become master benders. at some point they pick up toph. they ARE a throuple.)

sokka meanwhile is like.. not cool with it.. but ? kind of relieved? like. he’s the eldest kid. he’s 18, and he’s been a man of the tribe as far as legalities for several years. it would have been entirely understandable if his dad had asked HIM to do it. he had his emotionally crushing romance with yue, and as much as he was like ‘im kind of a prince’, he finds he doesn’t actually want some of the responsibilities and demands that would bring. yue’s life sucks.

back in the fire nation, zuko never demanded a quest and never went on it. he’s spent years hardening into something that, while brittle, can survive the pressures of the court around him. he still has his scar. he still wants his father to love him, but he knows by now that it’s not something he’s capable of earning. he watches his sister, never the most stable person, start to have complete breakdowns of sanity once she hits puberty, and helps her cover for it and receive medical treatment on the down low. he’s the heir, but he lives knowing that if he was ever in a position to inherit his choices are to abdicate or have the baby sister who he raised kill him and destroy herself and the country in the process.

when he realizes the plan is to marry azula off rather than someone more reasonable-- mai is RIGHT there, for fucks sake-- he doesn’t realize ozai’s true intent is to fuck this up through malicious compliance and false shows of good faith. he panics, and does the zuko thing: he blurts out that this is unacceptable and immoral and she’s only 16 and Ozai sees the true opportunity for two birds with one stone. send zuko, let him piss someone off so badly he gets killed or divorced, and he gets rid of zuko from the line of succession permanently. there are those who are incredibly attached to teh idea of a firstborn for firelord, and it’s been a constant thorn in unpopular ozai’s side to nto be able to name azula his heir apparent without costly rebellion. but if he can taint him in the mind of the fire nation so much that birthright is easy to supercede-- yeah. this’ll work PERFECTLY.

so zuko is sent to marry hakoda, chief of the water tribe.

literally NO ONE was expecting it to be a member of Ozai’s immediate family. besides the fact that his oldest child is half hakoda’s age and his brother has 20 years on hakoda, it would have been sus as fuck - the treaty is not favorable enough to grant that kind of secession of interests. it becomes quickly apparent that this young man -- hakoda reminds himself of that repeatedly. not kid. not kid. young man. don’t think of him like a kid, it’s hard enough on both of us already. -- is not a horrible threat. he’s scared shitless and shakes with what he thinks is bravado. he’s desperate to make the marriage work. he’s desperate to not go home. he’s got a giant fucking scar on his face from where the fire lord punished him for some grievous but unstated offense.

zuko “daddy issues” fire nation sees his husband to be and, despite being scared shitless, immediately begins to soften a little. like... he’s not nearly as scary as he thought he’d be. his face can be stern, but it just as easily breaks into huge smiles, and his eyes are crinkled with laughter. he’s incredibly handsome. and his biceps are. his biceps. are. his hands are...

like. zuko thinks. okay. maybe. maybe his marriage duties. won’t be so horrible as he thought. maybe he’s ready for this. and he knows what to expect, Uncle had discreetly provided him the means and the contacts to acquire an intimate education in the whirlwind of activity that was the two months before leaving. and like, once he’d gotten past the nerves, it was often even... good? or at least... not bad? he thinks that even if hakoda isn’t a professional expert, he has a certain.... je ne sais quoi, if you will.

((DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF))

sokka sees his new stepfather and immediately falls in love because he’s that kind of dumb bitch. (the core of this au is that i cant breathe thinking about sokka falling in love with his hot young stepmom his age who his dad doesnt even want to fuck. like. i CANT. sokka masturbates to ‘hand caught in the washing tub’ fantasies which are even more absurd for requiring zuko to be DOING LAUNDRY. i find it so funny.)

bato watches them at the wedding feast while hakoda is very clearly trying to treat zuko as an Equal Adult Partner and mostly managing to seem like someone having a serious conversation with a seven year old about the game they’ve made up. zuko is clearly enamored with it, soaking up the attention, blushing and doing his best to Bravely Flirt, which at one point includes awkwardly attempting to feed Hakoda by hand. bato has to excuse himself to have a teary eyed giggle, hoping that Kya is in the spirit world looking down and laughing with him. he can’t resent the kid even a little bit, when hakoda is sitting there looking so incredibly fucking befuddled as to what he’s supposed to do with this star struck infant he’s legally wed to

anyways all of this... is very funny. their wedding night... is less so. zuko does not take the rejection from hakoda very well, especially because he’d been caught wanting. HE’S the one who should be rejecting hakoda. and he catastrophizes almost immediately about his potential value to the water tribe, his future treatment, that endless inescapable freezing cold loneliness is the good ending for him here... hakoda, meanwhile, drops zuko off at his home, reassuringly informs him that there’s NOTHING else expected of him and he will be well taken care of, and books it to bato’s. bato refuses to let him in on grounds of ‘you can’t sleep under the same shelter as me on your wedding night to that kid, have a fucking brain’, and he ends up crashing at sokka’s.

sokka, who had KNOWN that his dad wouldnt, but also upon seeing zuko and zuko’s awkward flirting was like... but how COULDNT he???? sokka is relieved.

the core of this fic is that i find it endlessly hilarious for zuko to try and seduce his husband while sokka simps around zuko and bato tries to be heartbroken or betrayed but mostly ends up with a giant case of hysterical schadenfreude. but the thing that CLINCHED it for me, like THE scene. several years after being married, settled into their life. they’re partners and they see each other as people. and zuko just fucking snaps one night

he just kisses him, desperate and clawing and climbing and maybe a little drunk. he knows hakoda is going to push him away, maybe even hit him, but he doesn’t care anymore, he doesn’t care. he can do anything he wants to him as long as he just-- finally does something. zuko is 21 and married to the surface of the sun and the surface of the sun jr is his best friend and clearly in love with him-- so clearly not even zuko can miss it-- and like. listen. listen. zuko is not a patient person. but he’s been patient for this. he waited and he matured and he is a fucking amazing husband and he wants this, he wants him. he wants to be wanted.

but hakoda doesn’t push him away. hakoda doesnt yell at him, or hit him. hakoda gentles the kiss into something soft and closed lipped. he pulls away slowly, and his eyes are so sad for zuko, so pitying. he strokes his cheek with the back of his hand so gently. he says, I’m sorry. I don’t want you.

and zuko daddy issues fire nation swallows

and he nods

and he leaves, even though its his own fucking house

and he knows he’s never going to be good enough

like FUUUCK i am OBSESSED WITH THAT

[scarilydark]

ATLA Modern Au HCs

Aang

appa in this world is a giant shaggy dog, probably a mastiff

aang seems like the type to ride a skateboard, and also wear beanies, that type, he likes taking appa on walks (or well, runs) while riding, and still somehow never manages to fall

Aang is also the type to play a bunch of sports, not exactly competitive, but he just loves having fun, absolutely seems like the type to just be chilling one moment, and then get the ZoomiesTM the next, you know?

Katara

surfer chick, and very good (and competitive)

she seems like the type to be really interested in zodiac signs, you know? like i have absolutely no idea what any of it means, but i feel like she'd definetly know all her friends signs and whatever,

she's interested in nursing, but also takes karate lessons, and not just any regular defense classes, like, the brutal shit.

sokka

was absolutely a fuckboy, then suki broke his jaw, and it was basically night and day (basically just like the show)

it is absolutely not safe to roast him or his friends, he will fucking destroy you, and like, in seconds too (thank god he has strong friends, his tongue has written him some goddamn checks let me tell you)

he is way smarter than he appears, like, you'd be talking to him in lunch, or see him around, and have those expectations of what he's like in class, but no, he's much smarter than he let's on, and usually does really good in class (do NOT ask him to tutor you, though, he seems like he'd be bad at that, Katara is the safer bet)

toph

still blind, still like, a teenager, still an actual professional wrestler. like, seriously, i'm not joking here, she does moonsaults and german suplexs 30 year old men who weight 200 pounds, and you can't stop her.

goes to a public school even though like, her family has a wikipedia page dedicated to them, like she's Rich rich. but low-key about it cause she doesn't give a damn about any of that type of money, she had her documents forged in advanced so the staff and students didn't know who she was (she refuses to wear shoes, the school tried to make her, she wrote them a 500k check and told them to fuck off, the obliged)

for a blind girl, she likes really, really loud music, head thumping heavy metal music, she still somehow hears people when they call for her while she has her earbuds in, nobody knows how, she's like, a goddamn cryptid.

zuko

another Rich rich kid, also pretty chill about it, he also goes to a public school, not out of him rebelling, though, but cause his dad didn't bother to sign him up into any private school, it was azula who rebelled against daddy dearest and went to school with him (i like the idea of zuko and azula actually being like, close, ok?)

fiercely protective of his friends and sister, he has gotten into the Most fights in the school (and several known creeps, along with the weird science teacher, got attacked by a person in a blue demon mask, all ending up in the hospital, said teacher got fired for being...too close with some female students)

he's also skilled in like, tons of shit, he's taken kickboxing, played soccer, knows how to play a guitar, and still for some reasons tells everyone he meets that azula is the smart one.

Azula

she is, EVERYWHERE, smartest girl in the school, the best grades, in basically any and every club, head cheerleader, all of it.

to be clear, in this Au, azula isn't like, That different, she's still snarky, has a silver tongue that cuts like a knife if she wants, can probably kill you (and would) in most ways, and the smartest person in basically any given room, but she's also like, human, and something was different enough in their childhood which made azula realize that "maybe dad is wrong, and i should stick by zuko" and it's done wonders for her, despite their fathers displeasure (she is planning on killing him once she's 16 though, like, honest to god, has a google doc for it and everything, so i mean, the more things change)

she secretly is obsessed with pokemon, the only other person who knows is zuko.

every single one of them is Bi, or at least, very Very comfortable with their sexuality. like, sokka and azula seem very much like the types to lounge about, and cuddle with literally anyone. they also basically flirt with anyone, sokka and zuko have kissed several times, and like, they aren't romantically interested in each-other, it's very much "this is my husband sokka, this is his husband zuko" type situation. aang is the type of person who was like out of the closet at birth like, he never even considered liking boys and girls at the same time wasn't an option. azula and katara also founded their schools LGBTQ+ club, and anyone who tried to stop it's formation, or get it banned, got lit on fire.

there's other characters i wanna do, but can't think of anything for them yet,

ship wise, i'm feeling pretty feral, sokka is probably gonna be with suki (and get pegged) i'm feeling like katara would get a girlfriend in this particular au, who she'd be with idk yet. i'd also pair up toph and aang, but, zuko and azula, is what's troubling me, cause, i could pair azula with katara, i do like that ship, and i could do something interesting, like maybe pair zuko with someone strange like jet, or ty lee, since mai honestly kinda bores me, but i'm feeling...kinda zucest, here? like, i know, I Know. but, azula is the type who doesn't exactly understand right or wrong, and doesn't really get what society may feel as taboo, that's why her sexuality is so clear to her, and she's not afraid to be open about it, so like, she loves her brother, you know? this does not seem like something that'd be unusual for the character. my problem here is, what does this mean for zuko, especially when he learns of these feelings? well, from a very early age, they've relied on each other, dad basically disowned zuko, and mom was convinced azula was the devil, so when they needed comfort, they went to each other, once they realized they're being played against each other, and that's been the story since basically childhood onto high school, she's the one who tutors him if he falls behind on any subject, he's the one who helps her make more friends, even if he himself can be anti-social, they're both equally protective, if i was gonna go the Safe route, i'd say he should turn her down, and they'd have a stronger relationship cause of it, But... the devil on my shoulder is telling me he wouldn't be as against it as he should be, that it's more in character than i'd like to admit. and, while, obviously, the elephant in the room is still prevalent, i can't just, ignore what seems like the natural progression of these two characters given the situation i've put them in,

(please god don't kill me for this, i don't normally ship taboo ships like this, i literally just can't think of a way where i can pair them with anyone in this particular Au)

[catie-does-things]

I can't fully commit to shipping Zutara, but your meta has definitely changed my tune on Zutara vs Kataang. Out of genuine curiosity however, say you were on the writing team and had to go along with making kataang canon, what would you have done to help rewrite the ship to make it better (I know you say that Katara doesn't get much out of their relationship, so what would she get out of the relationship?) (You can point me to a fic if that you've written about this already elsewhere).

To be honest, if I really could change anything at all, the very first thing I would do would probably be to make Aang and Katara the same age - either by making Aang older or Katara younger, but preferably the former. 12 and 14 is just an extremely awkward gap in maturity. I suppose if you wanted to keep the age difference but bump them both up a year or two that could also solve this problem. Or make them both 13. Whatever.

But more than just their actual ages, they would need to be written as emotional equals. When Katara mentions her mother’s death in The Southern Air Temple, for example, Aang should take more notice of this and make an explicit show of sympathy, rather than being solely focused on his own hopes for what he’ll find at the air temple the way he is in the actual episode. There are tons of opportunities for little tweaks like this throughout the show, and it wouldn’t have to be done every single time, but basically we would need to see Aang expressing understanding and emotional support for Katara in the same way she does for him.

To look at one more example, in The Serpent’s Pass, we see Aang still struggling with losing Appa and emotionally withdrawing from the rest of the group because of it. Katara notices this and is concerned about him, especially when Aang rejects her attempts to comfort him. This is resolved following the birth of the refugee couple’s baby, after which Aang says:

I thought I was trying to be strong. But really I was just running away from my feelings. Seeing this family together, so full of happiness and love, it's reminded me how I feel about Appa ... and how I feel about you.

And then they hug it out. It’s a sweet scene. But it’s all about Aang and Aang’s feelings, and it didn’t have to be that way. Aang could have also said something to the effect that he realized the strain his emotional distance put on Katara, and that it was unfair to her. This would have validated Katara’s feelings as well as his own, and shifted the focus away from being only about him.

Of course, if you’ve read my meta on The Southern Raiders, I talked a lot in that post about how Aang’s attempts to offer Katara moral guidance and emotional support in this episode came off as really immature and ineffective. This episode would probably need the most in-depth re-write to “fix Kataang”, but off the top of my head some things I’d change: Get rid of Aang’s initially dismissive attitude towards Katara’s desire to confront her mother’s killer, make his attempt at empathy focus more on the genocide of the Air Nomads and less on losing Appa, cut the false equivocation between Katara and Jet, have Aang present the concept of forgiveness in more nuanced terms, and maybe even have Aang go with Katara and Zuko to create more opportunities for him to offer her the emotional support that, in the episode as is, she’s only getting from Zuko.

And then I did briefly suggest a tweak to The Ember Island Players in this meta post. Basically, use the concept of the characters reviewing their past adventures to push Katara closer to realizing her own feelings for Aang - though she can still have reservations about the timing - instead of making her seem more confused than ever. And yeah, if we want this to be a fairly straightforward romance arc where they can just kiss at the end of the finale and that’s a satisfying resolution, then we should cut the entire balcony scene between Aang and Katara in this episode so as not to complicate things unnecessarily.

(If we do keep the balcony scene, then we need to make room for a follow up on it at some point where Aang apologizes for not respecting Katara’s boundaries.)

I could list a bunch of other little things I’d change (for example, in The Fortune Teller, have Katara make the connection that Aang is a powerful bender on her own, rather than because Sokka points it out), but none of them individually would make or break the ship. The general guiding principle is that Katara’s feelings need to be given the same narrative weight as Aang’s, which means they need to be more upfront, and Aang needs to be more supportive overall.

That is of course a lot of changes. If I had to “fix Kataang” by making just one change, it would probably be to cut the problematic scene in The Ember Island Players, which would still leave us with a one-sided narrative of the relationship, but at least one that didn’t undermine itself at the eleventh hour for no reason. In my personal opinion, however, while either approach to “Kataang done right” would be better than what we got, both would still fall short of the narrative strength and dramatic impact of Zuko and Katara’s relationship exactly as it was in canon, so there would still probably be a huge number of Zutara shippers.

[half-a-hetero]

ATLA BATTLE OF THE BANDS AU SETUP PT. 1

oK SO I’VE HAD THIS AU IN MY HEAD FOR TWO FKN DAYS AND I HAVE COME TO EVER SO GRACIOUSLY INJECT IT INTO YOUR MIND- THE GAANG PLUS YUE AND THE FIRE NATION GALS IN BANDS. a battle of the bands au. tHINK OF THE aRt. n i’m thinking zukka and yueki, and they meet at battle of the bands but yk...we got 2 sets of pining idiots yk yk. i thought this up five (5) days ago and iM DYING 

(tw: mentions of canon-typical abuse, and past death)

this is basically just the setup but i’ll add little tidbits and worldbuilding and art later

zuko (18): drums + backup vocals

mai (16): bass guitar

ty lee (15): keyboard

azula (15): lead guitar + vocals

suki (17/18): rhythm guitar

they do some group vocals/harmonies but not that often

so like azula has this really strong, really powerful voice, and that means she could do really moving rock ballads/power ballads, and etc etc. she took extensive guitar and voice lessons as a kid because of That Fucker Ozai™ and thats why she has so much control. same with zuko, except he didnt take voice lessons (he just liked singing) and quit guitar after ozai went to jail (it was a painful reminder of The Shit He Went Through) and took up drums to let out his anger and frustrations instead. Azula stuck with guitar because it was something she loved to do, despite her past.

where azula has a bold voice, zuko has a raspy-yet-smooth-at-the-same-time one that matches azula’s really well. while she’s off singing power notes, hes singing the lower, raspier undertones and it sounds really nice.

zuko also took up art classes and is genuinely proud of his work.

he’s secretly (its not that much of a secret) an art nerd

zuko, azula, and suki wrote a few songs together, kinda

for lack of better explanation, ozai was (canon-typically) abusive, and he got drunk one day and got mad at zuko and pushed him. zuko fell into the fireplace, and boom. scar.

azula got mainly mental trauma because zuko would take the blow for her, but she got therapy and theyre both for the most part better (there are still some relapses)

azula’s secretly a DC nerd

zUkO wEaRs riNgs 

the canon-typical atla “ozai pitting them against eachother sibling rivalry” comes into play through guitar (hence why zuko drops it. he wanted to let his sister have something she loved for herself. also, he didnt like it). ozai was a classical guitarist and famous [the money and the “royalty” canon aspects]

should i….mullet zuko?

aro azula and toph >>>>

ty lee is still from the circus, except this time mai was there too, which is where she learned knife-throwing. they both ran away from the circus summer after freshman year and met azula though mai’s bass lessons (alternatively, they met at martial arts classes). theyre 14/15. they moved in with azula, zuko, and iroh around the middle of sophomore year (grade 10) when ozai was arrested. the azula and ty lee were 15, mai was 16, and zuko was 17 at the time, around the ages they were in the show when the war ended (i think??)

azula said it didn't matter cause they had a huge house. she says it was half-empty, anyways, but mai and ty lee know that meant she liked their company.

they get along really well with suki

everyone realizes they can all play instruments, the core parts of a [rock] band. they start playing together, and eventually decide to become a band

their band is called ‘the kyoshi warriors’ (or something idk this is off the top of my head) in honor of the girls’ martial arts instructor, master kyoshi, who passed away

WAIT SJITGHHFSD FAN THE FLAMES IS A GOOD NAME TOO WHAT (although i can see that being more of a song name) credits to boom ( @boomerangsandadora) for that (go check out their ideas on this au)

theyre inseparable

together, mai, ty lee, suki, azula and zuko look fucking menacing. just imagine that. fucking bamfs

mai skateboards. just. this is a kind of important plot device. shh.

suki joins their friend group gradually. first, she’s attended azula’s martial arts class since they were in second grade, and moved up the belts like wildfire (along with azula). she tried to befriend azula a few times, but gave up over the years because azula wasnt interested in friendship (no thanks to ozai pressuring her to always be first. azula saw her as a rival, suki saw azula as a particularly competitive classmate and but equal in skill). She was zuko’s classmate since freshman year (grade 9) but only became his friend in sophomore year through a literature assignment the two were paired up in. she was really his only friend, cause everyone was too busy sizing up his scar. the two became inseparable then on.

she plays rhythm guitar because she loves guitar but agrees that azula is better at being in the (relative) spotlight

on the outside, suki and zuko looked tough, but underneath that, they’re two bumbling, pining gay idiots

suki’s parents both died in a fire, so she grew up with her “cool gay aunt” who was also a feminist and a mixed martial arts instructor.

suki spends her time teaching the beginner classes at the dojo

she met azula + the girls thru martial arts and zuko

overall thingies:

even though zuko is oblivious to sokka’s reciprocate feelings, no one else is. mai, azula, and ty le are just like “zuko wtf you’re more blind than toph”

he thinks the rest of his friends dont know about his crush bu he forgets who his sister is. honestly. all he talks about is sokka, it isnt hard.

unlike a lot of other bands, they actually have more complicated and interesting bass riffs, and a lot of times when writing songs they start with bass and build up from there

azula and toph get along becaus theyre the only sensible ones around. all their friends are pining idiots and they bond over their mutual superiority 🪄🧃🧃

mai skateboards at the same skatepark as sokka and aang. she’s long since past trying to teach zuko (he’s an uncoordinated gay mess) (who can somehow still play drums ??what???)but once she sees him agree to learn to skate from sokka she knows what’s up

suki’s birthday is during th time this fic happens, and she invites yue to the party (she tells zuko he has to invite sokka because even though she loves her bestie, he really is dumb)

“hey yue, we’re having a little get-together for my birthday, and i was wondering if you wanted to come?” compare to zuko’s “uh—hey sokka? i, um. suki’s birthday is pretty soon, and, well. we’re having a get-together to celebrate? and i—she asked me to invite someone? andifyoudontwannagothatstotallyfineimsorryforbotheringyou-” (includes much stammering and heavy blushing)

on the outside suki’s all calm (someone has to be the “i’m a mess but i dont look it” friend🙄🙄. honestly)but on the inside she’s like

“oh my gOD is that dyed hair hOLY FUcK thats so badass and she pLAYS BASS TOo that’s hOt”

“WAITWHATTHEFUCKISSHESPEAKINGTOME- ?? she’s laughing now she’s gORGEOUS- ThE giGGLEs i CANt bREatHE-”

“hOLY mOtHEr of kYosHi sHe’s wEAriNG lEsbiAn riNgS sHIT and her voice is so nice too fUCK i think i’m in love-”

[notasiren21]

I was having a debate with a Kataang shipper, and eventually we came to differing viewpoints on emotional im/maturity that the two years could do between Kataang and Zutara.

And then, how their lives impacted them in terms of growth and maturing too.

And then I came to the realization of this (and sorry, this is long):

There’s this paved pathway Aang had that Zuko never did, just some pointless goal that was meant to forever keep him exiled and with only an uncle to watch him as he lived in anger and regret

Idk, to me, Aang had this destiny that he had to focus on and get to, a part of him matured for it, but he desperately clung to his freedom, which in turn, stifled his emotional maturity. In a way, it’s like Sokka, but even Sokka had what Aang never seemed to acquire in a sense.

Zuko was robbed of that by ozai, Zuko believed in being good and was naturally a good person by heart (as expressed in scenes with his mother, comparisons with Azula, etc) and he tried to save the lives of several by speaking out against the sacrifice of new troops just to win something.

His mother had left them (essentially him as Azula came to distance herself and become more like her father), he wore the weight of realization that Azula was considered superior against him, he bore the crippling thought that he was going to have to spend his life trying to earn his father’s approval, he lived the weight of his father snatching the role of Fire lord from his uncle, the knowledge that it was wrong as he heard Azula talk ill of iroh and ozai bash him to earn the title, and then how he was expendable to his father.

Aang lived among people who he loved and in turn, loved or adored him back, and tragically, he lost his friends to his role as the avatar, but he always had Bumi and the some of the monks (especially one) and Appa.

Zuko had a scar that engraved the idea that he was nothing but a failure, damaged him into thinking his ideals and morals were wrong when they were what was needed, that he shouldn’t have been born and was lucky enough to even be alive in a sense.

Zuko lost his briefly earned pathway to be the next Fire lord. He was sent on a destination to find the avatar who wasn’t considered a last saving grace or sliver of hope, to never be found again.

To a degree? He knew it was in vain to search for him, but he had nothing else to do but try.

Because not finding him secured his role as a failure, it let him lose to Azula, it didn’t really avenge his uncle, it didn’t secure his right to live if he was basically exiled.

And to another degree, he knew his father abandoned him. But that meant he would have to settle in the knowledge that both his parents left him orphaned in a sense.

He operated under the care, guidance and love of his uncle. The only support in his life. The only one who truly cared for him enough to stay by his side.

He was surrounded by soldiers on ship who didn’t respect him. He was mocked everywhere he went as much as he was feared (something he didn’t want to begin with before the Agni Kai), and he had no home.

I feel like that, especially occurring at the age of 13 I believe, more than forced a few aspects of him to grow up and mature. Enough to acknowledge when he was in the wrong without someone telling him, enough to know when to fix his mistakes or make up for them, enough to realize who was really there for them and who he could be vulnerable with.

To some level, I think he and Katara were on the same wavelength because she witnessed her mother die to save her, she had a huge responsibility in her tribe, she was of an important figure of birth and considered royal, she was practically playing mother to several, and the last water bender to live in the tribe but wasn’t allowed to really brush up on it.

Being with Aang and Sokka, then eventually toph, I think it also aged her to the point where the gap between her and Zuko in ages didn’t matter, it was like it taxed them both enough that they both had what the other was missing.

My mother and I had this debate that I think can apply to this:

“What’s worse, to wake up after being cryogenically frozen after 200 years and see the world new/different but you still be the same as before?

Or wake up after like x amount of years from a coma, and have your childhood robbed from you because you’ve aged and everyone else around you has and moved on?”

We eventually settled on, well they both suck, but seeing the reality of what your life once was is especially crippling. And we settled on the coma one

To me, Aang was just cryogenically frozen.

The world he knew died and a new one began in a sense. Everyone he knew and cared for was dead. His temple was gone and his people.

But he didn’t really have to see reminders of it because it was just history and the past. It was essential, beyond the storyline, for him to be frozen for so long because he didn’t have his old life to look back on and hinder him, all he could do was press forwards because he can’t go back and regret if nothing is there. Seeing the temple? It’s like a relic now, not what he once knew. It’s not as he left it. It’s something else now standing in its place. It’s just now, what is.

Beyond the whole weird avatar mojo stuff, he’s living with no reminders. It’s kinda more, benefiting in a sense? He can move on, he doesn’t have guilt to face him everyday.

Zuko, he was the coma scenario.

He lived his life thinking good of the world and people, and then it’s like what life was really like was revealed to him. And then he just got hit by a truck out of nowhere (consider the metaphorical coma inducing truck an Agni Kai with his father) and everything just kinda, paused for a long while.

Mother is gone, father disowned him, sister couldn’t care less if he was dead like dear daddy, and there’s kinda no point now?

He’s living in this rage induced haze that he’s sorta, disconnected from who he once was. He’s broken and suspended in time of heart ache and self loathing.

Iroh is standing by his bedside and talking to his unconscious state, and the words are going in, but there’s no point because he can’t take them in and process them.

He’s shut down.

And then, it’s like meeting Katara in the cave, it sorta wakes him up for a second, grants a miracle and shows him there’s something outside of the pitch black he’s been seeing for so long.

And then the past comes back in the form of Azula, and false promises and the offering of restoration to what once was now takes over and he falls back unconscious and no one can get through to him again.

Eventually, when the realization hits that he can’t go back, he wakes up

But Zuko now lives with seeing his past everywhere around him. He’s got the knowledge that he’s aged and he needs to accept it and adapt.

He lives with the constant reminders because they’re still fresh, they didn’t go away, and they’re crippling as ever.

That’s why I believe that in a way, Zuko aged and matured enough to be capable of Katara’s affections and love more than Aang. That he could be her equal. Because he’s living with reminders, while Aang is living in an air of ignorance and bliss to a sense because it’s just history, everything has aged or been rebuilt that it’s not the same world he once knew. He’s got a new lease on life

And Zuko has some physical therapy to do. He’s got muscles he needs to strengthen just to walk again in the form of finding his true good nature and being the future Fire lord his people needs. Being the son that wants to take down his father and sister.

Zuko is still young, he still has room to grow and learn more, but Katara has kinda already established herself in a sense and aged more than she should have playing mother and voice of reason at times, even if she has more to learn too.

And I think they’re on almost equal wavelengths to better understand each other and be a supportive life partner together.

[vomara]

I saw your posts about Katara and the general treatment of female characters in the new ATLA fandom and what i wanna know is, why is it like this now? You know usually i'd say if there's misogyny in a fandom is because the show itself has big problems with it. But ATLA is like, the complete opposite of that? It's a very good show in terms of equality between female and male characters. And it was out there pushing that over a decade ago.

Like who's coming into this show full of great women and going "I only care about the boys and the girls are annoying"? Methinks these people are far too accustumed to shows and fandom where male characters and male focus are the norm, and they come into this show and start perpetuating the same, but this is to me at least almost entirily the fandom's fault. Cause the show isn't out there purposely ignoring or giving bad dialogue and arcs to the women in it. (2/2)

yeah, i agree. there's a very clear and longstanding male-centric bias in fandom in general, and atla is no exception, and yes, it really isn't well-supported by canon, which has plenty of well-developed female characters. atla fandom isn't the WORST i've been in, but the fandom focus has... shifted very male-centric nowadays in a way that wasn't always so prominent. while i'm not gonna say that it was a fantastic thing, before about 2015, there was a little bubble of more female-centric fanwork in the fandom -- mostly concerning azula, but other characters, too. (again, i don't think that it was a fantastic thing, given the fact that a lot of azula fanwork tends to ignore fundamental aspects of her, but it was there, and it existed.) now what? the fandom is predominantly z*ukka, with lingering remnants from a thriving z*utara fandom.

in general, i don't blame fandom for zuko being a fan-favorite -- he was practically designed that way. dramatic and attractive, with one of the most visible character arcs in the series. for other characters, you actually have to pay attention to see how they learn and change; for zuko, you don't have to pay much attention at all. but exempting him, the two most developed characters are aang and katara, both of whom get glossed over in fandom, particularly 2020 fandom. since katara is the main female, let's look at her.

why is she so disrespected in fandom? i think we can start by examining the largest pairings. the z*utara fandom goes all the way back to the airing of the show itself. it's a genuinely compelling dynamic and i like it, but the fandom repels me deeply... because katara is often forced into a position where she has to perform emotional labor in order to force zuko to redeem himself. her character often loses spark, and she sometimes becomes passive in way that's not canon. not to mention there's a whole subset of z*utara tropes that feels very... colonialist. and being a brown girl, fitting her into these more passive, colonized molds is... uh, not a good look on the fans. but i digress. at least she's there and present.

now flash forward to post-2015, but especially 2020, z*ukka fandom. (this fandom existed prior, but was much more lowkey.) the one thing about a lot of mlm pairings in practically every fandom, is how fans can choose to exclude the females of the narrative. this is in no way a disparagement of gay shipping -- but it is a criticism of how those same shippers behave to other characters. other characters, especially females, become accessories to their main ship, and because of that, they often become flat and unidimensional. furthermore, z*ukka had a rival ship in z*utara, so establishing a sense of superiority comes down to proving that sokka is somehow better than katara in some form or another. and how? she's homophobic, she's whiny, she's a "mom", she's "straight" (???) ... or maybe they call her badass and assign her no other traits. maybe they even pair her off with another person to get her out of the way, so they can focus on their mlm pairing, which they justify as more important because it's "progressive shipping". essentially, unlike z*utara, z*ukka stans can very conveniently throw katara out the window. she doesn't need to be present, and so often times, she isn't.

it's just all part of this continued shafting of brown girls in fandom. the fandom CONSISTENTLY loves to hate katara, specifically because she talks about her trauma so much. (which is justified as hell! she lost her mother and then became a mother to the rest of her village at a young age, and she uses this trauma to help her empathize with others!) zuko's out here monologuing about his trauma, and everyone loves him, but this same love doesn't extend to katara. it's irksome to say in the least. sokka, who's of the same race, gets a lot more attention, and that really says a lot about how gender plays into fan-following, because he isn't quite as developed as she is.

there are other girls in the fandom with notable followings, but honestly it would take forever going through each one of them step by step. azula is the most significant in fandom, and that's partially because her character development is strong and visible in the way that zuko's is. also, people have a tendency towards enjoying more unstable females, but that's its own thing. overall, though, even she has been long outstripped by the fan-following of the main mlm ship in fandom. there's no way to compete with that.

and really, that's all it is. this recent misogyny is very much a result of this almost cultish shift towards one particular ship in fandom, an mlm ship that very obviously allows for the exclusion of female characters. once you become a superfan and enwrapped in this type of cultish shipping, you no longer need canon, you no longer need the rest of the cast, and you no longer need female characters, and so you can just enter into a nice little echo chamber where you talk about the same two characters over and over again and get completely disconnected from the original material. and that sucks, because often times, it's the canon context and the complexity of other characters that provide complexity to these characters you're discussing, and now that you've disconnected, you've warped and flattened the dynamic of everyone including those favorite characters into something very generic and boring. and that's a travesty! but, well, i suppose it’s just another byproduct of misogyny.

[kikiscastleinthesky]

THE SOKKASM ZUTARA

I’ve seen a lot of tumblr blogs that ship zutara and I decided that is time for me to open mine too. So, yes, I’m a zutara shipper. And for the time being, my posts are going to be dedicated principally to analyze the ships in ATLA. 

Disclaimer alert:  I’m not forcing anyone to ship zutara. And I won’t accept hate because I (and many others) may have a different opinion, If you are one of those persons I invite you to leave, don’t waste my time and yours, because I’m not even going to reply. Everyone has the right to ship whatever they like and want, without been mocked, harrassed and humiliated. 

Well... now that everything is settled: 3...2...1 go!

I’m starting with this small analysis, because every zutara shipper has been attacked on why zutara and zutara is horrible yada yada but, this ocassion I’m gonna use all the attacks we get and defend it. 

I. Zutara is way the worst toxic relationship:

You call Zuko the abuser, the toxic and the bad tempered? Then you     didn’t get a clue of his redemption arc.

You call zutara toxic for:

a)     giving your mother’s closure and final acceptance into the group?

b)     saving each other’s life?

c)     being the “leading co-parenting” of the group?

d)     support you when you’re about to beg for his uncle forgiveness?

II. The cave scene didn’t mean anything, and just think about it, they would never ever get along well:•      

  Of course, I misunderstood Zuko confessing his own grief, probably he just hates her.

When Katara opens to her mother sorrow like she never did with anyone was like no big deal.

 That part when she offers to heal his scar with SACRED water was totally illogical.

And being the first person who he let touch his scar really said to me that they were absolutely toxic.

 Yes, he betrayed her initial trust. And it hurt, but guess who betrayed worst? The man who for three years was his father. But nope, Iroh, should never forgive Zuko, for what he did. (Right? Katara was betrayed and she should bever have interest in him, so Iroh would never forgive his abuser, right?)

III. Zutara is about getting in love with your abuser:

The abuser love? When did Zuko abused Katara? When did he forced to do something she didn’t want? Did he ever physically abused her or sexually assaulted her? Even if he tied her to a tree, he never humiliated her, he never hurt her or overpass against her. Or are you trying to make up his whole plot to eliminate all his attacks towards team avatar only rest in the female character? (Have you forgot how he betrayed his uncle? Or even himself?)

IV. Zutara is an age gap, it would be underage thing. “You don’t like Aang because he is a child and still pair Zuko, being a minor.” You want to hypersexualize two kids (Aang and Katara) into having sexual interest.

Katara would have been dating an underage guy too. She would have been 18 and Aang 16. I know! Age gap only matter when the man’s older. Both Katara and Zuko had gone through puberty, and both were in adolescence, both shared the same maturity level. Yes dude, there a huge difference in being a CHILD and being a TEENAGER, yes, still minor, But with puberty hit already.

Actually, I still believe even being 11-12 you can get like a… spark… a hint. Even if its not a relationship whatsoever, and not having sexual interest of any kind. If you really want to see what closest we get to a “real” attraction and potential between kiddos that age, you get S1Mike and Eleven (stranger things) / you get Chihiro and Haku (Spirited away) / you get Pazu and Sheeta. (The castle in the sky) –Wooo, that really changes things right?

But yet there are people that believe shipping zutara is “pedophile” I thought in seriously not replying to this stupidities but, here I am, dismantling their theories.

So, this is real life. An adult person trying to sleep with a prepubescent kid. So… there is no support on this. Because a ship is about two fictional characters in a fictional story.

What about fictional pedophilia? Well, we can change that: Fictional pedophilia is a psychosexual disorder when you ship an adult fictional character (+18) to have a sexual interest in a fictional prepubescent child (-12) and / or attempt to engage both characters in sexual acts.

So step one… are either Zuko or Katara either an adult or prepubescent child? As you can see in the image at the right, both have gone through puberty. Step two, are you trying to a couple of minors to get sexually involved? No, this is a love story, not porn. And before you yell at me for the porn zutara comics/fics on the web, I guess you should see the porn Kataang /fics comics on the web too.

But I don’t hate any ship. So, technically, neither Kataang, nor Sukka, nor Yukka, nor Jetara, nor Maiko is pedophilia.

Ok, yeah yeah its not pedo, but is statutory rape, so yet it’s illegal.

Oh yes, if we state that 18 is the age where you are considered an adult (at least in my country) both are minors, your term is partially correct. But guess what would be statutory rape too?

Sukka (15) and Maiko (16-17), both implied to have sex relationships and canon during the series.

The episode "The Southern Raiders" became (in)famous among the fandom for what is a truly epic instance of this trope. Zuko bumps into a very flustered Suki on the way to Sokka's tent, and she hurriedly excuses herself. He walks into Sokka's tent to ask him a question and finds him pants-less and surrounded by flowers and candles. He even greets Zuko with a suggestive "Well helloooo..." before he realizes who itis. After a short talk, he rushes Zuko out and sticks his head out to call for Suki. And if there was any doubt, Sokka is shown the next morning fiddling with a flower necklace for no apparent reason... except to indicate that maybe Suki had been “deflowered”.

And yet, if Kataang had sex, it would be statutory sex at some point too: 16 and 18 -Conclusions: Statutory sex takes all ships equally.

V. Poor Aang he would be devastated.

Kid, he’s 12, in the comics he’s 13-14. Or what? Haven’t you guys had a broken heart ever? Your high school sweetie? Or Aang’s so frail to not be able to find love? To close himself for a better opportunity? Seeking your own happiness in not selfish. What is selfish is seeking your own happiness at the other expenses.

And even that, we all know what would Aang do if Katara starts a relationship with Zuko. (Even if it wasn’t Zuko, I highly doubt he would like Katara dating someone else) He would go on avatar rampage. That is NOT healthy, that is NOT romantic. That is extremely possessive and selfish to do. It’s psychotic. Because Aang cares more about himself than Katara’s feelings, even if she would be happier without him.

VI. Zutara is all about sex interest.

Well once more you mistake chemistry with sexual needs. Wanting me to sleep with my husband means I only use him for sex relief? If I find myself sexually attracted to anyone probably means I just want to sleep with that person and nothing else.

VII. A hug is all zutarians have to acknowledge zutara:

We have a complete extended analysis in all the small details, but we like to use that forgiveness hug because in that hug you have more potential that all the kataang scenes all together. We have thousands of complete analyses, pages dedicated exclusively zutara. 

VIII. Katara “fell in love with Aang” and it’s not one sided.

Uh... Nope, just because two persons are good friends it doesn’t mean they are a good couple. Yes, the way the both of them interact is absolutely beautiful, But not romantically.

Do we see Katara’s view on romantically being drawn towards Aang? Yes, we see it, and yes, unfortunately, is one sided.

How Kataangers complete this:

·       The fortune-teller: I didn’t see like “Wow omg the avatar is going to be my future husband!” But… was like “uh… really?… well, I guess it’s him” Zutarians and Aunt Wu are the base for many backs up theories. ;) Aang is not the only powerful bender you know? And actually, that episode is way trying too hard to demonstrate the crush Meng has for Aang and Aang has to Katara. How is even healthy to accept that sometimes persons don’t like you back and it’s not the end of the world.

·       The cave scene: I forgot that Katara is telling him to be her boyfriend and they will live happily ever after. And really, it all gets us to a real Oma and Shu theory. Not to mention that they were “forced” to kiss because their kids innocence believed if they kissed, they wouldn’t die, and that Aang messed up things as well. But if you see it beneath, if she was truly interested, she would have told Aang: “wow omg we kissed, ok. let’s give him a clue…” nothing, she goes back in treating him same as always.

·       The headband dance: Well that’s a fair point yes. Actually, I felt something different…unfortunately Katara later had to tell him not to kiss her.

IX. Zutara is because you projected on Katara and had a crush on Zuko, because Katara and Zuko were your favourite characters and because is the bad boy style romance.

My crush was Jet <3, and zutara was the most logical endgame for girls. Ask any girl, ANY 14 yo who would like to date: A high school, nice and handsome guy or a 7th grader that had potential to be her best friend. (See the logic) 

And nope is not like “Insert fav characters of the opposite sex to ship them” You need to see real development.

I don’t know why they stereotype Zuko as the “bad boy” – relationship archetype. Zuko is never seen to be the classic fuck boy who treats girls like shit and suddenly there comes a lady to change him. Maybe he is a “bad boy” (confused though) in S1 and S2, but his redemption arc is literally the answer of why he is not “bad boy” anymore.

If Katara was truly and really romantically interested then she wouldn’t have friendzoned Aang. Once? Nope 4 times. And also… are we forgetting kind of imagery…

Friendzoned  

 When Aang fixes her a small necklace with the fishing  thread.

 When he kissed her at the invasion. She didn’t  reciprocate it. (I’m not even mentioning the mommy proud speech)

 When he wanted to talk about the kiss in the western  air temple (Comic love is a battlefield)

 When he kissed her at the play and she had to told  him to back off.

 Strange imagery

 She was June Pippinpaddleopsokopolis (Aang’s  granddaughter)

When Aang got shot, she held his body in her arms in  the exact way Mary held Jesus in Pieta’s sculpture.

 She was Sapphire Fire. (Aang’s pregnant mother)

After they got married, in the book legacy, she said  she enjoyed most seeing Aang becoming a man. (Honestly ladies if I got a BF  the least I want is seeing how the kid transforms into a man)

I’m looking forward to watch you grow into manhood  as I did to your father (Katara’s letter to Tenzin)

 I’m really  trying to deny Oedipus complex here.

Still hard for me to track Katara’s love interest for little Aang since all we see is more a relationship mom/sister or Harry/Hermione. I have heard rumours that Bryke wanted to give the ship “mystery” and “expectation” but I think they really messed up, I didn’t see expectation or mystery, I saw a child insisting to a girl that didn’t reciprocate. It wasn’t even like she didn’t have much of a chance, because her love interests:

Was killed by Long Feng

Gave him a hideous mustache and disappeared him after Azula���s attack in the western air temple.

Forced to be attached to a toxic relationship.

Apart that all those points I’ve mentioned, Kataang is not a relationship for me. Staying in a formal relationship with the first person they met of the opposite sex at 14 -12 (guys not even Disney does that, jeez not even studio Ghibli) and not having any chance to experience any other relationship. Never experiencing a broken heart, or someone better. I think that it gives the wrong idea, telling guys that no matter how long they are placed in friendzone, eventually the girl will fall for them. They just have to keep insisting.

You could say, but what a hypocrite! Snow White was 14 years old when she went to live with that prince! Many princesses are 16! And not to mention that many men were the first they met! Like Aurora, Rapunzel, and Cinderella. Well, you are right at one point. But ... the interaction of these characters changes radically, mainly because they never "give cute kisses" to their future husbands, nor do they treat them like their brothers or their children and ... the men were never friendzoned, except for Naveen at the beginning. You see the real attraction of teenage girls with an older boy. And I'm not saying that they should never be friends or support each other. Mulan and Chang were allies, friends, they supported each other, they saved their lives. But at no time was there the kind of interaction Katara and Aang had.

If Kataang was to be endgame, we would see Katara’s reaction to Jet, totally different, THAT kind of reaction was what I was waiting. (That kind of reaction is what every princess do, at least one time)

The same chemistry we saw in Yukka / Sukka. Honestly, I saw more chemistry between Haru and Katara.

Or at least give us some character development like: Aang, I know my feelings where not as you wanted but now I decided I want to be with you because (list everything here except he being the avatar), I really like you, perhaps we can give it a shot. Or like several things that could clue us that she is interested (come on people, two persons can kiss/hug/ have sex and that doesn’t imply they will be together in a formal relationship) But all we got was: Oh, right, he’s the avatar... suddenly I fell for him and I’m gonna kiss him fully in the mouth and that’s how I’ll tell him and that all my confusion has magically disappeared.

X. I’ve never saw that kind of spark between them. Again, it was “Just a hug”

Yes! That’s initially the whole point of it, a friendship hug, the truth of why we don’t need silly blushes. Because that forgiveness hug shows their initial relationship, they are friends! All their love needs to come first from a truthful friendship, by the contrary of calling the “immediate falling” like Aang did for Katara, it shows us that friendship love can evolve into something more beautiful, and that’s why we like the ship, because all zutara shippers know Zuko and Katara wouldn’t fall in love like that all of the sudden, they have to create the romantic relationship, and that’s what we portray in the fics.

What makes Zutara exceptional is that he, sees her, he hears her, he listens what she had to do, at anytime he forced her to do something she didn’t. And before a “teenager adolescence ship” he sees her as a human, with feelings with own ideals and goals.

And there is a complete and extremely well based analysis in: The crossroads of destiny + The southern raiders + The lighting saving.

XI. The comics show us how toxic they really where.

Their interaction in the comics was something I like to call: destroying a character. Not only Katara, who turned to be that awesome badass to the submissive girlfriend. From how I see it in the series to the comics there’s all I have to say: That’s not my girl.

XII. How Katara could be queen of a country that almost aniquilates her tribe and killed her mother? It would be a betrayal.

I think this argument is out. Not valid. Is like saying a Jew can’t date a German because of the holocaust. (German doesn’t mean nazi, just as Zuko, who was from the Fire Nation and didn’t order Katara’s mother assassination, and not every citizen of the fire nation means a ruthless killer). Is like saying that a Japanese can’t date a us citizen because of the bombs in WW2. And even if we see it “political”, is like… an aphrodescendant can’t rule a country that is racist, then Mr. Obama would have never reached the presidency.

Two persons can unify them, because they can demonstrate that being from different country that initally has not good terms can reach peace. The union between those countries represents the power of maturity, of overcoming adversities and the power of forgiveness. *Our lands now connected by love* And I want her to be queen, I want her to rule, I want her in charge, I want her in power. Imagine all the potential she could have (politics, business, negotiations, rebuilding, restoration, education, public health!! ***faints***) Not only for the fire Nation but for the whole world! Imagine that once Zuko abdicated they left to the south pole and she opened a fighting school and a healing school of her own (like master Pakku, but now her students are given a medical license that acknowledges them as professional healers) And this is just an idea. Like these ideas are hundreds. It would have been the perfect feminist role model!

XIII. Since the beginning, Katara was always interested in Aang and she always supported him and was for him when he needed her. That’s proof they were meant to each other.

If a girl expresses faith in your abilities, she loves you, she hugs you, and she supports you clearly she’s completely into you. Because obviously female best friends don’t exist.

[clumsydarknut]

Having just rewatched The Legend of Korra and The Last Airbender in that order...

I just gotta say, the Gaang is so incredibly powerful that it's shocking to me that anyone argues Korra is the more powerful Avatar. Let me break this down:

Sokka

Though he isn't especially good at combat in the beginning of the series, his intellect repeatedly comes to the rescue at just age 16. It's Sokka who develops the lid for the Fire Nation War Balloons. He also thinks up the fake firebending they use in the Fire Sanctuary. His tactical knowledge is equally impressive - it's him who figures out the Solar Eclipse, how to bring down the drill threatening Ba Sing Se, and who discovers Jet isn't as righteous as he claims. Despite being the butt of all the jokes that episode, Sokka's instincts are, in fact, incredible. Then on top of that he trains in the way of the sword with one of the greatest blade masters in the history of the world, and progresses at an incredible speed. The man is an unstoppable force of intellect and dedication, even compared to many of the tacticians and leaders in both ATLA and LoK.

Katara

In only season one, before reaching the Northern Water Tribe and at only age 14, Katara teaches herself most of the basics of waterbending, including freezing things at will, improvised control, and basic forms from the scrolls she stole from the pirates. But that's just what we see on-screen. When they do reach the Northern Water Tribe, she not only unflinchingly challenges a master waterbender in at least his 60s, she holds her own against him, using advanced techniques we don't see used anywhere in LoK (even by Kya, her own daughter) that she is largely improvising on the spot. She then learns everything Master Paku has to offer her in the span of a few weeks and is deemed a master waterbender, at only 14. Katara, with no training, was able to take on Fire Nation climbing tanks single handedly, and with training was capable of halting the rain in at least a 40-foot radius. Katara bends more water at one time than any other waterbender in either ATLA or LoK with the exception of the Moon and Ocean spirits.

Toph

In addition to being blind, being the creator of metal bending, and being the first to learn the badgermole's seismic sense, Toph had raw power that few other benders ever knew. The most notable instance I can think of off the top of my head is when she, on her own, in the middle of a sea of sand where she could hardly see, halted the descent of Wan Shi Tong's Library, which was being dragged back to the Spirit World via his spirit powers. She single handedly stopped a hugely powerful spirit in his tracks with only brute force. This 12-year-old tiny blind girl had enough power to keep a massive stone library tethered to the physical realm. I'd argue this is on par with Avatar Kyoshi separating Kyoshi Island from the mainland in terms of raw strength.

Zuko

Though he is always shown to be a weaker firebender than other members of his family, it's important to realize he is still far more powerful than your average firebender. In the beginning of the series he's still learning the basics, but he hits a major turning point when he asks his uncle to teach him how to use lightning. He isn't successful with that, of course, but in the process of learning to redirect it, we see a change in him. He gets the hang of that technique more or less, but the real difference shows in how he absorbs his uncle's ideology on the balance of the world. From that moment on, Zuko's bending improves at rapid and even frightening pace. His bending becomes fluid, adaptive, and creative. Rather than the short bursts of flame we see in season one, where he's focusing on the muscle and not the breath, we see his abilities change to more full and sweeping attacks - where he focuses on the breath, and how it extends past his body.

In all honesty, though, it's his sword and stealth skills that are truly incredible. I'm fairly certain we can all agree that his work as The Blue Spirit far outdoes any other nonbending warrior (and most other bending warriors) in either series. It's actually when he combines his swordplay and his bending that he is the most proficient. Then, on the day of Sozin's Comet, he is able to fight with heightened power without losing control of the flames - I'd bet that some of that comes from his swordplay. Neither Ozai nor Azula show the same level of precision or restraint.

Aang

This kid is 12 and he's already an airbending master, complete with tattoos. People may complain that he relies far more on airbending than the other elements compared to Korra, but realize this - Aang's avatar experience began the day he was told. He didn't even attempt bending other elements until he met his teachers. In terms of time covered in the show, Aang had access to these other elements for a considerably shorter amount of time, and we didn't see much after the defeat of the Firelord. By my estimate, he likely was just as proficient in the other elements as Korra by the time he reached 16. I don't think using his most comfortable element more frequently while still learning the others (all of which he's been studying for less than 6 months) indicates a difference in power or skill - especially when you look at how much raw strength he has in all four.

Without the Avatar State, Aang was able to: destroy dozens of Fire Nation Naval Warships singlehandedly; create a whirlpool powerful enough to wrench a massive sea serpent into the side of a cliff; generate a shockwave of earth large enough to take down the entirety of the Earth Palace Royal Guard (different from the Dai Li); create a rolling wave of earth to ride while wrecking Dai Li agents; build a massive zoo in a matter of minutes; redirect lightning from a comet-enhanced Ozai; and, though not necessarily powerful, he invented the air scooter.

The most amazing thing, though, is that Aang could easily take any one of his companions in a fight. Without the Avatar State. And while still bearing the burdens of his entire culture being destroyed. It's shown that he defeats Zuko multiple times, and based on the little bit we see of him fighting with Toph, the makings for a quick victory in an actual fight are all there - though that's probably more due to him being able to fly, making him immune to her seismic sense. Against Katara in a water-only match, he'd probably lose. But give him his other elements, and we're in for a show. And again, his companions are nuts. Some of the strongest benders and smartest warriors in history. That should tell you something about just how amazing Aang is, and all without the Avatar State.

As a fan of epic battle scenes, despite how beautiful LoK's animation was, ATLA is always gonna take the cake.

[gloves94]

Sunburn [Prince Zuko] 8

Warnings: None   Rating: PG-13   Pairings: Zuko/OC   Summary:  “You have everything you’ve ever wanted.” “No.” He said softly. “Not everything…”  His golden eyes looked at her with a melting intensity she had never witnessed before. “I guess not.” She responded with glassy eyes as tears welled up threatening to break the dam of her eyes.

My fanfiction: M A S T E R L I S T

A brown speck floated in a blue vastness in the middle of a lost sea.

Tsai lay on a boat she had stolen back in Mo Ce regretting every single decision she had done in her short life. Her moral compass had been askew. She could not believe she had actually stolen a humble fisherman's boat back at the docks. Why did she think she would be able to navigate a boat with absolutely no sailing experience? She had been lost at sea for days. Her only guide had been the north star which would compass her in the direction of the Northern Water Tribe. It seemed simple enough at the time. The air had been growing colder as the days passed and she thought she was approaching north due to the drastic climate change. She presently lay across the deck sprawled out like a starfish. Her skin was being burnt by the vicious sun, she was starving and was severely dehydrated.

Having had left Prince Zuko's ship in a rush she hadn't even manage to bring her belongings with her. Only picked up some supplies at the local village with the little money she carried on her person.

She regretted leaving home. She regretted attempting to follow her grandfather's dream.

Freeing the Avatar. Following Iroh on this fool's errand. The worst part is that nobody would know what happened to her now. She would die a disgrace to her clan. She would bring shame to her family. To her grandfather's name. It was then that she thought of him. She thought about him every day. Would he be embarrassed of her?

She sighed and closed her eyes- at this rate - she'd ask him herself soon...

Xxx

A cool sensation brushed against the auburn hair girl's skin. The cold wind made her shiver as she was able to regain the sensation in her skin. She turned over pulling herself together in a fetal position and her eyes cracked open to see a blurry blue shaped figure kneeling before her. Water dripped down her chin- water.

She parted her lips open and drank.

Xxx

"I'm not one to complain," a male voice whined. "But can't Appa fly any higher?"

Distorted conversations had resounded in her ears from a while now. Some were incoherent others more distinguishable.

'What's an Appa?'

"I have an idea! Why don't we all get on your back and you could fly us to the North Pole!" Another voice retorted. This one was younger, a bit more child-like.

"I'd love to," the original voice retorted dripping with sarcasm. "Climb on everyone, Sokka's ready for takeoff."

"W-what's a Sokka?" she mumbled slowly opening her eyes returning to the world with partial consciousness.

She slowly sat up leaning on her elbows and touching her head with her other hand she had a pulsating headache and found herself being covered by a heavy wool blanket.

"She's awake!" A female voice announced loudly.

Tsai took a minute to look at the two people that were gathered around her. Both had tanned brown skin, their eyes were blue and their hair was dark brown. They were wearing parkas in traditional Water Tribe fashion. They looked oddly familiar for some reason.

"Who are you?" She said attempting to scoot away from these strangers. "You're safe now," the girl spoke in tone which was not welcoming. She pulled out a cantaloupe and offered the girl some water which she desperately took in hopes it would quench her burning thirst.

Tsai eyed the girl with the loopy hairstyle through the corner of her eye. Her expression was bitter towards her. She could tell that for whatever reason this girl did not like her.

"We found your ship," the girl explained. "Aang said he had a feeling he had to go down and that's where we found you. You were dehydrated and sunburnt. We don't know how long you were out at sea."

She simply remained still taking it all in. Lowering her head in shame.

Her eyes drifted up and she saw a pair of large grey eyes starring back at her. The arrow above his forehead unmistakable. The Avatar. Then it all clicked together. She was flying on top of the Avatar's flying bison. The Avatar was on board and these two Water Tribe people were his loyal team mates.

"You're Prince Zuko's girlfriend?" The male with the fade haircut and ponytail accused. It was more of statement than a question. His eyebrow was raised in suspicion and mistrust.

The red tint that spread across her features did not go amiss to the group. She didn't want to think about her last moments with him. They were too painful. It was too much, too many complicated emotions to dissect at the moment.

"He wishes." She let out what sounded like a humorous huff. "My name is Tsai," she explained reclaiming her identity. She hoped they would come to know her as more than her association to the Fire Nation's prince. She proceed to explain her entire story and to tell them about when she saved Aang at the Pohuai Stronghold and how they met again in the Abbey and how she ran away to meet them at the Northern Water Tribe.

"This is you!" The teenage boy suddenly pulled out a parchment from a bag. It was the WANTED poster her brother had sent her. The one in which she went by the alias of Haru.

"Eyup," she said lazily. She wasn't proud of her wanted poster. Of the shame she had brought to her family and to her name. It wouldn't be long until somebody identified her and wrote her real name down. The thought of it made her stomach churn uncomfortably. Speaking of stomachs a sharp pain in her gut suddenly made her bent over.

"Here," The girl said fishing out what looked like dried nuts and seeds and handed it over to her. "Eat them slowly." She instructed and avoided Tsai's hand not wanting to touch or even be around her.

Regardless the girl was grateful for their kindness and began eating. "This is my brother Sokka, I'm Katara and you've met Aang." She said signaling to the Avatar.

"How do we know we can trust you?" Sokka still asked warily rubbing his chin. "First of all," she said weakly raising up an index finger. "I'm a non bender- what harm could I possibly do?" "Hey!" He protested. "I'm a non bender too! And I can do a lot of damage!" He whined fuming.

"She saved my life once Sokka, and because of it now hers is on the line," Aang interrupted taking his eyes off the horizon ahead of them. Sokka nodded, it made sense to him.

"Avatar-" Tsai began. "Aang, just Aang," he smiled over his shoulder.

"Aang. I wanted to talk to you-" she struggled to keep her eyes open. "About equality. I want all parties in this war to be equal."

Suddenly feeling faint. The girl laid back down, her eyes slowly shutting. She guessed her conversation with the Avatar would have to wait until some other time. And just like that she fell asleep once more. This time feeling more at peace than before.

Xxx

Moments later the group had been welcomed in to the Northern Water Tribe with open arms. Tsai only came back into consciousness when they arrived at the palace. Where everything was cold and crafted out of snow. She didn't like this place, it was cold, void, and everything was way too neat. For the first time in what seemed to be forever she felt home sick. She wanted to go back to Yu Dao and simply be in her room with Mecha or be in the indoor garden watching the swimming koi with her mother. Maybe even pestering her father while he attended his governing duties.

"Well, nobody likes this style anyways," one of the Waterbenders that had welcomed them had said when handing the colonial girl a parka which was a beige color and some dark brown pants and boots. "They haven't been dyed yet,"the bender had explained. "In these areas you have to stay warm. You could get frost bite or even hypothermia and that's it. So make sure to be aware of your temperature." he had warned. "don't get wet."

Presently Aang and his gang sat in a long table inside of the Northern Water Tribe's snow palace. Tsai wondered if anybody from the Fire Nation had ever been inside here as a guest. She sat in the same row as the Avatar next to the Southern Water Tribe siblings she had now learned were named Sokka and Katara. They sat with their legs crossed as the leader of this tribe, Arnook, had decided to host a feast in their honor. Despite her exhaustion and hunger Tsai sat like she had been taught to her whole life, with her back straight and her chin up. Drums were being beaten in the background. She kept her eyes focused on the massive fountain that decorated the center of the room.

It wasn't the right time, but she wanted to have a serious conversation with Arnook and with Aang. The future of the Fire Nation and of Yu Dao depended on it.

"Tonight, we celebrate the arrival of our brother and sister from the Southern Tribe. And they brought with them one of the last Airbenders and someone very special, someone whom many of us believed disappeared from the world until now...The Avatar! Not only have they brought the Avatar, but the last Airbenders as well!" Arnook said grandly, gesturing to his guests. The crowd cheered and applauded, "We also celebrate my daughter's sixteenth birthday. Princess Yue is now of marrying age!"

The edge of Tsai's eye twitched slightly. Arnook was suddenly beginning to sound a lot like her mother.

Suddenly a beautiful white-haired girl whom Tsai assumed to be Princess Yue stepped forward with two older women walking on either side and slightly behind her. Princess Yue smiled and briefly bowed her head demurely towards her father. She was beautiful. Her eyes were a striking blue, her hair white like rays of moon. She found herself unable to remove her eyes from her, feeling strangely drawn to her spirit.

"Thank you, Father." She said graciously then addressed the crowd, "May the great Ocean and Moon spirits watch over us during these troubled times!"

"Now, Master Pakku and his students will perform!" Arnook exclaimed, gesturing with one arm towards the three men standing on a raised platform across from the head table.

The older man, Master Pakku and the two younger men began Waterbending to significant bubbles of water from three large jugs in front of the raised platform, completely captivating the crowds. Aang and Katara were in awe as the two applauded almost jumping up from their seats. Tsai had never seen Waterbenders before, usually she would've been starring in awe but her hunger was too much and she began to as polished as possible eat the giant sea crab that had just been boiled, platypus bear, pickled fish and tentacle soup. Basically everything and anything that was in front of her. She ate as if she hadn't eaten in days, which to be fair she hadn't. And for dessert she had the sea prune stew. All delicious flavors that were unknown to her palette. Tsai was too busy eating that she did not notice the princess walking over and taking a seat besides Sokka who instantaneously stopped eating when he saw her. He swallowed a mouthful of food and brushed his hands clean against his clothes before leaning an elbow against the table as he attempted to look as cool and as nonchalant as possible.

"More for me," smirked Tsai as she helped herself to Sokka's food. He glared at her and it was then that the princess was starring at her intently. Her blue orbs frozen on her face. Magnetized. Tsai couldn't stop herself from starring as well. This sensation.. it was odd. She had never felt it before. It was emotional, it called more to her spirit.

It was then that her stomach grumbled. She snapped out of the trance and smiled politely before continuing to eat.

Moments later she sat with both hands on her stomach which now churned painful.

'Why did I eat so much?' She slouched slightly. Eyes focused on Arnook and the Avatar as she rehearsed the rhetoric she would say to them in separate meetings. She played a game of ping pong in her head, strategizing how the conversation would go. Snapping out of her train of thoughts she kept her eyes fixed on the Water Tribe leader as he lead Aang and Katara to Master Pakku who was standing on a raised platform. She watched the interaction and saw the water bending master walking away and Katara storming out. She didn't hesitate in flashing Tsai a deathly glare on her way out as she left the dinner party.

'What did I do?' She thought confused.

Once again exhaustion burdened her shoulders as she slowly leaned forward on the dinning table something which she considered to be extremely rude.

'No. I have to talk to him.' She decided determinedly and stood up approaching both Arnook and Aang who were at the center of the celebration.

Like most people from the Water Tribe Arnook had dark hair, skin and a set of striking blue eyes. He looked older than he should've due to the stress of the war.

"Chief Arnook," She approached them and bowed slightly stretching her hands out like she had always been educated in Fire Nation fashion.

His eyes widened slightly as he was taken aback by the gesture.

"My name is Tsai, I'm from Yu Dao, I'm-" She was interrupted.

"Fire Nation!" He said angrily.

She was taken aback by his reaction.

"You have brought a member of the Fire Nation to my tribe?" Arnook turned to scowl angrily at Aang.

"It's not like that," Aang defended. "She's not with the Fire Nation. She's with us."

"What if she leads them here? What if it is a trap? No Fire Nation citizen has set food in the North Pole in the last one hundred years! There is a reason why we have been able to survive this war for so long!"

"I'm-I mean no ill-" Tsai tumbled over her words as she struggled to find the proper thing to say. Everything she had rehearsed in her head before had just gone down the drain.

"Get out of my home!" He shouted. "You are not welcome here!"

She looked at him shellshocked her mouth gaping from the shock of his rejection.

"And your friend best be on her best behavior. She'll be watched closely. I'll be sure of it." He spoke menacingly before retreating.

Aang looked at her unsure of what to say and simply placed a comforting hang on her shoulder.

"Why? Why did he react in that way?" She asked confused. "I know the Fire Nation is at war, but I present no threat. I didn't even get to thank him for the meal," she said sadly.

Aang remained unsure of what to say. He really didn't meddle in these political matters.

"You'll have your chance to," he said with optimism before giving her shoulder a second pat. The girl let out a pessimistic sigh slightly dropping her head to the side. They decided to get out of here but before leaving Tsai noticed Arnook's daughter, the princess, still looking at her intently.

Some moments later they were escorted to a chamber outside the palace premises were Tsai and the others gave into sleep.

Xxx

Zuko was restless. He was sick of being on the ship. He was sick of sitting down, of laying down, of pacing up and down his small room. He was presently leaning against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest. His glare was fixed on a blank spot on the wall.

The events of the past days replaying on his head over and over again. Losing the Avatar.

Fighting Tsai.

Losing Tsai.

He had single handedly ran her out of his presence. He had done it again. He was completely alone, but most of all. He hated how her absence made her feel. Worst of all his uncle wouldn't shut up about how much she missed her and how she was the best Pai Sho player on board.

It was then that the metal door to his chamber open and Uncle Iroh poked his head inside.

"For the last time. I'm not playing the tsungi horn!" He snapped angrily.

"No, it's about our plans." Iroh said worriedly as he looked at his nephew carefully and stepped further into the dimly lit room, "There's a bit of a problem."

Zuko turned to see Admiral Zhao stepped into the room then, standing slightly behind Iroh as he stared at the banished prince coldly. That proud bastard stood tall with a smug expression on his face.

"I'm taking your crew." The Admiral stated matter-of-factly with a smirk on his face.

"What?!" Zuko demanded, pushing himself a way from the wall and moving to stand a foot or so away from the admiral.

"I'm taking them for a little expedition to the North Pole." Zhao said with a vile smirk on his face as he enjoyed the sight of the of the seething prince.

"Uncle, is that true?" Zuko asked in disbelief as he looked over Zhao's shoulder at his uncle.

"I'm afraid so. He's taking everyone." Iroh confirmed then covered his eyes with his arm in sadness, "Even the cook."

"Sorry you won't be there to watch me capture the Avatar." Zhao sneered down at the prince, "But I can't have you getting in my way again."

Zuko growled and charged towards Zhao with fire burning his eyes only for Iroh to move forward and stop him by putting his hands on his chest.

"No!" Iroh gasped, keeping his hands raised slightly as he and Zuko watched Zhao walk towards to crossed broadswords hanging on the wall of Zuko's cabin. His eyes growing slightly as recognition flickered through his eyes. He began connecting some dots in his head.

"I didn't know you were skilled with broadswords, Prince Zuko." Zhao stated with feigned interested as he picked up one of the swords, remembering how the Blue Spirit had used the same kind of swords back at the Pohuai Stronghold to rescue the Avatar.

"I'm not." Zuko replied and looked off to the side, "They're antiques, just decorative."

Zhao scrutinized the prince skeptically then began examining the broadsword in his hand as he addressed Iroh, "Have you heard of the Blue Spirit, General Iroh?"

"Just rumors." Iroh answered flippantly, "I don't think he's real."

"He's real alright. He's a criminal and an enemy of the Fire Nation." Zhao stated as he walked towards the other two then twisted the sword so the blade was facing down as he held it out to Iroh, who took the broadsword from the Admiral's hand. "And so is his accomplice," it was then that he pulled out a parchment from his back pocket. It was a WANTED poster with the drawing of a an auburn haired girl that was more than familiar to both Zuko and Iroh. Iroh's poker face was impressive almost worthy of award recognition. Zuko's could've used some work. He gritted the back of his teeth.

"Seem familiar?" the Admiral arched an eyebrow as he attempted to dissect the expressions on their faces for the slightest hint of a tattle tale give away.

"Tsai of Yu Dao also goes by the alias of Haru. Reports say that she fled Yu Dao some time ago. Came to the Stronghold and working together with the Blue Spirit freed the Avatar. She was last seen at the docks near the Abbey. Strange coincidence that that the two of us were in the same place... at the same time," he said trailing off as he eyed the two of them suspiciously.

So that's why she had left. She hadn't left because of him. She had left to protect them! She probably knew that Zhao would come hunting her down and fled before they associated her with them.

It was then that Iroh let out a loud laugh and patted his stomach.

"But she's the daughter of the Vice Royal Governor," Iroh laughed once again. "You really think the teenage daughter of the Vice Royal Governor snuck into a military fortress and freed the Avatar? And I thought you didn't have a sense of humor," he laughed. When Iroh painted it the scenario sounded absolutely ridiculous.

Zhao seethed as he boiled in anger feeling slightly humilliated.

"I have a feeling that justice will catch up with them soon. Specially with that little slut," It took every muscle in his body to keep Zuko from lounging at Zhao. Fists clenched at his side. He could feel his Uncle's gaze fixed on him. "Sounds personal," Iroh commented. Zhao ignored the comment and continued as he walked towards the door to the cabin and paused in the doorway with one hand on the door, "General Iroh, the offer to join my mission still stands...if you change your mind."

Zuko's jaw clenched as he and his uncle watched the other man leave the room, closing the metal door behind him.

Xxx

The next morning Tsai awoke feeling like a brand new person. Well rested and well fed she awoke and took her time doing her routine. It was hard not to be annoyed by Katara who excitedly chattered about how excited she was for her first waterbending lesson.

"What are you going to do today Tsai?" Aang asked as they got ready to leave for breakfast.

She paused for a moment. She had to have a conversation with him and with Arnook at some point, but it would have to wait. It had to be done correctly at the correct place at the correct time. Also it's not like she had money to shop around the market or buy any teas.

"Explore," she spoke ominously after a moment. She really wasn't in the highest of spirits. She meditated writing to her brother. Lost in thought she decided to explore the window show the local market.

The market was cold, filled with fish, sea food and other traditional Water Tribe artifacts such as carved necklaces and bead bracelets. She looked at the sea prunes and vast variety of roots, sea flora and fauna on the stalls. Some seemed familiar and she could identify from the many levels of encyclopedia she had read back in the palace. She would've love to try more of their delicacies but didn't even have the money to spend. Word of her being from the Fire Nation spread like wildfire and all villagers were wary of her. Hiding merchandise and glaring at her with pure hatred which confused her to no end. She felt hyper conscious and more alone than ever. Being shunned like that from all the others.

Talking to Arnook was going to be harder than she had expected. Feeling a presence next to her she turned and was surprised to see the white haired sixteen year old, it was Princess Yue.

"Majesty," she lightly bowed her head pressing her palms together as Fire Nation citizens usually did as a sign of respect. Several passersby gasped at this.

"Yue will do," she swatted her hand down reaching for her hands lowering them. "You're a princess too, right?" She asked the auburn hair girl

She smiled kindly at her in response. "Not quite," Tsai cracked a smile for what seemed to be the first time in forever. "My father is the Viceroyal Governor of Yu Dao, one of the Fire Nation colonies in the Earth Kingdom." She explained. "It's an hereditary title, but I'm afraid we are not royals."

"Want to come shopping with me?" The white haired girl offered her company to the other. With nothing else to do, feeling at ease, warmed and welcomed Tsai gladly accepted the invitation.

"By the way, I love your makeup," the Fire Nation girl complimented.

Xxx

Seeing Tsai and Yue walking together around the Northern Water Tribe was odd- maybe even scandalous. Seeing them together was odd. It was like two sides of the same coin.

Yue had confessed that she was interested in knowing more about her culture. Being the first outsider she had ever met in her life she had become intrigued by what the life of another sixteen year was like in another world. Specially one from the Fire Nation.

Yue showed Tsai around the market and anything that Tsai tried on or said she wanted was given to her as an offering as they all bowed to their beloved princess with respect. By now the girl resembled her old self a little more. Her eyelids were coated with some light brown eyeshadow and her lips with a peony pink lip balm. Nails were again polished dark. Seeing the two teenagers, one with bold auburn hair, the other with white, one wearing yellow the other wearing blue. It was a strong contrast that was not unperceived by others.

"So do you have a boyfriend?" Yue asked as they both sat on a gondola riding to the other side of the city. Yue had insisted that she wanted to show Tsai her favorite spot in the heart of the city.

Tsai hummed as she thought of her answer. Did she? Everyone she met thought Prince Zuko was her boyfriend, but was he?

"Erm- it's complicated," she admitted with a sheepish grin. Yue raised an eyebrow intrigued by the story. "Well," she ran a hand through her hair nervously. She wasn't home were she could have girl talk with her friends and it's not like she could talk about this with Katara. She would immediately know who she was talking about and shun her just like all the others.

"Well- the last time I saw him we were on his boat and we got in a fight," she began sadly.

Unknowingly to Tsai, Yue was picturing the most romantic scenario possible. A gondola in a pond and a verbal argument, not a physical one like it had been.

"We were on his boat and he kissed me mid argument," she blushed. "That is so romantic!" The other girl cooed. "I was so surprised I just- froze. You see he's- odd, complicated, mysterious-" "You are so crushing on him," the white haired girl gushed as they continued walking. Tsai felt her ears turn red. She shook her head and focused on the story. "And since I didn't kiss him back he took it as a rejection." "Was it one?" The other inquired surprised. "No- well- yes, erm- kind of," Tsai shook her head, eyes closed. "He's just! He can be such a child sometimes! He has a lot of growing up to do. Besides I can't deal with all of his baggage and inner demons," she shrugged. "That's something he has to figure out himself. You know what I mean?" "You sound so sure. I wish I was half as mature as you are," Yue sighed. "Trust me I am neither of those things," Tsai rolled her eyes before letting out a laugh. "I don't know what love is supposed to be or feel like, but I do know it doesn't call you a "pest" and push your buttons."

"Did I mention toxic?" She added.

"Oh, that sounds like a lot of fun. You're lucky you're not a royal. Most of us have arranged marriages and even then all the boys here are so dull. You know one you know them all. I really wish I could meet someone different," she sighed with a slight frown.

It was then that a voice called out her name.

"Princess Yue, good morning!" Sokka called out when he saw the Northern Water Tribe princess's gondola pass under the bridge he'd been standing on and he quickly ran down the steps and along the small path beside the canal until he caught up with Yue's boat.

"Somebody like Sokka perhaphs?" the red-head sniggered. Yue elbowed her to keep quiet with a giggle.

"Hey, how about that picnic last night?" Sokka questioned as he slowed to a walk alongside their boat and rubbed the back of his head as he caught his breath, "Boy, your dad sure knows how to throw a party."

"Yeah, Sokka would've eaten the entire Giant Crab if Katara hadn't stopped him," Tsai teased. Sokka flashed her a deathly glare and Yue tried to stiffle her laugher. "I'm happy you enjoyed yourself." She replied sincerely with a slight smile as she looked at the boy.

"Well, it wasn't as much fun after you left." Sokka confessed then blushed which caused the white haired princess to blush as well.Tsai rolled her eyes a smile on her face.

Sokka cleared his throat and rubbed the back of his neck nervously, "So, I'm still hoping we could see more of each other."

"Do an activity, you mean?" Yue asked in amusement as she watched the boy struggle from the corner of her eye, her lips curled in a small smile. Tsai giggled with her friend. She strongly fought the urge to make a sarcastic comments.

"Yes!" Sokka agreed eagerly, then awkwardly continued as he gestured with his hands, "At a place...for some time."

"I'd love to. I'll meet you on that bridge tonight." Yue said with a light laugh as she pointed towards the bridge in front of her.

"Great! I'll see you-Ah!" Sokka's happy reply was cut off by him yelping as he walked off the small ice path and into the water.

Both girls giggled behind their hands, peering behind her as the gondola continued moving forward.

"Sorry." She apologized and waved slightly with one hand. "That was adorable," Tsai laughed. "He's so cute!" Yue commented back with a blush "I-I just, I feel like I shouldn't lead him on," she said softly. Tsai had seen Sokka snoring the night before and picking his ear wax in the morning, in her eyes he wasn't that type but didn't want to ruin Yue's day dream. "Lead him on? There's no harm in just getting to know him," she advised wisely.

She spaced out for a moment imagining if Zuko would ever do something like that for her. She raised her eyebrows at the horrible imagery.

"Go out with me!" He would probably state bluntly sounding more of a demand than an invitation his cheeks red. For some reason there was also fire blazing in the background. She shook her head.

"So what are you wearing?" She gushed excited for her friend.

Some moments later they were at the spot that Yue had mentioned. It was a serene bond at the heart of the Water Tribe. Even the air felt warmer as they approached it. An oasis of peace blossomed in the midst of the snowy desert. At the end under a falling waterfall was some lush greenery growing, mist clouded the secluded area. Not a single sound could be heard.

"What is this place?" Tsai asked softly feeling like she might be disrespectful if she raised her voice. They both crossed a wooden bridge that lead to the island in the center of the body of water.

"This is the Spirit Oasis. It is the center of all spiritual energy in our land," Yue explained as they stood a foot away from the pond. In it Tsai could see two koi fish swimming. One was black with a white spot and the other identical in contrast. The fish swam in circles around each other in what seemed like an eternal dance of push and pull.

"Why have you brought me here?" Tsai asked perplexed as she removed her eyes from the koi fish and turned to look at her friend.

"I'm afraid I haven't been completely honest with you," Yue apologized. "I'm not interested in knowing about your culture or your life in the Fire Nation's colonies."

Tsai looked at her impatiently with an arched eyebrow.

"When I first saw you- when I met you- I felt a strange connection to you. As if we already knew each other." She explained.

The red-head was silent for a moment. "I-I'm sorry. I shouldn't have brought you here-" Yue began turning away.

"No," Tsai raised a hand. "I felt it too." She spoke suddenly. "Almost like a pull?"

Yue stopped in her way and turned to face her friend.

"I feel like I've known you for a lifetime," the girl from the colonies confessed. It was such an odd feeling...

"I just had the feeling we had to be here. Together. The two of us." Yue explained. Tsai lowered her eyes to look at the two fish in the pond it looked as if she was almost hypnotized or in a trance.

Her mind went blank for a moment and she could've sworn she saw a bright light and felt a comforting heat before snapping out of it. She touched her arms feeling warm almost toasty. It was that pleasant feeling you get after a long day at the beach. She felt as if she had just been sun kissed.

xxx

AN: Oooohhh So what are we thinking? Why do you guys think Katara dislikes Tsai so much?

xxxx

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CHAPTER MASTERLIST

[ships-and-what-not]

The fact that we never saw more of zuko and katara after the agnai kai with azula is actually very dumb. It was such an intense pivotal significant moment, in which they would have been feeling very emotional and vulnerable with one another, with such heightened emotions spiraling, and relief of having each other come out of it, and the intimacy in holding each other afterwards... katara being their to support zuko with what would be conflicting and sad to see his sister in that state (like how zuko was there for katara with her conflicting feelings after finding the man who killed her mother), but also the relief he would have of having katara be ok, the relief katara would have of him being ok, and how she would feel after just having him take a fucking bolt of lightning, jumping in front of her and risking his life for her, on top of him already being there for her, supporting her, respecting her boundaries, needs, decisions and feelings. The mutual respect and admiration they have for each other, the feeling they would have afterwards while standing side by side, katara helping to support him and looking at each other, tell me their hearts wouldn't have been racing and an unspoken pining for each other wouldn't have been shared. Tell me once katara took him back to tend to his wound that he didn't reach for her hand to thank her again, him saying how scared he was of something happening to her, tell me she wouldn't have cupped his cheek in her hand looked into his eyes before reaching up to kiss him gently, tell me he wouldn't of been taken aback for like point 5 of a second before being over taken with his mutual feelings and kissing her back pulling her close against him with her hair clasped between his fingers and his other around her back to draw her closer, tell me when they slowly pull away that she wouldn't second guess herself and apologize before he stopped her to bring her in again and softly kiss her, and that they weren't flushed in the face and katara almost speechless struggling to think clearly stuttering out about going to get some healing supplies, that they didn't spend the time together smiling at each other, blushing and katara sticking to him like glue while healing him, tell me she didn't lie down with him after she had finished all she could with the wound being exhausted, and they didn't drift off in each others arms and wake up remembering what had happened and specifically between them, maybe feeling vulnerable and exposed, katara going to tend to his wound again, or maybe being sleepy and after having been so close then stayed there laying by each others side sleepily gazing softly into one another eyes, katara gently tracing the outline of his face, a form of contact that we've seen him not let anyone do except katara, and zuko gently running his fingers through her hair and placing his arm around her while they lay there for a moment.

Or that there wouldn't have been at least some unspoken mutual pining for each other while katara helped heal his wound, that they wouldn't have had stolen glances, pauses and moments of physical touch that lead to blushing or fast heart rates, and feelings that would've confused them both that would've lead to not being confident in the canon pairings they were paired off with, leading to katara not kissing aang in the final episode, but instead a group gaang hug, zuko gone to talk to mai face to face openly and honestly after learning that face to face communication is always best from his previous misstep, and that mai would sigh and say she already knows, him having no idea how but her saying she was going to break up with him anyway because there's someone else she's caught feelings for, he asks if he knows him and she says you know her, zuko momentarily taken aback and then smiling saying he's glad they could end things mutually and wishes her the best. That mai would go and find ty lee who's in her kiyoshi warrior attire and struggle to tell her through blushing how she really cares about her as a friend but also more than that, and ty lee taken aback at first before super thrilled throws her arms around her kissing her before pulling back to say she loves her too, and smiling in each others embrace with their foreheads gently pressed together. Tell me that katara and zuko wouldn't continue to have moments of stolen glances, prolonged eye contact, blushing and tension between them, tell me there wouldn't be a gradual build up of them clearly liking each other, and that aang wouldn't gradually let go of non-reciprocated feelings, that he wouldn't be focused on other post-war matters, that he wouldn't find another girl his age who he would fall for, tell me that as him and toph grew older and had more moments of them two together that they never had soft moments, of them having fun together, of them meditating together, going for walks in nature together, of sparing and practicing together with moments of aang airbending who into the air catching her off guard and swooping up and catching her smirking at her, tell me that as she got older that she wouldn't have started to blush at stuff like that, that she wouldn't yell at him for cheating and calling him twinkle toes and that he would catch her off guard when he smiled and kissed her cheek instead of pushing back against the name, that they wouldn't talk again about what happened with appa and how bad she felt and him assuring her he understands it wasnt her fault and that he's glad that she cares for appa, and she let's him know she also cares about him, and how glad she is that he found her and let her join them, how glad she was to have gotten to be with him, and that they wouldn't have felt vulnerable and connected, a paused moment of eye contact before aang leans down and softly kisses her, the way they mutually saw and felt about each other gradually shifting as they got older.

Look all I'm saying is opportunities for realistic character interactions and moments, and character relationship development were robbed, and they didn't have to not have katara and zuko just never talk about one of the most intense scenes and moments they shared together that was literally life or death type life changing. I'm sorry but as if they wouldn't have talked about what happened, and him literally risking his life for her, in addition to their chemistry and mutual respect for one another, as if that wouldn't have lead to then having feelings for each other that are finally realised between them.

Mai and zuko don't work, and aang and katara don't either, not the way their characters interactions and moments together had been written throughout the series, it just makes making them canon in the end super forced felt. Aang shouldn't have gotten with katara, katara deserved to be with zuko, and zuko deserved to be with her, both mai and zuko deserved to be in a healthier more compatible relationship rather than a forced one that feels like plot convenience or at least bad writing if they had been intended to be canon, same applies to aang and katara, if they were intended to be canon then they were extremely poorly written. Not to mention what katara and zuko have that aang and her just don't have in terms of passion, mutual pining, compatible ideologies and maturity levels, the whole yin and yang symbolism, the political power couple they would make with post-war reparations, etc., and how soft they would be? There would be nothing dark and edgy about them at all, they would be such a sweet soft couple, zuko would be so caring, responsive, thoughtful, respectful and soft towards her. And she would have someone who was her equal, who understood her and worked well together, someone who would carry their weight and try to help out when they can, someone who would take her with him if and when he had to go and wouldn't leave her alone for periods of time, someone who would make sure she didn't feel left out or hurt, who would have the emotional maturity and awareness to pick up on things like that after he himself has grown so much and can tell things like that. Someone who would love her but never be forceful or entitled about it, someone who would love her selflessly without expectation of reciprocation, someone who wouldn't kiss her without consent or when she clearly is not ok with it, someone who wouldn't let other girls flirt with him right in front of her because he knows how that hurts, happily show off his amazing water tribe lady to the world. Someone who would respect and learn about her culture rather than expecting her to do so for his without much reciprocation, someone who would make sure all of their children feel loved equally and unconditionally as he knows very well what it feels like to feel like there's unequal love and regard with siblings, and he would make sure they all feel loved and cared for equally without any favouritism, and he would actually make sure that's the case as he would actively want to not repeat generational trauma/abuse.

[moonchildushine]

Mind Over Flames

AO3 

Thank you so much everyone for the support! Your likes and reblogs really keep me going but just the fact that you take the time to read what I write makes my day. I highly encourage everyone to leave feedback! Either way, thank you again. Happy reading c: I will be uploading the next chapter right away!

Fuse

Zuko / Fire Nation There was nothing Zuko could put attention to besides the hospital for the water tribe. Two months after their reunion in Ba Sing Se passed flying with all the preparations. Zuko was always surrounded by engineers and architects preparing everything closely. He also spent a lot of time with Bato. Katara sent him a month after with instructions and ideas. He was supposed to go back after a week, but Zuko asked him to stay and give his thoughts on the design. He wanted it to be appropriate for the water tribe. 

In one week he was going with two cruisers to the South Pole. He knew Katara didn´t ask him to go personally, but he wanted to. After three years of being the Firelord Zuko did not have even one day for personal projects or even a vacation. Except for that one time Mai kidnaped him to get some alone time. The guards freaked out for a few hours. 

He was in his study, as always, getting everything ready for the trip. Also checking some documents about war prisoners. The door then opened unceremoniously. 

“Do I have to kidnap you again? I haven’t seen you in two days”. Mai stormed in. She had her characteristically annoyed face. “Not really,” Zuko smiled “hi Mai. I´m sorry, the hospital preparations have me busy”. 

She came around the robust desk, leaned down, and cupped his cheek to kiss him on the lips. They remained there for a few seconds, enjoying the closeness. 

“Why is it so important to you?” she asked and settled on the desk. “I owe them, after storming in chasing Aang, and all people my father and grandfather took from them”. 

She remained silent. At first, she used to get angry or annoyed at all the people Zuko said he owed. But Mai eventually learned that it made him feel better, so there was no point fighting it. 

“Alright just know I´m very annoyed that I cannot go. And that you need to repay me”. She got up and left. “As always”. ー He almost forgot how cold the wind was in the South Pole. The last time he sailed those waters he was a different man, with a very different purpose. 

“Firelord Zuko we will be arriving in an hour to the Southern Water Tribe” informed him one of the guards. “Very well, make sure the filters for the towers are working well”. “Yes Firelord”. And the guard left. ー Katara / South Pole 

“Katara! Fire Nation ships are coming!” yelled a little girl coming into her home.

  Katara took the kid´s hand and they both went to the port. Two big Fire Nation cruisers were close to the shore. A small curious crowd gathered to receive the newcomers. 

The ships soon docked, Katara left the girl with Gran Gran and she went to reunite with her father. 

When the ramp lowered she was speechless. Coming down was no other than Zuko himself. Katara did not ask him to come, she in no way expected him to be there to help her out, yet there he was. 

“You did not tell me Zuko, the Firelord, was coming” muttered Hakoda beside her. “I didn´t know” answered Katara. When Zuko finally reached the bottom he greeted his dad Water Tribe style. “It´s nice to see you again Chieftain Hakoda” “You too Firelord Zuko, we are grateful for your help. But please, just Hakoda”.  

He then turned to Katara. 

“Hello Katara” he smiled at her. She felt warm in her heart. He came across the world for her. “You didn´t have to come” she complained. “I know,” he sighed “but I owed you”. 

She finally hugged him. And he hugged her back. They separated smiling. ㅡ Katara didn’t remember the last time she was as happy and excited as she was for the next two weeks. She and Zuko spent almost all day together. Supervising the construction, with both Water Tribe and Fire Nation workers. 

Zuko, of course, went all the way out for the design. He brought special carved wooden pillars, and she would even have an office and a private healing room. Including her requested water rehabilitation pond. Special made beds, and three more rooms that she thought initially.

She almost forgot how it felt to spend so much time with a close-aged friend. After Ba Sing Se both Aang and Sokka stayed on the Earth Kingdom. And before that, she did not see them for almost six months. 

Unfortunately, as it commonly happened in the South Pole, a blizzard covered the tribe for an ongoing three days. 

Zuko and his people stayed in tents near the outsides of the tribe. The construction was halted and there was nothing to do but to stay inside until the storm passed. 

On the fourth day, Katara got worried over Zuko. She knew he was alone in his tent, and being alone in a never-ending blizzard was terrible. So she gathered some furs and food and made the most effort with her bending to get though the raging wind and snow to make him some company. 

When she arrived and passed through the entrance she was met with a warm room. Zuko was sitting on a pillow, using his bending to control the fire. 

“Well I don’t even know why I was worried you’d get cold” joked Katara. 

He turned back to see her, a smile as warm as the room they were in took form in his face. 

“Hi Katara” “Hi Zuko” she smiled back “I brought some furs and food for you”. “Great I’ll make some tea” 

He prepared the tea and she served and warmed the food. She bent her tea over to her cup and they both laughed. 

“Oh wow,” she praised tasting the tea “your tea skills have greatly improved since the last time”. “Thank you. My Uncle wouldn´t let me become the Firelord if I did not make him a decent cup of tea”. “He was right, as always”. “As always”. 

She looked around the tent, it seemed rather simple for Fire Nation royalty. A rug, some pillows, the little chimney, and a short table in which they were sitting on conjunct sides. Their elbows almost touching each other. 

“So, mmm, how is your scar?” shyly asked Katara. “Oh,” Zuko looked at his chest “it is fine”. “Can I see?” Katara blushed realizing what she asked “I mean for medical reasons! I want to see if the method I applied for you helped at all. But is okay if you don’t want to” she finished looking away. “Okay,” he opened his robes enough to see the scar “you can look. It actually healed very well”. 

Katara looked back at him, and down, just below his chest. The scarring actually did look very good. The lines were not harsh, it reduced in size and the color was almost the same as the rest of his skin. 

“Those medicines helped so much” she lightly touched the scar “I´m glad”. Katara looked at Zuko. His amber eyes filled with and emotion she couldn’t interpret. “I can never thank you enough Katara” he held the hand that was touching his chest. One was cold, the other was warm. “Not only did you save me that day. You saved my nation Katara. Is a debt I will be paying the rest of my life”. “Zuko no,” she made sure he was looking at her in the eye “you saved me. You took that lighting for me. I would not have defeated Azula if it was not for you. Please, I don´t want your debt”. 

The fire was slowly dying. But she did not get cold, he was warm enough. Both of them remained silent, only staring at each other. He tucked a strand lock of hair behind her ear. She cupped his scarred cheek. Without thinking of anything else, they approached each other, getting closer. Until finally, they fused. In a tingling shivering, heart-melting kiss. They could no longer feel their different body temperatures, for they were one. There was not a place when one started and another ended. Only warm touches. 

A fire lit in both their hearts. One that was long due, and never to die. ― She felt lost and confused. Katara could not get herself to regret it. How could something that felt so good, so natural be wrong? She never found an answer. The storm ended and a  letter from Aang arrived the next day, he was coming back and he promised he would stay for long. A choice needed to be made. News about her lover´s return soon spread, and she received excited comments from practically everyone she encountered. She loved Aang, there was no doubt about that. But she couldn´t ignore her feeling for Zuko. Katara finally realized what motivated her so much three years back. She could try to but her heart did not lie, there was more than friendship with Zuko, but was that enough? Was that kiss enough to leave everything she had built with Aang already? 

Her answer came from two places. One was her father, he heard about Aang and came to give Katara a talk, about marriage. According to tradition, Katara was old enough. She did not think that was happening anytime soon. But her father looked so hopeful, and when he told her about how he and her mother got married it brought her to tears. The words stuck with her for many nights. You deserve good love Katara, safe, gentle, wise, equal. That was Aang for her. 

Her second answer came from Zuko himself, indirectly. He did not talk with her, did not look for her. She knew he was probably as confused as her, and he had Mai to think about, just as she had Aang. Katara was not great friends with Mai, but just the thought of being the cause of someone else´s suffering strained her heart. No. She was not going to be that. 

Two weeks later the day came. After a month of work, the hospital was almost done. The rest of the details were  finished by the people in the tribe. Many things and gifts stayed at the tribe, and the rest was packed back to the cruisers. He never came to say goodbye to her. And she did not go to see them leave at the port. With the sound of the ships leaving Katara cried. She cried for the love that could never be. 

And away in the chilled sea, Zuko cried. His love for the women who saved him in more ways than one could never see the light.