#secret bumi lol

[lilacmooon]

The (Future) Fire Lord Izumi and her Ember Island Admirers

[chiefbeifongcanrailme]

⭐️⭐️⭐️

Hi Mochi! I'm so sorry I'm taking forever to get to this ask- but it's totally your fault- you know I'm indecisive- I'm a Libra and I couldn't choose which fic to go with🫠

So after much procrastination, I have picked: Somebody Come Geeeeeeeed Her She's Dancin' Like A…

This is my stripper!Lin fic.

Spoilers below. Be warned.

I had a lot of plans of continuing this- prequel, sequel, multi-chap the whole shindig but alas, the world is cruel. Although, just answering the ask is giving me a fantastic idea.

Anyway, coming down to the fic- a 20-something year old Tenzin is reluctantly taken to a strip club by Bumi where he is completely smitten by one of the strippers. Convinced that the woman wearing close to nothing on stage is Lin, Tenzin abandons his brother to go find her and see if it really is Lin. But whether or not this woman is his good friend, Captain Lin Beifong, Tenzin is experiencing love at first sight.

I'm laughing as I'm typing this, but we all know Lin's hot as balls and to have her be a stripper would be everything. As I was first writing this fic, I kinda decided that the stripper would actually be Lin's doppelganger from the bronx south side (known to be a shady area of Republic City) and Tenzin would feel like he's being gaslit. Jade's boyfriend would be Lightning Bolt Zolt while Tenzin's friendship with Lin keeps getting tested over this. But then I changed my mind, and decided to go with undercover Lin who's working with one of the up and coming triads based in the south side- of course, this has to be secret and nobody other than Saikhan knows about this. He often covers for her and ever since Tenzin discovers Jade, Saikhan has been working overtime lol.

But coming to the fic itself, where I got to include none of this, I wanted to establish just how attracted Tenzin is to Lin. He supposedly falls for Jade and that's only because as Jade, she gives him the time of day while Lin doesn't. Lin enjoys being Jade because that's the only time Tenzin will properly shoot his shot- with Lin, he's too tightly wound. And well, while Jade may a boyfriend (Lightning Bolt Zolt), for convenience (and so that she can be trusted by the triads), Lin secretly is in love with Tenzin.

And it's funny cuz Tenzin loves Jade, Jade "loves" Zolt, Zolt- who sees Lin at the RCPD once is obsessed with this more high strung, difficult, stick-in-the-ass version of his girlfriend- and therefore into Lin, who in turn, is into Tenzin who just won't make a move!

RIP to all my good ideas. Unfortunately for its audience, this director only publishes the very pretty, pointy tip of her icebergs.

[highfantasy-soul]

Moments I loved from NATLA Episode 4 - Into the Dark ❤️️❤️️

Aang and Iroh interacting more - love that they're not friendly to each other, per se, but it builds a foundation that makes their later respect make sense

The Earth Kingdom being harsh with their 'fallen foes' is nice to seed in here as in the animated version (season 1), most of the 'bad' stuff was relegated solely to the Fire Nation

The Earth Kingdom is no pushover and it's nice to see that early

Sokka defending his dad "My dad would have never done what you did" even after he commiserated with the Mechanist about his dad 'not valuing' what Sokka could bring to the table.

Though Sokka is frustrated that his dad doesn't see "him", he knows his dad is an honorable man doing his best and when Sai tries to use him as an example of 'doing the wrong thing just to survive', love that Sokka calls him on it

SECRET TUNNEEELLLL!!!

Like them introducing this now - all old buildings have secret passages - it's just a law

Teo's "its time to fight!" attitude - love it. He's so ready to stop cowering and wants to hit back

Flopsy statues!!!!!

Rolly ball throne? Nice touch

"Bumi? BUMI!!" :D

"You did 🤨" Love how Aang keeps his "I'm just gonna say the truth and I don't care if that's 'not allowed' I'm gonna do it anyways because your social rules are stupid" attitude

Katara's water pouch!!

Love the shake in Jet's voice as he tells Katara "I am nothing like the firebenders"

Katara's assessment is shallow on her part, but the core has a ring of truth - no, freedom fighters aren't the same as their oppressors, but when you start harming your own people to hurt the enemy, then you really have lost sight of what's right and wrong - why you're fighting.

FREEZE JET'S ASS!

I love Jet, especially this version of him, but yeah, no touchy

And Katara is absolutely right: Jet might have helped her through her block, but her power, that's all hers.

What are you going to do, Zuko?? What choice will you make!!??

Love that we're getting this choice of his here in Omashu

Bumi's puns 😭 kill me now - though very canon accurate

Like the vibe that everyone just has to laugh as to not anger him - there's less of a whimsical madness vibe to Bumi here and a more serious - yeah, this guy is our leader vibe that's quite unsettling

The tonal shift with Bumi did give me pause, but I like how the writers kept the jokes, the games, his eccentricities, but shifted the vibe to make them darker

In the cartoon, whimsy might work, but if you think about it realistically, that leadership style would NOT work during a war - a 100 year war, at that.

HIPPIIEESSSS!!!!

Sokka getting into that maraca - you let your little musical heart fly

"What are you doing here?" "We're doin' what we're doin'" :)

Oma and Shu lesbian supremacy!!!

Always get chills when this story is told

Lol Sokka's "There's no such thing as angry spirits." Right before the episode where they're kidnapped by an angry spirit XD

Love the switch up of the rocks not really being the path out - keeping us animated show fans on our toes as to what the lesson will be this time

Everything about the Earth Kingdom soldier's interaction with Iroh - all of it is just so good.

The cartoon glossed over Iroh's warmongering past - but he did do terrible things that hurt so many people. No, 'it was war, I was a soldier' is not an acceptable excuse (we didn’t accept it with Jet, so why the double standard for a ROYAL MILITARY GENERAL??)

The funeral scene

Leaves from the Vine

Zuko offering a soft and kind memory of Liu Ten instead of just talk about him being a soldier

Zuko sitting next to Iroh so he won't be alone!!!!!!!!!

The conversation between Katara and Sokka in the cave where she talks about how Jet helped her and Sokka how Sai helped him - then Katara reminding Sokka that when he was forced into a leadership position for the Southern Water Tribe, he didn't have anyone to help him through that

The concept of us all needing people to help us through our journeys is so important and really comes around at the end of the episode and just through the entire series

BADGERMOOOLLLEEE!!!!

Is it bad that all I could think about was how cute it was the entire time it was on screen?

Dallas Liu is so. Freaking. Good. At. His. Stunts!!!!

And the first mention of the theme Zuko struggles with of compassion being weakness!

Sokka's little 'thanks!' as Katara saves him from the badgermole XD

Seriously, all the little touches in Ian Ousley's performance are great

Idk why Sokka assumed the badgermole was a man, that's clearly a dignified lady

The power of sibling love guiding the badgermole was a great alteration from the OG - if they can be controlled through music, they can definitely respond to emotions

Bumi's whole speech here - and his willingness to get crushed - is what brought me around on this portrayal of him

He's right: it's a game where you have to make impossible choices - you have to fight even when you don't want to (a much more poignant message for Aang than 'look at things a different way')

The power of friendship saves the day!!!

"You CAN rely on your friends - and that's the only way I'm going to save the world: with my friends"

"You think like a child" (derogatory) "Is that really so bad?" (genuine)

Bumi made Appa's whistle!!! 😭😭😭😭

One last time Zuko chooses protecting his uncle over capturing the Avatar 🥲

"Everything I need is right here on this boat" 😭😭😭

[Masterlist of my NATLA thoughts]

[dont-blame-it-on-the-kids]

“ Be still, don't move. ”

Hey guys finally Kyalin Drabble lol

Not much ever gets past Lin. Even when she’s off duty the seismic sense helps her keep tabs on things happening in her surroundings. But even after all these years the waterbender has a way of slipping past her defenses.

Lin jerked awake as a hand covered her mouth and she tried to shove the intruder off her but they were ready for her and a giggle stopped Lin from continuing to fight.

“Be still, don’t move.” Kya whispered but chuckled again.

“Kya!” Lin snapped pulling the hand off her mouth.

“Shhhh,” Kya broke off into a giggled and Lin felt her settle into the bed beside her. “I’m back in the city, and you~ are getting slow Chief Lin.”

“I never know how you do that.” Lin scoffed.

“I have my secrets, and a key.” Kya hummed as she pressed her cheek to Lin’s shoulder and relaxed.

“How in the world did you get a key?” Lin wrapped her arm around Kya and made sure she was covered by the blanket as well.

“Mmm my secrets.” Kya smiled.

“How long are you in town?”

“A while. Bumi is here too, he’s on the island.” Kya shifted to kiss Lin’s jaw. “But I had somewhere else to be.”

[lizajane2]

Avatar the Last Airbender Live Action Episode 4

"I'm really starting to see the kind of person he is."

No, no Aang you're wrong. Zuko is under the impression that gaining his father's acceptance and love are more important. He's confused and lost. Just needs guidance. There is good in him.

"He'll listen to you." Sometimes.

Bitch no when Iroh and Aang are at the end of their conversation you can slightly hear Leaves from the Vine playing in the background.

How do you make King Bumi crazier than he was in the animated series?

"Look at the power you have. That's because of me."

Let me just scooch in here: "WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?!"

Not me singing along to "Secret Tunnel." LOL. I just couldn't help myself.

"You were a butcher!" Perspective is important here and I love that they added this scene with the earthbender because we've always seen Iroh as this tea-loving and wise old man who has a good heart, but you never saw the pain he caused other people with his actions.

This scene was spoiled for me, but I was not prepared for it at all. Iroh was alone in his pain and suffering, even Ozai his own brother didn't sit with him, but Zuko did. And I'm ugly sobbing right now. THE WRITERS KNEW WHAT THEY WERE DOING WITH THAT RENDITION OF LEAVES FROM THE VINE!!!

They kept this in!!

Cause this:

Was so attractive to me when I was a teenager (I have no reason as to why it was). It's the little things that make me love this show.

Okay, the fact that they used Sokka and Katara's love for each other as a family to find their way out of the tunnel is touching. It's a weird decision but I don't hate it.

"You think like a child." Well, Bumi that's cause he is one. LOL. And I feel like Bumi has a right to feel that he was abandoned by Aang. That was his best friend and he just disappeared. I get it.

"You wanna come with me?" Zuko sounded so surprised.

"How about a friend?"

"Home. Everything I need is on this boat."

[angelosearch]

My initial screaming thoughts on the Avatar the Last Air Bender live action remake on Netflix. Spoilers for eps 1-4 below, will watch 5-8 later today probably.

I want to hug this casting director and also ask them how they pulled the chacters straight out of the cartoon and made them real.

IROH IS SO GOOD OMG

Lol wow the dialogue is really leaving nothing up to the imagination. Exposition exposition exposition. Get why they are doing it this way but it gets reeeeeally clunky sometimes.

We must say the exact number of years that everything has happened and everyone's age

hope line in ep 1 is straight out of Ember Island Players

WOW THE BENDING

WOW THE FIGHT CHOREOGRAPHY

The ostrich horses are chocobos and I am not taking any questions

😭 The airbender genocide is horrifying (as it should be)

Animals are a tad uncanny valley but I am okay with it

I appreciate that they kept so much of the original music even though it feels a little out of place for something live action

The tone is much more mature. The themes are different in a good way - they haven't changed much of what exists in the canon, just shifted focus. Adult side characters are getting more story. Stakes feel higher. Violence! Grittiness!

Firebenders are really fucking evil so they need to balance it with more morally gray/evil earthbenders and more upfront sympathy/development for Iroh and Zuko

This show could be enjoyable to someone who has never seen the cartoon before but it is definitely written for us, those who had our hearts broken by the movie

Sokka is not overtly sexist and honestly I'm okay with it. I like that arc for him in the animated tv show but with the tone of the live action, he couldn't just be funny sexist, he would have to be dark sexist and that just wouldn't be Sokka. Plus I like how they focus more on Sokka's sense of duty because it creates a good foil for Aang.

I was never really a big Sokka/Suki shipper but DAMN.

KYOSHI PLEASE STEP ON ME ALL I REALLY WANNA BE A GIANT WOMAN OMG THEY TOOK STUFF FROM THE BOOKS

I am getting more Zutara vibes rn than Katara/Aang idk

Okay they are condensing the plot but in really smart ways. We aren't losing much.

The set design. The costuming. SO PERFECT. Ohmashu looked great.

DANIEL PUDI AAAAHHHHHHHH

THE. CABBAGE. MERCHANT. 10/10 IT'S THE VOICEACTOR THEY CAST HIM IN THE LIVE ACTION

they mention secret tunnels. Are they gonna do it? Are they gonna keep it in?? YEEEESSSS FUCK YES OKAY THIS REMAKE IS AMAZING

I really like how they made the tunnels about sibling love tbh

Utkarsh Ambudkar disappears into the role of Bumi and it is SO GOOD

Me: *cries as Zuko comforts Iroh at Lu Ten's funeral* My husband: "Wait, listen to the music" Me: *listens* *lays down* *CRIES A LOT*

This show is very focused on showing what a 100 year war does to people and I think that was a good direction to take

Overall I am VERY happy with it. They understood the assignment, there is a ton of love for the show weaved into it, and I am excited to see more.

[ameliatheamazing]

I watched the a:tla live action and because I used to be the Posting My Thoughts On Avatar blog, I'm gonna share the lil reviews I wrote after watching each episode. spoilers ahead!

1- aang:

ok so far it’s actually really good! The actors are amazing, especially aang and zuko, but like everyone actually. They are kids. And that’s like the most important thing. (i just hope they’re still kids by the end of the series lol). The visuals are BEAUTIFUL, the lighting and color grading is really good, the effects are great, the costumes are amazing- it’s all really faithful to the show. And it’s so exciting too bc i know it so i’m like so hyped every time something new that i recognize comes along. So overall i’m enjoying it. The main thing is it’s pretty tonally different, like bc it’s a limited series they’re focusing more on the war aspect of it all and cut a lot of the filler. Which makes sense i guess but like.. I do hope they let these kids be kids! Like please let aang goof off and show katara and sokka that it’s ok to take a break and have fun as well. I feel like that’s a really important aspect of his character so we shouldn’t cut all the filler. Please. We’ll see. (i had this exact problem with the pjo series too.. feel like i’m getting deja vu)

2- warriors:

Episode 2! Was really good! They took out sokka’s sexism which ppl were mad about but i honestly really liked what they did instead, how he connected to suki through them both being leaders of their villages. He still underestimated her and she still taught him to fight (he just wasn’t wearing makeup. tragic) and i LOVED every scene they had together! I was like kicking my feet it was so cute. Kyoshi came in and was so OP. I think it’s weird that they started going to the north because of some omen and not because aang needs to learn waterbending?? Like what’s the reason for that. so many of the decisions made here just seem to be trying to move the story along as fast as possible. But there are still good character moments and it’s enjoyable.

I love zuko. I already did so i am biased but his actor is amazing he really has that anger but also like, a clear softness beneath that. (my only problem is his scar isn’t quite as nasty as the animated version. Like from far away you can’t even really see it, i feel like it should be bigger.) I’m still not sure about iroh’s actor he’s pretty different from the animated version and i just feel like no one can live up to the original, but his character is similar to the one we know and love. azula and ozai made an appearance which is wayy sooner than in the og lol. but both of their actors seem great i’m excited to see more of them.

3- omashu:

ok we knocked out a few major s1 episodes, with jet and the mechanist from the northern air temple being featured. neither of them were from omashu originally but combining them here actually worked out ok. i loved danny pudi as the mechanist obviously. they weren’t living in the air temple though which took out a pretty big struggle for aang, where he had to come to terms with other people living on the air nomads’ land. but they can’t include every detail and like i said, having them in omashu worked just fine. idk how i feel about the jet plot, it seemed pretty similar to the original episode it just had less focus so it was like weirdly paced i felt like. most important thing was we saw cabbage guy!! even in live action his cabbages aren’t safe

4- into the dark:

why did they have bumi like, literally try to kill aang? in the show they revealed he was bumi at the very end and he was like haha it’s me your friend! i was testing your strength or whatever. here, they had him be mad at aang for not being there during the war! like oh my god?? in the original series, not everything was about the war. you even forgot it was happening at times. here, they don’t let you forget.

so glad they included secret tunnel. also oma and shu were lesbians we love to see it. but it was so strange that the badger moles like… responded to love? what?? that’s not a thing. in the original cave of two lovers episode i remember katara thought love would be the answer at first, but then was proven wrong and the crystals actually just guided them because it was dark. but in this one, she was right and sokka looked like an idiot for not believing her?? ok. i am kinda glad they took out the kataang stuff, i don’t think we need it this early on.

i liked zuko and iroh’s plot, especially the addition that the guy who captured iroh had a personal trauma from iroh’s ba sing se attack. this show has so much depth and nuance rather than just having good guys and bad guys and this was a great way of showing that.

5- spirited away:

idk what to think of this one. it was kind of an all over the place infodump. they clearly used this one as a way to put in a lot of stuff they weren’t gonna cover otherwise, like sokka’s trial thing. it didn't flow together very well. but i still enjoyed it i guess. we met a bunch of spirits that normally don’t show up until later like koh, wan shi tong, and the fox that i’m pretty sure was yue. interesting choices. ok and why the fuck did they have june flirt with iroh?? bc in the og series he makes comments towards her that are a bit gross. and instead of taking that out altogether, they reversed it?? what the fuck? that’s not better. i think my favorite part of this episode was gyatso telling aang it wasn’t his fault. he needed to hear that.

i’m starting to get pretty annoyed that aang hasn’t learned waterbending AT ALL? by this point he had been practicing with katara quite a bit! like we are way behind on the mastering elements thing when that was literally their top priority in the main series.

6-masks:

that was actually amazing. pretty spot on 1 to 1 of the blue spirit episode, at least the second half. except at the end aang and zuko talked a lot more, they’re really pushing zuko towards that redemption more than in the original. zuko’s backstory also had a lot added to it which i really liked. ozai’s characterization is so interesting, he has a little more depth (we’re just seeing more of him rly) but he ofc is still the worst human being ever in the world. but the actor who plays him is so good and we're really seeing why he makes the decisions he does. the agni kai was more drawn out which made it even worse, and we saw the actual moment of zuko’s banishment which was also extremely painful to watch! :D when he was crying in his bed ugh i couldn’t take it. and i love the detail that the soldiers he wanted to save were assigned to be his crew, which led them to respect him more once they heard his story. i loved that.

they really dumbed down commander zhao in this, i watched the original episode again and he was so much more threatening. idk why they gave that asswipe more comedic relief than aang. let aang be silly!! i’m also craving more appa in this show.

7- the north:

this was pretty much just an expanded version of the waterbending master episode. (although aang is STILL not learning waterbending?) the katara vs pakku fight was amazing and really accurate to the original scene, which was one of my favorite fight scenes so i’m glad for that. although they took out the whole thing with pakku noticing katara’s necklace but that’s fine tbh. but yeah she had her girl power moment! slay. yue is amazing and her and sokka’s interactions are so great! although i wish sokka and suki hadn’t actually kissed in episode 2, bc i feel like it took away from the importance of his and yue’s relationship! like she was his first kiss in the series and now she’s not. she’s not even necessarily his “first girlfriend.” so yeah weird choices all around. i also found it interesting that she dumped hahn and was not even betrothed to him. and he was way less of an asshole so it's not even clear why she did that. i guess trying to give her more agency? but like it doesn't make sense.

8- legends:

this one was good, again pretty accurate to the season 1 finale. the fight scenes were really drawn out to the point where it felt like they were just padding time lol, but aang’s avatar state fish suit thing looked really cool. i don’t remember if aang’s conflict here was in the original but i don’t think it was? where he’s like “i have to bear the burden of being the avatar alone” i remember him struggling with that in season 3 but not s1. idk how i feel about that. I love that katara got her moment and got to not only fight but be a leader! also momo like, sacrificed himself to save someone but it fell pretty flat bc if you're just watching this new series, you would barely care about momo. he's like not in this at all. zuko was the highlight once again. i just love him. i think that's all i have to say? again, pretty much the same story as the original.

TLDR i didnt hate this series, most of my problems with it just came from the fact that it's a live action remake and i hate those as a concept. as a fan of og avatar it was really enjoyable! I didn't like the shift in tone very much but I knew it was coming. (i'm probably gonna rewatch the og series as a palette cleanser lol). The cast and overall visuals were great and the story, although condensed, was fairly accurate. I'm excited to see how they do s2 but i'm not like super invested and my hopes are still not that high.

[thedeliverygod]

ATLA live action episode 4 review

The live action is diverting a lot from the original series but it's still really entertaining so it's still not bothering me much.

I can't believe how many plotlines they managed to squeeze into the city of Omashu lol.

SECRET TUNNELLLLL made it into the show, bless.

Bumi being angry and bitter that Aang disappeared rather than just being 'crazy' was kinda nice imo? It made a lot of sense. Especially given the responsibilities he had to take on as King.

Also this episode was full of Zuko and Iroh feels. I love them so much.

Katara's clapback after Jet was like "You're so powerful, I helped you do this." and she's like nah I did it myself and I've got more important things to do than deal with you~ was great

Flopsie easter egg!!!

I will say the badger moles reacting to "feelings" rather than music was kinda meh lol. I don't really see them doing another series anyway but it takes away from Prince Wu's whole thing with the badger moles in LOK lol. I mean animals definitely do react to emotions so it's not like totally out there but -shrug-

lastly, I definitely giggled as it showed Bumi & Aang in the delivery cart and then show an explosion with an exclamation of MY CABBAGES!!!

[greenvillainredemption]

Ep 4 time. I love how Bumi looks, his whole vibe is perfect. Idk why they revealed who he was so quickly when the whole twist of the original episode was like omg it’s my friend :D !!! Also I love his and all his guys’ costumes, I might just be biased because they’re greeen lol.

Also the secret tunnel singers are incredible perfect life saving crop watering skin clearing etc etc.

I love how Iroh is confronted by someone who was hurt by what he did in ba sing se, since I see the criticism all the time that he should’ve faced harsher consequences for what he did (not that a single guy beating him is exactly just but y’know it gets the point across) (another thing that might’ve actually been in the original show and I just forgot lol)

And the flashback of zuko sharing something of iroh’s son while leaves on the vine plays in the background noooooooooo AND SHOWING IROH DECIDING TO GO WITH ZUKO WAAAAAH

[cabbageslost]

Live Reacting to Live Action AtLA - ep 4

Nothing about this is spoiler-free. You have been warned. Skip til after you've seen if you're worried.

..

Okay, just like with the first three, this will be my space to blather my way through the 4th NAtLA episode. Almost to the halfway point. Here's hoping this one brings it, cuz if there's a Bumi who is "toned down" I will be just screaming into the void. Firing it up now...

..

Well. At least they let Katara be the one to be out looking for Aang. I feel like she hasn't gotten enough "umph" in this version.

Secret love cave is turning into secret haunted tunnels. *sigh* Gonna guess this change won't be one I like.

Wait, what? They're skipping WAY THROUGH a ton of Bumi lead up. Straight to instant knowing. *deep breath*

Yay, she gets a water skin now an-- oooh, Jet's back. Kick his ASS, girl! One hope speech then his stubborn ass goes down. YES! Yes that WAS you!! woohoo.. okay, favorite part so far. LOL

Pun game is strong with Bumi.

At least we still get the nomads, but.. this bit isn't even a book 1 thing. And it being here is gonna probably mean skipping a fairly iconic part from the OG.

Wait, Iroh dropped a pai sho tile? But that stinky sandal turned out to be an MVP later.. lol..

Okay, still having crazy Bumi trials of a sort.

Sokka's instincts showing up to lead them out of the cave. I kind of love their sibling fights. Giving me hope for Katara getting better writing as we're going on, because she clearly acts well (and her imperfect, layered self was always my favorite and I want none of that toned down.)

Guard/Iroh exchange is actually a pretty standout scene, acting-wise. And Iroh's expressions.. oh man, if those expressions didn't hit you in the feels enough, here's the flashback. Shades of Leaves on the vine..

Ah, sibling love. Um, okay. Yeah, still don't like it. This adaptation already has so much they cram in, no reason for them to try and reach out for more season 2 stories to shove in.

Aang and Bumi fight.. I wish that they would have Aang explain that he didn't "leave", not in this version. He and Appa were out for a midnight stroll when stuff happened to go down. What's the point of making that change if he's still letting the world think he left them? (Which, I mean, he was 12 and understandable.)

Yes!! A (very brief) mail chute ride AND a MY CABBAGES!! Some of my prayers have been answered.

Okay, and I approve the addition of this Zuko/Iroh flashback. "Everything I need is on this boat." Uncle Iroh, you and these ninjas-chopping-onions moments.

Ah, ending on Zuko ignoring an Appa sighting. Guessing that's why they were making Bumi completely hammer on Aang having run away (though he didn't) - because they were trying to get a couple points from The Storm in.

..

Alright, well. This one was a roller coaster for me. I actually did love the added scenes (the Iroh/Zuko flashbacks), and they seemed to start writing Katara better (please keep it up), and I got my tiny glimpse of a fun ride. Also got to see Katara put the smack on Jet, but the awesomeness was dampened a bit since she was immediately making excuses for him in the cave with Sokka. And then a lot of the rest of it was disappointing. Putting Cave of Two Lovers in there for no reason was a big L, and I remain frustrated by the repeated "you ran from this" stuff that is getting tossed at Aang - including by his own past life who would 100% know that didn't happen (in this version). It was a decision to change it to make it not a running away, but then there's no decision to have Aang reassure the world he never chose to leave them? Bonkers. I mean, it was frustrating enough in the original, since when he ran was when they were removing him from Gyatso.. he had been still around the temple after being told he was the Avatar, he wasn't running from that alone. But at least he was choosing to run, so I kind of "got it" then. But they changed it and now he hasn't even run and just.. meh. I'm also frustrated at the pretty big lack of showing the Gaang actually forming a close bond. It's all the little "fun" things that they cut out that just don't let us see how they're close friends.. we just have to be told at the end of the fight, I guess.

[fuckyouozai]

my kyoshi novels opinions may be controversial because they are this: i love kyoshi and rangi and the fact that we get canon queer romance - which is genuinely lovely and well-developed and thoughtful - is truly bonkers insane beautiful. some of the worldbuilding is really compelling too, there are some insanely cool side characters (i wanted more of kelsang, i think fire lord zoryu was very cool, i want more info on kyoshi’s mom), and man the bending was super super cool! but overall like.

the books were not good LOL

plot-wise, story-wise, connection to atla-wise, they were not great. book 1 of kyoshi was just her getting pummeled with trauma, then poorly-developed outlines of potentially cool characters with the flying opera company which ended in a weird false climax. lek dying served no purpose; he was essentially introduced in order to die. plus the whole aborted side plot about how she discovered the secret to immortality is silly! bumi is a spry 112 years old in the og series! we know people can live very long lives! we don’t need an explanation!

the 2nd novel was good, again i LOVE kyoshi’s character, but there felt like so many details and abandoned side plots that we didn’t need. and despite that it was still significantly shorter than the first book. it seemed like that novel wanted to be a kuruk book but had to keep refocusing on kyoshi. and it’s like. let it be about kuruk! kuruk is interesting! and the fact that ummi is not mentioned ONCE in the novels (i think MAYBE once in passing) is truly insane. hei-ran did not need to be a kuruk love interest, that added nothing. the reason we’re interested in kuruk as a character is what little we saw of him in atla. so connect it to atla! don’t introduce his entire arc and life as something where the love of his life being stolen by koh was just a short addendum at the end. plus yun just did not convince me as an antagonist. it was a heel-turn and i get that’s got a lot to do with the betrayal of jianzhu/not being the avatar/possession/torture by spirits, but i did not find that transformation convincing

and to top it all off the writing was.... just not very good. sooooo YA. tho that’s a personal complaint since i think these books are technically YA so it’s perfectly reasonable that they’d have that tone

again, i LOVED both kyoshi and rangi - their characters, their interactions, their relationship. i thought kyoshi moved convincingly throughout the novel, i just thought the plot around her was pretty weak. it’s a shame we didn’t get more to connect us to atla, like even a touch of the establishment of the kyoshi warriors (tho admittedly yes suki alone included that)

i haven’t finished the yangchen novel yet but so far i’m enjoying that. i think that yangchen has a lot more leeway because we know so little about her in canon that she can be interpreted widely rather than like. having an established character like kyoshi or even kuruk

[catie-does-things]

Some fun facts about Sin and Duty:

The original outline was written in a fit of pique after reading a one shot fic where Kya was secretly Zuko’s daughter but Katara successfully kept this a secret from everyone and there were basically no consequences.

In the original outline, Bumi kept up the double life much longer and Aang only learned the truth on his deathbed. It took me very little reflection to realize that would be Depressing AF and no one wanted that.

When I started actually writing the story, I thought I could keep it to a long-ish one shot, which in hindsight, lmao.

I went back and forth over whether Zuko’s wife was Mai or someone else. I never actually decided.

For a long time I thought of Bumi’s arc as being about him reconciling with both Aang and Zuko as his fathers. Like Bumi himself, it took me longer to realize that his relationship with Katara was where the actual root of his trauma would lie.

Also like Bumi himself, I probably should have realized this from the moment he called his own mother a whore in chapter three - which is actually one of my favorite moments in the story.

The seditious pamphlets that outed Bumi were supposed to be a larger subplot than they wound up being. Aza was originally going to turn out to have been involved. Iyego was supposed to be the red herring.

Headmaster Miki of the Royal Academy is named after Saint Paul Miki. Fire Sage Kisai and the acolytes Taegon and Hasang are named after Saint James Kisai, Saint Andrew Kim Taegon and Saint Paul Chong Hasang, respectively. When in doubt, martyr names out.

Bumi’s scenes with Korra in the final chapter were mostly written about halfway through the story.

The rest of the final chapter was so hard to write I literally left Aang on his deathbed to go write the entirety of Peace & Love instead. That was an emotional whiplash to come back to lol.

[chiefbeifongcanrailme]

Hi!!! For the ask me anything, do you have any Linzolt headcanons?

Hi yes of course! I stopped at 10 because I was droning on a bit much lol.

They enjoy spicy food, black coffee, and firewhiskey.

When they were younger, they'd have secret spots hidden around the city where they'd meet up for a drink. Under a bridge, by the canal, obscure parts of railway tracks, and dark alleyways. And once they're older, they revisit these same spots to reminisce.

Zolt loves Lin wholeheartedly. He doesn't have any hidden agendas and so he'd hate the idea of Tenzin wanting to be with Lin but pressuring her for airbenders. Given the opportunity, I could totally see them getting into a fistfight over Lin.

Of the two of them, Zolt is more blatantly affectionate while Lin is more reserved. She has her own ways of showing him that she cares and Zolt treasures those moments.

Whenever Lin throws herself headfirst into danger, while internalizing his worries, Zolt is her biggest cheerleader. He knows his girl can do whatever she puts her mind to, even if it's callous and dangerous, he is rooting for her. And should things not go awry, he wouldn't hesitate to jump into anything to save his damsel in distress.

Lin is good friends with some of Zolt's friends from back at school. She can't tolerate any of his criminal friends and Zolt thinks that special, because he's the only criminal for her.

Zolt often makes Suyin the butt of his jokes because that's his own snide way of getting back at her for everything that she has done to Lin. He isn't rude or offensive. And given Su's personality, what she sees as friendly banter is a well-masked, convenient jab from Zolt.

To further mess with Tenzin, Zolt is very friendly with Bumi, Kya, and the kids. He is simply cordial with Pema so as to not make Lin uncomfortable and often wonders out loud how Tenzin could make such a wrong choice.

Lin and Zolt love taking vacations around the world. If it weren't for work, they probably would've scoured through every fun, summery beach. (Yes, Zolt prefers beaches to mountains).

Firelord Izumi is the biggest Linzolt supporter. She doesn't care about either of their backgrounds. To her, they only come across as two people madly in love with each other, and nothing else matters.

[raayllum]

today in “thoughts i’ve somewhat mulled over but recently clicked when i actually focused on it for 3 minutes,” i was standing around making my hot chocolate and thinking about the differences in how atla titles its episodes and how tdp does. they’re both amazing fantasy series with books and chapters, but the chapter titles felt distinctly different from each other for a reason i couldn’t quite place.

and now i think i’ve identified the difference. 

(disclaimer: this doesn’t mean one is better or more mature or sophisticated than the other, lol)

the majority of atla episodes are named after people or places

people (most prominent in book one, but still happens throughout):

the boy in the iceberg / the avatar returns / avatar aang: just for aang

the puppetmaster: for hama

the king of omashu: for bumi

jet (self explanatory)

bato of the water tribe (self explanatory)

the blind bandit / the runaway: for toph

the avatar and the firelord: for roku and sozin, and aang and zuko

avatar roku (self explanatory)

the blue spirit

the waterbending master

the deserter 

the fortuneteller 

the earth king

the painted lady

sokka’s master

the guru

[groups - subsection]

the firebending masters

the southern raiders

the warriors of kyoshi

the ember island players (theatre company)

That’s 23/61 episodes, so a little over a third of the show. The second most common episode title is after places:

the southern air temple

the spirit world

the great divide

the northern air temple

the cave of two lovers

the swamp

the library

the swamp

the serpent’s pass

the city of walls and secrets

lake laogai

the beach

western air temple

the boiling rock (part 1 and 2) 

15/61. So 38/61 episodes are named after people or places. (Could you count the Tales of Ba Sing Se as both?) Then you have episodes named after events - like “Avatar Day,” “the Awakening,” “the Drill,” or “Day of Black Sun” and “Siege of the North.” There are also outliers about belongings, like “The Headband” and “The Waterbending Scroll.” “Zuko Alone” and “Appa’s Lost Days” are extraordinarily similar in function. 

So overall, in Avatar, there aren’t many episodes that have strong symbolism built inherently into the titles except for, really

The Storm [symbolic and literal]

The Crossroads of Destiny [almost entirely symbolic]

Nightmares and Daydreams [technically literal, but due to the nature of dreams, mostly conceptual] 

Into the Inferno [symbolic]

That doesn’t mean there isn’t symbolism - I love the way the narrative is reflected in the culmination of “boy in the iceberg” and “the avatar returns” into “Avatar Aang” for example; it’s one of my favourite parallels in the whole series - but the episodes can be understood just fine without a symbolic read. 

As a whole, ATLA episode titles tend to be quite literal. They set you up for whatever that episode, especially given the weekly release style it was made for, will focus on for that week, usually centred around some kind of person (identity, occupation, or alignment not always obvious right away) or location (a bit more mystery). 

Now, let’s take a look at TDP episodes. Which ones are named after people, items, events, or places?

An Empty Throne - an item

The Dagger and the Wolf - an item and character (Ava)

The Cursed Caldera - place

Voyage of the Ruthless - a place / journey

The Heart of a Titan - item

Sol Regem - character

The Crown - item

The Midnight Desert - place

Dragonguard - group / people

The Final Battle - event

What about everything else? Well, the remaining TDP titles are almost entirely symbolic.

Echoes of Thunder - symbolic and literal in both the storm and the aftermath of Thunder’s death

What is Done - entirely symbolic

Moonrise - technically an event but not made clear by the title itself

Bloodthirsty - descriptor

Through the Ice - symbolic as Rayla’s walls melt, Ezran and the egg go through the ice, and the kids travel across it, but again - it doesn’t indicate a clear place or event

Wonderstorm - occupies a similar space as Moonrise

A Secret and A Spark - entirely symbolic and entrenched in lore

Half Moon Lies - symbolic

Smoke and Mirrors - symbolic due to illusions (verbal and magic)

Breaking the Seal - dual literal and symbolization for each

Fire and Fury - symbolic

The Book of Destiny - like, meta-symbolic

Breathe - symbolic, descriptor

Ghost - literal and symbolic

Heroes and Masterminds - could also go into people, but given that it isn’t clear until the end of the episode who the hero(es) and mastermind(s) are, I’m keeping it here

Thunderfall - occupies same space as Moonrise and Wonderstorm

Hearts of Cinder - symbolic

All of this being a very long winded way of saying that while ATLA’s titles tended to be more literal even at their more vague points (i.e. Zuko Alone is still somewhat self explanatory), TDP favours far more symbolic titles for the majority of their episodes that reveal, generally, very little about what the episode is actually about and is only really obvious or known once we’ve watched them. 

[the-last-cuddlebender]

I wish you would write a fic where.... Aang and katara take their kid penguin sledding ❤️ or just visit the South Pole

My immediate thought with “visit the South Pole” was ice-skating, but the otterpenguins get a honorable mention lol.

(This somehow became Kya-centric, and I absolutely adore it.)

feat. bestdad!Aang, bëbë!Kya, bestmom!Katara, bestuncle!Sokka, bestPap-Pop!Hakoda, littleshit!Bumi, and bëbë!Tenzin

Words: 2,004

*****************************************

Sokka was going to die if he didn’t stop laughing long enough to breathe. That, or Katara was going to creatively kill him.

Aang was beauty. Aang was grace.

Aang could not ice-skate.

He could surf on the wind and walk on one hand through fire, but put him on bladed shoes on ice? He was worse than a newborn catdeer.

“Daddy, you gotta do this, r‘member?” Little Kya had her mother’s grace and twice her father’s flair even when she was so thickly layered that her arms perpetually stood at the horizontal. Only a thin strip of her face was visible between her parka and her hood.

“I-I got it, moonpeach.”

Aang, in fact, did not have it.

He’s lucky he’s so flexible, otherwise the split he windmilled and then belly-flopped into might have hurt him.

Sokka laughed so hard that the otterpenguins two glaciers down made disgruntled sounds at him.

Aang tried to hide himself in the ice. Kya bent over and patted his arrow with one of her horizontal arms.

The snow melted around Sokka from the force of Katara’s glare, but he really, really couldn’t care less.

Oh, how he wished to have one of those new photo-whatchamacallits that they had in the city.

“Daddyyyy...,” Kya whined in a chastising tone that nearly swapped their roles as parent and child. “Daddy, you gotta do it like this.” Kya was insistent, stern, and extremely amiable with her wobbling student. “Here, hold my hand. I won’t let you fall again, m’kay?”

Aang managed a weak laugh and tried to nervously decline for fear of accidentally smushing her when he inevitably fell again, but little Kya was already taking his hand. Her face flushed a little red as she struggled to gain initial momentum, but it wasn’t long before she was skating with her father, crouched and holding her hand with both of his, like he was cargo tied to a sled.

The ice sang as Katara slid up next to them. Her hands laced behind her back as she swayed with complete control of and on her element. “Very good, Kya. You’re a great teacher.” Katara patted Aang’s back. “Isn’t she, sweetie?”

Kya puffed her chest and smiled so wide that they could see it in the small space between the neck of her parka and her hood. Aang’s legs were starting to shake from crouching for so long.

“Katara,” Aang hissed. “Katara, help me.”

Katara laughed something bordering on pride and mischief. She kissed his cheek, maneuvered to kiss Kya, too, and skated away to push Sokka, sitting on the border of the ice, into the powder again.

“Kataraaaaa…” Aang shook a little more, threatened to windmill again, but caught himself by sinking into a crouch so low that his rear nearly touched the ice. He was level with his daughter, now, and their speed was inches at a time. “Katara, please.”

“You’re doing really good, Daddy.” Kya patted his head with her free horizontal arm. “‘S okay to be scared. Don’t worry. I'll catch you if you fall again.”

“Hehehe, well, you see, Kya, Daddy is really heavy, and he doesn’t want to—”

Kya rounded on him with a familiar glare that compelled Aang to sit straight and speak clearly when he talked. “I’m strong!”

“Oh, I know, sweetie, I know. You’re very strong, but that’s not—”

Kya tried to press her finger to  his lips but ended up pressing the whole of her mitt to his mouth. “Shhh!” She straightened like a woman going to war. “I said Imma catch you, so don’t be scared, ‘kay? I promise.”

Aang melted and would have become a human puddle if he wouldn’t have smushed Kya in the process. She had his heart in the palm of her hand.

“I promise, okay?” Kya waddled close to Aang—who was still crouching low enough to be at her level—and strained her horizontal arms to circle his neck in a hug. “I promise.”

Aang’s insides liquified. On the border of their little ice ring, Katara oozed pride so thick that it escaped her in a giggle. Even Sokka picked himself out of the snow and smiled at the loving little oogies.

...The moment was broken the second Bumi appeared.

He and Hakoda were sprinting for their lives.

“What—Dad?” Katara stood at attention with Sokka right beside her.

“No time!”

“Gotta hide!”

Hakoda and Bumi dove into the powder that was once Sokka’s little purgatory of Katara’s design.

They missed. Terribly. Partially because they dove through the powder and onto the ice.

Aang really wasn’t being given much luck that day.

The duo took him out at the knees just as he stood with Kya in hand. A Mother’s instinct was a force stronger than nature, and Katara was in his wake and catching their daughter before Kya was ever in danger of hitting the ice.

“Daddy!” Kya, thoroughly distressed, squirmed to be let down. She was so frantic to get to the bundle of limbs and groans now stuck in the powder that she treaded on nothing for the first few seconds after Katara put her back on the ice. She windmilled her horizontal arms and skated to the scene of the accident.

Aang was on his back and trying to remember how to breathe, mutely groaning a ‘why me’. His daughter’s teary eyes took up all he saw when next his vision found focus, and his heart broke with a crack so loud that he swore everyone could hear it.

“D-Daddy…” Kya maneuvered onto her knees and patted Aang’s face with her mitts. “I’m sorry, Daddy…”

Aang, half-buried in the snow, reached up to wipe away her little tears. His world was collapsing, but he tried to keep the bulk of his worry and desperation out of his voice. “Hey, hey, hey, shhh...It’s okay, Kya. See? Daddy’s okay.”

Kya hugged his head, nearly wrapping the whole of her around him and his neck. “I promised to catch you…I promised...” She sniffled. “I’m sorry…’M sorry…”

Unadulterated fury like a tempest made flesh skated over to them, but Katara channeled her bloodlust into a somewhat rough wave of her hand to free her son and father. They raced to tell her something about ‘Gran-Gran’s retribution’ and ‘leopardseal boots and octopus’ and ‘they didn’t know the sea prunes were hers’ and ‘pretty please tell Gran-Gran to grant us mercy’.

Katara crossed her arms. They sat straight and shut their mouths.

(Sokka, shaking his head, was already working out how he could possibly use his diplomatic skills to save his father’s and nephew’s lives.)

“Sorry…’M sorry, Daddy…”

“Oh, Kya…” Aang was sitting cross-legged and hugging his daughter in the next second. He was flexible enough to move like water even with his skates on. “It’s okay. You didn’t break your promise.”

“But...B-But…” Kya was struggling so hard to not cry that Aang was half-prepared to bargain with even Koh himself for the secret to keeping her from tears.

“You said you would catch me, and I didn’t fall. I was run over by your brother and Pap-Pop.” He kissed her cheek and blew a raspberry until she smiled, and her little giggle stitched the world back together.

The hand on Aang’s shoulder was relieved and no longer thirsty for blood; Katara was a tide receding back to calm waters. “You’re a fantastic teacher, moonpeach,” she softly said as she kissed Kya’s other cheek.

Kya smiled even wider, patted both of their faces, and laughed a sound that even the otterpenguins two glaciers away were calmed and drawn towards.

Aang held her to his chest so she was sitting on his arms. “I guess I need to start calling you, Sifu Kya, won’t I?”

Katara sagely nodded. “Oh, absolutely. Though I must warn you, Kya, Daddy is a pretty difficult student.”

“I am not—”

“Hush, Pupil Daddy.” Katara’s eyes howled with the laughter that she struggled to keep at bay (but that Sokka, Hakoda, and even little Bumi, freely let out).

Aang grumbled but couldn’t care less about their audience when Kya smiled like that. She bounced more than she squirmed to be put down, and she bounced even more as she took Aang’s hand and ‘helped’ him to his feet. She was so excited that she either didn’t notice or didn’t care about Katara picking her husband up and tapping his legs apart so he (resembled) a stance that would keep him from immediately falling.

Aang stayed crouched so low that his rear nearly touched the ice. He was a puddle in airbender robes holding onto his daughter’s horizontal hand with both of his. Katara was a gleeful shadow right behind him and oozing pride as readily as the sun gave heat.

“Can you show me how to stop again, Sifu Kya?” Aang gently asked. “I’m not a really good student—”

Katara laughed.

“—and I could really use another demonstration from a Master.”

Kya spoke in excited huffs and bubbles of giggles, just too excited for words. She nodded so fast that her head threatened to come clean off her shoulders, and she tugged him across the ice even faster.

Hakoda and Bumi sat with Sokka in the powder and cooed at the little oogies.

...But they didn’t have very long to enjoy it.

Gran-Gran crested the hill like a deadly omen armed with a broom that she wielded like a master spearman.

The look in her eyes was a force of nature that put even Katara’s to shame.

Even the otterpenguins two glaciers down cried for mercy and sprinted for their lives.

Katara and Aang were content, for the moment, to let natural selection determine Bumi’s and Hakoda’s fates.

(A Mother’s instinct was a force of nature, though, so Katara’s calm became Aang’s waypoint to gauge when or if he had to save the eldest-born part of their world.)

For now, they were content. Class was in session, after all.

Kya puffed up, waddled with her arms horizontal, and spoke in a tone that compelled Aang to speak clearly when he talked and fight the overwhelming urge to hug her.

The spark in her little eyes was a force of nature all on its own.

A Father’s instinct was a tide that was pushed and pulled with her every smile.

Aang was an ocean reduced to a puddle.

His full moon stood at his back.

His Morning Star waved her arms in excitement, and his Evening Star faintly laughed among Hakoda’s pleas for mercy.

“—this move all on my own! It’s really easy, but I’ll be right ‘ere in case you fall, Daddy!”

...It took Aang months to learn that move.

But it would have taken him lifetimes to learn it all on his own.

He loved every second of it—even the bruises that came with it.

...The first time Aang fell during a ‘lesson’, Katara was too slow to catch him.

A Daughter’s instinct was a force of nature, though, and little Kya was braced with her arms vertical to catch him. Aang should have known better. His daughter was his and Katara’s. If Gran-Gran could chase down three warriors and bring them to their knees even in her old age, it should be no surprise that Kya could hold up one man in her young years.

...The first time Aang skated ‘freely’, Kya and Bumi were on each of his sides.

...The first time Tenzin wore his ice-skates, Kya helped lace them up for him. Her voice was stern but calming like something protective as she herded him onto the ice.

“It’s okay, Ten-Ten. I got you. I won’t let you fall. I promise I’ll catch you.”

Aang and Katara were going to melt the whole South Pole if they smiled any bigger.

...Sokka was going to kill himself if he didn’t take a break from laughing to breathe, but Aang was no better. Katara, either, for that matter.

Kya puffed her chest like the world and everything in it was hers.

“Sifu?” Tenzin didn’t know what most words meant yet, but he was convinced he knew the word for ‘sister’. “Sifu, ‘m hungry...Bumi didn’t share the ‘prunes.”

No one dared to correct him.

(Kya held it over Tenzin’s head for years.)

(“Korra, I gotta hand it to you. Tenzin is a terrible student, but you helped him learn how to be a great teacher.”)

(“Kya, please…”)

(“Ah-ah! That’s ‘Sifu’ to you, Ten-Ten.”)

*****************************************

.

.

I don’t know how this became a Kya-love fic, but I’m not complaining in the least. The splash-bëbë deserves all the love in the world😤, and she has Aang wrapped around her finger💖

[penguinsledder]

Ayo headcanon???

Ok anon I know you asked for a headcanon and not a fic, but this just snowballed and sprialed out of my control lol

--

Almost Like Before

Rating: K+

Word Count: ~800

Genre: Romance, Family, Hurt/Comfort

ff.net | AO3

Katara never really looked old. People often complimented her on how she never seemed to age a day, and she’d even been mistaken as her little Kya’s older sister a couple of times. She was the talk of Republic City’s women—some said she had this special seaweed cream available exclusively in the South Pole, while others theorized it was due to a plant-based diet she’d probably adopted from living on Air Temple Island. Still, there were rumors that maybe it had to do with her healing prowess—maybe she had a special technique that kept her body from aging.

Little did they know, though, that her only secret to not looking old was nothing more than just having her goofball best friend-husband by her side. Aang just never lost that kid in him, and while it did frustrate her at times, it was also one of the things that just endeared him to her. It showed in the way he still grabbed every opportunity to impress people with his undying marble trick and in how he snuck around the kitchens for an extra slice of fruit pie. In the silly competitions to see who could round up the kids for dinner the quickest, and the playful way he spun her around when they danced, just like when they were in that Fire Nation cave.

Even though he had to carry the world’s burdens, he never lost that childlike sense of fun, and he made sure everyone around him didn’t, either.

That is, until he couldn’t.

Kya, Bumi, and Tenzin all saw it. Only weeks after their father's passing, Katara seemed to finally catch up with her age. And it was almost scary how quickly she did. 

She had gotten smaller as her back hunched a bit, and her wrinkles became more prominent. Her smiles never seemed to touch her eyes anymore, and they no longer carried the lively spark they once had. 

Tenzin and Bumi helped her move back to the South Pole, while Kya had volunteered to keep her company.  As hard as Aang's death had been for everyone, they knew their mother carried the brunt of it.

For the next few years, she busied herself with assimilating back into the Southern Water Tribe with Sokka’s help. He and Kya held her together on her bad days, and celebrated with her on the better ones. Her sons would visit when they could, breaking her usual routine every now and then. Life went on like this until the day the White Lotus knocked on her doorstep, saying that they found the one.

Of course, she immediately volunteered to be her waterbending master. From the moment they met, she felt a strong connection to the little girl, and the young Avatar reciprocated it. They were an almost inseparable pair, drawn to each other—after all, they had met before.

Slowly, things started to change. Kya and Sokka noticed how she brightened up around Korra, even laughing affectionately at the various troubles the child seemed to get into. Life became more than family visits and quiet meals at home. Renewed energy seemed to fill her, and she would smile real smiles again, the kind that touched her eyes.

The day Korra announced she was going penguin sledding, Katara knew she had to come with her. And from then on, she would watch her sled down the South’s snowy slopes, bending her ice ramps so she could soar a bit before landing.

She knew he loved soaring, after all.

Korra would squeal in delight before landing back onto the ground in a heap of snow. The poor penguin would waddle away while its earlier rider collapsed into a fit of giggles. The scene would always grip Katara’s heart with pure nostalgia.

Penguin sledding practically became a biweekly routine, and Katara looked forward to those days very much. Korra just seemed to have so much fun, and after many years, she was reminded of how infectious the feeling was. On penguin sledding days, she felt lighter, freer, and—dare she say it—she felt ... younger.

On those days, she would fondly think about how Aang was bringing fun back into her life yet again. Sometimes, it was almost like before, the only thing missing was—

“I love you, Katara,” Korra declared one day as she wrapped her little arms around the old waterbender’s knees. Big cerulean eyes looked up to her, and for a second, they seemed to flash silver.

She knew it was meant differently this time around. But she could see from the young girl’s eyes that the words held the same certainty and strength she knew. A single tear escaped her as she stooped down to return the hug. 

“I love you, too,” she whispered.