#thegreysunflower-blog

[southslates]

Zutara head canon: When their newborn starts to stir at dawn, Zuko takes them to the balcony to watch the sunrise

Zuko has lived his whole life with a certain set of guidelines; he has rules he must follow as a member of the Fire Nation's royal family.

When he was a child he had enjoyed playing with the palace servants. Azula always had Mai and Ty Lee, but he was too awkward to make friends and too kind to find subjects of his own. He had learnt, at age seven, facing his father's burning, aurelian gaze, that princes do not hang around with the common folk - he had learnt that all must abide to his whims, to the whims of Prince Ozai.

He had remained friendless, quiet, had sulked his way and grown with only his mother as company. He was only adhering to his birthright.

Then his father had burnt off half his face for speaking out of turn in a meeting. The Agni Kai is sacred to the Fire Nation and he had refused to fight his father and suffered an ineffable amount. He had learnt, at age thirteen, eyes of the entire court upon him, that you must always stand your ground - he had learnt that pain and suffering are the only teachers half of his bloodline knows.

He had shaved off half his head afterwards, had been an insufferable captain and sailed the seas. He was only adhering to his birthright; he was only facing horrors he had created.

As an adult, Zuko is still held to a strict code; a moral code, one written in blood (in lightning scars). But some rules are almost enjoyable to follow. Some guidelines are formed from love and not propriety, from mutual respect.

Katara lies in bed next to him. They sleep together - this is a rule he likes to follow. Izumi lies in their room, close enough so that they can always protect her - this is a rule he likes to follow.

When his eyes open in full he first glances to the window, a sky still slightly blackened. He can feel the fire in his veins rejuvenating itself and pulls himself out of his wife's tight grasp, sliding her posessive hand off of his waist. She moans and he stills. There is one rule in his household that Zuko, at age twenty-five, is absolutely terrified of breaking -

Katara is not to be woken until hours after sunrise. He rises with the sun, she with the moon; she bends and heals far later into the night than he does, and she rages when she is roused early. She is always adorable with the vestiges of sleep written across her features, but Zuko . . . he knows that look is not really worth the consequences of awakening her before her time.

At that same moment Izumi gets up, like she can also feel the flames. He wonders if this means she is a firebender almost briefly before his gaze turns back to Katara, who is rising with him, and looks almost - almost so close to consciousness. Oh, no.

In a burst of confidence he turns her off of him and jumps across their cool floor, barefoot, and takes Izumi out of her crib. Her features are red and she looks like she's on the brink of tears before she takes him in, gurgling and reaching out for his face. There are only two people in this world he trusts to touch his scar so easily.

"We are not," he hefts her up, placing her face over his shoulder, "going to wake up your mother. Do you understand?"

His tone is teasingly serious, and his daughter calls him out on it, gurgling against his side. He sighs in complacence and happiness before side-eying Katara once again, relief smothering him when he realizes that she's out again, lightly snoring against their pillow. "Let's go outside. I think that'll be fun. We can look at the sun. Do you like the sun?"

Izumi obviously can't respond to him but when he looks down he sees her bright smile and feels his heart fly out of the window he opens. When he steps outside, stone against his feet, his daughter in his hands, the sun is still climbing into the sky. It paints a gorgeous picture at this moment, showering them in pure gold; he feels its energy in his veins.

"That's firebending, Izumi. That's energy. Can you feel that?" She turns around in his hands and looks out at the horizon, her blue eyes wide.

He can lose himself in this moment; his daughter in his arms, Katara in his bed, fire in his veins. It feels so intrinsically correct, and he thinks that rules can't be so bad if they've landed him in this life.

/

I’m accepting all prompts right now! Drop a headcanon/request in my askbox and I’ll get to it. Thanks for asking this one @thegreysunflower-blog!

[sunmoonturtleduck]

zutara hc: Zuko's main love language is touch. When Katara has nightmares, he hugs her tight, kisses her forehead, and raises his body temp so she knows he's there. They have also developed this code: 3 hands squeezes means "I love you." They'd squeeze each other's hands in the middle of a boring council meeting, when they're busy and pass each other in the hallway, when they're half asleep, and when they're going through moments of great pain.

These are amazing 🥰

I love these even more because the Zuko we see in canon was usually pretty uncomfortable with physical affection (ex. in his interactions with Song and Jin) but when he was with Katara, he was completely comfortable and trusting.

[anyaarts]

For Zutara Month: I'm a huge sucker for Momtara and Dadko. Maybe baby's first trip to the South Pole? And Zuko insists on wearing the baby in a carrier so that he can keep them warm?

zutara month 2021 day 1: momtara and dadko

originally wasn’t going to participate in day 1 but I couldn’t stop thinking about girl dad zuko so thank u @thegreysunflower-blog for requesting!! i just altered the idea a lil bit ☺️

zuko and katara having a firebending prodigy daughter that azula would spoil a lot so yes, thats their third child revealing to be said prodigy while at the swt

alternatively: OnceAroundTheSun!Zutara moving to the swt, starting a family and seeing azula in their child

happy zutara month !!