#zutara week 2021

[pethfics]

ZUTARA WEEK 2021 (Catch-up), Day One: Hair

Title: Strands of Longing Summary: There was something almost intimate about such a simple act, and both Zuko and Katara seemed to realize the significance of it as they sat in silence, the swish of the comb through her hair the only sound between them. Read on FF.net

NOTE: So back in 2021, I missed Zutara Week. That was the only time I had ever not written for Zutara Week during the actual year. The only other time I wasn’t able to post on the actual dates was back in 2012 but I still managed to post stuff within the same year. But 2021 was a challenging year for me and I could not write as much as I used to.

I managed to bounce back in 2022 and 2023 but it bothered me to have a gap in my Zutara Week entries. And the 2021 prompts were really good too! 

I’ve been making up for what I missed in 2021 in terms of fanfiction writing so I decided to power through with my 2021 Zutara Week one-shots this year and I’ve chosen the dates that lead up to the premiere of the live-action series on February 22.

I’m pretty sure I will have a lot of thoughts and feelings about that new iteration of the show so I wanted to get these pieces out before then, so as not to mix any 2024 Zutara thoughts with 2021 ideas, if that makes any sense. All that and also to give myself a firm deadline since I’ve found that this is the effective way to help me get things done. 

[beealexageek]

Zutara Week 2023

Day 7

Prompt: Flow

(3/3)

“Tui and La... have always circled each other in an eternal dance.”

This is the little bastard of these two:

ZK Week 2020 Day 7: Rebirth ZK Mini Bang 2021: Never too late to fall in love (again) 

Aaaaand... that’s it.

That was my contribution to this year's Zutara Week. I feel like there were little things I improved on and I'm happy with that.

@zutaraweek

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[calderacitylovers]

Wholesome Zutara Short Stories

Tell Me Where Your Heart Is by badlucksav | Published: 2021-04-12 | 2,363 words

Katara accidentally discovers a secret stash of love letters Zuko has written to an anonymous woman but never sent. Could he be talking about her? “And I can’t help but hope that maybe that’s a sign, that you feel for me as I feel for you. Maybe you’re afraid to put it to words, as I am. But I cannot ever speak these feelings to you unless I know...I won’t put you in that position.”

Tales of Tenderness by emicha | Published: 2021-04-06 | 3,068 words

Toph, Iroh, Sokka, Gran Gran, Aang, and Azula observe how the relationship between Zuko and Katara unfolds over the years. “This is the picture of two souls that have seen too much bad already, who’ve grieved and hurt more than one single lifetime should permit; the picture of two people who still have it in them to hold a person so different from oneself this close.”

MOONTIDES by  MarkedMage | Published: 2020-11-24 | 10K Words

He smells like fire and feels like home. She smells like rain and feels like love. A short story about Zuko and Katara’s first kiss inspired by this and this glorious animation by Hayley Foster Wong.

GOLD by ifyouwereamelody | Published: 2020-11-27 | 3,7K Words

Zuko and Katara’s first kiss in a fall garden.

A Love Story Told in Reverse by cablesscutie | Published: 2021-04-26 | 9,324 words

A collection of sweet outtakes from Zuko and Katara’s life: from their childhoods to becoming parents. “Her head tips to rest on his shoulder, and with his heart in his throat, he gives into the months-old urge to kiss her hair. She makes a happy little hum, and Zuko can’t breathe.”

just say when by hawktasha | Published: 2021-03-16 | 6,131 words

After Sokka and Suki’s wedding, Katara wakes up with the worst hangover of her life, with the best friend she has been harboring feelings in secret for the last few years laying next to her, no clothes at all on either of their bodies. Oh, and she had no idea how they ended up in that predicament.

Engagement Chicken: The Engagement Scheme by DontStopHerNow | Published: 2022-09-18 | 23K words

After a night of commiseration about marriage expectations, Katara and Zuko agree to fake an engagement to get the meddlers off their backs. They'll call Chicken on the arrangement when everyone else objects. This can't last a month! Featuring: meddling friends, heartfelt words cloaked in half-truths, chaperones, Fire Nation engagement traditions, Southern Water Tribe wedding traditions, background couples, and a squid-whale with a mistaken identity

The Dragon of the West’s Guide to Flirting by bluesunflower44 | Published: 2021-05-12 | 4,341 words

“Now. Take very good care of this, it’s a family heirloom. Although no one passed it down to me, since I wrote it, it will be a family heirloom one day. I just know it.” Uncle Iroh is good with the ladies. So taking his advice when it comes to romance should go just fine...right?

Strike a Match by Naladot | Published: 2022-09-03 | 22K

At Republic City's second annual HeiBai festival, Fire Lord Zuko has contracted a matchmaker to find him a permanent political ally—or, well, a wife. He asks Katara to chaperone his meetings. But this arrangement only threatens to reveal the truth: there are a lot of things neither of them have ever dared to talk about.

Seven Years Bad Luck by riathermopolis | Published: 2021-08-08 | 20.6K words

The gaang reunites every summer for a week on Ember Island, which in theory Katara supports whole-heartedly. The only problem is that apparently some higher power on the island is on a mission to humiliate her. At least, that's her best guess for why she suddenly can't act like a normal person around Zuko. Or: Katara repeatedly embarrasses herself in front of Zuko.

Maiden Mother Crone by MoonShoesReyes  | Published: 2021-02-12 | 10,8K Words

Post-canon. After the ravages of war, Katara learns to wear three faces: maiden, mother, and crone. A sweet story of Zuko supporting Katara in her journey of self-discovery and finding a purpose. A sprinkle of Blue Spirit and Painted Lady. "After years of being empty, Katara finally knew who she was - or at least, she knew who she was at the core. Though her cast of masks stayed ever-changing, the Painted Lady was always kind and just."

Bound to Burn by Selemetis | Published: 2020-10-02 | 10,3K Words

Post-canon. Zuko witnesses the kiss between Aang and Katara. Over the coming months Zuko and Katara work their way back together. "Zuko knew he had to let Katara go for her to see where she wanted to stand."

So Close and Still So Far by EKWolf2020| Published: 2022-09-18 | 6,4K Words

It is the ten-year celebration of the end of The Hundred-year-old war. Expectations and excitement are in the air for most of the world. But for Katara, she feels dread as some news has come to her that could change everything. Will she follow with expectations, or will she find that there is another path for her?

The Brave Man Only Once by ifyouwereamelody | Published: 2021-02-19 | 2,2K Words

Firelord Zuko and Ambassador Katara’s first kiss. “He flinches as a voice rips him abruptly out of his own thoughts and drops him back into the meeting; the table of council members is watching him, staring with raised brows that beg the answer to a question he doesn’t know, but Katara refuses to look his way.”

Til Kingdom Come by bluenebulae | Published: 2020-07-26 | Words: 6,2K

Four years after Sozin’s Comet, Katara finds her way home. A proposal story. Supportive Gaang. “I’ve spent four years exploring every corner of this world, Zuko. I’ve been a waterbending master and a shop girl, an assistant in an abbey and an advisor to the Earth King and a whole bunch of people in the Fire colonies still think I’m an actual spirit. I think, now, I just want to be Katara. And that means being here.”

Voyage by amoeve | Published: 2015-07-24 | Words: 4,2K When Zuko asks Katara to marry him, it is for love. But it’s also an alliance that shows the world that the war is truly over, and everyone wants to get in on the fun. For their wedding Zuko and Katara work their way through over-the-top combination of customs and traditions from the four nations. Hilarious and absurd, but wholesome. “She’s a waterbender. When they travel, the little ship skims across the surface of the sea, eating up the miles, and they have ice houses to sleep in every night. He’s a firebender. He lights their way when the fogs descend, keeps them warm when they sleep, and fries the fish she catches in his hands.”

But Who’s Counting? by halfhoursonearth | Published: 2023-12-28 Words: 7K

After the Last Agni Kai Zuko and Katara are waiting for the news from the GAang and get to explore their friendship and growing connection. A tender and beautiful story. “Tears are gathering in her eyes, and a new tightness pulls at Zuko’s chest. Though he still isn’t used to the casual way his new friends touch one another, this is not the first time he has felt the instinct to reach for Katara, in particular—to lay a comforting hand on her shoulder or arm. But wiping tears from her face is something new, and Katara watches him with wide eyes as his hand rises to her cheek.”

happiness (that's all rolled up in you) by soopsiedaisies | Published: 2024-01-17 | 3,8K words

A first kiss story. Zuko and Katara are cooking dinner for the Gaang on the Ember Island. Sweet, thrilling, and beautiful. "She reckons that she likes a lot of things about Zuko. She likes his face, for starters: his nose, his eyes, his mouth. She likes his scar and the way he dresses. She likes how he picks up the slack left by the others like those tasks were his anyway and she likes his smile. She likes the way he kisses and she really likes his hair."

For the Fire Nation | 2019-11-25 | 2,8K words

He falls in love with her for his country before he falls in love with her for himself. A short and beautiful AU story that explores how love and duty aren’t always mutually exclusive.

[gemgirl28]

How do you make friends in zutara fandom? It’s been really hard for me because I seem to find myself in bigger discords where it feels like everyone is in a clique and it’s hard to connect, and they talk so badly about people they don’t like to the point I’m afraid to say anything because I don’t want them to do that to me too. I don’t know if it’s gotten worse lately or if I’m just looking in the wrong place

Hello anon! First off I'm sorry you've struggled to connect with other people in the fandom. It definitely can be difficult when we are all interacting with each other online, but I hope you do make some genuine connections 🫂

I will say, making fandom friends in 2023 feels VERY different from 2020/2021 when I first got into fandom, and that is very much due to shutdown vs things opening back up. When I started engaging with the zutara fandom in August/September 2020 I was working full time from home doing a job that was often dead (read: I was online during working hours) and a part time job on the weekends that was soooo slow it allowed the brainrot to really sink in as I daydreamed about zk while working. Now I work in office a minimum of 3 days a week and while we are in our slower season, we still have a ton of work to do to prep for our busy season.

And that's just me! I know people who are engaging in other fandoms, have also had work ramp back up, have had family stuff that pulls them offline, etc. It's a different space than it was when I was first making connections with people (and I would be curious to see if anyone who was already online pre-Covid has written a dissertation about the waves of online engagement due to shutdown).

Also, I do struggle to make connections in larger servers, mostly because I get overwhelmed at the nonstop activity and end up muting them. I do think they are great places to keep up with fandom activity, like events, fanart, fanfics, etc, but for initially making friends I find it tough.

So all that to say, here is my personal method for making fandom friends (results may vary):

Engage with the same person over and over. Like their posts, comment on them, reblog with commentary/additional tags, just over and over engage with them.

They slowly start to engage back (liking your posts, responding to comments, reblogging your reblogs, etc.).

Slide into their dms and ask them how they are doing, then tell them what about them made you slide into their dms (I legit messaged someone that their vibes seemed nice and it worked).

Talk about fandom stuff but also about your interests outside of fandom (IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER: DON'T SHARE IDENTIFYING INFO. I'm talking about things like fave foods and music, not where you live or your mother's maiden name).

Be friends forever.

Now that I'm reading that back it sort of reads like instructions for getting to know someone on a dating app. But also, if you aren't trying to fall a little in love with all your mutuals, what's the point?

tl;dr: It can be tricky making friends now that real life has ramped back up, but if you give it a little time and effort, you can make some great connections in fandom.

[fabdante]

Detours

“Do you know where we’re going?” He asks and she almost lets out what sounds like a laugh. But she holds it back. Hiding it like her face is hidden from him.

“No, no one knows where they’re going in here,” she says and he blinks, stopping. She takes a couple steps before she notices he’s stalled and stops herself. When she turns to him, she’s far too calm for his liking.  

“Then shouldn’t we go back while we still know which way back is?” He asks, gesturing behind him with the hand that holds the flame and she shakes her head, instead taking steps toward him and grabbing his free arm.

“It’ll be fine,” she says, this little twinkle in her eye that he’s almost about to fall for and forget all his worries. Before he comes to his senses, though. They don’t have enough food to survive being lost in a cave. “Don’t you trust me?”  

“With my life,” he replies easily, holding her gaze, “but I don’t trust this cave.”

And she says, “then trust me, I want to show you something.”

Summery:  After the war Zuko asks Katara to help him find his mother and she agrees. While in the Earth Kingdom, Katara decides to take him on a site seeing trip. And then they talk a lot. (Finished and posted for @zutaramonth​ ‘s day 2 prompt, Cave of Two Lovers, based off fan art I did for Zutara week 2021 which is reposted above)

Words: Too many 6689

Rating: G (does make reference to Zuko’s childhood, the war, and character death, no more intense then the show itself does)

Read Here!

[emsprovisions]

Tumblr Drabbles Masterlist

Will update as needed

THE OWL HOUSE:

GUSTHOLOMULE:

Starlight - November 20, 2022

Late to Dinner - November 21, 2022

nap - January 27, 2023

illusion - January 27, 2023

don't leave - January 28, 2023

too loud - January 29, 2023

collapse - January 29, 2023

the kindest "i hate you" followed by a contagious laugh - February 14, 2023

holding hands - February 16, 2023

caught staring - February 18, 2023 

cuddling and eventually falling asleep - February 18, 2023

Sleepover - April 21, 2023

You’ve got something on your face - April 21, 2023

Eyelash - April 21, 2023

I know you’ll keep it safe - April 27, 2023

Panic Attacks and Comfort - May 9, 2023

Sharing clothes - May 18, 2023

Fellas is it gay to sit on your friend's lap? - May 19, 2023

accidental neck kissing - May 19, 2023

Sharing a jacket - May 19, 2023

Part 1 of Gus's Boyfriend - May 20, 2023

Part 2 of Gus's Boyfriend - May 20, 2023

Wake up cuddling - May 23, 2023

Gus Week Day 1: Human Realm - June 26, 2023

Gus Week Day 2: Family - June 27, 2023

Gus Week Day 3: Friends/Graveyard - June 29, 2023

Gus Week Day 4: Childhood - June 29, 2023

Gus Week Day 4: Also Childhood - June 29, 2023

Gus Week Day 5: Sports - July 1, 2023

Gus Week Day 6: Identity - July 1, 2023

Gus Week Day 7: Cosmic Frontier - July 4, 2023

Summer prompts:

Thunderstorms late at night - July 8, 2023 Heat Stroke - July 9, 2023 Barbecue - July 13, 2023 Summer Fair - July 26, 2023

HUNTLOW:

Hunter's Birthday - December 11, 2022

alone, finally - January 27, 2023

trembling hands - January 28, 2023

when they play with your hair - February 14, 2023

Hugs, warm hugs - February 18, 2023

LUMITY:

saccharine - January 28, 2023

Cuddling and eventually falling asleep - February 18, 2023

OTHER:

Drive Me Home - November 21, 2022. Pairing: Vee/Masha

Through a Palisman's Eyes - May 9, 2023. Hunter-centric, dealing with Flapjack's death and the other Palismen consoling him

AVATAR: THE LAST AIRBENDER:

Zutara Week Day 3 – Hands - September 20, 2022

Zutara Week Day 4 – Meeting - September 21, 2022

TALES OF ARCADIA

Your body fits perfectly with mine while dancing - June 3, 2021. Pairing: Jim/Claire

Twizzlers - July 30, 2021. Pairing: Douxie/Zoe

TANGLED

My Sunshine - June 28, 2020

[sokkalore]

I am so so grateful you documented the whole twitter poll saga I love to go down memory lane via your tag and relive the high of that week, my SSRIs could never come close to what that poll did to me in just a few days

it was objectively hilarious yeah bc like. while zukka tumblr is still thriving, zukka twt pretty much ended in 2021 bc of how nasty and obnoxious zutara twt is (and zutara twt is like. Everyone bc they chose it Over zukka even if they don’t like it)

so they absolutely expected zukka to lose round one bc we’re all “gone” and they see themselves as True atla fandom bc they’re still on there ….. so for zukkas to happily jump back just to make sure zukka wins after not being on atlatwt for like 2 years. well🤭 that’s our power isn’t it

[the-badger-mole]

I posted 838 times in 2022

That's 226 more posts than 2021!

692 posts created (83%)

146 posts reblogged (17%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@stardust948

@zutarawasrobbed

@the-badger-mole

@words4bloghere

@sokkastyles

I tagged 717 of my posts in 2022

Only 14% of my posts had no tags

#atla - 635 posts

#zutara - 450 posts

#anti aang - 210 posts

#anti kataang - 164 posts

#ask the badger mole - 157 posts

#down the road and back again - 117 posts

#down the road and back again comments - 96 posts

#ask game - 80 posts

#anti mai - 49 posts

#anti maiko - 44 posts

Longest Tag: 139 characters

#how do you feel about the decision about miranda warnings and the courts protecting cops from financial liablity for violating your rights?

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

Zuko: He's Just Better Than Aang🤷🏾‍♀️

Frankly, I think Zuko in season 1 was more altruistic than Aang was during the entire series. Yes, it was the season where he was arguably at his worst, but it's also the season where he risked his life to try to save the man who had tried to murder him. He still had the injuries he sustained in the attempt, and still, Zuko tried to save him.

Meanwhile, Aang didn't go out of his way for anyone. The times he did "try to help", was more about his reputation as Avatar than actually wanting to help in those instances, and he gave up as soon as it got too hard. Remember The Great Divide? Zuko went with Sokka on a suicide mission to try and save Hakkoda. Aang wanted to run off and go play the day after Hakkoda risked his life to save him. Let that sink in. The father of the girl he allegedly "loves" has been captured trying to save Aang's life, his friends are distraught, and Aang can't muster up the empathy to sit with them to plan the next move. Not even to get in Katara's good graces. But I'm supposed to believe that Katara would realistically choose Aang over Zuko? Like...

323 notes - Posted May 7, 2022

#4

Katara: Oh, that's such a pretty flower! Zuko: It's dragon lotus. It's one of my favorites. Katara: Did you get it for Mai? Zuko: er…No. Flowers aren't really her thing. Some guy was giving them out on the street to celebrate the end of the war, and well… Katara: I should see if I can get one then. Zuko: He's probably gone by now, but here, you can have this one. Katara: It's yours, though. I can't take it. Zuko: Please do! Uncle always says that the greatest aspiration of any flower is to adorn a pretty woman. Er…that is…I didn't mean to say that… Not that you aren't pretty, I'm just not…you know…it wasn't a come on Katara: trying not to laugh Don't hurt yourself, Zuko. I get it. I'll take the flower. Thank you! It smells wonderful! Zuko: In the Fire Nation, women wear these in their hair. Katara: Oh? Tucks flower behind her ear Like that? Zuko: Yes, but I think it'll be more secure in your bun. May I?….There. That's perfect. And Uncle was right

426 notes - Posted April 20, 2022

#3

I saw one of your post from a couple of weeks ago where you mentioned you are a Christian. How can you support abortion?

Well, first of all, pro-choice isn't pro-abortion. I just want to make sure that's clear. I don't think anyone is pro-abortion for abortion's sake. Second, I chose to be a Christian. I had to study and pray and get advice and really weigh my decision before I got baptized, and it was months before I finally made my choice (and I have a few friends who took years to make that decision). There's a lot that I do or don't do because I'm a Christian and I hold the bible as my standard, but I had a choice in the matter. Now, I am abstinent because I believe sex is for marriage, and I only date men who agree. But not everyone in this country is a Christian. Not everyone chooses abstinence or celibacy. Not everyone wants a child. Not everyone should have children. None of that is my business.

Who am I to force the standards I chose onto someone who didn't choose them? And who am I to force a life-altering decision on someone after I was given so much agency on my own life-altering decision? I truly believe that banning abortion will do more harm than good in the long run, especially if these nuance-free pro-life radicals actually succeed in criminalizing contraceptives and birth control, and in completely getting sex ed taken out of schools. Which is looking likelier by the hour.

426 notes - Posted June 29, 2022

#2

Here's the thing that gets me about the whole "Zutara is anti-feminist" take. Their relationship in canon is platonically supportive after they reconcile. Before that, they met as enemies in battle, yes, but there was nothing inherently sexist in how Zuko interacted with Katara, especially in comparison to how she was treated by her own friends and allies, and even her own brother.

Romantic Zutara is completely fan-created (canon chemistry notwithstanding), and a large portion (if not most) of the creators, as far as I can tell, identify as women. In those fan creations, Katara gets to be a world leader who is loved by a supportive man who adores her strength and is there for her in her weak moments. Zutara the ship is at its core very feminine. Also, except for making the romance overt instead of subtextual, that's pretty much how Zuko treated her in canon after they became friends. Compare that to what Katara is reduced to in the actual canon, and it's hard to understand why anyone would think that of the two ships Zutara is the one that is anti-feminist and bad for Katara.

502 notes - Posted February 16, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

You know, I often lament the fact that Katara lost out on a supportive partner who respected and trusted her when Zutara didn't happen, but Zuko lost out, too. He lost out on marrying into a family that would have given him the love, encouragement and support that they gave each other. Hakoda, Sokka and Bato would have taken such joy in introducing Zuko to the SWT customs that were handed down from father to son for generations. Hakoda would have absolutely given him as much advice as he could as a leader in his own right balancing the duties of chiefdom and family. Kanna would have grown to love this uncertain boy king who didn't think it was a humiliation to help her around the home. He missed out on having a wife who would back him up and advise him as he figured out how to be the leader his country needed. No matter how bad things got in the Fire Nation, he would have had a tight-knit family support group to make sure he got through it.

When you take a step back and look at all the ways Katara and Zuko would have filled in for what the other was missing, I get annoyed all over again that all that parallel and convergent development was set aside for pairings that were somehow the blandest and most toxic that anyone on that writing team could have come up with. It is so clear that Zutara was supposed to be endgame and they got robbed for Bryke's pet ship.

853 notes - Posted June 10, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[pethfics]

ZUTARA WEEK 2021 (Catch-up), Day Four: Lavender

Title: Remedy in a Bouquet Summary: "It's not a cure or anything," Zuko said humbly, "but it might make you feel a bit better." Katara was amazed and grateful. Read on FF.net

[sasuhinasno1fan]

Finding you again- Zutara Month Day 20 Part 1

So in honor of day 20 of @zutaramonth​ prompt ‘College’ I’ve decided to bring back a fic I was working on for Zutara Week 2021, my Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok-Joo au, with fencer!Zuko and rhythmic gymnast!Katara. This one is based off the prompt Hair from that year, but it also fits since they’re all attending sports university. It’s an update from the last time I posted this and I’m hoping to actually do all the chapters this time. Anyway, enjoy!

College

“I hear you’re not even father’s son.”

“Disobedient child!”

“Never forget how much I love you my little duckling. I’ll be back soon, I promise.”

“Zuko?” closed golden eyes opened and turned to see his coach standing in the doorway of the changing room. “Ready?”

“Yeah. I’m coming.” He tucked the hairpin in his hand into his bag and pulled it onto his shoulder, picking up his foil.

“Do you think it’ll happen again?” Piandao, his coach asked, taking the bag from Zuko after he made sure his student had his items first. “The panic attacks?”

“I don’t know. I still don’t know the cause.” Zuko reminded, fitting his gloves on.

Piandao sighed and stopped the young man, “And I take it you haven’t gone to the therapist I suggested to your uncle?” Zuko didn’t answer which made the bearded man sigh again, this time full of frustration. “Going to therapy is good for an athlete, especially if it helps your panic attacks. You do realise if you weren’t doing so well in training, the school would actually consider removing you. not to mention those who have connections.”

Zuko didn’t need to be reminded that the one person he wanted to avoid for the rest of his life was unfortunately still involved just because of where he went to school.

“I still get the best wins at practise. I beat Jett all the time.”

“But Jett is department captain and wins competitions. It’s been a year since you’ve been able to place in a competition, let alone not get disqualified. Zuko, if it happens again today, I’m pulling you from competitions until you start seeing the therapist.”

Piandao walked ahead, leaving him standing there. The threat was there and worrying. Thing was, as much as he wanted to do this, he knew he was going to end up having a panic attack again.

Never forget how much I love you my little duckling

Those words felt like a lie every time he heard them in his head.

“No?”

He felt uncomfortable as he stared at the guy in front of him. Mako Choi was an up-and-coming fencer. His own brother was well known for his own skill in taekwondo. After his match – where like he predicted, he’d gotten disqualified after the whole room went double, his hearing got wonky and not to mention, his heart beating like it was trying to escape his chest – Mako approached with his coach, asking if Zuko would train him for his Olympic qualifying match in a few months.

“I just don’t see what you can learn from a guy who’s been disqualified from every match since the season started.”

“A lot from the guy I’ve admired since he’s entered the competitive scene.”

Fiddling with the strap to his bag, Zuko shrugged. “Sorry. I don’t think it’s a good idea. That’s my coach over there, Piandao. He could recommend someone better.” Skirting around the two, he darted to where he left his bike, trying not to feel guilty. If things had been normal, he would have agreed. Mako would have hated his teaching style, he was sure, but at least he could have tried. Right now, all he wanted was to go back to his dorm and sleep, even if it meant dealing with Jett later. He was sure it would be snide remarks and threatening to have him do the worst event for the school’s upcoming Sports Day.

He was all set to go, Piandao just coming out of the gym, still talking with Mako and his coach, when his phone rang.

“What Sokka?”

“So, Coach texted the results of the match. Jett wants to talk to you; says he’s got the prefect thing for you to do to make up for your loss. The rice lifting challenge.”

Zuko had to bite his lip to keep from screaming. Their school’s sports day was each Department against each other in different events. It also had the tradition of one member of the Department being a cheerleader. Each event and challenge gained them points to winning the whole Sports Day and usually ended with a bonus in their funding usually for food. The idea of the lifting challenge was like it sounded: to carry as many industrial size bags of rice, like the one the school cafeteria ordered, and hold it for as long as possible, adding more bags to hold every minute. Usually, the Karate Department would be the one to win, Fencing never even coming close.

“I’m not going.” Zuko said, making up his mind. He’d dealt with enough today and not to mention what he was going to have to deal with once his uncle heard he hadn’t gone to his therapist appointment. He hadn’t said it to Piandao, but Uncle Iroh had booked one, he just never went.

“What?”

“I’ll hang out at Lu Ten’s office or something, but I’m not going. Not to the crapshoot of a meeting or to Sports Day. I don’t care what he threatens me with. I’m only coming back to drop my kit off.”

“Um, well…” Sokka sounded hesitant still, instead of warning him to not piss off Jett. Zuko knew what was coming next wasn’t good. “I actually heard Mai was back. Didn’t make it past the preliminaries for the national team I hear.”

Clearly, this day could get worse.

“Screw it, I’m not coming back for the next few days. I’ll be with my uncle if you need me.”

“Wait, wait, wait! Normally I’d be begging you to come back so I don’t deal with a pissed off Jet, but ask Toph to do your event for you. it would put the Weightlifting Department in danger of losing but it would be big help to her. They’ve still been trying to mess with her and she’d love a chance to get back at them. Just come back to campus, drop off your things and ask her. then I’ll take you out for lunch at my dad’s restaurant. You love his marinated salmon.” Sokka enticed.

Zuko sighed. “I want two orders. And you’re paying.”

“Done! Get here soon.”

Zuko didn’t bother answering, stowing his phone away and pushing off, heading towards Republic City Sports University.

Multiple girls watched the blue ribbon flow like water as Katara did a back leg grab turn. As she brought her leg down, she twirled her ribbon to the side, ready for her coach’s next instruction.

“Good. Very good.” Yagoda said. “your turns have gotten much better. I see someone has been practising her stretches on both sides. Now, I want to see your fouettés. If you want to place in the upcoming competition and qualify for the national team eventually, your routine has to be perfect. Ty Lee, pay attention, because I want to see your fouettés after.”

Suki looked at the girl dressed in pink, who pouted at her matching hula hoop. She didn’t know why she was pouting. Ty Lee was already the most flexible out of the whole department, fouettés were easy for her.

Before the girl in blue could start her turns, the door to the practise studio slammed open, the door slamming into the wall. Standing with all the self-importance in the world, her gold eyes gleaming much like her smirk stood Azula Lung, daughter of the Prime Minister of the Fire Nation and ace of the Karate Department at the school. She had a massive amount of sway within the school just because her father. Not that she was a spoiled girl who would threaten her father on people. Oh no, she took care of giving threats herself and she took care of them well. Some people had assumed her father bought her admission, at least until she competed in her first competition with the rest of the department. She placed first, gained a record and left her opponents in bloody messes. Azula had skill and she knew it.

Seeing that she had everyone’s attention, she easily strolled inside, another girl following her. While Azula was dressed in reds and golds, this person was mainly in black. Her lightweight trench had long sleeves that mainly left her nails exposed, the red catching on the lights in the studio. She looked bored and sullen.

“Mai!” Ty Lee cried, running over and throwing herself at the girl. She looked uncomfortable with the hug but she didn’t push Ty Lee off of her.

“Mai has returned from her qualifying competition for the national team. We’ll be taking Ty Lee with us.” Azula announced, not even asked, announced to Yagoda.

Thankfully, while any other coach would bend easily, Yagoda did not. “You can get Ty Lee after practise is over. She still has her own hoop routine to show me, not to mention her routine for the Department cheerleader for Sports Day.”

Azula scoffed. “Sports Day, waste of time. She won’t be attending.”

“She will if she doesn’t want to be benched from the next competition.”

Azula’s smirk turned into a frown as she glared at Yagoda. “You really wanna do this?”

“This might work with your coach, but you’re not my student, and you don’t pay my salary.”

“We’ll see about that. Ty Lee, plan for us to go to Ember Island this weekend. I’ll take care of this.”

Azula turned and walked out, Ty Lee still holding onto Mai.

“I just can’t believe you’re back! I missed you soo much! Are you visiting before you head to the Olympic dorms?”

“Ty Lee. I’ll explain later.” That was all Mai said before peeling off her friend’s hands and walking out.

Katara watched Ty Lee pout, her whole-body slumping before Yagoda clapped, getting everyone’s attention.

“Let’s start again. Katara, fouettés please.”

While Katara was able to land her fouettés with little issue and do a perfect run of her ribbon routine, she kept thinking about what Azula had threatened. Everyone on campus knew that the Karate Department had gotten the old Weightlifting Department’s gym thanks to Azula. No one knew if the threats – because what else could it have been? – had come from Azula or her father. Just that before everyone knew it, the Karate Department was moving into gym that the Weightlifting Department had worked tirelessly to get hold of from the school, leaving the overworked Department to take residence in one of the older gyms. The last thing she wanted was for Yagoda to lose her job thanks to a spoiled girl.

“She won’t fire her. I mean, Ty Lee is her friend.” Suki said, spinning one of her clubs around her hand with ease.

“The same Ty Lee who didn’t seem that bothered her friend was threatening her coach.” Katara reminded, watching Ty Lee run through her routine with ease. She was Katara’s biggest competition, as Suki had no desire to aim for Olympics, instead using rhythmic gymnastics to better her tenssen jutsu skills for when she eventually took over her family’s dojo. Katara truly believed Suki would give Azula a good fight if she’d joined the Karate Department instead.

“Ok, fair. But come on, Yagoda was on the national team until her retirement age, both as a single competitor and as part of the group team. the school would be insane to fire her over something as small as ignoring a student’s demands, even if it was from Azula.”

Thankfully they weren’t going to fire Yagoda. Threaten her Department was a whole other matter.

“They’re threatening to cut our budget if Ty Lee isn’t excused? You can’t be serious!”

After practise was over, most of which had been with Yagoda on her phone arguing with someone – the Dean it would later be gossiped about – she’d called Ty Lee and Katara over and gave the news.

“You’re seriously going to accept this?”

“Katara, if it were up to me, I would ignore Azula’s demands but I can’t without it affecting the whole team.”

“Why are you letting her push people around like this?” Katara asked, turning to Ty Lee.

The girl shrugged, turning the hoop in her hand. “That’s just the way Azula is. She gets what she wants.”

“Yeah, and leaves a wave of destruction behind her.” Katara muttered loudly enough. Ty Lee flinched slightly but she can’t find it within herself to feel sorry. “So, she can’t be our Department cheerleader. Now what?”

“I want you to take her place. I know,” Yagoda interrupted, seeing Katara revving up to complain and protest, “It’s a lot of extra work, but think of it as planning your own routines. I’m usually helping you or giving them to you. if you come up with a good enough routine, I’ll let you perform it at the upcoming competition.”

“That’s not fair! What about me?” Ty Lee complained.

“Maybe don’t use your friends to back out of commitments. Make sure to pass the outfit you got to Katara, it was bought with our budget and I’d rather it didn’t go to waste. Katara, meet me here during open hours so we can go over the routine for Sports Day.”

Ty Lee huffed. “This is so unfair. I’ve been begging to do my own routine for a competition for ages.”

Rolling her eyes, Katara looked at Ty Lee. “And me being forced to take your place so the rest of us don’t suffer is fair? Grow up Ty Lee. You have all the chances to be amazing at this and you give it up to please your friend, who honestly, is nothing but a bully. And the fact that you seem blind to it says a lot about you.”

She didn’t let Ty Lee respond, putting her ribbon away before following Suki out the door.

“Wow.” Suki said, once they had fully exited the gym. “you let her have it.”

Katara dropped her bag on the ground and pulled on her jacket, the Southern Water Tribe symbol proudly displayed on the back. “I’m not gonna feel sorry for her. I mean, who does Azula think she is, just lording over everyone like that, like she’s some princess or something? So, her dad is Prime Minister; technically speaking, so is mine. You don’t see me using my name to do whatever I want.” She complained as she pulled her hair out of its bun.

“because you’ve got sugar in your veins.” A new voice said.

Coming up behind them, led by an oversized Bernese Mountain dog was Toph. If Azula was the Karate Department’s ace at only a sophomore, Toph was the Weightlifting Department’s as the youngest freshmen to be admitted into the school with the most amount of records ever gotten as an incoming freshman. However, many of her teammates didn’t believe she deserved to be there. For one, Toph was blind and another was she was the heir to one of the richest families in the Earth Kingdom. They seemed to ignore Toph ran away from home to even apply and if anything, her blindness made her work even harder. She was sarcastic and sassy and on the worst of days grinded every one of Katara’s nerves, but she was a true friend and Katara felt lucky to have her.

The nicknames she could have done without.

“I heard Azula. What’s the thief up to now?” Toph asked, letting her guide dog lead her past the two rhythmic gymnasts, knowing they’d follow.

“Dragged Ty Lee away for the weekend, leaving Katara here to take her place as Department cheerleader. On the plus side, Katara was given permission to create her own routine for the next competition, which upset the poor Ty Lee.”

Toph burst into laughter. “Serves her right. If she didn’t like it, maybe she should find new friends.”

“I am happy, but it’s already another thing to add to my plate, not to mention practising, checking on dad and now doing what I think is one of the dumbest traditions in the school.”

Toph cackled in a way that told the others she knew something. Toph had this way of just knowing people and hearing things which she used it to her advantage all the time.

“You won’t be saying that when you hear who some of the Departments’ cheerleaders are. Wanna take a guess as to who’s the Fencing Department’s cheerleader?”

Katara looked over at Toph, who’s smile grew maniacal. Usually that meant someone was going to get embarrassed as hell. It usually tended to be Sokka.

“Wouldn’t it be one of the girls?”

“Nope.” Toph shook her head, popping her p.

“Is it-?”

“Katara, watch out!” Suki cried.

Turning the corner, a guy on his bike appeared and with a panicked look, veered off course at the sight of her. She still stumbled over her feet and fell to the ground, her hands pricking in pain as they were scratched. Thankfully though, her jacket took most of the damage. The guy on the other hand, tumbled onto the grass as he was thrown from his bike, the vehicle in question clattering loudly.

She took in the pale skin and dark hair surrounding his face, his gold eye grimacing in pain. It didn’t stop her from noticing the large burn surrounding his right eye. she noticed that his school jacket was the same one Sokka wore, meaning he was in the Fencing Department.

“You should be more careful.” She meant for it to come out a bit nicer, but the anger from dealing the whole situation with Azula and Ty Lee slipped in.

clearly the guy didn’t enjoy being yelled at as he snapped back. “I didn’t see you.” he seemed to rethink his anger and continued in a calmer voice. “Are you ok?”

Katara sighed, trying not to keep hold of her anger. It was an accident and yelling at him wasn’t going to do anything. Though, his pale skin and gold eyes reminded her of Azula, but he hadn’t been the one to manipulate the whole school to get what he wanted. “I’m fine. here.” She got up, pulling his bike up while he grabbed his kit that had fallen off. Other than a few grass stains, he didn’t look too hurt.

“What’s up Sparky?” Toph called, Badger bringing her over and with surprising accuracy, punched the guy in the arm, hard.

“Ow! Stop calling me that.”

“This is Zuko. His dad owns that really cool tea place I keep telling you guys about.” She loosened her grip on Badger’s lead, his signal that he could greet people, as he nosed Zuko for pets. “This is Sugar Queen and Honey, aka Katara and Suki. They’re both Rhythmic Gymnast.”

“Nice to meet you.” Zuko said, wiping his hands from the slobbery kisses Badger gave him in return from the pets on his pants before fitting his bag on his bike again.

“So, have you seen it? what does it look like?” Toph asked, leaning in as Zuko took the bike from Katara.

The gymnast wondered how the two met. Zuko, from what she could tell, was quiet, seeing how he was answering most questions with a few words. Toph was wild and had no filter. Maybe he was different in front of others he knew better.

“How do you – you know what? Never mind. I haven’t seen it, and I don’t know if I can guilt him into showing me. He’s already holding Jett off for me.”

Toph’s face contorted hearing Jett’s name. while she hadn’t been there for Jett’s dating and cheating scheme, Toph didn’t like Jett on principal seeing how Sokka complained about him all the time, he didn’t seem to care that he cheated on Katara and that he was rude to anyone who wasn’t he close friends. While Toph could stand being around Pipsqueak on the weightlifting team, Katara would have to remind Toph that setting Badger on Jett wasn’t a good use of a guide dog.

“What’s his problem now?”

“I’ve been instructed to do the rice lifting challenge for the Fencing Department, but after the day I’ve had, not gonna happen. Any chance you wanna stand in for me?”

“Didn’t you have a competition today?”

“Why do you think I’m avoiding Jett?”

It wasn’t often Katara saw Toph look sorry and with pity. Getting Toph to apologize was near impossible and she’d cover her emotions with her snark most of the time. Clearly whatever relationship she had with Zuko was something deeper than she understood.

“Alright. I overheard the Weightlifting Department talk about switching the orientation of the gym to mess with me, so anything to piss them off.”

“Perfect. I gotta go before Jett finds me, but good luck. And sorry again about knocking you over.” He said to Katara, before he got on his bike and took off.

“So how do you know him?” Suki asked.

“I go to his old man’s tea house sometimes; he was working there and I got to know him and his family. He’s Sokka’s roommate apparently.”

“Oh, that’s Zuko! He’s a pretty good fencer from what I hear. Weird though, I haven’t seen his name in the announcement of students placing.” Suki said, speaking about the posting on their school’s website so they could show off their students and people could keep track.

She had a point. Katara never remembered seeing the name either. She also found it a bit strange Sokka never dragged his roommate to meet the rest of them but at the same time, never really said a bad word about him. There was something about Zuko though that seemed familiar. It wasn’t the burn around his eye, in fact it was his eyes. There was something about the gold that seemed different from other Fire Nation born. It was on the tip of her tongue but nothing came to mind.

“Hey, let’s go find Sokka. Maybe if we catch him off guard, we can get him to agree to let us wax his legs.” Toph said, taking Badger’s harness again.

“Ok, why?”

“Well, you’re cheering for your Department. Who do you think is cheering for the Fencing Department?”

“Oh!” Suki bursting into laughter, grabbing Katara’s arm, “We’ve got to go see this.”

At least there was a small positive for the day. Before they got far, Katara noticed something glinting in the sun. it was a gold hair clip, the design of the Fire Lily shimmering with the inlaid stones. It was exactly where Zuko had landed. She quickly scooped it up, letting Suki drag her along as she took a good look at it. it was beautiful, a bit old if the oxidation on it was anything to go by, but still pretty none the less. But why was Zuko carrying it? his hair was long, but not long enough to need a hair clip like the one she held, not to mention it seemed a bit feminine. So why did he have it?

“What do you mean she wants to get back together?”

Zuko looked up at his cousin, who stopped his job of placing stickers on the bottles. He knew his uncle was going to be coming in with another batch and if they didn’t move quickly, he was going to scold them.

“She moved back. She didn’t make it past the preliminary rounds. She and Azula found me as I got back on campus and she told me she wanted to get back together, that I was the only person she could date. I couldn’t get out of there fast enough.”

Mai’s reappearance in his life was something he could have done without. While he gladly gave up any relationship between him and Azula, his relationship with Mai was nice. It was safe and they understood each other. At least until the day he had his first panic attack and it caused the first of many disqualifications and Mai wouldn’t answer his calls. In fact, with Azula smirking in the background, she dumped him like he was nothing, saying her career in archery was more important than him. He wanted to make it as a professional fencer, but never at the expense of the people he cared about. When she stood in front of him, after another disqualification, asking to get back together, he yelled at her. Told her to leave him alone and follow Azula’s orders like the good dog she was. He didn’t regret his words, even after seeing the look on her face.

“Wow. She’s got some nerve.”

“Lu Ten! Zuko! You two better not be talking and not finishing those bottles! That delivery is due in an hour!”

“We got it dad!” Lue Ten called before turning to his younger cousin. “What are you gonna do?”

“Ignore her. There’s nothing I want from her anymore, so it’ll be easy. You’re putting that on crooked.” He pointed out, looking at Lu Ten’s bottle.

“Shit. I could kill Aang. Who orders tea for 3 different Departments the day before they’re needed?”

Zuko didn’t bother mentioning that their younger cousin wasn’t the smartest person with some things. While he focused on putting the correct stickers on the types of bottled tea, all he could think of was where his mother’s hair clip disappeared to. He knew he had it in his bag, resting on the top of his gear. It wasn’t there when he emptied it and it was no where in his room at the house. He had no clue where it could have ended up. The campus was huge and he’d been around quite a bit before heading home so if it did fall out, it could be anywhere.

“Guess I’ll have to ask Sokka.”

“Sorry?”

“Nothing.” There was a lot involving his mother he didn’t want to tell his cousin or his uncle. “Hurry up before Uncle comes with the next batch. Everything starts at 1 pm and I don’t need Jett getting ideas of dragging me back in.”

Thankfully they finished on time and Lu Ten drove them to the school. While he directed Lu Ten to where the Fencing Department would have their tent, he stacked the coolers on top of each other and headed to where Aang said the Track and Field Department would be set up. The noise from Sports Day and people gearing up for events surrounded him. The year before he was ready to try and get his Department on the tiers, even with Jett being an ass. This year, he wanted to be as far away from this as possible.

“Watch it!”

Stopping, Zuko turned to see past the coolers, surprised when he realised, he nearly crashed into Katara again. The last time he saw her, her training clothes were blue, made even more aware with her Southern Water Tribe jacket she’d been in. this time, it looked like Ty Lee had gotten a hold of her and threw her into her own closet. Her cheerleading uniform was bright pink, the Department jacket somehow matching. He guessed Ty Lee had that made since all the Departments lettermen jackets where some shade of grey.

“It’s you.”

“Sorry. We’re creating a habit.”

“Hmm, more like you are, but that’s fine. what is this?”

“Tea, from the Jasmine Dragon. My cousin put in a massive order last night so it’s getting delivered now. It’s for the Track and Field and Weightlifting but I’m sure Toph wouldn’t mind you stealing a bottle.”

“Tempting, but if my coach sees us downing extra sugar before the day is over, she’ll kill me. I heard from my brother that Jett is trying to hunt you down and since I hate Jett, you should probably deliver that before he finds you.” Katara said, pointing over her shoulder, to where the main field was.

“Thanks. Sorry again.” He walked around her when she called for him. He looked over his shoulder, watching her walk up to him, tugging something from the bun she wore. It was a hair clip, a very familiar one. “That’s…”

“I found it the day we met. It was where you landed so I thought it might be yours?”

He dropped the coolers on the ground, taking the hair clip from her. It looked slightly shiny, as if it’d been cleaned. He was about to ask, looking up when he stopped. He really got a good look at Katara, her bright blue eyes, the braid that spilled onto her shoulder, with the minor kinks from being in a bun.

“You, you went to Ba Sing Se Preparatory.” he stated.

“Yes?”

“You screamed at those bullies.”

He couldn’t believe he forgot. Her blue eyes briming with anger, the conviction in her voice as she yelled at the bullies from down below, even Sokka trying to calm her down. her family saved his life.

Zuko crawled carefully on the ledge as he wiped down the windows, the rest of his class pushing desks out of the way to be swept and mopped. Most of his classmates didn’t want him anywhere near an open area, especially with his limited vision but he’d just gotten his bandages taken off and he wasn’t about to let it hinder him.

Without them on, he didn’t see Mom flinch at the sight of them, though the massive burn that he now had wasn’t any better, let alone the lack of hair that had been left too. The fights between his parents were getting worse and Azula’s teasing was starting to become more hurtful than playful. He wanted it all to stop. If he pretended that things were ok, maybe they would be eventually.

“Hey scarface!” Zuko looked over, 3 of his school bullies storming over. He tried not to flinch, already knowing what they were going to yell at him about. They’d been doing it all day. “We lost the race thanks to you!”

Zuko used to be more confident. But after the burns, a few harsh words and he’d start retreating back down into himself. These bullies took advantage of it. During their Sports Day, Zuko had dropped the baton in the relay race and ran in the opposite direction of everyone else, away from the bullies yelling at him.

“Mr. Reversal, can’t believe you’re so stupid.”

“You need a walking stick, scarface? Huh?”

Zuko felt one of them shove him and he expected to hit the window frame. Instead, he went flying out the open window. Zuko would mostly remember being caught by an older man with darker skin, most likely from one of the Water Tribes, with kind blue eyes, who held him as he burst into tears and two younger children. The boy patted his back, telling him not to worry because his sister would take care of it and the girl screaming up at the bullies from the ground floor. Her long braid swung back and forth as she shook her fists and threatened to do violent things to them. her eyes seemed bluer than her families, like the clearest ocean.

Katara blinked at him before she gasped. “Wait, Zuko Lung? You, you were in the River Class with Sokka. You disappeared not long after my dad caught you.”

“My uncle, he took custody and it was far from where he lived, so I had to…I can’t believe I forgot about you. Sokka’s my roommate.”

With a smile, Katara shrugged. “no one ever said he was smart. Are, are you happy? Before you left, you always seemed…”

For the first time since this whole list of messes started, Zuko felt like his smile was real. “I am. I mean, I’m dealing with different things, but for the most part, I’m happier than I have been in years.”

“Good. I should really let you go deliver those before Jett shows up. But, don’t be a stranger, ok?” Zuko had only just picker up the coolers again when Katara got his attention again. “How did you know it was me? You didn’t recognise me yesterday.”

“Your hair. I remembered your braid most of all from that day.”               

[badlucksav]

About Me

For those of you new around these parts, I’m Sav: writer, artist, multishipper extraordinaire. I like a lot of pairings and a lot of fandoms. My interests are always shifting, but I’m always in the AtLA/LoK fandoms.

This blog has NSFW content, so minors DNI. All NSFW posts are tagged as such and content is placed under a cut.

Here are my current fandoms:

Avatar: The Last Airbender

Avatar: Legend of Korra

The 100

Six of Crows

Shadow & Bone

Spider-Man (Tom Holland)

Harry Potter

Stranger Things

The Umbrella Academy

Teen Wolf

Scooby-Doo

Spy X Family

Law & Order: SVU

The Last of Us

Twilight Saga

Game of Thrones

Just because I haven’t made content for some of them doesn’t mean anything ok

Here are my current OTPs:

Irosami • Makorra • Makonora • Twiyor • Linko • YuTen •Jetko • Zutara • Bellarke • Kanej • Spideychelle • Dramione • Harmony • Stydia • Diego x Lila • Bensaro • Hellcheer • Jabella

I’d do a fic master post but…that’s a lot of work and no way I’d remember to update it, so you can find my Ao3 here, or by fandom:

• Avatar: The Last Airbender

• Avatar: The Legend of Korra

• The 100

• Six of Crows

• Spiderman (Tom Holland)

• Law & Order: SVU

• Shadow & Bone (TV)

• Soul Eater

• Harry Potter

• Spy X Family

• The Last of Us

• Guardians of the Galaxy

• Twilight Saga

You can find my art here on Tumblr but since the search function is kind of trash, you can also find it on my Instagram. My NSFW art can be found on my (18+ only) Twitter. And if you wanna see me randomly yell about things and retweet random content, follow me on my SFW Twitter too.

I am currently accepting prompt requests from these lists [x, x], but my inbox is always open and you’re free to submit ideas you have, but I can give no promises on if/when they’ll actually be completed. I’ll also write for more than just my OTPs, so feel free to send just about any pairing (barring inc*st etc). You can also come to my inbox or DMs just to talk about headcanons and whatnot! I love hearing from people.

I also open commissions sometimes! Most of the information is located below, but feel free to DM or email with other questions. I will always indicate on this post if my commissions are open or closed, but always feel free to message me in case I have an opening.

I also have a Redbubble shop that I was neglecting, but now I’m taking care of it, with some new designs already up and more to come!

I’m not one of those people who has multiple blogs for their different interests. This is a one stop shop, so you’re also going to see a lot of: random art I find, photography, shitposts, body positivity, LGBTQ+ posts, other fandoms I’m not super into but the art/post looked cool, memes, the occasional political post, and anything else that looks neat in addition to fandom stuff (I tag most of these #off topic).

I try to tag thoroughly, but if I miss something please feel free to DM or send an ask (my anons are on) and let me know (this also includes my Ao3 tags). I tag #off topic for things not fandom/writing related, #sav’s scribbles for my writing, #sav’s sketches for my art, #sav answers for asks, and #sav’s stockpile for things I’ve put in my queue.

I have run a few events. You can find the blogs here:

• YuTen Week (2022)

• Avatar March Madness (2022, 2023)

• Azulaang Week (2021)

• Zutara Mythical Creatures Week (2021, 2022)

• Avatar WTF Weekend (2022, 2023)

Lastly, ask me about my discord servers:

• Lin Beifong server.

• Scooby Doo server.

• Zutara server. (18+)

Commissions are currently closed.

[moneneki]

My Zutara fics masterpost

Ice crystals in molten gold

Rating: T

Summary:

Katara was too young to fight in the war, but victory still took a heavy toll on her family. Years later, on her 16th birthday, one last tragedy leaves her completely alone and desolate, with only one bright spot: Zuko, a golden-eyed stranger that helped her through the worst night of her life. Now living with Baroness Hama, her husband Baron Yon Rha and their children Hahn, Mai and Azula, Katara’s new life becomes hell. She longs for freedom, and yearns to find Zuko again… A visit from the crown prince of the Fire Nation to the Baron’s household may provide her with the perfect chance… Or push her into a path she never expected, laden with misunderstandings and ceremonies, old promises and new friends, and court intrigues interwoven with lost family history. But among all that, her chance at love seems uncertain.

Written for the ZK Big Bang 2021!

ZK Mythical Creatures Week 2021

How bright the lights

Rating: T

Summary: Katara really really wanted to go to the festival. Instead, she's stuck with family responsibilities and bored out of her mind. Her day ends up not being as terrible as she had feared, though.

Golden touch, silver touch

Rating: M

Summary: Fire Lord Ozai the Golden has obtained his greatest wish and has grand plans for it. When Prince Zuko protests, he is punished and given what everyone thinks is an impossible task— but is it really?

A hundred eyes

Rating: T

Summary:

Anger and desperation have made Prince Zuko reckless… While a refugee in the Earth Kingdom, he's about to learn what his actions can cost him, especially when spirits are involved.

The mountain of smoke

Rating: G

Summary: Zuko is doing his best. Katara doesn’t seem eager to forgive him, despite his efforts— He listens attentively for the faintest hint of a possibility, and finds something when she tells him about an old legend of the Southern Water Tribe.

Zutara Week 2021

On the crosshairs

Rating: G

Summary: Their story, told in glimpses. They held very strong opinions about each other's (and some other people's) hair. Unkempt. Crude. Tasteless. Overall, wild. As wild as only such a primitive, backward band of peasants that lived in a spirit-forsaken corner of the world could be. Her brown mane could only be tamed (barely) by restraining it in a tight braid that no respectable citizen of the Fire Nation would ever wear on themselves. Stupid. Pretentious. Ridiculous. The angry guy obviously obsessed over maintaining that silly hairstyle. Only a “civilization” rooted in war and violence could conceive such an awful hairstyle for their black hair, long and straight and shiny like the summer coat of a mink snake. They were just as untrustworthy, each and every one of them. Collection of one shots for the Zutara Week of 2021, all stringing from the prompt of Day 1: Hair.

(Also available in Spanish.)

One night contract

Rating: T

Summary: Besieged by debts that could end the legacy of the extinct air nomads, Katara and Aang make one last desperate attempt at the casinos of Omashu. There, they meet the millionaire Zuko, and receive a proposal that could be their only chance. Zutara fanfic inspired by the movie Indecent Proposal (1993).

(Also available in Spanish.)

[poeticmoonspirit]

I posted 571 times in 2022

That's 230 more posts than 2021!

89 posts created (16%)

482 posts reblogged (84%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@juldooz-atla

@cobraonthecob

@the-badger-mole

@zutarawasrobbed

I tagged 112 of my posts in 2022

#zutara - 41 posts

#zutara month 2022 - 17 posts

#zuko - 12 posts

#anon asks - 12 posts

#katara - 12 posts

#pro zutara - 8 posts

#zutara week 2022 - 8 posts

#fanfiction - 8 posts

#jet - 8 posts

#jetara - 7 posts

Longest Tag: 86 characters

#when i continue writing my jetara fic im gonna picture jet like this during flashbacks

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

Why does everyone say "I wish zutara was canon" lmao have you seen the creators and their writing?? We've got everything we need in fanfics and art—hell, even AMVs! Canon is overrated!

Zutara exists in every way that matters.

96 notes - Posted April 3, 2022

#4

LMFAOOOOO why are they so mad?!?!

Imagine going on AO3 and looking for a fic for a ship that you don't even like at 6 in the morning. Talk about dedication! I love my fans <3

Anyways! I'm going to continue minding my business and writing my stories✍🏾

103 notes - Posted March 10, 2022

#3

I've talked about this on twitter, but the way canon shippers defend their ships with their whole chest is hilarious. You're that defensive because zutara is mentioned? Why? You HAVE canon, you have EVERYTHING, yet you still care about what we ship? It's giving insecurity to be honest. It's been fifteen years and you'd think they'd get it through their heads that zutara fans don't give a flying FUCK about what's canon.

Why would we when our fan content is better than anything Bryke would put out? LMAOOO

109 notes - Posted October 6, 2022

#2

These Things I've Done

"Katara, you're not a monster. You'll never be a monster."

She shook her head angrily, unable to contain herself any longer. "No, I don't think you understand, Aang. I decided to end that man's life today. I did that. Not Zuko, not Sokka, me. And if you can't handle that then you can just kindly fuck off!"

Aang sputtered, "You don't mean that—"

She let out a bitter chuckle, "Oh, I think I do," She stepped closer to the airbender so that they were face to face, toe to toe, "And I won't repeat it."

He was breathing harder now, his eyes wide, unable to believe what she was saying. She was perfect. Katara was always perfect. So innocent and kind. So why was he seeing her so differently now? Why was she acting this way?

"Katara, I think Zuko has corrupted you somehow. This isn't like you—"

She clenched her jaw, pressing her finger into his chest, "Oh, no no no—we are not doing this again. You and I? We are not the same. We've never been the same! You can't tell me how to live my life just because you don't agree with it! I ended that man's life because he killed my mother! I was owed that! And I'll be damned if I let anyone else tell me otherwise!"

"And if you think for a second that I am gonna let you slander my best friend then you've got another thing coming! Zuko was there for me, he's always been there for me! So why won't you? Why can't you support me on the one thing that would give me closure?"

"Katara, the monks always say to—"

"I don't care what the monks said, Aang! I am not a monk! I am Katara from the Southern Water Tribe. I am not you! Why don't you understand that?"

"Katara–"

"I'm sorry, Aang," She gulped, swallowing the lump in her throat, "But if you're going to shame me for killing my mother's murderer then I don't think we can be friends anymore."

Part II Part III Part IIII Part V Part VI

182 notes - Posted August 25, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

"zk is mostly katara-centric" first off, so what? And secondly, we love them both equally. Katara gets more hate than any of the other characters. As a brown girl, she can't get too emotional. She can't bloodbend because then she'll be "evil", and she can't be nuanced or too complex.

Outside of zks and the occasional Katara stan, who else is gonna ride and die for her character?? Casual fans who don't even remember what happened in the show?? Antis?? Just shut up already, you sound like a broken record.

186 notes - Posted July 24, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[chiefnooniensingh]

I was tagged by @mandoworryan and i don’t think i’ve been tagged in over a year in tag games so i’m really experiencing some joy, thank you!

three ships: Captain Swan (once upon a time), Malex (Roswell New Mexico), Bellarke (The 100)

first ever ship: oh i don’t really know? on tumblr i think it was Captain Swan, but I think it goes wayyyy further down the line than that. I think Zutara comes close. Or Nienke and Fabian from the og House of Anubis (the Dutch one).

last song: Zandloper by Typhoon

last film: The Card Counter (2021) dir. Paul Schrader

currently reading: Norwegian Harry Potter and Dune

currently watching: all the star wars movies on repeat

currently consuming: a wacky cake! and otherwise any and all oscar isaac movies/series

currently craving: a girlfriend, a job that doesn’t trigger my anxiety every other week, enough money that i can choose what job i want whenever i want

i’m gonna tag @chiquititadiaz @ropoto @maxbegone @marcgrant @jamesholden @bisexualalienss and anyone who sees this!

[lotustiled]

Zutara Week 2021 Day 4: Free Day

a bit late (and messy lol) but here's some titanic au zutara! ofc i had to draw them as another one of my favorite star-crossed lovers

[perfectlypanda]

Zutara Week 2021 Day 7: Stories

In my mind there is a very clear connection between the prompt “stories” and my attempt at rewriting part of the AtLA ending, however I’m having a terrible time verbalizing it (sort of “stories belong to their readers” ala John Green vibes?). Instead you get this snippet from a meta I wrote months ago (which I guess I’ll need to post now to have this make sense):

So if someone asks me if a romantic Zutara relationship is “canon” within the context of AtLA, then no it isn’t. But for me, that’s literally the only place where Zuko and Katara aren’t deeply in love and living their best lives together. AtLA is a work of fiction, and fictional characters are just as fictional when a fan thinks about them as when the character’s creator thinks about them. A story is only as real as you make it. And for me? Zutara is real.

Sorry, no kiss, but as I’ve said a few scattered times - my preferred show ending would have had no canon romances except Sukka (although I certainly wouldn’t have been upset if there had been a Zutara ending...). 

♥ Please do not repost. If you like it and want to show people, share a link to this page instead. Thank you!

Transcript under the read more.

Katara: Didn’t I tell you to wait for me so you didn’t hurt yourself?

Zuko: Katara! You look great!

Katara: Thanks Zuko! It’s a big day, how do you feel?

Zuko: Sore, but alive, all thanks to you.

Katara: Only because you saved me first.

Zuko: We make a good team. 

Katara: Yeah, we do. So when you go find out what happened to your mom, I’m coming too.