#and yeah the southern raiders scene is…. interesting

[comradekatara]

hey, so. people on twt (ugh, I need to delete that account) started to compare Zuko and Azula’s relationship to Sokka and Katara. So, I jump in like “they are not comparable in any way” then people are like “Sokka and Katara do have issues even though it’s not the same as Zuko and Azula” (even though the original tweet did imply that but, whatever). and I’m all like “sure, they both have trauma from their upbringing and they fight like siblings and that trauma probably has effected their relationship but it’s still no way like it’s being compared… they love and care for one another” and then they’re coming back like “it’s not the same but they still have issues” and citing the southern raiders (which I have my own opinions about and I feel like people totally miss read that scene) but all in all to say; I’m annoyed because I feel like people are being disingenuous and I feel like your thoughts would be interesting

okay yeah obviously I don’t know what the full arguments were (and I never will because I loathe twitter. I mean X sorry) but i can definitely talk about this more generally. I mean they are the central sibling pairs configured in a similar way for obvious reasons. they are definitely comparable.

sokka and zuko have superficial similarities as older brothers who feel undervalued, struggle to live up to a harmful patriarchal standard of gender (specifically masculinity/manhood) as shaped by imperialism/colonialism/war and the expectations their fathers placed on them to “be a real man” within a very limited framework, and ultimately find their worth via other avenues beyond the limited scope of patriarchal imperialist logic. azula and katara have superficial similarities as younger sisters who are placed on a pedestal by their culture community, are the best benders of their respective elements and outclass all the older more established (male) masters who dismiss and look down on them for being teenage girls, and who feel a deep sense of grief due to the loss of their mothers that informs everything they do and fundamentally who they are as people. and then obviously the REAL foils who are foiling are katara and zuko, and sokka and azula. these pairs are each very obvious mirrors, both in terms of their personalities (as developed differently by their respective environments) and their arcs. zuko is fire nation katara. azula is fire nation sokka. so obviously their relationships are similar in this way. they are narratively constructed as parallels.

that said, I think the key primary difference between these sets of siblings is that zuko and azula are directly opposed due to being pitted against each other by ozai’s abuse, whereas sokka and katara are extremely codependent, to the point that sokka’s entire identity is shaped by his role as katara’s brother and protector. so if you read zuko as a foil to sokka (which he certainly somewhat is, but is not the primary foil to sokka) you’ll get confused because he doesn’t live for others and he doesn’t look out for azula at all. but azula, like sokka, does define her identity through her loyalty and her ability to best serve others, so she does try to help zuko as best she can, which is obviously hindered by the incredibly limited of scope of what she considers “helpful” (much in the same way that sokka’s protection of katara is often limited by his own narrow worldview and unhealthy sense of duty as it corresponds to his identity). azula wants zuko to be a “perfect prince” in the way that she is a “perfect princess” because she refuses to acknowledge how specifically harmful that paradigm is to both of them until it is too late. so her intentions are actually good (don’t @ me), but she’s just deeply misguided and her level of cognitive dissonance is off the charts generally (again, much like sokka).

meanwhile katara and zuko, despite loving their families a lot and feeling defined by their families in many ways, are still very self-focused. which isn’t to say that’s a bad thing or that they’re selfish (they are both defined by an incredibly passionate and outspoken sense of justice for others, of course), but rather that they understand that what they want is to further their own interests for their own benefit even as they are seeking justice for the entire world. (in katara’s worlds: “me. me, personally!”) but like. if anything, the fact that azula and sokka never think in terms of the ego but only in terms of servitude to the point that they are actually detached from their own humanity is deeply unhealthy and awful, which is why so much of sokka’s arc is about getting him to understand his intrinsic worth as a human being and the value of accepting help, and azula’s tragedy and downfall is precipitated by her acknowledgement that she has been deliberately isolated her entire life and now she is alone and utterly helpless.

I do see katara and zuko as quite heroic, inspiring characters, to azula and sokka’s quite tragic, heartbreaking characters (especially azula of course, but like. I don’t think sokka’s deep-seated, copious issues have somehow been magically resolved just because “the boiling rock” is his apotheosis. you get it). but katara was always the “valued” sibling whereas azula began as the valued sibling and zuko rose above her by disrupting/transcending the paradigm that valued her only to end up in the position that she felt teleologically entitled to (not to say that she thought she would become fire lord, but that he does become the most powerful player in the fire nation, at least in name). and a large part of that is the fact that katara and sokka grew up in extremely different conditions than azula and zuko did, even if both their worldviews are informed by imperialism and patriarchy in some way. so katara was valued as a sort of cultural artefact who represents the last hope of a dying people, whereas azula was valued as the obedient daughter of a powerful abusive patriarch. it’s still a way of ascribing “value,” but the criteria are completely different in both cases. which is why I still think that azula and sokka are functionally more similar, because even if azula is valued, it is with the expectation that she function in the same way that sokka is expected to function, as a depersonalized vessel for the good of their people.

so there are similarities for sure, but also those similarities are constantly being complicated through locating their respective cultural contexts as they informed their upbringing, psychologies, and sibling relationships. I will say that it’s true that both of these relationships are unhealthy (to an extent), and both sets of siblings parallel each other in very significant ways, but the ways in which their relationships are in fact “unhealthy” are nonetheless almost diametrically opposed.

#f1reladymai #asks #I need to someday make a post that’s just. EVERY PARALLEL across all four of them #a chart even #analysis #katara #sokka #azula #zuko #azula&zuko #katara&sokka #azula&sokka #katara&zuko #azula&katara #sokkaxzuko #and yeah the southern raiders scene is…. interesting #I’ve talked abt it before #but I don’t even think it’s katara’s ‘cruelest’ moment #I still think bullying a girl she just met for being blind is the worst thing she ever said 😭😭😭 sorry #also I just realized you implied that zuko and azula don’t love each other???? um. yeah they do. what

[mysticwolfshadows]

So, after the live action series, I've been binge reading basically all my AO3 bookmarks for ATLA/Zutara. (Can you blame me? The TENSION in that scarf scene. Damn.)

Anyway, I got really in the mood for a time travel fic, but I only had one and it was an 'into the future' fic. (I Choose Us: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27492745) So I go to look, and I can't find anything that peeked my interest, and I realize that I wanted to watch the world burn and came up with one instead.

Basic set up is that everything is the same, all the way up until Zuko and Katara arrive at Azula's coronation. Instead of challenging him to an Agni Kai, Azula is wild and fights them both. And when Azula is starting to lose, she goes after Katara like normal. Only, Zuko isn't in a spot where he can save here, and, well... Yeah.

So, in my racing midnight mind, I immediately started to think about firebending and angst, and how insanely cool it would be for Zuko to unlock this fort of feral firebending form. Just going absolutely savage, his inner fire not coming out in controlled bursts or movements, but to literally start bursting from his skin all over his body. Have it burn everything as he loses control, until there's literally nothing left.

But then Zuko wakes up back in Ba Sing Se, after he had been sick. And he remembers.

And suddenly, we have a set up for Zuko having this uncontrolled power that flares with his emotions, and a SECOND layer of trauma centered around Katara. He couldn't save her before, and if he doesn't get a handle on this power, he'll have to see her die all over again! And, of course, he can't dare attack her in the catacombs, so he joins the gaang.

Katara vouches for him, even though he won't meet her eyes. Toph confirms, saying he's telling the truth about being on their side. Aang is optimistic, but Sokka is kinda dubious. Until, of course, Zuko starts talking about what the Fire Nation plans to do on the Day of Black Sun and helping with revising battle plans.

Even if Iroh is there, Toph obviously would tell that the 'uh, I was the prince?' explanation isn't quite right.

They go through the Fire Nation, Zuko helping them navigate the best he can. He tries to not let them get distracted, but it never works. Toph eventually questions him, and thinks he's either insane or had some sort of spirit vision.

And of course, they get into shenanigans. The dance party, Zuko pointedly staying out of the way, being a look out. Cleaning the river, busting out the Blue Spirit disguise. Taking Sokka to Piando, and having a really interesting conversation. Then we get to Hama. And Zuko knows basically nothing about this, other than Katara's crazy display while investigating the Southern Raiders.

At some point, Zuko and Katara have to have a conversation. He's weirdly protective of her. Just her. And Zuko sort of kinda tries to side step it. He's a terrible liar, of course, so he says something along the lines of he had a spirit vision and he saw her dead. He doesn't want to talk about it, so Katara doesn't really get details.

Do they win on the Day of Black Sun? Does Aang succeed in taking out Ozai? Or do they have to retreat again, to face off on the day of the comet?

#zutara #zuko #katara #time #time travel #atla #avatar the last airbender #fanfic idea

[sneezypeasy]

ATLA Original Scripts: Extra Goodies

As I’m sure you may have guessed, the very first script I chose to open at the WGF was The Southern Raiders (I mean, can you blame me? 🤣). But shippy lore and zutara fandom history aside, I did unearth quite a few unrelated tidbits, author’s notes and script changes that I found interesting or funny enough to note down. As promised, here is a compilation of some of these tidbits, with little connecting theme or pattern other than “I thought the fandom might find these snippets interesting” 😁

1. Elizabeth and Aaron Ehasz are genuinely hilarious.

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Credit for finding #1 and #3 goes to my husband, who was with me on Day 2 of Original Script Investigations :3

I don’t mean to say that the other ATLA writers are necessarily boring or unfunny – as I said I didn’t get a chance to read every script and there may have been other genuinely amusing snippets from other writers that I honestly just missed. All I know is, the most entertaining action/non-dialogue lines that I did find were written by these two chuckleheads. I fuckin’ love them, lmao 🤣

2. In Day of Black Sun, Zuko was originally meant to redirect lightning using his dual swords.

I can see why this detail was changed during the storyboarding/animating process (as he just uses his bare hands in the show, the way Iroh taught him), but at the same time the sword-lightning-redirection thing really intrigues me. Dual swords are strongly associated with Zuko’s Blue Spirit vigilante persona, and there’s several episodes where Zuko uses them as part of obscuring his Fire Nation identity, whether that’s to help him keep his cover or even to help him get away with what the Fire Nation could reasonably consider as acts of treason.

So the idea that Zuko would use his swords to redirect Ozai’s lightning comes across as powerfully symbolic to me: Zuko standing in defiance to his abusive father, channeling some Blue Spirit energy to defend but not to kill; Zuko facing down a terrifying display of Fire Nation aggression and wrath, absorbing it into himself and then directing it back to its source, using a non-bending instrument, one he’d previously used in service of vigilantist or even sabotage/treasonous acts… yeah, I think that’s pretty damn cool, ngl.

From a Doylist standpoint, I like it. Very nice.

From a Watsonian standpoint, I can (grudgingly) understand why they likely chose not to portray this scene the way it was scripted.

Ah well.

3. In Lake Laogai, Katara’s healing water was meant to “turn black” as a visual indication that Jet’s injuries were too severe for her to heal.

This scene kind of plays out in the show, but not in the way that the script implies it should:

You can see that in the show version, the water turns black right as Katara appears to pause her work and look up to say “This isn’t good”. Maybe it’s just me, but the show doesn’t seem to imply that the water “turned black” despite Katara’s best healing efforts; I instead get the impression that the water stopped glowing because Katara (momentarily?) suspended her healing efforts upon registering how bad Jet’s injuries were.

The script seems to suggest that the scene should have played out like – Katara tries to heal Jet, the water turns black while she’s still moving her hands and working, Katara might then visibly react with shock or alarm, before finally looking up to remark, “this isn’t good”.

And honestly, I’m actually really bummed that they didn’t animate this sequence out! It would only have taken maybe a couple more seconds, but can you imagine if the writers had been able to employ the dramatic effect of “[Character] is so heavily injured, the healing water turns black” to its maximum potential?

Imagine Katara trying to heal Aang’s lightning wound in The Awakening, but it turns black and then he has that chi-shock attack. Imagine her explaining beforehand that she’d tried healing his wound multiple times over the two weeks he’d been unconscious, and it had always turned black, but she hoped that with him being awake maybe it wouldn’t fail this time - except that it does 😭

Imagine Katara trying to heal Zuko after the lightning scene in Sozin’s Comet, and the water turns black, and Katara grits her teeth “Oh no don’t you dare” and visibly puts all her effort into making that water glow again and finally he wakes -

Argh, it’s one tiny visual clue and yet there’s so much potential for drama and angst (yum!) - I’m so frustrated it wasn’t kept! Huge missed opportunity imo. Ah well, for all you fan-artists and fanfic writers, consider it free real estate. Make it canon, let’s gooo 🤣

4. In The Runaway, after being accused of being “too motherly”, Katara actually slaps Aang when he doesn’t respond fast enough 🤣

I don’t really have much to say about this one other than that I just found the mental image pretty funny. I do find it interesting that as much as the writing did a better job of developing Kataang in the original script, there also isn’t any serious effort to tone down Katara’s motherly tendencies towards Aang either (in fact, I think one could easily argue that slapping Aang’s hand away makes the whole mom thing come off stronger, but idk). Either way, this was pretty entertaining to read. 😂

5. In Tales of Ba Sing Se, Zuko and Jin are both a lot more expressive in the script, and it’s way more fun:

In the script, Zuko looks “totally overwhelmed” when Jin asks him out. In the show, he just looks… blank? Expressionless? Idk. I did get the sense that this was unfamiliar territory for him, but to me the show doesn’t animate him to be nearly as flustered as the script suggests he ought to be. He doesn’t scowl at Iroh immediately either, and even when he does he looks more irritated than “furious”, imo. 🤷‍♀️

I did figure that Zuko telling Jin she has a large appetite was his attempt at making polite conversation, but the script makes him come off more sympathetic with that too:

In the show, the waiter doesn’t roll his eyes at anyone, he just walks away, the shot does pan out to the other diners staring but they move on very quickly, and notably Jin appears completely unperturbed by the whole thing. She doesn’t look sad or “hurt” as the script suggests, and Zuko’s attempt at a compliment isn’t framed as him regretting his outburst and awkwardly trying to make up for upsetting her (as she doesn’t seem to be upset at all).

I’m honestly a little sad that so much of this was cut; it really softens Zuko’s character a fair bit. I mean we already know that underneath his hot temper Zuko always had a deep sense of compassion and empathy for others, but these little details really help bring that side of him to the surface and I’m just sort of bummed that they shaved them off here :/ not sure why they felt the need to do that.

Anyway, we all love awkward turtleduck Zuko, so here, have some more:

I like that Zuko is explicitly written as being more at ease once he and Jin have found a quiet area to be alone in. Neurodivergent Zuko confirmed? :P

Also, love the little addition that Jin “peeks” through her fingers right before Zuko starts firebending (they didn’t include that part in the show either). Makes you wonder, did she see? Did she see, and accept Zuko anyway? :P

(Too cute.)

6. In Zuko Alone, Zuko stops Lee from hurting himself with the dual swords:

On the one hand, I don’t mind that the show portrays Lee just having fun with the swords and looking to Zuko for approval (and getting it!). It’s sweet. On the other hand, I think there’s a layer of foreshadowing here that the show missed - without Zuko there to help, Lee’s recklessness and impulsivity will get the better of him (as it ultimately did). I’m sort of torn on this one.

Edit: I’ve been thinking about this a little more and I think I definitely prefer the script version, if only for the fact that Zuko’s “imperceptible smile” is at the end of his and Lee’s encounter. In the show, Zuko smiles at Lee encouragingly after he gives him a swordfighting “lesson” and then lets the kid swing the swords around a bit, which is definitely a heartwarming moment but it has a very different connotation to Zuko smiling with Lee after Lee opens up about Sen Su to him. In the show Zuko is smiling for Lee, to give him encouragement and support. In the script, Zuko smiles during a bonding moment for both of them, in a way that seems to suggest he is grateful/touched that Lee is sharing something so personal with him. It’s a really soft moment for Zuko and upon thinking about it more I’m definitely bummed they cut that little smile. :(

7. In The Chase, after Azula attacks Iroh, Zuko is apparently doing his best to comfort and stabilise him – he is not simply overcome with despair over his fallen uncle:

And in Crossroads of Destiny, Katara isn’t just angrily pacing the “prison cell” back and forth before Zuko is thrown in with her; she’s actively searching for a way out:

I kinda wish both of these were kept in too. Zuko and Katara may be hot-headed at times (they are definitely two of the most passionate characters in the show, if not the most passionate) – but not to such an extent that it overwhelms their ability to work through a crisis; I find it more consistent to their characters that they would still try to do something even when they appear to be in a pretty hopeless situation. That seems to be a trait they both share, in the show.

I also like that Zuko’s efforts to help Iroh humanises him a bit more and puts the emphasis on Zuko caring about Iroh’s recovery, rather than Zuko just being upset that things have turned out so horribly. I was sympathetic to him before, but I’m even more sympathetic now, if that makes sense. 😭

8. In The Painted Lady, Katara’s disguise is blown due to a hair-loopie malfunction, rather than Aang literally blowing her disguise (off).

This is more of a subjective thing but I wish they kept this one in too! I think it’s cute :P

9. The Puppetmaster was originally meant to be titled The Dark Side of the Moon, and includes some differences on how Katara regains control of herself in the battle with Hama:

I understand why the script made Katara “pirouette” and dance under Hama’s bloodbending – it’s a reference to the whole “puppetmaster” thing (which, by the way, I have to say “The Dark Side of the Moon” is a much cooler title, but I can see why they changed that too – it’s way too spoiler-y, sadly). Ultimately though I prefer the show’s version where Katara is forced to her knees and then breaks free – it’s more dramatic, I think, and it reminds me of the earlier scene in The Waterbending Master where Pakku has knocked Katara down, and she takes a breath and steels herself and then gets back up to fight again. I’m not sure if the animators meant to mirror that scene or not, but either way I think Katara standing up after being pushed to the ground is a lot more powerful and compelling, both visually and symbolically, than Katara breaking free of a dance that she’s forced to move to under Hama’s hand. Maybe that’s just me.

I will say though, the ending shot is different to how it is in the script, and I wish they’d kept the script version:

10. Finally, the ending of The Fortuneteller has Katara actually hearing and reacting to Meng’s insult.

Which I thought was mildly amusing. Slightly bummed this was cut, but only a little 🤣

I hope you guys enjoyed reading these as much as I did 😊 I actually have about 6 or 7 more tidbits left that I want to share, but I’ll pause this compilation here as 10 is a good number and I think this post has gotten long enough already 😅

Thanks to @korranguyen​ for her effort in spotting and transcribing the Zuko/Jin snippets 😊

#atla #atla original scripts #writer's guild foundation #elizabeth and aaron ehasz are absolute legends #bit of fluff for the jinko fans too

[halfhoursonearth-writes]

On Changes to Canon and What Happens When Your Fix-It Needs to Break a Perfect Scene

I’ve just finished writing through the final Agni Kai in I Asked You First, a canon-divergent Zutara fic that covers the span forward from The Southern Raiders. If you’re reading that story (first of all, thank you!!) and are interested in some musings on canon-tweaking and character arcs, this is for you! If you’d like to read but haven’t, or aren’t caught up, then what follows is a bit spoilery. 

[I’m not even sure if this sort of metacommentary is something fic authors do/should do or if anyone wants this, but here I am, and I’ve brought paragraphs!]

I will start by saying that I dreaded writing the final Agni Kai.

Because I’ve penned more than 100,000 words into a timespan that unfolds over three episodes in canon, I’ve mostly been writing into off screen moments. Why I chose to breathe so much into this corner of ATLA’s narrative is the subject of a different ramble, but the result is that so far there have only been a few instances where I’ve had to grapple with major canon plot points. Ember Island Players and Zuko’s reunion with Iroh jump to mind. 

My strategy for these scenes has generally been to play them as straight as I can while tinkering with the emotional stakes (e.g., how would the EIP balcony scene with Aang feel for Katara if she’s just realizing her feelings lie elsewhere?) or expanding them only to account for new/different dynamics created by the canon divergence (e.g., how might Iroh and Zuko’s reunion grow from adding more experience with articulating emotions/more intimacy skills to Zuko’s character development?). Even still, I feared arriving at such essential story moments. Would these scenes be boring to relive for the reader? Would they feel shoehorned or inorganic in an evolving narrative? 

But no single scene caused me as much agita as the final Agni Kai. Because, in my mind, the final Agni Kai is just about perfect. It is powerful, profound and character-defining for everyone involved. 

Well if it’s so perfect and powerful, then why would you change it? 

Because played straight in I Asked You First, the final Agni Kai would no longer be quite so perfect or powerful. Some of the reasons this scene works so astoundingly in canon no longer apply to the slightly altered character arcs in IAYF. There are a few reasons why, but they mostly stem from the fact that Zuko and Katara falling in love on Ember Island changes the stakes and implications of the canon Agni Kai for each of their character journeys. 

So I had a challenge ahead of me:

How could I ensure that ATLA's narrative climax for Zuko and Katara remained impactful and true to their character arcs?

Let me set up this question for each character.

In the series, Zuko’s choice to take lightning for Katara is a character-defining moment. It is made more impactful by the tenuousness of their friendship (regardless of whether their dynamic is imbued with the possibility of more) and the way his choice contrasts his betrayal in Ba Sing Se. 

The audience sees that Zuko has come to deserve his honorable destiny because he would cast it aside to save a friend—the very person he once betrayed to lay claim to what he once saw as his fate. To go one step further, he is completing a growth arc here from a boy with such a monomaniacal focus on his own personal destiny that he cannot see the way his actions harm others into a man with a broad and balanced perspective who would give up his life to keep another person—someone who already represents something essential and human, the potential to find hope amid the ravages of war—from coming to harm. 

But Zuko in I Asked You First? Yeah, we know he’s going to take that hit for Katara. To make such a sacrifice for the woman he loves is beautiful in its own way, but not nearly as profound for his arc or demonstrative of his growth. 

So how could this canon divergence maintain the power of the Agni Kai for Zuko's growth? 

That was my challenge for Zuko. 

In the series, the Agni Kai is character-defining for Katara for a few reasons. She overcomes her narrative foil, for one. Second, she experiences the gravity of Zuko’s sacrifice for her—bearing primary witness to the astounding scale of his character growth—enabling her to fully appreciate the human potential for change. And perhaps most importantly, after a life torn apart by the Fire Nation invading her home, Katara arrives in their capital, not as a vengeful conqueror but as the one who can help curb violence and save the world’s hope for peace, so that she may find peace elsewhere.

Fueled by her need to save her friend, Katara overcomes Azula not with an astounding display of force (though her power is certainly on display as well), but rather with resourcefulness and ingenuity—and I would argue—compassion. It’s a way for her to defeat Azula that really lines up with what we know about Katara’s character.

But—and I am not arguing that this is a fault of this scene—the canon narrative is not nearly as primarily concerned with setting up Katara’s future arc as it is with establishing Aang’s or Zuko’s. I think the final Agni Kai in canon actually does set Katara up to be a world changing-hero…and then kind of lets that be the end of it. She’s the only one who can take down Azula and then she’s Aang’s prize. There are many amazing fics set after ATLA that really wonderfully explore what this version of Katara could become if she casts aside the canon vision of her future. But I’ve already written her down a different path, one I believe can be equally rewarding for her character, but one that requires a slightly different Agni Kai.

In I Asked You First Katara already profoundly understands that people can change and that Zuko has. She already loves him for it. Katara still arrives in the Fire Nation capital—after their warmaking tore apart her life—to curb violence and create the hope for peace. But her relationship to the Fire Nation has already changed through loving Zuko and playing a key part in his examinations of his not-all-bad family legacy. She's already swimming in all that nuance and potential. She has also begun to determine that she will shape her destiny by what she and Zuko do together. How this will work in a way that affirms Katara’s identity remains one of the central concerns of the upcoming (final?) leg of this story, so I won’t get too far into the weeds of it here.

But it means that when it comes to Katara in the final Agni Kai, my challenge wasn’t just: how could this canon divergence maintain the power of the Agni Kai for Katara’s growth? It was:

How could this canon divergence maintain the power of the Agni Kai for Katara’s growth—while setting her up for the world-changing future I'm writing for her?

So, these were my quandaries. And for me, the answers came in the form of canon tweaks I made in both the set-up and unfolding of the Agni Kai, in conversations and actions, and most notably in a moment when Katara—with all her ingenuity and resourcefulness—calls upon a different tool from her arsenal. She defeats Azula with a move that Zuko showed her, one that reflects back one of the greatest feats firebenders can achieve with the power and forms of her people. The impact of waterbenders on Iroh—and Iroh on Zuko—comes full circle through Katara, and it's peace-brinigng.

And now? Now we get to see how this sets the stage for what Katara and Zuko will do in the future, and what they can do together.

Anyway, like I said, I'm not sure this sort of authorial insight is something people are interested in, but writing some of this analysis out has helped me work through what's coming next. And now that I have arrived here on tumblr dot com with my brain rot stinking fresh, I wanted to offer it up for anyone who may be interested. I remain so extremely grateful that people have read and engaged with IAYF through thousands of words and long hiatuses. So, again, THANK YOU! I love this community and am happy to be floating around here.

#zutara #i asked you first #fic meta #final agni kai #zutara fanfiction

[transboysokka]

First of all, I'm soooo excited for that finished Zukki drawing. I am feral over it!! Also, could you maybe give a summary of each of your wips? I'm curious about all of them!

Thank you so much!!

Sure, I'd love to give some summaries! Then maybe y'all can PLEASE tell me what u are most interested in reading to help me figure out what I should prioritize?

The current priority is the one going by "Zuko Sees Sokka Fucked Up" lol bc @witchering10123 wrote the most beautifully painful Whumptober series about Hakoda and Sokka just Going Through It and I wanted to write the last two entries from Zuko's perspective when Sokka gets found because I think that would be so good and I love pain and suffering!!

Let's see... Modern Taiwan AU is the one I'm most excited about! This will be a long one and I've never written a modern AU before but basically it's based on SKAM (particularly season 3 of Druck) so it's like a cute trans love story BUT it is also going to have a LOT to do with Taiwan's ghost month and is going to be kind of inspired my Marry My Dead Body hehehehehe

Toxic Jetko I just posted about but basically it's my take on if Zuko and Jet had tried to make things work but it really just wouldn't have. It IS based kind of note for note on a real relationship I've had in the past because the dynamic was way too Jetko and I was like wow wouldn't that be a great fanfic actually

(how terrible it is) to love something death can(‘t) touch is a FUCKING. VAMPIRE AU!!! and it's so so so far from being ready but it's uhhhhh basically like if IWTV was about Zukka and Izumi. So there is some Divorced Zukka in there and also references to asshole Zhao in flashbacks... It's going to be angsty and exciting, but probably also pretty long

i will not be great, but I’m grateful to get through is a very niche sequel to if i fade away (the awful things we do to make the head go quiet) because that is a Dead Dove fic with a cliffhanger ending and I'm excited for the healing that we will see in the sequel but it does deal with heavy shit so I haven't been super quick at writing it. It does fix the Big Problem we saw in the first one though.

ZAtD Katara Arc - So when I wrote Zuko Amongst the Dragons I rushed it a bit too much and I love the universe that has been created for it so I want to go back and revisit some stuff. I skipped over the Puppetmaster and the Southern Raiders episodes in the plot and I thought it would be cool to write something with that like a deleted scene where Dragon Zuko is with Katara dealing with these terrible things

ZAtD Izumi Epilogue - I couldn't fit this into the main story BUT I want to write like a 5-10 years later snapshot of Zukka so happy with Druk and Izumi and kind of revisit how Zuko is dealing with his humanness, and is he the Fire Lord or nah?

ZAtD Divorce Epilogue - This would be way later but I'm obsessed with the idea of Divorced Zukka BUT with their psychic connection from their Dragon Bond and like what would happen any time they get into a room together hehe

ZAtD Extended Torture Scene - This is just because I had so many ideas for when Azula interrogates Sokka at the Boiling Rock that I left out of the original fic bc it kind of disrupted the tone but I DO like whump and angst so I WOULD like to finish what I had kind of wanted for that scene muahahaha

So yeah anyway, any opinions on what I should try to finish and publish first???

#quesTian #Anonymous #writing #wips

[northerngoshawk]

3, 16, 21 for fanfic end of year!

thanks for the ask, choco!

3. favorite line/scene you wrote this year

pfffffffffff choco why would you do this to me

there’s actually many many many fav lines & scenes i wrote this year - it’d be impossible to choose just one. but for this ask, i shall choose a section that’s from one of my more recent works.

Silence fills the space between them once more. Hakoda looks over to see Aang’s eyes are unfocused. His fingers are clenched around the necklace once more, and Hakoda can’t help but wonder if he hangs on because he’s afraid to let go.

(he knows he had been when he kept Kya’s necklace with him for weeks afterwards)

these two lines are from my Hakoda Adopts Aang fic these sleepless nights we spend (waiting to come home). i actually really enjoyed writing these two lines because it parallels the reasons for why Aang and Hakoda, respectively, can’t sleep at night. it really shows the love that Aang holds on to his people, how he holds onto them because he doesn’t want to lose them by letting go (something something The Guru something something letting go of his love for Katara, whose love is reborn from his love of the Air Nomads etc. etc.). i think these few lines really go into the depth of Aang’s grief and shows how much they mean to him.

but what i really love about this is that it also shows Hakoda’s grief for the people he’s lost as well, the most notable one being Kya, his wife. i shall admit that i used this as an opportunity to invent a new hc about Hakoda: that right after the Southern Raiders attack, he kept Kya’s necklace with him for a few weeks before giving it to Katara and heading off to fight in the war. by showing the two parallels between Kya’s necklace with Hakoda and the Air Nomad necklace with Aang, i wanted to show the parallel between Hakoda’s and Aang’s grief, which is the reason they can’t sleep and serves as the basis for why Hakoda eventually chose to adopt Aang as his own son.

16. fic(s) you completed this year

*exhales* a lot. there’s a lot. but here goes nothing...

i lost it all again (can you help me find it once more?), the second fic in my Katara-centric series that deals with cultural appropriation

tell me (every moment was worth it to be alive), in which Aang writes a letter to Gyatso

life is a burden (and the choice to bear it), in which Aang contemplates life

gods don't bleed (except you do), in which Katara learns the Avatar is not a god, but human

where we're meant to be, a hurt/comfort Kataang fic in which Aang and Katara escape imprisonment

leaves let go (to fall from the vine), in which Iroh sees Lu Ten one last time

a war to win (at all cost), just a Kataangsty oneshot with no real direction

never letting go, an angst-to-fluff oneshot about Katara saving Aang

protecting you, prequel to “where we’re meant to be” feat. Aang whump

grazing among the stars, just a fluffy little drabble snapshot of Kataang life

everything, a drabble that looks at Aang’s grief in 600-some words

going back, moving forward, a oneshot that looks at the dichotomy between Aang’s relationship with the Air Nomads vs the Gaang

dreamless dreams, a platonic Zukaang oneshot in which Zuko is plagued by nightmares of the Air Nomad Genocide and Aang helps him heal and move on

these sleepless nights we spend (waiting to come home), my Hakoda Adopts Aang fic in which both Aang and Hakoda contemplate on what they’ve lost and learn how to live together

honestly, the only fic i’ve started but not completed this year was see the sky and sea (and remember me), but i am most definitely planning on completing it next year 😌

21. most memorable comment/review

great question! honestly this could be either good or bad, so imma do both!

one... interesting comment i got was on my very first Aang-centric fic the avatar's fear, and it was just someone ranting on and on about Aang’s development in B3. which. yeah. it was memorable because it took me so off guard when i opened my email and saw it lololol.

now, a good memorable comment is one i will never ever forget, and that was on my Katara-centric fic teach me how to live my life (because I can't remember how). in the comment, a poc said that they felt so seen and heard, reading this fic, and it was enough for them to keep trying to find their culture again. it really touched me because it was the fact that my stories have that kind of power, to reach into strangers’ souls and touch them and help them find themselves again. i never would’ve thought my stories had that reach, much less power, to find someone i’ve never talked to before and give them that. it’s really both humbling and empowering to think about.

but as a bonus shoutout to you, choco, your comments on my niche fic see the sky and sea (and remember me) have empowered me so much 🥺 every chapter i love to hear your thoughts, and every chapter, you never fail to make me so 🥺🥺🥺 it’s honestly because of you that i’m even motivated to finish this fic. so from the bottom of my heart: thank you 💖

FANFIC END OF THE YEAR ASKS  

#northern answers #chocomd #ask game answer

[ekwolfwriter-blog]

Sokka and Katara Sibling Talk during the Southern Raiders

So, this is more of a sudden idea that I got from reading a few analysis's on the Southern Raiders Episode. A lot of them have interesting interpretation regarding how the episode supported Katara, Zuko, and even to an extent opened the chance for Aang to grow (or not grow from some interpretations, don’t come for me. Lol) But there was a post that unfortunately for this episode, Sokka’s feelings on the matter of getting revenge/justice on their mother’s killer got significantly downplayed. Either intentional or not, that is not my place to say since I am not for that kind of discourse.

However, while reading, I suddenly came up with a scene that I think/ wish could have helped with the episode and truly show how both parties were affected and even growth for Sokka. Check it out:

Katara huffed off from Appa and it is later in the afternoon as she looked to be stowing some things away into a bag; planning to go on this trip alone. Suddenly she heard someone coming from behind her and she suddenly hides the bag. She is shocked to see it is a sullen but concerned Sokka as he looked her.

“Hey, can we talk for a second?” He asks

“If this is about making me not go and get my chance to get at someone that killed our mother, there is nothing you can say to stop me!” She snapped as she kept packing, back turned to him.

“I know, that is not what I wanted to talk about. Well it is but - “

“No Sokka, I am not going to listen to you about this! I know that you are just going to tell me the same thing that Aang is trying to tell me! That I need to forgive him and let it be!”

“No, Katara, that is not -”

“Or that I need to just think that losing mom is the same as Appa?! Hah! So we were inconvenienced for a while. Like that equates to losing a life!”

“Yeah, that was not really the best comparison, but Katara will you listen -”

“No Sokka,” she snapped her head toward him! “All I do is listen but not be heard! I am tired of feeling like I have to hold back my anger and my sadness because that is what I have always done! Not this time! You can’t make me stay silent about this anymore! So you can just shut -”

“You should go!” Sokka blurted out over her rambling. This stuns Katara as she lost her train of thought and tried to registered her brother’s words.

“I what?”

“You should go after the guy. I will admit that I don’t really have the same need to go after him, but I get it now that this is might be what you might need.”

“What gave you that idea?” She scoffed a little, not sure if she could accept that her brother came to this conclusion on his own.

“Well,” Sokka sat down by the rock near them and looked away. “It hurt a little when you said that I did not love mom the way you did. And I wondered about if it was something back then that I did that made a difference in how you loved her more than me. Then Suki and Toph came around and I asked about if what I did might have caused a difference and they brought something to my mind.”

“Suki brought up that is was not something while Mom was alive that seemed to have changed but what happened after. She saw the same with a fellow Kyoshi warrior that went from being a happy go lucky girl to something like a mother once her own mother died. Like we grieved but soon after, you had taken on doing things around the house when Dad or I were gone. And you had to do it on your own for so long. And Toph reminded me that I had mentioned... forget it.”

“What?” Katara asked as she sat beside him, urging him on.

“Well...” he looked at her then away again. “This is pretty sad to say, but we talked at one point. And Toph reminded me that, somehow, along the way, I forgot what Mom looked like. And all I could remember was you. And it kinda made a bit more sense. Not like I love you like a mom, but that you have a lot of motherly instincts and what not!”

Katara pretended to looked shocked as she did not want to let on that she heard him before. But part of it did feel genuine to see that he even felt comfortable to bring it up. Especially since they haven’t talked about they mother like this in a while.

“And, I have to admit, I guess I felt something like that when Dad left the first time. But I see now that you had to be strong for a longer time. That you had to be the older sister to everyone even though you shouldn’t have had to. And because of that, I’m sorry that I didn’t see that before.” He had such sincerity in his eyes that it caused Katara to tear up a little.

Katara looked at him and gave him a big hug. She hid her face in his chest as he held her back. She cried a little but then nodded. “That means a lot to hear that, Sokka.”

“I know.”

She pulled away to then look at her with a serious look in her eyes. “But this does not change my mind to get this guy.”

Sokka nodded. “I know that too.”

“So you are serious about not stopping me at any point?”

“To be honest, like I said, I realized that I might not have been as affected as I thought I was. I still grieve and miss the idea of Mom. But I see this time, this should be your chance to grieve and heal. And if getting this guy will help, I am not going to stop you. Besides, it seems like even if I said anything, you are determined. Stubborn to the end.” He teased a little and they both chuckled a little.

Katara signed a sudden feeling of relief and nodded but could see that there was more on Sokka’s mind that he wanted to say. “Is there something else that you want to say?” She asked.

Sokka looked at her a bit more before glancing down. “Just... just be careful. I don’t want to lose someone else that is dear to me.”

“Sokka, I am a powerful waterbender. I can handle myself.”

“It’s not the physical strength I am worried about,” he said as Sokka looked back again and it was like looking at her father. Loving, but concern and fear buried in his eyes. Katara could not understand what he meant before he sighed and got up.

“Well, so long as you don’t go alone, I am will feel better about that. I won’t stop you. And make sure you come back safe!” He was quick to talk as he began to walk away.

Katara grabbed his arm and then looked up at him. “I promise that I will be careful.” She was holding the blue stone of their mother’s necklace as a promise to Sokka that she would be okay. With this little assurance, Sokka gave a half smile and walked away, hoping his words got to her. Katara sat there a little more as she thought about Sokka’s words and concern.

Unaware of a certain fire bender that was listening in and watching her carefully of her next move.

And Scene! I hope that you all like this! Looking back now, we really did miss a chance to have the siblings talk about the loss of their mother - even if brief, it could lay the foundation of them opening up more. Still, I hope to make more scenes to explore the more what might have been.

#atla sokka #siblings #katara #southern raiders #closure #katara deserved justice #sokka being a good big brother #listening

[zuko-always-lies]

“Yeah, you kinda burned down my village.”

“Oh...sorry about that. Nice to see you again.”

Going back to that scene in the Boiling Rock where Zuko and Suki meet (again), I see that line by him as telling of either a) how terribly ‘redeemed’ Zuko is written, b) how questionable his redemption arc is as a whole, or c) that he simply doesn’t grasp the moral gravity of his actions and how seriously he has hurt others in the past (and is capable of hurting them in the future).

The ‘apology’ is extremely insincere, almost like he thinks it’s some awkward encounter he’d rather just forget. Did he spill milk on her tablecloth? Accidentally leave her icebox open? Forget to water her plants?

No, he literally burned down her village.

And in case Zuko forgot, fire hurts people. Sometimes, when you—let’s say—set countless buildings on fire, it kills people.

What if we swapped Zuko and Suki in this situation? How would the fandom look at Suki’s apology? They’d rip her to shreds, and rightly so. It’s genuinely traumatic watching your home burn down, much less the homes of practically everyone in your community. The fandom would just add it to the list of reasons to woobify for Zuko and demonize Suki (and this would be warranted, frankly).

But Zuko doesn’t profess any real regret for causing all that harm to Suki and her community, and he certainly doesn’t ask for forgiveness or make promises of restitution—which are signs of true remorse. Also, if you go back and watch The Warriors of Kyoshi episode, you’ll see that Zuko uses his komodo-rhino’s tail to knock Suki to the ground, then he proceeds to launch a fire blast at her while she’s vulnerable (blocked in the nick of time by Sokka). There’s another apology in order there, too.

“Oh...sorry for trying to incinerate you.”

And I think you’re right when you said before that this is connected to an unwillingness (laziness, even?) by the writers in not giving Suki more depth and development. There’s no way she would jump on the ‘uwu Zuko’ train in the comics if they wrote her like a normal person.

I don't have much to add to what you say here. It's all accurate. It's interesting that "The Southern Raiders" is the very next episode, and involves Zuko condemning a man to death for doing more or less the very exact thing Zuko did in "The Warriors of Kyoshi."

This fandom is obsessed with having Suki hating Azula for fighting her and her warriors and capturing them and (by all appearances) treating them far better than they would have treated Azula if the circumstances had been reversed, even though it makes zero sense for Suki to be cool with Ty Lee and Mai while hating Azula with all her soul.

Meanwhile, Zuko burned down Suki's village and likely put her family in danger, but I've never almost never seen a fic where she holds any sort of grudge against him for that. And canon is even worse here.

#Zuko #Azula #Suki #Mai #Ty Lee #Zuko isn't held accountable for his actions #And hardly ever suffers consequences for them

[distinguishedhoundflapauthor]

Avatar fandom really does not care about Katara.

While I understand the rightful concern with Aang and Katara being a couple considering the age differences, immaturity level of Aang, and the inconsideration of her feelings in many different factors. But the problem with  The problem with Zutara is that many people forget Katara is a 14 year old girl who lost her mother to the Fire Nation, her people and culture were on the brink of extinction thanks to Fire Nation raids on their in the past thanks to Zuko’s Grandfather and her mother was killed via  the Southern Raiders. While their fight against the Fire Nation was admirable the result was still the same: they lost. Katara became a adult fiqure at an earlier age than she should have because her mother was killed in the raid and she had to take up maternal duties when she was old enough. While I am totally against Aang and Katara becoming a couple I have many doubts about Katara and Zuko. My first concern is the famous prison scene in the Ba Sing Sa prison, while this is an interesting and cute scene I should remind everyone before this Katara and Zuko never  had any romantic scenes they were enemies! While Zutara on the surface is alot better there is a dark underneath while Zuko may have redeemed himself in the eyes of Team Avatar his country on the other hand has not. The Fire Nation did an extreme amount of damage to the Water Tribe that many people want to brush over because they either project themselves on Katara and imagine themselves as Zuko’s wife and Queen. interesting fact that white feminist need to know that sex and the power of friendship will not clean up what happened in the Northern Water tribe!!! Golden eyed dark skin half fire nation babies will not bring back Princess Yue who sacrificed herself so the Moon Spirit could live due General Zhao killing it for his desire for conquest!!! Katara marrying Zuko after the war does not help her country in the slightest because how is she going to help rebuild the tribe as Zuko’s wife and how doesthis heal the would the Fire Nation plus Katsura is a 14-15 year old girl who barely had a childhood,was not raised to be a Princess, and the only reason you bitches want her with Zuko is so she can coddle your black hair edgy fire bending dreamboat without having any agency of her own. You are viewing this fictional relationship through the lenses of white supremacy because that’s in some cases is how Avatar was written because notice how the brown skin native water benders are sexist and won’t let women fight while the pale skin Fire benders have more open minded attitude with women so you feel you a with a pale skin character that has an imperialist background Katara has the ability to be herself instead of with her own people. The disturbing fanfics where she is Fire Lady but coddles him and is the aggressive of the two…Yeah I see it…🧐

The Fire Nation raided the Southern Tribe of Waterbenders and placed said water benders within a prison that made being a liquid related situation impossible and possibly tortured them. Kya was Murdered on the spot and her body was left for her children and husband to see and grieve over .Bato and the other men of the Southern Tribe left behind their family and village in a massively vulnerable position and what will her father say when he finds out Zuko threatened to burn down the village in pursuit of Aang and held his mother hostage… Yeah that be interesting first conservation for a in laws on how they met. Before you say the moment when they went to avenge Kya Zuko did that to get in Kataras good grace to show he had changed not the Fire Nation as a whole. Remember he betrayed them in Ba Sing Se and before you bring up taking a bolt for her he probably would have done that for anyone he was friends with including Aang… The only thing these white bitches are paying attention to is the fact that Zuko is rich and the Crown Prince so they will be living the life of luxury and that Katara is a healer so she can take care of him like she is a care taker similar to Aang. They are not thinking about the fact Katara has not seen her culture during its glory days and could use her skills to help rebuild her home, or seen her family and childhood friends in years, or that her she needs to rebuild her relationship with her father. No let’s focus on vacations to the South Pole and what dress will Katara where for her wedding at 16 years old and and white fandom’s personal favorite: How ‘wild’ her wedding night will be🤯😰😡😡…

Then how the hell is Zuko Katara’ emotional and intellectual equal when in the series did they plan or strategize together…When…Cause the fight before Azusa does not count when Zuko probably asked her at the last minute…? In the emotional content when the hell did they( outside her hugging him saying she forgave him for betraying her and crying in relief that he was alive from being shot in the chest with a bolt of Lightning and the Ember island prayer play when Katara told him that Aang kissed her when was there an emotional moment between the two… When? All I see is when these two are paired together is caretaker to a prince vs the avatar who outside of being a spiritual leader doesn’t have much influence or wealth. Zuko did the bare minimum in basic human kindness and with treating her with respect and they should be a couple because of the “bare minimum.”

What is so wrong with Katara going home reconnecting with her family and friends that she has not seen in years. What is so wrong with her and Sokka going home to rebuild their home and bring it back to it’s glory days before Sozin’s raid? What is so wrong with her falling in love with someone in her culture and staying home with people who love her why does she have to marry within her late teens and move away to a far away land full of strangers who would look down on her cause of her ancestry and class status? Why does she go from spiritual leader caretaker to royal caretaker. Why does she need to live in luxury catered to by servants when for all her life she taught to be independent and self sufficient?Why does Katara need to aid the Fire Nation and the Earth Kingdom when she has an entire tribe in the South that loves her and could use her skills to rebuild their homes and revive their culture. Plus she could bring in a new era of Southern style water bending at home…

.

#katara defense squad #katara deserved better #zutara critical #atla #Katara #anti kataang #white feminism

[sokkastyles]

I recently saw a take that bothered me, and I was curious at your thoughts (if you haven't commented on it prior).

The post was something like:Zuko kneeled three times in forgiveness and Ozai burned him, Katara threw water at him, but only Iroh showed unconditional love. OBVIOUSLY Ozai was completely in the wrong. But the contrast between Iroh and Katara/the gAang feels disingenuous. Your thoughts?

Yeah, I've seen this a lot, and it was one of the first things I saw from supposedly neutral blogs when I started getting into the fandom and I was incredibly confused by it until I realized these blogs were all anti Zutara, because it's just such a reductive interpretation.

I've touched on this before, but the framing in these situations is more about ZUKO and his understanding of forgiveness and atonement than they are about the relationships to the characters, and obviously these relationships are not all the same.

Zuko kneeling in front of his father was a terrified child who had been conditioned by his abuser to believe he was in the wrong. I've said this before, too, but Ozai demanding that Zuko fight is really just another way for Ozai to reinforce his control over Zuko. There is no way Zuko CAN fight back in that situation, psychologically, and Ozai both expects this, because this is how he has conditioned Zuko to be, and punishes Zuko for doing the only thing he could in that situation. Because of this cognitive dissonance, Zuko believes that he was in the wrong, and spends three years trying to atone for something that was actually done to him.

Zuko on his knees before Iroh and before the gaang are different both because they are different steps in Zuko's journey and because his relationship to these people is different. When Zuko tries to join the gaang the first time, he is genuinely repentant, and he's stopped trying to get forgiveness from the father who was never going to give it, but he has to butt heads with the idea that just because he genuinely is doing the right thing now doesn't mean the people he's wronged will forgive him. Zuko's first time asking for forgiveness from the gaang is him confronting the idea that forgiveness is HARD. And when it doesn't work, when they reject him, he reverts to what he's been conditioned to do, he falls to his knees and offers himself as a sacrifice. Which is not what these people want from him at all, because they are not Ozai.

Katara throws water at him but comparing her to Ozai in that situation is really odd and disingenuous. Katara has justified grievance against Zuko. He hurt her and the others and she feels personally betrayed by him because she did trust him before. She wanted to hurt him back to a degree, but what she doesn't want is someone to torture. If any of the gaang were like Ozai they would have accepted Zuko's offer of himself as a prisoner and would have used it as an excuse to hurt him. Moreover, as much as Katara did want to hurt Zuko like he hurt her, what she really wanted was trust, the kind of equal footing that she thought she had with him in the caves. Katara, specifically, is frequently framed this way with Zuko not because she is in any way like Ozai, but because she demands things from Zuko that nobody has ever asked of him before. She wants him to be an ally and an equal. Not only does she hold him accountable for his actions, but she tells him that he can get forgiveness and that he doesn't have to make himself small and self-flagellate to do it. She brings him up.

That's why she attacked him when he tried to grovel before the gaang on his knees. The times when he is kneeling before her and genuinely repentant, and not just engaging in self-flagellation conditioned in him by his abuser, that's when she accepts him. I've talked about a lot of those scenes already, like Zuko looking up at her in the caves and at the beginning of "The Southern Raiders," but another interesting scene is right before he asks forgiveness of Iroh. Zuko is again looking up at Katara, but this time she sits down and looks him in the eye at his level. She understands his fears but tells him that if he's genuinely sorry, he will be forgiven.

This is a powerful moment because of Zuko's arc of breaking her trust and being forgiven by Katara, but it's also powerful because of the framing. Instead of Katara helping to bring Zuko back up, or turning him away when he's kneeling before her, she lowers herself so she can meet him on his level, something she would not have been able to do if there wasn't trust between them. She also is reinforcing to Zuko that forgiveness requires the agency of the person seeking forgiveness as well as the person giving it. A powerless person groveling isn't forgiveness. A powerful person taking advantage of the person in front of them isn't forgiveness. Katara, the girl he had to get forgiveness from, sitting down with him is a meaningful way to show that.

There's also the obvious difference between Iroh and Katara. Iroh and Zuko have a parent-child relationship so Zuko kneeling in front of Iroh is out of respect (without the groveling/learned victimization of his scene with Ozai) and Iroh bestows the unconditional love and forgiveness that a parent is supposed to have for a child. Katara and the rest of the gaang do not have parental obligations towards Zuko, they aren't even friends when he first tries to join them, and his relationship with them was entirely antagonistic in the past and even with Katara, they only had a brief and entirely unspoken allyship before. They were still trying to work out where they stood with each other. But once Katara and Zuko do have a relationship, Katara assures him that Iroh will forgive him because of the existing love between them, and because that's what a parent does.

#zuko #katara #zutara #iroh #atla meta #ozai

[heliianth]

something that frustrates me with katara is it feels like her character wasn’t super focused on when zuko first joined the gaang so all we got was her anger until the southern raiders. like yes her anger here makes absolute sense because of everything she’s been through and she’s getting more and more isolated because everyone else is warming up to zuko, but i feel like all we really get to see is those moments of her making icy comments and all that. i totally get that the show doesn’t have as much time to elaborate on that, but i imagine that’s also part of why a lot of people hate so much on katara. at this point, zuko’s actively working to be better while katara ends up a little stuck and indulges her anger for a bit. and that’s fair! she’s 14! everything sorta sucks! i was an absolute nightmare at 14!

it’s interesting when fanfictions expand on her struggling with this dilemma (because yeah… aang Does need to learn firebending but zuko very much hurt katara and the others) and then working towards a point where she can start healing. that part of the show always felt a little rushed to me which sucks bc it’s my favorite (i just really like seeing them get to a point where they’re all friends y’know)

but overall yes it’s absolutely because people tend to hate 14 year old girls no matter what they do which is just… yikes. sorry for the ramble! my roommate and i just finished rewatching atla yesterday so uwu

no ramble at me ive been literally obsessed w this show for the past few weeks i love this shit nomnomnomnomnom

anyways i can understand this. i think her anger n the way its portrayed is sufficient for Me because i dont really need any further elaboration imo. katara felt used and betrayed by zuko and the direct result of that was aang dying, i dont think she personally needs to struggle with that any more than depicted. she says all this in a lot of scenes and she trusts aang's decision to accept him, but not zuko himself, i think its pretty clear. i actually think the southern raiders addresses it perfectly tho despite the breakneck pace of the last half of s3—i think at that point in the series a lot of katara's anger (post-firebending masters and boiling rock), not just lingering distrust, is focused on the fact that zuko is fire nation. she struggles separating him, the individual, from his colonizing imperialist country, the collective. part of her healing is learning the value of forgiveness... yon ra (is that his name??) is just a pathetic loser and shes better than him and she knows it, so she's ready to forgive zuko as a person after she sees that for herself. she utilizes that kindness and strength on someone who she can see deserves it now. so i dont super see the pace as a reason to Hate-Hate katara to the level some of the fandom do, but i can understand why people would think its rushed considering the amount of time other arcs are given.

people who hate katara n think shes annoying for talking about her mom are losers tho they can fuck off smile

#atla

[imreallyhereforkataang]

hello, i don’t know who to ask about this but i’m new to the fandom and saw that you really like kataang. what��s your interpretation of katara’s glance down after the kiss before the invasion? i’m not a fan of the surprise kiss trope but even with that said, i had thought she liked him back. it didn’t seem like she did at that point or through the rest of book 3, and then next thing we knew they were endgame in the finale. sorry for being a bother, i’m just a little confused (like katara i guess haha)

Hi, Anon! Welcome to the fandom! Hopefully it treats you nicely lol.

Ah yeah. I've seen this talked about a lot over the years. And, y'know, I get it. It can seem a little out-of-place at first since, as you noted, Katara shows signs of being romantically interested in Aang beforehand, and now that they've had their second kiss, she doesn't look too happy about it. As someone who ships them, I initially would have loved to see them happy in that moment, to take another minute to themselves just to share grins and maybe laugh a bit because they've taken that step, put their feelings out into the open, and they're both glad for it. To a shipper, or to someone who's rooting for our protagonist to express his feelings, this does feel like a celebratory moment. I'm taken out of the context of the scene for a second because the pretty music has shot in and I'm still surprised at Aang's move and I'm happy to see an actual, mutual (as Katara leans in) kiss between them.  

Then again, this situation is a lot realer for them than it is for me. I'm the viewer, I can hear The Cave of Two Lovers' theme, I can see this being painted in a positive light because we see these two come together for a brief moment, and the narrative is, in a sense, praising that. In-universe, though, it's a bit more complicated, and Katara looking sad really isn't so out-of-place.

Remember where they are and what they're doing, what they were saying moments before and what they're about to risk. For them, this is the quiet before the storm, their possibly final goodbye. Aang is about to fly off and face his destiny, confront what he's been training for over most of the year, "since the day we met" as Katara puts it, and determine the fate of the world based on whether he wins or loses. Whether he comes back or not. And he puts the reality of the situation out there. "What if...what if I don't come back?" It's the threat of that possibility that spurs him to kiss Katara. And she figures as much.

Despite the music suggesting otherwise, this isn't a happy scene (and perhaps that's why we don't get the full score until the finale, because this kiss is only foreshadowing what could be). It's tense, and bittersweet, and pretty tragic imo. Aang knows he could die. He says so. And then he kisses her. And I feel like Katara breaking out into a great big smile in that moment, even though she does have feelings for him, would just seem off. Idk, personally I'm not sure how you (impersonal) can celebrate finally kissing the person you like when you remember that what drove them to make their move just now is the very real possibility they might never see you again. That they're about to leave and face that risk, and there's nothing for you to do about it. Seems like an upsetting situation to be in. 

There's also the fact that I'm skeptical Katara didn't already know Aang had feelings for her. I'm not saying it was always on her mind or that she paid much attention to it, she may have been putting all that stuff on the back burner or pretending it wasn't there as much as it was (including her own feelings) to focus on more important things, but I think she at least knew it subconsciously. I mean, Aang's not very subtle sometimes lol, and they've shared plenty of moments. So when Aang kisses her and Katara jerks back and her eyes widen in surprise, it's not because she didn't expect Aang to have these feelings (at least imo), but because she was in the middle of talking and is taken aback that Aang broke the unspoken barrier between them. 

They're touchy feely throughout the show. Katara's kissed him on the cheek plenty of times, they've even kissed on the lips before now. They have sparks, and they've been dancing around them quite a lot, from the Book 3 premiere at the latest. But they haven't gone that extra step to put it out there too far, where there's no mistaking the meaning behind these gestures. I think, on Katara's end, she would have been okay with putting off making any official moves for a while, given the war and several other possible factors preventing her from feeling able to spend too much conscious thought and emotion on it, and so she's surprised that Aang's kissed her because they'd been keeping their more romantic intentions implicit up until then. She won't be realizing afterwards or celebrating in her head that "omg, the guy I('ve sorta been avoiding my feelings for but actually do) like likes me back," because she’s known this, but it’s been left unsaid and kept slightly quiet in Katara's musings. Now, it's out there in the open, they're past the safe zone, there's little room for ignoring the feelings anymore, and it sucks so much that they had to make their way there now. It's such tragic timing, a kiss that doesn't stem from a smiles and rainbows conversation where they sit down to talk about their feelings and where they want to go from there, but a kiss done out of desperation, out of the possibility that Aang doesn't come back. Through that lens, it's almost like they kissed "too early," especially for what happens next.

See, my impression is that Aang's kiss was meant for two possible scenarios -- Aang loses and thus doesn't come back, which means there's obviously no future for him and Katara. Alternatively, the day is won, the war is over, he comes back and the world is finally at peace; they can stop running, they can celebrate and breathe and talk about where they're going from here in an environment more appropriate for that. And since Katara kissed him back, it seems like she affirmed that there's something there for them, given he returns. But instead, something happens that I don't think they anticipated. Aang does come back, but he didn't win. So, in terms of Katara and Aang, they're now at a bit of an impasse, a situation that their kiss wasn't intended for, and it leads to this semi-awkward limbo because Aang's still alive but ideally that kiss between them wouldn't have happened yet. 

Everyone needs to regroup, start it all over again, keep grinding and come up with a new plan. There's no time to get sidetracked, now more than ever. And, to me, that's reflective of what happens to Katara after Aang kisses her and takes off from the sub.

Katara's reaction is to dwell on the kiss. She wants to, but Sokka reminds her that there's no time to. So Katara snaps herself out of it, and she moves on. And then they survive the Day of Black Sun, but the fight isn't over for them yet.

You asked about the DoBS kiss, so I'm not gonna waste your time hyper-analyzing Ember Island Players because there is a lot that's been offered and discussed about that episode. But if you were to simplify the reason for Katara's stance there, it's pretty much just holding up what was established in DoBS.

At the Invasion, while caught up in surprise because she had an expectation that they wouldn't broach the subject this way, if at all, for a while, Katara kissed Aang back, and she kissed him back because she wanted to. But since then, she's had more time to think, and she won't be so caught off guard next time. Aang expresses during EIP that he wants to try a relationship with Katara sooner rather than later, and that he'd thought she felt the same since she kissed him back (as well as the moments they shared before), but Katara is adamant now about this not being the right time. She fully intends to keep her head in the game, like Sokka reminded her at the Invasion. That's essentially what she thinks Aang needs to remember now, too (and yeah, like I said, there are other ideas that can be brought in that contribute to the articulation, but this is the primary point being conveyed here).

Whatever the reason, her response causes Aang to reevaluate his conclusion about where they stand. Even though the war isn't over, he thought that, because he survived and Katara accepted his kiss before, maybe they could try anyways. But Katara still feels stuck in limbo, and she makes that clear. It's also significant to note that Katara doesn't make Aang any promises about being together after the war, which imo was a good move on the writers' part (I have a wip about this but idk when that'll be done lol). Anyways, Aang backs off, following her lead and putting romance aside.

I do want to talk about the second half of Book 3 as a whole, though, not just EIP. I've seen people criticize this portion of the story in terms of Kataang, but I think that, besides the substance of these episodes, it's important to keep in mind that the last 10 episodes of the series (The Western Air Temple and on) originally aired 7.5 months after Day of Black Sun. Not only that, but these episodes all aired within the same week. It was a big, hyped-up event on Nickelodeon dubbed "Countdown to the Comet," and it took place over the course of 6 days. That sort of schedule for finishing a show is...unusual. But it was also intentional here. 

Even though the episodes don't have to be watched that way, the final 10 episodes are, in a way, all together the final big bang of the series. They're majorly dedicated to the most critical elements of the main story, including Zuko finally, after 2.5 seasons, joining the gaang and him finding his place in it. I'd say that The Western Air Temple to The Southern Raiders are most generally about that, about Zuko being accepted and making amends especially to the original three members of the gaang (who he's hurt much more than Toph). The viewer is gratified by watching Zuko do what we all hoped for him, forming relationships with Aang, Sokka, and Katara after all this time, merging our most important A and B plots. The other major things the last 10 episodes are for are the final battle, of course, because that's going to be our conclusion to this journey, and Aang's preparation for it.   

So yes, onscreen interactions between Aang and Katara are fewer, but by no means does that make the rest of Book 3 an undoing of what they have. All their setup has been established, we're good on that, and we're going to leave that relatively be for now while we delve into the action until we're ready to revisit. And besides, imo, they still have extremely critical moments in the last 10 episodes that I am deeply, deeply happy exist. They're more subtle and less explicitly romantic -- a lot of them take place when they're not even around each other, but they speak volumes to me about how Aang and Katara have influenced each other, and how important the other is to them.

These 10 episodes are like a refocus of our largest priorities, and Kataang coming together is put on hold (again, I think that benefits the main story) for the end. But even though we watch less scenes where they're together, with more scenes of Zuko joining and hanging out with each of them individually in place, there's hardly indication of Katara and Aang avoiding each other after their DoBS kiss, or even post-EIP. 

They're still friends first. What they're avoiding is not each other, but a new possibility for themselves, because right now they're choosing to ground their feet in what they have. Basically, around each other, they're pretending what unfolded between them never happened until, possibly, on Katara's say so, it's appropriate to resume that aspect of their relationship.

And after the war, probably into a few months of peace (based on the state of Sokka's leg), she decided it was. She felt ready, and they dove right in.

I hope that clears things up! And don't worry, you weren't a bother at all! I love talking about these two, but unfortunately I became really busy the past couple days (plus this response got deleted and I couldn't salvage it because I saved a copy of a cursed screenshot of Aang and ig it was scary enough to erase my clipboard history :3). Thanks for your patience lol!

#i hate tumblr it happened again #id in alt text #kataang #kataangtag #atla #avatar the last airbender #katara #aang #irhfk replies #oh yes and btw i have LONG been aware of the other storyboard lol #i have also listened to the official commentary for this ep #the girl is sad for him yk #and she been knew he has feelings for her #so i'd appreciate if ppl would not rb the other storyboard. seeing as it's not canon it's irrelevant to the conversation

[hello-nichya-here]

So imma break what seems to be the typical trend with these asks and not just tell you a head-cannon lol. What is your opinion on taking a good character and making them "bad-guys".

Warning - this part is long lol.

For example, I'm playing around with the idea of writing a story where Katara was kidnapped by the Southern Raiders at the age of 4 or 5. She was brought before Azulon who, upon seeing her age, decides to introduce her to Azula. His plan is basically to curb a bit of Ozai's influence on her. (For reference, Azulon is still an ass. Just not to his family and he has a respect for the power the other elements have.) So alongside that, he goes and collects everything he can on waterbending, and takes it upon himself to teach her (I'm having Azulon be the one that gave Iroh that speech about the elements being connected which he later told to Zuko. Just roll with it lol.) So Azula and Katara grow close over the years, Katara eventually not remembering her original home (when I say that, I mean emotionally. She feels no connection nor desire to go back because she was taken at a young age). As she's learning, Katara is quickly found out to be a bending prodigy, despite not having a real master. At age 8 she goes to the Royal Fire Academy for Girls with Azula, where they meet Mai and Ty Lee. While there she learns about different places water can be found, such as the water cycle and eventually the composition of the human body. (I feel like having Hama teach her is to predictable and it's counter intuitive to where I want the story to go lol.) So she begins experimenting. First with the water vapor in the air, then with the water within plants, moving on to her own blood and eventually other students. As she practices, and spends time with Azula teasing other kids, she becomes increasingly cruel. This trend continues and influences Azula as well, bringing out the worst in her (Hey she has a healthy respect for the other elements though. So Azulon didn't completely fail.) This trend continues until the girls are ten. Katara by this point isn't very outspoken. She finds the act of internally injuring someone fascinating, listening to how they scream differently depending on what's damaged. Azula is more outspoken, similar to how she is in canon only much more likely to actually do the threats she makes or even sometimes act first then give the order to someone else. At this age both girls are essentially bending masters (completely believable to me considering Katara became a master in just a couple months in canon). This is also the age when Azulon passes away.

Ursa leaves and not long after Iroh returns. That's when he does the unthinkable. He gives Katara a drug rendering her unconscious before taking her from the palace. He has her put on a boat and sent to the Southern watertribe. She hates it there, her body not adapted to the frozen wasteland of the tundra. She views Sokka as an idiot, but she does like Gran-gran. Her soft demeanor reminded her of how Azulon treated her. Unable to leave, she has no choice but to wait, choosing to hide her current bending skill. Things proceed as they did in canon until they find Aang. When Zuko arrives he does the same thing he did in canon. Aang reveals himself to be the Avatar. When he tries to turn himself over, Katara reveals herself. (I'm thinking of having her say "Hello Zuzu" in a condescending voice lol. Not 100% on how that particular scene would play out.) Zuko immediately recognizes (and fears) her. She proceeds to use her bending to throw him back on the ship before taking off with Aang, leading them away. Canon proceeds as normal, certain scenes like the waterbending scroll not happening because she's already a master bender. She focuses on learning Healing while in the NWT until the invasion. She kills Zhao when he threatens the moon spirit (her ability to bend. I wanna make this scene rather gruesome. She does it with subtle bloodbending so the others don't know it was her).

As they are escaping the earth kingdom fort, Katara has pretty much reached her limit with traveling with the group. She had hoped he would be the quickest way back into the nation, hoping Azula would be sent after him. She had every intention of ditching them at Omashu when she finally sees Azula. Katara pulls Azula out of the fight, into a secluded area where they have thier reunion (I am having them be soft with each other, and only each other.) Katara wants to join Azula but Azula instead wants her to act as a double agent. Seeing Appa flying in, Katara quickly pulls Azula in, stealing a kiss before running back and flying away.

Canon proceeds as normal clear up until the crossroads of destiny. Katara of course is happy to find Azula in the throne room. She willingly hands over the invasion plans before they spend the day together, eventually setting a trap in the Catacombs (Zuko is still going to be there). When Aang breaks in, she asks why he's with Iroh. Aang tells her about Iroh saying he saved her from the firenation before. Katara realizes what he means. She takes being on Aang's side eventually using her bloodbending during the fight to immobilize him, leading to Azula getting a clean hit with her lightning. Iroh tries to interfere as Sokka and Toph arrive. Katara goes off about her kidnaping her before preventing his blood from reaching his heart, killing him. Zuko trust to attack her in anger while Sokka and Toph grab Aang and flee. Zuko is captured and taken back to the firenation in chains.

*takes deep breath*

I went through ALL of that because my questions start at this point. I could have Ozai order Azula to kill Katara, leading to them fleeing and joining the Gaang, leading to a nicer ending. Alternatively, I could have the same thing happen and have Katara and Azula kill Ozai instead, with them systematically killing the members of the Gaang leading to fire nation victory. Or I could find some kind of middle ground, where the Gaang doesn't die but the fire nation doesn't give up the colonies as a condition of ending the war.

Which of these makes the most sense to you. Are these darker stories something you like? Should I make Katara and Azula's relationship co-dependent! On a scale of 1 to yes, how kinky should I have Katara get with bloodbending Azula lol? Overall, what are your thoughts? Hopefully this isn't way to much when it comes to an ask. I know that was a lot of set up for just a few questions but I felt the context was important. If nothing else, I hope you found that incredibly rough outline I came up with off the top of my head pretty interesting lol. I never actually wrote any of that down. I probably should at some point.

Holy shit, this was one hell of a wild ride. And yeah, you should write it at some point. Your story is interesting and from what I know about Azutara, that ship needs more content.

I really like dark, grim stories... but I live for happy endings. However, this is YOUR story. The advantage of fanfic is that it can be as self-indulgent as your heart needs it to be. Go with whichever ending you like the most.

Some sweet, sweet codependency is perfect for darker stories. Also you made me very curious with the bloodbending thing.

To sum it up: DO IT! JUST DO IT!

#asks #azutara #long post

[thinkingisadangerouspastime]

I hate to be an asshole, but I see this a lot and I'd like your take because while we have differing opinions on some things, your metas are spot on (and I binged half your stories last weekend, oops) and I know you'll be straight up with me on this. What "chemistry" between Zuko and Katara? I keep seeing that and not getting it? The chemistry when he roughed up her grandmother and threatened her village? The chemistry when he tied her to a tree and violated her boundaries? (1/3)

The chemistry when he hired a trained assassin to stalk her good friend and if collateral damage happened, oopsie? The chemistry when he stabbed her in the back after she was nice to him in the crystal catacombs? The chemistry when he demanded that she accept him? Or the chemistry when he showed he didn’t know her at all? The chemistry when both of them were grossed out being thought a couple? Or is it the chemistry when he saved her and Katara couldn’t wait to kiss another guy? (2/3)

I dislike r/eylo from Star Wars fandom. I think it sends the wrong message. But as much as I hate it, there was chemistry there from the first. Rey is attracted to him and Kylo is attracted to her. They don’t want to be, but they are and it plays out in the next two movies. There was none of that in ATLA and I can understand z/ks saying it but other people? What am I missing? Where am I not looking? I’m not even that huge on Katara/Aang but Zuko/Katara chemistry where? (3/3)

Obligatory disclaimer: this is my personal response to anon’s questions and my personal thoughts on Zvtara’s chemistry. I’m not going to put this into the main tags - much less the Zvtara tag! - because while I believe this is a genuine question, I don’t doubt there’s at least one person out there who will misconstrue it as “hate” because the A:TLA fandom is, uh, aggressive in its ship wars lol. However, if I have any Zvtara shippers following me, I encourage you to reblog this post with your own thoughts! Please refrain from sending your commentary on anon unless you’re going to be friendly about it, lol; I like to keep my blog positive and welcoming! Thank you :)

Firstly, I am EXTREMELY flattered that you enjoy my metas so much and binged half my fics!! I was grinning so gleefully as I read that part of your asks,, y’all are too sweet to me. 💛

Okay. Moving on.

So, the main question here seems to be this: What chemistry exists between Zuko and Katara in A:TLA?

Short answer? None, in my opinion.

Longer answer? For all the reasons you outline in your asks, I do not perceive any romantic chemistry between Zuko and Katara within the series run of A:TLA. Note the qualifiers: “romantic” and “within the series run.” I’ll try to break down what I mean!

“no romantic chemistry”

For one, a romantic interest with anyone in the Gaang would have undermined Zuko’s entire redemption arc, full stop. Yes, I mean anyone. For Zuko to have joined the Gaang because of romantic interest* would have been… counterproductive. Zuko joined the Gaang because he realized - to put it very simply - that the Fire Nation was wrong. He realized how he’d been indoctrinated since birth. He realized that he could help the Avatar (instead of trying to, uh, kill him lmao) by teaching him firebending. He realized he could help Aang defeat the Fire Lord and bring peace to the four nations. Zuko realized he could help end the war. He could help break the cycles of violence and abuse that had in part made his own life so miserable. For him to join the Gaang because of romantic interest? Completely takes away from all of that. A key theme of A:TLA is dismantling imperialist power, propaganda, rhetoric, etc. Zuko’s decision to fight against Fire Nation imperialism is crucial to his redemption. He could not have been redeemed without making that choice. Thus, if Zuko had joined the Gaang because of romantic interest, it would have been completely counteractive to his redemption.

(*That is, the relatively popular [? I think?] implication that Zuko and Katara’s moment in “The Crossroads of Destiny” was romantic-coded and thus Zuko should have joined the Gaang at the end of Book 2 because he had romantic interest in Katara and she in him. I genuinely am clueless how people interpret that moment as romantic - like to me it’s honestly heartbreaking! Katara offers Zuko tentative sympathy only for him to stab her in the back minutes later - so if someone would like to share some thoughts, please feel free to do so!!)

On a similar note, for Zuko to take the lightning for Katara at the end of the series because of romantic interest would also undermine his redemption arc. Please note: this does not mean Zvtara shippers cannot interpret the Agni Kai as being romantic-coded. Of course they can! That’s what fanon is for! Transformative works! But in terms of canon, Zuko did not try (and fail, rip) to redirect Azula’s lightning because he was romantically interested in Katara. (I mean, in terms of canon, Zuko and Katara were both romantically interested in other people, too, so… Moot point, lol? But I digress.)

Zuko taking the lightning is about him learning to earn forgiveness and accept unconditional love from his family (both Iroh and the Gaang). It is a selfless act, and it directly parallels Zuko’s selfish act in “The Crossroads of Destiny” to stand silently while Azula strikes Aang with lightning, thus becoming complicit in Aang’s death. The point of his “sacrifice” is that Zuko would have taken the lightning for anyone (and don’t get me wrong - the moment is doubly powerful with Katara, as she’s a primary protagonist!). Zuko did not attempt but fail to redirect the lightning because it was Katara he was protecting; he took it because it was the right thing to do. Zuko has learned to differentiate between “right and wrong” on his own. To at last put others before himself. To make his decision about romantic interest? To make Zuko’s most selfless act in the series (not to mention one of his only 100% selfless acts!) about out-of-the-blue “romantic love”? That not only lessens the impact of his decision, but it is also reductive to Zuko’s entire character and arc. There’s no romantic chemistry there.

Again, of course, fanon exists for purposes such as interpreting Zuko’s failed misdirection of the lightning to protect Katara as romantic. Go wild!! I’m talking strictly about canon.

So that pretty much summarizes why romantic interest with anyone in the Gaang would have been detrimental to Zuko’s redemption, hence why Zuko doesn’t have any canon romantic chemistry in the Gaang. It just ain’t there! It would have screwed over his arc! And again, because of all the reasons you outline, I cannot comfortably interpret any romantic chemistry between Zuko and Katara within the series run of A:TLA. Personally, romantic Zvtara would have been too sudden, too unexpected, and too… well, as I said: uncomfortable. Why would Katara have romantic interest in a guy who’d hurt her so many times? Who she’d only just forgiven? Why would Zuko have romantic interest in Katara, a girl he barely knew for most of the series? Especially when he already had feelings for a childhood friend? I, personally, just don’t get it.

But. You know what Zuko and Katara do have in canon?

A phenomenal platonic bond.

It develops very late, admittedly; Katara has only forgiven Zuko for the last five episodes of the series (5 out of 61… Katara was only on good terms with Zuko for 8% of the series, lmao). But Zuko and Katara are very, very similar personality-wise, so it follows that (eventually) they’d be great friends! Yeah, Zuko acts like an entitled dick for a good portion of “The Southern Raiders” lmao, but he ultimately respects Katara’s decision to spare Yon Rha (love that scene so much 🤧). Katara recognizes that Zuko is trying his best (if sometimes falling short) to redeem himself and earn the Gaang’s trust, and she also understands how - while she is completely justified in her anger! - holding that hatred close to her chest isn’t good for her. So she offers him a third chance (and honestly, Zuko should be forever grateful for that lmao!).

So what can a strong platonic bond lead to? Well, if it’s in your taste, a romantic relationship!

“within the series run”

As aforementioned, I don’t see any romantic chemistry between Zuko and Katara within the series run of A:TLA. I think Zuko has hurt Katara in too many ways - and again, she has only just forgiven him by the end of the show - for there to realistically have been any blossoming romance between them. I think romantic interest for anyone in the Gaang would undermine Zuko’s redemption. I also think M@iko and K@taang are well-implemented romances into A:TLA, so romantic Zvtara would not have fit into the narrative. (Doesn’t mean someone has to ship them!! I just mean they made logical sense and had narrative purpose within canon. That’s all.) But again, Zuko and Katara have a great platonic bond. So while I don’t see romance within the series run, I can understand why people might be attracted to Zvtara in post-canon!

Post-A:TLA (disregarding LOK, which I haven’t even seen lol) Zvtara has some solid potential. I’m personally intrigued by the idea of how they’d navigate their relationship amidst all the politics! Basically, any relationship with a strong platonic bond can have potential for “more.” That’s why people ship T@ang, that’s why people ship Zvkaang, Zvkka, M@ilee, etc. So while Zvtara may not have romantic chemistry within the show - in my opinion! - they’ve got one of my favorite platonic bonds, so I can totally get people wanting to explore that bond in post-A:TLA and possibly translating it to romance.

So for some people, then, it might be less about “chemistry” in A:TLA itself, but more how their relationship could grow and change after the end of the series!

Quick sidebar: I mentioned that while I do not interpret the final Agni Kai as romantic, I’m fine when other people do. It’s fanon! Ain’t no big thing! But also, Katara has forgiven Zuko by that point. I, personally, am not comfortable with reading any of Zuko and Katara’s TSR-and-earlier interactions as romantic because of the imbalanced power dynamic. Example: I don’t think Zuko tying Katara to a tree and manipulating her with her mother’s necklace was romantic, and I don’t like the resulting implications when people do treat it as such. Zuko was still so indoctrinated by Fire Nation propaganda… Yeah, from Book 1 to about halfway through Book 3, I personally don’t feel comfortable shipping Zuko with anyone outside of the Fire Nation. Pre-redemption Zuko was not the most fun person to be around if you were non-Fire Nation.

But as I’ve said, these are all just my opinions! Again, if I have any Zvtara shippers following me, please feel free to reblog with your own thoughts! I would love to know where the idea comes from that Zvtara had chemistry within A:TLA, since I personally don’t see any romantic vibes (though platonic chemistry, of course, abounds.)

(For the record, I don’t know anything about Star Wars, which is why I haven’t brought up R.eylo, lol.)

TL;DR - To me, there isn’t any canon romantic chemistry for Zvtara. Narratively, I think it would undermine Zuko’s arc. Logically, because of how Zuko treated Katara for 92% of the series, I personally cannot interpret any of their interactions as romantic. But their platonic bond? Beautiful!! Thus, if people want to explore post-A:TLA, fanon Zvtara, I am all for it.

#hope this at least partially answers your question anon! #anon #amy answers #amy analyzes

[comradekatara]

let’s talk about ty lee

there’s this one, very overlooked line from “the beach” that I just find fascinating. ty lee is trying to pacify zuko, at which he yells

to which ty lee sighs and responds quietly, wistfully

the reading of this line betrays a sadness on ty lee’s part that brings out an otherwise unforeseen maturity. 

anyone paying enough attention can tell that ty lee is smarter than she lets on. she and mai are both protecting themselves against azula’s manipulation in different ways. it’s a two-sided dance: azula brazenly manipulating mai and ty lee, and mai and ty lee subtly manipulating azula. azula knows that they fear her and are only there by coercion, and she openly uses this to her advantage. but she does not anticipate either of their betrayals, and this speaks volumes to how ty lee wears a mask of naiveté that [almost] never cracks. 

make it impossible for her to disagree with you by complimenting her. 

mention auras whenever you want the conversation to change tracks. 

feign innocence. 

make her jealous by flirting with boys. (that one’s just for fun.) 

this whole scene, and every scene, she is looking for levity wherever she may find it. she is the peacekeeper; she knows how fragile their group is, all the underlying tensions bubbling beneath, constantly on the verge of overflowing. she’ll make vapid remarks whenever she feels like anyone is about to lose control of their emotions and say too much and/or hurt someone. 

but here, ty lee’s tone does a 180. she lets her perky cheerleader persona fall, because she’s overwhelmed with sympathy for zuko. frankly, if she had slapped zuko across the face this episode, i would not have complained, because zuko in this episode is peak Little Bitch. but his insufferableness in this episode only further speaks to ty lee’s sadness at seeing him in this state.  

ty lee did not know him during his banishment. she saw him as a child, and she saw him after ba sing se fell, where he was basically just introduced as the latest player in azula’s posse. azula used the same coercion tactics on him to make sure he never strayed too far, and it’s clear to anyone (because zuko is...not subtle) that he is unhappy here, with them. she never saw zuko in his Ponytail Phase. she never saw him yell “I DON’T NEED ANY CALMING TEA” and stomp around burning things. 

so when she sees him again, to us as the audience, he’s actually calmed down quite a bit. but to ty lee, the change is drastic. for one thing, half his face has been burned off since she last saw him. again, to us, this is how he is introduced, and it just feels like a natural part of his face. but to anyone who only knew him before the age of 13, they’d be quite horrified to encounter his scar. it is not clear whether she knows the specifics of his banishment, or what exactly happened. well, that is, before zuko yells at her, “my father decided to teach me a permanent lesson on my face!” which... yeah, elucidates the situation pretty nicely. 

but even more so than the scar is his seeming personality transplant. before his banishment, zuko was terrible at performing the way azula is. some of that is simply the fact that azula is also far better at lying to herself, and convincing herself that ozai’s feelings are her own. zuko is painfully transparent. especially in contrast to someone like ty lee, he wears his heart on his sleeve (and you can bet daws peck at it). ty lee knows zuko as he was before he was warped by that severe trauma, so she knows him as he truly is. whenever i watch this episode, i can only scream “this zuko is not my boy!!!!” and i’m willing to bet ty lee feels the same. instead of being earnest, idealistic, kindhearted, and sensitive, zuko is just yelling all over the place and treating her best friend like shit. it’s horrible to watch. 

and yet, ty lee can’t find it in herself to be frustrated by his behavior, only saddened. so when he yells “you don’t know me,” what he’s saying is “you don’t know what i’ve been through,” and while that may be true, ty lee did see his life before that. his childhood paints a relative picture of what his life would have been like in a vacuum. sure, he’s still suffering under ozai’s abuse, his mother’s disappearance, lu ten’s death and iroh’s consequent grief, but before the agni kai, he’s still an idealist who cares about people and isn’t afraid to speak his mind in favor of what he believes is right. 

zuko was routinely punished for showing kindness, because kindness = weakness, but even though he was punished for it, he still trusted his instincts and remained kind. that is, until he got banished for “speaking out of turn.” how could he have been in the right in that situation when clearly his father who loves him would never have done such a thing unless he had committed an egregious crime? so he tries to behave the way he thinks ozai would want him to behave, and bases his decisions off of what he thinks his father wants, convincing himself that these must be the right decisions, and that his instincts are wrong. thus, he feels tremendous guilt when doing the right thing, and he feels tremendous guilt when doing the wrong thing––and it is only once he confronts his father, and acknowledges that ozai had been the one in the wrong the whole time, does he learn to trust his instincts again. 

it’s obviously a tragic situation, and therefore ty lee’s cognitive dissonance between this zuko and the one she knew is enough to break her facade, for even a moment. she wants to reach out to him, she wants to help him, but with azula there, she knows she cannot. 

look at how this shot in “the boiling rock (part 2)” is positioned. azula is in the background, with ty lee in the foreground. here she is realizing that azula would just let them all die, let her brother die, without a care. but we know that ty lee does care. ty lee’s fighting style is specifically one of fully incapacitating people without truly hurting them. and even when they took ba sing se, azula made sure not to kill anyone. but now, here she is, not only letting strangers die, but letting zuko die. 

ty lee is not faced with the decision between saving zuko and betraying azula (and it seems like she cares more about not incurring azula’s wrath than she is about finding a way to help them) because mai makes that decision for her, and ty lee only acts when it’s clear azula is about to strike mai. if mai “loves zuko more than [she] fears [azula],” then ty lee loves mai more than she fears azula. this is significant, because up until this point, we––as well as azula––are pretty much convinced that ty lee worships her. and say, for argument’s sake, that she does. then we can look to this moment on the gondola as a turning point. ty lee realizing that azula would not hesitate to kill zuko would cause ty lee to want to turn against her, and azula forces her hand when it looks like she is about to kill mai. 

but i don’t even think it’s as simple as that. because ty lee’s not dumb. she knows what azula is capable of. this is why she behaves just so sycophantically towards her. azula trusts mai because she deems her too apathetic to act on a moral code, and would instead act only in her own self-interest, and in a sense, she’s right. but mai won’t let zuko die, which azula did not anticipate because she assumed that because she was the one who engineered their relationship, that meant that their relationship would work on her terms. she thought the same of mai and ty lee, that because they were only friends through her, they would choose her over each other. but obviously, they wouldn’t. 

meanwhile, ty lee knows that azula likes her not just as an asset, but as a person. and she knows that the more she flatters azula’s ego, and the more she pledges her loyalty, the more azula will like her. azula clearly cares about mai and ty lee. their betrayal hurts her on a personal level that she isn’t willing to admit, but incites a breakdown nonetheless. you can see that even in the beginning of “the southern raiders,” azula is starting to come loose at the seams. and by the time that ozai demonstrates to her that he does not truly love her, all the bonds in her life have been broken. she falls apart because to her, she has just been handed empirical proof that she is incapable of being loved. and so she loses it completely. 

ty lee let azula feel loved, even if said love was only expressed in dramatic compliments, the illusion of obsequiousness, and paper-thin loyalty. this scene, at the beach, shows us ty lee’s internality in a way we very rarely see throughout the show.

it’s clear that she cares. to be able to manipulate people as well as ty lee manipulates azula, one must be able to read people incredibly well. it’s obvious that ty lee possesses uniquely adept social skills, and it’s obvious that zuko, well.........does not. ty lee is an incredibly quick-thinking performer. very rarely does she not know how to talk her way out of a situation. we only see two instances wherein she does not: 

when she is confronted by multiple boys at once asking her to pick one, (sidenote: dykon???????????) and when she must save mai.

even though it’s clear that she easily could, punching her way out of a situation is ty lee’s last resort. though azula’s priorities lie elsewhere in assessing ty lee’s usefulness, it is evident that personally, ty lee values her people skills over her fighting skills. 

she wants to resolve this conflict not through violence, but through communication. zuko is making it particularly difficult because he keeps lashing out, but she can tell exactly what he is thinking and feeling because his behavior is so readily apparent. when the audience is introduced to zuko, we are led to assume that he is an inherently angry person. and yes, even as a child, he has always had a bit of a temper. but zuko behaves particularly egregiously in this episode, and ty lee is acutely aware that this is not his neutral state. this behavior is a response to an inner turmoil that becomes painfully obvious when he burns a portrait of his family. 

ty lee confronts him about it and he says, “whatever. i don’t care,” to which ty lee sadly responds, “i think you do care.” thus the exchange that leads to ty lee’s most revealing moment. the line, the wistfulness behind its delivery, lets us infer so much about ty lee. she is more perceptive than she lets on, and more caring, too. if azula had only been paying attention, she would have known that her betrayal hadn’t come out of nowhere, not remotely. but to paraphrase mai, azula doesn’t know people as well as she thinks she does. because ty lee played her like a fiddle. 

#ty lee #analysis #zuko #azula #mai #azulaxtylee #maixtylee #tylee&zuko #this analysis is kind of all over the place but you guuuuyyyyssssssssss #i love ty lee #sidenote #mai and ty lee are .....what the kids call........an otp???????? #ok im done now

[sif-the-tsunami]

Ropes and Roses: part 2

Summary: Elizabeth Rosehill is a talented dance instructor and a force of nature that beguiles her famous student. Event in her life, however, have led her to search for more creative ways for her to keep herself afloat. What will she do to keep her dreams secure and what will it mean for her blossoming relationship.

Warnings: I promise that we are getting to some fun stuff, this one is mostly flirtation, fluff, and some feminine bisexual chaos.

A/N: I love some bisexual chaos. let me know what you think.

@achaoticaugust @thelastsock @viking-raider let me know what you think?

Word count: ~1600

Henry looked around the studio after placing the yoga mats down. The light tan wood floors creaked softly under his footsteps, the walls coated with a light blue paint made the space feel calm and inviting, he thought to himself that the color combination reminded him of a day at the beach. One wall was covered with mirrors, the other had a rack with more yoga mats, brightly colored jingly hip scarves, and photos taken of various dancers. Elizabeth walked back into the room wearing a soft gray shirt over the curve hugging leggings and tank top she was wearing for the previous class.

“So, Greg told me this morning that they had not fully finished the plans for the dance scene, and he was willing to take my input. I have reviewed some of your fight scene footage, I think I have a good idea of where we can start. And I’m not going to lie, with your strength, I bet you would be a lot of fun to swing dance with. Now, lets get warmed up.” She began.

She kicked off her shoes and sat down on the mat, her movement was almost fluid. He watched her black painted fingernails run through her hair, the soft curls bounced gently as she leaned her head to left slightly. Henry joined her on the floor. For the next twenty minutes he mirrored her stretches as best as he could. With every new stretch, Elizabeth would praise him for his effort. Every “good job!” she exclaimed would perk him up. He would do yoga with her every day if it meant he could hear his new teacher shower him with praise.

During the stretches, they chatted about hobbies. Something about her demeanor made him open up more easily. She teased him for still playing WoW, but he playfully jabbed, “Oh I’m sorry who all plays Elder Scroll Online still?”

“Yeah, okay, that’s fair.”

The last position they did required them to have their legs spread apart and trying to lean forward enough to drop their elbows on the floor. It was pretty clear to Henry he wouldn’t be able to make it down that far. He could feel a tightness in his lower back that was keeping him from going too far forward.

“You don’t need to go as far as me, just as far as you can. Do your best, Henry. Take a nice deep breath in with your mouth, hold it for a five count, and exhale with your nose.” She said, her voice like velvet. “You are doing a really good job, keep up the effort. I’m willing to bet that if you kept doing stretches like this, in about four months, you could probably get your elbows down like this.”

He looked at Elizabeth’s large brown eyes, trying hard not to check out her body and immediately regretting wearing his dark blue track pants. She moved upright as smooth as ever. He couldn’t stop himself from thinking that she was showing off for him. He knew women would occasionally bend over backwards to impress him, and often it would work. It allowed him to be very picky with his romantic liaisons. She was up before he was, and reached out a hand to help him. With that gesture, he snapped out of his train of thought.

The dance instructor did everything she could to evoke any form of dance from Henry’s body. It was like trying to juice a rock. “So I think what we are going to try to accomplish is a basic tango. You get to look strong and imposing, your partner gets to look hella sexy. Win-win, right?” She said, trying to sound optimistic.

“It’s not too late, you can tell Greg that I should just be really great at Chess.” He teased.

“Don’t you tempt me, Mr Cavill. I might just do that.” She laughed for the first time in front of him. “So I have plans for the next couple nights, but if you want to really try to improve, I can get a partner for you to practice with on Sunday night. We would have to wait until after the school’s fall recital. But I can give you a couple hours.”

“Do you think I could actually get better.”

After a pause, and a long drink from her bottle of water, she responded as diplomatically as possible, “Well, Mr Cavill, if you don’t mind my honesty? You can’t get much worse.”

“Ouch. Ow. You hurt all two of my feelings.” He feigned insult. She raised a single eyebrow and saw right through him. Oh no, he thought, she knows I’m an absolute marshmallow.

“Uh huh, all two of your feelings. Right. So, Sunday night?” She giggled a little.

“Oh yeah, I’ll be here.” They then said their farewells, and left the studio for the night. Henry made his way home to a very excited Kal. He might still hate dancing but he enjoyed his time with Elizabeth. What was it about her that made him want to please her? Her whole face lit up when she smiles, her laugh was like music. 

That night he dreamed of the teacher, and wondered just how flexible she actually was.

***

Sunday night was an absolute joy for Elizabeth. She loved watching the little kids tap dance, the couples showing off their waltz, and the group of women who show off their tribal routine. Before the last dance, she noticed that her newest student tiptoed into a spot in the back. She was actually kind of excited to let him see what she could do. Being a very thorough researcher, she knew he would be able to learn a basic routine, especially given the amount of fight choreography he had mastered. She would be able to make the connection from his brain to his body. He might not enjoy it, but she appreciated the level of dedication that he had shown in the past and was willing to put forth for her.

Between performances, the families with littles mingled and left the studio. The group of belly dancers sat on one side of the room, the couples from the ballroom dancing stayed to another side. Henry stayed in the corner by himself, hiding in an open room with a baseball cap and a hoodie.

Elizabeth came out from the back wearing black pants, a black suit jacket and a sparkly silver bralette. Her hair pulled back in a tight ponytail. Her partner, Genevieve, wore a formfitting red dress with lovely long blonde curls. She had agreed to perform this particular dance months ago and the anticipation was palpable. Inspired by the Frieda Kahlo movie, they had always wanted to perform a two woman tango. Elizabeth and Genevieve moved together like lovers deeply enthralled with each other. The music was sensual, but not nearly as sensual as they were. The two never broke eye contact until the very end of the dance. For a brief moment, she flashed her big brown eyes at Henry. His eyes were the size of dinner plates and he gulped hard. Good, she thought, I still got it.

Genevieve and Elizabeth hugged as the students applauded their display. They wrapped up the showcase, some more mingling and gradually the other adults left. Henry stayed to himself while waiting for his teacher to be ready.

“So, Mr Cavill, what did you think?”

“That was… oh my god, so... Wow… I don’t know if I can make a coherent sentence right now.”

“Thank you, that was exactly what I was going for. Henry, this is Gennie, she will be your partner tonight.” Elizabeth removed her jacket and pulled on a black tank top to get ready for their practice. She saw him sneak a peek at her changing, looking at the roses tattooed all over the right side of her torso. Gennie and Henry shook hands to begin their time together. Elizabeth was right, they were a good pair.

Their evening was well spent, Genevieve was a gracious partner. They had great chemistry together, Elizabeth was even able to take a short video to show to Gregory. She noticed that when the connection was made by Henry his whole body language changed. He loved to be told how great he was doing. The visible pleasure made her want to keep praising him. Before the evening class was done, Elizabeth also figured out what would make her pupil begin to laugh, and the more he relaxed the more he gave her. They became a great team, and a genuine friendship was beginning to form between the two.

***

Over the next few weeks, Henry and Elizabeth would continue their lessons. Over one lunch with his friends, the actor spent more than half of their time together telling the group of the instructor. He couldn’t stop himself from singing her praises. When someone suggested that he was developing a crush on her, he laughed to himself and denied it.

“Come on, Hank, you keep telling us how funny and cute she is. When you are done working together, ask her out.” Jillian suggested.

Jillian’s husband Jeremy asked Henry to describe the woman he had been talking about.

“Short, curly hair, she has some pink streaks in her hair, brown eyes, she kind of looks a little like a sort of retro pin-up model. She has a tattoo of flowers on her rib cage. I think she’s pretty.”

“American you said?”

“Yeah, from Southern California.”

“Huh, how about that.” Jeremy said vaguely. The questions seemed a little out of character for him but maybe he was actually interested in who she was. Henry tried not to overthink it, but it sat wrong with him the rest of the day.

#henry cavill fanfic #henry cavill smut