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wileycap · 7 months

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ATLA Headcanon (this is very much spoilers and I'm pretty sure this isn't a super original thought):

Ozai was always thought of as kind of a useless coward in the Fire Nation, before he grabbed power. He was the spare prince next to the Dragon of the West, and this motivates him in everything that he does.

It makes a lot of sense and provides some depth of character to him - which, let me be clear, I don't think he needs: within the story, he works perfectly fine as just a cruel, narcissistic monster. Any detour into his motivations would have distracted from the overall story.

But think about it. Why does he hate Zuko so much? Because Zuko reminds him of his own (perceived) failures, as the disappointing son, and as a narcissist, he can not bear thinking about anything that makes him less than perfect. He wants to get rid of Zuko because he sees himself in Zuko, and this is only compounded by Zuko and Azula's dynamic resembling the dynamic between him and Iroh. Of course, in this case, it's the younger sibling that is the favoured, more capable child. Ozai wants to see himself in Azula, but actually sees himself in Zuko.

Now, I know that the more overt explanation is that he cares about his legacy, and wants Azula to succeed him because she's the stronger heir, but I don't think that matters to Ozai that much. It certainly matters a little bit, because the greater glory of his heir reflects well on him, and obviously he wants that. But I don't think Ozai is actually all that concerned with what happens after he dies. To that, Zhao, whom Ozai promotes and clearly favours to some degree, expresses open disdain at Iroh's spirituality - it's reasonable to think that this sort of attitude thrives under Ozai, or it might just be the Fire Nation in general.

I think Ozai operates under a belief that the world will end with him, and doesn't believe in an afterlife. I don't necessarily mean that he is actually cognisant of this belief - I mean that he is only concerned with himself, so to him, once he stops existing, everything of value will have left the world. If he'd still been in power once he was at the age where death becomes a real concern instead of an abstract possibility, he probably would have sought some form of immortality.

He is very quick to cast Azula aside with a meaningless title, after all. He doesn't value Azula, he just hates the reminder that is Zuko. Zuko also resembles him physically - and to that point, his method of punishing Zuko before getting rid of him is to disfigure him. To further distance himself from Zuko.

In Zuko Alone, Azula refers to Iroh as "his royal tea-loving kookiness" - and we have to remember that Azula probably parrots Ozai's words. Why is this significant? Because at the time, Iroh has just broken through the Outer Wall of Ba Sing Se, a tremendous military accomplishment. He's living up to the Fire Nation's greatest values of military power and glory in battle. And still Ozai disparages him to Azula.

Because Ozai is a wounded narcissist who's always been jealous of his brother. I'm intentionally paraphrasing Zuko's words from The Avatar State here, because it's very likely that those words are also originally Ozai's. An attempt to drive a wedge between his successful older brother and his son.

Ozai's plan to literally burn down the Earth Kingdom is, aside from being monstrous, a terrible strategic decision. What, does the think that the ashes are going to pay him taxes? What's the end goal? At that point, the Fire Nation has effectively won the war. Sure, they are likely still facing resistance, and the Earth Kingdom might be able to rally in the future and challenge them for hegemony. But, considering other conquering military states in our history, a large chunk of their economy probably relies on war. On levying taxes on subjugated territories in order to prop up the economy of the homeland. So, he's intentionally handicapping his own nation by literally burning down a massive source of income.

In the context of erasing his own profound narcissistic injury, however, that makes perfect sense. Who's going to remember Iroh's glorious victories in the Earth Kingdom when there is no Earth Kingdom?

So, there you have it. Ozai is the disappointing child in the shadow of his heroic older brother, the cowardly prince who never went to war in a nation that idolizes war and war heroics above all else, and he spends the rest of his life covering that wound up with blood and fire.

And I do think it's a very beautiful sort of karma that he ends up without his firebending after a short reign and without any meaningful triumphs or accomplishments to his name. Because fuck that guy.

#atla spoilers #atla headcanons #iroh #fire lord ozai #ozai #zuko #fan theory #avatar the last airbender #atla #fire nation

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firelordsfirelady · 26 days

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III. Cookies

Author: @firelordsfirelady

Imagine: When Y/N—a princess of one of the Water Tribes—is told she’s leaving her tribe, she never expects that she’s to be betrothed to the Fire Lord’s son, nor was she prepared to be exiled the very day she arrived at the Fire Nation. With her life in the hands of her new fiancée, how will life change for the princess?

Pairing: Zuko x F!Reader

Trigger warnings: arranged marriage, feelings of fear, banishment, mentions of burns/abuse, frustration, violence, betrayal

Word Count: 1018

Destined to be Yin and Yang

I own no rights to Avatar the Last Airbender or any of the characters/story.

Author’s Notes

The characters as all aged up so Zuko’s banishment happens when he’s 16

Keep in mind I am bringing a unique world with inspiration from ATLA in their characters, some of the events that happen, bending, etc. Not many things may align or occur with what happened in the show. It’s intended that way, so I hope you enjoy it regardless.

See Y/N’s inspiration here.

The cooks in the kitchen were steadily busy preparing lunch for all of the crew in the ship, so they looked annoyed when I appeared at the kitchen doorway.

“Not another one.” One of the cooks groaned. “Lunch will be served at the usual time—not beforehand. It’s not my problem if you’re hungry.” The older man grumbled, but I frowned in response.

“Perhaps, you would like some help cooking then?” I rolled up the sleeves of my robes as I stood up from the doorway. “What is on the menu?” The man scoffed at me as he began to chop carrots.

“Pad Thai.” He then sneered. “Not that I expect you to know how to make it.” I smirked at the man’s snarky comment.

“Aren’t you cutting the carrots for pad Thai too thick?” I made my way over to the cutting board. “Mother always cuts hers into thin sticks.” The man raised his eyebrows at me. “Here, let me chop these while you go manage the chicken. It smells like someone is burning the meat.” I grabbed the knife from the man as the smell of burnt chicken filled the kitchen. The man cursed under his breath as he rushed over to the cook in charge of the meat. I let out a small chuckle as I set to work quickly chopping the carrots into thin sticks.

I was halfway through chopping the carrots when my sense of peace was rudely disturbed.

“What on earth do you think you’re doing?” The voice belonged to none other than Zuko, who looked livid at the sight of me in the kitchen. All movement in the kitchen around me stopped, but I flashed him a smile as I continued chopping the carrots.

“If you’re hungry, please be aware that lunch will be served on time.” I said, mocking what one of the cooks said earlier. “If you’re impatient, I shall personally deliver your plate within moments of it being ready.” The only noises in the kitchen were the sounds of various liquids boiling, sizzling of meat on the stove, and my constant chopping of the carrots. I could feel the heat radiating from Zuko as he stood there in the doorway of the kitchen with clenched fists.

“Perhaps you didn’t hear my question—“ Zuko began, but I raised my hand to cut him off.

“Oh, no, I heard your question.” I politely said. “Obviously, I am lending a helping hand to the kitchen staff that are working so diligently to prepare food for you, myself, and the whole crew.” Raising an eyebrow, I glanced up at the Fire Nation Prince. “Is that a problem?”

Zuko closed his mouth as his knuckles turned white.

“How my father expects me to be betrothed so such an informal princess is beyond me.”

Ouch. I hid my hurt behind a gentle smile I gave Zuko.

“Leadership is not about being in charge. It’s about caring for those you are in charge of.” I quoted. “Mother and Father always said if you take care of your people, your people will take care of you.” I glanced around at the kitchen staff. “Perhaps I am a bit informal, but I am only merely doing my duty as the princess.” Zuko scoffed at my words before he turned on his heel.

“Kindness is weakness.” He bitterly spat before he walked away. I slowed my chopping of the carrots to watch the prince walk away. His words hurt, but I refused to let him disrupt who I was raised to be. One of the cooks, the same one from earlier, placed a hand on my shoulder. Turning to look at him, he gave me an awkward smile.

“We can handle the kitchen from here, Princess.” I dismissed his words with a wave of my hand.

“Please call me Y/N. The title of princess seems so formal.” I shot a side-eyed glance at the doorway Zuko had just left. “Might as well keep up with the Prince’s thoughts of my informality.” The cook chuckled. “I do not mind helping. I used to help the cooks back home.” The cook bowed to me and gave me a soft smile.

“If you insist, then who am I to deny the princess?” He sent a wink my way, and I rolled my eyes.

“Perhaps I could insist on utilizing the kitchen after dinner tonight?” I raised an eyebrow at the cook, who shrugged in response.

“We shall see how lunch turns out.” He gave me a curious look. “If it is good, then you are welcome to the kitchen any time.” I smirked and nodded.

The rest of the cooking for lunch went by uneventfully and the crew had no complaints when they were served their chicken pad Thai. So, the cooks allowed me into the kitchen several hours after dinner had been made. I smiled as I set all of the mixing bowls on the counter before I scavenged the fridge and pantry for the ingredients to make my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe. I hummed as I measured, poured, and mixed the ingredients together before placing small dollops of dough on a few of the baking sheets.

Once I finished washing my dishes, I checked the cookies and found them cooked to perfection. Carefully removing the pans from the oven, I set the baking sheets on the counter. Allowing the cookies to cool, I set a few of them on one of the plates. Then proceeded to put all of the other cookies on a larger tray before I brought them below deck for the crew to enjoy.

Once I returned to the kitchen, I took a small piece of paper and wrote a simple message: It takes courage to be kind.

Smiling to myself, I carried the note and the plate of cookies to the closed door of Zuko’s bedroom. Gently setting the plate of cookies down, I smiled to myself as I gently knocked three times then went to my own room across the hall. Just as my door closed, I heard the door across the hall open.

Tag List @chevysstuffs @puttyly @ginger24880 @night-fall-moon @hypnoticbeing

#avatar imagine #zuko imagine #zuko x reader #avatar the last airbender #destined to be yin and yang #prince zuko

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burst-of-iridescent · 6 months

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so sorry you've been getting these anons ana :( i thought as a native i could give my two cents on the fire lady katara trope? ill admit im more of a casual zutara shipper, so i havent seen a good chunk of the fandom, but ill give it my thoughts. for me personally, i am not a fan of fire lady katara- it's not particularly to do with the trope itself, but the execution often done by the fandom. ive discussed this with other natives before, but sometimes in the fire lady trope, it is often that katara moves to the fire nation, that she wears fire nation clothes and is surrounded by fire nation culture. obviously, that isn't wrong! the sharing of culture is a beautiful thing, but there is a good majority of fics where it feels like her water tribe culture is forgotten, that she is made to move permanently to the fire nation in favour of zuko. specifically in a post war climate, where a good majority of the people in the fire nation would still hold onto imperialist and racist beliefs, the idea of katara living there permanently is uncomfortable. i moved out of my mostly native village into a nearly fully white uni, and it's scary, and so when i apply those thoughts to katara living in the fire nation, its uncomfortable. and as for the rest, it's mainly just how sometimes it feels like the fandom doesn't value her culture as much as zukos, even unconsciously- it often feels like the fandom values the perceived glamour and power of the fire nation royalty, and finds fire nation culture more understandable than anything water tribe, and so prefer to have katara in a setting that is more 'easy' for them. in hand with this, is often the fandom perception that the water tribe is less progressive than the fire nation, that they are sexist and that zuko is giving katara a better life (i will say that this is not something i have not seen often, especially recently, but it is something i have discussed w people so i thought id mention it, especially since its usually not intentional). sorry this got so long, i went on a bit of a ramble but obviously this isn't the be all end all. like you said, there are lots of people who are fine, or enjoy fire lady katara because they perceive or write it differently, and that is fine! everyone perceives media differently, just like some people will be uncomfortable with zutara, some might not be. i just thought id send this as a reason why some of us do dislike the trope, and things to keep in mind when ppl are writing it

hi anon, thank you so much for sharing this with me! i really appreciate you taking the time to write out your thoughts and offer your perspective on this.

i definitely agree that the fire lady katara trope can be executed in some exceedingly problematic ways. there are many zutara fics that i've clicked out of for the reasons that you've mentioned, especially older ones that were written around when the show aired or shortly after. i won't deny at all that there are ways people write the zutara relationship that make me profoundly uncomfortable. my problem arises when someone assumes that the trope itself is inherently racist or wrong, instead of understanding that it can be written in a variety of ways by a variety of people, who bring their own perspectives - and prejudices - to their individual portrayals.

what you said about moving from your mostly native village to a fully white university really struck a chord with me because (although it's not the same, and can never be) i can really sympathize with those feelings of alienation and sudden lack of belonging. i'm part of the desi diaspora myself, and i've grown up in a country where i've always been the minority, and had to deal with racism and ignorance, so your experience really spoke to me. i hope that doesn't come across like i'm trying to co-opt your struggle or anything like that, because that was not my intention at all. i just wanted to let you know that i can understand what a scary feeling it is, even if not exactly in the same way.

that being said, personally if i could choose between spending my life in india or growing up overseas, i would still choose to do the latter even if it meant living through the bigotry and ostracization i've experienced again. i love the life i've built here, though it's a more difficult one than what i could've led back home.

in the context of atla, i agree that katara would most likely face racism and discrimination in the fire nation, at least in the immediate years following the war. but personally i also find a very empowering narrative in seeing her confront and dismantle the prejudices within the fire nation system, just as she did with the sexism of the northern water tribe. katara wouldn't abide bigotry in any form, and i think fighting inequality is a battle that she would want to take on, and would willingly choose to take on whether she ended up with zuko or not. that's why i take issue with the insistence that her becoming queen of the fire nation inherently equates to her victimization, because it can also very much be a power fantasy, and i know many woc who do see it as such.

(of course, that is just my own perspective, and i completely understand why others see it differently and might not be comfortable with it. their feelings are just as valid and legitimate.)

ultimately, i think correctly executing the fire lady katara trope isn't just about katara herself valuing her culture, but zuko doing it as well. i love seeing explorations of the trope (and the zutara relationship in general) where zuko takes an active interest in katara's heritage, incorporates her traditions and practices into his own life and home, and involves himself in her culture just as much as she involves herself in his. zutara is a ship that has always been about equality to me, and that's something that can and should carry over to how they blend their cultures together. like you said, there is nothing wrong in katara wearing fire nation clothes, or being surrounded by fire nation culture - so long as she isn't the only one in the relationship taking an interest in her partner's heritage. thankfully, in most zutara content i've seen, she isn't.

in my own personal view of katara becoming fire lady, it happens only years after the war ends. she spends her time postwar travelling the world and kicking ass, empowering women in the north to learn waterbending, rebuilding the southern water tribe, meeting and learning from everyone she can. when she becomes fire lady, she continues to travel often - home, of course, but also to the other nations when necessary, using her skill of inspiring and motivating others, and her desire to help the less fortunate, in matters of international diplomacy. when she returns, her husband is in blue, and her children wear whalebone beads in their hair, and there are fire flakes next to stewed sea prunes on her dining table. there are hard times, but there is also love and respect, and so she changes the world as she damn well deserved to in canon.

#zutara #fire lady katara

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mugentakeda · 5 months

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its like I desperately DO want to explore Iroh maybe emotionally manipulating Zuko his very manipulatable nephew. NOT because I hate Iroh and think his actions in the show are all 100% manipulation but because I love him and how shitty he is. He's like shitty on accident and it's great.

"Whoops accidentally isolated my nephew whoopsies accidentally formed codependency with him. Oh well time to play scrabble" its so slay

THERES THIS UNFINISHED FIC I READ ON AO3 THAT GOES SUPER INTO THIS ACTUALLY i loved it so much it had such a heavy hand in changing how i view iroh (because when i was a wee middle schooler and first watched atla i too viewed uncle iroh as a do-no-wronger). at least the emotionally manipulating part. heres the link if you wanna read it :) now under the cut im about to spazz a bit on the topic of iroh and zuko and im not gonna make anyone read this word vomit unless they really want to LMFAOOO

the way i see it book 1 iroh was still in the dregs of grief over lu ten and was also still dealing w The Order which i imagine had him on thin ice for a WHILE before he managed to score the grand lotus promotion.

i personally dont think iroh was THAT distantly caring of zuko like he was portrayed to be in the fic i linked above and on the contrary i think he was having a Horrible Time during zukos recovery from his burn. but he was still distant in the way that he didnt know zuko that well yet and it was mostly the guilt on top of projecting himself and his feelings about lu ten onto zuko (the first of what will become Many) and thinking along the lines of “how could any father do this to their son, it angers me because id give anything to have lu ten back”, but then once iroh comes to love ZUKO then its “how could ozai do this to zuko”

but despite all that theres still a seven layer salad of problems, miscommunication, misunderstandings, guilt, baggage, and projecting. iroh comes to love zuko fiercely by the end of book 1 after he snaps out of his apathy and is forcibly booted from the ship, therefore a fugitive and therefore harder for The Order to access. SO, he can finally focus on getting ozais venom out of zuko. sadly, as ive said before, iroh only managed to get some of the venom out of himself not even a full decade ago. And its worse, because irohs an older adult.

thats not just a childhood and teenage years of propaganda and crimes. its a whole lifetime. And hes on time limits. sozins comet is coming. his nephew is really good at catching up with the avatar. the order tells him that sentiment and guilt cant get in the way of their goals. its a nice idea to realign zukos ideals with The Orders so iroh has an heir if he decides to take over once they hopefully topple ozai, or if he doesnt want to rule at all so zuko can take over instead- but if ozais venom reaches too deep and zuko cant be helped, The Order will take the measures necessary to remove him from the equation.

between the stress of trying to get zuko aligned with being ok with the avatar toppling his dad and sister and entire nation in less than a year with whatever methods the avatar sees fit, only like a few gallons of his own fire nation bullshit problems being flushed out a few years ago with plenty to spare so hes Really not the best at trying to get his nephew see things iroh himself doesnt even fully see, not realizing that zuko isnt the kind of kid that does well with vague proverbs and prefers it straight forward (and with enough tact to phrase things in ways that wont make him flip out when he hears things hes not ready to hear yet but at the same time without sugar coating), iroh is obviously not gonna do a perfect job.

matter of fact, id go as far to say hes not gonna even do a good job. ill give him one chewed up star and say he did a halfway decent job. a lot of people credit him for getting zuko on the right path as if he was the one that did the heavy lifting, when really he got lucky that zuko managed to pull himself out from under a fucking MOUNTAIN of deeply embedded propaganda and violent physical and emotional abuse trauma in under a few months versus iroh whos still working on it after YEARS. and his doesnt even include the abuse trauma. zuko is strong as fuck and that is his strength and nobody else deserves to be credited for that. iroh gave him pointers and a nudge in the right direction, but didnt give zuko a map and also made him take the route that involved zuko crossing the bridge with an evil goblin that would only let him pass if he solved his riddles three.

but DESPITE ALL OF THAT! despite all of that never getting properly resolved and discussed and brushed over- partly because brykes stinky asses giving irohs character the 180 and making him all ~hoity toity righteous ive never done anything wrong despite my obvious hypocrisy thats so bad it smells~ in book 3, partly because parents like iroh who have 100 million things wrong with them along with being bad at communicating barely Ever get their head right enough to sit and talk these things out with their kids, iroh and zuko still love each other so, so fucking much.

its the little things and the implications that get me the most?? iroh basically collapsing onto zuko during the siege of the north when he leaves zhaos ship and burying his face in zukos chest. zuko telling iroh that for the last time hes NOT playing the tsungi horn. iroh pestering zuko into going back to the port to find a fucking tile for a game that iroh can just buy new of and zuko just growling and stomping off. iroh pumping his fist and grinning at zuko beating up zhao during their agni kai. their banter. his nonchalance at zukos bluntness and rudeness. iroh bothering zuko into going to bed to no avail. his snarky remark at zuko sitting in his room in the dark instead of going on a walk with him. iroh sucking up their argument from the night before over ozai and going with zuko to join azula despite his suspicions while glowering at all the soldiers like a huge snarly bear protecting their cub. like UGHHHH THE VOICES THE VOICES!!!!

its just not a realistic parent child relationship if there arent an equal amount of softness to ease through the complicated tangles.

its the apology plate of cut fruit after the shouting match. you hate it because its like why wont you just say sorry to my face with your words, but then you realize you wouldnt know how to respond in words yourself, so you just eat the shitty cut fruit and say youre sorry back by doing some equally lame act of service later that day just to make the ground fully even again and all is forgiven without even having to say it outloud and both of you are thinking we’ll definitely talk it out later. later wont ever come but the love wont leave anyway so who cares (you both care).

i literally love them SO much dude i dont have enough words they have so many issues we should feed them ibuprofen by the spoonful and put them in a blender

#IM SORRY THAT THIS IS SO LONG ANON #this isnt even the 10 page thesis i told you guys about i could go on longer but i shall Refrain #HEURGHHHHH #asks

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badplacetohaveagoodtime · 7 months

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I used to lean more towards Zutara than Kataang bcuz when watching the show, I always saw Aang more as Katara's younger brother, although even I saw that he had a kiddie crush on her at some point. Also, 14 y/o x 12 y/o feels a bit weird. It's not that big of a difference, but 14 and 12 is a bigger difference than 30 and 28, for example.

ALSO: Older Kataang definitely looked more natural than younger/series Kataang.

Anyway, when actually watching the show I wasn't actually rooting for any ship, I wasn't paying attention to that at all I think, but I never do bcuz I just don't find it the most interesting thing in a movie. Romance always feels like less important plots, b- or c-, or even lesser plots, even in romance-focused movies, I'm still more focused on the drama surrounding them most of the time.

So anyway, my point is that when I finished the show and eventually got into fanfiction, I leaned more towards Zutara and (idk what the ship name is for) Toph x Aang.

Then I got into Zukka and Zukki and Kazula etc etc and you get it.

But tbh, right now, I am actually leaning more towards Kataang. At least in the fanfics, I never read Zutara and usually read fics with Kataang in the background. They actually feel better, more emotionally on the same level than they used to. I think that seeing small, cute panels from the comics (from post-series canon) helped, too.

And then I obviously ship Zuko with Sokka (and sometimes Suki) like a rational human being. They're cute asf.

Idc if ships are not canon bcuz like I said, I don't pay attention to the romantic developments in a book/show/movie unless I'm reading fanfiction that I usually choose to read partially based on the romantic plot(s).

#zukka #zukki #fanfic #atla #avatar the last airbender #katara #kataang #zutara #zuko #aang #sokka #kazula #atla azula #atla suki #ship wars

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ghanjrho · 10 months

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How A:tLA should have ended, Pt. 2

Part 1 is here

I promised you Fire Family and Steambabies, have your Fire Family and Steambabies. We'll start with oldest and move down in age, as of roughly AG 115. For timeline purposes, the royal wedding was in AG 105, when Zuko was 21 and Katara 19.

Uncle Iroh: Iroh retires from his role as Regent the day Zuko and Katara have their Fire Nation wedding. Now he moves back to Ba Sing Se and his tea shop, though he still makes it back to Caldera for a couple weeks a year. It's a good system, obviously removing the Dragon of the West from the levers of power, while also putting enough physical separation between him and Zuko that a coup is unlikely to target both at once. The Steambabies call him Grampa Iroh.

Ozai: Is dead. Handed over to the Earth Kingdom a year or so after the war ended, an international tribunal called for his execution. In desperation, he offered up all the information he had on Ursa. All it bought him was being executed like a member of the Fire Lord's family, as opposed to a peasant. Aang refuses to vote for death on principle, but has grown enough to understand that not everyone can live by his personal code of ethics.

Ursa: Was found. The basic arc of The Search is maintained, with the exception that Ursa didn't lose her memories. Why didn't she go back? She was going to. But Ursa was Noriko now, and Noriko was going to have to work hard to convince her son that she was his mother; at the time she didn't know that the Mother of Faces could undo a gift and make her Ursa again. Not to mention that at the time of The Search, the family simply didn't have the money to travel to the Capitol and stay there for the amount of time it would take for her to get access to Zuko without running afoul of her banishment.

Zuko: Is the Fire Lord, and a devoted father. He thinks the second is more important. Had some serious nerves about parenthood, but bowed to the reality of needing an heir and a spare. Winds up having more than that.

Katara: Is the Fire Lady, and a handful of other titles besides. Her travels through the Fire Nation hinterlands give her a surprising wealth of connections to the Fire Nation's peasantry, which she freely uses to keep abreast of what's going on in her adopted land. She and Zuko are that married couple that can't keep there hands off each other.

Azula: Instead of letting Azula be a crutch villain, Azula gets better. Ursa's return and Zuko's persistent attention helped her unwind a lot of the emotional abuse that Ozai inflicted on her. Not all the way better, she has a medicated tea that she takes daily, and her moral compass is still worryingly external. That said, Zuko is her frame of reference instead of Ozai, so everyone is willing to call it good enough. On her 18th birthday, Zuko (and Iroh) named her the Hand of Fire, making her the Fire Lord's go-to problem solver.

Kiyi: is adorable. Yes, Mommy looks different now, but Kiyi has cool older siblings now! Azula had very complicated feelings about "her replacement" for a while. A lot of talks with Ursa helped; finding out Zuzu would fold in the face of Kiyi's pout did too. Early morning Fire Sibling meditation is essential bonding time. For Kiyi's age, I'm putting her 10 years younger than Azula, or 12 years younger than Zuko; in AG 115 she's 19 and a skilled firebender.

Izumi: Steambaby the first. Izumi was born on her parents' first anniversary, almost to the hour. Like her aunt, she's an extremely talented firebender, using blue fire and learning lightning generation. Unlike her aunt, her mother isn't trying to protect a more vulnerable sibling, and her father isn't emotionally abusing her to turn her into a living weapon/vessel for his will.

Kya: Steambaby the second. Followed her older sister by a year and a half, being born in mid-winter. Like her mother, she's a waterbender with the healing gift.

Lu Ten/Noriko: Twins that followed Kya by 3 years and a bit; spring birth. Neither has shown signs of bending yet, but there's still time.

Rei/Kallik: Boys, newborn.

Bonus:

Sokka/Suki: The brother-in-law and co-sister-in-law of the Fire Lord. Have 3 of their own and are working on a fourth. Suki and Azula are in a low-key competition to be the favorite aunt. Their work mainly keeps them in the new United Republic's territory,

#atla #zutara #steambabies #azula redemption #atla azula #ursa atla #zuko #katara #ozai screwed up azula a lot #probably including the my mother called me a monster line #azula takes her medication #what meds? who knows #there's more steambabies to come #i meant it when i said zutara cant their hands off each other #zukos long term plan of revenge against ozai is to have a bunch of kids #and raise them to be mentally stable and love their siblings

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zvtara-was-never-canon · 15 days

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Yesterday I saw a post that basically said that Avatar wasn’t a feminist show that has a bias towards Zuko and that no female villains get redeemed(?!?)

And said that the show oversexualises Azula which like WHAT

This is not a Cuties situation the camera never accentuates cleavage or anything, if you just saw Azula showing more skin in the beach episode (because she’s at the fucking beach) and then immediately thought about sex that sounds like a you problem.

People really gotta learn what words mean - and that no show from nearly TWENTY YEARS AGO is gonna present social issues the same way modern series would. Avatar has two whole episodes in which the whole lesson is "Sexism is bad, don't mistreat women", and a ton of the female characters are absolutely badass and incredibly well-written. One or two questionable moments is not enough to make claim it is misogynistic.

A female villain not getting redeemed while a male character does is only sexist if her gender is presented as the reason why she can't be redeemed, or if they did all the same things but her actions are presented as worse - and while the ATLA fandom is often guilty of that last one (not always because of sexism, but also because of ableism), that doesn't mean the writting of the SHOW was sexist.

I say this as someone who loves Azula's character and wants a redemption arc for her: the show's ending is a tragic, but logical one. Not everyone changes. Not everyone wants to change, or even gets the chance to. It's sad, but it makes sense and there's nothing offensive about the finale (unlike the way Azula was treated in the comics, but once again the root of the problem there was "the mentally ill are inherently evil/beyond help so anything and everything done to them is justifiable").

"The show oversexualizes her" That one is bit more complex - but not THAT much.

Avatar is a show with lots of fanservice (see Zuko taking off his shirt causing birds to fly and fangirls to appear behind him squeeling), but all of it is stuff that was ALWAYS presented in a way that was 100% appropriate for children. More importantly, the show never tried to use the fanservice to compensate for poor writting or to make Azula an evil seductress (a trope that is not inherently sexist, but can become so if the writer isn't careful with it). Making Azula gorgeous in a scene, or letting Grey Delisle have some fun like the did during the confrontation Zuko and Azula had in The Awakening, is not the same as them reducing Azula from character to sex-object.

Once again, the fandom is far more guilty of the "Attractive means sexual and sex is evil" mentality than the show ever was. I lost count of how many people "theorize" that Azula is a "slut" who slept her way to the top and has even raped people (usually Zuko and Suki) even though the show made it clear she can't flirt to save her life, is so respected/feared because she's a great fighter/manipulator, and has literally never forced herself onto her brother and was obviously lying when implying she had done something Suki because THE SHOW ITSELF told us everything she was telling the Gaang on that scene was just an attempt to buy her father more time until the eclipse was over.

Some of the fans treat her as the typical "evil femme fatale that you can tell is evil because she sleeps around", but the show itself never did that.

Also a lot of what I sometimes see fans claim is "sexualization" is just mundane stuff. I lost count of how many times people were losing their shit because "WHY IS A FOURTEEN YEAR GIRL ALWAYS WEARING MAKE UP?"

Maybe because said fourteen year old is a perfectionist that can't even stand to have one hair out of place, so obviously she'd want her face looking perfect too? Or maybe she wants to look older not to "seduce" anyone but because she'd rather not risk not being taken seriously for being so young? And, crazy thought but bear with me here, maybe, just maybe... Azula likes make-up. Revolutionary concept, I know.

And it's not like the show ever got weird about it like the comics (seriously, girl is hallucinating in a straight-jacket and her hair is all messed up, but SOMEHOW she put on lipstic/the doctors did it for her????). She had a clean face when she was sleeping and when she was at the royal spa getting her hair done, and even at Chan's party her make-up is exactly the same she wears during the day. The "weirdest" place she wore it at was at the beach, and again considering it's Azula, who always wants to look perfect, I can see it.

Seriously guys, there's a difference between "TikTok is constantly telling women, teen girls and children they need to buy 37 different products that they gotta put on before anyone can *gasp* see their face" and "This cartoon had one of the characters constantly wearing make-up because that's a thing teenagers do sometimes + it helps the character be more memorable"

#azula is no femme fatale

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water-beats-earthbender · 2 years

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Not to like complain about this again,,, but,,, God Zuko being 13 when he's burned and banished is just so important to his character and it makes so much of him make sense. Idk aging him up say, 3 years just doesn't work. Obviously what ozai did was horrific whatever age Zuko was. But Zuko was never going to last in the fire nation. He wasn't going to make it past 14 max. Unlike Aang, Zuko doesn't run from responsibility- if anything he runs towards it. That's why even at 13 he sneaks his way into a war meeting. It's why, when he hears a plan that would wrongly sacrifice an entire division of new recruits, he speaks out. Yes, (pre-scar) 16 year old Zuko would speak out against the plan, but he was never going to make it to 16 in ozai's fire nation.

Of all of the characters, Zuko's age is probably the most important when it comes to his backstory. Aang's age is also pretty important, but only bc a 15 year old aang running from being the avatar is not as sympathetic as a 12 year old aang told too soon. Katara and Sokka being 3 years older doesn't change much of their backstory regardless of where you add in the 3 years, same with Toph. Although, i do think a 15 year old Toph would have probably would have run away from home already.

Besides that, like Zuko being in the height of grumpy disrespectful teen angst during the show makes complete sense when he was horrifically burned banished at 13 and spent the next 3 years chasing a ghost. But Zuko at 16 being burned and banished would be more likely to recognize the quest for what it was. 13-14 year old Zuko is naive enough to believe that ozai wants him back. And like, i get that everyone of any age wants their parent to love them and that the hope that somehow it isn't a hopeless quest is powerful. And i know older teens and even adults give their parents chances when they know it's hopeless. But a 16 year old would be more likely to recognize that it's an impossible quest. A 16 year old freshly banished Zuko would still be in denial but not nearly as naive as 13 year old freshly banished Zuko. The main issue is that Zuko getting older means he becomes more aware of the world around him and thus he can't ignore the suffering that the fire nation causes to itself (the world too but Zuko couldn't see that unless he left the fire nation). As Zuko reaches 15 it just becomes unlikely that he'd never sneak out of the palace (and we know he has the skill to) and once he does sneak out he'd be unable to keep quiet and ignore any suffering he saw. Factoring Iroh's influence and a 16 yr old never banished Zuko would wise up to the problems of the fire nation.

I also can't help but notice that the 3 extra years of Iroh influencing Zuko aren't often factored into how different Zuko would be. A Zuko who isn't bent on chasing a ghost would be more easily influenced by Iroh. A freshly banished 16 year old Zuko who is old enough to notice the problems within the fire nation would be more open to Iroh's anti war stance. That Zuko would probably be mature enough for Iroh to actually discuss treason with. Iroh and Zuko were close before Lu Ten died. If Zuko had 3 extra years around Iroh without the trauma of his scar and banishment, season 1 Zuko would have been very different (even if he's still grumpy and angsty). To the point that, we'd probably have white lotus!Zuko.

On the flip side, lengthening Zukos banishment helps ease some of the issues from making him 16 when banished. But even Zuko would mellow out a bit after 6 years of chasing a ghost. Idk i was just reading a fic and put of nowhere they mention Zuko being like 19/20 and it totally took me out of the fic. Like season 2 Zuko's attitude does not work if he's aged up. To some degree, i just think Iroh would kinda get through to him with 3 extra years of tea and metaphors. And without the avatar actually showing up (which gives Zuko tunnel vision) Zuko would get worn down. He would notice the harm the fire nation is causing and his morals would set in.

#atla rants #zuko #atla zuko #aged up aus #atla #avatar the last Airbender #iroh #atla iroh

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gods-favorite-autistic · 11 months

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Grease ROTPL finale spoilers below

I have thoughts and questions

Jumping for fucking joy when Nancy slapped Mr Daniels and said “she is a child” LIKE YES QUEEN

Nancy this episode slayed so much like from assaulting predators to supporting the gays in the span of less than an hour you go girl

Speaking of supporting the gays the coming out scene was so amazing and it Hurt

Frenchie and Betty Rizzo were so great this episode and the siblings energy with Jane and Gil was unmatched

Watching Gil with another girl hurt but like I get it so much

If they do get another season I am excited to see how the whole Pink Ladies date T-Birds thing comes around cause like rn Hazel and Cynthia are both dating non T-Birds (not to mention Hazel’s dating a soc)

I think we can all agree on one thing and it’s that the girl from Lydia’s summer scout or whatever is gonna catch these hands

Jane Nancy and Cynthia were so real in the first song like yeah get his ass

Susan I was rooting for you we were all rooting for you

Buddy finally made the right choice and now he’s a fucking homeless high school dropout-

Somebody give this poor boy a break

The Zuko name drop at the end fucking floored me

I need to know what happened between Zuko (I’m assuming Danny’s older brother?) and Jane to make her this mad

Also btw the whole writing it down thing for the coming out scene was cute and all but I would really like to know what Nancy wrote on the paper

Also something Nancy said in that scene caught my eye so imma just rant for a bit

In the part where Nancy’s trying to guess what’s making Cynthia upset she’s says something like “did you talk to your mom?” Which brings up two questions for me

What happened with Cynthia’s mom that would make Cynthia upset if they talked (from what we see of the scenes at Cynthia’s place it seems like she’s doesn’t live with them but she’s obviously not dead so something happened there$

How does Nancy know about whatever happened between Cynthia and her mom (basically like did she hear it through town gossip, is it like common knowledge for the town, or did Cynthia tell her in which case I wanna see that scene)

Also another thing that stood out to me (because she is my favorite character) was that in the church Cynthia kept doing the like 🙏 peace be with you thing and yeah it could’ve just been her being nervous and stuff but she also does the like touch cross thing (idk what it’s called) when Jane is talking to Mr. Daniels as almost like a subconscious thing so I’m wondering if that’s possibly a thing or if I’m just grasping at straws for a Cynthia backstory

I’m really hoping if we get a season two that they flesh out Olivia Nancy and Cynthia’s backstories cuz like we know Jane’s pretty much and we get little snippets of the other three but nothing really solid

Idk kinda like the T-Birds episode except with the girls

Anyways sorry for rambling (and spending like half the time talking about Cynthia) but yeah that’s it

#tw cursing #cw cursing #rise of the pink ladies #nancy rotpl #olivia rotpl #rotpl spoilers #lydia rotpl #hazel rotpl #cynthia rotpl #rotpl #jane facciano #cynthia zdunowski #olivia valdovinos #nancy nakagawa #tw all caps #cw all caps #grease: rise of the pink ladies #grease rotpl

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frogwithastrawberry · 1 month

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Sorry but I was just thinking-

How different would Avatar: The Last Airbender been if Aang had sealed himself and Appa in the iceberg a few years later?

What if he had grown to 16 before being told that he was the Avatar, and still survived the Fire Nation attack?

Aang is shown to be a mostly forgiving person, who obviously had outbursts in every emotion. And I think that's because he was 12 when he was sealed away. 12 year olds are still in the realm of "child that copies whatever their parents are doing". So being raised by Monk Gyatso, an old man who had likely seen his fair share of hardship in life and just wanted to live peacefully? Aang would have picked that up. It would have been the last influence he saw, the one that would stick in his mind.

And I know that supposedly the Air Nomads were peaceful people, but I think Monk Gyatso was tame even among them. He saw Aang as a child who was the Avatar. Everyone else saw him as an Avatar who just so happened to be a child. So not only was Aang being in an easily influenced age group important, it was important that he was with Gyatso specifically.

If not, I think he would have ended up like Zuko. Unlike Zuko though, Aang wouldn't have had anyone to guide him. Zuko had incredibly destructive powers and a drive for revenge, but he also had Iroh, who consistently minimized his damage in one way or another.

Aang would have had powers incomparable to anyone alive, and no one in fighting shape would have had the knowledge of how to fight him- believing that Air Nomads had died out. Aang wouldn't just try to go after Ozai, he'd try to go after the whole fire nation. Anyone he saw with fire bending would have been targeted. And I think that if he had left on bad terms, or been a bit older? Aang wouldn't have held back. Ozai would find his armies depleted before he faced Aang himself

#atla #avatar the last airbender #avatar aang #atla aang #avatar theory #character analysis

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leafsfromthevine · 2 months

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idk if u have said anything abt this but would you want a second season of natla?

HAI MOON DEAR MUTUAL i have not mentioned anything about this so thank you for giving me the chance to explore thoughts.... in short, i want to say yes? in long, there is a LOT of questions that make me,,, concerned. one thing is the characters being older and them shifting the timeline; they said they would account for the actors/actresses actually aging in real time which obviously would mess up the canon timeline more than they already have 😭😭 i want a season 2 just for toph.... but toph is So Important To Me i fear they'll do something wrong. like i have many opinions abt how they wrote the current cast and just. you CAN'T mess up toph or you lose the whole show,,,,imo,,, also the fog in natla that mirrors the swamp is now not connected to toph's introduction which i guess isnt SUPER relevant but. its a thing thats different. also also they already did secret tunnel so like. idk what they're gonna fill that with and also also also how are we gonna develop kataang and also also OZAI HAVING THE CALENDAR JUST IN HIS OFFICE WHAT ABOUT THE LIBRARY DID THEY RIP IT FROM THE LIBRARY WILL WA SHI TONG EVEN BE IN THE LIBRARY IF HES BUSY IN THE SPIRIT WORLD???? they put so many bits of s2 into s1 just incase the show never sees the light of day after s1 but in doing so they've already changed so much of hypothetical s2 before it even begins????? anyways. if s2 happens im looking forward to more dallas liu zuko he carried and he WILL carry and im sure live action zuko alone WILL change lives (if la zuko has 100 fans im one, if la zuko has 1 fan its me, etc. etc.). thank you for the question i hope i put an answer in this somewhere :3

#SORRY THIS SO LONG #ive been having thoughts if you can't tell #leafbox #atla live action

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tinky-dinky · 10 months

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I am so very tired of this 'Oh, Azula's just an abused child, she deserves better, she's not responsible' narrative.

Yes, she is an abused child. But so is Zuko. And he chooses to be good. Before anyone jumps on it, he was already choosing to be a relatively decent person before he got scarred and Iroh began mentoring him. The whole reason he got burned in the first place was because he spoke out against the generals wanting to use a battalion of new recruits as fodder for the earthbenders. He was already fundamentally good.

So, if Zuko is able to have empathy for others and choose to do the right thing at 13 years old, why can't Azula? She's 14 in the show, a year older than Zuko was. But she chooses to do horrible things, and does so with a smile on her face. Hell, we see her smirking gleefully while watching Ozai burn Zuko's face in the flashback of the Agni Kai. Iroh, former imperial general who's definitely seen plenty of other horrible things, is so disgusted he can't look. But Azula looks and she is delighted by what she sees.

Does she deserve better? Well, obviously, she doesn't deserve to be abused. But she absolutely deserves to be in prison or in a mental health facility. She attempted to kill Iroh, Aang, Zuko and Katara (she might actually succeed in killing Aang, it's a bit unclear). In the real world, a 14 year old who tried to kill four people would definitely be sent to either juvie or a mental health facility, at least until they're 18, but possibly longer.

Politically speaking, Zuko has to be at least seen to be doing something to Azula in recompense for Ba Sing Se. I can't imagine the Earth Kingdom would be very pleased if he just allowed her to walk free after she took over their city. Hakoda would probably also want her to face some consequences for trying to kill Katara, and he's the chief of the Southern Water Tribe. Also, how can Zuko justify punishing any of the Fire Nation generals/admirals/whoever responsible for the many horrific acts towards the Earth Kingdom and Water Tribes if he allows Azula to go unpunished?

Azula is absolutely responsible for what she chose to do. Are there mitigating circumstances, lessening but not removing her responsibility? Yes. But she is still responsible, especially because she clearly wasn't under duress, going off how she was smirking gleefully the vast majority of the time.

Zuko is under no obligation to help her. She tormented him throughout their childhood, to the point of gleefully telling him their father was going to kill him. She tried to kill him, and his beloved uncle, and his friends. She coerced and threatened Mai and Ty Lee. An abuse victim does not have to help their abuser, regardless of their familial connection.

#Can we please stop woobifying Azula and acting like she isn't responsible for her own choices?#azula #iroh #zuko #atla #avatar the last airbender

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unfriedough · 2 years

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Hello, I would like some angsty crack romance scenario/headcanon between Zuko and the reader. The character herself is a short, mute,non-bender with people constantly underestimating her even the Gaang sometimes. Even though she could kick people's butts even as a non-bender. She is very sensitive when people call her cute or any kind of nickname really. So my idea is she gets captured by Zuko in hopes to get information from her because he underestimates her. She communicates using sign language but he can't understand and calls Uncle Iroh to decipher. He starts asking questions and she gives witty and sarcastic answers in sign language as Uncle Iroh laughs and tells Zuko whats she saying. You can add whatever to this.

And I know I already requested this but I just wanted to add a bit more detail sorry.

‘Back to you’- Zuko x female!reader

Masterlist <3

An: HIYA! So,,,, i did this as a mix (which might just be what you meant lol) of headcannons/scenarios. Also, since reader’s like imprisoned and stuff, I didn’t feel the need to mention her height! Thank you for adding more detail btw! It helps alot <3 AND THANK YOU FOR THE REQUEST OFC !!! CAN YOU TELL I GOT CARRIED AWAY? 2.7K WORDS!!

Summary:

You’re mute, and you get kidnapped by zuko when gathering materials. When on his ship, you realise maybe there’s more to him than what meets the eye.

Warnings: ITALICS WRITTEN IN ‘this’ FORMAT IS READER SIGNING!!, sparring/fighting, ANGST!!!!!!!!!

Getting captured by Zuko wasn’t something that was meant to happen, obviously. You were ambushed by his ship staff when collecting materials from the woods - a job you insisted on completing on your own. What an idea that was.

You put up a good fight, but unfortunately, there were too many firebenders against just the one non-bender. They did definitely seem surprised that you were as resilient and powerful as you were, a byproduct of Zuko measuring your strength based off of looks soley. You definitely left a few cuts and bruises.

Eventually, one of the benders knocked you out, a blunt object hitting your head with too much force for you to take. The rest was a blur, though it’s obvious they just carried you back to their ship.

You awoke in a dark cell, illuminated by a single crack in the door. Bars split the room in half, making an even smaller space - not that you could move around anywhere. You looked to your arms, finding chains that bound you to the rusted metal wall. You sighed, stretching your unbound legs around, pins and needles becoming more and more prominent. Suddenly, the door slammed open, and you shut your eyes tightly - partly from the sudden jumpscare, and partly from the amount of dust flying into your eyes. You returned your legs back to their original place - much closer to you.

“Finally, you’re awake.” a gravelly voice spoke, one you didn’t recognise.

Your eyes fluttered open, and you turned to the source, finding who you can only assume to be the infamous Zuko - one you’ve heard plenty of tales about, but never had the displeasure of meeting. Well, that was until today.

“Took you long enough,” he muttered, sitting down behind the rusty bars.

“We can do this easily and quickly, as long as you cooperate.”

‘And what if I don’t?’ you raised your brows as you signed, amused, and not at all threatened.

His eyebrows furrowed, “What?”

You looked to the side awkwardly, signalling an ‘x’ with your hands, before making a talking motion, hopefully he would get the hint.

He sighed, dropping his head into his hand, “Just my luck.”

You laughed, leaning your head against the wall.

“So, you speak in sign.” you nodded, and he thought for a moment. “My uncle knows sign!” his face lit up, and he scrambled to his feet, quickly evacuating the claustrophobia inducing space.

Not too long after, he returned with a man many decades older than him in hand. The older fellow had a gentle look, and a very welcoming smile. They sat back down, and you sat a little straighter.

“Hello.” The older gentleman said, “My name is Iroh, and this is my nephew, Prince Zuko.”

You were just about to sign ‘pleasure’ but you realised, no, it wasn’t in fact a pleasure, they held you captive. You chose to simply introduce yourself.

‘y/n,’

“Her name is Yn.” he interpreted, and you winked at zuko, who seemed to get more mad.

“That’s not important!” he lashed out. “What do you know about the avatar?”

‘He’s a bald kid with an arrow on his head. He airbends too.’

Iroh laughed, not expecting such a statement, struggling to translate to the teenager.

“She- she said he’s a bald kid with an arrow on his head.”

“We need real information! What am I supposed to do with that! Tell me where he’s hiding!”

You paused, blinking in surprise, before licking your lips, and signing, ‘How should I know? I’m here, and he’s somewhere that’s not here.’ you paused, looking at the old man this time, ‘Your nephew needs to relax. Like, desperately.’

“How should she know, she’s here and he’s somewhere that’s not here,” He smiled, “And I agree, he does need to calm down.”

The prince blew a fire into your cage, which you barely dodged. You immediately stood up, tugging against the old chains in an effort to break them.

‘Watch it loser! Do you not have any manners?! As a prince, you should know better. If I was a firebender, I’d match the scar on the other side, you no good doing dunderhead! Useless! This is why you can’t catch a 12 year old. TWELVE.’

Iroh stared at you, wide eyed and speechless.

“What’d she say?”

…

“I’m not even gonna try.”

Zuko and Iroh called it off for the day, deciding to return the next in another attempt for information out of you.

The prince thought long and hard about each question, the sort of answers he would need, and how to get you to cooperate. It infuriated him that you couldn’t speak, mainly because he felt excluded and lonely when you and his uncle spoke. Though, Iroh always made an effort to include him.

The sun finally rose, you could tell by the marching upstairs, and very loud yells from the teenager. Being only recently hit, added to being on a boat with no clue of the time, you started to get a headache - which may or may not have affected your patience.

Much to your dismay, the pair returned.

“Good morning, Yn.”

‘Is it really though?’

“I guess not,” Iroh laughed, and you did too.

Zuko’s eyes looked between you two, a scowl on his face.

“She said ‘is it really tho?’”

“Oh.”

They sat down awkwardly, and your eyes remained trained on Zuko, his mannerisms seemingly getting more tense by each passing second.

“I’m gonna ask you again. Where. Is. The. Avatar.”

‘Dude. I don’t even know what time it is, in what universe would I know?’

“I don’t even know what time it is, in what universe would I know?” Iroh repeated out loud.

“In this universe. Didn’t they tell you their plans?”

‘You think we have a plan?’

“You think we have a plan?”

“Yes!? How else would he be able to evade me.”

‘Have you ever considered, you’re just not good at combat?’

“Have you ever considered you’re just not good at combat?”

“I am!” He grabbed the bars.

‘Who are you trying to convince here?’

“Who are you trying to convince here?”

“I’m not trying to convince anybody!”

You raised a brow, nodded sarcastically, as if to say ‘whatever floats your boat’.

“You should learn to be afraid. Who’s got the upper hand here?”

‘I don’t even have hands.’ you shrugged, showing off your chained hands.

“She said she doesn’t even have hands.” Iroh struggled to say, laughing.

“UGH!” Zuko said, throwing his head back in annoyance, showing off his perfectly sculpted jaw - maybe you should keep that thought to yourself though.

“What am I meant to do? She won’t listen!” He said, exasperated.

“Maybe you’re just asking the wrong questions.”

“Fine. Um, where were you and the avatar last?”

..‘Didn’t you literally kidnap me from there?’

“Didn’t you literally kidnap her from there?”

“MAYBE YOU SHOULD TRY ASKING OKAY? IT’S HARD!”

Things continued to escalate as Zuko began to lose his temper further.

‘Say, let's make a deal.’

“She’s proposing a deal.”

‘We spar, and if I win, you set me free. If you win, I’ll tell you everything I know about Aang.’

“She’s suggesting you spar, if she wins you grant her freedom, and if you win, she’ll tell you all you need to know about the avatar.”

“Do you think that’s a fair deal?”

“I think so.”

“Okay. I accept.”

So, in shackles, they took you up to the deck. Once up, Zuko and Iroh went on one side and you on the opposite.

“Stay focused Prince Zuko, don’t underestimate her, she has a determined look in her eyes - one that rivals the fury of a firebender.”

“Uncle, this will be easy. I’m going to win.”

And on the opposite side, you were observing the armour they gave you - big, bulky and so very tacky. And so you opted to remain armour-less, it was so obvious how to take Zuko down - you didn’t really sweat it.

“No armour huh?” a guard said, and you waved your arm dismissively, yawning to show you think this’ll be easy.

The guards laughed, earning a glare from both the prince and the retired general.

You stabilised your feet on the ground, arms up defensively.

“What kind of bender are you?” Iroh asked sweetly.

‘None.’ you scoffed, rolling your eyes.

“She’s a non bender.” he said, eliciting a loud chuckle from the teen.

You grinned at the pair, waiting for them to be ready - you could almost taste your freedom.

“3..”

“2…”

“1. FIGHT!” Iroh howled.

He immediately lunged closer, using his fire to propel him forward. You didn’t move, you waited and listened and observed. His breaths were already quite laboured due to the fire, his movements were sharp yet uncalculated - a horrible mix. His arm was perpendicular to his body, other one back, a flame cocooned in his fist. Just as it was about to hit your face, you wrapped your hands around his arm and pulled it over your head, turning around just before kicking his back to the ground. He let out an ‘oof’ sound as his body hit the cool deck, laboured breaths exiting you from the adrenaline. Just as you were about to celebrate, he kicked his foot up, a spark uncannily close to your figure - causing you to fly back in self defence. Zuko jumped back to his feet, the shocked look on his face quickly getting replaced by a scowl. You reentered a solid stance and faced him menacingly, contrasting the pleased look on your face. You motioned ‘come’ with your hands - impatiently waiting for the cat to pounce. He blasted four more flames towards you, which you expertly dodged, inching closer and closer with each avoidance. You were at arms length when he loaded another blast. Quickly, you redirected his arms, evading death by a single second. Using the proximity to your advantage, you raised your knee to his chest, slowing his thought process down due to the pain, and after landing that leg, you swiped your other leg under his unstable ones, and with a groan, he fell yet again. You slid to the ground, pinning the prince’s arms above his head.

Then, there was silence.

Only sound coming from the strained breaths from you and the enemy beneath you. Your eyes locked with his, suddenly seeing him in a new light. The prince seemed to see the same, evident as he stopped struggling against your tight grasp. You neared his face slowly, mouthing ‘I win’ slowly, soundlessly. His face reddened, and eyes widened, mouth opening and closing - somewhat mimicking that of a fish.

Iroh yelled something about the match ending - declaring you the winner. You leaned back from your spot, signing to zuko, ‘What? Cat’s got your tongue?’ which his uncle repeated to him.

His face’s shade deepened, and he used his hands to hide it - an effort in vain, you’d already seen enough. Gently, you removed his hands from his face, and he slowly sat up, causing you to fall into his lap. It was as if time slowed, there was no anger, or resentment or fear, just warmth. Just the presence of two people discovering their feelings. It was weirdly comforting, even with your heart beat being so erratic. It was at that moment that the boy’s peripherals became more focused, a deck empty of staff surrounding him. Of course his uncle decided to leave him. He refocused his eyes on you, only to see yours wandering down to his lips. Soft and so very kissable. Before you knew it, he began to lean in too, arms wrapping around you. Your own reached to his face, cupping his pudgy cheeks in your warm hands. Subconsciously, he leaned in. As if a magnetic force took over, your lips suddenly crashed into his, your passion returned with just as much fervour from his side. You shut your eyes tightly, bodies pressed so close together, fitting like the last two pieces in a puzzle. His lips were delicate, dissimilar to his fiery personality - though, it did grow on you during the short period of time you had together. Your noses collided briefly, making you laugh. The kiss broke due to your giggle, and Zuko watched you laugh, a smile tugging on his lips as he heard the carefree, melodic noise.

Though, the thought lingered on his mind - you’re leaving today. The pain in his heart was deep, an ache caused by a sharp stab in his gut, a scar left on him, he felt like a stray kitten just having found a home, and now he was to lose it to his own stupid agreement to a deal. He sighed, and you poked him in his chest, and tilted your head to the side.

“It’s nothing,” he began to get up, causing you to fall out of his lap and onto the solid ground - a look of mock anger on your face. “I’ll go get your backpack.”

Right, he took it. It wasn’t filled with anything important. Just the necessities - a notebook and pen in case you run into someone who doesn’t understand sign and a few snacks. This angered Zuko at first, he was expecting to loot a map, or any sort of treasure or information, but no. Just some things. Tidbits from your life. You could often tell alot about someone using what they carry, but he felt as if he already knew you despite not knowing much. The days you’d been here felt like years, and passed like seconds.

It was only after the prince left in which you realised you were leaving. And you’ll definitely miss him. You scrambled to your feet and followed his direction. Some guards pointed to his room, and you just signed ‘thank you’, which even if they didn't understand, they probably got the hint. You finally made it to his chambers, a large black door with red and gold details towering over you, slightly ajar. You peeked through the crack and knocked.

“Come in.” The boy assumed it was his uncle.

You slithered in and shut the door behind you.

“Yn.” he said, surprised, a faint pink tinting his cheeks, dropping your things back onto his bed.

You walked up to Zuko, wide eyed and nervous, though you tried to keep that discreet. You grabbed your notebook from his bed, pen in your hand, and wrote: ‘I’ll miss you, blasty.’, turning it around to show him, your face glowing with a massive grin.

His face deepened in shades, a dopey smile playing on his face. “I’ll miss you too,”

You paused and looked at him, mulling over your next words. You scribbled something down, and hid it from his view. You ripped the paper and handed it to him folded up, not letting him read it yet. You leaned in again, this time to his cheek, and planted a soft and gentle kiss. He frowned, pulling your face back, this time to his lips. This one wasn’t like the first, it wasn’t blissful or happy. This was a goodbye kiss. And you both knew that. His lips felt almost sour this time, a bittersweet flavour matching the bittersweet farewell. Little did you know, he was fighting tears, biting back the salty water threatening to drip, pooling at his lower lash line - but he refused to let it drip. He refused to be emotional. Because this is what he deserved, to lose the people he loved. He deserved to be in pain. But you? You didn’t. He knew it would hurt deeper if you saw how upset he was, and so he kept it in. No matter how difficult. Your lips separated, his glossy eyes wandering your face for the last time. You leaned over the bed, breaking the moment short, and grabbed your things, waving goodbye before exiting the room, a frown on your face. As soon as your figure disappeared, he slumped onto his bed, dropping his face into his hands. He groaned, finally letting the emotions overtake him, tears slipping down endlessly. Zuko’s arm roughly wiped away the liquid from his features, though it just kept coming, his other hand fumbled to open the note. The firebender’s mouth opened slightly, eyes rereading the text over and over and over. ‘Find you way back to me, Zuko :)’

His body felt numb and guilty, his morals conflicting. But alas,

“I’ll find my way back. I promise.” he whispered.

An: Tbh I really shocked myself with this one, I had a lot of fun writing this angst! As always, hope you enjoyed reading, SEE YA! <3

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tiny-katara · 2 years

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Let’s be real. I bet that if Aang looked like Zuko, you all would ship Kataang. Just admit that you think Zuko is attractive and not Aang. And Zuko may be your type, but he isn’t Katara’s. She never expressed any attraction towards Zuko, not even a subtle attraction like she did towards Haru. You may not think Aang is attractive but Katara obviously does. She has her own taste.

Uhhnmm????

Excuse you???

No. Even if Aang looked like Zuko I wouldn’t ship it because my problem with their relationship has literally nothing to do with aesthetics and everything to do with the fact that Aang doesn't respect Katara's boundaries.

It also has to do with the fact I personally identify with Katara's passion and have been with a partner who hated conflict/confrontation like Aang, which wasn't a great time for me. It is a deeply personal dislike based on my struggle to make my feelings more palatable and toned down for my male counterpart in the relationship. It was painful and I see that part of myself in Katara, who handles all of the attempts to get her to calm down and do the easy thing with a grace and strength I can only aspire to.

Also it's a bit disgusting to assume some random person's type. It's at the very least rude. You know absolutely nothing about me and the argument that you're insinuating is that I want to "fuck Zuko." Whether that's your intention or not, that is the implication and it's completely disrespectful of the aspec Zutara shippers, which I personally identify with, and any Zutara shipper that is not attracted to men. Please take a solid look in the mirror and think about that.

And you know what, yeah. I don't think Aang is attractive because he is a literal child. No one except maybe other children should be finding him attractive!!! That's weird.

Additionally, Katara literally tells us her type in "The Fortune Teller" if you missed it. She specifically mentions that she hopes her partner will be tall and handsome. Aang is neither of these things in the show, and he shouldn't be because he is a 12-year-old child.

And yeah, Katara doesn't express any interest in Zuko but literally what does that have to do with the conversation? This about Kata*ng and how a lot of the scenes in the show make some women uncomfortable. Zuko does not fit into this equation at all.

I also noticed you mention Haru and not Jet, someone Katara is most definitely interested in. Jet and Zuko look strikingly similar and if Jet is Katara's type, I see no reason why Zuko wouldn't be, although I will admit this is speculation, but it's pretty well founded if you just... look at both of them lol.

Katara is welcome to have her own taste. I have no issue with that, but what I find odd is that the guy she ends up with is one she shows little to no interest in during the show and the ones she explicitly shows interest in look nothing like her canon love interest and are instead tall and handsome. Your argument could carry some weight if she actually ends up with Aang when she's older, but she doesn't.

And also we don't need to see her express any canonical interest in Zuko to ship it. We're here for concepts and the chemistry, although I can see how that can be confusing to someone who's main argument for their ship is that its canon and everyone else should just move on.

Please go enjoy canon on your own. You're more than welcome to, anon. I encourage you to do so and to block any tags that may upset you in the future.

#anti kataang #anti aang #zutara #pro zutara #anti bryke #katara #seriously katara is awesome #she is such an amazing role model #i know i only talked about it a little #but i mean it #she is great #i want to handle the discouragement of my passion the way she does #bc she always sticks up for what she believes in #we could all use a little katara

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