#( * ooc — but i believe that aang can save the world. )

[m00nchildwrites]

There is so much discourse over the Netflix Live Action, and a lot of it I find annoying BUT one of the main ones for me is people going on about the natla writing by claiming that they are "telling" more than "showing". Yet, in the same post, they are missing the point of some of the interactions between the characters by focusing only on the told instead of the complexity hidden between the lines in many cases. These actors are actually amazing. I'm beyond impressed with all of them tbh. But let me explain what I'm talking about with one example. There are so damn many, but I'm just going to point out one right now.

I see a lot of people's takes on the Natla Bumi as a grown man taking his anger out on a child and being extremely ooc, which shows that these people are only focusing on the obvious and- to channel Kakashi from Naruto- not looking beneath the underneath. While natla Bumi is different than the OG show, I personally like this version of Bumi. He feels more "real" while still feeling like Bumi. He is angry. He is angry and hurt to discover that it was his close friend who had been the Avatar. The Avatar that disappeared. The Avatar that ran and hid and let the war happen. People have to realize that this interaction is how Bumi finds out not only that his childhood friend that he thought was murdered all those years ago was alive this whole time, but that it was he who had the power to stop all of the terrible things that had happened since from happening. Of course, he is mad. Mad and hurt. He likely feels abandoned by his friend as well.

He is all of those things, but I feel like people are missing what else is going on.

Bumi was also trying to force Aang, who was a child of only 12, to realize what it would mean to be the Avatar that the world needed at that moment in time after 100 years of war. He is doing it from a place of hurt and anger and tiredness, and absolutely handling it the wrong way. BUT this Natla Bumi is way more believable as a real person than the exaggeratedly goofy and cartoonish character was in the OG.

Bumi in the Netflix Live Action was trying to teach Aang: "This is what it means to be the Avatar. This is the kind of hard choices you will have to make- that the world needs you to make." He clearly realized that his friend was essentially frozen in time. A fact that is alluded to when he asks him how he remained unchanged all these years. Bumi already knows the truth and is teasing him to hint that he is aware. This is disguised as a taunt because they are not alone in the room, and because the White Lotus is all about subtle messages to get their point across. I mean, they use pai sho to send messages for crying out loud, but I digress.

The point is that he knows Aang is still the same kid he knew all those years ago. He knows Aang is not ready to be what the world needs right at that moment. He knows Aang is still too innocent and idealistic. He might be acting mean to Aang, but let's not forget Bumi is in the White Lotus, and know he is not being mean without reason. He knows what he is doing and hopes that by trying to force Aang to "wake up" and see the reality of the world and his role, maybe Aang will be better prepared for what must come. The scene with the roof collapsing and Bumi trying to make Aang choose who to save just exacerbates this lesson. That clearly reads as him trying to get Aang to push himself, perhaps to the use of the Avatar state, but if nothing else, to the point of hardening enough with resolve needed to face the difficult choices that Bumi (& everyone else) knows must be made. IE Aang must kill the Fire Lord to end this war. After all, energy bending is not known, remember? The death of the Fire Lord by the hands of the Avatar is the only way the war can end, and Bumi, King of Omashu and White Lotus member, knows this. Just as he knows sweet and innocent Aang of his childhood is not ready to be the battle harden Avatar the world needs, but he has to be. Thus, Bumi tries to push Aang into that readiness in a way he thinks is right.

And, let's not forget how OG Bumi put creeping crystal on 2 kids and let it slowly grow to the point of almost suffocating them. But no one questions that OG Bumi was always good and that he was trying to teach Aang a lesson in the original show, and never intended to let Katara and Sokka be suffocated to death. Right? Right.

Of course, in the end, in the Netflix Live Action, Aang is the one teaching Bumi the lesson. The lesson that the Avatar doesn't have to do this task alone. Bumi had seen so much in his years that he forgot what it meant to have a friend at your side to face things with, and that is what we watch Aang remind him of.

In sum, people watch the OG characters do some of the same things that they are mad about in the Netflix LA, and yet they give the OG characters the benefit of the doubt that it was meant well while demonizing the NATLA version for doing essentially the same kind of thing. So either people's watching literacy has decayed since the OG show

OR

People are so dead set on hating on the Live Action and any other adaptation, and it never actually mattered how much was put into it because they are always going to find something to hate about it.

And people wonder why we haven't been given more ATLA content... 🙄

[kataraslove]

“people only ship kataang because they hate zutara” is SUCH a ridiculous (and, as op mentioned, very entitled) thing to say. a quick scroll through our blogs could demonstrate that people enjoy kataang for various reasons. personally, i enjoy kataang because the relationship has major thematic elements tied in with the series, they have tons of parallels between the two, their final arcs mirror each other, and their relationship (both platonic and romantic) is the foundation of avatar the last airbender. there’s a reason why katara is the one to narrate the opening theme and why katara’s the one to find aang and why the show is a documentation of her indescribable hope and belief of aang through and through (“but i believe aang can save the world.”) there’s a reason why every season ends with a hug between katara and aang. speaking of hugs, what other ship could i write an entire meta about on their hugs alone? you don’t spend time in kataang spaces (or, from the looks of it, any space outside of zutara) therefore how could you possibly understand why people enjoy the ship outside of “they hate my rival otp :((“ also anon, a word of advice, people who hate zutara also - guess what - more often than not dislike kataang. i’ve seen plenty of people say, “i can’t stand both zutara and kataang. katara deserves better.”

speaking of katara deserving better, the ship war has less become less of an issue of katara’s happiness and more of, “the writers didn’t cater to my demands. therefore, i am going to spend every moment of my time being miserable over the series and making fandom a hell scape over the last 20 years for anyone who doesn’t ship zutara or enjoys the canon.” this is why people start despising your ship. simply because despite being the most popular ship in the fandom, none of you guys understand what preferences mean in fandom. if people dislike zutara, let them! if people want to ship something else, let them! if people enjoy canon, let them! there’s tons of people who also enjoy both kataang and zutara - are you going to rule them out as well? call them fake shippers because you don’t understand the concept of multishipping?

and you know what, maybe you are right. maybe people ship kataang because the fandom content revolves around them in a committed relationship, where there aren’t ooc headcanons of the two cheating on their respective partners. maybe people are uncomfortable with katara dressed in all red, devoid of all her cultural expression, sporting a fire nation emblem in place of her mother’s necklace, and ruling the nation that decimated her people, with fandom preaching that it’s the feminist girlboss ending that she deserved (it’s not). maybe they’re tired of fandom spaces that are constantly criticizing every element of the show and making it absolutely insufferable to have various interpretations of the characters. for whatever reasons they may have for hating zutara, that’s a reflection of YOUR fandom and your fan content and behaviour.

I'm convinced people only ship kataang because they hate zutara. but I'm glad people care so much about katara and her happiness that we still fight about it ten years later. the ten years ship war? lol

That's not how shipping works. Sure, some people might say "Thank God Kataang happened because Zutarians didn't deserve to have their ship become canon" but people don't make fanfic, fanart, fan videos, metas, and entire blogs dedicated to a ship they don't actually like just to spite other people.

There are even cases like mine in which I went from "Kataang is cute, but not my thing" to actually really thinking about their relationship and concluding they ARE indeed a perfect match - not out of spite for Zutarians, but because their "arguments" as to why the ship was supposedly bad were so blatantly false, that it made me look at the real thing differently.

And while people will always disagree about what would make a character happy (and that keeps fandoms alive) and discussions are not bad, ship wars are something else. It leads to bullshit like the stuff that made me create this blog: the non-stop harassment of anyone that dares to ship anything other than Zutara. That is peak "I'm an entitled baby who was never told no before and never had to deal with things not revolving around my tastes."

[nathenos]

quit being a weak bitch

sorry can’t read this i’m sleep xoxo

[kyu-gsoo]

The warmth of a waterbender

For Kataang Week 2020.

Day 1: Keeping Warm

Word Count: 749 words

Summary: There are days where Aang hates being a firebender. On these days, the hate he harbors is only soothed by a certain waterbender. 

Author’s note: Let me just say that even though I have no friends in this fandom it feels so great to be a part of and actively contribute to one after so long. I cannot believe my love for A:TLA and Kataang have also resurrected my love for writing. I am so incredibly happy that I want to cry. Anyways, writing is probably shit because I’m rusty and characters might be OOC because I’ve never written Kataang before, so bear with me ;__;

He remembers her face when he burned her, all those years ago. He remembers feeling broken and wretched and distraught all at once. Katara had run away from him crying, hurt and betrayal reflected in her eyes while he stood there helplessly feeling an awful aching in his chest. The vile feeling in the pit of his stomach only solidified his decision.

“I’m never going to firebend again.” he’d said like a fool, knowing full well how unrealistic it was, and meaning it with the entirety of his heart.

Tonight, at a hundred and twenty-three years old, he recounts that memory with the very person he’d hurt cuddled in the space of his arms. 

They lie together on the floor.

Katara’s voice rings clearly. “How could you blame yourself for that? Aang, you were just a kid. You were only twelve.” She lays a hand on his cheek, bringing his face to hers. “And you never meant to hurt me.” 

“But I did,” Aang replies in a clipped tone. He averts his eyes in shame more than anything else. What did his intention matter, compared to the effect of his careless actions? He never even dreamed to see that look on her face. All the light snuffed out of his eyes when he remembered that she had made that face towards him, because of him. 

“I’m not saying you didn’t.” Katara remarks gently. She knows this revelation hurts him. “But that’s how I learned about my healing powers. I’ve saved so many people with my healing abilities. And I have you to thank for making me realize them.”

He swallows thickly, his throat bobbing. He wishes he could somehow swallow all the dread and guilt too. “I was a catalyst.” He murmurs. “Your healing abilities would have come to surface one way or another.” Then, softer, Aang continues, “It shouldn’t have taken me hurting you for you to learn.”

“Sweetie,” Katara starts, thumbing his right cheek. He still won’t look at her. “It was a learning experience for both of us.” She sits up to straddle his lap, and he rises with her, leaning his forehead on her shoulder. “You’ve learned and grown so much since then.” She kisses his arrow and continues before he can get a word in. “And I know you’re afraid because you think you have the means to hurt me with your firebending. You’re not wrong.” A pause. It’s so silent, she can hear his breathing. “But you have the means to protect me with it, too.”

There is a shift in the air, and just like that, it’s like the world is right again.

Aang looks up at her and cracks a smile, finally. There is warmth in his heart and Katara is the source of it. How did he get so lucky, he thinks as he reaches up to kiss her. How did he manage to find a person so beautiful and forgiving and patient and understanding? Then, have this person love him wholeheartedly, flaws and all?

When they part, Aang watches as the entire sun shines through Katara’s eyes. He’s reminded that he’s so in love with her. 

She lets a little laugh escape in victory. “And besides,” Katara whispers in a lighter tone now, “if there’s one thing your firebending is good for, it’s keeping the cold away.” She hugs onto his shoulders then, and he pulls her down the rest of the way until they tangle into each other.

They succumb to sleep then, with his heart at peace finally. Aang knows there will be days where he relives these feelings again. But Katara will soothe these open wounds over like she’s done time and time again tirelessly, and they both know it’s not her healing abilities he has to thank for that. These abilities come not from Katara the Healer, nor Katara the Warrior, but Katara the woman that’s devoted her entire being to loving Aang. 

  There’s one last thing that floats at the back of his mind before he drifts off. He can’t help but think that she was wrong about her last statement. Aang may have the energy of a thousand suns ignited in his core. But at the end of the day, as Yue’s spirit glistens in the shape of the moon, it’s Katara’s embrace that keeps him warm at night.

[firelxdykatara]

Why do you think Zuko was out of character when he hired Sparky Sparky Boom Man ? And by the way am I the only who doesn't' have a problem with Zuko's characterization in the first half of book 3 ? I see a lot of people saying that they turned him into a bad boy or he was ooc but wasn't that the point ? Zuko was trying to be someone he wasn't. I don't know maybe i am not seeing something.

Mmmmm ok there are two different things here, and I’ll start by addressing the second: Zuko’s behavior in the first half of book 3.

To that, I will say that I actually don’t have a problem--overall--with his characterization there, because it made sense. As you said, Zuko was trying to force himself to fit into a space he no longer belonged. He was trying to be the Crown Prince his father wanted, he was the prodigal son returneth home triumphant after his defeat of the dastardly Avatar. He had everything he wanted--his honor, his father’s approval (but not, as he would come to realize, his father’s love), even a nice noble girlfriend of whom his father and the nobility at large would approve.

And it was only after he had everything he’d been searching for since his banishment, that he realized he actually had none of it. His honor wasn’t something he could get back from someone else, his father’s approval was conditional on the lie Azula had told him, his girlfriend didn’t understand him (largely because of the changes he’d undergone while banished and later exiled) and probably never would and their relationship was based on nothing but superficial attraction and his sister’s machinations. Nevermind his father’s love, which he never should have had to earn in the first place.

So of course Zuko was angry and emotionally volatile, prone to explosions of anger and frustration because he had no outlet for his pain, no means of conceptualizing why he was so desperately unhappy despite the fact that he finally had everything he’d ever wanted (or so he thought). It wasn’t until he finally had his own self-realization--and came to accept that his father, and his nation, was wrong, to maim a thirteen-year-old boy and to wage a war that brought nothing but pain and destruction to the people of the world--that he was able to look his father in the face and say ‘you were cruel, you harmed me and I did not deserve it, I’m leaving to help the Avatar and you can’t stop me, you have no power over me’, and leave.

(Notably, while he’s still somewhat emotionally volatile with the gaang, he’s considerably happier and healthier with them, because he’s no longer trying to force himself to fit back into a society he had outgrown. Once he becomes the Fire Lord it is within his power to change that society, but while he’s with the gaang he settles for learning the true meaning of fire and helping his new friends save the world.)

However, let me circle back around to one particular point: Combustion Man, and why I think hiring him was very OOC for Zuko, even as he was in the first half of book 3.

Because here’s the thing: the core of Zuko’s character has always been compassion and empathy. That is what got him scarred for life by his own father--it was compassion for his people and empathy for their lives that lead him to speak out during that fateful war meeting, staring down men more than twice his age and demanding they treat their own people better.

Ozai tried to burn away Zuko’s compassion, but, and here’s the critical bit, it didn’t. fucking. work. Because you see Zuko making the compassionate choice, again and again, even in book 1. He cares more about his uncle’s safety than the mission he’s been on for three years, and that is shown in episode seven of book one--so, almost from the beginning, we see that there is something more important to him than capturing the Avatar, and that’s his Uncle. But we also see that Zuko is never fighting to kill, or even maim. Suki’s village burning is an unfortunate side effect of a firebending, well, bending fire around a bunch of flammable buildings, but Zuko is not given to wanton cruelty or destruction for destruction’s sake--he doesn’t stick around to hurt the people who were harboring the avatar any of the times he catches up to the gaang and finds them surrounded by people willing to protect them.

Which, yes, you can absolutely quote katara and talk about the not as big of a jerk as you could have been award, but it’s still important to Zuko’s overall arc and the fact that Zuko is not the primary villain, even in book 1. Because Zhao is right there, being a primo bastard, to the point where Zuko even saves Aang from his clutches--and, sure, you could say that was just because he didn’t what Zhao to be the one who takes the Avatar back, but at the end of it all he didn’t give chase when Aang ran, letting him go and instead returning to his ship.

Then, of course, at the end of book 1, what do we see? Zuko, attempting to save Zhao’s life. This was a man he hated, a man who’d tried to kill him multiple times, a man who was competing with him to try and take the Avatar (and was far more cruel and excessive about his methods), but Zuko still reached out a hand to save him when La snatched him up. He tried to save the life of a man he hated and had no reason to want alive, because he’s a compassionate person and he didn’t want to see even a man he hated die like that. Zhao rejected his hand and ultimately sealed his own fate, but Zuko still tried. And then, of course, he spent book 2 on something of a roller coaster, emotionally and mentally, but he was still compassionate at his core, despite attempts to obfuscate it. He stole Song’s ostrich horse, but he helped Lee and his family, and didn’t lash out when his identity was discovered and he was ultimately rejected. He had such a crisis of conscience when he saved appa that he got sick, something that has been memed to death (especially lately), but it wasn’t because he did one (1) nice thing--because we’ve seen him make compassionate choices already--it was because he did a good thing that also jeopardized his one last chance and getting what he wanted (ie capturing the Avatar and returning home).

Now, obviously, he made the wrong choice at the end of Book 2, despite that experience--because when he freed Appa, getting what he wanted was still a somewhat distant prospect, but Azula was right there holding it out to him on a silver platter. Of course he couldn’t reject it! Even when that meant turning on his Uncle, even when that meant ultimately throwing Katara’s compassion in her face, he had the chance right then and there to just go home, and he needed to take it. (Not only because of his need for closure, but because narratively, he story would’ve felt rushed and incomplete if he didn’t get that chance to go home, have everything he wanted... and realize he didn’t actually want it at all anymore, let alone need it. Having said that, I love a good ���Zuko joined the gaang at the end of book 2′ fic as much as the next Zuko fan. I just don’t think it would have worked as well in canon [although I still think he should’ve joined the gaang sooner, but that’s a whole other rant].)

What does all of this have to do with Zuko hiring Sparky Sparky Boom Man? It’s simple: I do not believe for one second that Zuko did not feel an immense surge of relief at the thought that Aang might have survived.

Now, obviously, this would have been followed by a surge of terror--because if Aang was alive, and his father found out, then what the fuck would happen to him???--which is why I think it would’ve made much more sense for Zuko to hire a tracker. Or, at least, someone he thought was a tracker. Azula slipping him a name of someone she knows to actually be an assassin, perhaps? Just to pile that guilt on Zuko’s shoulders should he be successful, or simply hedging her bets??? Who knows. But something other than Zuko knowingly hiring an assassin to track down and murder a child. (And all of his friends lmfao since Zuko would know they wouldn’t just let the dude kill him.) Especially when Zuko had never tried to kill anyone, even when he had the chance, in the entire show to that point.

Anyway, yeah, that’s why I think that Zuko’s behavior in the first half of book 3 made sense, and that him hiring an assassin was super ooc and I don’t vibe with it.

[ao3feed-zukka]

I Prob'ly Shouldn't Brag, But Dag, I Amaze And Astonish - An Avatar Sokka AU (Book One)

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/3vaLCJ6

by YellowTurtle21

Water. Earth. Fire. Air. Long ago, the four nations lived together in harmony. Then, everything changed when the Fire Nation attacked. Only the Avatar, master of all four elements, could stop them, but when the world needed him most, he vanished.

"Whoa, hang on, Katara. It's my story, I'll tell it." "You don't even believe in bending or spirits even though they're part of your job! But fine, you tell the story."

Okay, now that Katara's gone, I can tell ya how it happened, Sokka style. We found Aang trapped in an iceberg and then Gran-Gran told us I was the avatar. Now I gotta learn magic bending shit to save the world. And manage feelings while doing it, I guess. Using my boomerang would probably be easier, but I've been told that I have to use magic bending to do it.

Words: 199, Chapters: 1/?, Language: English

Series: Part 1 of Avatar Sokka AU

Fandoms: Avatar: The Last Airbender

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Categories: Multi

Characters: Sokka (Avatar), Katara (Avatar), Aang (Avatar), Zuko (Avatar), Toph Beifong, Suki (Avatar), The Gaang (Avatar), Azula (Avatar), Mai (Avatar), Ty Lee (Avatar), Iroh (Avatar), Everyone is here pretty much

Relationships: Aang & Toph Beifong & Katara & Sokka & Suki & Zuko, Azula & Mai & Ty Lee, Sokka/Zuko (Avatar), Suki/Yue (Avatar)

Additional Tags: Avatar!Sokka AU, Aang is still alive, Raava got tired of waiting, Raava was still awake in the iceberg and decided to attach to Sokka at birth, Sokka is still skeptical even though he can bend, He mainly relies on his smarts and boomerang still, Yue's gonna live, Zuko Joins The Gaang Early (Avatar), Maybe - Freeform, Well we'll see how it goes, The title is a hamilton lyric lol, how do you tag?, no beta we die like jet, I haven't actually finished the series yet, Sokka deserves it, Pakku and Kanna do not get back together, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Swearing, Canon-Typical Violence, maybe slightly OOC?, POV First Person, Roku and Sozin are both genderbent because I can, (and to keep the homoeroticism but also only have two males in a row), Implied/Referenced Homophobia, Only in the fire nation tho, Roku's wife is still female lol, Bisexual Disaster Sokka, Aro/Ace Toph!, Trans Suki, gay Zuko, Pansexual Aang, Katara is the token straight, she's very supportive tho, Suki Joins the Gaang Early, Yue gets pants!, Sokka is telling the story to... Izumi? One of Katara and Aang's kids? I dunno, You Decide

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/3vaLCJ6

[tellthestoryofmybrokendreams]

Wild Heart

Fandom: Avatar: the Last Airbender

Pairing: Zuko/Katara

Status: Complete

Words: 2,805

AO3 Link 

Next

Desc: Sometimes Zuko wonders if his horrible Agni Kai and banishment or his struggles - with his nation, his destiny, and himself...if all his hardships were worth it. But then he sees her smile.

A/N: Hello all! I'm obsessed with Bleachers, and so many of their songs fit Zutara. So I challenged myself to write a fic for every song. Here's the first one! These fics are ordered in the track order, not in chronological order. Cont...

Basically everything in here is like canon level, except it goes into a bit of detail about Zuko's scar and the healing process. Some of the flashback dialogue/information is taken directly from the show, or Zuko's prequel comic and "The Search". (Which aren't canon, but it's easier to steal from them than to try to get a read on Ozai or make up Fire Nation traditions lol.) I put a lot of effort in to keeping literally everything canon except the very ending, the only difference is that you see Zuko's thought process throughout. This was tough, considering in early season three he's pretty WACK and like ridiculously OOC, especially in "The Beach", and I hate it, but I wanted to show all those little ways that Zutara is still pretty damn canon. Bryke just made Aang their self-insert so he HAD to get the girl. 

Anyways, enjoy!

~

The Fire Lord sits in his study and looks over a proposition from the Earth Kingdom to impose sanctions on the Northern Water Tribe until they agree to help their sister tribe with rebuilding. He knew the first year after the war would be the hardest, but Spirits was this terrible. Every move, every decision, every little choice he made seemed to have boundless political repercussions. Was he endorsing this? Shaming that? At the last big meeting with the Fire Council and various noblemen of the country, he’d served wine to the attendees and apparently picked sides in an argument between two men who owned neighboring vineyards and both claimed the same bit of land between them.

Zuko sighs and rubs his eyes, dropping his head in his hands.

He was tired, he was confused, and he was more than a little fed up. Trials for those involved in the war were still ongoing, and he knew by the end of them all his army would be small and his prisons overflowed.

The other nations needed reparations, both in money and physical assistance as they rebuilt. He was happy to provide all the aid he could, but they needed so much help and the Fire Nation had to rebuild as well. The village his friends had described to him, the one destroyed by pollution from a Fire Army factory, was far from unique. It was clear to Zuko that his predecessors didn’t care very much about their people, or at least not at an individual level.

Was it all really worth this new life?

Zuko had lost his mother and his cousin when he was only eleven. He’d then endured abuse and manipulation from his father and sister ten times worse than before. He’d been indoctrinated into a culture of imperialism and superiority, hearing all throughout his childhood that his nation and his family were superior and deserved all the glory in the world.

Even with the presumption and arrogance he was surrounded and seduced by, he’d still been a source of shame for his father, and suffered for it. Azula was born lucky. He was lucky to be born. It was what his father had reminded him day after day when he couldn’t master firebending like Azula could, when he cared too much, when he spoke out of turn, when he expressed himself, whenever he was less than perfect.

He knows now, perfect in his father’s eyes is something he could never achieve. And if he had? Well, that would be a real reason to be ashamed.

And then he’d just wanted to go to a war meeting. He’d just wanted to show his father he was capable. That he was worthy of love and respect.

When he’d heard the general’s plans to send new recruits into battle as a diversion, like koala-lambs to the slaughter, he’d spoken out before he knew what he was doing. What he had known was that it was wrong, and that he’d hated it.

“You can’t sacrifice an entire division like that! Those soldiers love and defend our nation! How can you betray them!?”

“Prince Zuko! How dare you speak out of turn and oppose your superior! It is not your place to dispute General Himura’s plans, and to do so is an act of complete disrespect. There is only one response to your insolence, an Agni Kai!”

Zuko turned to General Himura, who must be a cowardly man to sacrifice their new recruits as a distraction instead of launching an invasion honorably.

“I am not afraid. I accept.”

At sundown, the Agni Kai began. Zuko may not have been as powerful as his sister, but he knew he could take a cowardly, and likely weak, old man. He had been confident, but when he turned to face Himura, he saw a face he’d never expect to oppose in a dueling arena. His father, Fire Lord Ozai.

Zuko fell to his knees, both in shock and submission. He couldn’t believe his father was prepared to duel him. Everyone knew who would win. But of course it was Ozai, he may have spoken against a general, but it was in the Fire Lord’s war room. Any disrespect in the Fire Lord’s sanctum is disrespect to the Fire Lord himself.

He could feel tears begin to well in his eyes as he bowed to Ozai, “Please Father! I only had the Fire Nation’s best interests at heart. I’m sorry for speaking out of turn!”

“You will fight for your honor!”

“I meant you no disrespect! I am your loyal son.”

“Rise and fight Prince Zuko!”

“I won’t fight you.”

“You will learn respect, and suffering will be your teacher!”

All Zuko could see as he looked up with tears rushing down his cheeks, was his father’s angry face. And then he raised his fist with white-hot flames blazing, and Zuko felt the worst pain he could ever imagine.

He woke up in the Palace medical chambers. He reached up to feel his damaged eye, and hissed at the pain of his bandages rubbing against the skin edging the burn. He couldn’t see anything from his left eye, and he prayed to the Spirits it was only because of the bandages.

His father stood above him, looking disgusted.

“Prince Zuko, you have shown yourself to be unworthy of the crown and unfit to stand upon the land of our noble ancestors. You are therefore stripped of your birthright and banished from the Fire Nation until you can prove your worth.”

Ozai turned and made his way to the door. Right before exiting, he turned back to his son, “I hope you will not be arrogant enough to keep your full head of hair after losing to the Fire Lord,” he sneered in cruel amusement, “No one likes a sore loser.”

Zuko pulls himself out of his memories and shakes his head to clear it. That was a long time ago. His father’s barbarism could no longer affect him.

Well, it did, but only in the ruined economy and society of the Fire Nation. Zuko no longer flinches when he enters the war room, nor does he feel the stab of pain and resentment in his chest when someone describes him as lucky in any capacity.

But his new life as Fire Lord, somehow boring and hard at the same time, and even all the strength he’d gained, doesn’t quite seem worth all his pain. Those three, almost four, years of searching desperately for the Avatar all across the globe, they weren’t fun. He’d had to face his father and his sister, two people who should have loved him unconditionally, and realize that they were twisted, evil people with no hope of being saved. He’d struggled with, and eventually accepted, the fact that nearly everything he’d learned throughout his childhood about the Hundred Year War and the man who started it was wrong. That what he was doing was wrong. He’d fallen into anger and hatred of himself more than once, despising himself for his actions, and the world around him for driving him to make them.

Really, was all that worth it?

And then his wife strides into his study with a smile on her face and makes her way to his side to give him a kiss. Katara settles into his lap and strokes his cheek tenderly, then snuggles into his chest and rests her head on his shoulder as she reads over the documents in his hand curiously.

“How’s my favorite Fire Lord doing today?”

He closes his eyes and leans into her hand. He can’t feel anything where Ozai burned him nearly five years ago, but he thinks he can always make out a ghost of his wife’s touch. She doesn’t even have to use her healing, there’s just something about her that makes the impossible seem otherwise.

“Better, now that you’re here,” he answers with a smile.

Thinking back, that’s sort of always been the case. His day has always been made better when Katara was around, even if that just meant Aang was close by. Really, even his past self, angry and stupid as he may have been, could appriciate her glowing brown skin and fierce blue eyes that never lost the love in them.

Even throughout his stupid decisions, his betrayal, and his repeated attempts to hurt them, she’s always seen right through him. She may not have trusted him, but she’d always known that beneath all the anger and hatred and animosity, he was really a scared kid who wasn’t sure what was right. Even when she’d yelled at him beneath Ba Sing Se, called him a terrible person and declared that as the Fire Lord’s son he was only capable of evil. Even when she blamed him for her mother, she knew. This time, she’d been the one covering things up with her anger, because she’d known that all he needed was to see the light. And honestly? She could have been just the person to help him.

When he’d offered up the story of his mother, desperate for her not to hate him, not even knowing why, she’d remembered the truth she’d always known. Her heart and hand reached out to him, and he took it. And really, he’d never let go. She’d apologized, and he’d confessed that he was considering choosing his own destiny. She’d even offered to heal his scar. And when she’d brushed her fingers across it, he’d known she was special, that she probably could heal it. Especially with that Spirit Water. Uncle had told him in their weeks at sea that the water from the Spirit Oasis could reverse death if the soul hadn’t left the body yet; he’d never imagined they’d give that away to the Avatar’s waterbending master.

But despite all this, he’d still been weak. He’d longed for his father’s love, convinced he had no one else’s. And he’d betrayed her. He’d fought her and the Avatar, and he’d stood aside in horror as Azula killed him.

“I thought you had changed!” she had yelled as they fought.

“I have changed,” he’d responded, and he had. He finally knew the truth, he just forced himself to ignore it.

“She has the Spirit Water,” he’d thought, trying to excuse it all. He’d get to go home, see the people and land he missed. His father would welcome him back with love, perhaps even hug him. His honor would be restored. It was everything Zuko had wanted.

And yet, it still didn’t feel right. All he could see when he went to bed every night was Katara, holding the Avatar’s body with a look of pure despair. He knew, even if he was loosening his grip on her hand, he still grasped her finger tips.

He’d kept a hold on them as he made his way through the beginning of the life he’d always wanted. Terrified of losing it if the Avatar resurfaced, he’d hired an assassin. And as soon as he’d gotten home, he’d collapsed on his bed and screamed, “Stupid stupid idiot why would you do that it’s not right he’s a child-”

This had run through his head on repeat, even as he’d tried to make it work with Mai. But she just hadn’t got it, hadn’t got him. He hadn’t been sure he’d made all the right choices, but she hadn’t seemed to care about his inner turmoil. Whenever he’d been concerned, her emotionless face had seemed to say “Why do you care so much? Why are you so freaked out? You’re the Fire Prince, what do you have to worry about?” She’d mostly wanted to kiss and laze about in that privileged way only royals could. He’d given her gifts, tried to be thoughtful, just like a boyfriend should. She’d just disregarded it, hadn’t even cared that he’d wanted them to be happy, he really had. And even though he’d fought with her and had no fun throughout their tiring relationship, he’d still gotten jealous of Ruon-Jian. She was the one who’d really wanted it, she was the one who had a crush on him when they were kids. And she still couldn’t keep her eyes off some idiot jock at a house party? She’d been chatting with him! She never chatted with anyone! He’d gotten angry, and he’d shoved Ruon-Jian. And then she’d yelled at him for not keeping his temper under control, and declared their relationship over. If he had been honest with himself, he would have known that it was a relief, a weight off his shoulders. But he’d still been deluding himself, and he’d still thought he wanted a perfect Fire Nation girlfriend.

The thought occurred to him once or twice that he needed Katara to lecture some sense into him, maybe smack him with a water whip a few times.

But he tried to make up with her, with Azula, with Ty Lee. They’d attempted to have a group therapy session, like they were normal teens with normal problems just contemplating their place in the Universe instead of four of the most important teens in the world at the time, each with a crucial role to play in the war they’d had no choice but to fight in.

He’d told them he was angry at himself, which was true, but he’d told them he didn’t know the difference between right and wrong anymore, which was a lie. He’d known the difference, but he’d still purposely chosen wrong and he was furious at himself for it. He’d silently cried himself to sleep that night, aching to reach out and take Katara’s hand properly, like he should have before, but knowing that he didn’t deserve to hold it then.

His uncle’s disappointment had hurt the most. And even though Iroh was so, so disappointed, he’d still sent that letter. As Zuko read the history of his great grandfathers, and heard Iroh explain the truth, he’d known Uncle was right. There was good and evil at war in him, confusing him, the good in his heart, and the evil forced into his mind over and over again. He’d known then his true destiny, to repeat this fight between good and evil carried out between two people who should love each other. Roku and Sozin were best friends and battle brothers. He and Azula were brother and sister.

And yet, selfishly, he’d stayed just a little bit longer. Mai was being good to him again and it was just so nice. He’d even let himself have a petty little Fire Court problem: he hadn’t thought he’d been invited to the war meeting. But he had! He’d gotten to sit at his father’s right hand and give his opinions without fear of getting a flaming fist to his good eye.

But then his opinion had led to Ozai and Azula deciding to burn the Earth Kingdom to the ground, and he had to admit the time for being selfish was long since past. He’d packed his things and prepared for the Day of Black Sun, writing a note to Mai explaining everything and timing his confrontation with his father so he’d have to listen instead of giving his son another scar.

And finally, he’d grabbed Katara’s hand properly. She pulled him up to his feet...and then tried to pull her hand away in fear of him gaining her trust again just to break it. He deserved it, obviously. But he fought to prove himself to her, and he did. Now her hand grabbed his tightly and pulled him close.

He would never let go again.

And now as they hold each other close once again, thoughts of family dancing at the back of their minds, he decides, definitively, that it was worth it. He’d do it all again, ten times worse, if it meant he could still have Katara.

“I will need your help on this one though my love, I’m afraid I’m far from understanding Water Tribe politics.”

She tosses her head back and laughs, and for the millionth time he memorizes her every detail. Her big, beautiful blue eyes, her long mahogany tresses she wears in Water Tribe braids pulled up into a Fire Nation top knot that holds her crown perfectly, her golden brown skin that always has that magical glow to it, the slope of her nose, the way her full lips curl in when she genuinely smiles...he could go on. He knows every little bit and bob of her body and he adores each one. Every night in their bed he lays a kiss to every inch of her, thanking the Spirits again and again for blessing him with this goddess.

He would do anything to keep them perfect like this, he knows it.

~

Further notes: For the record, my family and I had a huge debate on what degree Zuko's burn was and what level of damage it would have caused. It's weird since the scar's appearance suggests 3rd or 4th degree, but he can still hear and move his eye, suggesting 2nd. Eventually we settled on moderate 3rd degree and concluded that he lost sight in the eye but not movement. He's got a good amount of nerve damage, and his skin is likely leathery and tight. With modern medicine and skin grafting, he would have had a much better time, and if treated quickly enough he may have been able to eventually regain sight. Frustratingly, there isn't much documentation of thermal burns to the eyes and their effects, seeing as a burn like Zuko's is extremely rare. Generally, if your eye is burned your whole face is burned and they're usually more concerned with your ability to breathe.

[wisdomsfromeast]

Namaste 🙏

Welcome back guys! I was literally out for 2 months searching Fanfics which can compete my or replace my Azuko ship for the reasons I will tell you. Firstly some part of my morality and culture etiquette where I live in and traditions which are dear to me were heavily conflicting in my mind that should I support this Incest shipping or not. Some said should and other said shouldn't. The other one overwhelmed plus having a sibling elder sister made me more conflicted that how could I? it's so taboo? If I write one what my public image would be? So I stopped supporting Zucest uninstalled the app and started searching good Fanfics of Other shipping which can counter Azuko. I literally read 5 to 7 fanfics a day just to have Zuko or Azula have peace in their life with their partners and you know what I got unnatural hatred or bashing of either Sibs which made either of their life miserable which I hated the most. Zuko centric ones got Azula either dead or made her total maniac. Azula centric ones made Zuko's future miserable or nearly made him small as if he was weak and Idiot from birth and Ozai was right. So let's start with shippings with their fanfics which could have countered Azuko

Zutara

The most celebrated pairing will ever find in ATLA fandom. Every day you will find thousands of writers write for this pair in FF.NET . Even though I hated this pair so much because of three main reasons. First Mutual distrust from the beginning. Second Opposite mindset. Third Impatient Katara.

I gave in through I read one of the best ones My Heart Burns for you

Sometimes it's just only beginning

Around the Sun

Fall of the White Lotus

AU ones like The Undying Fire Series

The Palace etc.

All of these are literally lack the most important thing attraction through sight even though writers force it its still not appealing. The dangerous thing which writers miss is suspicion my lord even though they are friends and Zuko sacrifice everything for stubborn Katara she always suspects and can't even read him. Zutara whatever you call it. It's failed creation just to feel love life for Zuko.

Sokkla

Reverse Zutara really. Sokka has brains and can control strong girls like Toph and Mai but Azula is too much for him to bear I series he outright fear her. Only in The Day of The Black Sun episode had some courage because she didn't had her bending when she got back he screams literally screams. I read

Gladiator 107 chapters

Airship Down with its sequel

Retroactive

Smoke Demon Series of MadameAtomic Bomb

Opposite Elements AU

Gentlemen of Weapons AU

Dishonoured

These are the best ones but what found the worst is they are not at all commited to each other especially Sokka is shown so reluctant and Azula is as casual as Ty Lee which both of them aren't. Sokka either cheats or leads himself in love triangle which I hate the most because one of the life either gets destroyed or damage.

Maiko

The worst one for me I really feel sorry for Mai but she should have encourage herself to be with Zuko in his childhood days if Zuko could have spoke in War room out of turn she could have been with him in banishment. She could have shown the courage which she have show in Boiling Rock I liked that. Zuko could have known more If Mai led herself open up more. Zuko even left her this show only one side love or to say infatuation Zuko is so cold in Maiko which he isn't. Even though few writers really focus them like.

Miscalculation and Equivalent Exchange by Ablaster86 (I read them)

They are literally used as side couple for Tyzula or Kataang which doesn't show how their relationship can develop and become one. Either their Marriage fails or they breakup which hurts me the most.

Tyzula

Yes most popular even though why I don't know. No Offence to LGBT community neither in the show both of them are shown homosexuals Ty Lee is flirty with cute boys as she claims and Azula is bitchy and frustrated that how boys hover around Ty Lee not me even though she so beautiful as jewel but boys fear her. No signs of romantic feelings for each other rather Ty Lee is bullied by Azula every time as a servant to keep her under her feet. Dominant love relationships exists I like those but Azula and Ty Lee's relationship is like Lion and Cheetah. Once got a chance strike back and free yourself. Just because Korrasami was promoted by creators bring Tyzula in counter. Just because Zuko has Mai and boys fear Azula bring Ty Lee with her who is most terrified from her. Somehow I read some

Restraint and Aphelion it's sequel

Broken Dragon and Fireflight by Nikipinz

Both in them Ty Lee acts like a friend in need but again Ty Lee is OOC a girl who freed herself from a Psychotic girl may help her in future but not sacrifice herself for friend she hated inwardly.

Zukka

Really they are Bros and thanks to Zuko he got his trust from a guy called him in names Angry Jerkbender before.

Jetko

Seriously I don't get just pair Zuko with everyone. I read

Foxfire and The Viper lizard tales

I couldn't get it what those writers wrote. How could Jet tolerate Firebenders or Fire Nation citizens. It will require whole character arc for Jet to understand Fire Nation like Zhao to believe in balance and harmony amongst nations in Rufftoon's Water Tribe.

Jetzula

The Palace

Again you know it will so hard for Azula even redeem one to have a peasant as a partner for life same goes to Jet to accept a Firebender.

Zukkaang

To much 😧😧 Zuko and Aang are friends please for God's sake bring characters those are ingrained with same sex attraction. I can't stand this ship didn't even bother to read any of its fanfics.

Azutara

Enemies till last breath and one killed one's last hope. One lost by one in her day of coronation anytime each see one another either of one will die. This pairing can't be supported because each caused huge pain which can't be relieved they can be distant friends but can't lovers. Even though I read one

Measure Each Step to Infinity

This one made me sad of Aang and Katara is too much selfish which she isn't. She likes to be concubine of her former enemy but hates to like live with a man whom she had all hopes of world peace and gave her life to save him. This is impossible! Writer didn't gave good reasons sudden changes.

Toko

This is a very interesting pairing Toph knows Zuko very well and in future they can understand each other as couple but one flaw which only limits them just to be friends is that Toph is a freedom loving girl and Zuko is honour bound to traditions and destined to be a good Fire Lord.

Embers

Lava and it's sequel

Just a Girl I recommend this one

Toph made Zuko to come out of his turmoil and become a master I just didn't like Azula being killed that was extreme.

Jinko

I read Ashes to Ashes but Zuko and Jin again I must say infatuation from Jin side. Zuko is really dork.

Zuki

Lost cause what can I say just to counter Zucest these ships are being made

Lost and Found by Tubendo

Addicted to Love

First one writer didn't knew when to start where both start to like each other. Second is just nonsense a Lord of a Nation started having crush on a Guard who has a love in her life more stronger than other's attraction come on Zuko isn't that kind of guy.

Ty luko

"I know you" "You don't know me" Those are heavy words Ty Lee used for Zuko she knows his depression and messed up life give by his parents. Even though show doesn't show any direct interaction between them except "I know you" Zuko acts as a moral support for Ty Lee. Boiling Rock is another big example Zuko's freedom gave Ty Lee hope to be free.

I know you

Good Fanfic I recommend.

One remained (Azulaang) I will give my detail analysis of mine in a next post because I read 10 of them and it's huge and I am not satisfied.

After whole lot of reading, self introspection and guidance from which I believe Scriptures. I literally fought a battle inside me and tried to find out which will win and Honestly Zucest won seriously just because it was incest I dropped it by societal norms. I was writing a Fic but stopped because what people will say? Crazy, deranged? But I can't resist it's too hot for them to be siblings and not to be intimate other wise I find that if they really wished to repair their relationship stop their all hatred of all those years they need love which will break those barriers and too much love always brings eros. So what's the big deal.

The Fire Royals allow Females to be Fire Lords so how come line continues if Female becomes Firelord and marries a noble even a sage which are below the rank. Household norms in every medieval culture is patriarchal. Which means child first belongs to man and to his family which results child to be a noble and not royal from his mother's line and that child will become the Fire Lord from that line of Family and the Royal line will end. Could it be possible for Princesses of Fire Nation got married with nobles or aristocrats and not to loose their claims to the throne are the Fire Royals that stupid that this will end their line if their females get the throne. Inbreeding is persistent among royals only just keep their divine status

As Azula says "Power is something you are born with" will her child get that power if she marry noble which are below the rank. Big No

Wisdomsfromeast

Timeout !!!

[slowdivcs]

get to know my muses ! ( sparknotes style . . . ) click their names for their full about page

EMI - kim yerim/20/she&her/theatre kid - future emmy award winning actress bc it’s her name and she deserves it duh ! self-doubt masked by a v high ego who speaks her mind and runs a poppin’ twitter. bit of a brat but in a lovable way, for the most part. rly short bt not scared to start a fight with you. super comfortable and affectionate, needs attention 24/7. has a secret stuffed animal collection

ANDY - kim taehyung/23/he&him/business major & ex-artist - youngest of the jeong siblings, appears cold but loyal to his core. had a bit of bad luck, used to play piano, paint, and do photography. now he’s focused on making amends with his dad aka getting an actual degree. actually super poetic abt life & adores nature. sometimes a bit chaotic when he goes out. big flirt

SIENNA - jung eunji/26/she&her/assistant manager at record label - second oldest of the jeong siblings, played the mom role until she moved out at 18 and started working for herself. independent to a fault, badass with a good heart. lives in leather jackets and wears heels to make do for her short height. married to her job kinda gal. drives an old jeep and likes to have a can of beer out in fresh air when she gets a break

MILO - reece king/24/he&him/part-time book clerk & daycare assistant. mature from a young age. lived and breathed books when he was young. a good listener but mysterious abt his own life. introvert with a heart of gold that was pressured in his teenage years by the wrong kids. honestly jst vibing and trying to live his life by his own standards. big anime nerd. writes poetry in his spare time but you’ll never see it 

their pinterest can be found HERE .

to be continued with more ? . . . 👀

[marmrlade]

unbelievable how my body decided to catch a cold. lil weak ass. literally disgusting. 

anyways im gonna try n work on getting back into the ~ groove ~ of things, if anyone doesn’t have my dscrd it’s @ ERYS#0140 come listen to me talk abt how taehyung’s look at variety has ruined my life

[nathenos]

hisshiss kisskiss bitch !

kisskiss hisshiss bitch !

[purplekyber]

Rebellions are Built on Hope

summary: The star wars au that nobody asked for.

notes: born of my original trilogy rewatch, featuring: extremely ooc zuko and katara, light smut (lime not lemon: as in literally a few sentences tops/implied), a shaky star wars au, and my 1am delirium filled writing. Enjoy, maybe. Zutara Month 2017 day four: Enemies to Lovers.

ao3

Katara is from an icy planet, she is practically melting in the sticky heat that permeates this crowded Cantina on some force-forsaken swamp planet in the outer rim. It is her years of diplomatic training, poise and control drilled into her by her mother and father as Princess of the Southern Tribe, that keeps her acting as if nothing bothers her. To everyone in this bar she is simply some nobody, nursing a drink at the bar. She is not Senator Katara, not Southern Princess of Aquitaes Prime, and definitely not Rebel spy, codename: La, waiting to meet fellow spy, codename: Agni, in order to obtain vital information pertaining to the war plans of Phoenix King and suspected sith lord Ozai.

The Rebel Alliance, otherwise known as The White Lotus, has had an inside source passing on information for a very long time. Katara, in her role as senator, served as the go between for Agni and her Father, she had strong suspicions who her mysterious partner was but now that the Imperial senate was dissolved she hadn’t imagined she would find out.

Of course fate would have it that Agni had been compromised in some way. She had got the seven-way-encrypted message on her comlink with the coordinates for a dingy bar on the outer rim, about as far away from Caldera as one could get, about a month after her escape from Caldera.

As Katara waits she takes in the sickly sweet tang of her drink settling on her tongue, brown curls sticking to her neck in the muggy air, smooth, bright music swaying the crowd and she wonders at the simplicity of it all. How, far away from Caldera and the War and all the division and suffering in the galaxy, there is simple enjoyment in music and liquor. She finds her thoughts drifting to her time in the Imperial Senate. There was never anything simple about life on Caldera. The senate was a joke, a puppet show meant to appeal to the people of the galaxy, to lull them into a false sense of harmony that the Four Nations Alliance was not dead and gone under the tyranny of the Galactic Fire Empire. Her time was spent pandering to stuffy old senators, negotiating meaningless deals, avoiding the pervasive gaze of the Emperor and trying not to punch the Prince in the face for his insolence and idiocy.

That stupid, good-for-nothing, nerf-herding, son-of-a-baantha, flyboy, show-off who acted like all that mattered was his Father’s praise that never came and as if all the suffering in the rest of the galaxy couldn’t equate to his. She couldn’t help but hate him, if it weren’t for him, the senate might still be intact and some semblance of order might still remain.

They had ended up in the Senate prison together, when the Princess had thrown her in for rebel sympathies. Supposedly, he was in for the same reason. His regime, and everything that his Family stood for had ended the Jedi Order, had ripped peace from the Galaxy, had taken her mother from her and she hated him for it. This had all spilled out in angry yelling to the Prince himself, all hot tears and seething rage that had been snuffed out in a second but the quiet, raw voice that had said ‘that’s something we have in common’. In the Force she could feel his grief as clear as day and piercing as any blade and it broke her heart.

She hated him for that as well.

He had earned her pity, her trust, her concern and he had thrown it all away when he had helped his sister try to kill her rescuers. She had begged him to join her and he had knocked her brother down, leaving the Princess a clear path for her lightning to meet Aang’s chest.

It was the grace of the Force that got them out, Katara’s frantic shooting while her brother piloted them away. It was Katara’s time-honed skill in medicine and the Force-powered healing that saved Aang’s life. The Galaxy’s last hope for peace between light and dark.

And after all that happened, what weighs on her most is the bitter taste of betrayal and the tear in her heart that Prince Zuko had left.

She hates him.

She can still hear his voice in her head…

“Senator Katara?” it whispers and Katara whips around when she realises that was not in her head.

Suddenly everything falls into place and she wants to cry.

“The quest is for truth above all else” she says, and she hopes to all hope that she is wrong at the same time, praying she is right.

“The Lotus opens wide for those who know her secrets” he shoots back, tension visibly seeping out of him.

Of-kriffing-course.

Of course Agni would turn out to be the one person she would rather strangle then have a civil conversation with.

“La, let’s get out of here. I have information that needs to get to the Grandmaster as soon as possible.” he seems to calm, flat, as if this is rehearsed. Katara wants to yell and scream but she cannot do that here so she follows him.

In the safety of the swamp, where no one can overhear, Katara whirls towards Zuko and holds him in place with the Force.

“I can’t believe you are Agni, you betrayed me, you betrayed us all, you could have come with us when I escaped but you tried to kill the last of the Jedi!”

“Katara you don’t understand, I couldn’t leave yet. My father, I knew he was planning something and I hate to find out what it was. He had to believe I was loyal… and I… I wanted him to…” Zuko trails off, suddenly seeming so small. Katara drops her Force hold an he falls to the ground.

“He’s going to burn the Earth Quadrant until it’s nothing more than dust and ashes, and then he’ll move onto the everyone else. He’s building a machine, a destroyer of worlds. The Death Star. And I have the plans to it. Please Katara, hate me all you want, but try to understand, I had to.”

Katara sinks to her knees in front of him and glares.

“Why should I believe you.”

“Search my feelings, I’m telling the truth.” and Katara does. She reaches out through the force and he drops shields she hadn’t even noticed. His mind is a tempest, full of pain and rage and bitterness, drowning in loss and loneliness but underneath it all is a tiny spark of hope and a deep honesty. She feels his emotions, his anger at himself, his guilt over betraying her… and then she’s slipping deeper and she’s seeing his memories. A sister’s taunts, his father’s saber coming down to burn his face, his mother… screaming as his father sends bolts of lightning through her for daring to use the Force… his mother teaching him- and Katara falls backwards like she’s been slapped.

He is just like her. They are force sensitive. They are lonely. Their mothers are dead and gone and they are full of rage but they have hope.

She doesn’t notice her own tears until the Prince’s thumb brushes them away.

“I’m Zuko, it’s nice to meet you” she looks him in the eyes and in their bright gold she sees everything he is trying to say to her.

“I’m Katara, let’s get out of here”

They are on her tiny ship, hurtling through hyperspace and neither can say a word.

There is still so much anger and hurt between them but there is a sense of solidarity.

Katara looks up and catches Zuko’s eye.

He is staring at her.

She is young, she is lonely, she could die soon.

He is attractive, he understand, and he is here.

So she grabs his collar and holds her face close to his.

He meets her eyes and she knows he is thinking exactly the same thing.

She doesn’t hate him so much, she thinks, when their lips are pressed together. She doesn’t hate him so much when his mouth is on her neck, and his hands are down her pants, or when she reciprocates.

He is dangerous (but so is she). He is still a nerf-herder. He is still a pretentious jerk, but he kisses her and he is here and she is not so lonely anymore.

Tomorrow is a new day, and maybe she will hate him even less when the plans for his father’s defeat are set into motion. She thinks, with enough time, she might even forgive him, but right now she will kiss him until her lips are raw and hold onto their shared hope for a better future.

[slowdivcs]

i woke up super early today so my eyes.. are closing bt i’ll be on tmrw to reply to the rest of the opens & plot w anyone that i haven’t yet plotted with !! all ur muses are Chef’s Kiss n i luv u all already ok goooodnight xx

[slowdivcs]

hey sexies :B 

[slowdivcs]

super busy n too tired to think today.. will be on tmrw luv y’all <3