#Like what's up with that Zuko?

[demaparbat-hp]

She will (and he'll let her)

[petricorah]

I love "i would kill for you" ship dynamics but what about "i would stop killing" ship dynamic??

I would lay down my sword for you. I would change my nature and go against everything i've known. I would resist the easy way out of solving my problems. I would give up the adrenaline of battle to stay by your side and make tea instead. I'm not sure I know who I am without a weapon in my hand because I've had to fight for so long but for you I'm willing to try and figure this out.

It must be hard. To put down your weapon that's protected you for so long. It's allowed you to stay alive it's kept you from getting hurt--physically and mentally. Because you've never had to worry about a real relationship if you think you'll be dead at the next battle. And you feel naked without it and it feels like you're ripping off an extension of yourself. Are you even whole without it? Are you worthy of being loved if you can't prove it by risking your life? And yet they've found someone who's asking them for something much harder than dying in battle on their behalf. They've found someone who wants them to live. And that's much more terrifying.

[chremes007]

You when your friend told you his ex turned into the moon.

ref pic:

[crowlion]

[pineapple-frenzy]

For your post finals art request, how about something from your Zutara scars au? Maybe Zuko gently kissing the scars on Katara's hands, with Katara looking absolutely flustered.

Thanks for your consideration and time.

I love soft scar kisses so much, I hope you don’t mind that I added a touch of angst to this

I saw something recently that was like what if Zuko thinks he’s the one that burned Katara’s hands, and I really like the idea so I wanted to incorporate it into this au. So here’s a little comic about Zuko apologizing for burning Katara’s hands (which he did not) insipired by your request :>>

[lovegrowsart]

it's pretty wild to me that people don't see that aang running off to save katara in CoD is his luke in empire strikes back moment, where he runs headlong into his want and attachment and he's narratively punished for doing so and not learning his lesson - aang runs after katara despite guru pathik's warning, like luke runs after leia and han from yoda on dagobah despite yoda's warning; similarly, as a result, things go to hell in ba sing se like they do on bespin - aang enters the avatar state before he's ready and gets killed, and ba sing se falls to the fire nation, luke fights vader before he's ready, loses a hand, and symbolically commits suicide after vader tells him he's luke's father.

the difference between their character arcs is that george lucas and co. actually went thru with luke's hero's journey and understood the fundamental difference between attachment and love, whereas I don't think bryke understood this difference and then dropped this from aang's arc pretty much completely and replaced it with aang digging in his heels into his want and attachment and he gets rewarded with energy bending from a lion turtle, the avatar state from a random pointy rock, and his forever girl from the self-indulgent white men that couldn't bring themselves to give their hero a compelling character arc that meant he might not have gotten everything he wanted at the end.

[only-lonely-www]

So basically ATLA brain rot has hit me like a truck

[discordiansamba]

some more spitballing about the knowledge seeker Zuko AU

Zuko not only knows all of Wan Shi Tong's knowledge seekers by name, he also knows where their favorite spots to be scratched are. Loyalty earned.

He gets in the habit of sleeping curled up with the knowledge seekers. Once he discovers he can shapeshift into one, he gets in the habit of falling asleep in that form. It gets cold in the desert at night, and the library is no exception. This way he stays toasty and warm.

I like the subtle detail of Zuko's nails and teeth being just a little too sharp for anyone's comfort.

Zuko's senses are also keenly sharp, though he's still half-blind and half-deaf on his left side.

Despite all this, Zuko views himself as a human. Iroh theorizes that his nephew would have become a spirit much sooner had he not persisted with this belief despite all evidence to the contrary. Thank Agni his nephew is stubborn.

He can still speak in knowledge seeker form.

Sokka: wait, could the other ones talk?

Zuko: ...no? why would they be able to talk?

Sokka: but-!

Aang wondering what it would take to get Spirit to try and track down Appa in Ba Sing Se by scent. The answer is it's free, but he needs something of Appa's to do it so they're kind of out of luck in that department.

they leave Zuko alone for five minutes and he comes back with a bunch of scrolls and tomes that they're 100% sure he did not pay for. what are you even going to do with those. you can't take them back to wan shi tong.

zuko: ...sorry. habit.

yes, he still wears the mask even when they're infiltrating the Fire Nation. everyone just hurriedly explains that he has a nasty scar that he's trying to hide. nobody ever seems to question it, which... kind of feels like something they should dwell on, just a little.

(it's also not a lie. they think. his knowledge seeker form has a nasty scar, so he must have one in human form too, right?)

the Gaang goes quite awhile without ever seeing his face. the first person who sees it is Iroh, in the catacombs of Ba Sing Se.

(he finally tells them his name after the Earth Kingdom falls. yes, this does mean Aang wakes up to everyone inexplicably calling Spirit 'Zuko')

Hakoda hearing the spirit traveling with his children is named Zuko and apparently has a nasty facial scar under that mask. manifests the energy of the woman doing math meme. he's heard legends of humans turning into spirits- his own children witnessed as much, but what in the world did the former prince of the Fire Nation do to end up like this?

he'll just... keep that to himself.

Iroh has a lot of mixed feelings about the situation. He is grateful that his nephew is alive, but it is very distressing to find him in the state he is in. Of course, he would still love Zuko even as a spirit, but he can only hope that it is not too late to reverse course.

(but if his nephew is happier that way, well...)

POV: You're Azula. You're about to become Fire Lord, but before you can ascend to the throne, the Avatar's pet firebending spirit appears and challenges you to an Agni Kai on behalf of Iroh. You laugh. Only members of the royal line can make a challenge for the throne, even in the name of another. This is absurd.

Then they remove their mask. You've never seen them without it.

They have Zuko's face.

[breadandblankets]

something I think u have to do if you make everyone else in the batfam a meta/magic user/bender/special abilities haver of some variation is make Duke the inverse

listen he's the only meta right? the only one with powers? if you make everyone Else have powers than what's his schtick??

(I mean other than being a genius teen activist and hero well in his own rights before Batman even sneezed in his direction but you and I both know no one cares about that -_-)

its about the Contrast okay

[demaparbat-hp]

Zuko looked up and locked eyes with his cousin, who was struck speechless. Then, ever so slowly, Lu Ten's lips twitched upwards. And then he smiled. And then he beamed. And then he nodded proudly once, just once, and vanished.

Lu Ten comes back in For the Spirits Chapter VII: Take Me South, only to leave Zuko with more questions than answers. Just how much is he truly aware of? When will he return? What is Zuko going to do now?

(What will the South bring?)

[fossilfan39]

Haven’t posted jetko in a week I’m having withdrawals

[jackshiccup]

despite knowing what was going to happen, snotlout's redemption and eventual downfall was so so heartbreaking to me. we spend the past 10 books witnessing how much he's tormented and bullied hiccup that we all feel the same anger and frustration and resentment as fishlegs does in the beginning of 11. i was, maybe, even rooting for something a little bad to happen to him so that he can feel even a fraction of the humiliation that he put hiccup through. but time and time again hiccup, with his inherent goodness and wonderful capacity to always try and see the best in people, reminds us that people need and deserve second chances. even third, fourth and fifth chances. even when hiccup was faced with the certainty that snotlout was set on betraying him from the start.

that's why it was so satisfying to get to the emotional catharsis of the swordfight. snotlout practically begging for hiccup to hate him and hiccup genuinely not having it in him to be able to. and even after that, even after he disarms hiccup and is seconds from killing him - he doesn't. and then hiccup comforts snotlout through it. he tells him words that snotlout didn't know he's been desperate to hear. he tells him he's being too hard on himself. he tells him he's a hero. he opens a door inside snotlout's life for the first time in a long time. despite everything, he offers him another choice to join the dragonmarkers. and snotlout accepts. he bows to hiccup, he calls him king, pledges his sword to his service forever, shakes his hand and chooses to bear the dragonmark.

and it's this moment we finally seeing the seeds of change planted in snotlout sprout - instigated by gobber teaching him a lesson in the amber slavelands and reminding him what the black star represents: pride, honour, bravery. all the times we see snotlout give in to vulnerability and ponder on his choices, he's always holding onto it. which makes it all the more symbolic when he hangs it around hiccup's neck during his last act of valour.

just like how the book tells us that the tides can change so fast, through hiccup, my heart was able to give snotlout another chance too. and it's because of hiccup's belief in snotlout's potential for more that makes you feel so strongly about his death. snotlout's excitement at finally being on hiccup's side, at doing what's right, at having the opportunity to actually be a hero - we can't help but feel that burst of pride, we can't help but root for him. and so we feel the loss, as hiccup did. and it's a point driven home when hiccup ends the epilogue with how he’s carried snotlout and his sacrifice with him all throughout his life. and how time has rubbed away at the black star.

that now the star doesn't look black at all. just gold.

[ponytailzuko]

[ID: Four doodles of Zuko from Season 1 of Avatar. The first shows him looking annoyed with his hands on his hips, with text saying “Day 1000: Still no Avatar.” The second shows him looking at sea from his ship. There’s a thought bubble that has a meme of a horse looking out to sea with impact font that says, “Man.” The third shows Zuko resting his head on his hand while he thinks, “i could be watching real housewives of caldera city right now but instead i’m on this rustbucket.” The fourth drawing shows Zuko smiling with a cat on his shoulder. End ID]

ponytailzuko.tumblr.com doodles ponytail zuko. more news in 10.

[tiredandwireds-blog]

I am beginning to see a pattern

[notachair]

Since atla is again having an extra surge of popularity, I'm shooting my shot:

[ID: (Rest of image description in alt). At the bottom of the image sits the text: "Zuko: Okay. Well, I can't remember how it starts, but the punchline is "leaf me alone, I'm bushed."" ID end].

Did we ever find out what the setup for this joke was? I feel kinda haunted by it. If not- anyone wanna make their best or worst guesses?

edit: I now know what "I'm bushed" mean, but go ahead anyway 👍

haunted thoughts in tags ↓

[lovegrowsart]

no matter whether ppl are trying to make zk's canon relationship out to be sibling coded or associative friends or whatever else ppl make up i feel it all comes from this place of people that don't ship it being unable to handle zuko and katara's canonically deep and intimate friendship at the end of show without (whether subconsciously or not) perceiving it as some kind of threat to whatever katara or zuko ship they DO ship (usually either k/a or z/s or m/z)

they don't know how to acknowledge/write zk (and i don't think them being a m/f ship is divorced from this) having their canonically close friendship alongside whatever they ship because that closeness, no matter how platonic, can't supersede the romance of their own ship. so they just lazily write it off as "siblings" or convince themselves they weren't ever that close in the first place or that katara still secretly hates zuko or something in order to get out of the bind of allowing them to be close friends even if you ship them with other people 🤷‍♀️