#bato being a good friend

[cienie-isengardu]

Sokka's sexism

Sokka’s sexism from the earliest episodes is an interesting case, because the Southern Water Tribe, at least from what was presented to us on screen, doesn’t seem to operate that much on gender roles? Especially when compared to the Northern Water Tribe?

I mean, yeah, warriors (men) went to war, while women, children and the elders stayed at home. But as Hama’s story shows, when Fire Nation attacked Southern Water Tribe, both female and male benders were fighting against invaders arm to arm and it seems like they were the actual first line of defense there, not the non-bender warriors.

In contrast, during siege of North Pole, in the final of Book 1: Water, we don’t see any female bender helping defend their home except Katara, who was involved in protecting Aang when he was in Spirit World.

Since all the waterbenders were captured from the Southern Tribe, it makes sense that non-bender warriors stepped in and got involved with war, while the kids and elders were left under women’s care.

Another example comes from “a ceremonial test of wisdom, bravery and trust”, known as ice dodging. As Bato explained, it is a rite of passage for young Water Tribe members and in their village “done by weaving a boat through a field of icebergs.” When a child turns 14, their father was supposed to take them to ice dodging, so they could earn their mark. Though the episode itself was focused on Sokka’s ceremony, Bato never specified it as something that boys alone should do and not only Katara (girl) but also Aang (outsider) is allowed to take part in the ritual. Once Sokka proved himself, everyone of their group got a mark, as a sign they passed the test. Interesting thing to note, since Bato did not specify it is a rite of passage for boys alone, it suggests girls were expected to know how to sail in boats of the Southern Water Tribe. Of course, again, war didn’t allow to continue this tradition as men (Hakoda, in case of Sokka & Katara) left to fight against Fire Nation.

Later, when Sokka and Katara reunited with their father, Hakoda did not try to send away Katara nor relegate her to just a medic job during the invasion. In Northern Water Tribe episodes, we learned that teaching for waterbenders there was defined by gender - women were allowed to learn only how to heal, while men how to use their bending in fight. Hakoda, nor Bato nor other of their warriors even for a moment questioned Katara’s presence on the battlefield nor the presence of women in the ranks of their allies like a blind, 12 years old Toph or the female water benders from Swamps or female(?) soldier from Earth Kingdom

And during battle, Katara did not fight in rank with other soldiers, she first alone secured Appa during submarine attack, then alongside her brother and father took down guardhouses - Hakoda himself told her and Sokka to attack one when he took down the other one

showing how much he trusted his 15 years old son and 14 years old daughter while ordering them attack on Fire Nation adult soldiers hidden in well guarder place.

Later, when Hakoda got seriously injured and Sokka temporary took the command of their forces, we could see that Hakoda relied on Katara to follow his troops and not ever once tried to send her back “to safety” or argued she should leave him behind, as often it happens with heroic (male) figures. Quite the opposite. When Katara offered him to “wait here if you want”, Hakoda firmly said “I want to press forward with the others”, which meant his daughter needed to come with him directly into an already ongoing fight (even if they stayed more at the rear of their army, they were still on battlefield).

She and her brother, alongside with the youngest members of Invasion, were forced to flee on Appa once the battle was lost, but no other adult woman was included. During Zuko’s coronation, when all war prisoners were released, in the background we could again see the female character(s) from Swamps.

And let's not forget how impressive Hakoda was by Suki when she single-handedly captured the warden at Boiling Rock prison and did not try to stop her from fighting against Ty Lee alongside Zuko and Sokka against Azula.

Understandably, we have no idea how the Southern Water Tribe and its culture looked like before the war, even arguably, the characters themselves may not have a clear idea due to growing up in dire times. But my point is, Hakoda and Bato, the two main adult Southern Water Tribe’s warriors that Avatar: The Last Airbender allowed us to know more about, have never shown any direct sexism toward Katara or other female characters. And though Sokka was the oldest boy at their village, there is no reason to think women did not hunt in absence of men, because one person would not be able to provide for a whole community 24/7. Also, as Hama proved, the Southern Water Tribe’s waterbenders were capable of fighting and their gender did not play any vital role the way it happened in their sister tribe at North Pole. 

Of course, Fire Nation’s repeated attacks affected residents of South Pole and their living conditions but from the little bits the show gave us, I think it is correct to assume if Sokka grew up with Hakoda around to guide him as he should, his behavior would be different from the sexism and dismissive attitude toward Katara or Kyoshi Warriors. For one, logically thinking Southern Water Tribe’s warriors need to do all the cooking, sewing and keeping their camp clean all on their own during war so it is not a “girly job” but a vital part of a warriors skills to survive and ensure their equipment is in the best condition. But Sokka doesn’t know it, because there is no one to teach him the importance of those skills. All Sokka had was father’s farewell words to cling to - and I’m not sure if Hakoda truly expected his son to be able to protect Katara and the village in his absence, or he just tried to make Sokka feel a bit less depressed about being left behind. You know, by giving him purpose and a Big Important Job to focus on and to feel needed and trusted. 

Which leads me to think that Sokka’s sexism is not rooted in Southern Water Tribe’s culture itself, but in his own insecurity and pressure of being the oldest boy in the village. If girls could be warriors - and be better than him - it would put into question all his self-worth, purpose and the trust given by father. Once Sokka met Kyoshi Warriors and later all the skilled girls, it challenged him on a very personal level, but he accepted the truth and moved on and alongside, finally became a true warrior and a man. 

And I find it indeed an interesting case, as Sokka’s sexism and dismissal of girls is not necessarily stemming from the culture he is part of, but rather is the effect of not knowing said culture & pre-war history of his Tribe. And of course, from his own insecurity. 

[sneezypeasy]

If Katara became Fire Lady, the person who this'd suck the most for isn't actually Aang, it'd be Bato's kid (or whoever's mum or dad happens to be good friends with Hakoda). Can you imagine? Your mum's voice?!?! Hakoda's kids are your age and they're out there being chief of the SWT and co-ruling over the Fire Nation. Who are you chieftain of?? You can't even govern a penguin. Disgusten.

[azulaaaaaaah]

atla/tlok characters that i think did *it* (but i just can’t prove it)

this is the most unserious post i’ve ever made. (AND I WANT TO PREFACE BY SAYING BY *IT* I MEAN KISSING)

Sozin and Roku

and history will say that they were just great friends…

this is the only one where ill legitimately die on this hill

like i’m 90% sure roku just showed Aang their friendship in the flashbacks to prevent awkwardly explaining to a 12 year old monk that he was romantically and/or physically involved with the person who committed a g*nocide against his people

LIKE CMON WHY IN THE WORLD WAS SOZIN SO PRESSED IN THE BACKGROUND OF ROKU’S WEDDING ??? AND FOR NO REASON?? WHY WAS THEIR FRIENDSHIP SO INTENSE?

sozin i feel loved roku (to an obsessive level) and roku literally dgaf. king shit

Wan and Raava

genuinely what the fuck was going on between these two. like i don’t even have any words

canonically at the very least it was a domestic partnership

S2 korra doesn’t make sense at the best of times. imagine trying to explain the intensity of this pair’s devotion to each other, to someone who hasn’t seen the show- all the while knowing raava is a disembodied spirit practically older than time

she’s the embodiment of everything good and light in the universe and he’s just wan. (and he’s wanough <3)

‘do you think we’re soulmates in every life?’

‘bet’

‘wait that’s not what i-‘

Cabbage Merchant and his cabbages (or at least a cabbage)

yeah i’m not touching this one with a 10 foot pole

Every member of the red lotus squad

ah yes it’s my favourite evil polycule

amidst plans to kidnap children and topple monarchies what else is there to do except… kiss.

let’s be real there’s something so inherently romantic about being apart of an elite, vaguely murderous anarchist squad

they all share one exact bed. it’s canon

(p’li somehow big spoons all of them)

The S2 Nomads

these dudes are the textbook definition of anti-monogamy

like they’re obsessed with love so i fully believe that they think ‘it should be spread amongst others’ or some shit

oh to be a travelling communist nomad in a band, wandering the wilds with my wife, and our several partners

they’re somehow the opposite of the red lotus and yet the same. they all share a single bed/sleep area

The dangerous ladies (but all separately)

i don’t ship any of these particularly and yet can still admit that it’s canon

ty-lee and azula have kissed bc azula probably made up a dumb excuse like ‘oh i don’t want my first kiss with a guy to be… erm… bad’

mai and ty-lee have kissed because they both probably have genuine, vaguely deep rooted romantic feelings for each other

mai and azula have kissed to purely spite zuko (and yknow what ty-lee too)

HOWEVER A KEY ASPECT TO THIS DYNAMIC: azula is completely unaware about the ty-lee and mai thing. it’s uh… better off that way.

Hakoda and Bato

i ship this about 50% but like… it’s got to have happened once right? considering all that down time they spent together on a boat away from the repercussions of water tribe society…

also considering they were leaders i doubt the other warriors were in a position to ever call them out on it

like cmoooooooon what’s a little kiss between the homies every now and again?

hakoda is where sokka gets his rizz/flagrant bisexuality from and i can’t change that guys

[likealittleheartbeat]

I try to generally be constructive and engaged with the show I love on here, so on this day, I’ll just say that one of the most thematically important aspects for me from the original ATLA is Aang’s emotional core of real shame for running away when he was hurt by the monk’s decision to send him away. People who feel the kind of deep-seated shame that Aang feels from this decision can understand how that kind of all-encompassing shame is not built around a simple failure or a lie they tell themselves; it’s constructed from real misbehaviors and transgressions of their own sense of ethics—lashing out, telling lies, attempting to hurt others intentionally—that then have consequences (abuses, abandonments, or deaths) which seem to far exceed their expectations or even basic logic.

The combination of the misbehavior with exaggerated existential punishments (along with a lack of support and amend-making in the immediate wake of the events) is what transforms a sense of guilt (I fucked up) into shame (I am a forever fuck-up). Then shame, that sense of being a secret monster ‘no matter what I do or how good everyone thinks I am,’ invites all the avoidance strategies (Aang puts on big smiles, makes lots of jokes, constantly tries to make everyone happy, hops from town to town without building deeper connections). One doesn’t want to acknowledge one’s true feelings or let others in to see those feelings and experiences because it’s too painful to face the grief at the same time that you have to look at yourself for being responsible—even when you recognize it wasn’t totally your fault. It’s just that if you had just been good, less emotional, less human, then maybe the world wouldn’t be so messed up. Of course, in a zen view of things, the world will always be messed up in the same way it will always be beautiful. These are constant facts that always coexist in balance, and this is the truth that Aang learns and that undergirds the whole series.

So I always loved that Aang ran away. It was his sin and his salvation. And it becomes this constant tension for the series—he gets hurt in Bato of the Water Tribe and starts to run away from Katara and Sokka, he runs away to the Guru in the Crossroads of Destiny and his best friend is attacked, he and the gaang retreat after the Day of the Black Sun failure, he runs away to meditation in Sozin’s Comet when everyone wants him preparing for war. Aang’s reluctance to be a hero and the attachments and petulance for which he gets criticized are what metamorphasize to become his most noble attributes. They allow him to empathize with others shame and, ultimately, wield the kind of compassion that can deconstruct the power and perfectionism of imperialism.

So yes, Aang ran away from his temple 100 years ago. It wasn’t the mentally healthy choice. It wasn’t the ethical choice. It wasn’t the wise choice. It was human and emotional and shameful and real. Aang is a better character for it. ATLA is a better show because of it. And we are better people when we understand these kind of tragic emotional experiences that people are trying so hard to grow through.

[isthei]

atla small town modern au

it’s katara & sokka’s hometown in the southern water tribe, which is being taken over by ozai’s industrialist company as a factory town

their dad is the mayor but he’s gone missing so vice mayor bato has been handling the work and sokka is running his and katara’s household

(hakoda’s missing because ozai hated that he was enacting anti-firecorp policies)

bending is still a thing. katara is a starry-eyed soul who wants to leave her small town to learn waterbending in the big city

sokka is a total pragmatist who thinks the town would collapse without them (he MAY be right)

aang is an undocumented immigrant from the air temples who was sent on the run w gyatso towards the nwt with crucial info to bring to journalists to bust open the evils ceo ozai wrought upon the air nation (e.g. labor exploitation, chokehold on clean water sources)

he got this quest cos he’s still the avatar in this au

got waylaid and separated from gyatso (who might be dead?) and ended up in the swt town

now uses his bending in secret to stack shelves in the local supermarket while trying to figure out how to get to nwt

(he may or may not be putting it off because the responsibility terrifies him)

unbeknownst to aang (and most everyone), the situation in the air nation is getting worse—actual violence is starting to happen

the water damage siblings take him in because they figure it’s their responsibility as the mayor’s kids. but over time they find him so endearing he becomes practically family

zuko has been disowned from his father’s giant conglomerate and believes that by catching the runaway avatar he will be brought back into the family

he pushes iroh into moving into town. he thinks iroh doesn’t know it’s to catch the avatar

in the meantime he picks up a job at the local boba shop and accidentally becomes a vigilante

(sokka develops a huge crush on the mysterious blue spirit)

unfortunately for him the description of the runaway has been switched around, and he thinks toph (another runaway in the same town) is the avatar

toph is friends with aang and is gleefully misleading zuko

she and aang are both out of school youth. toph spends most of her time trouncing people in sports at the local courts but her spending money comes from a huge stash of cash she took out of her parents’ safe before running away

aang is a regular at the boba shop and befriends zuko. zuko thinks aang is just the avatar’s friend and aang thinks zuko is neat. they bond over being new to town

azula comes to town at some point and immediately realizes that toph is not the avatar

(iroh knew all along but doesn’t tell zuko because he a. it’s a good lesson for his nephew and b. he finds it funny)

BONUS:

azula enrolls in the local school trying to find the avatar, accidentally develops a homoerotic rivalry with katara instead

iroh takes her in and sets off her redemption arc

[zvtara-was-never-canon]

https://www.tumblr.com/allnewalldifferentwildspider/748862622231838720/the-reason-im-so-vulgar-in-regards-to-aangs

What a bunch of bullshit.

"He makes no effort to get to know or understand her" they're literally traveling the whole world together - and their original reason for doing that was because he wanted to help her go to the North Pole to learn waterbending, something which means a lot to her. Just because the writers didn't think the audience was stupid and needed a scene of them sitting down and telling each other a list of their flaws, qualities and motivations, doesn't mean their relationship was shallow.

"We get the MALE GAZE from him" Wow, he thinks a pretty girl is pretty. What a crime.

"He doesn't try to find out what happened to her mom" he didn't have to, she fucking told him basically right away. Complaining about that is like complaining he never asked if Sokka was her brother, even though one of the first things Sokka ever said to Aang was "And this is Katara, my flying sister"

"He always gets surprised when she's mad about something" Aang, the naturally cheery person, is pretty much ALWAYS surprised whenever ANYONE is angry, because that's not an emotionl he usually experiences much. Doesn't mean he doesn't get her - and I say this as a very grumpy person.

And ya know who else gets surprised at Katara's anger all the time? Zuko. The guy that sent an assassin after her group because Katara had to bring Aang back to life after Azula killed him - which only happened because Zuko helped her when Aang and Katara had her cornered.

Funny how things are only bad when Aang does it, but totally okay when Zuko does them in VERY different contexts that obviously paint him in a negative light for good reason.

"He hates the food and culture that she loves so much" Disliking a culture's food is not the same as hating said culture. We only see him talk shit about the Water Tribe's hunting culture once: in the Bato episode, in his friends are accidentally shutting him out of the conversation because they're too excited about being reunited with someone that is basically family. A 12-year-old throwing a tantrum is not the same as him being openly racist. Ya know what IS racist though? Zuko supporting his nation's attempt to genocide the water tribes.

"He doesn't respect her boundaries and kisses her twice without her consent" ONE poorly timed kiss is not the same as him forcefully holding her in place and kissing her, or even asking first then going for it anyway after she said an explicit no. And Katara visibly enjoyed the kiss during the eclipse episode, and was basically cuddlying with him on Appa afterwards.

"He keeps trying to talk for her when she's angry" You mean literally the same thing Zuko did in Southern Raiders?

"He expects her to do the work for their relationship... but he also makes wild assumptions about them being an item already... but he also wanted to talk things out with her to make sure he got it right..." I don't even need to tear these apart, the OP did it for me by making their arguments contradict each other. How kind of them.

"Aang wants the beautiful image of Katara. He wants that pretty face, those big blue eyes, that body, those long legs, those hips, the chest, and the hair that is just so manageable" While Aang is attracted to her, he NEVER mentioned a single one of those things, ever. The hair thing was literally MENG being insecure about her own hair. If you wanna simp for Katara, go ahead and do it, there's nothing wrong with it, but don't act like Aang only sees her a piece of meat.

"He has no interest in the complex, strong, hurt, angry, and caring person that Katara actually is" Ah yes, that's why he doesn't cheer her on when she's fighting Pakku, or helps her with the Painted Lady thing because he admires her compassion, or tells her she gives him hope, or calls her sifu, or accepts that she won't kill Yon Rah but also won't forgive... oh wait, he did do all those things.

"I'm calling it like I see it" Too bad you need glasses and refuse to wear them.

"Aang doesn't actually like Katara; he's just really horny for her" Considering your random description of why she's so hot in a post that has nothing to do it, all while ignoring her agency that used to choose Aang, I'd say that's more likely to be an accurate description of YOU than of our protagonist. Sorry, just calling it like I see it.

[ceruleanwhore]

Aang As a Father, in Response to LoK

⚠️CAUTION⚠️

This post is full of Aang and kataang hate. If you like Aang and/or ship kataang in any capacity, scroll on for the sake of your mental and emotional wellbeing. Thank you!

When Avatar: Legend of Korra came out, I remember there being tons of discussion around how much Aang sucked as a father and how surprised everyone was, even some of us who never really liked him as a character. However, I’ve been thinking about it today, and the conclusion I’ve reached is that not only is it not surprising that Aang was not a very good parent, but it was inevitable. The one thing I disagree on that I’ll get to at some point in here is how he sucked at parenting in canon as opposed to how I think he was set up to fail at it given the direction he was headed with his canon characterization.

I’d like to start by getting into that characterization and discussing some of the elements of Aang’s canon personality that I think are relevant. In the series, yes, as we all know and as Aang stans love to point out ad nauseum, he’s just a mere bitty child, but we can also see some of his flaws that, even in his 12-year-old self, have some serious consequences at times. Canon Aang is a messy cocktail of toxic positivity, selfishness, avoidant tendencies, impulsivity, and a dangerous lack of emotional control. He does things like casually throw away the fate of the whole world over his god-given right to have a crush on a girl and then, in the next season, compare that same girl’s experience of losing her mother to his radically different experience of losing his pet for a couple weeks as he tells her to get over it. He also has a tendency to go into the freaking avatar state when he’s upset about something and cause serious damage to everything around him until Mommy calms him down. Even when he doesn’t go into the avatar state, he does things like verbally abuse his friends and abandon them in the desert when Appa goes missing.

All of this is completely relevant to who a hypothetical adult Aang would be and what he’d be like because, all throughout the series, there is never any accountability from Aang. He literally never takes responsibility for the things he does and makes amends or even just apologizes in a meaningful way because he never has to — the narrative makes sure of that. That’s the key part of Aang’s flaws, that Bryke genuinely thought they made a perfect good guy and had nary a crumb of self awareness that they accidentally made him a raging asshole who is constantly being rewarded for his shitty behavior. Even when he’s clearly in the wrong, like with the Bato situation in s1, they somehow turn it around so yeah, I guess he fesses up and apologizes but, at the end of the episode, Sokka and Katara are apologizing to him and there’s no lasting consequences for the shitty thing he did. Because of this crucial element of the story and Aang’s character, it is very likely that he’d go his whole life being a dickhead while continuing to never have consequences for that and somehow managing to maintain his friendships and relationship with Katara.

I want to kind of go through these one at a time, starting with the lack of accountability. Since Aang is the avatar, literally no one in the whole world of atla actually has authority over him, at least once he’s an adult. His peers are his equals but, even though Katara, Toph, and Zuko taught him his bending, they don’t really have any tangible authority over him as his teachers. Combine that with the fact that none of Aang’s friends really ever criticize him or hold him accountable for his actions and it becomes very clear that, as a father, he will never actually be held accountable for being a bad parent. What goes with this is that he also won’t be open to advice because he assumes he always knows best and the narrative also supports and rewards that. Between the two, he’s set up so that when he inevitably turns out to be a lousy father, there will be nothing anyone can say (assuming they would even say anything at all) to help him improve.

With this in mind, let’s start into the actual character flaws that, as concluded above, won’t be corrected at any point, starting with the toxic positivity. One of Aang’s most recognizable characteristics is his bright, cheery disposition which can be a good thing but also leads to him being very dismissive of anyone else’s problems or negative emotions. As a parent, he would never take his children’s problems seriously and would simply brush them off and tell his kids to practice detachment and just let go of whatever is bothering them, regardless of how serious the issue is or how much it matters to the kid. This will teach the kids both not to even try to bring their problems to at least one of their parents and also that any problem they have is actually inconsequential, so even when they do have really big, serious issues in life, they won’t be able to recognize it as such and get whatever help they might need. It also will convey to them that their own father just doesn’t really care about them, at least not enough to engage with them in any capacity about anything serious.

Next up is Aang’s selfishness. Throughout atla, we see time and time again that Aang struggles greatly with prioritizing literally anyone else over his own comfort and desires. He was more than willing to sacrifice the whole world for his ability to avoid having to engage in conflict and then, in season 2, he showed that he was 100% willing to sacrifice the whole world for his crush on Katara. It’s not just that he tends to thoughtlessly give into his impulses and desires without giving thought to how it affects others, it’s also that, because of who he is, that has the potential to cause immense damage and he still doesn’t care. As a father, he would always put himself before his wife and his children. He would treat Katara at least as badly and unfairly as he did in canon and his children would have the lovely experience of watching that and also growing up in a household where their wants and needs don’t really matter to their own father.

Another key factor when it comes to Aang’s personality is his avoidant tendencies. We see multiple times throughout the series just how far he’ll go to avoid doing things he doesn’t want to do, like preventing the world from complete destruction. In his household, I imagine he’d want no part of any of the real, ‘messy’ aspects of parenthood and would just have Katara do all those things. Anything to do with the mess of child care (changing diapers, cleaning up spit up, any sort of wound care for scraped knees, etc.), conflict resolution between quarreling siblings, or correction of misbehavior would fall to her. He, like plenty of real men, would only want to do the cute, fun parts of parenthood, like taking the kids to Disney, while making Mom the ‘bad guy’ who has to do all the real work. 

Then there’s also the impulsivity. Aang tends to get these ideas of things he wants to do and then, without any further thought, just goes and does them. This can be pretty harmless when it’s something like wanting to go penguin sledding and then going off and doing it but, as we’ve seen, there’s plenty of times where it isn’t, like when he hides Hakoda’s correspondence from Katara and Sokka in s1 because he’s feeling pissy. In parenthood, I think this is where we ended up with the unfair treatment showed in LoK because it’s his impulsivity driving it, but I don’t actually think he’d be out here treating his kids differently based on bending abilities, I think they’d all be pretty equally getting the short end of the stick from him. 

The way I see his impulsivity coming out with his family is either with grabbing the kids to go do something on a whim (like riding the elephant koi) or going off on his own or with Katara on some spur of the moment trip that leaves their kids alone or drags them away from home for weeks at a time with no notice. If they’d leave the kids alone while going off without them, that could lead to trauma around neglect and abandonment while, if they take the kids with them, the kids get stuck being dragged along and then ignored while Aang goes off to do all the stuff he’s there for that the kids weren’t really ever supposed to actually be part of. I think that, with stuff like this, the avoidance, and the toxic positivity, he’d think that he’s setting himself up to be the cool, fun dad with Katara being made out to be the ‘bad guy’ when, in truth, he’s out here fucking up his children and they’re going to know and hate him for it in the end.

The last part is the matter of his inability to regulate his emotions. It’s bad enough for anyone to have to sit there and watch as the same toxic positivity dickhead then struggles with anger issues he never even so much as apologizes for, but for his kids, I’m sure it’s unbearable. My dad has struggled with anger issues my whole life, as have I, but we take responsibility and we’ve both spent over two decades working on ourselves, trying to get better. Aang would never do that in any capacity. For his children, they’d get this environment where they can never be upset at all because it bothers Dad but then Dad can fly off into the fucking avatar state as soon as he’s even mildly inconvenienced. This model of ‘you being upset is just a little inconvenience you need to get over but when Dad’s upset it’s a huge deal and he’s actually allowed to be upset’ would be downright infuriating to live with and would definitely contribute to their children’s childhood trauma. It’s not just that you’re not allowed to be upset, it’s also that you always have to be walking on eggshells trying not to set this guy off.

Another thing I would add to this last point is something I learned from my family that I think is relevant here. My dad genuinely thought he was totally normal and didn’t have any anger issues until my brother and I were born, and he also was always really great with other people’s kids and never had problems there until he was working on the railroad with two babies at home. Yes, we’ve already seen Aang’s anger issues in canon, but I would also speculate that his mood and stuff would get worse once Tenzin’s born. This could either lead to him being absent for most of the kids’ early childhoods as he’d just avoid being around them if they’re triggering him or his anger issues could get worse and more prevalent once there’s kids in the mix. Either would be detrimental to his children’s mental health.

So I guess my point here is that LoK having it so Aang’s whole issue with fatherhood is that he treated his kids unequally doesn’t really cover the ways in which he’s set up to be a terrible father. I really don’t think favortism would even be an issue (I think all 3 kids would get dragged around to air nomad stuff, not just Tenzin) but Lord knows there’s other issues to be considered here. As a father, Aang would be selfish, impulsive, dismissive, thoughtless, and hypocritical as well as probably struggling with completely unchecked anger issues. His children would have trauma because of him and they would hate him, but not because he would leave two behind while dragging the eldest around on vacations. The cherry on top of the shit sundae of Aang’s fatherhood is that he would have no self awareness whatsoever as all of this would go unchecked by his wife and friends, so he would genuinely believe that he’s a good, fun, loving father all the way up to the moment of his death.

[narrativelysignificantturtleduck]

i neeed to see hakoda & piandao interact tbh. hakoda sees his son has a friendship with this random fire nation adult and is like ?? in one comic where sokka showed interest in fire nation food he said "please dont say things like that" if he found out sokka was friends with piandao he would wonder where he went wrong in his parenting

i've said before that i think there'd be a lot of mutual suspicion when they first meet. like hakoda is concerned about a fire nation guy being interested in his kid, like you said, but also piandao knows that kids generally latch onto him as a father figure because there's some problem at home. when they meet they're both kinda sizing each other up, trying to make sure the other's good for sokka.

except they're both capable of being polite so nobody ever really notices. hakoda is in friendly welcoming community-leader mode and piandao is being a Perfect Gentleman and they seem to be getting along fine. like if this is a piandao & jeong jeong visit the southern water tribe situation like in the post i linked, sokka's thrilled that his dads are getting along, meanwhile bato and jeong jeong (who have some idea of their partners' feelings) are trying their best to stay out of the weird polite little dad rivalry.

this is also a dynamic in the hakoda/piandao boiling rock au, where they have to learn to trust each other because they don't have anyone else (until they run into suki).

eventually, piandao is genuine enough that hakoda believes he's not a bad influence and piandao discovers that hakoda left his kids to fight in the war, which explains why sokka needed a dad. (piandao feels kinda bad for assuming hakoda was the problem, when the problem was, y'know. the war. that he used to fight in)

and then they become friends and maybe make out

[stardust948]

Frenemies AU angst

(I found this in my drafts and decided to post it. Based off this post.)

Iroh is a senior in military school or already in the military. The parents gaang is junior year in HS so around 16 and 17

Ozai still lives with Azulon but Azulon is hardly at home bc of work. When he is there or when Ozai knows he’s coming soon, he just doesn’t come back until he leaves again. Either stays with Ursa in her RV or roams around town in his car. Later stays with Hakoda and Bato when they become closer friends.

Azulon blames Ozai for Ilah’s death since she died during childbirth. He’s always been emotionally and verbally abusive to Ozai but it didn’t get physical until Iroh left for military boarding school. Ozai was 8-10ish. Mainly involved being burned or tased, which left less of physical scars.

There was a big fight between the two when Ozai announced he wanted to go to Republic Arts high school and pursue a career as a musician. Azulon wanted Ozai to follow his footsteps and go to military school like Iroh. But he backed off after Iroh vouched for his brother. Still, he refused to pay for the school but Ozai earned a scholarship and Iroh covered the rest. Ozai swore up and down he’d pay him back but Iroh just told him to give him free backstage access to his concerts and they’re even. Azulon and Ozai avoided each other after that; strangers in the same home. They physical abuse ended but the threat was still there and the mental scars lasting.

After the incident at the contest, Ursa finds Ozai sitting in his car at the school’s parking lot. She knows better to ask if he’s alright or what was wrong. Instead, she tells him to get into her car and they go back to her RV. There, they spend the rest of the night watching movies and cuddling. Ozai’s feeling somewhat better in the morning; able to speak some but not back to his usual loveable a-hole self. Though he is confused to receive a text from Hakoda of all people checking on him.

Hakoda: Hey man, you good?

Ozai: Are you seriously asking me if I’m good after burning a layer of my skin off?

Hakoda: You kinda just left after without a word.

Ozai: Because I burned a layer of my skin off.

Hakoda: Ozai, I’ve seen you explode over someone using your special pen without permission but you just shut down after burning your hand. Are you sure you’re okay?

Ozai: Who won?

Hakoda: Poppy.

Ozai: We’re going to be hearing about that for all next week.

Hakoda: She was pretty worried about you. We all were. You know, you can talk to me if you want.

Ozai: I just wanted to know who won. Now stop bothering me or I’m blocking you.  

Ozai closed his phone. Just then Ursa stuck her head through the door.

“Hey, my mom made pancakes. You want any?”

Ozai shook his head.

“Alright honey. Keep an eye on my children. I’ll be right back.”

Ozai smiled some as he rolled his eyes. Ursa always referred to her hoard of plants and succulents as her children. Still exhausted, he laid back down and pulled the cover over his head. Out of curiosity, he check his phone one last time.

Hakoda: Ok. See at school.

Ozai powered down his phone. He didn’t have the energy to be annoyed. He ran a hand along the bandages before drifting back to sleep.

///

The conversation they had in the janitor’s closet came flooding back. Hakoda’s seen Ozai fly off the rail many times, but that was the first time he looked guenically hurt. Hakoda’s clumsy joke about Dads also didn’t help. Hakoda cringed at the memory.

His mind drifted to the events after. The dark play Ozai wrote about the little boy slowly dying in the burning building wishing only to see his father again. Finally meeting Ozai’s father with his cold exterior and calculating eyes that made even the brash self-confident Ozai shrink back. And to top it off, Ozai saying he’d never seen his father look happier.

Hakoda didn’t know what to think at the time. He just assumed Azulon was like his father, criticizing his every move and lamenting how he wasn’t good enough.

///

Ozai refuses to bring it up despites Ursa’s suggestions of seeking professional help, even after he and Ursa wed and had children. Not until he lost his temper with Zuko and almost burned him like Azulon. Zuko’s horrified scream snapped Ozai out of it last second. Falling back onto old habits, Ozai took shelter in his car for the night and wept bitterly. Ursa finds him and directly tells him to get help which he finally relents.

It's very slow going but beneficial in the long run. Most importantly, his children never saw that side of Ozai again.

@waterfire1848

[ao3feed-zukka]

A Touch So Sweet (is foreign to me)

Read now on Ao3 at https://ift.tt/jwDf4Ru by Burnt_Ashes Six times that Hakoda saw Sokka and Zuko being physical and either wondering why or writing it off as platonic, and the one time that he finally got it. I don’t own these characters, they belong to whoever owns A:tLA. Anyways, enjoy! Words: 3674, Chapters: 1/1, Language: English Fandoms: Avatar: The Last Airbender (Cartoon 2005) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Categories: M/M Characters: Hakoda (Avatar), Zuko (Avatar), Sokka (Avatar), Katara (Avatar), Kanna (Avatar), Bato (Avatar), Aang (Avatar), Earth King (Avatar), Iroh (Avatar) Relationships: Sokka/Zuko (Avatar), Hakoda & Sokka (Avatar), Hakoda & Zuko (Avatar), Katara & Sokka (Avatar), Aang/Katara (Avatar), Hakoda & Kanna (Avatar) Additional Tags: Oblivious Hakoda (Avatar), Developing Relationship, Established Relationship, POV Outsider, Fluff and Angst, Father-Son Relationship, Young Love, Friends to Lovers, 6+1, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Chronic Pain, Scars, Firelord Zuko (Avatar), Gay Zuko (Avatar), Bisexual Sokka (Avatar), Good Parent Hakoda (Avatar), Minor Aang/Katara (Avatar), Tenderness, Misunderstandings, Zuko (Avatar) Needs a Hug, Sokka Needs a Hug (Avatar), Happy Ending Read it on Ao3 at https://ift.tt/jwDf4Ru

[nijigasakilove]

Yet another week not being married to Holo. Another good build up episode that gets us one step closer to the big showdown between Amati and Lawrence. Still a little confused on all the microeconomics of the situation, but I think I’ve got the gist of it lmao

Marc, Batos and the alchemist are all great friends and business partners for Lawrence and I like how they all kind of gave him bits of advice to help him see the clearer picture with he and Holo’s relationship.

“What’s more precious than money?” It’s about far more than just business at this point, go get your girl back Lawrence! Can’t wait to finally hear his answer to Holo’s “what am I to you” Marc certainly deserves more than 10 lumine for all the game he put Lawrence on today 😂

I’m actually quite curious to hear those stories of pagan gods and humans getting together that the alchemist knows about.. the way she looked it kind of made it seem like it hit close to home for her 🤔 she’s lowkey best girl for everything she’s done to help.

That smug look on Amati face at the end of the episode.. he’s up to something and I think Lawrence may have just got finessed. We’ll see how it goes next week but I got a really bad feeling. Would be just Lawrence’s luck if Amati caught wind of the Pyrite play and did something of his own with the gold coins

[sockfus]

It wasn't like Hakoda didn't think Bato was attractive, but that didn't mean he was attracted to him like that. Bato had always been sharp. His jawline a smooth line, cheekbones that looked like they'd been chiselled from Earth Kingdom marble, all defined angles and sharp edges. He was tall, too. Hakoda remembered being sixteen and witnessing Bato go from the same height to broader, and so much taller that he towered over everyone bar Panuk. Even his hair had grown longer with his height, something that whenever Hakoda had questioned him about, he'd puffed his chest out like a puffin-seal and proudly declared he wanted to grow it long like the older warriors. It suited him. Lingering eyes always came from Hakoda's way, landing on his newly broad shoulders and fresh muscles, but it was just jealousy back then. Pure teenage envy that his best friend had developed quicker than he was, and nothing more. And anyway, it was perfectly healthy to appreciate your friend's looks. Hakoda was more than happy to admit Bato was a good looking man, just as he had been a good looking teenager- it wasn't an unusual sight to see him chatting with a woman at port back during the war, and if his stomach felt funny, it was probably due to whoever had overboiled the sea prunes that morning.

Nothing to do with being attracted to Bato. He hadn't ever felt the urge to card his hair through the long brown locks, to curl against his lean body and kiss him goodnight as he once had Kya. Whenever Bato had shucked off his tunic and pursed his lips, chapped from the sea weather, and asked for help applying his salve it wasn't like his fingers had lingered over the smooth curve of his chest or the muscle of his arm.

They were just friends. They always had been.

[empressofthesunwriter]

Yin and Yang: Book 1.15

Balance is a key aspect in the world, so why shouldn’t the Avatar have an opposite?

In a world where Raava and Vaatu merge with humans, the Avatar and the Daimon try to keep the peace between the four nations.

Aang and Hua are the current incarnations, but wake up 100 years in the future.

How will these two learn all four elements in one year and defeat the Fire Lord?

Book 1.15: Bato of the Water Tribe

Water. 

Earth. 

Fire. 

Air. 

Long ago, the four nations lived together in harmony. 

Then, everything changed when the Fire Nation attacked. 

Only the Avatar and Daimon, masters of all four elements, could stop them, but when the world needed them most, they vanished. 

A hundred years passed, and my brother and I discovered the new Avatar and Daimon, an airbender named Aang and an earthbender named Hua. 

And although his airbending and her earthbending skills are great they have a lot to learn before they’re ready to save anyone. 

But I believe Aang and Hua can save the world.

***

“Ah isn’t it nice? Just us four, Momo, Appa and Jaiyi, no stupid Mask-Dude around!”

“Sokka, you are so annoying! Blue is our friend! I’m a bit worried for him.”

“Katara, Blue said in his note that he had some things to do here, I’m sure he will be back.”

“I hope so, Aang.”

“I wonder what Blue has to do here. I mean, besides the water tribe ship from the fleet of your dad we found, here is nothing interesting.”

“Well, Hua, maybe Mask-Dude has to report to his evil boss about us! Telling him how gumble we are and will lead us straight in these hands!”

Annoyed Hua, Katara and Aang looked at Sokka, who was sitting, like them, around the campfire, acting like he knew why their friend had left.

This morning as they had found clues of a battle between the watertribe warriors of the South and firebenders, Blue had been with them. 

Then they had decided to camp tonight beside the ship.

That’s when Blue “said” he had some stuff do to around here, however he would soon rejoin them.

Only Sokka was happy that Blue was gone. 

All the others, especially Momo and Jaiyi, who Blue had always given some extra food, were sad. 

Blue hadn’t been long with them, yet, his quiet helpful presence was missed. 

Since he could now communicate with him, they also missed his opinions and snarky responses.

Suddenly a strange noise can be heard, its source originating from somewhere in the fog around them.

All jump up, benders in their bending positions and Sokka has his boomerang ready.

“Who's there?”, demands Sokka to know.

A man, hailing from the Water Tribe with white bandages wrapped around the upper left portion of his torso, stepped out of the shadows. 

He is surprised to see them.

“Sokka?”

The addressed one raised an eyebrow quizzically before he recognised the warrior.

“Bato!”

“Who?”, chorus Hua and Aang a bit confused.

However, no one seems to hear them as Katara also calls out the name of this Bato and she and Sokka run up in his arms. 

The three watertribe members hug each other tight.

“Sokka! Katara! It is so good to see you two. You've grown so much.”, tells them Bato moved.

How does he remember Hakoda children being so tiny and cute, and now? Now they were nearly adults.

Aang and Hua get a bit closer to the three, staying a respectful distance away.

Both bow in greeting.

“Hi, I'm Aang and this is Hua.”

“Nice meeting you.”

No one seems to listen to them, because Katara and Sokka ask where their father was and Bato tells them he and the other warriors are in Eastern Earth Kingdom now.

The Avatar and Daimon are a bit dumfound been ignored. Not even Katara or Sokka presented them to Bato.

Normally you introduce your friends to your…family? Was he their uncle?

Why wouldn’t anyone explain to them anything?

A gust of wind blows, causing them all to shiver.

Bato states that this is no place for a reunion and leads the siblings away.

Thankful Bato looks back at Aang and Hua and gestures for them to follow.

Oh, well good.

For a second both thought they had to stay here.

Aang takes Hua's hand and so they follow Bato and their friends to an abbey.

Appa with Momo and Jaiyi follow of course too.

“After I was wounded, your father carried me to this abbey. The sisters have cared for me ever since.”, explained Bato, before he spoke to a nun, who was the highest one. “Superior, these are Hakoda's children. They've been travelling with the Avatar and Daimon. I found them by my boat.”

“Young Avatar and Young Daimon, it gives me great joy to be in your presence. Welcome to our abbey.”, bows Mother Superior to them.

The two bow back and say together: “Thank you, it's truly an honour to be here.”

“If there's anything-”, begins Aang, but gets interrupted by Sokka: “What smells so good, Bato?”

“The sisters craft ointments and perfumes.”

“Perfume? Maybe we can dump some on Appa because he stinks so much. Am I right?”

Everyone is silent, and a single person coughs.

“You have your father's wit.”, deadpans Bato at Sokka.

The group moves to the hut in which Bato is staying, with a tent on the opposite side of the door being the bed chamber, a fire with cushions in the middle, and various pelts placed and hung everywhere.

“Bato, it looks like home!”, exclaims Katara happy.

“Everything's here, even the pelts!”, points Sokka out.

Aang who is holding Momo looks at the pelts in mild disgust. 

“Yeah, nothing's cosier than dead animal skins.”

“Aang!”, hisses Hua, flicking the back of his head. “This is part of watertribe culture, don’t disrespect it.”

“It was not my intention.”

“Really? Then keep your mouth shut about these things.”

Offended Aang looks at her, though Hua just stares him down.

Their little squabble gets interrupted as Katar and Sokka find a pot of stewed sea prunes cooking over the fire.

Bato tells them all to help themselves.

Aang sniffs it but looks away in disgust and sets it to the side, while Hua at least takes a taste.

Meh, she has eaten worse things.

And food, was food when you grew up in poverty.

So she keeps on eating, which earns her a flabbergasted look from Aang.

How can she stomach this?!

“Bato, is it true that you and dad lassoed an arctic hippo?”, asked Katara, happily eating her own stewed sea prunes.

“It was your father's idea, he just dragged me along. Well, the hippo did the dragging!”

Aang wants to join the conversation, but sadly Sokka cuts him off.

“So, who was it that came up with the Great Blubber Fiasco?”

“You knew about that?”, chuckles Bato.

“Everyone does!”, tells Katara.

“What's that story?”, asks Aang curious.

Sokka waves Aang off.

“It's a long one Aang, some other time.”

This makes the Avatar pout, while the Daimon softly hits with her elbow in his side to cheer him up.

Katara and Sokka were just so happy to see an adult from their tribe, it was normal how they didn’t give them any attention.

Aang gives her a little smile, then stands up to loo around the room more.

Hua shrugs her shoulder and gets herself and Jaiyi another bowl.

You get used to this salty, slimy taste.

“You and Dad had so many hilarious adventures.”, said Katara right now to Bato.

“Not all of which were hilarious at the time, but everything's funny in hindsight.”, then Bato sees how Aang was wearing a pelt hat. “Hey, Aang! Please put that down, it's ceremonial and very fragile.”

Aang does as he is told and then sits in the back of the room.

He wasn’t having much fun right now. How Hua could just listen and eat these nasty stewed sea prunes was beyond him.

Well, the answer was simple.

Hua would do anything to see someone again who remembers her family and share stories with them.

Katara and Sokka deserved this space with Bato because she was so sad she would never get it.

So she ate the food and was silent observing one hilarious story after another.

A bit later Hua was playing with Jaiyi, as she heard how Bato told Katara and Sokka, how he was waiting for a message from their father and that they could see him again.

Something cold and terrible took place in her heart as she saw the excitement of Katara and Sokka.

A part of her wanted to speak up, to beg them not to leave her and Aang, yet a bigger part understood.

She understood it so well.

She would give anything to see her family alive and well again.

So she fought off her tears, but she didn’t need to cry.

Katara and Sokka told Bato clearly that they would love to see their father, but Hua and Aang were more important right now.

This was the moment when Hua let out a happy cry, all the attention turning to her.

“Oh Hua.”, cooed Katara and embraced her. “We won’t leave you, you are family too, remember.”

She just hiccuped and hugged Katara back tighter.

Even Sokka patted her head.

“Now, now, Hua, it’s okay. We won’t leave you.”

“I love you guys.”, she just told them.

Her family might be long dead, but she had a new family.

It was little.

It was a bit crazy.

But it was good.

No one noted how Aang was missing and what a decision he currently took.

***

The next day the kids and Bato walked back down to his ship.

“This ship is sentimental to me. It was built by my father.”, explains the man.

“Is this the boat he took you ice dodging in?”, asks Sokka.

“Yep! It's got the scar to prove it. Ha. How 'bout you Sokka? You must have some good stories from your first time ice dodging.”

Suddenly Sokka looks really sad.

“He never got to go.”, explained Katara. “Dad left before he was old enough.”

“Oh, I forgot you were too young.”

“What's ice dodging?”, wonder Aang and Hua.

“It's a rite of passage for young Water Tribe members. When you turn fourteen, your dad takes you-”, Bato stops. He smiles and puts his hand on Sokka's shoulder with a new thought. “You know what, you're about to find out!”

Soon they find themselves on Bato ship, sailing along the shore. 

“Ice dodging is a ceremonial test of wisdom, bravery, foresight and trust.”, begins Bato. “In our village, ice dodging was done by weaving a boat through a field of icebergs.”

“How are we supposed to ice dodge without ice?”, wonders Sokka.

“You'll be dodging those.”

The watertribe man points to a group of tall, sharp, jagged rocks near the shore. 

Katara, Hua and Sokka get nervous.

If they weren’t careful, they would end up on the rocks, with severely broken bones.

“Sokka, you steer and call the shots, lead wisely. Katara, you secure the main sail. The winds can be brutal, so be brave. Hua, you are on the bow, look out for danger. Without your judgment, we risk getting more than hurt. Aang, you control the jib. Without your steady hand, we all go down. Your position is about trust.”

Somehow this offends Aang since he babbles: “I know that. Why wouldn't I know that? I'm the Avatar; I know about trust!”

He crosses his arms and looks away, but gives Bato a second glance.

“For this is to be done right, I cannot help.”, tells them Bato and sits down cross-legged. “You pass or fail on your own.”

“Alright let’s do this! Hua, what’s your opinion?”, asked Sokka.

“These rocks seem manageable, we need a steady hand, captain.”, she calls over.

“I agree. Aang, ease up on the jib. Katara, steady. Aang, less sail. Katara, give him room.”

The ship moves to the side and sails between some rocks.

“Captain Sokka, more rocks on the left!”

“Aang, helm to lee. Helm to lee!”

“What does that even mean?”

The waves knock Bato around. Sokka and Hua struggle while Katara and Aang close their eyes. However, the boat passes between more rocks.

“Great job!”, praise Sokka.

Katara and Aang smile, as Hua calls out frantically: “Captain, a large group of rocks, is before us. We better turn around!”

“There's no way through!”, agrees Katara.

“We can make it.”, insists Sokka.

Bato stands up and grabs the side of the boat. “Sokka, you've already proven yourself. Maybe we should-”

The water tribe boy doesn’t listen and gives new commands: “Aang, I'm gonna need air in that sail. Katara and Hua, I want you guys to bend as much water as you can between us and those rocks. Now!”

Katara and Hua bend the water below the boat while Aang fires airbending blasts at the sail. 

Sokka groans nervously as the boat clears the rocks. 

When they reach clear water, Sokka sighs and relaxes. 

The rest of the group smiles at him.

Back on land, the kids stand in line before Bato, who holds a small cup of purple paint.

“The spirits of water bear witness to these marks. For Sokka, the Mark of the Wise.” Bato uses his thumb to put an arc and a small dot on Sokka's forehead. “The same mark your father earned. For Katara, the Mark of the Brave. Your courage inspires us. For Hua the Mark of Foresight.”

He paints a circle with a little dot on her forehead. “You are now an honorary member of the Water Tribe.”

Hua has to fight the tears as she bows down in thanks.

“I’m honoured to be part of the Watertribe.”

“And for Aang, the Mark of the Trusted. You are also now an honorary member of the Water Tribe.”

It’s like a slap in the face for him. 

Aang can’t accept this honour. 

Not after what he did.

“I can't.”, he mutters.

“Of course, you can!”, disagrees Katara.

However, Aang steps a few feet away and wipes away his mark.

“No, you can't trust me.”

“Aang, what are you talking about?”

He takes the crumpled map out of his sleeve.

“A messenger gave this to me for Bato.”

Katara takes it from him.

“You have to understand. I was afraid you would-”

“This is the map to our father! You had it the whole time? How could you?”, shouts Sokka. “I’m so sorry Hua, but I won’t go to the North Pole with a liar. I'm going to find Dad.”

“Now, Sokka. I think you should-”, tries Bato, but gets interrupted by Sokka: “Katara, are you with me?”

The waterbender looks at the two youngest, Aang full of guilt and Hua who shakes her head, mumbling, please over and over.

“I'm with you Sokka.”

Sokka, Katara, and Bato walk away and that’s when Hua turns to Aang full of anger.

“What did you do?!”, she screeched. “Why did you do it?! Katara and Sokka never wanted to leave us!”

“But they said yesterday-”

“If you had stayed to listen, then you would have heard how they promised to stay with us since we are also their family, but now…”

Hua lets out a loud wail and sinks down on the sand. Aang looks full of guilt and anguish at her.

“I already lost my family, I lost Monk Gyatsu and now Katara and Sokka!”, she whimpered, fat tears rolling down her eyes. “Why do all the people that I love leave me? Why?!”

Aang sinks down too and embraces her tight, first Hua fights him off, she is still angry, but then she cries into his robes.

They only have each other now.

“I’m so sorry Hua.”, Aang cries too. “I was stupid and hurt and desperate, I really thought Sokka and Katara would leave us because they ignored us for Bato.”

“Aang, they saw a friend of their father! Of course, they wanted to catch up. I would have done the same if I met someone who remember my family! Stupid idiot.”

“Yes, I deserve this.”

They stay for a while like this.

Hua hurls insults and cries at Aang's robes and he agrees with her and promises to do better.

***

Later the groups get ready to depart.

How strange to think of them as groups and not anymore as Team Avatar-Daimon.

Hua was sitting on Appa's saddle with Jaiyi in her arms, trying to console her crying ninetails.

Jaiyi understood that Sokka and Katara would leave them and hated it.

Aang was with Momo on Appa's head, watching how Katara got ready with Bato and Sokka.

Then the watertribe girl stepped on them.

“Good luck.”, she wishes them.

“Okay. You too.”, answer her Aang.

Hua and Jaiyi stare at Katara with big eyes, tears glistering in them and the older girl has to fight of her own, as she joins Sokka and Bato at the abbey gate.

Mother Superior, in front of Appa, stares at Aang.

“Guess we should be moving on.”

“That would be best.”, then she turns to Hua and bows. “It was still an honour meeting you young Daimon.”

“Thanks. Let’s go Aang.”

“Let’s.”

Appa walks out of the abbey and Aang notices three figures walk away in the distance.

“I'm really an idiot, Hua.”

“Yeah, I told you this only 100000 times today.”

“What should we do next?”

“Wait for Blue? He should be back soon.”

“Hopeful he won’t leave us either.”

With this, they walk into the forest.

A few minutes later they hear someone approaching.

It’s Blue!

Happy they call out his name.

Their friend is wearing clean black robes with a hood, his mask still in place, his trusty swords and a bag slung over his shoulder.

“Where you shopping?”, asks Hua as she helps him up the saddle.

After he sits down he writes his answer and Hua reads it aloud so Aang hears it too: “Something similar. Where are Sokka and Katara?”

So they tell him what happened.

“That’s rough, buddy. I’m sorry. I won’t leave you, I promise.”

“Thanks, Blue.”, chorus Hua and Aang together.

Zuko can’t believe his luck.

Katara and Sokka left them!

He could now under false claims steere now Aang and Hua to his ship!

Ha!

And his uncle had thought him crazy when he had been back on the ship to get his things.

How his plan could never work.

But look at it now!

Sadly the universe was against Zuko because they heard the shouts of Sokka and Katara.

They all turn around and see the water tribe siblings running up to them.

“Katara, Sokka!”, yells Hua and Jaiyi yips happily. “What are you doing here?!”

“Well, what do you think? We're getting you guys to the North Pole.”, smiles Katara.

“Yeah, we've lost too much time as it is.”, agrees Sokka.

Stupified Aang and Hua look at them, while Zuko inside cries out in anger.

He was so close!

“Don't you want to see your father?”, wonder Aang and Hua.

“Of course we do, Aang and Hua. But, you're our family, too. And right now, you need us more.”, reminds them Sokka.

“And we need you, guys.”, adds Katara.

No one can watch this fast as Hua jumps down from the saddle and hugs ugly crying Katara and Sokka.

“Never leave us again! I can’t lose another family.”

Katara hugs her back just as tight, giving her cheek kisses and Sokka pats her head.

“There, there Hua.”

That’s when he notes Blue on the saddle.

“Oh awesome, Mask-Dude is back?!”, he groans.

In his head, Zuko isn’t thrilled either seeing them again, but he waves in the hope that it seems welcome and friendly.

After Hua calms down enough, all go back on the saddle and they fly in the direction of the North Pole.

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[ssreeder]

yooooo. queer-ie: i love your work and would die for it (this is the queer part) and i just know there’s gotta be scenes that have been deleted. could you possibly tell us about some of those (this is the -ie part)? no pressure tho!! i’ll be hopelessly devoted to you either way.

eyyyyyy-o.

sorry Ive sat on this ask for a while but it tuurns I doooooo have like 4k of of outtakes from RIA & ITF lol.

so here are a few, i’m not sure if this is what you wanted from this ask lol im doing my best. (also none of these are edited or proof read and im sorry about mistakes and grammar and tense and all that other jaz because these were seriously like - ‘i don’t know if im going to trash this orrrrr…..’ then it never made it in & might not even be applicable to the current story.)

im such a good author I know so many details ummmm here is an insert from some point in RIA (I think this was going to be a POV from Hakoda and his men talking and I decided it was a waste of word count. sorry hakoda)

- - -

“I say we kill him.”

“Don’t you think that is a little… <i>extreme</i> Gilak?”

“Not as extreme as the <i>son</i> of the Fire Lord living and breathing in our camp!”

Hakoda felt the specific vein in his forehead thumping against his wrinkled skin that was trying its best to keep it contained. He could feel a headache coming forward the longer they discussed what to do about the situation that Sokka brought to his attention… and so far, they had not one tangible idea.

“Gilak, I have already told you, we can not kill him.”

“I know sir, your son is buddies with him, and we can’t upset Sokka.”

Hakoda shot the larger man a stern look, and he quickly retracted his words.

“I know why we can’t kill him. I just think it would be the simplest solution in this situation.”

Bato jumped to Hakoda’s defense, like he always did.

“This is not a simple situation, so it will not have a simple solution. I think we should speak to Morrak and see what he learned about the boy before we make any decisions. If we kill the Prince of the Fire Nation while he is severely injured and being non threatening we will look like the savages the rest of the world calls us. We have to handle this delicately, like Hakoda said, Sokka trusted us enough to tell us who he is when he could have easily lied. Which means we need to respect that trust and handle it delicately.”

Hakoda cleared his throat, earning the attention from both his men.

“So it is decided. I will talk to Morrak and once I get more information, I will meet back with you both and we can discuss our options at that point.”

“Yes sir.”

“Yes Chief.”

Hakoda was happy when they left his tent, freeing up the stifled air that seemed to stop moving the moment the conversation began. Hakoda felt an intense guilt building from betraying his son’s trust and sharing his friend's identity with the other men… Haoda knew it was the wisest decision for him to make as the Chief of the Southern Water Tribe, but it wasn’t helping him be the best dad to his son… Something he was still struggling with every passing moment.

Even now… Hakoda left his son alone in the healer’s tent with the boy he just recently discovered was the Prince of the Fire Nation… A boy bred into fire and violence. Sokka seemed to trust him, which gave Hakoda a tiny bit of hope that maybe there was something good in this boy… But that tiny feeling was smothered by the rest of the overwhelming amount of mistrust and worry he had when he looked at the golden eyed boy who glared at him from the moment he opened his eyes.

Hakoda rubbed his forehead, digging his thumb into his temple in an attempt to push back the stress vein. He needed to speak to Morrak, and after that… He would make a decision on what was the best next step he could make. He needed to protect his tribe and his son, that was his main concern right now… and right now… Sokka was tied to this fire bender in a way that made Hakoda nervous.

Turning towards the entrance of his tent, Hakoda decided not to overthink this situation a minute longer and go find Morrak so they could talk…

Each time Hakoda thought about all the things he didn’t know, or wasn’t understanding, he felt the weight of his decision growing heavier and heavier. If Hakoda didn’t figure out what to do soon, he was going to be crushed and then Sokka would be on his own…

Hakoda couldn’t fail his son again, he had to make the right decision

- -

Ok so this one is right before Zuko gave himself up in RIA. I don’t remember how the final scene went down but we all know how it ended :) <3

Psst… Dad.”

Hakoda frowned in his sleep, caught in the middle of a dream and the reality that awaited him on the other side.

“Dad… Wake up.”

Hakoda opened his eyes and saw Sokka staring down at him.

“Son? What are you doing in my tent in the middle of the night? Are you ok?”

Hakoda sat up and rubbed his eyes, trying to see through the darkness he was startled when a tiny flame broke through the void and gave clarity to the room.

Zuko was standing behind Sokka who was kneeling next to Hakoda’s bed, and the Water Tribe man felt a mixture of conflicted feelings. He was instantly happy that Zuko had come back for Sokka, but the dred that followed swallowed any joy he had…. Zuko couldn’t be here. If Quon found him… They would all be in trouble.

“I’m fine… Zuko came back. He… We… Ummm… We are leaving.”

Hakoda thought he would be devastated the day his son told him he was leaving again, so sure that his world would bottom out and Hakoda would feel like he was falling into despair. But when he looked at Sokka, and he thought back to the talk they had about his feelings for the fire bender, Hakoda knew that there was nothing he could say to change his son’s decision.

Just like Hakoda had allowed Katara to leave, he had to do the same with Sokka. His children didn’t belong to him anymore, they were grown and they were bonded to people who they were loyal to… And Hakoda was proud of them. It was a monumental thing to find someone you loved, and staying loyal to them was what kept that relationship strong…. Even if Hakoda didn’t love the idea of Sokka choosing a fire bending boy, he wouldn’t stop him from being loyal to his love.

���I understand, son. Allow me to put on my pants and I will help you two escape.”

Zuko spoke up, “I don’t think that will be necessary. The uhh… The helping us… Not the uhh… The pants.”

Hakoda smirked and Sokka smacked his own forehead. No wonder the boy refrained from using words.

“I would like to make sure you two make it out ok. Is that a problem?”

Zuko seemed to dislike the idea, but Sokka gave him a pleading look that had a splash of assertiveness, which seemed to be their typical dynamic. Now that Hakoda was aware of the romantic nature between the boys it was easier to disfer their interactions.

Hakoda slipped on his pants and slid on his boots, making sure he secured his hunting knife inside. He couldn’t grab any other weapons just in case they were caught, Hakoda couldn’t risk looking like he was prepared for a fight. If they were caught, they would need to make sure that whatever words made up their excuse were good enough to fool whoever found them.

As long as it wasn’t Quon, they might have a chance

- -

RIP Shen, I never realized how fucking funny you and Zuko were until you died. I think this was when they were all sharing intel idk… but Zukos an asshole and I love it. (he and Sokka were sooooo hostile during the SWT arc)

“Nothing… Just…. Fucking drop it. How about Zuko and I switch seats and I will come over and help you with the Fire Nation cruiser information. Bato and Zuko can, I don’t know… Play their tile game or whatever.”

“Fine with me. I fucking love games.” Zuko mumbled as he stood up.

Shen watched with wide eyes, not saying a word, and Hakoda could honestly say he had no words to add to the tension either.

“Good!” Sokka stood up as well and made sure to bump his friend’s shoulder as they switched seats. The fire bender glanced back and Hakoda wondered if he was going to shove Sokka in the back but he didn’t reciprocate the hostile gesture and instead he flopped down next to Bato and crossed his arms with his brow narrowed deep into the center of his face.

Shen leaned back when Sokka came to sit down next to him, and Sokka glanced over at him and scoffed.

“Don’t be dramatic. Let’s just get this thing fucking over with so we can be done here.”

“Whatever you say.” Shen replied as Sokka aggressively organized the parchment and prepared to draw out Shen’s cruiser.

Hakoda watched as Sokka’s anger melted when Shen began to explain what it was like being a soldier stationed on Fire Nation cruiser. He told them about -

- -

TA DAAAAAA idk if this is what you wanted…. but here it is. I don’t have anything from the first book, and only a bit from ITF but I do have more RIA. I rambled a lot in the second book ha but yeah idk what else to say! Thanks for the ask.

[zvtara-was-never-canon]

Apparently when Aang was depressed and suggested that maybe they should abandon hope, he was actually ordering/Forcing The pregnant Couple to accept air nomad beliefs.

Also Aang apparently Regularly disrespects and refuses to learn from other cultures and Aang actually isn’t even a good airbender because somehow even though he regularly airbends, we don’t see him practicing at all.

Finally even though Aang allowed Katara to take Appa and acknowledged that she believes that she needs to go on the journey to Yon rha, Aang was forcing Katara to murder Yon Rha.

What show were Aang’s detractors watching?

I love the implication that somethings as simple as "having hope" is considered "Air-nomad exclusive belief", when that's a big theme throught the whole show and we have IROH telling Zuko not to give into despair, and explaining to the crew on "The Storm" that Zuko is so obsessed with capturing the Avatar because that mission allows him to hope he can come home and fix things with his dad.

They REALLY think that "pacifist" (which IS an air-nomad thing) MUST mean "hopeful, optimistic and cheery" like Aang - like we didn't see the air-nomads clearly freaking out so bad that they tell Aang he is the Avatar four years ahead of time, getting pissed whenever he is having any fun, and even want to separate him from his "father" because they knew something bad was gonna happen. Aka, they gave into despair.

As for him "forcing" the couple to give that name to their child

Husband: What should we name her?

Wife: I want our daughter's name to be unique. I want it to mean something.

Aang:  I've been going through a really hard time lately. But you've made me ... hopeful again.

Wife: I know what I want to name our baby now. Hope.

Husband: That's a perfect name. Hope.

That was a suggestion at most. Not an order, not intimidating them into doing what he wanted them to, and surely not forcing them to accept "air-nomad beliefs."

"The guy who spent the whole series traveling around to learn from different people, and was so understanding he was even sympathetic to the nation that killed everyone he knew and loved, did not respect other cultures" Bruh.

Literally the only two "disrespectful" things I remember Aang doing were:

1 - That bitter comment about "dead animals" towards Bato - which he only made because he was feeling left out of the conversation since his friends were so excited about being with someone from their tribe that they were completely ignoring him. Not cool, but totally understanding considering he's 12.

2 - Snapping at Pakku for not wanting to train Katara/trying to teach her what he was taught behind his back (even though the second one is on shaky ground since, even though that was a bit of a "cheat code" to make Pakku train Katara indirectly, he doesn't have the right to demand Aang never share his knowledge with someone he doesn't approve of)

And both of these, on top of being understandable, also have the disclaimer of "You can disagree with someone's beliefs/cultural habits without looking down on them" - hell, Katara full on says Gran-Gran left because she wouldn't let the Northern Water Tribes stupid customs ruin her life. Not to mention, the Fire Nation's culture for at least 100 years has been "fuck everyone else, only our way of living is the correct one" and the whole point of the show is "This belief is not only wrong and hurting the other nation, it is harming the Fire Nation itself"

"It's my culture" is a neutral statement. It does not shield said culture from criticism, and Aang disagreeing with someone's beliefs - be it that hunting/eating meat is okay, or that women can't be fighters, or that not all life is sacred - is not the same as him being disrespectful. He owes people basic human decency, not blind agreement with anything and everything they believe in.

So yeah, these people need to keep. Aang's. Name. OUT. THEIR. FUCKING. MOUTH.

[oneatlatime]

More season 1 thoughts

I like Katara better in the second half of the season than the first. I found her less annoying. Is that because she has evened out as a character, or is that because there was less of her? I don't know. I'd love to see a quantitative analysis of the number of lines per character per episode. Still, Katara handled the whole Pakku problem with fewer explosions than when she was handling the pirates and the waterbending scroll, and you can argue that the Pakku stuff was much more of a direct attack on her, so I'm going to call her reduced annoyingness growth.

Poor Sokka has been consistently my favourite character since episode one, and that hasn't changed at all. He just got royally stomped on in a way specifically designed to cause as much pain to him personally as possible in the finale, and I'll be interested to see if that causes any long term change. My boy is good at repression, so I doubt there will be obvious change, but this show is good at gradual stealth character growth. I'm looking forward to trying to ferret out the subtle changes to him in season 2.

Aang is lovely. I think he appears to be the least changed of our main cast at first glance, but like Sokka, I expect that getting used/possessed/actively participating in mega fishman destruction in the finale is going to have some effect on him (Still not clear on exactly who possessed whom / who was in control. Don't know if I'll ever know, or if it really matters). Aang is a lovable island of fun in a sea of century old war trauma. When he's not being stupid because he's 12, he's being consistently kind and open hearted, with an unshakable core and sense of self. Congrats to Gyatso on raising such a self-possessed boy. And you know what? He's entitled to stupid 12 year old moments because he is 12.

Poor Yue. Kind of a one note character at first glance, but because she's a mirror of Sokka, she feels just as deep as he does. That's clever writing.

Appa continues to be both team transportation and team dad. I think Sokka is team mom. Katara may be feminine, but it's Sokka who's keeping them fed and going in vaguely the right direction. He's the practical one. While Katara's or Aang's actions often drive the story, it's Sokka who's on clean up duty to make sure that the impulsive and bighearted decisions made by his sister and adopted brother blow up in their faces as little as possible.

I am convinced that Momo has no awareness of the main quest. I think Appa knows that his human and his human's friends are trying to save the world. I think Momo knows that these humans and their big furry thing feed him and keep him warm while going to lots of different places.

I loved that the season finale couldn't be predicted. The end game that the show set up was a showdown with the firelord. I expected that the firelord would make his first appearance in the season finale. Instead, we get a conflict I didn't see coming in a location I had honestly forgotten we were going to. Even if you had watched episodes 1 through 17, could you predict the conflict and location of the finale beyond something something fire nation? I like that I couldn't predict it. Too often shows spend so much time building up to the season showdown that it's almost anti-climactic because you've pretty much guessed the shape that the conflict will take. Not this show.

I think my favourite episode of the second half of this season is Bato of the Water Tribe. I loved having a glimpse into non-war water tribe life. It gives us a look at what it is that the people fighting the fire nation are fighting to preserve/get back. It also gives us a rough outline of the kind of person Sokka and Katara's dad is, which surprisingly adds a lot to Sokka's characterisation. And I love an episode where Sokka gets the A plot. The fight scene was really entertaining to watch, although I do feel sorry for June's big beast.

I think the best (as in the most skillfully executed) episode in the second half of the season is probably The Blue Spirit. It's a character episode disguised as an action episode, and not to get too much into fanfic speculative territory, but I feel like it lays groundwork for a couple of possible paths for the characters that certainly weren't available to them before. Also I love the melancholy note it ends on. I don't like unhappy endings as a rule, but I make an exception for contemplative endings, like the Southern Air Temple, the Summer Solstice Part 2, and the Blue Spirit.

I find I prefer the 'problem of the week' type episodes more than the episodes that serve the larger plot, because honestly I just want to hang out with these guys. High stakes adventures are both important and necessary, but it's also cool to have a problem presented and solved in 23 minutes. I feel like the characters act more like people and less like servants of the plot when they're in 'monster of the week' type episodes.

There were fewer eye-poppingly beautiful episodes in the second half of the season, although the Deserter's forest and fireworks festival was nice. The finale was downright bland, but you can't have lush multicoloured foliage at the north pole. I am so thankful that the show doesn't go for that stupid grimdark aesthetic that movies are still struggling with.

Finally, a word on the blasphemous live action that definitely doesn't exist:

Some of the greatest parts of this show are the gorgeously colourful eyepopping backgrounds, the very well thought out combination of bending and cartoon physics, and Sokka's stupid faces. You know what a live action can't do? Any of those things. So really, why did they even try? I can't think of a show, a world, a story, that is more suited to the artistic liberties and conventions of animation.