#blacksmith sokka

[witchering10123]

my "divorced" zukka au, slammed back into my memory by @transboyzuko latest addition (a true hero right there yall)

story idea is below the cut because whoo boy it became a lot longer than i thought it would

sozin's comet, sokka and toph are dangling off the ship, there's smoke and fire everywhere, it's getting hard to breathe, hard for sokka to see, and without his weapons, sokka is unable to see a way out

a figure of a guard appears through the smoke, and sokka jerks back and away from the man (in vain) but in doing so, jostles his leg. the pain and the shock combined, toph's hand slips out of sokka's grip and he watches helplessly as she falls

sokka makes to jump after her, but the guard grabs him before he can and yanks him back onto the safety of the wider platform. sokka tries to fight, but he's quickly subdued and he falls unconscious

(fear not, toph does live: she falls from sokka's grasp, but what sokka doesn't realise, due to the intensity of the smoke and fire, is that suki is right beneath them, and she catches toph. do not worry i am not killing toph, i am too scared to do that)

the airship pulls away from the battle, with the most senior commander taking over and urging a retreat to one of the southern fire nation islands, where he, and a number of powerful fire nation lords, hail from - that part of the fire nation does not recognise the authority of fire lord zuko, however it is unclear if they would recognise ozai, now that his bending is gone (and besides, quite a number weren't wholly impressed with him usurping iroh), so the war has become more of a civil war, with the separatists (they're not separatists but idk what else to call them) planning to take over the fire nation and then continue the war

the gaang are now faced with a fire nation civil war AND convincing the many ek provinces and water tribes to support zuko so that the 100 year war can truly end, however many ek ministers and some northern water tribe ambassadors believe this is a trick

during this time, sokka is a prisoner of the separatist group, and has resigned himself to this fate, believing toph to be dead and ngl perhaps suki as well, but he's definite that toph is dead and he's definite that his actions led to her death, so MAJOR survivor guilt

this is, of course, exacerbating his guilt about not protecting yue, his mum, katara (even though she's not dead he still doesn't know what happened to her)

so yeah, sokka's feeling very guilty and feels as if he deserves being imprisoned/tortured/etc, so he's not making any escape plans or anything, he's just done

BUT THEN

a new political prisoner is placed in the cell next to his: a young boy called hinata (imagine like 7 or 8) who the separatists are using to try and goad one of the fire nation nobles who is supporting zuko - he reminds sokka a bit of the boys back home in the swt that he cared for

sokka begins to feel very protective of this kid, especially when the guards come round to do their usual tormenting, or when they give out too small rations, or when hinata has a nightmare, and after a while he realises that he needs to get out, but not for himself, just for hinata

so they do, they escape (you'll notice how much thought i've put into this lmao) but they can't get back to hinata's family because it's all a massive war zone so sokka grabs the kid and they head for the ek, and not just the ek, like south east of ba sing se ek, near the eastern air temple ek, like as far from the fire nation as possible, sokka isn't letting anyone near hinata

yeah, he essentially becomes an older brother to hinata

now sokka has every intention of reuniting hinata with his family once the war is over but unfortunately they are very remote and so the village they are staying in doesn't exactly get the news asap. or like, at all

aang is visiting the eastern air temple a few months after that war has ended (i'm thinking at least a couple of years after aang defeated ozai but hey whatever floats your boat) and he stops by at a village to get supplies and lo and behold sokka and hinata are there

the reunion is very accidental, one of appa's buckles on his saddle snapped and aang landed near the village because he didn't want to continue his flight to the eastern air temple with a broken saddle and he needed supplies anyway, and so he enters the village, asks a nearby kid who looks strangely fire nation "hey, do you guys have a blacksmith" and hinata is like, "oh yeah, come with me" and he takes him to sokka

yes sokka would become a blacksmith fight me if you dare

(also i'm imagining that during sokka's time as a prisoner, he definitely lost his leg that got broken because like the separatists would have gone for the easiest route with sokka's broken leg and if it's broken too badly then why bother trying to heal it just go chop chop- so yeah, sokka makes himself a prosthetic and specialises in mobility aids, which are sorely needed in this area of the ek with the amount of refugees that fled to that province when they couldn't get access to ba sing se, but he does other engineering things as well and his ideas are, ngl, creating a bit of a hub near the eastern air temple, so slay for sokka)

regardless, aang and sokka reunion :)))

long chat about hinata having to return home, because like yes that was always the intention but aang reveals to sokka that hinata's family were killed when hinata escaped and the separatists had no more leverage over hinata's family (he doesn't reveal that to hinata for obvious reasons, he lets sokka do that) and hinata and sokka have become a little dependent on each other

it's not co-dependency per se, but like it was definitely going that way before they reached the village and their community helped them begin to heal from their trauma and stuff, but regardless they don't want to be separated, and so after much deliberation sokka and hinata decide that they want to stay where they are and if the gaang want to visit that is fine but if there's nothing tying them to the fire nation then why leave their new home

sokka's part of the decision is most definitely fueled by shame over losing toph and not being able to protect the people he loves, but aang doesn't realise that sokka doesn't know that toph is alive so aang doesn't mention anything, he just agrees to tell the gaang and family and all and leaves

aang returns not even three weeks later with katara zuko toph suki, a couple of hinata's uncles who want to at least see that hinata is alive, and a letter from hakoda and bato saying that they're aboard a ship sailing over

angsty reunion for sokka as he realises that toph is alive lemme assure you that was not on his reunion bingo card no siree

angsty reunion for suki and zuko with sokka because zuko and suki were very sure that sokka was dead and sokka was very sure that zuko and suki would hate him for getting toph killed

angsty water tribe fam reunion obvi with a heavy dosing of katara hakoda and bato assuring sokka that he did not fail

...so yeah it's angsty it's dramatic it's miscommunication it's long distance it's kind of technically not really divorced au but it's got a bit of flair and that's all that really matters

[royonninjago]

The Ninja's Roles Within the Team

Something I think the various Ninjago shows do really well is the characterizations of each Ninja. If it was bad, then kids wouldn't wanna watch the show or buy the Lego sets to reenact their favorite moment and create new scenarios for the Ninja to go through.

However, for the past few years a problem I've had with the TV show is that some characters feel more... useful than others. Then there are moments when one character is missing, but the team seems to operate just fine without them, and I think that does a real disservice to the characters.

In contrast, take the ATLA episode "Sokka's Master". It's one of my favorites because it separates Sokka, the only non-bender in Team Avatar, from the rest of the team. The episode demonstrates to both us and the rest of Team Avatar why Sokka is essential to their team. Without him, they're bored, can't figure out where they are or where they're headed on a map, and are overall completely directionless. Its like the precursor to those dime a dozen fantasy mangas where the weak member of a dungeon divers gets fired and the rest of the party ends up deeply regretting it.

I want the Ninjago TV show to demonstrate to us why each member is essential to the Ninja Team, and why without one of them the Ninja Team is worse off or have to work twice as hard to compensate.

Dragons Rising had such a good opportunity to explore this, but unfortunately it seems like the biggest problem the Team faces from being separated across the merged realms is lack of manpower and not much else. In lieu of this, here are some of my ideas as to how each character could prove to be essential to the Ninja.

Lloyd - The Leader. This one is definitely the most obvious. He's had a very clear leadership role since he became the Green Ninja, and ever since Wu left this distinction has only gotten more pronounced. However, I do find myself wishing to see a bit more of a dark streak with him. He was originally introduced as an antagonist, and I don't know about y'all but I still find myself enjoying Three Days Grace ever since I played the Halo 3 campaign at a friend's house while listening to AMVs of their songs.

Kai - The Weapon Master. Although there was never anything to support this, I always thought that Kai made the weapons that the Ninja used in the pilots. He is a blacksmith, after all. I think it would be cool if this aspect was more leaned into and not only make him the guy that creates all the swords and throwing stars and whatever other simple weapons the Ninja use, but to also be the best one at using those weapons. A sword is obviously his go to, but put any kind of simple weapon in his hands and I think he'd be able to use it very well. Imagine how much cooler it would have been in season 11 if Kai managed to defeat Aspheera's sheer power with his incredible swordsmanship skills. It'd certainly tie into his arc that season much better than what we actually got.

Jay - The Scout. Remember that scene in the pilots where the Skulkin cars were trying to reach 88 mph or whatever and Jay was gaining on them just by running? The writers sure don't! Though in all seriousness, whenever the Ninja need to learn a new technique to do something, Jay always picks up on it really quickly. First to perform Spinjitzu and summon his Golden Weapon Vehicle, second to unlock his true potential, third to summon his Elemental Dragon, he managed to surprise Ronin when practicing Airjitzu, not to mention his laundry list of hobbies. If they really leaned into his speed, combining that with his skills as a Ninja would make him perfect for running ahead and reporting back on the enemy forces. In my own little world, I like to imagine him as a PG version of the Scout from TF2 (Jay even had a slight Boston accent in the pilots!).

Cole - The Muscle. This one is also fairly obvious due to Cole's signature Earth Punch, but I feel as though it should be noticed more when he's not around, especially in Master of the Mountain. If I'm remembering correctly, they don't fully acknowledge his absence until they're locked up in the Vengestone cage about to be executed. If I regularly hung out with a dude that could lift a car over his head, I'd be lamenting about his absence whenever I needed to lift a heavy box.

Zane - The Information Officer. Another obvious one, but in this case I feel as though they lean a bit too heavily into it. Yes, he's a robot and yes, it's his job to know things, but I want to see his more dorky and silly side from time to time. Give us more Zane following a bird because it danced and him just chilling (literally) in the fridge at midnight for no reason type of stuff. After all, his greatest fear is losing his humanity.

Nya - The Strategist. I feel as though on a 'don't judge a fish by it's ability to climb a tree' level, Nya is just as smart as Zane. Due to his physiology, Zane can hold much more raw information many times over Nya, but I feel as though Nya is much better at putting that information to use. Going back to Master of the Mountain (I realize I'm referencing it a lot, its still fresh in my mind), when Kai and Zane were lost, they relied entirely on the raw data from Zane's internal compass, and because of that they got lost and had to rely on Geckles capturing them to reach their settlement. On the other hand, when Lloyd, Jay, and Nya were lost, Nya was able to determine the location of the Munce settlement by searching for signs of life and finding footprints. Also, I think this characterization fits the Master of Water really well considering water adapts to whatever environment it resides in.

The new Ninja from Dragons Rising are still very inexperienced and still haven't really found their grooves within the team, but I'm still gonna try and analyze them here.

Arin - ???. Right now, Arin's main skills are his unique Spinjitzu skills and his talent with a grappling hook. Its still so early in his Ninja training that he hasn't really carved out a distinct role for himself, though I hope this changes as time goes on. Not too long ago I proposed a cool idea for his future if any of y'all wanna take a look at that here.

Sora - The Technical Specialist. While I don't enjoy the idea of PIXAL being replaced as the Ninja's primary vehicle builder, with Sora being the Elemental Master of Tech it seems very possible that this is where things are headed. Instead of that, I think it better for her to either focus on using her skills in the field or to specialize in Mechs. Both of these ideas come from the Elemental Mech mini-series. I thought the idea of switching up parts on a mech in the middle of a battle to be a fun concept and one giving credence to her being a Field Tech, and whenever she uses her Elemental Powers its for the purpose of creating or altering or fixing a mech about half of the time.

Wyldfyre - The Dragon Expert. Even before the Merge, the Ninja encountered Dragons a lot. Now that there are dragons seemingly everywhere, Wyldfyre seems like the perfect liaison for communicating with these dragons, assuming she can learn to cool off when its needed. She also seems to know a good amount about dragons, considering that she was easily able to identify the Wasting Sickness and make a soup to help ease the pain it caused. There's still a lot she needs to learn before anyone can consider her an expert, but with her love of dragons and the belief that she is one, I think she'd be more than willing to learn.

And there you have it. If you have any ideas or head cannons or questions surrounding this topic, I'd love to hear them!

[oneatlatime]

A Precariously Stacked Pile of Random Season 2 Thoughts

These are notes I took as I watched the season. Usually after I’d already posted about the episode in question, and I thought of something I would have added to the post. Rather than edit them into my posts, I’m rounding them up and posting them all at once. As such, they are vaguely chronological. Unfortunately, because I made the notes legible to me and me only, I didn't bother to write down what episode I was referring to. I've also added some notes in as I was editing these notes. So this is also a bit of a scavenger hunt. Enjoy!

Iroh poisoning himself: dumbass moment or 5D chess?

My autocorrect corrects “Sokka” to Sock, and “Sokka’s” to socks. This causes double takes when editing.

Badgermoles have excellent eyeliner. Is that where the Kyoshi Warriors get their jaw dropping cat eye?

Why is Ty Lee spelled Ty Lee and not Tai Li? Why is Dai Li spelled Dai Li and not Dy Lee?

Sometimes Sokka makes me think of Mulan. Am I crazy?

Are the swampbenders’ moves based on a real martial art style too?

Why didn’t Aang use his swamp sense to locate Appa post-appanapping?

Where did Toph, who spent her whole life as a prisoner of her parents’ house and a moonlighting WWE wrestler until Team Avatar busted her out, get such emotional intelligence?

Why did Zuko’s dad put forward the plan to disinherit Iron in favour of him less than 24 hours after Lu Ten’s death? Why did he think that moving quickly was the right approach? Does the Fire Nation not do grieving periods? In what world was 'strike while the iron is hot' the correct course of action here?

Looking back, I’m amazed that season 2 didn’t end in Zuko’s redemption. I didn’t much like Zuko Alone, but I was sure that a season that included that much set up for a Zuko redemption arc would prioritise finishing that arc.

I haven’t even met this Firelord guy yet, but I am peeved that that twerp has a name as cool as Ozai.

Why haven't I met that Firelord guy yet?

I really thought that the older brother character in Zuko Alone would make an appearance later on in the season, giving Zuko a chance to flex some newly acquired morals. But the parallel to Lu Ten and the general message about the evils of war lands better if we never hear of him again.

Zuko in the first half of season 2 had me so annoyed that I was incredibly uncharitable to him in my write ups. Reading through some of the stuff I wrote while watching episodes, I kind of wince now. Zuko in the second half of the season was much less annoying. Which I feel bad for saying, because he’s clearly not in a good place in the second half of the season.

I would love to know why the writers decided to have Toph and Iroh meet in the wilderness. I think it’s a good choice, but I want to know how they came up with it, and why those characters? Is there anything about Toph (especially at that point, when we’ve known her for 1 episode) that suggests that she and Iroh should meet? Or would get along if they did?

Zuko has so many rock bottom fake outs this season: Zuko Alone? Nope, he gets worse in The Chase. The Chase? Nope, he gets worse in Bitter Work. Bitter Work? Nope, he gets worse in the finale.

I’m still peeved that Azula won a 6 on 1 showdown. Sorry, but that breaks immersion.

I bet the Blue Spirit could make lightning.

If water is the element of change, why does the Northern Water Tribe have such strictly defined traditions? I get that it's literally the element of change, in that water can exist in different physical states, but shouldn't the metaphorical interpretation also be true?

I like that Toph can think like an Airbender sooner than Aang can think like an earthbender.

What is Sokka’s boomerang made of? Is it metal? Because if it’s metal, does that mean that there’s a blacksmith somewhere in the South Pole? With a forge?

I still can’t get over how dumb the whole eclipse plot was.

Suki is TINY!!!

I mocked this guy’s 80s aerobics video leotard aesthetic, and I stand by that mockery, because this guy is ugly. Those colours are awful. But do you know who else has those colours?

Jet this season fascinates me. He’s positioned as genuinely repentant and legitimately seeking a second chance and I don’t believe him for one minute. Why don’t I believe him? This show has a theme of learning from mistakes and doing better, so shouldn’t Jet be a perfect fit for this show’s themes? I should be primed to believe him. And yet I don’t.

I have to applaud Iron’s enthusiasm for their new life in Ba Sing Se. A lot of that cheer (at least before the tea shop) is put on for Zuko’s sake. I don’t know where Iroh gets the energy to keep trying with Zuko after years of minimal results, but I’m glad he does.

I think Aang and Ty Lee should hang out. They have similar circus energy. Or maybe it’s that they’re the only two characters in the show so far who are remotely playful.

Aang = surface silliness, core of calm. Not that the silliness doesn't run deep, but he seems to have an untouchable anchor of calm deep within that rarely gets disturbed. Gyatso raised him well.

~~*~~*~~*~~*~~Poetry bouncer ~~*~~*~~*~~*~~

I need next season to have more Appa & Mono subplots à la their escapades in The Swamp. Not à la Momo’s Tale.

Tales of Ba Sing Se definitive ranking: Momo Aang Sokka Zuko Iroh Katara & Toph

I love that Momo still sleeps in the Momo bag from The Blind Bandit

Are Suki and her warriors sitting in the middle of some Earth Kingdom forest in their underwear?

So are Smellerbee and Longshot just done? Will they be back in season 3? What happens to their life now? They are known associates of an enemy of the state who was just executed. It doesn't look good.

Everyone on this show has big ears. Zuko has the smallest ears simply because he has the least amount of ears remaining. But everyone else? Big ears.

Can I have more Gyatso? I forgot how cool he was. More Guru too please.

Hakodilf.

Everyone in the SWT has such wonderfully fluffy hair.

I like Sokka’s boots. Southern Water Tribe boots in general.

If this is the grand total of the SWT, I have some bad news about population dynamics.

Is there a proper naval term for what the SWT are doing? They’re a stealth strike force that seems to be going after individual enemy ships, using both direct and indirect tactics. Not pirates, because as far as we know they aren't going for FN supplies. They're doing what submarines do, but above water. There’s got to be a proper name for that.

Is there a raft of FN corpses chilling in the waters in front of the NWT's big wall?

I saw ATLA described as a show where all the characters are Asian-inspired people of colour, but isn’t Suki a blue-eyed redhead?

I had no idea that you could decline an Agni Kai. Zuko should have done that.

Why are the Dai Li so in love with Azula? I get that they're pissed with Long Feng for getting arrested, but wouldn't the logical choice be to direct their loyalties to the Earth King rather than a wildcard princess? I'm not going to pretend for a minute that the Dai Li are loyal to the Earth Kingdom or to Ba Sing Se, but the Earth King is a known quantity. Seems to me that it would be easier for them to re-puppetify him, rather than a FN princess.

Katara & Zuko bonding over their missing mothers is the same “makes sense until you think about it for five seconds” as Song & Zuko bonding over losing their fathers to war. Technically the same, sort of, on paper, but actually kind of rude to equate them once you know the full story. Same with the parallel between Lu Ten and the older brother in Zuko Alone. The proper dead mom parallel is Katara and Jet. Although Katara doesn’t object to the Zuko comparison, so I have no grounds to do so.

I’m really glad that Katara didn’t remove Zuko’s scar with her spirit oasis water. Both because she kind of really needed that water, but also because one thing this show has always done right is permanence. No quick fixes, no fake outs, no take backs. Lu Ten is dead, and he stays that way. Princess Yue is the moon, and she stays that way. Half a dozen people’s moms are dead, and they stay that way. Aang is the last Airbender, and he stays that way. Zuko is scarred, and he stays that way. There are no hand waves, no easy fixes. All the characters can do is learn to live with it, and go forward. And I’m grateful the show is like that, because that permanence, as well as being a good lesson to learn, functions as a reward for audience investment.

Aang did come to a crossroads of destiny in the finale, chose his duties to the world over his friends, and got aggressively slapped down for it. I have a feeling that he’ll take the wrong lesson from that, since he was already inclined to shun that path.

Overall Season 1 was prettier.

Ty Lee was the cause of more than one Beat Up Sokka Quota fulfillment this season. Make of that what you will.

Will Zuko & Azula spend season 3 bouncing between the FN and Ba Sing Se? They could be heavily involved with establishing the FN governance over Ba Sing Se, since the city is already inclined towards royalty.

Favourite episode this season? The Guru. The Blind Bandit and The Swamp are tied for second place.

[yikes-kachowski]

what abt suki x sokka kids too??

So I have three kid concepts for you, but id personally only give them two or even just one.

First of all, Sokka and Suki would make perfect parents. They're emotionally intelligent and kind and just so supportive and proud of their kids no matter what. Only problem is that they are kind of workaholics.

So here's my ideas:

Firstly, Yuka. A strong warrior and nonbender. She is following her parents legacies like it's a damn rulebook. She's cunning and quick, logical and skeptical. She reads exclusively non-fiction, but doesn't enjoy it. She believes that you can't enjoy something while working hard, but enjoys working hard itself. She can be overly prideful. She is a strong community leader on Kyoshi Island.

Then, Amaruq. He was born in the Southern Water Tribe, and he was born deaf. Deafness is quite common in the water tribes, I think. He is not a fighter, instead, he's a blacksmith and a cartographer. He hunts well, and could put those skills into combat if he so chooses. He is very handy with a bow and arrow.

Here's my last concept, for which I have no name or sketch, but I think yue would thank sokka by giving him a VERY strong waterbender. And I think they would be very involved in the Civil War between the North and South. I think their eyes would be VIVID blue.

Yuka would teach asami chi blocking 100%. She would also allow us to see the Kyoshi warriors in tlok.

Amaruq would be someone that helps out all of them along their power crawl and then would probably have a huge badass fight scene.

The waterbender would have sworn to protect koraa from birth methinks.

Hope this is what you wanted :) anyway, here's some quick sketches that I'm not very proud of

[the-badger-mole]

How Things Fall Apart

Zuko liked to believe that Mai had loved him once. At least, she had once loved a version of him. When he failed to live up to that image she'd built up in his head, all pretext of affection faded in short order.

It wasn't all Mai's fault, Zuko conceded. He had learned to ask her what exactly she wanted as gifts, but he still managed to disappoint. One year, he hadn't been able to afford to replace the diamond bracelet she'd lost during a vacation to Ember Island, so he'd gotten her what he thought was a lovely bracelet with a cheaper alternative stone (the Fire Nation was weathering an inflation crisis, and Zuko thought it would be gauche to spend so much money on the high quality gems imported from the Earth Kingdom instead of increasing the palace staff's salary). Another year, when the country was in a better place financially, Zuko splurged on a new set of throwing knives crafted by the finest blacksmiths under Master Piando's direction. Mai hadn't wanted more steel blades. She wanted the black blades crafted from the meteorite the Southern Tribe's prince had gifted Piando (Zuko's correction about Sokka not being a prince went unheard). It didn't matter that Piando had already made plans on how to use that stone, Zuko was the Fire Lord, and that should mean something. Zuko could do nothing right by Mai. She had still not forgiven him for getting rid of the stately palanquins.

After the birth of their first, and as it would turn out, only child, Mai became more distant. It was an improvement, Zuko told himself philosophically, over shouting matches and heavy objects being thrown at him (Mai never threw a blade at him, and she always made sure whatever she threw hit the wall and not Zuko. He was, after all, the Fire Lord). As long as Mai had access to the royal coffers, relative peace was kept. Zuko was certain that she had at least one lover, but he was content to ignore it, as long as Mai kept up a reasonable amount of discretion. Instability in the Fire Nation's royal family could have far reaching consequences, after all.

Iroh, ever the optimistic presence in Zuko's life, told his nephew about an art practiced in certain parts of the Fire Nation called kintsugi. Instead of throwing away broken things, the artists would carefully gather the broken parts and using a mixture of gold dust and lacquer, piece the broken things back together. The finished products often looked more beautiful than the original. Zuko thought he understood. Finally, fifteen years after he ascended the throne, eleven years after becoming a husband, and seven years after becoming a father, Zuko and the Fire Nation found a sense of equilibrium. The Fire Nation's economy had begun to right itself; a new curriculum designed to fight the decades of propaganda had been approved and implemented; feasible reparation agreements had been reached with the countries most damaged by the war and colonialism. Zuko and Mai only spoke when necessary for public appearances and state functions, and Izumi was growing into a precocious, inquisitive and imaginative child, to say nothing of her firebending prowess. If Zuko's daughter felt the absence of her mother, she hid it very well. Then one day, the peaceful existence Zuko had carved for himself and his child was shattered.

Mai's death was sudden and jarring. Zuko hadn't known anything was wrong until late that night, when a servant, disheveled and out of breath from sprinting to Zuko's chambers from hers, told him that a physician had been called for the Fire Lady, but the outlook was grim.

Officially, Mai had died after suffering from a hemorrhage caused by the miscarriage of her second child. While a few errant rumors floated around for a few months afterwards, the truth (that the child Mai was carrying wasn't Zuko's, and the miscarriage was intentional) was known to only a handful of Zuko's most trusted friends and family. Zuko grieved, though perhaps not as might be expected of a widower suddenly left alone to raise a child. He mourned what might have been if they hadn't married; mourned the family life he would never be able to give his daughter; mourned the lack of a partner who would stand at his side and help him move the country towards a more progressive, inclusive future. Most of all, he mourned the death of his hope of having anything better for himself.

Zuko didn't wallow, though. As little hope as he had left for his own prospects, he wanted Izumi to retain her own bright outlook for the future. He would have some help there with the expected arrival of Katara and her two children. It would be good, Zuko thought, for his daughter to have friends her age. As it would turn out, it was good for Zuko to have a friend around, too. When she stepped off the boat, clothed in a gauzy gold fabric gifted to her by the queen of Omashu, Zuko felt the weight in his heart lighten for the first time in years.

Follow up to Severing the Tie

Next, How Do You Mend?

[princess-of-the-corner]

If I remember right, one of the ingredients for repairing a Miraculous is meteorite, which, from what I recall from a blacksmithing video I watched where they forged Sokka's Space Sword, is hella expensive.

True, but considering Lila's three rich moms, and more, she'd be able to get her hands on someq

[jennyandvastraflint]

Xena Reactions S3Ep3

We start with a dude dramatically running away from war... EW. ARES. He just keeps getting uglier

Damn strong armour. Is the armour possessing the guy?

MEDAL OF HEPHESTEUS!?

Cheerful start really

Damn they wanna hurt some guy. Was that Gabby

YEEES XENA AND GABRIELLE

Gosh Xena and Gabrielle are so gorgeous

Is she gathering criminals for a mission XD

OHHH GORGEOUS.

"I am no lady" either way gender.

Xena introducing them

"Just men?" 😂 Gabrielle asking the good questions

Going up against Ares... Blergh. Ares can go choke on his own ego.

Oof, village laid waste

The armour looks so stupid honestly...

Rude!???

Love how Xena's SWORD broke but not Gabrielle's staff 😂

Oh fuck the pretty one was hit

Oh. METAL! Not medal... Yes that makes more sense (auditory processing issues hu)

Blacksmithing fancam

Hate that pretentious guy

CALLISTO SHOUTOUTTT <3

"Wow, nice ceps!" He is GAY. He is so down to suck Ares's dick...

BOOMERANG (Sokka is foaming at the mouth in jealousy)

"Cos I'm gonna kill her" no you won't. Shut up and suck Ares's dick you war simp

Gabrielle commanding them as she should.

Boo for them ignoring her.

"Murderers guarding murderers"

"Were they murderers before they met you?" OUCH

THEY WERE LIKE ME

AAAAAAH

"Am I really who I am, or am I what you made me?"

They're playing their funny guessing game again

Jesus can these murderers CHILL

Gabrielle looking, then going NOOOPE

Please these idiots are still standing there

Ahaha they're guarding each other cos none trusts the other to not kill them

RISE AND SHINEEE

"But what are you here for?"

SO VALID. STAB THAT GUY DEAD.

"You know what men are like" lesbian

Ahaha he just fell asleep

"But you're going to buy them"

Yuck, I wouldn't wanna be stuck with that guy either

"I think I've never been part of a true disaster before" "Cynic"

URGH the sexist prick can go die in a ditch

Ew what kinda straight sex shit is this

"Men are so easy" shdhshd

Gosh he's annoying.. Why r all the men in this annoying

NOOOO HE WANTED TO HURT GABRIELLE

And he grabbed Xena...

DID SHE KILL HIM-

Oop

"That's gotta be uncomfortable" 😂

GABRIELLE MY BABYGIRL

"Is this a private get together or can anyone join in?" Oh she knooows

She's happy they're working together

AHAHA She sensed Ares

Why is Ares' beard so fucking UGLYYYY. Like it literally got worse

Ares you snitch. Why are you telling her. Bro as if THAT isn't also interfering?? 😂

Uhhhh... Whomst?

Damn they throw bombs

Gabrielle ur so amazing

Xena I love you sm

Damn. She's defyyying gravity

Mmmmm, dudebro sexist is sus af

Urgh... They tricked her...

GABBY

YUCK. DISGUSTING. I hope she gets to murder him

I love Gabby

HOLY SHIT. HER SHOVING THE OTHER WOMAN AGAINST THE WALL (Gabrielle 🤝 Jenny)

Glaphyra?

Yeah true but y'know, a bit too many men for my liking, and a whole bunch of others stand around doing nothing about it

They really just want money, hu

Is he gonna free them

Ayoooo double double crossing

Ahsdhsh she used the Doctor strategy. Get captured cos breaking out the cell is easier than breaking into the whole thing

EW. ASSAULT. DISGUSTING. Someone give her a wife

"Hey that's not how a princess fights" gosh get some perspective, man

"Amazon Princess" YOU TELL HIM

OH FUCK. GABRIELLE IS JUST SEEING XENA MURDER WITHOUT RESTRAINT

Something something the old Xena showing for a moment

"Why does everyone wanna kill me?" Honestly it's very understandable

"I'm not leaving!" "Like she said"

Ares is like lmao bye have fun dying, loser

All the steaaaam, brilliant. Gotta be pretty hot in there

YEESH That gotta hurt

Kabooooom

"Look after Xena, okay?" awwwww

"I'd sooner fall for a toad" valid

THEY'RE SO GAAAY

"You're Gabrielle" AAAAAH ❤️

"Question is who would I be without you?"

Ahaha them bickering

Ok so as a whole the episode was very, very meh. I liked the Xena/Gabrielle moments tho

[matt0044]

No, what happened in Volume 9 couldn’t have been put into Vacuo. Full stop

The Ever After by its very nature has Team RWBY and Jaune confront their emotional turmoil be it via its warped culture compared to Remnant or elements such as Herb or the Blacksmith directly confronting them on it.

The reason they couldn’t have it before was with everything Atlas put them through and Mistral before that. Salem, by her nature, commands their attention which means Ruby would have to stuff her trauma down the toilet again while Jaune, oof, don’t get me started.

The Ever After was designed to be both a rest and therapy session for our heroes because, for lack of a better term, RWBY was overdue for “filler” in the sense of being more or less loosely connected to Salem. “Crazy, time wasting nonsense” as Sokka once put it is actually better for a story than some may think.

I mean... a lot of people were often complaining about “cast bloat” so wouldn’t thinning the heard temporarily to take things slower be a good thing?

[yourlocaltrashpandaa]

I’m convinced that if they managed to get Bengali in the 2011 Thundercats show before it was cancelled.. He’d be their version of Sokka, extroverted funny man with occasional good ideas..

Also I think he would’ve been more on the young side, a teenage apprentice in blacksmithing (and he gets lectures for using his family’s priceless ancient heirloom hammer as a weapon.) Plus he’s got a supportive Dad in Lynx-O which’s a big win~

Plus the funny dynamic between a Extroverted Bengali and a Introverted Tygra would be just amazing and utterly chaotic~ and I just know Wilykit & Wilykat would absolutely join in to terrorize Tygra with even more hyper energy..

😂

That would be interesting, imma take some notes 👀✍🏼

[muiltifandomnerd]

Jetkazula au idea: Cheerleader Azula x Nerdy Sokka x Badboy Jet

Cheer Azula also does Karate and Debate. She’s also gets straight As like it’s nothing and is the residential ice queen.

Nerdy Sokka does do chess, debate, and the whole blacksmith club. Maybe he does so some fencing and hockey.

Jet is the delinquent who actually does good with school work. He’s also an anarchist who hates the school system and capitalism.

[lieutenant-amuel]

Well I told you this was coming but sorta like the Crazy EXGF ask, what galavant songs do you think match the ATLA characters?

Thank you! And sorry for the late reply! I totally forgot about this ask.

Stand Up - Sokka and Piandao, maybe?

Galavant (Isabella Reprise) - Katara to Aang.

Hero’s Journey - Aang, Katara, and Sokka. I know the purpose of their journeys is very different (as are their characters), but I think this is a good song for them in early season 1.

Togetherness - Aang, Katara, and Sokka. Same as Hero’s Journey.

Jackass in a Can - Sokka, maybe?

Comedy Gold - also Sokka. I don’t know why XD He has good a good sense of humor, and I can imagine him singing it to Aang, so yeah.

No One But You - Azula.

Moment In The Sun - Sokka, because the Gabe Galavant Sokka triad <3

What Am I Feeling - maybe also Azula.

I’m A Different Kind Of Princess - maaaaybe Toph?

Will My Day Ever Come - Zuko.

He Was There - Zuko about Ozai.

I Don’t Like You - Katara and Azula.

Goodbye - Aang.

It’s A Dark Season, It’s A Good Day To Die - the whole cast generally especially in season 3.

(I’m so tempted to choose If I Were A Jolly Blacksmith and My Dragon Pal And Me for Zuko, but I don’t know XD)

Those are the only ones I can think about, so that’s it! Thank you again!

[foxdoc]

Blacksmithing teacher: "Welcome to blacksmithing class, today we'll learn about rare metals used in history to make unusual but powerful weapons, now everyone please turn your attention to this meteorite sample which was used in smithing several hundred years ago by-"

Freshman class in unison, groaning: "Sokka?"

Blacksmithing teacher: "Oh yeah, it's last period isn't it"

obsessed with sokka’s name kinda popping up everywhere in school books years after atla. like yeah ur learning history about the end of the hundred year war? oh right with the avatars amazing team and some non bender named sokka who probably wasn’t all that important. on to gym class where u learn different fighting styles, did you know btw that the first guy to ever train with the kyoshi warriors was some random guy named sokka? oh well. can’t be late for physics where we learn about the invention of the air balloon and the submarine by … sokka? huh okay I guess, on to politics where we learn about all these important decrees over all the different nations which were first proposed by.. ah man, sokka? again? anyway art class now, here look at these paintings made by sokka

[againwiththeturtles]

just misread your url as "sokka therapist" and honestly it's what he deserves

Sokka does deserve a therapist, this boy. I think his therapy was when he forged his own sword and got to duel his master, so he should go back there. Get thee to a forge!

[backhurtyy]

[Short ID: A digital portrait of the main characters from Avatar: the Last Airbender set against a blue-gray background. The characters are divided into two rows. From left to right on the top: Suki, Zuko, and Sokka are drawn from the chest up. From left to right on the bottom: Toph, Mai, Aang, and Katara are drawn from the waist up. They are all surrounded by fog. In between the two rows of characters is the title of the fic: never shall we die, by zukosadragon-ace. The artist’s signature in the lower right corner reads hiraethia. End ID]

never shall we die

“Yes, about the day we met. Do you remember it?”

“How could I ever forget, Mister Huo?”

He chuckled and, a smile playing at his lips and sincerity shining in his eyes, asked, “Sokka, how many times must I ask you to call me Zuko?”

“At least once more, Mister Huo. As always.”

or,

A Zukka Pirates of the Carribean AU, featuring infamous pirate Suki Suzume, governor’s nephew Zuko Huo, blacksmith Sokka Amarok, cursed treasure, and a whole lot of pining.

- written for the @atla18bigbang | beta’d by @beachytablecloth | art by @hi-raethia - teen and up | ~70k words | updating weekly on saturdays - NOW COMPLETE

chapters: prologue | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 art: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7

more detailed image description under the cut

[Long ID: Top row: Suki is looking to the viewer’s left with a smirk on her face. She is dressed in a white shirt, green vest, and dark brown coat with gold patterning resembling Kyoshi Warrior armor. She has a gold earring, faint scarring on her cheek, two bandoliers across her chest, and is wearing a green bandana under a brown tricorn hat. In the middle is Zuko, dressed in a maroon vest with a white undershirt. He has long hair blowing over his right shoulder. He looks forward with a determined expression, and around his neck is a golden pirate’s yuan. On the right is Sokka, dressed in his book 3 clothing with his sword strapped to his back. He faces the viewer’s right and looks to the front with a smile.

Bottom row: Toph is dressed in her canon clothing with gold rimming around her collar and a green bandana. She stares ahead at the viewer with her arms crossed, grinning. Next to her is Mai, dressed in a black hat and dark maroon shirt with Fire Nation armor over her chest, shoulders, and forearms. a sword is strapped to her hip as she raises an arm with three daggers between her fingers, and she has a stern expression. Beside her is Aang, with his hand outstretched toward the viewer with a wide grin. he is tanner, with scarring across his right eyebrow and cheeks. He is wearing a gold earring, orange vest, and yellow shirt with a red sash around his waist. On the far right is Katara, unsheathing a sword with a smirk. She is wearing her book 3 clothing with a braid swinging over her shoulder, and has white arm wraps around her forearms. End ID]

[discordiansamba]

zuko's new name is shun, and he's a sandbender.

that... would explain why they spent the past thirteen years unsuccessfully trying to find him. none of them looked in the desert. they'd all been kind of sick of the si wong desert. it feels like a really weird twist of irony that zuko would reincarnate into a sandbender of all things, but the more time they spend around shun, the more convinced they are that he's zuko.

(or was zuko. reincarnation is hard.)

they kind of... chill out a bit after aang and iroh's approaches actually manage to not scare the kid off. he's wary of them at first, but he slowly stops trying to bolt at the first sight of them. it's not easy to find the time, given how busy all of their schedules are, but they take it where they can find it.

he's so much like zuko, it almost hurts.

he doesn't look like zuko- not really. he has the eyes and the birthmark in place of his scar. he wears his hair short and shaggy. he's on the leaner side, but that's where the resemblances end. his skin is much darker, and his hair is light brown. his facial features aren't quite the same, which is why it takes them months to realize his expressions are the same.

(well that, and the fact that he can move the left half of his face now)

he doesn't have a mom. she died in childbirth. he doesn't know his dad- he took one look at his eyes and didn't want anything to do with him. which just seems unfair. seriously, two shitty dads in a row? can't a guy catch a break? at least his uncle sounds nice- or sounded. the man is dead now.

(and despite what iroh says, everyone knows he's a little jealous.)

he's an apprentice at a blacksmith shop. he's taking swordsmanship lessons. he's still using the dual dao, because of course he is- and of course he's still frustratingly good at it. sokka will not admit it out loud, but he's enjoying having the chance to spar with him while zuko shun's still a novice. eventually he's going to start kicking his ass again.

he's an earthbender, which toph is elated about. she's even more elated when she realizes that some of his movements echo hers- as if her bending so ingrained itself into his subconscious that he still remembers it even now. she teaches him metalbending. he thrives at it, because of course he does.

("sometimes he still moves like a firebender, though," toph tells them one day. they know what prompted it. katara had to heal a careless burn he'd gotten. it's not an isolated case.)

he's afraid of thunderstorms, though he tries to deny this and powers through them anyways. it's not the noise. it's the lightning.

(katara can't look him in the eyes for weeks afterwards.)

(continuation of this)

there's a tea shop in ba sing se that he's started to frequent, which is weird, because he doesn't even like tea that much. the tea here isn't even that good, either. he's heard rumors that it was better once, a decade ago, but the teamaker responsible for the improvement of the flavor left for a better job.

(he took his infamously surly nephew with him.)

but he still finds himself in the shop once a week, after work. he doesn't know why. he's just drawn to the place. he's drinking his usual (jasmine- it's always calmed him) when an unassuming old man enters, and the shopkeeper nearly faints dead on his feet.

the man is mushi, the teamaker from the rumors. he smiles at the shopkeeper and asks if he can go to the back, for old time's sake. he comes out later with a fresh pot of tea, passing it out to the customers one by one, before he finally stops in front of his table and sits down across from him.

"do you want some?" he asks. "it's jasmine."

he blinks, but doesn't see any reason to refuse this man. there's something about him. something that reminds him of his own uncle. the man smiles, and pours them both a cup of tea. he asks him about himself- how does a young sandbender such as yourself end up all the way out in ba sing se?

and he... tells him. he's not entirely sure why. he doesn't know this man. but there's just something about him that makes him want to tell him everything. he's like a calming presence in a storm. the old man listens, only speaking occasionally.

(he remarks on his hands, peppered with tiny burns. he ducks his head when he admits he has a tendency to be careless around fire. it shouldn't burn his hands, some part of him always thinks. he's never told that to anyone, but the old man seems to understand.)

they must talk for hours, only bringing the conversation to a close because the tea shop is closing. he's... reluctant to leave. he wants to spend more time with the old man. the old man merely smiles, and promises him that their paths may cross yet again.

(iroh watches the young man who has the spirit of his nephew until he can no longer see him. only then does he weep. they are tears of joy, for he has found him again... but also tears of sorrow.

zuko lives, yet zuko is gone.)

[toomanystacksofbooks]

ATLA College HCs:

Aang: I’m getting Environmental Science Major vibes from him. Rooms with Sokka.

Katara: pre-med, but she takes lots of women’s studies courses cause of course. Roomswith Toph.

Sokka: realistically he would be ROTC but in my universe he’s going into metalwork and blacksmithing stuff. Majors in fine arts and minors in precision metal working. Rooms with Aang.

Toph: she started as a business major but quickly dropped that for precision metal working where she becomes besties with Sokka. Rooms with Katara.

Zuko: I will forever push my nerd Zuko agenda, but I love social worker Zuko she he majors in that and minors in English. Actually managed to get a room alone.

Suki: idk if you can major in martial arts but she’s doing that. Rooms with Mai.

Mai: bestie honestly gives no shits so she majors in business knowing full well she’s gonna do whatever she wants with her life. Rooms with Suki.

Ty Lee: unsure if you can major in acrobatics but that’s Ty Lee’s major. Rooms with Azula.

Azula: proudly double majoring in business and finance. Rooms with Ty Lee.

Yue: pre-med bestie like Katara. Rooms by herself.

Also, Aang/Katara, Sokka/Zuko, Suki/Yue, Ty Lee/Azula, and Mai and Toph are happily single.