#but the rest it's like suki yue.......

[ultfreakme]

I know Zuko is queer because he has exactly one guy friend the same age as him(Sokka) and the rest are badass sapphic women. Mai, Ty Lee, Suki, Katara, then the Kyoshi Warriors ended up being the main security in the Fire Nation palace. Song saw the dude and went ‘time to adopt him this is bestie material’. Like he’s just accidentally drawing on all the women for gay reasons and gay reasons only.

[ecoterrorist-katara]

The tragedy of Katara’s parentification

Sokka and Katara were both parentified, and it’s a profoundly life-changing thing for both of them. One of the saddest things in ATLA, though, is how Sokka sort of got to outgrow parentification, but Katara never did.

Sokka’s told to be the man. The provider, the protector. He’s not so good at the former (his hunting failures are a consistent source of comic relief), and he takes failures of the latter very, very hard. He doesn’t manage to save Yue, and that wrecks him. After Yue, he becomes extremely protective of Suki in a way that’s borderline offensive to her. He’s willing to do anything to protect his friends and his family, including something as irresponsible as breaking into the Boiling Rock. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that Sokka is the only one of the Gaang who unambiguously kills. The rest of them may technically have clean hands because of cartoon logic, but Combustion Man is very dead, and Sokka is the one who killed him. We don’t know how he feels about it, because the show never goes there, but I have a pet theory that Sokka is so uncharacteristically (remember he was team “leave Zuko to freeze to death”) against Katara confronting Yon Rha in The Southern Raiders because he’s the only who knows what killing feels like and wants to protect Katara from it.

But by the end of the show, Sokka’s in a place where he can start to let go of his need to protect. Objectively, all his friends are unbelievably powerful and can take care of themselves, including his sister and his girlfriend. Suki is the one who saves him in the final battle, representing not only a reversal of his initial cartoonish misogyny, but also demonstrating that he is worthy of protection. And of course, he and his friends saved the world, so there isn’t really an enemy that he has to protect them from anymore. Sokka’s loved ones create the conditions under which his parentified behaviour is no longer necessary. Sokka would still have to take the first step to stop seeing himself as the one who has to lay his life on the line, but at least it’s possible for him.

But not Katara.

Katara had to take on the mom role after their mother was murdered, which meant she was responsible for domestic labour and emotional support. Sokka says in The Runaway that her role was to keep the family together. Unlike protection, that’s always a full time job regardless of the war. We see Katara spending more screen time than anybody cooking, getting food, mending, and generally doing women’s work. We see Katara giving everyone emotional support, including strangers and her enemy. We see Katara putting aside her own discomfort and her own hurt in The Desert because if she falls apart, they all die. Nobody ever showed her that she doesn’t need to be the only one who cooks, or that somebody else can be responsible for the emotional wellbeing of her friends, or that — god forbid — someone else can actually be responsible for her emotional wellbeing.

That’s why I never cared for the Ka/taang argument of “he teaches her to be a kid again!” Putting aside the fact that Katara ends up taking care of Aang a lot more as the series goes on, the whole tragedy of parentification is that you can never again be a child. That part of your childhood, your god-given right, is robbed from you. It is extremely precious and important to still be able to be a kid, but breaking free of parentification is not about seeing yourself as a kid. It’s about breaking free of being responsible for everyone’s feelings and behaviours.

For Katara, that responsibility is not problem of perception, but of reality. Unlike Sokka, who was told and shown that his loved ones are capable of protecting themselves, Katara has zero reason to believe that her loved ones are able to feed and clothe themselves and not fall apart emotionally. Between Toph and Sokka who emphatically don’t want to do this work, it all falls on Katara. Telling a parentified child that they just need to loosen up is akin to telling an overworked mother that she needs to just relax (“happy Mother’s Day! You get a break from chores, which you will catch up on tomorrow because nobody else is doing them”). It doesn’t accomplish anything if nobody creates the circumstances under which it’s possible to let go of responsibilities. A lot of Zutara fans, spanning all the way back to the early days of the fandom, like the “Momtara and Dadko” trope where Zuko also does chores. Why? Because even without the concept and language of parentification, many fans recognized that Katara’s performance of domestic and emotional labour is inequitable and probably very taxing.

Growing out of parentification is about more than just letting go of old expectations: it’s also about finding a new way to value yourself beyond the role you grew up with. I’ve said this before, but it’s very important to acknowledge that just because a kid is parentified doesn’t mean they’re actually good at being a parent. In fact, it’s probably a given that they’re not, because they’re kids performing roles that are developmentally inappropriate! Sokka remains a shit hunter; he becomes a decent fighter but he’s still miles behind his friends. A big part of healing from his parentification is finding another area — strategy, engineering, project management (what else do you call that schedule) — where he actually excels, to which he can dedicate his time and from which he can derive satisfaction and a sense of identity. For Katara, fighting for the oppressed and combat waterbending give her that. Crucially, however, Katara does not stop being a girl when she becomes a warrior. She’s still responsible for domestic and emotional labour. Unlike Sokka, whose protector duties were more or less relieved as the series went on and he found new ways to contribute to the group, Katara continued to perform her old role in addition to her new one (which is depressingly realistic btw, look up feminist theory around the concept of the second shift). Still, it’s important that she found these new ways to value herself and her contributions…

…which disappear in her adult life. Where’s adult Katara fighting for the oppressed? Where’s adult Katara enjoying her status as a master waterbender? Where’s Mighty Katara? Where’s the Painted Lady? Where’s the person who vanquished a whole Fire Lord?

What do we know about adult Katara? She’s no longer a rabblerouser or an ecoterrorist. She did not translate her desire to help the downtrodden into a political role, like being Chief or on the United Republic Council. She’s not known as the best waterbender in the world, only the best healer, even though her combat abilities are what she took the most pride in. Even as a healer, she established no hospitals, trained no widespread acolytes (except Korra, I guess?), and made no known contributions to the field.

What Katara is known for…is being a wife and a mother. The same role she was forced to take on at age 8. One which she performed for the next 80+ years.

[bloodbenderz]

there was a lot of mistakes made in the live action but the worst one without reservation was that the creators did not understand patriarchy and they did not understand women's liberation outside of an american context ( or any context if we're being honest )

it's easy to see on a surface level how that fucked up katara's whole character how she wasn't allowed to have her character defining moments how she wasn't allowed to be angry or even excited or impulsive but i think it doesn't really become clear how deeply wrong the show's conception of gender & patriarchy is (and the implications for the political landscape of the show) until you get into how they destroyed sokka's character too

sokka's whole Complex is born of patriarchy. i'm not trying to do men's rights advocacy here but in my experience when a people is under constant threat, constant assault, constant violence (much of which is gendered) and the traditional "protectors" or "providers" of that people are men, the masculine role becomes protecting women and children. i am not saying this is a good thing or a bad thing but it is true the narrative of violent resistance is overwhelmingly about men. to be a man in a time & place like this means fighting to protect your women, & to die for them is honorable. that is where sokka gets this idea that he has to be a warrior & he has to fight & if necessary die for katara & the rest of the tribe. it's about duty. everyone has a part to play, a role to fill

everyone including women! which is the other half of this. the duty of women is to keep up the home, to maintain a country worth fighting & dying for, to raise children so that the community can have a future. it becomes especially obvious in the context of the show when you see how the nwt lives & in specific how yue lives and dies.

many women participate in patriarchy. many colonized women participate in patriarchy. most of my family comes from or still lives in a country completely devastated by colonialism & its aftereffects & many women in my family believe wholeheartedly in the idea that everyone in the house has a role to play. it's not because these women are stupid or they hate themselves. but when you grow up believing that men & women are fundamentally different, and seeing that women are in specific danger because of their gender, it actually makes a lot of sense to expect the men in your family to protect you, and to raise your sons that way.

in practice that means that men aren't really expected to do anything around the house, especially when there's no actual danger. my aunt literally 2 days ago told me this lol like she doesn't make her sons do anything bc she wants to let their lives be easy before they have to go out into the world & take care of their wives & children.

what does women's liberation look like when an entire community is under threat? colonized women have been dealing with this question as long as colonialism has existed. the writers of this show don't even pretend to understand the question, much less to formulate a thoughtful response to it. they just say oh, well, katara, yue, & suki are all the exact same type of liberated girlboss for whom patriarchy is no significant obstacle.

which brings us back to sokka lol. sokka, at the beginning of the show, has completely subscribed to patriarchy, has integrated it into his sense of self. he has a lot of flaws, but he also has a lot of really good traits. his bravery, sense of honor, loyalty, work ethic, selflessness, all of this came from him striving to be a good man. he would die to protect katara, because she's his sister. he also has her wash his socks & mend his clothes, because she's his sister. even after he meets suki, humbles himself, & expands his view of the role a woman can play, he doesn't completely disengage from patriarchy. at the end of the day he believes in his soul that a good man's duty is to fight & if necessary die for his people, & that's exactly his plan. this is a very real psychic burden. pre-aang, it's also largely fictional & completely ridiculous. we're SUPPOSED to think it's ridiculous. he's spending his time training babies & working on his little watchtower. the swt hasn't been attacked since their mother was killed because it has been completely stripped of all value or danger it once held for the fire nation, & everybody knows this. there is very little "men's work" left, aside from hunting & fishing, which is so damaging to sokka's self image he resorts to toddler bootcamp to feel useful. the contradiction here is comical. it's also completely devastating. that's supposed to be the fucking POINTTTT like colonialism & patriarchy convinces this young boy he needs to be a soldier & die for his family. & you know what he does? He acts like a young boy about it. they didn't just leave this unexplored in the remake they completely changed the circumstances to 1. make sokka incompetent for some reason 2. make his "preparations" seem less ridiculous. Which ruins the whole character. Possibly the whole show.

all this makes the writing of katara & the other women infinitely more offensive to me. katara is a good character because she believes in revolution. she wants to liberate her people from imperialism, & she wants to liberate women from colonial gendered violence, traditional patriarchy in her own culture, & the complicated ways those things interact. it is LITERALLY the first thing you're supposed to learn about her. she's the PERFECT vehicle to address the question of women's liberation under colonialism. one of the things i was most looking forward to seeing in this show was how labor is distributed in a place where almost everything that needs to get done is "women's work" & how it affects katara & sokka's day to day relationship when their lives weren't at risk constantly. what actually are her responsibilities every day, & how do they compare to sokka's? how does her grandmother enforce these traditions with katara & sokka, & how is that informed by her own experiences in the nwt? what does patriarchy look like in a tribe made up of mostly women & children? it's so important to who katara is & what she believes! but why bother exploring any of that when u could instead make her a shein model who has nothing in common with the source material except her hairstyle lol.

yue is actually even worse to me bc yue is supposed to be sokka's counterpart. she's supposed to show you how destructive it is for women specifically to internalize this gendered duty so completely. it sucks for sokka, but he is a man & thus his prescribed role gives him some agency. yue's role affords her no agency whatsoever, & this is the POINT. to make her someone who's allowed to break things off with her fiance if she likes, who sneaks off to do what she wants when she's feeling stressed, whose will is respected as a monarch, like what is even the point of yue anymore? in the original the whole reason she was even allowed to spend time with sokka was because her father knew she was with a trustworthy boy. her story completely loses all significance when the dimension of patriarchy is removed from it. the crux of her whole story is that she is not just a princess but the literal & spiritual representation of the motherland. that's what women are supposed to represent during wartime, at the cost of their own sense of self. in order to fulfill her duty to her people she gives her life to them in every single way that matters.

it's just so unbelievably frustrating (and WRONG) that the only types of characters for these writers are "soulless misogynistic fuck" and "liberated american-style feminist." there's no nuance at all! they don't bother exploring how real love manifests in patriarchal communities, & how patriarchy defines the limits of that love. or how for so many of these people their idea of goodness, morality, & honor is gendered. or how imperialism affects not just individuals but entire cultures & their conceptions of gender. but why do any actual work when you could completely change sokka & katara's general demeanors, their entire personalities, & their roles in the tribe so you can dodge any & all nuance

Anyways. in conclusion. it was bad

[sirenalpha]

I'm seeing so much commentary on people reacting to the live action atla toning down Sokka's misogyny

and I'm over here like this is a total non-issue because in my own rewrite of the show I already did that exact thing, it makes complete sense to do it and they should do it because it's a weaker aspect of the original show

Sokka's early misogyny is utterly cartoonish in comparison to the set up of the rest of the SWT, it doesn't feel realistic for the only teenaged boy in a dying culture surrounded by adult women with a grandmother who left a more out and out misogynist society to act the way he does

how Sokka "resolves" his misogyny is equally cartoonish, I never liked how in The Warriors of Kyoshi literally episode 4 of the show makes a teen girl compromise her own culture with a female only fighting tradition teach a boy who is supremely rude and disrespectful to her and then still be attracted to him afterwards, it's more misogyny to fix misogyny and is very obviously men writing about how to fix misogyny especially as they have Aang make a joke about Sokka wearing a dress after going through how meaningful the fighting costume is and how a lot of Asian clothing with hanfu influences like atla borrows from would have men in what to western eyes would be dresses, Aang has already seen multiple male authority figures in robes, the joke makes no sense

I also wouldn't consider Sokka's misogyny genuinely resolved after this, consider how the show deals with his romantic relationships with both Yue and Suki and how both can be seen as extensions of how Kataang is treated in the show, rewards for the hero, especially with how Sokka interacts aggressively with Hahn instead of respecting Yue's wishes whatever her reasons for them, I think an argument can be made that Yue's death is a fridging for Sokka's storyline rather than or in combination with being a consequence of Aang's failure as an avatar or the culmination of her own storyline where she fulfills her duties as a leader to protect her own people

Beyond his romantic relationships, while Sokka drops a lot of his more misogynistic language with Katara, he doesn't support her when she faces off with the NWT leaders to learn waterbending, and he still leaves the caretaking and food preparation and grocery shopping to her which is more common than him going out to hunt or gather in order to provide for the group while he takes a leadership role like determining their travel schedule and routes, it is not an even division of labor and falls along traditional sex stereotypes

In addition to his typical duties to the group, Sokka also remains invested in the trappings of masculinity after ep4, he's concerned about what's manly and how he compares to Jet for example, there's no investigation or interrogation in his interest in meat and hunting and how they relate to masculinity and his misogyny, in the episode with Piando, his insecurity as a non-bender is resolved by giving him a new male mentor and a new martial skill, sword fighting, which is masculine in both western and Asian cultures rather than assuaging his self esteem issues in any less stereotypically masculine ways, I also think it was done so he could compare more favorably to Zuko, another male character, and even his interest in engineering and mechanics comes with a male mentor and is a traditionally masculine pursuit

the show's poor handling of misogyny also extends beyond Sokka, with the NWT, the show acts as if Pakku is the only reason the tribe is misogynistic and the only consequences to that misogyny is that women can't waterbend and there are arranged marriages, and that both the NWT and Pakku's misogyny is resolved by allowing only Katara to learn to waterbend which she doesn't even earn on her own merits, she gets the opportunity because Pakku likes her grandmother

none of this is realistic, misogyny is not because of one bad apple, Pakku doesn't make Yue's arranged marriage, Chief Arnook does, he picked Hahn for her, and the show acts as if Arnook has no authority to compel Pakku to teach Katara or any ability to persuade him in order to reduce his culpability in the NWT's misogyny as its leader to make him a more respectable character so it's not uncomfortable when Aang and Sokka follow his orders in the battle later on, but women not being able to bend and forced into arranged marriages is still status quo when the gaang leaves, Yue's just dead

I'm not even convinced the show runners understand what's wrong with arranged marriage, the issue is not Yue can't be with Sokka who she likes and at most has a slight crush on cuz she's only known him for like two days, it's that she's being treated as male property, a broodmare, and a vehicle to ensure Hahn receives the throne because her father has no male heir and picked some guy to succeed him instead, like it's not explicit in the show but that is the implication based on the historical reality of princesses in arranged marriages, and the show has her get out of it only through death idc that she ascends to being a spirit, it's still a teen girl that dies

There's also no discussion by the show of the Earth Kingdom's misogyny when it has the exact same shit going on, Toph is the only female earthbender in the show not including avatars, there might have been a female earthbender in the background when Katara broke them out of prison, but I'm not really counting that, the entire army and Dai Li are all made up of men, the EK might even be worse because the show doesn't demonstrate that women and girls even have the capacity to earthbend aside from Toph and avatars and Toph doesn't even learn from a human, she has to learn from animals, the show treats this as commentary on her disability but the show has no compelling reason why it can't also be commentary on her sex, Toph was also originally supposed to be a boy so this could have ended up so much worse there literally would have been no female earthbenders aside from avatars at all, I'm not counting Oma as she might just be a mythological figure not a real person that once lived

The Fire Nation kinda barely avoids the same issue, Azula is the only named female firebender aside from avatars in the show but she has two female sidekicks who despite being non-benders show martial skill and there are clearly female soldiers and guards in the FN military so there are much stronger implications of female firebenders existing and being completely allowed to train their abilities and that Azula isn't exceptional in that respect like Toph is, only for being a prodigy with blue fire

Azula was also originally supposed to have an arranged marriage in s3 and they dropped it in favor of showing that royal and noble girls could casually date in the FN which has wild implications for women's empowerment in the country more so than but especially in combination with the fact women can train and join the military (which is why I say the FN is not fascist it's literally the least misogynistic country aside from Kyoshi and by like a country mile so it's literally not misogynistic enough) not that the show does anything more than minor teen drama with it

again, the vast majority of this misogyny is completely unremarked upon by the show especially after s1 when they leave the NWT, it is clearly a fictional world made by men with no true understanding of misogyny just a vague awareness that misogyny is bad and what the really obvious and outdated examples of it are, this is a narrative inconsistency in the show to have the examples and commentary on misogyny be so cartoonish in the beginning and then disappear after s1

your options to resolve this inconsistency is to either go all in with more realistic misogyny and provide commentary on all of it but this takes effort and will be divisive, or take the easier route and ease off the cartoonish-ness of it and comment less on it to avoid drawing attention to all instances of misogyny in the show

obviously Netflix was gonna do the latter

(not me tho, I'm making it less cartoony and dealing with it in my rewrite)

[avatarfandompolice]

…and another thing:

If we’re removing Sokka’s sexism from the live action show, what point does even introducing the Kyoshi warriors and/or Suki serve?

The whole purpose of that episode is for Sokka to learn a lesson about his narrow worldview. There’s a small bit of Kataang jealousy stuff and a generic action scene towards the end. The Kyoshi warriors exist in that episode narratively to prove Sokka’s sexism wrong, and Suki is the forefront of that. It’s her actions towards bettering Sokka that even make her relevant to him and the rest of the story.

If she’s just gonna be there as a love interest that they encounter, then the weight of her purpose that makes the relationship feel valuable is lost. She’s just another pretty girl Sokka likes. She’s redundant when Yue is thrown in the mix later. The reason she continues to be important is that impression she made on him. Without that, there’s not much (not saying she isn’t compelling on her own, mind you).

And the Kyoshi warriors, while cool in concept, now only serve a singular purpose of just being another force on Aang’s side, whereas again they serve to strengthen the idea of women empowerment in the cartoon along with that. That feeds into Kyoshi’s vision of why she even started the group. Now they’re just some task force. Cool. Why even have them there?

Any adaptation that reduces characters’ importance in the story to nothing, then throws them in anyway because they want the nostalgia jerkers to clap is NOT a good adaptation. Unless they somehow develop some other motivation for Suki to bring and maintain her value to the story, removing her importance to Sokka renders her useless to the plot.

[imagines--galore]

||The Thread of Fate|| Part Thirty-Five

Summary: Soulmate AU. They say the Thread of Fate connects you to your one true love. It may tangle. It may stretch. But it will never break. Wrapped around your little finger it tightens when it feels your soulmate is close and loosens when they are far. And becomes visible with the colors of your soulmate’s Nation when you finally fall in love with them.

Pairing: Zuko x OroraOC (ATLA)

Rating || Genres || Warnings: T+ Romance. Adventure.

Previous Chapters - Masterlist

A/N: EMBER ISLANDS!!!!! WOOHOOO!!!!!! FINALLY! I am so so so excited for the next chapters! And guy seriously if you have any scenarios or moments you might want to see between Zuko and Orora or even the whole Gaang or any interactions between any characters let me know!

The first night was spent out in the courtyard.

Katara had been so exhausted that the second she had laid down on her bed roll, she'd been asleep. The rest of them had tip-toed around her, going about their business of making and eating food. Sokka had quickly asked Orora to leave a bowl of food out for Katara. In case she woke up in the middle of the night and was hungry.

Orora watched as Sokka set the bowl beside his exhausted sister. She didn't even stir when Sokka adjusted her blanket to cover her properly.

"You know, she didn't mean what she said." The older girl glanced beside her at Toph, who was finishing off the last of her food. "That you're not a part of the family." The girl clarified, and though her words were meant to be comforting, Orora couldn't help but feel a twinge of ache inside her. Setting aside her half-finished bowl, the girl swallowed against the strange feeling that rose within her.

"I can pretend how much I want Toph." She said in a low voice. "But what she said is true. I'm not a part of their family." Playing around with her rice with her chopsticks, the Waterbender shrugged, giving a small teary smile. "But they are a part of my family." She nudged the girl sitting next to her. "Just like you."

Which was why Toph had been the first person she'd gone to after Katara and Zuko had ridden off on Appa. She'd ranted until she had no more words left. And once she was done, Toph had been the one to reassure her that Katara would be alright.

"She's a good person with a good heart Orora." The girl had said, finding it strange that, for once, she was the one comforting the older girl. "When the time comes, she'll make the right decision."

And she had.

Seems Orora had nothing to worry about.

Though given how much she tended to worry, Orora was beginning to wander if perhaps Yue had given her the patch of white hair so she wouldn't start growing actual white hair out of the worry and anxiety she felt all the time when it came to the people she cared about.

"So, this was like your vacation home when you were a kid?" Suki asked as they finished up their dinner. Zuko nodded, glancing around at the pathway that ran along the entire courtyard, leading away into the rooms. "That was a long time ago." The boy said. "The last time we came here was a year before my cousin and Uncle went to the war front. Since then, no one has been here."

Aang raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Then why was the door kicked down when we came in?" He asked, lifting his bowl of food towards his mouth and taking a bite. Suddenly looking sheepish, Zuko's eyes darted towards Orora briefly before he explained. "I came here a couple months ago, when my father sent my sister and I out on a forced vacation." Toph snorted. "And what, you couldn't walk in like a random person?" She asked, her tone obviously mocking, one that had Sokka sniggering to himself.

Annoyed, Zuko pursed his lips. "I was working through some stuff." He grumbled. Sokka rolled his eyes. "You're always working through some stuff Zuko. Should we keep an eye on you? Make sure you don't kick down any more doors?" His eyes landed on Momo who was happily chomping away on a fruit. The boy grinned. "Maybe we should have Momo follow you around. Keep you from harming unsuspecting doors."

They were all laughing now, except for Zuko, who glanced at Momo. The flying-lemur glanced back at the human.

Before quickly gathering his fruit and dashing off to hide behind Orora.

"Ouch."

                                            ————————–

She had wanted to go to sleep, she really had. But there was something nagging her. At the back of her mind, something was pushing her to ask what she wanted to. She'd caught Zuko's eye while everyone had begun to lay down their sleeping bags. Motioning to the dark corridor that led to the inner rooms of the house, Orora stood from where she'd been adding logs to the fire to keep it going through the night.

Even though it was Summer, the wind coming in from the sea was chilling at night.

Zuko, dropping his sleeping mat on the floor, walked after the retreating form of his girlfriend. He found her waiting for him, leaning against the side of the many windows that ran along the corridor. She was gazing down to the beach, where the waves were crashing against the shore. The sound of the waves breaking was quite prominent even this far up.

It was calming.

"About Katara." She began, raising her eyes to Zuko. The girl had thought her questions about the younger girl's well being would be endless. But all that came out of her mouth was: "Is she really alright?"

Sighing, Zuko rubbed the back of his neck, pursing his lips before he spoke. "As well as she could ever be after the confrontation with the man who killed her mother." Orora tried not to wince at his bluntness, but her features twitched anyway. "She was quiet, the whole ride back, like I told you. And after that I went to get you guys, and then when she was speaking to Aang, she finally forgave me for all that I did."

Orora smiled, peace settling in her heart. Perhaps now Katara wouldn't be so opposed to her and Zuko being Soulmates.

But then she remembered the tiny detail Zuko had mentioned while he told them all of what had happened. "Did she......did she really use blood-bending? On that man?" She asked, her voice hoarse as she wrapped her arms around herself, as if her body could feel the phantom pain of how that felt.

To have someone take control of your body.

To make it do things that were out of your control.

She remembered how devastated Katara had been. How she had broken down after the run-in they had with Hama.

Zuko frowned, looking to the side, unable to fathom the fear in Orora's eyes at the mere mention of such a dangerous bending form. She had told him about it. He had never thought he would witness it.

"She did." He admitted. "She allowed her feelings of hatred and rage rule her, take over her completely." Closing his eyes, he sighed sadly, before lifting his head to look at Orora. "Anger is an ugly emotion Orora. It takes hold of you. Every fiber of your being is a slave to it, and there is nothing you can do about it. You loose your true self to it. But Katara was strong." He was quick to amend. "She was strong and though she made a few mistakes, she broke through."

He paused. "I know more then anyone how anger can take over your entire life. I almost let it ruin the best thing that could ever happen to me." His lips pulled in a small smile as he gazed at his Soulmate. "Katara fought against that rage, and she won."

Though there was a part of her that believed that speaking to Katara would reassure her fears, Orora couldn't help but feel her entire body relax at Zuko's reassurance. Her heart lightened, and new hope breathed into her.

A hope that made her believe that she had her sister back.

With one final sigh, she allowed her worries to rest completely. "I'm glad you helped her out Zuko." She admitted. "She wouldn't have allowed anyone else to help her, so I'm happy she had someone that I could trust to keep her safe."

The pride was obvious in Zuko's expression as he smiled at Orora. "Yeah, well, I had to get her to forgive me somehow. I mean I couldn't have your sister disapproving of me when I finally took you out on that date." He had laughter in his eyes, a sight she never got tired of seeing.

Humming, the girl shrugged. "She'll find some other reason to disapprove of us. Though it wouldn't be as bad as what was before." She teased, knowing it would only make Zuko nervous about the situation.

And it did.

His shoulders dropped, as did his smile.

Orora laughed softly to herself as she walked towards him. "So try to stay in her good graces now that you're there." She advised. Leaning up, she pressed a quick kiss to his cheek.

"Good night."

With that she walked away, leaving Zuko to stay back for a few moments longer, his mind working a mile a second as he thought of what he had to do to achieve something he'd been waiting a long time for.

And his mind kept racing with ideas until he fell asleep underneath the open sky with the stars twinkling down at him.

The reason behind his thoughts asleep just a foot or so away from him.

                                            ————————–

"I cannot believe I am spending my day cleaning your house."

"Technically it belongs to my Dad."

"I'm slaving away for the Fire Lord. That's even worse!"

"You know if you shut your mouth and focus on cleaning, we might get this done much faster."

"Oh no. If I'm gonna clean this place, I will be complaining every second of it."

Zuko resisted the urge to throw the already dirty rag at Sokka's face. But he didn't have to, since Katara walked by just then. "If you're done complaining Sokka, you missed a spot." She gestured to the roof which had several cobwebs hanging from the ceiling.

Since they would be staying in the house, Katara had suggested that they clean up some parts of it. Areas that would be in their use, and not have them sneeze and cough every time they went from outside and into the dust and sand covered rooms.

Muttering under his breath, Sokka lifted the long piece of wood that had a cloth wrapped around it, wiping away at the cobweb. Thinking that perhaps his sister's presence would keep him from complaining, Zuko turned back to his task. "How come Toph and Aang get to sit out?" Sokka bemoaned, finding yet another thing to complain about.

The Prince gritted his teeth, fighting with all his strength not to hit the water tribe boy over the head.

"They're not sitting out, they're training. Really Sokka, its not like you have to clean the whole house. Just the rooms we'll be sleeping in." Katara looked around. "Is Orora here?" She asked, her voice sounding just as tentative as she looked. Zuko glanced over at her, as Sokka responded. "She went to the other room with Suki." He said, oblivious to the turmoil his sister felt at the moment. Nodding, the young waterbender Master walked out. And no sooner had her steps receded, when Zuko was following her.

"Hey! Where're you going?" Sokka called out to his retreating back. "Katara's gonna go talk to Orora and I wanna hear it." Call him nosy, but he wanted to listen to what the two girls had to say. Especially since he would be one of the topics of the conversation. "You coming?" Glancing at the dusty, cobweb covered stick he was holding, Sokka allowed it to fall to the floor before following after Zuko.

                                            ————————–

Swinging her legs from where she sat atop the newly cleaned counter that ran along the length of the kitchen, Suki watched Orora as she bended water along the surface of the floor. "I feel bad that I'm not doing anything." She said, her eyes tracking how every last grain of sand and dust was taken away by the water Orora was moving to and fro.

"Well think of it this way, I'm practicing my bending by you not taking part in the cleaning." Orora said, lifting the water in the form of a bubble and throwing it out of the window and into the foliage that surrounded the house. "And with that we are done." The girl said, looking around at the recently clean kitchen with a proud grin. Suki nodded. "It looks good." She giggled. "The boys won't be happy with us for finishing our work so easily and with barely any effort."

Orora waved a dismissive hand. "Oh, let them inhale some dust clouds. Might do their egos some good." The two girls laughed, missing Katara as she stood at the entrance to the kitchen. The younger waterbender girl cleared her throat, catching their attention.

"Suki, I need you to bring the food and pots from the courtyard please." The girl said with barely a glance in the Suki's direction, before her eyes met Orora's.

Sensing the sudden shift in the air as the two Water Tribe girl continued to look at each other, Suki nodded. "Yeah sure Katara!" Jumping down from her seat, the girl began to retreat. "I'll just go!"

Though the moment she stepped outside the door, the girl flattened herself against the wall next to the kitchen and just about held her breath, waiting for the conversation to begin.

Her surprised eyes landed on Sokka and Zuko, who were pressed up against the wall opposite her. The three of them glanced at each other, before coming to a mutual agreement.

And continued to eavesdrop.

"Was there something you needed to say to me Katara?" Alright so maybe she was being a little cold towards the girl, but whatever Katara had been going through in that moment, what she had said hurt more then the other girl's rejection of her and Zuko's bond.

The younger girl bit her lower lip, guilt gnawing at her from within. "I....." She trailed off. "I have a lot of things to say, but I think I should start with, I'm sorry." She choked out, feeling the lump in her throat growing as tears burned behind her eyes.

"Orora I am so sorry about what- I was just so angry at the time, and I said some horrible things." Katara's gaze was pleading as she continued to look at Orora. "And I'm also sorry about the way I treated you and Zuko when you decided to give him another chance. I let my anger cloud my....well....my everything." Honestly, Katara was at a loss. She was usually so good when it came to voicing what she was feeling out loud, but in that moment, watching her older sister look at her with that strange expression on her face, words failed her.

A look that was a cross between endearment and sorrow.

Maybe she had rushed into it. Maybe she should've given Orora a little bit of distance before approaching her with an apology. Give them both some time. But, in truth, Katara didn't want to wait.

She missed her sister. She missed their talks, Orora's playful teasing, their waterbending sessions. Not to mention the knowledge that no matter what, Orora would always have her back.

Not that Katara had ever doubted it even when they weren't speaking to one another.

"I can't pretend that what you said didn't hurt." The older girl finally spoke, her voice soft and gentle, which only made Katara's heart twinge with guilt. "And that when you were against my decision to try to be with my Soulmate, I felt like I had been betrayed by my own sister."

Katara couldn't help the whispered apology that echoed in the otherwise empty room.

"But I'm not going to hold anything against you." Orora revealed, chuckling when she saw the obvious expression of shock shoot across Katara's face. "We've had too many bad and-and negative feelings cooped up inside us Katara." She continued. "And I just don't want to feel them anymore. I'm tired of being sad, or angry, or depressed all the time over something."

She sighed. "And I just want it to stop."

A moment of silence, where neither girl moved or said anything.

Before Katara shot forward and Orora raised her arms, gathering her younger sister in an embrace that was returned just as lovingly as it was given.

Just beyond the two hugging sisters, three heads floated, partially hidden behind the doorway.

Suki, with a smile on her lips, glad her friends had finally made peace. Zuko, with a look of satisfaction, ecstatic for his Soulmate to have her sister back.

And Sokka?

Well......

"That was beautiful!" He sobbed, stumbling to stand in the doorway, tears streaming down his cheeks. The two girls turned to look at him with identical expressions of bemusement. Orora raised an eyebrow. "Really Sokka, you're overreacting a little." She said, but her words were met with a comically loud sob as Sokka launched himself forward, wrapping an arm around each girl's shoulder and hugging them, or rather squishing them together.

Completely ignoring their protests as he pressed a rather messy kiss on each of their cheeks.

"Gross! Sokka get off!"

                                            ————————–

They were at the last stages of their clean up.

Aang and Toph had returned awhile ago, and Katara was having Aang airbend some of the cobwebs that were too far out of any of their reach. And since Orora was finished with sweeping the floor with water and collecting the dust and sand, she was quick to escape to the inner courtyard and settle herself down next to Toph.

"How was training?" She asked, watching Toph break some nuts open with a small swipe of a rock she was bending. "Twinkletoes still has a long way to go before he can call himself a Master." She revealed, smashing some nuts open and handing them out for Orora to take. The older girl muttered her thanks before popping them in her mouth.

"You really think stealing Aang's secret stash is gonna win you any points with him?" She asked, raising an eyebrow at the small sack of walnuts she'd seen Aang sneak out and eat from on several occasions.

Toph grinned. "Nope. But maybe it'll teach him to hide his food better." She laughed, before finishing off the last of the nuts. Orora simply shook her head, making a mental note to buy Toph her own bag of nuts to snack on later. As well as a new bag for Aang, since Toph finished his. "So, how're you holding up?" The older girl asked, stretching her legs out in front of her, her hands resting against the floor behind her as she leaned back slightly. The younger girl frowned. "What do you mean? Am I supposed to be holding something up?" She asked, to which Orora shook her head, smiling softly though looking sad at the same time.

"I mean how're you holding up with The Duke not being around." She elaborated.

And her words were met with complete silence.

A silence that stretched on for a good few minutes before Toph was finally able to speak. The question had come so out of the blue that the girl was actually at a loss for words. A first for her, since she was always prepared with a snippy quip for anyone who happened to come her way.

"I haven't actually really allowed myself to think about that." She finally admitted, frowning slightly as she did. "Because when I do, I feel this really overwhelming feeling. And I don't like it." She admitted, crossing her arms over her chest defensively, as if she could shield herself from within from feeling what she was in that moment.

Orora nodded, reaching out to gently lay a hand on Toph's forearm. "Like you left a piece of yourself behind?" She asked, her voice soft and comforting as she shifted a little closer to the girl. Toph, sensing the shift, didn't hesitate to lay her head down against Orora's shoulder, drawing comfort from her older sister's presence. Feeling more then a little overwhelmed, and not trusting herself to speak, she simply nodded. Drawing her arm up to wrap around Toph's shoulders, Orora gave her a squeeze.

"I know it feels really difficult, and honestly, it does suck. But trust me when I say that when you meet him again, there is no other feeling like it."

Loud voices approaching had the waterbender looking up in the direction of the owners, namely Zuko and Aang who were now done with their tasks and walking towards the courtyard as well. "Believe me." Orora said, her ice blue gaze never wavering from the unaware Zuko. "I know."

Toph, sensing the two boys approaching shook her head. "Don't you go going all sappy with me, Ice Princess." She teased, glad to have spoken to Orora, and getting everything off her chest. She would still miss The Duke, but the promise of their meeting again had all her worries slowly disappearing.

Rolling her eyes, Orora gave the girl a playful shove, before pushing down the green headband she always wore. In response, Toph flicked her foot upwards, causing the earth underneath the wooden platform they were sitting on to shift and send Orora sprawling to the side.

"Toph!" She called out, rubbing the back of her head. The blind girl only grinned. "What're you complaining about?" She asked, sensing Zuko's steps rushing to where Orora had fallen and helping her sit up. "You have Firebug's arms around you now don't you?"

Orora pursed her lips, blue eyes shining with annoyance, despite the blush that painted her dark brown skin because yes, she didn't particularly mind the position she was in right then. Zuko chuckled under his breath, prompting Orora to punch his arm. "Don't encourage her." She admonished him.

Toph laughed loudly, standing up and throwing the now empty bag of walnuts in Aang's direction. "You're welcome!" She called over her shoulder as she walked away, leaving Aang to groan over the loss of his snack.

                                            ————————–

Once everything was clean, everyone had settled down for the night. There wasn't a shortage of rooms in the house, but for some reason, they'd all opted to sleep together in the living area of the house. It was large enough for all of them to fit in comfortably, and it opened up to the courtyard outside where Appa would sleep.

Inwardly, Orora was glad they weren't sleeping in separate rooms. She liked being near all of them, knowing everyone was safe and sound asleep.

Plus she'd kind of gotten used to sleeping with Zuko's face just a few feet away from her own. More then once she had fallen asleep while simply looking at his face. Then again, he had done the same every night since he'd gotten her back.

They'd all been much to exhausted to stay up long and chat that night.

Which was why they were all up bright and early the next morning. Aang and Zuko had gotten up even earlier to practice their firebending. Orora was just waking up when they returned. She was a little miffed about it, having wanted to see how Aang was progressing and to see Zuko use his firebending from a source that was other then anger and rage.

"We need to go into town." Katara stated as she surveyed a rather long piece of paper that she held. Everyone looked up from where they'd been finishing their breakfast. "We're almost out of food." The waterbender continued. "We need to get a few other supplies, and get Suki a new outfit." She added, glancing in the girl's direction who gave a nod of agreement. Sokka frowned. "Whats wrong with what she has on?" He asked, to which Suki, Katara and Orora all threw him a look.

"Sokka, do you really expect me to walk around in prison clothes?" His Soulmate asked, raising an eyebrow at him. The boy shrugged. Personally, he didn't think it mattered. They were just clothes. Then again, he did like his girlfriend in her Kiyoshi outfit more, so maybe it did matter.

Aang looked around at the group. Each of them supporting the colors of their Nation. "Well, if we're gonna go out and explore, its best we change into our Fire Nation disguises." He suggested. The new information had Zuko looking around. "Fire Nation disguises?" He asked, to which Toph nodded. "What we wore while we roamed around the Fire Nation before the Invasion. We really blend in rather well." She said, already standing up to get ready. Sokka grinned. "Maybe I can wear my beard again!" He stated gleefully, before racing off at a speed that left Orora thinking that he was maybe part Airbender.

"So wait, we're all going shopping?" Zuko asked, looking around as everyone dispersed, eager to change and get out of the dreary house. Katara rolled her eyes. "Of course we're all going Zuko." She smiled. "Its more fun to go as a group. And its been ages since we went out and just explored." With that she grabbed Orora's elbow, who grabbed Toph, and disappeared to the rooms where they had stored their supplies.

Leaving Suki and Zuko behind to clean up.

                                            ————————–

"No! Absolutely not!" Suki stated with a tone of finality in her voice.

"Awww but why?!"

"Sokka, it makes you look ridiculous."

"I thought you would think it made me look dignified."

"If you mean dignified-edly horrible, then yes, you're right."

Sokka pouted, though it was rather hard to see with the huge bushy beard he was wearing. Toph, who had been listening to the exchange while leaning against the broken door of the house, grinned. "I think you look dignified Sokka." She called out, prompting Zuko and Aang to snigger as Sokka turned to Toph with a hopeful look on his face.

"Thanks Toph! I knew I could-" He cut himself off, catching the wide grin on Toph's face. Scowling, he yanked at the beard, he pulled it off and tossed it aside, grumbling certain words under his breath that would have him earning two swats over the head by his sisters.

Who still hadn't appeared yet.

"Where are they?" Zuko asked impatiently, a little annoyed that he wasn't using the time to have Aang run through some fire drills again. While he was supporting a cloak with a hood to hide his face, Aang adjusted the tall hat he had found in the closets of the house, hiding his blue tattoos from sight. "Is this your first time waiting for a girl to get dressed Zuko?" He asked. The Prince's mind flashed back to the time when he had waited for Orora to come down from the apartment when they were supposed to go serve tea to the Earth King.

He remembered what his Uncle had said. “You should prepare yourself for such tardiness my nephew. A lady always takes her time. But it is always worth the wait.”

"Hey, I'm a girl and I got ready quicker then they did." Toph pointed out. Footsteps from within the house caught their attention, with Katara stepping out first. "That's because you opted to not take a bath after all that cleaning Toph, and Orora and I like to feel clean." Toph rolled her eyes as Orora stepped out as well.

"Its called a healthy coating of dust Sugar Queen." She argued, though the rest of whatever she said was barely heard by Zuko as his eyes found Orora and he stared at what he saw.

His Soulmate, in the clothes of his Nation.

Orora, wearing Fire Nation clothing.

The mere sight of her had his lips parting, and eyes widening in utter amazement. The bandeau top she wore just about covered her chest area, leaving the rest of her torso, namely her shoulders and navel completely bare. And though the bare navel did show the scar she now supported, that ran along her side, it was hardly noticeable against her dark brown skin. Her pants were cinched in just below her knees, and the skirt she'd wrapped around her hips only accentuated the curve of her body. A trait he had noticed before. Though now he could admire it more openly. Her shoes, funnily enough, were identical to the ones he wore, probably because they were the latest fashion.

The accents of gold along the edges of her clothing only enhanced the gorgeous color of her skin, as she pulled up the armbands that reached her elbows.

Her hair was completely down, the tips brushing her shoulder, settling in soft curls against her bare skin. Only a small portion of it pushed to the side to keep the hair from falling into her face. It was, of course, in place with the help of the blue comb he had returned to her.

His Uncle was right.

It was worth the wait.

There were only a handful of times Zuko had been struck speechless by someone.

And it seemed Orora had the honor of being the one to render him voiceless more times then anyone else.

Adjusting her armbands in place, Orora glanced up to see Zuko staring at her. She couldn't help but feel a blush crawling up her neck and blooming in her cheeks, the intensity of his gaze prompting her to suddenly feel shy and avert her eyes from him, brushing her hair behind her ear.

To say the both of them were as subtle as Appa in a china shop would be an understatement. Aang and Sokka were making faces at one another, identical expressions of playful disgust as they waited for the two Soulmates to break out of their little bubble. Toph had the honor of feeling both their heartbeats reach to a crescendo level. She couldn't help but grin though, already preparing a wide variety of teasing quips and jokes that she would be throwing at them both later. Suki, for all her tough warrior act, was a romantic at heart. And she could only exchange a happy smile with Katara, who had secretly planned the entire entrance because yes, she was going to help her older sister out by making Zuko see just how amazing she was.

Not that he didn't know that already.

"Are we waiting for anyone else?" Katara asked, still smiling as she finally broke the bubble the two Soulmates were happily encased in. Zuko's cheeks burned red as he quickly pulled up the hood of his cloak to try and hide his face. A little too late for that though.

"Yeah, we're just waiting for Zuko to pick up his jaw from the floor." Aang said, before bursting out into a laugh that had him leaning against Sokka for support, who wasn't any better, since he was laughing his head off just as hard as Aang was.

Suki grinned devilishly as she hooked her arm through Orora's and began to lead her down the steps. As she did, the two girls passed Zuko, and Orora's hand brushed against his.

By accident or on purpose.

Neither of them knew.

But what they did know, was that the small patch of skin where they had touched, seemed to zing with an electric charge that they both felt. One that had Orora nearly reaching out and taking his hand, just so she could feel more of that heart stopping sensation. And she would've done it too, if Suki hadn't been pulling her along.

Despite the fact that she could feel the cool sea air against her bare skin, Orora had never felt hotter before as she did under Zuko's gaze. Though this heat had nothing to do with the elements.

Oh no, this one seemed to come from inside her. And only wanted to burn brighter, engulf her entire body, mind and soul.

"Since I want my Soulmate to look at me like that as well." Suki declared, pulling Orora out of her mind as she pried her away away from Zuko's molten gold gaze. "I vote Orora to help me find the perfect outfit." She threw over her shoulder, grinning at the scowl on Zuko's face, knowing she had annoyed him by stealing Orora away.

As the rest of them moved to follow, Toph grinned. "I hope you're ready Firebug. Cuz none of us are gonna let you live this down."

Sighing, Zuko reminded himself that it was his choice to make friends with all of them. The added bonus? He was close to Orora.

So if he had to endure a little teasing as a price, then it was all worth it.

And despite what was to come, and knowing anyone could see him and tease him even more for it, his eyes never once left Orora's figure as she walked in front of him.

                                            ————————–

Tag List - @wavesofchaos​ @violet-potter​ @rennysketch​ @emma-andrea1 @lovesammikinzz @fuzzyfestcat @msrawog @notsaelty @lust-for-pan @aces-tattooartist @jinxxangel13 @lotr-got @bitterspoons @realrintaro @gatorgirl151 @inutheangel @heartfully10 @lucaaahhh @juniper-july19 @anuttellaa @gfksz @bussyvussy @punksnotdeadbutiam @ablofftoneverland-blog-blog @slut-for-menn @vyliie @army-moa75 @juwhls @aqlodun @lovelybaka @glowyruby @niktwazny303 @ladystrawberry

[the-genius-az]

Im bored, so here's some stupid headcanons

* Aang had dimples. No questions asked

* both Azula and Zuko had untamable hair as children. Trying to make their hair look presentable? Good luck, you'll need 2 hours and a break inbetween

* on that note, they have crazy thick hair. Like, a strand it's as thick as fishing line

* same with Toph^^

* Sokka and Katara have a tan around their eyes from the Inuit snow goggles

* also Inuit tattoos^^

* Yue cannot get sick. Like she might be a princess and look fragile, but her immune system is literally impenetrable

* Mai - Resting Bitch Face no.1, Azula - Resting Bitch Face no.2, Ty Lee - sweetest face ever

* also Ty Lee is always at least a little red in the face (kinda like Falin from Dungeon Meshi). Just sitting around? Light blush on her cheekbones. Listening to Azula? Her cheeks are beet red. Cold outside? Her nose is like Rudolphs

* Toph's fav metal to bend is steel. Also pewter

* Mai named all her favourite knives (though she denies it) and it's always some cringy shit like 'Piercer' or 'Dragonfang'

* Dragonfang was a gift to Mai from Azula (hence the name)

* Sokka got a lab in the Fire Palace after begging Zuko to let him get one

* he almost blew up the palace once^^

* Suki and Azula cannot be left alone in the same room or they will tear eachother to pieces

* Suki and Toph have a sisterly relationship (with the same amount of bickering and fighting as if they were actually related)

-Squid¤

I love headcanons, please everyone send more.

[zukkaart]

My a:tla post-canon headcannons

Even though Sokka is notoriously bad at art, he draws Yue constantly because he worries that he’ll forget what she looks like

Zuko loses sleep over his father’s diplomacy tactics, he studies them inside and out to ensure that he will never do anything like him, even to a fault

Toph never forgives her parents but cries when she sees her mom again, she never sees her father

Yue watches them all and leaves moonflowers outside their doors/windows on hard days. Even Zuko

Azula has short-term memory loss for the rest of her life because of the trauma

Katara cries the day she realizes she’s the age her mother was when she died

Zuko avoids Suki again after the war because the guilt starts to eat him alive. She has to corner him and force him to admit his guilt before he can speak to her again

Aang opens up a baking school on Saturday mornings in the EK to teach people how to make traditional air nation foods (especially fruit pies)

In between missions Ty Lee returns to the circus

Mai is a regular both at Aang’s baking lessons and Ty Lees shows

Zuko travels to Ember Island to see “Love Amongst the Dragons” every summer but always insists he take the others to see a “good version” elsewhere

Iroh has regular shipments of special teas sent to Sokka to help with his adhd

Zukos scar still burns sometimes in the middle of the night, he wakes up screaming. Iroh never mentioned it, no one else does either

Aang talks to Yangchen late at night when nightmares keep him up, he often cries in her lap the same way Kyoshi did

Probably more to come

[quillthrillswriting]

i never ever stop thinking about sokka and yue. THEM.

also ASTRONAUT SOKKA. PLEASE AND THANK YOU.

presenting: "There's a Star-Man, Waiting In The Sky," by quillthrills on ao3

a flash-fiction atla modern AU in which yue passes away from cancer early in life, and sokka becomes an astronaut so that he can go to space and be close to the moon she always loved so much ☾

୧‿̩͙ ˖︵  ⋆⁺₊⋆ ☾⋆⁺₊⋆ ︵˖ ‿̩͙୨

“Y’know,” Yue turned back to Sokka, smiling softly, her features bathed softly in starlight. “I’ve always wondered what it would be like to be up there, alongside the moon.” She reached down, gently picking up another chocolate dipped strawberry, her arm of silver bracelets clanking together.

“Not sure how much I’d trust you in space.” Sokka raised an eyebrow as he leaned in to kiss away the spot of chocolate caught in the edge of Yue’s full lips. He shot her a teasing grin. “Looks like you can’t even properly finish your food.”

She shot him a glare, shoving him sideways onto the picnic blanket. “You know what I mean.” Her eyes seemed to glaze over for a moment as she gazed up at the moon. “Can’t you imagine how beautiful it must be up there?”

“Yeah,” Sokka almost whispered the words, his eyes never leaving her face. “It must be breathtaking .”

Yue turned back to him again, her brow slightly creased now, as her once-soft tone became strained. “When I die, I hope to go up there.”

“That won’t be for a long time.” Sokka had intended the words to be decisive, but his voice shook as his eyes drifted back at the white-and-blue paper bracelet around Yue’s too-thin wrist, the hospital blotting out the stars behind them.

She only tipped her head, smiled in that sympathetic, selfless way she had. “I will, Sokka. You know I will.” She raised that same bracelet-wearing arm skyward, her fingers tracing the moon in a soft caress. “And when I do, you’ll find me up there .”

୧‿̩͙ ˖︵  ⋆⁺₊⋆ ☾⋆⁺₊⋆ ︵˖ ‿̩͙୨

Sokka adjusted his helmet, his gloved, bulky hands reaching out to the button- speckled dashboard before him. He moved his way across the sparkling lights as if he’d been born aboard a spacecraft, but his hands still shook. They’d been shaking since he’d awoken that day.

It felt as though he’d been anxious to arrive since he and the other astronauts had boarded three days before. He’d been counting down the hours meticulously, pacing back and forth, so much so that another one of the crew members, Suki, had warily suggested he take a couple extra hours rest that night. When he did sleep, it was dreamless, light.

The first time Sokka had felt truly awake was when that beautiful silver sphere of light and crystalline rock drifted into view of the viewport early that morning. Since then, he’d been glowing with excitement, fighting tears with every minute. With every mile they came closer, and he could swear he saw her, her smile, her lips, her essence in the hills and valleys of the moon ahead. Yue’s photo was tucked into the frame of his helmet, and in the corner of his eye, he swore he could see her smile softly at him as the ship finally began landing procedure. With the gentle whoosh of the airlock, Sokka finally allowed himself a moment to cry.

As heavy boots pressed into the dust and rocks of the almost untouched heavenly body, a boy wept, reunited with the love of his life once more, if only for a moment.

check out this fic, and the rest of my works, on ao3 here ->

[magicaljarofbeans]

ATLA Live-Action Series

So.

I just finished the season, and there are some good things, and... some bad things :|

I have purposefully not engaged with what the rest of the internet think about it since it came out so keep that in mind. All I know is that it's not been well received and people hate the acting (all from other people telling me in person rather than me looking it up).

Let's start with what I consider the good bits:

Sokka is funny

Iroh is amazing as always

Zuko is pretty good, but specifically amazing with Iroh

Admiral Zhao is even more detestable

The bending looks pretty good (minus the ice sledding)

Iroh's backstory made me cry like the animated series (it's the goddamn music ok!)

The cabbage man makes an appearance

Firelord Ozai is cast and acted well

Suki is great

Ok, I think that's probably the extent of the actually good. Now for the absolute wreck that is the issues:

The removed Sokka's misogyny, a key aspect of his character development

Aang isn't running away from his duties as the Avatar (and doesn't at the start either), despite it being a key character trait he works through. However, everyone is gaslighting him into thinking he has been?

Katara and Aang are simply not acted well. They are the youngest cast members, but it's incredibly forced and not really written well to begin with.

Katara has become Gandhi. Well, is trying to be. She just keeps blurting out inspirational messages and not saying much else.

THEY CHANGED THE ORDER OF EVENTS. This doesn't have to be an issue, but it is when it's done in a way where story-lines no longer make sense. i.e. Sokka meets Suki before they go to the northern water tribe and meet Yue. Basically Sokka kinda cheated on Suki and just doesn't care. (There are several more examples of this)

Aang literally doesn't bend a single drop of water himself. As in, NOTHING (giant water monster doesn't count)

Katara and Aang don't end up getting trained at the Northern Water Tribe. Like. At all.

Katara is labelled a "Master Waterbender" and now has to train Aang???? Ummm, what?

Aang can just fly now. Glider don't glide, it fly. It woosh over continent in a single day!

That brings me to, WHAT EVEN IS TIME. Apparently going from a small village in the middle of nowhere to Roku's temple in the middle of the Fire Nation takes a day by glider (Katara and Sokka were just sleeping and weren't for long enough to worry about food or water)

Ozai is happy to sacrifice half his navy to "distract them while we take Omashu". Which is so far away from the Northern Water Tribe that the distraction wasn't needed.

It's Book 2 with Book 1's ending?????

The old people are clearly young guys with old age makeup. Apparently they can't get older guys anymore? (Except Iroh :)

Aang keeps talking to the previous Avatars but not actually getting anything out of it.

Apparently he has to be at a temple to talk to the past Avatars now.

Azula is introduced prior to the Northern Water Tribe fight

We see Ozai's face. It removes the mystery and power behind his presence

What is up with Jet? He's now a bomb placing terrorist. Not too far from accurate but still

Oh and his base sucks. Literally only like 2 meters off the ground at most.

I'm sure I have forgotten some atrocities, and there are several things that are ok that I haven't mentioned (Momo and Appa look fine) but overall, it's fine, I've watched worse shows, but it's not that great. Just watch it for Iroh.

[theowritesfiction]

Hi @theowritesfiction ! How are you doing? Been a while since I reviewed, but I just read the latest chapter of AKN and have some thoughts I’d like to get down.

First, I really loved this chapter! Ty Lee’s story told from her POV (and with all of her biases) was particularly humorous and wacky . Even when narrating a horror story. I also had no idea that she was an illicit writing aficionado. One who has somewhat obsessive interest in her friend’s sexual lives. Particularly that of Azula and Katara. I mean what did Ty Lee write? Thirteen pages of Azutara love making? Though considering it’s over Azula and Katara, no one can really blame her, can they?

Ty Lee’s writings here kind of reminds me of “friend fiction” from the character Isabela from DA2. Who would write fictional romances of her acquaintances with other people. Usually as way to annoy or embarrass said acquaintance. Such as the character Aveline Vallen for example. With her own brand of “friend fiction” Ty Lee trying to give Azula and Katara a push in the right direction.

I’m also wondering if Azula and Katara will…reenact those scenes of the “holy scissoring”? Once Azula gets her head on straight and the two get back together. Potentially with an audience of Yue and Suki. Since they were both so enthralled by Ty Lee’s writings… ?

Azutara “Holy scissoring” (for several hours without rest according to Ty Lee ) was necessary to defeat the demon pig (ignoring Mai contribution at the end for now😉). Is Ty Lee’s story foreshadowing how Azutara defeats the evils of Ozai? And possibly when Azula stops being so stubborn and realizes that the great life she wants for herself is within her grasp?

Can’t wait for the next chapter!

hey, @745voiceofthepeople, I'm doing fine, how are you? Work has been busier than normal for me lately, and I've also been playing some new game releases, like Life is Strange Double Exposure (really good!) and Dragon Age Veilguard (fun, but objectively... not very good). but I'm also still writing regularly, if only not as much as before.

I'm glad you enjoyed the silly Ty Lee horror story with friends. :) I like the idea of Ty Lee enjoying fanfiction in general and maybe trying her hand at it. Not sure what her fandoms would be, probably something overbearingly sweet. :)

I think Azula and Katara can and probably will blame Ty Lee for her slightly disturbing interest in their sex lives. ;) And thank you for the reminder about Isabela in DA2 doing that, I had completely forgotten about it. That's right, she annoyed everyone with it. I guess Varric loved it though. for me, @juniperhillpatient and her happenstance story was more of an inspiration, because she had that one chapter where different characters were telling wacky friend-fiction stories, so I just wanted to do an extended version of that, all from Ty Lee's POV. :)

Well, who knows what's in store for Azula and Katara next (well, I guess I do know that), but you'll have to wait and see just how Azula finally gets her shit together and breaks away from Ozai. She's being pretty stupid about that currently, but maybe there's still some hope for her. Maybe Ty Lee's story also will have some influence on her eventually figuring things out. :)

Thank you for sharing your thoughts, I'm so glad to hear you're still reading and enjoying AKN!

[umbrum77]

Been thinking of a scenario for a while and I wanted to present it to you.

Scenario: Azula, Katara, Ty Lee, and Yue (who survived) all fall in love with Suki after the war.

Only way I can see this ending is either in blood or a poly relationship/Suki harem.

How do you think it would go? What would five of them say or do? How would the rest of the Gaang +Mai or anyone else react?

first off i love the idea of gang + mai as it implies when the gang goes to save the world mai just shrugs and goes back to like reading a book, i think the gaang would be surprised. mai would be happy she only has to go to one wedding. suki: i got what the ladies like, swords. i would write this where they all end up joining the kyoshi warriors after the war. Yue tries but she really cant keep up with the training but stays on the island. tylee is just gay for suki. katara has to figure out if she is into girls at all and azula has to learn what liking someone actually like...is.

naturally they turn to tylee who helps them figure out there hearts. suki overhears this and finds it interesting. but panics when katara is the first one who says her feelings are about suki. azula is confused as she likes suki and what the rules are for that and tylee has to take a deep breath to explain. suki panics a bit a runs to find yue who has basically taken over running day to day operations of the kyoshi warriors, getting supplies, planning diplomatic missions, paper work and such. suki tells yue the news and yue laughs and tell suki thats why she came here. suki just sits on the floor and yue sits next to her. "you make quite the impression" yue starts. "you are a good person and it makes sense so many people see that." suki rubbed her eyes, "just what the heck do I do now?" yue smiled "what do you want to do?"

suki turned to yue, "i want to hug you for being so nice to me." yue smiled and opened her arms and suki leaned into her. they stayed like that for a moment and suki just breathed. suki pulls away and looks and yue with a smile "well i think i will keep you at least." yue laughed "gee thanks."

they both laughed,

"well i guess, " suki stood up and offered a hand to yue. "if this, what ever this is, works out you would get some girlfriends too?" "the world is much more interesting outside the north pole." suki laughed. " im going to tell them i over heard there talk, oh gosh there is a group of people gushing about me, thats so weird, want to join me?" "sure, oh and I have an idea." _ azula raised her hand, "wait so question so like do we get a really big bed?" katara, "yeah what if one of you snore?" tylee took a deep breath, these two very sheltered woman had alot of questions. "ok lets, lets start over." suki and yue walked into to the sitting area. the three girls turned and suki saw each of them brighten up. she turned to yue who nodded. the kyoshi warrior smirked and walked over to azula, "i over heard what you 3 where talking about" she then grabs azula and kisses her, pressing hard, she feels the princess freeze and then go slack. after a moment she pulls away and azula wobbles before falling down. "sun set is in a few hours and there is a nice spot to watch it on the mountain if you all want to join me." suki then walks out of the room, yue giving the other three girls a smile before following suki. katara and tylee look at each other and at the dazed azula. before jumping up to follow. azula finnaly comes to witha big smile on her face as they leave the room. she jumps to her feet. "wait for me!"

[princess-of-the-corner]

Good point on Jet and Co. Being hard to incorporate. My thoughts went something along the lines of this:

Most of the "fire nation" kids in this AU are the children of rich and/or influential people and they all go to a private school. The Gaang minus the fire nation, Aang and Toph (Suki, Katara, Sokka, Yue, etc.) goes to a public school and Jet and Co. live in the poorer inner city and go to a public school there. While Ozai is obvs the Hawkmoth in this AU, I think Mai's parents would be a good fit for the Andres and Ty Lee's folks can be, like the Tsurugis if they were around from minute one. We don't have an Audrey because Ozai sucks hard enough to count for her AND Gabe!

Anyway, Ozai, in an effort to expand his business to fund his magical artifact search, basically starts attacking key points of infrastructure in the Freedom Fighters' community. He convinces the city to cut funding, tear down buildings, gentrify the neighborhood, etc., and he gets a bunch of the other "fire nation" kids noble parents in on it. Eventually, the Freedom Fighters have to move to a different part of town, and all of them spent time homeless. They understandably have a vendetta against Ozai and rich people in general and are really mistrusting. They're running a plot to expose corruption in the businesses that killed their neighborhood. They do illegal things sometimes like trespassing and breaking and entering in an effort to get evidence, and they are sometimes violent and frequently resist arrest.

The Gaang and the rest of the class are all the type of people who help where they can, use their money for good, peacefully protest, spread awareness, etc., especially if they have a Mylene figure leading the charge, but the Freedom Fighter kids really don't trust anyone outside their group to help (especially since most people won't go to the extents that they do) and they dislike rich people on principle. The Gaang first runs into them when they have a sporting competition against Jet's school.

The episode would focus on their difference in resources that their schools have, the difference in methods for change that the two groups use. Jet definitely gets akumatized after getting indelicately told off by the Gaang after they witness him doing something illegal for the first time. Maybe the rest of the Freedom Fighters too. The episode would end with an unclear resolution. This is all before the Fire Nation kids and Toph switched to the Gaang's school.

Later, there's a citywide exchange program to offer different perspectives and foster community, and Jet, Longshot, and Smellerbee get exchanged into the Gaang's school. They hit it off right away with Zuko when he breaks the rules to keep another kid out of trouble, but Jet gets kinda pissy when he realizes Zuko's "one of those rich assholes" and starts being really confrontational with him. He finally starts a violent scuffle over something minor and Jet gets sent to the principal over it, where he gets akumatized again. This time, with the assistance of a more chilled out Smellerbee and Longshot, a Toph, and previous experience on how to actually talk to Jet and get through to him, the post-akuma conversation goes a lot smoother and they're able to come to some kind of agreement. The exchange program ends on a hopeful note and with the gaang having worked out some kind of program to help out Jet's school.

Obviously you don't have to use any of this, especially since it would get a bit political, but it was what was in my head when I thought on incorporating Jet. Generally less murderous and more "perpetually pissed off and willing to break laws."

I think I'd rather mostly have everyone in the same school. For ease of who would be where and how everyone becomes friends. Like I /could/ have it be a thing with Zuko being a connection between groups but I want everyone to be able to be at school together.

But yeah having Jet as the like. Activist who goes a bit too far and doesn't really get nuance yet (because by fuck he's a teenager) works well.

Like I think round 1 he'd get along with Katara because like. I mentioned that Hakoda is one of the City Council members who's actually ya know sane and a good person, and he does have a focus on some environmental activism and improving communities. So like he'd meet her and they'd vibe because she agrees ya know?

But Jet being Jet, leans into the more black/white extremes. Sure her dad may be trying to make changes, but why isn't he just doing it? Why is he playing politics against a bunch of assholes who only care for making things worse for minimal long-term change instead of just overthrowing the system overnight and implementing the changes he wants?

Which. Yeah breaks the friendship and he probs gets in trouble for doing some shit.

Then we have the Zuko friendship happen at some point and it's. Yeah Zuko certainly has some criticisms of the rich assholes in town. Which Jet vibes with!

But finding out about Zuko being Ozai's son turns the whole thing. And instead of 'legitimate criticisms' he sees it as 'entitled rich boy whining about daddy saying no on occasion'. Which.... Zuko does not have the emotional maturity to explain exactly why that's wrong and what his family situation is really like in a calm and peaceful manner. So that turns into a fight.

[blueleopard555]

Thank you for the tag @waterfire1848

My words are Adventure, Comfort, and Regret.

Tagging: @marinette-buginette @rorschachiris @bellatrixobsessed1

My words for you lovely people are: Flirting, Kindness, and Debate

Directions (Because I had to ask): You match a snippet of a WIP for a fic (or art) to each word. It can be any ship, canon, AU, or series! Very minor spoilers for two Sokkla Saturday prompts!

Adventure:

Sokkla Saturdays 2024: Nov 30th

“So…” Sokka softly whispered as the emergency light switched on. He ran a hand through his damp hair, rubbing his hand against his jacket. “How’s your day?”

The young woman at his side glared at him in the dim light. She took a deep breath. “Peachy.”

Sokka nodded thoughtfully. He reached into his school bag to reveal a peach. “Mine too.”

Much to his satisfaction, the girl snorted.

“At least you have a snack,” she replied with a tense smile. Sokka decided he liked that far more than the death glare.

He reached into the bag again to pull another peach out. He hadn’t even begun his next joke when the young woman began to laugh. Sokka decided he liked her laugh. It made his heart flutter.

“Well, we can both snack,” he said, offering her the second peach.

The young woman’s eyes danced between his gaze and the peach before grabbing it. “The name’s Azula. What is yours?”

Azula? Sokka had heard that name before but could not place where. He replied with a soft smile, “Sokka.”

Azula’s eyebrow rose. It seems like he wasn’t the only one who felt some familiarity between their names.

“Well, Sokka,” Azula sighed, “What are we going to do? The power is out and we are stuck in an elevator. For the first day of class, this sucks.”

Comfort:

Sokkla Saturdays 2024: Nov 9th

Azula scrolled through her phone, paying little attention to the football game Sokka was watching. Appa whimpered again as Azula ruffled the fur by his ears. Aang’s massive Pyrenean mountain dog was very spoiled.

“You like that, don’t you?” Azula asked Appa.

The dog sighed and dropped his head in her lap.

“Very spoiled, indeed,” Azula stated with a smile. She continued to stroke his head.

“I wish someone would pet my hair.”

Azula turned to her husband, who was also resting on the couch. Sokka was bundled under a thick blanket.

“Then move over here,” Azula said as she patted the cushion beside her.

Regret:

This is Sokkla Saturdays 2024 idea for Nov 2nd that was scrapped. I planned on making it a standalone fic sometime in the future. Trigger Warning: Cheating

It was now a full year since Suki ended their relationship.

Sokka frowned before shrugging. She was now halfway across the world in Europe with Jet. There was nothing he could do and nothing he wanted to do. He bit into the bagel, realizing his heart no longer felt empty. He swallowed, smiling at how far he had come.

A year ago, Sokka burned the bed his girlfriend and best friend cucked him on for weeks before Sokka found them on the couch. Said couch was also burned. Sokka’s smile widened at the memory of watching furniture and boxes of pictures go up in flames. Ten months ago, he rebounded with a girl named Yue. She moved back to Norway two weeks later after a weekend in a hotel room. Seven months ago, he started to properly heal with therapy and taking care of himself. Three months ago, he realized he was happy again, no longer plagued with regret in every waking hour.

And now? He ate a bagel, proud of himself for how far he had come. Sokka realized he had not even thought of Suki and Jet in months. Sokka ordered a second bagel with eggs, cheese, and sausage to celebrate.

[avatarthelastearthbender]

Introduction

"Fire"

"Air"

"Water"

"Earth"

"Long ago,the four nations lived together in harmony,then everything changed when the Water Nation attacked...Only the Avatar,master of all four elements could stop them,but when the world needed her most,she vanished.100 years passed and my brother and I discovered the new Avatar...an Earthbender named Toph. And although her earthbending skills are great,she has a lot to learn until she's ready to save anyone,but I believe Toph can save the world"

~~~

Hello, welcome to my Avatar Swap Au blog

[Main Characters]: Toph - {In the role of Aang} She has the pretty much same personality as in canon,only she can be more childish,like canon Aang. She grew up in a small town where she used to fight in the underground earthbending Lei Tai tournaments secretly from her wealthy and protective parents, Upon finding out she's the avatar and on top of always wanting to run away from her protective family,she got overwhelmed by the responsibility and she ran away and trapped herself inside the top of a mountain, using earthbending, remaining there for 100 years. Azula blew the place up in a moment of frustration towards her brother,Zuko

Azula - {In the role of Katara} Unlike the canonically brutal and rough firebenders,the Fire Tribe has many warm and welcoming individuals that fight with honour and respect,Azula doesn't seem to fit right in with them though because,like in the canon universe,she is clever and she is quite apathetic towards the enemy,but more in a petty way like a combination of a redeemed Azula and how canon Sokka was in the beginning,she eventually gets her character development. (She also isn't Toph's love interest by the way)

Zuko - {In the role of Sokka} Zuko is Azula's older brother,who despite his awkward and introverted nature,seems to get along better with most people from their Tribe,but always tried his best to include Azula with the rest. Although he had a hard time trusting Toph,not believing she was an actual Earthbender since the Water Nation had killed them all,he -like canon sokka- eventually trusts her and they all travel together.

Aang - {In the role of Toph} Aang is a 12 year old boy from the Air Kingdom,who got raised by monks and was kept around them his whole life, wanting to explore the world outside the Air Kingdom,he agreed to teach Toph Air bending. His methods of teaching are not how Toph expected,Aang was so calm and interrupted lessons sometimes to have fun,Toph had a hard time learning air bending as it used so different methods from what she knew,and when she was in the air she couldn't see with her feet, which also annoyed her (The whole vibe was kind of how Korra struggled to learn air bending when she was trained under Tenzin).

OTHERS:

Sokka is swapped with Zuko

Katara swapped with Azula

Hakoda swapped with Ozai

Kya swapped with Ursa

Kanna swapped with Iroh

Jet swapped with Chan

Suki swapped with Mei

Yue swapped with Ty Lee {Ty Lee turned into the Sun Spirit}

And many more! Feel free to ask, headcanon and of course suggest anything

[arabella-s-arts]

Watched the new atla show. And now I will share my thoughts because I need to put them somewhere.

I agree with people that it kind of fell flat. More like an impersonation than the actual show. Also, people are right, where is Katara's rage? I'm not going to dive into it, because people already have, but Katara is stubborn and righteous, so where'd they put those qualities?

I wish the show would stop telling us everything. Like, stop telling me that Ozai thought finding the Avatar would be impossible, and sent Zuko on this quest anyway. I know, it's obvious. I don't need to be told the subtext, that's why it's subtext. Subtality could do this show a world of good.

Zhao's death sucked. It was perfect how it was in the original, it showed Zuko's kindness, and Zhao's hubris being his downfall was perfect. Also, this isn't necessarily a complaint, just something I noticed, Zhao feels different in the show. A guy with similar aspirations and ideas, yes, but not the same guy we all hate.

The acting wasn't always the greatest, but I can't tell if it's actually the actor's fault or script (probably script).

I wish Sokka was involved in the Jet plotline, he played a big part in it originally, and it really showed his true character.

Why did Katara and Aang never get any actual training in Northern Water Tribe? That's what they were there to do. Somehow, magically Katara became a master waterbender, because she what? Believed in herself? That's not how learning a skill works. Imagine trying to learn the flute, you're confident, and you figured out on your own how to play a few notes. But you still need someone to teach you the rest of the notes, how to trill, how to read the sheet music, etc. You can't learn everything just from confidence.

The costumes bothered me so much. Sokka and Katara's coats looked so light weight, which is probably more comfortable for the actors, but those coats could not shield you from a light breeze, much less a frozen tundra. Also someone pointed out that their clothes don't actually look worn, and they're right.

What on earth was the scarf scene? Why was it there? What was the point? I am not a Zutara shipper (though I have no hate for the shippers, just dislike for the ship), and now online is just going to be posts about that.

Was Suki just not wearing her warrior make-up because she had to kiss Sokka? Either way, it's still upsetting. The one time she doesn't wear her warrior make-up (which is an honor to wear) is when she's finally in a real fight, and on the day Kyoshi shows up too. Also, no Sokka wearing warrior make-up? I get if they couldn't fit it in, but it's still a bit sad.

I don't understand them getting rid of the fact that Aang ran away, I think it really makes his character more complex as he struggles to take on the responsibilities of the Avatar.

They sorta switched Sokka and Katara's roles in the Omashu tunnels, which I don't get.

Having Zuko fight Ozai in the Agni Kai was a terrible idea.

I'm sorry to say this, because I don't like Zuko being in pain. But Zuko's scar is smaller and a lot more understated than in the animation. I don't know much about burnt tissue, or how it will scar, especially with their technology. But we rarely see heroes with facial scars beyond a line through the eye or something, I don't want it taken away. The scar doesn't even seem to reach his ear. And I'm sad about them confirming his sight was fine. Zuko with some hearing and vision loss is technically just a headcanon. But then why did Zuko only leave his unscarred side up when sleeping around people he didn't trust in the animated version?

I could tell that Aang was airbending during it, so it wasn't really flying. But it's a little too similar, especially considering how significant flying is in Korra.

The thing that bothered me the most was Yue's death. Why was it barely acknowledged?! Yue made a huge sacrifice, but instead we're making up a plotline that causes Aang to have the spotlight instead. And when Sokka was talking to Arnook about Yue, somehow the conversation became focused on Sokka, and his insecurity, instead of someone they both deeply miss (though Sokka and Yue's relationship development could've been better). Sokka is joking around again by the end of the episode, it feels like her death never happened! And why make her a fish! No offense to fishes, but it feels less impactful, and in the original, we could see how Yue was able to keep some of herself alive in the way she presents herself as a spirit, she doesn't do that here.

Some things I liked:

Zuko being upset about Aang stealing his journal.

Sokka and Suki had really good chemistry (though, the show doesn't really give us a reason why Suki likes him, she seems annoyed with him when they first meet).

The effects were good, and I liked a lot of the fight scenes.

Kyoshi.

Oma and Shu being lesbians.

That one lady hitting Zuko for trying to hurt Aang.

Suki being awkward and beating up the guy she likes.

I am impressed with how they were able to overlap some story lines. That must have been difficult to figure out.

The sets.

Azula.