#ch: katara

[katrara]

the women who made me - [ 2/?] cartoon queens >> katara

“I know sometimes it hurts more to hope and it hurts more to care.”

[isabelpsaroslunnen]

I watched the first Netflix ATLA episode!

[spoilers below the cut]

The dialogue is frequently clunky (especially poor Aang's), some of the costuming (especially in the Southern Water Tribe) is middling cosplay level of convincing, and I would have preferred to keep more of the humor of the original (this is particularly felt with Iroh).

Still, I liked it more than not, particularly Aang, Katara, and Zuko, who are all really compelling (Sokka's arc is flattened in a way that does not quite work IMO and his actor doesn't do as much with it). I love Zuko's Avatar murder wall, some of the bending looked really cool, and I'm curious how the other episodes will play out now that we've gotten through so much of the expository heavy lifting (hopefully).

The choice to show the Air Nomad genocide playing out is neither a hit or a miss for me. The original handles it with a fairly light touch and a lot is accomplished through implication and through Aang's feelings about it. In some ways, I think it's possible that its centrality to Aang's arc and motivations will benefit from the impact being front and center from the first episode (the airbending children being backed into a corner with the clear indication that they all got burned alive after Gyatso died certainly makes for a different experience of it). In other ways, it feels a bit condescending and Sozin is so muahahaha that it doesn't hit as hard as it could have done. It functions as intended but in a somewhat unwieldy way, I guess. Gyatso is fantastic, though.

I did appreciate that Katara's flashback to Kya's death was such a brief fragment—it's not clear from this show alone what she's alluding to or what happened, but we get a sense of what it means for Katara, which I did like.

Reading over what I've said, it sounds pretty meh, but I actually did have a good time watching it and the cast (and presumably direction) carried it off fairly well. So I'll definitely keep watching.

[lavilicious]

War Games Chapter 26 be like. Everyone say thank you, @lovelyelbowleech

[sorrowmarked]

katara starter for @de2thletter's yue.

It wasn't that Katara was ungrateful for a chance to learn to heal from water bending masters. She was! Healing was useful! She'd seen it herself when she'd healed her burned hands. It was a wonderful thing, but it being separated by gender just seemed ... well it seemed stupid. Boys could learn to heal. Girls could learn to fight. Wouldn't it better that everyone was trained in both?

"I'm not saying learning how to heal isn't great," Katara said, "I'm just saying you've never once wanted to learn how to fight?" She asked, looking up at the older girl. "I mean you could keep yourself safe, keep your people safe!" She said. "There's no reason for the boys to learn to fight, and the girls to learn to heal, that's just ..." well she didn't want to call it dumb, but it was. Katara caught herself before it slipped out. "It doesn't make sense. You know I've mostly taught myself, I could teach you a few moves if you wanted."

[localfanbaselurker]

I’m watching Voltron: Legendary Defender for the first time and here is what I have had to say per each season (this is 1-2) (3-4) (5-6) (7) (8)

Pre-Watch Knowledge

->big transformers type robot

->pretty alien girl that looks like princess yue from A:tLA

->they are the epitome of color-coded characters

->space??

->there was crazy people in the fanbase that sent cupcakes laced with something to the creators

->queer baiting (this one in particular got me)

->klance.

->^honestly I only knew that because people were comparing it to zukka and I wanted to check it out

->my friend really likes it

Post S1 thoughts-

->that cliffhanger was crazy imagine they weren’t renewed for a s2

-> i went on tumblr after and youre telling me they made that show IN TWO YEARS?? EIGHT SEASONS. IN TWO MF YEARS?? that is insane. props to the writers bro they fr must of known what they were doing.

->all of these characters already scream “doomed by the narrative”

->my fav characters are pidge and lance

->I definitely did NOT expect yue Allura to be British

->bonding moment.

->^like yeah okay i get it now

-> the healing pods are a very interesting concept. Like, what if you get some ailment that it doesn’t recognize?? Do you just die??

-> genuinely felt so bad for Not Yue. Allura. Allura when they had to remove her father’s memory thing. Like yeah I know the castle was corrupted or wtv but bro imagine. Your entire race is dead. your mom, who you previously knew alive is now most likely dead. You already had to go through losing your father once, and now you have to lose him again. Any sliver of hope you had of staying connected with him is gone, because the entirety of his essence is now gone. She’s stronger than me, I would have never given him up so easily. I admire that about her.

->I also made the horrible mistake of going on ao3 after

yk for gits and shiggles… and when I go to a new fandom I always search by hits to see the classics first yk

…

WHY are you guys so 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝓪𝓴𝔂… I genuinely shed a tear what. I was flabbergasted to say the least.

On that note the top 23 were about redguy/blueguy getting smoochy-smoochy with each other so I guess that should be a hint as to what you guys like

->the description of the show says the robot (voltron) is operated by “five teenagers” but that shiro guy has to be AT LEAST 25. He is pushing 30 you can’t convince me otherwise.

->for now it’s kinda giving atla except the war is intergalactic and lasted 10,000 years instead of 100.

->all the other characters seem to have a pretty clear background, but we haven’t yet heard about Keith’s backstory, so I want to know (I know now, this was my initial thought)

->shiros backstory/ptsd is very interesting, lots of angst possibilities i see

-> I had an inkling that pidge was…genderly different. (At first I thought she was transmasc)

Post S2

-> WHERE is my man. Where did he go.

-> Pookie please come back. Now. It’s not a suggestion.

->KEITH BACKSTORY I PREDICTED THEY WERE GONNA SHOW US YAY I LOVE BEING RIGHT

-> he’s galra! Soooo much whump opportunity

-> the whole “Allura doesn’t hate you she’s just a little upset to find out ur part of the race that killed off her entire peoples and family and okay maybe she does hate you” scene with keith and hunk is really giving that scene in atla: the southern raiders where zuko thinks katara hates him and sokka reassures him (badly) while he was just trying to get laid w suki.

->^ that’s gay

-> the aliens they met are going to be very important, aren’t they?

->^ oohhh so this is where the “langst” stuff comes from? he’s just kinda insecure i think, but it can’t possibly just be this episode that has that tag so high, unless flanderization is just really popular with you guys, but already suspect that unfortunately

->^Allura high key ate with this

->the “Blade of Marmora” people are definitely gonna be important later

-> the mall episode was soooo fun! fav s2 episode for sure!

->^gay. It’s literally giving “two bros chillin in a hot tub. five feet apart cus they’re not gay”

-> I know of 2 ships now. klance and allurance. I only see the former though, the latter seems more like a running gag/unrequited crush thing (for now i suppose)

-> Coran is an icon. I love that whimsical man. he’s beekeeping age per say.

-> I need pidge to find her brother and father man I feel so bad for her PLEASE DOBT TELL ME THEYRE DEAD ILL LITERALLY DIE.

-> pidge is sooooo cool i love her so much she’s literally the pookiest of the pookies

-> Who tf is gonna be the black paladin now. Keith sure as hell isn’t ready for that. maybe Allura?? Cus yk she kinda already leads them a little bit

These are thoughts I had compiled over a while now. I am on S5E3 as of now (07/03/24) but I wanted to document my thoughts either way. I will post on the tag “laura’s first vld”

[jmesther]

I just discovered this very fluffy Kataang fanfiction. (at least at first it’s fluffy) One of the earlier ones. It’s au where Aang saved the world on his own without meeting Katara and then Zuko sets them up. Apparently there is smut at the very last chapter if you’re into that stuff.

[quillthrillswriting]

i'm writing in jealous aang AND a sparring scene in the upcoming ch of "the teenager in the iceberg"- y'all kataang stans are eating GOOOOODDD 🤭

in order to placate you lovelies, enjoy a couple short & sweet excerpts!!!

also, i love the way that tiny aang in the header looks like he's desperately trying to seperate jet and katara 😭🤍

⁎⁺˳ ✧༚ ˎˊ˗ ♡ ˗ˏˋയ ✩

Sokka rose, crossing his arms as his expression shifted to anger. “The traps are Fire Nation. You can tell from the metalwork- no other tribes can achieve seams this flawless without the aid of a Firebender that can bend blue flame.”

Aang’s nose wrinkled as he gently landed next to Katara. “What do the firebenders want with these forest animals?”

“We won’t be sticking around long enough to find out.” Sokka said decisively as the three began to walk back to where they’d left Appa. “As the leader, I say we get walking AQAP.”

Katara raised an eyebrow. “AQAP?”

“It means As Quickly As Possible.” Sokka recited the acronym as if it was obvious. “It’s a more efficient method of communication. I call them ‘short-word-quick-talkers.’ Trust me, they’re gonna be very popular.”

Katara and Aang side-eyed one another sceptically before falling into step behind Sokka. 

⁎⁺˳ ✧༚ ˎˊ˗ ♡ ˗ˏˋയ ✩

Katara bent a stream of water from the bottle strapped to her hip, then carefully sent a water-whip straight for their fire, silently proud at how much her late-night practice sessions had allowed her to improve. “Who says you’re qualified to be the boss, all of a sudden?”

“I’m not the boss, I’m the leader.”

Katara scoffed incredulously. “You’re the leader?”

“Naturally.” Sokka puffed out his chest like a peacock pigeon. “I’m the oldest.”

Aang raised an eyebrow, grinning teasingly. “Sokka, I’ve been around for over a century. I have training robes that are older than you.”

Sokka deflated slightly, his shoulders slouching before he managed a retort. “Well, I’m wiser, then. And I have instincts.”

“Ooh, instincts.” Katara wiggled her fingers at him, her voice filled with fake awe. “Please, oh wise leader, share with us your wisdom.”

⁎⁺˳ ✧༚ ˎˊ˗ ♡ ˗ˏˋയ ✩

“Down you go,” Jet grinned, self-satisfied and authoritative in his stance. Katara beamed back, her lips parted in an amazed expression, while Aang and Sokka’s features quickly settled into irritation. Before long, an archer and a few other kids dropped from the trees surrounding them, and both Aang and Katara jumped into the fray in response alongside the mismatched gang of weapon-slinging kids. Sokka joined in, his irritation visibly rising as Jet took down each soldier before Sokka could even get close to being in range.

“You snooze you loose, man,” Jet shrugged, his hooks snagging on a man who had been about to grab Katara. “Apologise to the lady.” He smirked, then kicked the man hard, dropping him to the side.

“I had her,” Aang grumbled under his breath, occupied with bending currents of wind to sweep soldiers out of the clearing. Katara furrowed her brow at Aang’s irritation, but decided to note it as something to ask about later. Finally, the remaining soldiers scampered out of the clearing in retreat, their shouts and yelps echoing through the forest. Katara still couldn’t take her eyes off of Jet. He sauntered over to her, a roguish grin on his face as he spoke.

“Hey.” He tossed his hair as he said it, his grin directed entirely at her now, and Katara felt a soft blush spread across her cheeks as she looked up at him. She broke her gaze only to check that Aang and Sokka were okay, and as she looked across the field to Aang…

Was she imagining it, or was his jaw clenching? Was she imagining it, or was his normally approachable expression shifting into a deadpan stare?

⁎⁺˳ ✧༚ ˎˊ˗ ♡ ˗ˏˋയ ✩

His gaze flicked from Jet to Katara, to the brush brushing her cheeks, the soft smile of her full lips. He was hit by the thought that he wanted to be there, next to her, in Jet’s place.

What was it about Katara that made Aang feel as though he could only breathe when she was around? 

⁎⁺˳ ✧༚ ˎˊ˗ ♡ ˗ˏˋയ ✩

Katara was too caught up in her Jet-related nerves to notice the way that Aang’s breathing was coming more quickly, that his fists were quickly clenching and unclenching. She walked towards Aang, who was joined by Sokka, only for Aang’s eyes to flit away every time they met hers. She reached out an arm reflexively, her hand lightly brushing Aang’s bicep as her brow furrowed in concern.

“Are you alright?”

His eyes flashed with something she couldn’t quite read, and his jaw clenched before he spoke. “I’m sorry, Katara, I just… I need a minute. My judgement is…impaired, right now."

⁎⁺˳ ✧༚ ˎˊ˗ ♡ ˗ˏˋയ ✩

He hesitated a moment before continuing. “Would you… would you care to join me for sparring practice, tomorrow morning? Might help you feel a bit safer next time you need to face off against Fire Nation swine.”

Katara smiled back. “I’d like that.” Jet continued to regale her with stories of all he and his fighters had accomplished as of late, but Katara found herself distracted, her gaze wandering over his shoulder every now and then.

It was not lost on her that Aang’s light had stayed on and his curtains drawn until Jet had returned her to her room for the night.

♥ if you want to stick around for this ch to drop, feel free to head over to the work here! ->

[princess-of-the-corner]

Tried to think of some Miraculous Gaang names! You may want to Google a few of these, fair warning.

Ladybug!Sokka - Captain Harmonia/Harlequin/Beetle

Black Cat!Katara - Painted Jaguar

Turtle!Aang - Lion Turtle, Tortiseshell

Snake!Suki - Pythonic, Tealtime, Naga, Aspen, Tock Viper, Medusa/Stheno/Euryale, Teal Gorgan

Tiger!Toph - The Blind Tiger

Dragon!Zuko - Seiryu 

Fox!Azula - Inari, Kistune, Silver Reynard, Kuma Lisa, Blue Ren (“the tale of Miss Ren”)

Pig!Jin - Babirusa

Bee!Ty Lee - Bumblebee (there is literally a “Dance of the Bumblebee” music score), Honeycomb

Mouse!Mai - Rat Queen (based on the “Rat King” from the Nutcracker Ballet. Kind of as a slide parallel to her canon thing, here, Mai’s parents signed her up for ballet, where she met Ty Lee and Azula.)

Ox!Haru - Oxenfree (all I got right now)

Horse!Teo - got nothing but “Pegasus” which is taken

Rabbit!Yué - Luna Lapine, Luna Angora, Satin Moon, Velvet Moon

Monkey!Kuzon - a bit more explanation here. Mostly, I was trying to fill out the miraculous roster, cause AtLa only has a few “main” characters, I was trying to find some named characters the Gaang is shown being friends with who are roughly their age. I didn’t list Jet or his friends, cause, honestly, what exactly would their story be?? How do they integrate? Like, I’m sure you could do something, I just couldn’t really think of anything at the time. But also, I realized all the friends of the Gaang belong to Katara, Sokka, or Suki, later Zuko - Aang and Toph don’t really have any that are unconnected from them. In Toph’s case, she was raised super sheltered, and never got a chance to meet anyone, while Aang HAD friends, but they’re all mostly dead, except Bumi, because of the 100 years in ice thing. And we already have Bumi here being an old man. The only other friend Aang really mentions is Kuzon, the Fire Nation kid who … I think there’s a short story about the pair of them fighting off poachers? Anyway, I was basically imagining Kuzon as “Le Chien Kim, but Animal Lover and Environmentalist Advocate”. He would have grown up next door to Aang and Gyatso, and that’s how the pair are friends. As for names … I want to say Tarzan or Mowgli, but I feel like, even in universe, those would get him visits from lawyers.

Now, briefly into ships - this is just me spitballing my random headcanons, PLEASE TO ALL READING THIS, WE ARE HAVING FUN, LET’S NOT BRING THE ATLA SHIPWARS HERE! THIS IS JUST ME SPITBALLING! THEY CAN ALL BE CHANGED!

so, Katara/Aang. Aang I see as non-binary - they don’t mind which pronouns you use, but mostly uses he/they when referring to himself. Katara believes she is straight, but is actually bi with a bigger attraction to males.

Sokka is poly-pansexual. His relationships start with Sokka/Yue, until Yué realizes she’s actually AroAce, and they break up. Then later Sokka/Suki, which morphs into Zuko/Sokka & Sokka/Suki, which changes to Zuko/Sokka/Suki. Suki’s bi, while Zuko is … Zuko (demi-pan, but never has the words for it till WAY later).

Toph is Aro, or at least grayromantic, as is Teo. Teo I also see as trans, but that might just be me.

Mai/Ty Lee eventually becomes Mai/Ty Lee/Azula. (Sexuality uncertain, but my cousin does call them the “Deadly Lesbians”.) There’s a brief Mai/Zuko, but only to get Mai’s parents to back off and leave her alone.

Haru is our only totally straight guy, congrats man, you are our cishet+!

Thoughts, Feelings, Opinions, New/Different Ideas?

(Also, side note. We still have Cabbage man, right?)

-

OH SO

Loving the names! I think I’m gonna make a masterpost of the names here once I finalize them.

Totally get the thing on Kuzon. Like yeah I’m trying to think of other characters to fill out the Hero team and other than Jet’s group there aren’t a lot. There’s a reason I dragged Jin into this(other than the fact that I love her)

And yeah I’ve been turning Jet and co over in my head trying to think of what they’d be and I can’t think of anything for them because there’s so many changes to the base setup.

AS FOR SHIPS

I have my ships I like and while I do take suggestions it’s my au and I get the nonsense!

Obvs the Aang/Katara stays.

I see the Zuko/Sokka/Suki and raise you adding Jin in there.

Swinging to Yue: I always have mixed feelings in some AUs because I love her and Sokka in Canon but most AUs they never really work out. And in this one idk why they wouldn’t exactly? Like nothing gets in the way. Maybe if I write Sokka starting the Suki relationship first and then while they’re poly they’re not at a ‘hey how do you think about another person?’ discussion stage when they meet Yue? And then by the time they are at that stage either they’ve moved on or Yue has her own partner?

That said. Yue/Azula. Any time I have the chance for them I take it. Like the equal opposite you see my vision.

I also have this weird soft spot for Toph/Ty Lee. Probably has something to do with that post of ‘Ty Lee teaches Toph to walk on her hands’ thing because as funny as that post is these two are menaces it’s great, the amount of trust involved in it!

Haru is def our token straight though.

My one original thought:

So like. The Gaang has a range of ages. And in atla that’s fine due to the circumstances. But here it’s kind of a question of ‘how do they all meet/become friends/etc if they never really meet’? so I’m gonna make shit up to squish them into the same grade in school. 

Aang and Toph skipped a grade. Homeschooling put them a bit ahead of their peers in public school so they just got placed ahead.

On the flipside, Zuko got held back a grade due to the whole ‘being kicked out and horrifically scarred’ thing. Like between the mental and physical care he’d need he missed a lot of class that year so just. Repeat the year.

[soulc-hilde]

Kids in the Iceberg

Series: The Lost Waterbender / Ch. 01

Pairing: Sokka x OC! Ikkara

Words: 1.1k

Divider by: @khaer

Synopsis: Sent off from her homeland in order to fulfill her duty, a young waterbender takes on the responsibility to teach the Avatar. Forced to abandon her people just like Aang was force to abandon his childhood, the two bond over their desire to be freed. Rushing off into the night, the duo are swept off in the midst of a rain storm. Waking in her homeland, Ikkara is left confused and 100 years behind the present.

With a pained groan, I open my eyes and wince at the unexpectant glare of light. Blinking a few more times, I could feel my vision adjust and what I thought was blue skies were blue eyes.

They stare down at me with curiosity and wariness. Sitting up as slow as my body would allow me to, I take note of him standing protectively in front of a girl who was practically his twin. Am I... Am I back home? 

Careful of the ice, I stand to my feet when a small hand grips onto my bicep. I look over to see the concerned, wide gray eyes that belong to the young airbender I was traveling with. 

"Ikkara, you're okay," he belts with joy, forcing his small form into my torso. As he nuzzles into my parka, I lightly pat my gloved hand on his bald head with a chuckle. 

"Of course, are you?" I ask, leaning him back in order to trail my eyes across his body. The boy behind him screeches, "who are you!" 

Before we could answer, a loud groan catches our attention. "Appa," Aang and I call out. Leaping over the slope of ice, we land on the white furry bison. Aang continuously swipes at his companion, fighting the animal's sleep while I simply patted the side of his head. Following after us, the siblings watch in horror. 

"What is that?!" The boy screams once again. Finally awaking, Appa nudges his head against me before licking Aang's backside. 

The airbender laughs, "this is Appa, my flying bison." The boy deadpans, gesturing to the girl, "and this is Katara, my flying sister." 

The large bison freezes, face twitching. "Oh-oh," I wince, ducking to avoid the ball of snot that had hit the teenage boy. With a scream of disgust, he flops around in the snow in hopes to wipe it off. 

"That's okay, it'll wash out," Aang laughs. I look around with slight familiarity, "are-are we in the south pole, by chance?" Aang nods, "do you guys live around here?" 

Immediately, the boy steps in front of Katara, pointing his spear at Aang and I. "Don't answer that, Katara. Did you see that bolt of light? They were probably trying to signal the Fire Navy."

Katara nudges him back, gesturing at us in annoyance, "oh yeah, I'm sure they're spies for the Fire Navy. You can tell by that evil look in their eyes, besides she's wearing Water Tribe clothes."

"Could be a disguise," the boy creates his own explanation. Cute, but paranoid... seems like my type

Katara gestures towards him, "the paranoid one is my brother, Sokka. What are your names?" I give her a small bow, "I'm Ikkara."

"And I'm A-a-a-a-a-aachoo!" Aang sneezes, shooting into the sky. Sliding down the icy walls and back onto his feet, he bows in greeting, "Aang." 

Sokka points at us, "you just sneezed and flew 10 feet in the air!" Aang and I shrug, "I thought/felt it was higher than that." 

"You're an Airbender!" Katara realizes with awe. She turns to me, "and are you one, too?" I shake my head, "afraid not. I'm a waterbender." 

If it was possible, her eyes seem to widen even more. "I'm a waterbender, too!" She nearly squeals. Sokka groans, "giant light beams, flying bison, airbenders, waterbenders... I think I got midnight sun madness," he walks off.

"I'm going home to where stuff makes sense," he scoffs. Pausing for a moment, Sokka realizes that he was in fact stranded on the glacier with the rest of us. I chuckle in my gloved palm, not wanting to come off as rude. 

"If you guys are stuck, Ikkara, Appa, and I can give you a lift!" Aang suggests, using his bending to flip onto the top of Appa's head. 

Katara smiles, "thanks!" I turn around and with a stiff stomp, a set of ice carved stairs form beside the bison. The younger waterbender gasps in awe, "whoa."

She joins my side in the saddle which left the three of us to watch Sokka mildly panic. "Oh no," he scoffs, "I am not getting on that fluffy snot monster."

"Well Sokka," I lightly tsk, "I don't see any boats around here for miles. Do you, Katara?" The girl smirks, shaking her head, "nope. Unless you're hoping some other kind of monster will give a ride home, you know, before you freeze to death?"

The stubborn teen sighs, climbing the icy stairs and hopping into the saddle. He shuffles in the very back, nearly digging the edges into his lower back. Aang doesn't mind though as he laughs away. 

"Okay, first time fliers, hold on tight!" He shouts, gripping the reigns, "Appa, yip-yip!" The bison releases a growl and launches himself in the air, all six legs fan out, before belly-flopping into the water.

"Wow," Sokka drags on, "that was truly amazing." I send him a quick side-eye, not appreciating the tone. Aang chimes, "Appa's just a little tired. After some rest, he'll be soaring through the sky!"

Katara shuffles to the front of the saddle while Aang watches her with a grin. She raises an eyebrow, "why are you smiling at me like that?"

"Oh," he stutters, "I was smiling?" I laugh, shaking my head as Sokka groans in mock disgust. As we drift onwards through the water, the evening turned to night. 

--- pov shift ---

Despite her long winded nap in the iceberg,  Ikkara felt the need to sleep attack her body once more. Curling into a ball beside Sokka, the boy couldn't evade his eyes as the moon glares down on her face. She was a masterpiece. 

Brown skin darker than his own, her short mane of curls danced playfully in the wind. Her pink lips hold a slight smile as the quiet ripples of the ocean and Appa's heartbeat soothes her to sleep. 

Get a grip, Sokka sighs, she's a possible threat to the tribe. 

Hearing someone cough, he turns to meet eyes with a humored Katara. Before he could say a word to defend his gaze, she wiggles her eyebrows before laying down for her own nap. Left grumbling to himself, the teen stares on into the night. 

Series Masterlist

Taglist: I am open to doing a taglist for this series. If you wish to join, just simply comment or inbox me and I'll happily add you on!

[dealbrekker]

I wrote this quite literally 10 years ago. Her birthday is coming up and everything. I'm proud of this story and that I finished a multichaptered fic. I only ever did one shots.

There are things I'd change and work differently, but I'm still pretty in love with this and figured I should reintroduce her back into the wild. It would be crazy if anyone on here ever read it back then...

Begging all your pardons for the epilogue in advance lmao.

Hope it's enjoyed ☺

Amidst a time of peace and a dimming marriage, Fire Lady Katara journeys back home to the Southern Water Tribe to reconnect with her people. While there, she meets a nomadic firebending artist whose scar is as striking as his work. As the moon wanes and her visit ends, the stranger molds an image of his life much different from what history knows to be true. AU.

[reyxa]

can't we just get oolong? ch. 5

AO3

title: can’t we just get oolong? author: Reyxa rating: T summary: au where zuko and iroh settle in ba sing se post-banishment. when a pretty water bender start frequenting the jasmine dragon, zuko’s world turns upside down.

Chapter 5: boiling over

Fresh crimson blood spills from his split knuckles, trickling down his fingertips. Zuko grits his teeth, his brows drawn tightly together as he shakes out the pulsing pain throbbing through his palm.

He looks down at the splits in the middle three knuckles of his left hand, each cracked and streaming red. He never used to bleed like this when he got injured practicing firebending. The injuries were more often blistered or charred skin that would dull his nerves over several days. The rivulets of blood were reserved for sword fights; a skill he didn’t hone until he lost his bending.

Squeezing his eyes shut, he closes his fist, opening the crevices further. “I don’t care what you want. What I want is for you to stay out of our way.” Katara’s words lodge themselves in the auditory part of his brain, rewinding and playing out over and over again. He wants to punch the wall again.

Why did he have to say that last week? He fucked it all up. He could literally see it as she ran down the hall of the Earth Kingdom palace, the threads that entwined them, the ones that led him to his destiny, snapping one by one the farther she ran from him.

And for what? He asked a waterbender who despises firebenders to give him back his weapons. What was he expecting? That she would be nice enough? That she cared? That she also felt some fragile thing between them and it was strong enough to make her loosen her values?

“Idiot,” he hisses at himself, clenching his fist tighter. He hasn’t seen her since.

He wipes the beading forehead sweat off his face and onto his apron. One last time, he turns on his heel away from the wall, and deftly raises his palm as he steps forward down the dark alley. Somehow, he had hoped his utter self-despising would kick up his fire enough to produce something. His palm tingles and blisters, like the fire beneath his skin is scorching the underside of his palm trying to burn its way through. It warms feebly, the air heating up a few degrees.

No fire. Not even a flicker.

He grunts. He should tend to his wounds.

He kicks open the door to the alleyway, it brings him satisfaction hearing the wooden door creak and moan as it jolts against the teashop wall. The bustle of the busy midday crowd in the shop blares out into the backroom he’s standing in, and it irritates him. Grumbling to himself, he yanks open the napkin cabinet in the backroom. He dresses his knuckles in the dark green cloth they usually use for tea spills.

Ember Island iced black tea is what he throws together for himself. The ice cracks as he pours the hot steeped tea over it.

“Zuko!” his uncle calls from the front of the shop. “Come here once you’ve finished your tea!”

Suppressing a loud groan, he throws back the rest of the tea and chokes down the smoky taste of it.

He walks out into the shop, feeling fussy. Over the years, he had come to tolerate, if not take some pleasure in, the gentle bustle of the teashop– the elderly people laughing, the water boiling on the fire in the back, pai sho tiles clacking as the afternoon sun streams in through the windows. But he was never content. He’ll always be restless, he thinks.

Uncle Iroh– who Zuko thinks could never look anything but content– smiles at him. He shuffles over, teapot in hand. “You look terrible.” he laughs, retying Zuko’s apron. Zuko throws him a sour look as Iroh lifts his wounded hand and covers it with his own wrinkled one. Iroh tuts. “You should be more careful. After you tend to that last table, why don’t you rest for the afternoon?”

He can’t be mad at his uncle. That was the first lesson he learned post-banishment. His brow softens and he nods at the only person who cares for him.

Resigned, he approaches a table with two Dai Li agents whispering over a stack of paper. “Welcome to the Jasmine Dragon, what can I pour you?” he murmurs, tapping his quill against his notepad.

They shoot him twin dirty looks.

“Green tea quickly,” one says coldly.

Zuko sets his lip in a harsh line, but nods as he walks away. Trouble isn’t worth it, yet. He brings them the tea cold, and takes his time warming the teapot with firebending to linger by their table.

They don’t notice him hovering. Curiously he peers over their wide hats at the paper.

He nearly drops the pot. Lingering ten seconds too long, Zuko blinks at the printed image of the sky bison with a large sum of money stamped under it.

“Leave us,” the agent grunts.

Thoughts rushing fast, he tilts the spout so the hot tea spills onto the table. It fountains off the table into one of the agent’s laps. The agent startles and Zuko apologizes profusely, handing the agent several napkins as the other agent helps him dry off.

With the agents distracted, Zuko swipes a flyer from the stack before leaving some spare napkins on top.

He pours over it in the backroom after his shift, a flicker of hope warming in his chest.

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[geothewriter]

Vermillion Seas Cardinal Skies: Chapter 11 - The Sword, The Man, The Legend

After liberating the small village of Jang Hui, Sokka feels pretty bad. In this chapter, he realizes his potential, Zuko discovers an important piece of his past, Aang reveals some secrets, and we get a training session!

Hello reader-friends! The funny thing about these chapters is that the ones I write on planes tend to be longer. This is absolutely no exception to that rule. I remember back when I posted chapter 5 saying that I wanted to limit the number of extra long chapters. Welp, looks like the shorter chapters are an exception to the average ch length here. Oh well, I don't think you're complaining!

As always, a massive shoutout to @achillmango for her incredible editing capabilities.

The sound of metal sword on metal sword clashing in the background almost entirely drops away from her ears at the seriousness of Aang’s expression. “Katara, have you ever felt really strongly for someone?”  Wow. Right now?  This isn’t where she expected this conversation to go, nor the place to have it.  She turns her gaze away, and answers noncommittally, “I– uh…I guess I have.” She looks up toward the branches of the tree and notices the midday sun shining beams of golden light on them, Its warmth is comforting yet something about this feels wrong. The light flickers against the slow-drifting pollen in the air.

Without further adieu, please enjoy Chapter 11 - The Sword, The Man, The Legend on AO3!

[shamelessliarkickapow]

The King's Pet or The King, ch 43

AO3 and ff.net

Giant eel-hound rider safety class in an au of the au:

Instructor: Now kids, it's important to remember that these animals run very fast on land and swim very fast in water, and speed can be dangerous. You need to take special precautions, especially with the tack and gear to prevent both water damage and slippage.

Zuko, 11, not paying attention:

Katara, 9, absent:

[ssreeder]

HI SREEDYYYY

i finally read ch 20 of itf IM SORRY IT TOOK ME SO LONGGG 💔💔 anyways tho it was sooooo goooddddddddddd omg……

i kinda.. dont like suki…. LIKE I UNDERSTAND WHERE SHES COMING FROM and i like get it but just like move on and get with jet like hes right there and she obviously likes him…. i get it tho WHATEVER!!

BUT KATARA OHHH I LOVE HERRRR SO MUCHHHHHHHHHHH shes so silly and funny and ACCEPTINGGG. like she found out ab zukka and was like I NEED TO CONFIRM IT but then shes happy cause her brothers happy IDK BUT I LOVE ITT!! i wish ara and her couldve been friends tho i love ara i miss her

yk i was praying for her downfall SOOO hard but now i like her she was just abused but that FUCKER zhao!!! and then shes lowkey falling in love with shen (i think, i mightve forgotten) AND THEN HE DIES bro….

anyways i love how u write jee, no notes, perfection.

okay now im gonna rant ab zukka AGGFHAGGRGGAGGAG I LOVE THEM SO MUCHHHHHHHh theyre so silly and goofy and i live them im biting my phone rn (/j) i dont know what to say ab them omg. their relationship progression was soooo like satisfying like when i read liab like i wasnt even upset that they hadnt realized anything yet i was just so sad and happy it was so crazy. IM SO EXCITED FOR ZUKO TO TEL IROH EVERYTHING!!!! finallyyyyyyy!!!! ZUKO SPEAK UR TRUTH!!

oh and jets chill too

OKAY IM VERY EXCITED FOR THE NEXT CHAPTER BYE!!!!

Haha I’ve been getting so many… mixed reactions to LIAB suki & I’m not going to lie I love it. Writing her as a less than perfect, judgmental, immature teenage girl is so fun (being influenced by jets attitude isn’t helping) but she’ll ‘come around’ soon, it just takes time haha. (not that her and sokka will be buddies again idk if that’s going to happen sorry)

OUR GIRL KATARA!! attitude & anger BUT ONLY WHEN ITS JUST! She doesn’t hate Zuko in LIAB, she just doesn’t appreciate his attitude, and of course she wants sokka to be happy! She just also wants him to stop being a sneaky liar!

Jee is wonderful I adore him I also have no notes / & YES ZUKO & IROH TALK 8k COMING SOON WOHOOOO FINALLY!!! Letsssss goooooo

[wingsfreedom]

Rui Shi and Renkai: the Lions

I often use Chinese as the standard language when translating possible meanings for the names since the world building is culturally inspired by it and it's also the language that is used in the official writing system in-universe (even though the characters are English speakers lol) BUT it's important to note that the languages that many names belong to are deeply diverse, in Gladiator and especially canon. There is a Japanese name (Sokka), Arabic wrong-sounding name (Katara), Spanish name (Azula), English pun name (Toph), Greek, Hebrew or a female name of Persian origins (Sozin)... est. So no one can stop me!

Let's start with Rui Shi, a Chinese name:

Rui Shi, Auspicious Lions of Chinese mythology 瑞 ruì: lucky; auspicious; propitious; rayl (acoustical unit) 獅 shī: lion

On the other hand, we also have a (presumably) compound name with Renkai. What is so interesting about his name is that the first half got a lion meaning too in Germanic language:

(Note that the deep "r" does not exist in JP, Chi and Germanic languages for the matter but it's not our fault that the characters are English speakers, maybe his parents have different accents in-universe.)

The name was decided before birth: if the child was a female, she would get the 'lotus' meaning and if it was a male then he would get a 'lion' meaning... and he is a boy and a Rui Shi wannabe, so it's decided. Also, "scowling as a furious lion" ch.358

Kai on the other hand can be any of the meanings on this list.

Return to the Lion meaning I find it interesting how the site parallel Lenn to Shishi i.e the Imperial Lions in Chinese mythology that are often found in palaces and tombs. They were thought to protect the building from harmful spiritual influences (*Si gritting his teeth*) and harmful people that might be a threat. [source: wiki]

In conclusion: badass.

[bard-llama]

WiP Wednesday: Outtake from A Second Chance at Family

I don’t think this snippet fits into the actual story, timing-wise, but I thought it was a fun idea, so enjoy Zuko’s crew asking the Gaang wtf they did to Zuko (Post Ch-3).

Being chased by the Fire Nation was nothing new. Being chase by soldiers that answered to Prince Zuko wasn’t even new.

The new thing was Zuko not being here himself. A good six soldiers were pursuing them, and while five of them wore those freaky faceplates, the guy who seemed to be giving the orders was that same soldier who followed Zuko around with a frown. So these were definitely Zuko’s soldiers – and yet, no Zuko.

Sokka was maybe a bit too stuck on that point, because he led them running around a hill – and abruptly found himself facing a dead end.

“Uh oh,” Aang said quietly, turning back towards the soldiers with his arms at the ready.

Katara sent Sokka a nervous glance and he tried to smile reassuringly, but he was just as worried. They’d done pretty well so far – but did they stand a chance facing six fully trained firebenders with their backs against a wall?

Aang pulled out his bison whistle and blew it frantically. Appa was their only real hope here.

Except when the firebenders surrounded them, they didn’t fire. Instead, one of the shorter soldiers stepped forward and pulled off her helmet. Because it was a woman behind the scary faceplate and Sokka didn’t know what to think about that.

“What did you do?” she demanded, hands on her hips. Very abruptly, she reminded him of Katara when she knew he’d done something wrong.

“Nothing!” he squeaked out automatically.

“What do you mean?” Aang asked, looking cautiously hopeful that they wouldn’t have to fight. 

“The Prince has been off since that port with the pirates,” another soldiers said, and the voice was surprisingly high. How many of these soldiers were women? Why the fuck was Zuko putting women in the line of fire!?

Well. He was Zuko. He probably didn’t care as long as they bowed appropriately. 

“What did you do?” another soldier demanded. 

“Uh.” Sokka winced. He didn’t actually feel guilty for leaving Zuko in that pit, but he knew Aang thought he should be. Even though Zuko had literally been chasing them since they’d left home. Even though he was literally trying to bring Aang to the Fire Lord!

“What do you mean?” Aang asked again, face twisted with concern. “What’s wrong with Zuko?”

“What isn’t?” Katara mumbled under her breath. Thankfully, Sokka was the only one who heard – and he wholly agreed.