#if you can understand why Aang learned what he learned and why his final showdown with Ozai went like that…

[loveoaths]

the fact that people can understand the position of the atla air nomads but not the jedi is wild to me and further evidence that people hate the jedi both because of a personal reaction to and misunderstanding of the word “attachment”, and 20+ years of EU novels shitting all over them for fun and profit

[jinnora]

i think i have figured out why people like atla more than korra: atla provides a clearer version of emotional payback than korra does.  

whenever people engage with media, they are agreeing to do the emotional work of getting to know characters, following the plot, learning about the world/lore, and understanding themes.  in response, the audience expects some kind of emotional payback for the work they’ve done.  this can take shape in many forms, but the ones we see most prominently (speaking from a western media standpoint) is the defeat of the villain/success of the protagonist.  

atla at its core is a protagonist-beats-villain story.  even though there are both good sides and bad sides to every element, who is good and who is bad remains very clear throughout the show.  and before you raise a point about zuko’s redemption arc, i’d like to remind you that azula’s lack of redemption makes this show cut and dry on who is good and bad.  if azula was able to be redeemed without helping the good guys ever, we’d have a more complex understanding of goodness and badness.  azula being cast aside is necessary to keep the dichotomy stable, so there’s always a version of who-zuko-could-have-became out there who doesn’t get redeemed.  

and from this, we get a massive emotional payback in the final battles.  seeing aang beat ozai not through force, but through taking his bending is exactly what he needed to do to both succeed as the avatar and as the last piece of an otherwise destroyed culture.  the final agni kai also provides emotional payback by completing zuko’s arc (the scar parallels him to aang; katara healing it resolves their first point of conflict) and katara’s (letting her fight someone not for vengence, but to stop an evil that is currently existing).  toph and sokka’s arcs are similarly closed when toph finally is able to be vulnerable enough to need help and when sokka see someone he loves return from battle.  so, at the end, the audience feels at peace.  we did the work to feel good and now we feel good. 

korra, on the other hand, is a completely different show because the point of it is that you can’t just defeat badness.  whereas aang had one great evil to defeat, korra must battle a new villain every season.  of course, this could provide emotional payoff, but just in smaller, more constant quantities (1 per season vs. avatar’s one per show).  why it doesn’t is because 1) korra’s existence creates her enemies and 2) her enemies are extremists, but often not 100% wrong. 

the equalists are entirely wrong in their approach to bring equality and their leader is vengeful liar, but their desire for equality isn’t necessarily bad.  they want to bring balance just like korra, but their ways of doing so actually bring more division and chaos.  the interesting part is that korra's presence initially amplifies conflict instead of ending it, since she is the symbol of bending and holds so much power.  unalaq would literally not have needed to become the dark avatar if korra didn’t exist.  while his desire to overthrow the southern water tribe was corrupt, the heart of the reasons (wanting to increase spiritual connection) caused korra to make the decision which brought airbenders back.  however, it also made zaheer able to become a threat again, which is probably the most literal version of korra making her enemies.  zaheer’s perception of peace being taking down world leaders would also turn the world to chaos, but once again, his heart is in the right place.  kuvira stepped up because no one else would but did not have the correct ideologies to make her a good leader.  while she did harm, she also fed people and gave them protection.  and, of course, the reason for her taking so much power (while often blamed on su) can also be traced back to korra’s reluctance to be patient with her healing and come back strong enough to either 1) be the one uniting the earth kingdom or 2) be able to defeat kuvira earlier in the season. 

this allows for a more complex version of goodness and badness to exist.  when korra says that she “had to understand what true suffering was so [she] could become more compassionate to others, even people like kuvira,” it acknowledges that villains can have good intentions that are simply pushed too far AND that korra herself can be pushed to make similar mistakes when placed in traumatizing situations.  this is entirely different than aang and ozai’s relationship; so, when you finish korra, you are left with an ambiguity between goodness and badness that atla doesn’t have, making the work you did seem less paid back, except it isn’t.  korra demonstrating a more complex version of goodness and badness allows a world more abundant in forgiveness and growth.  it gives you a more nuanced perception of character, allowing the protagonists to have horrendously obvious flaws that somehow don’t stop you from rooting for them.  there’s just no final battle, big showdown, or huge revolution the protagonist starts.  there’s nothing plot wise to signify the clear defeat of evil that people crave.  and while everyone is allowed to have a favorite, and most people will naturally sway towards atla because of this, thinking less of korra as a show because of the moral ambiguity it addresses seems dismissive, because if if korra had followed atla’s simple dichotomy of good vs. bad, it most definitely wouldn’t have been as gripping, complex, or interesting as it is. 

[shinidamachu]

Do you have thoughts on the Aang/Ozai showdown at the end?

Zuko: please. The real hero is a random rock the Avatar.

The final battle was amazing, from an animation poin of view. The colors, the fighting sequence, the symbolism, Aang finally mastering all elements. Just very exciting and satisfying to watch, because it was something that the audience was hoping for since episode one. And they delivered it.

From a writing point of view, though? It was less of a showdown and more of a cop-out. See, I'm not saying, by any means, that Aang should have killed Ozai. Quite the opposite. Not only because it was a children's show. Not only because Aang was a traumatized, non violent, 12 years old. But also because it made sense for the character and for the core themes of the show.

Don't get me wrong, Ozai one hundred per cent deserved to die. Aang himself stated that the world would be a better place without Ozai in it. I just don't think he should be the one to do it. At the same time, is on his hands that Ozai's fate lays and no one else can make that decision for him.

So if killing Ozai off could turn him into a Fire Nation martyr anyway and Aang refuses to do so because of his pacifist principles, what's the other option to defeat the guy and end the war? The authors went with energy bending and, honestly, I thought it was brilliant for a series of reasons.

First, ending Ozai's life seems like the obvious choice, an easy way out. I love the concept of Aang refusing to do what's expected of him and choosing instead to finish the war on his own terms, without compromising who he is, because in theory, that would mean he would have to go out of his way to find a different solution, in a perfect shout out to Bumi's words in The King Of Omashu: "you must master the four elements and confront the Fire Lord. And when you do, I hope you will think like a mad genius."

Second, in a show where bending is intimately related to one's very being, the questions begs to be raised: how much taking someone's bending away is better, more ethical or less cruel than actively killing them? Because it's a fundamental part of who they are, of their soul. Ty Lee had the abiliity to block chis, temporarily making people unable to bend. And it was a terrifying thing for the people she used the technique on.

Lastly, it ends the "killing Ozai would turn him into a Fire Nation martyr" for good, because (ATLA COMICS SPOILER ALERT) Aang let him leave without his bending and a significant amount of people still worshipped the guy to the point of planning coups on the down low and sending Zuko death threats left and right, so we basically got the same result, but Ozai remained an ever present threat to the peace Aang fought to achieve.

The problem, as people smarter and more eloquent than I have pointed out countless times, wasn't the energy bending solution, it was the way it was introduced and then executed.

Aang: hey! Look at these weird Lion Turtle things.

Looking back now, this scene from The Library was obviously foreshadowing the finale, so the Lion Turtle reveal wasn't pulled out of thin air. It had a purpose. Considering that this episode, from Book Two, mentioned the Lion Turtle, who would later teach Aang how to energy bend and that The Guru, also from Book Two, introduced the arc of Aang having to let go of his attachment to Katara in order to master the Avatar State, I can only assume that the original intentions of the writers were very clear:

Aang doesn't want to kill Ozai but he also doesn't want to let go of Katara. That's the catch! To "energy bend" his way out of murder, he has to master the Avatar State. His conflict here, is much greater than before because now Katara is a factor in the equation as well. He either kills Ozai, keeps his attachment and gives up the Avatar State or he masters it, defeats Ozai by removing his bending but has to let go of Katara in the process. It's awesome because it's the hardest possible choice a character like Aang could be forced to make. And we knew he would ultimately do the right thing, but regardless of what he decides, he still loses something important to him, he still has to make a huge sacrifice.

Of course, none of that happens. This was the first and only time the Lion Turtle was brought up. The “letting Katara go” arc was unceremoniously killed alongside Aang the second Azula shot that lightning in Ba Sing Se, but differently from the Avatar, whom Katara ressurrected, it was never brought back. And it’s a shame. Because The Library was the perfect episode to expand on the Lion Turtle and energy bending mystery. 

And the finale? It was the perfect episode for Aang to do what he failed to do in Ba Sing Se: to let Katara go and achieve the Avatar State by his own merits, sacrificing something he wanted for the greater good. The way he hid into a cocoon of rocks? It would have been a great call out to the little crystal tent he made in his fight with Azula when he decided to give the Guru’s advices a try. And it would also symbolize rebirth in the same way Katara breaking him out of the iceberg did. Because now he had finally reached the other side of the river and he is no longer the same person he once was.

But the narrative decided, instead, to rob Aang from any growth, from any substancial change, from any interesting arc. They went with the “love is the most important thing” approach to justify him honlding on to Katara. And I could have bought it if they hadn’t been so dishonest about it.

First: if you love someone, you let them go. Attachment and love are two very different things. No one ever told Aang to stop loving Katara. He was told to let her go. And it makes sense because he was attached to her in a way that wasn’t healthy for either of them, and was keeping him from achieving his full spiritual potential, something he should care a little more about, given his upbring.

Second, in the person of Iroh, arguably the wisest character in the show, Aang is told that he is right for choosing love over power. But this is a false equivalence because it’s not what Aang is doing. The scene makes it look like he is seeking power for the sake of power. That’s not the case. The Avatar State is an inherent power, meaning Aang already has it. It’s part of who he is. He just needs to unblock it and learn how to control it. And he has to do that not for personal gain, but to put an end in the war.

A war that took almost everything from Katara, the person he loves. Aside from Aang himself, she is the person who would benefit the most from him learning to control the Avatar State, since she is the one who has to calm him down every time he accidentaly triggers it and winning the war is a very personal goal of her. Now, this is just conjecture but I firmly believe that even if Katara was secretly in love with Aang (which I don’t buy), she would be the first to tell his it’s okay to let her go. But alas, she wasn’t even aware of this conflict. A conflict she played a key part in.

That being said, I do think that the Ozai dillema was introduced too late. It should have been explored before the Day of Black Sun, giving Aang plenty of time to search for a different solution. It also never made sense to me why killing Ozai wasn’t a problem then. Apparently the explanation that I was supposed to stick with is that Aang was naive. He didn’t know people expected him to kill the Fire Lord until Zuko asked him what he would do when he faced Ozai, since violence wasn’t the answer. But I honestly struggle to accept this because, yes, Aang was naive. 

But not that naive. Not at that point. After episodes like The Siege of the North and The Avatar State, I just don’t buy he didn’t know what people wanted him to do. Plus, Aang has an evasive fighting style, based on always being one step ahead of his opponent. To do that, he has to plan beforehand. What was his plan to confront Ozai in the Day of Black Sun, after everything he went through? Talk to him? Arrest the guy? If that’s the case, shouldn’t it at least be discussed with the gang? It’s never addressed.

Then comes the finale. Aang’s moment of truth. The event we’ve all been hoping for. The one that will turn him into a legend. And Aang is losing. He can’t win without killing Ozai or controling the Avatar State to take his bending away. What will he sacrifice to become a hero? His morals or his attachment? Answer: neither! Because the writers decided he should have everything without give up nothing. So they miraculously make a convenently sharped rock hit the exact right spot in the perfect time unblock his chakra, allowing him to enter the Avatar State.

I’m not even gonna talk about how this is most definitely not how chakras work, because it’s not really my place. But I am gonna talk about the tragic (not to say hilarious) fact that, by trying to make Aang have his cake and eat it too, the writers ultimately made a fucking rock the responsible for Aang’s success. Not his cleverness, not his hard work, not his altruism: a rock. If that rock wasn’t there, in the right place, at the right time, then what? Would Aang finally have done what he had to do, or would he be killed, allowing the war to continue?

That’s my issue with it. That, and the fact that they had no trouble addressing delicate topics, but didn’t have enough courage to let the 12 years old protagonist end up alone. Because, of course, children can’t understand the hero not getting the girl. Right?

RIGHT?

Aang managed to defeat Ozai and get the girl even though there was a whole season dedicated to build up an arc in which he would have to let her go to succed. Even though their last one on one interaction before their last kiss was Aang screaming at her and storming off, while Katara reprimended him for walking away from the issue. Even if he had been acting more and more possessive and entitled when it came to her affection. Even if Katara had shown no real interest in him that way before she suddenly does. But what do I know? Maybe she was hit by a magic rock too.

Aang and Katara happened at the cost of Aang’s character development. Fandom might think the rival ship was harmed the most by it, but that’s not true. Aang was. And it’s really sad. He is an amazing character and he deserved to be the hero of his own story, to have his beliefs tested and to come out of his journey irrevocably changed, not locked inside a plot armor.

[watchathon]

Avatar: The Last Airbender, Series Finale: Sozin’s Comet

In case you’re finding this post just by browsing the tags I’ve used for this post, this is the Watchathon, a blog where I’m hoping to watch an episode of a TV show every weekday, with a short blog post where I write down my thoughts as I watch. Each new thought starts with a hyphen and a bolded first word.

- Like so. Now that the introductions are over with, it’s time to break that one-episode-a-day rule and finish off Avatar: The Last Airbender with the climactic grand finale, Sozin’s Comet:

PART 1: THE PHOENIX KING

- Okay, so, Katara in the intro is still saying “He has a lot to learn before he’s ready to save anyone.” I could’ve sworn they removed that part by this point... Maybe that was just something for the DVD?

- I like that the “Previously on” segment is so long. It really emphasizes how much buildup there was to this. How much the Gaang has been through to get here.

- I gotta say, I was not expecting a beach party in this episode.

- Somehow, for reasons I can’t explain because I don’t understand them myself, this ambush from Zuko made the audio of Nicolas Cage saying “Surprise attack!” in Into the Spider-Verse play in my head.

- Zuko’s really lucky that he earned Katara’s forgiveness before this violent pop quiz, seeing as just a half season ago... “You take one step backwards... one slip up... give me one reason to think you might hurt Aang - and you won't have to worry about your destiny anymore. Because I'll make sure your destiny ends right then and there. Permanently.”

- It never occurred to me that we didn’t get details on the war meeting before now.

- I’d bet hearing about this plan is the thing that tipped the scales and fully convinced Zuko to join the Gaang, and prevent the genocide of the Earth Kingdom.

- It’s so nice to see Zuko being welcomed into the group hugs. Especially when it’s Katara who invites him.

- I like that Zuko is teaching Aang to redirect lightning, the same way Iroh taught him.

- Even before it’s made explicit, you can tell that Aang’s uneasy about the idea of killing.

- Toph is just delighting in her role as Melon Lord, isn’t she?

- Someone out there has definitely written an AU fanfic where someone gets killed during this training and it’s Toph’s origin story as the malicious Melon Lord. If not, then I will write it myself, and it shall be the crackiest crack fic that ever cracked.

- Y’know what, I wish Toph could’ve actually gone on a life-changing field trip with Zuko too! Everyone else got one...

- This scene of Sokka climbing into Appa’s mouth is even more uncomfortable once you’ve... well, once you’ve grown up and... Okay, I tried to put it subtly, but I just can’t: Once you’ve been cursed with the knowledge of what vore is.

- Well, there’s a bait-and-switch if I’ve ever seen one: “Azula, you’re the new Fire Lord!” “=)” “But I am now the Phoenix King and still your superior who you will answer to.” “=O”

- Nice to see June and her Shirshu make a comeback.

- Does this mean Aang wasn’t running away on purpose? I honestly thought he was just going to that island to get some alone time, maybe meditate or contact the previous Avatars’ spirits.

PART 2: THE OLD MASTERS

- I’m not sure if this is something I forgot from June’s first appearance, or if it’s actually just never been brought up before, but I didn’t know her Shirshu had a name.

- It’s sweet that Zuko is seeking out Iroh’s help. Even if the method of finding him is, ah, well... unorthodox.

- Even Avatar Roku doesn’t know where Aang is. And here I thought it was some Avatar thing that had never been brought up before.

- It’s nice to see these people make a comeback. Bumi, Piandao, even Jeong Jeong and Master Pakku are here for the finale.

- I am surprised that we didn’t get an interaction between Toph and Bumi, though. The man Aang wanted to teach him Earthbending, the girl who ended up doing it... But I guess there’s only so much time, and I don’t think there’s any scenes that could be deleted to make room for it.

- It seems like Aang is just searching for confirmation of his beliefs, rather than actually seeking wisdom.

- I like that we get to see Bumi taking full advantage of the eclipse to take back Omashu from the Fire Nation, instead of just being told about it.

- It’s nice to see so many past Avatars beyond just Roku and Kyoshi, Avatars that we never heard of before, but now we hear their stories. But all of these past Avatars echo the same sentiment that Aang should kill Ozai, even an Air Nomad Avatar.

- What can I say about this scene of Zuko and Iroh reuniting? Forgive me for echoing a post I made on my main blog, but this is a scene that’s both sweet and sad.

Sad, because Zuko’s abuse at the hands of Fire Lord Ozai left him anxiously expecting furious punishment for crimes much less than what he did to Iroh. He can’t even comprehend the idea that Iroh would forgive him. His expression while apologizing to Iroh clearly shows he’s expecting the worst.

Sweet, because Iroh still loves Zuko like his own son, and doesn’t even need to forgive him because he never felt anger at Zuko’s betrayal: Only sadness and a worry that Zuko had lost his way, truly lost his honor. And Iroh is so clearly happy to see that Zuko has found his destiny, and joined the fight against the Fire Nation.

I could go on and on about this scene... It’s my absolute favorite scene in the whole series and it brings me to tears every single time I see it.

Gosh... it’s gonna be so awkward going back to the jokes and little mundane thoughts after this, isn’t it?

- Okay, I have officially given up on the idea of finding out what the heck this island is.

- I like the smile on Katara’s face, when she’s asked to team up with Zuko and fight Azula.

- It’s nice to know that Iroh will get the opportunity to run that tea shop, even if Zuko won’t be there to work with him.

- Okay, okay, so the island was actually a lion turtle. Frankly, I’ve still got a lot of questions. Even some new ones.

- It’s nice to see that the Netlix subtitles aren’t ALLCAPS anymore.

PART 3: INTO THE INFERNO

- Gotta hand it to the music, it can make even a scene of Azula making a fuss over a non-pitted cherry rather unnerving.

- Azula’s... Azula-ness has gone straight up to eleven with her newfound role. Hasn’t it? What with all the banishments, even banishing the entire Dai Li.

- Sokka, Suki and Toph are the real dream team. 

- And we get a great final blind joke!

- I like that we get to see everyone doing their part in this final battle. All the members of the Gaang, even the White Lotus, get their moments to shine.

- The hallucination of Ursa shows that Azula, on some level, has an idea of what’s wrong with her. You can tell that they were thinking of a redemption arc for Azula come Book 4, though I am glad that didn’t happen.

- It’s chilling to see Ozai razing the forests of the Earth Kingdom like it’s nothing. And then to realize that this is what Aang will have to face.

- At first I wasn’t sure what Sokka’s plan was, but now that I see it in action, it’s really creative.

- I like the idea of a final one-on-one Zuko vs Azula duel(...a). It’s been a rivalry since Book 2, and it’s nice to finally see it get settled, even if I can’t imagine it’ll end up that easy: Otherwise, what would Katara do?

- It’s so cool to see Aang showing his prowess in all bending techniques, using them all in this final showdown.

- The background music during Zuko and Azula’s Agni Kai really sells it. It makes it sound almost tragic, and it is: two siblings pitted against each other, no choice but to fight to determine the future of the world.

- Azula might be slipping, but she’s still Azula, all too willing to cheat in what’s supposed to be a one-on-one duel.

PART 4: AVATAR AANG

- Netflix isn’t showing the intro for the individual parts, but I’ve gotta say... There’s no way that Katara’s still saying Aang’s “got a lot to learn before he’s ready to save anyone.” Right?

- I like that we get to see one last use of Metalbending from Toph in the finale.

- Dang, I hope this isn’t really the end for Sokka’s sword, or his boomerang. Especially when the sword was so cool, and one could say meaningful.

- I honestly wasn’t sure the Avatar State would ever be a factor again. But if there was ever a time, this is it. (ADDENDUM: This is probably the best time to clarify that I find and add the images at the start after writing the rest of the post.)

- And it’s so epic to see Aang bending all four elements at once.

- I like that Iroh got to burn down the Fire Nation flag.

- Since Zuko’s down for the count, I guess this means a battle between Katara and Azula, the latter powered up by Sozin’s Comet.

- To be honest, I could barely make out what Azula just said. “kjsdbksrbfkjvf family position to look after, kdcbkfh”?

- Katara may not be stronger than Sozin’s Comet-powered Azula, but she’s much more clever than Azula is right now as she loses her marbles.

- This is just the perfect kind of defeat for Azula. There’s no grace to it, no dignity, just writhing around, screaming and spewing fire as Zuko and Katara look on with pity.

- There’s probably a great practical reason someone could find for Spiritbending being a thing, but here’s why I’m glad it exists: Aang gets a happy ending. He gets to take down the Fire Lord, and hold true to his beliefs. If it weren’t for Spiritbending, if Aang killed Ozai, then he would be conflicted to the end.

And I don’t want that. I want Aang to get an unambiguously, undoubtedly happy ending, where the world is saved and that’s all there is to it.

Plus, Spiritbending is quite the spectacle.

- I’m guessing Sokka’s space sword and boomerang really are done for. But hey, there’s always headcanon. Maybe Sokka searched the forest and eventually found them.

- Weird to think that Ty Lee’s gonna be a Kyoshi Warrior.

- Again, I can’t believe Zukaang’s not the most popular Zuko ship in the fandom. Not a ship I’ll go to bat for, but it’s got all the hallmarks of a fan-preferred couple.

- It’s so nice to see Zuko’s coronation, and the official end to the war. It’s a happy ending for the whole world, the start of an era of peace.

- “Love and peace,” huh...? Now that’s funny to hear in the finale to this show, considering the next show I’m covering, come 2021...

- I like that we get to see one last confrontation between Zuko and Ozai. Even if Zuko’s question of where Ursa is doesn’t go anywhere (in the show, I know they touch on that in the comics), it’s nice to see the newly-crowned Fire Lord Zuko having evolved past a need for Ozai’s attention, or a fear of Ozai’s wrath.

- It’s nice to see the whole Gaang having fun at Iroh’s tea shop, in the end. And I stand corrected, this is where we get the final blind joke.

FINAL THOUGHTS

I’m lucky in that most of my childhood cartoons hold up as an adult. I watched Kim Possible, Phineas and Ferb, Code Lyoko, Courage the Cowardly Dog...

Still, there’s something special about Avatar: The Last Airbender. It had a unique aesthetic and world that no other show was quite like. It had a story that was like nothing I’d ever seen as a kid.

And it doesn’t just hold up, it’s even better.

When I was a kid, it was as simple as rooting for the good guys to win, and for the Firebenders to lose, except for Zuko once he turned good.

Now, as an adult (but mostly as someone with a DVD player/Netflix account so I’m not just watching whatever reruns I can catch) I can appreciate the character development, the arcs, the entire story.

I can appreciate how Aang grew from a little boy who does indeed have a lot to learn before he’s ready to save anyone, into a hero who could save the world.

I can appreciate how Zuko was an abuse victim who did what all abused children wish they could do and left his abuser.

I can appreciate... Gosh, Iroh’s entire character and dynamic with Zuko.

Some people say that Avatar “starts off as a kids show, then turns serious”, but I’d disagree. Avatar is a show where our heroes change, where they learn lessons, where they come of age and become the kind of heroes who can end a war that’s been going on for over a century.

As relieved as I am to be (mostly) done with these posts for the rest of the year, I am still oh-so-glad that I’ve rewatched Avatar yet again, and I know that I will be whenever I rewatch it in the future.

Now, with all that said... Farewell! Until the Christmas special, at least...

[satans-little-helper33]

A short Zutara fluff fanfic

This takes place during the time between Zuko and Azula’s agni kai/Aang’s showdown with the firelord, and when Zuko is crowned firelord. I tried to stay true to the characters while putting them in an unfamiliar scenario. - satans-little-helper33

Katara’s hands glowed as she used the spirit water to help heal Zuko after the battle. He had several new wounds, fresh but with her help gradually scarring over; Katara wanted to speed up the process by doing whatever she could. She had learned to care about him. She and he were alone in a healing room in the palace; Katara had sent the other servants out so she could concentrate better. Pressed against one wall was the headboard of a large, plush bed used for injured nobility. Against the opposite wall, a bath had been drawn by one of the servants before Katara had arrived. Along the walls were vials and containers with healing droughts and other helpful care aids. Aang, Toph, and Sokka were off dealing with the aftermath of the battle and helping however they could. Zuko lay on his side on the bed, Katara sitting on a seat beside it. She leaned over his body to access his injuries. Her hands hovered over his skin, encompassed in the healing liquid, as she moved the water over his injuries: the entry burn right below his ribcage where the bolt had first hit him, the exit wound on his mid-back, and finally a painful flesh wound on the back of his neck. She had used up all her spirit oasis water when Aang had been attacked by Azula, but she’d learned how to heal using regular water. Katara moved her hands over his back, up and down, alternating between the wound on his back and the one on his neck. The raw muscle and damaged skin on his back took center stage at the moment: the place where the lightning had exited his body during the death match against his psychotic sister. However, the shock waves of the lightning had left small flesh wounds in other places on his body, other than the main parallel/symmetrical burn marks. She shifted to focus on his neck. His hair covered it a bit, so she pulled it aside, and she felt his muscles tense.

“Are you okay?”

His reply was quiet and slightly hesitant, and after a second he said “Yeah, I’m fine.”

She wondered if she had hurt him. His hair fell back onto his neck and she became a tiny bit irritated, and tugged his loose, shaggy locks aside. Zuko took in a sharp breath, and then an almost imperceptible sound expressing something Katara couldn’t exactly pinpoint. The thought suddenly crossed her mind that maybe she wasn’t hurting him at all—maybe he like having his hair played with. As she focused her healing energy on his neck, this thought kept circulating in her head. On impulse, she ran her free fingers through his hair. He tensed up, then turned his head to look at her, still lying on his side.

“What are you doing?” He asked hesitantly.

“I—” Katara didn’t really know how to explain why she was doing it other than his internal workings fascinated her. He was so often closed off.

Katara paused. “Who did your hair when you were young?”

“Royal attendants and groomers. Why?” He replied with confusion and slight apprehension.

“So no one ever just…” She ran her fingers through his hair again to communicate her point. Zuko closed his eyes contentedly.

“I didn’t really have that kind of upbringing.”

Katara rolled him onto his back, and very gently ran the tips of her fingers along his facial scar. His golden eyes met her brilliant blue ones. Katara bended the water back into its bowl. She rested her fingers lightly against his burned cheek.

“Even after all these years, does it still hurt?”

“No...it’s just a lot more sensitive than the rest of my skin.”

He covered her hand that rested on his face with his own.

She moved her hands back to his jet black locks, tucking his hair behind his ear.

“Can you sit up?” Katara asked, still aware of his wounds.

Zuko straightened up and sat facing her.

“How much physical affection have you had in your life, other than your uncle?” she inquired gently.

“Very little since my mother died.”

Katara’s eyes softened with sadness, and her hand subconsciously moved to her mother’s necklace.

“I can empathize.”

She brought her hand up to Zuko’s face and he slightly leaned into her hand.

Katara leaned in and paused an inch from his face.

“And it's about time that changed.”

Their lips met and he tensed, then yielded to her. He realized that he had been misdiagnosing all the things he had felt for her, what he had thought was sisterly affection, and his internal walls came crashing down as he felt it all.

This kiss could not compare to anything he'd experienced before, it was the explosive combination of two opposing elements.

Katara opened her mouth to him, and wove her fingers in his hair. She curled her fingers into a fist, pulling at it, and Zuko let out a sound between a moan of surrendering pleasure and a growl of desire, and he pulled her to him.

She ran her free hand up and down his bare chest as they kissed, and noticed it was warm--high fever hot, actually.

She broke the kiss for a second and playfully murmured against his lips

“Are you burning up?”

Zuko seemed a little embarrassed.

“Yeah, that happens when I…”

Katara gently pushed him down from their sitting position so he lay on his back on the bed, propped up on pillows in a semi-sitting position, the dim orange light from the lamps casting a glow upon both of them. She moved so she kneeled over his lower body, one leg placed on either side on his thighs.

“You jumped in front of Azula’s lightning strike meant for me. You sacrificed yourself to protect me.” she said quietly.

“I...I couldn’t live in a world where you had died…because of something my family did,” Zuko replied. He added the second part as if to distance himself and not reveal how much he truly felt for her. He was still coming to terms with it himself.

His striking golden eyes bore into her icy blue ones, trying to convey something that he didn’t know how to communicate vocally.

“You have a beautiful soul, Zuko,” Katara said, looking down at him tenderly.

His eyebrow tilted up in surprise.

She brushed some onyx hair out of his eyes and leaned down to murmur in his ear “And you’re beautiful on the outside, too.”

The scar that marred his face, given as parting gift from his father years ago, caused lasting body image issues in him. He would never admit it, because the way he had been raised was as not to show weakness. Even with his uncle’s support and tenderness, Zuko had pushed others away from him since the day he was scarred. An underlying psychological issue that he would never voice-- how could anyone ever love something so disfigured?

So Katara saying he was beautiful? That took him aback.

Mai had never been good at compliments or admitting feelings, displaying affection with a kiss and saying “I don’t hate you.”

She was so gloomy, and he had thought that “I don’t hate you” was as good as he was going to get from a girl. They understood each other in their sadness, but with Katara, he felt something more, emotional support that he had previously only received from his uncle and now-vanished mother.

She thinks I’m beautiful, inside and out.

Something warm blossomed within him. Even with all the awful things he had done in the past when he was lost, searching for his destiny in the wrong places and chasing after a father’s love that didn’t exist, she had still forgiven him.

Zuko, who was never very good at expressing his emotions, replied;

“Thanks”

Katara let out a little laugh, understanding what he didn’t say.

She leaned down to kiss him again, but he grabbed her back and rolled over so he was on top. She drew in a breath of surprise, and gripped him harder, losing herself in his hair, his eyes, his sculpted body. The water in the bathtub began to swirl into a mist, surrounding them. Neither noticed until Zuko felt the humidity, and came up for air. He looked around, surrounded by what seemed like a fog indoors.

“What--” He turned back to Katara, who wore a sheepish look.

“Uh, sorry, that happens when I--” she began.

Zuko gave her a little smile.

“Then we’re even,” he replied.