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imagines--galore · 5 months ago

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||The Thread of Fate|| Part Twenty-Eight

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 - Part One, Part Two, Part Three, Part Four, Part Five, Part Six, Part Seven, Part Eight, Part Nine, Part Ten, Part Eleven, Part Twelve, Part Thirteen, Part Fourteen, Part Fifteen, Part Sixteen, Part Seventeen, Part Eighteen, Part Nineteen, Part Twenty, Part Twenty-One, Part Twenty-Two, Twenty-Three, Twenty Four, Twenty-Five, Twenty-Six, Twenty-Seven

A/N: This was a roller coaster of emotions let me tell you!

"Well it looks healed enough. But it will leave a scar." Katara stated as she straightened up from examining Orora's burn. The older girl sighed before nodding at the sympathetic look she received from the other girl.

"I figured as much." She muttered, sitting up from where she had been lying on the bed. Toph sat across from her on another bed, while Sokka and Aang stood at the doorway, leaning against either of the wall. "Its better if you share with Toph for now." Katara added to which the blind girl nodded.

Her feet were still elevated. "I don't mind. Means Ice Princess can give me healing sessions and I'll be up and seeing in no time." She raised a hand in Katara's direction. "No offense Sugar Queen, but when it comes to healing Orora here is more of an expert."

Katara shrugged. "No, I agree with you. She has been doing this a lot longer then I am." Orora smiled at the compliment, before her eyes shifted towards Sokka who was frowning, as if he were deep in thought.

"You alright there Sokka?" She said, startling the boy out of his stupor. "If you think any harder you're gonna hurt yourself." Though everyone smiled or chuckled lightly at the joke, Sokka didn't join in. Pursing his lips he contemplated briefly if he should speak his mind before doing just that. "No, I was just wandering if you'll be alright."

Orora frowned though a smile of confusion stayed on her face. "I'll be alright. You heard Katara, all these wounds will heal and-"

Aang stepped forward, cutting her off. "That is not what he means Orora." The boy glanced at Sokka who nodded before continuing. "He means Zuko."

The smile fell from her lips, her eyes casting down to the ground. Her hands rested just next to her thighs, allowing her to gently grip the soft bedding underneath. "What we're asking is," Aang continued, ignoring the way Katara's face turned especially dark at hearing the name of their new team member. "Are you alright with him joining our team? We know how much his betrayal effected you, and we don't want you to feel weird about the whole situation."

Toph nodded. "Yeah, say the word and I'll throw him off the nearest cliff and make it look like an accident." Though her words were spoken in jest, Orora couldn't help but flinch as her mind conjured the image of him doing just that not even an hour ago.

Her heart and mind still couldn't comprehend just how easily he could've died.

Something she could examine later, the waterbender promised herself, as she lifted her head to look at each of her friends one at a time.

"Truthfully, I'm not thrilled that he's here." She revealed. "I'm still mad at him for what he did, and I guess I will be until he's proven himself. I don't know." She shook her head, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, trying to collect her thoughts.

Her gaze met Aang's. "You need to learn firebending to defeat the Fire Lord, and having Zuko on our side is a tactical advantage as well." She had to look at all of this in a pragmatic way. Keep her feelings out of it, that was the best course of plan.

"If Zuko's being here means we have a chance to end this war, then I am not going to let what he did to me get in the way of that."

Silence followed her words, before Toph grinned. "See, I told you she would say that." Orora looked at her in confusion, but was distracted by Aang reaching out and placing a hand on her shoulder. "Thank you Orora." He said, smiling at her.

The older girl smiled back, reaching up to squeeze his hand in return. Katara simply gave a nod before walking out of the room. Sokka watched his sister go before looking back at Orora's worried expression. "Don't worry. She'll be fine." He reassured her.

Then he grinned and walked to her to lightly punch her shoulder. "Its great to have you back Orora."

She nodded, returning his smile. "Good to be back."

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Since she was still recovering, Orora was put on bed rest.

Per her own orders.

Toph was forced to do the same, yet neither of the girls were complaining. It gave them time to catch up and just chat. Sokka had come by earlier and dropped off Orora's things, which she was currently going through.

Since the area around her stomach and waist had to be cut and was also burned off, she had to stitch it up. And already an idea to sew a waistband to cover herself up was forming in her head. Luckily she still had some cloth leftover from creating the lining of her shirt. It was a light blue so it should be good enough. Cutting the fabric to the length she wanted it to be, Orora listened as Toph explained what had happened after their return to the main Invasion Force.

"Then they piled us kids on Appa and we came here. Nothing much to tell." The blind girl concluded, playing with her space rock as she laid back on her bed, one arm behind her head. "Not as interesting as what happened to you I should say."

Orora shook her head as she threaded a needle. "I was wandering when you'd ask that." She muttered under her breath, though loud enough for Toph to hear her. "Oh come on, you're telling me nothing happened?" She asked, curiosity lacing her tone.

Successfully pulling the needle through the small hole, Orora began to sew. "Other then him bandaging me up and bringing me here? No, nothing at all."

Toph laughed softly as she shook her head. "You know I can tell when people are lying right?" She stated gleefully.

Orora stabbed herself with her needle.

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Having gotten all of his stuff and a room assigned to him, Zuko turned his attention to the water skins and belt Orora had left behind. No time like the present to bring it to her then, he thought to himself, picking up her things and walking out of his room. It was still light out, but the evening was fast approaching.

Locating where Orora was staying was easy. He just had to follow his string. It was always taut now that they were almost constantly near one another.

"-ave you told him yet?" He heard Orora's voice as he neared the room.

"I haven't exactly had the time. Between getting our butts kicked and worrying about you, I didn't think it was appropriate to drop the bomb on him about us being soulmates." Zuko paused. Maybe this wasn't the right time to disturb them.

But then he didn't walk away either.

Instead he stopped where he was, just a few steps away from the open doorway, leaning against the wall so even his shadow couldn't be seen. He was lucky Toph couldn't feel him standing there.

"Well, you're not getting your butt kicked now, and I'm back, safe and sound, so you better get to it young lady."

He heard Toph snort. "What're you my mother?"

"Would you rather Katara be on your case then?" Zuko could picture the look Orora was giving the earthbender when she said that.

Silence.

"Alright, you have a point. But can't he come up and talk to me about it?"

"Toph, he's probably just shy. One of you has to take the first step, and I'm urging that you do." He heard Orora respond.

"Is that what happened with you and Zuko?" The sudden shift in conversation nearly had him dropping what he was holding. "My situation with Zuko was complicated. Trust me, you're getting a very simple story to finding your soulmate, so take it."

The word complicated couldn't even begin to describe how strange their soulmate journey had been so far, Zuko thought to himself, frowning to himself.

"You get two stories though don't you?" Toph said. "And in both those stories he saves you."

"I saved him once too." Orora cut in, and Zuko briefly recalled how she had pulled him out of the way to avoid getting burned by the lightning during the storm on top of that mountain all those months. "But, hey who's counting." He heard Orora sigh. "Toph just, ask what you want to ask." She said a hint of exasperation in her tone that anyone could've picked up on.

"I'm just wandering how your story is going to end, that's all."

Zuko felt himself freeze. His eyes widened and he felt his heart give a particularly painful thump before it resumed it's normal rhythm. No one spoke from within the room for a good few seconds.

But then he heard Orora.

"I don't know."

"Have you forgiven him for what he did?"

Agni, he knew how this conversation was going to go. Placing the water skins and belt on the floor to be collected by Orora later, he turned.

And with a heavy heart, he walked back to his room.

Completely missing the rest of the conversation.

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"No. At least, not completely."

"And will you forgive him? Given time, as he proves himself and helps us?

"I....don't know."

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Once the bandage was in place, Orora tied the waist belt she had sewn the previous night, around her waist. The material ruched naturally once she tied it at the side of her waist, the one that wasn't bandaged of course.

Glancing at Toph and smiling at the girl as she snored away, Orora rose to her feet, intent on starting the day and ask Katara what are duties would be around the camp. It was best if she kept busy, she mused to herself, slipping her shoes onto her feet. Once everything was in order she moved to step out of the room.

Only to step on something.

Looking down she was met with the familiar sight of her belt and water skins. Frowning she picked them up. There was really no need to wander who had left them there.

Zuko.

Why hadn't he come in and given them to her?

More importantly, why did it bother her that he hadn't given them to her himself?

Shaking her head and briefly stepping back into her room to toss the items on her just made bed, the girl pushed the thought to the back of her mind.

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Katara and her were the first ones to arrive. The younger girl insisted that she could handle breakfast, forcing Orora to just sit down and relax, while also wait for the others to appear.

And they did.

Teo wheeled in first, grinning at Orora and waving at her. The older girl waved back. Next to step in was Aang, who rubbed his eyes, yawning as he slumped on the floor beside Orora.

And promptly fell against her shoulder as he fell asleep again, snoring lightly with Momo curling up in his lap.

The older girl smiled down at Aang while Katara shook her head at her soulmate's antics. Haru and The Duke were next to walk in. Both of them greeted everyone before taking their place in the circle as well, with Haru sitting next to Orora.

Appa growled from where he waited for his breakfast just beyond the clearing where they sat, prompting The Duke to leave his post of helping Katara hand out bowls of rice and make sure Appa had his hay. Sokka finally arrived carrying Toph. He set her down on a broken column before taking his bowl of rice and began shoveling the food down his throat.

The last one to arrive was Zuko.

Which was funny since he was the first one away, what with the tendency to rise with the sun and all.

She'd picked up on his habits as well as his Uncle during their stay in Ba Sing Se.

He accepted his breakfast bowl from The Duke and once he sat down on Aang's other side, began to eat. Orora kept her gaze trained towards her bowl of rice, her chopsticks held firmly in between her fingers as she did.

"So, what do you think?"

A voice drifted through her train of thought muffled and yet it pulled her back from whatever she had just begun to think. Raising her head, she blinked at Haru who was looking at her and smiling.

"Sorry, I wasn't listening. About what?" The earthbender smile before repeating himself. "I just asked if you'd like a tour of the Temple. We've found some pretty cool things."

"Oh." She paused, looking at him before glancing back at her food and cleared her throat. "That sounds fun. Maybe later?" She suggested to which Haru nodded, prompting Teo to speak up from where he had just finished his breakfast. "This is an amazing Temple! Better then the one we lived in. The Duke just found something really fun yesterday, and we can't wait to show you."

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From where he sat next to Zuko, Sokka had a pretty good view of what was going on.

And this is what he noticed.

He noticed how Orora's smile appeared strained, as if she were forcing her muscles to pull upwards.

He noticed how Haru's shoulders slumped, probably at the thought that his plan to show Orora around alone had just fallen through since Teo and The Duke would want to tag along as well.

He also noticed, how Zuko's expression was set in a dark scowl. One that was directing towards Haru.

Sokka may be oblivious at times, but there were some things he was rather observant in. And when it came to all three of his sisters, he was ever watchful.

Even though Katara had made no mention of it, he knew Aang was her soulmate. She would tell him when she thought right. Besides Katara was one stubborn and willful girl, and he knew she could handle things on her own.

Toph was a little tough to read. HA! See what he did there? But he liked to think he understood her now more then he had at the beginning. He had suspicions about who her soulmate was, and he had plans on talking to The Duke about it and ask him what he planned to do.

Orora was a completely different story. He looked at the older girl and pursed his lips in thought. There was so much going on with her, and Sokka was worried because she hadn't let all those emotions out yet. And when that dam broke, Sokka knew there were going to be casualties.

The major one of whom would be Orora herself.

He just hoped he had the chance to talk to her before that happened.

Worried eyes jumped from Orora, who was still focused on her breakfast, to Zuko who was now shaking Aang awake and telling him to finish breakfast before they started training.

And maybe he should speak to Zuko about Orora soon too.

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"Hey Orora? Mind if I ask you something?"

Looking up from where she had just finished giving Toph a healing session, Orora smiled at Aang. "Sure." Pulling back the water and tossing it aside because she had just been healing feet with it, she walked after Aang to stand a little ways away from the rest oft he group.

"So, you know its my first day of training firebending right?" He said, clutching his staff and looking nervous. Orora nodded. "Well," He rubbed the back of his head. "I was comfortable with Katara and Toph because I knew the kind of teachers they would be, but with Zuko I don't know anything."

She stayed quiet. "And well, you've known him the longest out of all of us, and I was just wandering if you could tell me what I should expect, just so I'm prepared." He ended, looking at her so hopeful and anxious that she sighed, closing her eyes briefly as she did.

"Well, don't expect him to be patient with you." She finally said after a small stretch of silence. Her eyes glanced at Zuko who was helping Toph down from the column so she could test her feet a little. "And he won't let up until you've perfected whatever form he is teaching you so be prepared for a lot of hard work."

Aang's entire body hung as he sighed. "This is gonna be hard." He stated dismally as Orora reached out to pat his back in a reassuring manner. "You're a talented kid, Aang. You'll get the hang of it." She smiled at him, before her gaze faltered towards Zuko once more.

Only to catch him looking at her.

She watched as his eyes widened, as did her own. Both of them quickly looked away, but not before their eyes met.

Not before the colors on their strings flared before settling into a more light hue or blue and red.

And certainly not before Toph picked up on how their heart beats picked up just then.

"I hope you're right." Aang muttered, oblivious to the inner turmoil Orora was feeling in that moment. Orora patted his back one more time. "Just mind your breath. That's what Master Iroh always told me." She said, smiling at him. It took him a moment before he too smiled and nodded.

"You ready?" Zuko's voice had her glancing up at him before stepping away from Aang, who nodded with a determined expression. "I'm ready. Lead the way Sifu Hotman."

That was certainly not what she had been expecting Aang to say.

Add that to the expression on Zuko's face and she could barely keep a small laugh from escaping her. Aang grinned at her, proud to have made her laugh, while Zuko's eyes darted in her direction before quickly looking away.

"Don't call me that." He stated, his tone annoyed as he began to lead the way towards wherever they would be training.

Aang skipped after him. "Understood Sifu Hotman."

"What did I just say!?"

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This was getting to be frustrating as well as humiliating.

With another loud grunt, Zuko tried to create a fireball. Only to fail.

Again.

Why couldn't he get it right? He'd always been able to produce powerful flames no matter what. He paused in his actions, looking in Aang's direction who was laying atop the column he was perched on, looking at the clouds overhead.

Movement to his right had Zuko turning to the spot, only to catch sight of Sokka as he sat down near them. Aang sat up as well, gazing curiously at the watertribe boy.

"Hey, jerks!" Sokka said through a mouthful of apple. "Mind if I watch you two jerks do your jerkbending?" He asked with a snicker.

Already frustrated, Zuko was quick to snap at him. "Get out of here!" He shouted, pointing to the way from where Sokka had just come form.

Sokka held up his hands, his mouth opening to say something.

"Sokka!" His mouth snapped shut, his eyes widened and sheer panic overtook his face as he glanced in the direction from where the shout had just come from. "I wasn't here!" He squeaked out in fear, before racing off as if a dragon was at his heels.

Just in time too, because Orora suddenly rounded the corner. "Where is he?" She demanded to know, her ice blue eyes glaring first at Zuko then Aang. Both boys were quick to raise their arms to point in the direction where Sokka had disappeared to.

"Sokka when I get my hands on you, you better pray to the Moon I don't break your arm for dumping your dirty laundry on me!" And she was off, her voice getting lower and lower as she walked further away, yet closer to her target.

Leaving Aang and Zuko to stare after her, wide-eyed and a little scared. "Maybe we should ask Orora for some of her fire?" Aang joked to which Zuko dropped his head in dejection.

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After nearly breaking Sokka's arm, and only letting go when he promised he would do all of her clean up duty for the rest of the day, Orora went about her day as normally as she could.

She chatted with Toph for a good hour before walking off with Haru, Teo and The Duke to explore the Temple. And Orora had to admit, it truly was a work of art. She'd have to ask Aang to give her a tour soon, just so she could ask him about the history of the place. He may not have lived there, but he had visited the place when it was bursting with life. Now it sat empty and hollow. And that was sad.

Once they all returned for lunch, she was quick to ask Katara for a little waterbending one on one. Nothing drastic, just a few maneuvers they both wanted to master that the other had created. Katara with her wall of water that she had taken from Toph's earthbending, and Orora with her wave of water using her leg that she had been inspired to do after seeing Zuko create a plume of fire with just the sweep of his leg.

Orora didn't miss the way Katara kept glancing at her finger, where her string glowed a warm red. Obviously the other girl couldn't see the color, but it still made her nervous. But she made no comment about it, simply focusing on the training and nothing else.

Dinner was Haru and The Duke's responsibility that night, so both girls arrived once everyone else had already begun to eat.

Everyone except Zuko that is.

Orora frowned at his absence, but quickly pushed it to the side. Instead she walked past the warm bowl of food that waited for her to go give Appa his feed for the day.

Only to stop short when she saw Zuko leaning against a column just beside the bison, his arms crossed as he looked below. Clearly, he was deep in thought. The girl quickly walked over to Appa and pulled out the hay from under the tarp where they stored it. "Here you go buddy." She smiled at the giant creature. "Eat good." She patted his nose as he gave her a happy groan before beginning to eat.

"Hey, can I ask you something?" Zuko's voice had her frowning. "You just did." She responded, a slight bite in her tone which probably had him flinching. An awkward silence ensued, one that had Zuko nearly squirming where he stood.

She closed her eyes before opening them again and turning to face him, her arms crossed over her chest. "Does what you have to ask effect Aang?" Keep her conversation with him short and to the point, while also keeping the topics on anything but them.

Not like he meant anything to her.

Right?

He nodded. "Yeah, I-I think I've lost my inner fire. Or maybe its weaker somehow." A twinge of concern ran through her as she blinked at him. Over his shoulder, she saw the rest of the group glancing in their direction, obviously curious as to what they were speaking about.

She turned back to him. "Look, I know you said you wanted to be a part of the group. And being a part of the group means we solve all our problems together." Nodding over his shoulder she gestured for him to start walking. "Best to have them be involved as well."

Zuko stood there quietly for a few moments, before he nodded. "You're right, I shouldn't burden you with my problems." Instantly Orora's entire demeanor changed. Her eyes grew ice cold, and her lips pressed in a thin line as she glared at him. "That's not what I said." She hissed at him, to which he raised his hands in a placating manner.

"No, yeah I know you didn't. Its just what I think." The two teenagers stared at one another for a few more moments. "Well you shouldn't think that either." Confusion ran through her veins. Why would she get angry at Zuko thinking he was a burden on her?

With that Orora walked back to the group, ignoring everyone's questioning looks and busying herself with her dinner as Zuko approached.

And especially ignoring the way her string had flared at the last few words she had said to Zuko.

She was a little tuned out from the conversation as she tried to regain her composure, and calm her suddenly rapid heartbeat. Toph did glance at her curiously, but decided not to say anything.

"Well, it's not lost." She heard Zuko say, his voice somehow bringing her back from the murky confines of her own mind. "It's just........weaker for some reason."

Katara, who was sitting next to Orora held up her bowl and glared at Zuko. "Maybe you're not as good as you think you are."

"Ouch." Toph stated, smiling sarcastically as she fed herself some carrot with her chopstick.

Orora, without even looking up from her bowl of food, where she was listlessly stirring her noodles spoke up. "Trust me, he is good." Everyone glanced at her surprised. Even Zuko. "He had an amazing Master," She finally raised her head to point her chopsticks at Zuko. "And he's too stubborn and determined to not be good." Beside her Katara pursed her lips, her eyes flashing with anger as she glared at Orora.

Zuko, taking confidence from the fact that Orora didn't think him weak, decided to put forth what he had been thinking over earlier. "I bet it's because I changed sides." He stated, frowning in thought.

"That's ridiculous." Katara muttered under her breath, as she drank the broth from her bowl.

Aang hummed in thought. "I don't know. Maybe it isn't." He look to Zuko. "Maybe your firebending comes from rage and you just don't have enough anger to fuel it the way you used to?"

For some reason she felt compelled to add to the conversation. "You did always use your bending more when you were angry." Why couldn't she just stay detached like she had told herself to be? It was her weakness, she figured, wanting to help people she cared about.

Or had cared about at some point.

Or did she still care about Zuko?

Sokka, never wanting to miss a chance to mess with the Fire Nation Prince leaned towards him and pointed a finger. "So, all we need to do is make Zuko angry. Easy enough." He declared, glancing slyly between Zuko, Orora and Haru. He probably didn't value his life enough, which was what prompted him to say what he did next. "Either we can have Haru flirt with Orora to get Zuko angry."

His suggestion had mixed reactions.

Katara's gaze was so chilling that it nearly rivaled the one Orora would normally wear. Aang and Toph both coughed into their broths, trying their best to mask their laughter. Teo and The Duke looked around oblivious. Haru's eyes widened and he looked away, though the blush on his cheeks was hard to miss.

But the best reaction was Zuko and Orora's.

Their eyes promised death as they both glared at Sokka. But he remained oblivious, as he picked up his sword and grinned. "Or!" As another option, he began to poke Zuko with the hilt of his weapon. He hit the other boy several times on the head and waist, laughing as he did.

"Okay, cut it out!" Zuko finally snapped, once he had calmed down considerably and didn't feel the urge to firebend the water tribe boy off the side of the Temple. He only stopped because he reminded himself that he wanted to win these people over. Sokka did stop, his sword slipping from his hand and flying up before falling on his own head.

Sighing Zuko pinched his nose. "Look, even if you're right, I don't want to rely on hate and anger anymore." He stated firmly. "There has to be another way."

Toph was the one who spoke up this time. "You're gonna need to learn to draw your firebending from a different source." She said, eating another vegetable from her bowl. "I recommend the original source."

Looking a little too excited for someone who was hit with his own weapon, Sokka perked up. "How's he supposed to do that‌? By jumping into a volcano‌?" He said, his question ending in a laugh that had Zuko scowling in annoyance.

Toph shook her head. "No." She stated firmly. "Zuko needs to go back to whatever the original source of firebending is." She explained further.

Raising an eyebrow, Sokka asked again. "So, is it jumping into a volcano?" He'd barely finished his inquiry when suddenly a blur of blue flew through the air and Sokka found himself, once again, with a mask of ice latched around his mouth, effectively shutting him up.

"Your opinion is no longer needed Sokka." Orora stated, as calm as could be, sipping from her broth and ignoring the way everyone was looking at her. Zuko felt his lips morph to a brief smile as Sokka began to mutely struggle with his binds. "Please continue Toph." The older girl urged Toph who grinned before nodding.

"For earthbending," She began, placing her bowl on the floor. "The original benders were badgermoles. One day, when I was little, I ran away and hid in a cave. That's where I met them. They were blind, just like me. So we understood each other. I was able to learn earthbending, not just as a martial art, but as an extension of my senses. For them, the original earthbenders, it wasn't just about fighting. It was their way of interacting with the world." The girl finished a nostalgic smile on her face.

Everyone stared at the girl, stunned. "That's amazing, Toph!" Aang stated, the awe in his voice evident before he turned his attention back to Zuko.

"I learned from the monks, but the original airbenders were the sky bison." He waved his arm in the direction of the mural they sat opposite to which depicted three sky bisons flying above the clouds. Grinning the boy looked in Appa's direction. "Maybe you can give me a lesson sometime, buddy." His received his answer in the form of a sleepy groan from Appa.

Licking her lips, Orora cleared her throat before she began. "For the waterbenders we learn from the moon." He gaze turned towards the sky just beyond the awning where they were sitting underneath. "How she pulls and pushes the tide towards her every night." She shrugged. "I guess that's also the reason we're so strong at night. Especially during a full moon."

A smile pulled at her lips as she continued. "I used to sneak away to the Spirit Oasis whenever things would get too much at home." She revealed, thinking back on all those nights she had sneaked out of the house and to bask in the tranquility of the Spirit Oasis. "It was there, while watching Koi Fish swim in an infinite circle that I was able to discover my waterbending."

Zuko stared at her in slight awe, once more taken aback whenever she would reveal something about her past. Still, what they had all shared wasn't something that helped him. And he stated as such. "The original firebenders were the dragons, and they're extinct."

Sitting up straight Aang frowned. "What do you mean‌?" He asked. "Roku had a dragon, and there were plenty of dragons when I was a kid."

Once again, frustration won him over and Zuko burst out. "Well, they aren't around anymore, okay?"

Aang moved his arms in an appeasing manner. "Okay, okay. I'm sorry." He said, remembering what Orora had told him earlier, to let Zuko just calm down on his own.

For his part, Zuko looked around the group before his gaze landed on Orora. Their eyes locked for barely a moment, and yet he felt a certain calmness overcome him and he exhaled deeply.

"But maybe there's another way." He said, walking towards the nearly destroyed fountain. "The first people to learn from the dragons were the ancient Sun Warriors."

Aang stood, approaching Zuko and standing beside him. "Sun Warriors? Well, I know they weren't around when I was a kid."

Zuko shook his head, turning to look at Aang. "No, they died off thousands of years ago. But their civilization wasn't too far from where we are now. Maybe we can learn something by poking around their ruins."

For his part Aang nodded in understanding. "It's like the monks used to tell me." He said. "Sometimes, the shadows of the past can be felt by the present."

Having finally had the mask melted away from his mouth Sokka spoke up. "So, what?" The Avatar and the prince turned to look at the group as Sokka continued. "Maybe you'll pick up some super old Sun Warrior energy just by standing where they stood a thousand years ago?"

Orora hummed. "Well I discovered my bending by just looking at the Koi Fish, so why can't it work for them?" She asked, gesturing towards where they stood.

"More or less." Zuko stated, agreeing with the both of them. "Either I find a new way to firebend," He looked to Aang. "Or the Avatar has to find a new teacher."

Aang gave a worried look while Sokka hummed thoughtfully. "Hmmmm, I doubt another one will miraculously appear like Zuko did." He paused before glancing around. "Unless one of you are hiding a firebender like Orora was."

For his trouble, Sokka received another ice mask to the mouth, courtesy of a fuming older sister.

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As she watched Appa take off, carrying Zuko and Aang, Orora couldn't help but feel a bubble of worry settle in her chest. Surprisingly, this worry had nothing to do with the doubt that Zuko would betray Aang and capture him, or worse.

This worry was over the fact that her little brother and soulmate were going to a place where she wouldn't be able to protect them.

And now she was even more confused.

Why wasn't she doubting Zuko's intentions? She had more then enough reason to, and yet somehow, she just.......didn't. Did that mean she had forgiven him? No, she was still angry at him. Wasn't she?

But then if she were angry at him that meant she still cared enough for him to have feelings for him?

Not to mention on the front of worrying about the two boys getting intro trouble and not getting out of it, she felt her stomach tense.

"I don't like this."

Katara's voice had Orora snapping out of her thoughts. She glanced to the side where the girl stood, mirroring her act of staring at the sky, watching as Appa grew smaller and smaller into the distance. Everyone else had already scattered, aside from Sokka, who sat near a broken column, polishing his space sword.

"Katara," She said, her voice gentle. "I know you're worried, but you don't have to worry about Aang going alone with Zuko."

"How can you be so sure about it?" Katara demanded to know. Willing herself to be patient, knowing just how scared Katara really was, Orora offered her a soft smile, placing her hand on her shoulder. "What happened in Ba Sing Se, isn't going to happen again. Zuko won't allow it."

Instantly, Katara's entire demeanor changed. Where she had looked worried and scared, now her features morphed to one of sheer fury and utter rage.

"How do you know he isn't taking Aang to be captured by the Fire Nation?" She said, turning on her heel so she could face the older girl fully, pushing off her hand in the process.

Maybe that had been the wrong thing to say. Orora pursed her lips, trying to think of a way to diffuse the situation. "I've known Zuko the longest Katara, and I believe he has changed." She responded her voice calm, hoping her tone would help soothe Katara's temper.

Nostrils flaring in anger Katara glared at her older sister. "Why are you defending him?" She demanded to know, prompting Orora to frown slightly.

"I'm not-" She began to say, only to be cut off. "Yes you are." The other girl's voice had started to raise in volume. "You shouldn't be defending him. Not after he betrayed you and broke your heart." The reminder had Orora flinching.

"Katara, this is our only chance of ending this war." She said, feeling a strange emotion simmering just under the surface but pushing it aside in favor of speaking gently to her younger sister. "You have to consider how it benefits us. Otherwise Ozai will beat us and the Fire Nation will finally take over the world."

A laugh of derision echoed against the walls of the long abandoned Temple. "Is that really your excuse?!" Katara demanded, a mocking smile on her lips with her arms crossed in front of her chest as she glared at Orora.

Orora frowned. "Its not an excuse Katara." She said, anger seeping into her tone as she regarded the other waterbender. "I want this war to end just as much as anyone."

"Oh do you?" Katara knew she was being cold, unfair and even spiteful, but she couldn't help it. And neither did she care. Not when she was this angry and worried at the same time. She needed to let her emotions out, and it seemed Orora was her target. "Or do you just want a chance to reconcile with your soulmate even though he is the enemy?"

Seeing Orora's mouth fall open and stare at her in utter shock was rather satisfying. "Do you really believe me to be that selfish Katara?" The other girl demanded, her volume now matching Katara's. "Do you really think I would put my family in danger for the sake of reconciliation with my soulmate?" Her hands were clenched in fists at her sides, causing the twin pots that held their water storage to tremble.

Sokka, who had been following their conversation closely since the beginning now set his sword aside, ready to intervene if need be. Maybe he should've stopped them before things got too heated, but then their next encounter wouldn't have been as calm as this one had been so far.

They needed to talk things out.

"He is the enemy!"

"He isn't the enemy anymore."

"He's the Prince of the Fire Nation."

"And that makes him bad? You've seen the citizens Katara, all of them aren't bad. They're just misguided."

Katara rolled her eyes. "Oh and you think you'll be able to guide Zuko back to the right path do you?" Orora faltered, frowning and shaking her head.

"N-no. This was all his choice, I had nothing to do with-" The other girl looked away, scoffing as she did, not wanting to look at her sister any longer lest she grew even angrier.

"Save it! You may turn a blind eye Orora, but I see the way he looks at you." Katara stated in a cold tone.

"What're you talking about Katara? What way?" Oh but she knew. She knew the answer to this question. Knew Katara's response would either make her or break her. She'd seen him look away from her, and she knew how he looked at her.

It was the same way Orora had seen Aang and Katara look at one another when the other wasn't looking.

A look that filled her with joy for her two friends, and yet sadness because she didn't believe anyone would look at her the same way.

Until now.

Katara opened her mouth to reveal the truth, but at that moment, Sokka stepped in partially between them. He gave his younger sister a look, silently telling her not to say another word. And for once Katara listened to her older brother.

With one final look of anger and eyes full of spite, the girl turned on her feet and walked away.

No sooner had she disappeared from view when Orora felt her legs tremble. She would've collapsed onto the floor if Sokka hadn't reached out to wrap and arm around her waist to keep her standing. "Easy there, come here, sit." He urged, gently guiding her towards one of the flatter rocks. Orora barely noticed as she tried to focus on her breathing, trying to calm her heart and mind as they raced ahead. Sokka crouched in front of her, a worried look in his eyes as he gripped her hands in comfort.

It took a few minutes for her breathing to even out, and once it did, Sokka finally spoke. "You good?" He asked, the concern evident in his eyes. She gave a small nod, pulling one hand from his grasp and cradling her head by pressing her forehead against it.

"Spirits! Whats wrong with me?" She muttered. "I was always so good at locking away my emotions and not feel anything for weeks but now its like I can barely keep my emotions in check." Raising her head to look at her brother, Orora bit her lip. "Am I weak now? Is that what this is? I have a weak heart?"

Sokka shook his head, squeezing the one hand he held as he smiled gently at his sister. "You're not weak Orora. You're one of the strongest people I know. And I've traveled almost the whole world, so that's saying something."

His attempt to lighten the mood had the older girl giving a small smile. "Even the strongest of people get overwhelmed sometimes Orora. And you were bound to be." He patted her hand in an affectionate manner. "The best way to unburden yourself is to let it all out and talk to the people involved."

She opened her mouth to say something, but Sokka held up his hand, stopping her. "Katara is right on her part to stay on guard. She nearly lost her soulmate because of his betrayal. Yes, I know about her and Aang even though no one has told me, I don't have that detective hat for nothing you know." Briefly smiling at her disgruntled look, he continued with a more serious face.

"But I am happy for you Orora, because now you have your soulmate on the same side of the war. And sure, he has a long road ahead of him to prove himself, but from what I have seen, in just a day, he is going to give it his all." Sokka grinned. "Mostly because I can see just how much he cares about you."

Trying hard not to blush, and failing, Orora bit her lower lip, before sighing. "I'll have to talk to Zuko when he gets back won't I?" Her response had Sokka nodding. "Yeah, and I know you're both at ends right now, but maybe after that talk, things won't be as tense."

The girl nodded, pursing her lips and exhaling softly. "You're right. We should all try to move forward, and focus on ending this war once and for all." Sokka frowned. "That's not what I-"

But Orora cut him off as she stood, pulling him to stand with her. "Thank you Sokka." She said, smiling at him before pulling him in for a hug, after which she walked off, leaving a rather confused watertribe boy behind.

After a moment he shook his head. "And they say I'm oblivious." He muttered to himself, making a mental note to talk to Zuko before Orora had the chance.

————————–

Surprisingly it was the hunger that got to them rather then the boredom.

Being glued to the ceiling with nothing to do but stare at the changing sky above did tend to get rather tedious. However, Zuko and Aang entertained themselves, after multiple failed attempts to escape their trap, by simply talking.

"So you're telling me that Orora joined in on the scamming thing?" Zuko asked, once Aang had finished relating the entire tale to the firebender. The boy nodded as he smiled. "Yup! She even came up with a couple of scams with Toph. Pretty good ones too." He added with a chuckle.

Curiosity burned in him as he frowned thoughtfully, trying to picture Orora actually going along with all of that. "I remember she used to tell me off for stealing stuff while we traveled through the Earth Kingdom." He revealed with a nostalgic smile. Aang hummed.

"Well she did urge us to stop once we had enough money for supplies and stuff. And she didn't join in after the first day, so yeah, maybe that Orora you hung out with came back." It was strange to think of what she had gotten up to while traveling with Aang and the others. In Zuko's mind she had been with him since he had been seeing her everywhere.

Zuko frowned. "She was probably too worried about me to actually do something fun while were traveled together." He stated, his voice full of remorse. He did remember her being worried about them all the time. Not so much as herself but more his Uncle and him. "Oh come on, I'm sure you both had some fun." Aang's cheerful voice cut through his gloomy thoughts. Despite how uncomfortable his current position was, Zuko was glad Aang couldn't see his face as he blushed, thoughts of what fun he had Orora had gotten up to flashed through his mind.

"And people do tend to worry about their other half when there is danger involved." Aang attempted to shrug, but the glue stopped his efforts. "I mean, Katara and I worry about one another all the time."

A brief moment of silence passed before Zuko finally asked. "So you've known Katara for this long and neither of you have talked about being soulmates?" He was curious how the both of them could walk around and not acknowledge something so......significant. Sure he and Orora had tried to deny it in the beginning but fate had other plans.

Aang grimaced. "It just never seemed like the right time." He finally revealed, the reason sounding stupid, even to his ears. He heard Zuko let out a sound of disbelief.

"Oh so going into battle with a low chance of survival wasn't a good time?" He said, the sarcasm evident in his tone which had Aang jumping to his own defense.

"Well I did kiss her before it all started." The young Avatar stated in a proud tone which only prompted Zuko to roll his eyes.

"And yet you still haven't talked about it, have you?"

Silence followed his question, before a small grumpy voice responded with a simple:

"No." Came the dejected response.

This time Zuko shook his head, his gaze following a cloud as it floated above. "Agni, that's the stupidest thing I've ever heard." He muttered under his breath, prompting Aang to purse his lips in anger and take a metaphorical swing at his friend.

"Oh! Like your situation is any better." Alright, so maybe it was a low blow, but Aang had to admit, he did feel a little anger towards Zuko for what he had done to his older sister. And as her self-proclaimed younger brother, who also happened to be the Avatar, it was his duty to make sure she didn't get hurt. Again.

Even though it wasn't much of an argument, Zuko still tried to make his point. "At least Orora and I know that we're soulmates."

In response, his friend rolled his eyes. "Oh yeah? And has that done any good to either of you?" He heard Zuko take a breath, ready to response, but Aang continued to speak, cutting him off. "I mean you saved her and leave, only to attack her before helping her again and taking her with you. Then you betray her and then change sides, save her again and now where do you two stand?"

Shocked silence followed his words. Zuko had suspected that Orora had told her friends about what had happened between them, but he hadn't been aware of just how much. He wandered if she had told them about the more intimate moments they had shared and how their relationship had begun to shift.

Clearing his throat, the young Prince, once again, tried to make an argument. "Well its more complicated when you say it like that."

A beat of silence.

"I know you can't see me right now, but just know, I'm giving you a look." Came Aang's voice, full of sarcasm, a trait Zuko had no idea the young boy even possessed.

Still he shook his head. "Okay, so I admit I've made a lot of mistakes when it comes to the whole soulmate thing, but I'm gonna make up for all of it. I don't plan on giving up."

His words came out with as much conviction as he could muster. Not to mention the tone of his words had Aang frowning in thought. "You really mean that?" He asked.

"Look, I know I've said that I changed side because I wanted to help you, but I would be lying if I didn't include that a major part of my changing was because of Orora." The teenager sighed. "She once told me, that I should find my reason for living, but she never said I couldn't find two reasons. The first one being ending the war and restoring balance to the world and the second reason is......her. Just her."

To say Aang was a little stunned would be an understatement.

A sigh that seemed to come from the very depths of his being echoed in the clearing. "I just need to make her see that she's my reason." He said, his voice dejected and sorrowful.

Though it was difficult, Aang managed to move his head enough so he could catch a glimpse of Zuko's face. Or at least the side of it.

"You promise never to break her heart again?" He asked, to which Zuko shook his head, as much as he was able to.

"I would rather give up my firebending then break her heart again." That was a very serious proclamation. Even saying something like that out loud was considered bad luck, and yet Aang found it was exactly what he needed to hear to make up his mind.

"Then I'll help you win her back." He said, smiling when he saw Zuko's eye widen in surprise. "You'll really help me?" The firebender asked, his voice full of disbelief.

Aang turned his gaze towards the sky again, thinking of the girl who had become such an important person in his life. "I just want Orora to be happy. She's like a sister to me, but she will be stubborn. Not to mention she has the tendency to lock her emotions for a long time. I just hate to see her destroy her chance at happiness. Besides, its never good to always live in anger, as you've already done. No offense."

"None taken."

"She deserves to be happy," The airbender stated firmly. "Especially after all that shes been through."

"I just want her to be happy." Came Zuko's voice. "Even if she doesn't accept our bond, I just want her to be happy."

And that was when Aang knew, Zuko's feelings for Orora went beyond simple affection. The realization had the Avatar smiling to himself, hoping that Orora would recognize her own feelings for her soulmate and just be happy.

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She spent the rest of the day alone.

It helped that everyone kept their distance, but it also helped that she decided to walk away under the guise of exploring the Temple on her own. The silence was welcoming and honestly, she had needed the respite. After all that had happened in quick succession, one after the other, Orora had barely had any time to really sift through her thoughts and just be by herself.

Meditation, her Master had taught her, was the key to discovering self and gaining control over one's emotions.

And so that was what she did.

Luckily for her, she found a hall that would suit to her needs. It was big and airy, with plenty of light. But the best part was the giant fountain bubbling away in the center. There were several smaller ones as well and she remembered The Duke telling her how Teo had managed to fix the mechanism that made it work and now the fountain bubbled away as it had done a hundred years ago.

She looked around, admiring the architecture and the simple splendor of it all. The Air Nomads truly were amazing architects, she mused to herself, sitting down at the edge of the fountain and looking at the clear water.

Had her mind been at ease, she would've admired everything even more.

But for now, the young waterbender simply crossed her legs underneath her. Reaching up, she pulled her hair free, allowing the mid-length dark brown locks to settle around her shoulders. Settling her hands in her lap, one above the other, the young girl took a deep breath and closed her eyes.

The sound of her element calmed her, and slowly her breath evened out as she began to delve deeper into her meditative state, loosing herself to her mind, heart and soul.

————————��

"Well now that we have our firebending." Aang said with a cheerful smile. "What say you and I get started on our lessons?" He asked his thoroughly distracted teacher who was looking around the small group that had greeted them upon their return.

"Where's Orora?" Zuko asked, not finding the girl anywhere. He had noticed her absence as soon as they had arrived, but had only just voiced his concern. "She discovered the fountain Teo fixed up in the eastern part of the Temple and went back to it straight after breakfast." Toph revealed. "She's actually been there almost all the time since you two left. Only coming back at night for dinner and to sleep." The younger girl added. They'd all wanted to see what was wrong, but Sokka had told them not to interfere. He had explained to Toph what had happened, and she wasn't really happy with Orora isolating herself like that. The last time she had done it, her older sister had nearly lost herself.

Worry gnawed at his chest, as Zuko glanced down at his finger where his glowing blue string was leading him towards her. Without another word, he began to walk in the direction Toph had just mentioned, his every step determined as he walked further and further into the Temple.

As he drew closer to the hall, he could hear the sound of water. His string tightened and he knew it was the right hall. Turning the corner, he walked towards the door, entering the large room and stopping at the threshold.

Orora was there, standing in the middle of the fountain, fully clothed, and going through a rather intricate waterbending move. Even from here he could see the concentration on her face and he didn't want to break it.

It took her a few minutes before she finally stopped, bringing herself to a halt with a deep exhale, her palms down in front of her. It was then that he moved forward, walking further into the room even as she started another waterbending form.

"Hey," Zuko greeted over the sound of the water splashing and the fountain gurgling away. "Aang and I just came back and I wandered where you were."

"I've been here." She responded, her voice calm, never once breaking her stance as her arms circled around in front of her, creating a bubble of water that was a perfect sphere.

Clearing his throat Zuko nodded. "Well, I've got good news. I got my firebending back, and Aang learned it too." She finally looked up to meet his gaze.

But only briefly, before she returned to her water sphere, which she was now splitting into multiple smaller ones.

"That's good news." She responded. "Now you can start with your firebending lessons."

Zuko frowned, having expected more of a reaction from her then what she was giving him. "We learned to firebend from the masters." He added, hoping to surprise her with the existence of dragons. "You won't believe who they were."

As she transformed the water spheres into spheres of ice, Orora turned away from him. "I'm sure nothing you can say would surprise me."

Finally he sighed, frustration seeping into his tone as he spoke. "So is this how its going to be? You barely speaking to me?" He asked, deciding that maybe the best way to get through to her would be to stop tip-toeing around her.

"I've found that the best way for me to move forward is to keep my interactions with you brief." She revealed, despite the fact the words felt heavy on her tongue and even heavier on her heart.

Zuko scowled, arms coming up to cross over his chest. "You never had any problem hiding your feelings before, so why can't you just come out and say what you are feeling. I can't read your mind Orora, so you'll have to help me out in understanding whats going on in your mind." He paused after his outburst, looking at her where she still had her back turned to him. "We used to-" His voice broke as he bit on his lower lip before picking up again. "We came to a point where we talked about everything Orora. Can't you bring yourself to share what you're feeling with me like you once did?"

He saw her shoulders tense, saw her her entire demeanor shifted. Zuko knew her long enough to read her body language, and in that moment he knew, she was beginning to loose her grip on her emotions. She turned, and for the first time since had had arrived, Zuko noticed her hair was down.

"If you really want to know." She said after a brief length of silence, her ice spheres still floating around her as she kept her arms lifted. "I'm angry, frustrated and sad."

Zuko nodded. At least she was talking to him. "And I guess all those feelings are targeted towards me." It was more of a statement then a question, still the look that followed confirmed his guess.

The boy nodded in understanding. "In that case, why don't you take it out on me."

Silence.

"What?"

He dropped his arms at his sides to appear as non-threatening as he could. "Come on. I promise I won't fight back, and I'll stay on the defensive."

She rolled her eyes at him, turning away once more. "I'm not going to do that Zuko." She responded, trying to shut him out. Of course, he wouldn't let her.

"Come on, I'm offering you a chance to just let loose." He urged her. Maybe if she had an outlet, he would have a better chance of actually gaining her trust again.

"No Zuko." She responded firmly.

"Just let it out Orora."

"Just leave Zuko."

"I can handle it." His voice was beginning to get louder.

And she matched his tone. "I said no."

"Look we have to work this out somehow." He burst out, his voice echoing against the walls and the water. "We can't just ignore each other. But if my being here makes you uncomfortable I can camp somewhere else. Aang can always come to me for firebending lessons."

He would do anything, anything to make her happy. Even if it meant removing himself form her life. Zuko knew it would have a very very negative impact on him.

But he didn't care.

Not when it came to her.

His string glowed bright and blue, though what caught his attention was when her side of the string glowed a crimson red.

Just as a water whip flew through the air and he barely created a pillar of fire to block it.

Though why did she break?

Why finally let go of the emotions she had worked so hard to regain control over through meditation over the last few days?

Because the thought of him sitting alone and friendless was what finally broke something in her.

Later Orora could never really remember what happened. How many times she attacked him and how many times he deflected her.

She had no idea when the others arrived, standing at the threshold with Aang and Sokka both holding Katara and Toph back from intervening.

What she did remember, was when she began to scream at him.

"You left me." The words echoed against the bare walls as she threw an ice disk at him.

Zuko jumped out of its way, landing on his feet. "I'm sorry." He shouted back, his features set in a look of anguish at what she said next.

"You broke my heart and you just left." Sokka tried not to feel just how true the words rang for him as he thought of Suki captive somewhere. "How could you do that to me?" An icicle shot through the air.

"I regretted it!" He twisted out of the way of the incoming projectile. "I regretted it as soon as I did it." Though her moves were starting to shift back towards the basic they were only growing in speed and viciousness.

Orora gritted her teeth, her face appearing almost unrecognizable with the amount of anger and utter anguish that she was feeling in that moment. "I'm your soulmate, was I not enough for you?" She paused, coming to a standstill in the middle of the room.

"No that's not it." Panting for breath Zuko stood opposite her, just a few paces away.

"Then what?" She roared, getting ready to attack him again.

His voice raised to match her volume as he finally revealed. "I thought you were leaving with your friends."

She faltered, her eyes widening and the water dropping to the ground where she'd been getting ready to strike. "How could you think that? I would never have left you." Whatever small pause she had taken ended the next moment when she created a wave that flew towards him. Zuko spun on his feet, creating a whirlpool of fire to protect him that dissipated her water wave.

"I know that now." He responded, straightening up. "I was just scared. I was scared of loosing you."

The revelation only seemed to make her angrier, as her attacks began to get sloppy yet stronger. Never before had Toph felt two heartbeats so in sync and yet frantic. "You went back to your family. The people who hurt you."

"I didn't realize it then, but I had to." The firebender cried out, doing his best to evade her attacks as best as he could. "I had to face them one last time. Confront them about all they had done."

Silently urging Zuko on, Aang hoped he would reveal everything to her. And then he did. "But all the time I was there you were always on my mind Orora." The young Prince revealed. "I told you, I didn't stop thinking about you. You were always there with me."

Katara frowned, her anger starting to replace her worry as she took in the way Orora's attacks kept changing in brutality and speed. And they were, as Zuko was beginning to find it harder and harder to defend himself against her attacks.

"Fight back!" Orora screamed as she threw a large sphere of ice in his direction which exploded into sharp icicles as it neared him.

Bringing up a wall of fire and burning the ammunition, Zuko shook his head. "No! I won't fight you!"

She paused, her entire body trembling, her eyes ablaze. "Fight back you coward!"

"No!" His voice was firm and true. "I won’t hurt you Orora." He watched as she closed her eyes, as if she were trying to block out the sound of his voice just by doing so. So he spoke even louder. "I’ve hurt you enough. And I will never hurt you again!"

A scream of sheer anger and heartbreak rang through the air, as Orora flung her arms behind her to create twin water whips. "Fight back!"

The first water whip, he was able to dodge. However, the second proved to be impossible.

A loud grunt of pain escaped him when the strength behind her attack caught him in the chest, sending him flying into the wall just next to the doorway.

For a moment he had his very breath knocked out of him, before he slid to the floor. He tried to get up, but barely got to his knees when he collapsed again, groaning in pain.

"Zuko!"

Her eyes were wide, her breathing ragged, and a horrifying fear she had never known before raged through her body as she stood there frozen, staring at the unmoving figure of her soulmate.

Aang, Sokka, Katara and Toph were the first to reach him, crowding around him.

"He's alright, I can feel his heartbeat." Toph responded, as Sokka laid him down on his back while Katara moved to pull water from her water skin.

But his hand darted out, pushing away Katara's offer to heal him. "No. I don't want to be healed." He said, his voice conveying how much pain he felt. Aang straightened. "Well maybe Orora can-" He trailed off as he looked around.

"Where'd she go?"

For as soon as she'd heard Zuko's voice, the young waterbender had raced out of the room. With tears blurring her vision and her heart all but in a million pieces, she ran until she collapsed.

Where?

She did not know.

And then she just cried.

Fully aware of how his string had not lost it's color despite what had happened.

Then again, neither had hers.

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yourhighness6 · 9 months ago

Text

NATLA Episode 2 Debrief (by yours truly)

Hi again! Here's episode 1 if anyone is interested. This is going to be another outrageously long post, just a tw

I absolutely loved the ominous start and then it's just:

They really captured the Zuko/Iroh dynamic the cartoon had in this scene. I hope they keep this sort of thing throughout the show. Also, side note, but for whatever reason Zuko seems a LOT more violent in this version. This child needs some serious therapy.

I guess this is their version of the map joke, huh? Low-key disappointed but not as mad as I thought I would be.

I'm not sure how I feel about the writers prolonging some of the conflicts that were resolved back in the SWT into this episode. I guess it makes sense that they would have to extend the drama, but I'm a little disappointed these thoughts didn't make it into the first episode. I'm glad they're included, but I think at this point team avatar had started to feel like family already in the cartoon, so it's kind of annoying and misses the mark a bit.

Yes I'm so glad they put GranGran's blessing back in! I was really mad when they took it out, but this honestly feels more meaningful than it did in the cartoon. It's a precious cultural artifact rather than just a couple of blankets. This is similar to what I was mad about with extending SWT conflicts, but I don't have nearly as much of a problem with it, as it seems like they're carrying a little piece of home with them rather than just extra drama.

The burial scene was very sweet and sad. It gave us a bit more insight into Air Nomad culture, and a sense of closure the cartoon didn't really give us. A+ for Gordon's acting as well (he is perfect for this part, even if he does still need some more acting experience)

Zuko has officially mastered the "my uncle dragged me here and I'm an agnsty teenager" face. A+ to Dallas for this entire scene. I am absolutely LOVING the Iroh and Zuko dynamic. Never change (jk I wish you a wonderful redemption arc)

Suki looks just as beautiful as she did in the trailer. Unfortunately can't say the same for the Kyoshi statue (I wish it had been made out of wood), but there is something to be said for the little shrines to the avatars instead of a few big ones. I actually kind of like that they changed that element, and I hope they explore it more in future episodes, because I assume some of the spiritualism surrounding them would have to be changed. Side note: but I've seen nothing of the spirit world so far and I'm getting a little nervous. I guess I wouldn't mind if they decided it was some long-lost avatar trick or is introduced in the NWT, but if they get rid of it altogether I'm gonna be pissed.

I'm glad they decided to make Kyoshi Island a matriarchal society instead of having a male leader. It just makes sense based on the lore and I like to see more strong adult women than in the cartoon. Also Suki got a mom! Maybe she'll get some development too!

This Aang speech was very in-your-face storytelling, but I feel like the whole show is gonna be like that so I'm just accepting it at this point. I think it stayed true to his character while getting the point across, and it also kind of helped his character compared to the cartoon. He's very emotionally open and has a charming nativity about him, but he's clearly trying to help. Loved it.

He's so awkward I love it. This whole interaction was really cool, because it expanded on their relationship in a cool way. They're both struggling between doing what their parents expect of them to help their respective villages, but are being faced with a pull to the outside world, Suki with her "big heart" and Sokka with his need to protect Katara. Thishonestly gives more depth to their relationship and I don't mind the writers dragging out first episode conflicts if this is how they're choosing to explore them.

Aww look at these cute little siblings. I like that the writers are giving them more time to progress from strangers to besties. Their interactions seem more natural, and Aang's grief more realistic. It's also great to once again see Katara growing more confident and powerful in her abilities. I love the smell of some good character development in the making.

Look at her face! She's like,"I'm so good at flirting. Mother would be proud." Meanwhile Sokka's scared of her. Anyway I'm living for their scenes and they're making me giggle. (Despite Sokka's sexism being toned down it still exists to a lesser level and I love to see her beating his ass while he tries to flex)

I love the new subplot! I love that flashback! I love this conflict! It gives more credence to his fears as a prodigy. Whatever writer came up with this deserves a hug.

AHH the ship is sailing! I love Sokka learning to be more open minded! I love Suki learning to be more open-hearted! I love when characters in romantic relationships learn from each other! This is giving Suki and Sokka development in ways the cartoon did not without trying to play Sokka's sexism off as a joke and also giving us more screentime and when I say I love it I mean I am doing a happy dance right now!

Okay, so just a quick word on shipping besides Sukka because as Zutara trash I am legally required to do this:

It seems like they are keeping the zutara hope parallel intact, with Katara and Zuko both finding hope in the avatar but in different ways. However, I don't think this really changes anything. So far, there's beven nothing to suggest they're going with ZK instead of KA, and I'm a little worried that they're trying to parallel Sukka and KA wwith the way they're setting up both girls as kind of a "teacher" to the boys in a way and giving both ships a huge amount of screentime in the same episode. Also, and I hate to say this, they might be attempting to fix KA by toning down Katara's anger and her "dark side". She didn't get angry to break the iceberg and they're eliminating her entire waterbending scroll plotline. They're trying to make them a better match for each other by watering her down and therefore increasing her connection with Aang and decreasing the chance of a future connection with Zuko over their anger and shared trauma. It's sad news that I didn't want to deliver, and I've seen spoilers that there is another ZK moment later down the line, but at this point, I think KA is a lot more plausible than ZK. *cries*

In slightly less depressing news, they're inserting the avatar state plotline a lot earlier. This makes sense with the condensed timeline, and I think I like the way they're going with it so far. I hope they keep the concept of avatar guide intact, though, and I'm worried that they're going to play into more of a connection to all of his past lives instead of just Roku. I kind of hate Roku but I do think that's a major concept I don't want them to get rid of, and his inaction during a time of adversity mirror's Aang's own challenges with confrontation. Their dynamic is a good one, and I wouldn't be opposed to changed but I really hope they don't entirely throw it out.

Scratch whatever the fuck I said before. I'm back on my shipping bullshit I can't believe we got a BONUS FIGHT! Also kudos to whoever decided Zhao should burn the village instead of Zuko. I was always so pissed at him whenever I rewatched this episode and now I can sleep easy knowing it was that military dipshit instead of him

I love Kyoshi to an unhealthy extent but I kind of wish Katara had been the one to go off on him. It would have seriously fixed things.

COUPLES THAT FIGHT TOGETHER ARE THE BEST COUPLES CHANGE MY MIND

Also, side note, but I love the hair these in fight scenes:

Most action movies hairspray the shit out of them but these actors are allowed to look a little disheveled while they kick ass. Huge thank you to whoever decided that more natural hair is superior cuz they are 100% correct

THE BONUS FIGHT SCENE IS NO LONGER COOL I REPEAT THE BONUS FIGHT SCENE IS NO LONGER COOL

I think this was the perfect conclusion to Sukka (for now)! Sokka learned something so much more valuable and impactful than in the cartoon, in my opinion. His masculinity is handled very well in my opinion, and even if I would have liked to see him wear the warrior outfit, there's something really great about the way he continues to embrace protectiveness, a masculine trait, while having rid himself of toxic masculinity, such as not being able to learn from others. He's leaving a more open minded and humble person and I love the way they portrayed it.

Okay the speech was a little on the nose but I liked it. One of the best things about ATLA was the way they executed Aang's childishness ending up beneficial for the world. I think the new conflict is expanding on that nicely while staying true to its roots. *pats writers on the head*

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH IS THIS REAL I LOVE IT SO MUCH AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

IM TRYING SO HARD NOT TO THINK ABOUT THIS LINE AND HOW IT COULD BE ANOTHER PARALLEL TO K/A I HATE IT BUT I LOVE IT AT THE SAME TIME LETS JUST FOCUS ON SUKI SAYING SOKKA HELPED HER AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

Also the fan was so cute. That last scene on Appa really wrapped everything up nicely. I like the way they tied in the conflicts between the siblings while engineering growth for Sokka.

Daniel Kim delivered in his two seconds of screentime. Zhao was such a bitch but idk what else I expected. Can't wait to see more of these two bastards in future!

Anyway, to recap:, things I did like:

Aang's new conflicts

Sokka's mini arc

SUKKA

Expanding on Katara's PTSD

Zhao burning the town instead of Zuko

Zuko and Iroh's dynamic

Things I didn't like:

Katara's characterization

Lack of Aang's actual avatar guide

K/A hints and lack of zutara implications

Postponing the Zhao and Zuko agni Kai

Overall, I have to say I think that they're playing into the core themes very well while expanding on the characters. If it weren't for the whole Katara debacle this would be a 9/10 episode, but with the Katara debacle imma give it a 7/10. Still, I can at least understand why the writers made their crappy decisions, even if I don't agree with them. Hopefully certain things are fixed in future episodes, but as it stands I think I'll live (barely)

#natla debrief #emmie babbles #zutara #sukka #aang #sokka #suki #zuko #katara #avatar the last airbender #natla episode 2

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sokkastyles · 8 months ago

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This is something I've turning around in my mind due to the general discourse around Katara "hating" Zuko, and obviously she doesn't hate him at all after TSR, but do you think she truly even /hated/ him after Ba Sing Se? She was absolutely within her right to be hurt and angry about his choice, and I'm glad the show actually let her hold onto that for awhile b/c so often K has to be the bigger person and manage everyone else's emotions, but being hurt and angry at someone, even lashing out at them b/c of that, isn't the same thing as hating them imo. Like tbh their entire vibe to me from the moment Zuko turns up at the Western Air Temple until TSR is exes after a bad breakup but there's still unresolved feelings there, which was certainly an interesting writing choice for them to go with (only made more so by the textbook romance writing grovelling in TSR.)

Yeah, she isn't mad at him because she hates him, she's mad at him because she cares about him, because she wanted to care about him, and because she thought he cared about her. Even when she tells the gaang that Zuko was "pretending to be a human being" in the catacombs, it gives the impression that she is trying to convince herself that what she's saying is true, that the moment they shared and the vulnerability Zuko showed in that moment wasn't real.

The other thing that gives the lie to the idea that Katara hates Zuko or just sees him as an enemy is that when she confronts him when they are alone, and threatens him, she doesn't react to him like she thinks he's lying about wanting to do the right thing, she confronts him about how "you and I both know you've struggled with doing the right thing in the past." In front of everyone else, she makes it seem like she thinks Zuko is just evil, but when she's alone with him, she makes it clear that she knows he isn't, and that this is really about how she can't trust him, how he broke her trust. It's personal, not just about him being fire nation.

And the fact that she waited to tell him this in private, while denying her feelings in public, is absolutely romantic coded. I've also pointed out before that the framing of the confrontation mirrors the final scene between Zuko and Mai (or rather, that the Zuko and Mai scene, which is explicitly romantically coded, mirrors this one), Katara standing in the doorway to interrupt Zuko's triumphant moment with a reminder that his past isn't so easily moved past, and a reminder of who he's hurt. It absolutely gives vibes of an ex who you still have feelings for.

Which is why it's hilarious that Bryke made that comment about zutara being a relationship you experience before realizing what you really need (with the implication that Katara really needs Aang and Zuko really needs Mai), because what it actually feels like is two people who were immediately drawn to each other, ended up hurting each other, broke it off, but then still had feelings for each other and ended the series closer than they were before. If Bryke really wanted us to think zutara were not good for each other, then there could have been a moment where, when Zuko and Katara get their closure with each other, there's also the G-rated equivalent of "let's just be friends." Maybe have Katara say something like, "I forgive you, but I can't make the choice you want me to make." This is also in an alternate universe where Zuko more explicitly encourages Katara to kill Yon Rah. But none of that happens. The episode does not tell us that Zuko is not good for Katara or vice versa. It has Katara end the episode by explicitly disagreeing with Aang and enthusiastically embracing Zuko without any hesitation at all.

That hug is so meaningful because it's the release of tension that the narrative has been building up since that moment in the catacombs. It's not that Katara hated Zuko but now cares about him, it's that she wanted to care about him way back in the catacombs and now she's able to express that without being afraid that he'll break her trust.

#zutara #zuko #katara #the western air temple

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zvtara-was-never-canon · 9 months ago

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lets lighten to mood here a bit: what are your top 5 kataang moments?

"Top five" hahahahahahahahaahahahahahahaha, what kind of nonsense is this? I need a top 15!

#15 - Them bickering on Kyoshi Island (01x04)

This one was one my favorite scenes in the whole show, even back when I didn't really care for Kataang as a ship. It's just such a funny, accurate representation BOTH of "When you wanna hang out with your friend, but you're still too mad to talk things out" and "When your is getting attention from other people and now you're really, really jealous."

Scenes like this are why I never felt Kataang was truly one-sided, again, even back when I personally didn't like the ship - it's just so obvious that with how close they are, lots of moments that could have been purely platonic end up having a romance vibe, so the eventually romance feels way more earned.

#14 - Aang nearly cofessing his feelings to Katara (02x18)

It's a short little moment, but I like it a lot. Aang is just so shy and nervous, it's adorable - and I actually don't mind that they were interrupted because we got lots of flirting in book 3.

#13 - The first two damn episodes (01x01 & 01x02)

I know, I know, putting not one, but two whole episodes is cheating like crazy, but I don't care. Aang likes Katara IMMEDIATELY, they go penguin sliding, he offers to take her to the North Pole long before he finds out HE needs to go there, Katara is ready to throw hands with everyone for wanting to banish Aang and is then losing her mind when he is taken by the Fire Nation. Even Sokka noticed they were getting a bit too clingy for two people that just freaking met and goes "Let's save your boyfriend."

#12 - "Baby, you're my forever girl" (03x09)

This one is just HILARIOUS. It starts out looking very realistic, sweet and romantic... and is then derrailed into embarrassing teenage fantasies, and Aang clearly feels so awkward when he realizes he had just been standing there like a dumbass. The entire episode is great, but that scene is easily top 3 of the funniest moments in it.

#11 - Flirting after he gives her the necklace back (01x15)

They are freaking adorable in that scene. Aang joking around when returning the necklace to her, Katara kissing his cheek and making him blush... peak cuteness. Gets extra romantic with the added context that those necklaces are basically the same as engagement rings.

#10 - Aang finding out Katara brought him back from the dead (03x01)

Aang just looks so in awe of her in that scene, like he can barely even comprehend how someone could be so amazing. The look in his eyes, man! I can't! I CAN'T!

(And for real, how can ANYONE still have doubts that the whole "Aang needs to let go of Katar FULLY AND FOREVER, ALL DAY AND EVERYDAY otherwise the world is doomed" thing is bullshit? The show literally looked us straight in the face and said "True love/friendship saved the day because if it wasn't for it the world's last hope would be fucking dead")

#9 - Cave Of Two Lovers (02x02)

Once again I'm cheating, and once again I don't care. Katara and Aang both blushing when she suggest that they kiss, Aang trying a little too hard to act like he totally doesn't want that kiss, Katara getting offended at it, "I'm saying I'd rather kiss you than die, that's a compliment!", the light of the torches fading away as they get closer to each other, Aang looking all lovestruck after it, then them both blushing after they're out of the cave - INCREDIBLE! SHOWSTOPPING! BEAUTIFUL! ADORABLE!

#8 - Katara not wanting Aang to go into the Avatar State (02x01)

I understand why Aang going into the Avatar State to save her on this same episode gets so much attention, but this moment is criminally underrated AND what makes that other scene hit so hard.

Katara can't stand to see Aang in so much pain and rage and thus refuses to be part of that plan. She is the one putting his humanity, his feelings, and his well-being before his responsibilities as the Avatar. She'll always encourage him to do what's right and help him do what's needed to save the world - but she'd never put him in any unnecessary harm. She'd never take him granted and act like she, or anyone else, is entitled to put him through so much stress and pressure just because of his duties as the Avatar. She'd never take advantage of Aang's kindness.

When Aang went into the Avatar State, it wasn't just about the protagonist saving his love interest (which is already an epic moment) - it was a friend saving another, a survivor of genocide saing another, the hero saving an innocent person who was in harms way. And more importantly, it was someone who was constantly treated like he needed to be a soldier/weapon first, person second, saving the girl that had always been his ride-or-die from the very beginning and that had just proven yet again that she cared about HIM, not just about the Avatar and what he could do for the world.

#7 - Aang and Katara VS Pakku (01x18)

Once again, Aang and Katara showing that they both take the concept of "ride-or-die" VERY seriously. They are really excited to learn together, and Aang is so pissed off when Pakku refuses to train Katara solely because she's a girl, that he says "Fuck this guy, fuck my mission, I'm out of here." Katara, of course, then accepts dealing with that unfair situation because she knows Aang's mission is important and doesn't want to stand in the way of it, even if she obviously isn't happy about it.

Then, once Sokka gives them that idea, Aang is super eager to teach Katara everything Pakku is teaching him, because, once again, Katara's personal goal of wanting to be a badass fighter is as important to Aang as his mission to save the entire freaking world.

They're caught, everything is going to hell, and Pakku now refuses to let train either of them unless he gets an apology, and so Katara goes into fighting mode with no hesitation. Aang, the absolute sweetheart that he is, lets her know that she doesn't have to do this to get Pakku to teach him - then steps aside when she explains this is about HER, her pride and her right to knock some sense into that sour old man.

Finally, after everything is resolved, we get Pakku saying Aang should start calling her "Sifu Katara" - which leads me to:

#6 - Sifu Katara (02x09)

That. Was. So. Fucking. Cute.

Aang wants to make sure Katara knows just how much she means to him, how much he respects her as a fighter/master and we KNOW he absolutely means it, and Katara is very touched by it.

And I gotta love how comfortable they are with each other. Aang practicing waterbending and talking with her to clear his head, Katara giving him advice as to why he's struggling with earthbending AND trying to make Toph change her approach into something Katara knows works on Aang, the push and pull/ying and yang motions showing how they just click and are in harmony with each other - it isn't just AANG showing he appreciates Katara's role as his master, it's the show itself doing that.

#5 - Aang & The Painted Lady (03x03)

That boy was simping for and flirting with the Painted Lady before he even realized it was Katara, because she was a kind "spirit" that he went out of his way to mention looked REALLY pretty even though he couldn't see her face. Then, of course, he has to praise her for wanting to help the people of the village and goes on to help her blow up a whole factory.

You google the meaning of "being in love" and Aang's face is the first the thing that comes up, I swear to fucking God, I can't with this boy.

#4 - Katara threatening to end Zuko if he ever hurts Aang again (03x12)

Once again, Katara and Aang take the idea of "Ride-or-die" VERY seriously. Katara doesn't trust Zuko really changed, but she does trust Aang's judgement and knows that he has the right to choose his firebending teacher, and that they don't really have much of a choice at the moment.

But she didn't forget what Zuko nearly took away from her, and makes damn sure he knows that if he screws up again, he isn't getting a third chance.

And I gotta say, we as a fandom don't talk enough about how, much like Aang's love for his people is explicitly stated to still live on through his love for Katara, the girl he already sees as family and would eventually marry, Katara was only ever willing to kill for two people - Kya and Aang.

This is one of those moments that proof that, even if one doesn't care for the ship, NO ONE can deny just how strong their bond is and how much they mean to each other.

#3 - Finale Kiss (03x21)

Even though I think they should have officially become an item after their kiss during the invasion and that the last minute conflict of "Maybe Katara doesn't actually want to be with Aang" that we got in Ember Island Players was REALLY forced, I still love this moment.

They look so happy, so at peace. They don't even need to say anything. They just lock eyes, smile, embrace each other and kiss. It's oen of the most romantic moments not just between them, but in the whole show.

Also if anyone has a Katara doll with that dress, please mail it to me, because my inner 5-year-old cannot deal with how pretty she looked on that scene and NEEDS it to be immortalized in a doll I can put on the shelf and stare at for hours.

#2 - Aang saying Katara gives him hope (02x12)

Okay, okay, okay, OKAY, we are once again in the territory of "Even back when I didn't like the ship, I still adored this scene." It's one of the moments that I'm always super excited to reach whenever I'm watching the show yet again.

Is just so rewarding. Every single episode we are reminded that Katara has complete faith in Aang, that he gave her hope before they ever met. Yet at that moment, because of Appa's kidnaping, he can't be the Aang she knows - be that he goofy, optimistic, super affectionate friend, or the kind, super empathetic, compassionate messianic figure of the Avatar. He is too hurt and scared, so he goes from lashing out to shutting everyone off - including her. He is doing his duty, but there's little to no emotion there.

Katara keeps the team together as they cross the desert, brings Aang back to Earth when he is snapping, parts the freaking sea, and then helps bring baby Hope into the world - and thus Aang is finally Aang again, and makes sure to let his best friend know just how much she means to him.

It's a nice role-reversal, with Katara being the one put on a pedestal and Aang showing reverence. It's sweet and makes all the moments in which she shows her blind faith in him all the sweeter. It easily could have been my number one.

If it wasn't for THE Kataang moment that is:

#1 - The Dance (03x02)

How could this not be number one? It's the definition of iconic. Literally invented romance. You open up a dictionary and see a picture of this scene in the definition of "chemistry."

Katara feeling insecure because of all the attention is getting, Aang going out of his way to make sure she doesn't feel left out, the way he says "it's just you and me", the way everyone is staring at them in awe... the lighting, the music, the camera angles, the freaking choreography... their smiles, Katara blushing, the way they lock eyes, the almost kiss, Aang holding Katara as they finally stop... it's too good. Just too freaking good. 11/10, no one is doing it like them.

#pro kataang #kataang

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burst-of-iridescent · 9 months ago

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atla live action thoughts: episodes 3 & 4

SPOILERS AHEAD

tw: opinions

things i liked:

jet, you beautiful, beautiful man. had me twirling my hair and kicking my feet fr i NEED this show to get a season 2 just so i can see more of him in the ba sing se arc please netflix

but looks aside, sebastian amoruso DELIVERED on the performance. the softness, the vulnerability, the charm, the intelligence, yet also the ruthlessness beneath it all? KILLED IT.

the moment between him and katara where he tells her to remember her mother as she was alive and not just her death was absolutely lovely. “remember the sunrise” made me very emotional

on that note, can’t believe jetara fake marriage is canon now lmao

i am SO here for desi omashu. i love the vibe and aesthetic of the city and again the visuals are STUNNING. live action repping the south asians better than the original ever did i’ll be honest

shameless fan service but “MY CABBAGES” being so fucking dramatic had me dying

of all the things i expected from the atla live action, secret tunnel and omashu being lesbians wasn’t even on the list but i’m not mad. hilarious that they turned the cave of two lovers into the cave of two platonic siblings though

jet, omashu and northern air temple arcs actually meshed together better than i thought. the NAT episode never sat well with me in the original so i’m glad they moved them to omashu instead.

the freedom fighters were RIGHT OUT OF THE ANIMATION. casting directors absolutely killed

love that they showed resistance movements within the fire nation and azula being part of rooting them out. it’s a nice nod to the deserter, since i’m guessing they’re not including that episode

really glad to see that the atla live action is following the tradition of having weirdly unnecessary zutara crumbs in every iteration of the story because what in the om shanti om was that zutara scarf moment. 10/10 no notes

having one of the earthbenders transporting iroh be angry over losing a loved one because of iroh’s siege of ba sing se was a really great change. i’ve always thought the original glossed over the true extent of the damage iroh did, so having him come face to face with what he’d done in the past was a great way to add some complexity

“how dare you beat up that child!” everyone go home seeing zuko being beat up by a random old lady is the highlight of this series. really love that they were just running around throwing things at each other that was major book 1 zuko/aang fight energy lmao

SECRET TUNNELLLLLLLL

leaves from the vine instrumental was 100% to inflict emotional damage and it fucking worked. the scene between zuko and iroh at lu ten’s funeral was so beautiful & then to have it flipped around at the end when iroh says “everything i need is on this boat”… fuck you for this netflix i didn’t need these tears today

things i disliked/am conflicted about:

not a fan of what they’re doing with katara’s character. they’re toning down a lot of her rage and fierceness, and boiling her down to “trauma over mother’s death.” in the original katara didn’t freeze jet and splash water at him because he tried to fight her, she did it because she was hurt and pissed off! there’s no way animated katara would’ve just run away from jet without sending a water whip at his face first. i’m concerned for how the pakku fight is gonna go tbh

bumi my guy, what did they do to you 💀 this series seems hellbent on having everyone remind aang that he ran away which doesn’t work when a) you already changed aang actively running away to him just going off for a break and b) you’ve made that point! the original omashu episode was about bumi teaching aang to look at the world differently, here it just weirdly feels as though he’s punishing aang by venting all his anger and despair on him?? that’s NOT what animated bumi was like & they didn’t even have the two of them go sliding down the delivery system in the flashbacks so adding it in at the end felt very out of nowhere. they didn’t even genuinely seem to be FRIENDS

having aang immediately figure out it was bumi was… sigh. can we please not do the thing where characters already know everything it’s giving me trauma flashbacks to the percy jackson show

jet’s plan feels more reasonable here than it did in the original. i get they’re trying to show that he didn’t care about the collateral damage to innocent people and that’s bad, but idk him wiping out an entire town unilaterally felt more extreme than a few bombings.

heavily dislike what they’ve done with zhao. i know they’re trying to show him clawing his way to power but that’s more of a long feng move than a ZHAO move. it’s important that zhao always holds more power than zuko and that he has an overinflated sense of ego from the start for him to fulfil his narrative purpose of serving as a warning to zuko of what he might become.

i like seeing mailee but why are they in this show? it feels as though they’re cardboard cutouts there for fan service instead of being actual characters

overall i liked these episodes better than the previous two & i do enjoy how action-packed and visually pleasing the show has been so far.

overall rating: 8/10 for episode 3, 7/10 for episode 4

#atla live action #zutara #i put these two episodes together since they felt like a two parter #also yes i gave into the urge to binge

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my-hi-universe · 9 months ago

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With the new atla series out I'm seeing a lot of zutara and kataang beef again annnnnnd aghhhh.

As someone who thinks both are fine, here are how I see both sides.

For kataang antis...I think you guys call them that? Idk, but for them, they say Aang is like a little kid and they mention the age gap all the time. But in the original show, Zuko and Katara have the same age gap so frankly that just doesn't work 😭 not to totally disregard that take though because I know fourteen year old me would not date a twelve year old, but I think some of y'all are pushing it. ESPECIALLY when y'all start mentioning the family dynamics like, "Aww a big sister and a little brother," liiike....now y'all are being annoying 😭😭

But some zutara antis are saying they feel that zutara is a self insert and....no, like I'm sorry but that's just a cop out 😭 like if you don't like the ship then just say that but this is a stupid reason for that, because it's just not true😭.

As someone who shipped byler when I was like eleven, I know how it feels to be called delusional 💀 but one thing I just won't stand behind is see y'all call zutara shippers delusional like everything for that ship wasn't there. Red and blue, zuko getting struck by lighting, the enemies to lovers. Everything was there! I think the downside of that is some zutara shippers are saying that that's proof for the ship which it obviously isn't.

But at the end of the day it's whoever Katara chooses, which in this case was Aang. I just don't see how this became a whole war....again, like? Be normal??

Edit:

I know I kinda said this up above with the Katara is a self insert, but I think I need to get more in depth because now I keep seeing it.

Because it is actually pissing me off when kataangs say, "people just ship zutara because they wanna live their fantasies out through Katara,".....ummm no?? 😭😭 Like maybe people ship zutara because Zuko and Katara are cute together?? Especially since kataang was supposedly an insert ship 😭😭?? The call is coming from inside the house💀 but even if that was the case wouldn't they just ship the cannon ship zumai...?

But it makes me mad because it totally disregards Katara as a character and just dumbing her down to a self insert, y/n type girl when nooo she is her own character.

One last thing is I was alwayyyys a sokka girl. I don't know why, I just liked the goofy blue type. Kinda like Voltron, everyone liked Keith but I was rocking with lance😭 the only time I like the red character over the blue was in TMNT 2012 version but anyways. What I'm saying is I never saw a zutara fan art and went,"sigh, I wish that was me🥺🥺" umm no💀

#avatar the last airbender #live action avatar #aang #katara #kataang #zuko #zutara #atla netflix #atla

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persephone-sails · 16 days ago

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Do you like legend of korra? I see you like korra as a character (honestly so validating for me most ppl see her as a mary sue when she's literally considered the worst avatar) so maybe you like the show too?

Korra is NOT a mary sue. It's true some people are big mad about cartoons depicting muscular ladies and like just hold female protagonists to waaay higher standards compared to their male counterparts (*cough* Aang *cough* ) but I can actually see where the argument comes from. The problem is Korra is never morally challenged by the narrative, especially on her pro-bending anti equalist stance. And to overcompensate for that, she's challenged an extreme amount in other aspects to the point where she can actually be considered the opposite of a mary sue. She never gets to fix her mistakes on her own whereas a sue wouldn't be making those mistakes IN THE FIRST PLACE. Even personality-wise she gets called out for her arrogance, and ACTUALLY struggles with her bending due to it. Her flawed development is more on Bryke and tlok's lack of moral complexity and sensitivity and detail that issues like the equalist movement, anarchism, diplomacy etc deserve. And it would, to a certain extent, be worth it if the relationships between the Krew and the Gaang were well written. As much as I dunk on spy x family, I do appreciate that it actually focuses on its characters even at the expense of better worldbuilding. But in tlok instead we have a love quadrilateral, annoying kid(s), a golden child who bears the burden to increase airbender population, Aang being an awful dad, Katara barely being there at all and suddenly can't waterbend anymore despite most likely being the one to train Korra. I don't think I need to say this anymore, but no I'm not a fan of tlok.

To end on a positive note, Korra is my blorbo because her personality is eerily similar to mine (except maybe the talkativeness lol) and I just hate that she was so underutilised and screwed over. She may seem like Bryke's darling because the latter tend to make everything about the protagonist but I do believe they have some level of bias against Korra due to her gender.

#before you say “but korrasami” it was token with no genuine development #and atla was mostly written by A TEAM of writers that made the female characters as we know them now #anti bryke #korra deserved better #anti lok #korra

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highfantasy-soul · 8 months ago

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Oh wonderful, another YouTuber I usually agree with butchering their critical thinking skills while talking about NATLA.

Just like with Jessie Gender, I usually agree with Read With Cindy's takes on media, but, just like with Jessie, Cindy just....point blank lies about what happened in the live action Avatar?

Because I have that terminal condition of 'can't let inaccurate information remain un-challenged', here's my response to her points:

She claims that because Sokka isn't sexist, Katara has nothing to be angry about…..so colonization, genocide, a 100 year war, the fire nation murdering her mother, the broken state of the world aren't things to be mad about? Sexism is the only thing a WOMAN could POSSIBLY be angry about???

She claims they 'sanitized' Sokka's character 'removing his flaws so he has nowhere to grow' - same as the last point - do you think sexism is the only flaw a man can have? There are absolutely no other character traits available for men to have that they need to grow from?

She claims that it's only in the animated show that Katara frees Aang from the iceberg - in the live-action, she wasn't the catalyst for the story - that's just…demonstrably not true. In the live-action, Katara's waterbending is still what breaks Aang free. Just because she doesn't do it in an angry tirade doesn't mean it wasn't her power. Yet again, women can show power in MANY ways other than screaming at sexist people. In the live-action, she's waterbending despite Sokka's command for her not to, he's trying to find a mundane way to get the boat back and Katara decides to attempt to solve the problem with her waterbending - which works, but also breaks Aang free. Yet again, if you can only see 'agency' as 'screaming tirade' then you're missing out on a lot of other ways people can show their agency

She claims that they substitute showing Katara and Sokka's 'everyday life' intro for Aang's to push him as the main character rather than the Water Tribe siblings, but…that's just not true? The live action shows Aang's 'day-in-the-life' AND Sokka and Katara's - it actually shows more of Sokka and Katara's 'day-to-day' than the animated show does. So this point is just a flat out lie.

She continues on about the 'hero's journey' and how the hero 'always refuses the call' - yet….in the animated show, Katara NEVER 'refuses the call' to go with Aang - she almost abandons her family to 'answer the call' and only stops because Aang and her family don't want her to be separated from them. Please stop using the hero's journey as gospel and anything that breaks from that mold is 'bad' - but if you ARE going to use it….get better at viewing media because all that DID happen in the live-action.

Cindy claims that the 'call to adventure' in the live-action is still 'go to the north pole' but it's not - the call to adventure is helping Aang on his journey to be the Avatar - a journey that Katara and Sokka willingly go on to play a part in saving the world. Did you not watch the entire first episode and then the first part of the second? She claims that Katara had no reason to go on the journey in the live-action other than to help Aang when that's point-blank not true. She was excited about how much more bending she could do and how, because of Aang (like in the cartoon), she could now become a better waterbender. Part of her journey out of the southern tribe is STILL for herself and her own growth, not just Aang's.

Cindy makes the argument that Katara isn't a real main character in the live-action because she had nothing to do with the inciting incident (Aang being released from the iceberg) and she didn't have her own reason for going on the journey (get a waterbending master at the north pole). Both these assertions are, just factually wrong. Katara DOES free Aang from the iceberg and she DOES continue on with him because being in the world is helping her waterbending - she even got a waterbending scroll out of it and the mental training that helps her begin her journey. Not only that, but the inciting incident could also be seen as the decision to help Aang or not, it doesn't have to specifically be 'freeing him from the iceberg'. That's an incredibly narrow way to view inciting incidents.

But more than that, Cindy's assertion that those two things have to be present in order for someone to be a main character are just…really bad and narrow storytelling. You can still be a main character even if you don’t personally cause the inciting incident: ummmm…Aang? Hello? He didn't CHOOSE to be the Avatar, he was drug along and finally had to accept his role despite not wanting to at all! Not only that, but Sokka is a main character too, so is his reason for sticking with the group not good enough? Is he not actually part of the Gaang?

She goes on to say that Katara was the glue that created and held together the Gaang and in the live-action, she wasn't. That's…also literally not true as well. In the animated and live action, Sokka is totally on board immediately with saving Aang after Zuko takes him (after Katara changes his mind about turning Aang over in the first place), then she's the one who insists that they all need to continue on with Aang even after the immediate threat of the fire nation is done. In the animated show, Sokka is on board from the second episode on, so Katara isn't 'keeping everyone together' - yet. I think Cindy is drawing from future seasons with that analysis when it isn't accurate in the live-action at all. Many times in season one of the animated series, Aang is actually the one to get in between sibling squabbles and tries to keep them together, so placing all the weight of being the glue of the party on Katara is…well, parentifying Katara in a way that's not exactly the best.

Cindy also claims that live-action Katara never has any dialogue or action that does anything for the story. That's just….again, inaccurate? Genuinely it feels like she just stopped paying attention to Katara the moment she didn't scream at Sokka and just heard the 'wah wah wah' of Charlie Brown adults every other time Katara spoke. She didn't pay attention to Katara as a character at all and that says more about Cindy's view of female characters than it does the writer's. She even claims Katara didn't do anything to help in fights when….she definitely does? Just because she's not a super competent waterbender off the bat like animated Katara is, doesn't mean she doesn't try to help in battles, but it makes a lot of sense that she's easily beaten because….she has no combat training and is fighting against trained soldiers???? Sorry she isn't 'girl boss' enough for you.

At the same time, Cindy is claiming that Sokka is put in a more important role than Katara and he's learning all these new things while Katara isn't. Which tells me that Cindy doesn't put any importance into Katara learning about leadership and waterbending and keeping the emotional core of the party in tact (something she claims Katara needed to do but didn't) - she only views Sokka learning about different ways to interact with being a 'warrior' as important. Apparently, Katara struggling with her cultural trauma isn't 'a lot going on' with her character - I guess Cindy found that stuff boring and just wanted more 'heroic' stuff. Apparently sustaining the cultural traditions of her entire tribe wasn't enough going on with Katara - that stuff isn't important and at all, apparently.

Again with the complaint that Aang is 'just pulling Katara along with him on his own journey making Katara a passive observer' while…showing the scene where Katara is practicing waterbending herself and encouraging Aang to join her in training too? And HE'S actually the one being more passive???

I think Cindy fundamentally misunderstands ensemble cast stories. She makes the claim that because Katara and Sokka don't come into the story until 20 minutes in, that means they can't really be main characters. Tell that to EVERY ensemble cast that picks up new protagonists along the way! Is she also saying that Zuko isn't a main character because the show didn’t start with him? Because he didn't "cause" the inciting incident?

Of course, she then tries to claim that both Suki and Yue were relegated to 'love interest for Sokka' in the live-action but she somehow believes that that wasn't the case in the animated show?? Both Suki and Yue had SOO much more agency in the live-action than they did in the animated series! I already made a post about Suki, but Yue's post is coming.

Idk how you could ever call live-action Katara 'meek' or 'just a good girl with no flaws'. She stood up to Sokka when he wanted to turn Aang over to the firebenders, she pushed for them to go on the journey with Aang, she stood her ground against Zuko and his entire group of soldiers (ALONE!), she joined Jet in tracking the spy and attacking him and his men, she stood up for what Jet was doing (before she knew everything) and then stopped the arrow from blowing up everyone at the palace, she again stood her ground against Sokka and made him see her pov (and she accepted seeing his too), she was excited to join Aang in the spirit world, she fought back against Pakku's sexism, and she stood her ground against Zuko yet again to defend Aang. So, which one of those things was 'meek' or 'just being a good girl'?

Cindy also claims that everything about waterbending was just 'handed to Katara so easily' and she didn't have to work for it. Like, WHERE???? In the animated series, Katara was automatically great at waterbending and was doing super advanced stuff immediately! In the show, we see her practicing in every spare moment. To claim that her being given a scroll that had been hidden among her tribe for years in an effort to preserve their culture the fire benders were trying to destroy was 'cheap' and 'just handing the win to Katara without her having to work for it' is, quite frankly, pretty disgusting.

This poison of 'individuality is the only good trait, you have to do everything yourself or else it doesn't count and you had it easy' is so freaking toxic and we need to get rid of that thought process right freaking now! To have your own culture fight and risk their lives to preserve knowledge to pass down to you is a beautiful and powerful thing - to claim that it was 'the easy way out' discounts the sacrifice of all the water benders before Katara who sacrificed so that she could have that knowledge. She still had to study and practice from the scroll - would you say that reading the works of scholars before you meant you didn't actually learn anything? You needed to do all the experiments and research yourself or else you're 'lacking agency'?

Not only does she have to study and practice from the scroll, she learns from observing other benders and trying out new moves based on their techniques. She uses both the scroll and her observation of others to scrape her way into learning new waterbending techniques. Contrast that with the animated Katara that we never see training unless it's the point of the episode yet she's still doing amazing things without a hitch. Absolutely bizzare that Cindy (and so many others) complains that Katara didn't crack open an entire iceberg with her rage, but ALSO complains that she….lifted some water to stop a fireball claiming it was 'too advanced' of a move for her to be able to do…..choose one, PLEASE!

The more 'critiques' I see people making about the writing of female characters in NATLA, the more I'm afraid we're regressing massively in what we think are 'acceptable' ways to write women. It seems like they all want to go back to the early 2000s white pop feminism that lacks any nuance or intersectionality - the only thing women can be mad about it shallow sexism and the only way to SHOW they're mad is to get physical or scream their heads off. No other method of showing anger or complex reasons for anger are allowed, that's "watering it down" rather than adding layers and nuance, incorporating every aspect of a character rather then just their gender to their motivations.

Ironically, what they're doing is contributing to gender essentialism - women are this way, men are this way, the only way to fight against 'women are this way' is to scream at a hyper-sexist man and if you're not doing that (or don't have a hyper-sexist man to scream at) then you aren't actually a 'strong female character' because screaming at sexism is the only thing that makes a woman strong.

#natla #natla positivity #netflix avatar #seriously it's so disappointing to see all these 'analysis' of natla using factually incorrect information in their arguments #of seeing people regressing so hard on what is allowed to be considered 'feminine rage'#of thinking that there is only one way to show a trait and if they don't do it exactly like they did it in the animated show #then that means they didn't do it at all and none of the additions to the live-action actually exist #genuinely to claim that Katara 'had nothing going on' in the live-action is.... not gonna lie it feels racist #cultural trauma and fighting to preserve your culture apparently is 'nothing' to some people

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pinkrabit · 9 months ago

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ATLA LA Episode 4 Into the Dark

The glowing rock candy 🤤🤤

Iroh and Aang bonding in prison.

"I'm really starting to see what kind of person his is." "I doubt that."

Sokka yelling at Sai like you yell at your father's mistakes

Love how active the fantasy racism is.

DONT GUILT SOKKA, SAI

Sokka is still so proud of Hakoda. He's so proud to be his son, "My father would never do what you did."

Zuko sneaking in??? We've seen numerous times in the OG his stealth capabilities when he tries. So, I'm excited.

BABY BUMI ! BABY (hes still a baby) AANG !

"I like the parts of Omashu that aren't so depressing :D"

SECRET TUNNEL

Great touch to openly address labor camps and POWs with the real world terms

"It's time to stop fighting. It's time to fight."

The Flopsy statue needs more recognition.

BUMI

Even Aang looks at Bumi like he's insane

Bumi, I know he's your friend, but you shouldn't out Aang like that

"Throw him.... a feast!" Aang looking terrified as if his old friend would EVER hurt him because the world has changed so much since he was last in it breaks me.

"Not everyone out there is the enemy"

"If you stand against us, you are."

"You're fighting because of hate. Just like the Fire Benders"

YES KATARA FIGHT BACK

KATARA THUGGIN AFTER SAYING "Goodbye, Jet"

I love how awful a liar Zuko is in every universe. LEARN TO FIB MY BOY

Aang at the table, like, "did my bsf friend forget I'm a vegetarian???"

Bumi being passively aggressive toward Aang, and Aang serving back "It was a tragedy!"

"Don't you care?" Aang, Bumi has a point when he yells at you. I like this Bumi a lot. His anger feels genuine. However irrational it may be.

THE HIPPIES IN THE MOUNTAIN

Sokka slowly vibing is OOC but still appreciated.

"We're doing what we're doing." They're all high. They gotta be.

Are Oma and Shu...? The gay??

I love how women are often portrayed as ending a war or unintentionally starting it, and then there's Azula.

Thanks for the backstory hippie man, wish you had a map though.

Two lovers, forbidden from one another~

SECRET TUNNEL (×2) THROUGH THE MOUNTAIN

"They're doomed 🤠"

Prisoner cruelty!! I know Uncle War Crimes but what about the Geneva Convention?

"The direct path is not always the best path." Paralleled with Aang wanting to find a way to end the war without killing Ozai.

I hate how they took out Kataang in the LA (i understand it'd be weird to allude to making aang's actor kiss kataras, though), but I like "love" in the tunnels being familial instead of romantic. And I like Sokka using his brain to figure stuff out.

"He was 19.. Was it worth it?" "We were at war.. I was a soldier." Such is the awful reality of war. When it comes to soldiers, it's not personal. It's a job, its dehumanizing to yourself and the rest of the world. It's a politcal game. "You (Iroh) know nothing of loss." And then showing his grief.

Iroh didn't want his son to die a war hero, he wanted Lu Ten to be his son.

!!! This was such an important conversation to put into the show. !!!

Zuko having something from Lu Ten 🥺🥺

I want a separate series with just Lu Ten

Leave from the Vine playing 🥺🥺

Bumi ragging on Aang for wanting to be a kid, AS A TWELVE YEAR OLD, makes me so mad.

Yes, he thinks about fun and games. A boy shouldn't be as bitter as an old man.

Zuko showing up to kick ass for his Uncle because that's HIS FUCKING UNCLE. He's still strong enough to break metal WITHOUT BENDING. SHOWING HIS COMPENTENCY.

"We've all seen enough death."

Zuko showing concern for Iroh's Injury to demonstrate his "true" nature of being sensitive and compassionate. Which is why he was banished in the first place.

The WT Siblings just hold each other before their perceived death feels so important to me.

And I feel like we can and should read into the badgermole/ "Love is brightest in the dark" scene.

"Great, how do you think they respond to verbal commands." Sokka can you be Sappy for like 5 minutes please.

"Some of us have to fight, even if we don't want to. That's what it means to he in a WAR!" This show is delivering so many lines and comments about war and its complexities for everybody involved. Just like the original. Y'all wanna sleep on it because of minor character changes????

I have yet to see a character, Suki has come the closest, that has been so awfully OOC that I've had to stop.

Aang asking for help, "one that requires you to make impossible choices" Bumi is a little misguided here but he means well in sharing his knowledge of leading to his friend.

"Learn what it means to be the Avatar!" "No!" Aang will never give up who he is based on others expectations. And the idea that he doesn't have to do things on his own, "like a child" is going to be what wins the war.

Aangs refusal to kill or hurt isn't bad, he's going to make a difference. He's going to save people. He's going to be the Avatar, but he will be an airbender first!

SAI OUTING THE FIRE NATION IS REDEMPTION

Iroh left to be with his nephew 🥺🥺

He won't let this boy be without a father

LEAVES ON THE VINE

"Everything I need is on this boat"

This episode felt a little rushed, and felt like it lacked a little in terms of the Gaang. But in terms of Zuko, it served. Zuko's story felt stronger here. Especially, after seeing Appa fly away, but he chose instead to prioritize his Uncle.

#into the dark #atla #netflix avatar #avatar #avatar the last airbender #king bumi #zuko #uncle iroh

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oneatlatime · 1 year ago

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The Deserter

How is this the first time anyone's had the bright idea to try disguises?

Sokka's sarcasm coming dangerously close to breaking the fourth wall here. Some pretty strong lampshading.

(edit: going through this just before posting, I realised this line is pretty much a sarcastic thesis statement for this episode, maybe this season.)

This is too cute. This episode both Appa and Momo understand english.

Saviour of the World, everybody.

There must have been a Gang goes to the Mall episode I missed where Sokka and Katara bought their stealth cloaks.

Say what you like about the Fire Nation, they do have gorgeous architecture.

Katara perfecting non-verbal burns with the mask-switching.

Flaming Fire Flakes have the honour of filling this episode's Beat Up Sokka quota.

This is actually less violent than the actual Punch and Judy. Poor puppeteer has to sew a new earth kingdom soldier for every performance.

Dovebending!

I know Aang is characterised as fun and fun-loving, but maybe don't take off your disguise in the middle of a group of your enemies? Is this going to devolve into an "Aang is stupid" episode? Because we just did that last episode.

And now he's sulking because he missed the chance to be outed in front of the whole crowd? Aang has no brain this episode.

Of course the fire nation would have fireworks. I find it interesting that the more artistic methods of bending have survived a century of war. Unless there's a combat style where soldiers bend dragons at the enemy, you'd think that bending for fun and entertainment would have been condemned by now as useless to the advancement of the fire nation.

Raise your hand if you didn't see this coming.

I have very little patience for Idiot Aang, especially when his idiocy revolves around needing to be the centre of attention.

Appa just murdered those guys.

How did Sokka figure out that Chey was a fire nation soldier just from looking at his face? Everyone in this world so far is borderline faceblind, what with the number of times that our main three have passed unnoticed. And yet Sokka gets one look at this Chey guy and clocks him as fire nation? How? Chey doesn't have a different accent, or a giant F on his face, or even a helpful identifying Zuko scar.

"Some say he's mad. But he's not. He's enlightened." Regardless of what he is, this is not how you ought to sell him.

Why doesn't anyone ever listen to Sokka? He's always right when it counts: they did get clocked at the fire nation festival, the fortune teller was a crook, Jet was untrustworthy, Katara was going to get them in trouble with the pirates. Hasn't anyone in-universe noticed the pattern yet?

So Chey is a cross between a fanboy and that one awkward kid that no one likes, and Aang is this episode's idiot. But who are the hat guys? Are they like the third through ninth deserters from the fire nation? They don't seem anything like the people at the festival, so they aren't the locals.

Zhao the asshole is back. An idiot and an asshole this episode. I suspect this episode won't be a favourite.

Ever so fed up with having your good advice ignored that you involuntarily plank?

I have no idea if this deserter guy (NOT going to try to spell that one phonetically) actually has the ability to tell what disciplines someone knows by the way they walk, or if that's Chey's fanboyish tendencies coming out. But if it's true, being able to tell someone's abilities and skill level at a glance would be an incredible advantage in a fight. No wonder they promoted the guy a bunch.

And so rather than do the sensible thing as Sokka suggests and leave, Aang leans even harder into his idiot tendencies. Sigh. You should absolutely go talk to the firebender who just told you to fuck off by proxy. What could go wrong?

I'm grasping about 40% of this fish speech. On the other hand, I'm getting the discipline speech 100%. And agreeing with it too. This episode's whole opening vignette was about how Aang lacks self-discipline. Setting aside the fact that going to the festival was a bad idea in the first place, they could have attended unnoticed if Aang had mastery over himself. This deserter's got Aang clocked.

Do you get the feeling that this deserter's negative experiences with fire are perhaps colouring his view a little? He does make a good point though: mess up with airbending and someone has a bad hair day. Mess up with waterbending and someone gets wet. Mess up with earthbending and someone gets squished. Mess up with firebending and someone gets roasted. There's a bit of a jump in the seriousness of the mistakes between air/water and earth/fire. And we already saw Aang mis-bend water and send all their supplies down the river, so it's not like the deserter is wrong to think Aang's not ready. Plus, of all the elements, only fire does its own thing when you're not looking. I bet the very first thing firebenders learn is not how to make fire, but how to control/snuff out an external fire.

Love this visual. Roku's statement is true, which once again calls into question how much of Aang is a unique person as opposed to a conglomeration of previous avatars. But the deserter's right here - Aang doesn't have the self-discipline to learn fire right now. I don't know if learning water and earth first would get him that discipline, but it would certainly buy him a few more months of maturing.

If I had to be an army deserter on the run from an evil imperial power, this is certainly the place I'd choose to hide. So pretty.

Sokka isn't an oaf!

This is going to go so badly. This deserter guy is 100% right to start with the basics, but Aang is the opposite of a willing student. He's happy to learn, if they do it his way, which is jump straight to flashy fire and burn everybody's eyebrows off. Not to say the deserter is a good teacher - he's certainly not suited to Aang. But people strong armed by spirits generally don't bring their A game.

It seems to me like bending fire is almost more about leashing fire than using it.

Wasting his time? Didn't it take Aang his whole life so far to master airbending? And he thinks spending a couple of hours on the basics of firebending is wasting his time?

Dear Avatar writers: My comment about Aang burning everybody's eyebrows off was supposed to be facetious. Could you dial down Aang's idiocy this episode just a little bit please? Feeling really sorry for the deserter here.

This deserter's got sighing down pat. I get the impression that he's had decades of dealing with hotheaded idiot students.

Zhao was his student? That's a neat way of doing combined backstory and parallel story in the present. I thought it was a flashback but it's actually what's currently going on. Neat.

"Learn restraint or risk destroying everything you love." Good lesson even outside of a bending context.

This golden forest throughout this episode is absolutely gorgeous. Although it seems to be stuck in eternal sunset (not complaining).

I was right! Firebending lesson number one isn't making fire, it's leashing fire.

"But I'm ready to do so much more" Hell no you aren't. The fact that you say that with a straight face after A DAY of lessons proves you aren't.

You mean you failed the lesson. Congrats.

Hey look. Exactly what the deserter said would happen is happening. And so an innocent pays the price for Aang's hubris. Ain't that always the way?

Hell yeah Sokka. You tell him.

Here's a good lesson for Aang to learn, unfortunately at the expense of Katara's arms: sometimes sorry doesn't cut it. Since Katara's arms are injured, is she currently unable to bend? With the amount that her self-image is built around her bending, this is going to double suck.

Katara can auto-bend?!? Instinctively? That was lucky.

Hey deserter guy: while your insight into waterbending healing and the firebending mindset is certainly valuable to Katara and the audience, maybe a recently-burned teenage girl is not the best target for your talk therapy?

Master indeed. That's got to be the single most impressive firebending move yet. Look at that. That's one guy!

See Aang? If only you squatted a little lower, you'd be able to pull this off.

Aang still hasn't learned his lesson. Impulsively firebending should have taught him to be less impulsive. Instead it teaches him to make dramatic blanket prohibitions on firebending and throw himself head first at Zhao with no plan.

If Zhao is an admiral, and the deserter's former student, does that settle Chey's admiral/general debate on the side of admiral? Or do fire nation military branches do cross training?

Now it's Zhao having the hubris problems. Does he really think that 8 guys, only 4 (?) of whom are benders, can take down Mr. Firewall?

The way Zhao's voice actor delivers the line "until I got bored" very nearly redeemed his whole character. Suddenly not just an asshole, but a human too. Given how abrasive the deserter is, I'm almost sympathetic.

Who wins in the fight of Aang's hubris v. Zhao's hubris?

This is a very cool move. It seems that Aang only has hubris problems when he's trying to bend fire - he's back to his usual self when he bends air. Can the element have that much of an effect on the mindset?

I'm really liking this delightfully one-sided fight. Aang really redeeming himself for his early-episode idiocy.

This should not work on a well-adjusted adult.

"I don't know why, but I thought you'd be better than Zuko." Tragically, Aang has no idea how savage that line is.

"Jeong Jeong said you had no restraint" says the kid who, up until this scene demanded it, had no restraint. A stinger of a line that is undermined in context.

Literally.

How many outfits did Aang pack? Because air nomad tailors aren't exactly thick in the air these days.

Was that a whole camp of deserters? And they've all gone into hiding?

Getting the first fishhook out with a second fishhook: when logic goes too far.

Final Thoughts

Zhao really screwed up this time. He and his men are going to have to walk back to their ship.

Roku really screwed up this time. Katara wouldn't have been burned if Roku didn't intimidate the deserter into teaching Aang.

Chey really screwed up this time. If he hadn't brought Aang back to his camp, he'd still have a settlement to live in.

Aang really screwed up this time. If he hadn't insisted on both attending the festival and outing himself at it, he never would have led Zhao to the deserters' camp.

Just a thought: maybe spiritually bullying a scarred veteran into teaching combat basics is a bad idea?

I really want to like this episode. Beautiful setting. What Sokka and Katara stuff there is, is great. Appa and Momo even get a funny joke, and Appa gets to murder some people. And most importantly, the deserter is RIGHT. THE WHOLE TIME. And he was right to insist on not teaching Aang. Roku really blew it. Everything the deserter knew would happen if he taught Aang did happen, because he knows firebending, and he knows how students like Aang approach it (and let's be honest - he's not the right person to teach Aang anything). Now Aang's thrown up a mental block around firebending that will have to be surmounted no matter what he says he will or won't do. At least Katara uncovered a new skill.

I have not seen Apocalypse Now, but this is Apocalypse Now, right? In which case I know why Aang doesn't work for me this episode: he's in the wrong genre. This episode is actually quite serious. Chey may call the deserter enlightened, but Chey's an idiot. What the deserter is, is broken. He's another victim of the fire nation. He's also easily the most skilled firebender we've seen so far, with deep insight into at least part of the nature of his element (I say part because the episode itself suggests that his view is overly negative by having him point out the sun as a source of fire, which isn't inherently destructive - it just is). The deserter is a person you absolutely should listen to, saying things Aang absolutely should hear, albeit he says them rather harshly. But Aang is in peak kid's cartoon mode this episode, and the deserter (and most other characters actually) are in Vietnam-era War is Hell movie mode. It makes Aang jarring throughout, to the point that I was mad at him for most of the episode.

That being said, Aang almost (almost) completely redeemed himself in that last brilliant fight. 'Hoisted by his own petard' has got to be one of my top three favourite narrative devices, and that Zuko dig was the icing on the cake. As I said above, it's a goddamn tragedy that Aang doesn't have the necessary context to know how much that dig hit home. Then again, Sokka and Katara would probably appreciate it more than Aang. I feel like they're more appreciative of petty vindictiveness.

Speaking of Sokka, great to see the continuity from last episode's lesson: ride or die for Aang until it's family on the line. Sokka will gladly take Aang to the north pole until Aang steps between him and his father, at which point he's on his own. Sokka will gladly take Aang to the north pole until he hurts Katara, at which point Sokka will rub his face in the dirt. And, honestly? At that point of the episode, Aang's flaky hubristic 12 year old idiot side was so annoying to me that I was rooting for Sokka in that fight.

We know Aang's a bit of a softie, but someone who didn't know that just saw Sokka face down the Avatar for the sake of his sister. Takes courage.

It was also nice to see Sokka and Katara more united than usual in their opinions. While Katara was willing to give things a chance, neither of them was all that enthusiastic about anything that happened this episode. Usually Katara blindly follows Aang and blindly opposes her brother, so it was nice to see her more (not fully) aligned with both sense and Sokka.

It's not really touched on, but Aang really screwed things up for the various deserters. They weren't exactly comfortable where they were, but they seemed settled, safe, and provided for. Now they're presumably on the run. Oops.

If I could excise Aang from all but the last fight of this episode, it would be a serious contender for my favourite so far. But as I cannot excise him, this one is thoroughly middle of the pack. This episode had some serious stuff to say about the horrors of war from a perspective I defy you to find in any other kids' show, if only Aang would sit down and shut up for a minute.

#atla #avatar: the last airbender #the deserter #avatar the last airbender

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