#no more Kataang or Zutara she’s with Azula now

[lesbian-honey-lemon]

katzula, zukka, and taang

nobody gets left out here in my shipping world

(I have an AU in my head where Katara heals Azula after the Agni Kai and they go off to the Sun Warriors on a redemption arc)

(zuko, toph, aang, and sokka are off trying to find Sokka’s sword and also running the Fire Nation bc they really don’t wanna mess with Azula, and they know Katara could beat the shit out of her anyway)

[zvtara-was-never-canon]

You're saying that zutara wasn't supported by the writers and shouldn't have been an endgame. That's a lie! and you can verify this, for example, by reading this post. Zutara has a huge support of writers and actors, she was supposed to become a canon! We were just robbed.

https://www.tumblr.com/crienselt/744143410729041920?source=share

I can show you lots of videos of Grey Delisle saying Azula and Zuko are totally fucking (including one she recorded for my birthday), and there's an infamous clip of Bryke proposing Azula and "The Blue Spirit" as a potential ship in a pannel. Somehow I don't think you'll take that as meaning my OTP is canon and was just robbed of it's endgame at the last second - but apparently tumblr posts are solid proof, therefore my argument is perfect and all you Zutara fans are now gonna have to accept that you ship Katara with a guy that canonically (by the standards YOU GUYS are trying to set at least) loves incest even more than Jaime and Cersei Lannister did. And oh, would you look at that! During one of the times Grey mentioned Zucest, Dante said "The Fire Nation are a bit like the Lannisters." See the links if you don't believe me. WHERE'S YOUR GOD NOW?

The creators/showrunners, writers, and lead writer have all said a billion times "Kataang was always the heart of the show and by the time the first episode aired we were set on it being endgame. Some people in the crew liked BOTH Kataang and Zutara, but Zutara was NEVER seriously considered as a real possibility for endgame or even temporary romance. The only love triangle ever considered was Aang, Katara and MALE Toph."

It doesn't matter how many interviews yall fake, how many clips you take out of context, how many deleted scenes you claim existed without a shred of proof to back it up, how many times you go "but this actor whose job is ACTING not WRITTING says he likes Zutara" or "This writer that wrote tons of Kataang episodes said the word Zutara once when writting a scene between Zuko and Katara" - your ship is still fanon. That's not a dig at you or saying it's bad, it's just a fucking fact.

Write some fanfic if you like it so much, but don't turn the production of the series itself into your fanfic just so you can lie to yourself about how there was ever any chance of you getting what you wanted in the actual canon.

And for real, you're gonna try to use the LIVE ACTION as proof? The thing the creators disowned? Netflix's over-glorified cosplay session that everyone keeps saying "It's mid at best" is THE argument you go for? Have some goddamn standards, I'm begging you.

[demaparbat-hp]

I used to just think Zutara was cool because Zuko and Katara had that whole fire-water duality, had more chemistry with each other than their canon love interests, Kataang gave me this sexist pseudo-incestuous vibe while Mai was just way too under-developed to interest me (Zuko gets the most character development out of all the characters but they pair him off with the most boring character in the series?).

Now when I actually think about it more deeply, Zutara genuinely made more sense for the narrative and characters too. Aang was told he had to let go of Katara so he could become a fully realized Avatar but then he just gets a deus ex machina so he doesn't have to. They dropped an entire arc just for Kataang to get together and made it happen in the most stupid way. The lion turtle deus ex machina was already badly done but at least it sorta made sense with the lore. The rock was just beyond ridiculous. Aang solved his problems by randomly hitting a rock even though they already established how Aang had this unhealthy attachment to Katara because she was his coping mechanism for his lost people. Instead of letting her go, Aang keeps that attachment and becomes even more possessive of her. He never learns to prioritize the world over Katara even though it is his duty as the Avatar! He didn't have to sacrifice or learn anything to achieve his goals and the way he became a fully realized Avatar NEVER made any sense. Katara and Aand were not always intended to end up together if you look at the IP Bible. Katara goes back to the SWT to help rebuild it while Aang goes looking for the hidden Air Nomads. There's hints early on in Book 1 that the Air Nomads are still alive (like how Aang was able to get a bison whistle from some merchants but they never explain where they got it from).

Meanwhile the whole Maiko relationship seemed like it was a metaphor to represent Zuko's false destiny and dissatisfaction with his life since Mai encouraged him to sink into his bad habits and ignore everything else, and Azula actively encouraged them to get together so she could control Zuko easier and keep him in the Fire Nation. Zuko leaving Mai behind felt like him embracing his true destiny. This entire thing falls apart when they get back together though, and them being so toxic in the comics is just further proving how dysfunctional they are (like, do they think this is going to sell us on the ship?). I also thought it was strange that apparently Zuko and Mai liked each other since they were kids but Mai never bothered to write him his entire banishment, Zuko never thought about her, Iroh never mentions her, Zuko was totally fine with going on a date with Jin (which Iroh also encouraged), and Iroh thought Zuko and Katara would make a good couple as soon as he saw them interacting as friends. It makes me think Bryke just created Mai and put her with Zuko as a way to discourage Zutara shippers but then forgot to develop her properly. Zuko doesn't even think about Mai after she risked his life to save him lol.

I'm about to make this a long answer, sorry about that :)

I love narrative, and I love to analyze how it is built. Narrative is the way a story is shaped to express its themes. Narrative is using the events within the story to build metaphors. Narrative is the smart foreshadowing, the parallels, the foils. Narrative is intentional, until it isn't.

I am not a professional. I do not have a college degree on this subject. I just like to think about what can make writing be great or lacking. I am merely expressing my personal opinion on this show and these characters, not stating an universal truth.

ATLA is such a well-written show. It treats its themes maturely and builds the story and characters masterfully. Of course, it isn't perfect, as nothing made by human hands is meant to be. ATLA has issues with its storyline and characters and, ultimately, with the narrative itself.

Aang's character arc is different to Zuko's in that, while Zuko's is focused on change, Aang's ultimately ends with him standing his ground. (And isn't that poetic? That in order to grow they need to embrace the philosophy of their opposite element?)

Zuko was forced to change in order to survive from a very young age. He learned to suppress his true, compassionate nature, to become The Perfect Prince—that which Azula embodies. When Zuko fails to do this, he is burnt and tossed away and forced to change once more. He has been hurt and thus is the farthest he has ever been from his true self—Zuko almost forgets who he is.

Zuko's arc, in that way, is similar to Aang's. It's about staying true to himself, but also about learning, about opening his eyes to the horror and using that same passion he has always had to do the right thing. Zuko changes, not into the person he was, but into someone who could, in the future, turn into the better version of himself.

Aang is different. Aang is a child born into peace, who does not have the personal, terrible experience of his people's genocide or the hundred years of war that have left the world wrecked. Aang's arc is about changing and learning and adapting to this new reality, about accepting his role as the Avatar. But it's also about standing firm and saying, "This is who I am, this is where I come from—pain will not break me".

Aang's struggle to control the Avatar State was all about that. The Avatar State meant that Aang lost control. It meant the pain and the hurt had turned him into a thing of anger (righteous as it was) and instinct and awe. Aang needed to be at peace with himself in order to control the Avatar State.

That tiny rock at the final battle felt like an easy way out. It felt like taking from the sheer terror of watching yourself almost kill a man as if from afar. The real moment of triumph for Aang in the finale happened when he stopped. It happened when he took control back and ended the Avatar State, stopping himself from betraying what he believed in.

Was not killing Ozai truly the best choice? I won't get into that debate. I know where I stand on it, but it's not really the point I'm trying to make here.

Aang's triumph, character-wise, happens when he stands his ground and refuses to abandon who he is and what he believes in. And for someone whose flight or fight response almost always turns to flight, this is a huge deal.

Now, where do Katara and Mai stand on this?

It has always been clear to me (even as a Maiko shipper) that Mai was always supposed to be a narrative device. Her relationship with Zuko is supposed to give us, the viewers, and him, another reason to see that this isn't the life he wants, that everything isn't perfect even when it should be on paper.

Zuko goes back home. Zuko is welcomed by his nation with open arms. He is revered. Loved. His father tells him he is proud of him. Zuko has a doting girlfriend—a beautiful, noble girl who can kick his ass and is everything a Fire Prince could wish for. She is adequate and things with her are easy, untroubled. Zuko has everything he could wish for.

And yet he is not happy.

Mai and Zuko have issues that should not be pinned fully on either of them. They had trouble comunicating. They wanted different things in life. They had different ways to look at the world. Different ways to look at each other. Different ways to cope. Different ways to express themselves. Different expectations.

And that's okay. It's possible to make a relationship like that work. Nobody is perfect and no relationship is flawless. Opposites attract and it's possible to find a middle ground in which they can both be happy.

Except they never truly did.

Mai and Zuko's relationship was a plot device. One that did its job damn well... Until it didn't.

If your relationship with the girl is supposed to symbolize the lowest point in your life, and going back into being someone you don't like anymore, then why get back to her when the story is over?

As for Katara, well...

Many things have been said about the abandoned Letting Go Of Katara arc. I'd like to avoid that discussion right now, if that's okay.

I think Zuko and Katara's relationship would have made a lot of sense both narratively and thematically, but also (and most importantly) it would have made sense character-wise.

Give them a few years, let them explore the beautiful friendship they had at the end of the series. Let them find themselves and grow into their roles in this different, exciting new world. Let them reconnect.

If they fall in love in the process? Well, maybe it was a long time coming.

[empressofthesunslittlecorner]

Let's talk about Zutara

WARNING NOT KATAANG AND MAIKO FRIENDLY

CONTINUE WITH PRECAUTION

I thought I should finally use this second blog of mine for the reason I made it.

To scream into the void and find mutals.

So let's talk about one Ship which people to this day fight over.

The fanon ship (at it pains me to write this) made out of Zuko and Katara from Avatar the Last Airbender aka. Zutara.

I read a lot of analyses, arguments and so on about this ship.

It probably all has been said about Zutara, but since I'm writing an AangXOC story which will include Zutara, I felt like I should give my stance on it.

Back when Avatar first aired in the country I lived in the time I was like 11-12 years old.

I had an instant crush on Aang since he was so funny, kind and gentle.

I never saw Aang's crush on Katara as a problem, because it always seemed to me, till season 3, that Katara was just motherly to Aang.

Giving a friend a cheek kiss in thanks doesn't automatically mean that you like-like them.

At this time I only really shipped Sokka and Yue and cried my eyes out how it ended.

And then the famous scene from book 2 in the crystal catacombs under Ba Sing Se happened.

Short recap, in that season Zuko goes through a lot of chances and I root for, wishing him the best.

Now back to the scene, I said.

The scene turned me into a Zutara shipper in one instant.

Zuko and Katara opening up to each other, sharing their traumas and feelings about the Fire Nation, Katara offering to heal his scare...it was poetic cinema.

I was shivering all over and was like kiss, kiss, kiss!

Let's not forget that before this scene I didn't even see them as a potential couple...but this scene, this beautiful moment they shared with each other, opened my eyes.

I was like, yeah this is it, this is something one should want from a partner. Mutual understanding.

Then Zuko decided to betray Katara for a chance to go home and I cried right there with our favourite waterbender.

I felt also betrayed.

The scene they shared made me feel things, which I experienced as a young girl for the first time, I felt the connection between Zuko and Katara like it was my own.

I was Katara at this moment and couldn't believe that the boy who opened up to me, who understood what it was like to have their mother taken away from the Fire Nation, who said that he wanted to change, that he turned his back on me.

Didn't I/Katara mean nothing to him?

Didn't he feel how special our/their moment was?

I was devasted.

When Zuko then joined the Gaang in the middle of season 3 I could understand Katara's anger towards him.

Katara and I trusted him first and he betrayed our trust.

We had a right to be angry.

As the Southern Raiders came on, as I saw how flawlessly they worked as a team, I felt my own heart heal.

I swerve to this day, that I thought they would kiss at the end of the episode, but we got a hug.

However, this hug, made me feel all giddy and mushy inside.

I felt it was something special.

Maybe even more than a kiss.

It was a huge of forgiveness and the start of a new bond.

And then the last episode comes on.

Zuko sacrificed himself to save Katara from Azula lighting, she healed him then...I thought, yes this is it, now comes the kiss...but nothing.

Then suddenly Zuko is back together with Mai and I was like WTF?!

And Aang and Katara share this really intense kiss at the end.

I was literally like:

It came out of nowhere for me.

That Aang wasn't over his crush on Katara we all know, but when did Katara decide she liked Aang?

When did this realisation happen, when in the Ember Island Player, which was like a few days before Sozin's Comet Katara made clear that she didn't want to have a romance or get kissed by Aang, which he didn't respect.

Did he ever actually apologise for the unwanted kiss? I don't think so.

Remember I had a crush on Aang, but through the seasons I became a Zutara Shipper and literally felt all their moments like they were my own.

I was Katara and Aang wasn't on my radar anymore.

I really doubted my interpretation skill, did all these lovely, mushy, heartful moments have been really romantic or did I project?

I felt like Zuko and Katara had broken up with me.

Yeah, so much inpact had their "friendly" moments at me!

To this day, the hug Katara and Zuko shared on the Southern Raiders is one of the most lovely moments of any of my ships.

Not even kissing made me feel, what this hug made me feel.

Think about how powerful this is!

If Zutara had kissed, I would have probably passed out or cried like a baby in happiness.

I don't know and I will never know since it's a fanon ship.

Uurgh.

Anyway, years passed and as I mention before I read a lot of analysis and so on.

What shocked me most was that Byrke originally planned to have Zuko and Katara together but then changed their minds.

It did reassure me, how I wasn't imagining things between them, however reading then how the Souther Raider Episode changed a lot of times because Bryke found it too shippy, tells you a lot.

They wanted to make Kataang canon and better, than the natural flow Zutara had going on.

I want to repeat again, a HUG was MORE ROMANTIC and INTENSE than the crappy kiss Kataang shared.

Like what?!

How is this possible?

Well, yeah, if you don't force things and actually make people interact in a wholesome way it can be.

Zuko and Katara felt never forced because they just clicked. They were different, but the same in many things, that it was so natural to understand the other.

Aang and Katara felt always more like a mother-and-son duo, than real lovers.

And Maiko was kinda lame too.

Sorry.

I have this theory they just wanted to pair Zuko with a Fire Nation girl and be done with it.

I don't know why they chose Mai when it could have been worked with Ty Lee too, if it was only to pair Zuko with someone who doesn't understand him or doesn't want to try.

Excuse me, maybe Ty Lee would have been better since she seemed to care for her friends, in contrast to Mai who just tried her hardest to be goth and hate everything.

Sorry.

What I'm trying to say with this rant?

I think, as someone who had liked Aang and then felt more connected to Zuko and Katara, I can clearly say that if Katara had been a real girl and not a fictional character controlled by men, she would be together with Zuko.

Why would I/Katara choose someone who I need to mother, who is younger than me, who can't relate to me, if there is an older handsome boy who is kinda dorky and awkward and tries his best, understands my feelings and helps me to parent the Gaang?

Yeah, no, Katara would have smooched Zuko if she had been a real girl.

Now, who of you who knows me, can say, but Empress some of your OCs are older than their canon partner, how can you say that Kataang can't work if you do this in your stories?!

I want to make clear I don't have general a problem if the girl is older than the guy or taller.

It's just that their supposed age gap is when they are together makes it creepy.

Look at an example.

My parents have a three-year age gap.

Nothing much.

They are both in their 60, mid 60, so it's not weird.

They are in the same mature stage in life and understand the struggles of the other.

Now think if my parents meet at 12 and 15.

My dad is the older one.

Are you going to say with a straight face that it wouldn't have been creepy if my parents started to date at this age?

What does a teenager want with a pre-puperty child?

Also, they live in completely different worlds, how can they relate to each other?

The same goes for Katara and Aang, what does a 14-year-old want from a 12-year-old?

I bet if it was the other way around, we would all give Aang shit for preying on a 12-year-old girl.

The gender shouldn't decide if we find a couple creepy or not, even if it's so sadly.

What I want to say, Kataang would have worked better if let's say season 3 ended with no pairing, just all being friends and happy and then in the comics when they age, when Katara is 22 and Aang is 20 they got together.

They would have matured, been on the same level, probably dated other people and had experience.

It would have been okay.

Even if I still think Zutara is superior in anything.

Anyway, I hope I could explain myself and no hate to the canon ships and their shippers.

Ship and let ship.

I just wanted to explain my reason why I will be always a Zutara Shipper and don't reconsider the ending of Avatar as the end and Legend of Korra.

I will forever be Team-Season-Four-Where-Aang-Finds-Hiding-Airbenders-And-Falls-in-Love-With-A-Airbender Girl-His-Age-And-Zuko-And-Katara-Marry-Eachother-And-Katara-Becomes-The-Most-Beloved-And-Badass-Fire Lady-In-History!

And they find also Zuko mom ^^

So for now this is it for me.

If you want my take on an Aang and OC story, where Zutara will be canon, go to my other Tumblr profile empressofthesunwriter and read Yin and Yang.

Here is the link to the Index

I wish you all a nice day/night!

Till next time!

[cosmiccdivinityy]

I swear if Aang was older/the same age as Zuko when the show started the shipping wars would be totally different.

Zutara vs Kataang would still be there cause come on friends to lovers vs enemies to lovers. But the arguments would at least be better and make sense. Cause the stuff now is just so nitpicky and doesn’t make sense to me. Also hypocritical.

No more Aang is too young (Zuko is two years older but it’s fine)

He’s emotionally immature (so is Zuko for like most of the show)

The people who only started off liking zutara cause Zuko was more attractive

The arguments would be way more interesting imo. Then the stuff we get now. Like if Aang was the same age as Zuko. Would we still get people making the weird Katara was his mom comments or would it be seen as cute that she’s trying to take care of him.

Also was pointed out we woulda pivoted from kataang vs zutara to kataang vs zukaang and omg the way Katara would’ve been dragged. Like she already gets shit now imagine her being in the way for some girls slash ship.

It’d be like the hate Sakura and Ginny got all over again.

Idk just a random thought I had. Wonder if Azula/Aang would also be way bigger than it is? Hmm.

[struggling-author]

Hey what are your avatar otps besides azulaang?

oh umm… I wouldn’t call them OTPs since that is exclusively Azulaang, but my bi Azula headcanon lives in a variety of ships. Azutara, Azuki, Maizula… not Tyzula tbh because that feels like… imbalanced? and not Tophzula because they are menace-besties but not romantic, but with any of the other girls I think it could be great. Azutara has the enemies to lovers from Azulaang but with more spice and less forgiveness, they‘d tear eachother apart first but that makes it even sweeter if they eventually fall in love. Azuki is kind of different because Suki is more rational and holds less of an emotional grudge, it‘d be difficult for Azula to earn her trust but she would not be openly hostile to her unless necessary. I imagine this one could only happen if Azula is already in the middle or post redemption though, because Suki would not put up with any EtL shit. I guess that is exactly why it intrigues me too, I feel Suki would be more willing to give Azula a chance, more than Katara for example, but at the same time it would be impossibly hard to win her trust and I‘d like to see if Zula can manage it. Lastly Maizula, and I prefer this one over Tyzula because I feel Mai is more capable of holding her own against Azula in a relationship. It’s a complicated version of childhood friends to lovers and I‘m kind of here for it. No idea how it would work though lol.

Aside from Azula ships, I think Zutara is pretty cool and works well alongside Azulaang. Kataang is kinda cool in theory too, but I don’t like shipping Aang with anyone except Azula, it feels wrong 🤷‍♂️ The only other Aang ship I can imagine liking is Zukaang, but I don’t talk about it much.

Oh and I have to give a shoutout to Sokkla, I don’t particularly vibe with it but they’re the sister ship to Azulaang and I do see the potential of the two genius strategists, so if Aang didn’t exist I would definitely ship Sokkla instead. Nothing but love to the comrades over there. 🫶🏼

edit: totally forgot this but I actually also love Tylaang aka Ty-Lee and Aang, it just has absolutely no fandom so it’s hard to get the ball rolling. I just feel they would be such a wholesome bubbly cute ship, and I dig the Ty-Lee airbender ancestry theory so she‘d love to learn all about airbender customs and they‘d have so much fun and probably a huge family 😅 anyway I think party of why I ship this is just because I think these two deserve the world and it represents my wish for them to be totally carefree and happy. you can also add Azula and make this a throuple, I think that would work because you have Tyzula as the polar opposites and Aang in the middle to bridge the gap.

speaking of throuples I enjoy the idea of… Azutaraang? (Azula/Katara/Aang) but it is very difficult to make work. The only way I can see it is if Azula and Katara fall in love first because nothing good could come of them fighting over Aang. or maybe I could see like a stranded on a deserted island AU where the three of them have to work together and learn to rely on eachother… idk, difficult but not impossible.

Oh and I love Zuki too (Zuko x Zuki) …damn I guess I do have quite a few non-Azulaang ships. anyway this is essentially a bodyguard AU and it’s actually my favorite Zuko ship (sorry Zutara) not much to say about it cuz I’ve barely engaged with it, but I love the idea and think they would just work really well together. I also can see this as a throuple with Sokka again. I don’t really vibe with Zukka on their own but if you add Suki then I love it, because Suki deserves two good boys and it’s more fun for everyone involved if those two good boys are in love with eachother too.

final edit hopefully: Sokka Azula Aang is good too, for the same reasons listed for Zuko Suki Sokka, I swear that’s it now. goodbye lol.

[cattapz037]

Ok so after a long time thinking and a very long confusing conversation with my grandma (confusing for her at least because I ended up doing a whole backstory and lore explanation), I must say I’m slightly disappointed in the Netflix ATLA. Not as disappointed as I could have been but still disappointed. They took out character traits/development, added some that weren’t needed like when Iroh straight up murdered Zhao by lighting him on fire. Sokka, Katara, and Aang barely interacted with eachother it was just Sokka and Katara most of the time and how do you expect me to believe Kataang is gonna happen when the two characters barely had any interaction like Katara and Zuko had more chemistry in the scarf scene then Katara and Aang did in all 8 episodes, this version’s starting to make me root for Zutara and I’ve never been a Zutara shipper ‘til I watched this

Never once did I see Aang waterbend not once, unless I accidentally missed it. And they took out all the filler episodes that helped the characters bond and develop. 6 characters showed up in episode 3. Why did Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee show up so early they barely did anything and all Azula did was just help Zhao, what they could have done was have them appear later (like whenever they were gonna have the s2 arc) and give them more use and then reveal that Azula was the one who helped Zhao which would give Zuko some more confliction in joining Azula or helping Aang like he had in the original s2 finale

And I wasn’t a fan of how they portrayed Bumi’s challenges. In the original they were so Aang could see things in different way to solve problems but in the adaptation it was just mainly Bumi projecting his trauma on Aang in the form of “teaching him to make hard choices” which was an interesting idea I just feel it could have been portrayed differently. And this version of “The Mad King Bumi” just feels broken instead of eccentrically crazy like the original.

And Aang didn’t have much struggle like the fight with Kyoshi in episode 2 I mean yeah sure, it was Kyoshi doing it but that’s it Kyoshi fought not Aang, Aang didn’t get to fight or at least try

Also the show kinda broke the “Show don’t tell” rule. Like the filler episodes were mentioned they said it happened but didn’t show it which I could have let slide if the main characters said it but they didn’t. And with Katara’s waterbending they say she had been practicing and showed her progress but didn’t show her working her way to reach that progress like not even in a background scene

“But the effects were decent”

I feel like there is more for me to say but I’m rather tired so that’s it for now this was part of my take on the Netflix ATLA live action. I got another post like this somewhere. I’ll probably just keep watching this show just so I can see the characters in live action

[atla-confessions]

Im new to the fandom, i watched atla, like, two weeks ago. and it was great! i loved it! but what surprised me the most, now, looking at the fandom tags and stuff, is... how much shipping there is. like, i know, its normal and all fandoms have ships. but to me, none of the characters really felt like theyd be a good ship?? even the canon ones, i didnt like kataang, i think sukki (or however its spelt) was fine, but didnt make me want to actively ship it, and i guess maiko is the ship i like most, just cause the vibes are good and edgy teen emos is a silly relationship dynamic. But i didnt even know mai existed before watching the show. all ive seen was zutara or zukka... and. neither of those ships (and especially zukka) have that sort of chemistry imo??? zutara is the commonly liked trope of enemies to lovers, but i think its a much more complex and interesting relationship if left as platonic. zukka literally has one episode where they rescue sokka's girlfriend and, thats kinda it. I love Zuko, hes my favourite character and hes very silly and goofy and has a great character arc. i kinda wish Mai (and Ty Lee) had more screentime to maybe get closer to her, as a character cause, especially in earlier seasons, she was more like a background character and didnt have much of an impact on the story other than being azulas lackey and then at the end rebelling against her. it seems like Lu ten had more of an impact on the story than her. And honestly seeing maiko being an actual couple really surprised me cause... zuko was absent for 3 or so years and then he comes back and then theyre back together all of a sudden. kind of made me go 'woah what'. but yeah, just some thoughts TLDR: new fan here, atla is super unshipable to me lol i dont like neither kataang or zutara (those ships are at war from what ive seen?) or any other ships really. also i want more Mai screentime

X

[impossiblycolorfulpanda]

Atla Netflix Trailer

I ain't gonna lie, that had me feeling jittery inside but still a bit bothered that Zuko's eyebrow isn't completely covered up to show that it's permanently missing.

Some believe that Zutara needs to be canon now since we got a full glance at the size comparison between Aang and Katara and it confirms what anti-kataang people were saying all along. It's a weird, self-inserting, kid-has-a-crush-on-minor-babysitter, dynamic that focuses only on Aang's perspective and attraction.

Y'all may call me hypocritical for agreeing with them and obsessing over Azulaang since Azula is the same age as Katara but the main differences between Kataang and Azulaang is that it's not gonna be framed with one acting parental and coddly to the other, we'd get insight into what those two feel for each other, Aang would be trading his child-like infatuations with Katara for a more mature love for Azula, though she deeply cares for him, Katara mostly sees Aang as a powerful symbol of hope than a person, Azula, at first, sees him as a dangerous enemy that needs to be neutralized by any means necessary which is no better, but once she looks past that, she'll see Aang for who he really is and value that, they would call each other out for their mistakes and directly and indirectly inspire each other to be better, I invented the concept of Aang and Azula becoming more spiritually bonded which allows one to know when the other is lying, and Azulaang can be endgame in their late teens or even early 20s.

As for Zutara, if they plan on going that route, they have to add in a season 4: Air. Otherwise, it'll come off as forced as Kataang, if not more so. If they add in a season 4 then I hope it becomes a part of the war arc and not-post war like most season 4 takes I've seen.

I always imagined Ozai, in any way possible, being the true instigator of the war and the antithesis of each member of team avatar as a whole, not just to Zuko. I'm anxious about that not happening but at the very least, he had better not get emasculated like he was in season 3. Let Ozai be a badass. Let him have a personal/thematical connection to all of Team Avatar, be a complete antithesis to Team Avatar, and prove to be the stronger, greater, more dangerous, and more competent character in comparison to both Azula and Iroh in any other way possible.

[awkward-txrtle]

fun. x ATLA

Idk if anyone else in the fandom listens to fun., but I'm a big fan of pretty much the whole Some Nights album. I was listening to it last week (yes, even the Some Nights - Intro, which I don't vibe with) because it was speaking to me in terms of ATLA characters (certain songs reminded me of certain characters).

"But Turtle, Nate Reuss wasn't focused on ATLA when he was writing this album"

Ok, and? I'm gonna have some fun with this!

So here's each song and the character I think it fits (not all are exact fits & not every song is included, but most are)

1. Some Nights - Sokka

"This is it, boys, this is war/what are we waiting for?" feels very Sokka to me, especially since he considers himself a warrior and is the protector of Wolf Cove after Hakoda and the other men leave to fight the fire nation. Also "I still see your ghost" could reference Kya, but more likely Yue, since Sokka says that he sees Katara's face when he tries to remember his mother. The line about the martyr reminded me of Suki. Ok also the "miss my mom and dad for this" line?? Come on. Ok BUT "my heart is breaking for my sister and the con she called love/and then I look into my nephew's eyes" is just SCREAMING a Zutara or Kataang fic of some sort. Come on, right?? It's just begging to be written. Overall, this is very existential crisis-Sokka to me.

2. We Are Young - Katara

Ok so I wasn't fully sure what song to give Katara and it just didn't feel right to leave her out so I deadass just gave her this one like 5 minutes ago, but it still works. It would also be AU-based, but hear me out. I'm assuming y'all are most likely to know this song out of all of them. So Katara's at a bar after breaking up with her boyfriend (Aang) and the Gaang's all here. "My seat's been taken by some sunglasses askin' bout a scar" would be Zuko asking about the scars on Katara's hands that she couldn't fully heal after Aang's firebending accident. "But between the drinks and subtle things/the holes in my apologies/you know I'm trying hard to take it back" feels very Aang to me, especially since he's immature. Then right after, I feel like it switches to a more Zutara vibe for most of the song. Also "the moon is on my side/I have no reason to run" with Katara is such a sick combo omg.

3. Carry On - Zuko

The lyrics are very angsty. "You swore and said we are not/we are not shining stars/this I know, I never said we are" feels like a very Zuko & Iroh interaction to me. And also "though I've never been through hell like that/I've closed enough windows to know you can never look back" !!!! Like that feels very Season 3 Zuko to me. Also, no matter what, Zuko is forced to carry on, whether it's with Ozai, Azula, the Gaang... Although don't get me wrong, Zuko does take back his destiny, but I'm referring more to how he can't give up. Also Ursa tells Zuko and he later says how he struggles and fights, even though it's hard. "And we talked and talked about how our parents will die/all our neighbors and wives" Zuko is very familiar with the concept of mortality, he nearly died and he loses his mother at a young age. I'm sure he worries about when Iroh will die, as well as his friends. I feel like Zuko has a line about people leaving him, but I can't find it. Ok next point "and it's nice to know when I was left for dead/I was found and now I don't roam these streets/I am not the ghost you are to me" is very reminiscent of Zuko's relationship (or lack thereof) with Ozai. Also "may your past be the sound of your feet upon the ground" feels like a very Iroh line. Last point, "on our darkest day, when we're miles away/so we'll come and we'll find our way home" is very reminiscent of Zuko's redemption arc and how he returns home and retakes his place in the line of succession and becomes Fire Lord.

4. It Gets Better - Katara?

Honestly the "yes, I know it hurts at first/but it gets better" reminds me a lot of Katara. I also liked the line about fire in the sky and snow on the ground. Not too much else to say.

5. All Alone - Mai

I really encourage you guys to listen to this song, it was really interesting. The lyrics reminded me of Maiko, especially how Mai seems to not care about anything. The girl's voice reminded me a lot of Mai throughout the series, especially her interactions with Zuko. "I gave her to you/I don't need a toy/I thought you might appreciate it/I don't like the way it moves" reminds me of their interaction when Zuko tries to give Mai the shell on Ember Island. "How do you cry with inanimate eyes/you're never gonna smile/with the way that you're wired" also reminded me a lot of Mai's character throughout the series.

(I really like All Alright, but wasn't sure who it would fit well with)

6. One Foot - Toph

"I put one foot in front of the other" is very Toph, she is a fighter first and foremost. "I don't need a new love or a new life" also feels very her, Toph doesn't care as much about the more material things compared to the rest of the Gaang. I'm sure there's more that can be said about this connection, but I didn't really vibe with the song so much. Sorry Toph.

7. Out on the Town - Aang

Okay, Aang fans, I'm asking you to stick with me here. "Cause I know I'll never take the time/to unpack my missteps and call all of our friends" feels very much like season 3 Aang, where he doesn't face consequences for his actions and Bryke kinda places him on this pedestal of sorts. Also, this is a kataang breakup song to me. The chorus really feels like Aang to me, putting his feelings before those of other people, causing a scene, there being consequences (that he somehow gets out of, but that's not today's discussion). "But I'm waiting for the day you come back and say/'hey maybe I should change my mind'" reminds me of the first 2 times Aang kisses Katara and how he expects her to change her mind on how she feels about him. Also the repetition of "open up your heart".

Overall, I found the entire album to be very Zuko-coded.

If you read this far, I appreciate you!

[linnoya-writes]

Zutara v. Kataang “what should’ve occurred post-Sozin’s Comet” canon divergent AU.

After the AgniKai, and Azula’s arrest by the FireSages, Zuko finally lets Katara thoroughly address the wound.  

“I’m alright— errgh!” 

A hand covers the center of his bare chest as they walk, but one thing Zuko’s quickly learned about Katara is to not question her concerned eyes or her tenacious stamina.  

“Let me see...” she stops them both in that grand echoing corridor on their way to meet the high-Sage.  She shoves Zuko’s hand reluctantly aside to see the lightning mark still bruising raw just below the area to his heart.  

The wound is a deep purple -- branching out like tiny veins --  and the girl’s eyes widen.

Katara had been holding so tightly to this relief that her very brief and impromptu healing session had gotten Zuko out of the worst possible outcome... but the truth was it had barely healed the wound.  His chest rises and falls uncomfortably as she studies the mark further with her ear, and hearing Zuko’s ragged breaths underneath all of that piled-up strength almost brings her to tears.  

How in the world can you be walking right now? she thinks, unable to imagine the young prince’s tolerance for pain.  

Katara looks up at him, the stern golden eyes returning her gaze and trying to convince her that he’s fine.  He was not.  She had used that excuse one too many times herself to know enough.

She summons a handful of water to soothe his wound while she speaks. 

“Azula mentioned a ‘family physician’— back when she was—“ Katara looks away, searching for the right words, but then decides against it and with a more determined face. “Where would the healing quarters be?” 

“It’s a medical wing,��� he rasps. “It’s not far.” 

His head turns forward, to the right direction, and while Zuko can manage walking on his own... Katara quietly insists on having him lean on her. He doesn’t protest.  

Their walk involves very few words, and Katara finds comfort in Zuko’s breathing next to her.  

The medical wing is grand, pristine and decorative with regal drapery of gold and red everywhere. To Katara, it feels too clean and sterile to think that anyone injured would’ve ever set foot there.  Zuko, however, seems to know the place well enough, as he makes his way around the cabinets and drawers to find bottles of liquids, washcloths, rolls of bandages and a cutting knife.  He sits himself down with a grunt on the nearest bed— not a cot, but an actual bed— and seems to forget Katara is there while he proceeds to clean the wound himself with his hyper-focused eyes.  

Katara watches, mesmerized.  This place, these tools… they all feel so sophisticated to her, but it’s listening to Zuko’s ragged breaths that finally gets her to approach him.  

“Let me try my hand at it again, please.”  

“It’s not that serious, Katara— she just grazed it.” 

“’Just grazed it’!? Zuko… this is your heart!  If we don’t take a look at every possible area of damage now, you might get seriously hurt.”  

“I’ve dealt with injuries before— I know when it’s bad.” 

“Oh, so that makes you the expert on how to treat lighting injuries?” 

Zuko winces up at her, then, seeing her arms crossed and her blue eyes glistening angrily.  They hold him in place.  

“I’m sorry,” he rasps.  

She drops her hands and gives a deep sigh.  

“Can you just… please just let me help you?”  

He nods, not looking away.  

“Lay down,” she commands, and brings in the closest footstool to use as a makeshift seat while Zuko clears away the bandages and ointments from the bed.   Zuko lays his head carefully on the pillow, grunting under his breath, and. Katara makes note of where that came from. 

“Sounds like she may have grazed some abdominal muscles, too.”  

Zuko looks away from her, annoyed, but he lets out a small chuckle.  

It catches her off-guard, but Katara proceeds to hold her hair back and leans an ear to his chest.  His heartbeat is normal, thank the spirits, but his breathing is still muffled, and when she places two fingertips over the bruising mark, Zuko lets out his very first real bellow of pain.  It echoes the walls of the wing.  Katara flinches back in her seat, watching his body shiver in response, his eyes shut tightly, his chest heaving. �� 

“Whatever that was…” he rasps as his head hits the pillow, “…don’t do it again.”  

“Zuko— I think the lightning hit one of your ribs,” Katara brings herself closer.

“There’s a brace…” Zuko points with his nose, “in that cabinet over there.” 

Katara glances over at where he’s gesturing, and then looks to him— to the scar on his face, and to the many unseen injuries that must’ve dressed this body once upon a time.  Her eyes fight a glimmer. 

Quietly, Katara goes over to the cabinet and pulls out a mint-condition rhino-elephant boned chest brace.  The weight of it is surprising in her arms.  When she returns to her stool, she sees a bit of dampness in Zuko’s forehead.  His lips are parched.  

For a moment, she forgets how to breathe.

“Zuko... how bad does it hurt?” She approaches his face, worried. “Tell me.”  

His eyes are shut, as if he were trying to concentrate on deep breaths and nothing else. 

“I can’t.” His weak, broken rasps almost break her.  

“Yes, you can!  Zuko, you can tell me. I… I’m not going to hurt you, okay?  I never meant to hurt you, and I’m sorry I made you think I’d ever do something so horrible to you…  but I’m going to make you better.  I promise!”  Her voice is quivering and she’s wiping tears from her eyes.  She has no idea when her other hand decided to find Zuko’s closest wrist, but there it is, and there it stays.  “But we have to work together—do you understand?  I can’t… I can’t do this all by myself.  I need you to trust me.” 

“I trust you.“ 

“What?” She was too preoccupied with her tears, she didn’t hear him clearly.

“I trust you, Katara.” 

His eyes are glistening, moving in a gold that is curiosity and faithful assurance. 

All at once, Katara feels at ease, shy, lost for words... unsure where else to look if not for his eyes.  

Zuko shifts his eyes towards the wound:  “I just meant that... I can’t let anyone see me like this. Especially the Head Sage. They might contest my ability to rule.” 

“Why?” She says this almost too loudly. “You already won that stupid duel. What else do you have to prove to them?”

“It doesn’t matter— I was a banished prince. Most of the court doesn’t believe I deserve to be here, much less with a crown.” 

Katara stares at Zuko, appalled, moving her eyes to the small FireNation sigil that’s clipped on the draping canopy of this bed.  

“No offense, Zuko,” she returns to address the wound, summoning more water from her pouch, “but right  now your country is ruled by a bunch of sour old idiots.”  

“I know,” he says with a hint of teenage sarcasm only Katara could catch. She wonders how much of Sokka’s personality had rubbed off on him. “Hopefully we’ll change that.” 

“We?” She glances to him, oddly. 

“Yeah.” He glances back to her, just as oddly. “I meant… you, me, Aang— the avatar— everyone?” 

“Oh. Right.” 

Katara feels too ashamed to admit that she hadn’t even thought about Aang since before the Agni Kai.  She focuses sternly on the wound. 

“Wait—”  Zuko edges his face to her from the pillow.  “What did you think I meant?” 

“Nothing!  It’s fine.” 

“Are-- are you serious!? You just asked me to trust you and now, you’re refusing to be open and honest with me?” 

Katara throws a glare at him, meeting Zuko’s very practiced glare and immediately knowing he’s right.  Still, she says nothing, and it’s a staring contest that Zuko does not have the energy to play. He scoffs.

“Forget it. Girls are crazy...” He quips, his head hitting the pillow again, his eyes looking at ceiling.  

“Fine! I’ll tell you—but it’s going to sound really really stupid so you can’t laugh.” Zuko turns to meet her pointed finger, both amused and disgusted. “You have to promise me you won’t laugh.” 

“Okay.”

“Promise!” She urges, sounding more and more bossy by the second.  

“Okay! Ugh—“ Zuko grunts under Katara’s healing water.  “I promise, alright?”  

“Good,” Katara takes a small breath, feeling her cheeks go warm.  “I— um, I thought you were talking about me… and you.”  

She’s too embarrassed to look Zuko in the eyes, particularly because she feels that warmth in her cheeks flood through her entire body.  

“...That’s what you imagined?” his raspy voice comes out shyly, and when Katara meets his eyes, she realizes he’s blushing too.  

She isn’t afraid to nod to him.  His eyes made her feel so at ease, so curious… and yet so vulnerable.   She wasn’t used to this.  

Katara breaks the eye contact to look at the water she’s bending for the healing session.  “Yeah. Like I said… stupid, right?”  

“I wouldn’t call it that, exactly...” Zuko returns to look at the ceiling, his voice coming in a thoughtful husk. “I just don’t know how it would work.”  

Katara laughs musically, avoiding his eyes.  “Yeah.  I don’t think I’m what anyone would consider Fire-Lady material... and I’m pretty sure we’d be at each others’ throats most of the time.  How would anything ever get done?”  

“We’d probably fight all the time.”  

“I mean, we were just fighting two seconds ago!”

“Right. We’re better off as allies.”  

Katara can feel the blush fading from her cheeks then, turning her gaze to him. 

“I think we’re a little more than that, though— I mean, with what happened back there.”  

Zuko meets her gaze again, curious.  “What would you call us, then?”  

Katara takes a moment.  

“We’re friends, Zuko.” She smiles, hopefully, returning to concentrate on the wound. “Friends who almost died trying to save one another.”  

“Friends.”  Zuko muses toward the ceiling. “It feels nice to say that.” 

“It does.” 

There’s a blush that passes over the two of them, but neither of them acknowledge it.  Instead, they talk about other things, letting the hours pass late into the night and early morning.  

***

By the time Sokka and Suki and Toph land over the Agni Kai arena on a commandeered Fire Nation airship, Katara knows that could only mean good news.  One look at Sokka’s limping leg in place of his missing sword and boomerang tells her enough, that her brother had given everything of himself to make sure mission to stop Ozai’s invasion had been successful...  and she quickly springs to action to get him and the girls to the medical wing.  

“Sparky!  You won!”  Toph runs immediately over to where she can hear Zuko’s breathing and laughter, throwing herself to her with an awkward side hug.  Sokka is too busy limping towards the opposite bed and close his eyes to say anything other than ‘We did good, buddy.’  It’s Suki who notices the brace and bandages over Zuko’s chest, the ointments and two cups of tea on his nightstand, the extra blankets and resting pillow at the foot of his bed... the warm, shy smile on his face as he’s listens to Toph talk about her ironclad suit on the airship.  It’s a kind of sweet, nurturing wholesomeness Suki had no idea existed in this usually-stern young man.  

When Katara’s voice pops up behind her, Suki flinches back to reality. 

“He took a pretty hard hit from Azula near the end...” Katara says quietly to her, holding some blankets intended for Sokka.  “...but he’s gonna be okay.”

Suki, like any girl her age, can sense from Katara’s voice that she’s choosing to leave out a major detail of what had happened during the Agni Kai... but the girl doesn’t pry.  

Only because she has something else to tell Katara.

“Aang’s on his way over.”

Katara stumbles in her words and almost drops her blankets.  Her eyes widen.  “....Aang?”

“Yeah.  He had to meet with the White Lotus and arrest Ozai.  But he should be on his glider heading this way.”

“He came back.  He actually came back.”  Katara muses, clutching the blankets tightly to her frame.  She’s so happy, so relieved by this news; she can’t wait to see Aang again.  But when she glances over at Zuko’s tender smile, talking about the Agni Kai with Toph... Katara doesn’t know why there’s suddenly a heaviness in the pit of her stomach at the thought about seeing Aang’s face. They hadn’t exactly left things in the best terms before the battle… or rather… even before that. She thinks about their moment on the balcony of Ember Island, and shuts her eyes tightly. And breathes.

***

She sees him gracefully landing on on his glider outside the arena.

“Aang!”

His name is effortless and joyful when she says it, running to him and hugging him without waiting for any approval.  Katara can feel the extra inches of height on him, the young muscles of his arms hugging her back just as tightly.  You saved the world, she thinks, just as I knew you would.

“Are you okay?” is the second thing she says to him.

“I got the Avatar State back.”

“You did!?”

They’re still hugging.  Their answers come in muffled voices against their shoulders.  

“Yeah. It helped me defeat the FireLord.” 

“That’s wonderful!”  Katara lifts her head and kisses Aang on the cheek while they hug.  “I knew you could do it.”  

When Katara tries to part from him, then, Aang remains holding onto her close.  Her smile is still dressed on her face.

“And, well… that means the war is finally over!”  

Aang announces this so proudly, with such an indiscreet coat of anticipation and giddiness… it makes Katara want to crawl under her own skin as her smile feels all of a sudden fraudulent.  It’s only when Aang moves his face closer to hers that she finally, finally snaps out of it, and pushes herself fully out of his hug.  Her arms fold over her frame, and she still manages to look at him. 

“Katara?”

His voice quickly goes quiet and confused — and sad — and it takes every ounce of strength for Katara to not comfort him as she usually does, but also not look away in shame.

“Aang, I… I think we need to talk— no!  Please don’t run away.  Please.” 

She sees Aang stepping back and she hears her voice turning firm, and it kills her.  She knows it’s Aang’s turn to feel completely out of his own skin, feeling unexpectedly cornered, ready to take off on his glider the moment this person he trusted more than anyone is about to tell him something he doesn’t want to hear.  

“It’s — it’s okay,” Aang attempts, and she can hear the effort; how much he’s trying to sound like a man.  “We don’t have to talk about it now.  There’s still a lot we have to do. It can wait.”  

And Katara puts a hand over her eyes and groans.  Of course he would pull that, and she doesn’t blame him.  

“Aang— I’m trying to talk to you,” she coaxes. “Could you please listen to me?”

Aang carefully chooses his words, his innocent, childish lilt returning. 

“What do you want to talk about?” 

“About... this!”  Katara gestures wildly between herself and Aang multiple times. “About us… not sharing our feelings, and not being able to be open and honest with each other.”  

“What are you talking about? I’ve always been honest with you!” He freezes and then cowers sadly, rubbing his neck. “Actually— no. That’s not true. I never told about what happened when I met the Guru at the Eastern Air Temple.”  

“What do you mean?”

“Well— promise me you won’t get mad?” 

“Aang,” Katara’s voice lowers, concerned. “What happened?”  

He takes a breath, looking at the ground.

“I was about to open the last chakra and gain full control of the Avatar State, and then the Guru told me I had to let go of all my earthly attachments.  And that meant letting go of you. I couldn’t do it.  I almost did but then I had a vision of you in trouble.  So I ran away.” 

“You what?”  Katara gathers her words. “Wait— so you refused to gain control of the Avatar State…. because you thought I was in danger?”  

His eyes begin glisten nervously, but his stance turns defensive at her.  

“Yes. Yes Katara, I did!  I wasn’t gonna just stand by and not do anything if I saw you were in trouble.“  

“So, you were willing...” Katara could feel the rage rising in her throat, her words quivering, “to put the entire world as risk, and lose this war… ... all because of me?” 

“I— I didn’t see it that way.”  

“Aang, that’s exactly what you did!”  Her eyes are a deep, exasperated blue and her hair moves wildly with every flail of her arms.  “You refused to control that power!  Thank the spirits I still had that water from the spirit oasis, to save you when Azula shot you, right? And thank the spirits that I can still get you out of that state whenever you get too emotional.  Thank your lucky stars that I’m still here... to get you out of any mess you can’t handle on your own.”

It hurts to almost look at him in that instant.  She feels herself speaking both to him and to herself.  

“Katara… no.”  Aang tries to ease her nerves, like a zookeeper trying to tame a wild moose-lion. “That’s not how I see us!  What I mean is… I was willing to put you first before anything that comes with being the Avatar. That’s the truth!”

She shakes her head. She wasn’t expecting the ‘us,’ but she can’t blame him for trying.

“That might be the truth for you, Aang, but you’re still the Avatar.  It’s your destiny, and kind of power is so… delicate… you have to put that first.”  

The few feet between them suddenly feels like miles and miles.  Aang brings a hand to his neck again, looking at the ground.

“I’m sorry— I didn’t mean to get you upset.” 

Katara sighs.  “I know Aang.  But... why would you choose me over your destiny like that?  That was so irresponsible.”

Deep down, she already knows the answer he’s going to give.  She needs to hear it anyway. 

“I did it because… “ Aang scrunches his face, his jaw shaking in nerves.  He didn’t want it to be like this, but she is asking it from him.  “... because I love you, and I thought…” 

“You thought what?” 

Her voice is firm, and quiet.  She already knows what he’s going to say, and she takes a deep breath to prepare for it. Her eyes are glistening. Deep down, she knows she’s responsible for the sad, desperate look in his eyes.

Aang can feel the moment slipping by, and he tries to not sound like a kid.

“I thought you loved me back--- I was so sure of it!  Ever since you found me, I had this feeling we were always meant to be together.”  

There’s am uncomfortable weight holding down her shoulders, and Katara closes her eyes. How can she not feel like this was her fault?  Katara shakes her head, wiping a tear from her eye.

“Aang... we never even talked about it.  And, even if we did... you can’t run from your destiny.  Do you understand what I’m saying? You’re the Avatar.”  

He couldn’t find anything else to say.  The moment was now completely gone.

“I-- I’m sorry.”  

“It’s okay. I haven’t really been that honest with you either.  The truth is… I… for a while now, I wanted to believe I could feel exactly what you felt.  And I thought I did.” 

“Katara...” 

“I want you to know I tried, okay?  You’re my friend…”  

“No.” Aang shakes his head, looking elsewhere, anywhere besides her.

“…and I did everything I could to see you as more than that, because you really are an amazing person, and you make me laugh, and you’re so sweet.”  

Small, childish sniffles come from his nose, and Aang holds a wrist over his eyes to grab the tears.  He hears everything, and yet they sound like they’re coming from someone other than Katara.  It cannot be real.  But when he looks at the girl in front of her, Aang notices she’s wiping tears as well.  And it’s real.

“Then... what’s the problem?” 

He can’t help but sound upset in that hopelessness, but Katara knows he doesn’t mean it.

She instead looks elsewhere for a moment, and shakes her head, shrugs her shoulders.

“I’m not sure if there even is a problem, Aang,” she gathers. “I mean… I’m not exactly an expert… but those kinds of feelings, they just—happen— you know?  You can’t force them into someone.” 

“So, why did you--” but Aang stops, and reconsiders his words.  “Why didn’t you ever tell me?” 

Katara sighs, exasperated, upset at herself that she hadn’t come up with these revelations sooner, but doing her absolute best to explain herself.

“I don’t know, Aang.  Maybe I was scared— that you’d get angry, and disappear again… and the world would be hopeless?” 

As crazy as it sounds, the possibility and accuracy of that makes Aang chuckle.

“Yeah. You’re probably right,” he says, wiping his tears again.

“And the last thing I wanted to do was hurt you, you know?” she adds. “You were my friend.”  

Aang rubs one of his elbow with a hand, awkardly, suddenly feeling so cold.

“Can I…um… can we still be friends?”  

Katara blinks.  “Of course! You’ll always be my friend, Aang. That won’t change.”  

“Okay. I can try and live with that.” 

“Good.”

It’s quiet again for a few moments.  They can hear the birds chirping around the ruined Agni Kai arena.  Aang looks around, trying to build the courage to look at Katara again, but feeling like it will hurt more.

“I should, um, see what Momo is up to.”  He turns on his heel to leave.

“Aang?” 

“Yeah?” 

“There’s still time,” she assures him, carefully, with a smile. “Focus on the important things. I know it doesn’t feel hopeful right now, but I promise… someday, you’ll find someone who’s going to change your world more than I ever could.”

A brave smile passes him.  “Thanks, Katara.”  

And he takes off on his glider.  

Katara smiles at that, just as bravely.  There is a knot of disappointment forming in her gut, at the fact that Aang leaves without saying “same to you.” But she doesn’t let it get to her.  Aang is still a kid... with his own innocent, twisted agenda... and she couldn’t blame him.  Letting go was a process.  She knew.  She could feel it happening with her, too.  

[radfemsiren]

oooh i ship zutara too! i also ship katara with jet, and i ship zuko and jet together lol. i love it all three ways. my ot3 is jet/zuko/katara aka jetkotara. i hate how toxic the atla fandom is because you have zukka stans saying zutara is an evil colonizer/colonized ship, yet they ship zuko with katara's own damn brother, but i guess *~yaoi~* makes it ok. and the kataang stans are just a bunch of creeps and misogynists who will claim that katara was never a mother figure to aang (when she clearly was) and they ignore all the implicit sexism of kataang and say stuff about how aang 'deserves' katara the most.

what makes me laugh really hard is when kataang stans say that katara was like a sister to zuko because katara is a parallel to azula. oh ok, so you think katara is like a sister to zuko when nothing in the series indicates that, but you people totally deny that katara treated aang like a brother for most of the series and mothered him? zuko is also a parallel to BOTH jet and aang, doesn't that make him katara's ultimate love interest now? or does that suddenly not count to you dumbasses performing mental gymnastics. i actually don't mind zukka because it's fanon and not in the show, but kataang is horrendous and doesn't even make sense for the narrative. they had 60 episodes to develop that ship and it still sucks and feels forced. 😭

Omg literally, every single argument they make against objectively better ships they toss in the garbage the second there’s a chance for yaoi lmao… also Jet and Zuko? My emo loving 13 yr old self would’ve exploded if that ever happened lmaoo, I actually never heard of that ship but I love it. Like… why do Jet and Zuko have more chemistry than Aang and Katara? 🤭 They def hooked up in basing se after a tea shift, I’m calling it 👀

Bruh I hate Zuko and sokka ships so much, it’s like when so many fanartists always draw bubbline in their male form only… like just say you hate women. They had like zero interactions, the boiling rock was the only time they talked lol. Also, sokka can’t have everyone! He can’t get princess yue, suki, Tylee and toph having a lil crush … AND Zuko?? ENOUGH!!

[zvtara-was-never-canon]

You often talk about how zutarians misinterpret the show or straight make things up to match their headcanons, especially considering kataang scenes – but every time I stumble upon it I can’t help but be fascinated by sheer stupidity of it.

I read one zutara fic because I’m a masochist still hoping to find something vaguely decent/want to say “LOL” more, and it has a scene where Zuko remembered the touching moment he had with Katara in the catacombs, how special it was… until the avatar dared to show up and to hug the girl Zuko wanted to himself or something. And I was like: okay, I am almost positive it’s not what’s been in the show… maybe something is wrong in my memory?

I rewatched “The Crossroads od Destiny”. Katara exclaims: “Aang” and runs to hug him; he hugs her back. In the next scene they are not hugging, Katara has her hands on Aang shoulders, saying: ���Aang, I knew you would come”, and hugs him again (he hugs back, too).

Just what has to happen in the brain to twist two hugs initiated by Katara into the hug initiated by Aang? That’s the literal opposite of what really happened!

But now I understand why they think Katara has no agency in relationship with Aang. If you twist every move she makes towards him into something he was forcing onto her, of course in the end you will get a helpless girl with no right to say “no”.

And lets not ignore the other lie in that sentence: Zuko did NOT remember the talk in the catacombs as something special. He literally only remembers that Katara told him about the water from the spirit Oasis, which he understands she could have used to bring back AANG, meaning OZAI would be mad at him, and AZULA would surely find a way to not take the fall for it. Katara is the least important factor in that memory.

But you know what kindness Zuko does remember? Aang's. He remembers how he said the two of them could have been friends. Yet he cannot understand why Katara is mad at him even though he stabbed her in the back right after she tried to make the ceasefire between them permanent.

Even when their moment is interrupted, the first thing that boy says is "UNCLE, what are you doing with the Avatar?" That boy did not give a shit that Katara ran straight to Aang, aka an enemy, because in his mind she was not a friend or someone in any way relevant, unlike Iroh.

Not only can they not accept that Aang means the world to Katara, they can't wrap their heads around the fact that Zuko couldn't care less about her.

[gold-fire]

Katara and 1 15 16 20 25

Thank you so much anon! Hope you enjoys this answers as much as I enjoyed writing them! 😘

1.Why do you like or dislike this character?

I love Katara so much and although I like a lot of things of her it's also true I don't like other things, really few ones only so I'll just say one thing I like and one thing I don't like about her.

The thing I like about her is her maternal instinct with her friends because I feel like since Sokka, Aang and Toph can't have the love of a mother due to different circumstances and Katara knows what to lost a mother is (must say Katara is such a strong person for forgive her mother's assassin life, it really talks so well about her) she wants to make sure her friends feel loved and protected and it's not an easy rol to put away your problems and concentrate in your friend's ones, so I love that about Katara.

And dislike... kind of her hypocrisy with Zuko and Azula (I know there are more hypocrisy characters but right now it's about Kat) like she manages to forgive Zuko and be friends with him but with Azula she crosses the line? Just doesn't make any sense in my opinion.

15. What's your favorite ship for this character? (Doesn't matter if it's canon or not.)

Well I think it's obvious what's my favorite ship for Katara because it's actually my favorite ship and ladies and gentleman it's AZUTARA! I love this ship so so much and I hope the Azutara community gets bigger and more artist create new fics and draws of them.

Also I must say that Katara's canon ship which is with Aang it's a great ship also and I find it very good and cute couple and for me in canon they match perfectly; it's true I love Azutara and for me is her best ship but always respect to Kataang!

16. What's your least favorite ship for this character?

The easy and obvious answer is her incest ships with her mom, dad and brother but people wants blood and I'll give them blood... I'm so sorry but I can't stand Zutara (sorry not sorry).

20. Which other character is the ideal best friend for this character, the amount of screen time they share doesn't matter?

I love her friendship with Toph and Suki (since they three strong independent woman) but I think Yue would have been the best friend of her, like both are water tribe woman born in a sexist nation (NWT more than SWT but still) and even so both are incredible strong enough to sacrifice themselves for her people.

25. What was your first impression of this character? How about now?

I didn't like Katara at first hahaha, please don't kill me I just was more concentrate and in love with Fire Nation people (only Azula, Zuko, Mai and Ty Lee) and I kind of not dislike but not care about the Gaang except for Toph and Sokka.

Now I worship her and love her almost as much as Azula, she's one of the more complete characters of all the show and the best water bender in the world.

[theowritesfiction]

Thank you for tagging me, @juniperhillpatient! You know how we fic writers always enjoy an opportunity to talk about ourselves and our writing! 😉

20 Questions For Fic Writers

1. How many works do you have on Ao3? 15

2. What’s your total Ao3 word count? 3,355,310

3. What fandoms do you write for? Avatar: The Last Airbender for the past few years, but I have also written for Life Is Strange, Dragon Age, Mass Effect and Baldur’s Gate fandoms.

4. What are your top five fics by kudos?

1. the burning ring – I guess not surprising because it’s the oldest of my azutara stories, and also it’s set in the canon-verse, which always gets more clicks than any AU. 2. the white lotus gambit – my ATLA Pai Sho modern AU story. I’m actually quite surprised that this story did so well because I expected it to have very niche interest, I mean who really cares about kids playing Pai Sho… but it was about so much more than Pai Sho. 3. Azula’s kitchen nightmares – shockingly my current WIP is already up to third place in this metric, which really blows me away because I haven’t been posting it *that* long. But I’m happy that readers have resonated so well with this kitchen nightmares inspired wild weirdness. 4. The raging maelstrom – one of my zutara stories, but with a very dark katara and rather bittersweet ending. I don’t really think about this story anymore, but like… it’s still there, I guess. 5. The pit of snakes – sequel to the burning ring, enough said 😊

5. Do you respond to comments? Yes, almost always, unless someone is just being rude then I will just freeze the thread and ignore them. Or if someone comments on a story that’s like 5 years old and I can’t figure out a way to respond because I have forgotten what the story was about. Also, I don’t plan to ever disable guest comments.

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? From fics currently posted on Ao3, I guess that would be the raging maelstrom. Katara sacrifices herself at the end because she sees it as the only way to atone for some of the awful mistakes she’s made, so that’s a bittersweet ending at best. I have a Dragon Age fic of 4 short chapters on ffn that’s way angstier, though. It’s called the price of immortality, and it involves my blood mage Warden sequestering herself away in Warden’s Keep together with her lover and requesting a bunch of prisoners be sent to her from Denerim. It’s all a part of an experiment to attain immortality by brewing a potion from lyrium, Andraste’s ashes and the blood extracted from the prisoners. However, she runs out of prisoners just before attaining her goal. Care to guess what happens to Zevran (her lover)? Yeah, turns out price of immortality is sacrificing your humanity and going batshit insane.

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? Eh, most of my fics have very happy endings, certainly the Azutara ones. Personally, my favorite is probably the once in a blue moon ending (WLG sequel), because it was from an unexpected POV and set 30 years in the future, and I liked how it allowed me to celebrate the accomplishments of all the main characters. It’s just too bad that not many people saw it.

8. Do you get hate on fics? not really. I got a lot of hate on the raging maelstrom, because there are some zutara fanatics who really hate anyone writing toxic zutara. They see it as secret kataang supporters undermining the validity of their ship. I’m glad that Azutara fandom appears saner, although that’s probably just because we're fewer lmao.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind? Occasionally. I used to write either F/M or F/F, but if I were to write smut again it would surely be all F/F. I just have very inconsistent mood when it comes to smut. Sometimes I like to include it, but for a while now I just haven’t felt any real urge to write anything smutty.

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written? Yeah, I write fusion fics which is just transplanting the characters of one property into the setting of another property, where they replace the characters of that setting. I’m not sure I have written a proper crossover according to its definition.

11. there is no question 11 apparently 😊

12. Have you ever had a fic translated? Someone once started translating my Mass Effect fanfics into French. I thought they were insane to even try, and they gave up after like 3 chapters.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before? Not really, I’m not sure that would suit me well, creatively I work better on my own.

14. What’s your all-time favorite ship? Well, I can’t really say Azutara because I’ve been writing fanfic for a very long time, and they have been my focus for only the past 3 or so years, but lately, certainly they have been at the center of everything I write.

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will? I don’t have anything like that. If I want to finish something, then I just do it.

16. What are your writing strengths? I have no idea, honestly. I guess I’m good at writing banter? I like to think I’m reasonably versatile and there’s nothing I’m amazingly good at, but also nothing I’m painfully bad with. My stories usually have a little bit of everything.

17. What are your writing weaknesses? I know I’m bad at writing action scenes, but it’s just so hard to motivate myself to apply greater effort when action really bores me. Sometimes I also struggle with descriptions and setting the scene, just because English is not my native language and it can sometimes be hard to find words to properly describe what I envision.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic? Well, I sort of did that for my Mass Effect fic, even if it was just a Russian admiral running around screaming ‘Suka Blyat!’ XD I don’t know, there’s a time and place for it, I guess.

19. First fandom you wrote for? Baldur’s Gate 2. Really showing my age there *cry*

20. Favourite fic you’ve written? oh that’s so hard to choose. Like, the amount of plotting and research that went into White Lotus Gambit was… a lot, and I loved the result. But then again, the effort to make the ATLA characters fit into the Life Is Strange universe, the crazy amount of very detailed outlining done for that fic, and the crazy codependent Azutara… yeah, I would have to say it’s corners of the world our mere prologue

[cosmiccdivinityy]

It’s so funny how you change as you get older and how something’s stay the same. Yes it’s another random ass post about some old ass show.

Back in the day Zuko and Katara were my absolute fave characters and zutara was OP. Then the show ended and I forgot about it.

It got brought back to Netflix recently and I’ve put off watching it cause tbh it was never my favorite cartoon (TT and DP)

I no longer ship zutara, but at the same time I only marginally like kataang more?

Like it’s 45 percent zutara to 55 percent kataang.

Idk I don’t like any of the popular canon/fanon ships much.

Give me Zuko/Suki, Yue/Azula, Mai/Aang, anyday (yes I am weird)

Now onto characters.

I like Aang a bit more now, but idk how much is me actually liking him or just feeling sorry for the shit has character has been through and wanting him to be happy. If that makes sense

Karata is still my fave and I’m sorry I ever doubted her (went through a im not like other girls phase and it wasn’t cool to like her 😭)

Zuko is literally the def of a failwolf (teen wolf moots?) it’s so funny, like he kind of cracks me up because of how unhinged and chaotic this man is. Very determined.

He’s also not my favorite anymore? Idk why. meh on Sokka too. (Don’t fight me but they’re both so overhyped 🫣)

Add Azula to that list. Love her down bad tho.

Also idc what anyone says Appa’s Lost Days were sadder than Irohs dead son scene. 🤷🏾‍♀️🤧

He’s also overrated. But I get why he’s awesome and why people love him, but swear people talk about him, Zuko, Sokka, Azula and a little bit of Toph like they’re the most amazing characters to ever walk the fictional earth. So yeah overrated as hell but still cool.

Appreciate characters like Suki a lot more now she’s a fucking bad ass (little Mary sue but hey she gotta keep up somehow)

Don’t tolerate Toph as much now. I’m very over the cocky/snarky/belligerent/caustic, type characters (will make a post about that soon) but she’s cool.

Overall top five ranking

Katara, Azula, Suki, Mai, Aang

Last three all interchangeable