#sick katara

[goldenavenger02]

for your ‘bad things happen’ bingo, i’d love to see maybe katara (atla) w the common cold? i never see katara sickfics around, and she seems like a character who’d be very prone to overworking herself into illness !! (any caretaker is okay ^^)

<3, sunny

As much as he wanted to believe his words, as much as he wanted to blindly hope that Aang knew exactly what Katara had been talking about and could find it easily, he couldn't allow himself to do so.

Not when there were Fire Nation soldiers still trying to find them

Sokka knew that something was wrong when he woke up and the makeshift campsite was silent despite the fact that the sun was high enough to be nearing midday.

Katara and Aang had still been awake when he turned in the night before, eagerly using the full moon shining above them to train their strengthened waterbending, but the moonlight made his heart ache in a way that he wasn't comfortable with Aang witnessing; it didn't surprise Sokka that he was still asleep against Appa's soft leg.

What was surprising was the fact that Katara was still asleep; even if she had been awake until the early morning hours, she still would have gotten up before him in order to pack away her things and start on breakfast so they could continue their journey as soon as Appa was ready to go.

Sokka got out of his sleeping bag to investigate, not bothering to roll it up and walked the few steps to where his sister laid asleep; she looked peaceful to the eye, but it didn't take long for him to catch onto the slight shiver under the bedroll and the way her face was pinched even in sleep.

He knew she was feverish before he gently brushed a few strands of hair out of her face and rested his palm against her forehead, but he hated being right about this.

She wasn't overly feverish which was only a small relief as he stood back up; he wouldn't be able to do much until she was awake and could actually voice just how sick she was, but he could at least use the last of their arctic hen to make some soup.

Sokka quickly started a fire from the remnants of the one last night, grabbed the large soup pot and filled it with water and some salt before sending up a quick, "Tui and La, keep me from burning this" as he put the last of the hen in to boil.

…

Aang woke up twenty minutes later, probably from the smell of the soup that was now on a low simmer if Sokka had a guess, and immediately punctured the silence by asking, "why are you cooking?"

"Katara's got a fever."

"Is she okay?"

"I think so, but I'm letting her sleep," Sokka tried to reassure the very clear panic in Aang's eyes, even though his own heartbeat had filled with the same agonizing beats when he had woken up to the odd silence, "between the late night waterbending and doing stuff all day, I'm not surprised she got sick."

"Oh."

His quiet response was full of guilt, but before he could do anything to comfort the twelve year old, a series of hard coughs rang out that could only be from Katara.

Sokka didn't hesitate to scramble over and lift her by the armpits so she was sitting before firmly rubbing her back; he had memories of both his father and gran-gran doing the same to him in the midst of coughing fits, but as she let out the last few weak coughs and leaned heavily against his chest, he looked up to see Aang's gray eyes filled with concern.

"Katara? Are you okay?"

"Aang?" She whispered hoarsely, wincing as she made eye contact with Sokka, her blue eyes watery and red around the edges, "Sokka?"

"Yeah, it's us," Sokka assured her as he pressed his palm to her forehead, relieved that the heat plaguing her hadn't risen, "you're sick."

"I can tell," Katara said around a sniffle with a dryness in her tone that even had Sokka smiling for a brief moment before worry overtook him, "we aren't near any markets, right?"

"Yeah, we're pretty far out," Sokka confirmed, knowing that their plan for that day was to get to a village or town to restock on supplies, "I'm using the last of the hen and vegetables to make some soup, but we're really low on a lot of things."

"We should head out then, after we eat lun-" Katara started, only to be hit with another rough fit of coughing.

"Katara, I don't think the altitude is gonna help with this," Sokka explained while firmly rubbing her back again, "you need to rest and get better."

"I can see if I can find more frogs." Aang offered, but he shuddered at the memory of sucking on frozen frogs whilst in the midst of delirium and shook his head before providing an explanation as Katara's coughing died out again.

"This isn't the same virus, I don't think that'll work."

"What about echinacea?" Katara suggested, her voice growing more hoarse with every cough that fought its way out of her lungs.

"What about it?" Sokka pressed, not even sure if he was fully aware what she was pondering about and if her stuffy nose was causing her to sound different to the point where she was saying something else.

"That one plant that gran-gran has so many cans of, that she makes ointments out of," Katara stopped to pull in a deep sniffle before adding, "but it can also be made into tea to help sickness. We're in between the North Pole and Omashu, it should grow around here."

"Okay, but how are we gonna get-"

"I'll go find it," Aang cut him off as he stood, "Katara, what does it look like?"

"It's a pink flower with an orange center."

"Okay, I'll be back soon." Aang insisted and Sokka wanted to tell him to wait a second, that he shouldn't go alone, but at the same time, they needed to get those flowers for Katara and that unwavering look of guilt and worry in Aang's eyes had him staying silent as he pulled out his glider and flew off.

"It's gonna be okay, Katara." Sokka insisted as he gently helped her lay back down so he could get her a serving of the soup.

"I know. I trust Aang."

Sokka paused for a moment to swallow down his worry before walking back towards her with the steaming bowl, kneeling down beside her before pressing the bowl into her feverish palms, "I trust him too."

As much as he wanted to believe his words, as much as he wanted to blindly hope that Aang knew exactly what Katara had been talking about and could find it easily, he couldn't allow himself to do so.

Not when there were Fire Nation soldiers still trying to find them and definitely not when his sister was this sick., even if his only choice was to place his full trust in Aang, he still made sure that his boomerang was at the ready after Katara had fallen back into a fevered sleep.

…

Hours passed; Sokka dumped the soup after spoon feeding Katara two more bowls of broth, making sure Appa and Momo got enough and managing to stomach his own alongside the worry that had settled deeply in his gut, knowing that it wouldn't keep.

He was thankful that they had chosen a spot near a river so he could continue to wet the rag that was very slowly lowering Katara's fever.

When the sun began to dip and be replaced by Yue's soft glow, he could have sworn that he heard Katara mumble something about missing their mother but her eyes were shut when he turned to look at her and tried not to focus on her flushed cheeks so he just added, "I miss her too," before turning away again.

Every rustle under the setting sun had Sokka flinching and grabbing his boomerang, only for him to let out various sighs that ranged from relief to annoyance when Momo or some other creature would poke its head out of the bushes.

But as the last few rays of sunshine started to disappear and he knew that it was growing less likely for the Fire Nation to launch an attack, that was when he was met with the familiar woosh that could only belong to Aang's glider.

"There you are!" Sokka exclaimed as soon as Aang's feet touched the ground, only to notice the large satchel tossed over his shoulder that he knew for a fact didn't belong to any of them, "what is that?"

"I couldn't find any echinacea in the fields, so I flew to a nearby town. One of the healers there gave me a tin of tea along with some food," Aang stopped rambling to pass Sokka the tin of tea leaves, "where's the teapot?"

Sokka wordlessly passed over the teapot, allowing Aang to start brewing it before taking a look in the satchel that was full of various nuts, dried and fresh fruit, fresh vegetables, and some bread.

"Did you have to pay this healer all of our money or something?"

"No, he just said that it's best for sick people to eat consistently and wanted to make sure we could do that."

Sokka swallowed; it had been awhile since they had been the recipient of that much unwavering kindness from strangers.

"Sokka?" A hoarse voice cut through his thoughts, forcing him to look up at Katara propping herself up on her wrist while coughing into her other elbow.

"Hey, I'm right here," he insisted, standing up and walking towards her before sitting beside her and resting his hand on top of hers, "Aang's back, he's working on that tea that's supposed to help you and the healer he found gave us enough food to last us a couple of weeks, so now you have to get better."

"Is that an order?" Despite the congestion in her voice, her tone still had that teasing nature to it that felt like a weight being removed from Sokka's chest.

"Yep, you don't get a choice," he insisted, pulling her into a quick hug, "that's my role as the team leader."

"Who made YOU the team leader?"

Despite the coughs interspersed with her laughter as the two of them argued the pros and cons of all five of them being the team leader, Sokka couldn't even find himself actually being angry at any of hers and Aang's good-natured insults, finding himself looking up at the moonlight and whispering quietly enough that neither of them could hear him over their giggles.

"Thank you, Yue."

[kabruyearner]

aang and katara’s relationship is treated so weirdly by the fandom that it almost makes me forget how beautiful it actually is. katara and aang have been there for each other during every rough time of their time together, with their relationship slowly developing very clearly, and yet people somehow people consider them rushed ???

when THESE scenes exist?

like, am i crazy? or did we not watch the same show?

[sapphic-agent]

So, someone in the "Katara deserves better" tag made a post saying that Katara deserves better than modern feminists condemning her for healing.

It was never about her healing (also we never condemn her, we condemn the men writing her). How many times do we have to say it? It's about her JUST healing when she always wanted to be a fighter. Some women (and men) in fiction might just want to heal/be meds. And that's fine. No one said it wasn't. We ARE saying that Katara wasn't one of those people.

This was literally her ENTIRE arc. You guys have to know that fighting is a crucial part of her character. You can't claim to be fans of Katara if you don't.

[discordiansamba]

anyways some more spitballing about the zuko time travel AU, in no particular order

they kind of. forget to tell Toph about the whole 'Li is a time traveler' thing. or that his name isn't actually Li (and they're so used to calling him that/being called that that it doesn't even strike a chord in her earth sense) right up until they actually run into Zuko again.

Toph: wait. hang on. does Sparky have a twin? because Angry Ponytail over there feels a lot like him.

everyone else: uuuuuhhhhhhh

(they do tell her after that)

Zuko's cover story as they travel is that he's a Fire Nation deserter, because it's a little more believable than the truth.

when they cross paths with Jeong-Jeong, Zuko leaves a letter for Iroh with him. he thinks a lot about what to say, but he just settles for the absolute most important part- that Zhao is planning on killing the moon spirit, and that if nothing is done, he'll succeed.

(Iroh would recognize that handwriting anywhere.)

they can't put the genomite rings on Zuko in Omashu because he climbed up into the rafters when they weren't looking and he is not coming down. Bumi thinks this is really funny.

they don't have to travel to Crescent Island on the solstice so Roku can tell Aang about the comet because Zuko can just tell them about the comet. only he does this in the most blunt and matter of fact way possible. because he's Zuko.

sokka: why didn't you warn us about (thing happening)! you're from the future!!!

zuko: you didn't tell me!!!!

eventually there will be a point in which there are two Zukos in the Gaang. Sokka decides that while he loves his older brother very much, that is entirely too many Zukos.

(one day, in Ba Sing Se, Zuko will look in the mirror and recognize himself as Li.)

Zuko: okay. bad news. you have to let yourself get captured by Zhao and taken to Pohuai Stronghold, because if you don't, I don't know when he'll capture you and where he'll take you.

Aang: awww man.

Zuko: good news, I can get the frogs Sokka and Katara will need to suck on while you're gone.

Katara: the WHAT

[billsbae]

[lphoenixspiritl]

I cannot for the life of me find the post that inspired this 😥

After much debate and none to few threats to his council Zuko threw open the doors to the vaults and hunted down every prize brought back to his forefathers as trinkets of conquest. 

Jewels and swords and gold, the accountants and historians spent days identifying items that had sat forgotten in the dust and the dark for nearly a century. Piece after piece was meticulously researched and documented over the next weeks and months as each one found their way home. 

It was the right thing to do after all, right? 

To apologize, right his father's wrongs and build faith in the new brow that bore the crown. 

It was a task he was proud to take on until they found it, nearly forgotten at the bottom of a chest, that dusty glint they almost missed. That small unassuming knife is what broke him. A strange curved blade set in bone carved with the moon set amongst the waves, if anyone would know it would be the ambassador.

Bursting through her door nearly breathless he set it in her hands. Eyes wide her fingertips brushed along the worn bone settling into the grooves as if they were made for her. The ulu fit in her palm melting into the shape of her grip. Then the tears began to fall and with it came the weight of the sins of the father's before him.

He could do nothing but hold her as she wept for those that were taken from her and those she would never meet, the parts of her she would never know. The sins of the father could not be undone but like that blade forged in fires neither of them would ever know, he could forge a promise that this would never happen again, that he would breathe his last breath before he ever committed the same sins as his forefathers.

[the-genius-az]

Azula with tuberculosis.

Mai and Ty Lee, seeing that Azula was getting worse, kidnapped Katara during one of the fights without the princess noticing.

And when she arrived at her room she found three girls, but one was tied up and furious.

But something that Mai and Ty Lee didn't expect was that the girl and Azula were going to slowly fall in love.

[myxhul]

One thing that bugs me every time i rewatch tlok is that one scene in book 3 where tenzin tells korra about the time when she was little, explaining how the red lotus tried to kidnap her. So, he, korra's father, sokka, and zuko went to rescue her and stopped the attack, locking the red lotus in their respective prisons.

Although my little zukka brain thrives with the fact that zuko is supposedly just there, chilling in the south pole post-retirement or whatever, i really think it would have been much better if insted of him, it was katara the one fighting alogside the others. It would have made so much more sence because one- she is one of the most powerful waterbenders on earth therefore totally has the power and skills to stand againts the red lotus, and two- yes, you can argue that she might still be greeving over her husband's passing but i think if sokka, zuko and tenzin were able to be there and help in the battle it wouldn't be much of problem for katara to be with them too. Aang is best friend and a family to both sokka and zuko and tenzin's literal father. If they were ready and willing to fight, so could she.

And isn't trying to protect korra also trying to protect her family in some sort of way? Katara was clearly very enthusiastic about teaching korra waterbending as a child, why won't she stand up against the red lotus for her, too?

It's disheartening to see how both the comics and tlok seem to sideline katara's character as if her contributions were not significant. Like she just isn't that important in the first place. It’s just awfully depressing tbh.

[nerdylizj]

Katara feels safest by the sea. It might be because she’s a waterbender, though she’s not sure that tells the whole story. The truth is, she decides while standing on the deck of a stolen Fire Nation ship under the half moon, quite simple. Katara is safest by the sea because the tide is reliable. The tide doesn’t die. The tide doesn’t leave her behind. The tide, Katara knows, is a work of permanence and impermanence. Marks in the sand are washed away. Seashells are gifted to the shore. Give, take. Push, pull. But never, ever: truth, lie. 

read chapter 9 or start chapter 1

[bunthebreadboy]

can you imagine katara and iroh teaming up to chastise the gaang for not remembering to take care of themselves?? (iroh fully scolds katara for it too just not as much)

cause i see it like

katara: the brain and the digestive system require a lot of energy and are connected. that’s why maybe you wouldn’t have the shakes, a bad attitude, and a headache if you fucking ATE LUNCH

sokka: bold of you to assume i don’t have all of those regularly. even when i eat lunch.

iroh: you’re not eating enough ??

sokka: wrong. i have adhd and my adderall is wearing off-

katara: ok fair, that’s an exception

sokka: -and i’m probably concussed

iroh: you’re probably WHAT??

katara: TOPH I SWEAR TO GOD IF YOU THREW ANOTHER ROCK AT SOKKA’S HEAD-

toph: he asked me if i could bend bone cause of the minerals in it so i hit him with a rock to see if i could fix his skull.

katara: yknow what. fair enough.

iroh: NO??

[comradekarin]

[drpoisonoaky]

Katara is sick (Part 2)

Part 1

Toph: So I ended up making my statue myself. Zuko: Good riddanc- Spirits what is that smell? Toph: I swear I took a shower today. Zuko: No. This came from the kitchens. Toph: Oh that smell. Definitely, somebody is burning something. It’s gonna be good when princess fussy-pants sees her dinner burned. Payback I gue- Zuko: No way. I can’t believe what my eyes are seeing. Toph: That 's rude. Zuko: I don’t know how to de- Azula: I have no time for your shenanigans, as you perceive I’m busy. Zuko: Torturing a bloodline of seaweed? Toph: Oh men, the snooty princess is cooking? Describe it with all details.  Zuko: It looks bad. Why are you trying to cook? You haven't cooked a single meal in your life. Azula: Katara is sick. Zuko: We know. Toph: So you decided to piss off her ancestors?

Azula: Quite the opposite. A while ago, she told me how her Gran-Gran makes them soup whenever they feel sick, and how she always feels better afterwards. So I’m trying to do that.

Azula: I read all the cooking books but something isn’t right; the soup shouldn’t be black, right?

Azula: Quite the opposite. A while ago she told me how her Gran-Gran makes them soup whenever they feel sick, and how she always feels better afterwards. So I’m trying to do that. Azula: I read all the cooking books but something isn’t right, the soup shouldn’t be black, right? Toph: Who would have thought the prissy princess really has a heart. Zuko: But not the right skills to do that. Stop. Azula: Zuzu, I need to give Katara the soup, I promise her a handmade soup. She looked awful, in her own terms obviously because even she’s sick she’s better than most people in their best da- Zuko: ‘Zula, buy her soup. There’s a great water tribe’s restaurant in 5 minutes. Stop this nonsense. Azula: But it has to be home made. Toph: I’m pretty sure if you go yourself and buy her soup, it counts as homemade. At least it would be edible, and I know Sugar Queen would love that. Azula: Fine. Next to that bakery?  Zuko: Yep. Azula: Ugh. *goes for the soup* Toph: Sparky, is the same chick who conquered Ba Sing Se just destroying a kitchen to make a water tribe’s dish? Zuka: Same old Azula. Toph: And now she’s going, personally, to buy soup for her girl, even though she’s royalty, to give the soup the homemade effect? Zuko: That 's right. Toph: *whistles* The power of Katara. Azula: I STILL CAN HEAR YOU ASSHOLES.

[kabruyearner]

can’t stop thinking about how there’s no way they pulled off this entire scene as a free style so then they mostly likely practiced it and now i can’t stop thinking about aang teaching katara how to dance and i’ll shut up now

[fanfic-lover-girl]

Zutara Antis Don't Know What a Toxic Relationship Actually Is

I just saw a Vegebul fan Tumblr user say that Vegebul can't be compared to Zutara because Zutara is toxic and Bulma was not trying to fix Vegeta🤡

As a Vegebul fan, I will proudly say without shame that this Tumblr user is an idiot with no brain. I am tired of seeing stupidity on Tumblr. In what world can you say that Zutara is toxic yet spew nonsense that Vegebul of all DBZ ships is healthier! Vegeta is the same man who was willing to let his baby mama and infant son die and nearly killed his wife when he decided family life was making him too soft in the Buu saga. Zuko was never the level of villain Vegeta was and never treated Katara that badly even when he was her effing enemy!!! 🤡

When has Vegeta ever supported Bulma the way Zuko supported Katara???

Unlike Bulma, Katara WOULD NEVER get with Zuko and spread her legs while he was still an antagonist and wanted to capture Aang!

Katara would never get with a guy who threatened to kill her and showed no sign of remorse either!!!

As for Bulma was not trying to fix Vegeta...so true! She gave him free housing, free food, free training equipment and free sex while he was still an egotistical bastard! She never calls him out for his horrible behaviour (eg. letting Cell become perfect and attacking her future son) or being a less-than-decent dad for Trunks. What a woman!

When has Vegeta ever shown any on-screen attempts to reconcile with Bulma for his hurtful actions? Unlike Vegeta, Zuko had to work for it! On-screen!!! For all of us to see Katara chew him out!!!

🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡

Every day I am amazed at Zutara antis who call Zutara toxic. Here is a guy who wronged and hurt a girl in the past that:

redeems himself and atones

proactively works to earn her forgiveness

provides emotional support and lets her be emotionally vulnerable

willing to be emotionally open with her

never lashes out even when she attacks him

sacrifices himself for her

works hard to redeem his nation that oppressed her people

genuinely cares about her and believes in her abilities

actively befriends and makes amends with all her loved ones whom he also hurt (which includes a possible love interest)

ALL ON SCREEN! No hand-waving his past hurtful actions or having character relationship development off-screen. No enabling of bad behaviour. Vegebul needed almost ten years to be a truly healthy relationship. Zuko only needed a few episodes for him and Katara to become great friends. Zutara >>> Vegebul.

In what world is this TOXIC?? Sounds pretty healthy to me! I want a Zuko for a husband (minus the enemy part lol). Who would choose Vegeta over Zuko for a love interest?? Well, I guess some people dig deadbeat husbands ;)

Both Vegebul and Zutara started off on bad terms and both shows ended with both pairs having a great relationship. The difference is that Vegebul began as a toxic relationship vs Zutara having a healthy dynamic once they became friends when Katara forgave Zuko. Zutara never had any romantic dealings while they were enemies. And even when Katara was rightfully antagonistic towards Zuko, Zutara treated each other better than Vegeta did Bulma. Just compare Katara saving a falling Zuko vs Vegeta who did nothing to save Trunks and Bulma.

[byfulcrums]

I love the soundtrack for the last Agni Kai because it's not epic, it's tragic. Most shows would make an epic soundtrack for one of the final battles that were the key for victory, but not ATLA. It shows that Zuko's victory isn't really something to be celebrated (though the characters would not be wrong to do so). It shows that Zuko and Azula's story is a tragedy. They're both just children forced to fight a war that wasn't even theirs, and they weren't even able to fight it together

[the-genius-az]

I completely forgot about your tuberculosis AU!

I don’t remember much about it, but was Katara involved? And if so, was she upset or do anything because of the way Zuko treated her even though Azula was sick?

Also, after the Agni Kai, how did Mai and Ty Lee react to him?

🥲

Only a few knew about Azula's tuberculosis in the war, until later, and Zuko never did anything bad against Azula in front of people, so no one knows about his behavior towards her.

But Katara definitely would have intervened instantly, maybe she "hates" Azula, but she's also a huge defender.

They were furious, but not in that way that they would hit or scream, but rather that cold fury that would immediately explode if you made a mistake.

Zuko didn't get involved with them much because of that, maybe he doesn't know them well, but he still remembers that the two were Azula's friends.