#but how could I ever choose between sokka and katara???
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the performative accusation that shipping zutara (and occasionally this criticism is levied at jinko/zukka) is colonialist apologism has been addressed in some excellent posts, explaining the inaccuracies and problematic implications of this logic far better than i ever could - like this post and this one and this one and this one and this one.
and i know this topic has been talked about to death, but if you could indulge my contribution for a moment, i just find it interesting how this sentiment results from the cognitive dissonance of atla fans being unable to reconcile with the idea of their favorite show's political beliefs not lining up with their own.
atla is a largely philosophical children's show that at its core deals with themes of love, redemption, and destiny vs. free-will. atla examines these themes through an anti-colonalist, anti-imperalist lens that deconstructs the idea of racial divisiveness and the idea that people of different ethnicities are inherently different. this is message is pretty explicitly stated by guru pathik:
Guru Pathik: "The greatest illusion of this world is the illusion of separation. Things you think are separate and different are actually one and the same."
Aang: "Like the four nations?"
Guru Pathik: "Yes. We are all one people. But we live as if divided."
and also by uncle iroh:
"It is important to draw wisdom from many different places. If you take it from only one place, it becomes rigid and stale. Understanding others, the other elements and the other nations will help you become whole."
this theme is developed across three full seasons, with the crux of this message culminating in zuko's friendships with the gaang - despite coming from different nationalities and different backgrounds, they have all had their own experiences being hurt by the fire nation and work together to take down the oppressive fire nation government. the question of destiny vs. free will is also explored through zuko's character - despite starting off as an antagonist, he develops into a symbolic representation of how the fire nation's oppression hurts its own citizens. he unlearns the fire nation's imperialist propaganda while simultaneously unlearning his father's abuse. rather than following misguided beliefs of what he thought his destiny was as the heir to the throne, instead he forges his own path.
thus, to claim that zuko can never form a deep and meaningful relationship with any of the gaang because of his nationality goes unequivocally against the themes of the show. and a major part of this is because these are fictional characters being used to analyze different theoretical questions within the show and in some cases, are used as symbolic representations of different philosophical ideas - their friendships and their character arcs serve a purpose within the text that cannot be easily transcribed onto real-life dynamics between people.
it's illogical to criticize fans who are choosing to understand atla at the level of the themes that are presented by the text - who are interested in exploring similar philosophical questions brought up by the show through the context of relationships.
if you don't like the themes of forgiveness and redemption that atla explores, your criticism should be aimed at the writing of the show itself rather than other fans. because you are giving far more thought to the "implications" of a close friendship or romantic relationship between someone from an imperalist nation and someone from an oppressed nation than the writers ever did. (and if you fall in this camp of people, i would hope you wouldn't be reblogging fanart of zuko and the gaang together while simultaneously claiming zuko could can never escape the sins of his ancestors and can never form a deep relationship based on trust and intimacy with katara or sokka or jin - because that would just be hypocritical).
and as a side note, people seem to apply this flawed logic to zutara far more than other ships solely because the show spends the most time exploring the complicated nature of fire nation imperalism in the interactions between zuko and katara in the latter half of b3. this is because they've been juxtapositioned against each other and paralleled with aang since the beginning of the show in ways that toph, sokka, and suki are not, who have mostly been used to examine different themes. there simply isn't enough time to explore these complicated themes with all the other characters, even if they theoretically exist in zuko’s dynamics with these characters, so the writers focus the most on zuko's relationships with katara and aang, and these relationships are given far more narrative weight, so have more content to criticize. but zuko and katara also canonically become friends by the end of the show. if you want to discount the existence of their friendship, claiming that it will always be tainted by the fire nation's oppression regardless of what is shown in the text, then you also have to discount zuko's friendships with aang, suki, toph, and sokka - because even if this isn't shown as a permanent barrier to their friendships in the show, it’s also not shown as a permanent barrier to his friendship with katara. if your logic is solely based on the idea that a person's identity in a relationship as a colonizer or a victim is fixed and unchanging regardless of character development, this would apply to zuko's friendships with everyone else as well.
#zuko#katara#zutara#i have seen people say that the zutara dynamic makes them personally uncomfortable and that's fine - to each their own!#but it's hypocritical to only dislike zuko's relationship with katara while simultaneously exalting his friendships w aang or toph or sokka#just because the show doesn’t take as much time to explore these issues with other characters doesn’t mean the same dynamic doesn’t apply#my post#my meta
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zukka n 22 pls :)
22. a kiss in a rush of adrenaline.
"Sokka."
"I know."
"It's just that…if you don’t make it…”
"I know, Zuko."
"Sorry. You can do this. Win for me, yeah?"
Sokka spares a glance at him, seeing how he is worrying his bottom lip. Zuko meets his eyes, as if he can read Sokka's thoughts about Zuko's lips and his hands and his--
"Sokka!" Suki warns.
"Shit," Sokka curses, redirecting his attention to the television and glaring at the banana peel that his kart just ran into. "Sorry, uh, got distracted."
"Sokka just hit a banana peel," Zuko says, continuing his ongoing narration to Toph. "I think it's the one he planted during the last lap."
Toph lets out a cackle that Sokka chooses not to acknowledge, and out of the corner of his eye he sees Katara lean forward more. His palms feel sweaty. He's so close to gaining on her, he can't let Zuko down after Katara beat him in the last race. Funny, the fact that he could lose the pool of money reserved for the champion of their Mario Kart bracket doesn't seem to matter to him anymore.
"Katara is still in the lead but Sokka is catching up, they are approaching the finish line to start the final lap, they both just got a power-up..."
Sokka tunes him out as he crosses the finish line, focusing on the final lap, on beating Katara. He turns a corner, then another, then-
"Fuck," Katara mutters as she just barely misses the shortcut that Sokka takes, then she shouts, "Fuck!" when her position changes to 2nd and Sokka takes 1st. He doesn't dare let it distract him though, tries desperately to not get distracted by Zuko for once as his narration of the game gets louder from his excitement. Sokka just focuses on completing the rest of the track smoothly, dodging a shell that Katara sends his way, then-
"YES!" he and Zuko shout at the same time, Sokka jumping to his feet as Zuko chants, "He won, Sokka won!"
Suki and Aang cheer and Katara gets up to give her brother a firm congratulatory handshake and a smile that makes Sokka fearful of ever trying his luck a second time. He turns back to Zuko, finally letting himself fully bask in his smile and the way his eyes are wide and excited. He's on his feet, throwing his arms around Sokka so strongly that they nearly topple over, then Zuko is pulling back from the hug and Sokka's hands are grabbing his elbows to stop him from getting too far and he's leaning forward and-
Shocked silence falls over the room except for the music from Mario Kart and, after a few moments, Toph saying, "What?"
Zuko and Sokka are staring at each other in shock, Sokka's hands still frozen on Zuko and Zuko seeming unable or unwilling to step away.
"Uh, Sokka just kissed me," Zuko tells her. Toph cackles again.
"I did," Sokka says. It had barely been a kiss, just a peck really, but there was no denying their lips met. And he wanted it to happen again. But also... "Sorry, it was the adrenaline," he starts, but when Zuko's face falls Sokka grips his arms tighter. "Not like that! Like, I definitely wanted to kiss you, but I hadn't planned to do it just now, I was just excited and you were looking so-"
"Sokka, I will double my contribution to the money pool if you have this conversation literally anywhere else," Katara says, already going through the menu to start a new race, sounding way too unenthusiastic for someone who has been telling Sokka to make a move for months. Everyone else is still busy processing what just happened to say anything else; Aang's eyes are darting quickly between Zuko and Sokka, Suki is hiding a smile behind her hand, and Toph is smirking in their direction.
And, well, it's the push that Sokka needs as he grabs Zuko's hand and leads them toward the door to go for a walk and a conversation that has been a long time coming.
#i was going to choose which map theyre doing and who they play as etc but to be honest im too lazy to think about that rn#thanks for the prompt!#sophiasrant#ask me stuff#prompts#my writing#zukka
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The war has been ended, Ozai has been rendered helpless, and Zuko has reclaimed the Fire Nation with the promise of peace. Everything that Aang has been working towards since the moment Katara freed him from the iceberg has been done. He's saved the world. Now, all that's left is to confess to his forever girl. The two are finally free from all the responsibilities placed upon them by the war and the world- now, loving one another no longer means neglecting their sense of duty.
OR: Aang wakes up the morning after him and his friends saved the entire world, and the first (and only) thing he can think about is Katara. When they get a chance to talk, the two take a walk down memory lane.
---
For a moment, in his still dream-addled mind, Aang wondered what he had done to wake up this way, only to have the memories rush back the moment his fingers lightly grazed the marks. For the first time in technically a century, a looming deadline of responsibility and unfulfillable promises wasn’t hanging over him.
Had it really only been yesterday when he and his friends had saved the world?
---
He remembered seeing that Katara was okay and feeling the relief so intensely that it felt as though it had reached his soul. Holding her for probably a couple seconds too long. Not wanting to let go, out of relief that she hadn’t been hurt.
---
From his place on the floor, bending a sphere of air for Momo to play with, Aang watched his friends bicker over Sokka’s drawing of them and felt so overwhelmed with emotion that he could hardly contain it. He had needed to grow up so quickly in the last year, all of them had. War had pushed them so far- each of them had lost so much, and yet, they could still smile. Could live in the peaceful world they deserved. That Aang would now be able to help create.
Aang felt tears prick his eyes as he wondered what Gyatso would say if he had seen what Aang had done. If he knew that Aang finally stopped running from destiny.
---
He turned to look at her, and spirits , she took his breath away. She pulled him in, and he wrapped his arms around her, burying his head in her neck, savouring in the reminder that she was okay , that they were okay , that they would have time now.
---
Guru Pathik was insane, absolutely crazy, for thinking anyone could ever choose cosmic energy over this girl.
---
When Katara had excused herself early, saying that she had to grab a few things, Aang waited until she left the hall before jumping up from his seat.
“I have to- uh- um- A-Avatar things. To grab, from, from my room? And I should probably- uh- check on Appa. See how the, um, sleeping on the balcony… went?”
“...Mhm.” Toph deadpanned, “Sure, Twinkletoes. Just in case you were wondering, Miss Sugar Queen’s on her way to the gardens right now. You can catch up with her if you take the stairs to your left and make a couple of turns.” She elbowed Aang, hard enough to crack a rib or two. “Go get her, tigerdillo.”
---
“As much as I hate to admit it, you’re right. It wasn’t the time, no matter how much I wanted it to be.” He bit his lip nervously, then reached for her hands, pulling them between the two. The water she had been bending splashed back down into her lap, and after she gave a startled giggle, Aang helped her bend the droplets of water from her skirt. He took her hands in his once more, caressing her skin gently with his fingertips.
“But… now could be that time. If you wanted it to be.” He breathed the words, looking into her shining, ocean-blue eyes.
♥ the rest of the (completed) fic can be found here!! ->
youtube
#help i'm crying at how funny this photo combo is#it looks like tiny aang is desperately trying to seperate them#atla kataang#kataang#atla fanfic#atla fandom#ao3#avatar the last airbender#writing#ao3 recs#ao3 works#ao3 link#ao3 writer#confessions#oneshot#fluff#eventual romance#atla sokka#katara#aang#toph beifong#kataang fanfic#coldplay#sparks#Youtube#quillthrillsatlafic
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Zutaras and even Zukkas to this day claim that Mai and Zuko wouldn’t be compatible because Mai never showed any care about the world/morality/politics which makes her an abhorrent match to their precious Fire lord.
That is the closest they ever got to a minimally logical argument and it still falls apart super quickly when you think about it.
First, we don't know what a Fire Lady actually does, as all the Fire Lords we saw in the show before Zuko were widowed/divorced. Maybe it is a role that offers great political power. Maybe it just means you're supposed to stand next to your husband looking pretty and giving him kids every now and then.
And regardless of what the role used to mean, Zuko's whole deal as Fire Lord will be changing nearly everything about how their nation works - if the role of Fire Lady really was incompatible with how Mai wants to live her life, he could just change it to better suit her as he is quite literally the person with the most power in their country and his word is the law.
And while Mai is amoral/apolitical, her actions in books 2 and 3 did show us that she is very capable and willing to:
1 - Fight when necessary (without killing people as the show's rating wouldn't allow for cutting throats and stabbing a motherfucker in the eye, which will come in handy with Zuko's idea for an era of peace, mercy and kindness).
2 - Try to give Zuko some emotional support when things aren't going his way (see Nightmares and Daydreams, aka the episode Mai haters pretend doesn't exist).
3 - Trust that Zuko is making the right call and supporting him fully even as he is doing something that goes directly against what she was taught her whole life (see The Boiling Rock Part 2, aka the other episode Mai haters pretend doesn't exist).
4 - Infiltrate a city and basically act as a spy.
5 - Be a team player.
6 - Just basically take action - THAT is why she didn't like her life in Omashu. She had literally NOTHING to do. It wasn't because politics are boring or whatever the fuck.
So yeah, Mai would not be this disaster Fire Lady, or completely uninterested in helping Zuko. And it's VERY bold of Zutara and Zukka fans to act like the fact that she likes fighting more than the political game is some "gotcha" against Maiko fans, when Katara's whole deal was wanting to have fun, see the world, fight, and learn more about HER culture, and Sokka wants to be like his dad - aka chief of the WATER TRIBE.
Like, say what you will about Mai, but at least we know that after the events of the show she would be in the same country as Zuko. Katara and Sokka meanwhile are likely going to split their time between being home with their family and traveling around with Aang - how is that a good match for the Fire Lord?
And that's when we think of Zuko just as a ruler. If we think of him as a person choosing what makes him happy, we have to remember that HE CHOSE MAI, not Katara, not Sokka, not anyone else, MAI.
I rest my fucking case.
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One word prompt: Delicate
aang….won’t take it well.
she already knows this, but somehow, the walk to her best friend’s room still feels like a walk to her own execution.
the western air temple is large, vacant, and terribly difficult to find if you aren’t sure what you’re looking for. so it’s perfect for their annual gaang reunions. normally, katara enjoys the temple’s serene atmosphere and peaceful ambiance, but now? she just wishes it wasn’t so damn quiet.
aang’s door is already cracked open like an ominous invitation. she does him the courtesy of knocking anyways.
“come in.”
he’s sitting at his desk penning some official avatar document or other.
“homework?” she teases lightly to mask her unease.
“oh you know, just a bunch of old guys asking for my advice. same as usual.” he scribbles one last line, then sets the brush down and turns to give her his full attention.
those wide grey eyes always seem to strike a familiar, tender chord in her, and she swallows thickly around her guilt. it’s the same guilt she felt when she’d broken up with him all those years ago. for a moment, she contemplates faking a laugh and chickening out, but remembers how he’d appreciated her honesty before (no matter how painful) and opts to rip the bandaid off as gently as she can.
“i wanted to talk to you about something,” she says. “something serious.”
he blinks, nods, and slides off his chair to sit cross legged on the floor. she sits across from him and takes a deep breath.
“it’s…look,” she struggles to find the right words, despite having thought this through a million times already. she tries again, “first, i want you to know that i love you, very much. the last thing i want to do is hurt you, or make you feel uncomfortable.”
aang just nods again, ever-patient. “i appreciate that.”
katara wrings her hands subconsciously, feeling sick to her stomach, but she forces herself to look him in the eye. “i’ll understand if you’re upset or if you need some space. but this is really important to me, and i don’t want it to come from anyone else.”
“okay.”
“okay…”
his cherubim face has filled out since their childhood days—cheekbones angled and jaw covered in light stubble. she doesn’t think she can do this. she doesn’t think he can handle—
“is this about you and zuko?”
katara nearly chokes, teeth accidentally biting into her cheek hard enough to bleed. “huh?”
aang only scratches the back of his head in a gesture so boyish she could swear she sees a glimpse of his past self. “well, you know. you and zuko. dating.”
she splutters. “how—who told you?”
he gives her a dry look and sighs. “i’m not blind, katara. uh, no offense to toph…”
she can’t stop staring at him. surely, he wouldn’t be so calm about this? surely, this is a surprise? shit, her relationship with zuko was a surprise to her.
eventually, she chooses not to look the gift horse too close in the mouth. “when did you find out?”
aang hums, “i suspected something was going on last winter solstice when you both spent the whole dinner arguing about where sokka and suki should get married. but toph told me she was pretty sure it was nothing.”
“since all the way back then?!”
“yeah, well…” he gives her a sheepish grin, “we dated for three years, katara. you think i don’t know what you look like when you’re flirting?”
katara feels her cheeks heat up, though his loose shoulders and amused tone immediately soothe the worst of her worries.
aang’s a terrible liar. always has been. she would know if he was uncomfortable.
she still asks, though, because she would hate for anything to be broken between them due to her own cowardice.
“i’m alright. really, katara,” is what he answers. then, “is this why you’ve been so jittery since we all got here?”
“well, yeah,” she says defensively. “it’s not exactly an easy thing to bring up with your ex.”
“did you think i would break?”
she studies him carefully, then admits, “i don’t know.”
aang just laughs, and the sound is as free as he’s always been. a part of her finally relaxes, eased by his wide smile and twinkling eyes. “don’t worry so much about me. i love you and zuko both. and even if your happiness doesn’t include me, that’s okay. i just want you to follow what feels right. that’s all i’ve ever wanted.”
her nose stings with emotion and she gives him her best, watery smile. “oh, aang, my happiness will always include you. why do you think i wanted to be the one to tell you about it?”
he just stands and holds his arms out wide. she clambers to her feet and folds into his hug, head now fitting neatly under his chin thanks to the seven extra inches he sprouted after the war.
when he lets her go, his eyes shine with his own tears. “not that you ever actually needed it…but you have my blessing.”
#this got so long lol#idk i just really like the idea that they’d all still be close friends#even if katara and aang didn’t work out#or if zuko and katara actually got together#i like to think their friendships are strong enough to weather something like that#katara#aang#zuko#zutara#my zutara stuff#fanfic
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SECRET TUNNEL! SECRET TUNNEL! THROUGH THE MOUNTAINS! SECRET SECRET SECRET SECRET TUNNEL!
I’m really liking Iroh and Aang’s conversations, I feel like it’s building a groundwork for Aang to trust Iroh, and eventually Zuko in the future.
Bumi is exactly how I pictured him, big hat, crazy dude. I love that he recognizes Aang right away and doesn’t make him do those weird tests. He’s asking the real questions “how are you still alive? And more importantly why are you still a child?” He’s nutty but he loves his friend and you see that.
But then he acts like he starts to doubt Aang, fair enough given it’s been 100 years. When Aang accuses him of not caring he gets mad and starts tricking him, playing “games.” He’s bitter and feels betrayed but Aang is still his friend, he didn’t mean to abandon the world and Bumi knows that, he just needs to be mad about it too.
My problem is that Bumi is almost painted as a villain, he’s trying to show Aang just how horrible and difficult the war has been but he almost kills them both and his innocent people in the attempt. Bumi has lived through the war in a way Aang can’t understand, he probably lost countless loved ones and has been sitting with that pain and grief for a century. Aang’s return brings it all back, but Aang also helps him start to heal from it.
I’ve always had mixed feelings about Jet, in the original too. He’s extreme, trying to take out a whole town to kill a couple soldiers, attempting regicide so he can stop a few spies. He’s traumatized obviously, angry and scared. He’s still just a kid.
Zuko having to chose between capturing the avatar and rescuing his Uncle is a beautiful moment, you see him struggle to choose between what he thinks is his destiny and the last member of his family who showed him any kindness. Him picking Iroh and finding the lotus tile as a clue, really a callback to how much of a madman Zuko is when it comes to finding people/things. Man found the avatar, his uncle, Appa, his honor, his mom, etc.
Iroh having to face his past being confronted by an earth kingdom soldier who accuses him of having no humanity, knowing nothing of loss, when we know his backstory. In the flashback, I can’t tell if Ozai is genuinely trying to comfort his brother over the loss of his only son but doesn’t really know how. Versus Zuko who is clearly still an awkward turtle duck and grieving his cousin, but still comforting his Uncle.
LEAVES FROM THE VINE, FALLING SO SLOW I’m sobbing my eyes out. All the musical callbacks to the original show are making me so happy.
Oma and Shu being lesbians???? YES I LOVE IT!!! GIVE ME MORE!!!
I always thought the tunnels could be about more than just romantic love. I’m glad they didn’t have Aang in them with Sokka and Katara because it means they can showcase familial love and its value rather than romantic. They haven’t really been showing much of Aang’s crush on Katara so it doesn’t make sense in the story for him to be with her in the tunnels anyway. Instead we can see Katara call Sokka out on some of his worse tendencies like his overprotectiveness and watch their sibling relationship grow.
The badger moles are the sweetest giant angry earthbending babies ever and no one can change my mind.
#avatar the last airbender netflix#avatar the last airbender#avatar aang#atla katara#atla sokka#uncle iroh#king bumi#prince zuko#secret tunnel
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What I’m trying to say is that I think there would always be tension between Zuko and Azula. But it doesn’t mean Zuko wouldn’t try to help her. And it doesn’t mean she’s incapable of caring for her brother.
Now this we can certainly be in full agreement about. Zuko doesn't try to help her in this story at all, like I've explained many times now, because he's absolutely stuck on a very toxic mindset that he refuses to break. It's a concept that I wanted to explore because of how often I've seen people reiterating that he's "allowed" to resent her and never forgive her and have nothing else to do with her.
I'm not even that harsh with Zuko in that story, I'd say (bet a bunch of you thought I'd have another Sokka-punch straight to Zuko's face if they came face-to-face in this one, huh? X'D), I refused to write him wanting her executed because, while certain fans HAVE said that, I don't think I want to write a Zuko who spirals to THAT extent. But of course, I wanted to show through the story what it means for some people, unlike yourself, to believe that Zuko can't possibly help her, that he shouldn't, that it's even unethical to expect him to do it, and just... why? Why would this be the hill you want to die on? Why would you want this traumatized boy to never learn to work through his trauma and never learn to see more than his own pain? It was a lot of pain, nobody needs to hide that... but for a character who's constantly touted for being such a symbol of empathy, it makes very little sense that some of those fans, the very ones who talk about him being all about empathy, would demand that he shows none towards his sister.
So... yeah. This particular AU is a rarity for me because I really don't want to explore Zuko in this direction. I mean, nothing good would come from it, either: if I went any further, he'd likely wind up losing everything if he keeps clinging to this mindset. One of the ironies of Zuko's behavior in this story is that, in clinging to resentment, he ends up effectively reversing the situation that led to Azula's breakdown in canon: first, Sokka picked Azula over Zuko. Then, Katara and Aang do it too. Toph, as well, by helping them when she does. Iroh did, too, by harboring Azula when he did. Slowly and surely, Zuko ends up resenting ALL these people he loved for not choosing to support him on his "Azula cannot be forgiven!" crusade, and he takes it as a betrayal, just as Mai and Ty Lee betrayed Azula for his sake. And if the fact that Zuko could spiral into a situation that mirrors Azula's breakdown doesn't feel like a massive red flag about this headcanon, I don't know what will. But I do believe that nobody who loves this guy should ever want him to wind up in a position like this one.
As for Azula, I absolutely agree, though I also believe that her way of caring about Zuko isn't what most people want it to be. I don't think Azula could ever become someone who coddles him and treats him reverently... but I do think she could look after him in tough-love sort of ways. I do think she could want to protect him if harm comes his way. Theirs would likely be a complicated relationship, I suppose... but I guess that's why people say that there's no set way to love a person. Love comes in many shapes and forms, and not everyone can love others the same way someone else does. I don't think Azula can love Zuko the way he wants to be loved by a sibling... just as I don't think Zuko can do that for Azula, either. But if they learn to accept each other, to truly understand one another, I do believe they could reach a level of respect and, who knows, even lowkey admiration for each other in the best of cases, and accept each other's care and affection in whatever form it comes, provided it's genuine, of course. As long as they learn to see each other with clearer eyes, I don't think their relationship could ever lose all hope. It could work... it just has to be done thoroughly, and the work to amend it NEEDS to come from both sides. Zuko making all the efforts for an unresponsive and ungrateful Azula would be just as unreasonable as Azula making all the efforts for an unresponsive and ungrateful Zuko. So, provided they both grow up a lot, individually, I believe they can grow as siblings...
... Which is something I have been doing for them in a certain other massive AU in which I may or may not have written my most wholesome and positive version of their bond, unintentionally :'D
I do think that it's possible these two could learn to let go of the spite and resentment, to be honest. It can be done, provided that they're handled by writers who know how to guide the characters in the direction necessary to achieve that goal. And I say this because I feel like I've done it pretty organically in Gladiator, obviously some people might disagree, but I actually feel good about the place where I've taken their sibling bond there. So I don't think it's beyond the realm of possibilities for these two to heal. Their bond can be better, but it takes mutual understanding, then mutual forgiveness, to make sure they can become better siblings for each other. It would take time too, yes... but when you're talking to someone who's spent a decade writing a fic, being told that developing something like this "takes time" almost comes off as a joke to me. Of course it would: that's no reason not to put in the work to make it pay off if you want it to. Otherwise, I would have given up on Gladiator in like 20 chapters, upon realizing it was going to be my biggest venture in this fandom and that I wouldn't possibly know how much time it was going to take me to finish it :')
#anon#leap of faith#for someone who has picked so many bones#with Zuko and with Ursa#I am surprisingly nice to them lately#it is weird#but I think you guys will understand why#somewhat soon#provided you read a certain insane huge fic of mine too#:'DDDDDDDDDDD#but yeah I refuse to believe Zuko and Azula can't heal#the only reason why they wouldn't is if the writer creating stories about them#be it fics or official ones#doesn't care to make it happen#simple as that
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wait what do you mean about yumi getting married to wu????
Soooooooooo.
I've written before about Water Tribe marriages; how they differed between the North and South (and how the North brought their customs with them when they immigrated south - the engagement necklace, for example). What I wrote was actually based on actual marriage practices among certain Inuit tribes.
In my Southern Water Tribe headcanon the traditional way to get married was the man made a woman a boat (to show her family that he was able to support her and a family) and the woman had a baby (to show that she could). That was it. Boat and baby. They were married. (Same-sex couples compromised/did work arounds.) There were no actual wedding ceremonies as such and certainly no dowries, like in the Earth Kingdom. Boat and baby, bada-bing, you are now married. (In this practice, Kya and Hakoda would have been considered married after Sokka was born.)
(This is why Tupilek fixes up and then gives Meili the boat. Although they do get married before Linyi is born, because Meili hasn't been raised as Water Tribe. Although I will say that Tupilek's family won't consider them real deal fully actually married until Linyi's birth, despite attending the full ass Wu-given shindig wedding ceremony in Republic City.)
Yumi - who as you might recall, has only had sex once with a man, where she and the man in question were both pretty drunk and both of them thought they'd give having sex with the opposite sex a whirl - has no expectation of getting pregnant ever and does not want to raise a child. She's quite firm on this. The thing is, though, is that she actually decides to continue the pregnancy once she realizes she is pregnant - which is, for her maternal Water Tribe family, more than a little confusing, since this would mean on her part that she was married to Meili's birth father? (Who, as you might also recall - or perhaps not since you don't have this all in your head the way I do - is her oldest sister Tanka's first mate on her ship, and who is Southern Water Tribe himself.)
Yumi knows she could give the baby to her next oldest sister, who has a family on Kyoshi Island, to raise. Which would pretty much negate the whole marriage thing. Instead, she chooses to give the baby to Wu; in essence, doing her part to marry him in her mother's culture. (Wu of course, does not provide her with a boat. He does provide her with the building and property for her dojo, although the only other person besides Yumi who knows for sure that he bought it for her is Nuo, because Nuo did all the paperwork. Others suspect, however, or just take it as a given.) Even though it isn't technically a boat, Wu has actually provided her with the means to support herself, which is kind of fulfilling the marriage thing, right? And then Yumi gives him a baby.
Now as I said, Korra wholly and completely gets the cultural - and even legal - ramifications of this. Wu also gets it because Wu knows about shit like marriage customs in other countries because that's what you raise a king to know. Nobody else really does because, you know, what the hell do they know about what the Southern Water Tribe does? And Korra and Asami had an actual wedding down there (which was a nod to her Northern heritage through her father more than anything else) so Mako, for example, would just assume that's how it would be done. He, like Lin, like Qi, like everyone else just thinks that Yumi gave them Meili because she thought Wu and Mako would do a good job raising her. Which is partly true! Yumi does think that! But it's not the entire truth, not by a longshot.
Yumi's youngest sister, Iskani - who is the healer that was Katara's last student, the one who is running the healing school when Meili attends it - DOES know the significance and she's angry that Yumi and Wu won't acknowledge it because she feels it's detrimental towards Meili. Who is her niece. (She's not actually pissed at Meili, but Yumi ignores her and she doesn't know Wu, so she takes it out on Meili. But as we all know, Meili doesn't put up with anybody's bullshit.) She wants Meili to know the truth and Yumi has forbidden her to say anything (and her parents and other sisters have told her to mind her business, despite them thinking that well, guess our Yumi is another one of the Earth King's wives, who would have thought?).
Yumi and Wu have zero interest in each other sexually or romantically, but this is an aspect of their relationship that means it is much, much deeper and intimate than just about anybody else understands. (Nuo understands. She was there.) There's a reason why Yumi trains Qi to protect Wu the way she would. And if I ever wrote that stupid Royalist story it would be in that, for sure.
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So, I know it’s probably been a while for you, but I was recently rereading your White Lotus Zuko series, and I noticed you mentioned being willing to elaborate on your reasons for sticking so close to canon. I’ll admit, the way you stuck close to the events of canon in basically every way was a source of some major frustration when I first read it, and even now, it’s something which unfortunately brings it from a 10/10 to a 9.5/10. Why did you choose to have Zuko’s different choices have ultimately no effect?
Ohhh yikes, I’ve been dreading this ask. The long and the short of it is under the cut:
The simple answer is that the White Lotus Zuko series only really came about because I'm a Zutara shipper who wanted to see what their relationship could have been like if Zuko was a good guy from the start. It really was that simple when I first began writing ‘No Reason You Can’t Do It’.
The longer answer is that I was still (am still?) a very new writer, really not all that confident in my ability to craft a plot and a narrative, and I was more interested in (and had more fun thinking about) the characters and their relationships than the plot. That’s what I liked most about writing Book 1 and Book 2, and one part of Book 3 I really enjoyed writing the climactic scene when Aang unlocks the Avatar State, because that’s when we see how much his friends have helped him on this particular take on his coming-of-age journey.
I could have had the story go differently, yes, but when I was writing this fanfic, I’d just left a job that I hated only to find myself in another job that I hated in the middle of a global pandemic, and I wanted to write something that brought me joy. And like I’ve said before, I didn’t want to write a canon-divergent series so much as a canon-adjacent series; I wrote the story for me, and I enjoyed the fact that sticking close to canon meant that I could try my hand at writing Azula, Mai and Ty Lee. Plus, I was able to bring in more Asian influences such as Zuko’s Japanese poetry or Iroh’s Korean proverbs, which was hands-down my favourite part of 'You Have To Stand Firm’.
I’m sorry to hear that you were frustrated by the way the series went, but I mean, if it’s canon-divergent AUs you want, I wouldn’t say Zuko’s choices had no effect. I wrote a 90k Zuko-centric prequel set in the 18 months between ‘Seventy-two to nil’ and ‘No Reason You Can’t Do It’, and I’m kind of fond of my Mai-centric spin-off, which was set up pretty nicely by the ripple effects of ‘You Have To Stand Firm’ and ‘Who Knows What Happens Next’.
Maybe once I’ve worked on some other stuff and real life slows down a bit, I might go back and write an alternate Book 3 where Zuko fights Azula in the Crystal Catacombs to allow Uncle, Katara and Aang to escape. When they get back to the Wani, Sokka and Suki are fully prepared to go back and break Zuko out. Just before they leave, Iroh hands Sokka a bag to give to Zuko. In full view of everyone, Sokka opens the bag and pulls out a Pai Sho set, a couple of boxes of ginseng, and a Blue Spirit mask. Annnnd that’s how Aang and Katara and the SWT warriors find out that Zuko’s the Blue Spirit. Great job, Sokka.
On the ship’s brig, Azula taunts Zuko by telling him that she’s heard rumours that pirates have sent a mercenary after the Avatar’s waterbender and the Blue Spirit after they sunk their ship. Once Sokka and Suki have broken Zuko out, they decide that it’s too dangerous to risk leading Azula straight back to the Wani, and instead decide to go across the Earth Kingdom as a distraction, a la Sokka and Zuko’s plan in Book 1. Whilst they’re looking for the Kyoshi Warriors, Combustion Man catches up to them - he’s after the Blue Spirit, and he thinks Sokka’s the waterbender!
Cue Aang learning the elements from Katara, Toph and Iroh, the older kids doing White Lotus things, and more ZK pining than ever. But would anyone read it after such a long hiatus? I probably wouldn’t.
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sokka loves katara so much. he thinks she is unreasonable, overzealous, and naive. he would die for her at the drop of a hat. he endures her screaming at him every day. he would tear anyone who hurt her to shreds. relaxing elevator music plays in his head as he tunes out her daily tirade. when she shows him kindness he cries out of gratitude. when he’s pissed at her he makes fun of her hair, because he knows exactly how to cut her deep without ever actually going too far. she never listens to his measured, rational advice, and he’s okay with that. she is his first priority at all times. she annoys him every day. he values her life over his own to the point where it’s not even a contest. sokka loves katara so much.
#😭😭😭#being the eldest sibling rly is just Like That huh#you would sacrifice everything for them and they do not care!!!!#sokka#katara#katara&sokka#can u tell who my favorite characters are..... what my favorite dynamic is....... I bet it’s rly subtle#my brother always asks me who I prefer bc he claims I have to pick ONE favorite I can’t just have a vague top 5#but how could I ever choose between sokka and katara???#they are both perfect!!!!!#it’s literally impossible!!!!!!!!
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I love her, damn it!
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Part 2 (Part 1 here)
Ship: Sokka x f!firebender!reader
Warnings: swearing, injuries, captive abuse, a bit of angst, but it ends well
Genre: angst-to-comfort
Fic type: Scenario
A/n: This is part 2 of the "I love her, damn it!" miniseries. Sorry that it took so long and I apologize to those who have sent in their requests. I've seen them and am already working on them. You can expect them to be completed in about a week.
Other than that, I hope you enjoy and have a nice day!
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(Y/n) was sure she had lost the perception of time at this point. All the blood loss, torture, and generally not being able to see the sun in the freezing metal cell had made her head fuzzy and not being able to recall what day or time it was.
She didn't know if it was hours, days, maybe weeks, or even months since she had been captured, but it didn't really matter at this point. (Y/n)'s main goal was to survive and possibly get out of the base to safety.
Just then, (Y/n) heard footsteps outside of her cell. Rhythmic, meaning it was probably another Fire Nation soldier that had come to either 'beat the traitor' or deliver scraps of food. The firebender heard the footsteps stop near the door and the rhythmic tapping of the keypad of the side of the cell door.
When the captive heard the high-pitched beep of the keyboard, signaling that the correct combination had been entered, (Y/n) threw her head back and groaned, her bound hand tugging at the metal chains around her wrists immobilizing her.
The metal doors to her cell slid open and a cloud of mist rose from the doorway. The girl sighed and through her nose released a mist cloud similar to the doorway and swung her head back in front of her to see who had decided to come to visit her. (Y/n)'s eyes widened when she had set her gaze on the visitor, before quickly relaxing and raising her brows.
"Princess Azula," (Y/n) addressed her, "To what do I owe the pleasure that you personally come to visit a poor firebender like myself in these circumstances?"
"You and I know very well that you aren't just another poor firebender," the princess smirked in reply, crossing her arms behind her back, "You are far more important than those disposable soldiers in this base."
"I suppose so, your Highness," the captive sighed and furrowed her eyebrows when she felt her energy depleting, "However, I would be far too hopeful to think that you've just come here to talk to your old friend. What do you want?"
"Always to the point, as usual," Azula replied as her smirk widened and she turned to slowly walk around the cold cell, "But you are right. You would be far too hopeful to think I've just come to see you."
"And as to what I want," the princess continued "I want to give you a choice."
(Y/n) raised a brow in question as the corners of her mouth started to tug downwards into a grimace at Azula's speech.
"Swear absolute loyalty to me and join the Fire Nation again as a general," she proposed, "And you will walk out of this cell a free woman. I'll arrange it so that no trace of this incident ever exists, and everyone will forget that you were a traitor to your kind."
"And if I refuse?" (Y/n) asked, her eyes locking onto her former friend's own amber ones.
"You'll stay here before you will be brought out by the firing squad to your execution," Azula replied.
"So you're making me choose between two evils. Execution or you." the captive smirked tiredly as her head swayed from side to side, barely managing to keep it up.
"Precisely," the princess turned on her heel to face the captive.
(Y/n) bowed her head, making some of her stray hairs falling in front of her face as she slowly started to laugh. The girl's laughter became louder with each second and she once again tossed her head back before breathing in deeply to calm herself, a huge grin settling on her face.
"Do you really have to ask for my decision? You already know what it will be, Azula," (Y/n) leaned forward as much as her chain bound hands would let her so that she was face to face with the Fire Nation princess before whispering, "My death will at least be without much suffering."
"So execution it is," Azula growled as her grin disappeared from her face and a frown came instead. The princess looked at the triumphant grin on the captive's face before turning away and swiftly walking to the doors of the cell and walking past the guards at the entrance.
"Have the firing squad ready for her execution," Azula commanded one of the guards.
"Yes, your Highness!" the guard replied and closed the cell doors.
(Y/n) sighed as her grin started to fade away. She knew that she couldn't escape this, but in no way did the girl regret her decision. The former general was aware that Azula would exploit her and break her if she had agreed.
And then her thoughts shifted to her friends. Aang, Katara, Toph, Zuko and...Sokka.....
The memory of the water tribe boy's brilliantly blue eyes flashed in her mind, the hand he had reached out to try to help her into the escaping jeep despite their disdain for one another.
"I'll never see him again," (Y/n) sighed out as her hopes shattered, "they won't be able to come for me."
Just as her thoughts started to become deeper into the pit of memories, the firebender's ears picked up the faint sound of footsteps running and shouting outside of her cell.
"Have I really become insane now?" (Y/n) pondered as she felt faint and black spots started to appear in her vision from how tired she felt, "Am I hearing things now?"
The girl's consciousness started to flicker as she supposedly heard footsteps coming closer down the corridor. And for a brief second, (Y/n) thought she could hear Sokka shouting her name and the sliding metal door being busted open with force.
And there they were. Those same sea blue eyes she had gazed into before she had been shot at. And now those blue eyes were the last thing the firebender saw before she had blacked out.
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Sokka felt his heart stop the moment he saw (Y/n) passing out just as they had made it inside her cell. His widened eyes then zeroed on the countless bruises on the girl's body, all of them varying in different sizes, and Sokka felt his blood starting to boil.
"Toph, release her from the chains!" Zuko commanded the blind girl, making the water tribe boy snap out of his thoughts.
"On it!" the girl replied and used her metal bending to crumple the chains around the captive's wrists.
Just as (Y/n) started to fall to the floor, Sokka leaped forward and caught the passed out girl in his arms. Immediately the fingers of his right hand flew up to the left side of the girl's neck, right above an artery, and upon finding the steady beating of her heart sighed in relief.
"Sokka!" Zuko called out to his friend, "We have to go! Now!"
The Fire Nation prince had come closer to the pair and was about to grab (Y/n) out of Sokka's arms to carry, but the younger boy clutched her body closer to his.
"We don't have time for this!" the firebender insisted and reached out for the girl, "Give her to me so that we can get out!"
"No!" Sokka replied stubbornly, "I can handle this myself."
"For fuck's sake, why are you being stubborn about this!" Zuko questioned angrily, "If you give her to me, I can carry her out faster-"
"Because I love her, damn it!" Sokka yelled back at the firebender and hoisted (Y/n)'s limp body up in his arms.
Zuko's eyes widened at his friend's outburst before his brows furrowed in concentration and after a pause spoke.
"Alright," Zuko said calmly, "Get her to the Rendez-vous point. I'll cover for you. Toph, go in front of them and scour out any enemies in front of us!"
"I can feel none so far," the blind girl replied as she started running in front of the group, Sokka following shortly behind with (Y/n) in his arms.
"Hold on, (Y/n)," Sokka thought to himself as the group made it out of the building.
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A soft surface under her. That's the first thing (Y/n) noticed when she started to regain consciousness. The second thing the girl felt was a calloused hand clutching her own. A finger slowly and gently ghosted over the hand and she felt the hand tighten.
(Y/n) turned her head to the side where the hand was coming from and started to slowly blink her eyes open, squinting a bit when the hospital room's bright light burned her eyes. But nonetheless, the firebender noticed the dark skin of the hand holding her's and looked up.
The girl felt warmth spread through her chest when she realized that Sokka had come to visit her and fell asleep. (Y/n) slowly wiggled her hand out of his grasp and gently traced his face with the back of her hand, making the boy groan in his sleep and the hand clutching her's previously grabbing her wrist.
"Mmmm, what?" the water tribe boy blinked as he took in his surroundings and with sleep clouded eyes looked at (Y/n), still clutching her wrist gently.
After a brief pause, his eyes widened and a large grin appeared on his face when he had regained enough consciousness.
"You're awake!" Sokka exclaimed happily and dived in the bed to hug the girl, "Holy shit, you're awake!"
"Slow down, water boy!" (Y/n) wheezed out as she slightly pushed at Sokka's chest, "You're suffocating me!"
"Sorry!" the boy quickly apologized before looking the firebender over to see if he had hurt her accidentally.
"It's fine, I'm fine," the girl laughed and Sokka's cheeks gained a reddish tint to them.
After a brief pause, the boy shook his head, the warmth from his face disappearing before his brows furrowed and he stared angrily at the girl in front of him.
"Why the hell would you think it was a good idea to try to stop the Fire Nation soldiers on your own!" Sokka scolded the firebender, "It was absolutely reckless and stupid, and-"
"Well, what else was I supposed to do?" (Y/n) angrily replied, "Allow them to capture us all? "
"You were supposed to stay safe!" the water tribe boy pressed.
"Since when was saving the world from the Fire Nation ever safe?" the firebender questioned.
"What I meant was that you were supposed to not get hurt," Sokka explained himself, "You placed yourself in unnecessary danger and you got hurt because of it."
"Since when do you care that I get hurt?" (Y/n) tsked.
"Since I found out that I love you," the words slipped out of Sokka's mouth and the girl's eyes widened in shock.
"You.. love me?" She cautiously questioned.
"Yeah, I do," he sighed, bowing his head and waiting for rejection, "Look I know you don't feel the same way, but I wanted you to know so th-"
Sokka never managed to complete his sentence as (Y/n)'s lips locked on to her former rival's. The boy tensed before slowly relaxing and leaning into the kiss. The girl's lips started to pull back, but the water tribe boy dived back in for another kiss.
No way was he gonna let her go now.
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Aang as Zuko’s “Found-Sibling”
so i kind of alluded to it on my previous post but if zuko sees his relationship with any of the gaang as a foil to his sibling relationship with azula, it’s aang.
in the season 1 finale, zuko compares the two directly:
zuko: I finally have you, but I can't get you home because of this blizzard. There's always something. Not that you would understand. You're like my sister. Everything always came easy to her. She's a Firebending prodigy, and everyone adores her. My father says she was born lucky. He says I was lucky to be born. I don't need luck, though. I don't want it. I've always had to struggle and fight and that's made me strong. It's made me who I am.
here zuko makes a lot of assumptions. he is implying that because aang is a prodigy like azula, everything must come easy for him. we as the audience know this isn’t true (he doesn’t know aang’s background at this point), but it does speak to his insecurities in terms of his sister (foreshadowing to his season 2 interactions with azula.)
contrast that quote with what zuko says to katara in the season 1 finale:
zuko: you rise with the moon, i rise with the sun.
he sees katara as evenly skilled as himself. a match, but with opposite bending elements. and that’s even reflected in the way that katara wins their match at night, but zuko wins their fight when it’s day time.
zuko (especially in season 1) sees azula as superior to him, someone who he’ll never catch up to in skill because she’s a prodigy. in contrast, he’s seen katara when she first started to bend and made mistakes (barely able to form a water whip, and the time she accidentally froze sokka). zuko has seen and acknowledged her growth throughout the show and he sees her as someone who has also had to struggle and work hard to get to her current bending capacity.
and like @sokkastyles already said:
Aang is the younger prodigy who he resents for being better than him in the beginning, the one who is imbued with power and authority by birth that he lacks, the “lucky” one.
continuing on, i wanna talk about crossroads of destiny. the zk scene again emphasizes how similar zuko sees katara to himself (not azula.)
he is calm, open, and vulnerable throughout these scene with katara. he almost allows himself to forget they’re on opposite sides because of how much they have in common. but once aang comes in:
there’s that same anger and resentment he has towards azula.
i’ve seen some people refer to the crossroads of destiny as zuko some hidden meaning of choosing between “sisters,” but i disagree. it’s framed as a decision between azula and aang, and for zuko, it’s supposed to be an impossible choice.
so we see him go after aang with an uncontrolled intensity that is so different from the brief peace he was able to achieve with iroh in ba sing se. and it’s easy to imagine that this is because he’s taking his frustration that he can’t express towards azula, out on aang, as a substitute.
we see lingering bits of zuko’s resentment towards aang, even after he joins the gaang. it’s unintentional, but from the firebending masters, we can see how he initially still holds onto that insecurity a bit.
when he initially realizes he lost his firebending he tries the forms over and over, while aang is just chilling:
aang: that one felt kinda hot
zuko: don’t patronize me!
aang: sorry sifu hotman
zuko: and stop calling me that!
even though aang was being genuine, it’s easy to imagine that zuko is connecting this moment back to times with azula growing up. especially because we know how much his ability to fire bend is tied up into his self worth.
he’s given the chance to “prove” himself by teaching someone who he considers superior in skill to himself (aang, just off virtue of being the avatar), and when he fails, that rears up the resentment again.
but then, their dynamic shifts after zuko admits he doesn’t want to rely on hate and anger anymore. zuko has several moments where he encourages aang (who he was previously resentful towards) because he sees that aang needs it. he’s able to realize that aang isn’t a prodigy in the sense that he thinks he’s superior to anyone else. and he’s also able to see that aang has his own insecurities as well, as they get to know each other more on their trip. he has phrases like:
zuko: you can do it. i know you can. you’re a strong kid.
aang: [Turning to Zuko.] We could turn back now. We've already learned more about fire than we'd hoped. [Aang shows Zuko his flame and gives a weak smile.]
zuko: No, we're seeing this through to the end.
and aang’s face as a result:
so in a sense, zuko is able to be needed as a big brother. and to offer support because aang is unsure about himself.
also this scene reeks of sibling energy:
but anyways, i think aang/zuko’s found-sibling relationship foils azula/zuko’s sibling relationship because even though they start off with resentment for similar reasons, his dynamic with aang changes.
i see people say that the reason they think katara is zuko’s “surrogate sibling” is because she provides him with care and kindness, unlike azula. the same could be said about aang.
whereas azula has made it clear that she doesn’t respect zuko’s bending, aang values and respects zuko for his skills (even when he was struggling at the beginning of the firebending masters.) aang is able to reciprocally affirm zuko as well:
aang: i don’t care what everyone else says about you. you’re pretty smart!
i also find the last few lines after they meet with the dragons to be significant:
zuko: That's why my firebending was so weak before. Because for so many years, hunting you [Turns toward Aang as screen zooms out to show Aang.] was my drive ... it was my purpose. [Aang turns toward Zuko as well.] So when I joined you, I lost sight of my inner fire. But now, I have a new drive. [Cut to Zuko's face as screen zooms in.] I have to help you defeat my father and restore balance to the world.
i’d like to think that part of losing/letting go of his anger/resentment in part was because of the new relationship he was able to build with aang. in a sense, he’s able to repair a “pseudo-sibling” relationship with a found-sibling who willingly accepts him.
i love that they’re address their confidence issues regarding firebending together.
and how, when they rushed to show the rest of the gaang after they returned:
aang: [Cut to Aang and Zuko demonstrating the Dancing Dragon to the rest of Team Avatar and friends.] With this technique the dragons showed us, Zuko and I will be unstoppable.
zuko has gained a found-sibling relationship that isn’t about comparing their firebending to each other, but working as a team. it’s so so meaningful that aang says “zuko and i.” the idea of zuko having a sibling relationship where he’s able to share his love of firebending and not feel insecure about it ...🥺. him having a “sibling” who wants to hang out with him and do things together and gushes about it with the confidence that aang had when he said they would be unstoppable.
oh! not to mention that i’ve seen people say that zuko/katara have a sibling relationship because she teases him in EIP. but like .. that’s such flimsy logic. and also? aang and zuko have their mutual teasing moments especially in the firebending masters, and it’s just adorable.
anyways, my main point from all this is that ik people love to say zuko/katara fit surrogate siblings (which i hate btw), but it’s mostly said because of katara/azula’s similar age. it doesnt matter that aang is 12, though, because honestly, he fits the “found-sibling” dynamic a lot better because of how zuko used to see aang in relation to azula. it just works better thematically. especially, because like i’ve said, and as so many people in fandom point out: zuko and katara are similar (some people... antis.. would say “too” similar). and when has zuko ever seen azula as being similar to himself? exactly.
#i'm gonna tag zutara for exposure but it's not zutara lol#found sibling#zuko#aang#atla#showing love to aang and zuko's friendship because i love it so much#and i consider them to be brothers#i wrote this at 4 AM whoops#if there's errors that's why lol#found sibling makes my heart go brrr#sorry that this was long#and no i dont want aang to replace azula btw#but i do think through his relationship with aang he would eventually know how to approach and repair his with azula
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I have always loved the way Aang says “okay. okay. sorry.” in this scene. So, let’s talk about this brief little moment. Because this brief little moment says so much about Aang’s character. This is the scene in which Zuko figures out that he needs to find a new source for his firebending. He has spent the entire last episode being vulnerable with the gaang and owning his mistakes. But, here, he is reminded of a mistake that he cannot own because he did not commit it. But he still has to bear the burden of it. Zuko’s ancestors hunting dragons is not something that Zuko can apologize for the way he apologizes for other things. It truly wasn’t his fault. But it is still something that he carries around with him. When he is confronted with this unpleasant realization that there exists a wrong that he can’t right, his reaction is to be defensive and angry. Aang did nothing wrong in this scene. Zuko is being reactive. But, look how quickly Aang forgives that. Not only is he not offended that Zuko yells at him for asking a very reasonable question, he apologizes for having set Zuko off. Aang knows that there is something wrong, but he doesn’t want to see Zuko be upset about it. He already has so much faith that there is more to Zuko than just being the angry jerk. So he diffuses the situation and waits until there is a better opportunity to try and find out what is bothering Zuko. Structurally, this episode is the first in the lineup of life-changing field-trips with Zuko. But it is the first. All we and the gaang know of Zuko at this point is what he showed us in The Western Air Temple. But they don’t really know what this new Zuko is like. Is he just as angry as he used to be? As hot-headed? They know his motivations and intentions are different now and that is what they are placing their trust in. Aang and Zuko being the first in the lineup is significant. Why is it Aang, to whom Zuko has done the most harm, whom Zuko has wronged the most, who goes first? Why does Aang have to be the one to test the waters with this new guy, who, yeah, is now on our side, but has been known to periodically explode over tiny things? Because it is his character. It is his skill. There are two distinct aspects of Aang’s character at play here. #1. His belief that no one is beyond redemption Aang has a deeply founded belief that no one is beyond redemption. He doesn’t see people as simply good or simply evil. And it is clear that even in Book 1, he did not see Zuko this way. Even after all those attempts at capturing him, Aang still chooses to save Zuko’s life. Twice. And those were not Aang acting on his “all life is sacred and therefore must be preserved” belief. No, Aang choosing to save Zuko’s life twice in Book 1 is him demonstrating his understanding that even someone who has made so many mistakes is capable of reform. He has always had that faith, not only in Zuko, but in everyone he encounters. He even gives Ozai multiple chances to redeem himself during their fight. But that’s a discussion for another day. Thus, when he and the gaang first meet Zuko in The Western Air Temple, Aang’s reaction is distinct from the rest of the group. Zuko picks up on it when he asks Aang,  Aang is clearly conflicted here. His immediate reaction to Zuko isn’t the disbelief of Toph or the anger of Sokka and Katara. He would really like to believe Zuko here, because he has faith that what Zuko is saying could be true, whereas the others dismiss it as an outright lie. But, ultimately, Aang gives in to the rest of the group and rejects Zuko here. But, we know that all he needs is just a little push. Just a little more evidence of Zuko’s honest remorse. And he gets that when he sees Zuko try to defend them from Combustion Man and again when Zuko apologizes to Toph. And again, he is the first person to accept Zuko. #2. His ability to express true forgiveness This brings me to my main point which is that Aang possesses an incredible skill – true forgiveness. He coaches Katara on his methods in a later episode (which is a whole ‘nother issue in and of itself, but we will discuss that another time), but we can see his philosophy at play here. When Aang makes the decision to forgive Zuko, he does so completely. He lets his anger out and then lets it go. And it is truly gone. After the end of The Western Air Temple, we never see Aang harbor any residual grudge toward Zuko. He is as carefree and fun-loving as we have ever seen him, despite the fact that he is now on an adventure with a former enemy. But, Aang doesn’t see it that way. He sees it as another adventure with a new friend.  He jokes; he pokes fun. He is simply being himself and in doing so, he is allowing Zuko to be himself. And that’s why the bond between them forms so quickly and so easily. Because they can both be their true selves. But, this wouldn’t have happened if Aang hadn’t had the skill, self-assuredness, and courage to forgive Zuko completely. Aang has always had these qualities for as long as we have known him in the series. The other characters have to learn how to do these things.  SO BASICALLY,  Anyone else in this scene would have either challenged Zuko for getting angry or simply ignored him. But neither of those things would have been productive the way Aang’s response was. tl;dr Aang is an incredible character whose unshakable core beliefs allow him to bring out the best in people.
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Even if the Fire Nation did decide to do a arranged marriage with a Fire Nation Royal marrying a Water Tribe Member, wouldn’t it be more likely for them to pair Azula with Sokka?
Azula is a Spare to the Throne so no racists could argue “The Heir isn’t Fire Nation enough”. Sokka is the eldest of Hakoda’s children and the only male child of any of the water Tribe leaders. (We do see the fire Nation has implied sexism.)
Plus from what we see of the Royal marriages, only Ozai, a Spare, got put into a arranged marriage. Though it can be argued that this was favoritism.
The favoritism thing is EXACTLY why I think that, in an AU where the "lesser" kid marries to someone of a "lesser" people, ZUKO would likely be the one to have an arranged marriage. Even though the Fire Nation seems to favor sons over daughters, Ozai clearly favors the prodigy child, aka Azula, so he is not having HER marry someone unworthy of his real heir.
And even if she WAS treated like "the spare" - that still doesn't make her less of a princess. A princess of a very elitist, racist nation. A princess that called Katara, Sokka's sister, a PEASANT even though she's the daughter of a chieftain, implying the Fire Nation doesn't even see that as real authority. Plus, in the terrible state the South Pole was in, the Fire Nation could EASILY just kill all the 30 people left and put a flag in an ice-berg to say "This land belongs to us now!"
Compare that her mother: a very high-born girl (because remember, Roku was treated as worthy enough to be friends with the freaking prince loooong before he was revealed to be the Avatar), a FIRE NATION CITIZEN, and descendent of someone who, despite being public enemy number one now, was treated as a freaking messiah. COMPLETELY different from "Eldest child of a ruler the Fire Nation doesn't even see as legitimate."
In that context, there's just NO WAY any marriage between these two nations is happening. The very suggestion of it would be seen as an insult to the Fire Nation royalty because HOW DARE someone say they'd need to make any kind of alliance with those barbarians?
As for Iroh and his supposed privilege of not needing an arranged marriage, that is just not something the show ever explicitly stated or hinted at. We have exactly zero info on Lu Ten's mom other than "she existed and isn't around anymore" and even WHY she seems to be long gone is not explained.
Was she the love of Iroh's life and tragically died shortly after giving birth? Was she just a noble lady that he never really bonded with or cared for, and was then allowed to leave once she did her job of giving the future Fire Lord an heir? Was she a pretty, humble girl with no status, money or political influence, whom Iroh had a one-night stand with and would have forgotten about completely if she had not gotten pregnant from said one night stand?
The writers gave us nothing. At most we can assume that, based on the network, target audience, and time it was made, she likely was married to Iroh at some point. And considering how royalty tends to work, it was either an arranged marriage for political benefit OR a Zuko and Mai situation of "As long as you pick someone with enough status (and from the correct nation of course), choose whatever girl you like best."
Again, with how the Fire Nation seems to depose/kill the rulers of the territories they invade and replace them with nobility of their own nation, a marriage between one of their royals and a foreigner (be the pair Zuko and Katara, Zuko and Yue, Azula and Sokka, Lu Ten and some Earth Kingdom princess, etc) is just not in the realm of possibility outside of fanworks that drastically change how they do things.
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Zuko & Katara's Relationship Dynamic
This is like the third or fourth time I've tried to write up this post so please bare with me.
Oh wow. That video. Hopefully everyone has seen it now. Not only did it articulate arguments I've been making for years, but it also brought up ideas I had never thought of or noticed before. Watching that and watching the second half of Book 3 again (because it's my favorite) made me want to redo my zutara dynamic post.
I'm going to be using the tiny bits and pieces the show gave us to see how Zuko and Katara's relationship looks and how it would look if they gave us more because...Bryke really fucking hated zutara. I mean, I guess they did.
Katara is compassionate; Zuko is empathetic
A lot of anti-zutara arguments have said that Zuko and Katara could never be together because they would constantly fight and hate each other and it end sooner than later. Not only does this actually describe maiko, but that argument would need to ignore the characters' actual character.
One of Katara's biggest character traits is how compassionate she is. She has a drive to help others and ease their pain. Whether it's getting Aang out of the iceberg or healing a Fire Nation fishing village, Katara will go out of her way to help someone in need.
Katara: No. I will never ever turn my back on people who need me.
Zuko is very emotional and passionate person. As much as he tried to hide it to appease his father, Zuko does want to open up and connect with people. Unfortunately, aside from his uncle, most of the other people he knows are like Zhao and Azula. Not the most understanding of crowds. But because of this he can pick up what people are really thinking and feeling. Think of it as a defense mechanism he developed growing up around people like Azula.
Get these two kinds of people together and you get the crystal catacombs scene. Katara lashes out at Zuko until she breaks down. When she does Zuko opens up with empathy since they have something in common. This creates the beginning of an understanding between the two. Zuko uses that to finally open up to someone who isn't his uncle and Katara listens and reaches out to help. Contrast to the first episode of Book 3 when Zuko tries to voice his thoughts and concerns to Mai and she...doesn't really care.
Something similar happens during The Southern Raiders. Zuko figures out that Katara is taking out her anger of being separated from her father by The Fire Nation onto him and even connecting her mother's death to him.
It's not the first time Zuko has done this either. He easily figured out that Sokka was planning on going to The Boiling Rock. He does it again during Sozin's Comet when he tells Katara that Aang needs to figure out what to do about Ozai by himself.
There's a noticeable pattern of behavior by the time Sozin's Comet arrives. Zuko voices his concerns about meeting his uncle again and Katara is right there to help him through it.
Zuko's empathy combined with Katara's compassion creates almost a cycle of understanding and emotional vulnerability that the two can't really get with anyone else. One notices the other having concerns or problems and goes to give comfort by words or by actions.
Zuko still has a temper but so does Katara
Even after Zuko's fever dream character change thing, even after The Day of Black Sun, he still has it in him to yell at anyone who commits even the slightest transgressions against him:
Aang: That one felt kinda hot.
Zuko: Don't patronize me. You know what it's supposed to look like.
Aang: Sorry, sifu hotman.
Zuko: And stop calling me that!
Sokka: So all we have to do is make Zuko angry. Easy enough. *pokes him with his sword* *annoying laugh*
Zuko: All right! Cut it out!
Maybe it's the firebender in him or maybe he really is just like that. Basically if you annoy him, he'll let you know. What people sometimes overlook is that while it takes Katara a bit longer, she also gets worked up when people upset her.
Toph: What's the matter? Can't handle some dirt, Madame Fussy Britches?
Katara: Oh, sorry, did I splash you, mud slug?
And remember, it was Katara getting angry at Sokka that even broke the iceberg that revealed Aang.
Katara: Ugh, I'm embarrassed to be related to you! Ever since Mom died I've been doing all the work around camp while you've been off playing soldier!
Sokka: Uh... Katara?
Katara: I even wash all the clothes! Have you ever smelled your dirty socks? Let me tell you, NOT PLEASANT!
Sokka: Katara! Settle down!
Katara: No, that's it. I'm done helping you. From now on, you're on your own!
The point is that it is both Zuko and Katara that are very passionate and emotional people. One of them isn't emotionally dominating the other because they both wear their emotions on their sleeves.
This also comes in to play when they set goals for themselves. When Zuko sets a goal, he puts everything into it. Katara is the same way. The difference is that Zuko's drive sometimes gives him a one-track mind while Katara is more flexible. Like for example Zuko being so focused on finding Aang before Sozin's Comet that he ignores Toph's story about her childhood versus Katara wanting to go to the North Pole but taking time to stop and help whoever they come across.
This passion also fuels their values and how strongly they stand by their beliefs. I already put The Painted Lady quote up above but Zuko's morality is what is making him so angry at himself during The Beach. He knows what he did was wrong, but he couldn't face it yet.
Sometimes their emotions get the better of them, but it's only because they are passionate about what they're doing.
Their natural teamwork is amazing
I can't provide a lot of clues in this bit because it's more of a visual thing. Just consider how flawlessly their plans worked during their attack on The Southern Raiders. Especially when you consider that it was a stealth mission so they barely even said anything to each other during and it still went incredibly well.
You could see it again during their mock battle with The Melon Lord. Sokka must have noticed because he paired them together to deliver some "liquidy-hot offence." And they pulled it off, again, without having to say anything.
They've only been a team for a few weeks(?), days(?) but they act as if they've been doing it for years.
They trust each other's judgment
Piggybacking of the previous point, Zuko and Katara have only been a team for a while but there seems to be a level of understanding in terms of judgement. They both know that whatever the other chooses is going to be a well-thought out decision. Maybe it's because they see each other as the mature members of the group even though Sokka is the same age as Zuko? I don't know.
Aang disappears right before they embark on their fight against the Fire Lord, and out of nowhere, Katara puts Zuko in charge.
Zuko: Get out of the bison's mouth, Sokka. We have a real problem here. Aang is nowhere to be found and the comet is only two days away.
Katara: What should we do Zuko?
Zuko: I don't know. Why are you all looking at me?
Katara: Well, you are kind of the expert on tracking Aang.
and that wasn't the first time in that episode that she went along with one of Zuko's decisions
Katara: Aang, don't walk away from this. *She begins to walk towards him as a hand touches her shoulder to stop her from doing so.*
Zuko: Let him go. He needs time to sort it out by himself.
As a lot of people have pointed out during the entirety of The Southern Raiders, Zuko never gives a suggestion on what he thinks Katara should do. Aside from making it a stealth mission, he follows her lead the entire way.
Katara teases Zuko (and he lets her)
The fun one. This one has two parts: pre and post The Southern Raiders.
Before The Southern Raiders, Katara was tolerating Zuko. She was still angry with him about the betrayal at Ba Sing Se. Getting little jabs at him was the only thing that was really helping her from loosing her cool around him.
Katara: I'm sorry. I'm just laughing at the irony. You know... how it would have been nice for us if you lost your firebending a long time ago?
Zuko: Well it's not lost. It's just weaker for some reason.
Katara: Maybe you're just not as good as you think you are.
Toph: Ouch.
He just finished yelling at Aang and Sokka but all he does is glare at Katara. She does it again, but to be fair, he kind of set himself up for it.
Zuko: It's a sacred form that happens to be thousands of years old!
Katara: Oh yeah? What's your little form called?
Zuko: ...The Dancing Dragon.
Then comes post The Southern Raiders and...yeah, she's still picking on him and he still lets her. Granted it's a lot more playful this time around.
Zuko: They make me totally stiff and humorless.
Katara: Actually, I think that actor's pretty spot on.
Zuko: How could you say that?
Actor Uncle: Let's forget about the Avatar and get massages.
Actor Zuko: How could you say that?!
(Cut back to Katara wearing a satisfied grin on her face and she looks to an expressionless Zuko as he slouches in his seat.)
I love pointing it out every time. She teases him and he does nothing about it.
Katara: Er, no. I was looking for cooking pots in the attic and I found this. Look at baby Zuko! Isn't he cute? Oh lighten up, I was just teasing.
And she admits it!
-
So what can we take away from this? From what little time they were given together (thanks, Bryke) it seems that Zuko and Katara really understand each other on an intimate emotional level. They can sense when the other is distressed and offer comfort. They're both passionate in and out of combat, for better or for worse. They're comfortable with each other as if they've known each other for years even though it's such a short time. Katara also likes to add a little bit of playfulness in there with Zuko letting her have her fun, again, showing how comfortable they are with each other.
I do think their relationship could have gone to romantic sooner than later if you would have given it a bit more time. Like first half of a hypothetical Book 4.
To me, at least.
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nightmares [sokka]
Pairing: Sokka x reader (hopefully the tags work this time)
Summary: Another request from an anon. “ your writing is so good aa!! what about having to share a bed w zuko (or sokka tbh i’m a simp for both) for a couple nights bc there weren’t enough beds for everyone and no one else wanted to “. First of all: thank you!! I’m glad you enjoy my writing :) <3. Second of all, the ideas I had for this fic just seemed to work best with Sokka so forgive me for not choosing Zuko.
Also, I apologize if I haven’t gotten to your request. Some of them really stump me and I have trouble with planning out a fic so some of them might be done in bullet format instead of a fic.
Note!! Suki and Sokka didn’t happen!! pls i’m sorry.
masterlist.
~
It had been Aang’s idea to go back to Ember Island to celebrate Zuko’s coronation. Zuko, although hesitant, eventually agreed. The royal family’s beach house stood empty and Zuko was finally ready to go back, finally being part of a happy family once more.
It was a larger group than originally anticipated. You had accidentally let it slip to Suki, who then let it slip to Ty Lee, who then informed Mai. The beach house seemed too crowded, not that anyone minded. The only issue was that there weren’t enough rooms to house everyone, even with Zuko and Mai sharing a room already.
The ones who were left didn’t want to share a room, claiming that it was supposed to be a relaxing getaway and that sharing a room with someone wouldn’t exactly be relaxing.
“Alright, alright,” Aang had finally said, his Avatar peacemaking skills coming out. “Look, there’s not enough rooms for everyone to have their own so two of us will need to double up.”
Grumbles spread throughout the group as Aang’s words settled in.
“Listen,” Zuko said. “Whoever chooses to double up can have the master bedroom. Trust me, that bed is big enough to share without ever touching each other.”
“C’mon everyone,” Katara said, picking up a hat. “Write your names on a piece of paper, put them in here, and then Zuko will choose.”
Everyone did as told, crossing their fingers and holding their breaths as Zuko moved his hand around, shuffling the papers before picking one out.
“Okay the first person is,” Zuko began, unfolding the paper. “(Y/N)!”
You huffed silently, crossing your arms and ignoring the relieved sighs of everyone else.
“Don’t celebrate yet, there’s still one person left to choose,” Zuko said, rummaging around the hat again. Everyone went silent once again, waiting with baited breath as the prince Fire Lord plucked another piece of paper out of the hat. A large smirk spread across his face as he silently read the name. Looking up, he made eye contact with the water tribe boy, aiming a teasing glance at him. “The second person is Sokka.”
The group went wild, but not in celebration. Everyone knew about the feelings that the water tribe boy had for you, and everyone knew that you liked him as well. Everyone, that is, except for the two of you. You both remained oblivious to the way the other felt, causing everyone else to feel frustration whenever the two of you interacted.
“Alright,” Katara said clapping her hands to get everybody’s attention. “Let’s go get settled in and meet at the beach in thirty minutes.”
Everyone made their way to their respective rooms and you found yourself following Sokka as he entered the master bedroom. You looked around the room, gazing at the decor and the large window. There was a balcony outside, giving a clear view of the beach. The bed was pushed against a wall, a fluffy loveseat off to the side and a dresser pushed up against another wall.
“I can uh, I can take the couch,” Sokka’s said, drawing your attention back to him. He was standing in the middle of the room, awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck as he avoided your gaze.
You glanced at the bed. Zuko hadn’t been lying, it was ridiculously large. Breathing in, you turned back to Sokka. “N-No. It’s okay we can share the bed.”
Sokka’s eyes widened, causing you to backtrack. “Unless you don’t w-want to. That’s-”
“No!” Sokka yelled, a little too loud. He quickly cleared his throat. “No. We can share. I don’t mind.”
You nodded silently, face burning in embarrassment before grabbing your swimsuit and heading into the bathroom to change. Once you were gone, Sokka sat on the bed, burying his face in his hands as he wondered just how he was going to survive these next few days sleeping in the same bed as you.
~
The rest of the day passed normally. You had helped Aang and Toph build a sand Appa, gone surfing with Katara, and even learned a few tricks from Ty Lee.
It was nice to have everyone together, especially now that they didn’t have to worry about the war. Now they had the opportunity to be normal teenagers; well as normal as one could be when Zuko was the Fire Lord and Aang was the avatar. You had gone to a local restaurant for dinner, enjoying each other’s company as you teased and told jokes.
After dinner you had gone to see a play, much to Zuko’s dismay. The Ember Island Players hadn’t gotten any better since the last time you had seen them, causing you all to leave the play early, instead choosing to head to the bustling streets. There was a festival going on, music playing and fireworks blasting as you walked through the town.
A performer jumped out at you, causing you to yelp and grab the hand closest to you. An upward glance told you that it was Sokka who you had grabbed onto. You blushed furiously, smiling softly when you felt his hand tighten around yours. You spent the rest of the night hand in hand, pretending not to notice the teasing glances from Katara and the knowing smirks from Toph.
When you finally got back to the beach house, it was late. Everyone mumbled their good nights and went straight to bed, too exhausted to stay up any later. You collapsed into bed after taking a shower, snuggling into the pillows. You opened one eye when you heard the bathroom door open, humming as you saw Sokka standing at the foot of the bed awkwardly.
“Hurry up and put out the lights,” you mumble keeping your eyes closed as you buried yourself under the covers. Sokka fidgeted and put his hair down before crawling onto the bed, lying down stiffly and putting out the candles at the bedside. You snorted as you shifted, noticing that Sokka was anything but relaxed. “Just go to sleep Sokka. It’s not like I’m gonna bite.”
Sokka blushed at your words before turning onto his side, trying to ignore your body heat as he drifted off to sleep.
~
It was the middle of the night when you landed on the ground with a dull thud. Sitting up, you looked over to the best, glaring at the water tribe boy when you noticed him lying spread eagle on the bed. He had unintentionally kicked you off the bed as he slept. Shaking your head, you took one of the blankets and made your way over to the couch, silently thanking the royal family for choosing comfy furniture.
It was half past dawn when Sokka was woken up by you shuffling around the room. Groaning, he sat up, running a hand through his hair before halfheartedly shooting you a glare. “Why are you up so early?”
You jumped slightly when you heard his voice before whirling around, ready to give him hell for kicking you off the bed. Your angry words were cut short however, when you noticed Sokka’s hair was down. You felt a blush rise to your cheeks before turning back around. You had always thought that Sokka was attractive, but something about him with his hair down always got you extremely flustered.
“You kicked me off the bed last night,” you replied flatly, picking up your hairbrush before taking on a teasing tone. “If you didn’t wanna share a bed you should’ve just said so.”
“I-I, no that’s n-not it,” Sokka stuttered, jumping out of bed.
“I’m joking,” you said, turning back around and flashing him a small smile. “Just...try not to kick me tonight okay?”
Sokka silently nodded his head, a sheepish expression on his face as he began to get ready for the day.
~
The second night came quicker than you anticipated. Ty Lee had proposed a girl’s day and had planned out so many activities that all you wanted to do by the end of the day was sleep. Luckily, you had gotten back before Sokka allowing you to shower and get ready for bed with no distractions.
By the time Sokka had walked in, the candles had been blown out. He smiled softly as he noticed your sleeping figure before showering as well and settling into bed.
Sokka was in the state between being awake and asleep, lying blissfully as he relaxed, when he was woken up by soft whimpers. Looking over to you, he frowned as he noticed a distressed expression on your face, tears beginning to stream down your face. You were having a nightmare.
“(Y/N)?” he whispered softly, not wanting to wake you up harshly. You didn’t respond to his voice, instead flinching in your sleep. Sokka hesitantly reached out to you, laying a hand on your shoulder to try and gently shake you awake. At his touch, you stopped moving, leaning into him. Sokka held his breath as you rolled over, moving closer to him in your sleep. Sighing softly, you nestled your head onto his chest, your scared whimpers subsiding as you relaxed against him. Carefully, Sokka wrapped his arms around you, bringing you closer to him.
Your breathing evened out once more as you fell into a deep sleep, no longer being plagued by nightmares. Sokka couldn’t help but stare at you in his arms, wondering how someone could be so beautiful. His heart raced as he held you and he found himself pressing a kiss to your forehead before drifting off to sleep as well.
~
The next morning you woke up because of the sunlight coming in through the window and proceeded to snuggle deeper into your pillow to avoid it.
“Good morning,” you heard Sokka chuckle, causing your head to shoot up from what you now knew was his chest, not your pillow.
“S-Sokka!” you exclaimed, trying to pull away from him. “W-What?”
“You were having nightmares,” Sokka mumbled, still half asleep. “You rolled onto me and this seemed to calm you down so I went along with it. Now shush and let me go back to sleep. In case you forgot, you woke me up early yesterday.”
You swallowed as Sokka shifted, blocking the sun for you and still holding you close. His soft snores filled your ears as you thought back to the previous night, realizing he was right after remembering your nightmares. Trying to calm your racing heart, you took another look at him before snuggling into his chest and drifting back off to sleep.
When you woke up again, Sokka was gone. A part of you was glad, knowing that you weren’t fully ready to face him after the previous night. You stepped into the dining room, being greeted by everyone smiling at you. Greeting everyone back, you made your way over to the table, taking a seat next to Aang. Looking up, you made eye contact with Sokka, causing the two of you to look away from each other immediately, blushes on your face. You took a sip of tea.
“So anything interesting happen last night?” Zuko asked, causing you to choke on your tea. You received a few weird glances. You shook your head as others replied.
“What about you Sokka?” Zuko questioned once more, noticing that Sokka was abnormally silent. Sokka glanced at you, his face softening slightly before turning back to the Fire Lord.
“Nope. Nothing at all,” he replied.
“Then why is your heart racing?” Toph asked, an innocent look on her face. Sokka’s face heated up as he shot her a glare (not that she could see it) and kicked her underneath the table, causing her to release a low hiss before kicking back. Your face went even redder, causing Mai to speak up.
“Is it hot in here (Y/N)?” she questioned, exchanging a knowing glance with Zuko.
“N-No,” you replied, looking up at her. “Why?”
Mai picked up her cup of tea, taking a sip before putting it back down, a smirk on her face. “Oh no reason, you just seem a little flushed.”
The rest of your day proceeded normally, with the exception of a few comments made to either you or Sokka, which usually ended with the two of you looking like a bright red mess.
~
That night, both you and Sokka lied wide awake next to each other. Sleep had been evading the two of you, yet neither one of you had acknowledged it.
It wasn’t until Sokka turned onto his side, facing you, that the silence was broken.
“(Y/N)?” the blue-eyed boy questioned, causing you to turn and face him. You stared at him for a moment, noticing the way his hair fell over his eyes and how his eyes seemed to shine brightly even though it was dark. You didn’t say anything, merely humming in reply to tell him that you had heard him. “What was your nightmare about?”
You hesitated slightly before answering, something that Sokka noticed.
“You don’t have to tell me,” he whispered. “I’m sorry for asking.”
“No,” you replied immediately. “It’s okay. It’s just, it’s not really something I like to think about.”
Sokka nodded in understanding as you breathed in deeply.
“In my nightmare,” you began, looking away from him. “We’re aboard the Fire Nation’s airship fleet. Everything is going as planned until it’s not. Suddenly there we are, separated from Suki and Toph and you’re hanging on to the railing of the ship. I keep trying to get to you but there’s just so much fire and debris and I can’t reach you until all of a sudden I can. But when I reach you, you’re gone. You’re gone and Suki and Toph are crying and I’m crying because I wasn’t strong enough to save you.”
“Y-Your nightmares are about me?” Sokka asked, staring at you with a look that can only be described as a mix between sadness and astonishment. You nodded, still not meeting his eyes. “Why?”
“Because I’m afraid of losing you,” you whispered back, finally looking at him. “Because losing you was the only thing that was on my mind when we were taking down the airship fleet even though destroying the ships was supposed to be our priority.”
“But why?” Sokka asked, still not understanding what you were talking about. “Zuko was out there fighting his crazy sister! I think that’s a little more daunting than taking down a few airships.”
“But I don’t love Zuko,” you said, effectively shutting him up.
Sokka’s eyes went as wide as saucers as he took in your words. “You mean...you l-love me?”
You nodded your head, holding your breath as you realized that you had just confessed your feelings.
“I love you too,” came Sokka’s quiet reply, a blush overtaking his features as he smiled at you. Now it was your turn to look at him in shock. “I have ever since you told me off for being a hotheaded, sexist jerk.”
You chuckled as you remembered that argument. He had made a comment about you and Katara being girls and you had gotten upset, resulting in you insulting him. By the time you were done with him, he had been looking at you in a way you couldn’t really describe until right now. He had been lovestruck.
“I can’t believe it took you this long to confess,” you teased
“Can you blame me?” he retorted. “You’re pretty intimidating when you want to be!”
You chuckled before shifting closer to him. You grew quiet before speaking. “You know, last night was the first night that my nightmares didn’t keep me up all night.”
“If you wanted to cuddle with me you could’ve just asked,” Sokka replied, smiling smugly as he wrapped his arms around you. You rolled your eyes before tangling your legs with his. “I’ll keep you safe from your nightmares.”
You smiled softly before looking up at him, being taken by surprise when you noticed him already looking at you.
“C-Can I kiss you?” he asked quietly.
You nodded wordlessly, closing your eyes when you felt Sokka’s lips brush yours. You shuddered slightly before leaning up and fully pressing your lips to his. His arms tightened around you as he kissed you, and yours wrapped themselves around his neck. You pulled away, meeting Sokka’s eyes as he smiled down at you. Silently, he pressed another kiss to your forehead before resting his chin on your head.
The two of you drifted off into the most peaceful sleep either one of you had had since the end of the war.
~
Sokka woke up grumpily the next morning, reaching out for you when he realized you were no longer wrapped up in his arms. Letting out a low whine, he sat up, realizing that you were gone. He quickly changed into his day clothes, too lazy to tie his hair up before heading downstairs. He entered the dining room groggily, rubbing at his eyes before making his way over to you, leaning down and pressing a kiss to your lips.
You melted into the kiss, only pulling away when Katara dropped her fork.
“When did this happen?” she asked, eyes wide as she looked between you and her brother.
Finally wide awake, Sokka looked at everyone with an embarrassed expression. He looked at you in a panic before answering. “Last night.”
“You guys really just had to confess last night, didn’t you?” Toph groaned, pulling out a handful of coins and handing them to Zuko.
Everyone else grumbled as they handed Zuko their coins as well. You sat there gaping at them, before scoffing in exasperation. “I can’t believe you guys placed bets on us?”
“I can’t believe Zuko won,” Aang muttered, looking at the Fire Lord before looking back down on his plate.
“It wasn’t that hard. I said you’d confess in the bedroom,” Zuko said, a smirk on his face as he made eye contact with you. “The best part was pretending that the second name that came out of the hat was Sokka’s.”
The room exploded into chaos at Zuko’s words, with Toph shouting all kinds of insults at the Fire Lord as she realized that he had rigged the bet to work out in his favor.
You and Sokka sat silently as you watched everyone argue.
“Y’know what?” Sokka asked, putting his arm around you. “I can’t say I’m mad about what Zuko did.”
Looking up at Sokka, you smiled before pressing a kiss to his jaw. “Me neither.”
~
ahahahaa i hope this is good and i hope you like it and it turned out completely different than what i originally had planned and i hope the tags work this time.
#sokka x reader#atla sokka x reader#sokka#atla sokka#katara#aang#avatar#avatar: tla#avatar: the last airbender#avatar x reader#toph#toph beifong#zuko#prince zuko#mai#ty lee#atla x reader#atla zuko#atla toph#atla
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