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m1ckeyb3rry · 1 month

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── THE GLASS PRINCESS // FIFTEEN

Series Synopsis: You wake up in a strange room with no memories, broken glass at your bedside, and a prince named Zuko as your only chance at figuring out who you really are.

Chapter Synopsis: You return to the palace and attempt to tell your brother the truth of the world.

Series Masterlist

Pairing: Zuko x Reader

Chapter Word Count: 5.6k

Content Warnings: complicated relationships (strangers to friends to lovers to enemies to strangers to lovers to enemies to lovers), amnesia, alternate universe, lots of secrets and lying and mystery

A/N: man i’m really going to miss this arc of the story…vibes have been unmatched so far (ba sing se era >> ursa era imo even if the underlying mystery of the ursa era was rlly fun to write)

“Sokka!” you shouted, kicking the front door. You knew the Avatar’s house was under near-constant surveillance by the Dai Li, and the longer you waited outside, the more likely it was that you’d be caught. Yet for some reason, your last three attempts at knocking politely had proven fruitless, and even this more violent greeting went unanswered. Giving up and ramming your shoulder into the doorway, you flinched when it swung open eerily and without protest.

Why was the villa empty? It didn’t look like it had been abandoned in a methodical fashion; a set of clothes you assumed were Katara’s was tossed over a chair, and there were dishes in the sink. All of this spoke to a hasty exit, one that might not have been entirely willing and was certainly made without an advance warning.

From the corner, there was a chittering sound, and you all but leapt out of your skin before realizing it was a tiny, fluffy creature. Stooping down, you recognized it to be a winged lemur, staring at you with wide viridian eyes. You offered it your hand with a smile, but it only sniffed it delicately before skittering backwards, leaping around a corner and then poking its head back like it was hoping you’d follow.

“What is going on?” you muttered to yourself, deciding you might as well follow the shy animal. It made a cooing noise at you, nudging you with its small, wet nose as you reached the room it was waiting for you in. Once it had ascertained that you were safely with it, it leapt onto your shoulder, nipping your ear when you tried to leave.

You were about to chide it for the rude behavior when you heard the front door creak open. Biting your tongue, you pressed your back to the wall by the door, peering through the crack at the new visitors. Based on the winged lemur’s behavior and your own intuition, it wasn’t the Avatar or any of his friends, and your stomach dropped as you saw men wearing the familiar Dai Li uniform creeping into the villa.

“You really think the Avatar’s the one that kidnapped Princess Y/N?” one of them said.

“Who else could’ve killed Captain Chhay?” his partner said. “That man is a legend in the organization. Long Feng thinks that they kidnapped Princess Y/N so that they have some leverage to enter the palace.”

“Poor girl,” the first agent said with a chuckle. “She’s like a toy for the real political powers to play with.”

His partner scoffed. “Right? It’d be depressing if she actually cared, but she’s not exactly done anything to gain any kind of relevance in her kingdom.”

“Her and that brother of hers are making this far too easy.”

“Did you hear that the Lower Ring citizens rioted just from seeing her?”

“At this rate, a peasant uprising isn’t far off at all. The seeds for revolution have been sown, and as long as things continue in the way they have been, it won’t be long before the monarchy is done away with completely and Long Feng can finally, truly assume power.”

“Shh! What if they overhear you?”

“It’s fine. The Avatar and his friends are busy under Lake Laogai. This is only a cursory inspection. There’s no one around to hear us; when else can we discuss this type of thing?”

“I don’t know. You’re just stressing me out. How much longer do we have to stay here, anyways?”

“We have to check for Princess Y/N. Or, at least, pretend like we did.”

“Honestly, I’d say we’ve done our due diligence.”

The voices were growing closer, and you shoved your fist in your mouth to avoid making a sound, staring wide-eyed at the winged lemur, who did not even blink as it returned your panicked gaze with a steady one of its own.

“True. Who really cares if she lives or dies? It’s all the same to our plans.”

“If she dies, though, people might feel some sympathy for the royal family.”

“Nah, just think about it: as long as we can blame the Avatar and his friends for killing her, then we not only get rid of one of the royal family members, we also shake the public’s faith in the Avatar. It’s actually for the best if we don’t find her.”

“You’re right!”

They were right outside the room now. If they took another step and turned, they would see you. You shrank back even more, wishing you could melt into the shadows, meld with the wall, hide in some way that would ensure they never caught wind of you.

“Let’s just go, then.”

“Wait, what if she isn’t dead, though? If she escapes and comes back to the palace, it’ll make us look horrible.”

They took that step, but still they did not turn. You shivered, wanting to squeeze your eyes shut but knowing you could not be caught off guard in case they saw you.

“If she comes back, we can let Long Feng deal with it. She’s been a real pain in his neck, you know? If Captain Chhay were still around, he’d probably be sent after her by this point.”

One of the agents clicked his tongue. “Good old Chhay. I’d never have said it while he was still around, but he was like a polar bear dog. Who else would be that loyal to a person?”

“I don’t know. Rumor has it that Long Feng paid him twice the regular salary. I’d be loyal too, for that kind of money.”

They retreated from the room, and you let go of the breath you had been holding, patting the winged lemur on the head, though you were still careful to be silent.

“That so?”

“Maybe one of us will be promoted to take his place now that he’s gone.”

“Now you’re talking!”

The door to the villa slammed shut behind them, leaving you and the winged lemur alone. You buried your face in your hands, breathing in quick, short gasps, gritting your teeth as you tried to regain your composure.

It went deeper than you realized. This wasn’t just incompetency or confusion — the Dai Li were planning on utilizing the citizens of Ba Sing Se for their own means, using them to overthrow the current government and then instating Long Feng as, ostensibly, a dictator. It was only your own fortune — you were still unsure whether that fortune could be considered good or bad — that you had overheard their plot, but what now?

You were presumed to be dead. At first, this horrified you, but as you thought about it, there was a definite bonus. The Dai Li’s efforts would be focused on the Avatar and his friends, and if you were considered a vanished non-issue, then there would be no eyes scanning the city for you. It left you free to operate as you wanted, given that you employed a modicum of caution.

Digging through the wardrobe of the room you were in, which upon investigation revealed itself to most likely be Katara’s, you pulled out a scarf and wrapped it around your neck and head. Though it did nothing about your stained dress, it concealed your identity well enough that you felt more comfortable walking outside than you had before.

“What about you?” you said to the winged lemur, scratching it behind its enormous ears. “You saved my life, I’m pretty sure. Thank you for that. Where will you go now?”

The winged lemur purred at you, rubbing its cheek against your own and tightening its grip on your shoulder. You giggled and rubbed its forehead.

“Alright, then. You can help me. Come along, but be prepared; it might be dangerous. I don’t think there’s time to rendezvous with the Avatar. I’ll have to storm my own palace and demand to see my brother myself,” you said, squaring your shoulders, finding some irony in the fact that you had finally been given leave to live your life how you wanted and yet you were returning to the very place you had tried so desperately, for so many years, to run from.

After all, if Princess Y/N was considered dead, then that meant you could live in disguise and become someone else. You could leave Ba Sing Se entirely and travel the world, see the sights you had thus far only ever read about. The capital of ice in the North Pole, the city of Omashu, which was commonly referred to as Ba Sing Se’s little sister…it was a possibility. There was no one stopping you anymore.

No one, of course, except for your own conscience. You could not leave when you knew that the Dai Li and Long Feng had killed your father and were planning on overthrowing your brother. You could not leave when your people, the ones who you had been born with a duty to, were being manipulated and taxed and abused by the ones that were meant to have their best interests at heart. And, though it was less grand of a reason, you could not leave the city where Lee was. Not without telling him first.

Though you knew the villa was located in the Upper Ring, it took you a moment to regain your bearings and find the palace. After all, it was far more difficult returning without one of Quynh’s doors to serve as a convenient portal or the Dai Li escorting you with their Earthbending. The sun was already high in the sky by the time you made it to the palace gates, but by the time you arrived, you found another problem facing you.

The royal military, which guarded the palace, was in complete disarray. It was as if a tornado had torn through them. Men were strewn about, staggering to their feet, while others used their own Earthbending to fix their formations. Was the palace under attack? Were you too late? Had Long Feng’s rebellion already begun?

“Who goes there?” a guard shouted at you. You did not respond, picking up your speed from a mere walk to a sprint, holding the scarf over your head so that it did not blow off as you ran. You could not know if you trusted the army or if they were in league with the Dai Li, and unless you were forced to, you did not want to reveal who you were.

“Hey! Answer us!” another guard said. You kept running towards the bridge over the moat. You just needed to cross that bridge, and from there, nothing could stop you. They must’ve had that same thought, though, as the stones of the bridge began to recede, leaving a gaping maw where you should’ve crossed.

Then the boulders began to fly. They weren’t trying to hit you, but they were blocking your path, making your entrance far more difficult. You used one hand to cover the winged lemur’s eyes from the dust pluming in front of you, squinting your own so that you were not blinded by it.

If you did not do something, then the guards would go from obstructive efforts to far more deadly methods. Earthbending against this quantity of offensive parties was a suicidal idea, especially when you were on the palace’s doorstep and there was a high chance you’d get caught, but there was one final card you could play, the one you had been unwilling to part with most of all.

Casting the scarf aside, you pointed at the guard who had been lifting another boulder into the air to throw at you. He paused mid-action, and then he pointed back at you, like he could not believe his eyes.

“I am Princess Y/N of the Earth Kingdom, you fool, and what you are doing right now is treason! If you throw even a pebble more at me, I’ll have you hanged!” you said.

“Princess Y/N?” the guard said, the boulder thudding to the ground before him as he dropped into a bow. “We were under the impression that you were — that you were dead!”

“Don’t be ridiculous. Reform that bridge at once,” you said. “Did you think that a girl of Shan’s line could be killed that easily? Perhaps I must remind you: I am the princess. As long as my people need me, I cannot die.”

After that, you walked unchallenged towards the steps leading up to the palace. It confirmed one thing, at least: the army was not allied with the Dai Li. If it was, then you would’ve been seized by now and dragged to Long Feng, but all that the soldiers did was shy away when you stalked past, giving you looks that were equal parts questioning and awed, like they could not quite believe that the shy, delicate little princess was capable of such feats.

It was only a matter of time before the Dai Li caught wind of your presence, if they had not already. You had to make it to the throne room by then. At least for now, they were limited in what they could do while Kuei was watching, for he was still the supreme authority of the kingdom. Now that you had gone and announced who you were, they ought to have done everything they could’ve to stop you, but curiously, there was no one that came to block your path.

Even stranger, the route to the throne room was torn apart and devoid of guards. There had clearly been a fight, but who had broken into the palace and managed to overtake it so quickly?

The walls were crumbling, and entire pillars had been torn in half. There were scuff marks on the carpet, and the stone floors glittered with dampness — it had obviously been a massacre. For the first time, you felt like you actually fit in, your ragged appearance matching the ruined entrance hall perfectly.

“I don’t know if I can trust you,” Kuei’s voice drifted out from the throne room, the door to which was, for some reason, lying on the ground. “I’m sorry, but you have no proof. I’ll have to trust my advisors on this one. Long Feng, what do you say of their claims?”

“Do you think that I could’ve hid a hundred years of war from you?” Long Feng said, his voice cold and flat. “What’s more, I’ve received some disturbing news. It seems that the Dai Li found evidence that the Avatar and his friends were involved in the murder of Captain Chhay, as well as your sister’s abduction.”

“What?” Kuei said.

“What is he talking about?” Katara said.

“I’m an Air Nomad! Killing is against my morals!” Aang said.

“Look, we didn’t kidnap or murder anyone! You have to believe us,” Sokka said. “About that, and about the war. I don’t know why your advisor is lying about all of this, but you have to see through it!”

“Even from the Avatar, this kind of situation is just too fantastical. I’m sorry, but I’m going to have to arrest you, at least until Y/N is found and Captain Chhay’s murderer is apprehended,” Kuei said.

“You don’t have to look any further,” you said, pausing in the doorway to catch your breath, hunched over as you wheezed from how much you had pushed yourself. The winged lemur jumped from your shoulder and scampered over to Aang, who made a small noise of surprise at the arrival. “I’m here.”

“Y/N?” Kuei said.

“Your royal highness?” Long Feng said, his innocence clearly feigned, though his surprise likely wasn’t. You glared at him, regaining your composure and straightening before taking the same place as always: below the throne, staring up at those who would always be above you. Your brother, the king. Long Feng, the traitor. You were beneath them both, but this time, you did not allow either of them to intimidate you.

“Where have you been, sister?” Kuei said. “We thought the worst must’ve happened! The servants came in the morning, and all they found was Captain Chhay’s long-dead body. You were gone. Who took you? Did they hurt you?”

“Clearly the princess has been through a horrible ordeal, your majesty,” Long Feng said. “Look at her dress. She needs time to rest and recover from what was no doubt a most harrowing encounter.”

“I’m fine,” you said. “There was nothing harrowing about it. He didn’t even have time to fight back.”

“Of course, you must’ve managed to escape somehow, and thank Quynh for that,” Long Feng said. “But just the mere experience of being kidnapped would’ve been traumatic. Poor princess…I will assign thrice the Dai Li agents to look after you, so that you may rest in peace.”

“I didn’t have to escape, and I wasn’t kidnapped,” you said. “This kind of conduct can be expected of my brother, but I know at least you are smarter than this, Long Feng. In fact, I know a lot of things about you now.”

“No,” Long Feng said.

“Yes,” you said. “You understand, don’t you? I killed him. I killed Captain Chhay.”

Kuei shrieked. “What?”

“It’s true,” you said. “I did it.”

“No way,” Toph said from behind you. “I think I respect you a lot more now.”

“Toph!” Katara hissed.

“Dai Li, seize her at once!” Long Feng said, gesturing towards you impatiently.

“Y/N…how? How did you do that?” Kuei said. “How did you murder someone? No, not just someone — the Captain of the Dai Li himself!”

“Does it matter?” you said as earthen cuffs bound your wrists behind your back once again. “The more important question is why. That’s what you should really want to know.”

“Take her to her chambers and ensure she does not leave!” Long Feng said.

“Why did I do it? What cause could your dear sister have to kill a man? Ask!” you said.

“We will decide what to do with you after we have gotten rid of the Avatar and his friends,” Long Feng said.

“Kuei!” you said. Putting him in this position was the worst thing you had ever done to him, but it was necessary. He had to seek out the information, or else he’d cover his ears and hide away as he always did.

His eyes swam with emotions you doubted he had ever been exposed to before, a veritable maelstrom of thoughts and questions and feelings that he likely did not even know how to handle. Dai Li agents appeared at your shoulders, but you did not take your eyes off of your brother. Your brother, who loved you. Your brother, who was the only family you knew. Your brother, who was the Earth King, the supreme authority in all the kingdom. You looked only at him, and you waited.

“Stop! Release her!” he said. The Dai Li hesitated, but though their loyalty might have been to Long Feng, they still had to abide by Kuei’s commands above all else. The stone restraints crumbled away, and the agents bowed before stepping away from you. “Why did you do it, Y/N?”

“Because Captain Chhay killed our father,” you said. “And he did it on Long Feng’s command.”

“What?” Sokka said.

“This is so complicated,” Aang said. Sokka hummed in agreement.

“That — you cannot just accuse people of regicide without proof!” Long Feng said.

“You sent Captain Chhay after me. He tried to kill me multiple times in Ba Sing Se alone. That’s proof enough! He was your little pet, wasn’t he? It’s what your own agents called him, after all. The beast of the Dai Li, sent to do Long Feng’s bidding. Who else but he would’ve been the one to kill the 51st Earth King?” you said.

“You’re being ridiculous! What motivation would I have to assassinate your father?” Long Feng said.

“Stewardship over the Earth Kingdom isn’t a bad prize,” you said. “Though I’ll admit that luck did play a role. After all, if our mother hadn’t died as well, then she’d be Kuei’s regent.”

“What, did he kill her, too?” Sokka said. “This dude just keeps getting eviler and eviler.”

“No, he — actually, wait,” you said. There was no proof, but for some reason, you didn’t find it too far out of the realm of plausibility. “There’s a chance, though I don’t have any proof for that claim as of right now.”

“You’re going on and on about nothing,” Long Feng said. “I’m not the ruler of the Earth Kingdom. Your brother is.”

“Yet he only implements policies that you approve of,” you said. “Policies which, if I might add, are deliberately harming our people! You’re sabotaging his reign so that our family is overthrown for good. You mean to usurp Kuei, and don’t even try to deny it — I overheard your agents discussing it, and, more importantly, I’ve seen the effects of your suggestions firsthand.

“The only city safe from the war charging exorbitant prices to those refugees which try to enter…thank goodness for that unnamed noblewoman allowing passage through the second southeast gate, right? I won’t speculate about her identity, but I’ll give you a hint: she’s someone you’d recognize.”

“You little wench,” Long Feng said. “You wasted your own money on that? I should’ve known.”

“That’s not all. You refuse to acknowledge the disparity between Upper and Lower Ring citizens, and the Dai Li are closer to terrorists than officers of justice. The people of Ba Sing Se are frightened to speak out about anything, because the Dai Li is always watching. No wonder they hate Kuei and I. No wonder they riot in the streets! But that’s exactly what you planned,” you spat. “Because once they revolt, you will pretend to be on their side and then use the same structures you claim to be against to strengthen your power, your grip on this nation. Kuei and I might be uneducated about the reality of this world and its wars, but at least we care about our people! Can you even claim that much? What sort of an advisor are you?”

“Continuing to speak will only incriminate you further,” Long Feng said. “You have gone mad, princess. There’s no other explanation for why you killed the captain meant to protect you, or for why you are saying such things. They are the ravings of a lunatic! King Kuei, I recommend she be arrested and sent to a correctional facility equipped to handle her case at once.”

You had said all you needed to, and so you just pursed your lips and ducked your head. Your part was done; now, it was up to Kuei to do what was right. If he did not make the proper choice now, then it was hopeless. Then they could take you wherever they wanted, because you could not fight back against your own flesh and blood.

“Dai Li, arrest—” You could not help your shoulders from slumping at Kuei’s declaration. Despite everything, it had not been enough. He still did not have any faith in you. “—Long Feng!”

“What? Your royal majesty, what is the meaning of this?” Long Feng said as the Dai Li agents saluted at Kuei before clicking a pair of metal handcuffs around Long Feng’s wrists.

“Did you really think I’d believe you over Y/N? Did you really think that there’s anyone in the world who I value more than her? It would’ve been more suitable for you to pretend like you actually cared about her. I might’ve been more inclined to agree with you then, but no matter your station, if you dare to speak against my dear sister like that, then you must face the harshest of repercussions,” Kuei said, standing and drawing himself to his full height.

“Kuei?” you said softly. You had never thought that he would be the one who would do something like this. Never in your wildest dreams had you imagined that he would stand up for himself, for you, to this extent. Yet here he was, doing exactly that.

“You are making a mistake! If you do this, you will be remembered as a foolish, empty-minded despot who used his power to rid the kingdom of any who dared to criticize his family,” Long Feng said. “You will be remembered as a tyrant. I swear it to be so!”

“That’s fine,” Kuei said. “They can remember me as a tyrant if that is what they will — as long as I am remembered as a tyrant who loved his sister. Agents, please, take him away at once! I’ve had enough of listening to him. I think it’s time that I take counsel from more qualified parties.”

“You’ll regret this,” Long Feng said over his shoulder. “I can assure you of that!”

“And you’ll regret killing my father,” Kuei said. “I can assure you of that.”

“I didn’t think he had it in him,” Sokka mused, earning him a snort of approval from Toph.

“Are you finally willing to listen to us?” Aang said. Kuei massaged his temples.

“Yes, I am. What’s this talk of war? Who are we at war with?” he said.

“The Fire Nation,” Katara said. “They attacked a hundred years ago. They killed all of the Air Nomads and have been steadily invading the Earth Kingdom; Ba Sing Se is the only place that’s still completely safe from their influence.”

“Because of the walls?” Kuei said.

“Yes, exactly. They haven’t managed to break through yet, which is why so many refugees have been coming here — most of them have lost their homes, and Ba Sing Se is the last hope they have at making new lives,” Aang said.

“The Fire Nation is that strong?” you said.

“That strong, and that dedicated. You know, their prince chased us all of the way here!” Katara said.

“For what reason?” you said.

“Something about capturing the Avatar and restoring his honor, I think,” Sokka said. “I’m not really sure. But! We have a way to defeat them, as long as you lend us your support.”

“We’ll do whatever we can,” Kuei said. “Right, Y/N?”

“Of course,” you said. Without Long Feng there to guide him, Kuei was like a baby animal whose legs were still wobbly and eyes were still barely opened. It would take time before he could stand on his own; until then, he needed someone who he could rely on, someone who could reassure him that he was doing the right thing. And since you’d rather that person be you than anyone more unsavory, you took the role upon yourself with as much grace as you could muster.

“The day of the black sun is coming up,” Sokka said. “The sun will disappear behind the moon for a window of time, and all Firebenders will lose their power. We have to strike them while they can’t fight back. That’s what we need your armies for — while they take care of the Fire Nation forces, Aang and a small task force will infiltrate the palace directly and defeat Fire Lord Ozai for good.”

Kuei glanced at you. You nodded. If they were telling the truth and this day of the black sun was a real event, then it was probably the best chance you had at turning the tides of a war that you had thus far been losing.

“Say, Katara,” you said as you walked her and Toph to the guest rooms they’d be staying in after they had finished briefing you. “Earlier, you mentioned a Prince Zuko and a Princess Azula. What are they like?”

You were fascinated by the thought that there was another pair of siblings not too dissimilar to you and Kuei, albeit younger, of course. Another pair of siblings who bore the burden of a crown. Another pair of siblings who had the weight of a nation looming over them. Would they understand the sense of duty which prevailed in you? The patriotism, the love for your subjects? You would likely never get to meet them and ask, considering you and they were on opposite sides of a war, so you settled for this, for learning about them through Katara’s words.

“They’re the worst of the worst,” Katara said.

“It’s true. They’re pretty crazy,” Toph said. “Though their uncle isn’t that bad!”

“Maybe you shouldn’t say that, considering he did lay siege to her city for six hundred days,” Katara said. “And not too long ago. I mean, it happened in our lifetime.”

It was almost a credit to Long Feng’s dedication, you thought, that he had even managed to hide such a long siege from you and your brother. The fact that Ba Sing Se had been under attack for two of your years of living and yet you had not known a thing about it was actually impressive, if not unfortunate.

“Oh, yeah. Forgot about that,” Toph said. “He’s pretty nice otherwise, though.”

“Naturally,” you said, bemused.

“We don’t know much about Azula, except that she’s Zuko’s sister and the princess of the Fire Nation, but Zuko’s been on our tail pretty much since Sokka and I found Aang in that iceberg. Apparently, he was banished or something, and the only way he can regain his honor is if he captures the Avatar. That’s what we’ve put together from his random speeches and consistent efforts, anyways,” Katara said.

“Although, we haven’t seen him in a bit,” Toph said. “Maybe he’s settled down somewhere.”

“Or he’s in disguise,” you offered. “You could’ve seen him and not even realized who he truly was.”

Katara shook her head. “No, he’s pretty distinctive looking. He has the giant burn scar covering the left half of his face — it makes him hard to miss. If we had seen him, we would’ve known.”

Your mind blanked, your stomach churning as you tried to process what she had just said. Burn scar. Left half of his face. Where else had you seen that distinctive mark before? You didn’t want to recall, but you did.

“Does he really?” you said to Toph.

“I dunno,” Toph said. “I’m blind.”

“Ah, right,” you said.

“Like I said when we first met, though, I can tell when people are lying, and she’s not. I don’t see what the reason to lie about that would even be,” Toph said. “It’s kind of a really specific thing to make up.”

“I’m telling the truth,” Katara affirmed. “Why, what’s wrong? I guess it’s kind of weird for the prince of the Fire Nation to be have a burn wound, but it was probably a training accident or something.”

“Oh, no,” you said. “Oh, no, no, no!”

“What’s wrong?” Katara said.

You did not want to listen to them, but if they were telling the truth, and you knew in your heart of hearts that they were, then that meant only one thing: Prince Zuko hadn’t settled down. He hadn’t given up on his chase or his war. He had moved on to more strategic maneuvers, that was all. Stealth instead of strength. Infiltration instead of invasion.

“He’s here,” you said, stopping and gripping her shoulders. She blinked at you, her blue eyes wide with uncertainty. “Katara, listen to me. All of you need to leave Ba Sing Se at once. If he gets his hands on Aang, then there’s no chance of our plans succeeding.”

“Huh? What’re you talking about?” Toph said.

“Prince Zuko’s here,” you said. “In Ba Sing Se, under an alias. I’ve seen him. I’ve met him. If the Avatar is his end goal, then the Avatar must leave as soon as possible. It’s not safe here.”

“But isn’t the Earth Palace the safest place in the world? There’s no way he can get past all of those guards all by himself,” Toph said. “He’s not that good of a bender, I’m pretty sure.”

You groaned. “No, he can get in. Anytime he wants.”

“How?” Katara said.

“It’s not important,” you said, too ashamed to admit your mistake. “Look, I trusted you all, didn’t I? Now you must trust me.”

Katara seemed uncertain, but Toph nodded at you, her expression set.

“We’ll just leave early,” she said. “I’ll go see my mother, Katara and Sokka will meet up with their father, and Aang can go visit that guru. Hopefully, by the time we’re finished with those errands, things will be dealt with.”

“I am sure it will not be a problem,” you said. “But just in case, you probably should not return to the capital. Unless Kuei or I appear before you ourselves, it would befit you to assume that any summons are deceptive in nature.”

“Are you sure about this?” Katara said. “If it really is Zuko, then he must have some tricks up his sleeve. Will it be okay for us to leave you alone?”

“If Aang is killed or captured, then it will be many years before the next Avatar reaches the level of training necessary to face the Fire Lord,” you said. “It’s too great of a risk for you to stay when it’s all but confirmed that Prince Zuko is here. As for me, I have the might of the Earth Kingdom behind me. No matter what, I’ll be fine.”

“Odds are that he’ll leave Ba Sing Se once we do, too, so there won’t even be any danger to the palace,” Toph said. “Once we go our separate ways, he’ll have to split his forces up as well, so it’ll also then be easier for us to take him on.”

“There’s also that,” you said.

“You have a point,” Katara said. “Alright. Toph, go tell Aang to get Appa ready. I’ll get Sokka and catch him up.”

“Be safe,” you said.

“You too,” Katara said. Toph punched you in the arm.

“Stay sharp, princess. See you around,” she said. “You’re not as much of an idiot as you could be.”

“Thank you,” you said. “I look forward to seeing you all again — if not in Ba Sing Se, then in the Fire Nation, on the day of the black sun, when we finally bring about their downfall for good.”

taglist (comment/send an ask/dm to be added): @rinisfruity14 @c4ttheart @blacky-rose @shizko @marsbars09 @happyplaidpersonfestival @catborglar @camilleverreault @nerdybouquetofkittens-blog @lovialy @heart4hees @stefnarda @ioonatv @vvicaddiction @yukihatesreoyo @yodayyy

#zuko x reader #zuko x y/n #zuko x you #zuko #avatar the last airbender #atla #reader insert #canon au #the glass princess #m1ckeyb3rry writes

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bythepen98 · 1 year

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Zutara ❤

This was honestly supposed to be a quick one but I got too invested bc this is my first fa of this ship :')

Context:

Consider this an au where Aang never had a crush on Katara and the tension instead revolved around her and Zuko throughout the series. A spark at first sight so to speak. Fate would step in several times where they'd somehow end up separating from their groups and find each other in the same vicinity. They're both temperamental, so they'd naturally start fighting and exchanging barbs but would always hold back from truly hurting each other. There was disdain but also slight curiosity there. However, it would mostly go ignored, spitefully so in Katara's end after the catacombs debacle, until Zuko realises that he messed up and goes back to fix things.

Note: He never paired back up with Mai during this period bc my boy may have been in denial but he knew enough not to lead anyone on just for the sake of normalcy, especially when he was feeling all types of conflicted. On that note, he still got pushed to spend some together with Jin back in Ba Sing Se but firmly and point blank told her that it was not a date --

bc all he could think about were fiery blue eyes

--but didn't mind going together as friends.

He would definitely be more awkward around Katara once he joins the team and Katara would be just as vicious bc the betrayal, while painful in canon, would probably be more devastating here since personal unresolved feelings (that have been building up since their many accidental meet ups) are involved. He'd still do his best to help her out while also trying not to be an eyesore by watching longingly from a distance. The rest of the Gaang just finds this a bit sad but also hilarious.

Like canon, things get better after Zuko and Katara went on their lifechanging bonding trip to find Kya's killer but instead of the one sided awkward/hostility, they were now both awkward and would shyly but somehow seamlessly move as a unit while they worked around the site, especially when it came time to make meals for everyone.

Fleeting touches, eyes locking for a few seconds before looking away, sitting in closer proximity around the campfire, Zuko silently placing flowers in places where Katara would easily find it and Katara reciprocating by making little snacks and giving it to him every now and then, particularly after his training sessions with Aang. If they sometimes held hands while they sat in silence after a long, hard day, then that's no one's business but their own.

Idk. I feel like it's a good kind of irony that they're both so passionate people who used to fight each other on sight but have this slow and sweet exploratory type of romance that would mostly go unacknowledged (out loud, though both knew the feeling was mutual) until after the war. Fits the vibe I had for them while drawing this so it was fun.

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sokkastyles · 1 month

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

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

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

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

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

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

#zutara #zuko #katara #the western air temple

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oneatlatime · 5 months

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The Tales of Ba Sing Se PART 2

The Tale of Zuko

Maybe I should make a Zuko's Stupid Faces post.

Zuko and Iroh's whole dynamic in one frame.

This girl is cute. Total girl next door type. She does have fairly horrible taste in men, but she's also very cute.

I just want to take a minute to point out a VERY important distinction. Zuko is not going out on a date. Zuko is not taking a girl out on a date. A girl is taking Zuko out on a date. She's got that arm in a death grip. Not only is that a clever reversal of the usual hetero dynamic, but I'm convinced it's the only way Zuko would ever get any action, so it's also in character.

I know Zuko's social skills are non-existent, but apart from the blow up at the waiter he is actually trying. He's failing, but I have to give him points for trying.

The way this girl's voice actress says "You juggled" made my ears very happy. And the beleaguered "yes. I juggled." is equally good.

Zuko! Tell her you did sword stuff! That's something you can actually do!

It gives me hope that someone so steeped in the most toxic parts of the Fire Nation, for so long, can STILL be so bad at lying, but it would certainly be a handy skill right about now.

I take it back. This girl does have good taste in men. Zuko's such a softie when it counts. He still sucks at being normal, but he just risked his identity because the girl he didn't even plan to go out with was a little bit sad.

This girl is the best.

Ha! He kissed her back! He Did! I saw that!

I take back what I took back. Zuko's evil again. He made my new favourite girl droop.

I love that Iroh's waiting up for him while making it look like he isn't waiting up for him. How many times on their ship, when Zuko was out Blue Spiriting, do you think Iroh found a reason to be randomly sat on the deck at 3 am?

Character development baby! Can you really call yourself loyal to the fire nation if you admit to having a good time on a date with an Earth Kingdom girl?

The Tale of Momo

Pretty.

That was a FILTHY bait and switch. For one shining moment, I had Appa back.

They should take that to June.

Not Appa.

Also not Appa.

I did not have 'Momo gets gaslit' on my Avatar Bingo card. Nor did I have 'interspecies animal friendship angst.'

Are these cat things the raccoons of the Avatar universe? Or the squirrels? Urban scroungers?

I love the idea that this guy just grabs the closest squirrel, sticks a hat on it, and expects it to dance. He got lucky with Momo.

I thought they were taking the animals to the pound, but this is very much a butcher. Which means that in Ba Sing Se, they eat varmint. Stay away from the hot dog carts.

That's very effective Simglish.

Thank god for thumbs.

Aw they're friends! This has Aristocats vibes, when O'Malley and the girl cat are getting together near the end.

And one final Fuck You, because god forbid Momo's tale ends on a happy note.

I'm guessing that's an Appa print, but couldn't it also be a platypus bear?

Something about the cats standing vigil over Momo's grief gets to me.

Final thoughts

I'll go through each of these stories individually, but first some general comments.

Last episode was kind of intense, and definitely ended on a downer (not that this one didn't), so it was a good call to at least start this episode off on something a bit gentler.

I was really impressed with the soundtrack throughout. Apart from the Tale of Momo where it's the animal noises that are front and centre, the music is doing a lot of work in every story, the strings especially. The strings are doing emotional work, plot stuff, and even humour. Seriously, next time you rewatch this episode, pay attention to the strings. These shorts are actually very light on dialogue (apart from Sokka's), but they don't feel that way because the music is doing the talking.

I'm assuming that this all took place over three days at least, since Iroh, Zuko, and Momo's tales seem to end on different evenings. So I don't think calling this episode 'day in the life' is accurate. My bad. It also occurs to me that this kind of episode format would be a great way of showing time has passed. If they had had an episode like this in the Northern Water Tribe - after Katara beat the crap out of Poophead but before the Fire Nation attacked - I would have liked the pacing of the whole finale arc better.

On to the stories!

The Tale of Toph and Katara

It might be because I didn't understand what this episode was doing yet, but this one didn't do much for me. It was good to see Toph have a moment of self-doubt, but I never would have assumed, based on her previous behaviour, that her appearance was her proverbial weak spot. Katara did a really good job at building her back up, and she was delightfully (and appropriately) understated for once. When she's reassuring Aang of something (especially in Season 1) Katara tends to got from 0 to 60 very quickly, so it was nice to see her be reassuring in a quiet, non-steamrolling way. Is this Katara character development? Apart from the fact that Toph quite literally got her eyeballs sanded, nothing much in this episode stuck out to me. Except those bitchy voices. Those were like knives in my brain.

The Tale of Iroh

So many questions! Is Lu Ten buried in Ba Sing Se? How is that grave not defaced yet? How did Iroh get a copy of his son's picture? They lost everything at the North Pole, right? Did he ask the people who got him their passports for a picture of his son too? Does Zuko know/remember that it's his cousin's birthday? If so, why isn't he there offering Iroh the world's most awkward hug? Given the fact that Iroh spent the whole day helping people, including a very misguided youth, and given that Iroh says something along the lines of "if only I could have helped you [his son]" does this imply that Lu Ten was going through a crisis at the time of his death? Was he misguided like the wannabe mugger? Is Zuko not the first Fire Nation Prince that Iroh has had to guide through an identity/existential crisis? Is Zuko going to be the first time Iroh succeeds at guiding a Fire Nation prince through an identity/existential crisis? Does Iroh live in perpetual fear of failing Zuko the way he seems to believe he failed his son? Am I reading too much into this?

To be quite honest, this story would have hit me harder if I had remembered going into it that Iroh had a son. Lu Ten takes being a textual ghost to a whole new level. Also the 'In honor of Mako' text confused me. And worried me a little.

The Tale of Aang

I liked this one! Aang can't help Appa at the moment, but he can help all the Appa stand ins who aren't fortunate enough to have an Aang to help them. Aang is a nice little boy! Of course he'd free a bunch of animals without thinking about the consequences and the epic pile of platypus bear dung he's just landed the zookeeper in with the Dai Li. I liked the animal designs. I liked the earthbending. I liked the Siamese cat representation. I loved cabbage man. I think that, if Appa could have known, he would have approved. I also think that I'm once again reading too much into this. it was nominally a fun fluff piece elaborating on a established emotional conflict (Appa missing), which gave it just enough weight to be slightly more than a fluff piece.

The Tale of Sokka

I am entirely serious when I say that 'poetry bouncer' is my favourite joke so far in the WHOLE show. I love absurdity played entirely earnestly. It's fridge funny too. The longer I contemplate the implications, the funnier it gets. What past event required a poetry bouncer be introduced? He's not there to protect the students or the teacher; he's here to reinforce the structure of the Haiku by force. Was he hired by the concept of Haiku? Is Haiku taken so seriously in Ba Sing Se that he's needed to break up cat fights between students? There is a rich well of haiku-related hijinks just hinted at by his presence, and I want to know more.

Sokka is so often his own worst enemy that it makes sense that he's taken out by his own hubris. That fortune teller lady was absolutely a crook, but she did one hell of an accurate cold read on Sokka.

The Tale of Zuko

Credits tell me that the girl's name is Jin. I would like to congratulate the creators of Avatar for managing to illustrate romantic interest so palpably without resorting to heart eyes and steam whistle noises. Nothing wrong with those; I'm just impressed by how much of Jin's interest in Zuko you can feel. Also, she'd better be more than a single episode character, because I need more of this sweetheart. She's a real contender for displacing Toph as my favourite girl in the cast.

To be fair to Zuko, he did make Jin droop (UNFORGIVABLE), but it was also the right call. He can't date her honestly. It IS complicated. And I don't think any Earth Kingdom girl (worth dating) would knowingly go out with Fire Nation royalty. Jin wanted Lee the Tea Boy. Try as he might, Zuko can't stop being Zuko. I would argue that he shouldn't stop being Zuko. His flashback mom told him not to forget who he was, so I'd also argue that the narrative doesn't want Zuko to stop being Zuko either. I guess it's a case of right girl, wrong time. It looks like she's cool with him being a firebender, but firebending and being the Fire Lord's son are not the same magnitude of hurdle to dating. Maybe when the war's over they can hook up again.

The Tale of Momo

I think this qualifies as cruelty to the audience. I got the impression that this story was crafted borderline maliciously, to make the viewers suffer angst dump after angst dump.

I liked seeing things from Momo's perspective. I loved the animal noises, which really got across a shocking amount of emotion. Those, combined with body language, were as effective as any spoken script. These cartoon people really know how to use their medium.

It absolutely kills me that Momo is missing Appa, and since he doesn't understand human speech, he can't even be comforted by knowing that his humans are actively looking for him. If you've ever seen one of your pets missing another of your pets in real life, you know there's nothing worse than the helplessness that comes with not being able to explain or magically summon their friend back from the kennel, or the vet, or the dead. All you can do is give them hugs. I'm glad that Momo got a street cat support group at the end of the episode, but the animal grief at the beginning was hard to get through. It's sweet to have confirmation that Momo sees Appa as family, but surely they could have showed that to us in a way that doesn't make me need to hug the stuffing out of my own pets?

Final Final Thoughts for real this time

This episode wrings you out a little. Fully a third of the stories are about Appa, despite him not being there. At least half are about missing someone who isn't there. At least half are bittersweet.

I liked this episode format. I hope they use it again next season. Only Toph and Katara's tale felt too short to me. The rest did such a good job at drawing me in, that when I went back to check timestamps I was surprised by how short these stories are.

I'm going to go eat too much chocolate.

#atla #avatar: the last airbender #avatar the last airbender #the tales of ba sing se

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comradekatara · 3 months

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for tbe atla people who has had in-universe fanfiction written about them (along the lines of tina belcher who came from bobs burger belcher)

your asks are always so strange (both in content and wording) that I end up having to read them like 5 times before I can begin to parse them. anyway I love that you cite tina belcher instead of just. rpf. like the literal terminology for this phenomenon that we do very much have at our disposals. so I even can’t tell if you’re asking “who would have rpf written about them” (which also presumably differs from historical fiction about past avatars or smth like that) and “who would write freaky friend fiction (like tina)?” i’m gonna go with the latter bc it’s way funnier.

i think that girl meng would definitely have written some….things…..about aang, iykwim. zombie apocalypse au, enemies to lovers, there was only one bed, etc etc.

i can also just kind of see jin doing this (abt lee from the tea shop or otherwise) i can’t explain it she just has fujoshi vibes. like, whenever ppl talk about how jin, zuko, and jet should have all been friends in ba sing se, i’m usually like “uhh… why tho….” but now i see why. it’s so that she could write jetko rpf about them.

for therapeutic purposes mai probably writes a lot of really cathartic short stories about her entire family, the entire royal family, and ty lee all falling into a sinkhole. but then mai saves ty lee from drowning at the last minute, which teaches ty lee to appreciate her instead of that stupid sinkhole bitch azula (this is all pre boiling rock, obviously).

at one point mai and sokka find a notebook of really angsty fanfiction about the blue spirit and they’re like, “oh my god this is amazing we gotta show this to zuko, he’ll get a kick out of this,” not realizing that zuko actually wrote it himself as a way to work through his identity crisis. he’s just like, “yeah….wow….so cringey, right? but also, kind of incredible how this writer articulates the struggle of the bisected self in extremis so beautifully……right? you guys think so too?” and sokka and mai just look at each other and silently go, “okay…. we may have made a mistake…..”

when katara was a child she would make up stories in her head about finding the avatar and befriending him and having him fall in love with her due to her courage and beauty and (hopefully, someday) waterbending talent and they would defeat the firelord together and live happily ever after. but thankfully she never wrote any of this down, because paper is a very scarce commodity in the southern water tribe and even she knows better than to invoke gran gran’s wrath on that. she never tells aang. although at some point (in sworn secrecy) she does end up telling zuko (assuming that he’d understand considering he also devised fantasies of finding the avatar to cope with his miserable existence), and he laughs for hours.

during their time together in the nwt, yue’s diary gets filled with all kinds of lurid fantasies of sokka killing hahn (in increasingly brutal ways) and sneaking her out of the palace so that she can join team avatar and they can be together forever. of course, whenever they talk about it, she’s just like “yes I love hahn he is great and I love my people and I would never leave my home” so sokka’s just like “okay girl you do you.” but then during the siege, yue actually sees sokka kill a man, and she’s suddenly so conflicted because all her self-indulgent fantasies were a bit too real (and in reality, he’s way more efficient about killing people than he was in her fantasies, almost like he’s done it before….) and she has no clue how to feel about it. anyway, thankfully, yue has learned how to hide her diary really well at this point, because if arnook ever found those particular pages he would’ve tracked down sokka and killed him without hesitation.

ok bonus follow up to the fujoshi jin writing jetko rpf au: eventually they find it (or maybe she’s bold enough to just straight up give it to them. you know what, she might be) and read it. jet’s like, “uhhh…. jin….. i’m not gay. you know that, right?” (he’s actually been hitting on her for… a while now…) and zuko’s like, “okay well i might be. BUT NOT FOR HIM!!!”

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yourhighness6 · 2 months

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NATLA Debrief: Episode 3 (by yours truly)

Hi again! If any of ya'll are interested here's episodes 1 and 2. Thank you to those who have been following these deranged, unorganized posts, especially @phoebester (Just an fyi this will be hella long, just like the other two)

First of all, the way they framed the opening resistence scene was genuinely so cool because I immediately thought back to the cold open for the first episode. The streets are so similar that's where my mind went RIGHT AWAY and if that is not good set design and filming I don't know what is.

The resistance scene was so powerful for so many reasons besides those small details, too. The concept of a resistance within the FN was never addressed at all within the cartoon and I can't express how glad I am that they added this. It just makes logical sense that some people would resist, especially while so many are dying in war, and it really serves to humanize the FN people in a way that's reminiscent of book 3 ATLA. Perfect way to expand on the source material and introduce core themes earlier in the show (M Nite should be taking notes).

It was also a perfect way to introduce both Ozai and Azula's characters. Ozai is this menacing figure stepping out of the shadows (quite literally), an almost larger than life villain who seems to have every move planned and everything calculated. He's brutal and efficient and we can see that. Azula is conniving and smart, the kind of girl who can fool anyone and come out on top, but is ultimately still a weapon under her father's control. You can tell from the moment Ozai mentions Zuko that she is the underdog, but she is determined that it will not stay that way, and she seems just terrifying enough to succeed. (also idc what anyone says Elizabeth Yu has mastered Azula's look and general vibe. I feel like the whole 'miscasting' debacle was a mix of fatphobia and being shown the wrong stills before the show came out. She looked sort of sweet and innocent in those but I get absolutely none of that from this scene)

Ugh the exposition was great and then they have to give us this. What the absolute hell did they do to my Katara? Like there was a whole ass episode in the cartoon devoted to her getting mad because she wasn't progressing as fast as Aang and then in this fucking adaptation the maddest she sounds is when she emotionlessly declares, "I don't get it" to convey mild frustration. I'm sorry Kiawentiio, you're acting is great but the writers clearly have no fucking idea how to put your emotional range to good use. The same problem was present in the last episode and I just don't see them being able to fix it significantly enough at this point, even if they have a desire to. Not to undermine that, but there were a couple good points in this scene: Aang mentions something about bending being "beyond thought" which gives bending a more spiritual aspect that I like, and Katara's PTSD is brought up again in an intelligent way, but still, that doesn't matter if they're going to completely butcher her character. (side note: when is Aang going to learn waterbending? they haven't shown him training at all and I'm getting worried)

This scene was fine or whatever but what in the absolute fuck is going on with Zuko and Zhao? Are they not going to do the agni kai? Like I know there's still animosity there but they were really just sitting there (semi)-calmly enjoying a cup of tea and demonstrating only mild dislike for each other. All I have to say is if they remove the agni kai altogether I'm gonna be so fucking pissed it'll bug me forever and I'll be fucking insufferable.

Also Zuko is so mean to Luitenient Jee for no reason. I know it's because his abuse makes him see any kind of comradery as weakness so it's a good detail if that's what they're going for but ngl I also find it a bit funny. Like what did he ever do to you? And Zhao taking three tries to pass his officer exam is so perfect too like what a fucking looser lmao.

Ba Sing Se looks beautiful. There's something so mystical about it, especially in the way Aang describes it as they walk up to the gate. It's this hub of culture and science and art, but it's also incredibly militaristic and so changed due to war it's almost unrecognizable to someone who was there a hundred years ago. The adaptation of cultures during times of change is something ATLA does so well and I'm glad to see that it's continuing in the LA.

AHH Katara was so awkward during this whole scene and I loved it. For one thing Sokka's commentary was absolutely hilarious but it's also this reminder that Katara has been relatively isolated from other children her age and her brain is like "cute boy flirt how" and its so fucking funny. It might not be the same Katara as the cartoon who is effortlessly comfortable wherever she goes but this is so much more realistic and if she's going to be a bit different this is probably the best thing for them to change (now keep the awkwardness and give her back her anger Netflix I'm begging you)

I am slightly concerned because it looks to me like they're trying to condense at least four episodes into one and I'm not sure if that's going to be a cohesive plotline or a complete mess or not but if handled carefully I think they might be able to pull it off.

Ooooh the explosion was super unexpected and totally cray cray thanks for keeping me on my toes. I'm assuming it was Jet that planted the bomb although I cannot for the life of me think why. Anyways Teo was adorable I'm adopting him.

Also I am so so so happy that they gave him a little more depth beyond just 'happy glider kid' and gave a bit more nuance to his character. Of COURSE kids who grew up in war are going to be desensitized to the bloodshed OF COURSE they're going to be a little vengeful and be thinking about ways to win the war OF COURSE Aang is going to be uncomfortable with that because he didn't grow up with that militaristic mindset even if he did loose everything OF COURSE that's not going to change the fact that kids grow up hearing about death and experiencing loss as extremely young children versus Aang being suddenly thrust into this responsibility and grief because he didn't grow up like that he grew up in peacetime it just makes sense. Good job Netflix this was wonderful this was perfect I loved it.

Okay don't get me wrong I love the way Aang wears his heart on his sleeve I love how their in-the-face storytelling makes a bit more sense with how open and emotional of a person he is it's just part of his character that was improved upon by the LA in my opinion but this is also just... such a misunderstanding of the group dynamic. Like why isn't Katara seeing these people and thinking "I can help with this I have to help with this" and Aang giving this speech to Sokka jumping on the bandwagon? I would even accept them seeing the destruction together and mutually deciding that they need to help the people there (this would probably be best as it allows us to see both character's compassion) or Aang saying something about it and Katara immediately being like "ur absolutely right" but of course they can't do that all we need is a lengthy speech from the protagonist while Katara stands there like robot girl. My mistake.

STOP because her mocking face is so fucking perfect I love Elizabeth Yu she's perfect. Anyway, I think that they're kind of... adjusting her trauma a bit? I mentioned earlier how I feel like she's shown as a little more scrappy and an underdog as opposed to perfectly calculating and not a hair out of place, but after this scene I feel the need to expand on that. In the cartoon, Azula's abuse from her father centers around his unattainably high expectations for her that eventually cause her ultimate breakdown and the conclusion to her devastating character arc. But in the LA, they're portraying her as less of a prodigy and more of a hard worker. She still has incredibly high expectations, but in this version, she never meets them all the time. Her brother is almost leveraged against her in a way. Even if she feels like she is the best and has the constant need to prove she is the best to her father, there's always going to be this nagging insecurity that she won't be good enough to measure up to her brother. She's not being told she's worthless like Zuko, but she's not reaching every goal like cartoon Azula, either. This also might explain why she has arrows. In the cartoon, weapons are viewed with disdain by firebenders, making Zuko using them so controversial, but Azula definetely doesn't seem to be hiding her talent for the bow and arrow and even if it was a her-sneaking-away-to-practice sort of situation that's not very in character and I don't think she would do that. I think in this version she probably has them because she's trying to find every possible way to prove herself to her father beyond just firebending, and mastering a weapon is a way to do that. I'm not sure how I feel about these changes but she is clearly a different character in this version than in the cartoon and moving forward I'm going to treat her as such. (I've noticed this a bit with all of the characters except possibly Sokka: they're different people. I think this actually might be intentional. [even so I still don't like their characterization of Katara her trauma hasn't changed very much to my knowledge she should still have the same core drives and character traits])

As well done as Azula was, there was relatively nothing in the Ty Lee and Mai department. They're just kind of existing, watching her train. Ty Lee is vaguely cheerful (and her costume is great btw) and Mai has one line about exploring the world that gives a bit of insight into her character and has a monotone voice. They're both clearly a little scared of Azula but that's basically it. Hopefully we get more on them soon.

Back in Ba Sing Se, I noticed a bit of a parallel between Teo and Katara. The Mechanist mentions that they lost his mother due to the war, which reminded me specifically of Katara. Throughout this scene, we see that Teo remembers his mother's philosophy and adopts it into his own mindset far more than his father's. Their situation is different because while Katara is arguing for compassion Teo is arguing for fighting back, but they are both fundamentally saying the same thing. It's not enough just to accept their lot in life and try to survive or fight, it's about the big picture, and about defending the things they love. While Katara and Teo both approach this subject from a very different front, the core idea is the same. It's also telling how they are dismissed initially as idealistic for their values when they are really upholding what their mothers stood for in their eyes: for Teo, a symbol of hope in her retellings of the stories of the avatar, and for Katara, a symbol of kindness in her reminders to remain empathetic despite the horrors of war. Make of this what you will, I just thought it was a nice little parallel.

Anyway, allow me to have a few words on the whole Jet thing (in bullet points because I don't have enough brain power to do this)

I'm glad Jet got his freedom fighters outfit. I was a bit worried when I saw what he was wearing in the first scene he was in because the fit is iconic, and so are the swords

God he's so fucking dramatic "they call me Jet" while the sun glints off his swords and he turns slightly for affect it was so funny I laughed out loud

He and Kia have no on-screen chemistry I'm sorry. Like even the fight scene was so awkward and every time they speak to each other they sound so stiff. They're good actors independently but whoever was watching their chemistry check (I'm assuming they had one pre-production but judging by this crap I wouldn't be surprised if they didn't) was either asleep or it was their first day because there is NOTHING there

What the hell did they do to the Freedom Fighters? They're so cheesy and the costumes are so bad (especially Smellerbee's). Like seriously that entire fight scene was so awkward idk what the hell happened there but it was nowhere near the quality of the rest of the episode so far

Overall, I'm not a huge fan. Also where is Sokka I'm pretty sure he's supposed to be there somewhere

Okay here's Sokka finally. Are they just taking him out of the Jet shenanigans entirely? I wouldn't be surprised considering how many episodes they had to condense but still I would have liked to see that. Oh well, I guess they had to have Katara do something in this episode instead of just stand around while her brother and Aang have huge plot points. Anyway, this scene was very interesting to me. Sokka and the Mechanist bonded in the og but not to this extent, and I honestly liked that they did something a bit deeper with it considering they don't have as much screentime to establish Sokka's daddy issues (for lack of a better word). Anywho the Mechanist mentioning that there are other career paths to take besides just being a warrior was super cool and I think we can glean a lot from it about Sokka's future character arc. Maybe in this version he doesn't perfectly live up to his dad's expectations and instead finds his own way? It was nice to see Hakoda proud of him in the original but if they go down this path I definitely won't be mad. It's interesting while staying true to the character, it's just a different direction.

The scene with Aang and Teo was cute. They're both good actors who play off of each other nicely, and Teo talking about how he doesn't want to follow in his father's footsteps lends a bit of insight to the conversation the Mechanist had with Sokka. He probably mentioned Sokka's dad because he wondered if his parents were engineers too and maybe is looking for a bit of an apprentice since his son doesn't take after him as much. This is also another way Teo conflicts with the Mechanist's way of life and may be more similar to his mother.

The jetara scenes at the Freedom Fighter camp had a much better dynamic. I think the fight scene was probably just them figuring each other out as actors, it just sucks that it seeped into the final take. I confess I was a bit disappointed that the Freedom Fighters didn't live up in the trees, but I guess that would be a bit difficult to engineer. I also noticed how Jet repeated Teo's "if not us, then who?" statement, which is probably just your basic commentary on how the future generations are our hope blah blah blah. It's a major theme so I shouldn't be as disinterested as I am in it but as it stands I'm still not totally thrilled with the Jet plotline as a whole and I think that may be affecting it. I feel like Sokka should be here to add some variety and spice things up a bit it's kind of boring.

The last jetara scene was definitely the best yet. I can't get over how happy I was to hear Jet say his mother taught him to fight. So often we hear how dads or older brothers are teaching the women in their family to fight but here we have a canonically badass male character saying that an older female relative was the one who taught him. One of the major complaints I have from the cartoon was how for all its talk about women being able to fight and its supposed feminist message, there were no women of the older generation fighting at all except for Jun, who wasn't even a particularly moral character like all these older men. We do have to remember that the cartoon started production over twenty years ago so it is a product of its time, when feminist issues weren't very mainstream. Another factor that might have contributed to the lack of feminism in the original was the generational discrepancies; millennials were the first to have widely accepted equal educational opportunities in the US, and even though educational opportunities are still affected by sexism, college became the norm for both male and female students at that time. This isn't to say women older than millennials didn't go to college, but this is around the time women and men started to become relatively equal as of percentage seeking higher education. Basically, they were the first generation of women expected to have careers, and therefore the writer's minds were probably shaped alongside a similar number of female peers, but primarily by men. This could have contributed to the lack of older women, but as times changed, so to did the amount of older women in professional fields. This line is a reflection of that, and I hope we continue to see more badass older women and older warrior women and women in power as the LA continues.

Other than that, I did take my shipping goggles out during this scene at the "sunrise" bit, and it wasn't about jetara. I heard from other fans in the zutara tag that the "you rise with the moon, I rise with the sun" line was removed but I keep thinking about how Katara is legitimately drawing power from remembering the sun rising, a time when the opposite element, Zuko's element, becomes more powerful. I know I'm reaching, but while I mourn the loss of our beloved "you rise with the moon, I rise with the sun" I have to find a new version. Anyway I think we should call this sunrisegate lol

Also, the way Katara is extremely hesitant to talk about her trauma whereas Jet seems completely fine with being emotional and dumping out exactly what he was feeling may have been a device but it does remind me of something I read about how ppl with PTSD will often react very differently when sharing their trauma and the same is true for many other trauma induced disorders. It was probably unintentional but I still thought it was a nice detail.

Anyway on a less serious note Iroh and Zuko's dynamic is still top tier. I've seen a lot of people complaining about Iroh's character but I don't see anything wrong up to this point. I might be in for a shock in future episodes but I have genuinely no idea what they find so off putting. He's a great actor and the character has legitimately not changed. The line above was a bit undercut by the fact that he's standing in the middle of an enemy city with a cloth half wrapped around his face to keep part of his face from being seen, but I'm just gonna take it at face value (haha pun). I think the thing Zuko despises most is cowardice, and it affects his perception of the war in a huge way. He calls Aang a coward for escaping from prison because he was running away or whatever and I've never considered Zuko a particularly logical character but it's like... bruh he's outnumbered like fifty to one what he is gonna do? Anyway his definition of cowardice is directly tied to his honor and his perception of it in relation to his trauma and the way he held back in the agni kai and him perceiving that as cowardice maybe... Ya'll got me? This isn't fully formed because I obviously haven't seen this new rendition of the agni kai but I'm guessing the events are basically the same. Do with it what you will.

I skipped over the Azula and Zhao scene because I don't have any groundbreaking commentary except to say that I liked it. It ties Azula into the story nicely and gives Zhao something actually interesting about him (I don't hate him as much as I did in the cartoon so whenever he comes up on screen I just sort of yawn).

Anyway, it was nice to see Katara get a bit angry. I think this captured the gaang dynamic pretty well. Aang being relatively neutral/ quiet while the siblings argue and Katara gets twice as mad as Sokka. Also he may have had the last word but she had the last laugh:

Again, the sibling dynamic was really great but I didn't feel like Katara was carrying it as much as in previous episodes. Sokka actually played his part in making it interesting and realistic. I don't think this single argument is enough to redeem Katara's characterization in my eyes but at least we know now there is a little spark there.

AHH THE SCARF SCENE! Scarfgate was everything I could have asked for and more. Like why does he appear directly behind her like that unless he's trying to fight her? Why does he just let her go by like that? Why does he hold out his hand in the first place? Truly is the Watergate of our time it deserves that name. (also in the same episode as the whole sunrise thing? come on) I'm probably being baited but at least I'm enjoying it.

So I was right about the bombings! I can't believe all those cute little kids are terrorists but I couldn't believe it in the cartoon either so I guess that checks out. Either way I find the bombing far less forgivable than trying to take out the Mechanist. Innocent civilians were hurt and even though I know there was a real possibility that civilians could have been hurt in the attempted bombing for whatever reason it just seems... more brutal somehow. Like the first one was in the center of town, you know? Anyway terrorism is wrong I hope Jet finds his way.

(I was worried about how they were going to tie all the seemingly unrelated plotlines together but I think they pulled it off. Again my main problems were all concentrated around the Jet plotline but when the Mechanist was tied in it became a lot more interesting)

When I heard this I was like "son ur about to get ur ass kicked" but the funny part is he was kind of right. Like when neither of them were bending he was winning. I guess in all fairness he is a lot bigger than Aang but I don't feel like that was an accidental detail. Anyway, I think this fight scene was the most entertaining yet and so much better than jetara against the firebenders earlier. Maybe the affects for water are just worse than air and fire (it feels slower somehow) but I'm very partial to this fight. And that's saying something because I usually fast-forward through fight scenes or just kind of tune them out or barely watch, so you know it was really good.

I think the reason I liked it so much was that it was funny, honestly, not in the same way or to the same degree the cartoon was but I laughed out loud a couple times. For instance Zuko gets hit in the face three times in the span of ten seconds, once with a plate, once with a wicker basket, and once with his own little stick thing. Aang also put a basket over his head and some random ass lady started whacking him with a fan. Kudos to whoever choreographed that it was the best.

Also I liked how Sokka and Katara saved the day together. Cute sibling bonding excersize. And it ended on a cliffhanger with the characters separated! My favorite kind of cliffhanger! It definitely left me wanting more.

Anyway, to recap, things I didn't like:

No Zuko and Zhao agni kai

Mai and Ty Lee were just sort of there

Katara's characterization is still so-so

Jetara plot line was boring and chemistry was not the best

It was kind of a lot for one episode, even if they managed to do it well

Things I did like:

Opening scene

Azula characterization

Teo

The Mechanist plotline

Teo and Katara parallel

Katara DID actually seem a little bit more firey in this episode

SCARFGATE

Zuko and Aang fight scene

Surprisingly good handling of all those loose ends

Cliffhanger

Overall, I would give it a 9/10. That's the highest score I've given an episode so far and I'm standing by it. I know others might have a very different opinion on it since it was condensed so much and differed a lot from the cartoon, but I agreed with many of the changes they made. One thing I would urge everyone to remember is that these are different characters from the cartoon. They're going to act slightly different and have slightly different journys and that's okay. I think it is worth comparing to the original, as it is an adaptation, but we need to remember that an adaptation is not an exact replica, nor should it be. That in no way means that we should make allowances for anything we found negative or mediocre, but it is going to be different and change in it of itself isn't a bad thing. Anyway thank you guys so much for sticking with me! I'll probably have the next episode's debrief up by tomorrow.

#natla debrief #emmie babbles #scarfgate #zutara #aang #sokka #katara #zuko #jet #jetara #natla episode 3 #natla analysis #natla meta

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the-badger-mole · 4 months

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Favorite Zutara fics?

It varies. There are also a ton of great fics and it's hard to winnow down. What I'd like to do instead is to give my top 5 underrated fic recs. These fics have under 10 k hits, and I think they deserve a TON more love.

The Art of Holding on and Letting Go by evergreenonthehorizon

One of the best "Aang makes good choices" fics I've ever read.

(Don’t) Follow Me Down by eleventy7

A retelling of the Hades and Persephone myth with Katara as the queen of the underworld and Zuko as the god of the spring. Beautiful prose.

Heartsong by we-were-angels (untilwefallinlove)

Katara as a sea siren and Zuko as the pirate who loves her. The ending leaves me wanting a sequel. Maybe the author will give me us one if we're REALLY good?

A Drop in the Desert by damagectrl

A Zutara fic with lots of The Mummy vibes. Also, this author in general is fantastic and if you don't know them, you should read all of their works! Dancing in the Dark was the first work of theirs I ever read and it is to this day one of the best Zutara falls in love in Ba Sing Se stories i've ever read.

I Think You're My Sole-mate by cablesscutie

Adorable one shot I wish had a follow up. I love a good Zutara meet-cute

#atla #zutara #fic recs #fics under 10 k hits

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magnus-is-swagness · 1 year

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The Professor’s new vibes are giving “There is no war in Ba Sing Se.”

#puppet history #watcher entertainment #watcher #shane madej

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firelord-boomerang · 6 months

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Jet gets recruited to join the White Lotus but he’s iffy about it at first so they give him like a Meet the Members thing where he’s introduced to all the old people.

Jet and Bumi hit it off really well and after five minutes of conversation, he has convinced the King of Omashu to give him a bunch of money for his Freedom Fighters.

Pakku and Jet get along okay. Jet doesn’t care for the faux wisdom and says he gets enough of that from Mushi (Jet refuses to call Iroh by his real name and would also periodically bring up the Siege of Ba Sing Se if the old man was getting too chummy). Pakku doesn’t really like Jet because of the street kid vibe and Jet doesn’t like the better-than-you vibes he gets from Pakku.

Piandao wants to train Jet in the art of swordsmanship to which Jet says “okay, cool”. They get into one lesson but Jet ends up casing Piandao’s palace at the end of the day. Piandao’s not mad, but he’s disappointed in himself because why the hell didn’t he see that coming.

Jeong Jeong is still about his firebending is evil thing and Jet agrees wholeheartedly about his cynical views on the fire nation. They get along great.

#jet atla #atla jet #atla

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asocial-inkblot · 3 months

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Art Style and Emotions Evoked

One of the choices made for ATLA that I really admire is that they sometimes used intentional shifts in art style (such as lines and colors) to change the atmosphere in a scene (or part of a scene, such as an ink painting) and give off a certain feeling, often dream-like and with the occasional benefit of reminding us of real life art history.

Some examples of this can be seen in the episodes The Storm, The Cave of Two Lovers, Zuko Alone, Tales of Ba Sing Se and The Beach. Basically, it tends to happen during Zuko’s trips down memory lane or when focus is put on other members of the Fire Family (but not always).

(Above Images from The Storm)

You can see the differences of course, but also the strong yet subtle similarities between the first three images above—and especially the third one where a younger Zuko can be seen standing next to his father—and the fourth one after, where Zuko is standing on his ship. The third and fourth images practically mirror each other; one younger with a more innocent vibe, the other older and hardened from the past.

Also, the first three, to me, have softer edges and warmer tones. And (when animated) appear more blurry. It reminds me of a sepia-hued, smudge-style canvas painting or even an edited photograph. It’s truly like a memory, which is exactly what that scene depicts.

***

(Above Image from Zuko Alone)

The above is yet another example of a memory being shown within scene, although it somehow seems more “real” than the previous images, imo.

I think it’s because of the way it’s made to look closer to the regular art style. A part of me wonders if this maybe was the “original” art style that they were going to go for, before they switched to a more commonly used one.

***

(Above Image from The Beach)

Now I'd say the above is akin to that of a caricature, which I absolutely love. The Fire Gang all look like themselves, yet not, due to the exaggeration that also helps to showcase their differing personalities. The beach was actually a goldmine for stuff like this: Exaggerated illustration of personality.

A few more beautiful examples:

All in all, the changes in art style were a very good, dynamic choice for a high quality, quickly-advancing show. I can look on the images used in this post alone for ages, just studying and enjoying them.

#ATLA #Avatar the Last Airbender #Zuko #Azula #mentioned character: Mai #mentioned character: Ty Lee #Fire Gang #Fire Family #Fire Royal Family #art styles #emotions #connection between art and emotions #The Storm #Zuko Alone #The Beach #The Cave of Two Lovers #Tales of Ba Sing Se

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zvtara-was-never-canon · 10 months

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The belief that everyone would magically ship Zutara if it were canon and we wouldn’t have this ship war is ridiculous. I’ve seen reactors watching the show for the first time being like, “I really hope Katara and Aang end up together.” I’ve seen reactors dreading the idea of Zuko and Katara kissing by the end. I’ve seen reactors not caring at all during Zuko and Katara’s final emotional scene and instead being much more focused on Azula’s mental state. I’ve seen reactors confused about Zutara, being like “well what about Mai? Didn’t she sacrifice everything for Zuko?”

Yup, I remember plenty of reactors having to repeatedly tell people "No, we don't like Zutara, stop pestering us about it already."

One of said reactors had liked Kataang from day one, and right away there were always TONS of comments in his videos about how he'd "change his mind very soon." When he didn't, it became "Just wait for Ba Sing Se" - and naturally what happened was that he was invested in Aang's conflict over not wanting to have absolute power if it meant having to give up on love, and how Katara was utterly emotionally destroyed when he died, and then brought him back to life.

Zutarians were then SURE that book 3 would get him on their side then. Instead, he loved Zuko's romance with Mai, didn't get any romantic vibes from The Southern Raiders or Zuko and Katara saving each other, and cheered when Maiko and Kataang were endgame. And in a Q&A he did after finishing the show, he had to answer over and over that no, he did not get any Zutara feels, and obviously got more and more annoyed at people.

The REAL fun for me tho was seeing some Zutarians be shocked that a guy that was indifferent to both Kataang and Maiko HATED Zutara, and was way less patient than the first guy when they kept harrassing him about it, to the point that he full on said "If you ship Zutara, you're a fucking idiot." Naturally, they called him rude, conveniently forgetting that they pushed him to that extreme.

Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.

#anti zutara

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innocentimouto · 1 year

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One thing I’ve noticed is that most people in the atla fandom aren’t invested in discussing any trauma experienced directly by war and tend to value “more commonly known trauma”.

Zuko getting burned? Being unloved? Having anger issues due to it? Desperately wanting his father’s love?

Everyone understands this in the fandom and explains all his behavior through these lenses.

Iroh losing his son. Sokka wanting to prove himself to his father and be a leader is relatable to many kids trying to grow up and fill shoes expected of them. Toph wanting her parents to understand her.

These are all things many people relate to in some way. Without having to have lived through war.

It’s why most Mai haters don’t even hate her for supporting the Fire Nation. Many don’t recognize that’s a problem. They hate her for how she acts around Zuko. Another relationship issue that can exist outside of a war situation.

Sometimes I get the vibe that people hate Mai for supposedly NOT being loyal to the Fire Nation (apparently calling her selfish and uncaring for her own people).

It’s why people have difficulty understanding Ty Lee also participated in taking down Ba Sing Se and harming many people in the process. And why it’s severely problematic that she just joined Suki.

It’s why Zuko’s racist and sexist lines throughout the show get tossed aside because he had a “redemption arc”. You don’t unlearn things you were taught to believe your whole life that quickly. Even the most sincere person would stumble and say something harmful or unwittingly carry harmful and racist beliefs.

It’s why his pathetic apology to Suki for burning her village is glossed over, like actual people couldn’t have died then. Like it’s so easy to forgive losing your home like that.

It’s why Iroh losing his son is so important and connects to his relationship with Zuko, which apparently makes Iroh good. Yeah, Iroh did bad things whatever those were, but it’s all good now. Anyone who is angry at him just lost their way and needs some tea and wisdom. Anger is not the answer.

His actions in the war are an afterthought. Other characters will get headcanons stretching any action in the most negative light:

Azula burning a doll

Aang kissing Katara without permission

Mai not giving in to Zuko’s every whim

Jet wanting Zuko to join the Freedom Fighters

Notice again, none of these things are exclusive to war. Even when people write Iroh negatively, it’s more on how he doesn’t help Zuko or doesn’t offer any help to Azula.

No one questions why he met dragons and still continued to conquer land. Few people discuss how very not wise it was of him to finally stop supporting the fn after his son died.

Even when people say he was indoctrinated and that’s hard to get out of----

then why do you hate on Azula? Why is it not hard for her?

Because she lied to Zuko. Because she worked for Ozai who abused Zuko. This is why Azula is at times more hated than Ozai. It’s not because of her actions in war. It’s because Zuko views her as this big obstacle that he agonizes trying to beat.

Again, not fully related to war.

Zuko and Azula and Ty Lee and Mai worked to conqueror BSS? Azula is the evil one.

This seems less like the suffering of the victims are being prioritized and more like a character who’s already hated is facing even more hate.

Jet floods a village. People still hate him more for manipulating Katara. To them he’s not horrible because he flooded a village. He’s horrible because he used Katara first and then he flooded a village.

Jet is seen as the abusive and manipulative boyfriend. Or an out of control angered teenager “whose prejudice killed him”.

There’s little discussion on why he would flood Gaipan. The most common is that he was angry. Or he wanted to spread pain. Nothing about facing actual danger or who was living there or that maybe the Fire Nation could decide to burn the forest if they got fed up.

His trauma is vaguely acknowledged and only to further show how dangerous he is to others. Being suspicious of Zuko is deemed as stalking. Stealing from the ferry is labelled as evil and proof he didn’t change from Book 1 despite being given to other refugees. In fact Jet is the only one seen giving out food.

Jet grew up an orphan in a forest with other orphans under him and a very common take is that he’s like a cult leader trying to get more people to brainwash. He can’t let go of the war because of anger and extremism. His trauma makes him dangerous and not uwu and in need of help and love like Zuko’s.

People think Katara could forgive Zuko easily but not Jet. Because Jet manipulated her. And Zuko just tried to kill her and her brother and capture the Avatar thus taking away hope for winning the war...

These are on entirely different levels. There is also the fact that Zuko invaded her home and made her experience what happened when her mother died all over again.

But that’s okay because Zuko apologized and he was traumatized, and Katara has a big heart. But bring Jet into the equation and it’s not even whether he apologizes or not; most decide Katara would never forgive him.

Again, trauma and consequences of war are devalued. None of Jet’s trauma beyond anger is acknowledged and still it’s only to condemn him for hating the fn. Which would be entirely understandable if people looked at it through the context of war.

The same way Azula hate would lessen if people were to recognize everything she did was because her nation expected soldiers to. She wasn’t a singular evil, reveling in Zuko’s suffering. She was following orders from her leader and serving her nation.

Which people could recognize if they think “Zuko got his scar from being disobedient” and “maybe the same could happen to Azula”.

“Azula is horrible to her friends” and not she’s the freaking princess they have to obey her by law she completely outranks them she is in fact showing a human side by allowing them room to treat her like a friend.

“Jet needs to let go of his anger” and not witnessing your family and home killed for no reason and seeing dozens of other children face the same thing and then having to fend for yourself in a forest because not even your own people want to care for you and no matter how much anger and grief you feel nothing happens and no one is coming to help you and now it’s your job to protect other children and you never asked for any of this and why won’t this stop and you have every right to be angry

I could go on, but this is also why many don’t relate to Aang. Yeah he lost his people but--

I’m sorry what?

Genocide is something plenty of people can understand and plenty of people don’t and unfortunately the people who don’t tend to make it hard for survivors to speak about it or be angry and want justice.

Aang should have all the justification to be angry. He should have all the justification to run away from his responsibilities. He is a child meant to save the world and everyone he loves is gone. His nightmares of finally facing Ozai are made into a joke about school to be more relatable to kids. Personally I think that even if many kids wouldn’t understand the genocide aspect, they could understand why Aang would be anxious.

Almost all of the fandom loves Toph because she’s always right and rough and amazing and again very few question her line of “not my problem” to helping in the war. Most don’t discuss how her wealthy life would have shielded her entirely from the war, making it difficult for her to understand any of the Gaang’s trauma.

One might say “it’s a kid show so they couldn’t show too much of war”.

They had Zuko burned and screaming. They had Katara about to kill someone in cold blood. They had Toph almost fall to her death. They had Hama in chains in a cell for years. They had animal abuse. They had brainwashing and women with no other role than to be puppets.

Even if they couldn’t show too much of war, they should have toned down the amount of humanization the Fire Nation got.

Basically I feel like this stems from how people experience trauma outside of war and how it’s become more acceptable to speak about it, but people who have suffering from war and colonization still aren’t welcomed enough and aren’t heard in online spaces and it really shows in this fandom sometimes.

#I feel like I'm missing some characters #and this got long #Aang #Zuko critical #I guess #Azula #Jet #atla jet #atla meta #someone once told me that Jet manipulating Katara and lying is more relatable #than Zuko invading her home #so Jet is therefore worse #...there are MANY people that would disagree with you #you can dislike Jet if you want but don't act like Zuko's actions are less just because you never experienced them

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