Atla Fanfic - Blog Posts
I have a fic idea but it is based purely on vibes and a single image in my head.
Does anyone have Zuko x reader fic recs?
I feel like I read every single one of them🥹🥹🥹.
Home (Zuko x Reader)
Summary: Zuko asked you to stay in the Fire Nation so he could come back to a friendly face, and you more than fullfil your promise.
Word Count: 550
Author’s Note: Two sequels back to back? A girl is on some emotional bullshit. This is the epilogue for From Eden - I sort left it open for a little continuation, and I just read an incredible fic that also ripped my beating heart from my chest and held it sadisicially in front of my face, so I decided to jot down a little 3AM tenderness. Enjoy.
~ Muerta
“When I do leave… will you stay? So I have at least one friendly face to come back to someday?”
Zuko’s words ricocheted around your head as you flew between the buildings of the imperial city, your feet carrying you faster than you ever thought they could run. The moment you heard about his confrontation with Azula, you were gone, not even waiting for the messenger to finish his sentence before you darted through the threshold of your quarters and into the humid late summer air, orange sunlight slanting the shadows of the world around you as it guided you forward.
The war was over. Ozai was defeated.
As you approached the gates of the palace, the guards stationed outside didn’t pause to question you - instead they stepped aside, allowing you to rush past without suspicion or inquiry. Zuko sent for you, he knew you were coming, yet you still felt as if you couldn’t reach him fast enough, like the only thing that could truly bring you back together was to see each other, unimpeded by distance at last.
You crashed through the doors of the royal infirmary, panting wildly with sweat dripping down your face, soaking through the collar and back of your tunic.
Your childhood protector stood by the room’s open window, his torso wrapped in bloodstained bandages and draped with a silken robe. He snapped his attention toward you, startled at first by the sudden intrusion, his gaze easing with relief the moment his eyes met yours.
“Zuko!”
You flung yourself into his arms and he caught you, unaware of the pain that shook his body as you slammed into the burns in his chest. His arms viced around your waist, fingers digging into the fabric of your shirt and the skin beneath it as he clutched you to him, face buried in the crook of your neck. You took in a quivering breath, breathing in the scent of him as sobs began to shake you; smoke from the hearth of a sturdy house filled your lungs.
“You’re okay,” you whispered into Zuko’s neck. “I’m so glad you’re okay.”
For ages, you and Zuko held each other, knuckles white and bodies sore with the tightness of your grip. Zuko’s fingers knotted themselves in your hair, while your face nestled deeper into the space between his jaw and shoulder, tears raining on his exposed skin. He said nothing, simply hushed you in the calming way he used to do when you were children.
You missed him. Spirits, had you missed him.
When you finally pulled away, Zuko rested his palms at either side of your head, the heat of his skin warming your cheeks while his thumbs stroked over your cheekbones. He gazed at you deeply, with an expression you’d never seen in him before, his eyes lidded yet somehow agape, lips slightly parted as he still held you close.
“I missed you,” he rasped. “I was so worried… I missed you. I love you.”
Before his words had even fully pieced together in your mind, your hands rose to his neck and pulled him to you, moulding your lips to his in a desperate kiss. He kissed you back, and you felt as if a painting left unfinished were finally completed.
Zuko was home.
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Holy shit!!!! Where's the fic!? I can imagine the angst potential and it is SENDING ME! Like the obvious angst that comes with not actually unrequited love fics and the sacrifice themself for their love trope as well as the will they won't they death thing but also the overall arc of starting by going back to the northern water tribe. The place of so many unresolved issues for especially Sokka but also Zuko given how he's trying so hard to atone for past mistakes he and his people made. He may even take the blame of Yue as it was him and his people that attacked that night. Even though it was ultimately Zhaos fault for how that night turned out it would be in character for Zuko to take the blame on himself especially when directly faced with the loss Yue's death caused. Of course seeing Sokka having a hard time over past memories would make it that much worse and when Sokka throws himself in front of an attack Zuko feels he ultimately deserves? The guilt and self-loathing would be SO much worse. When Sokka is grievously injured by this to the point no one knows if he will survive? That guilt and self-loathing rolls up into an intense ball of pain. There's also the regret of not being brave enough to tell Sokka how he felt before it was possibly too late. All this combined would mean that if Sokka didn't survive, Zuko would have a hard time finding the will to himself. Severely needing someone to confide all of this to and reassuring himself that Sokka couldn't hear him anyway, he starts to talk. After all he can't do anything about the majority of his problems but not being more open with Sokka? That's something he can work on, even if it all falls on deaf ears. However Sokka is much more aware than Zuko knows as we are well aware. While in the spirit world Sokka is able to receive that closure from Yue but is forced to listen to the one he loves unknowingly bare his soul to him and Sokka finds that Zuko is struggling much more than he assumed he would. Now confronted with Zukos pain as well as his own from not being able to fix it, that pining angst would be almost UNBEARABLE! We all know Sokka is a fixer. When he sees the people he loves in pain, he has this urge to make it all go away. Knowing there is nothing he can do, the crushing feelings of helplessness would be nearly overwhelming. However the reassurance from Yue that it's ok to move on and that what happened to her was not his fault would ultimately be very important for Sokka's character. Plus when Sokka and Zuko reunite and we finally get sweet sweet communication and confirmations of "yes, I heard everything. Yes I love you too. Yes I'm okay," it'll just be *chef's kiss*🤌
Ok a zukka fic idea: so after the war Sokka decides to stay in the fire nation with zuko. But first he does have to cover some things in the water tribes. He spends some time in the south trying to make tentative alliances and treaties and such. He also helps oversee the reconstruction effort and migrations from the sister tribe. He takes a short break to spend time in the fire nation (for business only... not because he misses a certain fire lord...). (1) - 🐼
So he goes back to the fire nation before he heads up north, to meet with other nobles that aren’t in the southern water tribe. And zuko comes with him. They are both pining still, because they are both idiots. But one day (either the first day or sometime during their visit) someone tries to attack zuko. Mainly Bc they still blame him for the previous damage or just Bc he’s the from the fire nation or he’s the fire lord. I also think it would make it interesting if it was yue’s fiancé. (2) -🐼
So someone tries to attack zuko, but right before zuko can react or the attack hits him, sokka jumps in the way to protect zuko. And he falls off into the water. When they retrieve him he’s unconscious and barely alive. The healers can only do so much and he remains unconscious. We see zuko promptly break down over this. And he regrets never telling sokka how he feels and stuff. And maybe we sokka is aware of what’s happening around him. Maybe he’s in the spirit world. (3) -🐼
So sokka’s unconscious...... and he’s getting worse. The healers notice this. Zuko notices this. Sokka knows this. But the in the spirit world we see Yue. And she saves him. Kinda like how the moon did that for her before she does that for sokka now. And he wakes up with white hair and maybe a moon marking or something. Then we see the aftermath. Sokka has to deal with Yue saving him and seeing her again. Zuko has to deal with almost losing sokka. (4) -🐼
They end up together ofc. But yeah idk. What do you think? - 🐼
this is SUCH A GOOD IDEA and it’s a really clever way to incorporate @peachieflame’s moon spirit sokka into a post-canon zukka au! i seriously love everything about this.
maybe seeing yue again would really cement in sokka’s brain how much his love for her was mostly infatuation, and how what he feels for zuko goes so, so much deeper than that. her and sokka would have many a beautiful conversation during their time together, i think.
she’d do something that would allow them to visit sokka’s room where he’s been healing. they’d be able to see zuko sitting at his bedside, holding one of sokka’s hands between both of his, knuckles against his lips.
in the spirit world, yue and sokka would talk about deep stuff, but i think they’d also have a lot of fun, too. finally yue would be able to show someone all the fun spots in the spirit world that she’d never been able to share with anyone else. she kind of wants sokka to stay with her forever, but she knows that ultimately, it’s not his time yet. i think deep in her heart, she’d know that it’s her duty to give some of the moon spirit life energy to sokka, and bring him back to the land of the living.
(i like to think sokka would wake up with a massive mark/tattoo because of the time he spent in the spirit world - a koi fish across the expanse of his back and flowing water that would curl over one shoulder and down his arm, and stretch down his opposite leg, to remind him what saved his life.)
throughout his time in the spirit world, sokka would have checked up on zuko SO MUCH that he’d be pretty damn sure that his feelings are returned. he’d have overheard so many conversations and little snippets that zuko would whisper to him. (maybe when zuko is specifically speaking to him, sokka can hear him no matter where in the spirit world he is. he’ll be sitting on a tree stump with yue and he’ll just hear zuko’s quiet rasp of “please, sokka. please come back to me.”) sokka would want to get back right then and there, but yue holds his wrist so he can’t get very far, and says, “not yet.”
one day, yue will press a hand to sokka’s heart, and say, “it’s time.” she presses harder, and oh, that kind of hurts. he feels a prickling sensation across his back and arm and leg, and a burning across his whole body that he hasn’t felt since the ice water dragged him into its depths.
but then he’s blinking his eyes open and zuko’s right there, and then they kiss and talk about how head over heels in love they are and live happily ever after 😌
/ᐠ-˕-マ~ master list for...
𝐞𝐧𝐣𝐨𝐲 !
《 ♡ 》 𝐚𝐚𝐧𝐠
nothing here yet :(
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《 ♡ 》 𝐬𝐨𝐤𝐤𝐚
nothing here yet :(
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《 ♡ 》 𝐳𝐮𝐤𝐨
nothing here yet :(
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《 ♡ 》 𝐣𝐞𝐭
nothing here yet :(
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《 ♡ 》 𝐬𝐮𝐤𝐢
nothing here yet :(
───────── 《 .°•♡•°. 》 ──────────
𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐬 : [active] [hiatus] [offline]
𝐫𝐞𝐪𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐬 : [open] [closed]
───────── 《 .°•♡•°. 》 ──────────
𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐥𝐚𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐫 :
I don't do writing for any of the girls except suki because I kind of don't like any of them💀😭. Except Toph, she's cool, but she's a bit too young. maybe in the new series where we see the older gaang, my mind will change🤔? but I'm sorry to disappoint :(.
ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ...𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭
ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ...𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐞𝐥𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐩𝐚𝐠𝐞
Welcome to Sena’s Adventures!
A webcomic set in the world of Avatar: The Last Airbender
With new characters, locations, and lore!
The Government Building in Shun Fei, one of the three independent city states
The story takes place 165 years after the original story, with a completely different world building than Legend of Korra. (Yes, this comic is a sequel to AtLA and not LoK.)
Life in Shun Fei is a little bit different than how things used to be.
As for the main character of the story, it is Sena, a 12 year-old, non-bender boy. He is a bookworm and mostly annoyed with his life.
>>Click here to start reading from page 1
You can also read 10 pages ahead of time by subscribing to my Patreon!
Now, please let me tell you a little bit about how this comic came to be!
I was a die-hard fan of Avatar: The Last Airbender as a kid, and that love has never died. I've always felt that Avatar's world was so lush and alive, that so many unique stories could be born from it. And even the most simple and humble ones would be infinitely interesting.
You definitely don't have to agree with me, but I was personally disappointed with how things went after the first series, meaning with both LoK and the comics (which I must admit I've never watched or read in entirety). For one thing, I couldn't come to terms with how Avatar's world had changed so much and became a lot more like our own world. So I asked, "If it were me, how would I write it?" And that's how this comic came to be.
( Despite this, I really hope that LoK fans will still enjoy my story as an AU! )
Sena's Adventures, at its core, is meant to be a story which examines the complex spiritual problems that arise from modernization. AtLA did something very similar, but through the framework of imperialism and war. Sena's Adventures on the other hand, takes place in a peaceful time. And even though its world is technologically far less advanced than that of LoK, it still carries the seed of a conflict between "reason and magic".
〜
I wanted this story to feel simple and naive, like a children’s story. I really like that about AtLA and I believe many others do too, despite our biological ages.
〜
And a final confession. I have never tried being active on the internet consistently before and it makes me a bit nervous. I have actually been drawing this comic for almost 2 years and I made only 24 pages in total, because I had very long breaks. But now that I’m uploading it, I intend to try my best to keep it going consistently.
Just so you know, from page 9 and on, I went monochrome for convenience and I’ll probably go less detailed with the shading in future pages for the same reason.
〜
Please enjoy Sena’s story!
( I’m really excited for the other main characters to be revealed, but it will take a while! )
So the author of this fiction has sadly left AO3 and I was never able to read the finished fic; does anyone have a saved copy of the fic?
Please??
IT WAS SO GOOD!! 😭😭😭
I need this shit in my life!!!
Do you think CatZula would go with Zuko and Iroh after the Northern Seige, or stay with the Gaang??
does anyone try to dress cat azula in clothes or armor?
In the versions I'd write they do try it. Once.
Does it still work if I pick and choose what part of Lok and the comics I include in my fan fiction??
Did you know that if you ignore lok and the comics, your fanfic, fanart, fandom interactions, and real life will improve immensely?
https://m.fanfiction.net/s/13647147/1/?__cf_chl_jschl_tk__=4tNXCwP_99QHA5C9qhwyxpRHKCXGYFZhselTl8vVwF0-1641950150-0-gaNycGzNCRE
While this isn't my own work, I can't help but want to share because of how amazing it is!! And azulaang fic, most of the characters are very ooc but it's an AU set after "Crossroads of Destiny" where Aang is captured by Azula. I HIGHLY SUGGEST YOU CHECK IT OUT!!! Its still on going and the author has stated there will be a sequel!!
Ok I got a question for all my fanfic writers.
When you're writing a story or brainstorming one, do the ideas usually come in chronological order or are they all over the board?
I've got ideas for some if the major events of my fic but I'm having trouble planing the parts inbetween.
So I've come up with this crack idea that werebeasts could be possible in the Avatarverse. Hear me out.
So we know that spirits can disfigured people through possession right? What about if a person willingly allowed a spirit to posses them to obtain some of the spirits abilities. Basically a possession based werebeast instead of a curse.
I'm thinking of putting the idea in my fanfic because the MC is gunna be an isekai character with an obsession with wolves/werewolves.
︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵
i've always said that late teens aang would absolutely give flirty silly goofy flynn rider energy and now i've written an entire kataang fanfic to support my delusions.
my last promo post had all the actually serious and eye-catching moments, so for this one, i just put together all the moments that i found fun:)<3 enjoy some silly excerpts from "all at once, everything is different," AKA kataangled!!!
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“Stop where you are, Avatar,” Prince Sokka shouted, his voice echoing between trees over the sound of his horse, Hawky.
The Captain of the Royal Guard, General Toph, did not use nearly as formal language. “When I catch you, you lily livered-”
“Can’t hear you over the sound of Appa outrunning the both of you!” Aang crowed triumphantly, leaning forward to pat the white and grey horse on his arrow-addorred head. On his shoulder, his monkey-lemur, Momo, chittered his agreement, sticking out his tongue at Sokka as he tauntingly waved a small satchel of bean-curd puffs at the prince.
“Toph, are you seeing this?” Sokka’s tone was irate, utterly incredulous. “The little thief’s rat thing took my lunch!”
“‘Little thief?” Aang clicked his tongue against the roof of his mouth, shaking his head disapprovingly. “I have a formal title, y’know. Or have you both gotten so haughty and royal that you can’t show a commoner any respect?”
Toph snarled, the earth reaching up to meet her as she strode after Aang, cutting through stone and dirt as if it were a still pool. “I’ll give you my respect once you earn it, twinkle toes, and you certainly won't if you keep running from us like this.”
Aang twisted to face them, assuming a meditative stance as he cocked his head teasingly, his tone mockingly pouty. “But I’m just so good at it!”
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“Did you see which way they went?” From the sound of his voice, Sokka was both irritated and incredibly embarrassed.
“No.” Toph’s voice was flat, utterly unaffected. “Obviously, I didn’t see which way they went.”
An awkward silence passed as what Sokka had said sunk in.
“Oh. Right. Um, my bad, Toph.”
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“Hey, I don’t know who you are, or where I am, if I’m being entirely honest. I genuinely don’t mean to intrude. I was just hoping for a place to lie low. I happen to be…” he trailed off, coughing awkwardly. “On the run from the law, it seems.”
Katara cocked a brow, her tone incredulous. “You expect me to willingly harbour a criminal?”
“You seemed to have no problem with trapping one in your house.” Aang huffed, crossing his arms. “And I’m not some common criminal. I’m a monk. It was more of a steal-bread-to-feed-the-hungry type situation, if you can believe that. And I do have a name, beyond “thief” or “mysterious but devilishly handsome home invader.” It’s Aang.”
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It took Aang a day longer than expected, and the moment Aang saw Katara’s face brighten at the sight of him, he absolutely refused to let it go.
“You really did miss me, didn’t you?”
Katara refused to respond, but to Aang, her silence spoke volumes.
“Awe, you really did,” He grinned, reaching to ruffle the top of her head as she swatted at his hands.
“Even if I did miss you-”
“-you did.” Aang interrupted.
“Which I didn’t ,” she huffed, crossing her arms.
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Now, standing on the precipice of going against almost every single one of her mother’s wishes, she was beginning to get cold feet. Perhaps Aang could read that in her face, or maybe he just felt like messing with her, because when she hesitated for a few moments longer, he simply pulled her over his shoulder, racing toward the river that pooled by the edge of the clearing, as Katara giggled wildly.
“What are you doing ?” She managed between laughs.
“Grass seemed too scary, so I figured I might as well reconnect you with your birth element.”
“ Aang .” Her voice grew flat as she put two and two together. “Aang! Do not throw me in the-”
“Too late!” He crowed, jumping into the deep end, still clinging onto her.
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“We have to get you to a hospital, Aang. I don’t want to risk reopening the wound. Kissing can wait.”
“No, it cannot ,” Aang declared decidedly, dipping her low as he pulled her in again. “19 years was long enough to wait without ever kissing you. Now is the time for kissing.”
“Now is the time for the hospital .”
Aang wrinkled his nose, brutally offended at Katara’s prioritisation of his health. She relented, a soft smile spreading across her lips, as she pulled him in gently, kissing him again.
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♥ feel free to check out the entirety of this fic & my ao3 here! ->
we all agree that aang would absolutely try to make katara a betrothal necklace, right? and we all agree that he would... definitely not get it right on the first try?
꩜ an excerpt from "i'd marry you with paper rings": ꩜
Monkeyfeathers .
Aang cursed softly under his breath, scrambling to straighten out the fabric under his fingers. Already, his fingertips were stained with the lychee nut, moon peaches, and plums he’d used to dye the scraps of fabric before him, and already, his fingertips had been pin pricked with needles over and over again. Sokka had reasoned that jewellery making couldn’t be as difficult as bringing an end to a war that had spanned nearly a century, and yet, here Aang was, seriously considering using firebending to burn every one of his terrible attempts at a proposal necklace that he was sure would horrify any member of either Water tribe.
That thought, however harrowing, was not enough to stop him from sighing profusely, carefully picking up his latest attempt, and shuffling sleepily over to Sokka, who had passed out hours ago, and had looked increasingly irritated with each attempt of Aang’s to wake him up.
“Hey,” Aang whispered in a hushed tone, “Hey! Psst. Sokka. Sokka. Sokka-”
“What?” Sokka hissed, his eyes shooting open.
“What about this one?” Aang dangled it in front of him, the pale blue stone catching the divots of Aang’s admittedly shoddy craftsmanship. Despite the Airbender’s best efforts, each of his attempts at etching symbols on the smooth surface had ended in pigeon- chicken scratches and wayward lines. He thought that perhaps this one looked a little bit smoother, but as it sparkled with moonlight, illuminating the primitive, childish markings, Aang felt himself wince involuntarily at the sight.
Sokka pulled himself up onto his forearms, peering down through eyes thick with sleep at the necklace Aang had laid along his palm. A moment passed as he scrunched up his eyebrows, tipping his head incredulously. “Why did Momo make Katara a betrothal necklace?”
“Spirits, I’m screwed.” Aang slapped his hand to his head, leaving behind an angry red mark. “It’s awful.”
Sokka, who had gotten used to trying to talk Aang up over the last few days, did his best to pacify him. “It’s not awful .” Sokka, naturally, was lying through his teeth. He was rather certain that were his waterbending ancestors to ever see Aang’s attempts at replicating a traditional water tribe proposal, Katara would almost certainly be plagued by dreams filled with spirits begging her to reconsider wedding such an incompetent carver.
“It’s unforgivable.” Aang sighed dramatically, turning his gaze over his shoulder to the quickly growing pile of failed attempts he had accumulated over the last few days.
“Mm.” Aang whirled back at Sokka, his eyebrows creased as Sokka decidedly didn’t disagree. “Only a little.”
Aang brightened, just a bit. “I’ll ask Zuko.”
Sokka raised an eyebrow. “Zuko is not qualified to tell how awful that is. The only time he’s seen a proposal necklace is when he stole Katara's for a few weeks, back when he was hunting us.”
Ignoring Sokka entirely, Aang crawled over to Zuko, dangling the necklace in front of the sleeping boy’s face. “Psst. Zuko. Zuko . Zuko-”
“This is awful.” Zuko’s words were flat as he rolled over, his tone brutally honest and characteristically direct. “I want to burn it.”
꩜ - i'd marry you with paper rings, quillthrills on ao3 ꩜
NOTE: i was inspired by the original 2012 minicomic with the same premise by @ngoziu. check it out here <3
...this is way too cute so i just made this into a fanfic!!:) u can find it here if u would like to read-> i'd marry you with paper rings <3
Aang Makes a Betrothal Necklace. (ln response to this post.)
sooo.... anyone else ever wondered how different ATLA would have been if aang had been frozen at age 16 instead of age 12?
yeah... me too 😌 my new fanfic "the teenager in the iceberg" follows the events of the show, but with only aang aged up, while everyone else remains their canon age.
also...cmon....how funny is it to switch zuko and aang's iconic dialogue to "you're just a teenager!" "...so are you?"
this idea was originally inspired by the talented @allgremlinart's aged up aang drawings, so please go show them some love!!:)<3
enjoy the excerpts from chapters one and two!
⁎⁺˳ ✧༚ ˎˊ˗ ♡ ˗ˏˋയ ✩
Aang chuckled, pushing himself up with his hands on his knees. He was… taller than Katara had realised, taller than Sokka. He rubbed a hand on the back of his neck, turning to look over his shoulder at the remains of the boulder-sized chunk of ice he had just been blasted out of. “Aang. My name’s Aang.” He hesitated, momentarily seeming to puzzle something over. “And honestly? No clue. Don’t remember how me and…Appa!” He yelped, suddenly scrambling back over the hill of ice and snow. Katara followed him without thinking, and Sokka, grumbling under his breath, followed moments later.
⁎⁺˳ ✧༚ ˎˊ˗ ♡ ˗ˏˋയ ✩
“So, you’ve brought a monster to invade the village, then? You’re some incognito Fire Nation soldier sent in as an undercover scout? Well, I’ll have you know that I’m the village’s strongest warrior, a-”
“The only warrior,” Katara chimed in, lightly elbowing Sokka’s side, earning herself a responding glare.
“The strongest warrior.” Sokka reiterated. “And I don’t much like firebenders.” He added the words pointedly.
“Ah.” Aang titled his head. “That’s a shame. Some of my closest friends are Fire Nation.”
“Of course they are,” Sokka glared, hunching over into a defensive position and adjusting his fishing spear until it pointed directly at Aang.
⁎⁺˳ ✧༚ ˎˊ˗ ♡ ˗ˏˋയ ✩
Katara still wasn’t quite sure what to make of Aang. The Water Tribe boys had always been all flashy muscles, seal-jerky breath, and overconfidence, so Katara had never seen someone move, carry themself, the way Aang did.
⁎⁺˳ ✧༚ ˎˊ˗ ♡ ˗ˏˋയ ✩
Katara had admittedly forgotten how much fun penguin sledding was. “Spirits, I haven’t done this since I was a kid!” she called to Aang as he raced past her, surprisingly skilled considering that he’d never even seen a penguin until half an hour before.
“You still are a kid!” He called back over his shoulder. “A kid who’s losing this race, badly !”
Katara’s competitive streak reared its head, her eyes narrowing as Aang stuck out his tongue. She sat up slightly, no longer gripping the penguin’s fur as tightly. “You wish!” She shouted back the words as she raised her hands, breathing deeply. Her hands moved through the positions she had practised from the few bending scrolls the tribe still held on to, and before Aang knew it, the snow in front of Katara turned to ice, and she shot past him as his own ice trail suddenly became dry snow with too much friction to slide on.
She made it to the bottom of the hill, beaming, breathing heavily. The wind had whipped her hair out of her bun, and she knew without checking that her hair must have looked like a lion-turtle’s mane. She watched as Aang made a show of drying himself off with a gust of wind that he then redirected at her, messing up her curls even more.
“You’re a cheater !” Aang gasped, mockingly clutching imaginary pearls at his throat. “I demand a rematch.”
Katara strode past him, only turning her head to cast him a smug smirk. “Maybe you’re just not as good of a penguin sledder as you thought .”
“Oh, not so fast!” Aang grabbed her wrist, tugging her back towards him, and she internally questioned why the momentary brush of their skin made her heart flip. He tried to trip her, she tried to flip him, and they both ended up on their backs in the snow, giggling, cheeks and noses bright pink from the cold.
⁎⁺˳ ✧༚ ˎˊ˗ ♡ ˗ˏˋയ ✩
“Trouble sleeping too, huh?” Aang cocked a grin, tilting his head to Katara. She kept her eyes fixed upwards, trained on the moon and the stars, worried that if she looked away, she’d end up staring into his eyes like a weirdo.
“I always feel so awake with the moon’s light on me. Sleeping under the stars has never really been a thing that works. It’s too energising, too… too much. It’s hard to explain.”
“No, no… I get it. I feel the same way in a windstorm, all those breezes and gusts of wind, it feels… exhilarating.” She watched through her peripheral vision as he looked up at the moon. “In times of war, I think we all tend to forget how spiritual bending is at its core. I’d say it’s a good thing that you’re in touch enough with the origins of your abilities to feel the moon’s pull tug at you just as much as it does on the ocean.”
⁎⁺˳ ✧༚ ˎˊ˗ ♡ ˗ˏˋയ ✩
Aang smiled back. “Now is our time to try to make up for that. I can’t bring back everyone who was hurt in this war, and you can’t bring back your mother, but together, the two-, three of us can make sure it doesn’t happen to anyone else.”
“I’d like that,” Katara exhaled, her breath calming down and tears dissipating. The two spent hours talking back and forth, exchanging the stories of their respective childhoods. Katara learned that Aang had invented several new bending moves and had been a big fan of fruit pies, while Aang learned that Katara had always been the bossier one between her and Sokka and that she had almost chipped a tooth on seal jerky when she was six. They continued talking back and forth in increasingly hushed tones until the world faded away under the cover of clouds and sleep.
Katara awoke to the loud shout of her brother.
“Wakey wakey, lovebirds!” he yelped, chucking a rock-hard stick of seal jerky at both of them.
“Ouch, Sokka !” Katara snapped at him, rubbing her head at the spot where she had been hit, before realising that she was leaning against Aang and immediately jumping away, blushing furiously.
♥ check out the two chapters of this (ongoing) fic & my ao3 here! ->
˗ˏˋ the teenager in the iceberg- ch. nine ˎˊ˗
˗ˏˋ fic summary: ˎˊ˗
i feel like a lot of people have wondered how different atla as a whole would be if aang had been older, so in this au, aang was frozen at age 16! naturally, i just had to flip aang being after katara from day one to katara now having a crush on aang from the very beginning. essentially, to recap. ATLA aang aged up AU fic. kataang. where she falls first, and he falls harder. also, cmon. i just had to write a new version of the scene where zuko and aang meet. zuko: you? you’re just a teenager! aang: s-…so are you…?
˗ˏˋ sneak peak: ˎˊ˗
In the middle of a field of lavender-lilies, possibly the most sleep-inducing meadow in all of the continent, surrounded by two soundly snoring siblings, the last Airbender found himself entirely and utterly awake. Worse still, rather than snatching scraps of rest from the unforgiving night, he found himself contemplating whether he had the basic common sense to even call himself worthy of the title of Avatar.
On second thought, Aang mused, the sleep deprivation might definitely be making me a bit dramatic.
Aang hadn’t necessarily ever considered himself to be the brightest in the trio of travellers- that title almost certainly went to either Katara or Sokka, both brilliant in their own respective rights, and yet, he couldn’t help but think himself utterly stupid as he flashed back to the moments in which Madame Wu had given him his fortune. He told himself that he wasn’t sure why he had asked about a girl in his reading, but he was at least bright enough to know that that wasn’t exactly the truth either.
Katara. Each time he drifted off into sleep for a few precious moments, he saw her there, stark against the dying embers of the volcano’s rage, as if the flames that had lined her silhouette had emblazoned her image directly onto his eyelids in that instant. Katara. He let his head roll to the side a bit, just enough so that Katara’s sleeping form drifted into his peripheral vision. A soft breeze passed between the two, carrying with it her scent of sea salt, linen, and snowberries.
He blushed when, through his sleepless haze, he registered that his own hands had called the wind.
⁎⁺˳ ✧༚ ˎˊ˗ ♡ ˗ˏˋയ ✩
♥ the rest of the (ongoing) fic can be found here!! ->
˗ˏˋ the teenager in the iceberg ˎˊ˗
˗ˏˋ an author's note: ˎˊ˗
hi lovelies:))) to tide you over, here's a little snippet from the next chapter of TTITI<3 i know that it's been ages, but life gets in the way, you know? i won't make any promises, because i don't want to disappoint anyone, but i do want to get better at making space for the things i love doing this year, and writing is absolutely one of those things for me:)
my (quillthills) updated ao3 ATLA masterlist
kataang:
"the teenager in the iceberg"- multichap
i feel like a lot of people have wondered how different atla as a whole would be if aang had been older, so in this au, aang was frozen at age 16! naturally, i just had to flip aang being after katara from day one to katara now having a crush on aang from the very beginning. essentially, to recap. ATLA aang aged up AU fic. kataang. where she falls first, and he falls harder. also, cmon. i just had to write a new version of the scene where zuko and aang meet.
all at once, everything is different, now that i see you:
stuck in her tower for all eighteen years of her life, katara had come to peace with her own lonely, repetitive existence, her only company being her mother, hama. at least, she *was* at peace, until a certain airbending thief happened along her tower, caught her eye, and forever shifted the path of her destiny. OR: kataangled. and yes, i came up with that brilliant wordplay all on my own. for day two of kataang week 2024: protectiveness/ bodyguard
and i promise, that one day i'll feel fine:
after an upsetting council meeting in which aang is painfully reminded of how little the other nations understand of air nomad culture, katara is there to remind him that he isn't as alone as he thinks OR: aang & katara friends to lovers post-war 👀 for day two of kataang week 2024: cultural exchange/culture sharing/revival of traditions
if happiness were a tangible thing, it would be you:
Katara is tired of the iron grip that Emperor Ozai has over the kingdom of Rosas, tired of watching him spread his influence across the mainland. When Sokka comes home from the palace with the knowledge of an impending tragedy, Katara is left to wish on the stars in hope that they will offer salvation. They do, in the form of the Avatar, a boy transformed into a wishing star almost a century earlier. Her wish for hope is fulfilled, in the form of a boy known to be the embodiment of hope. Will that same hope be enough to stand against a man powered by the dreams and wishes of an entire kingdom?
you with the dark curls, you with the watercolour eyes:
Avatar Aang had been told time and time again that to venture across the surface of the sea when the moon had risen and claimed what rightfully belonged to it was to sign your own death certificate. And yet, he found himself here, at the water’s edge, skipping stones, lost in thought. To be the Avatar had once meant something, years before. Before the four tribes had separated, scattered to the ends of the earth. Those who formed fire itself chased the other tribes from the surface lands, those who could move rock and metal burrowed underground, those who flowed with the air sent ships with great sails across the sea until they reached towering mountain spires. Those who bent water, who bent blood… they retreated to the depths of the sea, and with time, they became a part of it. Legend told of the way in which the Water tribes had adapted, two legs smoothed into razor sharp scales and voices twisted into something dark and luring. Now, they were the monsters known as sirens.
you're in the wind, i'm in the water:
aang has only just been crowned as the avatar, the king of all four elements, and already, he struggles to find his footing in a society without any of his people. a dance with princess katara of the water tribe, and a subsequent escape to the palace gardens, helps him find that footing. OR: the first of many kataang regency-era works ♔
so i will go to secret gardens in my mind:
after he and katara's escape to the palace gardens the night prior, avatar aang, the king of all four elements, cannot stop thinking of the beautiful dark-haired water princess. misunderstandings and deliberate deception constructed by regent ozai makes the reconciliation of these star-crossed lovers more complicated than necessary. OR: the second of many kataang regency-era works ♔
well, my (not-yet) boyfriend's in a band:
in which the gaang are in a band, and when it comes time for them to write an original song to submit to the republic city music festival, aang is...suspiciously good at writing love song lyrics OR kataang, if they were in an indie band and aang didn't know how to communicate his feelings except through writing love songs
i'm no longer a kid, and everything has changed:
after aang falls to azula's lightning strike in the caves of the earth kingdom, toph, sokka, and katara are left to pick up the pieces. katara's healing abilities are put to the test in the weeks that follow, but she finds herself seeing aang in a different light as she realizes how much he's endured since emerging from the iceberg only months before. OR: the weeks-long gap between the end of season two and the beginning of season three of ATLA is finally at least partially expanded upon. ALSO OR: a bit of aangst, or kataangst, if you will
can you see me using everything to hold back?
Katara's life after saving the world was filled with a whirlwind romance with Fire Lord Zuko that became a loveless, controlling marriage she is no longer happy in. After finding out the extent to which her husband has betrayed her trust, she escapes to find home in the person she has missed most during her time in the Fire Nation. OR: The common Zutara trope of "Zuko helps Katara escape an unhealthy relationship with Aang" is flipped entirely and completely on its head.
my heart is yours, it's you that i hold on to:
The war has been ended, Ozai has been rendered helpless, and Zuko has reclaimed the Fire Nation with the promise of peace. Everything that Aang has been working towards since the moment Katara freed him from the iceberg has been done. He's saved the world. Now, all that's left is to confess to his forever girl. OR Aang wakes up the morning after him and his friends saved the entire world, and the first (and only) thing he can think about is Katara. When they get a chance to talk, the two take a walk down memory lane.
the avatar's adventures in parenting:
aang being a bad parent is CHARACTER ASSASSINATION and i won't stand for it. i just know that him and katara wouldn't be focused on just passing on bending, but the *teachings* and ideals of both of their tribes to all their children, regardless of bending status. OR, aang and katara become parents and aang finds out that parenting is his proudest achievement, more so than stopping a hundred year war or holding the position of avatar
i'm trying to tell you something, something that i already said:
katara speaks to each member of the gaang individually and finds out that aang has been head over heels with her for years and no one ever bothered telling her. this takes place after the fire lord is defeated, but in my version, they never kissed in the finale:oo katara is basically dumb in terms of love and so is aang and they are peak miscommunication trope and theres too much zutara content and not enough kataang OR katara interrogates each of her friends (toph, sokka, and zuko) and comes to the conclusion that she has lived for years without the kind of love most people wish for their entire lives
yukka:
there's a star-man, waiting in the sky:
a flash-fiction atla modern AU in which yue passes away from cancer early in life, and sokka becomes an astronaut so that he can go to space and be close to the moon she always loved so much ☾
shining down on me:
sokka can't stop thinking about yue. she comes to him in his dreams, and try as he might, he just can't move on. inspired by the song "my love, mine all mine" by mitski "moon, tell me if i could send up my heart to you? so, when i die, which i must do, could it shine down here, with you?"
if any of these speak to you, they can all be found on my ao3 account:)<3 happy reading!!!
i love writing sokka, so i've thrown some of my favourite lines of his from my fanfic "the teenager in the iceberg" together, so that they can be properly appreciated <3 >:)
---
Sokka continued, his voice both indignant and commanding.“We don’t even know your name, Mr. Walking Ice Cube! What were you doing in there? Were you trying to mimic a snow-man and you got too carried away?”
---
“So, you’ve brought a monster to invade the village, then? You’re some incognito Fire Nation soldier sent in as an undercover scout? Well, I’ll have you know that I’m the village’s strongest warrior, a-”
“The only warrior,” Katara chimed in, lightly elbowing Sokka’s side, earning herself a responding glare.
“The strongest warrior.” Sokka reiterated. “And I don’t much like firebenders.” He added the words pointedly.
“Ah.” Aang titled his head. “That’s a shame. Some of my closest friends are Fire Nation.”
“Of course they are,” Sokka glared, hunching over into a defensive position and adjusting his fishing spear until it pointed directly at Aang.
---
“Appa can give us a lift?” Sokka said incredulously. He gestured at the sky bison, sprawled across the ice and looking as though he could sleep for weeks longer. “If anything, he looks like he needs us to lift him up off the ground.”
---
Naturally, Sokka was still a skeptic. “A pulley system! Hot air from a hidden firebender! Secret underwater sea-vents! Or maybe we all ate something funny and all of this is all in our heads… ” He finished off his sentence by wiggling his fingers as if he was ready to cast a spell.
---
Sokka nodded sharply. “He’s our responsibility, no matter how much I berated him when we met earlier. We need to find that sky monster of his, it’s the only way we’ll be able to catch up with the ship.”
“Aang called it a sky bison.”
“He also didn’t tell us that he was the Avatar, so I’m not sure if we can take everything he says at face value,” Sokka pointed out as Katara rolled her eyes. He cocked a grin. “C’mon, let's go get the little guy.”
“Aang’s taller than you!” Katara called after him, rushing to keep up with Sokka’s longer strides.
“Sure, in his dreams !” The decidedly-shorter-than-Aang boy called back.
---
“Here’s the deal, bucko.” Sokka said matter of factly, accompanying his words with sharp gestures and exaggerated syllables, as if Appa was deaf. “Your friend needs your help, and WE need YOUR help to get to him. You get the picture?” Without waiting for any kind of affirmation, Sokka nodded briskly then scrambled up to Appa’s back, settling into what appeared to be the driver's seat.
Appa did not move, didn’t even blink.
Sokka blinked, utterly bewildered. “How do we get him to, y’know, go ?”
---
“He’s not gonna-” Sokka started, but as Katara slid onto Appa’s back, they felt him begin to levitate. Sokka huffed, crossing his arms dramatically. “Spirits, I hate when you’re right and I’m wrong.” Too concerned to snap a retort back at Sokka, Katara just settled down into her seat, anxiously picking at the leather of her coat.
---
Katara awoke to the loud shout of her brother.
“Wakey wakey, lovebirds!” he yelped, chucking a rock-hard stick of seal jerky at both of them.
“Ouch, Sokka!” Katara snapped at him, rubbing her head at the spot where she had been hit, before realising that she was leaning against Aang and immediately jumping away, blushing furiously.
---
he's so sassy and funny i love sokka so much
♥ find the rest of the fic here!! ->
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i've always said that late teens aang would absolutely give flirty silly goofy flynn rider energy and now i've written an entire kataang fanfic to support my delusions.
my last promo post had all the actually serious and eye-catching moments, so for this one, i just put together all the moments that i found fun:)<3 enjoy some silly excerpts from "all at once, everything is different," AKA kataangled!!!
︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵
“Stop where you are, Avatar,” Prince Sokka shouted, his voice echoing between trees over the sound of his horse, Hawky.
The Captain of the Royal Guard, General Toph, did not use nearly as formal language. “When I catch you, you lily livered-”
“Can’t hear you over the sound of Appa outrunning the both of you!” Aang crowed triumphantly, leaning forward to pat the white and grey horse on his arrow-addorred head. On his shoulder, his monkey-lemur, Momo, chittered his agreement, sticking out his tongue at Sokka as he tauntingly waved a small satchel of bean-curd puffs at the prince.
“Toph, are you seeing this?” Sokka’s tone was irate, utterly incredulous. “The little thief’s rat thing took my lunch!”
“‘Little thief?” Aang clicked his tongue against the roof of his mouth, shaking his head disapprovingly. “I have a formal title, y’know. Or have you both gotten so haughty and royal that you can’t show a commoner any respect?”
Toph snarled, the earth reaching up to meet her as she strode after Aang, cutting through stone and dirt as if it were a still pool. “I’ll give you my respect once you earn it, twinkle toes, and you certainly won't if you keep running from us like this.”
Aang twisted to face them, assuming a meditative stance as he cocked his head teasingly, his tone mockingly pouty. “But I’m just so good at it!”
︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵
“Did you see which way they went?” From the sound of his voice, Sokka was both irritated and incredibly embarrassed.
“No.” Toph’s voice was flat, utterly unaffected. “Obviously, I didn’t see which way they went.”
An awkward silence passed as what Sokka had said sunk in.
“Oh. Right. Um, my bad, Toph.”
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“Hey, I don’t know who you are, or where I am, if I’m being entirely honest. I genuinely don’t mean to intrude. I was just hoping for a place to lie low. I happen to be…” he trailed off, coughing awkwardly. “On the run from the law, it seems.”
Katara cocked a brow, her tone incredulous. “You expect me to willingly harbour a criminal?”
“You seemed to have no problem with trapping one in your house.” Aang huffed, crossing his arms. “And I’m not some common criminal. I’m a monk. It was more of a steal-bread-to-feed-the-hungry type situation, if you can believe that. And I do have a name, beyond “thief” or “mysterious but devilishly handsome home invader.” It’s Aang.”
︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵
It took Aang a day longer than expected, and the moment Aang saw Katara’s face brighten at the sight of him, he absolutely refused to let it go.
“You really did miss me, didn’t you?”
Katara refused to respond, but to Aang, her silence spoke volumes.
“Awe, you really did,” He grinned, reaching to ruffle the top of her head as she swatted at his hands.
“Even if I did miss you-”
“-you did.” Aang interrupted.
“Which I didn’t ,” she huffed, crossing her arms.
︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵
Now, standing on the precipice of going against almost every single one of her mother’s wishes, she was beginning to get cold feet. Perhaps Aang could read that in her face, or maybe he just felt like messing with her, because when she hesitated for a few moments longer, he simply pulled her over his shoulder, racing toward the river that pooled by the edge of the clearing, as Katara giggled wildly.
“What are you doing ?” She managed between laughs.
“Grass seemed too scary, so I figured I might as well reconnect you with your birth element.”
“ Aang .” Her voice grew flat as she put two and two together. “Aang! Do not throw me in the-”
“Too late!” He crowed, jumping into the deep end, still clinging onto her.
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“We have to get you to a hospital, Aang. I don’t want to risk reopening the wound. Kissing can wait.”
“No, it cannot ,” Aang declared decidedly, dipping her low as he pulled her in again. “19 years was long enough to wait without ever kissing you. Now is the time for kissing.”
“Now is the time for the hospital .”
Aang wrinkled his nose, brutally offended at Katara’s prioritisation of his health. She relented, a soft smile spreading across her lips, as she pulled him in gently, kissing him again.
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♥ feel free to check out the entirety of this fic & my ao3 here! ->
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︵‿presenting...quill's kataang week!‿︵
︵‿︵︵‿︵︵day two: protectiveness/ bodyguard︵‿︵︵‿︵︵
︵‿︵︵︵‿︵︵‿‿hosted by @kataang-week︵‿︵︵︵‿︵︵‿‿
summary:
stuck in her tower for all eighteen years of her life, katara had come to peace with her own lonely, repetitive existence, her only company being her mother, hama. at least, she *was* at peace, until a certain airbending thief happened along her tower, caught her eye, and forever shifted the path of her destiny. OR: kataangled. and yes, i came up with that brilliant wordplay all on my own.
:D the following are excerpts from "all at once, everything is different, now that i see you":
In all of her eighteen years of gazing out into the same meadow, the same night sky, Katara had never quite managed to piece together why every year, on her birthday, the night sky came alight with glowing lanterns in hues of soft silver and blue. As much as it tugged at her, she didn’t mind the element of mystery too much. After all, a girl who grows up never leaving the confines of her tower is a girl used to looking out into a world of mysteries. Katang spent her days pouring over old scrolls, gleaning bits and pieces about the world from what she could see through her window.
To be entirely honest, it wasn’t all that much. A modest meadow, a bubbling brook, the occasional frog-squirrel or cat deer. Still, it was more than enough for her to feel utterly enchanted by. Each and every time that an animal walked by, Katara would imagine how it would feel to be one of those wild things, chained to nothing, bound by your own will.
Katara certainly wasn’t.
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Aang made quick work of the tower walls, the uneven brick providing natural foot and handholds as he scaled the rough, mossy stone. When he finally reached the summit of the spire, he heaved himself over, his breath rough as he dusted off his palms. He tugged off his thin overshift, revealing his one-shouldered monk’s robes as he did. Aang scratched his neck absentmindedly as he took in his surroundings. He was surprised to see that the tower was furnished, lived-in, even. He recognized waterbending forms painted on most of the walls. There were even lit candles softly flickering away in various nooks and crannies, casting warm light over the room.
Wait. Alarm bells rang in Aang’s mind, urging him to further examine the situation he had found himself in.
If the tower is abandoned, then who lit the-
The next sound he heard was a deafening thunk as a thin sword buried itself in the wall next to his head, leaving a deep cut along the shell of his ear.
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She wanted a reason to snap back, to make some snide comment, but Aang’s eyes were so open, his expression so… trustable that she simply couldn’t stomach it.
Katara knew that should’ve been telling him to leave. She should’ve asked him to apologise, to be on his way. In all her years of solitude, she’d never dreaded being alone, but something about Aang leaving and her never being able to see him again sent a pang of something like homesickness straight through her.
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“I see that you need time to process all of this.” Aang stood, his eyes shining with sympathy that only made Katara feel more guilty over how heartbroken Mother Hama would be were she to find out about her new doubts. “I’m happy to give that to you.” She trailed like a ghost behind him as he strode to the window, tugging a wooden glider from his back before standing atop the edge of the terrace, grinning at her softly as she clung shyly to the carvings of the doorway. “And I understand that you don’t know me, that you have no real reason to believe me.”
He turned to the side, saluting her teasingly. “So I’ll be back, same time tomorrow, so that we can get to know one another a bit better.”
“Aang!” She shouted, rushing to the edge of the terrace as he snapped open his glider, plunging downwards. “No, you will not .”
“I can’t hear you! But I totally agree! I’m looking forward to it as well!” His whoops echoed through the field as he did a couple loop-de-loops.
︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵
Aang stepped through her window, right on schedule, with an injury he claimed he had gotten while sparring, Katara’s only response was the word “Again?”
“Hey, If being injured is what it takes for you to let me stay even a few minutes longer, I’ll take it.” Aang grinned, shrugging as he tugged up the end of his top to reveal the bruises patterning his ribs. Katara did her best to focus on the injury itself, and not the muscle rippling over Aang’s side, as she settled into the stool next to him, leaning over to run her hands over the purple-and-blue skin. “I like your company.”
I like you. The response materialised in Katara’s mind before she could suppress it, and the longer it sat there, the more right it felt. I like you.
︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵
“So, what else does a thief carry with him in his bag?” Katara had been strangely curious about what Aang considered precious enough to carry around with him in his satchel, but after fishing through playing cards and a set of spinning marbles he’d been very proud of, her interest was considerably less piqued.
“Oh, I don’t think I ever got a chance to explain what I took to end up in your tower.” Aang fished around until he tugged out a velvet box, passing it over to her with both hands. He continued on, talking about the castle security and his plans to pawn the necklace to feed and house children displaced by the ongoing conflict with the Fire Nation, but his words faded away as Katara opened the box.
I know you.
There, nestled in silk, was a pale blue pendant on a deep blue velvet ribbon. Just looking at it for a moment was enough for her to feel entirely off balance. Vague memories hit her, one after the other, of looking up at a ceiling of moon symbols carved in diamond, a hanging mobile of seals and icebergs. The ornate arches of a castle, the corridors and gardens of a grand estate.
I know you.
︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵
The world tilted, and suddenly, neither Katara’s will, nor her body, were her own.
︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵
♥ feel free to check out the entirety of this fic & my ao3 here! ->
to see the rest of the kataang week submissions from the other extremely talented and lovely members of this community, head over to @kataang-week :)<3 thank u so much to the wonderful mods for making all of this possible!
︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵
︵‿presenting...quill's kataang week!‿︵
︵‿︵︵‿︵︵day two: protectiveness/ bodyguard︵‿︵︵‿︵︵
︵‿︵︵︵‿︵︵‿‿hosted by @kataang-week︵‿︵︵︵‿︵︵‿‿
summary:
stuck in her tower for all eighteen years of her life, katara had come to peace with her own lonely, repetitive existence, her only company being her mother, hama. at least, she *was* at peace, until a certain airbending thief happened along her tower, caught her eye, and forever shifted the path of her destiny. OR: kataangled. and yes, i came up with that brilliant wordplay all on my own.
:D the following are excerpts from "all at once, everything is different, now that i see you":
In all of her eighteen years of gazing out into the same meadow, the same night sky, Katara had never quite managed to piece together why every year, on her birthday, the night sky came alight with glowing lanterns in hues of soft silver and blue. As much as it tugged at her, she didn’t mind the element of mystery too much. After all, a girl who grows up never leaving the confines of her tower is a girl used to looking out into a world of mysteries. Katang spent her days pouring over old scrolls, gleaning bits and pieces about the world from what she could see through her window.
To be entirely honest, it wasn’t all that much. A modest meadow, a bubbling brook, the occasional frog-squirrel or cat deer. Still, it was more than enough for her to feel utterly enchanted by. Each and every time that an animal walked by, Katara would imagine how it would feel to be one of those wild things, chained to nothing, bound by your own will.
Katara certainly wasn’t.
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Aang made quick work of the tower walls, the uneven brick providing natural foot and handholds as he scaled the rough, mossy stone. When he finally reached the summit of the spire, he heaved himself over, his breath rough as he dusted off his palms. He tugged off his thin overshift, revealing his one-shouldered monk’s robes as he did. Aang scratched his neck absentmindedly as he took in his surroundings. He was surprised to see that the tower was furnished, lived-in, even. He recognized waterbending forms painted on most of the walls. There were even lit candles softly flickering away in various nooks and crannies, casting warm light over the room.
Wait. Alarm bells rang in Aang’s mind, urging him to further examine the situation he had found himself in.
If the tower is abandoned, then who lit the-
The next sound he heard was a deafening thunk as a thin sword buried itself in the wall next to his head, leaving a deep cut along the shell of his ear.
︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵
She wanted a reason to snap back, to make some snide comment, but Aang’s eyes were so open, his expression so… trustable that she simply couldn’t stomach it.
Katara knew that should’ve been telling him to leave. She should’ve asked him to apologise, to be on his way. In all her years of solitude, she’d never dreaded being alone, but something about Aang leaving and her never being able to see him again sent a pang of something like homesickness straight through her.
︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵
“I see that you need time to process all of this.” Aang stood, his eyes shining with sympathy that only made Katara feel more guilty over how heartbroken Mother Hama would be were she to find out about her new doubts. “I’m happy to give that to you.” She trailed like a ghost behind him as he strode to the window, tugging a wooden glider from his back before standing atop the edge of the terrace, grinning at her softly as she clung shyly to the carvings of the doorway. “And I understand that you don’t know me, that you have no real reason to believe me.”
He turned to the side, saluting her teasingly. “So I’ll be back, same time tomorrow, so that we can get to know one another a bit better.”
“Aang!” She shouted, rushing to the edge of the terrace as he snapped open his glider, plunging downwards. “No, you will not .”
“I can’t hear you! But I totally agree! I’m looking forward to it as well!” His whoops echoed through the field as he did a couple loop-de-loops.
︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵
Aang stepped through her window, right on schedule, with an injury he claimed he had gotten while sparring, Katara’s only response was the word “Again?”
“Hey, If being injured is what it takes for you to let me stay even a few minutes longer, I’ll take it.” Aang grinned, shrugging as he tugged up the end of his top to reveal the bruises patterning his ribs. Katara did her best to focus on the injury itself, and not the muscle rippling over Aang’s side, as she settled into the stool next to him, leaning over to run her hands over the purple-and-blue skin. “I like your company.”
I like you. The response materialised in Katara’s mind before she could suppress it, and the longer it sat there, the more right it felt. I like you.
︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵
“So, what else does a thief carry with him in his bag?” Katara had been strangely curious about what Aang considered precious enough to carry around with him in his satchel, but after fishing through playing cards and a set of spinning marbles he’d been very proud of, her interest was considerably less piqued.
“Oh, I don’t think I ever got a chance to explain what I took to end up in your tower.” Aang fished around until he tugged out a velvet box, passing it over to her with both hands. He continued on, talking about the castle security and his plans to pawn the necklace to feed and house children displaced by the ongoing conflict with the Fire Nation, but his words faded away as Katara opened the box.
I know you.
There, nestled in silk, was a pale blue pendant on a deep blue velvet ribbon. Just looking at it for a moment was enough for her to feel entirely off balance. Vague memories hit her, one after the other, of looking up at a ceiling of moon symbols carved in diamond, a hanging mobile of seals and icebergs. The ornate arches of a castle, the corridors and gardens of a grand estate.
I know you.
︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵
The world tilted, and suddenly, neither Katara’s will, nor her body, were her own.
︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵
♥ feel free to check out the entirety of this fic & my ao3 here! ->
to see the rest of the kataang week submissions from the other extremely talented and lovely members of this community, head over to @kataang-week :)<3 thank u so much to the wonderful mods for making all of this possible!
︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵‿︵︵
︵‿presenting...quill's kataang week!‿︵
︵day one: cultural exchange/ culture sharing/ revival of traditions‿
︵‿︵︵︵‿︵︵‿‿hosted by @kataang-week︵‿︵︵︵‿︵︵‿‿
summary:
after an upsetting council meeting in which aang is painfully reminded of how little the other nations understand of air nomad culture, katara is there to remind him that he isn't as alone as he thinks OR: aang & katara friends to lovers post-war 👀
:D the following are excerpts from "and i promise, that one day i'll feel fine":
Aang typically prided himself on standing strong when it came to upholding the beliefs of his people. It was his responsibility, his burden of loss to carry and his gift.
But if he was being entirely honest with himself, moments such as the one he found himself in now, surrounded by a council of nations in which he was the only Airbending representative, it was difficult to remain pretending as if nothing was bothering him. He’d accepted a seat on the council of nations before fully understanding what it would mean to him, how it would feel . Every other representative was flanked with another member or two of their tribe.
Aang stood alone.
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He’d been so sure that he’d kissed her, in the Cave of Two Lovers, and again before he’d entered the Fire Nation. Both times, he’d waited for her to say something, anything, to confirm that those kisses had been just as earthshaking for her as they had been for him, but both times, she hadn’t. He’d pressed her about it only once, and the moment she told him that she felt confused, Aang had felt like an absolute and utter idiot . The idea that he’d made Katara uncomfortable… It was enough for him to do his best to suppress his feelings as much as he could.
That had left them where they were now- on opposite sides of a council room. Two teenagers who could end a war but couldn’t manage to communicate. Aang supposed that there was a bit of comedic irony present there, but truth be told, nothing felt funny to him at the moment.
Not with how the other council members were speaking about his people.
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“How can you say that?” Katara ran her hands through her hair incredulously, his jaw set. “Each nation standing on their own and neglecting the balance between our peoples is how the war started. The blood of the Air Nomads is just as much on the other nations for neglecting to remember that, for failing to come to the defence of the remaining Air temples after the first of the Fire Nation raids.” Aang flinched at the visceral reminder, the images it stirred, but regardless, Katara was right. She continued on, her voice dropping in volume but only gaining intensity.
“It’s "every nation on their own" until it was your nation, the one that this “nation of one” defended only months ago.” She spat the last of the words out as if they were laced with venom, her disgust evident as she reminded Hanh of the water spirit form Aang had taken to ward off the invasion of the Southern tribes.
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“Aang. There's no precedent for any of this. The scenario you’ve found yourself in… unique feels too simple of a way to put it. None of the monks would judge you for succumbing to moments of grief and anger.”
“ I would judge me. I would not forgive myself.”
“You should.” She smiled softly, shaking her head. “Even the great Avatar, saviour of the world, is not without moments of imperfection.”
Aang chuckled through his tears, his smile turning cocky. “You’d be surprised. I think you’ll find that I’m about as close to perfection as can be.”
“I know,” she said simply, and the genuine quality of her voice was enough to send a blush blooming across Aang’s face. She pushed on, internally berating herself for letting that slip. “And I understand why you feel alone, I really do, but I’m right here, in your corner. Please don’t forget that. You’ll always have me there." She smiled softly, shaking her head as she did. "If you’d escalated the situation back there, if you had snapped completely, I would’ve been right behind you, following your lead.”
Aang’s nose wrinkled as he laughed at the idea of the pair of them fighting the entire council. Katara shook her head, her eyes fixed on his, her tone dead serious. “Let Sokka, or Zuko, or Toph pull us back to reality. I’m right there with you, in everything .” In life too, if you’d let me, she added silently, her hands itching to pull his hands back to hers.
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♥ feel free to check out the entirety of this fic & my ao3 here! ->
to see the rest of the kataang week submissions from the other extremely talented and lovely members of this community, head over to @kataang-week :)<3 thank u so much to the wonderful mods for making all of this possible!
holy cow to be on a rec list w this many talented people is such a compliment 🤭🤧 so happy ur liking the teenager in the iceberg!!!!
hello! can you recommend your fav kataang fics (preferably not angst since i still need to heal from your fic😭)
yeah sure! i'll try to recommend ones that are happier!
stranger by sycamore17: i've recommended this before and i'll recommend it forever. god tier fic.
apartment 3e by sycamore17: a new girl-esque atla fic with sukka, kataang, and maiko. i looove this fic. it's so fun, and it feels very much like watching a sit-com.
unspoken, undeniable by @flameohotwife: a fake dating au where katara and aang start publicly "dating" because the earth king is on his case about the future of the air nomads. so much fun and the mutual pining is to die for.
old halls, new life by @flameohotwife: parents!kataang i love you. a story that features aang sharing his air nomad culture with each of the cloudbabies over the years.
the plan by the_clockwork_monk: a peek into katara's brain while zuko and sokka are gone during "the boiling rock" episodes. i love fics that tackle katara's denial of her feelings for aang while also having her hardcore pine at the same time. it always makes me laugh.
seeing stars: the atla dating gameshow by @coyotelemon: pure fluff, pure romcom. every moment i was reading this i was squealing wildly into my pillow.
the teenager in the iceberg by @quillthrillswriting: a wip about an au where aang emerges as a teenager from the iceberg. features reverse crush kataang which i looove. such a fun story so far i can't wait to read the rest of it!!!
guys it's OUT NOW!!!! i'll do a proper promo post tomorrow so i guess anyone who sees it before then can be part of a super secret club hehe
new chapter of "the teenager in the iceberg" is gonna be out tonight!!! so excited to show you guys the fortuneteller ep!!
new chapter of "the teenager in the iceberg" is gonna be out tonight!!! so excited to show you guys the fortuneteller ep!!
if any of you require additional info before making your decisions, please feel free to inquire for details in the comments 😌
and if you need my kataang credentials, you can find my fanfic masterlist here and my ao3 here
thank u lovelies!!<3
my (quillthills) ao3 ATLA fanfiction masterlist:
"so i will go to secret gardens in my mind":
after he and katara's escape to the palace gardens the night prior, avatar aang, the king of all four elements, cannot stop thinking of the beautiful dark-haired water princess. misunderstandings and deliberate deception constructed by regent ozai makes the reconciliation of these star-crossed lovers more complicated than necessary. OR: the second of many kataang regency-era works ♔
"you’re in the wind, i’m in the water":
aang has only just been crowned as the avatar, the king of all four elements, and already, he struggles to find his footing in a society without any of his people. a dance with princess katara of the water tribe, and a subsequent escape to the palace gardens, helps him find that footing. OR: the first of many kataang regency-era works ♔
"there's a star-man, waiting in the sky":
a flash-fiction atla modern AU in which yue passes away from cancer early in life, and sokka becomes an astronaut so that he can go to space and be close to the moon she always loved so much ☾
"the teenager in the iceberg"- multichap
i feel like a lot of people have wondered how different atla as a whole would be if aang had been older, so in this au, aang was frozen at age 16! naturally, i just had to flip aang being after katara from day one to katara now having a crush on aang from the very beginning. essentially, to recap. ATLA aang aged up AU fic. kataang. where she falls first, and he falls harder. also, cmon. i just had to write a new version of the scene where zuko and aang meet.
"you with the dark curls, you with the watercolor eyes"- multichap
Avatar Aang had been told time and time again that to venture across the surface of the sea when the moon had risen and claimed what rightfully belonged to it was to sign your own death certificate. And yet, he found himself here, at the water’s edge, skipping stones, lost in thought. To be the Avatar had once meant something, years before. Before the four tribes had separated, scattered to the ends of the earth. Those who formed fire itself chased the other tribes from the surface lands, those who could move rock and metal burrowed underground, those who flowed with the air sent ships with great sails across the sea until they reached towering mountain spires. Those who bent water, who bent blood… they retreated to the depths of the sea, and with time, they became a part of it. Legend told of the way in which the Water tribes had adapted, two legs smoothed into razor sharp scales and voices twisted into something dark and luring. Now, they were the monsters known as sirens. OR: a KATAANG AU where tui and la have split the earth into the sea and the sky. aang is a winged avian, while katara is a siren<3
"well, my (not-yet) boyfriend's in a band":
in which the gaang are in a band, and when it comes time for them to write an original song to submit to the republic city music festival, aang is...suspiciously good at writing love song lyrics OR kataang, if they were in an indie band and aang didn't know how to communicate his feelings except through writing love songs
"i’m no longer a kid, and everything has changed":
after aang falls to azula's lightning strike in the caves of the earth kingdom, toph, sokka, and katara are left to pick up the pieces. katara's healing abilities are put to the test in the weeks that follow, but she finds herself seeing aang in a different light as she realizes how much he's endured since emerging from the iceberg only months before. OR: the weeks-long gap between the end of season two and the beginning of season three of ATLA is finally at least partially expanded upon. ALSO OR: a bit of aangst, or kataangst, if you will
"can you see me using everything to hold back?":
Katara's life after saving the world was filled with a whirlwind romance with Fire Lord Zuko that became a loveless, controlling marriage she is no longer happy in. After finding out the extent to which her husband has betrayed her trust, she escapes to find home in the person she has missed most during her time in the Fire Nation. OR: The common Zutara trope of "Zuko helps Katara escape an unhealthy relationship with Aang" is flipped entirely and completely on its head.
"my heart is yours, it’s you that i hold on to":
The war has been ended, Ozai has been rendered helpless, and Zuko has reclaimed the Fire Nation with the promise of peace. Everything that Aang has been working towards since the moment Katara freed him from the iceberg has been done. He's saved the world. Now, all that's left is to confess to his forever girl. OR Aang wakes up the morning after him and his friends saved the entire world, and the first (and only) thing he can think about is Katara. When they get a chance to talk, the two take a walk down memory lane.
"shining down on me":
sokka can't stop thinking about yue. she comes to him in his dreams, and try as he might, he just can't move on. inspired by the song "my love, mine all mine" by mitski
"the avatar's adventures in parenting":
aang being a bad parent is CHARACTER ASSASSINATION and i won't stand for it. i just know that him and katara wouldn't be focused on just passing on bending, but the *teachings* and ideals of both of their tribes to all their children, regardless of bending status. OR, aang and katara become parents and aang finds out that parenting is his proudest achievement, more so than stopping a hundred year war or holding the position of avatar
"i'm trying to tell you something, something that i already said":
katara speaks to each member of the gaang individually and finds out that aang has been head over heels with her for years and no one ever bothered telling her. this takes place after the fire lord is defeated, but in my version, they never kissed in the finale:oo katara is basically dumb in terms of love and so is aang and they are peak miscommunication trope and theres too much zutara content and not enough kataang OR katara interrogates each of her friends (toph, sokka, and zuko) and comes to the conclusion that she has lived for years without the kind of love most people wish for their entire lives
if any of these speak to you, they can all be found on my ao3 account:)<3 happy reading!!!
the teenager in the iceberg- ch7 sneak-peek!!!
“Psht,” Aang rolled his eyes, sending a breeze to blow back Sokka’s sandy hair. “Katara’s a friend, Sokka. Dependable, just like Appa, or Momo.”
“Thanks.” Katara said flatly, pretending to suddenly be interested in observing the sand at her feet. Dependable. He sure did know what a girl wanted to hear.
“Hah, maybe you should go into the jewellery business, instead of doing your whole world-saving thing!” Sokka exclaimed from the water’s edge, seemingly unaware of the tension that had been crackling between the two benders only moments before.
“I don’t see why I can’t do both!” Aang ambled over to him, leaving Katara thoroughly confused and more than a little hurt. “I would say that you should start a business too, but it looks like you don’t have too much of a chance of breaking into the fishing industry.”
“Mmm, care to help? I don’t see you doing much more than watching from the sidelines.” Sokka shot him with the daggers in his eyes.
“A vegetarian fisher?” Aang raised an eyebrow, but walked into the water alongside Sokka regardless.
“Maybe you can do the bookkeeping for the business. I think you have the potential to have a real head for numbers.” The fish shot up beside Sokka, splashing teasingly, and Sokka lunged, only to come up with empty hands yet again.
Aang doubled over, weak with laughter, which was made worse when the fish came up yet again, just to splash Sokka with a small wave of water. “I think to have a bookkeeper, you need to be able to catch fish to sell,” he managed through his chuckling.
“Yeah, alright, Air-Boy.” Sokka fixed him with another glare, and before Aang could dart out of the water, Sokka tackled him, managing to submerge him for only a couple seconds before Aang erupted from the water in a burst of wind, using the waterbending he’d already learned to combat Sokka’s overeager splashing.
Katara giggled, settling back onto one of the larger rocks, but her smile faded as she watched the way Aang’s eyes shone in merriment, the way he grinned playfully. Katara’s a friend.
She couldn’t stop replaying the words over and over again, even as Sokka finally caught and roasted his fish, even as she and Aang foraged for the nuts and berries that would make up his dinner, even as she extinguished that night’s cooking fire.
Katara’s a friend.
She wasn’t sure if that was fully true. Not after the way she felt when she looked up at him, not after the way he’d jumped to protect her from Jet, not after the way her heart leapt into her throat at every accidental touch.
Was this only friendship, to him?
She cast a sidelong glance to Aang, curled up with Momo under woven orange-and-yellow sleeping sheets. Moonlight danced across the planes of his cheekbones, his skin sparkling as if cast from mica.
It was as if the moon spirits themselves were marking him as hers.
Wordlessly, she leaned over him, quietly adjusting the branches to his right until the moon caught on the leaves above him, until his face was no longer illuminated.
He wasn’t hers. She wasn’t sure why she had to keep reminding herself of that.
♥ check out the six chapters of this (ongoing) fic & my ao3 here! ->
sooo.... anyone else ever wondered how different ATLA would have been if aang had been frozen at age 16 instead of age 12?
yeah... me too 😌 my multichap kataang fanfic "the teenager in the iceberg" follows the events of the show, but with only aang aged up, while everyone else remains their canon age.
to put it clearly, katara falls first, and aang falls harder 🤭 (and they both get a lil jealous hehe)
enjoy the excerpts from chapter 6!!! (the jet episode!!)
⁎⁺˳ ✧༚ ˎˊ˗ ♡ ˗ˏˋയ ✩
“We’ve got a big plan to score big against the Fire Nation.” Jet kept his face straight ahead, his hooks swinging, and Katara could see the bit of wheat he still held between his teeth over his shoulder.
“Sounds…big.” Aang said the words somewhat sarcastically, earning a choked giggle from Katara, but Jet didn’t quite seem to catch the nuance of it all.
“Oh, it will be.” He hacked aside a final overhanging branch. “Here we are.”
“...A bunch of holes in the ground?” Aang shifted his weight and raised an eyebrow, only to immediately drop to a defensive position when Katara swatted him, hard, on the arm and gave him a glare. He raised his hands in a “don’t shoot” position, and schooled his features into neutrality by the time Jet turned around.
⁎⁺˳ ✧༚ ˎˊ˗ ♡ ˗ˏˋയ ✩
Aang paused his movements at this, letting the water he was bending drop to his feet, coursing through cracks in the rock floor beneath them. “Katara. You can’t genuinely believe that. Sokka is an idiot, but he’s not dumb.”
Katara raised an eyebrow. “What is that supposed to mean?”
“That Sokka can be goofy, sure, but I trust him and his perception, 100%. He doesn’t miss things. If anything, he sees and notices things most people don’t. If he doesn’t trust Jet….” Aang sighed, resuming his bending forms. “I just feel like you’re getting too close to him. Jet, I mean.”
“And what would the problem be with that?” Katara could hear her voice rising, her temper flaring.
“He’s a bad guy, Katara.”
“You don’t know that!”
“He hurt you!” Katara shut her mouth at the raw emotion in Aang’s voice. He was breathing heavily now, his fists clenching as wind whipped around them. He bit his lip, took in some deep breaths. “He hurt you,” he repeated, this time more gently. “I didn’t protect you quickly enough.”
⁎⁺˳ ✧༚ ˎˊ˗ ♡ ˗ˏˋയ ✩
Tonight was different. She still couldn’t sleep, that much was the same, but as she rose to drill her forms by the river, she felt a hand clamp around her forearm. She almost screamed, but when she whirled around to face her would-be attacker, she exhaled in a whoosh, relieved that it was only Aang.
“My bad,” he whispered, cringing at his choice to grab her arm without warning. “Didn’t mean to scare you.”
Katara dropped back down onto her sleeping bag, neatly crossing her legs. Aang did his best to ignore that she was only in her wrappings now, that the moonlight was sparkling on her bare skin, like a spirit in a painting of old. “I was just…wanting some air.”
“C’mon, Katara, don’t even try. You’re an awful liar.” He flashed a grin, and in the dark, the starlight set his teeth aglow. “I know you’ve been bending at night.”
Katara blanched at this. “How?”
“Light sleeper?” Aang shrugged. “Plus, you’re not great at sneaking out, either. You’ve stepped on me pretty much every time you’ve gotten up to practise.”
⁎⁺˳ ✧༚ ˎˊ˗ ♡ ˗ˏˋയ ✩
“I, um…” Aang trailed off, and even in the dark, she could tell he was trying to hide a blush, could tell he was embarrassed. “I got you something.” He quickly backtracked, his voice somewhat frantic. “If you want. You might not. Want it, that is. And you don’t have to, and I’m not sure if it’ll even-”
“Aang.” Katara caught his hands in hers, looking into his eyes earnestly. “What is it?”
⁎⁺˳ ✧༚ ˎˊ˗ ♡ ˗ˏˋയ ✩