Katara would’ve been such a good diplomat (it’s canon)

everyone rightfully hates on the ATLA comics because the politics are baffling and the characterization is even more so…but if there’s one thing we can take away from the dumpster fire that is The Promise, it’s that Katara was BORN to be a diplomat and an international force for peace, okay? Especially since her besties, the Avatar and the Fire Lord, aren’t actually very good at this.

If you haven’t read The Promise, the Wikipedia summary is pretty good. The TL;DR is that Zuko and Kuei agree that the Fire Nation colonies need to be returned to the Earth Kingdom. The colony of Yu Dao is not happy about this because the people of the Fire Nation and the Earth Kingdom have been mixing together (under inequitable conditions) for more than a hundred years and “just kick out the Fire Nation” is not as straightforward as it seems, since there are blended families now. Zuko refuses to kick out the Fire Nation people from Yu Dao, Kuei wants to play hardball, and they almost launch another war. Oh and there’s a weird plot about Aang debating whether to put Zuko down like a rabid dog

For all that the Wiki page does a good job of summarizing the events, it forgets some key facts: 

It’s Katara who first starts thinking about new solutions after witnessing the situation on the ground, and then comes up with the idea that Zuko and Kuei should meet and talk about the colonies:

It’s Katara who tells Kuei that Zuko has legitimate concerns (without saying that Zuko is right), when Aang tries to hedge and sugarcoat the truth: 

And it’s Katara who says to Kuei, wait, what the hell do you mean that you have no idea what your people want, that Yu Dao is just a dot on the map for you? We’re getting you out of this stupid blimp and you’re gonna talk to people before you make a decision that affects their lives, you coward

To recap, Katara demonstrates some pretty freaking key political skills, like: 

finding out what people want before making a decision for them 

seeing people as people first and foremost, not as fire nation or earth kingdom 

encouraging her loved ones, the Avatar and the Fire Lord, to resolve a conflict by beginning negotiations instead of brawling like a couple of drunks at a bar / kids on the playground (both analogies fit btw, 13-17 is a weird combination of ages)  

realistically reporting tricky disagreements without sweeping them under the rug

kidnapping a king to the middle of a battlefield to give him a reality check about listening to the people he’s trying to rule

Anyway, Katara is hyper competent at both war AND peace! We see this in the show, with her compassion for the prisoners of the Earth Kingdom (by inciting a prison riot) and the suffering people of the Fire Nation (by committing ecoterrorism), only now that compassion is backed up not only by her fighting prowess and speeches about hope, but actual ability to manipulate the levers of power. 

And have I mentioned that she has the ears of both the Avatar and the Fire Lord and her dad is Chief of the Southern Water Tribe? Even if Katara didn’t get a diplomat position based on her skills, or her status as a war hero, she could nepo baby her way in. The fact that she does not pick up a career in international diplomacy is a crime & a colossal oversight from the creators. At minimum you know Katara would’ve established Healers Without Borders or something. She deserves to be yelling at people at ATLA UN and then drafting world-changing resolutions. 

And as a bonus, Katara demonstrates her gift for diplomacy by not smacking Zuko up the head for attempting to legitimize colonization through the argument of economic progress…

…and by not smacking Aang up the head for seriously considering anti-miscegenation as a viable political solution: 

This patience is a new development because show!Katara did not have this in her, but maybe this is what growing up is all about and not just yet another strike on the “comics are wildly OOC” tally

TL;DR: ATLA boys lost their brain cells post-canon. All hail Katara, Sugar Queen of international diplomacy. 

Rewriting the Gaang in LOK

Basically how I would have written the adult Gaang. Pretend the comics as they are don't exist.

Katara: Breaks up with Aang sometime post-finale to do some soul-searching. Travels the world on her own and sees how people are struggling after the war. After talking (beating) some sense into a few government officials, she realizes that the best way to help people post-war is through politics. She becomes an (unofficial) ambassador, helping and negotiating aid for small villages that tend to get overlooked and does this for a number of years. She joins up with Zuko and Aang after they found the United Republic of Nations and becomes Councilwoman Katara, representative of the Southern Water Tribe. She eventually gets voted chairwoman due to her passion to improve the lives of the citizens (and because her fellow council members are too scared to vote against her). She heals on the side when she needs to, but only out of obligation since she can't stand to see people suffer; she puts much more effort into getting raising funds for a hospital full of healers. A few years later, Haru moves to Republic City and is just as awestruck by her as he was the day they met (the pornstache has been removed by divine intervention). They meet up a couple of times; for drinks after work, walks around the city, and they even attend a few galas together. They eventually start dating and get married two years later. They have their first daughter Kya (who's an earthbender), a son- Tyro (who's a nonbender), and another daughter Suma (who's a waterbender). They live a happy, peaceful (if you could call Katara stopping the occasional criminal before the police peaceful) life together where their children are well-loved and as part of the Southern Water Tribe as they are the Earth Kingdom. Aang's death hits their family hard, but they all come together and support each other. Katara personally mentors Korra, even convincing her family move to Republic City so that the Avatar knows the people she's meant to protect (the White Lotus protests, they fail❤️). She teaches Korra Waterbending, but also teaches her empathy and appreciation for other cultures (and that sometimes, selfish world leaders need a good punch to the face, a lesson Korra took to heart even though she absolutely wasn't supposed to see it).

Aang: Is torn up after Katara breaks up with him. He's hurt and confused and doesn't know what to do with himself. He retreats to Ba Sing Se where he talks with Iroh and learns that he unfairly pushed his feelings onto Katara. Wracked with guilt at hurting someone he cares about so much, Aang realizes that he has a lot of growing up to do. He focuses on his job as the Avatar, working closely with Zuko, Kuei, and the other leaders to heal the world after the war. The first time he sees Katara again is when she arrives to help with the United Republic of Nations. He apologizes to her and Katara forgives him, promising they'll always be best friends. His role in Republic City is more or less the same, though at some point he develops feelings for Toph. But he fears doing to her what he had done to Katara, so he tries to ignore them. But Toph, never one to beat around the bush, point-blank asks him if he's ever gonna man-up and confess to her. They start dating, and Lin comes a few months later as a surprise. They have their hiccups- Aang especially needing to reconcile with the fact that there's a chance she might not be an Airbender- but they manage to resolve them. Lin is an Earthender, of course, but Aang loves his little girl to pieces (which is good, because Toph would kill him if she suspected otherwise). Tenzin is born three years later, an Airbender, and Su Yin is born two years after that as an Earthbender. Lastly there's Bumi, a nonbender. There's always the urge to favor Tenzin, but Aang knows he can't. They're all his children and they deserve to be treated as such. So he teaches them all about their culture, takes them all on trips. The kids fight, but Aang is always quick to help resolve it (as it turns out, getting Lin and Su to stop fighting is a lot harder than getting the four nations to get along, go figure). Aang loves his wife and kids and wouldn't trade any of them for the world. He dies peacefully at age 66, surrounded by his children and the love of his life.

Sokka: Fucking hates politics. He'll leave the negotiating and speeches to his sister, thank you very much. If the room of government officials isn't a war room, he wants no part in it. After the war, he spends most of his time in the Southern Water Tribe. He works with his father to rebuild and relearn their culture, and writes frequent letters to his sister. Though, something about his life in the south is unfulfilling. Maybe he misses Suki, but there's something about inventing that calls to him. He can't do much of that in the south pole, so he leaves for the Earth Kingdom, helping villages struggling with heat, agriculture, transportation, etc. In the United Republic of Nations, he becomes lead engineer of the city, utilizing bending to make quick technological advances. He and Suki reunite in Republic City where Suki becomes the police chief. They get back together and have a daughter, Lian. The three of them live a simple life together, until Suki gets gravely injured in the line of duty when Lian is twenty. They decide to retire to the Southern Water Tribe where Sokka takes over for Hakoda as chief and prepares Lian to take over for him.

Toph: When Toph hears that Twinkle Toes and Sparky finally started that fancy new city, she thinks it's the perfect opportunity to cause a little chaos. Closing her metalbending school, she decides to relive her days as the Blind Bandit by founding pro-bending (thanks @ecoterrorist-katara for the idea!). Zuko's a hater and tries to shut it down because "safety," but finds no help in Aang who really, really loves the idea. He goes to every one of her matches and Toph feels both smug pride and... Something else. But she tells herself it would never happen, Twinkle Toes likes girls like Sugar Queen and she was the furthest thing from that. But she isn't totally oblivious, she can feel his heartbeat pick up when he's around her and how he's started to stutter when he's talking to her. So she bites the bullet and they start happily dating. But the arrival of Lin uncovers issues she didn't even know were there. Lin cries loudly and for Toph who relies heavily on her sense of hearing, it's hell. She was also unprepared for how much her body would change. She finds herself not wanting to be around her daughter. But Aang realizes this and urges her to talk to someone. After some arguing, she does. Aang is attentive, so Toph can take breaks when she needs to and Katara and Suki are always ready to get her out of the house when she's overwhelmed. Things with Lin get better and when Tenzin comes around she doesn't suffer nearly as much. Su Yin is similar. It's hard with Bumi because she's older, but Aang and her friends are there to support her. Toph can be distant with her children- her closely monitored childhood always present in her mind- but sees how Aang can be doting and allow their kids freedom. She follows by his example, trying to find a balance between hovering and absence. Aang's death is the worst day of her life- she was there, she felt his heart stop- and she retreats into the swamp for a while to grieve. But she returns to Republic City when Katara begins to mentor the new Avatar. Not to be outdone by Sugar Queen, she becomes Korra's second teacher. It's hard to be around Korra sometimes, but she likes the girl's spunk and attitude, even if she is a brat.

Zuko: Zuko struggles after the war. The obligations of the Fire Lord are crushing and daunting and the fear of turning into his father feels like it's constantly looming over his head. Mai doesn't understand why he's struggling so much and he can't figure out how to explain it to her, so they break up. She goes to Kyoshi Island to spend time with Ty Lee and figure out what she wants in life. Stressed, burnt-out, and heartbroken, Zuko asks Aang to kill him if he ever starts to act like Ozai, but Aang steadfastly refuses, berating him for even suggesting it. Aang assures him that he'll never turn into his father and that he has his friends to rely on. He follows after Aang to Ba Sing Se, working in his uncle's tea shop as a much needed break. He opens up to Iroh about his fears and Iroh affirms that even having these worries proves that he'll never be Ozai. He spends time in Ba Sing Se working in the tea shop and negotiating with the Earth King when he meets Jin again. She's as carefree as she was back then and Zuko is both envious and in awe of it. But he knows he can't have a relationship with her, he can't burden her with his problems. But Jin is gently persistent, lending an ear when he needs one and assuring him that he isn't burdening her. When she asks him if he wants to be with her, he confesses that he does- more than anything- but also admits that he has no idea how it'll work. She tells him that if they want to be together no one should stop them. A year later, they're married and she's crowned Fire Lady Jin. There are some protests to their relationship from traditionalists, but Ambassador Katara (Zuko is so sure that she was never actually given that title, but he can't prove it) is quick to shut them down citing that the Fire Lord marrying an Earth Kingdom girl is a sign of unity. They have their daughter, Izumi, and she's Zuko's entire world. Zuko's greatest fear is that his children will end up like him and Azula, so he refrains from having more kids. Jin respects this, but urges him to talk to Azula. So he does; his sister curses him out, but seems to enjoy his company in her own way. They'll never have a good relationship, but Zuko doesn't want her to feel alone so he makes time at least once a week. It's shortly after Aang's death that Zuko relinquishes the title of Fire Lord to Izumi, his grief over his lifetime friend far too painful. Eventually, though, Katara and Toph bully him into training the new Avatar. It's not a role for a retired Fire Lord, but Zuko knows that the world needs Korra to be strong and it's his responsibility to make that happen as much as he can. And so, he becomes Avatar Korra's third teacher (if you told him 60 years ago that he'd become the Avatar's most sane instructor, he'd think you were high on cactus juice. But with Katara punching dictators in the face and Toph breaking every rule ever written, someone has to be a good influence).

Occupations if you missed them:

Katara: (Unofficial/Self-proclaimed) Ambassador of the Southern Water Tribe, United Republic of Nations Councilwoman and later Chairwoman, Healer (on the side), Waterbending Master to the Avatar

Aang: Avatar, United Republic of Nations Councilman

Sokka: Engineer and Inventor, Chief of the Southern Water Tribe

Toph: Pro-Bender, Manager of the Pro-Bending Arena, Earthbending Master to the Avatar

Zuko: Fire Lord, Firebending Master to the Avatar

Suki: Police Chief of Republic City (I'm sorry I didn't make a detailed background for her I got lazy, I promise I don't love her any less😭)

Defending my ship choices:

Harutara: Come on, y'all know what I'm about at this point. They're my everything, how could I not have them together? Plus, there's something really poetic about Haru falling for her as an adult the way he did as a teenager: watching her inspire those around her. I headcanon that he's enamoured with the sound of her voice because it's the voice that liberated him and his people and he attends all her speeches

Taang: I actually wasn't sure about this one. I'm not an active Taang shipper, but I do think they'd really balance each other out. Toph is the hard ass Aang needs to challenge him and Aang would bring out the softer side in her. Toph would never let Aang favor one kid over the other and Aang wouldn't let Toph neglect their kids. So looking at it like that, I felt them being together would be best for the story

Sukka: It's not as perfect in canon as people make it out to be, but I still love them. I wouldn't want any different for them

Jinko: This one actually made more sense than I would have thought. Jin is very different from Mai, so I can really see her being what Zuko needs considering where he would be mentally. I like Mai, but I feel Maiko really made her way more one dimensional so her living with Ty Lee and finding herself feels like a better end for her (and if they start dating, that's no one's business). And we've already seen Zuko go out of his way to make Jin happy so it's not like we're getting another Kataang situation. I'm happy with this for them

The Kids:

Yes, I purposely made Kya an Earthbender. And yes, Katara still gives her her mother's necklace. Because that's her firstborn daughter no matter what element she does (or doesn't) bend. One thing I hate is that Bryke made the Kataang kids primarily part of the culture that they bend. That's such a slap in the face to biracial kids, not to mention poor Bumi who doesn't seem to belong to either for some reason until he ends up an Airbender. So yeah, all of the Harutara kids are part of the EK and SWT. Suma is a name I made up because it sounded pretty

I know it's weird to think of Lin and Tenzin as siblings, I felt so odd writing it. But I love them both so I couldn't just not write them. I made Bumi the youngest so he could be spoiled because he deserved better in canon. Su and Lin have a better relationship, but they still butt heads because they feel the need to one-up each other due to them both being Earthbenders (and later Metalbenders). Lin still becomes a cop, but their big fight never happened because Su was never neglected to the point of becoming a criminal. All four kids are taught Air Nomad culture and traditions and taken on trips because Aang is a decent father

I named Lian partly after Yue, since Yuèliàng means moon in Chinese. One of my gripes with LOK is that Katara and Sokka's family are meant to be the leaders of the SWT. Kya or Bumi should be the chief in canon, but Bryke just... Didn't do that for some reason. So fuck it, Sokka's daughter is chief now

Nothing really changes about Izumi, although I'd say she's a little friendlier. I contemplated giving Zuko more kids, but I actually think his decision not to have more kids was one of Bryke's better choices. It makes sense, so I didn't feel the need to change it

Other notes:

The Gaang teaching/helping raise baby Korra is something I live for

The Red Lotus is swiftly dealt with by Katara, Toph, Zuko, Suki, and Sokka when Korra is a kid. They never stood a chance. I was actually going to have Sokka still die during the attack in the SWT and Suki kill Zaheer in revenge, but eh I decided not to off Sokka

The Civil War still happens, but differently. I don't have the patience to go into that, just know that Katara is HEAVILY involved

Welp, that's everything in my brain

Coming back to earth

Summary: Aang and Katara have to deal with citizens who aren't too happy with their new plan.

Word count: 1,548

Author's note: I felt really conflicted while trying to figure out what to write for this. From what we know so far, Katara was never officially a councilwoman, so it's hard to grasp something. I didn't wanna write an AU, so I only had one option that would fit: the timeline between the end of the war and before the founding of Republic City. Since this is the only time when Katara has been shown to participate in council meetings in the comics. I imagined that the story takes place at the same time as, or after "Imbalance", but since we don't know what's gonna go down there, I'm gonna make some wild guesses.

----------x----------

"Do you really think this is going to work?" Katara wondered as she and Aang exited the temporary building of city hall. Being back in the industrial city wasn't as pleasant as either of them had expected. The airbender entwined their hands and gave it a squeeze.

"I hope so. This is the most reasonable solution we've come up with so far."

There'd been countless conflicts between benders and nonbenders, some of which had turned rather violent. Hence a similar council meeting that was held in Yu Dao, where representatives from each nation were present, had just ended. Almost the entire Team Avatar had attended, except for Fire Lord Zuko, because a Fire Nation representative was already in town.

During the meeting, Aang had proposed a crazy idea, which no longer seemed as crazy once everybody had given it some thought. His plan was to unite all of the villages running along the west coast, where both Earth Kingdom and Fire Nation citizens had already mixed during the past hundred years, and create a fifth nation, where benders and nonbenders from all over the world could live together in peace. Nobody would be looked down on for their ethnicity, their bending abilities or lack of for that matter. Most importantly, if Aang wanted to be able to stay together with Katara, it'd be a perfect place to live in for the two of them. It almost sounded like a dream.

Of course, not everybody saw it as a good thing. Rumours spread around town about the so-called "fifth nation" being formed. Two Earth Kingdom noblemen were sitting on a bench on the main street outside of city hall. From what other pedestrians heard from their loud conversation while passing them, they weren't pleased.

"Can you believe that? This is outrageous! They're just going to rob us of our land!" the bigger guy exclaimed, waving his hands in the air. His plump figure donned upper class Earth Kingdom attire. He'd been living near the booming town decades before the sacred land of the air nomads was overtaken by the refinery. Now his own land was about to be divided into half - one half remaining under Earth Kingdom territory, the other falling under this new nation.

"Those youngsters know nothing about politics. Who even put them in charge of such important roles in the first place?" the second nobleman asked whilst stroking his long grey beard. He was slightly taller and older than his companion. He considered himself an expert in politics due to having good relationships with other noblemen from Ba Sing Se, who kept him informed about the progress of events during the war.

The two noticed how the Avatar and his friend came out of the building where the council meeting was held. The noblemen slowly stood up from the bench, with the older one grabbing his cane so he could walk. The fat one adjusted his belt higher and blew on his shiny golden rings, wiping them clean against his robes before turning to his companion.

"Shall we?"

Receiving a confirming nod, they began heading towards the couple, to show them exactly what they thought of their new plan. Aang and Katara didn't suspect a thing while they continued their walk down the street. As Sokka would say, they were too busy 'oogying' around. As they walked past each other, the shorter nobleman earthbended a small rock right in front of Katara's foot, which forced her to trip.

"Ow!" she yelped and fell on her knees, but luckily managed to put her hands on the ground so she wouldn't fall flat on her face. Aang immediately knelt down beside her.

"Katara! Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm okay.. I don't know what happened there," she said as she sat down and began dusting her tunic. Little did she know that, despite not being able to react fast enough to prevent her from hurting herself, Aang had sensed where the earthbending had come from.

He looked around and noticed the two men responsible walking the other way. They stared back and laughed at them, until they understood that the airbender had spotted them, after which they looked away and pretended like they hadn't seen anything.

"Hey! You two! Who do you think you are? You don't treat girls like that!" Aang shouted to them. He also earned the attention of other passers-by, who first looked at him, then at each other in confusion. The noblemen turned around and slowly approached Aang and Katara. The shorter one pointed a finger at himself.

"Who do we think we are? Shouldn't we be asking you that question? You and your little friends can't just come waltzing in here and divide up our land!"

"We aren't dividing up your land. We're trying to come up with a solution that'd make everybody happy," Aang said as he grabbed Katara's hands and helped her stand up.

"There is only one solution, Avatar. Send those ash-makers back to their homeland. These occupied lands that you're trying to form into this so-called 'fifth nation' are Earth Kingdom territory!" the taller nobleman added, tapping his cane on the ground.

"No, you're wrong. Now they're both Earth Kingdom and Fire Nation territory. This is a whole new world we're looking at. Do you really expect us to order people to leave their homes behind? After they've lived here for the past hundred years?" Katara chimed in.

"Shut your mouth, little girl! I was talking to the Avatar."

"Excuse me!?" Katara exclaimed as Aang took a step forward.

"Hey! That's my girlfriend you're talking to."

"I don't care if she's your girlfriend. She's a simple rube from the south who shouldn't put her nose where it doesn't belong. This is our land and she shouldn't have a say in who gets to live here or not."

"She-"

"Oh, really? And who should have a say, then?" Katara interrupted before Aang could start defending her again, holding him back by laying her hand on his chest. She stepped right in front of the taller nobleman, crossed her arms and glared up at him.

"Only the honest Earth Kingdom citizens, such as ourselves, who've suffered the most because of this war. You southerners had it easy, living on your small iceberg in peace, cut off from the rest of the world. It's not like the Fire Nation came and conquered your land and claimed it as their own. We've had hundreds and thousands of families torn apart, troops killed on the front line. What's your small village done compared to that?"

Katara felt how every inch of her body became filled with rage after every selfish statement. She was so close to snapping because of his ignorance. She took a deep breath and spoke in a low, furious tone.

"You have no idea what my tribe went through during the war. All of our waterbenders were imprisoned. My mother died trying to protect me. Our men journeyed to the Earth Kingdom to help you fight against the Fire Nation. Women and children were left to fend for themselves. My friends had to leave their home behind and come here to make a living. My boyfriend's entire culture was destroyed, every one of his people were killed."

At this point, she raised a finger under his nose.

"Don't you dare compare your kingdom's suffering to ours. Even though my tribe is much smaller, that doesn't mean our suffering was, too."

Katara glanced at Aang, then took a step back and laid a supportive hand on his shoulder. Her gaze remained fixed on his grey eyes, her face softened and she smiled a little.

"We're all in the same boat here."

"I highly doubt it. It's not enough that those ash-makers have stolen our land, our homes and our jobs, now you want to allow your snow savages to come here, too? I suggest you go to the nearest harbour, find yourself a boat and go straight back home to that icy inferno where you belong. You foreigners aren't welcome here," the short nobleman warned her. He spat in front of Katara's shoes before they both turned around to walk away.

She growled, her hand clenched into a fist and ready to bend the water out of her pouch, but Aang put a hand on her shoulder to return the favour. He held her back.

"C'mon, sweetie. Let's go.. those two aren't worth it."

He felt how her stiff body relaxed, her shoulders slumped. She let out a heavy sigh and nodded, allowing Aang to guide her the other way.

"Filthy peasant," the shorter nobleman muttered to his mate. Katara heard it and in a split second she summoned the water from her pouch into a whip and whacked it against the backs of their heads. The men cowered and rubbed at the painful spot, turning around in shock.

"That's for calling me a peasant, insulting my people, and my tribe," Katara said before she spun around and walked away.

"Don't ever talk to my girlfriend like that again!" Aang threatened them one more time, then followed Katara. The noblemen felt disgusted when they saw him give her a soft kiss on her cheek, their hands entwined as they headed their way.

Nothing about Ka/taang precludes Katara being Chief of the SWT…

which is why it pisses me off even more that Katara didn’t get to have a role of any political importance whatsoever. It wouldn’t change anything about LOK’s storyline, and it would be fully in line with her character.

There’s a common anti-Zutara argument that Katara wouldn’t want to be Fire Lady, because she would want to rebuild and lead her own culture. I am sympathetic to that. Based on her canon characteristics, she might want to be a United Republic Councilwoman, Chief of the SWT, or just generally the Waterbending Master / Matriarch of the her tribe, which would be easier (though not impossible) if she weren’t married to the sovereign of another nation — I get that.

but the thing is…she didn’t get to do any of that, even though “wife of the Avatar” doesn’t contradict those roles. All the things that would be difficult for her to do if she were married to Zuko, she still didn’t get to do as Aang’s wife. She didn’t get to have a career the way her husband, or her brother, or her friends did.

so it’s extra hypocritical when Ka/taang shippers are like “but being Fire Lady would disempower Katara!” when Ka/taang canonically disempowered her! And KA fans are fine with that: they bend over backwards to justify why Katara doesn’t have a statue, or why she wasn’t there to protect Korra from the Red Lotus, or why she wasn’t at Yakone’s bloodbending trial. Yeah she got to live in the SWT — eventually, I assume, because in the comics she just follows Aang around — but what else did she get to do? Fucking nothing, apparently. Because to some people, the greatest honour for a woman is to be the hero’s wife.

2, 19, and 20 for the fandom asks!

heyyyy thanks for the ask!

2. My favorite fic from the fandom that I’ve read

I LOVE SO MANY!!! let’s narrow it to three…I’m a huge fan of crushinator’s Half Asleep and eleventy7’s Once Around the Sun, but if I had an icicle to my head and had to pick just one, I’d say colourwhirled’s Southern Lights. All three fics rival published books to me, but Southern Lights embodies a lot of things I love about fanfiction as a literary tradition (distinct from original fiction). It’s very, very long, which means we have plenty of time to dive into how different characters grow in a way that’s very difficult outside of long series. Katara’s journey is at the centre of Southern Lights, obviously, but we see a lot from Zuko, Sokka, Azula, Toph, Aang…I’ve compared it to A Song of Ice and Fire before for this reason. Because it’s a full AU, it also takes advantage of our knowledge of canon and works it into something very different, so there’s plenty of “ohhhhh so this is where x happens” and you get that delight of both familiarity and newness. Also the themes of colonialism, trauma, reconciliation, and oppression from your enemies vs oppression from your own people are done in a super mature way. There are no easy answers in Southern Lights, but I feel like the author trusts the reader to grapple with those complexities.

19. Favorite headcanon

Momtara and Dadko for the Gaang! I love the idea that Zuko helps her with chores in the Western Air Temple as a way of regaining her favour, and then he just keeps doing it. We love an equitable distribution of domestic labour.

20. Least favorite headcanon

I like Fire Lady Katara, and I’ve defended it before, but I don’t like the version of the headcanon where the people of the Fire Nation think she’s a savage / peasant and she has to get etiquette lessons and learn to be a FN noblewoman to get respect. I think Katara would sooner pull the “I won the throne so watch your mouth” card than to defer to people who think her culture is inferior, particularly because we don’t have any indication from canon that the Water Tribes are especially looked down upon (more than, say, the Earth Kingdom). And as much as I like Fire Lady Katara, I prefer United Republic Councilwoman Katara or Chief Katara. Both are obviously harder to execute so I understand why fic writers don’t go for them, but I have a serious soft spot for fics that depict her in those ways.