*Weekly Discussion 9/24 to 9/30*

[girlunderglass]

Week of 9/24 to 9/30

We all adore our ships and patiently await the time they will happen. To help other shippers understand the appeal in your favored couple, you are going to be challenged with a two part discussion:

Using one of the methods below, please tell us why your ship is so alluring to you, while composing a situation from the point of "City of Walls and Secrets" that would lead the two characters into a romantic relationship.[/b]

Like the Fairly Odd Parents, here are Da Rules :


~ You may use one of the following formats:
- A Role Played Transcript
- A Theoretical Composition
- A Fiction- One-shot, Drabble or a Ficlet.

~ Feel free to include any pictures, song references, poems, links, videos or art

~ This discussion should be worked out in your respective ship threads and a single final copy posted to this weeks thread. Preferably no later than Friday (10/6) night so we have two days to talk about them.

~ All ships, big and small should part take in this challenge.

~ You may include fluff (hugs, kisses, romantic moments) but please, no sexual content or cursing. This is not the place for that sort of stuff.

~ Have fun with this. Do not get stressed out over it or feel that you have to out-do one another.

If you have any questions, PM and admin. Use this thread to post your statements only.

[Zink]

As not to freak you out, this is not a Long Feng/Azula entry. It's something much, much better...

---

“So,” Long Feng pronounced. “So a Firebender, a member of the royal family, a princess nonetheless, has infiltrated my utopia, killed several of my Dai Li, and demands acquittal?”

“That’s correct,” Azula confirmed.

“And why, again, should I not execute you on the spot?” he inquired.

“As you so kindly mentioned, I’m the princess of the Fire Nation,” Azula reiterated from her cell. “Either, you let me go, and I inform my father of the city’s weak points, or you don’t, in which case I burn down your prison with blue fire, bringing the war to your doorstep. I’d like to watch you try covering up a gigantic blue wildfire,” she smirked.

“So either way, you’re saying, my city is ruined. In that case, tell me what you think of it before you destroy it.”

Azula snorted. “It’s really rather obvious what’s going on here. You’re using antiqued techniques of the Fire Nation as crowd control. I can only imagine you acquired them when my dear uncle broke through the walls, even though he was too weak to consider using them to strengthen his siege.”

“Yes, but what do you really think? It’s not often we have such an esteemed visitor critique our city,” Long Feng pressed.

“I’d imagine not if you continue to apprehend them.” She thought about it. “We don’t cling to our customs so pathetically in the Fire Nation. And we certainly don’t deny the existence of a hundred-year-long war. Of course, when you’re losing, there’s not much else you could do.”

“I thought as much,” he answered. “Allow me to give you a history lesson.” As soon as he had finished speaking, he spat what appeared to be a centipede on the ground. Azula gave him a look of distaste and drew her feet off the floor; as if unwilling to have it crawl over her feet. As she gazed on the insect, it doubled in size. Her heartbeat quickened as she identified something distinctly out of her world.

“When I was young, there was no Avatar, no balance, no order,” the centipede informed her in a sinister voice, quite different from Long Feng’s. “Only chaos. The worlds were intertwined; the spirits owned the earth, and the downtrodden humans did whatever they could do to survive. That universally meant serving the spirits. Corrupted benders banded together twist the visages of the living, aggrandize the features of the beasts, and best of all, created life itself in the most hideous forms… all for my profit.” The worm was now the roughly Azula’s height and seemed to be pacing in circles. For once, Azula was completely perplexed.

“Of course, the good can’t last forever. First lesson of yin and yang. The Four Elemental Siblings decided that the world wasn’t balanced enough; they used their influence to cause lesser phantoms agree with them, until nearly all the spirits concurred.” It was twice her height and was crawling across the walls. Azula felt rather gratified for the thick bars separating the two of them.

“They separated the Spirit and Mortal Worlds, restricted the number of elements, gave them notions of peace, and imposed their own ideas of perfection on the malleable young universe. Sound like anyone we know?” It jerked the upper segment of its body at Long Feng, who had crumpled on the floor, unmoving. “And of course, the starring achievement: they created the Avatar, the bridge between the worlds, the master of all four elements, the divine medium transcendent from Heaven,” it recited with evident malice. Azula was captivated; anyone who was a rival of the Avatar was a friend of hers.

“The Elemental Siblings sentenced their only challenger (myself) to live in the roots of the Tree of Life while they lived in the branches, but didn’t dare move directly against their eldest brother.”

Azula gasped in recognition. “Yes, you’ve realized my identity by now, haven’t you?” he whispered. A masked face burst out of his head.
“Koh the Face Stealer!”
Only the highest self-discipline kept Azula from cracking a smile. “So,” she began.
“How do we get rid ourselves of the Avatar?”

---

img228.imageshack.us/my.php?image=kohla3ti.png

---

Kohzula.

[Ana]

The Toph/Sokka entry is done, be very afraid. Also, much love goes out to fellow Tokkas aquakrystal, who helped out a lot, and lychii (who provided the banner. Major apologizes for not giving you credit until now!) . <3

---

So far we hadn't seen anything really showing a crush from Toph, but that had changed, because in the first part of Secret of the Fire Nation, Toph had saved Ying's husband from falling off the cliff they were walking on, he didn't thank her, and Toph said nothing.

But, a little after that, a Fire Nation ship had spotted them and fired a fireball at them, it was heading to Suki, but Sokka pushed her the way just in time before the fireball had hot the top part of the cliff, Toph had saved Sokka, but he cared more about Suki, and didn't thank Toph, and when he had ran ahead, she was like “Oh thanks Toph, no problem Sokka” probably meaning that she kinda wanted him to thank her, because she didn't seem to care if Ying's husband didn't thank her, but she did care if Sokka did.

When the sea dragon was attacking them, Katara made an ice bridge to the other side so they could get there safely, Toph was the last one to come, and Sokka realised this and called over to her, she soon came because the sea dragon had hit the rock she was on, then it had hit the ice, making it break. Toph was yelling that she couldn't swim, Sokka was saying he was coming, but Suki had jumped in first, after she got Toph above the water, Toph said " Sokka, you saved me" and gave a kiss to Suki, who she thought was Sokka. Toph could have just said " Sokka, thank you for saving me", but instead she gave him a kiss.

It's true, that Toph does not have very good people skills, so far her ways of dealing with her crush have been..not to so good. Sokka is most likely going to oblivious to Toph’s crush so I think they are both going to need a push in right direction. Perhaps like this….

---

Katara had noticed that Toph had been spending a lot more time around Sokka than before. Toph was always trying to spark a conversation with him, start a dual with him, and of course there was that time (not to long ago) where Toph had kissed Suki thinking she was Sokka. It had all came together in Katara’s head when Toph and herself had just shown the boys their new wonderful new outfits and only Aang had made a remark on how great they looked, which made Toph very annoyed.

“Of course…she has a crush on Sokka.”
Katara pieced to together in her mind. Toph kept her annoyed attitude most of party, much to Katara’s dismay.

“I should try and help her...”

Then Katara spotted her brother in the crowd dressed as..a Bus Boy? Whatever, she didn’t have time to worry about such silly things.

“So, Sokka..did you say something about Toph's outfit? It sure is nice.” Katara asked her brother.

“Not really. Why should I? Toph's knows she looks good.”

“Because it would be nice of you. Look there she is, why don't you go say..something.”

“Alright. Alright.” Sokka agreed most likely only to get his sister away from him. Sokka then spotted Toph chattering with Aang at the other end of the room. She did look pretty good in her duds.

“Hey, Toph.” Sokka greeted her.

“Hello, Bus Boy.”

“Yea, um you look...nice all dressed up.”

“I do?”

“Oh, yeah. Just fabulous darling.”

“Thanks, Bus Boy.” said Toph is a gratified voice. So, Sokka had come to his senses and said something nice to her? It was about time but still..it was kind of him. He sure was a nice guy…

Later on after coming home from the party...

“Hey, Katara, could I talk to you for a minute?” Sokka asked his sister.

“Sure, what's wrong?”

“Before you and went left, you wanted me to say something nice about Toph's outfit, why did you do that?”

“Well,” Katara looked at Toph who was sitting on the ground petting Momo, “I
thought it would be nice for her to have the guy she likes to comment on it.”

“Why didn't you,” Sokka pauses, “What do you mean someone she likes?”

“What do you think I mean, Sokka?” Katara says then leaves Sokka to his thoughts.
“Maybe...” Sokka said as he tried to out the pieces together while looking at Toph.

---

Out of the whole “Aang Gang” I think Sokka has treated Toph the way she wants people to treat her as: just Toph.

To Aang she is “Sifu Toph”, to Katara she’s “The new one in the group/little kid Toph” and to Sokka she is “just Toph”. I think Toph started developing her crush on Sokka because firstly, the guys is pretty likeable and second, like I said before Sokka treated Toph like she was “just Toph” and I think that’s what she wants. Sokka treats her normally, not like she's blind, or a girl who needs help.

It is kinda easy to see why/how she started to get a crush on him. In The Chase, he was the only one out of the group who didn't blame her for Azula and her friends finding them, and he was the only one who tried to stop her from leaving. I think that Sokka could be a person who could Toph could talk to about stuff, Toph could keep Sokka in line if he got to crazy, or silly, and Sokka could possibly try and loosen Toph up (you know, make her more comfortable, make her feel like part of their family).

---

And for added fun:

[Growly]

Katara/Aang (OTP)- Because I've never seen something like it before.

I have a habit of liking the more "passionate" romances, or at least those with a lot of drama. And there is this one, which is so...different. It's like a little girl's fantasy about her knight in shining armor. The one who is sweet and kind and handsome. Intelligent street-wise and with the books, but doesn't boast about it. Also, you have somebody who's intense and makes you feel so alive it's beyond your comprehension. And I'm not just talking from the girl's POV, it's the guy's too. Somebody who won't put you through a whole lot of drama if they can help it. Think about it- nobody wants somebody who will put them on a roller coaster ride. You think you do and then you realize that you want somebody who's just a little bit calmer around the edges, but not boring.

That's Kataang.

And then you have the friendship. People underestimate this, always have and always will, but friendship is the most important thing. After all is said and done and the infatuation has worn away, you need something to hold it up. A strong, secure friendship does that and so much more. It also guarantees everything- honesty, trust, and love. It goes past the flowers and the fancy dinners. It's deep.

That's Kataang.

Last but not least, you have the thing of knowing that somebody will always be there. People come and go, sometimes before you realize it, but that's not Kataang. No matter what those two are together, if not in body then in spirit.

Kataang is beautiful. It's magical. It's what people spend their whole lives waiting for but some never even get, much less find. So when these two come together, it's epic.


*

It has drama, the bonds between two people that are strong and unbreakable, it has pain, it has conflict, it has romance, it has the potential to be anything and everything. Aang is the Avatar and as such how does that reflect on their relationship. Should he fall in love? Is he allowed to? The potential forbidden angle is interesting. How will him being the Avatar affect Katara and their relationship should they marry and start a family? To me, the pair starting a family would be a symbol of rebirth and regrowth.

They are both growing and maturing, it's been interesting to see them discover new things about themselves and to see new feelings awaken. Aang is adorable as he trips his way through trying to tell Katara he loves her.

Aang's given Katara opportunities she would have only dreamed about, he's given her the world. Katara's given Aang the unconditional support and love he needs. Already they are devoted to each other, they are willing to sacrifice much for each other.

They are both multi-faceted characters and the romance they would form would be that way well. This ship is not all sugar either. We've seen Aang's Avatar state darken his personality. We've seen Katara's jealousy and temper rear its ugly head. There is a definite potential for conflict. I can't wait to see what's in store for them next. Their relationship is obviously evolving and changing, just as they are.







They Value Each Other

They put each other first. Aang's duty is to be the Avatar, but he on more than one occasion was willing to forget that for Katara. Aang is sensitive to Katara's feelings and needs. Even after being harsh with her, he apologizes and explains himself. He listens to her, supports her. Katara is the same with Aang. She put her own happiness to the side for him (i.e. The Waterbending Master. Katara was willing to forgo learning waterbending so Aang could continue his training). They listen to each other, consider each other's feelings, and I think at some point could be a very passionate pair. They already have a sort of underlying tension. They are awkward at times around each other, blushing, tongue-tied. She is always touching him and many times if you observe their placement within scenes, she's standing or sitting near him. She's always near him.

*

Aang's given Katara opportunities she would have only dreamed about, he's given her the world. Katara's given Aang the unconditional support and love he needs. Already they are devoted to each other, they are willing to sacrifice much for each other.

*

There are also instances wherein Katara reacted on Aang's behalf. She defended Aang against what the old fisherman said in Ep 10 The Storm and was the one who doused the burning Avatar statues in the Avatar Day ep.

I think what I'm trying to say is that both of them 'think' about each other. Aang, for example, was mindful that Katara had lost her necklace in Ep 5 - Imprisoned. He also reacted defensively for Katara's sake when Master Pakku refused to teach her waterbending.



They Provide Each Other With Balance

They both do have fun-loving side (Aang goofing off, Katara's "Water-bomb") and I think that could come into play in their relationship and enhance their passion.

Relationships take teamwork and a balance. Aang and Katara have that. yes, he's younger and yes at times it seems she is mothering him. But it is for her benefit as well. If she can successfully help him get through his mission, then it will benefit her family, her tribe, and her world.

*

I've thought of something else concerning Aang's relationship with Katara aside from platonic and romantic love, etc. They work/fight well together, from making/manipulating clouds to sailing to fighting a giant sea serpent, etc. They are certainly used to working with each other.



They are Dynamic

(Katara and Aang’s Relationship) has drama, the bonds between two people that are strong and unbreakable, it has pain, it has conflict, it has romance, it has the potential to be anything and everything. Aang is the Avatar and as such how does that reflect on their relationship. Should he fall in love? Is he allowed to? The potential forbidden angle is interesting. How will him being the Avatar affect Katara and their relationship should they marry and start a family? To me, the pair starting a family would be a symbol of rebirth and regrowth.

They are both growing and maturing, it's been interesting to see them discover new things about themselves and to see new feelings awaken. Aang is adorable as he trips his way through trying to tell Katara he loves her.

*

They are both multi-faceted characters and the romance they would form would be that way well. This ship is not all sugar either. We've seen Aang's Avatar state darken his personality. We've seen Katara's jealousy and temper rear its ugly head. There is a definite potential for conflict. I can't wait to see what's in store for them next. Their relationship is obviously evolving and changing, just as they are.









1. Episode 1-2: Katara and Aang immediately established a relationship, whether it be friendship or more. In the first episode, Katara's hopes and dreams of becoming a water bender were lifted when she saw Aang. In addition, when the water tribe banished Aang, Katara even wanted to become banished with him. Why? Well, one can say that their friendship is very strong even if it's just the first couple of days. I say that Aang symbolizes Katara's hopes and dreams. She always believed in the avatar and knew that he would come back. Even though she didn't know that Aang was the avatar at first, she still embodied her hopes in Aang because he was the last living airbender that they have seen. Also, when Aang fell overboard and was "drowning", he turned into his Avatar State when he heard Katara calling him.

2. Episode 4- Aang constantly tries to get Katara's attention by impressing her with his airbending. Although she is ignorant towards Aang's obvious "flirting", she did seem somewhat upset/jealous when Aang was spending more time showing off to other people. In the end, however, she still did care for Aang because she saved him from the Unagi. Also, when Aang bravely jumped from Appa and used the Unagi to extinguish the fire on Kyoshi Island, Katara gave him a hug. One can draw that she gave him a hug because they do share similar morals.

3. Episode 8- When Aang was about to leave for the crescent island, Katara said "Please don’t go, Aang. The world can’t afford to lose you to the Fire Nation. Neither can I." One could draw that Aang has already made a gigantic impact on Katara's life and he is becoming a necessity.

4. Episode 9- In The Waterbending Scroll, Aang and Katara had a bit of a "bickering". In the "Healthy relationship" thingy above, a healthy relationship always works out their problems. In the end of the waterbending scroll, Katara and Aang did resolve their differences and jealousy.

5. Episode 14- Everyone knows about the "powerful" bending thing. Although many say that Katara was "utterly surprised" or "totally upset" that Aang was indeed a powerful bender, I would have to disagree. I think Katara was over analyzing the situation, like many shippers tend to do, and think that it might someone that she has never met. However, when Sokka told her that Aang is a powerful bender, it seemed more like a slap in the face for her.

6. Episode 15- In Bato of the Water Tribe, Aang fought valiantly against Zuko in order to obtain Katara's necklace. Although Zuko didn't really care much for it, Aang obviously knew that the necklace was important to Katara and wanted to get it back in order to make her happy. In the end, Katara kissed Aang. Although many people say that the kiss was "directed" towards Zuko, she and Aang were obviously joking around, like many of us do with our friends.

7. Episode 1 (Book 2)- Yet again, we see that Aang's avatar state is triggered by Katara. They also had a moment in which Katara expresses her concerns for Aang because (as I've mentioned before) Aang is becoming a necessity in her life.

8. Episode 2 (Book 2)- Probably one of the most controversial things. Anyway, when Aang and Katara were trapped in the Cave of Two lovers, Katara suggested the kiss. Of course, Aang, having never experienced a romantic relationship before, kind of lost his game at that time. Later, Katara and Aang were seen leaning in to kiss until it was blacked out. The light is supposed to be shown when people express true love. Whether they kissed or not, the light was shown... why? Because Katara and Aang showed true love.

9. Episode 5 (Book 2)- Well, this one isn't really evidence, but Aang was asking the prisoners for advices on how to get a girl.

10. Episode 10 (Book 2)- In the Library Katara has an infinite amount of knowledge at her fingertips and she looks up Aang.

11. Episode 11 (Book 2)- Katara was the one that helped him out of the Avatar State at the end of "The Desert." Aang was willing to hurt (and perhaps even kill) those sand benders and Katara risked her own safety to bring Aang back.

12. Episode 12 (Book 2)- Aang was emotionless throughout most of the episode because he did not want to loose control again and Katara was the ones who tried to get Aang to show his emotions again. At the end of the episode Aang sees baby Hope and let’s himself feel again. He then tells Katara: "I thought I was trying to be strong... but really I was just running away from my feelings. Seeing this family together [with the newborn baby], so full of happiness and love, it's reminded me of how I feel about Appa... and how I feel about you." This could be a love confession but it’s most likely Aang telling Katara that she means a lot to him and he is sorry for being short with her. Katara then hugs Aang, accepting Aang’s apology and his importance to her (and her to his as well).

13. Episode 14 (Book 2) – City of Walls and Secrets, Katara looked delighted when Aang told her she looked beautiful. XD I decided to point this out because Aang was clearly blushing, and Katara didn't appear worried that he may be falling for her. That tells me that she at the very least doesn't mind that Aang's taken by her.








-Yin and Yang-

This idea never really clicked into place until I saw (Amira’s) words about how Aang and Katara make a handsome couple. I remember thinking that when I watched The Cave of Two Lovers - specifically when the lights come on and their hands are intertwined. They form a beautiful contrast of dark and light.

Now, here's where some fun theorizing comes into play. No matter whether or not Yue joined with Tui (the moon) or not, the light colour is actually Yin, the masculine element, while Yang, the dark colour is the feminine element. The twining of their fingers made me think of the interconnectedness of Yin and Yang - of dark and light. And there is no denying that Katara is dark-skinned while Aang is very light-skinned. Perhaps this is a further indication that they compliment each other in the same manner as Tui and La?

The push and pull of their relationship is evident, even if that relationship is not romantic as of yet. I hold to the belief that opposing elements do not automatically mean that two people are automatically opposites - it's more based on the personality of the individuals in question. Just as I think that Aang is more of an opposite for Zuko than Katara, he is more of an opposite for Katara than Zuko is. Even more importantly, he is able to bring out aspects of Katara's personality that no one has been able to touch since the death of her mother and the attack on her tribe. He makes her feel happy - brings her hope - and she, in turn, brings him strength... and, yes, she brings him hope as well.

And what Amira said about their motions in The Fortuneteller while they were cloudbending is something I have noticed time and again - they look like they were dancing, and not alone. It wasn't coordinated (and it's interesting to see just how few of their efforts are pre-coordinated) - indeed, it was more like they were acting instinctively as a unit. They were moving together in a scene that demonstrates their differences (and how they have managed to combine these differences into a workable whole) in one compelling, circular dance.



-The Necklace-

Also, something a friend of mine who watches the show pointed out to me - the fact that Aang gave Katara a necklace and she accepted it (In the water tribe, it's a practice for the men to give betrothal necklaces to the women they wish to marry)

*

It's the custom, the tradition, and the symbolism of Aang giving Katara the necklace that he made himself that counts. Something that was later discussed in the "Waterbending Master." Pakku made Kana (Katara's grandmother) a necklace. He even stated that he carved it himself. Aang giving Katara his handmade necklace is definitely similar if you look at it from that viewpoint.



-A basis in Hindu Mythology-

This has a basis in Hindu mythology which Avatar borrows heavily from. In fact, the name is the most important giveaway, really. Beneath the English title in the opening sequence are the characters which read "The Divine Medium Which Descends From the Heavens" - which is actually the definition of the Avatar.

In Hindu mythology, the word Avatar applies to a very specific type of "medium" or
physical incarnation. Namely that of the God Vishnu. According to translations, Vishnu is present in everything: "As he pervades everything, vevesti, he is called Visnu".

A further excerpt about Vishnu:
Vishnu takes form as an all-inclusive deity, known as Purusha or Mahāpurusha, Paramātma [Supreme Soul], Antaryāmi [In-dweller], and he is the Sheshin [Totality] in whom all souls are contained. He is Bhagavat or Bhagavan, which in Sanskrit means "possessing bhāga (Divine Glory)".

In other words, he is the sum total of all souls/everything on the planet.

Vishnu possesses six "divine glories":

Jñāna: Omniscient; defined as the power to know about all beings simultaneously; In other words, a connection to all beings at once - something which is sort of mentioned/hinted at in the episode "The Swamp" with the discussion about how all living things are in fact connected - are all parts of one larger whole. Aang is the physical represenation of that whole.

Aishvarya: Sovereignty, which persist in unchallenged rule over all; The Avatar is the strongest being in the world.

Shakti: Energy, or power, which is the capacity to make the impossible possible; Pretty self explanatory: the ability to do that which is impossible to anyone else. We've seen it happen on the series before.

Bala: Strength, which is the capacity to support everything by his will and without any fatigue; While Aang is mortal and bound to real physical needs, the greater spirit which he is the representation of, is ever present and untiring.

Virya Vigour, or valour which indicates the power to retain immateriality as the Supreme Spirit or Being in spite of being the material cause of mutable creations; While Aang is a physical reprentation, he is only a small part of the great whole which he represents - I always thought this well represented by the fact that each of the Avatars is almost treated as entirely different being - they are one, but each individual is only part of the greater whole - the divine spirit

Tèjas Resplendent, or Splendour, which expresses his self-sufficiency and the capacity to overpower everything by his spiritual effulgence Three words: The Avatar State.

These six are the most important, however the actual number of qualities (or personalities in this case) of Vishnu is countless/infinite.

That's the argument for Aang as a representation of Vishnu.

Here's where the fun part comes in. Vishnu has a consort. Lakshimi. I'm going to borrow a quick summary so I can get down to the good stuff:

In Hinduism, Lakshmi is the goddess of wealth, light, wisdom and fortune, as well as (secondarily) luck, beauty and fertility. Lakshmi is the Mother of the Universe and Vishnu's Shakti. Lakshmi is consort to Vishnu, and also married his incarnations Rama (in her incarnation as Sita), Krishna (as Rukmini) and Venkateshwara (as Alamelu).

In other words, she has been with multiple incarnations of Vishnu - which are equivalent to the different lives of the Avatar.

The origin of Lakshmi is where it comes together: She appeared from the ocean and chose Vishnu as her consort, as only He had the power to control Maya (illusion). Because of this, Lakshmi is also called the daughter of the sea.

This is an indication that Aang as the Avatar will be most drawn to the same woman/person in subsequent lives, as there is a continuing cycle in which both God and Consort reappear among mortals. While Vishnu/The Avatar may change with each new incarnation, the consort/lady does not change her nature - she is still the daughter of the sea.

Katara is the only female waterbender to have appeared on the show. She shows a great many of the traits attested to Lakshmi - including wisdom, gentleness and knowledge. Lakshimi is the goddess that people pray to when they wish for happiness with their friends, family, children and lovers.

There have also been indications that Aang had a lover in a past life who was taken from him - obviously something which drove his past life to the extreme of trying to kill a spirit (Koh). The connection between the two (Aang and Katara) was created the moment she freed him from his imprisonment in ice by using her waterbending - he was enamoured of her immediately. This can be taken as an indication that her essence/spirit was familiar to him from the beginning because he had connected with it so many times in past incarnations.

*

Just some further ramblings on the subject: I believe that the incarnation of Vishnu that Aang most resembles is Krishna.

Krishna is the embodiment of love and divine joy that destroys all pain and sin. Krishna is the protector of sacred utterances and cows (In this continuity, Bison?). He is a trickster and lover, an instigator of all forms of knowledge and born to establish the religion of love. A few more facts about Krishna: He loved to play the flute, is known for his enjoyment of playing pranks and is the deity of Humour and a messenger of peace.

[Growly]

1. Katara Doesn’t Love Aang.


The thing that's interesting about this debate is that we all agree on one thing:

We don't know how Katara feels.

So for people to say "Kataang just won't happen" is ridiculous, just as much as saying "Kataang is totally already happening" It's impossible to rule out either possibility, so I wish people would stop acting like there's no way Kataang will ever happen, simply because Katara is "motherly" and not "loverly". We don't know that.

Many people use the fact that Katara has never acted towards Aang the way she acted towards Jet (and Haru, although I didn't see the love-struck fangirl look when she was with Haru, so I'm scratching him out of the picture here) as anti-Kataang evidence. I don't think this is a sign that she doesn't, or won't ever, like Aang that way--I think it's because their relationship is that much stronger and deeper.

I don't think your 3 week crush on the new guy in school has the power to compete with a relationship (platonic or other) that you have with someone you essentially live with. It's the strength of that relationship that makes me think them ending up together is not as far-fetched as many make it out to be.

*

I see Katara as somewhat naive and unsure of herself in terms of romance. A lot of people have her pegged as a person who understands love and romance and to me the indications are there that she doesn't. She is experiencing new things just as Aang is in terms of love/romance.

Katara more than likely never had male of her own age (other than Sokka) around for several years. She had to assume a grown up role very quickly after her mother died and in many ways may have replaced her mother's roles within the tribe and her own family (she took care of washing, household duties, helped with delivering babies, etc.) She is a natural caretaker, mother-figure if you will. That does not negate a relationship with Aang. I am only half-joking when I say that Katara could kiss Aang full on the lips and some people would say it was "motherly."

I do think Katara is confused. She's never experienced the world outside her village. She had her first real crush (Jet) but I do think she learned from it. But I don't think her actions towards Aang can be so easily dismissed as motherly/familial/friend. Their relationship is far too complex and it has been evolving (even subtlety) since the first episode. Nor do I think that any act of support and care she obviously shows for Aang negates any romantic relationship between the two.



2. Katara acts like a mother to Aang.


I don't know who said it, but I think someone mentioned about Katara being 'motherly' to Aang again.

Just want to say that Katara is 'motherly' 'protective' to everyone she cares about, not only Aang. She just the motherly sort period. I think that whoever she ends up with, she's going to 'mother' in a sense cause it's in her personality to be a 'mother hen'.

Sorry, but Katara being 'motherly' to whoever is an anti-argument to whichever ship that increases the acidity level in my stomach. My mother, for example, mothers my dad, looks after him, worries about him, etc. I also have aunts who act 'motherly' to their spouses.

Seriously, it's OKAY for a woman to act motherly to her lover or spouse.

Just take a look at the synonyms for 'motherly'.

Main Entry: motherly
Part of Speech: adjective
Definition: caring
Synonyms: affectionate, careful, caretaking, comforting, devoted, fond, gentle, kind, loving, maternal, nurturing, protecting, protective, sheltering, supporting, sympathetic, tender, warm, watchful
Source: Roget's New Millennium™ Thesaurus, First Edition (v 1.3.1)
Copyright © 2006 by Lexico Publishing Group, LLC. All rights reserved.
Roget's New Millennium™ Thesaurus - Cite This Source

Main Entry: protective
Part of Speech: adjective
Definition: guarding
Synonyms: careful, conservational, conservative, covering, custodial, defensive, emergency, fatherly, guardian, insulating, jealous, maternal, motherly, paternal, possessive, preservative, protecting, safeguarding, securing, sheltering, shielding, vigilant, warm, watchful

--- The basic definition of motherly is 'caring' and 'protective', not something incestuous. So if you want to debunk Kataang, kindly please stop using the term 'motherly'. That Katara is motherly to Aang is actually a Pro-Kataang argument as far as I am concerned. (Note that motherly can mean loving and jealous.)

*

The whole motherly thing with Katara and Aang, I am going to touch upon this because it needs to be touched upon. People see this as shooting down any chance that Katara sees Aang as a romantic partner. She is his mother-figure or sister-figure. I don't see that. We see how Katara is with Sokka and she certainly isn't like that with Aang. And people say she is motherly and in actuality that is fine. She puts Aang first. She is always thinking about him, his needs, what makes him happy. He is her first priority.

And the converse of that is that he is always thinking of her, her needs, her feelings. Noticed he apologized to her after being a jerk in SoTFN. He didn't apologize to Toph (or if he did it wasn't important enough in the storyline to show), but they made a point to show him apologizing and explaining himself to Katara.

*

I love Kataang because well it's just that it's cute and its fun. I mean that the way that they interact to each other is way different than how they act to different people. In the first episode you could tell that Aang started to like her. Maybe it wasn't that obvious then but in episodes like The warriors of Kyoshi you could really tell that Aang had a crush on Katara.

They have a really strong bond that makes them compatible for each other. Like what other people said, Katara is probably the only person so far in the show that we have seen, get him out of the Avatar state. Some people say that Katara is like Aang's mother but she is like that to almost everyone that she cares about. The way she sometimes acts with Aang is way different than motherly.

*

On the subject of Katara the Mother, I'm actually surprised the whole SHE PULLED AANG FROM A WOMB thing took this long to make it over here. That's been bouncing around LiveJournal for a while.

Me, personally, I think that entire Katara Is Aang's Mother Figure argument is just...no. She's just not.

Katara has a motherly quality about her, yes, yes indeed. And they often play that up with her (another thing Mike and Bryan specifically mention in the commentaries for Siege of the North; I would recommend that everyone listen to those commentaries btw, they're DELIGHTFUL [and not just because they validate me in various instances]). But the thing is, she's like that with everyone. You can clearly see from the first episode and understand that Katara being motherly is part of her personality and you are presented with why she's that way. If Aang and Aang alone suddenly and inexplicably inspired in her a mothering instinct, then I'd say that you were on to something. But that part of their interaction is status quo for her. For me, the thing that makes Aang and Katara's dynamic so great are the ways that she treats Aang that she doesn't treat other people.

Katara, while not Aang's mother, is very definitely Aang's protector. (And here I will refrain from a digression about my love for Chosen One/Protectoress OTP, but let's just say that the Aang/Katara-y commercial that goes on about Katara being the woman behind the man delights me something awful.) That's the role that she assigns to herself, it's the role that she takes up. But the dynamic of the Protector/Chosen One differs from Mother/Child in very important ways.

The major thing (besides the romantic moments that they've had, which cannot be viewed in a vacuum) that makes me scoff at Katara as Aang's maternal figure is the fact that theirs is a relationship of equality. The key thing that makes someone a parental figure is that they are in authority and the way that Katara relates to Aang is never from a position of authority. In fact, she defers to him more often than not; and to take it a step further, throughout the series it's made obvious that she admires him (in the sense of looking up to him).

It's there from the very first episode when she brings him back to the camp and gushes to her grandmother about how special he is and how she just knows that he has great wisdom¹ and her general fangirling of him continues throughout. Off of the top of my head: she wants him to be the leader in Jet, she goes on about how he's so brave in The Storm, in various instances throughout various episodes even when she's unsure about something she defers to him anyway because he's the freaking Avatar. When it comes time for her offer Aang advice or counsel she approaches him as a respectful peer and that's how he entertains her. They've had petty arguments, they get irritated with each other, they make up, and none of this is in the manner of a mother relating to a child.

I understand how on paper (or even visually since she's always clutching him to her bosom; not that that's never been used as a romantic image since it has) Katara/Aang as Mother/Child seems to make sense, but when you actually look at their interactions and way that they relate to each other it's not there. The vibe is just entirely different which is why, for me, it's so easy to delineate between Katara having motherly qualities in general and just being particularly affectionate towards Aang and Katara acting as Aang's mother figure/de facto mother.

As far as why I swore off debating (and I'm doing SUCH a great job with that)? It's because it gets wearying for me to have the same arguments over and over ad nauseum.

¹I love the way that this little situation alludes to the idea of a girl bringing home some new guy with whom she's just completely taken and her parents trying to reel her in like, “Okay, honey, you barely know him. Don't invest so much in him so soon.” And that allusion becomes even stronger when Katara wants to leave the village with Aang.



3) Aang is immature/just a kid.

People also mention how immature Aang is. He has the duty of the avatar, meaning that he's the only person who can maintain balance in the world and he is the one who is suppose to master all of the elements in a very short time. Who wouldn't be stressed out? The fact that Aang shows his "kid" side simply shows how he tries to maintain the stress level by adding humor. He doesn't want to worry Katara or Sokka because the atmosphere would be just awkward if he acted all serious all the time. Aang has shown great maturity. To be mature, one doesn't always have to act serious. They can be humorous but their attitude has shown growth. Aang has definitely shown growth over the season and is continuing to show true maturity.

*

People often seem to overlook it because of his generally carefree and cheerful personality, but Aang's role as the Avatar is not merely a role of great power, but of great responsibility (please excuse me for using the cliche here, but it's true). An Avatar serves the people and does far more for them than they ever could for him/her. They don't just treat him with respect and shower gifts on him because he's powerful - it's also because deep down they have an innate knowledge that they truly owe him a great deal. The Avatar has to be so much - how could they do any less? After all, is it not his duty as the Avatar to defend them, to help them even if it means putting his own life and happiness at risk?

More than anything, it has irritated me when people write fics that completely dismiss Aang - or else, treat him as inconsequential or portray him as a silly kid, incapable of understanding how truly serious the situation is. It's certainly not the case - he tears himself up on the inside over all the things that happened, whether he could have prevented them or not, he takes the blame upon himself. That's a huge burden for anyone to carry, much less a child who hasn't even turned thirteen yet.

And for those who use the argument that he's only twelve and thus is incapable of understanding or feeling love... That's just ridiculous. And even worse, it's uncalled for. That is ageism in the worst way. No one is too young (or too old) to feel love. It is not a condition that is restricted to only those in their teens and twenties. One of my favorite songs is about an old couple who falls in love for the first time - something that few people seem to like to think about. So even if Aang were merely an ordinary twelve year old, that statement would be ridiculous.

Besides, he's not an ordinary twelve year old. He's the Avatar. Putting aside all the past lives he has lived, all the experiences and knowledge that he would have attained during those lives (for the sake of assuming that he has no memory of any of those things, at least consciously), then there is still one thing to take into consideration.

People (for the most part) take Aang seriously, despite his youth. Why? It's because they expect that he is capable of it. That he will fight for them - even die for them. He is certainly not too young to die for all the people of the world. It seems to me that it's horrendously unfair to expect him to take on that burden and not get even the smallest reward for it.

Aang deserves what happiness he can find - he loves Katara and I believe that he deserves her love in return, for however fleeting a span he may have. Somehow I doubt most Avatars die peacefully of old age... That is the primary reason why I support the pairing of Aang and Katara far above the pairing of Zuko and Katara. I can sympathise with Zuko's suffering - but in the end, I believe Aang needs Katara in more ways than Zuko ever could.



4) The Age Difference

People may say that Katara is two years older than Aang and its just gross that they should get together. Well, Zuko is two years older than Katara so wouldn't the same opinions apply there? There is no rule saying that girls have to date older guys/guys have to date older girls. That is a very chauvinistic opinion. Take celebrities for example. Many of the women date younger men and many of the men date older women. Its considered "in" I guess.









Fanfiction
Thought the Mountains Would Crumble by Rawles

Holding Hands by phoenkoi

1 sentence: aang/katara by Memlu

To dust by Memlu

Two Different Things by JessieHeart

Boy of Grey Eyes by JessieHeart

What Sokka and Toph know by Artemis Rae

Shadows in The Mind by Artemis Rae

Thirst by Artemins Rae

The Reaction by Amira

The Lesson by Amira

History of a Kiss by Amira

Questions of the Heart by Amira

Little Gifts by Amira

Little Stories, Lots of Fun by Amira



Fanart
Horizon by drgnelf

Reach by KimchiCrusader

Under the Trees by KimchiCrusader

What If by KUNGPOW333

Panda Lilly by Florayne



FanVids
broken road by Lydjachan

Sweet Rapture by BardChild



Icons
100 icons by Millie Chan

8 Aang/Katara icons by Abarero

[Growly]

Amira's Note: This is just the product of me watching CoWAS and wishing there was lots of Kataang...LOL. That and I thought it would be fun to get into the characters' heads and write for Toph. ;D


It had been ground into young Aang’s head from day one: Live an honorable and simple life, avoid violence unless absolutely necessary, value life above anything else, and avoid the pleasures that romance and intimacy can bring for they lead to a disruption in concentration and unhealthy attachments.

Day in and day out for all of his twelve years at the temple that’s what he had heard and the daily reminders against sin and vices only increased after he was made aware of his status as the Avatar.

Of course it didn’t work. As soon as the young Avatar first glimpsed her smiling face through his foggy vision after being released from his icy cocoon, he was hooked and all of those mantras and rules were erased from his thinking.

It had been an instant friendship, an instant bond, and at least in Aang’s case, an instant attraction. He had thought from the first moment of their meeting that Katara was the most beautiful creature in the world and as they got to know each other and his emerging hormones kicked in, those innocent thoughts on her beauty were replaced by thoughts far lacking in the innocence and the morality expected of a young monk.

So it was no surprise to the airbender when Katara emerged through the doorway and out into the living room of the little house they were staying in that his thoughts immediately ran the gamut of innocent to devilish, especially when his brain called attention to the curve-hugging gown she was wearing.

“Wow.” He said softly, almost reverently. A blush crept over his cheeks and he could feel the muscles in his face forming a grin. “You look beautiful.”

Aang was still grinning and blushing like a fool when Sokka took his fingers and flicked him painfully on the side of his head. The message was clear.

‘I don’t care if you are the all-powerful Avatar, stop staring at my sister like that.’

Katara’s blush was hidden by the mask of makeup caked onto her face and as she opened her mouth to thank Aang, Toph’s fan immediately came into her line of vision.

“Don’t talk to the commoners, Katara…” Toph said sharply. “First rule of society.”

For a moment the waterbender frowned. Aang was no commoner. But there was no time to argue the point, they had a party to get to.

“We’ll get into the party and find a way to let you in through the side door.” Katara said as she and Toph left their temporary home. She could feel Aang’s eyes following her every move as she walked away and she blushed again, delighted that he was paying so much attention to her. He had been so distracted and closed off from her after Appa’s kidnapping, that to feel she was the focus of his attentions again meant more to her than any words he could say.

“He likes you.” Toph said bluntly once they reached the little walkway outside.

“What?!”

“He likes you, Sugar Queen.” A wry smiled played over Toph’s heavily made-up features. “And you like him.”

“I-I…Aang’s just a friend. A really good friend.” Katara stammered.

“Sure. What ever you say. Tell that to your body temperature.”

Katara stopped dead in her tracks at that statement. The eatherbender grinned, knowing she had essentially knocked the older girl for a loop. This was going to be fun.

“My what?!” The waterbender’s voice rose several octaves higher than normal causing Toph to laugh. “What are you talking about?”

“Just because I can’t see, Sugar Queen, doesn’t mean that my other senses don’t work.” She grinned. “Anytime you’re near Twinkle Toes or he talks to you, your temperature goes up. I’ve felt it before. I felt it tonight. Why did you think I stopped you from talking to him? Society girls don’t get all blushy and stupid over boys.”

Katara sighed.

“Just tell him.” Toph said. “For all of our sakes. Sokka and I are getting a little tired of the cutesy, flirty game you two play. It's kind of nauseating.”

The earthbender stuck her finger in her mouth and made gagging noises.

Katara raised an eyebrow. "And you're worried about me not being good enough to pass for a society lady."

***********

The attempt to contact the Earth King was not going well. Both boys and girls had a difficult time not only getting into the palace, but a difficult time in locating the Earth King and each other.

Aang and Sokka had managed to disguise themselves as busboys and complete with pitchers of wine, they attempted to blend in.

“Where are Toph and Katara?” Aang asked, a touch of worry in his voice. He didn’t like this place. Everything about it was so materialistic and unnatural. Fake.

He scoured the crowd. Sokka had told him to forget about finding the girls, but he couldn’t help it. He had to know they were okay. That she was okay.

Suddenly, he heard a familiar voice.

“Another crab puff, please.” Toph said in her best haughty society girl voice.

The young Avatar’s face broke into a smile. “You found us!”

Toph was saying something about his footsteps, but Aang wasn’t listening. He couldn’t pull his attention away from Katara. In a sea of elegant people, she stood out as the most beautiful. Like a goddess from one of the story scrolls he had seen in Wan Shi Tong’s library. He blushed, smiling shyly at her.

The rest of the party was like a whirlwind. Joo Dee lecturing them for attending the party, his tricks with the water, the earth king suddenly appearing and then just as suddenly disappearing. Long Feng whisking them away to the library and threatening them.

And then a new “Joo Dee” whisking them back to their little home as if nothing had ever happened, leaving them all bewildered and unnerved.

***********

Katara found Aang sitting on the porch of the little house they had been given by the officials of Ba Sing Se. He was leaning back on his hands, staring up at the star-filled sky. The meeting with Long Feng had left them all upset and frustrated, Aang most of all and upon returning to the little guest house, he immediately separated from the others. The waterbender had noticed the little crease on Aang’s forehead, the one that often appeared right above his brow when he was upset about something as he mumbled he wanted to be alone.

But his words were merely for show. He knew eventually she would come after him to make sure he was all right. And sure enough, there she was, a comforting presence in an otherwise tumultuous world.

“They’re like jewels.” She said softly. “Sparkling.”

The airbender didn’t say anything in response and merely smiled. Katara sat down next to him, resisting the urge to reach out and hold his hand. She had noticed over the past several weeks that the urge to touch him, to be closer to him was getting stronger and she now looked for any excuse she could find to put a hand on his shoulder or envelop him in a hug. Anything to increase their closeness. To some it might have looked motherly or the actions of an overprotective guardian, but the feelings that were stirring inside of Katara meant there was something far less innocent behind those touches.

Aang confused her, her feelings towards him confused her. They always had. Part of her wanted to protect him, part of her wanted to on occasion slap some sense into him, and lately part of her wanted to find out how it felt to really kiss him, not just lightly and nervously brush his lips with her own.

And it wasn’t like she and her brain hadn’t done battle over this issue.

‘He’s two years younger. He’s the Avatar. He’s your best friend. He can be a complete goofball. He’s short and bald.’

The waterbender had pretty much come to terms with his age at this point. Aang often displayed a maturity far beyond his years, a maturity that had come from being a boy bearing a very adult burden. Katara had also come to terms with him being the Avatar. She knew it had risks and consequences and was well aware of what it did to Aang and how she helped him with his powerful abilities.

And Aang’s goofball behavior she found adorable. In Sokka it was irritating and she felt no hesitation at snapping at him or smacking him in an effort to make him grow up. But with Aang it was a different story. Katara loved the young Avatar’s sense of humor and how the pain of his past and his heavy burden had not diminished it.

Friendship was blossoming into something more, this was now undeniable to the waterbender. Katara had been feeling the subtle change, she just had just been unable to put a name to it.

Silence hung heavily in the air between the two friends, both eager to say something, but not sure how to say it. And there was the fear of being the one to say it first.

“I wanted to say thank you.” Katara said, suddenly breaking the silence and choosing to go the safe route.

“For what.” Aang turned, his charcoal colored eyes focusing on her.

‘Short and bald is no problem.’ The waterbender thought as her eyes met his. ‘He’ll grow. He is growing. Besides, he’s got those eyes…’

Katara felt a blush start at her ears and work its way around to her cheeks and down her neck. She prayed that it was dark enough that he couldn’t see how red she was turning.

‘…and those tattoos.’

“For saying that you thought I looked beautiful.” She finally answered. “I never got a chance to thank you.”

“Oh, yeah.” A grin tugged at the corners of the young Avatar’s mouth. “Toph sort of…”

“…interrupted.” They both said in unison, laughing.

The laughter died off and they were once again sitting in silence, staring up at the star-filled sky.

“Do you think they are looking down on us right now?” The boy asked, his voice slightly tinged with sadness.

“Who?” Katara looked over at him in confusion.

“Gyatso. Your mom. All of my old friends.” Aang sighed. “Do you think they see us? Do you think that they’ve seen what we’ve become? What we’ve done?”

The watertribe girl nodded and reached out to take his hand in her own.

“I think they would be proud of us.” Katara said, squeezing Aang’s hand. She felt his fingers move to intertwine with hers and she smiled. “They would be proud of what we’ve accomplished, the strength we’ve gained, the bonds we’ve formed, the love we feel…I feel…”

Her voice trailed off. The young airbender was staring at her with wide grey eyes, mouth set in a small smile. Nothing more needed to be said, he understood her perfectly and his smile widened.

Smiling, tears suddenly forming in her eyes, Katara leaned in and captured his lips in a kiss. It was not a deep kiss, but it was enough to send shivers down the girl’s spine. The kiss was magical, taking her breath away. There was nothing that the pair wanted more than to preserve this moment, but that was impossible. Not because of the ongoing war or the search for Appa, but because of a shrill female voice drifting out from the inside of the little house.

“Hey Sokka, you owe me ten copper pieces. I told you they’d kiss before we left Ba Sing Se.”

*Courtesy of Amira*






Aang/Katara is totally big time, universe-saving-love soulmate stuff. It's epic. It doesn't have to be full of them having senseless conflict with each other to be a great romance.

He's a boy-messiah tragically displaced while the world, absent of him, falls into war and turmoil. A hundred years of despair drag on, until he is rescued, until he is delivered into the arms of this girl. This girl, who is the one who still believed that he would return to save them, this girl who's been waiting for him all her life, the faithful, the one who never lost hope. So they have a connection and they travel together and they bond and he needs her. She does her very best to protect him from the outside world that would do him harm or even his own inner turmoil because, sometimes, it seems like the most dangerous thing that he faces is the rage and pain that creeps up on him, that makes him into a horrifying force of nature, a demigod on a rampage. And it hurts her when he's like that, because when he's hurting so is she. And when he stops being that boy and starts being that divine being, he isn't human anymore, he isn't Aang, and it would destroy her to see him lose his self in being the Avatar. He has to save the world and she has to save him. Because they love each other and that's what you do.

See? Epic.






Thank you to everyone who helped in the creation of this discussion: Daydream11, Ana, kyogoon, kataang101, Radiantbeam, LadyLiesl, Gotterdammerung, gambitia, and all of the wonderful artists, writers and fans on the Kataang thread. And a special thanks to Elystia for all of her work on the graphics and Amira for the lovely narrative piece!

[inuyatta]

Here's the SoKo ship, as defined by some of it's members: XD

Inuyatta:

**Song may have only been onscreen for a total of five or six minutes--yet she made quite an impact on the angsty Zuko. Something that few people in this series have ever been able to do with loads more screentime. Zuko tried so hard to not let her affect him, and yet--she did.\par

**Also, it's the only pairing where both characters look to be around the same age, save for Sokka and his many ships. XD It's also interesting that they first meet wearing the other's home-colors (Song wears pink/fire, Zuko wears green and brown/earth). Not proof or anything, but interesting to note.\par

**Song has gotten closer to Zuko than any other girl on the show that wasn't related to him/trying to kill him. He may have pushed her hand away from his scar, but she wasn't afraid to try and touch him, physically and emotionally. And while she failed physically--she did get him emotionally.\par

**It seems that in future episodes, every 'oneshot' character who makes a heavy impact on one of the regular cast returns. Suki for Sokka, Jet for Aang and Katara. While the Gaang are the main cast members of the show, Zuko is also considered a main character because his story pretty much always parallels to Aang's. So, following the pattern here...Song has a pretty good chance of appearing again.\par

**The episode was titled 'The Cave of Two Lovers'--surely everyone here got *pinged* when they saw that. XD


Gambitia:

I like Soko because, of all the people I could potentially ship Zuko with, this one seems right. I don't feel this same sort of rightness with any other Zuko ship. When it comes right down to it, what I ship has very little to do with logic, it has to do with what I feel and what my intuition tells me. I certainly try to rationalize and justify my ship, but it's that intuitive feeling that pulls me in...and Soko feels right.

sapphirestar:

**Song doesn't think that all Fire Nation people are bad; she realizes that anyone can be corrupted by too much power so therefore she's accepting, kind, understanding, willing to help, and not very judgmental. She knows that people can't help what family/life/circumstances they're born into (but hopes they will make the best of it) and that most Fire Nation children are raised with the belief that the war is right and justified, as was the case with Zuko, but now he is seeing and experiencing first hand another side of the war: the impoverished, innocent peoples' of the rest of the world.

Zuko's finally realizing just how much of a negative effect his nation's war is having on these kind and humble people and that he's not the only person who's been negatively affected by it. He's struggling now with what he was taught to believe is good and right including what he wants for himself, and what he's beginning to see as wrong and unjust which is exactly what he originally thought was perfectly fine. Song would understand this and aid him in his journey of discovering the truth and what's right, giving him hope and would eventually help him see that it's his responsibility as heir to the Fire Nation to help the Avatar bring peace once again; and once peace has been reached, he can then rule the Fire Nation in harmony with the rest of the world, which is better than having a constant war to always worry about and having few friends whom he can trust.

Song seems to be pretty much at peace with herself and with those who caused her pain ("It's okay...they've hurt me too."), so I think she'd be very patient with Zuko in helping him find his way to the "right path", so to speak, and in accepting who he is, what's happened to him, and help him move on to better times. Once he's past his turmoil and has found peace (which will probably take a long while), it will bring Song much joy. She can give Zuko hope and peace and he in turn can give her happiness because he will have finally found happiness. [/i]

Book:

* It does. It does have effect: the fandom. The fandoms not...not so...It's yacht-sized, but shippers here seem really nice; not so judgemental on a few things, reasonable, and share my love for something cool. ;D I find a lot of the smaller ships have the nice fandoms, and this ones no exception. Because the shippers here are pretty kind ,and won't scrape off your head automatically, nor make fun of other ships harshly and are politely honest:

* I enjoy Songs character. I enjoy Zukos character. I enjoy the fact that they could enjoy eachothers character. I enjoy thinking of them together drinking tea with Iroh and laughing about silly things. And I enjoy their porch scene and it's romantic setting, which made me wish they would have more romantic backdrops while kissing and/or feeding eachother frozen frogs.

* After, not just thinking about them having romance, but analyzing and seeing if it would work, I find it does. Song has been the only female character, thus far, to be shown to have made an impact on Zuko. Her story got through to him. It should be clear, too, that it might be because of her caring nature (and the fact that she is of the female persuasion perhaps) that her story got through. If it was a guy who's rough, I don't know if Zuko would have looked as shocked as he did. Zuko didn't show that same 'they really...?' expression with the boy in Zuko Alone, but he showed it with Song. I think her personality and her story impacted him. <==this is where some shippers collide like moldy cheese and rocks.

Thus, it leaves me to believe that what Song does- and would- impact Zuko. He wouldn't brush off what she does so easily as he may others. Along with that: Song is kind and understanding. Come on! She saw with her own eyes a 'stranger' stealing from her! And she does nothing?? Most women in Avatar we've seen would have tried to stop Zuko and say 'oh no you won't!'- but Song didn't. Be honest, doesn't it seem like she understood something, deeply, about Zuko if she would allow him to take Julius like that? The fact that she's understanding like that works with Zuko. The fact that she's also firm (slapping Irohs hand away) and patient (not pressuring Zuko to speak) works with Zukos personality; which includes being introverted and tempermental.

((Contrary to popular beliefe, the fact that Zuko doesn't speak so much plays an important role in his future and current relationships. If you couple a character constantly needs to know what you're thinking, how you're feeling with words, with Zuko, it wouldn't work. He'd barely speak, and whomever he's with would cry a river that 'you don't tell me everything!' and not understand that Zuko lives in his own world where he doesn't have to say everything- or sometimes- anything. Since being with Iroh, even his gestures are understood. So those two work. If Zukos with someone who isn't observant of his behaviour like Iroh....

BAM. Issues.))

* Major factor: from Song and Zukos interaction Song does like Zuko. And if you feel she doesn't like him (I disagree) then you must at least admit she was intrigued. It's fact. She was intrigued enough to try and get into his personal space (try to touch his scar) so she feels some chemistry with him. A 'likehood', you may. And I do wonder, if Song hadn't shown Zuko and Iroh great kindness, or a bit of her personality, would he have been impacted by her? Who knows. She did show herself to him though, and that impacted him.

"But Zuko was only impacted by Songs story"- You know what? I would really like to know if Zuko has heard the stories, or what stories, of the Airbenders destruction. Or of the gruesom tales of the war with the Water Tribes and the Fire Nation- or even if he has heard tales of the war with his homeland and the EK- if he's heard the truth about all these stories. He has heard a twisted truth more than likely. I'm sure he's heard a few gruesom details of one true story or true details of something, and yet...the expression of surprise he showed Song, we haven't seem him show that for others. If he showed surprise with those stories, we don't know. He's hid his emotions- kept a straight face. With Song IT SHOWED ON HIS FACE. <==Very big deal concerning Zuko! If he doesn't look hostile he looks blank. This time he looked, with Song, 'I'm thinking' and then surprised.

Take in the expressions, young ones, take in the expressions. ;D

* The fact that that both Zuko and Song seem like they'd love eachother and be reasonable! They would still be with their families, have good times- a few healthy struggles- and that! Healthy! It seems like they'd have a healthy relationship: it doesn't feel like they'd fall in love, that they'd forget their families and everyone else (which doesn't mean they'd forget eachother either). They'd be sensible together, and wouldn't get those young folk craaaaazy ideas of abandoning everything for love (I dislike those sort of stories with a burning passion of a thousand flames. ><)

* The struggles the fandom has had just to be stable. Awesom members have really kept it going, despite 'Sue' comments, 'Song: A Death Target' opinions and other trash. Sokos kept itself alive and still remained reasonable. That's amazing. The fandom has had one, if not the, hardest struggle to get established in the community.

Dudes, clap yourselves on the back! Major cool. This is a ship, in general, you can't help but respect.

* And to sum it all up (many reasons, but this is enough in one post huh? ^^ Soko is a cool name, I like being called a 'Sokoite', ze porch scene= mad coolz buisness, the awesom fanart and fanfiction, and- most important:

I love it, so it means doo-doo what others think.


1. Reasons why Soko is a benificial ship for:

Zuko: He has a companion who understands him, and has the patience to try to understand him. A companion who's nice and is patient, and someone who is compatible with him by nature. I'd say Song is the healthiest/one of the healthiest choices for him too.

Song: She has a companion who she's compatible with. Someone who will probably intrest her all throughout their relationship: she won't be bored, and Song could learn many things she hadn't before. She'd have a partner to love, who would keep things intersting (Zuko, you specimen you!), and who she could have a good time with, (plus, he'd love her yo, and be kind to her or else she'd get him ;D).

Fandom: The fandom has the/one of the most refreshing relationships of all the pairings. Songs nice and polite- and characters like that seemed drowned in obnoxious or loud and unnecessarily agressive characters throughout ALL stories. I'm glad to see her, especially since she is compatible with Zuko. (They'd have adorable teasing too. =D) The fandom gets the juice of an all-time Avatar ship drink! <==you know what I mean.

2. Reasons Why It Works:

Com.pat.i.bil.i.ty with the characters core. Come on. Admit it: the characters we've seen, we've seen glimpses of their true core, or who they'll always be. Small bits, but good enough. Judging from Song and Zuko:

*Zukos introverted. Doesn't talk much. The kind of guy who'd stay silent for some time if you asked him what kind of cake that is. Songs a bit more outgoing. Patient. Will wait a moon and a day for you to tell her what kind of that cake is. Eventually, Zukos going to tell you what the cake is, but you have to be patient enough and give him time to answer.

Zuko= time
Song= waiting

Goes hand in hand. 'Time will bear the fruit of love in the patience of spirit'.

* They look good. It's not even shallow CAUSE THEY DO LOOK GOOD. It's fact. They would look cute!! D: Sure, it's little points. But they're still points. Ze'd look good!

* Song would be firm with Zuko but not unnecessarily so. Zuko would instill more caution with Song about strangers and inviting them to dinner (which is, poentially, unsafe!) They'd each help eachother as they bring new elements out of eachother, but not in a painful way.

* It would be a healthy couple. <==This cannot be stressed enough!


(Y'all already said the rest and you know it. ;D)

2. Reasons Why It Is A Great Experience To Support It:

The Soko community isn't mean. It just isn't. Most people who support Soko are at least relatively kind. There's no spamming, it goes at a steady pace...and hanging out with Sokoites is usually pretty downright cool. You aren't shunned if you like other Zuko+ pairings, and there's no 'we shall destroy the *dot dot dot*'.

There's just 'Sokos cool', 'yeah, remeber that scene?' 'it was awesom', 'oh, is that a new Soko fanfic?' 'yeah, check it out.' 'I'm working on some fanart guys' 'can't wait to see it!' 'what would happen if this happened?' 'I love your Soko work!' 'that's a great theory''cool post''Soko haters are lame' <=(okay, that's me ;D)

Basically, teh fandom isn't ze harsh or rudes. It's laidback here, and you don't feel bad for liking something that's COOL, nor do you have to worry about opposite ships so much, because the Soko thread? It's SOKO. Outside ships are of no worry. Usually. xD And you find reasons for loving Soko in other people.

Aaaaaaaand, Soko is going to happen *tah me, yeah yeah*. You have fun posting in the Soko community. Hypes you up and keeps you hoping for Songs return.

Soko= healthy ship, healthy fandom, and healthy healthy. Yeah.

Plus we have good fanfics and fanart yo. ;D

---

speaking of said fanpieces, here are just a few:

Let the Scars Heal by Zimmay
Ahn-nyo'ng-hi Ga-seyo by Isaia
I Trust You by...me >_< Babbs suggested it though.

as for fics:

Heal All Wounds by sasori--this one's kinda half-SoKo half Zutara, so how's that for intership diplomacy? XD


We've got so much more fic, but we haven't had enough time to go through it all to recommend anything unanimously--and this is one of the first SoKo fics to surface, so...XD

Enjoy! ^^

[girlunderglass]

Well done shippers! The deadline has been reached. Other ships may indeed still post their statement.. but it will not be up top like these are.

I now open this thread up for discussion. Feel free to talk about the ships, their statements and how these entries may or may not have changed your opinion of the ship.

Begin.

[Paraiba Ocean]

Lol...so official, GUG. Sorry we're a good 33 minutes late, but my computer is slow and I had to search for this.

*Copied from Trustno1*

Why ship Zutara?

Lately many people ask why we ship Zutara. I hope the following text will be able to answer this question:
The most intriguing aspect of Zutara is it's tension. Now some of you will ask, what kind of tension can the two of them feel, if they are enemies?
I'm referring to the tension between both of them I as a viewer am experiencing: Both of them experienced very similar events in their past and have developed similar personalities, which would pull them closer together, if they would be aware of it, but instead they are pushing each other away, because of each others way the deal with these events.


Both were parted violently from their fathers. Kataras father abandoned her to fight in a campaign against the Fire Nation and Zukos father banished his son for his disrespect.
Both were forced by this incidents to grow up, although arguable if they really behave mature, both took on great responsibilities for their young age (Katara obtaining the mother role in her village and Zuko being responsible for his own crew) and feel driven to achieve certain goals.
Both Katara and Zuko lost their mothers. Katara lost her mother in a Fire Nation raid and Zukos mother left (or died) for reasons we are not aware of right now. Both of them had a very close relationship to their mothers. How deep the relationships were can be seen in the
trinkets both of them hold dear and which make them remember of their childhood:
www.avatarspirit.net/images/screenshots/207/259.jpg
www.avatarspirit.net/images/screenshots/118/176.jpg
For both of them their mothers are the motives behind their respective goals as they want them to be proud of them. Katara wants to be acknowledged as a strong women (just like her mother) and seeks to be a waterbending master. Zuko on the other hand wants to be acknowledged as a prince of the Fire Nation ("Never forget who you are") and seeks out to regain his right by capturing the Avatar.
Although both seem to believe in destiny (Zuko at the end of Bitter Work and Katara in the Fortuneteller), both value hard work the most. Even if both are not nearly as talented in their bending arts as the persons around them (Zuko/Azula and Katara/Aang), both kept on struggling.
Both worked hard on their bending arts:
www.avatarspirit.net/images/screenshots/104/066.jpg
www.avatarspirit.net/images/screenshots/101/176.jpg
and both also showed great determination (and a short temper) to achieve the respect (as a prince or a waterbender) they keep struggling for, as shown in their duels:
Zuko/Zhao ("Your father doesn't want you back")
Katara/Pakku ("Go back to the healing huts were you belong")
www.youtube.com/watch?v=LmNrxnaV0XU
4. The two of them are not giving up easily no matter how hopeless their situation may seem: Zuko kept on searching for the Avatar for 3 years, although his father and grandfather failed to find him and Katara was learning waterbending on herself without a master or instructions.

When both see somebody, who reminds them of their hardship in their childhood, both of them become immediately attached to that person, seeking to help them: Zuko grew fond of Lee after hearing about how much he misses his brother and revealed even his firebender indentity in order to rescue him.
Katara insisted to help Haru, when he was imprisoned in the Fire Nation internment platform and didn't hear on both, her brother and Aang, when they tried to rescue her.

But as great as their similarities are, as great are the diffrences between them. As benders they show a great connection to their elements, which are each others counterparts.
Because of their contradictive elements, they also persuade a contradictive way to achieve their goals.
It was Iroh, who introduced this contradicting nature to us (Fire is the element of power. The people of the Fire Nation have desire and will, and the energy and drive to achieve what they want. (...)Water is the element of change. The people of the Water Tribe are capable of adapting to
many things. They have a deep sense of community and love that holds them together through anything.)

This description is a valuable source on how they act to gain the respect their longing for: Katara being from the watertribe and having a great sense for family and friends sees herself as a guardian and supporter of her friend Aang (she also tends to be the leader of the gAang as we already have seen in "the Desert"), thus sees it as her duty to make him achieve his goal.
Zuko sees in Aang an objective, his last hope and he has the desire to capture him in order to regain his honor.

At this point we are able to see the tension between the two, which was build up in their past. Both could understand each other in a way no one else would be capable to, but struggle in diffrent ways for similar goals. Both see Aang as a symbol of hope, although fullfilling their duty would bring contradicting results.
It's this balance between similarities they are not aware of and diffrences between them that are so obvious, which make this ship so interesting.

[girlunderglass]

NP Para. All entries are very well written.

And I am even happier to see everyone took on a creative approach and wrote different formats.

[Zink]

Holy cow, growly... I thought I would never even think the word "Kataang" over "Zutara," but now I'm not so sure... Dang it! And then Para came along and made me even more indescive... Very well-written entries, both of you.

Question for the board: Do any of you believe that there are ships that are completely non-canon, but would make a very nice romance anyway? Basically, that ships supported by canon are not always the best ships?

[Paraiba Ocean]

Does the ship "Zutara" mean nothing to you? Jk...but Zutara is purely fanon. We've no evidence, just symbolism. And it requires patience and a lot of thought process. You don't just ship Zutara and everything be hunky dory, nooo...you've got to be willing to give your support and love to the ship because it's very tender and brittle. I think Zuko and Katara would have a very nice romance.

[Ana]

mutantgoldfish said:

Question for the board: Do any of you believe that there are ships that are completely non-canon, but would make a very nice romance anyway? Basically, that ships supported by canon are not always the best ships?

Sure. A rather bad example but: Zutara. Many people think it would be a good romance and yet it's completely fanon and those same people are not found of the canon ships. The term "it's all about opinion" works here. Anyway, thoughts on the entries.
Koh/Azula: I found this one very amusing but still very well done. It made me like Koh/Azula a tad more than before.
Katara/Aang: This one made me proud of my ship. <3
Song/Zuko: I liked this one a lot and it reminded why I like Soko so much. Very nice.
Zuko/Katara: This opened my eyes a tiny bit. Zutarains are not in fact just in it for the sex.
Kidding kidding, but seriously this one was also enjoyable and well done.

[Paraiba Ocean]

mutantgoldfish said:

Holy cow, growly... I thought I would never even think the word "Kataang" over "Zutara," but now I'm not so sure... Dang it! And then Para came along and made me even more indescive... Very well-written entries, both of you.

That was not me there. I copied it from a fellow Zutarian with his permission. But don't be indescive and force yourself into thinking that you HAVE to pick between Zutara and Kataang. Sure, most shippers pick between the two, but there are multi-shippers who like both. I'm not saying multi-shipping is the way to go, but think about who you'd like to see together, or what type of pairing you like best and go from tehre. [/Para's sensless babbling]

[Zink]

Nah, it's just that who I think Katara should be with varies with every fanfiction I read or fanart I see. Kozula always stays firm, though, lol.

I wasn't specifically targeting Zutara, as you might have guessed, Kozula is purely fanon as well. I was just wondering if y'all feel that in sharing Avatar with the world, it becomes ours, too, and if you think the Avatar fandom kind of defines the show as well. For instance, I wouldn't be anywhere NEAR as big as a fan as I am now if not for Distant Horizons. I also wouldn't analyze every one of Azula's line for "face" references and freak out over the shipping presentation at ComiCon ("Kozula is canon! Kozula is canon! Oh my shu!!!")