when you sit and think about not only how contrasting toph and sokkaās backgrounds are, where one seemingly had everything but is treated as if theyāre incapable, while the other had everything taken from them but is burdened with the responsibility of always having to appear capable but also how their shared trauma in the finale connects them and makes them trauma-bonded for life and you canāt help but love how they make it through scarred but still standing side by side, alive and together regardless of it.
any toph headcanons you mIGHTT wanna share?š«£š«£š«£š«£š«£
Hellooooo Anon! I always love sharing my views and hcs on Toph, so of COURSE I want to share <3
Toph remembers everyone's birthday, and she pretends she doesnāt. Tied to that is that if someone mentions wanting something six months ago, she suddenly drops it in their lap with a shrug and brushes off any notes of appreciation given to her as if it weren't a big deal when it's the biggest deal
When she's not trying or making an effort to tune into heartbeat patterns or whatever (emphasis on that because we all know she's a human lie detector as a whole), she can tell when people are lying to themselves much faster than when theyāre lying to her. Sheās frighteningly good at calling out everyone elseās emotional nonsense and absolutely terrible at recognizing her own or simply refuses to acknowledge it
Physical affection comes easier to her than verbal affection. When trust and comfort are there, leaning against someone, bumping shoulders, grabbing a wrist, stealing a blanket, but saying it is like forcibly removing a limb lmao. Was just talking about this with someone too, but she feels like the type to fall asleep on the shoulder of someone she trusts. And you know, all those shows of affection through punching fall under this category, too
She has a habit of sitting too close to people she trusts lol
Tophās first instinct when sheās upset is isolation. She wants to get herself under control before anyone notices because being witnessed in the middle of an emotional spiral feels more uncomfortable to her than the spiral itself. She's supposed to come off as stoic and hardened, and for anyone to see anything other than that image she purposefully created for himself is unthinkable
She hates being pitied more than almost anything. It makes her feel trapped in her own skin. Don't feel bad for her
Compliments stick with her far longer than insults do. Sheāll shrug off someone calling her difficult or stubborn, but if somebody says something genuinely kind about who she is as a person, sheāll think about it for weeks
Toph remembers every person who chose her when they didnāt have to. Sheād never admit it, though
She is much better at handling physical pain than emotional pain because one is easier to handle and get over than the other. The latter is messy and unpredictable, and she hates not knowing how to fight it when any physical pain can be kicked and ignored
She struggles with needing people, and she really tries not to. Because trust can be earned. Need feels dangerous and scary and why would she ever feel like she needs something or someone when she should, first and foremost and always rely on herself
When sheās scared someone will leave, she'll pull away first. Sheād rather convince herself it was her decision than risk being caught off guard. (i.e., when it comes to her and Sokka getting into a relationship, if she feels like he might leave first for whatever reason (because she assumes that he is going to treat her the same way he's treated his other girlfriends or conquests and he doesn't because she's not them), she's going to refuse to give, to give him a quiet out)
Toph has a habit of turning serious conversations into arguments because anger feels easier to manage than hurt. Shocker!
She can usually tell when someone she loves is suffering before they say anything. What she doesnāt know how to do is sit still and watch it happen, which means she often tries to fix problems that canāt actually be fixed, and she does so in a very indirect way because she would hate it (and she does hate it) when people stick their noses into business that isn't theirs to stick their noses into
A lot of her confidence comes from competence. When she canāt solve a problem, protect someone, or make something better, she feels far more helpless than she lets on... which is not at all
She wants reassurance more often than sheād ever ask for it, and if she has to ask, it doesnāt feel real. The words mean the most when theyāre offered freely :)
A few Team Avatar reminders (og series) because I think people tend to confuse canon and fanon a little too often:
- Aang was very mature and sensitive for his age (as he was forced to be). Most adults donāt have as strong and morally correct conviction as him, let alone most twelve year olds.
- Katara was a child. Regardless of how mature and strong she was, she was a little kid and a victim of the war, just like every other kid in the series.
- Sokka was incredibly smart, like ridiculously so (keep in mind heās 15-16), and likely one of the smartest characters we encounter in atla. There are countless times the team would have been absolutely cooked without him (in most episodes, yes).
- Toph doesnāt hate being feminine, she hates being forced into a box. While she presents as a tomboy, the show also acknowledges her want to be taken seriously as a girl.
- Zuko is not reasonable or particularly smart. Most of his descisions are made based on emotion and his feelings in the moment. Heās not stupid at all, but heās very much a passionate guy rather than a thinker (literally what his entire arc is based around, and imo what makes his arc that much better. He has to learn to he less impulsive).
Kataang are friends to lovers. You don't see a huge jump in their relationship because it has always been in good standing. That does not mean they didn't develop it.
Katara and Aang cared for eachother as friends first, they did not start off needing a dramatic development because they have always been good to eachother.
That said it doesn't mean we don't see the shift in that relationship. If you don't think Katara ever liked Aang I fear you're just not watching the show properly.
