Been on an AtLA kick for a while, read lots of fire family fics, and I was wondering if anyone had explored the concept of Ursa as a Joo Dee? Like, she fled to the earth kingdom after assassinating Azulon, tried to blend in with other refugees in Ba Sing Se, but immediately got clocked and scooped up by the Dai Lee. Cue imprisonment, interrogation, and brainwashing. Fast forward five years, and Azula's coup suddenly gets much more personal as Long Feng pulls out the surprise tool he had been saving for later.
Things that definitely happened Post-War in ATLA a.k.a. assorted headcanons that really boil down to "wouldn't it be neat/funny if...":
Zuko fought an inordinate amount of Agni Kais, to the point that some of the junior officials ended up thinking that it's custom to fight the Fire Lord every once in a while. He was notable for both never losing, and never seriously injuring his opponent.
Aang and Katara helped with the reformation of Ba Sing Se. They became friends with Joo Dee. Katara helped her regain her own memories, and her own name. Some of the women formerly known as 'Joo Dee' formed a theatre troupe, which produced highly subversive counterculture plays. Their anti-authoritarian nonconformist plays became a huge cultural movement, though they did face a fair amount of criticism from the more traditional groups. Aang loved them, and the patronage of the Avatar definitely helped them grow. They also produced a play on the history of the Air Nomads, at the request of Aang. Aang, of course, helped write it.
Sokka once hit his thumb with a hammer. This led to the invention of the nail gun, powered by pressurized air. Aang spent over four days bending air into canisters and pressurizing them. The invention never saw widespread use. The day after it was complete, Sokka drove a nail through his thumb.
That one old guy who ratted out Haru for being an earthbender stubbed his toe every single day for the rest of his life.
Lieutenant Jee resigned his commission. He requested that Zuko accept his resignation in person, and Zuko was happy to oblige. The moment his resignation was official, he went on a 45-minute tirade attacking the Fire Lord, which was never written down in its' entirety, but was described as "extremely vulgar, even for a sailor" by attendees, and mostly had to do with their time on Zuko's ship.
Toph actually ended up having a great relationship with her mom after a long and harrowing process. She competed in a couple more Earth Rumbles, and her mother was in the audience, cheering. She never really got along with her father, after the whole "hire two guys to kidnap her by any means necessary"-thing.
Momo started several diplomatic incidents. Future historians would forever puzzled by the many mentions of this mysterious 'Momo' in official documents, with the theory that Momo was the Avatar's pet being dismissed by the leading historians. Clearly, Momo was some sort of rebel leader - perhaps a Water Tribe extremist?
Unanswered Questions + Worldbuilding Ideas from ATLA/TLOK
The Joo Dee’s from Lake Lao Gai in Ba Sing Se. These are the tour guides assigned to the Gaang and likely other elite/rich refugees entering Ba Sing Se. Questions include: Who are all these near-identical women? Where did they come from? Who knew/reported them missing? Were they able to reverse the brainwashing post-war? How many psychologists are there and what quality is their care? Clearly there are enough that Sokka knows about them despite growing up super isolated.
Zuko’s Metamorphosis. Man had an existential crisis so strong that he went into a high fever coma for like 2 days and no one questioned it?? Uncle Iroh acted like this was a perfectly normal response. Did he go through this after his son died and he went soul-searching? Is this just a common response for firebenders with existential crises? Was there a massive pandemic of this after the war ended and practically everyone in the Fire Nation was forced to reevaluate their worldview?
The Sandbenders of the Si Wong Desert. Do they have any folklore/ghost stories around the Spirit Library? Do they know who’s in it? Do they have designated sages that visit the library for knowledge? How do you think they felt about it mysteriously disappearing one day? Do they think Aang buried it in his anger about Appa’s kidnapping/trafficking?
Combustion-Bending. What happened to the other combustion-benders? Is there a community of them? Do they need the tattoo for it or is that decorative/symbolic like it is for Air Nomads? Does this firebending style have any connection to airbending in the way that lightning-bending connects to waterbending?
The Nuns of the Abbey in the episode where Bato and June the Bounty Hunter are introduced. Made a post with more questions here (link) but main questions include: Do they worship the Spirits or someone/something else? Knowledge & traditions? What’s their relationship to the Airbender nuns and monks? The Abbey nuns wear clothes similar to Christian nuns whereas the Airbenders are based on Buddhism. Are they different sects of the same religion? Different religions entirely?
Dai Li Reform or Disbandment. Never happened in canon but definitely needs to. Their crimes include multiple counts of human/child trafficking, mass brainwashing, use of child soldiers (see: TLOK), kidnapping, conspiracy, and treason. If they’re reformed, they’d need tons of oversight/transparency.
The Foggy Swamp Tribe of the Earth Kingdom. Did Southern Water Tribe members settle the Foggy Swamp with nearby Earth Kingdom citizens? Do they have any spiritual practices regarding the Swamp? Do many of them share Huu’s views? Is he seen as a spiritual leader? Do the visions people in the Swamp receive of dead loved ones affect their funerary practices? How does Foggy Swamp style bending differ from North/Southern Water Tribe style bending beyond a focus on plant matter?
Princess Yue’s Deification. She sacrificed her life to replace/merge with(?) Tui as the Spirit of the Moon. She is, as far as I know, the only human to have ever become a Spirit apart from maybe the Painted Lady. Did Yue replace or merge with Tui? Is Yue also the Koi Fish in the Spirit Oasis or is that Tui resurrected? Does the Northern Water Tribe know that Yue’s a Spirit now? Is there a day of mourning for her? Do they consider her their patron Spirit?
Reminder that all my posts double as invitations for discussion! I love talking to anyone who loves this media like I do. I love building ideas off each other. I love questions about the content. I appreciate constructive criticism too!
