And his most profound accomplishment would always be proving himself worthy of Katara.
If Zuko were to think of his greatest achievements, a few moments came to mind. One was the time he finally beat Uncle Iroh at Pai Sho after a very long four-hour match. He was fairly certain the old man had let him win, but Zuko gladly took the victory anyway. Another was the peace he had helped forge between the four nations (though honestly he credit most of them to the Avatar and the gangs). Still, after the war, he tried his best to mend the Fire Nation’s broken relationships with the rest of the world, while simultaneously uniting his own people so they could finally work as one.
But his most profound accomplishment would always be proving himself worthy of Katara.
In the years since they had married, there were countless of things he could never repay her. His wife was beautiful, yes, but she was more than that. Her mind, her resilience, her patience was what made him fell in love with her. She gave him the grace to grow, taught him how to forgive himself while still taking accountability for his past, and she also play a big role in bridging the gap between the continents as one of the greatest ambassadors the world had ever seen.
Most miraculously of all, she had made him a father. The twin little waterbenders, whom he loved more than life itself.
"You're spacing out," Katara said, her gentle voice pulled him from his thoughts.
She was sitting on top of a wooden fence. The twins had climbed up beside them. Katara and their daughters just couple minutes ago insisted they wanted go out to watch the falling snow, and of course he complied with their request, even when he was still not too used to the southern hemisphere’s cold yet, even after all these time.
Zuko, standing beside his wife, tightened his grip on her waist while rubbing her gently, something that was meant to comfort her.
"That tickles," she chuckled, leaning into him. "Tell me what’s on your mind."
"Just that I’m happy we made it back to the South," he smiled. "Even if it's only for a week."
Katara grinned, probably seeing how his lips shivered, just as one of the twins reached out, grabbing at Zuko's blue coat to balance herself.
"Well, Fire Lord, I saw how that paperwork was beginning to kill you," she teased. "I figured I'd better grant your wish to come here before I regretted it."
“Thank you, my generous Fire Queen." He laughed fondly.
"That is still such a strange title, even after all these years” she said.
"If I could, I'd let you take the title of Lord instead” Zuko looked at her.
"And deal with all your paperwork? No, thank you. I'm perfectly happy doing what I do," she laughed again, and how he would do anything to keep her as happy as she was now.
Zuko just let out a dramatic sigh though a smile rested on his face as he watched his family. He never could have imagined a life like this when he was young. But this reality was far better than any dreams he’d ever had and he would never change a thing.
The Fire Prince is different than she remembers, barely an echo of himself. He moves as though he's treading deep waters. Sometimes, Katara feels like she's watching him through a fog.
After being exiled from the North for bloodbending an abuser—before facing Zhao and being thrown to the seas for Zuko to find—she'd heard the stories. Prince Zuko died as the Long Night began, caught in the explosion of the Yuurei. And yet, here he was, offering Katara passage to Omashu so she can reunite with her friends.
(Breathing in time with the fires of a ghost ship.)
.
Reverse AU:
“Years ago, a spirit showed me a reality in which I was meant to be the Avatar,” Zuko's airbending Master said. “Kyoshi died a century earlier and the Tribes didn't join forces to make the world their hunting ground. The Cycle itself was different, too—elemental opposites didn't succeed one another. It was so marvelous, yet so strange. However, this is our reality, and you're the Avatar.”
Placing a tile on the board, Aang continued, “Perhaps if water wasn't the next element in our Cycle you'd get a free pass, but we're not so lucky. Everyone's out to kill you so the next Avatar will be born in the Water Tribes. If that happens, the world is doomed. So you better get this exercise right, Zuko, or Princess Creepy-Yet-Pretty's going to catch you. And this time, I don't think she'll hold back."
for those curious, this is joanne, a 15-year-old sumatran tiger currently living at phoenix zoo. it's very sweet to see her playing and tumbling around like this at her age -- she's got some people taking care of her if she still has this energy at that age.
i did see some users in the notes who were concerned about her looking 'scrawny', or wondering if she's maybe a juvenile -- far from it! at 15, joanne is very much considered a geriatric tiger; she's a grandma. she is, however, a sumatran tiger (panthera tigris sumatrae) -- sumatrans are the smallest extant subspecies of tiger, built more for the sweltering jungles of sumatra than the blistering cold of the amur river or the dense forests and mangrove swamps of south asia.
when you're used to seeing amur or amur-bengal hybrid ('generic') tigers on television or online, most of which are often overfed and overweight, a sumatran is going to look a bit weird, but joanne looks to be in wonderful shape -- look at those muscles flex and that coat shimmer when she moves! that's a healthy old lady for sure. props to joanne's keepers for taking such good care of her.
Imagine being the avatar that single handedly saved the world several times and brought back the whole air bender population from the brink of extinction and some cunt still has the nerve to say "the previous avatar let us down" Korra should have ended the world sooner
t.h. receding hairline stan account @this-is-a-witty-url - Tumblr Blog | Tumgag
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