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timepiececlockSo, here's a thought: what if Katara still won the battle against Azula, but Aang died while fighting Ozai?
That would set up a really *interesting* scenario, if you think about it... Ozai as the Phoenix Lord is busy roasting 1/3 of the Earth Kingdom (let's face it, there's a lot of land to roast), but meanwhile a coup has occurred back home. The heir he left in charge isn't in charge, the other one is. But the war doesn't end.
Iroh: Re-taking Ba Sing Se, securing it for rebel EK forces & the White Lotus.
Ozai: Has control of the bulk FN army, has some airships which survived the gaang's sabotage, is laying waste to the EK landscape. He has an army, but is cut off from the FN and its support.
Zuko: Has control of the capitol, has control of the domestic military forces, is claiming the crown of Fire Lord. May have to defend the city against Ozai's forces.
That's THREE people from the royal family, all with "armies" of their own, all out in force. DUELING! Except, of course, that Iroh and Zuko are allied. But Ozai has most of the military power, right? All the forces still in the colonies and outposts like Omashu are under his control (except those in Ba Sing Se who now are under Iroh's control). In the Fire Nation, all the remaining forces and cities are in a state of flux--some swear loyalty to Zuko immediately, some refuse and swear to the Phoenix Lord instead. The generals split and choose sides, taking their armies & navy[s] with them.
It's freaking CIVIL WAR. How fun would that be to see play out? My brain adores the idea of 3 "princes" of the FN battling across the Earth Kingdom, each with their own armies and spying and traitors and military coups and broken loyalties and such. Meanwhile the EK and WT are like "Must you use OUR LAND to battle out YOUR FUCKING FAMILY PROBLEMS?" The world has become the royal family's chess board, just like Sozin wanted.
And for the others...
Katara: Zuko's new trusted lieutenant; after she gets word that Aang is dead, she is heartbroken, but decides to focus on the problem in front of her: helping Zuko take control of the city and rally the people to fight the Phoenix Lord. Zuko cannot do it alone, and with Iroh in the EK, she is all that Zuko has to rely on. They put Azula in prison. Zuko helps her deal with her grief, and she helps him deal with the clusterfuck that is his country. Her assistance and loyalty to him is very, very visible.
Sokka, Suki, and Toph: They succeed in destroying some of the fleet, but they witness Aang's death. They can't save his body, but they escape and head for Ba Sing Se on a distraught and near-suicidal Appa. Sokka becomes the person Appa relies on, the only one he'll listen to. [Appa *was* with them, right? Who had Appa during the final battle?] They hope to meet the White Lotus and Iroh in BSS and regroup, and plan for the coming civil war.
Mai & Ty Lee: Mai's uncle releases them when he gets news that Zuko has claimed power, and Ty Lee demands that the Kyoshi Warriors be released as well. As a group, they make their way toward the FN capitol. Along the way, they recruit for Zuko's forces, and gather information about the loyalties of the cities and towns. Mai and Ty Lee become closer. Mai gradually realizes that if the war ends, then Tom Tom won't be force into battle when he grows up, and he won't be at risk for dying young. If Tom Tom lives to become heir to their family's wealth, Mai will be free from her mother's control, and won't be forced to marry and have children. Tom Tom will be her freedom.
Hakoda & Co.: Heads to what remains of the Water Tribes, bringing news that the FN is about to have a civil war which could do even MORE damage to the surrounding nations, and that the WT must support Fire Lord Zuko if anyone's going to come out of it alive.
"There witnesses to our fight with Azula, you know that. Those old women--"
"My great-aunts."
"And others too. They keep talking about how you took Azula's lightning for me. They're saying--"
"It doesn't matter."
"But they think--"
"Katara, look at me. Look at me. It doesn't matter what they say. It doesn't matter what they think. What matters is that they recognize my claim, and that they all know beyond any doubt that you're here to support me. They will respect your power; they know that you healed me, and that you were my champion against Azula."
"Zuko..."
"I can't do this by myself, Katara. You helped Aang, before. Please...help me, too. Help us."
"I will help you."
"Thank you."
"It doesn't bother you, what they could be saying?"
'I put it out of my mind. If they want to see...I'm sorry, Katara. It must make you uncomfortable. I know that with--I know it's not easy to hear something like that right now. But I can't let myself think about it, because it doesn't change anything."
"You're right, Zuko. It doesn't matter, does it? What matters is that they know they'll have to get through me to get to you. That's what they need to think about."
I seriously need a map of all the cultures/cities....
That would set up a really *interesting* scenario, if you think about it... Ozai as the Phoenix Lord is busy roasting 1/3 of the Earth Kingdom (let's face it, there's a lot of land to roast), but meanwhile a coup has occurred back home. The heir he left in charge isn't in charge, the other one is. But the war doesn't end.
Iroh: Re-taking Ba Sing Se, securing it for rebel EK forces & the White Lotus.
Ozai: Has control of the bulk FN army, has some airships which survived the gaang's sabotage, is laying waste to the EK landscape. He has an army, but is cut off from the FN and its support.
Zuko: Has control of the capitol, has control of the domestic military forces, is claiming the crown of Fire Lord. May have to defend the city against Ozai's forces.
That's THREE people from the royal family, all with "armies" of their own, all out in force. DUELING! Except, of course, that Iroh and Zuko are allied. But Ozai has most of the military power, right? All the forces still in the colonies and outposts like Omashu are under his control (except those in Ba Sing Se who now are under Iroh's control). In the Fire Nation, all the remaining forces and cities are in a state of flux--some swear loyalty to Zuko immediately, some refuse and swear to the Phoenix Lord instead. The generals split and choose sides, taking their armies & navy[s] with them.
It's freaking CIVIL WAR. How fun would that be to see play out? My brain adores the idea of 3 "princes" of the FN battling across the Earth Kingdom, each with their own armies and spying and traitors and military coups and broken loyalties and such. Meanwhile the EK and WT are like "Must you use OUR LAND to battle out YOUR FUCKING FAMILY PROBLEMS?" The world has become the royal family's chess board, just like Sozin wanted.
And for the others...
Katara: Zuko's new trusted lieutenant; after she gets word that Aang is dead, she is heartbroken, but decides to focus on the problem in front of her: helping Zuko take control of the city and rally the people to fight the Phoenix Lord. Zuko cannot do it alone, and with Iroh in the EK, she is all that Zuko has to rely on. They put Azula in prison. Zuko helps her deal with her grief, and she helps him deal with the clusterfuck that is his country. Her assistance and loyalty to him is very, very visible.
Sokka, Suki, and Toph: They succeed in destroying some of the fleet, but they witness Aang's death. They can't save his body, but they escape and head for Ba Sing Se on a distraught and near-suicidal Appa. Sokka becomes the person Appa relies on, the only one he'll listen to. [Appa *was* with them, right? Who had Appa during the final battle?] They hope to meet the White Lotus and Iroh in BSS and regroup, and plan for the coming civil war.
Mai & Ty Lee: Mai's uncle releases them when he gets news that Zuko has claimed power, and Ty Lee demands that the Kyoshi Warriors be released as well. As a group, they make their way toward the FN capitol. Along the way, they recruit for Zuko's forces, and gather information about the loyalties of the cities and towns. Mai and Ty Lee become closer. Mai gradually realizes that if the war ends, then Tom Tom won't be force into battle when he grows up, and he won't be at risk for dying young. If Tom Tom lives to become heir to their family's wealth, Mai will be free from her mother's control, and won't be forced to marry and have children. Tom Tom will be her freedom.
Hakoda & Co.: Heads to what remains of the Water Tribes, bringing news that the FN is about to have a civil war which could do even MORE damage to the surrounding nations, and that the WT must support Fire Lord Zuko if anyone's going to come out of it alive.
"There witnesses to our fight with Azula, you know that. Those old women--"
"My great-aunts."
"And others too. They keep talking about how you took Azula's lightning for me. They're saying--"
"It doesn't matter."
"But they think--"
"Katara, look at me. Look at me. It doesn't matter what they say. It doesn't matter what they think. What matters is that they recognize my claim, and that they all know beyond any doubt that you're here to support me. They will respect your power; they know that you healed me, and that you were my champion against Azula."
"Zuko..."
"I can't do this by myself, Katara. You helped Aang, before. Please...help me, too. Help us."
"I will help you."
"Thank you."
"It doesn't bother you, what they could be saying?"
'I put it out of my mind. If they want to see...I'm sorry, Katara. It must make you uncomfortable. I know that with--I know it's not easy to hear something like that right now. But I can't let myself think about it, because it doesn't change anything."
"You're right, Zuko. It doesn't matter, does it? What matters is that they know they'll have to get through me to get to you. That's what they need to think about."
I seriously need a map of all the cultures/cities....
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Re: painted lady?
Date: 2009-03-04 05:28 am (UTC)Re: painted lady?
Date: 2009-03-04 06:31 am (UTC)Very good point. Ah, how those children don't return to the nest. ^_^
"I don't believe in the sun"
Date: 2009-03-04 07:06 am (UTC)I've thought so too, and honestly a lot of Zutara fans have written her that way, but a lot have also had her just turn into a wife and baby factory. I'm rapidly warming to the idea of Zuko giving her a job within the government, though. Something militant and executive in nature, that ties her to the FN directly as opposed to her being a WT diplomat.
Ah, how those children don't return to the nest.
Nearly every fic I've read has had one or both going back. But maybe they can't, won't, don't want to anymore. Especially if Aang's dead. Sokka and Katara have both had these huge life-changing experiences, and met people they loved as friends and more. And now the SWT is too small for them. The world is their stage, and they'd never be happy again with tiny lives. Katara, especially, is too adventuresome and too ambitious for that. She was the first to volunteer to leave with Aang, after all. She loves her home but there's nothing there for her now except everything she left behind.
And Sokka... Sokka would go to the Earth Kingdom. For Suki, or for Toph, or for himself. He loves the cities, he loves the weather, he loves watching Earth Rumble competitions. He loves the roads, the trees, the intellectualism, and the food. Sokka isn't like Katara, stifled and screaming for a new quest to keep the pain away. Sokka can go home again, but spirits forgive him, he doesn't want to. Half his heart is crying for not being the tribe leader his father wanted him to be, but oh spirits--half of his heart is free. And he'll take that.
Re: "I don't believe in the sun"
Date: 2009-03-04 08:24 am (UTC)Speaking non-fic specifically, I agree that both Sokka and Katara have grown too much to be happy long term in the South Pole. I seem them both going back, probably multiple times, give that it's their home and they DO have some family there, and I imagine both of them would need some time to wrap their heads around the idea that it WASN'T home anymore.