Zuko Staying Up All Night Outside Katara's Tent Is Genuinely One Of The Tenderest Moments In The Whole

zuko staying up all night outside katara's tent is genuinely one of the tenderest moments in the whole show to me because it's so clear that zuko didn't have to do that. whenever we've seen zuko do this before it's usually for a purpose (hunting aang), out of necessity (catching sokka sneaking off to boiling rock so he didn't go into danger by himself), or because someone he loved was in danger (iroh being injured by azula's lightning).

with katara, there's no such urgency. there's nothing stopping zuko from getting a good night's sleep and finding katara the next morning to tell her about the southern raiders. it would hardly have delayed the trip by more than an hour or two, if that. it's likely zuko would've woken up before katara anyway (mr. rise with the sun after all) so he probably could've met her at the same time he did in the show without having to lose sleep and wait outside her tent.

but he doesn't, because he knows that katara would want to know about the southern raiders right away -- that this is information given already six years too late, and which he has no right to keep from her for even a second longer than he has to. i think too that zuko saw some part of himself in katara here; the little boy who ran to find the person responsible for his mother's disappearance the moment he learned she was gone and the teenager who had to live an almost equal amount of time never knowing for sure who had taken her away and why, would surely relate better than anyone to katara's desire for closure, for answers so long denied.

(which is also why i can't take it seriously when people paint zuko's actions in this episode as self-serving. of course he wants to earn her forgiveness -- which, by the way, he should want-- but not once does zuko let his desires take precedence over katara's. if he was going to do that, he would probably have started by not pulling an all-nighter on an uncomfortable ass rock for no logical reason.)

so he stays. he waits. he puts his needs second to hers -- as he will do for the rest of the episode, as he will do when he leaps in front of lightning for her -- not only because he cares enough to try, to figure out what she needs, but because he understands her.

and if that's not love, idk what is.

More Posts from Bi-babe-y and Others

bi-babe-y

1 year ago

“the live action watered down katara’s character!” yeah and so did the comics and the legend of korra but i don’t remember seeing yall complain about that. or is it only bad when bryke aren’t the ones doing it?

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bi-babe-y

4 years ago

so glad i outgrew some people

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bi-babe-y

1 year ago

Thinkin about how Kya lied to protect Katara from Yon Rha. Took her place. And how Katara watched her die because of it

Thinkin about Katara and Zuko bonding over the loss of their mothers at the hands of the fire nation. About how Zuko, more than anyone else, more than Sokka, even, saw how deeply Katara was affected by her mother's death. How he understood- how he even thought to try to understand, unlike others- what Katara needed. How he didn't scold her, or reject her, and instead did everything in his power to support her and help her find closure, in whatever way she needed.

Thinkin about how Katara witnessed Zuko jump in front of a lightning bolt that was meant for her. Protected her. Was willing to die to save her. Another person Katara cared for, willing to sacrifice themself in order for her to live.

But this time Katara was powerful. This time, she was able to take down a firebender at the height of their power and save the person she cared for.

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bi-babe-y

1 year ago

say what you want about bridgerton I know it's not a Good Show or whatever but nicola coughlan insisting on being 'as naked as possible' in this series as a 'fuck you' to everyone saying she's too fat to be a romantic lead and because 'when I'm 60 I wanna watch it and remember how fucking hot I was' is ICONIC BEHAVIOR

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bi-babe-y

1 year ago

the circle of life

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bi-babe-y

4 years ago

my mom says she’s not a hugger. but when i put my arms around her on a gloomy day or after bad news she’s the last to let go. my dad says he doesn’t want gifts on his birthday, but i see the way his face light up when i get him a card with a nice message and a box full of chocolate anyway. he’s just a kid inside, still. it makes him giddy. my brother never says i love you. but when i tell him “i just need to finish the dishes before i vacuum!” he wordlessly goes to vacuum the entire house before i can, and if he sees me struggle with a wrapper or a jar or a bottle he mutters ‘c’mere’ and opens it for me without even sparing me a glance. the thing is, people love you quietly, and you love them quietly, and the air is buzzing with tiny but grand gestures & once you look for them, you find them everywhere. i think that’s really beautiful.

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bi-babe-y

3 years ago

I haven’t seen anyone talk about this, but why is no one talking about the casual racism from Hope when she assumed Adam was Jackson?

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bi-babe-y

3 years ago

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bi-babe-y

3 years ago

sorry but in WHAT world would a hall full of british teenagers think their new headteacher was cool because she danced across the stage like theresa may? everyone would eat her alive

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bi-babe-y

4 years ago