Ok, this definitely can't be a new Zutara headcanon, but if we suppose that Kanna gave her son her betrothal necklace to gift to Kya when he proposed (kind of Crazy Rich Asians style, but without the prior disapproval), wouldn't it make sense for Katara to gift it to Zuko when they get married? Of course, she might not want to give away the only thing she has left of her mother, so I'd still adore the idea of her carving one for him. I always read fics with Sokka doing it for Suki, and you CANNOT tell me it's only a guy-to-girl thing. You know Zuko's devoted, sentimental butt would wear that necklace literally everywhere. We're talking about the boy who kept his uncle's smelly slipper for no discernible reason other than pure sentiment. The jerk-hole war ministers and advisors gasping scandalously would really just be the cherry on top. Also, Katara would just love it. Claiming a tradition historically reserved for Northern Water Tribe men? Getting the chance to further share her family's traditions/culture with Zuko and the rest of the Fire Nation? Sign her the egg up!
Once Ellie learns what a sleepover is, she regularly bullies Tommy into having them with her (he goes willingly but he makes her work for it nevertheless).
He's not only the cool Uncle tm but also the person she can talk to about stuff she doesn't always want to talk to Joel about, either because it would make him worry a lot or because it would be an incredibly awkward conversation she has no intention of having with him. Tommy knows how to keep a secret and he would never betray Ellie's trust.
They maneuver mattresses onto the living room floor and eat enough sugar to kill a small toddler. Most of the time, their nights consist of Ellie doing weird shit to his hair and painful face masks that she discovers in old magazines, watching movies Joel either deeply dislikes or doesn't want her to watch (trying to protect the last of her innocence, sweet attempt but futile, since nothing of that is left anyway), and gossiping; Tommy is GREAT at gossip.
Joel is a bit jealous that he isn't invited, but when he comes to pick her up in the mornings and sees her curled up with Tommy the exact same way he and Sarah would when he made his brother babysit, the bittersweet surge of affection is worth the comparably lonely night in his bed.
Ellie deserves every bit of family she can get.
Whenever they have the chance, Ellie and Joel get matching clothes, usually sweatshirts.
The best places to find new ones are remote gift shops that haven't been picked over yet, but they will take anything they can get their hands on, starting a small collection. It's not clear who had the idea first, but they both love it more than they're willing to admit for exactly the same reason - it makes them look like a family, and, more specifically, the package deal they are. They don't actively coordinate their outfits, but if one of them wears a shirt they both have, the other one races to change as soon as they see it.
Everyone else finds it fucking adorable, not that anyone except Tommy would actually be brave enough to say it to their faces, but the people in Jackson like Joel and Ellie more than they know; it's the way they look at each other, really, the bubble of fondness surrounding them wherever they go.
Identical shirts pose one problem though, mostly for Joel. When they're scattered around their house, left on the couch or in his bed, slung over a kitchen chair, it's hard to see what size it is. Ellie loves wearing Joel's shirts, glowing with something adorably childlike whenever she does, but Joel cannot wear hers, and he has gotten stuck in them while trying to pull them on in a hurry more than once.
He complains to Tommy about it (with the biggest fucking smile, and his brother cannot for the life of him take his annoyance seriously), but he still comes up with a solution. After collecting all of their matching shirts, he commandeers their living room and stitches their initials where the clothing tag should be (Ellie hates them, they're itchy, so she cut them off). His embroidery is great, he even makes sure to use the right color schemes, and numb fingertips are worth the crushing hug Ellie gives him afterwards.
(She still steals Joel's shirts, just because she can.)
There’s only like half the staff that the palace should have because Ozai and Azusa fired/killed/mutilated/scared off/etc. the rest
So they’re all trying their hardest to do their jobs and their terrified of messing up in case he’s just like the rest of his family
They know he’s friends with the Avatar but you can never really be sure
At first they all stay out of his way
Then, a group of younger maids see Zuko and Aang feeding the turtle-ducks
Aang pushes Zuko into the pond and the maids are sure he’s going to set the boy on fire
But instead he just laughs and checks to made sure none of the turtle-ducks are hurt
A few days later, the cook walks into the meal hall to see how everyone’s meal is going
Instead he sees the Firelord in a heated debate about theatre with Suki while Aang, Katara, Toph and Sokka are in the middle of a food-fight
The cook makes the mistake of squeaking indignantly at the sight of his hard work all over thirteen year-old faces
When Zuko notices him he quiets the other teenagers down and apologises for the mess, the others quickly following his lead
Over time, the sergeants come to realise that the new Firelord is just a regular child
An eccentric child who owns a third of the entire world, but a child
By the time Zuko turns seventeen, the entire staff has warmed to him, even the new employees who had heard rumours about what Zuko’s predecessers did
He’s genuinely kind to them and interested in their lives in a way that they’d never experienced before, especially not from a noble
Eventually it became normal for Zuko to be found in the kitchen teaching servants how to make good quality tea
Zuko also offered hugs to them
Many of them had lost people to the war, and at first he did it as a way to comfort them
He was stiff and had obviously never done it before but the servants loved that he cared about them enough to step out of his comfort zone
He was also warm and very comfortable once he relaxed
The younger, bolder servants took advantage of this by hugging him whenever they could
At first it was when Zuko was alone, then one servant accidentally hugged him when he was in front of the Gaang
Sokka and Toph thought it was hilarious
Katara and Aang joined the hug
Suki comforted the servant after she freaked out and started crying
When Zuko adopted Druk, the entire staff helped raise him
Alright so Zuko doesn’t go running from his ship once he wakes up, but he also doesn’t buy anything he’s being told anymore. So he turns to his crew, explains what’s going on and essentially goes, “So I’m gonna be a pirate now. I’ll fill out all the paperwork for you to be dismissed from the navy and get you guys as close to home as I can.”
Iroh’s shocked, but doesn’t say anything about it and that night the rest of the crew have a big discussion. They all come to the same conclusion and wait for the opportune time.
By the time Zuko’s filled out and sent off the proper paperwork relieving them of duty he’s also cut his hair short. So then he’s about to take the ship as close to the nearest colony as he can to let them go home they all just go… no.
Zuko: What do you mean no?!
Jee: We mean no, you can’t get rid of us.
Zuko: I’m your prince, go!
Jee: Technically you just went and threw your title away after discharging us. We’re civilians of the Fire Nation and you’ve got no title. You can’t make us leave.
Zuko, fuming and nearing screaming: What do you want?!
Jee: Oh, we’re staying. You want to be a pirate? You need a crew. You’re not a prince now, you’re the captain.
Imagine a thirteen year old in charge of a ship full of ex-navy officers turned pirates. Except he’s dangerous as well and no one knows how to deal with him.
And when Aang wakes up? Ooooh boy.
Anyone who tries to tell me that Azula doesn’t end up being the shortest in her family other than Iroh is wrong.
Zuko is taller, Mai is super fucking tall already, Ty Lee gets one of those weird growth spurts at like sixteen (it happened to me I got +2 inches), and Kiyi is eventually taller than Azula too. The entire concept of her being the strongest Firebender ever while she is (conceptually) the smallest is hilarious to me.
Mai: “If you can’t reach it just ask. I’ll get it for you.”
Azula: “Fuck you, I don’t need your help.”
Azula: *starts climbing the library bookshelf to get to the one book she wants all the way at the top*
— — —
Zuko: “I’m taller so I go first.”
Azula: “What does that have to do with anything? No one says that! You’re supposed to say it’s because you’re older.”
Zuko: “Yeah, but I like rubbing it in that I’m better than you at something.”
Azula: “Being tall isn’t a skill.”
Zuko: “That’s what short people say.”
— — —
Kiyi: “I was going to make a joke about you being short but then I figured that would be mean.”
Azula: “You know, sometimes it’s nice to keep your thoughts to yourself.”
— — —
Azula: “Stupid fucking genetics. This is Iroh’s fault.”
Ty Lee: “Technically he had nothing to do with it.”
Azula: “Hush, I need someone to blame for my being small.”
Ty Lee: “If it makes you feel better I love that you’re small so I can give you all the forehead kisses in the world with ease.”
Azula: “That makes me feel a little bit better but just barely.”
Zukka neighbors AU, enemies to lovers 100k+
while it's not the same story i got the idea from @kurisu-80's neighbors AU comic, which i definitely recommend checking out, i think about it a lot
Lolita dress FemHunter :DDD, lolita dresses are so pretty so have a pretty girl with pretty dress :))
Inspired by this dress (Just changed the color and small things uwu)
Princess with an empathic link to her sworn protector but she has severe anxiety so her door keeps getting thrown open and someone in full armor runs in yelling I'LL PROTECT YOU MY LADY, WHERE'S THE DANGER? and she's just got outlook open and there's two (2) emails she needs to reply to
If Zuko did join the Gaang in Ba Sing Se, he's here to cheer on the boy bestie, the homiesexual.