Katara wakes up with a case of bed hair (one has to wonder what happened to her spa makeover), and reeling from the side-effects of over-indulging in sake. As Katara struggles with her hair, she observes that she is Not a Morning Person. Zuko barely suppresses his laughter at the sight of her.
Katara is looking for Sokka and Suki, who already went to the hot spring. Zuko declines her request to go get them, but offers her something to drink.
Zuko believes that Sokka and Suki are having "alone time," and with Aang unaccounted for (in spite of what Katara believes is Zuko's knack for finding the Avatar), Toph is the only one in the house. With only the six Gaang members to keep track of, the cast does seem a bit more manageable than it was for much of Stalking Zuko. Katara notes that Aang couldn't possibly help her, and she'll look ridiculous for the rest of the day.
Zuko offers to help, but concedes that he doesn't know much about hair. Katara, however, is desperate enough to reluctantly take his help. Zuko starts by trying to remove the flowers from Katara's hair, in spite of her still not being awake. Katara enjoys the opportunity to just be together with Zuko, hearing his voice and sharing their opinions. Katara then takes the opportunity to ask about the crystals in the cave. Zuko, missing the point, asks if Katara didn't like it. Katara did like it, as the birthday was the first in which she wasn't grieving for her mother, but realizes that setting up the crystals took a lot of effort. Zuko says it was "worth it"(a phrase that reminds me of the Shepard/Tali romance from Mass Effect), and that he remembers Katara going on and on about the Cave of Two Lovers and the hope giving crystals at the Western Air Temple. Zuko and Katara have another moment with "possibility and indecision in equal measure."
Zuko changes the subject, and mentions that the Tale of Oma and Shu is a folk tale in the Fire Nation, but he had never realized that it was true. Katara says it's a love story, not a tragedy. Zuko says that Oma had killed many people after her boyfriend was killed, but Katara says it's a story about how The Power of Love can overcome odds. Zuko fairly cynically snorts (which seems more in character than Katara thinks), saying that even if Oma stopped the war and established a city, the guy she loves is dead. Katara doesn't like Zuko's analysis, but he clarifies that he doesn't like the idea of that being considered a happy ending, since it hits too close to home. When his cousin Lu Ten died, Lu Ten's girlfriend went insane, publicly denounced the war, was conscripted into the war instead of imprisoned(one would think she'd be executed for treason), and died in "a colonial dispute."
Katara doesn't know what to say to this, but notices that Zukko is blushing brightly, apparently thinking he "revealed too much" and ruined the legend of Oma and Shu for Katara. Katara is grateful that he's telling her things, and as he finishes removing the last flower, strokes Katara's cheek.
The moment is interrupted by Sokka bursting in and asking for lunch for him and Suki, much to Katara's annoyance. Sokka then gets into the birthday leftovers, most of which are for him.
As Zuko looks for Aang, Katara gets her hair to a presentable state and tries out Toph's lockpicks.
Aang returns, in a "funny mood," and asks Katara to go into town with him for supplies, a request she accepts. Sokka wants to go into the bookstore, and get books that the library doesn't have, as well as replace ones that he lost on the Day of the Black Sun, getting gold coins (It's hard to tell whether they're going for the Cheap Gold Coins trope or if books are expensive in the Avatar universe, which may not have a Gutenberg style printing press). Suki goes along to "supervise" Sokka, and possibly make out with him.
Aang evidently isn't happy with this, so Katara takes him out for an ice cream and to have a friendly chat. Aang points out that he and Katara have had few opportunities to meet and talk as a pair, but Katara points out that he met her and Sokka together, and he tended to butt into their alone time. Aang misses his waterbending training, and while Katara thinks his time would be better spent training in earthbending or firebending, where he still needs improvement, she can indulge him with a waterbending session.
Aang seems to have a fairly accurate analysis of the situation; the author hasn't given him much time with Katara since Zuko's arrival. However, he seems to be taking this overly personally, which makes me wonder how he'll react to Zuko's final victory.
Katara finds Zuko and Toph occupied, with Zuko teaching Toph "brave soldier boy" on the tsungi horn. They had planned on teaching Aang for three hours each in their respective elements, but reluctantly give Katara a share of that. Katara and Aang practice octopus forms and do iceboard surfing, which Katara believes is only geographically possible in the Fire Nation, with the poles too cold and the Earth Kingdom beaches too rocky, even if there aren't any other waterbenders around. Aang wins by getting the most air, and is in a better mood.
Katara hands Aang over to Zuko and overhears a "most ridiculous conversation" about feelings. Zuko, unwilling to waste any of his two hours (and probably to talk about feelings at all given the kind of person he is), reluctantly accedes to Aang's request. Aang asks about love, then more specifically asks what makes a couple's love special. Zuko's hesitant to describe how being in a couple is like.
Aang asks Zuko if he likes Mai, a question that Katara wants to ask but is hesitant to (since she's Mai's love rival, so to speak). Zuko, after trying in vain to change the subject, says that he doesn't think he ever did.
Zuko says love is about loving the other person as they are, and that he had wanted Mai to change, becoming more emotional and opening up to him more. That's a valid interpretation of love, but perhaps one can look at this another way. Mai's personality is implied to largely be the result of her father forcing her to be a Proper Lady for his family's own social climbing. As such, Mai's personality can be considered as being imposed on her, rather than being who she is. It's also something of a stretch to say that Zuko asking Mai to be more expressive is asking her to change; rather, it should be considered to show more of who she is, like she did in her outburst in "The Beach".
Zuko suggests that Aang talk to Sokka and Suki about this, apparently upsetting him by doing so. Aang is disappointed, having learned a lot from Iroh at Ba Sing Se (the association of the two is upsetting for Zuko, reminding him of how he betrayed Iroh). Shamed into being more forthcoming, Zuko, in one of the few bits of dialogue so far that is recorded verbatim, says that love can be painful, especially if it's unrequited or the object of your affection dies or goes away. Aang is a bit surprised that Zuko is scared of anything, and Zuko insists that they get back to practice. In spite of that, Katara can't stop thinking about it.
Katara takes a nap. After Aang finishes his two hours with Toph, he seeks out Sokka, and the two end up under Katara's balcony (a bit reminiscent of Sokka and Toph's talk in "The Runaway", only with Katara above, rather than below, those having the conversation.) Sokka then gives various versions of "the birds and the bees" to Aang, causing Katara to conclude that Suki should give The Talk to their kids.
Sokka then apparently wonders if Aang is sometimes having A Date with Rosie Palms, (which he calls "penguin sledding") and reassures him that it's natural. Aang not understanding all of this, says that he went penguin sledding with Katara (all the way back in the very first episode, and more than that, as soon as he got out of the iceberg.) Sokka is shocked to hear that.
An argument ensues between Sokka and Zuko, over who has to explain "penguin sledding" to Aang; Sokka tried and failed, but Zuko has had enough of embarrassing conversations. They have a noogie-off, much to Toph's chagrin.
Suki finds Aang, who tells him about all the "penguin sledding," Sokka mentioned. Suki asks if Aang's referring to love or making love, and Aang mentions that he wants to know about love vs. romantic love. Suki actually gives a good talk about sex that isn't innuendo-laden, but much to her and Katara's surprise, Aang already knows about sex, if not its relationship to love. Suki says that only couples have sex; disregarding the many cases in which this is not the case, Aang says that doesn't necessarily apply with the Air Nomads, where at certain festivals, male monks have sex with female monks, and nine months later, babies are born.
Suki explains that in other cultures, sex is what people in love do, and essentially says that's why the Sex Equals Love trope exists. Suki concludes by saying love is a mixture of feelings, something Aang will recognize when he's ready.
Another author's note follows. The author mentions basing Katara's bad hair day on a pirate party when she had too much to drink, and got her costume's feathers in her hair.
The author points out that in spite of Katara not being aware of her attraction to Zuko, she is drawn to him, and communicates quite well with him, unlike in his relationship with Mai.
The author points out that one problem she has with Maiko is Zuko and Mai's mutual desire for the other party to change. For Zuko regarding Mai, I said my piece a few paragraphs above. For Mai regarding Zuko, Zuko does change a lot over time, and mostly for the better. It's understandable that as Zuko is dissatisfied with his life in the Fire Nation after seemingly killing the Avatar, Mai would hope that he would have an epiphany of some sort.
The author asks if she is going out on a limb by calling the story of Oma and Shu, as well as the Someone to Remember Him By trope more sad than romantic, due to being more about the idea of love than its reality and I say no. One would think that the heroes would deserve to be able to spend their lives together, raising a family, sharing memories and growing old together, before being parted by death.
The author also hopes that Zuko's reasons for not finding the ending a happy one aren't "too out of left field" for our tastes- again, my answer is no. The author describes Lu Ten as a mini Iroh, in that he's a bit of a flirt, and wins himself a lady friend in the process. Said girlfriend would have turned against the war as a result, not unlike how Iroh came to oppose the Fire Nation, and Iroh couldn't have helped his potential daughter in law when he was also beside himself with grief. Zuko thus realizes that loving someone is a great risk.
The author hopes Aang didn't come off as rude in asking Zuko about this- again, my answer is no. Aang is merely inquisitive and persistent, willing to ask stuff without worrying about the consequences, which seems like a good explanation of his behavior in this scene. By contrast, Zuko is more guarded with his emotions, and only feels comfortable talking about them with Katara. Zuko has some idea of how Aang feels about Katara, as well as the fact that she doesn't love him back, and tries to gently dissuade Aang.
Aang is naturally curious about romantic love, which is not something the Buddhist-like Air Nomads necessarily encourage. I've noticed people tend to like to interpret Air Nomad culture their own ways (which is understandable for fanfiction), but also that they like to use such bits as evidence for or against their Aang pairings (which can potentially amount to creating evidence in their favor).
The author points out that Aang noticed Katara's sexyness on her birthday, (although it seems Katara didn't quite notice that he noticed, since she didn't say anything about it). He also believes that the crystals are significant to Katara because it's where he and Katara almost kissed(Katara's VA says so; it's not quite Word of God, but what she says is more likely to be canon than what a fanfic writer says). As such, he, believes he and Katara have a shot, but wants to confirm whether he's in love.
He goes to Zuko first, because of his relationship with Mai. Not only does this mean that he knows Zuko has been in a relationship, but he also wants to remind Zuko about Mai, so that he'll get back with her and leave Katara to him. This is an interesting application of the Ship Mates theory, as well as a discussion of the first step I mentioned back at the beginning of this law; I haven't seen characters actively consider pairing off a romantic rival with someone else, or at least haven't seen the tactic as discussed as openly as it is here.
Aang's conversation with Sokka doesn't go as well, because Sokka's still in the aforementioned flush and has sex on his brain, thus leading Sokka to assume that Aang's asking about sex before passing the buck.
Suki's the natural choice, as someone who's 1)down to earth and sensible, 2)the leader of a band of teenage warriors, and 3)someone the author wants to incorporate into the plot more. All of these are naturally good reasons for her to be the one to do this.
In their conversation, Aang demonstrates his belief that love and sex don't necessarily go together, and the author says that a problem she has with Kataang is that Katara is "miles ahead" of Aang in the sexual knowledge department. Like I said with Aang and Katara's "maternal" relationship, I suspect Zuko's several miles ahead of Katara as well. The difference between Zuko (who may well have actually had sex with Mai) and Katara is most likely at least as large as the difference between Aang and Katara (who probably has hormones but doesn't know how to act on them yet).
The author says that sex for Air Nomads is "a means to an end," and not associated with romantic love, hence Aang's confusion about them.
With every Author's note like this, I feel more and more sorry for Aang. The author goes into more and more detail about how Aang's in love with Katara, who doesn't notice and will never return his feelings. The entire thing comes off as almost like a Netorare story.
The misunderstandings will continue in the next chapter, Zuko will get worried, Suki and Katara will have "a perplexing conversation," and Sokka will owe Suki money.
What I liked
- Differing interpretations on Oma and Shu's story.
- Suki being the one to give Aang the successful talk about sex.
What I didn't like
- Aang seemed too needy in this chapter.
- Suggesting that Zuko is forcing Mai to change by making her be more expressive.
- Suggesting that Aang is too sexually immature for Katara
- Assumptions about Air Nomad culture that served to support the author's views about Kataang.
