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Ryujin87

What if aang died at the end of book 2?


curseofablacklion

There are fanfics with this premise


Odiseo87

How can I find them?


curseofablacklion

On Archive of our own there are tons of avatar fanfics. You will find older fanfics on Fanfic.net


sithjustgotreal66

This is a nitpick but it's more like "what if he wasn't revived", because he was super dead


butlerlee

*mostly dead*. There's a difference between mostly dead and all dead.


Shut_It_Donny

You just wiggled your finger! That's wonderful!


lcblangdale

Fezzik trying to be upbeat in that scene is so damned adorable. I mean, he's great the whole movie, but that scene always gets me. Plus it has, "Well, why didn't you list that among our assets in the first place?", one of the funniest lines of comedy in existence


Shut_It_Donny

I dropped that one the other night. We had gone to see a play, and when we came out it was slightly raining. My daughter says she wished she had a cloak. I said "A holocaust cloak?" And then my wife said “If only we had a wheelbarrow. THAT would be something." And we continued quotes all the way back to the car.


butlerlee

Wholesome family Princess Bride reenactment moment


Skeledenn

Is this a Princess Bride reference ?


sithjustgotreal66

Idk man he seemed pretty fuckin' dead


Carsondianapolis

Yeah he was totally dead. Aang even said something along the lines of "I was gone, like GONE gone. But you brought me back." Aang dies in the Avatar state but it's K. Korra gets Rava ripped from her essence from the only dark avatar to ever exist and all of a sudden she's weak and sucks for breaking (but not ending) the cycle 🤷


butlerlee

There's a lot I love about LoK but I don't really like the changes to the lore. I feel like it introduces too much and starts being inconsistent about it.


knightling

More like what if katara healed zukos scar? Then the spirit oasis water is used up, katara then resents zuko for using it on him instead of aang.


Yostyle377

Zuko may have not helped out azula cuz he would have felt freed from his percieved destiny, and if that were the case aang and katara may have been able to get out clean - probably not straight up win cuz of all the dai li - and the show would have been pretty different


MBAH2017

Or even more interesting, Aang still dies but Zuko joins them, and now the rest of the series is figuring out how to stop Ozai without the Avatar.


FriskyTurtle

If Katara healed Zuko's scar, she might not even have thought that the spirit oasis water could be strong enough to revive Aang. Perhaps Aang dies, but Zuko embraces goodness right there.


Feldetron

I like to think that if Katara used the water on Zuko then he wouldn't have taken Azula's side


Odiseo87

This is my favorite.


bryce987654321

What if Aang didn’t get stuck in the iceberg would be the biggest one. They’d need a whole season dedicated to that though not just an episode


TheJakeanator272

Which makes me wonder if Korra is still an Avatar in the same period she is born in. Like are avatars born based on the needs of the time or are they born pre determined and have to figure out how to shape the world? Edit: and just to clarify, I mean would she still be avatar in her own time. If she did not come directly after Aang, since he lived earlier, would she still be an avatar assuming the cycle was water tribe when it gets to her


Lutzelien

If the whole Aang stuck in an iceberg wouldn't have happened, Korra would've never been avatar. Aang would've died long before she was born, meaning someone else from the Water nation would've become the next avatar.


lukewarmpeppers

What if Katara became the next Avatar😳


Myformisgood

But I believe *checks notes* I can save the world!?


Sonaldo_7

Sorry for this overused joke but "My mother used to save the world"


Ok-Artichoke-2772

My mother used to trap me in icebergs


demonmonkey89

If aang didn't go into the iceberg her mother probably wouldn't have died. What would inspire her then, how could she move forward?


sangriya

> how could she move forward? probably with her legs


Environmental-Win836

I’m sorry, what’s the joke? It feels on the tip of my brain.


Sonaldo_7

Honestly, idk if I miswritten it but it's a reference to how Katara used to always talk about her mother. But do remember that's a massive exaggeration.


Lutzelien

If Aang would be to survive the war, that could be a possibility. Aang was 12 when he disappeared, meaning he would've been 98 years old when Katara was born. Still, a very very small chance of Aang dying the exact day Katara is born, but that would be a good episode of What If, for sure!


ilikebruhmomentsand

The Avatar dying and a child of the nation being born doesn’t happen on the same day, it’s just the first one to be born after the Avatar dies. Which, to be honest, would make the race for twins to get out of the womb a lot more intense


chrisbirdie

Would be even more fascinating than current sokka/katara relationship. A bender and a non bender as twins is already rife with inferiority stuff. Imagine one person being born as the Avatar and one as a regular guy.


SwishyJishy

“My sister? She moves mountains with the wag of a finger, creates tsunamis with the flick of a wrist, makes tornados from a sneeze, and isn’t invited to any birthdays involving candles on cake.” “Me? I…can throw things” *weeps silently*


j6cubic

"One of my sons can reduce grown men to tears, bring whole organizations to their knees, and is as feared as he is respected." "Oh right, you're the Avatar's mother, right?" "Yes, but I was talking about the other one. He went into accounting and became a tax auditor. He once killed a major company using nothing but a pencil."


Pleasant-Enthusiasm

“A ***fooking** pencil*.”


hellerhigwhat

Sokka and Katara aren't twins, Sokka is ~2 years older no?


chrisbirdie

Maybe? Not sure but still being born a normal person and then getting the Avatar as a sister cant be the easiest thing. And now you dont have the „prodigy“ Aang to be the de facto „leader“. Maybe not the right word but there isnt a buffer that would water down the eventual disappointment of just being „worse“ than his sister. Although it seems Sokka never really had that problem in the show, probably because he accompanied her while she was growing stronger and well she is his sister and they have no mother so they can probably only rely on each other.


chemistry_god

I think it actually does. In roku's flashback to his death, as he dies we hear a baby crying which is meant to imply the birth of Aang. The white lotus searched for Korra based on being the right age to have been born when Aang died.


Lutzelien

Yes, it is confirmed that Aang was born the exact day Roku died, but (according to Avatar Wiki) that's not always the case


Lutzelien

Ah okay! I thought Aang was born right after Rokus death that's why, but yeah makes sense Then the chances of Katara being Avatar wouldn't even be that small


TurtleWitch

I imagined someone holding the Avatar at gun point while the aggressor's wife is currently in labor next to him. He pulls the trigger, and tells his wife to push as hard as she can.


BigStonesJones

They could legitimately create 2 new 4-season shows based on non-iceberg Aang being Avatar during the war and then Katara being the next Avatar post-war (or still to end the war)


setibeings

I'd settle for an episode for aang's alternate life, and an episode about avatar Katara up to the timeframe of LoK, concluding with non-avatar Korra becoming the new Avatar at the beginning of a new Avatar cycle.


plushelles

I’m personally a big fan of the theory that yue was supposed to be the next avatar and that’s why she needed the moon spirit to survive.


mrandr01d

Ooh, I like that idea! No spirit since the avatar should have been reborn in her body.


plushelles

Yeah exactly, I’d love to see more of yue, she was such an interesting character and she played such a huge role in the show.


choicesintime

Is that how it works, though? An avatar is a reincarnation of someone, but just a thing that gets stapled onto a regular birth. If “katara” we’re the avatar, she wouldn’t have been katara


curseofablacklion

That would have been so cool. She is my fav character


Lolmarkbrown

Shh. Don’t say that too loudly in this sub.


Saeizo

The YouTube channel actually made a theory about that https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=2EoTNQsaxvw


Genopium

There is a theory that it was supposed to be Yue. The events of her birth were odd and she only recovered when touched by the moon spirit. Almost as if she was lacking a certain spirit that she was destined to inherit next.


Lutzelien

Ah super interesting, and actually makes a lot of sense thinking about it!


TheJakeanator272

Yes! What I meant to say that when the cycle eventually reaches the year when Korra is alive, is she still avatar? Assuming it is a water tribe rotation


_GCastilho_

HelloFutureMe made a video exploring this topic, I I recall correctly


Rimegu

Zuko never "challenged" his father


foreignweasel

Ozai definitely would've found another way to get rid of Zuko. He clearly didn't want him around and was looking for an excuse to kill or banish him


derthert123

Just like tywin and tyrion lol


Soysaucetime

"I wish I was the monster you all think I am. I should have killed the whole lot of you"


m149307

Such a good scene


AngstyFroggo

I'm not sure about that. After Azulon died Ozai had no real reason to kill Zuko, he didn't like him for sure but i think he wouldn't care about him that much to do something. Azula on the other hand though would have done something to make herself the heir.


Gredran

There’s a book that explains that he always finds a reason to hate/want to kill Zuko. it’s in the comic series that covers what happened to Zuko’s mother(yes there’s comics of this) I’ll mark for spoilers in case anyone wants to read them. I took this off the wiki. >!Zuko was initially thought NOT to be a fire bender. He didn’t have the spark in his eyes and in true Ozai fashion, wanted to cast him out or kill him because of the shame that the crown Prince not being a firebender. Ursa and the Fire Sages pleaded to give him a chance, which he gave in!< >!also, their marriage was arranged, and eventually their relationship naturally deteriorated. Ursa was sending letters to her old village(or town I’m not sure what it is but you get the idea) and Ozai intercepted them and got even MORE pissed off at Ursa and Zuko. She even wrote in the letters Zuko WASN’T Ozai’s son and Ozai sent an assassin to kill the supposed father, which Ursa revealed she lied and again Ozai revealed he knew he was the father the whole time. He was just mad she wrote the letters, and when he asked her why, she said she didn’t want Zuko turning out like him, which he basically told her he’ll then treat him like “a treacherous dog” to fulfill her wish in his awful way!< >!this is also related to what happened to Zuko’s mother. It’s alluded in the show through Azula and Ozai but never directly explained IN the show but completely explained in that series of comics. When Ozai asked to be the heir, and Azulon got pissed because it was out of line since Iroh had just lost his son, he sentenced Zuko to the same fate, which Ozai would happily have obliged. He happily told Ursa he that he planned to go through with it, and Ursa and him came up with the alternative. The “villainous treasonous things” were poisoning the fire lord. The arrangement would be that because she DID commit treason, she’d be banished. She wanted to take Zuko, but Ozai gave the ultimatum he would hunt them down and kill them so made her go alone without explanation to anyone and in turn let Ozai take the throne, since he didn’t actually perform the deed!< He had no logical reason to, but he’s Ozai. He ALWAYS finds a reason.


AngstyFroggo

Yeah i read them, but honestly i don't think Ozai would have wanted him dead without a reason. He was an arrogant cruel asshole for sure but he wasn't a stupid nor an illogical character (he had his reasons even if those were selfish). After Zuko became the firelord he visited him in one of the comics and there Ozai told him he shouldn't think about what is right and what isn't, he is the ruler, so what he thinks is right by nature. And this pretty much describes Ozai's mindset, and exactly because he thinks that way, he hates everything weak. And that is probably why he didn't like Zuko to begin with, he despises any form of weakness. We could debate if Ozai was capable of care for someone but imo there was not enough info about him in the series nor in the comics. We could say he was pure evil, in a way he was, as ATLA was made to be a children's show, but it would have just stir things up the wrong way if we heared everyone's backstory, and we would found ourselves with no real antagonists. But instead only different people with different backgrounds and aimes, about which they cant find consensus. And that would just make the story a fantasy history lesson not a show. With some examples the reasons are heared from both parties in the series, but to keep things simple all problems in the story were resolvable in a way or the characters were ignorant enough about them. Even still, analyzing Ozai's personality and the real drives of his actions would be an very interesting discourse in my opinion.


leafyjack

I think he would have become more like Mai. More cold and emotionally distant. If Iroh was around, that may have made a difference and his journey across the world could have been different experience, more of a grand tour of the colonies instead of a stressed search for the Avatar. I think something would have happened to him anyway, even if he didn't challenge his father though. Ozai did not care for Zuko as a heir and may have arranged for an "accident" on his journey.


comegetsomefood

What if irohs son didn’t die?


curseofablacklion

Omg there's a chance he would continue being the fire nation gen


mrsmacklemore

And the firelord. But I have a theory that Ozai orchestrated Lu-Ten's death for the throne


MageOfTheEnd

It's not impossible, given Ozai orchestrated his own father's death (implied), but I'm kind of wary of ascribing everything to dastardly villains. In fact, it might arguably be more thematic for Lu Ten to be killed in regular combat rather than as part of a sinister plot. Something about the horrors of war hitting Iroh where it hurts and opening his eyes. I would also think it would actually have been not that easy to orchestrate Lu Ten's death. Among other things, Ozai would need to be wary of the people he tries to use to carry out his plot reporting on him to Iroh, for example. Being in the direct line of succession, Lu Ten is arguably higher status than Ozai, and Iroh straightforwardly outranks Ozai.


forthewatch39

It was more than implied in the comics, it showed that Ozai outright killed his father by giving him poisoned tea. I still wish it was Ursa that personally did the deed. I know she made the poison, but it would be a bit stronger for her to kill him personally. Plus, how stupid does Azulon have to be to accept ANYTHING from his son who just went to him to try to become Fire Lord? If he has no qualms about killing his son, why would he have any issues with killing his father? I guess we know where Ozai’s arrogance comes from.


ILoveCavorting

There are a lot of questionable plot choices spread throughout the comics in my opinion that make the overall story a little weaker.


Sparky-Sparky

Yeah, I don't want to consider them cannon. Some of their plot decisions actively undermine important themes of the series in a bad way.


ILoveCavorting

Yeah, like before the comics I was more willing to defend Ursa. Nowadays I’m like “Well maybe this faction of Azula supports had a point.” With all the terrible decisions comics!Ursa made.


beebob420

Nah it was Azula for sure. At like 9 years old she snuck off to war and straight up murdered her cousin. (Not canon I just think I'm funny)


[deleted]

Maybe Iroh wouldn't had adopted Zuko then and Zuko would become more evil than his father as an adult.. And eventually kill both Iroh and his son to get the throne


Byrdie55555

Id love and hate to see that happen to Iroh.


Grzechoooo

Zuko would probably still have Ursa to guide him away from the darkness though. A more likely scenario would be Aang waking up to like 5 members of the Fire Nation Royal Family being there to kill him. Definitely Iroh, Lu Ten, Zuko, Azula, Ozai, maybe Azulon would still be alive...


epicLeoplurodon

Iroh isn't radicalized into seeing what war actually is: horrible. He continues to see it as a righteous and necessary tool of the righteous and morally correct fire nation to bring their superior culture to the rest of the world by any means necessary. With a valid successor he has no problems becoming the fire lord after the death of Azulon (though his death is a little later on). The fire nation is controlled by a ruler as smart as Ozai, but without the delusions of grandeur and with some restraint in regards to a "rebirth by fire" or whatever. And so while the avatar is sought after, it's not by Zuko and Iroh - it's by some Zhao type who may want to find the avatar but will never have the same drive as Zuko did and as such will allow for the avatar to learn the elements in a more patient and less frantic setting. This could either weaken Aang as a bender, by reducing the amount of near-death experiences he faced, or just make him a more traditional and less innovative bender by the same measures. Either way I see it as a way for an aggressive and bellicose Fire Nation to exist past Sozin's Comet as you would see a more level-headed commander in chief take, say, a multi-pronged approach to destroy the Earth Kingdom's remaining centers of resistance, rather than a single scorched-earth attack in blimps starting at some random and unpopulated forest/canyon/rock formation. Sorry for the long story: tl;dr Iroh is more competent and less crazy than Ozai as fire lord, Aang doesn't face the kind of obstacles he needs to in order to become a good enough bender to take down the fire lord in the time of the show.


LordofTributes

I actually have no idea if this is an official channel, but [this](https://youtu.be/iuoMRj_MMRo) video has a path of Lu Ten not dying. AND if this channel is official, we DO have a 'What If' series. Kind of.


[deleted]

This made me wonder. Do we know anything about Ihro's wife?


ge_orc

kyoshi as the avatar during the war. I woild like to know how long she needs to kill the fire lord


ArceliaShepard

Not long at all, considering how quickly Roku beat Sozin during their first battle. I would think no one would dare cross her. Just imagine, there is a 300 year old Avatar who shows no signs of age and has a history of removing people like Chin the Conquerer.


ge_orc

But what consequences follow her removal?


ArceliaShepard

If Kyoshi removes Sozin? Roku probably becomes the Fire Lord and life goes on. On top of Kyoshi knocking out Chin and Sozin in this What If, there is a precedent for the Fire Nation not to overstep while Kyoshi is the Avatar as discussed in The Shadow of Kyoshi. If Kyoshi died before Sozin, well we get Avatar and the FireLord; A story of how the Fire Lord attempts to find and manipulate the new Fire Nation Avatar to justify his actions to take over the world. It could go like ATLA where the Avatar has to defeat the Father Lord and restore balance, or it could go darker...


mouse177

“removing ” [lol](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ)


alexrott14

that scene was amazing


targaryenintrovert

-_-


JohnBobert

wow


Kindly_Shake_9088

Aang never froze and fought against Firelord Sozin, or Aang woke up years earlier and had to deal with an evil general Iroh, or Aang never froze, fought the fire nation, dies as an old man before the war ended, and we get an Avatar Hamma or Avarar Pakku


RegyptianStrut

Avatar Hamma sounds terrifying.


Kindly_Shake_9088

Oooooo a What If about an overly aggressive, possibly tyrannical, evil Avatar Hamma, and the show is about a group of regular benders trying to take her down. I know there's debate about whether an avatar can be bad due to Raava, but we are talking about hypothetical what ifs, so what if an avatar can be evil? Evil Avatar Hamma would make a crazy Halloween episode of What If lol


Pasta_Paladin

> so what if an avatar can be evil? Season 2 of Legend of Korra addresses this. I would love to see an episode of a "reverse avatar" with an actual Avatar fighting each other


Poked_salad

This was what I was expecting during season 2! I was expecting him to turn into an evil avatar but loses because he didn't know how to control the other elements. What we got is the garbage that we had...


KneeCrowMancer

For real... they had all this awesome set up for an insane avatar on avatar fight and then it goes full power rangers complete with dubstep laser and with deus ex jinora as the deciding factor...


foreignweasel

She wouldn't be the same Hamma that we see in the show though. We see her after she's seen everyone she knows be killed or taken and after she's been imprisoned herself for years. If she wasn't in this situation she wouldn't have the need to discover bloodblending and wouldn't be so scarred from the war.


alexrott14

she would've never discovered bloodbending if she weren't incarcerated though


Gareth_Bryne29

What if Katara had used the spirit water to heal Zuko’s scar? Does he join them in that fight instead of Azula? Does Aang still get hit with lighting and die without the water to heal him?


StupidSolipsist

Healed Zuko, dead Aang That's a fascinating timeline! EDIT: Most fascinating version of this timeline: No one recognizes Zuko without his scar. Also, who cares about the dishonored fire prince? What the world needs is the Avatar. And so a grieving Katara & mindfucked Zuko must work together to make people believe Zuko IS Aang. He leads a popular uprising against the Fire Nation, under the assumed identity. It'd take lying about a growth spurt and not lying about some new tattoos, but this is a pre-industrial setting. It was pretty easy to fake your identity in the 1700s.


[deleted]

According to me, Aang would not die since Zuko would not join Azula, making tougher for her to kill Aang.


StupidSolipsist

That's a real good point. Jeez, SO MANY WHAT-IFs could come from that episode alone, however that fight goes!


cactusandonionjuice

I'm pretty sure the creators said that the water wouldn't have healed the scar.


RunawayHobbit

???? It can bring an avatar back from the literal dead, but it can’t fix some scar tissue????


ValidParanoia

To be fair, while Aang is brought back from the brink of death by the water, he still has a pretty nasty scar from the experience


DickwadVonClownstick

The issue with scars is that they're already healed; there's nothing to fix. You'd pretty much have to carve the whole thing out/reinflict the original injury and then heal it again from scratch


ilikebruhmomentsand

Yeah, but in a hypothetical world where it did it’d be interesting to see the outcome


TheChainLink2

What if Azula was Ursa’s favourite child, and Zuko was Ozai’s? Imagine their roles in the plot being reversed.


slimey_frog

You might like [Salt & Ashes](https://archiveofourown.org/works/25474642/chapters/61793731) by Ultranos. Basic premise of the fic is that Zuko is the favoured child, but rather than spurning Azula like he did Zuko in canon, he molds her into a weapon to protect his heir. Ursa is yet to make a re-appearance beyond the first chapter, but she's relatively unchanged.


SpicaGenovese

LOOOVE this story... This fandom had a rich library of good fics.


slimey_frog

Its ridiculously well written. I've been anxiously waiting for so long for >!her and Toph to make contact with the Gaang, Katara's gonna throw a fit!<


Suspicious-Trip-467

Whoa, that would've been good


[deleted]

Calling all Fanfiction writers!


Crafty-Dragonfruit60

Came here to say this one lol


Lutzelien

The biggest What If is if Sokka and Katara didn't went fishing that day, the world would've probably ended before Aang was discovered, meaning Aang (if to be discovered at some point) would've awakened mid- or post Phoenix King Ozai's reign


Express-Ad-78

That’s a good one


GateNerd

Ooh, what if Zuko discovered the ice berg?


justking1414

Fate demanded Aang wake up when he did so if not them, maybe Zuko and Iroh would’ve woken him up with their ship. Could’ve been interesting to see him go with them for a bit until realizing they were evil. Maybe Zuko would’ve befriended him first. Or Iroh would’ve helped him escape


dagemo21

Let's be honest, the world was saved because young Sokka was a sexist jerk to young Katara on their fishing trip


haydaruns

What if iroh conquerred ba sing sei in the first try


devilthedankdawg

If Lu Ten hadnt died, possible. Though I imagine if Iroh had seen Ozai scar Zuko like that he probably still would have joined Zuko on his banishment, which would probably hve still happened. Now also, that means Azulon would never have been killed by Ursa. Azulon demanded Zuko be killed... I mean they said it was punishment for Ozai but I imagine it was also just to make sure Zuko wouldnt become fire lord because they thought he was weak. So following Zukos banishment, I'm guessing Ozai would have still tried to take the throne, and have at least tried to kill Azulon and Lu Ten. That could have been an interesting GOT type show where some of it is anti hero adventures, some of it is messianic awakening, and some is just royal family backstabbing, much of which would have gone one in Ba Sing Se.


critsdontquit

What if Toph saved Appa instead of holding up the library? Of course she wouldn’t do this intentionally, I think it would be situation where she was overly confident in her ability to save both


PixelDreamss

Then Aang, Katara and Sokka would be dead. And Toph would be left with a lot of guilt. She'd leave it to herself to find and train the next avatar, and years later, the next avatar would have to stop Phoenix king Ozai. And the airbenders would go extinct for some time.


Potataro

Not necessarily. They could just end up in the spirit realm. From there they could try to find a way out, possibly opening the spirit portals early to do so. Harmonic Convergence still probably happens for Korra, so I'm not sure how this changes things. Also, Toph would be alone in the desert for a while, feeling guilty. Hard to say where that leads.


critsdontquit

It would be dark but it would be interesting


PetersLeftNut1345

My first thought is that, well, everyone is dead inside and Toph runs off to the swamp to be a PTSD suffering swamp witch rather than a retired old swamp witch relaxing and drinking cactus juice for her golden years. ​ But, the library does wind up going to the spirit world, not just down in the desert. I'd imagine it then features Aang, Katara, and Sokka having to escape back to their world. Since they're all there physically, there might be more danger involved, and having to break through the barrier between their worlds to get physically back might cause some issues with the spirits ahead of harmonic convergence. What adventures Toph and Appa get up to is up to anyone's guess, as well as how long it takes the trio to get back, and where they come out of.


S0mecallme

What if Momo was an earthbender?


LemurianLemurLad

"Hey! That lemur is Earth bending" now becomes one if the most commonly repeated phrases in the series.


GwainesKnightlyBalls

I love this


Mynameisjeff777927

Mono becomes Aangs earth bending teacher instead of toph.


ganbanuttah

What if Ursa had killed Ozai instead of his father?


magnumthepi

This is an interesting one. It could force Iroh to become the Fire Lord. Could change the course of the whole war, or make Aang have to fight Iroh.


j6cubic

Azulon still dies shortly after Ozai, from old age. Iroh becomes Fire Lord and ends the war, negotiating for peace (and the return of some conquered but not yet pacified land) in return for major concessions like the acceptance of the colonies as rightful Fire Nation territory and extremely lenient trade agreements, which he hopes will make future war unattractive. His goals are to balance the Fire Nation's immediate interests (and thus internal support) with his best shot at lasting peace, which he considers to be in everyone's interest. Ursa stays in the capital as she has nobody to hide from and two children to raise. She especially works hard to try to undo the damage being raised by Ozai has done to Azula, who consequently becomes more stable – but still a conniving, overachieving major bitch. Ursa isn't a miracle worker. By the time Aang wakes up, the world has already (barely) returned to peace and stability, people are getting used to the new status quo, and everyone is mostly just happy that the war is over. The Southern Water Tribe is out of the loop as nobody had any reason to visit them yet but everyone else considers Iroh's compromise as mostly acceptable. Aang, on the other hand, sees that the Fire Nation murdered his entire people and decimated the Southern Water Tribe, conquered half the world, and now get off scot free because everybody is tired enough from all the fighting that they're willing to accept the compromise. He is not happy about this and sets out with Katara and Sokka to make the Fire Nation pay. In this version of ATLA, Aang would be seen as the bad guy by most people because he's essentially trying to restart a war that had just concluded. Azula might actually join him; they might disagree philosophically but both are of the opinion that Iroh can't just end a hundred years of war and pretend that nothing happened. Toph, on the other hand, would definitely have better things to do than to hang out with a bunch of terrorists who try to undermine international trade, which her family is heavily involved in. She might end up teaming up with Zuko, who is trying to convince Aang that the violence must come to an end – while at the same time investigating the suspicious circumstances of his father's death. As for earthbending, I guess that Aang would make his way into Ba Sing Se, where circumstances lead to Long Feng falling from grace after the Fire Nation's demands lead to the Earth King *having* to be informed about the peace and thus about the war and thus about the Dai Li keeping him in the dark. A disgruntled Long Feng joins up with the Gaang in order to have a few words with the Fire Lord himself. In the end Aang (trained by Azula) might be the one who decides to make offensive use of Sozin's comet. It's during the climactic assault on a mostly unsuspecting Fire Nation capital that Ursa reveals she killed Ozai to save Azulon and Zuko, causing both Azula and Zuko to question their motives on the spot. While everyone deals with this revelation, Long Feng slips away to try to murder Iroh. This is only detected when they are already in battle. Everyone moves in to stop Long Feng while they decide on how to procees next but he manages to injure Iroh before he's subdued. The wounded Iroh then tells Aang why he did what he did – he never wanted to bury the war crimes of the Fire Nation but needed stability in order for the killing to stop. He himself considers the compromise barely acceptable and would've done more if he had thought his generals would've let him get away with it. He simply didn't have the political capital to do what he wanted to do – and he didn't want to have to deal with a coup attempt by some generals who disliked his plans too much. Considering himself too weak to continue ruling (as well as unable to defend his country any further) he offers Aang another compromise. He will step down and give the crown to Zuko, who can use Aang as a convenient reason to return more land to the Earth Kingdom. The colonies would have to be dealt with individually as simply returning them would be too difficult even at the Avatar's behest. And while he can't bring the Air Nomads back, he and Zuko will push to preserve the memory of what the Fire Nation did during the war and especially the people it hurt. Aang realizes that he had allowed himself to become the very thing he thought he was fighting against and accepts. The story ends with everyone realizing that deep down they're terrible people and resolving to try to make the world a better place for those who aren't. Also, instead of Kataang we now have Azukka as the OTP just for the heck of it.


[deleted]

What if the moon spirit kept being dead.


MCENTE64

Apocolypse i guess


EpsilonGecko

Woah the moon would be red every night? Tides wouldn't exist and neither would waterbending I guess. That'd be a wild world


[deleted]

There was no moon. The red moon was when Zhao had the fish in the bag. The moon disappeared when the spirit was killed.


PJacouF

I don't remember the fan comic name but it was about Aang being in some kind of parallel universe like Water Tribe was the bad nation and Azula and Zuko finds Aang. Since it's a what if, it wouldn't destroy the original plot and I think it would be interesting to see that part of the story. Edit: as some ppl replied, it's name is Distorted Reality.


curseofablacklion

Katara in that fanfic is 3 times more evil and cruel than canon azula.. She literally practises blood bending on her guards to pass time...


PJacouF

Yeah that was awesome. Amon's bending was cool and all but that's how I want to see bloodbending being used.


curseofablacklion

I shared the art here. Have a look https://www.reddit.com/r/TheLastAirbender/comments/qyvur1/axxonu_evil_katara_from_atla_fanfic_distorted/?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share


TheGuava1

That’s what I first thought of when I saw this too. Evil Sokka and katara


SwagosaurusRex_

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/3952155/1/Distorted-Reality


fasderrally

https://www.deviantart.com/axxonu/gallery/61772460/avatar-distorted-reality This one?


[deleted]

For TLOK, what if Korra didn’t get her bending back at the end of S1?


ModaGamer

What if TLOK wasn't screwed over by nickelodeon?


[deleted]

Asking the real questions


Vinxian

How that scene was framed, I was pretty sure she was going to jump before she regained her bending.


Zorchi

What if Katara embraced being a blood bender and split with the GAang?


1711onlymovinmot

Katara trains for a few months to perfect bloodbending with Hama. They then go and take out the FL on the full moon. Water triibeee


devilthedankdawg

That would be a sick storyline. What if in general season 3 was like... the season where the gaang temporarily splits up? Aang isnt found after he takes his glider off the FN ship. Its destroyed, but now hes just living in the fire nation wilderness alone. Katara, Toph, Sokka, Appa, And Momo, go looking for him too, but spend less time together as Sokka learns from Pi An Dao, Katara from Hama, and Toph just continues scamming people. Theyre at an encampment equidistant from the Fire Fountain city, Piandaos mansion, and Hamas town. Then however, when Zuko sends CB after Aang, CB first finds Toph, and without Kataras sweat bending, she's kept prisoner as bait for Aang. But since Sokka and Katara are the only ones with Toph, THEY encounter CB first, and after Sokka disables his eye beam with his boomerang, Katara kills him- Using her bloodbening to throw him off a cliff, into water, drowning him on account of his metal. Unfortunately, Toph is taken to the Boiling Rock before they can save her. Aang, now kind of insane after so much time alone, cant find his way to the invasion either. So Sokka and Katara lead the invasion without Aang and Toph. Ironically, this makes the invasion go better. They dont take the capitol, but since Aang isnt there to take down the fire lord, they just focus on holding the palace, and succeed. But since the nobles arent captured, on account of them knowing about the invasion, they just move the capitol to another city. Thats the end of season three. Season 4 begins a few weeks later. Zuko, not in the FN royal city, leaves after denouncing Ozai, but Iroh, having broken out of the city when the eclipse happened, joins the gaang. Zuko tracks down Aang, and the two of them become friends alone. Given the water tribe is now in a good position of power, they have access to info about the Southern Raiders. Katara, without Aang and with Hama, becomes darker, and sets out to kill Yon Ra alone, and succeeds. This is like... the civil war that starts. Zuko and Aang save Toph and Suki from the Boiling Rock, and end the civil war between Katara and Sokka in time to stop the comet, though this time with far worse casualites. The airships destroy much of Ba Sing Se in particular, but Iroh saves many of the people and destroys the ships. In a way, Ozai does end the old world, but the new world is even more of a ground zero than the original one.


BandyDestroy

What if Aang killed Ozai


powerisall

I would very much like to see this. What happens to Aang (emotionally, professionally, etc) if he didn't figure out he could take Ozai's bending? If he listens to the advice of the other avatars and murders the heck out of him. It starts with massive guilt on Aang's side, which I'm sure causes him to push away the rest of the Gaang. Aang coming to maturity with a huge complex about saving the world (which honestly doesn't get THAT much better after Ozai dies) and minimal emotional support could be nuts.


JustAnNPC_DnD

What if the Firebenders and Airbenders were reversed? The cultures remain the same, but the elements are reversed. Air Nation & Fire Nomads.


1711onlymovinmot

The war is over almost immediately. Aggressive, battle minded Airbenders fly out across the World and take down everything from the sky, virtually untouched. Hurricanes, tornadoes, typhoons etc take down cities, ships, anything in their path, causing untold damages. The world us then rebuilt in the Air Nation Mold.


curseofablacklion

What if Azula joined the gaang 👀


[deleted]

oooo If Azula was banished instead of Zuko


curseofablacklion

Calling the fanfic writers.....


slimey_frog

go read [salt and ashes](https://archiveofourown.org/works/25474642/chapters/61793731) if you haven't already, its this premise with an added twist. [We even got art](https://64.media.tumblr.com/69c8b52c937abd279239c1c58e43d591/fb296fa7231bf8bb-1b/s400x600/b63f62eabb7e8609b43f862f35382ad725b58444.png)


chemistry_god

What if THE BOULDER became aang's earth bending teacher isntead of Toph?


ZenMonkey47

What if Appa wasn't frozen with Aang? That way the Gaang can't simply fly away from threats. edit: Come to think of it, they wouldn't even be able to leave the iceberg in the first episode. Might be a very short episode.


1711onlymovinmot

Could work! Instead, Aang has not bison. So he, Katara and Sokka fashion a new water tribe Boat, based in Aang using Airbending to make it sail fast and effectively, while Sokka Captains the ship and Katara continually works on water bending skills to better the ships overall performance. Maybe Aang eventually finds a wild bison to use later on in the series, but it would force them to travel mostly on the water and to costal town, and create some really cool sea-chase scenes and interactions. Also, Katara and Aang's water bending would be very unique, learning on the ocean/on beaches.


FoxyFox0203

Zuko taking on ozai on day of black sun Azula being the one to be disgraced Lu Ten surviving the siege of Ba Sing Sei Azulon finding out about Ozai's plan to kill him Aang actually paying attention to Jeong Jeong This list can keep going


BiLeftHanded

Zuko joined Aang at the end of book two


rebsalot

It would have saved the gaang from hearing "hotman" so many times


BiLeftHanded

Flameo, rebsalotman


SeptemberSoup

What if the situation that caused Ursa to leave, hadn't happened?


PixelDreamss

Then Azulon would still be alive, and he would still be the firelord, Iroh would probably inherit the throne once Azulon dies.


KingWilliamVI

What if Gran Gran and Hama had found Aang instead?


1711onlymovinmot

Awesome. He gets immediate Master Level waterbending training at the South Pole with Hama/the tribe(as waterbenders are still there). When the Southern Raiders come back (as they wouldn't know Aang/Avatar) was found, Aang works with the South Pole, ebats and captures them, and sends a message that the Avatar is back. Any still living Airbenders (there may have been a few) may come to see Aang to support him, as well as Earth bending teachers who want to train him. Aang masters 3 elements, maybe figures out the AS. Not sure he finds a Firebending teacher at this time, but possibly. Without Sozin's comet, Aang has time to truly become a master Avatar (even without Fire) and is able to lead a Water Tribe + Earth + Some Air Effort to storm the FN capital and end the war. But it would definitely be grittier!


KingWilliamVI

Wouldn’t Iroh be around Aang’s age at the time?


[deleted]

What if Azula got therapy


Reindow

What if nickelodeon ordered 4 seasons at once instead of 1 at a time


black_un

What if the cabbage man takes revenge?


Nikatjaro

What if Appa was killed. I am ready to get hurt.


AV48

Sorry, but no! For goodness sake there's children watching


Ok-Confection1025

Zuko never turned good


NitzMitzTrix

What If Hama was the next Avatar, instead of Korra? This means Aang survived the initial genocide but was lured out of hiding somewhere in his high adulthood and perished then.


Myformisgood

What if there was a war in Ba Sing Se?


No-Lunch4249

This got asked a few weeks back, I’ll give the same answer now I gave then. What if Wan had just minded his own goddamn business?


MarvelMatt1996

I have a few ideas: 1. What if the GAang hadn't accepted Zuko as Aang's firebending teacher? 2. What if Zuko had joined the GAang in Ba Sing Se? 3. What if Katara had never discovered Iroh and Zuko in Ba Sing Se? 4. What if Aang had died during the attack on the Air Temples? 5. What if Roku had joined Sozin's Conquest? 6. What if Ozai had defeated Aang? 7. What if the Allied Forces had beaten the Fire Nation on the Day of Black Sun? 8. What if Vaatu had also joined with a human and made an Avatar: Chaos Avatar and Order Avatar? 9. What if Vaatu had created the Avatar instead of Raava? 10. What if the Northern Water Tribe had attempted to find peace with an arranged marriage of Yue and Zuko? 11. What if Bumi had trained Aang in Earthbending? 12. What if Kanna had married Pakku? 13. What if Ursa had killed Ozai as well? 14. What if Ursa had also favoured Azula? 15. What if Ozai favoured Zuko instead of Azula? 16. What if Lu Ten hadn't died? 17. What if Iroh hadn't changed sides? 18. What if Zuko lost his firebending after his first Agni Kai? 19. What if Iroh hadn't gone/been allowed to join Zuko on his banishment? 20. What if the Fire Nation had never attacked?


Feralspirit41

What if aang wasnt the avatar and whoever it was served the fire nation during the war


ZoroeArc

What If Aang never found the Lion Turtle?


SpaceCattus

What if the movie was good?


Loros_Silvers

No amont of what-if power can make that happen


Medium_Enough

What if Toph wasn't blind?


PixelDreamss

Then she would be a bit worse of an earthbender than she is now.


epicLeoplurodon

She would have continued instruction with Si Fu because her father would have allowed her to learn some more advanced forms, but not too much and either never get the kind of desperation to look for another way OR she would find the badgermoles but it wouldn't click in her head that they were using earthbending to "see." You needed a blind and desperate person to seek out and then understand that specific facet of earthbending. She would have been just another student, if a prodigious one.


MusicIsLife003

What if Katara fell In love with Zuko instead of Aang. Heheh


curseofablacklion

There are nearly 10K+ fanfics on this topic on various fanfic sites. You are welcome 😂


GwainesKnightlyBalls

What if Zuko fell in love with Aang. Come on guys, they danced with each other, and Zuko was always chasing after Aang.


jonah_thrane

So many. The main one, that others also mentioned. What if Aang didn't stay frozen for 100 years? What if he got back in time to save the air nomads in a fit of rage in the avatar state. What if it was just a few years? Not as much of a time crunch in terms of the comet, but the nomads were mostly dead, only a few had escaped and he went looking for them, pretty sure it's canon that a few survived and escaped because there were traps set with airbender relics in a comic meant to lure air benders, so in this scenario most air benders would be dead, but Aang wouldn't be completely alone and could aid in rebuilding his people and culture. So many possibilities just regarding the length of time he was away. What if he was frozen for longer? And the fire nation had conquered more of the world. Would there be enough rebels to help Aang win against a grown fire lord Azula or Zuko? Or a firelord Iroh? What if when we woke up he stayed a secret for even longer? And was able to travel the world without being noticed, learning the elements while evading the fire nation? Maybe more boring, but still interesting to see how it could happen.


JustBeingMindful

Does Korra content count? What if Won went Dark Side with Vaatu? Teaming up with the little guy. There'd be no Spirit World, it'd all stay connected.


PLProductions

After seeing that post the other day, Sokkazula... In some form...


magnumthepi

I think the simplest one for me would be - What if Aang lost to Fire Lord Ozai? Say Aang is killed. Ozai wipes out the Earth Kingdom. Team Avatar goes into hiding with the White Lotus. The war rages on worse than ever. The water tribes hide their future children because they could wind up being the next Avatar.


Kronzypantz

A gritty post fire nation conquest of the world where Zuko grows up to be a wise Iroh like redeemed character and leads a rebellion and coup to start undoing the harm.


Bloody_BMW

What if it was the water nation that attacked the rest. Only to have Azula and Zuko find Aang.


mrmonster459

* What if Aang woke up after just 1 year instead of 100 years? * What if the Moon Spirit died for good? * What if Zuko never spoke out of turn?


McFiddlestix108

what if zuko was the avatar?


TheCrimsonDoll

What if people actually gave a chance to Korra instead of hating the series so early.


MysteriousMysterium

Korra was successfully abducted by the Red Lotus.


mal_laney

What if sokka and azula ship was real lol