Katara


 * This article is about the character. For other similar uses, see Katara (disambiguation).

"water"

- I will never, ever turn my back on people who need me!

Katara is a waterbending master, born in the Southern Water Tribe to Chief Hakoda and his wife, Kya. During her childhood, she was the only waterbender living in the South Pole. At first she lived a peaceful life with her family, until she lost her mother in a Fire Nation raid. After her father left to battle against the Fire Nation in the Hundred Year War, Katara was raised by her grandmother, Kanna, alongside her older brother Sokka. As a teenager, she and her brother discovered the young Air Nomad Avatar, Aang, who had been frozen in an iceberg with his bison, Appa, for one hundred years. In need of a waterbending master, the siblings and Aang left the South Pole on a journey toward the Northern Water Tribe. Katara and Sokka eventually became close friends with Aang, and after their journey to the North Pole, continued to travel with him across the world as he mastered the remaining elements, earth and fire. The siblings' assistance helped Aang halt the Fire Nation's ambitions of world domination, ending the century-long war, and finally restoring balance to the world.

The murder of Katara's mother, Kya and the later departure of her warrior father, Hakoda, left her feeling traumatized and alone. Though she was cared for by her grandmother, Kanna, she invariably found herself filling the mother role left behind by Kya, even to her own older brother. As was the custom of the Water Tribe for women to see to domestic duties, Katara soon took on many of the responsibilities expected of an adult and quickly became independent and strong willed. Morally and emotionally driven, she developed a great sense of justice and compassion for others, becoming fiercely protective of those in need.

Initially, Katara's waterbending abilities were limited because there was no one to teach her at the South Pole. However, after acquiring a waterbending scroll, and formal training at the North Pole, her determination and hard work allowed her to surpass Aang and completely master the element. She became Aang's waterbending instructor after their departure from the Northern Water Tribe, replacing Master Pakku, who had instructed them during their time there. Her mastery of water made her a formidable asset to the group. After the Hundred Year War ended, Katara and Aang began a close romantic relationship that eventually led to marriage, and raising a family with three children: Bumi, a nonbender who gained the ability to airbend later in life, Kya, a waterbender, and Tenzin, an airbender.

Later in life, Katara became highly regarded as a master healer, said to be the best in the world. After Aang's passing, she became Avatar Korra's waterbending teacher and helped her to recover physically from her ordeal with the Red Lotus.

Early life
Born into the diminished Southern Water Tribe to Hakoda and Kya, Katara faced the reality of her tribe's dwindling strength from an early age. At the time of her birth, forty-five years of repeated Fire Nation invasions intended to capture and imprison the tribe's waterbenders had left them devoid of benders. The tribe's defenses would have crumbled under the might of the Fire Nation; however, because of their relative inaccessibility in the South Pole, and the perception that they were a non-threat, they were mostly left alone. However, when Katara was eight, the Fire Nation again raided the village when charged by Fire Lord Azulon to find and dispose of the last remaining waterbender in the tribe. During the battle, the leader of the raid Yon Rha confronted Katara's mother, who was taking refuge in the family's igloo. Seeking shelter with her mother, Katara ran back to her home and interrupted their exchange. Realizing the intentions of Yon Rha, who had demanded Kya tell him the identity of the waterbender, Kya insisted Katara leave, and gave herself up as the last waterbender, lying to protect her daughter. Katara ran to fetch her father, Hakoda, but by the time they returned, Yon Rha had left and her mother had been killed. The death of their mother had a profound impact on both Katara and Sokka.



With the absence of a mother figure in the family, Katara soon found herself filling the role left behind by Kya. Katara began to take on many of the domestic responsibilities expected of women of the Southern Water Tribe, despite her young age. Several years later, her father Chief Hakoda, left to fight in the Hundred Year War with the rest of the men of the Southern Water Tribe. Katara and Sokka were left in the care of their grandmother, Kanna. Though Kanna loved the two and cared deeply for them, Katara was left feeling traumatized and alone.

Living in a tribe consisting almost entirely of women, children, and elderly, Katara took care of not only her own family, but aided others as well. She developed a protective and motherly personality which she would carry with her for the remainder of her life. Even to her own elder brother, Sokka, she was sometimes seen as a maternal figure. Much later, Katara overheard her brother admitting to being unable to picture his mother, whose image had been replaced by Katara's. Katara displayed deep affection for those she traveled with, as well as being fiercely protective whenever danger threatened their safety. The inner strength she had developed in the absence of parental figures aided her in keeping Aang and their friends together through their most difficult experiences.

Harmony Restoration Movement
As part of the Harmony Restoration Movement, Katara and her friends began moving Fire Nation colonials back to the Fire Nation, starting with the more recent colonial establishments. A year later, when Aang, Katara, and Sokka were assisting in the relocation of a Fire Nation colony led by Mayor Nishi, the team found out that Zuko had withdrawn his support for the movement, so they immediately traveled to Yu Dao, the colony where the Fire Lord was staying. After landing, soldiers ordered Aang to leave.



Once there, Katara and the rest of Team Avatar encountered a protest that included several members of the Freedom Fighters and learned that Zuko was preventing people from entering and exiting Yu Dao, so she and Aang flew over the colony's walls with his glider to meet the Fire Lord. They were, however, confronted by Fire Nation soldiers who prevented them from talking to Zuko, so they had to fight them. After Aang defeated several guards, Katara became enraged when she saw the guards were trying to set her boyfriend on fire and knocked them out. Zuko suddenly grabbed Katara, admonishing her for attacking his "people". Aang, angry at Zuko's action, warned him to let her go, but after he insisted that she had first to agree to stop attacking his people, Aang separated Zuko from Katara with airbending, prompting him to retaliate, causing the airbender to block the attack and enter the Avatar State. But Katara, telling him that he would not be able to control himself in an altered emotional state, managed to calm him down. The Fire Lord agreed to talk and gave the couple a tour of Yu Dao, pointing out how heavily integrated the lives of the citizens were in the colony. At this, Katara proposed a meeting with the Earth King concerning the matter, to which the Avatar and the Fire Lord both agreed.

After leaving Yu Dao, Smellerbee said that Aang had three days to make a compromise before the Freedom Fighters take action. On Appa, Aang thanked Katara for not letting him kill Zuko while in the Avatar State. The group continued to Ba Sing Se in order to inform Earth King Kuei about the colony's situation as Toph explained to Katara what Sokka meant with 'oogies'.

As Katara arrived in Ba Sing Se with Aang, they met two girls, who claimed to be members of the Official Avatar Aang Fan Club, much to the airbender's excitement but Katara's indifference. After learning they were looking for a place to stay, the girls immediately offered their clubhouse. They spent the night and the following morning there as Aang entertained the girls, much to Katara's annoyance and apparent jealousy as she was left out of the party. She reminded Aang that they had to meet with the Earth King, finally getting him to leave the clubhouse. After leaving, Aang thanked Katara for allowing him to spend some time with the girls, as he had felt like he was at home again, but she, feeling guilty because of her attitude, responded that she did not deserve it.



When Aang and Katara went to the Earth Kingdom Royal Palace and met Kuei, they communicated him the news. At the king's final decision of sending troops to attack Yu Dao to solve the conflict, the couple showed their surprise and disagreement, however, they were not able to change the sovereign's mind. Realizing that sending in the army would be seen as a declaration of war, Aang and Katara hurried back toward Yu Dao in an attempt to persuade as many of the Fire Nation colonials there to evacuate.

Upon their return at Yu Dao, Aang attempted to evacuate the city, though they were met with severe resistance from both earth and firebenders. After fighting off their attackers, the couple noticed Smellerbee, Kori, and the Yu Dao branch of the Official Avatar Aang Fan Club, much to Katara's annoyance. However, she came to the fan club's defense when Aang got angry at them for sporting Air Nomad attire, opting that it was probably a mistake. When an angry Aang stormed off, she followed him onto the roof, and comforted him when he verbalized his conflicting opinions about his promise to Zuko, and the separation of the four nations. Offering him her opinion, she reminded him of the words Guru Pathik and Huu told him prior: separation is an illusion, so is the separation of the four nations, who are actually all the same.



Later, when Aang entered the Avatar State to fulfill his promise, Katara calmed him down, and explained that when she saw Kori's family, she saw their future, outing her doubts about what would happen to them as a couple if the four nations would remain separate. Sharing a kiss, she convinced him to find a quiet place to think about it all before jumping to action based on rushed conclusions.

When the battle unfolded, Katara used her waterbending to confront King Kuei and eventually took him into the city to show him the lives he would change were he to persist in his war.

A smiling Katara later witnessed Aang declaring that he would teach the Official Avatar Aang Fan Club the ways of his people, calling them the first Air Acolytes.

Searching for Ursa


Sometime after the battle for Yu Dao, Katara attended a meeting together with her friends and several government officials at the home of the governor of Yu Dao to discuss the future of the city. She was listening attentively to the lecture that an Earth Kingdom professor gave on ancient Earth Kingdom philosophies regarding the four nations, though got annoyed and subsequently shushed her brother and boyfriend as the two kept talking among themselves. Aang swiftly apologized, but when Sokka commented that he was not surprised that she, his "boring sister", was interested in the "boring" lecture of the professor, she promptly waterbent the water from her glass into his face, transforming it into a snowball midair. She repeated the action a few moments later after a similar insult by her brother.

A week later, Katara traveled to the Fire Nation Royal Palace together with Aang and Sokka upon Zuko's inquiry. Upon arrival, they were delightfully surprised when they discovered Iroh there as well. Zuko explained that Iroh was there to act as interim Fire Lord while he would be gone, looking for Ursa, a journey on which he invited Team Avatar to accompany him. The amicable atmosphere quickly changed, however, when Azula emerged from behind Zuko, and Katara promptly attacked the princess with ice spikes, which she easily avoided. Zuko explained the situation and after some words, Team Avatar accepted that Azula would come with them in search for Ursa.



The following day, as Aang was preparing Appa for the journey toward Hira'a, taking care of Azula's luggage, Katara voiced her still present concerns about the princess's presence on the trip, though she took confidence in the knowledge that if Azula did try something, there would be four of them to take her down. When Azula subsequently zapped Sokka with her lightning, Katara was quick to trap the princess's hand in ice with her waterbending to prevent any further action. As the tension subsided, she released her, withdrawing the water into her pouch, though warned Azula to never touch her brother again, albeit to little effect.

As they set off on their journey, Katara rode atop Appa's head, sitting next to Aang. When Sokka commented how the adventure felt like "old times", Katara and Aang kissed, after Aang had stated that it was better than old times, since he could now kiss her whenever. The mood was broken, however, when Azula had another one of her aggressive psychotic episode, followed by Aang's making a gruesome expression, caused by the presence of the wolf spirit, though no one could see the creature. Sokka mocked the Avatar, much to the annoyance of Katara, who asked him to stop as Aang's situation was serious, though when he would not let up, she ended his mockery with another snowball to the face. Their playful antics suddenly became serious when Azula had dived off Appa and set fire to Aang's glider, who had swooped down to save her from plummeting to her death, subsequently sending him crashing down on the ground. As they landed, Katara and Sokka quickly jumped off to tend to the downed airbender, while Zuko went after his sister.



Katara, Sokka, and Aang caught up with the two firebenders at a nearby river, right when they were about to fight one another. Katara cut the battle short by encasing Azula in ice, completely immobilizing her. As Zuko talked to the other guys, Katara crossed the river to yell at Azula that she did not appreciate her actions against Aang. Azula's insulting rebuttal was cut short, however, as the wolf spirit Aang had seen earlier showed up and attacked them. Katara and Zuko noticed that the pattern on the spirit's chest was the same as the gruesome face Aang was making, prompting the young Avatar to attempt to reason with the creature. When his attempts failed as the wolf snapped at him, Katara, together with Zuko and Sokka, launched another attack at it, though her ice spears shattered without effect against the spirit's side. After a brief scuffle with Appa, the spirit threw up a swarm of moth wasps that attacked the entire group, making it hard for Katara to breathe. They were eventually saved when Azula shot a lightning bolt away from them all, drawing the moths and the wolf spirit with it.

That night, Katara agreed with Aang and Zuko to each take turns watching Azula sleep. Awaiting her turn, she tried to get some sleep next to Appa.



The next morning, Katara was startled when Azula woke up and suddenly grabbed her wrist. Sokka forced the princess to let his sister go with his boomerang. Azula realized that the letter she was carrying was missing and consequently grew angry, demanding to know Zuko's whereabouts. She set the camp on fire as a distraction, forcing the Water Tribe siblings to deal with it, as she went out in search of Aang and Zuko. Aang returned to help extinguish the fire and by the time they were able to smother it, Zuko had managed to calm his sister down. They continued on to Hira'a.

Arriving at the outskirts of the village, the group went in disguise, so the Fire Lord and Avatar could avoid attracting attention, and came upon the entire town attending the Hira'a Acting Troupe's version of the play, Love amongst the Dragons. After the play concluded, Zuko started asking about Ursa. This caught the attention of Noren, the director of the acting company, who invited them all to his home, where they could talk more freely. Aang and Katara complimented Noriko, Noren's wife, about their lovely home, and the Avatar asked how long they had been married. Noriko happily informed them that it had been nearly five years, subsequently embarrassing the young couple when she noted that they were perhaps a bit young to be already thinking about marriage, though she soon digressed, concluding that love was ageless. Under the cover of being drama historians, they did not find any new information regarding Ursa, but they did learn that her ex-boyfriend, Ikem left town, heading toward Forgetful Valley.

As they left the family's home, Azula voiced her disgust and stated that if it wasn't for Zuko, she'd burn their house down, convinced that their happiness was all an act. Katara became upset and tempers flared between her and Azula, before Zuko announced that they will be going to Forgetful Valley.



Upon arriving, Azula's first thought was to firebend a path, which Zuko and Aang quickly put out. Suddenly, Aang started to make a weird facial expression similar to their encounter with the wolf spirit. Sokka noted that there were facial markings on all the plants and animals surrounding them. Aang spotted a flutter bat, who had exactly the same pattern on his wings as he had on his face, and followed it down to a round pond. Aang felt a spiritual calmness surrounding the water, sensing a resemblance to the Spirit Oasis at the North Pole, and asked everyone to be respectful. However, Azula disregarded his request and fired a lightning bolt straight into the pool, believing that her mother was there. Soon after, the group was attacked by plants and vines, though the skirmish was cut short as Katara deduced the attackers to be waterbenders, and forced them to reveal themselves.

Heeding the order, Rafa and Misu showed themselves, and set up camp with the others, sharing a meal. Misu warned them that Forgetful Valley's ponds needed to remained undisturbed, and retold the team her life's story. When Aang learned that they were on the lookout for a spirit with the ability to grant faces, one that only appear when the wolf spirit appears at one of the ponds, he offered his help. But as Aang meditated, Azula suffered another of her psychotic episodes, believing that her mother sent the elderly Water Tribe siblings to impede her progress and aimed a bolt of lightning at them, which Zuko attempted to stop.

With Azula showing no signs of restraint, Katara and Sokka prepared to attack the princess at Zuko's insistence. Katara waterbent at Azula despite Misu's protests to not disturb the area. Aang was able to get them to stop after revealing he had summoned the Mother of Faces, who would grant them only one request. Zuko decided to let Misu have Rafa's face restored, but Azula interrupted and instead asked for and received information on Ursa. The Mother of Faces told the group that she had been visited by Ursa, and gave her a new face. Azula fled toward Hira'a, Sokka and Zuko following them. Katara and Aang remained with Rafa and Misu, with the Avatar trying to pursue the Mother of Faces under her sacred pool's water. After Aang was ejected from the pool, Katara came to his aid while the spirit appeared before them, denouncing humans for being selfish and making her their slave. She ordered them to leave, with her spirits attacking the group to force them out.

Katara and Aang tried to ward the spirits off, with the waterbender able to protect Misu from a spirit by freezing its claws. After Aang incidentally revealed Rafa's empty face, he recognized it at the work of Koh, which, upon hearing this name, prompted the Mother of Faces to tell her animals to stop their attack. Aang explained what he had learned about Koh, to which the Mother of Faces told the group he was her son. Katara and Aang watched as the ancient spirit restored Rafa's face, and they happily watched as the siblings hugged. Afterward, they returned to Hira'a with the spirit, who restored Ursa's face and memories. With Azula having escaped and left the letter behind, Katara watched as Aang and Sokka discussed if they thought the princess had truly begun to change. Sokka argued against this, but Aang believed she had, to which Katara kissed her boyfriend on the cheek, saying that she loved him because he saw the bright side of things.

Returning Ursa to the Fire Nation Capital
As Zuko desired to have Ursa, Ikem, and Kiyi visit the Fire Nation Capital for the first time since Ursa's banishment, Katara, Aang, and Sokka accompanied the family on the Fire Nation cruiser that was bringing them all back. She and her brother watched how Aang was entertaining Kiyi by riding a flying dolphin fish together. When Katara suggested he join them, Sokka refused by claiming a preference for mechanical rides, with the exception of Appa.

Some time later, Katara, Aang, and Sokka prepared to leave on Appa. As Zuko inquired about their intention, Katara noted that being back to the city will bring up many memories and that they could use that opportunity as bonding time.

Reviving Yangchen's Festival


When the peace talks in Yu Dao came to an end, Katara and the rest of Team Avatar returned there to witness the introduction of the city's new coalition government. Afterward, she attended a banquet in celebration of the election with her friends. After a while, she began to worry where Aang had gone to and set out to search for him, finding him on a balcony, meditating. When she asked him what he was doing there, she was told that he had seen Yangchen's spirit, though since he had been unable to communicate with her, he was attempting to contact her through meditation. Although she acknowledged that meditation was important to Aang, she reminded him that celebrations like the one they were supposed to be attending were something important too. Reminded of Yangchen's Festival by her words, Aang returned inside with Katara, where he alerted the three Air Acolytes, Xing Ying, Yee-Li, and Jingbo, as well as Katara and the other members of Team Avatar that they would go on a field trip the following day.



As such, the team left the next day on Appa, setting course to a cliff overlooking the ocean where the Air Nomads used to start their celebration of Yangchen's Festival. Katara tried to get her brother and Toph in the spirits of the holiday, noticing how excited Aang and the Air Acolytes were about it all. Having arrived, they were supposed to take part in a bowing ceremony. When Toph refused to take part, Katara tried to reason with the earthbender, pointing out how important it was to Aang, though Aang asked her to let it go, which she did. After the bowing ceremony, the group set out toward the meadow to enjoy a ceremonial meal. Along the way, tensions rose again when Toph destroyed Yee-Li's cymbals, with which she was creating Air Nomad music as was tradition. Katara once again tried to calm the earthbender, though was cut short when Aang suggested tensely to just keep on walking toward the meadow.

They found out, however, that a town with a large refinery had been built on the previously sacred grounds. Walking around through town, Katara tried to console Aang, pointing out that a lot can change in a hundred years. Her attention was drawn away, however, when Niyok, a girl from the Southern Water Tribe whom she had not seen since leaving there, called out to her and happily greeted her. Upon asking what she was doing there, Katara was directed toward the Earthen Fire Refinery where the girl was working with her sister. Realizing that Nutha was there as well, Katara merrily called out to her fellow tribeswoman, though received a noncommittal stare back, prompting her to leave the sisters alone.



When Aang spotted Yangchen's spirit once more and let it lead him to investigate the grounds of the refinery, Katara and the three Air Acolytes followed him. She was helped across the fence by his earth- and airbending, where they discovered that the river running near the factory was terribly polluted. Before they could take any action, however, the refinery's guards appeared and tried to expel them from the factory's grounds. While Aang bent the Air Acolytes to safety, Katara used her waterbending to destroy the incoming earthen projectile. Bending a huge wave from the river, she urged Aang to move out of the way, intending to strike down the guards. However, Aang asked her to call off her attack, and subsequently used his airbending to let the guards knock each other out.

Their actions had been witnessed by Satoru, the refinery's engineer and interim boss while his uncle, Loban, was away on business, who heartily greeted him, instantly recognizing who they were. When Toph and Sokka returned, Satoru became starstruck by the young earthbender and promptly invited he, and on Toph's inquiry, Katara and the others, to join him on a tour through the factory, where benders and nonbenders from all over the world were employed. When Aang eventually managed to strike up a conversation with Satoru about the refinery's location and accused to factory of having defiled the sacred land, Katara backed him up, referring to the polluted river. When Toph corroborated Satoru's claim that the factory was not to blame for that and subsequently got into an argument with Aang, Katara urged the two earthbenders to remain calm after an earthquake shook the ground, assuming they were responsible for it. When a second quake occurred, Satoru asked them all to leave, but before they could heed the engineer's request, they heard a factory worker call out for help, as the earthquakes had left him trapped under a haywire machine. Katara used her waterbending to pulverize incoming rocks while Sokka ushered the workers to safety and Aang and Toph moved in to save the trapped man. After the crisis was averted, Katara was shocked to learn that Loban's business partner and co-owner of the refinery was Lao Beifong, Toph's father and even more when Lao declared Toph to be a confused girl rather than his daughter.



When Lao subsequently ordered the Rough Rhinos to escort Team Avatar off the refinery's premises, Katara readied herself for battle and took on Yeh-Lu and a hammer-wielding Rough Rhino member by herself. Before she could finish the fight, however, she was dragged along by Sokka, who urged her to run along with him. When they were cornered at a fence, Katara readied her water once more, blaming her brother for making them easy targets. It was only after Sokka pushed her out of the way to let the Rhinos crush the fence and halt at the nearby river that Katara caught on to her brother's plan. Utilizing the water of the river, she quickly encased their three assailants in blocks of ice.

After Yeh-Lu's burning grenade exploded near the river, Katara noticed it had revealed an passageway which the siblings promptly checked out. Using glowing crystals, they illuminated their path and eventually arrived to an iron ore mine, which was also the cause of the river's pollution. They were found out by Kahchi and Vachir, who instigated a fight with them. After the skirmish between Vachir and Sokka led to the weakening of one of the mine's support beams, Katara used her waterbending to freeze Vachir's bow, arms, and feet. The interaction made Katara realize that the earthquakes were caused by the mine's instability and she and her brother tried to urge the present workers to leave. No one listened, however, though they were approached by Nutha and Niyok, who explained that everyone down there needed the job to survive, so no one dared to leave without their boss's orders.



Upon Sokka's return, accompanied by Lao Beifong, Katara directed his attention to the weakened support beams, which had been identified as being the cause of the earthquakes. Although the order was given to evacuate, Katara became trapped underground when the mine caved, along with Toph and several others. When Aang tried to bend a tunnel from above, she called out to him and urged him to stop, as if he bent it the wrong way, the entire tunnel might collapse.

Hearing Aang call from above ground, Katara asked if Sokka was there. Aang replied that her brother had not returned and asked how Toph was holding up, she answered that she was doing as good as could be expected, given she was literally carrying the weight of their world. Seeing the earthbender growing exhausted, Katara asked Satoru to give her the remainder of her water, noting that running out would not matter if Toph failed. After Aang notified her of Toph's students' arrival, she told Toph, who asked her to tell Aang that the situation was like spider ants beneath stomping feet, only flipped. When the metalbending students removed the ground above them, Katara ran out to Aang, kissing him and saying she was glad to be out. Afterward, she happily reunited with Sokka before catching sight of Nutha and Niyok. Being thanked by the former, the waterbender stated with a smile that it was not a problem.

The skies, however, soon grew stormy, and though Katara initially believed that a storm was coming in, Aang told her it was not a natural event. After seeing him try to talk to Yangchen again and ponder a way to reach her, Katara asked if she could do anything to help, though was assured that her boyfriend could do it. After Aang returned and explained the situation at hand, including the need to destroy the buildings, the waterbender was urged to evacuate everyone from them. She began by destroying the cabbage merchant's restaurant, telling the panicked vendor that it was not safe for him to remain there, though adding that they could get him new cabbages after the situation ended. After completing the task, she returned to Aang and told him as such. After seeing Old Iron beginning to emerge from the sea, she asked if he would turn back if the town was returned to its natural state; after an affirmative answer, she warned Aang that he could not wait for the mask to be returned and comforted him over his regret about destroying things with a kiss on the cheek. The waterbender also added her assurance that she would keep the people from interfering in any way.

With Old Iron nearing the town, Katara noticed Sokka, Satoru, and Loban clinging to the spirit's mask. She bent up a water vortex which allowed the three to slide down to the ground safely. She soon tried to block an attack from Old Iron, declaring he would not destroy the humans.

After Aang defeated Old Iron, Katara spent time reminiscing with Niyok and Nutha over life in the Southern Tribe. Noticing her boyfriend in an upset state, she decided to approach him, though not before telling Nutha it was good to catch up with them and apologizing for not returning home, though was told by her friend to stop, saying she acted like an idiot while telling her that Katara and Sokka made them proud as Southern Tribers. Approaching Aang, she noticed that Lady Tienhai's statue had been destroyed, much to her shock. Hearing him wonder if spirits had no place in the world as a relic of the past, the waterbender believed it could not be true. Taking his hands, she told Aang that they did have a place if he did as well. She urged him to contact his past lives, saying that the current time connected the past and present. Before walking away, Katara told him to find her if he needed her.

Three months later, Katara watched the proceedings of the new Spirits' Friendship Festival. She remarked it was not Air Nomad-like at all because of the kites, loud parade, and Sokka selling meat, something she did not have in mind when Aang told her about Yangchen's Festival.

Return to the South


Upon returning to the Southern Water Tribe, Katara and Sokka were stunned by the changes to their home, leaving them confused and lost. Stumbling upon a construction site, the workers became hostile, but Katara defeated them with her superior waterbending.

She and Sokka continued on their way and discovered a developing city where their village used to be. While Sokka was enthusiastic about all the changes, Katara was more hesitant. In a crowd of thrilled Southerners, they found Kanna; they hugged their her and were happily surprised to learn that she and Pakku had eloped at the Misty Palms Oasis just weeks before their arrival. Pakku asked Katara to help out at the new school for waterbenders he founded, much to her surprise, as she could not fathom where the necessary waterbending students came from.

When Kanna subsequently pointed them to the new town hall, Hakoda's new abode as the Head Chief of the Southern Water Tribe, Katara grew hesitant once again, musing the extravagant building was nothing like their father. After being reunited with their father, Katara and Sokka were introduced to Malina and Maliq, a pair of Northerners leading the Southern Reconstruction Project, as well as the three workers from before, Noa, Kam, and Soonjei. After the workers had left, Malina described the long-term plan for the South, including the construction of a palace, much to Katara's bewilderment.

Later, while having dinner at Two Fishes Northern Cuisine, a pair of young servers stole Maliq's briefcase and injured Malina, prompting Katara and Sokka to pursue. Creating an ice sled, she followed the thieves riding a snowmobile all the way to the shipwreck.

Triggering a booby trap on the ship, they fell, arriving in the caverns below, where they met Gilak, a comrade of their father's from the war. They quickly discovered Gilak's wartime experiences embittered him against more powerful nations and prompted him to form a Southern rebellion. Katara protested his views, informing him of how the Fire Nation's colonies were working to create a new society, and demanded he hand over the thieves and the briefcase. Katara quickly froze his hand after he refused, giving her and Sokka an opening to escape. Pursued by Gilak's warriors, Katara slowed them down with an ice wall, but they lost valuable time themselves when Thod, Gilak's elderly second-in-command, stalled them with a story about a snow rat, before Katara waterbent him out of the way.

Once they returned home, Katara agreed with her brother that Gilak was an extremist, but she also admitted that he still had a point, as their home had been transformed into a cheap imitation of the North, reminding her of how Earthen Fire Refinery took over Air Nomad land.

They found Maliq standing outside Kanna's hut, and Katara informed him of their failure to retrieve his briefcase. Learning that Hakoda and Malina were inside, Katara scolded Sokka for his lack of manners, as he entered the hut without knocking, but they both stop cold in their tracks upon finding Hakoda and Malina locked in a kiss.

The next morning, Katara and Sokka accompanied Malina and Maliq to tour their new factory. While Maliq began to ramble on, Katara privately discussed with Sokka the implications of Hakoda and Malina's budding romance; Sokka, while somewhat off-put by the image of his father kissing Malina, maintained that Hakoda was capable to choose who was best for him, while Katara still held uneasily against it, unwilling to entertain even the thought of Malina becoming their stepmother.

Returning their attention to the Northerners, they learned that the South possessed the largest oil deposit in the world, which they intended to extract to usher in a new age of machinery in the world, allowing machines to become a part of people's everyday lives. Katara questioned its necessity. The Northerners concluded their tour by introducing Sokka and Katara to Toph, and invited them all to attend the festival that evening as guests of honor.

At the festival, Katara was approached by Pakku, who introduced her to two young waterbending students of his, Siku and Sura, however, the girls denied being waterbenders and ran off. Believing to be out of sight, they waterbent openly, prompting Pakku to explain to an intrigued Katara that he found the girls in a village far removed from the sea but that they, while talented for their age, tended to only bend in private.

Katara soon left the festival to check on Hakoda, who was organizing the city's outer defenses in anticipation of an attack from Gilak. As they sat down, Hakoda guessed she was worried about Malina and apologized for not telling her and Sokka sooner, as he thought they were not ready. Katara then questioned why he chose Malina, as she worried the Northerners didn't truly understand the Southern Water Tribe and that she may truly be up to something nefarious. Hakoda reassured her, insisting that Malina has a lot to learn about her sister tribe but deep down she had a good heart. Nonetheless, Katara insisted that his feelings were clouding his judgment, but her father reminded that she was in love too and that the right kind of love could help her see the truth. At that moment, Aang arrived on Appa. Katara happily embraced her boyfriend but gently declined kissing him in front of her father. After confirming with Aang that Hakoda was very supportive of their relationship, she decided to give Malina a chance with Hakoda.

Returning to the festival, Katara spotted Malina and formally thanked her inviting her friends and her. In the middle of Malina's speech about her plan, a drilling machine emerged in the middle of town square. Gilak emerged and revealed to the assembled crowd the North's plan to take the South's oil for themselves and dominate the Southern Water Tribe, much to Katara's shock. Malina remorsefully admitted that it was the original plan, only for Maliq to reveal that he never destroyed the documents. An altercation insued between the rebels and Northerners, and Team Avatar decided to intervene and stop them. During the fighting, Katara stood in defense of Malina and Maliq, only to hit in the back by Kam, who declared it to be payback. Katara then enountered Thod, who stated that the point of his earlier story was that the North would always look down on the South, and attempted to recruit her to Gilak's cause. However, Katara firmly refused his request. Disappointed, Thod declared she had forgotten where her loyalties lay, revealing himself as a chi blocker as he disabled her arms. Luckily, Katara used her legs to bend and encased Thod in ice. Leading Team Avatar, they came just in time to see Gilak stab Hakoda in the chest. Enraged, Katara encased Gilak in ice, scaring off his remaining followers, who were promptly captured by Aang, allowing her to heal Hakoda.

Later, in Kanna's hut, Katara and Sokka were relieved to see their father pull through. Kanna then noted that the discord in the South due to misguided beliefs and that someone had to reexamine theirs. Katara soon got into a debate with Sokka over which party was in the wrong: Gilak or Malina and Maliq. Sokka insisted that the Northerners' overall plan for the South was beneficial and that they need to adapt to the changing times, to which Katara retorted that the tribe's identity would be lost as a result.

The two siblings soon exited the hut to inform the others about Hakoda's recovery. They were soon approached by Malina, who insisted to Katara that she no longer shared Maliq's views, but Katara believed her views would change once more if she fell out of love with Hakoda. Though Malina desired to say her goodbyes to Hakoda, Katara refused to allow her to see him, although Kanna did.

A few days later, Katara and Aang attempted to assist Pakku in teaching Siku and Sura waterbending. The sisters watched in awe at their demonstration, and eventually revealed that they were indeed waterbenders, but soon ran off. As Aang said that the demonstration didn't go they way he had planned, Katara mused that the girls were not quite ready for such a big change.

The two left with Hakoda, whom Katara gently scolded for going out on his own while he's still hurt. He goes on to say how he had became convinced that the Southern Water Tribe needed to partner with other nations to advance and rebuild the South. Katara, now with a change of heart, disagreed, saying that not everyone in the Nations were on their side, using Maliq as an example. She feared that allowing them to help would turn the Southern Water Tribe into a copy of the other nations. While Hakoda agreed that that would be a concern, he explained further that Pakku, Katara, and Aang were from different nations but had worked together in order to restore an almost lost art.

During the a meeting that night, Hakoda briefed Team Avatar and the world leaders of his plan to modernize the Southern Water Tribe and open it to the other nations. Katara continued to be worried, not wanting her father to change everything about her home. When Kuei was hesitant to assist, he implied the South was lacking civilization, to Katara's offence. While Katara began to snap back at him, an officer burst through the door, informing Hakoda that Gilak and his army had broken out. A fight then ensued between Team Avatar and Gilak's army, in which Team Avatar eventually became outnumbered. Gilak subsequently kidnapped Hakoda, but with Aang's airbending prowess, the two were able to recover him. On return to the city hall however, it was discovered by Firelord Zuko and Toph that Gilak's forces had kidnapped Earth King Kuei whilst they were saving Hakoda.

Following an unsuccessful search for Gilak, a messenger Hawk appeared before the group, containing a letter from him, which explained that he wished to meet them on the Bridge of No Return to exchange Kuei's life for Hakoda's. Katara and Sokka explained to the group that it was an old bridge that the tribe used years ago to deal with criminals. After reading the conditions of the letter, Zuko warned them that Gilak would cut the bridge with Kuei and Hakoda on it, even if they gave in to all of his demands. Katara was horrified, and commented at how evil Gilak's supposed plan was.

Katara, having arrived, looked on at the bridge with worry. Noticing her concern, Aang walked over to her and comforted her by kissing her on the cheek, assuring her that Sokka's plan would work out. Sokka then walked up to her, and asked if she was alright. Katara expressed her concern that her trip home had not turned out to be anything like she had expected it to be; she had thought that now that the war was over their lives could go back to how they had once been. Sokka comforted Katara, saying that while he understood her, it was impossible for anything to be as idealistic as she had imagined because the war altered the tribe, even reaching back to Kanna's time. After Gilak had arrived, the chi blockers crossed the bridge and chi-blocked all all of Team Avatar including Sokka, so that they could not interfere. As Hakoda and Kuei walked onto the bridge, Gilak attempted to cut the bridge, only to be thwarted by a hiding Malina. It was then revealed that Team Avatar had not, in fact, been chi-blocked, due to Sokka's ingenious idea of using hidden chainmail, that made them impervious to the chi-blockers attacks. As the fight ensued, Gilak walked onto the bridge holding Zuko, Malina and Hakoda, and cut the ropes. Aang and Zuko struggled to keep everyone safe because of Gilak's struggling, and Gilak pried himself free of Malina's grip, falling to his death. Malina, realizing there was still too much weight, let go of Hakoda's hand and told him she loved him. Moved by her devotion, Katara rushed to rescue her, and the two shared a heartfelt look.

Days later, Katara spoke to Kya at her grave, saying she had realized that her perception of the "old" tribe was a place including her, but her courage would always be with her. As a result, she would no longer be afraid of change in the Southern Water Tribe. As she spoke, the Sura and Sika came forward to her and told her they were sorry for her loss. Katara explained how her mother had died to keep her, a Southern waterbender, safe, and that the children's mother had tried to do the same for them. Moved by her story, the young students agreed to learn how to waterbend. Later, she made a traditional Southern dish to share in the multicultural dinner.

Later life


Sometime after the Harmony Restoration Movement, Katara married Aang and gave birth to three children: Bumi, a nonbender who gained the ability to airbend later in life; Kya, a waterbender; and Tenzin, who was born an airbender like his father. Katara continued to develop her skills in waterbending, eventually becoming a leading expert in its various styles and respective skills and techniques, as well as being regarded as the greatest master and healer in the world. She passed on these skills to her only daughter, Kya, who became a renowned healer in her own right. When Kya revealed her sexual orientation to her, Katara was supportive of her.

In 124 AG, Katara wrote a letter to include in the book that Aang was assembling for Tenzin, in which she wished her son the joys of youth and the strength to accept his legacy as one of the world's last airbenders. Before 128 AG, Katara's efforts led to the outlawing of bloodbending in the United Republic.

Through Tenzin, who eventually married Pema, she became the paternal grandmother of Jinora, Ikki, Meelo, and Rohan. After the passing of Avatar Aang and his reincarnation into the new Avatar, Korra, she became the Avatar's waterbending teacher once again.



During one of her early training sessions with a young Korra, Katara taught her that waterbending was all about slow and calm movements. Her lesson did not stick with the Avatar, however, as she accidentally buried Katara under a pile of snow, not for the first time, when she tried to copy the elder's moves. Uncovering the elder, Senna apologized, though Katara brushed it off, noting that she had battled more dangerous waterbenders during her life than the youngster and expressing her confidence that the Avatar will learn to control her abilities in time. The session got cut short by Tonraq that day, as a snowstorm was heading their way. Upon learning the next day that Korra had sneaked out during the bad weather, Katara joined Tonraq and Senna during their search for their daughter. Discovering the young Avatar safe and sound with a polar bear pup whom she desired to keep, Katara convinced Tonraq and Senna to let her bring the animal home, noting that every Avatar had had an animal guide and that raising Naga may be exactly what the high-energy Avatar needed. Afterward, Katara and Korra's waterbending lessons continued, and Katara included healing lessons in her teachings, making Korra a skilled healer as well.



In 170 AG, Katara supervised Korra's firebending test alongside other members of the Order of the White Lotus. She noted the Avatar's ferocity, to which the White Lotus leader responded that she also lacked restraint. After Korra defeated her opponents, the White Lotus turned to Katara for counsel, wondering whether or not they should let Korra start her airbending training with Tenzin, since the young Avatar had yet to grasp the spiritual side of bending. Confident in her son's abilities, Katara announced that she believed Korra to be ready to commence her airbending training, as Tenzin would be able to teach her what she needed to know.

When Tenzin and his family arrived at the Southern Water Tribe compound, Katara and Korra greeted Tenzin and his family. At her son's asking, Katara helped Meelo off of his head, much to her grandson's displeasure. As she expressed her joy over seeing her family again, Jinora approached her, informing her that she had read everything about her past adventures and asked what happened to Zuko's mother, Ursa. Katara attempted to elaborate, only to be interrupted by an excited Ikki, who fired several random questions at the old waterbender.



As the young airbenders ran off to play in the snow, Katara turned her attention to Tenzin and Pema, the latter being pregnant with their fourth child. She predicted that the child would be an airbender, much to Pema's dismay, who explained that it would be nice to have a nonbending child like her. When asked if Tenzin and his siblings were as rambunctious as the young airbenders, Katara said that Tenzin had always been more serious than Kya and Bumi.

When it was revealed that Korra's airbending training with Tenzin was to be delayed and the Avatar decided to find her own path by traveling to Republic City on her own, Katara was the only one who understood that Korra had to go and find her own place in the world. Confident in Korra, she gave her husband's reincarnation her blessing.

Months later, after Korra's bending had been removed by Amon, Katara tried using her healing powers to restore Korra's abilities, but to no avail. She later witnessed Korra, whose bending was restored by Aang, energybend Lin Beifong, restoring her earthbending abilities.



Six months later, Katara invited her oldest son, Bumi, to attend the Glacier Spirits Festival with her and the rest of their family. She, alongside her daughter, awaited the arrival of her sons at the dock, having a joyful reunion with her grandchildren. She later attended the royal banquet in honor of Chief Unalaq, sitting at a table with her family, where she looked on with concern as Tenzin was being picked on by his elder siblings.

The next day, Katara encouraged Tenzin to take his siblings along with him on his trip to all the air temples, reasoning that he should cherish the time he spends with his entire family. She also felt that the three siblings should visit Aang's birthplace together. Tenzin agreed to let his siblings join him and gave his mother a farewell hug, promising to see her soon. Before they all left, she gave Kya an old family picture of their family together while they were still young.



During the Water Tribe Civil War, Katara did not interfere between the two combating parties, believing her fighting days to be over, and instead helped tend to injured rebels along with several other healers in her healing hut. She was sought out by her family, who brought a spiritless Jinora for her to examine. Alarmed over the amount of time Jinora had been in that state, Katara placed her granddaughter in a bath of water to heal. Assessing the situation with her bending, she stated she was unsure how much longer Jinora would be able to survive with her body and spirit separated, noting that Jinora was strong to have lasted as long as she had.

When Jinora's spirit later returned to her body, Katara happily embraced her granddaughter and later accompanied her and her family to Korra's announcement that peace was restored between the Southern and Northern Water Tribes and that the South was officially independent.

Five weeks after the insurrection of the Red Lotus was put down, Katara was visited by a still injured Korra and set out to heal her. Katara commented that the mercury poisoning Korra had suffered had caused a lot of internal damage. Upon being asked if she could heal it, she remarked that all she could do was help guide the young Avatar's healing process, though the ultimate result of that was out of her hands. Reminiscing on the feeling of going through a traumatic experience, she told Korra that if she dedicated herself to getting better, she would recover stronger than ever.



The two waterbenders set out on the hard process of recovery. Progress was slow, however, and after nearly six months, a frustrated Korra snapped at Katara over the elder's inability to heal her. Katara tried to console her, stating it was all right and urging her to let her anger and frustration flow like water. When Korra admitted that she was tired of the situation, Katara told her she was not the first Avatar who had to overcome great suffering. She recalled how Aang felt about the destruction of his entire culture and revealed that he had sought meaning in his suffering, which eventually led to peace. She urged Korra to do the same and guided her to take her first steps again in a long time. Katara continued to help Korra over the next two years until she was physically fit again.

Personality
When Katara was a young girl, her mother was killed in a Fire Nation raid. This event had a tremendous impact on Katara's life and personality and arguably shaped her into the person she became. She was emotionally driven, involving herself completely in the heartache and needs of those around her. Placing her whole heart in the affairs of others, as well as bearing her own heartache, she was often easily reduced to tears. According to Sokka, Katara largely prevented their family from falling apart and took on many responsibilities to the point where she filled the void left by their mother (so much that he pictured her in place of his mother). As such, Katara had a maternal personality and often acted as a motherly figure to the group, something that often irritated the rebellious Toph. Her loss was also part of what drove her in her fight against the Fire Nation, although she did not exhibit as much outward prejudice as her brother. She was also a bit of a stickler for morality, even to the point of causing Sokka and Aang to faint from shock when she stated she wanted to pull a scam, as she had berated Toph for scamming people. According to Sokka, she was an optimist.

She has a soft spot for children. When aiding in baby Hope's birth, she stated that she helped her grandmother deliver many babies in their tribe, and in Jang Hui, she gave a portion of her food to a little boy. She even went as far as to care for and defend Tom-Tom, Mai's little brother, despite the fact that he was from the Fire Nation and that everyone else, with the exception of Aang, was distrustful of him for it.

Katara is caring and compassionate, and is often marked by a fierce determination to aid others. She stated herself that she would never turn away from people who need her help. Katara was even willing to defend Fire Nation civilians such as when she helped the village of Jang Hui and when she fought Hama, who was from the Southern Water Tribe, to protect the Fire Nation village she was living in. This strong desire often frustrated others, particularly Sokka.



Katara was portrayed as the most mature member of the group, rarely taking part in Sokka and Aang's goofy pranks and Toph's less silly ones, though she did have a sense of humor. Katara was described as being motherly by Toph and Sokka. While the team traveled through the Si Wong Desert, Katara was able to hold the group together in its most desperate moments.

On the other hand, Katara could be overly domineering. For all her kindness and compassion, she was sometimes self-righteous, had a nasty temper, and could be fierce when provoked. With lack of sleep, this side of her can quickly become more apparent. She was also set in her ideals and frequently refused to relent on her views in the face of opposition. Combined with her strong sense of compassion, this gave her a strong sense of justice and she would run headlong into often dangerous situations to help others, which was best illustrated at the prison rig and at Jang Hui. Her short temper had frequently clashed with others; she showed open, but short-lived, jealousy of Aang's talent, and was frequently perturbed by Toph's confrontational and rebellious nature.

Despite being one of the more compassionate members of the group, Katara was one of the least willing to let go of a grudge, especially against those who she felt had betrayed her trust. She held a considerable grudge against those who had threatened Aang, as Zuko had, or done things she considered morally wrong, like Jet. At the Western Air Temple she showed outright hostility toward Zuko and threatened to kill him if he slipped back to his old ways. Upon her re-encounter with Jet, Katara reacted hostilely at the mere sight of him, and she was harsh and unforgiving of Zuko even long after he had joined Team Avatar and gained the trust of everyone else. However, this could be because Zuko's betrayal of her at Ba Sing Se was far more personal than his betrayal of anyone else. For a while, she was also argumentative with her father because she felt that he had abandoned her and Sokka when he left to fight in the War. However, Katara was sometimes willing to give people second chances; with much reluctance, she allowed Jet to guide Team Avatar to Appa, and she appeared to be saddened by his death. Also, she offered to try and heal Zuko's scar when they were enemies. Eventually, even after his betrayal, Katara decided to forgive him, embracing him as a friend, after he helped her find the man who killed her mother.

Katara was marked by a fierce desire to learn waterbending, viewing it as a part of her and her culture that needed to be expressed. She also may have viewed it as a hope for rebuilding her tribe. Her enthusiasm for waterbending caused her to constantly train herself in the art, and when she finally found a master to teach her formally, she became overjoyed. Having quickly advanced under the tutelage of Master Pakku, he stated that Katara accomplished this due to her fierce determination, passion and hard work.

Sokka told Toph that Katara could be a pain and would get "involved and in-your-business". Even so, Katara is understanding of other people's privacy. This was best demonstrated when Katara continually scolded Sokka for snooping around Hama's inn and rummaging through her personal belongings.

Motherly and feminine as she might be, Katara was not afraid to go beyond her feminine looks and way of being to achieve what she wanted. When she and Toph were denied entrance to a rowdy pub because the both of them were girls, they dressed up as boys. Katara in particular showed her masculine side when wanting to ride the pub's mechanized bull; she was even willing to start an all-out brawl with some of the guys there who mocked her ability to stay on the bull. The whole thing ended with Toph dragging Katara away before things came to a head. Katara and Toph later went to a spa and reflected on how being a girl was not so bad at all.

Waterbending
Katara's most notable ability was her waterbending. She rapidly developed her skill at the art, and her fierce resolve to master the element helped her become one of the most powerful waterbending masters. She was identified as a waterbender when she was a small child. As she grew older, she kept practicing even though she did not have a teacher, and learned whatever little she could with great ambition, while ignoring the criticism of Sokka, as he downplayed her ability to bend, referring to it as "magic water".

Over the course of her childhood, with her father having been unable to obtain her a master, Katara taught herself basic waterbending techniques and managed to master some simple waterbending forms. This was a difficult feat, considering she would have never had the chance to have observed any waterbending in practice.



As of the discovery of Aang at the South Pole, Katara was capable of "pushing and pulling" water, streaming small amounts and manipulating it into basic forms and movements, and was beginning to gain some control over the ability to change its physical state, freezing it into ice, as well as attempting to create sizable waves of water. What little she knew, she taught to Aang, who quickly mastered all she had to offer. That which had taken her years to achieve, Aang managed to imitate and outperform her within mere minutes, much to her envy and frustration.

Her waterbending remained amateurish at best until she came across a Northern Water Tribe waterbending scroll depicting several different traditional waterbending forms, among a collection of wares in a pirate-traders ship. Unable to afford the high price demanded for the scroll by the pirates, yet incapable of passing up such an opportunity to finally have formal instruction in waterbending, she deftly stole the scroll and eventually made away with it. Katara and Aang first learned the water whip technique from the scroll, and afterward continued to improve their overall technique. Up until their arrival at the Northern Water Tribe, both Katara and Aang demonstrated considerable improvement, and Katara's confidence in her own abilities increased dramatically.

Later, Katara demonstrated the ability to bend with much greater precision and ease compared to when she first stole the scroll. She was able to draw unseen water out of different sources and bend greater quantities in general, streaming them into powerful blasts and freezing water with much more control than before. She later developed several of her own techniques, including cloud manipulation and a hand-held variation on the water-whip technique. Katara also demonstrated greater manipulation of ice and snow, as well as discovered her ability to heal. In the time between her acquisition of the waterbending scroll and arrival at the North Pole, Katara's sheer determination and discipline saw her proficiency improve greatly, clearly surpassing that of Aang.

Katara's pride, strong-mindedness and sense of justice caused conflict with the traditions of the Northern Water Tribe, which forbade women from learning combat focused waterbending. Katara, furious at having traveled to the opposite end of the Earth, only to be denied instruction by irrational customs, challenged the master waterbending instructor of the Northern Water Tribe, Pakku, to a duel. Though she was undoubtedly no match for the master, she valiantly held her own, determined not to be beaten. She demonstrated not only more advanced techniques than she ever had previously, but also a surprising amount of agility and skill in physical combat, as well as greater proficiency in basic waterbending techniques she had previously learned. For the first time, she was seen bending with her feet, employing nonbending hand and foot strikes in combat, and transforming the physical state of a wave. Pakku eventually removed her ability to bend by trapping her body and limbs between spikes of ice, and so won the fight without harming her. Though he admitted that she was an exceptionally talented waterbender, he rigidly stuck by the laws of his culture and refused to teach Katara.

At the fight's conclusion, Pakku discovered Katara's necklace which had broken off during their duel. Recognizing the carved pendant, he revealed that the necklace had originally been given to Kanna by himself as a symbol of their engagement sixty years prior. After realizing Katara was the granddaughter of his ex-fiancée, who had left the Northern Water Tribe to escape their arranged marriage, he decided to instruct Katara in combative waterbending.

Under the guidance of Master Pakku, Katara's waterbending abilities advanced quicker than that of any student he had ever trained, which he accredited to her fierce determination, passion and hard-work. She fought and defeated Zuko with the augmented power of the near-full moon. During the fight, she knocked him off his feet, deflected and shielded his attacks, imprisoned him in a dome of solid ice, and later, a wave of solid ice. Though she was defeated by Zuko after the sun rose, she fought him again with the full moon and defeated him easily.

Following the Siege of the North, Pakku declared Katara a full-fledged waterbending master.



Katara continued to hone her waterbending potential, regularly demonstrating her waterbending mastery in battle. In Omashu, Katara blocked a flurry of Mai's knives by waterbending wooden boards into the air as shields in front of herself. She managed to block Mai's hand arrows with ice and retaliated by freezing Mai's arm in ice. Ty Lee sneaked behind Katara and blocked her chi, preventing her from waterbending. While in the swamp, Katara cut apart the vines holding her with the water stored in her pouch. In the battle where she, Aang, and Sokka fought against Huu, Katara created large waves in the swamp water, froze a part of the swamp monster, and created a coil of water that she used to blast a hole into the monster. She also created large round blades out of the water and used them to cut up Huu's monster. Later, she easily defeated two earthbending students by freezing them in solid ice.

When facing Ty Lee a second time, Katara fought using the water in her pouch to fend off her chi blocking attacks, forcing Ty Lee to cartwheel away from disks of razor-sharp water. She also stopped Azula from killing Aang by catching her hand in a water whip. While crossing the Serpent's Pass, she made a bridge of ice for the group to travel across, and worked with Aang to support an underwater bubble for the group to travel in. She also surfed around on a surfboard of ice and, together with Aang, created a massive whirlpool to defeat the serpent.

She also rapidly condensed water vapor into ice to defeat her foes. When assaulting Jet upon re-encountering him, she used ice spikes, similar to Mai's daggers, to pin Jet to the wall in an alley. While fighting off the Royal Earthbender Guards, Katara defeated dozens of them with whips and streams of water. In the Crystal Catacombs, Katara and Aang fought against Zuko and Azula. Katara managed to cut one of Azula's hair bangs with a water blade, and created two enormous whips of water, which she used to briefly trap Azula. Later, these whips were able to match Zuko's enormous fire whips. Finally, when Katara was surrounded by Dai Li agents, she defended herself with the octopus form, and rode on an enormous wave which knocked down these agents as well as Zuko. She proceeded to escape on a rising stream of water, carrying Aang to safety.



Katara's waterbending later became even more advanced and destructive. During a fight with a Fire Nation ship, Katara used a huge wave to separate the two ships and created a huge steam barrier between them for cover. Once their ship was hit by a harpoon, Katara used her frosty breath of waterbending to freeze the hole in the ship's hull, thus repairing it. When Aang held a dance for some of his Fire Nation school friends, Katara also created a fountain out of solid ice for beverages, as well as the glasses they used to drink from. At the Jang Hui River, Katara created a cover of steam and sped herself atop the water's surface. Assisted by Aang, she used crashing waves and precise missiles of water to destroy a Fire Nation Army factory. She also blasted a Fire Nation river craft into the air and against a cliff. Katara also transported a huge bubble of water from a nearby creek to extinguish a fire. When Combustion Man locked Katara and Toph in jail, Katara used her own sweat as a water knife to break out of a wooden prison cell. During Katara's time hiding within the Fire Nation, she met an elderly woman named Hama, who turned out to be a fellow waterbending master from the Southern Water Tribe. After learning this, Hama began training her in Southern Style waterbending. Among many techniques and combat tactics, Katara became able to condense moisture in the air to create her own water source for her bending, as well as becoming aware she could remove water from plant life.

On the Day of Black Sun, Katara fought against the Fire Nation guards at the capital, destroying several guard towers with Sokka and defeating many soldiers. At the Western Air Temple, she rained ice spikes onto Combustion Man. While tracking down her mother's killer, she used the enhanced power of the full moon to nearly take down a whole Fire Nation ship of the Southern Raiders single-handedly. During her encounter with Yon Rha, Katara created a large wide dome of water by gathering rainwater and created ice spikes from it, nearly killing him. Finally, during Sozin's Comet, she froze herself and Azula into a block of solid ice, thawed the center of it, and chained Azula to a grate.

Healing


Katara's innate aptitude toward waterbending abilities made her a rare case to also naturally have access to the incredible ability to heal by manipulating the chi paths in a person's body, including herself. She inadvertently discovered this ability after Aang accidentally burned her hands, and subsequently used this power again to heal Aang's own burn after his face-off with Admiral Zhao. Once she reached the Northern Water Tribe, she further developed this ability by training with Yugoda.

With the aid of a small vial of spirit water, which held special properties, from the Spirit Oasis, Katara's healing abilities were enhanced. Katara was going to use the spiritual water from the Spirit Oasis in an attempt to heal Zuko's scar, but Aang and Iroh burst in, making Zuko angry at Iroh for allying with the Avatar. Instead, she later used the spirit water to bring Aang back to life after he had been struck in the back by Azula's lightning. Katara unsuccessfully attempted to heal Jet after he was fatally wounded by Long Feng. During the invasion, Katara's father, Hakoda, was injured while taking out a Fire Nation ballista tower. Aiding him, her healing was enough to allow him to walk again. During Azula and Zuko's Agni Kai, Azula generated lightning and aimed it at Katara rather than Zuko; however, Zuko jumped in front of Katara and let the lightning shock him instead, sparing her from near death. After chaining Azula to a water grate, Katara used her healing to aid Zuko. Her healing had been successful enough that he could rise to his feet just moments after she had begun.

As an adult, her prowess continued to grow, as she became well-recognized in her abilities throughout the world. She proved herself to be an excellent waterbending teacher, having trained her daughter and both Avatars Aang and Korra to become highly adept masters themselves, including teaching Korra the art of healing. However, even though her healing skills were recognized to be "the best in the world", she could not restore Korra's bending after Amon severed the connection Korra had to the three elements other than air with his bloodbending.

Bloodbending


After learning all of Hama's Southern Style skills, Hama decided to teach Katara bloodbending, an advanced ability to manipulate the water within the body of all living beings, controlling them like puppets. When Katara refused to learn such a technique, viewing it as dark and immoral, Hama decided to silence her with the said technique. Despite only just hearing about the skill, Katara showed an innate talent for the art, quickly becoming the first person to break the effects of Hama's bending grip and free herself. Ultimately however, Hama tricked Katara into utilizing bloodbending to save Sokka and Aang, leaving her greatly distressed. Sometime later, Katara traveled with Zuko to hunt down the man who killed her mother, Yon Rha, the captain of the Southern Raiders. The night they arrived at the Southern Raiders' ship, under the full moon, she alone took out nearly the entire crew. When she discovered where the captain was, she let her anger take over and started using bloodbending on him, which stunned Zuko. When she looked into his eyes and discovered that he was not the one, she released him, shocked and dismayed that she had just used bloodbending on an innocent person. Though this was the last known time she used the technique, she came to greatly understanding its workings, as she was able to determine how Amon had used bloodbending to remove Korra's bending. Later on in life, Katara saw to it that bloodbending was made illegal in the United Republic.

Other skills


Despite being unable to fight in close combat, Katara exhibited remarkable agility and acrobatic skill, such as when she performed a dance with Aang. Furthermore, Katara was resourceful and had a remarkable ability to adapt to her environment, reflecting on the fundamentals of her element, being that of change, such as using her own sweat as a catalyst for her waterbending. Despite being cut off from the rest of the world, Katara possessed a healthy knowledge of spirituality and was one of the few to possess a deep respect for spiritual and cultural matters, unlike her brother Sokka. Katara was also versed in midwifery, demonstrated in her crucial role in delivering Than and Ying's baby, Hope.

Katara's knowledge of healing extended outside the waterbending subskill, being versed in physiotherapy, as evidenced when she guided Korra to walk again.

Appearances
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Other comics
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Trivia



 * In the unaired pilot, Katara's character was named Kya. The name Kya was later given to her previously unnamed mother. Nickelodeon's legal department vetoed the name when they discovered there was already a video game character named Kya, so they had to change it. Kanna was first proposed to replace Kya, but was later used for the name of her grandmother instead.
 * Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko have stated that they think of Katara as the deuteragonist of the series, as well as the "person the story is being told through".
 * Other than in the opening sequence, Katara was the first person to bend in the series.
 * Katara once stated that she hated the papaya fruit.
 * Katara seemed to have been knowledgeable on yoga.
 * According to Aunt Wu, Katara will have her third great-grandchild before quietly passing away in her sleep.
 * In "The Cave of Two Lovers" with Avatar Extras bonus commentary, it was confirmed that Katara mastered waterbending in the short time that she was at the North Pole, making her the first female student of Master Pakku.
 * Katara was seen or mentioned in every episode of Avatar: The Last Airbender except "Zuko Alone".
 * Katara narrated the opening sequence, and therefore was the first person to speak in the series.
 * In some comics, her name is misspelled Takara instead of Katara, a word meaning "treasure" in Japanese.
 * In the Greek dub, her name is "Tamara". This is probably because "katara" (κατάρα) means curse in Greek. However, when Nickelodeon translated Sifu Kisu's words about waterbending he mentions her as Katara. Her name was also mentioned as Katara by the White Lotus leader in The Legend of Korra.
 * The last character in Katara's name, 拉, means pull, which is one of the basics of waterbending.
 * In Arabic, Katara,قطرة, can be translated as droplet or water droplet.
 * Katara was the only member of Team Avatar never to meet Fire Lord Ozai on-screen during the series.
 * Katara was the first person to touch Zuko's scar in the series, other than Zuko himself. Mai was the second to touch his scar, when they kissed after reuniting with one another.
 * Katara was the only character ever shown to calm Aang out of the Avatar State.
 * Katara, along with her brother, Sokka, had the longest list of love interests in the show: Jet and Aang both had her eye, and although nothing ever happened, Toph once assumed Katara and Haru "had a secret thing" together. Unlike her brother, she had no love interests from the Water Tribes or the Fire Nation.
 * Katara is the only person to have participated in all of the water duels featured during the Hundred Year War, battling Pakku, Hama, Aang, and a number of Pakku's waterbending students.
 * Katara is the only character to appear in both the first and last scenes of Avatar: The Last Airbender.
 * Katara was originally envisioned as a twelve-year-old girl, but after a suggestion from one of the crew members, she was "aged up" along with Aang and Sokka.
 * LEGO produced a Katara minifigure, and still to date remains the only toy based upon this character in the markets.
 * Katara's quick series of jabs against her master, Pakku, during their fight is the first instance of two benders using hand-to-hand combat in the series.
 * The way Katara discovered Korra leaving the Southern Water Tribe compound is similar to the way Kanna discovered Katara and Sokka leaving in "The Avatar Returns". Both times a young person is leaving, somehow involving the Avatar's fate, and both times the elder lets them go.
 * When Katara was fourteen years old, Yugoda stated that Katara was the spitting image of Kanna when she was younger.
 * Just like she addressed Kanna in her youth, Katara's grandchildren call her Gran Gran.
 * When in need of a fake name, Sokka named Katara "Sapphire Fire". Katara also used the name "June Pippinpaddleopsicopolis" when trying to enter Omashu for the first time, following Aang's lead after he called himself "Bonzu Pippinpaddleopsicopolis, the Third".
 * Katara is the only known person to use both healing and bloodbending, which constitutes all known sub-skills of waterbending.
 * As such, Katara is the only known bender capable of using all known sub-skills of a given element.
 * Katara is one of only two people, aside from the Avatars themselves, to have seen four Avatars in their lifetime, the other being Sokka. She saw Roku and Kyoshi manifest themselves through Aang, knew Aang, and was Avatar Korra's waterbending master.
 * Katara is one of two people known to have trained two different Avatars, the other being Toph Beifong.
 * Katara is the first person known to break free of a bloodbender's hold by their own doing.
 * Of the five known bloodbenders, Katara is the only one who was never known to have had someone else break free of her bloodbending grip, though she rarely used the skill.
 * Katara is the first known waterbender to have given birth to an airbender.
 * Katara is the only known waterbender to have taught more than one Avatar.
 * Katara appears in every book of the Avatar franchise, save for Book Three: Change.
 * Katara broke a tooth on some seal jerky made by Ashuna when she was six years old.