Writers Note: Hey all, this is Chapter 2, the greatest challenge for this specific Book in general is getting in the mind of Katara. I hope you all enjoy. PLEASE give me your feedback, as it helps me greatly.
CHAPTER 2
The coronation had not been anywhere near as lavish as those of Fire Lords past, and it had not been nearly as well-attended, either. Had circumstances been different, Zuko might have chosen to take a few days to allow for more preparation, or at the very least, to repair the damage done to the palace during his agni kai with Azula. As it was, had you asked the young Fire Lord that evening, he most likely would have said he wouldn't have chosen his coronation to be any other way. The Earth Kingdom and Water Tribe captives recently released from prison were gsdfsdfuests of honor, and most of the key members of the Fire Nation bureaucracy were not only in attendance, but had sworn their allegiance to their new ruler. It was inelegant and as unceremonious as anything in the Fire Nation had any chance of being, but it was the start of something new and somehow that felt appropriate.
The celebrations, held in the palace's extensive gardens, continued late into the night. As the sun dipped below the horizon and the relative cool of the balmy Fire Nation evening settled over the capitol, lanterns were lit all around the palace grounds. Katara, seated with Toph and her brother at a table off to the side of the crowd, noticed that many of the Earth Kingdom and Water Tribe people in the crowd winced visibly as the firebenders among the palace servants went about setting the lights. Not so terribly long ago, she would have been one of those shying away from the sight of even this most innocent firebending.
With a smile, though, she noted that her own peace of mind was not the only change. Fire Nation citizens and Earth Kingdom nationals mingled freely, and she even spotted her own father engaged in a spirited dance with a golden-eyed woman.
"Things really are going to change now, aren't they?" she remarked to anyone who happened to be listening.
"You said it, Sweetness."
"Well, I certainly hope so," a voice Katara hadn't heard in some time chimed in. She looked up in delight at the sight of Aang approaching. He was still dressed in his elaborate new robes, and she couldn't quite keep herself from staring. The formal attire made him look so noble and handsome that taking her eyes off him seemed nearly impossible.
To her great delight, he took the empty seat between herself and Toph. If she were to move her chair just a few inches, their arms would be touching. Katara pondered what would be the easiest way to slide over in her chair, and whether she could pull it off without making it completely obvfdsious what she was doing.
"I was wondering when you were gonna turn up," Toph remarked, interrupting Katara's musings. "We haven't seen you in hours."
Aang pulled a face. "Yeah, I know. I've been doing the Avatar thing."
"Get used to it, buddy," Sokka remarked. "I'm pretty sure you're not gonna be able to get out of that gig."
The young airbender laughed. "It's okay, actually. Zuko's just been making sure I know all the important people in the Fire Nation ruling class."
"Speaking of Zuko," Suki chimed in as she returned to the table, bearing two cups of rice wine, one of which she handed to Sokka with the other reserved for herself, "where is he, anyway? I don't think I've seen him since right after the coronation."
"I just saw him," Aang said. "He's gonna swing by in a few minutes. He said he wanted us to meet somebody."
Sokka snorted. "Probably some stuffy, puffed up Fire Nation noble who wants to get it in good with the Avatar so you won't take away his bending, too."
"Only one in four," Zuko called at that very moment. "Fire Nation nobility- yes. Stuffy and puffed up- no."
"And frankly," a female voice with a silky-sharp edge added, "I wouldn't have much use for firebending even if I were one."
All five of the young heroes seated around the table whipped around to gape at the approaching Fire Lord and his companion. Four of the five jaws dropped. Katara found herself unconsciously reaching for the water skin she'd neglected to bring with her to the celebration, and she saw both Suki and Aang tensing up reflexively. Toph's expression remained stoic but she too shifted ever so slightly in her seat, planting her feet a little more firmly on the ground. Only Sokka, with his broken leg propped up on an empty chair, seemed relatively unaffected by the appearance of the raven-haired beauty at Zuko's side once he had recovered from the initial surprise of her presence.
"Guys, relax," the warrior said nonchalantly. "It's just Mai."
They had all heard the story of how Mai had dramatically rescued the entire party escaping from the Boiling Rock at great cost to herself (and, more memorably, they had all dealt with Zuko's especially violent flares of temper in the ensuing days while he worried himself raw over what price Azula might have extracted from her). But it was one thing for them to objectively know that Mai had turned traitor against the Fire Nation and saved four of their number, and quite another to suddenly be confronted with the woman herself.
Katara actively forced herself to relax her tense posture, reminding herself that Mai was not a threat and there were no knives in sight. She saved Dad and Sokka, she told herself sternly.
Aang, for his part, got to his feet and bowed respectfully to the older girl. "Thank you for helping our friends before," he said. "We owe you a lot."
"Yeah, sure. Whatever," she said dismissively, but Katara caught the tiniest twitch about her mouth that seemed to be the beginnings of a well-suppressed smile.
Katara quickly discovered that Mai was not at all what she had expected. Well, she wasn't entirely sure what she'd been expecting, exactly. Whatever it was, though, Mai definitely wasn't it. Given the fact that she was dating Zuko, Katara supposed she had expected the older girl to be as taciturn and reserved as the firebender tended to be. On the contrary, while it was plain that she was not a woman who revealed herself easily, she actually possessed a great deal more social grace than her boyfriend.
The conversation was a bit awkward once she joined them at the table- none of them quite knew what to make of her, and she threw off the effortless group dynamic they had created between them- but as the evening wore on and they got used to her presence, it got easier. The noblewoman was not overly talkative, but she was well-spoken and she had a dry, biting sense of humor that both Toph and Sokka immediately took to. It was very clear that if she spent much more time with them, she would be an accepted member of the group in no time.
Katara found the whole thing to be rather surreal. Only a month ago, she would have considered this girl an enemy to be attacked on sight. Now here she was, sitting among them making sarcastic comments about swamp bender hygiene and none-too-subtly sliding her foot up Zuko's calf under the table. Somehow, Ty Lee's decision to switch sides had been easier to comprehend- perhaps because the chi blocker was a great deal easier to read than this clever woman with the face of a card cheat.
The waterbender simply came to the conclusion that it was going to take awhile to adjust to her presence, and her highly unconventional demeanor.
Eventually, the conversation turned (as it inevitably must) to the subject of the recently-ended war. Katara hadn't really given it much thought, considering her whole focus had been on making sure that everyone she loved survived the war, but as the discussion went on, it dawned on her just how much there really was left to do.
As Aang rightly said, the battle was only half the victory.
"It seems to me like it's not really over until you actually sign a peace treaty," Mai remarked.
As much as Katara hated to concede the point, as much as she wanted to revel in the exhilaration of the coronation and Aang's irrefutable triumph, the older girl unfortunately had a point. Ozai had been stripped of power in every sense, Azula was on her way to an asylum where she belonged, and the Phoenix King's fleet had been destroyed. It was a huge step on the road to peace, but it wasn't official yet.
"I know," Zuko sighed, rubbing his temples tiredly. "I'm meeting with Chief Hakoda tomorrow to begin negotiating peace with the Southern Water Tribe, and this morning I sent an emissary to Chief Arnook at the North Pole. But that's just a start. I still need to-"
"Meet with the Earth King," Aang finished for him. "Yeah, I've been thinking about that. What ever happened to him?"
"He and Bosco went off to live a nomadic experience and travel the Earth Kingdom in disguise, remember? I told you that," Sokka reminded him.
"You did?"
"You probably wouldn't remember," Katara reassured the surprised airbender. "He mentioned it right after you first woke up after Ba Sing Se. You were still pretty out of it."
Aang frowned. "Those first few hours are kind of a blur," he conceded.
"I'm not surprised," Toph remarked. "You were real messed up for awhile there, Twinkle Toes."
Mai snorted at the nickname, but Katara wasn't so amused. "Can we not talk about that?" she suggested tersely. "It's not the point, anyway. The point is, we don't actually know where the Earth King is."
"That could be a problem," Aang said thoughtfully.
"You're not kidding," Zuko agreed. "Uncle sent word that somebody called Bumi is acting as interim ruler in Ba Sing Se, but a short-term ceasefire isn't good enough. Negotiating peace is going to be difficult as it is. Without the cooperation of the true Earth King, it will be a thousand times harder, and we can't afford that. The Earth Kingdom endured the war the best, and as a result, most of the fighting occurred on Earth Kingdom soil. If this peace is going to be lasting, it's absolutely essential that a real agreement be reached with the Earth King and his government."
"But you can't do that without the Earth King," Mai concluded.
Sokka shrugged. "So we go find him, then."
"What, just like that?" Zuko asked skeptically.
"Sure, why not?" Suki asked. "The Earth King is many great and wonderful things-" At this Sokka and Katara both made audible attempts to stifle laughter. Suki determinedly ignored them and soldiered on: "-but a master of stealth is not one of them. It shouldn't be too hard to find him."
"No kidding," Mai added dryly. "Even Ty Lee could probably track him."
A round of giggles followed this comment as the mental image of the bumbling monarch being chased by a pink-clad detective popped simultaneously into everyone's head.
"So is that it, then?" Sokka asked. "Are we gonna go fifnd Kuei?"
Katara nodded. "I think we have to."
"Definitely," Suki agreed.
The group cast a collective look at Aang, who had thus far been silent on the matter. "It seems like a good idea to me," he said thoughtfully. "We could leave in a couple days to start searching for him. Once we've got him pinned down we can send a message to you, and we'll all meet in Ba Sing Se."
Zuko nodded in agreement. "That seems reasonable. I just hope you can find him quickly, because the situation between our nations could become unstable fast if we don't begin peace talks as soon as possible."
Aang groaned. "I thought I was done with deadlines!"
The older boy mirrored his expression. "I think both of us are probably going to be working under deadlines for a long time to come."
Despite herself, Katara snickered at the look of utter dismay on the Avatar's face.
Katara and Aang walked side by side down the corridor in what seemed like companionable silence. Internally, however, the waterbender was a froth of excitement and nerves.
Dawn was only a scant few hours away when the celebrations had finally wound down enough to allow the Avatar and the Firelord to bow out without committing political suicide. Aang and Zuko had both been obligated to remain, but no such compulsions had held the rest of the group at the party. Toph had vanished relatively soon after the decision to search for Kuei was reached, complaining that the fireworks that were being launched from the roof of the palace were giving her a headache. Sokka and Suki had bowed out not long afterwards, both of them red-faced and giggling from too much wine, completely failing at their attempts at a discreet exit. No one could remember quite when Mai had left.
Only Katara had elected to remain behind until the wee hours with the two put-upon young statesmen. Once or twice, she was engaged in conversation by some Fire Nation or Earth Kingdom citizen curious for details of the final agni kai between the royal siblings, but for the most part, she had been content to remain out of the way at her table, simply watching Aang circulate through the crowd.
It was fascinating to watch him, the way he moved and gestured as he talked, and the ease with which he won over everyone with whom he spoke. Aang had always been far more charming than he himself had any idea of, but that innate social grace he'd possessed as long as she'd known him had been tempered and perfected these past months. And even more... something had changed in him, just in these last few days. She couldn't put her finger on quite what it was, but there was something in his eyes that seemed different. It was as though his natural gentleness and wisdom had been refined and purified.
Katara couldn't understand it, but she wanted to. And that was why she was currently buzzing with excitement as they walked down the hallway of the Fire Palace. She was keenly aware that this was the first time they'd been completely alone together since that horrible conversation on the balcony of the Ember Island theatre almost two weeks earlier. The knowledge made the silence awkward, but more anticipatory than anything else. She was more than ready to repair the rift that had formed in their friendship and become reacquainted with him after everything that had happened. The chance to spend even a little time with him was exhilarating.
His hand, swinging at his side, brushed hers (or maybe it was the other way around). They shared a brief startled glance before they both looked away. Katara's fingers tingled.
A part of her felt a little bit foolish. Pull yourself together, she chided herself. It's only Aang, after all. But there was nothing "only" about Aang- there never had been. Being around him, even in times like this during a quiet walk back to their respective rooms, had always been a happy prospect. That she was now fully aware that she was completely crazy about him only served to underline that fact.
That was why, when they reached the door of the bedchamber Zuko had set aside for her, Katara found herself wildly disappointed. As exhausted as she was, she was reluctant to part ways with Aang.
"Well. I guess this is your room."
"Yeah. It is."
She hesitated, with her hand on the door knob. Their eyes met again, and again he looked away bashfully. "Goodnight," he blurted out, at the exact moment that she said his name.
"What is it?" he asked, turning a little pink at the awkward moment.
"Did... I mean, do you want to come in for a little while?" she suggested. Somehow, the fact that Aang was tense and shy as well made the words come easier. It was a welcome reminder that no matter how big a hero he was, no matter how great and noble he looked in those fancy new robes, he was still her Aang. He was still the boy who stuttered and blushed when she kissed his cheek, and who made her laugh with ridiculous jokes.
One corner of his mouth twitched upward in a relieved smile. "Yeah," he said. "I'd like that. We... uh, we haven't had much of a chance to talk to each other."
"No, we really haven't," she agreed. She turned the knob and entered the room, with Aang close behind her. "You still haven't told me the whole story of what happened after you disappeared before the comet."
She'd heard the story, of course- or at least, the short version- and Sokka had given her a blow by blow recount of Aang's battle with Ozai at least three times, but it was a whole other thing entirely to be able to hear Aang tell her about it himself.
"I guess I haven't, have I?"
Katara perched herself on the bed, smiling as Aang bounced up onto the mattress beside her. "Come on," she prompted him. "What really happened? Toph said something about a Lion Turtle but she wasn't too clear."
Aang laughed. "Yeah, that was crazy. See, what happened was..."
And so he told her everything. He recounted the whole dizzying journey and his quest for a solution to an impossible problem. As he explained his council with Avatars past and with the enormous Lion Turtle, Katara was moved with sympathy for him. Before he had vanished that night, it had been obvious that the thought of killing Ozai was infinitely distressing to him. She had known that... but still she had doubted him. She, just like the rest of them, had questioned his resolve. She, who had always believed in him more fiercely than anyone, almost to the point of irrationality, had doubted him in the eleventh hour. And he had responded by rising up and finding the solution the whole world had told him did not- could not- exist. When no one else would support him, he had believed in himself and proven them all wrong. Katara had known before anyone else that Aang was extraordinary, but hearing how he had refused to stop seeking until he found an answer he could live with, hearing how he had used his newfound knowledge to save the world and end the war nonviolently... A rush of profound love rose up in her for him, more than she knew what to do with.
"Katara?"
The concerned tone in his voice startled her, pulled her out of her thoughts. "Hm?"
"Are you okay? You're... why are you crying?"
To her great astonishment, she discovered that an involuntary tear had indeed welled up in her eye and gone streaming down her cheek. She wiped it away quickly and stared at her damp fingers in surprise. Then she looked up at Aang, who was watching her with a look of such tender concern on his face she almost couldn't bear it. The way he was looking at her, she would have almost thought he...
"I'm fine. I just..."
But she didn't know what to say. She had no idea how to put into words what she was feeling at that moment. It was too much, he was too much.
She tried again. "Aang, I-"
I love you.
It was all she really wanted to say to him. Even though her head had only been let in on the secret quite recently, her heart had been bursting with it for much longer. The desire to just confess everything was overwhelming, especially with him still gazing at her as if he adored her every bit as much. She wanted to take his hand, to lean in and kiss him, to tell him just how much he meant to her.
But she couldn't. Somehow it seemed too sudden, too soon. The last time they had talked about matters of the heart, things had gotten out of hand; it seemed too abrupt for a complete reversal. And even if it weren't... she found herself suddenly shy. Even though it was Aang, the person she trusted more than anyone and who she could talk to about anything, she found that she couldn't do it. Her stomach exploded with a flock of buttermoths and her palms began sweating at the mere thought, and she choked on all the things she wanted to say.
"I want you to know how proud of you I am," she blurted out, instead.
His expression morphed from one of sympathetic concern to complete surprise instantly. "What?" he asked.
"I mean it," she pressed on. "I know I've told you this before, but I think you're really amazing, you know? I've never known anyone as strong or as brave as you and I, um, I just wanted you to know that."
He mumbled her name, blushing furiously again. And then he was looking at her in that soft-eyed way he did, as if he was as enamored of her as she was of him, and it was just too much.
She reached over and cradled his face in her palm, drawing him close to press a tickling kiss to his right cheek. Maybe such an affectionate display should have been awkward, with the things they'd said to each other at the theatre still hanging over them, but before any uncomfortable tension had a chance to take root, Katara dispelled it by then flinging her arms around his neck in a fierce hug.
Aang's arms immediately wrapped around her waist, gratefully inviting her in. Reassured by his reaction, Katara snuggled even closer, hiding her face against the solid warmth of his shoulder, her cheek rubbing against the soft fabric of his robes. It was the closest they'd been since their argument on Ember Island, and it felt like absolution. They had both done and said things they regretted- Katara certainly knew she had- and this physical affection was the best way they knew how to put the uncomfortable ordeal behind them.
Katara closed her eyes, a soft smile crossing her face as he tucked himself just a little closer. "I mean it," she whispered. "I'm so proud of you, Aang. Even when no one else supported you, you believed in yourself. I'm so sorry I doubted you."
"I would have doubted me, too," he said in an equally soft voice.
"But I shouldn't have."
"Katara, please don't worry about it. You were only trying to help, and I know you were just worried."
She laughed against his shoulder. He knew her too well. "I guess I always worry about you more than you probably need," she conceded.
"Well, that's okay then," he said in a quiet yet cheerful voice, "because I probably worry about you more than you need, too."
She tilted her head to allow her a glimpse of his face, breaking their hug at last to get a better look at him. "You worry about me?" she asked, unexpectedly pleased by this fact.
He nodded. "You're my best friend," he pointed out, "so of course I'm going to-" He abruptly cut himself off with an enormous yawn.
Katara grinned at the disgruntled look on his face. "Go to bed, Aang," she said. "It's almost morning, and even mighty Avatars need their rest."
He laughed. "I guess so," he conceded. He gave her another hug, spontaneous and very brief. "I'm glad things are okay between us," he said softly in her ear. And then he was up and heading for the door.
"Aang!" she called after him.
He froze, hand on the doorknob. "Yeah?"
I love you.
"Goodnight."
He favored her with a brilliant smile that was so wonderfully Aang. "Goodnight," he replied, and then he was gone.
Katara slumped back on the bed with a deep groan, though whether of contentment or disappointment, she wasn't entirely sure.
Want to see more? Please leave a like, and give me your thoughts on what I should do next.
I'm taking suggestions for the next few books. Who knows, I may throw a bit of Korra in the series.
Writers Note: Hey all, this is Chapter 2, the greatest challenge for this specific Book in general is getting in the mind of Katara. I hope you all enjoy. PLEASE give me your feedback, as it helps me greatly.
CHAPTER 2
The coronation had not been anywhere near as lavish as those of Fire Lords past, and it had not been nearly as well-attended, either. Had circumstances been different, Zuko might have chosen to take a few days to allow for more preparation, or at the very least, to repair the damage done to the palace during his agni kai with Azula. As it was, had you asked the young Fire Lord that evening, he most likely would have said he wouldn't have chosen his coronation to be any other way. The Earth Kingdom and Water Tribe captives recently released from prison were gsdfsdfuests of honor, and most of the key members of the Fire Nation bureaucracy were not only in attendance, but had sworn their allegiance to their new ruler. It was inelegant and as unceremonious as anything in the Fire Nation had any chance of being, but it was the start of something new and somehow that felt appropriate.
The celebrations, held in the palace's extensive gardens, continued late into the night. As the sun dipped below the horizon and the relative cool of the balmy Fire Nation evening settled over the capitol, lanterns were lit all around the palace grounds. Katara, seated with Toph and her brother at a table off to the side of the crowd, noticed that many of the Earth Kingdom and Water Tribe people in the crowd winced visibly as the firebenders among the palace servants went about setting the lights. Not so terribly long ago, she would have been one of those shying away from the sight of even this most innocent firebending.
With a smile, though, she noted that her own peace of mind was not the only change. Fire Nation citizens and Earth Kingdom nationals mingled freely, and she even spotted her own father engaged in a spirited dance with a golden-eyed woman.
"Things really are going to change now, aren't they?" she remarked to anyone who happened to be listening.
"You said it, Sweetness."
"Well, I certainly hope so," a voice Katara hadn't heard in some time chimed in. She looked up in delight at the sight of Aang approaching. He was still dressed in his elaborate new robes, and she couldn't quite keep herself from staring. The formal attire made him look so noble and handsome that taking her eyes off him seemed nearly impossible.
To her great delight, he took the empty seat between herself and Toph. If she were to move her chair just a few inches, their arms would be touching. Katara pondered what would be the easiest way to slide over in her chair, and whether she could pull it off without making it completely obvfdsious what she was doing.
"I was wondering when you were gonna turn up," Toph remarked, interrupting Katara's musings. "We haven't seen you in hours."
Aang pulled a face. "Yeah, I know. I've been doing the Avatar thing."
"Get used to it, buddy," Sokka remarked. "I'm pretty sure you're not gonna be able to get out of that gig."
The young airbender laughed. "It's okay, actually. Zuko's just been making sure I know all the important people in the Fire Nation ruling class."
"Speaking of Zuko," Suki chimed in as she returned to the table, bearing two cups of rice wine, one of which she handed to Sokka with the other reserved for herself, "where is he, anyway? I don't think I've seen him since right after the coronation."
"I just saw him," Aang said. "He's gonna swing by in a few minutes. He said he wanted us to meet somebody."
Sokka snorted. "Probably some stuffy, puffed up Fire Nation noble who wants to get it in good with the Avatar so you won't take away his bending, too."
"Only one in four," Zuko called at that very moment. "Fire Nation nobility- yes. Stuffy and puffed up- no."
"And frankly," a female voice with a silky-sharp edge added, "I wouldn't have much use for firebending even if I were one."
All five of the young heroes seated around the table whipped around to gape at the approaching Fire Lord and his companion. Four of the five jaws dropped. Katara found herself unconsciously reaching for the water skin she'd neglected to bring with her to the celebration, and she saw both Suki and Aang tensing up reflexively. Toph's expression remained stoic but she too shifted ever so slightly in her seat, planting her feet a little more firmly on the ground. Only Sokka, with his broken leg propped up on an empty chair, seemed relatively unaffected by the appearance of the raven-haired beauty at Zuko's side once he had recovered from the initial surprise of her presence.
"Guys, relax," the warrior said nonchalantly. "It's just Mai."
They had all heard the story of how Mai had dramatically rescued the entire party escaping from the Boiling Rock at great cost to herself (and, more memorably, they had all dealt with Zuko's especially violent flares of temper in the ensuing days while he worried himself raw over what price Azula might have extracted from her). But it was one thing for them to objectively know that Mai had turned traitor against the Fire Nation and saved four of their number, and quite another to suddenly be confronted with the woman herself.
Katara actively forced herself to relax her tense posture, reminding herself that Mai was not a threat and there were no knives in sight. She saved Dad and Sokka, she told herself sternly.
Aang, for his part, got to his feet and bowed respectfully to the older girl. "Thank you for helping our friends before," he said. "We owe you a lot."
"Yeah, sure. Whatever," she said dismissively, but Katara caught the tiniest twitch about her mouth that seemed to be the beginnings of a well-suppressed smile.
Katara quickly discovered that Mai was not at all what she had expected. Well, she wasn't entirely sure what she'd been expecting, exactly. Whatever it was, though, Mai definitely wasn't it. Given the fact that she was dating Zuko, Katara supposed she had expected the older girl to be as taciturn and reserved as the firebender tended to be. On the contrary, while it was plain that she was not a woman who revealed herself easily, she actually possessed a great deal more social grace than her boyfriend.
The conversation was a bit awkward once she joined them at the table- none of them quite knew what to make of her, and she threw off the effortless group dynamic they had created between them- but as the evening wore on and they got used to her presence, it got easier. The noblewoman was not overly talkative, but she was well-spoken and she had a dry, biting sense of humor that both Toph and Sokka immediately took to. It was very clear that if she spent much more time with them, she would be an accepted member of the group in no time.
Katara found the whole thing to be rather surreal. Only a month ago, she would have considered this girl an enemy to be attacked on sight. Now here she was, sitting among them making sarcastic comments about swamp bender hygiene and none-too-subtly sliding her foot up Zuko's calf under the table. Somehow, Ty Lee's decision to switch sides had been easier to comprehend- perhaps because the chi blocker was a great deal easier to read than this clever woman with the face of a card cheat.
The waterbender simply came to the conclusion that it was going to take awhile to adjust to her presence, and her highly unconventional demeanor.
Eventually, the conversation turned (as it inevitably must) to the subject of the recently-ended war. Katara hadn't really given it much thought, considering her whole focus had been on making sure that everyone she loved survived the war, but as the discussion went on, it dawned on her just how much there really was left to do.
As Aang rightly said, the battle was only half the victory.
"It seems to me like it's not really over until you actually sign a peace treaty," Mai remarked.
As much as Katara hated to concede the point, as much as she wanted to revel in the exhilaration of the coronation and Aang's irrefutable triumph, the older girl unfortunately had a point. Ozai had been stripped of power in every sense, Azula was on her way to an asylum where she belonged, and the Phoenix King's fleet had been destroyed. It was a huge step on the road to peace, but it wasn't official yet.
"I know," Zuko sighed, rubbing his temples tiredly. "I'm meeting with Chief Hakoda tomorrow to begin negotiating peace with the Southern Water Tribe, and this morning I sent an emissary to Chief Arnook at the North Pole. But that's just a start. I still need to-"
"Meet with the Earth King," Aang finished for him. "Yeah, I've been thinking about that. What ever happened to him?"
"He and Bosco went off to live a nomadic experience and travel the Earth Kingdom in disguise, remember? I told you that," Sokka reminded him.
"You did?"
"You probably wouldn't remember," Katara reassured the surprised airbender. "He mentioned it right after you first woke up after Ba Sing Se. You were still pretty out of it."
Aang frowned. "Those first few hours are kind of a blur," he conceded.
"I'm not surprised," Toph remarked. "You were real messed up for awhile there, Twinkle Toes."
Mai snorted at the nickname, but Katara wasn't so amused. "Can we not talk about that?" she suggested tersely. "It's not the point, anyway. The point is, we don't actually know where the Earth King is."
"That could be a problem," Aang said thoughtfully.
"You're not kidding," Zuko agreed. "Uncle sent word that somebody called Bumi is acting as interim ruler in Ba Sing Se, but a short-term ceasefire isn't good enough. Negotiating peace is going to be difficult as it is. Without the cooperation of the true Earth King, it will be a thousand times harder, and we can't afford that. The Earth Kingdom endured the war the best, and as a result, most of the fighting occurred on Earth Kingdom soil. If this peace is going to be lasting, it's absolutely essential that a real agreement be reached with the Earth King and his government."
"But you can't do that without the Earth King," Mai concluded.
Sokka shrugged. "So we go find him, then."
"What, just like that?" Zuko asked skeptically.
"Sure, why not?" Suki asked. "The Earth King is many great and wonderful things-" At this Sokka and Katara both made audible attempts to stifle laughter. Suki determinedly ignored them and soldiered on: "-but a master of stealth is not one of them. It shouldn't be too hard to find him."
"No kidding," Mai added dryly. "Even Ty Lee could probably track him."
A round of giggles followed this comment as the mental image of the bumbling monarch being chased by a pink-clad detective popped simultaneously into everyone's head.
"So is that it, then?" Sokka asked. "Are we gonna go fifnd Kuei?"
Katara nodded. "I think we have to."
"Definitely," Suki agreed.
The group cast a collective look at Aang, who had thus far been silent on the matter. "It seems like a good idea to me," he said thoughtfully. "We could leave in a couple days to start searching for him. Once we've got him pinned down we can send a message to you, and we'll all meet in Ba Sing Se."
Zuko nodded in agreement. "That seems reasonable. I just hope you can find him quickly, because the situation between our nations could become unstable fast if we don't begin peace talks as soon as possible."
Aang groaned. "I thought I was done with deadlines!"
The older boy mirrored his expression. "I think both of us are probably going to be working under deadlines for a long time to come."
Despite herself, Katara snickered at the look of utter dismay on the Avatar's face.
Katara and Aang walked side by side down the corridor in what seemed like companionable silence. Internally, however, the waterbender was a froth of excitement and nerves.
Dawn was only a scant few hours away when the celebrations had finally wound down enough to allow the Avatar and the Firelord to bow out without committing political suicide. Aang and Zuko had both been obligated to remain, but no such compulsions had held the rest of the group at the party. Toph had vanished relatively soon after the decision to search for Kuei was reached, complaining that the fireworks that were being launched from the roof of the palace were giving her a headache. Sokka and Suki had bowed out not long afterwards, both of them red-faced and giggling from too much wine, completely failing at their attempts at a discreet exit. No one could remember quite when Mai had left.
Only Katara had elected to remain behind until the wee hours with the two put-upon young statesmen. Once or twice, she was engaged in conversation by some Fire Nation or Earth Kingdom citizen curious for details of the final agni kai between the royal siblings, but for the most part, she had been content to remain out of the way at her table, simply watching Aang circulate through the crowd.
It was fascinating to watch him, the way he moved and gestured as he talked, and the ease with which he won over everyone with whom he spoke. Aang had always been far more charming than he himself had any idea of, but that innate social grace he'd possessed as long as she'd known him had been tempered and perfected these past months. And even more... something had changed in him, just in these last few days. She couldn't put her finger on quite what it was, but there was something in his eyes that seemed different. It was as though his natural gentleness and wisdom had been refined and purified.
Katara couldn't understand it, but she wanted to. And that was why she was currently buzzing with excitement as they walked down the hallway of the Fire Palace. She was keenly aware that this was the first time they'd been completely alone together since that horrible conversation on the balcony of the Ember Island theatre almost two weeks earlier. The knowledge made the silence awkward, but more anticipatory than anything else. She was more than ready to repair the rift that had formed in their friendship and become reacquainted with him after everything that had happened. The chance to spend even a little time with him was exhilarating.
His hand, swinging at his side, brushed hers (or maybe it was the other way around). They shared a brief startled glance before they both looked away. Katara's fingers tingled.
A part of her felt a little bit foolish. Pull yourself together, she chided herself. It's only Aang, after all. But there was nothing "only" about Aang- there never had been. Being around him, even in times like this during a quiet walk back to their respective rooms, had always been a happy prospect. That she was now fully aware that she was completely crazy about him only served to underline that fact.
That was why, when they reached the door of the bedchamber Zuko had set aside for her, Katara found herself wildly disappointed. As exhausted as she was, she was reluctant to part ways with Aang.
"Well. I guess this is your room."
"Yeah. It is."
She hesitated, with her hand on the door knob. Their eyes met again, and again he looked away bashfully. "Goodnight," he blurted out, at the exact moment that she said his name.
"What is it?" he asked, turning a little pink at the awkward moment.
"Did... I mean, do you want to come in for a little while?" she suggested. Somehow, the fact that Aang was tense and shy as well made the words come easier. It was a welcome reminder that no matter how big a hero he was, no matter how great and noble he looked in those fancy new robes, he was still her Aang. He was still the boy who stuttered and blushed when she kissed his cheek, and who made her laugh with ridiculous jokes.
One corner of his mouth twitched upward in a relieved smile. "Yeah," he said. "I'd like that. We... uh, we haven't had much of a chance to talk to each other."
"No, we really haven't," she agreed. She turned the knob and entered the room, with Aang close behind her. "You still haven't told me the whole story of what happened after you disappeared before the comet."
She'd heard the story, of course- or at least, the short version- and Sokka had given her a blow by blow recount of Aang's battle with Ozai at least three times, but it was a whole other thing entirely to be able to hear Aang tell her about it himself.
"I guess I haven't, have I?"
Katara perched herself on the bed, smiling as Aang bounced up onto the mattress beside her. "Come on," she prompted him. "What really happened? Toph said something about a Lion Turtle but she wasn't too clear."
Aang laughed. "Yeah, that was crazy. See, what happened was..."
And so he told her everything. He recounted the whole dizzying journey and his quest for a solution to an impossible problem. As he explained his council with Avatars past and with the enormous Lion Turtle, Katara was moved with sympathy for him. Before he had vanished that night, it had been obvious that the thought of killing Ozai was infinitely distressing to him. She had known that... but still she had doubted him. She, just like the rest of them, had questioned his resolve. She, who had always believed in him more fiercely than anyone, almost to the point of irrationality, had doubted him in the eleventh hour. And he had responded by rising up and finding the solution the whole world had told him did not- could not- exist. When no one else would support him, he had believed in himself and proven them all wrong. Katara had known before anyone else that Aang was extraordinary, but hearing how he had refused to stop seeking until he found an answer he could live with, hearing how he had used his newfound knowledge to save the world and end the war nonviolently... A rush of profound love rose up in her for him, more than she knew what to do with.
"Katara?"
The concerned tone in his voice startled her, pulled her out of her thoughts. "Hm?"
"Are you okay? You're... why are you crying?"
To her great astonishment, she discovered that an involuntary tear had indeed welled up in her eye and gone streaming down her cheek. She wiped it away quickly and stared at her damp fingers in surprise. Then she looked up at Aang, who was watching her with a look of such tender concern on his face she almost couldn't bear it. The way he was looking at her, she would have almost thought he...
"I'm fine. I just..."
But she didn't know what to say. She had no idea how to put into words what she was feeling at that moment. It was too much, he was too much.
She tried again. "Aang, I-"
I love you.
It was all she really wanted to say to him. Even though her head had only been let in on the secret quite recently, her heart had been bursting with it for much longer. The desire to just confess everything was overwhelming, especially with him still gazing at her as if he adored her every bit as much. She wanted to take his hand, to lean in and kiss him, to tell him just how much he meant to her.
But she couldn't. Somehow it seemed too sudden, too soon. The last time they had talked about matters of the heart, things had gotten out of hand; it seemed too abrupt for a complete reversal. And even if it weren't... she found herself suddenly shy. Even though it was Aang, the person she trusted more than anyone and who she could talk to about anything, she found that she couldn't do it. Her stomach exploded with a flock of buttermoths and her palms began sweating at the mere thought, and she choked on all the things she wanted to say.
"I want you to know how proud of you I am," she blurted out, instead.
His expression morphed from one of sympathetic concern to complete surprise instantly. "What?" he asked.
"I mean it," she pressed on. "I know I've told you this before, but I think you're really amazing, you know? I've never known anyone as strong or as brave as you and I, um, I just wanted you to know that."
He mumbled her name, blushing furiously again. And then he was looking at her in that soft-eyed way he did, as if he was as enamored of her as she was of him, and it was just too much.
She reached over and cradled his face in her palm, drawing him close to press a tickling kiss to his right cheek. Maybe such an affectionate display should have been awkward, with the things they'd said to each other at the theatre still hanging over them, but before any uncomfortable tension had a chance to take root, Katara dispelled it by then flinging her arms around his neck in a fierce hug.
Aang's arms immediately wrapped around her waist, gratefully inviting her in. Reassured by his reaction, Katara snuggled even closer, hiding her face against the solid warmth of his shoulder, her cheek rubbing against the soft fabric of his robes. It was the closest they'd been since their argument on Ember Island, and it felt like absolution. They had both done and said things they regretted- Katara certainly knew she had- and this physical affection was the best way they knew how to put the uncomfortable ordeal behind them.
Katara closed her eyes, a soft smile crossing her face as he tucked himself just a little closer. "I mean it," she whispered. "I'm so proud of you, Aang. Even when no one else supported you, you believed in yourself. I'm so sorry I doubted you."
"I would have doubted me, too," he said in an equally soft voice.
"But I shouldn't have."
"Katara, please don't worry about it. You were only trying to help, and I know you were just worried."
She laughed against his shoulder. He knew her too well. "I guess I always worry about you more than you probably need," she conceded.
"Well, that's okay then," he said in a quiet yet cheerful voice, "because I probably worry about you more than you need, too."
She tilted her head to allow her a glimpse of his face, breaking their hug at last to get a better look at him. "You worry about me?" she asked, unexpectedly pleased by this fact.
He nodded. "You're my best friend," he pointed out, "so of course I'm going to-" He abruptly cut himself off with an enormous yawn.
Katara grinned at the disgruntled look on his face. "Go to bed, Aang," she said. "It's almost morning, and even mighty Avatars need their rest."
He laughed. "I guess so," he conceded. He gave her another hug, spontaneous and very brief. "I'm glad things are okay between us," he said softly in her ear. And then he was up and heading for the door.
"Aang!" she called after him.
He froze, hand on the doorknob. "Yeah?"
I love you.
"Goodnight."
He favored her with a brilliant smile that was so wonderfully Aang. "Goodnight," he replied, and then he was gone.
Katara slumped back on the bed with a deep groan, though whether of contentment or disappointment, she wasn't entirely sure.
Want to see more? Please leave a like, and give me your thoughts on what I should do next.
I'm taking suggestions for the next few books. Who knows, I may throw a bit of Korra in the series.
Chapter One----> http://kh13.com/forum/topic/69797-avatar-aftermath-book-1-chp-1-emotions/?view=findpost&p=1358943
Edited by Aang