Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender.

Day 1: Hands

Those Which Hold My Love

"Katara, are you okay?!"

Katara couldn't help laughing as she saw her husband scurrying all over the family mansion in search of a bandage. "I'm fine, Sweetie. Really."

"No you're not. Let me see."

Aang reached into another kitchen drawer and pulled out a few pieces of cloth. He carefully wrapped them around her left hand, wincing as he saw the burn. "You have to be careful."

The next few minutes went by with even more havoc as the Avatar finally stopped panicking. He continued to blow on the bandage using his airbending.

"It's okay, Aang." Katara assured him. "You should go. It's time for your meeting-"

"That meeting is not as important as you are." He said firmly yet sincerely.

"Please? For me?"

He sighed. Whenever Katara said it like that, he couldn't refuse. "Are you sure?"

"Of course."

He led her to the bedroom and made her sit next to their daughter. "Until I come back, be careful."

"The cooking-"

"And don't leave Kya by herself."

"Okay, but what about-"

"You need your rest." He finished. He grinned the same way he did when he was that thirteen year old airbender and placed a kiss on her cheek. "I'll be back soon."

And with that he left. Katara frowned for a moment, wincing and tracing the bandages with her finger. She glanced at the family portraits on the wall- one with the two of them holding Kya and another one from the day of their marriage. The one where they were holding hands. And as quickly as she stopped frowning, she lost herself in a world of thoughts and memories.

...

Katara was kneeling next to the fountain of the Western Air Temple courtyard, staring at her hands. Again. This was probably the millionth time she did this ever since she met Aang, but despite the many times she would carry out this little... experiment... the same amount of curiosity would linger. Maybe it was just a part of being overprotective since they were best friends. Maybe there was another, more important reason to it considering how he was now learning firebending and was trying to be careful. One thing was clear, though. To this day, she had never known the reason why Aang gave such importance to her hands.

Every time there happened to be a burn or scrape, the Avatar would rush over to her as if the world was really going to end. He would gently seize her hands and use a few healing techniques she previously taught him to cool down the injury, all the while going on and on about how sensitive her hands could be. He would refuse anyone else's help, insisting that he be the only care taker of her hands when such a thing happened. Being the world's savior and having a great responsibility in his hands, he was at the same time concerned with making sure her hands were soft and comfortable.

She didn't get it. What was the magic he saw in her hands that she couldn't? Where was the necessity of this importance?

She suddenly saw that Aang was coming up to her. Her cerulean eyes widened a little at what she saw. Trickling from the top of his bald head and slinging over to his feet was what she assumed to be pear juice. In his hands were two pears, held carefully and cautiously. The airbender looked as if he had been through a war with Momo judging by the amount of peach juice that was splashed over his face and neck. Despite his goofy appearance, the poor airbender seemed obviously exhausted from the torment the badger frogs had given him. The waterbender couldn't help but steal a small chuckle in response as well as express the trace of worry she held.

"Um...Aang?" she said, gesturing to his previous appearance.

Aang cheerfully dropped next to the waterbender and handed her one of the two pairs he held. "I never knew lemurs were so good at guarding things." he said with laughter evident in his voice.

"So this is all Momo's doing?" she said, fiddling with her pear.

"Yep."

Katara noticed a small bruise on his finger. "What happened?"

"Well," he grinned sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head. "I kind of made a bet with Momo-"

"Sorry, I meant…what happened to your finger?"

"Oh, that. I just… wasn't using a proper technique for hot squats at one point, so I slipped and stubbed my finger on a stone."

"How many sets did you do?" she asked.

"About sixty sets."

"Don't tell me Zuko made you overdo your training." she murmured worriedly, trying to maintain a cheerful attitude but inwardly growling at the mention of the fire prince. Since it was Zuko who was training him, it was best to be wise and to stick to his instructions calmly, involving as less anger as possible. Less anger meant more self-control.

"It's fine. Next time it's probably better to camp where there are less badger frogs."

She smiled. "I guess so."

Katara saw that he was watching her hands. She looked carefully, switching her attention from her hands to him and hoping to spot some kind of clue as to why her hands were the specialty. He slowly raised his pear up to his mouth and took a shaky bite, wiping away the trail of juice with his arm and licking his lips. And as quickly as he stared, he started twiddling his thumbs and looked in another direction. Katara raised an eyebrow.

"Did you want to ask me something?"

"Huh?" the Avatar blushed. "N-no… not really…"

"It's okay, Aang. What is it?"

He didn't know how else to say what he wanted to say. However, he took a deep breath. "Katara… can I see your hands for a minute?"

She was a little puzzled with his request but tried not to show it. She smiled. "S-sure…"

A wide smile painted itself across Aang's lips as he gently took her hands. He approached them so slowly at first as if he couldn't really believe he received permission to do so, feeling as if he was holding the most precious things in the world. A goofy yet thoughtful sparkle lit up his stormy eyes. He started to trace the creases of her hands with admiration and deep thought. His smile was no longer as goofy as it was. It was so sincere that Katara's eyes were also glued to her own hands, like she was trying to follow Aang's gaze and discover the secret in them that so effortlessly made him smile. What was clearly so special about her hands?

The Avatar held her hands so lovingly that Katara started to grow nervous. She feared the possibility that he might bring up the kiss at the invasion. But at the same time, she never felt so special the way Aang was secretly admiring her palms. It was so amusing to watch that sparkle in his eyes influence the simple happiness he held in his heart.

Just when she was about to ask him why, a badger frog interrupted the silence with its croak. Aang suddenly let go, groaning and getting up. He smiled again, looking at her. "T-thanks, Katara."

She nodded. "You're welcome."

With a content sigh he hastily got up and started to walk away, reliving the experience and leaving her behind to think about what just happened.

...

Lady Katara is still left to ponder the same thought. She observed her hands again, which were firmly wrapped around two year old Kya. Brushing back her sleeping daughter's hair, she smiled to herself as she was reminded of the incident at the Air Temple all those years ago. She looked out through the window of her bedroom at the stunning view Air Temple Island had to offer, reminiscing her memories.

"Is my little angel still asleep?"

Katara saw Aang standing at the doorway, occupied with a small package and a few flowers.

"Last time I checked, I thought she was your princess." She said.

"She's my everything. Like you." He slowly walked in, placing the package on the bed. "Cookies. For Kya."

"She's been eating a lot of sugar lately." The master waterbender noted. "But I'll have to let it go for now."

Aang chuckled. "I'll let it slide this time, too." He handed Katara the flowers and sat next to her on the bed. "For my darling wife."

"They're beautiful." she whispered.

"Not as much as you are." He said, taking a long look at his wife's hands. He watched with keen interest as her fingers danced over the rose petals. "How do you feel?"

"It's only a small burn, Aang." She smiled.

"To you, maybe." He said. He bent forward and gently took her hands into his, staring at them with the same sparkle he held as he did that day long ago. He grinned in contentment. "But to me, it means a lot. I can't let anything happen to these hands. They mean so much to me."

It was what she loved to watch him do the most. He was so careful not to let them get stressed by the touch of a rough surface very often. That tiny glint of courage he would receive when he took her hands in his was priceless, feeling as if they were safe with him. As much as she was anxious to hear more, she couldn't ruin the moment. "My hands?"

"Yeah." Aang answered, his fingers balleting with hers. "Compared to your eyes, your hands are a close second in importance."

"Really?" she smirked.

"Mmhm. These hands are magical." He grinned. "They saved me from the iceberg. They healed me when I was hurt, hugged me when I felt so down, saved me from-"

"Aang." Even to this day, Katara shuddered to hear about the fall at Ba Sing Se.

"I'm not talking about the lightning part." He assured her softly. He cupped her face in his palms. "They hold all the love I have for you."

Since the few blissful years of her time with Aang and a few more counting from the kiss they shared at Ba Sing Se, she never thought of asking her beloved husband the same question that lingered in her mind all these years. She never felt it was necessary to ask. There were times when he would simply ask to see her hands again like he did that day at the Western Air Temple and like he was doing now. So much had happened since then. The war was over, the Gaang members had each taken up a responsibility, Air Temple Island was established... And of course, Aang and Katara got married years later. Her opportunity to ask had slipped away as the years passed by quickly, and she never made the effort to ask again. Today at last, she received her answer. Now she would just watch every time, giggling whenever he tickled them to make her laugh or planted a kiss on them. She would forever cherish these moments with more to come. She leaned her head on his shoulder, and he wrapped his arms around her.

"I guess that's the secret to why you like my hands so much." She murmured. "I've been wanting to know since forever."

"It's not a secret anymore, is it?" He smirked.

"What should we do about the cooking, then?" Katara asked.

"Shh." He stopped her. "You talk too much." And he leaned in for a kiss.