Author's Note: Okay, this takes place after Zuko joins the group, but before Sozin's Comet. The Gaang is camping, just like old times, and Katara has trouble sleeping.
Disclaimer: I do no own Avatar... Maybe Mike and Brian would like to share :)
O.o.O.o.O
She woke up with tears streaming down her lovely face, an aching heart, and a longing for her mother. Yet again, the nightmare returned. What was this? The sixth night of disrupted sleep? Why couldn't the dreaded memories just leave her alone?
With a sigh and a wipe of her tears, Katara left her sleeping bag and tip-toed past her snoring brother. Maybe some waterbending will help, she thought as she wandered off into the forest, taking special precautions not to disturb the light-sleeping airbender.
Katara reached a body of water that wasn't too far from the camp, and rolled up the bottom of her pants. After removing her shoes, she sat at the edge of the river, creating little splashes with her bare feet. The water was unusually warm and Katara decided she'd further deeper into the water. She stood on her feet and took small steps. The water crawled up her legs with every stride. Deeper, deeper... The water that had started at her ankles was now brushing up against her shins.
With one graceful motion, a stream of water appeared in front Katara, calming the young waterbender's nerves. Though the motions she performed with her element were relaxing, she still felt that source of power from the moon. She looked up at the gleaming crescent in the sky an smiled. Thank you Yue. For everything. Katara returned her focus to the motions of the element before her and allowed the stress to flow down the creek.
With a content exhale of the breath, the now free-of-worries waterbender returned to the camp site. She snuggled into her sleeping bag, with a small smile, and drifted into the unknown abyss of sleep.
The next night brought a much too similar nightmare. Only this time, the dream had been much, much, precise. The accuracy of it scared Katara, and forced her to return to the river.
But that night, bending didn't calm her. In fact, it made her more fidgety. Her hands never stopped shaking, and chills continued to crawl up her spine. Another shiver escaping her lips, she looked up at the moon for a cure. It did nothing to help her. The water seemed to get colder with time, cooling her shins with displeasure.
The girl stepped out of her element and bended the water off her lower legs. Maybe by some miracle the haunting feeling would go away, and leave Katara in peace. Maybe; just maybe. Although, what was once a mind clearing stroll through woods was soon turning into a frightening, lonely race to return to the campsite. She broke into a run, as if something as chasing her. And there was; the memories. She tried to ignore, she tried to hide, and now she was simply running. But after traveling with avatar, she knew very well that you couldn't run from your fears. You had to face them 'head-on' as Toph would say. But Katara didn't care, she just had to get into the comfort of the camp.
Once she had stepped foot into the clearing, she collapsed, softly sobbing to herself. But the sounds of Toph's muffled snoring coming from her earth tent, and Sokka's not-so-muffled snoring coming from next to the died down fire, brought Katara back to her senses. She couldn't act like this, she just couldn't. She had to be strong, for Toph, for Sokka... For Aang. They all needed her, and she couldn't break down now. Not now, not ever.
She stood, and took a deep breath. Softly walking towards her sleeping bag, she wiped away the remaining tears.
"Katara," a voice whispered. The beautiful girl turned to the young avatar, who lay on Appa's tail. He looked at her with a pair of stormy gray, concerned eyes. "What's wrong?" She bit her lip.
"Nothing, Aang. Really. Just go back to sleep," she responded. Aang never left her gaze. It was obvious that he had been aware of her absence in the past few nights.
"Talk to me," he called to her, quiet enough not to disturb the others. Seeing her uncertainty, he continued, "Come here,"
Katara hesitantly took a step forward, before giving in completely and sat beside him.
"You can talk to me, Katara. Come on, what's wrong?" he asked as he wiped away one of her stray tears. She took a deep breath.
"You don't need to worry, Aang." she began, "I just had a dream,"
"A dream?"
"Well, a nightmare, actually. But I'm fine," she began to get up, but he grasped her hand and pulled her into a warm hug.
"Katara, you've done so much for us-- for me especially. You've always been a huge help and, well, now I want to help you. You know you can tell me anything, right?" He brought his hand under her chin and caused her to look up at him. "Right?" he repeated.
"Yeah..." she whispered, "I know,"
"Then talk to me," he said with a tiny smile. His eyes reflected love and care, and Katara knew she could really tell Aang anything.
"Okay... I've been having the same dream--nightmare-- for the past week,"
"I've noticed," he replied in a calm voice.
"Oh, I'm sorry. I really should have been qui--" Aang put his fingers to her lips and shushed her.
"It's fine. You were saying?"
"Well, every time the nightmare comes back, it gets more..." she struggled to find the right word, "accurate... When ever it comes back, it gets scarier, more frightening. My mother... she risked her life to protect me, the last waterbender in the South Pole."
"She sounds like a brave woman," Aang commented. Katara brought her hand up to touch her necklace and nodded.
"I miss her." Another tear rolled down her cheek but was quickly wiped away by Aang's thumb. Katara fought, she couldn't let Aang see this weakness in her. But it was hard, and soon, more tears began flowing down her flawless face. The young airbender pulled her into his lap and stroked her hair while she softly sobbed into his chest.
"I'm sorry," she whispered between sobs.
"Sorry? For what?"
"You shouldn't be seeing me like this. I shouldn't be worrying over something that happened so long ago."
"Like what? Like this? Katara, I care about you. And if something is bothering you, you shouldn't keep it bottled up inside. You don't always have to the tough one," he said, somewhat angered.
"But I do. I do have to be the tough one. For you guys. You need someone to be the head of the group, to always be there for you guys. Not the other way around."
"Katara," he said sternly, "Look at me. You will always be the one who we can talk to. Always be there for us. And it doesn't matter if you take a little break every now and then. No one can be the strong one all the time. I mean, look at me. I'm the avatar and I still have moments where I just break down. It happens. To all of us. Okay?"
"Okay," she whispered.
"I think I know what will cheer you up," he said. Katara looked up at him to continue. "The monks used to tell us stories-- legends-- of past air nomads, and avatars, and such. Every one they told us was amazing. Filled with action, adventure, romance, tragedy. In fact, I'll tell you my absolute favorite one. It's about an avatar. A young avatar, in fact."
"What happened?" asked Katara, who had already stopped crying long enough to become entranced in Aang's words.
"Well, once upon a time," he began with a sly grin. "There was an airbending avatar. Now, most of the time, the child would be told that he was the avatar at the age of sixteen. But this time, he was told when he was just a young boy, at the age of twelve."
Katara nodded. But somehow, the tale seemed strangely familiar.
"When everyone had found out that this boy was the avatar, everything changed. The kids didn't play with him anymore. And he was expected to train more, and not have as much fun as normal... When the boy heard the monks were going to send him away, to learn the different elements, the boy was devastated. He would have to leave his home-- his family...
"The boy ran away, with his flying bison. He left a note to his guardian, telling him he was sorry and that he loved him. But a storm struck and the boy and his bison fell into the depths of the ocean. The boy's," Aang brought his hands into a fighting stance and made a whooshing sound for effect. Katara giggled, "avatar instincts kicked in, and he froze a ball of ice around him and his bison..."
Katara gasped as the realization of the stories setting set in. Aang was telling the story of himself. A breeze blew through the rustling trees and caressed Katara's face. She shivered. And Aang picked her up and sat her down in front of him, between his legs, before continuing his story.
"One hundred years later, the boy opened his eyes and gasped. He must have died, because standing before him was a magnificent angel," Aang whispered in her ear. Katara looked straight ahead, with a burning flame rising in her cheeks.
"You don't mean that," she whispered, in a slightly teasing manner.
"Of course I do. Now shush, now interrupting and no waking the others."
"Now... where was I... Oh yes. So, there was an angel, looking down at him. But the boy was confused. Heaven was cold, very cold. 'Come closer,' he whispered. The angel came closer. 'Closer,' he stalled. Soon, he made the connection. He wasn't in heaven, he was on snow! 'What is it?' the girl asked. The boy said the first thing that came to his mind, 'Will you go penguin sledding with me?!' "
Katara laughed, remembering the hyper Aang she had found in a block of ice a few months ago.
"It just so happened that the angel was a waterbender. And she helping the avatar through everything. In fact, she soon considered the boy as part of the family. And that was more than the boy could ever ask for. The boy and the girl-- along with her brother-- traveled the world in search for a waterbending master, and an earthbending and firebending teacher."
Katara sighed as she looked towards the camp at her brother, Toph, and Zuko. All fast asleep and unaware of the story being told.
"The avatar and his friends continued traveling the world, running away from the insane Fire Nation princess and her friends, getting fortunes read, exploring an underground library, getting lost in a magic swamp, traveling through love caves..."
They both laughed at their crazy adventures.
"But the boy soon realized how much he cared for a certain waterbender... He loved her, and would do anything for her. But every time he tried to tell her, something would get in the way, or she wouldn't be listening... But it didn't matter because in the end, the avatar magically defeated Fire Lord Ozai, without killing him, and got the girl. They shared a passionate kiss in the sunset on a balcony of a tea shop in Ba Sing Se..."
Katara laughed. "You made the last part up," she accused.
"Okay, okay, so the ending was made up. So what?"
They both laughed.
"Thanks, Aang. Your story helped," Katara said with a smile.
"Anytime, Katara."
The waterbender began to get up, and walked back to her sleeping bag. But before she crawled into in, Aang whispered.
"Wait-- I have to make sure those nightmares don't come back." With a mischievous grin, he patted the area on Appa's tail next to him. Katara giggled and, once again, and walked over to where Aang lay.
She snuggled closer into Aang's bare chest, and inhaled his exhilarating scent.
"Goodnight, Aang,"
The avatar gave a tender kiss atop of his favorite waterbender's head.
"Goodnight, Katara, My Little Angel."
O.o.O.o.O
Hehe...
Fluffy...
R 'n' R please!