Author's Note: Story takes place about 3 years after the end of the series. Just a sweet, little Kataang story.

Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender. Please don't sue.

Pillow Talk

A contented sigh had escaped the young Avatar's lips, his spirit finding peace simply by the presence of his lovely waterbender who lay contently nestled in his arms. Though his time with her was never quite enough to satisfy either of them, it did provide them both with a greater appreciation for what little time they shared together.

It was rare indeed, to experience a lifetime of love and passion in a few, short hours, and still be left wanting more. The thought brought a smile to Aang's face, as he was certain that no one could ever experience a love like his and Katara's. When a thousand lifetimes of love would be spent over the course of a single life, who could ever hope to compete with that? In fact, he had every confidence that long after they had both passed to the Spirit World, it would not be his accomplishments as Avatar that people would remember, but their passion and love for each other that would be the watermark by which history remembered them both.

Adjusting himself slightly on the plush mattress and allowing Katara to snuggle closer to him, Aang brought his free hand to her face, brushing some loosely falling strands of hair from her eyes as his fingers danced enticingly across her skin. She rewarded him with a smile that said more than words ever could and moved to press her lips to his.

After several, agonizingly sweet moments of pleasure, Katara at last pulled away from his lips and lay her head back on his shoulder, her fingers playfully drawing obscure designs on his chest. "What are you thinking about?" she asked simply, her question coming for no other reason than to hear the sound of his voice.

A moment of contemplative silence passed between the two before Aang finally answered Katara's patient question with a simple, "Cabbages."

"Cabbages?" Katara asked, raising her head to look at Aang's deadpanned expression. Her own expression responded similarly, her eyebrow arched and her lips held tight as though fighting to suppress the giggles that seemed to bubble up from within her.

"Cabbages," Aang responded, nodding his head as though the answer was the most expected reply to Katara's question.

"Okay," the waterbender remarked, her escaping laughter proving she was losing her effort to keep a poignant disposition about the serious nature of leafy garden greens. "I hope you're planning to elaborate on this."

"Well, it's just that, I hate cabbages." Aang answered honestly, his crooked grin sliding across his face as he hugged Katara closer to him.

"Since when?" the young woman asked, her eyebrow arching in speculative inquiry. "You used to always love cabbage rolls."

"Well, I think I came to this conclusion about six hours ago, when the Earth King asked for my assistance mediating a dispute between the agricultural senate and the cabbage merchants who are upset over a proposed 15% increase in sales tax. Oi," Aang sighed heavily, his head shaking in disbelief and frustration. "Honestly, I don't understand why these people can't mediate their own concerns, especially something as mundane as this. I'd like a day off every once in a while too, but its just as if they're occupying my time with frivolous tasks just to keep me busy."

Katara frowned slightly at the frustration building in the man next to her, and knew first hand how much he regretted not having more time to spend with her. Truthfully, she was just as upset over the constant demands placed on Aang as he was, but not because it took away from the time they spent together as much as it simply hurt her to know that the world seemed to be using the Avatar so that they did not have to do their own work.

But this was not her time to lament about her feelings on politics and world leaders unable to keep their own house in order. This was her time to spend with Aang, and she would do all in her power to ease his mind and spirit away from that which troubled him.

"So," Katara said, resting her head against his shoulder once more and returning to her task of drawing strange designs on his chest with her finger, "I take it you won't be in the mood for cabbage casserole tomorrow?"

Laughing lightly at her own little joke, Aang shifted his body again, rolling on his side so that he could fully wrap his arms around Katara. "No, that probably wouldn't be a good idea. In fact, I've come to realize that I take a perverse pleasure in watching cabbages get destroyed."

"Alright, no cabbage casserole," Katara remarked, kissing Aang lightly on the lips as she closed her eyes, comfortable in his arms and to feel the rhythm of his body that was uniquely his own.

"But you know, this whole cabbage fiasco has given me some time to think about another issue," Aang said, smiling playfully once again as Katara opened her eyes and waited patiently. "Time bending."

"You have the weirdest pillow talk," Katara responded as her fingers began rhythmatically dancing once more over Aang's bare skin. "How did you make the leap from cabbages to time bending exactly?"

"Oh, well that's quite easy actually. You see, I figure, if its possible to bend energy itself, fold energy and manipulate it however you want, then it's also possible to bend space and even time…though I'm not exactly sure how long it would take to master something like that."

"And this involves cabbages…how?"

"Well, what I'd do is, go back in time, say, three years, and convince the Earth King to raise the sales tax of cabbages 200% for domestically grown cabbages, 350% for imported. This would retroactively destroy the entire cabbage merchant industry and lo and behold, cancel out the reason for having this stupid meeting tomorrow, leaving my whole day free and clear to spend right here with you."

"Hmm…" Katara responded in thought, and though her lips formed a deeply introspective expression, her eyes danced with unshed laughter that gave away her amusement to Aang's theory. "But I was planning to go shopping tomorrow."

"Oh, well, I guess that idea's over and done with then." Aang said dejectedly as he pulled Katara closer.

After several moments of silence stretched between them, Katara spoke again. "So, three years ago, we would have been at…the Southern Water Tribe, correct?"

"Uh….yeah, I think so."

"So, if you performed your amazing feat of bending, would you search out your past self?"

"Hadn't really thought about it, but yeah, I think I might."

Katara pulled away to fix Aang with a crooked expression that only seemed to make the young man glow. "So wait, you'd go back in time and destroy an economical resource but you hadn't given any thought about seeing your past self again?"

"I can't really think of any reason to," Aang said shrugging, "There isn't any advice I could give him that would make my life any better than it is."

"Really, nothing at all?"

"Well, maybe just a reminder to appreciate a certain waterbender every chance he gets. He can be a little thick and sometimes forget that."

"True, true," Katara said airily, but the smile on her lips told just how much she truly missed this silly side of Aang. "So, would you offer the same advice to that same, certain waterbender?"

"No," Aang responded simply, his lower lip jutting out as he playfully raised his eyebrow. "Because she already knows how lucky she is."

"Oh, your going to get it for that," Katara answered, pouncing on top of Aang and reaching determinedly for the one spot on his body that would render him an immovable mass of giggling laughter. Expecting her assault, Aang defended his primary weakness by shielding his ticklish spot and wrestling Katara away from him. Arms and limbs wrestled with one another, fingers groped and ticked each other's bodies and playful laughter and pleads for mercy became more personal yearnings and enticing touches. Finally, Aang had pinned Katara beneath him, all laughter and playfulness draining from his body as he gazed fully into her beckoning eyes.

"If I had one thing to tell my younger self," Aang said, his voice, slow and heavy with need as he lowered his head to run his nose against her nose and along her cheek, leaving white-hot kisses that trailed his intimate touch, "It would be not to give up hope. That I'd win your heart in the end."

Katara reached forward, wrapping her arms around Aang's neck and pulling his face to hers. "And I were to say anything to my younger self," she said before pressing her lips to Aang's in a slow, languid kiss that seared his lungs, robbed him of his breath and ignited every nerve in his body. Had his mind not been wiped of all thought, he would have marveled at how she could have some a physical effect on the Avatar. "I would tell her, to not wait so long. To not be so scared and just do what her heart told her she wanted. Because Aang," Katara said, pulling the airbender to her lips once more, "You never had to win my heart…you always had it."

-End

Author's note: Well, not sure if this worked out as well as I planned. Originally I wanted them to discuss their eventual children, but I got hooked into the cabbage ranting and thought it was funny. This story isn't meant to be deep, just a good dose of Kataang fluff. Hopefully I got that part right at least.

As always, if you're kind enough to read, please be kind enough to review.