I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender

Moon Priest

Revelations

Katara was worried about her brother. This wasn't exactly a new state of being for her, but it had certainly reached a new level.

There was a world of difference between at him getting a fishhook stuck in his thumb and his first girlfriend dying. They hadn't been here long, not by any measure, but those two had taken to each other like a seal-lion to a water.

And now she was gone.

She didn't know how Sokka would take this. She honestly had no idea. When Mom died, they at least had someone to blame, but now?

Who could he blame when she all but took her own life?

"Katara, we have a problem."

"Aang?"

"It's Sokka. He won't wake up."

She had raced to his side. Sokka had finally fallen asleep on Appa in the middle of stowing away their supplies in the side-pockets. She had seen him there, but she had only thrown a blanket over him. He needed his rest and it wasn't that cold yet.

Now she wished she had woken him or gotten someone to help her drag him inside.

He was screaming, only no sound escaped his throat and his eyes were still closed. Moonlight shone impossibly only on his head. It was way too bright to be natural and it bleached him, turning her healthy brother into a dying man.

Nothing they did could help him. If they moved him, the moonbeam followed. Even when they moved him inside, the beam melted a path through the ice. They couldn't do anything.

Well, she couldn't. Aang had gone to the Spirit Oasis to see if he could do anything from the other side. And she was powerless to do anything other than being nearby. None of the Northerners had done a thing to help. 'Spirit business', they'd say and move away.

None of them had done anything. She had sent one of them to fetch Pakku, but he'd never shown up. Either the message never arrived or he didn't want to interfere. And she couldn't bear to leave Sokka alone, not now.

As the night grew longer, he had stopped that strange, silent screaming. He now made gestures as if to speak or illustrate a point. His brow had furrowed and his lips had twitched as if to smile. He had clenched his teeth and at one point even puckered them as if expecting a kiss.

The moonbeam was growing duller and duller. Finally it dimmed completely, just as the first rays of the sun had come out.

Sokka had open his eyes.

Katara gasped and flinched backwards before she knelt closer and began to talk with him, asking him questions, was he okay, did he have a bad dream, did he see something, was he okay, was he hungry, was he thirsty, did he remember what happened?

"Yes, no, yes, didn't you ask that already, always, no and yes."

Katara had lunged forward and thrown her arms around him and hugged him. This was Sokka. Her brother. Her family.

It didn't matter that for a moment she thought his pupils had glowed with white light.

It had to be her mind playing tricks on her. Yes, that was it. She had stared at his brightened face for so long; she couldn't instantly not see the moonlight.

It was a perfectly logical explanation. Heck, it was even a explanation she could Sokka using.

But still… something gnawed at her.

AN: so… Avatar… I love the show, I really do. But it could also have been so much more.

Make the episodes a little longer. Introduce a couple of mature plot points. Expand on the lore a bit.

But no, it's a kid's show. Short episodes, no gray and gray morality, no complicated expansions.

No return of Koh.

Yue had no influence in her Moon-spirit phase (actually, Yue had no power, period).

No effects of the Spirit World manifesting in the Material World (except Hei-Bai and the Painted Lady, but that's more a result of environmental damage, in my mind).

No religion, anywhere.

It's a bunch of little things that bother me. I'm not saying I'll be addressing all (or even any) of them, but it bothered me.

Anyway, this story will probably showcase Sokka becoming a priest or shaman or some-or-other-holy-figure of Yue, the Moon Spirit. Warning, though, I imagine Sokka doing some sacrificing and/or facing some pretty strange/disturbing things in his quest for enlightenment (pun not intended).

I love magnificent bastard Sokka, but I don't think I'll be able to do him credit, so it's likely charming, cunning, vicious barbarian Sokka for me.

Also, I'm going to try something a bit different with this story. I'm not going to write out of Sokka or even Yue's POV. Should be interesting.

'Till next time, enjoy and give me some feedback?

I don't know if there is already something like this somewhere on FF.

~GrinGrin

PS - It's actually a double feature, but the other story (Worship) is a crossover with Warhamme 40K, with all that entails.

Written: 08/12/2013

Posted: 08/12/2013