I'm back from vacation! And this is a little idea that I came up with in the middle of the night. It's really short, though, and it's based on the Finale.

Oh, and in case anyone doesn't know yet, I'm planning to continue my story 'Leaving', which was previously a one-shot, by popular demand. I decided to post this message here, since I don't think too many people read my profile, and Author's Note chapters are a little annoying (and kinda misleading if you have a story on story alert)

Disclaimer: The Avatarverse belongs to Mike and Brian, who managed to create this amazing show that has fed my soul for so long :D

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Katara had always been the voice of reason in their little 'gang'. No matter how drastic the situation, she would always appear calm and try to find a solution to help them get out of it. Even in the Si Wong desert, when Sokka, Toph and Aang had nearly lost hope, she kept the group together and they were eventually able to escape.

So it was only obvious that when Aang disappeared two days before the arrival of Sozin's comet, Katara seemed wholly unaffected.

But in reality, she had never been more terrified in her life.

It wasn't just because the Avatar, savior of the world and the only one who could stop the Fire Lord, had disappeared. She was worried because her best friend Aang, the one who had always been there, the person she cared so much about, had vanished, and no one knew where he had gone.

But Katara wouldn't panic. She couldn't afford to. She knew that she was the voice of reason within her group, and if she were to break down, everyone else would erupt into chaos. And she wouldn't let that happen.

She had never gone this long without him before but somehow, she managed to remain cool for quite a long time. But occasionally, she found herself thinking about the airbender. 'Where is he? What if he's hurt? What if he never comes back?' She tried to push these thoughts to the back of her head so she could focus of the situation at hand – figuring out how to defeat the Fire Lord, even if Aang doesn't show up.

But she was bound to cave eventually. Which is why when Jun mentioned to them that Aang didn't exist, Katara's heart nearly skipped a beat. She nearly collapsed from the shock, but miraculously managed to stay upright. She was able to breathe a sigh of relief when Jun stated that he wasn't dead ("We could find him if he was"), but he still wasn't here, with them. At one point, she wanted to cry, but kept quiet.

Gradually, the others noticed a change in her. Once they had reached Ba Sing Se, Sokka noticed that she seemed to be less active in their discussions. Toph could feel her fidgeting a lot more than usual, and Zuko and Suki observed that Katara would often stare at anything, whether it was a rock or the dying embers of the campfire, as if in deep thought. She had no idea that, as much as she tried to hide it, they were aware of her concern about the Avatar.

That night, after everyone had fallen asleep, Katara sat upright in her sleeping bag and folded her hands. She said a short prayer to the spirits, asking them to protect Aang and bring him back safely soon. After she had finished, she looked up at the moon and silently hoped that, wherever he was, he was thinking about her as well.

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Far away, on a mysterious island floating in the middle of the ocean, a young boy was having a peaceful dream involving a tea shop and a certain waterbender.

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Note to self: Write longer stories.

Well, that's it! I hope you enjoyed it!

Please R&R if you did, or if you feel I could improve. I could use some constructive criticism!

Star