Love And Loss
Chapter 1: Live And Let Live
Well, my other fanfiction is not totally finished yet, but I really don't have the spirit for that one right now. This one is a sequel to that one, and marks the events of the morning, and the last battle against the fire nation. Cheers.
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She awoke to his warmth. The person that was hers only. Katara just lay there on his chest, his breathing slowly moving his chest upward and downward. If he seemed at all a boy to her yesterday, the night had changed all that. The sun slowly came up along the horizon, making a line of light that moved closer to them as the sun became higher. As the warmth hit Aang's body, he started to stir. Katara sat up, watching as he wiped his eyes with his hands. "Where are we?" Katara chuckled, watching him start to realize why that where sleeping on the ground above the Western Air Temple. He stood up, offering a hand to his lover.
"I'm never going to forget last night…… if nothing else in my life goes right, I will always have that." Katara breathed as Aang moved in for a soft kiss. She knew in his eyes that they needed no more words. They packed up and started the decent towards the main Temple courtyard.
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It was funny. After all these years of thinking he was inferior to almost everyone around him, it seemed that Sokka had almost everything he had ever wanted. He had learned the arts of swordfighting, and possessed his own sword to boot. He had taken over for his father, and really became a leader against the odds. But most of all, he had found someone that wouldn't have cared if he had never had those things. As long as he was with her, things seemed like they could move through anything.
That idea did not come without its second thoughts, though. What had all that cost in the long run? What had to happen for him to be where he was? He decided that it was not up to him to question that. He just better shut up, and hope he didn't jinx it. He felt the body that was lying on top of him was holding on to him tighter. He stroked her back, loving the touch of her naked body on his. The intimacy was almost perfect. Not wanting the moment to end, he just stayed still.
"Mmmmmmmmm…….." Suki moaned as her eyes fluttered open. She moved her head up and looked down to the soft smile Sokka had across his face. She softly slapped him, and he grinned. "You bad boy. You made me do naughty things." He started to laugh, and soon she was laughing with him. They tossed and turned on the bed, softly making out. Soon however, they knew that they would have to get ready for the coming battle against Ozai.
Sokka was the first out of the bed, and just as Suki went to follow him, he scooped her up and took her towards the bathing hole that Toph and Katara had fashioned for each of the rooms, using earthbending, and water from the streams that ran off the cliffs near the temple. In turn, Sokka and Suki washed each others bodies. It seemed that they wanted to hold off leaving each others side for as long as humanly possible. A knock on the door halted their bath; however, as they heard the voice of Haru telling them they had better get ready and "Cleaned Up."
"Where we really that loud?" Suki exclaimed as they walked out of the bathing hole, wiping themselves off. "I guess so…… it makes you wonder if everybody knows." She blushed, just thinking about how Katara and Toph would gossip about it. Turning around, she was startled to find Sokka in front of her with a wooden box. "Here…… I had this made for you. I even had to steal Appa again just to pick it up." She looked slightly dumbfounded, but took the box and laid it on the bed. As she slid the lid off, she gasped. The box held a Kyoshi uniform, complete with the traditional headband, armor, and makeup. The shield looked different, though. Instead of the earth kingdom style, it was painted with the wave symbol of the water tribe. "Oh Sokka……" He put his arms around her and said, "I know. You don't need to say anything."
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The plan was simple. Defeat the fire lord any way possible. Simple in theory, Aang thought. The last time he had tried this, it had failed miserably. It had cost the freedom of those who where as close to true victory as anyone could have been. One thing was different this time, though. The mission was to defeat him, or die tring. They where done with running away. It had never solved anything other than prolonging the suffering of others.
Katara left Aang alone as he prepared for the battle. She had her own duties to attend to, such as filling her water pouches, setting up Appa's amour, and just looking things over in general. Not that she didn't want to be with him. More than anything, she wanted to stay at his side. She hated to worry so much, but it was in her nature to be motherly. It seemed though, that this worry was something new, something more. It wasn't that of a mother to a son……. But a lover to a lover.
Tranquility. Precision. Strength. He would need all this in the end. Aang breathed heavily, trying to calm himself. Nothing to halt him…… not fear, not power. All it was, and would be, was the good, vs. that of evil. The wind picked up, beckoning him to the air. He thought of Katara, letting her soft touch and blue eyes burn into the back of mind. It was the only thing that would give him any solace in the coming battle.
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It felt right, that's for sure. Suki tied the battle cloth around her waist, her stomach. She had not done this in so long. It almost felt like visiting an old friend that you had not seen in many years. She was herself again, at least, as much as she could ever be. Looking downward, she picked up the black armor. Sokka came over, and helped her tie it, if only to have the opportunity to steal a couple of kisses along her neck. He was half dressed, and she playfully pushed him away. "Better get your shirt on bub, because I don't want those muscles to get all cut up before I get a chance at them again." He grinned, rotating his arms much the same way he did in Full Moon Bay. Suki giggled, and watched as Sokka seemed to take her amusement to his head. "Ok, silly. That's enough." Turning back to her uniform box, she picked up the brown case at the bottom. She opened it, scanning the contents. White, black, and red makeup. Two small brushes. Sokka padded her on the shoulder, and said he was going to check up on the others.
Sokka moved around the temple, making mental notes as he watched the rest of their company get ready for a battle they likely would not survive. The odds just seemed against them in every way. They where defeated when they had the advantage….. so why would this be any different? All their hope was held together by a string. A small cut would have them collapse from the weight of it all. He walked into Haru's room, finding him practicing his earthbending technique with Toph. They both smiled, but in his heart Sokka knew that they where trying hard not to show their nervousness and anxiety. "Have you guys seen The Duke?" Sokka asked them. They shook their heads, Toph giving her "I'M BLIND….." expression.
Suki looked back at herself in the mirror that Katara had given her. Her smooth, pale face stared back at her. She dipped the larger of the two brushes into the white war paint. Slowly she moved it up her cheek, curved it around her forehead, and back down her other cheek. She moved up around the nose, and finished the top around the eyes. Next, she blackened her eyelashes. Last, she took the smaller brush and colored her lips and eye sockets with red. Her transformation was almost complete. One last thing remained; Kyoshi's symbolic headpiece. As she fit it on top of her head, she eyed the mirror for one more second, the realization that she was once more a Kyoshi warrior sinking into her consciousness.
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I went over this a couple of times to fix up some problems, and while this is a bit shorter then I would have liked, I pretty happy with it. As this is only the few hours before, the next chapter will be traveling back to the fire nation. I dont know when that will get to being done--(Hopefully in the next two-three weeks) so stay tuned! Oh, and please review! I really would love so feedback! Cheers.