This is new to me so forgive me if it's terrible. It's set well into the future, sometime in the first year of marriage. Love, Katie

I don't own Avatar. Also, I highly recommend listening to Mercedes lullaby from the Pan's Labyrinth soundtrack while you read. It's the tune Katara is humming.

Dark Lullaby

The wind blew into their small bedroom brushing back the curtains with an eerie howl. Katara rolled onto to her other side trying to hide her face from the light of the full moon.

Just then from down the hall she heard the faint cry of her little baby. She grabbed her robe and without even putting socks on she hurried down the hallway. Finally she arrived at his small crib and looked upon the face of her darling little boy. The moonlight was dancing upon his cheek and she couldn't help but realize how much he looked like his father. With the pure innocence of his gentle features and those deep storm grey eyes there was no mistaking that this was indeed Avatar Aang's child. She softly touched his cheek with her palm.

"It's okay little one, momma's here," she comforted.

She ran her fingers through her sons dark curls. He had so much hair for such a little one! She then rested her hand on his small chest and his little fingers instinctively wrapped around her index finger. She picked up the small child in her arms as she began to hum a lullaby that her mother had often sung to her in the night. She couldn't remember the words but she remembered the haunting yet soothing melody. The small baby in her arms seemed to enjoy this and cooed happily as he batted at her hair with his fingers. She kissed his forehead and returned to rocking her sweet boy to sleep.

She hummed the lullaby over and over until his eyes closed peacefully as he entered into sleep.

"Katara, are you in here?"

She looked over to see Aang standing in the doorway looking very concerned.

"Yes," she responded then resumed humming her lullaby quietly.

"Are you all right?" He asked tentatively, his voice shaking.

"I'm fine Aang, why do you ask?"

"I woke up and you weren't there," he whispered as he walked over to her trying to envelope her in a hug but she resisted.

"The baby was crying," she replied sweetly.

"I'm sure he was," he paused. "Now please come to bed," he asked sincerely. "It's late and you need your sleep."

"Do you want to say good night to him?"

His eyes were momentarily fogged with tears and she couldn't understand why. He smiled warily and gestured towards the door.

"Katara, please come to bed now," he begged.

"Well I suppose, the little one seems to be sleeping better now."

Katara placed the small little boy in the crib and kissed his warm forehead.

She turned to face her husband whose tears were now visibly dancing upon his cheek. She took his outstretched hand and he pulled her into a tight hug. She couldn't understand why he was acting so strangely. The baby was fine! She was fine!

"Aang, what is the matter?"

He tried to hide a sniffle as he kissed the crown of her forehead.

"Nothing, you just need sleep that's all."

He pulled her towards the bedroom and placed her in the bed, bringing up the small pelts around her face.

"Why aren't you coming to bed? Do you want to go check on the baby?"

He nodded and kissed her lips softly. She noticed that his lips which usually tasted like a warm breeze on a summer day tasted like his salty tears. She pulled away and placed her palm on his cheek.

"Why are you crying?"

He laughed a little through his tears and shook his head.

"Never mind, it doesn't matter. It can wait till morning."

She turned onto her side and he kissed her lips just before she drifted into a deep sleep.

Aang watched her for a moment to assure that she was asleep. After a while he walked out of the room, closing the bedroom door behind him as quietly as he could. The haunting melody that Katara had been humming was running through his mind as he walked down the empty hallway. He walked past to the baby's room and closed the door.

His heart was aching as he walked out into the moonlight to a small mound near the farthest corner of their house.

For a moment he closed his eyes and tried to pretend that it wasn't there but when he opened them to his great displeasure it was still there. It was a heartless reminder that the remains of the child that Katara had supposedly just rocked to sleep were lying in its belly.

It had been like this every full moon since the small boy had died peacefully in his sleep. Aang would find her in that room, holding an imaginary baby and softly humming her dark lullaby.

And as Aang shrank to his knees in front of the pile of dirt, he found himself humming it as well.

-x-

Thoughts? And no, Katara is not going crazy. I just have heard some stories of hallucinating that someone lose someone you love is alive after they've died. So I toyed with that idea a little and got this.