Yes, I'm still working of Queen of the Slopes. School's just eating me up right now. NOM.
Ba Sing Se. Again. Because, liek, everything happens there!
Man, I haven't written a one-shot in forever! That shouldn't be...
Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar.
At Least for Tonight...
The ride home from the Royal Earth Kingdom Palace that night was more than uncomfortable, unpleasant.
It was unbearable.
No one spoke a word, each caught up in their own thoughts. The silence it created was foggy, dense, and in Katara's opinion, deafening. Sokka was looking skeptically at the "New" Joo Dee. Toph stared forward as always, arms folded across her chest and frowning at where she figured Joo Dee's face was. It didn't help she was wearing a dress either. Aang was staring outside the window and to the stars, looking more and more distant.
And Katara? She was looking at all of them, at a loss for what to say. Their entire gang's atmosphere was one of defeat. No words of comfort came to Katara's mind.
Even if she knew what to say, she wouldn't in front of this "new" Joo Dee. Her smile was the same as "old" Joo Dee, her clothes were the same. But she wasn't the same person. And so the silence grew.
Katara's stomach tossed and turned every time she looked over at Aang, and it had nothing to do with motion sickness. All she had to do was take one look at his clouded grey eyes, and she could feel the walls he was building up around him all over again. Just like the Serpent's Pass.
But Katara wasn't going to avoid it, not like last time. Last time, it wore on and on as he brooded in silence. No, she had just gotten Aang— the real Aang— back. She wasn't about to let go of him again.
"Welcome home!" New Joo Dee cheered as the carriages slowed to a stop. It was amazing, actually: their voices sounded almost the exact same way, in pitch and tone. It did nothing to improve their spirits; it just confused them all the more.
They stepped out single file, already walking up the front steps, not bothering to turn around. They needed sleep. Maybe in their dreams, they could all forget tonight ever happened.
"Goodnight, and sleep well!" New Joo Dee said cheerfully, and with a snap of the reins the official carriage drove out of sight. The four of them traipsed slowly into the house, stunned and exhausted by the evening's events.
As they entered, Toph wasted no time in removing her hair pins and headdress, tossing away the flower and wiping off all of her ridiculous make-up with her large sleeves. Momo, who had been perched upon Sokka's shoulders up until this point, jumped over to Toph to help with the make-up, licking it off of her face in a comforting gesture.
Sokka simply plopped down on one of the cushions, intertwining his fingers together just underneath his nose, and staring straight ahead. It was an old habit his sister recognized of when he was deep in thought.
Taking the time to go into the dressing room, Katara shut the slide door firmly before beginning to dress down for the night, removing her earrings and headdress as well. She began browsing through their dressers and the many drawers of clothing: pressed, folded neatly, and tucked away. Some of them had probably never been used before. She had spotted a night shirt earlier that she rather liked, whilst she and Toph had been searching for gowns for the ball.
Before tonight, Katara had wondered why they stuffed the place with clothes of all designs and sizes. Sure, it was the Avatar they were talking about, but they had clothes of their own... Now she knew why they didn't just give them money and buy the right size on their own. The money could be used for something else. Mainly, bribing people to tell them where Appa might be. The idea had crossed her mind before.
Opening the fourth drawer of the second dresser, Katara found it the shirt: it was simple enough, collared, with a deep dark green color and yellow buttons down the front. The skirt came down to knee-length, with pants to match. But it was the silky texture of the cloth that grabbed Katara's attention earlier. Though she'd never wear it on a regular basis, she liked it all the same.
Shedding her dress, Katara donned the robe, stepping in front of the mirror and the water basin below it to wipe off her makeup and undo her hair. It fell in a neat curtain around her, and looking into the mirror (a luxury that she never had before) she began to re-braid it into it's usual style.
I wonder how Aang is... She thought, pulling her hair back into the bun and fitting two blue beads into her hair, sliding them up to her forehead . I didn't see him walk into the house... Wrapping the rest of her hair into the typical sturdy knot at the back of her head, she divided it into three long strands. So where is he? She asked herself, braiding down the length of her long, wavy locks.
"Ugh, forget this!" Katara muttered to herself. There were more important things than fixing her hair loopies right now. Standing up, she quickly tied the long braid in the back with a strip of blue cloth, before sliding open the door to the living room.
Aang wasn't there— just Sokka and Toph and Momo, who were all collapsed and sprawled out upon the cushions.
"Where's Aang?" Katara asked them, now slightly worried.
Sokka looked over at his sister and shrugged.
Katara balked, her voice rising: "You mean you don't know—?!"
"Hold your ostrich-horses, Sweetness," Toph interrupted. "He's just outside."
Katara exhaled a breath of relief, not realizing that she needed to until now. It calmed her heartbeat down.
"Thanks," she said, and she made her way to the front door and out of the house again.
Sliding the front double doors shut again, Katara looked around. The sun had long gone down, and the moon was waning. It gave a chance to let all of the pinpricks in the sky shine a little brighter tonight.
But no Aang.
"Aang?" The waterbender called out softly. She hated how her voice sounded— almost nervous. "Are you there?"
"Up here." Came a solemn voice from above. Katara stepped out from underneath the awning of the house to see Aang perched on the rooftop, staring down at her with big grey eyes.
"Can I join you?"
"Sure," Aang replied, getting up in order to help her.
Thinking this a bit unnecessary, Katara spotted a barrel filled with water at the side of the house. Bending it out with one fluid motion if her hands and arms, she elevated herself on her own up to the roof.
"You seem to manage well enough." Aang told her, holding out his hand. He couldn't help but remember when he had lifted her up into his arms and helped her off of the broken ship. That was when they had first met, back in the South Pole. Those days seemed so long ago now...
Katara took the proffered hand, and just as well: the instant she stepped onto the roof, she slipped a bit, grabbing onto him tigtly as Aang helped to steady her. She smiled gratefully up at him. They settled down at the top of the roof, gazing up at the brilliantly lit stars. Spirits, her mother had once called them, just up past their bedtime.
After some peaceful quiet to themselves, Katara turned her head to study Aang. He continued to look up at the stars, arms folded over his kneecaps as he sat stiff as a stone, still brooding. Katara looked back, before reminding herself that Aang wasn't allowed to brood anymore.
"Don't worry," Katara told him quietly. "We'll find Appa."
Aang said nothing.
"You'll find him, Aang," she said confidently. "You said so yourself. He's got to be here."
"And what if I'm wrong?" He countered.
Then we're in a load of trouble... Katara thought. "Aang, you're supposed to be the wisest being on earth. I know it. We will find Appa."
Even though he remained quiet, the waterbender thought she could feel a softening in the air.
"You'll see, Aang..." Katara continued, turning away again, straightening the hem of her robe. "You'll see..."
Silent as the stars.
It was several minutes before anyone spoke. And the voice came from not them, but from somewhere below them, on the ground.
"Katara?" Sokka's voice traveled up to the rooftop.
"Yes?"
They saw Sokka's form rush out from underneath the awning of the front steps. Both she and Aang looked down that the older Water Tribe boy. Sokka heaved a sigh of relief once he spotted them:
"Good. You're safe." Katara looked at her older brother. "You'd better get down from there." He told them, as quietly as he could mange.
"Why?" Katara asked her brother.
Sokka looked around shiftily before responding. "They could be watching the house. Toph said as much. It's best we keep a low profile..." He looked meaningfully at Aang, "For now, anyway..."
It came as an unfortunate reminder for them all: the rules had changed.
With a sigh, Katara realized that her brother had a point. Standing up without managing to slip again, she gracefully bent the water towards her and into an icy waterfall. Gently, she slid down her element, hardly making a sound. With a billowing leap, Aang softened his fall using a cloud-like puff of air, his feet lightly touching the ground.
Satisfied that they had heard him and were coming, Sokka went inside the house again.
Katara began to make her way back into the house, but a hand rested softly upon her shoulder. She turned to face Aang, who was looking at her with a quizzical expression.
"Your hair loopies are missing." He told her seriously.
"Oh!" Katara said, brushing her forehead to find them. "Right," she told herself as she grabbed the two strands and attached them to the back of her head, amazed that he had even noticed such a trivial thing.
"Better?" She asked.
"Much." He replied.
They began walking up the steps to the front door. Before Aang's hand reached the handle however, Katara stopped him.
"Aang?"
He turned around. "Yes?"
"Thanks," He continued to look at her, and suddenly she found it rather uncomfortable to look into his deep grey eyes, much preferring her shoes instead. "For the compliment... earlier tonight."
For a moment, their thoughts traveled on a single floating cloud; one single line: "Wow. You look beautiful."
Aang smiled at the memory. "You're welcome." Opening the door, he stepped inside.
Katara followed him, her blue eyes gazing up at the stars, sending a silent prayer up to the spirits even as she whispered her mantra: "You'll see..."
She shut the door firmly behind her, their little gang safe from the Dai Li. Safe, at least for tonight.
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