"Dad!"
Hakoda wrapped his arms around his children and looked into their shining blue eyes. They sparkled in the sunlight just like Kya's did. The wind whipped Katara's long hair and softly brushed his face. He took a deep breath and embraced his children more tightly. And as the three of them stood there, the wind whipping their clothes and making them sway ever so gently, they could feel her presence and their hearts swelled with love and relief, and at last the bitter emptiness that had haunted them for so long drifted away with the wind.
No more innocent families would be broken.
Finally Hakoda gently broke the peaceful silence,
"I know your mother would be proud of you."
Katara felt tears swelling up in her eyes, but for once there wasn't a painful ache in her heart to accompany it.
These were happy tears.
She squeezed her father's hand and the family, at peace at last, separated to meet and greet the bustling crowd.
It was a long, bittersweet day.
Katara decided to walk alone to the teashop where the gang had agreed to meet. She was tired and lost in her thoughts. They certainly deserved to celebrate a glorious victory, but for some reason it felt like the war was far from over. There was still so much to do. Katara walked slowly onward, staring at the dusty ground and her aching feet.
She was taken aback when she finally glanced up and found herself in a very unfamiliar area. There were many strange people about, talking loudly and laughing, children running around happily. She instantly panicked. Bah Sing Se was a big city. And it was getting dark.
She caught sight of a hill in the distance with a tree solidly perched on top of it. She quickened her pace. She could probably see a lot more of the city from up there.
As she reached the top of the hill, she was surprised to find silence. She thought a bustling city like Bah Sing Se would have no room for such tranquil, beautiful spots. She was alone except for the large tree, with its strong branches reaching towards the sky and thick roots clenching tightly to the hill. Staring down at the rooftops below, she soon recognized the area she needed to be in and breathed a sigh of relief. She wasn't so lost after all. Leaning against the tree, she crossed her arms and stood silently, resting. Just as her heavy eyes began to close, a voice broke the silence.
"Well, well, well. Look who's here."
She immediately recognized the voice but didn't turn around. She yawned and stretched.
"Hey. Don't you have better company somewhere than me and this lonely old tree, your highness?"
"I've never liked this city. Even when Uncle and I were here. People, people, people, everywhere you turn. And when so many people are forced to live so close together, well..."
"Chaos. Dirty, stinky, cranky chaos. People need space. People need to be able to breathe."
Zuko nodded and settled himself beside Katara.
"So how did you find this place?" Katara wondered.
"Oh. Uncle would come here often, and sometimes I'd trail along. It's my cousin, his son's, memorial."
Katara hadn't even noticed the pale picture and display settled firmly into the roots. She sighed.
And then she remembered.
She spun around and gently placed a cool hand on Zuko's chest.
"Are you--"
"I'm fine. Really."
Katara stared into his tired eyes. He gave her a weak smile.
"You're lying. Oh Zuko, I don't have my water with me. Oh! I could take some out of the grass--" She quickly raised her hand, but Zuko took hold of her wrist and held it firmly.
He shook his head.
"Oh come on Katara. We're lucky enough to have found the only untouched spot left in the whole of Bah Sing Se. And you're just going to suck the life out of it?"
"Just a little! You need it. You've been busy all day, and I can feel it swelling up. This is all my fault, and you're in pain, I can feel it..."
He glanced up at her pained face. She quickly looked at the ground and let out a shaky breath.
"It is, Zuko. I never wanted to put you through such pain. Please. Let me help you."
He gently brushed a delicate wisp of hair out of her face. She looked up into his golden eyes, which suddenly didn't seem so tired.
"It's not your fault."
He put his hand on the back of her head and pulled her light body towards him. She leaned against his strong shoulders and wrapped her arms around his waist.
"Thank you."
Sokka, Suki, Aang, Toph, and Momo lounged around the empty teashop. Iroh had closed it for the evening so the gang could have some space, and was now busy experimenting in the kitchen. Suki sipped her tea and hummed, staring blankly into space. Sokka wandered around the shop, studying the pictures on the walls and curiously rummaging through the cupboards. Aang giggled as he chased a hysterical Momo around the room with an air ball. Toph sat with her feet on the table, picking her nose and flicking the contents into her teacup.
Suddenly, the life of heroes wasn't so exciting.
Finally Sokka purposefully sat down next to Suki, his elbows on the table, a mischievous look on his face.
"Guys, you're not going to believe this."
Aang leaped up and sat next to Sokka, his eyes gleaming. He'd been waiting for some excitement all day, and Sokka always had the craziest ideas. Even Toph stopped her business momentarily and raised an eyebrow. Suki put down her teacup and turned to face him. Sokka glanced around the room suspiciously, then, deciding it was safe, he pulled a small, dirty vile out of his pocket.
"It's....THIS!" Sokka held it up triumphantly and waved it around. Dust filled the air and Momo sneezed.
"Wow." Toph said.
Suki sighed, "It's just a dirty old vile, Toph."
Sokka glared at her. "Is NOT! Don't you know what's IN this vile?!"
"Can't say I do." Toph answered.
Sokka looked around dramatically, his eyes wide.
"It's....it's...it's..."
"It's WHAT?!" Aang cried, jumping up excitedly and knocking his chair over.
Sokka beamed. "It's cactus juice!" he whispered.
"What? And how did you get that?"
"I ran into a sandbender from the desert today."
"And why would he have a supply of cactus juice?" Toph wondered.
Silence. Both Aang and Sokka nodded thoughtfully.
"I didn't think about that. Cause those sandbenders are just creepy, I guess. But ANYWAY...remember how unsupportive Katara was of this sweet little potion?"
"Where are you going with this?"
"Well today, she's going to become just a little bit more appreciative of this magical stuff."
"Come on, Sokka, you know she'll never drink it."
"But what if she didn't know she was drinking it! I'm going to put it...IN HER TEA!" Sokka looked around the table, pleased with himself.
Toph snickered. Aang stared at Sokka wide-eyed. Momo sniffed Toph's teacup, stiffened, and ran to the other side of the room. Suki shook her head,
"Sokka, don't you think that's a little...mean?"
"Oh come on Suki, it's just for fun, and it's just a tiny bit."
"But you don't know what it will do to her." Suki warned.
"Oh, I'm sure it will just lighten her up a little bit. Give her an extra boost of energy. It's really harmless stuff. I just want to see if it will work on her. This stuff could truly change the world, you know. All those sad, depressed people out there...a little bit of magical cactus juice...and BANG! Everyone's crazy-happy, just like we're meant to be! I could make a fortune!"
And with that, Sokka reached for the bright blue teacup and dramatically poured the contents of the little vile into it.
At that moment, the door swung open and Katara walked in. Sokka shrieked, startled, and flung the empty vile out the window. Everyone gasped and sat up straight.
Katara glanced around warily.
"Uh...hi."
"Why HELLO there Katara, my most favorite sister in the world! Please uh, come have a seat. Here, let me pour you a cup of tea! You look positively famished. Sokka reached for the large teapot, quickly poured some into the blue cup and thrust it into Katara's hands.
"Drink up!"
Katara smiled. "Well, thanks. A nice, relaxing cup of tea is just what I need." She took a long drink.
Aang giggled but stopped himself abruptly when Sokka glared fiercely at him.
"Uh, excuse me. I'm just going to...step outside..."
Aang walked outside towards his glider, which was resting against the wall. He might as well see what Teo was up to.
He jumped slightly when he suddenly felt Katara's hand on his shoulder. Something in her eyes was a little...off.
He glanced back at the teashop to find Sokka, Suki, and Toph pressed against the window, their faces red with laughter.
And the rest...
...is history.