A mother knows her children. A mother understands that even as adults they may require a gentle hand to guide them, to advise them, and an ear to listen. Katara knew her children better than they might expect. She knew that if Kya were having a problem it was best to take a step back and wait for her daughter to approach her, as she inevitably would. Kya was always very open about her feelings, happy to discuss them at length and listen to her mother's advice.
Bumi needed approaching. He was a prideful young man, unwilling to seek others out for comfort, even if he were desperate. Katara could see it in his eyes and in the sloping of his shoulders when it was time for her to draw him into a hug and whisper encouragements. He would never find her, but when she found him his gratefulness was unmatched.
Tenzin was the trickiest of her three children. Many times he didn't realize he was in the middle of a problem at all. His difficulties seemed to sneak up on him, even when those around him saw them coming for miles. What Tenzin usually needed was a mirror.
As Katara smoothed out the most recent letter from her youngest son before her, she thought about his need to some reflection just about now. She pulled his last letter from the top drawer of her desk and placed it beside the new one. Her eyes flicked back and forth between them and she exhaled wistfully.
The very nature of the latest letter gave her pause. It was a letter of intent, informing her of his plan to propose to a young Air Acolyte, Pema. She blinked back to the other bit of parchment and read Lin's name. His feelings were practically on top of each other and she had the physical evidence of that in her hands.
Katara's aging fingers carefully folded the two bits of parchment and slipped them into her traveling bag. As she prepared to leave her cozy home in the Southern Water Tribe for a trip to Republic City, she paused at the bathroom, extracting a handheld mirror from the cabinet, sliding it into her bag with a nod.
The city was almost as she'd left it. Tenzin offered to fly out on Oogi to pick her up for this visit, but she insisted on taking a steamship. It was a small bit of adventure for her and she hadn't gotten much in the way of adventure lately. Katara enjoyed the voyage- traveling from climate to climate and taking in the view of the City her husband built as it was meant to be seen; like a beacon of hope at the edge of an endless sea. She shed a sentimental tear as the ship passed through the shadow of the enormous statue of a small boy she met all those years ago.
As the ship steamed to port she could spot the ever-recognizable saffron robes of her youngest son, milling about in the waiting crowd. Children sat on the shoulders of their parents, waving enthusiastically at the incoming passengers and Katara waved back happily from the deck. Tenzin didn't seem to be the life of this welcoming party as he was standing with his hands clasped behind his back, his posture rigid and serious. His mother shook her head in amusement at the sight of him.
She filed from the ship with many others that were greeted cheerfully by long lost relatives and old friends. Each of them spared a glance for Tenzin, even amidst their celebratory hugs. He stood out in a crowd. It wasn't just his towering height of six foot three inches that grabbed their attention, but the blue tattoo that worked its way from his neck to his forehead- branding him apart. He was an airbender, a rare thing, the only one in existence.
"Hello, sweetheart," Katara greeted, hands outstretched to cradle either side of his face lovingly. He leaned in to kiss her cheek and his facial hair scratched against her.
"Hello, Mother," he returned, pulling back to give her a grin, "How was your trip?"
"Lovely!" Katara replied with a clap of her hands for emphasis, "but it is nice to have finally arrived."
"You should have just let me come to you," Tenzin reasoned as they began to walk, her bag now weighing down his long arms.
"Nonsense," Katara replied, "Its been too long since I've been out here. Almost a year now," she mused.
"Nine months," her son corrected and she sighed at his accuracy. The only reason he knew the exact amount of time was because the week she moved was also the week he and Lin separated. Or perhaps he was counting the months he and Pema had been together?
"How is Avatar Korra's training coming along?" He wondered.
"Fine. Its a little slow because she's so young. Such a darling girl, quite a firecracker. I'd love for you to come out and meet her sometime this year," Katara responded with a tentative glance. She knew that Tenzin was a bit touchy about the subject of her new apprentice, both her sons were. They each felt meeting Korra was somehow accepting their father's death and neither were ready for that yet, though Aang's physical body had been gone for years.
"Maybe after the wedding," Tenzin replied, unsure.
"Yes, the wedding," Katara returned, bringing the subject to the forefront with a significant look. Tenzin didn't automatically reply as they had just arrived at their own personal dock and he could busy himself carrying her things on board.
They boarded the smaller ferry that would take them to Air Temple Island and took a seat as the boat pressed into the chopping waves, heading for home.
"When are you planning on popping the question?" Katara asked, breaking the easy silence that settled between them. Tenzin sat up straight, looking slightly taken aback.
"Oh. I already did," he told her, "I suppose you didn't get that letter yet."
"Apparently not," Katara confirmed.
"She said yes," Tenzin told her, with a grin that would hardly fit on his face. Her face took a worried expression as she watched him.
"Are you going to actually do it this time?" She asked, half hassling him and half serious. After all, Tenzin had been down the engagement road before. It was a promise to marry unfulfilled, lingering as a distant plan for years like a trip that was always talked about, but never saved for.
Tenzin's smile dissolved quickly at her words and his shoulders sank, he looked blankly across the expanse of the bay as aggravation spread across his features, accentuating the wrinkles around his eyes, "That wasn't exactly my fault."
Katara placed a hand on his knee, in a good-will effort and smiled softly, "I'm sorry, sweetheart. I am not trying to make fun. I just want to make sure you really want to do this."
Tenzin eyed her carefully, "Of course I do. Mother, wait until you meet Pema. She's a wonderful person, you are going to love her."
Katara nodded, a whiff of the skeptic about her, "I've met her, remember? She is a lovely girl..."
Tenzin sensed the coming clause in his mother's tone, her voice rising in that way it did when she was attempting to soften the blow of disapproval.
"...but don't you think maybe you jumped into this a little too quickly?"
Tenzin scowled, it appeared as if his mother was not planning on letting this subject alone until she had an answer that would put her matronly concern to rest.
The boat arrived at the dock on the island and Tenzin hoisted himself to his feet, gripping her bag and offering his hand to her as he disembarked. She accepted it, hopping the small space between the boat and the wooden structure.
"I am not getting any younger," he finally told her as they began their ascent to the main house, perched high on the hill.
"I know the feeling," Katara returned, non committal. She left her response out there, neither prodding nor letting go and Tenzin knew that his only choice was to elaborate.
"I want children..." he said plainly, "and so does Pema."
Katara nodded beside him, matching his leisurely pace, but offering no words.
"We get along extremely well," he added, "she's very easy to be around. You wouldn't believe how much we have in common."
Katara sighed heavily at that and looked Tenzin over carefully, "That is what I was afraid you might say."
His eyes darted from side to side suspiciously before asking, "What do you mean?"
"Did I ever tell you how the Acolytes originated?" she began as they crested the hill, coming into the open courtyard.
"Dad wanted to share the Air Nomad culture with future generations, so he-" Tenzin began to answer, but was cut off by a wave of his mother's hand.
"Not quite," she told him, letting her hand drop. An Acolyte passed them, pausing for a quick bow which Katara acknowledged with a dip of her head. Sure that the young student was out of earshot she continued, "they began as a fan club."
"A fan club?" Tenzin repeated dubiously.
"Yes, a fan club," she affirmed, finally reaching the front door of her former home. Tenzin held it open for her and followed her inside, dropping her bag on the couch.
"Tea?" He asked.
"Yes please," she answered gratefully, following her son into the kitchen that once belonged to her. She took a seat at the preparation table, watching her youngest child move about the place as if he were trying to impress her with his ability to exist on his own.
"So, what about this fan club?" Tenzin wondered, attempting to sound aloof as he searched the cabinets for a box of tea leaves.
"It started a group of girls that had their sights set on your father. They admired his culture and were fascinated by his bending, but really I think they were interested in getting a piece of him," she recalled. Tenzin turned to her, confused.
"Many of them were genuinely good hearted girls," she disclaimed, "but they were collectors too. They were interested in the culture and they all desired to own a part of it. They were his fans first, students second. I've seen plenty of them pretend to have a common interest with him, just to gain his favor," she intoned with a lifting of her eyebrow.
Tenzin sighed as he placed the kettle on the stove, "I don't think this is quite the same thing," he insisted, taking a seat across from his mother.
"I'm not saying it is, I just don't want you getting caught up with someone that may not be after you for who you really are," Katara explained sympathetically, "If she says she likes...I don't know...sea prunes-"
"She loves sea prunes!" Tenzin announced triumphantly and Katara reached over to pat his hand gently.
"Oh sweetheart, nobody love sea prunes... except for you and maybe about six people from the Southern Water Tribe."
Tenzin leaned back in his chair with a pout, withdrawing from her touch defiantly, "Well, I don't know what to tell you. I honestly don't care if she likes sea prunes or not. We're getting married either way."
Katara sighed and leaned back as well, "Tenzin, I'm just worried about you."
"You think she's too young," he projected.
There was a pause, because Katara did think that, but that wasn't her main concern, "No, its not that. Its not even that she is an Acolyte either, as you know Xing Ying is one of my dearest friends," she explained, referring to one of the senior Acolytes on the island, "but, I just worry that you've jumped out of one relationship and right into another without any time in between. Can you honestly say that you are past your feelings for Lin?"
Instead of answering, he stood and walked over to the whistling kettle, "Lin and I are done," he mumbled. Katara noted that he avoided answering with a simple yes or no. He poured their tea and brought it back to the table, setting a steaming cup before he looked her in the eye, "I invited Pema to dinner tonight, I would appreciate it if you would go easy on her. She's nervous enough as it is."
Katara gave him an amused smile, "Tenzin, I'm only talking to you about this because I'm concerned. I wouldn't ever say something to make her uncomfortable," she guffawed.
"Thank you," he replied, taking his seat.
"I just want to make sure you are happy. If you're happy, I'm happy," she finished simply, placing her hands in the air as if to let the conversation go.
"I'm happy," he told her.
"Ok then," she relented, "Now what do you want for dinner?"
"I'll cook," he replied.
"No, no I'd like to do it," she insisted, "I don't get a chance to cook much nowadays."
Tenzin nodded, catching the hint of loneliness in her voice.
That night, Katara cooked up a smorgasbord of his favorite foods, ranging from hot to cold, fire nation to earth kingdom, appetizer to main course. Pema joined them and the conversation was pleasant. The women hit it off and Tenzin was relieved that there was no inkling of his mother's earlier doubt in their exchanges. It was a successful night and Tenzin left the table, arms full of dishes, more confident in his choice of bride than ever.
He placed the bowls in his large sink and began humming happily to himself as he washed them. His tune halted however as he lifted one of Pema's dishes out of the pile and noticed that her sea prunes had gone completely untouched.
(A/N: This fic was inspired by The Promise comic book series and Katara's reaction to the Acolytes. I got to wondering what she would make of her son's decision to marry a fan, especially since I've had Lin refer to the Acolytes as "groupies" in some of my previous fics. Anyway, please review as it totally makes my day to get some feedback- good or bad.)