The Last

Yumiko Kaze

Katara slept soundly in her borrowed quarters. As friends of Fire Lord Zuko and the Avatar, Katara and Sokka had been treated quite well in their last few weeks at the palace and dreams of the happenings over the past few weeks danced in her head.

It hadn't been very long since the official end of the war. Hardly enough time to start selecting political members to keep the fragile new peace between the nations. The members of the White Lotus of course were willing to play a large part in the new order of things. They had proven throughout the war to be intelligent and trustworthy people.

With Iroh there to help him, Zuko was shaping up to be the best ruler the Fire Nation had had in a long time. In keeping with his new friendships with the Avatar and his friends he has asked the other teenagers to become envoys for their own nations.

Toph had already been sent away for her first mission: To go home to see her parents for the first time since she had run away. It was not something she was looking forward to, but before she could begin to help maintain peace throughout the nations she would have to start with her own family. Iroh had assured her that building that bridge would be the hardest. And Toph never backed down from a challenge.

Katara and Sokka were planning on leaving for the South Pole in the morning to begin their own mission. And of course to spend some time with their family. Their father had left for the South Pole to begin rebuilding the community the war had nearly destroyed. Their job would be to beat a group of supply ships Zuko had sent and explain that the Southern Water Tribe no longer had anything to fear from the Fire Nation and that the new Fire Lord was more than willing to make up for his ancestors atrocities.

Of course, Aang was planning on going with them—As Avatar it was his job to assist in keeping the peace between nations. Not to mention it would allow him to be with Katara.

Katara stretched in her sleep. The night was disgustingly peaceful and quiet with the moon just now rising outside Katara's window. Suddenly, that peace was shattered by a deep throated bellow.

Strangely enough it was not the bellow that woke Katara, seconds later she was jolted out of her rather peaceful sleep by the shrill voice of none other than the Avatar.

"Katara! Come quick! Something's wrong with Appa!"

Katara sat bolt upright, blinking sleep away. In all the time she had known Aang she had never heard him sound so scared. He sounded absolutely terrified.

"What's wrong?" Katara quickly leaped out of bed and threw on a robe over her night clothes as the Avatar made a quick landing on the balcony before racing inside. Months of being on the run from the Fire Nation meant that she was awake and alert instantly.

Eyes wide, Aang gripped the new air glider that Sokka had made for him with white knuckles. "I-I don't know. I was saying goodnight to Appa and Mo Mo before I went to bed and…" his lip quivered a bit and tears formed in the corners of his eyes, "Suddenly Appa made this horrible noise." Aang wiped his eyes, "He laid down and was all tense. I don't know what to do, Katara. He really sounds like he's in pain."

"Don't worry, Aang. Everything will be all right. I'll go down and check out Appa, you get Sokka." Katara grabbed her water skin from the night stand and cinched the sash on her robe tightly as she headed for the door. There was no time to lose.

Aang looked at Katara and for the first time in a while she saw real fear, "Do you think you can heal him?"

Katara wanted to tell him that yes, she absolutely could. After all, she was a master water-bender and healer; but it something was really wrong with Appa it would be wrong to get his hopes up. She paused in the hallway, "I don't know what's wrong with him yet, but I can give it a try."

This seemed to be enough for Aang, because he nodded at Katara and turned to go the opposite direction. "I'll get Sokka."

Katara felt her heart soar and melt all at once. Aang really believed in her and her abilities just as much as she believed in his. If only she believed in herself as much. Her thoughts raced as she hurried down the maze of hallways. Air Bison physiology was completely different from a humans. What if she couldn't help Appa? That would completely crush Aang. Appa was his best friend.

Katara blasted past the hallways that lead to the imperial stables and continued towards the palace entrance. It had been discovered that Komodo-Rhino's didn't take very well to Air Bison sharing their stables and so Appa had been given a makeshift space of his own in the front courtyard of the palace.

As she got closer to the Air Bison, Katara could more clearly hear Appa's groans, as well as feel the tremors they caused. Mo-Mo met Katara at the door to the hut and followed her inside while making concerned lemur noises. Reaching Appa's side, Katara placed a comforting hand on the great beast's head and peered into large brown eyes the size of dinner plates. "What's wrong, Appa?"

Appa's only answer was to stare back at her before letting out another pitiful groan.

Immediately, Katara set to work inspecting the Air Bison from nose to tail. She was no veterinarian, but she figured she couldn't do too bad of a job. Aang trusted her to do this.

Oddly enough, the only thing Katara could find wrong was that Appa had apparently gained some weight after the many celebratory feasts that had occurred with the end of the war. Katara was beginning to think that maybe Appa had just eaten way too much and given himself a killer stomach ache. She would have to tell Aang to start limiting the amount of moon-peaches Appa could have.

Just to be safe, Katara inspected Appa the way only a water-bender can. Coating her hands in her element from her ever present water skin, Katara's hands began to glow. Slowly she moved her hands over Appa, starting with his head and neck before moving to his shoulders and abdomen. Her eyes closed and her brows furrowed. His body fluids were all fine, his organs were okay, but there was something…strange about some of the readings she was getting. Something she couldn't quite discern, or understand.

Was that what she thought it was? And that?

She was jerked out of her thoughts by the arrival of Sokka and Aang. She didn't even need to ask what had taken so long. Sokka was the heaviest sleeper she knew. Truthfully, that was part of the reason she had sent Aang to get her brother. It would have been harder to concentrate with a distraught Aang hovering nearby and it had given the Avatar something to do.

"Is Appa all better? Did you heal him?" Aang asked excitedly and running to Appa's side.

Appa let out another groan, rolling further onto his side and kicking out a bit with all six legs as if in answer. Mo Mo made a face and hugged his tail.

Katara opened her mouth to answer… and closed it. How was she possibly supposed to break something like this to Aang? He'd been with Appa forever, they'd grown up together. This news would change the Avatar's life, forever.

She took a big steadying breath before saying quietly, "Aang, there's nothing I can do."

"W-what?" Aang's face fell, "What do you mean there's nothing you can do?"

Sokka looked equally shocked, "He'll be okay though, right? Appa just ate too many moon-peaches again, didn't he?" he laughed nervously as though he were trying to convince himself his sister was just being dramatic.

Katara pursed her lips, "This is a lot more serious than moon-peaches, Sokka." She looked back at Aang and began in a soothing voice, "What's happening to Appa is… natural. It's not something I can heal. If it were a wound or infection it'd be no problem, but…" she spread her hands, "This is the next stage in Appa's life."

"What are you talking about? Are you saying Appa's dying?" Aang shouted.

Katara's eyes flew open and she waved her hands apologetically as though trying to erase the thoughts in their heads. "No! No, nothing like that! Appa's fine. Healthy and everything."

Sokka and Aang let out huge breaths they'd been holding. Aang's face relaxed and he placed a hand on Appa's front leg.

"Then what's wrong with him?" Sokka asked.

Katara couldn't look either of them in the eye. She almost didn't believe what she was about to tell them. "Appa's pregnant."

There was a moment of silence and several crickets chirped as though the universe wanted to punctuate the ridiculousness of the situation.

And then Sokka started laughing, "Whoo. Sis, that was a good one. Seriously, what's wrong with him?"

Katara fumed, "I'm serious! Do you think I would joke about something like this?" she threw her hands in the air.

Aang was taking the news a little better, but not by much. At least he wasn't laughing at her. "But Appa's a boy!"

Katara cocked her head, "Are you sure Aang? Sokka and I have always thought he was a boy because you said he was a boy. Sometimes, when animals are small, they're hard to tell apart. One of our friends back home had a pet penguin seal she raised from a pup. She thought it was a boy too—until one day it had babies."

Sokka had stopped laughing and was pressing his hands to his eyes and pacing. "Even if Appa is a girl, how could this happen? There haven't been any other Air Bison around for a hundred years." He threw his hands in the air and exclaimed, "The only think big enough to mate with Appa around here are the Komodo-Rhino's and I just can't see that happening."

Katara shrugged, "I don't know. All I know it that Appa is about to have calves."

Sokka blinked. "Calves? Plural?"

"Eight of them."

Aang, who had been staring at Appa for the past few moments suddenly interrupted, "How can you tell?"

"I can feel Appa's heart beat with my water bending. His—hers, isn't the only heartbeat in there." Katara held her hands up and stared at them as though she still wasn't entirely certain they were playing tricks on her.

"Show me."

Silently Katara took Aangs hand and placed it over Appa's chest, "Focus on the feel of Appa's heart beating. It's kind of similar to the blood bending that Hamma taught me. After a moment you'll be able to hear it and feel it not just with your hand, but your entire being."

Aang stood there a moment with his eyes closed, listening. Feeling. His lips quirked in a smile, "I feel it." He opened his eyes, "I hear it." She gently moved his hand to Appa's stomach, "Now listen for it again."

Aang was immediately assaulted by a cacophony of sound. Eight heartbeats, all beating at a slightly different time and rate. "Wow." He removed his hand and ran to Appa's head, "Appa this is amazing. You're going to be a mother!"

Appa let out another groan, as though telling Aang that if it were so wonderful then next time he could be the one to go through it. Now that Katara knew what to look for, she could see the great stomach clench with the contraction.

Sokka sighed, "This is going to delay our trip home, isn't it?"

Hours later, several servants and guards had stopped by in order to see what all the commotion was about. Once they had realized what was going on, they all moved on with polite smiles and congratulations for the blessed event. One was nice enough to fetch some supplies that Katara requested.

The roar that Appa let out as dawn approached shook the far walls of the palace. Sokka, who had been pacing back and forth like a nervous father, paused near Appa's back legs and called, "Guys! I think something's happening!"

Katara, who had been at Appa's head alongside Aang whispering comforting words to the poor animal, hurried to her brother's side. "We've got some hooves!" she confirmed, shooing Sokka out of the way, grasping the forefeet of the unborn calf and began to help Appa along by pulling.

A moment later, "I think it's a boy!"

"Are you sure?" Sokka asked sarcastically, peeking over his sister's shoulder. "That's what we thought last time.

"I'm sure!" Katara retorted. "He's not dry yet and without all that fluff in the way you can definitely tell."

Sokka peered a little closer and his eyes widened a little, "Oh."

Katara smirked a little as she grabbed a blue ribbon that one of the servants had been kind enough to fetch for her and tied it securely around the calf's neck. She towel dried it a bit and then carried it around to Appa's head and Aang.

Appa cleaned her baby thoroughly before nudging it to its shaky feet. Once it was standing the baby seemed to know exactly what to do and started to suckle. Katara noted with interest that unlike cows air bison did not have udders, in between the leathery stomach pads they had rows of nipples like cats or dogs.

"Wow, Appa! Look at your baby!" Aang exclaimed, almost with as much pride as if he had been the father.

"Here comes another!"

The process continued until all eight baby air bison had been brought into the world; five boys and three girls. By first light everyone was exhausted but exuberant. The birth of Appa's babies symbolized so much more than just the circle of life. Appa was no longer the last of her kind.

"What in the world is going on out here?" the sleepy voice of Iroh sounded from the opening of Appa's hut. He rubbed his eyes and then stared. "By the Ancients. What happened?"

Sokka shrugged, "Well… Appa had babies."

Iroh raised an eyebrow and folded her arms inside his sleeves. "I see that. I thought Appa was a he?"

Aang laughed as he stroked one of the calves on the head. "So did we."

"And the last of his… her kind?"

"Yup." Sokka interjected from his placed on the floor, he'd been dozing against the far wall with Mo Mo curles up next to him.

Iroh looked thoughtful for a moment, "Perhaps…"

"You can explain this?" Katara asked hopefully.

"Aang, you were trapped in the iceberg with Appa for a hundred years, yes? Neither of you has aged. Is it possible Appa could have gotten pregnant before your fateful trip?" He asked.

Aang stood, using his hang-glider for support and scratching his head. He was going to have to shave it soon. "I guess."

"But why did it take so long for Appa to have them? We've been running around the entire planet for almost a year now." Katara sounded as though this mystery bothered her as much as that fact that Appa was actually a girl.

Stroking his beard, Iroh explained, "Some larger animals take longer for their babies to prepare to enter this world than others. Just as a human takes longer than a dog or cat to give birth. Komodo-Rhino's take two years to have their babies."

"Two years?" Katara repeated incredulously.

Iroh laughed at the expression on her face, "Yes. Air Bison could very well be similar in that regard."

"That makes sense." Aang said, "And air bison always had big litters. Appa was one of nine. That's probably another reason they take so long."

"I just thought of another good question though." Sokka threw and arm into the air and waved a finger.

"And what is that?" Iroh asked.

"Where are we going to keep them?"

AN: Short and sweet. My first attempt at fic in a while. Constructive criticism is welcome. Though I admit I prefer praise along with it. A friend told me that Mike and Brian were thinking of making Appa a girl at one point and the idea caught my interest. This fic is supposed to follow my other Avatar story Worse than Death. I'm working on my own little ficverse here, though it may take a while for me to get charged up about writing again—did I mention I'm a review whore? Reviews help. They really do. Please review. Please?