oOoOoOo
Aang clenched and released his fist. Clenched and released.
Katara watched him.
He was angry.
He didn't get angry like this when he was a kid. But he wasn't a kid anymore and he had a lot of things to be angry about these days. Those fond childhood memories of penguin sledding and elephant koi riding were just that: memories.
Aang had his bear back to Katara. The blue line of his arrow traveled down his spine and across tight muscle.
It is a hot summer night and the anniversary of the night he defeated the Fire Lord Ozai seven years ago.
Katara bit her lip. Oh spirits… Has it really been that long?
They had all rejoiced. The Day of Black Sun had passed. With Ozai gone, Iroh was going to be the new Fire Lord. Balance would be restored.
Aang had confessed he loved Katara at sunrise. Katara had kissed him. They had never been happier.
But it was Azula who replaced Ozai.
And, with her murder of Iroh on the day of Sozin's Comet, all chaos erupted.
Azula swept the Fire Nation into a renewed vigor. She believed fire to be the superior element and she would prove this to the world, by force.
For seven more years, the war would continue. And it seemed that she was an even more capable leader than her father. She was a true prodigy.
Aang continued to stand in the cold water of the swiftly running stream. The current pulled at his waist. The moon made the river water shimmer and it lit up the beads of perspiration that clung to his back and shoulders.
Katara waded into the stream until she was close enough to reach out and touch him. He knew she was there, but he did nothing.
His fist slowly stopped its rhythmic clenching.
The tips of her fingers lightly glided over his shoulder and rested there, "Aang…" Her voice was gentle, but she didn't know what to say. An 'are you okay' would be pointless. She knew he wasn't. "You should get some rest. It's late. The big day's tomorrow."
"I know," he snapped.
Her fingers fell unconsciously back to her side.
"Tomorrow's always a big day," he said staring into the river.
"But tomorrow night's battle is very important. We have to win this one."
"We always have to win them all." He couldn't stop the bitterness that dripped from his words. He didn't want to.
"But Aang," her hand came to grasp at his arm just above the elbow, "we're finally winning. It can finally be over soon. Don't give up hope."
He then turned to look at her.
He looked so frustrated with everything. Frustrated with having to deal with the petty fights within the army that he had to lead slowly on foot. Frustrated with being needed everywhere at the same time. Frustrated with not even being allowed to have the simple things he wanted.
He doesn't even want that much. His eyes traveled over Katara's almost glowing form. The moonlight lit her white and rather scant nightclothes brilliantly. Well… I want a lot of some things.
He quickly stopped that line of thinking though. It would lead him to only more frustration.
True, she had said she loved him and he did not doubt her, but their relationship was stressed to say the least. They had little to no privacy. They were always exhausted. And they weren't married. They hadn't had time.
That was his excuse anyway, an entirely valid one, but an excuse nonetheless.
They were engaged and had been for a long time now, too long. I should have been married to her long ago.
She seemed to see what he was feeling and she frowned, but only for a moment. She plastered an encouraging smile across her lovely face, "C'mon. Let's get some sleep." She tugged at his arm.
He wrenched himself out of her grasp. Her fingers, as if in shock, did not move. They still held the air.
He took a step back, deeper into the cool water. "I want to meditate. I'll go to sleep later."
She nodded sadly. There was nothing she could do. She took a step forward, "Well then, see you in the morning." She had to stand on her toes to kiss him. She pressed her lips on to his and rested her hand on his shoulder.
He did not move. He always kisses her back, but not tonight.
With a sad sigh she walks to the shore. For a few moments, she lets him see how her white night gown clings to her shape as she walks out of the water. She does not even glance back at him as she gracefully bends herself dry.
From her lonely tent though, she stares at the river where he stands until sleep takes her.
oOoOoOo