All I could do was cry. He left me! He left me alone! How could he do that to me? We were family. We had decided to get married about 2 years ago and he just leaves me. I don't understand! We started dating when we were in our 20s. We have known each other our whole life.

I have nowhere to go! I felt lost and alone. I was still hurting after all this time the pain was as fresh as the day he left. Before when I needed comfort and love I went to Air Island Temple and Tenzin would be there for me but now he wasn't mine any more. He belongs to her! Pema had his heart; she was the one that he was meant to love. I don't know how my heart will ever go on, who would ever want to love me?

2 years earlier

We were on Oogi, Tenzin's sky bison, flying high above Republic City. This is how we spent most of our Saturdays together. I was always off on Saturdays and we would spend them together the whole day. We were inseparable. Tenzin was everything to me. He had just asked me to marry him a week earlier. The only person we had told was Aang; Tenzin's father, my spiritual guide, and our Avatar, he was everything to us and there were no secrets between the three of us. Aang had promised to keep it secret from everyone else until we were all in the same place. This was our last moments of pure joy!

We were heading back down to Air Temple Island when we heard the sound. The sirens were going off; we look at each other with a knowing look. We couldn't get down fast enough. Once off Oogi the Air Acolytes were running toward us. Tenzin grabbed me by the waist the air bended us to the ground. Tears were already on his face. I gently kissed him on the cheek as the tears flowed from my eyes. The sirens meant that Aang was not well. In fact by the time we got to him, he was close to death. Aang had been sick for a while but when we told him we were engaged he seemed to be rallying. He wanted to walk me down the aisle. I made him promise that he would be there and that he would dance with me and he said he would. Seeing him pass from this world into the spirit world was hard. I knew that part of him was being reborn as we watched somewhere in one of the two water tribes, but the other part of me wanted Aang back here with us! We weren't done needing him! He was the only father I knew. Katara, Tenzin's mother, and all of Tenzin's siblings were already around Aang's bed. Tenzin ran to his side. I on the other had stood back and waited to be called to his side. I knew that when he wanted me he would call me over to him. Standing in the door way with me was Pema, an Air Acolyte who had grown up on the island, she was crying as well. We both hugged each other at the thought of this being the end of Aang.

"Lin, come closer," Aang called me over to him with a weak smile. I dried my tears and put a smile on my face. When I got closer I grabbed Tenzin's hand for strength.

"Leave us. I want to talk to my little Lin alone. Yes Tenzin that means you!" Aang smiled at his family and nodded to them that it would be okay.

"So how are you feeling? Done anything important today," I tried to make is seem like this was just a normal day and like we always meet like this. Aang tried to sit up and act like nothing was wrong. I put my hand out, touching his weak chest and pointed to the pillow. He didn't put up much of fight since he was so weak.

"You remind me so much of your mother. She would have been so proud of you, Lin. You have grown into a beautiful, wonderful woman! I hope that I was part of that and that you know that I love you as if you were my own child. I am so happy that you and Tenzin are so happy together. He is going to need you when I leave. He is the last Air Bender he has a long legacy to keep up and it is burden that he can bare with you by his side. I promise that I haven't told anyone about the engagement and I will keep that promise. Know that I will always be with you and that no matter where life takes you or what happens to you I am always proud of you and so is your mother! She was a true fighter and you have so much of her in you. I love you so much Lin and it pains me to say Goodbye but the time has come for me to say Goodbye." He kissed my hand, since it was still so close to him. I leaned in and hugged him as tight as I could. I could feel how weak he was at that moment. I kissed his cheek as tear soaked as mine.

"Thank you for everything. You mean everything to me. I don't know how I will go on without your guidance. I love you Aang." I kissed him again on the cheek and then whispered in his ear, "goodbye"

"Let Tenzin in please," he said softly to me. "I love you Lin."

I smiled at him as I stood up and I walked out the door. I turned to Tenzin, "he said you are next."

"Okay. Just breathe," Tenzin spoke to himself as I gently kissed his cheek as he walked past me into the room, where his father lay dying.

In the hallway there were Tenzin's siblings, Bumi and Kya along with their mother Katara. Katara was standing close to her brother Sokka who had his arms wrapped tight around his sister, they have been through so much together they have always seemed so close and Sokka was a source of strength for me when my mother died. He taught me how to fight without my bending. Fire Lord Zuko and Queen Mai were also there, Fire Lord Zuko was the first person to embrace me once Tenzin went into Aang's room.

"Little Lin it has been a long time since I have seen you last. My how you have grown, your mother would be so proud of the amazing woman you have turned into and to be the newly elected Chief of Police she would be over the moon with that news. These are difficult times and we will get through them as we always do, together," he told me as he wiped tears from my eyes.

"Thank you Zuko, I think I want to be alone right now. I am heading to my room," I stated as I turned from them and headed down the hallway. Katara was close behind me. I felt her motherly hand on my shoulder. I turned to face her and she had a smile on her face. She took a handkerchief out of her pocket and handed it to me. She hugged me in a way that only a mother could.

"This is hard times for all of us but you can't lock yourself up. You have done that in the past and I won't let you do it again. You need to be with us. Tenzin is going to need you," she whispered to me in way that was both kind and forceful. I knew that I would not be going to my room. I would stand and wait with my family. With her arm around me and the silent sobs that were coming from me I returned to my family.

"Katara you could have let her go you know. She is a big girl now and if she wants to be alone she can," Sokka yelled to us from down the hallway.

"Sokka hush up! Katara didn't force me she just made a very good point and I can't argue with her reason. Plus I should be with family now! You guys are what is most important to me!" I smiled as Kya ran to me with tears in her eyes. "Oh Kya! I am so sorry." I touched her growing belly Aang would never get to meet his grandchild and that seemed to be the worst part somehow. Aang was so great when we were all children. He seemed so happy with us all around him and he seemed to be able to tap into the inner child that was alive and well in him.

Shortly after I returned to the group Tenzin came out from the room. He ran to his mother and hugged her, he sobbed for a few moments before composing himself enough to say that Aang wanted to see Bumi next. I slowly walked over to him and put my hand on his shoulder. He turned to me and clasped in my arms. I was strong enough to hold his weight but I fell to my knees and let him sob and get the emotions out. I knew how close he was to Aang. They had a truly special bond, since Tenzin was the only Air Bender of Aang's children.

"Walk with me? I need to get away for awhile," Tenzin said to me with an anguished look on his face.

All I could do was nod; we started to walk toward the Air Bending training area. We walked in silence only soft sobs coming from the man that I knew I was going to be spending the rest of my life with; it hurt me to see him so upset. I had no words of comfort for him being that my own pain was so great. I knew that we would get through this and that we would do this together. He had been there for me when I lost my parents and I would be there for him as he lost his.

"What am I going to do Lin? He has always been there for me! Lin, I," he started to sob at this point grabbing me close to him and just holding me. I start to cry then I couldn't stay strong any more. I had has this bottled up since we got back from our ride. I just couldn't hold my emotions in any more. Once we started crying we couldn't stop.

I slowly started to laugh; the laughter was coming through my sobs. Tenzin pulled me away enough to look at me in the eyes. "Why are you laughing?"

"I am sorry honey but I started to have a memory of your dad when we were around 7 or 8. And it made me start laughing. Do you remember when we all went the trips that we use to go on when we were all younger?"

"Yes I remember." At this point there is a puzzled look on his face and his tears and sobs had stopped.

"Okay so you remember that one time when we went to Ember Island? Your parents took all of us kids to the royal house on the Island. My mom, Sokka and Suki, and Zuko and Mai were coming later maybe like a day or so later but your parents took us on Appa. I remember getting into the house and your sister and I were sharing a room and we were getting our stuff out when you and Bumi came into the room dressed in your swim clothes that you both wore from the time we left the City. You guys looked so funny to Kya and me," I started to laugh as the memory of my love in the swim suit ran across my mind.

"Yeah I remember that trip. You girls were so slow and mom said that we couldn't leave until we were all ready and that we needed to have our rooms ready first. So Bumi and I made sure that we ready before we left so that we could just throw our bags down and get the beach before you girls," Tenzin looked off into the distance as we recalled his memory of our shared childhood.

"Ok now I am going to get to the part that I was laughing about. Remember when we finally got the beach and I was a bit nervous about getting in the water? Mom was never too keen on the water so it was something that I kind of inherited from her up until your father helped me over come my fear. He came up to us all wet; Bumi and I were working on a huge sand castle. Bumi was helping me work on my Sand Bending, your dad asked me if I wanted to join him in the water and I looked at him with such fear and I shook my head so hard that Bumi was laughing at how funny looking I was. Your dad Air Bended a large gust of wind causing Bumi's hair to get in his eyes and for him to look a sand monster, Bumi stopped laughing at me then. I laughed and took your dad's hand. He placed me on his shoulders as he walked me into the water. I was so scared because he was just kept walking and the water was getting higher and higher. Soon we were both under the water and your dad started to Water Bend us out of the water. We started surfing in the water I had such a wonderful time on your dad's shoulders."

I placed my head on Tenzin's shoulder and we told stories of Aang and all the adventures that we did as children. We realized that Aang was at the center of most of our childhood adventures. I have no idea how Katara dealt with him. He was nothing more than a big kid, we know and we knew than that he was something important to the world to us he was dad and Uncle Aang. How were we going to survive the lost of this great man who meant so much too so many, not only to our little world?

"Pema, what is the matter," Tenzin asked as he saw her running toward us.

"Your mother has been called in to Avatar Aang's room. He has said to goodbye to everyone your Uncle said to hurry," Pema told us as we both rose to our feet and started to run toward Aang's room

When we got there everyone was back in Aang's room and we could tell that he was gone. Tenzin ran to his mother's side, she was holding the hand of the only man she had ever loved. She would tell us the story of how her and Sokka found him in the iceberg and how she knew he was special from that moment. How was she doing to survive?

Pema and I were standing in the doorway, I was watching my family suffer and there was nothing that I could do about it all I could do was fall to my knees and cry. Pema placed her hand on my shoulder; she was so kind and loving. I slowly stood up with the help of Pema. "Thank you Pema." I smiled at her for her help.

"I hate to do this but I need to get back to the station and start arrangements for his funeral. There will be so many people coming to Republic City we need to make sure that there is enough man power to keep everyone here safe. I am truly sorry for everyone's lost," I looked at Katara as I said the last words. Katara stood up with all her children around her and she walked over to me and embraced me a small sob came out of her at that moment.

"Thank you for everything Lin. Let us know what you need from us. Aang had made some arrangements himself he wouldn't let me see them but I know where they are. I will let you know what they say once we read them. I love you Lin," Katara was so calm, she is truly our pillar of strength.

"I will walk you out Lin. I can take you back to the city if you would like," Tenzin stated as he rose from his seat on the floor

"Thank you honey, I would like that." I smiled at Tenzin. We walked out of the room and we headed toward Oogi.