Author's Note: This marks my first ever Avatar story. It was inspired two nights ago when I was looking at the full moon from my bedroom window.
The story takes place sometime between The Chase and The Library.
Enjoy!
Constant
It was night when Aang had let Appa land in a forest within the Earth Kingdom. They had immediately worked on setting up camp, and after ensuring that everything was safe, Sokka and Toph had gone to bed. Aang had tried to go to sleep, but the lone figure sitting beside the smoldering campfire had kept him awake and curious. Katara had her head tilted up looking towards the moon, her gaze never leaving the perfect circle. Overcome with curiosity – and wanting to spend time alone with her, his conscience added – he nimbly jumped off Appa and walked over to stand beside her.
"I don't get it, Katara."
She wasn't surprised to see him awake. Turning her head to look up at him, she asked, "Don't get what, Aang?"
"The moon. Why you like it so much. I mean, I know your waterbending is stronger with the night, but you just – stare at it."
Katara giggled. "I guess I do." There was a pause for a moment as she thought, her gaze finding its way back to the glow of the moon. She let out a soft exhale of breath. "You know, Aang, in our lives, everything changes. You've changed, Toph has changed, Sokka has changed, the world has changed. But the moon… The moon is a constant in our lives. No matter how bad our day was, or how much we learned, the moon will still rise every night."
Aang silently took a seat next to Katara, his eyes fixed on her.
"The moon cycle is like that of our lives," she continued. "We start from scratch, blank, then begin to develop. We reach our full potential, shining brightly, then we start our descent. The cycle is resolved with the fading of our life, only to be replaced by the beginning of another." With this, Katara lowered her gaze, shifting to look at him. He couldn't describe the look she held in her eyes – a sort of longing, mixed with something he didn't understand.
"Sometimes, Aang, I just wish that life could be a constant – that I could be a constant – like the moon."
There was silence between them before Katara shifted to get up. Overcome by a funny, fluttering feeling in his stomach, Aang acted on instinct and rested his hand over one of hers on the ground. Katara stiffened and Aang nearly slapped himself. What am I doing? What am I doing?! He went to pull his hand away, but Katara relaxed and brought her fingers around his. She smiled at him, moving to lean against his arm. Aang swallowed nervously, his heart in his throat, but as time went on, he relaxed and began to enjoy the feel of Katara resting against him. He closed his eyes.
Katara's eyes flickered up to his face. She smiled softly, her fingers squeezing his hand gently, before whispering too quietly for the boy of her affections to hear, "Thank you for being my constant, Aang."