Kataang Wedding: Chapter 2- Cold Feet and Nightmares

The sound of shuffling feet was the only perceptible noise as Aang paced back and forth in his room. It was a day before his wedding and the sly and smooth pre-wedding nerves had made its way into Aang's mind. He had everything prepared to the minute detail, exactly as Monk Gyatso had instructed him to do. But, he was scared to know he'd be leaving behind a former life, molding a new one with Katara. As a nomad, he was used to constant motion, flowing with the natural beat of life. He knew-or at least felt- that marriage with Katara was a natural rhythm but, something gnawed at the back of his mind, whispering subconscious doubts and repressed fears.

He thought back to his time with Gyatso, how happy he was to see his old master. Sometimes, in the dead of night when the Avatar was awake and only the sound of Katara's soft breathing could be heard, he would think of how life would have been had he not ran away. He shook his head at those thoughts, though. Gyatso always reminded him to live in the present, and not to dwell on the past. That was one of the key mantras of a nomad. Aang sighed; his emotions drained his body of energy.

He lay down on his bed, arms stretched out and legs drooped down. "Oh Spirits…" Aang sighed as his eyes closed.

A cool breeze slapped Aang's face as he woke to a brilliant sunshine. He was in a field, underneath a thin pale blanket. His hand felt the smooth touch of Katara's hand. Sitting up he held it tenderly, kissing it softly. "Why are we out here?" Aang asked, looking around he saw the sky was teeming with various aerial creatures, some sky bison even. It all felt too surreal to him, the sun blared too brightly and the grass seemed too green.

Katara's laugh pierced the air, sending Aang a shiver down his spine. He wanted to believe that everything was natural here, but he knew it wasn't. "Don't you remember we're on our honeymoon?" Her voice buzzed through Aang's ears, as if she was speaking through a static-induced radio. "What's wrong Aang?" Katara asked as she saw the disbelief and subtle horror on the Avatar's face, putting her clammy hand against his face.

"Nothing…nothing," Aang mumbled, patting Katara's hand as he put it down. He needed time to breath, time to process the thousand thoughts that were presently rushing through his mind. The Avatar lay flat on the blanket; it felt smooth, seemingly real. "Hey, Katara?" Aang was treading dangerous waters now; he could feel his mind being bogged down by a liquid version of fear.

"Yeah?" Katara breathed, lying down next to him, curling her fingers through opening of his hands.

"What…what was our wedding like? I'm so tired I can't remember it, but I'm sure it was something special, right?" His words hesitated at the precipice of his lips, falling out all at once, a jumbled splattering mess.

"Well," Katara began, but as she was continuing her sentence, the birds stilled and the atmosphere hushed. "It was marvelous—" Suddenly Katara's voice cracked and attenuated, her words blended together into one chilling sound. "Mar-ve…Marve—lo" her mouth contorted into grotesque shapes as he continued to speak, and before Katara could utter another word with her icy cold voice, she dissipated into thin air, right before the vulnerable Avatar's trembling eyes.

Tears streamed down Aang's face as he screamed for Katara. Regardless of whether he mastered his emotions, the blue arrow on his head flickered into a searing hot white shade until it faintly dimmed the air around him. A gust of wind shot Aang twenty feet into the air, his feet blending into the tornado below him. Trees joined in on the chaotic dancing of air, some of the sky bison were trapped in it as well; Hell hath no fury like an Avatar scorned.

There was no Katara to save him now, he knew that. But he also knew that everything in this world, or whatever it was, was not real. Aang could see himself from the outside in: the ground decimated from the powerful gales, the animals helplessly strewn across the field like abused ragdolls, and worst of all…the peaceful air nomad turned into an emotional fury. Controlling his breathing and thinking soothing thoughts of the past, Aang regained control, his emotions in check.

"I'm sorry Katara. I'm sorry Monk Gyatso. I'm sorry…" Aang simply muttered names and apologies in hopes of an emotional atonement. It wasn't like him to let his emotions get the better of him; of course it wasn't normal for him to be getting married either. Sitting on the floor the exhausted bender hugged his knees.

The force on his body increased, he stared to panic. It tightened and tightened until his chest felt like it was going to implode. Aang snapped his eyes open to find himself in a (one sided) warm embrace with Katara. "Aang, are you all right?" her soft voice, her naturally beautiful and real voice, lulled Aang into a peaceful state.

He just kept holding onto her. "Yeah, I-I'm fine…" his words muted as he buried his face into her hug. "I just-I'm scared of the future…" the words trailed off as Aang didn't want to speak anymore. He was exhausted of it all for the night.

"I know, Aang. And that's okay. You must be scared more than me being a nomad, I'm sure it's not easy having to settle in one aspect of your life." Katara let the words sink into Aang before she continued. "And-and if you want we could postpone wedding for a little while?" Her voice didn't sound necessarily sad but it had the undertones of reluctance.

Raising his head from Katara's embrace the Avatar shook his head. He didn't want his fears to stop him from one of the best moments of his life. He knew that if Monk Gyatso were here, he would have wanted Aang to be happy. Even, even if that did mean leaving a portion of his life behind. He wasn't abandoning it; he would simply be adding a new chapter into his introspective and ever changing life. "Katara, I just have one question," The Avatar smirked before continuing, "Which flavored fruit pie would you like to feed me tomorrow?"

"Well Aang, it wouldn't be fun if I told you, now would it?"

"No I guess not."

Their laughter filled the air, spiraling so high that somewhere in the Spirit World even the smiling Monk Gyatso could hear them.