Well, people seemed to like the first chapter, which is good since it was relatively bland :P My only hope is that you guys will enjoy the remaining chapters just as much.

Enjoy Chapter 2!

"I'm surprised," Katara said casually.

Bending the excess water off the plate his was holding, Aang replied, "About what?"

It was after dinner. Kya had practically flown from the table to go to the dock and wait for Suluk, even though they weren't expecting him for another hour. In the meantime, Katara and Aang washed the dishes and cleaned up the kitchen while Bumi and Tenzin went off to take care of the bison puppies.

Katara gave her husband a knowing look. "I'm surprised that you actually gave Kya the okay for this date." Aang hummed in response. "You're usually hyper-protective of the kids. Especially Kya."

"Well... she is fifteen," he responded flatly.

"Uh-huh." Katara handed the last plate to Aang and got started on putting the dried dishes away. "So... you're okay with this?"

"I wouldn't say that." Aang put down the last plate, crossed his arms, and leaned back against the kitchen counter. "But I don't think Kya would be particularly excited at the prospect of never going on a date. Ever. No matter how much I'd like that."

Katara laughed. "Who would have thought you'd be the type to want to keep his daughter permanently sheltered from boyfriends? Remember when people used to say that we were too young to date?"

Aang shook his head disbelievingly. "I don't know how your father could stand it."

"As I recall, he gave you one heck of a talking-to almost immediately after the war ended."

"Oh, I remember... It was almost as terrifying as facing Ozai. But now that I have a daughter... I can only look back on it in understanding," he said wistfully.

Dishes put away, Katara turned and wrapped her arms around Aang's neck, leaning in with a smile. "Well, I'm proud of you. For not letting your fatherly instinct hold Kya back from actually having a life." She gave him a small, teasing kiss.

Aang chuckled, resting his hands on Katara's waist. "How proud exactly...?" He returned the kiss, holding it for a moment with a small moan.

Katara leaned back with a breathy chuckle. "Not now, Aang. Suluk's going to be here soon."

"Good. Maybe we can scare him off." He leaned back in for another kiss.

But Katara placed a finger on his lips, halting him. "Really, Aang. You do want to meet this boy before he takes your daughter out, don't you?"

Aang sighed with a small nod. "True." Letting go of his wife in order to avoid temptation, he looked out the window. "He should be here any minute now."

Katara pressed a finger against his chest. "Try not to be too intimidating. I'm sure Kya will appreciate it."

Aang smiled mischievously. "No promises."

Kya was sitting on the stairs that led to the dock. She really wanted to sit on the dock, but she didn't want to seem too desperate or needy.

Thankfully, her brothers had gone off, so they wouldn't be there to cause a ruckus when Suluk arrived. It was going to be enough of a pain to keep her parents from embarrassing her. Especially her father. While he's given her permission to go on this date, she still wouldn't put it past him to try and scare Suluk off by either telling him stories of some of Kya's less refined moments. Or by pulling the 'I'm the Avatar and I could kill you in a second flat' card.

Of course, Kya was pretty sure that just being the Avatar wasn't enough to scare Suluk away. He was practically apathetic to the fact that she was the Avatar's daughter, so she couldn't imagine him being too intimidated by merely her father's status.

That was part of the reason she liked him.

In the distance, she could see a boat approaching from the mainland. Squealing in a more school-girly manner than she would have liked, Kya jumped up and ran down to meet the boat at the dock.

Her timing was perfect. She got down there just as Suluk was jumping off the boat. He was dressed in unmistakably formal Water Trip clothes. Lined with white fur, it was a mixture of blues, styled reminiscently off of old warrior outfits. Seeing Kya run his way, Suluk smiled and held his arms out, silently inviting her in. Only too happy to oblige, she wrapped her arms around his waist and gave him a tight hug.

"Hey there," Suluk said with a laugh. "I'm guessing that means your parents gave the okay?"

Kya stepped back and nodded excitedly. "And just as I thought, they want to meet you before we head out tonight." She looked down at her casual outfit. "I should also probably put on something more appropropriate."

Suluk laughed. "You can do that while I meet your parents." He looked past her towards the temple. "Shall we?"

"Absolutely," Kya responded. Hooking her arm with his, they made their way inland.

"And you thought your father would reject the idea out of hand," Suluk said teasingly.

Kya shrugged. "I honestly didn't think my dad would go for it. But it turns out I still got him wrapped around my finger."

They made most of the rest of the journey in silence, which was fine by her. She was just enjoying the warmth of Suluk's body close to hers. She made a mental note to keep her distance when she introduced Suluk to her parents, for the sake of her father's mental health.

They found her parents sitting outside, enjoying the evening weather. Upon seeing their daughter approaching with her date, they both stood. Katara had her overly-friendly demeanor on, which Kya could tell she was forcing a little. Aang, on the other hand, was making no effort to hide how exactly he was feeling about this prospective 'date'. He was standing in a more rigid manner than Kya was used to seeing her normally carefree father in, his eyes slightly narrowed and focused on Suluk in a sharp glare.

Ignoring her father's demeanor and hoping it would just go away, Kya slapped on a big smile. "Mom, Dad, this is Suluk. Suluk, this is my mom and dad."

Seemingly unnerved by her father's aggressive aura, Suluk stepped forward with a pleasant smile and bowed respectfully. "Avatar Aang, Master Katara. It's an absolute honor to meet you."

"Thank you, Suluk," Katara said with a returning bow. Aang also bowed, his glare continuously steady. "We are both pleased to meet you."

There was a couple moments of tense silence before Kya clapped her hands together. "Well, you guys get to know each other. I'm going to get dressed." She quickly turned and ran off to her room, hoping she wouldn't come back to Suluk's dead body.

Once their daughter had disappeared from sight, Katara turned to Suluk with a hesitant smile. "So, Suluk... you're in school with Kya, correct?"

Suluk nodded. "Yes, Ma'am. We have History and Arithmetic together."

"That's wonderful! Do you like those classes?"

"I'm not a huge fan of Arithmetic. But I do like History."

"Really?" Katara glanced at her husband, hoping he'd relax. However, he seemed perfectly content to stand there as intimidatingly as possible. "What are you guys studying right now?"

"We just got finished reviewing the Harmony Restoration Movement. Now we're getting into the founding of Republic City."

Katara laughed. "'History'. That was only about twenty years ago..."

Kya was running back, a bit slower now that she was wearing a dress. This was her favorite, long and sleek, a mixture of dark blue and orange. This dress was specifically designed to represent her parentage. She liked it not only because it was gorgeous and made her look elegant, but because she was able to show off her bi-cultural heritage.

Suluk turned and smiled as she approached. He held a hand out, which Kya took graciously. "You look beautiful."

"Do you mean to imply that she doesn't look beautiful otherwise?" Aang asked cheekily.

"Dad!" Kya admonished.

Suluk laughed. "It's okay, Kya. He's your father. And fathers have to defend their daughter's honor."

"I think you'll find that Kya can defend her own honor," Aang snapped.

Suluk looked at Kya with a smile. "That I can believe."

"Well, then!" Katara quickly interjected, giving Aang a pointed look. "You kids have fun. Kya, be back before midnight or I'll send your father out to look for you."

Kya grimaced at the thought of her father tearing up the city to find her. "Don't worry, I'll be home by then." Giving Suluk a smile, she wrapped her arms around his and they made their way back down to the dock.

As they shrank into the distance, Katara turned to Aang, arms crossed. Seeing his wife's expression, Aang closed his eyes and sighed. "I tried, okay?"

Katara nodded. "You actually behaved yourself better than I thought you would."

Aang gave a crooked smile. "See, then? I did good." He leaned in to steal a chaste kiss.

Katara giggled. "Now if only we could get rid of Bumi and Tenzin. Then we'd have the whole evening to ourselves."

At the mention of their sons, Aang stiffened a little. "Speaking of which, we should probably check on them. It doesn't take that long to clean and feed the bison. And knowing Bumi, he's getting Tenzin in trouble."

Katara scoffed. "You know, Tenzin is capable of getting trouble all on his own."

Aang sighed. "I'd be happy if Tenzin managed to cause his own trouble. That boy is too serious for his own good."

"Just because you're a perpetual child doesn't mean our children have to be. You have Kya and Bumi. I'm personally grateful for a child who doesn't have the personality of an airbender."

"What's wrong with airbender personalities?" Aang asked indignantly.

"The fact that I live with three of them," she said, tapping his chest. "I'll go check on Bumi and Tenzin. You have that report to work on for Sokka."

Each of the four waterbenders arched their arms and spun their respective streams of water in symmetric twisting spirals.

Kya watched in amazement. Their fine control, their ability to stay completely in sync through their complicated routines... It was impressive. It reminded her of her parents. Sometimes, when they thought their children were tucked away in bed, they would casually run through their waterbending katas. They moved so fluidly together, the water glistening in the moonlight... It was always a beautiful sight.

She felt a warm hand grasp hers and she turned to see Suluk looking at her. He gave a small smile before returning his attention to the show.

Kya smiled to herself. She also returned her gaze to the stage, but she wasn't really watching. All at once, she was thinking about a future. A possible future with Suluk. He was a good man, with status and skill. She could imagine a house on the edge of Republic City, living happily with children. Perhaps the two of them would also waterbend romantically in Yue's light.

The waterbenders on stage swayed in unison, the separate streams of water uniting into a large ribbon of water that circled through the air and flowed over the audience.

After putting Bumi and Tenzin to bed, Katara kissed Aang goodnight. "I'm tired. Good luck with the rest of the report."

Aang smiled. "Thanks, love. I'll try to be to bed soon." He gave her another quick kiss.

So there he sat, at his desk in the Air Temple, working on his report on the current status of the Fire Nation. He had gotten back from visiting Zuko a week ago and he had yet to give Sokka the full details. Since Sokka had become the Chair of the United Republic Council, he needed to be more up to date on the current events of the whole world.

Suddenly there was a frantic knocking on the main door of the temple. "Avatar! Avatar Aang! Are you in there!?"

With a small frown, Aang stood and briskly walked to the main door. He lifted the lock and opened the door, revealing a young man in Water Tribe clothing. "Oh thank goodness!" the man said. "I saw the light on through the window and hoped you'd be in here...!"

"Calm down..." Aang stepped out of the temple and closed the door behind him. "What's your name and what's the matter?"

"My name is Thorruk. Councilman Sokka wants to speak with you. He says it's urgent."

Aang frowned. His ability to detect lies may not be nearly as fine tuned as Toph's, but he could still feel the boy's quickened heartbeat as he spoke. His name was Thorruk, but he was lying about Sokka. Which led Aang to wonder why in spirits' name would he be lying about such a thing. "Councilman Sokka is still in City Hall? At this time of night?"

"Yes, sir," Thorruk said, "He's been working hard on some issue or another. I'm not sure of the details but he sent me to get you. He wants to see you right away."

More lies. But it wasn't just lies. The boy was nervous. Frightened, perhaps? Maybe someone was blackmailing him. Using him to lure Aang into some sort of trap. "Are you alright...?" Aang asked carefully, wanting to give Thorruk a chance to ask for help.

Thorruk frowned. "I'm fine, sir. I'm just out of breath from trying to get here as fast as possible."

He was telling the truth, but obviously not the whole truth. "Alright," Aang said. He wasn't sure what was going on, but he had to help Thorruk from whomever was forcing him to do this. And, if he was completely honest with himself, he was curious as to what exactly was going. Who was blackmailing this man? And what did they want?

Thorruk sighed, clearly relieved. "Thank you, Avatar!"

Aang nodded and smiled. "Let's go. Best not to keep Sokka waiting."

After the show, the audience and the performers filed out to the main ballroom. There were long tables of hor d'oeuvres, all Water Tribe styled food. Kya was stuffing her face as elegantly as she could manage.

"You must be hungry," Suluk said with a smile.

Kya blushed. "Not really..." she admitted. "It's just really nice to eat good Water Tribe food."

Suluk's head tilted slightly. "Your mother can't cook Water tribe food?"

"Well... my dad's a vegetarian, and he hates virtually all vegetarian Water Tribe dishes. So do I, actually. So when my mom cooks Water Tribe food, she has to modify it to make it edible for us."

"Mmm." Suluk's expression remained blank. He placed a hand on her arm. "I want to introduce you to my father."

Kya nodded excitedly, stuffing the last polar puff in her mouth. She let Suluk turn and pull her over to an older Water Tribe man. His hair was grey and he wore elaborate and formal Northern Water Tribe clothing. She immediately recognized him, having seen his image in the newspapers.

"Father, this is Kya, Avatar Aang and Master Katara's daughter. Kya, this is my father, Councilman Rouki."

Councilman Rouki's eyes flickered to Suluk for a moment before looking Kya up and down with a warm smile. He extended his arm. "Kya. It is an honor to meet you."

Kya grasped his arm in the traditional Water Tribe style. "Likewise, Councilman."

"You're a beautiful young woman. You obviously take after your mother."

Kya could feel her face get warm, and she subconsciously averted her eyes. "Th-thank you. You're very kind."

Suluk squeezed her hand. "Kind and perceptive."

That didn't help her blushing problem. She glanced up at Suluk's face for a moment and smiled before looking back at the ground.

Another man came up behind the Councilman, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Councilman Rouki."

The Councilman nodded. "Yes, I know." He turned back Suluk and Kya gave a small bow. "I apologize. I have business to attend to." He turned around and followed the other man away.

"Speaking of which..." Suluk lifted her hand and pressed her hand to his lips. "I need to talk to you about something."

Kya smiled. "Talk about what?"

Suluk looked around the ballroom. "I'd rather talk in private."

Her stomach stirred with warmth and she shivered. "Sure."

Suluk led her outside and into the alleyway between the theater and the building next to it. There was a couple of old dumpsters and stray papers, soaked in the puddles of dirty water. Once they were out of sight of the main street, he turned around and smiled. "I like you, Kya... a lot."

Kya smiled. She realized she had been doing that a lot the last few days. "I like you a lot, too. I have to admit... I thought you were kinda a jerk for a while. But you've proved me wrong."

Suluk smiled widely. "You are just... incredible. You're so smart and open minded... A strong Water Tribe woman. A true Water Tribe woman." He placed his hands on her waist. "The blood of the Water Tribe runs strong in you. You're a credit to our culture and our people."

Kya giggled. "The people of the Water Tribe are patient and resilient. I'm proud to be one of them."

Suluk nodded. He dragged his fingers across her dress, tracing out the lines between the blue and orange. He looked a little confused. Or possibly conflicted.

"Suluk? What's wrong?"

He lifted his head and met her gaze. He smiled. "I'm happy to hear you say that. To hear you speak of your Water Tribe pride. We are a singular nation. A powerful nation. You can understand how important it is for us to maintain our nation's strength."

Kya's smile faded a little, her brow knitting in confusion. "Well... yes. The Water Tribe has gotten a lot stronger since the war ended. Especially the Southern Water Tribe. Of course, we all want to make sure all the nations stay in balance."

"I couldn't agree more," Suluk said. "That's why we have to keep the blood pure."

Now her smile was completely gone, as was the warmth that she had felt earlier. "Blood...?" A dark pit in her stomach was starting to form. "What... What do you mean exactly?"

Suluk frowned slightly. "I mean, you must have realized how disadvantageous having tainted blood is. You know, as you were growing up?"

Kya's chest suddenly burned, breathing momentarily difficult as anger coursed through her. "How dare you!?" She grabbed his wrists and threw his hands off of her. "I'll have you know I'm proud of my lineage, just as proud as I am of being Water Tribe! My so-called tainted background has only made me stronger!"

Silence fell, and only the sound of the passing wind and a faint chatter from inside the theater. Suluk looked confused at first, but his expression then transformed into sadness. "I was hoping that you'd be able to understand the logic. That you'd be able to see why the Water Tribe lines have to stay pure." He closed his eyes and let out a long sigh. "I really do care for you... and I had hoped that this was going to end different. But I guess my father was right."

Suluk swung an arm up and lunged forward, a stream of water slicing through the air towards her. Kya spun away to the side, her arm extending to pull water from the ground. However, when she landed in a crouch a few feet away she realized that Suluk had taken all the water from the ground. Suluk stepped forward and launched another stream of water at her. Kya rolled away and landed behind one of the dumpsters. She leaned her back against it and panted heavily. "Suluk... You can't do this..."

"I have no choice."

There was the sound of water slicing through metal and the dumpster fell apart behind Kya. She rolled forward and jumped to her feet. As Suluk regained his footing, Kya extended an arm and blew out a breath. Concentrate. Waving her arm in front of her, she collected the moisture from the air until she had a shell of water around her hand. It wasn't much, but if she could get close enough, it would be enough. She faced Suluk and took an en garde position.

Suluk stood with the water encasing his arms, having employed a smaller version of the octopus form. He had a sad smile on his face. "You're an impressive waterbender. I know few waterbenders with your level of skill."

Kya gave a bitter laugh. "Despite my tainted blood?" she retorted.

"Yes. Can you imagine how powerful you would have been without the Air Nomad blood?"

She let out an angry shout and charged forward. Suluk swung his arms forward and tried to hit Kya with his water, but she jumped from side to side, dodging the streams of water being launched at her. She couldn't help but smile to herself. One advantage of having Air Nomad blood? Her natural ability to avoid and evade.

Kya rolled under another of his attacks and landed beside him. He stepped back, his eyes wide in alarm. Kya could only smirk. The water hardening to ice around her hand, she intended to knock him out with a single blow.

She wheeled her arm back when it suddenly froze. The water melted off her hand and fell harmlessly to the ground. With a small gasp, Kya tried to stand up or jump back, but her entire body was immobilized. Her muscles and joints creaked in strain. What…?

"You have lost control, Suluk."

Suluk stepped back from Kya's frozen body, his water falling off his arms. "I'm sorry, Father."

Kya managed to slowly turn her head, her entire body trembling against the force keeping her still. At the end of the alley, she could barely make out Councilman Rouki and a man and a woman that she didn't recognize. The Councilman had his arms out towards her, fingers bent and tense as he held her in place. He sighed. "I always have to clean up your messes."

His hands jerked and twisted, and Kya's body was jerked up and her breath caught her in throat. Her head thrown back, the last thing she saw as her vision blackened was the silver light of a full moon.

So what did you all think? Leave a review letting me know :)