Apparently I didn't completely screw up on the last chapter, according to the one review I've gotten (thanks) so I'll just continue in the same vein I've been in since I started. Though you'll notice a perspective change here.

Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar: the Last Airbender. For the fiftieth time...

Chapter II: The Avatar

As Aang landed in the town square on his sky bison Appa, he was greeted by the fervent cheers of the crowd, all of whom were extremely excited to see the hero of the Hundred Year War and the almighty Avatar.

The aforementioned "almighty Avatar" had never been more terrified.

He'd never liked meeting crowds, but this time, he had more than just a sea of nameless faces to be afraid of—on the contrary, he had some very specific faces to be worried about, faces he hadn't seen in six years.

And the prospect of seeing those faces again scared him more than canyon crawlers, psychotic Fire Lords, and giant panda spirits combined.

Who would've thought that a mere reunion would've ended up being one of the most memorable dreads of his lifetime?

BOOM. The entire ground rumbled as Appa landed on the ground.

The cheering of a crowd reached a new crescendo—the Avatar had landed! They were about to be the first ones in six years to see the Avatar walking, talking, and breathing…maybe even bending.

Aang was just about ready to direct Appa on a stately walk forward (combined with a plastic smile and cheesy waving) when a cone-shaped object was slipped into his hand. "Sorry for the wait, Avatar Aang," he heard someone whisper. "Here's something to help everyone hear your speech."

Speech?

"There isn't supposed to be a speech," Aang tried to whisper back frantically, but by the time he was able to get over his shock enough to say the words, whoever had given him the megaphone had slipped back into the crowd and the word that the Avatar was about to give a speech had spread like wildfire.

Great.

Why does everyone always seem to know something I don't?

The crowd was looking at him expectantly, waiting for some words of wisdom that he didn't have. What was he supposed to do now?

Tentatively, Aang raised the cone-thing to his mouth. "Uh…hi," he managed to say. "I'm the Avatar." He paused.

A hundred pairs of eyes stared back at him blankly.

"Ehehe…but I guess you already knew that!" Aang stammered, smiling weakly. You are an idiot, his mind seemed to tell him matter-of-factly. He heartily agreed. "Uh…"

Tell them why you have come, something inside him seemed to say, and Aang felt his panic abate slightly. "I—I've come to inspect, I mean,take a friendly look at, the Southern Water Tribe, because of a request from the Earth King and the Order of the White Lotus."

Now there was a little more than blank staring, Aang saw. Some people seemed chagrined at the revelation, but most had expressions of excitement and were whispering to each other eagerly about the upcoming inspections.

Aang supposed a little complimenting wouldn't hurt. "I'm really impressed by what I've seen so far, though! I think that I'll be able to go back to the Order with good news. I'm really happy that you have been able to rebuild this well, and I think it really shows—uh…"

How had Zuko put it when he'd made his speech at the end of the War? Oh, right.

"…uh…the…perseverance and integrity of the people of the Fi—Southern Water Tribe."

The last part of his sentence was nearly drowned out by the round of cheering and whistles that came from the assembled crowd. Apparently he had done something right (though he reminded himself guiltily to apologize to Zuko later.) Aang was just about to take a mental sigh of relief when his eyes picked out a figure from his audience.

They made eye contact, and his stomach immediately did a double flip. The relief that had been welling up inside him vaporized, to be replaced by a bizarre mixture of fear and something else he couldn't quite identify.

Katara…

He knew he was openly staring and he could vaguely feel the sensation of his jaw falling, but at the moment he didn't care. Everything in his mind ground to a halt. The crowd, his impromptu speech—none of it mattered. There was only one thought running through his mind, and he wasn't in the mood to think anything else at the moment.

She's even more beautiful than I remembered.

A dreamy smile appeared on his face. Katara visibly blushed and looked away—at which point Aang realized that he was, in fact, in front of a large crowd.

Now isn't the time to admire Katara, he realized belatedly, and it was his turn to be mortified as he realized that he had just been very obviously and inappropriately eyeing her.

"U-um," he managed to stutter out, "Thanks for listening." The crowd gave him a round of applause, but Aang could barely hear it. His mind was still replaying what he had just done over and over again.

The feast held in celebration of the Avatar's arrival was going to be held that night, and was as extravagant, if not more so, than the one Aang had attended at the Northern Water Tribe all those years ago. The Tribe's best cooks had all contributed, even promising to make a mouth-watering vegetarian dish, the thought of which had Aang's stomach rumbling. His diet during the two week trip to the Southern Water Tribe had consisted of nothing more than dry bread and some Avatar Spirit nourishment. It was almost enough to overcome the dread he felt.

As a guest of honor, he would have to sit with the tribal chief and his family and dine with them, which he would've been more than happy with six years ago—he definitely preferred the company of his friends to that of a group of politicians. He wasn't quite as eager now, not after what he'd done to all of them, especially a certain blue-eyed waterbender.

Something told him that he was about to have a very long evening.

He must've imagined it.

The gloomy silence of the Southern Air Temple, coupled with the large amounts of blank-eyed statues that were situated everywhere, was already pretty creepy. It hadn't helped, of course, that this was the first time in a year that Aang had truly felt alone.

It was logical to think that his currently uneasy mind had somehow conjured up the call for his name, maybe transfigured it out of the cry of some animal—

"Aang! Where are you? Look, I just want to talk, okay?"

—there it was again, but louder, much louder. With a jolt, Aang stopped meditating and opened his eyes, realization coursing through his mind.

He hadn't been imagining things.

Aang could hear their footsteps now, along with some quieter talking ("Are you sure he's here?"…"This is the first place he would go."…"I think I heard something over there…"). They were getting closer. Aang got to his feet as quietly as he could and took a stealthy step.

"Someone's over there!"

Toph, he realized, and he mentally groaned to himself. I should've remembered she would've sensedme moving.

Running footsteps sounded in the corridor just outside the door. He heard the creak of the knob turning… The door opened with a loud groan.

Silence.

"So…hey guys…" Aang finally said, giving a tentative wave.

End of Chapter Two