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Kyoshi Island – Nighttime
Aang, Katara, Sokka and Suki sat around a small table late that night. They had just finished eating their dinner and were now sitting around, chatting.
"So how long are you guys staying for," Suki asked as she poured herself a cup of tea.
"Maybe for another day or two," Katara said. "Aang has some business in the Earth Kingdom. A couple rebellions in the wake of Monk Guandao's defeat. The Earth King is trying his best to put them down, but so far he's been unsuccessful. That's why he needs Aang."
"So you're going to be very busy for the next few weeks, huh Aang?"
"Huh? What?" Aang looked up, startled. Clearly his mind had been on other things. Like on Katara and him having a baby. He looked over at his wife. Did she even know?
"Uh … well … I guess so …." He sheepishly rubbed the back of his head, slightly confused. He had no idea what everyone was talking about.
Sokka got up, patting his belly. "Well, I'm gonna hit the sack."
Katara nodded. "Yea, we should be getting to bed too."
***
Katara was laying on a surgical cot, screaming. Several doctors stood around her while Aang paced back and forth nervously with Sokka.
"Just a little more, Katara," he heard one doctor say.
"Push. Push, Katara!"
Katara screamed even louder. Suki was next to her, holding her hand, practicing breathing exercises.
"Almost there, almost there. You're doing great! Just one more big push!"
Katara pushed with all of her might, and, suddenly, Aang heard the sound of a baby crying.
One of the doctors turned. "You can come see your baby now, Aang."
Aang's heart felt light as a feather. He rushed over to Katara's bed to see her holding a small, moving bundle. Aang couldn't quite see the baby's face, but he didn't care. He was a daddy!
"Come on, lemme see the baby," Sokka jumped up and down.
"Be very careful," she sternly warned Sokka as she handed the infant over.
"Oooh, coochiee coochiee coo!"
A growling sound emanated from the baby. Sokka looked down, and his face turned pale. "Uuum, guys, there's something wrong with your baby."
The doctors crowded around it, chattering.
"It's not human!"
"It's deformed!"
"I warned you," one doctor shouted. "Didn't I tell everybody?! But nobody listened to me! It's Manbearpig!"
"Shut up, Al," another doctor snapped.
The monstrous baby growled, before leaping out of the doctor's arms. Its mouth hung open, baring huge, gleaming fangs. Strands of saliva hung from its open mouth.
"Look out, it's loose," Sokka squealed.
The creature let out a bloodcurdling shriek at the sound of Sokka's voice. It thrashed about the room, before its eyes settled on Aang.
Aang was rooted to the spot. "N-nice baby. I'm your daddy."
The creature began pacing back and forth in front of Aang, as a predator would often do to its prey. It could sense the fear coming from its victim. Aang backed into a corner.
That was it. The creature jumped into the air, its fangs heading straight for Aang's throat…
***
"YAAAAGGGHHH!!!!" Aang bolted upright in bed. He was still screaming. His pillow was wet with sweat.
Next to him, Katara shot up. "Aang, is everything okay?"
"Uhh, yea, yea. Just a nightmare."
"Are you sure? Tell me if something's bothering you."
"No, no, I'm fine. Just a bad dream. Let's go back to sleep."
Katara's lower lip trembled. "You never open up to me."
Oh great, Aang thought. Just what I need right now. Another mood swing.
He put his arm reassuringly around her shoulders. "Really, I'm fine. Everything's okay, I promise." He kissed her lightly on the forehead. "Now let's go back to sleep."
As his wife rolled over next to him, Aang lay awake, unable to get any rest. The truth was, there was something bothering him, although he wasn't about to admit it to her. The idea of fatherhood scared him. He wasn't sure if he was ready to be a dad. He had a hard enough time keeping up with just Appa and Momo, much less a baby.
Aang didn't get any sleep for the rest of the night.
***
The next morning, Aang found Suki and Ty Lee practicing in one of their training buildings with the rest of the Kyoshi Warriors. Aang decided to wait – he didn't want to be like Sokka who would just come barging in on them while they were practicing. Suki, however, seemed to notice him loitering around outside. She signaled for everyone to stop sparring.
"Take five ladies," she called. The girls relaxed, happy for the break. Suki walked outside. "Hey Aang! What's up?"
Aang rubbed the back of his head, nervously. "Uh, can we talk?"
Suki nodded, smiling reassuringly. "Sure thing. What's on your mind?"
"Uh … well … I"
"This is about Katara, isn't it?"
"Yea."
"And about her being …" she trailed off.
"Pregnant," Aang finished.
"Yea."
"I just can't believe it," Aang said. "How can this have happened?"
Even under her makeup, Suki began to blush. "Umm, well, let's not get into the mechanics of it right now."
"I'm too young! I'm only gonna be fourteen in a few months! I can't be a father! I don't know the first thing about taking care of kids!" He began pacing back and forth, talking nonstop. Suki was worried that if he didn't stop to take a breath, he might suffocate.
"What if the baby's deformed? Or what if he's incorrigible? What if I drop him or something? What if Katara and I don't raise him right and he ends up being a criminal? What if –"
Suki cut him off. "Aang, all kinds of horrible things can happen."
"That's supposed to make me feel better?"
"No. What I'm saying is, you can sit here worrying about every little thing that could go wrong until you're blue in the face. Instead of focusing on all of the bad things that could happen, why don't you think about all of the good things that can happen?"
"Like what?"
"Well, say, for instance, what if you raise him and he becomes some kind of super genius? He could find the cure for some disease or something."
"Well that's true."
"Aang, do you realize that your child has your genes as well as Katara's?"
"Yea, so?"
"Well, since Katara's a Waterbender, there's a chance that he could be a Waterbender. But since you're an Airbender, then there's a chance that –"
"HE COULD BE AN AIRBENDER!!!" Aang was overjoyed. He hadn't considered that possibility before.
"This is so great," he shouted. "If he's an Airbender, then it's a start to rebuilding the Air Nomads! He and I will do it together. Of course, Monk Guandao's still an Airbender, but I can't really count on him, now can I? But if my baby's an Airbender …" He began leaping for joy.
Suki smiled. "Glad to see you're not worried about it. Just don't get your hopes up too much. Remember, it's a 50/50 shot that he'll be an Airbender."
"Yea I know." He patted the Kyoshi Warrior on the shoulder. "Thank you, Suki. This talking with you … it really helped me out."
"Glad I could be of service." She turned around and walked back into the training dojo. "Alright everyone, back in formation." There was a loud stir of groans from the rest of the Kyoshi Warriors.
"PSSTT!!! Aang," a voice whispered. Aang turned around to see Ty Lee loitering around outside the dojo.
"Hey, what's up, Ty Lee? Shouldn't you be training with Suki?"
Ty Lee shrugged. "Probably. I'm playing hooky today though."
"But won't Suki get mad?"
Ty Lee flopped unto her hands. "Probably, but I figure that if I can survive working for Azula, then Suki should be a breeze." And with that, she leapt into the air and did a graceful cartwheel.
"But anyway," she said, walking on her hands, "I couldn't help but overhear you and Suki talking."
"I'm sure you couldn't," Aang mumbled.
Ty Lee didn't seem to hear him, so she continued on. "If you're still unsure about being a father, well, I know a way you can be sure."
Aang's eyes brightened. "Really? How?"
"Follow me!"
***
Aang sat at a table in the kitchen as Ty Lee bustled around the counter. She was coloring something small with bright magic markers, but her body hid whatever it was. "This is a totally cool project we had to do when I was a student at the Fire Nation Academy," she was saying. "It'll show if you're going to be a good parent or not."
Aang tried to peek around her shoulder. "What exactly are you doing?"
"Making your baby."
Aang sat there silently, trying to make some sense out of what she had just said. Suddenly, she whirled around with big eyes. "Ta-da! Here's your baby."
Aang was dumbfounded. "That's an egg," he pointed out rather plainly.
"Well, duh!"
Aang looked at the egg. It was the stupidest thing he'd ever seen. Ty Lee had drawn a face with bright eyes, rosy cheeks and dimples. On top of that, she had attached some yarn to give it the appearance of curly hair. For visualization purposes, think Shirley Temple on ecstasy.
"This is your baby," Ty Lee said.
It took everything he had to not burst out laughing right then and there. That thing was supposed to be his baby? No, no, no, no, his baby was going to be a great warrior, not some sissy little dimple-face.
"The experiment is rather simple," Ty Lee explained. She placed the egg gently in Aang's hand. He looked up at her expectantly.
"What am I supposed to do with this?"
"That's your baby. If you can go a whole day without breaking that egg, then it proves you're a good parent. Or something like that."
"Did you pass the test when you were in school," Aang asked.
"Heck no. I was doing some cartwheels, and I had placed it in my pocket, forgetting it was there and it kind of slipped out …"
"And broke." Aang sighed. "I don't know, Ty Lee. This whole thing seems kind of dumb."
"Look, do you want to know if you're going to be a good father or not?"
He nodded his head. "Of course."
"Well, this is the way. I'll check on you later tonight to see if the 'baby's' okay. See ya later!" And with that, she cartwheeled out the door.
Aang looked down at the girly-girl egg. Those bright painted eyes looked right back at him. "Well … I have to admit … you are kind of cute." He frantically looked around just to make sure no one heard him say that.
***
Aang sat on a rock outside by the lake, watching the fish leaping up out of the water. The egg sat on the rock beside him. As he was sitting, he suddenly got the feeling that he was being watched. He slowly turned his head to see a group of girls watching him. The lead one rushed right into his arms.
"AAANGGYY!!!"
Aang laughed. "Good to see you too, Koko."
"How come you haven't come back to visit us," she pouted.
"Uh, well, I've been kind of busy saving the world."
"Ooooh," all the girls said in unison. "Tell us all about it," Koko asked. The girls sat down around Aang as he began to go into narration.
***
"And it looked like it was all over. There was Monk Guandao, about ready to finish me off, when –" Aang stopped dead in his tracks. He was now standing on the rock, acting out the entire battle scene when he noticed…
"The egg! It's gone!" He was frantically scouring the area, lifting the rock up to check underneath. "My egg! My egg! Where'd it go!"
"What's the big deal about some stupid egg," Koko asked.
"It's my baby!"
The girls sat there, confused by that odd remark.
There was a sudden roar. Everyone turned around to see the gargantuan oonagi screeching up out of the lake. Inside its jaws, safely perched in the gap between two of its teeth, was Aang's egg.
The oonagi roared louder than ever, before disappearing under the depths of the water.
"MY EGG!!!" Aang dived into the water, leapfrogging through the lake.
"Be careful, Aangy," Koko called.
The oonagi's gotta be here somewhere, he thought as he cut through the waves. He surfaced up for some air – and no sign of the enormous fish. Oh, it was hopeless. He wasn't even a father for ten minutes and he had already lost his kid. How could he be counted on to raise a child when he couldn't even handle an egg?
"ROAAARR!!!"
Aang looked up as the serpent-like fish's jaws came straight at him. One snap of those jaws and he'd be done. Thinking quickly, he Airbended himself straight out of the way of the beasts mouth. The oonagi's jaws slammed shut on nothing. The creature roared again as it looked left and right for its prey.
Aang landed on top of the fish's head. Sensing this, the oonagi began rearing its head left and right, trying to dislodge the boy from off of it. Aang took an even Earthbending stance, bracing himself as he grabbed hold of two tentacles on the creature's head.
This frustrated the oonagi to no ends. First, it was angry that it couldn't get a hold of this boy, now he was pulling its tentacles, causing some moderate pain. The creature thrashed about, now really angry. Aang, unable to hold on any longer, went flying off.
And the oonagi saw its chance.
"Oh, I can't look," Koko cried, burying her face in her friend's sleeve.
The giant fish went straight for Aang – and its jaws clamped shut.
Koko and the rest of the girls were crying. "He's … he's gone," one girl lamented.
"No, wait! Look," Koko pointed ecstatically.
There was Aang, in between the jaws of the great fish itself. His two hands were firmly gripped on two of its pointed teeth, prying the jaws open. Aang tried not to breathe in the putrid odor of the creature's breath. He didn't know how much longer he could keep this up.
And the oonagi's jaws began to inch their way shut. Once that happened, Aang knew it would all be over. And he still had to get that blasted egg out from between its teeth.
And a sudden idea hit him. He would have to be fast. One miscalculation, even for a millisecond, could cost him dearly.
Please let this work!
Aang kicked his right foot backwards and a light flame roared out of it. Sorry, he mentally apologized to the animal. It wasn't enough to severely injure the monster, but it was enough to hurt it. The oonagi opened its mouth wide as it roared in pain.
Now's my chance!
Using Airbending to propel him forward, he flew out of the oonagi's mouth, snatched up the egg and landed in the water below.
And now the oonagi was really mad. That human had caused it great pain. Now it had to pay him back. Aang could see the murderous look in its eyes.
Cradling the egg, he tried to swim his way out of the lake. He wasn't fast enough. In an instant, the oonagi would be on him. He was right. The creature opened its jaws wide to scoop Aang up. At the last second, Aang raised his hand and a jet of water flew up unto the fish – and froze instantly.
Inside its block of ice, the oonagi blinked dumbly.
Aang reached the shore of the lake and collapsed unto his back, panting, gently holding the egg in his hand. He raised his other hand, and the ice block instantly melted. The oonagi, now unable to get to him, made several roaring noises. I'll get you, Aang knew it was telling him. The giant sea-serpent turned around and drifted back into the lake, disappearing, once again, under the depths.
Aang looked at the egg in his hand. All that for this stupid thing. "You're lucky you're cute!"
***
Again took great care of the stupid egg for the rest of the day, watching it every waking second. He sat at a table in the kitchen, the egg on the table in front of him. He was bored out of his mind, but to him, it was worth it. Plus, it was already evening. Just an hour or two more, and I'll prove to myself and Katara that I'll be a good father.
Uh-oh. Aang held his stomach. Bathroom time. As he hurried to relieve himself, he wondered whether he should bring the egg or not. He didn't like the idea of those creepy painted eyes watching him. I'll only be gone for a minute. Besides, it managed to survive an oonagi attack. What's the worst that could happen?
And with that, he hurried off to the restroom.
***
After relieving himself, Aang returned to the kitchen to notice a delicious aroma wafting into his nose. Sokka was frying something in a skillet. "Hey Aang," he called. "You're just in time for a pre-dinner snack."
"Whatever it is, it smells really good," Aang commented.
"Oh, it will be. And I'm just about done."
"Mmmm," Aang remarked about the smell. "What're you making?"
His eyes fell on the table … and the empty spot where his egg, not even two minutes ago, had been. He felt a sinking feeling in his stomach as Sokka placed the skillet right under his face.
"Want some egg," he asked with a large smile.
Aang felt some tears well up in his eyes.
***
Katara came into her bedroom to prepare for dinner, when she saw Aang sitting at a desk, his head buried in his arms. She went over to him and rubbed his back. "Are you okay?"
"I'm a failure. I'm going to be a horrible father."
"Aang, what're you talking about."
He looked up with a distressed face. "You're pregnant, Katara."
"Yea, I know," she said.
"You know?" He was astonished.
"I've known for about two weeks now. I'm actually pretty surprised it took you this long to catch on."
He didn't say anything – just nodded his head.
"Listen," he finally said. "Last night … I've been having nightmares. I'm worried. I don't know if I can handle raising a kid."
Katara bit her lip. "I know. I feel the same way Aang."
"Y-you do?"
"Yup."
"So what do we do? What if we're not good parents? What if … what if I screw something up?"
"Well, Aang, we'll be fine."
"What makes you so sure?"
She waved her arm around her. "Well, for one thing, we're surrounded by people that love us. I'm pretty sure Sokka would never allow us to mess his nephew up. Plus, we have dad, and Gran-Gran. And, Toph and Zuko'll visit us. We won't be alone in this, Aang."
"Okay," he replied. "But, what if there's something wrong with the kid to begin with? What if he's … deformed."
"Then we'll love him all the same."
"Even if you give birth to manbearpig?"
Katara laughed at his silliness. "Even if it's manbearpig."
The two stood up and embraced each other in a deep kiss.
Aang went to bed that night, knowing he wouldn't have another nightmare about his baby.
But that didn't mean he wouldn't have another nightmare that night.
***
Katara was standing there, with a water whip, preparing to unleash it on her opponent. The person she was fighting was apparently Water Tribe – though he had never seen anything like her. The woman was mad, cackling insanely as they fought.
The woman blasted a water jet at Katara, knocking her off balance. As Katara staggered to her feet, the Water Tribe woman suddenly gripped her by the throat and began strangling her.
"Aang …" she gasped. "Help me!"
And then the scene went black.
***
Aang awoke in a sweat. He rubbed his eyes and looked over. There was Katara in bed next to him, sleeping peacefully. Aang rolled over and pulled the sheets over his head. Within a few minutes he was asleep again.
When he awoke the next morning, he wouldn't even remember the dream.
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