Greetings, this could be my last chapter for a God awful long time. You see, I'm joining the Marine Corps and am shipping off to basic training in late July. I figured I might as well post at least one more time before I go :D do enjoy this!
O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o
Aang was pacing in the Earth Kings meeting room while looking down at the several newspaper clippings in front of him.
"BODY OF WOMAN FOUND DUMPED"
"BLUE EYED TEEN GIRL MISSING"
"BRUNETTE WOMAN'S BODY SHOWS UP IN RIVER"
"ANOTHER BODY FOUND"
"SERIAL KILLER STILL UN-FOUND"
Aangs eye's were glassy as he grazed over the words, "-Victim was found naked-" "-Doctors who reviewed the bodies say they were all sexually assaulted-" "-Killer lures in victims with charm-" "-A warning is being issued to all young women with blue eyes and dark hair-"
"AANG!" Sokka's voice shouted from beyond the doors. Aang let him in and Sokka holds up a newspaper in his hand.
"No, not another one."
"This one's the worst, Aang. You have no idea, sit down."
Aang sighed deeply and took the paper from Sokka.
"KILLING THOUGHT TO BE LINKED TO BLUE EYED BEAUTY MURDERER"
"A few days ago, a young baby girl was stolen from her crib late in the night in the Northern Earth Kingdom. The child had just turned one the month before. Parents awoke the next morning to find their child missing and immediately reported to authorities. Their child was not missing for long. The body of the small child was found caught on some rocks in a nearby river. Doctors say she was drowned. Authorities think this murder is one done by the 'Blue Eyed Beauty' serial killer. The child had long curly brown hair and deep blue eyes. Parents are extremely upset and-"
Aang had to stop reading. He set the paper down and slowly put his hands to his face. "Sokka, It's him. Not only has he killed all of these women, he's killed an innocent child. He's growing stronger, he's confident. It's only a matter of time before he comes after them."
"Don't worry about it Aang. Katara and Autumn are safe here. They are constantly guarded, there's no way he could get to them."
"It doesn't matter. He can find a way, and he's not afraid to kill a child. This poor girl, this poor family. We have to step up our efforts Sokka."
"That's why we're here, We'll have this meeting and get Jets face out there again. We'll find him, and he will pay for his crimes."
Aang breathed deeply, he took the paper and pointed it at Sokka. "Make sure Katara doesn't hear about this. I don't want her worrying more, and if I know her, this will send her into a fit of hysterics."
"I know."
15 minutes later and Aang was speaking to the earth king, several councilmen, the head officers in the police force, and a sketch artist.
"The Blue Eye Beauty murderer is a man named Jet and he is a crafty individual. He's smooth and can easily lure in these girls with his charm and good looks. He is very unstable though and doesn't handle rejection well. His parents were killed by firebenders when he was young and so he grew up without supervision and does just about whatever he pleases regardless of possible consequences. He should be considered very dangerous and will do whatever it takes to achieve what he wants. He nearly killed an entire village of innocent people years ago, just to wipe out the fire nation troops there.
"I don't understand, Avatar Aang. How do you know so much about this criminal?" asked one of the police officers.
"... Because, well, as you all know, Katara has long dark brown hair and blue eyes. A while ago, Katara was kidnapped by Jet. He loves her, but he's insane. So when she rejected him, he went completely ballistic. He- well, please keep this to yourselves, he raped Katara during a Lunar eclipse, and he believed Autumn to be the child of that rape. Once it was out that she was an airbender, and my child, his insanity tripled, leading to the stream of murders that are happening. We believe he won't stop until he finds my daughter, and kills her. He believes if he removes Autumn, then Katara and I will cease to be together and he can move in and take Katara once more. That wouldn't happen though, and he would then switch to killing us instead. We believe that he's loving these girls as if they're Katara and then they're saying something to set him off, a kill word or phrase. This sets him into kill mode and he rampages."
Everyone in the room was silent and all that could be heard was the clink of writing brushes against the ink basins. One of the councilmen looked up and briefly made eye contact with the Avatar and quickly looked away because of the betrayal, anger, and sadness that resided there.
Aang answered some questions and he and Sokka sat down with the sketch artist. The prints were to be placed in every city in the earth kingdom. Yet still Aang worried.
As they walked back to their quarters Sokka tried to calm him, "Hey, don't worry so much. Jet is going to be just as wanted in the earth kingdom as you were in the firenation, just a few years ago."
"Yea, and I still got around with ease and snuck into highly guarded facilities and no one knew the better. Jet can do the same. All he needs is a disguise and a new name. Something very easy to do. What if he cuts his hair? Gets brand new clothes? He can go a while, continue killing innocent people until he's confident enough to come here and go after Katara and Autumn."
... "Everything will be fine, I know it. These aren't just any guards protecting them."Sokka smiled as they rounded a corner. "These are extremely gorgeous ladies." he purred as he eyed Suki standing outside of a small door with a lock.
"And they are here to work now." Aang said before Sokka could run up to them. "She and 2 more are mine until the sun comes up. Then they'll switch out." He bid Sokka good night and took the key necklace off from around his neck. He insert it into the lock after knocking 4 times and turned.
"Hi Autumn!" He nearly shouted as he saw her lying on the bed with Katara. He carefully crept up next to her and captured her attention by crossing his eyes and clicking his tongue at her.
"How was it?" asked a nervous Katara.
"Things should get done around here now. We'll have his profile and picture posted in every city in several places with a substantial reward put up by not only ourselves and the Earth king, but from the families of the murdered girls as well. We'll find him, dead or alive, we will find him."
Katara smiled and the three snuggled together on the bed before changing for bed.
O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o
He quietly walked down the street, no one would even notice he was there. No one ever did except for who he wanted.
There she was, standing by the back door staring into the night. Waiting for him.
"Oh, Saru, it's just you."
"It's just me." He repeated back with a smile.
A devilish look flashed across her blue eyes and she said, "I'm ready for that wild night you promised." she cocked her hip to the side with her hands resting on her waist line.
"Are you sure? It is going to be one crazy night."
She rolled her eyes and took his arm.
He had been talking with her for about 4 days now, during the night when her father passed out from boozing too much. She loved the way he didn't yell and how he didn't tease or goad at her. He led her deep into the forest until they came to a clearing with a blanket laid out and a basket on top. He pulled out candles and lit them. Fire flies twinkled from all sides and she played with them while he quietly prepared the food.
"So, Rein, how long have you lived here in Sai Tao?"
"All of my life, my father was born here too, but my mother moved here from Lui city not too far from here. She really liked it though before she died." She said after he handed her a plate.
"I'm so sorry. It does seem like a nice little town. A place where one would settle down and start a family and live a peaceful, quiet life."
"I know, that's why I don't ever really want to leave. I can't wait to get married and have children of my own. My dad think I'm never going to leave, I am turning 18 in just a few months."
"So you do want kids? Any preference?"
"A little boy would be nice. I'd name him Tin, and I would teach him to be a kind and gentle boy so that he could have a lot of friends and meet a nice girl and-"
"I really want a girl. Boys are OK, but, there's just something about a little girl. One with big blue eyes and dark, curly hair, yea, that's perfect."
"Yea, I suppose. It really doesn't matter, I mean, I don't get to choose anyway."
They ate in silence for the rest of the meal.
Afterwards Jet spread the blanket out a bit more and folded the top over so they could rest their heads on it while they gazed upward at the stars.
Jet turned and looked at her and watched Rein's eyes flutter as she grew tired, "Hey, don't fall asleep." He said with a smile.
"I'm not. It's just so beautiful that i wanted to close my eyes to imagine it better."
He laughed, "Liar. It is very very beautiful though."
She looked at him and saw that he was staring at her. She wanted to look away but his eyes held her there and she slowly sat up while keeping his gaze locked onto her eyes. He reached in and put his hand behind her head, wrapping her hair in his fingers, and gently pulled her face into his. The kiss was short, a few seconds, and he pulled back and hovered 3 inches away.
He waited, watching her eyes move under her eye lids as she thought about what she wanted to do. She looked up and flashed her blue eyes at him and he bit his tongue to keep himself from going forward. She then pressed her lips against his, pushing him back onto to blanket and rolling herself on top of him.
He smiled and let his hands sit at her waist, holding her there. He knew this would get her angry, she may not want to go all the way, but if he gave her next to nothing, he would force her hand.
It worked. She growled and sat up so that she straddled him. She unclipped her dress at the back of her neck and quickly pulled the ribbon at the bottom free. She put her lips to his again but put his hands on her back with the lace ribbon in hand, motioning for him to unlace it from her and take it off.
He did so and ever so slowly grabbed the hem of the skirt and pulled it up and off. She shivered, so he reached next to him and pulled the other end of the blanket across her back. Now she would feel safer and warm with him.
He wasn't mean, he didn't yell. He didn't shout at her and tell her that she was the spitting image of the woman he loved, though he did think it.
She pulled off the thick strip of fabric around her breasts and put his hand on one. She bent her head down to his ear and whispered, "Touch me."
Jets face lit up as he received his permission.
O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o
Rein was snuggled up against Jet, lightly snoozing. All of her clothing was strewn around the blanket they were wrapped in, along with Jets.
He kissed her forehead and wrapped his arm tighter around her back. She sighed and turned slightly so that she was facing upwards. He moved his arm up to behind her neck so that it wasn't being crushed completely by her back.
He snapped his fingers and she did not respond. He smiled and whispered, "How was it? Wonderful? Everything I told you it would be? See, aren't you sad you waited this long?" He reached up and pet Rein's hair. "Aren't you happy you're with me?"
She mumbled something in her sleep and he paused trying to decipher it.
"Say that again?" He prodded.
Among a string of unintelligible words he caught, "... Boy... Trying to... Say that I... You're... I love you..."
Jet's face lit up.
"I"
He slowly lifted his lower arm she was laying on and set it across her neck.
"Love"
He grabbed the bicep of his other arm and turned so that she was not disturbed.
"You"
He cracked his knuckles.
"Too"
He wrapped his feet around her legs in a sudden movement that caused her to wake. He squeezed his arm as hard as he could and she gasped out, pulling at his hands, tears streaming down her face. She clawed at his face and managed to cut a huge gash stretching across his nose to his ear lobe. Jet squeezed harder and rolled so that her face was in the blanket and her choking gasps were muffled.
"Katara."
Finally her gasping stopped. Jet held on. He smelled her hair and wiped his salty eyes in it while he continued to choke. He waited until the pulse he felt in his arms stopped. He let go and rolled onto his back.
He let out a short sob, but stopped there. He pulled her feet and dragged her about 30 feet away to a huge ditch he had dug. He stopped to open her eyes and pulled out a knife which he used to cut out a lock of her hair. He tied a ribbon around it and put it in a bag sitting next to the deep hole. He wrapped Rein's body up in the blanket and lowered it down. He started to cover it with dirt and had her waist covered when he thought he heard something.
It sounded like Rabbit hounds barking in the distance.
Quickly he jumped up and grabbed his bag. He flung the shovel down into the hole and it clanged loudly as it impacted with Reins skull. He charged off into the woods, pulling out his new hooked swords as he ran. He leapt up and caught a hold of a tree branch and swung upward into the tree tops. He continued to swing until he thought his arms would give out. Then he finally stopped at a thick branch and laid down. He couldn't hear the Rabbit hounds barking any more, but he knew he had to keep moving. If he would have buried her completely, then he could have gone to a neighboring town. Teen Girls disappear all the time, especially ones whose fathers drink daily. But now she would be found and everyone nearby would know.
After a short nap, he continued his journey towards the ocean, it would take him two days to get there and another week at least to relocate, he had a new destination, they were after him now.
O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o
It didn't take long for the news to reach the Avatar. Another body. Another young woman dead. Another person whom he let die.
For a while things were quiet after that. The Kyoshi warriors guarded their door and surrounding area's along with reformed dai li agents. In their locked, metal room they had a bed, an unused cradle, an conjoined bathroom, a huge mirror mounted on the opposing wall, along with many vases filled with water. Aang also placed several very large bricks of earth around the room. If Jet came, he would have allot to go through.
The confinement was slowly driving them insane. Aang was always allowed to go out whenever he wanted because he didn't let Katara come. You had to be an earthbender just to get through the door. He walked through 3 feet of a solid earth door just to reach the metal door on the other side. When he let Katara and Autumn come out, he simply bent the door open as one would open a normal door.
Katara called Suki in and she was let in by a dai li agent just beyond the earth door.
"I want out."
"I know."
"Can you please help me convince Aang that we need to go out, just for a little while. With him of course, but, Autumn is getting so fussy. She just doesn't understand. She's an airbender, she needs fresh air and open spaces. This will ruin her."
"I can, He should be back soon. I will call up my girls and we will escort you all to the roof of the palace if he allows it."
Katara knew Suki would let her come out if she could. But no one was getting through that door unless they were herself or her girls or if they were the Avatar himself. Anyone else needed special permission from Aang and he had to accompany them as they went in.
O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o
Katara hurried to tie Autumns bonnet as Aang stood behind them waiting to open the door.
"Thank you Aang, it's been a week since we were out, thank you." She hugged him while Autumn cooed from her hip.
"I know, I'm sorry that we live like this right now. It shouldn't be long before Jet is found and we can stop this. We can live out in the middle of the ocean if you want." he laughed before giving her a kiss and taking Autumn from her. "Hey baby" He said touching his nose to hers.
When outside, Katara ran the length of the palace roof. She did a cartwheel and a flip and Aang asked Ti lee to hold Autumn a moment so he could join her. He danced with her, no music, just dancing. He tossed her up into the air and caught her so gently that she barely felt his arms around her.
Autumn clucked and giggled happily from the side and blew small gusts of air out at them.
Katara and Aang started coming back towards them and Autumn sneezed, She flew up and out of Tylee's grasp and into the air. Katara gasped but before she could even speak, Aang had leapt up and caught her and was nervously laughing at her.
"Careful baby, you'll fall off the roof. Though daddy would never let that happen to you."
Katara ran up and took her daughter. It was always a hard thing to deal with, her being an airbender, but never something she would exchange.
"How old is she?" Asked Tylee, eager to avoid being punished for lack of a firm grip.
"She'll be six months old in a few days. That reminds me-"
"Aang!" shouted Sokka running up, on either side of him a dai li agent.
"He's OK." Aang said to them and they went back to their posts. "Yes Sokka?"
"First things first." He held out his arms towards Katara and she handed Autumn to him. "Who's a cutie patootie? Who is? You are! You're a cutie patootie little Autumn!" Suki giggled from behind them before covering it up with a cough.
"Ok Sokka, why are you here." Aang laughed. Sokka handed Autumn back and reached in his pocket.
Before Aang could stop Sokka from pulling out the paper, Katara said, "What's that?"
"Um, it's a newspaper clipping."
Aang gave Sokka a stern look and said, "It's nothing sweetie. Keep playing with Autumn."
Katara rolled her eyes and took the paper from Sokka. Aang made a motion to take it from her but she held it away and said, "Excuse me, Aang. But when was my freedom of what I'm allowed to read also taken away?"
Aang winced at her words, "I just don't want you to worry."
Katara handed him Autumn and read the clipping,
"MURDER UNSURE IF CONNECTED WITH BLUE EYE BEAUTY KILLER, JET"
"Early yesterday morning a body of a young woman was found in the cargo hold of a ship transporting ice from the North pole. The girl was attempting to go to the South pole to help re-colonize it, since she had just mastered her previously hidden talent of waterbending."
Katara stopped. Her jaw dropped and she shouted, "We can't wait here anymore!"
"What? Why?"
"Another girl is dead. We're going after him, I can't stay locked up knowing that he's out there! We have to find him, NOW!"
"Katara there's no way he can get to you, he wouldn't stand a chance even if he somehow-"
"This one was a waterbender!"
"What?" Aang chimed back.
"She was a master waterbender! Just like me! and he killed her! 'killed by a special hook ended sword that punctured either side of her neck.' Do you hear that? Do you want that to happen to me? Do you want that to happen to our daughter?"
"Katara! Of course not, I can't even imagine it! But us going after him will just open us up and make us more vulnerable! We have to stay here! "
"No Aang, we can't! The longer we wait, the stronger he gets, the more confident he gets! He took out a master waterbender and got away with it. He's killed many, and do you think he'll stop? No, and he wont get caught unless we go after him."
"I have an idea-" Sokka chimed
"WHAT?" they both screamed at him.
"Oh, well, what if we set up a huge event something he would have to come to. And then using secret Dai li and Suki and the others, along with Toph and her awesome seeing abilities, we could get him. We don't have to go to him, we just need to bring him to us."
"yea! If Autumn and I are there and out, then he'll have to come. He'll be driven to."
"Like a moth to the flame"
"You mean bait out Katara and my daughter, I don't think so."
"Aang, you listen. I have been locked up for weeks in that prison of a room while Jet ran around killing the innocent. We are either going through with Sokka's brilliant plan or I am going after Jet myself without you. I will not stand idly by anymore!"
"Katara..." He shook his head and held his daughter in close. He turned and paced in a circle slowly.
"Aang, please." Katara said stepping in front of him.
"... Alright. We can do it."
"Yes! Thank you!" She hugged him and Autumn whined to have attention too and she kissed her nose. "Hear that Autumn? We're going to catch the bad guy!"
Aang sighed and said, "and how are we supposed to even do that?"
Katara thought about it the entire walk back down to the room. She and Aang got ready for bed in silence while her wheels and gears turned over it. She was still thinking when Aang gasped out
"Our wedding! That's what will bring him in! Our wedding! He'd stop at nothing to come!"
"That's brilliant! He'll come to try and break the whole thing up and we'll get him then!"
"And then we can finally be married. He'll be locked up and we can be married worry free."
"It's perfect!" She threw herself at him kissing savagely. "We're finally going to be married." She said between kisses. She managed to back him up to the bed but before she could push him onto it Autumn shouted for attention, shaking her tiny fists and squealing loudly.
Aang bit his lip and said, "and then Autumn can have her own room."
"She has a crib." Katara said slyly.
"Katara, I don't think so. We'll have the wedding soon and then the fun can begin."
"Promise?"
"Do you honestly think I would change my mind?" He said grabbing her by her rear and pulling her tightly against him.
"I suppose not."She kissed his neck and he kissed the top of her head.
O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o
TaDa! So that is it for now, I can make no promises on when the next chapter will be posted. Thank you's to the few that review.
