Chapter 10: The Avatar
Hey guys! I'm glad that you guys enjoyed this story so much, and I'm happy that I can bring it to a hopefully good ending with this chapter. I really enjoyed writing it and I'm looking forward to finishing up this and A Pirate's Love to get onto my next idea. Anyway, thank you guys for keeping up with my stories and all the support, and I hope you all have a great day!
Quick responses to reviews:
Anak007: Wow, I'm happy that you've really enjoyed it. I'm sorry that I have to bring it to a close, but hopefully you'll come to enjoy the next story I have in mind.
TheRaccoon13: Yeah, it might have been a little dumb, but the way I figured, her pride and her confidence in her abilities would allow her to think that she could handle whatever was waiting for her. That's what I was thinking, anyway. And thanks, it's pretty much what I think would have happened if the Avatar series kept going. Republic city would be the start until all of the nations were no longer divided. At least, that's my theory, anyway.
Kataangforever: Absolutely.
.avon.: I agree. In a lot of stories, people seem to forget that Katara is more than capable of getting herself out of situations like that, and I personally try my best to reflect that in my stories.
Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender.
Ozai had never felt fear before. Well, there had been one time where he had almost died in a car accident when his lousy driver couldn't seem to avoid an oncoming car, but other than that, he never had been fearful before. It simply wasn't in his nature. He had been raised from birth to be strong and confident, just as all the previous Fire Lords had been back when the world wasn't so closely woven as it was now. There used to be a time when the people were separated by what element they bended or where they came from, but that was not the case now.
Ever since he had read a surviving scroll from one of his ancestors, he had made it his mission to bring the world back to the way it should be. The Fire Nation had always been the strongest of the nations back then, and they would be once again as he brought it back to the world. It would dominate the rest of the world, and once he had conquered every last inch of the world, he would be satisfied and rule it for the rest of his life.
Due to this life mission of his, he had made it a point to never let fear get to him, as showing fear was a sign of weakness; something that he was not. But, as he stared into the pure white eyes that were filled with rage, he just couldn't help but feel a wave of fear roll over him as he saw that he had truly made the worst mistake of his life.
He wasn't sure what to do at this point, however. The girl he was holding captive was his only real leverage, so if he let her go, the Avatar would have nothing to hold himself back from defeating him. On the other hand, however, if he didn't let her go, the Avatar would likely only get angrier, and possibly end him before he could even make a decision.
Neither of these options sounded better than the other to him, and while he tried to decide what to do, he was saved from having to make the decision as the Avatar finally stopped waiting and blew a strong gust of wind at him, making him yell in surprise as he was blown back into his throne.
Of course, Katara didn't have to worry about being hurt, as Aang launched himself to catch her before she could even be scratched. Once he was sure that she was alright, he set her down on the ground and returned his attention to Ozai, a snarl on his face that only made the self-appointed Fire Lord more scared than he had been before.
Despite the killer headache he felt from getting smacked against his throne, Ozai knew that if he didn't move, he would die. Knowing this, he jumped up from his throne and shot some fire back at the Avatar, hoping to catch him off guard with a barrage of attacks that he wouldn't be expecting.
To his great annoyance, however, the Avatar was completely prepared for this. Every blast of fire sent at him was broken as he summoned a ball of air around himself and rose into the air, making Ozai's eyes widen in fear as he saw him start gathering the other elements around him until he was surrounded by a cyclone of the elements.
Seeing that he was not going to win, Ozai immediately started running away, shooting blasts of lightning over his shoulder in the hopes of stopping his pursuer. It did not work, as the Avatar either dodged or sent back every bolt sent at him, only serving to increase his fear as he did everything in his power to survive.
There was a problem with their fight, however. Between the blasts of lightning being thrown at each other and Aang's elemental cyclone surrounding him, the building was becoming heavily damaged, so much so that parts of the building started shaking.
Katara, who was currently watching the fight with awe as she saw her boyfriend chase her captor across the room, seemed to notice that the building's integrity was failing and thought about what to do. At the rate those two were going, it wouldn't be long before the whole building came down, and she wanted to make sure that everyone, enemies included, got out alive.
Normally, she would be more worried about Aang, but she could tell from the look of things that he had it under control. Besides, if he needed her help, she was right there when he needed her.
Instead, she decided to focus her efforts on how to get these people out of there. Though, as she looked around the room at the guards she had frozen, she couldn't help but feel a bit hopeless. There was no way that she would be able to get everyone out before the building collapsed on her own.
Luckily for her, she didn't have to keep thinking about it for long, as a group of people came rushing into the building. She wasn't sure if they were enemies or friends until she recognized a familiar face in the crowd. One that she had seen many times when she had gone to visit her Gran Gran.
"Pakku!" she said excitedly as she ran over to give him a hug, making him chuckle as he hugged her back before letting go, a serious look coming over his face as the room shook from the angry Avatar's rampage.
"It's nice to see you too, Katara, but maybe we should save the talking for when we all get out of here?" Pakku replied with a raised brow, making Katara laugh sheepishly as she saw that he was right.
"Right. But what are you doing here? And who are all these people?" she couldn't help but ask as she looked around the room at all of the people who wore matching clothes to his.
"Later, Katara," he told her sternly, his eyes widening as the building shook again. "We need to get everyone out before the building caves in."
Knowing that he was once again right, she put aside her questions and forced herself to focus, knowing that there were lives at stake. "Okay. So what should we do?"
"With the help of my friends, we'll cart them all out of here and make sure they're safe. After that, we'll come back in here and see if we can't help Aang." He paused and looked up at the ceiling, a small chuckle escaping his lips as he saw Aang kick his enemy back into the far wall. "Though I don't think he really needs it."
Looking up at her boyfriend, she couldn't hold back the beginnings of a smile. "No, I don't think he does," she finally murmured back, making Pakku grin knowingly as he saw her continue watching the Avatar.
With another rumble of the building, the two snapped out of it and shared a nod of agreement, knowing that there was work to be done. But as they started helping the others bring their frozen enemies back out, Katara couldn't help but be worried for Aang. Not that he couldn't handle himself, as he clearly could, but she still couldn't help but be a little worried.
Despite her worry, she knew that the sooner that she helped get everyone out of there, the sooner she could go back in to help him. Feeling reassured by this thought, she turned around and forced herself to focus on the task at hand, not allowing herself to worry about Aang until she was done with her task.
Fortunately for her, she was right not to worry about it, as Aang had things more than under control. Ozai was completely on the run at this point, occasionally hurling back lightning bolts when he could, but it was clear that it was a game of cat and mouse.
This was rather humiliating and degrading to him, as he took great pride in being strong while others were weak, but it was here that he was the weak one. If only his daughter hadn't allowed herself to be so easily caught. She would have been able to help him, but he could see that they were already carting her out of the building.
He knew that he couldn't keep this up forever, but he wasn't quite so ready to give up yet, either. If he was lucky, the Avatar would spare him and he would go to jail for the rest of his life. If he was not lucky, the Avatar would kill him before he could even blink. As much as he didn't want to admit it, he was surprised that he was still alive. Pure luck was the only reason that he hadn't been taken down yet; something that he knew to be true as he barely managed to dodge the Avatar's constant attacks.
His luck wouldn't last forever, he knew, and as much as he wished that he could do something about it, he couldn't. Every attack he sent at the quite enraged Avatar was either dodged or sent back at him, meaning that trying to attack him head on would be useless.
As he was thinking while running away from his pursuer, he didn't notice the long elemental tendril that was reaching out for him, making him gasp in surprise as it took a hold of his leg and started dragging him backwards. Before he could even register what was happening, it flipped him over the Avatar's cyclone and slammed him into the ground, making him groan as he barely managed to get himself up in time to see his enemy come floating down.
Before he could do anything else, the young Avatar quickly bound him in Earth restraints, ensuring that he wouldn't be going anywhere. Ozai tried to get out of his earthen shackles, but all his efforts were in vain as he watched the Avatar come floating up to him.
Watching helplessly as the Avatar came drifting closer to him, he closed his eyes and prepared himself for the worst, only to become surprised as he felt a hand placed on his shoulder and a hand on his head. Becoming confused and not sure what was going on, he tried one more time to free himself, but did not succeed as the Avatar took a deep breath and let it go, feeling the energy from the insane firebender flow into him as he removed his powers.
Once he had finished the process, the earth restraints holding his enemy went back into the ground, allowing the now drained man to fall to the ground without any cushion to ease the fall.
"What… What did you do to me?" Ozai growled as he looked up at his enemy, unable to move the rest of his body as he tried not to look as tired as he felt.
"I took your bending away," Aang told him solemnly, feeling sorry that he had been forced to use this technique at all, but knowing that he had been left with little choice. "You won't hurt anyone ever again."
Ozai attempted to get up once more, but his tired body just collapsed back to the ground, making him groan as his face smacked into the hard floor. If Aang didn't feel bad for the man, he might have laughed, but all he felt was pity as he saw the once strong man look at his lowest. Even if he had ordered his girlfriend to be kidnapped to use against him.
"Aang!" a familiar voice snapped him out of his thoughts as he turned around to see none other than his lovely girlfriend come walking back into the room. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine," he assured her as he started walking up to her, wanting to pull her into his arms and never let go, but the building shaking once again made them both stop in their tracks. "This building is on its last legs. We need to go."
"Don't worry, we got everyone out. We just need to get out of here, too," Katara told him quickly as she looked down at their defeated enemy, taking on a look of disgust as she saw the man drool a little, only to be interrupted again by another shaking of the building. "Come on! This place isn't going to last much longer."
Nodding his agreement, Aang quickly stooped down and threw Ozai over his shoulder, running out right behind Katara as the room around them finally began caving in. Fortunately for them, they managed to get out right as the ceiling fell down to the ground, running with all of their strength through the lobby area and to the entryway where their allies waited for them.
They supposed that it couldn't just be that easy, however, as pieces of the ceiling started falling down in their pathway to the entrance, making things more difficult for them to get through to it. Thankfully, with some quick airbending movements from Aang, they managed to get through the quickly falling debris and dove out of the building just as the rest of it came crashing down, letting out a sigh of relief as they saw that they were alright.
Though it hadn't been easy, and though they certainly weren't happy that they had nearly been crushed to death by the now destroyed building, they were thankful that they had made it out of there alive. Especially now that they could actually see each other.
Looking at each other, the two did the first thing that their hearts told them to do and walked over to each other, pulling each other into a tight hug as they enjoyed having the one they loved close. Neither of them had been sure if any of them would make it out of that, but they were glad that the fight was over and that they had all made it out safely.
"I'm so glad that you're okay," Aang murmured to her as he put his nose in her hair, being intoxicated by the usual sea breeze smell that usually was there, even if it had been mixed with the smell of soot. "I was worried that they would do something to you."
"They didn't," she assured him, smirking a little as she thought back to how she had managed to escape. "Though they were kind of enough to put me next to a water fountain. I should thank them for being so kind."
Aang chuckled as he heard this, finding himself amazed that he had such a beautiful and strong girlfriend to call his. "I'll have to thank them as well." He couldn't help but frown a little as he thought of something. "I'm sorry that they took you, Katara. It's my fault that they got you involved in my world."
"Aang, the day that you told me that you were the Avatar, I knew what I was getting into," Katara pulled away from the hug and looked him in the eyes. "I knew what could happen, and I was okay with it. No matter what happens, I'm going to be here with you as long as you want me to be."
Unable to hold back a smile from hearing this, Aang leaned forward and cupped her cheeks in his hands, giving her a tender kiss that made her smile as she looked up at him. "I love you," he whispered to her, making her smile grow as she kissed him.
"I love you, too," she murmured against his lips, making him smile as well as he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her closer, barely noticing as her arms went around his neck and pulled him closer as well. They both couldn't help but let out a relieved sigh as they kissed, feeling better knowing that they were both alive and that they were no longer in danger.
Unfortunately for them, however, the sound of someone clearing their throat made them both freeze as they remembered that they weren't the only ones out there. Reluctantly pulling away from each other, they turned to see Pakku and the others standing not far away from them, making them both smile sheepishly as they realized that they had probably seen the whole love scene.
"Well, don't you two look comfortable," Pakku teased, making Katara roll her eyes with a small smile as he turned to look at Aang. "I'm glad that you both made it out safely."
"Yeah, I'm glad too," Aang agreed with a laugh, looking past his waterbending mentor as an idea came to mind. Taking Katara's hand in his, he brought her over to the rest of the group of older men, stopping in front of his air bending mentor and Guardian. "Katara, since we're here, I'd like to introduce you to my Guardian, Gyatso."
"It's very nice to meet you, Miss Katara," Gyatso bowed in respect to her. "Aang has told me much about you."
"He has, has he?" she couldn't help but grin at the young airbender, making him laugh sheepishly as he rubbed his neck in that same adorable way that she had adored since she first met him.
"Yes, he has. And I have to say, from what he has told me of you, I do not think I could have picked a better girl for him," Gyatso told her, making her smile at him.
"Thank you, Gyatso."
Before anyone else could say anything, Iroh walked up to him and patted Aang on the back. "You have done well, Aang. I see your training was worthwhile."
"I guess it was," Aang chuckled as he thought about it, his smile dropping a little as he looked down to the man that he had defeated. "But who is this guy? Why did he mess with me?"
"I believe that I can answer that," Iroh regretfully told him as he looked down at his brother, shaking his head in disgust as he saw him try and fail to crawl away. "This is my younger brother, Ozai. You see, we are descended from the past Fire Nation rulers who wished to rule the world, but failed to do so because of one of your predecessors. Ever since my brother found out that we were descended from the royal family, he has made it his mission to finish what our ancestors started. I have not seen him in many years."
Walking over to him, he stood in front of the weak shell of a man that he called brother and stooped down to look at him, a sad look on his face as he did so. "Look what you have wrought, Ozai. Was all of this chaos worth it?"
"Do not speak to me, weakling!" Ozai snarled as he attempted to shoot some flames at him, even though he already knew that he couldn't anymore. "You always were too soft. If you had joined me, you could have been my second. You were just too weak."
"And yet it is you who will spend the rest of your life in prison," Iroh told him sadly, shaking his head once more before taking a deep breath and standing up and walking over to his brethren as some other members started dragging Ozai away.
Deciding that Iroh had already talked about this enough, Katara couldn't help but turn back to Pakku as she finally decided to ask the questions that were on her mind. "Okay, Pakku. Who are all these people?"
"We are the Order of the White Lotus," Gyatso spoke up for him as he stepped forward. "We are the secret guardians of the world who work to ensure there is peace. Not only do we ensure that there are no wars between any nation, we are responsible for training the Avatar and making sure that they have all the skills and knowledge they need to be able to keep the peace."
"Yes, thank you for explaining that so well, Gyatso," Pakku dryly remarked, watching as Gyatso just laughed off his friend's sarcasm before turning back to Katara. "He is correct. The Order of the White Lotus has been around for centuries, and to this day does everything it can to keep the world at peace."
Katara couldn't help but laugh a little as she took all this information, finding that she was surprised to find that two of the people she loved were integral to the world's peace. "Wow, I never would have thought that my boyfriend and my step-grandfather would have been so important to the world."
"And I never thought that my step-granddaughter would end up besting me in waterbending, but here we are," Pakku grinned at her, making her grin back at him with amusement dancing in their eyes as they remembered back to the day that Katara had officially became a master. "Now, if you'll excuse us, we have many people to check into prison. You both be careful, now."
"We will, Pakku," Katara assured him as she gave him another hug, not noticing as Aang gave Gyatso a hug goodbye as well before watching the Order members walk away with their prisoners in tow.
Aang, seeing that Katara looked tired, walked up to her and took her hand. "Come on, let's go home. It looks like you might need a nap," he joked, making her laugh as she smiled at him.
"Okay." And with that, the couple started the long walk to Aang's car, both feeling as if they could sleep for a week and still not have enough rest as they went back home.
A couple months later, the couple found themselves at Sokka and Yue wedding, which was currently making Katara happy that she was about to have a sister, but also a bit weirded out that her brother was going to be marrying her best friend. But, as much as her brother got to her sometimes, she couldn't deny that the two loved each other a lot and was happy for them.
With her being the bridesmaid and, after Aang quickly became Sokka's closest friend since the kidnapping, he had been chosen as Sokka's best man. The only problem with this was that the two wanted to be together to watch the ceremony, but they supposed that they could wait until after to celebrate their friends together.
"Do you, Sokka" the minister began as he looked at Sokka who had tears in his eyes. "Take Yue, to have and to hold, for richer or for poorer, for better or worse, in sickness and in health, until death do you part?"
"I do," Sokka said with a wide smile on his face, making Yue tear up more as the minister then turned to her.
"And do you-"
"I do!" she exclaimed before kissing Sokka, making the minister chuckle as he gestured to the newlyweds.
"Well then, may I present to you Mr. and Mrs. Sokka Aqua!" The people in the crowd cheered for the young couple, eventually going up to the stage to personally congratulate them as Aang made his way over to Katara.
As he finally reached her through the mass of people, he took her hand in his and kissed her cheek, making her smile up at him as he said. "You know, I think you're the most beautiful bridesmaid I've ever seen."
"You're so cheesy," the young waterbender couldn't help but laugh as she leaned her head on his shoulder, feeling content as he put his head on hers and the two continued to watch the newlyweds do their best to keep up with all of the people talking to them.
"I know," he chuckled a little, making her smile as the vibrations from his laughter went through her. "But that's what you love about me, right?"
"Absolutely," she agreed with a small nod, making him smile as he looked down at her. Looking back to the newlyweds, an idea came to mind as he took in everything around him, his smile only growing as he leaned down to her ear.
"Want to go outside for some fresh air?" he murmured to her, making her shiver pleasantly as she felt his hot breath on her skin. Nodding again, she allowed him to lead the way out to the nearby balcony that overlooked the beautiful night sky. It was a bit odd that they had chosen to have their wedding at night, but Katara figured that it was because Sokka knew he wouldn't be able to get up before eleven, so she imagined that was the most likely reason why they had decided to get married then.
When they finally reached a good spot for them to enjoy the beautiful scene ahead of them, Aang turned to face the beautiful woman he called his girlfriend and smiled. "Have I ever told you how much I love you?"
"Sometimes," she teased, knowing that he said it all of the time, but knowing that he would find this amusing. "But I wouldn't mind hearing it more."
Taking her hands in his, he squeezed them gently and looked up into her eyes. "Katara, I love you more than I ever thought was possible. You're… everything to me." Pausing for a moment, his voice took on a bit of a nervous tone as he then said. "And with the wedding and seeing everyone so happy for them, it got me thinking."
"Thinking about what?" Katara asked cluelessly, clearly having no idea what was about to happen. Gasping as she saw Aang get down on one knee, she couldn't help but cover her mouth with her hands as tears started streaming down her face.
"I wasn't planning on doing this today," Aang admitted with a bit of a laugh as he looked up at her. "But ever since the day you got kidnapped, I realized that I don't want to live my life without you. So," digging into his pocket and producing a betrothal necklace, making even more tears stream down Katara's face as he presented it to her. "Katara Aqua, will you-"
Before he could even finish the sentence, Katara got down on her knees and threw her arms around his neck, crashing her lips into his as he responded and pulled her closer. Pausing in the kiss for a moment, she pulled ever so slightly away and smiled at him. "Yes, Aang. Of course I will."
Smiling even wider at this, Aang gave her another kiss before helping her get the necklace on, being in a bit of disbelief that such an amazing and beautiful woman would agree to marry him as he did so.
"Hey, are you guys trying to steal the attention from us?" Sokka called as he walked out to the balcony with Yue next to him, making the newly engaged couple blush as they realized that they had probably seen the entire thing.
"Congratulations, Katara!" Yue squealed excitedly as she walked over to give her friend a hug. "I'm so happy for you."
"I would say congratulations to you, but I don't think you'll like being married to my brother," Katara joked, making Sokka glare at her while Yue and Aang laughed, but she just waved off her brother's glare. "I'm just kidding, Sokka. I'm sure you guys will be very happy together."
Rolling his eyes, his eyes then brightened as he remembered something. "Oh! It's time for cake! Come on, guys!" he told them excitedly as he walked back in, making Yue laugh as she looked back at her friends.
"He's right. Come on, guys! It's time to celebrate!" she cheered, making them smile as they walked back into the building and made their way for the banquet hall where the giant cake would be waiting for them. Along the way, Katara took Aang's hand in hers and gave him a smile, her new betrothal necklace gleaming in the light of the room as she smiled lovingly at him.
And as they shared one last kiss, the newly engaged walked into the room, feeling excited for what the future would bring. And to think, all that had happened, all the good, all of the bad, and everything in between had all begun with a Chance Meeting.