Author's Note: This chapter takes place during the episode "Sozin's Comet, Part 4: Avatar Aang" (S3 E21), after Zuko and Katara defeat Azula.

Chapter 8: Show (Don't Tell)

Zuko sat slumped against the pillar, the only thing holding him upright. His breathing was labored, and sweat beaded on his forehead.

He doesn't look so good, Katara thought as she drew a fresh supply of water from her water skin and used it to cover the burn wound on his solar plexus. Her initial healing after they defeated Azula had brought him out of danger. At first, he had been able to take a few steps by himself, but he soon began to weaken and needed help to even stand. The damage from Azula's attack was severe enough that he was going to need more extensive healing.

The lightning strike had missed his heart—he wouldn't have survived otherwise—but the injury to his other organs was significant. Katara would need a larger supply of fresh, clean water to heal him properly. Even then, he would have to depend on his own body to do the rest in the weeks to come. But all she had right now was her bending water, and she hoped that would be enough to heal him to the point where he could walk without help. She had to get him strong enough to climb aboard Appa in case reinforcements arrived and they needed to escape.

Katara winced as a shriek of rage pierced the air. She tried to block out the noises that drifted over from across the plaza. She had moved Zuko over to the colonnade opposite to the one where she had defeated Azula. The Fire Nation princess may be chained up, but the insane ranting and sobbing and random bursts of flames made Katara uneasy. Even from this far away, just knowing that Azula was there put her on edge. Before the fight, Katara had seen Azula as a tiger shark—swift, ruthless, and deadly. Now Azula was a deranged tiger shark—pitiful, but also unpredictable and even more dangerous.

Azula's screams died down, and that was when Katara noticed the sound. At first, it was barely perceptible, blending in with the fading rumble of the retreating comet. But as the sound grew louder, it took on a distinctly mechanical quality. Reinforcements must be arriving, she thought. She gritted her teeth. Zuko was starting to look less pale, and his breathing came more easily. She concentrated on redirecting more of his chi to the site of the injury. Almost there…I just need a little more time.

A dark speck in the sky grew steadily larger as it approached, and soon Katara could make out a roughly oval silhouette. She inhaled sharply, her breath hissing between her teeth. An airship! Judging by the size of the airship, there were probably quite a few firebenders aboard. Even though Sozin's Comet was fading into the distance, its residual presence would still boost their firepower. She couldn't take them all on by herself, and Zuko was in no shape to fight.

They had to hide. But where? The entrance to the royal palace was over fifty yards away. Even if they made a run for it, the airship would spot them and they would soon have an entire troop of firebenders after them. The pillars offered some cover, but the stone columns wouldn't hide them for long. Katara felt very exposed.

But the airship was getting closer, and they had no other options. "There's an airship coming. We have to hide behind this pillar," Katara told Zuko. She grabbed his arm just under the shoulder and hauled him around the pillar, out of the airship's line of sight. Grimacing, he tried to help by scooting over as best as he could.

But Zuko had long legs, and they were sticking out too much. "Tuck your legs in," she whispered. He folded them to his chest, and Katara tugged at his shoulder and knees until all of him was behind the pillar. Then she knelt down by his feet and waited.

Katara took stock of their surroundings. The colonnade where they were hiding was identical to the one where she had captured Azula. Which meant that the metal grate that lay just a few feet away covered a channel of water that Katara could use to fight the firebenders. It would not be enough, but it was better than nothing.

Another scream rang out in the plaza. Katara was suddenly filled with terror. The Fire Nation soldiers would find Azula, and they would free her. Not only would Katara have to defend Zuko and herself against a platoon of firebenders, but against the insane and vengeful Azula as well.

The deafening roar of propellers filled the plaza as the airship touched down. Katara's pulse pounded in her ears. Her muscles burned from the tension of anticipation, from maintaining constant vigilance and holding herself ready to strike. She had never imagined that defeating Azula would end like this, with her and Zuko outnumbered and outclassed, like sitting turtle ducks waiting to make their last stand. But she vowed to take down as many firebenders as she could. She would show no mercy. Katara wasn't going down without a fight.

That was when she knew she wasn't going to see them again—her friends, her family, the people she loved. Her father, her pillar of strength, even when he was far away. Sokka, who she knew loved her despite his sarcastic remarks. Toph, who could be abrasive and direct, but generous and loyal, too. And Aang, of course, with his big heart and free-spirited nature—whom she loved, but would never get the chance to tell.

A dull metallic thud and the sound of descending footsteps reached her ears. They've lowered the ramp. They're coming.

Katara drew out her bending water and held it ready in both hands. She kept her ears trained on the footsteps in the plaza. She was a tightly coiled spring, poised to strike in an instant.

The footsteps began to approach her and Zuko's position. Low, indistinct voices seemed to be having a discussion. Katara rose to a half crouch and shifted one foot behind her in a fighting stance.

"They're over there!"

Katara almost dropped her bending water. That sounded a lot like…

"Toph?"

She cautiously peered around the stone column. In the dim twilight, she could make out the tiny earthbender standing in the middle of the plaza, pointing at the pillar that concealed her and Zuko. Behind Toph was her brother, who seemed to be injured from the way he was leaning on Suki.

But where was Aang? Why wasn't he with them?

Maybe she couldn't see him from where she was. She stepped out from behind the column to get a better look. Nothing changed—it was still Toph, Sokka, and Suki. No Aang.

Katara began to panic. He was supposed to come back. He has to come back. He has to!

Then someone pushed their way past Suki and Toph. "Katara?"

From the sound of his voice, from the way he moved, she knew who it was before she saw him.

"AANG!"

Katara dashed toward the familiar figure who emerged from the group, who was running to her, too. She threw her arms around his neck and pressed her cheek against the side of his head. She hugged him tightly, not quite believing it was Aang she was holding or that those were his arms around her back.

She didn't know how long they held on to one another, but it wasn't long enough. Eventually, they loosened their arms and stepped back, but she didn't completely let go. Neither did Aang. Whatever distance there was between them had been erased by the threat of losing each other.

"You came back," Katara said, with tears flowing down her face.

He gave her a soft smile, the kind of smile that made her heart beat a little faster. "I'm so happy you're okay. I knew you would beat Azula."

But from the way his arms still circled her back, firm and secure, without any intention of letting go, Katara could tell he had been worried about her. Just as she had been worried about him. She couldn't keep herself from smiling back at him, grinning even, as her tears of relief turned into tears of joy. "You came back," she said again.

Katara wanted to pull him close once more, but she was conscious of the others watching. Instead, she studied Aang's face, looking for any clue of what had happened during his fight against the Fire Lord. Clearly, he had defeated Ozai, or he wouldn't be standing in front of her right now. But aside from some scrapes and bruises, he didn't look any different than he had three days ago. There was no sign of the shame or anguish that she expected would come from killing another human being. If anything, Aang seemed more at peace than ever before. How was this possible?

"The Fire Lord," Katara began. She hesitated, almost afraid to ask. "Is he…"

"I defeated the Fire Lord, but I didn't have to kill him."

"What?" That made no sense. Perhaps Aang was still in shock from his battle with Ozai.

"He's alive. I took his bending away, so he can't firebend anymore."

"Took his bending away…?"

"Yeah. The lion turtle showed me how to do it."

"Lion turtle…?" First he has to go and disappear, and now he's talking about lion turtles and taking firebending away? Katara would have thought she was losing her mind if she wasn't standing in front of Aang right now with her arms around him. She gave her head a little shake. It doesn't matter, she thought, as she gazed into his eyes, which were as open and warm as ever. He came back.

"Um, hello?" Sokka said, waving an arm at them. "We're okay too. Thanks for asking."

Flushing with embarrassment, Katara let go of Aang and went over to her brother. He was keeping his weight off his left leg, which was wrapped in a bandage and hung at a funny angle. "What happened to your leg?"

"I think I broke it."

"How?"

"You know, when we stopped the airship fleet from burning down the Earth Kingdom. No biggie. It's not like we fought the Fire Lord or anything."

"Let me see if I can heal your leg." Katara reached back to draw the water from her water skins, but they were empty. Belatedly, she realized she must have let her bending water fall to the ground when she ran to Aang. Looking over her shoulder, she saw there were indeed two puddles on the ground by the pillar where she had left Zuko—

"Zuko!" she gasped.

The Fire Nation prince had somehow gotten to his feet and was leaning against the pillar. He started to walk toward them, but he stumbled and would have fallen if Katara hadn't run over to catch him in time. She pulled his arm over her shoulders, supporting his weight. "You shouldn't have gotten up by yourself," she said. "You still need more healing before you can walk around."

"I know," he said. "But we shouldn't be out in the open like this. We're lucky it was our friends who found us and not our enemies. We should all get on the airship. It's the safest place to be right now."

Katara took over the captain's cabin as her infirmary. Out of entire group, Zuko was still the one in the worst shape, so she worked on him first. Thankfully, she had found several vats of clean water in the galley, which made her efforts at healing much more effective. Not constantly worrying about being attacked probably helped, too. And finally having a calm setting allowed her to do the little things she needed to heal properly, such as taking off her gloves to have more contact with the water.

The muffled sounds of yelling and scuffling drifted in from under the closed cabin door. The others must have found Azula and brought her on board. Insane shrieking reverberated through the thick metal door. Katara cringed. Even though she knew they had to keep a close watch on Azula, it made her nervous to have the unhinged Fire Nation princess on the airship. Then it occurred to her that the Fire Lord must be on board somewhere, too, as their prisoner. The thought of being on the same airship as Ozai unnerved Katara, even if he could no longer firebend. He was, after all, the man who had perpetuated the hundred-year war and nearly annihilated an entire people.

All of a sudden, the screaming cut off. Someone must have found a way to silence Azula. Whatever it was they did, Katara hoped that she wouldn't have to hear her again.

Healing Zuko had taken up almost an entire vat of water. But he looked much better, and he was finally able to stand up and walk around the room without getting short of breath.

"You still need to take it easy," she said, as he alternately swung his arms across his chest to loosen up the muscles and test his strength. "There's only so much healing I can do. Your body needs a few weeks to heal itself completely."

Zuko nodded. "Thank you, Katara," he said. "You saved my life. I don't know how to repay you."

Katara gave him a warm smile. "You saved my life, too. Besides, there's no such thing as keeping score between friends."

"But I've done so many terrible things that hurt you and the people you love. I don't deserve your friendship."

Zuko was still often gruff and angry, but he had come a long way. Seeing him so humble and remorseful made her heart go out to him.

"But isn't that what forgiveness is all about?" she said. "No one deserves to be forgiven. But once someone forgives you, the past is just that—the past."

Zuko seemed to accept her explanation. Then he bowed and said, "Thank you, Katara, for your forgiveness. And your friendship."

As he opened the door to leave, she said, "Please send Sokka in next. I need to take a look at his leg."

Broken bones were one of the most difficult injuries to heal, since bones contained very little living tissue compared to the rest of the body. But Katara did the best she could to knit the shattered parts of Sokka's leg back together. At least she was able to realign the bones so they would heal the right way. She splinted his leg to a wooden board and instructed him to stay off his leg for the next week until she could examine him again.

Suki and Toph had escaped with only minor cuts and bruises, so that meant Aang was next. Katara was shocked to find that he had sustained more injuries than he was letting on. Maybe he hadn't wanted her or anyone else to worry. Or maybe it was the adrenaline dulling his pain. Whatever the case, Katara was just happy to have him back in one piece.

As she worked on healing him, Aang recounted what had happened on the night he disappeared—the trance that drew him to the lion turtle, his attempts to gain wisdom from his past lives, receiving the knowledge of energybending. Then he talked about his fight with the Fire Lord, how he had held back from killing Ozai and won the battle by taking away Ozai's ability to firebend.

General Iroh was right, Katara thought to herself. Aang chose his own path after all. He really did shape his destiny.

After Aang finished talking, he was quiet while Katara healed him. She was almost done. All that was left was the front of his torso. They were both perched on the edge of the lone bed in the cabin, sitting slightly turned at the waist so they were facing each other. With her hands encased in water, Katara started at his belly, redirecting his chi to his wounds as she slowly moved her way up to his chest.

Aang's eyes followed her hands as she worked, and she was struck by how vulnerable of a position he was in by allowing her to heal him. It wasn't that she approached healing him any differently from her other patients. When Katara healed someone, she might need them to take off their shirt, hold their arm a certain way, or let her touch their feet. They would do what she asked—things they would not normally do for anyone else—and they would do it without question, because they trusted that she was going to help them.

With Aang, though, it was different somehow. He trusted her to help him through her healing, that much was true. They were physically very close, even if they weren't actually touching, separated only by the water surrounding her hands. He was also bare-chested and barefoot—he must have lost his shirt and shoes in the battle with Ozai. None of these things was out of the ordinary for healing in general, but healing Aang in this context felt much more intimate than she had expected.

Maybe it was also different with him because she knew that she didn't have to heal every single one of his injuries, down to the last scratches and scrapes—but she was doing it anyway, to stretch out their time together. She suspected he knew it, too. And he let her do it.

He really trusts me, she realized. He loves me that much.

After she finished healing the last wound on his chest, she let the water flow into the vat designated for spent water. "Thanks, Katara," Aang said, and started to get up. "I feel a lot better—"

"Wait." She put a hand on his shoulder, and he sat back down. "I'm not done yet."

He doesn't know that I've forgiven him, truly forgiven him. He doesn't know that I love him.

I want to show him how I feel. And I want to show him that I still trust him. That there are no more walls between us.

She opened her free hand, revealing a small ball of water that floated above her palm. It wasn't large enough for her to cover her entire hand, as she would typically do for healing. Instead, she used it to sheath her fingertips while the other hand remained resting on his shoulder.

Katara touched the water to his cheek with her fingers, healing the cuts and bruises on his face with only a thin layer of water separating her from Aang. She moved across the bridge of his nose and slowly traced a finger along a deep scratch that ran down the side of his nose and over his cheekbone, the edges of the wound closing in her wake. The feel of Aang's warm gaze on her face made her fingers tremble as they continued down his cheek and over his chin. She kept her eyes on what she was doing, trying not to look at him looking at her. Showing how she felt was a lot harder than she thought it would be.

When she was done, she released the water from her fingers and finally raised her head to meet his gaze. The tender longing she saw in his eyes made her heart flutter and ache at the same time.

This is the part where we kiss, Katara thought. Her hand was still resting on his shoulder. Somewhat unsure of herself, she tentatively laid her other hand on his arm, just over the elbow.

A few moments went by. Nothing happened.

Katara was beginning to feel very awkward as they sat on the edge of the bed together, staring at each other. She broke her gaze and pulled her hands back and carefully folded them in her lap.

When she mustered up enough courage to sneak a glance at Aang, she saw that he still hadn't moved. Why is he just looking at me? she wondered.

Then it hit her. He's thinking about what happened on the night of the play. He doesn't want to risk making another mistake. He's holding back.

Aang was waiting for her to say something, do something first.

If showing him how I feel didn't work, then maybe I need to tell him.

Katara cleared her throat. "Aang…I want you to know that I forgive you. Like, really forgive you," she said. "I forgive you for pushing me and making me uncomfortable that night at the play, back on Ember Island. I forgive you for, um, kissing me."

Aang blinked at her in confusion. "Oh…yeah. You already forgave me, but thanks…for forgiving me…again?"

Hmmm. That didn't come out right.

She tried again. "What I'm saying is that I still trust you, like I always have. I want us to go back to being friends again. You know, like the way we were before."

He gave a nervous laugh and looked away. "Yeah. Sure thing. Friends. Just like before."

That really didn't come out right, she thought, starting to get frustrated with herself.

Seeing Aang with his head bowed and his shoulders slumped, Katara decided to stop dancing around the subject and come right out and tell him.

"Aang. Please, look at me."

She wasn't sure if he would. But he did. Maybe it was the firm resolve in her tone, or the edge of pleading in her voice.

"There's something I need to tell you," she said.

That was when she noticed it. The wary look in his eyes, instead of the openness she was so used to seeing.

A stab of panic shot through her heart. No, no, no, he can't look at me that way. I can't stand him looking at me that way!

Aang had never looked at her like that before, so careful and guarded. The walls between them were still standing, on his side this time. And she knew why. There had been too many false alarms, too many false starts. Too much confusion.

"I need to tell you…" she began, and faltered.

Tell him what? Words weren't working for her. She had already made a mess of things trying to say how she felt.

Show him. I need to show him, the way he showed me.

Before she lost her nerve, before she let herself think about it too much, Katara closed the distance between them and kissed him.

Aang didn't move. Their lips were pressed together, but she was the only one doing the kissing. Feeling foolish, she pulled away. She stared at her hands in her lap, her face growing hot with shame. I can't believe I misread him like that. I just made the same mistake he did on the night of the play.

There was nothing for it but to apologize. Katara was about to do just that when Aang darted forward and kissed her. It was brief, just a fleeting brush of his lips. By the time she registered it, the kiss was over.

It's still on his mind, how he kissed me that night, and how I reacted. He's still holding back. That was the thing about Aang—even though he made mistakes, he never made the same mistake twice.

But Katara wasn't going to hold back. Not anymore.

She laid her hands on Aang's shoulders and leaned forward. This time, when her lips met his mouth, he kissed her back with an enthusiasm that sent an electric thrill down her spine. She wrapped her arms around his neck to pull him closer, and to her delight, he responded by circling his arms around her waist. Kissing Aang released all of the tension she had been holding inside for so long, and all of the times she had wanted to kiss him and feel him close to her were compressed into this one moment.

When they pulled apart, her head was spinning, and she needed a minute to catch her breath. The intensity of their kiss had left Aang breathing hard, too. She was lightheaded and her chest felt tight in a very pleasant way and she wanted to kiss him again.

But something about the way he was looking at her made her pause. Then she saw the questions in his eyes. Katara had showed him how she felt—she blushed when she thought about just how boldly—but words were necessary, too.

"It's okay, Aang. I'm ready to talk," she said.

He let out a breath, as if she had just given him permission to start breathing again. "So…I guess this means you do have feelings for me. Right?"

They had just shared the kind of kiss that made Katara's heart race, they still had their arms around each other, and this was what he wanted to know? But then she saw he wanted to be sure, totally sure. Given everything that had happened up until this point, she didn't blame him.

Katara responded by kissing him again, more slowly and tenderly this time.

"Does that answer your question?" she said with a mischievous smile.

"Yeah…it does." Aang returned her smile with one that was equal parts pleased and shy. "So this means we're together, then?"

Katara was about to say, Of course it does, because what else would it mean? They were in love with each other. Of course she wanted to be with him.

But she couldn't say it. Something held her back.

"Katara?" Aang said, starting to sound panicked.

Did she want to be with Aang? If they were to get together, it was only a matter of time before he would be wrenched out of her life. Again. Because that was how things went, for Katara—the people she loved the most were the ones who were taken from her first.

She had lost him twice already—once in Ba Sing Se, and again in the days before Sozin's Comet. Even though he came back both times—impossibly, and against all odds—deep down, she knew the day was coming when she would lose him for good. And she knew that the more she loved him, the more devastated she would be.

Katara unwound her arms from Aang's neck and backed away. She twisted her fingers together in her lap. "When I think about being with you…it scares me, Aang."

"Oh." His shoulders sagged, and he seemed to deflate. "It's because I'm the Avatar, isn't it? Or because I burned you that time, when I was learning firebending from Jeong Jeong. But I can control the Avatar state now, and I know how to firebend. I would never do anything to hurt you, Katara."

Then he appeared to realize something. "Or is it because of the way I kissed you on Ember Island? You don't know how sorry I am. I wish I had never done that. I'll never do anything like that again, I swear."

Katara laid her hand on top of his. "Aang, it's not any of those things. It's just that…I don't think I can stand losing you again."

"What do you mean?"

"When you…when I lost you in Ba Sing Se, that was bad enough. But when you disappeared before Sozin's Comet, I was…" Her voice hitched, and she almost couldn't go on. She took a deep breath and tried again.

"I was so afraid I would never see you again," she said, her voice wavering now, tears flowing freely down her face. "And I knew that even if you did come back, I could lose you to Ozai. For good."

Aang took both of her hands and squeezed them gently. "But we won the war. Ozai and Azula won't be a threat anymore. Zuko will be Fire Lord. We're going to have a time of peace, like the way things were a hundred years ago."

But Katara shook her head. "What about the next Azula, or the next Ozai? There will always be someone else like them. You're the Avatar. The world is depending on you to stop them."

"When we talked at the invasion, you told me that I had grown so much," he said. "And I really have. I'll be able to handle them, Katara." Then he smiled at her. "We can handle them…together."

Together… Of course. Wherever he went, she would go too. They would travel together, like they always have, and they would face their enemies together— the master waterbender and the Avatar.

Katara sniffled and wiped the tears from her face. "You're right," she said.

Aang ran his thumbs over her palms, and then he laced their fingers together. He was giving her that look again, the look that made her feel like she was the only person in the world who mattered. She moved in to kiss him, and he met her halfway. Still holding her hands, he pulled her closer. She let herself get lost in the kiss, her fears and anxiety washing away.

But as she kissed Aang, as her heart opened up to him more and more, something else inside her, the part of her she kept walled off, began to open up as well. Memories—images from the past—swirled up into her mind. Aang being shot with lightning in Ba Sing Se. The empty balcony on Ember Island, with the staff he had left behind. Her father's tall figure, growing smaller as his ship faded into the distance, before finally disappearing. Her mother's body on the floor, a charred hole burned into the middle of her chest.

Suddenly, kissing Aang felt wrong. Katara broke it off and pushed herself away. "I'm sorry, Aang. I can't do this right now."

It felt wrong to lead him on—lead both of them on, really—if she wasn't sure if she could be with him.

He stared at her, his eyes clouded with confusion.

"I can't lose someone I love. Not again," she said. Her explanation somehow seemed inadequate.

"So…are you saying that if we're not together…you wouldn't love me anymore?" he said slowly.

I just told him I love him, didn't I? Katara realized with stark terror. It was a little early to be saying that kind of thing, wasn't it? Especially if they weren't going to be together. She hadn't meant it to come out that way.

She shook her head and closed her eyes, trying to center herself. "I don't know what I'm saying, Aang. I'm just so afraid that if we get together, I'm going to care about you more and more, and then one day I'm going to lose you."

"But you don't know that, Katara."

She opened her eyes, tears streaming down her cheeks. "Yes, I do!" she said fiercely. "Everyone I love always disappears from my life!"

Aang took her hand and clasped it between both of his. "I'm not going to disappear, Katara. And if I ever leave to go somewhere, I'll always come back. I promise."

Katara wanted to believe him, more than anything. But she couldn't. She had lost him too many times already.

She shook her head. "I don't know, Aang. I don't think anyone can make a promise like that."

"Then what can I do? How can I convince you that things will be okay?"

"I don't know," she said again.

Aang still held her hand, and for a while neither of them said anything.

"I'm scared, Aang," Katara said eventually. "Of how much… how much I…"

I'm scared of how much I love you. But Katara couldn't quite bring herself to say it. Instead, she said, "I want to explore the world with you. I want to help you face your enemies. I want to be close to you."

She looked down at their hands clasped together. For her and Aang, the line between friendship and love had blurred until it was almost nonexistent. "But I'm also scared. I can't be with you right now. I'm not ready."

His eyes searched her face, anxious and hopeful at the same time. "Do you think you'll be ready…someday?"

"I don't know." Katara pulled her hand away and stood up. For both of their sakes, she had to redraw the boundaries that separated being friends from being in love, until she was ready to be together with Aang. If she was ever ready.

"I'm sorry, Aang," she said quietly. She couldn't bring herself to meet his eyes. Without looking back, she opened the door and walked out of the room.