Chapter 2: Moon and Ocean

"Goodbye, Sokka. I will always be with you."

And then Yue was gone. Not just dead, but fully disappeared. And Sokka was left behind at the Spirit Oasis, holding her betrothal necklace, and it hurt.

Sokka continued to sit there, clutching her necklace, reliving the past several minutes over and over. What had happened barely felt real to him. And it had all happened so fast. One moment they were there to stop Zhao from killing the Moon Spirit, and the next he was gone, Aang was gone, the Moon Spirit was dead, and then…so was Yue. She had become the moon. Of all the people he knew, he'd always been the most skeptical of the spirit stuff. Bending, past lives, spirit monsters…he didn't really believe in that sort of stuff, and Sokka wondered momentarily if this was the universe's way of getting payback. Oh, you don't believe in us? Well, then, we'll just have the woman you love turn into the moon! Was his skepticism really such an offense?

Of course, Sokka knew that their love was doomed from the beginning. She was the princess of the Northern Water Tribe and he…he was just some guy from the South Pole. But he couldn't help but fall for her. Her beauty had been what initially drew him to her, but it was Yue himself that made him fall so fast and hard. She was kind, and sweet, and just amazing. Sokka recalled his lame attempts to ask her out. He'd stumbled over his words, had made himself look like such an idiot, but she had decided to spend time with him anyways. And she had even loved him back…but she was already engaged. Somehow, her loyalty to her engagement only made him love her more. She was so strong and loyal…even when it broke her heart, she still stood by it. And her dedication to her tribe was even more amazing…and he didn't protect her. He failed. With a jolt Sokka realized that this was his fault. Chief Arnook had put him in charge of protecting Yue, but he didn't. She was dead and Sokka couldn't save her. Of course, she chose to give her life back to the Moon Spirit, but…Sokka should have protected the Moon Spirit, too, then. He should've done something different.

Sokka refused to cry. Warriors don't cry, he told himself, and he screwed his eyes shut to stop tears from escaping. But when he closed his eyes, he saw Yue. Yue in the boat as he saw her for the first time, Yue on Appa where they almost kissed…Yue, glowing bright as the moon, as she kissed him. "Goodbye, Sokka. I will always be with you."

Sokka opened his eyes and looked up at the moon. Yue. She really would always be with him…every night she would be in the sky, shining down on him. I know you're still with me…but is it so wrong that I'd rather you be with me here?

Was this how Dad felt when Mom died? On one hand, Sokka really hadn't known Yue anywhere near as long as his father had known his mother. But still…Sokka had loved Yue. And if he could, he would have wanted to spend the rest of his life with her.

But as quickly as she had appeared in his life, she was gone.

Sokka continued to sit there, just staring at the moon, for a long time. The moon was beautiful, and he didn't want to stop looking at Yue just yet. He didn't want to go help finish the battle. He was sure Aang and the other water tribesmen had it handled, anyways. They didn't need him. And he didn't really want to seek out Chief Arnook…how could he possibly tell him about Yue? The man had trusted him to protect his daughter and he had failed.

Eventually, Yue began to leave the sky and the sun began rising in the horizon. Day was coming, and Sokka knew he had to face the world. He looked at Yue's betrothal necklace again, and sighed. He had to return it to her father and tell him about Yue's…death. Or whatever it was, really. The point was that she was gone and Sokka failed. As Sokka left the Spirit Oasis, he realized that Katara had left him at some point, probably to find Aang after he created the big water-monster-fish thing. Sokka figured he should find her before he goes to Chief Arnook. He wanted her to be there. As annoying as Katara's mothering could be, the truth was that Sokka really needed her right now.

The Northern Water Tribe city had managed to withstand the Fire Nation's attack, but it was a wreck compared to the beautiful city it had been two days previously. There were holes in walls of homes and the ground had been rendered uneven from both waterbending and blasts of fire. Columns were collapsed; while most were decorative, and were used by waterbenders in the battle, others were part of structures which collapsed without them. Many of the canals were blocked by blobs of snow and broken bridges. The worst of the damage was near the entrance to the city, where virtually everything seemed destroyed. All of the buildings, even the great wall, were gone, and Sokka could see some remainders of them floating the water. The Northern Water Tribe had won the battle, but their city was in ruins. They're still better off than my tribe, Sokka thought. They, at least, have plenty of waterbenders to fix this. The city will be back to normal in no time.

Sokka searched around the city, asking people if they'd seen Katara. The answer was always 'no' and Sokka would move on. After a while, Sokka began to feel anxious…shouldn't someone have seen her by now? Where was Katara? Was she okay? What if she was hurt, or…

Sokka couldn't let himself think like that. She had probably gone after Aang, and if she was with him, then she was alright. Katara was okay, and he would find her.

Sokka continued to look for her and after a few minutes he saw a familiar tattooed bald head. "Aang!" he called out. Aang turned around and, upon seeing Sokka, jumped over to him and hugged him, grinning.

"Sokka, you're okay!" The twelve year old hugged him for a moment, and the stepped back. The smile had slipped off and now his eyebrows were slightly down. "Are you okay? I mean, you look fine, but…I know you and Yue were sort of…"

Sokka bit his tongue a little and forced a small smile. "I'll be okay." Someday. "Have you seen Katara anywhere?"

Aang's eyes widened. He shook his head. "I haven't seen her since I left the Spirit Oasis− I thought she was still with you!"

Sokka's heartbeat began to beat faster. "She left the Spirit Oasis. I haven't seen her anywhere…I thought she was with you!" If she isn't with me and she's not with Aang…then WHERE is Katara? Sokka was officially starting to panic. His heartbeat pounded from within his chest and he could feel his leg weaken as his thoughts raced. Where was his sister? Sokka looked around and, unwillingly, his eyes settled on the wreckage of the city's entrance. If Katara had been there…

"I bet she's at the healing huts," Aang spoke up quietly. Sokka turned back to him and saw that Aang was also looking at the city's entrance. He must have had the same thoughts. "Katara probably went to the healing huts to help the healers. She was learning to heal, too, you know." Aang looked back to Sokka, a smile returning to his face. "So she probably wants to help everyone who was hurt. I'm sure she's okay. Come on, we're probably making her worry about us." Aang motioned to Sokka, urging him to follow him to the healing huts.

Sokka slowly nodded. "Yeah…she's probably fine." She has to be. "And you're right, she probably starting to worry about us…so, we'd better go find her and let her know we're okay." She has to be okay. I can't have failed two people I love in one night.

The two boys ran back towards the center of the city, continuing to keep an eye out for Katara. In truth, Sokka was becoming more and more desperate with each passing second. Aang was undaunted; he was confident that Katara was alright and that they'd find her at the healing huts. Sokka tried to take strength from Aang's certainty (but deep down he knew, he remembered, the twelve year old's propensity for denial).

Finally the two of them reached the healing huts, which were full and hectic as healers were busy with the many wounds of the previous night's battle. It had been far worse than the previous day's, due to the moon's disappearance. Aang and Sokka split up as they asked around. Like all of the other people Sokka had asked, every healer, every wounded warrior told him that they hadn't seen Katara.

Sokka was just about to go crazy when he saw Master Pakku talking to several other waterbenders. Sokka suddenly felt a little more optimistic. Maybe Pakku knew where Katara was. Sokka had assumed that she would have gone after Aang, but maybe instead she had gone to find Pakku. Gone to help the other waterbenders drive the firebenders out of the city. Maybe she had just gone over to talk− despite their horrible first encounters with each other, Pakku and Katara had quickly formed a bond after he learned who she was and began to teach her. She had actually spent a considerable amount of time with him outside of their lessons, talking to him about life in the Southern Water Tribe, telling about Gran-Gran. He, in turn, would tell her about Gran-Gran when he'd known her. Sokka had been there some of the time, but most of the time Katara had spent with Pakku, he had spent with…Yue.

It wasn't unreasonable that Katara would go talk to Pakku.

"Master Pakku!" he shouted as he ran up to him. The old waterbending master turned to face him.

Pakku quickly looked him over before speaking. He looked his age, worn down and exhausted after the siege. "Sokka. It's good to see that you made it through the battle. What do you need?"

"Katara. Have you seen Katara? I can't find her anywhere!"

Pakku's eyes widened a little bit. He turned to the nearby waterbenders. "Have any of you seen Katara? You all know who she is. She's missing." The other waterbenders were silent, some of them frowning as they tried to remember whether they had seen the young waterbender. Others simply shook their heads. Sokka and Pakku observed them. After a few moments, Pakku walked over to a couple of waterbenders that had looked at each other before trying to avoid Sokka's gaze. "Have either of you seen Katara?" They refused to look at the old waterbending master. "Kylatok, Nokoda, if you know something, then you will share it!"

Sokka stepped forward, hands pulled into fist. "Where is my sister?"

One of them, the taller and paler of the two, answered first. "I…I think I may have seen her earlier. But I'm not really sure it was her."

"Where? Where was she?" The waterbender only looked down to his feet for a moment, before raising his head and looking away from Sokka. It took Sokka a few more moments to realize that the waterbender wasn't just avoiding looking at him; he was looking at the entrance of the city. The pulverized entrance to the city. No.

Pakku had also caught on. "You saw her near the entrance of the city? When was this? Nokoda, when did you see Katara near the entrance of the city?"

The one who had previously spoken resumed looking at his feet. The other waterbender was the one who answered Pakku's question…and crushed Sokka's hope. "Right before the wave. We saw her running towards the entrance while we were making the wave. I…we didn't see her come out."

No.

No, this wasn't right.

If that was…then…Katara couldn't be gone.

She just…

For a few moments, Sokka became dead to the world, numb and deaf, only mildly aware to Pakku's fury at his students. ("You knew there was one of our own in the line of the attack and you did nothing?!") It didn't matter. None of it did.

I failed…again.

Not only had he failed to protect Yue, but he had failed to protect Katara, too. Katara. His sister. His wonderful, kind, and brave sister. His fourteen-year-old sister.

"Being a man is knowing where you're needed the most. And for you right now, that's here, protecting your sister."

He'd been so caught up in his grief over Yue…he hadn't even noticed when Katara had left him. He hadn't protected her.

Why did the spirits feel the need to take her away, too? Why? What was all of this? Sokka, for a few moments, wondered whether he was actually somehow cursed. Was this all payback for his skepticism? Hadn't he lost enough? His mother was dead…his father left…Yue was dead…why did they need to take Katara, too?

"We didn't think she'd keep running further out!" one of the waterbenders tried to defend themselves. "She should've known we'd push the remaining firebenders out! She should've come back."

Sokka heard that and he snapped back out of his thoughts, looking at the waterbenders. He felt like he was seeing them for the first time, and they weren't just two of many waterbenders. They were horrible. They had known that Katara was in danger, but they did nothing. No, they didn't do nothing…they helped make the wave that…that…

They're just as bad as firebenders!

"You," he growled out, glaring fiercely. "How…how could you do it? She's fourteen! How could you see her in the way and attack anyways!?"

The taller of the two stepped back. He looked incredibly distressed. Sokka didn't care. "I'm sorry," the waterbender said, eyebrows creased, eyes wide.

It was too much. "I don't care!" Sokka launched himself onto him, punching him—punching his face, punching anywhere…he ought to throttle him. "YOU KILLED MY SISTER!"

"What?"

Sokka stopped. Oh no. How could he have forgotten? He got off of the bloodied waterbender, stood, and turned around. "Aang…"

The twelve year old airbender was standing not far from him, having seen the commotion. And he looked…he had heard what Sokka had said. His eyes were wide and watering, his mouth slightly parted. Damn it. Sokka had forgotten all about Aang. He'd have had to tell him anyways, but this…this was a horrible way to find out.

"K-Katara?" Aang questioned, looking between the four men. Pakku, Sokka, Kylatok, and Nokoda. It was written all over their faces.

Katara was gone.

"No," Aang shook his head. Sokka took a few steps forward…and then he noticed the glow. Oh no. "NO!" Before Sokka could do or say anything, Aang was in the Avatar State and Sokka, along with Pakku, Kylatok, and Nokoda were all blasted away. Wind whipped around, throwing people and things all over. The water which composed the healing huts and other buildings melted and froze in a wild maelstrom, causing chaos all around Aang. Sokka himself had been thrown into an ice wall, his right wrist hitting before anything else. Sokka let out a grunt of pain as it hit, and when he pulled it away, he felt a dull throb of pain every few seconds.

He looked up, seeing the destruction that Aang was causing. The healing huts had already been overflowing because of the battle, and Sokka could hear screams of panic as the huts were destroyed and the ice beneath their feet rose and fell. Sokka saw several waterbenders try to attack Aang, attempting to knock him out. It didn't work. None of them had any chance of fighting an Avatar in the Avatar State. Sokka looked at Aang. He could see, even from where he was, that the kid was upset. He was grieving, just as he had been at the Southern Air Temple weeks previously. Attacking him would do nothing to stop the Avatar State. Aang needed to calm down. Aang needed comfort.

He needed Katara.

But she wasn't there. That was why Aang was upset. Because Katara was gone. Aang had lost her. So had Sokka.

And Sokka realized what he had to do.

Holding up his throbbing wrist, Sokka managed to pull himself to his feet. The wind blew hard at him, but he pushed himself forward, trying to get close enough to Aang to talk to him amidst the chaos. "Aang!" he called out. Spirits, what was he supposed to say? He wasn't one for mushy feely stuff. That was…Katara's job. "I know how you feel," he started lamely. "I'm feeling it, too! I know that you were close to Katara…" Sokka and I! We're your family now! "She became your family after you lost the Air Nomads…but she was my family, too! She was my sister!" Sokka noticed that the wind blowing against him wasn't as hard as it was when he started speaking, and he continued, knowing what had to be said. "All that pain your feeling? I'm feeling it with you." He stepped closer, and he could feel the wind slowing down. He saw Aang slowly descending as he began to leave the Avatar State. "I'm still with you," he told Aang, as his tattoos stopped glowing and he collapsed. Sokka, rarely one for mushy hugs, allowed the twelve year old Avatar to embrace him as he cried. Sokka returned it with all of the strength of a platypus-bear. "Katara said that we're your family now. So…even if she's gone, I promise you, I'll always be with you."

Aang sniffled as he cried. "I've already lost my entire people…I can't lose Katara, too."

Sokka hugged Aang tighter for a moment before withdrawing a bit. "You know, we don't really know for sure. She may have survived the wave." Aang looked up hopefully. "I'm not saying that she did−by the look of the city's entrance, it was a really powerful wave and it would take a miracle for her to live," he told Aang before he got his hopes up too much. "Still, if you ask me, the universe really owes us a miracle or two."

"So Katara may still be alive?" Aang looked outwards towards the city's entrance and the vast ocean beyond it. "If she is alive, then she's out there, somewhere, waiting for us."

Sokka nodded, and put his hand on Aang's shoulder, squeezing gently. "If she is alive…if she's out there at all, we're going to find her. Together."

Sooo...
1. Even though the main focus of this fic is Zutara, other characters will still be very present. I guess, if you want, you can skip Aang and Sokka chapters, but they will be a part of this fic.
2. In future revisions, I think I may combine this chapter with chapter 3. Any thoughts/opinions on that?