"Hey, the surf's back up! Anybody wanna go for another run?"
Aang, who had been dozing under the large canopy that had been thoughtfully erected on the beach by a few Kyoshi Islanders, lifted his head and squinted.
Sokka was right – the South Sea had been placid for the past few hours, almost as smooth as glass. Now the waves were cresting, and beneath the clear waters Aang spotted the bright scales of a school of elephant koi, just within reach for a brave soul to jump on and ride to glory.
"Thanks, Sokka, but I'm good for right now." Aang stretched before reclining back in the "chair" he'd bent out of the sand. "In a little while maybe. Why don't you and Suki go out and I'll catch up?"
"I would, but I've got to go and get changed," said Suki, who had been laying on a blanket alongside Sokka. "Giya says the dojo's full to nearly bursting for the early afternoon lesson."
"Aw." Sokka's mouth quirked in disappointment. "Couldn't Jie do the early afternoon lesson and you do the midday one? We've hardly had a chance to spend any time together."
"You can always come to the dojo with me and train." Suki adjusted her bathing suit. "You know you're always welcome."
"Train? You mean get my butt kicked … again? Yeah, I'll pass." Sokka groused. "Plus, you know how the Kyoshi Warrior makeup makes me break out, and I left my grooming kit back in Ba Sing Se that has all my whale-walrus ointment."
"Sorry." She leaned to give him a smacking kiss on the cheek. "We'll make up for it later, I promise. Oh, and Aang – Oyaji says he hopes you don't fill up on too many sweets. He's been perfecting this dish he can't wait for you to try – braised tofu in a mock-fish sauce over black rice. We'll be having lunch on the beach here after we finish up at the dojo."
Aang's stomach growled helpfully. He'd had nothing to eat since their quiet breakfast of congee with mixed fruit, and he had been planning to sneak off to spend some quality time in the hospitality hut where tables and tables of sweets and snacks were laid out for any guest to help themselves. But he didn't want to disappoint the village leader by picking at his food. Plus, Oyaji's proposed meal sounded pretty delicious.
Suki waved goodbye before walking back to her family hut, which stood just off the main path leading to the beach.
Aang couldn't quite hide a smile as he watched Sokka follow Suki's progress with a dreamy look in his eyes. When she was gone, he leaned back, and promptly fell butt-over-wolftail before coming to rest slightly behind Aang.
"... Ouch. Uh, Aang, mind making me one of those chairs you've got?"
Aang's eyes flicked over to where Sokka was sprawled in the sand, looking like a dazed pentapus, and he winced in sympathy.
"Oh! Sure, no problem."
Aang took a deep breath before making a wide, scooping motion in the air with both hands to mound a quantity of sand at his feet. Beckoning a small stream of water with two fingers, Aang bent the mixture into a loose paste and formed it into a reclining chair, making tight fists when he was done to lock in the shape. He grinned a little, wondering what Toph would say if she were there. She'd often said she couldn't understand how Aang had effortlessly picked up sandbending, but metalbending seemed to be beyond him. Life was strange, sometimes. Even for the Avatar. Maybe especially for the Avatar.
Sokka bounced to his feet and sat gingerly on the structure at first, but was soon assured of its sturdiness and leaned back with a contented sigh. As he did so, Aang fussed around a bit, eyes narrow as he critiqued his handiwork.
"Want a footrest?"
"Nah, this is good, thanks."
Sokka turned his head, gazing at where he'd last seen Suki.
"You know … being here on Kyoshi Island again, it just makes me realize how lucky I am to have Suki. She's just so … everything, you know?"
Aang made a sound of agreement. Suki was a fantastic woman, no doubt about that. He had been pleased that on their first trip back to Kyoshi Island after the end of the war, Suki had been hailed as a hero. Yes, people flocked to the Avatar – including Suki's cousin Koko, who had been an open admirer of Aang's on his first visit – but the majority of the village wanted to know about Suki's time in the Boiling Rock prison, about her improbable escape, about her travels, about her brief stint as actual security for the new Fire Lord. Sokka hadn't been exaggerating about not having had much of a chance to spend time with Suki alone. She had been mobbed with well-wishers and starry-eyed admirers from the moment she'd stepped foot back in her home village.
Sokka stirred restlessly next to him. "Sometimes I wonder how I got so lucky. A girl like her? A guy like me? What were the odds, huh?"
Aang frowned slightly, glancing over at his friend.
"Yeah, Suki's great, but what do you mean a guy like you? You're pretty great, yourself, Sokka. I'm glad things are working out with you two, but if they hadn't, lots of other girls would be interested."
"Of course you'd think that, Aang, because that's how it is for you." Sokka rolled his eyes. "You're the Avatar. No one would ever really be out of your reach."
Aang was quiet. His eyes reached over Sokka's shoulder and traveled down the shoreline to where a lone figure stood in the center of a loose circle of people. The solitary figure waved graceful arms in the air to shape twin plumes of sea water into rings that rotated round her body at various angles and in various sizes.
"Yeah, not even her. She was into you almost from the start."
Aang was startled out of his musings to see Sokka smirking at him knowingly. He'd followed Aang's gaze down the beach to where Katara was continuing to captivate her audience. She moved a hand languidly through the air to condense the water rings into a shimmering dome that encompassed the entire crowd. There were shouts of surprise and shrieks of laughter when Katara dramatically dropped her arms and the dome collapsed, drenching the spectators.
"How do you know that?" Aang turned to Sokka, eyebrows high. "Did she tell you?"
"She didn't need to tell me. I'm her brother – I've known her my entire life. I knew the signs."
Sokka stood and brushed wet sand off his shorts. "Us regular people thank the Spirits for blessing us with someone to love. But you, Aang? Even if there wasn't my sister, there'd be someone for you." His expression suddenly turned quietly serious. "But there is my sister. Right?"
"Yep. There definitely is Katara."
Aang's insides vibrated pleasantly at the thought of Katara. Her beautiful eyes, and hair and skin. The warm scent of her. The feel of her body when they snuggled. Her lips …
His head lolled back and he smiled dreamily up at the canopy.
Katara … Katara!
"Yeah, okay, I know that look. Oogies incoming." Sokka shook his head wearily. "I'm gonna grab some waves before lunch. See ya."
He walked off with a languid wave toward the creamy waves that were crashing on shore. Nearby, just under the surface of the water, Aang could just make out the bright scales of a school of koi fish. He hoped Sokka remembered that the rider had to gently stroke the dorsal fin before mounting a koi fish. Otherwise, the fish would just be grumpy, and that would make for a very bumpy ride.
Aang leaned forward and watched Sokka wade into the water and then disappear beneath the surface. After a few seconds, there was a large splash and a rather sleepy-looking koi fish emerged with Sokka confidently kneeling on the animal's back while gently massaging its dorsal fin.
Satisfied that Sokka had started his sea adventure out on the right foot – or fin, as the case was – Aang turned his attention back to Katara. She was now demonstrating a water shield that arced high into the air and foamed at the shoreline, almost like a portable waterfall.
Abandoning his makeshift seat, Aang lay on his stomach, rested his chin in his hands, and feasted his eyes.
Their first visit to Kyoshi Island, Katara had been cognizant only of the rudiments of waterbending, eager to get to the North Pole and find a true Master. Now Katara was a Master herself, and was deservedly admired by the inhabitants of the small village. The demonstration that she was giving the islanders wasn't even a fraction of what she was able to do, what she had done over the harrowing months that it seemed the world might come to an end. Aang knew he'd never get tired of watching her, of being quietly amazed by her. Of loving her.
Aang reflected for a moment on Sokka's earlier statement. His friend was right, but he was also quite wrong. Perhaps there were others out there that would want to be coupled up with the Avatar, but Aang knew that it didn't work the other way around. There was only Katara for him. No one else in the world for him but her. And if Sokka was serious that Katara, in those early days, had soon come to care for him as more than a friend, Aang knew that his heart had been hers from the moment he'd laid eyes on her.
With a soft grunt, he lifted himself from the sand and stood, stretching his arms high over his head. He glanced at the sea, where Sokka had been joined by Ting – once known only as the "foaming mouth guy" – their koi fish playing what looked like a lively game of tag with their human passengers holding on for dear life. Aang's shoulders relaxed when it became clear that the men were shouting in delight, not screaming for help. Sokka even managed a quick wave in Aang's direction, hurriedly clutching his elephant koi's dorsal fin when it looked like he was about to lose his footing.
Aang was grinning and waving back when a slight movement in his periphery caught his attention. Turning, he saw that Katara was now demonstrating the famed octopus form, and it looked very much like one of the tendrils was longer and waving independently of the others, almost as if it were beckoning to him …
He didn't even bother to rid himself of the sand that clung to his upper body and legs as he ran joyously toward his love. Aang knew his cue when he saw it.