Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender or anything related to the series nor do I own any other media, entertainment, etc mentioned in this story. This is purely a work of entertainment. I claim nothing as my own.

"Limit Sky"

CH5

~ Little Dream ~

Katara walks alone up to the front double doors of Yu Dao High School. As her eyes sweep the brick foundation, and she sighs and continues inside. The student body is alive with chatter and horseplay. As she moves through the bustling halls, talk of Yu Dao is hot on the lips of her peers.

She gets through her first classes of the day and for 3rd period, she arrives in the gymnasium. Niyok waves her over from beneath the bleachers. She is already dressed in the school gym attire, dark blue shorts and a white shirt. Katara jogs over to her and they walk side by side into the women's locker room after a warm embrace.

"I feel like I haven't seen you in ages!" Niyok giggles, holding her hand.

"Yeah, same."

"I'm so glad to see you're safe and sound."

Katara clears her throat, "Thanks."

"You're still not over that cold?"

"I was out in the rain for hours. I think I got off lightly, compared to my brother. He's still sick," she giggles. "I'm just glad I didn't get pneumonia or something."

Niyok nods, "I still can't believe you made it all the way home by yourself like that. You're really something, Katara."

Opening her locker, Katara pauses for a moment, "Yeah… well, I wasn't alone…." she looks at her friend and smiles. "I'm gonna get changed. I'll see you out there in the gym."

She catches the rest of her friends at lunch an hour later. They all share hugs. Nutha is the one to wipe the lone tear that escapes her eye, and then proceeds to tease her about it. They huddle together at a table in the farthest corner of the auditorium.

"You know, this sucks." Nutha complains, leaning her chin on her palm. "How much longer do they think they can keep us on lockdown like this? It's a shame I have to look forward to school every day just so I can see you guys."

"Agreed. It's been a week. I hate having to ask my mom to escort me places. Is it even legal for them to lock us down like this?" Haru scans the table for their reactions.

Katara shrugs, "I dunno, but after what happened downtown, I guess they're being extra cautious."

"Why punish us though?" Asks Niyok. "Who's to say that boutique blowing up had anything to do with high schoolers?"

Katara's fists clench her skirt.

"They don't know who did it but apparently they saw a bunch of kids running around so they blamed them. Now we all got punished for it." Haru pouts. "But I did hear that a couple of people from our school got arrested that day."

Niyok looks at Katara, "Katara? You alright?"

She blinks and then smiles, "I'm fine."

"So what happened while you were at the protest, Katara?" Haru asks, leaning in and speaking softly. "Did you and Jet see anything?"

A frown comes to her features, and then she softens, "All I know is someone set off fireworks and then I had to run away. Things got pretty bad. As for Jet, I don't know what happened to him."

"You haven't talked to him?"

She shakes her head and sighs, "I haven't seen him either. It's… probably for the best."

The friends look at each other and then back to Katara. Katara turns to gaze out the nearby window as dark clouds roll into view. A small smile comes to her face, "Oh yeah… it's fall now, isn't it?"

Niyok raises a brow, "Yeah?"

Katara fiddles with her fingers, "I hope the lockdown lifts soon."

Nutha sighs, "Even if it does, they're talking about putting a strict 6pm curfew on people 18 and younger. We just can't win at this point."

As the others continue to gripe and groan regarding the circumstances, Katara keeps her gaze on the clouds outside. She cups her hands to her chest and whispers his name, "Aang..."

When Katara returns home that day, she finds Sokka in the backyard. His back is to her as he bends over, grunting as he digs with a shovel. Katara grows pale and drops her bag to the ground. He turns to her, sniffling and smiling with a wave. Her face is alive with horror.

"Katara! Come look what I found!"

She walks up beside him, ducking out of the way as he throws more dirt over his shoulder. He's digging a hole…

"Sokka, what's going on? Is your fever escalating again?"

"What? No!" He shakes his head violently and Katara lets out a held breath. "You remember how Gran Gran was saying that she found a little critter running around out here the other night?"

Katara nods.

"Well, I'm setting a trap for it. This here hole I'm digging? It's gonna get caught in it and I'm gonna catch it and cook it." He licks his lips and nods to himself, proud.

His sister rolls her eyes, "Sure, great idea!" She gives him a respectful bow, "Whatever would we do without you?"

"Starve to death."

"Right." She sighs, "Well, I'm glad you're feeling better. I guess you'll be back in school with me tomorrow?"

"Huh? Oh yeah. By the way, did you bring the books from my locker like I asked?"

Katara turns on her heels and retrieves her book bag from the ground. "Sure did. I'll put them on the table. I'm going inside to start dinner."

"Sounds good. Make somethin' good, would ya?"

She scowls at him and storms off into the house. Gran is inside the kitchen, eyes glued to the TV. Gran's face lights up upon seeing her. Katara sits her bag on a chair and comes over to give her a hug. "Hi Gran, how are you feeling?"

"I'm fine. I have some good news for you." Katara's brows raise and she sits down in front of her. "You know how you were so worried that Mayor Iroh was going to tear down our homes? Well, he has just made a public declaration that he will not be doing so."

Katara hops to her feet, "Really? He said that?! The protests worked then?!"

Gran chuckles, "Maybe, but most importantly, you can be at ease now, my dear."

The young lady hugs her grandmother again, "Finally… finally!"

"It's just a temporary solution and delay to a serious problem." They turn to see Sokka entering from the back door. He shrugs, "It's only a matter of time before he will have to do something about Midtown, or it will be just another old scar, like the slums."

"Sokka, you support the idea of tearing down our home?" Katara shakes her head at him, mouth agape.

"No, I agree that we could use remodeling and stuff. It will work for us in the long run."

Seeing Katara's nostrils flare, Gran stands up and places a hand on her shoulder. "Enough bickering you two. Katara, let's start dinner. Sokka, go finish whatever it is you were doing."

Once her brother is out of ear shot, Katara glances over her shoulder as she washes her hands. "I can't believe Sokka wants to see our home destroyed…"

"It isn't that dear, it's just, your brother wants to see a better life for all of us. He sees innovation as a means for that to happen."

As Gran sets the ingredients out on the table, Katara pulls a pot and pan out of the cupboards, just in time to hear a loud snap from outside, followed by a squeak, and lastly, a cheer. Sokka rushes in seconds later, holding a bundle over his shoulder. Katara recoils and scoots behind Gran's stunned form. Sokka drops the bundle on the table, a wide grin on his face as the women flinch away once the entity in the cloth moves around.

Sokka puts a firm hand on it, leans casually against the table and smirks, "What did I tell you? I did it. I caught our little backyard critter!"

"Please tell me it isn't some kind of rodent…" Katara whispers.

Sokka removes the cloth over it. The women look in awe at the tiny creature. It's fuzzy, with beady dark eyes, little hooves for feet and stubs on its head. Sokka presents it to them in circle of life fashion.

"Awwwwww!" Katara squeals coming over to pat its head. "He's so cute!"

"Now, now, Katara. No getting attached to dinner! I need you guys to skin him and cook him." Sokka shoves the critter into Katara's arms. "I expect dinner ready by 7 at the latest."

He strides away, waving over his shoulder at them and exiting the kitchen. Katara frowns in his direction, "How did I get stuck with such a chauvinistic pig for a brother?!"

Gran sighs.

Katara looks down at the fuzzy cub in her arms and smiles, her eyes swimming with warmth. "Don't you worry, I won't cook you." She caresses it's fur and massages the space between it's ears. It squeaks and nuzzles further into her embrace.

"What on earth are you going to do with it, Katara?" Gran asks, watching her go back outside. "It looks like it's only a month old!"

Katara walks over to the short, wooden fence separating her home from the neighbors. Closer to the alley, there are plants in various stages of wilt and color, many have already fallen to the ground.

Katara plucks some leaves and sniffs them. "These are peppermint plants. Is this why you're here?" She kneels down and feeds it by hand. It eats all the leaves and licks her palm. "You know, Gran grows lots of peppermint plants and keeps them in the basement throughout the winter. She says they ward off gopher mice." It looks up at her and wags it's little stub of a tail, "Tell you what, you come back here whenever you like and I'll bring you a treat. How's that sound?" It squeaks and snuggles her. With a giggle, she releases the little critter onto the solid ground of their backyard. She strokes its fur once more. "Go on now. And don't worry, I won't let Sokka catch you again, OK?"

It squeaks and runs off into the brush behind their homes.

Katara's eyes wander over to her bike, idly laying against the back of the house.

"Katara, come now, let's start dinner!"

She glances back to the house and then to her bike once more. "Soon." She says, turns on her heels and returns to the house.

Months Pass…

"Thanks so much for letting that little monster go." Sokka drawls, glaring at his sister as they walk to school towards the end of the week. "Ever since you did, he keeps coming back! He's taunting me!"

"Sorry, not sorry." She giggles, holding her books together against her lap as they walk.

"I thought he would hibernate over the winter, but nope. He comes back every freaking day. Hmph, little bugger is so hard to catch now." He begins to grumble under his breath, but then looks at his sister, "What's with your hair?"

"What do you mean?"

"You're wearing it loose from the braid now."

Katara smiles, "You know… with Yu Dao changing so much… I thought it was time for a change. If this city is changing, I have to be willing to change too."

Sokka raises a brow at her. "Not sure what that has to do with your hair, but OK."

She turns to him, "But speaking of hard to catch, do all the Yu Dao Middle School kids wear the standard cobalt uniform? I can't remember."

"They should…? Why can't you remember? That was like what, two years ago for you?"

"I just want to be sure."

"Who do you know that's in middle school?"

"No one… I just, I need to see Master Pakku after school today."

"You know, curfew is still a thing." She nods, "Alright, I'll walk you there but we gotta get home immediately afterwards."

"Good, because I won't go another day without him."

Sokka grows pale, "What? Another day without who? Master Pakku?!"

"No… Don't worry about it, it's nothing. I just made up my mind about something."

Her brother trails behind as she walks on, head held high and gaze straight ahead. His eyes narrow, "Better not be another boy."

On a sunny day in March, hills teaming with daffodils are in full bloom. Mounds of yellow blossoms overlook the back schoolyard of Yu Dao Middle School. The mountains of Yu Dao are in the distance, the peaks kiss the clouds. The shores of the Yu Dao bay are also within view, a vast descent from the daffodil hills.

As the other middle school kids linger around the school yard, playing and chatting amongst each other, a lone young man lays in the fields. He can see everything unfolding below, but remains hidden amongst the blooms. The sun gently glows over him. He smiles, arms folded behind his head.

Not a cloud in the sky.

He closes his eyes.

His brows crease as a shadow falls over him.

He blinks open one eye.

Closes it.

Both eyes snap open.

She is leaning over him.

"Whoa!"

He scrambles to his feet, looking at her with wide eyes.

They stand 5 feet apart.

He shakes the yellow petals from his wild hair and then straightens up.

They are equal height.

Her lips are parted, but she says nothing. He swallows roughly.

The wind stirs their hair and clothes.

"Hi…" she speaks, a couple octaves above a whisper.

He gives a crooked smile, tilting his head, "Hey."

Their eyes connect and are unmoving.

Water meets Air.

"Aang…" she breathes, the weight of his name is airy and blissful. He shivers at the sound. "I've been looking all over for you."

He looks away.

"It's been months… I thought you would at least try and find me… but you didn't." She pauses and then steps forward. "So I came to find you."

His eyes find the ground. He uses his shoe to play with a trampled bloom.

"Why did you leave me that day?"

"There was police everywhere and -"

"The day you fell on top of me."

"I-I don't know what you're talking about…"

Katara gasps, "You're going to deny it? Aang, please, it's just the two of us. Don't make this hard for me. You have no idea what I had to do to find you."

He blinks and shifts his weight on his feet, "How… did you find me?"

Katara takes in some air and smiles, approaching him. Aang stiffens in the middle of backing away. "It wasn't easy. Of course, Master Pakku helped a lot." The mention of his name causes Aang's jaw to drop. Katara nods, "Yep, he had a lot to say about Mister Aang. Mister top of the eighth grade class." She takes another step. He is stuck. "Mister popular. Mister prone to skipping class. Mister wise beyond his years." She giggles, "And probably his favorite thing to talk about was, how much of a troublemaker you are."

Aang's stormy hues dash everywhere as she meets him face to face.

"I told him, that just couldn't be true. Aang's a good boy." She taps her chin, "Then again, you did fall out of the sky on top of me, then disappeared for a year. And then next time I see you, you whisk me away from danger… only to disappear again."

"Uh…"

"You're a master at being evasive…" She pokes his chest with her finger, "Well, what do you have to say for yourself, mister?"

Aang swoops down and plucks a daffodil, holding it in front of her face, "Please accept this beautiful flower as my sincerest apology."

She smirks, taking the flower, giggling and then sticking it in his hair. She sighs, smile falling from her lovely face. "Aang, are you hiding from me?"

He looks dismayed, "No, never."

"Good. Because now that I know where to find you, I'm never letting you get away from me again."

Aang blushes and rubs the back of his head.

"Are you real, Aang?"

He huffs a laugh, "Sure am!"

She smiles, her shoulders loosening. She kneels down, sitting on the blossoms beneath them. Aang joins her, resuming his previous position with his arms folded behind his head. Her gaze travels to the kids playing in the schoolyard below. Aang's hooded eyes study her form in silence, eventually resting fully on her hair as it pools behind her, brushing against his arm whenever the breeze picks up.

"Don't stare so much."

"Sorry." He smirks and turns his attention to the clouds.

"Aang, does anyone else know you have powers?"

"I don't have powers."

She scowls over her shoulder at him. He doesn't see this as his eyes have fallen shut. "I know you do."

"You mention powers a lot around me. Do you have powers, Katara? Is that why you're so eager to know if I do?"

She smirks, "Maybe." She turns and lays on her stomach, inching close to his face. Her nose grazes his cheek and his eyes shoot open. He tenses again. "How do you have powers?"

"I don't have powers, Katara! I'm just your average everyday guy with a dream."

"And what's your dream, Aang?"

"To have a dream."

She laughs. "You're such a terrible liar!" She presses her nose against his cheek. His cheeks grow scarlet. "Your voice is different from when we last met."

"I-Is that a bad thing?"

She shakes her head, moving away from him. "No, it's smoother… deeper. Soothing even. It's nice."

A crooked grin comes to his face, "Your hair is longer."

Katara runs her fingers through her thick tresses and hides a blush behind them. "Yeah… Happy belated birthday, by the way." He tilts his head at her. "That night we met, I remember your friend saying your birthday was coming up the next week. It's been a while, but I remembered."

"Yeah. I turned 14 on September 28th."

"My birthday just passed too."

"Oh, when was it?"

"February 17th. I turned 16."

Aang smiles, "Happy belated birthday, Katara."

The school bell rings. She and Aang stand up. "I better get back to school too…" she says, brushing the blooms from her skirt.

"Yeah…" they pause. "Hey, high school gets out at three right?" She nods. "Why don't you meet me after school? We can hang out!"

Katara blinks "Really?"

"Of course! You still have your bike right? We can ride around for a while and I'll walk you home before curfew!"

"That does sound nice…" She nods, then gasps, "You do remember that day! You little liar!" She hits at him, but he ducks and takes off down the hill.

Aang laughs all the way down the hill, "I'll meet you at the skatepark at three thirty!"

Giggles erupt from Katara, "Ok! You better be there!"

"I will!"

Katara grins and skips off back to Yu Dao High.

Afternoon rain comes as a gentle flurry. Katara stands beneath her umbrella, holding her bike at her side by the handlebar. Many others are exploring the park around her. She lingers closer to the side of the park by the skate zone.

Just as she props her umbrella against her chest to start texting, she hears the sound of a skateboard approaching. She looks up just in time to see Aang roll up, kick off his skateboard, and catch it in his hand before grinning at her.

She smirks at him, "Oh, there you are. I thought you stood me up."

"What? You? No way." He shakes the rain from his messy hair.

Katara comes over to hold the umbrella over him. She touches his blazer and smiles, "Good, you're not too wet. You don't have a raincoat or anything?"

"What for?" He asks with a raised brow. "Rain is a part of nature. Feels good to have it on my skin!" He grins and steps back to throw his head back and spread out his arms.

Katara giggles and he takes the umbrella from her, holding it over them both. "I thought you liked rain too? Last time we met you were covered in it."

"Not by choice, trust me." She walks forward, holding her bike with two hands now. Aang follows her with the umbrella. "I was lost that day, remember? And that was a really strange day too. I don't remember seeing a cloud in the sky at all that day… yet out of nowhere, it just started pouring."

She trails off, looking into the distance ahead. There's a bike trail before them, with joggers coming around the loop. Aang comes up beside her. She blinks and then smiles at him, "Kind of a bad time to ride around, huh?"

"We can walk until the rain stops." Aang suggests.

"Sounds great! Now I get to know everything about you. Including your powers." She walks ahead, leaving an exasperated Aang to trail behind her.

They follow the trail. Soon, the sun begins to peak through the clouds, yet the rainfall continues. Both of them begin a series of glancing over the surroundings, taking in the views. The cherry blossoms are in full bloom, scattering all around them in the breeze and along the ground. Katara catches one in her hand and touches it with her finger, massaging the delicate petal.

"I love this time of year." Aang comments, catching a few blooms himself in his palm.

"Me too," Katara agrees. "It's so —"

"Beautiful."

Katara turns to him and notices his stare. His gaze appears far away as he reaches over and removes a bloom from her hair. She giggles, doing the same for him, although he has many more in his thick tresses than she does.

"You're so interesting, Aang." She remarks, as they resume their slow stride.

"I promise you I don't have powers."

She laughs, "I meant that you seem to like flowers. You were laying among the daffodils, you're admiring cherry blossoms and you smell like apples."

He chuckles, shrugging, "Yeah I…." He tilts his head, "Apples?"

She nods, "I noticed the day you carried me to safety."

"You know, I'm pretty sure that wasn't apples. Gyatso takes care of the apples in the fall so you must have smelled chamomile on me."

"Chamomile?"

"Yeah, me and Gyatso grow them on the farm. Gyatso's my guardian by the way." Katara's mouth parts in awe. Aang nods, "Yup, I'm a farm boy."

"No way. You live on a farm." Aang continues to nod. "What do you do on the farm?"

"We grow fruits, veggies and herbs. We also raise animals but not for eating or distributing. We're vegetarians. We raise them because they're really good at helping out around the farm and because they're friends."

"What kinds of animals do you raise?"

"Mostly flying lemurs, rabaroos, koala sheep, and sky bison. But we take in anything that needs a home." He grins.

"Wow…" she breathes. "I've never seen a sky bison before! Or a lemur!"

"You should stop by some time! Appa and Momo are two of my best friends and I'm sure they would love to meet you."

Katara beams at him, "I would love to."

Aang blushes and tilts his face away from her direction, "Soooo, what about you? What do you like?"

"I love to swim. I'm on the swim team at school."

"Oh cool! How good are you?"

She smirks, "The best of the best."

"Nice. Oh, so that's how you know Master Pakku." She nods, and he sulks, "That guy is a pain. He's always nagging me about something."

"Funny, he calls you a pain too." She laughs. "He told me he coaches gym class alongside the swim team now so I assume that's how you know him?"

"Nah, we actually know each other through Gyatso." He sighs, "But that's a story for another time. What else do you do?"

She shrugs, "Well, I spend most of my days helping out my grandmother and cleaning up after my older brother, Sokka. I do most of the cooking and cleaning actually. But when I'm not doing that, I'm usually watching TV or reading something. What about you?"

"I like skateboarding and doing parkour and free running."

"You do parkour?!"

"Yeah," he snickers, "That's what me and Kuzon were doing the first day we met you."

She frowns, "The first time we met, you fell out of the sky on top of me."

"I don't ever remember that happening." He says with a smile.

She swats at him and he scoots away, returning quickly to cover her under the umbrella again. "That sounds so dangerous though. No wonder your palms were all scratched up…"

"It is dangerous, but it's fun so…" he shrugs. "Kuzon puts up a bunch of TikToks of us. You can check them out if you want."

"I'm not a social media person." She admits, "It just isn't for me. I prefer my privacy."

"Same here. I mean, Shoji made me a Snapchat last year but I don't use it. I got too much living to do than to be stuck on the internet."

Katara smiles. Her phone pings and she checks to see a text from Sokka, reminding her about curfew. She groans, checking the time. Sure enough, curfew is an hour away. She sighs, tucking her phone away back into her purse. "It's almost curfew…" she mumbles.

"Yeah, sorry we didn't get to ride together." Aang says, making a face.

"No biggie. We'll have plenty more chances."

He perks up, "Really?!"

"Of course! I'm not letting you out of my sight ever again, mister. And don't even think about running off somewhere because I'll track you down again."

Aang shrinks under the intensity of her stare, "Y-yes ma'am."

She smiles and walks ahead, "Come on, you said you would walk me home, remember?"

"Of course!"

As they near her house, the conversation between the two has long died down. They walk shoulder to shoulder. Around them, other kids have begun to scatter, running into their homes at the calls of their parents. The rain continues, although it has slowed to a gentle trickle. Aang continues to cover Katara with the umbrella, but he peeks out from under it, smiling up at the sky as if playing peak a boo. Katara giggles at his antics.

"I really have a great time with you, Aang."

"Likewise."

She pulls out her phone, "What's your number? You know, so we can hang out again."

He punches his number into her phone while she holds the umbrella. "Reception is kinda wonky on the farm but I'll definitely text you or whatever once it comes through." He laughs.

She nods in understanding. "You have no idea how happy I am that you're a real person and not some figment of my imagination."

"You actually thought that?"

"Not often someone falls out of the sky on top of you."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Grrr…" She balls her fists. He grins sheepishly, and hands her back her phone. "I guess there's only one way to officially put my fears to rest though." She steps onto the porch, leaving the umbrella with him. "Wait here."

Aang watches her go inside the house, then peeks around the corner of the house to the backyard.

Katara emerges from the house with a grumpy Sokka in tow. "Who exactly am I supposed to be meeting?"

She shoves him out onto the porch, "My new friend."

"Friend, right. It's a guy isn't it?"

Katara frowns at him and looks over his shoulder. Horror spreads over her features. Aang has disappeared! She shoves Sokka out of the way and runs down the stairs. Her umbrella lies propped against the stairs, and Aang is nowhere to be found.

"No…" she whispers. "Aang! Aang where are you?!"

"Who's Aang?" Sokka asks, his frustration evident in his tone. "Ugh, never mind, I'm going inside. Come on Katara, you know we gotta be inside before curfew or Gran's gonna kill us."

Katara turns to him with tears staining her cheeks. "No, Sokka, please wait!" She runs up the stairs to stop him from entering the house. "Sokka please, I promise I'm not —"

"Katara?"

She gasps, whirling around.

There's Aang.

Stranding at the bottom of the stairs.

Cradling a baby moose lion in his arms.

"Look what I found in you guys backyard!" Aang rubs it's belly with his finger, "Cute as a button, isn't he?" He then grows pale, "But you guys might have a serious problem if the mom shows up."

"Sokka!" She cries out, yanking him outside while he shrieks from the force. "Look!" She points down at Aang. "Can you see him?"

Her joy drops when he frowns and turns quickly to her. "See what?" He asks with an edge.

She is crestfallen.

"You gotta be kidding me. I spend months setting up traps and tracking him down… only for my sister to bring me out here to see this kid holding Fufucuddlipoops like it's the easiest thing in the world." While he starts sulking, Katara's joy returns, tenfold. "Somebody up there really hates me."

"I knew it!" Katara races down the stairs.

Fufucuddlipoops leaps out of Aang's arms onto Katara's shoulder just as her entire body weight crashes into Aang.

Aang's entire body goes stiff as her arms wrap around his neck. Immediately, he sees Sokka glare down at him. Aang frantically waves his arms at his sides, an awkward and nervous grin on his face.

"I knew it. I knew it was just a matter of time before you brought a boy home." Sokka grumbles, coming down the stairs, "And not just any boy, another bad boy."

Katara pulls away from Aang and frowns at her brother, "Aang's not a bad boy!"

"Look at him! He's gotta be a bad boy if he's covered in tats at his age!"

"These are part of my culture. Everyone gets them when they turn 12."

"Culture, yeah right! What culture is this?" Sokka pulls out his phone.

"The Patolan Nomads."

"Like the Patola Mountains between Yu Dao and Cranefish Town?" Katara asks.

"Yup."

Sokka punches it into his search engine and narrows his eyes at Aang, "I'm gonna check on this."

Aang smiles and removes Fufucuddlipoops from Katara's shoulder, "In the meantime, what're you guys gonna do about him? It's only a matter of time before he gets bigger and causes problems in the neighborhood."

"I've been caring for him," she admits, causing Sokka to flare up in exasperation, "But all I can feed him is peppermint plants that my Gran grows in the basement."

"So that's why your sticking around here, aren't cha?" Aang tickles its belly, "Alright, well since he's basically been domesticated at this point, there's little chance he'll survive in the wild without being poached. I'll just take him back to the farm with me. Gyatso and I will take care of him."

"Oh Aang, that's so kind of you."

"Yeah, thanks for getting rid of that fuzzy little monster, arrow boy."

Katara frowns and grabs her cranky brother by his ear, leading him back up the stairs and into the house. She shoves him inside and closes the door behind her. Turning on her heels, she jogs down the stairs and throws her body weight at Aang once again. Fufucuddlipoops jumps onto Aang's head in the nick of time.

"Thank you, Aang."

"F-For what?"

She presses her cheek against his, and rubs their faces together.

"For being real."

Aang smiles, a blissful sigh escapes him as he melts into her embrace.

Hands firmly at his sides.

A/N: And now, FFNet and AO3 are officially caught up to each other!

Here's chapter 5! Next chapter is a really long one and is also full of Kataang (and Sukka) stuff. The delay is because my schedule is so full this month. Between work, family, friends and church, I am cramming in as much writing as possible in between. It won't be long before CH6 is dropped though!

I hope you guys are enjoying the normalcy while it lasts because things are about to pick up, big time! Also, don't worry, Kataang is not going to happen quickly in this fic. I assure you, it's going to be a WHILE. But we're going to enjoy lots of little teases throughout! These two are about to have a serious slow burning friends to lovers, Kataangsty romance in here. I hope your ready for it!