Katara whipped around to see four Earth guards, all smiling. Her eyes widened with shock and fear as she jumped up, still hyperventilating. She turned and started to run down the beach. "Help!" She screamed. The guards were following her. She could hear their pounding footsteps as they came closer and closer. "No!" She cried and ran as fast as her legs could carry her. But it wasn't fast enough. She heard the sound of a large object being thrown through the air, a nauseating crack, and a sharp pain as she was thrown to the ground and crushed as she screamed before her world went black.

Aang heard a girl's voice "I don't care! Go ahead! Take me!"

Oh no. She's not alone…Aang quickened his pace as he heard a low grunt reply "Gladly."

It was growing louder. "Help!"

"Katara!" Aang pushed off the ground with a huge burst of air. He flew above the treetops just long enough to see Katara running away from no less than four guards, and they were gaining on her.

He hurried out onto the beach as he heard her cry out, "No!"

Aang followed them as fast as he could on foot now, not knowing how dangerous they were. But knowing he would'nt be able to catch up with them even with his Airbending. Suddenly a scream rang out and Aang saw something horrible unfold in front of his very eyes. He watched as though in slow motion. One guard pull a huge boulder out of the ground and send it hurdling at Katara where it made contact Aang never knew. He shut his eyes tight when it made impact and opened them after the scream died, only to find a guard lifting Katara's limp body.

"No, you don't!" Aang shouted. He felt himself lose control as his Avatar was activated and his arrows and eyes started to glow white-blue.

The guards eyes grew wide in fear and Aang caused a huge swirling mass of powerful wind to throw them one-hundred yards away. It wasn't until he remembered Katara did he calm down. It took a moment for him to regain control of his body but as soon as he could walk he ran to Katara. By some miricle she had only been thrown fifty feet or so, but she still was in bad shape. Aang felt tears well up in his eyes as he fell to his knees beside her. He pushed the hair out of her face only to find his hand covered in warm blood. "No. Katara, please…I'm so sorry." He supported her head and lifted her torso and pressed his lips against hers. Even with Katara unconscious, it was better than any kiss he'd ever gotten, even from Marie. Of course it was not saying much seeing as Marie's was one of the three or four kisses he'd ever gotten. He put Katara back on the ground and sat back with his hands in his lap, palms up. He gasped when he saw that neither on his hands had anything on them. He shifted Katara so her head was on his lap and felt around her neck, there wasn't anything there. He gasped as all her cuts and scrapes disappeared, the blood vanished from her clothes, and she slowly opened her eyes. "Katara? Are you okay?"

"Get away from me!" Katara jumped up and glared at Aang. "I saw what happened! Why don't you go back to you're precious Marie?" She spat.

Aang hung his head miserably. I should have known… "Katara, nothing happened!"

"Yeah right. I don't believe that at all." She turned and stopped, before heading toward the water. "I'm leaving."

"Wha-wha-what?" Aang got up looking at her in incredulity.

"You heard me." She pulled the ribbon out of her hair so it hung around her shoulders.

"No! Stop Katara!" She made her way into the water until it was around her waist.

"What?" She turned to face him.

He ran up to her and pulled her into a dip, kissing her with his eyes closed. Katara eyes widened in disbelief before closing from enjoyment and kissing him back.

"What?" Aang pulled her up as they broke apart to find Sokka standing on the beach, with his jaw nearly touching the ground. "You-you-you guys were-"

Katara giggled as Aang blushed. "You know, I seem to remember a little something happening with Suki a while back-"

"You leave Suki out of this!" Sokka shouted suddenly turning bright crimson. "Get over here!"

"Come on Aang. Let's go see Prince Pucker-up." Aang muffled a laugh as he followed Katara to the beach. She's not mad anymore…

"Katara! You know that you're to young to date!"

"Relax Sokka. It was a simple kiss. And I'm coming of marrying age soon." Katara said simply putting up her hair.

"Marrying age? Yeah, in what-two years?" Sokka seemed to still have a hint of light pink as he circled around the rock Katara was sitting on. Aang had stood off to the side thinking it was better to stay out of the argument.

"I'm still not of marrying age!"

"Yes, but you still kissed Suki."

"Katara! This isn't about Suki! It's about you kissing the Avatar two years before you're supposed too!"

"Actually, sixteen is the age your supposed to be when you marry. There's no age limit on dating, much less kissing Sokka. And relax. It was nothing more than a simple kiss." Katara finished putting up her hair and had moved on to fingering her necklace coolly. Not noticing how Aang's face fell when he heard what she said. But she seemed to understand because she flashed him a small mechivious smile for a second or two.

"Still! You're missing the point!"

"You're fighting a losing battle Sokka! There is no point! You're just upset because I kissed a boy other than Dad before you became sixteen!" Katara walked off leaving Sokka the way they had first seen him as Aang followed her.

"You guys have marrying age?" Aang asked curiously in although what he though was a casual tone.

"Mmhm." Katara replied.

"Any other marriage customs?"

"Yeah, lots of them."

"Like what?" Aang asked hopefully. No harm in asking.

"Well, the man has to ask the woman, and when he proposes they have to have been on at least fifteen dates. To propose he has to give the woman a necklace like this one, to symbol engagment. If she accepts they have to get married after six months of preperation have passed. So they can have time to pray to the Moon God about all sorts of things, like, good fortune, many children, a healthy relationship, things like that. Then on the day of the wedding, the woman or man can't see each other, and the bride has to wear her necklace and have a bouquet with white roses in it. After the wedding she burns the roses on the alter of the Moon God to give as a sacrifice. That's about it other than the fact of having to be sixteen to marry."

"Does the man have to be sixteen?"

"No, only the woman."

"Cool." Aang grinned. "Hey, about what happened on the beach, I-"

"What is there between you and Marie?" Katara stopped suddenly and faced him.

"Nothing. She kissed me, not the other way around." Aang assured her.

Katara smiled suddenly and grabbed Aang's hand. "Come on!" She pulled him through the forest to a clearing. There was a little sunlight coming from the rooftop of trees. Aang watched as Katara climbed up onto a tree from a particularly low branch and reach to help him up. He took her hand and she helped up and they continued climbing until they could poke their heads out of the leaves and see they sky. Aang watched as she stepped slowly onto the leaves and disappear from his view. He stepped up after her and gasped. They could see everything from up here.

"This is impossible!" He said in awe.

Katara laughed. "Well, that's saying something isn't it? Coming from someone who lived in an ice burg for one hundred years and finally turned up with a Flying Bison. And who can fly."

"But, how?"

"How can we walk on the trees you mean? I don't know really. I just figured it out." Katara smiled at him and sat down leaning on her hands with her feet in front of her. "Mmm." She sighed as though talking to herself before a skeptical look crossed her face. "Wha-Aang, do you smell that?"

Aang sniffed. A smokey smell filled his body as he took deep breaths of what was supposed to fresh air. "Yeah, what-" Aang's eyes widened. Oh no. "Katara, the forest's burning down."