Volume 2: Virgin Healer Part 2: Awakening! A legnedary power is found!
By Danielle Franklin

x o x o x

Watery sunlight filtered through her bamboo reed blinds, waking her. Katara squirmed beneath her many down feather coves, arms above her head as she strecthed her arms. Upon feeling motion besides him, Aang to began to wriggle in the heat of the covers. "Morning..." He said with a smile as he emerged from the mass of quilts. "Mornin', love..." She said giddily as she bent down and kissed him on the lips. "Mmhhmm..." He moaned happily into her kiss. "Love you..." He said after she withdrew from him and walked over to her giant wardrobe. Katara looked back at him, smiling suductively. "I love you..." She said in a sly tone as she slipped her sleeping robe off her shoulders, letting it drop to the teak floor below.

Katara then slowly turned to open the massive cedar doors of her dresser, exposing many fine linens. Silks of every color, finely woven sashes,
woolen scarves for winter, many guilded hair combs made from percious metals, hair clasps carved from the most rare of woods, bangles and jewels made from the finest materials money could buy. When she was finished dressing, she looked more divine than the moon spirit herself.
Her hair, braided and swept up into a giant bun at the top of her head, glossy copper curls fell into her face, all held together by a finely carved ivory hair piece. Her tunic, an elegant shade of turqiouse acompanyed by bolt of rare and exquiste pale blue air nomad silk that had been spun by the hands of Aang's ancestors more than 100 years ago, gracefully drapped over her shoulder as a sash.

Aang's breath was taken away once his eyes locked on her. "Is that?" He asked, stunned as she slowly walked up to her. "Yeah! I bought it in the village with Hina." Katara said with a smile as he walked up to her, fingering her sash. "I haven't seen this stuff since I lived with Gyatso and the other monks..." He said with contempt as he continued to handle the delicate fabric. Suddenly, his breath caught in his throat. "This fabric"
He said with surprise as he grabbed a handful of it, rubbed it aganist his face. "It was hers..." He moaned under his breath as he took the silk from his wife, bringing it to his face, inhailing the now faded scent of his past.

"I remeber..." He said sadly to Katara. "Remeber what?" Katara asked worridly. "It was my mothers... she was the only women in the whole off the Eastern and Wastern temples bold enough to deviate from the tradtional yellows and oranges of our people... she would always wear blues... she told me they reminded her of the sky..." He said sadly as he gave the fabic back to his wife. By the time Katara recieved the fabric back, she was in tears. "Do you want it?" She asked as she handed it to him. "No... you wear it. She would have wanted you to." He said with a sincere smile and placed a gental kiss on her lips. "She was a great women, my mother..." He said, slowly slipping back into memories of his childhood.

Katara walked up to him, wrapping her arms around his bare chest. "I bet she was..." She said with a sigh as she hugged him, looking up into his steely gray eyes. "I love you..." She said in a whisper as she stood on tiptoe and placed a caressing kiss on his lips. Aang said nothing, only melted into her touches. "I better get Miho some breakfast before she gets into a fit." Katara said as she broke away from her husband. Aang nodded,
sitting back down on the bed, drawing the covers back over his bare shoulders.

x o x o x

Katara entered the kitchen to find Miho on the floor playing with her doll. "Good morning, my sweet girl!" Katara said happily as Miho jumped into her mothers arms. "Good morning mommy!" Miho shouted with a giant smile as she planted a giant kiss on her mother's cheek. Katara laughed at her daughters actions. "Such a sweet girl..." Katara said with a smile as she let her child down. "Can I have breakfast!" Miho shouted enthusiastically.
"Yes! But keep quite, daddy went back to bed..." Katara said as she went to prepare her child's meal.

Just as she was whisking her eeg whites with a pare of wooden chopsticks, she dropped the bowl at the sight before her. Yolk ran down her fresh tunic. Aang just walked through the door, Pakku and half a dozen water tribe nobles and sentry in toe. "What's all this about?" She asked with worry as she gazed upon the look of her husband's face. "Lady Katara Mizuho of the House of Nagata, you have been summoned to the royal court of Chief Arnook Shuhei Kusunoki II and Chiefessten Sawako Madoka Kusunoki I to serve as the Virgin Healer of Chikai, under the great blessings of the moon spirit and the ocean. We are here to take you to your new home." Pakku said in his royally arogant voice.

"What are you talking about!" Katara asked as she bent down to pick up her fallen bowl. "Lady Katara, we are here to deliver you to the great god and goddess of the heavens. Please, lady mistress, serve our lands, protect our people and our harvest. We bow to you." A noble added to Pakku's words in a respecting voice as the whole group fell to bended knee before her. "Lady Moon, we are here to deliver you to the staircase to heaven, which you will climb and recieve the blessing of the moon and ocean at the kingdom of heaven. Lady, we beg you, protect us from the savage earth workers!" The noble further begged.

Katara was stunned out of her mind. "But I'm not a guardian! Or any type of handmaid to the moon princess for that matter! You all are mistaken. I'm just a coutier of the southern water tribe. Nothing more than 25th in line to recieve the crown on the Cheifessten." She said as she wipped up her mess of egg. "Lady mistress, we have traveled great distances to come her. Risked our own lives to you, to deliver you to the goddess! Please, your ladyship, join us on the palinquin! Ride with us back to the great frozen city of Chikai!" Pakku demanded as he too bowed before her. Upon reciving his words, Katara fell to her knees. "Master! I dare not stand before you while you are on bended knee!" She said appologetically. "Lady, you are no longer my pupil, but the sacred handmaid of Lady Moon. Do not bow before a mere water bender! Do not disgrace Lady Moon!" Pakku said in a tone unreckonizable to Katara.

Katara slowly rose at his words, her body trembling with fear. "Why? Why have I been chosen as the sacred handmaid of Lady Moon? Why me? Out of thousands off girls in the capitol city?" She said, eyes adverting Aang's gaze. "You have shown most passion and dexterity when traning under me my guidence. You show more purity of soul and body than any women in Chikai. An oracle has been shown to us from the godess. She has chosen you, a friend from her past life. A person to recieve Lady Moon in her physical being. You, Lady Mistress, are the guardian diety of Chikai. Please, join us on our long jouney home." Pakku said as he bowed even lower, showing his respect for her.

Katara was speechless. She gazed upon the anxecious faces of the nobles, sentry, even her own husband. "What if I refuse this gift? Refuse my oath to Lady Moon?" Katara asked, standing tall, ready to recieve her answer. "If you deny the will of Lady Moon, death is most certain under her command." A noble said dryly. "I see..." Katara said with worry, eyes toward the ground, then at her husdand. She looked at him, waiting for a responce. When one finally came, it was but a nudge from him, pushing her forward. She looked to him, to make sure he was sure of his actions. She got her answer. The look on his face said every thing: Yes.

"Lords and Sentry, I acept the will of Lady Moon. Deliver me to my high pristess, novices, and handmaids." She said, trying to make her voice as commanding as possible with out sounding gaudy. "My lady!" The crowd shouted in recongnition. With those words, she was ushered out the door.
"Lady, collect what you desire. You shall not come back to this place." Pakku said as he bowed to Aang, leaving the manor to rest in the palenquin.

She slowly walked to her room, grabbing the things she loved most: Her hair combs from Aang, two silver bangles from Hina, the bolt of old air nomad silk that had belonged to her long passed mother-in-law, her wedding band. All these things she stored in a tiny draw string bag. Katara clutched the back possesively to her chest as she came out of the room and into the entry way.

With a muffled good bye and a stream of tears, she was gone.

x o x o x

Katara gazed upon herself in a full length mirror. She was dressed in a finely woven silk robe, dyed many hues of green and turqiouse, stitched with the patterns of maples and cranes. Her hair, scented with myrrh was piled high upon the crown of her head. Many glossy curls fell around her face. On her neck was a large glittering gold and aquamarine necklace that slowly brought her down. Twinkling jade earings hung from her lobes.
Her face held a solemn look. Even benth her kohl lined eyes, tears fell at her look.

"Lady Mistress, it is time for you to decend the staricase to heaven." A women called from the doorway. "Yes, Sayaka." Katara said in a deft tone.

x o x o x

To Be Continued in Part Three: Kingdom of Heaven! Romance of the Novice!