A/N. I mention somethings that happened in the previous story, especially during the chapter when Toph joined them! So if you haven't read those, I included a little recap in the story, don't worry!

I don't own Avatar the Last Airbender

A week. It had been a week since capturing the ship, and there was no change in Aang's state…

The tribe had settled in some kind of routine. Sokka had discovered how the ship worked, and now, they were making steady progress through the Jasmine River. If her brother was to be believed, they would get to the Eastern Lake today or tomorrow.

It was strange to see her family and friends dressed as the enemy. How her father and Bato walked around as officers of the Fire Nation Navy. How Sokka was wearing that hated uniform.

But the strangest thing was that… The tribe was enjoying it. From the room where she had been hauled up this week, she could hear the laughter. And the jokes. She had heard old Gilak chuckle about the crazy son of the Chief, who had come up with this idea.

With the tribesmen were now some of the Freedom Fighters, The Duke and Pipsqueak. Katara had met them that the first day after capturing the ship when she had emerged from the room. She had finally slept. Was it because she was less worried now about Aang, or just because she had been exhausted, she didn't know. But after that first night of good sleep, she felt her state of mind was a bit better.

Sokka had told the two Freedom Fighters what had happened, the death of Jet and that Aang had been injured. He hadn't told them how or why, but the two boys had come to visit the airbender, and had promised to make him a surprise for when he woke up. She had appreciated it.

What she didn't appreciate was the long line of visitors each day. Sokka still came each morning and evening to wash Aang, and Toph came to sit with them at least an hour each day. Those, Katara could accept. But the line of water tribe men who came to ask about the Avatar… That was less enjoyable. There were some nice visits, like Gilak, who asked about the airbender and what he was like. But then there was Iqaluk, who just asked what the Avatar was capable of.

Then there was Kranook, one of the oldest warriors. He had always been a little… conservative. Her Gran Gran had always said that he had been born old and grumpy. But now she understood. The first visit of Kranook had been interesting. The man had come in, without knocking, and had asked about the Avatar, as if he was entitled to know about it. Katara had just said he should leave, because she was busy with said Avatar.

And then… He had begun his preaching. That it was unbecoming o the Chief's daughter to act like this with a foreigner that the tribesmen were gossiping about the two of them. Of course, without foundation, because, as a good water tribe woman, she would be capable of resisting… exotic fancies.

At that moment, she had thrown him out, with the clear message to never come back.

And now, and the seventh day of the voyage on the ship, she was yet again undoing the bandages around Aang's torso. As she was doing so, Katara smiled at the short hair that had begun to grow on the airbender's head. She had known he was capable of growing hair, but this was the longest she had ever seen it. It was dark, but not the jet black that Toph had. There had also been some fuzz on his chin, but that, she had removed, because… Well, she didn't like it. Katara had hesitated to shave his head, but Sokka had said that it could help to hide his identity. And… well, she wasn't against it. Aang with hair was… interesting.

When the bandages were gone, she looked at the wound on his back. It was largely just a pink and red scar, thanks to the healing she had done. Day after day. Hour after hour. Minute after minute. Nonstop. Now, it looked like a sort of pink scar, stretching over his lower back. It was ugly, and broke his tattoo… That was something she hated. Katara hated that the Fire Nation had destroyed yet again something of his culture. There was not one person in the Nations now, with unblemished Air Nomad tattoos… Spirits, how she hated that.

How she hated Azula for having done that.

Sighing, Katara began to put new bandages around Aang. As she was finishing that, there was a soft knock on the door.

"Come in!"

Her brother entered, and Katara still felt the apprehension of seeing him in red. He had let the hair at the sides of his head grow out, so that now, he was sporting something a bit more similar to the topknots that the Fire Nation used.

"Hey Sis… How are you?" He asked, sitting down in the chair at the desk.

This had also been a recurring thing. Sokka, coming into the room, to talk to her. It was mostly just boring stuff about the running of the ship, or how Bato was struggling with the kitchen. He had also told her that Momo had begun to terrorize the supplies storage.

"Alright." It was the same answer as always. It was not alright, but to explain all of that… well, that would be a long conversation.

"We are going to dock at the town at the entrance of the lake. We have seen a Fire Nation flag above the townhall, so we suspect it has been occupied. But with a bit of luck, we could pass off as Fire Nation soldiers." Sokka explained, while he fixed his eyes on the airbender behind her. Katara had remarked how her brother had begun to avoid looking her in the eye. Why, she could guess : he was afraid of seeing the same anger as he had that night when taking the ship.

"We are going to buy some supplies with the money found in the storage. There was a small fortune, probably for the salaries of the men. Would you like to come with? Some fresh air and distractions could do us all some good…"

She had become more comfortable with leaving Aang. At night, she had begun to sleep for longer periods of time, and he stretched her legs twice a day on the deck. So… why not?

She knew why not. Her dress was ruined, burned at the hem, torn, and since a week, also covered in bloodstains. But there was nothing else…

"Sokka, I can't go out like this." She gestured at her clothes.

"Oh! I have a solution for that!" He grinned, and produced a bag, "You know how in the Fire Nation, female firebenders are also in their military? Well, in the storage room, there were also uniforms for them! Toph has already changed, and if you want to come with us… It will only be us. Gilak and Dad will buy the supplies, and we can walk around a bit. Just for a change of scenery…"

Her brother stood up, putting the bag on the desk.

Well… It couldn't hurt, could it? There would surely be volunteers to watch over Aang… And they would be too far…

"Alright, I'll come. Please, go outside, I'm going to change." She spoke, and saw the surprised look in Sokka's eyes.

"In front of Aang?"

"Not like he can see anything Sokka…" She sighed.

And also, nothing he hasn't seen before. But that, she didn't say aloud.

"Yeah… of course. Well, see you on the deck!" her brother seemed distracted, and quickly left the room. Katara shimmered out of her dress, standing in her bindings. She opened the bag and was relieved to see it was actually just some black pants, with a red shirt.

It was just a disguise. Nothing more. Katara had already dressed as an Earth Kingdom noble. So why not a Fire Nation soldier?

Because they were the enemy.

And yet, she put the clothes on. It felt good to have some clean, new clothes on her back, even if it was Fire Nation. Turning to the unconscious airbender, she bent down and kissed his forehead. Katara had not kissed him again since that night in the barn… And she craved to do so. But she wanted him to respond it, to answer her kiss with as much passion as he had done in the barn… Not the cold, still lips that were his now…

The waterbender walked out, through the corridor, going down the stairs, and emerged on the deck. The sun was high in the sky, and it was actually… warm. No wonder, because they were approaching the summer months. From where she stood, Katara could see the small town on the banks of the lake, where the river met the expanse of water. It wasn't that big, but it was busy, with at least two or three streets filled with shops. And Sokka had been right. From the small townhall, a big red flag was hanging from a pole, in the windless air.

"Ah, Sugar Queen! You are coming with us?" Toph's voice came from her left, and, turning around, she was met by the earthbender, who was wearing something similar to herself. It was weird to see her in these clothes… Behind her, Katara saw the two Freedom Fighters, surrounded by planks and wood shavings.

"Yeah… What are you doing?" She asked them, and she saw how The Duke looked up, with those big eyes underneath his helmet.

"Making a new saddle for Appa! Toph said you lost it, so, to surprise Aang, we are making a new one!" The boy said happily. Katara felt a real smile come on her face. It was a nice gesture, one that she could really appreciate. And travelling on Appa without a saddle had been more than dangerous.

"So, you changed! Can we go?" Her brother spoke, appearing from the other side of the command tower, "We are going with the boat, because there will only be five of us, and we don't want to attract too much attention."

Katara nodded, before turning to Pipsqueak and The Duke.

"Could you keep an eye on Aang? It would make me feel better if there were people with him."

"Yeah, of course!" The young boy bolted up and ran inside, followed, more slowly, by the big teen. Sokka and Toph turned around and walked to the other side of the deck, where her father and Gilak stood, talking. Katara followed more slowly.

She heard Sokka say something to Toph, who turned around with a big grin.

"You changed… In front of Aang?" the earthbender whispered.

"Yeah. So?" She was tired of these kinds of questions.

"And he didn't wake up at the sight? Spirits, when I tell him this, he will curse himself of having slept through it!" Toph laughed, and Katara saw how her brother made a face.

"Yeah, yeah, laugh all you want."

"Oh don't worry I will! Spirits the poor guy… Having dreamt of seeing you naked, and the moment he has the chance… He doesn't even get to see it!" Toph continued, not even caring that they were getting into earshot of her father, who looked up and smiled tentatively when seeing her.

"Please Toph… I can't get over the fact that I will have to deal with these kinds of things once he wakes up. Don't fuel my nightmares…." Sokka groaned.

"You could shut your eyes! I will have to deal with the vibrations!" The blind girl laughed.

Sokka wanted to continue, but was, thankfully, cut short by her father.

"Alright. We will be going now. Listen, Gilak and I will buy some supplies. You three won't go too far away and come back after an hour or two. Understood?" He said, still smiling.

"And no fighting, or attracting attention, or anything else. We know." Toph said shortly, without the amusement in her voice.

They got in the boat, and then, they lowered it, hitting the water. The boat had a small engine, so there was no rowing involved, luckily. Normally, Katara would have aided the boat with her waterbending, as Pakku had shown her while they travelled from the North Pole to the Earth Kingdom, but she decided against it. As Toph had said: They shouldn't attract attention to themselves.

After several minutes, they arrived at the docks. Her father had put on the captain's helmet and gear, so he looked more authoritative, and Gilak followed, also with a helmet with a faceplate, to hide his unusual blue-grey eyes.

"Papers?" A small man in green spoke at the end of the dock, but her father just shrugged, pointing to their ship.

"We are going to Ba Sing Se. Orders of Admiral Chan." He spoke. Katara had heard how some of the tribesmen had been training on speaking with the Fire Nation accent, but it had proven difficult. So, they had opted to use the dialect of the Western Earth Kingdom, the region which was under Fire Nation occupation since before the war. That would work.

"Oh… Oh yes, of course! Alright!" The small man sounded afraid, and Katara felt a pang of regret. They had to play a role, which included terrorizing the local population… But Spirits, she was asking herself how the Fire Nation soldiers did it... Did it make them feel powerful?

She climbed out of the boat, extending a hand to Toph, who could see on the boat, because it was metal, but Katara suspected that the wooden dock would be less optimal for the blind girl. The earthbender took her hand, and Katara kept it firmly in her grasp when they stood on the dock.

"W-will you need anything here?" The small man from the village stuttered, while bowing repeatedly to her father.

"We need supplies. We will pay, of course." He answered, but Katara saw the frown on the man's face. This town had never been under occupation, so he had surely thought the Fire Nation would just take the supplies they needed, instead of paying for it.

"Oh! Then, you are most welcome!" the Earth Kingdom man, turning around, walking towards a warehouse, gesturing for her father and Gilak to follow.

"Well, we have some time to ourselves… And some money! What about buying some things we need, and then, buy a decent meal… I love Bato, don't get me wrong, but putting him in the ship's kitchen was a mistake. The only thing he can make decently is sea prunes…" Sokka sighed, walking off without waiting for a response.

Katara and Toph followed, and she had to agree. Bato had made food for her, and some soup that she could feed Aang without much difficulty. But it hadn't been good. The spices of the Fire Nation and Bato cooking skills didn't match very well…

They stepped over the gap separating the wooden dock with the muddy street, Sokka nearly flew over to the first shop. It was good to see he hadn't lost his enthusiasm for shopping. She, however, followed more slowly, while releasing Toph's hand.

"Has he always been like this with shopping?" The blind girl sighed.

"Afraid so. You had to see him the first time we visited a town during our travels. He acted like a little kid who discovered something completely new. It was endearing the first time, until I realized he had spent nearly all the money we had. Now, I just let him loose in the first shop, then take his money." Katara looked at how her brother was looking at several bags and purses.

"And he has a weird love for bags."

"Weird guy… So, do you want to buy something?" Toph asked.

"Maybe I'll look inside a bookshop… It is quite boring in the room with Aang…"

"You do know you could come down, don't you? I can keep a foot on the ground to check on him."

"Yeah, I know… I just… I need to be there. If not for him… Then for myself." She sighed. Normally, she wouldn't be so open about these fears. But with Toph, it was no use, she would spot a lie from a mile away.

They managed to extract Sokka from the first shop, and they brought him to the next one, which sold some books and paper materials.

As she was looking through the piles of books, she recognized The Tales of Avatar Kyoshi. She had wanted to buy it in Ba Sing Se after the others had left… but yeah, that had been no use. Taking it, she also took a book about healing herbs. Maybe that could help? Before turning around and going to the counter to pay for the books, she saw another small pile of books. And one, with a yellow and orange back, that she recognized.

In Gaoling, before meeting Toph, Aang had tried a bending school. While he had followed the first lesson, she and her brother had gone to the book market of the town. Sokka had tried to buy a present for the airbender, but she had thought it was offensive and disgusting.

Air People's Ideas of Lovemaking

She had forbidden Sokka to buy it for Aang… And now, she hesitated. The waterbender had talked about this book to Aang, he had laughed and told her it was actually not offensive at all, and he had told her that all four temples had copies of it in their libraries… So… Maybe she could give it to him now… For academic purposes, of course.

Yeah, who was she kidding? She wanted to buy it and use it for future endeavours.

Quickly looking over her shoulder, she saw how Sokka was standing outside, talking to Toph. She quickly took the book, put in in between the two others and went to the counter. The man behind it raised his eyebrows on her choices of literature, but didn't say a word, probably because he was afraid she was Fire Nation. She paid for the books and exited the shop.

"Let's go eat! Dad said we had two hours, and I am hungry!" her brother exclaimed, seeing her arrive with the books under her arm.

"Why is your heart beating faster Sweetness?" Toph asked innocently, while Sokka was crossing the street towards a restaurant.

"No reason!" Too late, she realized… That it was a lie.

Toph grinned, shaking her head, before following Sokka. Katara had to be careful… She absolutely didn't want to have her brother see what she had bought. It would be the end of her.

Entering the small restaurant, nearly the whole clientele fell silent seeing the red in a sea of green. They stood awkwardly at the entrance, before sitting down at one of the tables.

A man appeared, quite clearly afraid. The murmurs took up again inside the room.

"Good day! W-what can I get you?" The man stammered.

While Sokka was listing everything he wanted, Toph shuffled more closely towards Katara.

"What the fuck did you buy in there? Your heart is doing the same thing as it did the day after finding Appa." She murmured.

"Eh… Nothing?"

"Doesn't work with me Sweetness. Come on, confess." Toph grinned.

"After!" Katara whispered, because the waiter turned to them. She just ordered some soup, and Toph asked for the same thing Sokka was having, which clearly exasperated the man. Her brother stood up, and went to the toilet.

"So? What is it?" Toph immediately asked when Sokka was out of earshot.

"Alright, calm down! It is a book! Aang told me about it." Katara explained. That wasn't a lie!

"Mmm… And what is it called my dear? A normal book wouldn't get such a reaction." The blind girl put her hand under her chin, smiling innocently.

"Just a book about the Air Nomads." Still, not a lie. Technically.

"Aha… You see Sugar Queen… I am familiar with most books you can buy. Even if they are no use to me, my parents wanted me to know them. And I don't know about any Air Nomad books. So, two choices. One, it is quite a new book, which I doubt seeing the situation. And two, it is a book that my parents didn't find quite appropriate."

Shit, shit, shit.

"I guess, by your heartbeat, it is the second." Toph grinned, still resting her chin on her fist.

"It's not so horrible! It was in every library in the Air Temples!" She murmured quietly, for she didn't want the tables next to them to hear her talk about Air Nomads.

"You do realize that doesn't make it appropriate? Every story about them is quite… Open minded…" The blind girl wiggled her eyebrows.

"Oh, just shut up." Katara said, trying to put a stop to the conversation.

"Please, just tell me the name of the book. Otherwise, I'll ask Sokka to take a look. And I guess, you don't want that.

Oh Spirits no, she didn't want that at all.

"Alright… it's… it's… Air People's ideas of… of… l-lovemaking."

It took nearly five minutes to calm Toph down, who, when Sokka came back, was still wheezing and wiping the tears of mirth from her eyes.

Answers :

You didn't think that that thing about the book in the previous story was just a filler, did you? No… That book will be coming in handy in this story lol.

Kaloang; You don't have to drop it, don't worry, just know that I won't include it here, but maybe a future story, because I am thinking of doing the comics after this! Yeah the parallels between how Katara is the last Southern Waterbender and how Aang is the last airbender are really quite sad if you think about it, and in the show, they don't put much attention to that fact!

TheQuietReader23 : Yeah, I really liked writing Aang's chapters, so I try to include him however I can lol! And I already have a thing planned for that, don't worry!