A/N. So, Aang is back! I may have rushed the reunions a bit, but as I've said before, I try to write like how the person is feeling. Like, for Aang, this is just a second after having fought Azula, while for all the others, it has been three weeks.

I don't own Avatar the Last Airbender.

Can you hear me?...

My Aang…

I'm afraid…

Wake up. We need you.

The world needs you Aang…

Katara…

Aang opened his eyes and was immediately hit with a blinding pain. Gritting his teeth, he tried to sit up. Where was he? The last thing he remembered was him and Katara, on Appa. Had that been a dream? It had to be… He knew he had been fighting in the Crystals Catacombs… What had happened? He was on a bed, in a room made of metal slates. So, not the Earth King's Palace. Sitting up, pushing his feet against the floor, Aang felt the strain in his back. Spirits, where was he? What had happened?

As he sat on the side of the bed, he saw how one arm was covered in bandages. Had he been injured? Why didn't he remember that? Looking down, he observed the linen bandages all over his torso. Spirits, he had been injured…

Where are the others?

Where is she?

Next to the bed stood his staff, and he reached to grab it. The feeling in his back nearly exploded. It felt as if someone was pressing a hot iron rod into his back.

Breathe in. Breathe out. Just as the monks had taught him. Pain was bearable as long as we made it so.

Closing his hand around the wooden staff, he brought it closer to him. Putting it between his knees, Aang used it to stand up. As soon as he put some weight on his feet, he began to feel dizzy. It felt as if he hadn't eaten in a week.

And he knew how that felt. In the temple, he had participated in the rituals as soon as he got his tattoos.

Breathe in, breathe out.

Turning around, he was met with a fiery-red banner, with that black emblem of the flames on it. Fire Nation. Now he knew what the room had made him think of… Zuko's ship.

He had been captured, he had to be! Why would he be on a Fire Nation ship otherwise? He had to get out of here, find the others! They had surely lost and were now imprisoned! That meant that Katara had to be somewhere on the ship.

But if he was a prisoner… Why had they taken the time to bandage his wounds? Why wasn't he in chains? Surely, that would be a better strategy? Aang took a step and groaned. Spirits, his back was killing him… Putting some weight on his staff, he managed to get to the door.

It was weird. Why were his belongings in the room? He saw his chest stand next to the desk. And he wasn't wearing his usual clothes… His tunic was gone, and his torso was naked, only covered in the bandages. And he was wearing dark blue trousers that were too big for him. What was all of this… It didn't make sense.

Opening the door, he cringed as it creaked open, sounding so loudly in this dark corridor. Left, or right? On his left, he saw a metal staircase. That had to be a way out, no?

What had happened? His last memory was that of hiding himself inside a sort of tent made of crystals… Trying to access the Avatar State, as the guru had thought him. He had managed it, but how, Aang didn't remember. The guru had said he would have to let go of her. And he didn't. That much he was certain of. No way that he would do that.

It felt hazy. One moment, he had been hovering above the Dai Li… And then, nothing but darkness. He had heard voices in the dark, calling him. It had sounded like his friends and family from before the iceberg. But that was impossible, they were dead… And in the cacophony of voices, he had heard one clearly. Katara's.

And the darkness had faded, and he had seen the clear night sky, had felt the wind on his face. Katara had been bent over him, watching him with such hope and relief. Aang had been surprised to see tears on her face. Why had she cried?

He had tried to wipe the tears away, but his arms had felt like lead, heavy and impossible to move. And he had said the words he had been dying to say… The words an Air Nomad couldn't take back.

And the darkness had come again.

Now, he was trying, as silently as possible, to go down the stairs. It was difficult, because his wooden staff was making noises on the metal, but he tried. As he arrived at the end of the stairs, he was met by two Fire Nation soldiers. But they were weird… One was enormous, while the other was comically small.

"He's awake!" the big one shouted…. Happily? What…

Aang hadn't time to think, he had to act. He had to find his friends! Moving his hand, he bend an air wave that hit the two people, blowing them aside. He quickly hobbled through, past the soldiers, and saw a door. There. He had to go there.

The airbender didn't know why, but he felt like that was the place he had to go. Were his friends kept behind that door? He pulled the handle down and pushed. Quickly stepping through the door, he turned around. At was met with something he hadn't wanted.

The fresh air hit his face, and he saw a deck filled with men in dark red uniforms, working and talking to each other… Spirits, this was definitely not the place he had wanted to come to.

"Twinkletoes!" Aang heard quick footsteps, and a pair of arms around him.

"T-Toph?" He croaked. Spirits, was that his voice? He sounded so… so tired.

"About time you weirdo." She whispered in his ear, and he smiled… It was all so messed up, with Fire nation soldiers turning around in his direction, and not attacking. And his friend who was clearly not a prisoner. But at least, Toph was like she always was. Brash but caring.

"Aang!" One of the soldiers spoke, and he recognized the voice.

"Sokka? What… What…" He sputtered, but the water tribe boy pulled if his helmet, smiling from ear to ear. Toph was nearly pushed aside when Sokka pulled him into a hug. It was weird, his friends didn't do hugs… Why were they acting as if he had been gone for years?

"Good to see you back in the land of the living, Air head!" Sokka spoke, releasing him.

And behind the water tribe warrior… There she was.

Katara was wearing a red shirt and trousers, and her hair flowed over her shoulders. She looked so thin… As if years of worry had taken a toll on her. Small dark circles could be seen underneath her eyes, and Aang knew she had been worried for something… And in her eyes, he saw such joy that his own heart began to beat faster.

"Katara…"

If Sokka had nearly pushed Toph aside, Katara didn't even care, and shoved her brother away. As soon as Aang felt her arms around him, he sighed. There was nothing to worry about. They were safe. She was safe.

Katara kissed his forehead, and he felt her hands on his back, gently going up and down, avoiding his lower back.

"I know you would wake up, I told them, I really did." She whispered, and Aang heard the tears in her voice. Creating a bit of space between them, he gently forced her face up with his hand. Tears were flowing freely from the beautiful blue eyes, and he saw her watery smile. Tears of joy.

"Are you alright?" He asked softly, trying not to let them be overheard by the others.

"Now I am." Katara answered, smiling. He kept his eyes on her, and the world nearly dissolved. This was important. Nothing else.

"Blah, it has already begun." Aang heard Toph mutter from his left. And from his right came a low grumble he recognized anywhere.

Appa was nearly bolting towards him, which would be comically if he was smaller. But having a ten ton bison charging towards you wasn't fun. The bison stopped just in front and licked him wholly, not forgetting an inch.

"Hey boy…" Aang said, softly patting his friend's furry cheek.

"He missed you… We all did." Katara spoke, sounding happy. So very happy…

One of the Fire Nation soldiers walked over to them, and Aang felt like he knew the man. Something in his way of walking reminded him of Sokka.

Hakoda.

Aang knew before the man pulled off the ugly helmet. And he was right, from underneath the helmet appeared the tanned face of Sokka and Katara's father. The man smiled sadly, looking him into the eyes. Well. This was awkward.

The last time Aang had really spoken with the man, he had asked Hakoda if he could have his permission to court Katara… and had been rejected. And now, the man was seeing them, with their arms around each other.

"Hello Avatar Aang." The man spoke softly, and kindly. It seemed… nice?

"Chief Hakoda." Aang extended his arm, to grab the man's hand in the traditional Water Tribe greeting. But he was stopped by Katara. Her eyes, which had been filled with joy and happiness… Had turned into something else. Irritation, anger… Distrust?

"You already met. Can we get some privacy?" She spoke harshly to her father, who clearly recoiled and took a step backwards.

"Of course… I apologize." The look in those ice blue eyes shifted. There was concern and something like apprehension. Aang turned to the older man and grabbed his arm.

"Nice to see you again sir." The airbender spoke softly. It was no use holding a grudge against Hakoda, he had only done what he thought was right. Quickly releasing his arm, Aang turned back to Katara. Sokka and Toph had taken several steps away, and Hakoda joined the others. But they were still watching them… Of course… Sokka and Toph knew what he felt for Katara, as did the chief.

Why were they watching them like that? Aang saw how the blind girl was grinning, while Sokka looked at them like… disgust? No, he was acting like it revolted him, but he saw the slight twinkle in the water tribe boy's eyes. And Hakoda… Well, he looked less happy. Worried even.

"How do you feel?" His attention was drawn back to the waterbender, who stood in front of him. Spirits she was beautiful…

"Like a Sky Bison sat on me for a week… But I'm alright. Will you explain to me what is happening?" Why were they on a ship? And where were they?

"Yeah… I imagine… You got hurt pretty badly…" Katara looked down to the ground when saying that. And Aang knew her. That meant she was lying.

"But I like your hair." She smiled shyly, looking up.

"I have hair?" Aang felt at his head, and indeed, there was a soft layer of hair between his fingers and the skin of his head, "How long… How long was I out?"

"Nearly three weeks…" Katara whispered, taking his hand in hers. The fact she touched him without hesitation sent a slight shiver through his spine. And the feeling he got from that, spreading into his lower back… It was less pleasant.

"Three… weeks… How…"

"You were unconscious for most of it…" The waterbender sighed, "I missed you… so much."

She looked at him, and his heart began to beat faster. Aang took a step towards her, but the pain in his back stopped him. He tried to hide it, but a small groan escaped his lips.

"I need to check on you!" Katara spoke immediately, pulling him towards the door. Aang quickly looked over his shoulder to see how Sokka was rolling his eyes, while Hakoda tried to look anywhere except… them. And Toph was making a rather vulgar move, grinning.

Spirits… What did they know?

As he was being led through the corridors, back to the room he had woken up in, he had time to look at Katara. She seemed much thinner. Her normally small, lean frame was now much more so. Aang could see the bones of her wrist stand out in her skin.

They entered the room, and Katara quickly shut the door. The moment the door closed, he realized this was the first time they had been alone… since the barn. Since that moment.

"Sit down." She gestured to the bed, and he did as she asked.

"Where does it hurt?"

"Uhm… Well… kind of everywhere?" Aang looked over his shoulder, smiling awkwardly. He saw how Katara pulled the water to her hands and began to pass them over his shoulders. The contact made him think back to the barn…

"Katara… Are you alright?"

"Of course, I am! I should be asking you that question!" The waterbender spoke softly, but he heard the hesitation in her voice.

"You look like all the worries of the world were laid on you Katara. What happened?" He worried. Normally, Katara wouldn't look like this if she worried about something.

"Nothing… Just… Just had a couple of rough days." She answered.

"Do you want to talk about it?" He asked, while feeling her hand go from his shoulders to his upper back.

"Not yet… Later, if that is alright?" Katara spoke, "Tell me when I'm in the right area."

Her hands went to his lower back, and the pain grew considerably.

"There…"

"I feel a lot of pent-up energy in there… Let me see if I do this…"

Aang didn't see what she did, but Spirits, he felt it. As soon as the warm feeling of her hands was removed, his brain nearly sucked him into his memories. The Avatar State… The lightning… That blinding pain, that darkness… And then, Katara looking at him on Appa, while he spoke the words…

Mero mana, timro ho, mero premokura…. My Katara.

He felt a blush appear on his face. Spirits had he really said that…

And also… That darkness. That had not been something like sleeping or being unconscious. No, it had felt much more… Absolute? Definitive?

"Katara… I didn't just get hurt, did I? I was… gone, wasn't I?" He turned around as soon as the pain subsided. She had been sitting on the side of the bed behind him, but as soon as he tried to look in her eyes, Katara stood up and walked over to the window next to the desk.

"I just used the Spirit Water from the North Pole to heal you. I don't really know what happened…" She spoke, without looking at him.

"Katara… what are you not telling me? You saved me, I know that. I remember waking up on Appa."

That got a reaction out of her. She whipped her head around, and Aang saw the unshed tears in her eyes. But also, the slight hope in her eyes.

"You… You do?" She stuttered.

"Katara, I'm still here… I'm not going to… to leave you." He stood up, trying not to scream, and shuffled over to where she stood, "I would never leave you." It was no use denying it now. He had spoken the words to her, and it was true. So why lie?

The waterbender stood still, not looking at him.

"You… you remember what you said?"

"Yeah… I do." Spirits it felt awkward. He had dreamed about this moment since the barn. Speaking to her, confessing his love… But what happened with her being captured, the guru messing around with his feelings, the chief refusing him…

"Aang… When you have been told everything that happened… Could we talk?" She smiled shyly.

"Talk? That kind of means several things now…" He smiled in return, not knowing where the confidence came from. Had that lightning burned away his awkward rambling? Good thing.

"Oh shut it. You know what I meant."

He did. And spirits did he want to talk with her. It was long overdue. Even after the barn, they had not had a moment to really discuss their feelings.

There was a knock on the door, and Toph entered, whistling happily. Her grin was actually infectious. It looked like she hadn't really smiled in weeks.

"So… Do you want food? We were going to eat before you so rudely interrupted us Twinkletoes. Really, waking up just before supper, it seems Sokka has had some influence on you…" The earthbender waved her hand in a follow me gesture, and Aang realized he was starving. Spirits, he could eat a whole room filled of fruit pies.

Looking at Katara, he saw how she nodded, and they followed the blind girl towards the deck. While walking through the corridor, the waterbender took his hand in hers.

"Already being mushy, are you?" Toph spoke, without turning around. Of course, she had felt it.

"Hey, he needs to have someone to lean on!" Katara objected, but the small squeeze in his hand made Aang think it was not only that. He could smell the food, even from here. And then, realized something. They were with the water tribe… which meant… water tribe food…

Oh no.

No, everything but that.

"Ehm… Toph, what are we eating?" He asked hesitantly. Spirits, please be merciful…

"Sea prunes with turtle-duck stew!" the blind girl answered, turning her head around and grinning.

"Shut up Toph. No, in the evenings, we have noodles with vegetables. Bato cooked until some days ago, when Gilak and Kranook threw him out of the kitchen… He is a bad cook." Katara explained when they arrived at the door leading to the deck. Yeah, Aang had noticed that one time he had eaten something made by the Water Tribe warrior. Spirits…

They walked over to where several men were eating quietly together, and Katara took a bowl from the table standing against the wall, and filled it with food. Then, she handed it to him, before also taking some food for herself.

Aang sat down next to Sokka, who smiled at him.

"Hey, how are you?"

"A bit better, it still feels like I've been dragged from Omashu to Agna Qel'a, but it feels alright. What happened? Katara didn't tell me… everything." The airbender answered, casting a furtive look to the waterbender, who was still standing by the food with Toph.

"What did she tell you?" Sokka asked, while producing a red robe from beside him, and handing it to the airbender.

Aang took it gratefully. He didn't feel quite strong enough to bend the air around him, and he felt the wind and the cold in the air. If the night got cold like this, it wasn't summer quite yet, but it had to be very close, looking at the star above him.

"She told me… well, what happened in Ba Sing Se and how she brought me back… But after, what happened?" he asked, pulling the robe around him. Aang saw how Sokka quickly looked at his father, who was sitting in front of them, in silence, listening. Apparently, what the water tribe boy saw in his father's eyes made him continue.

"Well, we got to Chameleon Bay, and stayed there for a few days. But the Fire Nation was sending scouting ships to the area. We kind of… borrowed one, and since then, we have been travelling west. We passed the Serpent's Pass this morning, meaning that we will arrive at the mouth of the river tomorrow afternoon. From there, we will see." Sokka explained, but Aang heard how he omitted some things. Like, how they had captured the ship. And what was happening at other places?

"And Ba Sing Se?" He asked, afraid to hear the answer. If he had been injured before defeating Azula…

"Fallen to the Fire Nation." Toph answered, joining them with Katara, who sat down next to him.

No… No… That wasn't possible… How could the city fall?

"But… how?"

"Well, when you decided to get roasted by Azula, we had to flee. We took the Earth King with us. But the Dai Li brought down a part of the Outer Wall, and a Fire Nation army marched in." Toph explained.

"Can't this wait? He just woke up!" Katara tried to object, but Aang wanted to know what was happening. This was his fault… If he had decided to use the Avatar State earlier, when the Dai Li had not joined the fight… He might have been able to stop the war. Taking the Fire Lord children captive, and using them to negotiate a truce, or even peace… But no…

"It is alright Katara… I want to hear it. What now?"

Hakoda looked up and smiled sadly. What was it with that man? He looked as if all his hopes had just been stomped in the ground.

"We have been working on a modified plan for the invasion." He explained.

"Sokka's plan." Aang heard Katara mutter beside him. And what was with her? She had been going from extremely happy to sad and angry. What had happened?

Hakoda sighed, looking at his daughter, and continued.

"We won't be able to mount a massive invasion like the one the Earth Kingdom had been planning," the chief explained.

"We have a smaller plan in mind. With our friends and allies. And the eclipse is not even our biggest advantage… We have a secret weapon." Sokka whispered, grinning. Beside him, Aang could feel Katara stir. From the corner of his eyes, he saw how she was shaking her head frantically at her brother.

"You!" Sokka grinned.

This had to be a joke… How could he be a secret weapon?

"Me?"

"Yep! The whole world thinks you are dead!" Sokka stood up, putting his empty bowl on the table.

The… whole… world. The world though he was dead. No. NO!

Not again! He had already forsaken his duty once, not again! He couldn't do that! Not again! How could Sokka think this was a good plan? He had to tell the people he was alive, how else could they have faith in their Avatar? And… And if he was dead… The water tribes would suffer! No, that was something he couldn't allow that was too much. He already had one civilization death on his conscience… He couldn't bear another…

"I think it might be better to go to sleep and take up this discussion tomorrow morning." Katara stood up and, not waiting for an answer of the others, extended her hand to him. Aang took it automatically and followed her. How could people even allow him to hide? It was not right…

In this daze, they arrived at the door of his room.

"Ehm… so… what do you think?" Katara looked at him, with a small smile.

What did he think? He was angry, he was afraid. How could the world still have faith in him?

"I… I want to think about it, alone…" He opened the door. He had to meditate. Think about this. What should he do…

"Oh… alright…" the waterbender looked crestfallen. Why would she be sad? He just wanted to think about him being dead…

He closed the door behind him.

Answers :

Kalaong : It is actually something I'll use later on!

Devidedbyzero-0 : Thank you! I hope you like this chapter!

Rak : The reaction will be in the next chapter, because Aang didn't really look at the reactions of various people. But next one will be Katara.

Bay45220 : Oh yeah, I had been planning that Alqaok would be a much bigger pain in the ass, but I scrapped it lol

Gabriela N. Gonzalez : Yeah, Hakoda really does mean well, but it just comes over as nosing around in other people's feelings, even if he just wants to help!