A/N. Kind of a slower chapter, in preparation for the battles. Next chapter is going to be Aang, and his arrival at Wulong!
I don't own Avatar the Last Airbender.
"You will look out for everyone. Even Toph. She may say she doesn't need help, but you never know. She can't feel arrows in the air, or people standing on one of the other air ships!" Katara pulled on one of the straps of Sokka's armour, fastening it tighter than really necessary.
"Sis… We know. And I can say the same to you! If you even think, for a second, that Azula is going to win, you run. You hear me? Don't act like a hero, just run. You know what she has threatened to do to you." Sokka pulled on her arm wraps, then looked her in the eyes.
"I mean it Katara."
It wasn't often that she saw her brother this serious, so the waterbender nodded, releasing the armour and taking a step backwards, looking at her handiwork.
In case of battle preparations, the warriors of the South always checked each other's battle gear, and so she and Sokka were standing in a tent that the White Lotus had given to them. In just over an hour, they all needed to leave. She and Zuko would take Appa, for they needed to cross the sea, but Sokka, Suki and Toph would be given an eelhound by Piandao. Apparently, it was one of the quickest animals on land.
"No stunts either. If it is going badly, you get out of there." She pointed a finger at her brother, who smiled thinly.
"We will be holding the air ships back while Aang fights the Fire Lord. I don't think we can just abandon the mission, because then Air Head will be outnumbered." Sokka sighed, and she realized he was right… The others would probably have front row seats at the battle between Aang and Ozai… Aang would be at the northeastern tip of the Earth Kingdom at Wulong Forest… She knew he would. And the others were going there too.
"Crash one of those air ships on Ozai if you can." She said, still looking into the pale blue eyes of her brother.
"What did you think I was planning?" Sokka grinned suddenly, that wicked smile he got when he had an idea that was just so crazy it might work. But Katara also knew that even though it could be a great way to say fuck you Ozai… It wasn't the way to end the war. Iroh had been right. Only the Avatar could end the war in a way everyone, in every nation, would accept.
If the prince would kill his brother, then it would be a coup. If she or her brother would do it, it could be interpreted as revenge for what has been done to the Water Tribe…
It needed to be Aang. It would be poetic justice, the war had started a century ago by the murder of hundreds and thousands of Air Nomads… And now, the last of their race would stop the war, avenging what had happened…
But Katara also knew that Aang didn't crave vengeance. He didn't want to stop Ozai for what had happened to his people. In the airbender's eyes, those responsible for the Air Nomad genocide were all dead and buried long ago… And vengeance wasn't something he did.
"Hey… It is going to be alright." A hand on her shoulder, and Sokka's smile changed in a warm one, "I will tell you what Toph said to us the night Aang got injured. When you were busy with him, we talked about Air Head… Toph said that nothing would stop him from getting back to you, not even a little lightning." The last part was said in a voice eerily similar to the blind girl's and Katara couldn't help but laugh at the silly imitation. But she also knew her brother was right. It was perhaps not the healthiest part of their relationship, but they couldn't live without the other… And they would always find a way back to the other.
"I know. If he has to kill Ozai, please don't congratulate him… He won't see that as victory." She answered.
"I know Sis… No worries. We all know what to do. Now, it is just time to accept what may come and make our peace with it." Sokka spoke and Katara nodded, leaving the tent. She knew what her brother had meant by it, that he wanted to be alone for a moment to prepare himself for the battle ahead. Walking away from the tent, Katara saw several members of the White Lotus stand close to Appa, while Bumi was hugging the bison fiercely. Realizing the old king had not seen Appa when they first visited Omashu… And neither had he done so the second time… the waterbender smiled at the sight of the Sky Bison falling into the hug with all his might, probably having recognized the old man.
Looking past the display of affection, she saw that Iroh and Zuo were not at the table anymore in front of the older prince's tent. Suki and Toph had disappeared somewhere too, so she was alone, for the moment.
And she liked it, just for a moment.
"Master Katara?" A sharp voice sounded behind her, and she tried to hide her irritation of being interrupted in the small moment of calm she had tried to have. Turning to the person behind her, she saw it was Hui Li… Tui and La.
"Can we speak?" The older woman asked, coming to stand beside her. Katara sincerely doubted that it was an actual question.
"If you wish." She answered, knowing the woman wasn't going away in any case. So better to have her say what she wanted and be done with it.
"I think we got off the wrong foot tonight. I have no wish to insult you." The older earthbender told her. Katara had to bite her tongue, trying not to say anything too brutally honest.
"Just to insult the Avatar." She answered instead.
"We are during his job here." The corners of Hui Li's mouth went up slightly but the smile didn't reach the pale green eyes, "The Avatar could have stopped this all… But he hasn't done so."
"Difficult to do your duty when you are frozen in ice for a hundred years." Katara crossed her arms over her chest, balling her fists. This woman was looking way too arrogant.
"Yes, that is true. But what has he done since you broke him out of it?" Hui Li asked, putting way too much attention on the you. Something that made Katara uneasy. What was she meaning by that?
"I know you lost a child during the capture of the city… Pakku told me. I am sorry about that, truly, I am. But Aang tried to defend the city that night. He and I fought Zuko and Azula, but we lost and had to flee. If we had not, Aang would have died, and there would be no hope at all. So tell me again, like last night, how useless the Avatar is." Katara knew that it was direct, and not at all patient what she had said, but she was done listening to such otter penguin crap.
Hui Li just smiled that cold smile of hers.
"I see why Pakku likes you. You are direct and to the point. So let me be that too. This order proves that we don't need an Avatar. The Avatar can't be everywhere at once, and with the numbers we have, we can. So why should we have to trust a boy of seventeen to do what we could do?" The woman spoke, and the words made Katara uncomfortable. Did everyone here think like that?
"Aang hasn't been a boy since he found his home destroyed lady. Maybe you should consider that before you judge him so harshly." The waterbender answered thinly.
"I would… If he was anywhere near the battle. But no, he is hiding Spirits know where, leaving the actual fighting to us and his friends. So, I will judge him for what I can see of him. A coward hiding behind the skirts of his… what did the reports say exactly? Oh yes… His paramour." The insult was clear as day. Hui Li clearly thought Aang was fleeing his duty, and for some reason, she thought it would be a good idea to insult him… And her, apparently.
"Your reports are false. I'm not his paramour. But if you insult him one more time, I promise you, you will regret it." Katara took a step away from the woman.
"His whore then. It doesn't change the fa-" Whatever she had tried to say was drowned when Katara turned around, lifted a hand and slapped the woman. She could have used her bending, but she doubted that would be accepted in this camp. And she would rather humiliate Hui Li like this.
"I gave you one chance with him. Because he is forgiving like that. But I don't accept any insults directed at me lady." Katara lifted her hand once more, now balled into a fist. Next insult, she would try and knock a tooth or two out of that mouth.
"I see Air Nomad pacifism isn't infectious. You are going to regret that." Hui Li whispered, clearly not used to being knocked down. But Katara didn't care.
"You may think whatever you want but know this: Aang is a far better person than any of us. You may not see it like that, but he is." With that, Katara walked away, not looking back. She directed herself towards the table next to Iroh's tent, knowing that the others would probably come back there whenever they felt ready to go. Glancing at the sun above them, she judged that it was less than an hour now… Less than an hour until midday. Tomorrow, Sozin's Comet would come…
And the world was going to change.
Falling down on a chair at the table, huffing angrily. Hui Li may think Aang was not coming, and that he was hiding somewhere… And the waterbender hated to see so many people doubting the airbender's bravery. He had never wavered, whenever needed he had always run into battle, without a single doubt. Sure, he wasn't brave in the way people would like to see the Avatar. He wasn't a warrior, but he was much more than that.
Aang was brave enough to see past the divisions and the hate. The Air Nomad had never faltered on his beliefs, even when the world was screaming at him to do so. No, Aang wasn't brave in the traditional sense of the word… But he was so much more than brave.
"May I sit?" A gentle old voice spoke, and looking over her shoulder she saw Iroh stand next to his tent. Just behind him, she could see into the tent. Zuko was sitting in a lotus position, in front of a candle which flame went up and down with every breath he took. Knowing that it was probably something from the religion from the Fire Nation, she didn't ask.
"Are you going to insult Aang?" She asked. It was not really courteous… But she didn't care.
"Ah… You have spoken to my friend Hui Li I see." The old prince sighed heavily, and sat down in front of her, "She has become bitter, and may have forgotten the ways of our Order. As many have done these last few months… But I can't really blame her. Her firstborn child, a daughter, died when one of our trebuchets flung a rock into the city when I besieged the city… Her second born, a son, died when the city fell. He had tried to prevent Fire Nation soldiers entering his home… I can't blame her being bitter. But no, I'm not going to insult the young airbender."
Katara bit her tongue. She hadn't known the details of what had happened to the woman, but she could imagine why a mother would become bitter after such losses. But those were not Aang's fault… directly. Hui Li didn't seem to blame Iroh, however, even though he had probably given the order for the trebuchet to fire…
"How are you feeling Master Katara?" the older man asked gently. She couldn't help but feel slightly uncomfortable around the man. He seemed too nice, too gentle. This was the Dragon of the West? But then again… Aang had told her that the prince had seemed a different man in Ba Sing Se, all fire and steel, when Zuko had been imprisoned…
"Good… I will be relieved when all this is over." She gestured at the sky, which, on closer examination, was getting a little… Orange? It seemed like a fine mist hung over the sky, orange and yellow…
"Sozin's Comet… Before my grandfather did what he did… The comet was known as Agni's Blessing. But I doubt it will ever be known again as that. Too many horrible things have been done with its power. Can you feel it now?" Iroh lifted his chin upwards.
"No, I can't. I think that is a firebending thing Prince Iroh." She pointed out. But then again, the whole summer had been dry and hot… And Aang had told her that it had been the same the summer when he fled the Air Temple…
"I'm not a prince anymore Master Katara. But I think you are right… The young Air Nomad must have felt the same power that I am feeling now." The older man put his weight against the back of the chair, folding his hands over his stomach… which had thinned a lot since last time she had seen the firebender.
"I think I may know where he is."
What?
"Where?" Katara asked immediately, doubting very much that the prince would actually know it.
"Young Aang had seemed conflicted about killing my brother, correct? That is what Zuko told me." Iroh lifted an eyebrow.
"Yeah… He hated the idea actually."
"I can see how it clashes with his beliefs. But am I right when I say he tried to contact the spirits to help him?"
Katara looked the man in the eyes. He had the same ember eyes as Zuko, but without the suspicious gleam into them, staring into the world doubting every word and every action. These eyes gleamed with kindness and intelligence.
"Yes." She answered. How had Iroh even known this?
"When… When my son died, I tried to do the same. I visited every shrine, every holy place. I shouted at priests, at learned men… And finally, I realized none of them had the answers I was seeking. So I climbed the highest mountain in the Patola Mountains… Discovering a temple. I was shocked at what I saw there, but was still in the dark place so choose to ignore it. I sat down in front of a closed door, and began to speak to every Spirit I knew."
Katara listened to the story, realizing Iroh had stumbled onto the Southern Air Temple. Aang had told her once that the temple had been built on the highest mountain top. But what had this to do with their dilemma at this moment.
"The first few weeks, I spoke, begged and shouted at Agni, the sun spirit. When no answer came, I began to seek older, darker Spirits. No one answered. I spent weeks… then months… sitting there. But one day, a voice answered. I… I won't go into detail what I saw, but they explained that only one creature could tell me what I wanted to know. When I asked where I could find this creature, the voice just laughed. And told me that it existed on my earth, but at the same time was a whole world apart. And would only come to those truly seeking a selfless answer. I don't know what the creature is, or if the airbender knows about it… But that is the only thing I can think of that would explain why June couldn't find him."
Katara kept quiet when the prince was done speaking. It sounded… plausible. But then again, Aang wasn't really searching for something selfless. He had wanted to find another solution to the war because he didn't want to betray the ways of the Air Nomads. And sure, he wanted to end the war, but not only because it was his duty… It was also the only way he would be left in peace after that.
"So you think Aang is with that creature?" She asked, trying to hide the hope she was feeling.
"I don't know Master Katara… But when I was with the airbender a few months ago, that fateful day… I got quite the good read on him. He isn't the kind of person to abandon the world. So, if you say he will face my brother at Wulong, I trust you."
With that, the old man stood up, smiled at her and walked back inside the tent. Katara stayed seated, thinking about what Iroh had said. It made sense… So much sense! If that had been presented to him, Aang wouldn't have hesitated, and would have grasped the opportunity to have a solution to his problems…
Her brother appeared next to her sitting down on the chair Iroh had vacated just before. He put his helmet on the table, the black lion wolf growling at her from the front of the helmet. She looked at Sokka, seeing the sweat on his forehead. The armour was rather warm for this kind of climate she assumed, and even in her silken dress she could feel the sweat on her back.
But was it the warmth or the knowledge of impending doom that was causing it?
"Ready?" She asked him, to which he nodded.
"You?"
"Ready as I'll ever be." She answered.
"Then, we need… Well, you know…" He spoke. Yeah… she knew. Normally, water tribe warriors would tell their closest friend of their wishes in case… In case they died. But now, they were only the two of them. At the invasion, Katara had not done so, and Sokka had probably done that with Bato or their father.
"If anything happens, and we still win, could you bury… you know… me… Next to mom?" Sokka asked quietly. Feeling the hurt and fear in her heart, Katara nodded. Of course, she would try that.
"And if something happens to me… Make sure Aang is going to be alright." That was her request. She didn't really care where she would be buried in case of her death… But she knew the despair the airbender would feel, for she had felt it for a few minutes months ago.
"I will." Her brother answered, in the same quiet tone. Silence fell between them.
This was the moment they had worked to for months… But Katara couldn't help but feel fearful at the prospect of actually doing all of this. When they had talked about fighting Ozai and Azula, it had been great, but far away… Now, at the eve of the actual battle, she thought about what could happen.
Suki, Sokka and Toph were supposed to fight a whole air ship fleet, filled with comet powered firebenders… How in the name of Tui and La were they supposed to do so? And Aang was going to fight Ozai, who, by admission of Iroh and Zuko, was the best firebender in existence…
How were they supposed to survive all that.
And then, there was her task. Sure, she knew it was actually Zuko's… But to have a chance of killing Azula? She wasn't going to let that slide. Sure, the princess was dangerous… But so was she.
Katara wasn't that humble. She knew that she was one of the best waterbenders around, and that her own fighting skills had been greatly improved ever since leaving the South Pole. There were not many people who could say they had as much experience fighting different types of benders, and she knew what to expect from most people. Azula's fighting style was rehearsed. Perfect, but clearly it was trained. Her own style was much more directed towards improvising, and it was on that Katara was betting much.
"Oh, there you are!" Suki's voice sounded, and Katara lifted her head, her thought broken by the interruption. She saw that the Kyoshi Warrior approached with Toph in tow, not having changed. It was clearly a better plan, for there probably was no uniform from her group in a hundred mile radius… The blind girl had not changed either, preferring her Earth Rumble clothes as she had done since joining them.
"Here we are…" Sokka sighed, standing up. Katara did the same, knowing it was time. Turning to Suki, she opened her arms and let her friend step forward into it.
"Look out for everyone… And for yourself. Don't get killed…" She whispered in Suki's ear, as she closed her arms around the Kyoshi Warrior.
"You neither, do you hear me?" Suki whispered back. It wasn't that profound… But Katara knew her friend was not good with this kind of farewell. Releasing her, the waterbender turned to Toph, who had just whispered something in Sokka's ear, and to which he had nodded.
As Suki and Sokka turned to each other, Katara quickly got out of the way. She didn't need to hear, or see what was going to happen… Oogies… So, stepping towards Toph, she saw the blind girl point a finger at her.
"No teary-eyed farewell." She said in a gruff voice. One that Katara recognized as the don't get emotional on me because I will get emotional voice.
"Alright. Just listen to Sokka, don't get all I can take care of myself. You three are going to need each other." Katara whispered, so that the others couldn't hear it.
"Yeah… I know. Watch out Katara, don't… you know. Get all Katara like. Azula is dangerous." Toph seemed to hesitate. The waterbender saw how she lifted her arms slightly, before letting them fall back to her sides. Understanding the hint, she quickly closed the space between them and enveloped the earthbender in a hug.
"I hate hugs." But Toph didn't step away. Katara even suspected she kind of leaned into it.
"I know." She answered, feeling a light smile come to her face.
"You clearly needed it. Now that Twinkletoes isn't here to get all physical." Toph tried to tease, but Katara just smiled.
"Yeah… Thanks." The blind girl whispered so softly that Katara had to strain to hear her. Feeling the moment pass, she released Toph.
Last was her brother. He had finally broken contact with Suki, and now turned to her.
"You know what I said." He began, before crashing into her with a bone crushing hug. Katara put her arms around her brother, trying to hold in tears, "I couldn't… I don't want to celebrate the end of the war and hear something has happened to you, do you hear me?"
"Me neither. We must all survive… Please don't die." She whispered into his ear, to which she felt he nodded. He released her, coughing awkwardly.
From the corner of her eye, she saw Zuko step out of the tent, wiping at his good eye. She was surprised to see such emotion from the firebender, who had clearly just said goodbye to his uncle. When he joined them, he just looked at the three who were going to leave them for their own mission.
"Don't die… Please." The prince spoke quietly. Katara had to resist laughing, because it was probably all the emotion he could muster.
"Oh, we love you too Sparky." Toph laughed, but it sounded just a little bit off.
"Ready?" With that, Zuko turned to her.
"Yes." She nodded, taking one last look at her brother, Suki and Toph. This wasn't farewell. She knew it wasn't! No way the Spirits would have given them all this time and hope, just to make them fail at the last moment. No spirit or god was that cruel.
Sighing, she began to walk towards Appa. Tomorrow, she would be flying over the Fire Nation, towards Caldara… And towards the fight that was going to decide the fate of the Fire Nation. Aang would fight for the world, the others for the Earth Kingdom… And she was going to get her revenge on Azula.
Azula had chosen the wrong person to hurt and to torment. Now, Katara would make sure that the princess couldn't hurt her or her friends. Who cared that she would probably have to fight that horrible bitch during the comet? Let her come with everything she had… Katara knew she was more than a match.
Answers:
Lenoravampire1: Some people prefer that ship. I never really understood it, because I don't see the chemistry… While it is present with Aang and Katara in nearly every scene.
Bbacon: Ah… yes. I mostly do things for a reason in the story. Sometimes I forget about it, and don't do anything with it. But with the Avatars and Kya? I have a little plan.
Handler: I really wanted to show the differences between Aang and his previous lives. The others didn't have the burden of a civilization on their shoulders… But he does. And of course, any addition with Kya had to be done in a way that honored her without making it too corny.
Jjsmith103: I think Aang needed the advice of someone who would love him for the person he is… And not from someone who would consider it his duty as Avatar. And I don't know exactly how the Spirit World would work, and I think neither does Aang to be hoenst. So I have some liberties with what I will do with that!