Chapter 7: Close Calls
Hey guys! I know I surprised you all with how the last chapter ended, and due to me not wanting to reveal what happens next, I have decided to move the review response section to the end of the chapter. I'm not a fan of accidentally revealing what happens, so that's why. Anyway, thank you guys so much for reading and I hope you all have a great day!
Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender.
Aang felt horrible for Katara. First, she had lost her parents to some pirates a few years ago, now she lost her last surviving family member and her good friend who he imagined was like a sister of sorts to her. He too had lost his parents, but Katara just kept losing the ones she loved. It was heartbreaking to see her like this.
But, knowing that it wouldn't do her any good to keep thinking these thoughts, he focused all of his energy into holding her tightly as she cried into his shoulder. Normally, he would have enjoyed having her this close, but now was not the time to be thinking of such things. Katara needed him, and he would be there for her as long as she needed.
"I'm so sorry, Katara," he murmured to her as she continued wetting his shoulder, feeling all the pain she felt from the loss of her parents come back with a vengeance as it combined with the pain of losing the closest thing she had to a family.
Katara didn't say anything back. She couldn't. This was not how she had expected her day to go. They were supposed to finish their target and go chase their next one. It was never supposed to come to this. And yet, the only thing that kept Katara from completely losing it was Aang. His strong arms wrapped around her and his soothing voice in her ear helped her more than he likely knew. It still wasn't enough, however, as nothing could make up for the loss of her family.
After a few more moments of making the poor airbender's clothes wet with her tears, they heard a familiar voice behind them.
"Hey, what are you crying about, Katara?"
A snort could be heard behind them, the person's voice smug as they remarked. "What doesn't she cry about?"
Aang and Katara immediately stopped everything as they heard these voices behind them. No, it couldn't be… There was no way that it was…
Looking over their shoulders, the two couldn't help but gasp in disbelief as they looked upon the familiar forms of Sokka and Toph, both of them standing there with looks that matched their voices as they looked down upon the two.
Katara couldn't hold back a bright smile. "Sokka! Toph!" Immediately springing up from the ground, she launched herself towards her friends and tackled them in a hug, taking them both greatly by surprise as they staggered back.
"Okay… We, uh… missed you too, Katara," Sokka chuckled awkwardly and patted her on the back as she squeezed them tighter.
"Sugar Queen," Toph choked out from Katara's rather solid hug. "Can't… breathe!"
Realizing that she was hurting her friend, she pulled away from the hug as Aang walked up next to her, a smile on his face from seeing that their friends were indeed okay. "Well, you two gave us quite a scare. What happened?"
A confused look once again overtook Sokka's face. "What do you mean?" he asked as he scratched his head.
Katara couldn't help but roll her eyes. "Oh, I don't know, Sokka. Maybe we got worried because the enemy ship blew up and we thought that you were still on there when it happened?" she sarcastically asked, making Sokka smile sheepishly as he finally understood what had been going through their minds.
"Oh. Sorry about that," he smiled apologetically. "It didn't take us long to do her job, so once we finished, we were working on getting the gold off of the ship when we found some blasting jelly."
"So we decided to blow stuff up!" Toph said excitedly with a grin as she cracked her knuckles. "It was awesome!"
"Well, you guys nearly scared me to death!" Katara scolded, remembering the pain she had felt as she had thought the closest thing she had to a family were gone. "I thought that you were…" Aang put a hand on her shoulder, seeing her on the verge of trembling with sadness. Being surprised by this, she looked over her shoulder and saw him give her a smile. She didn't know how, but she knew exactly what it meant. Take a deep breath. Everything's alright. I'm here for you.
She did as she was told and took a deep breath, calming her nerves as she gave him a grateful smile before looking back at her friends. "Just please, if you're going to blow up another ship, just wait until I know that you're safe so I don't think that you guys died."
Toph couldn't hold back a smirk. "Were you worried about us, Sugar Queen?" Katara gave her a glare so scary, it made her put her hands up in surrender. "Okay, okay. Jeez, sorry Sugar Queen. We won't do it again. Right, Snoozles?"
"Right," he agreed as he smiled apologetically to his sister. "Sorry, sis. We didn't mean to scare you like that."
"It's okay," she sighed as she brought them in for another hug. "I'm glad you guys are still alive."
"So are we," Sokka joked, making the four laugh as they all finally settled down.
Despite the fact that they were all at peace for the moment, Toph couldn't help but snicker as she remembered what she had seen as they had walked up to their friends. "Well, you two looked pretty comfortable when we got back," she snickered.
Katara and Aang looked at her in confusion for a few moments before their eyes widened, a heavy blush tinging their cheeks as they remembered how Aang had comforted her when she had thought that her friends were dead.
"Toph," Katara muttered through her teeth in a dangerous warning tone, making Toph once again put her hands in the air in fake surrender.
"Okay, okay! Sorry, Captain Fussy-Britches," she smirked as she started making her way back to the ship. Aang, still being confused as to why Katara had seemed angry, decided that it would be in his best interest to act like nothing had ever happened and followed her, leading the rest of the crew as they started making their way back to the ship.
"You know, she's not wrong about you not being good at hiding what you're feeling," Sokka informed her as he turned to look at her. "Can you really blame her for bringing it up?"
"I can when she does it right in front of him," she growled a little, but forced herself to take a deep breath. She had just thought that her friends had died, and they hadn't. Maybe just this once she could give Toph a little grace. "Did you at least get the treasure off of the ship before you blew it up?"
Sokka laughed and pointed with his thumb behind him, showing three large chests filled with treasure sitting on the beach. "Of course we did. We weren't going to waste this stuff."
"Good," Katara nodded and pointed to three nearby crew members who had stayed behind. "Get those chests onto the ship! It's time to set sail!"
The three did as they were told and carried the chests back to the ship with the Water Tribe siblings in tow as they walked through the island. Fortunately for them, they were the only creatures on the island save for some insects, so they met no resistance on the way back.
Before long, everyone had made it back to the ship and the treasure had been put safely into the captain's cabin. Once she was sure that they had everything taken care of, Katara took her place at the wheel and called for sails, knowing that it would be in their best interest to get as far away from the island as possible. After all, it wouldn't be long before it started reeking of the dead.
"So, what's next, Captain?" Aang asked as he took his place at her side.
To his surprise, a smile came onto her face as she looked at him. "Next, we're going to do one of my favorite things as a pirate."
"Hunt down more ships?" he couldn't help but question with a raised brow.
At this, she just laughed and shook her head. "No, we'll go hunting later. With all of the treasure we've gotten lately, it's time to start giving it back to the people who need it."
Unable to hold back a smile as he watched her come alive as she thought about helping others, he couldn't help but think about what a wonderful person she was. Not only had she been kind to him when he had found out that he was the Avatar, but she didn't keep all the treasure she gained for herself, but instead wanted to give it to the ones she knew needed it most. No other pirate captain in the world besides himself would do such a thing, and he couldn't help but be amazed at how kind and caring she was.
After a few moments of staring at her without her noticing, he seemed to realize that he was staring and cleared his throat. "Aye, that's a good idea, Captain. So, where are we headed?"
"There's a small town not too far from here that's known for being in a tough spot," Katara told him they finally got back to open waters. "They'll be the ones to receive our gift today."
"Won't they be wary of pirates, though?" he asked curiously.
She laughed a little and nodded slowly. "Aye, they likely will. But, we mean them no harm and only wish to help them. We'll just drop off the treasure and be on our way."
"Does anyone ever thank you for your kindness?"
"Sometimes, but it's rare," she admitted with a careless shrug. "It doesn't really matter. I don't do this for thanks. I do this because these people need it more than we do. I will not just stand by and let helpless people suffer if I know I can do something about it."
Once again, Aang found himself amazed by the young woman next to him, seeing that she truly only wanted to help others. Not only that, but the whole reason she had started hunting pirates was because she wanted to make sure that no one else would have to suffer as she and her brother had. Never before had he met a girl so selfless and incredible as her.
"Anyone ever tell you that you're something else, Captain?" he finally chuckled as he snapped out of his thoughts.
"A few times, Aye," Katara laughed with him as her smile never faltered for a moment.
"Well, they don't say it enough," he told her as he walked up to her and forced her to look at him with a gentle turn of her face, leaving her heart beating quickly and her cheeks burning red as he looked into her eyes. "I've been sailing the seas my whole life, and never before have I met a Captain as strong and brave as you. Yet, despite the fact that you could choose to be just like every other pirate, you don't. Instead, you choose to hunt down the ones who care for no one but themselves so that the world can be a better place." He paused and looked deeply into her eyes as he felt himself speak straight from the heart. "You're the most kind, selfless, and wonderful person that I've ever met. And I can't even begin to say how proud I am to be your Quartermaster and your friend."
Katara's already racing heart only seemed to go faster upon hearing these words, and she could only whisper breathlessly to him. "And I'm proud to have such a caring and thoughtful Quartermaster at my side. One I know that I can trust with my life, and who cares about people so much that he won't take a life if it killed him." She couldn't help but get lost in his eyes as she took a deep breath. "You're the most amazing person I've ever met, Aang."
The two could only continue staring at each other as they felt their hearts beating rapidly, both wanting to close the distance between them, but not wanting to make a move that might get them in trouble. But, after moments of just staring at each other, the two couldn't help but to slowly lean into each other, getting within inches of each other's lips as they could taste each other's breath.
"Katara!"
Freezing at the familiar sound of their friend, they both turned to see Sokka come running up the stairs to them, though neither of them could keep an unhappy look off of their faces as they turned to look at him.
"What is it, Sokka?" Katara couldn't help but ask in a bit of annoyance, having been that close to kissing him, even if she didn't know whether Aang had been leaning in as well or not.
"We're almost to the town," he said simply, making her eye twitch as she realized that she had been prevented from kissing Aang for basically no reason.
"Thanks, Sokka. Go get the crew ready to dock," she told him in her rare monotone, trying her best not to show how annoyed she was since Aang was still at her side. Sokka, although being confused as to why Katara seemed upset, decided that it would be in his best interest to just leave and did as he was told.
Aang was rather disappointed as well, as despite the fact that he still had no clue whether she felt the same or not, he had been aching to know what her lips tasted like. Regardless, he knew that it likely was for the best. If she didn't feel the way that he felt for her, the last thing he wanted to do was make things awkward between them. Even if he really wished he could just tell her how he felt.
"Right," he forced himself to focus as he turned to his Captain. "Well, if we're almost there, we should get the treasure ready. Who do you want to come with you, Captain?"
"Well, the Captain should always have her Quartermaster at her side, shouldn't she?" she pretended to think about it, despite having already made up her mind about who she was bringing.
"Aye, you're right," Aang nodded in agreement. "Though I can't carry it all myself. Who else do you want to bring?"
Once again, she acted like she hadn't already made up her mind, not wanting to let him know why she had picked who she had picked. "Sokka can come with us. He'll help you carry the other chest."
"Aye, then. I'll go get him and we'll get the treasure ready for when we reach land," he told her with a quick smile before making his way down to the main deck, making Katara sigh as she watched him go. If only she could read him as easily as she could read other people. Then maybe she would know what was going on through his mind.
Deciding it didn't matter for the moment, she forced herself to focus and pulled the ship in, finding that she was very much looking forward to seeing her brother suffer for interrupting their moment.
Not long later, the three pirates found themselves walking through the woods that led towards the town they were going to. Despite Sokka's many complaints, the only pathway to get to the town without flying was through the woods, meaning that they had to make their way through the woods. Not that Katara minded this, as she wanted to make Sokka pay for interrupting her moment with Aang. And she had to say, so far, she hadn't been disappointed.
"Why did we have to go to this town?" Sokka whined as he struggled to keep the chest aloft as he watched out for fallen branches that could trip him. "Couldn't we give money to a poor town that doesn't make us walk in the woods to get there?"
"I don't know what you're complaining about, Sokka," Aang laughed as he took in the beauty of the woods around them. "It's beautiful. You should learn to enjoy nature more."
"I'd probably enjoy nature more if it didn't get in my way so much," he grumbled, his eyes widening as he watched a nearby mosquito fly over to him and land on his arm, making him sigh as he swatted it and kept walking. "Stupid woods. Stupid bugs. Stupid sister."
Katara and Aang couldn't help but laugh as they heard him grumble to himself, but they decided not to say anything. Their friend was already in a grumpy mood, and although it would be entertaining to see him get grumpier, it would have to wait until after they had finished what they came to do.
After a little while of walking, the three finally found themselves at the entrance of the town, all of their eyes widening as they saw that the town truly was rather poor. All of the people looked like they were either sick, hungry, or tired. Some of which looked like they were all of those things.
Taking a deep breath to calm herself from seeing people like this, she put on a smile and walked up the rest of the way to the town, meeting no resistance as they made their way to the center where the people were milling around.
"You! Pirates!" an old man sitting on a chair called out, a cough interrupting him that made them all look at him with pity. "Your kind is not welcome here!"
Sokka, not believing his ears as he remembered the effort he had gone through to bring the chest full of treasure with him, was about to speak up when Katara slammed a hand over his mouth.
"We're very sorry, sir! We won't be long!" she promised the old man while she gave Sokka a pointed look, becoming satisfied as he rolled his eyes and sighed in defeat before nodding before she removed her hand from his mouth and turned back to him. "We only came here to give your town a gift."
"We don't accept gifts from pirates, you thieving scum!" the old man nearly hissed. "Go back to the sea where you belong."
Knowing that this was likely how they were going to act, Katara nodded to her companions and the two opened up the chests, revealing all of the treasure that lay within as the people in the town's center gasped upon seeing it.
The old man himself couldn't help but be surprised from what he was seeing, but despite the fact that the treasure was right there in front of him, he couldn't help but look back to Katara with great suspicion. "What's the catch?"
"No catch," she promised him with a smile as she took off her captain's hat and kneeled down next to him to level with him. "I know that pirates haven't been kind to people, but my crew and I aren't regular pirates. We have our own mission, and part of that is helping those who need it. Please, take this gift and know that we mean you and your people no harm."
After a few moments of silence, the skeptical look on the old man's face finally lifted and a grateful smile replaced it. "Well, clearly you aren't typical pirates. If you were, you would have started attacking us by now," he chuckled, his eyes shining with hope from what the gift would mean for their town. "Thank you. How can we ever repay you?"
"No repayment necessary," she laughed with a smile as she put her captain's hat back on and stood up. "Knowing that your people will have a fresh start will be enough for us." The old man coughed once again, making her frown as she saw that he was sick. "Are you alright?"
"Oh, I'm alright," the old man sighed as his coughing settled down. "The town's been sick for some time, but thanks to you, we'll be able to get the medicine we need."
Katara wasn't satisfied with this, however, as she looked around at the townspeople and saw that he was right. Most if not all looked like they could pass out at any moment, and she was not willing to just leave them like this. "Sir, I'm a healer. If you can gather all the sick in your town, I can help them get better now."
"You want us to gather our sick so that you can slaughter them!" one of the townspeople from the back called out, making a few murmurs of doubt ripple throughout the crowd that had gathered behind them.
"We mean you no harm!" Katara told them as she turned around to face them. "If we were going to attack, we would have by now. If your leader wishes it, we will leave now, but I do not want to leave knowing that there are people I can help."
"And how do we know that you won't just finish our weak off once you've got them all lined up for your convenience?" came another taunting reply from the crowd.
Although she was a bit frustrated that these people were so wary of her, she couldn't really say she blamed them. There was a reason why she had vowed to hunt down pirates, after all. But, a smile came onto her face as she thought of something that might help her win their trust.
"If you don't believe me, then maybe you'll believe my friend." The word 'friend' was bitter on her tongue, but she decided to ignore it as she gestured to Aang. "He is known throughout the world for being the only non-killing pirate in the world. He'll vouch for me."
"You're 'The Ghost'?" the old man couldn't help but almost choke out in surprise, watching as Aang nodded and stepped up in front of everyone.
"Aye, I am 'The Ghost'," he spoke loudly for everyone to hear. "I have spent many years as a pirate, and I have not killed a single man in my entire life. If you allow my friend to heal your sick, you have my word that no harm will come to them." Taking out his sword, he lay it before the old man in front of him and waited as Katara did the same.
Sokka didn't do anything for a few moments, and after a glare from Katara, finally sighed in defeat and put his sword with the others as well. Katara waited patiently for the old man to think it over, and after a few moments, he nodded his agreement.
"Very well, then. Due to 'The Ghost' vouching for her, she will be allowed to heal our sick," the old man declared, making Katara and Aang smile and Sokka sigh as he saw that they were going to be there even longer.
Though many of the townsfolk didn't look like they agreed with their leader's decision, they saw that the three pirates were unarmed and decided that it would be best to just go with it. Before long, the sick had all been lined up in the center of the town and were waiting as Katara looked them over.
"There's so many of them," Katara whispered to Aang sadly as she saw everything from sneezing to coughing. "It'll take me a long time to get through them all."
"Not if you have someone to help you," Aang told her with a smile. "I'll help you."
A concerned look came onto Katara's face at this. "But Aang, what if they find out that you're the Avatar?"
"They don't know that I can bend anything else than water," he reminded her quietly. "The only thing that people know about 'The Ghost' other than what I look like is that I don't kill people. No one will be able to know."
"Okay, but do you even know how to heal?" she whispered back to him, doing her best not to get lost in his eyes while they had a task ahead of them.
"No, but you can teach me," was his simple reply. "Now come on, there's no time to waste!" Grabbing her hand, he led her over to the start of the line as she did her best not to blush from feeling his hand in hers. Now where they needed to be, Aang released her hand and turned to her. "Okay Captain, how do I start?"
It took her a few moments as she was still feeling the electricity go through her from his touch, but she managed to snap out of it and smiled as she reached out to the nearby water fountain and grabbed some. "Get some water first," she instructed, watching as he nodded and did the same. "Good, now focus your energy into the water. If you've done it right, the water will start to glow."
Aang did as he was told and closed his eyes, taking a deep breath as he poured his energy into the water, making it glow a bright blue as Katara smiled. "Good. You've got it. Now, take your water and place it over their body. The water will scan it for whatever's wrong and fix it."
Being surprised at this, Aang decided it wouldn't do him any good to question her and did as he was told, being amazed as he could feel the water reporting back to him what was wrong with the patient in front of him. "You're right. It's telling me what's wrong right now," he said in amazement as he circled the water over the patient.
"Good," Katara smiled as she saw that he was already getting used to it. "Now, focus that energy into what needs to be healed, and the water will do the rest of the work." Doing as he was told, Aang focused on what was wrong and watched in amazement as the water took away the sickness in his patient, who immediately looked better after he took the water away.
"Thank you!" the man laughed joyfully as he saw that he was no longer coughing and gave them a smile before walking back over to his family who all hugged him.
Smiling as she saw that it was already working, she turned to Aang. "See? This is why I can't turn away if I know I can help."
"Aye, I see what you mean," Aang nodded in agreement with a smile back at her. "Well, let's get the rest of these people healed, then." Giving him a smile back, she nodded and the two set to work, neither of them willing to stop until every last sick person had been healed.
Some time later, Katara took a deep breath and poured the last of her remaining energy into healing the last person in the line, finishing what they had started and being relieved that it was finally done. The final patient thanked her and went back to their family as she felt herself get a little woozy. Her energy drained, she couldn't help herself as she almost fainted, making Aang surprised as she collapsed into his arms from how tired she was.
"You okay, Captain?" he asked with clear concern as he held her in his arms. Had Katara not been so tired, she likely would have blushed from being this close to him, but her tired body was far too spent to do such a thing at the moment.
"I'm fine," she sighed tiredly as she stayed completely still, being comfortable in his warm embrace. "I might need a minute to rest, though."
Aang laughed and helped her sit down, joining her on the ground as he replied. "Aye, that would probably be best." He looked around at all the people who were better now because of their efforts. "You were amazing, Captain. All these people are better now because of you."
"Because of us," she corrected him with a smile, making him smile back at her as they stared into each other's eyes. Sokka watched this scene from a few feet away, being grossed out from seeing that his sister was acting like this, but he couldn't help but smile a little as well. He had noticed that she had been happier since Aang had joined them, and if it meant that he would have to keep getting grossed out here and there, then he knew that he would just deal with it.
Unfortunately for the two, they didn't get to stay like that for long, as the leader of the town came walking up to them, looking much better than he had before. "You and your friends have been very kind to us, despite the way we treated you. Please forgive us and accept our thanks for your help. You and your friends are welcome here any time."
"Thank you," Katara smiled as she got up to her feet as Aang rose with her and bowed to him as he bowed to her.
"Would you all like to stay for dinner? It's the least we can do after all you've done for us," the old man asked with a smile.
"While we appreciate the offer, we've been away from our crew long enough," she smiled apologetically. "We should get back to them. But, thank you for the offer. I hope that your town will get better quickly."
The old man smiled once more and bowed to her. "It will, thanks to you. Safe travels, my friends." The three pirates bowed back to him and wished the townsfolk well before setting off back into the woods, all of them feeling more chipper than usual from seeing how grateful the townsfolk had been.
"See?" Katara couldn't help but sigh happily as they walked back, the sun dipping down over the horizon as they did so. "We did some good today. Now do you wish we hadn't come here, Sokka?"
Sokka opened his mouth to scoff at her, but although he didn't want to admit that she was right, he just couldn't help it. After seeing how they had changed those peoples' lives for the better, it had truly made it worth the bad trip. "Aye. As much as I don't want to admit it, you were right," he sighed in defeat, his frown turning into a smile as he remembered how happy the townsfolk had been when they left. "We really made a difference, didn't we?"
"Of course we did, mate," Aang laughed as he gave him a rough pat on the back, making him wince as the pain went throughout his body. "Those people will be much better off." He turned to smile at Katara. "And it's all thanks to you, Captain."
Blushing a little at the smile he was giving her, she couldn't help but smile back at him as Sokka once again rolled his eyes, finding that they had way too many staring contests for his liking. But, after a few moments, they both snapped out of it and Katara laughed sheepishly.
"Well, let's get back to the ship before Toph sends out a search party," Katara resumed her serious attitude, watching as her two companions nodded in agreement and focused on the way back to their ship.
Fortunately for them, the walk back didn't seem as long as the walk to the town, as they got to their ship just as the sun had sunk beneath the horizon.
"What took you guys so long?" came Toph's question as she walked up to them with her hands on her hips. "The crew's been itching to get back out to sea."
"Sorry, Toph. The townspeople needed our help," Katara explained with a sheepish smile. "But if they want to get back to sea, let's not keep them waiting!" The crew cheered at this, making her smile as she and Aang took their places at the helm and got the ship moving.
Before long, they were well away from land, and were far enough away that no military would be able to find them. "Well, I'd say that we've had enough adventure for one day," Katara chuckled as she called for the anchor. "That's enough for today, everyone! Go below deck and get some rest."
The crew did as they were told and wished each other goodnight before going below deck, leaving Aang and Katara alone on the top deck. "Well, I suppose I should go get some sleep, too. Good night, Captain," he told her with a smile.
"Goodnight, Aang," she smiled back at him, watching him nod to her before he made his way below deck. Now alone, she decided that it would be best if she took her own advice and made her way to her quarters, quickly getting undressed before she finally laid down in her hammock and fell asleep.
Not long later, the sound of an alarm bell woke up the captain, making her gasp as she sat up in her hammock and heard the familiar sound ringing through her ears. Knowing what it meant, she forced herself to get up and put her clothes on, not wasting any time as she gathered all the things she needed before bursting out of her cabin.
"Captain!" came her Quartermaster's voice from across the ship as he started running to her. "We've got trouble!"
"Aye, I can see that," she couldn't help but yawn a little as she followed him up the stairs to the helm. "What's going on?"
"A few of the lads were feeling restless, so I told them that they could come up here and keep watch," he explained. "I don't know how long it's been since then, but they saw something and got me. Once they showed me what it was, I told them to sound the alarm."
"And what is 'it'?" Katara almost grumbled, still being very tired and not being very happy with whoever had disrupted her sleep.
"A pirate ship," he finally told her, catching her interest immediately as she forced herself out of her tiredness. "They've been heading toward us, and they're almost here."
"Then, let's not keep them waiting," Katara smirked a little before turning to the crew. "All hands on deck! If these pirates want to taste our steel, then they'll taste our steel!" The crew cheered in agreement at this, making her smile as she saw that they were as ready as she was.
Not wasting any time, she called for sails and got the ship moving, turning it so that they could see the ship coming from the side. "Waterbenders! Take up the line and make them choke on the sea!"
The waterbenders did as they were told and sent a wave at the enemy ship, but Katara was disappointed to see it disappear into steam just before it reached it. Shaking off her disappointment, she then called out. "Earthbenders! Your turn!"
Next came the Earthbenders, all of them with a large rock in front of them that they kicked up into the air and sent towards the enemy ship, only to have the rocks be caught and sent back to them which they caught as well. They were evenly matched for Earthbenders, too.
Seeing that it wouldn't do them any good to keep waiting, even if she was rather annoyed that two out of her three lines of warriors couldn't do anything, she forced herself to focus and called out. "Firebenders! Your turn!"
Lastly came the Firebenders, all of them taking their places quickly and sending a large amount of fire towards the enemy ship, but the flames dispersed before they could do any damage.
"We're perfectly matched, Captain!" Toph shouted from below as she walked over to her. "What do we do now?"
Katara wasn't sure of this herself. Rare were the times that they found themselves in this position, but after a few moments of thought, she looked to her Quartermaster as an idea finally came to her. "Aang, do you think that you and the other airbenders could make it over to the other ship?"
"Aye, Captain. We could do that," he nodded, though he couldn't help but raise a curious brow. "What did you have in mind?" Leaning in to whisper in his ear, he smiled as he heard her plan and once again nodded his agreement. "Aye, that sounds like a plan, Captain!" Making his way to mid deck, he shouted out. "Airbenders, to me!" The few airbenders on the ship came walking up to him and he quickly relayed the plan to them. Once he was satisfied that they knew what to do, he led the way to the edge of the ship and, making sure they were all with him, collected the air around them and sent them flying off into the sky.
They all could only watch in amazement as the airbenders flew over to the enemy ship and landed on the masts, using some airbending to quickly wrap the sails around the masts so tightly that they could not be used by their opponent. Having succeeded with their mission, they launched themselves back into the air before safely landing on the middle deck of their ship.
All except Aang, who had instead been aiming for the top deck where his Captain waited for him. "It's done, Captain. They're not going anywhere."
"Good," Katara smiled, never having appreciated airbenders as much as she was at the moment. Not wanting to waste any time, she turned back to the crew and shouted out. "Let's get moving! It's time to finish what we started!"
"Aye, Aye, Captain!" the crew shouted back to her as she brought the ship in. Fortunately for them, the enemy pirate crew had not managed to free their sails in time, and knew that trying to do so would be a lost cause.
Before very long, the battle was ringing as steel clashed with steel, sending the sounds of war throughout the once quiet night as they fought. However, the enemy crew were simply no match for them, and they all soon fell to those they had meant to kill.
Katara dealt with the captain herself, choosing to give him a merciful death that she knew he didn't deserve as she stuck her sword in his heart before walking away. These pirates may have interrupted her sleep, but they had made her job a little easier by coming to her, after all.
And so it was with a happy heart that she watched her crew take the loot they had won and set the blasting jelly on the ship to make sure that these pirates would not survive. And considering how the explosion that soon came from the enemy ship, she felt it safe to say that no one had survived that.
After some time of the crew celebrating their victory, they all agreed that they needed more rest and had gone to bed. All except for the Captain, who found herself too awake to go to bed just yet. Besides, she liked looking at the stars at night. It was one of her favorite things to do in the world.
To her great surprise, however, she soon found that she was not alone.
"Captain?"
Looking over her shoulder, she was both surprised and delighted to see that her Quartermaster was standing not too far away from her.
"Aang? What are you doing above deck? I thought that you wanted to get some sleep?" she couldn't help but ask in confusion.
"Aye, that was the plan at first, but I couldn't get to sleep," he shrugged as he walked up the rest of the way and leaned over the rail of the ship. "I've always been a light sleeper, and with that battle we just had, I don't think I'll be able to sleep for a while."
"Aye, I know what you mean," Katara sighed tiredly as she looked up at the stars. "I don't think I'll be able to sleep any time soon, either."
Aang couldn't help but smile a little at this. "Well, if you'd like, I could keep you company."
"Of course," the young captain smiled back at him as she moved imperceptibly closer to him. "So, are you starting to get used to the crew yet?"
The young airbender couldn't help but chuckle a little as he heard her question. "Aye, you could say that," he agreed as he thought about it. "It's definitely different being in a crew that kills, but I can't say that they're not one of the most skilled pirate crews I've ever seen."
"Well, they did have a good teacher," Katara laughed as she thought about it. "Tophs knows how to get them into shape."
"Toph's not the only one who made them into what they are now," came Aang's reply as he turned to look at her.
"She did most of the work, I just taught them how to take orders," she shrugged simply as she leaned onto the railing as well.
Aang couldn't help but laugh a little in amazement at how little credit she gave herself. "Captain, no one would be here right now if it wasn't for you. You were the one who started this journey, and you're the one who's been leading them to be one of the most feared Pirate crews to sail these waters." He couldn't help himself as he looked deeply into her eyes and said. "You're the most incredible woman I've ever met, Katara. I've been all over the world, and never have I met a woman as beautiful, brave, smart, kind, or giving as you. You're… amazing, Katara."
Katara felt herself blushing badly as her heart began pounding, finding herself lost in his eyes as she took in all that he had said about her. And, though she knew that she was taking a risk, she simply couldn't take it anymore as she leaned into him, not noticing as he did the same and their lips melded into one.
Both felt their minds melt in the kiss, and as they got used to it, they moved their lips against each other slowly, Aang's hands going to her waist to pull her closer as Katara's hands wrapped around his neck, making them both let out a satisfied sigh as they finally were able to do what they had wanted to so badly.
After a minute or so of kissing, the two found themselves running out of oxygen and reluctantly pulled apart, looking into each other's eyes as they breathed heavily and remained silent, finding that they couldn't speak at the moment from their kiss.
Quick responses to reviews:
Stegz: Yeah, you're right. I forgot about that, but he'll start learning them soon. And as you can see, not a joke, just a misunderstanding.
TheRaccoon13: Yeah, I like to make it kind of hard for them, it kind of adds a little fun to it for me at least. And yep, you got it right.
Ihaeklag: Yep, you got that right.
Thewirlydirly: I watched one of them when I was a kid, but have not seen any of them recently.
UGudBroXD: Don't worry, they're not as you can see.
Kataangforever: Well, she does now.
Hahaileyynicholee: I honestly don't know about the Tokka. I hadn't really thought about that. I could if you guys want me to. I have a bad habit of being mainly focused on Kataang in my stories. I don't want to say anything to spoil what comes next, but Aang very likely will be talking to the past Avatars in the near future.
Wil02: Wow! I'm glad that you like it so much! And I agree, that part was rather fun for me to write, so I'm glad that you enjoyed it, too. Thanks, but if I'm being honest, I didn't come up with the bending idea of pirate fights myself. I got if from a story called "Bad People" by Lyralocke, so the credit for that goes to her. I just fine-tuned it a little, but thank you. And absolutely, Toph wouldn't be Toph if she wasn't antagonizing her friends, would she?
