2 Years Later

"We're visiting the Eastern Air Temple."

Katara, sitting on her bed reading, looks over to see Aang standing in the doorway of their room. His face looks red and puffy but still maintains a stern expression.

"What do you mean? We just arrived back here at Ba Sing Se, there are people here expecting to meet with you!" Katara argues.

"I don't care. They'll wait." Aang tosses Katara's empty travel bag to her. "Pack up your stuff, we're leaving."

"Aang, I just unpacked this morning. What is the meaning of all of this?" Katara at this point is appalled at Aang's behavior. Who was he to order her around like that?

"Katara, I'm not debating this. I'm heading out to load up Appa, either you come with me or I'm leaving you behind."

Aang leaves the doorway and Katara hears the front door open and close as he exits the house.

What the hell was that?!

Katara is fuming at the blatant disrespect. However, she did believe that he would leave her behind if she didn't hurry. Angrily, she throws her clothes into her travel bag and storms out to the front of the house. She figures she can reprimand Aang for his tone on the way there, but she can't do anything about it if he leaves the city.

Aang is already mounted on Appa and holding the reins, giving off the impression that if Katara had come out one minute later he would have already been in the air. Katara climbs on board and takes a seat in the back of the saddle.

"Yip yip, Appa."

Aang and Katara make it to the Eastern Air Temple without a word spoken by the Avatar. Katara had tried to get him to apologize for his insensitive orders, but Aang has mastered the solemn-stare-into-the-distance, so eventually Katara gave up and sat pouting for the remaining trip.

Appa lands at the base of the central building and Katara and Aang dismount.

"So now that we're here, are you going to talk to me?" Katara spits at Aang.

Aang says nothing and proceeds up the large, winding staircase. Hesitant, Katara follows. This particular temple has sustained the most amount of damage of all the air temples during the Air Nomad Genocide; walls have large chunks of stone missing, torn from them during massive explosions, and the staircase is almost too precarious to climb. Most of the infrastructure is still standing, much to Katara's surprise, despite having over half of its foundation demolished or damaged in some way. Vegetation has taken over the building in the absence of human contact.

Katara continues to follow Aang until they reach a 4-story tall room with an open ceiling. In the center is a monumental statue of a past airbending Avatar. Aang is standing directly in front of the statue, staring up at the stone face.

"Aang…?"

Aang turns his head to Katara, tears falling down his face silently. Katara walks to him and hugs him tight, where he begins to sob harder.

"Katara, I- I'm not sure I know who I am anymore."

"What are you talking about?" Katara rubs the back of his head.

"I can't remember their voices. I don't remember every name of all the friends I lost while in that iceberg. I don't even know if I'd consider myself an air nomad anymore." Aang is shaking in Katara's arms.

"Oh, Aang," Katara pulls him out of the hug and places a hand on either side of his face. He now matches her in height. "Listen to me. You'll always be an air nomad. It's who you are."

"But what if I forget how to be one?" Aang pushes away Katara's hands and begins pacing the room. "I hadn't completed my training before I was lost. Sure, I mastered the element, but I hadn't finished learning about our culture. I don't know everything that should have been passed down through the generations. I'm the last airbender, and because of that a large chunk of my people has been lost forever." Aang is yelling into the air.

"You can't go back in time and change the past, Aang. You just have to learn how to move on, to repair what's been broken."

"How am I supposed to fix this feeling, Katara? It's impossible."

"You may not be able to completely erase your guilt, or bring back those that were lost. But maybe you could do something in honor of them, make sure that they're never forgotten."

Aang dwells on this for a moment. Katara sees his face relax and then turn into one of hope.

"You're right. There is something I can do." Aang walks to the center of the room and shoots himself to the top of the statue with a gust of air. He spreads his arms out like a starfish, gesturing to the room around him. "I can restore the temples to their former glory. Oh, and I can document my air bending teachings to store in the libraries. That way, my mind might be put at ease."

Aang drops back onto the ground in front of Katara and grabs both of her hands. "This whole nation could be prepared and ready for when the airbenders finally return. Just imagine it, Katara. A new era of airbenders. I can't wait to meet them."

"What do you mean? Who are these new airbenders you're picturing?"

"Our future kids! I hope they're airbenders. Not to say that waterbending isn't great and all, but the more the better, right? If we're gonna rebuild a whole nation we're gonna want to expedite the process."

Katara takes a step back, overwhelmed by what Aang is saying. He's already planning for our children? She hadn't even thought about life that far in the future. Of course she wanted children one day, she just hadn't thought about their children. While she begins to internally panic, Aang is still rambling on to himself, making mental notes about whom he should contact to begin reconstruction of the temples.

She wants to interject, to tell him to not assume details regarding her future, but for some reason she's frozen. This is the happiest Katara has seen Aang since the end of the war. The weight of his peoples' genocide seems to be a constant burden on his spirit, never granting him true happiness. Katara always felt as though his mind was somewhere else. Now, looking around, she imagines that this is where it's been. Although she can acknowledge that this is a feeling she could never understand, Aang hadn't put much effort into explaining it before today. This is the first time he has opened up to her in this capacity. Katara wants to be there for him, but it's a lot to take in and process. She's all of a sudden thrown into this story in Aang's mind that she feels she has no choice but to accept.

Aang runs over to her and grabs her hand, pulling her down the stairs toward where Appa is waiting. "Come on, we have some people to talk to."

"Who?"

"Duh, Toph and her apprentices! I can recruit them to help me fix this place." Toph is currently an earthbending instructor at her own studio in Gaoling, near her childhood home.

Katara doesn't know if she has the emotional capacity to accompany Aang on this journey of restoring the temples. She has always supported him in his quest to atone for the genocide of his people, but after the bomb he just dropped she feels like she needs to take a break and evaluate.

"Aang, actually, can we go back to Ba Sing Se first?"

"Why? We need to get started immediately, no time to waste."

"Yes, of course, I understand that. I just left some of my stuff there is all and would like to go back and get it."

They reach Appa and Aang turns to Katara, kissing her. "Sure thing, let's go."

Aang and Katara fly above the wall into Ba Sing Se and begin the descent toward their vacation home. When they get close enough, they see a large creature sitting at the front of their home.

"What on earth is that?!"

Appa lands on the street in front of the house and he and Katara cannot believe their eyes. There, sitting on their front lawn, is a red-scaled dragon, towering to the same height as the second-story windows. They glance to the front porch and see Zuko sitting on a bench, casually sipping on a cup of tea that he'd helped himself to from their kitchen.

"I was wondering if I'd catch you two here. You're awfully hard to locate, you know."

Aang is the first to speak. "Zuko, he's beautiful, how did you-"

"The Sun Warriors," he responds. "Shortly after my coronation I went to their city to pay them a visit. I wanted to establish a good relationship with them as Fire Lord, and let them know I would do all I could to protect them under my rule. They had somehow already caught word of our victory over my father, and had a gift prepared." Zuko gestures to the dragon.

"And he was the gift?"

"Well, his egg was. I hatched him myself."

Katara is still speechless. The dragons weren't extinct? "Where have you been hiding him?"

"In the Royal Palace. I had some trusted staff help me care for him as a baby. Once he got to an unmanageable size, I moved him to the mountain range behind the Capital. No one ever goes there, and it was full of wild livestock. I visited him nearly every day." Zuko sets his teacup on the open bench beside him and stands. He walks over to the dragon and it nestles its face into Zuko's hand. "His name is Druk."

"Zuko, this is unbelievable."

"Tell me about it. But that's not why I'm here." Zuko walks toward the pair, who are still staring in awe at the magnificent creature. "I wanted to invite you two to come see the progress made on Republic City. The Avatar Assembly headquarters has finished construction, along with some small shops and housing developments, but there's still a long way to go.

"So, what do you say?"

"Zuko, that sounds great. But Katara and I actually have to head out, we were just stopping by to pick up some stuff."

"Aang," Katara turns to Aang. "This is your big important project, don't you want to see it?"

"I have another, more important project to tend to. You already know this."

"Well how about if I go?"

"What?"

"I could go and let you know how things are going once you get back from Gaoling." Katara straightens Aang's robes. "You can do what you need to do, and I can check out how our new world capital is doing. It's important that one of us go."

Aang sighs. "You sure you'll be okay?"

"Why wouldn't I be? Go. It's alright."

Aang turns back to Appa before abruptly spinning around. "Wait, if I'm taking Appa then how are you going to get there?"

"Oh don't worry," Zuko interjects. "Druk may not be fully grown but he's got enough room on him for another person. The saddle fits two. It's your lucky day, Katara, you get to ride a dragon."

Zuko smirks. Katara blushes, knowing she interpreted what Zuko said much differently than Aang did.

"Aw man! That's no fair!" Aang pouts. Katara laughs and then hugs him as a send-off.

"Go! I'll see you when you get back."

Aang kisses her one more time and then climbs onto Appa. He departs, and Katara walks toward Zuko.

"You sure this thing is safe?"

Druk looks at Katara like he understood what she said. Zuko laughs. "I wouldn't have gotten here in one piece if it wasn't."

Druk lowers his torso to the ground and Zuko lifts Katara by the waist onto the saddle. Zuko climbs up into the front of the leather set and Katara settles one leg on either side of him. He orders Druk to take off, and they begin their journey to the construction site of Republic City.

Hey guys! I know this chapter was pretty Kataang heavy, but next chapter will be nice and Zutara fluffy as you might have already guessed. :)