A/N: I am shocked and pleased at the number of reviews I am getting for this fic! Keep 'em coming! I love reading feedback. Anyways, here's the next chap… (And yes… you will find out whose wedding it is, well half of it at least!)

A Congratulations is in Order

It was a short walk to the small restaurant and Aang commented dozens of times on how much the Southern Water Tribe had changed since he had last seen it.

Katara explained how the Northern Tribe had spent years helping them rebuild and how dozens of villagers had decided to stay once the restoration was complete, turning from the sexist political view of their sister tribe to a more simple and democratic lifestyle here. Aang was amazed at how different it looked, yet still similar to its simple roots.

As they entered the small tavern, they chose a spot near the central fire pit to sit and eat. Aang pulled his parka up over his head and hung it on a peg near the front entrance. He stuffed his mittens in his pockets and could feel his blood warming as he bended heat into his body to defrost.

Katara kept her parka on for the time being and Aang ducked his head as all eyes in the tavern went to the arrow on his forehead. He groaned as several mutters lifted from the crowd and one woman stood up and pointed, "Is that the Avatar?!"

Aang gave a small chuckle and a wave, "Hi."

A few annoyed glances from Katara, several autographs, and one kiss on the cheek later, the four took their seats, ordered their food, and made small talk as they awaited their meal. Aang told them how he had mastered all four elements and had spent the last six years helping to rebuild the free world, much as the southern village had been rebuilt. He told stories about how he and Zuko had to come to terms with their differences for the better of the Fire Nation, and surprisingly enough ended up being pretty good friends. The two children listened intently as he described how he had spent over two years searching the world for any surviving Airbenders, Kya commenting more than once on how sorry she was for Aang's loss.

As he spoke, Aang could feel Katara's eyes on him, and on more than one occasion he wiped at his face and neck thinking he must have something stuck to his face for her to be staring like that. Finally he couldn't take it anymore, "Katara… do I have something on my face?"

Katara shook herself of her thoughts, "Huh?"

"It's just…" Aang chuckled, "You keep looking at me and I'm thinking I must have something on my face…"

Katara laughed nervously, "Oh… No… No, there's nothing on your face. Sorry… It's just…" she paused unsurely, "You look so… different."

Aang felt his spirits fall, "Different?"

Katara suddenly heard the disappointment in his voice, "Oh! No, not bad different. Just… different." She smiled as she caught his eyes and placed a hand on his arm. His heart skipped a beat, "You look good Aang."

Aang felt a blush rising to his cheeks and he cleared his throat, "Oh… uh, t-thanks." He managed a smile through his humility.

Katara smiled slyly, seemingly pleased with his more than modest reaction, "I mean gosh Aang… You must get all kinds of attention from the ladies."

Aang laughed nervously and Kya giggled, which egged Katara on even more, "All that Avatar training has really buffed you up, huh? You're down right muscular!"

Aang cleared his throat, rubbing his bare shoulders, tightening the neck of his tunic and suddenly wishing he had left the parka on, "Katara… I uh… You know… I've just been working really hard these past few years, that's all."

Katara smiled good-naturedly, "Aang, relax. I'm just giving you a hard time…"

Aang relaxed and returned her smile with a 'phew' expression as their server began passing out their meals.

He was gracious for the following lull in conversation as the four stuffed their mouths with stew and bread. He wasn't quite sure what to think of Katara's flirtatious comments and he found himself wondering nervously just how tall her husband-to-be stood. This, of course, reminded him that he had yet to congratulate Katara on her engagement…

Katara couldn't help but notice the unmistakable poignant dull that had suddenly found its way into Aang's eyes. Aang opened his mouth to give his congratulations just as Katara opened hers to ask Aang what was wrong.

"Katara I just…"

"Aang what's wr…"

But they were both cut short when Tantu piped up. "So, Avatar Aang…" he mumbled through a mouthful of stew before swallowing. "How do you know Master Katara? Were you guys like boyfriend and girlfriend or something?"

Both Aang and Katara looked at each other, both still mid-sentence before they snapped their mouths shut simultaneously and looked at Tantu with reddened cheeks.

Kya elbowed Tantu in the ribs, "Tantu! That's none of your business!"

"What?! I've heard the stories… I just want to know if they're true!" Tantu answered defensively. "Don't you?"

At this, Kya seemed intrigued. "Well yeah…" she looked at Katara thoughtfully. "Master Katara, how do you know the Avatar?"

The silence that followed was awkward and uncomfortable to say the least. Aang chewed nervously on the inside of his cheek. Katara finally broke the tension, which Aang was immensely gracious for, "Kya, Aang and I knew each other when we were kids," she said simply.

"Wow," Tantu exclaimed, "So then, did you really help the Avatar take down Fire Lord Ozai?!"

"Uh…" Katara stammered for some reason even she couldn't explain.

So Aang answered for her, glad that the conversation had veered from them being boyfriend and girlfriend to that of the fall of Ozai. "Yes. Katara and her brother Sokka were both part of the invasion force. In fact… Katara even taught me my first waterbending!"

At this both children's eyes grew wider and Tantu even dropped his piece of bread he had been munching on. "Really?!" they both asked excitedly.

"You mean… I'm learning from the Master who taught the Avatar?!" Tantu asked incredulously.

Aang nodded, noticing the small smile accompanying Katara's blush. He grinned, suddenly aware of his opportunity to get back at Katara for teasing him earlier. "Do you guys want to hear about how she convinced Master Pakku in the Northern Tribe to take her as a student?"

Katara found her voice and cut in before either child could respond, "Believe it or not… I'm sure they've probably already heard that one."

Tantu just nodded, "Master Pakku told us that story when he first came here. For some reason I think he was proud of it…"

Kya grinned, "She was named one of the most powerful Waterbenders in the whole tribe!"

Katara just smiled humbly and Aang nodded approvingly, "She's pretty amazing, huh?" He suddenly turned to Katara with a warm smile and reminiscent eyes. His tone of voice changed, his face softening as he spoke, "Taking down Ozai was the hardest thing I've ever had to do. I could have never done it with her…"

Tantu stuffed his mouth with another gulp of stew as Kya smiled dreamily, "So you were in love then?" she asked suddenly.

Aang thought his stomach had literally dropped to his feet and his heart felt like it was in his throat. "Well… um Kya… Katara and I… you see…" he stammered, his voice squeaking in a way that it hadn't since he had hit puberty barely six years ago.

Katara just smiled at Kya. "That was a long time ago Kya," she answered modestly, though her voice cracked slightly.

Aang felt his heart drop to the level of this stomach. "Yeah… a long time ago…" he muttered, barely over a whisper. He drew a deep breath and forced a smile, "Katara has a new life now and lots of new and exciting things going on."

Katara looked at Aang questionably as he continued. "Which reminds me that there is still something that I haven't congratulated you on," he said through a forced smile that didn't reach the forlorn look in his eyes.

"Congratulate me?" she questioned. "Aang what are you…?"

"I saw Toph earlier while I was looking for you…" he explained numbly. "She told me whose wedding it was."

Katara suddenly got an all-too-familiar disgusted look on her face. "She what?!"

"Katara it's okay…" Aang said suddenly. "I'm happy for you."

"I can't believe she did that! The next time I see her I'm going to…" Katara suddenly stopped mid-sentence and turned to Aang. "Wait. What? You're happy for me?"

"Well yeah…" he answered with a confused look on his face. "Why wouldn't I be?"

Katara looked to Kya and Tantu, analyzing their expressions to see if they knew anything. But their expressions looked just as confused as she felt. "Aang…" she said as she turned back to him, wrinkle in her brow, "I don't follow… Why are you happy for me?"

Aang felt like his head might explode. If this was Katara's attempt at a joke, he wasn't laughing. "Katara…" he started, still wearing a fake smile that didn't match his tone of voice. "You're getting married. Of course I'm happy for you…" he paused, trying to read her shocked expression. "Aren't you?"

Katara leaned back in her chair, speechless. She opened her mouth to say something, but when the words wouldn't come, she snapped it back shut again, her only expression reading pure confusion.

Aang looked among the group nervously, deciding to fill his mouth with stew so he wouldn't have to say anything either.

So Tantu took it upon himself to break the silence, "Master Katara isn't getting married," he stated matter-of-factly. "Her brother is."

The stew that had been in Aang's mouth only seconds before found its way across the table and in the faces of three very shocked Waterbenders. He stared wide eyed as a wave of relief washed over him so strongly he thought he might be knocked to the floor.

Instantly, Katara looked at Aang with an expression that read somewhere between surprised and… was that… hurt? "You thought I was the one getting married?" she asked in a hushed voice as she bended the stew out of her hair and clothes.

Aang helped bend the stew out of the three's hair and clothes with an apologetic smile, "I thought… well… I mean Toph…" he stuttered.

Katara's expression changed to that of disgust, "Toph… I am going to kill her! I can't believe she told you that I was the one getting married! Is this her way of getting back at me for insisting she wear a dress at the ceremony?"

"Well, actually Katara…" Aang interrupted, remembering his conversation with the blind Earthbender, "She didn't actually say anything," he rubbed at his neck nervously, "I just assumed…"

"What?" Katara met Aang's eyes. "Why would you just automatically assume that it was my wedding?"

"Well," Aang struggled with words to express how he had spent the past few days convincing himself that Katara was too perfect to stay single forever, "I mean you're… you're you Katara."

Katara wrinkled her brow again while Aang ran his fingers along the edge of table nervously.

Kya, suddenly feeling the need to leave Katara and Aang to their conversation privately, stood up from the table, "Well… it's getting late and it looks like you two have a lot of catching up to do." She turned to Aang and bowed, "It's been very nice to meet you Avatar Aang."

Aang just smiled at the young girl, still in a daze as Tantu handed a few copper pieces to Katara to pay for their meal. They hurriedly rushed out the door to leave Katara and Aang alone at the small table.

As the two sat there at the table in an awkward silence, Aang found himself, again, retreating to his memories as he struggled with a way to apologize…

"Katara, I'm sorry!" His face was the color of the crimson Fire Nation clothes he was wearing and his head was spinning with pure embarrassment.

Dark cerulean eyes fixated in a cold glare on him, and he felt even more frantic with each passing second. "It was an accident I swear!" he pleaded to no avail.

Katara sighed forcefully, exhaling a sharp breath between flaring nostrils, "Aang, how could you?!" she asked vehemently. "I trusted you!"

"I didn't know you were down here!" he replied, "I thought you went with Toph into town!" He ran his fingers along his brow line, wishing very much that he had taken Sokka up on his game of Pai Sho instead of coming down to the water to practice bending.

Katara folded her arms across her chest, her damp clothes clinging to her as she had temporarily forgotten her ability to control water. "Well I didn't…" she answered, "Is it too much to ask for a little privacy?!"

Aang sighed, frustrated with himself, the situation, and everything else... He stared at the ground beneath his feet, running his toes in circles in the sand, "If it makes you feel any better… I didn't see anything." He had tried to sound apologetic, but his embarrassment actually made it sound a little disappointed…

Exasperated, Katara threw her hands up into the air, "Yeah Aang, that makes me feel loads better!" she replied sarcastically.

Aang groaned, "I'm sorry… I didn't mean… I just… It was an accident. I just wanted to come practice some bending moves Katara! I had no idea you were bathing down here!" his voice rose unintentionally with each syllable until he realized his was shouting. "I'm sorry…" he muttered, shifting his eyes to the ground again.

Katara was shocked by his outburst at first. She grunted, finally deciding to bend the water of her clothes that she had thrown on so frantically. It had to happen quickly when she had heard Aang gasp upon seeing her nude in the water only minutes before. Satisfied that she was dry, she began pulling the water out of her hair so she could braid it.

That's when she noticed Aang was laughing…

"What's so funny?" she asked hotly through a softening glare.

"N-nothing," Aang chuckled.

Katara crossed her arms again and gave him a look that plainly read, 'Tell me… or else…' Aang cleared his throat nervously and responded, "It's just… It's kind of a funny situation…" his prepubescent voice squeaked with nervousness as he awaited her response. "Isn't it?"

She finally gave into the situation and allowed herself a small smile and a soft chuckle.

Aang smiled back, appreciative for her change of heart.

Katara turned on her heels to head back up to the camp as she said over her shoulder, "Even if you didn't see anything… I wouldn't let Sokka find out if I were you…"With that, she thrust her arms behind her drenching Aang from head to toe as a wave of water came crashing down on him.

A/N: Sorry if the little flashback at the end was kind of weird. I wanted to write one in which Aang had to apologize to Katara and it was actually pretty hard to come up with something. I remembered the scene in "The Runaway" where Sokka and Toph were talking and Katara is under them taking a bath and it made me think… Hm… wonder where Aang is? lol Anyways, it's total innocence and you can believe Aang entirely when he told her that he didn't see anything!! I hope you guys are enjoying the flashbacks, they're meant to develop Aang and Katara's relationship, kind of show what they've been through together and how it led up to Aang allowing Katara to go home with a promise that he'd come to her soon….

Also, I know a lot of you are commenting in your reviews about shipping and whose wedding it is and all that… Let me just say that I, personally, don't really understand the whole shipping thing. I write characters the way I see them in the show. Aang is in love with Katara, that much we know for sure. And it's obvious that Aang has a very special place in Katara's heart… As far as whose wedding is approaching, I again, wrote Sokka the way I see him in the show… You can see for yourself what I mean when I post the next chapter:)