"Wouldn't Katara, a water tribe princess bring the balance you seek in your kingdom." She eyed Toph with almost a fear in her eyes, but the blind earthbender could not see her. She looked up and met Aang's gaze. Was that pain in his eyes? Her father and brother stared at her and then the debate broke out once more.
"Why not choose an Earth Kingdom Princess."
"Well Katara is of age and now of royalty."
"She could bring unity."
"…peace…"
"…hope…"
Her heartbeat grew faster and faster, finally Sokka stood up fiercely.
"I will not force my sister into an arranged marriage." He said gritting his teeth. Suki tried to make him sit down, but he would not listen. Suddenly her father and the Northern King stood together.
"She is our waterbending master, we cannot forsake her. She must remain to teach the younger ones." The northern king uttered.
"Don't you have other waterbenders to teach the young ones?" Iroh volunteered.
"But she is our master, we need her experience and…"
"Katara is a powerful waterbender, but I do know there are more experienced in the Northern Tribes…" Iroh once again offered calmly. Katara realized then that Iroh wanted her for his nephew. He genuinely thought she was the best choice and his acceptance was turning the minds of others as well. More were growing in favor of the match.
She felt her dad sit down beside her and he took her hands in his and she stared into his eyes.
"Katara you are my only daughter…" He said simply obviously not able to get out any more.
"What should I do, Father?" His eyes looked sad and worried for her and he took a deep breath.
"I don't know what to tell you Katara. I had wished that one day you would marry for love, like your mother and I did. With an alliance with the Fire Nation there would be some who would reject you as foreign but with your voice among them, we would be safe. They are right. You are everything the Fire Nation is not, you are kind and caring. While they are destructive, you are healing. I leave it up to you my daughter. If you do not wish to marry the Prince then I will understand and I will not let it happen." She gulped and felt her grip tighten on her father's.
If she married Prince Zuko, her people would live in peace, with no worry from the Fire Nation and even the might of the Earth Kingdom would not dare to attack them with the Fire Nation by their side. She touched her necklace attentively. What would her mother have done? Was love even an option she could consider? Her face grew stoic and she felt tears begin to well in her eyes. Her father's expression still rested on her and he helped her wipe away the tears. She sniffled a bit but then he gave her a slight smile seeing her recover a bit.
"I made up my mind father." She whispered. With that she stood up and clasped her hands in front of her. Her throat caught as the table grew quiet and expectant. Everyone's eyes focused on her and she looked down so as to not meet anyone's gaze in particular.
"I have discussed the proposal with my father and I will concede to the council's wishes and marry Prince Zuko, if he will have me." Her voice croaked at the last part. Her gaze shifted to Zuko and for the first time she saw an expression in his eyes, surprise, and she waited silently hoping for him to reject her. He must have seen the expression of need on her face for he took a moment to consider and finally rose quietly. He had not said a word during the council and she had not seen him say anything outside of the council either and a part of her desperately wanted to hear his voice.
"I will concede to the council's unanimous wishes." She took a deep breath and his gaze went to her again and there was a silent intensity in them, but he had inadvertently given her hope, the council had to be unanimous. She hoped fervently it would not be so, but within the hour the decision had become unanimous. Apparently hers and Zuko's concessions had settled the rest of their opinions.
A few of the more generous Earth Kings shook Iroh's hand and gave their congratulations on the pending event. All that was left was to settle for a day for the wedding. Many happy faces laughed and joked. Only Katara and the Water Tribe delegators and Prince Zuko seemed unresponsive. Her father fought hard for the wedding to be postponed for a year or two, but the others were too wedding happy and they had Iroh's age to consider. They wanted it by the next full moon which was in three weeks. Her father consented only under the condition she was to return home first. Finally dusk approached and she was only too relieved.
Aang stood up once more and discussed the day's events and announced the council adjourned and on the following day the delegates could be dismissed.
She walked around the temple in silence letting her thoughts drift around her. Everything was so quiet and she looked up to the crescent moon and suddenly remembered her promise.
"Katara?" She turned and saw Aang walk out from the shadows into the small bit of light.
"Aang?" She said anxiously. This was the first time she had been alone with him since she had seen him. He had always been so elusive. His worried expression scared her and he took her hands in his arrow tattooed ones.
"Katara you don't have to go through with this. We could find another way. I'm the Avatar, I could make them…"
"Aang stop. I have made my decision. You and I both know this is the only way. If there were I'm sure…well it doesn't matter. For the past five years I've felt like I've been drifting and I didn't have a purpose anymore. I felt maybe at one time, you and I…" She stopped, her words trailing, her eyes focusing on him to see his expression. If anything his face seemed to be consumed more in shadow.
"Katara I realized after the war, I couldn't hold on to you. You deserved to have a good life and find someone you love and settle down and have children. I couldn't give you that life. I'm the Avatar and this was more important than what I may have wanted at the time. If only things had worked out as they should." She shook her head. She finally understood why Aang had avoided her all these years. I guess in a way it had helped her to realize he was not for her anyways. Maybe at one time they could have been, but that time was now long gone and she would not reminisce on what could have been.
"Aang it's alright. Times have changed. We've all grown up, some of us more so than others. I have great respect for Zuko for helping you when we needed him and for everything else he did for us. I think he has truly turned out for the better." Aang suddenly seemed angry.
"Katara, if he tries to hurt you, I swear I'll…"
"Aang you're the Avatar, you have more important matters than worrying about me. I can take care of myself." She tried to say it kindly but I guess in a sense it reminded him of when they were younger. She had always taken care of him and it made him feel juvenile to think he could protect her. Finally sighing he squeezed her hands lightly.
"Be well Katara. I wish you happiness in your marriage." He leaned over and kissed her on the cheek making her blush. He turned away and disappeared into the shadows. She stayed at the balcony for another moment and sighed went back to her own room.
Unbeknownst to either Aang or Katara, Zuko had been watching them in the shadows and had heard their words. He turned away from them back to his own room to think.
The bringing of dawn brought about the day of goodbyes and promises. Katara and her retinue were waving goodbye to the Northern Water Tribe. Sokka was off with Suki somewhere and Toph and her own delegation had head out minutes earlier after teary goodbyes.
She looked up as Prince Zuko approached her. She admired him in the light of the rising sun. He was handsome like before and he seemed nervous approaching her. He was no longer in finery but in traveling clothes fitted for comfort and flexibility. The only thing fine about him still was the top knot adorned with the mark of the crown prince.
"Lady Katara," he said formally "I wish you the best of luck in your travels and I hope this has not caused you any distress." He looked at her and she was at a loss of words. He reached up slowly to his top knot and took off his golden mark of the crown prince. He handed it to her a bit awkwardly and before she could say another word turned away from her. She fumbled with it for a few moments unsure of what to do with it.
It was then that Fire Lord Iroh approached her smiling cheerfully.
"Good travels Lady Katara, I hope to see you…What's this? Did my nephew give this to you? Well I would keep it Katara, that is an old family relic. This mark of the crown prince was worn by Sozin himself and even Avatar Roku. It has been in the family for centuries. Zuko would not lightly give this to just anyone, especially after he worked so hard to obtain it."
"Uncle!" She heard Zuko yell in a fiery temper. Iroh just gave a wider smile and took her hand and kissed the top of it gently.
"Till the full moon, Lady Katara." It felt odd for people to call her by her newly acquired title and as she took the mark from Zuko's top knot she placed it in her bag and out of sight. She looked around hoping to see Aang somewhere, when she didn't see him she sighed.
"Goodbye, Aang." She whispered into the wind and left with her family to return home to the South Pole and prepare for her wedding to Prince Zuko.
On the ship she fumbled in her bag and removed the crown of Prince Zuko and fondled it lightly. She wondered what it would be like married to Zuko. He seemed so unexpressive of what he was thinking and feeling unless he was mad. She scrunched her nose and lifted her arm over her head determined to throw his emblem.
Then she thought better of it. Iroh had been really impressed Zuko had given this to her. It was old and a family heirloom. Her hand went to her necklace. It wasn't any different from her necklace. Even when Zuko had taken it from her when she got it back she realized it had been taken care of, it had been returned to her good as new. She had to be patient with Zuko, but she wasn't sure if she could handle it.
She had gone back after the Council meeting to her home and there was much celebrating and rejoicing for their return and her father's ascension to the throne. The people trusted him. Then he had announced her engagement.
Everyone had fallen silent and then she heard the sounds of distaste and wanted to run. Her own people loathed her. Her brother growling stood before the people as their crown prince.
"Listen up all of you. Katara is sacrificing herself to the mercy of the Fire Nation so that every single one of you out there can live life in peace. So your children and their children will never know war. She is doing this for all of you and you disgust me by treating her so."
"Sokka." Her father had stopped him. The people were quiet and this time when their eyes fell on her she felt as if she were going to her death. They pitied her, but the woman who shoved their children behind them looked to her with hope and sadness. Her brother had called it a sacrifice. She was sacrificing herself to the mercy of the Fire Nation.
Oh Spirits what had she done?
She ran, she kept running until she reached her old igloo. She saw the fire inside and shrunk away from it. She did not want to be near anyone now. Not even Gran-Gran. She turned and walked as the stars had already come out peaking from behind the diminishing sun's rays. A beautiful play of colors filled the sky as a pathway to the spirit world was drawn out for her. She would miss the auras more than anything. They were what comforted her and reminded her of her mother. They would not have anything so beautiful in the fire nation.
She looked up to the moon where Yue, her friend, presided. She looked up to her. Did Yue feel this way when she sacrificed herself? Was it even the same thing?
Yue had given up her human form to become the spirit of the moon and restore balance to the whole world. Even Iroh had fought for that balance. She would be giving up all her hopes and dreams to become a queen in a nation that would despise her.
She remembered what her father said. People would hate her for this. They would think she betrayed them. Her people would hate her and the Fire Nation people would hate her. Why would they want a waterbender as their Fire Lady?
It was all for balance, so that there could be no more war. So no more children would grow up motherless and so fathers and brothers would not leave and never come home. She had to remind herself why she did this, because in the end her feelings were insignificant to the others that needed her.
She would never turn her back on the people who needed her.
Katara began to cry solemnly on to her small cot.
Now she was on her way to the Fire Nation, to be married. She was on her way to the Fire Nation and inside her heart was dying.