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Rain hammers the ground almost as deafeningly as the thunder roars.
Far in the distance, Katara is sure she can hear the screaming of dying soldiers, but all her attention is on the firebending before her.
It is almost impossible to see Aang and Azula dueling in the darkness and steam they are creating.
The dancing blue and red fire are almost mesmerizing to Katara. She might have thought they were beautiful if she didn't know that Aang's life was caught in the struggling dance.
Her hand clutched tightly to the fabric of her tunic over her pounding heart. She let the water soak into her and roll off.
Suddenly, the red fire vanished in an explosion of blue.
For Katara, everything seemed to slow down as she ran toward Aang, praying to the spirits to let him be safe.
In a flash of lightning, Katara saw Azula laying on the ground, eyes closed.
Crawling on her hands and knees through mud, Katara found Aang in the darkness. He lay on his back. She felt the sticky warmth of blood and her tears began to pour out. They mixed with the stinging rain.
Pursing her lips, she gathered healing water into her hands. A light blue glow illuminated them. She pressed them to him and the glow grew to surround them and all the rain falling on them, even around them.
The rain was drawn toward them, drawn to Aang's wounds. She could feel her own energy being drawn out of her. It was as if the sprits had determined that Aang should live and they were directly helping her heal him.
The twisting lights and glittering rain was beautiful.
The glow faded and Aang stirred.
He saw her face. Her wet hair clung to her as water poured down her face and drops formed at her eyelashes. He wondered for a moment if she had been crying.
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The clouds had thinned and the thunder and lightning were gone. There was just the rain. He smiled faintly.
"Aang?"
"Hm?"
She looked exhausted as she leaned forward onto him. She whispered in his ear, "Can we get married now?"
He rolled over, propping himself up on his elbow and looked down at her, "Yes."
She smiled weakly up at him. "I love you."
They lay in the mud and rain.
As he looked down at her admiringly, her soft expression turned into that of terror. She pushed Aang away. He rolled, and as he did so, he felt the heat of blue death. It flashed where he had been only seconds before, where Katara still was.
Aang saw Azula standing before him. And then he saw nothing, nothing but the Avatar State.
When Aang came stumbling out of the blinding Avatar State, the rain had stopped and the dark sky was lightly tinted with dawn.
Aang saw Azula was dead. Her body lay dismembered some distance away.
Before him though was Katara. With a splash, he dropped to his knees.
Her blood mixed with the puddles of rain water she lay in. Her body was charred past the skin in some parts, but her face remained. He gathered her cold body in his arms.
He was shaking.
"Katara," he choked out. "Katara," he pleads.
But she could not hear him. She would never hear again. She would never hear, 'I do.'
In death, her expression is peaceful.
He clenches his fist in her wet hair and buries his face in her smooth neck.
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And finally, an end.
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