Didn't expect this, did ya? :P Yes, this chapter is the result of a tiny little thing that ABFG spotted in the first chapter, something that I had overlooked but am seeking to regard with this new chapter. Anyways, you'll see what I mean in a moment, so enjoy and review! :D
DISCLAIMER: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender. The show and its characters belong to Mike and Bryan, the brillant geniuses behind one of the greatest cartoon shows in the history of cartoons. Their work is legendary, and I salute them for it.
High Expectations
"Beautiful sunrise, isn't it buddy?" cheerfully asked Aang as he laid back on Appa's head, gazing up at the clear arctic sky with wandering eyes, watching as the crimson morning sun turned the snow a dark red, painting a vivid canvas on the frozen landscape. Appa, who was resting near his master's home, grunted his reply, lifting his massive head slightly towards the open sky, as if considering whether or not he should take off and frolic among the frigid clouds. Deciding against it, he dropped his head back down to the snow, resting his large chin in his paws.
Aang took a deep breath, gently exhaling it through his mouth, enjoying the nipping and tingling sensations that the chilled air brought to his insides, a strange rush that made his body feel alive. "The world just feels so much better, so right with all this peace and harmony," he thoughtfully mused, folding his arms behind his bald head as he enjoyed the early morning hours in his adopted home, the place he had called his own shortly after his marriage to Katara.
Aang happily sighed, closing his eyes as he whispered, "This is what we've been fighting for all along." Smiling, he added, "And you know what? It was all worth it." He was silent for several minutes, allowing the sunrise to wash over him, awakening his inner Firebender just as it did each and every day, conflagrating his chi with pulsating energy and life.
"Daddy?" tiredly murmured a small voice from below him, making him open his eyes with surprise and sit up from his seat, his arms falling down and resting near his sides. Down below him was his daughter, rubbing her drowsy eyes as she yawned, dressed in her usual parka that Katara had made for her.
"Well, good morning, my little penguin," greeted Aang in a cheery tone as he smiled, jumping off of Appa and alighting on the snow below him. He scooped his baby girl up into his arms, making her sleepily giggle as he kissed her head, saying, "What are you doing up, little sweetie? You should be sleeping, not freezing your little braid off out here with me and Appa."
"Gotta practice my Waterbending," mumbled Makima in reply, lethargically yawning as she snuggled into Aang's shoulder, smiling a little and closing her eyes as she found a comfortable place to rest on her father.
"Practice?" laughed Aang, gently kissing Makima's cheek. "The Tiger-Seal pups are still dreaming with their mamas, and you're already practicing Waterbending?"
"Mommy says I have to if I want to be a Master Waterbender," muttered Makima, her young body practically giving off an aura of drowsiness that would make even Ty Lee yawn and fall asleep on the spot.
Aang was taken a bit aback by Makima's statement. "Honey," he concernedly said, gently nudging her awake, "you're far too young to be out here practicing your Waterbending so early. You need your sleep."
"No, Daddy," weakly protested Makima, slightly struggling against him. "I have to…practice…for Mommy…" The young toddler trailed off, her sterling silver eyes shutting closed as her tiredness finally overtook her, taking her off to the land of dreams.
Aang heavily sighed, making his way back inside the house, tenderly depositing Makima back into her bed and quietly leaving her room, quietly whispering to himself, "What have you done, Katara?" He went back to their room, finding his wife standing in front of her vanity mirror, straightening out her billowing hair with a whale-tooth comb. She was wearing her usual heavy parka, which helped to keep both her and the child she was expecting very warm and cozy.
Katara noticed Aang's reflection in the mirror and, without turning around, smiled and said, "Good morning, Aang. Have you seen Makima?"
"I have, as a matter of fact," firmly replied Aang, angling his eyebrows downward and crossing his arms, frowning at the reflection of his wife.
Katara's smile dropped at her husband's stern look, putting her brush down as she turned around and stared at Aang with confused eyes. "What's wrong with you?"
"What is Makima doing getting up so early in order to practice her Waterbending?" sternly asked Aang, glaring at Katara with rock hard eyes, his gray irises roiling into a thunderstorm which he struggled to contain.
"Aang," sighed Katara, "she needs to learn more about Waterbending-"
"That doesn't give you the right to push her so hard!" snapped Aang, jabbing an accusing finger at Katara, making her jump with fear and surprise. "She's only four-years old, Katara!
"Don't you yell at me, mister!" retorted Katara, narrowing her raging sapphire eyes at the Avatar. "She's my daughter, and I'll teach her the way I want to!"
"You mean our daughter, Katara!" corrected Aang, dropping his arm and taking a few angry steps towards Katara. "It's both of our jobs to raise her, and what you're doing is wrong!"
Katara gaped at Aang, furiously gritting her teeth and clenching her shaking fists. "How dare you!" she exclaimed in a hostile tone, getting up in Aang's face and giving him a threatening look. "I've practically been a mother my entire life; you have no right to criticize me on the way I raise my daughter!"
Seeing the sea of furious anger and rage tossing and turning in Katara's eyes, also feeling the turmoil and justifiable outrage storming in his own heart, Aang closed his eyes and wearily sighed. "Look," he calmly said as he opened his eyes, all anger gone from his strong voice, "let's just calm down." As Katara backed off, still scowling at him, he gestured to her and asked, "Why do you feel so compelled to make Makima a Waterbending master at such an early age? She's only four!"
Katara scoffed, putting a hand under her bulging stomach as she incredulously asked, "Isn't it obvious? As the daughter of the Avatar, she'll be expected to be better in the ways of bending than anyone else here in the South Pole." Placing a free hand on her chest, she added, "As one of the few true Masters in the whole South Pole, it's my responsibility to teach Makima everything I know."
"Katara," said Aang in a placating tone, "I've never made a big deal out of my status as the Avatar. If anything, it's made me a more humble man over the years. I'm not perfect, Katara; I'm just as human as you, Sokka, Zuko, Toph, Suki, and everyone else in the entire world. I make mistakes, I screw up, and I gain new knowledge every day, sometimes even challenging my own perceptions on the way the world works."
"But Makima's still your daughter," reasoned Katara, her eyes softening and losing their hardened edge. "Any children we have are going to under a lot of pressure to live up to your legacy, and, as the oldest child, Makima's going to have to grow up at a faster rate. Even the way I talk to her sometimes is way more mature than someone her age would be able to understand."
"Then why do you do it?" pleadingly asked Aang, taking one step towards Katara and taking her hand in his, seeking to make up for yelling at her just moments before. "Why do you treat our daughter as something she's not? She's only four years old, Katara; she should be out there playing with penguins and using her Waterbending for fun, being a little kid instead of being forced to wake up with the sun in order to practice her Waterbending."
Katara sighed, holding her head down and closing her eyes, her heart heavy with guilt and shame after hearing Aang's words, knowing that she had indeed been wrong. Half-opening her eyes, she quietly said, "I…I just want her to be ready, in case…in case something happens to one or both of us." Looking back up at Aang, she said, "For most of my life, I grew up much faster than all the other girls around me. It made me strong, made me the person who I am today. I just want our daughter to grow up in a way similar to mine, taking on responsibilities that others her age would never face in the hopes that she'll grow up to be a formidable person that people will look up to and respect."
"Katara," kindly said Aang, resting his forehead against hers, "you lost your mother when you were only twice as old as Makima is now. You were forced into a life that you weren't ready for; you couldn't control that. But Makima is lucky to have her mother around, and that's why you need to let her be her own person." Smirking at his wife, he added, "Besides, I know she'll grow up to be a wonderful person because she has to us to guide her and love her for who she is, not want we want her to be. Makima doesn't need to master Waterbending at this moment; in time, yes, but for now, she needs to be the little four-year old she was meant to be."
Guilty tears sprung to Katara's eyes, hating herself for putting her precious little girl through so much at such a tender age. "I'm a horrible person…" she murmured, clenching her eyes shut and biting her lip, glistening droplets of regret trailing her quivering cheeks as she struggled to contain her sorrow.
Aang lovingly kissed her lips, whispering, "No you're not, my precious Moon Lily." Kissing away her tears, he added, "You're an absolutely wonderful, loving, and caring person. You might have had the right intentions in mind, but just the wrong way of executing those intentions." Smiling as Katara opened her eyes, he pecked her lips again. "Now come on, Mom, show me a smile." Seeing Katara lightly smile at his efforts to cheer her up, he gave an airy chuckle as he said, "That's better."
"Can you forgive me for being such an idiot?" meekly asked Katara, her voice tiny and insignificant compared to his.
"I'll always forgive you," promised Aang as he charmingly smiled at her, making her smile even wider than before. "Now come on," he beckoned, standing just a little apart from her, "you've got a daughter to apologize to." Katara nodded, and the two parents made their way to Makima's room, peeking in the doorway, smiling as they saw Makima's tiny form lightly rising and falling under the covers.
Taking in a shaky breath, Katara made her way towards the bedside, gently sitting down next to Makima's sleeping from. "Makima, sweetie," softly called Katara, leaning down and tenderly kissing her daughter's cheek, causing the toddler to stir from her sleep. "Mommy needs to talk to you."
"Mmm?" moaned Makima as she sat up, rubbing her tiny hands in her sleepy eyes as she tried to wake herself up once more. Her silver eyes finally focusing, she slowly said, "Yes, Mommy?"
Taking Makima's hands in hers, Katara said, "Sweetie, Mommy hasn't been very nice to you lately. I've been treating you like a big, grown-up girl when you're still my precious little baby." Smiling, she added, "You don't need to be up every morning practicing your Waterbending; you need to spend more time playing with your toys, the penguins, and with me and Daddy, just being the cute little girl that you are. Can you forgive Mommy for being such a dodo-head?"
Makima sleepily smiled, throwing her arms around Katara's neck as she murmured, "You're not a dodo-head, Mommy." Katara chuckled as she embraced her daughter, bringing a piece of her flesh and blood ever closer to her heart. Aang smiled from his place at the doorway, glad to see the situation peacefully resolved. He was still unnerved at himself for having yelled at Katara, but it was just his natural instinct to protect Makima, a piece of himself that he had made with Katara, combining the flesh of a Water Tribeswoman with the heart of an Air Nomad. Coming out of their embrace, Makima cutely asked, "Can we all go penguin sledding after my nap?"
"You and Daddy can go penguin sledding," assured Katara as she tucked Makima back in. Patting her bulging stomach, she jokingly added, "Your little brother or sister won't let me go sledding with you."
"Will you go penguin sledding with me after the baby gets here?" asked Makima, her little eyes already beginning to slide shut.
"We'll see," promised Katara, smiling sweetly down at Makima.
"Promise?" Makima lifted up her pinky, wanting her mother to affirm her statement.
Katara intertwined her own pinky with Makima's as she smiled. "Promise."
"Yay…" softly whispered Makima, her small arm falling from Katara's as sleep overtook her, keeping hold of her till only Spirits know when.
Katara gently chuckled and kissed Makima's forehead, whispering, "Sleep tight, my starry-eyed baby." She quietly got up from the bed, making her way over towards Aang, the two of them sneaking out of Makima's room and stealthily closing the door behind them. Smiling at Aang, Katara took hold of his hand, forcing him to look over at her. "Thank you for that, Aang. I don't know what I'd do without you around."
"Go insane, probably," chuckled Aang, his wife chuckling along with him as they made their way back to their room, snuggling together just like old times, back when they were wide-eyed children, staring up at the stars and wondering what kind of future they would have together. Doubts and worries were always eased from their hearts when they held each other, knowing that they were safe in the arms of love.
Sweetly kissing Aang's forehead, Katara warmly said, "You're the wind beneath my wings, Sky Guy."
Chuckling as he kissed her chin, Aang said, "And you're the ocean of my heart, Moon Lily." They both chuckled as they snuggled together for their daytime nap, letting their dreams meld together, watching as their precious Makima grew up under the warm and loving canopy that their hearts provided, making them proud of her with each passing day, knowing that this, after all, was what they fought for.