A/N: All right, I apologize for the random switching around of the chapters. This is the new chapter 2! Thanks for your patience!

"Listen, Aang, I'm worried about Katara as much as you are, but you've got to let Appa rest," Sokka said. Appa's body dipped into the arctic water, drooping with exhaustion.

"Yeah, Aang," Toph said. "I haven't been able to see in three whole days! And I wouldn't mind, you know, not drowning if Appa passes out too." Toph stuck her bare feet up in the air and snuggled deeper into the blankets. To her, the freezing temperatures were the only indication that they were heading south.

"We have to get Katara to Master Pakku as quickly as possible!" Aang gripped the Appa's fur tightly as he whipped around to face his two friends in Appa's saddle seat. Appa moaned in complaint. "How can you two even think about stopping? She hasn't woken since we left Ba Sing Se."

Toph reached out a hand to the sleeping girl next to her and felt her pulse. "She's still breathing, and her heart is strong. She'll come out of this coma, Aang."

"Look, Aang," Sokka said slowly. "Why don't I drive and you lie down next to Katara. She's probably cold and we don't want her to get sick. Besides, when was the last time that you've slept?"

Aang shook his head, his eyes haunted. "That doesn't matter."

"Sure, it does, Twinkletoes," Toph said. "Sleep does a body good. And Katara does look cold."

Both boys looked over Katara. "I think that you're right, Toph," Sokka said. "She does look – hey, wait a –"

Toph shook her head subtly, shutting Sokka up.

"Well," Aang said. He rubbed his ringed eyes. "I don't want her to get sick."

"Lay down, Twinkletoes," Toph ordered. "We'll wake you before we arrive."

Aang glared at the two of them. "I'm not going to fall asleep."

"Of course," Sokka humored him.

Aang knew it was a mistake the minute he leaned back against the saddle. He held Katara against him, to warm her as he promised to do, but despite the girl's fragile state, Aang couldn't sit still. The minute he let his mind wander, it came back to the noxious smell of fresh blood, the screams of a rebel leader and the lifeless torn face of a traitor. You owe me a life, Avatar, Chenlu had told him. Her eyes were dead as she clutched the corpse against her. Never forget that you owe me a life.

Aang sat up, jostling Katara. She didn't wake up. "I've got to get out of here." Aang was breathing hard. "I got to get out of here!" Aang jumped to his feet and grabbed his staff. With a harsh knock, he released the glider and with a slight yell, shot off into the air.

"Aang! Wait!"

Aang ignored his friends. He couldn't stay still, he couldn't stay there. The wind pressed against his face, freezing his tears into a glaze along his cheeks. If Katara didn't wake up –

When Aang returned, Sokka was kneeling over his sister. He was laying another sleeping bag over her, his face grim and worried. He looked like he aged ten years just studying his unmoving sister's face.

Aang landed and placed a comforting hand on Sokka's shoulder. "She'll be okay."

"You'd better be right."

Aang took his hand away. "I spotted the village from up there." Aang actually smiled when Toph whooped. "We'll be there in about fifteen minutes or so."

Aang sat next to Katara and placed a head on her forehead. Aang didn't know much about medicine or healing, but he did remember Monk Gyatso smoothing his forehead whenever Aang felt sick. Katara didn't have a fever, but she still did not wake.

"There it is," Sokka said finally as Appa finally gave one last lurch and dropped into the water. "Come on, Appa! You're so close! Yip yip!" Appa tried in vain to lift his heavy body out of the water.

"It's all right. A few more minutes won't make that much of a difference now," Aang murmured.

Someone in the village must have spotted the sky bison because a small crowd began to gather at the docks, waiting for their arrival.

When they reached the dock, the crowd burst into applause and a cheer of "the Avatar" rose. Aang didn't waste one moment. He lifted his girl into his arms and airbended them off Appa and in front of the villagers.

"Where is Master Pakku? I must see him! It's an emergency!" he yelled. The cheering stopped, replaced by an eerie murmur. A boy of the tribe waved at Aang to follow him, and the two weaved through the tents and disappeared.

"Come on, we'd better keep up." Sokka took Toph's hand and led her down Appa's head to the dock.

"Um, Toph." Sokka face dawned with horrid realization. "There's something you need to know before we get off Appa."

"Whatever it is can wait! Oh, land!" Toph took the last step off Appa and braced her bare feet against the hard surface. She stomped the ground once with her left foot, then her right. Slowly her pale eyes began to fill with deep horror. "You! You didn't say there were no rocks or earth at the South Pole! I'm completely blind here!"

Sokka bit his lip. "Oops. Sorry, Toph. Really. I guess it must have slipped my mind. But I need to find out what Master Pakku says about Katara. Come on." Sokka lifted Toph up and unceremoniously threw her over his shoulder.

"Hey!" she yelled. She kicked him in the stomach but after a grunt of pain he ignored her and raced after the Avatar.

Sokka pushed aside his family's tent flap, and entered. Toph, could feel the still mood in the tent and she fell silent as Sokka placed her back on the ground.

Master Pakku was shaking his head. "It's a wonder she's alive at all." She was lying on a raised table, silent and motionless as Master Pakku pressed water into her head and throat. Aang knelt in front of Katara, gripping her arms. "She had an incredible amount of blood and airflow cut off from her brain for extended period of time." Master Pakku sighed and pulled away from her.

"Master?" Aang asked.

Master Pakku smiled. "She will live, Aang. It might take a while for her to return to the Katara we know and love." Master Pakku pursed his lips thoughtfully. "It will take at least six weeks of rehabilitation before she's fully healed. Probably longer for her to return to her previous strength."

Master Pakku wasn't expecting the look of pure devastation on Aang's face. "Six weeks? Six weeks?"

"Probably closer to two months, Aang," Pakku told him bluntly.

"Aang, it's fine," Sokka said. He took a step forward to place his palm Aang's and Katara's intertwined fingers. "We'll just stay until she gets better."

Aang yanked his hand loose. "You don't understand, Sokka. You don't understand anything!"

"Oh yeah? What's not to understand?" Sokka snapped. "My sister is in a coma right now because you couldn't choose between her life and the worthless king's!"

Aang's body tensed. "Stop it."

"It must have been a hard decision, huh? Two months of life sucked out of her before you could even do anything to save her. You just stood by and watched her die in front of you, didn't you? Does that fit with your noble ideas of not taking a life? Huh? All powerful Avatar?"

Wind began to pick up in the tent.

"Sokka," Toph said. "Aang. Cool it. You're not helping Katara. Aang, I said cool it!"

"Get him out of here!" Master Pakku moved forward to protect Katara from the Avatar's temper.

Sokka grabbed the younger boy and shoved him out of the tent into the snow. "Snap out of it, Aang, or you'll go into the Avatar State!" Sokka yelled as the wind just grew fiercer. "I'm sorry, all right? I didn't mean it."

Gradually the wind died down around the boy kneeling in the snow. "I promised the world that I would never disappear again. No one knows yet if I survived the rebel attack on Ba Sing Se and we didn't have enough time to send word to anyone. I can't just wait six weeks and let the rumors spread that I'm dead again. And I can't abandon the Earth Kingdom. People are probably dying." His voice grew husky. "People have already died."

Master Pakku, who had been standing at the entrance of the tent, stepped forward. "Aang, I swear to you by the White Lotus that I will the greatest care of Katara. But the world needs you again. You know that."

Aang twisted around to face the great Waterbending Master. "But maybe, maybe I can take her with me! You can teach me healing over the next couple of days and then I can just continue working on her as we travel –" Even as the words were tumbling out of Aang's mouth, he knew they were unreasonable. He couldn't take a barely conscious girl with him to a warzone. She had to stay here with a healer.

"I'll stay here with her, Aang." Sokka gripped the younger boy's shoulder. "I'll take care of her and explain why you had to go. Katara will understand."

"But I need her!" His voice cracked. "I just can't leave her here!"

Toph bumped into Master Pakku before carefully stepping in the direction of Aang's voice. "Aang," Toph said after she ran into him. "Aang, I know I'm not good at this kind of thing, but here's the deal. The world needs you right now, more than Katara does. Now I know this is hard." Toph reached her hand out blindly before placing it against his neck. "But it'll be okay. We know you can do it. Besides, I'm coming with you."

"Thanks, Toph," Aang said, but his heart wasn't in it. After a moment he stood up and walked back inside the tent. He brushed a curl out of the sleeping girl's face.

"I'll be back within two months," he whispered. It was a promise he couldn't keep.