Author's Note: I have no clue what this is. But I like it. I liked writing it.
"Real Kisses"
It started with a simple cough and a slight fever, Aang's healers convinced that the battle with Fire Lord Ozai had damaged him irreparably. The soot and smoke from the battle with the great firebender, his prior wound from Azula which had never fully healed to anyone's satisfaction, the injuries the boy sustained during his confrontation with Ozai, which had left the Fire Lord dead and the young Avatar weak and his health compromised.
The spring following the great battle came to find the young Avatar much altered. He had become noticeably thin, his face more drawn which only made his grey eyes even larger. But to Katara, he was still handsome and she told him so often.
There was no strength in Aang anymore and what he would have given just to be able to one simple trick with his beloved airbending. The war-weary group of friends had rented a small house after the battle, a small earth kingdom dwelling with a delightful little garden and a small pond, determined to make something of a life for themselves and to keep Aang comfortable.
Aang spent much of his time outside in the sunshine, sitting quietly by the pond, his now frail body wrapped in blankets to keep out the chill that seemed to possess him even in the warm spring weather. A calm had settled over the boy and once the brother of former Fire Lord had remarked that he seemed far older than his thirteen years, as if all the spirits of the ancients had possessed his young mind and soul, aging him.
Katara wiped her hands on her apron and walked out into the garden. They had just finished lunch and with Sokka and Toph's help, Aang was once again outside, settled on a soft woven blanket that had been a gift from a grateful Earth Kingdom mother whose young soldier son had been returned to her alive and well. The boy was staring off into space, a little smile on his lips, the sun warming his cheeks. The waterbender sat down next to him and took his hand in her own, lifting it to her lips and kissing the pale, tattooed skin.
"You okay?" She asked.
The boy nodded and squeezed her hand gently.
"I've done so much. We all have. Given so much. I never would've thought this would all be over and yet here we are. The world is finally working towards peace. Now there is just one more thing I want to happen." Aang said with a small smile, lifting his gray colored eyes to meet her blue ones.
"Really?" Katara returned his smile. "And what is that."
"I want a real kiss."
"A real kiss?" She was confused.
"Yes." The young Avatar's young face clouded over with sadness. "I won't grow old. I'm dying, Katara…"
"Aang! No!"
He gently put a finger to her lips to silence her.
"It's okay. I've accepted what's happening to me." He smiled sadly. "But I've never been kissed – you know – for real."
"What do you call what we did in the Cave of Two Lovers?" The watertribe girl asked, pretending to be insulted.
Aang grinned. "Do you remember that couple we saw? The one Sokka yelled at to get a room…"
"You want to be kissed like that."
The young Avatar nodded eagerly. "Just like that."
"And I suppose you have someone in mind that you'd like to kiss." Katara said, scooting closer to him and cupping his chin in her hand. She rested her forehead against his and let the other hand trace the tattoo on his head. He smiled and pointed at finger shyly at her.
Eager to fulfill the boy's wish, the waterbender leaned forward and with a gentle touch of her fingers she lifted Aang's chin and captured his lips with her own.
A low moan rumbled from the back of the boy's throat as Katara parted his lips with her tongue, deepening the kiss. Aang's fingers found their way into her hair, slowly untangling the braid as their mouths gently moved against each other. Katara's hands ran down the length of his torso, grabbing the bottom of his tunic and pulling it out of the waistband of his pants. Her hands buried themselves underneath his tunic, her fingertips lightly skimming over the bones making up his spine. They were so prominent, sharp beneath the delicate smooth skin of his back. She nearly wept, but he pulled away suddenly from her grasp, face flushed and eyes shining.
"Wow…" He was panting, trying to catch his breath. An ear-to-ear smile was plastered across his face. "So that's a real kiss."
The waterbender nodded, returning the smile.
The young Avatar grinned mischievously, a spark of the old Aang returning to the dying boy in her arms.
"Can we do that again?"
O – O – O – O – O
Katara stood in front of the statue that marked Aang's former presence in the world, tears in her eyes. He spent the last few weeks of his short life never far from her and often in her arms, safe and happy. The waterbender had kissed him for real many times after that afternoon in the sunshine. She loved him and when she was all alone and the weather mimicked the pleasant weather of that afternoon, she could swear she could feel him close to her and touching his lips to hers.