AN: Well, as promised, here it is! Another chapter. I think the 5 reviews for a chapter thing went pretty well, in my book! Only two days of waiting. And that gave me some time to relax a little bit and get some other things done. Anywho, I know most of you are probably getting either annoyed or tired of these little "Day blahblah" chapters, but don't worry. They'll be clearing up soon. ;)

Chapter 21, Day 21. (ehe, I didn't do that on purpose or anything...!)

Chapter Twenty-One

Day Twenty-One

Katara walked quickly down the hallway, her olive-toned fingers rubbing along the water skin which held, well, what else, water. Her blue eyes dilated with the dimness, and soon she reached a familiar door way. The bolded numbers stood out against the rest of the door, and her fingers enclosed around the metal knob. Breathing in softly, she stepped inside, blinking as she closed the door gently behind her.

The first thing her eyes rested on was the huge, scarlet Fire Nation flag above the bed. She cringed inwardly, involuntarily clutching the water skin slightly tighter as she moved towards the bed. Another familiar sight came onto her as she gazed upon the unconscious Avatar.

A deep frown encrusted onto her lips as she gently rolled him over. But soon, a tiny grin replaced it as she saw that on he was growing…hair. A small giggle escaped Katara's lips as she carefully unwound the tight bindings around his torso. She bit her lower lip seeing the wound. It was horrific looking, but Katara was used to such things. She tried not to look at it as she bended the water from the sack, concentrating on the healing session.

Such healing sessions usually lasted about a half hour or longer. They tired her, but on this particular even the moon had already raised and she felt its energy flow through her veins. After she had become satisfied with her doings, she gently wrapped the binding back around Aang's body, slipped a red robe on and laid the silk covers over his still body. Katara sighed, her eyes lingering for a millisecond before she collected her things and quickly exited the room.

Katara continued walking to down the corridor, the sloshing sound of water echoing off the walls. She hesitated in front of Vinca's room, biting her lower lip hard as she argued whether or not to visit her. Finally, she raised her hand and knocked softly.

It was not more than a second before the door opened. Vinca looked tired, almost as if she hadn't slept in a long time. Her hair was in a neat braid, her curly bangs hanging down the side of her face, her lashes framing her wide gray eyes.

"Hello," Greeted Katara awkwardly, her fingers skimming the rough velvet surface of the water skin.

"Hi." Vinca replied, her voice quiet.

Katara looked at her in surprise, her eyes widening. It was the first time in weeks she had heard Vinca speak.

Seeing the shocked look on the waterbender's face, a soft giggle escaped Vinca's lips,

"Toph kind of…surprised me." A faint smile curved on her face at the memory, "And I talked and…yeah." She talked with her hands, adding a shrug.

"Oh." Was all Katara could manage to say. Of course, Toph would get her to talk. She cleared her throat, "Anyway…well, I know you're hurt." She shot the airbender a pointed look. Vinca stuck her tongue out playfully. "So, I'm going to heal you. Whether you like it or not."

Vinca frowned, crossing her arms, "I'm fine—"

Katara sighed loudly, gently nudging Vinca into her room before she could protest.

"You're so modest. I see the way you walk, with a limp. You're in pain."

"No—"

The waterbender glared at her friend, "No protesting or else."

Teasingly, Vinca raised her eyebrow, "Or else what?"

"Urrg. Just…let me heal you!"

The airbender giggled, before somewhat reluctantly sitting down. Her thumbs absent-mindedly picked at a stray string from her own shirt. "Katara, are you sure you shouldn't be healing Aang—"

"I already did." Katara cut her off curtly for the umpteenth time.

Vinca sunk hesitantly down into the chair, folding her feet underneath of her. "Okay, okay." She paused, watching the waterbender open the pouch, "I just don't want to waste your time…because I'm ok, really. Just some bruises."

Katara sighed, looking at her in exasperation. "Vinca. You've seen Aang…he's okay. He's just…resting…" she trailed off, looking at the ground.

There was a long pause.

Katara looked up to see Vinca, her hands together as she stared off into space, her eyes clouded and distant.

"Vinca?" The waterbender asked, worried at her sudden change in demeanor.

More silence. Katara was afraid that Vinca had gone into her chosen muteness again.

So, Katara began to speak, "He's okay, Vinca. He's just in a coma. There is nothing to me worried about, he's going to wake up soon. I just know it."

"How soon?" Vinca's voice was just a mere whisper. Her expression didn't change.

The waterbender bit her lip, "I don't know."

There was another pregnant pause.

"You miss him." Katara commented slowly, studying Vinca's face. She knew that she was only stating the obvious, but she played the card anyway.

The air bender blinked, almost like she was returning to reality. "Yes. I do." She swallowed, staring down at her hands. "Though, I know that he will wake up…Just, I don't know when." Her fingers traced the pink scars that were embedded on her wrists, "He's done so much for me, and I couldn't save him. I saw it. I saw her move, I couldn't done something. Anything." She trailed off, closing her eyes tightly as her whole body tensed up.

Katara didn't say anything, because she had a feeling Vinca would continue. Instead, Katara busied herself by disinfecting the water silently.

"I don't know what made me like him so much." Suddenly, a pained expression came onto her face, "Actually, I do." She hesitated.

"You don't have to tell me, if you don't want to." Katara said gently.

Vinca shrugged, "Its not a secret. Aang is just…he's hope. No matter what the situation, he's determined. His smile…eyes…just, he's Aang. I don't know how to…describe it. Everything about him is just, amazing, and I just want him to wake up so badly. And I probably sound stupid." She hugged her knees to her chest, a small laugh coming out of her mouth, "I'm sorry. I don't make any sense."

Katara smiled softly, "No, its okay. I know what you mean. And I also understand what you mean by 'not knowing how to describe it'. He's just Aang." She paused. "I thought I liked him. But then I realized that I loved him, such as a brother. I knew that I couldn't pretend to like him differently. I told him. Then I realized how much he liked me, but I also saw him falling for you."

Vinca frowned, "Me?"

The waterbender laughed quietly, "You know he likes you."

She smiled softly, "I guess so. But I think I like him more than he likes me."

Katara only rolled her eyes, poking Vinca gently in the arm. "Enough talk. I guess time will tell, and apparently you're oblivious to everything." She chuckled, "Now, tell me what hurts?"

Vinca giggled, but before obliging she looked at Katara with big gray eyes that sparkled with a new kind of hope, "Thank you, Katara. For everything."

Not one of my best chapters, but hey, I'll be posting a new one soon! I'll let the 5 Reviews = Chapter thing slide for this chappie because it sucked. I was braindead all day and I just wanted to get it up, so Vinca's describing of her feelings for Aang were horribly written. I might possibly reupload this chapter, it just depends how you guys feel about it. I shall be posting the next chapter either tomorrow or the next day, just whenever.

& Thank you for all the reviews! :)