Summary: Katara gets a paper cut. Aang panics.
Word Count: 1.9k
Welcome to Day 2 of Kataang Week 2023! Today's prompt is Injured with an unnecessarily long exposition! Enjoy!
Aang sighed.
The chair underneath him creaked as he stretched backward, arms reaching the farthest they had in hours, before he hunched over his desk once again and blinked at the ink-ridden documents in front of him.
It should've been a good day- the council had adjourned early, the weather outside was starting to warm up, the acolytes had made an amazing egg custard tart that morning- things should've been good.
Alas, here he was, stacks upon stacks of documents strewn about his desk, not a square inch of wood grain in sight. There were even more piles of paper on the kitchen table! Hours upon hours of reading and signing and reading and editing and did he mention reading? Tax laws, trading agreements, even a special request from King Kuei to give a formal decree declaring Bosco the Earth Kingdom ambassador of the Air Nomads.
Aang buried his face in his hands. He needed a break. Not that he'd be getting one any time soon. With a heavy sigh, he rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and picked up the black pen on the desk next to the document he was reading.
"C'mon, Aang, you can do this," he muttered, holding the paper in front of him. "It's just another trading agreement. How bad could it be?"
Aang read to himself quietly as he skimmed the page. "The Earth Kingdom requests… …tariffs upon all foreign goods… blah blah blah…sales tax upon fruits and vegetables of a predetermined percent… blah blah blah more legal jargon…"
As if sensing the tension rising in his chest with every all-too-vague sentence, Aang suddenly felt hands massaging his shoulders. He instantly sighed, unable to help melting into the familiar touch of his wife.
"You work too hard," the waterbender murmured, temporarily pausing her ministrations to bend her head down and kiss his cheek. "So many knots. You didn't even sense me come in."
"Sorry," he whispered. He leaned his head back to look up at her. "Very focused on trading agreements." Katara chuckled as Aang gently took one of her hands and pressed kisses to her palm and each of her fingers. "When did you get home? And how's our little one?" She walked around the chair to stand next to where he was seated. Aang gave her clothed belly a kiss and smiled fondly, thinking of the new life that was growing there.
"Got home a few minutes ago," Katara said as she sat down on his lap. Aang's arms instinctively wrapped around her. "And baby greatly enjoyed the buffet at the hospital staff dinner tonight. I practically ate for four," she giggled. "I saw all the papers in the kitchen and figured you were working. Thought you could use a break." She raised her arm and jerked her head in its direction.
It was only then that Aang noticed the brown bag handles looped around her wrist. He gripped his stomach through his orange tunic as a delicious scent filled his sinuses.
"Dumplings from that place on Roku Avenue you love so much," Katara grinned. "Along with some sweet rice and steamed veggies. 'No temple dinner is complete without a plate of steamed vegetables,' right?"
Aang groaned. He could practically taste those dumplings now. "You are an absolute goddess." His stomach rumbled in agreement. "I promise I'm not just saying that because I'm hungry. Avatar promise."
Katara rolled her eyes playfully, a smile fighting its way onto her lips. "You break those Avatar promises all the time, sweetie. Forgive me if I'm not horribly convinced by your hunger-induced praises." She then stood up, handing him the bag. "Chopsticks and napkins are inside. I'm going to the kitchen to get some of the fruit Zuko brought the other day and wash up. Need anything from the kitchen table while I'm there?"
Aang winced, once again reminded of the work yet to be done. "Now that you mention it, there's a stack there that I need to finish tonight." Katara looked at him curiously from the doorframe. "The paper on top should say 'Special Ambassador Request from His Majesty, the Earth King Kuei.'"
"It's about Bosco, isn't it."
"Never thought I'd be arguing against giving a bear an official international title."
Katara laughed. "Kuei really does love his bear. I'll go get that for you. Be right back."
"Love you!" Aang called out as her silhouette disappeared from the doorframe.
The waterbender made her way down the hall to the kitchen and splashed some water onto her face at the kitchen sink, feeling instantly refreshed by the cool sensation on her skin after a long day of work. She washed her hands using soap from Sokka's newest invention (the "soap dispenser" as he called it) and dried off her hands with a nearby towel before setting her sights on the stacks of paper on the kitchen table.
"'Special Ambassador Request' from Kuei," she muttered to herself. "Let's see here… 'Proposed Tax Laws for the United Republic' no that's not it… 'Comprehensive Spending Plan of the International Development Fund' that's not it either… 'A Suggestion to Mitigate Slanderous Media Against Officials' I'm sure that's not going to be misused… ''Special Ambassador Request' found it!"
Katara carefully picked up the pile of documents, around 300 pages stacked on top of a few folders. One thing was for certain; she did not envy Aang's job. With her free hand, the waterbender grabbed the bowl of Ember Island cherries from their ice box and walked back to their bedroom, unable to help the laugh she let out when she saw Aang inhaling his dumplings.
The airbender looked up when he saw her, frozen like a deer dog in front of a torch. Aang slowly stuffed another dumpling into his mouth.
"I wef yu hof," he said with a full mouth. He nodded his head towards the cover of the container the dumplings had been in which had six dumplings placed on it from the original 12. Katara set down the bowl of cherries on the table and rummaged through the bag. She pulled out another box of dumplings, making Aang's eyes go wide.
"I had that fancy dinner thing at the hospital tonight, remember sweetie? I already ate. I got all of this for you."
To say that Aang's smile could've powered the entire United Republic would have been an understatement. He slowly reached for the dumplings on the plastic cover, looking up at Katara for confirmation. She nodded and placed the container in her hand next to him while he continued scarfing down the food.
"Yur amaying. Wuf yu, shweetie. Ba-ee too."
Katara laughed and kissed the top of his head. "Baby and I love you too, sweetie. Now where do you want me to put these?" She raised the arm upon which the papers were resting, cradled against her chest.
Aang swallowed and tilted his head toward the trade agreement he had been reading. "On top of that would be lovely."
The waterbender carefully shifted the documents from her arm to her hands and reached over Aang, who had scooted back his chair, to set them down on the other paper. She hissed as she pulled away sharply from the stack.
"Ow!"
Aang's expression immediately turned to one of concern as Katara examined her finger closely, a small rivulet of red forming on the skin of her fingertip.
The airbender stood up immediately. "Are you okay?" The dumplings lay forgotten on his chair when he saw the blood on her hand.
"It's just a paper cut, sweetie. No big deal."
"No big deal?!" Aang squeaked, his hands waving in the air rapidly as he began pacing in circles around Katara. "What if the baby felt it? What if he's sad now? Do we do something? Sing to him? Keep your finger elevated?"
The waterbender did her best to stifle the laugh rising in her throat. "Sweetie." She put a hand on his shoulder to still him. "It's a paper cut. The baby is the size of a strawberry. I think she's okay." Katara rubbed her stomach for emphasis. "See! Fine!"
"But still!" Aang resumed his pacing, circling Katara like a hawk as she watched him with an amused glance. "We should probably disinfect it! Who knows what kinds of bacteria are in that stack of papers? I mean, knowing Kuei, Bosco probably touched it at some point."
"Aang."
"Ohhhhh, and then we need to bandage it, stop the bleeding, make sure it heals properly… because if it doesn't it could get bacteria, or worse! There could be all kinds of diseases in the air right now- I've heard komodo-chickenpox has been going around- oh! And that new strain of-"
"Aang."
"-pig-chicken pox. I've heard it's even worse. Lots of coughing. So many things could go wrong! You could get bacteria in there and it could make you lose all feeling in that finger and have to get it amputated, or something even worse! You could get an infection and get sepsis! Or the baby could get-"
"AANG!"
Katara grabbed his shoulders with her hands to steady him. "Sweetie, who's the doctor here?"
Aang faltered and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.
"Well-"
"Aang, I love you, but the baby and I are fine. In all the time you've spent worrying, I could've healed myself already! It's just a paper cut."
Before Aang had a chance to argue, Katara quickly pulled a marble of water from the waterskin hanging on the corner of their bed and healed the wound.
"See!" She held up her finger for his inspection. "Good as new."
Aang scrutinized her finger for a moment and sighed when he saw that there were no scars or marks to be found.
"I guess I overreacted a little, huh?"
Katara snorted. "A little? You thought I was going to have to get my finger amputated because of a paper cut."
"Alright, maybe just slightly more than a little."
Katara snickered at his serious expression, unable to hold back her laughter any longer.
"This isn't funny!"
"It's kinda funny," she giggled. "Komodo-chickenpox? Really? You do remember that you can't get that more than once, and we both already got it the first winter we were in the Fire Nation?"
The airbender blushed. "Okay, well, the baby hasn't gotten it!"
"I don't think that's how it works, sweetie."
Aang pouted at the waterbender, which only caused Katara to laugh harder.
"It is nice to know that you care, though," she said finally once her giggles died down. She wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her head against his heart, humming in contentment as she heard the steady thumping.
Aang happily returned her embrace. He held her against his chest and whispered into her hair. "If you don't know that by now…"
She chuckled and turned her head to look up at him, giving him the most earnest, loving expression she could muster. "I promise, if I ever have to get my finger amputated, you'll be the first to know."
The airbender groaned. "I'm never going to hear the end of this from you, am I?"
Katara tutted her tongue. "Not just me. Our baby will obviously have to hear the harrowing tale of how she narrowly escaped a case of komodo-chickenpox. Oh! And of course how brave her mother was in the face of imminent doom, just barely saving us both from sepsis!"
Aang gave her a dry look.
"And then of course she'll be babbling all about these stories to her aunts and uncles, who I'm sure will be very entertained by them." She gave Aang a cheeky grin. "Don't you agree, sweetie?"
Aang laughed and shook his head, finally relenting with a sigh.
"You know what?"
She raised an eyebrow curiously.
He pressed a kiss to her cheek and rested his hands on her belly.
"I wouldn't have it any other way."