Kataang Week 2023 Day 1: Wind & Rain
Summary: City Hall is under threat of a thunderstorm, and Aang refuses to ask Katara for help. What could possibly happen? Or, the one where Open Forum Day goes horribly wrong.
Word Count: 4.4k
Welcome to Day 1 of Kataang Week 2023! Full disclosure, this was my first time writing fanfic in months and I kinda went crazy with this one. Today's prompt is Wind & Rain! TW for slight gore? Nothing super graphic, just some injuries. Enjoy!
"And that is why it is imperative that this council take action on this extremely pressing issue. This kind of slander cannot be allowed to continue for the sake of the dignity of Republic City and the United Republic as a whole. Thank you."
A round of polite applause followed from the audience and World Council members as Aang wearily stood up from his seat at the center of the wooden crescent table.
"Thank you, Republic City Councilman Goshi, for that absolutely riveting presentation on why the media should not be allowed to call you- sorry- Republic City leadership 'boring, virtue-signalers whose speeches' best value is for the purposes of inducing coma.'"
The airbender had to pause to stifle a yawn. "Your input is greatly appreciated and this council will be sure to take it into account in our next session."
"W-well I was not only referring to-"
"Next speaker, please," Zuko called out, his head unabashedly face down on a strategically placed stack of trade agreements (who knew City Hall paper made such a good pillow?) as Councilman Goshi left the podium red-cheeked. Aang returned to his chair next to the firebender and gave Sokka a subtle kick under the table, noticing the warrior's head beginning to droop.
"Wh- what? I'm up, I'm up."
Today was, of course, the bimonthly "Open Forum Day," as named by one of Earth King Kuei's advisors. On the first Friday of every other month, community members from all over the world were given the chance to present their concerns to the World Council. The World Council, of course, was a representative body of all four nations consisting of Kuei, Zuko, Sokka, and Aang. Open Forum Day was meant to give people a chance for their voices to be heard and real action to be taken. It was an opportunity for those who had been silenced and oppressed to speak up and bring light to pressing issues facing their ever-changing world.
Or at least that was the idea.
In practice, every minor Republic City politician and their hog monkey had their assistants line up at six in the morning- the earliest that City Hall doors were ever open- in hopes of convincing the World Council to suppress their next election opponent, the media, a minority group, or perhaps all three at once. And as if that weren't enough, the Council was not allowed to be made aware of the subject of a speaker's concerns beforehand, to "avoid bias," which effectively put an end to any filtering of the more frivolous talks like Councilman Goshi's.
Aang looked over his shoulder and cursed under his breath when he caught a glimpse of the clock behind the council table. Three more hours of this? He wasn't even sure if he was going to make it through the next thirty seconds of shuffling between speakers. The airbender let his head bow down, fighting desperately against his falling eyelids to stay awake. Surely he could take just a quick, five-minute nap…
"Our next speaker is Master Katara of the Southern Water Tribe. She will be informing us of crucial issues regarding the hospital overload in recent months."
Aang immediately perked up hearing his wife's name announced, all thoughts of sleep forgotten. He gave her a curious look as she caught his eye walking up to the podium to speak. She hadn't told him she was speaking today. How had he not noticed her in the audience earlier? She was wearing a beautiful flowy blue blouse that brought out the deeper hues in her eyes, and her earrings were the glow-in-the-dark cave crystal earrings he had made for her birthday last year that really accentuated-
Sokka elbowed him. "Earth to Aang," he whispered. "You're giving me oogies over here. A guy does not need to see his brother-in-law looking at his sister like that!"
"Like what?" Aang whispered back, a twinge of pink in his cheeks from being caught.
"I don't know! All… oogie-like!"
The airbender rolled his eyes, straightening his posture and sitting back in his chair as he tried to focus on her talk. After all, she was talking about something important, and it wasn't her fault she was so distracting- the way her eyebrows furrowed when she talked passionately, her eyes getting this spark in them that made him just-
This time it was Zuko kicking him under the table as Sokka shot him a death glare. "I'd rather not have to explain to Katara why her brother is chasing her husband around Republic City," the firebender muttered. "Again."
Aang gave Zuko a sheepish smile, avoiding Sokka's gaze altogether as he turned back towards the podium, where Katara was clearing her throat and beginning her talk.
"In recent months, hospitals all around the world have seen a sharp increase in patients with the newest strain of the monkeypox virus going around. Thankfully, this disease isn't fatal in most cases, but infected patients are forced to spend extended stays in the hospital, often a minimum of seven nights, which has put pressure on the system. Our healers are unab-"
A booming clap of thunder interrupted Katara mid-sentence as a bolt of lightning illuminated the sky, making Kuei and several audience members jump. A frantic knocking was then heard on the council room door, causing heads to turn in the direction of the sound.
"What is this, one of those horror stories Mai loves?" Zuko muttered under his breath. Zuko, Sokka, and Aang looked at each other, shrugging. It was highly unusual for any council meetings, even Open Forum Day, to be interrupted.
"I have an urgent message for Avatar Aang!" a trembling voice came from the other side of the door.
Aang sighed. "This should be good." He nodded to the two guards in front of the entrance, gesturing for them to let the messenger in.
"Oh, thank the spirits!" the man said as he was let in, stumbling as he entered the room. He turned towards Aang. "Avatar, there is a system of severe thunderstorms heading this way right now! Republic City Police are going door-to-door all over the city telling everyone to move to rooms of their houses without windows. It's not safe here!"
Shocked whispers erupted among the civilians in the room as the sky outside darkened and rain began to fall.
"Yeah, I have a feeling those," Sokka jerked his head towards the 20-foot, ceiling-high windows that made up an entire wall of the room, "are going to be a problem."
"We're all going to die!" Kuei yelped as he curled up into a ball in his chair. Panic quickly began snaking its way through the crowd as people began standing up and shouting similar statements.
Aang slammed his hands onto the table as another clap of thunder was heard outside, making all in the room go silent. "We have to stay calm, everyone." He fought back his own feeling of anxiety rising in his throat. Spirits, did he abhor storms. "Sokka's right. We can't stay in this room."
"Where will we go?" one woman cried out, others around her nodding their heads wondering the same.
Aang pressed his lips together in thought. As far as he knew, every office and meeting room in the building had large windows just like this one. Where would they even be able to fit so many people?
Sokka snapped his fingers together, an idea sparking in his brain. "The lounge! It's in the center of the building so it won't have any windows, and it should be big enough for everyone here."
"Oh, I don't know if that's completely necessary," Councilman Goshi spluttered. "I mean, surely there's somewhere els-"
"What, Councilman? You don't want the people to see the expensive sofas and vending machines where their tax dollars are going?" Zuko said with a smirk. "Everyone line up. The guards will lead you to the lounge. Kuei, you go with them. No one is to leave the building. It's too dangerous."
Sokka, Katara, Aang, and Zuko nodded at each other in understanding as the civilians began filing out of the room. The rain and wind were battering heavily against the windows, a flash in the sky breaking up the gray monotony of the outside every few minutes.
"The four of us will make sure there's no one left in any of the offices and meet back up at the lounge," Aang said with a determined look. "Sokka, you take the West Wing, Zuko, the North Wing, Katara, the South Wing, and I'll take the East Wing."
"Team Avatar is on the case!" Sokka whooped, slinging his arms around Zuko and Aang's shoulders. "Let's go!" He jogged out of the room, Zuko following closely behind him
"Sweetie," Katara touched Aang's arm, stopping him before he left with the others. "Are you sure you don't want me to join you?" Her eyebrows were furrowed in concern. Her worried eyes searched him for the slightest hint of fear, any trace of hesitation.
"I'll be fine, sweetie," he reassured her, desperately hoping she wouldn't sense the knots forming in his stomach. "It's just a little rain, right?" He shot her what he hoped wasn't coming across as a forced smile. He was the Avatar. It wouldn't be a problem. He could do this.
Katara scrutinized him for a moment before relenting with a sigh. "Alright, but if anything happens, just yell for me and I'll be there. Promise me."
"It's a deal."
She glared. "Promise me."
Aang rolled his eyes and pressed a quick kiss to her temple. "I Avatar promise you that I will yell for you if I need any help. Now come on!"
Katara gave him a small smile, satisfied, and followed him out of the room. She headed down the hall with him and took a right where he continued straight, breathing deeply as she entered the South Wing.
"Is there anyone here?" Katara called out as she began opening doors. All clear so far. The East Wing was shaped like a diamond, with offices on either side of each corridor before the path circled back to where she began.
"In here!" Katara heard a small voice from inside one of the offices, the door to which she quickly opened. The girl couldn't have been more than eight years old, trembling under a desk as the rain and wind pounded against the large window behind her. Her cheeks were streaked with tears, and her shivering intensified as another flash of lightning streaked the skies.
"Hey," the waterbender whispered as she knelt beside the girl. "You're okay now. Do you think you can tell me what happened? What's your name?"
"I'm N-naime. M-m-my mom is one of the s-speakers," the girl mumbled. "I had to go to the b-bathroom and I couldn't find it and got lost. Storms scare me."
"You know, storms scare my husband too," Katara said softly, gently rubbing the girl's shoulder. "But he gets through them because he's brave. Do you think you can be brave for me, Naime?" The girl nodded and wiped away her tears with her small fist. "Let's go find your mom, alright?" Naime outstretched her arms, allowing Katara to scoop her up from under the desk and carry her into the hall, Naime's arms wrapped tightly around the waterbender's neck.
"We're going to really quickly make sure there's no one else here and then go to where your mom is. Is that okay?" The girl nodded in response, and Katara smiled. "You're being very brave, Naime. I'm sure your mom is very proud of you."
The two quickly finished checking the rest of the rooms, which were thankfully all clear, and made their way to the lounge, where Sokka and Zuko were already waiting. Katara carefully set Naime down on the ground and breathed a sigh of relief as the girl tackled one of the women sitting on the chocolate-colored sofas in an embrace.
"Mama!"
"Naime! I was so worried about you."
Katara gazed fondly at the sweet reunion scene, the sound of rain battering on the ceiling a quiet background from inside the lounge. Sokka suddenly elbowed her, breaking her out of her thoughts. He looked around the room.
"Where's Aang?"
The waterbender inhaled sharply. Her eyes darted around the room frantically as a cold, sinking feeling settled in her chest.
"He's not back yet?"
Sokka and Zuko gave each other a look before turning back to Katara.
"We thought he was with you," Zuko said.
"Does it look like he's with me?" Katara whisper-yelled, her eyes hardening with fear. "He should've been back ages ago. The only reason it took me so long was because I found Naime. Oh, I should've never let him go on his own. I have to go find him." She turned on her heel and made it halfway out the door before Sokka grabbed her arm and stopped her. A deafening clap of thunder rang out, causing a few shrieks from the people closest to the door. A distant shattering of glass was heard from one of the office rooms as the wind streamed through open windows and caused doors to bang open and closed.
"Katara," Sokka said firmly. "I know you're worried- we all are. But do you hear that? It's too dangerous. Aang is the Avatar. He'll be f-"
"I am sick and tired of people using that as an excuse," she hissed back. "Yes, Aang is Avatar. Yes, Aang is superhuman. But he is just that- human. He is human. This is a storm. He could be hurt or-" she choked, her mind racing at the speed of light as she thought of all the things that could've gone wrong. "Or worse," she finished hoarsely, ripping her arm out of her brother's grasp. "I'm going to find him." Without another word, Katara ran out the door.
"Aang?" she cried. "Sweetie, where are you?" Katara quickly jogged down the hall to the East Wing and began opening doors. Unlike the South Wing, the East Wing was a maze of intersecting hallways, a design that Aang had complained to her countless times before. She muttered under her breath, cursing whoever came up with such a design.
"Aang?" Katara turned a corner and saw a glowing light coming from one of the last rooms, the door ajar. She ran as fast as her legs could carry her, panting as she poked her head inside.
"Sweetie?" She creaked the door open and gasped when she spotted shards of glass speckling the floor. The window had been completely shattered by the wind. Katara carefully stepped around it, and her breath hitched when she saw him.
Aang was curled up in a corner of the room next to the desk. His head was buried in his knees, but his tattoos were bright, and the wind around him seemed even stronger than what was blowing inside from the window.
"Aang?" Katara called out louder, hoping he'd snap out of it. "Sweetie, it's me."
The airbender's head snapped up, his eyes looking at her in concern. The lights behind his eyes flickered when he saw her, tears still streaming down his wet cheeks. "Katara?" Aang started hyperventilating, his gray eyes now pure, blinding white. "N-n-no, you have to l-l-leave. It's not safe."
"What's not safe, Aang?" Katara asked as she took a few steps closer to him. "I'm right-"
"No! You can't be here!" the airbender shouted as his spine snapped back, rigid. His tattoos illuminated with a brighter glow as his worried expression shifted to one of anger and focus as the Avatar State took over.
A ball of air formed around Aang as he lifted himself off the ground, sending the broken shards of glass into a rapid orbit around him. Rings of water soon joined as the wind shifted and more rain began blowing through the window. With a sharp blast of air, he pushed the desk to the other side of the room, one of its wooden legs snapping when it slammed against the wall. Aang moved directly in front of the shattered window and punched it with an ice gauntlet, causing the remaining glass to fall onto the ground below.
With large, pulling motions of his arms, Aang drew even more water from outside into his rings of water. He slowly thinned them out, expanding each into concentric spheres of water around him, the water swirling at violent speeds. With a flick of his wrist, the outermost shell froze, and Katara's eyes widened when she realized what he was doing.
"He's freezing himself in ice," she whispered to herself. "He thinks he's back there. On Appa in that storm."
Knowing she had to act quickly, Katara made a sweeping motion with her arms, melting the first sphere of ice around him.
"One down, a million more to go," she muttered.
Aang's head snapped back when he sensed the disturbance, his glowing eyes furious. He shot a blast of air at her, which she narrowly avoided with a blast of water of her own.
"Aang," she yelled over the howling wind as she kept ripping away his water barriers. "Please listen to me. It's not real, sweetie. It's not real."
For a moment, Katara thought she saw his eyes flicker back to normal, but regardless, this Avatar now perceived her as a threat. He sent another powerful blast of air in her direction, slamming her hard against the wall.
"Ow," she groaned, rubbing her head. "Damn Avatar survival instinct." But she was still determined. Using the same pulling motions that he was using to draw in water from the rain outside, Katara forced the water out of his bending grip and encased herself in an ice suit, leaving only her face exposed so that she could talk to him.
"Sweetie, please," she said taking away another layer. "This isn't you. It's not real. I'm right here." She kept pulling and bending, ripping away what felt like endless spheres of water until she had finally stripped his barriers down to just air.
Katara let the ice suit melt from her body and walked through the swirling storm around him, wincing as the shards of glass sliced the skin on her side and arms. She grabbed his wrist and held it to her heart, letting him feel her heartbeat.
"I'm right here, Aang," she yelled. "And I'm not going anywhere." Aang's eyes flickered and the air around them slowed, ever so slightly. "It's not real," she said as she grabbed his other hand. The airbender began to lower himself to the ground, the gray in his eyes staying for longer and longer with each passing moment.
"It's not real," he whispered back. His eyes were still glowing, but he had lowered himself to the ground, breathing hard and trembling.
"It's not real," Katara whispered back. She tightened her grip on his hand over her heart as she reached up with the other and cupped his cheek. "I'm right here, sweetie."
"It's not real," he murmured. The light of his tattoos faded and he collapsed into her arms, his legs weak as she supported his weight. "You're right here." He gripped her tightly and let his tears fall freely into the fabric of her shirt. Katara rubbed circles on his back and gently guided him out of the room into the hall, away from the storm. "I'm right here."
The airbender pulled away for a moment to wipe the wetness from his cheeks when he noticed the blood on his arm. His eyes instantly darted to Katara's side, where the glass shards had cut away at her blouse and left behind an angry red gash, blood still seeping from the wound. He then noticed the small cuts on her cheek, the dark red that was soaking into her sleeve.
"I hurt you."
Aang immediately withdrew into himself. He recoiled as if he had just been burned and his eyes widened with horror as the memories of what he had done in the Avatar State came back to him. "I slammed you into the wall, I-" He faltered. Another clap of thunder came from outside as a flash of lightning filled the hall they were in with light. Aang's breathing began to accelerate and his hands felt like they were on pins and needles.
Katara quickly pulled Aang back to her and tilted his head, forcing him to meet her eyes. "Stay with me, sweetie. I'm right here. I'm not going anywhere." He was silent for a minute, the eye contact allowing him to slow his breathing and refocus. Katara smiled as he did, pressing a quick kiss to his forehead as she held him against her chest.
"Hear that?" she whispered to him over the sound of the rain. "That's my heartbeat, sweetie. I'm still here. I'm okay. Whatever you think you did to hurt me is forgiven. Because it wasn't you. It was the Avatar State. It was a survival instinct. You would never hurt me."
Aang's eyes were closed, his head swaying with her movements, momentarily pausing with each clap of thunder, as she rocked him back and forth. "You're still here. You're okay," he repeated over and over again, both out loud and in his head- a mantra to keep him grounded, remind him that he was safe here in Katara's arms.
"Do you want to talk about it?" she asked after a few minutes. "It's okay if you don't."
Aang's grip tightened ever so slightly before he nodded. "I was going back to double-check all the rooms," he murmured. "Then I heard the windows shatter and went to check if everything was okay and then-" He paused, frowning. "It was like I was back there. I don't know why or what triggered it, I was just-" He shuddered and closed his eyes. "I don't want to talk about it anymore," he whispered. "I'm okay now though. Or at least I will be. We'll talk about it later?"
Katara gave him a small smile and squeezed his hand in affirmation as Aang stood up and helped her to her feet. "Ready to go back?" she asked. He nodded, and the two briskly walked down the hall together, Katara's good arm tightly intertwining with Aang's when the sound of more thunder filled the building.
"Katara, wait," Aang said right as she was about to open the door to the lounge.
She tilted her head in confusion at him. "What's wrong, Aang?"
The airbender pulled her into a long, sweet kiss, clutching her as tightly as he dared while making sure to avoid her injuries. Katara yelped in surprise at the motion before eagerly kissing him back, giving him all the love and comfort she could pour into one action.
"I love you," Aang whispered as he pressed their foreheads together.
"And that couldn't have waited until we got inside why?" she asked, an amused glint in her eyes.
"Because I don't fancy giving your brother another reason to kill me." Katara raised an eyebrow at him quizzically. Another reason? Aang didn't give her the chance to ask before he opened the door and gestured for her to walk through. "Ladies first, sweetie."
The waterbender rolled her eyes and gave him a look telling him that he was going to be elaborating later, and the two walked into the room hand-in-hand, much to the surprise of a very frantic Sokka.
"Where have you guys been? We were worried sick!" he yelled, tackling them both in a hug.
"We're fine, Sokka," Katara laughed. "Or at least-" she glanced at her arm, the light blue of her blouse an ugly brown from the oxidized blood. "We will be. Right after Aang shows me how much he actually paid attention when I taught him healing."
"Can't you just heal it yourself?" Zuko asked. He had been mildly alarmed when the two showed up as if nothing had happened despite Aang's swollen eyes and Katara's blood-stained, ripped-up blouse, but he figured it was best not to ask questions. If he needed to know, he'd find out. Those two would have enough to deal with if Sokka's spluttering and fussing like a mother turtleduck were any indication.
"Where's the fun in that, Sifu Hotman?" Aang grinned, all but ignoring the warrior moving frantically next to Katara, fretting over her wounds.
The firebender groaned. "Don't call me that."
Katara laughed and pulled Aang in the direction of the water jugs, skillfully avoiding Sokka by weaving through the crowds of people seated and talking in the lounge.
"Aang?" she said after he sat next to her, hand coated in water, and laid it over the wound on her side.
"Am I doing it wrong? I could've sworn this was the proper technique."
"No, your technique is fine." The water illuminated and absorbed into her skin, the once angry wound now a mere light pink scar that would fade with time. Aang pulled another stream of water and began working on her arm, where the bulk of her remaining cuts were. "You just never let me tell you that I love you too. Outside the room before we came in."
The airbender paused, his eyes softening when he turned to look at her. "I know," he said quietly. "Believe me, after today? I know. And I love you even more for it." The two shared a smile as Aang went back to healing, now finally having reached the cuts on her cheek.
"There is news!"
The room went silent as every head turned to the source of the voice- a guard standing near the entrance. "We have been informed that the storms should abate in about an hour. After that, it should be safe to resume normal activities. That is all."
Aang exhaled deeply as he turned back to Katara, excited conversations resuming amongst all the seated civilians as he finished healing her last wound.
"Think you can do another hour?"
The airbender nodded slowly, clasping their hands together.
"Yeah, I think I can."
Katara squinted at him.
"For real this time, I promise," he laughed. "Not because I'm the big bad Avatar." His voice quieted and he squeezed her hand. "But because I have you. And we can do anything together."
A small smile found its way onto Katara's lips at the honest answer. She leaned against him and sighed, squeezing his hand tightly when they heard another boom of thunder.
"Together."