This was one of my favorite fanfictions growing up, I believe I found it when I was 12 years old? I decided years later that I wanted to re-write it for FutureAirbender18 because I re-read it and I still love it years later...
Part 1
She stood at the edge of the lake, peering out across the grey mist that rose above the pale shimmering surface, her reflection gazing serenely back at her. The person she found reflected in the surface was almost unrecognizable, her long brown tresses framing her face and falling loosely across her tan shoulders to her waist. Her blue eyes nearly matched the color of the water as she sighed softly, reaching out one foot to touch the cool liquid, causing ripples across the quiet lake.
She twisted her hair back from her face and let out another soft breath into the morning mist and smiled, reminiscing.
Today was her birthday, her eighteenth to be exact, normally a huge milestone for most people as she would now be officially an adult. She had graduated from high school just a few weeks earlier and now she faced the challenges of choosing an appropriate college and deciding on her future.
She shook her head a little reproachfully to herself; she tore herself from her thoughts and glanced instead back to the campsite that her older brother was busy setting up. Shawn was a year older than her, with the same mocha colored skin and his eyes were the same shade of blue as her own – it ran in the family that way, passed down from her mother – his shoulders were broad as he pitched the tent with very little help from her best friend, Talia, who sat on the shoreline.
Talia was set to graduate in the following spring, her classic good looks nearly the opposite of the two siblings – she had skin the color of ivory, her hair a beautiful shining ebony, with pale green eyes.
Katarina turned her attention back to the lake, her gaze snapping to a movement out on the open, otherwise empty lake. Her heart beat faster suddenly, her head coming up fully as she squinted out on the water. There was a tiny shadow just barely visible as it struggled against the deep water and a furious movement caused worry to prickle on the back of her neck.
Icy cold terror shot through her and she took a few steps down the dock, pulling off her thin t-shirt then jumped off into the cold water in a graceful dive – advantages of having been on the high school swim team as she swam out to save the person. She kept the figure just in eyesight as she swam closer, pausing as the figure slipped beneath the surface.
"No!" She gasped, coming to a full stop and treading water as she twisted one way and then the other, certain that the figure had been there just a moment ago. Only silence and cold waves greeted her on every side, the water lapping at her shoulders as she skimmed the horizon.
"Hello!" a voice sounded cheerfully from just over her shoulder.
Katarina let out a small scream and nearly inhaled a mouthful of water, sinking for a moment as she stopped treading water. Sputtering she surfaced, wiping water out of her eyes and blinked at the stranger in front of her. "Where did you come from?" The question came out harsher than she intended, but the stranger in front of her laughed merrily.
He had short dark hair that stuck out every which way, his grey eyes sparkled with humor as he tilted his head at her. His pale skin was sleek with the sheen of water, he smiled tentatively and then shrugged nonchalantly, motioning to the water, "Down there," he pointed deeper into the water.
She blinked in surprise. "You, you were floating down there?"
"Er, yeah," he rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly with a tanned arm, his grey eyes averting to a spot behind her left ear. "I was just taking a break from swimming."
"I thought you were dead!" The accusation was out before she could stop herself, her eyes flashing. "Hang on, how did you breathe?"
He laughed, but it didn't quite meet his eyes this time. He drew his hands close to himself and shrugged again. "Nah, I was all right," his tone suddenly grew softer. "I can breathe underwater," he admitted. For a moment he hesitated and then, "I could teach you how."
She stiffened, suddenly aware that this complete stranger could have nefarious reasons to lure a young woman such as herself out to these kinds of depths. "No thank you," she snapped, pushing herself away from him. "I should head back, my brother is waiting for me," she pursed her lips and began to swim back to shore.
"Wait, hang on!" She heard him call before she plunged under the water, scooping water behind her and kicking out strongly.
Usually she found the water comforting, she had always moved through water like a fish, graceful and elegant. Sometimes she felt a bit out of sorts when she returned to dry land.
Only minutes later she was scrambling out of the water onto the dock, gasping slightly for air as she had pushed herself faster than she normally would.
To her surprise, when she turned, pushing her hair out of her face and wringing it out, the boy stood there on the dock behind her, smiling.
"What do you want?" She snapped, bristling slightly at his presence.
He flushed slightly at being caught staring and glanced down to the dock at his feet. "Oh, nothing. I just wanted to make sure you made it back to shore all right."
"Well, I did," she said, a bit exasperated now. She glanced toward the shore where the campsite resided and then back at the boy. He had slim shoulders and his bare chest was nearly hairless, a thin line of hair sprinkling from his chest down to his flat stomach, a pair of dark blue swimming trunks hung low on his hips and she forced her gaze away from the expanse of pale skin.
He walked past her, giving her a nice glimpse of his well toned back that sloped down into a nicely formed, round butt and his strong calves.
"Well since you nearly saved me from drowning," he drawled, "I may as well know your name." He crossed his arms as he said this, leaning against the dock's railing.
She recovered herself and gave herself a firm shake. "Katarina," she said, holding out one hand. "My mum was a fan of...unique names," she trailed off lamely.
"I think it's pretty," he said without thinking. Pink flashed across his pale cheeks and he gulped then hurried on. "My name is Aaron," he reached out to take her hand.
At his touch, she felt a jolt of nerves that spiraled up her arm, stemming from his warm touch and she stifled a gasp at the sensation. For a moment, her eyes flickered to his, wondering if he had felt the same thing, finding nothing reflected in his gaze as he looked at her steadily.
"You seem familiar," she confessed after a second. There was an eerily familiar, comforting sensation in his presence.
He tilted his head at her, confusion flickering across his face. "You know," he glanced out at the lake, "I thought the same thing, when I first saw you."
He took a step back, toward the shore. "Come on," he urged. "I want to show you somewhere." He tugged at her hand playfully.
Katarina hesitated. A small part of her, one that was growing softer with each passing second, warned her that it could be a trap, that she could easily become the next "Missing Person" on the television, lost at the local lake.
The next moment, she let him pull her along. He began to scale the hillside, first at a walk and within a few heartbeats they were both running up the hill. Aaron followed no clear trail, instead he scaled the mountain as though it were a part of him, his feet finding footholds effortlessly and then his hands joined in the climb, scrambling over rocks as though he breathed nature.
The air around them whipped around their faced and hands, warm and spinning them playfully. Aaron ran, lifting his hands as though he floated on the wind, controlling it as it pushed and pulled.
As they reached a precipice, he paused and then allowed her to stand on the edge first, looking out over the lake. The trees and greenery stretched for miles around the lake, the campgrounds had faded into lush green treetops, a beautiful open meadow across the lake, the lake itself shone with the last rays of the sun's warmth that stretched across the land. The sunset itself painted the sky with breathtaking colors, hues of yellow and orange extended into red on the horizon, with bits of blue peeking through as the sky faded into darkening twilight.
Aaron smiled, relaxed in the evening sky, suddenly his arms dropped to his sides and the temperature of the air seemed to drop with them, the cool breeze causing her to shiver as goosebumps crawled across her skin. She felt keenly aware that her hand was still in his.
He squinted at her for a moment, his nose wrinkling slightly. He sighed, "The air," he murmured, half to himself, although his eyes stayed locked on hers, "Sometimes it speaks to me."
"What?" She asked in surprise, the concept of it foreign to her but also something that she recognized in herself.
Aaron cleared his throat softly, nervously. "The air speaks to me sometimes," he admitted, his adam's apple bobbing. "Do you know what I mean?"
"Yes," she breathed. "When I swim," she tore her gaze away from his warm, sympathetic silver eyes, out to the lake. "I feel as through the water pushes and pulls with me, like it's a part of me."
His face broke into a warm, lopsided, boyish grin. Excitement trembled in his voice as he raised their joined hands. He looked sideways at her and he took a step closer to her. "Sometimes, I have dreams. They're so lucid, so clear, I feel as though they're memories, my own memories, but they're not, they can't be," he whispered. "I never recognize any of the people in my dreams and I don't know where they come from."
"What kind of dreams are they?" She asked quietly.
His face remained passive and blank as he stared at her, then his gaze shifted slightly. "I don't know, but I know they're in love, I can feel it."
Her heart caught in her chest, in her throat, hammering there anxiously.
He went on. "It's always so strange because the world I dream of is always the same: I wear robes of yellow and orange that let me dance in the wind and fly. The world has different animals than here, but those people are all more connected to the world, and the girl..." He trailed off.
Her breath shuddered. His fingers traced patterns on her wrist, leaving a lingering tingling sensation in their wake. "What about her?" She felt a flash of envy for this girl that she had never met, for a girl that he dreamed about who didn't even exist.
"She wears thick robes of lovely blue, she looks a lot like you," he admitted with a shy smile. "The same skin tone and her eyes are the same shape and color as yours, when she smiles it feels like my whole world brightens," he paused and his eyes flickered back to hers, a faint smile tugging at the corner of his own lips. "It's the most beautiful thing in the world."
Katarina felt her heart swell at the words, at the same time it felt as though her heart had stopped beating entirely in her chest. She swallowed back a swell of jealousy. "That's awfully sappy," she faltered. "But I wish I had dreams like that."
"Katarina," he implored quietly. The wind whispered through her hair, tugging at it softly and pushing it back from her face. This time, she tilted her head to look at him and was startled to find his breath mingling with her own.
He leaned forward, his eyes flickered down to her lips for a fraction of a second and then took a step back. "I should get you back, you know, so your brother doesn't worry." His lips quirked into a smile.
She was surprised that he remembered that her brother was waiting on her. "All right," she agreed reluctantly.
The walk back felt longer than the journey there, Katarina seemed to struggle at every step and many times it was Aaron who gracefully stepped around rocks and outcrops. The silence stretched, but it was not entirely uncomfortable.
"How old are you?" Katarina asked as she paused to catch her breath.
Aaron paused, watching a butterfly flap onto an outstretched leaf. "Sixteen," he said, raising an eyebrow at her in silent question.
"I'm eighteen," she conceded after a second. "Today was my birthday actually," she nodded to the last bits of the sunset at the horizon.
"Oh, really?" He spun around to face her, taking a wrong step and stumbling to regain his balance. "Happy Birthday, Katarina."
"My friends call me Kat," she corrected automatically and then frowned at herself. She was surprised that he was younger than him, despite being younger he seemed much more mature than most other awkward sixteen year old boys she had known. He was sure footed and seemed confident in himself but not so much that he came off as egotistical and rude, rather he projected someone who was sure of himself and where he stood in the world.
She was surprised when he motioned to her, holding out his hand to help her down the last few steps to the bottom of the outcrop. "I can smell food already," she exclaimed. "Come on!"
He laughed and followed, not releasing her hand. She could feel the heat radiating from him and moving up to her flushed cheeks.
As she pushed past the last few trees and undergrowth bushes into the campsite, she let his hand drop from hers and waved excitedly to her older brother.
"Shawn!" She called across the camp with a smile, "I brought someone to meet you."
Shawn looked up from the campfire where he was rotating several sticks of meat and tending to a tray of vegetables.
"This is Aaron, I found him when I was out swimming on the lake," Katarina motioned behind her. For a second, Aaron seemed to lose his nerve as he hesitated and then he raised one hand in a half greeting.
"Hello," Aaron pushed past his nerves and stuck out one hand in greeting.
"Nice to meet you," Shawn glanced at his sister, suspicion written across his face and his tone cautious as he nodded politely and shook the younger boy's hand. "Are you here on vacation, too?"
Katarina sat down on one of the logs by the fire, stretching out her tawny legs and glancing across the fire at Shawn who was now adjusting the flames with a stick.
"Er, no," Aaron sat down on the ground, crossing his legs. Katarina couldn't help but notice his feet were bare, with a thin layer of dirt on them as he sat down. "I don't go to a traditional school. I actually live here at monastery nearby."
Katarina looked at him curiously, he caught her gaze with his own and then he motioned to the other side of the lake. "It's over in that direction a few miles. I grew up there."
"You grew up there?" Katarina's voice softened.
"Yeah," Aaron shrugged and then took a deep breath. "My parents abandoned me at a young age so I grew up in the monastery with the monks. I've learned their ways," he went on with a small sigh. "I like it there," he added defensively when he caught the pity that flashed in the eyes of both siblings.
"Someone's coming," Aaron murmured, half to himself, his head twisting around to look through the bushes. Katarina's eyebrows rose as a moment later, almost silently, Talia emerged from the main pathway, brushing herself off as she waded through the undergrowth.
"I got lost on my way back," she said by way of blunt apology as she threw herself down on one of the logs. "The bathrooms are way down there."
"Talia, you shouldn't go wandering off alone," Katarina couldn't help but scold the younger girl. "And you shouldn't let her," she added snappishly to her brother who raised both hands defensively.
"Look, she was fine on her own!" Shawn replied.
Talia snorted and crossed her legs. "Just because I'm blind doesn't mean I can't get around on my own," she bristled. They'd had this conversation a hundred times. Somehow, even though she'd been born blind, Talia got around perfectly fine on her own even though Katarina often worried over her like a mother hen. She paused, her head jerking to where Aaron sat next to Katarina and she narrowed her pale green eyes. "Who is that next to you?"
Katarina's eyebrow rose, startled that Talia could sense his presence despite her disability. Aaron's shock was reflected in his own expression as bewilderment spread across his features. "How did you know I was here?" He asked.
Talia smirked and then tucked her bare feet under her in a very unladylike fashion, tucking her feet under her long skirts that she wore. "You wouldn't believe me even if I told you," she snarked.
Aaron looked at her seriously, his gaze taking in her long ebony hair twisted into bun at the base of her pale throat, her dark bangs fell into her face and almost hid away her milky eyes that fixated on him, she was tiny in stature compared to either of the siblings, she wore a dark emerald skirt and pale yellow blouse that hid her small frame. A flash of envy shot through Katarina as she noticed Aaron staring, she bit her lip to remind herself that he was a friend – one she'd only just met today at that.
Aaron's lips curved into a smirk of his own. "What if I told you, I felt you coming."
Talia paused, her back stiffening as she twisted her head to look at him with her pale eyes. A new respect seemed to settle over her and she gave him a less guarded expression than before. "Though the ground?" She asked, her tone sharp as she tilted her chin.
Aaron's smile grew. "Yes."
Talia's shoulders slumped slightly and she relaxed. "Hmm," she tutted softly, "So you can." She sniffed suspiciously and then turned her head to the other boy. "Shawn is the food nearly ready?"
"Do I look like a maid to you?" Shawn snapped across the fire. His sharp blue eyes had watched the exchange and now he shot a guarded look toward Aaron and Talia alike. "Wait, don't answer that!"
Katarina giggled despite herself. Shawn handed her a skewer with meat and then he handed a larger portion to Talia, who ripped into it with her teeth savagely.
Aaron hesitated when Shawn offered him a skewer.
"I haven't poisoned it you know," Shawn said with a smile. "And we have plenty to go around if that's what you're worried about." He motioned to the large platter beside him.
Aaron hunched his shoulders uncomfortably and shifted slightly. "Um, no thanks actually," his grey eyes stared hard at the plate. "I'm vegetarian. Growing up with monks and all."
"Oh," Shawn only faltered for a moment. "We have vegetable ones too," he pulled the smaller plate of vegetable skewers from under a sheet of tin foil.
Aaron took one with a grateful smile.
Dinner went by amicably enough, with Talia and Shawn swapping their usual dinnertime banter across the fire form one another with flirting smiles. Katarina joined in with her own snappy comebacks, Aaron adding to the conversation hesitantly at first and then joining in with the laughter.
When the fire had mostly died down, Shawn presented them all with a chocolate cake, complete with almond buttercream frosting, her favorite.
"Cake?" Katarina smiled in surprise at the cake.
Shawn laughed. "You thought I forgot my little sister's birthday?"
She flushed pink and gave a short, embarrassed laugh. Shawn cut her a large slice of cake and handed it over.
"Oooh and presents!" Talia added with a sly grin at Shawn.
Aaron looked slightly uncomfortable as he took a bite of cake, covering up the awkwardness as he watched Katarina accept a small blue box with a bow.
Katarina flipped open the box and stared. Inside the box lay a small blue pendant, engraved with blue curling waves carved into a smooth blue stone, with a blue ribbon.
"It's our mother's," Shawn murmured, more for Aaron's benefit than anyone else. "I had it restrung and a jeweler polished it up for you."
Katarina smiled and strung it around her neck where it hung at the base of her throat.
Talia's present was a short, silver dagger that made Katarina smile and hug her best friend. "Thank you," she whispered as she pulled back.
-l-
As the night grew darker, Shawn pulled out a bag of marshmallows and he made s'mores with Talia.
Aaron announced that he should probably head back home and rose to leave.
Shawn gave his sister a pointed look over a browned marshmallow that he handed over to Talia, who was busy raiding the chocolate bars.
Katarina smiled and rose to her feet, choosing to follow Aaron to the edge of the campsite, following the path just far enough into the woods to hide them.
"I got you a present," Aaron said softly as he paused by the treeline, glancing back for a moment.
He dug into his pocket for a moment and produced a small wooden figure, holding it out in his hand. "It's um, a carving I made for you," he explained quietly.
Katarina stared at the tiny intricate swirls carved into a larger swirl of wood. "What is it?" She'd never seen a shape quite like that before.
"It's what I imagine air looks like, if you could see it," Aaron explained, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly.
"Good night, Kat," he nodded to her and she watched from behind a large tree until his slender figure disappeared into the woods, appearing to leap from one boulder to the next until he vanished into the trees completely, swallowed up by the shadows.
-l-
That night, she dreamed of fire. She dreamed of war: people who could conjure fire through their hands at will, burning down a village made of ice with tiny fleeing villagers. Her heart cried out for the people who fled in terror, dropping everything to fight back with their swords and spears.
Among them, she dreamed of a man in a loose yellow tunic and matching loose pants, with an orange overlay, floating down to face the men in fire. He was light on his feet, he moved as though he were one with the air, blasting them back with his own powers.
He paused in the air and turned to look at her, his eyes flashed white for a fraction of a second and then the light faded and his eyes were a lovely silvery grey as the met hers. She gasped. His head was shaved completely bald, but on his head there was a perfect blue arrow that disappeared and as her gaze drifted lower she saw similar blue arrows adorned his hands.
She jerked awake with a gasp of terror, her heart pounding in her ears, her body slick with cold sweat. Thin rays of light caused the tent to glow orange and forced herself to take several deep breaths as she looked around.
Next to her, Talia was strewn across the bed, still snoring softly, her hair mussed and her legs bent at odd angles.
She forced herself up, making her way to the showers at the campground and then changing into the nicest set of clothes she had brought along, a soft blue tunic that matched her mother's necklace and a pair of black jeans.
She spent the day at the lake, fishing from the bank and dipping her feet in the cool water, watching other quaint lively little families that wandered along the edges of the lake, many accompanied by small children who giggled and played.
Despite this, she felt a deep longing and regret, thinking about the boy she had met yesterday and looking for him constantly. She tried to focus on the trout, but instead found herself thinking of Aaron.
That night, she retired early for the night, finding herself irritated by the easy conversation that Talia and Shawn were having,
She wasn't blind to the fact that Talia was quite taken with her older brother, laughing at his stories of their childhood, talking to him about her own stuffy upbringing.
-l-
She woke up late the following morning, roused by the voices of Talia and Shawn. She sighed, pulling on a light grey t-shirt over her head and then freezing the sound of a third voice: a low, soft chuckle that joined in with Talia's light laugh and Shawn's deeper scoff.
Her ears perked up and her head snapped up with curiosity. She tilted her head in confusion. She pulled on a pair of blue shorts and ran a brush through her thick hair, hastily dividing it into three equal sections and overlapping it until a thick braid wove its way down her shoulder.
She unzipped her tent, poking her head out and her eyes fell on her two companions: Shawn was handing out plates of eggs, toast and sausage for himself and Talia. Next to Talia, a silver grey eyed boy leaned against a tree.
"Good morning," Talia shot over her shoulder with a grin. "You slept in and you went to bed early on us."
"I know, I know," Katarina accepted a piece of toast and busied herself spreading jam on it.
"Morning," Aaron nodded to her over his own slice of buttered toast. He smiled sheepishly at her.
Shawn cleared his throat loudly, shooting her a sharp look. "Aaron wanted to see if we wanted to visit the monastery with him today."
"Oh," Katarina spun back around to look at Shawn again. "Well, we were going to head out today," she glanced at her brother for confirmation.
"I'll take down the camp and pack up if you and Talia want to go check out the monastery," Shawn volunteered.
Talia's eyes had a knowing sort of gleam in them as she stared at her friend. "I'm feeling a bit run down, I think I'll stay here and help Meathead pack up. Otherwise we may be here forever."
"So that just leaves you," Aaron smiled at her, quirking one eyebrow at her.
She glanced at her brother for confirmation. He gave her a sort of half shrug and then said aloud, "Go on, Kat. We'll be leaving in a few hours."
Katarina hesitated, Talia held out a water pouch to her with a smile which Katarina accepted with an answering smile.
"Thank you," she knelt slightly to give Talia a thankful hug.
Aaron nodded to Shawn with a faint smile on his face. "I'll get her back to you," he promised.
Katarina followed a step behind him. There was a well beaten, narrow path that led down to the dock on the lake.
"I thought the monastery was across the lake," she called as she stepped over a large boulder.
Aaron paused where he was, waiting for her to catch up, leaning against a tree. "Oh it is," he agreed. "It's just faster to cross the lake rather than go around."
As they reached the dock, Katarina noticed a small wooden boat that was tied to the dock. Aaron knelt next to it, untying the rope with quick, sure movements.
He clambered into the boat and then held out his hand to her. She took his hand, feeling the warmth spread up her fingertips to her face and she gripped his hand hard as she took a seat across from him in the tiny boat. The boat shook and then steadied as she let go of his hand. Aaron unhooked the oars and then he began to row with purpose. His broad shoulders made quick work of the distance on the lake, he was undeterred by the thick mist that rose from the lake.
Katarina looked at the banks of the lake as they drew closer, where the trees grew thickly and bordered the old buildings that were scattered sparsely along the edge of the water.
"You can't get to it from the main road," Aaron explained as he rested the oars briefly and let them drift on the water. "We get some tourists but most of them stick to exploring the lake."
The monastery came into view, tucked away neatly in the trees, the monastery was a large tan building, with spiraling blue towers that touched the clouds, the architecture was breathtaking with towers built into the landscape itself, a few towers released smoke into the sky as signs of life.
"It's beautiful," she breathed in surprise. Aaron frowned at her for a moment, reaching down to touch the water and then he smiled.
"Well, we're here," he hopped lightly out of the boat and dragged it the last few feet to the shore, settling it on the rocky bank.
He held out his hand to help her out of the boat, but she was already rising to her feet, padding quickly up the rocks to where the stone stairs led up to the monk's temple.
The silence between them stretched, but it was a companionable sort of quiet, not strained or heavy.
"Where are we?" Katarina asked as they stopped at a set of heavy oak doors.
"This is the library," Aaron announced. He swung the doors open wide and walked in. "There's thousands of volumes here. I've only read a handful of them."
The library had heavy wooden shelves, adorned with stretches of books in every direction – most of the novels were leather bound older style in red and brown, a speckling of navy blue and green speckled between.
Katarina looked over as he grabbed a small lantern and lit it, holding it up to allow her to read a few of the titles on the books.
It felt like taking a step back in time, to older times that were more peaceful, filled with quiet and calm.
Katarina touched one of the spines lightly. "It's so peaceful."
She glanced up into the ceiling, where more levels of books stretched.
"Come on," Aaron slipped his hand into hers and gave it a gentle tug.
Her footsteps echoed softly in the halls as she followed him. His footsteps were nearly silent as though he walked on air as he wandered down one hallway and then turned into a narrow set of stairs leading deeper into the library.
At the end of the stairwell there was a small wooden door. Keys jingled at his waistband as he tugged out a set of keys, he placed one into the lock and with a soft click he unlatched it.
"There's something I want to show you," he said quietly and he swung the door wide open and stepped into the darkness. He blew out the lantern where he stood, and Katarina hesitated at the base of the steps staring into the abyss.
She stared into the darkness uncertainly and took a deep, steadying breath, gathering her courage and then she stepped through the doorframe.
For a moment, a sturdy, firm frame pressed against her and then leaned over her. "I forgot to close the door," Aaron said by way of apology, stretching out a hand to pull the door closed behind her.
"Um, Aaron," she breathed softly. "I can't see."
"Take my hand," Aaron offered, his hand fit into hers. She stared into the dense darkness with a small frightened squeak.
She felt the warmth of his hand spreading up her arm and breathed a soft sigh of relief. A soft chuckle sounded in her ear. "It's all right," he murmured and then he led her down a flight of stairs into more darkness.
"Close your eyes, just for a second," Aaron whispered. Then he pulled his hand away from hers and she was left feeling oddly cold and alone.
She closed her eyes, seeing red flicker beyond her eyelids and her eyes shot open in surprise.
Aaron stood in the middle of the room, his fingers dancing in the flames of a candle. He picked up a torch and his fingertips flew across the torch with a small smile, summoning fire from nowhere.
Katarina gasped and stepped back. Her breath caught in her throat as she stared at him in disbelief. It must be an illusion, she thought to herself as she watched him extinguish the flame with a with a flick of his hand.
A second later, she whipped around and made for the stairs. She only made it three steps before he was there, one hand wrapped around her arm, catching her by the elbow.
"Don't hurt me," she yelped, pulling back in terror.
"Wait, don't leave," he pleaded. His tone was soft but desperate. "I can explain."
He pulled out a chair by a desk and gestured to it. "Take a seat. Please."
Katarina considered her choices and slowly made her way over to the chair, dropping into it with a sigh. "All right. Explain." Her back was stiff against the back of the chair as she watched him warily.
He reached over and pulled out one of the scrolls on the desk and placed a paperweight on it as he unraveled it.
"A few years after I was brought here," he began slowly, "I started having dreams. Visions. Of people in funny clothing, places that don't exist in our world, but they feel real. So very real. I had dreams of people who could control elements."
He hesitated and gave her a long look. "Do you remember when I said the air speaks to me?"
Katarina smiled reminiscently and nodded, relaxing slightly even as her nails dug into the palms of her hands. "Of course."
"By the age of nine, I could feel the air. It pulled me. Whispered to me," he opened the scroll fully and stepped back to allow her to see the drawings. "Unlike you, I felt all of the four elements. It came to me slowly. Air comes naturally to me, like breathing. Then I started to feel the push and pull of the water, like you."
He gestured to the scroll. The scroll depicted a person who moved water as though in control of it.
"Then came fire," he set down the lantern on the table and with a flick of his wrist, flames burst from his fingers and glowed red. He tilted his head curiously, "Earth rumbles to me sometimes, but it's never felt as natural as the other elements. It resists change."
"What is it?"
"I don't know," Aaron shrugged. "It's like I can weld elements. Bend them to my will. It's a part of me and I don't know how fully how it works."
"Why tell me this?" Katarina looked into his pale eyes.
Aaron rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly and then he sighed long and low. "I suppose for so long I felt alone. I thought maybe you were someone like me. Someone who felt the same way."
Katarina shook her head in disbelief. All of this sounded wild and crazy. But despite all of it, what she had just seen was real. He was real. She stared straight at him, his stormy grey eyes locked on hers, the emotion reflected in his gaze was real and he was real.
"It's not the same," she argued, shaking her head in confusion.
Aaron stared at the scroll and then pushed it closer to her. "When you said the water speaks to you, have you ever tried to follow that impulse? To control it?"
Katarina squinted her eyes at him in amazement. "Of course not."
Aaron hmmphed. "I can show you, if you promise not to freak out."
Katarina took a deep breath and nodded slowly. "I'm ready."
Aaron brought his wrist up, his fingers sweeping through the air and pulling it with him, twirling it into a small ball of air. The next moment he withdrew his hand and then brought his fingers slashing through the air, pulling the water from the air until his fingertips were covered in water. He threw down his hand and ice shattered on the floor, then with a soft popping noise he conjured a flame from the air and the ball of fire hovered in his palm.
He brought his hand up sharply, staring at the floor with a small frown. "I still can't do earth," he admitted with a shy smile.
She swallowed hard. "How many people know about your...power?"
He sighed and leaned against the wall. Slowly he slid down the wall until he was sitting on the floor below her, staring up at her where she sat in the chair still.
"Just you," he confessed. "But I think my mentor suspected something," he said with a small shrug. "He added the key to this place when I was nine, when I first started feeling the elements." He reached into his pocket and produced a small ring of keys that clanked together loudly in the silent room.
"So where are we?" Katarina asked, looking around. There were shelves, similar to the library but instead of books, these shelves held scrolls similar to the one that sat open on the table. The writing on the scroll was an older language, seldom used now, likely only older generations would be able to read and interpret the information.
"Under the library," Aaron admitted. "These scrolls tell stories, myths," he corrected himself. "There's myths about people who can bend each of the elements: water, earth, fire, air. But none of them mention a single person who has the power to control all four."
"It's all...impossible to believe," she said with a surprising level of calm.
Aaron frowned.
"But it sounds beautiful," Katarina broke the silence again. "I wish it were real."
"I should get you back, before Shawn starts to worry," he suddenly turned away.
"All right," the disappointment was plain in her voice as she turned to follow him out of the room.
-l-
Aaron rowed across the lake in silence, this time it felt slightly strained as she sat next to him.
As he reached the middle of the lake where the mist that rose from the lake water was so thick that it felt as though they had entered cloud cover, Aaron paused, resting the oars on the edge of the boat.
"Try something for me, will you?" His request was soft, his grey eyes flickering to her uncertainly.
"All right," she agreed, raising her eyebrows.
"Try to move the water," he invited, his eyes widened as a smile played at his lips.
"You're teasing me," Katarina replied, sighing to herself.
"Oh come on," he pleaded. "You said you believe in me, I'm asking you to believe in yourself."
Katarina tilted her head to one side. "Fine," she relented. "What do you suggest?"
"Close your eyes."
Katarina closed her eyes.
"Take a deep breath and then put your hands in the water."
She peeked at him anxiously for a moment and then closed her eyes tightly again and inhaled deeply. Then she stretched out her hands, dipping her fingers into the cool, refreshing lake water.
"Now feel the water, the push and the pull. Let it take over your senses and then try to move with it."
Katarina drew her hands along with the natural waves of the water, feeling it tug at her hands and then resist her slightly. She focused on the water, pulling her hands first one way through the water and then the opposite way.
Slowly, she let her will spread down to her hands and she waited until the water pulled away from her before she gestured with her hands to pull it back to her.
To her surprise, she felt the water rush to follow her instruction, whipping up into a small wave. Her eyes flew open to see that far from just feeling the water move, it had responded to her touch like magic.
"Did you see that?" She exclaimed, her hands dropping to her sides as she stared in amazement at the sparkling water, which lapped innocently at the edges of the boat as though it had not just flown toward her hands at her will.
Aaron nodded, his eyes bright and cheerful at her enthusiasm. He raised an eyebrow and leaned back with a smug smile flickering across his face.
There was a small silence. He closed his mouth, clearing his throat quietly and leaning forward with his arms resting on his legs casually. A solemn expression crossed his face with suddenness that she didn't expect.
"Be careful in the future, Kat," he stated, his eyes growing serious.
Her smile and excitement plummeted and she stared at him in puzzlement. "What do you mean?"
"It's just," he looked away and sighed softly. "People don't like the unusual. Some people would use you for the power you have, so you have to protect it."
Katarina nodded slowly. "I get it," she shook off the nervousness that she had felt a few moment before.
-l-
"Goodbye," she murmured as she pulled away from him. Her breath caught in her throat as it closed on itself.
She felt his hands press into her shoulders and then his nose buried into her hair for a second before he pulled back from her with a sad smile.
"I'm glad I got to meet you," Aaron answered softly.
She locked eyes with him, bright blue meeting the steel grey. "I hope you keep having those dreams."
Aaron gave a short, sharp laugh. His eyes danced with a flash of mischief that she didn't understand. "Oh I will," he chuckled lightly. "Besides, I have a feeling I know who they are."
Katarina's eyes widened in surprise and she opened her mouth to ask further, but before she could make a sound, she hear a shout.
"Katarina, come on, let's go!"
It was Shawn's deep voice that echoed across the parking lot, and he honked the horn once.
"All right, I'm coming!" She shouted back and then she turned back to look at Aaron one more time, but he was gone.
Discouraged, fighting back tears and disappointment, she sighed and turned back to the little blue car where her brother and Talia were waiting.
She forced a smile on her face as she popped open the door and slid into the passenger seat. She blinked several times as she stared out the window, into the dark leaves of the trees, across the lake with the thick mist rising above it, and then back to the woods with the trail that led through to the monastery.
For a moment she caught a flash of a person running through the trees, with the branches of the trees waving wildly in a gust of wind that hadn't existed a moment before.
The trees seemed to dance to a sad, melancholy song as her brother started to turn down the gravel road that led to a black pavement that led down the mountainside.
Her heart beat heavily in her chest as they left behind her favorite place in the world – guarded by the one person who had taught her the true meaning of love and life.
-l-
She sighed deeply as she wove her way up the tiny mountain trail. The trees loomed above her, creating an almost tunnel-like experience as her little car huffed and puffed its way up the paved road.
She turned into a small parking lot and paused by the tiny parking booth and paid the ten dollar fee for parking and camping, then pulled her small SUV into a spot toward the back of the lot, shaded by a few large pine trees.
She shifted her car into park and then opened the door, removing each of her tennis shoes one by one so that she could stretch her toes, then she slid her shoes back on and stood up, stretching her fingers to touch her toes and then arching her back.
Sighing loudly, she reached across the driver's side door into the passenger side to grab her knapsack and slung it over one shoulder.
It had been almost two years since she had been to this place, yet it looked exactly the way that she remembered it. She was fresh from her second year at college, having completed her pre-requisite courses for general education and still listed as an undecided major.
Shawn had found a nice job in the country, working only a few hours away and he worked as an apprentice to a blacksmith, having chosen a trade working with heavy metals and fire.
Talia had just graduated from high school and she was looking into working with service dogs and was interning at the police force in the city.
She latched her car door and headed down to the water. The mist rising from the water looked the exact same as it had two years prior, the fish darted away as she approached the edge of the water.
She wandered along the edge of the water, not confident enough in her own endurance to swim across the lake to the building that she sought.
When she reached the library door, she pushed open the heavy, familiar oak and stepped inside. It smelled the same as she remembered, the faint musty pages of the books, the old leather, a faint woody smell emitting from the basement.
She ran her fingers across the soft, leather bindings and then she ducked into the tiny stairwell that led to the basement. The darkness prickled at her emotions, nerves rising in her throat as she descended further into the darkness.
She was careful to keep her footsteps light, then paused as she felt her hand come into contact with the heavy, old fashioned door handle. She reached out hesitantly, then turned the knob.
It didn't move.
Her head dropped. She let out a breath that she didn't realize she had been holding. Tears threatened to spring forth, but she fought them back with a few fierce blinks and then stepped back.
Being foolish, she thought to herself. He would be eighteen now and had likely moved on.
She let out a soft breath as she left the same way she came, retracing her steps and being cautious to close the door behind her, standing on the stone steps.
She glanced up to the rocky mountain above her, her memories threatening to sweep her away again, mixing with her dreams that she'd had nearly constantly for the last few days.
She swallowed hard. It wasn't meant to be, she told herself with a firm shake of her head.
Without thinking, she began to climb up the mountain, finding footholds and handholds with ease even though she rarely climbed mountains. She usually felt the most grounded when she was in water, but somehow this climb came easily to her.
She approached the place that he had shown her previously, she was startled to see someone was already there. She frowned as she realized that the mountain was likely a public hiking ground and therefore it wouldn't be entirely unreasonable for someone else to stumble across the place he'd shown her.
The man sat on the ground facing away from her, his legs dangling into the air off the edge of the outcrop, looking toward the beautiful lake.
-l-
It was early September and the winds were growing colder, he could feel it even as his power over the air shifted so that he remained warm constantly.
He wore his traditional monk clothing, a yellow tunic under an orange apron like overlaid robe, fastened closed with a dark red cloth ribbon. He had chosen to get away this morning after prayers, picking out his favorite meditation place in hopes that he could find peace.
Sometimes, on days like today, the meditation place brought him more pain and suffering than peace and joy.
He sighed and looked out over the lake, his eyes searching the lake anxiously. So many times, he'd imagined finding her again – always imagining seeing her in the lake again because she swam as though she were part fish.
Nearly two years prior marked the day that he had brought her to this place –somewhere the he'd never shown anyone before her.
He'd been afraid to tell her at the time, so he'd never admitted to her what he knew deep in his soul to be the truth: she was the girl in his dreams. She was dressed differently and she carried herself differently, but her blue eyes were unmistakable, her dark brown curls held back in a different hairstyle, her clothing from a different era, but it was still her.
His dreams had meshed so closely with his memories of her that it felt indistinguishable at times. Sometimes he would wake up with her name on his lips, but it felt wrong. The name on his lips didn't quite make sense, it didn't fit the girl that he dreamed of but when he thought too hard about the details it was as though they slipped away from him faster.
"Hello?" The soft, curious voice sounded over his shoulder.
He turned his head and his eyes sought out the person who made all of the air in his lungs vanish.
-l-
Seeing his face brought back a rush of feelings that bubbled up under all the memories she had reminisced over for two years. His head twisted in her direction and for a second she didn't fully recognize him.
He no longer had a patch of thick, dark hair. He was shaved bald, his pale skin reflecting light with his eyes reflecting like silver orbs.
"Katarina?" He breathed in disbelief, his voice coming out low and odd.
"Aaron," she gasped, her voice trembling in surprise and the new emotions she was feeling.
He quite literally seemed to fly toward her, knocking her over and causing her to fly backwards. His hands reached out, steadying her before she could fall.
His embrace was nearly suffocating, but her arms came up to rest around his shoulders automatically and he stared at her.
"I missed you," she murmured into his shoulder.
His grip tightened minutely at her words, then his voice trembled the smallest amount as he replied, "Same."
As he pulled back, his eyes searching hers, the first thing that popped into her head made it past her brain and came out as, "Your hair," there was a note of sadness in her voice.
"I know," he laughed, a musical sound, bringing one hand up to rub self consciously at his now bald head. "I shaved it a few weeks after you left."
"How old are you now?" Katarina knew the answer, a smile playing at her lips as she watched him.
One corner of his mouth twitched upwards and his eyes brightened. "Seventeen, but in two days time I'll be eighteen."
She nodded.
"You're twenty then," he went on in a rush. "Curious, we seem to meet on important holidays: your birthday and now mine."
He walked back to the outcropping of rock, peering down into the water below. He glanced at her as she followed him to the edge.
She held out her hand and with a flick of her wrist she summoned an elegant stream of water, carefully twirling it around them and then letting it splash onto the ground.
Aaron stared at the spot where it had vanished, his eyes growing wide with surprise, pride shining in them. "You've been practicing," he laughed in delight.
He looked out at the water for a long moment, the water reflected in his gaze as he stared out there. He snuck a look at her, frowning thoughtfully at her. "I want you to do something for me," he requested, an odd look passing over his face, holding out his hands to her.
Something about his hesitancy made her feel anxious and hesitant as well. "Okay," she agreed. Her blood felt warm and tingly as she placed both of her hands in his trustingly.
He let go of one of her hands, reaching instead for her waist and then he jumped...right off the cliff face.
She screamed in terror as they both plummeted toward the lake, air rushed past her face, tugging at her clothes and sending her hair whipping around her eyes and nose as they fell. Aaron seemed at ease, letting go of her hands as he positioned himself into an elegant dive.
Aaron somehow managed to pull his arms toward himself, the water arching up to meet them before they hit the shimmering surface of the water – the water caught them as though it were a net, taking the brunt of the impact.
Even so, Katarina felt the cold of the water forcing the air from her lungs as she gasped at the cold sensation. Using her power, she was able to surface almost immediately, drawing the water close to her and propelling herself upwards.
Aaron was already at the surface, water glistening on his skin, his clothes soaked to a dark russet color now as he treaded water calmly.
"Are you mad?" She demanded as soon as she caught her breath, turning her eyes on him and narrowing her gaze. "That jump could have killed us both!"
Aaron's eyes widened in the face of her fury, but his jaw was set in a firm line as he stared back at her. "That's just it, Kat," he said, his voice deep and serious now. "We can't get hurt. We can't die," his voice cracked slightly and he shook his head, more to himself than her. "Not when we're already dead."
She pushed away from him, using the pull of the water to propel herself backwards to take a long, hard look at him. "What are you talking about?" Her voice faltered and she suddenly felt an overwhelming sense of loneliness, as though she were deeply lost within herself and in the world that she lived in.
It felt as though she were falling away from the world, disconnected, his eyes met hers and it felt as though those were the only two things holding her steady.
She gasped in confusion and terror. Those eyes. Stormy grey, with her own puzzlement reflected back at her.
Déjà vu. It had to be. Those eyes.
He drew closer, cautious as he approached. She reached for him, out of instinct rather than wanting to be near him.
He brought one pale hand to her cheek and she closed her eyes at his touch. She felt the tug of it, the sudden need to kiss him, and she leaned forward until their foreheads pressed against each other, the slick water on their foreheads meshing together.
He leaned in and his lips brushed hers, soft and hesitant at first, pressing gently to her own and then she answered him with her own trembling lips. She pressed back against him, suddenly hungry as though he were air and she were drowning.
A flash of blinding pain hit her in the temple and she drew back with a yelp of mingled surprise and pain, she was vaguely aware of him drawing back suddenly, one hand flying to his own head in a reflection of her own pain. She crumpled, the pain clouding her vision to black and she struck out wildly at the water in panic, trying to draw on her power but unable to focus to allow it to steady her.
His arms shook and he sank deeper into the water, reaching out with his own bending to save both of them, but he couldn't immediately grasp her in the water and his senses felt sluggish and distorted.
Images flashed in his mind. People who he loved and adored – a girl dressed in green with a yellow tunic, flashing him a smile even as her pale green eyes stared over his left shoulder. A man dressed in blue sharpening his sword on a rock. An older man dressed in robes of dark russet, with a red angry scar across one amber eye as he laughed and served a tray of hot tea to the table. A woman dressed in dark green armor applying a red lipstick with a practiced hand, her face painted pale white in stark contrast to her dark red eyelids. Another girl, dressed in dark blue robes, soft animal furs framing her face, her eyes the color of blue crystals. The same girl, dressed in a blood red top, with long red skirts that fell to her ankles where she wore brown leather sandals. Around her neck she wore a thin blue necklace with an insignia that he didn't quite catch as she twirled around, smiling at him.
Katarina's head sank below the surface as visions flashed in her head. Her hair was loose in waves, with two hair loops that framed her face, her blue eyes stared back at her in the mirror. A boy approached her, his skin was pale except for the bright blue arrows that extended from his head down to his hands and his feet which were hidden by thin cloth. He leaned in and kissed her lightly on the cheek, so casually that recognition flashed in her eyes as she returned his smile. Another boy leaned across the table, slinging an arm around her and he looked so similar to her, his blue eyes flashing to her with an affection that she returned, but it was different from the first boy – it felt as though it were a friendship born from kinship rather than romantic affliction. A girl dressed in a bright pink uniform pranced past her with a cheerful wave, her long brown hair tied in a braid that nearly reached her rounded hips. Another girl splashed in the mud across from her, both of them arguing as the ebony haired girl threw a splattering of mud across her, the smaller girl wearing red shorts and a yellow underwrap.
Her eyes flew open as he pulled her up from the depth of the water, his grey eyes flashing in concern as he searched her face. She coughed up a mouthful of water, her eyes streaming with effort and salty tears mixed with the lakewater on her face as she looked up at him.
Wonderment flashed in his eyes, delight spreading across his lips as he grinned at her.
Those eyes. She knew those eyes. She felt something deep in her soul shift and then realign with a jarring sensation.
"Katara," he breathed, his voice soft and gentle as it wavered.
She tilted her head to look at him fully, her fingers wrapping around his wrist, holding on to make sure he was there. "Aang."