The first 16 chapters belong to Avatarfan792, and I take no credit for them. Here is a link to where the story was originally posted: s/14303822/1/The-Aftermath

This is the last chapter that was written by Avatarfan792 before he passed away. Thank you for such a beautiful story.

RIP, Avatarfan792

Chapter 16: Family

AN: Sorry again if the quality is really bad. I've been really sick this week! It makes me worried that I might not be able to finish the story like I had hoped, but we will still keep pushing ahead! Before people review this specific chapter, I want to say one thing here without spoiling the chapter too much. Don't hate on Sokka. We all have our moments and react differently to different situations. That's just what comes with being a human being. As always, thank you to everybody who reads and takes the time to review, you all make my day :)

I apologize for any grammatical errors, English is my second language.

Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender

It was a warm, autumn day at the Southern Air Temple. The lunch hour had just finished, which means for most airbenders, it was back to training. The sounds of flying bison filled the air as this particular lesson focused on controlling their animal companions in flight. However, two particular people were missing from this lesson that usually were in attendance. The 11 year old Master Airbender, Aang, and his mentor, Monk Gyatso were sitting in the dormitories getting ready to practice the art of meditation.

"Monk Gyatso?" The young airbender beckoned, a curious gaze sent towards his mentor's direction. When given a nod to continue, he chose to take a deep breath and ponder his next question so he didn't sound silly. "You know that meeting that you allowed me to sit in with the other Elders, talking about the possibility of a war, right? That wouldn't happen, would it? There's no reason to fight!"

For the first time in his life, Aang saw a small hint of fear wash over his mentor's face, before he put on his usual gleeful expression, turning back to his pupil. "There is nothing to worry about, Aang. There is no war going on." There was a stringent pause as the two sat in silence, listening to the roars of the bison from outside. Finally, Monk Gyatso took a slight breath before speaking. "You are right, Aang. There is no reason to fight. But it is important to remember that all four nations think in different ways. We are advocates for peace, and we always will be. Other nations don't always share that view, so when two nations are angry with each other, they usually come to us so we can help negotiate peace. That's why we had this meeting today."

Once again, silence overtook the pair as they sat in silence, allowing themselves to get in the proper mindset for meditation. It almost felt like the topic was going to be completely dropped, until the airbender squeaked out a question at a near whisper. "Monk Gyatso, if a war did happen, would you protect me?" The young airbender expected his mentor to either laugh or get angry at his question, so when Gyatso's face brightened with a warm smile, the young airbender was left rather confused.

"Of course, Aang, I would protect you. I would do everything in my power to protect everybody at the Southern Air Temple. You all are my family. But, we won't have to worry about that. Like I mentioned before, there is no reason to be concerned about any war happening. The elders and I are trying our hardest to make sure of it."

Aang stared back at his mentor in utter amazement. Then, another question seemed to spring into his mind. "Gyatso, you said that you would do everything in your power to protect people. Does that mean . . . you would . . .?" The young airbender couldn't even finish his statement. It was heavily implied what he was referring to, and he absolutely couldn't imagine fighting anyone. It was so heavily against the lifestyle of the Air Nation.

His mentor's face once again became serious as he answered his question. "Yes, Aang, if it came down to it, I would fight or even kill to protect the ones that I love." The young airbender was about to pipe up in protest, but Gyatso just raised his hand up to signify that he wanted to continue. "I know that killing someone would lead to becoming exiled from the Temples. But, if that means it results in you or any of the other novice's safety? I would do it anytime, in a heartbeat."

The young airbender looked scared as his mentor finished his response. Taking a deep breath, he tried to dive deeper into the topic. "Why, Gyatso? You love the Temples and sharing our customs with the world! Why would you give all of that up for me or any of the other novices?"

Monk Gyatso once again smiled as he answered his pupil's questions. "You will find out one day when you grow older, Aang. When you fiercely love somebody, just as I love you and the rest of the novices in this Temple, you will do anything at any cost for them. Connection between loved ones is one of life's greatest gifts. If I were to lose you or any of the other novices, I would be devastated. So, if the situation were to ever come, I would do anything for any of the people I love. Whether that's using violence to protect them, being captured in their stead, or dying for them, I've accepted that as my own personal choice that I would make. But, we don't need to worry about it, because there will be no war, Aang."

Silence once again filled the room as the two sat in thought, pondering their conversation. Then the young airbender thought that he would end the conversation with his own declaration. "I'd do the same for you Gyatso. Or anyone that doesn't deserve it against them, in fact. I know that it would come with a great cost, but my soul would feel better about it in the end. I love you Monk Gyatso, thank you for your advice."

The mentor smiled as he scooted closer to Aang and brought him in for a hug. "I love you too, Aang. Don't you ever forget that even in your lowest moments, that people still love you. Don't forget the promise you just made, either. Sometimes the people you love will do things to make you angry. But, even when you are angry with them, doesn't change the love that you have for them. If you lead with your heart, you will always find the way to do the right thing.

"Avatar Aang? AVATAR AANG!" This caused the Avatar to snap out of his prior memory of home, remembering the sage advice his mentor had given him before. Standing in front of him was an Earth Kingdom soldier, who was snapping in his face trying to make sure that he was fully paying attention.

"Sorry, I'm here! I was just thinking of some advice that I received a while ago . . . So what's the situation?" Aang could hear the commotion that was taking place on the other side of the alleyway, but the Earth Kingdom Soldier had stopped him before he could go charging in.

The soldier's face turned grim as he braced himself to give orders. "It's the Dai Li . . . they raided different buildings around the area and took as many political figures as they could as prisoners. The most prominent buildings that they attacked were the Embassy for each Nation . . . and . . . your house."

This information got Aang's attention. "What?! My house? Are my friends okay?" He felt guilty that he was immediately thinking about his friends, but he wasn't exactly happy with any of the politicians from the other Nations at the moment. He also didn't like that the Earth Kingdom Soldier's face had turned pale.

"We don't know. We don't have a report on the prisoners other than the fact that we know that they are in there." He pointed across the alleyway to where the noise and commotion was. The Soldier then placed his hand on Aang's shoulder. "The rumors that I am hearing out here from my reports is that the Dai Li are searching for you. Are you sure you still want to go in there alone?"

Aang responded with a nod. "I appreciate the offer to assist me, but I don't want anyone else to possibly get captured. I promise you, I will get these prisoners freed, even if it's the last thing I do." When the Soldier grimly nodded and let out a small sigh, he stepped aside, allowing Aang to make his way down the alleyway. He knew the Dai Li would greatly outnumber him, so he had to be strategic and stealthy if he wanted to win. The first people he wanted to find were his friends. Not only to make sure that they are okay, but they would also be a huge help in actually winning a fight if he were to be discovered. As he crept down the other side of the alleyway, he took a brief moment to survey his surroundings.

Fortunately, the situation didn't seem to be as bad as he thought it would be. There were four groups of prisoners that he found. One group of prisoners from each Nation, and then his friends against the wall nearest to him. Unfortunately, everyone was caught, but they were only in Earth cuffs. Aang knew that they must have some sort of plan, because Toph was still patiently sitting there, cuffed, and he knew that she could break out of those cuffs at any time. In the center of the square plaza that everyone was kept in were six Dai Li Agents. They were in a circle talking to one another, not seeming to pay much attention to the prisoners.

Aang began to crouch and get low, sneaking along the edge of the outer wall of the alleyway as he inched closer to his friends. Finally, he was able to make a small roll so he stayed out of any potential line of vision of the guards. He found himself right behind Toph and Suki, and saw that Katara and Sokka were sitting in front of them. Just as he was about to say something, he was interrupted by Toph. "Nice of you to join us, Twinkletoes." She let out in a hushed tone.

"Keep your eyes ahead and stay quiet, I don't want anyone to know I'm here." Aang whispered back. "Do you guys have a plan? There can't only be six of them, right?"

"We allowed ourselves to be captured when we heard the other Embassies were being attacked. It was Toph's idea." Suki started to explain in a serious and hushed manner. "There were six of them that came to capture us, so there has to be more than the ones here. But they're looking for you, Aang."

"So I've heard," Aang responded with a soft groan. "Suki, I'm going to get rid of all of the earth cuffs on every one, Toph can get rid of her own. After that, I want you to stand up and create a distraction. Toph, while that's happening you go over and free the two groups with your earthbending and I'll free the group on the right. Suki, Katara, and Sokka will lead the fight against the Dai Li, and then the rest of us and hopefully the prisoners will join and we can get this all over with. Does that sound good?"

The two nodded their agreements before Suki relayed the information over to Katara and Sokka. Though Aang couldn't see her that well, he noticed that her body seemed to relax when she found out that he was there. With a soft stomp, Aang broke the cuffs off of the group in front of him, and began to sneak his way back towards the alleyway that he entered from. Suddenly, Suki stood up and shouted. "AVATAR AANG, YOU'RE FINALLY HERE TO SAVE US!" This created the distraction that he had hoped for, as the group of Dai Li headed straight towards their group and he saw Toph start to head in the direction of her prisoners.

Using this moment of opportunity to his own advantage, Aang quickly moved over to the group of prisoners that he assigned himself to set free. They were all from the Fire Nation Embassy. Stomping to break the cuffs that they were set in, he quickly shouted instructions towards them. "If you're able to fight, we need your help. If not, please return to your Embassy where you will be safe." Without waiting to see who would join, he turned around to help out with the battle.

He was shocked to see however, that they were already massively in favor. Many of the Earth Kingdom prisoners that Toph had released were joining the fight, and Katara, Sokka, and Suki took down 3 of the Dai Li they were facing already. By the time he got to the others, the other 3 Dai Li had also surrendered. This seemed too easy . . .

Almost as if they were on cue, 10 more Dai Li members came rushing through the entrance to the Plaza, and were met with the cries from the newly reformed group that was here to make a stand against them. Two members came rushing up to Aang immediately as they saw him, trying to send rock cuffs towards him. He stomped the ground while they were in midair, causing them to break, then he sent a gust of wind from the right to knock one guard into the other, sending them crumbling to the ground. Katara must have seen this, because as soon as they hit the ground she cuffed them with ice to momentarily bind them. As Aang surveyed the rest of the battle, he noticed that things were going quite well. A few of the prisoners they had worked to free were back in cuffs against the ground, but the Dai Li were greatly outnumbered and stood no chance.

"ENOUGH." A familiar, chilling voice screamed out into the night air. As chills went down his spine, Aang turned around to see the last person he possibly wanted to, Long Feng. Aang was the closest to him, the rest of the crowd far enough behind him where the two could square off alone. Everyone and everything stopped as they stared at the face-off between the two of them. "You think you could try to stop me again, Avatar Aang?" Long Feng sneered. "I heard that you were all about peace at the end of the war." He continued to mock. "Let's see how you choose peace in this situation!"

Long Feng briefly stepped aside to reveal something behind him. There stood one large stone pillar that held a contraption. On both sides of the pillar stood two huge boulders, ready to come crashing down to the ground below. The problem was that on each side of the pillar were prisoners. On the left side was Chief Hakoda, who was bound under the boulder contraption completely helpless. On the right side of the column was a group of three children that Aang recognized from a few days ago when he had stopped to play with them. Each of them were also bound, and they were placed tightly together under their own rock contraption. It was there that Aang then understood what Long Feng was doing. He was going to break the pillar of rock in the middle with his earthbending, causing both rocks to fall at once. Long Feng was forcing him to make a choice on who to save and who to let die.

That choice didn't even last for a split second as he immediately broke the pillar. As he saw the contraption breaking and the rocks start to fall, Aang didn't have time to think as he immediately shot forward with his airbending towards the group of prisoners. He used the strongest gust of wind possible at Hakoda, hoping to knock him aside and away from the boulder. Then, he leapt over to the three children, pushing them away from the boulder. Looking up, he saw that the boulder was about to crash over him. Time slowed down as he protectively got down to his ground and covered his head with his hands. Suddenly, his memory of Gyatso came rushing back to him. I'd do anything for the people I love, even if it means being captured in their stead or dying for them.

Impact. The pain was unbearable, and the wind was knocked out of him. His vision became fuzzy as he felt himself blacking out. He didn't remember much, but all he remembered is Long Feng laughing closely in his face and then taking Hakoda away with him. Then, everything went black.

He woke up to Katara healing some of the bruises on his body. The waterbender's ocean blue eyes didn't seem to notice that he was awake as she was intently working on a bruise near his abdomen. "K-Katara?" The airbender was able to breathe out, still working on getting the breath back in his body.

"Aang!" Katara responded, immediately stopping the healing that she was doing to gently come down to him and bring her against him in a small embrace. "How are you doing my love? That was quite a hit you took, you had me worried!" The concern on the waterbender's face was evident, but Aang seemed to have a few more questions that he wanted to ask his companion.

"I'm fine . . . how long was I out for?" He tried to look around, and he saw that most of the commotion was over and that the Palace Square was almost empty.

"Only about five minutes," Katara reassured him. "Once everything was over, Suki and Toph kind of went into action mode and told people to go back home where they would be safe. It sounds like Earth Kingdom Soldiers are going to be going and protecting the embassies tonight. We told them it wasn't necessary for our place."

Aang nodded in relief, before turning his voice to as gentle of a tone as possible to address the next subject. "What happened to your father?" He almost cursed himself for asking the question when he saw her face fall.

"Long Feng took him." She stated in a serious expression, pain clearly overtaking her. "Thanks to you the three kids are safe and are being returned to their parents, but you weren't able to get to Dad in time. Long Feng then went up to you and told you that you would regret that decision before taking off with him."

"Katara . . ." Aang started, trying to figure out how he could even make things right. "I'm so sorry-"

"Don't, Aang. It's not your fault. You did everything you could to try to save him. Thanks to you he's still alive. Sokka's upset, but please know that I'm not upset with you. I know you were trying to do the right thing." Katara finished healing some of the bruises on Aang's leg as they sat together in silence.

"I promise Katara . . . we will get your Dad back and out safely from prison. Even if it's the last thing I do." Aang stated firmly as he stared into her eyes. He was making a promise, and he never backed down on his promises.

"I know, Aang." Katara responded with a gentle nod and smile. "Go home and get some rest, I'll be home soon, I have just a few more people to heal. I just need some time to think right now." She was grateful when her companion nodded back in understanding, and brought her in for a hug. As she melted into his embrace, she realized that Aang would be right and come through on his promise, and all of her worry for her father started to wash away.

Aang was still upset with himself as he reached the front door of his house. All he wanted to do was save everybody, and now Chief Hakoda was being imprisoned by Long Feng and the Dai Li. Yes, he was still frustrated about their recent conversation, but he knew that his heart was in the right place and he was looking out for Katara. As he entered the front door, he saw Suki and Toph squeezing the shoulders of Sokka, trying to comfort him. The Water Tribe Warrior had his hands clenched against his face, clearly trying to hold in all of his emotion. Apparently, seeing Aang didn't help.

"YOU!" Sokka stood up and pointed his boomerang at Aang. "You need to leave . . . NOW! Or else I will make you leave!" The sweat was pouring down his face, which was exhibiting a bright red hue that was contorted with anger.

"Sokka . . . I'm so sorry-" Aang tried to begin, before he was quickly cut off.

"I don't want to hear it! Your words mean nothing to me when your actions clearly stated what your intentions were. You had the chance to save him, Aang! Yet you chose three random kids over my father! YOUR GIRLFRIEND'S father!"

"Sokka, you know that I tried to save your father too! If I just would have been quicker, I could have saved everyone. I failed, and I know it. Please . . . you know I have nothing against him."

"It could have been the other way around, Aang! You could have saved my father and blasted the other three children away! Don't you remember all that he's done for you in the war? How he willingly arrested himself for you? THAT'S how YOU repay him?"

Aang was trying to be patient with Sokka, but now he was getting frustrated. He understood why Sokka was angry, and suddenly it put everything in perspective to him on how he treated Toph back in the desert when Appa was captured. "So what was I supposed to do, Sokka? Just let three children get captured by Long Feng?"

"Don't try to turn this back around on me, Aang. YOU made that choice. YOU knew that your little blast plan to my father wasn't guaranteed to save him as you went to push those kids out of the way. YOU were willingly putting my father at risk to die!" Sokka exclaimed, throwing his hands up in the air.

"Sokka! Listen to me!" Aang angrily pleaded. "You know that I view all lives as sacred, it doesn't matter what position, gender, or age they hold. I had the opportunity to save three lives guaranteed instead of one, I was going to go with the guaranteed three!"

"Oh, so my father is JUST ANOTHER LIFE to you?!" Sokka shouted, the anger from his voice shaking the walls around him.

Aang let out a small sigh as he knew that he wasn't getting through to Sokka. "That's not what I meant, Sokka! You know that I was trying to save everyone there. Chief Hakoda is still alive, and I'm extremely happy that's the case. But it would destroy me either way if your father died, or if any of those children died. I tried to do the right thing, Sokka. I really did. I failed, and I'm so sorry that I failed. But, I'd like to think that there's still hope. I promised Katara this before I left and I'm going to promise you as well. We are going to get your father out of prison, Sokka."

Sokka seemed to ignore everything he had just heard from Aang until the last part, which caused his eyes to narrow even more. "So . . . Mr. Air Nomad." He said in a mocking manner. "Tell me . . . since all lives are equal in your eyes, would you have done the same thing if it was Katara in that situation instead of my father?" There was a moment of silence as everyone in that room knew that Sokka had gotten Aang there with that logic. Sokka, however, had no problem breaking that silence. "TELL ME!"

Tears began to fill Aang's eyes as the guilt washed over him. He had already done enough fighting, arguing, and choosing that he wasn't even sure if he would be good enough to live up to the Air Nomads anymore. "I don't know, Sokka!" He finally admitted, throwing his hands up in the air in frustration and defeat.

"You don't know," Sokka let out a sardonic laugh, mocking his statement. "Aang, you may have lost your father figure in your life but I WOULD LIKE TO KEEP MINE." The room fell silent again at this statement, everyone in shock. Sokka clearly just crossed a line.

"Sokka!" Suki admonished, glaring at the Warrior and pulling him back by his robes. This seemed to calm him down slightly, before he turned back to Aang one final time.

"I'm going to my room, and I'm going to bed. When I wake up tomorrow, you better be gone. I better see your things packed up and out of here. You're not a part of this family anymore. That's not how our family works. We don't leave each other to die." With that, he turned around and stormed off into his room, slamming the door behind him. Suki quickly turned back and ran to him, not before shooting an apologetic look to Aang. Toph, however, came up to him and gave him a quick hug.

"It's not your fault, Aang." She whispered. She never called him by his real name. "Suki and I will talk to him." She then let go, and turned around, heading towards Sokka's door. Aang continued to stand there in shock. The tears quickly flowed down, and soon enough, his breathing became uncontrolled as he felt another panic attack. Falling to the floor, he allowed the tears to come while he let Katara's former words coax him. Breathe. Take deep breaths. Relax. Breathe.

It took 10 minutes, but he was able to calm himself down. Tears still coming down his cheeks, he started writing all his feelings down onto a letter that he left on the table. As he wrote, once again, the memory that he had earlier with Monk Gyatso came back to him. "I would do anything for the ones I love, even if that meant taking their stead in prison or dying for them." After he finished his letter, he took off into the night of Ba Sing Se, and was soon in the air on Appa, flying away.

As Katara finished up her last patient, the only thing that she wanted to do was go home. The last thing that she possibly wanted to have happen just occurred, and once again she felt fearful for another member in her family. Now all she wanted to do was go home and be comforted by Aang. Katara almost felt guilty that she had felt any sort of resentment towards her companion. But, she knew that Aang had no intentions of her father being imprisoned or killed, and she herself had witnessed him do everything in his power, including risking his life to save him.

Walking home, she hoped that Sokka was doing better about the entire situation. He was completely silent for a minute after Long Feng had left with their father, before he completely went ballistic and was shouting that it was Aang's fault. She knew that before she had the opportunity to be comforted by Aang tonight, that there was a chance that she would have to comfort her brother. That was something she would happily accept. She rarely admitted it to people, but she and Sokka loved each other more than anything, even if they did fight a lot.

Finally, she reached the front door of their house. As she walked in, she noticed no one was in the living room, so she figured that everyone had gone to bed. Great, I can spend some time with Aang. But, to her surprise, Aang wasn't in their bedroom. Coming back into the living room, she was about to head to the others' rooms when she noticed a parchment on the table. When she picked up the letter, she noticed the tear stains that splotched up the paper, making it harder to read. But, she was still able to read it pretty easily.

Sokka,

Words cannot begin to express how sorry I am for earlier tonight. I realize that I have made a mistake in not being able to save your father, and I promise you that I will not return until your father is completely safe. You may not view me as a part of your family anymore, and I understand that. I just want to know that you're a brother to me. I love you like a brother and nothing will change that, and I am forever grateful for everything that you have done for me. I promise you that I am going to get your father back home to you, safe and sound. It's the least that I could do in return.

Katara, I'm sorry that I didn't come to find you before making this decision. I partly did it because I knew that you would never agree to it. I love you with all my heart and I know seeing your father imprisoned hurts you just as much as your brother. I am sorry for the pain that I have inadvertently caused you, and like I told Sokka, I'm going to make it right. Remember the other promise that I made to you when we talked about the last time things went wrong in Ba Sing Se. I will always find a way to come back to you. I love you, and I know you will know what to do when everything gets revealed.

Toph and Suki, you two are also my sisters. Please watch over Katara and Sokka for me and give them all of your love for me. They need you right now. I won't let you all down. I can't let anyone down again.

Aang

Katara stared blankly at the letter before her. What? Why was he feeling this way? What made him leave? She reread the letter over and over again, trying to make sense of it. But one thing became abundantly clear, Sokka told him to get lost. Now, she has done a great job of controlling her emotions so far tonight. But knowing that Sokka told Aang that he wasn't part of the family anymore? The fumes raged inside of her as she stomped towards Sokka's bedroom with the letter in her hand, slamming it open. Inside, a shocked Sokka, Suki, and Toph were looking at her.

Staring right at Sokka with a glare, she threateningly asked in her narrowest voice, "What did you do?" She then shoved the letter into his chest.

Being back on Appa and in his element allowed Aang to properly gather his emotions. He finally landed at his destination, Lake Laogai. Walking up to where the entrance was last time, he wasn't surprised at all to sense Dai Li members when he used his earthbending vision that Toph Taught him. Opening the entrance to Lake Laogai with his earthbending, he swiftly entered. Walking down the hallway, he was met by two Dai Li guards, who were shocked to see him. Fear started to wash over their faces as they pleaded with the Avatar to spare them.

"Relax," Aang smoothly spoke, putting his own hands up to show that he came in peace. "I want you both to take me to Long Feng, I promise you I am not going to do anything." The two reluctantly agreed and took him down the hallway, leading him into the main chamber of Lake Laogai. There, the man that Aang currently despised the most turned around with a smirk to greet him.

"Avatar Aang," Long Feng mocked, "to what do I owe you the pleasure for such a surprise visit?" Aang glared back at him, but he knew that he needed to stay calm for his plan to work.

"I want to make a trade to release Chief Hakoda of the Southern Water Tribe from prison." He responded firmly, showing that he wasn't going to back down an inch.

Long Feng could only smirk in response. "Avatar Aang, you know that I am public enemy number one right now, no money that you could possibly give me would be of any use to me. I only trade prisoner for prisoner, and Chief Hakoda is my most valuable prisoner, since he is a leader of one of the most prominent Tribes in the world. Who could you possibly offer to me that would be better than that?"

Aang took a deep breath, before clenching his fist and pressing his arms together, pushing them forward in surrender. He took a step forward towards Long Feng, and lowered his head, answering with a simple reply.

"Myself."