Day 3: Parenting


Summary: KW 2024 Day 3: Parenting. In which the Council of Five can't figure out why the Avatar and his wife haven't had children yet, but neither can Katara.

Word Count: 2.2k

A/N: Welcome to Day 3! Bit of a shorter one today, but please enjoy!


"Rough day at work?"

The airbender's head snapped towards the source of the voice, offering her a grateful smile in response to the sympathetic look she was giving him. Katara wordlessly handed Aang the steaming mug in her hands as he shifted his weight, allowing her to sit down on the couch next to him.

"Something like that."

Aang shot her an appreciative grin before taking a sip of the freshly made tea, sighing as the warmth spread across his tongue. "Have I told you recently that you're amazing?"

The waterbender chuckled and pressed a kiss to his cheek. "Not since this morning, no." She wrapped her arms around his torso, her cheek resting in the crook of his neck while her hand lay on his chest, absentmindedly fiddling with the collar of his shirt. "Do you want to talk about what happened?" The blue of her eyes was piercing, inquisitive, as if trying to read his mind.

Aang winced, squirming to avoid her penetrating gaze. "Not particularly. It was nothing, sweetie, really."

Katara huffed but remained silent, fingers tracing patterns on the orange fabric. The airbender let out a soft sigh of relief at her seemingly letting the matter go before he noticed her chewing her lip- a nervous habit he had come to learn over the years, often when she wanted to say something but didn't know how.

"Sokka told you, didn't he?" It was a statement more than a question.

"Bits and pieces."

Katara cupped his cheek gently, moving his head to face her. "He's worried about you, sweetie. And so am I! You're under so much stress and we just want to do everything we can to help."

Aang pulled away from her and exhaled deeply, his arms untangling themselves from her body and instead wrapping tightly around his torso. He snuck a glance back at the waterbender's expression and flinched at the desperation in her eyes, the hurt on her face from his rejection.

"Can't we talk about it tomorrow?" he asked, unable to meet her gaze. "It's been a long day, sweetie. I'm exhausted."

Katara inhaled sharply, immediately pulling away the hand that had been reaching for his. Her shoulders slumped as she slowly rose to her feet, eyes hyperfocused on the designs in the carpet.

"I understand. Sorry." She turned her back towards him. "I'm going to go to bed."

The airbender's eyebrows furrowed. "Sweetie, it's only 8 o'cand-"

"I'm tired. It's been a long day, like you said." She offered him a small smile. "Goodnight, sweetie."

Without another word, she left the room, leaving Aang with only the pit in his stomach and an empty tea mug for company.


"I'm an idiot."

The airbender joined her an hour or two later, setting down what sounded like heavy ceramic on her nightstand before crawling into bed next to her, arms immediately snaking around her waist. He flinched at how her back remained stiff against his chest, the way she hadn't automatically melted into his touch as she usually did. He supposed he deserved it, but still, it hurt.

"How'd you know I was still awake?"

"You can never sleep on an empty stomach," Aang replied simply. "And we didn't eat dinner together like we normally do. I figured you'd want some food."

The ceramic she had heard was a plate, Katara quickly realized. The scent of vegetable dumplings, stewed sea prunes, and mango fruit pie flooded her nostrils. She felt her mouth watering, and her stomach growled in anticipation, eliciting a soft chuckle from Aang.

Blood rushed to the waterbender's cheeks as she sat up in their bed, carefully taking the plate into her hands so as to not spill the bowl of sea prunes. She stared at the food incredulously before turning to Aang, gaze soft and an affectionate smile adorning her face.

"Thank you," she whispered. "And I'm sorry for getting mad."

The airbender shook his head and gestured for her to eat. "It's not your fault, sweetie." He wrapped his arm around her shoulders, breathing a sigh of relief as she gave in to his touch and rested her head against him. "I'm the one who should be apologizing. I'm ready to talk if you still want me to."

Katara paused her inhalation of the stewed sea prunes to nod at him. Aang laughed and pressed a kiss to her temple. "You eat first, though. You look adorable."

The waterbender blushed as she took a bite of another dumpling. She then furrowed her eyebrows, looking at him concerned. "Did you eat yet? Where's your plate, sweetie?"

Aang rubbed the back of his neck with a sheepish grin. "Don't worry about me, sweetie. Let's just say I got a little carried away with taste testing while I was cooking."

Katara shook her head in mock disappointment, not even bothering to hide the smile on her face. With a sigh of satisfaction, she set the plate aside, food completely cleaned off, and laid back down on her side, motioning for Aang to join her.

"So?" She took his hands in hers, pressing a kiss to each of his palms as he gave her an appreciative smile.

"The council was, well," he began with a sigh. "They were asking about the… repopulation efforts for the Air Nomads. They want us to have kids soon. 'Accelerating our timeline,' they said. Though I'm assuming Sokka mentioned that."

Katara nodded and squeezed the airbender's fingers reassuringly seeing the tired look in his eyes.

"I didn't want to tell you because I didn't want to make you feel pressured," he said solemnly. "You already have so much on your plate with the waterbending academy and new hospital- you don't need the weight of an entire nation added there too. The Council needs to mind their own business."

"Sweetie," Katara said with a frown. "I want the weight of an entire nation on my shoulders."

Aang looked at her like she was crazy, which elicited a short chuckle from the waterbender.

"I married you, the Avatar, the last Air Nomad," she explained. "I knew what I was getting myself into. Whatever burdens you carry, we share. That's what this-" She lifted their intertwined hands. "-means. If you have to carry the weight of an entire nation on your shoulders, then so do I."

His gaze softened at the determination set in the lines of her mouth, the fire and love in her eyes. But again, something was off. He noticed her chewing her lip again.

"If there's something more you want to say, sweetie, just say it." Though his words were blunt, his tone was gentle, more curious than anything.

"It's just that-" She paused before shifting closer to him, entangling their legs under the blankets and pressing the side of her head to his bare chest. He pressed a kiss into her hair, cradling her against his body.

"Just that?"

She craned her neck to look up at him, expression hesitant.

"Why haven't we had kids yet, Aang?"

The airbender's eyes widened, clearly taken aback by the question.

"We said when we got married that we'd wait a few years, have some time just for us, for the world to settle down, but, well…" She shrugged. "It's been a few years. The world, for the most part, has settled down. But it feels like every time I bring it up- the idea of us having kids- you either say you're too tired and put off the conversation or switch topics entirely."

"It's fine if you've changed your mind!" she quickly clarified. "I just wish you would talk to me about it, sweetie. I hate not knowing what you're thinking."

Aang felt his stomach drop at the thinly veiled frustration in her words. In classic airbender tendencies, he had avoided and evaded his obstacles, taking the path of least resistance, falling victim to his naturally worst habits. In doing so, he had hurt the person he loved most, left her confused and in the dark, none of which she deserved.

Without another word, Aang pulled the waterbender closer to him, holding her gently but firmly in his arms.

"I'm sorry," he murmured into her hair. "You're right. I've been avoiding you and not communicating. It wasn't fair to you at all. I'll do better, sweetie. I promise."

The comforting squeeze Aang felt on his hand flooded his body with relief, his muscles instantly relaxing with the small gesture.

"So?" she whispered after a few moments of silence. "You never answered my question."

The airbender inhaled sharply, unsure how to word the last few months of internal conflict he had been having with himself.

"To be completely honest?" He let out a shaky exhale. "I'm terrified."

She said nothing, waiting for him to elaborate.

"I want to have kids with you- spirits, I want to have kids with you." A smile formed on Aang's face at the thought. "To have a little boy with his mother's eyes running around causing chaos because he picked up my knack for getting into trouble, to have a little girl with your smile and laugh completely oblivious to the fact that one sad look on her face would make me do anything for her, just to see that smile again."

Katara couldn't help the soft sigh that escaped her lips, warmth spreading throughout her chest at the picture his words painted, the comfort in knowing she wasn't the only one fantasizing about their future.

"I just…"

She pulled away from him slightly to rest her chin on his chest. She looked up at him intently, eyebrows furrowing at the hesitation and uncertainty on his face.

"What if I mess it up, Katara?" The airbender stared blankly ahead, lost in his thoughts. "I never had a dad- I don't know what it means to be a father. I know Gyatso was pretty close, and I've seen how Hakoda is around you and Sokka, but I just-" He exhaled. "What if I do it all wrong? What if I mess it up? What if our kids hate me and have every right to do so because I screwed it up?"

Without another word, the waterbender moved upwards and pulled him to her, cradling his head in the crook of her neck as his arms instinctively wrapped themselves around her waist. She kissed the tip of his arrow and rested her cheek on the top of his head, holding him protectively.

"You don't think I'm scared too, sweetie?" He looked up at her with confusion. "Yes, I had a mom, but so many of my memories of her are fuzzy, and I was so young when she died. I don't know how to be a mother, how to have big conversations about growing up or dating or any of that."

She sighed.

"I'm terrified of messing something up, that me having to grow up surrounded by a war means I can't give them a normal childhood." Katara took Aang's hand in hers and intertwined their fingers. "But I don't think anyone is ever really prepared to be a parent. I don't think anyone is ever not scared." Her gaze softened. "That's why we have each other, sweetie. To help and support one another, but also to check each other if needed, to save each other from our worst instincts and bad habits."

She shrugged. "Do I think I can do this? Not really." She squeezed his hand. "But I know we can. Together."

Aang chuckled and shook his head before looking up at her with admiration. "You always know exactly what to say to make me feel better, don't you?"

Katara giggled. "It's my specialty."

The airbender grinned and squeezed her hand back. "You're right though, sweetie. We have each other. We can do anything together. Will we mess up? Undoubtedly. But we'll apologize and try our best anyways, and our kids will know that, and it'll all be okay." He sighed. "Yeah. It'll all be okay. We'll be okay, and they'll be okay."

"Exactly," the waterbender smiled. "All that Avatar wisdom is going to make you an amazing father, Aang."

"I sure hope so, or else all our kids will talk about is how incredible their mother is."

The two laughed before lying in a comfortable silence for a few moments. Aang's eyebrows then furrowed, his eyes narrowed in thought.

"Sweetie?"

"Yeah?"

"Promise me one thing?"

"Anything, sweetie."

He hesitated.

"Promise me that you won't let me treat any of our kids differently, that you'll straighten me out if they ever feel like I love them any less than the others."

Katara snorted. "Sweetie, of all the things I can imagine you doing as a father, that is the absolute last." She gave him a small smile. "But I promise."

Aang sighed and pressed a kiss to her jaw.

"Thank you, Katara. For everything."

"Always, sweetie. Always."


"Katara?" he would ask a few nights later, voice seemingly swallowed up by the darkness of their room on a new moon.

"Yes, sweetie?" her muffled reply would come, face buried in the pillow she clutched to her chest.

"Let's have a baby," he'd whisper.

And he'd feel the smile on her face, even though he couldn't see it, as she turned on her side to face him, arms wrapping around his neck, their bodies pressing flush against one another.

"Let's have a baby."