Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

The Avatar Returns

Katara's head was tucked in her brother's shoulder, both Water Tribe children dozing lightly after their escape from the Fire Nation ship, as they flew away from the South Pole on the back of a flying bison. The waterbender's face was almost completely obscured by the hood of her large coat, but the flash of light brown skin peaking out from the protective winter gear was one of the most beautiful sights Aang had ever seen. Sokka and Katara, both virtual strangers to the young airbender, not only risked their lives to save Aang, but also left the comfort and familiarity of the Southern Water Tribe to journey off into the unknown with him.

Aang knew he was lucky. Most people would not throw away everything they knew and loved to help out some goofy kid. Aang could not fault Sokka for his weariness towards the avatar. Even Aang doubted he could be so trusting if some random person popped out of an iceberg, yet Katara had extended her hand towards Aang and took him under her wing. When Aang woke and found himself staring into her mesmerizing blue eyes, the avatar knew he forged a connection with the young girl that he would never be able to forget.

Katara accepted his claims that he was an airbender, despite no one seeing hide or hair of a single airbending monk in a century. Katara helped fill in the gaps once they had realized just how long he had been in the iceberg. Most importantly, she did not ostracize him or even revere him once it was revealed to her that he was the avatar. The monks Aang had grown up with, the same monks who witnessed him through all his awkward childhood stages, did not know how to treat him once they found out. Katara was different. Despite the short time the two had spent together, Aang knew she was special.

There was a war going on. The Fire Nation had ground down the nations with a tyrannical fist, and Aang's head was still spinning with the news. This was not the world he had left behind. As the avatar, Aang knew he could no longer run from his responsibilities. There was a long road ahead of him, full of many unknown perils and obstacles, but gazing at the waterbender and her brother, huddled together on Appa's back, Aang felt that perhaps he could persevere through it all as long as Katara remained by his side.

Aang scooted forward on the saddle, leaning in as close to Katara as he dared. "Can I keep you?" The boy whispered, as his right hand twitched, wanting very badly to stroke along the patch of skin that had been teasing Aang for the last hour or so.

Sokka let out a cacophonous snore, causing Aang to airbend himself away from the pair in reaction to the sudden noise. The moment was broken, but as Aang began to steer Appa closer towards the direction of the Southern Air Temple, a sensation of warmth settled over the youth. The future might be full of mystery, but with Katara as a traveling companion, and most importantly, as a friend, Aang could not wait for his destiny to unfold.

Bato of the Water Tribe

Listening to Sokka and Katara wax lyrical praise about their father and the virtues of the Southern Water Tribe to Bato set Aang's teeth on edge. He knew the siblings missed home, but having the reminder that they belonged somewhere else, with other people, was a smack in the face. The two seemed so content in a world that did not involve Aang that he had to slip away.

Letting the door covering flutter close behind him, Aang smacked his head a couple of times in retribution for letting him fall into the delusion that Katara and Sokka would travel with him forever. They had lives that existed outside of the realm of the avatar and The One-Hundred Year War. They had a family that loved them.

"Can I keep you?" Aang scoffed, walking down the path towards the beach. "Keep dreaming, Aang."

No matter how much Aang wished it were different, he couldn't keep Katara to himself. She and Sokka would leave him to reunite with their dad, leaving him alone once again. In a sense, Aang figured it was a divine consequence for leaving his old life and his old family. If Aang didn't abandon the Air Nomads one hundred years previously, who knows if there would even be a war to fight now? Aang abandoned his people a long time ago, and now his new family would do the same. Aang supposed his punishment was fair, but he could not help but wish that Bato had never shown up in his life.

The Waterbending Master

Katara had been improving on her waterbending skills ever since she had pulled Aang out of the iceberg only several months prior. Aang was aware of the fact, as he had practiced with her on a daily basis, and had been saved by her skills and quick wit numerous times, but watching her hold her own against Master Pakku, arguably the greatest waterbending master in the entire world, took the avatar's breath away. The water did not force itself against the slight girl's body, but rather flowed with her. To Aang, Katara had never looked more beautiful than she did with her hair falling loose around her shoulders, and water spiraling at the command of her fingertips.

Katara lost the battle. No one expected her to win, least of all Katara, but the fight had been so close and so intense, just the mere emotion and shock of all the spectators could have melted the entire Northern Water Tribe, leaving the city to drift off to sea. An untrained student, let alone a girl, holding their own against Master Pakku was unheard of. The silence that surrounded the people of the Northern Water Tribe was that of shock, but it was also full of awe and wonderment. Just by looking at Katara, even as she was pinned under long spears of ice, her panting breath clouding in front of her face was a sight to behold. In that moment, not a single person in the crowd could doubt Katara's importance, or the power she could wield.

"But you still won't teach me, will you?" Katara snapped out, still defiant in times of confinement. Aang started towards Katara to defend her, when Sokka grabbed his arm, pulling the boy to a halt.

"That girl can handle herself," Sokka spoke, nodding his head towards the altercation. Turning his head, Aang could already see the conversation between Katara and Master Pakku had taken a turn. "Nobody has ever been able to tell that girl no. If that were the case, we wouldn't be here with you now, would we?"

Aang beamed at the older boy, his gratefulness for the waterbender blossoming in his chest until the avatar felt like he was going to explode. Katara had completely changed Aang's life for the better, and Aang vowed that he would try his hardest to make it up to Katara, even if he had to spend his entire life in the presence of the waterbender. In fact, that would be preferable.

Katara and Master Pakku had reached a conclusion, and Katara was standing tall in triumphant. After decades of patriarchy ruling over the Northern Water Tribe, all it took was the reminder of Master Pakku's first love for him to cave and agree to teach girls waterbending. Walking over to stand beside his friend, Aang busked his shoulder against Katara's, her good mood rubbing off on him.

"Hey, you looked pretty good out there. Can I keep you? I think you might come in handy," Aang teased Katara, wrapping his arm around her shoulders when she started shivering in the cold. Katara cocked her head in his direction, sending him a wink. Grinning in return, Aang took that as progress.

The Avatar State

In front of his very eyes, Aang watched Katara die. The image of her sinking into the ground, unable to stop her trajectory, permeated Aang's mind as the avatar state took over. There was no war. There was no cause. There was only the man who had slaughtered Aang's best friend in the entire world. Vision tunneling, the avatar struck.

The power of all of his thousands of past lives culminated under the avatar's skin, and the force of anger channeling through his veins made him unstoppable. Destruction reigned down from his hands, showing the men the true consequence of flirting with danger. They wanted to bring out the avatar state, and now their wish was his command.

When Katara resurfaced, Aang was lost to the avatar. The balance of peace was gone and only vengeance remained. It took Avatar Roku, informing Aang of the avatar cycle's own mortality to pull him from his poisonous state of mind. Emerging from the avatar state, and seeing the damage inflicted on the Earth Kingdom base struck Aang with the realization just how dangerous of a weapon he truly could become.

The group had fled from the scene, not even waiting to hear any apologies. It had become obvious to the three kids that they would have to continue this journey alone. The avatar was too powerful, and no matter what side of a war you are on, it is still war, and there will always be people who are willing to exploit someone for the "greater good."

Aang could not help but be plagued by the visions of rubble scattered across the base. He had razed their tiny fortitude to the ground in mere minutes, and at the time, he had no reservations about such an act. To be honest, what scared Aang most was not the incredible wealth of energy contained in his small body, but the knowledge that he would react in the exact same way, without hesitation, if he thought Katara was in trouble.

Once they had set up camp, Aang separated himself from the group, needing some time to come to grips with his own emotions. Aang wasn't dumb. He knew he had romantic feelings for Katara. From the moment he saw her face, Aang thought that she was beautiful. Her confident spirit and never-ending support just caused Aang's feelings to grow, but his display brought him to a whole new realization. Aang was in love with Katara.

"Aang, are you okay?" Aang immediately jumped into a defensive stance, startled by Katara's unexpected appearance. Seeing her standing there, sincerity starkly written in her eyes, caused Aang to break down.

Falling to his knees, Aang wrapped his arms around Katara's waist, and pressed his face into her stomach to smother the onslaught of tears.

"Please don't ever leave me, Katara! Please! Can I keep you? Please?" As Aang's salty tears soaked Katara's tunic, without any signs of slowing, she slowly stroked her fingers on the blue arrow cascading down his baldhead, tickling at the base of his neck.

"I will never leave you, Aang."

The Cave of Two Lovers

They kissed. Aang had finally kissed Katara, after months of yearning for the young waterbender. It was just his luck that immediately afterwards, the cave was flooded with the crystal's light to lead them out of the labyrinth, and Katara ran off towards the exit. Too shocked from the sensation of Katara's soft lips pressed against his own, Aang merely stumbled after his friend without forcing any kind of conversation between the two.

Once they escaped the clutches of the cursed cave and met back up with Sokka, the two would continue in their not-conversation. As much as Aang wanted to interpret Katara's silence being indicative of her own nerves being rocked by their moment of intimacy, a growing dread filled the avatar's stomach with the thought that perhaps the kiss meant nothing to the young girl.

Katara had been the one to propose the kiss in the first place, but she had acted out of a means of survival. To the water tribe girl, Aang was her silly, strictly platonic, friend. There would be no forcing the issue. Aang was not about to ruin the best friendship he ever had. Aang would rather have Katara as just his friend, than not in his life at all.

Unbeknownst to his fellow travelers, Aang had sequestered a piece of crystal away from the cave's walls. Out in the sunlight, the crystal remained dull and listless in his hand, but the avatar could remember how they glowed in reaction to his love for Katara. Even if nothing ever happened between him and Katara, he would keep this memory with him forever. Pressing the crystal against his lips, Aang whispered to himself, "Can I keep you?"

Sozin's Comet, Part Four: Avatar Aang

Standing on the balcony of the Jasmine Dragon, watching the sunset over Ba Sing Se, Aang felt a sense of calm overwhelm his senses in a way that he has never felt before. The war was finally over, and while there was a lot of work to be done to restore the world back to its rightful balance, now there was time to rest. There was now time for peace, tranquility, and simple pleasures such as a cup of tea.

Katara joined Aang on the balcony, and not a single word transpired between them as they fell into an embrace. Aang had always been the proactive one in the questionable relationship between the two. He had always been the one to engage a kiss, or push her into talking about what was, or was not, between them. Now, bathed in the purple and red hues of the sunset, a warm breeze winding between them, Aang knew that the next step was hers.

When Katara pulled Aang into a gentle, yet passionate, kiss, it felt like every imperfection and blemish on the world had suddenly righted. It felt like a watch, with one loose cog, had been repaired to tick perfectly in time with the universe. The world could have been crashing down around them, and Aang doubted that even that could draw out the avatar state in this moment.

Releasing Aang, Katara leaned back to look Aang in the eyes, smiling softly. Her hands remained cupped around Aang's jaw, and her thumbs began to slowly stroke his cheeks. To Aang, there was nothing to be said. It felt as if their cosmic energies had joined, and everything between the two was understood. There would be no more misunderstandings. No longer would the two stumble around each other, not sure where to draw the line in the sand of their friendship. Aang was content with the silence, but Katara had one last thing to ask.

"Aang, can I keep you?"

Chapter Text

Jet

Katara was embarrassed. She had trusted Jet. She had believed in him. As little as she now wanted to admit it to herself, Katara had even been attracted to Jet. The rogue had seemed so cool and poised in the face of danger, and had a sense of righteousness that could rival even the most honorable man. Of course, Jet was not an honorable man, and whatever righteousness and good intentions he may or may not have had at some point had mutated into pure vengeance. Jet had been so suave, and his silver-tongue so quick with lies that Katara fell right into his ploy. To herself, Katara briefly wondered how many other innocent girls Jet lured into his trap with a piece of straw clenched in his smirk.

The spirits had definitely granted Jet with a beautiful face, but forgot the heart to go with. Katara had always thought herself above shallow dalliances, and sought a person more for their mind than physique, but in the end, she wasn't above it at all. She was just a naïve girl from the Water Tribe. There were many times Katara doubted her worth and contribution towards the mission with the avatar, but none more so than today. Perhaps she was not made out for the vast world, and never should have left her humble beginnings at the Water Tribe.

"So, do you want to talk about?" Aang stretched out his words, and cautiously approached Katara from behind. The young girl had originally been sent out to find firewood once they set up camp. She had been so lost in her musings, the sun had already began to sink below the horizon.

"Not really," Katara muttered, eyes downcast to avoid Aang's face. She was waiting for Aang to make some kind of joke to try to lessen the tension, which is why Katara started in shock when she felt Aang's arms wrap around her. The airbender's fingers threaded through the thick knot in her hair, bringing to head down to rest upon his shoulder. Before Katara could contain her emotions, her entire body began shuddering in response to the act of tenderness Aang showed her.

"How could I be so stupid?" Katara sobbed. "How could I have trusted someone like that?"

"You're not stupid, Katara," Aang murmured, his hand not wound in her hand began rubbing soothing circles on her back. "You are a kind, trusting person. That doesn't make you stupid. That makes you a good person."

Just for a moment, Katara felt her heart flutter in her chest. The two stood in their embrace for a few minutes longer, allowing Katara time to compose herself. Pulling away from the avatar, rubbing her face clean, Katara shot Aang a reassuring smile to let him know that she was okay.

"Thanks, Aang. Can I keep you? You always know what to say."

Aang shot her a wink, before gathering firewood, which was Katara's initial task before she became distracted. "Try and keep me away."

The Storm

Sitting in the damp cave, listening to the rain pound down outside, Aang had completely spilled his heart to Katara. Katara knew Aang had a lot of mixed feelings when it came to his destiny. In the past, he had given small hints, such as mentioning how he never wanted to be the avatar, but the young waterbender never imagined it ran this far. Aang was lost.

The guilt of not noticing earlier weighed heavily on Katara. She was supposed to be Aang's best friend. She often turned to the airbender for guidance, but how many times did she return the platitudes? It did not take a genius to realize that to accept the responsibility of the avatar so young would be a burden, never mind the fact that Aang woke up in a whole new world, where everything he knew and loved was gone. All of this time, she had thought Aang had been coping, but watching the avatar break down in front of her showed Katara just how wrong she truly was.

"The fisherman was right! I did turn my back on the world!" Aang was growing more and more frustrated with himself. If he had hair, Katara would bet that he would currently be pulling at its ends.

"You're being too hard on yourself. Even if you did run away, I think it was meant to be. If you had stayed, you would have been killed along with all the other airbenders," Katara tried to soothe the wounds of the hurting boy.

"You don't know that."

"I know it was meant to be," Katara responded fiercely, confident in her convictions. "The world needs you now. You give people hope."

Aang smiled up at Katara, a flicker of light breaking through the avatar's storm. The look shared between the two of them was so heavy, that Katara almost forgot to breathe. The words Katara didn't speak were still floating around in her mind, growing in weight as her emotions swelled within in.

Katara had wanted to say, "You give me hope. Can I keep you? Please? For just a bit longer, can we keep you?" Yet, those words would not come out. It felt as if Katara spoke one more syllable, something would break, and Katara was too afraid to find out what that something was.

In the end, Katara did not have a choice. The fisherman's wife came rushing into the cave, begging for the lives of her husband and Sokka. Suddenly, all the thoughts swirling around Katara's mind spilled out of her head like a cloud releasing rain. The young waterbender forgot about everything she had wanted to say to the avatar, and focused on saving her brother.

Tales of Ba Sing Se

Aang heard Katara and Toph giggling maniacally as they returned to the house from their trip to the Day Spa. The young boy might be the avatar, but he would never understand how women could enjoy getting all pampered up. It seemed like torture to spend hours on your clothes, hair, and make-up, but it might just be a girl thing. Then again, Sokka's definition of a "boy's thing" included hunting cute, little animals, so Aang wasn't really sure what to believe. Maybe he was just weird.

"How was your trip?" Aang called out, distracted by Momo's antics. Aang would hold a nut out to the little flying lemur, and the moment Momo would stretch his arm out for the treat, Aang would airbend it away. With the girls and Sokka gone all day, Aang was bored. His entertainment could only be found in teasing his little, flying friend. There were only so many times in a day Aang could practice his bending skills.

"It was great," Katara hummed absently, making her way past Aang and Momo. Aang had now added little loops in the nut's trajectory, and was putting all his concentration in keeping the morsel away from the lemur. "Toph even let them clean her feet."

Aang looked up to make a quip at Toph's expense, and found all the air whooshing out of his lungs. For an airbender, it was very disconcerting. Ever since Aang first opened his eyes in the icy tundra of the South Pole, he had thought Katara was beautiful. The avatar had traveled all across the world, and he had yet to meet someone whose beauty and charm compared. Now, seeing Katara before him, made up like a doll, he was speechless.

Katara never wore make-up. When they lived their life on the run, constantly running or battling those fighting against them, make-up becomes a hindrance. Seeing Katara shine under such feminine splendor made Aang suddenly glad Katara favored utility over vanity. Aang did not want any other men seeing Katara as such an alluring subject.

"Uh, Katara!" Aang squeaked, his voice going up at least two octaves. "You look, wow. I mean, you look…"

"Geez, Aang, you could give a girl a complex," Toph chided, whacking Aang in the shoulder as she passed the stuttering and blushing boy.

Aang cleared his throat, steadying himself. "Katara, you look beautiful. You too, Toph."

The airbender felt as if he got through that exchange fairly painlessly, and just as his flush began to leave his face, Katara leaned over and pecked him on the cheek.

Katara smirked as Aang became even redder than an apple. "Can I keep you, Aang? You work wonders on a girl's confidence."

Aang sat there, mouth agape, as Katara and Toph swept out of the room in a flurry of laughter. The boy was in such a state of shock, he did not notice that Momo finally managed to snatch the nut.

Post-A:TLA

It had been four years since Aang took down Fire Lord Ozai, and ended the One-Hundred Year War. That did not mean, however, that the kids lived the rest of their days in peace. The world was in tatters, completely torn apart from decades of warfare. Slowly but surely, the avatar was stitching the world back together, trying to bring back peace and harmony.

The anniversary for the end of the war was fast approaching, and no matter what engaged those of the group of friends, they always made sure to meet up at the Jasmine Dragon in Ba Sing Se. Despite how much Aang wished they could have stuck together, everyone had their own duties to fulfill. Zuko had an entire nation to run, Toph started her own earthbending school, and Sokka spent his time jumping between the nations to help create a more unified government. Only Katara and Aang remained together after the end of the world, and while they missed their friends, Aang wouldn't abandon his time with Katara for anything in the entire world.

On the day of the anniversary, Katara noticed Aang was conspicuously nervous. The now older avatar did not even react when Zuko showed up with Mai, their on-again off-again relationship obviously on the upturn. Nor did he react when Toph purposely spilled an entire pot of tea on him, hoping to raise his ire. Sokka's raucous laughter had died when Aang waterbended all of the tea out of his clothes, and continued in his distracted twitching.

The sun began to sink, bathing the tea shop in a myriad of colors. Aang pulled Katara out to the balcony, and she was overwhelmed with the sense of déjà vu. Only four years earlier, did the two stand on this very balcony, merely children, and decided to propel forward with their relationship. If it weren't for Aang's ridiculous growth spurt over the last several years, Katara would swear that she had stepped backwards through time.

Neither said a word as Aang turned to face Katara, his grey eyes sparkling in the fading light. The airbender flashed Katara a grin so shy, it was almost reminiscent of his twelve-year old self. His hand fumbled in his pocket for a moment, before it could escape the fabric. Aang pressed an object into Katara's hand, took a deep breath, and asked, "Can I keep you?"

Resting in Katara's palm was a water tribe betrothal necklace.