Coming Together

The Project

A loud knocking was what woke Katara up the next morning. She tossed and turned, trying to wake up fully, tangling herself in the sheets as the knock came again, louder this time. She groaned and crawled out of bed, her feet smacking against the wooden floor as she made her way from her bedroom, down the hallway and finally to the front door. The knocking began again and she interrupted it by flinging the door open. The morning sunlight blinded her for a moment and she couldn't see who was at her door.

"Do you know what time it is?" She asked, annoyed as her eyes tried to adjust to the light, the outline of a tall man coming together. She held her hand up to block the sun and a face came into focus. A face she instantly recognized and felt awful for being rude.

"Sorry, I'm a morning person. I didn't know if you were one or not..." Aang said and rubbed the back of his neck nervously. He had been anxious to see her again, but not like this; with her hair around her in a wild but beautiful mane, and dressed in a silvery blue night gown edged with navy lace that was much too short to be seen in public, gripping her curves and not leaving much to the imagination... almost like liquid moonlight was painted onto her body. It took everything Aang had to look away from her, turning to the side.

"I just wanted to give you a ride to the council meeting, but I can see that you're not ready to go anywhere yet..." He said with a blush, using as much self control as he had to not look back at the scene that would forever be burned into his mind. Katara, who was half asleep, didn't realize what was wrong with this picture until she felt the cool morning breeze touch her exposed upper thighs. She made a little squeak and held her nightgown down, crossing her legs. She felt so embarrassed, but she also didn't want to slam the door in his face. She left the doorway and walked swiftly around the corner, shouting behind her.

"Please come in Aang. It won't take me long to get ready."

He did as she asked, walking through the door. "Are you sure? I can just leave right now if you want. I should have realized..."

"No. I'm sure! Just give me about five minutes and I'll be ready. Promise!" She called from the bedroom, panicking at the thought of letting him leave when she wanted to see him so badly, especially after last night.

He closed the door behind him and walked slowly through her living room. It was cozy, with a few pelts on the wall to remind her of home. There was a black picture frame on the wall with what looked like a pendant that drew his attention. He stepped up to it to get a better look and a pang of jealousy went through him. It wasn't just any pendant; it was an engagement necklace, as was the custom in either watertribe as he had learned through his travels. It was confusing to him why she would have one... and yet have her friends would set her up on dates. He thought about it a little more and realized that it was in a frame, so she wasn't wearing it regularly. Maybe it was a token of a lost love she kept as a memento for herself. That thought brought Aang more distress, the fact that she might still have feelings for another man somewhere out there in the world. He sighed and fiddled with the small vase in his hands that he had brought her, it holding a single flower. He had been holding it behind his back to surprise her, but she surprised him first. Aang continued to walk through the room, examining all of her wall hangings. There was a portrait of her standing next to a man, his arm around her shoulders. They looked very happy together, smiling as if from a joke they had just heard. The man was of watertribe decent, just like her. He wondered if this had been the man to make that necklace for her. He looked nice enough, fairly handsome, strong and tall. His hair was shaved on the sides and longer on top, pulled into a short pony tail. He wondered if she had been very happy with him and what caused the end of that era.