I tried to make this an extra-special one, which is why it’s so long.
I’m not sorry about the cliff-hanger, by the way. Mwah hah hah.
I know, I’m evil.
Anyway, enjoy! I think you’ve waited long enough.
-Ellie
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The moon glowed bright in the night sky, surrounded by glittering constellations. Shadows stretched between the trees where the light didn’t reach. The darkness screamed danger!
Katara rolled away from the ominous forest, sighing at her over-active imagination. The dark had always terrified her - not that she’d ever let the others know. They didn’t need another excuse to see her as nothing but a useless waterbender.
Her arm started to go numb beneath her, so she sat upright on her mat. Looking over at her brother, Katara felt the familiar pang of protectiveness she’d had over him ever since her mother died. Although Sokka was the older sibling, it had constantly seemed like she’d been the one looking out for him, not the other way round. His immaturity levels had always been higher than hers, meaning Katara had usually been the one making the important decisions.
The novelty of being in charge had worn off after a while however, and she had realised that he needed to make his own decisions at some point in his life. So the ‘take charge’ side of Katara had stepped back, letting her inexperienced brother handle the reins for once. Naturally, Sokka had let that go to his head, but Katara didn’t mind. Despite all her and Aang’s teasing, her brother’s instincts were generally right.
With a proud smile, Katara looked away from her snoring sibling.
Her gaze came to rest on the Avatar’s sleeping figure. In the dying firelight, she saw that his features had softened in sleep. Aang had been so tense recently, obsessed with mastering the elements before Sozin’s comet arrived. Katara shook her head sadly at the amount of pressure put on Aang. It was too much for one boy to handle.
Skimming Aang’s angelic features, Katara wished she had some way that showed she belonged to a bending culture, like Aang’s arrow tattoo. She had her mother’s necklace, but it wasn’t the same. It didn’t immediately say ‘waterbender’ when you looked at it, the same way Aang’s tattoo immediately said ‘airbender’.
Katara’s eyes closed in silent anger at the thought of her missing necklace. Zuko would pay for taking the only personal possession she owned. He had no idea how much it meant to her.
Aang did though. Katara had believed her friend when he had promised they would get it back. Somehow his reassurance had been the only thing that made her feel better about the whole situation. She knew she could count on him.
The last of the flames flickered, casting shadows that danced across the Avatar’s flawless skin. Katara’s eyes widened as she realised something had changed. She still felt protective and kind of motherly towards the boy, but the struggles she’d watched him go through had made her start to feel something else.
Something Katara was scared to look too closely at.
Taking a deep breath, Katara decided a distraction was needed. It was obvious that she couldn’t join her companions in sleep, much as she wanted to. There were too many thoughts flying around her head, threatening to turn into a headache.
Katara silently rose from her makeshift bed and crossed over to Aang’s satchel, where the waterbending scroll she’d stolen from the pirates was poking out. She crouched down and, trying not to make a sound, lifted the heavy leather over the top of the bag and quickly took the scroll. She sighed in relief when Aang didn’t make a sound.
Katara knew how much he needed sleep.
The river was on the other side of the trees, meaning she’d have to go through the black forest to get there. Katara steeled herself for the darkness, but before she stepped under the dense canopy, she looked back at the camp.
Aang had rolled over in his sleep, and was now facing her as she walked away. Katara smiled softly in the boy’s direction and whispered, “I’ll be back soon.”
Then, the Water Tribe girl turned away from her companions, and, holding her head high, strode into the shadows before her.
Right into the waiting arms of the banished Prince.
