The Two Of Us - An ALTA X Reader Fanfiction

Chapter Twenty~ The End of Us

TW: DEATH

(AANGS POV)

The last time I remembered a storm like this was when we rescued Sokka and the fisherman, but that was out to sea. This...this was a man-made hurricane from hell, ripping through the air and sending small branches spinning into the sky and fish hitting trees so hard they merely left spots of color where they exploded on contact. I could feel her, inside the storm, and the pain we shared from the proximity wasn't the only pain she felt. I had helped with more than a few births and I recognized the way the pain and tenseness spread from her lower back up the sides to her abdomen. She was in labor.

Katara took my arm, shaking me to get my attention.

"Aang, we can't get through this. You need to go to her, calm her down!" She yelled you be heard over the storm and I knew she was right. I started this, now I had to finish it.

Leaning back, I yelled back to her.

"I'll go calm her down and try to get her to come out of the Avatar state, but then I need you right there Katara. She's in labor, she needs you."

Katara nodded and backed up to the troops and her brother, all of whom except Sokka looked terrified of the force of nature before them. Sokka just seemed concerned.

Bracing myself and earth bending the sand halfway up my legs, I pushed past the near blinding pain in my chest and slowly began to walk through the hurricane towards the love of my life. My thoughts were single minded, every ounce of my spirit focused on getting to her and pulling her from the Avatar state, then telling her how much I love her and need her in my life. We could find a way to make this work, take breaks when the pain began, and maybe someday we could find a way to detach that part of my soul from hers and live together peacefully.

I reached her and fell to my knees as she screamed, the pain from the contraction spearing through me as it did her. Her belly was round and covered in zigzagging lines, the outline of a small hand pressing up like the baby was trying to escape. Blood coated her thighs and her lips were blue from the nonstop shrieking she emitted. Her hands clenched her shirt and she opened her mouth, an unearthly scream being torn from her as tears streamed down her cheeks.

I leaned forward, hand outstretched.

"Y/N..." I called, and watched as her bloodshot eyes flew open and snapped towards me. Relief and disbelief warred within her and she lifted a trembling hand towards mine, a small smile on her face despite the pain we were both experiencing.

"Aa-" her hand touched mine.

The world exploded into white.

(Y/NS POV)

All I felt was pain. I could sense someone approaching and gripped my thin shirt to try and work through the pain. It grew in my chest to a white hot spear through my heart and I gasped in between screams, my breathing becoming difficult. Each gasp I took never felt like a full breath, and I began to cry at the lack of oxygen. Everything hurt. My blood was pounding in my head, and I felt like I was spinning, nausea rising with the pain.

Slicing through it all came a single word, filled with love, and I opened my eyes, looking to my side to see Aang kneeling next to me, his own breathing labored. His eyes shone through the pain, expressing all the apologies we both needed to say, and I felt more tears slide down my cheeks as he spoke my name.

"Y/N..."

His hand was reaching towards me and I lifted my own. All I wanted was to feel his warm hand holding my own again. I would give anything to have him hold me, and now here he is.

My fingertips touched his and my world went dim. The last thing I knew was the feeling of something being ripped from me, as if someone was tearing off half my skin in one swift movement. I felt my heart stop, my breathing stop, and I watched helplessly as Aang lit up, forced into the Avatar state, as my mind slipped into the darkness. No more pain, no more thoughts or emotions, no more anything.

(AANGS POV)

I felt myself wrenched into the spirit world, and an intense pressure filled my body and mind. Memories that weren't mine flooded my mind. A mother I didn't know holding me above her, smiling broadly at me and showering me with love; a father brutally beating me as I cowered in the cold floor in a puddle of my own urine; sand beneath my body and a feeling of freedom in my heart; pulling a cut up and emotionally exhausted boy out of a bush and dragging him into a little shelter; hiding my embarrassment as warm hands kneaded my flesh into relaxation; the expression of adoration from the boy above me as pure euphoria filled my entire body; the rage and terror of being held captive by my own body as it hurt another person; the grief and loathing as I sat on a train alone in the world with an impending baby; the pain and resignment as I was used by the vendor; the peace that came with Roku finally telling me what I needed to know; the longing to be home and in his arms again.

Her memories flooded into me. Every second, every feeling, every trial and every joyous moment. I knew them all, as intimately as I knew my own, as if I had lived through it all myself. With them came the determination she held to do what she thought was right, and the unconditional, endless love she held for me. I felt her fear for the baby's future. I felt her want for me to know how much she loved me and how sorry she was for everything in that last moment as she reached for me. It all swirled around inside me and seeped into crevices and cracks I didn't know were there, filling me and molding me back into a whole person again.

The light faded and the storm stopped, leaving me on all fours next to her body. Her belly moved slowly, but her chest remained still. I was distantly aware of Katara running up to me, followed by a few troops. The voices were mere noises as I struggled to understand what had just happened. I finally looked up at Y/N's face, and felt tears stream down my cheeks. Her hand lay on the ground, outstretched towards me, her lips curved into a soft smile. But her eyes, once so bright and full of defiance and life, were classy and devoid of anything.

Someone was screaming. Sokka wrapped his arms around pulled me to my feet away from Y/N's body and I realized it was me. I screamed in rage and grief, struggling weakly to get back to her as Katara said a small prayer over her body, closed her glassy eyes and began to cut her open, trying to pull the baby out before it too was killed. Sokka didn't turn me away or make me leave though, something I would be grateful for later.

A small newborn was pulled from my lovers stomach, covered in blood and viscera, and I froze. The little thing squirmed as Katara wrapped it in a small cloth, tying off its cord and slicing through it before standing and saying something to a troop who dropped and began putting Y/N back together. My eyes remained locked on the small bundle Katara held as she approached, an unspoken apology in her gaze as she held them out to me, saying something I didn't hear or process. The only noise I could hear was the small cry of the baby, and as Sokka released me I held out shaky arms and took my child, bringing them close to my chest.

Their little face was scrunched up and they cried, searching for warmth. I instinctively slipped them into my robe, turning them towards my chest. My legs grew weak and I dropped again, clutching my child as if they too would vanish and leave me truly alone. Their small hand finally worked its way out of the blanket and as soon as it touched the bare skin at the base of my neck they calmed, lightly hiccuping and relaxing into me. My vision blurred at the small crop of dark hair on their head and I cried, unaware of anything but the horrible and confusing blend of loss and joy.

After some time we were guided to a carriage and brought home. Nobody spoke to us but we shared a carriage with the covered body of Y/N, and I slipped from my seat to crawl with one arm towards her, pulling the blanket back and running my hand through her hair, so much like our baby's, who was fast asleep in my arms. I whispered apologies and how much I loved her until I fell asleep as well, my heart and mind heavy.