Nightfall

Thirty Two

It was mid-afternoon by the time Katara woke up. After healing Sokka's ankle, she had gone back to the room she was staying at with Toph and Suki and laid down. She thought it would have been difficult to fall asleep because of all the terrible memories in her mind, but she crashed once she laid her head down on the pillow. It was like she was dead to the world for those hours that she slept; nothing would have woken her up until she was ready.

And when she was ready, she got up out of the bed. Soft sunlight was streaming through the window, lighting up the room easily. The air around her was warm, and it held a sweet taste in it. There wasn't much in this room, though. Just three beds and three tables next to the beds. That was it. But it was better than what Katara had had when she was in the arena, and she was thankful for it. 

She hadn't even undressed last night when she got into bed, so she ran a hand through her dark hair before walking out of the room and into the hallway. The sounds of voices rose up in her ears; everyone else must have been awake already. She wasn't used to getting up so late. 

Katara walked into the room they had been in last night, and her eyes focused on Sokka. He was chatting with Suki, and it didn't even seem like he saw her. There was a goofy smile on his face as he gazed at Suki. Katara was happy that he had found someone who could take care of him. That would make it easier for her to disappear once they stormed the Capital. As long as he was safe, she knew she would be fine to disappear and be by herself for eternity. 

"Katara!"

She turned to face the boy who had called her name. Aang held out a weird looking fruit toward her with a grin on his face. He was sitting with Lu Ten on the ground, so she walked over to them and took the fruit out of Aang's hand. 

"What is this?" she asked him with a frown.

"A papaya."

Katara tried not to scrunch up her nose at the sight of the papaya. A pungent smell rose up from the fruit. She hadn't ever really liked them before, but it was sweet that Aang kept some food for her. "Thanks," she said to him. She would still eat it, even if she didn't like it.

"How'd you sleep?" Lu Ten asked her.

"Fine."

"I would assume so," Lu Ten said, laughing. His laughter rang out in the room, but Katara wasn't really amused. "You were the last one to get up."

Katara bit into the papaya instead of answering him. The flesh of the papaya melted in her mouth, leaving something sweet behind once she swallowed it. It wasn't as bad as what she remembered, but it still wasn't her favorite fruit. She flashed a smile to Aang when he looked at her; she didn't want to hurt his feelings by not liking the papaya. 

"Oh, good, everyone is finally here," Iroh said behind her. She turned around to find him standing in the doorway. He had an easy smile on his face. "In the next few hours, you six will be picking out your weapons and armor and training. I want you all ready for the operation."

"As ready as kids who were thrown into the Games will ever be," Katara muttered to herself. She hadn't really trained much before she went into the Games, but she knew she could take care of herself. She had made that known when she killed that boy.

"We will be going by teams to get weapons and armor," Iroh said. He either must have not heard her talk to herself or chose to ignore it. "The first team is Aang and Sokka. Follow me, please."

Aang stood up and stood by Katara for a second. "Do you want to train with me once you get your armor?" he asked her quickly.

"Yeah. That would be fine."