Hey guys! Who's ready to finish this series? I know I'm ready for the ending because I already wrote it lol (it's something surprising lol). Anyway, I'm here to tell you that I have changed the day I update to only Monday's. I know, I know, you guys are used to two updates every week. However, school has gotten stressful and it's better if I just update once every week. I hope you all enjoy this book!
Faint moonlight bounced off the water, sending shadows dancing across the side of the Fire Nation ship. Two small Water Tribe canoes snuck up to the ship, and three men wearing masks climbed up on the ship.
Konno and the rest waited with bated breath. This was their only chance to blend in with the Fire Nation. Otherwise, she didn't know what would happen to them. Someone slipped their hand into hers, and she quickly glanced at Sokka. He seemed to know that she was worrying about what was going to happen to them.
Katara whispered anxiously, "What's taking them so long?"
Konno looked to the left and said, "I have no idea."
Katara had her arms raised as she held created a small bubble for them all to breathe out of. Her, Konno, Sokka, Toph, and Aang were sitting on Appa, underwater. They didn't want to be spotted by the other Fire Nation ships. Aang laid to Katara's left. Her eyes kept darting to him, to make sure that he was still breathing.
"I really hate not being able to see anything," Toph announced.
"There's nothing you can really see right now," Konno muttered. "It's too dark."
"Guys, we shouldn't waste our air supply," Sokka said softly. "I don't want to suffocate down here."
"This was your idea," Katara said, an annoyed tone developing in her voice.
Before Sokka could snap back, Konno squeezed his hand. He glanced at her, shaking his head. She rolled her eyes at him. Lately, him and Katara had been getting into multiple fights about the littlest of things. It started after they picked up their father earlier in the week. It seemed like Katara was mad at Hakoda, but she wasn't exactly sure why. She hadn't had a chance to ask yet. She didn't think right now would be the best time to ask.
Suddenly, someone sunk through the water close to them. His eyes were closed and he had no clothes on besides his underclothes. Konno hoped that they hadn't killed him; she just hoped that they knocked him out. She would feel very bad if they had killed him, especially if he had a family back in the Fire Nation.
"That's our cue," Sokka whispered to Katara. "It's time to get on the ship."
Katara swirled her arms and released the air bubble around their heads. Konno sucked in a quick breath before the water could come crashing down on them. Her heart picked up pace as water fell down on them; she was still afraid of the water. Appa broke through the surface with a roar. He flew the short distance to the ship and landed.
"Here, let me help you down," Sokka said to Toph. His hair was plastered to the back of his neck. "I don't want you to slip."
"I'm fine," she said, waving her hand to him. She jumped off of Appa, easily landing on the deck. "See?"
"Right." Sokka turned to Konno and held out his hand to her. She took it gratefully. "I was trying to be nice to her," he whispered as they slid off of Appa.
"I'm sure she can handle herself," Konno answered, wringing the water out of her hair. She looked up at Katara and found her struggling with Aang. "Katara, do you need help?"
"Yes, please."
Konno stood underneath her and said, "You can drop his legs, and I'll catch him, okay?"
"Okay."
Katara let Aang down gently to Konno. Sokka helped her grab his legs and body while Katara got down from Appa. She flicked her fingers and all of the water rushed out of her hair.
"Do you need help bringing him to a room?" Konno asked her.
Katara gave her a grateful look. Lately, she had been very uptight, but Konno still treated her good. She knew she was under a lot of stress. "That would be great."
A figure made their way over to the four of them, and Konno realized it was Hakoda. He nodded to each of them and said, "Me and the others picked out our rooms. I can show you where Aang's room is."
"We're fine," Katara said dismissively. The moon hung behind her as she shook her head.
"We would like that," Konno said instead. "Thank you, Hakoda."
Katara shot her a look, but she ignored it. She needed to know where Aang was going to stay because she didn't want to put him in someone else's room. Konno held Aang's legs while Katara held his upper body, and Hakoda brought them through a tight metal hallway.
"I chose the room all the way at the end of the hallway. Bato is going to share the room with me," Hakoda said, pointing to the last door on the right. "The Duke and Pipsqueak chose that room." He pointed to the one next to his. "There are about three or four rooms left, so Aang can go in any of them."
"We got it from here, Dad," Katara said with a nod. "Thank you."
Hakoda pressed his lips in a thin line but nodded anyway. He exited the hallway, leaving Katara and Konno alone.
"Which room do you want Aang in?" Konno asked her awkwardly.
"This one will do fine," Katara answered.
She pressed her back into the door to open it up, and the two of them walked in with Aang. The room was large, and it had a bed in the center of it. There was a Fire Nation flag situated on the wall to the right.
Katara and Konno gently set Aang down on the bed. His skin had paled, and there was a yellow tint around his eyes and mouth. A white bandage wrapped around his chest and back, a stark contrast to the sickly glow from him. Konno wished he would wake up by now, but he had fallen into a coma after Katara saved his life.
"I think I'm going to heal him for a little bit," Katara said, her eyes never leaving his body. "After that, I'm going to go to bed. Are we going to share a room?"
"That would probably be best," Konno said with a nod. "Do you want me to ask Toph if she wants to share a room with the two of us?"
"That would be great." Katara finally looked at Konno. She pulled her into a tight hug. "Thank you for everything. You've been so good to me even though I have been so rude to everyone."
"Hey, you're going through something rough right now," Konno said, rubbing her hand along Katara's back. "It's fine. And besides, I treated you guys pretty badly when I first joined the group. I think I deserve it."
Katara sighed into Konno's neck. "I'll try to be nicer because no one deserves this. I'm sorry."
"It's okay."
Katara pulled away from Konno and offered her a small smile. "Our room is going to be the one right next to this one, okay?"
"Okay. I'll see you in a little bit."
Konno smiled at Katara before exiting Aang's room. Little fires burned in the sconces, so she could see how to get back to the top deck. The moon sliced through the dark night, helping her find Toph. She was standing next to the Duke, talking about something.
"Hey, Toph," Konno said when she got to her. "Do you want to share a room with Katara and me?"
"Yeah," Toph said with a nod. "Which one is it?"
"The one next to Aang's."
"Okay. It's pretty late, so I'm going to go to bed," she said with a sigh. "It's been a long couple of days."
"It definitely has," Konno said, nodding. "I'll come to bed in a few minutes. Katara is healing Aang right now, so she'll come to bed soon, too."
"Okay, thanks," Toph said, patting her shoulder.
"You're welcome."
Toph and the Duke headed toward the hallway, leaving Konno alone. She walked over to the rail and stared out at the choppy waters. The moon seemed to be at the highest it needed to be in the sky, and it shone down on the blue water. She knew Yue was still with her, watching over her. She wouldn't have thought that this was her path in life, but she wouldn't change much of anything. She had found some great people to rely on.
Konno thought she was the only person out on the deck of the ship, but there was a creak behind her. She whirled around and sighed when the moonlight covered Sokka. "It's just me," he said softly.
"I got that now." He stepped closer to her and wrapped her up in a hug. His chin rested on her shoulder. Air swooshed next to her ear, so she assumed he sighed. "What's wrong?" she asked, rubbing her hand along his back.
"I'm worried about Aang."
"Aw, Sokka, it'll be okay," she whispered. "He'll be fine."
"How do you know?"
"Someone very close to me reminded me that there is hope when it doesn't feel like it. It's always there, at the back of your mind, even if you can't find it."
Sokka pulled away from Konno. He had a beautiful smile on his face. "Are you talking about me?"
She nodded. "Yes, you. And Katara and Aang and Toph."
His hands slipped around her waist, tugging her closer to him. Her hands rested on his chest, and they could feel his beating heart underneath his ribs. He seemed to be nervous about something.
"You know, we never had a chance to talk about our feelings," he whispered to her. "We haven't had the chance at all."
"Our lives are crazy right now," she whispered back. "Whenever we tried, someone would always interrupt us. And then Aang got shot by lightning and everything went downhill."
He pressed his forehead against hers affectionately. They didn't really need to talk about their feelings, not right now. They didn't need to speak at all. She was so comfortable in just his presence that she didn't need to say a word.
"I can't believe that Dad is actually here," Sokka whispered, ruining the peaceful atmosphere.
Konno pulled away from him and leaned against the railing. He did as well, his arm brushing against hers. He laced their fingers together. She was happy that his father was there, but for some reason she was missing her own parents. They always were there for her, yet she left them just like that. She took her own feelings and ran with them and didn't even take the time to make sure that her Mother or Father was okay. They had lost a daughter while she had lost a sister.
"What are you thinking about?" Sokka asked, squeezing her hand.
"My parents," she answered softly.
"Me too." Little raindrops fell on their heads as they stared out at the water together. The waves danced under the moonlight, and she could see their shadows rippling across the surface. "Having my dad here is making me miss my mom a lot."
"Why?"
"The only time that I had with him, my mom was alive," Sokka explained. "Dad left right after Mom died, and he never came back until now."
Konno nodded. "Katara told me that when we were still in Ba Sing Se."
"Yeah." Sokka sighed. "It's hard for me to actually picture my mother, you know? It's been so long since she has been alive. All I really picture is Katara when I try to picture her. Is that bad?"
Konno shook her head. "That isn't bad, Sokka. It means that every day is getting easier and easier."
"But I miss her so much."
Konno wrapped her arm around his waist and drew him closer to her. His head dropped to her shoulder as she said, "You always will. But you taught me that life will get easier. Some days will be easy, but some days will be hard. You will never forget her, and she always lives on in your heart."
Sokka sighed. "When did you get so wise?"
"That wasn't me. You taught me that."
"When did I get so wise?"
Konno laughed softly. "We better get to bed. You look exhausted."
"You're right," he said, lifting his head off of her shoulder. "I am exhausted."
"Have you slept since Aang got hurt?"
Sokka smiled slightly, saying, "You know me so well." His smile dropped off his face as he started walking toward their rooms. Konno fell into step with him. "I'm worried about him. It was my duty to protect him and then he died. What kind of friend allows that to happen?"
"Sokka, you can't beat yourself up about this," she said softly. She didn't want to be too loud in the hallway just in case someone was sleeping. "It isn't your duty to protect any of us. It's your duty to be our friend and love and care for us. That's it."
"I should have been there," he whispered.
"Sokka -"
"I know, I know." He sighed, stopping outside of her room. "I should stop talking before I get ahead. I shouldn't worry about this."
"No, you shouldn't."
Konno gave him a quick hug before pushing the door open to her room. A small window allowed the moonlight to shine across the two sleeping girls. Katara was passed out on a small bed in the corner while Toph was curled up in a ball on another small bed. There was one more bed shoved in between the two of them, but Konno was afraid to wake them up.
She slowly shut the door behind her and winced when it creaked. She had no idea where she was going to sleep now, especially because everyone had already gone to bed. It would be too awkward if she went in Aang's room and shoved his unconscious body to the side so she could get some sleep.
"Konno? Are you going to go to bed?"
Konno whirled around and saw Sokka standing outside of his door. It looked like he had already gotten out of his regular clothes and was in some sort of pajamas without a shirt.
"Well, I didn't want to wake Katara and Toph up so I thought I'd go sleep on the deck or something," she said quickly. She wouldn't allow her gaze to move from his eyes.
"My room has two beds," he said with a shrug. "You could come sleep in there if you wanted."
"Oh, no, I shouldn't."
"Come on, Konno. It's just for one night."
She sighed. "Fine."
She followed him into his room and found the two beds pushed against each other in the center of the room. The covers on the left side of the bed were already messed up.
"Do you want me to move the beds away from each other?" he asked, already reaching down to do it.
"No, it's fine," Konno said quickly. "I don't care if the beds are close to each other or not." He sent a smile her way, and she rolled her eyes. "No, I don't mean that, okay? I just want to go to sleep right now."
"Okay, okay," he said with a laugh.
Konno slid under the covers, and Sokka did the same. He faced her, and she faced him. "Goodnight, Sokka," she whispered.
"Goodnight, Konno."
The Girl had done this before; it had fallen asleep with another boy once. But it didn't really feel right last time. This boy, though, felt so right. The two of them were at least a feet apart from each other, but she could feel the heat radiate from him. The Girl wanted to be closer to him, but it wouldn't yet. They still had to talk about some things before she could be wrapped up in his arms. She couldn't wait for that to happen.