AANG :
what had once been a smile slides from his face , replaced with the slacked jawed expression of disappointment . he had thought he had done enough , made enough jokes , to put a smile on her own face . the words are a rejection : stop trying to cheer me up . ❝ i . . . i’m sorry . ❞ it’s a weak apology , spoken with mumbled &. embarrassed words . the airbender knows what she’s going through , has experienced a loss as great as hers . heart stills in his chest you , the avatar , cannot help with this . it’s a heartbreaking thought , one that lingers and will fester . ❝ i guess i should leave you alone , huh ? ❞
SHE FELT A BIT BAD -- guilt causes her shoulders to rise up as her arms reach around her drawn - up knees. katara felt aang’s movements away the same as the lake’s waves retreating from the shoreline. his shadow dips and falls, and katara’s voice wavers as she speaks. “ wait, aang, i -- ” the young water - bender’s eyes pull towards the avatar’s silhouetted form.
when katara had envisioned the avatar, she had imagined someone strong and brilliant and prepared ; someone who could bring her mother back. and while aang was all those things, he could not bring back someone from the dead. neither her mother, or the air - benders that he had lost so long ago. katara’s throat closes slightly, words pinched and heavy. “ i’m sorry. you don’t have to go. i could ... i could use the company. ”
