One hundred years before

Aang's heart felt as though it would beat out of his chest. He was being led to the Temple where he would get his tattoos to show he was a master. Outward, he looked calm; Gyatso had told him that he had to be professional about this. He was one of the youngest airbenders to be proclaimed a master, but then again, that was partly because he was the Avatar.

Aang had just found out two days ago, and still couldn't believe it. More likely wouldn't believe it. Especially with the news that came with it. A war was starting with the Fire Nation. Aang didn't want to believe that either. He was such a peaceful child, a vegetarian, and a monk who believed all life was sacred, so why waste it on a war? But the Monks said he must prepare, so they raised him to master and planned on shipping him off to the Northern Water Tribe for training. That meant he had to get his tattoos.

"The process of getting your tattoos is very painful, Aang." Monk Gyatso had told him that morning. "But it is also very rewarding." Gyatso smiled and pointed to the arrow on his head. "The girls can't resist it."

Aang had blushed and told Gyatso that he didn't want them if girls liked them. Gyatso smiled and told Aang that one day, he'd love a girl with all his heart, and want nothing more than to kiss her.
"Ew, gross!" Aang had said. But he knew Gyatso was right, one day, he would love someone. Life just happened that way. But he hoped that day was far off.

The procession of Monks had finally reached the Temple. Inside, they instructed Aang to disrobe to his small clothes. Aang did so with showing as little embarrassment as possible. He knew that he would have to take his small clothes off eventually. Then they began washing his body so he was cleansed of his old self. When they were done, Aang felt no different, but Gyatso had said as much. It was just for ceremony.

Next the Monks asked him if he had eaten any meat, to which he said no. Then they took him into a room where there was a wooden table with leather straps that looked too worn to hold back a fly. It had obviously been used for as long as possible so they did not need to kill another animal to get new ones. Around the table were three women with their hair shaved off halfway to show their arrows. In each ones hand was a razor that every Monk and non- Monk used to shave their head. At the three women's feet was a brush and bucket of blue dye. Gyatso had explained to Aang that they would be scraping the skin and filling it with dye. Aang shivered and tried to hug himself to keep the women from seeing, but it was of no use. They'd see all of him and he could do nothing about it.

The Monks strapped him to the table on his stomach. "First, they'll be doing your legs." Gyatso informed him. He then handed him a foul smelling drink and said, "It will ease the pain."

Aang gulped it down, and almost choked; it was as foul tasted as it smelled. But he managed to get it down. Immediately he started to feel woozy. "What is it?" He asked, shaking his head to trying to get that woolen feeling out of it.

"Poppy. A wondrous plant, it heals, can make hallucinations, and much more, why – no you don't want to hear of it. But you are lucky. In my day, we had none of this."

"Why does it make me feel like my head is full of wool?" Aang asked.

"We added some alcohol to it, enough to get a man tipsy, and more than enough to get a boy drunk. Now lie still so the women can start."

Aang had not notice how his legs and arms had been till now. He closed his eyes and calmly schooled his limbs to still. He then tried to think happy thoughts, like the time he and Gyatso had first made fruit pies, or when he had taken Aang out of the Air Temple to Omashu. Aang noticed how almost all his happy memories had to do with Gyatso, and smiled up at the Monk. Gyatso was like a father to him, always there, making sure he was safe. Gyatso smiled back sadly and Aang only dimly felt the razor as it scraped from his foot to knee.

"Be strong Aang." He heard Gyatso voice say,

. . . and then he awoke.

He was lying on Appas tail in the middle of a forest. Sokka and Katara were sleeping peacefully in their sleeping bags. Or more like Sokka was snoring loudly and Katara was looking as beautiful as ever.

Aang rubbed his bared arms self-consciously. His dream had made him remember all too well of the pain and Gyatso. It made him feel dirty. He needed to bathe. So he slowly rose from Appa's tail and began to make his way toward the small river he had seen when they arrived the night before.

Once he was there, he pulled off his shirt and pants. When he was down to his small clothes, he looked around to make sure no one had followed him. He was all alone. Aang hastily pulled them off and jumped into the water, submerging himself from the waist down. He waded further into the water and was disappointed that it only went up to his waist. He was hoping it would be deeper so he could swim some.

"Whatever." Aang muttered, and began to bathe.

Katara yawned and rubbed the sleep from her eyes. The sun was bright in the sky and the air was warm. Katara scolded herself for sleeping so late, she was supposed to go down to the river and clean the dirty clothes. And she was also hoping that she could wake early enough to get a quick bath. She looked over at Sokka, who was still sleeping, and thought that she could still go take a bath. She looked over to where Aang would have been, and was surprised to see he wasn't there.

'Probably looking for some fruit,' Katara thought. She got up and began gathering her clothes and Sokka's, then went over to Appa and gathered whatever Aang had left. She grabbed the basket she had made not that long ago and put all the dirty clothes in it, and began to walk to the river.

As she walked she couldn't help but think of Aang. It had been a couple of months since she found him, true, and even though now and then he showed his age, lately he'd been acting much, much older. Katara knew what was wrong, or thought she did. He was just worried about mastering all the elements and saving the world, which, she admitted, was a lot to worry about.

Strangely her thoughts wandered to his tattoos. She had always been fascinated by them, and yes, found them very attractive. She remembered the first time she had seen them, in her Gran Grans igloo, and the urge to trace them with her fingers. The urge was still there, and stronger still since they had kissed. But she didn't want those feelings; she didn't want to feel that way. But as much as she tried to deny it, it was –

"Oh my." Katara gasped. She could see the river ahead, and it in naked, was Aang.

His tattoos showed up strikingly blue against his pale skin. The wound like snakes up his back and his arms, to his head. Her eyes traced them to the bottom of his back; to where the water blocked off the rest. Her heart was beating to fast in her chest, she felt warm everywhere. She physically ached to see where that blue line led.

She sat down behind a tree and tried to get a hold on herself. She shouldn't be looking at Aang like that, but . . . for a 112 year old, his body was beautiful. Suddenly he turned around and began walking up to the bank. The water dropped lower and lower and no matter how embarrassed Katara was, she couldn't turn away. The blue line flowed from his inner thighs to the front of his legs, winding around them. Part of the line was obscured by the beginning of hair in-between his legs. Katara blushed profusely at what was nestled in the hair.

When he was on the bank he used airbending to dry himself off, and began to dress. Katara was almost relieved when he was dressed and she needn't look anymore, but even dressed she couldn't help but stare at him and try to imagine how he could look that way, and still be the boyish Aang she knew.

Aang airbended himself dry and began to dress. The hair on his arms and neck were raised, he couldn't shake the feeling of someone watching him. Once he was dressed, he suspiciously looked around. He could've sworn that he'd seen someone when he turned around, but alas, no one was there. He was alone.

Back at camp, he found Sokka muttering something about meat and Katara. And looking around, Aang noticed that Katara wasn't there.

"Where's Katara?" Aang asked; a touch of concern in his voice.

"Probably off washing the clothes; she said she would yesterday, remember?" Sokka replied, unconcerned. "What I'm wondering is, where's the food? And where have you been?"

Even though Aang's heart was in his stomach, he managed to reply with, "Had a bad dream, and went to meditate."

'It must've been Katara.' Aang thought. 'If she was washing clothes, she would've had to have gone to the river. And she would've seen me.' The realization of this made Aang blush. He was never comfortable with people seeing him naked, and Katara just made it ten times worse.

But then again, maybe no one was there to begin with. But the only way for Aang to find out was to ask Katara herself. This was something he didn't want to do.

"I'll go find her." Aang said, trying to sound cheery. Sokka spared him a glance, and then went back to doing whatever it was he was doing.

Aang went back to the river and walked along the bank until he saw Katara. She was half naked, waterbending the stains out of her clothes. Aang blushed. He had seen her this way before, but he couldn't get used to it. But before he could go forward, Katara stripped of her small clothes and began unbinding her chest binds.

It felt like his heart had stopped. She was standing there, perfect in every way. And no sooner than the thought had crossed his mind, did Katara's hand stray to her collarbone, where she idly stroked it. Aang's breath hitched. He knew he shouldn't be looking, especially when she was doing something so intimate, but he couldn't turn away. She was beautiful.

"Aang!" Katara half screamed. She tried to cover herself as best she could.

Aang blushed and stammered, "I was looking for you . . . Sokka's hungry."

Katara's beautiful face was red from either embarrassment or anger, or both, as she said, "Sokka's hungry? And that gives you the right to watch me naked?"

"Does it give you the right to look at me naked?" Aang asked; his face equally red.

Katara gasped and sat down heavily. "I guess we're even then."

"So you were looking at me!" Aang said.

"I couldn't help it," Katara said sheepishly, a blush staining her dark cheeks. "Your tattoos . . ."

"Monk Gyatso said the girls couldn't resist them." Aang said softly. He didn't know that they would go as far as to watch him naked, but Gyatso was right. And he was right about another thing too; Aang did love a girl, and would do anything for a kiss.

"What did you say?" Katara asked.

"Oh, nothing." Aang lied.

They sat there awkwardly for a few moments until Katara said, "I need to get dressed."

Aang blushed again and turned around. Even though his back was turned, he couldn't help but imagine what those clothes were hiding as he heard them being pulled over limbs.

When she was finished she told Aang he could turn around. When he did, she asked him listlessly if he could help her dry the clothes. He agreed just as listlessly, and as Katara waterbended the water out of the clothes, Aang airbended them dry. Once they were finished, Katara folded them and put them in her basket and they headed back to their camp in an awkward silence.

Before they got there though, Katara suddenly asked, "What did you think of me?" It sounded rush, as if she had forced herself to say it.

All Aang could do was answer truthfully. "I thought you were beautiful." And the pure honesty in it made Katara's heart clench.

She blushed and said quietly, "I thought you were handsome."

Aang smiled and stood a little straighter, though he didn't let the compliment get to his head. All he could do was be happy that Katara thought him handsome.

Katara also stood a little taller. She didn't know why, but Aang compliment made her feel a whole lot better about herself. But she did know why, she just wouldn't acknowledge it. She couldn't tell herself that she loved him.

A/N: Finished my first one! I hoped you liked it, and tell me if you think I should continue, or start some ficlets, either one I have ideas for! Updates might be on a shaky scheduel, it's almost the end of school, so a lot of projects and what not. Reviews welcome!