It was easier to smile before they saw the temples. The world was so different now that he could almost convince himself that he was on a visit to some new, undiscovered place, and he'd get to go home when he got bored.
And then he saw the place the southern air temple had once been.
It was still there. No one had touched it since he left. At least, that was what it looked like. The temples were still in place. But the rain and wind and years had smoothed out all the corners and collapsed most of the buildings.
“Aang-” Katara said, as he looked around.
“They're all dead,” he said. And he sat down, right where he was standing. “They're really dead. They've been dead for thousands of years.”
He felt like something inside of him was cracking, and he let it.
He didn't remember much after that.
Then Katara put her arms around him, and he could breathe again. What had been left of the temple was gone.
“It's okay,” she told him. “It's okay, you're okay- we're your family now.”
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branchandroot
Aangst
Date: 2010-01-16 08:47 am (UTC)And then he saw the place the southern air temple had once been.
It was still there. No one had touched it since he left. At least, that was what it looked like. The temples were still in place. But the rain and wind and years had smoothed out all the corners and collapsed most of the buildings.
“Aang-” Katara said, as he looked around.
“They're all dead,” he said. And he sat down, right where he was standing. “They're really dead. They've been dead for thousands of years.”
He felt like something inside of him was cracking, and he let it.
He didn't remember much after that.
Then Katara put her arms around him, and he could breathe again. What had been left of the temple was gone.
“It's okay,” she told him. “It's okay, you're okay- we're your family now.”
For now, that was enough. It had to be.