She watches the firenation disappear,

And strangely,

Feels a little homesick.

She is born of ice and snow,

But the land of heat and fire,

Has grown on her.

A lot has happened in the firenation.

When she left the South Pole she was a different girl.

She is not that girl anymore,

And she can't help but wonder,

And worry,

If this new girl will belong there anymore.

"You've always got a home on Kyoshi." Suki offers.

She smiles at her friend.

"And you've always got one at the South Pole."

Maybe they'll never get the chance to really be sisters,

And maybe that technicality doesn't really matter.

"Are you going to read that?"

Suki points to Zuko's letter,

Which she still clutches tight in her hand.

"He said not to read it until I got to the South Pole."

"Since when have you ever done what anyone tells you?"

Suki has a point,

But then again,

She kind of wants to wait.

She already misses him,

But at the same time,

She needs to distance him.

She needs to figure out who she is on her own,

Not the only water bender of the South Pole,

Or the Avatar's teacher,

Or Zuko's girlfriend.

She is Katara,

And she needs to find out who that is.

"I'll wait." She says.

Suki shrugs, "I'm going to go check out our rooms. I'll see you down there?"

"Yeah, I'll be down in a bit."

It's been a long time since she's been surrounded by so much water,

And she can feel it calling to her,

But she doesn't feel like bending,

Not right now.

She just enjoys feeling the ebb and flow of the ocean around her.

"How you doing kid?"

Jun leans on the edge next to her.

She shrugs,

"I'm not sure."

"Fair enough. Your Dad died, you broke up with your boyfriend. I get it."

She flushes. "He's not my boyfriend."

"Well I did always say you were too pretty for him."

They're quiet for a moment,

While she works up the courage to ask,

What she's wanted to ask since Jun's return.

"Jun… my dad. When he, when you brought him, he wasn't. Umm, "

"You want to know if he asked me to tell you something, if he mentioned you at all."

She nods, staring at the floor.

"For a while he was well enough to talk, told me all about you and your brother and what you were doing with the Avatar. He was pretty proud of you kids. But then you know his injuries got to him, he started losing it. Lots of calling out for Kaya."

"Mom…"

"If you say so."

"What happened to him?"

She's not sure she wants to know,

But at the same time,

She knows she needs to.

"Ozai's sympathisers. They got a lot of your side one way or another. Hardly anyone gets away, let alone alive."

"Oh."

"Don't beat yourself up, nothing you could have done."

"Mhmm."

She's biting back tears.

She's going to have a lot of time with them.

It's a long way to the South Pole without a flying bison.

But maybe that's okay,

It will give her time to grieve,

To clear her head,

To figure out what to do next.

"He was pretty cut up about you leaving you know."

She almost asks who,

But she doesn't need to.

She knows.

"He'll get over it."

Jun shrugs and pushes away from the edge "If you say so."

She is alone on deck,

Just like she is alone in life.

Of course,

She isn't really alone at either.

Around her crewmen scurry to keep the boat running,

Below her, friends wait,

And in her hand is a letter that sooner or later she will read.

She feels alone,

Even though she knows she is not.

She wonders if she'll ever feel okay again,

Even though she knows she will.

And she wonders what lies ahead for her,

And how things could have gone so wrong.

She survived a storm that had been brewing for one hundred years,

And now that it is over,

She has to figure out how she's going to survive the aftermath.

She has to learn how to live,

After the storm.

Author's Note:

Wow it's been quite a ride. When I started writing After the Storm, it was a one shot inspired by a picture I saw while scrolling through tumblr. And now 30 chapters and an epilogue later it's finished. This story and my readership expanded beyond my wildest dreams and expectations. I know this isn't the ending that any of you wanted and I'm pretty confident it's not the ending any of you expected. So before you fill the reviews with well deserved hate mail, I have news. There is going to be a sequel set a few years in the future. In no way is this the end of Katara and Zuko's story. My mom once said to me "Sometimes the right people meet at the wrong time." And I think that is incredibly true for Zuko and Katara. So I owe it to them and myself as a writer to finish telling their story. There will be a brief hiatus while I finish Camp NaNoWriMo and start the new series. You can track my as an author here or follow me on my tumblr owlsdragonsstuff for updates and sneak peaks. Thank you all so, so much for your continued support. Thank you for writing all those reviews, and talking with me about the characters, and writing and everything else. I can't wait to see you all after the storm.

Lots of Love,

Nicky