Chapter Text
Zuko’s coronation banquet was definitely the fanciest dinner Sokka had ever been to. Even the Earth King’s dinner in Ba Sing Se looked kind of quaint in comparison. This time at least, Sokka had some coaching. (If by coaching, Sokka meant a 15 minute crash course from Toph followed by watching Zuko for any and all social cues, no one had to know.)
Sokka stood at the edge of the crowd, eyes flicking over the room, diagramming escape routes and hiding spots with no effort. When traveling with Aang, crowds typically meant danger. Standing still and being polite, engaging in small talk and not violence, none of it came easily to Sokka anymore. His gaze found Zuko again, watching as he interacted with nobles and foreign dignitaries. As he watched, Zuko shuffled his feet uncomfortably, but he didn’t show any other sign of his nervousness. How does he do that, Sokka thought, they don’t even notice his discomfort! Zuko is absolutely see through, and they have no clue.
A hand on his shoulder pulled him out of his thoughts. Katara stood to his side with a forced smile. “Sokka,” she muttered between her teeth, “act like we’re talking.”
“Well if I act like we’re talking, that means we are talking, and then it’s not acting anymore, is it?” he asked.
Katara broke and scowled at him. “You idiot, just talk to me, one of the Earth Kingdom merchants won’t stop coming up to me.”
He caught sight of a short, balding man with a belly hanging over his belt approaching Katara from behind and quickly started leading her through the crowd, using escape route 3B. “I see what you mean, these men can be pigs,” Sokka grumbled as he very politely shoved their way through the room.
His sister giggled behind him. “Sokka, you were a pig too, less than a year ago!”
Sokka faked a gasp, stopping them next to a pillar with a perfect vantage point of the Kyoshi warriors guarding Zuko. “Pardon me, but I’ve been drinking my respect women juice every day since Suki kicked our asses back on Kyoshi!”
Katara elbowed her brother in the ribs. “Can’t you at least try to follow Toph’s rules? You aren’t supposed to curse in noble company, that was her second point!”
“Nag nag nag,” Sokka muttered, scanning the room to hide his grin. A bit of bickering had always distracted his sister in the past, and it hadn’t failed him this time. The merchant who had harassed Katara had moved on to harassing the influential men of the party, trying to work his way near Zuko.
Aang approached them, finally breaking away from the Fire Nation nobles that had been dogging him all night. The three of them made small talk, trying desperately to look busy enough to avoid the attention of the other party guests.
Sokka kept finding his gaze on Zuko. It wasn’t his fault, Zuko was just entirely too good at the whole court thing. It shouldn’t be possible for someone (who was exiled for three years before turning traitor ) to be this good. There was no way he had much experience, yet he floated around the room like he had been at court for decades. Zuko gave a small laugh at something one of the council members said and accidentally met Sokka’s eyes. Zuko nodded his head almost imperceptibly, and in return Sokka mimed drinking poison. Zuko almost grinned before drawing himself back. As Sokka watched, Zuko turned and had a whispered conversation with Suki before stepping up to the next noble with a small smile.
Suki told one of the other warriors something before heading towards Sokka’s group. He watched her apprehensively, hoping Zuko wasn’t mad with him for the silly gesture.
“Hey Suki, what’s up?” Aang asked, grinning as she approached.
She nodded back to him and stepped into Sokka’s arms. “Hey guys, Zuko sent me with a message.” She paused and tilted her face up to Sokka’s with a small smile. “Hey babe.”
Sokka smiled down at her (because honestly, how could he not ), but he really just wanted to hear what Zuko wanted. “Hey,” he mumbled, kissing her cheek carefully, not wanting the lecture he would get from messing up her makeup.
Suki giggled before stepping back to face the rest of the group. Sokka caught Katara rolling her eyes and stuck his tongue out, like the nobleman he was supposed to be pretending to be. Suki ignored them, instead looking around, confused. “Where’s Toph?”
Toph appeared out of nowhere behind Katara. “You rang?” Katara jumped, and Toph laughed much more calmly than she would have if they were alone. This party had them all on their best behavior, but they were starting to slip. They’re all just kids. Kids who had defeated the Fire Nation’s opposition merely a week ago, but whatever. They were all exhausted still, mentally and physically, and it took all of their resolve to represent Zuko well.
Suki nodded. “Zuko wants to show us something after the party, he said it should be a surprise. He doesn’t know how long he’s going to take here, but he’s granted you all permission to go back to our quarters.”
Sokka frowned, furrowing his eyebrows and tilting his head to the side. “What about you?”
“As head of his guard until the Kyoshi warriors leave, I have to stay here until he leaves. Don’t worry, I’ll head over as soon as we’re done,” she reassured him. He shrugged and nodded, relieved at finally being able to leave.
Sokka stole a glance at Zuko before exiting the hall, only to catch the Fire Lord already staring at them exit. Zuko nodded at him again, while Sokka winked back, feeling pleased as a blush spread across Zuko’s cheek.
Katara, Aang, Toph, and Sokka walked back to their quarters through the winding halls and courtyards of the palace. It only took five minutes for them to get there, but by their grumbling it could have been a full day’s hike up a mountain.
As soon as they reached their common room, they collapsed into the various chairs and couches they had dragged in from other sitting rooms. (On their first day in the palace, while Zuko was still knocked out from Azula’s lightning, Toph had claimed that they needed more furniture options. She pulled them along to the countless sitting rooms of the palace, throwing herself into all the couches and chairs until she had found over ten that she deemed suitable. Nobles. )
Aang fell face first into the plushiest couch available with a large groan. “I hate being the Avatar,” he mumbled into a cushion.
“You think being the Avatar stinks?” Toph snarled, not even bothering to find a chair and just plopping down on the floor. “My parents get business from all of those stupid merchants! Some of them even recognized me, and wanted to suck up!” She affected a snooty accent. “‘Oh, Miss Beifong! Are your parents here? You really shouldn’t be traveling alone, spirits forbid something happened to you! ’” Toph bent her arm-brace-from-space into increasingly intimidating daggers, and Sokka sunk deeper into his chair with each one.
Katara sighed. “I know it wasn’t fun, but it’s important that we show we support Zuko as Fire Lord. We were the visible heads of the resistance. Some of the Fire Nation people still think Zuko’s just another Ozai or Azula, which clearly isn’t true. More people seemed comfortable after seeing us support him, even if it meant we couldn’t play around or practice.”
Sokka shut his eyes and tilted his head back in his chair. He wasn’t sure what this surprise from Zuko was supposed to be, but he couldn’t wait to find out so he could go to sleep already. He let the banter between Katara and Toph drift over him, preferring to space out at that perfect point between awake and asleep.
Zuko and Suki stumbled in half an hour after the rest of them excused themselves, beelining to the chairs. “Finally, his Royal Majesty decides to join us!” Toph remarked from her position laying on the floor.
“Yeah Zuko, what took you so long?” Aang asked, stifling yawns obviously every few seconds.
“The whole party was for my coronation, I couldn’t leave until it was socially acceptable, whatever that means.” Zuko sighed and flopped onto a couch, while Sokka blinked his eyes open to find Suki perched on the arm of his chair. “I don’t even feel like doing the roof thing anymore.”
Sokka perked up at his last statement. “Yeah, hey, what are we all gathered for anyway? Suki said you had a plan?”
The older boy groaned. “I was going to sneak you all onto the roof, try to make up for the awfulness that was the banquet, but I think my bones just turned to slush.”
Aang sat straight up. “That sounds like fun though!” He turned towards Katara. “Doesn’t that sound like fun?”
Katara winced. “I don’t know Aang, we’re all pretty tired, that might not be the safest idea…”
At hearing his sister’s disapproval, Sokka’s enthusiasm spiked. “I think it sounds like a great idea! Up, everybody up, we’re relocating to the roof.”
There were a few groans, but soon everyone except Zuko was standing. After a few pokes in the back of the head from Toph, and Aang and Sokka working together to pull on his arms, Zuko stood.
“Great!” Sokka clapped his hands together, substantially more awake than before and watching with glee as Katara and Zuko winced at the noise. “Now, to the roof!”
Sneaking on to the roof was easier said than done when the only person who knew how to get there was practically sleep walking. They walked in circles around the halls, only getting anywhere when Toph flicked Zuko’s face to wake him up. Eventually, somehow, they made it up there.
Sokka was at the back of their procession, so he heard everyone’s soft gasps as they took in the view. When he saw it himself, he understood why. They weren’t on the tallest building of the palace, but they had a decent vantage point of the city.
The roof itself was a small flat space that ended in a steep descent on all sides. Past the roof, they could see the lights of the city, usually extinguished by this time, but kept on through the night in honor of their new Fire Lord. In the distance, the caldera peaked over the city, perfectly framing the stars that glimmered high above their heads and the moon, a tiny sliver of light in the deep blue sky. As always, Sokka closed his eyes in the moonlight and said a short prayer to Yue.
Once his prayer was completed, he opened his eyes to catch Zuko staring at him with a soft smile. Sokka blushed, turning to take in the light of the city. He accidentally elbowed Toph in the shoulder, earning a quick punch to the ribs that he grumbled over but didn’t protest. It was a tight fit, but none of them complained over the loss of personal space. They were used to tight quarters, and honestly, they slept better when they were close together.
They all agreed to lay down, barely fitting everyone in the tight confines of the rooftop. Looking up at the stars, Sokka started to track the constellations of his childhood, albeit in completely different locations. He recited the stories of the ones he could find out loud to the group. Surrounded by everyone who mattered, they finally let themselves release the tension of the night. Slowly, they all drifted off to sleep.
——
The next morning, Sokka jolted awake. Everyone else was asleep. As he tried to find what had woken him up, his gaze was caught on Zuko.
Even though Zuko usually woke with the sun, he must have been too exhausted to do it that morning. The sun turned the sky purple and pink with morning light, and Agni must have been in a good mood, as he granted Zuko with what looked to Sokka like his very own halo. The light caught on Zuko’s hair, making it look softer than a turtleduckling. His hair hung across his forehead, and all Sokka wanted to do was brush it back, cradle Zuko’s face in his hands, kiss his—
Sokka shook his head. Wait. What? No. He looked at Zuko’s face again. It’s just a face. Two eyelids, closed at the moment, one nose, one scar, one mouth, one jawbone that looked like a perfect place for Sokka to put his hand as he would lean in and kiss him—
This needs to stop. Sokka took a deep breath and let it out, turning on his back where he couldn’t be distracted by Zuko’s pretty face. There, you admit it, Zuko has a pretty face. That’s not scary, right? Except for the fact that you have a girlfriend, idiot.
He rubbed his eyes with one hand. Okay. So. You like guys. This is new, but not entirely surprising. There was the whole Boulder thing. And the Teo thing. And— okay. I like guys. That’s okay.
I like… Zuko. Sokka cringed. But I’m dating Suki! I can’t like Zuko, that’s not how it works!
But… Do I like Suki, or am I just dating her? Shit.
A voice rang out from the courtyard below, one of the guards telling the other that the Fire Lord was missing. Quickly, Sokka reached over and punched Zuko in the shoulder without looking.
“Ow, what the— Sokka? Why are we— oh. Right. Did you just… punch me?” Shit, he’s cute when he’s just woken up. When Sokka looked over, he was propped up on his elbows to make eye contact, yawning and looking around at their friends. Was he always cute and I just didn’t notice?
“Guards think you’re missing. Tough luck buddy, apparently being Fire Lord is a full time gig.”
Zuko scoffed. “Really? I thought it was only part time. That’s it, I quit, this is a breach of contract.”
As Zuko stretched, yawned, and tried to tiptoe his way across the minefield of their friends without waking anyone, Sokka cursed himself for not noticing his massive crush on the guy earlier. “Oh, good morning Zuko,” he whisper-yelled after him.
The older boy glared back at him. “Just cause you get to sleep in—“
Sokka smiled. “Shush, you’ll wake up the rest! Go, shoo, go do Fire Lord-y things, I’m going back to sleep.”
Zuko scowled, but opened the door as quietly as possible, easing it shut behind him. Sokka let his head fall back onto the roof.
Shit. This is bad.
——
It was almost dinner before Sokka could get Suki alone. He tugged at her wrist, asking, “Hey, can we talk?”
She looked at him strangely, glancing at the rest of their friends before turning to face him. “What’s up?”
He gave her a sheepish smile then led her away, not bothering to tell the rest of them where they were going. They would probably assume Sokka and Suki needed some ‘alone time’ and leave them alone.
When they reached a random sitting room, Sokka made sure the door was locked and the windows were shut before sinking onto the couch next to Suki. “Sokka?” she questioned, trying to catch his eyes. “Hey, you’re kinda freaking me out. Is everything okay?”
He screwed his eyes shut, and everything started spilling out. “I didn’t mean to, it just kind of happened, I was just looking and then—“
“Sokka, I need some context,” Suki cut him off. “Did you… Did you cheat on me, Sokka?”
“No!” His eyes flew open, and he looked at Suki, who just looked confused. Sokka groaned. “I’m screwing this up so badly. I didn’t cheat on you, Suki. I just… I think I might like someone else. But I still like you!”
Suki visibly relaxed. “Is that it? Oh Sokka, you really freaked me out for a second there.” Suki giggled. “Is that it?” Watching Sokka’s face drop, Suki dropped her own smile. “No, what I mean to say is— Sokka. On Kyoshi, it’s perfectly normal to date more than one person at a time, as long as everyone knows what’s going on.”
Sokka furrowed his brows and tilted his head. “I… what?”
She giggled again before sighing. “Kyoshi was an interesting lady, to say the least. She was attracted to both men and women, and when she was at her prime, she had at least two partners at any time. People grew used to her habits, and they became commonplace. While it’s typical for someone to have a partner who they may get married to, it’s perfectly acceptable for them to have other partners, as long as everyone is in the know and agrees to the situation.”
“I…” Sokka felt like his brain was about to explode. I’m not just weird? This is acceptable? This is okay? “…what?”
Suki was still smiling at him. “Did I break your brain?” He vacantly nodded. “Okay then. I’m going to hug you now. Feel free to let your brain kick in whenever it gets a reboot.”
And that’s what they did.
——
The week continued, and Suki and Sokka kept sneaking away all the time. Zuko knew they were dating, but he found himself getting annoyed with Suki all the same. Why am I so mad? They did this all the time on Ember Island. I was fine with it then. Why is this different?
It all came to a head one day when Sokka found him in one of the courtyards. He jogged up with a brilliant smile, the reds of his Fire Nation clothes making the blue of his eyes stand out. “Hey, jerkbender!” he called. “Wanna practice your swordbending for a bit?”
Zuko sneered. “Are you sure you don’t want to practice with Suki?” Watching Sokka’s face fall, he realized he might’ve crossed a line. Zuko sighed, turning so he didn’t have to look at Sokka. “I’m sorry, that was rude.”
Sokka cleared his throat. “Yeah, a bit. She did just break up with me.” Zuko spun around, confusion evident on his face.
“What? But— why?”
“Well…” Sokka looked like he was blushing, but since he got sunburned a few days ago, he looked like that constantly. His nose scrunched a bit, like it always did when he was weighing his options. “We just didn’t really feel anything for each other anymore. She’s got her eyes on other people, and—“
Zuko’s head tilted in confusion as he cut Sokka off. “People? As in plural?”
Sokka closed his mouth and opened it a couple times. Finally, he mumbled, “Okay maybe I wasn’t supposed to let that out just yet.”
Trying to keep his sputtering to a minimum, Zuko shut his mouth and considered it. “…It’s Ty Lee and Mai, isn’t it?” he asked after wrapping his mind around the concept.
Sokka’s eyes grew to a comical size. “What? No! I didn’t say that! I didn’t say anything! I— no— um.” He offered a sheepish smile. “Maybe don’t say anything?”
He toyed with the idea of just keeping Sokka in suspense, but decided that was cruel. “I won’t say anything.” Sokka practically collapsed inward when he sighed, and Zuko quirked a smile. “Anyway, I have two hours until my next meeting. Meet me in the training room in ten?”
Zuko was already walking away to get his dao when Sokka grabbed his elbow. He half turned and raised an eyebrow at the shorter boy. Sokka smiled sheepishly. “Hey, um, I was actually wondering about something else too…”
Sokka’s eyes darted around Zuko’s face. After a moment of quiet, Zuko raised his eyebrow in question. “Sokka? What is it?”
At hearing his name, Sokka jolted back as if burned. “Oh, nothing! Nothing.” He grinned widely as if trying to dissuade Zuko from questioning further. “Just…” Sokka let the grin fall into a smaller smile and stepped back. “You’re my best friend, Zuko. Thanks for being there for me.”
Zuko blinked once, then twice, and gaped at Sokka. “I…” he drifted off, closing his mouth again. “I’m… what?”
Sokka snorted. “Nerd, you act like you’ve never had a best friend before.”
“I haven’t,” Zuko responded absentmindedly, still trying to process the situation. “Are we… best friends?”
A sad look crossed Sokka’s face before he forced a grin on again. “Duh. We’ve been best friends since you helped me jailbreak Dad. Did you miss all the…” he mimed a parry with an imagined sword, “…bonding moments?”
He considered all the hunting, sword fighting, and late night talks they’d had since breaking out of Boiling Rock. “I just thought you hated me less than before.” After seeing a broken look cross Sokka’s face, Zuko rushed to correct himself. “Not that I still think you hate me! I’d like to be your best friend! I just…” Zuko turned away, weighing his options. With a sigh, he decided to try to tell the truth. “Azula was the only one allowed friends as a child. I had Lu Ten, my cousin, but that was it. I couldn’t even talk to the servant’s children. It wasn’t anything to complain about.” Aside from the overwhelming loneliness. The desperation for friends of my own. The stinging remarks from Father and my instructors, with no one to distract me from them. Trying not to get lost in his memories, Zuko added, “Now I finally have friends…” …and you’re all leaving me.
When Zuko turned back to look at Sokka, he was staring at Zuko with an odd intensity. “Alright, I’m going to need a promise right now that you’re going to write to us once we go back home. No way are we letting you go back to feeling like lonely-child Zuko, not now that we got you to join our gang!” Sokka’s hands flew in grand movements like he was batting away Zuko’s loneliness.
Zuko huffed out a laugh at his friend’s ridiculousness. “Promise.” He and Sokka smiled at each other for a minute before Sokka startled out of it suddenly.
“We’re wasting time! Quick, go get your dao so I can kick your ass in time for your stupid meeting.” Sokka shoved at Zuko’s shoulder until he stumbled out of the courtyard, grinning like a maniac.
(Once Zuko left his sight, Sokka sighed, dropping his smile and covering his face. “Shit,” he muttered, going to lean against the wall. “One chance to tell him, and I fucking blew it.” Sokka let out a long sigh before rubbing his eyes and smoothing back his hair. “Okay. Best friends. I can do that,” he whispered to himself, rolling his shoulders and straightening his back. “I can do that.”)
——
Zuko woke up with a pit in his stomach on the day the Southern Water Tribe people were scheduled to leave. Although Aang, Katara, and Sokka could just fly Appa to the South Pole, the Water Tribe siblings wanted to spend time with their community. Aang would fly alongside the ship on Appa, coming aboard at every mealtime and at night to sleep. Every step of the trip had been carefully planned out, and Zuko knew that Sokka loved his plans, but if he had to look at another time-table he was going to either cry or scream.
He went about his morning routine, trying as always to squash his need to convince the morning servants that he didn’t need assistance getting ready. Zuko discovered in his first week that Ozai and Azula had conditioned the workers using fear. Fear for their safety, for their jobs, for their lives. He had serious work to do, helping them to recover without it coming across as an order. That meant letting them do their jobs, even though he wanted nothing more than to pull on his own robes, shove the ceremonial headpiece on his head, and run out to find Sokka.
By the time he made it to the dining room in the visitor’s quarters, the sun was well into the sky. Everyone was already gathered around the table, waiting for Zuko and Toph to appear. As he turned in the doorway, Toph yanked a wall up and stepped through, scaring their friends as always.
“Toph!” Katara chided, “There’s no need for that, you know where the doorway is!”
Toph cackled. “Of course there’s a need for it! You guys need to stay on your toes! I won’t be there to scare you in the South Pole!” Everyone sombered up at her last statement, as if suddenly remembering that it was their last day together.
Zuko coughed and headed for his seat. He avoided eye contact as he snagged breakfast off the different serving platters across the table. It was a rare day when the kitchen workers allowed him to serve himself, and Zuko was not about to risk losing that privilege just because of the almost overwhelming fear of being alone again.
Slowly, conversation restarted. It was only Zuko, Toph, Katara, Aang, and Sokka present, as Suki had left for Kyoshi (and brought along Mai and Ty Lee) two days before. Zuko only zoned in when he felt a hand on his elbow.
He looked up to see Sokka staring at him, eyebrows furrowed. “You good?” he asked under his breath, letting Aang’s stories distract the others from them. Zuko nodded, looking away from Sokka in an effort to get him to drop the subject.
It’d been three weeks since Suki broke up with Sokka, and three weeks since Zuko realized he had actual friends now. Personally, he thought it was strange how much three weeks could change his outlook on life. It took over three years for him to throw off his loyalty to Ozai, but in three weeks he had given all of the loyalty not already claimed by his country to these four idiots.
He and Toph spent some afternoons after Zuko’s awful meetings sat in the middle of their courtyard on a dais that Toph raised to tower over the surrounding buildings, complaining about stuck up nobles not knowing when to shut their mouths. Toph showed him that aggression could be friendly, could be comforting, which was a revelation after a lifetime of people either pampering him or aiming to hurt him.
Katara had just started to get to know him when the fight with Azula happened, but by his coronation they got along pretty well. Over the past month, Zuko had realized that Katara understood when he didn’t want to be alone, but didn’t want to talk either. When either of them needed the comfort of another person, they’d just find the other and sit down nearby. It might be small, but Zuko wouldn’t trade that understanding for any grand gesture from Katara.
With Aang, Zuko thought he might understand what little brothers are like now. When Zuko wasn’t overwhelmed with work, Aang tended to follow him from place to place, peppering him with questions about what he was doing and why. Zuko tried to be patient, explaining to the best of his ability why tax reforms are important and why it matters what route his soldiers take on their way home, but when Aang fluttered away (distracted by some kids laughter or passing food cart) he learned to just sigh and keep moving.
Now, Sokka was interesting. It didn’t matter what they did. They could be sword fighting, reading in the library, bickering over a tactical plan, staring up at the stars, throwing fruit at each other, brushing out Appa, trying to see who could climb the highest on the palace rooftops (Zuko, no competition), or just passing each other in the halls. No matter what they were doing, Sokka always brought Zuko out of his moods. He always got Zuko to open up about what was bothering him, and helped him figure out how to fix it. Sokka didn’t always reciprocate (he insisted that he didn’t need to talk about his emotions, which Zuko knew was utter bullshit, but it wasn’t always the most important thing to press), but he always made sure Zuko knew he was welcome. Zuko hadn’t been so happy and content since his mom… well. Since his mom.
Needless to say, Zuko wasn’t quite sure what he was going to do now that his friends were all preparing to leave. Sokka hummed and let it drop, turning his attention back to Aang’s story about his adventure with Kuzon to the Whistling Caves.
——
The morning was spent packing up the last of their things. Toph and Zuko, as the only ones not leaving, were the designated helpers. Zuko was disgruntled to find that this meant Toph got to sit in the middle of their common room reclining and eating grapes while Zuko had to retrieve missing items from all over their quarters.
After their items were packed up, Zuko had the servants take them down to transport to be loaded onto the ship. Meanwhile, Aang led the rest of them into their courtyard, plopping down in the middle of the clearing to watch the clouds. Soon, all five of them were plopped down in a circle, staring up at the sky. (Well, Toph was just enjoying the feeling of the sun on her skin and her friend’s happiness.)
They ate lunch there in the courtyard, sharing stories from before their travels converged and talking about future plans. Zuko couldn’t have repeated any one conversation. He was busy trying to memorize this feeling of contentment, of belonging, of friendship and knowing he was surrounded by people he loved.
By the time they made it to the docks, quiet had overtaken the easy conversation of before. They each took turns hugging and saying goodbye to Toph and Zuko, until the only people left were Sokka and Zuko.
Toph suddenly spoke up right as Sokka was turning to Zuko. “Aang, I think I can sense a pet store across the street, we should get Momo some treats!” Before Katara could say no, Toph and Aang had taken off.
Katara turned to them with an apologetic look. “I should go stop them from going overboard,” she said, already turning to give chase. “Aang! Wait!”
They watched their friends run off before Zuko turned to Sokka. “Um,” he started before realizing he had no clue what to say. “Um… bye?” Zuko winced at himself, peeking an eye to see Sokka’s reaction.
Sokka was staring at him with the most fondly exasperated look Zuko had ever received. “You utter brat. This is ridiculous, come here,” he demanded, already starting to hug the older boy.
Zuko was frozen for a second before relaxing into his friend’s arms. He sighed, tucking his head into Sokka’s neck and trying not to cry. Sokka’s hands settled, one at the small of his back and the other buried in the hair at the nape of his neck. Zuko couldn’t stop thinking, I don’t know when I’ll see you again. I don’t know when I’ll hug you again, when I’ll be able to bicker with you in person, do anything in person, and suddenly he couldn’t hold off the tears anymore.
He started sniffling, then shuddering as Sokka tried to calm him down. Sokka tried to pull back and see what was wrong, but Zuko just tightened his grip around Sokka’s middle. He sniffled out a few more sobs.
“Zuko, c’mon, what’re you thinking?” Sokka asked, not knowing how to fix this. Zuko squeezed his eyes shut as more tears tried to escape, pulling back slightly to rest his chin on Sokka’s shoulder.
“I—“ he tried to start, but his voice broke immediately. Clearing this throat, Zuko whispered, “I don’t know when I’m going to see you again. We’re both going to be so busy, I don’t want to—“ lose you , he didn’t say, because he couldn’t speak any further. Openly sobbing, pressed his forehead into Sokka’s shirt.
Sokka, meanwhile, obviously didn’t know what to do with his armful of crying Fire Lord. He rubbed up and down on Zuko’s back, murmuring, “Hey, shh, it’ll be okay. We’ll figure it out. We’ll write all the time, and Katara and Aang will visit all the time, and I’ll try my best to come visit you. I know I can’t promise beyond that, and—“ Sokka cut himself off, taking a couple deep breaths to regain control over his emotions. “It sucks. But we’ll do this. Hey,” he pulled back, forcing Zuko to meet his eyes. Zuko angrily wiped away the tears on his face, glaring at Sokka for no discernible reason. Sokka smiled brokenly at him. “I’m not going to replace you. You’re still going to be my best friend, Zuko.”
Zuko let out all of his breath at once, grinding his palms into his eyes. “Damn it, how do you always know what to fucking say,” he muttered, peeking out between his fingers when Sokka chuckled.
“Sorry to break it to you, your Majesty, but you’re pretty predictable,” Sokka remarked, laughing at the indignation on Zuko’s face.
“I’m not predictable!” Zuko sputtered. “I just— you’re— oh shut up!”
The blush on Zuko’s face made the red rimming his eyes even more noticeable. As they caught sight of their friends returning, they both tried to look more presentable.
Katara took a look at Zuko and pulled him into another hug. They had another round of goodbyes, and then just like that, Sokka, Katara, Aang, and the rest of the Water Tribe group were boarding.
Toph put up with Zuko watching the ship pull away for about five minutes before huffing. “You know,” she said, “I guess it’s easier to be blind right now.”
Zuko glanced over at her before looking back to the ship. “What do you mean?”
“Well I can’t see them leaving. For all I know, they’re just sitting five feet off the shoreline. They might be all the way to that Kyoshi Island you all talk about. I wouldn’t know.” She smirked and punched Zuko in the arm before turning pointedly back to the paladin. “Now, you and I need to get back to the palace so you can eat ice cream and I can laugh at you being pitiful.”
With one last look at the retreating ship, and the small figures on it that were his friends, he followed Toph.
——
As soon as Sokka saw Zuko disappear into his fancy royalty transport with Toph, he collapsed forward onto the railing. “Shit,” he muttered, dragging a hand down his face. Katara leaned on the railing next to him.
“I know it’s been forever since we’ve been home, but I wish we didn’t have to leave Zuko and Toph,” Katara said, staring as the Fire Nation slowly grew smaller and smaller.
“Yeah,” Sokka sighed, heavily debating telling his sister what was going on. He looked around, and found Aang talking to Bato further down the deck. “Look Katara, I…” he drifted off, not sure how to say it.
Katara nudged Sokka’s shoulder. “If this is about your giant crush on Zuko, I already know.”
Sokka whipped his head to stare at her. “You— what— I don’t…” he gaped at his apparently telepathic sister. “How do you do that?”
His sister giggled, turned so her hip was leaning against the railing, and crossed her arms. “I’ve watched you flirt more this past year than I ever did at home. I know what it looks like, Sokka. You two are completely oblivious.”
Bewildered, Sokka tried to wrap his head around Katara recognizing him flirting with people. He forgot that once he processed her last sentence. “Wait, what do you mean ‘us two’?”
Katara sighed. “Sokka, it’s clear he likes you too. It’s painful to watch you two dance around each other!”
Sokka snorts. “Nothing could possibly be more painful than watching you and Aang try to figure out where you stand.” He caught Katara’s blush and cut her off before she could deny it. “Anyway, it’s not like Zuko and I could ever work out. He has his duty to the Fire Nation, and I have mine to the tribe. We’d never see each other, we’d have diplomatic conflicts, I just…” he sighed, turning back to look at the speck that used to be Caldera City. “I didn’t want to start something that we couldn’t continue. I can’t have him and give him up.”
He jolted out of his thoughts as Katara put a hand on his arm. “I know.” She pulled him in for a hug. “It sucks,” she mumbled into his shoulder.
“Yeah…” Sokka murmured, shutting his eyes to stave off the tears he had avoided for so long. “It sucks.”