More Than Friends // zukka

The Letter

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have mentioned it. I just - er - it doesn't make you less beautiful" Zuko said, still not looking at Sokka who had stopped walking, "But I guess you knew that already!" 

Whatever Zuko had just said, Sokka must've misheard it. There was no way that Zuko just told him that he was beautiful. Zuko. Beautiful. Sokka's head was spinning with confusion. Did he like Zuko saying this? And what would that even mean? Was this normal? Was this how friendship between two teenage boys usually worked?

"What did you just say?" he managed to croak out.

"I - er - nothing. It - I'm sorry, this was stupid. I shouldn't have said that" Zuko replied quickly, and Sokka watched his face grow red. But Sokka didn't think that it was stupid.

"No, it was - thank you. I like that you said that" he said.

"Oh," Zuko said.

When Sokka woke up the next morning he noticed that he needed water more than anything ever. He rushed to the bathroom and got himself a big glass of water, chucking it down on the way back to his room. He was halfway down the corridor when he suddenly bumped into something warm and squishy, and found himself on the floor in a matter of seconds.

Water had spilled all over him and the person he had run into. When he looked up to see who he body checked accidentally, he was embarrassed to see Zuko's sleepy face frowning at him.

"I'm so sorry. I-"

"You seem to be in a rush," Zuko interrupted him, chuckling a little.

"I was thirsty," Sokka explained.

"I can see that. Although most of the water is now dripping from your shoulders..."

"I'll get a new glass,"

And did he imagine it or had Zuko's eyes rested on his body a little longer than was necessary?

"Sleep well?" Zuko changed the subject and awkwardly reached for Sokka's hand to help him up.

"Yes, er - thank you. How about you?" Sokka answered, trying to calm his heartbeat.

"I'm not sleeping very well lately. I hope that once we start our search that will change..." the Fire Lord explained, yawning, "By the way, I want to tell you about the evidence I found. Meet me in the gardens after you get dressed."

And with that, Zuko turned to walk to his own room next to Sokka's and disappeared. Yet again, Sokka found himself half naked and confused. He picked up the glass and walked to his room, not really noticing anything around him.

When he set foot out of the Palace he immediately appreciated the fresh morning air and the sun warming his skin. He looked around and saw Zuko standing at the pondside feeding turtle ducklings. There had rarely been a moment when Sokka had seen Zuko move as gently as he did now. Trying to be as quiet as possible, Sokka made his way over to the young Fire Lord.

"Hello, Sokka" his rusty voice sounded as soon as Sokka had arrived next to him.

"Hey... Oh wow, these little babies are the cutest things I've ever seen!" he immediately exclaimed as he saw the little turtle ducklings quacking and splashing around in the pond. Zuko chuckled and gave Sokka some bread to feed them.

"They are, aren't they? I used to feed them with my mother when I was little..." Zuko told him, reminiscing. There it was again; that feeling of overwhelming sadness and empathy for the young Firebender. Sokka nodded.

"She sounds like a person with a good heart!" he said, trying to cheer Zuko up.

"Oh, she is. I hope that my sources can be trusted. But to start at the beginning: When I started sorting through my parents' stuff I found a letter from my mother saying that she was safe in the Earth Kingdom where my father wouldn't find her."

A frown appeared on his face as he looked at Sokka who was processing everything Zuko had said. Why would Ursa hide from her husband?

"Are you sure your mother wrote that letter?" he asked.

"Yes. It is her handwriting and signature. And it is dated to about 4 years ago when I was already banished from the Fire Nation." Zuko answered confidently.

"So, that could explain why you never got the letter... I just wonder who did get it and why it was never mentioned to you?" Sokka added.

"Yes, I've wondered that too which is why I asked some of my family's closest friends and staff about it." the Firebender told him.

"And what did they say?"

"Some of them remembered Azula running around with a letter addressed to me, and one of them said he was the one to take it from her and hide it somewhere. He did read it and figured it would do no good if Ozai got his hands on it." Zuko smiled.

"How nice of him. But I bet Azula read the letter, as well..." Sokka mentioned.

"I figured as much which is why I went to ask her about it and after a long while of arguing she finally gave in and told me that she had sent a hawk to check if it was really our mother who had sent the letter. Which it was. She said the letter came from a small town in the Earth Kingdom near Omashu. I think we should go and look there first!"

A shimmer of hope sparked in Sokka and he smiled. This would be a good starting point and Zuko seemed hopeful and confident which Sokka liked. It suited the Fire Lord. They made plans to leave the next morning and went to have brunch. This was great! A whole Palace and gardens for themselves, Sokka was loving it. He hadn't felt this relaxed in a long time. And yet, he was wondering what Aang and Katara were up to right now.

Funnily enough, they wouldn't be too far away from the others once they would arrive in Omashu. Thinking about the mountain city, Sokka imagined what it would look like now after the war was over and the Fire Nation forces had retreated. When he went to bed that night his head was still full of thoughts and guesses about the adventure ahead.