Fire and water: Sokka x reader x Zuko

The banyan grove tree

(Y/n)s pov:

"I protect the swamp from folks who want to hurt it, like this fellow with his big knife" Huu said guiding us through the tree.

"See completely reasonable, not a monster just a regular guy defending his home, nothing mystical about it" Sokka said putting his knife away.

"Oh the swamp is a mystical place alright, it's sacred, I reached enlightenment right here under the Banyan grove tree, I heard it callin' me, just like you did" Huu said sitting on the tree.

"Sure you did, it seems real chatty" Sokka said as I elbowed him with a glare. He rolled his eyes at me.

"See this whole swamp is actually just one tree spread out over miles, branches spread and sink then take root, then spread some more, one big living organism, just like the entire world" Huu said outstretching his arms.

"I get how the tree is one big thing, but the world?" Aang asked tilting his head. I nodded, is fire nations people are pretty different from those from the water tribe like Sokka and Katara.

"Sure you think your any different from me? Or your friends? Or this tree? If you listened hard enough you can hear every living thing breathing together, you can feel everything growing, we're all living together even if most folks don't act like it, we all have the same roots and we are all branches of the same tree" Huu said as we sat down with him.

"But what do our visions mean, how do they fit in to this" I asked pulling my knees into my chest.

"I'm the swamp we see visions of people we've lost, people we loved, folks we think are gone but the swamp tells us their not we're still connected to them, time is an illusion and so is death" Huu said nodding his head.

I thought back to my vision. Zuko, Azula, Mei, Ty-lee; my old friends. Friends I had lost through time and circumstances and my parents, two people I had lost through death. If time and death are illusions, maybe I'm closer to them then I thought...

"What about my vision, it was someone I had never met" Aang said tilting his head in confusion. "Your the avatar, you tell me" Huu said shrugging. Aang pondered.

"Time is an illusion so? It's someone I will meet" Aang said hesitantly as Huu nodded.

"Sorry to interrupt the lesson but we still need to find Appa and Momo" Sokka said standing up and stretching. "I think I know how to find them, everything is connected" Aang said before touching the branch of the tree.

His tattoos started to glow as he sat there. He then jumped up. "Come on we've gotta hurry" Aang said helping Katara up. We hurried along the vines eventually passing a river.

"Hey Huu, how you been" the strange man wearing a leaf said in a thick accent. "You know scared some folks, swung some vines, the usual" Huu said with a laugh. We returned to their camp, lighting a fire and sitting around it. Introducing ourselves to our hosts.

Time skip

"How you like that possum-chicken" Tho said sitting down with us.

"Tastes just like arctic-hen, so why were you guys so interested in eating Appa, you've got plenty of those big things wondering around" Sokka said referring the cat-gator.

"You want me to eat ole' slim? He's like a member of the family" Tho said feeding the cat-gator. "Nice slim" Sokka said throwing a piece of bug meat at the gator, it hissed at Sokka as the meat bounced off its snout.

Tho cackled, "oh he don't eat no bugs, that's people food" he said laughing. I scrunched up my face.

"Would you like one purdy lady" Tho asked with his heavy accent, raising his eyebrows at me while handing me a stick with roasted bugs and fish. "Ohh thanks, I'm sure I'll love it" I said laughing nervously, it certainly wasn't palace food.

"Where'd you say y'all were from" Due asked Katara and Sokka.

"Didn't know there was water benders anywhere but here, they got a nice swamp do they?" He added taking a bite of his bug. "No it's all ice and snow" Katara said with a smile. I shivered at the thought, Tho and Due paused.

"No wonder you left" Due said with a put off face.

"Well I hope you realise now, that nothing strange is going on here, just a bunch of greasy people living in a swamp" Sokka said crossing his arms. "What about the visions" Katara asked looking at him with a glare.

"I told you we were hungry, look at me I'm eating a giant bug!" He said taking a big from his kabab. I grimaced as he swallowed. "What about when the tree showed me where Appa and Momo were" Aang said affectionately patting the little lemur.

"That's avatar stuff, that doesn't count, the only thing I can't figure out is how you made the tornado that sucked us down" Sokka said looking at Huu.

"I can't do anything like that, I just bend the water in the plants" Huu said looking at Sokka confused.

"Well no accounting for weather, still but theres absolutely nothing mysterious about the swamp" Sokka said with a shrug.

I rolled my eyes and took a bite of the fish on my kabab. Some people just never learn.