Burnt Out - Zuko x OC

Closure vs. Justice vs. Revenge

Suki and Kai lay in the confines of the small, stone teepee together. The group had found themselves camping, just like old times, after Azula obliterated the Western Air Temple in an attempt to become an only child. And all was going well until Katara ended up in one of her moods again, sulky and angry and as closed off as Boiling Rock had been.

That was how Suki and Kai had ended up together — because Zuko wandered after Katara and when that didn't work (like Kai told him it wouldn't), he barged into Sokka's tent, running Suki off in the process.

The girls rested side by side, staring up through the stone slats that Kai bended up from the earth. There were cracks in the two slates where they didn't quite meet up and the shimmering, plentiful stars could be seen if they focused their eyes.

Kai hadn't expected to feel so close to Suki so quickly, she'd only met the girl once, but it felt as if they were two peas in a pod — sisters. And that bond came with the lingering feeling of guilt that sat in the back of her throat like acid reflux.

"I hope Zuko didn't interrupt anything too embarrassing." Kai said. She'd picked up two interestingly shaped rocks while clearing out the campsites and now had them floating in the air above her head. She didn't care to look at the stars these days, they only reminded her of what was to come.

"What? No!" Suki said, "We were just, uh.. y'know, catching up."

She caught Kai's side eye through the fire light that shined in. "Right, catching up." Kai said, "Well, I purposefully made you guys' tent at the back of camp so you can 'catch up' without the rest of us hearing."

Suki smiled as a silent thank you to her new friend.

The Kyoshi Warrior had a lot on her mind... life wasn't exactly slow, she would say, but it was calmer now than it'd been since her village was destroyed. Suki finally had a moment to think and, like the others, had sporadic chances to feel like a teenager for once. Chances that she'd never experienced before, having grown up mostly surrounded by females.

"You and Zuko have been together for a while now... right?" She asked.

Kai shrugged, "We've been on and off, I guess." She caught the stones in her hand and turned on her side, lifting herself up on her elbow, "Why do you ask?"

"It's just... Sokka and I haven't spent that much time together, and what if he wants to... you know." She kept her eyes pointed straight above and her cheeks blushed red. Redder than the eyeshadow of her traditional garb.

This girl, this warrior, was embarrassed to even be bringing up the subject. But the opportunity was right there in front of her and if Kai wasn't the right person to ask, who would be? Katara, his sister? Hakoda, his father?

Kai was the only viable option, which was rather unfortunate for the earth bender.

"Oh god, please tell me you aren't coming to me for 'the talk', Suki. Shouldn't you be having this conversation with, like, an adult??"

"Did you have it with an adult?!" Suki proclaimed in response. She couldn't imagine having asked her sweet mother about something as promiscuous as premarital sex!

But she was right, Kai hadn't been given the chance to go to any real adults with all of her hormone driven inquiries. She'd only had three women to ask those questions to, ones that'd taken her under their wing, ones that were more than happy to fill her head with the radical idea of a healthy sex life.

"Ugh, fine." Kai said. The idea of Suki and Sokka having sex twenty feet away didn't bother her, but the idea of giving Suki advice on the matter... "What do you want to know?"