Work Text:
It was a chilly night and the Gaang was exhausted. They were heading back to Caldera City after having found Ursa in her hometown of Hira’a. After two years of governing from the Fire Nation palace, camping seemed a little more challenging (and a lot more uncomfortable) than Zuko remembered. But he was flying high on the stories his mother had shared with him, and enjoying a campfire with his friends brought him peace in the cold.
Katara and Azula has fallen asleep far apart on opposite sides of the camp, each under her own water tribe blanket. Aang was off meditating and Sokka had retreated into the woods to relieve himself, when it started to snow. Zuko lifted his gaze from the flames to watch the flakes flurry down. This was the first snow he’d seen since chasing the Avatar around the poles and it, in this distinct context, was mesmerizing. He held up his arm and watched as the hexagonal crystals melted immediately upon landing on his skin. Slowly, he turned his hand over, watching tiny water droplets accumulate across his palm. He heard a snicker and glanced up to see Sokka watching him from the edge of the forest, smiling. He could feel the corners of his mouth rising without his command and he knew his friend’s expression matched his own.
“Okay,” Sokka said, approaching him teasingly, “I know you’ve seen snow before.”
Zuko’s grin widened, “not like this. It’s a lot more serene when you’re not chasing a spirit child through a blizzard.”
Sokka snorted quietly and sat down next to the Fire Lord. “Yeah, that feels like a lifetime ago, doesn’t it?”
“A lot has changed,” Zuko agreed, “that’s for sure.”
For a while, they sat and watched the flames leap up to lick ice crystals out of the air, while the rest of the snow began to build up on the cold ground around them. Nonchalantly, Sokka scooched closer to the fire bender, rubbing his bare arms. Zuko casually draped an arm across his back and sent a wave of heat through both of their clothes, evaporating out the gathered moisture. He smirked to himself as Sokka yelped and huddled even closer. “Showoff,” he muttered under his breath.
They stayed together like that as Yue crept by degrees across the sky. It was as if the snow couldn’t touch them, while all around it blanketed the campsite and the surrounding woods. Zuko found himself struck by the muffled, padded silence that stole away his very breath and the sleepy sounds of his companions. Eventually, he was sure Sokka had dozed off, but as he shifted his weight to rouse him, the younger man responded observantly, “bedtime already?”
“I mean, going to bed isn’t all that much different from sitting here, seeing as no one thought to bring tents or anything.” Zuko teased.
Sokka sat up straight, too sleepy to jump to his feet just for the dramatics. “Hey, wait a minute Mister Fancy Pants, this was your adventure! You’d think you could have afforded to equip us a little more luxuriously.”
Zuko lifted his hands in mock surrender, “All I’m saying is, I thought you were the Plans Guy.”
“Yeah, well at least I brought a blanket!” Sokka stormed off to the pile of gear resting near Appa.
“Is that... is that the last one?” Zuko inquired hesitatingly. The previous nights had been more mild and his clothes and bending had been sufficient to keep him warmish. But tonight he was going to be cold. The thought crossed his mind to go sleep between Appa’s paws, where Aang had retired, but with his luck he’d wake the adoring creature.
“Ha! It is! But how about this: if you warm us up a dry patch of ground, I’ll share it with you.”
“Deal.” Zuko got to work melting the snow and evaporating it out of a patch of dirt on the edge of the woods, somewhat removed from the rest of camp. As they settled in under the warm fur, Sokka sighed. “This is nice.”
“Mmmm.” Zuko agreed, wrapping himself around his friend. His mind traveled back to the last time he had held Sokka this way, to the house on Ember Island, a few nights before the comet. He thought of the contrast between that plush bed and this chilled earth and he couldn’t help but compare the comfort levels of his inner world as well. How that first night together they had both been so tense with the crushing anxiety of imminent doom, and yet tonight they could bask in the satisfaction of a mission successfully completed, no - more than a mission: his life’s goal. For perhaps the first time since childhood, Zuko was content.
“I’m glad you’re Fire Lord now, even if I miss our adventures,” Sokka confessed. “You really are doing a great job.”
“Thanks, I hate it.”
“I know. But seriously, not everyone could’ve handled that Harmony Restoration Movement snafu so... harmoniously.” Sokka meant it. He knew Zuko was fulfilling his destiny and all, but he was almost surprised by how well he was doing it.
“I guess. I miss our adventures too. Thank you for coming with me on this one.”
“Seriously? Finding your mom? Meeting that giant spirit wolf? I wouldn’t‘ve missed it for all the seal jerky in the Fire Nation!” Sokka insisted.
“Honestly, I think your private stash of seal jerky pretty much accounts for all the seal jerky in the Fire Nation, anyway.” Zuko mused.
They lay there for a little bit, each lost in his own thoughts. Zuko noticed his fingers combing through Sokka’s loose hair, rubbing the stubble he found underneath. He felt Sokka purring happily under his touch. How he wished this could be part of his regular life, at the palace. It was so unfair that Agni had granted him those few short weeks with the Gaang - enough time to become friends, teammates - only to have the team disbursed to the four nations right as Zuko undertook the most important and difficult task of his life. And to think there would be no end! Even after peace had been restored, and restitution paid, even if the horrors of the last century could some how be set right, it was his destiny to govern from the Fire throne for the rest of his life. How could he be expected to do that alone? Of course, he has his advisors, and it truly wasn’t expected he’d persist uncoupled, but that led to a whole host of other challenges. He closed his eyes and sighed at the futility of his wish. Sokka turned in his arms, as if in response, and Zuko could imagine his questioning gaze.
“I’ve missed you, Sokka.” He sighed again. “Like, a lot.” His eyes were still closed but he could almost feel Sokka smiling as he snuggled closer.
“I know,” he responded quietly, “I’m sorry.”
Zuko’s eyes snapped open as he pulled back. Had he been reading this wrong? “You’re... sorry?” he asked. But in the dim light Sokka looked more confused than he himself felt.
“Yeah, I’m sorry I haven’t been around more! Spirits Zuko, I didn’t mean like that!” Sokka reached out to cup Zuko’s face, forcing him to meet his gaze. “Buddy, baby,” he tried, “I want to be around more; it’s just hard.”
“Oh, no, I’m sorry!” Zuko’s heart skipped a beat. “I know you have things to attend to. It’s really important that you support Toph with her academy and the work you’ve done in the colonies is downright essential.” Zuko was rambling.
“That’s not why it’s hard.” Sokka interrupted with a quick peck on the Fire Lord’s open lips. “It’s hard to be at the palace; to be around you, to watch you struggle, and to not be able to take you in my arms at night and do this.” He kissed him again. This time Zuko was ready. He kissed back, his lips gently nipping and tugging at his friend’s. Sokka held him tighter before he pulled his mouth away. “I’ve been selfish; it was cowardly of me to leave you to go pretend to be important just to relieve myself of watching you suffer alone. I should have made myself more available. I should have talked to you.”
“No, Sokka, it was on me. I wanted you close but never let you know. How could I blame you for seeking your own part to play in this wobbly new world we’re making?”
Sokka snorted. “Did you just say ‘wobbly’?”
“So what? It’s a good word!” Zuko huffed, he'd been trying to be generous.
“Nothing!” Sokka laughed before regaining his seriousness, “It’s just... Zuko, I think I love you.”
Zuko turned away. “I’m sorry.” Why did he feel so terrible? Sokka is all he’s wanted since the Boiling Rock! More than he wanted the throne, more than he wanted his mother. He should be overjoyed by his friend’s declaration. But he didn’t deserve it, did he? As he reconsidered his initial response, he realized Sokka had all but drawn away from him. Looking at his face he saw a mix of disappointment and shame. Oh my gods, he thinks I’m rejecting him!
“Arg!! No! I love you too!” He almost shouted. “I’m just sorry for you that it has to be me.”
“Zuko. You’re an idiot.” Sokka’s expression brightened. “I want it to be you.” And just like that, peace resettled in their souls.
“I want it to be you, too.” Zuko whispered.
Suddenly, they were kissing again. Harder, faster and more needy than before. This was to cement their love. To memorialize this night as the night they’d first known. To claim each other as something more than friends or teammates or traveling companions. To mark the beginning of a new kind of world, one less wobbly, for the two of them.