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Sokka’s earliest memory was of his little sister.
He remembered his father pulling back the sealskin tent’s flap to reveal his mother in bed, a quiet bundle in her arms.
“Sokka,” she beckoned, “come meet your little sister.”
His father helped him onto the bed, and he immediately put his face close to the new baby. Her eyes were closed, and her breathing was even, lips parting in a soft snore.
“Her name is Katara,” his mother said.
“She’s so small,” Sokka observed, his blue eyes wide with wonder.
“She is,” his mother agreed. “But you know what, Sokka? When you were born, you were even smaller!”
“No way!”
“Yes way! And now look at you, my big, strong boy.”
Sokka’s gaze flickered towards his mother, and he grinned.
“And, as my big, strong boy, you’re going to have to be an example for Katara—she’s going to look up to you as she grows up.”
“I will!” chirped Sokka. “I’m gonna be the best big brother ever!”
“Oh, Sokka,” his father ruffled his hair, “we know you will be.”
“You already are,” his mother affirmed. “Do you want to hold her?”
“Yes!” Sokka exclaimed.
Positioned beside his mother, she carefully handed the newborn over to Sokka, soothing her as she stirred and whimpered.
“Hi, Katara,” he greeted, attempting to whisper (unsuccessfully), “I’m your brother, Sokka. I will always be here for you.”
Katara yawned, her blue eyes opening wide. Sokka couldn’t look away. From that moment on, Katara was his best friend, and she would always be.
***
“Hey guys—AH!”
Katara and Aang sprang apart at Sokka’s greeting.
“Nothing! We’re not doing anything out here!” stuttered Aang.
“Haven’t you ever heard of knocking, Sokka?” demanded Katara.
“First of all, you’re supposed to knock before you go inside, not before you go outside,” Sokka said. “And second, as my sister, you really shouldn’t be kissing anyone in front of me! It’s your sisterly duty to avoid giving me the oogies!”
“‘Oogies?’ Ugh, you are so immature sometimes! What about you and Suki?”
The siblings continued to speak over one another until Aang coughed, “Uh, Sokka? Sokka!”
“Time out,” said Sokka, putting a hand in front of Katara’s face. He turned to Aang, “yeah?”
“What’d you come out here to tell us?”
“Oh, right! We’re about to head out.”
“But the Earth King’s celebration doesn’t start for a couple more hours.”
“I know—we wanted to take Appa out for a ride first.”
“That sounds like a good idea! I’ll go—I’ll go get the others,” Aang went ahead of the siblings.
Katara frowned, grabbing Sokka’s arm when he started after Aang.
“Spit it out,” she grumbled.
“What?”
“Your sarcasm. I know you’re thinking something. Just spit it out.”
“I have nothing sarcastic to say,” said Sokka. “Only disgust. You guys don’t need to do that in public.”
“Ugh, Sokka, you and Suki kiss everywhere...well, what do you think?”
“About what? Kissing Suki everywhere?”
“No, stupid. About Aang and me, what do you think about us?”
“Oh!” he rubbed his chin, thoughtfully. “I’m happy it’s Aang and not, like, that Jet guy. I love you, of course, and I think you and Aang would make a good couple.”
“Thank you…that means a lot.”
“Just don’t break up because, you know, we’d all have to choose sides and no one wants to do that,” Sokka said. “It would ruin the gang.”
“Yeah, yeah, alright,” Katara elbowed her brother before wrapping him in a tight hug.
***
The group was exhausted. The meeting with representatives from all over the nations was overwhelming to say the least, everyone with different ideas for the future.
Finally, they had managed to sneak away while the other councilmembers and sponsors went to a catered dinner in the ballroom, hiding in a living room deep within the Fire Lord’s palace.
“Zuko, please tell me you have some cactus juice around here. Or flaming fire whiskey. Or something with alcohol in it,” Sokka flopped onto the floor. “I need a drink after that meeting.”
Zuko stood, going over to the bar cart. “We have flaming fire whiskey. A lot of that. And—”
“I’ll take the whiskey.”
Zuko poured the alcohol into a glass. “Anyone else?”
Toph and Suki raised their hands, and Zuko distributed the beverages to his friends.
“No whiskey for you, Katara?” asked Suki.
“Don’t be a party-pooper, Katara,” Sokka added. “We know you love flaming fire whiskey.”
“I’m not drinking right now,” Katara shrugged.
“Come on, Katara, this is a celebration! It’s been eight years since we defeated Ozai,” said Sokka.
“And three months since you’ve defeated Tagah,” smiled Suki. “You deserve to let loose a little bit.”
“I’m honestly okay, I’m not feeling it right now.”
“Come on, Katara—” urged Sokka.
“Everyone shut up,” Toph said, sitting up straight, her feet slamming onto the floor. She wiggled her toes.
“What?” Sokka asked. “What’s going on?”
Toph broke out into laughter. “Couldn’t wait any longer, could you, Twinkletoes?”
“What do you mean, Toph?” asked Suki.
“Aang knows what I mean.”
“I have no clue what you’re talking about,” Aang smirked.
“Oh, bullshit. You know I can sense everything with these grippers,” Toph swung her feet in the air.
Katara turned to Aang with a smile. “I think we can tell them now.”
Aang kissed Katara’s forehead before placing a hand on her abdomen. “Katara and I are having a baby.”
“What?” Sokka sprang up from his place on the floor, while Zuko and Suki said, “congratulations!”
“You guys, this is so exciting,” Suki added.
“Thank you,” Katara grinned.
“Immediately after defeating Tagah, you had to put a baby in her, huh?”
Aang and Katara blushed while Zuko and Suki laughed.
“That’s inappropriate—” started Aang.
“Ew, Toph, that’s my little sister you’re talking about!” Sokka covered his ears. “I don’t want to know about Katara’s sex life.”
“What do you think, Sokka?” asked Katara, turning her attention toward her older brother.
Sokka removed his hands from his ears and moved towards Katara, wrapping her tightly in a hug. “I’m so happy for you! Although I wish Toph wouldn’t make disgusting jokes about your sex life—oogie!”
“Thank you,” Katara smiled. She then glared at Toph, “you hear that, Toph, stop making disgusting jokes.”
Toph laughed again. “I’m so going to corrupt this kid!”
“No,” Aang and Katara said at once.
Sokka pulled away from Katara, “no, I’m going to corrupt this kid!”
“No,” Aang and Katara repeated.
“Do you think the baby will be an airbender?” asked Zuko.
“Hm, I’m not sure,” said Katara, resting her hands on her abdomen. “I guess there’s an equal chance of the baby being an airbender or waterbender or nonbender.”
“No matter what,” Aang took one of her hands in his, interlacing their fingers, “we’ll love them.”
Sokka couldn’t help but grin at his sister and brother-in-law—La’s fins, he was going to be an uncle! He was going to be an uncle…sure, he was young, and Katara and Aang were even younger, but everything would work out…the baby was a symbol of hope, of all the group had survived.
And, as Aang said, the baby would be loved.
“How are you feeling about this, hon?” Suki rubbed her husband’s back while Toph dominated the conversation, talking about how she would teach the baby to spar.
“I’m so excited. I’m gonna be an uncle!”
Later that night, Sokka pulled Katara to the side, like she had done to him years before. “How do you feel about the baby? Are you…are you and Aang ready for this?”
It seemed not even Ozai himself could dim Katara’s smile. “I’m so ready for this—we’re so ready.”
“Was this planned?”
Katara blushed. “Not particularly. But we’ve been married for some time now, and Tagah’s defeated…we’re in a time of relative peace. We’re really happy.”
“Then I’m happy for you,” Sokka smiled, pulling his sister into a side hug. “You’re going to make a great mom. And Aang is going to make a great dad.”
“Thank you,” she returned the hug, tightening it to last longer.
***
Sokka turned the doorknob and said, in a singsong voice, “hello! Is anyone home?”
“Uncle Sokka!” cheered the children at the door. Nine-year-old Bumi and Four-year-old Kya couldn’t contain their excitement and practically leapt into Sokka’s arms when the door swung open.
“Hey, kiddos,” he greeted, balancing them on opposite hips. “Where’s your mom?”
“In the kitchen,” Kya nuzzled her face into his shoulder.
He carried his nephew and niece from the entryway to the kitchen, where Katara was cutting vegetables for dinner.
“Sokka,” said Katara with a smile, placing her knife on the counter and moving towards him.
“Hey, sis,” he said, the children slipping down from his arms, settling back onto the floor before scrambling out of the room. He looked at the babbling baby in the highchair, “hey, Tenzin. What’s up, little guy?”
“Bah!” Tenzin had been born six months before, the last child Katara and Aang would have.
“What are you doing here?” Katara asked, wrapping her arms around her older brother.
“I was in the area,” Sokka shrugged.
“You just happened to be on Air Temple Island?”
“Okay, you caught me. Suki’s out of town for some warrior conference at Kyoshi Island, and I wanted a hot meal for dinner.”
Katara laughed. “That sounds more like it.”
“So, can I stay?”
“Of course, Sokka, I would never say no to you—and Suki—coming to dinner. I don’t get to see you nearly as much as I wish.”
“Yes,” Sokka fist-pumped.
“Aang won’t be home, though,” Katara added, “he just sent a hawk.”
“Bummer…Avatar stuff?”
“Always…” Katara trailed off, turning her attention back to the vegetables. “Would you mind checking in on Bumi and Kya? They’re supposed to be working on homework and reading in the living room.”
“No problem.”
Sokka went out to the living room and stood in the doorway, silent, watching as Bumi and Kya giggled as Kya made animal shapes out of her waterbending.
Kya had just made a sky bison when Sokka cleared his throat: “Your mom said that the two of you were supposed to be doing homework.”
Kya bent the water back into the glass. “Homework is so boring! And I have so much of it,” she said.
“You’re four, how much homework can you have other than coloring?”
“Hey, I have a lot to color, okay?”
“Okay,” Sokka chuckled. Kya was so much like Katara when she was younger. “And what’s your excuse, Bumi?”
“I just…I don’t wanna do it,” he shrugged.
“Fair enough,” Sokka sat down on the carpeted floor. “Do you kids want to hear a story about the time I defeated the Fire Lord?”
“You mean the time Dad defeated the Fire Lord,” corrected Bumi.
“Sure, sure, that time your dad defeated the Fire Lord,” said Sokka, “but from my perspective! Like, what Aunt Suki and I were doing while he was doing his whole Avatar thing.”
“Yes!” exclaimed Kya. “I want to hear!”
“Anything that gets me out of doing my homework,” Bumi said.
“That’s the spirit!” Sokka launched into his story.
By the end of the story, when Katara had come in to ask them to set the table, Bumi’s eyes were wide with wonder, and Kya was lightly snoring against his chest.
“What is going on in here?” her voice dropped to a whisper.
“Uncle Sokka is telling us a story about the war,” explained Bumi, jumping up from his pretzel-like position on the floor. “Mom, I want to be a warrior!”
“Maybe one day, but now, it’s time for dinner,” said Katara, holding her arms out for Sokka to pass Kya to her.
As Katara roused Kya from her sleep, rubbing her back softly, Sokka couldn’t help but admire the scene. His little sister had grown so much, from a stubborn child to a grown woman who was empowered and empowered others. His nephews and niece looked so much like their mother, his best friend since her birth.
Ugh, he hated being so sappy. He scooped up Bumi and swung him upside down on the way back to the kitchen.
***
Goodbyes would always be difficult, although Sokka had said many throughout the years.
Sokka had to live through the grief of his mother and Suki and Aang’s deaths, along with the deaths of his father and several tribesmen he had grown up with. He supposed it was his turn to be reunited with all of them. He just didn’t want to be away from Katara.
He had been weak for a while, the years of being a warrior finally catching up to his body, aging him prematurely.
When the time came, Katara was there, at his side. They were together, as they had always been, as they had always belonged.
Katara's hair had started to turn from dark brown to a light grey, and wrinkles surrounded her eyes as they filled with tears.
“Don’t leave me, Sokka,” she begged.
“I don’t want to leave you,” he replied, his voice rough. Katara clutched his hand. “But it’s my time. You still have more to do, little sister. You need to help the new Avatar—a Southern Water Triber, what about that—you need to lead her.”
“I love you,” she said to him.
He was silent when he went. No snarky comments, no jokes. Holding Katara’s hand, he faded.