Chapter Text
Sokka and Zuko take the chance to see the great Arctic seal migration in the South Pole's city, Whale Harbor, when Zuko is two months away from giving birth to their first child. Aang, Katara, and Suki greet the pair when they dock their ship with tight hugs and warm smiles, but there's one outlier among them.
Momo jumps from Aang's shoulder and perches himself on Zuko's, purring and nuzzling against the crest of his neck that lies underneath the thick of his fur coat. It's not unusual for Momo to be so clingy with certain things, but it is a surprise that it's for Zuko of all people since they were more like amicable buddies than best friends.
Sokka furrows his brows. "When have you and Momo been so close?"
"I guess he really missed you guys," Aang says with a bright grin.
Zuko shrugs, scratching behind the lemur's ears while allowing him to bury himself deeper into his shoulder blade, and pulls Sokka along to meet with the rest of the tribe with the group. As he expected, the villagers take to the pregnant Fire Lord with great reverence, congratulating him in a flurry of joy all around. Among the citizens, political figures, and military officials, Momo stands watch as his personal guard, grunting whenever someone gets too close. Sokka learns the hard way to take that as a sign when Momo tries to take a bite at him when he throws his arm around Zuko's waist.
It all comes to a head when they gather around the part of the celebration that holds a long line of food stalls for them to indulge in. Oh, and Sokka plans to indulge himself a whole lot. Stacking various festival goodies in his arms, he carefully sorts out the best of the bunch to give to Zuko.
However, during his count, Momo darts off of Zuko's shoulder to snatch the top of Sokka's seal meat on a stick, only to circle back and try to hand it to the Fire Lord, who curiously tilts his head at the sight. "Hm, what's this? For me?" he asks, a little confused at the gesture. He looks to Aang and Sokka, but they both have as much of an idea as his husband does.
"I think he wants you to eat it," Suki interjects, and Katara nods in agreement.
Zuko parts his lips and lets out a soft 'oh' in understanding. He moves to take the pastry from his little paws with a grateful pat on the top of his head. "Thank you, Momo."
Momo purrs at the praise, leaping from his place and wrapping himself around Zuko's neck. Sokka watches in awe while Aang laughs. "I think Momo's taken Zuko as his mate."
Mate?
It may be funny to everyone else, but Sokka knows this will become a problem in due time.
Something that is proven to be true the first time Zuko has to climb off of Appa's saddle when they travel to Wolf Cove to visit Dad and Gran Gran; he nearly stumbles over two feet before Sokka caught him. It's fine, but Momo starts chittering away at the large bison like he was scolding Appa for even hurting Zuko by accident. The first of many offenses that come following that incident comes whenever Aang tries to airbend in their vicinity or when Katara and Suki even try to touch Zuko's bump; Momo instinctively goes to swat them away and Sokka's general presence altogether. However, despite all that, the worst of it all, the thing that has really ruined his mood undoubtedly is the fact that Momo has taken the bed.
When Zuko's not busy with his Fire Lord duties, he's in bed napping, the baby and the cold winds draining all his energy. Usually, Sokka would snuggle up right under Zuko and take in his warmth, but Momo has turned into a tyrant and grunts every time he tries to get close, circling Zuko's belly like his personal stomping grounds before drifting off to sleep himself.
Unfortunately, for Sokka, his husband finds it charming.
Zuko had already stripped down from his traditional robes and replaced them with loose sleepwear. That droops just about everywhere, making the seven-month bump look even bigger in comparison. "He's just being protective," he says, comfortably reclined with a scroll propped up on said bump. A minor report on new trade negotiations between the South and Eastern Islands. A simple piece of business he could work out before resting his head.
"Well, I don't see how a lemur could protect anything. Especially him." He points towards Momo, who is currently occupied with fluffing up his mediocre nest beside Zuko.
"I'm sure when the real danger comes, I'll have you to protect me. Oh, great warrior of the South." Zuko chuckles.
He can't argue against that. It leaves Sokka to mope down in the kitchen with Gran Gran and the rest of the group.
"I think it's sweet." Gran Gran pats his shoulder as she passes out the batch of cookies she made for them. "When I was pregnant with your father, we had a litter of polar dogs that used to be quite protective of me. Your grandfather wasn't quite fond of them, but they make particularly good bedmates."
Sokka used to be Zuko's favorite bedmate.
With another woeful sigh, he sinks lower into his seat. Sensing his conundrum and seemingly trying to spare his feelings against her humorous grin, Katara reaches for his hand across the table. "Don't worry," she tells him. "Zuko's not going to replace you."
"I don't know, Katara. Things aren't looking too good for me," Sokka says. "The only solution is for Aang to get his friend over there to back off."
At the mention of his name, the said Avatar perks up. "I personally like to think Momo belongs to all of us."
Sokka gives him a dirty look, and Aang nervously laughs, taking a cookie to stuff his mouth with while Suki raises a brow and crosses her arms. "Don't tell me you're seriously jealous of Momo?"
He doesn't validate that answer with a response.
Jealous of a lemur, yeah right.
Late at night, when the entire house has gone off to bed, Sokka slinks into his bedroom where Zuko's slumbering peacefully, blankets curled up to his neck while he sinks deep into the pillowed mattress with heavy snores. Sokka has long since grown accustomed to it. In fact, it somewhat reminds him of a slumbering hog monkey. Maybe it isn't the best comparison to make about his pregnant husband, but Zuko is a cute one, so it balances out. He would be even cuter if it weren't for the little nuisance perched on his belly. Momo, despite lying perfectly still, curiously watches Sokka with one open eye.
"We can do this the easy way or the hard way. And just so you know, It's never too late for me to eat you," Sokka says, slowly stalking forward, enough so that his knee is perched on the mattress. "So stay calm and let me do this."
He crawls farther onto the bed, barely stifling a wince as it sinks and emits a low, creaking protest beneath him. Fortunately, Zuko and Momo remain utterly still, granting Sokka the freedom to stretch out flat on his back. Success! He silently cheers, reveling in the warmth around him. Sokka commends his own warrior bravery for getting him here, and he might as well go as far as to say that if he remains completely steady, perhaps, just maybe, he could reach out and touch—
Yeah, Sokka should've seen this coming.
In an instant, he is thrown back and nearly hits the ground before his fingers can reach Zuko. He rolls onto his knees as Momo nimbly clings to his face. "You little—" Sokka quickly shuts his mouth to avoid waking up the entire house. "Zuko is not yours."
With a strong pull, he detaches the lemur and tosses it toward the cushioned seat in the corner of the room. This gives Sokka enough time to slip back into bed with a satisfied huff. However, his moment of victory doesn’t last long.
"Sokka?" With how loud they were being, Sokka is surprised Zuko didn't wake up sooner, but he guesses he can chalk it up to exhaustion that is clear in his appearance, hair tussled and drool hanging from the corner of his mouth. He barely moves a muscle as Momo darts towards them to bury himself into his unoccupied side, sticking his tongue out in a mocking gesture to get at Sokka.
"What're you doing?" He momentarily frowns at the sight in front of him but quickly turns his attention back to Zuko's question. His bleary eyes lock onto Sokka's as he waits for an answer. However, he can't bring himself to say it out loud right now; it sounds just as silly as Zuko probably thinks it does. "Were you fighting with Momo?"
"No, of course not," Sokka says, waving his arms about, quick to clear up that misconception. "Me and him, we were just having a friendly conversation."
Zuko looks even more worried, and he bumbles out to explain. "Don't take this the wrong way, but Momo is... would it be so bad if he slept on the floor or outside our room?"
Zuko lets out a soft, low hum, his expression deep in thought as he seemingly struggles to find the right words to say. Sokka takes the chance to lean against him and gently brings a hand to stroke Zuko's back in a comforting gesture, offering his support, only to be thrown aback when a choked sob breaks free. Momo, sensing the tension, flutters around in an attempt to cheer him up, but it’s clear that Zuko is lost in his emotions, tears spilling down his cheeks without stop.
Great. Sokka just had to open his big mouth. "Hey, I'm sorry, I won't bring it up again. We don't have to make Momo leave; in fact, I can leave instead."
"It's not you," Zuko says, wiping away stray tears from his eyes. "I know this might sound silly, but I really enjoy having Momo here with me. Did you know he brings blankets to bed to make a nest? He refuses to go to sleep without me now; it's the cutest thing ever. He's like a little baby."
Really? That's his issue?
"Yeah, that's real cute," Sokka replies, rolling his eyes sarcastically and trying hard not to clench his jaw too hard. "But, babe, you have to help me out. I can't even get into my own bed without watching my back. I shouldn't have to be competing for my husband and child's affections with a. . . Momo!"
Zuko furrows his brow. "You aren't competing," he says, tone dripping with patency. Sokka jumps to argue, but he pecks his lips tenderly. "I didn't marry the lemur, Sokka."
That makes him feel a bit stupid for believing otherwise, but it isn't entirely Sokka's fault.
Momo's eyes dart back and forth between the two of them, and Zuko spares him some mercy and plants a kiss right atop his furry head. "What do you think? Can we agree to be on our best behavior?" he suggests softly as he settles back down in the bed, hardly paying attention to Sokka and Momo exchanging pointed looks. "I'm feelin' a bit tired, so you two better figure it out for yourselves."
Sokka sighs, parting his lips to ask. "Do we have a truce?"
Momo gives him a beady-eyed glance before gently curling up on Zuko's belly once more, letting his silent obedience speak for itself. Perhaps he finally understood that Sokka had his merits, or he's simply too tired to fight anymore. Whatever it is, Sokka does not waste a second seizing the opportunity to lean in against Zuko’s side, his hand resting tenderly just under his bump, finding comfort even with the little lemur perched above them.
He'll just have to get used to sharing for now.