#Hakoda and Azula would get drunk together

[blueleopard555]

Explanation + Spoilers for Water Lessons!

Skip this if you don't want spoilers for chapter seven of my fic, Water Lessons. This might also include spoilers for chapter eight which has yet to be released at this time. NSFW warning!

A commenter on AO3 wanted more information on the Hakoda, Kya, and Ursa love triangle subplot I added. It might seem that I did it on a whim (Tbh, I kinda did at first), but I have my reasons, I promise.

First, the commenter asked, "What where the feelings of the three of them that night?" As mentioned, Ursa thinks both Kya and Hakoda are hot. Ursa is, on some level, also a bit jealous of their relationship. Of course, they have their flaws, but to someone who was married to and is now divorced from Ozai, they are perfect. They love each other, they have fun with each other, and they have great bonds with their children.

As for Kya, she does realize that Ursa has not had best marriage in the world. While finding her attractive, she still wants to be loyal to her husband. HC for this fic is that she's never been with anyone else other than Hakoda. High school sweethearts, you know? But... what if she does want to try being with someone else after all this time? What if she wants to know that Ursa is happy being alone? A good friend would want their best friend happy, right?

Hakoda on the other hand? His loving wife and some other attractive, trustworthy woman? He'll never say that out loud but perhaps he has imagined what Ursa might be like in bed. His wife is wonderful! Perfect! Yet... like Kya, could it be a bad thing to add spice to their bedroom? (IRL, PROBABLY YES, IT COULD BE BAD)

That drunken night, Hakoda got frisky with his wife. Being slightly drunk, Kya says it isn't fair for Ursa to only watch. A switch flipped on in Kya's brain as she watched Hakoda play with another woman. That IS hot. Alcohol mixing with pent up emotions/desires is a great way to have fun and/or have regrets in the morning.

The commenter then asks, "Would it be a one night only thing or go further?" Honestly, idk. I didn't think that far ahead tbh but we'll get to the meta stuff later. Regret would be felt by all parties, especially with all their children now knowing. For Ursa, her ex-brother-in-law is there on vacation with them! How awkward is that?! If it does continue, it would be after things cool off. Or maybe things don't happen. Two of their respective children are starting to date. Like I told that commenter, the three of them did have secret ideas of them doing something together again on this vacation.

Meta Analysis Time!

This whole story has two goals/themes: Getting Sokkla to happen and showing Azula grow as a person and overcoming her fears.

Learning about the threesome that took place goes on to be the catalyst for the "first major section" of chapter eight, "A New Day." (I guess it should be "A New Several Days" but whatever!) I don't want to give away too many spoilers but… lol… Azula reflects and makes a decision. It's that decision that I hope gets the ball rolling on "Azula has gone through a character arc." IDK if my arc for her is easy to see/understand but again, I'm trying. My writing is far from perfect. Since the subplot does not directly affect the final scenes I have planned, I didn't bother expanding on the love triangle aspect of the story other than it did happen.

Now… recall how I mentioned that I added the whole subplot as a joke? This whole fic started out as two ideas: Azula biting Sokka’s during a sexual scene and her reaction to Ursa sharing what she did.

[theowritesfiction]

As promised here’s my ask/revue of chapter 29. And to preface, the was amazing.

I read and enjoyed the last chapter. (29) Plus getting a glimpse into a conflicted Katara who is jealous but also doesn’t want her friend(s) ending up hurt was great to read. And have I mentioned that I love jealous Katara who wants Azula all to herself? Cause I love jealous Katara who wants Azula all to herself.

“Obviously, Katara felt terrible for even thinking about hooking up with Azula during this sensitive drama, but her heart had no way of denying what she wanted” - I admit I started smirking at this line. Odviosily I want best girls to get together, the road to get there (despite being bumpy at times) is also just so incredibly satisfying. I swear Azutara slow burn is one of the best things in this world. Though some times Azutara getting together quickly is also satisfying. Like in Juniperhill “The dievil you know”. Perhaps it’s a contradiction to like both, but I own to that. Azutara dynamics are just the gods gift to the world.

I also especially loved the moment were Zirin is complaining that Azula is talking Katara, Yue, and Suki a bit too much. And when Azula took her sarcastic remark as a good ahead to talk about the love (and lusts) of her life made me burst out laughing.

I laughter even harder when Zirin spells out what was wrong, accosted Azula about being too obsessed with Katara, Yue, and Suki (and Kya the budding Pai Sho Genius!) and stormed off. And Azula still didn’t know what the fuck she talking about!

Yes Azula do be honest with yourself. Katara is your preferred option every time. Please continue the introspection when Sober and hungover in the morning. Maybe you preferring Katara over anyone else has something to do with Zirin throwing wine in your face?

I smirked when exasperated Katara got out of bed to pick up drunk Azula.

Yue wanting to help Suki with her foster sister was really sweet. Kya wanting to burn the gifts is sad, but eerily reminiscent of Azula herself. It also reminds of the last chapter, which was amazing (as always) but also depressing. And I’m adult enough to admit that I was bawling in time with Kya and Azula in the last chapter.

Of course Azula found a bowling alley despite being drunk of her ass. Best girl is just that person ain’t she? Except when it comes to bowling itself, cause other best girls got her beat. Speaking of that I’m sure the tongue lashing that Katara gave was one for the history books. With Azula probably think of bowling alleys and how pretty Katara’s eyes are in the night, the whole time. Oh! And throwing up on her bowling ball.

Azutara adventure ending with peaceful walk in the night and violence against an unwanted pervert? Sign me up.

“Who knows," Katara laughed, looking like she was really enjoying herself”. My cheeks are starting to hurt after grinning so much this chapter.

Azula and Katara’s little conversation in the end was very sweet. Azula being determined to get Hakoda to the Fire Nation so that she could 1 see how her interacts with his children, and 2 see Katara’s smile as being reunited with the father she misses was adorable. As was Katara and Azula’s talk about having a “regular” sleep over. And the mental image of Katara tucking Azula in, or cuddling with her.

I’m glad Ty Lee wasn’t involved in the Blue spirits orgy. Sokka doesn’t deserve to be done like that. Though Mai being engaged to Roun Jan is bound to bring interesting happenings… also Mai is absolutely right. Zuko is a hypocrite that lacks introspection.

This chapter was awesome, and I loved all the sweet Azutara moments! I’m also glad for Suki/Yue. Both pairings deserve to be with someone who will love them wholly and utterly. Know we only need for Azula to get her out of ditch… easier said than done I bet! Can’t wait for the next update!

Hey, thank you so much for the review!

Indeed, we love jealous Katara. I think especially because Katara being such a sweet person, would feel very guilty for the way jealousy makes her feel, and I just love that kind of internal conflict for a character.

interesting that you would mention the Azutara dynamics and slow vs quick burn, because @juniperhillpatient and I were just talking about that recently, and coming away with the conclusion that it really depends on the circumstances in which we place our characters. sometimes driven by codependency they will come together very quickly, and sometimes when there's less pressure on them, slow burn makes a lot of sense. these girls are very versatile about their dynamics. <3

I always love it when a totally self-unaware Azula is gushing about her crushes. It's just something that fits her so well. :)

Yes, the drama with Azula, Yue and Kya was intended to be a bit of a tear-jerker, I'm afraid! Too bad for Kya, because she'll have to wait for another parental figure a little longer, but at least we're on the right track now that Suki and Yue are starting to bond more closely. Also, I'm sure she'll eventually have a lot of fun with all those expensive gifts.

I think with how tipsy Azula was, Katara yelling at her was pretty ineffective, so Katara probably didn't waste too much of her energy there. ;) But like... I just wanted them to spend some time together where their interactions weren't overwhelmingly dominated by lust. It felt important to show that they also work together very well on the level of friendship. Of course, the attraction is pretty obvious anyway. You can see that in how sweet they are with each other. ;)

Oh don't worry, Ty Lee might be a bit airheaded in this story, but she wouldn't cheat on Sokka. Also, I'm sure Mai is going to break off her engagement as soon as she slaps Ruon Jian awake XD and yup, I'm pretty sure Zuko will hypocritically throw a tantrum when he hears about the orgy

I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter, and seeing some of the building blocks for more serious Azutara and Yueki relationships further down the road :) but I'm enjoying taking my time with it, so the slowburns will continue for some time still!

[chaoticnerdsstuff]

Do you have any Azutara head-canons or AUs?

Here’s an Au where I completely ignore the comics and Lok LMAOO

YES i do have HC'S (btw these aren’t in order)

Katara would be the one to be most supportive of Azula, and her most frequent visitor when they threw her in the… y’know.

Azula HATED Katara at first, She hated that this was the person to defeat her. She hated the fact that Katara always made time in her busy schedule to visit her. She hated that Katara was being kind to her. She hated that she was so sure that her brother was likely the one to convince katara to do this. But never once did she tell her to go away, did she try to push her away with insults? Yes. Did it work? No.

Katara only chose to help Azula because she witnessed her Mental breakdown, and it didn’t help that she knew of Zuko’s and Azula’s Homelife.

Katara was the first person to realize that Azula lost her bending(Headcanon of mine that Azula lost her bending for a few years after her mental breakdown)

It took them both years to realize they had feelings for each other and a few months to actually act on them.

Katara would often gush about Azula to Zuko, while he braided her hair. While Azula simply told her best friend, who is toph, that Katara was attractive and Toph made crude jokes that made the princess laugh her ass off.

After being released from her cell, Azula lived in the South Pole for a year, to her surprise she wasn’t beaten to death for what she has done to them in the past.

Katara and Azula often can’t sleep well, even before they get together if they are in the same place. They would end in each other’s arms for comfort.

Katara is able to read Azula like an open book, the same is for Azula.

Azula is the most awkward flirt Katara’s ever seen and she absolutely loves that about her. Azula gets flustered with a single compliment out of Katara’s mouth. Toph tried to do what Katara did and gave Azula a simple compliment, but all Azula did was call her a dumbass.

Azula is the most physically affectionate of the two.

Azula isn’t overly protective of Katara knowing what she is capable of but the same could not be said about Katara. If someone just gives them a look, she will take them down with her words, Azula loves it.

Katara is the one to encourage Azula to give her mother a chance.

When Azula and Katara play Pai sho, Azula does not care if the woman is her partner she will destroy her. Katara on the other hand doesn’t understand the game and somehow wins 90% of the time. Since then Azula swears Katara is not only a master in water bending but in strategic skill.

Katara is horrible at making Tea. Azula never tells her, when Iroh went to their house and was offered tea by Katara, he almost spat it out in an instant if it weren’t for Azula who was giving him a death glare. Azula refuses to admit that she loves Tea, just not katara’s.

Azula doesn’t mind if she’s a little or a small spoon, Katara usually prefers being big spoon.

Azula and Katara are both morning people! Even if they usually have all-nighters.

Katara practically babysits every time her girlfriend and Toph are in the same room

When they get arguments they both make each other Tea, sit in silence, then begin talking about what and why the topic upset them.

Azula regains her bending when she is in her late twenties but doesn’t use it unless necessary, Mostly uses it to show off to Katara and ZuZu.

Katara still gets nightmares of Azula screaming out flames, And Azula still gets nightmares of her time in that cell. They don’t talk about it until one of them begins shouting in their nightmares.

Azula asked for the permission of Hakoda and Sokka to marry Katara. Sokka knowing how much the woman changed gladly accepted her into the family. Hakoda and Azula got high together and Azula revealed how much she cared about Katara, and Hakoda gave her his blessing. Unknown to Azula, Katara asked for Zuko’s and Toph’s blessing, obviously, Zuko broke out into tears while Toph punched him and told him to get a hold of himself.

Aang officiated their wedding!! Zuko walked Azula down the Aisle and Hakoda walked Katara down the aisle as well.

Since Azula was the first to get married, Ursa often nagged her about wanting Grandchildren. It usually went like this “Mother I am a lesbian” “You can always adopt!” And they have three kids: Oldest is Lu Ten(Water bender), Youngest is Kya(Fire bender), and Eldest is Mira(Earth bender) :D

Katara and Azula get married in the Southern Water Tribe and just throw a party in the fire nation, much to Ursa’s dismay.

Since Zuko got his own dragon, Azula was jealous, so Katara gifted her a Polar bear dog, which was named Fikhar. Which Azula adored from the beginning

When Azula went to the southern water tribe to visit her girlfriend/wife she offered Hakoda and Sokka advice, which they almost always took.

Azula and Katara raised their kids quite oddly, 6 months in the southern pole and the other six months in the Fire Nation. This went on for ten years before they settled down in the southern Water tribe.

Azula was the cool aunt who gave Izumi all these gifts and candies while Katara was the one who told Izumi not to burn down the courtyard or play with her mother’s knives.

[autisticzukka]

what is this hakoda zuko arranged marriage you speak of? i am intrigued

okay so the long story short is that it’s a slight rebuttal of a popular post that is very fun but i find like... unrealistic in a really intriguing way like, how would this ACTUALLY play out. I’ve talked about it at length in my server a few times, and it’s one of those AU’s -- like the genderbend zukka ATLA rewrite or the zukki fic that starts with sokka failing to assassinate zuko -- that lives rent free in my head and I’ve written a couple thousand words for.

tw for like VERY unrequited zuko in love with hakoda and the inherent comedy of sokka being in love with his fire nation stepmom.

so here’s hakoda, chief of the southern water tribe, happily not-married to Bato. and here is a more balanced war, where the north and the south are actually  allies, rather than whatever the fuck they were in ATLA. Yue already has a fiance and the Northern chief refuses to remarry. that leaves hakoda responsible for biting the bullet and doing a political marriage even though, as he points out at length, he is an elected official and if he stops being elected it’s no longer a marriage with the chief of the south pole. intelligently but mostly selfishly motivated (yue’s fiance is his nephew, after all) pakku points out that its not like the fire nation knows... that. the fire nation is dumb. ozai’s stupid.

faced with such inarguable points hakoda stiffens his upper lip, pre-emptively ends things with bato on the understanding that if this is another kya situation they’ll get back together and that he’s still the most important person to him but the tribe comes first yada yada, and deals with katara throwing the mother of all tantrums. it is slightly softened by the fact that in return for him marrying the fire nation noble, a thing everyone can agree isn’t traditional, the north has finally agreed to train katara. she heads out before the wedding, in protest but also so as to not cause an international incident.

(on her way, she’ll find aang. with the war less dire, katara will be sympathetic towards his desire to live without committing violence, even if she deeply can’t relate. they’ll have a hot girl romcom summer of self discovery and coming to terms with the dichotomy between duty and love as they become master benders. at some point they pick up toph. they ARE a throuple.)

sokka meanwhile is like.. not cool with it.. but ? kind of relieved? like. he’s the eldest kid. he’s 18, and he’s been a man of the tribe as far as legalities for several years. it would have been entirely understandable if his dad had asked HIM to do it. he had his emotionally crushing romance with yue, and as much as he was like ‘im kind of a prince’, he finds he doesn’t actually want some of the responsibilities and demands that would bring. yue’s life sucks.

back in the fire nation, zuko never demanded a quest and never went on it. he’s spent years hardening into something that, while brittle, can survive the pressures of the court around him. he still has his scar. he still wants his father to love him, but he knows by now that it’s not something he’s capable of earning. he watches his sister, never the most stable person, start to have complete breakdowns of sanity once she hits puberty, and helps her cover for it and receive medical treatment on the down low. he’s the heir, but he lives knowing that if he was ever in a position to inherit his choices are to abdicate or have the baby sister who he raised kill him and destroy herself and the country in the process.

when he realizes the plan is to marry azula off rather than someone more reasonable-- mai is RIGHT there, for fucks sake-- he doesn’t realize ozai’s true intent is to fuck this up through malicious compliance and false shows of good faith. he panics, and does the zuko thing: he blurts out that this is unacceptable and immoral and she’s only 16 and Ozai sees the true opportunity for two birds with one stone. send zuko, let him piss someone off so badly he gets killed or divorced, and he gets rid of zuko from the line of succession permanently. there are those who are incredibly attached to teh idea of a firstborn for firelord, and it’s been a constant thorn in unpopular ozai’s side to nto be able to name azula his heir apparent without costly rebellion. but if he can taint him in the mind of the fire nation so much that birthright is easy to supercede-- yeah. this’ll work PERFECTLY.

so zuko is sent to marry hakoda, chief of the water tribe.

literally NO ONE was expecting it to be a member of Ozai’s immediate family. besides the fact that his oldest child is half hakoda’s age and his brother has 20 years on hakoda, it would have been sus as fuck - the treaty is not favorable enough to grant that kind of secession of interests. it becomes quickly apparent that this young man -- hakoda reminds himself of that repeatedly. not kid. not kid. young man. don’t think of him like a kid, it’s hard enough on both of us already. -- is not a horrible threat. he’s scared shitless and shakes with what he thinks is bravado. he’s desperate to make the marriage work. he’s desperate to not go home. he’s got a giant fucking scar on his face from where the fire lord punished him for some grievous but unstated offense.

zuko “daddy issues” fire nation sees his husband to be and, despite being scared shitless, immediately begins to soften a little. like... he’s not nearly as scary as he thought he’d be. his face can be stern, but it just as easily breaks into huge smiles, and his eyes are crinkled with laughter. he’s incredibly handsome. and his biceps are. his biceps. are. his hands are...

like. zuko thinks. okay. maybe. maybe his marriage duties. won’t be so horrible as he thought. maybe he’s ready for this. and he knows what to expect, Uncle had discreetly provided him the means and the contacts to acquire an intimate education in the whirlwind of activity that was the two months before leaving. and like, once he’d gotten past the nerves, it was often even... good? or at least... not bad? he thinks that even if hakoda isn’t a professional expert, he has a certain.... je ne sais quoi, if you will.

((DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF DILF))

sokka sees his new stepfather and immediately falls in love because he’s that kind of dumb bitch. (the core of this au is that i cant breathe thinking about sokka falling in love with his hot young stepmom his age who his dad doesnt even want to fuck. like. i CANT. sokka masturbates to ‘hand caught in the washing tub’ fantasies which are even more absurd for requiring zuko to be DOING LAUNDRY. i find it so funny.)

bato watches them at the wedding feast while hakoda is very clearly trying to treat zuko as an Equal Adult Partner and mostly managing to seem like someone having a serious conversation with a seven year old about the game they’ve made up. zuko is clearly enamored with it, soaking up the attention, blushing and doing his best to Bravely Flirt, which at one point includes awkwardly attempting to feed Hakoda by hand. bato has to excuse himself to have a teary eyed giggle, hoping that Kya is in the spirit world looking down and laughing with him. he can’t resent the kid even a little bit, when hakoda is sitting there looking so incredibly fucking befuddled as to what he’s supposed to do with this star struck infant he’s legally wed to

anyways all of this... is very funny. their wedding night... is less so. zuko does not take the rejection from hakoda very well, especially because he’d been caught wanting. HE’S the one who should be rejecting hakoda. and he catastrophizes almost immediately about his potential value to the water tribe, his future treatment, that endless inescapable freezing cold loneliness is the good ending for him here... hakoda, meanwhile, drops zuko off at his home, reassuringly informs him that there’s NOTHING else expected of him and he will be well taken care of, and books it to bato’s. bato refuses to let him in on grounds of ‘you can’t sleep under the same shelter as me on your wedding night to that kid, have a fucking brain’, and he ends up crashing at sokka’s.

sokka, who had KNOWN that his dad wouldnt, but also upon seeing zuko and zuko’s awkward flirting was like... but how COULDNT he???? sokka is relieved.

the core of this fic is that i find it endlessly hilarious for zuko to try and seduce his husband while sokka simps around zuko and bato tries to be heartbroken or betrayed but mostly ends up with a giant case of hysterical schadenfreude. but the thing that CLINCHED it for me, like THE scene. several years after being married, settled into their life. they’re partners and they see each other as people. and zuko just fucking snaps one night

he just kisses him, desperate and clawing and climbing and maybe a little drunk. he knows hakoda is going to push him away, maybe even hit him, but he doesn’t care anymore, he doesn’t care. he can do anything he wants to him as long as he just-- finally does something. zuko is 21 and married to the surface of the sun and the surface of the sun jr is his best friend and clearly in love with him-- so clearly not even zuko can miss it-- and like. listen. listen. zuko is not a patient person. but he’s been patient for this. he waited and he matured and he is a fucking amazing husband and he wants this, he wants him. he wants to be wanted.

but hakoda doesn’t push him away. hakoda doesnt yell at him, or hit him. hakoda gentles the kiss into something soft and closed lipped. he pulls away slowly, and his eyes are so sad for zuko, so pitying. he strokes his cheek with the back of his hand so gently. he says, I’m sorry. I don’t want you.

and zuko daddy issues fire nation swallows

and he nods

and he leaves, even though its his own fucking house

and he knows he’s never going to be good enough

like FUUUCK i am OBSESSED WITH THAT

[gemgirl28]

Katara, we can safely say (given the fact that the fandom often seems to implicitly age her up by several years), is pretty hot. And where is our evidence that older Katara is hot?

Her mom, Kya. If we go by Water Tribe marriage customs, it’s entirely possible that Kya married Hakoda at 16 and popped out Sokka and Katara at 17 and 18, making her just 32 at the time of the show.

So keeping that in mind, do you have any crack pairings, smutty headcanons, anything steamy related to Katara’s hot mom? Would she be up for a threesome with Hakoda and Ursa? If her husband was out of the picture, who could you see her with? Is there an AU where Kya gets captured (but escapes and can’t return for some reason) and somehow Sokka and Katara end up a half-sibling like Zuko and Azula have with Kiyi?

Alright so first off anon, thank you so much for this ask. It is the wildest thing to ever appear in my inbox has absolutely made my day.

I'll be honest, before this I really had not given Kya much thought beyond 1. She is a milf and 2. I headcanon her as chieftess and then Hakoda took over as chief after her death. But now that you've asked...

I could definitely see Kya as being bi. I don't know about a threesome (or a relationship in general) with Ursa only because in a Zutara endgame, it'd get pretty awkward really quickly. I do however see her and Hakoda having a pretty serious long-term relationship with Bato.

(Because Kya has alllllll the game, she would realize Bato and Hakoda were into each other ages before they did, and while at first she thought it was cute, she finally got tired of waiting for them to get their stuff together and intentionally got them drunk one night and that's how that started.)

Gotta say I don't see Kya moving on quickly if something happened to Hakoda. IF, and that's a big if, she really knew he was gone, a fun crack pairing would be her and Jun.

So for a "Kya is taken prisoner and not killed" AU I don't think she'd have another kid because 1. See above about her not moving on and 2. Even if she somehow was told Hakoda was dead, if she did move on I think she'd be very careful to not have a kid because she wouldn't want to risk losing them the ways she was torn from Sokka and Katara.

(There's a lot of potential for angst in that AU and as anyone knows angst is not really my schtick so that's all I've got for it.)

So to sum up, I don't really spend a lot of time thinking about Kya's potential sex life but it would be, to quote Ron Swanson, epic and private.

[bellatrixobsessed1]

Kissing Dead Pearls (Part 6)

Sokka used to chase gulls with her.

That was how they met. On a bright sunny afternoon. One where the sun blazed hotter than it had all summer. Where there were only a few extraordinarily puffy and perfectly white clouds in the sky. The forecaster had announced record high temperatures that afternoon and Ursa had been yelling, from atop the cliff,  at her to get inside before she got charred.

Azula decided that day that she was a sea dragon and had boldly declared as much and that, “dragons don’t get hot!”

Ursa had stormed off the patio at a brisk pace, only to be caught by Ozai. He’d muttered something to her that was probably akin to, “let her have her fun, I’ll watch her.” Because Ursa had disappeared back into the lighthouse--presumably by Zuko--and Ozai made his way down to the beach.

She caught sight of Sokka and his family before Ozai had made it to the sand. Hakoda held his hand and Kya held Katara’s. They’d expected her to take a shining to Katara first, but she’d marched right up to Sokka and declared that his shark print swim trunks were cool, but that her dragon swimsuit was better.

For a while she, Sokka, and Katara batted at a mound of sand with brightly colored plastic  shovels. Katara insisted that these little mounds were sandcastles. Azula’s had more shape to them, but they kept collapsing every time Sokka carelessly chucked sand at them. She couldn’t hit him with her eclectic blue shovel until his parents weren’t looking. And when she’d finally gotten the opportunity, he hit her back! Zuzu never hit her back. The look on his face when she’d whined that he hit her was priceless. And for nearly an hour she played exclusively with Katara.

And then they’d spotted the seagull. She hadn’t paid it much mind, none at all, actually. She had a rather decent sandcastle in the makings now that Sokka was in time out. But the seagull made itself known by landing upon her hard work and collapsing it. She screeched in aggravation and she thinks that her father might have had to stifle a chuckle. Hakoda, next to him, surely did.

In an attempt to get himself out of trouble he chucked his dark blue shovel at the gull. It squealed and shambled off. “I bet that you can’t catch it!” Azula proclaimed loudly.

“I can so!” Sokka insisted.

“If you do I’ll buy you a boat!” In essence it was a promise to steal her daddy’s credit card and somehow make her way to the boat shop across the way. Not that Sokka, only eight, could do anything with a boat. And not that she, only seven, could legally purchase one.

That logic passed the both of them by and he chased the gulls for days, sacrificing countless hamburger buns for the sake of that quest.

He never did catch that seagull.

.oOo.

She knows that she ought to go home, that there’s no sense in staying, especially not now that the tide has risen again and she can’t make her way out to the rock cluster. Instead, Azula sits on the shore with her head resting on knees that are drawn up to her chest, toes buried in the sand. The sun beams down upon her, scorching her skin. But it doesn’t matter. Nothing particularly does.

She knows, just as much as she is aware that there is no point to watching the arch, that she shouldn’t hinge her entire life on one boy.

One kind, humorous, and loving boy.

But then, this is no breakup. It isn’t a matter of moving away or growing apart. There is no chance of getting him back. So maybe it is justifiable and understandable to give in and render herself useless over one boy. One kind, humorous, and loving boy.

She feels numb. Numb to the sun on her skin that would normally breath life into her. Numb to the ocean lapping at her calves that would normally soothe her. Numb to the kind ocean breeze and numb to the greetings of the old sailors and their good natured inquiries about how she is holding up.

She answers that she is fine.

She is not fine.

Ozai has returned to the bar with a promise to come back by noon. The promise is well intended but empty no less. A few drinks from now and he will have forgotten that he’s made it at all.

It is Katara that finds her. She isn’t surprised, the girl has probably seen her from the deck of La-bsters. In the same way that Azula goes to the arch, Katara likes to sit on that deck and read or stare at the ocean and the seagulls as they zip by.

She watches Katara pad down the beach, hears the crunch of the sand beneath her feet as she kicks up small clouds of it. “Zuko told me about last night.”

Azula scoffs. “Of course he did. Zuko should stop sharing other people’s business.” She doesn’t mean to be snappish and confrontational.

Katara gives a sad half smile. Azula supposed that Katara is used to her moods, she is prone to cold and biting remarks when grief settles in. The girl drops beside her and hands her a mango-pineapple smoothie, her favorite. Long since going enviro-friendly, it is served in a hollowed pineapple. “On the house.” Katara smiles. Azula takes a sip, a pleasing fruity tang bursts on her tongue like a mouthful of sunrise. “I made it myself.” She adds.

“No wonder it tastes so horrible.”

Katara gives her bicep a firm nudge. “At least Toph didn’t make it, you remember Toph’s smoothie, right?”

Azula nods and gives her eyes a roll. “The Mustard Mango Mishap, who cold forget.” They’d let Toph truly her cooking skills and she’d very confidently pushed the mustard dispenser instead of strawberry and then several other smoothie flavors before handing it off to Azula.

It tasted lovely; pineapple, peach, and mango. But instead of strawberry or even wild berry, Azula tasted mustard. She gagged and sputtered, “i-is that mu-mustard!?”

“Whoops.” Was the only answer she’d received.

Azula sips her smoothie, the beverage icy against her palms. She adjusts her sunglasses and peers into it.  “He’s dead.” She remarks bluntly.

Katara cringes. By now, she is used to Azula’s straightforward speech. She is used to it enough to take no offense, to know that she means no harm. But it doesn’t take away the sting of hearing the word ‘dead’.

“I know that he meant a lot to you too.” She says quietly.

Azula grips the pineapple tighter and lightly gnaws on her lower cheek. “I loved him.” She doesn’t think that she had told him enough. In fact, she is almost certain that she had only been able to do it once. When she, face red like a sunburn, asked him if he’d like a date with her. She recalls playful teasing, mostly central to her fluster, before he had agreed.

“So did I.” Katara says. “So do I.”

“Sometimes I want to go out and search for him myself.” Azula confesses. “That way I could say that I did everything I could.”

Katara nods. “Yeah, I sometimes think of the same thing. But then I remember that I don’t have a boat.”

“I do.” Azula replies. “Father is never home, he’d be too drunk to miss it.”

“Azula…? You’re serious?”

Azula rifles through her beach bag and pulls out a journal and several books on navigation, boat maintenance, and general sailing tips. She opens the journal and shows Katara a few pages of notes. “I’ve been studying them for months.” She pauses. “Before he went missing. He was always so enthusiastic about sailing and I enjoy learning new things. I figured that I could do my research and we’d go on a trip together one day…”

She sees Katara’s eyes tear up and her lip tremble. “He would have liked that a lot.”

Azula nods. She turns back to the horizon, watching the place where the clouds swoop down to touch the ocean. “I could get Zuko and we can all go together. I can bring Mai and TyLee, maybe…” She wasn’t holding her breath on that. Despite owning a boat rental, TyLee is horribly afraid of the ocean and is prone to seasickness. And Mai’s mother, kind as she is, is all too overbearing to let her go out to sea. “Your father can come along. And your mother.”

“One of them would have to stay behind to work on repairs to our restaurant. I can’t just leave either of them alone.”

Azula understands. It might just be she and Zuko. Or she alone. “Think about it?” Azula requests, picking up a shell and turning it over in her hand.

Katara is silent for a good while before replying, “sure, Azula. I’ll think about it.”

Azula fidgets with the shell.

“Really, I will.”

Azula nods.

[sky-kiss]

Urzai Day 4: Modern AU

A/N: I failed. This was going to be business AU. With a lot of boardroom sex. And then it was. Sokka getting the parents drunk and them just being filthy and confessing all their youthful indiscretions. Now it’s this.

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AU Where Everyone Is Disgustingly Happy and It’s Pretty Gross

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“I fail to see why we must attend.”

Ursa took a steadying breath, staring straight ahead instead of at the man beside her. If she looked, the urge to slap him upside his idiot head would prove too great. Instead, she pinched the bridge of her nose. She reminded herself of the reasons she had fallen in love with him. She reminded herself of the two beautiful children they raised together.

Better. She turned, painting on a radiant smile, “Because, my love,” she stressed the endearment, enjoying the scowl it elicited, “this is a family affair. And, like it or not, Sokka is practically family.”

“Not yet.”

She pinched his forearm, “Hakoda will be there. You like Hakoda.”

“I tolerate Hakoda,” he corrected, turning up his nose. There were times when her husband struck her as a paragon of men, forward thinking, handsome, charismatic even. There were others when she could not shake the impression that he was nothing more than an oversized child trapped in a man’s body.

“Yes, well,” she smoothed a nonexistent wrinkle out of his dress shirt, patting his stomach, “I tolerate you as well, dear. So please. Behave.”She knocked on the door before he could argue, shifting the bundle beneath her arm. A bottle of wine for herself, cinnamon whiskey for her husband, and a pie (bakery bought; she had no talent herself) for the children.

Despite Ozai’s grousing, she had high hopes for the evening.  Sokka hadn’t offered much in the way of an official explanation; he was just excited to have a place of his own after sharing an apartment with his sister for the past three years. “A get together kind of thing" had been his exact words. Kya had kindly translated to “ a housewarming party.”

Ursa was happy for the him. In part because he deserved it; of all the young men she’d she’d had the pleasure of knowing Sokka was one of the few she would classify as genuinely good. And, more selfishly, because she knew how good he had been, and was, to her daughter. It was something of an open secret among their social circle that Azula had spent the majority of her nights at the house.  Helping Sokka unpack.

“He’s really quite hopeless,” she’d muttered, making a show of inspecting her nails. “Honestly, it’s a miracle he’s made it this far.”

The hand at the small of her back smoothed upward, fingers curling in the fabric of her shirt as he leaned past her, knocking on the door. Ozai’s voice pulled her from her reverie, “If you’re going to stand there all day navel gazing…”

She shook her head, chuckling despite herself.

The conversation inside silenced immediately. She could just make out the sound of Sokka barking orders (at her own son, most likely) and then feet padding across the hardwood. The water tribe boy was grinning, a hint of color already in his cheeks from the heat, “You found the place! See, Azula. I told you they’d find it.”

Azula, leaning against the kitchen island, made some flippant gesture with her hand, “I didn’t doubt they could find us, imbecile. I doubted they would come.”

“Well,” Sokka turned back to them, grinning, “Shows what she knows. How are ya, mom?”

Ursa chuckled, returning his embrace, “I’m doing well, dear. Are you settling in?”

“Yeah. Yeah, just...boxes. A lot of boxes,” he scrubbed a hand over the back of his neck, surveying the living room. While it was mostly put together now (her daughter’s influence, no doubt) there was still an element of chaos. Nothing she and Kya couldn’t fix over the course of an evening. Sokka held his hand out, tone more somber, “Mister Huo.”

Ozai shot her a look. To an outsider, she imagined it must look as austere as any of his other expressions. After decades together, she saw it for what it was. Thinly veiled amusement. Her husband linked his hands at the small of his back, standing to the full of his considerable height, “Sokka.”

“Dad’s out back making burgers if you want to go help. Think he was going to make a fire or something.”

Ozai’s eyes widened, “He’ll burn your house down.”

Sokka flashed him a sheepish green, shrugging, “Yeah. That’s what mom said too.”

Her husband grumbled something under his breath, pausing to press the obligatory kiss to her cheek before stalking towards to the back door. It was probably for the best. Conversation would be easier without Ozai looming over their shoulders. And Hakoda, for as dear as he was, as good as he was, was better off with a more...grounded partner supervising his lofty endeavors.

The water tribe boy stared after the man, shaking his head. “We’re never going to eat.”

Sokka sounded appropriately miserable. A bead of sweat trickled down the side of his face, a testament to the summer heat and the oppressive humidity. Staring out towards the backyard, Ursa was inclined to agree with him. Already, she could hear the telltale signs of their bickering.

“I’m just saying. If you had a little more vision, we’d have this done in half the time,” Hakoda flipped the burgers for perhaps the fifth time in as many minutes. Too often. He shot a dark look at her husband. Ozai stood to the side, arms crossed over his chest, unrepentant. He was already portioning out their whiskey, tone droll, chiding.

“There is a burn ban in place for a reason, Hakoda.”

“Are you this unimaginative in every aspect of your life, Ozai? If so, remind me to offer Ursa my condolences…” Kya slid the back door shut. The rest of their conversation was (mercifully) droned out.

Sokka took the pie from her, motioning for her to follow, “C’mon. We were waiting to take a tour of the house until you got here.”

“That was very sweet of you, dear, but you didn’t have to go through any trouble on my part.”

He waved her off. To her surprise, Azula uncoiled from her position near the kitchen island, moving to twine her arms around the young man’s waist. It was...impressive growth for her.  Even months into their relationship (and after her parent’s reservations were finally erased), she’d been leery about showing public affection. She’d spent years cultivating her public persona, encasing herself in armor; even the smallest show of attention was too much like a gap in her armor.

That she felt she could express herself here was telling. Ursa  fought the urge to reach out and touch her daughter’s face. Azula’s smile was subdued, maybe even indulgent, but it was there. That meant the world to her.

Kya rolled her eyes. The water tribe woman pressed a glass of wine into her hand, tipping her head towards the hallway, “If you’d prefer, Ursa and I can show ourselves around…”

Her son shook his head, half a step from lunging in front of them, “Not a chance. You guys will start ‘organizing’ and I’ll never find anything again. Now. First stop, the bedrooms.”

The older women shared an amused glance. Neither of them missed the way Sokka took Azula’s hand. Neither of them  missed that the girl was mostly willing to follow, her protest entirely feigned.

______

It was a comfortable house, she’d give him that. Nothing overly remarkable (which shock her, honestly; Sokka was painfully traditional in some respects and a pioneer in others). Perhaps the most impressive aspect was an addition he had made himself.

He was living here alone (technically). The master bedroom was his. The spare was set up to serve as an office sometimes and a place for guests to stay. The third room was just...excessive. So he’d started a project all his own.

Sokka scrubbed and the back of his neck, gesturing at the polished hardwood floors. The far side of the room was lined with mirrors; an effective replica of any ballet studio. Ursa hid her smile behind her hand, listening as the boy fumbled through his justification, “Don’t smirk, mom. The room wasn’t doing me any good and Azula needed a place to...you know. Practice. And at least if she’s here when she falls…”

“I do not fall, Sokka.”

“If she falls,” he corrected, “I can drive her to hospitable or something. Or at least...defend the paramedics when they arrive.”

Ursa smiled, “It was very thoughtful of you, dear.”

“Eh. Gotta give her some reason to stick around.”

She didn’t respond but found herself shooting another glance towards Kya. The other woman shook her head. In silent agreement, they hung back a few steps, letting the couple lead them back towards the kitchen. They were involved in a little squabble, verbally prodding each other until Azula dug her elbow into the boy’s side. It didn’t keep him from laughing.

Ursa shook her head, linking her arm with the water tribe woman, “I don’t think I understand their relationship. But I’m not exactly in a position to judge.”

“Let’s just say love is strange, hmm? Leave it at that.” She liked the other woman. She was clever and feisty and had a...realness to her that was lacking among the majority of Ursa’s social circle. She liked the glint in her pale eyes, the hint of mischief as she leaned against her shoulder, “And how are you holding up, Ursa? After everything with Zuko?”

She snorted into her wine, “Ah. You mean after he decided to take ten years off his mother’s life?”

“More or less.”

Her (idiot) son had decided to vanish over the weekend. She’d been none the wiser until Azula forwarded her one of the (less flattering) new articles. Tycoon’s son married in Vegas. Ursa was still in the process of recovering. Her frustrations were only made worse by Ozai’s sudden indifference to the whole affair. For once, he wasn’t willing to chastise their son. Ursa finished her glass, “I’ll make it through. How’s Katara?”

Kya snorted, “Happy to have her brother out of her hair, I imagine.”

It’s all...oddly companionable. They two women drift into more neutral territory. How busy the hospital was recently (they were understaffed again, Kya was convinced that was responsible for her fresh string of grey hairs); how Ursa was managing the company’s latest merger.

It was...lovely.