Sokka had known for a long time that he was the one
who had to make the plans. It was the way of the
world, the flow of the chi, if you would. Some
people were benders, some people, or, well, one
person actually, was the Avatar, and he was the one
who could read a map so they didn't end up flying in
circles all day long.
That was the way of things and it'd worked pretty
well so far.
But he had to admit, that as a guy with a plan, Zuko
wasn't too shabby. The Fire Lord's vacation home was
a heck of a lot nicer than camping out and living
near an actual town meant there was actual food to
be had. Meaty food, a little spicy, true, but meat!
Yeah, Zuko could definitely be second in command as
far as plans went.
It was a shame that the plan for sex tonight wasn't
working out quite as well.
When they'd first arrived on Ember Island, Zuko and
Aang had wandered off to talk to Katara and he'd
been pretty fine with that. It wasn't that he didn't
understand Katara's desire to revenge their mother's
death. No, he had a pretty good handle on that one.
But he'd figured out a long time ago that even if he
did kill the bastard, it wouldn't bring their mother
back. All he'd have was an empty heart and blood on
his hands.
But if Katara had needed to figure that out on her
own, that was okay, too. She could even borrow Zuko
to do it but dammit, she was supposed to give him
back. It was dusk now and the jerk was nowhere to be
found.
Part of the problem was the house was too big. Who
needed a vacation house with a dozen bedrooms,
sitting rooms, two kitchens, and even servant's
quarters? Sokka knew because he had already searched
all of them and found zip. No Zuko.
Slipping outside through one of the way too many
doors, Sokka walked silently around the path that
wound through to the courtyard. It was dark, light
barely seeping out through the windows to color it
in shades of dim and Appa was curled up near the
fountain, his bulk a pale smear against the darker
night.
Appa made a soft, lowing sound and Sokka started
towards him, only to stumble to a stop and stare at
his suddenly found objective.
It was times like this that he could really use a
witness because all of the world should know about
it. The former prince of the Fire Nation with two
hands buried up to the elbow in shaggy white fur as
he scratched behind Appa's ear. The bison huffed out
another groan of appreciation, tilting his head and
Zuko obligingly scratched there as well.
"There you are, big guy, that's a good boy," Zuko
murmured.
Sokka held back in the shadows, silently watching.
Sometimes it was hard to reconcile this gentle,
slightly awkward boy with the one who'd been chasing
them all that time.
"You really are an ugly thing, aren't you?"
And sometimes it wasn't.
Appa crooned as Zuko found a new choice spot to
scratch and then took the opportunity to give the
boy a slobbery full body lick, soaking him in
saliva.
"Ugh," Zuko sputtered, shaking out his arms. "Ugly
and drooly." He still smiled, fending off another
attack to reach into his tunic. "I know, this is
what you're really after."
Sokka narrowed his eyes, peering into the dimness to
see what Zuko was holding. Round and red, the
perfect specimen of an apple. Appa eagerly opened
his mouth and Zuko tossed it in the wet cavern of
tongue, still smiling faintly as Appa crunched away,
nuzzling at Zuko's tunic in search of another.
"So here you are," Sokka said, crossing his arms and
leaning back against a stone pillar. It was
completely worth it to see Zuko startled, faint
sparks tingling from his fingertips as he moved
automatically into a firebending posture.
Sokka yawned, unappreciative. "Are you sneaking Appa
treats? After Aang just said he was getting a little
round and needed to cut back?"
Zuko started guiltily, dropping his hands. "It's one
apple! How much difference could one apple make in a
creature this size?"
Sokka raised an eyebrow.
"And he was hungry," Zuko said, a little sullenly.
"He was begging me!"
"Appa started talking today, too? No one ever tells
me anything."
With a last glare, Zuko turned away, focusing his
attention on Appa as though if he stopped scratching
the bison, the world would end in despair. Shifting
a little from foot to foot, Sokka tried to decide if
Zuko was actually upset. It wasn't like he was a
happy ray of sunshine at the best of times and
trying to tell the difference between sad, depressed
little Zuko and completely normal depressed Zuko was
sort of giving Sokka a headache.
Oh, man. What if he needed to
talk? This was
definitely not his area of expertise. Aang was the
'in touch with his inner girl, please, chat me up'
guy of the group and Sokka was more than happy to
steer anyone who seemed like they needed any verbal
massaging in his direction. Sokka preferred the more
manly pursuits, like insults and wrestling and sex.
Very manly.
Except for how this was Zuko, and Sokka had been in
and out of his pants, and other parts of him, for
the better part of a couple weeks now, so if there
was any massaging to be done, verbal or otherwise,
it really shouldn't be Aang doing it.
Talking. Right.
"So, ah, how did everything go with Katara?" Sokka
fumbled out, twisting his hands together awkwardly
and readied himself mentally for the flood of
emotional goo that was sure to follow.
Zuko's hands stilled and he slowly drew them away
from Appa despite the bison's groaning protest.
Biting his lip, he turned to look at Sokka, his eyes
still bright in the shadowy twilight. Sokka braced
himself; here it came.
"Could we not talk about it right now? Because I'd
really rather just suck you off."
It took a minute for those words to trickle through
the angst filter that Sokka had thrown up in his
brain and another minute for him to stop gaping at
Zuko, and geez, who knew a prince could talk so
dirty and not even hint at a blush. He really
needed to do it a lot more often.
He found himself squeaking out a feeble little,
"Okay!", his mouth obviously deciding that it didn't
have time for his brain to catch up and then Zuko
was fisting his hands into Sokka's tunic, turning
him and pushing him up against the warm, furry wall
of Appa's side before he just dropped to his knees.
They hadn't done this all that many times, barely
more than a handful that they had to sneak when his
father was around, and Suki, too, but Zuko was
obviously a fast learner, barely fumbling at his
belt before he tugged Sokka's trousers down to his
knees.
His mouth was wet and pink and
hot, this
fantastic cavern of damp heat around him, and Sokka
couldn't even strangle out a yelp before Zuko was
swallowing him deeply, the sweet curl of his tongue
around the head made Sokka throw back his head and
gasp at the sky, briefly, insanely, grateful that
the moon was hidden by clouds tonight.
Firebender, he thought dizzily, his hips rocking
forward without his permission and he had two
handfuls of Zuko's hair clenched between his
fingers, whimpering as Zuko obligingly tipped his
head up and took him that much deeper, velvety
wetness and heat inside, so wickedly hot and he came
so hard that the cloud-hidden stars swam instead
behind his eyelids, weakening his knees until he
sank down to the ground, sprawled out and just plain
used.
He opened his eyes just in time to see Zuko lick his
lips, the wet gleam of his mouth enticing enough to
make him twitch painfully in hidden parts.
"You really do like that, don't you." His own mouth
apparently didn't know how to shut up while his
brain was still on vacation and Sokka winced at how
that sounded. He could have possibly phrased that so
it didn't sound so...astonished.
Zuko didn't seem offended; he actually smiled a
little, lips still faintly swollen. "Yeah, I really
do. It's powerful."
"Powerful?" Sokka frowned. "Buddy, it looked a lot
like you were the one on your knees to me." He bit
his tongue a fraction of a second too late, stupid,
stupid, mouth, he wanted Zuko to like it, wanted him
to do it again, so stay shut!
This time he got an offended look, golden eyes
narrowing in that pissy little way Zuko had. Without
a word, he bared his teeth and clicked them together
sharply.
Sokka flinched, cringing from the very thought of
it. "Okay, yeah, powerful."
Hesitantly, not because his mouth was stupid but
because he just...he had to know. "In the prison,
would you...would you have bitten the guard?"
Heat flared in Zuko's eyes that was nothing like
passion, almost glowing in the darkness. How had he
and his uncle ever managed to hide in Bai Sing Sai,
you could
see the fire in him, some
indefinable core of him burned hotly in a way that
could never be disguised.
"I don't take orders well," Zuko said, that heat
filling his voice.
"Yeah, tell me about it," Sokka said dryly and
because he'd had enough of all the chatter, he
decided to go with the more manly pursuit of more
sex, leaning in to lick at Zuko's swollen mouth. It
was like he'd given permission for something to
break free, Zuko grabbing him by his shoulders and
pushing him back against Appa, warm fur at his back
and eager hands at his front, bordering on frantic.
It made Sokka laugh, breathlessly, into Zuko's mouth
as he tried to get past those fumbling hands and
onto a little bare skin himself. "If you'd hold
still, I'll give you what you want."
"If I keep moving, I can just take it," Zuko
whispered against his mouth, tongue dipping inside.
It almost distracted Sokka from the hand sliding
down his back to his ass, cupping one cheek and
squeezing firmly.
Sokka's breath froze in his lungs, his tongue
stilling against Zuko's and with startling
perception, Zuko paused, pulling away and searching
Sokka's face. "No?"
The sticky-sweet afterglow faded abruptly away,
leaving him feeling chilled in all the places Zuko
wasn't pressed against. But he couldn't say no,
didn't have the right, he'd gotten his turn and he
was a man, he could do this.
Where Zuko had suddenly gotten his perception Sokka
wasn't sure, but he had poor timing. "Sokka, we
don't have to."
"I want to," he said firmly, skinning his pants down
and off. He could do this, he wasn't stupid, he
understood the concept of fair trade and Zuko had
barely offered a protest when Sokka had taken his
frustrations out on his ass, so it was okay. He
could do this. It was his turn.
He slipped down to his knees, resting his weight on
his elbows. It was almost worth it to see Zuko's
shocked expression, slowly turning again to heat and
that made Sokka look away, focusing his attention on
the rocky ground beneath him. Okay, they could have
picked a better venue, but Sokka was nothing if not
adaptable.
Warm hands skimmed over his backside, smoothing over
his skin. The bare brush of a fingertip between his
cheeks made him tense a little. Sokka took a deep
breath and forced it out, holding perfectly still as
Zuko prodded slightly deeper, testing lightly. That
fingertip slipped away but before Sokka could feel
more than a moment of relief it returned, slick this
time and when the hell had the prince of Fire Nation
decided to start carrying around lube? How was he
planning on explaining it to anyone, that he had it
in case someone needed an emergency massage?
That finger pressed a little deeper, just inside,
and Sokka grunted a little, burying his face in his
folded arms.
"You need to relax," Zuko murmured, his breath warm
against Sokka's bare hip.
"I'm fine!"
"Sokka, I can't--"
"Just do it!" he snapped, pushing his hips up like
he could force Zuko inside. He could handle the
pain, dammit, they didn't need to natter on about it
like cowbirds.
The sudden increase in pressure against him and
suddenly Zuko's finger was completely inside him and
oh, gods, it
burned, deep and unrelenting and
he couldn't help tensing against it, his whole body
stiffening in rejection.
As quickly as it had come, it was gone, the burn
fading. A faint involuntary sob of relief slipped
free of Sokka's throat. He swallowed it away,
shooting Zuko a look over his shoulder.
"Wh--you stopped?"
"I can't do this," Zuko said with quiet firmness.
"What? Why?" Sokka rolled over, frustration thick in
his throat, bitter and hot. "I didn't say you should
stop!"
Zuko sighed heavily. "Sokka, I couldn't even if I
wanted to." He gestured at his body and even in the
dark Sokka could see he wasn't the slightest bit
aroused anymore. Frustration surged into
humiliation, how could Zuko not want him?
"You're sixteen!" Sokka exploded, "How does that
even happen!"
The other boy's lips thinned into a white line and
he stood up, roughly straightening his clothes. "If
you think I can fuck you while you're shaking and
terrified beneath me then you have a much lower
opinion of me than I thought."
Sokka gaped at him, his own anger draining away. He
was as shocked by the obscenity as he was by Zuko
abruptly storming away, ignoring Appa's lowing
farewell. The most heated thing he'd ever heard Zuko
say before was 'stupid'.
It took him a second to realize that every moment he
sat here bare-assed, Zuko was getting further away
and probably into a better hiding spot.
"Wait!" he yelped, yanking on his pants, hopping
after Zuko on one foot as he desperately tried to
tug them up. He gave up on the ties, holding them
closed with one hand as he darted after the other
boy.
Zuko had managed to get a fair distance away in his
temper, refusing to look at Sokka when he jogged up.
"C'mon, wait!" He caught at Zuko's elbow gingerly.
Zuko slowed but kept his head turned away, letting
Sokka see only the scarred half of his face. Sokka
sighed, scrubbed a hand over his own face. "I don't
think anything like...what you said, all right? I
don't think that."
"Then what do you think?" Zuko asked acidly and
Sokka winced at his tone. Pure princely sullenness
in that one.
"I just--I need to do this!" Sokka burst out. "I
have to!"
"You have to?" Zuko repeated, tipping his head
enough to look at Sokka in disbelief. "Why do you
have to?"
"I--" Sokka trailed away and now it was his turn to
look at the dirt. The rocks didn't provide any
answers. The tips of his boots were worn and scuffed
but had nothing to add. "I have to..." Sokka
muttered, finally. "It's my turn."
"Your turn," Zuko echoed him again, utterly
bewildered. "Your turn to what...to
bottom?"
"I have to!" Sokka burst out in a furious whisper.
"You did it!"
For a long moment, all Zuko did was stare at him,
mouth working slowly, soundlessly, until he finally
turned away, shoulders quivering. Oh, geez, he
wasn't...he couldn't be crying, could he? But when
he turned back his eyes were clear and shining
perhaps a bit too brightly.
"Okay," Zuko said, a bit strangled. "I understand
where you're coming from. I get it. But, Sokka, you
do know that I'm not exactly keeping score, right?
I--" he choked up again, biting his lip fiercely as
a sound almost like a laugh slipped free. "Sokka, I
swear, this is the first time I've ever heard of
anyone trying to get fucked to prove their
manliness."
Proving your manliness had nothing to do with
fairness, Sokka didn't point out, mostly because the
sound of Zuko's raspy voice spitting out obscenities
like jewels was kind of hot. Super hot.
"Say that again," Sokka demanded, grabbing the front
of Zuko's tunic.
He smirked, tilting his head so that his hair
spilled lightly against his cheek in inky trails,
golden eyes shaded under his lashes.
"What, fucked?" Zuko purred it, breathed it against
Sokka's shoulder and he couldn't form a single word
of protest when Zuko tugged him down, shoving him
back against a stone pillar as he loosened Sokka's
pants, hot hands slipping inside and touching him in
entirely wonderful ways.
"Wait...I have to...it's..." Sokka shook his head as
words, his trusty companions, failed him and left
him utterly inarticulate.
"Shhh," Zuko murmured, easing his own pants open
until they were pressed against each other, the feel
of bare skin making him gasp and his last orgasm
could have been years away instead of only a few
minutes as Zuko took them both in hand, stroking
with wicked, quick touches.
"But I--" Sokka tried, weakly.
"Let me do this?" Zuko begged softly, "I want this."
Fairness would have to wait. The hot pressure of
Zuko's a hand holding their cocks together was
tangled in with Zuko's mouth on his own, the hot
sweep of his tongue sliding slickly against his own
as Zuko stroked them brutally, going for his own
orgasm as only a man could and just dragging Sokka
along for the ride. And that was fine, that was
perfect, Sokka arching up with a cry as wet heat
spilled between them, Zuko's low moan muffled into
Sokka's shoulder as he shivered and came.
"Oh...gods...Zuko...you..." Words were just not
going to make peace with him tonight.
"Just Zuko is fine, I'll leave being a god to
someone more qualified," Zuko murmured, faint
laughter in his voice. It made Sokka want to say
something, do something, to make that laughter come
out for once and what had made Zuko so determined to
stifle his emotions away? That burning he felt when
he thought of the Fire Lord was sharpening into a
purer hatred, colder, like deep, black ice.
It was hard to think about it with Zuko still
pressed against him, terribly sexy with his cheeks
flushed and his lips wet, panting slightly.
"Come back to bed with us." He said it without
thinking, words that had abandoned him suddenly
tumbling stupidly free to form just the wrong thing.
Zuko flinched; there was no other word for it. All
that sweet, heavy bliss pooling between them faded
like steam and wordlessly, Zuko did up his trousers,
hopping to his feet in a graceful little move that
made Sokka want to roll him right back to the
ground. His expression warned Sokka against trying,
completely closed, eyes shuttered.
"Zuko..." he exhaled, let it trail away.
"Goodnight," Zuko whispered, barely audible. He left
Sokka sprawled on the ground, walking too quickly
away as he was absorbed into the darkness.
Sokka sighed and let him go, wincing as all the
little rocks and pebbles from the path made
themselves known. Squinting a little down on the
ground, Sokka suddenly realized that he and Zuko had
actually had sex on the path where anyone could have
just walked on up and gotten an eyeful. Or in Toph's
case, a footful.
He basked a little in the manly pride of that before
he finally rolled to his feet, trudging back to the
house with less enthusiasm and more exhaustion than
Zuko had shown. At least one warm body was waiting
for him to come back and she wasn't going to take
off and play hard to get.
That night he dreamt of the moon, the pale oval of
it hanging behind his eyes as he buried his face in
the sweet curve of Suki's shoulder and slept the
justifiably exhausted sleep of the well-sexed and in
his dream there was warmth behind him as well, the
almost too-hot pressure of bare skin and in sleep,
he never noticed the emptiness, dreaming of
something more.
-finis-