A/N: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender. Or Star Wars. Or Captain America. Or DC Comics.

Friends Who Ship Friends

Anakin Skywalker, by nature, was a very closed off kind of person. He had few friends, and while some might see that as a problem, Anakin liked it that way- he could trust these people, even when they drove the young ex-Jedi absolutely bonkers.

Like his best friend/former master/brother-in-arms, Obi-Wan Kenobi. Obi-Wan was highly regarded as one of the best Jedi of his time- and Anakin agreed. Not many people could say that they'd gone up against the worst the Separatists could offer- Count Dooku, Savage Oppress, Asaaj Ventress, General Grievous- the list went on and on.

Thus, in Anakin's opinion, Obi-Wan should have ladies falling all over themselves to get him to notice him. This was, in fact, true- with the war over, Anakin and Obi-Wan had left the Jedi Order to become full-fledged diplomats for the Republic. As such, they had traveled to many planets over the past two years, and had had some…. interesting times.

Anakin and Obi-Wan sprinted round a corner, hiding behind a dumpster.

"Think we lost them?" Obi-Wan asked.

Anakin held up a couple fingers. I hear footsteps, he spoke over the bond.

How many?

A lot.

The steps got louder and louder, until their cause was clear- a crowd of fangirls. Anakin would later say that he hadn't bothered to count- after the third squeal, Anakin had screamed "Run, Ben!" and bolted. Obi-Wan had been right on his heels.

This… is bad, Anakin thought. To his surprise, Obi-Wan seemed to be shaking in silent laughter. "What?" Anakin hissed.

"Don't you see?" Obi-Wan whispered, "This is why I didn't want to be famous! This is the price you pay!"

"But you're the Master here!" Anakin protested.

"But, my young Padawan," Obi-Wan mock scolded, "Jedi Master does not sound as sexy as Jedi Knight. Also, I am closer to forty than to thirty; you are in your mid-twenties, which makes you a much more… desirable catch."

Anakin had ignored the fact that Obi-Wan Kenobi, poster child for chastity, had used the word "sexy" in a sentence, and replied, "But I'm a married man!"

"A fact that has yet to reach these poor ladies, I'm afraid. Now, let's move before they see us."

Ah, pleasant memories. But, you see, Obi-Wan was now the reason why Anakin found himself in a diner… somewhere.

See, Obi-Wan had a very good friend (his own words) named Satine. A rather classy lady, she was the Duchess of Mandalore, an older version of Padme- and just perfect for Obi-Wan.

Neither of them, however, could see it. Anakin, however, did. On the two occasions when they were in the same room together, Obi-Wan and Satine would both hover around each other, neither one willing to take that first step.

As stated before, it drove Anakin bonkers. Obi-Wan and Satine were just perfect for each other! Anakin saw it, Padme saw it, Ahsoka saw it. Why didn't they?

Anakin really needed to talk to someone about it.

But first- the caf at this diner was just too good to pass up after three years of… whatever it was they brewed during the war.

James "Bucky" Barnes needed to get away from his friends. He loved them to death, but man, were they stupid!

First off, there was his old friend Steve. Steve and Bucky grew up in Brooklyn during the Depression. Steve had a heart that was too big for his tiny frame.

Then the war had broken out, and Bucky was captured. And who should come to his rescue, than Steve himself? Except… Steve was much taller than he had remembered.

And through Steve, Bucky had met Margaret Carter. The woman was everything that a guy could want- classy, yet able to throw a punch. It also didn't hurt that she could keep up with Captain America on the battlefield- not many people could make that claim, and Bucky was proud to say that he was one of them.

But they kept dancing around each other. Glances from across the room, finishing each other's sentences, starting each other's sentences- Dear God, when would they get together? It was enough to drive Bucky bonkers.

So, Bucky had gone for a walk, and found himself in a diner… somewhere. There were some interesting types here, to be sure, so Bucky took a seat next to the most human-looking person he could find.

Said person was contentedly sipping a cup of coffee. A passing waitress (her nametag read "Harleen" came up and asked Bucky, "So, what'll be, suga'?"

"Coffee with milk, please."

"Here ya go!" She said in a very cheery voice.

"Well," said the man next to Bucky, "that was… interesting."

Bucky turned to look at the stranger. Sure, he looked human, but he didn't dress like one. The scar over his right eye, plus the way he held himself, spoke of a soldier's life.

"So…" Bucky said. "Seen some action?"

"Yep. You?"

"More than enough for one lifetime."

"Here, here." The stranger held out his right hand. "Anakin Skywalker, Jedi Knight."

"Bucky Barnes, U.S. Army."

"A soldier."

"Is a Jedi any different?"

Anakin was thoughtful for a moment. "No," he shrugged. "Not really."

"Ah."

The two men sat in silence for a moment. Then, Bucky spoke up.

"So… did we just become friends?"

"I guess," Anakin replied. "Got any friends that drive you bonkers?"

"Yes."

"Then yes, we did. Tell me about your friends."

"Okay then. Steve is like my little brother. I had his back growing up. He was a scrawny thing- then he joined the Army and saved my butt from becoming a lab rat. He met this girl- Margaret's her name, but call her Peggy 'cause she'll punch you otherwise."

"She will?"

"Yep. Steve made that mistake once. Best mistake he ever made."

"And this Peggy… Steve likes her?"

"A lot. And I suspect she feels the same, but they just…" Bucky sighed. "Ever had two friends that you just wanted to take their heads, shove them together and say 'Now kiss, you morons!'"

Anakin smirked. "As a matter of fact, Bucky, I do. Obi-Wan and Satine are their names. He was the man who trained me to be a Jedi, and she's a Duchess."

"Aiming high, there, are we?"

Anakin shrugged. "I married a Senator. Your Peggy reminds me of Satine. Elegant, classy, yet a capable fighter?"

"That's it. She a redhead?"

"Nope. Blonde. But that's just petty semantics, really."

"Alright. So how do we get our friends together?" Bucky asked.

"Hmmmm…. Are there any major holidays or celebrations coming up?"

"Yes. Christmas. We all give gifts, but since it's an active battlefield, there's really not much we can do."

"Hmmm…." Anakin was thoughtful, now. "Do you have any mistletoe? I don't exactly celebrate Christmas where I come from, but there are several holidays that seem similar to Christmas that I do observe. We have mistletoe."

"Mistletoe? How… Ahh ha ha ha…" Bucky smirked. "You think it will send them over the edge?"

"We'll see. From your description of Steve, he sounds a lot like Obi-Wan. It'll just be a matter of time. I'll try the same thing- there's a party coming up- both he and Satine will be there."

"It's a plan, then." Bucky extended his cup of coffee. "To friends who ship their friends."

"Hear, hear."

A week later, Anakin and Bucky met again at the diner. The shared smirks between them indicated that they had both been successful in their endeavors.

"So… how'd it go?" Anakin asked.

"I never knew Steve had it in him," Bucky said, the glee evident on his face. "You?"

"Same here. I even snapped a picture of it." Anakin pulled out a small piece of paper showing his success.

"Ah. Ditto here." And Bucky pulled out one of his own.

Just then, a newcomer arrived, and sat at the booth on Anakin's other side. Both Anakin and Bucky looked to the new person. She was about twelve, if they had to guess, and appeared to be blind (if the paleness of her eyes were any indication), yet Anakin could not see a walking stick, and from the way she carried herself, she seemed to know exactly what was around her. What struck Anakin was the fact that she was barefoot, yet didn't seem like a homeless street rat.

She also radiated frustration into the Force.

"Trouble with friends, young one?"

"Yes." The girl turned to the waitress. "Got any calming teas?"

"Sure thang, sweet pea!" Harleen said.

"Thanks. Who are you, again?" She said, turning to Anakin.

"I'm Anakin. And you are…?"

"I'm Toph Bei Fong."

"I see. Well, Toph, me and my pal Bucky over here were just talking about some friend problems of our own that we had just recently solved. You?"

"Yeah. I have these two- Zuko and Katara. They're just so perfect for each other, but…. Urgh! I just wanna smash their heads together and say 'now kiss, morons!'"

"Oh, we know what that's like, don't we, Bucky?"

"Yep. Want some advice, Toph?"

"Sure. Anything."

"Well…."

A week later, all three met again at that same weird diner. Toph was in much better spirits, having taken the advice Anakin and Bucky's advice to heart.

And lo and behold, it worked.

Toph raised her mug of tea. "To friends who ship their friends?"

Anakin and Bucky responded. "Hear, hear!"