Word Count:179
Characters/Pairings: Sokka, Katara, mentions of others
Timeline/Spoilers: post-AtLA, pre-LoK; no spoilers
Summary: "Are you even in there, Aang?" Reincarnation's a bitch. ; Avatar Week – Day 7: Rebirth
Notes: Sort of a spiritual companion to my fic Dysfunctional Family,which also deals with reincarnation. Lyrics at the end are from When We Die by Bowling for Soup.
As soon as he hears the news, he hops on board the first ship heading southbound from Republic City and sets out that very day. Council duties are trivial matters in the wake of such. He barely has time to notify Suki and the kids before he departs.
Upon his arrival, anxious parents stand outside the hut and move to greet him, but the look on his face stops them short. He all but tears open the cloth doors, not caring for formalities.
"You show up again after how long? Don't you know what you did to us when you left? How much Katara cried, how Toph didn't speak for a week, how Zuko stayed cooped in his room for days? And your kids, did you think about them before you up and left? And, what about me? Weren't we supposed to be best friends? What happened to that?"
A warm hand touches his shoulder, comfort emanating. "Sokka."
Slowly, he sinks to his knees beside the sleeping infant's bedside. Voice hoarse, he murmurs, "Are you even in there, Aang?"
.
I can put back all the pieces; they just might not fit the same.
A/N: This has literally been in the works since LoK premiered. Everyone was doing these Bumi meeting Korra and saying "hi dad" fics, but I of course took the more depressing route. Anyway, since Avatar Week on tumblr came up, and it fit with the theme, I fixed it up a bit, but this is as good as it's gonna get, folks. Please review to let me know what you think!
