Title: Dream (1/1)
Rating: G
Warnings: It's not really a warning, but this has a pinch of Sokka/Yue.
Word Count: 1,166
Disclaimer: Not mine.
Summary: Have you ever had a dream that seemed so real you almost believed it was true? Sokka did.
A/N: Nothing heavy. This is rather lighthearted.
Dream
Sokka was flying, feeling the soft, refreshing breeze thread through his warrior's wolf-tail, caressing his cheeks, and ruffle his clothes. His arms were extended on either side of him as he glided through the night air, surveying the ground beneath illuminated by the bright full moon. The sight of the quiet countryside with its tall, rugged mountains, and smooth, rolling valleys was breathtaking. He sighed contentedly.
Suddenly, a quiet, feminine giggle echoed in his ears, and he turned to look beside him. His heart fluttered, and he could feel a blush creeping up his cheeks.
"Princess Yue," he murmured, taking in the sight of the beautiful girl from the Northern Water Tribe.
She smiled as she glided alongside him. She looked so real… but it was impossible! He stretched out his hands to touch her; he couldn't believe that she was right here with him! When he almost grasped the sleeve of her thick overcoat, she giggled again and moved away from him, and before he knew it, she had faded and vanished into thin air.
"Princess Yue!" he shouted uselessly.
"Sokka…" a disembodied voice seemed to whisper in his ear, and he felt sure it was her voice, but when he turned around toward the source of the sound, she was nowhere to be found. His heart instantly plummeted to his stomach.
Not again! He couldn't believe that he lost her all over again!
A loud, clattering sound broke through the peaceful silence, shattering the serenity, and swiftly, he was falling from the dark sky. His arms flailed desperately, trying to grab hold of something, anything, before he plunged to his death, but his fingers clutched at empty air. He panicked as the ground rushed up to meet his face, and the wind whistled in his ears in what he swore sounded like whispers, but he could not discern the words.
His heart raced, pumping wave after wave of hot blood through his bloodstream, and a translucent sheen of cold sweat formed on his skin. He stretched out his arms before his face protectively, bracing himself for impact.
"Hey," a voice seemed to call out indignantly in the distance, all hushed pretenses gone.
Just before he fell onto the rocks, he jumped up from his sleeping bag, boomerang in hand, his heart still pounding forcefully as a bead of cold sweat rolled down the side of his face. His drowsy eyes peered through the darkness in vain.
"Who's there?" he asked in as menacing a voice he could muster despite the light slur of his words.
A slight rustle of fabric by his side gave indication that Aang stirred, but fortunately, he did not wake up. Just when he was ready to fall back onto his sleeping bag, he caught a small movement in the corner of his eye. Frowning, he pulled himself up to investigate the matter.
Visibility was low, but he could still recognize some general shapes, and he carefully side-stepped the scattered pots and pans that had been used for cooking that night. Was that what the clattering sound was? He wondered absentmindedly.
He made his way toward the trees and entered the forest, not knowing what to expect. However, he was confident with the cool blade of his boomerang digging into his palm. He meandered through a few trees until a sharp crack of a broken twig sliced through the silence of the night, and he turned toward the noise. Making his way through a small clump of trees, the sight that met his eyes both froze and boiled the blood in his veins.
His baby sister and that—that…
"WHA—?" The indignant and incredulous cry was torn from his throat as he watched them jump away from each other with all the haste in the world and then some.
"Sokka!" Katara said in alarm, instinctively drawing closer to him.
"What are you two doing?" he asked furiously. "Were you k—Were you k—ki… Were you doing you-know-what with that jerk?"
He stared at the defiant boy so intensely that he wondered why the banished prince couldn't feel the hate emanating from him in waves.
"Um…" Katara said nervously, her blue eyes wide. "This is all a dream, Sokka! None of this is actually happening!"
Sokka snorted. "How stupid do you think I am?" he asked furiously.
"W—Well, if this wasn't a dream," she said tentatively, "would I be doing this?"
She began skipping around Zuko, singing the most idiotic song he had ever heard, and he wondered whether she had gone insane. That is, until she grabbed Zuko's hands—Sokka completely missed the meaningful glare she shot at Zuko—and they spun around in a circle, in the strangest "dance" he had ever seen. Then Sokka wondered whether it was he who had gone insane. After all, Angry Jerk had too much pride and dignity to do such a thing, right? Thankfully, the darkness of the night hid Zuko's deep scowl from Sokka's bewildered eyes.
Maybe Katara was right. Maybe it was all a dream. And the ridiculous sight before him was enough evidence for his sleep-laden logic.
Shaking his head, he walked back to camp and to his soft, comfortable sleeping bag as his eyelids drooped heavily. Yes, it had to be a dream. Why else would his baby sister kiss that bastard? With a small chuckle at the absurdity of the thought, he slipped back into his sleeping bag and promptly fell asleep.
When he awoke the next morning, the sun was already shining brightly above, and the delicious smell of food wafted into his nose, and he breathed in happily. He felt totally refreshed, although that dream—scratch that, nightmare—he had last night was very strange. Just to make sure, he lazily glanced toward his sister and the jerk, and with relief, he felt reassured that it really was just a dream. They were yelling at each other again, so things must be back to normal… not that it ever deviated from normal, of course, he mused.
He yawned and stretched luxuriously, prepared to join the others for breakfast. He grabbed a bowl and got himself a large helping of rice porridge and began eating with relish.
"You know," he said to his companions with a mouth full of porridge, "I had the strangest d—nightmare last night."
He missed the surreptitious look Katara and Zuko exchanged. An almost imperceptible smirk tugged at the corners of Katara's lips.
"Do tell," she said with a hint of amusement in her voice.
Sokka chewed and swallowed thoughtfully. "You were in it," he said to her and then frowned, sending Zuko a glare. "And he was too."
"Really?" asked Aang, curious.
He nodded, the scowl in his face darkening. Hesitantly, he told them what he saw.
"At least we know that'll never happen!" he concluded and leaned back, satisfied.
"But funny how dreams can seem so real, huh, Sokka?" Toph unexpectedly piped up, smirking.
End.
A/N: Please review!