I don't own Avatar of course. ... But if I did.. it would've turned out so.. much worse than it is. o-o So be thankful. :P

Also, this is a three chapter piece; though there is some in this chapter, there wont be any fire-avoidance training in the next, and most of it will take place in the third.

Part One:

Manipulation and Mistakes.

"Zuko!" Sokka complained, following Zuko around the Air Temple. "Why not?" he whined. "Please?" he begged. Zuko was tired of this. He turned around on the Watertribe idiot.

"Why do you want me to burn you?" he demanded.

Sokka paused. "Well, I don't actually want to be burned," he said. "I want to learn how to avoid being burned really- by you know, the firebenders we run into and fight."

Zuko growled in frustration. "I've been teaching you about fire, you just need to lis-"

"Yeah, but you haven't taught me how to fight fire." Sokka interrupted.

"Yes, I have!"

"Well, telling me isn't enough!"

Zuko's eye twitched. "So what, you want me to shoot fire at you?"

"Yes!"

"No!" He gripped his face and glared through his fingers as he remembered an entirely too similar conversation he once had with his Uncle about redirecting lightning. He took a deep breath. "Sokka, I'm not going to.. shoot..." he slowed to a stop as he saw the expression on Sokka's face; all of the pouting and immaturity was gone, replaced by a sincere determination.

"No, Zuko," he said. "Listen to me.. I need to know this stuff; I need to be able to hold my own, but more than that, I have my sister to worry about! She's hard headed, extremely emotional- and she constantly berates and insults you despite the fact that you could probably hurt or even kill her if you wanted to."

"Sokka, I-" Zuko started, but Sokka lifted a hand.

"No, listen please." He looked Zuko in the eye. "I need this."

Zuko sighed. "It wont help anyone for you to get burned."

Sokka frowned. "You know that Katara has healing powers with her water magic stuff. I'll be fine."

"Why can't you just be satisfied with the information I already gave you?" Zuko groaned. "Fight at a long distance with your boomerang, or up really close with your sword; if you do either, then it'll be hard for them to use firebending effectively."

"I know and I'll try my best to do that, but I wont always have circumstances of my choosing, and I need to learn how to fight them regardless of the distance." He looked directly into Zuko's eyes again. "Please."

Zuko hesitated, thought, and sighed. "Katara can heal you?" he checked.

Sokka smiled relieved. "Yes."

Zuko nodded. "Then go see if she'll heal your clearly damaged brain. I'm not going to shoot fire at you!" With that, he turned and walked away from, for once speechless, Sokka.

The next day, he was shooting fire at Sokka.

"I can't believe I'm doing this," he grumbled, punching a halfhearted ball of fire near Sokka's feet. The very morning after Zuko had refused Sokka, the idiot had gone and asked Aang to firebend at him- and Aang had reluctantly agreed, because Sokka convinced him that it was somehow for Katara's sake. So to avoid the Avatar killing their main strategist with his only adapt control over fire, Zuko was forced to accept giving Sokka a lesson whenever Aang was learning earthbending from Toph. Sokka had planned it that way if his proud grin was anything to judge by.

Feeling manipulated into the situation and somewhat irritated by the fact, Zuko sent a sustained fire stream at Sokka's chest, though too short to actually reach him- barely. Sokka quickly jumped to the side and threw his boomerang at Zuko. The weapon slammed into Zuko's ankle, knocking his leg back and causing him to fall forward, his fire stream suddenly shooting out further as he did, catching Sokka's shirt on fire as Zuko fell on his face. He growled as he lifted himself up into a sitting position and watched Sokka slapping his shirt frantically, eventually putting out the flame. He sighed.

"What?" Sokka demanded, glaring at him.

"Nothing." Zuko replied. He picked up the boomerang, and stood up. With another sigh, and handed it back to Sokka.

"What's up with you?" Sokka asked, taking the offered weapon. "So much sighing."

"What's up with you?" Zuko returned. "So much burning."

"Hey, I'll have you know that it was only my shirt that was burning!"

Zuko starred at him, then shook his head. "Anyways, we're done now that-" he started.

"No, not yet," Sokka interrupted. "I still-"

" Aang's back." Zuko finished, pointing to the Avatar and his earthbending teacher walking in their direction.

"Just one more match," Sokka pleaded. "They're still a distance away."

Zuko hesitated. "Fine." he said. "One last match for today; but this time, you have to do it without your boomerang."

"What?!" Sokka cried incredulously, as if Zuko had just told him he was to do it without his legs.

"Just give it to me." Zuko sighed.

Sokka seemed conflicted, like he somehow couldn't bare being apart from the thing. He looked like he was about to start whimpering. Eventually, his temper risen, Zuko said, "Fine, keep it on you.' He gave a stern glare. "But do not use it."

Sokka nodded hesitantly, then took several steps back. Zuko nodded for them to begin. Before thirty seconds into the 'fight' -Sokka dodging, unable to close the distance- Sokka had already forgotten his promise and was about to throw his boomerang. Zuko stopped abruptly, causing Sokka to do the same in confusion.

"No," Zuko said, walking up to Sokka. "We agreed that you would learn this without your boomerang." He held his hand out. "Give it to me."

Sokka stayed frozen for a moment before he asked, "How did you know I was about to throw Boomerang?"

"Because you were about to shift your sword to your left hand." Zuko replied, still waiting for the weapon.

"How did you know that?"

"Because your shifted your stance in the way you always do. Now hand it over!"

Sokka handed him the boomerang incredibly slowly and reluctantly. "How did you notice that?.." he muttered, but this time more to himself so Zuko didn't bother giving an answer.

Before they could continue, Toph and Aang showed up- the former of which swaying then collapsing in a heap on the ground, covered in bruises. After a moment of watching the breathing, fleshy lump that was the almighty Avatar, Sokka called out a hesitant, "Uh.. Katara? I think Aang might need some help over here?

"What?" came a distant reply.

"I said that Aang is hurt!" Sokka called louder.

Soon footsteps rushed to them, and Katara practically threw herself next to the passed out Avatar. "What happened?" she asked, straightening his body out.

Sokka shrugged, then pointed at Toph who also shrugged. "I forgot he has baby skin." she answered. But Katara wasn't listening and had already withdrawn her water from the pouch on her waist to start on Aang's injuries.

Meanwhile, Toph scanned Zuko and Sokka- or at least, was facing them. Then she said, "Hey, Sparky," He inwardly cringed at the nickname he'd been dubbed by her a few days earlier. "The reason you didn't want to train Sokka to fight firebenders is because you're afraid he'd get burned, right?"

He nodded hesitantly, not sure where she was taking this completely change of subject. "Yeah?"

"Great, then I can help. I'll just give him a suit of rocks as armor, and then you can shoot all the fire at him as you want!" She grinned.

"That would be none at all." he muttered.

Toph frowned and opened her mouth when Sokka exclaimed, "Wait, you can make armor out of rocks?!" After a short nod and a smile from Toph, he continued excitedly, "Then yes, do that!"

She grinned triumphantly, and Sokka had instant regret pass over his face a second too late, as small pieces of the temple's stone floor slammed into his body. Once he was entirely encase in stone, excluding his face, he just stood there. After a second, "Toph! I can't move!"

Toph smiled. "I know; you're not an earthbender, so of course you can't."

"Then why did you suggest it?!" he demanded, still stuck in place.

"Because I was bored." Toph replied. "Now, onto the entertainment." She then began to bend the stone around Sokka, forcing him to swing the sword around wildly. "Don't fight it- I might accidentally break your arms!" she laughed, as Sokka grounded his teeth in resistance.

Suddenly his eyes widened with realization. "Wait, Toph," Sokka started, trying to speak while being moved around all over the place. "Katara's here, she'll-"

"Toph, stop!" Katara shouted, having finished with Aang, and still had the water outside of her pouch- though this time threateningly. Zuko rose his eyebrows; she normally ever only looked at him with that intensity.

"What, Sugerqueen?" Toph replied gleefully. "This is fun! I don't understand why you don't like bloodbending; controlling people's movements like this is great!" She shifted her hands causing Sokka to charge at Zuko, his sword pointed forward. Zuko's reaction was to dodge then firebend at him.

Luckily, it didn't get pass the rocks. Now Zuko was mad also. "Toph," he started, stalking towards her. "You can't just-"

Sokka shot toward him again, and he dodged the wild sword swipe. "Toph, seriously." Sokka said, sounding oddly calm, considering his arm and feet were moving in jerky movements against his will. "Please." he added.

Toph just grinned- until a water whip slammed into her cheek slamming her head to the side. She turned on Sokka's sister. "What's you deal?!" she yelled. Her attention left the rocks that covered Sokka, so they dropped to the floor. "I was just having some fun with those tw-" She stopped. "Katara?" she asked slowly. "Are you.. crying?"

Tears streaming down her face, Katara swung around and left, leaving Toph standing stunned, Sokka regretful, and Zuko completely confused. Sokka walked up to Toph and placed a hand on her shoulder. "It's alright," he said. "She'll get over it soon, just.. try not to do that in front of her again, okay?" Toph nodded mutely, still facing the direction Katara had gone.

After some silence, Zuko spoke. "So.. what's bloodbending?" Sokka turned to him. "It's a waterbending technique that allows the bender to control the blood in someone's body, forcing them to do their will. It was used against us a month or so back, having me and Aang attack Katara, then each other." He paused, and his voice lowered. "I almost killed Aang." After a moment, he continued in a lighter tone with a smile. "It can only be done during the full moon though, so it's rather limited."

His attempt at lightening what he just explained failed. Zuko stared at him. "Oh."

Sokka sighed. "Hey.. I think I'm done for today." he said. He turned back to Toph. "Come on, we need to talk." And like that, Zuko was alone.

Well, alone with a passed out Avatar. He walked over and nudged him awake with his foot.

"Wha.." Aang said groggily.

"Katara's upset. You should go help her." Zuko replied, pointing in the direction.

"Katara?" Aang asked. Then he jumped up in alarm. "What happened?"

"Just go to her." he said. Aang nodded and left quickly, his tiredness seemingly forgotten.

Zuko sighed, and sat down exhausted. His tiredness wasn't forgotten.

I wrote this because I always wondered.. why didn't Zuko teach Sokka and/or the others how to avoid and counter firebending? Sure, he was training Aang, but he didn't spend all his time at it. I figured that Sokka would be the most likely of the group to ask for it and be able to convince him- even if it was through halfway subtle manipulation.Then I thought that some internal conflict would fit in as well; in the show, whenever they were learning an element, there was some sort of internal problem.

Katara had to deal with the traditional gender rolls of the nothern tribe and Aang temporarily lost his master due to his mistake of disrespecting them.

Learning earthbending, Aang was fighting his own nature trying to shift how his mind worked to be compatible with the element of earth while meanwhile, Sokka was stuck in a hole which ended up being what triggered his adapting of mentality.

When learning from Zuko, Aang had to leave camp to find a source of firebending because his teacher couldn't use his old methods anymore, ending up with a new understanding and appreciation of firebending.

So I thought.. maybe I should continue the pattern. But not being very creative, I decided to have Toph and Katara get into a fight over moral differences, causing Zuko to learn about bloodbending.