Chapter 4: Dojos & Pai Sho

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Sokka could barely focus on his Calculus lesson through the next period, earning him the moniker of 'flighty' from Professor Kwan. He didn't like the idea of being on the woman's bad side, as she seemed like the unforgiving type. He had asked Longshot, who sat in front of him for the class, the name of the boy with the scar from Gym class. Longshot simply frowned and tapped on the assignment in front of Sokka.

He considered asking Joo Dee, who was also in Advanced Calculus, but thought better of it, not wanting to seem desperate for information. When Sokka inquired of Longshot whether Jet was actually flirting with him or if it was just his personality, he received a smirk in response. Sokka scoffed and leaned back in his seat, annoyed with the boy's cryptic silence.

As Sokka made his way towards the school exit, after class, he felt a hand close around his wrist and pull him over to the side of the hallway. He looked around into the faces of Longshot, Jet, a very short girl with a short haircut and a large, overweight boy. Jet smiled and put his hand on the wall beside Sokka's head.

"This is Pipsqueak and Smellarbee," Jet said, pointing to the large boy and the girl, respectively. "Guys, this is Sokka." Though he was speaking to the others, his eyes never left Sokka's face.

"Nice to meet you both," Sokka said, giving them a small wave. "I would stay and talk, but I promised I would be home right after school to help out my Gran Gran." He pointed towards the door and slid away from the group.

"Wait." Jet fell into step beside Sokka, as they headed out of the school, and shoved his hands into his pockets. "His name is Zuko."

Sokka looked over at Jet and raised his eyebrows in confusion. "The boy from Gym class?" he asked, turning his attention back to the ground in front of them, which was thick and muddy from the melted snow, just as The Blind Bandit had warned.

"Yeah. His name is Zuko and he's bad news. You shouldn't get yourself mixed up with a trouble-maker like that." Jet pulled a small box out of his pocket and took a toothpick from it. "That scar...his own fault. Set his kitchen on fire having a fight with his old man." He popped the toothpick into his mouth and stopped at the corner. "I'm this way."

Sokka turned to see Jet pointing down the street. "I'm this way," he answered, pointing straight in the direction they were walking. "So, I'll see you tomorrow."

Jet nodded slowly and stuffed his hands back into his pockets. "You'll definitely be seeing me tomorrow." He gave Sokka a very obvious look over and turned away, heading down his street.

Sokka swallowed hard and chewed his bottom lip. "Intense guy," he muttered under his breath, turning back to his proper direction. He hadn't taken a single step further when he heard his name.

"Sokka!"

Sokka groaned, recognizing his sister's voice, and spun around, a clearly forced smile etched on his face. He kept his hands closed around the strap on his bag in front of him and raised his eyebrows at Katara. She was hurrying up to him, Suki following close behind her. She was smiling way too happily for it to be sincere, at least when dealing with Sokka. She stopped in front of him and waited for Suki to catch up.

"Why didn't you wait on me?" Katara asked, a false tone of hurt showing in her voice.

Sokka pulled a confused face and cut his eyes around, wondering if perhaps he was being filmed for a gag show. "Are you kidding?"

"No," Katara said, sharply, before returning to her smile. "You remember Suki from lunch, right? She is coming over today. Her grandfather lives in the apartments that Gran Gran is in." She cast her eyes back to Suki, her face beaming with admiration.

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure everyone's grandfather lives there. The place is nothing but Seniors." Sokka rolled his eyes and turned away, looking rather annoyed at the giddy laugh that Katara gave over his joke. "That wasn't even funny, Katara," he said, a little taken aback about having said that, seeing as how it was typically other people telling him that things weren't funny.

The three walked in silence for the remaining two blocks to the apartment. Once inside, Sokka dropped his bag by the door and hurried into the kitchen. Gran Gran was already in the kitchen with a large plate, full of crackers and cheese wedges. Sokka grinned when the woman laid the plate on the table and signaled for him to sit down.

"You're the greatest, Gran Gran," Sokka said, settling into the chair and starting on his snack. "I was thinking," he managed to say through a cracker-filled mouth. "I should try and find a job around here, somewhere. I don't like being broke. I have some money saved up, but it won't last long. There's a new board I have my eye on."

"Where do you think you can work around here?" Katara said, cattily as she came into the kitchen, tugging Suki along behind her. "This isn't like when we lived in the city, I doubt there are any of those punk shops around here."

"It was a skate shop," Sokka answered, sticking his cracker-covered tongue out at his sister. "Besides, I'm sure there's something I can do. Places always need dishwashers." He gave a small nod and stuffed the last few crackers into his mouth before heading out of the room, towards the bedroom.

Loud music filled the apartment soon after, slightly muffled by the closed bedroom door. Katara pulled out seats for Suki and herself when Gran Gran offered them a snack.

"Your brother is...charming," Suki said, rolling her eyes slightly at the thought. She picked up a cracker and leaned back against the chair, breaking her usually pristine posture.

Katara laughed quietly and rested her arms on the table, picking apart a cracker. "Well, he can be when he wants to be. I just wish he would act that way more often. He has his...moments."

"Oh, I wasn't insulting him. He's interesting, doesn't try too hard to impress anyone it seems." Suki gave a small shrug and smirked. "Then again, he could be trying really hard not to appear to be trying hard. That's what Jet does, it's a little pathetic, honestly. He's good looking and all, but that isn't enough for him, I guess."

Katara blushed at the mention of Jet and turned her head towards the table. "He seemed...nice." She smiled up at Suki and tried to contain the giggle that was attempting to burst from her throat.

Suki made a small scoffing sound and leaned forward on the table. "Jet is..." She sighed loudly and shook her head. "Never mind, you strike me as a 'learn the hard way' kind of girl." She smirked and tilted her head, bobbing it slightly. "I love this song," she said, closing her eyes and shifting her shoulders in time with the music coming from Sokka's stereo in the bedroom.

Katara was glad that Suki's eyes were closed and the girl hadn't seen her quick flash of distaste. "Yeah, it's...great," she said, weakly. She turned her face away from her grandmother, who had shot her a look that just screamed 'yeah right'. "Suki's parents own the dojo just down the street. She said that I could come by sometime if that was alright with you, Gran Gran."

The old woman gave a quiet laugh at the idea of seeing the girl in a dojo, but simply smiled. "You're more than welcome to go anytime you would like, dear." She turned back to the sink to hide her amusement.

Suki gave a small whine as the music came to a stop, but perked up when Sokka came back into the kitchen. "Shoulda left it on," she said, flashing Sokka a dazzling smile, which was ignored.

"I'm gonna go next door and see what Pakku is up to, I figure he could use some company and I'm kinda bored," Sokka said, giving his grandmother a quick hug.

"Don't stay out too late," Gran Gran called after the boy, but he was out the door without hearing her.

Sokka stretched his back as he stepped onto the walkway and headed over to Pakku's apartment, two down from his grandmother's. As he lifted his hand to knock, the door swung open and an old man who was bald on top with long white hair around the sides stepped out. The man was thin and tall and had a long white mustache and a patch on his chin. He carried himself like a man of great importance and his thin blue eyes made it clear he had seen things he regretted in his life. He looked down at Sokka and gave the boy an inquisitive smile.

"I was just coming over to see you, Pakku," Sokka said, smiling up at the man. "I figured we could hang out for a while. Not much to do at the house, Katara has a friend over and I feel a little outmatched with all the females." He gave a happy laugh and looked at Pakku, expectantly, but the man didn't laugh.

"I was just heading out to see a friend of mine and play some Pai Sho." The old man looked down into Sokka's hopeful eyes and sighed. "Would you like to come along?"

Sokka nodded eagerly and fell into step beside Pakku as he walked. "Hey, Pakku, did you hear about the two pretzels that were walking alone on the street late one night?"

Pakku cut his eyes towards Sokka and frowned. "Pretzels?"

"Yeah," Sokka said, grinning. "Two pretzels were walking along and one was assaulted." The boy broke out into a hysterical fit of laughter and clapped the old man on the back. "Oh, come on. Don't you get it? Pretzels...assaulted. Like a sal-"

"Yes, Sokka, I get it," the old man said, dryly. "You know, customarily, when two people walk together, they do so in silence." He pursed his lips and stared in front of him, ignoring the pout that sprang to Sokka's face. After a short, and thankfully silent, walk, Pakku raised his hand and pointed. "There is our destination. The Jasmine Dragon. My friend owns it. Do you like tea, Sokka?"

Sokka nodded and looked up at the small, two-story shoppe with light brown siding and a large Oriental overhang. It had several signs out front advertising various teas, one boasting that they had the best tea around, guaranteed. "I love tea," he said, trying not to sound too eager. "Hey look, Ginseng is the special today, that's my favorite," he said, pointing to a small sign by the door as the two walked into the tea shoppe.

"Mine as well," came a voice beside Sokka. He turned to see a robust man of his height, who appeared a bit under his grandmother's age. The man had dark grey hair, which wasn't on top, but around the sides and a small top knot behind him. His face held a large beard with five points to it. His golden eyes struck a familiar cord inside of Sokka, making him take a step back and smile, wearily. The man smiled back and looked up at Pakku. "Who is this, Pakku? The grandson of Kanna's you told me about?"

Pakku nodded and pushed Sokka towards the old man. "Sokka, this is my good friend, Iroh."

Sokka offered his hand and was pulled into a tight hug instead. He laughed quietly and returned the greeting to the man. "It's nice to meet you too, Iroh," he said, once released. "So, that sign out front says you have the best tea anywhere. I'd sure like to find out."

Iroh's eyes lit up and he smiled, happily. "That sign is right, I'll show you. Two cups of Ginseng and a cup of Jasmine," he said the last, tilting his head to Pakku, "coming right up. Go set up the board, Pakku, I'm going to take you down today. I've been practicing."

Pakku simply smirked at the man and led Sokka to a table near the back as Iroh dashed away behind the counter. Sokka let his eyes wander around the shoppe as Pakku attended to a Pai Sho board behind him. His eyes followed a boy out of the back room and into the shoppe. The boy attended to a few tables and began clearing the one next to Sokka. It took a moment, but realization dawned as he recognized the boy from Gym class.

"Zuko." Sokka hadn't even meant to speak, but he was glad he did when the boy looked up, with a half smile. He smiled back and watched as the boy's face dropped.

"You again, huh?" Zuko rolled his eyes and lifted the empty cups from the table. He turned away and headed back for the back room. Sokka got up and followed, again without thinking. "What do you want?" Zuko asked, narrowing his eyes at Sokka. "I see you found out my name all on your own." He dumped the cups into a large sink and folded his arms over his chest.

"Yeah, J-just someone told me your name." Sokka nodded, awkwardly and looked away, feeling as though he were very much unwanted in the room.

"Well, J-just someone is a jerk and I would rather you kept my name out of your little...conversations." Zuko dropped his arms and turned away from Sokka, putting his hands on the sink and leaning against it. "Did you need something else or is hovering your thing?"

Sokka frowned and opened his mouth to speak, however, for once in his life, there were no words he could find. He simply sighed and turned away from Zuko, pushing back into the main of the tea shoppe. He slumped into his seat across from Pakku and watched quietly as the two men partook in their game. He sipped at his tea, which really was the best tea he had ever tasted, and tried to keep from watching Zuko as he moved around the shoppe taking orders and clearing tables.

Sokka didn't know how devastatingly difficult it was for Zuko to concentrate on his work with him sitting there. He didn't see as Zuko would cast glances his way when clearing tables or the way that the boy would look away every time Sokka shifted in his seat. Sokka didn't see the knowing look in Iroh's eyes as he led them to the door and bid a goodbye to him and Pakku.

"Oh, Sokka," Iroh said, grabbing onto the boy's arm as he was heading out. "I don't suppose you would be interested in a job, would you? I can imagine a young boy such as yourself would need some spending money and things around here get very busy on the weekends and on special nights. My nephew and I could sure use some extra help if you are willing."

Sokka about came out of skin at the offer. "Yeah! I mean, yes, Sir. That would be great. I was just telling Gran Gran that I needed to find a job. This is great. Thank you so much. I won't let you down, Sir. Do you need a reference or anything? I have the number for my old boss, if you need." He began shuffling around through his pocket for his wallet.

"No, no, that won't be necessary. Pakku tells me you're a good kid and I'm inclined to believe him. Just show up tomorrow after school and I will get you all set up." Iroh gave the boy a pat on the back and smiled as he headed back into the shoppe.

"Thanks," Sokka said, looking up at Pakku.

"For what?" the man asked, innocently.

"For saying I'm a good kid."

"Yeah, well, if you have a job then you won't be running around the apartments telling those dreadful jokes anymore." Pakku let out a small laugh at the fallen look on Sokka's face.

Sokka pulled himself together and scoffed. "My jokes are great. For example, knock knock?"

Pakku's sigh could be heard from three streets over.

A Note From the Author: Okay, so I felt as though the "new environment" drama was really killing Sokka's style, but hopefully I've given him a bit of redemption here. What do you guys think of Sokka working with Zuko? Think that'll get things going? :D -Jenna

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