AN: Woah...did I actually manage to post a chapter on time? Damn, look at me go. Haha, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter. It was so fun to write, so I'm sure it'll be fun to read. Thanks to ZekeTheDude for Betaing, as always! Now, read on!

"Have you seen Princess Azula?"

"I have not. Might I ask why you're looking for her?"

"Uh, we made a bet that I couldn't go two hours without sneaking into the kitchens and I lost. I was just looking for her so I could let her know."

"Ah, I see. Well, unfortunately, I do not know where she is. But it pleases me that you two seem to be friends. I noticed in Ba Sing Se that she seemed happier around you. "

"Err… well, I wouldn't say happier, per say. I'd just say… less angry. She's less angry when I'm around. That's it. Haha. Well, uh, I'm just going to go, uh, look for her! It was nice talking to you, General Iroh!"

"Same to you, Sokka."

Sokka slips away and angrily slaps his hand against his forehead, "I'm such an idiot. Why did I think it was a good idea to talk to General Iroh? Of course he would notice something was going on!"

The Water Tribe warrior grumbles to himself as he wanders all over the Fire Nation palace in search of the Princess. He looks all over the place and still, she's nowhere to be found. First, he checks the kitchen. After all, he spends a lot of his time there, so it was worth a shot, right? He pokes his head in and turns and looks around, shoulders slumping in disappointment whenever he realizes she's not there. Second, he checks her room, managing to slip past the guards to get into her chambers. It's completely empty, so he ducks back out to keep looking. After that, he runs all over the palace, checking the sparring grounds, the throne room, and even Zuko's private study, but he can't find her anywhere. He's just about to check their tower, when he stumbles upon a pair of gossiping maids in the corridor. They're standing outside of one of the bathrooms, arms full of towels, as they chatter on. Sokka doesn't give them a glance until he hears something that catches his interest.

"Well, Yuji told me the Princess hasn't been in the Royal Gardens in years. Not since Fire Lord Zuko was banished as a boy." One of the maids, a short and stocky woman, leans in to her friend, like she's divulging a great secret.

"Are you sure about that? Yuji is notorious for blowing things out of proportion." The second maid scoffs, " I swear, one day that man is going to lie to the wrong person and end up dead."

"Yuji wasn't lying about this. Sayo was there as well, and she confirmed what Yuji was saying."

"Well, if Sayo says it's true, then it must be." The second maid adjusts the towels in her arms, "Hm, I wonder why the Princess decided to go to garden then. Fire Lord Zuko was always more of the type to loiter around there."

The first maid giggles and drops her towels in a basket on the ground, "Well, Mu Tan, if you're so curious, why don't you go ask Princess Azula herself?"

"And have my hair burnt off? No thank you."

The two women scuttle away, whispering and laughing amongst one another. Meanwhile, Sokka is already walking quickly towards the Royal Gardens, determined to find Azula. The Royal Gardens are typically closed off only to the royal family, but since he's a war hero, as well as a close friend of both the Avatar and the Fire Lord, he's thankfully granted access to the gardens. He's only been in there a handful of times, seeing as he's never really had a reason to step inside. He isn't exactly the type to just go sit outside in a garden.

When he makes it to the door, the guard lets him in without a word. He spots Azula right away, sitting by the pond. There are turtleducks in the water, swimming around and making noise. She's glaring at the animals, as if they had committed an unforgivable sin against her. He begins walking towards her, doing his best to stay quiet.

Of course, he should have known that Azula would hear him coming. When he's about three feet away from her, she turns, "What are you doing in here? You never come to the gardens."

"I could ask you the same thing. If the palace gossip is correct, you haven't been in here in years."

"That is true." Azula turns away, gazing back out in front of her.

Sokka sits down next to her and reaches for her hand, lacing their fingers together. He's not worried about being caught, since the only other people that are allowed in the garden are Zuko and General Iroh, and he doubts either one would make a random trip right now. Sokka knows for a fact that Zuko is having difficulty negotiating with the ambassador from Ba Sing Se over trade details, so he should be plenty busy.

Sokka bumps his shoulder against Azula's, "It's pretty out here, isn't it?"

"If you like this sort of thing, then I suppose."

"Why don't you come out here more often?" Sokka asks, genuinely curious.

"I hate the garden." She says, turning and giving him a flat stare.

"You… hate it?" He questions, turning his head, "I mean… I'm not one for gardens and stuff. But you have to admit… it's pretty peaceful out here."

"For you, maybe."

"Why are you out here, then? If you hate it so much?"

"Must you ask so many questions?" She snaps irritably, yanking her hand away from Sokka's.

He raises his eyebrows, surprised by her anger. Sure, Sokka and Azula loved to bicker. It was fun and it usually ended with them in bed together. But it had been awhile since Azula had actually been angry with him. He really wants to asks her why she's in such a sour mood, but he values his face and he doesn't want it to be burned off. So instead, he stays quiet, taking turns between looking at Azula and looking at the water, waiting for her to either answer his question, or to change the subject.

The minutes tick by in a semi uncomfortable silence before finally, Azula speaks up, "I have always hated the garden, I suppose, even as a child. It reminds me of my mother."

"Your mother?"

"Yes, my mother." She looks down at her hands, examining her nails. After a moment, she looks up, giving Sokka a disinterested look, "As you know, my father always favored me over Zuko. Zuko was everything my father hated. Emotional, weak, and a terrible firebender. I was everything that my father wanted. I excelled at firebending, and I never failed to make him proud."

Sokka shakes his head, finding it impossible to even imagine having Azula's childhood. Ozai was the complete opposite of his father. Where Ozai was cold, cruel, and ruthless, Hakoda was warm, loving, and compassionate. He might not have been rich and royal, like Azula and Zuko, but at least he grew up with a loving family. In Sokka's opinion, this was far more valuable than anything money or power could provide.

"My mother, on the other hand, babied Zuko to pieces." Azula continues talking, continuing to speak in a flat, monotone voice, "She was always there to wipe away his tears. She spent most of her time making Zuko feel better, so she tended to favor him over me. She didn't understand my father, and since I was so like him, she didn't understand me. I don't have many good memories of my mother, and since she spent most of her time here in the garden, I suppose I don't have many good memories of here either. This is more Zuko's sanctuary, rather than mine."

"So why did you decide to come here?" Sokka asks softly, letting a few seconds go by.

"I don't know." Azula shrugs her shoulders, "Nostalgia, I suppose? I'm not sure, really."

Sokka nods, unconvinced. Azula wasn't the nostalgic type. Or, she never had been before. Azula cocks an eyebrow at his concerned expression and rolls her eyes, "Now don't sit here and feel bad for me, please. It's not like I'm saddened by my relationship with my mother. I feel nothing towards her."

Sokka's expression shifts from concern to skepticism and he just knows she isn't telling the truth. If Azula felt nothing towards her mother then she wouldn't even be in the garden in the first place, right? He doesn't say that to Azula, though. He knows she wouldn't take his thoughts well. Still, he can't help but think it. It bothers him that Azula didn't grow up with the same type of family love that he did. Everyone deserves to feel loved, and the same goes for Azula.

Sokka clears his throat and scoots closer to the Princess. He grabs her hand again, and squeezes it softly. The feelings that he'd been pushing down the past few weeks were dangerously close to rushing to the surface and he wasn't sure if that would be a good thing or a bad thing. There was a chance that Azula would take it badly and declare that she wanted nothing to do with him. That did plenty to discourage him from voicing his emotions. The last thing that he wanted was to lose Azula.

But there is no hiding it now, though, not from himself at least. He is in love with Princess Azula and he's been in love with her for weeks now. It's not easy, being in love with her. It's hard. There are some days where he isn't sure if he wants to know this madness or feel that chaos in his chest. He hadn't even seen it coming, either. If he had been paying attention, perhaps he might have predicted this, but he was too busy spending time with the Princess to even notice his change in feelings. But whether or not he saw it coming, he is in love with Azula. For better or for worse, she is the girl that he loves, and shouldn't he express that? Did he really want to hide these feelings in case she rejected him? What if she feels the same? Wouldn't he be a fool for not even trying?

In a split second, Sokka makes his decision.

He clears his throat, "Azula."

"Sokka."

"I'm in love with you." He's met with silence. A bit nervously, he holds onto her hand a little harder, "I just needed to tell you that, okay? And… I'm sorry that your parents sucked. They didn't love you the right way… But, uhm, I do, I think. I do love you."

Azula stares at him, an unreadable expression on her face. Azula's always pretty hard to read but it's especially difficult to decipher her emotions right now. He's really nervous right now, sweaty palms and all. He leans in, making eye contact with her.

"Azula, say something please."

She continues to stare at him. He wished that he could see into her brain so he would know exactly what she was thinking. Seconds tick by, and the only sound that can be heard is the sound of the turtleducks as they splash and quack around the pond. For a moment, he contemplates drowning himself in the water, just so he wouldn't have to feel this anxious anymore. He would prefer her to slap him in the face, rather than experience this uncomfortable uncertainty.

A split second later, Azula yanks her hand away from Sokka and pushes herself to her feet, "I need to go."

Sokka quickly gets up after her, "What? Azula, no. C'mon, let's at least talk about this."

"I said that I need to go." She snaps. She turns away from him and begins walking towards the garden exit.

He follows after her, jogging to keep up with her quick pace, "Azula, wait!"

Before he even knows it, she's storming back into the corridor and up the set of stairs that lead to her chambers.

He stops following when she disappears up the stairs. Dejected, Sokka drops down to the ground and puts his face in his hand. He was an idiot. He should have never told Azula what he was feeling. Now everything was messed up between them and he wasn't sure if he would be able to fix this. Azula never exactly told him anything back, but he figures that her storming away was just as good of an answer as anything else.

With a sad sigh, Sokka gets on his feet. There was only one thing that would make him feel better, and that thing was food. So with a heavy sigh, Sokka begins walking towards the kitchen, hoping it would help get Azula off of his mind.

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