Avatar - Zukka - Borderlines P10

Title: Borderlines - Part Ten
Series: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Pairing: Sokka/Zuko
Rating: R
Word Count: 3,038

When evening rolled around, Sokka had returned with the girls without any complaints for being dragged off and all three refreshed. Aang and Momo returned from exploring the area, Zuko woke from his nap and an excellent dinner was served right there in their suite. Refreshed by the relaxing afternoon, the five friends were able to talk animatedly through the meal with recent stories and remembrances of past adventures.

Thoroughly recovered from their travels after the meal, Katara and Aang slipped out together to have a massage and Toph bid her good nights with a yawn to turn in to sleep early. The table was cleared and the servers slipped out quietly and Sokka glanced at the young Fire Lord who had placed himself on the sitting room's plush couch. With a moment's hesitation, he moved to join Zuko, sinking down beside him.

"Hey," he said softly, bumping lightly Zuko's shoulder with his own.

With the afternoon's conversation still fresh in his mind, the young lord failed to prevent the faint flush from appearing on his cheeks, but still he bumped back, mirroring Sokka's motion. "Hey. So, how are the baths?" he asked casually, glancing at the other boy only from the corner of his eye.

"Oh, really great," Sokka said with a nod. "It's crazy how many there is -- there's a map of the whole place. There's even some underground mineral baths. I told Toph I'd go with her to those tomorrow." It was easy enough to sense the tension and Sokka watched Zuko from the corner of his own eye before stretching casually and laying his arms on the back of the couch, one of them behind Zuko's shoulders. "What did you do this afternoon?"

"Caught up with Aang... took a nap..." Zuko chuckled lightly, pretending not to notice the utter lack of subtlety in the move Sokka had just pulled. "That's about it. Nothing terribly exciting."

"It's nice to just relax though, huh?" Sokka said with a hopeful smile for the other. "If you uh... if you want to hit the baths, that's cool," he said, his effort in sounding easy very obvious. From the brush of fingers at the nape of Zuko's neck though, it was also obvious that he was hoping that Zuko would stay.

"Mm," Zuko made a brief show of considering the suggestion, but then shook his head. "No... I'll just go tomorrow." He leaned back, just a little into Sokka's touch, the familiar warm flutter settling into his middle. It was a simple thing to let his own hand travel the bridge of their already touching knees, palm sliding light, suggestive onto Sokka's thigh.

A smile flickered for a moment on the younger one's mouth and then his arm was sliding in earnest around Zuko's shoulders, pulling him closer. Sokka leaned in to nuzzle behind his ear and place a light kiss on the Fire Lord's jaw. "I... mm..." He bit his lip lightly, speaking very quietly for the normally boisterous ambassador. "I'm sorry about the room thing... it's just... Katara..."

"Shh," Zuko insisted, frowning. "It's fine. I understand." He didn't have to like it, but he did understand that it was Sokka's choice if and when he told his sister about... them. At the moment, he didn't really want to talk, and with Sokka's initiation, there wasn't much room for any thought that extended past the couch they occupied. His hand was gentle on Sokka's jaw, but insistent, angling the other boy for a firm, unhesitating kiss.

Sokka sighed quietly, a pleased sort of sound and offered no resistance as Zuko took his mouth. Exhausted from travel but relaxed from the afternoon, the contact felt absolutely perfect and the arm around Zuko's shoulders tightened a bit. He tipped gently into the kiss, returning the gesture in an unusual way -- neither hurried or urgent or hesitant or nervous. Instead, slow and relaxed, he eased the kiss deeper as his hand slid across a shoulder and into Zuko's hair.

It was a welcome change, this relaxing energy, no nervous stuttering or reluctant contact. It made the heat in Zuko's stomach bloom hot and hungry and he had to consciously pull himself back from tearing Sokka's shirt from his torso right then and there. Instead he focused that need through his mouth, taking the other boy's lips in a kiss that left no room for argument. Somewhere in the back of his head,
Zuko realized that they ought to move to one of the bedrooms before Katara and Aang returned.

Zuko met no argument either, Sokka instead lifting his other hand to the other's shoulder with fingers squeezing faintly. The hunger that Zuko expressed was reflected back to him, Sokka parting his lips to invite Zuko's warmth. He didn't seem concerned about the younger pair returning -- they'd just left anyway. Instead his hands were wandering, fingers pulling at fabric as he sucked at Zuko's
lip, then trailing down pale throat until the heel of Sokka's palm was rubbing at his clavicle just under the collar of Zuko's robes.

A stifled groan met Sokka's enthusiasm, Zuko clutching at the back of the other's neck, pulling him close. When Sokka could quell his own nervousness, the young man honestly had amazing skill with his hands and Zuko knew he could quickly come undone under such touches. He didn't know what had come over Sokka, whether it was the vacation, or the bath or simply being away from the palace and his work, but whatever it was that spurred him forward, Zuko could only be grateful now and reflect on it later. "Sokka..." he breathed, teeth scraping a sensitive ear lobe.

With breath growing slow and deep, still he didn't hesitate, though he shuddered as Zuko teased at his ear. "Mmm..." was his answer to his name and he glanced at the Fire Lord with some shyness or chagrin as he tugged at the tie that held Zuko's top closed. When it slid away, Sokka didn't remove the other's shirt but simply let it fall open and a hand ghosted up his stomach to turn into a firmer touch over his ribs. Then with a steadying breath, Sokka was tugging and shifting and drawing him back into kisses that were gaining urgency when his feet ended up on the couch and back against the cushions.

Zuko braced himself with one arm as he arced over Sokka, knees on either side of the other boy's legs as he let the fabric fall from his shoulders, and ducked in to suck hard at Sokka's throat, his free hand tucking underneath to explore the arch of Sokka's lower back, drawing him up, easing his head back and his throat bared for Zuko's mouth to reach.

With his chin tilted sharply, eyes widened at the arm of the couch with this treatment. Though his breath quickened a little, still Sokka didn't protest and in fact tilted his head to invite further the heat of Zuko's lips to explore sensitive places. Unsure of what to do with his hands, they first found purchase in the light fabric of Zuko's pants, clenching when the other boy nipped at his skin. But as Zuko's pale hands tugged at his own shirt, Sokka's breath hitched and he turned his face back to his partner. Just as the tunic fell open, he was pulling at Zuko by his garment, dragging the other down
on top of him to stifle any little amounts of hesitation in fervent kisses as skin met skin. Sokka's arms wrapped around him, hand catching on the back of Zuko's head as his lithe body arched up against Zuko's.

The demand in Sokka's hands and body was enough to make Zuko's head swim, and he groaned audibly against Sokka's temple as the other's arms slid around his bare waist, holding them tight together. As close as they were it was impossible for either boy to pretend that neither was affected by the contact. Zuko didn't know where Sokka's confidence had come from, but he knew it was exciting and more than welcome and it stoked his own pleasure, filled his head with things he longed to do to the Water Tribesman laid out so wantonly beneath him.

Sokka echoed the murmur from Zuko's throat with his own strained sound as Zuko's weight sank against him and they shifted, finding a way to fit together without much considering it. He was starting to pant faintly in the heat of the moment and the thought had already occurred to him that they really ought to move from the front room but the idea of stopping for any reason seemed unfathomable at that moment. Instead his arms only wrapped tighter around Zuko, his mouth on warm, pale skin and dark hair tickling his cheeks. As they settled and shifted, Sokka's cheeks were blazing -- and his breath caught in his throat as hips pressed together. Before he could even consider something resembling self-control, his own hips responded without his consent and arched against the weight and pressed his heat into Zuko's response. "S-shit--" he whispered, almost apologetically and forced down a swallow.

Zuko could only agree, closing his eyes against the room's light and breathing harshly against Sokka's throat, swallowing the urge to bite his skin, to mark him for everyone to see. Instead he focused on meeting Sokka's jerking movements, pressing him hard into the cushions, demanding, soothing.

The sound of a door scraping open over stone tiles failed to register. Nor did near silent padding of bare feet.

It only took a step or two -- along with the quiet sounds of deep breath and rustling fabric, the vibrations of movement and racing heartbeats -- and the feet stopped.

"Oh my GOD," Toph said, startling both boys out of their minds. Sokka stared up at Zuko with wide eyes, blanched enough to match the Fire Lord's pallor. "You've GOT to be kidding me."

Zuko jerked back suddenly, nearly falling from the couch as he reached for his discarded shirt though he knew the younger girl couldn't actually -see- him. He froze, awkwardly tangled in Sokka's legs, achingly hard and trying to swallow around the knot in his throat. The Water Tribesman was not going to take this well. "Toph," he snapped, irritably. "Shut -up-."

"Calm down, Loverboy!" Toph laughed, grinning at some point to the far left of the couch. "Not my fault you decided to get busy in a common area!" Sokka was trying to disappear into the couch, hands pressed over his face. "Man, I'm glad I'm blind right now."

Zuko groaned and covered his own face with a hand, rubbing at the dull ache just over his left eye that he knew would shortly become a full fledged head-ache. Once again, the mood was ruined. "Toph, just promise him you won't tell his sister so he at least begin to remember how breathing works?" A quick glance at the other boy told Zuko that things, at the moment, were not going well in Sokka's head.

"Fine, fine," Toph said with a shrug. "I won't tell her. And I'll even leave you two alone because that's how nice I am." She walked over to the dining table and picked up an apple which she tossed in one hand. With her hand back on her own door, she tossed over her shoulder, "Have fun, boys."

"Kill me," Sokka managed weakly once her door clicked shut. "Just get it over with."

Zuko sighed deeply. Yep, there was that headache. "She's not going to tell Katara," the young lord pointed out, though there was little hope in his voice that suggested he thought the evening could be salvaged now.

Sokka acknowledged this with a helpless groan as he lay an arm over his eyes. It wasn't that he didn't believe Toph would keep her word -- he just didn't feel like this boded well at all. Then he sighed deeply, his tension deflating into something more akin to despair. "Do you think I should?" he mumbled.

Zuko blinked, turning to look down at Sokka's hidden face. "What, tell your sister?" He could honestly say he was surprised that Sokka was even considering it. "That... that's up to you," he offered, hesitantly, unhelpfully. "-I- don't care if she knows." And he didn't. In fact, there was a tiny, spiteful part of Zuko that -wanted- her to know, just to see the look on her face when she learned that her brother was, in fact, capable of making his own decisions even if she didn't approve of them.

"Mm." Sokka didn't moved for a long moment but his lips shifted as though there were words forming themselves inside. When he spoke again it was still a mumble. "I'm afraid she'll tell our dad." If the mood wasn't ruined before, it was crushed now.

Zuko raised a brow, heaved a tiny sigh. "Because I'm the Fire Lord or because I'm a guy?" he asked. It wasn't, he supposed, fair to ask, but the question had just... slipped out. He remembered Sokka's father as being a good man, but he didn't honestly know much about him.

Sokka lifted his hand enough to offer a faint, indignant scowl at the question. "How about both?" he said a little irritably.

"I can't change either of those things." Zuko looked away. "And if people can't accept it, that's their issue, not mine."

This got Sokka's full attention and elicited a brief flash of anger across his features. "I know you can't change that -- I'm not saying I want you to," he said. "But it's easy for you to say that -- your uncle thinks it's just great! But how about when the pressure starts coming on -- you are the Fire Lord --" He was ranting now. "-- you're going to be expected to make an heir, you know. You'll start hearing that really soon, I bet, as soon as things start cooling down. Do you have a good wife in mind cause last time I checked I've got no Fire Nation blood AND I can't make babies--"

"Enough!" Zuko cut him off, glaring angrily, mostly failing to hide how Sokka's words --and the truths he spoke-- shook him. "You think I don't know all that? Well I do!" Now he stood, disheveled and upset, pulling his shirt back on and looking everywhere but at Sokka. "It's shitty, I know! And it's hard and I don't know what to do about it. But I'm not ready to just give up and marry some stranger like my father did. I'll-- I'll think of something, dammit! Just don't expect me to have all the answers all at once!" He paused, breathing heavily, holding his shirt closed as though it were keeping him in one piece. "If you're that worried about it, just don't tell her," he amended, making some effort to reign in his temper.

Sokka was sitting up now, arms folded sullenly over his chest. The good news was: he was no longer aroused, that was for sure. "I don't expect you to have all the answers," he pouted. "And --" He lifted his chin and looked at Zuko. He was being defiant simply for the sake of it now. "I'll tell her if I want to."

"Great," Zuko lifted his hands in surrender. "Do whatever you want." A sigh and he stepped past the couch, shoulders curved in defeat and irritation. "I'm going to bed."

"Fine." He heard Sokka get up and the door to his room snap shut. When Zuko moved on with a sigh and opened his own door, Sokka surprised him by appearing to step past him as though he'd been invited in.

Zuko stared as Sokka glanced briefly around the room as though inspecting it for imperfections. "What are you doing?" he asked, wary.

"I'm going to bed," Sokka said as though Zuko were a complete idiot. "Just because that other room is mine doesn't mean I'm going to sleep there."

Zuko grumbled but in truth, he didn't -want- Sokka to leave. Still, his pride couldn't handle such a verbal admission, so he only sniffed faintly and began undressing.

Sokka seemed to be smart enough to at least allow him this much and didn't say anything else, discarding his clothes down to his shorts which he left in a messy pile on Zuko's floor before making himself comfortable in the other's bed. He seemed to be petulantly asleep before Zuko even blew out the lamp.

Zuko took his time getting ready for bed, as much, perhaps, to annoy the other boy as to ensure he was asleep by the time he joined him. When the room was dark and the young Fire Lord slipped between the sheets, it was without a sound and as little disturbance of the bed as possible.

As he settled as far to the edge of the bed as he could, it seemed for a moment that he was safe. But then a strong arm lashed out and grabbed Zuko around the middle, hauling him closer in spite of his protest. "Stubborn," Sokka mumbled at him as he settled again with an arm resting across the other's pale chest.

Zuko flushed, tensed for a moment before grumbling under his breath and letting himself relax into the circle of Sokka's arm. "-Who's- stubborn?" he argued, but didn't pull away once he'd settled. "...good night," he mumbled, not entirely disguising the affection in his voice.

"Good night," Sokka mumured back with just as much petulance and resistant affection. He buried his nose behind Zuko's ear and whispered as a threat, "I'm gonna snore as loud as I can. So there."

"If I accidentally fire-bend in my sleep," Zuko answered, eyes closed and casual as could be, "it's not my fault."

"Oh yeah?" Sokka whispered, his own eyes shut although there was a strain in his voice as he attempted not to laugh. "Well, I've got a boomerang in my shorts."

"Does it curve to the left or to the right?"

Zuko wasn't exactly surprised when the response he received was a smack upside the head.