Notes: Not mine!
Gravity of
love
"Um, Zuko, you have a little fuzzy thing with a shell following you," Sokka said when Zuko entered the dining room after Iroh and Katara.
"It's a turtle-duckling," Katara explained while Zuko muttered something dark under his breath.
"Yeah, but that doesn't explain why it's following His Royal Crabbiness around like he has it on some invisible leash."
"Apparantly, it's imprinted on him," Katara said, and went on to explain just what imprinting was when Sokka gave her a blank look.
"So, that little fuzz ball thinks that Zuko is its mother?" Sokka asked, his expression a cross between amused and incredulous.
"Pretty much," Katara replied.
There was a snort of muffled laughter from Aang and Toph, but Sokka didn't even try to hide his reaction. He burst into deep, gut wrenching guffaws. A muscle began to tick in Zuko's jaw, but before he could do or say anything, Sokka had leaned down and picked up the little turtle-duckling, gazing at it while tears of mirth leaked down his cheeks.
"So snicker what's a cute little thing like you cackle doing with a grumpy sourpuss like him?"
The turtle-duckling let out several indignant squawks, and Sokka laughed even harder, almost dropping the little creature as his hands shook with his mirth. The baby let out a frightened peep, and then its weight was suddenly gone. Sokka blinked, staring at his empty hand, then looked up to where Zuko towered over him, his new "daughter" held gently in one hand.
"Be more careful, you almost dropped Kaiya," Zuko snapped, glaring down his nose at Sokka.
"Kaiya? You named her?" Katara asked, delighted.
Zuko flushed red and turned for the door, but not before the others broke out into fresh laughter as Toph quipped, "Awww, that's so sweet."
Zuko flung a rather acidic comment over his shoulder before he stalked out of the room in search of some bread for Kaiya. Katara rolled her eyes and shot Sokka and the rest a halfhearted glare before taking off after Zuko. She really did think it was sweet that he had named his new "pet", and fully intended to tell him so.