"Zuko, Zuko, Zuko, Zuko, Zuko, Zuko!" Sokka babbled hyperactively, taking a seat beside Zuko in the courtyard. Zuko barely looked up, as he had gotten used to Sokka's childlike enthusiasm.

"What is it?" he asked, absentmindedly reading his book.

"Remember how I got upset last week because there were no ice skating rinks nearby?" Sokka asked, grinning.

"Errr...yes?"

"Well..." Sokka dug around in his coat pockets, until he eventually retrieved a blue flyer from his jacket. "Behold!"

Zuko bent over and took a look at the flyer. It showed two graceful skaters twirling about the rink, with a heading at the top that read-Spirit Oasis Ice Rink Grand Opening! Join us on October 16th, 12 pm!

Zuko's eyes widened, and he actually started to get excited. He had always wanted to know how ice skate, but there were no rinks around Palace City, and it was too hot for anything to freeze over.

"So, what do you say? Care to embark on a frosty adventure?" Sokka announced with a flourish, and for some reason taking on a snooty accent.

"I'd love to, actually! I've always wanted to know how to ice skate," Zuko exclaimed, much to Sokka's surprise.

"Seriously? You really want to? I don't have to, like, drag you or anything?" he asked incredulously.

He let out a soft chuckle. "Yes, Sokka, I mean it. You're going to invite Suki too, I presume?"

Sokka rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "Actually, she's the one who found the flyer, and then I asked if I could you to come too. She also said she was going to invite another person as well, but she hasn't told me who they are yet. I suppose we'll find out eventually, right?"

"Err...yes, I suppose so," Zuko replied, nervous. He shouldn't be too worried about the mystery guest. As long as it wasn't Jet.

...

"Alright, so I scored the tickets, now I all I have to do is invite everyone to the event! It's going to be so much fun, don't you think so?" Suki exclaimed excitedly, slamming the tickets on the lunchroom table.

"Yeah, it's going to be great, but just tell us who you're inviting already! It's been getting my detective nose twitching." Sokka wiggled his nose.

"Pffft, I didn't know you had one. You couldn't tell the difference between water and coffee yesterday," Zuko snorted.

"Hey, all cups look the same to me! Suki, tell him I'm a detec-"

"Wait, hold up a second guys." Suki suddenly stood up and waved enthusiastically at a passerby, and Sokka and Zuko turned around to see who it was. Yue was strolling right past them, arm in arm with a boy that looked about her age.

Yue perked up and grinned at her as she strolled up to the pair. "Hi, Suki! How are you?"

Suki grinned broadly in return. "I've been doing fantastic, actually! I...uh...kind of wanted to ask you something."

"What is it?"

"I found this flyer for an ice rink nearby, and the three of us-" Suki gestured to the trio. "-were going to head over there. I just wanted to know if you would like to join us."

Yue perked up, and smiled cheerfully. "I would love t-" Suddenly, the boy she had been talking to grabbed her hand and starting talking for her.

"Sorry, she's busy that day," he responded, donning a confident smirk.

"What do you mean? I didn't even tell you when it was yet!" Suki protested indigiantly. "She was clearly about to say yes, why are you answering for her?"

"Because I'm her boyfriend, and I know what's best for her. Now, stop meddling in other people's business. Come on, Yue, let's go." The boy continued to pull at her hand, but Yue wouldn't move an inch. Her face was scrunched in fierce determination.

"No, Hahn. I can make my own decisions, and I've decided to have some fun with my friends. Is that okay with you?" Yue spat coldly.

Hahn seemed taken aback by this, but eventually let out a disgruntled sigh. "Fine, then. Go skate around with weirdos, if that's you want. Come on, let's have lunch already."

Yue smiled sweetly at Suki as she walked away with Hahn, leaving Suki to skip cheerfully back to the table.

Sokka's jaw had dropped. "Suki, what on earth was that all about?" He had never seen the two of them talk to each other, let alone become best friends.

"Well, I helped Yue out with the lemurs that had escaped a couple of weeks ago, and we've been texting each other since. What's there to say?" She turned around and gazed in Yue's direction with a dreamy expression on her face.

"I'm sure there's plenty of things you'd like to say to her, am I correct?" Zuko asked with an innocent smile. Suki turned bright red and promptly fired her mashed potatoes at him.

Sokka was hopelessly lost, but he decided that he might as well accept it. No one wanted to tell him anything, it seemed like. If Suki wanted to be friends with Yue, who was he to judge?

...

The four of them had been waiting in line at the Spirit Oasis Ice Rink for about 30 minutes. They still needed their ice skates, but so did about a hundred people. Suki and Yue didn't seem to mind, as they chatted furiously with each other the entire time. On the other hand, Sokka had been babbling excitedly while Zuko smiled at his childlike enthusiasm.

"Skating's pretty hard at first, but once you get the hang of it, it's like you're a part of the ice," Sokka exclaimed, waving his hands around animatedly.

Zuko laughed. "Yes, I'm sure it is. Although, I'll probably find out once we actually get our skates."

Once they did, they headed to the rink that seemed the least crowded. Sokka and Yue immediately glided out onto the ice as if they were born in the cold. Zuko and Suki, on the other hand, were a little more timid.

"Um...at first I was really excited, but now I think I'm having second thoughts," Zuko stuttered.

Sokka turned around and grinned broadly. "Don't worry, Zuko. Even if you fall, it doesn't hurt much. Besides, I'll catch you before that ever happens!"

Suki smiled and glided out onto the ice before Zuko could make up his mind, and immediately fell into Yue's arms. They both laughed jovially at this, making up Zuko's mind.

"O-okay. I'm coming." Zuko nervously let go of the railing and began to skate in Sokka's direction. The ice was a lot more slippery than he had expected, however, and he promptly hurtled towards the ground.

He was stopped suddenly by Sokka's arms positioning themselves between him and the ice. Zuko stared up at him in befuddlement, which was greeted by a broad smile. "See, I told you I'd catch you!" Zuko couldn't help but blush.

Sokka, who apparently didn't notice, helped him to his feet. He gripped both of Zuko's gloved hands and began to skate backwards. "Let's go for a little walk around the rink, okay?"

"Alright." He clutched Sokka's hands tighter.

"Now, push forward with your left skate-no, not my left-then just glide with the other skate. Left...right...left...right...that's it!"

Zuko continued to slip up on occasion, but Sokka was always there to catch him. By the time the falls stopped hurting, Zuko had gotten the hang of his ice skates. He and Sokka spun around the rink, laughing their heads off.

Zuko was pretty sure he could skate now without Sokka holding his hand, but Sokka always refused to let go of it, saying, 'I couldn't skate properly until I'd done it for a full three hours! You're going to fall, and then you're going to die from brain damage.' Zuko always giggled at this, but he let him hold it anyway, because Sokka's hand was always warm compared to his.

They had stayed at the rink for most of the day, and by now most of the crowd had gone home. Their faces were all flushed from exertion and the frosty air, so they took a break to warm up. The four of them sat on a bench, talking and drinking hot chocolate they'd bought from a stand.

"So then after Sokka yelled, 'bring it on, little girl,' I spiked the volleyball right to his face! He had a shiner for about two weeks, I'd say," Suki exclaimed, resulting in explosions of laughter from everyone except Sokka, whose face was a red as a tomato.

"The referee called foul, everyone knows that," he declared huffily. Zuko smiled and looped an arm around his shoulders. "Well, I don't know anything about sports, so I suppose not everyone."

Sokka's face burned even harder, and he looked like he had forgotten how to speak. "W-well...most people do, so I guess you're just special, Zuko."

"Erm...thank you?" Zuko asked, tremendously confused.

Suki and Yue looked like they might drop dead from laughter, like they had just shared an inside joke Zuko was unaware of. He was feeling like Sokka now; no one was telling him anything.

Yue looked at her phone and she frowned. "I just missed a call from Hahn. I should probably get home before he gets worried about me."

Suki's joyful expression dropped. "Alright, that's fine. At least me let me drive you home."

The two of them disappeared outside of the rink, giggling and strolling to Suki's car. "So...was ice skating everything you thought it would be?" Sokka asked, somewhat serious.

"Yes. It was everything I imagined and more," he replied breathlessly, returning Sokka's intense gaze. They stayed that way for a moment, lost in each other's eyes.

Sokka suddenly coughed, abruptly ending the moment. "Well, I'm glad you had a good time." He stood up, helping up Zuko at the same time. "We should probably head back to our dorm too. Do you want to drive my truck?"

"I'm definitely driving. You almost ran over a squirrel on the way here!"

"It was an accident! I told you I was sorry..."