Disclaimer: I do not own ATLA or its characters.

51

Lavish was the word that came to mind as Suki dropped her overnight bag on the plush carpet. The furnishings were the architectural sort of modern that screamed 'expensive', and the lamps and overhead lighting looked less like practical design and more like functional sculptures. Tucked around the corner was a little kitchenette, all sleek lines and shining surfaces. Before she could explore any further, though, she was grabbed from behind and spun. She let out a little yelp of surprise, which was quickly smothered by Sokka, who pressed his lips against hers in a fervent kiss that left her knees weak and her heart pounding.

"What do you think?" he asked when he pulled away, his eyes twinkling with a mixture of lust and adoration. The adoration she accepted; the lust, however, would have to wait. They had a date to go on, and she would not be deterred. Not tonight.

"It's beautiful, of course," she said. "It ought to be, for the amount it costs."

"You're not kidding." He looked around the room, eventually striding over to massive windows that lined the far wall of the living room. A bird's eye view of the Upper Ring of Ba Sing Se filled the windows from corner to corner, but in the gradual distance, through a soft haze made purple by the dipping of the sun below the horizon, one could see the farthest reaches of the city. Sokka squinted for a moment in the general direction of their apartment building, and Suki knew that he was looking for their home. After a moment, though, he clapped his together with an abrupt sound. "Let's get ready for our date," he suggested. "I've got big plans for you."

She grinned. "I was told I'd have reservations at all the finest clubs."

"You told yourself that, I'd like to remind you," he laughed. "I was thinking of something just a hair more subdued- not boring, mind you, but not keeping me up til three in the morning, either."

"Got somewhere to be?" she asked, raising one perfect brow.

He waggled his own brows at her. "Yea, as a matter of fact, I do; deep in-"

"Okay, I get it, thank you," she interrupted, blushing to the roots of her hair. "Well, this date will never get started if we don't get ready, so... I'll see in an hour or two."

Aang tapped his lips thoughtfully as he stood in the brightly lit aisle of the sporting goods store. The walls were lined with row after row of tents: ultra-light, ultra-modern, ultra-anything-one-could-think-of. He frowned, reaching for an orange one almost absently. "I'm not sure we need a tent this fancy," he said, more to himself than to Toph, who tapped her foot impatiently beside him.

He'd invited her along as a gesture of goodwill, a peace offering of sorts. After she had unintentionally revealed to Katara things he would have preferred to share in his own time, he and Toph had shouted some rather strong words at one another in the parking lot of her apartment building. It had left the both of them feeling guilty and more than a little ashamed. He knew she was alone, and struggling with both friendships and her circumstances; she knew that he was somewhat justified in his anger, since she'd interfered in a relationship that had little to do with her. It was a few days ago that she'd finally reached out to him in a gruffly worded but well-meaning e-mail, asking, more or less, for them to be friends again.

"I'm not sure you have the money to spend on a tent," Toph said.

He gave her an injured look. "I've been saving for this, Toph. I can afford it, and I want to do something special for her."

"You've been saving up, so you're taking her out of the city to sleep in the dirt?"

"She won't be sleeping in the dirt," he said. "That's what the tent is for."

"Isn't your roommate taking your other roommate to 'The Empress'?" she asked mildly.

"Yea- what of it?"

Toph twisted her cane in her hands. "Nothing. Just commenting."

"Well, don't," Aang laughed. "I am fully aware of how incapable I am on delivering in that regard. A night at 'The Empress' is outside the realm of financial possibilities for me; a night under the stars is far more affordable."

"She won't see the stars," Toph grumbled. "She'll be in a tent."

That gave Aang pause. "That's a good point... do you think we should get hammocks instead?"

"Ugh," Toph groaned. "Just grab something and let's go." Impatiently, she reached down, grabbing the first box her hands came across and slamming it into the cart. "There, I've made the decision for you."

"I do appreciate it," he said carefully. "But, I think a two-person tent will suffice. That's an eight-person."

Toph flushed, then crossed her arms over her chest. "Oh, for Spirits' sake," she complained. "We're going to be here all night."

The beep of the dryer jerked Katara from her mindless television consumption. She scowled. There was not a bone in her body that currently possessed the willpower to fold laundry. She'd honestly forgotten that the dryer was even running.

Another little beep met her, this one higher and more cheerful in tone than the blaring of her dryer, and she looked down at her phone.

'Yea, I got the job,' was Mai's reply. Seconds later, another text came through. 'I think I charmed the pants off our interviewer. He's pretty hot.'

Katara almost laughed. She supposed he was, in a brooding sort of way, but his surly attitude and standoffish demeanor put a bit of a damper on what would otherwise be a handsome face, in spite of (or perhaps, because of) his scar. 'I'm sure you did,' she replied, her fingers tapping against her phone screen in a fever. 'But, remember that he's about to be your boss, so try to keep his pants on. At least at the office.'

She could almost imagine the wicked grin that was probably firmly planted on Mai's face when the dry-witted girl's answer came back minutes later. 'I'm sure he and I can find a break somewhere during working hours'.

'I've never actually heard you say that you like someone before,' Katara typed quickly, a little blip of excitement running through her.

Mai's reply was typically droll. 'You haven't heard me say it now, either.'

'You specifically mentioned Zuko's hotness.'

'He is specifically hot.'

Katara rolled her eyes. 'Fine,' she texted back, frowning. 'Be obtuse. But know that I'll be watching you, ready to tell Ty Lee at the tiniest display of flirting.'

'I'm not flirting. I'm staking my claim.'

A/N: i've decided to go to 100 of these little chapters and then we'll tie a neat little bow on this story. We're halfway there. Thank you for hanging with me for so long. You guys are making writing this worthwhile.