A/N:

Here goes my longest entry this year... as well as the smuttiest. I ended up creating something that combines a few winning prompts in Sokkla Saturdays that weren't assigned for today, such as Detectives, as well as Pretend Couple (hence, I didn't use those in the coming weeks since it feels like I already used them here...), and I kind of went overboard to the point where I didn't even pay attention to word count, only to telling the story to the best of my ability. I certainly hoped I pulled it off.

This may be one of my favorite entries I've written this year, so I really hope you guys enjoy it too!


"Look, I'm not gonna sugarcoat this: the Golden Suns are going to kill Zuko."

Sokka frowned: murder attempts on Zuko were hardly a novelty in the wake of the war's conclusion, but they certainly had diminished in quantity as the years went by. The news that a new one might happen soon couldn't sit well with him… but the reason why this one was difficult to accept wasn't merely because he didn't want his friend to face mortal peril.

"The… Golden Suns," Sokka repeated. "You mean, the Fire Nation-born volunteers Zuko himself assigned to Republic City, the ones who he tasked with helping bolster and strengthen the United Republic. The ones running the charities to support orphans from the war. The ones who own that ferry for tourists where they do a fancy firework displays, all of which has been a huge boost for the economy of Republic City. Those Golden Suns want to kill Zuko?"

"Alright, don't believe me if you want the Fire Lord dead, then," Toph rebuffed moodily, arms folded over her armored chest – she positively thrived in the new uniform for the Republic City Police.

"I didn't say I didn't believe you, but you need to share more than that, honestly," Sokka said, eyes wide. "I mean, Fire Nation backstabbing their own? What else is new, right? But those guys aren't puritans knocking on Zuko's door and demanding for his head on a pike, they're people he trusted, people he personally sent to Republic City, who are building up the United Republic…"

"It's a smart move, I'll give them that," Toph huffed, cracking her knuckles. "Earn a lot of goodwill, trick your authority figure and make him think you're a subservient lowlife, then recruit a lot of resentful punks in the United Republic, convince them that the Fire Lord is actually the bad kind of Fire Nation while they're the good kind… amass an army, take it to his doorstep under false pretenses: you get a dead Fire Lord and a new order is established. Get it now?"

"Well… somewhat. But how do you know this is going to happen?" Sokka asked. "You can't just be assuming this out of nowhere, Toph… you have evidence of some sort, right?"

"You… could say that," Toph said, with a shrug. Sokka raised an eyebrow.

"That almost sounds like you're coming up with this entire conspiracy theory on your own," he said.

"Not on my own. Someone's helped me figure it out, sure, but it's not a conspiracy theory and you'd better take it seriously if you don't want…!"

"If I don't want Zuko to die, yeah, I heard you," Sokka sighed, shaking his head. "Look, I'm expected to focus on my councilman work, I just got here like two weeks ago… but I'm willing to help you if you need me to. What do you want, a warrant or something? Permission to investigate what they're up to in their headquarters or whatever?"

"No, they're not so sloppy. They wouldn't be preparing their plans anywhere predictable," Toph said, shaking her head. "They'll pretend to be all lawful and nice so we can't catch them and then my forces will come off as the villains for hounding them. But anyway… no, I don't want fancy bureaucracy: I need you to help me with a sensitive mission."

"A… sensitive mission," Sokka repeated. "Well, gee, not that I don't mind the thrill of missions, but I did retire from field work as a White Lotus agent literally a month ago and I came here right afterwards because Aang said he needed my help in the council, remember?"

"What about it? You can have two jobs," Toph huffed. "Besides, mine's not going to take that much time out of your life, believe it or not."

"Investigating a corrupt organization trying to kill a head of state doesn't take time? Really?" Sokka asked, skeptically.

"Not really. You're not going to do that much investigation, if any. You see, you're bait."

Sokka blinked blankly. Now he was confused.

"I'm… bait for a group of people who want Zuko dead? How does that make any sense?" Sokka asked, with an awkward smile.

"I need you to date someone," Toph said. Sokka yelped, staring at her in disbelief. "What? You and Suki are ancient history, right? You're not going to tell me you just started seeing someone exactly when I needed you to do this, are you?"

"I'm not seeing anyone, but what the hell, Toph? My dating someone is going to help you in your investigation?" Sokka huffed. Toph nodded.

"That other person's going to be way more crucial for the investigation than you, okay?"

"You mean… my partner?"

"That's right."

"Uh… is it another of your officers?" Sokka asked – he didn't recall any female officers in Toph's employ, but he certainly hoped to learn there were a few he hadn't met…

"Nope," Toph said. Sokka crooked an eyebrow. "Look, you're going to find out who it is when you agree to this, okay? Just say you'll do it and that's that."

"I just have to say I'll date someone, without knowing who it is?" Sokka asked, blinking blankly.

"Yep. Commit to this act, that's all I need from you. The Golden Suns won't see it coming," Toph said. Sokka scoffed, shaking his head.

"Honestly, why don't you date this person yourself?" he asked. She groaned.

"Ugh, because they'll know I'm onto them if I try something like that. I've already snooped about too much with my officers and found nothing… they've got their guard up around me. But you…"

"I'm the Avatar's idiot friend and they're not going to take me seriously?" Sokka asked, glaring at Toph pointedly. She dared smirk, and he rolled his eyes.

"You being the Avatar's friend's got something to do with it, yeah," she said. "Aang and Katara can't deceive anyone this way because, well, everyone knows they're married. Zuko's in the Fire Nation and he's their target so it'd be stupid to get him to investigate the very people who're trying to kill him, right? Suki's his guard too, so she's not eligible either…"

"I'm basically your last resort?" Sokka asked. Toph shrugged.

"Not entirely. My first option, because you're the only one that makes sense, is more like it. Besides, come on: even if I just wanted you to be bait, you could figure out their corrupt dealings in the process, right? You're always saying you're the smartest out of all of us, so you know, prove it! Figure out all the shit I can't figure out about the Golden Suns…"

"And now you appeal to my ego. Fascinating," Sokka sighed, shaking his head.

"Sokka… I'm serious here," Toph said: all humor had fled her countenance by now. "Zuko really might not get out of this one if those fuckers have the plans they appear to. Either we take action now or Aang's precious balance is going to hell once those fuckwads take over the Fire Nation. I know this is crazy, but I need you to work with me here. I need you to be an ironclad bait that they'll underestimate because they're bloody stupid. Okay?"

Sokka breathed deeply: he hated being so bad at saying no… but Toph's arguments had persuaded him, whether he liked it or not. Even if Zuko weren't a personal friend of his, he would have been hard-pressed to find a reason not to do this… even if his role in the situation was still remarkably confusing. How the hell was he supposed to help Toph by dating someone? He didn't see the sense in it… but he knew himself well enough to know that he'd cave in eventually anyway if this discussion continued for any longer.

"Fine, then. I'll do it," he said. Toph sighed, and she smiled again in profound relief. "Who's my partner?"

"She's in interrogation room number four. I'll take you there," Toph said. Sokka raised an eyebrow. "And before you start jumping to weird conclusions, no, she's not there because she's being questioned. That's just the safest place in this city to have a private conversation, alright?"

"Right…" Sokka sighed, still eyeing Toph skeptically.

The metalbender led him out of her office and through the corridors of the Republic City Police Headquarters. The complicated building was the grandest in the booming city so far, no doubt by Toph's own choice. It boasted of numerous facilities locked behind metalbending… among them, the interrogation rooms. Toph slowed down by the fourth door, raising her hands to yank the metal panes out of the way, allowing Sokka a chance to enter the room: his so-called partner sat by the metallic table, but he couldn't properly see her from the threshold of the room.

"Go on in, she'll explain everything," Toph said, with a smile. Sokka grimaced.

"You're not going to be there too?"

"Nope, don't expect you'll need me."

Toph patted his shoulder reassuringly at first… only to shove him inside the interrogation room moments afterwards. Sokka would have registered the sound of the closing door behind him… if only he hadn't been entirely distracted by the woman sitting within the interrogation room.

Her modern attire suited her slender body type perfectly, and her new hairstyle, a half-knot that allowed most her hair to cascade down her back, complemented her usual fringe perfectly. She was a woman grown, and quite an impressive one at that, something his body was quick to react to with unnecessary tingles in his stomach… tingles that soured once he recognized the familiar, if more adult features, of one of his worst enemies from his teenage years.

"Woah!" he screamed, jumping back and bumping into the metal wall. "Azula?!"

"How eloquent, peasant," she sneered, a devious smirk spreading across her face. "Still as jumpy as ever, I see."

"What the hell are you doing here?!" Sokka squealed. This couldn't be happening… yes, he knew Azula had somehow patched things up with Zuko, he hardly knew any details on the matter for he and Suki had already parted ways when it happened. But while aware that Azula was in Republic City nowadays, he had no real clue of who she had become over the course of the last decade… and he was stuck inside this room with her now. Oh, curses, Toph had locked them up inside the damn interrogation room… he was going to kill her. She was his best friend, but he was going to kill her.

"Here, as in, within this interrogation room? Or here, as in, Republic City? Aren't you on speaking terms with Zuzu?" Azula asked, amused. "Or with the Avatar, for that matter? Do you not know I've been stationed in their fancy new city so I can serve as the Fire Nation's ambassador to the United Republic?"

"I… had heard of that. But I had not heard of…!" Sokka said, looking at her, waving a hand towards the closed door. He blinked blankly for a moment before glancing back at her. "You… you're helping Toph investigate a group of people who want to kill your brother? You?"

"Are you about to accuse me of playing double-agent, by any chance?" Azula asked: her smile widened further, and Sokka snarled in her direction while resenting his damn body for reacting in stupid ways to that smile. What the hell was wrong with him? Yes, she was pretty, but that was no reason for him to find her damnable smirks appealing…

"Are you playing double-agent, by any chance?" Sokka asked, stepping up to her: he pulled up a chair, but he didn't sit on it right away, choosing to glare at an increasingly amused Azula from above, instead.

"Toph will take offense if she hears you're questioning… not only her judgment but her course of action in this situation," Azula chuckled, shaking her head smugly. "I suppose you're jealous that she and I have become such close friends while you were out and about in your terribly interesting life as a White Lotus agent?"

"You… what?" Sokka scowled. Azula chuckled. "Well, if you're such good friends, why didn't she tell me that you were from the start? And on top of that, why's she so damn ashamed of your friendship and your work with her that she locked you up in here and even sent me here under… well, kind of false pretenses? I had no idea you're the one who's going to be investigating anything and hey, you're an ambassador! Don't you have a lot of work to do for your brother… or is it you're sabotaging his rule on multiple fronts by not doing your assigned job, supporting the Golden Suns in whatever the hell they're trying to do and sabotaging Toph too by pretending to help her when you have no intentions of doing that?"

"Hmm. Toph did say you were likely to be stupid in a very strange way," Azula said. Sokka's eyebrow twitched.

"And she didn't need to say you'd be as infuriating as ever, but I kind of figured that one out as soon as I realized it was you," Sokka growled. Azula chuckled, and to further irk him, she spread a hand towards his presumed seat.

"Come on. At the very least hear me out, will you?" Azula said. Sokka rolled his eyes…

But he complied, if grumpily. He sat down, glaring at Azula pointedly as she continued to smile in that utterly unnerving way…

"The Golden Suns have been working with me quite closely, yes," Azula said. Sokka's brow furrowed. "It's expected that they would, since I've served as their most direct link to Zuko. I'm not, however, their leader or anything close to that: the man in charge is called Shuang, and he's the son of a former loyalist of my father's. Naturally, that doesn't have to mean that he's up to no good… but he has made inquiries to me about the Fire Nation, as well as the Palace, in rather subtle ways over the course of the past months. His recruitment efforts in the Golden Suns have increased considerably, and even Earth Kingdom commoners have taken to joining his initiative. The Golden Suns have protected the Fire Nation citizens still living in the now-defunct Colonies, including those who would have been subjected to scrutiny by the United Republic's laws. Many of them are people with grudges against Zuko, too: the latest, alarming move made by the Golden Suns' leader was a direct invitation for me to join their group."

"Uh… huh," Sokka blinked blankly. Azula relaxed against the chair's backrest, her hands linked as she placed her elbows on the table between them.

"My usefulness for their organization is clear: until Zuko sires an heir, I'm effectively the only other direct descendant of the dynasty of our forefathers, thus, the only other person who can lawfully take the Fire Nation throne," Azula said. Sokka frowned heavily. "My conflictive relationship with my brother is no state secret: everyone knows we have gone to war against each other numerous times. Our cooperation appears… fragile, I suppose, even fickle to some: my outing with Shuang that night was a rather enlightening matter, as he started off as a most respectful Fire Nation citizen… and the more comfortable he grew with me, the more keen he was on criticizing Zuzu until he directly confessed to believing that others out there could be far more effective and modern Fire Lords than Zuko had been so far. I played along… and it was by my doing so that he extended this invitation to become part of the Golden Suns."

"You're a government official for the Fire Nation," Sokka said, frowning. "Joining an organization of Fire Nation volunteers who work to clean your nation's name in the United Republic would be… an odd choice, to say the least."

"Which should tell you that the organization's true purpose isn't at all what it's reported to be," Azula said, with a simple smile. "I told him I would think about it, he insisted that I would be a grand addition to their ranks… and he even asked if I might see him again. I told him I would reach out once I made up my mind."

"And you're ready to reach out now?" Sokka asked, blinking blankly.

"I may be eventually, I suppose," Azula said. "Depending on whatever you choose to do, that is. I'm not exactly eager to force you into anything you're not comfortable with… but the truth is that I've noticed I've been followed ever since I told him I'd contact him anew eventually, once I was ready. Hence…"

"You came to Toph for help with shaking off their pursuit?" Sokka asked, raising an eyebrow. Azula let out a soft chuckle.

"Not quite: they still think I'm in the embassy. She and I have established a secret, safe route through which I can access this very building whenever I need to, without anyone's awareness…"

"Wait, you… you have direct access into this police station? You?" Sokka asked, perplexed. Azula shrugged.

"It's strange, I'll give you that much, but I fear Toph direly needed to have a friend who would be an even worse person than she can be, even on her worst days," Azula smirked. "I've provided that service for her just fine. At any rate, according to my staff, I'm in my office right now and I asked not to be disturbed: all blinds are closed and no one will be able to tell I'm not there. I do have to go back soon, though, and the sooner I do it, the better… so an answer on your part would be most convenient for us both."

"An answer regarding what? You want to know if I'll fake-date you?" Sokka asked, eyeing her in disbelief. "I mean, Toph kind of cajoled me into saying I'd do it, but… come on. What is your plan, exactly?"

"Oh, to use you as bait…"

"Toph said that part already, I just don't see how…"

"You're the Avatar's brother-in-law. You're a grand war hero, too," Azula said, with a false smile. Sokka's eyebrow twitched at her mocking tone. "I have no business looking for a relationship with a Water Tribe man like you…"

"You absolutely don't," Sokka said, with a sarcastic grin, and Azula chuckled.

"Ah, but I would if I thought I have something to gain from it, right?" she said, leaning forward on the table. "That's how the world would see it. The evil, nefarious Princess taking advantage of the defenseless non-bender who can't tell she's using him…!"

"And… you want the Golden Suns to think you're taking advantage of me to, what, find a way into my friend group that doesn't relate to Zuko?" Sokka asked, raising an eyebrow.

"In a manner of speaking," Azula said, with a shrug. "If, as it looks like, their plan is to install me as a puppet hierarch while Shuang is the one ruling instead…? I may just become a much more appealing target to them once they pick up on my political aspirations of advancement at your expense. I'll come off as greedy and desperate to find a foothold of power, seeking an alliance with the Avatar so that even he will prefer me over my brother…"

"And I'll come off as the dumbass who let you get away with that," Sokka finished, with a curt grin. Azula snorted, amused.

"Indeed. And now comes the part where you'll accuse me, predictably, of being up to no good, right?" she said. "If so, it's a valid fear on your part, I grant you that much, but if I wanted to destroy my brother's rule or cause trouble in the United Republic, I'd very well have joined Shuang in whatever capacity he wanted me to by now, and none of you would have even the slightest suspicion about it."

"Did Toph start looking into them before or after you told her everything you did?" Sokka growled. Azula smiled.

"She was already looking into them well before they contacted me. A speech Shuang gave, his protection of known Fire Nation criminals, his keenness on climbing higher in Republic City's social circles… all of it had alarmed Toph since a long time ago. She did ask me if I knew anything about them, I told her I'd investigate them on my free time… and shortly afterwards, they reached out to me."

"Heh, well… I still think you'd be better off pretending you're dating Toph instead of me. Maybe tell them you're throwing her off their trail or something," Sokka scoffed. Azula chuckled. "What? Big friggin' deal if you do that, isn't it? It's pretense anyhow…"

"They'll know it's not real," Azula said, simply. "You haven't been around long enough to know, I suppose, that your friend's type is 'nerdy pushover who worships her at every breath', right?"

"Uh… what?" Sokka blinked blankly.

"She's in some strange relationship with that utterly forgettable guy who fawns over her at every turn…" Azula sighed, shaking her head. "What was his name…? Satoshi? Oh, no, Satoru, that's the one."

"S-she's… what? Really?" Sokka blinked blankly, staring at Azula in disbelief. She shrugged.

"Thus, the only member of your fancy group who's not taken is you. How fortunate, isn't it?" Azula smirked. Sokka huffed, shaking his head. "I'd genuinely not mind much if you rejected me if only I had other options besides from you, but I really don't. Toph believed you were smart enough to navigate this messy situation without needing me to hold your hand through it constantly…"

"Oh, really?" Sokka's eyebrow twitched, and Azula smirked at him.

"You disagree?"

"Didn't say I did."

"Ah. Then maybe you do want to hold my hand through it, do you?"

"Don't…! Stop putting weird words in my mouth!" Sokka squeaked, face flushed as his eyes flickered to her lips impulsively. He forced himself to focus on her eyes, instead… though they represented an alluring pitfall of their own, even if he had no doubts she was thinking to herself that he was pathetic right now. "I'm not stupid, alright? I get what you're going for… I just don't see how this is going to work. You and I… look, anyone would figure out that we're too weird a combination, okay? No idea how you intend to act like we're dating, but if you're really being watched and followed by those guys, it means we even have to…"

"To fake even the beginning of our relationship, yes," Azula said, nodding. "I've thought of that. Meeting in a relatively public place, pretending that we're only reconnecting for the first time since…"

"That's never going to work: we never connected in the first place," Sokka huffed. Azula smiled, shaking her head.

"How sad. And here I thought I felt sparks flying between us when you pinned me to that wall…" she sighed. Sokka's eyebrow twitched even more dangerously now. "Oh, come on, I thought you were smart, aren't you? Being goaded so easily can be entertaining, but I do expect better comebacks from you than from Zuko…"

"You'll get what's coming for sure, if you keep taunting me like this," Sokka huffed. "I'm serious here: we can't pretend we're dating. There's literally nothing believable about it."

"So… that's it? You're not going to help, no matter if Toph begged you to?" Azula asked, with a dismissive huff. "Well, she's certainly going to be thrilled about this. I suppose I will truly become her sole best friend, at this rate…"

"I… didn't say that," Sokka cut her off, and Azula raised an eyebrow. "Be realistic here: would you date me?"

"I… can't dignify that question with a proper answer," Azula said, with a smirk: her eyes raked his body in a way that made Sokka extremely self-aware. "I might endanger the integrity of our mission otherwise."

"Yeah, I'm going to take that as a 'no'," Sokka concluded with an unpleasant smile. "Therefore, if you want to deceive your friends from the Golden Suns and make them think you and I have some weird thing going on… then dating's not going to work. It won't be believable. We'll have to play it off as a matter of… of hatesex instead."

For the first time since their conversation had begun, Azula's sneer faded from her face entirely.

"Did you just say…?" Azula blinked blankly. Sokka shrugged.

"Pretend you could be attracted to me, and that I could be attracted to you," Sokka said, with a shrug. "Then, say we meet by chance in a tavern, maybe. We play at being drunk or so, maybe I can make it look like I'm way worse off than you, and then you can gallantly help me back to my apartment…"

"And we can… pretend we're having drunken, angry sex?" Azula asked, blinking blankly. Sokka shrugged. "Huh. Well… strangely, that does sound more believable than regular dating for the two of us. Maybe you really are smart, after all."

"I'm not flattered by your questioning of such a simple fact, just so you know," Sokka said, with a dry grin. Azula chuckled, shaking her head. "But just for the record… do anything fishy, at any point in time, anything that so much as suggests you're genuinely connected to the Golden Suns in some twisted way, and I'm not just telling Toph about it, I'll tell literally everyone I know and…"

"And I'd lose my position and my reputation all over again… well, that's an unpleasant concept, so I'll do my best to avoid giving you cause to think I'm up to no good," she said: her devious smile had returned in full, and it threw her last statement into question at once.

"You don't sound very convincing right now," Sokka said, raising an eyebrow. Azula's smile strengthened.

"Perhaps I don't, but with any luck, my actions and choices will earn me your goodwill eventually," Azula said. Sokka let out a bark of laughter, shaking his head.

"Not sure that's possible…" he said: she continued to smirk in that way, and he continued to be unnerved by it…

Had she always been this beautiful, damn her, or had she done something special to entice him today? His suggestion regarding their pretense had been spoken in fully hypothetical terms, but he shouldn't have said anything along those lines at all: now his mind had taken to supplying him with rather unnecessary and unwanted thoughts regarding what Azula might be like in bed…

She pushed herself up to her feet, and he followed suit promptly. He couldn't let his guard down around her, not for a second… not even when she extended her hand in his direction in a most professional attempt to seal this deal.

"Are we in agreement, then? You will help me unravel this conspiracy against my brother and take down the Golden Suns from within, should I succeed at gaining their trust?"

Sokka breathed deeply: it hardly sounded like he'd have to do a lot of work… but his apprehension over Azula hadn't receded at all. Toph's willingness to trust her wasn't all that reliable, Azula had been able to lie to her about being a purple platypus bear a long time ago… he sighed, however, knowing Toph would be much worse off if Sokka didn't help. Zuko, as well, would wind up in trouble, who knew if even with a revolt in his hands that could be prevented if Sokka took this investigation seriously. Whether Azula was working for Toph or against her, Sokka could be there to keep watch on the Princess and make sure she wasn't playing double-agent after all.

So he clasped her hand, glaring at her pointedly as he nodded firmly.

"Deal."


Sokka wasn't too punctual when it came to social encounters, Azula thought, as she sank in a tavern stool by herself. They'd agreed to start their staged not-so-accidental encounter at seven-thirty, and it was indeed seven-thirty… she sighed, guessing she'd simply enjoy her drink even if he failed to show up.

It was the tavern she frequented most often in Republic City, so the bartender already knew her. Hence, it stood to reason that the Golden Suns would be quick to question the bartender once word reached them of her dalliance with the Avatar's brother-in-law. Shuang's people had access to virtually every social level of Republic City these days… so she had to ensure to never let her guard down whenever she was in public. Only a handful of locations would be safe, such as the Police Headquarters – though Azula was apprehensive about Toph's police officers, as she had no idea if some might be corrupt, regardless of Toph's assurances of the opposite – but she'd have to play her part to perfection anywhere else, anyhow. Perhaps once in a while, if she was truly alone with Sokka, it would be fine to speak freely… but that wouldn't be the case in any of their public encounters, such as this one.

Ten minutes after her arrival, he turned up and sat in a stool next to her, carelessly. He held his head up with a hand, his elbow on the table… by doing so, he could pretend not to have noticed who she was so far. His time as an agent of the White Lotus had probably taught him a thing or two about deception, Azula suspected…

"Get me whatever you've got that's… well, strong," Sokka said to the bartender.

"Sure," the older man said, eyeing Sokka with uncertainty. "Rough day?"

"Ask a warrior to become a bureaucrat and every day becomes a rough day," Sokka sighed, shaking his head.

"Is that so? I'm thriving just fine in my job, I'll say."

She spoke without being spoken to, charging her voice with judgmental vitriol that was guaranteed to make him see red: the bartender poured a drink for Sokka nervously, as the Water Tribesman turned towards her with wide eyes, jaw dropping as she smirked in his direction…

"What the…?! Hey! What are you doing here?!" he squeaked, inching away from her.

"I ought to be the one asking that question. I come here every week," Azula said, with a dry grin. "I suppose you have to get used to the city still, Mr. Failed Bureaucrat…"

"I'm not a failed one, damn you! I'm just unexperienced and it takes a toll on me!" he hissed, snatching his sake once the bartender offered it, and downing it quickly. "And you being here just makes everything worse."

"Does it, now? The mean Fire Nation ambassador is too much for you to handle, is she?" Azula asked, smiling deviously in his direction. "Don't tell me you're going to put me in my place, now… or are you?"

"I… the fuck are you implying?" Sokka huffed, eyeing her dismissively. "The only place I'd put you in is… well, outside the tavern's door, honestly. Refill, please?"

"Is that so? I take it my days of being pinned to walls by you are over, then?" Azula asked, with a dramatic sigh. The bartender, pouring the drink, winced and spilled some of the bottle upon hearing those words. Sokka scowled at her.

"Hey! Don't word things that way!" he said. Azula's smirk widened further. "We were kids! The hell is the matter with you?"

"Oh, you were one very precocious kid for sure," Azula chuckled, picking up her own lychee wine and sipping it slowly. "Already had a girlfriend, but he still pinned another girl to a wall…"

"I didn't do it to…! I wasn't a cheater or something, don't say shit like that!" Sokka huffed. He glanced at the bartender again to find the man kept eyeing them warily. Thus, he drank the sake quickly and said: "Uh… more?"

"I… will have to ask the two of you to, um, well, I realize you're not trying to disturb the customers, but please, uh… tone it down?" the man said, with a weak smile. Azula chuckled.

"Do excuse us. How very unprofessional of us to behave this way in a tavern," Azula said, eyes drifting towards an embarrassed Sokka. "Do apologize too, peasant, would you?"

"Don't call me that," Sokka growled.

"Then what should I call you?" Azula asked, with a devious grin.

"You can just call me Sokka. Simple enough," he said. "If you're too much of an ass, though, you'll just not call me anything because I'll find another tavern and stop dealing with you. Honestly, why did Zuko send you here?"

"To get rid of me, obviously," Azula said, nonchalantly: the bartender raised an eyebrow as he continued to work, pouring their drinks as well as those of other customers who stopped by the bar to request more drinks. "I'm a nuisance, even a threat to his rule… so I, the dignified Princess Azula, find myself demoted to the simple role of a bureaucrat myself. We're not so different, you and I."

"I… was about to feel sorry for you until you said that last sentence," Sokka said, face twitching with disgust – Azula chuckled at his reaction.

"Is it so revolting to have something in common with me, Mr. Failed Bureaucrat?"

"Don't call me that either!" Sokka squeaked. Azula chuckled as he downed his third shot of sake: the rush of alcohol sank in his system, and it was supposed to embolden him into being more uninhibited than usual… at least, that was what he acted like. Years on the road, serving as a White Lotus agent, had taught him enough about how to tolerate his alcohol and how to put on a proper act as a drunkard in order to achieve any mission that required being underestimated. "Girls like you should… should call me Mr. Boomerang, if anything."

"Ah, again with that nonsense, is it?" Azula smirked. "What's there to be respected about Mr. Boomerang, if I may ask?"

"That he… always comes."

Azula raised an eyebrow. Sokka blinked blankly before his mouth dropped comically.

"Back! He… always comes back! T-that's what I…!"

Azula let out a loud, delighted cackle of laughter, throwing her head back as Sokka smacked his forehead with his palm. The bartender, pouring another drink, watched them with his jaw dropped, now spilling more drinks without so much as noticing what he was doing.

"My brain just blanked for a second there, I din't…! Come on, don't be stupid! I didn't mean…! It's not a sexual thing, you damn…! Ugh, you're infuriating!"

"Oh, but you're delightful!" Azula chuckled. "I have never met another man quite as easy to ridicule as you. That certainly makes you stand out, I'll say…"

"Shut up," Sokka groaned, cheeks red as he gestured at the bartender again.

"Shouldn't you pace yourself with…?" Azula asked. Sokka scoffed.

"Pace myself, my ass! I'm getting as drunk as I wanna be, and the faster I do it, the sooner I can get out of here and not deal with you and your… well, you."

"My… what?" Azula asked, amused. Sokka's eyebrow twitched… and his gaze shamelessly shifted towards her body, settling quite carelessly on her bosom.

"You filled out a lot. I mean… they weren't that big when you flew over me and I… uh. Shit. What the hell did I just say?"

"You're sure you're not drunk enough yet?" Azula asked, raising her eyebrows. "Making uncalled for comments about a woman's chest doesn't sound like something you do when you're sober…"

"I… what? I didn't… say that out loud, did I?" Sokka smiled awkwardly. "I mean, shut up. You're making me say weird crap, and think I said weird crap, and I don't… I didn't. I haven't. I…"

"Oh, now, now, don't stop, will you?" Azula smirked. "I do so enjoy finding out how desirable I am. Even my enemies can't help but find me impossibly attractive, can they?"

"Heh…" Sokka scoffed… but he eyed her again, and yet again he seemed to blank out on what they were talking about. His gaze traveled over her body, down her legs – she wore a skirt today, and not a particularly long one, providing him with a proper glimpse into the firmness of her legs, no matter if they were clad in stockings…

"Are you still there?" Azula asked, after about thirty seconds of feeling herself utterly devoured by his gaze.

"I'm… w-what?" Sokka blinked blankly.

"You definitely do like what you see, don't you?" Azula smirked.

"I… could never like you. You? Not a chance," Sokka huffed. "You're… mean. And you look at me like I'm… some stupid idiot. Maybe I'm dumb but I'm not stupid…"

"Ah, should I look at you differently, then? The way you're looking at me, perhaps?"

Sokka frowned a little, glancing at her: she angled her body in his direction, supporting herself with an arm on the bar… and she smirked as her gaze traveled over his councilman's suit, settling on his strong chest and arms for an unnecessarily long amount of time… though she finished it off by licking her lips upon daring glance at his groin.

"I do wonder if Mr. Boomerang is already ripe for… coming," she whispered.

Sokka shuddered. Azula's smirk widened. He huffed, shaking his head and focusing on his empty cup again.

"Or am I underestimating your abilities?" she asked, slowly inching closer to him. "Do you have even more than that in store there for whichever lucky lady catches your interest, Mr. Boomerang?"

Sokka gritted his teeth. He let out a breath, then another…

Then he felt her lips pressing softly against his cheek.

"How unfortunate that it's not bound to be me, then," she said: she dared reach out to squeeze his hand gently before climbing off her stool.

Without a word, she dropped the right amount of money on the bar and turned around, intending to leave… only for a hand to grip her wrist suddenly, yanking her back and nearly causing her to lose her balance in her high heels.

"W-where d'you think you're going?" Sokka huffed: he stood up too, if on wobbly knees, and Azula smiled in his direction.

"Oh? Am I to be luckier than usual, then? Seems unlikely, but I wouldn't mind…" she said, smirking deviously as her eyes drifted towards his trousers once more…

"You're… you're acting inappropriately," Sokka said, pointing a finger at her: he poked her collarbone once… then he poked her lower than that. Then lower…

"Hmm, am I? Looks like you're trying to be even more inappropriate than me. And in such a public venue, too…" Azula said, fanning herself with her free hand. "Sokka, please, everyone will stare…"

"Calling me by my name now… isn't going to save you," Sokka said, stepping up closer. Azula smirked – she knew he wouldn't dare kiss her, there was no way he'd do that just like that, but he certainly made a convincing act of it…

"Oh? Save me from what?" Azula asked, amused.

"I'm… taking you to jail," Sokka said. Azula's amusement lost some of its flirty edge as she smirked at him in disbelief.

"Is that so? Is the metalbending marvel going to hold me accountable for kissing your cheek?"

"Y-you're wearing makeup. So… got the evidence right there on my face," Sokka huffed: he pointed at the wrong cheek, and Azula didn't bother correcting the mistake as she chuckled.

"You're the one who's going to end up in jail if you don't pay for what you drank," she said. Sokka winced, but he didn't loosen his hold on her wrist as he turned towards the bar again.

"Sir, are you quite sure…?" the bartender said, eyeing him warily.

"Sure of… what?" Sokka huffed, pulling out a set of coins. "This will do, right? I… think?"

"That's fine, I'm only… well, wondering if you're too intoxicated. Perhaps you should wait here and…"

"What? No need, we're going to the police! They're gonna straighten her out, you know, teach her a lesson, make sure she doesn't mess with a manly man like me again…!" he announced, only to be interrupted by a most ridiculous hiccup that made his entire body jolt upwards. Azula, behind him, snorted and laughed again.

"Uh… oh, dear," the bartender said: Sokka turned around, glaring at Azula before pulling her towards the door.

"Oh, my! Mr. Boomerang is taking me! It's everything I could have ever hoped for!" Azula exclaimed dramatically as they stepped out of the tavern: the bartender and the local customers watched in utter astonishment as they faded from view through the twin doors.

Sokka's grip on her wrist didn't loosen up as they marched into the night. Azula kept up without complaint, deliberately showing she wasn't even slightly displeased by being dragged by him anywhere. Halfway through their walk, Sokka actually slowed down and leaned against a lamppost, rubbing his eyes and playing a very convincing drunk while she mocked and ridiculed him relentlessly for it.

Within ten minutes, they reached their destination… which wasn't, in fact, the Police Headquarters. It was one of the fancier buildings in Republic City, and Sokka happened to have taken residence in an apartment that, unfortunately, might be easily surveilled from a nearby rooftop. Azula scowled as she assessed as much, immediately wondering if Sokka was already being watched… Aang and Katara, she knew, would be the more difficult ones for the Golden Suns to keep tabs on, since they lived in Air Temple Island, and Toph had become even more merciless as a police chief with every passing day, so they would prefer avoiding her. Sokka would be easier to spy on, as well as being the one they would likely treat as the weak link in the group… a foolish assumption, and one Azula would be glad to exploit for her benefit.

"Well, then… the Police Headquarters look rather interesting today, don't they?" Azula said, as Sokka fumbled with his keys to enter the building. "Much slimmer. Guess it went on a diet."

She smiled at her utterly ridiculous joke, but Sokka actually chuckled upon hearing it. She raised an eyebrow as he glanced at her with a careless smile.

"That's such a bad joke… that it's almost up to my standards, Princess. Up your game or… or I'll end up thinking you're as undignified as me…"

"Well, it's hardly my fault that this Police Headquarters turned out to be like this," Azula said, with a smile… Sokka's fumbling attempts to slip the key into the hole went nowhere as he dropped the keys on the ground. "Oooh, that's not very promising. I do hope you aim better with, uh, Mr. Boomerang?"

"W-what're you talking about…?" Sokka grumbled, leaning down to pick up his keys… and offering Azula a most delightful glimpse of his rear, as his suit's trousers wrapped quite tightly around his buttocks.

"Well, now…" she smirked, and this time she licked her lips without knowing whether or not anyone was spying on her, without even worrying about if she'd get a rise out of him by doing so…

He picked up the keys and rose to his full height again, using his grip on her wrist to stay upright. He cleared his throat before working to unlock the door… and this time it paid off.

"There… there we go. Come on. Jail time," Sokka said. Azula pretended to shudder in anticipation.

"My, my, what devious plans you must have devised for me…"

He pulled her inside the building, shutting the door behind him carelessly, without properly locking it. Azula frowned, and Sokka shrugged in her direction.

"Don't know if it'd be believable for me to lock it properly if I'm supposed to be very drunk, right?" he said. Azula smiled and shrugged too.

"How many neighbors do you have?" she asked.

"A few?" Sokka said, with a shrug.

"And… how thick are the walls?" Azula asked. Sokka blinked blankly. "I'm sorry, but if we're going to simulate that we're sleeping together, we have to make sure they're valid witnesses of what we were up to. I'll make sure to be the most vocal lover you've ever had…"

"That's an image," Sokka smiled, leading her up the stairs – even now, he held Azula's wrist, though more gently than before.

"You're a much better actor than I imagined you'd be," Azula commented, as they reached the second floor and made for the third. "Lots of years of being underestimated by fools have certainly paid off for you, haven't they?"

"Yep. Lots of years of taking advantage of that particular factor to trick enemies into thinking I'm drunk when I'm not… and so on and so forth," Sokka commented.

"You do seem perfectly reasonable now. I suppose I got flustered over your reckless ogling for no reason…" Azula sighed dramatically. Sokka couldn't help but smile, shaking his head.

"I'm the one who was flustered, damn you. Licking your lips while looking at my junk? You're a piece of work," Sokka said. Azula let out a mischievous laugh as they made for the next floor.

Sokka's apartment was on the fifth floor. The nearby building, a four-story one, was perfectly positioned to spy on his apartment, something that became apparent to Azula once they reached that corridor… so she slid her wrist out of his grip only to clasp his hand firmly.

"What?" he said, moments away from slipping the key into the door.

"First… we would have taken much longer than this to get all the way up here, if you're as drunk as any potential spy would think you are," Azula said. Sokka raised an eyebrow.

"You think we're being watched right now?" he asked.

"I think it's entirely possibly you were already being watched without your awareness, well before we did this," Azula said. Sokka frowned. "The rooftop of the next building would offer someone a perfect glimpse of your apartment. Did you close your windows before leaving to work today? Drapes? Blinds?"

"I… didn't. Not all of them, not really? I… didn't think it'd be necessary," Sokka said. Azula sighed.

"They underestimate you, you underestimate them, I see," Azula said, shaking her head. "Makes no matter: the point is they could easily watch you, and if there's some spy on that rooftop right now, and your windows are perfectly open and available for them to see through…"

"They'd notice this is all a charade?" Sokka grimaced. "So… what the heck, you want me to go in there and close the…?"

"Then you'd give away that you know you're being watched," Azula said, with a dry grin. Sokka scoffed.

"This sounds a little too extreme, you know? Maybe they haven't started watching me all that closely."

"And what if they have?" Azula asked. "Are you willing to take that chance and waste our entire operation here?"

"I mean…" Sokka blinked blankly.

"What's the worst that could happen?" Azula asked, rolling her eyes. "All you have to do is… kiss me, I suppose."

"Heh," Sokka smiled awkwardly: his mouth ran dry at the very thought of doing that…

But how to deny that the thought had popped up in his head far too many times after feeling her lips brushing against his cheek?

"We don't have to go any further than that. Are your room's drapes closed?" Azula asked. Sokka nodded.

"Those are, yeah. Don't really open them much, don't spend a lot of time there other than to sleep, so…"

"Then even if there's a spy nearby, all you have to do is… kiss me after we go in, take me to your room and we can cut out our pretense then," Azula said, nodding promptly.

"Right… but we're supposed to simulate sex afterwards anyhow," Sokka said, crooking an eyebrow. "Please don't tell me you expect them to inspect my house while I'm at work to make sure that we really…"

"They might if we don't sell it," Azula said, with a light smirk. Sokka huffed. "So, you know, start rehearsing in your mind what kind of weird sex noises you'd make if you were hatefucking me."

"That's… such a weird concept," Sokka blinked blankly. Azula laughed at his reaction, inevitably so. "Holy crap. Okay. Okay. I'm… I'm going to try. We have to. So… is it long enough yet for you to have endured climbing five flights of stairs with drunk Sokka?"

"Maybe not yet. But… for safety's sake, maybe we should start from out here?" Azula said, raising an eyebrow. Sokka eyed her skeptically. "I mean, you're going to kiss me later on anyway, might as well do it in the corridor now so you can get used to it and provide a more believable performance afterwards. Right?"

"… Do you think I would be a bad kisser and you're the one who wants to get used to it before I inevitably disappoint you?" Sokka asked, an eyebrow twitching. Azula couldn't help but chuckle at his claim, shaking her head.

"I don't know if it makes you feel any better, but I'll inform you that I have no expectations from you. This is a performance," Azula said, simply. "We're not serious about this. Your quality as a lover is irrelevant entirely. As an actor, however…"

"That's good to know, then," Sokka said, glaring at her as he stepped closer to the Princess. "I'll have to act like I'm giving you a good kiss, then."

"And a good fuck afterwards, too," Azula smiled. "Ready?"

"You?"

"Absolutely."

She probably shouldn't have said that word with such certainty: nothing prepared her for the powerful grip of his hand on the back of her neck, of the other, around her waist… of his lips, crashing with unexpected fierceness and passion against hers.

At first, she guessed he was proving a point.

When his tongue brushed daringly against hers, she considered it proven.

When he coaxed a soft moan from her throat, she wondered if he was doing more than just proving a point.

When he groaned, pressing his body into hers, she started wondering if she was the one who wanted more than that.

She shoved him against the door, breaking their kiss only briefly, for her lips were on his right afterwards: he didn't ease up either, hands deviously traveling over her flanks… She whimpered once he clasped each of her buttocks in his palms, rubbing and squeezing them without the slightest display of restraint. She dared slide one of her legs between his in retaliation, in the hopes of testing her suspicions of what his trousers hid…

She was breathless already because of their heated kiss, but confirming his manhood was considerably erect made her lightheaded right away.

They broke off for a moment, breathing heavily, chests colliding: his hands hadn't moved from where they were, much as her leg still brushed against his groin…

Footsteps by the stairs caused Azula to glance to her left in sheer panic: it was an elderly man of Earth Kingdom descent, she thought, based on the color of his clothes… he had just come home, it seemed. And he was opening his own apartment's door…

He dared glance in their direction then, and Azula clasped Sokka's head, firmly pressing his lips to her neck.

"O-oh! Oh, my…" the old man blushed, dropping his keys much like Sokka had earlier: he bowed towards them, pushing the door open once he finally unlocked it, blurting out: "Excuse me, excuse me…"

Sokka had heard the footsteps, taking his cues on whatever Azula deemed necessary to extend their deceit: but now he genuinely devoured Azula's neck, causing her to gasp, mouth wide open as she indulged in the gentle suction his lips offered her sensitive skin.

"T-the door…" Azula managed to say, biting Sokka's earlobe to force him to focus on the mission again. He growled, complying by turning the key he'd left in the door's mechanism…

They nearly fell to the floor as the door swung open – the pretense of being too drunk was certainly going to be more believable after that clumsy stumble that Sokka only broke by clinging to the edge of the door: it was easier by then to just fall, though, so he let himself do that, and Azula landed atop him, still seeking to kiss him voraciously.

Sokka kicked the door closed without even a smidge of concern over the noise – they were supposed to be noisy, so what could be wrong with that? His arms wrapped tightly around Azula's body, hoisting her with him as he sought to stand up: he clasped one of his couch's side-tables as though to support himself, but naturally, he only ended up knocking down that table too. The act of being entirely drunk and out of his mind was coming quite naturally to him, so naturally Azula wondered if it was an act at all…

At least, some of it hardly felt like one. She couldn't remember ever being kissed with such raw fierceness, touched with that remorseless, near-possessive intent. If she hadn't known any better, she would have thought he genuinely wanted her… because it felt like he did. If she were any less professional, she might feel similarly about him…

But she was a consummate professional indeed, and it didn't matter how strong his arms were as he finally hoisted her off the floor, or how thrilling the jousting of their tongues might be, or how manly his scent was, she would remain unmoved. She was only doing this for the sake of the mission. This was only about…

He pinned her down on the couch, and he dove in for the deepest, most reckless kiss yet.

She couldn't even see sense anymore after that: it was his turn to slide his leg between hers, rubbing against her core and urging her to return the favor. At some point, in all of this, they had wordlessly agreed that nothing, it seemed, would be off the table. They couldn't very well pretend they would have sex if they didn't commit to the act, could they? That was it. That was all there was to it…

He pulled her suit jacket open, hands deviously slipping through her garments, and she flinched at the realization that he was actually, genuinely looking to touch her skin directly.

It was even more alarming to realize that she wanted him to do so.

She should have stopped this. She should have told him he was taking it too far. To carry her to the bedroom, so that they'd have every right and reason stop at once. How did they even know if the spy would have a proper glimpse of what was happening in the couch from their position in the neighboring rooftop? This was a mission. It was just a mission, it was…

His hand took the place of his thigh, and his fingers rubbed her clit pleasantly enough to coax a loud cry from her lips.

"Like that, do you, Princess?" he hissed, lips against hers still. Azula shuddered.

"Y-you… you have to… t-to do better than that, still…" she blurted out: curses, what was wrong with her? Why would she say that, of all things…?

"Oh, do I, now?" Sokka said, with a devious smirk. "Just how rough do you like it, huh? Just how far do I have to go to…?"

"To… what?" Azula asked, breathlessly. "Is this… my jail sentence? That's what this is about? You're… punishing me?"

"Do you want me to?" Sokka asked, slowing his touch… and causing Azula to buck her hips against his hand instead. He smirked knowingly, and she bit her lip at first before smirking and licking her lips fully.

"Definitely."

He didn't restrain himself anymore: her desirable lips were his for the taking, and the smooth feeling of them pressed against his own was more addictive than he ever anticipated it would be. Of course this was for the sake of the mission, of course it was, and yet…

He dared touch so much more than he should have. Her hands even guided him at times, and he covered her clothed chest with kisses as his fingers prodded at her slit from outside her underwear. He felt the humidity spilling through the fabric already, confirming through it that he wasn't the only one taking this far more seriously than he should have been. Curses, he had no idea what was coming over him, but he needed her. He wanted her. He had never wanted anyone in this carnal, visceral, physical way before. The primal attraction he felt towards her was goading him into acting like an utter moron… but her moans as he touched her were going to help in the mission, right? She was delivering on her promise to be his most vocal lover ever, that was for sure…

And he was struggling with his own damn arousal, to the point of even thrusting against the couch, against her thigh once she noticed what he was doing, all be it to obey the mandate of his building erection. She made it easier by providing him with further friction, rubbing him against her leg as she even guided his free hand into her shirt. He dared take things further by his own volition, touching her smooth skin boldly with his calloused hands, slipping his fingers under the hem of her bra… she moaned, and he waited for protest, dipping his fingertips slowly under the clothing garment.

"Tell me to stop and I'll stop," he groaned against her lips. Azula whimpered. "Tell me you don't want this and I'll…"

"I want you… I want you. I want…"

If this was still an act, she was ridiculously convincing at it.

His full hand slipped under the cup of her bra, taking her mound into his palm and squeezing her nipple between two fingers. Azula's loud cries were marvelous: Sokka didn't slow down for anything, even daring tug her panties to the side so he could rub her clit and finger her core boldly. Her smooth, wet warmth welcomed his touch, and he even dared laugh deviously at the intense moans that spilled from her throat. He kissed it as she threw her head back in bliss, and he savored her neck with delight, inhaling that smooth perfume…

"Still want it?" he asked – she shuddered in the wake of a potent wave of arousal. "You sure, Azula? I just want to pay you back for that kiss…"

"S-Sokka…" she gasped breathlessly: she could barely move her leg anymore, even if it continued to press against the bulge in his crotch.

"What? If you got something to say, you can say it…" Sokka said. "Don't hold back on me now, you never do…"

"You're… the worst," Azula whispered. Sokka hummed.

"Worst at sex? I can prove you wrong…"

"Fuck… n-no, y-you're good at that but… y-you're the worst…" Azula shivered. "D-don't… don't stop, don't stop, a little more, Sokka, just…!"

He obeyed, prodding her clit harder: she as good as screamed, and he smirked. That was bound to have been heard across the whole building… as far as evidence was concerned, they were certainly set.

His mind suddenly seemed to spark back into sense when Azula's chest heaved, having ridden her excitement as satisfactorily as could be. She panted heavily, lying, disheveled, on that couch... and Sokka's eyes widened. She was utterly beautiful, even more so when she wasn't perfectly composed. Her body… he had felt it up as he pleased just now and it was delightful, he could lose himself in her for days if he had the chance to do so…

But wasn't this supposed to be a pretense?

He blinked blankly at that realization and leaned forward: it would look like a kiss to anyone who could have been spying, and he certainly hoped no damn voyeurs from the Golden Sun had been assigned to watch him from that rooftop today, but in case they had been…

"You okay?" he asked breathily. Azula, head still swimming in bliss, gripped his arms firmly.

"I'm… t-that was… adequate…"

"Adequate?" Sokka smiled: even now, her pride continued to rule her, no matter how chaotic the situation might be.

"I… take it you're asking about…" Azula said, swallowing hard. Sokka nodded slowly. "I… guess we must have sold it. T-that was… as realistic as can be. Considering you… did it for real."

"I, uh, thought you'd tell me to stop if you didn't want me to…" Sokka whispered. Azula gritted her teeth. "Did you think a spy would have heard if…?"

"I… didn't," she admitted. Sokka raised an eyebrow. "B-but that's… that's neither here nor there. Just… let's go. Your room? That's all we have to do now, so…"

"Okay… okay," Sokka nodded, leaning in and pressing his face to her neck.

He climbed off her, sliding an arm under her legs and hoisting her in his arms. Azula's chest continued to heave, and she purposefully pressed her face to his collarbone…

"Stumble," she told him: Sokka, walking too firmly in an effort not to let his unfulfilled arousal take a toll on him, obeyed her at once. He walked in an awkward diagonal, once more pretending to be intoxicated before reaching his bedroom door.

He dropped Azula on the mattress, and she bounced on it before Sokka shut the door abruptly. With that, they were in darkness and silence once more.

Their heavy breaths permeated the room as they seemed to return to their senses, realizing what they'd been doing. They weren't so much as friends, let alone had they ever pondered being lovers – of all of Zuko's friends, Sokka was the one Azula had the least interactions with since he went on his White Lotus career after his split with Suki. She had even gotten to know Suki better than him after she had made amends with Zuko –the Kyoshi Warrior was still her brother's bodyguard to this day –, and upon traveling to Republic City she had bonded with Toph while Aang and Katara were also warming up to her – less so in the waterbender's case, true, but still…

And yet here she was, feeling terribly exposed on Sokka's bed even if she was still mostly covered by her displaced clothes, her hair a mess underneath her.

He remained by the door, bracing himself against the wall. Azula pushed herself up slightly, staring at his darkened silhouette with uncertainty as what little light drifted in through the blinds fell upon her body.

"Sokka…" she whispered. He let out a deep breath as he turned towards her.

"We can talk freely now?" he asked. She nodded.

"We should be able to, yeah," she said.

"Sorry if I… went too far," Sokka said, gritting his teeth. "Guess I'm a little winded up or something. It's, uh, been a while for me? But, well… that's not important, alright?"

"Not been as long for me, but…" Azula said, with a weak smile. "I'm surprised you're not out of practice if that's the case."

"Heh, nice to know, though… don't think I've ever done it like that before," Sokka admitted, swallowing hard. Azula raised her eyebrows.

"Maybe hatesex suits you better than you thought?" Azula said, with a slight smirk. Sokka scoffed, eyeing her skeptically. It was difficult for her to see it, though she still could read through his reactions flawlessly.

"Maybe you're the one who likes it better than she thought," Sokka said. Azula let out a bark of laughter. She flexed a leg, struggling to tug her underwear back into place… and as much as he could barely see her silhouette, Sokka noticed her every move keenly. "I mean… you weren't faking that, were you?"

"Who knows?" Azula said, simply. Sokka actually smirked, turning towards her with arms folded over his chest. "Oh? Don't believe me?"

"You're so fucking proud, damn it," he said, shaking his head. "Can't accept you lost your composure, not even for a moment, huh?"

"And you're fucking proud yourself, are you? Of having made me come undone, apparently?" Azula said, raising her eyebrows. "Need this petty victory over me to feel better about yourself, do you? That's quite ridiculous, I'll have you know…"

"Is it?" Sokka huffed. "Sounds like you're trying to antagonize me for no reason… because we achieved our mission just fine with what I did, didn't we?"

"Oh, no, we didn't," Azula smiled, shaking her head. "We have to keep the deceit going for at least ten more minutes… well, maybe five. I don't know if you would have lasted much longer than that if we went all the way…"

"You have no idea how long I could last… or how many times I could go at it, for that matter," Sokka hissed. Azula smirked.

"Is that so? Planning on keeping me entertained all night proving your might, Councilman Boomerang? You always… come, is it?"

"And I always come back for more," Sokka said: the greed in his voice sent a shiver down Azula's spine.

"Do you?" Azula said, raising her head haughtily. "Does that mean… that you'll finish what you started out there?"

"I…" Sokka frowned: no, he wouldn't. He couldn't. He wasn't going to…

The vague light from the blinds allowed him to notice that her hands had risen to her blouse.

She undid the buttons, one by one.

Sokka's dumbfounded expression spoke for itself as his blood rushed even more violently through his system than before.

She was serious. She was seducing him.

And he was letting her succeed at it.

She undid the button of her skirt… and that was when he pounced on her: Azula growled as his lips fell upon hers, her fingers aggressively yanking his hair as she forced him on his back, as good as restraining him with her limbs. He was strong, but it hardly seemed as though he wanted to fight back anymore. Her clothes hung spread open now, with only her bra, slightly out of place over his previous actions, covering anything on her chest: she sat up, shaking her hair back before shrugging off all her upper body's clothes: in the very dim light of the room, it was clear Sokka was gaping at her with lips parted.

His lustful hands reached up to catch her breasts, to shove the bra out of the way: Azula moaned again – she definitely had wanted him to do that again, damn, there was something so marvelously overwhelming in his every touch…

With her bra out of the way, Sokka dove in hungrily, devouring both her breasts in turns as she struggled to strip him as well. Every time she pulled back in any way, he would lunge for her chest again moments afterwards. Azula laughed it off, rolling her eyes in sheer bliss at her reckless lover's behavior, but her sensitive nipples seemed to grow more and more responsive to his every suck as time went by: she shivered violently when the arousal, dormant from before, started to return after Sokka pinned her down again…

No, no, no, she couldn't let him get away with that. He wasn't about to pull this one again. It was fine if spies thought she had been submissive and helpless… but this was private. They couldn't see it anymore, and she wouldn't relinquish control without putting up a fight.

She shoved him off her, climbing over him and straddling his abdomen with her back towards his face, working on undoing his lower body's clothes: Sokka snickered as he gaped at and groped her rear. Azula growled threateningly upon recognizing his likely intent…

"What?" he smirked. "Not fond of spanking, are we?"

"I'll return it tenfold if you so much as dare…" Azula hissed.

He dared. She gasped in outrage at the light slap, and he laughed deviously at her reaction.

"I spanked the Fire Nation Princess. I can die happy now," he smirked. Azula's outrage, as genuine as it was, was interrupted by a burst of amusement she couldn't restrain.

"You will die for sure. Happily? We'll see about that," she hissed. Sokka cackled, but her threats seemed meaningless to him as he yanked her skirt up, making it ride higher and higher until her skin was fully exposed for him.

"Come here… I want to taste you," Sokka whispered: Azula groaned: she had pushed his trousers and underwear down to his knees, failing to remove them altogether…

But his manhood had certainly sprung out into the open by now, and Azula was as good as entranced by it when Sokka's hands clasped her thighs, reeling her back over himself.

Once more, he tucked her underwear to the side before diving in with his mouth: Azula cried out, grinding against his face at first… a strangely pleasant sensation had bloomed on her rear as well, right where he had spanked her. Curses, no, she wasn't into that. She couldn't be into that. But… could she be into that?

"D-do it… again. Fuck. Oh, fuck, do it again, spank… s-spank me…"

She really had lost every smidge of dignity she had left, hadn't she?

She hadn't meant to make up for her foolishness by devouring his manhood, but she leaned down and as good as gagged herself with it to avoid saying anything stupid again: even so, what she'd said was enough for Sokka to hum appreciatively and obey her request. She shuddered, shivering against him as an unexpectedly enjoyable sensation spread over her mounds, as Sokka palmed them deviously before striking them lightly: the vibrations resulted in a hazy, strangely warm sensation that only enhanced everything her ridiculously talented lover was already doing with his mouth. She took him into her mouth in as best she could, closing her eyes impulsively… and every sensation he evoked in her seemed stronger for it.

She couldn't withstand the onslaught of pleasure, the new frontiers he was breaching for her, anymore: he was intense, he was thrilling, and she needed more. She needed him.

She jolted herself out of his control without explanation, even removing his cock from her mouth as she dragged herself over his body. The high heels that slid past him sent a danger warning through his system, but before he could so much as try to remove them from her feet, Azula made her wild choice without so much as consulting him: she sat on his manhood, guiding it inside her until she sheathed him to the hilt.

She cried out in undisguised delight. He cursed more loudly than he had at any other point that night.

"Holy fucking hell…! Okay… okay. Woah, damn, you're smooth… Azula, damn…!"

"And you're so fucking big!" she shouted: this time, at least, she did it deliberately, regardless of whether her words were true or not. She glanced over her shoulder to find him smirking, no doubt realizing she was being so loud deliberately, yet again intent on ensuring everyone would know they were in the middle of a rather unreasonably wild tryst.

"I'm going… to fuck you senseless…!" Sokka roared. Azula couldn't hold back her laughter as she took to riding him, thrusting slowly and ensuring Sokka's sounds would not be as forced and extreme as that last one had been. "Oh, hell…!"

"That's how I like it!" Azula said, as his hips started grinding against hers at a quicker speed. "Make me yours! Make me yours…!"

"You're all mine already, Azula… don't you ever doubt it," he said: his voice hadn't been as loud as before…

But it didn't have to be.

He sat up, pulling her with him as he rose higher, without breaking the connection between their bodies. Setting her on all fours, startling her enough for a genuine gasp of shock to spill from her lips, Sokka began plowing into her wildly, quickly, hands keeping her bent forward as she panted with each of his thrusts.

Well, that was certainly a first in a million ways: the first time she had been spanked erotically, the first time she had been fucked in doggy-style position, too… the first time she had done something as wild as this with Sokka. It was the roughest sex she'd ever had…

And she genuinely relished in it.

She begged for more, urging him to spank her again, and Sokka complied a few times. His command over their tryst wasn't absolute, she could certainly make demands and thrust against him too… but when he grew more authoritarian, Azula couldn't help but melt into his grasp. He pulled her up, set on groping her breasts again, his lips ready for her neck once more, and he devoured it while prompting her to lean forward again, this time with his chest pressed to her back, as he plowed faster into her with every move.

"Can you… take it?" he gasped into her ear. Azula smiled wildly, supporting herself with her outstretched arms.

"Fuck me like you mean it, damn you," she hissed. Sokka snickered in her ear, and his thrusts grew more intense yet.

She didn't want him to win. She wouldn't let him win, not even when she felt her body was ready to melt like butter, even if she could barely hold on anymore as he tilted her head back, kissing her deeply on a whim, as though he had grown to miss the feel of her lips on his. She wound up supporting herself on the headboard, clinging to it as best she could, but even that was difficult to achieve: the power with which he thrusted made it so the bedframe would bump into the wall, and he surely would have to apologize to his next-door neighbor, if there was one, for the near earthquake he was causing through this wild tryst with his lover.

But the sounds that spilled from them didn't stop there: her moans were exaggerated at times, all be it to ensure she was heard… by the time her excitement was ready to release again, though, there was no need to exaggerate at all: the desperate, loud sounds leaving her lips were as real as they could be while he juggled her breasts, whispering surprisingly devious things in her ear that made her body melt all the faster…

She had no more defenses left. She almost crumbled as her arms gave way, as her legs trembled wildly, as she cried out in blissful defeat: if this was how he'd take it upon himself to prove whatever point he wanted to prove to her, she certainly would welcome it a million times over…

He wasn't done, though: his thrusts continued for a delightful eternity, it seemed, stirring Azula back for another peak, and then another, until he unleashed himself inside her, wild groans pouring out of him as his arousal broke free within her core.

He breathed heavily afterwards, hugging her tightly… carelessly letting himself collapse atop her. She flopped down too, face buried in his pillow – it smelled like him, and she found she rather liked that, for whatever mad reason she did. He had done one hell of a number on her that night… and she wanted him to do another one. And then another one, And then…

"Think that's enough?" Sokka asked: his breath tickled her cheek. Azula shivered, glancing at him to find his face remained close to hers.

He hadn't uncoupled himself from her yet. He crushed her delightfully against the bed, and she found she wanted him to keep doing that, to keep trapping her and subjecting her to pleasure unparalleled upon doing so…

"No… I really don't," was Azula's answer to his question.

She smirked slightly, in an enticing way that invited him to try again. To do it again. To stop at nothing that night… for she didn't want him to. They were good at this… they were great at this. If the plan was for them to deceive the Golden Suns… well, wouldn't it be even more effective to do so by genuinely sleeping together? Yes, it was only a matter of sense, of course. There would be no need to manufacture evidence, to fake anything, if they were going at it for good. The hickeys, the awkward gait, the passionate cries in the night… all of them would be as genuine as could be, and Sokka seemed to be perfectly comfortable with that concept as he snickered, burying his face in her neck to tease her sensitive skin anew.

Dawn found them tangled around each other still, if unconsciously this time. Hours drifted by as their rest replenished the energies spent through the night… only for them to return to consciousness upside down across the bed, by midmorning.

"Well, we certainly have no reason to worry about making our act convincing anymore," Azula concluded as she dressed up in the same clothes she had worn the previous night.

Sokka sat up, rubbing his eyes as she endeavored to be as professional as possible – a near impossible feat considering the unfathomable shamelessness with which she had chased every burst of pleasure provided by his mouth, hands, manhood and just about everything she could reach of him last night. She breathed out slowly, brushing her fingers over her suit's jacket before glancing over her shoulder at her lover.

"Is something the matter?" she asked. "Hungover?"

"Nah, I was faking the drunkenness. You knew that already," Sokka said, with a weak grin. "Just… we really made a mess, huh? Not just because we actually did sleep together and I think everyone's going to yell at me once they find out about that, but, well…"

"Well, Toph won't. Though technically? The rest of your friends would have yelled at you once our relationship became common knowledge, regardless of whether we slept together or not. At least this way you actually earned the yelling fair and square, if that's any relief?" Azula said.

To her surprise, he actually smiled at her. That her heart would speed up for it was certainly uncalled for.

"Can't lie… it was worth it. I didn't know I'd be into half the stuff we did last night…" he admitted. Azula scoffed.

"Don't play coy now, you have a dominant streak and that's nothing to be ashamed of," Azula said. Sokka chuckled, shaking his head.

"Not pretending I'm coy about it. It's kind of odd getting to know myself better through someone else this way, but I admit… I liked it," he said. "Anyway… what's next?"

"My walk of shame?" Azula answered, matter-of-factly, as she walked across the room to find her high heels.

"Besides that," Sokka said, smiling a little. "We're supposed to, well, act like an item now?"

"Uh… I'd say, if we weren't doing this with a purpose in mind, we'd likely avoid each other for a couple of days," Azula reasoned, raising her eyebrows: Sokka's heart lurched at the thought. Why would that be an issue? He had gone years without seeing her, he certainly had a whole life to deal with that hadn't included her until merely a few days ago… "By the time our shame dwindles, and we realize we're a rather good match… huh. There's a large festival coming up, isn't there? To commemorate the end of the war?"

"That's true," Sokka said. "Think we could meet by chance there? You have to attend it too, don't you?"

"I'm expected to, though I won't be a participant. It'd be inappropriate for me to be involved in the spectacle personally, of course, considering who I am," Azula said, with a dry grin. "But once you're done with whatever protocol nonsense you're supposed to do… I suppose we can stage a casual encounter between us that can evolve into something more?"

"Sounds good," Sokka smirked. Azula smiled.

"Do correct me if I'm wrong, but it almost sounds like you're looking forward to more of our… sort-of-but-maybe-not-really-faking a relationship situation," she said, stepping around the bed and approaching the spot where he sat. Sokka smiled, shrugging carelessly.

"I've gotten better at acting, true… but I'm not much good at lying anyway," he said, letting his eyes rise to hers. "You're the hottest woman I've ever slept with. No contest."

Azula blinked blankly, and she smiled even if her cheeks reddened slightly over his praise.

"Well… that's natural. I'm a rather prodigious firebender, as you may recall," she said, simply. Sokka chuckled at her response. "But I appreciate the compliment all the same. I'd return it, too, but… you're not a firebender."

"Ah. Guess hottest doesn't apply to me, then?" he asked.

"Not quite… though I suppose, if I'm to get technical?" Azula said, stepping towards him and taking his face in her hands:

He didn't hesitate to kiss her back once her lips brushed his. Thrills still rushed through their bodies, making them lightheaded over the contact. Azula smiled as she pulled away slightly, amused to feel Sokka's hands clasping her waist, intent on keeping her close to him.

"No man I've slept with has ever made me as wet as you did, so… I suppose that suits your element as well as the heat suits mine," Azula smiled. Sokka smirked proudly. "And that was rather ridiculous of me to say, but it's hardly that wild, considering the utterly shameless things you made me say last night…"

"Yeah, that's hardly the most shameless thing you've said in this room, yep," Sokka smirked. Azula laughed, shaking her head.

"I have to get going. I'll be late for work, a sin on my part…" Azula sighed dramatically. "And one that will make our mission all the more successful, as people will suspect I was up to no good last night because of it. If an opportunity comes up… try to inspect the next-door building, the rooftop to be precise. While I do suspect they could have been watching you from there, I'd rather make sure…"

"Well, I still hope no one was there. I'd rather not give some voyeur a show, frankly…" Sokka said, pushing himself off the bed. Azula smirked.

"Voyeurism is where you draw the line, then?" she asked. Sokka chuckled.

"Well… I wouldn't be against watching you doing, uh, 'stuff', if you felt like it," Sokka smirked. Azula snapped her tongue, smirking deviously in his direction.

"Noted," she said: the sunlight drifted through the window's drapes only slightly, but sufficiently for her to admire his body, much as he had shamelessly gaped at hers while she dressed up.

He pulled out a simple set of trousers, dragging them up to his waist. He didn't do anything else to dress up, and Azula didn't need to ask why: the shamelessness in being shirtless as he opened the building's door for her would make their one-night-stand even more believable for his neighbors, for any spies lurking in corners… no one would have reasons to question what had happened between them that night, and frankly, there was nothing to be questioned anyway: what should have been a feigned tryst had been as real as it could get, and while it wasn't what they had intended at first, Azula couldn't help but find the development utterly delightful.

She didn't kiss him goodbye as he opened the door for her: she was back to pretending she had some modicum of pride, even if Sokka appeared to have forsaken his entirely. He watched her until she vanished in the street… and then he breathed out in utter disbelief, both over what had transpired between them and over the utterly wild storm laying waste over his heart right now. Curses, but she was attractive, delightfully wicked, adventurous and appealing in just about every possible way…

Oh, he hated himself for it, but he was already getting attached and he knew he shouldn't do so. Still… it had been an amazing night. Azula clearly agreed, so… perhaps she'd be down for more of it, even after their mission was finished?

Two days of reliving their tryst in his mind during council meetings were, it turned out, far too many. He barely could focus, constantly distracted by wondering if their future encounters would result in the same outcome as the one from that day, if perhaps their next times might be a little less intense… but the minute he remembered Azula's smirks, her taunts, the way she constantly asked, even demanded for more, he grew convinced of the opposite. More than that, he grew convinced that he wanted the opposite…

His duties in the celebration of the war's end at Republic City's park were mostly protocolar, though he did offer a brief speech. He had to mingle with the other authorities of the council, as well as the other war heroes who were present at the ceremony, but he slipped away once the opportunity arrived, determined to find her. He only succeeded once the first fireworks were being launched, and he smiled like a fool as her face lit up under the glow of the explosions, as she stood by herself near one of the park's ponds, right past a cluster of trees.

"Heh… there you are," Sokka said, offering her a tense grin. Azula raised her eyebrows, glancing at him with apparent disdain.

"Quite the eloquent speech you offered back there," she said. "I particularly enjoyed the rallying cry of 'Everything's so pretty in Republic City'. Quite impressive."

"Heh. I improvised that… didn't go so badly considering people kind of liked it?" Sokka said, with a careless shrug as he slowed down beside her. "Enjoying the fireworks?"

"They're… adequate," she said. Sokka smirked upon hearing her use that word anew. "What?"

"Nothing. Just… thinking about something else you found adequate not that long ago."

"I have no idea what you mean," Azula said, stubbornly. "Or are you trying to say you have such good memory of what happened when you were utterly drunk?"

"I…" Sokka glanced at her – of course, she was right, he wasn't supposed to indulge in banter carelessly, for there was a chance that they might be watched right now. He had to pretend he had been drunk that night, and that was even the whole core of what he'd wanted to say to her… "I remember a handful of things. Not as well as I should, but… I do remember the start of it pretty well. The sounds you made were probably too powerful for even the strongest drunken haze to erase them from my brain, so…"

"Heh. Not like you were all that restrained, yourself," Azula said, raising her head haughtily. "Either way, it was a drunken mistake on your part for sure. No doubt a great war hero like yourself should not be colluding in any way with… war villains, like myself?"

"That's… what some people might think. But…" Sokka said, eyeing her furtively. Azula smirked.

"You're not about to say a handful of orgasms are enough to sway your opinion of me, are you?" she said. "If so, it would make matters terribly boring. I only like you because you hate me."

"That's terribly masochistic of you," Sokka said. Azula chuckled.

"Well, you have a dominant streak, as it turns out… I doubt my masochism is much of a problem for you," she said. "Not to say that it matters, though… it was a one-time thing, wasn't it?"

"It… uh, it could be if you wanted it to be," Sokka said, running a hand over his hair. Azula raised an eyebrow, eyeing him warily. "But, see… it barely counts as one time if I forgot half of it because I was drunk, or does it?"

"Oh? Want me to remind you of the second half, do you?" Azula asked, turning towards him with undisguised amusement. "You're rather forward, aren't you? Bold, too. Some might even say…"

"Stupid?" Sokka finished. Azula laughed again. "Well, you like that I hate you, I like that you hate me, we have mind-numbingly great sex because of that… isn't that something to exploit, Princess?"

"Oh, want to exploit me?" Azula asked, smirking. "That's terribly filthy of you to say. Inappropriate, too."

"I didn't say…" Sokka huffed, though he chuckled, angling his body towards her. "All I'm saying is… we can have fun together, we proved that. I just want to show you what I can do when I'm actually all there, you know? I'm bound to be better sober than drunk, so…"

"Is that so? Were you at half your power, by any chance?" Azula asked, amused.

"Maybe I was," Sokka shrugged enigmatically. Her smirk was lined with that deviousness that immediately compelled him to kiss her, even if he didn't act on the impulse yet.

"And what of your friends? Don't they need you for one thing or another tonight?" she asked: she raised a hand touching the lapel of his outfit delicately. Sokka swallowed hard, then shook his head.

"Technically… my big duties are done. It's just the partying now, and…"

"And?"

"I'd much rather party in private with you."

Azula smirked, lowering her gaze. Sokka's hands slipped up to her waist, settling there gently, pulling her closer. She brushed her pelvis against his suggestively, clasping his delicate neckerchief: instead of reeling him in for a kiss, she yanked him lower still, so her lips would hover by his ear.

"Are you quite sure of what you're getting into, peasant?"

Sokka smiled: his hands slid past her waist, cupping her ass-cheeks firmly and making her gasp. They wound up gazing into each other's eyes, her hand still clutching the neckerchief.

"I'm going to make sure you cry out my name rather than calling me that… so yes, I'm damn sure of what I'm doing, Princess."

Her smirk finally proved too much to resist: he kissed her willfully, passionately, careless about whoever might bump into them, whoever might see…

For the more people watched, the more people overheard, the better: their relationship had to be the talk of Republic City, to draw as much attention as possible. There was no telling if the Golden Suns were watching from behind that tree line right now, or maybe hiding among the crowds celebrating the end of the war… but if they were keeping an eye on them somehow, they'd be direct witnesses to how Sokka pinned Azula to a tree, kissing her deep and wildly, in a domineering display she submitted to without a care in the world: it was but the start of their tryst for that night, and it continued once they took off together to Sokka's apartment once more.

They met up the next night in the same tavern as before: this time, they didn't sit at the stools but at a table at the corner of the establishment, drinking together, even feeding each other obnoxiously, being shamelessly handsy and sharing no end of inappropriate kisses so that, if the bartender still hadn't understood what was happening between them before, he was certain to do so by then.

Another night spent together, and then another: Sokka boldly asked Azula out on a date while buried to the hilt inside her. It was a surreal conversation, interrupted by wild cries in the throes of rough sex, but she agreed to his reasoning that it was time for them to be seen in public in broad daylight, too.

Their first proper date started reasonably, and it escalated as they spent more time together: from sweetly holding hands while walking across the streets in the morning, they had wound up daringly sneaking behind the tavern they visited that night, having their way with each other in a wild, careless frenzy. By the next day, the local newspaper – which had existed for merely three years by then – dared run a story, paired with furtive pictures of the presumed couple walking unassumingly together on the previous morning, their hands linked. Sokka couldn't help but be relieved that the photographers hadn't caught them at any of the more risqué moments they had shared throughout that day, which had, yet again, resulted in a wild tryst in Sokka's apartment. He never imagined his libido could somehow increase after sex, but the momentary relief and satisfaction he found with Azula would always be followed by ravaging need, by lust that clouded his senses until he couldn't even think clearly anymore.

Said inability to think clearly was certainly taking a toll on him in more ways than he ever imagined it would: otherwise, he wouldn't be marching into the Fire Nation embassy with bags of food, right on time for lunch break.

All her staff saw him, and as he was a councilman, he hadn't required any appointments or explanations to be there. He had simply asked to see her, and he had confirmed with delight that several of the staff members had shot him wary, suspicious glances: rumors were spreading successfully, then. Spies or no, there was no way the Golden Suns wouldn't have heard of Azula's relationship with him by now.

She was flustered when she marched down the hall towards him, mouth agape with surprise and confusion as he smiled in her direction. She shot a wary glance at her staff, all stationed at their cubicles near the building's entrance: they'd have direct evidence that she was nervous about seeing him… they'd know his visit to her workplace made her uneasy due to the nature of their remarkably physical relationship.

"Ambassador Azula," Sokka said, bowing pompously in her direction with a flourish of his arm. She slowed down before him, cheeks tinged red as she met his shameless eyes.

"Councilman Sokka. To what do I owe this visit?" she asked. "Does the council require anything from the embassy, or…?"

"Oh, it does. I think it's safest for us to discuss it in private, though," Sokka smirked, raising the bags of food he had brought with him: "How about it?"

"I… I thought I told you not to come here during my work hours?" she said, her voice more hushed than before, as though to hide what she was saying… but, naturally, she failed to conceal her words properly. Even so, Sokka played along with a smile as he stepped closer to her.

"You're so tense…" he whispered. "Looks like you've had a rough day, haven't you? Might be you need to unwind a little bit…"

"You'd like that, but…" Azula said, and Sokka shook his head.

"At the very least eat with me. You said you get so lost in work at times that you forget to do it, so…"

"Is that why you're here?" Azula asked, skeptical. "Wow… my knight in shining armor, aren't you?"

"I can be, if you want me to. But you know I can be a few other naughtier things too, if you'd prefer that…" Sokka smirked, biting his lip deviously. Azula huffed.

"Food. We'll eat, you'll leave, and that's that," she said, raising a condemning finger in his direction. Sokka smiled brightly and nodded.

"I'm here to serve my favorite ambassador, nothing less, nothing more," he said, with yet another bow.

Azula couldn't stifle a smile upon hearing those words before urging him to follow her to her office – she felt the gazes of her staff following her as she walked away, already anticipating Sokka's hand to land somewhere close to her rear before they were gone from sight… and she smirked when it happened, shooting him a complicit stare that Sokka corresponded immediately.

He pinned her to her office's door as soon as it was closed, and Azula yanked him near her by pulling his neckerchief, as she often did – she had boldly admitted to him a couple of days ago that his fancy, formal attire suited him impossibly well, making him all the more attractive than he already was. He, of course, felt similarly about her smooth, luxurious work suits as well: more than anything, they thrived in throwing a wrench into their feigned perfection, revealing their primal need for each other underneath all the pretenses and projections they often hid behind.

As for how much of it was real, and how much was a matter of tricking the world, neither of them truly knew anymore. Even so, they read each other flawlessly every time their reactions were excessive, every time they deliberately exploited all opportunities to convince any witnesses that they were up to no good…

"The… food?" Azula gasped, as Sokka devoured her neck relentlessly: his lips slid lower, trailing over her collarbone, aiming towards her chest – his hand slipped inside her suit jacket, and he deliberately undid the blouse buttons underneath to reveal her delightful cleavage. "Sokka, you said…"

"You're too hot… I can't help myself," he responded: her fingers gripped his hair tightly, guiding his mouth over her gradually exposed chest. "Want me to stop, then?"

"I… o-of course I do…" she said: her left hand cupped his manhood boldly over his trousers, and Sokka yelped softly before eyeing her with a raised eyebrow. She smirked deviously before returning to her vocal act. "This is wrong… I'm supposed to be working! I-if Zuko finds out…!"

"Who cares if Zuko finds out?" Sokka responded, pressing her against the door and kissing her breathless once more: their moans were purposefully loud, though the excitement was effectively rising and they wouldn't need to exaggerate anything anymore in no time. "You said you were mine, he's got nothing to do with this…"

"I… I didn't say that…" Azula gasped – frankly, she might have said it at some point, but she had no recollection of it. Sokka certainly had a talent to coax the most embarrassing words out of her in the throes of passion…

"Then I'll make you say it now," Sokka declared, smirking deviously. Azula moaned as his hand slipped up her skirt purposefully, knowing exactly where to go, what to do, how to touch her in order to bring her most shameless side to the fore…

And he succeeded at it, of course: before long she started crying out loud to tell him where to touch her, how to do so, to keep going and not stop. Anyone beyond the room would be brought to believe she was trying to be responsible, at first… only to succumb to her innermost instincts, shamelessly giving herself to her lover and now purposefully, genuinely admitting out loud that she was his for the taking.

Their tryst began against the wall, but it moved to her desk shortly afterwards: Azula didn't even hesitate to urge Sokka to clear the surface with a sweep of his arm. He knelt before her, pulling down her underwear and furtively stuffing it in his jacket pocket. Without the constraints of her underwear, Azula could spread her legs further and Sokka, with his head hidden under her skirt, devoured her folds and ensured that Azula's moans spilled out relentlessly as he offered her however many climaxes he could provide her so far.

Both were still half-dressed when Sokka thrusted into her: at first he went about grinding their bodies while simply standing before her, but the surging passion saw him climbing on the desk along with her soon enough, ramming hard against her while disregarding the creaking sounds of its wood, resentful of their dual weight and agitated activity. Azula wrapped her arms and legs around him, locking him in place as he thrusted into her, buried as deeply as he might go, with rapid hips movements that stirred Azula's need of him further: her begging had been a matter of exaggeration too… until it wasn't. Right now, with his lips wrapped delightfully around one of her nipples, Sokka drilled hard and deep inside her, deeper than anyone else had ever gone, and she relished in the enhanced, delightful sensations of being stretched open by him…

By this point, she never could count how many times she climaxed with him during their encounters. As far as she was concerned, this one could have been the fiftieth of the day, for her sensitive body, heated as though it might melt delightfully over excessive pleasure, certainly felt as though she had been through fifty orgasms. Sokka depleted himself inside her, but he boldly continued thrusting afterwards, no matter if his own strength threatened to give way, until she reached one final peak.

Most his hair had fallen out of his wolf's tail by then – her hair, of course, was far worse off than his. He had unbuttoned most her suit jacket, leaving but one button on, and undone her bra as well as her blouse. The result was a most ridiculous cleavage where most her breasts would be exposed, the cups of her bra resting on the underside of her mounds. She had no idea what he'd done with her underwear… though an utterly shameless part of her truly hoped he would keep it. It was a ridiculous trophy for him to take with him, she supposed… but she was happy to part with it, both for the mission's sake and to let him claim a most mutually beneficial victory over her.

"How was that?" Sokka asked, pushing himself up slightly and smiling at her: Azula's chest heaved as she tried to come back down from her latest spree of excitement. The first sound to leave her lips was a groan, and she responded to Sokka's question with a hard kiss.

"You're fucking smug… so smug, you bastard. I used to think I was shameless before I knew you, but…"

"Heh, I'm worse, I take it?" Sokka smirked.

"More like… I've discovered my limits are a lot more flexible than I thought they were," Azula said, laughing softly. "Fuck, you're too good…"

"And here I thought I was so bad… didn't I interrupt your lunch break to wreak havoc on your life and social reputation?" Sokka asked. Azula laughed.

"You'll have to try harder than that to be genuinely bad. You even brought lunch… though we haven't eaten it yet," Azula said, glancing at the bags Sokka had dropped on one of her bookshelves, right by the door. "That was too nice of you. Keep that up and I'll start thinking you actually like me."

"Heh, me? Liking you?" Sokka repeated, with a smirk. "Would that be so appalling for you, Princess?"

"Well… if the sex doesn't grow dull just because of that, I won't care much either way," Azula said, simply. Sokka chuckled, caressing her face before kissing her lips.

He kissed her repeatedly, sometimes chastely, sometimes deeply… and she responded with her own subtle demands, leading him in the direction she wanted him in every time. Locked in that intimate embrace, Sokka nibbled on her lower lip, trailing his tongue over it teasingly while Azula rolled her eyes back with delight and pleasure.

"We… really should…" she mumbled, absentmindedly.

"Hmm? I'll leave you be the minute you stop hugging me so tightly, Princess. Promised thing."

If he hadn't said it, she wouldn't have noticed that all her limbs remained locked around him. He hadn't even bothered unsheathing himself from her, and he offered her a smug smirk now as she glared at him.

"You're so full of yourself, damn you," Azula said.

"As are you, and I like that about you better nowadays, admittedly… so I imagine you'll like it from me, too," Sokka smirked. She laughed, shaking her head.

"Perhaps I do… doesn't change that you're a pain."

"Am I? Here I was trying to be a 'pleasure' instead…" he said, teasingly.

She covered her mouth with a hand, and Sokka smirked as he eyed her knowingly.

"T-that was…"

"A very stupid joke that you found funny. No covering up now, Princess, I know your body back and forth by now… I know your sense of humor is as unrefined as mine, just as well."

"It's not, and… oh, fuck you," Azula laughed, throwing her head back. Sokka grinned deviously, nibbling on her neck now.

"Well, you can go on and fuck me indeed, if you want. Feel like riding me, do you?"

"Maybe. But it's not like we have that much time left, you have to go back to the council and I have to…" Azula whispered, kissing his lips again as he came back for another thorough exchange, as though to further persuade her to indulge in some more fun. "T-to… ah, fuck. Whatever. My reputation's as good as dead, might as well… might as well…"

She was the one frantically kissing him then, and Sokka chuckled as he slipped an arm underneath her body: he'd swap their positions now, taking advantage of what she'd do next to bolster her excitement by prodding her clit… he grinded his hips against hers, ensuring his pubic bone would graze her swollen nub lightly, and another shameless moan slipped past her lips. The sound sent more of that primal need coursing through him, making him think that maybe he'd reschedule the change of positions for another time, maybe this was fine again, just like this…

The sound of a shifting tile on the ground caused Azula to gasp, breaking their kiss and urging him to ease up on his relentless teasing and stirring of her arousal. He had heard it too, though… and he frowned in confusion as Azula glanced back, past the desk, towards a spot near the corner of her office.

"Shit," she blurted out with a small voice: the tile started moving of its own accord. Sokka's jaw dropped: they would be caught by someone with their pants down. He remained, to this moment, deeply coupled with Azula's body…

He didn't expect Azula to sit up, forcing him to do the same. He did suppose their bodies would split, and the pleasant, wondrous connection between them ceased – his foolish, irrational side resented the separation, having wanted so much more of that warm delight he had found so thrilling to indulge in within Azula's core –, but she took him by surprise with her next move, right before their intruder emerged from the new gap on the ground:

Her hand slapped over Sokka's mouth, forcefully silencing him an instant before the Chief of Police stuck her head out of the hole in Azula's office.

Sokka yelped instinctively, and Azula's wise choice to silence his initial shock proved the correct one after all.

"Well, now… sounds like you've been busy, huh, Spicy?" Toph smirked: she didn't even climb out of the hole at all, resting an elbow on the floor tiles around the one she had removed. "Mission's going friggin' great, isn't it?"

"T-Toph…" Azula gritted her teeth: it was stupid to feel the need to rearrange their clothes when they were dealing with someone who was blind, the wooden desk made it so Toph couldn't possibly sense them, too… but she could certainly sense the mess of the office, and depending on how long she'd been waiting underground, she might have heard more than enough to know just how well her mission was going.

"I was dropping by to let you know that the Golden Suns are reacting to the bait… but I guess you wanted to throw on some more bait on top of the bait already, huh?" she snickered. "Shit, I just knew this was going to happen…"

Sokka impulsively responded, though Azula's hand upon his mouth ensured he wouldn't be able to raise his voice at his friend. Azula shot him a meaningful glare, reminding him to keep his voice down, and he grimaced before nodding in agreement. Only then did Azula remove her hand, and Sokka turned towards Toph with a glare – both him and Azula were still sitting on the desk quite awkwardly, covering up whatever parts of their bodies were exposed as they regarded her.

"You… knew this was going to happen, you said?" Sokka repeated, with a dangerous smile. "The hell is that supposed to mean?"

"Oh, that you two are the same kind of dumb, I guess," Toph chuckled, covering her face with a hand. "I mean, I figured you'd probably pretend you were dating, then catch feelings for each other and then you'd go all out and fuck like bunnies later, but you just… went about it the other way around, I guess? Can't lie, the bait's really strong this way, huh? Yeah, it sure is, heh… oh, give me a fucking second, I really have to laugh at how dumb you two are and I can't do it here…"

She closed the floor once more, letting loose with laughter within the underground passage she had just traveled through. Some of the echo of her laughter still reached the uncomfortable pair within the office, finally flustered enough over their behavior to actually reel themselves into control, for once.

"I suppose at least she thinks it's funny," Sokka said, an eyebrow twitching as he sighed, zipping and buttoning his trousers once more. Azula made to do the same, though she had far more buttons in her blouse; she didn't reject Sokka's help when he offered it freely.

"Admittedly, I wouldn't be all that bothered if we'd been caught by anyone but her," Azula said. Sokka raised an eyebrow. "I mean, we weren't supposed to… this wasn't exactly the plan all along."

"I get that, but… it's kind of unexpected that you'd be self-aware with Toph," Sokka smiled a little. Azula's gut tingled at the sight of that gentle expression on his face, devoid of the mischief with which he always approached her for their carnal encounters. "Guess you two really are better friends than I thought."

"Well, don't get jealous, but… she is my best friend," Azula admitted, with a shrug. Sokka raised an eyebrow.

"Jealous why?"

"Because as far as I know, she was yours?" Azula said, simply. Sokka snorted.

"I'm happy sharing friends with… well, friends, I suppose," he said, raising an eyebrow and glancing at Azula with uncertainty. "If that's what we are…?"

"Huh. Good question. I don't really know how you live your life, but I can assure you I haven't seen my friends naked nearly as often as I've seen you…" Azula admitted. Sokka snorted, chuckling and shaking his head. "I'm only saying…"

"I don't do this stuff with my friends either, so I suppose we're still lethal enemies," he said, frowning and glaring at Azula in a teasing manner. She growled at him, inching closer and playing along with his silly joke.

"Utterly so. I can't wait to choke you… for, uh, sexual gratification, I suppose?" Azula said, raising an eyebrow: Sokka's entire charade crumbled as he laughed, dropping his head on her shoulder. "Which doesn't mean we're not enemies. No, certainly not…"

"The one I'm more unwilling to share is you," Sokka said, wrapping his arms around her waist and reeling her closer to himself. Azula blinked blankly upon hearing those words. "Not trying to be a possessive idiot here, I just…"

"Well, you're an idiot for sure…" Azula said, caressing his arm gently. "Not sure about the possessive side of it, but an idiot anyway."

The floor's tile rumbled again as Toph pushed it out of the way. Sokka instinctively relinquished his hold on Azula, cheeks flushed as Toph climbed out of the tunnel in full – she remained amused, to a fault, but she jerked her head towards Azula with a skeptical sneer.

"Alright then… didn't I tell you the two of you were going to hit it off perfectly if you stopped being so thickheaded about each other?" Toph said. Azula scoffed and Sokka raised an eyebrow in response to that statement. "I told her she reminded me of you at times, Sokka…"

"Oh, really?" Sokka blinked blankly before an idea clicked in his head. "Ah! The bad jokes, I bet it's because of the bad jokes…"

"Her sense of humor is as dumb as yours, yep," Toph attested, and Azula rolled her eyes while elbowing Sokka's ribs. "But anyway, I'm not here to congratulate you two on fucking all across Republic City…"

"We haven't really gone that far yet," Sokka said. Azula hummed.

"Might not be a terrible idea to try it, though. That'd definitely be a message for the Golden Suns…" she said. Sokka smirked and Toph huffed.

"Didn't you two just blow off a fuckload of steam just now? I literally took a walk because I came by right when you were getting started, and I came back when you were about to get it on again. How much sexual frustration do you still have left that you'd need to bang all across the city to work it out?"

"Uh… well, you see, I'm very frustrated about other things too," Sokka said, raising an eyebrow. "I haven't gotten my last paycheck from the White Lotus! That's very frustrating."

"Hmm. And I didn't find the right spices in the market the other day. That frustrated me, too," Azula said. Sokka nodded sagely.

"The automobile industries prototypes frustrate me too. Those fuckers are developing something so cool and won't let me volunteer for testing because, well, I don't know why! Is it because I'm a councilman? Is it because I'm a war hero? Is it because they're angry that I got to work with the Mechanist years ago and they didn't? Whatever the reason, it was very frustrating…"

"So, all those frustrations, you're just… working them out on each other?" Toph scoffed, hands on her hips. Azula and Sokka shared a furtive smile before nodding proudly. "See? You're both the same kind of dumb and you just keep proving it."

"You don't have to get so worked up about it anyway. Isn't this more convenient, hence, believable for your plans?" Azula asked, raising her eyebrows. "We're not simply pretending, we're actually involved now, having a rather strange relationship of our own… we even showed up on the newspaper this week, I'm sure you must have heard about it."

"I did. And I thought I'd tell you you're doing a great job with serving as bait, but then I found you were actually doing Sokka rather than your job, so…" Toph said, with a shrug. Azula smiled guiltily and shrugged. "No idea how the hell you made it as a White Lotus agent for so long if you always get so caught up in your mission's details as you did this time, Sokka."

"See, that's the key to it: it doesn't always happen. In fact? It never happened before. Azula and I… what we have is a special kind of relationship, right?" Sokka said, smiling deviously at her.

"The especially horny kind, I suppose," Azula said, with a shrug. "At any rate… aren't you here to update us about the Golden Suns?"

"Or are you here to reveal the whole thing with the Golden Suns was bullshit and you were just trying to matchmake us all along?" Sokka asked, raising an eyebrow.

"You'd wish," Toph said, smirking. "Though I matchmade you anyhow. If you ever get married, I'm giving the speech and revealing exactly how this started and how gross you two are together."

"Well, now…" Azula said, as both she and Sokka balked at the notion of marriage.

"It's a lot of sex, but that doesn't mean… marriage."

"I have been thorough about my birth control measures, so you won't have to marry me over a sudden pregnancy," Azula said. Sokka nodded.

"You told me so on our third night. Dumb of me not to think about it before that, but eh, Toph says we're dumb for all of it anyway…" he shrugged.

"And Toph's right to think so," Toph blurted out, with a smirk. "Anyway, you idiot hornballs, listen up: the Golden Suns are making moves. I'm not fully sure of what it's about yet, but from the sounds of it, they'll be throwing some party on their big cruise in a few weeks. If Shuang doesn't reach out to you before that, I think it's the right time for you to hit him up yourself, Azula: get an invitation to that party. Once you've pulled that off, you'll have a chance to convince him that you're capitalizing on Sokka's loins to get away with a better spot in the Avatar's inner circle, okay?"

"A public occasion of the sort should be a perfectly unassuming stage to do as you ask," Azula admitted, raising an eyebrow. "Though it's worrisome that it's on their cruise. If anything complicated were to happen…"

"I'd go with you, wouldn't I?" Sokka asked, glancing at Azula with a raised eyebrow. She shrugged.

"I suppose you would, if I'm allowed to bring a date…" she said, carelessly.

"A dangerous date for sure, eh?" Toph said, biting her lip. "I suspect Shuang's not going to be happy if you bring him."

"Well, I'm not keen on going alone, so he'll have to sock it up," Azula said, raising an eyebrow. "You, though… send your forces to monitor the cruise from a distance in those new airships of yours. Even if we should be able to fight off the Golden Suns if things get complicated, I'm not taking unnecessary risks. Diving off a cruise in the middle of the ocean at night isn't among the things I've hoped to do in this city."

"Hmm. Got a list of those? We can go on more dates to pull off the things you do want to do…" Sokka said. Azula couldn't hold back a disbelieving smile before Toph scoffed again.

"Having fun flirting?" she asked, skeptically. "Save it for when I'm out of here, Meathead. I'll see if I can set up the airships, but still, get yourself an invitation, Azula. The bastard ought to send you one of his own volition, but if he doesn't…"

"I'll be ready to reach out, no need to fret," Azula said, waving a hand dismissively in Toph's direction.

"I hope so. Make sure to watch out if you have to contact him personally, guys like him tend to be stupidly territorial after all," she said, letting out a deep breath. "And I guess I'll be off now. Lunch break's about to end for all of us, so…"

"True. And we didn't get to eat at all," Azula said. Sokka huffed.

"Hey, now, I ate something…"

"Shut up."

"Ugh, you're both gross," Toph said, though she laughed as she walked towards the hole she'd left in the room. "Just a warning, though, Spicy: you've been very noisy with this whole 'I'm banging Sokka' thing… it's going to reach Zuko's ears eventually. Might make him think he'd rather the Golden Suns kill him, who knows?"

"Heh, he's dramatic that way, true," Azula smirked.

"But I'm just saying… he's bound to react, and probably overreact, eventually. Don't be too surprised if he shows up in Republic City in a couple of days to demand that you explain what you're doing," Toph said.

"The things I must endure because of you, midget," Azula hissed. Toph smirked, waving a hand in her direction as she sank in the ground.

"You know you love the chaos, Azula, you can't fool me anymore," she said.

"Can't I? I'm a four-hundred-foot-tall purple platypus-bear…!"

Toph's laughter resounded as she closed the passageway again, and Azula let out a sigh as the Police Chief left them alone again. She and Sokka remained in silence for a moment, each in their own thoughts, until Azula sighed a second time and climbed off the desk.

"Want to eat quickly or do you want to take your food back to Town Hall?" she asked, simply. "I suppose we'd have time for…"

"Say…" Sokka bit his lip, pushing himself off the desk as well. Azula glanced at him, immediately alarmed by his tone. "Not that I'm trying to intrude or anything, but… what's with the comments about Shuang, exactly? If I can ask… I mean, maybe I'm thinking too much of it, but it kind of sounded like he's not going to be happy about your relationship with me? Which… doesn't make sense. Isn't your relationship with me exactly what we're betting on for you to get an inside scoop on what he's up to?"

"It is, but…" Azula said, breathing deeply and placing her hands on her hips: she looked uncomfortable, and even frustrated with herself… and it took Sokka a moment to understand why. "Let's just say my previous inside scoop on what his plans are wasn't obtained in a… professional manner, either."

Sokka blinked blankly. Azula seemed nervous, but she met his gaze firmly.

"Not that it should mean anything to you, it's hardly like I cheated on you if I slept with the guy when you weren't even part of my life…" she said, though her words sounded rather nervous anyway.

"U-uh… huh. I see," Sokka said: why the hell would it bother him to hear this? It was stupid to feel self-aware over Azula's previous partners. Even so, a million questions seemed to arise in his mind, questions he didn't dare ask… "Was it, uh, a one-time thing? Or are you still…?"

"I would have made it a none-times-thing, frankly, if I hadn't noticed he was being too sketchy," Azula confessed. "As I told you, he… sought me out a few times. I ignored him the first ones, but he always looked for excuses to meet me in public, only to then propose for us to meet more privately. Toph's warnings about him, the stuff she picked up about his secretive dealings, pushed me to suspect that maybe he was so insistent for reasons more nefarious than the apparent… but my first attempts to humor him cautiously didn't pay off. He proved to be a lot more ironclad about his true intent than I expected him to be. So… I had to play along with his wishes for a more private meeting. The only way to get the truth was…"

"By making him think you'd lowered your guard," Sokka concluded, frowning. Azula shrugged.

"You were a spy for the White Lotus, or whatever you were. This kind of thing shouldn't be all that shocking," she said.

"It's not, just… I didn't realize that was the level of trouble we were getting into," Sokka said, frowning. "I mean… I'm not about to get possessive or something. You can do whatever, whoever you want…"

"And I do," Azula said, simply. Sokka smiled at her response.

"But Toph implied he won't feel the same way," Sokka said. "Isn't this going to paint a target on my back if the guy's some unreasonable creepy puritan who believes something as backwards as, I don't know, that the Fire Nation Princess should only ever be with her own people?"

Azula gritted her teeth, glancing at him with uncertainty. Sokka shrugged and she sighed.

"It's… not impossible. I'd like to think you're a public figure with plenty of political clout, and he'll know better than to do anything unreasonable… but, honestly? I don't like him," Azula admitted. Sokka grimaced.

"And even then, you…?"

"His looks aren't the problem. It's whatever the hell is inside his mind that's as rotten as most the Fire Nation was. As even I was, once," Azula said, frowning. "I've learned a thing or two in my years of living in Republic City, believe it or not. At first I just wanted to go back home, I hated Zuko for sending me here, but… I could do more for Fire Nation people here than by sitting and sulking in a Palace while Zuko handled his work without me. Which is all he was bound to do, since he barely trusts me even nowadays…"

"He sent you here without trusting you?" Sokka asked, frowning and stepping closer to her. Azula shrugged.

"It's hardly like I'm not watched here. His best friends are here, right?" Azula said, simply. "If anything, he's probably more comfortable if someone who can steal bending is near me in case I double-cross him at some point."

"That sounds…" Sokka frowned: why would he be uncomfortable with that notion? Yes, he'd bonded with Azula primarily on a physical level, and he certainly enjoyed their conversations and banter, and her sense of humor was interesting… all of which, yes, had crafted some level of attachment between them. But he hadn't trusted Azula at all either a little over two weeks ago… had she told him about this during their reencounter in the interrogation cell, he would have likely said Zuko was right to act that way. Now, though…

"What? Getting soft on me, now, are you?" Azula smirked teasingly at him. "Too many orgasms messed with your morals, Sokka? Still remember I'm the Fire Nation's most ungodly monster, or am I so alluring that you forgot we used to be bitter enemies fighting in the war against each other?"

"I didn't forget, but… well, I guess I don't know if you're different now," Sokka said. Azula raised an eyebrow. "Because maybe you were always fun and I just… never got to see this side of you."

"Oh? And here I thought you were about to say maybe I'm still untrustworthy and terrible, instead. I'm not sure whether it flatters me or disappoints me that you chose to say something nicer than that," Azula smiled…

Though her smile was gentler than usual. Sokka raised an eyebrow as Azula shook her head.

"At any rate, you're a competent warrior, but if you're worried about Shuang sending anyone to murder you in retaliation for your relationship with me while I'm not paying attention, perhaps you could spend some time with your sister and the Avatar. If anything's too worrisome on the nights I can't spend with you, freeload off them for a few days instead," Azula suggested. "It's not likely that we'll be together at every waking moment… so short of us deciding to move in together for the sake of your protection, I can't presume to be able to keep you safe from Shuang's potential resentment, if he does feel any."

"Just how unhinged do you think he might be?" Sokka asked. Azula shrugged.

"It's hard to say. He's definitely not an honest man, he knows how to hide behind façades… he's a noble from the Fire Nation, after all," Azula said. "I can guess the magnitude of his ambition, but I don't know how far he's willing to go to see it satisfied."

"Heh. Well, if he wants to be Fire Lord, killing Zuko and marrying you would be his primary plan, wouldn't it?" Sokka said, with a disgusted snarl. Azula smiled.

"Not territorial, you say, and yet that concept seems to disgust you so…" Azula said. Sokka pouted slightly. "Now, now, even if he gets away with that, I'll still ensure an arrangement so I can see you on the weekends, if you want…"

"Not funny," Sokka grumbled, his voice almost childish in his irritation upon hearing those words. Azula's chuckles strengthened as she reached out to pat his chest gently.

"So serious now. I like you better when you're thriving off stupid jokes, but I suppose your pouting is cute in its own way," she said, hand reaching up to his cheek next. "Either way, we can discuss whatever you want us to do about your protection tonight, if you want to. We really should get back to the real world now."

"I suppose we should," Sokka sighed, leaning in quickly and kissing her lips softly.

Azula breathed out as Sokka marched back to the door: the bags of food lingered by the bookshelf, and he picked up his own before pointing at the other one.

"It's extra spicy, just so you know," he said. Azula smirked.

"You're really trying to win me over, aren't you?" she asked. Sokka grinned.

"Is it working?"

"Hmm. Am I really not being communicative enough while you're ramming into me?" Azula asked, raising her eyebrows. Sokka chuckled, a hand on the doorknob

"Just one last thing about that guy…" Sokka said, glancing at her with a smidge of curiosity. "You haven't had the time to see him ever since you and I, well…"

"The time or willingness, no," Azula said, simply. "And as far as he's concerned, I am supposed to be in a rather treacherous dalliance with you. It wouldn't do for me to trample around with other people, would it? I must deceive you into believing I'm all yours properly, right?"

"Huh. Good to know we're exclusive, then," Sokka smirked. "But… I have to ask if there's a strong reason for that. Am I that much better at it than him, or…?"

Azula rolled her eyes. Sokka's devious smirk urged her to praise him, but instead, she marched up to the door, clasping it over his hand and pushing it open quickly.

"The way is clear, safe and sound. Please, be on your way," Azula said, with a dry grin. Sokka chuckled.

"So shy about admitting you like me better, are you?" he said. "Guess I'll coax the truth out of you in a fun way tonight…"

"Guess you'll try, rather," Azula said, curtly. Sokka laughed again, shaking his head.

"As proud as ever, but fine, fine," he smiled, stepping out into the corridor. "Make sure to eat now, or, uh, maybe eat while you work? That could work for you, but try not to get any smears on your important paperwork, or else what will people say about the very dignified ambassador who…?"

"Will you stop? Haven't you done enough damage to my reputation in one day?" Azula huffed, marching up to him past the room's threshold.

"And whatever do you mean, my lady Ambassador?" Sokka smiled teasingly. Azula shook her head as he stepped closer to her. "Meet me at the tavern, at seven?"

"Do I even have a choice?" Azula huffed. Sokka smirked.

"You know you do. You're just trying to hide that you just want to say yes," he said. "You're a wonderful contradiction, you know? Always saying one thing and then doing another…"

"Hmm? Well, I can't stand you, not even a little bit," she said: her hands rose to either side of his face, and Sokka's smirk widened…

The devious expression upon his face was erased with a deep, thorough, lustful kiss. Yet again, they knew they were likely being overheard… but it didn't matter. It was fine to be overheard, better, even…

They smirked at each other once they parted, and Azula smoothed over his neckerchief before pulling away. Sokka nodded in her direction, a proud smirk decorating his handsome features.

"See you tonight," he winked as he marched down the corridor through which they had arrived earlier.

Azula watched him go, knowing he'd be thrilled to feel her gaze upon his rear as he marched away. A foolish grin spread over her face… a grin that was much more genuine than she wanted to acknowledge, once she realized she was smiling. She tensed up, tearing her focus away from Sokka, and her sudden reaction caused someone, likely one of the gossipy assistants in the embassy, to wince and hide away, two corridors down. Well, it wasn't too surprising that her own people would spy on her… she only hoped, truly, that none of them were genuinely associated with the Golden Suns, but she could never be too careful as to assume as much.

Shuang was a strange man, one without Sokka's genuine charm. He wasn't as smart, either, and he was remarkably full of himself, too. As much as he was a perfectly handsome Fire Nation individual, he wasn't exactly the most apt man as far as physical pursuits were concerned. Which, of course, answered Sokka's earlier question perfectly well: she hadn't even reached one peak of excitement with a man who had come undone within less than three minutes of a tryst. She had a purpose in what she'd done with him, a very straightforward purpose… and she intended to see this entire operation through to the end, come what may. That was all that mattered.

But somehow, the proud man who was fixing his hair as he marched down the corridor seemed to make her resolve shake slightly, if not completely… offering her a new perspective she hadn't cared to ponder before. She bit her lip as she retreated back into her room… looking forward, already, to her encounter with Sokka that night.


The newspaper article that detailed the controversial relationship between the councilman and the ambassador burned to cinders in his hands. His personal bodyguard, a muscular firebender, eyed him carefully.

"How should we proceed now, Lord Shuang?"

It was how they styled his name so far: it would be Fire Lord Shuang before long. All the pieces on the board were ready to ensure his ascent to the cusp of the Fire Nation would be as smooth as possible.

He had multiple plans in mind… though it was odd that the least likely one would be the one he'd set in motion. But she had taken the initiative, and if this was the way she wanted to dance with him, he'd humor her gladly.

Shuang breathed deeply as he swept his fingers clean of the ashes dismissively, his eyes gazing well past his reality and deep into a promising future.

"We will send her an invitation. With any luck, she'll bring her toy as well: it's well past time for me to reconnect with my dear Princess."


A loud knock on Azula's door brought her to grimace as she squirmed lightly in bed: her face had been pressed quite comfortably to Sokka's bare chest, and he held her smoothly against him even while they slept.

Another night in the tavern had resulted in some slightly more genuine conversation between them: due to Sokka's concerns about their enemy and his potential interest in hounding him, Azula had finally offered him the opportunity to spend the night in her own abode, the upper floor of the Fire Nation embassy. While her personal staff had certainly noticed she hadn't returned home alone, they hadn't been as chaotic or noisy that night, for who needed further evidence anymore? The fact that Azula had never brought a man home with her before would speak lengths about the presumed seriousness of their relationship, so exaggerating their cries of pleasure wouldn't be necessary to prove it further, not when the entire city was abuzz with the gossip regarding their sudden, shocking, scandalous relationship.

Thus, Azula wanted to continue resting – it was the weekend, she wasn't supposed to need to work today, she should be free to catch up on some direly needed rest instead of dealing with whatever was going on at her door… but the voice of one of the maids drifted into the room all the same.

"Princess?" she called. Azula groaned, burying her face in Sokka's chest, startling him awake by doing so. "I realize it's early, but… a telegram has arrived from the Fire Nation. F-Fire Lord Zuko requires you to come home at once."

Azula scoffed: Zuko could go to hell for all she cared. She knew exactly what he wanted… and she also knew she didn't care to deal with it.

"Zuko… what?" Sokka grimaced, rubbing his eyes as he tried to fight off the drowsiness. "Fuck, what time is it?"

"Time to sleep," Azula sighed, shaking her head.

"T-there's also an invitation," the maid continued. "It arrived last night, and it's not something urgent, but Mr. Shuang has sent a…"

Azula shot upright quickly, her smooth blankets and sheets spilling down her body with her abrupt motion.

Sokka remained in bed, blinking himself awake. Azula clad herself in her nightgown, loosely tying the sash before opening the door. After a quick exchange with the maid, she returned to bed – the maid had boldly glanced past Azula, and Sokka had smiled and waved proudly in her direction, his bare torso exposed, the covers up to his hips. The woman, flustered by confirming personally that their relationship was deeply intimate, had walked away without another word.

"Is he for real?" Sokka asked, switching to a much more serious tone.

"Looks like it," Azula said, pulling out an elaborate paper from a smooth envelope. "An invitation for Shuang's cruise, in a week. Oh, much better than having to seek him out myself…"

"I meant Zuko," Sokka smiled weakly. Azula scoffed, tossing that telegram at him without any regard. "Gee. One would think he's not your boss…"

"He's my brother: that means he won't get genuine respect from me. Just ask your sister if you don't believe me, I'm sure she feels the same way about you," Azula smirked, analyzing the invitation thoroughly still.

Sokka sighed as he read the telegram: it was short and curt, demanding Azula's immediate return for a briefing. There were no specifics… no clarification about the reasoning behind that order.

"Does he call back you often?" he asked.

"First time he's ever done it since he sent me here, so no," Azula said, bluntly. Sokka grimaced.

"Then… he's heard the news about us," Sokka concluded. Azula shrugged carelessly.

"I suppose he did. Doesn't really matter, though: I've done my job dutifully since he stationed me here, no matter if we fucked on my desk," Azula said, bluntly. Sokka smirked at the welcome reminder. "He doesn't get a say on who I sleep with, so whatever his problem is, it's a lesser concern. Shuang reached out himself, though… I don't doubt he has bitten the bait. So I suggest that…"

"That I lay low in Air Temple Island until you come back from Zuko's briefing?" Sokka asked, with a sigh. Azula smiled weakly at him.

"Good to know you'll miss me," she said, simply. Sokka huffed.

"Maybe I ought to go with you. Though Zuko would probably lose his shit if I did," Sokka said, reaching out to touch her hand gently with his fingertips. "But…"

"But you have work, you irresponsible councilman," Azula smiled. "Come on. You lived a life without me for a long time, you can bear without me for five days, can't you? It's how long this stupid trip is bound to take me, so…"

"Hmm. Five days. That sounds awful," Sokka grimaced. Azula chuckled.

"Who'd have thought the day would come when the guy who was so appalled by the concept of fake-dating me would hate the notion of being away from me for just five days?" Azula smiled, leaning in to kiss his lips softly: the guy in question smiled brightly at the contact between their lips, though his grin was much more fragile once she pulled away. "It'll be good for us. Regain your energies, maybe look into other fun things we could try out in bed…"

"Been thinking about one idea for a while now," Sokka admitted, with a guilty smile. Azula gasped in feigned shock. "Guess I'll see how you feel about it once you come back. But… we'll meet up at the tavern once you do return?"

"Or maybe someplace nicer," Azula said, with a shrug. "You might be treated as an official suitor of mine if Zuko gets all ceremonious and pompous, so…"

"Woah, boy. Do I have to start planning our wedding, then?" Sokka asked, amused. Azula scoffed.

"No need, I'm sure Zuko will plan a huge celebration all on his own… and once he does that, you and I can just escape to some far-off, rundown town and get married by whatever local sage lives there, why not?" Azula smirked.

"Technically, civilian marriages are a thing now in Republic City, so… I could legalize a marriage between us if I felt like it. Councilman, you know?" Sokka smirked. Azula bit her lip with devious delight.

"Sounds like fun. We'll have to discuss it some more once we meet again… at the City's Star, maybe?"

"Oh, that place looks kind of fancy," Sokka smirked.

"It is. And it will be your treat," Azula responded, simply. Sokka chuckled.

"Fine, I'll pull some strings and get myself a reservation. You're sure you'll be back in five days?"

"Positive," Azula said, leaning closer to kiss him. "You won't escape from me for much longer than that."

"I don't want to escape from you at all, to begin with," Sokka groaned: his arms looped around her waist, and Azula couldn't hold in a burst of laughter as Sokka pulled her into bed once more – five days without her meant he'd make the most of whatever time he had left with her.

He helped her pack after they indulged in each other one last time before parting ways. They shared their breakfast in her suite, and while Azula had expected Sokka to simply go home afterwards, he was determined to stay with her for as long as possible – while he insisted that it was a matter of giving their act further credibility, Azula could only laugh off the explanation as he kissed her heartily, right before sending her off on the airship meant to take her back to the Fire Nation. Their obnoxious exchanges certainly made onlookers uncomfortable, and Azula was sure she'd heard cameras going off – photography was a relatively recent invention, and its usefulness in the also recent newspapers had made many camera-owners quite eager to find the juiciest story to sell. Right now, of course, no photography subject was more controversial in Republic City than the two of them. She whispered to Sokka that they ought to stay still for as long as possible to ensure the photographers would get the right pictures, and he let out a delightful bark of laughter before kissing her willfully again.

Were the circumstances any different, she would have been utterly embarrassed to indulge in such public displays of affection with someone she liked. At first, when their pretense had begun, she had gone for it without a hitch, all be it to prove more convincing at their charade… but as they shared heartfelt smiles between kisses, it hardly felt like a pretense anymore.

She couldn't really say at what point everything had changed – their first kiss had certainly been an agreed-upon matter, they had meant to get used to kissing, knowing they might have to do it in the future to further prove the veracity of their relationship. But what had started as a straightforward agreement had evolved into a level of physicality neither one had ever expected… and now, as a burst of self-awareness seemed to bloom in her heart while holding Sokka closely, she feared they might be approaching a level of sentimentality she certainly hadn't signed up for. It was one thing to find him attractive… it was another to find herself smitten with the handsome man before her, even if the affection in his eyes suggested he wasn't handling himself much better than her, attachments-wise.

Was it still a pretense when she made sure to find a window so she could wave at him? Was it still a ruse when he stood there, watching her airship take to the skies? For how long would he stand there? Was his heart churning in the same way hers did upon seeing her airship fading away into the horizon?

"The hell's the matter with me…?" Sokka sighed: he actually pouted when a cloud covered up the airship, concealing it from sight. He was mad at the weather now, all be it because of Azula?

Oh, he was losing his nerve. Yes, she was fascinating, interesting, exciting… but that was no reason to be so irrational, absolutely not. He had to be reasonable here. These five days would be great for him: he'd focus on himself, he'd hide away from the potential wrath of the Golden Suns by visiting and even crashing at Aang and Katara's place for a while… he'd remember how to live his life without Azula. He'd done it without a hitch less than a month ago, curses, he could go back to that life easily…

How the hell had he adapted faster to being a councilman than to being away from Azula for ten minutes? He grimaced, burying his face in his hands. He wasn't in love, was he? He wasn't in love. It was a perfectly natural thing to assume otherwise after finding an incredibly sensual partner who understood him on a deeper level, perhaps, but love? It couldn't be love. It couldn't be…

But would it be such a bad thing, if it were?

Well, Katara certainly thought as much:

"Are you out of your mind?!" his sister yelled at him about three hours later: Sokka blinked blankly at her accusatory tone, as she lost all grip on her temper – not an entirely unusual occurrence with Katara… "Azula?! You've spent years single and then the minute you come to Republic City the one you hook up with is Azula?!"

"Heh. Yeah," Sokka said, with a devious smirk. "And let me tell you, every hook-up is…"

"Don't! I don't want to hear it!" Katara squealed, looking at him in horror. "It was hard enough to wrap my head around her friendship with Toph, okay? And I'm good with that by now! I've learned to exist around her without constantly dreading she's up to no good…!"

"Then what's the big deal?" Sokka grinned, goofily. "I mean, she and I are definitely up to no good in the bedroom but that's none of your…"

"It's not my business?! You're sleeping with someone who could be taking advantage of you somehow!" Katara squealed. Sokka chuckled and shrugged. "How could you do something like this, Sokka?!"

"Uh, well, if you really want to know, we generally do it by…"

"Sokka! This is serious!"

"Damn, you're loud today. Fine, fine, I won't lie, I was a bit apprehensive at first, myself… but honestly? If you knew in which ways she takes advantage of me, you'd understand why I don't mind it one bit," Sokka snickered. Katara nearly shrieked and walked away.

"You're impossible! I can't even talk to you! Can't look at you, you…! Ack! Aang, just tell him to stop being a moron!" Katara roared: her husband swallowed hard before glancing at the perfectly placid, beaming Sokka in confusion.

"Eh… are you, uh, sure about this, Sokka?" he asked. "I mean, it kind of came out of nowhere…"

"I know, right? It's kind of crazy," Sokka chuckled, with a careless shrug. "I just went into a tavern to unwind one night and then woke up with the hottest woman in the world locked around me on the next morning. Been trying to make sure that happens pretty often since then, too…"

"Yeah, well… I mean, you look happy. So that's good, right, Katara?" Aang smiled awkwardly: she shot him a meaningful glare, and Aang winced. "Uh, well… I've been doing my best to get along with Azula too, but she's mostly been responsive to Toph? It's kind of strange that she's gone this far with you…"

"Maybe I'm just that attractive," Sokka grinned goofily. Katara rolled her eyes.

"Or maybe, just maybe, she's trying to use you for whatever nefarious plans she has in mind," Katara said. "Stuff like, I don't know, using you as a shield while she tries to avenge herself and her father? Look, Toph can say all she wants that Azula isn't up to that stuff, but after this? I have every reason to believe…"

"She's been here for about five years, right?" Sokka said, raising an eyebrow. "And she hasn't done anything sketchy in all that time, has she?"

"Well… not according to Toph, but Toph can't keep track of her all the time anyhow," Katara said. Sokka smirked again.

"Great! I guess I'll do it when Toph can't," he decided, and Katara's jaw dropped. "See, if I keep her busy, and boy can I keep her busy, it means she has less time to plot any wicked things if she's really trying to do that."

"You're so… naïve. And so…" Katara blinked blankly. Sokka raised an eyebrow.

"So… stupid?" he asked. Katara smiled dryly.

"She's going to kill you in your sleep one day and you'll have no one to blame for it but yourself," she said. Sokka chuckled, shaking his head.

"As long as she does it after we have our way with each other, can't say I'll mind…"

"Sokka!"

His next five days were sure to be a lot less fun over Katara's tantrums, Sokka knew… so he pondered spending his free time at the Police Headquarters on occasion too, perhaps helping Toph find new angles in her investigation into the Golden Suns. It would certainly beat hearing Katara talking about Azula as dismissively as she did… though he knew, too, that he had been no better than that merely a few months ago. A part of him wanted to stay level-headed, to admit that there was still some level of possibility that Azula might be playing every single one of them indeed…

But that supposed bout of rationality dwindled quickly every time it bloomed in his mind: he was reckless, he knew, crazy for being so easily swayed by someone as capable of deceit and manipulation as Azula was… but his self-preservation seemed too small to matter when compared to the unprecedented bliss, companionship and unexpected peace he indulged in whenever he woke up with Azula in his arms.

Such memories of her would keep him company in her absence… much like they would for Azula as she traveled to the Fire Nation. How she hoped Zuko wouldn't be as stupid as to overreact at the news of Azula's relationship with Sokka… if he was too unreasonable, she'd have no choice but to tell him what Toph was up to. But more than anything, she dreaded that he'd decide her personal life, and her choices, were grounds to remove her from her position and force her into a genuinely menial job in the mainland, away from…

Her fists clenched as the airship descended on the Fire Nation Palace: away from Sokka? Yes, perhaps she had enjoyed herself with him, but her freedom in Republic City was about much more than him. It was. She liked knowing herself protected by international law in her role as a diplomat, able to see the city, indulging in what had started out as a demeaning life as a commoner in some regards, and that now translated into a freedom she cherished deeply. What she did with that freedom was her business, hers alone… whoever she slept with was no different.

She would convey as much to Zuko, then, and she would hope he'd be an adult about this… she sighed, marching through the familiar halls of the Palace – a tingling sensation of nostalgia bloomed within her, and where she would have wanted nothing but to be here merely a few years ago, now she found she didn't need it quite so badly… not anymore, anyhow. The realization brought a smile to her face as she entered Zuko's study, disregarding Suki's warning to let her announce her first.

"Azula!" Zuko roared: swamped among papers and in a messy office, the Fire Lord glared at her pointedly while Suki sighed, by the door.

"I'm sorry. I couldn't stop her," Suki said, eyeing Azula with displeasure.

"Now, now, why the face?" Azula smirked at her. "I thought Zuzu had demanded that I came here at haste, and so I did. I did have duties to handle back at the embassy, but as we know, the Fire Lord's commands cannot be disregarded under any circumstances. So… what do you need of me, Zuzu?"

Zuko had risen to his feet, hands still on his desk as he glowered at her. Azula raised an eyebrow, expectantly… and then Zuko shook his head before glancing at Suki.

"Please, leave us. I don't think you want to hear this," he said. Suki sighed.

"If it's about, well, that? I can handle it, Zuko…" Suki said, shaking her head. "I read the papers too."

"Ah… I forgot for a moment there," Azula said, with a slow smirk directed towards Suki. "Guess you'd like to hear how your ex is doing these days?"

"I… don't think I want to hear it from you, actually," Suki admitted, with a grimace.

"Well, he's very energetic, I can tell you that much…" Azula chuckled, and Zuko gasped in sheer horror while Suki covered her face with her hands.

"You know what, Zuko? You were right. Never mind. I'm out," Suki said, shaking her head and marching out the door. Azula couldn't hold back her devious laughter as she sank on the chair right across Zuko's desk.

"Could you stop? This is serious! She was in a serious relationship with Sokka and this hurts her!" Zuko exclaimed, pointing towards the now-closed door. Azula blinked blankly and shrugged.

"Why?" Azula asked. "It's hardly like they're still together, she can very well move on if they've been broken up for… uh, how long has it been, now?"

"Three years," Zuko said, bitterly. Azula snorted.

"Wow. Keeping such tight tabs on them? I'm starting to wonder if you have a thing for Sokka, yourself, and that's the entire reason why you're being such a…"

"Could you stop making light of everything?! Of course I don't!" Zuko growled. Azula chuckled.

"Then are your sights set on her instead?" she asked, amused. "Because, frankly, I'm as good as clearing the way for you if that's the case. Sweep in as a concerned party, comfort her when she's down because I'm having far too much fun with Sokka… unless, that is, you don't think you can be suave enough to pull that off?"

"Enough!" Zuko exclaimed: he rummaged one of his cabinets, pulling out something he slapped on the table right before Azula. "I don't know what kind of twisted game you're playing, but you'd better stop it! Because this is completely unacceptable behavior, not just from someone of your status as a diplomat in Republic City, but as…!"

"As your sister," Azula finished, eyeing the picture Zuko had produced: she blinked blankly, taking it into her hands.

It was a simple picture of herself and Sokka, laughing together by one of the fountains in Republic City. She remembered that day immediately at the sight of it… their first actual public date. It was already sundown by that point, and the two of them had been growing more and more handsy by then. But the way he smiled at her, the way she grinned up at him as he held her…

She'd never slowed down to wonder what she might look like when she was with him. She wasn't even conscious that her face could show that sort of placid, cheerful expression…

She smiled. It was probably a smile to match the one in the picture. A smile she wasn't sure anyone other than Sokka had ever elicited from her.

"This… is a very nice picture, actually. Mind if I keep it?" Azula asked, reeling it in and raising her eyebrows as she continued to inspect it. "I hadn't seen this one before. Did you hire a special investigator or so? Paid off the photographers with the better pictures so that only the more boring ones would wind up on the papers?"

"Maybe the papers would rather not publish pictures of you making out with Sokka in every corner of Republic City: thought about that?" Zuko huffed. Azula snorted.

"The people shall be remiss for entertainment if that's the case, I suppose, for they've been having quite a lot of fun gossiping about us so far. Though I'm sure they won't be too bored, we do make out publicly often enough that they probably will see it for themselves eventua-…"

"Azula, what the hell are you doing?"

Azula raised an eyebrow to find her humorless brother staring her down fiercely. She raised an eyebrow slowly, tucking the picture into her suit's jacket pocket – it didn't matter if Zuko hadn't told her she could keep it, she meant to do exactly that. She set her elbows on the armrests of her chair, her fingers interlocked as she blinked blankly.

"As far as what I expect you're concerned by… I'm having a life. Something you, I'm afraid, can't seem to afford," Azula said, with a dry grin. "Sad facts about being Fire Lord, I suppose."

"I have a country to run. I have a lot to focus on. I can't date someone until I've made sure everything's working because I…" Zuko said, breathing deeply and shaking his head. "I don't need to repeat the past, alright? And you don't need to do whatever the hell you're doing with Sokka. You're disregarding your duties and don't even tell me you're not, because I got a very alarmed report by a member of your staff regarding…!"

"Ah. Yes, well… Sokka's a bit needy, I suppose," Azula said, with a fond smile. "I told him it was a workday, but he wouldn't listen…"

"Quit lying," Zuko hissed: Azula raised an eyebrow in surprise at his retort. "If he actually showed up it's probably because you asked him to. You're just trying to piss me off, aren't you? I mean, yeah, I've been waiting for you to start acting up, but I didn't think you'd do it this way…"

"Acting up?" Azula repeated, with a dry grin. "So… what, the embassy and my status there were just a matter of treating me as a bomb waiting to blow up?"

"And that bothers you now? Azula, after the things you've done…!"

"Things you offered me a full pardon for as long as I helped you in Republic City, which I have," Azula said, sternly. "Fire Nation citizens are thriving in Republic City, my work as their ambassador has been smooth other than one lunch break of recklessness, which, by the way, was indeed a lunch break, therefore, I didn't compromise my actual work hours by…"

"That doesn't change the magnitude of what you did! It's reckless, it's crazy, it's unprofessional as hell!" Zuko exclaimed, his voice hitching higher as he scolded her. "It'd be bad enough if it were anyone else too, but Sokka is also a public figure, he's one of my friends, and…!"

"Oh, wait, now. Is it very inappropriate and unprofessional of me to start a relationship with him because he's your friend?" Azula asked, with a skeptical smile. Zuko scowled.

"Do you even have to ask? Of course it is!"

"Ah. Is that why you broke things off with Mai for the thousandth time, then?" Azula asked, her smirk widening: Zuko's face paled. "Because, for the life of me, I can't remember ever telling you that she was my friend, therefore, you weren't allowed to date her… but I guess you conveniently came up with that funny idea that dating your sibling's friends was unacceptable when I decided I liked Sokka, did you?"

"You don't… you don't like him," Zuko said, shaking his head and shrugging. Azula frowned.

"Oh? You decided that for yourself, did you?" she asked. "I suppose this is more of your nonsense, isn't it? That I always lie…?"

"Whatever you're up to, Azula, you'd better stop it," Zuko said, heavily. "The work you've done for the Fire Nation has been fine… but it's not going to stay fine if you start ruining your reputation, as well as that of the Royal Family, by acting recklessly with careless relationships that won't go anywhere. And along with that, Sokka… he's had rough times of his own, okay? His first girlfriend… turned into the moon, alright?"

"Uh… huh," Azula blinked blankly: she had heard stories about Princess Yue, but she hadn't really had a chance to discuss that with Sokka so far… their lips were typically either too busy taunting each other with banter or finding purchase somewhere on the other's body, after all.

"And then things between him and Suki fell apart over distance, and they've both been recovering from that over the past years," Zuko said, breathing out heavily. "The last thing he needs is to become a public joke because you decided to entertain yourself by ridiculing him."

"Oh. So… you think that's what this is about?" Azula asked, blinking blankly. "I'm trying to publicly embarrass him?"

"Why else would you be doing this?" Zuko huffed, shaking his head. Azula smiled… a dangerous smile, though it wasn't as though Zuko could tell the difference.

"How about… maybe I found him interesting? Maybe I found him attractive? Maybe I have an ulterior motive that goes far deeper than you think it does?" Azula said, eyes wide with skepticism. Zuko scowled.

"Guess at least you're more honest than usual now, with that last one you confessed: Azula, I've had enough of the ulterior motives. I don't want you doing creepy stuff, let alone if you're going to get any of my friends hurt in the process. Sokka's been through enough," he said.

"Oh. Is that so?" Azula said: her heart churned in a way she didn't remember it happening since her teenage years, since the very last of her clashes against her brother… perhaps the ones after she surrendered and accepted the consequences for her actions during her years on the run. She never wanted to grow emotional about anything… but she certainly preferred the foolish, fluffy feelings Sokka elicited in her over the pure, sickening rage Zuko was coaxing from her now. "So, you're sure I'm going to hurt him. You're worried about his heart… and what about mine? Ah, that's not a problem. Because, of course, Azula doesn't have one. Azula doesn't care about a damn thing other than stealing a throne or taking power or tormenting her brother by any means necessary… that's her life's purpose, isn't it?"

"Azula…" Zuko frowned, his tone changing as Azula rose to her feet. "Don't… I didn't mean it that way!"

"Oh, surely not," Azula smiled, shaking her head. "Doesn't mean it's not what you're thinking. And seeing as you're jumping to whatever conclusions you care to when it comes to me, I should be free to do the same thing with you. You've literally yanked me out of Republic City, I'm wasting three workdays because of this trip, in case you haven't noticed, days during which I should continue to watch over the Fire Nation citizens living in the United Republic, but no, instead I'm here, listening to your…!"

"Well, it's hardly like they're helpless without you now! The Golden Suns are doing their work, too."

Azula froze. Those words actually stopped her on her tracks as she glared at her brother pointedly. Zuko raised an eyebrow.

"What?" he said, his tone much like that of a scolded child's.

"The Golden Suns?" Azula asked. Zuko shrugged.

"It's not as if you don't know," he said. "They're doing good work. They're reliable. I keep receiving word of people who are thrilled by their work ever since I sent Shuang there. He had promised he'd do great at the programs they developed and he's getting even better results than anticipated. So, you being away for three days doesn't mean the city's going to turn on all Fire Nation citizens just like that: we have a cemented position there, the rest of the embassy can keep functioning without you…"

"Right. Everyone can do without me. Nice to know," Azula said: her blood was back to boiling as Zuko huffed, shaking his head.

"Could you not…? You keep saying I'm overly dramatic, but you're not being much better than me today, are you?"

"Well, dear brother, I'll make this as blunt, simple and direct as I can make it: you can't afford to lose me. Until you get yourself a wife and a legitimate child, I'm your only official heir because we're the only ones of royal blood. Therefore, I advise you quite strongly not to alienate me any further. At least, not until you get yourself a child so you can discard me as you clearly look forward to. Once that day arrives, you and I can very well cut ties and I can go on to do whatever I want with my life without your meddling. I'll quit as ambassador, since clearly Shuang would be a much better fit for the job than me, and…"

"Azula, stop," Zuko huffed, glaring at her. "That's not what I'm trying to…!"

"I don't give a fuck," Azula said, startling him with her expletive. "Yes, Zuko: I don't give a fuck. Whatever you're trying to say is meaningless after the things you've said so far, so shut up, sock it up and I'll go on and save your pitiful life in the only way I can while you're too busy trying to make me into the enemy instead of seeing the real threats that are closing in around you!"

Zuko blinked blankly now: the notion of enemies he knew nothing about, of course, had floored him. He was predictable that way… much as Azula's bitterness was predictable in its own way.

"W-what are you…?"

"We're done here. Good day to you, Fire Lord Zuko."

"Azula!"

She wouldn't hear another word. She turned on her heels, tossing his study's door open, careless about the scowl Suki directed in her direction as she walked past her. She hadn't been in the Palace for over ten minutes and all she wanted was to get out at once – if Zuko still wanted to believe she wanted to become Fire Lord in his stead, he certainly underestimated the abundant, irksome dark thoughts that came to mind whenever she set foot in her former home.

Perhaps it was simply because it was a new environment, somewhat devoid of all the trappings of the past… but Republic City felt safer. It was fresh, it was different… even those who still resented her knew better than to ignore her diplomatic status.

A status that might vanish because of her outburst against Zuko just now.

Still, she shook her head as she marched into the airship: the crew had been in the middle of restocking, so she instructed them to take off again as soon as the process was done. She locked herself up in her cabin, hoping to stay there once more for the next two days.

She had been impulsive, foolish… but she couldn't reject the rush of anger that had nearly overcome her upon hearing Zuko's words. To think she felt safer around the Avatar, around Sokka's sister, than she did around her own brother… she guessed Toph and Sokka would be likely to protect her if Zuko fired her. They'd have the authority for it, if nothing else…

Miserable thoughts scrolled through her mind as she let herself stem in her frustrations against her brother… but after the airship took off, and the impending return to Republic City became a tangible reality, those dark thoughts were chased away when she removed her jacket, finding the picture she had unceremoniously stolen from Zuko's study.

Her heart pounded at the sight of him… at the sight of their smiles. She could barely wait to see him again… it wasn't merely that five days away from him had been a rather bleak experience after about two weeks of virtually uninterrupted encounters with Sokka, but after Zuko's wretched words, she needed Sokka's reassuring, heartwarming presence more direly than she had anticipated. He might not be keen on offering any manner of emotional comfort… the physical one would do, just as it had so far. Knowing herself wanted, needed, was enough sometimes. Even if she wasn't wanted or needed here… Sokka was different. He was becoming a strange source of support and stability for her in a matter of weeks, of less than a month… an odd relationship where neither one knew for sure whether they were deceiving themselves, each other or the rest of the world was, somehow, stability.

The thought would have been funny if only Azula hadn't been close to tears. She rolled into herself in bed, telling herself she'd see him again soon. Telling herself all the lingering pain would fade away quickly, once she did.

The airship landed to very little ceremony and protocol: Azula climbed off as soon as she was able and simply returned to the embassy, checking on her staff right away, far more somber than she had been before her trip. Surely everyone assumed she was in a bad mood because someone among them had given away far too many details about her relationship with Sokka to the Fire Lord… but frankly, she didn't care about that. She simply ensured everyone had done their jobs while she was out, stopped by her personal rooms in the upper floor to clean up thoroughly after the long voyage, and then returned to her office to get some work done before the day was out…

A basket waited for her there. Azula's eyebrows rose as she stepped forward… her lips parted upon recognizing the sweets within that basket, and upon finding a letter attached, with familiar handwriting:

Hope you had a safe trip! See you tonight, Princess.

Her heart skipped a beat, and with just that, her dark mood seemed to ease up: that utterly ridiculous man… her cheeks flushed as she wondered how absurd it was to feel so taken with someone in such a short time. But this… this was a rather convincing way to put forward that they were a proper couple. The effort was unnecessary at this point, he could have saved it… and yet he had gone out of his way to do this just to give her a reason to smile, she knew. A sigh left her lips as she picked up the small card… and she frowned upon noticing there was something on the back of it.

P.S.: I confess I may have stolen one mochi from your pretty basket. Punish me for it tonight?

She let out a loud laugh, covering her face with her hands as more overwhelmingly sweet emotions took root inside her heart. How was she supposed not to feel as strongly as she did about him after endearing and amusing antics like these?

The City's Star was a luxurious restaurant, one Azula had only visited once or twice, typically over business deals among the richest residents of Republic City, deals that required her presence for one reason or another. Going for a simple date would be a first for her, and Azula ensured to pick an appropriate dress for the occasion, her heart racing already. She wasn't all that hungry thanks to Sokka's gift of mochi… but she looked forward to the evening desperately, regardless of that.

She crossed the embassy's grand hallways with sure footing until she pushed open the front door, intent on requesting a carriage in the street to carry her all the way to the City's Star…

"And here I thought you weren't holding back on me at all… but I guess even the gorgeous can get more stunning yet, huh?"

His voice sent a surge of thrills through her body at once. Her eyes widened as she turned towards him: that familiar, delightful smirk greeted her as Sokka, resting against the wall of the embassy, stepped up to her with the confidence of a man who knew himself welcome in her presence…

For he was. She was likely smiling in an even more foolish way than in that photo, but she didn't hold back her laughter as she nearly sprung towards him: his arms wrapped around her waist, and Azula only had to push herself slightly, already hoisted by her high heels, to reach his lips with a joyful kiss.

Sokka chuckled against her: his arms tightened around her firmly, his lips pressing against her cheek, against her neck… Azula closed her eyes, relieved profoundly by his presence already, so much sooner than she had anticipated it. He was enough… this was enough. She was mad for thinking so, of course she was… but her genuine relief to be beside him once more was too strong for her common sense to overrule it.

"Oh, fuck, I missed you," Sokka groaned by her neck: her dress might wind up crumpled under his embrace, but Azula couldn't have cared less. "And you look… oh, damn, I shouldn't have…"

"No… no, you should have. Don't regret it now," Azula laughed, as Sokka pulled back with a guilty smile: her lipstick now smeared his face too, and she chuckled as she wiped it carefully off his lips. "Though if you made my lipstick spill over my face, that's…"

"Just a smidge?" Sokka admitted, smiling awkwardly. Azula laughed, shaking her head as she produced her pocket mirror, endeavoring to fix it. "Sorry, I was just a little too thrilled to see you, and damn, you look amazing. You really were holding back on me, huh?"

"Well, I'm sure I can still surprise you with one thing or another, in the future," she said, smiling as well while she cleaned up her makeup as carefully as could be: she eyed Sokka furtively, though, appreciating his elegant suit as well. "But you're one to talk. Not taking the City's Star lightly, are you?"

"Neither are you," Sokka smirked, stepping up behind her, arms wrapped around her waist. Azula sighed in relief at the contact between their bodies, resting even more comfortably against his grip while she continued to work on amending the makeup. "I actually got swamped with work, ran off to the airfield as soon as I could… but when I got there, they told me you'd already arrived. So I went to the embassy… but they said you were in your personal chambers just when I got there. It's why I left you the basket in your office… I hope you liked it."

"It's… well, a ridiculously endearing gesture on your part," Azula said, smiling as she finished her corrections – at that point she couldn't help but wonder why she bothered, she'd likely wind up with her makeup smeared all over her face in five more minutes, going by how frequently they were overwhelmed by the urges to kiss each other until they were breathless. "Thank you, though. I'm not the terror of mochi for no reason, I've already warned you about it, but…"

"Well, I wanted to do something nice for you. Welcome you back home the right way, I guess," Sokka said, with a shrug. His words echoed in her heart in a strange way: home? Was that what had changed within her heart… what had as good as caused her to escape from the Palace at once? Was she simply desperate to return home… to him? "Guess you're not too mad about the one I stole?"

"You were wise to do it, if anything. I finished the whole basket already," Azula admitted: Sokka's eyes widened. "I told you I can't stop eating them when I get any, Sokka…"

"Oh, damn. Are you still in the mood for the…?"

"Well, you're not about to cancel the reservation now, are you?"

Sokka's eyes narrowed. Azula raised an eyebrow… and then he smirked.

"You… are a glutton. Like me," he concluded, with a bright grin. Azula scoffed, shaking her head as he threw his head back in joyous laughter. "Oh, she's the one, ladies and gentlemen! Republic City, all four nations: I've found my soulmate!"

"Shut up!" Azula laughed: had he done this a week ago, she would have likely assumed he was only making a fuss for the sake of their mission… right now, it felt so genuine and spontaneous that the mission didn't so much as cross her mind.

He obeyed her demand in the best of ways – and he ruined her hard work to fix her makeup once more. Azula, however, locked her arms around his neck as she kissed him willfully right back: this was what she needed today, for sure. He was what she needed today, and all of Zuko's stupid words, whether those he said outright or implied, would go forgotten somewhere in the midst of the laughter, the lust and the growing affection she shared with Sokka.

She wound up fixing the makeup in the carriage that Sokka finally succeeded at procuring for them – after an initial struggle to stop himself from kissing her and dragging her right back into the embassy, that was. He talked carelessly with her while on their way to the restaurant, and the mood was as bright as it could have been… but his questions about her trip seemed to dampen her enthusiasm slightly as she answered them quickly, near-dismissively. He didn't need her to say it outright, let alone when their driver might overhear… so he chose to accept her subtle changes of subject, sharing his personal experiences from the past five days of fielding Katara's denial, Aang's awkwardness and Toph's teasing while trying to do his job and not die of boredom without Azula in the city. That last part flattered her visibly, and he grinned brightly at her because of it.

Their evening proceeded smoothly, though for once, their silences worried Sokka: where she used to be confident while quiet, perfectly comfortable with the circumstances she was in, now Azula appeared anxious, even sad at times. Her gaze would be lost in the horizon on occasion, and even if she returned to her high spirits quickly, Sokka didn't fail to pick up on the issue every time. Thus, he elected to help her rather differently… by sweeping her off her feet quite literally and leading her into the luxurious restaurant's dance floor. Tipsy and uninhibited, they would up dancing in a way that Azula eventually described as 'sparring while hugging', which Sokka decided was the best kinds of dancing he could have ever involved himself with.

But the best dance, altogether, was one they began by the alley behind the restaurant shortly before going home: they didn't go all the way there, but Sokka certainly pressed Azula to the wall, informing her of having stolen a rather interesting surprise from Toph's office, if she wanted to try it. Azula's wide smirk spoke for itself before she urged him to take her home, to his bed, at once.

His headboard proved appropriately strong to bear with the violent way in which Azula wrenched her hands back, locked in the handcuffs Sokka had procured from the Police Headquarters. He had devoted himself to her that night in every possible way, taking advantage of her restraints to provide her with pleasure unparalleled. There was no need for her to exaggerate her cries at any point that night, not when her mind barely seemed to function as she became a vessel of pure instinct and arousal, pulsating at the rhythm of Sokka's relentless thrusts. The way he moved that night, arching his body into hers with slow withdrawals and fast thrusts to the hilt, had her swimming in utmost bliss, enough to finish innumerable times around him as she blurted out more ridiculous, needy pleas than she had ever uttered in her life. Her body was drenched in sweat when he was finally slowing down, her throat was dry after far too many moans, far too much panting…

"Oh, fuck," Sokka sighed happily as he collapsed atop her: she loved that feeling of being squeezed between him and the mattress, whether she was face-up or down. This time, she had chosen the latter. "Hey… I wasn't too rough, was I?"

"Heh? What the hell counts as… as too rough?" Azula asked, with a devious grin. Sokka chuckled.

"You're something else, Azula," he chuckled, kissing her cheek softly. "It was just right, then?"

"Of course not… it was a million times better than that," Azula let out a chuckle, closing her eyes as though to relax on the mattress, atop the pillow she had bitten into repeatedly in order to circumvent her surging bursts of pleasure.

"Heh, well… wow, your legs are trembling," Sokka smiled, caressing her thighs reassuringly.

"Your doing," Azula grinned. "I like having shaky knees because of you."

"Well, I like being the reason why you have them," Sokka responded, leaning closer to kiss the corner of her mouth. "But I think… it's time to take care of your wrists, okay?"

"Hmm?" Azula blinked blankly.

"The cuffs? Aren't they digging into your skin?" Sokka asked, climbing off her and making for the key.

"I… didn't even notice," Azula smiled, watching Sokka with one eye as he saw to releasing her from the handcuffs.

"Toph's absolutely going to kill me once she notices I nicked them," Sokka admitted, and Azula laughed at his confession. "Especially because, well…"

"Yeah, she's going to know exactly what you did with them. But before she decides to steal them back, I'm using them on you too," Azula said, with a wicked smirk. Sokka whistled.

"Are you, now?" he asked, setting the cuffs aside and rubbing his thumbs over her reddened skin. "Uh… I've got some ointments for bruises. Might be a good idea…"

"Oh?" Azula blinked blankly, pushing herself to lie on her side as Sokka climbed off the bed, on his way to the first-aid kit he kept in his house.

"You know, having a sister like mine… she said I'm accident prone and gave me a lot of basic stuff to treat wounds of all sorts," Sokka chuckled. "Believe it or not, I haven't needed that much of it… but it's probably because I've only been in the city for a short time, I guess."

"And you hadn't played with bondage in the bedroom until tonight, either," Azula smirked. Sokka chuckled and shrugged.

"True," he said: he found the ointment he had in mind and took his seat beside her: she didn't make any moves, but Sokka raised her hands delicately towards him, rubbing the cool ointment gently over her wrists. "And there we go. I guess I'll apply some more by morning…"

"Keep it nearby in case you need it next," Azula said. Sokka chuckled, nodding.

"We ought to drink some water before round two, though," he said. Azula scoffed.

"Round fifty, is more like it," she said. Sokka snorted. "What? That was intense enough to count for that many, if you ask me…"

"You're very flattering," Sokka smiled, brushing her hair away from her face gently: his fingers trailed over her sweaty forehead, and he rose to his feet once more.

Azula waited on the mattress as he walked to his dresser: he used to keep a single glass there… but there were two ever since Azula had become a frequent visitor to his apartment. Azula bit back a smile, failing to stifle it completely as Sokka poured a glass of water and offered it to her with a gentle smile.

"For round fifty-one, then," he said. "I can't have you dehydrated here, now, can I?"

"You know… all this aftercare feels like you're spoiling me rotten," Azula said, smiling as she took the water in her hands. "Not that my standards are any lower than this, but… uh, well, never mind, they had to be lower than this considering I'd never had sex like this before, but still…"

"Neither you nor I, Azula," Sokka chuckled, pouring his own glass of water. "But come on, now, a Princess like you knows exactly what it means to be spoiled rotten, right? This is… well, pretty mild, isn't it?"

"Is it?" Azula smirked. "In all my years as a Princess… receiving a sudden mochi basket, being surprised by my, uh, suitor who decided to come find me before I could go find him, getting fucked so delightfully to the point where I barely feel my legs still, then receiving tender care over my wrists and even being offered a glass of water without asking for it? It literally has only happened once, as in, right now. What does that tell you?"

"Pfft. That the Fire Nation's got no idea how to pamper their own royals, then," Sokka said, with a teasing smirk… that faded from his face once he glanced at Azula to find a smidge of that vacancy from before appearing on her face again. "Azula…"

"Heh, well, you could just very well say they pamper royals in a different way, I suppose," Azula said, with a shrug. "Anyway…"

"Hey," Sokka whispered, returning to the bed and sitting by its edge. He set his glass on the nightstand while Azula focused on draining her own, as if doing so would stop Sokka from talking about what she wanted to avoid. "I kind of figured I'd go along with it earlier… give you some happier things to think about, I don't know. But… something bad happened in the Fire Nation, didn't it?"

"It… no. I mean, not really?" Azula said, with a shrug, setting her glass aside too. "It's not important, Sokka. Ultimately, what matters is…"

"You matter," Sokka said, bluntly. Azula blinked blankly, raising her gaze to meet his. "You know… neither of us has a clue of what all this will mean once Toph's big investigation is over. I think we both know that. But for now… you're my partner. And while I never really slowed down to imagine that I might ever come to care about you like this, I… I do. So… it's okay if you're not comfortable with sharing what happened, but don't lie to yourself and pretend your feelings don't matter, okay?"

He cupped her cheek, leaning close to kiss her lips softly. It was such a tender gesture… so much gentler than all their kisses so far. Azula responded almost shyly, pecking his lips sweetly, tempted to simply drag him back into bed, back into the shackles, back into the mood of rough sex…

Her hands gripped his hair. She wound up pulling him into the bed indeed, but when her arms and legs wrapped around him, it wasn't with erotic intent for once. Sokka held her closely, frowning in concern, but offering her as much support as he could so far.

"Was he really mad about… us?" he asked. Azula sighed.

"Doesn't matter if he was… not really, anyway. I was ready for that, honestly. I wanted to… to make fun of him through it, to mock him, and… heh, I kind of succeeded. He showed me a picture someone took of us, actually… I'll show it to you later."

"Oh?" Sokka smiled a little. "You brought it with you?"

"I'm sure he was happier that I did… maybe that way he can stop thinking about how I'm some vicious fiend trying to ruin your life."

Sokka's amusement faded away quickly. His frown deepened as Azula's tight embrace loosened up. She rolled on her back again, releasing him and putting some distance between them.

"I mean, he didn't exactly say that, so… I'm probably just overreacting," Azula said, covering her face with her hands.

"What did he say?" Sokka asked: the stern tone of his voice made it clear that he wasn't taking her words lightly. "What the hell did he tell you?"

"Well… I guess he's sure there's no way this is genuine, I suppose," Azula said, with a dismissive laugh. "And considering how it started, well… it's hardly like he's wrong? But he has no idea the Golden Suns want to kill him, no idea that he's in danger, he actually thinks they're the nicest people out there while I'm… the annoyance he sent to the embassy so I wouldn't be a burden at home, I suppose. He outright said that he'd been waiting for me to start 'acting up'… like I'm some disaster waiting to happen."

"He…?" Sokka frowned, and Azula sighed, shaking her head.

"Don't… don't even get mad on my behalf, Sokka, please. I… I'm pretty sure half the city feels the same way," she said, glancing towards the closed drapes of his window. "And… well, I'm grateful if you don't anymore, but you did before and… how could I blame you, anyway? As far as anyone's concerned, the things I've done are…"

"Azula, Zuko did plenty of shit I thought I'd never forgive him for," Sokka said, curtly. Azula blinked blankly. "There's things I could hold against him to this day that would probably make him grovel at my feet and beg for forgiveness… but I don't do that, because I know he's doing his best to be better than he was before. And while I had a hard time believing that of you at first… I don't anymore."

"Well… thank you for your trust, but I…" Azula said, shaking her head and covering her face with a hand. "Why are you so sure that I won't backstab you as soon as the chance comes up? Are you that sure of how smart you are, by any chance?"

"I'm that sure of… of how good I've gotten at reading you," Sokka said, reaching out to caress her flat abdomen gently. "We have a lot in common, I guess, more common ground than I ever imagined we would. You're… you're insanely fun. And honestly? If you were as ambitious as everyone thinks you are…"

"I could very well double-cross you on the cruise, you know?" Azula said. Sokka raised an eyebrow. "Turn you over to Shuang, tell him I've seduced you and that you'll do anything I ask of you…"

"Well, that last bit wouldn't be a lie provided you're very convincing, but…"

"I could still do that," Azula said, looking at him sternly… only for Sokka to smile. "And you don't mind, do you?"

"Azula… you wouldn't be telling me this if that was genuinely what you wanted to do."

Azula winced. Sokka stared at her earnestly, letting out a deep sigh as his hand rose to caress her cheek.

"You're too smart to spill your plans to people this way. If you did it… it'd mean you want to be stopped, I suppose," Sokka concluded, with a shrug. "And then your plan would include getting stopped… hmm. And what would happen if I told Toph that you confessed you'd double-cross me? You might wind up in prison, I suppose, and then I'd go see you and yell at you for betraying us all, you'd say something or another to get my blood rushing, and…"

"Building up another twisted fantasy with bondage here, are you?" Azula asked, smiling slightly. Sokka snickered proudly. "Well, well. Sex with you in a prison… it sounds like an unnerving concept, but heh, if it's with you, it could be interesting…"

"Wanna try it out?" Sokka snickered. "No double-crossing necessary for that, you know? We can very well just tell Toph to lend us a cell as a reward for our work this mission…"

"Wait, you're serious…?" Azula snorted, before lashing out in laughter. "Oh, Sokka…"

"What? It would be reasonable! She owes us, big time!" Sokka chuckled, rolling closer to her and pressing gentle kisses to her laughing lips. "Bottom-line is, though… call me a naïve idiot if you want to, but I don't think you're up to anything like what you just said you might do. Things between us are so weird and confusing and… and I honestly love them exactly as they are. I like… I like trying to guess at what we are, I like the feeling of teetering on the edge of a cliff, knowing that maybe I'll just sprout wings and fly, even if the odds say I'm just going to plummet to the ground…"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Azula asked, meeting his eyes in utmost confusion.

"It means that… if things go well it'll be as amazing as flying when you don't expect it," Sokka said, with a gentle grin. "I… don't think I'll have enough with just finishing this mission, honestly. Maybe you will, but… if you didn't, I'd love to keep doing this, all of it, with you. And this time we could be more reasonable if you want us to, we don't have to be so obnoxious and crazy by being flashy about our relationship, but…"

"I… honestly never imagined I'd enjoy being that obnoxious," Azula admitted, smiling and shaking her head. "Though I suppose… a little less of it would be, uh, adequate."

"Adequate," Sokka repeated, smirking. Azula laughed, unable to help herself from caressing his cheek gently. "Point is, I… I'm not scared, Azula. I don't know if I'm a dumbass for it, you're definitely smart enough to figure out some crazy strategy with ten tons of layers that us mere mortals could never imagine…"

"Flatterer," Azula said, and Sokka shrugged.

"Truther, rather," he said, kissing her lips gently again. "But what I don't like is… is hearing your brother's acting this way with you."

Azula froze up again, her amusement dwindling as Sokka frowned, shaking his head.

"Why did he send you here if he didn't trust you?" he asked. "Before I got to know you as much as I have over the past weeks, I thought he was the very first person advocating for your growth and believing that you'd changed… I mean, I barely spent time with either him or you over the last years, so I have no idea what your relationship has been like since you capitulated after your last rebellion? But… I didn't think it'd be like this."

"For that matter, he could've just tossed me in the Boiling Rock instead?" Azula said, with a dry grin. Sokka huffed.

"Well, knowing you, you would've rallied the prisoners in your favor in a matter of hours, turned the guards, then you'd have had your own private army…"

"All of which explains why I was sent to a job with no such potential here," Azula said, with a dry grin. "Also explains why he'd sooner trust the Golden Suns than me: he expects me to be the one who'll start a rebellion again, the one who'll try to kill him or so, and he's so busy suspecting me that he'll end up clearing the way so that all his other enemies can get him instead. I… I told him of that, but I was too pissed off to explain everything properly at that point. Our argument was a lot more fun when I was just making fun of him about his concern over your break-up with Suki…"

"Uh… oh, wait. You saw her too?" Sokka asked, grimacing. Azula sighed and nodded.

"I suppose I was a bit of an asshole, surprising no one, but still…" Azula said, shaking her head. Sokka frowned. "I mean, I just told her you were energetic? Admittedly, for a moment I outright forgot that you and her were…"

"You… told her that?" Sokka repeated, with a slow smile. Azula blinked blankly. "Heh. She might be pretty irked about hearing that, I guess…"

"What? You're not going to tell me you were a doormat with her…" Azula asked… and Sokka grimaced. "Sokka?"

"Look… what Suki and I had was an impulsive teenage relationship that then made very little sense once we were older," Sokka sighed. "I ended things between us because… she deserved to be with someone who felt as strongly about her as she did about me. But I… I couldn't really be that guy. I tried, but I could never make it work. When I actually tried to picture my future with her, I just… felt nothing, you know? I should've been thrilled, but I wasn't. And she's great, alright? I care about her, but… not in that way. Not anymore, anyway. So, well…"

"So… all this means you used to be mediocre in bed?" Azula asked, with a weak smile. "Shame on you…"

"Mediocre at everything to do with our relationship, I suppose," Sokka said.

"You didn't send her a mochi basket?" Azula asked. "At any point in time?"

"Uh… nope," Sokka blinked blankly. Azula smirked.

"No bondage, either?"

"Didn't you hear me say she's likely pissed about your 'energetic' comment for good reason?" Sokka asked, with a weak grin. Azula chuckled, covering her mouth as she allowed herself to cheer up over Sokka's surprising revelations. "So, well… if you're an asshole somehow, I'm either as bad as you or worse. Might be why we've been such a good match, huh?"

"Hardly sounds like you're an asshole if you broke things off with her because you can't give her what she's looking for," Azula said. "Would've been much worse to drag it on forever, if you ask me…"

"Well, it's true, and yet she's bound to be irked to know that I've found what I was looking for with someone else," Sokka said, grimacing. "At any rate… did she give you a hard time?"

"Not really. Zuko's the one who bothered me," Azula sighed. "Basically, he's sure I'm going to break your heart and… is it stupid that I felt like he wouldn't give a damn if you were the one who happened to break mine?"

Sokka's eyes widened. Azula sighed, shaking her head.

"Not saying I expect you to, but… it didn't even cross his mind, I guess, that I could actually care about this. When I said I liked you, he dismissed it as a lie at once," Azula said, rolling her eyes. "Made me wonder if he has a clue of what kind of man you are, honestly. The better I've grown to know you, the more I've found myself…"

"Found yourself…?" Sokka asked, raising an eyebrow. Azula smiled.

"Drawn to you, I suppose," she said, stroking his hair gently. "The thought didn't really cross my mind all along. If anything, Toph's the one who started saying I ought to pretend dating you to make a stronger case about my usefulness for the Golden Suns, so…"

"So… she really did set us up, huh?" Sokka asked. Azula chuckled.

"She always told me we'd hit it off if we just tried… I always told her you despised me and that I saw no reason to have anything to do with you," she said. "She'll be so smug to know I'm even… glad that she pushed me into this. But…"

"But you're still pissed about what Zuko told you," Sokka concluded. Azula sighed. "Well… he's an ass."

"Is he? Aren't I the problem?" Azula asked, nonchalantly. "I've been the problem all my life, so…"

"You're not," Sokka said, pressing a kiss to her collarbone softly. Azula raised an eyebrow as she glanced down at him. "I mean, you're trouble in many ways… but I don't think you're the one out of line there. I mean… you never got in the way of his personal life, did you? Or told him what to do with it?"

"Not really, but he's Fire Lord, he gets to boss me around if he wants, or so he thinks…" Azula sighed.

"Just because you're Fire Nation?" Sokka grumbled. "Well, then, you should marry me and then you'll have a chance to be legally free from him."

"Heh. Good plan."

"Thought you'd appreciate it."

They fell into silence for a moment, with only the light sound of their breathing and their caresses on each other's skin to fill that comfortable emptiness… but it didn't last.

"Are you serious?"

Azula's question brought a smile to Sokka's face.

"Do you want me to be?"

"I have no idea," she admitted. He chuckled, kissing her upper left breast, next: Azula squeezed him to her chest, making it so his face would land comfortably upon her mounds.

"Ehehe, best pillow ever…" he grinned goofily, and Azula smirked at the sight of his foolish expression.

"Our whole relationship has been a weird pretense that turned out to be way more real than it had any right to be," Azula said. "Marriage for political reasons – because, honestly, escaping from my brother is a political reason, like it or not – is probably as weird as every choice that has brought us this far, so at least it's consistent for us."

"You know… I think it's been easier precisely because we're always on that weird confusing balance between reality and pretenses," Sokka said: one of his hands rose to caress Azula's breast, and she moaned happily as she urged him to keep going. He chuckled, wondering if they'd drift from a rather honest conversation into full-blown sex gradually… "If we'd realized we had this much potential all along, well… I probably would've taken a thousand years to gather my courage to ask you out because I would've been dead-sure you'd never even look twice at me."

"Hmm, not openly, I wouldn't have. But when you turned around… oh, I would've been looking for sure. Twice, thrice even…" Azula smirked, stretching her arms out to grope Sokka's rear. He chuckled, rising over her on the bed once more to kiss her lips softly.

"You're every bit as much of a perv as I can be, and we only know that because of this weird situation of ours," he said, pressing his brow to hers. "But… I'm starting to feel like the pretense side of things is pretty much nowhere around anymore. We just use it as a shield at times, I guess… but the truth has become a little more complicated than that."

"Maybe," Azula conceded. Sokka gazed at her with those earnest blue eyes, and she wanted to lose herself in them for good…

"If he were anywhere nearby, I'd probably go yell at Zuko for what he said to you," Sokka said. Azula snorted, shaking her head. "I mean it…"

"You're an idiot. Don't even think about it," Azula said. "It's not worth it."

"I know," Sokka said, breathing out slowly. "Look, I have no idea how I've found myself trusting you as much as I do after, what, three weeks of being in our confusing relationship?"

"Hmm, it has been about that long, yes," Azula admitted, with a smirk. "But I suppose seeing a woman naked, and making her say all the utterly embarrassing things you've brought out of her in bed, has lulled you into a sense of security? Perhaps it's because of how vulnerable I've been around you, to a degree…?"

"Vulnerable?" Sokka asked, trailing his fingers over her jaw. Azula smiled.

"Admittedly, I've been more vulnerable tonight than ever before, but…"

"Hmm. I suppose that makes sense," Sokka said, lowering his gaze. "But…"

"But?"

"The thing is I do trust you. I believe in you. I care about you," Sokka said: Azula's heart tingled upon hearing each of those phrases. "And I… I'm so pissed because it sounds like Zuko doesn't. Maybe he does? And maybe he's just terrible at showing he does. Maybe he doesn't even realize he cares, that's all the credit I'm willing to give him, but… he's your brother. If Aang and my sister were about to call it quits, I'd be worried about them both, but I'd be more worried about Katara. That he'd worry about me because of… what, my mess of a love life, rather than being worried about you? I don't get it. I just don't get it…"

"Well, our family has been notorious for being fucked up, so… I suppose that's the explanation you're looking for," Azula said, with a sigh. "I've always thought… the only reason why he forgave me when he did was because I'm his only valid heir. The ruling class of the Fire Nation wouldn't accept anyone who isn't a direct descendant of the Fire Lords on the throne… a massive movement, of the kind Shuang is building up here, would be necessary for someone else to take that throne. So… I'm only allowed to be of use for the Fire Nation because Zuko is better off keeping me in his corner for now. Even if he pushes me as far away as he can, he still needs me. Weird as it is, some factions in the Fire Nation respect him more simply because I'm part of his administration. But once he cements himself in full, and once he has a child of his own…"

"He'll push you out, you think?" Sokka asked, frowning. Azula shrugged.

"I wouldn't be surprised if he did. If I hated my only heir and sibling, I'd do the same thing," Azula said. Sokka raised an eyebrow.

"If?"

Azula blinked blankly. She glanced at her lover, whose intelligent stare bore into hers.

"I mean… well, it's not like it'd matter if I want him in my life or not, right? He's the one with the power, so… it's a hypothetical situation. I'm not saying that I don't…"

"You don't, though. You don't hate him… even after what he said to you," Sokka reasoned. Azula's eyes widened. "I mean… maybe you don't love him, I wouldn't expect you to, frankly, after everything you've explained, but… you don't hate him."

Azula swallowed hard, her throat strangely thick with tears. Yes, Sokka was right… even if her father would be sorely disappointed in her for that, the truth was that she didn't hate Zuko. Maybe he deserved her hatred… but she didn't feel that way, in the end. The reason why his lack of concern hurt was clear: she wished he gave a damn. Even if she had built a new life for herself, she had done so out of necessity after being sent away by Zuko, even if she had been protected by her status as a diplomat.

"Guess it's going to sound… sound weird for me to say this. But… some days it feels like nobody needs me," Azula admitted.

She didn't know why she had confessed that. Why she had conveyed one of her greatest, deepest fears to him. But she had done it, with a trembling voice, and she closed her eyes as she waited for the inevitable rejection of her insecurities…

"I wonder if that's a bigger reason why Toph realized we were good for each other," Sokka whispered.

Azula frowned, glancing at him: he leaned in, but this time to embrace her in full, with warmth and care rather than lust and greed. His lips, pressed against her neck, formed his next words with just as much uncertainty as she had spoken hers.

"Because I feel that way too, far more often than anyone can tell."

Azula's eyes widened. A protective urge took root within her heart: she raised her arms as well, embracing him… finding her vulnerability had been answered by more vulnerability rather than by empty reassurances. He had opened up to her… she had done the same. Suddenly, a pretend relationship had taken her world by storm, perhaps both their worlds… and it had become the most real, tangible, powerful bond they had experienced, even if they barely could register how their affection had escalated so much, as fast as it had.

"So…" Sokka said, swallowing back his own tears as he pulled back slightly. "So… I've got an idea, heh."

"What is it?" Azula asked, a hand trailing over his neck, rising to his handsome face.

"I've got Aang and Katara. Also got Toph, and, hey, she loves you too, so… maybe she'll help with this," Sokka said, with a weak grin. "But if… if anyone ever does something awful to you, if you're ever feeling brokenhearted, I… I'll be there for you. I'll help you however I can. I'll punch whoever did it, I don't know…"

"That'd be something to behold… you're supposed to be a councilman," Azula laughed softly, and Sokka grinned guiltily. "You're going to punch people willy-nilly just because they offended me?"

"Gladly," Sokka said, and Azula laughed again: her tears spilled by then, whether she wanted them to or not. "I have people who can and will pick me up if I fall to pieces. Whether they need me or not… well, beats me. But… I won't let you be alone anymore, okay? Even if we decide that this shouldn't go on – and for the record, I really would rather it did – I'll still be your friend, more than that for as long as you want me to be. I'll be in your corner. I'll hold you and shield you from the world's shit if I can do it. I'll be there for you, no matter what. So… if Zuko's a dumbass who can't appreciate you for who you are? It's his damn loss. From now on, whether you like it or not… your heart is mine to protect."

Azula's wide eyes were clouded by tears. Sokka smiled warmly at her, pressing his brow to hers…

"Do you really mean that?" she asked. He nodded slowly. "I… I mean, I want to do the same for you, too. You're worse than me, aren't you? Bottling everything up, never telling anyone what's really going on…"

"Worse? Hmm, hard to say…"

"Oh, no, you're worse. By far," Azula said, and Sokka chuckled as she caressed his face delicately. "So… your heart will be mine to protect as well. Whether you like it or not."

"Hmm. That sounds like a wedding vow, almost," Sokka smiled. Azula laughed and shrugged. "Worth jotting down in case we get that far, right?"

"Definitely," Azula said, pressing her brow to his. "I… I don't know what the hell you've done to me, Sokka…"

"Going by your sexy moans, I've given you about a hundred orgasms, so maybe that's what…"

"Heh, good point, maybe that's it," Azula agreed, and Sokka chuckled guiltily. "Guess what I'm trying to say is I… I never imagined I'd feel any of what you're making me feel. Both physically and emotionally, that is…"

"Then… if that's how it is, how about we go all the way?" Sokka asked, smiling at her. Azula raised an eyebrow.

"And here I thought we'd done that about a hundred times indeed…"

Sokka chuckled as he climbed off her, taking his seat on the bed. He pulled her up delicately too – her legs no longer trembled though they'd be delightfully sore by morning.

"Do you trust me?" he asked. Azula swallowed hard, smiling and shrugging a moment later.

"Hard not to trust someone who's somehow put you on all fours and still hasn't lost his respect for you," she said. Sokka chuckled and Azula took his hand in his. "I trust you. I can't see any reason not to."

"And I trust you. So…" Sokka said, breathing deeply and cupping her face. "How about we cut out the shields and the pretenses? How about we… we go forward at full speed now? Do you want to be with me for real, Azula?"

She swallowed hard: her throat felt thick with tears again upon hearing a question she had never imagined someone would address to her. Her short-lived romantic experiences had never gone anywhere because she had never truly wanted them to… but she did now. Against all odds, sense and reason, she did want their relationship to have a future, even though they hadn't set out on this path with that purpose in mind at all.

So she smiled, offering him a tearful nod. Sokka's grin widened, but she raised a hand and stopped him from speaking.

"Just… for the record?" she said. "I… I like things as they are between us. Maybe we don't have to be as obnoxious anymore while in public, sure, but…"

"Being official doesn't mean we can't fuck as roughly as you like it," Sokka said, smirking. Azula chuckled and nodded.

"Good to know. I don't mind if we start being more emotional than before, but… rough sex was the founding stone of this relationship, and we'd best remember it," she said, solemnly. Sokka chuckled, nodding in agreement.

"Perfect. I wouldn't have it any other way," he said. Azula smiled, her hand caressing his once more.

"Doesn't always have to be rough, though," she said, biting her lip. "Well, that is, unless it doesn't feel right otherwise? But, well, I suppose that requires for us to try other ways to go at it, so…"

"Azula…" Sokka inched closer as Azula's breath hitched, as her hands clasped his harder.

"I'm just saying, I…" Azula started, unsure of how to convey all her thoughts, contradictory and complicated as they were…

Sokka's free hand rose to her face. He cupped her cheek and leaned in, brushing his lips lightly against hers.

By now, Azula would have been sure they had already shared every kind of kiss known to mankind. But the devotion, the tenderness in the way he kissed her now, in the way he tilted his head, holding her face in place, was unprecedented for her. Her heart jolted, her gut as good as somersaulting, as though he had never kissed her before…

For he had never kissed her this way. Perhaps he had offered her more affection over the course of their whirlwind relationship so far… but right now, he held nothing back. He poured his heart out to her in that kiss… and Azula responded by offering him her own.

The overwhelming sensation of pleasure elicited by their most reckless rounds of sex usually arrived as bursts of fire, flaring and dimming depending on the moment, burning brightly, rising and falling, kindled into full strength when the right conditions were met. But this… it was as though swimming in a pool of warmth, as though floating in bliss unparalleled. Every touch, every kiss, every exchanged laugh and moan, all together added up into a recipe as potent and magical as the one they'd been indulging in so far. And as the excitement inevitably rose, it felt like a smooth torrent this time, a waterfall ready to spill into a large river of even more happiness…

As much sex as they'd had until then, it was the first time they made love. The tenderness didn't fade in the wake of a climax, or two… their smiles, occasionally paired with tears of emotion or overwhelming arousal, never seemed to fade from their faces. However naked they had been around each other in the past, they truly bared everything that night.

Morning found them, yet again, locked in their tender embrace. The unsettling feelings in Azula's heart had receded by then… properly replaced by the sensation she already knew the name of, even if she didn't wish to speak it aloud. She smiled as she woke earlier than him, when the sun was rising… and this time, concern about doing her duty was the last thing on her mind. This time, keeping her brother appeased through her perfect performance as ambassador didn't matter in the least. The warmth they shared, the smiles they exchanged once Sokka woke up too, about ten minutes after she did, meant more than anything else ever had. The spell that had been cast upon them that night hadn't faded by morning: the love they shared, so sudden and surprising as it was, would continue to guide them forward…

So long as undoing the Golden Suns' conspiracy didn't cost them everything, that was.

The cruise party was due to happen two days after Sokka and Azula committed fully to their relationship – as much as the pretense relationship had turned real, their mission wouldn't be left unfinished because of it. If anything, pulling it off would be all the easier now, for they would be as genuine as could be about their interest in each other. All Azula had to do was lie about her affection for Sokka, something she'd be fully capable of pulling off, and persuade Shuang that she was willing to turn against her brother. After their last encounter, it wouldn't be all that difficult to play her part to perfection.

Thus, even if they would have liked to stay in bed all day, indulging in each other's company, Sokka and Azula had much work to do, not only in their respective workplaces but afterwards, too. They were late to both the Town Hall and the Fire Nation embassy, but neither one bothered making excuses about their impunctuality – a most astounding fact in Azula's case, no matter if her iron grip on schedules had become rather wobbly ever since her relationship with Sokka had begun.

Sokka waited for her outside the embassy by the afternoon, thrilled to take her into his arms at once when the opportunity arrived, but they didn't take off to an expensive restaurant this time. Instead, it was an afternoon spent shopping: yet again, they wound up finding common ground in doing so, for even if Azula wasn't as much of a fan of shopping as Sokka was, she certainly appreciated his compliments, whether sweet or raunchy, as she tried out potential dresses to wear for the party. His suit, Azula thought, would be easier to choose, but Sokka was quite peculiar about his fashion and for good reason: the deep blue outfit he wound up choosing suited him so well Azula couldn't help but look forward to stripping it off him after they were done with the entire matter. Perhaps she'd simply drag him inside the cruise, actually, and they could find an empty cabin aboard to exploit for their purposes right then and there…

But choosing their outfits wasn't the only thing they had to do in preparation for their brief cruise trip: they needed to confirm everything with the very person who had started their plan, after all.

"We're going to keep all lights out on the blimp while we follow the cruise," Toph said, feet on her desk in the Police Headquarters as she recounted her plans to her friends. "And we're going to fly pretty high so those fucks can't hear us. It's going to be a party, so it should be noisy and they shouldn't hear us anyhow, but I'm not taking any chances."

"I take it you'll be aboard the airship as well?" Azula asked. Toph nodded.

"Can't pretend I'm fond of flying still, but I'm better off there than waiting for everyone else to get everything done," she said. "You're ready to deal with Shuang?"

"Naturally," Azula said, simply, but Toph huffed.

"Really? Ready to tell him you've been riding Sokka into the horizon all for his benefit?" she asked: Azula bit her lip, and Toph scoffed at her reaction. "Well, now, get it together, Spicy. Your heartrate's all over the place. You used to be harder to read than that…"

"Oh, be quiet," Azula huffed. Toph snickered.

"I'd say the same about Sokka but honestly? He's been a mess since you went on that lightning trip to the Fire Nation, at least," Toph said. Sokka smiled guiltily. "I literally pretended you were right behind him once, you know?"

"Ugh, asshole," Sokka huffed, blushing and glaring at his friend while Azula smiled fondly at him.

"He suddenly stood upright, probably trying to show what a manly man he is or something," Toph said, with a devious cackle. Azula chuckled as well, reaching out to clasp Sokka's hand reassuringly as he sat on the chair next to hers. "He was pissed at me for like two days, then he was just moping because you weren't around… and I guess I get why, if you're holding hands in front of me now, too. Is that practice for when you meet Shuang or something?"

"Practice… for the future, maybe," Azula said, smiling proudly at Sokka. He grinned back at once, his fluster fading quickly. "I suppose you could say that all that sex served as practice, too…"

"Maybe people ought to practice before getting into relationships more often. It's working wonders for us," Sokka reasoned, and Azula laughed while Toph balked, an eyebrow twitching.

"Wait. Wait a sec. You two dumbasses…" she said, smiling slowly. "You're kidding. You're actually kidding. My two best friends went from fuckbuddies to being in an actual relationship now?"

"Is that such a bad thing…?" Sokka asked, with an innocent smile.

"I didn't say it was bad, but I…hey! I wasn't joking about giving a speech at your wedding! Don't you dare let Katara do it, Sokka!"

"Uh, that would be potentially catastrophic so don't worry, it'll be you," Sokka chuckled as Toph sighed in relief.

"Good. Though… I can't really believe you two weirdos got this far this fast," she snickered. "Though, then again, I can believe it, because you really are…"

"The same kind of dumb?" Azula and Sokka said in unison, eyeing Toph skeptically. She grinned brightly.

"See? You finally accepted it," she said, beaming. Both Azula and Sokka rolled their eyes, though they smiled still, fingers intertwined. "Though I will say it's wild that you went from 'nooo, marriage, what the hell is that? Unthinkable, Toph, seriously, what's wrong with you?' to 'Please give our wedding speech, of course we want you to!' in like, what, a week?"

"Heh, I forgot we'd dismissed the idea before…" Sokka admitted. Azula chuckled, shaking her head.

"It's not like we're going to rush in and tie the knot tomorrow…" she said. Toph snorted.

"At the rate at which you're going, you might. Try not to do it on Shuang's cruise, though, or he's probably going to realize you two are way more serious than you're supposed to be…" Toph said, carelessly. Azula hummed.

"A valid point. Well, that's fine, we'll just do it right before we climb off the cruise," Azula shrugged, and Sokka chuckled while squeezing her hand. Toph laughed too, folding her arms over her chest.

"You two are the best combination for each other and the worst for everyone who tries to stand in your way, feels like," she said. "Which means… you're gonna cause chaos wherever you go and that's lots of fun. So, well, if someone's a dick at either of you about this, send them my way and I'll straighten them out for you."

"You can persuade them with your foolproof argument about our compatible dumbness," Sokka smirked. Toph snickered and nodded promptly. "Anyway… you're sure everything's ready? We're good to go forward tomorrow?"

"Dead sure. They won't know what hit 'em," Toph said, cracking her knuckles. "Take the tunnel back to the embassy as usual, though…"

"Heh, we came that way too. I take it you two have been doing that for the past months to avoid being noticed by the Golden Suns?" Sokka asked, raising an eyebrow.

"A little longer than that, actually," Azula admitted. "Toph was tasked with keeping me under surveillance at first, you know, former conqueror of Ba Sing Se and all…"

"I dropped by at the embassy all the time to make sure she wasn't doing anything weird. She messed with me, I messed with her… we ended up becoming friends," Toph said, with a shrug. "But Azula thought I couldn't be too nice to her and show the world we were friends because too many people were still keeping an eye on her, so we came up with this tunnel strategy to meet up unnoticed, instead. It's always funny to make her walk through sewers, gotta say…"

"Shithead," Azula glared at the earthbender, and Toph smirked with delight at the insult.

"You're not going to convince anyone in this room that you're some delicate flower, Spicy Princess. No one's going to buy it," she said, and as much as she found no pleasure in traversing sewers indeed, Azula still smiled.

As unsettling as it was to walk through the city sewers, Azula held Sokka's hand as they made their way back to her embassy once their meeting with Toph ended. Walking across the stench-ridden area was unpleasant, but doing so with company helped, if only slightly.

"I try to make her be the one who visits me more often, but I can't guarantee it every time," Azula sighed, rubbing the back of Sokka's hand with her thumb. "She sure thrives in making sure I have to go through it often, though…"

"Well… depending on what happens in our big mission tomorrow, it means the Golden Suns may realize you're working with her. Once that happens, wouldn't it be reasonable for you to not hide your friendship as much?" Sokka asked, raising his eyebrows.

"I suppose, though… we weren't only hiding because of this," Azula said. "I've been followed and watched quite persistently, like we told you, so…"

"And you've been seen in public doing unsightly things with me," Sokka smiled, wrapping his arm around her shoulders and reeling her into a quick embrace. "As we're serious now, well… your public appearances can become more genuine, can't they? At least, after the Golden Suns are out of the way."

"I suppose…" Azula smiled, dropping her head on his shoulder. "It'll be odd, and I'm sure she'll be judged for being friends with someone as foul as me…"

"They're judging me for being more than friends with you as it is, and that doesn't seem to bother you," Sokka said, diving into her neck to nibble on her skin teasingly.

"Damn it, Sokka, we're still in a sewer: I'm not fucking you here," Azula huffed. Sokka chuckled, pressing a kiss to her cheek.

"Guess that's the first real boundary we've found?" he asked. Azula scoffed.

"Do you have to ask?" she said, though she couldn't help but laugh too as she elbowed his ribs for his teasing.

Naturally, said reservations were easily dismissed once they emerged back above ground: after sharing a thorough shower – in which Azula scrubbed them clean as conscientiously as could be, to Sokka's delight and amusement –, they wound up sharing her bed in her suite once more. Rolling over the covers anew, after an intense tryst of strong emotions and wild exchanges, Azula wound up lying atop Sokka, her head resting comfortably on his chest. His hands traveled over her body, and she moaned appreciatively under his caresses, smiling more noticeably whenever he dared touch her anywhere intimate.

"I wonder if it's any safer for us to be here than in your apartment," Azula whispered. "I've thought for a while… I might have Golden Suns associates in my staff, without my awareness."

"Hmm. Maybe, but they can't hear us talk about them if we talk very, very quietly," Sokka said, teasingly. Azula smiled and nodded. "Almost feels like nothing will be safe until they're out of the way, huh? And technically… if Shuang's more thorough and careful than expected, this might not end tomorrow."

"True too," Azula said, caressing his chest gently. "Doesn't change anything for us, though. They'll think I'm doing this because I want access into the Avatar's inner circle… so I'd have to keep doing it, even while pretending to be a self-serving leech looking for power at all costs."

"Well, I'll be happy to let you keep doing it, of course," Sokka smiled. "But… I guess I'm wondering what things will be like once it's all over. Obviously, we're going to keep seeing each other and doing everything we want together, but… it'll be interesting making people understand we're serious about this."

"Interesting is one word for it…" Azula said, closing her eyes. Sokka raised an eyebrow as she breathed deeply. "I… don't really want to think much about the future, I suppose. I know you offered to marry me so Zuko won't just yank me out of here when he feels like it, but… I wouldn't really have the embassy anymore at that point, would I? I… I don't really know what I'd do by then."

"Hmm. Maybe I could get you a job in the council," Sokka said, with a grin. Azula chuckled. "What?"

"You're a piece of work. That's the worst idea ever," she said, kissing his chest anew. "We'll get no work done if we're co-workers, we'll keep sneaking into each other's offices constantly and everyone will catch us red-handed while we're going at it, so…"

"Well, now! How very inappropriate of you," Sokka said, haughtily. Azula chuckled at his reaction, shaking her head and pressing another kiss to his strong chest. "I was sure we could be professional, Azula, really…"

"I'm sure we can't. Utterly certain," Azula smiled, reaching down with her hand now, running it over his flank and down to his rear, squeezing his buttock lightly. Sokka chuckled, pressing a kiss to her brow. "I guess I just… I don't want anyone to take you away from me. Or me away from you, as the case may be. We can say we'll do our best to ensure that won't happen, but… we can't be sure that we can avoid it."

"Heh. Well… I lost a Princess once before, you know?" Sokka said. Azula raised her eyebrows, glancing at him in surprise upon hearing him volunteering the information without her having to prod at him for it. "Obviously, what you and I have is… well, not at all the kind of relationship I had with her, but…"

"If you're talking about what I think you're talking about, you were way too young for the kind of filth you and I get up to nowadays," Azula smirked. Sokka chuckled and nodded.

"True… but the way I feel about you now? It reminds me of how I felt about her, at first," Sokka said. Azula's eyes widened. "I don't know if it would have lasted, to be honest. Maybe I could've married her and had the happiest, careless life with her… but maybe the same thing that happened to me with Suki would have happened with her eventually. In a sense, that things ended before they could even begin allowed me to crystallize and idealize that relationship, I suppose. What you and I have is as real and tangible as can be. It's not the idealization of a relationship, it's… it's the relationship I never knew I wanted and it's better than every alternative I've ever known. Still, what I'm getting at is that… I couldn't save her. I couldn't protect her. I even saw a vision once, in the Foggy-Bottom Swamp? Where she… she pretty much held me responsible for her fate."

"Sokka…" Azula frowned, tightening her grip around him. He breathed deeply and smiled at her.

"And that's something I haven't told anyone else about, heh. But… the thing is I had no choice back then, alright? I… I had to let go. I had to let it happen. It hurt for ages… but the one thing I could cling to was my belief that I wouldn't ever allow anyone else to be taken away from me that way. That I'd protect everyone I cared about… and as ridiculously fast as this has been, Azula, you're in that list now, too. Whether it's the Golden Suns, Zuko, Earth Kingdom radical groups or even my sister's rants, I'm going to keep you safe. I'm stronger now… I know I can do it. No one's taking you away from me… well, unless you want to go, of course."

"Hmm, I liked the sound of you being such a greedy bastard that you wouldn't let anyone take me at all…" Azula smiled, pressing tighter against him, her heart jolting with tingles of joy over his resolve. "Thank you, Sokka. I don't know if it'll go as well or as easily as that, but… I hope it does. I want… I want to stay by your side, just as much."

"Good," Sokka smiled, tilting her head up to kiss her softly.

Their conversation could have ended there… but Azula's lips curved into a smirk before long. Sokka's gut stirred with anticipation, knowing she was either about to seduce him into another round of wild lovemaking, or to entice him with mischievous banter.

"I have to say, though… you have some high standards, Sokka," she said. Banter it was, then. Sokka raised an eyebrow. "I mean… your first girlfriend, as far as I understand it, was the Princess of the Northern Water Tribe? And now you're with the Princess of the Fire Nation instead. Suki didn't cut it… who knows how many others in between weren't up to snuff either. It's quite impressive…"

"Wait, now. Are you accusing me of being some sort of gold-digger?" Sokka asked, amused. Azula snorted and cackled, dropping her head on his shoulder. "Because… fuck, people might actually start saying that about me, come to think of it."

"I didn't mean it that way, but suit yourself," Azula chuckled, kissing his cheek. "I'm only saying you're slightly high-maintenance too, you dork."

"Might be why we're so good for each other, then. We're high-maintenance and we operate at maximum efficiency," Sokka smirked proudly. Azula nodded sagely.

"And isn't that the recipe for a wonderful relationship?"

"Considering it's been less than a month and I already want to start discussing what we'll name our future children, yeah, it definitely is," Sokka laughed, kissing Azula willfully again, wrapping his arms around her body and reeling her close as she chuckled too, her heart burning with delight upon hearing him say such words.

No, she wasn't ready for children, neither was he, she expected… but she found the concept of their children to be an interesting possibility to explore in the future, rather than seeing it as a pointless fantasy she barely wanted anything to do with. Yes, they were moving forward far too quickly… but perhaps they'd slow down after the Golden Suns were out of the way. By then, they'd be able to enjoy a proper relationship, fully on their terms, with no outside pressure. By then, they'd make their own choices… and whatever Zuko thought of it, he could very well stuff his opinions wherever he pleased, for neither Sokka nor Azula would let him dictate the direction and growth of their relationship.

The warm comfort they indulged in continued into the next day: Sokka held her tightly once Azula woke up again, and he seemed far more conscious than her as he kissed her lips softly.

"Don't tell me you were just lying there, watching me sleep…" she said, smiling and prodding his nose with hers.

"I was watching you sleep and thinking about our relationship, so I was doing two things, Princess," Sokka teased her: his affection enveloped her, and she couldn't wait for it to do the same for the rest of the day.

He took off to Town Hall for his workday, though they shared lengthy, heartfelt kisses before he took off: she didn't even bother looking guilty about it to the staff members who saw it happen, didn't offer explanations or pretenses of self-awareness. At this point, it was impossible to feel shame about a relationship that, as odd as it had been, filled her with pride instead.

As experienced as they were at handling complicated matters, anxiety over their impending mission's fulfillment still bloomed within their hearts: Sokka returned to the embassy in his fully formal regalia by sundown, and Azula finished dressing up shortly afterwards – he offered to help her with her hair while she handled her makeup, ensuring they'd be ready as quickly as could be. They were fully aware of the new, sudden domesticity in their behavior, but at this point, it seemed that everything they shared was a source of comfort for the two of them.

Thus, once they were ready, they took off to Republic City's bay, hands linked. The city was lively – as was expected right before a weekend began –, music and laughter seemed to drift from everywhere, and as they progressed towards the bay on a carriage, Azula found herself appreciating the city even more than she already did… perhaps more than ever, upon knowing she might be able to build a future for herself in it with the man holding her hand in that carriage.

Sokka was quite keen on inspecting the cruise as soon as they reached the bay, down to even sprinting off towards the entrance and hooting at the sight of the luxurious and beautiful ship with the typical golden prow of the Fire Nation. He whistled, hands on his hips as he assessed the ship with amazement.

"Pretty impressive! I wonder how expensive it was to build a ship like this, actually…" he said, eyeing the craftsmanship with interest. A uniformed man beside him cleared his throat, stepping towards him menacingly.

"Excuse me… if you're not invited to today's gathering, I must ask you to leave the premises of this pier at once," the guard said: Sokka raised an eyebrow, hands on his hips as he regarded the man dismissively.

"Really? Do you know who I am?" Sokka asked. The man grimaced.

"You may be Councilman Sokka, but this is a private event, and…"

"And he's with me."

Azula's statement cut across the guard's scolding: his eyes drifted towards the elegant Princess Azula, who extended her invitation at the man before her.

"P-Princess… I see," the guard said, nodding in her direction. "Welcome, uh, please make yourselves comfortable on the cruise, and enjoy the nighttime tour…"

"We shall do just that," Azula said, with a judgmental smirk. Sokka grinned, stepping up to Azula and offering her his arm. "Do stay with me all night, dear. I'm afraid you might wind up in trouble if I'm not right beside you constantly…"

"Well, now, that's not going to be a problem and you know it," Sokka smirked: the temptation to breach boundaries and act recklessly almost took hold of him… but he held back, taking Azula's hand delicately and looping it around his bicep as they marched up the ramp that led towards the cruise.

Eyes followed them as they walked together, and as placidly as they behaved, their tension had already started rising. Azula let out a deep breath, glancing at him with a warm smile.

"Almost thought you'd wind up groping my ass again," she said. Sokka smiled, shrugging lightly.

"If you want me to…"

"I always want you to, but we can certainly save it for later," she said. Sokka chuckled and nodded. "I suppose they expected me not to bring you along…"

"Probably. But I suppose they didn't have strict orders not to let me in, anyway…" Sokka reasoned. Azula smiled, shaking her head.

"They couldn't have taken such a risk. Refusing access to a public figure like yourself when you had a perfectly legitimate way into the cruise would have likely caused an uproar they wouldn't have found convenient, so… this suits them better, if just for now."

"I don't want to leave you at all tonight, though," Sokka said, smiling too, no matter if he didn't feel like doing it while conveying his fears – they were mostly alone on the ramp, so no one would overhear them, but the lanterns that lit the way up to the deck certainly would allow anyone on deck to see their facial expressions, and they had to be the picture of perfect party guests right now. "If anything weird happens, if that fucker asks to speak alone with you…"

"I'll refuse to do it without you unless there's no other choice," Azula said, reassuringly. "If there isn't one, I'll hand you the flare just in case anything bad happens to you. They shouldn't harm me, I'm their ticket to success, so…"

"I should hope so, but I still worry," Sokka said, breathing out slowly as they finally reached the end of the ramp…

Where they were subjected to a rather awkward search for any weapons they weren't supposed to be carrying. Azula's dress, form-fitting and elegant, clearly hid nothing, but they were most thorough with Sokka to his utter irritation: try as though they might, they nonetheless failed to find a single weapon on his body.

"Good thing you told me not to bring any," Sokka grumbled quietly to Azula as they climbed the stairs within the cruise, on their way to the deck, as he put on his jacket properly once again. "But I guess we'll have to do what we agreed on and try to find an armory aboard, at some point or another…"

"If necessary, sure. But if not…" Azula said, smiling as she clasped his arm a second time. "We should just enjoy ourselves, Sokka. Nothing more to it."

"Heh, nothing more for sure," Sokka smiled, nodding in her direction.

The party had numerous upstanding guests beyond the members of the Golden Suns: Sokka greeted the Fire Nation's council representative, who regarded Azula with wary respect, and eyed the contact between them with uncertainty. Then, it was Azula who met more rich Fire Nation-born people she was familiar with, ever introducing Sokka with a powerful hint of pride in her voice. They answered questions about their relationship status shyly, and the primary answer Azula and Sokka offered was that they looked forward to the future together, earning themselves happy smiles from those who genuinely congratulated them, and awkward ones from those who still didn't understand how such an unlikely match had been made at all.

The more noticeably uncomfortable ones, however, were the members of the Golden Suns. They outright avoided Azula, and whenever she managed to speak with them, asking for Shuang, they'd evasively tell her he would make an appearance once the cruise had set sail. Unwilling to seem too keen on seeing him, Azula took to relaxing – or pretending to do so, at any rate – with Sokka while checking the facilities of the grand cruise. An impressive assortment of drinks would be available for the guests, as well as a grand feast. A squad of traditional Fire Nation musicians had taken to playing soft tunes aboard the ship, and Sokka threatened to dance with Azula only for her to refuse at once – Fire Nation people didn't dance, she said, and Sokka snickered by dragging her into the corridors of the ship to prove otherwise in further privacy, well after the cruise had taken off on its nightly trajectory near the bay.

That was an excuse, of course, to continue searching the ship while also having fun together – unfortunately, the deeper levels of the cruise were too distant from the music for them to continue dancing, but by then, their perfect excuse to be in places out of bounds was an even more pleasant one than dancing.

"Hmm… all these rooms are locked, Sokka," Azula moaned into his lips as he pressed her to a wall. "We can't…"

"No big deal… we'll just unlock one. I'm a man of many talents," Sokka snickered, trailing his lips delightfully over her exposed neck. Azula moaned, throwing her head back in sheer bliss. "Can't ask me to stay on my best behavior for another second, girl: you're driving me crazy here…"

"I've done absolutely nothing to that end…" Azula said, smirking as she clasped Sokka's head, leading it lower, as though towards her cleavage, and Sokka grinned with delight upon being cushioned by her soft skin. "Ah, how shameless of you! This is a respectable party, Sokka…!"

"The party can be respectable if it wants to be: you and I, though, oh, that's a whole different story…" Sokka chuckled, pressing soft kisses to the top of her breasts. Azula moaned willfully, bucking her chest up into his face before he returned to her lips. "Okay, now, you're making this too hard on me…"

"Making you too hard, you said?" Azula teased. Sokka chuckled, stealing more delectable kisses off her lips.

"C'mon. I can get us into one of these rooms. I kinda like this one…" Sokka said, tapping the door gently

"You sure?" Azula asked, her eyes meaningful. Sokka nodded, smirking.

"Got a feeling it's the captain's room, or something…" he said. "Those are always the fanciest rooms."

"Sokka, the captain's room wouldn't be in this corridor…" Azula laughed, wrapping her arms around his waist as Sokka huffed, shaking his head.

"I know what I'm doing," he said: his fingers trailed deviously over her body as he reached up to her face, going even higher yet…

Her hairdo, so delicate and perfect, came undone once he removed the hairpin keeping her elegant ornamental comb and Crown Princess hairpiece in place.

"Sokka…!" Azula gasped. He smirked.

"You look even hotter in that dress with your hair down, fancy that…" he said. "Ugh, the things I'm going to do with you…"

"You… you…" Azula started… before giving herself to kissing him recklessly.

The pin was of the right girth to fit inside the keyhole. While cracking the lock wasn't easy while Azula devoured his lips, Sokka tried his best to focus on his task while caressing her mischievously with his free hand.

Eventually, the lock snapped: Sokka smirked, pushing the door open…

To find a most unreasonable room in what was a civilian vessel.

"Oh, gee. What the hell is this?" Sokka blinked blankly, slowing down their kissing frenzy as Azula, too, glanced into the room behind that door.

"Uh… heh. What luck, this ship has to be full of proper bedrooms, and you just happened to pick a cargo room?" Azula said, with a dry grin. Sokka frowned as he stepped inside, reaching out with a hand to touch one of the nearest shelves. "Come on, it's none of our business. Let's go, Sokka, weren't you going to show me the best of times?"

"I can do that after I check…"

"Who's there?!"

Sokka cursed inwardly. Azula's eyes narrowed as she glanced towards the source of the sound. Another guard… easily handled, even if they failed to charm him.

"That room is off limits for… u-uh, Princess?" the guard said, slowing down as Azula's features became clearer to him. She offered him a guilty smile.

"I, uh… sorry. Me and my date were merely, eh… oh, it's embarrassing, really, but…"

"Yeah, very embarrassing," Sokka grimaced: he covered his groin with a hand awkwardly as he stepped out of the room, and the guard narrowed his eyes at Sokka. "Things just got a little heated up, okay? But nothing happened, nothing at all…"

"How did you get in there?" the guard asked. Sokka shrugged, raising Azula's hairpin carelessly. "Y-you…"

"Guess your locks aren't that safe, hehe. Sorry?" Sokka said, smiling awkwardly. "But, uh, about our little problem, do you think you could maybe overlook this and, I don't know, find us a room to blow off some steam in, or…?"

"No!" the guard said, immediately. Sokka winced at the violent reaction. "You… I must ask you to leave this corridor. Remain in the deck's area, Princess, Councilman. It is the designated area of the party, so do not stray past it. Am I clear?"

"Heh. Crystal clear," Sokka grimaced, sighing and turning towards Azula. "Well, I guess public sex has its appeals…"

"Sokka…!" Azula winced, glancing at the guard with apologetic shame. "No such thing will happen, I assure you… honestly, Sokka, you're impossible!"

"What? We've almost gone that far as it is, that day in the park, you…"

"Shut up!" Azula exclaimed, dragging him through the corridors: the guard watched them attentively, no doubt listening to their argument intently. "We don't need to cause trouble here, alright? This is supposed to be a perfectly reasonable day, a nice date! I wanted you here because I thought you could behave yourself, but you're being ridiculous now!"

"Am I? I thought you were into it too, damn. Can't blame a guy for getting his hopes up…"

"Oh, I sure can!"

Their argument continued as they made their way upstairs, and they were enveloped by the party's sounds and celebrations again. By then, Sokka had successfully adjusted himself properly once more, without needing to conceal anything with his hand anymore:

"How many did you get?" Azula asked, softly.

"Three. Fucking guard showed up too fast," Sokka growled. Azula sighed.

"With any luck, we won't need any of them anyhow," she said, brushing her fingers against his gently. "Amazing job figuring out where their armory would be, though."

"Maybe you're not the only genius around here, how about that?" Sokka said softly, leaning closer to her and brushing her hair with his fingers. "Want me to fix your hair now?"

"Oh, well, if that's how you'll make up for this shameful matter, certainly," Azula said, raising her voice enough to be overheard by any onlookers as they stepped out into the open anew.

They found a comfortably private area of the deck, in plain sight of the guests and hosts alike, for Sokka to indulge in combing Azula's hair and composing it anew into the picture of perfect elegance. All her feigned displeasure with him faded by then as she turned in his arms, sharing more careless kisses with him while they enjoyed the music and atmosphere, occasionally glancing at Republic City's many lights from afar. Aang's ridiculously tall statue stood nearby too, and Azula recounted the story of how Toph had to work on it multiple times in order to get Aang's features correctly: the Avatar had been caught by surprise when the earthbender slammed a clay cast on his face, in an attempt to get a better grasp of every detail, and she had still needed Katara's guidance to portray some of them correctly, such as Aang's arrows. Toph, of course, had no clue of what they looked like, but at least the final result had been positive, enough that they had thrown a party right under the statue, with a very flustered Aang, to rejoice in Toph's success.

Sokka had missed out on that, traveling as a White Lotus agent… but he resolved not to miss any such stories anymore. He smiled as Azula finished her retelling, and she raised her eyebrows in his direction.

"What?" she said. He chuckled, prodding her nose with his.

"Just thinking… when Toph builds your statue, I'll make sure to be there. I'll make sure she gets everything right…" he teased, trailing a hand over her waist. Azula laughed, shaking her head.

"I'm getting a statue now?" she asked. Sokka shrugged. "If so, might as well build it yourself, if that's the case."

"Sure can, Princess. You know nothing of my artistic abilities…"

"Oh, I know enough about them: even Toph says you have none and if she knows that for sure while being blind, well…"

"Heeeey!"

"May I cut in?"

Azula's sudden tension alarmed Sokka, too. He hadn't heard that cold, deep voice before… but he knew what to expect even before turning on his heels to stare at a tall, thin man of dark hair and golden, sharp eyes.

"Ah, finally," Azula smiled: Sokka's grip around her waist didn't relent even as she stepped forward, almost to stand protectively between the new arrival and Sokka. "It's been too long, hasn't it, Shuang?"

The man's disposition was quite different from how it had been the last time they had met – unsurprisingly so, Azula thought. Where he had gone to great lengths to be charming in his arrogance before, now there was nothing but frigidness instead.

He wasn't alone, either. A number of Golden Sun members stood with Shuang, and none appeared any friendlier than Shuang himself. Beyond them, however, it seemed the party had slowly cooled down, and the musicians were even being guided elsewhere… most guests were being led inside the cruise. The area that was supposed to be off-limits… Azula tried not to react to that, but it was nothing short of alarming. She had been prepared for facing Shuang in a private room: winding up alone on the deck with him wasn't quite what she had predicted…

The cold man didn't answer her greeting. Azula blinked blankly before glancing at Sokka, who raised an eyebrow at Shuang.

"This is Shuang, as you'll have inferred by now," Azula said. "Shuang, this is Councilman Sokka…"

"I'm well-aware of who he is," Shuang responded, bluntly. "Introductions, however, are… unnecessary. A waste, I'd say."

"Are they?" Azula asked, raising an eyebrow.

"They are, I'm afraid… for neither of you will be leaving this cruise alive tonight."

Azula's perplexity increased, much as Sokka's own did, too. That Shuang would blurt out his intentions as boldly as that… Sokka wasn't about to keep playing the fool now, not when him and his partner were being threatened directly.

"Funny. That almost sounded like you have a death wish," Sokka said, as coldly as Shuang. "What the hell do you think you're doing, Shuang?"

"What needs to be done. What I would rather weren't necessary… but it certainly is, because of you," Shuang growled. Sokka frowned.

"Because of… me?"

"She has soiled herself with you!"

Azula's eyes widened. Sokka's jaw dropped.

So much for hoping the man would see an opportunity in Azula's closeness with someone who was part of the Avatar's closest circle… it turned out that Sokka's suggestion pertaining Shuang's reaction had been far more accurate than Azula's. The man's pretense of rationality and coolness crumbled under its own weight quickly: even his own men eyed Shuang warily as he glared at Azula, affronted and outraged…

"Fire Lord Zuko… oh, he has no idea what the Princess has been doing, I'm sure! He wouldn't have known she has been colluding with the enemy…!" Shuang said, eyes twitching as Sokka scowled in his direction.

"Zuko's done his own share of colluding with the enemy, if that's what you want to call it," Sokka hissed. "You do realize that the war's been over for thirteen years now, and Zuko had a hand in making it so? If you can't accept that…"

"Accept that the war ended? Or that mongrels like you could… despoil the purity of our royal bloodline?"

Sokka's stomach twisted unpleasantly upon further confirmation of his suspicions. Yes, perhaps Shuang had sounded like a Fire Nation loyalist ever since Azula had first talked about him… but it genuinely seemed that the very worst of the ideologies from the Hundred Year War had shaped him into one of them most despicable people Sokka had met recently.

"So… you're predictably disgusted because she slept with me," Sokka said, eyeing Shuang skeptically. "Because she…"

"I expected you to be… a true heir to Sozin's legacy!" Shuang nearly shrieked, glaring at Azula anew. Her initial shock was about to be outdone by her utmost outrage, though. "I believed you understood, you said you understood, that the Fire Nation's superiority had long been proven! We must ensure the world follows! We cannot become part of a system: we belong at the head of that system! It is by our leadership that our world will thrive! But you… you would give yourself to a lesser man! A man from the Water Tribe? When you had the ideal suitor in me, and yet you never gave me a true answer! You never joined the Golden Suns! You never came back, and yet…"

"And yet I came back over and over with him?" Azula said with a dry grin. "Well, I also came over and over with him. You, on the other hand… you're not very good at noticing when someone's faking it, are you?"

Sokka's eyes widened at the information Azula had blurted out as brutally as she had. Even Shuang froze on the spot, but the Princess wasn't done humiliating him yet.

"And I don't just mean that I faked my interest in you, of course… I faked private and public matters alike, if you truly must know," Azula said, with a sardonic smile. Shuang's outrage only seemed to increase. "But let's see… now that you've shown your true colors and how revolting your twisted mind is, what, exactly, is your plan going forward, Shuang? Do you intend to kill me and somehow frame matters to deceive my brother into believing I lost my mind again and needed to be put down at haste? With so many witnesses aboard, too… will you kill them all as well? Or will you tell them that I had someplace else to be? Must be so easy for me to return to shore over an emergency, considering we're in the middle of the sea right now… and of course, the matter of Sokka is even more alarming. Nobody is bound to shed many tears for me… but the Avatar would likely tear the world apart to find out what happened to him. How do you intend to explain to him, and to his wife, that you murdered Sokka, exactly?"

"There's no need to worry about all those things…" Shuang snarled. "For you two… have been conspiring against the Fire Lord."

"Ah? Is that so?" Azula laughed, folding her arms over her chest.

"You will sell out our nation to foreigners! The Avatar, this wretch…!"

"Goodness… I overestimated you to an alarming extent," Azula laughed, shaking her head judgmentally. "I actually thought you were somewhat smart, but this…"

"And I will stop your schemes! In doing so, you will commit suicide out of shame!" Shuang roared. "The Fire Lord… will be distraught to lose his only heir! But I, Shuang, protector of his interests abroad, will ensure to become his closest advisor…!"

"So that you can kill him next, as soon as you have a chance, and become Fire Lord yourself," Sokka finished, with a smirk. "Wow, that's a dumb plan. I can't believe we went to these lengths to deceive a simpleton like him, Azula…"

"While I certainly commend you for guessing Shuang could be a mindless puritan, I'm as shocked and disappointed as you are, honestly. I expected better," Azula told Sokka, shaking her head as Shuang scoffed in their direction.

"Enough ridiculing me!" Shuang roared. "I…! I would have done it with you! I would have taken this world for you, Princess! I would have been your Fire Lord! But the lack of dignity with which you've carried yourself in the past month…!"

"Oh, woe is me!" Azula said, melodramatically. "I won't marry a fool who's terrible in bed, what a nightmare!"

"Gee, you should thank me, even," Sokka said, and Azula nodded sagely in his direction. "Definitely got a better deal with me than you would have with this bozo."

"Absolutely. I mean, you were always a step-up, Sokka, but this is…"

"Silence!" Shuang roared. Azula smirked, shaking her head. "You have mocked me and ridiculed me for the last time! I won't stand for another second of this display of shamelessness! You're unworthy of the glorious family you were born to, and you…! You pathetic weasel: you shall never hinder the Royal Family with your inferior bir-…!"

She'd had enough. That was the core thought in Azula's mind when she raised her left hand and shot a blast of blue fire right into the man's face.

Shuang shrieked as other, far more competent firebenders around him protected him from the attack: Azula's choice of violence resulted in what should have been a skewed fight, with around twenty enemies against two…

Sokka drew one of his looted gadgets from the cruise's armory, flinging the first knife right into the closest guard's shoulder. The second one found its way into the flank of a firebender who tried to approach Azula, and the Princess shot Sokka a grateful smile before twirling in the air, packing a potent arch of fire that even flung several enemies overboard.

"The flare!" Sokka told her: Azula yanked her comb out of her hair, quickly removing her hairpiece before setting the small, disguised flare on fire.

It shot up into the sky, and while it was a small, red explosion, it would suffice to guide Toph's airship in their direction.

All they had to do until then was hold out. Sokka fought hand-to hand when he had no choice, repurposing his knives whenever he could do so: most the enemies were firebenders, something unsurprising considering the sickeningly puritan views of their leader, so Azula wound up on the defensive, undoing their attacks while Sokka rushed in to strike away at their enemies with knives or fists.

He removed his suit jacket at one point when Azula had to field three different firebending attacks at once: the blast leveled at Sokka was slowed by the spread jacket he tossed in the foe's direction, muffling the flames while the fabric caught fire too. The firebender was startled by the unorthodox move, but Sokka took advantage of the opportunity to punch him square in the face before dodging the next attack as well.

For someone who hadn't been as rigorous about firebending training as of late, Azula found herself handling her numerous opponents without as much strain as expected. She protected Sokka from his next assailant, shooting a burst of flames at his hair: the man shrieked as his flammable head caught fire, and the Princess smirked before turning again towards the foes attempting to surround her from behind.

"KILL THEM! KILL THEM BOTH!" Shuang roared desperately: his own hair had been singed, and he had risen to his feet only to give utterly pointless commands to his forces.

"Bet he thinks he's some genius strategist!" Sokka laughed, punching the next opponent square in the gut. "Your left!"

Azula fielded the attack Sokka warned her of without so much as looking at it: the next barrage of flames leveled in her direction turned blue as she took control of it, amassing as much fire as she could by consuming, with it, the flames of their many opponents. Slowly, the Princess crafted a dome of fire that swirled around both Sokka and herself, and he gaped around himself in wonderment as he realized they were actually safe within its premises…

He recognized the attack quickly: it was what she'd done when they had clashed in the war, for the very third time. Her escape from the ghost town of Tu Zin… Sokka shot a smile at her over his shoulder, finding Azula in the middle of focusing on her bending… and on her next move, too.

"Come closer," Azula said. Sokka blinked blankly: well, she had used the technique to escape back then… it stood to reason that she'd do it now, too. But did that mean…?

Sokka had no choice but to nod. He stepped closer to her, and Azula pressed her body snugly to his. The familiar comfort in their bodily contact was perfectly agreeable… but he knew that wasn't the point of her slowly surging dome of firebending. She was up to something big, bigger than he realized all along…

"What do I…?" Sokka started, but Azula interrupted him.

"Hold onto me!"

He did as she told him to…

And once he was safe, arms locked around her body, she lowered her arms, and the flames around them were repurposed to launch them into the dark sky.

The dome had sufficed to create distance between them and their foes: they gaped in their direction in astonishment, unable to make a single move, as the Fire Nation Princess and her Water Tribe lover powered into the sky together.

"Holy shit…! Okay, this is terrifying! Amazing, and terrifying!" Sokka squealed: he gazed down at the trail of blue, burning into the night and shedding further light upon the location of the cruise, in case Toph's airship hadn't found it yet…

But it had. Azula snarled, purposefully angling herself and Sokka to the southwest, hoping to avoid getting in Toph's way by doing so. She wouldn't hold the powerful burst of fire forever, and she urged Sokka wordlessly to raise his legs over her waist, which he did promptly… though the soles of his shoes had already been charred by the power of her bending, much as Azula's elegant dress was burning, too.

Sokka winced at that realization: it had been too much fabric, and it wasn't the kind of outfit any firebender would have ideally fought in… but Shuang, the utterly incompetent, ideologically poisoned fool, had proven to be far too foolish to bite the specific bait they'd dangled for him. No, he'd chosen to swallow the line, the hook, the entire fishing rod rather than the bait by reaching a much more ridiculous conclusion… and he had sent them on this crazy course that saw them flying like a shooting star in the night, for however long they might be able to sustain their flying rhythm.

"Azula…!" Sokka called for her: he had smacked the burning edges of her dress, doing his best to put out the fire before it could get to her, but he feared the damage had been done. Most of her outfit was well and truly destroyed by now, but it seemed that hardly concerned her. "You can't fly us away forever!"

"Oh, I wish I could!" Azula responded, with a wild grin. Sokka smiled too. "It's weird as hell to do this with someone else, but…! I think I like it!"

"I like it too, but I don't want you to waste all your strength here!" Sokka said, leaning closer. "Aang's statue! Can you aim for it? We can get help when we get there, Air Temple Island's not too far from there…!"

"Right…!" Azula gritted her teeth, changing her flight's direction towards Aang's tall effigy.

There was no way to know what had happened aboard the cruise after they'd left, but the jettisoning pair continued to fly towards their chosen destination. Azula slowed the fire output once they were near the statue before glancing at Sokka over her shoulder.

"You're a good swimmer?" she asked. Sokka smirked.

"Don't worry, Princess!" he exclaimed. "I'll get us to safety!"

Azula smiled before focusing on slowing down anew: landing on the statue's area wouldn't prove easy, and a dunk in the water would take care of whatever still burned on either of their clothes… so it would be much easier to let themselves fall in the outskirts of the island rather than in-land.

She slowed them as best she could, decreasing her fire output gradually… and finally, she shut it completely: Sokka's firm arms held her as they went underwater, and he kicked powerfully, holding her with one arm and pushing them forward with the other on their way to the shore.

They surfaced for breaths but continued swimming as powerfully as they could until their feet found solid, if not very stable ground of small rocks at the very outskirts of the tall statue. Sokka ensured to hoist Azula with himself, still holding her waist: she panted as heavily now as she did after their many heated nights, no doubt overwhelmed by the feat of bending she had been forced to perform just now.

"Never… flew that far before. Never…" Azula admitted, her legs trembling lightly. Sokka's firm arms kept her upright, and he slowed down once the water was reaching the level of his waist.

His hand cupped her face before he pressed a powerful, celebratory, passionate kiss to her lips. It didn't matter if they tasted the sea's salt off each other, for Azula locked her tired arms around his body too, surrendering to the relief she felt over having survived that ordeal safely with him by her side…

"You really should've been… should've been on the road with me, all these years," Sokka laughed once their kiss ended. Azula smiled. "That was amazing. You're amazing."

"So are you… so are you. I… heh. I didn't know we'd be as good in a battlefield as we are in bed, but I guess we're just that well suited for each other," Azula laughed, gazing at him with heartfelt affection.

"I'd say we should do that again… but we really shouldn't," Sokka chuckled, kissing her lips softly again. "Fuck, I'm glad you're okay. I'm glad…"

Azula sighed, smiling as she hugged him back. Water spilled down both their bodies, the hair he had tried to patch up for her was a mess yet again… her heart lurched suddenly as she reached for her dress's hidden pocket to find, of course, that there was no pocket anymore: her hairpiece, which she had stuffed there clumsily, was gone.

"Something the matter?" Sokka asked, pulling back upon sensing her frantic motions.

Azula swallowed hard… and then she smiled, shaking her head.

"Nothing important. Though… I'm almost naked," she said. Sokka smiled, cupping her face delicately and kissing her lips once more.

"I can lend you my shirt and trousers. Can't say I mind being caught without pants if it's for your sake," he said. Azula chuckled, nodding promptly.

"My gallant hero. And see? You had nothing to be jealous of," she said, with a dry grin. "As you can tell by now…"

"Shuang was a creepy dumbass," Sokka finished. Azula laughed and shrugged.

"He'll get what's coming. They outright attempted to kill an ambassador and a councilman under some delusion that we were trying to overthrow Zuko…" Azula said, with a sigh. "Though that's just the excuse they were trying to feed even themselves, anyway. I'm honestly surprised he was that much of a piece of shit, though… I really believed Shuang would buy the concept of me taking advantage of you for the sake of information. But…"

"Can't ask for much more from some people, I'm afraid. He was a nasty mix of Fire Nation supremacy bullshit and jealous creep, from the sound of it," Sokka said, with an awkward smile. "Toph's going to have a blast dealing with that idiot in an interrogation room."

Azula chuckled as the two of them, still waist deep in the water, glanced towards the direction they'd come from: a large airship had descended on the Golden Suns' cruise by then, visibly so by the searchlights it shined upon the cruise's deck.

"Ah… a happy ending," Azula smiled, nestling her head on Sokka's chest as they watched, from afar, the culmination of Toph's grand operation to apprehend Shuang and his fellow conspirators.

Sokka chuckled, cradling Azula even more tightly. He'd get her out of the water soon, but for now, he relished in their survival… in their swiftly achieved mission, too. Things had grown far more dangerous than he would have liked, but their efforts to put a stop to the Golden Suns before their intentions could flourish at all had paid off perfectly. Whatever the future had in store for them, they were free to explore it without Shuang's dark – and stupid – schemes dangling dangerously over the hard-earned harmony their world direly needed.

They were already mostly dry, relaxing at the foot of Aang's statue when they were picked up, not by Toph's people, but by the loud roar of a sky-bison: sitting beside Aang, Katara scowled heavily at the sight of her brother in nothing but his underwear, right next to an awkward Azula, draped in his clothes. Sokka winced over his sister's judgmental glare.

"Okay, now: for once, and I mean it, this isn't what it looks like!" was his grand defense, and Azula let out a burst of laughter so loud and unusual in her that even Katara was puzzled upon hearing it from her.

"Toph told us to be on the lookout because of something on tonight's cruise," Aang said, smiling awkwardly. "Didn't know you guys would be involved in it, though… are you okay?"

"Eh… just freezing a bit, but we'll be fine if you give us a lift," Sokka said, with a dry grin. Azula nodded in their direction.

"And if you can help us get, uh… new clothes, too," she sighed. Katara blinked blankly.

"I… don't even want to ask," she said, shaking her head.

"Come on, you saw the blue fire, didn't you?" Sokka asked.

"I did! And I don't know if you two weirdos just took off from that cruise to do hell knows what here just for privacy's sake…!"

"Eh, yeah, that sounds like a brilliant plan…" Sokka said, though his eyes narrowed. "Huh. It wouldn't have been such a bad plan, come to think of it…"

"Ack! Don't even…! You're coming with us now, don't get stupid ideas in your head!" Katara nearly shrieked – Azula and Aang laughed at her frantic response, but Sokka, ever the insidious brother, scoffed in her direction.

"Well now: it was your idea! So, if it's stupid…!"

"SOKKA!"

Aang and Katara ensured to fly them back to Air Temple Island, where they provided them with proper clothes, even if they were the outfits of Air Acolytes. Neither one was used to those attires, and it was clear that they'd change out of them as soon as possible… but for that night, if nothing else, they wore them while spending the night in a private guest room within the temple. For once, their mutual exhaustion and the complications of the day saw them falling asleep without further action, nestled comfortably in each other's arms while Aang took flight on Appa once more, letting Toph know that her friends were safe and sound.

By the next morning, Toph awaited them in the Police Headquarters. After returning to the city on Appa's back, Sokka and Azula accompanied each other to their respective homes, dressing up properly before making their way to see the Police Chief. There were bags under her eyes, but she seemed pleased once they sat across her in her office.

"Pretty sure a few Golden Suns are lying low in the city, can't say for sure that we caught them all… but you two kicked ass last night," Toph grinned deviously. "Maybe I ought to tell Town Hall and the embassy to let you two become detectives for me instead, you're probably better at that than at whatever the hell you do in your jobs…"

"We're pretty good at any job someone gives us, mind you… but thank you for the flattery, I suppose," Azula said, with a shrug.

"Have they confessed yet?" Sokka asked. Toph shrugged.

"I mean, they were very persistent about saying Azula's trying to kill Zuko and that's why they tried to kill her…" she said. "I told Shuang just now that she was helping me investigate him and I think he shat himself right then and there. I'll make some new recruits clean in there in case he really did that…"

"Ew," Sokka grimaced, and Toph smirked in his direction.

"You know, you were a way more useful bait than I thought you'd be," she said. "Sounds like he was a creepy traditionalist and all his hopes to kill Zuko for power just got completely replaced by his outrage that the Princess would be banging a Water Tribe guy… guess our original plan for Azula to infiltrate the Golden Suns to help dismantle them from within would've gone forward smoothly if only you'd been Fire Nation instead, Sokka."

"Good thing I'm not," Sokka said, with a dry grin. Azula heaved out a sigh and nodded.

"Good thing you're not," she agreed, intertwining her fingers with his. "Frankly, I'm glad Shuang showed his true colors when he did. Bearing with an unsettling moron like him for another day would have been too much to ask…"

"Well, we've still got to go through all the due process and whatnot," Toph said, with a sigh. "You'll have to give me your testimonies on what happened on that ship, though I can guess how it went anyway…"

"Will do," Azula nodded.

"And we'll lock up that fucker somewhere so he won't be a threat to anyone anymore, be it you two or Zuko or whoever," Toph said. Azula tensed up.

"Have you already alerted him about this?" Azula asked. "I mean, evidently he knew nothing about your investigation, but…"

"Yeah, we've sent word. These people were a big investment by the Fire Nation in Republic City," Toph said, with a shrug. "Aang says the council's going to freeze the Golden Suns' assets and whatnot, so who knows? You might end up in charge of all those things in the end, Azula."

"What… me?" Azula frowned. Sokka raised his eyebrows.

"Well, you did thwart a considerable threat against Zuko… and against yourself, seeing as the piece of shit outright was going to kill us," Sokka reasoned. Azula met his gaze with uncertainty. "So, heh, I'd sooner trust you to manage that stuff. But seeing as Zuko is Zuko… maybe he'll find some other backwards dumbass instead of choosing you, huh?"

"His loss is our gain. Less work for Azula means we can get back at Zuko for being an idiot with her," Toph smirked. Azula actually smiled, shaking her head. "Really, though! The three of us, plotting wicked schemes to mess with him? He'll see it coming for sure, but he'll never be able to fight back, oh, no…"

"Tempting, but we'd have to really plan those schemes thoroughly," Azula said, simply. Both Toph and Sokka chuckled at her pragmatic response. "Anyway, we'd better get to the official business, right? The sooner you're done processing the bastard…"

"The sooner he'll be put on trial," Sokka smiled brightly. Azula smirked. "Can't imagine they'll let me preside it, but I wonder how his insistence on my lowliness will go over with the members of the council…"

"If I may suggest something… add a punch to the face in his sentence, if you can get away with that," Azula smiled. "Or two. You can give them to him for the both of us."

"Hey,you can punch him personally too, Azula. I wouldn't deprive you from that little victory, I promise," Sokka grinned deviously, and Azula chuckled before nodding in agreement with his last suggestion.

They took care of the paperwork and testimonies on that day: afterwards, life was supposed to go back to normal for Sokka and Azula, and yet they stepped out of the Police Headquarters to realize that they no longer knew what normality meant.

"Well, then… we can celebrate with a drink, can't we?" Sokka decided, bumping her gently with his elbow. Azula smirked.

"And with whatever follows a drink?" she asked, raising her eyebrows suggestively.

Sokka grinned deviously before clasping her hand in his, guiding her through the streets of a developing city that showed much promise while still halfway through its development… much as the strong, surging bond between the two of them did.


"I… I had no idea, okay? When I got that letter from Toph – well, from whoever transcribed it for her – I almost lost it. I thought… okay, I know it's stupid that I thought Shuang was trustworthy when he's the son of one of dad's loyalists, but I guess he just manipulated me. I figured, since I changed, maybe he did too… and I didn't really let myself consider maybe you had, too. Suki told me I should come here so I could apologize to you properly for how I acted the other day, so…"

"Did she, now? That's surprising… though it's not truly surprising that it wasn't your idea."

"Azula, I'm trying to…! Ugh, never mind, you're… you're right. I should've thought about it myself. And I shouldn't have made you feel like you were disposable. I'm sorry, and… that's it. I'm sorry."

If there was one thing Azula had genuinely never expected from her brother, it was that he'd speak those words to her. To others, maybe… but her? A week had passed already since Shuang's capture, and where his sudden visit to Republic City had been expected due to the complicated circumstances, Azula had genuinely expected anything but to find him visiting the embassy personally. Her eyes flickered towards Suki, standing firmly by the open door of Azula's office, and she wondered briefly if the Kyoshi Warrior was proving to be a greater influence on her brother than anticipated, if she would push him to undertake journeys like this one…

"Well… good. Thank you," Azula said, with a dry grin. Truthfully, just as Zuko struggled to utter those words, she struggled with accepting his apology without any scorn.

"I've… thought about it. And I guess I get it if you say no, but… I think we should start over," Zuko said, earnestly. Azula raised an eyebrow. "I think I'm ready to try."

"To try… what, exactly?" Azula blinked blankly.

"Well… to let you take a bigger part in my administration, back home," Zuko said, breathing deeply. "You can be part of my council, actually work for the Fire Nation directly, which is what you told me back then that you wanted to do, so…"

"You're letting me go back permanently?" Azula asked, perplexed. Zuko winced.

"Well, it's not like I'd banished you or something," he said, grimacing.

"Eh, not in name, but…"

"Whatever you want to see it as, you can come home now, okay?" Zuko huffed. "Look, I've got a long way to go to become a better brother, I'm aware of that. So… I'm going to try. I'm willing to try. Just… give me a chance. If I fuck up, well, I'll still let you choose whatever you want to do instead. But if you really want to go back home and be part of my government, I… I'll be grateful to have your counsel."

The last sentence sounded like the hardest, most practiced line he had ever uttered. Azula raised an eyebrow, though, astounded by Zuko's offer. Those were words she would have coveted, thrived in, merely a couple of years ago. It was everything she could have wanted: returning to the Fire Nation, perhaps no longer being watched warily by Zuko's closest associates, perhaps no longer being the subject of pointless gossip, of terrible conflicts within his court… she had proven herself through the investigation to unveil the true nature of the Golden Suns, after all. Zuko would likely try to be patient – though it was questionable that he'd succeed at it for long – and he'd hope to offer her a less hostile environment than what she was used to, coming from her family…

An unsettling feeling gripped her when she remembered how disquieting the Palace had felt. How out of place she had been just by walking through the halls of her childhood…

Going back to the Fire Nation?

She frowned, eyeing Zuko for a moment as she weighed her answer, which was bound to be further questions rather than an answer at all… until she caught sight of movement behind her brother, which kept her from speaking.

Suki had moved. She seemed to have smiled at someone, and stepped out of the way for them…

Azula's heart jolted when Sokka, perplexed, eyeing Suki warily, entered her office with perfect familiarity.

Zuko noticed Azula's reaction at once. He frowned, turning on his heels and then freezing on the spot when his eyes fell upon the utterly befuddled Sokka.

"Zuko?" Sokka blinked blankly.

"Uh… Sokka?" Zuko said. "It's, uh, it's good to see you."

Naturally, Zuko no longer knew what to think of the relationship between Sokka and Azula. Naturally, he had no idea whether it had been a charade or if it was genuine… if Azula and Sokka were friends now, or more than that.

But as Sokka glanced at Azula, blue eyes gleaming with concern for her, with the hopes of not having interrupted some dreadful meeting that was only making her miserable, Azula's lips curved into an affectionate smile. Every smidge of mockery, of skepticism with which she had addressed her brother so far faded away quickly.

Suddenly, finding the right word to describe what Sokka meant to her wasn't so hard: Zuko had spoken it moments ago.

She didn't need to go to the Fire Nation to return home: Sokka's blue eyes and his kind, encouraging smile assured her that she already had built a home of her own, furthering her certainty that she was exactly where she wanted to be.