Chapter 6: Love Me

It didn't take them long before they found Aang and Appa, playing in the river close to the village. However, it did take them a long time to explain everything to the young Avatar and Katara, so that they would understand that Zuko was no longer after him.

Zuko noticed that Sokka had decided to leave out some things, like his little adventure in the slavehouse and how Zuko had bought him there. He couldn't really blame him; though Zuko had no idea what Sokka had to go through, he knew it would be hard to actually talk to them about it. After all, it had taken Zuko himself quite some time before he could get it out of the young tribesman.

Katara and Aang looked at each other briefly, hesitance flickering in their eyes. Sokka knew for sure they'd be interested in the offer- after all, it would all be a lot easier for everyone if they would team up with Zuko; they wouldn't be followed anymore and there wouldn't be any danger for the villages they would visit anymore. Aang wouldn't want anybody getting hurt because of him and it could be prevented with this way.

"I can't see why not," Aang finally said. "But, Sokka, are you sure we can trust them?" He turned to the tribesman, who had been busy prying Zuko's arm off of him- he didn't want the prince to act that way around his friends, since they were both giving them weird looks.

"I'm sure," Sokka said, nodding his head. He trusted Zuko- for some kind of twisted way he trusted him. If someone had told him about that three months before, he would've laughed and asked if Appa had fallen on top of him. Katara nodded in response, still too dazed about everything that had happened.

Especially still too dazed about her brother and… Zuko. Aang simply giggled about the display: Zuko often snaked an arm around Sokka, only to get Sokka annoyed. The tribesman would then smack the arm away, only to get Zuko annoyed in return- this was definitely odd, but also very entertaining for the Avatar.

"Sokka… you still haven't told us everything that has been going on, right?" Katara finally asked, her blue eyes looking intently at the prince, who glared at her in return. Sokka immediately blushed. "What's going on between you and him?" Zuko didn't like the way Katara spat out the word 'him', but he let it slide.

Sokka also didn't really like it, though he understood it. Their mother had been killed by the Fire Nation, so they hated most Fire benders with a passion, Sokka would've reacted the same way as Katara, had she been the one who ended up with Zuko constantly pulling her closer (he shuddered at the thought). However, Sokka knew other parts of Zuko and he knew that he wasn't like the cruel soldiers who had killed his mother; he was definitely different.

"If you must know," Zuko finally said, pulling the slightly smaller boy closer to him. "Sokka and I will be getting married soon."

Silence.

Sokka blinked. Katara blinked. Aang blinked. Momo blinked.

"WHAT!" Surprisingly enough (not), it was Sokka who was first to speak, or rather, bellow. "What do you mean, we're getting married! You can't decide stuff like that on your own!" Zuko smirked at him, lowering his face to Sokka's and brushing their lips slightly, causing the tribesman to flush slightly.

"Are you saying you don't want to stay with me?" Zuko whispered, almost seductively to Sokka, who was slightly mesmerized by the way the other boy touched his body. The only coherent thought that was going through his mind was that Zuko felt very warm… he could bathe in that heat forever.

He quickly pinched himself.

"No! You pervert! Don't I get any say in this?"

"No."

"I should!"

"But you don't. You're staying with me." Sokka groaned in irritation.

"What happened to the whole 'you're free to stay or leave'-thing?" He asked.

"It's different now," Zuko said indignantly, pulling Sokka closer to him. Katara and Aang were still looking at the display, both confused, though Aang seemed to enjoy it as well. "Of course, you'll be treated like a king as well and we'll have to find a way for you to bare children, but I think we have a method for doing that. I'd have to look into that," he continued, missing the stares he was getting from Sokka, Katara and Aang.

"I have to WHAT!" Sokka exploded again. "That's it! We have to talk about this. Right. Now!" He grabbed Zuko's hand and started to drag him towards the forest so they could both get some privacy.

"What is it?" Zuko asked, annoyed, again trying to snake his arms around his waists and succeeding in doing so. Sokka was immediately lost in his warmth, the comfort and the feeling of safety… it just felt right, to be with him like that, even though he had kept telling himself it didn't feel like that. "Oh, I see, you want to try having children right now," Zuko said, a smug look on his face. Sokka smacked him on the head and reluctantly released himself from Zuko's grasp.

"Just, wait a moment with all of your perverted thoughts!" Sokka finally exclaimed, throwing his arms up in the air. "And no-" he quickly continued as Zuko was about to reply that. "Don't say anything! Just, what are we now? Because I'm confused and I hate being confused!" Zuko's smirk disappeared and it was replaced with a look of seriousness. "Am I just some toy for you to play with?" Sokka then growled angrily… he didn't want to be used anymore. He wanted Zuko to be clear.

"I meant what I said," Zuko said in all earnest. "I'd really like us to be… together," he added. The prince wasn't too good in expressing his feelings, so Sokka had to take that as an answer to his question. Before Sokka could answer him, however, Zuko had already pulled him closer and pressed his lips on Sokka's- something he was intent on doing more often.

It took the tribesman's mind a couple of seconds to register what was going on, but then he started to move his lips against Zuko's, opening his mouth slightly so the prince could enter with his tongue. Zuko immediately took the invitation and started to explore his mouth, taking in every feeling he got from being with the boy and savouring it.

Sokka's arms wrapped themselves around his neck, to deepen the kiss some more and in return, Zuko's hands went under Sokka's shirt, exploring the toned chest with interest. However, this didn't last very long, since they both needed to part for breath- they looked at each other for a moment, Sokka still lost in the warmth of the other's body.

"So, is everything clear?" Zuko asked.

"No, not yet," Sokka answered truthfully, though grinning at the other playfully and this time, it was Sokka who quickly kissed the prince on the lips, before they both went back to Aang and Katara.

Sokka couldn't help but grin like an idiot all through their discussion.

--

Epilogue

"Zuko! You bastard, get over here and face your punishment!" A loud voice bellowed. Zuko obediently sprinted towards the man who had called him.

It had been five years since the Avatar and Prince Zuko had teamed up. The Avatar had saved the world, as was predicted, and had overthrown the Fire Nation's king, together with Zuko himself. He took great pride in knowing that, without his help, the Avatar would have never succeeded in doing so.

Aang had gone back to his former temple, planning on restoring it completely and try to teach Air bending to others who had the talent for it- he already had a lot of children under him, who didn't have any parents and who had a natural talent for Air bending. He often visited Sokka and Katara, together with Appa and Momo.

Katara had decided to go back to the North Pole to learn everything she could about Water bending. She had become a great master and was teaching the South Water Tribe how to bend as well- she even managed to teach Sokka some basic moves, which was quite the accomplishment.

And as for Sokka… he still lived with Zuko. He still found it hard to believe that he was actually married to the guy, because sometimes Zuko could be impossible. Not that Sokka was the easiest person to live with.

"What is it, Sokka?" Zuko came, grinning like a madman. Sokka just scowled at him. "Why, aren't you cold?"

"Zuko," the former tribesman growled at him warningly. Zuko's grin became even wider. "Give me back my clothes. Right. Now."

"Oh, I don't know Sokka, I think you look much more… appealing now," he replied. Sokka had gone swimming in the nude, since they had decided to spend a day together. Zuko was too busy with his duties as king and so had taken Sokka for a picnic in the forest nearby the fort they were currently residing in. He pulled the boy closer to him, their wet skin touching each other as Zuko pressed his lips on Sokka's, who happily returned the kiss, his former anger forgotten.

"You're overdressed," Sokka said and tugged on Zuko's pants. The prince smirked down at the slightly smaller boy and happily pulled them off and discarding them in the river. He really didn't care where his pants would end right now.

Zuko dived back in for a hungry kiss, while caressing Sokka's chest, shoulders, hips, neck, head… anything he could find. The water made soft and gentle sounds as their bodies moved in a steady pace, hips grinding, lips clashing against each other. They both moaned, groaned, panted, until they found their release and slumped against each other for support- their bodies sweating slightly, even though they were halfway in the water.

Zuko guided both of them to the shore and laid Sokka down on the sheet he had brought with him to have lunch. He lied down himself and pulled Sokka in a warm embrace, stroking his back gently and watching the trees sway softly, their branches rustling slightly. Sokka let out a sigh in content and wrapped his own arms around the prince's neck.

"Sokka?"

"Hm?"

"… When're we having kids?" Silence. Zuko covered his ears.

"HOW ABOUT NEVER!"

--

AN: Gha, I'm sorry about the crappy ending T.T… But damn, I just didn't have any inspiration for this anymore and I had no idea how to end it OR continue it -.-…

And sorry about the crappy lemon, but I just couldn't get myself to write a good one. Gha. You can scold me if you want T.T Anyway, I hope you've enjoyed my short fic xD.

Until next time :3