Disclaimer: Don't own A:TLA for god's sake! Jeez!

Note: This is a challenge fic issued by 4EverSleepingDragon.

Warning: mpreg (male pregnancy), possibly OOC-ness, and an AU-fic as well. Also, there is yaoi (slash) in this story, so if you are against that, please leave. Do not say I did not warn you. Mild cursing…

Thank you for the reviews!

Oh, and note: This takes place a little after the second season premier (the Avatar State). BUT: Zuko still has his hair.

When Sokka woke up, he found the camp to be quiet and empty…well, almost empty. Zuko was sitting with his back facing towards him by the campfire, playing with the flames. For a few minutes, Sokka lay there and watched him, before his stomach growled loudly.

Sokka sat up quickly and flushed a bit as Zuko turned his head slightly and looked at him. "Oh. You're up."

Sokka yawned as an answer. "Where're the others?"

"Your sister, the Avatar, and uncle took the bison and went to buy some supplies a few hours ago. But knowing how uncle likes to shop, they won't be back until nightfall."

Sokka nodded as he fixed his clothes and stood, stretching a bit. Then he walked over to Zuko and sat down beside him. "So…what's for breakfast?"

"You mean lunch." Zuko corrected as he handed him a plate.

"Lunch?" Sokka glanced up at the sky. "Oh. Oops." It was noon already. Wow. How fast time flies…

Zuko rolled his eyes. "Lazy dolt." He muttered under his breath as he began playing with the fire again.

Sokka watched him, ignoring the insult. He was used to it, and frankly, he didn't really mind. He knew Zuko never really meant it to actually hurt him.

A soft silence settled between them, but it was quickly broken by a small squeak. Both glanced down at the little fox, who had appeared from one of the tents and had bounded over to Zuko. It quickly hopped into the Firebender's lap and curled up, emitting an almost inaudible purr. Zuko couldn't help but smile a little as he stroked the little fox. He had bandaged the ugly cut on Yun's leg last night, and now it seemed Yun was walking a little better. "Hungry?" He murmured to the little fox, which looked up at him with his wide eyes and squeaked once. Zuko's smile widened a bit as he reached over to the food pack and took out some berries. He held them out to the fox, which sniffed them a bit, then eagerly nibbled on one.

Sokka couldn't help but grin at the sight. It was…well…adorable. You usually think of a Firebender to be anything but adorable, but there was just no other word to describe it. It was a kind of a nice break to see Zuko smiling at the fox and playing with it, rather than his usual moody and distant demeanor.

Yun finished nibbling two berries before yawning and jumping off of Zuko's lap. It glanced up at Sokka before bounding off into the woods. Zuko watched it go before dropping the rest of the berries back into the bag and standing up. "I'm going for a walk. Don't follow me."

Sokka said nothing as he chewed the fish. He was used to Zuko stalking off at random times. He'd be back. But Sokka couldn't help but watch Zuko's retreating form as he disappeared into the woods.

Sokka sighed in boredom as he threw his boomerang for the thirty-ninth time (he counted) and caught it. It was boring being in an empty camp with nothing for company but the annoying birds that were chattering overhead. He long ago realized Momo had left with Aang, because otherwise, the lemur would have been back by now, demanding food. Yun had not shown up after lunch, and Sokka had a feeling if it came back, it would look for Zuko first. That fox had come to think of Zuko as a sort of 'mother'.

Sokka couldn't help but snicker at that thought as he caught the boomerang again. Who would've thought Zuko would be the mothering type? But then again, he did always make sure they had enough supplies and was the first to notice if something was wrong with someone.

Sighing again, Sokka glanced at the woods where Zuko had stalked off. He'd been gone for about an hour now, judging by where the sun was now. What was he doing? What if something happened to him?

That thought animated his limbs and he found himself quickly walking over to the edge of the woods, intent on finding Zuko. He quickly stopped though. Zuko could become rather violent if someone followed him…he hated being followed, just as he hated being worried and fussed over. But…his uncle did that all the time and he's still alive, right? Plus, there's the baby…

Taking a deep breath, Sokka started walking again, tracking the faint footprints of the said Firebender.

It didn't take long for Sokka to find Zuko, and when he did, he was quick to duck behind a bush.

Taking a deep breath, Sokka parted the leaves of the bush a bit, shifting his kneeling position a bit to get comfortable. Okay, this had definitely not been one of the brightest ideas he had. If he was caught…

But damn the scene in front of him was hot. Figuratively, of course, but literally too if he was caught.

He'd only seen Zuko naked once before, and that had been in the dark, in the woods and they were more preoccupied with doing…well…other activities, than gazing at each other's bodies.

But here was the said Firebender, a few feet in front of him, bathing in the stream. Oh boy.

His pants were starting to get tight…

Zuko let out a content sigh as he undid the pony-tail, letting the black strands fall past his shoulders. Glancing down at his reflection, he noted that his hair was starting to grow back. Granted, it had been at least two months after the Siege of the Northern Water Tribe, and he hadn't had time to cut it. Not with being stuck on a stupid raft in the middle of the ocean and being constantly chased by Azula. Of course, his hair hadn't completely grown back, it was more like some tiny fuzzy locks or something, but it was there.

Tearing his gaze away before he could see anything else he did not want to see, mainly the hideous scar, he lay backwards into the cold water, going under. After a few seconds he came up again and ran his fingers through his hair, trying to get it untangled. With all the running and flying, he hadn't had time to bathe in a while. He kind of missed it, but compared to the bison and a certain Water Tribe boy, he smelled heavenly.

A small rustling towards his right caught his attention, but he ignored it. Just some dumb bird or something.

With a sigh of regret, he stood up, making his way back to the shore. The water had been cold, but had felt oh so good.

Sokka had to clamp his mouth shut in order to not make any unwanted noises that would reveal he was there. But oh Spirits…

It had been too dark then for him to truly see and appreciate the other's body…not to mention the hormones had been successfully blinding him then… But…

Sokka grinned widely as he took in the sight before him. Oh yeah…

A nice frontal view…

But way too short.

Shifting a bit to get a better view, his grin faded a bit as he watched in disappointment as Zuko pulled on his pants. It was only a few seconds after that he realized he had let a groan escape his lips.

Zuko had just finished pulling on his pants when he heard some rustling again but this time, he was sure he had heard a groan as well. Quickly sliding into a ready stance, he snarled, scanning the woods.

"Who's there?" He hissed. Had someone been spying on him? If they had… "Come out before I torch you!"

Sokka froze when he heard the threat. He had hoped Zuko wouldn't notice, but that was like asking Appa not to fly. Zuko was a combat seasoned prince for Spirit's sake!

Panicking, he pondered on what he should do. If he came out, Zuko would kill him. But if he stayed, Zuko would kill him. Wow. Weren't the choices great?

But in the corner of his eyes, Sokka caught sight of something cream-colored. He turned his head a little to get a better look and found Yun staring at him. It squeaked happily before turning and bounding out of the bushes towards Zuko.

Sokka made a mental note to thank the little animal later.

Zuko dropped his guard immediately when he saw Yun bounding over to him, squeaking happily.

"Oh, it's only you." Zuko muttered quietly, flashing the fox one of his rare smiles.

Turning away, he grabbed his shirt and pulled it over his head, before grabbing his robes. They really needed washing, but he'd better get back to camp before the Idiot did something completely unnecessary and stupid.

Meanwhile, as quietly as he could, Sokka snuck back to camp, before quickly walking the opposite way of where he knew Zuko was so that when he got back, he would not arouse suspicion from the already suspicious Firebender.

Now, however, he really needed to get rid of that uncomfortable lump in his pants.

Zuko blinked as he looked around camp. Where was the said Idiot? There was no sign of him.

Yun squeaked happily as he roamed around camp, glancing up at his adopted 'mother' once in a while to check if he was there.

Zuko watched him a bit before thinking back to his bath. What if…

No. Zuko quickly shook his head to get rid of the thought of Sokka spying on him. In the Fire Nation, to spy on another male or female while bathing was severely punishable. Besides, it went against all honor codes. And being a warrior, honor was very important.

Sokka was a warrior, or so he liked to call himself. So that would mean honor would be very important to him, right? He would not sink so low as to actually spy on him now would he?

No he wouldn't. Zuko thought firmly. Sokka was a bumbling idiot and they had shared some activities together and he was the father of the baby, but he wouldn't do that.

Yeah, yeah. Short, I know. I didn't have much time today to write…

:reads over what she has written and starts laughing like crazy: Oh jeez Sokka, what are we going to do with you?

And Zuko? You need to get to know Sokka bit more… wait. Then again, don't. We want Sokka to live!

R&R please.