A/N: I wrote this a couple days ago, but didn't have time to type it up and submit it until now. And there's a funny ( well to me at least) story that goes along with it:
Okay, so I just finished writing this when my mom finally got done with her doctor's appointment and I went to get the Blazer and pull it around so she wouldn't have to walk so far. Well, we had this Oldies station on and when I started the Blazer, Diana Ross and the Temptations' song "My World is Empty Without You" had just started playing on the station. Seriously. The first line of the song is "My world is empty without out you, baaaaaaaabe." I laughed hard because of how appropriate it was. Then I felt horrible for laughing.
Being imprisoned wasn't as bad as rumors had led him to believe. Sure they were put through hours of interrogation and treated them more harshly than the other prisoners, but it was all worth it when he was able to slip into the loving embrace on his long-time friend. It had taken a lot of bribing and they had to take on extra chores to convince the guards to let them share a cell, but the men were willing to do whatever it took to guarantee that the two of them were not separated.
However, after only two weeks of being held at the Fire Nation capital's prison, the palace officials finally singled Hakoda out as the leader of the invasion force and deemed him "dangerous" as he could be plotting and rallying his men to escape. Arrangements were promptly made to have him transferred to the Boiling Rock.
Hakoda had given him the news in a somber tone, holding him close and running his fingers through his hair gently. He knew protesting wouldn't change anything so he just sadly clung to his chief. They were going to send Hakoda away in a week and he wanted to spend every second he could with his partner until they did.
On their last night together, he held the chief close to him as tightly as he could, unable to cry despite his want to, while the other man whispered soothing words to him: promises of how this wasn't permanent and they would be reunited soon enough. He knew the words to be true, because Hakoda had never broken a promise to him before. But that didn't stop the aching pain in his chest when they led his lover away in shackles. Nor did it stop the tears from flowing when he watched his best friend onto a war balloon for transport to the maximum-security prison-island.
His fellow warriors recognized his sorrow and offered their pity and words of encouragement. Their efforts did little to cheer him up as he returned to the lonely cell that night and lay on the cot that seemed so cold and empty without the other body in it, pressed against him tenderly. Getting comfortable seemed nigh impossible without those strong arms wrapped around him and warm breath tickling his neck; sleep refused to come without the steady beating and rhythmic breathing behind him.
Somewhere in the distance, far out in the woods beyond the prison, a wolf howled, soft and sad. The lonely cry resonated sharply in his aching heart.