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Character(s): Katara, Sokka
Location: All around Garden-- they're taking a walk.
Rating: G
Open/Closed/Finished: Closed
Summary: Team Watertribe needs some sibling bonding time!

After finding Sokka at lunch, Katara had been in high spirits-- even the brief blimp with Zuko in the cafeteria managed to slip away from her mind at the mere knowledge that her brother had somehow made his way to this world. When they finished their meal (which took longer than usual thanks to the mountain of food Sokka had managed to pile onto his plate), Katara insisted that they go for a walk to talk-- she had missed her brother during hertwo weeks in this strange wold.

"Have you had a chance to walk around this place? It's so different from anything I've seen back at home!" She commented as they made their way around the lobby, her eyes cast upwards to the domed ceiling.

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Sokka's gaze followed his sister's. "It's a little crazy," he agreed. For the first hour or so he'd been here he was sure that he'd been dreaming. Full-on, cactus juice, dreaming. Because metal buildings like this didn't exist.

In the end though, Sokka had to admit that not even he was creative enough to dream up something like Balamb Garden.

"I didn't exactly get the tour. Just the general outline and some pamphlets. And an interview? I guess the people here are just like, hey, sure, let's put these out-of-town freaks to good use! I don't know. It's weird." And not a good weird. He was worried about what was going on back home.

"Well, it's nice of them to be willing to take us in-- I can't imagine trying to get use to this world on my own. It's so different here. Though..."

Her gaze dropped down to Sokka, and it was clear by her expression that she was worried.

"I miss home. I miss Aang and Toph. And there's so much that's going on... What if they're doing it alone? What if they need our help, but we can't do anything since we're stuck here?" It was so nice to actually be able to voice her concerns to someone, the thoughts that had been plaguing her mind since her arrival. "But, since you said the raid had failed..."

Katara gave a heavy sigh before she averted her gaze, her voice soft as she spoke.

"What if we can't return home?"

Yeah. Sokka knew that expression. He reached out for Katara's hand, giving it a squeeze. There were a lot of good reasons for being a big brother, but one of the ones he liked the best was that he always seemed to be able to think a little more clearly when he saw how worried Katara was. As if she helped him be stronger.

He guessed the truth of it was they made each other stronger--since he spent enough time of his own freaking out about things. He'd freak out about the trees, Katara would freak out about the forest... and they balanced each other out.

"You said that you've been here two weeks. But when I got back from Boiling Rock, you were there, and that was--what? A week after the eclipse? A little more. So we don't know how this works." Sokka squeezed her hand again. "As Zuko's crazy uncle would say, sometimes you have to take a bite of the silver sandwhich.

Or something like that." Sokka grinned and stroked his chin with his free hand. "I wish I had my beard."

The squeeze of her hand was a reassuring gesture, and Katara looked up at Sokka with a small smile. Even though Sokka was a rather enthusiastic individual, he always knew exactly when to switch modes to become the reassuring big brother that Katara always took comfort in. After all, back in the Southern Water Tribe they had to depend on each other during the rough time after their father's departure to take part in the war.

"I, for one, am glad that beard didn't come with you." Katara teased with a small giggle. But his other words piqued her interest-- since he came from a time after hers, Katara didn't know what had gone on in the strange lapse-- what had she missed out on?

"Boiling Rock?" She tilted her head then, a curious expression on her face. "Where is that? What were you doing there?"

"Hey!" That beard was vast and amazing, THANK YOU. Wang Fire was like... was like... the older part of his soul!

Anyway.

"Boiling Rock? It's a Fire Nation prison." The whole story--and she'd get it--included Zuko. Maybe then Katara could see that he wasn't as bad as she thought, even if the Zuko here needed some of the right encouragement to see the Good Guy light.

"See, when we attacked on the day of the black sun, the Fire Nation was ready for us. We didn't get to Ozai and after the eclipse we were stuck in the middle of firebender territory. It was better to surrender than die." Sokka shook his head. The memory still stung. "The adults stayed behind and the rest of us left on Appa. And then after Zuko came over to teach Aang firebending, he told me where they sent war prisoners... and I kinda snuck off. Zuko came with me. He helped me, Katara. He missed his opportunity to get out when plans changed and he helped me save Dad and Suki."

He took a breath. Sokka's face was serious. It was the truth. And he trusted Zuko.

Her brows were knit was Katara listened to Sokka's bizarre tale of what had happened in Boiling Rock. She didn't want to believe it-- it couldn't be possible, no way. Zuko, helping Sokka free their father? Her brother seemed too serious about the entire event for it to be a tall tale he wove, especially since it involved a certain Fire Prince, but it just didn't make sense in her mind.

"Sokka... even if you are telling the truth, that's not the same Zuko that's here. When we first arrived, he and I got into a really big fight. I mean, if Zuko really did join us to help Aang, he wouldn't have tried to hurt me."

"My Zuko," and boy did THAT sound ridiculous, "tried to hurt you too! In Ba Sing Se he betrayed us, Katara. But you know how Appa got out? It was Zuko. He had... I don't know. A change of heart."

And that sounded lame. Lame and ridiculous, so he was off to a great start. Sokka scrubbed his face and stopped walking alltogether.

"Look, I know it sounds crazy. Zuko sounded crazy too, which is why none of us trusted him. And maybe it was desperation at first because Aang needed a firebender but..." Sokka's face hardened into stubborn lines. "I trust him, Katara. And I'm not going to give up on him. He's our friend."

The mention of Zuko's betrayal in Ba Sing Se wasn't helping Sokka's argument; if anything, it was counterproductive. Her eyes narrowed further, and there was a small flare of anger at the memory-- she had been so stupid, thinking that someone like him could really change...

"He only joined us to help Aang, right? But Aang isn't here-- there's no one to give him that 'change of heart' he had. And now that Azula is here too, I'm sure she's going to try and keep him on her side! Just because it went one way in our world doesn't mean things are going to be the same here!"

"He went back to the Fire Nation, Katara! Azula--"

And that was the end of that train of thought for Sokka. "AZULA IS HERE?" What kind of luck was that? How was Katara just standing here and not... AZULA WAS HERE??

Oh spirits. They were all gonna die.

She had expected such a reaction from Sokka, so his panic hardly phased her. Though, her expression did become slightly troubled-- the fact that the two Firebending royals were here didn't bode well for them.

"She is-- I bumped into her the other day." There was a moment of prolonged silence, and Katara crossed her arms, her face faltering further into an even more uneasy expression. "... Jet's here, too."

Sokka's shock dropped almost comedically. He hated Azula, and panic was appropriate, but Jet was another story altogether. A more important story since he was a friend.

Sort of.

Well he was a good guy.

... Most of the time.

He'd helped them! And that's what had counted. Helped them one of the times they'd needed it the most and... "Katara." Sokka could read her face. "I don't know." It had really been sort of unclear.

Edited 2010-07-02 02:48 (UTC)

She didn't know, either. But she was glad Sokka was here-- she had been conflicted about her feelings about Jet's appearance in this world, especially after what they had assumed happened in Ba Sing Se, and she needed to hear what her brother thought about the whole situation.

"He didn't know that the Earth Kingdom fell... in fact, he said the last thing he remembers was facing Long Feng with Aang." There was another sigh, and Katara lifted her gaze to look up at Sokka. "I talked with him the other day, and... I don't know. It's weird seeing him. And I think he knows something happened, but I don't know if I should tell him..."

Edited 2010-07-02 02:57 (UTC)

Sokka shook his head. "I don't know if something happened. We haven't heard from him, we've been on the run, hiding out..."

It was a lame excuse, but an honest one. Jett might have been just fine if they'd found a good healer for him. Maybe he was fighting the good fight against Fire Nation troops in the city. Sokka wanted to think that. He wanted to be optimistic.

"Don't tell him, Katara. Unless you know, don't tell him. There's just no reason to."

"But, with what Toph said..."

Katara squared her shoulders-- Sokka was right. Maybe Jet had been properly healed after they had left, maybe he'd been alright the whole time, maybe he was back swinging in the trees where he belonged; she had to be optimistic. And this was why she was so glad Sokka was here now-- she would have been plagued with the more unfavorable possibilities were it not for her brother's upbeat point of view.

"You're right-- I won't tell him." Determined to steer them both out of the rather gloomy topic, Katara playfully elbowed him in the ribs.

"I'm really glad you're here, Sokka."

He wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "I can't say the same," Sokka said airly, waving his free hand, "the food here is terrible compared to the scraps we're used to. I really miss nuts. You have no idea. REALLY do."

Laughing, he let Katara go. "I dunno. This place is definitely weird for too many reasons to begin to name but I guess... I mean. There are definitely worse places to be stuck. Yanno. If some other crazy universal people-eating-rift-in-time opened up and sucked us in.

Katara gave a light laugh at Sokka's words, and nudged him again with her shoulder. "It's a weird place, but really interesting, as well. Have you looked at the kind of things they teach? Everyone here can use something called 'para-magics'-- it's like bending! Things like water, ice, fire, air, even earth-- think about it, Sokka; even you can bend!"

She knew that Sokka always found her ability to bend to be strange since she was a child, but hopefully seeing how useful it had been in their journey Sokka would consider attempting this 'para-magic' that the world provided them.

But Sokka shook his head. "Yeah I'll be able to do it here, but when I get home? Back to being..." I'm not the useless guy. "Just me. I'd rather stick with what I know, Katara. What I'm good at. Weapons. That's what I signed up for."

It just wasn't worth getting involved with. Magic--wasn't his thing. He'd never been able to do it, and he never would. That was okay though because he'd found something else. And now they had the elements AND steel, thanks to him and Suki.

Suki.

"I think I'll just stick with my sword."

That made sense-- even if he were able to 'bend' the elements in this world, there was no guarantee that the ability would be able to transition back to their world. It would make sense that he would want to stick with something within his comfort zone-- he was the weapons wielder of the group.

"Do you have your sword with you here?" She asked, curious. Katara noticed that she had only arrived to the world with the clothes on her back-- she didn't even have her waterskin within her possession. But thankfully her mother's necklace had been hidden in her pocket-- now that she didn't have to blend in with the Fire Nation, she had taken up wearing the piece of jewelry regularly again.

Sokka nodded. "It's in my room." He kept the boomerang on him--it was just a tad more inconspicious. "I'm in the beginner's class, I guess, but going over the basics won't hurt. Kinda seems like there's a lot of other fighters here."

He starts walking again, crossing his arms over his chest and dragging his feet in wide, swinging arcs. "I met a guy who reminded me of Piandao. That was strange. I'm taking Engineering."

Katara began to walk beside him again, and her eyes widened when he mentioned the Piandao doppelganger. "Is he a swordsmaster, as well? Maybe he can help you hone your skills some more! But it's nice that you're going to be in a class with other people who specialize in weapons, too-- maybe you can find a sparring partner. We need to keep our skills in tact, if we plan to go home and help Aang and Toph."

She gave a small sigh as she thought back to her friends, and her eyes drifted off into the distance. "I wonder what they're doing now... who's doing all the cooking and washing if I'm here? Who's going to make sure that everyone gets up on time to practice bending?" It seemed like the Time Compression didn't manage to suppress her motherhenning nature.

Sokka wouldn't have expected it to. He draped an arm around Katara's neck as they walked. "It's okay. Like I said, you were still there when I left so maybe we're both still there now! However that would work." He shrugged and tugged her hair fondly before dropping his arm.

"This place is a real opportunity to learn some things that could help us when we go home, Katara. We have to think about it like that." And NOT like the fact that people had been stuck here for months already. Sokka didn't mention that part to his sister, though he had a feeling she knew.

"What would really help is if Zuko and Azula weren't here, as well. We won't even have an advantage over them if we all get sent home! They'll learn the same things that we do. It'll just make the Fire Nation stronger." Her frustration was obvious in her voice. It seemed like no matter where they were, even after they were pitted through Time itself, the Fire Nation always managed to follow them.

"It'd be so much easier if we could just deal with Azula and Zuko here, but I don't want to cause any trouble in the school-- I mean, we already got into really big trouble for that fight."

"You shouldn't have fought Zuko," Sokka said under his breath. He knew his sister well enough to know that Zuko himself would have to prove his change of heart to her--and even then it would be tenuous, probably. "I know you think I hit my head or something being dragged through time, but Katara. He's one of us. Please. Just... ugh. I know you can't trust him. Just do me a favor and don't antagonize him, okay?"

Katara stared at Sokka for a long moment once he voiced his request. Her brows were drawn together-- was he really serious? She could hear the exasperation in his tone, and that was enough of a hint to tell her that he meant every word. She then gave a small huff before crossing her arms, chin turned up a fraction of an inch.

"Fine-- I won't do anything, only because you asked me not to." She aimed a finger at him, shaking it slightly as added on, "But if he starts anything with me, I'm not going to ignore it. Alright?"

Sokka grabbed the finger pointed at him--and pulled her into a hug. "Alright," he mumbled into her shoulder. "Alright. I'm going to try to fix it, Katara, but you'll have to give me a little time. Thank you."

The sudden hug surprised her, but Katara wrapped her free arm around his shoulders, returning the embrace.

"I'm only agreeing to this because I trust you, Sokka-- but I swear, if he breaks my trust again..." She steadied her voice. "I'm not going to give him any more chances."

"I don't know where he is right now, Katara, and I can't promise anything. Being here... it changes everything. But I know he's got good in him, even if it's way down deep." Sokka let go of her and sighed. "On Boiling Rock... I made a plan and--and things changed. Zuko had the chance to leave then, but he didn't. He stuck with me even though that was the only way out at the time. He trusted me. And I trust him. I do."

"I just hope you're right. But what about Azula? She's here now, and she's conniving. I don't think she's going to let you just waltz up to her brother and try to bring him over to our side." There was a sigh as she crossed her arms again. It seemed like nothing was ever easy for them.

Eh, what fun was anything if it was easy?At least, that's what he kept telling himself. Sokka rubbed the back of his neck--Azula definitely might be a problem. But he was fore-armed with the knowledge that Zuko had walked away from her once, so he could do it again.

Right??

Dropping his arm, Sokka shrugged. "Probably not. But she can't be at his side all the time. And she's not allowed in the guy's dorms--and I know his roommate. Nice guy. Can't talk. Anyway, the point is that... well, I'll find a way. Azula might be crazy, but I'm persistant." He flashed a broad grin at his sister.

"That," Katara flicked a finger against his forehead as he gave her that wide smile, "you are."

She turned around then and gave a heavy sigh, complete with a showy heave of her shoulders as she started to walk again. "So persistent that sometimes I don't know how I put up with you."

"Mmm-hmm," Sokka said, lacing his hands behind his neck and following in his sister's wake. "It must be that sisterly love, the bond of family that keeps us together. Birthright of the youngest to endure the stupendousness of the older, wiser sibling..."

"Stupendouness? More like stupidness!" Katara's shoulders shook as a fit of giggles overcame her. She had to clamp her hands over her mouth to suppress the noise, though the mirth didn't cease.

Sokka stuck out his tongue and lightly hip-checked Katara. "Har har. So glad to see this place hasn't changed your sense of humor." But he flashed her a smile--it was good to hear Katara's laugh; Sokka might have held a stiff upper lip for her, but that sound helped ease some of the worry he was trying not to show.

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