Sweet birdsong drifted through the window, settling into Sokka's sleeping mind. The noise roused his consciousness and he shifted, slowly leaving the dreamworld.

His eyes fluttered open, but it was difficult to focus in the dim glow cast by the dawn. After a moment, the fog of lethargy lifted and he smiled to himself as a familiar sight caught his attention.

His wife of half a decade lay next to him, her short red hair cascading over the pillow as she curled into a crescent shape. She slept soundly with no hint of any worry in her face, simply peaceful and content.

The Water Tribe warrior watched the rise and fall of her breathing, a sight he had yet to grow tired of in the eight years he had been with her. Nothing pleased him more than admiring her gorgeous face, freed from her traditional warpaint and utterly serene in the morning light.

But as much as he would have loved to savour her beauty until the sun set again, reality called. He rose slightly, carefully hovering over her slumbering form. Gently, he eased himself onto her before softly kissing her forehead. He continued down her face to her nose, cheeks and then finally her lips, lingering for a while.

Suki stirred, her eyelids peeking open to reveal her blue-purple irises. She looked up at him, smiling widely at his adoring gaze, before reaching for his hand and squeezing it.

"Good morning Sokka," Suki yawned, covering her mouth with her free hand. "Sleep well?"

"Like a rock," Sokka replied, releasing her hand and rising from the bed.

He shivered as the cool early morning air hit his bare skin. Casting his gaze around, he searched for his shirt. A more thorough scan of the surrounding area revealed it was on top on their wardrobe. Sokka wasn't entirely sure how it had gotten there, but he stood on his tiptoes at he attempted to retrieve it.

Garment in hand, he turned back to his wife, who was still lounging in bed and watching him with a smirk on her lips. Rolling his eyes, Sokka's lips twitched as he flexed an arm for her.

"Enjoying the view?" He teased.

"Could be better, but I suppose I have to make do," Suki mock-sighed in disappointment, grinning at Sokka's pout.

She too began to clothe herself in her usual Kyoshi Warrior kimono, crossing over to the mirror and applying her facepaint. She peered at herself in the reflective surface, noting that something was missing.

"Sokka, have you seen my headdress?" She asked.

There was no reply, and she turned to find the room empty of her husband. Frowning slightly, Suki opened the door and crossed into the kitchen.

Sokka was at the stove, happily laying cuts of meat into a pan. He turned at her arrival, smiling endearingly.

"Hey. Boarcupine bacon alright for breakfast?" He asked, gently rocking the pan.

Suki's stomach growled, the smell of the meat sizzling rousing her hunger.

"Sounds perfect. Seen my headdress anywhere?" She enquired.

Sokka thought about it for a moment as he reached into a cupboard for some plates, beautiful porcelain gifts they'd received from Zuko. As he did so he hummed under his breath.

"Might be under the bed. You were quite hasty in removing it last night," he reminded her.

Suki blushed under her makeup as the memories of the previous day welled up. Perhaps she had been a little overzealous. She kissed his cheek in thanks and went to retrieve her missing headpiece.

Properly attired and ready to greet the day, the couple sat down to enjoy their meal. Suki watched in half-amusement, half-disgust as Sokka attempted to eat five slices at the same time, his mouth jammed full of bacon.

"Honestly Sokka, sometimes I wonder if you're not a boarcupine yourself." Suki remarked, giving him a flat stare.

He swallowed the large lump, thumping his chest.

"As if there was ever a beast this handsome. Or clever." Sokka boasted.

Suki raised an eyebrow at his bragging, but simply shook her head in amusement.

"If you say so. I've got to teach the girls how to break a man's arm from behind today, so I might be a bit late coming back. Some of them can be a bit fanatical about that sort of thing," she told him.

Sokka shuddered, repressed memories of his own run ins with the Kyoshi Warriors coming to mind.

Despite technically being a member of the group himself and having married their leader, they were still not particularly prone to gentleness around him. More than once Suki had used him as a living demonstration dummy, and Sokka often found himself on his face eating dirt.

Still, the bruises had faded in time. At least they had all learned how to chi-block by now - his arm had taken nearly a week to get back to full responsiveness.

"Alright. I need to talk to Oyaji - Aang wants to see if he can get some of the Unagi's eggs to hatch. He thinks he might be able to get them to colonise other areas. Why he would want that is beyond me, though. Horrible thing," Sokka declared.

"The Unagi has been a proud defender of our island for years, Sokka," Suki insisted.

"You told me it's eaten at least three people!" He exclaimed, waving his arms. "How's that defensive?"

"I didn't say it was perfect," Suki shrugged. "We don't know that it actually ate Mi-Ling, anyway."

"Still. Okay, well I'll see you later. Don't over-exert yourself though. You train too hard sometimes," Sokka told her, picking up their plates.

"Don't be such a worrywart. If I don't set an example to my Warriors, how will they learn?" Suki sniffed.

"I'm just saying. You going to bed tired all the time isn't great for me, y'know. Makes a man feel inadequate when his wife falls asleep the moment she gets in."

Suki rolled her eyes, grabbing him by the shoulder and kissing him hard. Sokka froze for a moment before he wrapped his arms around her, bringing her closer to him. After a minute Suki pulled away.

"It's hardly 'all the time', but if it makes you feel better I'll be more careful in future," she promised.

Sokka flashed her a smile, before leaning in again to give her a quicker kiss.

"Thanks. Show 'em how it's done, eh?" He laughed.

Suki nodded, grasping his hand before turning away. Sokka watched her go before snatching up the last piece of bacon in the pan.

Life was good.