Alright this is a Sukka chapter since Suki won't be in the story for a while, we can focus more on Kataang in the next chapters.

Disclaimer; I do not own Avatar

Katara woke the next morning to find Sokka eating breakfast alone. She had already checked if Aang was in his room and he wasn't.

"Where's Aang?" she asked Sokka. He shrugged while chewing on a piece of bacon.

"I guess he woke up early and left to go do whatever he was doing." Sokka replied.

"Well what time did he come home at?" Katara asked him. Sokka looked up from his food and thought for a while.

"Now that you mention it, I don't even remember him coming in." Sokka told her. Katara couldn't believe this. He stayed there all night! He was pushing himself way too hard he was going to go crazy.

"I'm going to go get him, he has to rest." Katara told him.

"Katara, I don't think that's such a good idea." Sokka told her.

"Why is that?" she asked confused.

"Well, I think pushing himself to his limit is his way of paying himself back for letting this war start and go on for 100 years. He feels guilty cause he knows he should have been there to stop it and this is his way of making up for it."Sokka explained to her.

"But Sokka, he can't carry that kind of burden. He wasn't the reason this war started and killing himself won't do anything." Katara argued.

"Calm down Katara, this is just a stage. Besides, he'll get tired and wear down eventually." Sokka continued to eat his food. Katara still wanted to go get him, but she guessed Sokka was right. Still, she wanted to make sure he had something to eat. She put some food in a small picnic basket.

"I'm going to take him some food." With that she left Sokka to himself. When she reaches the shack, Katara entered slowly and waited quietly as not to disturb him. But like before, he knew when she entered.

"Good morning Katara." Aang said from his position with his eyes still closed and not turning at all.

"Morning Aang," She said quietly.

"So what's up?" Aang asked.

"Oh well I just thought I should bring you some food." Katara told him.

"Oh, well thank you Katara, but you really didnt need to."

"Well I just wanted to make sure you had some breakfast." she told him sincerely.

"Oh I had breakfast this morning at the cabin before I came here, but thanks for caring so much." Katara was confused by what he said.

"You came home last night?" She asked him.

"Yeah, it wasn't too late but you were asleep. I woke up early this morning, ate, then came here." he told her reassuringly. Katara was shocked. He was lying to her.

"Ok then, I guess I'll leave." She turned to open the door but Aang spoke up.

"Can you leave the food though and I'll eat it later? Thanks Katara." Katara nodded to him, placed the basket on the ground, and walked out.

As soon as the door closed Aang turned and attacked the basket. He was starving and hadn't eaten since the basket Katara brought to him yesterday. He had stayed here all night. He hated lying to Katara, but he didn't want her to worry.

Katara was hurt. As she walked away,, her only thought was why "would Aang lie to me like that?" She was hurt thinking that Aang felt like he had to lie to her and couldn't tell her the truth. She was also worried about him though.

Sokka met Suki at the dojo later on that day like she said. Of course she made him put on the uniform and face paint. She showed him the technique to refresh what they learned yesterday. She had to admit, Sokka had picked it up really fast and his form was almost perfect.

"Okay, now we're not just going through the motions. I'm going to come at you, get into position and look for an opening and redir-" She lunged at him while speaking but didn't get to finish as Sokka successfully parries her thrust and knocks her on her but. The shock and embarrassment clear on her face. This was his first time using the technique and he performed it perfectly. Sokka stared down at her with a wide smile, and reached out his hand. She took it and he helped her up.

"So how was that?" He asked her with a wide grin. Suki of course did not want to admit to him that he had performed it perfectly.

"It was pretty good." She told him nonchalantly.

"I got you! Admit I got you!" Sokka said with a wide grin. Suki gave him a playful push and said,

"Alright, it was just beginners luck. Let's see if you could do it again." and she lunged at him. The two continued to spar for the day.

The next couple of days were the same as before. Aang left the shack a few times to come to the house and get food. He had to make sure Katara wouldn't see him or she would make him stay and rest. He took short naps on the floor a few times so that he wouldn't succumb to total exhaustion. He had been at this for four days already. Katara was extremely worried but didn't want to force him to leave. But, Katara still brought him food every morning and evening to make sure he had food. Katara walked up to the shack and gently opened the door. However, the usual sight of Aang meditating was replaced by the 12 year old sprawled over the floor.

"Aang? Aang?" She ran to his side and gently rolled him on his back. "Aang can you hear me?" She shook him gently but he wasn't coming through. Katara bended the water from her pouch and splashed it on his face.

"Ugh ugh ugh," Aang began to cough and woke up. He tried to sit up but his body wouldn't let him. Katara, noticing this placed her hand on his back and helped him sit up.

"Aang look at yourself, you need to rest." Katara told him.

"'I'm fine Katara. I was just resting my eyes is all." He tried to stand but found out he couldn't.

"You see Aang, your body is telling you it needs rest."

"Katara I know you're worried but really I'm f-" Katara quickly cut Aang before he finished.

"No! You're not fine!" Katara raised her voice at him. Aang was surprised; Katara had never spoken to him like this, just to Sokka. "I'm sorry Aang but you are pushing yourself way too hard! I mean look at your? You can barely sit up straight! Now you are going to go to that house and get some rest! I don't care if I need to drag you back!" Katara hated yelling at Aang that way but it was for his own good. Aang slowly looked down and mumbled,

"You're right Katara." He tried to stand up but fell right back down. Katara went to his side and supported him up. She then slung his left arm over her shoulder and began to walk him out. Katara was glad he wasn't that heavy. After a couple of minutes they reached the house and Katara took him inside. When they reached his room, Katara gently laid him down.

"Thank you Katara." Aang slowly whispered. She nodded and was going to ask if he needed anything else but stopped when she heard his light snoring. She let a small smile at the sleeping boy and slowly walked out.

Sokka and Suki were in the dojo later on that day sparring. Suki had stopped forcing Sokka to wear the Kyoshi uniform after the third day since he had practically mastered the technique and she wasn't really teaching him anymore. She still told Sokka to come though because he was a much better sparring partner than all the other girls. They had already gotten comfortable with one another and actually enjoyed the others company. After a couple of sparring matches, they sat down for a small break and began to talk. Sokka told her all about how he and Katara found Aang in the ice and their adventure so far. Suki told him about all the training from a very young age it takes to be a Kyoshi warrior and how she got to be leader.

"You went through all that training since you were eight?" Sokka asked her with a surprised expression and Suki smiled proudly. "How did you convince your parents to let you join?" Sokka asked. Suki's smile slowly faded and she dropped her head a little.

"My parents died when I was very young. I don't even remember then." She replied sadly. Sokka felt terrible. Just seeing her expression, he felt like someone punched him in the stomach.

"I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to make you feel li-" He tried to tell her but she interrupted him.

"It's fine, really. Like I said, I don't even remember them." she didn't want him to feel bad because he didn't know.

"When I was eight, the Fire nation invaded my village. They killed my mother." Sokka told her.

"Oh my god, Sokka I'm sorry that must have been so hard for you." Suki placed her hand on top of his. She gave him a small smile.

Sokka wanted to change the subject so he asked,

"So umm, besides training or swimming, what do you do for fun on this island?" Suki thought for a quick second then her face lit up.

"Oh man I forgot!" She slammed her palm to her forehead.

"Forgot what?" Sokka asked.

"There is a festival going on in town tonight."

"A festival for what?" Sokka asked again.

"Today is the anniversary of the day the island." Suki explained to him. Suki suddenly got quiet for a few seconds before she slowly asked him, "Sokka, umm would you sort of umm, like to go with...me?

"You want me to go with you to the festival?" Sokka asked puzzled. Did she mean like a date?

"Yeah well, I don't want to go alone and it's not like you're doing anything else. Or do you just not want to go with me?" She asked raising her eyebrow.

"No no, I mean like, isn't your boyfriend taking you?" Sokka asked. Suki was surprised by his question and gave out a small laugh.

"My boyfriend? What makes you think I have a boyfriend?" She asked him. Sokka's eyes went wide and he began to stumble with his words as she stared at him, waiting for his reply.

"Oh umm I just assumed that you had one since you know, you're umm..." Sokka let out a small cough and quickly said, "Yeah."

"Yeah well, no boy on this island wants a girlfriend who can kick their butts. Plus I don't really have time for any of that." She told him. It was quiet for a few seconds until Sokka spoke up.

"Well then yeah, I'll go with you." He told her.

"Really!" she asked a little excitedly. She then spoke again but calmly, "Ok then I guess I'll just go change into something else and we'll go." Suki got up and walked into the changing room in the back. Sokka was confused. Was this like a date? He continued to sit there thinking until the door slid open once again and Suki walked out. She was wearing a light green kimono with some yellow designs. Sokka thought the kimono hugged her curves perfectly. This was also the first time he has seen Suki without her makeup. To say Sokka was stunned was an understatement. This was the same girl who he had spent almost all of his past four days with, however Sokka never realized how, well hot she was! Suki blushed a little when she noticed that Sokka was staring at her,

"You ready to go?" she asked.

"What? Oh, yeah sure." Sokka snapped out of his thought. They walked out of the dojo and walked down the road that led out of the village and into town. They walked in silence for a moment until Sokka broke it.

"So umm, what kind of things da they have at these festivals?" Sokka asked.

"Oh just like usual stuff. There's lots of of food, games, dancing-"

"Dancing?" Sokka cut her off. He never danced before in his life and he didn't really want too. She let out a small giggle and smiled at him.

"Don't worry Sokka, no one said you had dance." Sokka let out a silent relief. The bright lights of the festival came into view. The sun had just gone down so the many different colored lights lit up the night sky. As they walked into town, many people filled the streets dressed in different sorts of clothing. There were many stands on the sides of the roads for different foods and games.

"There is a lot of people here." Sokka had to raise his voice so Suki could hear since there was so many people yelling and passing by them.

"Yeah well most of the people on the entire island are here. Just stay close to me and you'll be fine" She grabbed a hold of his hand and led him through the crowd. Sokka stayed right behind Suki as she led the way to a round table for them to sit. A few feet away from the table was a large empty floor so people can dance. Currently a group of dancers were putting on a performance. They had masks on and even a dragon. Sokka could tell it was a traditional dance. There was also loud, live music playing. They sat at the table and began to talk to each other.

"Are there any festivals like this in the South Pole?" Suki asked Sokka.

"No, I was told that when I was much younger our village was bigger, but thanks to Fire nation raids and all the men leaving for war, our village is even smaller than yours." Sokka replied.

"Oh my, that is pretty small. So umm, are there any other warriors or girls your age?"

"No, I was the oldest male in the village before I left. There were no girls even close to my age besides Katara." Sokka replied.

Suki only nodded. She didn't know why but she kind of felt relief in knowing that there weren't any girls Sokka was waiting to go back to at home. She was going to ask him another question until they both heard three loud screeching noises.

"Suki!" Three girls shouted at them from a few feet away and came running. The first one had black eyes and brunette hair that was tied in a long braid. The second one had green eyes and blond hair that fell to her back. The third girl had brown eyes and hair that was tied up in a bun.

"Hi girls" Suki said as the three girls embraced her in a hug.

"it's been a while." The blonde one told her."

"Yeah, you haven't been to our a village in some time." The brown hair girl added.

"I'm sorry; I've just been really busy with the Kyoshi warriors." She took a seat next to Sokka. "Girls this is Sokka. Sokka this is Tera, Emi, and Hana." Suki pointed to the brunette, the blonde, and then the brown haired girl. Sokka felt awkward with the current situation but managed a small smile and a little wave. These were obviously Suki's friends from the island. The blonde and brown haired girls had wide smiles and the brunette girl who Sokka thought to be Tera had a small grin.

"Oooh, Sokka huh." The blonde girl who Sokka thought was Emi said as the three sat across the table from the two. "So Suki, how come we've never met Sokka before." She continued and gave the pair an assuming look. Sokka felt a little uncomfortable with the way the girl looked at them.

"Yeah Suki, I didn't know you had-" The brown haired girl Hana was going to say before Suki cut her off.

"Sorry girls but it's not like that. He's staying in my village for a few days with the avatar."

"Oh yeah, I heard the avatar was back and that he was on the island." Hana said. She then turned to Sokka and asked, "So you're traveling with the avatar?" She asked sounding amazed. Sokka smiled and nodded.

"Yeah well, we're trying to save the world and all that." Sokka said cooly. The other two girls looked impressed. Emi then spoke up.

"That is so cool." She then gave Sokka a flirtatious look that made him a little comfortable. "So Sokka, since you're only going to be here for a few days, and I guess you and Suki don't have anything going on, how about you come with me for a while and I'll show you a good-" Suki then quickly cut her off.

"Sokka can you go get us some drinks please!" She shouted louder than she intended to. Sokka jumped back from her sudden outburst. He looked at the three girls who were staring at Suki strangely, and then to Suki who was staring back at him.

"Yeah sure," he said slowly before getting up and walking into the crowd.

'What the hell was that about?' He thought. 'What was up with those looks they were giving me? And what was that blonde girl saying she wanted to show me? Hopefully a good meat stand in this festival, I'm starving. If I'm lucky maybe she'll offer again.' With that he continued off to get drinks for him and Suki.

Suki watched as Sokka walked off into the croud before turning to Emi.

"What is wrong with you?!" She practically shouted.

"What? He's hot and you said you weren't together. Besides I just wanted to sleep with him." She replied casually.

"You can't just go sleep with him!" Suki was getting real defensive now.

"But you just said you two weren't anything." Tera now told Suki accusingly.

"We're not!" She tried to convince them. She was feeling pressured by the three girls all staring at her.

"So why can't I sleep with him?" Emi casually asked. Suki finally burst out at them.

"Because he is about to leave!" She yelled. The three girls sat there for a second staring at Suki before they slowly grinned.

"So that's why huh?" Tera asked her.

"Huh?" Suki was confused and surprised.

"You dont want to get to close with him because he his going to leave soon." Emi accusingly told Suki with a wide smile.

"What! No that's not it at all!" Suki was feeling backed into a corner.

"Then what is?" Hana asked. Suki took a deep breath then simply said,

"He's just not my type."

"Who isn't babe?" A boy around 18 years old placed his hand on the table. He had a muscular body and his skin was tanned. He had black spiky hair and brown eyes. He wore loose black pants and a green sleeveless shirt with yellow designs. Beside him stood two other boys about his age.

"Go away Shen." Suki coldly told the boy without even looking at him.

"Awe come on baby. Why do you got to be like that? I'm just being friendly. So what do you say you and me go somewhere a little more private." He told Suki with a flirtatious tone. Suki was disgusted that this jerk wanted anything to do anything with her.

"I'd rather be tortured by the Fire nation." she spat at him.

"Awe now there it is again baby, so cold. I know you've wanted me for some time now Suki, so how about you get your little cute self-" he tried to grab her hand but Suki pulled it away and yelled.

"As if! You're a pig! If you don't leave now I'll-"

"You'll what? We both know no matter how good a fighter you are you won't do anything or you'll get in trouble with your little Oyaji. It wouldn't look to good if the leader for our noble Kyoshi warriors was attacking peaceful civilians." Shen told her with a smug grin.

She knew he was right as much as she hated to admit it. She wasn't going to let this jerk get her in trouble.

"Maybe she won't do anything, but I will." A voice came from behind Shen. He turned around to see Sokka standing there with two cups in his hand.

"Is that right?" He slowly growled at Sokka. He walked up in front of Sokka. The boy was about three inches taller than Sokka so he had to look up at him.

"My friend told you to leave. I suggest you do what she says." Sokka told him threatingly. Shen stepped back and let out a small chuckle.

"Oh Suki, I didn't know you found yourself a little boyfriend!" He said loudly. People were starting to see what was happening and a small crowd was gathering around. Suki didn't like where this was going and spoke up.

"Sokka it's ok, I'm fine." Suki saw the way the boys were glaring at each other. "Really Sokka, he's not worth it."

Shen then tried to turn to tell Suki something with a grin but before he could fully face her Sokka spoke again.

"I said back off."

Shen then looked at Sokka threatingly and said, "And what are you going to do if I don't, ponytail." As he said the last word he smacked the two drinks out of Sokka's hands and they spilled to the floor. The two teens stared each other in the eye. Shen had a smug look of confidence. Sokka had a small grin. Shen then spoke up.

"You know what, I think I'll just teach you a few manners right now!" He brought his arms up and pushed Sokka in the chest trying to send him to the floor. Sokka took three steps back and stopped. He still had the cocky grin.

"Go right ahead then."

Shen clenched his fists tightly before finally charging at Sokka. He swung wildly trying to knock Sokka's head off. Sokka's expression did not change. He kept his arms at his side as he sidestepped and dodged every attack. Finally, Sokka brought his hand up and caught his punch. Shen struggled as he tried to push Sokka back and it was apparent on his face.

"What's wrong Shen? You seem to be having a little trouble. Well go on,teach me a lesson." Sokka teased.

This rose Shen's anger even further like Sokka wanted. Shen brought his free hand up and tried to punch Sokka but Sokka released the hand he was holding and dodged, causing Shen to fall on his face. Some people in the crowd began to laugh. Suki herself let out a giggle. Shen looked up at his two friends who were watching on and nodded at them. Sokka saw them from over his shoulder approach him from behind.

"I was just starting to get bored." He said confidently.

Shen stood and lunged at Sokka. The two boys also attacked. All three attacked Sokka wildly as he dodged and played with them. Suki and some of the other onlookers laughed at how silly Sokka made the boys look.

"I think it's about time I end this."

One boy lunged at Sokka from behind. Sokka turned, caught the boys arm and spun him around, causing him to crash into the other boy. He turned to Shen who was on one knee trying to catch his breath. He stood up and charged at Sokka who let out a small sigh and stepped out of the way while bringing his elbow crashing down onto Shen's head. Shen collapsed on the floor and lay motionless while Sokka coolly walked to his table.

"You know you didn't have to do that. I told you he wasn't worth it." Suki told him. Sokka shrugged and said,

"I didn't like the way he was talking to you." Suki smiled and blushed a little that Sokka did that for her.

"You know I can take care of myself." Suki told him still with a smile on her face. Sokka smirked at her and simply said,

"You're welcome." Suki nodded then suddenly leaned in and gave him a quick peck on the cheek.

"Thank you," she said. Sokka nodded then turned to see the boys throwing Shen's arms around their shoulders.

"Hey, make sure you let him know to never bother her again, got it?" Sokka told the boys and pointed to Suki. They nodded and walked away. The crowd that had gathered began to disperse and continue with the festivities. Some people started heading to the dance floor. Suki stared at Sokka who was watching a man walk by with a tray of meat. Suki couldn't explain it, but she couldn't help but smile when she watched him.

"Do you want to dance?" Suki asked him suddenly. Sokka turned to her with a look of complete horror.

"What?" he asked. Suki laughed and grabbed Sokka's hand to lead him away from the table. She started pulling him to the dance floor.

"Come on, it'll be fun." She said. She stopped in a spot and turned to face him, placing her hand on his shoulder.

"Umm Suki I don't dance." Sokka said nervously. She let out a small giggle.

"Here,"she placed his left hand on her waist and grabbed his right hand. "Just do what I do." Suki started to move her feet and sway side to side. Sokka was hesitant at first but soon started to move with her. "You see, it's not so hard right?" Suki told him playfully. "I would say you already got the hang of it, but you know, usually it's the boy who leads." She added teasingly. They continued to dance and Suki let Sokka lead. Suki enjoyed dancing with Sokka. Because she was a warrior, she never tried to develop or show any feelings for boys. She always tried to keep her act of a strong, independent girl who never let anything bring her down because if she dropped her guard for the slightest second, if she let someone get too close then she can really get hurt. But right now, she was happy. She knew she could drop her guard and just be a girl with Sokka and not get hurt.

Sokka felt Suki rest her head against his chest. He felt this strange feeling in his stomach. He didn't really know what he was feeling. This was the first time he's even talked to a girl close to his age beside Katara. He never had to worry about dating or liking any girls because there was none back home. But now, here he was dancing with a beautiful girl that has her head leaned on his chest and who he though he was only friends with. He didn't know how he was supposed to feel. All he knew was that when he saw that guy trying to hit on her and disrespecting her, he was suddenly filled with rage. The only reason he restrained himself from shoving his fist down the guys throat was because he knew Suki wouldn't have wanted that and he would have made quite a scene. Was this how a guy was supposed to feel about a girl who was just his friend?

Suki lifted her head and stared directly into Sokka's eyes. They just stared at each other momentarily before Suki gave him a wide smile. Sokka in return smiled back. They continued to dance for a little while longer. Sokka finally got some meat to eat. They played games and enjoyed the festival. Finally, it was over and the two were walking on the road back to the village in awkward silence. Sokka had his hands stuffed in his pockets, Suki held hers together in front of her. Suki broke the silence.

"I just want to say thank you, again for you know, what you did back there. I mean, it was really nice." Sokka smiled to her.

"It was nothing." he simply replied.

They finally stopped at a small wooden house.

"Well, I guess this is goodnight." Suki said looking down and playing with her hands.

"Goodnight," Sokka said as Suki began to climb the three steps to her porch. Sokka turned and was about to walk away.

"Sokka?" Suki called him. He turned to see her running down the steps and stop right in front of him. She looked at him blankly for a few seconds and Sokka was about to ask what was wrong when she suddenly crashed her lips on his. For a second, Sokka was taken aback by the kiss but then kissed back. Suki sunk into the kiss as Sokka wrapped his arm around her waist. They stayed kissing passionately for about a minute until they slowly pulled away. They stared each other in the eyes, their noses nearly touching and Suki whispered,

"Goodnight," She then turned and quickly ran up her porch and shut her door.

Sokka stayed where he was for a few seconds before finally whispering, "Goodnight."

"Do it again." The two men sent fire blasts at the scarred prince who dodged the attacks and sent his own blasts at the men. The two men fell once again. Prince Zuko was breathing a little heavy after training for a few hours. Iroh looked on and shook his head.

"Prince Zuko, firebending comes from the breath, not the muscles. Stop trying to force it with anger. Just breathe and let it out. You were excellent the other day when you defeated Jhao because you used your basics and didn't rely on strength. You do this, and your firebending will be much more powerful than it is now." Zuko nodded and looked to the men who were getting up. It was a good thing they were wearing pads or they would be pretty burned. He was about to tell them to go again but a servant came running onto the deck.

"Prince Zuko, I'm sorry to interrupt your training." The servant said.

"What is so important that it could not wait until later?" Zuko ordered.

"I have just received word that the Avatar is on Kyoshi Island."

I know, there is a lot of Sukka going on right now but it's cause I'm trying to get as much in right now because Suki is going to be absent from the story for some time and that's when I'll focus more on Kataang. Hope you're enjoying so far. I'll try to upload as soon as possible. Please review