Chapter Text
Sokka wakes up to find he's still dreaming. A glowing figure stands at the open window, hands resting on the sill. Another assassin?
But she turns, and the truth is much worse. It's Yue, smiling gently, the way she does everything. Sokka thought he was done with dreaming about her years ago.
"Yue," he whispers. "I'm sorry."
She tilts her head to the side. "You have nothing to be sorry for."
"I can't dream about you anymore."
"You aren't dreaming." She glides to the foot of his bed.
"No, Yue..." His traitorous mind. He's terrified she will lean forward and kiss him, and he will wake up in the morning and not be able to look Zuko in the eye. He's not in love with Yue anymore, he's sure of it, but maybe some part of his subconscious just can't let go.
"Sokka?" Next to him, Zuko stirs, and Sokka breathes a sigh of relief. In the old dreams, they were always alone.
He reaches over and runs his fingers through Zuko's hair, and Zuko rolls over with a sleepy smile.
Yue's still there, waiting, her face beautiful and unreadable and still glowing.
Zuko props himself up on one elbow, then startles awake, sending a burst of flames straight at Yue's chest before Sokka can stop him. The fire flickers around her body, then sputters out, leaving her unmarked. Zuko narrows his eyes and lights the lamps.
"Hello, Fire Lord Zuko." Yue bows as if this were a court meeting, and she were the foreign dignitary she would have been in another life.
Zuko doesn't take his eyes off her, but says nothing. Maybe this isn't a dream. It feels too real, the lingering heat from Zuko's flames, the soft night air, the tightness in his throat.
"Zuko, this is Yue." But if this isn't a dream, how could Yue be here?
"The moon spirit?" And your ex-girlfriend, he doesn't say.
Yue nods. If she's here, and she can walk the earth, why didn't she come before? Was he not good enough? Is she here for Zuko?
Sokka takes a deep breath. He's stronger than the fears, now.
Zuko reaches back and takes Sokka's hand. Even after a couple years, Sokka still wonders at his warmth.
Yue's face stays lovely and serene, but a sadness creeps into her eyes, like the way she looked sitting at the high table with her father.
"Yue?" Sokka forces a smile. "What's it like up there?"
"Lonely," Yue says, and Sokka's smile melts away. "But beautiful."
How unfair, that he's here happy and successful and free with a fiancé he loves, and she's all alone, locked into duty like she's been for her whole life.
"And I get to see the whole world," Yue continues, her lips curving. "Fire Lords and cabbage merchants alike." The edges of her eyes crinkle. She looks older, though not by much. "Here, let's sit at the table. I don't have much time left." She glances out the window.
"All of us?" Sokka asks.
Yue nods. "Yes." Her face sets. "I wouldn't have disturbed you if it wasn't important."
Zuko squeezes Sokka's hand, and Sokka pulls him out of bed. Yue takes everything seriously. It doesn't mean this is a catastrophe. And, besides, Sokka and Zuko have a lot of experience with catastrophes.
Once they're all seated at Zuko's breakfast table, Yue folds her hands together. "It's about your sister."
Ice shoots down Sokka's spine, and his chair clatters to the ground. "Katara! Is she hurt?"
"Fire Lord Zuko's sister. Katara is well."
The adrenaline fades, and Sokka picks up his chair again. If anything happened to Katara...he doesn't know what he'd do.
"Has Azula escaped again?" Zuko runs his hands through his hair. His nervous tic. He swallows. "Did she-did she hurt someone?"
Yue shakes her head. "She is still at the Small Palace."
Anything about Azula puts Sokka on edge.
"But she is lonely," Yue says.
"She burns anyone except me who gets within 30 feet of her," Zuko mutters. "And I can't exactly babysit her."
"She can't burn me." Yue glances at her hands, still neatly folded. It's hard to see with her glowing, but is that a blush? Yue can't possibly...
He can't fault her for moving on. Just - Azula?
"You want to visit her?" Zuko asks in wonder. "Sokka told me you were kind, but-"
"Yes. I want to visit her. I want...I want to see if I can help her." Yue looks Zuko in the eye. The Yue of five years ago wouldn't have done this. At least, being the moon spirit, she's out from under Arnook's thumb. "I can walk the earth every new moon. You visit her on the full moon. This way, she will not be alone as long."
Zuko nods. "That would be..." He trails off. "Thank you. I would like that."
Yue smiles. "Next month, then. I will try not to startle her."
"Why didn't you visit me before?" Sokka asks. He tries to keep the hurt out of his tone. "If you can come down every month?"
Yue's smile disappears. "There's no guide to being the moon spirit," Yue says. "So, by the time I figured out I could walk the earth, you had moved on with Suki, and I...I didn't want to interfere. You two were so happy."
"And after Suki?"
Yue glances at Zuko. "You were hardly ever apart from the Fire Lord."
"It's true," Zuko says. He flashes a wry smile. "He just couldn't keep his hands off me. It was always 'Zuko, I'm so sad and I miss Suki! I need a hug, Zuko! Zuko, let's spar! Zuko, hold my hand while I get a tattoo! Zuko, I'm cold and you gotta come spoon me!'"
"Was I really that obvious?" Sokka likes to think he's smooth.
Yue laughs, and it sounds like bells ringing. "I'm afraid so."
Well, at least Zuko took it well, seeing as he was repressing his own feelings for Sokka. "What can I say?" Sokka shrugs, raises an eyebrow. "Zuko's flaming hot." It's an old joke but a good one.
Zuko rolls his eyes, hiding a smile, and Yue keeps laughing.
For a moment, it feels like all three of them are very good friends, like Yue is a normal woman, not a princess or a spirit but a childhood crush he's now on good terms with.
"Could you visit here again?" Sokka asks, and both Yue and Zuko turn to stare at him.
Yue's shoulders fall. "I don't think I should." She glances at Zuko. "You know how I said there's no guide to being the moon spirit? I set myself rules, and those rules include no unfair advantages to any nation." There, her duty again. "I'm sorry, but I might let something slip, and you two are in a position to use my knowledge to advance the Fire Nation or the Southern Water Tribes."
"But, the avatar-" Sokka starts, hating how small his voice sounds.
"Not all avatars are like Avatar Aang," Yue says.
"And Azula-"
"Azula does not run a government." Yue pauses. "And I don't want to come between you two."
Sokka sputters. "As a friend, I meant! Of course!"
"I know," Yue says.
Zuko sits there in awkward silence, looking away. And Sokka knows that vision of friendship will never be.
"I should be going." Yue stands, and Sokka and Zuko follow her to the window. "Goodbye, Fire Lord Zuko."
Zuko bows to her. "Thank you, Moon Spirit Yue."
Yue bows back, then turns to Sokka.
"I am happy for you, Sokka," Yue whispers, and touches his face. Her hand is cool and soft, and he can't help but compare it to her icy kiss the night they parted. "Be well." He closes his eyes and she presses her lips to his forehead, so gently he can hardly feel it. It's a benediction, a blessing maybe, and he feels cold despite the warm Fire Nation night.
When he opens his eyes again, she's gone, leaving an oddly shaped hole in his heart.
"Sokka?"
Sokka blinks, and it's like surfacing after a long time underwater. The heat comes rushing back.
Zuko looks uncertain, his hand hovering over Sokka's shoulder. He's not jealous, exactly, but he's more jealous than Suki was, and he doubts himself.
"Don't worry, Zuko," Sokka says, and shakes off the daze. "I'll always choose you."
Zuko smiles his dopey innocent smile, and Sokka kisses him, an entirely different sort of kiss from Yue's. Zuko kisses back enthusiastically, his hand sliding down Sokka's back, and he doesn't have to say it for Sokka to know he'll choose him too.
When they pull away, Zuko's back to normal again, face a little flushed, the way Sokka loves to see it. He can't resist another kiss, a tender one that makes him feel incredibly lucky.
Zuko rests his head on Sokka's shoulder, holding him close. "I never thought I'd get to meet her."
"I never thought I'd see her again, and especially not for the sake of your supervillain sister," Sokka mutters.
"That's rough, buddy." Zuko pulls him into bed. "At least you've still got me." He pauses. "But I'm glad. That Azula will have someone."
And Sokka could say the same for Yue.