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writetomyheart2026-01-08 09:22 pm
alchemicink) wrote in writetomyheart2026-01-08 09:22 pm
[Team four] crash landing
Snippet of a zukka idea I had. It's been a while since I've written them.
Atla, g-rated, less than 700 words
His head is pounding, as if someone had taken a hammer to his skull. Zuko opens his eyes slowly, wincing at the light. He's surrounded by the wreckage of the balloon and its basket, along with several broken tree branches they collided with on the way down.
"Well that could have gone better."
Zuko turns at the sound of Sokka's voice, wincing a little at how the movement makes his headache worse.
"You're the king of understatement," he replies back.
"Zuko!" Sokka shouts -- entirely too loud for his headache -- and rushes towards him. "Are you hurt?"
"Mildly concussed," he answers. "I'm fine."
Zuko's vision is filled with Sokka suddenly all up in his personal space, frowning at him with concern. He doesn't even ask before reaching out and checking for any bumps or cuts on Zuko's scalp.
Zuko decides not to complain because having Sokka's fingers tangled in his hair is actually a nice temporary distraction from the headache.
"Okay, so we made it through the crash relatively intact," Sokka declares a moment later once he's done assessing Zuko's head. "Except for the balloon of course."
"Of course," Zuko repeats, eyeing the shredded remnants at their feet, and then snarks, "Let's take a balloon ride, he said. It'll be like old times, he said."
"It was like old times," Sokka protests with a laugh. "We lost the balloon we took to the Boiling Rock too."
Zuko would roll his eyes if his head wasn't still splitting open.
"Maybe this is actually a terrible way to travel."
Sokka nods in agreement. "As soon as we get back, I'm gonna start work on inventing better air travel options."
Something twists in Zuko's stomach at the thought of returning back to the palace from their mini-trip away for a day. Because once they arrive home, Sokka's ambassador replacement will have arrived, and it won't be much longer after that before he packs his bags and heads south to the Water Tribe again.
Back to his family and his home again.
"I suppose we'll just have to find the nearest road and hitch a ride back," Sokka says, oblivious to Zuko's spiraling thoughts, as he surveys the surrounding woods with his hands on his hips. "Which direction would be best, you think?"
"Any direction is fine," Zuko shrugs.
They'd seen plenty of houses and roads amidst the fields they were flying over earlier. It won't take them too long to find civilization again, no matter which way they go.
Zuko notices a few twigs and leaves stuck in Sokka's hair, so he reaches over to brush them away. Doesn't even think about it; just moves automatically. There have been plenty of times over the past few years he's seen Sokka looking disheveled -- after fiddling with a new invention, after a rough round of sparring -- and Zuko's used to smoothing out the mess.
He'll miss little moments like this when Sokka leaves.
Sokka tugs him in a direction that doesn't look as dense as the rest of the forest, making it easier for them to walk through the underbrush. They move slowly and in silence for a little ways until Sokka finally speaks.
"So, hey, do you wanna tell me what's bothering you?"
Zuko frowns. Did he seem like he was upset?
"Uh, well, crashing the balloon wasn't exactly fun."
Sokka shakes his head. "No, I meant before we left Caldera. It just seemed like something was bugging you lately. Actually, I wanted to get away for a day so maybe you could forget about whatever it is. Or talk about it. Or brood about it in peace. Whatever helps."
Zuko stops walking. Sokka looks so earnest when he turns towards him, it makes Zuko's heart hurt.
"I don't brood" are the first words out of his stupid mouth because he doesn't know how to deal with Sokka being so kind to him right now.
"Yes, you do," Sokka scoffs. "Mr. Fire Lord, Brood Master Supreme."
Zuko punches Sokka's arm because he is not even going to dignify that with an actual response.
"So are we gonna talk about it or are we gonna walk in circles for the next few hours until you feel better?"
Atla, g-rated, less than 700 words
His head is pounding, as if someone had taken a hammer to his skull. Zuko opens his eyes slowly, wincing at the light. He's surrounded by the wreckage of the balloon and its basket, along with several broken tree branches they collided with on the way down.
"Well that could have gone better."
Zuko turns at the sound of Sokka's voice, wincing a little at how the movement makes his headache worse.
"You're the king of understatement," he replies back.
"Zuko!" Sokka shouts -- entirely too loud for his headache -- and rushes towards him. "Are you hurt?"
"Mildly concussed," he answers. "I'm fine."
Zuko's vision is filled with Sokka suddenly all up in his personal space, frowning at him with concern. He doesn't even ask before reaching out and checking for any bumps or cuts on Zuko's scalp.
Zuko decides not to complain because having Sokka's fingers tangled in his hair is actually a nice temporary distraction from the headache.
"Okay, so we made it through the crash relatively intact," Sokka declares a moment later once he's done assessing Zuko's head. "Except for the balloon of course."
"Of course," Zuko repeats, eyeing the shredded remnants at their feet, and then snarks, "Let's take a balloon ride, he said. It'll be like old times, he said."
"It was like old times," Sokka protests with a laugh. "We lost the balloon we took to the Boiling Rock too."
Zuko would roll his eyes if his head wasn't still splitting open.
"Maybe this is actually a terrible way to travel."
Sokka nods in agreement. "As soon as we get back, I'm gonna start work on inventing better air travel options."
Something twists in Zuko's stomach at the thought of returning back to the palace from their mini-trip away for a day. Because once they arrive home, Sokka's ambassador replacement will have arrived, and it won't be much longer after that before he packs his bags and heads south to the Water Tribe again.
Back to his family and his home again.
"I suppose we'll just have to find the nearest road and hitch a ride back," Sokka says, oblivious to Zuko's spiraling thoughts, as he surveys the surrounding woods with his hands on his hips. "Which direction would be best, you think?"
"Any direction is fine," Zuko shrugs.
They'd seen plenty of houses and roads amidst the fields they were flying over earlier. It won't take them too long to find civilization again, no matter which way they go.
Zuko notices a few twigs and leaves stuck in Sokka's hair, so he reaches over to brush them away. Doesn't even think about it; just moves automatically. There have been plenty of times over the past few years he's seen Sokka looking disheveled -- after fiddling with a new invention, after a rough round of sparring -- and Zuko's used to smoothing out the mess.
He'll miss little moments like this when Sokka leaves.
Sokka tugs him in a direction that doesn't look as dense as the rest of the forest, making it easier for them to walk through the underbrush. They move slowly and in silence for a little ways until Sokka finally speaks.
"So, hey, do you wanna tell me what's bothering you?"
Zuko frowns. Did he seem like he was upset?
"Uh, well, crashing the balloon wasn't exactly fun."
Sokka shakes his head. "No, I meant before we left Caldera. It just seemed like something was bugging you lately. Actually, I wanted to get away for a day so maybe you could forget about whatever it is. Or talk about it. Or brood about it in peace. Whatever helps."
Zuko stops walking. Sokka looks so earnest when he turns towards him, it makes Zuko's heart hurt.
"I don't brood" are the first words out of his stupid mouth because he doesn't know how to deal with Sokka being so kind to him right now.
"Yes, you do," Sokka scoffs. "Mr. Fire Lord, Brood Master Supreme."
Zuko punches Sokka's arm because he is not even going to dignify that with an actual response.
"So are we gonna talk about it or are we gonna walk in circles for the next few hours until you feel better?"