𝑯𝑰𝑫𝑫𝑬𝑵 𝑫𝑹𝑨𝑮𝑶𝑵, 𝒂: 𝒕𝒍𝒂

➳ 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯: 𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘦

SOKKA IS DEFINITELY NOT SCARED. Sure, while the team was sharing ghost stories earlier that night in the forest, Toph said that she heard screaming under the mountain, and then Hama mentioned something about people disappearing when the moon is full. The floors of this inn seem to be creaking, and there are noises in the walls, and there's a chill in the air that definitely isn't because some angry Spirits were nearby.

Okay, this inn is definitely giving Sokka the creeps. There's no way he's getting any sleep in here. Thankfully, he's pretty sure that someone else would be awake, too.

Sokka quietly sneaks over to the room he knows Kida is in, Momo on his shoulder and sword in hand. He knocks on the door, but there's no answer. Sokka shoots a glance up and down the hallway before slowly opening it.

Kida is sitting in bed, back against the headboard, hugging her knees to her chest. The blanket pools around her feet, discarded as if she'd also spent time tossing and turning, finally giving up.

"Kida," Sokka whispers. For a second, there's no response. "Kida," he says, a little bit louder.

She turns her head, the moonlight accentuating the curves of her face and the shadows under her eyes. "Hey," Kida replies.

"Can I, uh, stay here tonight? This place kind of freaks me out."

Kida smiles softly, but it seems a bit strained. "Yeah. Of course." Momo pokes his head from behind the door. "You too, Momo," she laughs.

Sokka moves inside, closes the door and sets his sword down next to Kida's and her bow and arrow. Momo jumps off Sokka's shoulder and settles down next to Kida. Kida seems to be lost in thought, gently running her hand through Momo's fur as he dozes off. Even as Sokka gets under the covers and settles in, Kida still stares out at the moon. Sokka wonders, in passing, if she's thinking about Yue.

"Hey." Sokka keeps his head on the pillow, but reaches up to gently poke Kida's thigh. "Are you okay?"

Kida glances at him briefly. "Yeah, I'm fine. You can sleep, Sokka."

"I can't sleep; I'd rather talk to you." To prove his point, Sokka shifts to his side, propping up his elbow so that he can rest his head on his hand, looking up at her expectantly. With everything so busy lately, with planning for the invasion, he and Kida rarely had any alone time. And, even if they did, it was mostly training. Kida tried to act normal, but ever since Roku's island, Sokka can tell something is off. By now, he knew her well enough. It was strange that he could see someone everyday, but still miss them. "What's going on?"

"Oh nothing," Kida laughs sarcastically. "Just trying to help the Avatar defeat the Fire Lord and restore balance to the world." She ends the sentence there, but Sokka has a feeling there's more she wants, or needs, to say.

"Are you sure there's nothing else?" Sokka wonders. "You can talk to me about anything, you know."

"It's fine, Sokka."

"Kida --"

"I don't want to talk, Sokka," she asserts. Kida turns her head back to the window, clearly signaling that their conversation had come to an end, whether or not Sokka wanted it to.

Sokka sighs, moving once more to lie down on his back, staring up at the ceiling. Even before, Kida rarely wanted to talk about herself and especially not what keeps her up at night. There had been moments, small windows into her past that she would share, but Sokka has a feeling she's holding something back. Does Kida not trust him enough? She can train for hours, disarm a skilled swordsman, shoot an arrow from a hundred yards away, and set fire to anything, but Spirits forbid she opens up to her boyfriend about what's on her mind, about what haunts her to this day. As much as Sokka loves Kida, she also frustrates him to no end. She's obviously tired, and there's obviously something bothering her if she's still not sleeping enough.