Book 3: Fire (Sokka Love Story)

Book 3: Chapter 10: Zuko Gets Choke-Slammed Into A Wall

Heidy-Ho, everyone! Yes, tis I, back with another chapter. After the cliffhanger last time, I thought y'all deserved a little closure.
In other news, I think I fucked up. The Lion and Wolf thing? Yeah, it didn't hit me until a few nights ago that those creatures don't fucking exist in the Avatar universe. It's always hybrids, and, LAWDD, the way I laughed. Ridiculous. Nonetheless, roll with it.
So, my week sucked ass. I think I failed my Stats exam, or did really bad in it (math, ugh), but hopefully... I dunno, I hope I pass that exam through sheer dumb luck. I got another exam tomorrow but that's like, easy shit. Only two more exams to go and I'm done. Yeesh the year passed too fast. I made brownies to comfort myself, and they turned out delicious, so not all things are bad.
I promised I would tell y'all about breaking into my house but it's late and I'm tired rn, so hopefully, next chapter, lol.
I hope you're all doing well, my friends. I know shit is hard for some of y'all and that life sucks in general, but hopefully, this chapter can make you feel a little better for some time. I like making y'all smile. Can feel it in the comments honestly, and it makes my day.

I'm honestly a sucker for how y'all explode every single time Sokka uses Sunshine. Anyway, enjoy!

*

It was tougher than expected to get the lone guard standing by (Y/n)'s cell to move away, but with well-timed fire and a couple of fake screams, the guard left her post to run down the hall past them without noticing them in the shadows, and when she was out of sight, Sokka and Zuko make quick work of the bolts on the door, swinging them across before yanking the metal door open.

Sokka's heart constricts at the poor sight that greets him. There's a small fire lamp hooked to the wall as the only source of light other than the light from the hall seeping in through the open doorway. A thin bed in the corner and a toilet, but his eyes catch on the figure on the bed, hands slightly elevated off the bed in what looks like an uncomfortable position, and she slowly rouses from her curled-up state, revealing a mess of hair and bruised arms and legs.

"Wow, two visits in one day. You really know how to make me feel special, Warden," (Y/n) says, her voice strained and reedy.

He can't move. Even as (Y/n) uncurls and sits up with an almost silent sigh, he's stuck, and all he can manage is his mouth forming around silent words, more stricken as his gaze roams from bruise to bruise splotching her skin, up to her face where her lip is split, and she has bruises around her right eye and cheekbone.

Surprisingly, Zuko is the first one to enter the cell, and he whips off his visor just as (Y/n) looks up, and awkwardly, he smiles and waves. "Hey—ACK!"

He slams into the wall beside (Y/n) because the moment she laid her eyes on Zuko, she turned furious, full of hatred and anger, and despite being chained by her wrists to the wall, her leg is stretched out, taut and strong, pinning Zuko to the wall with just her bare foot to his throat.

"What are you doing?" Zuko croaks, hands coming up to push her off, but she presses harder against his throat, and Zuko chokes.

"Make one move and I'll snap your neck like a biscuit," (Y/n) hisses. Zuko, surprisingly, stops squirming and focuses on breathing more importantly. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"We came to rescue you," Sokka says. Her head finally whips to him, a shocked little whimper escaping her, and then when she's focusing on him fully, her eyes begin to tear up. His heart constricts. "(Y/n)—"

"You're here," (Y/n) breathes. "You're—you're actually here. I thought I had imagined your voice but you—"

Sokka strides forward to bridge the gap between them, but he stops right before her, seeing her up close, and he misses this. He missed waking up and glancing at her sleepy face if he was lucky enough to be up before her. He missed having her curled up near him, just inches from each other. "I'm here," he says, lips finally cracking a smile.