ZERA'S TALE » Sokka x OC

1.07

A/N: THANK YOU to everyone showing the love for this story 💖 I really enjoy writing it and hearing all your wonderful feedback. Work has been a little crazy lately so I haven't had as much time to dedicate to this story but I promise I'm not going anywhere.

This chapter's gonna be long but I'm just embracing the thicc word count from here on out. #sorrynotsorry

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The early morning sun caressed the clouds with pastel kisses as Zera sat atop Appa's head, his reins gripped tightly in her nervous fingers. Sokka was sitting next to her, trying to teach her how to fly so Aang could take a break.

Instead of taking a break, however, Aang was occupying his time by pacing a hole in Appa's saddle, nervous breaths coming out in shallow puffs.

"Would you sit down? If we hit a bump, you'll go flying off." Sokka called back to Aang, making Zera grip the reins tighter and shoot Sokka a dismayed look. That could happen? she thought to herself. Sokka met her worried gaze and placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder, feeling a little guilty at how he'd phrased that.

"What's bugging you, anyways?" Zera asked over her shoulder to distract herself from her anxious thoughts, sparing a glance backwards to Aang.

"Eyes ahead," Sokka barked, causing Zera's head to snap around forward so quick she was sure she gave herself whiplash.

"It's what Avatar Roku said. I'm supposed to master all four elements before that comet arrives." Aang confessed.

"Well, let's see. You've pretty much mastered airbending, and that only took you a hundred and twelve years. I'm sure you can master three more elements by next summ—er," a grunt cut off Sokka's words as Zera elbowed him in the side for his sarcasm.

"What?" He squawked defensively, "It's true!"

"Don't freak him out," Zera grumbled, still stressing— a comical amount, Sokka thought— about piloting an animal who basically did everything himself.

"I haven't even started waterbending and we're still weeks away from the North Pole!" Aang exclaimed, resuming his pacing and fretting before Katara's hand reached out and grasped his wrist gently.

"Calm down, it's going to be okay. If you want, I can try to teach you some of the stuff I know," she pulled him towards her as she spoke, coaxing him to sit on his knees facing her.

"You'd do that?" He asked, and Zera could practically hear this heart leap out of his chest to do acrobatics at Katara's offer.

"They're so cute together," she leaned over to whisper to Sokka, angling her eyes back to Aang and Katara.

"That's my sister, jerk," he whispered back, his insult holding no more venom than that of an overprotective brother. The two nonbenders had grown closer over the past few weeks since Zera's return, bonding over the simple fact that they weren't gifted with bending abilities.

"We'll need to find a good source of water first," Katara continued to calm Aang, either not hearing Zera and Sokka or simply pretending not to.

"Maybe we can find a puddle for you to splash in," Sokka turned and grinned at the pair sarcastically, making Zera chuckle softly. She let Sokka take over Appa's reins to find a good landing spot near water, focusing her now undivided attention on the soft watercolors of the morning sky around them.

The waterfall Sokka found definitely was more than a puddle.

"Nice puddle, Sokka," Zera grumbled to the Water Tribe boy, who shared her deadpan expression, before cutting her eyes over to Katara and Aang's ecstatic faces.