(Untitled)

[notanoptimist]

Somehow, and Sokka doesn't want to spend time thinking about why, things were almost better with one-after-the-other attacks from Harth and the Magog. But even without thinking about it, Sokka knows why. Because he has less time to meet people and work on projects that make him think he isn't working hard enough - at least when they're being

Comments

[notanoptimist]

"Wait-- a second." Because he's not counting push-ups, but he is trying to memorize the names of the pieces of the engine Kaylee designed to work in the air balloon.

After he's finished, Sokka draws his knees beneath him, wincing slightly and breathing deep. "They're-- push-ups. Spoon-- showed me-- how." Nodding over to the laundry, he runs the back of his hand against his brow and flops over to sit cross-legged across from her, leaning back with his weight on his hands. "What've you been-- doing?"

[notanoptimist]

--which he uses to get the rest of the sweat from his face. Thanks! And he smirks at her, too.

"Did you get the magazines to Aang?"

[dead_comrade]

Krauser pauses to observe.

Then he summarizes.

"What?"

[notanoptimist]

A pause in the push-ups and Sokka blinks, looking back over his shoulder as he pulls himself into a crouch.

"...Huh?"

Eloquent.

[dead_comrade]

"People do strange things around what they're reading here. Last time it was a girl screaming about blood." He shrugged. "Working?"

[notanoptimist]

Sokka grins at that, turning to sit flat on his butt, knees drawn up and arms crossed over the tops. "I needed to-- keep studying and-- training. Easier to just-- do 'em at the-- same time."

So there! Totally realistic!

He nods, though, wiping the sweat from his brow as his breath calms. "Uh-huh. Just-- memorizing some words."

[wash_drives]

That funny sound coming from the doorway? That would be Wash laughing while trying not to laugh, resulting in a muffled giggling/snorting noise.

Sokka looked like some of the kids from flying school before exams, bulk up while actually studying. God knows that they had to attract the 4 women in the damn school.

[notanoptimist]

For a while, Sokka doesn't notice any sounds at all. He's busy, you see, trying to memorize all those complicated names Kaylee had written down for engine parts in English, then Chinese, and finally just said to Sokka so he could write it in his own language and learn them that way. And he's not sure what number push-up he's on, but he is sure he's figured out all three ways of saying 'piston' by now.

Eventually, though? He notices? And rolls his eyes as he rolls and plops onto his butt to look at Wash. "Next time, I'm just-- keeping the door locked."

[wash_drives]

"How ya doin' on the pushups there, stud?" Wash grinned, "Working on that textbook of memorization Kaylee's gotcha on?"

[notanoptimist]

"Push-ups keep me in shape for when gun-toting wives show up," Sokka replies, his chin high, his tone mock haughty. At least, before he grins back. "Yeah, I think I've got some of it. It's the alphabet that's throwing me on English, but it's the letters and words that mess me up with Chinese. I still don't get why your universe has more than one language."