Schmoop Bingo - Never What I Mean To Say
Title: Never What I Mean To Say
Prompt: Shower Together
Medium: fic
Rating: PG
Pairing: Sokka/Zuko
Summary: Early in their relationship, Sokka struggles to rein in his tongue -- with mixed success.
Written for avocado_love in her Queen Flight universe, an Avatar: The Last Airbender/Dragonriders of Pern crossover. Part of schmoop_bingo .
It rained all day long at Benden Weyr, winter's chilly rain, but the first wings back from fighting thread reported that the air over Bitra Hold had been cold and windy. Z'ko's wing flew in last, and while Z'ko had not seemed injured in the brief glimpse of him that Sokka caught, he emerged from the infirmary nearly an hour after he entered with a wounded rider.
Sokka hesitated when he saw Z'ko, even though he'd been waiting for him that full hour and longer. Their relationship was still new, and Sokka was still deciding how to just be with him, if it was okay to just take his arm and pull Z'ko away like he had some right to.
Sokka hadn't quite decided one way or another yet when he reached out to take Z'ko's arm. Z'ko looked up, his face startled and then relaxing into weariness. Ash smeared his face and his cheeks looked windburned, but he looked like Z'ko and that was more than enough for Sokka.
Sokka smiled, and Z'ko smiled back, but then Sokka opened his mouth and ruined everything. What he meant to say was something like "You did a good job" or "it's not your fault someone got hurt" or even "come on, let's get some klah into you."
What he actually said, though, was "Whew! You smell like something a dragon dragged in." He winced. Nice going, Sokka.
Z'ko rubbed his eyes. "Thanks, Sokka. Any other revelations you wish to share?"
Sokka sighed. "Sorry. That came out wrong." He tugged on Z'ko's arm, towards the lower cavern's bathing rooms. "Let's get you cleaned up so you can sleep."
"Where are we going?"
"The bathing pools. They won't be too crowed this time of day."
Z'ko stopped and frowned. "I have a pool in my weyr."
"Oh." Sokka fought sudden awkwardness. "Well, I can let you go -"
"Come with me?" The words were simple, but behind them Sokka heard… hope?
"Okay," he said, and watched Z'ko relax.
***
Sokka had investigated Katara's weyr shortly after she impressed, so he knew that in comparison, Z'ko's bathing pool was a little… austere. Not small, really, but lacking the grandeur of the weyrladies' pools. That said, it was plenty big.
"You could fit what, four, five people in here? It'd be like a bathing party!" Sokka kicked himself. Where did that come from?
"Or just two," Z'ko said from the doorway. He sounded exhausted and looked it as well, his face smudged with char and his eyes half-closed.
Sokka swallowed. Suck it up, Sokka, he told himself. You've already shared way more than a bath. Somehow, though, this felt more… well, intimate than just sex.
"Here," he said, stepping back to Z'ko and reaching out. "Let me help you out of that." His hand stopped a span from the fastening on Z'ko's heavy wehrhide jacket. "Not in a, you know, pick-up line kind of way, though, because I guess I've already picked you up - or you've picked me up, or we've picked each other up, and -"
"Sokka," Z'ko interrupted. "The sooner you shut up and help get my jacket off, the sooner I can get in the bath."
"Right." Sokka held his tongue as he fought with the fastenings, but then Z'ko's jacket fell to the floor. The boots were more difficult, but he managed those without issue and Z'ko's heavy wherhide trousers as well. He hesitated then, straightening - but Z'ko sighed and leaned into his shoulder and Sokka felt the awkwardness drain away. "Come on, lift your arms so I can get your shirt off, too." Z'ko complied, and when he stood naked there, Sokka bit back desire. "Into the bath with you," he said, and gave Z'ko a shove towards the pool.
Z'ko settled into it with a groan, immersing himself all the way while Sokka took the opportunity to watch, then surfaced. He blinked water from his eyes and leaned his head back. "Are you coming?"
Pretty soon, I hope, Sokka thought, then told himself to behave. He shed his clothes as fast as he could, then stepped into the pool. "Hot!" he yelped.
"It's a hot pool," Z'ko responded with a faint grin.
Sokka scowled. "Not all of us are freaks from a tropical island." As soon as he said it, he regretted it - and regretted it more when Z'ko's grin slipped away. I should apologize, he thought, but then decided that with his luck, he'd better just shut his mouth before it was too late. He sighed and shifted in the water, stretching his legs out beside Z'ko.
"So. How was threadfall?" Sokka sunk lower in the water, trying to hide. I thought we were going to keep our mouth shut!
Z'ko exhaled, blowing ripples over the water. "It could have been worse. There was a fall… oh, two years ago, just after I joined the fighting wings. It was…" He lifted his hands from the water. "Clumpy. I hate clumpy thread."
"More than regular thread?"
"Regular thread is predictable. Clumpy thread… clumps. There'll be no thread where there's supposed to be, and then suddenly -" He curled his hand into a fist and splashed it down into the water.
"So… two years ago, clumpy thread?"
"That was an awful fall. First time I was thread-scored dragon-back." He twisted and leaned forward, gesturing to his shoulder. "Went right through my jacket. Honorath went between to freeze it off."
Sokka studied the offered shoulder. Fine silver lines crossed it, the familiar pattern of thread almost appealing over Z'ko's lean muscles. He forced himself to nod, and Z'ko settled back into the water.
"What about you?"
"Me?"
"You. How was… smithing."
Sokka shrugged. "Oh, you know. A valve here, a pipe there."
"I don't, actually."
"What?"
"I don't know. About smithing."
"Oh. It's very… smithy."
"Smithy?"
"Smithy. That what we smiths call it. First thing apprentices learn." Sokka raised his hands. "How to be… smithy."
At that, Z'ko laughed, a real, honest laugh, accompanied by a smile that warmed Sokka more thoroughly than the water. "C'mere, lover," he said, the endearment coming naturally to his tongue as he extended his hand. "I'll wash your back."
Prompt: Shower Together
Medium: fic
Rating: PG
Pairing: Sokka/Zuko
Summary: Early in their relationship, Sokka struggles to rein in his tongue -- with mixed success.
Written for avocado_love in her Queen Flight universe, an Avatar: The Last Airbender/Dragonriders of Pern crossover. Part of schmoop_bingo .
It rained all day long at Benden Weyr, winter's chilly rain, but the first wings back from fighting thread reported that the air over Bitra Hold had been cold and windy. Z'ko's wing flew in last, and while Z'ko had not seemed injured in the brief glimpse of him that Sokka caught, he emerged from the infirmary nearly an hour after he entered with a wounded rider.
Sokka hesitated when he saw Z'ko, even though he'd been waiting for him that full hour and longer. Their relationship was still new, and Sokka was still deciding how to just be with him, if it was okay to just take his arm and pull Z'ko away like he had some right to.
Sokka hadn't quite decided one way or another yet when he reached out to take Z'ko's arm. Z'ko looked up, his face startled and then relaxing into weariness. Ash smeared his face and his cheeks looked windburned, but he looked like Z'ko and that was more than enough for Sokka.
Sokka smiled, and Z'ko smiled back, but then Sokka opened his mouth and ruined everything. What he meant to say was something like "You did a good job" or "it's not your fault someone got hurt" or even "come on, let's get some klah into you."
What he actually said, though, was "Whew! You smell like something a dragon dragged in." He winced. Nice going, Sokka.
Z'ko rubbed his eyes. "Thanks, Sokka. Any other revelations you wish to share?"
Sokka sighed. "Sorry. That came out wrong." He tugged on Z'ko's arm, towards the lower cavern's bathing rooms. "Let's get you cleaned up so you can sleep."
"Where are we going?"
"The bathing pools. They won't be too crowed this time of day."
Z'ko stopped and frowned. "I have a pool in my weyr."
"Oh." Sokka fought sudden awkwardness. "Well, I can let you go -"
"Come with me?" The words were simple, but behind them Sokka heard… hope?
"Okay," he said, and watched Z'ko relax.
***
Sokka had investigated Katara's weyr shortly after she impressed, so he knew that in comparison, Z'ko's bathing pool was a little… austere. Not small, really, but lacking the grandeur of the weyrladies' pools. That said, it was plenty big.
"You could fit what, four, five people in here? It'd be like a bathing party!" Sokka kicked himself. Where did that come from?
"Or just two," Z'ko said from the doorway. He sounded exhausted and looked it as well, his face smudged with char and his eyes half-closed.
Sokka swallowed. Suck it up, Sokka, he told himself. You've already shared way more than a bath. Somehow, though, this felt more… well, intimate than just sex.
"Here," he said, stepping back to Z'ko and reaching out. "Let me help you out of that." His hand stopped a span from the fastening on Z'ko's heavy wehrhide jacket. "Not in a, you know, pick-up line kind of way, though, because I guess I've already picked you up - or you've picked me up, or we've picked each other up, and -"
"Sokka," Z'ko interrupted. "The sooner you shut up and help get my jacket off, the sooner I can get in the bath."
"Right." Sokka held his tongue as he fought with the fastenings, but then Z'ko's jacket fell to the floor. The boots were more difficult, but he managed those without issue and Z'ko's heavy wherhide trousers as well. He hesitated then, straightening - but Z'ko sighed and leaned into his shoulder and Sokka felt the awkwardness drain away. "Come on, lift your arms so I can get your shirt off, too." Z'ko complied, and when he stood naked there, Sokka bit back desire. "Into the bath with you," he said, and gave Z'ko a shove towards the pool.
Z'ko settled into it with a groan, immersing himself all the way while Sokka took the opportunity to watch, then surfaced. He blinked water from his eyes and leaned his head back. "Are you coming?"
Pretty soon, I hope, Sokka thought, then told himself to behave. He shed his clothes as fast as he could, then stepped into the pool. "Hot!" he yelped.
"It's a hot pool," Z'ko responded with a faint grin.
Sokka scowled. "Not all of us are freaks from a tropical island." As soon as he said it, he regretted it - and regretted it more when Z'ko's grin slipped away. I should apologize, he thought, but then decided that with his luck, he'd better just shut his mouth before it was too late. He sighed and shifted in the water, stretching his legs out beside Z'ko.
"So. How was threadfall?" Sokka sunk lower in the water, trying to hide. I thought we were going to keep our mouth shut!
Z'ko exhaled, blowing ripples over the water. "It could have been worse. There was a fall… oh, two years ago, just after I joined the fighting wings. It was…" He lifted his hands from the water. "Clumpy. I hate clumpy thread."
"More than regular thread?"
"Regular thread is predictable. Clumpy thread… clumps. There'll be no thread where there's supposed to be, and then suddenly -" He curled his hand into a fist and splashed it down into the water.
"So… two years ago, clumpy thread?"
"That was an awful fall. First time I was thread-scored dragon-back." He twisted and leaned forward, gesturing to his shoulder. "Went right through my jacket. Honorath went between to freeze it off."
Sokka studied the offered shoulder. Fine silver lines crossed it, the familiar pattern of thread almost appealing over Z'ko's lean muscles. He forced himself to nod, and Z'ko settled back into the water.
"What about you?"
"Me?"
"You. How was… smithing."
Sokka shrugged. "Oh, you know. A valve here, a pipe there."
"I don't, actually."
"What?"
"I don't know. About smithing."
"Oh. It's very… smithy."
"Smithy?"
"Smithy. That what we smiths call it. First thing apprentices learn." Sokka raised his hands. "How to be… smithy."
At that, Z'ko laughed, a real, honest laugh, accompanied by a smile that warmed Sokka more thoroughly than the water. "C'mere, lover," he said, the endearment coming naturally to his tongue as he extended his hand. "I'll wash your back."