(Untitled)

[princeinexile]

When Sokka foisted the babies off on their parents, Zuko was happy to be foisted upon! He's the stay-at-home dad-- and by stay at home, we mean stay on the roof, and by stay on the roof we mean 'because he's a cripple who can't really climb down easily, let alone with two kids

Comments

[notanoptimist]

Don't break your neck, Zuko, or the necks of babies. That would be kind of sad.

CRUNCH.

Just like the wooden crate that was just thrown on top of the roof was "kind of" surprising.

The Sokka that pulls himself up on the fire escape to sit on the roof isn't very surprising. After all, he lives there.

"Hey."

[princeinexile]

"He--hey." Zuko looks at the box with a blink, and then rolls over from where he was curled around the girls as they made noises and wiggled here and there. "How is it down there?"

[notanoptimist]

"Boring!" Sokka reports cheerfully, grinning at the girls before holding the crate steady to try and kick it into pieces. "I was talking to a couple of people and one of them asked me to show her how to throw the boomerang. So I'm back to carving again."

Setting one of the boards over his legs, he pulls his knife out of his belt loop and glances at Zuko, brows up. "D'you want another one? I was thinking of making one for Mel."

[princeinexile]

"...sure," he says as he sits up. "Gotta have something to do up here, and losing a few more fingers won't hurt, really." It's not even bitterly spoken -- you live with a scar long enough, eventually it has to become a joke.

[notanoptimist]

Has to.

"It'll be wood, just like the last one," Sokka replies, frowning a little at the board on his lap. "Hard to cut your fingers off. This girl, she's got all kinds of boomerangs, bigger than mine and smaller, all shaped like bats."

There's a beat, just for a second, and Sokka keeps his eyes on the wood-- but it doesn't totally hide a smirk that is rarely ever on his face: pure, unfettered, free pride.

"We had a contest."

[princeinexile]

"Bats?" Who the hell would throw bats around? That's stupid. "Bats? Or Wolfbats?" The distinction has to be made.

"So who won?" Captain Obvious has already TOLD him who won, but whatever. Zuko will be polite and ask.

[notanoptimist]

"Just bats. I don't know, she's one of those run-around-in-bright-clothing-and-a-mask-and-beat-stuff-up guys. Seems to make sense to her." Just not Sokka.

Though he's very glad that Zuko is kind enough to play up to his ego. It's why he grins like a moron.

"Oh, I kicked her ass. It was awesome."

[princeinexile]

"Good for you." He's still wondering about the tight, bright clothes. Who the hell ninjas in yellow and green, anyway? Fucking amateurs.

[notanoptimist]

Steph was in eggplant, even. What matches that?

Smiling still, Sokka gets a good-size plank free and comes over to sit nearer to Zuko and the girls. Not near enough that they can grab his knife or the splinter that fall from the wood as he starts to carve, but within conversation distance. "How're you guys doing? Having loads of fun?"

[princeinexile]

"Oh yeah. The girls sleep, Dad stretches and tries to do kata, and falls down and the girls laugh, and... we sort of rinse and repeat." He shrugs, and then says, "It's okay. There's sun here..."

And he does look better. There's nothing like a supply of your life giving daystar overhead to help a cripple heal.

[notanoptimist]

Lips quirk and Sokka looks up, squinting at the light. "...There is that," he says, admittance in his tone. "For all the other crap... there's a sky."

Even if it's not his life giving daystar, it's pretty awesome.

"How's your kata going?"

[princeinexile]

"Slow. I feel kinda dumb, doing the things I was struggling with when I was small, but.." he shrugs. Baby steps.

Fucking baby steps.

He reaches out and puts a hand in Loo's reach; she immediately is gumming fingers. Probably teething.

[notanoptimist]

Eyes on the baby, Sokka smirks and shrugs, turning back to his slow carving. "Run when they can walk, right? You've got time and you're doing better."

Admittedly, though, Sokka wouldn't mind having someone to spar with, where Mel can accidentally break a bone or eight.

[princeinexile]

"I know. I feel better," he says, turning his eyes to the sky. Sun does that for a Firebender -- renews them, rejuvenates them... He smiles under it, and positively basks.

...goddamn sun people.

"It'll just take time."

A beat.

"So, what's the girl's name? That you beat?"

[notanoptimist]

It's nice to see that, Zuko smiling for some thing. He was so easily disappointed by people. At least the sun can't fail him.

Smiling back just for that, Sokka keeps his eyes down, watching carefully as he carves-- and stretching a leg out to block Hana from reaching into the wood shavings. "Steph. Mel thinks she was at the apartments, too-- or, like... some other version of her. Or something."

There is a tone of irritation, aggravation, some sort of 'ation in his voice. The whole idea of multiverses is pretty much annoying.

[princeinexile]

Yeah, they are. The once-prince smirks at him, and then says, "I've heard tale of that. I think she met House down there. Only it wasn't House."

It was some sort of alter House. Who was a cranky gimp who didn't know them.