1,092OMG! I am sooo sorry it's taken so long. I've spent all week in a waiting room without my computer so I have another chapter written down right now. i should actually have it up sometime tonight! I was going to turn this into an uber long chapter but decided to split it up. the chapter after this one will be somewhat lemony. anywho, i hope you enjoy. please review. and thanks everyone who reviewed and favorited!
Katara strained the water from the dirty pail with her bending. She made a face looking into the dusty, dirty remains. She drained the sparkling clear water into her waterskin. She corked the waterskin then collapsed into one of the chairs. Kitchen-check!
"Katara!" she turned to see her brother ambling her way. His arms were completely full of meat. Suki followed with a large basket full of vegetables, rice and fruit. Toph strolled beside Suki with a large sack and a sly grin. Suki immediately began to arrange and organize the food into separate cabinets and drawers. Sokka dumbed the meat into a large box that Katara had lined with ice just a few minutes before, anticipating her brother's arrival. Katara blew on top of the meat and a thin layer of ice covered it before she gently closed the lid.
"And this is for Sparky," Toph gently placed her sack onto the counter. Katara could hear items clinking together as it settled.
"We figured the poor guy could use some cheering up," Sokka stated. Katara peeked into the sack and pulled out one of the many bottles.
"Fire Whiskey," she read, "Wait, Fire whiskey? Are you kidding me?"
"You get the food?" Zuko walked in. There was a smudge of dirt on his face and a few bits of dusty areas on his clothes. Hallway and tea rooms-check!
"You're finally back!" Aang skipped into the room, staying in the air just a few moments longer than a normal. Unlike Zuko, he was covered completely in dirt smudges and dust. Bedrooms-check!
"We got tons of food!" Sokka flipped the lid off of the box exposing many different meats.
"Aw, Sokka," Aang peered into the box and then closed it, "Did you only get me-me-mm-mm" everyone but Zuko ducked. "M-M-m-ACHOO!" Katara lifted her head to see a now spotless avatar and a very dusty fire prince.
"I'm just going to go throw myself into the ocean," Zuko mumbled and turned towards the door.
"WAIT!" Sokka slid right up to Zuko, "We got something to cheer you up!" He thrust the bottle into Zuko's face, "It's firewhiskey."
"if it's anything like cactus juice then this is going to be great," Toph laughed. Zuko took the bottle from Sokka's hand and began to look it over.
"cactus juice?" Suki asked Katara. Katara just rolled her eyes and shook her head.
"we shouldn't drink. The monks always said that it was just a poison that made you make bad decisions and impaired you judgement," Aang rummaged through the cabinets, a broad grin filled his face as he realized there was food besides meat in the house.
"You do realize that you picked out the strong stuff, right?" Zuko inquiried.
"How do you know? Have you drank before?" Katara asked as she pulled out all the bottles. There was six, one for each person.
"Well, Uncle got me to drink a few times. He believed I would loosen up if I had a little bit of liquor in me and then tried to get me l-" Zuko stopped dead. "Never mind."
"So, how do we do this? Just start drinking till we are stupid?" Katara scoffed.
"Seriously guys, this is a bad idea," Aang said with a full mouth of apple.
"You play drinking games of course," Sokka grinned ignoring Aang's advice.
"Drinking games?" Katara asked, "what kind of games?"
"Truth or dare," Suki sighed dreamily.
"I have never," Zuko smirked.
"Strip poker!" Sokka exclaimed.
"take a drink everytime Sparky frowns," Toph suggested.
"Yeesh, Toph. That's not a game. We would be drunk before we knew what happened," Sokka complained.
"Thanks," Zuko grimaced. "And exactly how is strip poker a drinking game?"
"well, it's fun to play when you're drunk," Sokka got lost in his thoughts.
"What's 'I have never'?" Suki asked.
"It's a game where a person says a thing they have never done and whoever has done that thing must take a drink." Zuko explained. "My crew used to play it all the time."
"why can't we just play truth or dare without drinking?" Aang glanced toward Katara.
"Because it's more fun when you're drunk" Sokka and Suki said in unison.
The teenagers sat in a circle around the campfire, behind the house. It was Zuko, Toph, Suki, Sokka, Aang, Katara and Zuko again. Aang was there completely under protest, still trying to prevent everyone from drinking. Katara still was skeptical but extremely curious. Suki and Sokka were whispering and blushing. Zuko just swished the contents in the bottle and Toph was grinning broadly.
"So, who goes first?" Suki asked.
"I've never had sex!" Toph hollered.
"No, shit." Zuko raised his good eyebrow.
"Don't get your sparks in a wad. It's my 'I have never' and I know of at least two people here who should be drinking." Toph turned her head pointedly at Suki and Sokka who both exchanged a glance. Suki blushed lightly as they both took a swig.
"Wait, you've had sex?" Aang asked as Zuko wiped the remaining firewhiskey from his lips.
"Way to go, Sparky!" Toph exclaimed.
"I didn't know she had it in her," Sokka said quietly.
"I miss when I used to chase you guys," Zuko held his head in his hand.
"Well, I have never used a sword," Suki attempted to change the subject. Zuko and Sokka both took a drink.
"I have never..." Sokka scratched his head for a moment, "Bent an element." Toph, Katara, and Zuko took a drink. Aang just pursed his lips. "Aang, you're supposed to take a drink!"
"I'm not drinking! None of us should be. It's a really bad idea, guys. What if Azula found us? We'd be helpless and it just impairs your judgement."
"Uncle always said that it takes away your fear and makes you take more chances," Zuko said. "Makes you more likely to go for the thing you want." Zuko didn't dare glance toward Katara. Things like Katara.
"Plus, Zuko already said that Azula and Ozai don't visit here." Sokka reasoned.
"Azula came to the air temple!" Aang argued.
"Well, it was kind of dumb to go there," Zuko said.
"Why?" Aang asked angrily.
"It's an air temple. You are an air bender. It was the very first place I looked for you when I set out on my search for the avatar." Zuko explained.
"Sparky's got a point." Toph turned toward Aang, "relax twinkletoes."
"I'm going for a walk," Aang stood up ignoring Toph's advice, "Katara want to come with?"
Katara looked around the campfire to see Toph frowning, Suki looking up, Sokka shrugging, and Zuko looking away. "Um, sure." She stood and then followed him toward the front of the house. "oh wait! I forgot my waterskin," she walked back toward the campfire but stopped when she heard the others talking.
"Why does she always seem to do what he says?" Zuko asked.
"well not always, she left to find that raider guy," Sokka said.
"okay once out of a ton of times does not make it any better," Toph said, "In short she's a people pleaser. She would rather everyone be happy than herself."
"I wish she'd do more things for herself." Suki said softly.
"Well, she found mom's killer, learned waterbending and stole a waterscroll." sokka reasoned.
"please tell me that's not it," Zuko leaned back onto his hands.
"Though she did try to reason with Aang that she got the scroll for both of them, it was for her." Sokka remembered. "Aang did think that she was fighting Pakku for him to learn waterbending for him."
"You don't have to do this for me." Aang tried to reason.
"I'm not doing it for you!"
"and he tried so hard to keep her from going to find her mother's killer," Zuko said as he looked into the fire. "She needed that. It was something she trully needed to do for herself and he tried to stop her." Zuko sighed and brushed back his hair. "I think she needs the alcohol more than I do."
"I just wish she'd join us for some fun," Suki stared at the stars.
"Yeah, sugar queen should join us instead of following Twinkletoes' wishes." Toph said somewhat loudly.
Of course, Toph realizes I'm standing here. Katara silently made her way back towards Aang. Aang was balancing on top of a ball of air whirling about palm trees. Aang lives so free willed. Without care.
"Hey Katara!" Aang jumped off the ball and ran to her. So why can't I have just one night?
"Hey Aang, I just wanted to tell you that I'm going back." Aang's face fell.
"But, Katara. That's stuff is bad for you."
"I think one night isnt going to kill me." Katara pulled at her hair.
"Please, just stay with me." Aang smiled at her, but Katara never saw it. She was looking back toward the campfire. "Katara?"
"Hmmm? Oh, Aang I'm sorry. I just want to join in. If you change your mind please come join us," She flashed a smile before rushing back toward the campfire.
Aang sighed. "the monks always said that drinking is bad," he mumbled. Why, Katara? Why have you been ignoring me since the invasion. He touched his lips. I thought we were going to be together. Do you not want to be together? Is it because we failed? Because your dad was taken prisoner? Because I easily agreed in taking a sworn enemy into our group? He sighed. I wish I knew how you felt. I wish I knew if you loved me back.
Ok, like i said i will have the next chapter up as soon as i type it up. gonna start on it as soon as i finish uploading this chapter. and be warned there is going to be a lemony like scene at the end. i'm not going to put a warning up as those usually distract my reading. I will just assume you can guess when its beginning as it is fairly obvious. :D