Just Another Horrible Day
South Pole
100 AG
Southern Water Tribe Village
08:00 AM
Sokka's mornings were fairly routine now, after two years as the only man in the village.
Wake up around 6, get clean, get dressed, patrol the surrounding areas, help with some basic upkeep of the village, and assist the older women of the village with preparing breakfast before Katara woke up, and reminding them that they shouldn't tell Katara or he would never hear the end of it.
All that would take a little over 2 hours, and then it was time to wake up Katara to take her hunting so she could practice her magic water tricks that may lead to his getting hypothermia.
So Sokka had been awake a little over 2 hours and had gotten around 5 hours of sleep since it was his job as the sole man of the village to keep watch as everyone went to bed and for as long as possible into the night. Alas, he was only human and as he learned in the early months of the men's absence, he needed sleep. But because the Fire Nation could show up at any given moment Sokka could only get 4 hours of sleep, and it was restless at that.
He'd taken about a year and a half to acclimate to his new schedule, but he knew it was taking it's toll on him and that he'd soon need to catch up on his missed sleep. But that could wait until winter and until then he was gathering food and helping where he could ad best he could given the circumstances.
All of this, of course, he did without Katara's knowledge. If she knew he was skipping out on sleep she'd flip her lid and start screaming so loud Tui and La could hear her from the spirit world.
So he worked hard when she wasn't looking and kept up the image of an aloof teenager for her sake and the kids', all while he felt nothing of the sort.
And now it was two hours after he woke up and it was time to bundle up as though he was asleep and prod Katara hard enough to rouse her but not enough to know she was being roused.
Sokka quickly stripped his coat off and folded his over shirt up, before setting them aside and worming his way back into his pallet and roll. Finally, he reached his foot out and prodded Katara in the side, and when he heard her groan he pulled his foot back to himself and played at being asleep. Soft snores and relaxed eyelids; a look he's mastered over the course of two years.
He was on the cusp of dozing when Katara kicked him and he yelped in surprise, looking up to see her looming over him in her patented "mom pose" with a scowl on her face.
"Katara, what the hell?" He whined as he did every morning. "I was having such a good dream..." He rolled onto his side and pretended to rub the sleep from his eyes. It may have been only a few minutes in the comfort of his bed but it was enough to tease his body into exhaustion. The lack of sleep was really catching up with him.
"Wake up lazy bones," she scolded, much like every morning. "You're taking me fishing today, remember?"
Sokka nodded and sat up, pushing his blankets away and reaching for his clothes that he'd worn not even 20 minutes ago. "Yeah, I know," he groused, annoyance bubbling in his chest. 'She wouldn't cal me lazy if she knew what I did to help around the village, I know that much,' he thought, contemplating telling her for a moment but ultimately deciding against it. 'No she can call me lazy, that's how I portray myself when she's around. She can't know what I'm doing, she'd feel bad. She's my kid sister, I can't ask that of her,'. He shook his head as he pulled his shirt on for the second time today. "Katara, since you're already up you go on ahead. I'll be out in a few minutes," he suggested, standing up and stretching his arms. "Warrior stretches and all that," he clarified, grinning back at her unimpressed face.
She rolled her eyes and turned to leave. "Ugh, fine. But if you're not out here soon I will come to get you, alright Sokka?" She acted as though he was a child. Sokka felt his heart clench.
'She's younger than me, she shouldn't act like a mom that's not how she should feel to act oh Tui protect her I just-' he smiled at her and nodded. "Yeah yeah, I hear you Katara, now get out of here," he laughed and turned away, turning his attention to his coat and boots.
Once she left, he quickly pulled both back on, trying to ignore his twirling thoughts and the apprehension about today. Something was going to happen, he just knew it, and whatever it was it was going to change their lives.
He knew he was being irrational, they lived in the South Pole after all. Change was rare and often came in the form of foreign ships. But so far in life his instincts had only failed him once and that wasn't enough to fully discredit them to him.
As he stepped outside he took a look at what was left of his village. Children, mothers, and elderly women. It wasn't right.
'But since when is war right?'
Sokka paused at that.
'The air nomads were as peaceful as they come, and they got slaughtered,'
His chest seized. Sokka placed a fist on his constricting heart. His head hurt.
"I have to stop thinking about that," he whispered, slowly pulling his gloves onto shaky hands. "We're fine here," he said, trying to convince himself that such was the truth. "I need to stay strong, for them," he wiped a tear away, standing up straight and heading outside.
As he looked around he saw a half dozen or so children chasing eachother around the fire, while the older women tittered amongst themselves and kept Katara from the cooking, occupying her instead with serving food and gathering the children for breakfast.
'If not for them...' He started towards fire and food, plastering a smile on his face as he approached with a wave. "What's cooking?" He laughed, grinning at the older women around the food. They gave him a knowing look. "Alright alright," he said, putting his hands up as he turned to his sister. "I hear you're serving food," he said, grinning at the girl before him. Her eyes were more familiar than they ought to be, not entirely her own.
"Sokka!" She scolds, glaring at him playfully. His heart aches again at the sight. It was both peacefully domestic and made clear the losses of the village. "'Bout time you got out here, I," she served a bowl pf stew with a flourish of the ladle, "Was about to serve your portions to the polar dogs," she held his bowl out to him, smiling.
She was halfway between a grown woman and a little girl, he noted with some sadness. Her eyes were still large like the children's, and she still had a face round with childhood fat, but he cheeks and brow seemed more mature, the light in her eyes more serious, her posture resembled that of an adult.
In the back of his mind, his memory supplied him with a vague image of their mother.
He took the bowl. "Thanks Katara," he said, with a genuine smile this time.
She smiled with a nod and turned away to round up the children not yet near the fire.
'Then maybe for her,' Sokka picked up his spoon, resolving himself.
'Definitely for her,'
End of Chapter 3