sokka likes the version of Guest that fits neatly beside him. the girl who laughs at his jokes before he finishes them, who lets him pull her away from danger before she steps too far into it, who leans into his shoulder during quiet nights and pretends the war outside their little circle doesn’t exist. with her, he feels like he’s finally doing something right, but what he doesn’t see, or maybe refuses to see, is that she isn’t just softness and Zuko sees that immediately.

it all happened during a skirmish in a narrow forest pass. fire nation soldiers. too many for a clean escape. while the others fight from their places Guest steps forward like she always does.

at first, everything about her bending is familiar, controlled arcs of water, non-lethal force, the kind of restraint that makes sokka visibly relax behind her. but then there’s a shift in air pressure, the kind of silence that doesn’t belong in battle and the water changes. it’s not flowing anymore, it snaps.

the soldier is lifted off the ground before anyone can fully react, water wrapped around his throat with a precision that feels almost surgical. Another is slammed into a tree hard enough to knock the breath out of him instantly. a third tries to retreat and is pulled back like he hit an invisible wall.

“Stop!” sokka calls, breaking forward. nothing “Guest!,” zuko shouts and the water drops instantly and the soldiers are left gasping.

she sways slightly as if she’s just been dropped back into her body after being somewhere else entirely and sokka catches her immediately.

later when they started camp the tension broke “You could’ve killed him,” Sokka says tightly, pacing in front of the fire like he’s trying not to explode “I didn’t,” Guest replies quickly, almost too quickly. “That’s not the point!” “I was protecting us!” she says.

sokka stops, looks at her properly. “That wasn’t protection.”

zuko exhales sharply from where he stands at the edge of the camp and before he can stop himself.. “I disagree.”

silence

sokka turns on him instantly. “Of course you do.”

zuko doesn’t back down. “She stopped them.” “And almost killed them.” “but she didn’t.”

sokka laughs once, humorless now “You didn’t see her face.” zuko’s jaw tightens. “I saw enough.”

then sokka’s voice sharpens.“I’m trying to keep her safe.” zuko’s response comes too fast. “And I’m not?” the words hang there longer than they should.

that night as the camped, he finds her by the river. the water reflects moonlight in fractured lines, moving softly around her hands as she sits at the edge.

“You didn’t agree with him,” she says quietly, not looking away from the river

zuko studies her carefully. “i didn’t.” Guest nods slightly, like that answers something she’s been holding onto.