playinginsand | [Rabbithole: Loo and Sokka, post Mikideath]

The Fire Palace is techincally a series of much smaller buildings grouped together and locked by walled footpaths and ornate gardens. The Imperial audience chambers are in the centre, near where the Royal family live in a smaller, heavily walled domicile. Guests are quartered in expansive rooms in one of the outer rings, a short walk away from the temple, used by all who live in the Palace.

One of the low buildings in the temple itself is dedicated to memorials to the departed. Smoke rises in thin worms from a thousand incense sticks, set before rolls representing the dead, individually or collectively. At the front, facing the worshipper as he enters, are twin rolls representing the parents of the current Fire Lord - one handsome king with his face marked by a hug burn scar, and one exotic looking blue eyed woman, sporting a scar of her own. As only four people in the world have ever met Melaka Fray, no one's arguing the likeness.

The victims of the recent border attack are in a temporary position next to Zuko. Each name is written out in perfect and careful calligraphy grouped by nation, and not one is left out, no matter who they might have been or which element they subscribed to. The sand in front of that scroll burns with more sticks than anywhere else, today.

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Louise sighs, melodramatically. "She thinks that little of us, doesn't she?"

"No, but she does think I can't wake up in the mornings without her shining presence to start my heart up again."

"You're managing here OK," she points out, and leans on him again. "I guess you'll both have to stay for a while."

"The only reason fits weren't thrown about me leaving for this long this time," Sokka points out, his voice soft, "is because of Miki. Even if my tribe said nothing about their chief being in the Fire Nation for months, every other leader of every other nation would have plenty to say. I can't ignore all of it.

"...no matter how much I want to."

Louise is silent for a second, looking down.

Sometimes it's worryingly easy to think that nher country is the only one that matters.

"You're right," she says. "That was selfish of me."

"And entirely too tempting for me to honestly consider." He sighs once and leans over to kiss her hair again, squeezing her hand once before releasing her arm, coming up on his door. "If I could figure out how, Loo, Hana never would have left, you and your brother, all of your children, all of mine, me, Steph... we'd be living together in some remote Earth Kingdom village.

"Until then, we just have to deal with reality."

"While you're wishing that," Louise says. "Can you put Mom and Dad there too, and have Jet still be alive without doing away with Ursa and the twins?"

She grins up at him again. "It's OK, Uncle. Don't strain too hard figuring it out."

"Well, I can at least try and include that pony Kanna's been asking for," he points out, smirking at her.

"A real pony, or a ponychicken?"

"She doesn't like birds - bad spill on a penguin when she was eight months old. Just a regular pony should do it."

"Well," Louise says. "It's not like you're making it more difficult for yourself. Can Ursa have a hyena?"

"Sure, I'll just teleport Shenzi over. Shouldn't be too hard, really. Got Steph here, didn't I?"

"Sounds like a plan," Louise says. "You let me know how that works out."

"Will do." He grins and squeezes her shoulder again before reaching back to push the screen to his room open. "See you at your fancy dinner, miss Louise. Don't forget to let Ursa show off right next to Issarok."

Louise grins, and hugs him quickly. "Seeya at dinner, Uncle Sokka."

Hugging her back tightly, Sokka drops a kiss to her hair and grins when he releases her. "See you there."

[Rabbithole: Loo and Sokka, post Mikideath]

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