NOTE (23/07/20) : i changed the ending of the previous chapter a bit, so you might want to check that out first! otherwise, enjoy and thanks for reading :) 

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"SOKKA, I DON'T WANT TO LEARN HOW TO USE YOUR BOOMERANG," Kida says. The two are walking through a forest, trying to decide what to do while Aang and Katara practice waterbending.

"Oh, and you think that I wanted to learn how to shoot arrows?" Sokka scoffs, kicking a small pebble in his path.

"No," Kida admits. "But, I wanted to prove that archery is not as easy as it looks."

"Which it is."

"Says the guy who almost shot an arrow through the Avatar's leg," Kida points out. "Just because a girl can do it, it doesn't make it easy."

"Fine," Sokka concedes. "I'm just saying, you decided what we did during our last training session; it's only fair that I choose this time. Aren't you the one who's all about equal rights?"

Kida sighs. "Okay, okay. You kind of have a point."

Sokka, who isn't paying attention to his surroundings, doesn't get to take pleasure in his win. Instead, he trips and stumbles, his body about to tumble down a small cliff. As a reflex, he grabs onto Kida's shirt and pulls her down with him. They land on the ground with a THUD! .

"That could have been worse," Sokka muses, after doing a quick scan of his body that revealed no injuries from the fall.

"Maybe for you," Kida groans. What Sokka didn't realize before is that he had fallen directly on Kida, his body having slammed into her ribcage, which softened the blow of their fall. Kida tries to sit up, but is stopped by an ache in her side.

"Aw, did I crush your delicate little ribs?" Sokka wonders with fake concern. He helps Kida up from the ground as she narrows her eyes and sticks her tongue out at him.

"Hey! Are you guys okay?" Katara asks, with genuine concern, as she and Aang slide down the hill to find the source of the commotion they had heard.

While Kida explains what happened, Sokka's eyes wander to land upon a stray knife. Instantly, he recognizes it as a Water Tribe weapon. He instructs the team to looks for anything else; their search leads Sokka to determine that a group of Water Tribe warriors must have ambushed some Fire Nation soldiers, and a battle occurred.

The trail leads them to the shore — and a boat from a Water Tribe fleet.

"Do you recognize it?" Kida asks.

"Yeah," Sokka says, entranced by the boat. He turns to smile at Katara. "Dad was here."

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THE TEAM DECIDES TO CAMP OUT NEXT TO THE SHIP. Katara and Aang fall asleep easily, but Kida has trouble because the pain in her side seems to intensify over time.

Out of the corner of her eye, she notices Sokka poking at the campfire and looking gloomier than usual. Kida decides that a conversation with him is probably less painful than the bruises on her ribs, even if it's only by a little. She moves to sit across from Sokka, the fire burning bright between them.

Sokka flicks his eyes to Kida, then back to the fire. "What do you want?"

"A distraction from the overwhelming pain I feel every time I take a breath," Kida says. "Which you caused, by the way."

"Sorry," Sokka mumbles.

As a silence starts to overtake them, Kida suddenly realizes something.

"You miss your dad," she states. "That's why you can't sleep." Kida knows she struck a chord with Sokka when he turns his head away, towards the darkness of the night. She studies the way the fire paints one side of his face in a soft glow, that somehow makes his jawline seem sharper. His eyes look darker, more subdued than they usually are.

"When he and the other men left our village, I wanted to go with them," he finally says, turning back to the fire.

"Why didn't you?" Kida asks softly.

"My dad said I was too young," Sokka explains. "I didn't care, though. I told him that I was strong and brave, and that I could fight, but he wouldn't listen."

"So you were left behind."

"My dad said that being a man is knowing where you're needed the most," Sokka answers solemnly. "He said that I needed to stay and protect Katara. I didn't understand."

"That's tough," Kida states. "Being a kid and burdened with all that responsibility, but still feeling like you're not doing enough."

Sokka raises his eyes to meet Kida's, surprised that what she said summarizes exactly what thoughts have been racing through his mind.

"Yeah."

"For what it's worth, I think your dad would be proud of you," Kida adds, trying to sound casual. "I obviously didn't know you then, but I think that now, you are all those things you said. You're strong and brave, and able to fight."

"What did you just say?" Sokka asks, with amusement.

Kida rolls her eyes. "I'm never going to repeat that again, so you better have heard it the first time."

Suddenly, a noise catches their attention. Sokka gets up and demands to know who's there; Kida tries to do the same, but the pain in her side stops her.

"Sokka?" a voice emerges from the shadows.

"Do you know this guy, or should I get my sword?" Kida whispers to Sokka.

"Bato?" Sokka exclaims in surprise.

"Okay, good," Kida sighs.

"Who the what now?" Aang wonders, waking up from his sleep.

"Bato!" Katara greets excitedly. She and Sokka run to hug Bato.

Aang tries to introduce himself, but is cut off by Sokka and Katara asking questions about their dad. Bato invites the group back to where he's staying. Sokka and Katara walk away with Bato, and Aang starts to follow, until he notices that Kida isn't.

"You good to go?" Aang asks.

Kida nods after struggling to get to her feet. "Yeah, I'll catch up."

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BATO LEADS THE GROUP TO AN ABBEY, where he had been staying since he had been wounded in battle. The group follows him to his tent, which Katara and Sokka are happy to find has been decorated like the ones back in the Southern Water Tribe.

"Everything's here, even the pelts!" Sokka notices.

"Yeah. Nothing's cozier than dead animal skins," Aang mumbles.

"Aang," Kida scolds. The Avatar looks to her and shrugs.

When everyone sits down for dinner (stewed sea prunes) and stories of the Southern Water Tribe, Kida, once again, starts to feel an ache on her left side when she attempts to lift the bowl to her mouth. Noticing Kida clutching her side, Bato asks:

"You're injured?"

"Yeah," Kida answers.

"I'm sure the Sisters would have some sort of cure," Bato explains. "They're just next door, if you'd like to check." Then, he goes back to retelling Katara and Sokka anecdotes from his youth.

When Kida starts to leave, she realizes that Aang, who she had a hunch was feeling left out, would have no one to talk to if Kida left.

"You can come with me," Kida suggests.

"I, I probably shouldn't," Aang hesitates.

Kida puts her hand on his shoulder. "I can stay, then?"

"No, you should go." Aang manages a small smile. "I'll be fine."

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BY MORNING, the Sisters had tended to Kida's wound — confirmed as a couple bruised ribs from a direct impact — and instructed her to get lots of rest. Because of this, Kida sleeps through breakfast, and is later woken up by a sharp jab to her side.

"Ow," Kida groans. She opens her eyes and sees Sokka staring back at her, knelt down beside her. "What are you doing here?"

"They, uh, sent me to check up on you."

"And bruise a couple more ribs?" Kida jokes. She tries to laugh, but immediately regrets it. She realizes that mundane tasks that require any sort of movement would cause pain. "Is Katara around? I think I'll need help braiding my hair."

"She and Aang went with Bato down to his ship. I'm supposed to meet them there soon, but...." Sokka hesitates. "I could braid your hair."

Kida looks to Sokka in disbelief. "You know how to braid hair?"

"Yeah, and I'm actually pretty good," Sokka defends, crossing his arms.

Kida raises her eyebrow. "You, Mr. Macho Man, can braid a girl's hair?"

"Yes!" Sokka exclaims. Quickly, he rises to his feet and pushes his shoulders back. "But, since you clearly don't want my help..."

"No, no. Wait, wait!" Kida protests, shooting up to try and stop him from leaving, but ultimately resting back down onto her elbows. "Can you help me? Please?"

"Fine," Sokka agrees. He walks and sits down behind Kida. He gently helps her move so that she can sit up, in front of him, facing away. "Are you comfortable?" he asks, softer than Kida expected.

She nods.

For a few minutes, there's only silence, and the feeling of Sokka gently maneuvering his fingers in Kida's hair. She closes her eyes.

"Where did you learn to braid?" she wonders.

"My grandmother," Sokka replies, still focused on the task at hand. "When Katara and I were little, she and my dad were sometimes busy taking care of things in the village. And our mom had just died, so that left me to help Katara do her hair. Eventually she got old enough to do it on her own, but I still remember how. Speaking of which...done!"

Kida opens her eyes. "I have a piece of string to tie it off —"

"No worries," Sokka assures. "I just used mine. And, I braided some into your hair, like you usually do."

"Oh, thanks." She touches the section of hair, which frames one side of her face, and moves it in front of her eyes. Kida isn't used to seeing her dark hair intertwined with blue thread, but she didn't mind the look. After she examines the braid, she turns her head to Sokka, who had shifted to sit next to her. She's surprised to see his hair out of the usual wolf's tail; instead, it falls in choppy sections around his face. "Really, thank you."

Sokka gets up to leave. "It was my way of thanking you."

"For...?"

"Well, first, it's an apology for breaking your delicate little ribs," he says. "And then, it's a thank you for what you said last night. How I'm strong, and brave, and a better fighter than you..." Sokka taunts.

Kida's jaw drops. "I never said that last one!" As Sokka exits the tent, she adds: "I'm keeping this string! You're never getting it back," she says as if it's a threat.

Sokka pokes his head in. "It's fine. I have extra." He smirks, then finally walks away.

Kida shakes her head, but can't help but laugh, before laying back down.