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The halls of the Fire Nation Palace were silent, broken occasionally by the leaves fluttering against the crisp autumn wind, and the splashes of the family of turtle ducks in the nearby pond.
Sokka shifts the weight in his arms, and sighs to himself. He should be mad at her, he really should, but it's hard to stay angry when she's like this, all soft and sleepy against him, her arms wound warm and tight around his neck.
He would say she's adorable, but even in her state of lethargy he knows that Azula is still--and will always be--deadly.
He sighs again. "You really should not have gotten out of bed."
She mumbles something he couldn't quite hear, and lifts her head from where she'd been nuzzling his neck. "They needed me at the meeting," she says softly, her eyes still closed.
Sokka scoffs, and pulls her body closer to his as he makes his way to their chambers. He tries not to think about how much lighter she has gotten lately. "You've been dizzy and vomiting almost non-stop for weeks now. I'm sure they'll cut you some slack," he tells her, and makes a mental note to have a word with Zuko later.
Azula pulls back from him and looks at him with narrowed eyes. "You know how hopeless Zuzu can get when it comes to forging complicated trade deals," she says, and smiles when he didn't say anything to disprove her statement. "I don't want the economy to collapse while I'm confined to weeks' worth if bed rest!"
Sokka shakes his head. His wife, ever the workaholic. He would have ran a hand down his face if he wasn't carrying her. "Azula," he coos, caressing her shoulder with his thumb, "the economy will be fine!"
"But--"
"No 'buts'!" He cuts her off, pausing in his steps to look at her sternly. "You need to rest."
"I'm tired of resting!" Azula shoots back. "I'm fine."
Sokka groans. "No you're not, 'Zula! Look at you, you can't even hold yourself up." She glares at him but he ignores her. "Remember what Katara said? This isn't an ordinary case of morning sickness. You need to keep your strength."
She scowls. "I've been getting better--" she mumbles, and abruptly cuts off and scrunches her eyes closed when what Sokka assumes as another wave of nausea hits.
"You were saying, Princess?" he asks with a smirk as she buries her face back into the crook of his neck.
"Fuck you, Sokka," she mutters, pressing herself into his warmth.
Sokka's smirk widens, and he leans down to press a kiss into her hair. "Yeah, that's how we got here ya know?"
He couldn't help but laugh when Azula lifts a hand to give him a smack at the side of his head.
＊＊＊
The bed was ready and adorned with more pillows when they made it back to their room. He places her carefully down the the bed and helps her change into a new set of sleeping robes.
"You okay?" Sokka asks as he sits on the edge of the bed, not bothering to hide the worry from his voice. Azula pulls the covers up to her waist and lays her head down her favorite red pillow.
"What do you think?"
Sokka frowns and sighs. Her skin is paler than usual, her face drawn, and her hair limp. "I'm guessing the answer is no," he replies.
It was Azula's turn to sigh. "I told you, I've been getting better," she tells him, reaching out to cup his face and smooth out the creases on his brow with her fingers. "I've been throwing up less."
Sokka shakes his head. "It'd be better if you stopped throwing up altogether."
"I didn't throw up during the meeting, didn't I?" Azula says, a small smile playing on her lips. "And besides, I've been managing to keep the food down these past few days."
"Katara said you'll be past this stage once the first trimester is over," Sokka says in reassurance, more to himself than her. Azula had been ordered to stay in bed because of her condition, and he spent many sleepless nights worrying about her while he had to attend to things in Ba Sing Se.
"See? I'll be fine. We'll be fine." Azula tells him, her fingers still caressing his cheek.
Sokka exhales. "Yes, but until then...no stressing over things. No training, no working..."
"Now wait just a minute--" Azula protests, sitting up suddenly and laying back down when her head started spinning. "You know I can't not work."
He clicks his tongue in irritation and leans over to stroke her hair and massage her temples. "Here we go again. I told you, the Fire Nation will be stay upright even if you took a break for a couple more weeks."
"Zuko--"
"Your brother can handle things by himself. He's a grown ass man," Sokka grumbles, moving his hands to work his fingers on the back of her neck. "You need to stop worrying about things. It's bad for the baby."
Azula frowns, but eventually relaxes and nods, and grabs one of his hands to give his knuckles a soft kiss. "I just wanted to straighten everything out, before--"
"I know, I know," Sokka says, tucking one of her side bangs behind her ear. "But you shouldn't push yourself so hard. I mean, I know Baby would like a booming textile trade but he would want his Mommy to be happy and healthy first."
Azula chuckles and gives his cheek a soft pinch. "You seem so sure," she says, gazing deep into his eyes.
"Of what?" Sokka asks, covering her hand on his cheek with his own
"That it's a boy," she answers, her other hand traveling down to rest on her abdomen.
Sokka shrugs. "I dunno. I just have a hunch."
"What if it's a girl?" Azula asks, her eyebrow raised.
"Oh, then great!" Sokka laughs, his hand now resting on her abdomen too. "We'll have a little you!"
Azula laughs. "You sure you're up for that?"
"Oh babe, I'm up for anything!"
"What if...the baby turns out to be as stubborn as me?" She asks again, her voice now soft.
Sokka smiles and shakes his head. "'Zula, I wouldn't have it any other way," he tells her, bending forward to seal the deal with a gentle peck on her lips.
Azula sighs as her mouth meets his, and hums when he tilts his head to deepen the kiss. They break apart after a few moments, and she wraps her arms around his neck to lock him in place. "I missed you," she whispers into his ear, basking in his warmth and his scent.
Sokka's heart leaps in his chest like it always does when she's near. "And I missed you too, so much," he answers, showering her face and neck with soft, tender kisses.
"Will you be heading out again?" Azula asks, her fingers now playing with the small hairs on the nape of his neck. The sadness in her voice is not lost to him.
Sokka pulls back so he can look at her eyes. It's been hard for the both of them, with him being called to travel around and her needing to stay in the Palace. He has to stay with her, especially now, when he knows she needs him the most. "No, not for a long while. I told the council I'm gonna be attending to more pressing matters."
"Oh?" she asks with a smirk. "And what would these 'pressing matters' be?"
"You." Sokka says, his grin wide. "And I told them that if they won't allow me to take time off and be with my pregnant wife, then they can kiss my ass!"
Azula laughs out loud and playfully shoves his shoulders. "And they say I'm gonna be the one to restart the war! You are a damn idiot."
"I didn't say it like that!" Sokka whines. "Not exactly like it anyway." The truth was it had been more forceful, and vulgar. But it made King Kuei shut up immediately.
Azula laughs again and shakes her head. "Water Tribe peasant, what ever am I going to do with you?"
"Love me, marry me, make babies with me?" Sokka tries, his brows wiggling.
"Done, done, and done." Azula answers with a smile as she runs her fingers through his messy hair.
"We'll have more right? Babies," Sokka asks, biting his lip.
"Let's see what happens with this one first, yes?" Azula replies, pulling him back into her embrace.
"Hey, fine by me," Sokka says, happily sinking into her arms and burying his face into the crook of her neck. "But wait!" He pulls away and sits up, crossing his arms to look down at her with as much force as he can muster.
"What?" Azula asks, her voice heavily laced with irritation. She opens her arms out. "Come back here!"
Sokka growls in his throat and tries not to give in. She really is freaking adorable when she's being needy like this. But he had to maintain a tone. "We still haven't agreed."
"On what?"
"On you taking a break from Princess duties!"
Azula groans loudly and drops her hands down her sides in defeat. "Sokka, I told you--"
"And I told you--!"
She pushes herself up to sit, crosses her arms, and glares at him.
"Oh. You want it like that? Fine." He puffs his chest, and glares at her in return.
Minutes pass, and Sokka's eye begins to twitch. He groans and throws his hands up, scowling at his wife's answering smug smirk.
"You're not going to stop, are you?"
"No," she replies, pursing her lips and jutting her chin forward, looking every bit like the esteemed Princess that she is.
"How about this," Sokka says, placing his hands on her shoulders. "How about I attend the trade meetings in your place?"
"And the diplomacy ones," Azula says.
Sokka winces. He hates those. "Fine, and the diplomacy meetings."
Azula nods. "Good. And the internal affairs, fiscal, armed forces..."
"Spirits dammit, Azula! What the hell am I gonna do in those?"
"If you don't attend, then I will!"
Sokka groans again, and runs a hand down his face. "Shit. Alright. I'll attend the trade, diplomacy, internal affairs, fiscal, and armed forces meetings. Happy now?"
"And have all the reports sent here," Azula adds.
"What part of 'don't stress yourself' is hard to understand?"
"I'm not gonna be stressing over them!" Azula protests. "That's Zuko's job. I'll just go over them to keep updated. It's boring in here!"
"Fine," Sokka agrees, dropping his head. "I'll tell Zuko to have all reports sent to you, stat."
"Thank you!" Azula scoffs.
"Alright, alright," Sokka grumbles, trying hard not to stay stern. "Now lay back down, Princess. You and my kid need your sleep."
"But--"
"Azula," Sokka admonishes, narrowing his eyes at her for effect.
"Fine," she mutters, rolling her eyes. She fluffs her pillow and lays down with a huff. He arranges the blanket carefully around her before kissing her forehead, her lips, and her belly.
Sokka stands, and heads for the door.
"And where do you think you're going?" Azula calls out.
"I'm going to let your brother know about the new arrangement," And maybe give him a piece or two of my mind.
From his position he can see Azula begin to pout. Pout! "Now?"
"Yeah," Sokka says. "I'll be back in no time, promise."
This seems to have appeased her, for now. "Alright."
He pauses at the division between their inner chambers and receiving room. "Try not to miss me too much, alright babe?"
A red object flew in his field of vision, barely leaving him time to dodge. "Just go," Azula snaps.
"Love you too!" Sokka answers, and sprints before Azula decides to throw a lightning bolt instead of a pillow.