006 - Rip Van Sokka

[alwayscomeback]

Who: Sokka and you!
Broadcast: Fleetwide
Action: Blue Fish
When: Right now!

[Sokka has finally awoken from cryosleep. He looks a little older (which, of course, he is, he's a whole 19 years now) and his hair is in disarray, but awake he is. His communicator catches him sitting upright, blinking confusedly around him as he tries to sort through three years worth of memories and try to work out where the hell he is.

After a few moments, the pieces fall into place, and he lets out a low groan, flopping back on his bed.]

Ugh. I thought I was done with this place.

[Then, he gets up, reluctantly, ties his hair back up in a pony tail, and heads up the hatch and out into the Blue Fish himself. It's like going back to a dream. Or maybe a nightmare. The familiarity is fuzzy and off, but it's slowly creeping back to him. ]

Comments

[alwayscomeback]

Right. Well, that is pretty important. You need to save energy for that.

[He gives a shrug. ]

Apparently? Sure did for me. I spent three years at home. Like. Three whole years.

[forcemageure]

Yes, let's just hope they're not yours.

[ Inevitably, now that he's said that, they will be. But Slay gives no appearance of having heard or taken notice; wouldn't do to give the game away so soon! ]

Really. Well, that explains all this. [ He gestures around his own face; 'all this' apparently being like, how Sokka is older. They can tease each other about this forever. Just like he would Carver. ]

Any exciting coming of age tales to share?

[ There are audible tildes around 'come of age.' The silly kind, not the legitimate accent kind. ]

[alwayscomeback]

Fingers crossed.

[Oh he knows. He knows his fate is sealed. Woe is he. Sokka rubs his own face, thoughtfully.] And yet, still no scruffy unkept beard. I'm falling behind.

[Sibling banter, he can do, and Hawke is less likely to shriek at him for it like Katrara is. ]

Mostly it was spent travelling the world and trying to stop people from causing destruction from their own stupidity. I didn't get to do a whole lot of coming of age stuff.

[Ain't no rest for Team Avatar.]

[forcemageure]

[ At this point, as if to prove everyone in the vicinity prophetic, Slay decides he's eaten enough and slinks across the kitchen to twine around Sokka's ankles. He smells familiar and yet not familiar!!! Slay must unravel this mystery by sniffing his shoes. Oh, then biting his Achilles' tendons if Sokka doesn't hop to petting quickly enough. ]

Maker, you don't want one of those:

[ Hawke winces, stroking his defiantly clean-shaven chin. ]

What if the cats thought there was a rodent clinging to your face? Bitten ankles would be the least of your problems.

[ This vacation away sounds hideously familiar. He winces elaborately. ]

Oh, I don't know. That sounds like the usual rite of passage to me.

[ Hawke, your life is not like other people's. ]

[alwayscomeback]

[Sokka, of course, does not pet soon enough and kitty punishment is extracted upon him. Sokka yelps, trying to skip away from the BITEY TEETH. ]

Slay, quit it!!! OW THAT'S A TENDER PART!!!

[He gives a shrug, trying to nudge the cat away. ]

Oh then I've got a whole heap of that sort of experience under my belt.

[forcemageure]

Sorry to hear it.

[ Deadpan. And they're actually in the kitchen, so pans are available!

He tsks at Slay, who of course ignores him, instead purring even more louderer and resuming ankle-twining, like he's benevolently giving Sokka another chance. ]

I'd offer to help you out, but he won't listen to a word I say.

[ Cats. Meanwhile there is a pause, wherein Hawke keeps looking at Slay, because eye contact for this would just be too personal or something. ]

Nice to have you back.

[alwayscomeback]

Of course he won't, he listens to no one. Cat, I swear I'll sit on you.

[No one wants eye contact or feelings or anything weird and uncomfortable like that. No one. Sokka gives an unassuming dude-shrug.]

It's good to be back.

[forcemageure]

[ Ah, the dude-shrug. Hawke knows it well. ]

Maker, no. He'll be sitting on you before you know it.

[ Actually that's exactly what appears to be on the way to happening, since Slay has hopped onto a counter and is now ramming his head into Sokka's arm at chest level. ]

[alwayscomeback]

[Sokka makes a frustrated uggh sound, before reluctantly petting the cat's head.]

This is under duresss, cat.

[forcemageure]

[ Slay shoves himself up onto his tiny back feet, like a little ballerina. Duress is fine, it's just a good thing he doesn't have access to actual knives. Hawke looks on, amused. ]

You missed the attention, I can tell.

[alwayscomeback]

Oh yeah, this is the thing I missed the most.

[And yet, he still pets.]

[forcemageure]

We let him serve as captain in your absence.

[ How serious is he. ]

[alwayscomeback]

[There's a significant pause, as Sokka looks from Hawke to cat. ]

It's really terrifying that I can't tell if you're joking.

[forcemageure]

Neither can I, really.

[ He shrugs, smilingly. Slay bites the outside of Sokka's hand. Tenderly. ]

[alwayscomeback]

AUGH, CAT, NO. NO.

[Yeah, like cats listen to such things. ]

Yep. This is exactly the sort of welcome back I needed. Great.

[forcemageure]

[ Slay is listening, he's just hearing 'yes, yes this is working.' He would hear everything short of 'spray bottle' this way. ]

Nice to be missed, isn't it?

[ If that drawl got drier everyone in here would need to make a run for the sink. ]

[alwayscomeback]

Oh yeah, I feel like the most loved person ever right now.