Eternal

icewhisker21:

A bouquet of roses.

Azula’s amber eyes took in the bright red petals…sharp
thorns…and dark green leaves that followed each individual stem till it was
lost behind pretty tissue paper wrapped in a ribbon. She then looked at the
nervous man who stood before her, trying his damned hardest to put on a good
facade. 

An elegant eyebrow rose “What is this?” Of course she knew what
he was doing. She just found it amusing to watch him stumble. 

“Uh…they’re roses” Sokka stated, fidgeting where he stood. Dark
blue eyes shifted back to examine the flowers quickly, wondering if one of them
had suddenly died. It would only be his luck that such a thing would
happen. 

Azula rolled her eyes, as she crossed her arms “I know what they
are idiot. What I want to know is what you are trying to do.”  

Sokka blushed, “I’m- well, they’re for you.” He held them
out to her as he stuttered “I mean obviously you must know they’re for you,
because why would I just randomly show up with roses. They’re certainly not to
confess my love for you or anything.” He just wanted to run back the way he had
come. Why couldn’t he just get the words out right? He must have recited this a
thousand times to himself before showing up to the palace. Today was important
and he wanted to get it right.

Azula smirked, loving every second of this “No, most certainly
not. Why would you want to confess such a thing to your former enemy?”

Sokka shook his head, getting the rest of his nerves together
“Listen Azula, we’ve been dating for a year now and today’s our anniversary.
I’m not good at planning anything romantic, so instead I got you fifty roses.”
He handed them over to her.

“Don’t you think that’s a bit too much? What am I supposed to do
with them?” Azula asked, taking them from him. They were…pretty, she guessed.
What was the point? They would just blend in with the rest of the traditional
Fire Nation red decorating every inch of this palace. Besides, she didn’t care
for such insignificant things. He must know that by now.  

Sokka grinned, glad that
she asked “Ah, but you see, they’re not just for pretty decoration. Fifty roses
is a show of unconditional love.”

Azula blushed lightly,
hating how his charm suddenly seemed to kick into gear, shifting the control in
their interactions. “What are you trying to say…?”

“It’s exactly as it sounds…”
he smiled affectionately, loving whenever her tough exterior wavered. It
allowed him to see what no one else was privileged to witness and that’s just
the way he liked it. He took the flowers from her and placed them on a table
nearby. He then wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her in close. His
right hand reached up to brush aside her hair gently “You mean more to me than
any words can express. A novel wouldn’t even be close enough to cover it all.”

Azula scoffed, her face
heating up even more. She couldn’t decide whether this was the cheesiest thing
he had ever said or the sweetest. Neither answer would quite sum up the unique
personality he had. “You’re such a dork…A novel? Is that the best you can come
up with?”  

Sokka laughed, “Oh no,
there’s more…” He then reached into his shirt and pulled out an entirely
different flower. It was smaller than the roses with white pedals and black
lining the edges. “This is a white panda lily. You’re supposed to give it to
the person you have deep feelings for to win them over.”   

“And you haven’t?” She
asked, trying to suppress the stupid smile on her face. Damn him.

“I think I have…” He
grinned, placing the flower in her hair “Perfect. Brings out your eyes and that
smile I adore so much. My dear, you are truly breathtaking.”

“All right,” Azula pushed
against him playfully, trying not to laugh “Now you’re just over selling it.”

“I probably am but there is
no limit to expressing how much I care for you.” He leaned down to kiss her
lips softly. His arms wrapped securely around her, making sure that there was
no space left between them.  Azula
returned the affection with just as much passion, her hands reaching up to play
with his wolf’s tail. The kiss was long and deep, both of their hearts
hammering loudly but just enough so only the other could hear it. Breaking
their kiss, Sokka whispered “Happy anniversary Azula. I love you.”

Azula shook her head, hating
and loving the way he could make her feel so special. It was moments like this
that reminded her of how lucky she was to have him “I love you too.”

Sweet! And in-character!