The Forgotten Princess (SokkaxOC)

i. XXI

A/N; Alright folks I'm not going to sugarcoat this. If you've seen the show or spent any time reading ATLA fics you already know how this chapter is going to be. Buckle up.

(also some swearing in this if anyone cares)

Sokka P.o.V.

"This ship is sentimental to me. It was built by my father."

Sokka stared up in awe at the boat, still unable to process everything that had occurred the previous evening. Finding evidence of his tribe, meeting up with Bato, telling stories around the fire... even almost confessing his feelings to the girl he liked.

It was all very surreal.

"Is this the boat he took you ice dodging in?" Sokka asked the man.

Bato nodded. "Yeah. It's got the scar to prove it," he chuckled. "How about you, Sokka? You must have some good stories from your first time ice dodging."

Sokka's face fell, remembering how young he was when his dad had left. "He never got to go," Katara explained for him. "Dad left before he was old enough."

"Oh, I forgot you were too young," Bato admitted nervously.

"What's ice dodging?" Aang asked in a confused tone.

Surprisingly, Azami responded. "It's a rite of passage for young Water Tribe members," she explained to him, shocking the three southerners. "When you turn fourteen, your father takes you out in his boat and you along with a few others have to navigate through icebergs without the father's assistance. Usually there's three positions, awarding either the mark of the Wise, the Brave, or the Trusted, if completed successfully."

She paused, looking at the jaw-dropped expressions on the faces of the three Water Tribe members. "What?" she demanded, crossing her arms over her chest. "I spent most of my life studying different cultures."

Bato gave her an impressed look. "It's true Sokka was too young at the time, but considering that he's fifteen now..." his voice trailed off, and a smirk grew on his face. "You know what? You're about to see it for yourselves." Sokka's eyes widened as Bato placed a hand on his shoulder, and he smiled up at the man.

If only his father could see him now... he was finally going ice dodging!

The three boarded the boat, and started to head out. How they were supposed to go ice dodging without ice was beyond Sokka's understanding at the moment, but he trusted Bato. Overall, he was struggling to contain his excitement, but he was also nervous.

He would only get one shot at this. If he failed, he could in theory earn another attempt, but they'd have left Bato behind by then, and he had no idea when he'd be able to return home, or if he ever would. He was basically fighting in a war after all.

As they moved out to sea, Bato began to walk the four through the process. "Ice dodging is a ceremonial test of wisdom, bravery, and trust," he explained. "In our village, it was done by weaving a boat through a field of icebergs."

Sokka's curiosity was piqued. "How are we supposed to ice dodge without ice?" he questioned, still seeing a gaping hole in all of this.

Bato smiled, pointing ahead of them. "You'll be dodging those."

Glancing ahead, Sokka started to feel his nervousness rising at the sight of a cluster of jagged rocks sticking out of the water. Getting the boat through unscathed would be a serious challenge.

He gulped, unable to quell the twisting in his gut.

A soft hand gripped his shoulder, and he looked over in surprise to see Azami standing next to him. "Hey," she said softly. "You've got this." He smiled back gratefully, and taking a deep breath he readied himself for the challenge ahead.