Chapter Text
Sokka does not remember getting his soulmarks.
He is born with three—one that Sokka cannot sense; another that radiates warmth; and a third that brings him a sense of security.
This sometimes happens, his parents explain to him, that sometimes someone's mark is faded. It's a sad situation, something that shouldn't happen in an ideal world—but something that happens if your soulmate is simply no longer in this world.
“However,” Kya says thoughtfully, “it's a little strange, isn't it, Hakoda?”
“Yes,” Hakoda agrees. “Normally, the marks appear when your soulmate is born and fade when they die. For someone to be born with a soulmark that is already faded...”
They exchange glances, and Sokka realizes that his soulmate probably died on the day Sokka was born.
The only problem is that Katara also has the same mark, also faded.
Sokka doesn't remember when he got Katara's mark. He must have gotten it when Katara was born, when she first opened her eyes—but he was little then and, well, he just doesn't remember the moment when her mark appeared on his skin.
He gets another one two years after Katara's birth—the last one, Sokka feels it instinctively. The marks complement each other; including the faded one, an empty space in their bond, a space that should never be empty, that should be teeming with life.
It's a strange feeling, mourning someone you never knew.
Feather – that's what Sokka and Katara call their missing soulmate – is just a mark on their skin, like a birthmark they were born with and can't get rid of. But Sokka likes to look at it, even if sometimes he is overcome with such great sadness, because whoever Feather was, they were theirs... But this world took them away, ensuring that Sokka would never meet them.
Bonfire brings warmth that Sokka likes to cling to on cold days. And some part of Sokka has an unpleasant suspicion that Bonfire might be from the Fire Nation—but at the same time, their presence doesn't bring anything bad. It's just... they're always somewhere nearby. Sokka senses them on the edge of his consciousness and just knows that Bonfire is a good person. Bonfire is one of the marks Sokka was born with, which means they are older than him, which makes Sokka sometimes think of them as his older sibling.
Fan carries with them a sense of protection. Sokka always senses them, their presence somewhere on the edge of his consciousness. They’re not from the Southern Water Tribe — which is a bit interesting, since Sokka and Katara are two of the few people whose soul family is mostly outside the Tribe.
Katara's mark is a whirlpool, which makes sense when you consider that Katara is a Waterbender. Sokka often runs his thumb over the small mark on his arm, feeling it pulsate with life. He senses Katara best and most strongly, being able to easily locate her in the village. And no wonder, since they have been close to each other since birth and their bond is simply the strongest.
Crystal radiates strength and confidence, but at the same time, every now and then, you can feel great sadness emanating from them. Sokka can't do anything about it until he meets them, so all he can do is send them his feelings, support, and warmth, hoping that it will help. One day, when they meet, Sokka will find out what happened to them.
Sokka is curious about who his soulmates are, of course he is.
And Feather fascinates him the most.
“It doesn't make sense,” he confesses to his father one evening. “If Feather died when I was born, why does Katara have their mark too?”
This is something Sokka and Katara have in common—they are part of the same soul family. Six people. Six, of whom only five remain in this world.
What happened to Feather?
“Even if Feather was part of our soul family, let's say, Bonfire or Fan were born with their mark, Feather must have died when I was born,” Sokka wonders aloud. It's not a pleasant topic, but it's the truth. “But then why did Katara get the same mark? I thought you need two people to create a marks, so Feather must have gotten a mark too, when Katara was born, but if Feather is dead... Maybe they're actually alive, but something happened to them? Maybe they were imprisoned by the Spirits?”
Not that he believes in their existence, but he decides to create this theory anyway.
Katara looks at him curiously.
“Maybe they're hiding somewhere?” she suggests. “Or maybe they don't have hands, or something happened to their soulmarks?”
Soulmarks are sacred. Few people have them in the same place, few people show them to strangers — because they are a symbol of your connection to your soul family. Many people in the Tribe hide their soulmarks, not because they are ashamed of them, but because they are incredibly precious to them. Because they want to protect them. Because soulmarks are incredibly important and they are private. They are a part of you, something that belongs only to you and your soul family. Sokka hasn't met his soulmates (except for Katara, of course), but he already knows that he would do anything to protect his soul family.
“I don't know,” Sokka admits. “Maybe they're somewhere far away and we just can't sense them?”
“Bonfire is Fire, but we can sense them,” Katara lowers her voice slightly.
This is something they have learned not to talk about. Bonfire is part of the Fire Nation, but at the same time they are their. The Southern Water Tribe probably won't accept them, and no wonder—the Fire Nation brings so much evil, so much destruction—but that doesn't matter to Sokka and Katara. It doesn't matter because Bonfire is theirs, period.
“Hmm,” Sokka ponders. “Maybe Feather is a bird?”
“A bird?” Katara repeats, amused.
“Their soulmark is literally a feather!” Sokka points out. “So they could be an animal, and that's why we can't sense them!”
“If they were an animal, we should be able to sense them!”
“What if they’re far away, very high up, so high that we can't sense them? Or somewhere deep, at the bottom of the ocean?”
“That's impossible!” Katara objects. “Why would a bird be at the bottom of the ocean?”
“Maybe Feather is some other kind of animal, only we're not aware of it? Or are they hiding somewhere?”
“I don't know,” Katara shrugs.
But her indifference is only feigned. It doesn't take long before she joins him in trying to find an explanation for why they can't sense one of their soulmates. They know that Feather is probably already dead; it's a knowledge they've grown up with; but that doesn't stop them from dreaming.
Having a soul family can sometimes be incredibly annoying; other times, it can be incredibly useful.
Sokka is always able to sense them. Usually, it's just someone's presence, on the edge of his consciousness, but sometimes he can sense their emotions, their feelings. If they are stronger, it happens without Sokka's consent—he just senses them, which... isn't always pleasant, to be honest. If his soulmates are happy, Sokka also finds himself wanting to smile. But sometimes his soul family is not happy; they can be irritated, frightened, or sad.
The worst part is that Sokka doesn't know why this is happening. He senses his soulmates' emotions, but he can't get answers to the questions “why?” and “what's going on?”
Sometimes, however, the presence of his soul family is incredibly useful.
Sokka learns this the hard way one cold day.
Later, Sokka will come to the conclusion that part of it was his fault.
But on that day, the potential consequences of his actions don't even cross his mind.
He is simply annoyed—annoyed that everyone treats him like a child. He is almost ten years old, which makes him almost an adult. Meanwhile, his father won't let him go hunting with the other men. Sokka is fed up with this—because Sokka is an adult, he knows how to hunt, he is able to help others, he wants to do something.
So, one day he decides to follow his father.
It's a simple plan. Sokka takes some warm clothes, grabs his boomerang (he could take his spear, but Sokka is simply better at using a boomerang), and heads in the direction where the men and his father went.
It's not particularly difficult to follow Hakoda.
Sokka sees his tracks in the snow, and besides, Hakoda didn't particularly try to hide his presence—why would he?
So Sokka follows him. And everything goes well—until an animal runs past him, appearing suddenly, too suddenly, surprising Sokka.
Sokka doesn't scream. He definitely does not scream like a little girl, because that wouldn't be manly behavior. But there is a possibility that, surprised—definitely not terrified—he jumps aside. To avoid a potential attack, because Sokka is a warrior and is aware that he could be attacked.
The problem arises when Sokka falls into the snow.
Because this snow is not just snow—because Sokka hears a strange sound, something really unpleasant, something like something breaking and...
And it really does break, because there was ice hidden under the snow– no, an ice cover, why didn't Sokka consider that it might be a frozen lake? Since when is there a lake here? It wasn't there yesterday. But then again, has Sokka ever been here before?
All thoughts flee his head when Sokka realizes that he has just broken one of the most important rules of life at the South Pole – if you feel the ice breaking, you don't step on it. Ever.
Sokka freezes. The situation isn't dire—not yet—so all he has to do is get back to shore, to the safety of the snow, and–
The ice breaks beneath him.
And he falls into the icy water.
He doesn't know how deep this particular lake is, but one thing is certain – this is a dangerous, very dangerous situation. One that he really, really doesn't like.
His clothes are pulling him down – and the bond connecting him to his soulmates is filled with panic and anxiety.
He sinks, losing air—but Fan appears beside him, placing a hand on his shoulder as if to say: calm down. Don't panic. Crystal pulls him upward, and although their hands are not real and cannot do anything, it makes it easier to head toward the surface, toward air and safety. Bonfire instantly surrounds him with warmth – because the water is cold, so very cold, but their protection is so useful. Katara reaches out to him, asking him: where are you? She sends him her strength, and Sokka knows that his sister is running towards him, towards where she senses him.
His soul family is with him.
Sokka is not alone.
He forces himself to calm down, quickly gets rid of his unnecessary shoes, and heads upward, toward the air, toward safety.
And he breathes.
He surfaces, gasping for air. His soulmates are with him. He can't see them, but he feels their presence. He knows that they are all focused on him, that each of them is trying to help and support him.
Sokka gathers all his strength to get out of the lake. It's so cold, so cold, he has no shoes — and then it's a little warmer because Bonfire sends their warmth, heating him up and making Sokka able to think more calmly.
He breathes heavily and crawls on all fours toward the safety of the snow. Crystal and Fan are with him, helping him and reminding him to be careful.
Katara approaches, running toward him. Behind her runs Bato, who stayed in the village that day because the village should not be left unprotected.
Sokka smiles at them.
Everything is fine now.
The rest of his soul family can't stop worrying. They stay with him for the rest of the evening, their presence more noticeable than before. Sokka feels like they want to make sure he'll be okay — they must have sensed danger, they know something happened, but they just don't know what exactly.
Katara rushes to him, hugging him and crying, happy that he is safe and angry that he was in danger.
Sokka pulls his sister close and begins to whisper words of reassurance that everything is fine, that nothing bad has happened—but it could have, if he were honest.
But right now, Sokka is safe, surrounded by pleasant warmth and a sense of security.
He is happy.
It is Sokka who proposes solidifying their bond.
Their soulbound has always been strong, but not as strong as it could be. Sokka and Katara did not solidify it for one simple reason: all the adults said it was better to fully accept the bond when they were older, more aware of what solidifying the bond really meant.
But Sokka almost died. He almost left Katara alone, part of his soul family, his younger sister.
“I want to do it,” he tells his father a little later, looking at him seriously. “I don't want anything to happen and Katara not knowing about it. If she blames herself...”
Hakoda looks at him for a moment, then sighs heavily.
“Do you know exactly what bonding is?”
“No,” admits Sokka. “But everyone says it's something wonderful.”
“After bonding, the bond becomes even stronger,” explains Hakoda. “Strong enough that you can sense where your soulmate is or hear their thoughts.”
“Really?” Sokka asks with interest. “That sounds awesome!”
“Yes, this kind of bond is precious and useful,” his father says with a gentle smile. Sokka wonders if he is thinking about his own soul family. “However, it sometimes happens that younger people often receive only fragments of signals, which can be confusing and sometimes even painful. For this reason, it is suggested that the bond be established when you are older and able to fully control what you want to convey to the other person–”
“But it could be useful to us!” insists Sokka.
Hakoda sighs heavily.
“Sokka, would you want Katara to accidentally hear all your thoughts? Let's say you fell in love with a girl, and Katara knew about it right away? If you solidify the bond too quickly, it may be difficult to hide anything from Katara, which can sometimes be... not entirely desirable.”
“But...”
“Sokka,” Hakoda looks at him seriously. “Wait a little longer. Let Katara be at least ten years old. Fifteen would be ideal.”
“But...”
“Sokka. This isn't a request. I don't want anything to happen to either of you. There are documented cases where soul families deepened their bond too early and it ended badly. I don't want to go into details, but please believe me. It could end badly.”
“But–”
“Sokka. No.”
Sokka presses his lips together.
He doesn't like this situation.
He fails to convince his father. Nor his mother, nor Bato, nor Gran-Gran.
Apparently, there is something special, a specific gesture that must be performed to solidify the bond. But no one wants to tell them because they are “too young.”
Sokka, if he's being honest, thinks that's nonsense.
Nothing lasts forever.
His mother dies.
Sokka does everything he can to not hate Bonfire. But sometimes it's really hard, because Bonfire is a Firebender, and Firebenders killed Kya. Besides, it's so unfair that Bonfire is out there somewhere, happy and safe, while Kya is dead, lifeless, and Katara has been crying for so long.
It's all the Fire Nation's fault. It's because of the Fire Nation that everyone lives in fear.
And okay, Bonfire isn't always happy. Sokka senses fear and sadness in them—at one point, so much sadness, it's as if they’re mourning someone—but that doesn't change the fact that Bonfire is part of the Fire Nation.
Sokka tries not to hate them, he really tries. Bonfire hasn’t done anything wrong to him, they've always tried to cheer him up, and their presence is always warm and pleasant, but... Sometimes it's hard to forget that Bonfire is part of the Fire Nation.
Hakoda decides to go to war.
Before that, however, he takes Sokka and Katara aside and explains to them exactly how solidifying their bond works.
“It's called bonding, but in reality, your bond is permanent no matter if you go though the ritual or not,” he explains. “The bond can only be broken when your soulmate dies. I don't wish that fate upon you.”
Sokka looks down at his knees. Feather is dead. Sokka never sensed them, but sometimes he finds himself mourning them and feeling sorry for them. He would like to meet them, he would like to know what kind of people they are.
“Bonding is a deepening of the bond,” says Hakoda. “It can only be done when you meet your soulmate. All you have to do is exchange blood, and when the drops touch your marks, the bond deepens permanently. From that moment on, you will feel it deeper, stronger, until it becomes a part of you. Do you understand?”
“It's that simple?” Sokka raises an eyebrow. “Okay, let's do it right away and–”
“Sokka,” his father interrupts him. “Please be careful. Soulmarks are precious, but they are also very fragile. I don't even want to think about what could happen if someone destroyed them. If your bond deepens and something happens to your soulmark...”
“Then what?” Katara asks anxiously.
“I don't know,” Hakoda looks at her with a hint of sadness. “I haven't heard of such cases. All I know is that soulmarks are like your hearts on the outside. If you hurt them, the wounds will be felt not only by your body but also by your soul. That's why I'm asking you to take this seriously.”
Katara and Sokka exchange glances and nod their heads at the same time.
“Don't show your soulmarks to strangers,” Hakoda says. “Never, do you understand? It's a part of you, something incredibly important, but if a stranger finds out about it... Your soul family makes you stronger, but it's also a weakness. You must protect them, do you understand?”
Sokka and Katara nod again.
“We will,” Katara promises.
“And we will protect our soul family,” Sokka adds.
Hakoda smiles warmly at them.
“That's how it should be,” he says. “Soul families don't betray each other. Ever.”
They deepen their bond some time before Hakoda leaves their village.
They exchange their blood—Katara's blood touches the whirlpool on Sokka's arm, Sokka's blood touches the new moon on her belly.
Everything changes from that moment on.
Suddenly, there is so much, so much, because Sokka can sense Katara so strongly, her presence is so powerful. Sometimes, he hears words she hasn't spoken yet. Sometimes, it's as if he's surrounded by a cacophony of voices because there are so many of them and it's just so loud.
They learn how to control it over time. It takes them a long time, but eventually they manage to keep the bond half-open, so that they are able to communicate their thoughts to each other from a distance, but only the thoughts they want to convey to the other.
They don't always succeed. Sometimes it's so annoying because Katara accidentally picks up thoughts that Sokka didn't want to convey to her; just as sometimes Sokka hears thoughts that Katara definitely didn't want him to know.
Of course, having a bond can be useful. Sokka and Katara are able to communicate from a distance, which makes them both feel safe. Because it means that if one of them were to get hurt—or if the Fire Nation were to come for them—they would be able to respond. It's a comforting thought.
Except—well, except. Except sometimes there is just too much of everything, sometimes Katara is too much, and they just need to close the bond for a while, to be themselves, to not have the other person around, to be alone for a moment.
The end begins with excitement.
Sokka smiles slightly, feeling the excitement emanating from Bonfire. It's good to feel this kind of positive emotion from them — for some time now, Sokka has mainly sensed their stress, anxiety, and sometimes fear.
The excitement turns to consternation, then anger and fury, causing the smile to disappear from Sokka's face. He senses Fan and Crystal reaching out to Bonfire, trying to find out what is going on – but once again they encounter an obstacle in the form of a bond that has not been fully established. They can only sense Bonfire’s emotions, but they have no idea what is going on.
Is everything okay? Fan seems to ask, as caring as ever. Sokka has never met them, but in his mind, Fan has always been a protector, a warrior.
Bonfire, of course, is unable to answer, but sends them a silent assurance that yes, everything is fine.
The fury does not disappear, but some time later it turns into determination.
“I wonder what's going on,” Katara mutters under her breath, having appeared next to Sokka at some point.
“I don't know,” Sokka shrugs. “But I don't like it.”
Fury seems appropriate, fitting. But Sokka doesn't like the fact that one of his soulmates feels this way.
“Well, there's nothing we can do about it right now,” Katara notes, though Sokka sees her fingers move slightly, as if she wants to do something, to react. “Bonfire is probably in the Fire Nation right now.”
“Maybe they’re from the colonies,” says Sokka.
“Bonfire is a Firebender, Sokka.”
“And they might as well be from the colonies, Katara.”
The colonies are something that isn't talked about much in their tribe, and something Sokka doesn't like to think about. The Fire Nation not only kills and destroys, but also colonizes. It drives people from their homes, forces them to flee, and then takes their land, as if it had the right to do so.
Sokka hates the Fire Nation so much. He can't wait for the moment when the Fire Nation is finally defeated — although at the moment it doesn't look like that will happen anytime soon, because the war has lasted so long and is not over yet...
“Even if they’re from the colonies, that doesn't mean–”
Katara doesn't finish her sentence because at that moment, both she and Sokka feel exactly the same thing: fear. The kind of terror that makes you unable to move. Fear that pierces your bones.
Sokka feels the urge to utter a few ugly words he learned from his father and Bato, but he won't say them in front of his eleven-year-old sister.
“Sokka,” Katara grabs his wrist, looking incredibly pale. Sokka senses her anxiety, her fear. “What's going on?”
“I don't know,” Sokka can only whisper, because something is very wrong.
His heart is beating like crazy, and he can sense Crystal and Fan, who are just as worried as he and Katara. He also reaches out to Bonfire, trying to help them somehow. Tui and La, his soulmates were able to help him when he fell into the ice lake, so why can't he do the same now?
But the problem is, he doesn't know how he can help. All he can do is try to embrace Bonfire, to tell them I'm with you, and please be careful.
Bonfire flicker slightly, as if to thank them – but the fear doesn't go away, it still doesn't go away and –
A gentle hope appears, relief. The fear disappears.
Sokka exhales the breath he had unconsciously held. Everything is fine now, everything is fine–
Pain.
The pain comes on suddenly, so suddenly that Sokka finds himself clutching his head. Crystal, Fan, and Katara react with concern, a desire to protect him—ah, it's not Sokka who's hurt, it's Bonfire, Tui and La, what's going on? This is too much, too much, Sokka has been hurt before, just like Katara, Fan, and Crystal, but it was never like this—it wasn't that awful feeling, as if he couldn't breathe, as if someone had suddenly put him in fire, Tui and La, it hurts so much, even though it's not his pain, even though it's only part of Bonfire’s pain — even though Bonfire is trying to close their bond a little, cut themself off from them so they feel as little as possible, that fool, of course they try to protect their soul family—
Something's wrong. Sokka's soulmark begins to throb. He hisses in pain and rolls up his sleeve to look at it—
It doesn't matter anymore, because the pain suddenly increases, and this time it's not just Bonfire’s pain; this time it's a different pain, a pain coming from their bond, a pain that Sokka feels, not Bonfire, and—
Their bond. Their bond bends, the fire increases, consuming everything and their bond.
And then... And then their bond bends together—and breaks.
It breaks, and with it, Bonfire and their warmth disappear, leaving only emptiness where they should be.
And like that, Bonfire is gone.