Thunder and Lightning
When she was little, Toph had been truly afraid of thunderclaps. If they were close enough, they could make the whole house rattle, blurring and overwhelming her unique senses.
But one day, she finally got fed up with cowering in her room. She wanted to look this force in the eye. Meet it face-to-face. Or rather, element-to-foot.
So, as the rain pattered against the slate tiles of the house, she snuck out.
As the warm torrent soaked her, she hunted for a solid patch of ground amidst the squelching mud to see clearly. And then she waited.
No less than a mile away, the tiny child felt the immense energy strike the ground. The earth moaned to her as it took the blow.
But that wasn't the source of the rumbling. It was coming from . . . the sky? A skyquake?
That's when her mother rushed out into the gale, shouting her name. She was barely audible above the wind.
The woman caught sight of her daughter, drenched and shaking. "Baby, darling, what are you doing out here? My Spirits, it's dangerous!" Her mother seized her quickly but gently and carried her back to the house.
"We have to get you out of those clothes! Mina, Mina! Go get her a change of clothes!" Her mother called to one of the servants.
Poppy set her down and held onto her tightly, desperately. The delicate wet fabric of their dresses clung to their skin. They were most likely ruined. But that didn't matter, not right then. "Toph, what were you doing out there?" she squeaked.
"I was looking at the lightning."
"Were you scared, dear?" Poppy asked her quietly.
"I was. But the earth told me that it was all right, mommy. It was supposed to accept the energy. It said if it didn't everything would be out of balance. And that it hurt a little, but it's okay."
"You're hurt! Where?" Her mother's voice took on a frantic pitch as she pulled away and started looking over her.
"No, no," the little girl said matter-of-factly, "the earth was hurt a little. But it said it would be all right."
Her mother embraced her again. Now she was shaking. "P-please promise me you w-won't go out in a storm again, Toph."
"I promise, mommy. Now that I know, it's okay."
AfterNote: I feel obligated to mention some AMAZING Toph-centric oneshots that have inspired me.
Brave Soldier Girl Comes Marching Home. by Serendipity1 -The reunion.
Blind. by GunboatDebater -Toph's greatest fear. Much more poignant than this one I wrote.
Scaring and Brotherhood. by Written Parody -sibling-flavored Toko
Her Name is Toph. by Masako Moonshade -Iroh/Toph friendship