This is part six of my on going story. You don't have to have read the five parts, before this one. It would help with a few bits thou.

Toph had finally given in, and done what Bumi and the earth king had been nagging her about for the last year or so, set up an earthbending academy of her own. It was located half way between Omasha and Ba Sing Sa, On the outskirts of a small village. The academy consisted of a large court lard, for the beginners, to learn the basics in. Two large dormitories, one for girls one for boys. There where also four small cottages for the instructors, They were Just behind the main building of the academy. In the large area of land that surrounded the academy the intermediate benders trained. around 150 feet behind the academy at the base of two mountains the advanced benders trained. As this was only the second term the academy had been open, there was not a lot of advanced students yet.

"And attack." Toph's voice rang out through the court lard of the academy, strong and steady.

It was the first day of the new term. Despite being very new, the academy had gained a very good reputation. This was dew mainly to have the grand master earthbender Toph as the main sifu. The sun was beating down strongly on the new beginner students, who where having their first lesson. Taken by Toph herself. Toph normally took the advanced class half of the time, the rest of the time she cheeked in on the other classes. She felt thou that she should be the one to teach the beginners, the basics on the first week. In this first week in was just Toph and the beginners at the academy. Having learned form the embarrassment that stopped many of the beginners last term from really trying their hardest at first, Toph decided this was the best way to start training the beginners. They felt embarrassed that they couldn't really earthbend yet, and were being watched and judged by people that could. She also did this as a way of making sure the students met her high standards. It wasn't that she wanted them to be able to be masters at some point, She just wanted them to be the best they could be, and that they loved earthbending. That was all she asked of her students. This didn't mean her teaching style had changed thou.

The students where lined up facing each other bending a rock back and forth. Much the same as Aang had done, when he first tried to learn earthbending before he had Toph as a teacher. As the rocks flow across the court lard, Toph was walking up and down, in the line of fire. None of the rocks ever came close to hitting her. It had still greatly worried the students at first never the less. They weren't used to Toph yet.

"And attack." as she walked along the line, Toph didn't flinch. She didn't lower her head, or move even a inch. It looked like the rocks that were shouting past her were going out of their way to avoid hitting her. To her students it was very impressive, and intimidating at the saw time. They quickly realised that their earthbending training was not going to be boring.

Before she could call for the next attack, one of the students lost control, and dropped their rock, creating a small crated under it in the court lard. Toph had been waiting for one of her new students to do that, as a sign that she had worn them out enough on the first day. "Ok that is enough of that for today." Toph made her way to the end of the court lard. "so before you are let off for the day, do you have any thing you what to ask me" she spun round again to face the staring faces.

After the last year Toph had learned fast, that her students always had a lot of questions for her. Not just about earthbending. They wanted to ask her about Aang and the war, being blind and any number of personal thing she never thought was common knowledge. It was easier to do it this way, to let them ask anything they wanted at the beginning to get it over with. "Come on this is going to be your only chance." her voice now took on a sign song quality, less stern than before.

Finally one of her braver students spoke up. "Can you really bend bone." their was a note of skepticism to the boys voice, that almost brought a smile to Toph's face.

She had expected this one, it was the question she was asked the most. Her answer to fellow earthbenders was always the same. "Yes I can, but I am not going to teach it to anyone. Sorry."

the calm tone she used now made the other students more relaxed, opening them up to ask questions of their own. "Are you really totally blind." The students had come closer towards where Toph stood. They now moved to sit. Their tired legs starting to give out under them. Everyone of them had at least one question for Toph, and there was twenty-two of them. They would be here for a long time.

"What do you think."

her tone wasn't annoyed, but the boy who asked her the question was taken by surprise and answered her as fast as he could. "Um...yes."

"That's right, I'm totally blind always have been, always will. Next question." as she turned to face away from the voice that asked the question she gave a quick smile.

After a few predictable questions about earthbending and the war, one of the female students asked Toph a question that took her a little of guard, not because she wasn't expecting it, but because she didn't know how to answer it. What she had planed to say to that question, didn't seem to leave her lips. "What is the avatar really like." the words ran though her head.

"He...He's cheerful, most of the time. In a annoying way, and he is a whip. He runs away from anything that he cant deal with...I think understand that thou, its how he copes with everything that's forced on him. He is no earthbender, not really."

"Is he still your friend."

The question came at her so fast she didn't see were it came from. "Yes." her answer came just as fast. "I think so... I guess we are."

for the next few minutes Toph answered more questions. She wasn't really there thou, her head was somewhere else. Those two questions had really shaken her, she had never let herself think about her and the others relationship with Aang. If they wanted to speak to him, let him in again then that was up to them. She was doing what she always did with things like this, shut it out and ignored it."Ok. That's enough questions." slowly the students pulled themselves onto their feet. "You all did well today. Not the best I have ever seen, but you are differently not the worst."

"I wasn't that bad was I."

Everyone of the students looked up at the sky, as the avatar flow in on his gilder. Landing behind them, facing Toph. He had been circling for a few minutes, waiting for the students to leave so he could talk to Toph on her own, but he couldn't let an opening like the one he was just given pass him buy. It was not very often he felt he got to look cool in front of Toph. He had a huge smile stretched across his face, like he didn't have a care in the world, when in reality nothing could have been further from the truth.

"All of you go." no one moved "Go now, lunch will be ready in main hall...GO!" she didn't what to scary them on their first day, but it couldn't be helped. Like a fire had been light under all twenty-two of them, they almost ran over the main hall behind were Toph stood. Most of them thou couldn't resist one last look back at the avatar. He looked quite happy in away, but Toph looked like she was ready to do some real damage.

They hadn't been in the same place as each other for almost a year. Even thou he knew she couldn't really see him, he still felt like she was looking right throw him. She saw right through the happy, relaxed mask he was using. As she created to steady her racing heart, Toph clenched her hands. The whole of her arms began to shake. All she was thinking was that she hoped, really hoped that Aang hadn't been spying on her when she has answered the question about them being friends.

She had changed since he last saw her. She had her hair down, she had been wearing it that way for three years now, he just hadn't seen it. Her clothes had changed too. Gone was the baggy ill-fitting clothes he was used to seeing her in. She now wore the yellow tunic, with a white dress underneath that came to just below her knees. Instead of her belt she wore a green ribbon around her waist. What was the most surprising to him was that she was wearing shoes. Brown flat ones that with crossed over straps. She seemed older too. Her eyes sawed the toll the years he had missed had, had on her.

Aang was wearing the same thing he wore all those years, only in green and brown. He had wanted to fit in as much as he could, so he wouldn't be recognised. This was still hard no matter what he wore, because no one else travels with a flying bison, and lemur. "How have you been." he didn't even now he was speaking till he stopped. Momo who had been sitting on his shoulder now climbed down his right arm. He moved towards Toph, but stopped when she finally spoke.

"I told you to stay away from me." she seemed like stone. Now perfectly still, her voice was the only thing that gave any scene of life from her.

"I'm sor…"

"Don't say that." she now moved in to a stance, casing Momo to move to hid behind Aang's feet. "I'll give you ten seconds to say something new, or I will send you Ba sing Sa."

Aang for the first time since seeing her knew what to say "Iroh is sick."

"Well that is something new." Toph was trying to make a joke, but neither of them smiled not even a little. Aang felt her heart rate speed up a little, and her hands shake a little. For a brief second he thought that she might cry. She moved towards the few steps behind her, that lead to the main hall. She picked up a dark green coat, with gold embroidery on the right shoulder. There was only the one button that pulled it in at the waist. To almost any other man Toph, with the coat on would be considered very attractive. To Aang however it looked to much like the clocks the dai li had worn "So are we going then."

Aang hadn't realised he had spaced out, until Toph had spoken. They where standing beside each other, but facing different directions. He couldn't remember if he had offered to take Toph to see her old friend, or if she had just assumed that he would. "Yeah, Appa is just a few meters away. I didn't take him all the way, because I didn't think you would what to speak to me, and his landing would have given me away."

They where now outside of the academy, walking at the same pace. "You where right." once they had started to move, Momo had climbed up Toph's back to rest in her shoulder. His steady heart beat was very reassuring.

He didn't try to talk to her again. She was still hurt. He wanted to shout and yell and get it all out in the open, and move on, be friends again. This wasn't the right time for that. He knew she was very close to Iroh and Zuko, so she was going to take all of this very hard. He had to put aside what he wanted, and be there for her. Like he should have been before. This was his chance to make amends, but he wished more than anything that it could be any other way than this.