Wrath of the Melon Lord
Acknowledgment:
I herby acknowledge that the work of fiction presented here is for my own personal amusement and entertainment purposes alone.
Disclaim: I do not own Avatar or LoK.
Summary: Zuko and Katara settle their matters THEIR way. And a certain earthbender acts tough following a period of frolicking, she gathers her fighters the HARD way. *revised since Aug.2010
A/N: I just wanted to say thanks to all who reviewed and to those who read and waited and waited and waited for the next chapter. Unfortunately I went through writers block with this story and went MIA for about a year and seven months (so I apologize with endless tearbending). I wanted to work on this project again and continue the Gaang's journey—and after weeks of revision, this story is back in Toph's favor (as a one-shot!)
Thank you for those who did read this the first time, and you may or may not notice some changes after the revision. And I thought this over; but, if I were to create a second chapter—the style and tone would be completely different because this first chapter is sooo out of whack. So I might just create a second one-shot based on this. (But, if you are wondering about the original story I had before the revisions—you can pm me. Trust me, I did not make a ton of changes).
This story is set before 'Ember Island Players' & Post Southern Raiders, but the scene takes place on Ember Island! Enjoy! ツ
She knew it.
She was better than they were.
There was no doubt about that. Because the way her hair blew against the wind and the way she stood her ground with her hands on her hips—che—they didn't see it coming.
"Snoozles!"
The Water tribe warrior groaned for the fifth time that day after a tiresome eye-workout.
Yes; an eye-workout. Because, you see—when you work for Toph, and when you're like poor Sokka, his pupils will dialate out from looking through a mini pirate scope. So today, the Gaang hung out by the house and gathered in hushed footsteps tracking down Mr. and Mrs. Sugar Fire.
"Say, where's Aang?" Sokka asked with a worried look on his face as he put a hand up over his eyes searching for a familiar sky bison or a glider in the sky.
"I am really...unsure about this, Toph," Suki hesitated with a look of confusion on her face.
The young Earthbender stiffened and turned to look at the pair, "Look you guys...it's about time someone took over this damn mission. Forget about Twinklestoes 'cause he might just be out there tear-jerking his sorry eyes out!"
Toph turned around. She began muttering under her breath as incoherent and colorful words reached her friends' ears, "What would I givefor egg-tart custards?"
"Sheesh, what's up with her?" Sokka frowned as he sighed heavily placing the small scope over his right eye again.
After their arrival on Ember Island, the Gaang decided they would need more supplies. Aang wanted to go with Zuko, but the possibility of someone recognizing the Avatar would've beeen fatal; so, the person who won the mini field trip with Zuko (again) was Katara.
Since this morning, Toph dragged her friends out of the house.
And now, they were in a forest. Leaves rustled from heavy branches—which made it difficult for Sokka—since the area was just about covered in pollen everywhere. It blocked his view, and matters became worse as insects like—
"AHHHHHHHHHH! Eugh Eugh Eughh! ARGGHHH! Get away you hairy, giant yellow striped insect! Gah! There's an unusual needle-like pole sticking out of its butt" Sokka cried helplessly waving his boomerang around with his right hand. Receiving blank stares from Toph and Suki, he stiffened.
"Sokka! It's just a bee..." Suki said eyeing him, checking to make sure he was okay. Shaking his head side to side, Sokka regained his composure as he laughed nervously.
"Hehehehe...hehh."
He looked to Toph and her expression was...well, contorted with anger.
"I can't believe you! WHY DID I EVER LET YOU SIGN UP FOR THIS JOB—"
"Job? What job?" Sokka glared at her, his figure looming over hers. Suki eyed back and forth between her boyfriend and Toph.
"Do you wanna make a sound, Snoozles? Sheesh, we're like close to them you idiot!" Tolph exploded, as her shadow replaced the figure looming over hers.
"That's a pretty big shadow," Sokka eyed, his voice strained, "But that's not the point; Toph, you're making this a big deal! Seriously, you're paranoid!"
"Look, flimsy ponytail, do you want himto be your sister's future boy toy or the boy who cries bison?" Toph gritted her teeth impatiently, stomping her feet creating vibrations into the earth beneath her.
"Hmm...Let me think about it," Sokka replied sarcastically, not giving a care in the world, crossing his arms over his chest.
"Argh, I've had enough of you two. It's getting on my nerves to wonder who's the blind one here," she answered him, stomping away from them, as her figure disappeared through the woods.
"She's been acting like this all day!"
"But, do you think it's alright with her walking by herself?" Suki asked looking at Sokka who had his head in his hands.
"What do you think, Suki? The guy who's currently saving the world or the Jerkbender whose destiny was to destroy us'?"
She glared at him, surprised at his blunt tone when it was so impeccably obvious. She thought back to earlier, and even she got a reaction from Katara.
"...I mean honestly, we have a war going on Suki," the waterbender said sternly. But she caught herself when she nearly stuttered. She felt her chest beating rapidly against her.
The kyoshi warrior looked at the girl before her, "You've grown so much Katara. You've come to learn what's reallyimportant," sighing she added, "But...don't you think it's time that you became a little—"
"What?" Katara interrupted. "Selfish? You want me to be selfish? Was that what you were going to say?"
Suki fell silent. And something in Katara's eyes flashed with an emotion that Suki thought she believed was familiar.
"Funny. I didn't think you of all people would even dare to think that Zuko—"
"You know I just want you to be happy," Suki interjected, "I just want you to realize whatitis before this is all over. I don't want you to miss out—"
"Suki, please."
The warrior's eyes widened at the waterbender's tone.
"I'm notmissingout on anything! Suki... the fate of the world is in Aang's hands! We came all this way to sacrifice our families and friends just so we could teach him the four elements!" a frown appeared on her face, and Katara lowered her head as she continued, "We gave up everything we had and I'veneverbeen more hopeful in my life! And for once I'm thankful that I got to meet the face of my mother's killer—"
"So that was all Zuko."
The waterbender snapped her gaze back up at the young warrior.
"So what?" she glared.
"He gives you hope."
"What in the world are you talking about? You know what...It doesn't matter! Because I know where my destiny lies—and I can't turn my back on Sokka, not on my Father or the people who need me most...especially Aang," her voice faltered.
"So if you'll excuse me, I have to get ready to leave so Zuko and I can get our supplies," she glared at her friend.
Katara ignored Suki as she took out her Fire Nation clothes. She paced around the room and rummages for another item in her bag.
"I just want to make sure you realize the moment until it's gone. I don't want you to regret—..." Suki paused searching for a reaction from the younger, but found that there was none.
Suki glared, "Fine. I guess that's settled then. Keep your feelings bottled up. He's the real deal and this is the real world Katara!"
"Aang's feelings for me are real too, you know?" Katara glared at her, "Damn it, Suki. I'm scared and I don't know what to think, okay?" voice straining, pleading for the other to stop.
Suki closed her mouth and refrained from saying another word. With a last look at Katara, she turned around and headed for the door.
Katara found herself staring at a portrait on the wall. She gave it a cold stare, but the figure only stared back.
Katara heard the familiarclinkwhen an item met the hard wooden surface, but she didn't turn around to look. She put a hand to her neck feeling where anecklaceshould be, as something wet splashed softly on her raised wrist. She raised her free hand to wipe the tears that were silently streaming down her face.
"Zuko...he found it on the floor in the house somewhere, and he told me to give it back to you before you walked into town," Suki said, and with that she left.
Leaving Katara in her room, the waterbender collapsed on the floor near the side of her bed. Lowering her head, she sobbed silently and her mother's necklace was in her clutched hand.
The portrait that hung on the wall, held the face of a woman with long black hair and beautifulgolden eyes—unheard.
As Suki walked out of the hallway that led to Katara's bedroom, she met Sokka's stare as she nodded and he returned it with understanding sighing sadly. But his expression changed when Momo leaped on his head as.
"Is she ready?" a husky voice asked, startling Suki. And she turned to meet the scarred face of her former enemy.
She smirked inwardly, "Yeah...she'sready."
And quickly as a flash of lightning, the warrior was pulled away by Toph who kept whispering, "Warpaint, I got it all set up! Look and I even found this weird looking thingy...I don't know what it looks like, but I think it's some kind of rod! It's long and skinny, but a small object. Oh! Maybe we can use it to club Sparky's hea—"
Suki quickly covered Toph's mouth as the two boys threw her a funny, strange glance, "Hahaha, Toph you'reSO FUNNY!"
"What's going on?" The former Prince asked turning to Sokka who lended Momo his boomerang.
The water tribe warrior shrugged, "Maybe it was a tampo—"
Wondering if all sanity had left him, Zuko quickly snatched the bommerang away from Momo as he threw it at Sokka's face, "Are you crazy?"
"What? I was just speaking my mind!" Sokka exploded as he rubbed a hand to his temple.
Zuko fumed as his cheeks heated with embarrassment for Suki. He turned around and yelled at her, "Your boyfriend isstupid!"
And that was the last thing he said to her before storming out to the beach.
"Hey you guys!" Aang exclaimed happily as he got down from his glider. Suki broke from her thoughts and eyed Sokka.
"Aww, man! Couldn't you have come at a better time?" Sokka moaned. It wasn't that he was unhappy to see Aang, he just didn't want Toph to come back hollering at them.
"But Momo and I were just looking for you," Aang said, puzzled. But a tree suddenly broke from its roots as it crash landed in front of Aang, nearly crushing him, "Ahh!"
"'Looking for you'?"
"Speak of the devil..." Sokka muttered under his breath as Toph came in the clearing; but Aang was still shaking from the trauma.
"Twinkletoes, you were the one that left us! And I'm not the devil! I am Melon Lord! Mwuahahaha—"
"Enough playing around Toph," Aang glared at her, regaining his composure.
"Can it, Twinkletoes," Toph simply said as she stomped her feet forming a seat out of the ground, crossing her legs.
"Well sorry, Melon Lord. I didn't mean to...uh...," he began as he scratched his head, trying to find the right words, "burst your melons!" he finished flashing a goofy grin; but a wave of a hand from the young earthbender sent him flying straight to a tree.
"Hahahaha good one Aang—!" Sokka cried out, as Suki winced.
"I'm okay," the young Avatar called out.
Suddenly a change of scene puzzled Toph that aggravated her to no end: Sokka, distracted, played with his boomerang. And Suki was just stood there.
Toph needed to get them to pay attention to her. They showed her no respect. They weren't helping with the mission! She glared at them waiting for their eyes to land on her, although with her blindness, she wasn't sure who exactly or what she was glaring at. She was Melon Lord for cripes sake! If it weren't for the recording scrolls, she would've been staring for hours until Aang stopped with his Air Scooter and for Suki to stop drooling over Sokka.
"What's wrong, Toph?" Suki finally asked her.
"WhooHoo! Yeah! 'Team Avatar'!" Sokka exclaimed happily as he traced out the letters onto the trunk of a tree.
Toph had snapped a little while ago, so it didn't really matter to her as she finally face palmed. They were the worst team ever! They couldn't even listen to her when she tried explaining the mission to them. But nooo, Twinkletoes had to excuse himself and cry his little eyes out after hearing the plan: 'Reconcile...ZUTARA!'
Moreover, being unstable as Aang was, Toph did what no one thought possible of her doing. And it was the only freakin' way she'd ever get them to do their business.
Sing
Suddenly, she stomped her way over to Sokka and Suki and pushed the pirate scope back into his hands. He finally gave Toph a terrified look as Suki glared at her.
But, then Suki's eyes widened as Toph returned back to her seat made out of a 'healthy coating of Earth' and placed her foot on top of it, pushing Aang out of the way— who landed on his bum very loudly. Aang quickly stood up startled.
"Whaa?"
"Let's get down to business... to bring epic... Zutara!" Toph began singing.
Suki's mouth opened slightly. Sokka, who was playing with the pirate scope close to his eye, smashed the rim to his eyeball wincing and laughing loudly as the familiar song was replaced by Toph's words. Aang just stared with disbelief; Toph wasn't that bad of a singer.
"Did they send me daughters..., when I asked for sons?" she continued pointing at each one of them as they wondered why she said "send" when she was the one who literally forced them in her company.
"You're the saddest bunch I ever met, but you can bet before we're through," she grabbed a hold of Aang's shirt and stared him in the eyes, "Mister, I'll make a man... out of you."
Aang stared at Toph, almost in a cowering way as she let go of him
"Gahh!" Aang cried flailing his arms around scattering away from Toph to join Sokka and Suki in their huddle.
The young Earthbender approached Sokka—who blamed Toph for his smashed eye— trying to tend to it instead of laughing.
Toph leaned against a tree and sang, "Tranquil as a forest(in her horse stance)...but on fire... within. (Turning to Aang)Once you find your center, you are sure... to win."
Sokka stopped tending to his bruised eye and looked at Toph out of the corner of his othereye, trying to sustain his laughter.
Toph glared at she spat out, "You're a spineless, pale pathetic lot... and you haven't got a clue." She grabbed the top of Sokka's head and added, "Somehow I'll... make a man... out of you."
Sokka cringed at the thought and scratched his head in wonder as he mouth the words, 'Why me?'
Then Sokka gaped at her as she let go. Walking away she faced them. She felt... like she was on top of the world, even though her cheeks were flared with embarrassment; and not even the Fire Lord could stop her. They might as well just sing and dance their way to the Fire Lord's doom. She stood up and Suki quickly followed her example. Sokka wasn't going to let Toph take the spotlight...wishing he had cactus juice in hand.
He was going to sing too, "I'm never gonna catch my breath!"
Suki jumped in, most likely confused, "Say good-bye to those who knew me!"
Feeling indulged to jump in despite his jealousy towards Zutara, Aang sang, "Boy, was I a fool in school for cutting gym!" he then glanced at Suki and Sokka and muttered while motioning to Toph, "This Melon Lord got 'em scared to death."
Suki quickly stepped up with her fingers laced near her neck, pretending to gaze admirably at Toph, "Hope she doesn't see right through me!"
Aang added timidly, "Now I really wish that I knew how to swim."
The three pawns of 'Team Epic Zutara' chorused, "Be a man!"
Toph stood in front of them heroically, "We must be swift as the coursing river."
"Be a man!"
"With all the force of a great typhoon."
"Be a man!"
"With all the strength of a raging fire. Mysterious as... the dark side of the... moon!" she sang a pitch higher towards the sky when she sang 'moon'.
"Time is racing toward us... till ZUTARA... arrives," she began stepping toward the three confused friends. "Heed my every order... and you might survive!"
Sokka felt like he was going to laugh again, but at the memory of him actually singing, he stopped. How did singing make him manly again?
'How was this supposed to bring an end to their conspicuous fighting?'
Toph continued while making violent hand movements, "You're unsuited for the rage of war. So pack up, go home, you're through!" She pressed her face toward Aang's, leaving three inches between them, "How could I... make a man... out of you?"
She quickly turned away, keeping her back on them as they chorused, "Be a man!"
"We must be swift as the coursing river."
"Be a man!"
"With all the force of a great typhoon."
"Be a man!"
"With all the strength of a raging fire. Mysterious as the dark side of the moon!" she sang again turning to face them again, an emotionless expression on her face.
'Time for serious-bending...'
"Be a man!" they sang louder.
"We must be swift as the coursing river," the young Earthbender said stepping toward them.
"Be a man!"
"With all the force of a great typhoon," she continued standing in between Suki and Aang—who created a vortex of water on the emphasis 'typhoon'.
"Be a man!"
"With all the strength of a raging fire. Mysterious as the dark side of the moon!" she yelled, finishing as the others joined her, all looking like complete idiots. She smirked.
...With Zuko and Katara...
The two benders felt a chill running down their spine...
Zuko looked to Katara, who was standing silently beside him with her hair blowing against the wind. His breath caught in his throat...
She's beautif—
"What?" she asked him, following his stare.
"Did you just hear that?" Zuko asked, paranoid, averting his gaze.
"Hear what?" she asked him, worried.
"Uh...never mind."
...Back to The Melon Lord's Wrath...
There was a moment of total silence before Sokka spat out, "Why the hell did we just do that?"
The Melon Lord glared at him and answered coldly, "I was trying to get your attention, Snoozles. You were all acting silly and I already told you. We have to plan this crap out before Zuko and Katara get here."
Sokka stared at her as if she was insane and replied, "Next time just yell to get our attention. You don't have to break out into song!"
Aang remained emotionless as he stared off into space and Suki was trying to hide her laughter behind her hand. Toph just glared. She would never admit that Sokka's idea was a better idea than hers was.
'Oh Spirits. What an awkward, long day it has been.Wonder what Sparky and Sugar Queen are up to?'
UPDATED since: 8.11.10
Haha, hope you enjoyed this revision. The spirits rekindled a new writer out of me that when I reread the original, most of the grammar was definitely out of whack and it bothered me to no end—so, I had to change it(: But please mark anything you find 'wordy' or 'out of syntax' (and no, the singing is exempt from that lol)
Thanks again & forever always will be Zutara. (Although I love LoK right now hehe)
Reviews are always appreciated!