Prompt: Being blind and noble, Toph learned long ago how to play people like a violin. She's able to find everybody's "type" easily. The thing is, she can easily be the "type" for Katara and Aang, but Sokka's "type" has her left in the dust. Occurs six years after the war.
Also, there's a bunch of SAT Vocab mixed in because I need to study...
Toph woke up with a yawn, stretching her arms up into the air. Her stiff spine creaked and she twisted around in order to restore mobility to her joints. Katara still snored lightly next to her, the pretty line of her profile obscured by the hazy sunlight streaming in from the wide-open balcony doors. The sound of seagulls cawing gently floated through the door, and the halcyon weather put a dazed, lazy smile across her face.
She slowly stirred from her sedentary position and although her movements lacked celerity she moved with the finesse and grace of a girl very sure of herself. Currently, she was wearing a white wrap around her breasts and a red silk tied loosely around her waist. She looked for something more germane, fumbling around the wooden-floored room until she hit something that felt like a bag. She had no idea how she was going to pick out a shirt from the pile of clothes, however, so Toph went back toward where Katara was sleeping, ready to kick the Water Tribe girl awake.
Toph hopped from foot to foot, temporizing. She had seen Katara's temper in action, and waking her up just so she would pick out Toph's clothes for her hardly seemed like something Katara would easily forgive. Toph shrugged off her prick of wariness. After all, it would be unwonted for the Sugar Queen to be less than cordial to the blind girl who she considered a younger sister. If Toph layered on the blind girl pity she could probably get away with it. She prepared her best kicked turtle-duck look, widening her milky eyes just so.
As long as Sokka and Aang didn't catch her like this, she was fine with indulging Katara's delusions of Toph being a "little girl" in need of caring.
Toph gently shook Katara's shoulders, "Katara..."
Katara groaned, pulling the cushion over her head to try to block out the sound. Toph shook her again, this time making sure to evince her wide-eyed, childish look so that Katara's heart would melt a little.
For Katara, she was not the least bit irritated. This was probably the first time she had been waken up so nicely. Usually, Sokka would roughly shake her awake whining that he was hungry, or their camp would be under attack. It had been a long time since she and Toph had been alone, and at the first opportunity to be apart from the boys for a little while, she took it.
Toph was gently shaking Katara's shoulders, and her verdant eyes, though unseeing, seemed to be begging her for something. Katara's heart melted, unused to seeing Toph in such a cute and vulnerable manner.
"What is it, Toph?" Katara asked, her voice gradually becoming stronger as she stirred and sat up.
"Could you help me dress?" Toph asked in a suppliant tone. Somehow, Toph's eyes became even bigger.
In the back of her mind, Katara knew she was being manipulated by the younger girl. However, Katara was unable to express this pejorative thought as it was quickly squashed by Toph's expectant face leaning in.
"Please Katara?" Toph prodded again. This time, her big eyes were accompanied with a slightly stuck-out lip that was quivering.
Katara was sure she was about to melt, while the same part of her mind who had seen through Toph earlier applauded the blind girl for her histrionic skills. Sensing defeat, Katara got up, flipping her hair onto her other shoulder, "What did you have in mind?"
Sure, Katara knew that Toph's cutesy, vulnerable act was Toph dissembling a facade to get what she wanted. In fact, it made her view Toph in a more nefarious light. But Katara couldn't help it. Toph knew just what kind of act was piquant enough for Katara to get her to perform Toph's every wish.
Toph discovered Aang's "type" long before she found the need to exploit it. While Katara was usually intransigent when it came to things she didn't want to do and needed a little "wide-eyed, naive Toph" before she would budge, Aang was much more flexible.
Aang usually broke down by the second time Toph asks him too.
However, she discovers his type at a bar. Not just any bar, a bar in the middle of the Fire Nation. During the whole time during the war, Toph hadn't needed to manipulate the Avatar. He usually performed both things he liked and didn't liked without argument. However, six years after the war, Toph had realized that because of this she had yet to discover his "type." Toph liked to pride herself in being an acquisitive girl despite having no sight. People claimed you needed sight to make good observations but not for Toph. As soon as she set her mind to it, she was easily able to find Aang's type.
And oh boy, was it hilarious.
As the Avatar, you'd think he would have his fair share of drama. Before Toph had discovered the truth, in fact, she had believed the Avatar's type was the feckless, weak-hearted type that was as delicate as a lotus blossom. When Aang and Katara announced their courtship, Toph hadn't been surprised but she realized she had been wrong about her suspicion.
So, she dragged Aang to a Fire Nation bar. She ditched him within three minutes, pulling up her cloak and dashing to a corner where she was out of sight but could still observe the Avatar's actions. Soon enough, he was being flocked by girls. On his left was a girl who attempting to arrogate anything Aang had on him, most likely to sell it as property of the precious "war hero Avatar's". Behind him, a girl was shrieking carping criticisms into Aang's ear about the other girls. Aang pushed the girls aside however, once he spotted a teary-eyed little girl wander into the bar.
The little girl was wearing tattered Fire Nation clothes, sniffling. Her face was round and so adorable that anybody would be hard-pressed to come up with an invidious remark about her. Toph frowned, was Aang the cutesy type too...?
Aang leaned down, gallantly swiping a tear that was running down the girl's cheek. Aang's fans behind him both scowled and squealed.
"What wrong?" Aang asked.
"I-I can't find my mommy," the girl said, sniffling, "We were walking down the street when a couple guys in green attacked us and now I can't find her."
Toph felt Aang's heartbeat quicken with rage, "We'll find your mom for you."
Ah. There it is. Aang was the sob story type. Toph smirked. Of course Twinkle Toes was.
She stepped out of the shadows, gliding gracefully to stand next to Aang, "We'll help you find you mom, don't worry."
Aang jumped back in surprise, shocked, "Toph! Where the hell have you been!? I've been looking for you everywhere."
Toph shrugged, "Guess you weren't looking hard enough," she replied.
Aang and the girl held hands as the walked out the bar, Toph bringing up the rear. She pocketed the information until she found a tenable time to exploit it.
As soon as Sokka fell for Suki, Toph had known his type. It was a little complicated and not very common, but it was easy to tell from the start. Sokka liked refined woman, the type that moved in a graceful, undulating fashion. They also had to be beautiful, and he hated girls that were banal the most. Sokka's type was the girl who forced, not compliments, but encomiums to spill forth from the mouth just by pure propinquity to her.
Toph may love Sokka but she admired Suki enough to admit that Suki filled all of the criteria for Sokka's type. And, from what she had heard from Katara and Aang, Sokka's first love, Princess Yue, had also been that way.
While she could easily become the "cutesy" girl or bring up her neglectful parents to create a great sob story, she could never be Sokka's type. She wouldn't even try. Because as myopic as Sokka was when it came to girls, Sokka would immediately notice a change in behavior in Toph and call her out on it.
She'd rather be just Toph for Sokka. Sure, it gave her probably zero chance of every being seen in a romantic nature. But, she was only eighteen. She had until, like, forever to get over him.
If she ever did get over him.
No.
She would do it, even if it was a lost cause.
That's almost exactly what Iroh had told her when she went to him for advice. She hadn't named names, but the man had stroked his beard, then rubbed his belly, and then replied in a slow fashion, "Trying to forget somebody you love is like belaboring your side of the argument after a compromise has been reached."
When he had said this advice, Toph had slammed her head onto the table. In her head, a stream of insults floated through her head, everything from calling Iroh "a crazy, deluded, senile, metal patient" to "a quack whose tea tastes like shi-"
Toph took a deep calming breath. It wasn't like there was a chance for her, so she didn't understand why she should hold onto feelings that wouldn't do her any good.
She resolved herself. She could easily find a guy who liked who she really was. Not a type she could fulfill- but the type she actually was. That's what she needed to do. Find a guys who actually liked her for who she was.
And maybe she'd get to see Sokka jealous?
No. That would never happen.
He only liked her as a friend. She wasn't his type.
Vocabulary Used:
Disclaimer: I may or may not have misused these words, so I don't guarantee any of these. However, I am using these to study so... What you see is what I'm using as well...
(In order of use)
halcyon: (n.) a legendary bird (kingfisher); (adj.) of or relating to the halcyon; calm, peaceful, happy, golden, prosperous, affluent
celerity: (n.) swiftness, rapidity of motion or action
germane: (adj.) appropriate, relevant, apropos, fitting
temporizing: (v.) to stall or act evasively in order to gain time, avoid a confrontation, or postpone a decision; to compromise
unwonted: (adj.) not usual or expected; not in character
evince: (v.) to display clearly, to make evident, to provoke
verdant: (adj.) green in tint or color
suppliant: (adj.) asking humbly and earnestly; (n.) one who makes a request humbly and earnestly, a petitioner, suitor
pejorative: (adj.) tending to make worse; expressing disapproval or disparagement, derogatory, deprecatory, belittling
histrionic: (adj.) pertaining to actors and their techniques; theatrical, artificial; melodramatic
dissembling: (v.) to disguise or conceal, deliberately give a false impression
nefarious: (adj.) wicked, depraved, devoid of moral standards
piquant: (adj.) stimulating to the taste or mind; spicy, pungent; appealing, provocative
intransigent: (adj.) refusing to compromise, irreconcilable
acquisitive: (adj.) able to get and retain ideas or information
feckless: (adj.) lacking in spirit and strength
arrogate: (v.) to claim or take without right
carping: (adj.) tending to find fault, especially in a petty or nasty way; (n.) petty, nagging criticism
invidious: (adj.) offensive, hateful; tending to cause bitterness and resentment
tenable: (adj.) capable of being held or defended
undulate: (v.) to move in waves or in a wavelike fashion
banal: (adj.) so lacking in originality to be obvious and boring
encomiums: (n.) formal praise, a lavish tribute
propinquity: (n.) nearness in place or time; kinship
myopic: (adj.) nearsighted
belabor: (v.) argue or elaborate in excessive detail
Author Note:
Oh god, my mom walked in and was like, "What are you doing," (because its eleven o'clock at night)... At least I can honestly say I'm studying...urgh...