Author Note: My first Avatar fanfic. Contains Katara/Aang, Zuko/Mai, Sokka/Suki shipping. I was just thinking about the similarities between Toph and Mai's upbringings. Also you don't see many Toph Mai friendship fic. While this doesn't get my whole idea out I hope it will get you thinking. Enjoy and if anyone can tell me how to get a beta and how it all works i would be much obliged. I need one as it seems like I'm writing more fanfic. Thanks for reading :).
After the final invasion, after Ozai's energy had been bended and his firebending taken away, after Azula had fallen deeper into the maze of her own mind, the Gaang was able to relax. Happy and content in the courtyard of General Iroh's tea shop, they could be loud and raucous or they could be quiet and at ease. They cherished these times for soon they would be back repairing the cracks the Fire Nation had strewn between the world. In one such quiet moment Sokka and Katara found themselves chilling. They lay on their backs looking at the clouds pass in a clear sky.
Sokka pointed up. "That one looks like a koala sheep."
"All clouds can look like koala sheep Sokka. That's like saying a cloud looks like a cloud. Be a little more imaginative, why don't you?"
Sokka bristled but only for show, "But it does! If you think you're so much better, you try."
"Watch I will. Look that one there. It looks like a … Like a …." Katara tried to think of something that was not cloud or koala sheep but he was right. The clouds were ambiguously fluffy today.
"Ha. Ha. I'm right they all look like fluffy clouds today. Man, I never knew life with the Avatar could be so boring." He sat up and spied Mai chatting with Suki and Iroh within the tea shop. Offhandedly he threw out, "Hey Katara, have you ever thought Mai and Toph are kinda similar? Not looks you know but like their childhoods and parents and stuff."
Katara sat up quickly and turned to face her brother. "You know I was thinking the same thing. They both had that whole parents make them act nicely and properly in public thing and not being their true selves going on. And they both secretly hated it."
"Yes. So Mai acted out by being all sarcastic and getting super good at her freaky dart thingys and Toph had her -"
"EARTHBENDING." They finished together, looking each other in the eyes. Sokka smiled with Katara quickly following with a laugh. Water tribe synchronicity, oh yeah.
"Yeah we still got it. Water tribe WHAT WHAT!" For some reason this made Katara laugh even more. It was getting out of control. She was rolling around and getting grass in her hair. Sokka stared. His sister was crazy but he laughed too. And helped out but pelting her with more grass pieces. He considered it his brotherly duty to make her look as crazy as possible.
What he didn't count on was dancing around throwing grass and chanting "Twins we're water tribe twins. Twins, twins Mai and Toph are twins," made him look the tiniest bit cuckoo too. Which was exactly how he looked as Aang, Zuko, and Toph walked into the courtyard.
The 3 simultaneously stopped to stare at the so called 'Water Tribe Twins' (who were not in fact twins at all). Aang smiled to see them both, cough Katara cough, so happy. Zuko stood confused not knowing whether to grin or call for help. And Toph …
"WHAT IN THE WORLD ARE YOU TWO CUCKOOS DOING? AND WHAT IS ALL THIS TWIN BUSINESS?"
Sokka froze with one foot in the air and promptly toppled over. Katara jumped up brushing off grass and arranging her hair.
"Oh erm well that was nothing. Nothing." Katara started to say.
Toph cut her off. "Save it Sweetness. I heard my name and I want to know what you guys were saying about me." With a deft bend of her wrist a rock appeared and she plopped herself down still staring expectantly. Zuko and Aang sat themselves down on the grass while Katara and Sokka traded looks daring each other to start talking.
Sokka started as he rose to his feet. "Look Toph here's the thing. We were just talking about how you are Mai are sort of like freaky twins with like same freaky parents and freaky -"
Katara cut in. This was not right. "We were saying how similar you and Mai's childhoods were," she said elbowing Sokka for his abundant use of the word freaky. She smiled "See, nothing bad."
"Are you kidding me? Me and Mai are nothing alike. She's all perfect and orderly and neat and I'm not. Not that she isn't cool," she threw in noticing Zuko getting antsy over all the talk about his girlfriend.
"Who isn't cool?" Mai asked as she glided in to sit next to Zuko. Suki followed behind, pulling Sokka down to cuddle in the grass with her. Realizing she was the only one left standing Katara shuffled over to sit next to Aang. He blushed slightly and grinned as she leaned towards him.
"Ummm nothing nothing," everyone scrambled to say.
Toph just looked towards her and said, "The Water Tribe twins over there were just comparing our childhoods. They think we were in the same situation. I set it straight though. We're nothing alike."
Mai nodded and let out a bark of a laugh, "Yeah thats right nothing alike" just as Toph said, "Obviously my childhood was way harder."
Mai narrowed her eyes. Everyone held their breaths looking between the two. "Are you sure you want to do this Toph?"
"There's nothing to do." Toph stretched and earthbended herself more rock to lay back on. She smirked, "It's just stated fact that I had a sucky childhood thanks to my stupid parents. Nobody here has anything on me." She offhandedly waved towards Zuko. "Oh well except Zuko. No offense."
He shrugged. "None taken."
"Ha. Did you have three governesses take charge of you so your parents would only have to see you once a day? And then did they only kiss you on your forehead and tell you to be behave? Somehow I don't think so."
"No but that was because being locked up in a cushioned room all day doesn't take three governesses."
"At least your parents did it for your protections." Seeing Toph bristling, she added " I know, I know, you didn't need protection. You needed love." She sarcastically wrapped her arms around herself.
"Talk about needing love." She mimicked a high voice totally unlike Mai's. "My parents never loved me. Oh pay attention to me. Maybe if I do what they ask they'll love me. Oh mommy, daddy, love me."
Mai jumped to her feet. "My voice sounds nothing like that."
Toph got to her feet, ready for anything Mai might throw at her. "Oh sorry was my voice too animated, better make it more boring."
"I was locked in my room for two whole days for not brushing my hair for a state dinner."
"My parents made my use a wheelchair until I was seven."
"Well, sorry your parents cared. Ms. Too Busy Living the High Life to Even Visit."
"Oh my parent's don't love me. Pay attention to me. Pay attention to me and my perfectly round buns."
"Why do you guys love me so much? Why do you guys want to protect me? Why can't you just hate me?"
It was too much. Mai's impersonation of Toph's voice was weirdly deep and slow while Toph's went from a falsetto to a gross monotone. Mai was stomping around, rubbing under her armpits, and kicking around dirt, being very unMai -ish. Toph had picked up rocks to mimic Mai's buns and sashaying in an imitation of a "proper" walk. It was all too much for the rest of the Gaang. They burst into the hysteric laughter they had been holding back since they realized no way was this going to turn into a real fight.
Mai and Toph stopped and turned dropping their props, both red in the face. Toph went back to her earth chair and blew at her hair as she laid back down. Mai slid back into Zuko's arms still shaking with laughter.
"Ok, ok fun's over. Don't make me kick all your butts." Toph grumbled.
"That goes double for you," Mai said hitting Zuko's still shaking arms.
"So I guess we figured it out. Mai and Toph are officially twins," Sokka proclaimed.
"Shut it," the two said in unison. Toph added a rock to Sokka's butt for measure. With his shriek and abundant butt rubbing everyone couldn't help but giggle.
"Twins of craziness," Sokka mumbled as Toph and Mai exchanged secret smiles.
Hey, it wasn't so bad being a twin. Just ask the Water Tribe Twins.