The sea was always changing.
Katara sat on a cliff overlooking the ocean, her arms around her knees. The wind whipped through her long, dark hair and rippled the sleeves of her gown against her arms. She could smell the salt in the air; the warm glow of the evening sun cast her skin in shades of bronze. She smiled a little, her eyes on the waves far below.
Today, the sea was a bit rough. The orange glow of the sunset stained the whitecaps a soft shade of peach, contrasting with the deep blue-green of the water. Katara's eye followed the waves inland, to where the water grew shallow. There, the water was a delicate green color. Green, she thought sadly. Green, like her eyes… She shook herself suddenly. Stop it, Katara! You can't keep doing this to yourself! Her blue eyes dulled. The spell of the evening was broken. With a sigh, she slowly rose to her feet and headed back to the palace.
It had been a long time since the Hundred Year War had ended. The great Battle of Sozin's Comet had taken place seven years before. Thousands had died in that epic clash of nations. Waterbenders, earthbenders and even the few remaining airbenders had joined together to take down the warlike Fire Nation. Katara herself had fought in the front lines – she and her friends.
Her friends. The thought made her sigh deeply. How quickly their little group had dispersed after the end of that battle! Aang, the Avatar, had been killed in his battle with Fire Lord Azula, the master firebender who had taken the throne out from under her father only weeks before the battle. (Katara was still trying to find him again, as the Avatar spirit would have reincarnated – but so far, no seven-year-old Avatar had turned up.) Zuko, of course, had remained to help rebuild the Fire Nation. She, Katara, had remained as well, to heal the wounded. After that, she had simply stayed because she was needed as a representative of the Water Tribes. Her brother, Sokka, had taken his fiancée, Suki, back home to the south pole. And then there was Toph.
Toph Bei Fong, the greatest earthbender in the world. Katara's blue eyes softened. The girl had been only thirteen years old when the battle had raged, but she had been one of the most potent forces on that battlefield. Over nine hundred Fire Nation soldiers had fallen to the tiny blind girl alone! Then the Dai Lee had reached her. Katara had screamed her name, but she couldn't get to her in time. By the time she reached the child, Toph had been lying facedown on the ground, covered with blood.
Katara remembered lifting the little earthbender into her arms and staggering off the battlefield with her. Tears had streamed down her face as she laid Toph on the ground and began to try to heal her.
It had been days before she was certain that Toph would live. During that time, her feelings for the blind girl had grown immeasurably stronger.
The waterbender sighed deeply, bowing her head. She knew that these feelings were…well, not wrong, exactly. (She couldn't bring herself to call such loving and caring emotions wrong!) But she knew they weren't things that could be acted upon. She could never take Toph into her arms and press her lips against hers. She could never whisper the words that she wanted to into Toph's sensitive ears – I love you.
It just wasn't done.
Toph had gone as soon as she had healed enough. She had led the Earth Kingdom resistance movement against the remaining pockets of Fire Nation power, and had won. Now she was the general of the Earth Kingdom's army – despite her youth. Katara looked down at her own feet. How old would she be now? – Nineteen? No, nearly twenty. A smile twitched her lips. She wondered what a twenty-year-old Toph Bei Fong would look like.
Katara raised her eyes to look at the palace as she entered it. She lived there now, performing her duties as an ambassador. How many changes had come over the years! Zuko had married a year and a half after the end of the war; his bride, Lady Mai Tsang, had since had a little daughter. Zuko had named her Zulie. She was a bright-eyed, beautiful child – she looked very much like her aunt Azula, but (thankfully) without the ugly streak of sadism that had warped the woman.
The Water Tribe woman's eyes darkened. She remembered how Azula had been dragged in chains into Zuko's court on the day of her trial. The former princess had shrieked at her brother to execute her, but he had calmly banished her from the Fire Nation, and ordered her ability to firebend removed. In a final twist of irony, it had been Ty Lee, Azula's former friend, who had carried out the second part of that sentence. Azula had vanished, and no one had heard from her since.
She had reached her quarters. Katara moved inside and sat on the bed, her thoughts drifting back to Toph. How beautiful the child was. She remembered Toph's strong limbs, her delicate face, her jet-black hair, and her blind eyes – light green and milky, like two pearls. She remembered, too, the crooked smile that would light up the little girl's face when she laughed.
A soft knock roused Katara from her reverie. She looked up with a sigh. "Come." The door opened, and a round face with bright eyes peered inside. "Yes?"
"Hey." The woman stepped inside. "Sorry to bother you, ambassador, but Fire Lord Zuko said you'd want to know. There's an Earth Kingdom envoy here."
"Oh?" Katara raised a brow. "Is there going to be a meeting I need to be at?"
"No." The servant shook her head. "An old friend of yours is with them. An earthbender girl."
Katara's eyes grew a touch wider. She felt the bottom drop out of her stomach – she could hardly breathe for a few moments. Toph! Toph was coming here? She struggled to master the surge of emotions that was battering her. "Do you mean Toph Bei Fong?" she asked then, her voice slightly strangled.
"Yes! That's the name." The round-faced woman nodded. Katara dismissed her with a wave.
Toph Bei Fong. Is coming. Here. Katara didn't know what to think. Wait. Did she say she was HERE ALREADY?? Without stopping to think, Katara leaped to her feet and sped from her quarters.
When she reached the front gate of the palace, Katara stopped. There was an envoy there, being greeted by Fire Lord Zuko and his wife, Mai. They were mostly soldiers, dressed in the distinctive green armor of the Earth Kingdom. Katara hesitated. She couldn't see Toph – but maybe that was for the best. And what am I doing, anyway? Running out here like a lovesick puppy! Toph's probably married by now. Straightening her skirt self-consciously, Katara drew herself up and slowly made her way down the steps.
Then the tall soldier talking to Zuko turned to greet Mai, and Katara's heart leaped into her throat. It was her!
Toph had grown. How she had grown! When last they had parted, the earthbender's head had only come up to Katara's chin. Now she was at least six feet tall – more, Katara estimated, given that she looked a few inches taller than Zuko. The armor she wore left her lower legs and upper arms bare; the waterbender could see the knotted cords of muscle in her limbs. She was still lean, but there were definite curves to her muscular body. Katara's eyes moved up to Toph's face. It was longer than it had been, and leaner. Her hair had been cut short, and fell in a shaggy mass around her ears and face. Her lips were still seashell pink, and her eyes…oh, her eyes! Katara's knees felt weak. Those huge, minty-green eyes were every bit as beautiful as she remembered.
At that moment, Toph's head suddenly jerked around, and her blind eyes looked in Katara's direction. Slowly, trying not to show how weak her knees felt, Katara made her way down the rest of the steps. Zuko caught sight of her. "Ambassador Katara!" he said. "You remember Katara, General Bei Fong?"
"I remember." Toph's voice sent thrills down Katara's spine. It was deeper than it once had been, but she remembered it – she remembered it! Toph turned to face Katara, her face breaking into a wide grin. (That same crooked grin!) "Hello, Katara."
"T…Toph Bei Fong," The ambassador dearly hoped her voice wouldn't squeak. "Welcome. What brings you to the Fire Nation?"
"Business." The blind girl's brows lowered. "We've had increased insurgent attacks in the northern Earth Kingdom area lately. We're hoping the Fire Nation can offer us some help." She paused. A hint of her smile came back. "And I'm sure I can find time to talk to old friends, too." She turned her face back to Zuko.
The Fire Lord smiled and waved his hand to his servants. "Get our guests settled in their quarters," he ordered. Then, as they obeyed, "Katara, Toph – you're both invited to dinner with my wife and I tonight."
"It would be an honor, Fire Lord," Toph smiled. Then she leaned toward him a little, speaking low enough that only he, Mai and Katara caught her next words. "Besides, I haven't kicked your ass in a while, Sparky!" Zuko laughed, Katara clapped a hand over her mouth, and Mai raised an elegant eyebrow as a smile twitched her lips.
That was Toph, all right. Katara's eyes followed the tall young woman as she went into the palace. She hoped that she wasn't blushing, although the warmth of her cheeks told her otherwise. Toph…
What is wrong with me? Katara shook herself suddenly. If she was going to have dinner with the Fire Lord and his wife, she needed to get ready.
She went through the motions of dressing mechanically. Her vanity beckoned; she sat down before it and began to do her hair. Toph…is here. She wasn't certain what she felt. Happy, yes – even exhilarated! But there was also an icy lump of dread in the pit of her stomach. She wasn't sure if she was afraid that something would happen between them, or if she was afraid that nothing would.
Oh, what am I saying? Nothing can happen! She closed her eyes. I will not jeopardize everything Toph has worked so hard to build just for my little schoolgirl crush. She's an army general, for Agni's sake – and I have peacekeeping duties, too. There are bigger things than either of us.
There was a knock on her bedroom door. Katara sighed, twisting a coil of hair up and slipping a sapphire bead over it. "Who is it?"
"A friend." The voice held amusement.
The waterbender's breath caught in her throat. Toph! For a moment or two, she was unable to form words. With a determined effort, she cleared her throat and forced her tongue to obey her. "Come in."
She did so, closing the door behind her. With a deep breath, Katara turned to face her. Agni - ! The woman was magnificent. The flickering light of the wall sconces played over the rippled muscles of her arms. After a moment's pause, Toph smiled, her head on one side. "Hey, Sugar Queen."
"Toph!" Almost without thinking, Katara rose from her seat and threw her arms around the warrior. The smooth plate of armor was cold against her cheek. "Oh Toph, it's so good to see you again!"
The earthbender chuckled, and her arms moved to engulf the smaller woman. Metal rasped as she did so. "Katara, it's great to be here." She laughed a little. "Ugh, I don't think I'm ever going to get used to this formality thing. It's all 'Fire Lord Zuko' and 'Fire Lady Mai' and 'Ambassador Katara.' Spirits! What happened to Sparky and Sweetness?"
Katara couldn't help laughing. "You're still the same disheveled, irreverent little tomboy on the inside, aren't you?" she said, pulling away.
"Of course. Who else would I be?" Toph favored her with her wide grin. "And look at you, Sugar Queen! You're even more the elegant lady now. I wouldn't have thought it was possible!" She put a hand on her chin and pretended to look Katara up and down with her blind eyes. "But I coulda sworn you used to be taller."
"Oh, you!" Katara smacked her on the arm and laughed again as she turned away, hoping that Toph couldn't sense the red flush rising in her cheeks. She sat down and resumed slipping beads into her hair. "Are you going to the dinner in that, Toph?" she asked, twisting a strand of hair and putting it up.
Drawing herself up, the earthbender struck a clenched fist against her breastplate. "Sure, Sweetness. I'm a general, you know! I can get away with stuff like that." She shrugged. "Besides, this is my dress armor. The regular stuff's all beat up."
This gave Katara pause. "You mentioned new insurgencies," she said, tucking one last strand of hair behind her ear.
"Yeah, I did." Toph's voice was grim. "It's actually getting pretty bad, Katara. We almost lost Omashu to them last month. They're getting smarter, and their strategizing is getting better – a lot better." She sighed through her nose. "It's not just firebenders anymore, either. There's a lot of earthbenders, even a waterbender or two. Ambushes, kidnappings, terrorist attacks, all-out sieges. It's getting worse."
Katara's eyes widened in shock and horror. "Oh, Toph, how awful!" she breathed. "We'd heard there were some problems, but nothing like that!"
"That's why we're here. When Zuko comes to the Earth Kingdom next month, we're going to be formally asking him for help, but we wanted to prepare him for it ahead of time." Toph paused, turning her sightless eyes in Katara's direction. "I came along," she said slowly, "because I wanted to ask you personally, Katara. Will you come?"
"Me?" The waterbender paused. Toph had used her real name, instead of one of her nicknames. She was serious. "Toph, why…"
"Because you're the greatest waterbending master I know," Toph said calmly. "You might even be the best in the world. We've got waterbenders in our ranks now, and I need someone to train them. Who better than you?" She paused again. "Please, Katara. We need you."
The Water Tribe woman's hands were shaking. "I…I don't know, Toph. I mean, I have responsibilities here…"
"I've already been talking to your brother about that," Toph admitted. "Sokka wrote me and told me he's willing to step into your shoes if you decide to come. Suki won't mind, she's tired of the snow anyway!" Silence. "I know it's a lot to ask. I wouldn't do it if I could think of anyone else."
It was a lot to take in. Katara bit her lips. "I…I'll think about it, Toph."
"Okay." The general laid her hand on Katara's shoulder. "I'll see you at dinner, Sugar Queen." The waterbender nodded quietly, and Toph let herself out.
Katara stared into her mirror, but her eyes were unseeing. I haven't fought in years. I had hoped it was over… Memories of the Battle of Sozin's Comet washed over her. She had plunged ice daggers into yielding flesh, sent shards of ice ripping through the enemy ranks. She had seen the bloody aftermath of what she had done, and watched her friends fall. And she had spent months in the infirmaries afterwards, healing, trying to save both friend and foe. Shuddering, Katara lowered her head into her hands. And now, Toph's asking me to do it all again. Because she needs me. Because they need me.
Another deep shudder rippled over her. I don't have a choice.