Okay, so I know Toko never has been and never will be canon, but ever since that moment where Toph made Zuko blush, I've shipped them together. Don't judge me, I'm a fangirl! I can build a ship out of ANYTHING! Anyway, QuirkyRevelations has been bugging me to post this story, and I've been putting it off because of school and AP testing. But now, I finally have the time to start publishing this. I hope you like it.
Zuko had never liked surprises. He found them to be the spark of a conflagration of trouble for him, and it would not die down without grueling hours of labor. So naturally, the Firelord was not especially pleased when the renowned, blind earth bender from his past suddenly showed up on his doorstep.
The commotion started when Zuko was listlessly strolling down a corridor of the royal palace, only to be interrupted by several shouts from the front entrance. Zuko instantly rushed to the entryway, and he arrived just in time to see a blast of earth crash through the double doors leading inside. An irritated Zuko dodged the incompetent guards - who were scattering faster than ants - and skidded to the threshold of his palace. The dust cleared, and behold there was a tall, slim young woman wearing a loose, vibrantly green outfit cinched by a thick brown belt. A viridescent headband adorned her raven hair, which was pulled up into a large, tight bun. Her colorless eyes stared blankly at Zuko, not quite meeting his astonished golden gaze.
"Toph?" said Zuko, not entirely believing his eyes.
"Sup, Princess. Aren't ya gonna invite me in?" came Toph's abrupt response.
"I'm afraid that's a moot point, since you pretty much barged in without permission," retorted Zuko.
"I was just making some ruckus to get your attention. The stupid guards were refusing to let me in."
"How did you know I was going to come?"
"You're the Firelord, aren't you supposed to keep the peace or something?"
"Everywhere you are, there's trouble. That much is already clear."
"Listen, we could play word games all day, or you can treat me like the guest that I am."
Zuko straightened, stepped aside, and politely gestured for her to come inside; he didn't have time to spend arguing with her all day, so he may as well let her in.
"Smart move, Sparky," nodded Toph as she brushed past a ruffled Zuko.
"As always, your manners and charisma are impeccable," commented Zuko sarcastically.
"Oooh, Mr. Firepants is using BIG words now. Don't use 'em too much, or your brain won't be able to handle it."
"Shut up."
Toph chuckled good-naturedly and socked Zuko on the shoulder with a painful force that he had not missed during the years they had been apart. He made a subdued groan, rubbed his arm tenderly, and trailed behind the ridiculously pleased Toph.
"You couldn't have picked a better time to plop down on my doorstep," commented Zuko with a hint of irony. "I'm meeting with some of the most respected citizens of the Fire Nation to begin laying out our ideas for the new Republic City, which I will pitch to the other three nations next month."
"Aw shucks, and I'm gonna be an embarrassment, aren't I?" guessed Toph humorously.
"I would expect nothing less from you," replied Zuko coolly.
"I'm glad you have so much faith in me, Princess."
"Any time. Are you planning to stay overnight?"
"As a matter of fact I am."
Zuko beckoned to one of the maids unlucky enough to be walking ahead of them in the hall. She meekly ducked her head and reluctantly approached the Firelord and earthbending master with the soft treading of her feet.
"Assign Miss Bei Fong to a room, please," requested Zuko respectfully.
"Yes sire," responded the maid as she began hurrying toward the opposite end of the corridor, with a smirking Toph in tow.
"I'll catch you later, Sparky!" called Toph as she merrily walked on her way, almost with a skip to her step.
After Toph's arrival, Zuko didn't see her for another couple of days; he supposed she had successfully gotten the hint and decided to make herself discreet while he took care of diplomatic matters. Although, the maids put in her charge always did come out of Toph's room trembling violently and hardly capable of discernible speech. Sometimes Zuko could hear Toph sparring with some of his guards (likely she had forced them into it) in the gardens, but he knew better than to try to stop her earthbending onslaught. As long as she didn't burst into his conference room in the middle of a debate or speech, Zuko didn't have an ounce of care about what she was doing. Finally, he dismissed the final meeting with his generals and advisors, feeling relieved that at the moment the constant arguments were at a standstill.
One of the elderly advisors came to Zuko afterward and inquired, "Where is that noblewoman you were courting when I saw you last?"
"Mai?" said Zuko, realizing that this was the first time he had spoken her name in a long while. "I'm afraid that she and I are no longer together."
"That's a shame," lamented the old man. "Is there anyone else in the picture?"
"Err- uh…." stammered Zuko nervously, not liking where the conversation was going. His palace would be swarming with potential wives if he didn't choose his words carefully. "N-not at the moment. Until I've made further headway with the Republic City project, I don't have time to be courting."
The man nodded gravely. "I understand. Well, farewell Firelord Zuko."
Zuko nodded reverently, and puffed a sigh of relief upon seeing that he had successfully maneuvered out of dangerous waters. All he wanted to do at that point was to flop on his bed and sleep for a millennium or so… maybe by then the war-torn world would have fixed itself.
She sensed him long before he sensed her presence, for which she was extremely grateful. She still hadn't quite decided if now was the best time to tell him the real reason she was here. Toph blew the wisps of hair out of her face, inhaled deeply, and stepped out of the shadows to greet her comrade.
"Hey, it's been too long, Sparky!" exclaimed Toph brightly. "How was it with the fussbudgets?"
"Not bad actually," answered Zuko nonchalantly. "We just finished with our last meeting."
"That's good."
A stretch of awkward silence loomed between them, and Toph struggled mightily to step across it.
Finally Zuko said, "Well, goodnight."
"Night," replied Toph in an uncharacteristically quiet voice.
A flicker of a frown touched Zuko's brows, but he shrugged it off and stepped into his private quarters, which were across the hall from Toph's. Toph sighed wearily, mentally berating herself for chickening out, yet feeling too afraid to knock on Zuko's door to try again. For a few moments, she couldn't decide whether to retire for the night or go outside to clear her muddled mind; in the end she opted for the latter.
Even though he was exhausted, sleep still eluded Zuko by tauntingly weaving through the various obstacles of his mind's anxious thoughts. The thought of Toph especially perturbed him, since he realized that she had not bothered to tell him why she came in the first place. Perhaps she had tried to tell him just now. If so, why didn't she? The questions were flying like buzzards in his head, and he was desperate to shake them out before they preyed on all the sleep he might obtain. Zuko decided that a breath of fresh air was just what he needed.
Zuko was surprised to see Toph curled up into a ball next to the turtleduck pond, where the tiny turtleducks were happily paddling through the pond's crystal clear water, which reflected the full moon in the midnight sky. Toph's apprehensive muscles visibly tensed as Zuko quietly approached her from behind, but she didn't turn around. Zuko sat next to her, and allowed the peacefulness of the night wash over them; Toph spoke aloud, breaking the stillness like a skipping rock disturbing a pool's placid surface.
"Zuko?" came her voice, sounding scarily frail and uncertain.
Oh Agni, when was the last time Toph had called him by his first name? Suddenly Zuko was seized with an overwhelming sense of anxiety as a flood of questions poured into his brain; the feeling surprised him because he had never felt such strong concern before for the little tyke that he had traveled the world with years ago - though he supposed she wasn't much of a tyke anymore.
"Yeah?" Zuko replied hesitantly.
Toph fidgeted with her fingers, which made Zuko worry even more since she was never one to nervously meander around a conversation.
"I'm…" Toph, unable to finish her sentence, sighed deeply. She tried again. "I-I'm…"
"For crying out loud, spit it out, Toph!" exclaimed Zuko in exasperation.
"I'M PREGNANT!" lashed out Toph abruptly.
Zuko blinked and uncomfortably gawked at her for a good two minutes. Her breathing became shallow as she repeatedly rubbed her arms and tapped her foot on the ground.
"… By whom?"
The dreaded question that was bound to come finally came, and she still didn't have an answer.
She pouted and replied, "I can't tell you."
Oooh cliffhanger! I hate those when I'm the reader... but in this case I am the writer, laughing maniacally in the background. :P