031. Sunrise
It always woke me up. Every morning, I could feel someone shaking - sobbing, almost - just outside of our campsite. It happened at around the same time every day, and for almost the same amount of minutes. And it always woke me up.
The vibrations ebbing through the earth were so powerful, so emotional, that I couldn't stand to sleep through them. After a few weeks, I gave in.
"Sokka?" I called out to the edge of the cliff, crawling quietly over to where I felt his presence. "Are you alright?" The sobs quieted.
"Y-yeah, I'm fine Toph. Go back to sleep."
I got to my feet, padding lightly to where he sat, looking in some general direction I thought he might be. "You wake me up every morning without fail, Snoozles. And I can feel you lying. You know that. So let's just skip the formalities and you can tell me what's bothering you."
He sighed, laughing lightly. "Just… I hate when the moon goes away. Sunrise just… I can't stand it." My eyebrow twitched, confusion evident on my face, but I let him continue regardless. "Y'see… A while before we met you, we stopped at the north pole so Aang could learn waterbending, right? Yeah." He paused, taking a deep breath.
"There I met this… girl. But she was more than just another girl. This girl... No one can replace her. She was brave… in her own way. She gave her life and saved a whole nation of people. And all that I have left of her is the moon."
I nodded, still confused beyond comprehension, but accepted this. "Sokka… I-" I was cut off, Sokka's arms flying around me. Awkwardly I patted his back, hearing a muffled and almost incomprehensible 'thank you'.
And as quickly as I was captured, I was set free, and I could feel him slowly walking back to where he slept.
"Y-yeah…" I mumbled, my head racing.