Back Home: Chapter 1
The rain had stopped falling, and the sun had taken its place in the sky. Toph could feel the small amount of heat from the rays shine on her feet and she knew that it was time to announce her decision. She climbed out of the handcrafted metal bed, slid on a dress, and joined the rest of the gang for breakfast.
"I can't believe this!" Aang said looking at the statistics drawn on the scrolls in front of him frantically. "Ever since the war ended, it seems like poverty has sky-rocketed."
"Well...it kind of makes sense," Sokka said through a mouth full of bread. He swallowed. "The war supplied thousands of jobs. Soldiers, sailors, anything in the metal business, and the guys who make the weapons don't have jobs anymore.'
Aang sighed. He made a mental note to bring it up at the next Peace Meeting he had to attend. "We need to find a way to supply more jobs."
Toph entered the room. She had barely listened to their conversation because her mind was somewhere else completely. "I...I have to tell you something," she stated. "You may not like it, but its something I have to do."
"What is it Toph?" Even though she was blind, Toph had become adapt to sensing people's facial expressions. She could feel Katara giving her an approving motherly smile. Toph hated when she did that. It made it seem like Toph wasn't capable of talking unless she had someone's approval.
Toph took a deep breath. "I'm leaving."
"No Toph! Don't leave, just tell us what you were going to say," Aang gave her a friendly smiley. It was similar to Katara's, but less motherly. It was more mutual.
"I just did. I'm saying that I'm leaving. I'm going home."
Sokka dropped his fork. "But Toph," he said hurt, "this is your home."
"I know that Sokka, I know. But I just...I need to see my parents."
"No!" Sokka said sternly. "You can't leave us."
"Maybe we can all go and visit your parents together," Suki suggested, her hand on Sokka's shoulder.
"No. I need to do this. I need to do this alone."
"How long are you going stay there?"
"I don't know."
"Are we ever going to see you again?"
"I don't know.
"Toph! You can't leave! Come on...be reasonable."
"Sokka, I want to go home. I want to wake up to my house in my room with my parents. I want to not go to bed every night wondering what is going through their minds."
"But what about us? What about when your back home laying in bed? Aren't you going to worry about our minds too?"
"You have each other. I'm sure you'll be fine. The war is over. I need to go back home."