Hellooo again, fellow Avatar lovers!
I found this sitting in my word fanfiction folder, and i read it and thought ooo i must continue!
The Gaang is bored, and they're all at the western air temple! Could be set between the Western Air Temple and the Southern Raiders, but it has my own little ending.
Anyhoo, the gaang is bored, so they decide to play a game of Hide and Seek! What mayhem could occur…you decide! Well, no, I decide, but you catch my drift! In the words of the Avatar himself, a game of hide and seek can change everything!
DISLCAIMER – I don't own avatar, if I did it never would've ended! Bah.
Read on, my brave warriors!
"I'm bored." Toph announced, slumped against a rock.
"Tell me about it," agreed Sokka, who was lying on his back with his feet propped up on the edge of the fountain.
Aang was lying flat out on Appa's tail, and Katara sat above him in the saddle, resting her head on her arms, making Aang's hat float around in the air on a water bubble, which Aang puffed up high with a poof of air when it got too close to his head. Zuko sat up against a wall, arms crossed, idly playing with a little ball of fire in his hand, which Momo would try to catch every now and again. He'd already set his ears on fire twice.
Hakoda, the prison guy, and The Duke were off hunting, and everyone was waiting for them to return. Sokka felt he would die soon without meat. Suki, who was sitting by Sokka's head, sighed, "So, is this all you do? Just…sit? Jeez, I thought what you guys did was more exciting than this."
"Oh, I'm sorry there's not enough excitement for you Suki" responded Aang irritably. "I suppose you have a better idea for what we should do?"
Suki blushed and looked down, playing with Sokka's ponytail. Things were bad when even Aang – the great peacemaker himself – was in a bad mood. Katara looked over at him, resisting the urge to shuffle up close to him and give him a hug.
Sokka sighed, and sat up, "Where's combustion man when you need him?"
"Wait…I thought his name was Sparky Sparky Boom man?"
"Keep with it Katara, we changed the name ages ago. I think you might be losing your touch…following Toph's example, I see." There was a high-pitched squeal as Toph launched Sokka into the air, sending him straight into the fountain. "Toph!"
"Whoops, sorry Snoozles."
"I've had enough of this…"
Katara rolled her eyes at Aang who groaned as Toph and Sokka started bickering loudly. Sokka angrily chucked a rock at Toph, who ducked, and it went flying at Zuko, hitting him in the head.
"Hey! Watch it!" Zuko stood up angrily, accidentally singeing the edge of Suki's trouser leg with sparks from his fireball. She jumped up, stamped it out and they both started arguing too. Momo jumped about, chattering loudly, and Katara sighed, rubbing her temples.
"Here we go again." She glanced at Aang, who looked up at her from below. "Surely there must be something we can do." Aang shrugged, keeping an eye on the squabbling teenagers, making sure they didn't kill each other.
He shrugged "Maybe there's some kind of…I dunno…game or something we can play, just to keep ourselves busy. Oh! I know! Hide and Seek!" Aang perked up, and his signature grin flashed across his face.
"Hide and what now?"
"Hide and Seek. It's a game me and the other monk kids used to play; one person is the seeker, and everyone else runs and hides, and the last one to be found wins!"
Katara shrugged, "Ok then, that has to be better than just leaving them to argue. But how to get them to be quiet…"
"No problem." Aang airbended himself up Appa's tail, over the saddle and onto his head. He whispered in Appa's ear, "Shut them up will you?" Appa roared loudly, sending three of the four bickerers off their feet onto the ground.
"Alright!" Aang shouted, "Katara and I have decided that we should all play a game to pass the time. Hide and Seek."
"Awh, Aang, not another stupid game…"
"Look, Sokka, either you play, or Katara freezes you to that cliff over there." Katara narrowed her eyes menacingly and Sokka quickly zipped his mouth.
"Ok, good. Now, everyone pick a partner." Sokka immediately grabbed Suki, and Teo wheeled himself over to Toph and nudged her.
"Partner with me?"
She suppressed a wry smile, the blind girl and disabled/flying boy partnered together? Somehow, she sort of liked the sound of it. "Alright then."
Aang moved quickly to stand beside Katara as he saw Haru edging towards her, "I'm with Katara." he said, glaring meaningfully at Haru. Katara giggled; Haru's face fell, and he looked over at Zuko.
"You mind?"
"Fine, whatever. Stupid game anyway."
Aang nodded, satisfied, "Right, now that we're all partnered up, I'll explain the rules. If you find someone, you have to catch them first before saying they've lost. Any bending is allowed, but no one is allowed out of this air temple. Other than that, you're allowed to hide pretty much wherever. Oh, and someone has to carry Toph when she's a seeker."
"What?!"
"Well, it's unfair; you can feel where everyone is. You're allowed to touch the ground when Teo says he's seen someone, ok?"
"But how am I gonna get around without using my feet?"
"You can just sit in my chair with me" Teo said brightly. Toph flushed pink but didn't complain.
"Ok," said Katara, "Zuko and Haru are the seekers. Game starts…now!" Immediately everyone split: Aang snapped open his glider and grabbed Katara round the waist without a second thought, launching them both into the air. Sokka and Suki ran off down one of the tunnels, and Toph earthbended her and Teo through the floor onto a lower level. Haru and Zuko were left, with their eyes on the wall, for 5 minutes, both of them counting down sulkily. When Zuko got to 200 he decided he was bored enough, and twisted round, trudging off up the steps. Haru trotted along behind him.
Katara and Aang
Katara laughed happily as Aang soared through the air; she loved flying. She thought that if she wasn't a waterbender, she would almost definitely want to be an airbender. Aang's arm tightened around her waist as he flew a loop the loop, and she tightened her arms which were already around his neck, trying to be inconspicuous.
Aang's storm grey eyes searched the temple, looking for a suitable place for them to hide. He was determined to win, partly because the longer they weren't found, the longer time he had alone with Katara.
He spotted a little botanical garden, high up near the edge of the cliff. Perfect.
He swooped down and landed, twirling them once in the air with his natural airbender grace before settling on the ground. Katara's eyes were glowing and she smiled brilliantly at Aang. He smiled back before realising his arm was still around her waist, and hers were still clutching his neck.
Trying hard not to blush he pulled her towards a pile of rocks, as an excuse not to let go of her. Katara saw through him, as she always did, but why would she complain?
"So, where are we hiding?"
Aang grinned at her excitedly, "You see the little brook, there? We can hide up where it starts; pretend to be a pile of rocks!"
She laughed, loving how carefree and happy he seemed. He hadn't been able to have fun like this in a long time. She let Aang pull her over to the rocky wall and she sat down, crossing her legs and bending the water off the ground. He sat down beside her and she shuffled until her knees were touching his, saying, "It'll look more convincing if the pile of rocks is smaller"
"Oh, right." He chuckled nervously and bended some stray rocks into an igloo shape, carefully creating a seemingly haphazard pile over them. Katara bended the water through a hole, to keep up the impression that they were a stream, and Aang closed off the final gap, enveloping them in darkness.
Katara sighed and leant back against the wall, crossing her arms, "Now what do we do?"
She felt Aang shrug from beside her, "We wait, I guess. I'll keep an ear out for any vibrations, and keep your bending water ready, in case we have to get away."
"It's very dark…"
Aang bended a small flame in his hand, holding it aloft, giving their little cave a soft red glow. He smiled, and his eyes twinkled, "Better?"
"Much." After a few minutes of silence, she gingerly put her head on his shoulder, and when he didn't resist, leant a bit more firmly on him. She closed her eyes and smiled happily, only just remembering to bend the water with her outside hand.
Aang switched the fire from his right hand to his left, then clasped hers, and there they sat, waiting for someone to find them but both hoping they never would.
Toph and Teo
Toph sat down leisurely on another rock and yawned widely. Teo wheeled himself over to her, "Aren't we gonna hide?"
"Nah, I can feel them coming, so we can just go through the wall if they get close."
Teo shrugged; happy he wouldn't have to kill his arms looking for some place to hide. He settled back in his chair and they lapsed into a slightly uncomfortable silence. Toph grimaced; she didn't like awkward silences.
"So…your Dad's an inventor, right?"
"Yeah." Teo twisted his fingers together, "he's pretty insane. What about yours?"
"You could say he was insane. My father's a Beifong" she said, as if that explained it.
"You're a Beifong? I didn't know they had a daughter…" Teo's eyes widened; he was sitting next to a Beifong? Who hadn't heard of the Beifongs? They were one of the most important families in the earth kingdom. He was surprised to see Toph roll her eyes and blow a few strands of her black hair out of her face.
"Yeah, I was just never allowed out of the house. Don't think that just because I'm blind I can't look after myself, because I can, thank you very much."
Teo got the impression that he'd hit a nerve, and he backtracked, "No, I know you can, I saw you in the invasion. I just never knew they had a daughter. They didn't tell anyone about you?" Toph shook her head, a little miserably, "Wow, that sucks."
"You're telling me."
"So is that why you ran away?"
"Yeah. Aang came to visit one day, and he gave me the chance to come with him and not have to hide anymore. I let my parents think that I was as helpless as they wanted me to be, but it got to be too much, so I took up Aang's offer. And now, here I am." Toph glanced at Teo in his chair; suddenly catching on to the fact that he was as disabled as her. "Didn't your dad keep you inside because of your legs?" She felt comfortable discussing his disability; after all, she was blind, so she could empathise.
Teo shook his head, smiling, "My dad's one of those people who thinks you can do anything if you want to…even if you can't walk. He's the one who made me my first glider, because I always wanted to fly like everyone else did. We didn't let my disability stop me, so I can do pretty much everything that anyone else does. My dad doesn't stop me."
Toph sighed, "I wish my parents were like that."
Teo patted her hand gently, "You just need to show them you can look after yourself"
"They won't be convinced that easily. That's why I left, I couldn't take it. And now they have no idea where I am…and I'm not sure if I even care."
"So you never want to go back?"
Toph shrugged, confused by how open she could be with this boy; the only other person she'd really talked to about her problems was Sokka. "Well…never say never…but I'm not going back anytime soon. I don't want to be shut up again."
"I understand. Hey, when you do decide to go back, I can come with you, you know," he punched her shoulder gently, same as she always did, "provide moral support."
Toph smiled, "Thanks, I'd like that."
"Cool."
They sat together in silence for a while again, both marvelling on how comfortable they were together; suddenly Toph jumped up. "Zuko and Haru alert…straight ahead!" She rammed her hands downwards, and they shot up through the ceiling, Teo grabbing Toph's arm as his chair wobbled, dangerously close to the edge. He whooped in excitement as the ceiling closed, just as Zuko and Haru ran in.
"Curses!" Haru shouted, "They've escaped! The fiends!"
Zuko groaned and smacked a hand to his forehead, "Would you please stop talking like a 2000 year old monk?!
Toph and Teo laughed together as they heard Zuko and Haru shouting at each other, then Teo wheeled himself to the edge of the courtyard, looking out over the gorge, his face pensive. "What?" Toph asked as she moved to stand next to him.
Teo turned to her, wearing an excited smile, "How would you feel about a quick flight?"
"What?!" Toph blanched, flying on a chair would be worse than flying on Appa! "Couldn't we just…erm…walk?"
Teo shook his head, "There's a perfect hiding spot up there," he pointed to a distant upside down temple, "and the only way there is gliding. Come on, the wind's perfect! I promise I'll look after you." He shot her a blinding smile, and Toph found herself unable to resist.
"Ok, fine, but you'd better not let me fall." He pulled her down to sit on his legs; she was much smaller and lighter than him, something she was glad of, and he clicked open his glider.
"Ready?"
"No…"
"Earthbend me off, would you?" Toph nodded and shot out a slab of earth, propelling them towards and over the edge. Teo pulled on his controls and they went swooping up into the air, Toph screaming and Teo whooping all the way.
Sokka and Suki
"Sokka, stop it, we can stop running now!" Suki giggled as Sokka pulled her further and further into the air temple, running around corners and through rooms with wild abandon, until every space they ran through was filled with shadows; Suki was sure they were halfway into the cliff by now.
Sokka stopped abruptly by a curtain, and Suki ran straight into him. He put his arm around her and nodded, satisfied. Suki looked up at him and said, "It's a curtain."
"I know, but this is the perfect hiding spot! I found it when Toph shot me into the cliff the other day." Suki giggled as she remembered that incident; Sokka had tried to prove that Toph wasn't a girl. That hadn't ended well for Sokka, but Aang and Katara had had a good laugh. That was until Toph earthbended Aang onto Katara, leaving him lying on top of her.
"Come on!" Sokka pulled her enthusiastically through the curtain; it was a storage cupboard, and was full with blankets, airbender robes, pillows and giant rugs for the Air Bison. Sokka put some cushions in the furthest, darkest corner, laying them out so there was enough space to lie down flat, then pushed Suki onto it and sat down next to her. She put blankets in a heap over them, and Sokka hung some robes on the rack above them. The final effect was a large heap of blankets under neatly hung up robes; Sokka was proud of himself.
"There, now no one will find us!"
Suki laughed at his excitement and kissed his cheek, "Plus, now I can do this," she moved right up close to him and put her head on his shoulder. Sokka put his arms around her and they both snuggled down deeper into the blankets.
They lay there, warm and comfortable, Sokka listening out for footsteps; Suki too busy enjoying having Sokka close to her. They never managed to sneak off together as much as they would like. Suki reminded herself to thank Aang profusely for this Hide and Seek idea. Though she had a feeling he would be congratulating himself since he had a whole day to be alone with Katara; Airbenders were a master of disguise. She didn't want to imagine what they were up to, but all she could say was that Aang was one crafty 13 year old boy.
She neglected to mention this to Sokka, who was muttering plans of what he would do to any seekers who came looking for them, and closed her eyes, gently dropping off to sleep, glad of the peace and quiet, and glad she had such an imaginative boyfriend.
Sokka stopped muttering and looked down at Suki, who was breathing slowly with a gentle smile playing across her lips. Sokka was glad she was asleep; Suki hadn't got much rest in the fire nation prison and he wanted to take care of her now she was here. In his opinion, she spent too much time running around and hurting herself; he would much rather she stayed with him. But he knew he couldn't keep Suki from doing what she wanted, and he doubted he would like her as much as she did if she was a meek, obedient woman. Her ability to look after herself was one of the things he loved about her.
He rested his head on hers and kissed her hair, closing his eyes too, too warm and happy to keep watch.
They lay there together, asleep in each others arms, and neither of them could look happier.
Zuko and Haru
Why did I have to get stuck with a guy with a moustache?! Zuko thought to himself angrily as he watched Toph and Teo disappear through the roof.
Jeez, that guy could really look after his hair better! Look at it, it's flopping around all over the place! I keep my hair in check, and I look great! Haru fingered his moustache fondly, wondering what Katara thought of it. He would much rather be with her right now than a grumpy firebender
"So…shall we go?" Haru said nervously; Zuko just flipped his hair out of his face and strode towards one of the tunnels, leaving Haru to hurry along behind him.
"Toph and Teo went upwards, so we might as well check back up there." Zuko wasn't much of a fan of Hide and Seek at the moment, but he knew if he didn't play Aang and Katara would be mad…and an angry Katara was a force to be reckoned with. Besides, he didn't want to get himself kicked out of the group just as he'd been accepted into it.
They trudged together through the brightly light halls, Haru glancing at Zuko every now and again, trying to find something to say that would fill the awkward silence. "So…what do you think of Katara?"
Zuko chuckled to himself; he'd known this guy was yet another Katara-lover, "I think she's alright, but she doesn't like me much."
"Oh. Do you like her?" Haru was trying to be nonchalant, assessing how much competition he had besides Aang.
Zuko tried very hard to be serious, "I think I will, once she stops hating me."
Haru's face fell in the light of new obstacles to Katara, "Oh."
Zuko asked slyly, "So what's all this about? Do YOU like Katara?"
"No…you said you did!"
"Hey, I like Katara as much as the next girl, but I have a girlfriend back in the firenation. Her name's Mai."
"You have a girlfriend?"
"Yeah. Why are you so interested anyway?"
"No reason." Haru was starting to annoy Zuko now with his Katara-obsessing, so Zuko decided to knock him down a peg…and then step on him.
"Well, I'm pretty sure Aang likes her a lot too…and she likes him."
Haru blanched, fingering his moustache worriedly, "S-she likes him? Not someone with, say…a moustache?"
It was all Zuko could do not to burst into hysterical laughter at Haru's transparent love of his moustache and Katara, "Nah, Katara likes her men with no facial hair at all, I think." Zuko then decided to take it one step further, wanting to drive Haru completely insane, "Did you see how Aang immediately claimed her as his partner? I don't even want to know what they decided to do together."
Haru stammered, "Y-you think they're doing something?"
Zuko shrugged, "Oh, yeah, it happens all the time. I know the signs, you see, because Mai and I used to do it."
"Oh?" said Haru in a weak voice, probably trying not to imagine it.
"Yeah. I'll say one thing: Aang's lucky he's bald." Zuko had no idea what that comment could imply, but he wanted Haru to use his imagination.
His words had the desired effect: Haru looked like he was about to be sick, "We have to find them!" was all he said, before running off towards the stairs leading up to the botanical gardens. Zuko burst out laughing and collapsed against a wall.
"What an idiot!"
Aang and Katara
Katara tried hard not to laugh as she heard Toph screaming and Teo whooping; she'd guessed that Teo had taken her for a glide, and if she wasn't sitting here with Aang she would most definitely want to see the look on Toph's face.
Aang chuckled from beside her, his shoulder bouncing up and down slightly, "What I wouldn't give to see Toph's face right now."
"My thoughts exactly."
They sat in silence again for a few minutes, listening as Toph screams died down and finally stopped. Aang supposed that they had reached solid ground again, and Toph was about to earthbend Teo out of his chair and into another fountain. He listened hard for that signature crack of bent rock, but his sensitive ears picked up nothing.
Huh, he thought, Toph must really like Teo.
He voiced his thoughts aloud to Katara, who's head was still on his shoulder and who's hand was still in his, and she agreed. "I wonder what Sokka and Suki are doing."
Aang laughed, "It's not hard to guess, considering you caught him in her room with a rose in his mouth."
"I still don't know where in Agni's name he got it!"
Aang blushed, suddenly glad of the flickering darkness; he knew exactly where the roses could be found, he was the one who took Sokka there to get them. He didn't tell Katara he'd been planning on getting some for her; that was the reason he had taken a whole day off to find them. He'd told everyone he had 'Avatar Stuff' to attend to, and no one questioned him.
Being the Avatar did have its advantages.
Whilst Aang was silent, Katara's thoughts were straying to how much she would like it if a certain someone turned up in her room with a rose in his mouth. She blushed red at the thought of it, not surprised by how much she liked the idea. Thoughts like that had been straying into her head a lot lately, especially since the invasion…but she had to admit it had been happening since long before THAT incident.
Aang interrupted her musing, "Katara, you're blushing."
Katara blushed even more as she said, "No I'm not!"
Aang grinned down at her, his grey eyes portraying some different emotion which Katara couldn't recognise. In a fit of confidence quite unlike him, Aang leaned down and whispered in her ear, "I'd give you one hundred silver pieces for those thoughts…unless they're about Zuko. Then I wouldn't want to know."
She shook her head, too breathless to laugh, "No…not about Zuko."
"Haru?"
They were staring at each other now, both sitting up straight, Aang's face slightly teasing yet some of his jealous worry showing through, "Not Haru."
Katara's quick denouncement of the two teenagers Aang thought rivalled his affections the most gave him an extra boost of confidence, and it was this that drew him to tightly squeeze Katara's hand, "Good."
Katara took a deep breath, desperately trying to find some other topic of conversation before her feelings overrode her and she did something she might regret. Might. "Your hair's growing back," she said quickly, ignoring the disappointment that boiled within her as Aang broke their locked gazes to look upwards, as if he could see his head if he did.
"It is?"
Katara didn't know what possessed her to say it, but she did, "I liked your hair, you know, I mean…you looked good with it. Not to say you don't look good now…erm…oh Agni…" she whispered to herself, not seeing Aang's delighted smile.
"Thanks, Katara. Your hair looks good too; I like it when you have it down…" Again, with confidence he never knew he possessed, he put out the fire he was holding in one hand and lightly brushed a strand of her dark, curly hair. Katara pushed one of the rocks away so a little light filtered into their cave, and so she could see Aang better. He was only two inches away now, his fingers still twisting her hair, their hands still entwined, and his gentle smile still playing about his lips.
Katara repressed a sigh that seemed to come from nowhere, her azure eyes locked in his grey ones, his smile slowly fading as his mind was blank, except for one thought.
He was inches away from Katara, they were alone in a tiny cave, and she was gripping his hand and staring at him as if there was no tomorrow.
Was he imagining it as he lightly moved closer, his hand slipping from her hair to her shoulder, aware that one of his wildest dreams could be coming true if he was just brave enough?
Katara couldn't move her eyes away from Aang in that moment; moreover, she didn't want to. She could hardly believe what was happening, yesterday if you had told her that today she would be alone with Aang, in the dark, her heart beating so fast it could jump out of her chest, his hand on her shoulder and his familiar face inches away…oh she would have laughed, but wished it could be true.
Would she ever have guessed that she could finally do something she had been dreaming about, sometimes unintentionally, ever since she'd visited Aunt Wu? And now that it was so close…all she wanted was for Aang to close the tiny amount of space between them.
Aang was so close, he really was, but neither of them heard the running footsteps and the shout of, "His glider!" Neither of them realised as the rocks were pulled away by an impatient moustached man, whilst a scarred and shaggy-haired one laughed his head off from behind, until pure daylight pierced their bubble and both of them closed their eyes against the harsh brightness.
Haru was speechless at what he found under the pile of rocks: Aang and Katara, so close together he could hardly believe they were two people. He backpedalled at the fierce glare Katara was shooting his way. Zuko started laughing even harder at the rage on the airbender's face, and at Haru's devastated expression; this couldn't have worked out better if he'd planned it.
Aang could've killed Haru in that moment, but as soon as Katara's head turned away from him he made up his mind. He wasn't going to let this opportunity pass him by.
"Katara!"
Katara turned back to him, and only just noticed Aang's determined expression before his lips were on hers, kissing her with wild abandon that she'd only dreamed of, and experienced briefly once. This time, however, she reacted differently. Immediately she wrapped her arms around Aang's neck, holding herself to him in an effort to show him how she never wanted him to let her go.
He had no intention of it: Aang had already pulled Katara onto his lap and his hands were back in her thick hair. Aang's arrows glowed brightly, the light trailing down from his forehead through to his fingers, lighting up the already bright garden, and the wind picked up, making the plants around them flutter.
Haru gasped, and, under some fit of misconception that Aang had attacked Katara against her will, he made to split them up, his moustache bristling angrily. Aang, sensing he was coming, simply stuck his hand out and airbended him into the cliff and Katara twisted her hand from behind Aang's neck, freezing him there. Then they carried on as if nothing had happened.
Haru was speechless, and cold to boot, by this point, and when Aang gripped Katara's waist and she traced the arrow across his head and down his neck, he lost it.
The couple were broken an inch apart by a loud bark from Zuko and a blast of fire from his fists. They looked towards him to find him on the ground, rolling around laughing, "He…fainted…hahahaha…oh Agni…this…is…great!" Sure enough, Haru was limp under the cover of ice. Aang burst into laughter too, burying his face in Katara's hair and shaking uncontrollably. Katara managed to keep herself calm, though she couldn't help but giggle.
Aang felt her kiss his cheek softly, and he pulled back - his laughter stilling - to look at her. She smiled brilliantly at him, and all she said was, "Oh my Aang."
He kissed her again, softer and sweeter this time, then Zuko said, "Erm, guys? You have to stop now: we caught you."
Aang's arrows flared menacingly as he broke the kiss yet again to glare at him, but Zuko was undaunted. "Hey, you made up the rules, and kissing breaks aren't allowed." Zuko grinned and Katara rolled her eyes, but, for once, she saw the funny side of it. She stood up, and Aang went with her, pulling her close to him with an arm around her waist as if he'd been doing it for years. Which – in both their heads – he had.
As they left, Aang snapping open his glider again for a shorter ride whilst Zuko was planning to do some fire-flying, Zuko glanced over at the unconscious Haru, "Are you going to unfreeze him any time soon?"
They both replied in unison, "He'll melt."
Toph and Teo
As Teo landed, Toph rolled off him, not noticing that she missed the contact slightly, and lay flat on the ground, her cheek pressed against it. She glared at where she knew Teo was, "Don't you ever do that to me again!"
He laughed, "You did enjoy it a little, come on." He wheeled himself over and flicked a piece of rock at her, which she neatly earthbended out into the foggy gorge.
"Enjoy it?! I was terrified?"
"Terrified? The great Toph…scared? I managed to scare you?" Teo laughed delightedly, and Toph couldn't make herself feel angry as she listened to his carefree amusement.
"Fine, I was afraid, but remember it while you can, because you won't be seeing it again any time soon."
"I will remember this," he said seriously, and Toph fought a blush at his tone.
"Well…we'd better go?" She was surprised by the indecision in her voice; since when was she unsure about anything? What was happening to her?
"You know, I'm pretty happy here."
"Where are we, exactly?"
"On some balcony," Teo looked around, "We're on the edge of a roof, did you see how they're upside down?"
"No," Toph said softly.
"Oh, right, erm, I'm sorry…"
"No, it's ok." Toph sat up and earthbended herself a seat next to Teo. "Teo?"
"Yes?"
"Would you…describe where we are for me?" Teo could tell this was something she didn't ask very often, and smiled, putting his hand over hers, expecting her to wave him off. He was surprised when she smiled too.
"Sure."
That was where Aang, Katara and Zuko found them an hour later. Teo still had his hand on Toph's, and he was describing avidly for her what the misty gorge looked like, while she looked on, smiling gently, for once looking a little like the girl she was.
That night
They all gave up looking for Sokka and Suki after that; Toph looked a little sick, and no one wanted to know what that was about, so they just left it and Teo patted Toph's back as she struggled to ignore the 'vibrations'.
When Sokka and Suki returned, both looking a little red for two people who had been innocently 'hiding' for the past few hours, to find a rather happy Zuko, Teo and Toph deep in conversation, and Katara and Aang nowhere to be found, they were aptly puzzled.
"What's going on?" Sokka asked Zuko, who shook his head.
"You'll find out."
"Toph?"
"Yes, Snoozles?" Toph glanced over at him, her light green eyes sparkling, and Sokka did a double take at how different she looked.
"Oh…nothing." He looked over at Suki, who was grinning smugly at Toph and Teo's intertwined hands.
Sokka was even more confused as Toph looked up, "Here come the lovebirds!"
For once there was no shout of, "We're not lovebirds!" from Katara, and Sokka strained to see why. Katara and Aang slowly ambled together into the small circle of light the fire provided, and everyone but Sokka grinned. There was a collective sigh of, "Finally."
Aang's arm was around Katara's waist; her blushing face was pressed into his shoulder. He was on the edge of going full Avatar-glow as they sat down together and Katara took his free hand. She giggled something quietly into his ear and he kissed her cheek as an answer.
Sokka had had enough, "What in the name of boomerang is going on here?!"
The Avatar just laughed, and said, "A game of hide and seek can change everything."
"You said it," said Toph, unexpectedly, and Aang smiled at her.
Sokka slumped down again and rested his head on Suki's legs, "This is too much. I can't even be bothered to kill you for kissing my sister, Aang. Don't give me that look, I know you did. I can tell." He yawned and everyone laughed at Aang's surprised, but happy, grin.
After another comfortable silence, Sokka stared up at the ceiling, and asked, "Where's Haru?"
"Frozen to the cliff face."
"Oh. Should we go help him?"
All five of them looked at each other, then they all said, "He'll melt."
Wow, that was long! How in Aang's name did that happen?!?!
I hoped you liked! I've put this as a stand-alone thing, but if it doesn't get many hits i'll put it with my other avatar one-shots. Hope you enjoyed it! REVIEW!!!!
xxx Love ATO x