Wounds That Heal

Chapter One: She Won't Awaken

The carriage was dark, but the young girl didn't notice. Her pale, blind eyes looked out at nothing as the carriage bumped and rocked. She didn't like the carriage because she couldn't tell where she was. Her senses could tell her everything, every sense except sight, but right now, she couldn't.

"Toph?" the boy sitting next to her asked.

"What, Zuko?" the girl answered.

Her brother, for that's who he was, smiled in her direction, weakly, at first, "I'm sorry about the carriage… but you know Sir Jet himself sent it…"

Toph shrugged, "I know, I know… he needs us pretty darn quick…"

Toph and Zuko, two of the best servants in the city, had packed up they're small apartment to work in the castle with the orphaned Sir Jet and Princess Katara. Toph was to tend to Katara while she recovered from her shock of seeing her whole family slaughtered, and Zuko was to cook. Everybody in the castle, except for Katara and Jet, of course, had been killed by trained assassins. The assassins had been killed by Sir Jet only at the last moment, but Katara had already fallen among all the blood. Sir Jet found her and checked her breathing, and sent her off to bed, where she's been since.

Since everyone else was killed, Sir Jet had hired Toph and Zuko to come and take the places of Head Cook and Head Maid, even though he wasn't hiring anyone else, for security reasons.

The carriage lurched to a stop, and the carriage driver opened the door for them. Even in her tattered green dress and apron, Toph felt like royalty. Zuko followed his sister and smiled, he could really get used to this.

They climbed up the big steps and over the moat into the outer wall. A few minutes later they went into the servant house and set what was left of their belongings. "Sir Jet wants you upstairs as soon as you're settled," the carriage driver said, leaving.

Zuko looked around the room. It was a nice little kitchen with a cutting table in the middle of the room, close to sinks and stove-tops and the oven. Over on the other side of the kitchen was a sort of servant's table for him and his sister to eat when they weren't serving the Princess or Sir Jet.

In a little room off to the side was a small room with two cots. It was here that Toph set down her rucksack and sat for a while, tapping her feet to 'see' around the room. Zuko set his stuff down on the cot next to her. He then smoothed out his tattered brown pants in hopes it could look okay.

Toph stretched out her feet and stood, taking Zuko's hand and pulling him out of the small room and up the stairs.

"Ah! Zuko and Toph!" Sir Jet said, smiling when they reached the top of the stairs. He looked at their clothes with a slight contempt, and then shoved some boxes in Zuko's arms.

"Your… clothes… should be taken off and burned, and you should wear what's in the boxes, for now. Zuko, please make some sort of soup for, my sister--I mean--the Princess… and I would just like some pasta with meat sauce. Toph, you can bring them up to me and I will show you where the Princess' room is. But please, take your time with dinner… my sister hardly eats anymore. Oh, and feel free to wander about afterwards!"

Zuko bowed, and Toph curtsied. Both turned straight around and walked back downstairs.

"A green, very fancy dress for you, little sister," Zuko said, handing Toph the garment. She felt around it for a picture.

It was a long, green dress, with quarter length sleeves that reached the middle of her forearm, at least. The neck would stretch across her shoulders, showing them off just a little. There was a knitted shawl that came with it, and as Toph undressed and put on the dress, she found that even on this rainy spring afternoon, she would have to wear it.

Zuko, on the other hand, was now wearing a newer version of his old, tattered tan-and-green pants and tunic suit, complete with an apron. The sibling pair looked at each other and laughed.

"Man, this is going to one weird job…" Zuko said, smiling.

"Better get the food ready… or Sir Jet might have to come down here and whip you into shape!" Toph said, pushing Zuko into the kitchen. He laughed and went to the cutting board to cut up carrots and Toph herself went to boil water for the pasta.

"Sir Jet?" Toph asked, a tray in her hands.

"Ah! You look very beautiful in that dress… Princess Katara's room is this way," Jet replied, clapping his hands over his mouth first, and then placing one hand on her shoulder and the other out-stretched, leading her toward one of the grand hallways.

"The soup looks good… where's my pasta?" Jet continued.

"Your pasta is downstairs with Zuko, you can get it yourself, I'm sure," Toph replied haughtily, "I am PRINCESS KATARA'S maid, not yours."

Jet gasped, taken aback, "I'm… I'm sorry for the misunderstanding, Ms. Toph…"

Toph smiled up at him, "You passed my test, Sir Jet… friends?"

He smiled and touched her hand in confirmation, "So my food is down with Zuko?"

Toph nodded, "You might want to keep him company while I'm trying to feed the Princess…" she suggested.

Jet coughed with a flustered air, and Toph noticed, but shrugged it off, "Certainly, Ms. Toph."

He opened a big door for her and she walked in. Tapping her foot to the cold marble floor, she 'saw' this was indeed the Princess' room. It was very small, with a wide window with blue curtains. The bed was in a little carved in nook area, and next to it was a small, blue vanity. The Princess herself lay under blue and white blankets in her bed, her brown hair feathered out all around her. She looked peaceful, but even in her sleep she had been crying.

Jet smoothed down her hair and kissed her on the forehead, "Get well soon, my sister…" he looked at Toph, who had set down the soup on the small bedside table and turned on the lamp.

She turned to him and punched him on his arm, "That's for calling me 'Ms.' Toph… just Toph will suffice."

He rubbed the spot where she hit him, "Well, Just Toph—"

She hit him again.

"Feisty little thing, aren't you?" Jet asked, rubbing the same spot.

"Just go… I think more that one person with the Princess is a little stressful, even when she sleeps," Toph replied, a laugh erupting from her blind eyes.

Jet nodded and left, closing the door behind him.

Toph 'looked' over at the sleeping Princess. She walked slowly over and stared blindly at the brown-haired girl.

"Princess? Princess Katara?" she finally said, tapping her lightly on the collarbone. Nothing. Toph shrugged and walked out, leaving the soup on the tray. She would pick it up in an hour, whether the Princess ate it or not.