Title: I Will Be Yours
Summary: Aang took her hand once more. And this time, she didn't stop him. Fluffy Taang goodness in all its glory!
Setting: Post- Suzin's Comet
A/N: You people who have graciously welcomed me into the Avatar fandom world-place-area-thing are absolutely amazing. All of you guys who reviewed on my other Avatar story rule! I love you guys, seriously. Enjoy!
The fireworks were starting soon.
It had been a week since the defeat of the "Phoenix King" and now that things were finally coming back into order, there was room for celebration. No one partied like the Earth Kingdom did, so here they were- 'Team Avatar' in all their glory to attend the greatest festival of the year, thrown in their honor.
Ba Sing Se had come alive that night.
The city was ablaze (no irony intended) with excitement. Everywhere the gang turned, there was something being vended or sold to remind them of their service to the world – Katara-inspired water tribe necklaces, mass-produced boomerangs that didn't return when you threw them, Zuko's scar or Kyoshi warrior makeup available in the form of face paint, air gliders that had already injured six, and carvings of their beloved Toph in rock and exotic stones.
Even the cabbage man was out and about, selling his heads on his newly repaired cart without fear.
At midnight, the rush began to slow as people began to gather in the main square, waiting patiently in the beautifully lantern-lit area for fireworks. There was a sober, ominous feeling in the air. Couples began to join up in anticipation, families huddled together in eagerness for the show, lovers held each other while looking up at the stars, and complete strangers found themselves holding hands and bumping shoulders with complete strangers they didn't even know. But that night, it seemed okay, right even.
The gang stood together in the very front, Zuko clutching Mai, Sakka holding Suki's hand, and Katara, Aang and Toph standing side by side with Aang in the middle. One by one, their faces tilted up towards the heavens, looking for the luminous bursts of hope to light up the sky. One after the other, until every person in the crowd from every nation, regardless of their differences, turned up to look at the stars.
They waited. And waited some more.
Pop!
A small burst to the west marked the beginning of the show. Aang couldn't help but smile at the beauty that lit up everyone's faces. He turned to Katara, watching as her eyes widened in awe at the stunning show in the sky, making them shine in wonder. It was nice to have those eyes sparking again after all that they had gone through.
Aang turned to his left to measure Toph's reaction, but to his surprise she was gone. Worry immediately settled in, and he scanned the vast crowd for his friend. By luck, he spotted her slipping through the crowd towards the cluster of holy temples to the west of the square.
"Aren't they beautiful?" Katara said ponderingly, interrupting his concerns.
He didn't fully grasp her words. All he could think about was Toph and why she would be slipping away from the wonderful display of fireworks presented partially in her honor. This captured his attention far better than Katara did, and without even a parting glance, he ambled off in search of his mentor and friend.
He found himself led to the temple of Dojh, known best for its many stories. Taking in the height of the great temple, he saw a pair of legs dangling off the far edge of the roof that was opposite of the view of the crowd. His heart skipped a beat, happy that he had found his friend. Avoiding the stairs, he air-glided to the top and landed with a soft thud next to Toph.
She looked magical under the glow of the moon, her face shining with the brilliant bursts of colors from above. Her hair was down and curled (to Katara's insistence), and instead of her rough cotton robe, she wore a silk dress that was a brilliant shade of green and gold.
He sat on the edge and turned to her. "You okay? I saw you had disappeared, and it worried me."
"You worry too much, Aang." Her voice was solemn, not the usual witty and sarcastic tone she usually spoke with. That surprised him.
"Am I not supposed to worry about my best friend?"
She half- smiled. "No. Not when your best friend is me."
"So I suppose I shouldn't ask why you're up here?"
Her features hardened. "You suppose right."
"I just want you to be happy tonight. This is your party after all."
They sat there in silence for a moment, listening to the dull cracks of the explosions above them.
"I don't belong here, okay?" she said quietly, slightly irritated to be sharing her personal thoughts. "This is my home, yet I feel so out of place…so lost."
"I…don't understand."
She looked away. "You shouldn't be up here. I'm sure the sugar queen is looking for you."
"And you. I'm sure she's as worried about you as I was," he corrected her impatiently.
Her eyes narrowed in anger. "No one should ever worry about me, do you understand that twinkle toes? No one!" she seethed.
"And why is that?" he retorted back, growing annoyed with her pessimistic tone.
She shrugged. "Let's face it. In a year or two, the gang will disband and everyone will go their separate ways. Zuko's going to have to rule his nation, and Mai will be his queen. Sokka will marry Suki and they'll go off to start their own lives. You'll marry Katara and move on. There's no more reason for me to tag along."
"Toph!" Aang cried, obviously horrified. "That's really not fair of you to decide things like that. How do you know? How can you be sure that we'll separate?"
Toph faced him, her silvery eyes looking but not quite seeing. "Aang," she said softly "what else is there to do? You don't need me, and that's okay. I accept that."
Aang took her hand in his, keeping his hold even when she flinched away. "I will never leave you," he told her, his words burning with emotion.
He had to make her understand somehow. There had to be a way.
She squeezed his hand. "What if I want you to?" she said quietly.
No one spoke for a good minute.
"It doesn't matter," he said finally, after several moments of mental turmoil. "It's my decision to make."
"Well then make it now," she said coldly, removing her hand from Aang's.
Aang's features formed into irritation. "Why do you think I'm going to marry Katara?"
"It's practically destiny, Aang. Why wouldn't you?"
"You sure seem to know a lot about my destiny tonight," he told her, miffed. "Why can't you focus more on yours?"
She closed her eyes. "I can't. All I know is that I'll always be on my own."
"You'll marry someone eventually. You'll find someone who will want to spend the rest of their life with you."
"Aang," she said carefully, her voice struggling to remain calm. "No one wants to marry a blind girl. I don't even know if I'm pretty."
An uncomfortable silence followed Toph's harsh remark. Aang never realized that she had even felt that way. She had always been the one who cringed good-naturedly whenever Sokka kissed Suki, or when Mai stroked Zuko's scar in affection. Never was she bitter or jealous that everyone was finding a mate to lean on. It seemed impossible that she was upset over it now because she was so strong at times.
"You're one of the most powerful benders on the planet and you're worried about guys being attracted to you? You're crazy," he nudged her with his shoulder.
She said nothing.
"And," he added, trying to make progress, "it helps that you're pretty."
She said nothing.
"Really pretty. You just have to take my word for it."
Silence.
"Toph," he said softly, taking her chin between his fingers and gently turning her face to his. "I think you're beautiful."
And that was all it took for Aang to realize that he meant it.
He pressed his lips to hers, gently at first, taking his time to make sure it was okay. She didn't object. In fact, she kissed him back; her eyes closed dreamily as Aang pressed his palm to her cheek, feeling her blush against his cool skin. She smelled sweet, like freshly-cut grass and fertile earth. A small noise of bliss escaped from her as he parted her lips with his tongue, a strange, new experience for the both of them.
It felt so good, so right. And then, she realized it was wrong.
She broke the kiss abruptly and looked away, repositioning her body to where they were shoulder-to-shoulder once more. Aang opened his eyes slowly, wondering why her perfect lips had suddenly disappeared; he noticed the sober look on her face and he instantly tensed.
"I-I'm sorry. Did I do something wrong?"
She opened her lips to speak, but she couldn't find the words to say.
"Really, I am. I won't do it again if you want…"
She shook her head. "Aang…it's not that I didn't enjoy it," she blushed, biting her lip. "It's just…wrong- for you and for Katara."
"I know you think that its destiny or something that Katara and I belong together, but you can't keep thinking that for certain," he said stubbornly.
Toph smiled. "Maybe it is, maybe it isn't. But for now, it is what it is. And I can't change that."
"Toph-" he protested, but he was cut off by her lips.
"I'm not saying 'never'," she whispered after breaking away from his stunned face. "Only…not now. I will be yours. Just, as a friend. And if you want to be more than that, then I'll be here. But you can't just give up on Katara when you two just started something good."
A moment of silence followed as he processed that information. So maybe one day something could happen. It didn't have to be; they could see what things led to in the future, and if Katara ended up not being in it, then she would be there- not forever, but long enough for him to make a decision. He understood. A part of him knew she was right, too.
"What do they look like, Aang?" she whispered, her precious face tilted up towards the heavens.
"The fireworks? Oh…" her question had caught him off guard. "They're beautiful, Toph."
She smiled, truly content for once in her life. "I bet."
Aang took her hand once more.
And this time, she didn't stop him.
A/N: This has some potential for an epilogue. Hell, even a full-blown story would greatly suffice! But I'm not sure yet. Sorry if this sounds blackmail-ish, but it kinda depends on the reviews and feedback. So what do you guys think? Let me know, I want to hear from you. Thanks for reading!