AN: IMPORTANT! This story is dark (ish) my friends. I just want to go ahead and apologize in advance.
Sokka hadn't seen her in months. When the war ended and things finally settled down after two years she just left. He and Suki were at their wits end with one another and eventually they had broken it off. Now, he was searching for his best friend. He had just slumped into a dusty Earth Kingdom town. He was sore and parched. The nineteen year old warrior wiped sweat from his brow and slouched into a walk-in bar. The tender was a grizzled old man with a white beard, dusted with dirt. "What can I get ya?" He asked.
"Just water," Sokka answered, waving a hand dismissively. While he was waiting his keen ears picked up on the whispers around him.
"I heard there's gonna be a real pretty one tonight."
"So I keep hearing. Mang said they'll probably auction her last, keep everyone around the entire time. More money that way."
Sokka couldn't figure out what they were talking about, probably ostrich-horses. The animals were a popular item in this area of the earth kingdom, he noticed. He had even popped in on a few livestock auctions, just to see what they were like. But, somehow, he had a creeping feeling about what these men were talking about.
"Even heard a Fire Nation was gonna be there."
"I'm just happy about that earthbender."
Earthbender? They couldn't possibly be talking about animals.
"We'd better head out, don't want to be late."
Sokka had to know what was going on, so he ditched his water and followed after the small group of men. As the sun started to set, he saw more and more people funneling in the direction he was headed. They ducked into a small shack and then the floor slanted down. When the tunnel opened up, it expanded into a huge room, a large earthern platform in the middle of the cavernous room. Men and a few haggard women were all crowded shoulder-to-shoulder. Smoke from pipes filled the air, making the light hazey at best. Then a booming gong filled the room and everyone got very quiet. A man came out on the platform, a small woman behind him, holding the train of his robes. Sokka cocked an eyebrow and then was shoved by the shoulder of a big burly man with a beard. Sokka had grown exceptionally the last few years, filling out into a dashing man, but the burly guy was monstrous. Sokka said nothing, the man only trying to get a better spot.
The man with the robes waved at someone behind him and another man came out, guiding a girl by the arm. He deposited her at the front of the stage. The announcer and the maid girl stepped away to the side. Sokka didn't understand why the new girl was up there. She was clothed in torn rags, bits of flesh peeking out from the fabric. She was petite, young and very defeated. She did not even raise her head when the robe man started yelling again. "Look at this lovely girl from Ba Sing Se!" He said grinning, waving an arm towards the girl. "Twenty years old, plenty of years left in her! We'll start at seventy silver pieces!"
He felt like he'd just been hit with an airship. This was a slave auction. Sokka stumbled back a step out of pure shock, desperate to recollect his thoughts and get out of here. He never knew such a thing existed, something so animalistic and barbaric. He was finally ripped from his haze when the man shouted "Sold!" Another woman was brought out. Sokka wanted to leave, to get as far away from this place as possible but it felt as if his blood had frozen and his feet were glued to the floor. It was like watching a puma-cat get run over by a train in Ba Sing Se, he just couldn't look away. Three more women were auctioned off as Sokka stood there in shock. A young girl was led up, perhaps younger than him. Her hair was black and mussed, falling over her eyes. His heart stopped beating at the thought that the girl looked like Toph. It couldn't be her could it? Toph wouldn't allow herself to get captured and brought to a place like this. Then the girl looked up and he felt his heart start again. It wasn't her, but he felt so very bad for her. She couldn't be older than fourteen. She yelped when she saw how many people were around her and stumbled backwards, falling on her backside. Everyone laughed at her and the man yanked her back to her feet by her hair. She cried out in pain and tried to pry his hands away. She was terrified. Sokka could see her shaking from his spot next to the burly man. "Fiesty girl!" The auctioneer shouted as the laughing died down. "Young and fresh! Can't get much better than that, boys! We'll start at 100 silver pieces!" When the price climbed into gold coins by a rich man in elaborate, expensive robes, the announced called out "Sold!" and the nobleman went to claim his property. Sokka was almost sick as the man grabbed the girl roughly and took a long drag of her hair and smiled.
It seemed like hours that he stood there, trying to wrap his mind around this sick hobby. More people filtered in and he guessed the two bending girls would be coming up soon. Smoke started to obscure the light and someone had to put another few scones up to brighten the room. Suddenly a flash of fire appeared from behind the stage. "Oh, look here men! A rare beauty you've all been waiting for!" He leered. "A prime example of the loveliness of the Fire Nation." An ebony-haired woman in a slinky red dress was practically dragged, kicking onto the platform. "Fiery too, just like the element she bends! Show her off, Lee." The man grinned and reached his grubby hands towards the girls flimsy dress. With her hands tied and her feet chained, she breathed a hot stream of fire at the man, warding him off. Another guard ran over and snagged her by her brushed hair and yanked her head back, allowing the first man to tear the gown from her lithe body. She was in jewled underthings, making the men in the crowd ooh and ahh. Sokka had to look away as they started bidding on her. He had to find a way out of here and weasel his way through the tightly packed crowd. He swiveled on his heel and heard "sold for 100 gold pieces!" as he turned to leave. He was still a long way from the door, but he saw an opening in the crowd just ahead.
"Bring out the Earthbender, Lee! You've been waiting for her all night, boys. Fifteen years old, beautiful ebony hair and the softest skin to grace this auction. She's high-born, men! From Gaoling." Sokka froze. It couldn't be Toph could it? He turned around and saw two guards hauling a small figure between them, her toes dragging the floor. The girl was limp, her hair pulled back into a fancy braid, her green dress skimpy at best. "Unfortunaltey we had to give her bending suppressants, she was too much of a firecracker, but I assure you, she is a marvelous earthbender. But don't let her impressive skills scare you off, oh no! She is still teachable you see, she's blind," he sneered. Sokka's blood froze and his whole world came crashing down around him. It was her. She lifted her head, her pale eyes unseeing as they searched the crowd. "Toph," he breathed. The guard released her, leaving her swaying on her feet, clearly drugged. Sokka started shoving his way back through the crowd to the still-empty spot by the bearded man. The crowd started up in loud voices, shouts and crude comments, but he didn't hear anything as he gaped at his bestfriend, scantily clad and ill, hundreds of leering eyes staring at her. "Just watch," the announcer said, crossing the stage silently and pausing beside her ear. "Boo!" He shouted, making Toph yelp in surprise and stumbled to the side. The room was filled with uproarious laughter. It made his blood boil.
"Get away from me!" Toph snarled in the general direction of the auctioneer. It only made the men in the crowd laugh more. The announcer grabbed her arm to keep her from falling over and started the bid at 100 gold pieces. Sokka felt like he was underwater as he watched men throw their hands in the air, raising the bid. 100 quickly escalated to one fifty. He had to buy her, as much as it made him want to purge his stomach simply thinking it, he had to do it. He couldn't- wouldn't let her be sold off like some kind of animal.
"Come on boys! Just one-fifty! She's worth more than that!" The auctioneer growled almost angrily, reaching over and tearing her dress from her body. She cried out and tried to cover her self but he smack her hands away and pinned them behind her back. The room got twice as noisy and more bids were offered upon her skin being revealed. She wore the same, skimpy, jeweled underwear as the Fire Nation girl before her. The burly man beside him started shouting higher offers of money. His arm was as big around as both of Sokka's legs, his hands could probably crush bone, especially fragile bones like Toph's. And he suddenly found his voice. "Two hundred!" He shouted loudly. "Two hundred!" The bearded man scowled down at him.
"Two twenty!"
"Two thirty!" Sokka yelled. And before the man could speak again he cried "Two fifty!"
"Sold to the man in blue! Congratulations!" The auctioneer shouted. Sokka shoved his way through the gathering of men desperate to get his hands on Toph before anyone else did. She didn't deserve that. The guards pushed her, surprisingly gently, into his waiting arms where he forced himself to look like those other men, a dark smile and a hungry look in his eyes. Men cheered for him as he pulled her down from the platform and the announcer declared the end of the sale.
"Get off me! Let me go!" She shouted weakly, her body limp in his hands. He dragged her off, trying to be sneaky. He clapped a hand over her mouth and winced when she bit him. He ignored the sharp pain and dragged he through a back door, throwing her over his shoulder once they were outside. "Get your hands off me!" She demanded, her voice cracking. He darted through the streets finally finding a suitably dark alley and setting her down on the ground. "Let go, let go! I'm the world's greatest earthbender and-and you'll regret it!" She struggled against his grip feebly.
"Toph, it's me. It's Sokka."
"Sokka?" Her muscles relaxed and her eyes went wide. Is it really you?" She asked, her hands reaching up to touch his face. Tears spilled down her cheeks and water welled in his eyes at the same time.
"Are you ok?" He asked, propping her against the wall of a building and pulling his tunic off. He slipped it over her body, tugging at the corners. It fell to the middle of her thighs and he noticed her skin was covered with goosebumps in the chilly night air. She nodded weakly, sniffling. "Did they touch you?" The alley was very quiet.
Her head bobbed the fraction of an inch. "Yes," she said just above a whisper, sounding utterly defeated. "Did they hurt you, Toph?" No answer. Panic rose in his throat and churned in his belly. "Toph. Listen to me," he said gently, putting his arms on either side of her head on the wall behind her. Did they hurt you. Did anyone hurt you in a way only a man could?"
"No," she peeped. He slumped against his hands in relief, but guilt and rage flowed through his system but he would handle it now he had to get Toph somewhere safe, and warm. He picked her up, cradling her to his chest like a newborn and started for the nearest inn.
Sokka ducked into a silent, humble little motel, blue eyes brimmed with fear and shock. He still could not comprehend what had happened tonight. An elderly man stood from behind the desk when he spotted them. He knew right away where this girl had come from. And he saw a gentle soul with a bare chest holding her tightly, his blue tunic hanging from the girls little frame. The young man across from him was that little girls hero. Sokka opened his mouth to speak but the man waved his hand dismissively. "I know. Upstairs on the left."
"It's not what it-"
"I know, son, I know. Go on now. That girl could use some rest and a warm meal. I'll have something sent up for you."
"Thank you," the tribesman replied. He carried Toph up the stairs and through an open door and lay her shivering body on the bed. He pulled the blankets over her and sat down beside her. He scanned her face. Her hair was shiny and washed, her skin clean. It was obvious someone had given her a bath. He could imagine her being dunked under the water, fighting as she was forced under the water, only to come up sputtering and choking. He shook the thought from his head and went over to the little washroom, gathering a towel and a bowl of warm water. He lifted her hands and wiped the wet cloth over them. He could see bruises littering her skin, encircling her wrists. Then he remembered her feet. They had hobbled her with rope. He flew to the bottom of the bed and threw the covers back, making quick work of the rope with a whale-bone knife. He dabbed her raw ankles with the towel gently, receiving a small "thank you" in return. A soft knock at the door distracted Sokka from his ministrations and he went to answer it. A young boy was there with a tray of soup and dishes. Sokka thanked him and took the tray.
It didn't take much to coax Toph into eating. He was glad because he heard stories of traumatized people losing their appetite and eventually dying from starvation. After they both ate and Sokka washed her face gently, he laid in bed beside her pulling the blankets tight around them. He couldn't sleep, his mind racing with images of the sale and the unknown. He didn't know what really happened to Toph. He needed to know, but he didn't want to know. An hour later Toph began to cry softly on the other side of the narrow bed. "Toph?"
"What?"
He almost asked if she was ok, but that would have been a stupid question. Of course she wasn't ok. So instead he reached over and dragged her towards him, curling his body around her back and holding her close. That's when her sobs broke through. She rolled over and buried her face in his chest, wrapping her arms around him. "I don't even know how it happened," she sobbed, her limbs still weak from the suppressants. Sokka screwed his eyes shut and tightened his grip on her. "I was just walking around and then they attacked me. I- they hurt me, Sokka. They hit me and kicked me when I refused to do something and they touched me. Spirits, they touched me-" she shuddered as though finally coming to the realization that she had been violated. "They put their hands on me and one man tried to... to touch me... there. But I didn't let him." Tears were rolling down Sokka's cheeks now. It would be a long road to recovery, but he loved her, and he would stick with her through it all.
an: ok so I don't even know where that came from. I was inspired by a similar story about Sokka and Toph finding Suki, though I cant remember the name of it. Also, I got some ideas from Taken with Liam Neeson.