Life-Saver
A Taang One-shot, may contain spoilers.
Summary: Toph stupidly takes a dare from Sokka to jump in the water. With Katara in town and Aang off flying, can someone reach her fast enough? Or will the blind girl die at the mercy of the waves?
His taunting never should have phased her. Toph was used to it, of course. She was teased nearly every day by the water-bender's brother. So why did it bother her today of all days?
Maybe because he started with a topic that really enraged her.
"Aang and Toph, sittin' in a tree. K-I-S-S-I-N-Owww!" He doubled over as she shot a brick-shaped rock at his torso.
"Cut it out, Sokka!" she yelled.
"First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes Toph with a baby carriage!" he laughed. Where was Aang when she needed him? Oh yeah, he was off flying, scouting the nearby terrain for any sight of fire-benders. A noble mission, of course. But Toph missed him and the calmness he brought to any situation.
"Aang is NOT my boyfriend," she scowled.
"Whatever," Sokka scoffed. "Hey, wanna go swimming?" he teased.
"You know I can't," she said softly.
"You're just afraid to try!" he replied.
"I'm not afraid!" she lied easily.
"Then do it!" he dared. "Jump into the lake!" Even from their campsite, far above the waters, Toph could feel the vibrations of the waves. It sent a jolt of fear up her spine.
"No way," she said, her tone dark and serious.
"Well, I guess I'll have to tell your lover-boy how you feel about him!" Sokka chirped. "I guess I'll have to walk up to him and say, 'Aang, Toph looooooooves you! She wants to kisssssssss you! She wants—Toph? Hey Toph! TOPH!" But she was gone, over the side of the cliff, into the water.
From miles away, the Avatar heard a shriek. It made him stop, and he flew back toward the campsite, curious and worried. The twelve-year-old knew someone was in trouble. He hoped he wouldn't arrive too late. The memory of losing Appa was still fresh in Aang's mind. Ferocity drove him faster than he'd ever flown before.
Please, he prayed, don't let it be too late.
Toph was drowning. There was no getting around it. Sokka couldn't see her, and she was struggling to keep her head above the water. She'd never been taught to swim properly, and she'd only been in water above her head twice in her life; once was when Suki infamously saved her. Now, she gulped and coughed the freshwater, praying for a miracle.
She knew she was about to die.
Suddenly, she felt a rush of wind. Is this heaven? Toph wondered. It seemed as though she were outside her body, and all she could hear was the "swoosh" of air. Then, she was being placed on the ground. She couldn't move a muscle, couldn't even breathe. But she could feel. She felt a hand touch her chest, take her pulse, and lips press against her open mouth and give her breath.
The Airbender was willing her to breathe again, to live.
Then she could hear.
"Toph! Toph! Please, Toph, don't leave me!" His voice had never sounded so desperate. Even when they'd lost Appa, he'd never given up hope. In between breaths, he kept saying her name. She gradually came back to life.
Coughing and sputtering, the earth-bender tried to sit up.
"Toph!" Aang shouted, throwing his arms around her. "You're alive!"
"Aang," she said weakly. "What—how?" He placed a finger on her lips to shush her, and for a long time just held her in his arms.
"I'm sorry," he said. That made no sense to Toph. This was all her fault. "I'll never leave you again."
She could tell he wasn't lying. Aang would always watch out for her now.
After all, he was her life-saver.