Toph snapped awake, barely stifling a scream, her breathing labored and painful. She'd been having the dream again, the one that she hated because it reminded her she was alone in the world. It had been six years since that day at Omashu and yet Toph could still remember every detail with perfect clarity. She had lost everything that day and had spent the past six years alone, save for the occasional peasant she encountered on her wanderings and the group of families who lived in the isolated village near her cave. She had found the cave by sheer luck and had been using it as her home ever since. The cave was miles from Omashu and Toph was still not completely certain how she had managed to make the journey, given all that she had been told about what had happened after that battle at Omashu. But she had made the journey and she supposed that was all that mattered, though she would have given anything to get back the world she had lost.

There were still many details about what had happened in the aftermath of the battle at Omashu that Toph was unclear on. What she did know was this, Azula had won and was now the Fire Lord, though she seemed more intent on chaos and destruction than actually ruling. Toph also knew that under Azula's rule things had gotten even worse than they had been under Ozai, which was saying something, as Azula's father was known far and wide for his cruelty. The people of all four nations were treated like slaves, except for those who had sworn loyalty to Azula who were allowed to roam the world unchecked, pillaging and killing as they pleased. Anyone who opposed Azula's reign was hunted down and brutally executed and it was even worse for benders, who were tortured for days before they were executed. As such, Toph had kept a low profile for the past six years, though her blood boiled every time she heard of Azula's cruelty and it was a daily struggle for her not to retaliate. Not that there was anyone for her to attack here. Her cave, and the tiny Earth Kingdom village nearby, were so isolated that no one bothered to even pay them any attention, let alone pay them a visit. This, of course, suited Toph just fine, for the less attention she attracted the less chance there was anyone would get hurt.

Unfortunately, Toph's isolation was also a hindrance to her ultimate goal, which was to find out what had happened to her friends. She thought about them daily and wanted to find them more than anything, assuming they still lived. She had no real knowledge of what had happened to them, though she'd heard a number of rumors. The most common story she'd been told was that Zuko had been killed in an Agni Kai with Azula and that Aang had been publicly executed, while the others had been thrown in prison where they still were today. Truthfully, Toph had trouble believing this rumor, though there seemed to be quite a lot of evidence to support it. Supposedly Azula had displayed her brother's head on a spike outside the Fire Nation capital, along with Aang's, and though the people who claimed this was the truth seemed to genuinely believe it, Toph had trouble believing Azula was that cruel. But she had considered the possibility this rumor was true, though the thought that it was always brought tears to her eyes. For if Aang and Zuko really were dead, then all hope truly was gone and the world would never recover.

But there were the other rumors to consider. Some people Toph had talked to claimed that only one was dead, though they were never clear on whether it was Zuko or Aang. Still others claimed that both Aang and Zuko were still alive, but they were imprisoned along with the other leaders who had sided against Azula. Still others claimed that while Zuko and Aang had indeed been killed the others were still alive and free, possibly living somewhere in the ruins of Ba Sing Se. There was even one man whom Toph had met who told her he had spent time in Ba Sing Se with the surviving leaders, though when she'd asked him who had been there he'd told her he didn't remember. So, in reality, Toph didn't know what to believe. She wanted to believe that her friends were still alive, but it seemed unlikely that they would all have survived. Still, she wouldn't give up hope yet, not until she knew for sure what had happened to them.

But there was still the problem of being isolated in this desolate corner of the Earth Kingdom to deal with. Truthfully, Toph didn't want to leave this place, but she knew she had to if she ever wanted to have a chance of finding her friends. But there were risks involved, namely the chance that she'd alert one of the roving bands of Azula's raiders, and until she was certain she could leave without endangering the lives of the people in the village she wasn't going anywhere. It was another of her daily struggles, the fight to remind herself that the lives of these people were just as important as those of her friends, but there were times when Toph was ready to give up and set out on her journey, despite the risks. But every time her impatience threatened to overwhelm her she would hear Aang's voice urging her to stay put and think about the lives she was putting at risk if she left. And every time she heard his voice she felt herself calm and made the right decision. And so, here she remained, waiting until the time was right to make her move.

At that particular moment however, the thing she felt most was hunger. She hadn't eaten in over a day and her stomach was rumbling like the earth did when she earthbent. Realizing she needed to acquire some more provisions she rose to her feet, one hand reaching out for the ceiling of the cave. There was a time when she would have been able to stand in this cave without worrying about hitting her head on the ceiling, but those days were long gone. She was now a fully grown woman and she had gained a considerable amount of hight in the past six years, though she had no doubt that she was still shorter than Katara. It still amazed her at times, the fact that she was now a twenty two year old woman, but for the most part she had gotten used to the fact that she was an adult. Still, some things had caught her off guard as she'd grown, especially the size of her breasts which she hadn't anticipated being quite so large, though as with her hight she had no doubt Katara had beaten her out in the chest department as well. And there were things that hadn't changed as well. Getting older hadn't hindered her ability to earthbend, nor had it given her the ability to see, not that she'd really expected either to change. Her overall appearance hadn't really changed either. She was still barefoot, still dressed in greens, and still wore the headband that had become the staple of her look. The only things that had changed were the length of her hair, which had grown out nearly to waist length, and the addition of a long-sleeved robe and a hat like the one she'd worn on the Day of Black Sun, both of which she used to help conceal her identity. The hat, of course, was a traditional part of the Earth Kingdom military uniform and Toph had gotten hers off the body of a slain soldier during her journey from Omashu.

And then there were the scars, which served as a reminder of why she hated Azula so much. The scars were the remnants of the fireballs that had nearly claimed her life on that horrible day that plagued her dreams and ran the full length of her forearms, as well as the palms of her hands. She couldn't see the scars of course, but she could feel them and they were a constant reminder of the life she had lost. There was a scar across the bridge of her nose as well, which spread onto her right cheek as well, the one spot the her hands hadn't been able to shield. She took a moment then to feel the scars, before hunger stabbed at her stomach again, turning her back to the present. Donning her hat she left the cave and made her way towards the village, which was the only place in a hundred miles where food was readily available.

It was early evening as she made her way down from her cave to the road. She couldn't see the darkening sky, but she could feel the stillness of the air that came with the setting of the sun. She was glad it was dark as the darkness provided her with even more protection should any unsavory individuals be watching from the surrounding hills. Still, she walked with the same brisk pace she always used when traveling these days. As she walked her mind wandered, taking her back to the days when she had helped Aang master earthbending so that he might become a fully realized Avatar. Those had been good days, especially since training Aang had gotten her away from her overbearing parents. She rarely thought about her parents these days, though when she did it was always with regret. She had not seen them since leaving home and she had no idea if they were still alive, though she sincerely hoped they were. The thought of her parents now made her feel like crying, so she turned her mind to other things and by the time she had reached the village she had gone back to thinking about how she was going to get her friends back.

The journey from her cave to the village was a short one, maybe a half hour at most, but Toph always seemed to find the time to think about things as she walked. Often she thought about the village itself and how isolated it was. She had been amazed when she had first arrived here to learn that the village even existed. It was so small that it did not appear on any maps and Toph had never heard its name before. But she had found the people to be warm and welcoming and they had become like a second family to her, helping to ease some of the pain of losing her friends.

As she entered the village that night she was greeted by several people, to whom she responded in kind before making her way to the small inn, which also served as the general store and bar. The establishment was owned by an elderly man named Bao, who was in his sixties or seventies, and his granddaughter Ming, who had taken a great liking to Toph.

"Ah, Lady Toph." Bao said, greeting her with a bow as she entered the inn. "What brings you here at this hour?"

"Hello Bao." she said, smiling. "I need food and possibly some water, if you can spare some. I know how difficult it is to get water these days, so don't trouble yourself if there's no need to."

"No, no, it's no trouble at all." Bao said, bowing again before shuffling off to obtain the items she'd asked for.

Toph smiled again and took a seat at the nearest table. She was always amused by Bao's overly formal manner and she had long since given up trying to get him to stop. She didn't really like that he called her "Lady Toph" as it was a reminder of the formal upbringing she had tried so hard to separate herself from, but there was no sense in trying to get an old man like Bao to change his ways. Besides, he was one of the few people she had met in the past six years and it would do no good to go making enemies now.

As Toph contemplated her friendship with Bao, his granddaughter Ming walked over to her, carrying a tray of food and a jug of spiced wine. "Hey Ming." Toph said, her sightless gaze still fixed on the floor.

"Hello Toph." Ming said, setting the tray on the table. "How have you been?" Like her grandfather, Ming could be overly formal at times though she seemed to sense Toph's aversion to the mannerism and tried her best to be casual.

"I'm good." Toph replied. "How are you?" She poured herself a glass of wine as she spoke, deftly maneuvering the jug as well as any person with a sense of sight.

"I've been well, all things considered." Ming answered, taking a seat beside Toph.

"That's good to hear." Toph said, taking a sip of the wine. She had not been much of a drinker before the war with Azula, but she found Bao's spiced wine to be quite good and usually had a glass or two every time she visited the inn. "No sight of any marauders, I take it?"

"Aw, come on Toph, when are you going to accept that this village ain't ever going to be hit by those thugs?" a harsh voice called out from across the bar.

Great. Toph thought. Just what I need, another debate with the Trickster Twins. The Trickster Twins, Lu and Li, were two of Bao's other regulars who had earned their name because of the pranks they played on people. Of all the people in this village they were the only two whom Toph could not stand. From the moment she'd met them they'd been an annoyance, though they no longer tried to prank her, not after she'd broken Lu's fingers with an earth block and whacked Li in the head with another. Still, they wasted no opportunity to heckle her, especially when it came to her concern that the village could still end up on Azula's radar.

"As I tell you every time we have this conversation Lu, I'll stop worrying about that threat when Azula no longer sits on the Fire Nation throne." Toph answered, not bothering to turn in their direction. "And the sooner you accept that, the sooner we can all get back to enjoying our wine."

"You do know they're never gonna come for us, right?" Li asked. "No one besides us knows this village is even out here. But I guess you're too blind to see that."

"Li!" Ming cried, outraged. "How dare you insult Toph in that way. You take your words back or I'll see to it that you never drink here again."

"Oh yeah, and how you gonna do that?" Lu asked, as he and Li approached the table where Toph and Ming were seated. "You need our money to keep this shit-hole afloat and you'd see that if you weren't so busy daydreaming about sleeping with the blind earthbender."

"You shut up." Ming cried, rising to her feet before Toph stopped her.

"No Ming, he's right, you do need his money." she said. "I'll handle this."

Before either Lu or Li could react, Toph was in their faces, driving them both back into the wall. "I warned you both before what would happen if you pissed me off again." she snarled. "It seems to me you've forgotten what happens to people who piss me off. Shall I give you a reminder, or will you both behave yourselves?"

"No, no, we'll be good, we'll be good, I promise." Lu begged, while Li just nodded.

"Good, now how about we get a game of cards going to keep you focused on something you're actually good at." Toph said, with a smile.

Lu and Li nodded and moved to get playing cards, as well as more players, while Toph returned to her seat. Ming smiled at her, and though she could not see it, she returned the gesture, before adding, "If they ever talk to you like that again, you let me know."

"I will." Ming said. "And thank you for standing up to them. I really appreciate it."

"No problem." Toph said. "Remember I've fought Fire Nation soldiers and Azula's fanatics. I should be able to handle a pair of idiots like Lu and Li."

At that moment, Lu and Li returned with several others, including Bao, who had Toph's provisions, and a deck of playing cards. And, once the drinks were poured and the cards dealt, Toph and the villagers began a rousing game of cards that lasted well into the night. It was sometime later that night, after her fifth or sixth glass of wine, that Toph realized that maybe she wasn't so alone in the world after all.

A/N: And that's chapter one. As you can probably tell, I'll be spending much of these early chapters recounting what happend during the war with Azula, how things have since she became Fire Lord, and what Toph has been up to for the past six years. I'll try to work dialogue into each chapter, but there won't be a ton of it until we get to later chapters. Anyway, that's all for now, hope you enjoyed it. Oh, and please leave reviews.