I Hope for Freedom

Disclaimer: Avatar: The Last Airbender doesn't belong to me. Shocking, I know.

.To fall a part

(Toph's POV)

I lay in my tiny space as I listened to Xin Fu have sex with Yue. She was a girl from the Northern Water Tribe. I heard rumours that she was a princess but rumours flew around once that I was a street urchin who lived on rats until Xin Fu saved me from dying on the streets. Therefore I ignored anything that was unfounded.

I wish I was on the streets eating rats, I thought bitterly; I probably would've died over ending up here.

Xin Fu let out a final moan and I knew it was over. He climbed out of bed and I soon heard the clinking of bottles. He was going out to drink. I was happy about that since I'd finally be able to get some sleep. I could never do it while Xin Fu was having sex, it brought back bad memories.

I was almost asleep when I heard singing. It was a soft melody about ice, water and snow. I smiled to myself as I drifted to sleep. Whoever she was, she had a terrific voice.

I dreamed of fog and lots of singing. Usually my dreams were either blank or full of nightmares. My last seeing moments being the biggest and worst on the list. Other dreams were just sounds in the blackness. That's what happened when you were blind. I never had my ability to 'see' with my feet in my dreams. Or more precisely, nightmares.

Suddenly there was a loud rapping on the crude 'wooden door' to my little space. I pushed it open and and jumped out in a panic.

"I'm sorry Xin Fu I didn't hear…." I started to apologize as I mentally prepared myself for punishment.

Instead I heard crying and realized the figure my feet picked up in front of me was Yue. I wanted to kick her to the moon for nearly giving me a heart attack.

"There's been a cave in," Yue said, "we can't get out!"

I immediately pushed her aside and used my bending to help feel around with my feet. My life had gotten a lot easier when I mastered using my bending to 'see' at age eight. It only worked with my feet though both my feet and hands could pick up vibrations not even heard by my ears. But I had to be on an earth based surface. I couldn't tell what an object looked like but I could determine size, weight, location and distance. That was good enough for me. I used my hands to touch things I personally wanted a better idea of.

"This isn't good, the whole area's blocked," I realized, "Yue, did you hear anything before the cave in?" I asked her.

"Just a loud explosion, like a bomb," Yue said fearfully.

I stomped my foot in anger. One of Xin Fu's competitors sent a bomb six months ago. Xin Fu was actually able to seal the area off before the bomb damaged any areas of importance. But doing that sealed the fates of over a hundred midday workers. Including my only friend Smellerbee. She was a pickaxe worker with group five. When the bomb was found they grabbed the supervisors and benders. Everyone else was left behind including some guards. Xin Fu said there was no time. He was right of course but I still hated him. I could hear Smellerbee's screams melding with others through the wall begging to get out. I was just nine then. She was eleven. The explosion rocked the underground and Xin Fu and other benders barely held the explosion back despite sealing us off over 50 feet thick. I fell to my knees sobbing as my body rocked with their final screams. Afterwards Xin Fu flung me in my box and locked it. I didn't get the hole until I was nearly eleven. Later he dragged me and had sex with me. His room was always a safe hell for me. No one could hurt me there but him. Of course, he always found a way to.

Now there was another bomb. A much better concealed one obviously and we were stuck. I would've questioned how I slept through it if I hadn't been up three nights straight helping train new benders. The majority were pathetic but there were at least three with some promise. Most would end up being pickaxe workers, furnace workers or new guard sex fodder.

"What's your name?" Yue asked suddenly surprising me, "it's okay if you don't want to," she added humbly.

People like her never behaved like this towards people like me. We were nothing to those of 'high class.' Especially the well dressed and treated whores. Delusions of grandeur I always thought since they were just as much slaves like the rest of us.

"It's Toph, I'm an earth bender," I said.

"In my tribe women are forbidden from bending," Yue told me, "but we're allowed to learn how to heal and I also snuck in a few water bending lessons before I was kidnapped," she revealed, "I never told though, I didn't want to be used to…you know," she added.

"Ok, I won't tell," I agreed, "we have air as long as nothing happens to the asir shafts," I stated, "worst case scenario it gets blocked off, I'll do my best to bend us to another location before we die from lack of air."

Yue just nodded but she whimpered for several minutes afterwards. She definitely wasn't meant to be underground. Xin Fu was obviously thinking with his penis when he brought her here instead of doing her above ground.

I might as well make conversation, I decided.

"Where do they keep you?"

"Mostly above ground, I get moved a lot," Yue said, "but this time is different for some reason," she told me, "they plan to keep me underground during my entire stay here," she whined, "but at least my room is on a floor entirely made up of metal," she said, "definitely better than in here," she said with open scorn and kicked at the ground.

"I can't bend me….that kind of place isn't for me," I decided to say.

"Well if you saw it…oh right you're blind," Yue recalled, "sorry," she said, "but you're so confident, more so than most of the girls I see down here and they can see!"

I wasn't sure what to say about that. Those girls weren't that confident for a reason. I decided to instead sit next to the bed. I wouldn't sit on that thing unless Xin Fu made me. Plus I had waited out cave-ins before. A regular hazard living here and of course in my designated line of work.

Yue paced for over an hour. Then she finally plopped down exhausted on the bed. I could hear her body hit it like a rock.

"Do you hate me?" Yue asked suddenly.

"No," I said surprised, "why would think that?"

"Um, you haven't said anything in a while," Yue confessed, "I thought my comment earlier made you angry," she said, "I'm not one of those stuck up deluded slave girls, honest."

"I'm not mad at you," I said with a laugh, "I have a really thick skin, trust me."

Yue was quiet for a moment. then she got up and walked over.

"Toph, I know it might sound silly," Yue started, "but would you like to know what I look like?" she asked.

I was confused but Yue took my dirt caked hands and placed them upon herself. As I moved my hands I realized it was her face and could feel soft smooth skin, a nice nose, a small mouth and as I reached up higher I felt the prickle of her eyelashes and was moving my fingers through her luxurious hair. "You're pretty, very pretty."

Yue giggled and let me continue.

"You're hair's long," I commented.

"My skin is brown, eyes blue, hair white and I'm 5'7," Yue listed.

I laughed. It was cute that she helped fill in the blanks I couldn't.

"They're bending the cave in away," I sensed, "we should be able to hear them in the next two or three hours."

"That's good," Yue said in relief, "um, how old are you?"

"Thirteen, I guess you're older, nearly eighteen?" I made a guess.

"Sixteen," Yue said, "I was snatched at age eight."

"Six," I told her my snatching age.

"It never gets easier does it?" Yue asked.

"The beginning is the worst," I said, "the rest just sucks."

Yue suddenly started to cry. "I miss my home, the ice, the water. I hate it here."

I thought about where she was from but only see myself freezing my ass off and being 'really' blind.

"I'm certain it's wonderful there," I lied, "I hope you'll get to see it again someday," I added honestly.

"Like you hope to be free someday," Yue said softly but her voice was filled with hopelessness.

Like I will be, I thought sadly, girls like you only leave Xin Fu in two ways, being sold off or getting killed or executed, I kept to myself.

I hugged Yue tightly. Despite my decision to never make anymore close friends, I wanted to comfort her. She gasped then hugged me back. Her clothes felt silky and expensive. Much better than my course clothes that were really pieces of cloth etched together. Then I recalled how she had to 'earn' them and immediately admonished myself.

Yue kissed me on the head and hugged me back.


(Normal POV)

Aang ate an apple in the cell where bottom rates were kept. He had to blow a monitor to get it but he was starving. Jet worked in the furnace until his legs got blown off in an explosion. Instead of killing him, he got sent here because guards had always wanted him. He rose to monitor because of brains and he guarded some supervisor's deepest secret. He was dedicated to master Xin Fu though. No one dared mention escape in his presence.

"How you liking the apple Aang?" Jet asked, "remember, I have four more gos."

There was a ripple of laughter.

"No problem," Aang said relishing the fruit, "better than the crap we get for free," he added.

"Is that so?" Xin Fu asked stepping in.

Aang froze. His night had initially taken a turn for the better when a cave in forced all activities to stop and many workers/slaves were sent to their cells or quarters with instructions to stay until further orders. All cells had monitors watching and no one was allowed to misbehave, not even the guards. Aang had assumed that either something went wrong in one of the areas or another competitor had planted a bomb that had gone off. But now he was in big trouble. He had just put down the food that they were provided with and Master Xin Fu had heard him.

I'm dead, Aang thought.

"I was going to pick the strongest among you for a special job," Xin Fu said, "but since Aang seems to be full of prestige, he must be top notch," he stated, "so congrats little boy, you're first pick for pickaxe duty."