Hey there again!
A/N: Well, my story wasn't exactly what I'd call a hit, but I got some very nice reviews and a fair number of hits. Plus, you guys seemed to be unanimous in wanting me to finish it so, without further delays (With the exception of the disclaimer.), here it is:
Disclaimer: Do I own Avatar? No. Do I want to own Avatar? Maybe. Are you a stupid person if you though someone who owned Avatar would be writing fan fiction? Yeah, pretty much.
"Character Talking"
Character Thinking
And the story:
Avatar: The Last Airbender: Shattering
The three remaining members of the team stared at the fire that now served the sole purpose of illumination.
The mood was gloom at the camp. No one felt like saying anything and the half eaten bowl of stew on the ground was enough to remind them why. Other than the burning wood, the only sounds that could be heard were Sokka's grunts as he tried to make his own hand shaped dents on the metal ball and an occasional noise from the distance that resembled a rock shattering in a hundred pieces. They accounted that sound to Toph.
"Do you think she'll come back to eat it?" Katara asked, staring at her bowl of stew but not touching it.
Aang wished he could answer positively, but the truth was that Toph coming back that night was very unlikely. After thinking a lot, he realized there wasn't anything he could say to answer Katara's question properly. That bothered him a lot.
Th waterbender sighed. "I guess not..."
"You could try and... Hmph... talk to her." Sokka said between grunts as he fought with the little ball. "In a nicer way that is."
"As if I could find her. If she doesn't want to talk to me me, I'll never get to her." Katara pointed out. Sokka didn't seem to be paying attention though, he was now trying to bite the ball, only to find that it was too small to fit in his mouth. Katara's eyebrows were twitching the boy. "Will you give up with that thing already? It was real bending, there's no way you can make a dent like that without bending."
Sokka didn't oblige to Katara's demand. "I'm sorry, but unlike you sorcerers, I'm a man of science. I need empirical proof." Katara glared at him causing the boy to loose his composure. "But I guess I got proof enough." He said, laughing uncomfortably and throwing the ball back to Aang. "Have fun buddy." Aang picked the ball, but he wasn't having any sort of fun at the time.
"Anyway..." Katara continued. "Why should I even look for her. I mean... even if I was a little insensitive..."
"A little?" Sokka raised an eyebrow, earning him another stare. He cowered again. "I mean... Please go on." He corrected himself nervously.
"Even if I was mean to her, the fact that she got so angry means I was right about her doesn't it?" She said.
Aang was a bit shaken by those words. "Isn't that a bit beyond the point now?" Sokka said, echoing the avatar's thoughts.
"No it's not." Katara said, standing up. She was starting to get excited like before. "Don't you see? She's doing exactly what I said she'd do. She's falling apart because she's being forced to face reality."
Aang was feeling more uncomfortable with every second that went by. He wished he could stop Katara from saying those things, but he didn't want to confront her either.
Sokka wasn't so happy either, but he was more than used to confronting his sister. "Yeah, you said that already. That's why Toph's gone and you've got a hand mark burning on your face." He said
"Can't you see where I'm getting at?" Katara said her hand gestures becoming more intense by the second. "This might actually be good for her! She could actually learn a lesson."
"And you get to be right once and for all." Sokka completed her trail of thought. "Face it, you and Toph are always at it. You just have to be on the right every time."
"That's not the point." The waterbender took a deep breath to calm herself. "Look, I know me and her are often fighting, but I really want her to be a better person. This thing right now may not be nice, but it's for the best. Don't you think so Aang?" She turned to the boy who'd stayed quiet during the discussion hoping he'd help her convince Sokka.
Aang looked up at Katara with a sad expression on his face. He didn't want to be angry at her, but he couldn't help it. Why is she being like that? Usually he'd go along with whatever she said, but this time it was so clear to him that she was wrong, he couldn't bring himself to do it.
Eventually he stood up and made his way to where his glider rested. He picked it up and opened it without uttering a word.
"Aang, where are you going?" Katara asked, surprised by Aang's sudden actions.
"I'm going after Toph." Aang said, his voice far from intense.
The girl's blue eyes fell. "But I thought..."
The young avatar stared into the horizon, his back to the waterbender cause he didn't want to face her directly. He wished he didn't have to be in that situation. Going against Katara was the last thing he'd do, yet he had no choice. He had to do what was right. "Maybe you have a point. Maybe this is good for Toph, but I can't just sit here while my friend is hurt. I'm sorry Katara... "
The little boy flew away and disappeared into the night sky leaving a dumbfounded Katara behind.
A/N: It's kinda short, but it's the right size. More than this and I would have to start filling it with bullshit.
I'm sorry Kataangers out there. I really don't intend to make Aang hate Katara or anything of the sort. As a matter of fact I tried to be pretty clear in saying that he's feeling divided. I'll explore more of that latter so rest assured, things will settle down. In case you're wondering this is more of a Taang than anything else when it comes to shiping, but I'm not much into just pairing everybody up for the fun of it. Like I said before, I'm thinking this up as I write and though I already have a general idea of stuff that will happen next, some of it is still a mystery. I may end up actually pairing Toph and Aang, or just developing on their friendship, but that doesn't mean Aang will suddenly forget Katara and jump into Toph's arms, so if that's what you're looking for... sorry, wrong place. Also, just because I'll focus on the relationship between Toph and Aang, it doesn't mean I won't poke around with the other ones. Not every relationship needs to be romantic in order to be writing/reading material.
Enough time wasting nonsense from me. Bye.
