~~ Sokka yawned and stretched. He got out of the cot that served as his bed and scratched his stomach. He pulled on his clothes he had stolen from a house in the Fire Nation and grabbed his sword and boomerang. He headed out from his tent and saw Aang's tent, still in a messy heap. Sokka sighed and crossed over to his sister's tent. He stuck his head in and saw Katara brushing her hair on her cot.
"Morning Sokka." she yawned.
"Morning." Sokka replied.
Sokka looked to the right of Katara's cot and saw Aang, still fast asleep.
"Has he been like this all night?" Sokka asked.
"Fortunately for us, yes. He didn't have any more nightmares. Or at least any more that woke him up."
Sokka pushed Aang with his foot.
"Come on man, time to get up."
Aang didn't respond.
"Aang come on, you've been whining for days about finding a fire bending trainer. We're going to search for one today. Get up!"
Still no response.
"Sokka leave him alone. He was up late last night."
"So were you." he replied. "And you're up."
Katara gave him her traditional glare and Sokka instantly stopped talking.
"I think I'll go see what Toph's doing." he said, quickly ducking out of his sister's tent.
"Yeah you do that." Katara mumbled.
"Toph are you awake?" Sokka asked as he pushed open the flap of Toph's tent.
Inside, he saw something that made his jaw drop. Toph was getting dressed. She wasn't facing him, but she was naked, and he got a good view of her backside. Toph stopped and wrapped her blanket around herself.
"What the hell! Get out pervert!" she screamed.
She stomped the ground and an earthen spire shot out from the ground, sending Sokka flying into the air. He came down hard, and it knocked the wind out of him.
"Toph I'm sorry!" he exclaimed as he rose from the ground. "I didn't know you were getting dressed!"
Toph lifted a large rock from the ground and aimed it at Sokka. Sokka clamped his eyes shut and prepared for the worst. She threw the rock, but it was sliced in half and it flew in two different directions around Sokka. He gave a relieved sigh and collapsed to the ground. Katara stood next to him.
"Toph, please," she started. "My brother may be an idiot, and a fool, and-"
"Hey who's side are you on!" Sokka exclaimed.
"My point is, Sokka didn't mean to spy on you. It was an accident. It's no reason to grind him into dust."
Toph grunted and returned to her tent. Katara helped Sokka up.
"Thanks for that." he said.
Katara pushed him to the ground again.
"Hey, what was that for?"
"I can't believe you! You pervert!"
"I thought you just said that it was an accident!"
"That was to save you from getting killed! My god, what is wrong with you? She's like, four years younger than you!"
"Hey, it was an accident! It's not like I meant to spy on her!"
"Just forget it."
"I hope I can." Sokka replied.
~~ A few hours later, Katara crouched by the fire, stirring the soup that would serve as their lunch.
"Sokka, go wake up Aang. He's been sleeping long enough. We're going to eat soon."
Sokka looked disappointed.
"Awww really? I'm starving though! And if Aang's asleep that means more food for-"
"Sokka, now." Katara stated, that same look on her face.
"Oh fine!"
Sokka stormed into Katara's tent and shook Aang.
"Come on Aang wake up. It's time to eat."
Still no response.
"Oh well, I tried."
Just as he was about to leave the tent, Toph walked in, bumping right into him.
"Oh…Toph…hi…" Sokka stammered.
Toph looked up at him.
"Did you like what you saw?" she asked.
Sokka was shocked.
"W-what?"
"You heard me."
"Well I-I don't think-"
"You don't think what? That I'm pretty enough?"
"N-no it's not that! I mean…I think your…um…very…beautiful Toph. In fact I-"
But she cut him off.
"Wait, who else is here? On the floor?"
"What? Oh that's just Aang. He's asleep though. We've been trying to wake him for a while. Now, as I was saying-"
"Something's wrong Sokka. His pulse isn't normal."
Sokka sighed as Toph got down by Aang. She put her hand on the ground right next to him.
"This doesn't make any sense."
Sokka got down next to her.
"What doesn't make any sense?"
"Based on his breathing and his heart rate, it feels like he's been running, not sleeping…"
"He has been having those nightmares again."
"Could a nightmare actually do this?" Toph asked herself.
Katara came into the tent.
"Come on guys, the soup's getting cold!"
She saw them kneeling by Aang.
"What's wrong?"
She crouched next to her brother.
"Toph says that Aang's heart rate makes it seem like he's been doing some running."
"Or fighting…" Toph continued.
The other two turned to her.
"Fighting?" Katara asked. "But he's sound asleep!"
"Maybe not so soundly after all…" Toph replied.
Katara put her hand on Aang's forehead.
"He's burning up…"
Sokka took the legs of Katara's cot and put it on the ground.
"Come on, there's a village nearby. We can bring Aang there."
Katara gaped at him.
"Sokka, we're in the Fire Nation! If one of them finds Aang, then we're all doomed!"
Sokka wrapped Aang's head in a bandana.
"We'll just have to keep an eye on him then."
Katara and Sokka helped Aang into the makeshift stretcher and picked it up.
"Alright Toph, you stay here." Katara told her. "We'll be back as soon as we can."
Aang's pet lemur, Momo, jumped to Aang's side. Sokka picked him up and put him on a rock near Toph.
"No Momo, you have to stay here." he said.
Toph stroked the lemur behind his ear as Katara and Sokka took Aang down the path to the village.
