Metamorphosis
Sokka was fascinated, he had no other way to describe it. It seemed one day Toph had just been the annoying little caterpillar crawling beside him that for a while he just wanted to squash and the next she'd suddenly become a butterfly, brightening his day with a sarcastic quip and new nickname or a new plan for one of their frequent escapades and hijinks.
He's not really sure how it changed, or when. It was almost unconscious. One day he had thought of her as just Toph, the tiny but tough and loud tomboy earthbender, and before he had time to process it she had become so much more.
Sure, she was still tiny. She was still loud and could take on men ten times her size. But now she was his smart, methodical, sneaky, sarcastic partner-in-crime. He found she could be more than brash and offensive; she could be compassionate, understanding, embarrassed, frightened.
Sokka wasn't sure how he had ever thought of Toph as a simple caterpillar, because all he could see now was the extraordinary, beautiful butterfly she had become.
I saw this theme and instantly though if Toph being compared to a butterfly, for whatever reason.
Hope you enjoy! Comemnts and crits are definitely appreciated. :D
-WS