"Katara, LET GO OF ME!" Toph yelled out of the middle of nowhere as they waited for the match to begin.
"No, I can't let you kill my brother!" Katara replied cackling with laughter as she bloodbent her friend to remain still.
"What's happening?" Mai asked Zuko who shrugged looking just as bewildered as Mai felt.
Just then Sokka appeared in the row of seats behind the old friends and leaned over top of Toph's bun and kissed her head. He climbed most unceremoniously over the chairs just as Katara released her bloodbending hold on Toph. Toph punched both of them in the arm before folding hers.
"I hate suprises, AND I could have you arrested for that, Sugar Queen!" Toph yelled at the master waterbender.
"But you won't!" Katara snickered high fiving her brother.
"Come on, you know you liked it!" Sokka laughed hugging a bitter Toph.
"Sokka, you came?" Aang asked astonished.
"Why the tone of surprise? Honestly, I can't believe you guys didn't invite me to Linny's big match!" Sokka exclaimed.
"Who did then?"
"Bumi. He said you guys were all going and offered to take him and Kya but Kya was busy and well, he didn't want to go, but DID want to know what happened, so I came. To be honest, I was rather curious myself. Lin is even smaller than you were at that age, Toph! And winning!" Sokka exclaimed throwing his arms up with excitement.
"That is because Lin is eleven. Of course she is smaller than I was at TWELVE!" Toph replied folding her arms and crossing her feet.
"So why didn't you invite Sokka?" Mai asked Toph.
Toph thought for a moment then laughed. "Eh, his daughter isn't fighting tonight," Toph said lowering her unseeing eyes, the corners of her lips curling into a smirk.
"Are you implying that ours are..." Mai began to ask before being cut off by the announcer.
Shiro Shinobi:
Ladies and gents, May I have your attention please? ARE YOU READY FOR THE FIFTH QUALIFYING MATCH OF THE THIRD ANNUAL PRO-BENDING CIRCUIT?
The crowd roared.
INTRODUCING YOUR DEFENDING CHAMPIONS TWO YEARS RUNNING, THE REPUBLIC CITY FLAMING MOON BADGERS AND THEIR CHALLENGERS, THE PINNACLE PALACE PLATYPUS BEARS!
more cheers
"What a stupid name! Moon Badgers aren't even a real thing!" Toph yelled.
"Don't call their name stupid! They have been champions two years running!" Katara yelled swatting Toph on the arm.
"I am guessing the team with the midget is Lin's," Mai said looking bored with her hands folded in her lap.
"So you're where Zumi get's her sarcasm and boringness," Toph commented.
"And you're where Lin gets her negativity and cynicism," Mai replied.
Shiro Shinobi:
And the Flaming Moon Badgers are on the defensive weaving through water, earth, and fire like acrobats. The Platypus Bears are holding nothing back tonight! Jinyu ricochets a disk off the side Lina smashes it and returns a few of her own and there goes his shin, knee, and shoulder and Jinyu is in the drain!
Kayama strikes Norika who returns with some intense firebending. Ziyuan slides to her defense redirecting the fire. Hiro tries to take out two with one strike but his hose is blocked with a series of earth disks before it could reach the fire and water duo.
Kayama and Lina appear to have some sort of strategy. Lina jumps off of Kayama's back and kicks one, two earthen disks knocking Norika and Hiro back to zone two. The moon badgers advance into Platypus bear territory. Kayama flips off of the railing sending Norika into the drain.
Hiro knocks Ziyuan back one zone into her own territory again. Ziyuan strikes back with an unusually large fire blast knocking Hiro back to the third zone. Was it just me or did that fire have a few blue flames in it? Wait! The refs blew the whistle. It must be under review!"
"The Moon Badgers receive a penalty for illegal, overzealous firebending!" the referee yelled. "Ziyuan move back one zone. Hiro moves up one zone."
"Oh come on! It was just a few flames! The majority of the blast was red and orange!" Zuko yelled flinging his hands forward.
"Zuko, are we sure Toph is the blind one here?" Mai asked.
"How could you say that?!" Zuko yelled at her. She didn't even flinch but stared back at him with the same deadpanned expression she always had.
"Zuko, there are three people in the world capable of producing blue fire, Your uncle, your sister, and your daughter, and only two capable of controlling it, your uncle and your daughter. Izumi is down there." Mai said.
"What?!" Zuko yelled with smoke coming out of his ears and nose, standing up.
"Relax, she'll be fine. You've taught her well." Mai said grabbing his wrist, bringing him back down to his seat.
Shiro Shinobi:
AND THE BELL MARKS THE END OF ROUND 1. The Moon Badgers take the round but it clearly wasn't easy. Second round will begin after the commercial break!
And we are back with the fifth qualifying match of the third annual pro-bending circuit. The moon badgers face off against the platypus bears an an intense clash of the elements. It seems the Platypus Bears have a new strategy as they dodge the Moon Badgers' attacks. Jinyu knocks Kayama back to zone three, Norika knocks Lina back into zone two and it looks like the Platypus Bears might win a round. Ziyuan knocks Hiro back to zone two. Jinyu knocks Kayama back to zone three with a second disk and Lina serves him a sandy soup with that three disk flurry knocking him all the way to zone three on his side. Ziyuan stands her ground in zone one holding the Platypus Bears off from advancing into Moon Badger territory. And the bell rings ending the round in a tie! We go to the coin toss to decide the round.
"The Platypus bears win the coin toss! Which element do you choose?" the referee asked.
"We choose earth!" the tigerdillo Jinyu answered looking at the little earthbender confidently.
"Lina, you're up!" Kya whispered shoving Lin forward.
"What do I do?" Lin asked hurriedly.
"Same thing as normal. Just knock him off the ring!" Izumi answered as Lin stepped into the Center circle to face a young man eight years older and two feet taller than she.
"Fifty yuans she uses three disks to knock him out," Kya whispered to her firebending teammate.
"Sixty she only uses two," Izumi replied.
"You're on!" Kya exclaimed subtly shaking on it.
Ding!
"Jinyu opens with two shots, Lina rolls to the side picking up a disk but not throwing. Jinyu lunges— Lina slides picking up a second, she is on the defensive—one disk to the side throws Jinyu off balance and a middle strike SENDS JINYU INTO THE DRAIN! Wait! What?" Shiro Shinobi commentated.
"Woo hoo!" Lin jumped up in the air and twirled around to see Kya face palm miserably and Izumi pinch the bridge of her nose. "I messed up, didn't I?"
"You're supposed to knock him off the small ring. Not the whole thing!" Kya explained indicating the lowering center circle that Lin was still standing on.
"Oh, sorry guys," Lin sighed.
"It's alright. It's just a game," Izumi said patting Lin on the shoulder in a sisterly way.
"The Moon Badgers win the face off BUT their earthbender will receive a penalty for unnecessary roughness and start the next round back one zone," the referee announced.
"Awwww,"
"Keep your chin up, K Linny?" Izumi said tilting Lin's head up with her index finger as the younger girl walked away.
DING!
"WE DID IT!
WE DID IT!
WE ARE GOING TO WIN IT!" the girls sang skipping around in a circle after the match.
"That was crazy!" Lin exclaimed brushing the hair out of her face.
"And Kya, your recovery after that guy got you in the knee!" Izumi yelled.
"Just a little quick healing!" Kya winked.
"Wait! They're coming!" Lin announced.
"Who?" Kya asked obliviously.
"You know who! Quick! Hide!" Lin ordered.
"Where?" Izumi asked.
"The lockers! I'll metalbend us in!"
The three girls dove into their lockers and skin slammed them shut locking the padlocks.
The door to their locker room slowly opened and several pairs of feet entered their temporary private space.
"Nice try kids!" Toph said loudly with her commanding voice throwing open all three lockers with ease, overpowering her daughter's bending effortlessly.
The children didn't move.
"Hey, D-Dad! H-h-How's it going?" Kya asked nervously looking over Toph's shoulder at her father's stern face as he looked one word away from entering the Avatar State.
"I am extremely disappointed in you, Izumi! What were you thinking?" Zuko asked solemnly.
"Dad, I know I am a Princess and I do my duty every day from dawn till dusk with only a few hours on Friday evenings off. I needed to do SOMETHING FUN! So, I asked Mom if I could borrow some money and started Pro-Bending," Izumi confesses.
"WHAT?!" Toph, Aang, Sokka, and Katara all yelled turning to the princess they all thaught was so prim and proper, so perfect in every way.
"I can't believe this!" Toph said with a growing smile on her face.
"I WON'T believe this!" Zuko added, his face turning hot with rage.
"It's true!" Mai said placing a hand on Zuko's shoulder. "And she paid it all back within a month. Pro-bending turned out to be a very profitable investment. People like watching the game."
"Do you realize what this could do to the royal family?" Zuko yelled.
"It does nothing to us, Zuko. Let her be. She's a responsible young lady. You should be proud. You've taught her well," Mai interrupted affirmatively.
Zuko sighed and glanced at Aang who had his eyes down.
"What do you think, Aang? Should we let them continue?" Zuko asked.
"The Flaming Moon Badgers have a perfect record. It would be a shame if they were disbanded." The Avatar turned to the girls and reluctantly said, "You may continue to play."
"YAY!"
"WOOO HOOO!"
"YES!"
Please leave comments and criticism in the reviews. Let me know how I am doing and what I can do to improve(please! I know there's a lot). Also let me know if there's something in particular you want to see in this story, or else I will just continue to write blindly!