Search for the Precious
Chapter 4
"The Right Mistake"
First of all, I would like to thank all the people who had reviewed my story. In chronological order, thank you for Justthisguyyouknow, Linzerj, The Animanga Girl, Ryan a.k.a A goat, Zane-Ice-Fairy, Jedimasterawesome, Daisy312, Sokka's Fan-Lawyer, LandofMidnightRain, I'm. Only. Human. Dude (or previously known Chipettegirl4life), and last but not least, two anonymous reviewers. I am truly thankful for your reviews and they really supported me in continuing this story.
From the bottom of my heart, I hope to reach 30 reviews with this chapter.
I love analysis, critics, and feedbacks about the story. So don't hold back your thoughts, and please send your opinions. I can't make a good story with only one mind, which is mine, because it's not enough. A critic, even the hateful ones, is helping me to construct the story.
Okay, off with the story!
"Oh, hi Sokka. Come here." Katara looked to the boy entering her room, who was now walking to the two people sitting on the floor beside the bed. He took Katara's pillow and sat down, hugging the fluffy stuff in his hands.
"So? What is it? You two look so tense. Spill the beans."
"Where's Toph?" Katara blurted. It seemed that she needed to talk to her immediately.
His mind wondered to three hours ago.
"Why aren't you staying in the palace? You can sleep in one of the guest rooms there. You know Bumi doesn't mind us staying." He said, walking through the unusually bright alley in Omashu.
"I've rent this place. I'm not wasting my money after booking for a night." She replied as they entered the inn.
"Yeah, I can see why you picked this place." His eyes wandered through the place. It was obvious that the building was entirely made of earth – one of Toph's main reasons to pick the place - with earth bending. Sokka could see the earth bending traces but not as many as usual. It had been flattened and smoothened, clearly for the comfort and luxury of their customers. The lighting was enough, not too bright but not too dark either, really comfortable for the eyes; even though it didn't matter for Toph. There were three couches and a small table at the hall, just like a normal house. The receptionist stood up and welcomed them, then asked them if they want to book a room. Sokka was about to refuse when Toph said she had rented a room and showed her key. They went upstairs and got in front of her room. Sokka excused himself to went back to the palace and bid goodbye to his best friend, receiving a nod and a punch from the girl.
"I walked her to her inn. She should be sleeping by now. Why?" he finally answered.
"Aang have something to tell her. Maybe he would tell her tomorrow." Katara said.
Aang let out a sigh and looked at them in the eyes. "I guess I have to tell both of you first then."
The siblings leaned their heads closer to the avatar; their curious eyes sparkled with huge interest.
Katara nid-nodded her head, absorbing the information that had just been told to her. Sokka, on the other hand, was stroking his chin with wrinkled eyebrows and narrowed eyes.
"So you're saying… that if we can't get Toph back as soon as possible, we're doomed?" Sokka, still in his thinking pose, asked him.
The bald nomad shrugged, "Pretty much; it's not impossible with his influence across this nation. We could only hope that Toph will cooperate with us."
Sokka responded. "She usually will, if we're under normal circumstances. But this time… I'm not sure. If we get her back to her parents, even without him thinking you kidnapped her, she will be… I don't know. Locked for her entire life, maybe? She ran away. Again. Her parents would think that… that… spirits. I can't even imagine what they'll do to her."
"I know! I can't hand her over to her parents too." Aang looked really guilty. It was his dilemma, after all.
"All this is hurting my head." Sokka shifted his hand to his temple and softly rubbed it. "Oma and Shu, Tui and La, Yue, spirits! Seriously…"
"Maybe some sleep will help. Come, we can talk about this tomorrow, with Toph." she emphasized the last two words and patted the boys' heads, then led them out of her room gently.
"Good night. Have a nice sleep, okay? I don't want you two to have a headache tomorrow." She kissed Aang's cheeks and hugged Sokka tightly. They both left to their rooms after that, with a blush in Aang's face, of course.
Sokka entered his room in the palace. He washed his feet thoroughly and opened his closet, then pulled out a clean under tunic. He changed his clothes and tossed those dirty clothes to his opened bag, missing it by a few inches. Ignoring his fail throw, he staggered to the corner of his room and plopped himself to the bed, his hands searched for his pillow. Realizing it wasn't there anywhere in his reach, he flinched, anxiously darting gazes to every corner, but his eyes immediately found the cushion on the floor.
He let out a relieved sigh and lifted it, burying his face into the warm softness of koala sheep-cushion pillow.
It smelled different. He had stayed here a few times before, and the pillow always smelled the same, like it had been washed by rose water and brushed by polished wood. But this time, his nose captured something different. The scent was faint and almost faded, but it was there. An earthy aroma with something else, which strangely, comforted him. He inhaled the scent, trying to attach it in his mind. It reminded him of Katara, and Mom, and… Suki.
His eyes slammed open, remembering something, even though he could see nothing with his eyes buried in the pillow. He whispered under his breath, "Suki…"
Memories of Toph and him suddenly filled his mind. He remembered how her body perfectly fitted his arms, how soft her hair brushed his hands, how her eyes weakened when he touched her pinkish cheek, sweeping her bangs out of her lovely face. How... Stop it, Sokka! You're with Suki! Don't let a thirteen years old girl own your mind when you've got a pretty and tough girl with you! You idiot, you haven't been thinking of her when you met Toph at the restaurant! Don't you miss her? Huh? Don't you miss your seventeen years old beautiful warrior girl in Kyoshi Island?
He shook his head, clearing the chaos in his head, wiping out train of thoughts possessing his mind. He flipped his back and inhaled the smell in his pillow.
It calmed him, and successfully drifted him to sleep.
The sky was colored blue, which was a sign of a new day. It was a fine morning, and the weather was wonderful. Grey and white clouds fluffed all around the sun, hiding the shy giant star. Below them, three teenagers were walking along the road as a breeze of wind caressed their skin, reddening their cheeks at its touch.
"Listen to me, Aang. You need to talk to her by yourself, it's the best way to tell her." Katara put a hand on his shoulder, reassuring him.
"Okay, okay." Aang took a deep breath and released it. After he felt calmer, he led the way into the inn Sokka had guided them to, the inn Toph stayed in last night. They walked toward the receptionist and nervously he asked, "Excuse me; could you tell Toph Bei Fong who is staying here that her friends have come to talk to her?"
"Toph Bei Fong… please wait a minute." She opened a big book and traced her finger to the words, "she had checked out this morning."
Katara rapidly asked, "she had?! Did… did she tell where she was going?"
"No… I'm sorry I can't help." The receptionist replied sympathetically.
"Okay then. Thank you." Sokka responded and walked away from the inn. His tone was filled with anger and irritation. "I can't believe she just ditched us like that."
"I know! and I'm not sure I can search for her since I've got a meeting in the palace." Aang shouted in frustration.
"I think you scared her, Katara." Sokka turned to face his sister. "You said you're going to escort her to her parents for permission, and now she's gone."
Katara's face turned beet red, "you think I caused this?!"
"I'm just trying to be realistic here, if there's one thing Toph hates the most, it's meeting her parents, especially after she left them like that."
"Well, eventually, we ARE going to do that!" Katara seethed. Her face reddened, full of anger. She turned quickly to her boyfriend, asking for support of her retort.
Aang stepped backward in surprise. Then he approached the eldest person between them, and put a hand on his shoulder. "Sorry Katara, but I'm with Sokka in this one."
"Aang yo-!" her words were hung in the air. Silence filled the void created by their lips. She exhaled a couple of times and closed her eyes, relaxing herself, which turned out quite effective. Defeated, she uttered under her breath with a little pout on her lips, "Fine. So how can we find this girl? I bet she ran with her earth bending to get away from us faster."
"Let me handle this." As Aang said that, he knelt one of his legs and planted both of his hands on the ground. He closed his eyes and then bright light shone from them and his tattoos.
Sokka walked closer to his sister, covering his mouth and whispered, "What is he doing?" from the corner of his eyes, he saw her shrugged her shoulders, so he came to a conclusion. "Okay, avatar stuff. Noted."
Katara narrowed her eyes, not approving his brother's statement. She nudged her brother at his ribs, her eyes opened wide enough for her eyeballs to pop out. Suddenly, a thought struck her and her features returned to normal, except a bright idea seemed to light her face. "It's like… in the swamp! He was like this too when we were searching for Appa! Remember?"
"Yeah, all glowy." He nodded and looped his hand round and round, circling Aang from his point of view. The water bender beside him slapped his hand down, visibly annoyed with what he's doing to her boyfriend. They exchanged stares from each other; one is a confused stare, and one is a motherly threatening stare, which backed off her staring contest opponent.
Their attention was directed back to the boy before them. His glow was vanishing, a sign that his consciousness had came back. He whispered under his breath, panting, "She… was sleeping under a tree in the village near the mountains across this place… but still inside this city."
"Alright! Let's go get her!" Sokka jumped joyfully toward Appa.
"I can't." Aang said, stopping Sokka's leap as the warrior turned and gave him a confused look. "I have a meeting in the palace and I'm already late."
Sokka crinkled his brows and confronted him, "So what do we do now? Get you to the meeting while our friend is on the run?"
"I think you should go after her, Sokka." Katara said before the avatar answered her brother's question.
"What?!" he backed slowly, his tone was filled with disbelief. Thousands of questions were running in his mind. He did want to chase her, but why him? Why alone? Why not Katara?
"You can calm her down. The only one who ever did and could. You are her best friend. I'm sure she won't be happy to see me face to face with her alone. And if that happens, she will never be back to her family and therefore, everything will be destroyed by them – or him. But with you, it's a different story. She would listen to me if you come along too." Katara's spoken thought lingered in his head. The only one who ever did and could. Best friend. Never be back. Never back. The only one.
He knew the last part of it was true. If Toph didn't return to her family, not just Aang, but the whole world depending on him will be hopelessly ruined.
Alright Sokka, you can do this. You're detective Sokka, with fancy hats and an awesome bubble pipe. You can do this.
Sokka closed his eyes and released his tension with each breath he took. With a fist thrown up to the air, he turned around and walked away. "Just to the edge of the town, right? I'll be back soon before you know it. I brought my sword with me, so I'll be fine." He waved his hand, receiving shouts of 'thank you' and 'good bye' from the couple.
"We'll catch up with you after the meeting is over!
"Okay, wish me luck." He whispered.
"Oh, I can't wait for your daughter to be mine in law!"
"Yes, we all can't wait."
"I believe we should set the wedding's date."
"I have consulted with a fortuneteller. According to their birth dates, this is the best day."
"Hmm… could it be a little sooner?"
"It can… but your son will be under marrying age."
"Of course. Very well, it is settled, then!"
The wind blew slowly, twitching his tan skin at their first contact. His nose caught an earthy smell that always appeared when rain was coming. He looked up to the already dark sky. His eyes seized a sight of lightning, followed by a thunder which echo rumbled through his eardrums. A big drip of chilly raindrop hoofed his forehead. The warrior brushed it off his face as he ran to the nearest shelter, a deserted tavern at the edge of the road.
He plunked himself to a wooden bench beside the door, relaxing his mind. Dribbles of water dripped from a rather big crack of its canopy near him, caught by a pail placed right below it. He leaned his back against the wall. But actually, he was leaning to a black cloak. He raised his hands and took it off the wall hanger. It was still in good condition, except for a fairly big rip at the left side of it. He looked around, searching for the cloak's owner, but eventually found no one near the building. He shrugged and put it on. Turned out the cloak was too big for his lean body.
He jumped when wind blew a bunch of water in the canopy. He realized he would get soaked if he didn't get inside. He was going to knock the door when he realized it was useless if there was no one inside. He leaned and pressed his ear to the door, searching for the tiniest of sound. Unfortunately, the weight of his body shoved the door open and he slipped ungracefully inside, falling head first. Darkness welcomed him, blinding him for a few seconds. He blinked, trying to adapt his eyes in the dark, and looked around.
It was a rather small place with a quite long table at the corner of it, just a few meters before the exit. There was some space between the wall and the table, enough for three people in a row to sit behind it. In front of the table, at the inner side of it placed a broken chair with only three legs, which would drop anyone who dared sitting on it. Rats and termites had gnawed most of their dusty surface, leaving it with holes and cracks everywhere anyone could see. Two small windows, though one of them was broken, were made at either walls of the room, allowing dim light to brighten the place a little.
Lightning stroke the earth, sending all the animals shrieked in panic and ran to their holes for dear life. Another door creaked open. His eyes twitched upwards, curiosity quickly took over his mind. Relying on his instincts, he tip-toed and peeped in, eyeing three people in it. The atmosphere was damp and soggy. It was pitch black, except for a faint moonlight glowing from a window, which unfortunately was half covered by a huge wardrobe placed at the corner.
"So you've come." He heard a man in black talked to the other two in the room. "I've heard a few rumors about you. They said you are good and stealthy in what I am going to ask you to do."
"Say what you want from us." The boy stepped forward confidently. The girl beside him expanded her arm, stopping him from doing what he was going to do, and whispered him something Sokka couldn't hear. The boy backed off and hinted her to take the lead. Her gaze shifted to the man in front of them, demanding an answer for her companion's question.
"I want you to track and bring someone to here," the cloaked figure gave them two pieces of paper and a small clinking bag. "Remember, each scar will lower your reward. And if dead, none."
The girl observed the man, and opened the bag. The boy stole a glance into it, and lifted his brows at the glimpse of its contents. The girl bowed to the man in front of them, followed by the young man beside her. "Your wish is our command." They gestured the man to leave before them politely, and started to walk toward Sokka who was standing behind the door.
Sokka obviously panicked. Rushing out of the place wouldn't be a good option. Everyone would hear the squeaking voice of shifting door and that's it. All's over. He's over. His eyes spotted a frail table, and his body immediately hid himself inside, hoping no one would see him there. The darkness wrapping him may probably enough to put him out of their sight. He pulled up the hood slowly, turned out it was big enough to cover half of his face.
The man walked through him. Sokka clammed his mouth and opened his eyes, peeking through a crack in the table.
The man had exited the tavern they were in. The rest of them walked out as the boy took the papers his friend was holding, and unfolded it. "This is…"
Sokka narrowed his eyes, trying to catch a glimpse of what written in the paper. His eyes widened when he recognized one thing, a whisper of curse slipped out of his lips.
The girl grabbed those papers back from him and scrolled them, then tucked it into her under tunic and continued walking. "Yes, I know."
Come on, you two! Get out!
One of them stopped. She heaved the other person's arm, stopping him from walking forward too.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
A pair of legs was now walking towards him.
Oh shit, oh shit! He grasped his sword, readying himself for self-defense.
A dart flew to his direction, right to the hole his eyes was peeking through. He shoved himself to the ground, and rolled out of the table. A young man, the same as the one he saw just now, was now standing before him, thrusting his sword to Sokka's chest. He may be caught in shock, but his body wasn't. He rolled to the other side of his body with his sword blocking and redirecting the man's sword, leaving it pierced to the ground. Taking the opportunity, he kicked the man in the chest and sent him swung backward. He flipped his body and crawled out, then dashed to the exit. From the corner of his eyes, he saw the girl extended her arm. He knew that move. It was the same move Mai always used to throw her knives.
He ran a lot more quickly out the door and slammed it violently. He saw three tip of blades pierced through the wood, and without wasting any time left, he ran from the tavern for dear life.
This is not good. Not good at all.
to be continued
Disclaimer: I do not own "Avatar: The Last Airbender". This story is based on the characters and plot of "Avatar: The Last Airbender".
Once again, thank you for all who had added this story to their favorites and alerts, and to people who added me to their author alerts and favorites, and obviously, for those who had reviewed my story. It's a great honor!
And ta-dah! A little action, if it could be considered action.
There was a change in middle of the previous chapter (chapter 3), before Sokka found Toph. I am very, very sorry for the inconvenience. My bad. My mistake.
Thank you for reading my story, and I hope you enjoyed it! RnR!
UPDATE: Just some minor changes.
1. I fixed my mistakes. (Much thanks to my beloved reviewer, Sokka's Fan-Lawyer! If anyone spotted any more errors, please point it out for me!)
2. I changed the task the cloaked man gave our two special guests in this chapter to: "I want you to track and kill someone for me. Your actual reward will be yours after you finished the task." (previously: "I want you to track and bring someone to here. Remember, each scar will lower your reward. And if dead, none.") I thought it will be more exciting to kill the target than just to track and kept alive. What do you think?