Sorry this is so late! My head is completely fried, and my muse has been... inaccessible. Anyway, onward to Day Four!

Day Four: Duty

Toph flexed her feet, letting the warm wash of sunset spread over her entire body. She had been told that sunsets were beautiful, that colors merged with each other in a beautiful palette of oranges and golds. But that didn't matter to her. She had always enjoyed the physical aspect of the sun setting; the last rays thrown over the horizon always seemed the warmest to Toph. Plus, it didn't hurt that during this particular sunset, she had Sokka beside her.

The two had trekked to the top of the mountainous hill to get away. Toph had no idea what they were getting away from; most likely it was the pressure of a new life after the war. They had new responsibilities to cope with, along with new duties.

"I never should have come back to my parents," grumbled Toph. She had returned, feeling terrible that she ran off without a word. In retaliation, or so it seemed, Toph's parents had arranged a marriage to 'keep her settled down.' Basically, they were trapping her. Already, the groom-to-be had visited the Bei Fong estate, thrilled that of the riches would be his, along with a 'beautiful bride.'

"Did you get to meet Tam Yog?" asked Sokka.

Even the name of her betrothed brought a sour taste to Toph's mouth. "Yeah. He's a greedy, pompous idiot who thinks I can't even walk by myself. Tam Yog walks around the place like he owns it – which he does. It kills me to see the Bei Fong fortune wasted on someone who'll only use it for their own enjoyment." If Toph had control of her own money, she would use it as funding for something grand and useful – a police force, maybe. "Why are you so glum, Snoozles?" Toph inquired, sending a well-aimed punch to his shoulder.

Sokka, rubbing at his arm, replied, "Well, you know how I've been staying at the North Pole? They have this marriage law there that lets every parent choose who their daughter's suitor will be. I've been trying to change it though; we're living better now that the war has ended."

"So? What does that have to do with your pouty face?"

He sighed. "Because I played a role in the war, I've got a whole list of sixteen year olds whose fathers want them to marry me. The thing is, I don't want to force them into anything, but I can't respectfully say no. You and me, we've both got marriage problems."

"No," stated Toph harshly. "They're duty problems. Marriage itself isn't the problem. As my father said, marriage is all about having a duty to your partner. If we were allowed to chose who we married, it wouldn't be a dilemma."

"Instead, we have a duty to our people," Sokka finished. "I met a girl, a long time ago, who had similar problems. She was a princess from the North Pole, and she always put her people before herself."

"Always?" asked Toph. She was looking for a way out. If a royal princess could cast off her responsibilities, so could she.

"Not exactly," responded Sokka. "She did act selfish once, when she was engaged to an arrogant fool."

"Then that settles it." Toph stood up, stretching. "I'm not gonna listen to duty. It's a load of manure. And so is Tam Yog."

Sokka grabbed her arm. "What are you doing? You can't just run away."

Toph grasped the front of her friend's shirt. "Oh yeah? Watch me." She turned and marched straight down the embankment.

Sokka had forgotten how stubborn the girl was at times. "Toph, come back. At least explain yourself. What are you going to do? Where are you going to go?"

She turned around. "Sokka, you heard Aang's offer. He told us about the new city. What's it called? Public City?"

"Republic City," Sokka interjected.

"Yeah. He said we were always welcome, and that he'd give us whatever job we wanted. Isn't there a dream you've wanted to chase? This stupid duty is holding us back! I've always wanted to catch criminals; I wish I'd be able to see the look on their faces when they get caught by a blind girl, only fourteen years old. Isn't there something you've wanted to do?"

Sokka nodded, remembering some of his past adventures. "I think I'd love being a detective, or a judge. When we went to a town, Chin Village, Aang was accused of murder. It was amazing, trying to put together all the clues. Even though Aang could have died at any moment. Also, the trial there wasn't exactly fair. I have some ideas of my own on how a great government could be started, so every nation could have their say in court."

Toph grinned. "See? We'd even get a chance to be with each other! I catch the crooks, then you sentence them to life in prison!" She didn't try to hide her joy; spending her job working alongside Sokka would be a true delight. "And it's our duty to Aang to help with the city. We took down the Fire Lord, almost burning down the whole world in the process. We have to do anything we can to help Aang rebuild humanity."

Sokka nodded, now fully on board with the plan. "When should we do it? When should we run away?"

"Idiot. Right now!" Toph started running before she finished, hooting with delight. Sokka chased after her, caught up in the moment.

It felt amazing to both of them. Gone were the countless days of cursing marriage and society, gone were the days they had to endure greedy grooms and screaming fangirls. Both Sokka and Toph were leaving their duties behind them; as Toph eloquently put it, they no longer had to carry their 'load of manure.' Then again, the two were running towards a new duty, a new dawn.

But this time, they were able to face it together. The 'manure' was easier to carry when they shared it with each other. And besides, it wasn't really 'manure' when they were living out their dreams, was it?