Sorry it took so long! Hopefully this long chapter is worth the wait! And, hey, Toph is finally introduced! I know a lot of you were excited for that! Thanks for the alerts, favorites, and reviews and please keep them coming!
Book Two – Chapter Six: The Blind Bandit
"It's pricey... But, I really do like it."
"Then, you should get it; you deserve something nice."
"I do, don't I? But, no, it's too expensive."
I sigh exasperated, rubbing my shut eyelids with irritation. Sokka has been debating with us for what felt like forever about an insignificant earth kingdom bag that's being sold in the town we're strolling around in. For some reason, he fell in love with the tote right when he first laid eyes on it and it isn't even that special. Sometimes I think he loves shopping related things more than most girls do.
Katara glares at her brother as he keeps on changing his mind about getting the bag. I pick up on how she is about ready to burst out at him so I quickly pipe up, "Sokka, if you are so unsure then just don't get it," I tell him before grabbing Aang's hand and hoisting him up from the ground where he has been lounging the whole time. "Let's just go already." Without any further arguments, we start walking away from the bag with Sokka glumly following behind us.
"Ya know what?" I hear Sokka say after we're not even a few steps away from the shop. "I'm gonna get it." I roll my eyes and we begin to wait patiently outside of the store while Sokka joyfully pays for the tote.
Unexpectedly, as we continue to wait, a scruffy, friendly-looking man comes up to us with a huge grin on his face and fliers hanging out of his fists. "Hey, you kids like earth bending? You like throwing rocks? If so, check out Master Yu's earth bending academy." He shoves a flier at Aang and casually goes on his way with the same smile playing on his lips.
We all scan the flier in interest. It is a nicely drawn picture of a man earth bending a bolder with information about the academy scribbled around it formally. Aang flips it over on it's back and beams as he exclaims, "Look, there's a coupon on the back! The first lesson is free."
"Who knows, this Master Yu could be the earth bending teacher you're looking for," Katara says optimistically.
"I hope so," I opine.
Sokka comes strolling over, tote swung over his shoulder, and takes a look at the flier. His eyes narrow. "This seems too easy," he says. "I feel like to find a teacher it has to be a lot tricker than this."
"You only think that because it's been tricky for basically everything else with us," Katara replies as we all start venturing in the direction of the earth bending academy.
"So?" He shrugs, fiddling with the handle of his new bag. "But, I'm sure I'm not the only one assuming this isn't the guy, right?"
Aang, Katara, and I share glances before looking at him sheepishly. "Yeah, you're not the only one," I breath out. "I guess we're all just hoping he is."
"Yeah," Aang agrees, smiling positively. "But, hey, what's it gonna hurt to meet this Master Yu?"
Sokka shrugs but doesn't say anything else. As we continue on our way, we make random small talk about irrelevant things. Finally, a large, concrete entrance comes into view. The same title on the flier is carved fancily on a earth kingdom designed sign above the circular entrance and I can see kids already lined up inside. Aang's face beams with excitement and he waves to us before rushing inside with the flier in his fist. I smile and take seats with Sokka and Katara on the side of the entrance, leaning into Sokka when he drapes an arm over my shoulders.
About thirty minutes later, Aang comes trudging out while wiping dirt off of his cloths – his new earth bending cloths might I add. "Eh, he's not the one," he tells us disappointedly.
"Sorry," I tell him sincerely. "But, I like your new outfit."
He smirks. "Yeah, Master Yu gave everyone one to train in. Guess he doesn't want it back, though."
"It looks good on you," Katara compliments him sweetly and a light blush covers his cheeks, making me grin. Anything that has to do with the major crush he has on her is just too adorable.
More people start to file out, kids around our ages, and we all suddenly over hear an intriguing conversation between two guys - a boy with gray spiky hair and freckles decorating his face and a brunette, more attractive one. They don't come off nice at all; they look like jerks who are completely self-centered.
"Yeah, but he's gonna have to fight his way through some of the best earth benders in the world to even get a shot at the champ," the brunette one tells the other.
Aang, not needing to hear any other statement to catch his interest, scurries over to them unhesitatingly before they get too far away. "Excuse me, but where is this earth bending tournament exactly?" he asks politely.
They turn around and smirk cockily at him. "It's on the Island of Noneya... None ya business!" the spiky haired one remarks and they both laugh obnoxiously before continuing to walk away.
I frown as we go to stand by Aang. "What jerks," I grumble angrily. My eyes float over to Sokka who is cracking up at the joke and I slap him on the arm to make him quit for Aang's sake. "Stop laughing, Sokka." He obliges but still has an amused yet sheepish smile playing on his lips.
Aang's shoulders slump but they perk back up when Katara says to him, "I'll take care of this." He raises his eyebrows confusingly at her but she ignores him and goes on with her plan. "Hey, strong boys, wait up!" she calls in a fake, high-pitch voice while jogging after them.
"What was I thinking? I don't need a new bag!" Sokka suddenly exclaims, chucking the tote to the ground and crossing his arms across his chest. "Why'd you let me buy this?"
Aang and I both give him a disbelieving look. "You're ridiculous," I say, rolling my eyes. "If you don't want the bag, fine, I'll take it!" I grab the bag, swing it over my shoulder, and smile mockingly toward him. "I look better carrying it around, anyway." He chuckles and catches me off guard by grabbing me by my sides and pulling me into his arms so my back is facing him.
"You're just saying that to annoy me," he mumbles into my ear.
"Maybe... Maybe not." I don't see but I can almost feel him roll his eyes.
"You guys are like perfect for each other," Aang randomly opines and we look at him strangely.
"Why do you say that?"
He scoffs. "Because! You've only fought like..." He stops his sentence when his face scrunches up in thought, trying to count all the times Sokka and I have actually argued.
"It's probably been a lot more than you think," Sokka says in a matter-of-fact tone. "We disagree all the time, but we've only had like three or four major fights."
"Yeah," I grumble. "I don't like to think about those..." Sokka's arms tighten around me and he kisses my head gently, causing my smile to return.
"Well, still, in all my a hundred and twelve years I've never seen two people so in love," Aang tells us, grinning.
"You've only been actually living for twelve of those years," Sokka remarks.
"So? I'm the Avatar."
"... And?" I urge.
He glances at me. "What? That should be enough of an excuse for anything." I laugh lightly while Sokka just shakes his head at him.
We all turn our attention forward when Katara comes racing back to us, a proud smile spread across her lips. "You ready for find an earth bending teacher? Because we're going to Earth Rumble Six!" she tells Aang excitedly.
"How'd you get them to tell you?" Aang wonders.
"Oh, a girl has her ways."
I scrunch my eyebrows together and snort. "What? Did you, like, flirt it out of them?" I ask, only half-kidding.
She gives me an appalled look. "No! Just, froze them to the wall so they had to tell me," she says casually.
"Oh yeah, just froze some guys to a wall so they were forced to tell me information; just an everyday thing," I remark sarcastically.
She gives me a dry look and I shoot one right back at her but we stop when Aang suddenly pipes up energetically, "Well, come on guys! Let's go to Earth Rumble Six!" He starts to stroll away but I grab his arm before he gets too far. He faces me with confusion and anxiety and I chuckle softly.
"Aang, we need to find out where this place is, remember?" I say.
"Oh, right." He rubs the back of his bald head and grins sheepishly.
I roll my eyes, intertwine my fingers with Sokka's, and make my way toward one of the shops to ask for directions, my friends on my trail.
xxxxxx
The first impression I got of Earth Rumble Six wasn't particularly what I would call quality.
A whole bunch of cocky, muscular, obnoxious guys throwing boulders around on a simple arena while hundreds of wannabes cheer them on.
Yeah, not want I find entertaining.
Sokka, on the other hand, is insane about this place; he won't calm down. As he bounces impatiently in his seat, I can practically feel the excitement raiding off of him. His fists are clenched and out in front of him and his eyes are trained on the arena while we await the competitors. On the way here, his mouth hardly ever shut and he kept blabbing on about how anxious he was to watch this. Sure, I am glad that he's so giddy about this, but I wish he wouldn't be so enthusiastic.
Aang is pumped, too, but not really as much; which is ironic since the whole reason we came here is for him. The only major emotion I can see on him is the hope in his eyes of the possible chance we might discover his earth bending teacher tonight. Though, as I study the fighters where they're lined up and ready to rumble, I can't help but think none of them quite fit to what Aang is searching for in a master. He wants a waiter and a listener, and all these guys look like the type of benders that abuse their ability by not having any strategy or self-control. But, of course, I could be wrong; I have been in the past numerous times.
Katara share's similar opinions about this tournament that I do. She, too, doesn't want to sit here for an hour or two and watch these beefy guys nearly kill each other, but we both are doing it for Aang's sake; he matters most right now.
My eyes shoot to the arena when I hear and feel shaking and rumbling. A muscled, sleek man is appears on stage and throws his fists in the air while shouting out, "Welcome to Earth Rumble Six! I am your host, Shin Fu!" The crowd erupts into applause and cheers and he basks in it with joy.
Karara huffs with irritation, picking at her nails absentmindedly. "This is just gonna be a bunch of guys chucking rocks at each other, isn't it?" she grumbles.
"That's what I paid for," Sokka replies, flashing her a grin.
I roll my eyes and rest my head in my hands, observing the stage with only partial interest. Okay, more like no interest, because I basically just zone everything out as unimportant thoughts invade my mind and distract me. I only start to pay attention again when Sokka begins hollering out even louder than he's been for the past hour or so and I look over at him, raising my eyebrows.
"Why are you cheering even more?" I ask him.
He stares at me incredulously. "Have you not been watching?"
"No," I say, shrugging. "Earth bending doesn't really spark my interest."
He slaps his hand on his forehead before motioning to the stage jerkily. "The Boulder has beat every opponent yet! He only has one more to go and if he defeats them, he wins!" he exclaims.
"Oh," I reply, switching my gaze to the stage. "Well, I might as well watch the end."
"Yeah!" Aang says to me suddenly, smiling joyfully. "It's really interesting. But, so far, I haven't seen anyone who would be a good master." I note the disappointment in his tone so I place my hand on his shoulder and give him a reassuring smile.
"It'll be okay. If we don't find one here, we'll find one somewhere else."
He sighs and smiles tinily before diverting his eyes back to the stage when the announcer's voice echoes around us. I bite my top lip and follow his actions, observing the scene in front of me. A tall, very muscular man with only short, green battling pants and metal wrist and ankle bands on stands on the right side of the arena; he must be the Boulder. His hair is done up so it is out of his eyes and he has a well-kept beard lining his youthful face. I can tell he is just as cocky as Shin Fu by the way he flexes his muscles and beams at the crowd like he's better than everyone else. I feel relieved that he won't be traveling with us because I know I wouldn't enjoy being around him; I hardly even like looking at the guy.
"Now, the moment you've all been waiting for," The host, from his enormous announcing stand, introduces dramatically as the lights dim on just him. I figure they do this so the next fighter can come into the stage unseen because if I squint really hard, I can spot a figure making their way onto the right side of the ring. "The Boulder versus your champion, the Blind Bandit!" The lights flash back on the contestants and we are met with a little girl now standing there, seeming around the age of twelve or thirteen, holding up what must be the championship belt with a smirk on her face. By the way the audience screams and cheers like maniacs, I conclude she must be very famous around here.
I study the girl. She is extremely short and her build seems very dainty and fragile in her green and tan cloths that almost appear a bit too big on her. Her hair is bunched up in the back and a nice headband keeps it all in place, yet her bangs still slightly fall in her eyes. Her eyes – the one thing that stands out on her the most. They are a ghostly gray and her pupils stay in one direction like they are not focused at all. Her eyes are the eyes of a blind persons; hence her stage name, the Blind Bandit. But, how is it possible for her to be such a talented bender that she can defeat all these big, strong men when she is blind? You have to see to be able to bend, don't you?
"She can't really be blind," Katara says disbelieving. "It's just part of her character, right?"
"I-I think she is," Aang opines, staring at the girl in fascination.
"I think she is... Going down!" Sokka shouts, his joke catching us all off guard.
I ignore him and face Aang and Katara. "She is blind; you can tell by her eyes," I tell them.
"Wow," Aang breaths out.
We all turn our attention back to the show when the Boulder's voice pops up. "The Boulder feels conflicted about fighting a young, blind girl," he expresses with unneeded hand motions and ridiculously speaking in third person.
"Sounds to me like you're scared, Boulder," the Blind Bandit shoots back, her voice matching her small appearance. Though, it holds mock and sarcasm along with some surprising maturity. No one would expect a girl like her would have that in her tone.
I smile when the Boulder frowns in aggravation. "The Boulder is over his conflicted feelings and is now ready to bury you in a rockalanche!" he threatens with clenched fists.
"Whenever you're ready, The Pebble." She throws her head back and laughs out loud, making me grin even wider. I already think very highly of this tiny girl.
"It's on!"
The Boulder lifts one of his legs up, ready to slam it onto the ground, but the Bandit gracefully slides her foot to the side before jabbing her other into the ground, creating a line of rocks that catches the foot that the Boulder was about to use and forces him into the splits. He cries out in pain and while he does, the Bandit bends three, long, rock-made cylinders out of the ground and they hit him straight on. He grunts loudly and is sent out the ring, colliding right into one of the walls surrounding it. She grins triumphantly and throws her fist into the air victoriously.
"Your winner, and still the champion, the Blind Bandit!" the host yells out to the crowd. This time, the audience is even more boisterous and Katara, Aang and I join in right away. Sokka, on the other hand, slumps down in disappointment that the Boulder lost.
"I like her," I state, smiling from ear to ear.
"How did she do that?" Katara wonders in awe.
Aang, who is smiling just like I am, maybe even more, replies, "She waited... and listened." Katara and I share glances and we know instantly what he's thinking. He believes she is the one; and, in all honestly, I do, too.
As the Blind Bandit grins hugely at the crowd, Shin Fu hops down off his post and holds up a bag of gold pieces. "To make things a little more interesting, I am offering up this sack of gold pieces to anyone who can defeat the Blind Bandit!" he announces. After the words slip from his lips, everyone in the room is deathly quiet and I am shocked to see Aang stand up without any explanation and jog off toward the stairs that lead up to the ring. "What? No one dares to face her?" the host questions in astonishment.
"Just wait," I grumble to myself.
"I will!" Aang calls out as he steps onto the right side of the ring, a friendly smile dancing across his face.
Shin Fu gapes at him incredulously, but just shrugs it off before jumping back up to his place on his stand. The crowd begins to cheer while Aang makes his way to stand only a few feet away from the Bandit. The Bandit herself just smirks.
"Go Aang! Avenge the Boulder!" Sokka hollers out and I slap my hand over his mouth, sending him a dry look.
"Could you not scream in my ear?" I say, withdrawing my hand away.
"Sorry..."
"Yeah, yeah." I roll my eyes and face the arena again.
"Do people really wanna see two little girls fighting out here?" the Bandit taunts.
Aang holds his hands up in front of him, obviously not affected by her words at all. "I don't really want to fight you; I want to talk to you," he tells her nicely.
"Boo! No talking!" Sokka, once again, bursts out.
"What did I say?" I snap, glaring at him. "And, don't boo him!"
He purses his lips for a short second before he grabs my hand and kisses each one of my knuckles affectionately. "I'm sorry," he says sincerely. "I'll shut up."
I can't help the adoring smile that spreads across my lips as he gazes at me with his big, blue orbs. "You're such a kiss up," I mumble teasingly. "But, you're lucky I can't stay mad at you." He smirks, clearly knowledgeable that both things I said are true.
We're whipped back into reality when a blatant blast of rumbling rocks steals are attention. I study the ring to see Aang dodging the Bandit's first attack by floating above ground and landing gracefully on his feet. As the crowed claps briefly, the Blind Bandit whirls around and narrows her eyes at Aang. "Somebody's a little light on his feet. What's your fighting name? The fancy dancer?" she hisses in irritation.
Aang responds with a sheepish shrug of his shoulders and a grin but it soon falls when she sends another boulder toward him. He flips over it and while she cautiously listens for his presence, he lands softly behind her. He begins to desperately beg for her to stop and speak to him, but she doesn't listen; instead, she beams at the fact that she found out where he is and shoots a couple large rocks his way. Unsure of what to do, Aang uses a gust of wind to fly both her and her shots off the ring. It's completely silent for a few moments, everyone frozen in surprise, before the crowd bursts into congratulatory cheers.
"Woo! Yes, Aang!" Sokka celebrates as he gets to his feet and excitedly speeds his way toward the stage to collect the winnings. Katara glances at me eerily but just shrugs, choosing to follow her brother. But, I stay there, worriedly watching as Aang rushes down to try and explain to the Blind Bandit. But, from the way his face falls sorrowfully, I know she left without listening.
"Oh gosh," I grumble to myself, shaking my head.
This is gonna be a long few days; I can already feel it.
xxxxxx
"Where are we gonna find her?" I ask Aang as we venture forward.
It's around the afternoon of the next day and Aang is determined to find the Blind Bandit. He, for the life of him, won't let it go because he is just so sure that this blind girl is his earth bending teacher. We've tried telling him that it's going to be impossible to find her, but he doesn't care; he's going to keep on looking and looking and won't stop until she is his master. I guess I shouldn't doubt him since he is the Avatar and he did have the vision of her in the swamp, but I just wish discovering her wouldn't be so difficult.
"Not sure," he says. "But, I'll think of a place to start so don't worry."
I sigh heavily. "If only this didn't involve so much walking..."
"Ya know, Kaiko, you're kinda lazy," Katara comments observantly.
"Kinda?" I snort, smirking. "I am very lazy; always have been since I was a child. The only time I am not is when I either am having fun or doing something important."
"This is important!" Aang counters.
"Good point."
We fell into a couple moments of nice, relaxing quietness until Sokka suddenly speaks up, "I have to admit, I'm really glad I bought this bag." He adjusts the belt Aang was awarded for defeating the Blind Bandit around his waist and pats the tote with a beaming grin. "It matches the belt perfectly."
"That is a big relief," Katara replies sarcastically and I bite back laughter.
"Guys, I got it!" Aang says when he spots the earth bending academy up ahead and points at it for us. "The academy is a great place to start our search."
When we enter, the two rude guys from the other day are drilling earth bending together. They notice us almost instantly and frown. "Oh great, you again," the gray, spiky haired one snarls at Katara.
All Katara does is threateningly step toward them, her expression hardened, and they flinch back in fear. "Yeah, I didn't think so," she retorts.
"Nicely done," Sokka says to his sister.
"Hey," the other pipes up, eying Aang in admiration. "You're the kid that beat The Blind Bandit!"
Aang nods and responds, "We need to talk to her. Do you guys know where she lives?"
"The Blind Bandit's a mystery; she shows up to fight, then disappears."
Aang's face falls and Katara clenches her fists in aggravation. "Let me handle this," she reassures to him before jabbing one of her fingers at the brunette one's chest accusingly. "You're not telling us everything!"
"N-No, I swear it's true!" the boy defends, his tone shaky. "No one knows where she goes, or who she really is."
That's when everything clicks."That's because we're asking about the wrong person," I realize and everyone gives me a quizzical look. "The Blind Bandit is obviously her stage name, so she probably just secretly fights but then lives her normal life as a completely different girl. Aang, what were her characteristics in your vision?"
"She wore a white dress and had a pet flying boar," he answers.
I turn to the boys. "Know anybody like that?"
"Well, a flying boar is the symbol of the Bei Fong family," the spiky haired one responds because the brunette is clearly too afraid of Katara to even make a peep. "They're the richest people in town, and maybe even the whole world."
Obviously not the whole world, dude, I think. Have you forgotten about the Fire Lord?
Surprisingly, the brunette one adds in, "Yeah, but they don't have a daughter."
"Flying boar is good enough for me! Let's check it out," Aang says energetically and rushes out the entrance as we trail behind.
"Yeah, you better leave," the guys faintly hiss after us and I grit my teeth in annoyance.
"Hey!" Katara calls, walking backwards so she makes direct eye contact with them. "I've got my eye on you." She exits after sending them one last dangerous glare.
"Water tribe," Sokka whispers to them for dramatic effect just before we leave.
"You know Katara's the only intimidating one to them, right?" I remind him, chortling lightly while Katara and Aang take the lead and we stroll behind them.
"Are you kidding? I'm always intimidating!" he counters.
I snort unattractively. "Yeah, okay, Sokka, whatever helps you sleep at night."
He's quiet and when I glance over at him, I see the mischief painted blatantly on his smug face. My eyes widen and I quicken my pace when I understand what he's planning to do. But, I am not fast enough, because in the next few seconds I feel his arms slip around my torso and lift me up in the air. I shriek girlishly when he slings me over his shoulder like I am a feathery rag doll. "Sokka!" I whine between my giggles. "How many times must you do this?"
"What? I enjoy picking you up."
"For no reason!"
"No, the reason is you insulting me," he says in a matter-of-fact tone.
I puff the bangs out of my face before muttering, "I'm sorry..."
"Apology accepted."
I wait for him to set me back down, but he never does and just keeps on walking casually. "Aren't you gonna put me down?" I question expectantly.
"No," he chuckles out. "Like I said, I enjoy picking you up."
"Sokka!"
"Oh, Sokka, just put her down!" I hear Aang shout out to us. I strain my neck to peek around Sokka to find that both him and Katara have quit moving and they are now staring at us pointedly with their arms crossed. "You guys are slowing us down and I want to get to the Bei Fong family as soon as possible!"
"Alright, alright," Sokka says disappointedly and gently puts me back down on my feet. "Just trying to have some fun, Aang."
He rolls his eyes and we continue on our way. "Sokka, I am always the one trying to have fun while you are the downer," he reminds him.
He begins to protest but I butt in, "He's right."
We all share laughs – minus Sokka – before settling into a comfortable silence as we anxiously get closer and closer to our destination.
xxxxxx
A couple servants set down multiple plates of all sorts of foods and beverages in front of us. Sokka, who is seated next to me, drools hungrily over the fancy meal. He is about to lunge for some noodles, but I grab his wrist and pull his arm back to his side before he is able to take anything. He gapes at me incredulously and I just give him a long, stern look, silently telling him to be polite. He takes the hint and pouts immaturely in his seat as I roll my eyes. I am suddenly very thankful that I learned formal table manors back at the fire nation.
When we finished wandering around and asking random citizens for directions, we finally discovered the enormous residence of the Bei Fong's; everything about the wonderful palace screams high prestige and prosperity. After passing over the medium sized walls that surrounds everything and searching around for a bit, the Blind Bandit, who I learned is named Toph, caught us sneaking around the grounds of the palace. She was dressed the complete opposite from the way she was for the tournament; she looked even more fragile than before in her nice, swaying, earth kingdom dress. Even though I was happy we found her, I was still confused as to why the two boys said the Bei Fong's don't have a daughter when they so obviously do.
We tried to convince her to teach Aang, but she declined immediately and was able to get us away but threatening to call the guards. Aang thought up a plan to pay the royal family a visit as the Avatar, knowing they wouldn't decline an encounter with him. This way, he has a way into the palace and more time to try and talk to Toph.
So, here we are now, settled in large chairs that are placed around an abundant table that almost has too much space to fill up with the essentials for a meal and the nonessentials. Many different kinds of foods and drinks are scattered neatly around for us choose from and Sokka isn't the only one out of us four that has to hold ourselves back from chowing down. I do, too because I haven't had a dinner like since I was living back at home. And, boy, did I miss having so many choices of great foods.
While the four of us are seated on the left side of the table, the father of Toph, Lao Bei Fong, is placed at the front end and the mother, Poppy Bei Fong, is next to Toph and Master Yu on the right side. Apparently, Master Yu is very close to this family.
Finally, after most of the servants are done scurrying around us, Lao begins to eat, signaling that we are allowed to start helping ourselves, too. Almost instantly, Sokka snatches a bowl of noodles and drowns himself in the steaming food. I would of done the same, but I let my mannerly instincts kick in as I pluck little bread cakes and dumplings onto my plate along with a side of vegetable soup and a cup of tea. Aang and Katara study my actions of doing this so neatly and copy me.
"Blow on it," I hear Lao order and I look up from my food to see the last servant setting a tiny bowl of broth soup in front of Toph. "It's too hot for her."
"Allow me," Aang says kindly before sending a controlled, little tornado at the bowl that cools it down immediately. Everyone but us four and Toph awe over his little trick.
"Avatar Aang, It's an honor to have you visit us," Poppy addresses.
Aang just smiles at her but quits when Lao speaks to him, "In your opinion, how much longer do you think the war will last?"
"Well, I'd like to defeat the Fire Lord by the end of summer, but I can't do that without finding an earth bending teacher first," he replies while secretly giving Toph a smug look. I hold back a chuckle but shoving a dumpling in my mouth.
"Well, Master Yu is the finest teacher in the land," Lao says and motions to him with a handkerchief. "He's been teaching Toph since she was little."
"Then she must be a great earth bender! Probably good enough to teach someone else - ow!"
Everyone shoots Aang a weird glance when he jumps in his seat abruptly. He doesn't acknowledge anyone else besides Toph as he glares at her and straightens back up. My eyes float over to Toph confusingly, but she is just innocently taking bites of her rice like nothing happened. I dismiss it like everyone else and continue to eat my dinner and listen to the conversation.
"Toph is still learning the basics," Master Yu informs Aang in a matter-of-fact tone.
"Yes," Lao sighs out. "And, sadly, because of her blindness, I don't think she'll ever become a true master."
I cock my eyebrows at his words and Aang, Katara, Sokka and I all share similar quizzical looks with each other. Never become a true master? Toph is probably one of the best earth benders I have ever seen...What he is he talking about? Does he not know of his daughters highly skilled ability? Apparently not.
"Oh, I'm sure she's better than you think she is-" Aang begins but he stops when he randomly face plants into his bowl of chowder. Again, we all stare at him in unknowing as to why he is having these strange outbursts.
He picks his head up and out of the bowl and wipes some of the food off with an annoyed expression. His glare on Toph suddenly twists into mischief before he throws his head back and lets out a large sneeze, causing the plates of Toph, Master Yu, and Poppy to fly into their faces.
Toph angrily gets to her feet and shouts at Aang, "What's your problem?"
"What's your problem?" he shoots back, standing, too.
Lao just sits there with a troubled expression, Sokka, Katara, and I gap at the two in shock, and Master Yu and Poppy try their best to clean themselves up. "Well, shall we move to the living room for desert, then?" Poppy suggests lightly, still keeping a gentle smile on her face as she removes a pastry from her hair.
Once again, I have to contain my laughter.
xxxxxx
"What was with you and Toph at dinner?" Katara asks as she comes out of the restroom, her hair down and damp from a shower while it lays messily against her shoulders. She's dressed in her cloths again and she slouches down on her desired bed in our temporary room the Bei Fong's let us have for the night.
Aang, who is leaning against the window sill, just shrugs. "Every time I went to say something about her being a great bender, she thrust my chair in different directions to make me stop. Eventually, I wanted to get her back so I did that unnecessary sneeze..." he explains shamefully.
"Her parents obviously don't know about how amazing she is at her bending," Sokka says from where he is seated on my bed with me.
"Wait." They all look to me when I speak. "So, she made you fall face first into your food?" I question Aang, a smile slowly creeping its way onto my lips.
"Yes..." he admits, frowning.
I start laughing. "I told you guys I liked this girl," I state giggly. "She's awesome."
"Thanks."
Aang gasps and whirls around in a ridiculous fighting stance to face Toph, who is now leaning against the door frame with her arms crossed. She sends me a smirk before looking at Aang seriously. "Relax," she tells him and he reluctantly eases out of his tense form. "Look, I'm sorry about dinner. Let's call it truths, okay?"
He purses his lips and nods. "Alright. You, uh, wanna talk outside?" he suggests.
"Sure."
They leave without goodbyes and I become very curious. "I want to know what they are talking about..." I complain.
"Probably just stuff about him wanting her as a teacher," Sokka replies and lays down on the bed. "Nothing special."
"Yeah," Katara agrees and follows Sokka's actions. "We should get to bed, guys, it's been a long day." She reaches over and shuts off the light before curling up in her blankets with a yawn.
I sigh and sprawl out with Sokka, my arms circling around his torso as I lay my head against his chest comfortingly. He rests his arm on me and his fingers subconsciously caress my side, lulling me to a peaceful sleep as my eyes slip closed.
But, we're not asleep for long, because the next thing I know a frantic Poppy is running into our room with tears streaming down her cheeks. "Wake up! Please, all of you, wake up!" she begs desperately. The lights are on and we're all jumping to our feet in a minute, spurring out questions.
"What's happening?" Katara asks, rushing to her side to try and calm her.
"Is someone raiding the palace?" Sokka quizzes as he reaches for his machete.
"Are you hurt?" I worry.
"No, no!" she cries, shaking her head back and forth. "Toph, s-she's gone! Someone took her and the Avatar while they were out back!"
Katara and I gasp while Sokka's eyes widen and all of us are too stunned to reply right away; but, we know we have to soon by the despairing look in Poppy's eyes. Her daughter, who she spends her life worrying over and caring for, has just gotten kidnapped. Out of anyone, she needs the most support and comfort right now. We're allowed to be concerned about Aang, but he's the Avatar and Toph, in her eyes, is just a little, defenseless girl who can get hurt by just the tiniest of things.
"Who took them, Poppy?" Katara questions with a soft tone.
"W-we don't know! Just, please, come with me out to where they were. My husband and Yu are out there already," she pleads, sniffling and wiping the tears off her cheeks.
We nod unhesitatingly and she hurriedly leads us down the long hall, through two doors, and into the dimness of the night. We join Master Yu and Lao where they are standing anxiously next to two fairly large - but not too deep - square holes in the ground. We don't exchange greetings with them and decide to get down to business.
"Whoever took Aang and Toph left this," Sokka observes as he rips a knife from the ground with a note punctured into it. He hands the paper to me and I unfold it quickly.
"If you want to see your daughter again, bring five hundred gold pieces to the arena," I read, frowning. "It's signed Shin Fu and the Boulder."
Sokka, who is skimming it over my shoulder, mutters, "I can't believe it." He suddenly snatches the piece of parchment from me and clutches it to himself with an excited grin. "I have the Boulder's autograph!"
Katara and I glower at him before we switch our attention to Lao. "Master Yu, I need you to help me get my daughter back," he tells him sternly.
"We're going with you," Katara states and I nod along with her words.
"Poor Toph," Poppy grieves, covering her face with her hands. "She must be so scared."
I sigh, go over to her, and rest a comforting hand on her shoulder. "It'll be okay, Poppy. We'll make sure to bring her home safely," I assure.
Her eyes wander across my face, most likely searching for any doubt on me, but she doesn't find any and smiles gratefully. "Thank you," she whispers, gives my hand a short pat, before stalking back into the palace while dabbing away her escaped tears.
xxxxxx
It didn't take us long to arrive at the arena. Lao has fast, loyal transportation and it only took about thirty minutes to an hour to show up. Master Yu and him practically run their way into the destination and we are quick on their trails. We are guided into the huge, lit room that we were in just one day ago. On the stage are Shin Fu and the Boulder, looking up at two metal contraptions that hang from the ceiling by chain. My lips press into a fine line when I spot Aang and Toph peeking through the small, opened space in the contraption that is covered with bars.
As we make out way onto the ring, I hear Toph shout out threateningly to her capturers, "You think you're so tough! Why don't you come up here so I can smack that grin off your face?"
"I'm not smiling," Shin Fu replies back, unamused.
"Toph!" Lao calls out when we are all standing on the other side of the ring. The Boulder and Shin Fu turn around and grin maliciously.
"Here's your money," Sokka growls out, dropping the bag of gold pieces to the ground. "Now, let them go."
Master Yu kicks his foot forward which sends the bag sliding toward them. Shin Fu picks the sack up, rummages through it shortly, before motioning to something above the arena that lowers Toph's confinement down and releases her to the floor. She jogs to her fathers side and they begin to leave with Master Yu.
"What about Aang?" Katara asks Shin Fu expectantly.
Shin Fu, smirking, pulls out a scroll and shows it to us. My eyes widen when I see that it's a wanted poster of Aang. "I think the fire nation will pay a hefty price for the Avatar. Now, get out of my ring," he orders, his voice dangerously threatening.
We don't even start to leave though; instead, we get into our fighting stances, ready to face both of them. But, we stagger backwards when each one of the earth bending contestants from the tournament make themselves known by hoping onto the ring, all prepared and willing to defeat us. We glance around at them nervously, knowing that just us three won't even stand a chance at winning against all seven of them.
"Go," Aang tells us seriously from where he still hangs. "I'll be okay."
Reluctantly, we exit the stage, but we don't leave the arena. I motion them to follow me and I lead them to where Toph, Lao, and Master Yu are continuing on their way outside. I begin to call out desperately, my mind focused on freeing Aang, "Toph, there is too many of them; we need you!"
Lao gives us a disgusted and angry glare. "My daughter is blind. She is blind, and tiny, and helpless, and fragile! She cannot help you," he hisses while gripping Toph's hand protectively.
"Yes, I can," Toph says surely, ripping her hand free, and making her way over to us. I cast my eyes away from her father so I don't have to see his concerning gaze on Toph.
"Thank you," I whisper to her.
She doesn't respond, but instead she rushes back onto the ring unhesitatingly. We follow her and stand on her flanks as we study what's on the opposite side of the ring – all of the earth benders dismissing themselves from the stage and the biggest one, who I recall as the Hippo, is carrying Aang's contraption with him. Toph creates a large, pointed rock from the ground in front of them so they are blocked off.
"Let him go!" she shouts. "I've beat you all before and I'll do it again!"
"The Boulder takes issue with that comment," the Boulder replies, narrowing his eyes.
The Hippo chucks Aang to the side effortlessly and when I hear Aang's pained grunts from being wobbled around in his metal prison, I get angrier. As the opponents start to race for us, Sokka, Katara, and I start to go after them, too, but Toph stretches her arms out so we don't go any further.
"Wait," she tells us. "They're mine."
I stare at her in disbelief. She's going to take all of them? Alone? Can she really defeat them all by herself, even with how skilled she is? But, none of us protest because by the look on her face, we figure she won't allow us to help no matter how much we insist.
The next thing I know, she is raising her arms in the air slowly before she stomps both her feet down, causing the ground under the seven earth benders to shoot up and make them fly backwards. A huge, cloud of dust is left from her powerful attack and it makes what's happening inside of it invisible to the everyone around it. Toph stalks into the dust and soon we are unable to see her, too.
After exchanging surprised glances, we scurry over to Aang's confinement. "Get me out of here!" Aang shouts to us franticly.
We drop to our knees and while Katara and I pull at the hinges, Sokka uses a stray rock to bang it up against the main bolts. We continue to this for a while, and every now and then I see one of the earth benders soaring out of the dust cloud and slamming into a wall; but, Toph is never one of them.
"Hit it harder!" Aang orders to Sokka, getting anxious by every passing minute.
"I'm trying!" Sokka responds frustratingly.
Finally, Sokka hits the bolts with just enough force and Katara and I pull hard enough, that we break the contraption open. Almost instantly, Aang crawls out of the prison and stands defensive, about ready to go on with a fight, but we shake our heads at him. We point to where the Hippo and the Boulder are skidding out of the dust cloud as Toph follows close behind, obviously unscratched. They all get into stances and from the cloud comes yet another guy, yelling out a battle call, as he swings toward her on a vine that hangs from the ceiling. She quickly bends the piece of circular ground under her so when the guy reaches them, he crashes into the Boulder and Hippo instead of her. They lay crumbled in a pile and with just a few motions of Toph's hands, she sends them off the ring and into a wall.
"Oh my gosh," I mumble to myself.
Toph moves her arms down and the cloud of dust disappears, showing Toph's last competitor, Shin Fu. He cracks his neck two times before sliding into a professional and intimidating stance. But, Toph just hacks a wad of spit to the side and grins challengingly at him. They begin to circle each other slowly until Shin Fu suddenly kicks multiple boulders and rocks toward her. She creates two walls that block each attack and once the shots are done, she rockets one of the walls at him. He flips in the air to dodge it before digging his fingers into the ground and throwing one more forceful rock her way. She simply turns to the side so it just misses her and right when it passes her, she catches it and chucks it back toward him. His eyes widen and it hits him straight on, making him crash out of the ring.
She did it! I think happily to myself. She actually beat every single one of them!
We all jog over to her and start spilling out contradictories and compliments on how awesome she did. She just smiles up at us; probably one of the first genuine smiles I've seen spread across her lips.
xxxxxx
"Dad, I know it's probably hard for you to see me this way, but the obedient, little, helpless, blind girl that you think I am just isn't me," Toph admits to her mother and father who are seated in front of her. We're resting behind her on a bench, listening intently to the meaningful speech to her parents. "I love fighting; I love being an earth bender and I'm really, really good at it. I know I kept my life secret from you, but you were keeping me secret from the whole world. You were doing it to protect me, I get that, but I am twelve years old and I've never had a real friend. So, now that you see how I really am, I hope it doesn't change that way you feel about me."
"Of course it doesn't change that way I feel about you, Toph," Lao assures gently and I let out a silent breath of relief. I was afraid her parents would be furious with her. "Though, it's made me realize something.."
"It has?" she questions hopefully.
"Yes. I've let you have far too much freedom! From now are you will be cared for and guarded twenty-four hours a day."
"But, Dad!"
"We are doing this for your own good, Toph," Poppy says.
All the respect I held for Lao and Poppy has vanished. After seeing how great Toph is at her bending and learning how she truly feels, all they are doing is constricting her even more? That doesn't make any sense! What they are doing is so far past over-protectiveness that it's almost neglecting now. A twelve year old girl can not be kept in a household her entire life; it isn't healthy. By doing this, they aren't helping her... They're hurting her.
Lao stands, ordering two servants in. "Please escort the Avatar and his friends out," he tells them. "They are no longer welcome here."
We get to our feet hesitantly and one servant guides us forward as the other trails behind us so we don't try and escape another way. "I'm sorry, Toph," Aang says sadly, glancing over his shoulder at her.
"I'm sorry, too," she replies and when I study her I spot a few tears roll down her cheeks. "Goodbye, Aang."
It takes all my will power to not go over and run away with her so she never has to be stuck here again. The servants lead us outside both the palace and the grounds and lock the gate behind us. We don't move for a few moments, not wanting to leave her behind, but we eventually begin to make our back to Appa.
Once we reach the hill we left Appa and Momo on, Sokka climbs onto the saddle and begins packing our things up. I decide to assist him as Aang stares sorrowfully out at the distance where the Bei Fong residence is still visible. Katara starts murmuring comforting things to him that I am unable to hear, along with his response.
Sokka leans back against saddle when we are finished gathering out things together, whips out a cloth, and happily starts to polish his belt. I roll my eyes and smile slightly, crawling over to position myself next to him. "Don't want that to get too dirty, now do we?" I remark.
He flashes me a grin. "Course not," he replies.
After helping Katara up, Aang flies himself on Appa's head and takes the reins in his grip. Suddenly, right before we're about to soar off, little pants of heavy breathing fill the silence around us. We all glance back to find Toph hurrying toward us, a blatant smile playing on her lips.
"Toph!" Aang cries. "What are you doing here?"
"My dad changed his mind," she tells us joyfully. "He said I was free to travel the world."
I beam down at her, all my sadness washing away into delight. "Well, we better get out of here, before your dad changes his mind again," I say, only half joking.
"Good idea."
"You're gonna be a great teacher, Toph," Aang tells her.
Her face lights up with an idea. "Speaking of which, I wanna show you something," she states, smirking.
"Okay!" He hops down off Appa and right when he lands, she kicks the ground so a rock shoots up and has him flying into the tree above with a yell. He dangles from the tree, his leg hooked around one of the branches.
"Now, we're even," Toph laughs out, referring to when he knocked her out of the ring, and holds one of her hands up at Sokka. "Um, I'll take the belt back."
He frowns, but unhooks the belt anyway and throws it down at her. He misses and it collides into the top of her head instead, causing her to tumble the ground.
"Sorry..." Sokka apologizes sheepishly just as Aang falls out of the three with a thud.
Katara and I look at each other knowingly before bursting out into laughter at both Aang and Toph. But, we purse our lips together and stop when Toph threatens to do the same thing to us if we go on with our giggling fit.
She was defiantly going to be a great addition to our group.