It has been three days since Aang and his friends escaped Easter Bunny Land and left it in total chaos. Children traumatized by Aang's and Toph's actions, buildings burning out of control, a naked prince chased by wild and crazy teenage girls. That was an experience the Avatar will never forget.
And what made it so special for the Avatar? Toph was by his side the whole time. They shared each other's pain, beat down a fake icon with brute force, and fought together to protect one another from the wrath of Zuko.
That whole time Toph wore a grin. That cute grin Aang couldn't shake off from his mind.
But right now, Aang needed to put such memories aside and focus on his bending. That's what he told himself as he prepared to go all out in his training near a beautiful lake and the mountains. Most of the time, Aang trained with Katara and Toph to master the elements of water and earth, but now it was time for Aang to train alone. In order to defeat Fire Lord Ozai, Aang must learn to use all of the elements, changing from one bending to the next with smooth precision and not leave any openings for the Fire Lord to attack.
For hours, the Avatar concentrated on perfecting the elements of water, earth, even air. Aang felt his muscles burning from every elemental attack and defense taught by Pakku, Katara, Toph and Monk Gyatso. He breathed heavily, but he remained relentless on his training.
You really think I'm… cute?
Aang tried to shake off the past and focused on his merciless training, toughening the body and mind. Not wanting to stop, he trained himself on combining two elements at a time, such as earth and water or water and air.
You're one badass wrecking machine. I'm so proud of you…
Toph's words nearly caused Aang to falter, but he regained his posture and quickly changed his technique from earth-bending to air-bending. His air-bending skills are unmatched as the trees bent back from Aang's powerful air strikes.
… I'm so proud of you…
Out of frustration, Aang slammed his hands into the ground and let out a titanic air-blast combined with earth-bending, sending tons and tons of earth flying into the air and dispersing. Aang fell to his knees to catch his breath.
"… Why? Why can't I get her out of my head?" Aang asked himself. In a way, Aang felt guilty for thinking about Toph in such a way. Ever since he was free from an iceberg, Aang couldn't take his eyes away from Katara. She was one of the kindest people he ever met, one of the most beautiful.
Then Toph came along. At first, Aang and Toph had a rocky relationship as student and teacher. But as time went by, their relationship grew into a steady friendship. But there was more to Toph than just being a tough earth-bending master. Aang began to notice Toph's beauty, outside and inside. The smaller the space between Aang and Toph, the harder Aang's heart pounded.
Aang looked down in disappointment and wrapped his arms around his legs, feeling that having such feelings for Toph would dishonor his growing relationship with Katara.
"Oh, man. What am I going to do? I really like Katara, but now I'm feeling funny around Toph? Maybe the best way to solve this is to talk to each girl at a time and figure this out. Man, it's not going to be easy, but there's no other way.
"I'm gonna do it. I'm gonna tell Katara how I feel about her once and for all!" Summong as much courage as he could, Aang headed off to the camp.
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"You want to take Aang WHERE?"
"You heard me loud and clear, Katara. I'm gonna take him to a gentlemen's club when we get to the city of Zhang. That city has the best clubs for men in all of Earth Kingdom. The zennies Aang won will be very handy!"
"Sokka, that is so LOW! What made you even think of something so immoral?"
"Come on, Katara. Checking out a hot geisha is a big step to manhood! Aang is gonna be really happy when I take him to one."
"Oh NO you don't! Aang is too young to go to such a dirty place! And YOU'RE not going to one, either!"
"WHAT? I'm old enough to go!"
Aang finally made it to the campsite. Aang couldn't clearly hear out what Katara and Sokka were discussing about, but the words were beginning to get clearer.
"Aang is only a CHILD!"
That sentence Aang heard crystal-clear. The words from Katara cut deep into Aang's heart as he stopped at his tracks. The Avatar looked away from Katara.
"… So I'm just a child, huh?"
Katara gasped in shock and turned 180, realizing what Aang heard.
"Aang. I'm… I'm so sorry. I didn't mean it like that. We were talking about-"
"I need to resume my training. I'll be back in an hour." Aang stormed off and headed back to his training site. Katara looked away and bit her lip, feeling guilty for saying such a comment about Aang. Katara felt tempted to go after Aang, but she refrained from doing so as she felt he needed some space for now.
"Uh… I'll check on the tents." Feeling partially responsible, Sokka walked off and tried to brush off the guilt. Toph returned to the camp-site after some fishing, carrying five huge hippo-fish.
"Yeah! I hit the jackpot! Five healthy, tasty fish for dinner tonight! Now we can-" Toph noticed bad vibes in the camp. Katara was too still, and Aang's footsteps were really pounding into the earth.
"… Katara. You said something to upset Aang. What did you tell him? I DEMAND you tell me what you said to make him so angry!" Toph stated. Growling to herself and growing irritated by her "interference", Katara summoned water from a nearby lake and slammed her with an enormous wave. Toph coughed some water out of her mouth as Katara towered over the downed earth-bender.
"It's not nice to butt into people's business. Stay out of it. And keep your distance from Aang." Feeling her anger rise to new heights, Katara marched to her tent, leaving the drenched Toph in the ground. Sokka immediately helped Toph up and tried his best to dry her up.
"You okay, kiddo?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. What is wrong with your sister?"
"Call it a hunch, but I think she's jealous of you."
"She's what?"
"I'm telling you, Toph. Ever since you and Aang hang around with each other, Katara's getting more and more ticked off about it. Maybe you should really give some space between yourself and Aang. That way, things can cool down a little. I don't want either of you to fight and end up getting hurt, okay?"
"Thanks for you concern, Sokka. However, there's no way I'm gonna listen to ICE QUEEN over there. I care about Aang more than you think!
"Sokka, I'm gonna find him. He's hurt, and I need to cheer him up. We'll be back soon, okay?"
"Okay, Toph. Just be careful out there."
"I will. Thanks."
As Sokka entered his tent, Toph faced the location of Katara's tent and raised her hand, preparing to crush Katara with her earth-bending. Seconds later, Toph settled down her inner fury and regained her composure.
"That, Katara… was Strike TWO…"
Toph brushed off Katara's erratic behavior and took a little something Aang holds dearly. With that very item in her hand, Toph headed off to Aang's training site.
888
"She thinks I'm a child. I felt so much for her, and she thinks I'm some CHILD?" Aang angrily threw another flat rock into the lake and had it skip on the surface. A moment ago, Aang was about to tell how he felt about her. Now he regrets ever having feelings for her at all. Tired of throwing small rocks, Aang summoned a 10-ton disc made of rock and threw it like a Frisbee at a mountain. The mountain trembled from Aang's throw, letting the disc sink halfway inside the mountain.
Feeling even angrier, Aang caused an enormous tidal wave. Aang waved his hands with more fury, causing the lake to turn from serene to chaotic. After a series of menacing waves, Aang collapsed from all the bending he used to let out his rage.
A giggle echoed from behind him. Aang got up and turned around seeing Toph sitting on a rock.
"Hey there, Twinkle Toes."
"Toph, I'm not in the mood right now."
"Oh really. I see you're back to being a pushover like before."
"… That wasn't funny, Toph. Just give me some space, okay?"
"Well, okay. I'll just take this 'nutcracker' with me. I guess it'll make good firewood."
Aang gasped when he knew what 'nutcracker' Toph was talking about. Toph whipped out Aang's air-bending staff and twirled it in the air. Toph was pushing him again! Just like before. Fuming with anger, Aang marched towards the earth-bending master.
"I want my staff back. Hand it over. Now."
"No."
"Toph, I'm in no mood for games! I said HAND IT OVER!"
"Nope. Not gonna happen."
"You're SO GONNA GET IT!" Aang sprinted right for Toph. Hearing his footsteps turn from a march into a sprint, Toph leapt off her rock and ran away from Aang. Toph smiled and giggled as she heard her pursuer running right after her.
"GIVE IT BACK!"
"You want it? Come and get it, Twinkle Toes!" The masters of air-bending and earth-bending ran through the dense forest, seeing who will win: the pursued or the pursuer. Toph summoned columns of stone to block the Avatar's way, but Aang summoned his air-scooter to evade the rock-columns and resume chasing Toph on foot.
"Not bad, Twinkle Toes. But you're not gonna get me!"
Aang started feeling the rage simmer down from within. The frown on his face slowly disappeared and was replaced with a carefree smile. Feeling his heart beating with joy, Aang sprinted even faster, wanting more than just his staff.
"Come on, Toph! Give it back!" Aang said, laughing to himself.
"You gotta catch me first!" Toph said, giggling. Aang really liked that giggle, that very giggle Toph made when he saw her image back at the Swamp.
Aang grabbed Toph by the waist, causing her to screech while still wearing a smile. The bending masters stumbled onto each other and rolled into the ground. As they stopped rolling, they realized they were in a field of beautiful white lotus flowers. Aang and Toph lied next to each other and laughed. The two benders rolled on their sides, facing one another.
"Aang. Don't you wish this would last forever?" Aang blushed as he looked into her eyes.
"… You're so beautiful…" Toph gasped from Aang's comment and felt her face blush. Then she wore a grin.
"Well, I wish I could say the same about you, but I can't see. However…" Toph lied even closer to Aang, close enough to feel his breath brush into her face. Toph gently traced her hands onto Aang's face, feeling every inch of it. Realizing what Aang looked like, she wrapped one arm around Aang's waist and felt her body touch his. Feeling his heart pounding like crazy, Aang gently wrapped his arms around her body as well. Toph leaned closer to Aang's face, her lips an inch away from his. Toph's heart began to pound harder, yearning for this very moment.
"… Aang. You're more than beautiful. You're… perfect…" Toph pressed her lips into Aang's, enjoying the taste of his lips. Feeling his entire body draining from Toph's kiss, Aang closed his eyes and wrapped his arms around Toph's body even more. The Avatar relished the taste of Toph's lips, feeling it was sweeter than honey. Toph's scent drove Aang to kiss her with more passion and energy, running his hand around Toph's back. Feeling his chiseled pecs pressing into her developing breasts, Toph opened her mouth and consumed Aang's kiss even more, gently rubbing her legs into his.
The wind gently blew by the two lovers and let the white lotus flowers bend to its path. The sun broke through the clouds and shined a ray of light over the field of white lotus flowers, shining warmly over Aang and Toph. Feeling the warm sun, the gentle wind and all the flowers around them, Aang and Toph wished that it was a moment that would last for eternity.
Neither of them realized that over a dozen pair of red eyes glowed within the dense forest, every pair glaring right at the Avatar with sheer malice.
