Sorry for the late update, but I just got back from vacation on Saturday. I barely got fifteen minutes of Internet time the whole week I was gone. It was totally worth it though!


Zuko was lying in his bed as he tried to figure out whether he should go to Toph's room or not; her poor temper after the glass incident didn't bode well for her mood during a frenetic festival of vivid colors, ear-splitting noise, and intermixed smells. The sound of small pebbles hitting the windows of his room interrupted his internal deliberation, and he flung the sheets off his body. He was promptly hit in the face by several more pebbles when he pushed open the windows, causing them to swing outward from their hinges.

"Ouch!" cried Zuko.

"Sorry!" called Toph from the ground.

"What are you doing here?" questioned Zuko. "You were supposed to wait for me."

"I got restless," responded Toph. "Now get down here before someone passes by and sees us."

"You do realize that I'm in the second story, right?"

"All I heard was 'Blah blah, I'm afraid of heights, blah blah.'"

Following Toph's silent command, the earth built a staircase that traveled from Zuko's windowsill to the ground in front of her. His eyes narrowed suspiciously, expecting the earth to swallow him whole as soon as he stepped out of the safety of his room.

Guessing his thoughts, Toph echoed his words from earlier that day and asked, "Do you trust me?"

Zuko huffed and briefly went back into his room to retrieve something; he then jumped onto the first step of the staircase and carefully stepped down to greet a self-satisfied Toph.

"Thanks," said Zuko. "Now put this on."

Toph frowned as Zuko handed her a mask that would cover the upper half of her face. "What's this for?"

"It's a masquerade festival," informed Zuko. "All the better for us, since no one will be able to recognize us. Now let's get going!"


Zuko and Toph were at the border between the serenity of the night and the disorder of the festival, watching (or sensing) the crowds laugh, dance, and sing in their merriment. Toph's toes curled in excitement, since she couldn't remember the last time she had been to a festival, especially not one as rambunctious as this one. Before she could charge in, however, Zuko's fingers brushed against her own and she turned toward him with a questioning expression.

"I know that you can get around in that chaos just fine," stated Zuko before Toph could begin venting her irritation. "This is for my sake. I don't want to lose you in the crowd."

Toph pressed her chapped lips together and nodded, allowing Zuko to clasp her hand. As they ambled into the festivities, their hands slowly shifted and their fingers entwined into a comfortable knot. Soon enough they were hardly aware of their connected hands and were enchanted by their cheerful surroundings. While the smell of freshly cooked meat wafted through the air, Toph's stomach grumbled hungrily and she hoped that Zuko had brought money. Thankfully he had, as indicated when he dropped a few coins into a vendor's hand to obtain a set of dumplings for him and Toph to share. She happily wolfed down the dumplings, and Zuko had to fight her to get his fair share.

After they finished eating, the duo joined the group of dancing men and women at the center of the city square. They swayed to the beat of the Tsungi horn and other musical instruments that blended into a symphony of euphoria. Zuko could faintly detect Toph singing along with the background music, and thought that her voice sounded rather pleasant. Sweat was glistening on her forehead when they finally withdrew from the mass of dancers, but Toph didn't seem to mind her breathlessness. Still hand-in-hand, Zuko and Toph strolled through the streets, which had begun to thin out some as the minutes ticked and ticked after the stroke of midnight.

A vendor who was selling tiger lilies called to Zuko, "Sir! Would your wife care for a tiger lily?"

Zuko turned to the innocently smiling vendor and stammered, "U-uh, well she's not actually my… You know what? Sure."

Toph blinked at hearing Zuko's response, but the strongly sweet smell of the bright orange flowers diverted her attention when Zuko placed them right under her nose.

"Mm…" mumbled Toph blissfully as she inhaled the flowers' scent.

A crooked smile took possession of Zuko's face, and he turned to buy a couple of intricately decorated paper lanterns. He and Toph walked out of the mania of the festival at last, with Toph still sniffing the flowers and Zuko still clutching onto the lanterns.

"What are the lanterns for?" inquired Toph at last.

Zuko let go of Toph's hand and lit a small flame within both of the lanterns. "Once you let go, they'll fly off into the sky. They are meant to symbolize freedom, something the world ached for for a long time."

"Freedom." The word rolled so beautifully off of Toph's tongue.

Toph took a delicate hold of the lantern and held it aloft, almost wishing that she could see as well as feel the light burning inside.

"On the count of three," whispered Zuko. "One… two… three!"

Toph let go of the lantern, and she supposed that it soon soared into the night sky, which glittered with stars overhead. She leaned against Zuko, who was watching the two lanterns become mere dots of light as they drifted farther and farther away. When he looked down at Toph, his breath was taken away.

She wasn't the dirty little kid he had first met all those years ago, he realized; she had long since become a beautiful young woman, with ebony curls rolling down her back and with marvelously sculptured facial features. Her alluring mouth curved into a smile that Zuko had come to love seeing in contrast to her typical scowl or sarcastic smirk.

Her smile flickered a little when she asked, "Why are you staring at me?"

"I don't know if I've ever told you this, but I like it when your hair is down," complimented Zuko, implying the answer to her question.

The dim light prevented Zuko from discerning if an actual blush flushed her cheeks pink or if he was just hallucinating. All he was sure of was that it had been a long time since he felt the tightness of his stomach and the unbearable urge to grin like he felt now. He could have stood there forever observing the slope of her nose or the curve of her jawline or the plumpness of her mouth, but she didn't let him.

"We'd better get home," mumbled Toph, hugging her tiger lilies to herself and walking ahead of Zuko.

"Okay," muttered Zuko as he followed Toph into the blanket of night, away from the blinding light of the festival; it wasn't until he told her her goodnight that he replayed Toph's statement in his mind, focusing on the simple but enlightening fact that she had referred to the palace as "home." The thought warmed him down to his toes.


In the morning after the festival, Iroh was sitting peacefully at the mahogany table in his room and holding a cup of steaming tea in his wrinkled hands. Unannounced, Zuko entered his uncle's room and flopped down on his king-sized bed, which had already been made. Iroh knew that his nephew wanted to talk about something, but he was patient enough to let the silence drag it out of Zuko.

"I think I'm falling in love with Toph," announced Zuko simply.

Iroh sputtered his tea all over the table, and he cried out woefully. "Honestly, Zuko! This is the second time during my stay that you've made me do this. What do you have against a decent cup of tea?"

"Uncle, didn't you hear what I just said?" asked Zuko, amazed that all Iroh was caring about was a dumb cup of morning tea.

"Oh I am well aware of your feelings for Toph," brushed off Iroh. "I was just surprised that you figured it out so soon on your own."

Zuko sat up abruptly and indignantly glared at Iroh. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"I'm sorry, that came out wrong," apologized Iroh. "It's just that you rarely seem to be on speaking terms with your emotions. When did you realize?"

"Last night at the festival," answered Zuko.

"So when are you going to tell her?"

"Wh-what? I can't just tell her!"

"Why not?"

"Uncle, she's pregnant with someone else's baby."

"That didn't stop you from falling in love with her in the first place."

"Argh, I know! But it's too complicated to start a relationship with her, especially since her husband just died seven months ago."

"You told me that she wasn't in love with him."

Zuko wanted to rip his hair out from aggravation. "I stood up all night just thinking about her, but whenever I close my eyes I only see Zhao's face."

"Zhao has nothing to do with your relationship with Toph. Just tell her how you feel!"


Akashi knew something was up when she went into Toph's room to find Toph already wide awake, fully dressed, and humming dreamily to herself. Usually when she came in, Toph was still snoring loudly into her pillow despite it almost being midday. The bed - oh goodness! - had already been made without a fault to it and Toph was languidly combing her shimmering black hair.

Akashi crossed her thin arms and questioned accusingly, "Okay, what's going on?"

"What do you mean?" asked Toph with a mixture of innocence and dreaminess.

"Your room is in perfect condition and you're brushing your hair," emphasized Akashi. "That never happens!"

"Can't a girl be ready for the day just for the heck of it?"

"Not if her name is Toph Bei Fong, she can't. What happened last night?"

"I didn't do anything!" snapped Toph defensively.

"You went to the festival didn't you?" guessed Akashi knowingly.

"Ugh, okay you caught me. It was a great time."

Toph shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly and continued to run the comb through her silky hair.

"You don't have to put my hair in a bun today," notified Toph. "I'm going to wear it down."

Still glaring suspiciously at Toph, Akashi tapped her foot on the ground. "Your good mood is about more than just the festival isn't it? This is about a boy."

Toph snorted obnoxiously. "Psh, why would you say that?"

"Because I've seen girls in love before, Toph," replied Akashi matter-of-factly. "And you, my friend, are one of them."

Toph laughed casually and shooed Akashi away with comb in hand. "Whatever you say, Akashi. Now leave me in peace."

"Mhmm…" muttered Akashi. "Back to dreamworld for you."


Was that enough fluff to make up for the delayed update? :P