Chapter 11: Carpe Diem

"You want me to do what?!"

Spending more and more time with Toph had taught Zuko a few things, including to dunk whenever her temper set it. Good thing he did, because a second later a boulder came flying his way, instead ramming into the wall behind him.

"We need to get Sokka out of your head once and for all," he said calmly, as if his head hadn't just been used for target practice.

"And you think telling him I like him is the way to do that?! Are you out of your mind, Princess!?" Toph's face was blushed in crimson, whether from anger or embarrassment Zuko wasn't sure.

No more than usual, he thought, self-answering Toph's screams. And if the ex-prince didn't calm the young earthbender soon, he would wind up dead from one of two ways; forgetting to duck from one of Toph's boulders, or even worse, being on the receiving end of the contents of Katara's waterskins.

"If you tell him how you feel…used to feel, whichever, it'll be closure, and you can move on to Twinkle…Aang. You can move on to Aang."

Toph smirked, she was having a long lasting effect on Zuko, one she was proud of. But that did not give him the right to come up with such ideas.

This is payback for that thing with Katara and Appa, she thought, referring to their revelation of Katara's feelings yesterday.

"No. No no no, big freak'n NO, Flamed-face. Hell no." Another boulder rose from the pile Toph kept in her room, and Zuko flipped to his side before the two made contact.

"Toph…"

"I don't need closure, Sparky. I'm fine. And why do you care anyway?" Toph raised her eyebrows and stomped towards Zuko.

"I think its you that needs closure, Sparks-a-lot, not me. You're the one feeling guilty about going after Sweetness when Needles still feels so much for you, and you're the one that's afraid to express your real feelings." With every "you" and "you're" Toph stabbed her finger into Zuko's chest, making her point with pain attached.

"I do not feel guilty and—"

"You're lying."

"—I am not afraid to go after Katara!"

"Still lying," Toph spread out the word, mocking Zuko in a way only she knew how.

"You're changing the subject Badger Bit! And the only way to prove to me that you don't need closure, that you're completely over Sokka, is to go tell him yourself. Carpe Diem, seize the day and all. So let's go. Unless you're the one who's afraid, Toph."

The earthbender groaned, Zuko knew which buttons to push alright. She marched out of the room, proving she wouldn't back down from a challenge, and stormed up to Sokka, who was holding Suki in his arms and failing at his attempts of flirting.

"Let's go Snoozles. Closure time." Toph grabbed Sokka by his collar and pulled him away (causing Suki to fall to the floor with a grunt) towards the east end of the main floor.

"Uh Toph…" Sokka said nervously, afraid he was about to be pushed off the edge of the abyss. He fought to remember what he had done to piss her off this time, but nothing came to mind.

"Listen up Snoozles, and listen hard, cause I'm only going to say this once." Toph sighed, not sure what to say next. She felt Zuko's vibrations, hiding behind a pillar not far off, and she stomped her foot down, sending a tiny earthquake under Zuko, to work as a warning that she'd kill him later.

"I used to haveacrushonyou," she mumbled under her breath, blushing, knowing Sokka wouldn't understand.

"Um…"

"But now your with Suki, so that doesn't matter anymore, and I'm over it," once Toph started up it was hard to stop her, and so her quick speeded rambling continued.

"I know you never…likedme that way, that you only ever thought of me as a sister, but that's alright, I completely understand. And I'm really, completely over you, because I'm inlovewith Aang now."

"Um…"

Zuko snickered from behind his hiding space, and another earthquake erupted beneath him. The scarred prince knew Sokka didn't understand a word that came from Toph's mouth, but she would get closure either way. Embarrassing one's self can do that.

"Yah, so, later Snoozles. Have fun with Suki...who I think is just about ready to kill you for dropping her and all. Yah…"

Toph sighed, knowing she had made a complete fool out of herself, and walked off towards Zuko.

"I'm going to give you until the count of three to start running, Scar Face. Then I'm going to pummel you to the ground. One…"

But Zuko grabbed the young earthbender's wrists, leaned down to her level, and whispered in her ear, "Let's get a reaction out of Sokka first…then you can pummel me to the ground, if you'd like."

Toph began blushing, just as Zuko knew she would, and at the minute Sokka walked past them, still in a daze. He looked up to see Zuko whispering in Toph's ear, and it looked as though he was about to kiss her on the cheek. Like Sokka would let that happen.

"Don't touch her!" Sokka yelled, pushing Zuko away. Toph counted it as a brotherly action, but Zuko knew better.

"Dude, you have Suki, and Aang's all wrapped up in your sister. Toph and I are all alone, we were just getting better equated is all." Zuko baited Sokka, knowing he would bite.

WHAT?! Toph mouthed, blushing a darker shade of crimson than before.

"What?! Man, stay away from her!" Sokka stepped in front of Toph and pushed Zuko away, wary of pissing off a firebender.

Zuko shrugged, careful not to show his smile to Sokka, and walked off. Sokka turned to face Toph, his back to Zuko, and Zuko looked back, winked at Toph, and walked towards the main hall to wait.

"Are you alright? He didn't hurt you or anything, right?"

"I'm fine Snoozles. Really."

"Hm," was Sokka's only reply, but before leaving he looked down at the young earthbender he had grown so close to. He leaned in slowly, looked into her endless gaze, and kissed her on the forehead, hesitating in each step. Toph, still blushing, bit her lip and waited. But Sokka only walked off.

Toph walked into the main hall, found Zuko, and hit him upside the head.

"What in the spirits was that?!" she hissed, wary of Katara, who was doing laundry, hearing them.

"He kissed you, didn't he? You're stillblushing."

"Yes…no…damn it Zuko!"

The scarred prince just laughed at his friend's reaction, for which she hit him again.

"This is not funny, Sparks! Ugh!"

"He doesn't see you as just a sister anymore, he's interested now, I can tell." Zuko looked towards Sokka, who had his arm around Suki, frowning. The warrior was trying to watch Zuko and Toph, but when his and Zuko's eyes met, he looked away.

Toph just groaned again, then stormed towards Katara, leaving Zuko to watch and see what the earthbender was up to now.

"Hey Katara, you like Zuko, don't you?"

"What?! Uh, um…" Toph had caught Katara off guard, and now it was the waterbender's turn to blush.

"I mean, what's not to like; he's a prince, he's handsome, despite the scar, and he's way more fun than Twinkletoes and Snoozles."

Aang walked into the room then, catching Toph's attention. She quickly shook her head, reminding herself to stay focused on the task at hand. Zuko and Aang spoke for a while, then both took of their shirts to begin firebending practice.

At that moment Katara's heart rate speed, causing Toph to laugh.

"I know the way you look at him, Sugar Queen. You could have yourself a Spice King, if you're bold enough. Carpe Diem and all that, Sweetness." Toph walked off, leaving Katara with her thoughts. Earth and firebender really were making a mess of the place.

Zuko and Aang were doing pushups, using firebending instead of their hands to push themselves off the ground.

"Need an extra weight, Ore?" Toph asked Zuko, who nodded, trying not to break his concentration. Toph sat atop Zuko's back, who continued with his push-ups. Both he and Aang did another 100 before the Avatar spoke up.

"Hey Toph, I could use an extra weight too…" Aang said. Toph laughed at his attempt to be suave, but climbed off of Zuko and onto Aang.

"Sure you can handle it, Twinkletoes?" Again she got a nod as a response.

Zuko gave Toph a look that could only be read as "How many hearts do you plan to steal before you pick one just right?"

Toph, smiled, shrugged, and closed her eyes, allowing both benders to complete their workout without further disruption.

**That Night**

"What exactly did you say to Katara, Toph? Every time she looked up at me during dinner she turned away blushing."

Toph shrugged, smiling. "I just told her she needed to start seizing the day, simply as that. Or, well, you could translate it to 'seize Zuko' but either way, same deal."

"You what?! Toph! Wait…Did you use my own advice against me?"

"I used your uncle's advice, but ya, basically."

Zuko groaned, throwing a pillow at Toph as he sat down beside her.

"I think I can handle it Toph, there's no need for you to—"

"—Meddle in your so called 'relationship?' What relationship? The only reason she doesn't glare at you with pure hatred is because of the…push…I gave you."

"Ha-ha. Funny Toph." The earthbender smiled, remembering the vibrations that both Katara and Zuko let off the day before when Toph pushed Zuko off the side of the abyss.

"Besides, you meddled with me and Sokka. I was fine without him knowing! Now I have to deal with him and Aang. Thanks Sparky."

Zuko ignored the earthbender, wrapped in his own thoughts. He and Katara kept taking one step forward and two back, and it was getting old fast. There has to be something he could do…something.

"Something…" he muttered.

"Earth to Sparky…" Toph muttered, and Zuko, knowing how Toph's joke ended, caught the pebble in the air before it could hit him in the head.

"You've got Sweetness on the brain, don't you?" Toph asked, already knowing the answer. She lifted her hand and a million other pebbles came and joined with the rock Zuko held in his hand. The earthbender fisted her palm and the rock Zuko now held formed into a heart. Toph twitched her fingers, and the rock heart beat like a real one would.

"Talk to her, Sparks, before your heart breaks." To illustrate her point, Toph twitched her fingers again, and the heart Zuko held fell into the many pebbles it originally was.

"What am I supposed to say Toph?" Zuko eyes stared off into the distance, then looked at the pebbles in his hand, thinking.

The earthbender shrugged. "How should I know? I have to deal with Snoozles and Twinkletoes now, thanks to you."

"We'll get through it, I guess. I'll talk to Katara, and you keep up your flirting with Aang. Speaking of which, I could only imagine what was going on in your head when we were working out." Zuko smiled at the image of Toph on Aang's back; surprised the earthbender didn't do anything to cause Aang more struggling.

"It takes Twinkles twice the time it takes you to do a push up, Sparky. I swear, I was about to put a marble stake to the kid's neck, see if that would speed him up."

Again Zuko laughed at the image, which he could see all to clearly.

Toph yawned, and Zuko wrapped the young bender in a blanket.

"Time for bed BadgerBit."

"Whatever Sparky. Hey, don't we have bending practice with Sweetness and Twinkle—yawn—toes tomorrow?"

Zuko groaned, and Toph feel asleep with a smile on her face.

"Carpe Diem indeed."

----

N/A: Sorry this is so short!! More later... Just not two months later, like last time. Sorry for the wait!!