Chapter summary: In which Toph arrives, gets a warm welcome and not-so-warm news.


28: Visit

When Roulan opened the door and stepped into the tea house, Toph followed. It was quiet except for the pleasant rumble of friendly conversation. She could only identify five individual voices, three of those five were further into the building and slightly muffled. Probably the kitchen staff. If Li worked here, then he was probably back there.

That was all well and good, but Toph was much more interested in the light footed critter bounding out from underneath a table straight at her. Grinning giddily, Toph planted her feet and spread her arms wide in anticipation. She promptly had an armful of a fluffy, whining, and gekkering fox Spirit.

"You remembered me!" Toph cried, clutching the kitsune tightly to her chest.

She felt paws scrabble up her tunic as the fox Spirit pulled herself up to her shoulder. Toph felt so giddy she hardly knew what to do with herself. She clutched the Spirit's furry tails until she felt all four paws on her shoulder. A warm tongue licked her cheek and made a mess of her hair but she didn't care. She was way too happy to care.

Then the fox Spirit hopped from her shoulder, landing perfecting on all four paws on her head. She stiffened and waited for the kitsune to sit down, its tails dangling next to her cheek and brushing her shoulder. This was amazing and absolutely worth ditching the gang for the day. Definitely. One hundred percent.

"What is all this commotion?" a man bellowed, lurching into the room. He wasn't very tall or very heavy set, but Toph could hear the authority in the man's voice. This was probably the owner.

Still grinning ridiculously wide, Toph waved obnoxiously. "Hi there, mister owner man," she said, skipping further into the room. She could feel the fox Spirit adjust its weight on her head with her every move, perfectly balanced. "I'm here to see Li," she said, stopping right in front of the man.

She felt the man's heartbeat jump briefly before settling. Huh. Why would visiting Li surprise him so much?

"Why do you want to see Li?" he asked suspiciously.

"Relax, Pao," Toph heard Roulan drawl accompanied by the scrape of wood over a stone floor. "She just wants to see her friend. She won't keep him too busy."

Toph snickered remorselessly. "No promises there," she said, crossing her arms.

The kitsune on her head -on her head- yowled followed by a sharp bark. The man groaned and shifted his weight.

"Well if that fox keeps making such a racket, Li will come without me doing anything," he said.

"Oh, good," Toph chirped.

"No! Not good," Pao said, startling both Toph and Roulan with the harshness in his voice. He sighed wearily. "Do you have any idea how long it took me to convince the boy to take a break?"

"You? Convince an employee to take a break from work?" Roulan scoffed. "I'll believe that when I see it."

"For once, Roulan," Pao said, shifting his feet so he faced where Roulan was sitting, "now is not the time."

Toph was missing something. She could feel it in the way Roulan's pulse sped up minutely and how Pao suddenly felt heavy on his feet. The signs were subtle, but Toph had spent enough time reading Aang and his flighty moods on his feather feet to catch the hints.

"What happened?" she demanded, her grin slipping to a no-nonsense expression. "Where's Li?"

Pao sighed and turned his feet back to her. "He should be sitting behind the tea shop taking his break," he grumbled. "But he's probably fiddling with something. The boy simply cannot sit still."

They were talking about the same Li, right? Wait. There! Toe-heel, toe-heel, toe, toe, toe.

"Actually," Toph said, pointing towards her right somewhere behind Pao, "Li's right there."

"Wha- Li!" Pao spun around and marched right up to the boy, sending Li briefly higher onto the balls of his feet. Fight or flight. "What by Yu Huang's jade throne are you doing out here? You're supposed to be on break."

"I heard Zenko," Toph heard Li say, his feet easing down to a flat footed stance. It was still balanced and evenly spaced but calmer and… well not relaxed, but definitely not as tense. Then his heartbeat jumped and he popped back to the balls of his feet. "Toph?!"

"Hey there, Short Fuse!" she chirped in greeting.

And down Li went to a flat footed stance. He even scuffed a foot in frustration. "I'm not that short," he grumbled. Yep, definitely Li.

"Still working on the nickname thing," Toph said, waving Li's words aside. She planted her fists on her hips and smirked. "A certain fox Spirit told me you were on break. That true?"

Li's feet lifted briefly so the heels were barely touching the ground in surprise. "She spoke to you?" he gasped.

And huh, that was real surprise. Well what do you know? Could the fox Spirit talk? Well, it was a Spirit, so why not?

"Not in so many words," Toph said, easily brushing aside Li's surprise. She stored the reaction away to think about later. "Pao actually told me," she admitted. "But you are on break, right?"

"Y-yeah, I am," he said, settling back onto his flat feet.

His heels pressed heavily to the ground as if he weighed twice his own weight. His heartbeat slowed and his voice dropped a bit, losing some of its energy. Okay, woah. Something was not right about this.

"If you won't take your break back there," Pao said with a sigh, moving to stand next to Li, "then take it out here."

That brought some energy back into Li's bouncing feet. "I can work!" he insisted, as if continuing an old argument.

"I know you can, Li," Pao said. Toph heard a muffled thump and felt Li suddenly go flat footed again. Pao must have put a hand on his shoulder or something. "But you have had a very bad morning and as your boss ," he added in a slightly louder voice that drowned out the beginnings of an argument from Li, "I am ordering you to take a break. You're my only waiter. I will not have you working yourself into a stupor and be unable to work later."

She felt the fox Spirit still sitting on her head shift before leaping out into the air. Li's feet suddenly weighed more so he must have caught the kitsune. His weight shifted up to the balls of his feet as he leaned forward, probably adapting to the Spirit taking up residence on his shoulders again.

"I'm not tired," Li grumbled.

Pao hummed mockingly, then his weight shifted so he leaned more on his left foot. "Mushi!" he called to the other person in the kitchen.

"Wha?!" Li cried, rocking back on his heels.

"I'm going back to finish up the counting," Pao continued. "Take care of any customers for the time being. If it gets too busy, call me, not Li. If Li tries to work, give him some of your calming tea."

Li was positively shaking with energy now and, oh, his feet were actually warming up. That was new. Was he blushing or angry? Probably angry. But his feet being hot? That was definitely interesting.

Then Pao was gone leaving Li with Toph and Roulan. This should be interesting.


Li felt like curling up and just crying. He could not sit still. Not right now. He felt too much. He needed to not think! He needed a distraction.

"So you comin' over here or will I have to drag you?"

Startled out of his dark thoughts, Li turned back to Toph. Oh. Right. He forgot. He flushed, reaching up and running his fingers through Zenko's fluffy tails. He watched Toph pull a chair out from the table where Roulan was sitting and tap the tabletop expectantly.

"Um-" he said hesitantly.

"Too slow!" she chirped, tapping the ground with her toes.

"Wha- Son of a batchfire?!"

He flailed, clutching Zenko's fur tightly when the ground stopped rolling beneath his feet. He staggered, catching his balance before the ground dipped then punched his feet depositing him into the chair at the table adjacent to Toph's and Roulan's. His butt thudded on the chair and he sat there blinking in dumbstruck shock.

Toph was beside herself, cackling like a madwoman and Roulan looked like she couldn't decide whether she should be horrified or impressed. She was definitely shocked.

"Where in the world did you learn that kind of language, Li?" the herbalist demanded.

Oh. Oops. Li gulped. "I… was a sailor?" he said hesitantly, unsure.

Suddenly, Toph stopped laughing and stared at him with her cloudy eyes in a bland expression. She frowned, her eyebrows dropping low over her eyes as if studying him. But she couldn't see him. Then again, Zenko couldn't see him either unless she opened her eyes. Not like Humans could see anyway.

"You're lying," Toph declared suddenly, almost surprised by her own words.

Roulan blew her breath out between pursed lips and shook her head. "With curse words like that, I wouldn't be surprised if you were a sailor," she said, glancing cautiously at Toph. "Come on over here."

When she waved him over, Li scooted his chair over before Toph could earthbend him over and scare the ostrich-horse shit out of him. A warning would have been nice and he said so. Toph just scoffed and smacked his arm with her fist. OW! Why?!

"That would be boring," she said simply, turning in her seat to face the group even though she couldn't see them. Li noticed how she kept her toes on the stone floor.

"So Li," Roulan said before Li could speak up. "When were you going to tell me your fox is a Spirit?"

Li tensed feeling Zenko's ears flip up in surprised interest. "I… wasn't going to?" he tried.

"Why not?" she said before leaning back in her chair to stare at the kitchen. "Hey Mushi!" she hollered. "You still have any more of that oolong tea?"

He heard Mushi's chuckles from the kitchen and Li shrank into his chair. He felt Zenko brush his neck with her tails before draping herself comfortably on his shoulders. It was comforting when she did that. He could feel her heartbeat against his back and her breathing by his ear. She was warm and alive and there.

"Coming right out," the elderly tea maker called.

Toph jerked, her wide, sightless eyes whipping to the kitchen. "Uncle?" she called.

A sharp, unexpected crash startled Li almost out of his chair. Mushi never broke anything. He was always methodical and overly careful. It was Li who'd broken dishes. Only two. But Pao had given him an earful about it. For Mushi to drop a cup like that-

Sure enough, when the old tea maker appeared at the kitchen door, his light brown eyes were wide with shock. They skipped over Roulan's face, lingered briefly on Li's, then locked on Toph.

"Oh dear," Mushi muttered.

"Uncle!" Toph cried again, hopping from her seat and running right up to the old man and attempting to wrap her arms around his wide girth. "I didn't think I'd see you here."

Li felt something inside perk up with interest. There was something in the way Toph said that that set Li's nerves on edge. He was missing something.

But before he could think further on it, the moment passed and Mushi was smiling and hugging Toph back. "Indeed," the old man said with a merry laugh. "It has been a while. A couple weeks, yes? How are you doing?"

"Bored," Toph moaned, practically dragging the tea maker over to their table. "I came to see Li. I didn't know you worked here too."

There it was again, that odd tinge to the little girl's words. He could feel Zenko's ears twitching, the fur brushing his cheek. Then the smell hit his nose and he sniffled, sending a dry glance the fox Spirit's way. She really did need a bath.

Her ears drooped and Zenko dropped her head limply onto Li's shoulder in humiliation. The display brought a weary smile to Li's lips and he reached up to scratch her furry head. He didn't mean any offense, honest. He wouldn't mind giving her a good scrubbing. Ying was right. It felt great to feel clean and fresh. Zenko sneezed and Li snickered.

When he lifted his gaze back to the others, he found himself at the center of everyone's attention. Surprised, he flinched back, quickly reviewing everything he'd said and did. What had been so odd? Why were they staring at him? What did he do?

This was annoying. Leave him alone!

Flinching away from the intrusive thought, Li dropped his gaze to the table. "I didn't know you knew Mushi, Toph," he said, hoping to change the focus of attention back to the girl who clearly enjoyed the limelight.

"Indeed," Mushi said, smiling broadly. "We met on the road to Ba Sing Se."

"Small world," Roulan said, deliberately nudging Li with her elbow.

Why was everyone hitting him today?

"I admit, I'm a bit surprised you know Toph as well, Li," the tea maker continued easily. "How did you two meet?"

"The library outside the university in the Middle Ring," Toph answered promptly. "He let me pet his fox Spirit."

"Zenko," Li said, startling Toph silent. "Her's name's Zenko."

Toph's smile returned. "Zenko," she said, sounding out the name. "Nice to meet you, Zenko. I'm Toph, the best earthbender in the world."

From her spot on Li's shoulders, Zenko yawned loudly and wagged her tails, revealing her foxy grin, her teeth shining in the dim light of the tea shop. Li smiled.

"She really likes you," he said wonderingly. "Is that why you came? To see her again?"

Toph shrugged and slapped her hands on the table. "Yeah."

Oh.

"But I also came to see you again, Short Fuse," she said.

Li bristled and she snickered, smirking at him. Roulan rolled her eyes and dropped a copper on the table.

"An oolong tea, please Mushi," she said. "You two," she nodded to Toph and Li, "are on your own."

Toph grinned and slapped a copper on the table too. "Surprise me," she said.

Mushi chuckled and turned his gaze to Li expectantly. Li shrugged and offered his fellow employee a grimace. The old man's smile slipped, softening to something gentle and sympathetic and familial. Standing, Mushi gathered up the coins and rested a hand on Li's head in a comforting manner before strolling back into the kitchen to prepare the teas.

"Alright, Li, spill," Toph said, drawing Li's golden gaze to her. "Something happened that's got you on edge. What's up?"


Roulan kept her eyes on the boy, studying him closely. That fox Spirit on his shoulders tilted its head so its closed eyes stared right at her. It was disconcerting. Now that she knew the thing was a Spirit, she wasn't surprised by the action. But it still disturbed her.

Then Li was talking and she forced her gaze to move from the fox Spirit to Li's face. The boy looked downtrodden. It was almost pathetic.

"I… I'd rather not talk about it," Li whispered.

"Nice try," Toph said. She swung her leg and Li yelped, jerking his body so his knee thudded against the underside of the table.

"What was that for?" he cried, rubbing his abused leg.

"Because I want an answer," Toph said. "A real answer."

Roulan narrowed her eyes, seeing the signs she was looking for. "How long has your headache been this bad?" she said suddenly.

Wide, pale gold eyes looked at her in surprise. Then Li wilted, leaning forward so his elbows leaned on the table and his fingers massaged his temples.

"Since this morning," he admitted softly. "It's been bad since the- since then."

"Since what?" Roulan pressed. "If something triggered it, then I need to know what it was."

Li sank lower in his chair. The fox Spirit made a soft warbling sound and nuzzled Li's chin, flicking its tongue over the boy's nose.

"There was…" The boy took a deep breath, held it, then breathed it out through his nose and tried again. "Have you heard anything about the potter's complex?" he asked.

"Yes," the herbalist answered. What did that have to do with- Her sharp brown gaze narrowed. "You were there."

Li nodded. "Someone murdered their children," he said. "They burned them alive."

Roulan swallowed over a very dry throat. "You saw the bodies," she said quietly.

He didn't nod, but he didn't have to. It was painfully obvious. "I live there," he said. "The kiln was active."

A kiln. Dear Yu Huang. Cremation.

"We never knew…" Li was shaking. "We tried to free them but…"

"It was too late." Roulan winced. No wonder Li was in such a dismal mood. "Why are you at work? Why aren't you with Ying?"

Li was already shaking his head. "I-I can't," he said. Roulan chose to ignore the way the boy's voice broke and let him continue. "I'll just see them again and I can't- I just can't. They'll never leave there now."

Never leave. Roulan furrowed her brow. "Who won't leave?" she pressed gently but firmly.

"The kids," Li said, forcing the palms of his hands into his eyes. "They'll never leave there now."

"Their remains are still there?" the herbalist gasped, sitting up straighter.

Li shook his head. "No. The Dai Li took them away," he said. "It's the kids." His voice dropped to almost a whisper. "The kids will never leave. They can't. I don't want to see them. I'll just…"

He cut himself off and forced himself to sit up. When she could see his face again, Roulan wasn't surprised to see no tears, but she wasn't sure if that was a good thing. She watched closely as Li put his hands palm down on the table and sat there, gathering himself.

"I can't see them yet," he said, his voice stronger. "I need to… I need to do something, anything. I just want to forget for awhile." He snorted derisively. "Forget." He laughed and Roulan did not like that sound. It wasn't a happy laughter. "I keep wanting to remember and now I just want to forget. Ugh, fuck me sideways, I hate this."

Roulan looked at the fox Spirit by Li's face and felt her own dislike of the boy's twisted laughter reflected on the Spirit's face. Perhaps she shouldn't press the issue. Yet. Later.

"A distraction, you say," Toph said, speaking up suddenly.

Goodness, Roulan practically forgot the girl was even here. How that happened with a personality as strong as Toph's, the herbalist would never know.

"I think I've got an idea," the girl said, a slow, sneaky grin worming its way onto her face.

Now this grin, Roulan could get behind.

"You any good at Mah Jong?" Toph asked innocently.

Roulan really like that grin.