A/N. So, this chapter had only minimal changes from the show. But after this one, I'm going to change it up!
I don't own Avatar the Last Airbender,
Aang was sitting at the table, with a very flustered Katara next to him. She was staring at the girl that Lao had presented as Toph Beifong. In the waterbender's gaze, he recognized something akin to mistrust and apprehension. Spirits, what had happened between those two?
Master Yu was also at dinner, for some reason. The man was looking at him, seemingly trying to figure out from where he knew the airbender. Aang smiled weakly in the earthbender's direction, which only provoked Yu to frown even harder.
A servant brought soup to the table, and served the blind girl in front of the airbender first.
"Blow on it! It's too hot for her." Lao ordered. Aang didn't like the tone that man used with his servants. Like it was normal to be obeyed. He didn't even ask, or say please. Just ordered. When the water tribe siblings had been presented as the chief's children, Beifong's whole attitude had changed. But Aang had heard in the man's voice that the niceties were not really meant. It was all an act.
'Please, allow me." He said, saving the servant from the ridiculous task of blowing on each spoon of soup. Bending a little tornado over the table, he cooled the soup. For some reason, he could feel the temperature drop. That would be his firebending… He didn't like it, but he still was one, even if he had not had much training.
The three adults clapped, but it sounded more like a polite way of thanking him. Not heartfelt applause.
"Avatar Aang, it is an honour to have you visit us." The woman, who had been presented as Lao's wife Poppy, said. Before he could even answer, Lao cut in.
"In your opinion, how much longer do you think the war will last?"
Aang tried to stay civil, but he was having a hard time, suppressing the annoyance he felt towards Lao Beifong.
"I'd like to defeat the Fire Lord by the end of the summer… But I can't do that without finding an earthbending teacher first." Those last words, the airbender spoke directly to Toph, who looked in his direction with clear displeasure.
"Well, if you are looking for a teacher, Master Yu is the finest in the land! He had been teaching my daughter since she was little."
"Oh really… Then he must be a great earthbender." Wait, that idiotic Yu wa her teacher? How had she become so good, while being taught by… that one. "Surely, good enough to tea…" The rest of his words were drowned in a groan. A rocky spike had appeared between his legs, hitting him in the… well, it hurt. Katara put a hand on his arm, and he gave a quick glance under the table. Katara held her laugh.
Ignoring his painful outburst, Yu spoke.
"Toph is still learning the basics."
"And sadly, because of her blindness, she will never achieve mastery of the art. Which is very disappointing. She is the first earthbender in the family for several generations. And to waste that potential… It is a sad thing." Lao sounded really miserable, like he cared more for the wasted promise, than for the fact that his only child had been born blind. Quickly looking towards Toph, Aang saw her, head bowed, with pursed lips. She apparently didn't like this either.
"I'm sure she's better than you think she is." The airbender felt it right to defend her abilities. He had seen her do amazing things. How could her own father not know this?
Suddenly, his chair moved with such force that he fell face first on the table. In his soup bowl. He felt the liquid drenching his face and clothes. Who. Did. That.
Toph hadn't even moved but was gazing in his direction with such glee he quickly put one and one together. The soup had gone inside his nose, and Aang felt a sneeze come up. Well… if she wanted to play with bending, he would show her bending.
After, he saw that most of the food had been blown in the faces of Poppy, Yu and Toph. The rest was against the wall.
Toph stood up, clearly furious. "What is your problem?"
"My problem! What is yours?" He answered, equally pissed off. Why was she making this so difficult?
"Shall we move to the next room for dessert" the calm, controlled voice of Toph's mother interrupted. At once, Aang realized that she was not asking, but telling them to stop. That woman seemed way sneakier than her husband.
"What was that?" Katara whispered in his ear while they moved.
"She hit me in the… well, you know! With rocks! And then, pushed me in my own soup!"
"You are trying to recruit her as a teacher! And your way of doing that is by fighting her? Spirit Aang. Her parents clearly don't know about Earth Rumble VI! She won't speak with her parents present." The waterbender pulled his arm, keeping him from entering the room with the dessert. Toph passed them, with a grin on her face. But Aang saw it wasn't directed towards him, but rather at Katara.
Looking at the water tribe girl next to him, he noticed her face lit up in a red hue. Why?
The Beifongs gave them a series of rooms on the eastern side of their mansion. Calling Appa with his whistle, Aang stood next to Sokka, who had taken some of the dessert with them to their room, even though Katara had protested.
"She a bit crazy, isn't she?" The water tribe boy stated, happily munching on a peach tart. Aang didn't even have to ask who he meant.
"She hit me between the legs with rocks Sokka! With ROCKS! It hurt. It still does."
"So, no Air Nomads kid any time soon." The boy laughed, while walking away, towards the bathroom.
Aang sighed. Not as if that was going to happen anyway. As he had explained to Katara the day before, airbenders didn't go sleeping around with anyone. What he hadn't told her, was the rest of it. Yes, the airbenders hadn't kept themselves to some social rules. They could love anyone they choose. But that was just it. One. Not two. Not three. Air Nomads loved just one person in their lives. And the realization in the Cave of the Two Lovers had hit Aang like a ten-ton bison. If he really loved Katara… Well. That was it. No one else could even come close to what he felt for her.
But what did she think? Yes, they had had that one conversation, and it sounded very promising. But the waterbender had been interested in his culture from the start. Was her question that evening just an interested mind speaking? Or was it something more? He didn't even know anymore. They had kissed, but some time had passed, and neither one had mentioned it. He didn't, out of fear of being rejected. It had just been a plan, to get out of the tunnels he told himself each evening, but a little voice in his head responded with one simple sentence.
If that was the case, why was she kissing you back?
He didn't know.
"Hey. Sorry about dinner. Let' call a truce," a voice behind him said. Quickly turning around, he saw Toph stand against the door, probably having snuck out of her room, for she was wearing her nightclothes.
"Come, let's walk, and then you can tell me… About what you want." The girl stated and began to walk away. Aang looked over his shoulder. Sokka was in the bathroom, and Katara was standing on the balcony, looking to the sky where Appa had appeared.
"Don't worry, your girlfriend will still be here when you come back." Came the laughing voice from the corridor.
Quickly following her, Aang answered.
"She is not my girlfriend. Just a friend…"
"Huh… truth… At least… for you. But that is not important." With that bizarre comment, Toph walked outside. The airbender, following, remarked that she wasn't feeling around to get her bearings, like that one blind monk in the Northern Air Temple had done. She moved… as if she could see.
They strolled in silence, but at a little ornamental bridge, Toph broke the silence.
"Even though I was born blind, I've never had a problem seeing. I see with earthbending. I can feel the vibrations in the earth with my feet. I see, or at least… know where you are, that tree. Even those ants." She explained, while pointing at a place on the ground. Bending down, Aang wasn't even surprised to see a whole colony of ants moving towards the northern part of the garden. How, in Yangchen's name… did he do this?
"That's… amazing!" He exclaimed, impressed. He would have to tell Bumi he was no longer the best earthbender. He had been dethroned by a sixteen-year-old girl in her nightgown.
"My parents don't understand. They've always treated me like I was a helpless little girl, needing protection."
"That' why you became the blind bandit… Why stay here where you're not happy?" He asked. She hadn't really stated she was unhappy. But Aang recognized the signs. She was feeling like he had felt at the temple, after they had told him he was the Avatar.
"They are my parents. Where else could I go?"
Aang knew the answer.
"You could come with us…"
"Yeah… You guys get to go wherever you want. No one tells you what to do… But it is just not my life…"
"Well... Katara tells us what t-"Just then, he felt something hit his head. Falling to earth, he felt Toph drop next to him. The only thing his mind could conjure before passing out, was the form of a face. But before the picture became clear, darkness.
Groaning, coming back to his senses, Aang could feel the cold hard surface underneath him. It reminded him of the fortress where that Zhoa guy had imprisoned him for a day. Feeling the back of his head, the airbender grazed a big bump on the back of his head. Removing his fingers, he saw the redness on them. He was bleeding. Great.
"You think you're so tough? Why don't you come up here, so I can smack that grin off your face?" Aang heard Toph shout.
Up here?
Standing up, he saw he was in some sort of metal cage, with an identical one next to him, suspended in the air.
Great.
"HEY!" a voice shouted. A voice Aang immediately recognized. Sokka!
"Here's your money. Let. Them. Go."
Toph cage was lowered, and the blind girl was freed. Her father immediately went to embrace her. Maybe Aang had misjudged him. He seemed to genuinely care for his daughter.
"What about Aang?" Katara… Spirits, how had he not realized whose face he had seen before passing out…
"I think the Fire Nation will pay a hefty price for… The Avatar!" Hey… That was Xin Fu!
"No! You are going to release him!" Katara shouted, pulling water to her. Next to her, Sokka drew his knives.
But they were horribly outnumbered, by every fighter from Earth Rumble VI.
'Just go… I'll be alright!" He shouted, and his head hurt by the effort. As Katara was running away, his heart ached. Would this be the final time he saw her?
His cage was lowered, and that Big Bad Hippo guy picked him up. But before they could get out of the Arena, a rock spire climbed out of the ground.
"Let him go. I beat all your asses before. And I'm going to do it again. Only now… I won't hold back." His cage was thrown away, and Aang could see clearly now. There, Toph, Sokka and Katara were standing. Spirits, they had gone to get her. Thank the Spirits.
The Earth Rumble fighters charged, and very quickly, the whole arena was covered in sand and dust. He couldn't see a thing.
"Aang! Are you alright?" The waterbender's voice came from the dusty mist. Just then , Aang saw Sokka, with a rock, coming towards the cage. Please… don't hit that. My head…
It was no use. As the water tribe boy was hitting it, the lock began to give way. After a moment, the cage was opened.
Staggering to his feet, he felt himself fall by the effort. Sokka caught him.
"What happened?" He said, while Katara was looking at his head. Aang felt the familiar feeling of her water covered hand around the back of his head.
"They knocked me out, and Toph! But she seems alright. I… just had a bigger rock I presume.
"You're lucky it didn't smash your head in." Katara said through gritted teeth. Sokka left them, marching to where Yu and Lao were watching what happened in the dust cloud. Aang could only hear screaming. Very.. manly screams.
His head felt much better, and just then, the arms of the watebender snaked around him, pulling him in a hug.
"I was afraid… I thought that I had lost you…" She murmured in his ear.
"You will not lose me Katara… Never…" He whispered back. The airbender should be hit against the head more often. Apparently, it made is awkwardness disappear.
"Come on… I'll help you if needed." With that she pulled him up. Was it his imagination, or did she kiss his cheek just before they emerged from the cloud, to sit next to Lao?
Toph had cleaned house. Most of the fighters were on a big pile just next to them. A big pile of blood, broken bones and groans. Spirits…
Just then , Yu spoke,
"She is the greatest earthbender I ever saw!"
Lao didn't seem convinced.
Going back to the mansion was quite the experience. The older Beifong was marching in front, not even listening to the words his daughter spoke softly just behind him. Master Yu was just looking, with his mouth wide open, at Toph. He had clearly not realized the potential of his student.
Aang was hobbling after them, with the help of Katara. She hadn't released his arm since the Arena.
Entering the mansion, they were quickly moved to a room, where Poppy was waiting. Lao sat next to her, and Toph was standing in front of them. Sokka stood next to the airbender and Katara.
"The blind and helpless girl you think I am… Just isn't me. I love earthbending. I love fighting.I'm really good at both! You may not have known about my secret life, but you were keeping me secret from the whole world."
What? Had she been kept secret from everyone? What had she seen of the world? It sounded sad.
"I'm sixteen. And I have never had a real friend. Only… The people you deemed.. Appropriate."
Okay, that was just not right.
"Now that you know who really am… Who I want to be. I hope it doesn't change the way you feel about me…"
Yep. That was it. He would make sure that she at least had a real friend for once.
Lao spoke.
"Of course it doesn't change the way I feel about you Toph!" That sounded good. Promising,
'It made me realize something. I've let you have far too much freedom!" What?
"From now on, you will be cared for and guarded twenty-four hours a day."
"But Da-"
"We are doing this for your own good young lady." Poppy interjected, and her words seemed final. Toph just looked at the ground, a tear rolling from his misty eyes.
"Escort the Avatar and his… water tribe… friends… out." Lao ordered his guards.
"I'm sorry Toph…" He managed to say, while being grabbed by one particular strong-looking guy.
"I'm sorry too… Goodbye Aang."
Standing on a rocky ledge, overlooking the Beifong Mansion, Katara came to stand next to him.
"Will find you a teacher… I'm sorry about Toph. Here parents are… something."
"But they won't be her…" He answered, throwing the reins around Appa's horns. This had been the teacher he needed. Just because of some bizarre family, he would have to look elsewhere.
"Got some place on there for me?" a girl's voice said, and they turned around to see Toph stand next to the bison, in her Blind Bandit clothes.
"Toph! What are you doing here?" He asked, but he knew what she was doing.
"Well… My dad changed his mind. He wants me to travel the world." The grin and the tone suggested he had not said anything remotely close.
"And the truth?" Katara asked, with a smile on her face.
"I snuck out of the window, bent the guards in a wall, and found you three. Screw them. I want to teach the Avatar. And fight, and live life, for once!"
With that, Sokka just threw her the Champion's belt, muttering something about her being the best.
Answers :
Gabriela N. Gonzalez : Here she is! And yeah, of course, the first thing she would do, while meeting someone, was tease the hell out if them. And the Beifongs are just the worst. I didn't like them on the show, and I wanted to show that. And Sokka, yes!
CoyoteLemon : That was my original goal with this fic! Just add to the show, with some aged up characters! At for now, it had actually been just the setting up! I'm getting in the real changes very soon!
Ashely Barbosa: I realized that kataang awkwardness is peak kataang. So I'm really using it! Of course, if they had a braincell each, they would realize the other liked them. But let's be honest. They wouldn't lol.