CH 5 | Toph's Secret [Part 1]
The worst part about the Ginseng Phoenix was the sticky floor. And the service, she supposed. The tea was pretty awful, too. Still, it was important that Toph keep her feet on the ground so that she could see when her mark arrived. The problem was that once you have sticky feet, now you have pebbles, sawdust, and all sorts of other careless debitage clouding her vision. So now she hunched at her table. Muttering and picking at her feet one at a time, making sure she had her "eye" on the door.
She slurped her the tepid leaf juice with disdain, less so for the tea and more for the person sauntering over to her table. She had already turned away two other men who, seeing a young blind woman at the pai sho table assumed they might turn a few coins in a game with her. This man was no different. "Are you waiting for a partner? I've been known to make the occasional wager..." he entreated. "That depends. Do you favor the White Lotus gambit?" the man shuffled, confused. "Wha-? No, not really." "Then get lost, asshat."
She huffed with annoyance as the man shuffled away, muttering a slur of insults under his breath. She slammed her teacup down and switched feet, savagely picking sticky slurry off her heel and wiping on her shorts, much to the nearby customer's disgust. She had only just noticed a woman who seated herself across from her and began distributing tiles without acknowledging Toph, or her nasty foot-picking. Toph, understanding that THIS was the person she had been waiting for, quickly executed her move once the tiles were set. "I see you favor the White Lotus gambit. Not many still cling to the ancient ways." The woman was barely older than her and spoke in a disaffected tone, revealing little emotion. "Those who do can always find a friend." Toph responded. They moved tiles in silence for a few minutes before the woman spoke again. "It is dark in here and I'm not seeing the tiles as well as I would like. Perhaps we can resume our game where there is more light? And friends."
Toph stood with here in agreement. "I'd like that. Plus, the tea is shit here."
The two women exited the seedy tea shop and made their way out into the city's tenderloin. She was glad that her new companion did not seem to have a taste for chit-chat as Toph was still mired in uncharacteristic stress. In only a handful of weeks she had found herself plucked from the (oppressive) confines of her parent's estate where most people were not even aware she existed, to a bustling Fire Nation colony where she now played a key role fomenting the historic events to come. In so many ways, coming out not only as a bender, but as a master earth bender of potentially unrivaled skill had finally brought about meaning and peace in herself—finally safe in her identity.
In all the other ways, the unexpected weight of knowing—being given the knowledge that so many things were about to change, and that for so many people, it could mean for the worse, that part of the responsibility now lay with her and her actions—was a burden she had not anticipated.
Toph could tell by the smoothness of the pavement and the cleanness of the air that they were now entering the west district. After turning the corner Toph stopped in her tracks. "There's a problem. An ID checkpoint ahead." She said tersely. "Taken care of, don't worry." Toph hesitated. Could she trust this person? She supposed she had no choice, at this point. As she suspected, her green attire flagged the police the minute they approached the gangway. "IDs." One of them demanded. "I'm not a citizen." Toph responded, unapologetically. "There are no colonized allowed in this district. Turn around and don't stop until you get to whatever dirt pile you call home." He retorted nastily. "That won't be necessary." Her companion replied, flashing her own ID card. "I am her escort." "No escort without papers." The other cop said, hands now wandering to his baton. Toph shifted her stance, ready. She could feel the heartbeat of her companion as she dug into her purse to produce an escort form. Despite the woman's stoic façade, it was obvious that she wasn't fully confident this was going to work. "This paper is suspiciously thin." The cop remarked. The two began to move forward, hands on their weapons. "Are these suspiciously thin?" Toph asked quickly, reaching into her wallet and pressing a thick wad of cash into his hand. "No, these all seem in order." As they passed, they could hear the officers laughing to each other as they divided up the money. "We should probably wash our hands after this…disgusting earth trash."
"Thanks" her companion breathed softly after a block. Eventually they entered a ground-floor apartment, then its basement. "I'm going to need you to…" the woman said quietly. "Right" Toph said, understanding quickly. Stomping her feet to the ground, she was able to detect the staircase underneath the stone. With an additional foot sweep and only minor pressure with her outer toes, the earth gave way, revealing the final descent into a well-lit room. Toph shut the floor behind them, and it appeared to the world that they had vanished.
"Gentlemen, please welcome Lady Mai and Master Beifong." The formal introduction was at odds with the friends seated in the room. "The honor is ours, oh Great Dragon of the West" Toph said sarcastically and hugged her Uncle Iroh. The other people she sensed in the room were ones she knew, but hadn't met in person. These were persons of great power—King Bumi, the earth bending master of Omashu, Pakku of the Northern Water Tribe—the man who personally trained her new roommate, Katara—and even a Fire Nation swordsmaster. "Katara is now in the city. We are all safe." Toph began. "This is why we asked to meet with you today, my good friend." Iroh responded while serving tea all around. "You are all now in the city, but it is our fear that your safety is already more in question than I would like." Toph accepted the tea gratefully, keen to wash out the overly sweet ginseng from earlier. She was surprised to find a burning aftertaste. "Uncle Iroh! You lush!" she interrupted, having never expected the old gentlemen to serve alcohol. Iroh chuckled deeply. "We could all use something a little stronger today, I fear."
"What do you know?" Toph asked, that unrealized stress creeping back into her voice. "When I asked you to guard the Avatar over this year, it was with the true intention of allowing Aang to come to terms with his role and responsibility to the world. It is for our order to stand for truth, and to protect the assets of balance and the Avatar is no small part of that equation." Iroh sipped his own tea before continuing. "Be that as it may, it is not for the White Lotus to control the actions of the Avatar or decide the course of the future." "I still am not understanding how what we're doing right now is any different. Not that I'm complaining" Toph cut dryly. "Believe me Toph, I would be happy to leave Aang to live and enjoy his life the way he wishes. But we know now that the fight will be coming to him despite his best efforts. It is better if he is prepared. I need you to move him towards his water bending master."
"I still don't understand why Aang needs to be in the dark on this. It feels dishonest." Even as Toph said this, she knew it wasn't true. She could tell by the feel of each person's hearts in the room that their plans and Iroh's words were genuine. "Why can't I just bring him here and have you explain all this? He has a whole room full of masters in here that can make him a fully realized Avatar." "I do not think it is wise to place the care and training of the Avatar solely within the control of the order. While the intentions of everyone in this room are pure now, we will not always be around. One day a new generation will take our places and I foresee that placing a being with such power under such a control would only create greater imbalance in the future. I also believe that the timing of yours and Katara's extraordinary mastery of your respective elements is no accident. It is for the new generation to teach their young Avatar, and it is for you to determine how you will balance the world you are inheriting."
Toph nodded, understanding and finally accepting the near-term trajectory of her life, and the lives of the rest of her new friends. "What I tell you today is that there are now people and plans being put into motion that have escalated our timeline. We need the Avatar as soon as possible."
Mai, who remained quiet until this point placed a surprising hand over Toph's. Was she perhaps attempting to soften the blow to come? "Fire Lord Ozai plans to remove all non-citizens from Fire Nation territory." "What do you mean, remove?" Toph asked, jerking her hand away. Mai swallowed hard.
"Exterminate."