Toph woke the next morning with her head tucked under Aang's chin. She could get used to this.

She groaned softly, stretching her legs a bit before burrowing deeper into Aang's chest. It was only when she felt said chest move slightly from laughter that she sleepily realized he was awake.

But of course he was, he always woke up earlier than her.

"Good morning, Shrimp." Aang's deep voice was like honey over velvet in the morning. It definitely made her feel a little more awake… (Yes, she could certainly get used to waking up like this.)

Toph sighed, loving the feeling of his fingers running through her hair. She wanted to be closer to him. She hitched her leg over his hip and squeezed herself near to his chest, burying her face into his neck. "If you keep brushing my hair like that I'm going back to sleep."

His hand flexed against her hip. Aang's voice was strained as he answered, "If you keep pressing yourself against me like that I'm going to have a problem."

She was confused for a moment before she realized his 'problem'. Her heart jumped in excitement- it was flattering that he reacted to her nearness.

"Oh? What kind of problem?" She grinned against his neck. (Oh spirits, was she flirting with her husband? This was exciting.)

"Toph-" His strangled voice started to reprimand her teasing before a knock on the door interrupted him.

"Lady Toph? May I enter?" Song's voice rang out.

Toph sighed in defeat and disentangled herself from Aang as she sat up. She giggled when he refused to let go of her waist until she playfully swatted at his hands.

What horrid timing; she was sure they were about to continue what happened between them last night. "Enter."

"Good morning." Song smiled as she entered. "Lady Toph, will you need assistance dressing, or does Lord Beifong assist you?"

Toph blinked owlishly at her. Lord Beifong? Did she mean Aang? Toph answered, "Uh, no. I'll require your assistance, Song."

Aang sighed heavily. "I'm going to shower while you get dressed then."

Toph tried not to pout as he got out of the bed. She hadn't gotten to fully enjoy waking up with him. And really… She just wanted to kiss him again. To make sure she wasn't dreaming.

As soon as the bathroom door was shut, Song dropped her formality and teased, "You seem upset. Hope I wasn't interrupting anything.."

"Well you did." Toph pouted fully now as she rose from the bed.

"My apologies." She didn't sound sorry at all. "But breakfast is at 9 on the dot, you know."

Toph waved her hand. "Yeah, yeah. Let's just get in another torture device of a dress for the day, shall we?"

Song helped her into the many layers of a dress and gossiped with her. "You seem happy. I'm glad, I know you weren't very excited to get married."

Toph let her mouth tilt up in a fond smile as she thought of her husband. "I wasn't. But… Aang is the sweetest man I've ever met. He's so fun and he makes me laugh. I like being with him… I think I'm…"

I think I've fallen in love with him.

She trailed off, not sure why she was being so gushy.

"Do you love him?" Song asked quietly, brushing Toph's long hair into a fancy updo.

Toph sighed as heat clawed at her cheeks. She whispered, "I think I might."

"Well, then you are lucky.. I am happy for you, Lady Toph." Song squeezed her shoulders affectionately.

Soon enough, Toph was dressed with her hair perfect and Song had long since left Toph alone for her other duties. Eventually Aang stepped out of the bathroom ready for the day.

Aang threw his used clothes in his bag. He went to stand beside Toph, noticing she was messing with something on her dresser. "What's that?"

Toph turned and held out a large rock the size of both her hands. "It's jade. I found it in a cave when I ran away as a little girl once. It's my favorite rock."

He traced his fingers over the green stone. "You ran away?"

"Yeah, when I was eight or nine maybe. My parents wouldn't let me learn bending. I had a bit of a temper tantrum and ran away. It was actually… kind of scary." Toph rubbed her arm and shrugged. "I got lost in a cave and just sat there and cried because I thought they would never find me."

"How did you get out?" Aang asked softly.

Toph smiled, "Actually, a badger mole found me."

Aang gasped, "What? Those are dangerous!"

"No, not really. They're blind, like me. So we both kind of startled each other. But then it just licked my face and started walking, and I followed it. I noticed how it bended the rocks out of its way, and I copied. And eventually, the badger mole took me all the way out of the cave."

"Wow." Aang blinked. He didn't know badger moles could be… nice.

Toph held up her rock. "I took one of the rocks with me just as a momento. From when I learned earth bending from a badger mole."

"That is incredible... And I'm glad you got out safely."

She laughed, "Yeah me too. But dealing with my parents afterwards wasn't fun."

"I can imagine." He chuckled.

Toph contemplated the rock for a moment before she put it in her bag. It was a treasure to her, she wanted to take it with her.

Aang smiled softly at her. "Ready for breakfast then?"

"Sure, Lord Beifong."

He groaned and tilted his head back. "I don't think I'm going to get used to that." Toph giggled at him as he continued, "That's what your father wanted last night. To tell me that since we had married, and I didn't have a surname, I get yours. And then I learned a little Beifong history."

"That must have been torturous. I would know, I had the same lessons growing up." Toph put a hand on her hip. "But I have to admit… Aang Beifong sounds pretty good to me."

"Toph and Aang Beifong… it does have a nice ring to it." Aang threw an arm over her shoulder as they left the room. She smiled and pressed herself closer to him.

Her parents were just sitting down as they entered the dining room. They were served breakfast- Toph realized that Aang's cooking was better. She decided not to point that out to her parents.

"So, when do you plan on returning to the temple?" Poppy asked politely.

Toph shrugged, leaning her head on Aang's shoulder as servants cleared their dishes. "We aren't in any hurry."

She noticed Aang's shoulder was a bit tense- was he uncomfortable? When he spoke, his voice was also a bit strained, "I'm sure we will start travelling in a few days. But yes, no hurry at all."

Her parents didn't notice these small tells, and glossed over to a new conversation. But it struck Toph as odd, and she planned to get to the bottom of it later.

"How about a walk in the gardens before you prepare to head out?" Lao suggested.

Her parents walked ahead of them, quietly admiring their massive garden as Toph and Aang trailed behind them. Aang reached out and took her hand, swinging it gently between them. Toph felt like she was walking on air. (How was it possible that he could make her feel so light and so free, just by being next to her?)

She was unsurprised when they came out to the other side and there were servants setting up a table for tea and pai sho. 'Just a walk' was always an event.

Aang was talked into playing a game against her father, so Toph sat at the table with her mother. They both enjoyed watching Aang beat Lao easily.

One of the servants brought out a radio- a stereotype product from the Fire Nation that played music. Aang was absolutely amazed, he'd never seen such a thing.

With the music playing a happy tune, Aang practically flew to Toph's side. "Dance with me, Toph!"

She raised an eyebrow as a smile pulled at her lips, "This is hardly a ballroom-"

"So what? Come on!" He pleaded. She rolled her eyes fondly and put her hand in his, allowing him to pull her up from her chair. She faintly remembered all the times they had danced together in ballrooms, always so prim and proper. The dance Aang was leading her in now was anything but.

He was messy, too bouncy and hyper, but still in sync with the tune as he twirled her around unceremoniously. Toph couldn't help but shriek with laughter as the spinning made her dizzy.

"No I'm- haha- Aang! I'm too dizzy, stop!"

He eventually did stop twirling, and they both giggled as their feet stumbled, the earth still spinning around them. She rested her cheek on his chest. "If I puke on you it's your fault."

"I know how to fix this. We have to spin the opposite way!"

"Aang, no!" Toph laughed as he lifted her to twirl again. This wasn't even dancing at this point.

Surprisingly, twirling the other way actually did help balance her out. She still punched Aang's arm though.

Poppy giggled and called out to them, "Come here Tophie, I'll fix your hair."

Toph sat back against her mother's legs as she braided her hair. "You and Aang seem to get along swimmingly."

She flushed, "Yes, he's…" Toph didn't know what adjective to use. The best? "He makes me very happy."

"I can tell." Poppy tied off her hair and kissed her head. "It was a good match. I'm glad."

As Poppy fixed Toph's hair, Aang and Lao sat down for another game of Pai Sho. Lao smiled at Aang as the young man studied the board. "I've never heard my daughter laugh so much before. Thank you."

Aang looked up, surprised. "Really? She laughs all the time."

"Because of you." Lao pointed to him. Aang rubbed the back of his neck, smiling shyly as he shrugged.

Lao continued, "She seems very happy, thank you for treating her well."

"Of course." Aang turned to stare at her. "She deserves to be treated well."

Her father cursed softly as he inspected the tiles. "It seems I've lost again."

Toph and Poppy laughed as they strolled closer. "Showing my old man up, Aang?"

Aang grinned at her, "My father and I play Pai Sho almost daily. I'm pretty good at it."

She rolled her eyes, "You show off." She held her hand out to him. "You ready to go back to the inn?"

After some long drawn out goodbyes, they eventually left the Beifong estate and (by the insistence of her father) took a carriage ride back to the inn.

They carried their bags in, quite exhausted from the visit. Toph slowly unpacked her bag, considering taking a long nap. A thought occurred to her and she turned to her husband as he unpacked his own bag. "Aang?"

He hummed in acknowledgement.

"Will you…" She hesitated. "Will you share the bed with me from now on?"

After a long pause, Aang answered slowly, "Only if you want me to."

"I do."

She heard him walk towards her, and then she felt a soft pressure on her cheek- a kiss. Aang pulled away, "Well then I will."

Toph tried not to blush too hard. "Okay."

"Okay." Aang smiled. "I'm going to go out for bending practice, want to come?"

She considered it before shaking her head. "Too tired. I'd rather nap."

Aang snorted, "Of course."

Toph threw one of her shoes at him as he retreated out the door. She turned back to finish unpacking her suitcase. Her hand landed on the jade stone and she picked it up. An idea was forming in her mind...


End Notes:

Thoughts? Comments? Concerns? (Be nice pls)