Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender

Author's Note: This is Toph's point of view from City of Walls and Secrets, beginning from the point where Aang tells Katara she looks beautiful. That was my favorite scene of the episode!

Good Vibrations

Although Aang didn't specify which of them he thought looked beautiful, Toph has no doubt he meant Katara. Toph neither knows nor cares what she looks like, and she has even less interest in what Twinkle-toes thinks of her.

She's not the only one to make this assumption, either; Toph hears the faint noise as Sokka, ever the protective brother, gives the younger boy a warning flick on the side of the head, and she feels the Avatar recoil slightly. Toph suppresses a smile with practiced ease.

She hears a sharp intake of breath to her left and knows that Katara is about to respond to the compliment. Toph quickly places her fan over Katara's face, telling her not to speak to commoners. Technically, she supposes the Avatar should not be considered a commoner, but it's the principle of the thing.

Toph feels like she ought to help Sokka restrain these two where she can. In addition to wanting to please him, for reasons she still doesn't fully understand, she doesn't find the thought of the couple getting suddenly lovey-dovey very appetizing. She and Katara turn to go, Katara tossing instructions to the boys as they leave.

Of course, Toph has known something was between Aang and Katara almost from the day she met them. She reads voices the way others read books, and the things that they didn't say to each other rang even more loudly than what they did, at least to her sensitive ears. In a way, it is a relief to have it all out in the open now. She senses that even Sokka, despite his pretense of disapproval, is not particularly surprised.

Toph may not know much about destiny, or about love, but she does understand vibrations. When Aang and Katara hug each other – which she's always felt they do much more often than is really necessary – they join so completely that her earthbending sense can no longer distinguish them. It is as though they take the unique parts of themselves and blend them into an entirely new creation, one single entity.

Their vibrations complement each other perfectly, and Toph recognizes that this harmony was meant to be.

Author's Note: Hey, I'm taking my Kataang where I can get it. I suppose it's possible that Sokka was just taking advantage of Aang's distraction to get back at him for earlier, but the timing of the action had a sort of "Stop looking at my sister that way" feel to it. Who knew a disembodied hand could express so much:)