Chapter 2: Girl Time
Rated T, Takes place sometime after chapter 1 Earthquake (for the first section) and Chapter 31 Exhaustion (second section) in Change the World
Prompt from DjpaigeDJ: Maybe you can include a certain monthly thing for Maddison and Katara seeing as they are girls.
Well here it is Djpaige, I hope you like it.
Maddi
It wasn't to long after I lost the 'cast' on my arm that my body began giving me not so subtile signs that my time of month was approaching. My 'warning signs' often came only a day or so before my actual period so I had no time to loose. Nervously, I approached Kanna as some of the other women headed out to gather the snow needed for the day. My face red and hot in embarrassment. Kanna took one look at my anxious expression and thick blush before sighing.
"Come here Maddison, I'll show you what you need." I nodded and trotted after the elderly woman, face still burning. You're being stupid girl, I berated myself as we crossed the village to an igloo, its part of life nothing to be embarrassed about.
Kanna ducked into the igloo and I followed her, dropping down to all fours to crawl through the small opening. Pushing the heavy animal skin aside I crawled in and stood, watching as Kanna went diving through her medical remedies. Finally she turned, a thick wad of bandages in her hands. She then handed them to me. I stared at the bandages, baffled by them and looked up at Kanna, a pleading look in my eyes. Kanna sighed.
"I don't know how the earthkingdom women do this but I suppose I'll have to show you." My face, which had just begun to return to its normal colour changed colour to match a firetruck. I stuttered out something unintelligent and turned even more red. Kanna meanwhile was looking at me like I was a child who had shown off and got hurt because of it. Sceptical and without a hint of pity.
"Take off your clothes." Head bowed in humiliation I did as I was told. Kanna spared my dignity by handing me the clothes, her eyes fixed firmly to mine and instructed me on how to put the bandages on. I followed orders without question, the fire in my face slowly smouldering into non-existence. It was strange how paranoid I was about my body compared to the women here in the South Pole. They didn't seem to care about seeing each other naked or talking about things that would make most north americans uncomfortable. I was pretty sure that I had seen two of the women comparing breast sizes before they put their clothes on after bathing.
The bandages formed a belt with a thick padding to wrap around and under. It felt like I was wearing some kind of diaper but I understood the practicality of it. It didn't mean I had to like it though.
It was late at night when I was woken up by a quiet plaintive tone. Somehow all my friends know I was the lightest sleeper in the group so I would often wake up when they had nightmares, problems sleeping or midnight snacks. It got to the point where they didn't even bother to be really quiet since unlike me, everyone else slept like the dead. Still I wasn't often woken by a hand on my shoulder and a voice asking for me.
"Maddi? Maddi, wake up." I blinked and sat up with a sigh, turning I found myself face to face with Toph.
"Toph?" I asked incredulous. Nothing woke Toph in the middle of the night. She didn't have nightmares like any of us yet and she wasn't the type to just get up in the middle of the night either. This was way out of character.
"What's wrong?" Toph's pale face turned red in the cheeks, she was a pretty blusher not like me. When I blushed my entire face matched a firetruck.
"I need to talk to you... alone."
"Sure." I replied, completely confused. What was going on with Toph, why was she acting so weird? Toph led me away into the forest until she was comfortable with the distance between us and everyone else. Then she turned, face to the ground. Hiding her face behind her thick bangs.
"I'm... I'm scared." Confusion bubbled from within me. What was happening?
"What's wrong?" I asked, was Toph having nightmares? She hadn't experienced anyone dying, she had no reason unless it was just a regular nightmare. For the first time in my life I felt myself long for the nightmares when I was a girl. They didn't involve people who I had killed.
"I'm... I'm bleeding." Alarm flared through me. I needed to know if she was hurt.
"Where! Toph tell me." Face still blushing prettily, Toph pointed. I blinked then it hit me. Toph was twelve years old. The same age I had been when I started. I couldn't help it, the smallest chuckle passed through my lips. Instantly Toph was on the defence.
"It's not funny!"
"You're right, it isn't. I'm sorry Toph... Didn't your mom ever tell you about this? Your the right age. My mom talked to me when I was... oh I don't know... eight or nine I guess."
"No, talk to me about... this is normal?" The sheer disgust, incredulous tone and wrinkle in her nose almost sent me laughing again.
"Yes, sadly. It means that your..." I took a deep breath. Was I going to have to go into the entire talk with Toph? Katara had known since she was old enough to comprehend where babies came from and apparently it wasn't to long after she had started bending. I guess when you're a family of four sharing one tent things like that aren't really kept a secret.
"It means that your body is maturing and that you're starting to become a woman... Toph the bleeding means that you're able to have children. It's something that every woman goes through. It starts at different ages depending on the girl but the average is twelve and it goes on until you're an old woman."
"Babies?" I sighed and started explaining. I found myself using the same terms my mother had. I explained it all as straightforward as I could. I didn't use animals or plants I used actual humans and bodies to explain. I could feel a blush creeping up over my own face but I kept going. Toph needed to know this, it was part of life for a woman and there was no way that she could avoid it. After I was finished Toph just stood there, gobsmacked before finally stating.
"I don't want to be a girl anymore."
This time I did laugh.
