Authors Note : I apologize for the long wait, as promised, this chapter is over twice as long as the previous chapters. I loved writing this one and i'm sure y'all will love it! Hope it's worth the wait. Please let me know if there's any typos!
"Hmm," Toph seemed to ponder, biting her lower lip as she thought to herself. "I don't know, should I?" she teased.
"Well you don't ha-"
"Of course I'll travel with you meathead!" she cut him off, giving him a punch to his upper arm.
"Really? Well, that's great!" Sokka exclaimed, thinking excitedly about how their adventure would be. It would be a rather long trip as well, quite a few days. Sokka knew what he was getting himself into. Toph would probably be cranky the whole time due to not being able to see very well on a boat.
"Well, I mean yea. I don't really like traveling alone since I can't really see the best on boats," Toph sighed, sitting down on the half-made bed. Sokka immediately noticed the change in her voice and expression. She didn't seem okay, something was wrong and he knew it.
"Hey, what's wrong? We can go the long away and travel by land as far as we can. You'll be able to see and chuck rocks at any bandits," he joked, rubbing the back of his head. It definitely would add onto their trip and Sokka knew he had to be back in Republic City soon. Sokka wasn't sure how much more it would add to the trip, he needed a map to examine. Although he knew it would at least add two or three days.
"You don't even know how to get to the boat port that's closest to the city," Toph snickered.
"What?! Yes I do!" Sokka retorted, scowling at her. "Lemme go get a map!" he announced as he left the room. The water tribes man cut straight across the hall and entered the room he stayed in. He still needed to clean up and pack his stuff but it was something he left to be done later. Sokka reached for his blue and white bag and dug in it. After a few seconds of ruffling he pulled out what appeared to be a map. "Finally," he mumbled to himself.
Sokka then searched the drawers on his nightstand, looking for a pen. He fortunately found one in the bottom drawer. He then turned to his map which laid on his bed. Sokka the began to mark lines on the map. It wasn't long until he put the pen down, grabbed his map and head for Toph's room.
"Okay, i'm back. I traced out a trail for us to ta-" Sokka was cut short when he looked up. Toph had her bed now completely made and she was packed. Her hair was fixed and her milky green eyes seemed to glow. 'Wow, she looks pretty' he thought to himself, not realizing his cheeks were growing pink.
"Uh, for us to what? Die?" Toph broke his thoughts.
"Sorry, but yea Toph, for us to perish and die," he chuckled. "It's the quickest boatless path I could map out. We pass over a few canals. So, we don't have to go to the boating port." Sokka explained as he laid out his map.
"Sokka, I'm blind. Remember?" Toph grumbled.
"Oh right. Here, turn around," Sokka said as he grabbed the earthbender's shoulders and turned her back to him. "I'm gonna draw it on your back," he explained. Sokka glanced at his map and back again at Toph's back. He touched a spot on the middle right of her back. "This is us now," he called out. Sokka then ran his finger along her back. "Here is a canal. Another is here, and Kong's river is here," he explained as his finger continued to move along her back. "We will then cut down to go around mountains and go left. By then we should be right outside the city if not in it," he finished, taking his finger off her back.
"Seems simple enough," Toph replied, turning to face her bags. "You should pack though meathead, I'm all ready to go," she grinned.
"Fine, fine, I'll go," Sokka rolled his eyes as he grabbed his map and left her room to go pack.
After about half an hour, Sokka had finally finished packing. It had taken him quite some time to pack. Once he finished he went to Toph's room to announce he was finished. Aang and Katara were fixing to leave and had been putting their bags on Appa. Toph and Sokka came out to say bye to them. The couple had plans to visit Katara's home and didn't have time to take Toph and Sokka to the city. The traveling pair, Toph and Sokka had left Iroh's house shortly after to start their long journey home.
"Stay close to me," Sokka whispered to Toph as they entered the lower circle. He kept his left hand on the hilt of his sword. Katara had bought him a new belt which carried his sword for him. Sokka liked it and wore it almost everywhere.
"I can see better than you. I'll know if someone is trying to mug us way before you will know," Toph replied as she shifted closer to Sokka.
They continued walking down the street, getting a couple of looks from the locals. Some expressions seemed to say "Hey, I know them" while some seemed to say "What are you doing here?" Sokka could feel his heart beating quicker than earlier. He was worried about being attacked. Ever since Aang defeated Ozai, the Gaang has been getting death threats from everywhere. His blue eyes glanced at every person they passed. He was cautious that they weren't gonna leap at him and Toph. Some of the locals were big and looked rather scary. Something then touched his hand which made Sokka jump. Looking down, he saw Toph's hand gripping his. She must've noticed an increase in his heart rate.
"We're fine Meathead," Toph whispered to him as she squeezed his hand. "If anyone attacks they won't realize they're attacking the greatest earth bender ever and the worlds best swordsman," she continued.
Sokka's cheeks turned pink and his face grew warm. 'Worlds best swordsman?' he thought to himself. Not only that, he couldn't help but notice how soft her hand felt against his. 'Wait, this isn't right, I'm with Suki,' Sokka reminded himself.
"I'm fine Toph," he replied as he pulled his hand away. "We gotta pick up the pace, the gate is right ahead," he said as he continued forward.
Fortunately they made it to the gate with no issues at all. If anything, they had a woman ask them for food or money. Sokka gave her a potato he had and some water tribe money. They got through the gate check point just fine. Ever since the war, people who left and arrived had to go through a check point to prove who they were. The large gate closed behind them as they stepped outside the city.
"See ya Ba Sing Se!" Sokka yelled,
waving at the giant wall. "Alrighty, let's see where to go," Sokka took his map from which was tucked under his belt.
"Wait Sokka," Toph rested her hand on his arm, stopping him. "I'm willing to take a boat, but only the shortest trip. I wanna shorten our trip but I don't wanna be on a boat for long," Toph explained.
"Are you sure?" Sokka asked, glancing at her hand on his arm.
"Positive, just keep me safe," she responded.
"Yea of course. Let's head toward the port then."
The two walked towards the large port. As they grew closer, Sokka could hear many people and Toph could see them. Sokka then felt her arms wrap around his right arm. He knew it was so they wouldn't get separated. With a crowd like this, Toph would probably get lost.
They were almost at the port now and already had to push past people. All around them people were yelling and shouting.
"Bread for sale!" a man yelled from Sokka's left.
"Earth bending lessons!" yelled another man somewhere in the crowd.
"Turtle ducks for sale!" called a woman behind them.
After pushing past what felt like a million people, they reached the vendor. Sokka looked at all the possible routes. There's were at least 10, maybe 20.
"Hello! I need two one-way tickets for route #7" Sokka said aloud as he pointed at a picture.
"That'll be 50 each," the man grumbled as he reached to grab tickets. Sokka reached into his pocket and handed the man 10 silver water tribe coins.
"Thanks," Sokka said before grabbing Toph and heading towards their boat. Once again, they had to shove past many people. It was easier this time and they quickly reached the boarding zone. Sokka showed the man their tickets who handed them a key with the room number 1540. Sokka led Toph onto the large dock and he felt her grip grow tighter on his arm.
"Please don't let go of me Soks," Toph whimpered. She wasn't able to see at all and had to completely rely on her best friend.
"Don't worry, I won't," he replied as he quickly made his way towards the boat. Sokka helped lead her up the ramp and get onto the boat. Fortunately, Toph was able to see some but it was very fuzzy due to the water. She let Sokka guide her as he walked down many halls.
"Here we are," Sokka spoke up after a long moment of silence. He used the key to unlock and open the room door. The room was small and only had a tiny couch, one bed, dresser and a door to a bathroom. "Uhh, great," Sokka groaned as Toph walked in.
"What? What's wrong?" Toph questioned said she stood in the middle of the room.
"There's only one bed," Sokka pointed to the bed. It had a gray comforter supported by dark brown wood. The bed was big enough for 2 people, maybe even 3. Sokka figured he could just take the couch and let Toph have the bed.
"We can share, it's not that big of a deal. If the bed is against the wall, I want the inside," she told Sokka.
"Oh.. okay. I'm not sure how Suki would feel about it though," Sokka scratched the back of his head, thinking about his girlfriend. They hadn't been talking much lately or even really seen each other. Suki was off on Kyoshi Island always and Sokka was always in Republic City.
"She'll understand Soks, nothing to worry about," she retorted.
"I guess so," he replied and began to unpack. Sokka then noticed a small sculpture sitting on the dresser. It was a small design of Aang and made of earth. "Hey, you think maybe you could earthbend this and stretch it over the floor? It might help you see," Sokka handed her the Aang sculpture.
"Let's see. Sit on the bed so your out of the way," Toph replied and began to earthbend the sculpture. She put it down by her feet and squished it flat. The small earth bender slowly began to stretch out her arms, spreading out the piece of earth. Slowly it covered the floor, going around the furnishings. The room was so small, she was nearly able to cover the entire floor. If someone were to walk in, it would've looked like the earth ate the ugly red carpet.
Meanwhile, Sokka watched in amazement, shocked really. He didn't think she was capable of doing it without really seeing the room. Although the room now looked like a zoo, he didn't care. As long as Toph could see, that was what he cared about.
"Nice job. Can I finish unpacking now?" Sokka teased as he stood up and grabbed his bag.
The rest of the day went by rather quickly, they had arrived on the boat a little after noon. For the rest of their evening, they unpacked, showered and ate. Sokka had went down to the boat's local kitchen and gotten dinner for them. By the time they finished eating it was dark out and Sokka was tired. Toph had climbed into bed before Sokka. He sat on the couch, reading a newspaper. Once he finished, he had started to take off his shirt until he remembered he would be sharing with Toph. Sokka found it difficult to sleep with a shirt on and hoped Toph wouldn't mind.
He climbed into bed beside her after cutting off the light. Toph then turned on her side to face him, her milky eyes open.
"Sokka?" Toph whispered, reach her hand out, searching for him.
"I'm here," he replied and touched her hand with his and drifted off into sleep.
The next 2 days were much like the first, except Sokka woke up to Toph being very close to him every morning. Each time he told himself "I'm with Suki". Yet he continued to share the bed with Toph who grew crankier each day. She was ready to get off the boat and so was Sokka.
So when the boat arrived at Kong's River Port, Toph was desperate to get off. The pair cleaned the room, got up the rocky floor and put the sheets on the ground to be cleaned.
Toph was relieved to feel the dirt against her toes once they got off.
"Ah! Land! Sweet land!" Toph exclaimed as she laid in the dirt, getting weird looks from the crowd. Meanwhile, Sokka looked around, trying to find something.
"Uh, Toph, I'm gonna introduce you to someone, that okay?" Sokka questioned, looking down at his friend.
"Sure Meathead, as long as it doesn't take forever, let's go!" Toph replied, reaching for Sokka's arm to guide her through the crowd. He pulled them through the crowd, pushing past more people. Eventually the clumps grew smaller and smaller and they were standing outside a wooden building. It was a large square shape with a long rectangle sticking out on both sides.
"The floor inside is stone, so let's go," Sokka told Toph. She let go of his arm, no longer worried about the crowd.
"Hello! How may I help you?" asked a petite woman behind a desk. Her hair was up in a messy pony tail and she wore a apron which had bits of hay on it.
"Pick up for Sokka ma'am. I paid earlier," Sokka replied, leaning on the desk.
"Okay! We will meet you right outside!" The lady responded and disappeared behind a door.
"Let's go Toph, you'll meet my friend outside," Sokka grinned and headed towards the door, followed by Toph.
"Sokka... you didn't-" Toph spoke the moment she stepped outside but was immediately cut off by Sokka.
"Oh, I did!" Sokka smirked. "Toph, I would like you to meet Sir Ozzy Hoster... the ostrich horse!" he announced as the lady cane around the corner with an Ostrich Horse. Almost immediately it walked up to Sokka, appearing excited to see its owner again.
"Ozzy Hoster?" Toph repeated, creating a confused expression.
"Yup! Hoster with an H! It's a mix of Horse and Ostrich!" he exclaimed overjoyed.
"I guess i'm gonna have to ride that thing?" she question, pointing in the opposite direction.
"Uh, yes! I got him last year," Sokka retorted as he turned her arm to point at Sir Ozzy.
"Fine... just don't kill me," Toph sighed.
Within a few minutes, Sokka helped Toph get up on his ostrich horse. He shoved his small blue bag into Sir Ozzy's saddle pouch and hopped onto the saddle.
"Im gonna have him walk at first, but you still might wanna grab onto me," Sokka turned to Toph who sat behind him.
"I'm sure i'll be fine," Toph lied. She was scared and she didn't wanna admit it. The last time she rode one of these was when she was 10 years old. It wasn't the best experience.
"Let's go Sir Ozzy," Sokka said and patted the ostrich horse's head. Immediately Sokka felt small arms wrap around his stomach and a head lay against his back. A sudden butterfly like feeling ran down Sokka's stomach and once again, his cheeks went pink. 'Why do I like this?' Sokka asked himself, confused about his feelings. He shook it off and looked ahead their path.
It didn't take long until the large buildings of Republic City grew closer. Toph had helped build some with her metal building and others she had taught. Eventually they reached the city and were riding on the busy streets. Sokka's eyes scanned the road signs for Toph's street. Sokka's city house wasn't far from Toph's and was a close walk. Sokka used the reins of Sir Ozzy to turn onto the street of Toph's house.
"Okay, were at your place," Sokka announced and stopped his ostrich horse right outside her house. Her house was made out of white stone with green rims and markings. Her house was small compared to Iroh's but it was enough for her.
"I'll help you off," Sokka spoke aloud and jumped off the ostrich horse. He grabbed Toph's hand and helped her slide off and grabbed her bag. The watertribes man grabbed Sir Ozzy's reins and leashed him onto a fence post. Sokka walked her to the front door and she used her metal bending to unlock it. She stopped in the doorway and turned to him.
"Thanks Soks, for everything," she thanked him. "It means a lot to me and it was fun." she chuckled.
"Yea, anytime! If you ever want a ride on Sir Ozzy, just let me know!" Sokka replied.
"I will," she paused. "Hey, can I tell you something?" she asked and took a step closer to him.
"Of course! You can tell me any-" he was cut off. Sokka felt soft, warm lips pressed against his. His blue eyes closed as he kissed her back and his hands wrapped around her back. He could feel both of her small hands on his face. She started to pull back but he pulled her close again for another kiss.
"Uhm, excuse me?" called a stern and familiar voice from the street.