A Kiss in Ba Sing Se

[A/N: This is an A/U story. Toph does feel inferior to Katara and so to compete for Aang's affections pulls out all the stops. Aang is a boy with near infinite power, but feelings of guilt and loss limit him emotionally. Finding his true heart's desire is proving difficult.

Disclaimer: I do not own any rights or titles to the characters of Avatar: The Last Airbender. Wholly owned by NICK!]

Chapter 3

Bridge

"D-do it?" Aang stuttered as he came to a hard stop. His face flushed so hotly he thought he could bend fire through it at that moment "Do what, Toph?"

She stopped as well. They were still holding hands as he just about jerked her backward. "Ow, why'd you stop Twinkle Toes?" she blared out delivering her infamous cross look.

He looked down at his feet. "Ah, Toph, uh, what did you mean by, eh, do it?" he asked pensively.

Toph rubbed her aching shoulder. "What do you expect you imbecile. Just what I said, talk! That's what I said, didn't I?" she yelled back at him.

"Oh... yeah... you did mention that too," he replied, rubbing the back of his neck with his free hand.

Toph's brow furled as she thought about his question. "Twinkle Toes, what were you thinking I meant by, do it?" she asked him directly. "Sheesh, I didn't know you had such a dirty mind Twinkle Toes. Does Sweetness realize this?" Toph asked as she leaned into his arm

The momentary soft cush of her breast shot through him like Azula's lightning. Aang didn't bother to answer that question, instead started down the path into the vast, treed park. His mind was already quite befuddled. The further they went, the larger the lump in his throat was getting. At times, he'd look behind them, as if someone was following.

Toph sensed he was on edge and probably thinking some rather impure thoughts about her. It was just the way she wanted it. Soon her opportunity would present itself if she could just be patient.

The quiet stroll was conjuring thoughts in the young nomad's mind. "Am I cheating on Katara already," he asked himself. "Is it 'really' wrong to hold my blind friend's hand while walking through a beautiful park, even if she is a... a very... eh, pretty girl?" The way he phrased the question, even to himself, was self-incriminating.

A half moon lit the sky with just enough light to outline Toph's soft features. Her small button nose and smooth cheeks The smell of the trees and flowers filled the crisp night air. This was an ideal romantic scene in the Avatar's mind. Even his paranoia faded with each step.

As they rounded a turn in the path, a bed of beautiful crimson moonflowers in full bloom caught his eye. Aang smiled as he recalled valley's filled with them at the Southern Air Temple.

This time he gently tugged at her hand. "Hold up Toph, let me get one of these," Aang requested, surveying the opened blossoms for the best one.

The blind girl stopped but didn't let go of his hand. "These what, Twinkle Toes?"

He bent over and picked up one of the large red flowers with his free hand. "Smell," the monk replied, placing it under her nose.

Toph took in a big whiff. "Mmm smells sweet... almost good enough to eat," she exclaimed with a tight grin. "What is it?"

Aang looked it over carefully for bugs. "A moonflower. Normally they only bloom under a full moon, but this field has bloomed under the half. According to Air Nomad Legend, it's a sign that true love will soon bloom as well."

If Toph felt like she needed a sign from above, she definitely had it now as she gently squeezed his hand. "Do you believe that's true, Twinkle Toes?" she asked, as the rush of red in her pale cheeks matched the petals of the moonflower.

He blushed as well, now thinking about their situation, and what he just said. "Uh, well... it is a legend... who knows? Some of them are true; others are just made up to impress young ladies, Master Gyatso once told me," Aang replied with a small grin.

Toph's hopes deflated slightly. "How, well, that makes sense."

She suddenly felt him touching her hair. Typically, she would have knocked him on his ass, but she allowed it this time.

Aang threaded the long stem of the flower through her thick hair until it rested behind her ear. "Wow, that looks perfect on you Toph," he exclaimed, admiring his handiwork.

Toph reached up and gently felt the soft petals of the scarlet bloom that sat nestled in her raven mane. "Thank you Twinkle Toes," she whispered.

Aang jaw dropped a bit at the thanks. "Hey, that was nothing Toph. I just thought, eh, you know, it looks really nice in your hair." Aang spoke softly.

His inside voice was screaming, however. "Wow! She 's so beautiful right now I can hardly talk," he thought as they continued down the earthen path. "Her hair, so soft; I just want to touch it more, but she'd probably deck me if I tried," he lamented inwardly. "Maybe she would let me," Aang reconsidered. "She's different tonight... what's happening? Is this some freaky magic?"

For the Toph, the hand holding was nice, but she liked the closer contact better as she wrapped around his arm once more. His forearm cradled snuggly between her breast and with each step, he knew she was female., very female.

"You okay Twinkle Toes?" she asked nonchalantly sensing his pulse rising

"Uh, yeah, sure I'm fine, I'm uh, fine Sifu... how about you?" Aang stammered as he looked at the position of his fortunate arm.

Toph raised her shoulders as her mounds pressed in on his arm. "Never better Twinkle Toes, I feel good," she replied, surprised at her boldness.

Between the moonflower, headband and her elegant gown, his heart was going all a flutter. "Was she always this pretty?"Aang asked himself, his eyes fixed on her. "Oh yeah, that night, when we talked in her parent's garden. I thought she was cute then! Just like when I saw her image in the swamp! By the Four Winds, I'm harder than granite right now," he admitted making sure his erection wasn't too visible even walking with a blind girl.

Toph turned her face towards him. "Hey, Twinkles... it's cool out here, but your body is feeling warmer," the petite earthbender commented as she shifted his arm deeper into her cleavage. "I don't mind the warmth, but what's up?"

Aang mind started to race. "Nothing Sifu, ah, nothing at all. I just thought you might be getting a little cold, is all, since you're not wearing a wrap. Do you like it?" he asked her, trying to sound nonchalant.

Toph nodded and smiled. "Yeah, it's nice and toasty. I wonder why we haven't done this before Twinkle Toes?" she asked, not believing she would say such a thing.

That question struck him like a gut punch. He gazed down at her. She felt like a vital part of him, so much more than just a friend. She had been more than a teacher to him for quite some time. Aang tried to ignore this feeling, trying not to be alone with her over in the past few weeks. Even now, he feared the possible consequences and if he could control his urges. This moment, all of his thoughts and desires were emerging, and she seemed to be welcoming, whatever they were.

"Dunno Sifu," he muttered wiping at the bead of sweat that appeared on his brow.

She knew he was lying, "Yeah, nice and toasty... thanks, Twinkle Toes. I hope my boobs aren't embarrassing you," she added, turning her face away.

"Uh, is my arm being there bothering you, Toph," he replied pensively as his eyes widened.

Toph added her other arm to the mix. "Why would it? I'm the one who put it there Twinkle Toes," she brazenly stated not looking his way. "I just didn't want to catch a chest cold."

With that, the pair fell silent, continuing the moonlit walk.

"Stupid, stupid, stupid," Toph cursed herself for bringing up their unique position. Aang had been content to play along, but now his walk felt stiff and unnatural.

As for the airbender, memories of nights the four of them slept out in the open resurrected. Aang would gaze upon his new teacher until he fell asleep. Sometimes he had to relieve the tension before he could get some rest. She always seemed to be nearest him when they slept like that.

Aang sighed as he continued to reminisce. "Funny, Katara you have always been approachable, I guess that why you're my first love, but Sifu, you set me on fire from the start!" he realized, recalling all the times he tossed off to her visage. That temptation was growing by the minute.

Toph suddenly released him, stepping away. "Ow, Twinkle Toes... hot... cool it down some or did you do that on purpose?" she inquired glowering at him.

Aang waved his hands in front of him. "Oops, sorry, don't know my own furnace," he apologized, placing her hand on his arm. "See, I brought it down for you." Aang so wanted to return to their previous position he was almost in a panic.

Toph placed the offered limb against her once more. "Hmm, okay Twinkle Toes, that's better a ton better," she commented with a satisfied grin.

This nuzzling was different than the last. Instead of being in the cleft of Toph's breast, Aang's arm laid directly across the nearest one. He knew it was impossible for her not to know or notice it. This reality was just like those dreams that Sokka said were normal for a young man his age but never happened for real. He pinched himself to make sure he wasn't dreaming.

"Comfy, Twinkle Toes?" she asked in a sultry voice that caught his attention.

He had only heard that tone in his favorite erotic dreams. "Yes, Toph, thank you for your concern," he replied flatly, unsure of how to respond. Walking through this fragrant garden, his arm riding her boob, just like the start of one of those forbidden dreams made his heart race like an eel-hound at full gallop.

"These are very dangerous thoughts. This soft breast, those rosy lips, and Toph's huge jade eyes, I think I'm falling," Aang warned himself. "Just don't look her way, and we can make it through this," he assured himself, as he began reciting mantras in his mind and remembering Katara's death gaze. "That's right, focus on Katara. Katara is your girlfriend now, " Aang thought as he took a deep breath in. The waterbender's face in his mind morphed into the vision of the giggling girl in the swamp. The same one he would imagine on her knees, servicing him. His attempted mediation definitely wasn't working, but he didn't want to move his arm either.

Toph was aware that Aang was going through some very personal conflict and she was the cause. She vacillated between modesty and lust herself as his forearm rubbed across her hardened nipple. This nagging feeling of guilt also dogged at her. She could almost hear the waterbender crying.

Toph quickly pushed the thought out of her mind. "At least I'll have this time with him, all to myself," she thought smugly recalling all the times Katara had pushed her way in between them. "No Sugar Queen to interfere tonight!"

Aang glanced over at her, despite his previous personal admonition as her face turned his direction, almost as if seeing him. The moonlight reflected off her clouded green eyes like smoky emeralds. The sight made his breath catch for a moment. Her beauty felt overpowering, and the thought of kissing Toph exploded in his mind. Even though he had shared a kiss with Katara earlier, it wasn't the epic, toe-curling experience he had hoped.

Toph flushed all the more as Aang's heart was pounding as if he had run 100 kilometers. She lightly licked her full lips just to moisten them, but for the young nomad, it was like meringue on an egg tart.

He forced himself to look away or else Aang would fall haplessly into those big green lipid pools generally hidden behind her long black bangs. "Wait a minute, when did Toph pull back her hair?" he asked himself. "Don't tell me, she likes me too!" he suddenly realized with a start. "B-but, she knows I love Katara. Why is she doing this when I love Katara?" he asked himself, even as he focused the intense feeling of her breast.

Toph was now aware of his rapid, shallow breathing. Aang felt powerless to turn and run. He knew he should, shouldn't he? Toph's pillow-soft boob trapped his arm like a vise.

Aang grimaced as he cleared his mind. "What am I doing? I love Katara, and now, she has shown she loves me too. Toph is just playing me. She figures it a win/win. She gets me to fall for her and then she'll make fun of me," he figured as his head bobbed slightly. "Of course I can't tell Katara any of this because I'm copping a really an incredible feel right now," he thought as drool escaped the corner of his lips. "I might as well enjoy this prank all the way through," he conceded with a mischevious smile.

Toph didn't know what to make of Aang's reaction now. Even though his heartbeat was still fast, it had settled into a steady rhythm. Where he was touching her felt electric, and she wanted so much more of him. Her own heart was beating so hard in her chest, she thought it would pop out. But she was determined to see this through, no matter the cost.

"Are we almost there Sifu?" Ang asked her unexpectedly.

Toph dropped her head. "It's just a litle further, up here to the right," she replied shyly.

"Okay, sounds good. It is a good night for a walk," he casually commented. "Are you're getting cold feet, Toph, you seem kind of quiet since we left uncle's place?"

The earthbender shook her head as her bangs dropped into her face once more.

Aang frowned at the lack of reaction from the one called the Blind Bandit. Normally, she would be all over the wordplay and move to plan B, if the first failed. "This isn't like you Sifu? Monkey feathers, what the heck is going on here?" he questioned himself.

Toph was too lost in her own thoughts to take notice of the young man's fluctuations. "What if he just tells me straight up, no way, no how? I can hear him now saying, let's just be friends," she dialogued in her mind. Toph sighed as she fought back the tears. "But what choice do you have, girl?" she asked herself. "You have to go head first, all in, like a true earthbender if you're going to find the truth! Haven't you already decided to go for this? Why are you acting like a lily-livered coward? Remember what uncle said, show him your bridge!"

"Is this the place Sifu?" Aang asked breaking into her revery as she let go of is arm finally.

The blind earthbender now focused outwardly on her environment. They were at an old tree with a low slung bough, perfect for the two of them to sit side-by-side.

She nodded. "Yep, this is the place. So, can we sit here and talk, Aang, or do you feel like you have to get back to Sugar Queen?"

Her voice had a severe quality he seldom heard, and the fact she called him by his name meant this was not a prank.

The earthbender jutted out a small rock mound that allowed her to hop up on the bough. Her feet couldn't touch the ground once she sat down. She patted the place beside her for him to sit.

Part of him said to start walking again; the other said stay. He paused for a moment and tried to read his friend's complex expression.

He stayed, floating up beside her. His toes could still scrape the ground.

Turning towards her, without a word, Aang hugged her tightly. "I don't know what's going on Toph, but whatever it is, I'm here for you," he promised into her ear.

It took her a moment to regain her thoughts after that unexpected and somewhat intimate move on the Avatar's part. Toph was shocked by what he had done. "Okay Aang, but, uh, I really need to tell you something important," she nervously exclaimed.

Before she could continue, Aang spoke up. "I love Katara, Toph," he proclaimed boldly, "I just want you to understand that. I know I was kind of touching your, eh, lady chest, when we were coming here, and I'm sorry," he apologized all too loudly. Aang understood that the declaration was more for him than her.

Toph covered her face with a hand. "Aang, don't you think after all these years I know how you feel about her! That's not what I need to talk about," she yelled in a breaking voice. "Please Aang, you just promised to be here for me, so be here, okay?"

"Okay," he quietly replied staring intensely at his petite friend.

Toph took a moment to compose herself. "Ah, Aang, this is difficult for me, talking about my feelings, but I have to tell you how I feel about you!" she expressed in a forced rush. "I have to show you my bridge!"

The young airbender's eyes popped wide open. "You want to show me your what?" Aang asked in confusion.

Toph shook her head vigorously. "Never mind, Aang, I said it wrong. It was something uncle said."

"So you have a bridge here Toph? Is it nearby?" he asked smiling in relief.

Toph clenched her teeth together. "Didn't I say forget about the earth-damned bridge, Twinkle Toes. I'm trying to be real and talk about my fucking feelings, okay? So no more bridges anything, you got that moron?"

"Uh... okay... but I do like bridges," Aang mumbled looking up into the clear night sky.

Toph gasped in exasperation. "Will you shut the Netherworld up about those stupid bridges!" she screamed. "For the last time, I don't own any bridges, and I'm sorry I even brought it up!"

They sat for a few minutes in silence before Aang spoke once more. "Okay, no bridges, just feelings, got it," he stated in a soothing tone.

Toph slowly made a fist and then released it at just the mention of bridges once more. It took a moment for her nerves to settle down as she organized her thoughts. "Okay Twinkle Toes, after almost dying out there on that battlefield, I realized that life was too short and that we don't have all the time in the world, even if we are young…"

Aang went to interject, but Toph raised her hand in protest. He fell silent. "Please, just let me finish. I'm not looking for any great spiritual enlightenment right now. So, please just not answer, unless I ask for one okay?"

"Okay," he simply replied, inclining his ear her way.

Toph tried to relax and once again get her act together. "Stay focused, you can do this," she encouraged herself.

Aang now just sat quietly, watching the small woman fidget and mumble to herself.

Finally, Toph let out a long exhale and began to speak. "As I stated before... when I was staring death in the face, the only voice I wanted to hear was your squeaky, broken, annoying one, Aang. The only arms I wanted to embrace me were those skinny sticks of yours, and yes the only kiss I want, even now Aang is yours," she exclaimed, sounding out of breath. Her face felt like it was glowing with embarrassment, but she was not going to stop. "Do you understand, that you freed me from a gilded cage? I was like some show weird bird that my family kept around because they felt they had too. But you Aang, you gave me a life and friends that have been closer to me than my own family? I love you Aang!" she shouted at the top of her longs.

Toph's cries gagged her voice as Aang saw each tear that rolled across her flushed cheeks, sparkling in the moonlight. It reminded him of the time in her father's house that he thought he would have to leave her. His heart skipped a beat as he started to process her confession.

"Sifu Toph…" he attempted to speak once more.

"Will you please let me finish Aang? You sure should take some lessons from…"

This time her words were cut off, not by an interruption, but by a passionate, lip pressing kiss that bent her head back.

Indeed, Aang turned and planted a deep, long, passionate kiss on her lips. It took but a second for her to understand what was going on, and another to respond in kind, and with like passion.

All the tension built up over the walk and even over the past years came together at this moment. They held each other as heaven and earth seemed to be spinning about the couple.

Toph was sure that if he had not been holding her up, she would have swooned from the intensity of the feeling. It was like nothing she had ever felt before.

"Wow!" was all the airbender could reply as he stared into her dazed face. This kiss was more than he anticipated. His toes were curled for sure, as they kissed once again.

Aang took the opportunity to kiss her tears away as well. Toph moved her head from side to side as he did, eyes closed with a huge smile, giggling.