A/N: This story must be over a year old. I wrote it back in the beginning of last year in response to a writing prompt my English teacher gave to our class. It was originally posted as part of a collection of ATLA oneshots, which I took down because I wasn't satisfied with the way I wrote them. =/
This, however, was probably my favorite out of the six that I wrote, which is why I decided to reupload it. That, and because I'm also a huge fan of the Toko ship (or just Toph and Zuko in general). xD
...I'm not sure if I would call this Toko though. To be honest, I'm not even sure of what to categorize it. Fluff? Not really. Angst (which I am oh-so-famous for writing ;P)? Nope. Just a little scenario - a what if? Toph had met Zuko in prison before he joined the gang oneshot. Takes place sometime at the beginning of Season 3. I realize that the ending is a bit abrupt, but then again, this isn't my best piece of writing.
Try to enjoy (if you can get pass the awkwardness ;P).
Prompt #6: Not So Different
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"Oww!" The young Earthbender yelled out in pain as she was roughly thrown into a cell - a metal one. Her backside hit the unyielding floor with a loud thump.
The bars rattled shut and a locked clicked, leaving her trapped in darkness. Not that it made any difference to her anyway.
A figure dressed in regal robes of dark red paced outside of the cell. "I've finally got you, you troublesome little girl. Now all I have to do is capture the Avatar and I've got the whole irritating gang right under my control…leaving me free to take control of the Earth Kingdom!" she gloated, dissolving into a fit of deranged laughter.
"No you won't! Aang will defeat you and the Firelord by himself! He won't need to come here and rescue us! He won't fall for that trap!" the girl in the cell yelled confidently.
The woman narrowed her hazel eyes. "Oh? Don't be too sure, little Earth bender. I'll make sure the Avatar does come…and when he does, I'll be ready for him."
"…not if I can help it," came the muttered response from inside the dark prison.
The Fire bender smiled maliciously. Grabbing hold of two of the iron cell bars, she stuck her head inside and whispered, "I don't think so, Toph. You behave yourself…or you'll be sorry."
A blue fire burst flew by Toph's head, missing it by mere centimeters. "You know what'll happen if you don't listen to me." With that, the woman walked out of the prison room, slamming the heavy door shut behind her.
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Hours and hours passed on end. Although she couldn't see, Toph could feel that she was alone in the vast, dark prison. How long have I been in here?
She worriedly wondered where Azula was keeping the other members of the team – the Sugar Queen and Snoozles – and hoped the two of them hadn't managed to get themselves into too much trouble. She would hate it if she had to miss out on a fight.
She tried feeling for her friends' vibrations, but she couldn't sense anything. It didn't help that she was trapped in a metal cell. Toph then attempted to pry apart the bars that were imprisoning her. They didn't budge. "…So I guess I can't bend my way out of this…" she muttered.
"No, but if you behave, I might just let you go," came a boy's voice.
Toph gave a startled gasp. "Who's that? How long have you been here? I didn't hear you come in!"
A husky laugh sounded. "I've been here ever since my sister left. She was so busy threatening you that she didn't notice when I slipped in and hid. How unlike her…" the boy muttered, trailing off.
He's been in here that long?! How is it that I haven't sensed his presence? Toph wondered how she could have been so preoccupied that she hadn't noticed she wasn't alone. She was usually alert to the smallest intruding vibration. The interloper's voice was masculine, so that ruled the Fire Princess out. The guards, then? No, there weren't any in here with her. Besides, this voice sounded too young to belong to the towering, bulky men patrolling outside.
So who was it that had been accompanying her? It had to be someone who could slip past the guards without raising suspicion… Recognition then hit Toph as soon as the intruder mentioned his 'sister'. "Wait, I remember your voice now…you were there when Azula was trying to capture Aang, when we had her cornered and she hit your uncle… It's Prince Zuko, right? You were banished from the Fire Nation?"
She smiled when she sensed the Fire Prince's bitter embarrassment. She had hit a nerve.
"Now, I wonder why you were exiled…by your own father, no less. What did you do, Zuzu? Your rotten attitude piss him off enough to banish you?" she streamed out, enjoying the feel of his inner turmoil immensely.
Two shaky hands clenched around the iron bars of her cell. "Why you little…talk about a rotten attitude! It's none of your business why I was banished by my delusional father! Keep your mouth shut or I won't help you get out of there!" Zuko spat at the Earth bender.
Toph frowned stubbornly. "Do I look stupid to you? Why are you really here?"
It was Zuko's turn to frown. "I just told you!"
"And what makes you think I would want your help?" Toph shot back, unperturbed.
Zuko sighed in frustration. "Fine, if you don't need me, I'll go now. You have fun staying here while your friend falls into my sister's trap." He released his grip on the bars and slowly turned to leave.
Knowing she had nothing to lose, Toph suspiciously stretched out her hand through the iron bars, resting it on the dirt ground. She closed her eyes, trying to sense his vibrations to tell whether or not he was lying.
He wasn't.
"Hey, wait! Don't go! … I, uh, need your help," she reluctantly called out, embarrassed, giving in.
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"So…tell me why you're helping me."
Toph was out of the cell, sitting comfortably on the floor next to Zuko. She could feel a warm glow by the side of her head; she figured it was fire that Zuko was controlling. He seemed to have calmed down. But as soon as she asked her question, she felt his tension build up again.
"I -- … I, uh….I don't think my sister is doing the right thing, you know, with keeping you and your friends captive here to lure in the Avatar," Zuko started uncomfortably. "I wasted too long chasing after him. And I've finally figured out what the right thing to do is… I guess you could say that I'm on your side."
"You're lying." The whisper floated out of Toph's mouth. Her hand was on the ground again.
Zuko's eyes widened. "No I'm not! I am on your side, you can trust me! I'm here, aren't I? I got you out of that cell, didn't I? I haven't done anything to harm you, have I?"
Toph shook her head. "No, you're not lying about that. I know you're here to help….you're not telling the full truth for something else," she said, fixing her green eyes on Zuko's face, making him break out in a nervous sweat.
Zuko muttered something incomprehensible, averting his gaze from her unnerving, although sightless, stare.
Raising an eyebrow at his refusal to answer, Toph persisted, "….Perhaps you're lying about why you're helping me?"
"No I'm not!" Zuko yelled, abruptly rising. His rash action made the ball of fire by Toph's head suddenly flare up.
She backed away from the flame in remote fear. "Watch it, will you? You want to burn the side of my face or something?!"
Zuko flinched, instinctively putting his hand up to the scar seared onto his own face. He roughly turned away from Toph, muttering a barely audible "sorry".
Toph paused, sensing Zuko's overwhelming shame.
Something I said, maybe?
"Hey," she called, slightly confused. "I'm sorry about that. I'm okay, really."
Zuko sighed and looked at Toph, as if he wanted to say something. After a long, uncomfortable pause, he spoke. "It's not okay…I -- … Ishouldbemorecareful," he rushed out, unused to apologizing. "And, the reason I'm helping you…"
"Yeah?" Toph asked, all the more curious.
"-- is because…" Zuko scratched his head. "Well, we're not as different as you might think we are."
Toph blinked in confusion. "And what's that supposed to mean?"
"Uh, well…" Zuko tried to explain. "I've heard things from Uncle. Your parents…my parents…they have something in common, don't you think?"
Taking a moment to consider that, Toph then stood up and folded her arms. "Let me get this straight. The reason you're turning your back against your sister – your nation, for that matter – is because our parentsdidn't understand us? Because they didn't believe in our abilities as Benders...?"
"Yes, that's the basic idea."
"…Don't you think that's kind of brash?"
"What?" Zuko asked. He thought Toph had understood.
"I mean, you hardly know me, and I hardly know you," the Earthbender stated in a matter-of-fact voice. "Why should you be prepared to throw everything away because of a few common factors in our lives? I highly doubt I'm that important to you."
Her words led the Fire Prince to flush a deep red. Toph broke off, once again sensing that her would-be rescuer was heating up. "What, did I say something wrong?" she said innocently. For once, she had been trying to speak rationally, instead of resorting to the usual sarcasm that filled up her conversation. So much for her effort…
Zuko was quick to argue, blurting out a "No!" to reassure the young Bender. If only she realized what she seemed to be insinuating… which was certainly not the reason he was helping her. "Look," he said, holding the bridge of his nose and trying to calm his thoughts. "I sympathize with you. Uncle helped me realize that I'm not the only one who wants to be accepted by the ones we love. He taught me that I should stop acting like the center of the world, because there are others who feel just as lost as I do. Once I knew that someone else experienced what I did, I felt a little better about myself."
Toph would never admit it, but she was glad the Fire Prince was opening up to her. Who would've guessed he actually had feelings? Instead of inserting a snide comment as she might have done earlier on, she let Zuko continue with his explanation. She liked how he seemed to be carefully choosing his words, as if trying not to say something remotely offensive. I should try that sometime…
"Like I said before, I don't agree with my sister anymore – I know what I need to do, and that's help the Avatar defeat my father," Zuko said determinedly. "I can teach him how to firebend. I… I'd like to join your group," he finished, glancing in Toph's direction to see how she would react.
Her face betrayed no sign of surprise, nor did she give any hint of resentment. She only curled her lips up in the smallest of smiles and said simply, "You'll have to talk to Aang about that."
Zuko smiled in relief. He was sure the Avatar would accept him; after all, where else would he find a firebending teacher? "Thanks, Toph."
"No problem, Sparky," Toph returned. "And thanks for opening up to me before. It sort of makes me feel better to know I have something in common with you. No offense, but I've always thought you were a bit of a loser – until now."
"…Uh, you're welcome?" Zuko's smile faltered.
Toph let out a short laugh. "Don't worry. Once you join the group, you'll get used to my way of talking." She turned away for a moment, pausing.
Suddenly, a wave of earth was sent flying towards Zuko. Unprepared, he was pinned on the spot. "What –"
"Now listen to me, Firebender," Toph warned, cutting off Zuko's confused protests. "You're helping me get out of here, right? You're helping me find my friends and stop your sister, you hear me? Maybe, just maybe, then Aang will let you join our group."
"O-of course," he said, writhing under the strong weight of the stones.
"Good. Oh, and… If you ever tell anyone what I said just before, I will personally bury you alive. Got it?"
Zuko nodded his head. "Got it."
Toph smirked, satisfied, and freed Zuko.
The prince rubbed his sore arms, dazed from her sudden attack. Honestly, he couldn't figure this Earthbender out sometimes. He wasn't surprised at the power of the young Earthbender before him; Uncle had told him just as much. What did confuse him were her sudden mood changes – so similar to his unreadable temper. No doubt about it – the Earthbender was a hard one to comprehend… as was he. "Not so different, are we?" Zuko said, offering a weak smile.
"Not so different," Toph agreed, punching Zuko lightly on his shoulder. "Now let's get out of here, shall we?"