Sometime the next day Toph and Ren stopped for a quick break. They had been walking since breaking camp the previous evening and it was time for another rest. Toph was keenly aware that every stop they made effectively lengthened their journey to Ba Sing Se, but it couldn't be helped. The road to the capital was long and treacherous and if they were going to make it there in any kind of shape for a fight they would need to periodically rest. It was annoying because Toph just wanted to reach the city where they would be better protected from Azula's raiders, but she couldn't push the pace too much or they would burn themselves out before they even reached Ba Sing Se. And so, they stopped, both of them aware that an attack could come at any time.

The break did give Toph a chance to tackle another issue that had been bugging her since she'd left her cave, which was, how were they even going to reach Ba Sing Se from their current location? Omashu was on the exact opposite side of the continent from Ba Sing Se and between them lay the vast expanse of the Si Wong Desert, not to mention several large bodies of water that would not be easy to cross. Toph had made the journey before, but that had been before the war when there had been boats to cross the water and she'd had Appa to carry her across the desert. She'd also had Aang, Katara, and Sokka to watch her back, which had made things decidedly easier. Not that Ren wasn't a good ally, it was just that Ren had never made this journey before and therefore lacked the knowledge of the terrain that would make the journey easier.

So the question remained, how would they get to Ba Sing Se? The most obvious answer was to take the Serpent's Pass, a narrow strip of land that connected the southern half of the Earth Kingdom to the northern half. However Toph was less than enthusiastic to use the pass, as it was a dangerous road to take and was guarded by a massive serpent, from which the pass had gotten its name. Toph had made the journey across the pass on her first trip to Ba Sing Se and had had nearly drowned while making the crossing thanks to the serpent. But it occurred to her then that the serpent may no longer be alive, so perhaps taking the Serpent's Pass wouldn't be as bad as she was thinking it would be. The pass was the quickest rout to Ba Sing Se after all, so maybe it was worth the risk. Still, Toph decided to ask Ren what she thought before making any decisions.

"Hey Ren, let me ask you something." she said, once they had found a comfortable and shady place to rest.

"Let me hear it." Ren said, with a curious glance at Toph.

"What do you know about the Serpent's Pass?" Toph asked, her sightless gaze staring off into the distance.

"I've never heard of it." Ren said. "Why do you ask?"

"Well, because it's the most direct rout to Ba Sing Se and I was just wondering if you knew anything about it." Toph answered, grinning.

"Okay, what aren't you telling me?" Ren asked, instantly suspicious.

"Nothing." Toph said, her tone innocent. "I'm just curious is all."

"Yeah, that's a great story and all, except you already know I'm from the Fire Nation and therefore unfamiliar with Earth Kingdom geography." Ren said. "Which leads me to believe that there's something you're not telling me about this Serpent's Pass."

"Alright, you caught me." Toph muttered, rolling her eyes. "There is something I'm not telling you about the pass, but you're not gonna like it."

"Ha! I knew you were lying!" Ren cried. "And what do you mean I won't like it?"

"Well, here's the thing." Toph said, speaking with more confidence than she felt. "The pass is guarded by a giant serpent, which is how it got its name."

"Well that's terrific." Ren muttered. "The pass is guarded by a giant serpent and you were actually considering using it, weren't you?"

"I was actually." Toph confirmed, her blank gaze now focused on the ground.

"Are you crazy?" Ren asked. "You want to go to a place guarded by a giant serpent? I knew there was something wrong with you."

"It's not that I want to go there." Toph said, choosing to ignore Ren's comments. "It's more like we don't really have another choice. Serpent's Pass is the most direct rout to Ba Sing Se and if we want to get there, then we're going to have to take this risk."

"Wait, wait, hold on a minute." Ren said, holding her hands up in protest. "You said it's the most direct rout to Ba Sing Se, but that implies it's not the only one, right?"

"Technically there are other routs." Toph conceded. "There are boats that cross the lakes on either side of the pass, but..." She trailed off, struck by a sudden thought. What if the boats still existed? She doubted they did, but there was always a chance.

"But what?" Ren asked, her amber colored eyes flashing with annoyance.

"But there is no guarantee that those boats even still exist." Toph said, continuing her previous sentence as she hadn't been interrupted. "It's likely they were destroyed during the war to prevent people from escaping from Ba Sing Se."

"But there is also a possibility they weren't, right?" Ren asked, her tone hopeful.

"There is a possibility, but I wouldn't risk it." Toph answered. "Because even if the boats weren't all destroyed there is a greater chance that they are being watched by Azula's raiders than the pass, because no one liked using the pass before the war, so why would anyone want to use it now?"

"I don't know, maybe because they're not crazy like you." Ren snapped.

"That's the second time today you've called me crazy and I'm telling you now, I will kick your ass if you do it again." Toph snapped.

"I'll stop calling you crazy when you stop acting crazy." Ren muttered. "I am not walking into a pass guarded by-" Her sentence abruptly cut off as Toph slammed a pillar of stone into her, knock Ren onto her back. Before Ren could even think to react, Toph had her hands and feet trapped and was standing over her preventing Ren from getting up.

"Hey, what the hell are you doing?" Ren shouted. "Let me up!"

"Shut up." Toph snapped, her tone venomous. "I told you not to call me crazy and this is what you get for failing to listen. Now, we're going to go through the Serpent's Pass and there's nothing you can do about it, understand?"

Reluctantly Ren nodded, though she still felt less than enthusiastic about this plan. She had no desire to deal with a giant serpent, but Toph seemed determined to go through the pass and Ren didn't want to start any unnecessary arguments.

"Good." Toph said, releasing the stone bonds on Ren's wrists and ankles. "I know the pass seems like an unpleasant place, but at this moment it's the quickest and safest rout to the capital. We can sneak in undetected and avoid a long, boring journey through the Si Wong Desert, unless you want to spend days trudging through a barren wasteland?"

"No, I don't want to do that." Ren said, though some part of her would have preferred that to getting eaten by a giant serpent.

"I didn't think so." Toph said, trying not to sound pleased with herself. "Like I said, the pass is our safest bet at the moment and besides, the serpent may not be there anymore. It's been a long time since I last journeyed across that pass."

"Wait, you've taken the Serpent's Pass before?" Ren asked. "When did you do that?"

"The first time I visited Ba Sing Se." Toph answered.

"You've been to Ba Sing Se before?" Ren asked, honestly amazed, all of her anger disappearing.

"Yes. Ten years ago." Toph answered. "And then again during the war with Azula."

"I thought you were in Omashu during the war." Ren said, confused.

"I was, but I was in Ba Sing Se first." Toph replied. "I was deployed to Omashu later in the war to help try and hold the city."

Ren nodded, seeming to understand. "Why did you come to Ba Sing Se the first time?" she asked, genuinely curious.

"I was traveling with Avatar Aang." Toph answered. "We were hoping to get the support of Earth King Kuei for the impending end of the Hundred Years War, but things ended up going badly. Azula invaded and eventually took the city, forcing us to come up with a new plan."

"Well, this time you won't fail." Ren said. "I'll make sure of that. This time you'll win and we'll find your friends and stop Azula."

Toph nodded, appreciating Ren's words. "Thanks for that Ren." she said. "And sorry for lashing out at you earlier."

"It's okay." Ren said. "I crossed a line and I'm sorry for that. You're not crazy Toph. You're brave and tough and a truly good person, and no one can ever take that away from you."

Toph didn't know quite how to respond to that. She had spent so much of her life being told that she couldn't do things that it had been a blessing to meet people like Aang, Katara, and Sokka who saw her for who she truly was. And then she had lost them, leaving her without anyone to support her true self. But she seemed to have found someone to do that again in Ren and she felt herself hoping that nothing bad ever happened to Ren so she would never be alone again.

"Thank you Ren." she said again, smiling this time. "I really appreciate that. It means a lot to have you on this journey with me."

"I'm glad I could be of service." Ren said, smiling as well. "And again, I'm sorry for acting like a bitch earlier."

"Forget about it." Toph said. "It's in the past. Besides, it can't all be easy on the road to the capital. We're entering dangerous territory and there's bound to be some conflict along the way. But that's what makes it fun. Well that, and the hope that we'll eventually make the world a better place."

Ren nodded and they set off again, neither of them aware of just how true Toph's words were. For unknown forces were lurking in the shadows and they would soon find out just how hard the road to the capital and victory really are.

A/N: Well, there you go. The journey to Ba Sing Se had begun. Sorry I took so long to get this up. I've been slightly distracted by other things, specifically A Foundation Called Family and the original story I'm writing for . Also, sorry this is so short, but I got all needed to say out in fewer words than I thought I'd need. Anyway, the next wait shouldn't be quite so long and the next chapter should be longer, so thanks for being patient and I hope you enjoyed.