Several hours after reuniting with Ren, Toph stopped for a rest, exhaustion washing over her once again. Her mind was still buzzing with questions about where her relationship with Ren now stood and she needed a few moments to finally let her thoughts settle. Truthfully she was already fairly certain she knew where the relationship stood, but there were still questions that needed answering. Specifically there was the question of how to broach the subject to Ren. Toph was fairly certain Ren had already dropped hints, but she was unsure how she should take those hints. Did they mean what she thought they meant? Was Ren really interested in her in that way? And if she wasn't, what would happen if Toph brought the subject up? Would the result be the complete destruction of their relationship? Or would something else happen all together? Toph had no answers and until she asked Ren she was certain she never would.

For her part Ren had begun to notice Toph's distraction and she was beginning to get worried about her friend. "Is everything okay Toph?" she asked, with a quick glance in Toph's direction.

"Yeah, everything is fine." Toph replied, though her tone was less than convincing.

"Are you sure?" Ren asked, her tone concerned. "You seem a little distracted and I just want to make sure you're not having second thoughts."

"I told you, I'm fine." Toph said, trying not to sound irritated. "Just let me rest for a few minutes and we'll be on our way."

"Okay." Ren said. "But if you need to talk, I'm here. And if something is bothering you then you should really let me know."

"I'M FINE, DAMN IT!" Toph snapped, her irritation finally boiling over. "Now leave me alone, before I'm forced to do something I'll regret."

Ren stared at her, shocked by Toph's outburst, pain and fear crossing her face. "I was only trying to help." she said. "Sorry if I upset you." With that, she turned and walked away, though she wasn't quite fast enough to prevent Toph from hearing her sob.

"Ren wait I..." Toph began, before trailing off as she realized her mistake. "Damn it." She turned then and walked to a large rock that sat maybe twenty feet from their campsite.

Sighing, Toph climbed to the top of the rock and sat, her mind buzzing with a whole new set of questions. She hadn't meant to startle Ren like that, but Ren had been annoying her and she didn't like that, especially when she was trying to think. Still, she supposed she could have handled the situation better than she had. It was just that the feelings stirring within her were relatively new and she needed time to sort them out, and Ren asking her if she was okay wasn't helping with that. But she knew she could have been a bit nicer and it would be awhile before she would forgive herself for that outburst. Now was not the time to go creating problems between her and Ren, especially since they had just gotten back together. But until the question of their relationship was answered Toph sensed things were going to be a bit strained. She wondered why that was, but supposed it had something to do with the fact that she'd never really been in a romantic relationship before.

That's not entirely true though, is it Toph, her inner voice asked. It was a strange question, but the more Toph thought about it, the more she realized it was a valid one. This wasn't the first time she had felt a romantic attraction to someone, nor was it the first time she had contemplated a relationship. She'd had feelings for Sokka at one point, though she'd never told him and she had given up on that idea when it had become clear that Sokka was in love with Suki. There had also been times when she'd felt some sort of attraction to both Aang and Zuko, though she'd never seriously considered pursuing either of them. And then there had been Lu, who had kissed her just days before he was killed by Azula's raiders. But Toph had been disgusted by that interaction and had never felt any sort of attraction towards Lu, despite what Ming had told her about that night. Still, it was obvious that these current feelings weren't foreign to her, though the idea of romantic love still was.

She wished then that she had someone else to talk to about this before she confronted Ren. Katara would have been her first choice, though she would have taken Suki, Mai, Ty Lee, even Penga, just to have someone to talk to. But Katara would have been her first choice as she, of all of them, had the most stable romantic relationship and Toph was certain Katara could give her the answers she was seeking. But a meeting with Katara was an impossibility now and even if it could happen Toph wasn't certain how much help it would actually be. She knew Katara could help her, but there was one aspect of her current situation that she was certain she would have to figure out on her own.

That aspect, which was the most frustrating part of this whole thing, was the fact that all of Toph's previous romantic feelings and interactions had been with guys. She was certain that this particular aspect was beyond even Katara's ability to help, as her current feelings were for another girl. Katara had only been in relationships with guys, a fact that held true for Mai, Suki, Ty Lee, and every other woman Toph could think of. So she was left to try and figure that aspect out on her own, with the knowledge that even if her friends had been there she couldn't turn to them for help. Toph normally wasn't one to go looking for help, but in this particular case she found herself wishing for aid more than she ever had in her life. But she knew the aid would not come, no matter how hard she wished for it and she realized this was one problem she would have to tackle alone, whether she wanted to or not.

As that realization hit her she leaped from the rock, her mind now clear. She knew what she wanted and she knew she had to get it now before it was too late. If she waited any longer she risked losing Ren for good and that was something she could not do, for she had never felt an attraction to another person like the one she was feeling now. Now, all she had to do was find Ren.

"Ren?" she called, as she made her way back to their campsite. "Ren, you still here?"

Only silence greeted her and for a moment Toph felt her heart constrict. What if her harsh words had sent Ren running off and something had happened to her? She shook her head, pushing those thoughts away. She would not allow herself to even contemplate the possibility that something had happened to Ren.

"Ren, come on." she called. "Look, I'm sorry for snapping at you earlier. It won't happen again. Just come out so we can talk."

The sound of movement on the opposite side of the campsite drew her attention and Toph activated her seismic sense to gain a better picture of source of the sound. To her relief it turned out to be Ren, who was standing by a tree, her arms wrapped around her, as though she had been trying to comfort herself.

"Ren." Toph said. "Thank the gods you're okay. I thought you'd wandered off and gotten hurt or captured."

"Oh really?" Ren asked. "And would you have really cared if I had?" There was a bitterness to her voice that made Toph flinch, though it did not sound like Ren was mad enough to attack.

"Yes, I would have cared." Toph answered. "More than you know."

"Why did you yell at me then?" Ren asked, her tone losing some of its bitterness.

"I didn't mean to." Toph said. "I was trying to think and you...look, it doesn't matter okay? I shouldn't have done it and I'm sorry. It won't happen again, I promise."

"What were you thinking about?" Ren asked, her tone now curious.

"Our relationship." Toph answered. "And how it's changed."

"How it's changed?" Ren repeated, turning the statement into a question. "I don't understand Toph. What are you trying to say?"

"Remember the quote I mentioned to you earlier?" Toph asked. "To see with sightless eyes, rely on the eyes of the heart? Do you remember that?"

"Yes." Ren answered, even more confused than she had been.

"Well, I did that." Toph said. "I used my inner sight to examine the truth of our relationship and you know what I discovered?"

"What?" Ren asked. "What did you discover?"

"That our relationship is no accident." Toph answered. "We met each other for a reason. I'm not sure what that reason is yet, but I know there is one. And our relationship goes deeper than just friendship. We are meant to be together. I don't know how or why, but we are and I want to find out exactly what that means."

"So, what are you saying exactly?" Ren asked. "Are you telling me you love me?"

"Yes." Toph answered, her heart racing. And then, without really knowing what she was doing she leaned in and kissed Ren on the lips. The feeling of completeness was overwhelming and Toph felt Ren surrender to it for just a second before she pulled away.

"What is it?" Toph asked, still dazed from the kiss. "What's wrong?"

"It...it's nothing." Ren said. "I'm just trying to process what just happened, is all."

"And, what is your heart telling you?" Toph asked.

"That you're right." Ren answered. "We are meant to be together. That this isn't all just some kind of strange dream. That I love you too." She smiled then and though Toph could not see it she had the feeling that she was looking at the most beautiful smile in the world.

Before she could comment however Ren had pulled her into a tight embrace, their lips pressing together again, this time with a passion so furious that Toph barely had time to draw breath before she and Ren were engulfed in the fires of love. Toph's hands moved to Ren's back, her fingers digging into the fabric of Ren's shirt, while Ren moaned with pleasure. Toph's mind was overcome with a brilliant euphoria and all other things ceased to be. Ren's lips were soft against hers and Toph felt an intense desire to make this moment last forever. She knew it wouldn't, but she would do everything in her power to make it last as long as possible.

Toph and Ren would remain wrapped in each others embrace for more than an hour before Ren finally pulled away. For a moment they both sat, gasping for air and then Toph asked, "Why'd you stop?" Her sightless gaze was fixed on Ren's face, as though she was trying to force her physical eyes to see the woman she had just made love with.

"I just...I just needed a break." Ren said, her voice an exhausted gasp. "And I think we should take things a little more slowly."

"Okay. If that's what you want, then that's what we'll do." Toph said, though she sounded like she wanted more.

"There's no need to sound disappointed Toph." Ren said. "We can go again, if you'd like."

Toph smiled and before she could speak Ren was on her like a wild animal. Toph smiled again, her fingers reaching to trace the jagged scars on Ren's back, glad they were still surrounded by the sweet flames of passion and love.

A/N: And that's chapter 15. Sorry it took so long (writer's block and all that) and sorry it's so short (took less words than I thought it would to describe what I wanted to). Anyway, yes, I have made Toph a lesbian (and obviously Ren as well). This is what I meant when I said there would be some interesting moments between them in the summary of this story. If you don't like that I made this decision, feel free to stop reading. Otherwise, please don't make a big deal about it. This was a decision I felt was necessary for the story and I will not change it. Sorry if that upsets some people, but that's life. Deal with it. That said, I hope you enjoyed the chapter and I encourage you to keep reading, as things are going to get really fun as we move towards the end of this story.