Disclaimer: Yeah I still own nothing but the idea!
Here's the update, just like I promised.
Sorry about the cliffhanger, but I like being dramatic.
And to answer mystery guest's question, the reason the sandbenders took Appa was probably because they want money. I mean how often do you see a ten ton flying bison? That's gotta bring in some cash.
Anyway read on and let me know what you think!
The surprise was evident on the firebender's face. Out of all the possible questions, he did not expect this one. The prince put a hand to his chin, trying to think of all the mercenaries he knew of.
"Well, what did the guy look like?" Aang's eyes closed, almost as though he was picturing the man in his head.
"He was tall, had black hair and a red tattoo on the side of his neck." Golden eyes widened as he came up with the only person to match that description.
"Are you sure?" The monk nodded solemnly, noting the frantic gleam in the teenager's eye. It was as though the older boy actually feared the man he had described. Aang's face fell as he took in the other's reaction. "That sounds like a man I only heard stories about." The scarred teen sunk onto his bed, thinking carefully about his next words. "They called him The Phoenix. He's a legend, formerly an army general; One that led many different conquests against the water tribes. He retired at the age of thirty with great accomplishments. After that he became a bounty hunter. He took every job, whether it was killing a king or kidnapping a peasant. He did it all. My uncle told me he killed someone of importance and it led to his banishment." This was a surprising turn of events. Though, that couldn't be the same person who attacked Toph.
"But the man who attacked her was not as skilled as all that. Toph beat him with hardly any trouble." Zuko shrugged slightly.
"Who would go after Toph anyway? You're the bigger bounty anyway. Even I am a bigger bounty." The airbender thought on it.
"This man, he was the best bounty hunter in the fire nation, right?" Messy brown hair shifted at the teen nodded. "What if he's after all three of us?" Both minds were sent reeling at this new information. The boy's felt the cold grip of impending doom surrounding them.
"Why would he be after Toph?" Zuko questioned, his expression disbelieving. The young monk shrugged slightly.
"She was The Runaway. She's helping the Avatar?" Neither of those choices seemed reason enough for a warrant to be out for the small earthbender. Light steps began to echo in the small room as Aang paced, his mind trying to think of ways to defeat this new foe. Down the hall the small earthbender was discussing the same thing with Katara.
"I don't know who would attack you, Toph. I could ask Zuko, he's a firebender." Misty green eyes rolled at the comment and the teenager dreaded what would come out of the usually sassy girl's mouth.
"I'm sure you and Zuko can discuss a lot. You two seem to have gotten over the complete and utter hatred thing you had going for a while." Unbeknownst to the waterbender, a petite foot touched the ground, reading her heartbeat and watching closely for any signs of change. There was a small increase, but nothing too major.
"Well. It's not right to blame him for something he didn't do. He gives me hope for the Fire nation." Once again sightless eyes rolled at the comment. She knew well how Sugar Queen was with hope.
"So much hope it makes you want to tearbend?" The trademark Blind Bandit smirk spread across her face as the waterbender's expression fell. The tan girl stammered awkwardly before scoffing. "Relax Sweetness, I'm only kidding. But really, anything happening between you and Sparky?" She already knew the answer of course, but hearing it confirmed would prove how right she was. The heartbeat next to her began to accelerate.
"W-why would you say something like that? I mean just because we spend time together. Pssssh, we're friends! He and I just get along now, that's all." An awkward smile spread across Katara's face; surely she didn't think that was a good lie.
"I can tell you're lying." Blue eyes widened and her head dropped.
"Fine I like Zuko, happy now?" The triumphant gleam in the blind girl's eyes quickly dissipated as she picked up another vibration. Judging by the way the form had moved into the room without her knowledge meant it could be only one person. Aang. "Where's the 'I told you so'? Why aren't you dancing and screaming to everyone how right you were?" The water tribe teenager obviously hadn't sensed the new presence in the room. She followed Toph's nod, surprised to see Aang standing at the doorway. He looked like he was about ready to run for his life. In an act that shocked the small earthbender he stepped further into the awkward atmosphere of the room.
"Hi, did I interrupt something?" Both girls averted their eyes, the brunette sporting a bright pink blush. Gray eyes shifted between the pair, one eyebrow quirked at the oddness they seemed to be displaying. He had obviously heard judging by the way his heart was beating.
"Well Toph and I were talking about girly things." Bright blue eyes looked up to level with gray. They seemed to be in a standoff of sorts.
"You mean, you were talking about Zuko." His voice must have had an edge to it because the waterbender flinched. Toph sunk into her bed, wanting to be out of this room. Not much could make her uncomfortable, but a break up for a relationship that never started was just an awkward encounter.
"Erm, yes. Toph just wanted to prove she was right, like always." Maybe the earthbender could straighten out this mess? With a smirk, Toph stretched out on the bed, hands behind her head. Katara and Aang both looked over at her.
"That's right, Sugar Queen can't keep a secret to save her life." The waterbender in question glared at the girl on the bed, looking extremely offended.
"Hey! You can read pulses, that is cheating!" Aang watched as the two began their face off with a small grin.
"W-well, psssh, I don't like him." She snorted and made many random noises, the type Katara typically makes. "We're friends. Yeah that's it! Hope! Tearbending!" The blind girl took delight in the frown she knew the healer was currently making. "Gee, with grace like that, I had no idea you were lying just by listening." The blue clad girl clenched her fists and stood, her eyebrow twitching in annoyance.
"Well some of us aren't made of stone, mudslug!" An angry finger pointed at the injured figure on the bed. "I like him, so what?" And with that sentence, the awkward feeling from before filled the room. The airbender looked like he wanted to fly away, the waterbender looked like she was ready to kill and the earthbender was completely neutral.
"Calm down Katara, she's just messing with you." The brunette scoffed and glared at the monk, the kind of look that used to rip his heart out. He was pleased to notice the feeling was not as strong as it was before.
"You're taking her side? You know how obnoxious she can be! Why am I not allowed to get angry?" The nomad simply took in the girl's posture. He remembered seeing her like this before.
"Katara, can we go talk?" Misty eyes shot open in surprise to that statement. He foot discreetly lowered to the ground, surprised to feel that Aang's heart was calm, almost knowing. His voice had twanged with a feeling she wasn't used to hearing in his light speech. He sounded almost, sympathetic? That couldn't be right. The black haired girl shook her head as the two walked out of her room. She wanted to know what they were going to discuss. They were right outside the door. Making as little noise as possible, Toph snuck over to the door, pressing her ear against it.
"Katara, you're not mad at Toph." The teenager scoffed, pacing up and down the hall. "You're mad at yourself." The rushing figure finally stopped and the earthbender leaned closer into the door.
"Why would I be?" Came the oddly defiant voice of the waterbender.
"You feel guilty." Ever the tranquil monk, Aang kept his voice even and controlled. He said it knowingly, yet subtly enough to make Katara think about it. For a brief moment Toph wished she had the ability to be right and not cause everyone to get annoyed but she quickly brushed this thought off. It would make life too boring.
"I do. Aang, I know you heard us talking from before… About Zuko and how I feel about him." Brown hair moved over her face as she looked down, seemingly disgusted with herself. The lithe form simply nodded, knowing full well there was no use to lie. "I'm sorry I told you I was confused at the theater. I just didn't want you to find out before you fought the Firelord. You already have too much to deal with, without me adding onto it." Aang slightly nodded, he wasn't angry. He could never stay angry at Katara, he was just hurt.
"You were the first person I saw after I got out of the iceberg. It's only natural that I wanted to be with you. You were there through it all. You were there for me." The monk held a small smile as he spoke to the blushing teenager. "Perhaps I mistook friendship love for romantic love. Maybe I just wanted someone and you were the only person I saw." The taller girl nodded, she understood his need to talk about this with her.
"Aang, I do love you. Just not the way you wanted me to. I'll always be here for you." The boy smiled slightly in response as the waterbender hugged him. It used to make his heart leap, now it just left him feeling content. His arms circled her waist. This isn't so bad. And it wasn't, things would be just like they were before, he was sure of it. Toph quickly scrambled from the door and fell back onto the bed, looking bored with life as the duo walked back into the room.
"I'm sorry for snapping at you Toph." The girl simply waved it off, lounging on the bed. Sightless eyes looked up towards the pair, curiosity written on the girl's face.
"What did you come in here for Twinkletoes?" The boy in question's smile fell and he nervously rubbed at his neck.
"I think I know who that guy is who attacked you." Katara's eyes widened and the look on Toph's face said it all. Get out, it's my turn to have a chat with the airhead. The waterbender quickly shuffled out of the room and out of Toph's 'sight'. "First off, is there anyone who might have sent him after you?" The girl lowered her head, she hadn't told the group about how she had run away from her family. Looking almost frightened, the girl nodded at the monk.
"I have something I need to tell you." Her quiet voice was a large contrast to the magnanimous sound it usually had. He quickly sat next to her, intent on listening to the whole story as she sat up on the bed. She seemed tense, almost like she thought he would get angry by what she was about to tell him.
"Toph, whatever it is I'm here for you." Aang added a gentle pat on the top of her hand to emphasize his point.
"My father didn't let me come with you." The airbender tilted his head, wondering what on earth had happened. "In fact, he forbade me to leave or even go outside. That night I packed and jumped out the window. I didn't even think about a guard seeing me, but one did. They all tried to catch me, but it was kid stuff compared to Earth Rumble. It was easy to dodge their attempts, but my mom's voice was harder to ignore. She was crying and begging me to come back. My father was yelling commands, trying to prevent me from escaping. At the time I felt alive, like I was untouchable." Her smile quickly fell and was replaced by a melancholy expression. Aang carefully, as if afraid, moved his hand to rest on top of hers. He was surprised that she even let him touch her and when she interlaced their fingers he wondered if someone had replaced Toph. But nevertheless he grasped her hand in return, offering silent support. He tried his best to focus on the story and not the jolt he got from touching her. "Now I just feel, sad. My mother was heartbroken. I never thought about how much it affected them to have their twelve year old blind daughter run away into the night. Even if she is the world's greatest earthbender, it's gotta be tough." The boy scrutinized her pause, wondering if he should say something.
"Well, you're with the Avatar so that has to make them proud. I know it doesn't do much to help but I'm glad you ran away. It led you to me." Pale cheeks flushed at his admission and a small smile spread across both of their faces. "Anyway, keep going. I don't think you're parents sent that man to attack you." A humorless laugh erupted from the small girl as she remembered the guys her parents did send.
"Well maybe not directly. They did send out my earthbending teacher and the Earth Rumble Six announcer guy. That's how I learned metalbending. Those two imbeciles thought they could take me. Before I left I let them know I was the greatest earthbender in the world. If they ever got out of that cage, I'm sure they would come after me again. My parents offered quite a reward. The man who attacked me knew my parents had sent people after me, in fact he said my parents sent him. Though he was lying, I think there is still some truth there. I think the two that attacked me before got some help. But what does it matter? I beat the ninny." The airbender chuckled at her boldness.
"I asked Zuko about the man who attacked you." Suddenly she moved her hand not being held by Aang up to his face, feeling his soft skin before rising up to his bald head. His cheeks flared at the sudden touch and how intimate it seemed. "What are you doing?"
"I thought someone had replaced you with Sugar Queen. She said the exact same thing. If you have a crush on Sparky that only proves it" The monk laughed at the serious look on Toph's face. Slowly a grin spread across hers as well and her hand dropped back down to her side.
"If it's who Zuko says, he's an infamous bounty hunter named The Phoenix." The girl snorted and rolled her eyes.
"Nothing about the way that guy fought seemed like an infamous bounty hunter." Aang agreed, shaking his head slightly. It didn't seem very likely, but he would do anything to make sure his earthbender didn't get hurt again. He glanced down at their still interlocked fingers and smiled brightly. Perhaps getting injured wasn't all bad.