"It's beautiful…" Sokka breathed. They were standing on a high ledge, overlooking a wonderful valley with a winding river, which was golden in the waning sunlight.
"I wouldn't know…" Toph yawned, and scratched her cheek absently. Sokka cringed, smacked himself in the head and then grabbed her hand. He turned towards her. They were very close. If this was a K it would be a K by now. Toph felt her body temperature rise ever so slightly. Sokka felt some- second thoughts, this is only a T. I'll leave that one out. Plus it's not in my nature to squeeze the lemon, so to speak.
"Sorry," He groaned, "Every time... I always forget. I guess it's because you see more than seeing people can actually see, you see..."
"I see."
"Toph…?"
She sighed, and tried hard not to break his fingers.
"Sorry, Sokka, thirty six hours aren't up yet." She couldn't quite keep the irritated edge out of her tone. He didn't even notice.
His shoulders slumped, and looked out at the view with unseeing eyes, the beauty of the valley forgotten. Toph smiled up at him, trying not to laugh at his goofy attitude. The truth was, she had already made up her mind, and held a decision in her metaphorical hand that she was quite content with. Watching- Feeling, I guess- him act like this was quite enjoyable; she liked to keep the suspense. She was a master of dramatic techniques.
"You know, I was never planning to go wrestling." Sokka admitted.
"Really? I was looking forward to it myself." Toph lied, glad that Sokka hadn't eaten for quiet a while, so his instincts weren't fully fuelled to catch her out.
"I was planning to take us out on a romantic walk all along." Sokka told her, squeezing her hand and shuffling ever so closer.
"You know, I have around two hours lef-"
Too late, they were smooching. Toph couldn't stop her heart rate from picking up, nor could she stop the adrenalin rushing through her. She didn't seem to be completely conscious either…
Because the cartoon character body requires oxygen, they broke apart and both turned bright red at the awkwardness of the situation.
"Toph, you've gotta tell me it's a yes." Sokka breathed, still holding her hand.
"What do you mean, I gotta?" Toph demanded with superiority.
"Well I just might explode otherwise!"
Toph heaved a sigh and folded her arms. Sokka clung on to her hand, so he was kind of caught up in it as well.
"Fine." She spat. "My decision is-"
"HEEEEEEELLLLLLLLP!"
Now who could that be?
Sokka turned round and stared at where the noise had come from, and saw many strange cross-species of birds scattering into the air from the exact spot. Toph concentrated on the vibrations from that area with mild interest. Of course that interest picked up when she realized that-
"Nothing's there." She said, frowning.
"Huh?"
"Nothing's there." She repeated, "There's nothing of importance anyway. Just something that feels like a little rabbit…"
"A rabbit?" Sokka shrieked, "Those things are evil! What if it ate Katara and Aang and Cari and our FOOD!" He gasped, "Not the FOOD!"
"Sokka…" Toph began, but decided she'd be wasting our breath, "Hmm…I wonder what was screaming?"
"Perhaps we should check it out…" Sokka mumbled, feeling a bit tired, and the sun had set, leaving everything in a shadow that would only grow heavier.
"Let's go then." Toph agreed.
"…You know this is all your fault, right, Katara?"
"…Wh-AT?!"
"Guys, please…this isn't really the right situation." Aang pleaded.
"Oh, I know. That's why I'm stirring." Cari told Aang happily, her voice slightly muffled as she was pressed up against his shoulder in the tight circumstances, "Y'see, if I can fuel Katara up to pre-menstrual with stress and maybe a comment about her weight then mibbe her chronic rage could bust us out of here."
"CARI!"
"Can I help yooou?" Cari simpered.
"You make me sound like Godzilla!" Katara practically shrieked.
Cari grasped this opportunity, a smirk blooming across her face.
"Oh, well about that…if you don't want people to liken you to the beast that is Godzilla, perhaps you should do something about your nails? And maybe your hair- it's a little…prehistoric." She chose her words extremely carefully, to gain the right results.
"Je-hu-hhhrrrrnnnnggggggg…" Katara growled, squirming this way and that, growing steadily redder, as if she had ants in her prehistoric pants.
"Oh and that Zuko guy? Why is it that every time he's brought up you grow bright red and quickly excuse yourself?"
"I…d-d-don't." Katara gritted out.
"Mmhm?" Cari said sweetly, her brown eyes shining, "Also, have I ever told you that when you get mad, you're a little bit like a fire bender on Momo-juice."
"YOU-WON'T-MAKE-ME-MAD." Katara told her, beads of sweat standing out on her forehead, her teeth almost ground to dust and her eyes glowing alarmingly.
"Sweetie, you've gone to mad and back already." Cari simpered, grinning widely at her.
"NAAAAAAARRRRRGGGGGHHHHHH! HEEELP! GET! ME! OUT! OF! HERE!"
You'll be surprised to find out that this wasn't actually Katara that shrieked these words. It was none other than God's Gift to the four nations, Aang. He clutched at the ties of the net, trying desperately to work out means of string-bending, his eyes wide with terror.
"Aang?" Both girls said in unison.
"This net," Aang panted, "Cannot hold both you guys. Not when you start arguing. I'll die in here- I'll die! The world needs me theUniverse needs me!"
"No need to get so egotistical." Cari remarked, raising an eyebrow, "I'm winding her up to get us out of this damned net."
"Why are we evenhere?" Katara demanded, deciding to join in with Aang's distraught attitude.
"For a noble reason!" Cari declared, "To bring two of our great friends together in love, and hopefully, holy, holy Matrimony! Now it may seem crazy, but we are doing this for them."
There was a silence; Aang stopped trying to chew his way through the net. Katara stopped trying to put the hair that she'd pulled out back on her scalp in a way that looked like it was still attached.
"You're right." Katara sighed, "This is crazy. You've got us in this mess with the stupid plan of capturing them in a net together. Does it seem like a good idea now, Cari? You matchsticks chewing IDIOT?"
"Yep." Cari said stubbornly, "It would have brought them together."
"Not emotionally." Aang pointed out, "You think too literally, Cari. Just forcing them in a net together wouldn't make them want to marry each other." And here it comes, an Avatar-Inspired speech, copyrighted by Nickelodeon, "Love is just something that happens. You cannot force it, fake it, or push it along. With love, patience and acceptance is required, not schemes and meat."
"…No forcing, faking or pushing? No schemes or meat?" Cari snorted, "Hey, Avatar- how do you think I got all my boyfriends? With love and patience?" She said in a baby voice, "Hell no!"
"You didn't get them with your personality, either." Katara snorted.
Cari raised an unashamed eyebrow, "Didn't say I did." She replied calmly. Katara twitched. Would she ever piss off that girl unless she hit her? This by the way wasn't something she was planning to do EVER unless she had about five hundred people surrounding her who were actually on her side. Second thoughts, a thousand people.
"It's alright in any case." Cari said, snuggling down next to a comfy piece of meat meant to lure Sokka, "If our plan worked, then Sokka and Toph are on their way to what would have been the trap."
Silence.
"What if it hasn't worked? What if they decided to go on a romantic walk instead?" Aang asked, having too much faith in the power of romance over someone like Sokka.
"…Sokka? Choosing a nice little walk over wrestling?" Katara asked, and for the first time for an hour or so since they had set up the net together, she and Cari laughed at the same joke, for the same reason. But it was still because the joke was at someone else's expense, so not much progress there on the 'Gee, we hope Cari will become a good person!' aspirations.
"Hey, look, it'sthem!" Came a wonderfully familiar and sweet voice.
"TOPH!!!" They screamed in unison.
"Trusty boomerang," Sokka thundered dramatically, drawing his sad little weapon out with a flourish of silver, "Do your business!"
And off it cart wheeled, spinning…spinning…hitting a tree…sticking in the bark…not spinning…stuck.
"…sw-ish."
"SHH!" Sokka spat, and drew out his sword. "I'll just have to help you out in a boring way instead…"
And being famous for his climbing skills, he set to work up one of the trees, grumbling about his boomerang yet again failing him.
Toph just stood there, staring off into…well nothing.
"So what happened here?"
At first, the three all tried innocent faces, and then they all realized that this would have no affect on Toph and she was the lie detector, so they may as well just tell her.
"Well this net was initially meant for…you and Sokka."
"WHAT?!" Sokka shrieked, and fell out of the tree. Not surprised, really.
"Well yeaaaah. To be honest, the whole reason we left without you was to get you guys together." Katara mumbled.
"Oh we know that." Toph said breezily, waving her hand. "But what's the deal with this net…filled with meat?!"
"Mmmmmeat?" Sokka burbled, sitting up from the floor and rubbing his head.
"You guys," Toph began, anger beginning to edge into her tone, "Left us completely stranded, with only a tiny amount of money for food, with no map and NO camping gear with NO warning. To get us together?"
Silence.
"EXPLAIN!" Toph and Sokka shouted in union.
"Otherwise you can stay in this net for good!" Sokka added, putting his sword away roughly.
"Well you pretty much explained it yourself." Cari shrugged, "We left you to make your own way here, so you guys could have some alone time and realize your feelings…by the way- did it work?"
That shut them up. Sokka looked to Toph hopefully, who sighed.
"Fine. Well basically, we kissed-"
"You guys kissed?!" The three of them shrieked.
"That's so cute!"
"In the moonlight?"
"Did he take you to dinner?"
"Did he get you flowers?"
"Who kissed who?!"
"It doesn't mean we're together!" Toph snapped. Sokka looked forlorn. Cari frowned. Aang chomped meat. Katara isn't important.
"Whaddya mean, Toffee? Kissing is practically marriage!"
"To you." Toph pointed out, "You're not with a guy long enough to even hold hands."
"She's had to think about whether she wants us to have a relationship or not." Sokka said dully.
"Does that mean you like her, Sokka?" Katara asked excitedly. When Sokka nodded his head shyly she squealed and bounced up and down, causing the net to sway from side to side.
"Calm it, Loopies!" Cari scolded, "So what did you decide, Toph?"
"Yeah, Toph?" Sokka jibed, looking at her hopefully. Toph sighed.
"Fine…" She mumbled, "My decision is…"