It had been a long time since Toru had actually been excited about something. Ever since his accident he'd lost interest in a lot of things he used to enjoy, opting to brood quietly instead and wallow in his own misery. For some reason, doing that just felt…better. And he never had the energy to put any amount of effort into anything else.

There was one thing, though, that brightened Toru's mood still. There was a day that came every few weeks, a day he'd always looked forward to. It was mail day.

Mail day was pretty much self-explanatory: letters from friends and family in nearby towns, and from the men of the village currently participating in the war, all brought to the village every two weeks or so -- there was no specific pattern. When it came, it came.

Toru awaited the day eagerly, always hoping for a letter from his father. He understood that most of the soldiers rarely had time to write a detailed letter, but he still wished for just one -- he hadn't gotten one in over a month.

Min-Jee glanced up from her work every so often to look at Toru, who was wringing his hands and staring at the door of the hut intensely, waiting for someone to open it and deliver a letter.

"Toru, you know the mail doesn't come this early," Min-Jee chuckled, amused, "calm down."

Toru let out something that sounded like a small whine before taking a deep breath and letting it out. He looked at Min-Jee pleadingly, as though she could make the mail come faster.

"What if it does come early?" Toru asked, "what if it comes early and there's nothing for me and that's why you think it's not here yet because nobody's bringing anything to us because there's nothing to bring and--"

"Toru!" Min-Jee stopped the boy mid-sentence. "Calm down. I'm sure your father sent you something. You have to be patient."

Toru shook his head, not ripping his gaze away from the doorway. "Patience is for people who aren't waiting for anything important to happen!"

"Who's yelling and why?" Sokka yawned, walking from the direction of his room towards the main room. He'd obviously just woken up, and Aang looked the same, appearing behind Sokka, shaking himself into full awareness.

Toru didn't respond, locking himself into some sort of a trance, afraid to even blink in case he missed something come through the door.

"The mail comes today," Min-Jee explained, "Toru's hoping for a letter from his father."

"Oh," Sokka mused, "is he a soldier?"

"Yes," Toru answered shortly, "he is."

"So is mine," Sokka replied, "mine and Katara's."

"Then you must know how it feels," Min-Jee said, "how it feels to know he's so far away."

Sokka sighed, looking sullen for just a moment. "Yeah. We know."

"What if it doesn't come?" Toru suddenly asked, "what if he forgot about me or -- or if he's hurt really bad or…"

"Toru, if you're not too busy driving yourself mad," Min-Jee interrupted, "have you eaten anything today?"

"Not hungry." Toru muttered.

"Toru," Min-Jee sighed in exasperation, "the mail won't come for a while yet, try doing something else."

"What else is there?" Toru asked, "I finished my studying, you don't need me to do anything--"

"I'd be happy to find something for you to do," Min-Jee told him. She then looked to Aang and Sokka, "would you boys have anything for him to do?"

Toru frowned. He didn't want to spend any more time with the Avatar or his friends than he had to. They were all so strange to him, so different. Toru had learned to tolerate their intrusion, but that was as far as he planned to go in terms of any sort of relationship.

"Technically I am doing something," Toru said evasively, "I'm sitting. And waiting. That's two things at once."

"Sitting and waiting is good," Sokka replied, obviously not wanting to put up with Toru's sour mood either, "it teaches patience…I guess."

"If only," Min-Jee sighed, "just…work off some of that excess energy you've got, Toru. You could use fresh air, at least."

Toru recognized Min-Jee's tone. She was suggesting, she was telling Toru to go out and make some use of his spare time.

When Katara and Toph finally woke up, it was decided that Toru would watch Aang learn Earth Bending.

Toru had never been more confused as he watched Aang and Toph train. He didn't know how a little blind girl could be such an excellent Earth Bender, nor could he even fathom how said girl could double as a teacher. If she couldn't see anything, how could she even know what was happening around her? When Aang actually shot rocks at her, how could she dodge? How was her aim and timing so exact?

None of these things were making any sense to Toru. Toph was blind, but she was powerful, she was confident and her abilities, and from what Toru had seen she needed little to no help doing things that any other blind girl wouldn't be able to. How did she come to be one of the strongest Earth Benders Toru had ever seen?

"Watch it!" Toru was thrust out of his thoughts when he heard Sokka shout. "I let you get away with the water, but I draw the line at rocks!"

"We weren't even aiming at you!" Aang said.

"Here's an idea: Get out of the way." Toph put in.

"I'm not in the way!"

"If you almost got hit with a rock, you are too in the way."

"Am not!"

"Are too!"

"Am not!"

"Are too," Toph said with a note of finality in her voice, "ya really wanna argue with me?"

"Stop it." Katara's tone didn't match her words, sounding blank, as though she'd stopped this argument a million times before.

"Uh, guys?" Aang broke in at last, "can we go back to training soon? Please?"

Their mood changed again, so fast that it almost gave Toru whiplash. Toph let herself relax, all signs of aggression gone, while Sokka moved away from his previous spot while at the same time trying not to look like he was doing what Toph had told him to.

Toru wondered why they never followed through on the threats they made. Even when they were that close to actually fighting they looked like they were just playing around with each other which, in Toru's opinion, was just nonsensical and stupid.

When Toru turned his gaze back to Toph, he began to wonder some more. She was confident and surprisingly capable for someone her age, blind or not. Toru almost thought he identified with the girl, but only for a split second before seeing how she acted. She couldn't see, and Toru couldn't walk. Toph walked around in complete darkness, while Toru had trouble walking at all. Toph was disabled, so was Toru. They were both missing something that most everybody else possessed. There were only a few differences, but they were big differences. Toph could hold her own in a fight, and Toru couldn't. Toph had friends, and Toru had none.

Toru was convinced that his disability made him useless. Toph seemed to know that she was anything but.

Toru limped back into Min-Jee's hut, having left the Avatar and his friends to wait for the mail again. He'd had enough of their odd, playful bickering.

"Back so soon?" Min-Jee didn't look up from her work. "Did you have fun?"

Toru didn't answer. He honestly didn't know if he'd had fun or not -- he didn't want to say yes, but something else kept him from saying no.

"Yes, there is something for you," Min-Jee said before Toru could open his mouth, "it's on your bed."

Toru had already gone to his room before Min-Jee could look up and smile. It was good to see the normally distant, brooding Toru excited about something. She just wished he would try to find more things to enjoy on his own.

Toru had sat down on his bad after taking the letter into his hands. For a few moments he just stared at it. What would it say when he opened it? Would it be good or bad? As he read the outside over and over, seeing his father's name handwritten on the envelope -- Dae-Hyun.

Letting out a deep sigh, Toru worked up to courage to open it.

Toru,

I am sorry I have not been writing to you as much as I wish I could. I think maybe this letter could make up for some of it.

Everything is going well over here -- as far as wars go. Though no one has been killed in awhile now, I'm not when I will be able to come home.

I hope Min-Jee is treating you right. I'm sure she is, I wouldn't have asked her to care for you in my absence if I didn't trust her.

The last time I asked about your leg I was told that you were in a lot of pain. I haven't mentioned it for quite awhile, I hope it has healed as much as possible, even if Min-Jee couldn't fix it all the way. I know you must be upset that you cannot join me here, but I know that you're capable of coping no matter what.

Sometimes the tragic things that happen to us make us stronger, son, I hope you know that.

Be sure to give Min-Jee my hello and my thanks for taking you in.

I miss both of you more than I can say.

Love,

Dad.

Toru sighed as he finished reading. His father was so sure that Toru was doing well, accepting his injury, coping, and moving on. Toru's father was the man he looked up to more than anyone else. He was strong and brave and confident and great, he took everything that the world threw at him in stride and didn't let tragic events in his past hold him down and keep him from moving on.

When Toru finally realized that his father wanted him to learn to be strong too, his stomach churned uncomfortably, and he ran his hands through his hair, his expression blank.

A letter from his father, a letter that was supposed to make him happy, somehow made him feel like a weak, spineless coward, and no matter how hard he tried he couldn't make the feeling go away.

Well there goes Toru, spreading cheerful rainbow puffy-cloud sunshine to all.