Disclaimer: Avatar: The Last Airbender belongs to Bryke and Nickelodeon, not me.
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Poppy awoke to moonlight. She smiled faintly and stretched her arms lightly above her head. Her belly, now stretched even rounder and tighter with the seven and a half months of pregnancy, made a large bump under the coverlets. Her smile widened.
"Are you still asleep, little one?" she cooed. The moon behind the budding cherry trees cast twining shadows over her. Poppy looked out the window.
Before Poppy had never noticed the garden, now it was one of her passions. Every morning she had her chaise moved into the smooth green yards, and she spent the days soaking in the sunshine. Lao had offered to hire a personal gardener to prune and weed, but Poppy had politely turned him down. She liked the wild profusion of flowers, and even the weeds seemed beautiful to her.
Poppy sat up in bed. The moonlight was so beautiful, and the grass looked so cool. She eased out of her bed and tiptoed to the door.
The garden stretched out invitingly in front of her. Poppy curled a protective hand under her belly and stepped lightly onto the grass. The damp blades brushed gently against her feet and the hem of her pale green nightdress. The air was thick with the smell of jasmine and lilies.
The baby kicked lightly. "You're awake now, aren't you?" Poppy laughed. She rubbed her belly. "You love it when I go outside."
She strolled through the garden, the moonlight casting pale white light over her. Her legs were weak from her long bed rest, but she almost didn't care. Poppy was so happy and so peaceful she nearly didn't notice the tightening of her stomach. She frowned and walked closer to the house.
The second time the dull, hot pain struck she did notice. Poppy touched her belly. "Are you all right, little one?"
Her only response was a third stab of pain, and suddenly her water broke. Poppy let out a strangled cry. "It's too soon!" she sobbed. "I can't lose this baby!" She sank to the ground and screamed, terrified
She stared at the ground beneath, watching the grass spin dizzily. She screamed again. Finally her husband appeared at her side, flanked by several servants. "Poppy?" Lao asked. "What are you doing outside at this hour?"
She gripped his sleeve. "The baby's coming!" she sobbed. "I can't…I can't…I have to have the baby now!"
Lao jumped to his feet and looked around. "Should…should we move her inside?" he asked.
Wei, now well-versed in the management of pregnancy, knelt beside Poppy. "She shouldn't be moved, my lord," she said. Poppy let out a sobbing scream and bit down hard on her lip. "The baby is coming, and quickly."
"I'll send for the doctor," Lao said, and snapped his fingers at a wide-eyed houseboy.
Poppy gripped the earth amulet that still hung around her neck as Wei made her lie down. The damp of the grass soaked into her hair and her back. She stared wild-eyed at the starry sky above her. She didn't notice when the doctor came, or her husband's startled stare, or even her own screams when the contractions threatened to tear her body in half. She stared at the sky, at the brilliant pinpoints of light and the scattered streams of clouds and the round white disc of the moon.
A terrible contraction, harder and fiercer than any of the others, struck her. Poppy screamed.
And then it was quiet.
The silence was almost more painful than the screams or even the pain. Poppy gasped for breath. The doctor held a small, limp, bloody baby in his hands. She closed her eyes, tears burning.
The baby let out a barking cry that turned into a wail. Poppy's eyes shot open.
"You have a daughter."
Poppy tried to sit up. "A daughter?" she breathed.
The doctor handed the wailing baby to Wei, who had a basin of warm water and a towel waiting. "A beautiful baby girl, Lady Bei Fong," he said. "She's early, and not as strong as she should be, but healthy."
Poppy sank into the grass. "A daughter," she said.
Lao watched Wei bathe the baby. "She's lovely, Poppy," he said. "Just perfect."
"She's perfect," Poppy repeated. Her fingers uncurled from the amulet around her neck in exhaustion.
Wei wrapped the baby in a soft blanket and held her out. "Here is your daughter, Lady Bei Fong," she said.
With trembling hands, Poppy reached for her. She cradled the soft warm bundle against her. The baby's tiny, perfect hands curled against the blanket. Her round face was as pale and flawless as porcelain, with perfect pink lips and perfect curling black lashes. The baby blinked and squinted up at her mother. Poppy sighed. Her baby daughter stared at her with large brilliant jade-green eyes, as dark and rich as a glossy ivy leaf. "She's perfect," she whispered. "Absolutely perfect."
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Poppy's tongue felt thick and heavy in her mouth. She forced her heavy lids to open. "Lao?" she whispered hoarsely.
His face was drawn and worried. "You're awake," he said.
"How long have I been asleep?" she asked, frowning.
"Almost twelve hours," he said.
The room was dimly lit, and the heavy curtains were drawn over the windows. A tiny warm candle flickered on the bedside table. Poppy glanced around. Her heart thudded for a moment at her flat stomach, and then she remembered. "Where's the baby?" she asked.
"Wei is taking care of her," Lao said. He cleared his throat. "I thought we could name the baby Toph. Do you like that?"
"It's a lovely name" Poppy said. She sat up, slowly and gingerly. "I want to see her. Could you ask Wei to bring her to me?"
"Oh, I don't think so," Lao said. His eyes darted around the room. "Not now. Maybe later."
Poppy frowned. "Lao, I want to see my daughter," she said. "I don't mind if she's sleeping, I won't wake her. Please, ask Wei to bring her to me."
Lao sighed heavily. "Poppy, dear…the baby has to stay with the doctor," he said.
"Why?" Poppy said. She clutched at the blankets. "There's nothing wrong with the baby, is there?"
"She's developed a fever," he confessed. "And since she's premature, the doctor is…Poppy? Poppy, you can't get up yet."
Poppy stumbled out of bed, snatching at her dressing gown. She half-ran, half-stumbled down the hallway. Lao followed her. "Poppy, come back! You need to rest…"
She threw open the door of the nursery. The pale green and gold walls looked harsh in the blaring white light of the lamps. The doctor stood at a table preparing some kind of herb. Wei sat in the cushioned rocking chair- the rocking chair that Poppy had yearned to rock her daughternto sleep in- holding the little one. And the baby…the baby lay fitfully in Wei's arms, her beautiful dark green eyes flickering around the room. Her pale cheeks were flushed red with fever. "My baby's not going to die," Poppy said flatly.
The doctor turned around, startled. "Lady Bei Fong, you need to rest," he said. "You've just gone through labor. Your body is very weak."
Poppy swayed limply. "What's wrong with my baby?" she asked.
"She has a fever, Lady Bei Fong," the doctor said. "She is a month and a half premature, after all. Her body isn't as strong as a normal infant's. She's going to be all right."
"She has to be," Poppy said. She stumbled towards her baby.
The doctor stepped in front of her. "Lady Bei Fong, I insist that you return to your bed and rest," he said. "Since you cannot have another child, I need to focus all of my attention on this one. I can't attend to you too."
Poppy put her hand to her throat. "I can't have any other children?" she asked.
"You haven't told her, Lord Bei Fong?" the doctor said.
"Not yet," Lao said. "There wasn't time…"
"Lady Bei Fong, I'm so sorry," the doctor said. "But please, you must rest."
Poppy allowed her husband to take her back to her room. She spent the next days lying in bed, staring out the window. Rain pattered against the roof endlessly, bathing the garden in a gray cloud.
While she sat uselessly, her little daughter fought against the fever that ravaged her body. Wei came to her room several times a day to give her updates, but it was never enough for Poppy. She had hoped that she could at least see her daughter to nurse her, but she was unable to. So as a few days turned into a week, and a week turned into two, Poppy waited.
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Poppy rested quietly on the settee in the living room. "Are you enjoying your freedom?" Lao asked, trying to smile. "It must be nice to finally leave your room."
"Yes," she answered politely, "it's very nice."
"Would you like me to get you a drink?" he asked.
"No, thank you," she said. "I just want to see Toph."
He sat in the chair across from her, stiff and uncomfortable. Ten, fifteen, twenty minutes passed.
The doctor stepped into the room. "Lord Bei Fong, Lady Bei Fong, I have your daughter here," he said.
Poppy sat up. "Please let me hold her," she begged.
Wei stood behind him with the swaddled baby in her arms. "There's something I need to explain to you," the doctor said.
Poppy reached eagerly for her daughter. "Hello, little Toph," she cooed. The baby girl, now nearly a month old, snuggled in her mother's arms. Poppy stroked the soft curve of her cheek. Soft thick black hair covered her head, and her smooth skin was as pale and perfect as porcelain. Toph blinked, and Poppy nearly dropped her. "What's wrong with her eyes?"
Lao leaned over her. "What do you mean?" he asked.
"Her eyes," Poppy repeated helplessly. She remembered the night of Toph's birth, of the vivid deep jade eyes. The child in her arms had pale eyes the color of sea foam. The baby blinked again, her head turning in the direction of her mother's voice.
"You see, Lady Bei Fong, when your daughter contracted the fever her body was not developed enough to sufficiently defend itself. She's much stronger than she looks…but the fever settled in her eyes, and although I was able to save her life, I wasn't able to save her vision."
"But she was perfect," Poppy whispered, staring into her daughter's face. "She was perfect."
"Your daughter is blind, Lady Bei Fong. Other than that, she is perfect. Perfect and healthy," the doctor said.
"But she's blind," Lao repeated, stunned.
Poppy's arms shook. "My daughter is not blind," she said. "She's perfect. Toph is perfect!"
Wei hastily took the baby. Poppy turned her face towards the wall, her fingers gripping her necklace. "She's going to be just like any other child," the doctor said. "I suggest you find a wet nurse to tend to her, in order to provide the best possible care. But she'll be just fine."
"She'll never be fine," Poppy sobbed. "Never."
The doctor nodded to Wei; she walked quietly out of the room and he followed. Lao sat awkwardly next to his wife. Poppy buried her face in her hands and sobbed.
"So," Lao said. "What are we going to do?"
Poppy looked up through her fingers. "What?" she said brokenly.
"Toph is our only child," Lao said. "It is imperative that she marry well, and carry on the family legacy."
"So?" Poppy choked.
Lao looked over his wife's head. "We ought to face it. Other nobles and rich men don't want their son to marry a blind girl."
"What does that matter?" Poppy asked. "I gave you a child."
He patted her hand. "I know, I know, but…" His voice trailed. "I can't say this without it sounding cruel."
Her chest tightened. "Just say it," Poppy said, her lips white.
"We can't let anyone even know we have a daughter."
"What?" Poppy demanded.
Lao stood up. "Just think about it. We keep her a secret, keeping her safe and raising her to someday become Lady Bei Fong. When she's old enough to marry, then we'll make her known, saying she grew up in…in Ba Sing Se, so she could go to school. We'll keep her hidden still, but she'll be in such high demand that we can get her married off sight unseen."
Poppy stared blankly at the wall, her thoughts milling and buzzing around her head until finally she was lost. "All right," she finally said.
"It's going to work," Lao said. She nodded dully. Lao cleared his throat. "And since we must pretend that we don't have a child…I think it best if you...if you didn't spend too much time with…the baby."
"You don't mean-"
"Well, if no one knows we have a child, you'll have to spend all of your time tending to house matters," Lao hurried. "You need to stay in the public eye."
Poppy's eyes unfocused. "Yes, Lao," she said.
"You're sure," he said. She nodded. Lao smiled and kissed her lightly on the cheek. "It's what's best for our daughter. I assure you."
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Author's Notes:
It was a bit difficult to write this chapter. I tried to come up with a valid reason as to why Lord and Lady Bei Fong would decide to keep their daughter hidden- they never really give an actual explanation, other than "uh...we want to protect her." So yeah.
I know I'm going to get a lot of "WTF, she was born blind!" comments. Let me explain my thought process. It seemed more dynamic that the Bei Fongs would finally have a perfect, living child, and then she would lose her sight shortly after birth. So technically she wasn't born blind, but she only had her sight for a couple of days. So Toph's parents, for succinctness's sake, told her she was born blind.
(I accidentally typed 'blind' as 'blonde.' Wow, that would be a totally different story.)
I hope you like this chapter! Let me know what you think!
Also...yay, Toph is born! Let the rule-breaking commence!
Actually, the next chapter will jump to another character's point of view. So stay tuned!