Chapter Seven: Bedtime

Toph can hear the sounds of merry-making erupting from her house all the way down the street; related they may not be, but Lin and Sokka are both in possession of a healthy set of lungs. The happiness in their voices makes the droop in Toph's aching shoulders straighten somewhat; by the time she opens her door she's smiling.

Lin and Sokka have a rousing wrestling match going on at the moment, Lin no doubt wired on sweets and adrenaline and Sokka, though older, still energetic. Toph listens and watches as they roll around the stone floor, then laughs.

"Mommy!" Lin crows, disentangling herself from Sokka's faux-headlock and running to give her mother a hug. Sokka stands and follows suit, cracking his back and sighing in satisfaction. "You're home!"

"Sure am, squirt," Toph grins. "Did you have a good time with Uncle Sokka? Give him a good beating from me?"

"As a matter of fact, she did," Sokka chuckles as Lin nodded. Toph smoothes Lin's hair for a moment, then gives her a quick kiss on the forehead.

"I think it's time for bed now."

Lin groans, and to Toph's amusement so does Sokka.

"Can't I stay up just a little bit longer?" she pouts. "Please?"

"We'll be really good," Sokka promises, kneeling beside Lin and putting his arms around her, squishing his cheek against hers. Toph imagines that they both look sweet and pathetic and puts her hands on her hips.

"One cup of tea," she says stoutly, "and then it's lights out, little miss."

"Yay!" Lin and Sokka cheer, running as one into the kitchen. Toph follows at a leisurely pace, detouring into her room to strip off her uniform and slip into a pair of loose pants and a robe. When she makes it back to the kitchen, water is already boiling merrily on the stove, Lin and Sokka chatting to each other about a mile a minute. Lin enjoyed her Uncle Aang's company best, but Toph liked how Lin got when Sokka was around; her solemn little girl grew so much more animated it was like she had a split personality.

"How was work?" Sokka asks lightly, pouring the water into a teapot and steeping the tea leaves. Lin puts her chin in her hands, listening carefully.

"It was fine," Toph shrugs, the warm smell of the tea loosening the knots in her back even more. "Tedious, but fine. The paperwork part always takes forever."

"That's 'cuz Gin is a slow reader!" Lin chirps, accepting her teacup from Sokka. "You need a faster reader, Mommy."

"One day I'm gonna fire that kid and replace him with you," Toph grins, waiting patiently while Sokka adds a tiny sip of cactus juice to his and Toph's cups (how does she know this? He's just taken a swig of it and is taking longer than usual to get her tea to her. She appreciates the thought). "You'd read and write fast for me, wouldn't you?"

"The fastest!" Lin smiles. Toph can tell from her heartbeat the playtime high is wearing off, and from her voice that the calming tea is making her sleepy already. "Mom, can I play over at Tenzin's tomorrow?"

"On my day off? Are you sure?" Toph teases, though a note of real hurt worms its way into her voice. Sokka places a teacup in her hand, squeezing her shoulder.

"There you go, Madam Chief of Police, ma'am," he salutes, settling into the chair next to her. "Lin, your tea's gonna spill."

Lin corrects her teacup and yawns widely.

"I won't be gone all day," she protests. "Tenzin said he found a new trick he can do with airbending and Bumi said he wanted to play pirates and give Tenzin the eyepatch. Tenzin would look funny with an eyepatch."

"If Tenzin's gonna look funny, how could I say no?" Toph laughs, reasoning to herself that Lin is still young, and there will be other days off for her anyway. A few moments of peaceful tea-sipping silence arise, and Lin's head gives a definite wobble that says to Toph she's drifting off.

"Alright," Toph sets her cup down, "bedtime."

Lin protests weakly as Sokka picks her up, quieting when he lays her down on her bed and Toph fumbles to pull the covers up and tuck her in.

"'Night, Mom," she yawns. "'Night, Uncle Sokka."

"Goodnight, little badgermole," Toph replies.

"Sleep tight, sweetheart," Sokka smiles, smoothing the blankets and leading Toph to the door. Lin is fast asleep before the door shuts all the way. They listen to her snore for a moment, then Sokka runs his thumb across Toph's cheek.

"I think it's your bedtime, too," he murmurs, tracing the bags under her eyes. Out of Lin's sight, the weight Toph has been carrying all day bows her shoulders, and she leans against the wall, sighing.

"That weasel-rat slipped out of my fingers again," she says quietly. "I don't know how Yakone does it, but he's harder to hold onto than smoke."

"You'll get him," Sokka says confidently, running his hands up and down her arms soothingly. "It'll be alright."

Toph closes her eyes (needlessly, but the action makes her tired eyes tingle anyway) as Sokka's hands travel from her arms to her shoulders to her hair, carefully undoing the trademark bun and shaking out her hair (it's getting so long again). His fingertips linger on her jawline and chase away her bangs from her eyes. His breath smells like tea and cactus juice as he leans forward and plants a kiss over each eyelid. She's long learned that such caresses and touches don't have to have a passionate meaning behind them, particularly between her and Sokka, but there's an unmistakable heat blooming in her belly nonetheless.

"Bedtime," he whispers simply, taking her hand and walking side-by-side with her to her bedroom down the hall. He doesn't let her go but for a brief moment to shuck his shirt, then tucks her safely against his chest. She sighs and takes a deep breath of the musk and leather and spice of him.

"Bedtime," she agrees, letting the warmth and steady heartbeat rock her gently to sleep. Sokka listens to her breathe, stroking her hair rhythmically. He thinks of Lian sometimes when they go to sleep like this, but tonight's dreams feature glowing milky green eyes and rough dark hair sliding through his fingers. He startles himself awake, and untangles himself from around her, padding to the bathroom and taking a good long look at himself in the mirror.

Yakone's streak of untraceable violence is affecting his work, too, but if he looks at himself long enough, he knows that's not what's bothering him tonight. He touches his skin, rubs his scruff, and takes out his own wolf's-tail. When he goes back to bed he makes sure there's a pillow's distance between him and Toph. Her face scrunches, but she doesn't wake up. Sokka watches her sleep and imagines his limbs are made of lead so he doesn't wake her.

He'd never touch her without her consent—he knows what kind of man he is—but it's a long time yet before he can fall asleep.

A/N: And the pieces start to click together. Unfortunately for everyone, there's about three chapters left before anything happens-and, if memory serves, about four more years.