With Judai sleeping, I quickly find myself following Toph and Sokka into the center third of the room. The Water Tribe warrior excuses himself for the washroom, Toph stays. I leave her to do her hair and check on Katara and Aang.

I'm a bit awed when I enter. I should be used to Katara's healing abilities by now, but it's still strange to see that glowing bubble of water flowing across Aang's back, covering that awful scar.

Seeing the two kneeling there on the bed, Katara's face scrunched up in concentration and Aang with a distant look in his eyes, I feel like I'm interfering with something. I beat a silent retreat and sit myself down on the table, already resigned to being stuck with Toph for the time being. I skeptically watch her dressing herself. Her hair looks decent enough, though she doesn't seem to put much effort into it. And of course, she doesn't use one drop of water before putting on her clothes.

"What is it with you and washing?"

Toph freezes in mid-movement, almost dropping her surcoat. I think I shocked her, but she recovers quickly.

"Shouldn't you be watching over your boyfriend instead of spying on a blind girl dressing herself?"

"Well, since I don't have a boyfriend to watch over... No. Plus, you've been running around in your underwear all morning, what more is there to spy?"

Toph blows at a strand of hair in exasperation, which I guess is as close as I can get to an admittance of defeat. I wonder if I should apologize for scaring her, but Toph is so... unpredictable. Well, maybe not unpredictable, but I don't know her well enough to gauge how she would react. What if an apology antagonizes her even more?

I sigh. "Do you want me to go away?"

"Well, since you obviously don't have anyone else to bug, you might as well stay here." Finally done, Toph sits down on the bunk bed. "So, what's up with our friendly pillow launcher?"

"Fever. I suspect his body simply shut down after this whole..." I wave a hand uncomfortably, the word doesn't sit well with me. I end up completely omitting it: "...business."

Toph hums doubtfully and lifts a hand to cup her cheek. "Didn't he say something about an infection last night?"

I forget to breathe for a second. She's right!

However... "Indeed, but then he should have shown some symptoms earlier, right?"

"How would I know?" Toph shrugs. It comes off as somewhat condescending, but not worth getting upset with. Besides, it gives me an idea.

"Maybe you wouldn't know, but Katara would. Do you know when she'll be done with Aang?"

"Nope, but you'll find out."

"I suppose."

We fall back into an increasingly awkward silence. Well, awkward for me, anyway. I don't know what to talk about, and I don't dare asking about Toph's problem with washing again. It's kind of weird, tiptoeing around her like that. Makes me wonder why I'm intimidated by a little blind girl. I suppose 'intimidated' isn't quite the right word. I have no doubts she can hurt me a great deal, but that's not exactly the problem. I don't want her as my enemy, the same way I try to avoid upsetting Sokka. Toph's not as approachable as Katara and Aang are. And yet I'm sitting here now, with her. Might as well try to build something reminiscent of a friendship.

"So... I'm sorry if this sounds weird, but... May I ask what it's like to be blind?"

"I can't see," Toph deadpans in response, as if I had a nut loose somewhere. I groan and roll my eyes.

"Yeah, I'm just smart enough to establish that. I mean, what is it like? Do you see, like, black or anything? Like when I close my eyes?"

Toph sighs. "Repeat that for me, will you, Fireflake?"

Er, what? "Do you see... Oh..." Okay, okay, okay... "My mind is twisting itself into knots right now. I suppose you don't even know what black is?"

"Can't say I do," Toph shrugs again. "I don't see anything, Birdie. You seeing people don't understand, so don't break your brain over it."

Of course I try to understand anyway, because that's what my brain does if I don't keep an eye on it. Pondering Toph's words, I realize they do sound absurd at first glance... but actually aren't all that intangible. "I think I do understand."

That catches Toph off-guard. She looks up, surprised and maybe kind of... happy. "Really?"

I nod and purse my lips, sorting through my thoughts. Now that I claimed understanding, I don't want to disappoint. "In a way. It's like the things behind my back, I guess. They're not covered in blackness, it's just... I just don't see them." I'm almost bubbling over with pride. I feel like I just found enlightenment. "That's so fascinating!"

"Fascinating?" Toph shakes her head in disbelief. "Gotta hand you that, Fireflake: That's a first."

"What do you mean?" I knit my brows, about as weirded out as her. "You've never been asked what being blind is like?"

She shakes her head again, shoulders sagging. "Not like this, no. People don't try to understand. They're too busy trying to take care of me like I was helpless."

I tilt my head curiously. "Huh? That's... I can think of a gazillion words to describe you, but helpless is certainly not one of them. I'd go for butt-kicking awesome."

Toph laughs softly. As in softly. Holy smoke, this is one for the scrolls! "Thanks, Kamina."

"Please, just call me Kami." I shake my head, this new Toph is starting to spook me. "Or Fireflake, as usual. I don't trust this tame...ness."

Toph laughs again, loud this time. I never knew that being laughed at can be that relaxing. "You've got yourself a deal, Fireflake!"

I smile tiredly. I pulled through a successful conversation with this difficult girl, now I want to go right back to sleep for recharging. Socializing can be so exhausting...

"I think I'll take another nap," I announce and get up from the table. "Would you send Katara to get me when she's done?"

Toph crosses her arms. "You're as bad as Snoozles. Maybe I should call you Sleepyflake."

"Be my guest," I tell her indifferently, not bothering to ask who Snoozles is. Judai, maybe Sokka. Sleepyflake rings awful, but I can't deny the truth in it. Not too eager to deny it, either. I'm more interested in studying the back of my eyelids just about now, so I leave Toph alone and sneak into bed next to an out-like-a-stone Judai. Only that the theine rushing through my veins keeps me from drifting off. Which is just as well, because it doesn't take long for Katara to poke her head in.

I glance at Judai, then back at Katara. I shrug, signaling that I don't know whether I should wake him or not for her to check on him, but she shakes her head and waves me over. I knit my brows skeptically, but I get up.

"What is it?" I ask the very moment the screen slides shut, still puzzled.

"I want to look after your back."

"My back?" I repeat with narrowed eyes, remembering the scene on Appa two days ago. Her chi is all twisted up, it can't be just the fall. Then I force myself to relax. It's some weird water treatment, not an interrogation. Besides, I can't deny that stupid fall, and that I could probably use another healing session. "Okay."

Judging from the look on Katara's face, the wariness didn't escape her. It seems to sadden her to a degree, but she quickly schools her features, even smiles. She turns around and I follow her to her and Aang's part of the room, where the little Avatar is donning his uniform. I can't help thinking he stole it, school uniforms are wickedly expensive. I'm not sure what to feel about the fact though.

"You're lucky my school is so unknown. If you ran around in a, say, Caldera Academy uniform, you'd be recognized everywhere."

Aang pauses and chuckles awkwardly. Guiltily. "Yeah... We're lucky you didn't wear it when you joined. The two of us wearing the same clothes would have looked off."

Not exactly. The thought is so unbelievably strange, but... "We could have passed as twins. Nobody would have looked closer."

"Twins?" Aang asks, apparently finding the idea as bizarre as I do. That it's true just makes it worse – granted, I'm taller than Aang and have broader shoulders, but the latter isn't much of a feat anyway and the difference isn't that great. Else... Well, there is no denying our common heritage. We're both wiry, with limbs foreign to brawn, agility in our bloodstreams. As far as I can tell, I'm a shade lighter in eye and skin color, while Aang beats me in hair. But it's all subtle enough to blame it on being unidentical.

I want to bash my head against the wall. Ten times, one hit per letter: A-V-A-T-A-R-T-W-I-N. Someone else? I could use a buddy to make me look less like a madwoman.

I resist the urge and take off my surcoat and tunic instead. Aang leaves to give me the privacy I need for unwrapping my chest, then ask Katara what she wants me to do. She says I should do what I'm most comfortable with, so I end up lying on my stomach in Katara's bed.

It's all cool, I guess. The waterbender does her thing without talking too much. She wants to know from time to time how I'm feeling, if anything hurts, but there's nothing to complain about. There is the occasional popping sensation, but it never goes beyond uncomfortable and I quickly get used to it, to the point that I become drowsy from the feeling. I almost miss out on Sokka leaving the washroom, and not quite as almost miss out on the fact that I'm half naked, completely failing to care. It only sinks in when Katara takes a break, and my face promptly starts to burn. I feel the need to cover myself immediately, even though Sokka is long gone.

"He... only saw my back, right?"

But Katara only chuckles at my awkwardness. "He didn't see anything, he was too focused on leaving."

"Oh, good," I sigh with relief and roll over to sit up, then wrap myself into a blanket. Just in case. "So, what are you doing to my back, anyway? There aren't any wounds."

Katara closes her eyes, apparently resigning. Or maybe it's irritation, the deep breath she heaves afterwards might indicate that instead. "I'm straightening out your energy flow. Your ribs are damaged in a lot of places, I can sense many old bruises."

She can sense them? Does that mean they're still... there?

I shrink a bit further into the blanket, wondering if I should answer her unspoken question. I decide to take the leap of faith. "I was beaten at school, and I hid it as far as I could. Never thought of long-term consequences." My heart is pounding, both from the confession and the dreadful news. I draw in a long breath to calm myself. "Is it really that bad?"

"You can move normally, that's always a good sign," Katara says with a placating smile. "And your airbending balances out potential breathing difficulties, which I don't think you have anyway. You're lucky."

Lucky, huh? Not the word I would have used, but apparently, I don't need to worry. "So my ribs are fine?"

"Your ribs are fine," Katara assures, then adds in a serious tone, "But you need to rest after an injury and give your body time to heal properly. Okay?"

"Okay..." I sigh. "Does that mean we're done?" I want to put my clothes back on.

Katara purses her lips thoughtfully. "We're done for now. But you should take it easy, or you might block your chi again."

"Got it."

I carefully slip out of bed. For a moment, I feel dizzy and almost kick over the bucket of water Katara used, but it fades quickly. I feel... different. Lighter. Like I can breathe freer, think clearer. I want to bend something. Frisky as I am, I turn to the local window and throw a punch into the general direction. The resulting gust of wind is stronger than expected, the shutters tear open and, swinging violently on their hinges, crash into the brick wall of the house with a loud Thwack!

For a moment, I just stand there, dumbstruck. Then I manage to pull myself together and turn to face Katara with a sheepish grin. "Uh... Whoopsy?"

But before she can comment, the slide screen is ripped open and a ballistic big brother appears, eyes darting around frantically. "What was that?!"

"Relax, Sokka, it was just the window," Katara calms him down, while a curious Avatar-face peeks over Sokka's shoulder, only to blush a furious crimson. Which is when I realize that I'm still topless and immediately perform damage control, covering my chest with my arms and spinning around on my heel, face overheating with embarrassment.

"Get out!" I yell at the boys behind me, and I can hear Sokka sputter an apology before the slide screen audibly slams shut.

A few seconds trickle away before I manage to find my composure and go pick up my clothes.

"That... never happened," I tell Katara, and the waterbender nods. She tries to look solemn, but there is obvious mirth shining in her eyes. I huff, and the amusement takes over the rest of her face.

"Alright," she states with a wink. "I pretend that I need to tell you not to blast anyone until your chi flow normalizes, because you haven't found out yet."

Well... I guess that settles it. Nothing noteworthy has ever occurred in this room. "How long will that take?"

"That's up to you."

Okay, I get it. I close my eyes and take a couple deep breaths until the light feeling subsides. Only a tiny part of it remains, but I can totally get used to that. Who knew what some waterbending can do to a battered rib cage? Also, I'm grateful that Katara didn't jump at the beatings, not everyone would have been deterred by my obvious uneasiness.

I finally dress myself, and I realize how hungry I am. I need breakfast. And I need it now.

Unfortunately, patience is on. Katara already had her trip to the washroom, it seems, only her hair is still loose. But Judai... "Um, Katara?"

"Hmm?"

I scratch my cheek, feeling self-conscious. "Sorry to drop this on you, but would you check on Judai as well? If he doesn't lash out again, that is."

"Of course," she replies, but I think I detected a slight hesitation and steer my gaze at my toes. This is all quite a responsibility to load upon her.

"I'm sorry," I repeat, pressing the words through gritted teeth. It's only now I realize how much I'm already depending on Katara for things which could be done without burdening her. "None of this is actually your problem. You've done so much already, I shouldn't bother you with this."

"Don't say that," comes the gentle response, and I look up to find Katara getting up from the bed and smoothing out her skirt. She smiles encouragingly. "You're not bothering me with anything. I'm happy to help."

"You're too kind."

Katara's expression becomes serious, I'm not sure if she agrees with me or not. I don't think so. "Come on, let's see what the others are up to."

And thus, we go to join the rest of the gang in the center third. Sokka starts whistling uncomfortably right away, Aang goes pink and Toph cackles like a fox hyena. I glare at her and grumble determinedly, "None of this has happened. Ever."

"Sure thing, Fireflake!"

Needless to say that Toph's tone indicates the direct opposite. I scowl some more when out of nowhere, a new voice pipes up, the words slurred from fatigue: "What's going on? Can't a guy get some sleep around here?"

Yup, still alive, and a (hopefully) more humorous chapter in the luggage.

A couple weeks ago, I had a light bulb moment and noticed that the issue of slavery actually is brushed upon in ATLA, in the non-labor camp sort of way. As early as episode 9, Sokka remarks on how Aang, as the Avatar, would fetch a much greater price on the black market than the titular waterbending scroll ever will. If that's not an allusion to slavery, then I don't know what is.

As for the guest reviews:

SandwichGoddess: In case you ever get as far as this... No, I didn't. In fact, I considered changing the name after I realized its meaning. I kind of have it with names starting with Ka-, it just rolls off the tongue and sounds lovely. I also have a penchant for names with four letters, and purposefully added the -na to break that habit. (Yup, Kami's original name was, in fact, Kami. But it's even better as a nickname, I think.) So Kami happens to be the Japanese word for god (or paper, or hair...), but that was completely irrelevant to the creating process.

Guest from June 29th: I'm just getting that blissful Clawhauser donut smile. In case you don't know Zootopia, let me tell you: It really is blissful. Reviews like yours make me smile so hard, because it adresses the things I have the most doubts about. The fact alone that Kami is an airbender pushes her dangerously close to Sue territory, so I'm walking a razor's edge here which can tip with every new chapter. Then there is the danger of Wangst, of course, and the hope that Kami/Judai interactions can keep up with the Gaang. Stories which are purely OC-centric often drop off the radar. (Which is a shame, there are some real pearls out there.)

Thank you both! And peace out!