Thank you for being patient as I continue to put out the rest of this chapter. I usually am very good at posting 2 or 3 chapters per week, but I want to take time to really tell this story and how intense this moment between Sokka and Toph really is for them.

Stay tuned and comments are always welcome 3 - Graymist

CHAPTER 06 - IT'S YOU AGAIN PART 02

SOKKA

About an hour had passed since anyone had seen Toph. Her speech was pretty long, and in it she talked about how far the Dai Li had come. She mentioned how the previous agents were removed and imprisoned for war crimes. Toph also promised the nation that her new unit would be the embodiment of discipline and loyalty to its people. Despite her soft appearance, every member of the Dai Li took a knee throughout her time speaking, and not a single one met her gaze out of sheer respect; They kept their heads lowered.

After a bit of socializing with the party attendees, the gang spoke to the Earth King about the state of civil unrest, trade routes, and more political business. Sokka excused himself momentarily as he noticed their table had a mountain of delicious meats, desserts, and drinks just waiting for him to dig into.

"King Kuei, if you wouldn't mind. I'm going to grab some tasty treats. I'll be right back!" Sokka said feeling his stomach growl.

The Earth King chuckled. "Of course, Sokka. Please make yourself right at home." Katara laughed and so did Aang, but Momo replied with some gibberish and jumped onto his shoulder to follow.

Wasting no time, Sokka ran over to their private table, which had seats reserved with each of their names on it. The table was setup under one of the pillars, which was halfway hidden in the dark, yet still remained illuminated in the brilliant glow of the crystals set above. Sitting back, he piled up a plate as high as he could and set one out for Momo full of grilled fish, which was his favorite. Sokka grabbed a drumstick and prepared to take a giant bite.

"Enjoying yourself as always, huh Snoozles. Or should I call you Chief Boomerang now?" said a voice from behind him. Sokka let out a started cry and turned around to a familiar face.

Toph...

She appeared walking in from the shadows and sat in the seat nearest him. She put her feet up onto the edge of the table and leaned herself back in the chair, her eyes once again faced in his direction.

Sokka felt the racing of his heart just like earlier. "Toph! It's you! I - Wow! It's been years, I mean…I didn't keep track exactly, but I am good with numbers. Well, I'm good at tracking too actually, not that I tracked you or anything. What I mean is -"

Toph crossed her arms, lightly tapping her fingers, and grinned widely. "You nervous to see me or something?" The scent of floral perfume clung to her, only making Sokka even more attracted to the beautiful young woman.

Sokka countered. "As if! Why would I be? Besides, you don't even have your feet on the ground to tell if I'm nervous or not!"

Her response was quick. "I didn't need to." Toph tilted her head slightly to the side and narrowed her eyes. "Where's fan girl anyhow? She's practically glued to you nowadays."

Sokka paused, not expecting such a direct question. Although, knowing her he should have. It was something he had gotten used to, but it still made him sad having to remind himself Suki was constantly so far away.

"Well, she's on Kyoshi Island. She didn't make it back home with me."

Toph's expression shifted to confusion. "What? You mean ever since you became Chief, you've been back on your own?"

Hearing it aloud was even worse than how he felt about it, but she was right. He was on his own. "She wasn't ready to go yet." His voice held feelings of abandonment to it. "She decided to stay until Ty Lee was ready to take over for her, but it's been two years now."

"Hmmph. Whatever, so anyway - you know before you took off a few years ago, you stiffed me on the bill when we went to Aisuru." Toph stated in a grumpy way before grabbing the haunch of leg meat from his plate. She took a large bit and chewed before spitting out a small bone onto the table.

Sokka knew she was going to bring that back up. I mean, it was his fault after all, and he felt bad about it since. After Toph had spent three days in the forest helping him find his sword, he had wanted to say thank you by taking her to a spot that just opened up. As usual, he goofed off and left his silver coins at home, so Toph covered them both despite it being his idea. Before he got the chance to fix it, he and Katara received a letter from their father urging them to visit him alone. From there, things got crazy, and he never did get a chance to make it back to Ba Sing Se since then.

Sokka noticed Toph looking annoyed and realized he hadn't responded back to her. "I didn't mean to. Honestly, Toph – I'm sorry."

Toph laughed. "Relax. I'm just messing with you as payback." She pointed toward the table. "I got that for you. Was hoping to split it with you actually."

Sokka looked and saw a sealed tokkuri with a ribbon set on the table. "What is it?" he asked.

"It's moon-peach sake mixed with some cactus juice." Toph's rose colored lips were in a half-smile. "It's filtered of course, so there shouldn't be any hallucinations. Just a good buzz."

Sokka unsealed the tokkuri and filled two small cups full of sweet-smelling fermented drink. "You sure this stuff is safe, Toph?"

"Listen Snoozles, don't knock it until you've tried it. This is good stuff, got it?" Toph grabbed her cup and held it out in front of her. She was close enough to him that he noticed her eyelashes were brushed in a silver glitter.

If only you could see yourself, Toph. You have no idea how beautiful you look…you've always been so beautiful, even back then…

Sokka clanked his cup into hers. "Well, it IS the quenchiest…You're on!"

Like everything they ever did, this turned into a contest that neither refused to lose. Shot after shot, after shot followed until Sokka and Toph finished the rest of the bottle's contents.

Sokka commented on her work with the Dai Li, and how much effort it must have taken to sort through the chaos left after the war. Toph shrugged it off as a way for people to finally see her greatness in action. If anything, she loved being able to show off. It was pretty much her only hobby from what he recalled, and she was good at it.

"Sounds like a lot if you ask me," Sokka said.

"You find ways to constantly keep busy when you're by yourself," She remarked, a subtle sadness to her response.

Sokka could relate to that on a personal level "You're telling me..."

An easy silence washed over them for a while, as the sounds of music grew distant, and the liquor began to set in quickly. The party was still going, and people danced everywhere they could. The throne room had become even more crowded than earlier, as guests continued to arrive without end in sight.

Sokka could tell he was light-headed, and time started to feel distorted. He saw Toph staring ahead absently. His thoughts were all over the place, and the music around them boomed loudly in his ears. Then without warning, the silence of the noise was broken.

"Why did you save me?" Toph asked him, her eyes still staring out far ahead into nothingness. Sokka had no clue what she was talking about, then again he was having a hard time keeping his head straight.

"Wh…What.. do you…huh?" By this point, Sokka's speech was so slurred, he had to really focus to form a sentence.

"That day, on the ship," Toph's voice grew soft. "You held onto me. I….I…" Her speech was starting to slur and get sloppy. "Yy-youu-u held on…"

"I don't think boomerang is coming back, Toph... !"

Sokka pressed his eyes shut. That moment was too painful for him, and he hadn't thought of it since it first happened.

"I ah-almost la-lost you," he answered clumsily. "Lost…too much. I wasn't going to lose you too." The image of her falling made his anger swell, and he slammed his drink on the table, splintering the cup. Not again. He had failed to save anyone that needed him. His own mother, even Yuei who literally slipped through his fingers, powerless to do anything about it. No! He'd die before having to say goodbye to anyone ever again.

Toph got up from her seat. Sokka saw her eyes watered and shimmered under the glowing lights above. Whatever souls were made of, right now she held his and if he were being completely honest, she could hold onto it for good.

"Snooz...Sokka...I… I'm…" Toph turned and left, walking away hurriedly but stopped herself. She flung herself around and walked up to him, her hands forming tight fists. "I don't care… I'm n-n-not pretendinggg anymore."

At this point, he was certain the cactus moon-juice was making him hallucinate as Toph sat herself upon his lap. Her perfume mixed with the scent of sweet alcohol that came from her lips. The backdrop around them started to blur and the colors of the room blended until there was nothing else except him and her. Toph placed her surprisingly delicate hands around his face and saw she wore the bracelet made of space earth he'd given her all those years ago.

What? She...kept that this whole time?

His heart swelled, and every voice in his head kept repeating her name again and again; and this wasn't the first time either. All he knew is right now, he wasn't strong enough to fight it. Sokka grabbed her by the collar of her dress and pulled her in kissing her deeply. Toph reacted instantly, pulling him in with fierce aggression. She may have looked soft, but her strength was as powerful as ever. Their tongues danced, intertwined, and collided with unrelenting passion from years of unsaid words to one another. Her small hands dug into his tunic and she twisted the fabric tighter and tighter pulling his chest inches from hers. Sokka grabbed onto her hips and squeezed the exposed parts of her thighs. As he did, Toph threw her head back and held in a moan of pleasure that sent shivers through Sokka's body. His muscles tensed everywhere, and right now there was nowhere else he wanted to be except with her. The taste of moon juice from her saliva, and the aroma of her honeyed perfume sent shivers of desire that consumed him.

A long hair fell from out of her bun as she pulled away from him. They both were breathless, gasping for air as if neither of them wanted to break the moment by simply breathing. She blinked lightly, and silver dust fell slowly from her long lashes. Her eyes stared right through him, her creamy irises calling to him like a spell.

This feeling...

Toph grabbed his hand and pulled him up quickly "...Let's leave."

To Be Continued...

Disclaimer: I do NOT own Avatar The Last Airbender nor the characters depicted. Avatar was created by Michael Dante Dimartino and Bryan Konietzko. All characters and settings are based off their world and is purely fan fiction made simply to entertain people as passionate about what they have created as I am.