This, unfortunately, didn't make it into Life Never Ends and was the original beginning of Ch. 3 for that story. As I love this way too much I have posted it here.

132 AG, Year of the Dog

Sokka

"Ha! I got you Hayoda!" The black haired, gold eyed boy shouted, landing on top of the watertribe boy.

"Get off of me!" Hayoda shouted back, equally loud. An evil grin crossed the boy's face and he flipped over, landing on the fire nation boy's stomach and then pelting him in the face with waterbent splashes.

"Mom! Hayoda's waterbending!" The fire nation boy shrieked. Maddison sighed and stood, calling out to where her son was getting soaked by mine.

"Su Sen, if you hadn't started it he wouldn't be soaking you."

I laughed at Su Sen's put out expression as the two boys continued to wrestle across the grass. Maddi sighed and sat down, shaking her head at her son's antics.

"He's so energetic." She muttered. I chuckled, causing her to send me a teasing glare.

"And what are you laughing about Mr. Councilman?" She asked, a smile twitching at the edges of her mouth.

"Just wondering how you and I both ended up babysitting."

"Right, and it's not that your son is beating up mine?" She added dryly.

"What can I say? He's got his father's talent."

"But his aunt's water bending." She replied before her face became serious. Maddi's eyes flicked over the garden.

"Is something wrong?" I asked

"Its too quiet. Where's Lu Ten and Lin?" She replied. The answer was given in seconds. There was a rumble of earth and a very familiar looking fire nation boy came running, gold eyes wide.

"Come back here you-" A little girl screamed running after the terrified older boy. Both children stopped at the sight of the two adults standing in front of them. Maddi as well as myself, arms crossed.

"He/she did it." The two pointed at each other quickly. Maddi just sighed and did a headcount.

"Ten. We're good." Once she was sure that all children were accounted for she turned to the two guilty children standing before her.

"So what happened? Lu Ten?" Su Sen's identical twin shifted uncomfortably at his mother's piercing gaze.

"I was just teasing her and Lin pushed me. I accidentally set fire to a bush. But she pushed me!"

"And I put it out."

"You destroyed the bush!"

"So? I got rid of the fire." Maddi groaned and pinched the bridge of her nose.

"Bumi, please tell me that nothing has happened with the little ones. Please."

"They're fine aunt Maddi." Bumi stated, laughing as he hauled three year old Suyen Be Fong off the ground, slung her over his shoulder and walked over to us, Maddi's youngest child, Kai, trailing behind.

"I think it's time I tell everyone a story," I started and instantly all the kids were gathered around in a perfect semi-circle, eyes wide and clearly excited.

"You couldn't have done that an hour ago?" Maddi asked dryly, pulling her youngest daughter onto her lap. Kai glared at her mother and wiggled out of her grip, soft, light brown hair falling into her eyes. Maddi sighed and began to braid the long strands while I began.

"So what story should I tell?" I asked out loud.

"Oh! Oh! Tell us about the giant leopard-seal!" Bumi begged.

"Boring! How about-" Su Sen began but was cut off.

"What happened after the Harmony Restoration Movement was ended?" Lin asked. She hadn't heard about the battle that had occurred afterwards, Toph preferred to fill her children in on her own adventures. I glanced around at the children once again, taking in their seating positions.

Bumi, my sister's oldest son was holding Toph's youngest daughter in his lap while she tried to earthbend herself a stone to chew on. Kya and Izumi, Katara and Maddi's daughters sat side by side. The two were close, not only relationship wise but they had been born only a few days apart. Tenzin, my sister's youngest child and only airbender sat quietly to the side, face serious. Sometimes I wondered if that boy ever smiled.

Su Sen and Lu Ten on the other hand, Maddi's twins, were full of energy and spirit, sometimes it was hard to keep either of them from fidgeting. Hayoda, my son, my pride and joy; and the only child that had survived to be born from the union between Suki and I, was nine years old and a waterbender like Katara. Lin Be Fong, Toph's eldest daughter had moved her place from beside Hayoda to sit beside Tenzin, glancing up at the boy out of the corner of her eyes. The last two children were Kai, Maddi's youngest daughter, at seven year old she had been the source of the most grey hairs between her parents. She worried her parents, mostly because much like Azula she was a prodigy, and that many of her personality traits reminded Zuko of his sister when she was younger.

I glanced at Suyen, Toph's youngest daughter. At only three years old she spent most of her time asking questions about the world or declaring that she would be a great 'medal' bender like her mother. Toph and I had been awkward around each other for a while after Suyen was born, our relationship unsure of how to progress from there. What made it worse was that neither of us could admit the truth of Suyen's heritage, to do so would bring dishonour to both of our families. Still, Maddi had figured it out and was the only one of the Gaang other than Toph and I who knew about Suyen's true heritage.

"A story about me and Toph huh?" I hummed, pretending to think very hard.

"Have I told you the story of Toph's metal bending academy?"

"Yes, and far too often," Tenzin replied while the others shook their heads. Bumi was grinning excitedly. The teenager groaned as I began the story.

"Well, it was after the first leg of the Harmony Restoration Movement was beginning to fall apart. I was sick of Katara and Aang's lover act so I decided to go with Toph to see her earth bending students..."