Amaurotic

Well, this is a long time coming. More will be revealed at the end of this, but just know for now that this hasn't been Beta'd, so it's fairly raw, which is kind of the point. Anyway, happy reading!

This has also been edited since its initial posting. Mostly regarding dialogue, so nothing major.

Disclaimer: I do not own "Avatar: The Last Airbender, and you should be thankful; if I did, it would have sucked.

If there was one thing that Toph was unequivocally, indisputably certain of, it was that being blind was bizarre.

Or, being blind in the literal sense, but still having the ability to perceive the world in a manner that was at once efficient, but yet unfulfilling by way of her prodigal Earthbending talents, her seismic sensing ones in particular. She could "see" in the sense that she could locate objects and people based off of the vibrations they made in the Earth, as well as the metal that she had worked so tirelessly to be able to Bend. However, while this method of seeing was quite effective in many regards, and was one of the principle reasons she was the greatest Earthbender alive – a fairly justifiable claim, to be sure – she was still hampered by the fact that things like colors and the actual physical likenesses of people and things were a foreign concept to her. Every comment about how absolutely gorgeous the sky was – "Oh, look at how blue and pretty it is!"- only truly served to irk her. Toph played like it didn't affect her at all, what with her constant wisecracks about how anything Sokka drew looked exactly like whatever poor thing had the misfortune of being captured by Sokka onto paper to her. If she were to be sincere, though, she would admit that she was majorly displeased by the fact that she was unable to partake in some of life's pleasantries. Despite the jokes being totally worth it, if only to poke fun at her former crush's drawing talents, or lack thereof, or just to lighten the mood in general, she still desired to see just what all the fuss was about. Literally.

But, she had angsted about that enough, she decided. Shaking her head to provide a physical example of a person clearing theirs, she turned her head towards Aang, who was sitting on the sofa while almost absentmindedly stroking Momo, who was audibly yawing in apparent bliss.

She decided to break the silence. "What's up?"

Toph heard him give a 'hmm?', and felt him sit a little straighter; he had been sprawled out across the piece of furniture prior. "What do you mean by that?"

She scoffed at that. "I mean, what's been going on with you? You haven't said a word in hours."

"It's only been one hour," he corrected whilst avoiding the question.

"Irrelevant. C'mon, I usually have trouble getting you to shut up so I can get a word in. What's with the mime act?" Though delivered in her usual blunt fashion, the words were meant with the utmost of care. He was her friend, after all.

"Can't I feel like appreciating the silence every so often?" Well, that sounded bitter. It wasn't harsh or biting, but it was delivered with a droll, sarcastic tone that sounded wrong coming from Aang's mouth.

"Okay, something's bothering you; you're never snippy unless there is. Do you wanna tell me what it is?"

"I'd rather not talk about it."

Toph exhaled in annoyance at the unusual behavior on display from the Avatar. For the normally infectiously cheery and talkative Airbender to be so withdrawn and taciturn was disconcerting to say the very least. A worried frown twisted its way onto her lips, but she tried her best to conceal it, tilting her head downwards, crossing her arms, and sighing almost exasperatedly.

"You know that letting it build up and keeping quiet about it is only going to make it feel worse, right?"

Aang sighed, and she heard the sound of flesh slapping flesh – it seemed to be him cradling his head in his hands, at least according to her seismic senses. "Yeah, I do." His voice was muted, so he had at least a part of his hand clasped over his lips, and his intonation sounded less bitter, and more weary and regretful; as if he felt bad for not being upfront with her. "It's just that… I don't really want to get into this now. It happened awhile ago, and I've been fine up 'till now. Something about the environment must have gotten me going again."

Toph raised her eyebrow, befuddled by his sentence.. Ember Island was a place of quiet refuge and relaxation. During the last days of the Hundred Years' War, it had been their last little escape from the oppressing force that was the almighty Fire Nation. It was the final place where they could relax and be kids, even if it was only for a brief time. Soon, Sozin's Comet passed throughout the sky, imbuing all Firebenders with amplified abilities, and Ozai made his move. In the aftermath, Ozai had his Bending stripped away from him, Azula was captured and placed in an asylum, Zuko was crowned Fire Lord, and then the long and arduous process of reconstructing in both a physical and a political sense began, and it was still ongoing.

'You'd think he'd find some peace here. It's gotta be hard for anyone to just relax right now, and he's the Avatar; it has to be ten times worse. What's bothering him?'

While Toph was thinking these thoughts, she sensed Aang setting his feet down onto the floor, finally changing from his contented, but bored slouch, and she heard wings flapping, so she knew that Momo had flown away, leaving the pair of them all by their collective lonesome. Not being of the demeanor to endure a horribly awkward silence if she didn't have to (and she probably wouldn't suffer through one even if she did have to), she broke the ice with a simple, all-encompassing question.

"So, has anything interesting happened to you on the whole Avatar front?"

The sofa creaked as he raised his body – specifically his head, according to her seismic senses –and he stayed still for a time, and Toph felt, rather than saw him lock his eyes upon her own clouded over and amaurotic ones. Concurrently, she could have sworn that she felt his heartbeat quicken ever so slightly, but she waved it off as just his trademark excitement finally breaking the surface of the cold, black waters that had flooded it.

"Oh, lots of things. A few months ago, Appa and I were cruising through the sky, and we came across Pipsqueak and The Duke. They'd reunited with some of the other Freedom Fighters-" his voice acquired a melancholy tone as memories of Jet came rushing at him, or so Toph surmised. "And they were having issues with some of the Fire Nation colonies. So, I stepped in and tried to mediate and help everybody come to a peaceful solution, but then I found out that there were some Ozai loyalists plotting in secret."

"How'd that turn out?" She was leaning forward now, hands clasping her chin in her eagerness to be regaled.

"Eh, coulda been worse. Nothing really dangerous happened... Except for that time I woke up to an assassin trying to slit my throat." He said that last part way too casually.

"Wait, what!?" Toph could almost visualize him smirking at that nonchalant 'WHAM' of a sentence. It made her want to wipe the cheeky grin off of his face, but she had no evidence to prove that it even existed save for her women's intuition. Accurate though it may be, it sadly wasn't enough justification.

"So, I was curled up, asleep, and having the greatest dream. I'm almost mad at they guy for waking me up, cuz now I can't remember it," he said with a whimsical, yet compelling air to his words. "Then - and this is the scary part - I heard something creaking, but it wasn't enough to wake me up all the way. I think I may have mumbled something about how I didn't order room service, but then I dozed right back off. A second later, I heard footsteps coming, getting louder as whoever was walking got closer to me, and I turned over with my eyes still only half-open, and I saw a blade a few inches from my face."

The young man had a knack for telling stories. It was evidenced by how easily he had managed to suck Toph into the story despite her being unable to see any of his pantomiming or facial expressions. The air whooshing around her served as the only indication of his excitable hands' antics. Aang could weave an intricate and suspenseful web of events with his voice as his only tool.

"And then?" she asked expectantly.

"So, I was awake like that," he said, snapping his fingers for effect. "but I was still a bit groggy, so when I tried to Airbend, I wasn't very accurate. Because of that, he was winded-" Toph had to audibly groan at that extravagant display of wit-"but still able to get away from the place."

"Sounds like you're losing your touch, Aang," she said with a wry smirk. Though she internally had a desire to hunt the would-be murderer down and shove a large piece of metal into areas where only she could locate, she couldn't very well go and mollycoddle the young man across from her. 'Twould be completely against her typical behavior, and he clearly viewed the experience with good humor, else he wouldn't be so flippant about his near-death experience. Either that, or it was a ploy to save face, but that didn't seem likely to Toph. After all, the two of them had certainly seen each other at their best, but also at their worst. It wouldn't really make for him to start being so protective of his reputation after so long.

"Guilty as charged. Then again, can you blame me? I mean, since Ozai went down, there haven't been a lot of reasons for me to be on my guard. I guess I'm just that good at being the Avatar," he countered with a wry chuckle, and presumably a cocky smirk.

'Apparently me and Sokka have actually rubbed off on him. Took him freaking long enough.' "Don't get too cocky there, Twinkles. Until all of the Nations can come together with flowers in hand and dance in a meadow with no hard feelings left, you still have a purpose." As soon as the words exited her mouth, she felt herself instinctively wince as what she said became clear to her. 'Yikes. That sounded a lot nicer in my head.'

"Ha!" His jubilant laugh stunned Toph, as she had expected that to hit a tad too close to home. She actually heard him stamp his foot from his mirth, which was something that she could finally claim to have actually been present for. "That'll be the day," he choked out, the words sounding half-chortled. "I can just picture Zuko leading everybody in a huge circle of peace, love, and understanding." Toph had to audibly laugh as well at the absurdity of that notion. Even if he had matured beyond his adolescent angst, Zuko was still not the most personable individual. The idea of him being the one to smile on his brother and help everybody get together was just majestic.

"If I ever see that, I swear my life will be complete." She was still giggling; something that in most other situations would have mortified her, but this was an exception due to the sheer, unadulterated hilarity at play, as well as the presence of Aang. For some reason, it was all too easy to loosen up in his presence. It was so natural that her own mind didn't even express shock at these occurrences anymore; they just happened.

Such was the nature of their relationship, she figured. He was the first one to try to set everybody at ease with a decently funny joke or an amusing anecdote, and she tended to be the one to make a half-hearted attempt to sarcastically heckle him. For a time, she tended to best him in these engagements, but as of the last few times they had spoken, he seemed to have finally absorbed some of the sarcasm she and Sokka oozed with via some form of osmosis, and could now make an effort to disarm her with his own witty repartee. It really was a change for Toph, since even Sokka was just pathetic in terms of actual banter. Or, more aptly, he mainly made wry remarks with no intent of one-upmanship, and usually just whined about everybody picking on him whenever she made an attempt to bring him back down off his cloud. Charming in its own way, sure – she had liked him, after all – but not the best setup for actual back-and-forths that she desired. Aang was the first person in their group of friends that actually bothered to match wits with her. It was… Refreshing, to put it succinctly.

'It really is strange… I mean, I'm not complaining, but… There's something about this that makes me think it's not just me rubbing of on him. Maybe it's just because we don't see each other every day... I need to ask Katara about it, I guess.'

"If you see it, huh?" He sounded a bit less jovial now.

Toph shrugged her shoulders. "I really can't complain much. If I weren't blind, I wouldn't be able to Bend nearly as well. I doubt we would have even met if I could see."

Aang cleared his throat, sounding nervous as he stayed silent for a moment. "Yeah, but don't you still wanna know what it's like? Just so you know how it feels? Maybe even see what the rest of us look like?"

Toph's reply came in a delayed manner. "I guess, yeah." Her voice was soft, with a hint of childlike wistfulness and longing subtly layering her words.

A drawn out silence grew between the two as Toph momentarily pondered on the words that had slipped off of her tongue. They were words not borne of meditation or deep thinking. Rather, they were words that originated from a deep, subconscious level. As she reflected upon them, however, she saw the truth within them, and was momentarily alarmed at how they had just came out with no filter. Of course, the blindingly fast reminder that only Aang had heard her served to sober her damn near instantaneously. He could be trusted.

"Anyway," he continued, apparently oblivious to her ruminations, "I managed to track him back to the rest of the group, had a big, long battle with all of them, and now they're in an Earth Kingdom jail awaiting transfer to the Fire Nation."

"Makes the stuff we did as kids seem like nothing, huh?" Toph adopted a grin to accentuate the joke that lied therein.

"Well, yeah. Puts running from Azula to shame," he said, his inflection light and cheery. "But I feel that if that's what counts as a big deal these days, then the world is on a path to a brighter future. Maybe I'm being naive, but with how much has changed in only a few years, I really feel like we're pulling it off."

Aang's voice had gained a more serious tone at that last admission, belying how hopeful he truly was for the world. Toph had to admire that. "So, you really think that people are trying to improve the world and that they'll succeed?" She said this with no air of cynicism, but rather a curiosity that was as genuine as anything she had ever felt around the young Avatar.

"I don't know how everything will end up, but I know that they're trying. For every backwards-minded revolutionary who wants to put Ozai back on the throne, there are at least a hundred, no, a thousand people who are putting their faith in Zuko to start fixing the relations between the Nations. A thousand people who believe that whatever Nation you're from doesn't matter, so long as you're a good person. A thousand people who truly believe that war is useless and a waste of time. A thousand people who care."

Toph nearly fell silent at that. She was certainly dumbstruck for a brief spell, but there was one thing she had to say to him.

"Hold on to that. If everybody thought that, it'd be real easy to make everything better."

"Thanks," he replied sheepishly, "I guess I needed to hear that."

She waved him off. "No problem, Twinkletoes."

He stood at that and made his way over to the sofa she was currently slouching on, drawing a momentary raised brow from her before she felt his weight sink down beside her. It wasn't at all unusual for him to put himself in close proximity with any of his friends – he was a rather touchy-feely person by nature – so there shouldn't have been any confusion on Toph's part. But, as he fell into place at her side, their clothed shoulders making minimal contact with each other, why was there a sudden churning of emotions deep within her that made her too flustered to even attempt to break the contented silence they had fallen into?

Beaches really were lost on her.

While not necessarily agonizingly terrible, Toph felt that there was a disconnect from the entire concept of a fun-filled day at the beach. The sights were obviously lost on her, but it transcended that. For every whiff of the salty air that passed into her nostrils, there was this overwhelming desire to leap headfirst into the tide and unite with the odor's source, despite her general aversion to water. Every brush her toes made against the sand filled her with the desire to spring up and show the rest of the Gaang why she was the greatest Earthbender in the world, but their insistence on having "fun" by way of sand castles and volleyball and other assorted indulgences spoiled that notion. That and her Sandbending skills still left something to be desired, seeing as she was not constantly exposed to the substance, so she could only practice on rare occasions such as the odd excursion to Ember Island. Sand castles were no doubt a pastime filled with fun, laughter, and despair when the tide washed a half-finished work away. However, a large part of the appeal that lied there was in the time spent diligently molding and shaping the wet sand. While Toph could certainly construct elaborate towns and cityscapes, it was all done in such a short time that the process couldn't possibly resonate within her. Though a complex process, it was no stretch for her to do it. Even with her less than optimal Sandbending skills, she could handle it with little to no issues, but she knew that something was missing from the event.

With the sound of shouting and the slapping of a ball, she decided to curtail that line of thought. Apparently the other members of their little tribe had decided to put on a seemingly impromptu game of volleyball, which was something that Toph could not participate in, for obvious reasons. Spectating the event was also out of the question, since she would be a sitting turtleduck for the ball should it be errantly knocked in her vicinity, and her only ways of knowing what was going on were the less than optimal commentary from any other spectators, and Sokka's various far-reaching noises of approval and disapproval. Even at a fairly decent distance away from the action, she could still clearly hear his yells of jubilation and despondence, but the odd thing was that his was the only voice that rang out.

Sokka may have been the most vocal player, but Aang was certainly no slouch. He seemed to think that yelling out his moves was an effective strategy. "I've gotta give him credit, though. He has very inventive names for what ends up being just a spike. Still, why isn't he doing that now? I heard him talking to the others earlier, so I know he's playing-'

"What are you doing all by yourself over here?"

Toph nearly gave a start at the sudden intrusion of her privacy. Thankfully, her bangs had shrouded her momentarily widened eyes, and she didn't flinch, so Katara was none the wiser about how she had actually managed to startle her. 'And now thinking about him is making me space out completely. Even Sokka never…'

"Nothing, really. Just staying out of that evil ball's path."

Katara sat herself down beside Toph on the sand. "Ah, I get you. Have you just been playing with the sand this whole time?"

"Eh, kind of. More drawing shapes I don't know how to draw and thinking, really." Toph tried her best to nonchalantly rub away her little sand doodles, thought they didn't really look much different afterwards.

"Thinking about what?" inquired Katara.

"Whatever random thing comes to mind," responded Toph with a shrug. She then tilted head skyward and gazed sightlessly as she changed the subject. "Who's winning?"

"It's close. Aang, Sokka, and Zuko are up by two against Mai, Suki, and Ty Lee."

"Any reason it's a battles of the sexes?" asked Toph.

"I… might've goaded Sokka into it," replied Katara, amusement dancing alongside every word.

"Ha! Did you ask him how he felt knowing a bunch of girls could take his sorry butt on?" Toph's wry smirk cut across her face as she shared in Katara's humorous air.

"In a not-so obvious way, yeah. It's a little questionable how easily he took the bait; I'm starting to wonder just how much of his sexism he's grown out of."

"From his smack talking, he seems to view them as people, not a gender. He's still being kinda obnoxious about it all, but baby steps, right?"

Katara chuckled briefly before answering. "Baby steps sounds about right."

With a swallow, Toph said, "Makes me wish I didn't have to separate myself from all that."

"Actually, I've kinda been wanting to talk to you about that." Katara sucked in a breath before proceeding. "You've been acting kind of… Pensive lately. I can't remember any time you were being so withdrawn in the past, so I've been a little worried."

Toph quirked her head in befuddlement. "Have I really been? I honestly hadn't noticed."

"Case and point, this is the first time that you and me have had a one-on-one conversation this entire trip."

Again, Toph was puzzled. Had she really been so distant? Thinking back on it, she couldn't recall spending time with anybody that trip. All save for Aang.

"Well, I'm not being intentionally distant," she said in an attempt to pacify her older friend. "I can't really say why I'm not being all social; it's not like I feel lonely. Or depressed. Or anything, really."

"Are you sure, Toph? I mean, you don't need to put on a brave front if you're having a problem. It's okay to let people in." Her motherly nature was ever apparent with her gentle, reassuring tone.

"Again, I'm not really feeling depressed, and nothing's really going on with my emotions. I've talked and hung out with people as much as usual at one of these get-togethers, and it's not like it's been exhausting me." That was definitely true. Most of her time on the island had been spent in the company of Aang, and their time spent together had been some of the most invigorating interactions she'd had in the longest time.

"That's funny… You and Aang both have been kind of retreating from the group this trip. Has it been together?"

"Yeah, actually." Toph wondered if Katara was trying to imply something. Though it wasn't in her nature to say something that was disingenuous, there was something in her voice that made Toph curious. Being someone who relied on her ears for more than most to read people, she had a vast, ever expanding knowledge of tonality and word choice. And the vague, nigh imperceptible emotion that painted Katara's words was what she could only classify as… Regret?

"Now that you mention it, there's something I've been wanting to ask you."

Katara's voice was still guarded. "What is it?"

"Well, is it just me or does Aang seem… Different? Not, like, an entirely different person or anything, but something's off. He never used to spend so much time away from everybody. Plus, and this may be nothing, but he's also been way more sarcastic and cutting in his speech. I know I may seem paranoid, but it's just been bothering me, and I figured you of all people would have the best perspective on this."

Katara didn't respond for a good, long while. Toph remained silent, staring at the great black expanse that she always seemed to gaze upon, and expectant. Time figuratively slowed down during this lull in their exchange, and the anticipation was maddening. Before Toph shouted or some other thing to regain her sanity, her compatriot finally responded.

"Yeah, about that…." Withering hesitation was emanating from every syllable. "We kind of…. Broke up."

To say the young blind woman was flummoxed would be doing the term a disservice. Her mouth was literally agape in flabbergasted shock. The dream couple had broken up? The term 'dream couple' wasn't meant in any ironic or bitter manner; they really did seem like the perfect union. Each was as saccharine and cheesy as the other, and they never seemed to be in disagreement. The way they fit together with such ease seemed to mirror the Avatar Cycle; Air and Water were downright complementary in most areas. She was a shoulder for him to lean on in times of self-doubt, a constant voice of reassurance and emotional support, a river that flowed into his heart to remind him of how cherished he was for reasons beyond his Avatar status.

'A lot of things I never could be,' her subconscious bitterly remarked while Toph was still reeling from the shock. Shaking those thoughts loose and ushering out of her mind's entryway, she decided to broach the situation with all the finesse and tact that she had in her being. "Wow. Never saw that coming. It definitely explains a lot, though. Was it recent?"

"A little over seven months ago," replied Katara, after taking a second to mull it over.

Toph sucked in a breath before going ahead with her next inquiry. "Okay, listen. I realize that this is probably really tactless of me to ask, but I gotta know. What happened between you two?"

Katara's answer was beyond cryptic. "Let's just say that months apart don't tend to help a relationship last."

After that vague reply, Toph felt the weight beside her stand and walk away, leaving her alone once more. Katara's words stirred up far too many questions for her to count. What were these negative effects? Who instigated the fracturing of their union? What was the fallout from the wretched schism? How was Aang coping with all of this?

Aang again. Toph's thoughts were recently Aang-filled. Aang this and Aang that. What was Aang up to? How was Aang doing? How badly was Aang still reeling from the loss of Katara? It was an Aang overdose. Aang Aang Aang Aang Aang-

'Enough!' Toph screamed internally. Thankfully, the niggling little voice that had made Aang its sole topic of discussion decided to heed her command for the first time that trip. She fell back on the sand out of relief for the unexpected respite, and hoped that she could just think about something else for a minute. Just one, measly minute. Surely that wasn't too exorbitant a request.

'Hearing that explains so much… Damn it!' Toph really did have a one-track mind when it came to charming Airbenders… 'Charming?' She groaned with the volume of a barrel chested sailor who was undergoing a horrific hangover. 'The guy's a massive dork. Like, worse than Sokka in a few aspects.' Despite that reasoning, Toph did have to give him credit. Not begrudgingly either. 'Then again, if he wasn't so dorky he wouldn't be so endearing, which is a bit of a cutesy way to say charming now that I think about it. Plus, since he's apparently gained the use of sarcasm, that makes him a bit better for banter. Not to mention how irritatingly nice he can be. Well… "Irritatingly" isn't the best word for it. More infectiously, I guess. I mean, how often does somebody ask how you're doing, and honestly wanna know the answer? And with how he doesn't ever complain about people asking for help with things, even when those things are really stupid and shouldn't require the most capable Bender in the world to help them with, it just shows how great a guy really is. Then there's…'

Oh, that train of thought had a long journey yet to travel, but she had to halt it when a sudden and simple realization took hold.

'I can go for hours on just how amazing he is, can't I?' Toph thought sardonically.

It was certainly the case. It wasn't the first time Aang had entered and controlled her inner ruminations, but this time was different. There was nothing restricting her from just indulging, and, as much as she was loath to admit it, gushing over him. Well, gushing by her standards, anyway.

'Great. He's turning me into some lovestruck, simpering little thing.' Before she could make a mental note to sock him one for having that effect, her own word choice hit her like a bolt of lightning.

'Lovestruck?'

And thus, the cornerstone of it all was finally unearthed from her deepest, most unconsciously explored thoughts. Well, 'love' may have been a tad dramatic, but the feeling was certainly akin. Constant thoughts about him when not in his presence, steady and unabashed enjoyment of his company, the ability to be completely naked and open with each other, the capacity for long, philosophical discussions or heated debates over the most inane of topics, not to mention the ability to appreciate a contented silence with no awkwardness in tow.

Toph could only blow her bangs out of her face, which was a bit of a recurring action of hers, and lie there while almost exasperatedly thinking of the truth.

'So, I like him. Why am I trying to rationalize it?'

There really wasn't an answer for that. After all, it's not like she could make herself disconnect from her infatuation and admiration. No, the best she could do was to just ignore it and hope it would fade like a sigh.

Toph didn't really want to, though.

She sensed him out on the balcony.

He'd been avoiding her the past few days, which meant that he'd been steering clear of everyone. Toph had inquired as to his whereabouts to Zuko, Sokka, Ty Lee – they had formed a bizarre, yet not at all surprising rapport – and even Katara, which was an awkward conversation to put it mildly.

No answers were given.

Honestly, the way he had practically vanished was getting to her. Especially considering his tendency to disappear and try to hide away when his emotional state was one of distress. It wasn't one of his most becoming traits, that was for sure.

Brushing those thoughts aside, Toph hastened to reach him, almost sprinting so as not to let him slip away again.

"Why are you in such a hurry?"

Toph shrugged in what she hoped was a nonchalant manner. It really wasn't. "Ah, you know, just getting some exercise in."

"Riiiiight. I think you were just in a rush to see me." There was a smirk in those words. Too bad she couldn't visualize it, because if she had that ability, she could give him a hearty punch to the shoulder with complete impunity. 'Ah, screw it.'

His shoulder had gained some muscle since she last socked it. His whiny protests offered little reprimand. It served him right for getting her all flustered.

"Anyway, where have you been these past few days?" she asked, not acknowledging the fact that she had technically just assaulted him moments prior.

"I- How- What- …Never mind." 'Twould seem that she wasn't the only flustered one. "Nowhere special. Why do you ask?"

"I…" She looked down for a spell while trying to figure how best to put it. "Well, you have a tendency to disappear when you're hurting, and I… Katara told me about what happened between you two. I figured being around her might have dug up some bad feelings." Her head was still pointed toward the ground. "I... guess I was... worried." The words came out as a barely a whisper, but she knew Aang still heard them.

Aang sighed wearily. "She did, did she?" A quick nod served as his reply. "Well, great." He paused for a long while, prompting Toph to raise her head in his direction, silently telling him to continue. "I'm not going to lie and say that being around her isn't doing anything to me. It's part of why I've been a bit distant with everybody. But, it's not really that at all. Honestly, I've just been thinking about things when we haven't been together."

"So… Do you wanna talk about it?"

He chuckled at that, which mildly irritated her. "Is it really like you to listen while somebody pours their heart out to you?"

Toph rightly scoffed at that. "Yeah, I'm so insensitive that I wouldn't do that." A little tremble crept into her voice with her next sentence. "Even if it's not my strongest point, I could make an exception for you."

Her own vulnerability astounded her. Was she really so unapproachable that it was noteworthy whenever she offered to be a shoulder? She was certainly no Katara in that department, but was it really that egregious?

"You will, huh? Hmmm… Could you come with me, Toph?"

'Well, that was out of the blue.' "To where?"

"It's a surprise."

A gust of wind blew across them, sweeping some earth off of her clothes and leading it away to what was guaranteed to be a fantastical adventure.

"Lead the way."

He grabbed her by the hand and led her through the halls of the house in a hurried manner, eliciting many a noise of befuddlement from the other temporary residents, and out the door into the cool night air. Toph could tell that he was leading her along the beach by way of the ocean's smell, but otherwise she let herself surrender to his intentions and follow his lead. They ran like the children they hadn't truly been in years.

The sudden lack of a breeze blowing her hair back was the first indicator that they had reached their destination. As she bent slightly to huff and catch her breath, Aang stood there. Toph could feel his eyes on her, disarming her. Not fully, as if he wanted to strip her bare and lay her imperfections out for all to bear witness to, but more of a cursory glance. If she was being honest, she was doing most of the disarming herself.

When her breath had been regained, she stood straight and turned in his direction, allowing him to take her hand and lead her again, only much slower. Within a minute, he let go of her hand.

"We're here. Notice anything?"

Nothing like a rhetorical question to get the conversation flowing. "Yeah, actually." There were seven oddly distinct shapes rising up from the earth. All made of earth, at that. "What are they?"

"Try feeling them and you'll find out." Laced throughout his words was an air of anticipation, as well as nervousness.

'What is it with everyone being cryptic around me?' Toph had to ask herself as she nevertheless decided to humor Aang.

The first thing she registered was that the thing she touched was the result of Bending. Pretty much no stone ever felt so smooth, and the odds of it inexplicably forming its particular shape by way of nature were rather improbable. The shape in question felt familiar. Almost like…

"A person," Toph voiced her thoughts aloud.

"Uh-huh," Aang replied, still a tad nervously.

Fascinated, she began running her hands up and down the sculpture's form, taking note of the slight curve where she presumed the hips would be meeting the torso, and she noticed something about the arms. One was bent and placed on the hip like a triangle, and one was pointing forward at an upward angle. It seemed like the pose of someone dramatic.

"Cool!" she exclaimed, almost giddily. Toph really did appreciate things like this; they could help give the illusion of sight, and she got the same general effect of it.

"I'll do you one better. Guess who that is?" Mirth was creeping back into his voice, presumably because he had heard her aweing over it.

"Who?"

"The one you've got your hands all over is supposed to be Sokka. I'd say I did a good job, too."

Momentarily stunned, she let her hands fall back down to her side and looked back at her friend. "You made all of these," she stated incredulously.

"Uh-huh."

"Not that I'm complaining, but what made you decide to spend a few days sculpting people? If the other ones are the rest of us, that is."

"Oh, they are; you're right," he confirmed. "And… The reason I did it was because I remembered what you said a few days ago about wanting to see all of us. Since I didn't think they'd all let you touch them enough to get what they look like, and I knew it'd be easier for you if they were made of earth, I figured that this was the best way to pull it off. Sorry I made you worry, I really am, but it was supposed to be a surprise, you know?"

It was fortunate for her that she was an exceptionally fast listener, because those last few sentences tumbled out of his mouth like a large amount of stampeding rabbaroos. Apparently, he was still just the tiniest bit worried that she wouldn't be impressed, but his fears were unfounded. If she were being honest, this gesture, though a bit grandiose, was quite possibly the nicest thing anyone had ever done for her. Unlike many other times regarding Aang and honesty, she let herself fully embrace that notion.

"I… You have me at a loss for words, Twinkles." Truthfully, what could she say to him? All words of thanks that she was familiar with didn't seem to match up to the level she would have to be shooting for.

"Why don't you just explore all of them for right now? "

Letting shine a brilliant, beaming smile, she did just that, moving her hands back over Sokka with an eagerness that was not at all related to her past infatuation with him. She could determine that he was still a bit gangly, but had likely gained muscle since the last time she felt him. Toph also surmised that the rough patch around his face was meant to indicate facial hair, which Aang confirmed when she asked him. His face was also free of common teenage imperfections, and aside from an oddly placed mole (represented by a raised bump) on his left cheek, the stone face was flawless.

She moved on to the others after some time, and she felt them all with the same fervor that she had felt Sokka with. Their radically different body shapes, at least for the girls, were also fascinating. Toph's own form had developed respectable curves as puberty led her towards adulthood, but Ty Lee and Katara's in particular were much more apparent. She could have made a wry remark about Aang enjoying himself a little too much whilst shaping any of his female friends, but she let him of the hook for that just once. He had done all this for her, after all, so he deserved at least a minute amount of mercy.

After marveling at how he had managed to replicate Zuko's scar – he mentioned that while the scar was a great resemblance aesthetically, he couldn't tell her how it felt texturally, so he took a little artistic license. Either way, she could only marvel at the little details littered throughout the mannequins. The little dusting of freckles on Katara's cheeks and nose, the fact that Ty Lee's mouth was in the shape of a huge smile, all of them. Despite her haze of gratitude and general enjoyment, she did notice thing that struck her as odd.

"Where are you here, Aang?"

His hesitation in answering her did not go unnoticed. "Oh… That… I didn't really get a chance to finish everything. When you came up to me at the balcony, I decided to come show you these on a whim. I would have started on myself tomorrow, but I didn't want to make you worry anymore, so I figured it was best to just show you now."

"Well, now I feel like I missed out," she said disappointedly. "I should've waited 'till tomorrow to run up to you and demand an explanation." Hey, she could try to lighten the mood with a joke too.

She felt him pacing, and heard him muttering to himself. "Hmm, maybe I could… No, that's dumb. She'd never go for it…"

"What wouldn't I go for?" she inquired. Her voice made him stop his movements, and he audibly gulped before replying.

"I kinda figured that instead of… Feeling up a statue of me…" Toph had to laugh at his phrasing and the nervous way he said it. "You could do the same thing with the real me…" He trailed off at the end, his tone belying his abashment to the very notion.

The swiftness of her own rebuttal surprised her. "I'm down for that."

"R-really?" there was still trepidation in his voice, but much less than what had danced among them beforehand.

"Yes."

Toph approached him slowly, her own apprehensiveness bubbling within, but thankfully hidden. When she reached him, he took the initiative and took her hands on his own, allowing her to clasp her own, smaller hands over his and start feeling around. They were shaking noticeably. While roughened from his Bending as well as his less than pampered lifestyle, there was still a certain softness that betrayed his youth, and they were mostly hairless, with only a little on his knuckles and the back of them. From there she moved her ministrations up to his arms. Toph noticed that while he was still definitely skinny, there was a subtle, lean musculature that wound its way around his forearms, and extended up to his biceps and triceps. While not rock hard, there was no doubt that he would be substantially strong even without the ability to Bend. She then dropped her hands to his waist, which elicited a nervous chuckle from him. She went no lower than that, however. His abdominal region was a tad emaciated, and she could feel his ribs poking through in a manner she knew to be unhealthy, but like the rest of him, there were still noticeable muscles there. Momentarily thanking some unknown force that made the clothes of the Air Nation so thin and light, she next went for the shoulders, which were unusually broad for someone his size, and up to his neck and face. The top of his head had some light buzz there, so he obviously hadn't shaved it in a few days, and there was also some stubble around his chin and cheeks, though it wasn't particularly thick. His cheekbones were high, and the skin around his face was stretched tightly across them. Aang's next action was bold and unexpected. He moved his hands up, resting them atop hers in as nonchalant a manner as possible. The shaking had mostly subsided. He directed her to other spots on his faces, feeling the unfortunate teenage imperfections that sparsely decorated his cheeks. They weren't an issue at all, though.

Lastly, her hands were guided to his lips, and she traced them ever so slowly. They were fairly full, and a tad chapped. What really grabbed her attention was his body's reaction: a contented shiver. Responding to that almost instinctively, she stood on her tiptoes.

Her lips were only a little off the mark when they met his.

There was no clashing of tongues, and no feeling up occurred. Toph's hands remained gripping his face softly, slightly pulling him down to make up for their miniscule height difference, and his slid down to her shoulders, eliciting a slight moan from her. The kiss was chaste, but there was an unspeakable amount of passion that radiated to and from the other. His fingers lightly drummed a rhythm on her shoulders, and she sighed happily. Toph felt just how powerful her only recently acknowledged affection for the Avatar truly was, and had she bothered to think about, the ease with which she had stepped in and kissed him would have momentarily terrified her. Only momentarily, though. As the temptation to slip into the sweet, heavenly oblivion that was Aang's embrace surmounted, she finally realized what she was doing. She didn't really care, at least until she remembered the issue between him and Katara.

Toph separated from him, their lips making audible popping noises, and he could only let out a contented sigh. Taking a moment to calm her emotions, which were screaming at her to take him back into her arms and kiss him senseless, she had to ask one question. If she didn't, she would feel like she was taking advantage of him.

"What about Katara?"

"Well, we are broken up," he chuckled. "I don't think there's anything saying we can't do this."

That wasn't what she meant, though. "I was more asking if you were sure you're over her."

"To be honest, I'm pretty sure I was over her before we split up." That made her raise an eyebrow in disbelief, but she gestured to him to elaborate. "Well, all I know is that when she brought up how she thought we just weren't right for each other anymore, I didn't disagree with her. At least, not internally. I mean, when it happened I wasn't exactly all sunshine and panda lilies, but after the first few weeks of being away from her, I realized that it was for the best."

"How so?"

"One of the biggest reasons was how insecure she was about me being gone for so long on Avatar business. She never directly accused me, but her word choice when we got into it wasn't exactly kind to any other women."

That notion flabbergasted Toph. Aang be unfaithful? Did Katara know him at all?

"That's ridiculous. Even if you were falling out of love with her, you wouldn't do anything while you two were still an item."

"Yeah, but I don't think she was really thinking when she said that. She knows me better than that. I think it was just a lack of communication, and she turned a mild insecurity into that to justify it. I don't hold it against her or anything, though."

A brief quiet took over as Toph deliberated over whether or not to ask the question that had been on her mind ever since Katara had delivered the revelation. Swallowing briefly, and making sure to keep her entire body away from him for fear of seizing him in another embrace, she broached the touchy subject.

"But, I gotta know, what made you realize it was for the best that you two break up?"

She heard him swallow before answering. "I realized that my feelings had switched over to someone else." She tilted her head in faux question, knowing the answer but still wishing for him to say it aloud. "You," he stated simply.

That admission made her damn near euphoric. Grabbing his hands again, she expressed that feeling of euphoria in her own way. "As long as I know I'm not taking advantage of you, I guess." The words were in jest, but the smile she gave to him was brilliant, beautiful and genuine.

"You never could."

The sound of his voice cracking almost made her laugh. Almost. She wanted to enjoy the moment, however. Thankfully, he rescued her from falling into the pit of awkwardness that she would have tumbled down into by taking the initiative and planting one on her that time. His hands slid to her waist, and her wrapped around his neck, and they stood there for an undetermined period of time, basking in the touch, closeness, and comfort of the other.

It was so damn storybook that it would have made Toph groan had someone told her about it, but the experience was too heavenly to make her complain. She could make fun of Aang later, though. And she was just fine with that.