Freedom

Chapter 11: The Scarred Face

"I want to save Zuko..."

Katara held her breath for Toph's reaction. The younger girl paused for a moment, her glazed emerald eyes narrowed in concentration.

After a moment, she sighed, "You know your brother is going to want to kill you right?"

Katara chuckled slightly at the girl's reaction, "I know..." she told her, "But I feel like this is something I need to do... I can't turn my back on him when he is the only reason we made it out of Ba Sing Se with our lives..."

Toph nodded, kicking her foot and bending a stool to sit on. She plopped herself down, "I don't think it's a bad idea..." Toph mused aloud, "Aang needs to learn firebending, he won't be able to defeat the Fire Lord without it... It's just that-"

"Sokka and Aang will never forget what's he's done and think I'm crazy for wanting to save him" Katara finished her sentence for her.

She shrugged and nodded, "Precisely..."

Katara sighed, "He saved us... doesn't that count for something?", she looked away, out towards the horizon.

Toph listened for a moment, read the way her heartbeat began to flutter faster when she spoke of him, how her breath hitched when anyone said his name, "Are you sure it's just cause he saved you?"

Katara looked at her in surprise and tried to brush the question off, "Of course! Just returning a favor.. uhhh... and for Aang of course, Aang needs a teacher"

The younger girl chuckled to herself, but decided to let the girl come to terms with it on her own time, "Right..." Toph paused for a moment before speaking again, "Look I don't know what happened in the caves, but Aang realizes what Zuko sacrificed to save you two. It may take some convincing but he'll come around"

"And Sokka?" Katara asked her.

"Well you're his sister, he has to do everything you say anyways" Toph said, bending herself a backrest and leaning back into it with her arms behind her head.

Katara laughed lightly, "So you'll have my back then?"

Toph closed her eyes and sighed, "Yeah yeah sweetness, whatever you need"

The waterbender got a big smile on her face, happy to have at least someone on her side, "Thank you Toph"

The boys came back soon after, both with their arms full of firewood. Aang bounced forward first, dropping the wood at her feet, "Here's that fire wood for you Katara!" He exclaimed, proud of himself for getting what she asked of him.

Katara looked up from the wild mushrooms she was cutting and smiled, "Thanks Aang"

Sokka rolled his eyes at the younger boy trying to kiss up and set his pile on top of Aang's.

Katara watched them for a moment as Aang laid down in the grass, playing with a few beads between his fingers and Sokka began to construct the fire for the night, leaning the sticks on each other.

She glanced over at Toph who seemed so absent minded as she forgot the whole conversation. Toph was shyly waiting for her to bring it up but didn't want to rise suspicion from the boys by staring an empty hole in her head, waiting and listening for the name Zuko to pop up.

"So where are we headed after this?" Aang asked, "We probably shouldn't stay here after that guy tried to pick up Katara" he said with disdain in his town, as if a man could possibly dare to hit on his girl.

Katara reached up to touch the pearl dangling from her neck, feeling it's smooth surface. She cleared her throat, "I had an idea..." she spoke up, "It's something I've thought long and hard about... And I think it's something we need to do"