Avatar Katara

The Tales of Ba Sing Se

THE TALE OF RINA AND TOPH

Sokka cut off the beginnings of a mustache with his machete. Katara fixed her hair loops. Rina finished shaving her hair. Then she noticed that Toph wasn't awake.

She opened the door and immediately noticed that Toph's hair was all over the place. Toph yawned and stretched, her wild bed-head poofed up. "I'm ready."

"You're not going to wash up?" Rina asked. "You've got a little dirt on your...everywhere, actually."

Toph shrugged. "You call it dirt, I call it a healthy coating of earth."

Rina nodded sagely. "I know what you need. A spa day."

---

"The Fancy Lady Day Spa?" Toph asked. "Sounds like my kind of place."

"Are you ready for some serious pampering?"

"Sure. As long as they don't touch my feet."

---

Rina flipped through a magazine on rare animals as her feet were scrubbed. Meanwhile, Toph was pinned down as the attendants struggled to clean out the dirt.

A pillar of earth slammed one attendant into the wall.

---

The girls rested in the mud baths, with mud covering their faces and cucumber slices over their eyes. Toph was bending her mask into funny shapes out of boredom.

One of the attendants saw it and screamed.

The mud bent into a grin.

---

Toph bent a stone into the pile of hot rocks and Rina blew the warm air around. Both girls sighed.

---

"Well that wasn't too bad," Toph said as the two girls walked back to the house, their hair and makeup perfectly done. "I'm not usually into that kind of stuff, but I feel...girly."

"Well I'm glad," Rina said. "It's about time we do something fun together."

They crossed a bridge over a creek. A trio of girls giggled as they walked by. "Wow, great makeup!"

"Thanks," Toph said.

"For a clown!"

Toph frowned. "Don't listen to them," Rina urged. "Let's keep walking."

"I think she looks cute. Like that one time we put a sweater on your pet poodle monkey!"

"Good one, Star!"

"Let's go, Toph."

"No." Toph stopped and turned to face the girls. "No. That was a good one. 'Like your poodle monkey.' Haha! You know what else is a good one? This." She stomped and a hole opened up beneath the girls, dropping them into the stream below.

Rina burst into laughter. "Now that was funny." She flicked her wrist and wind blew the girls downstream.

Then she noticed Toph wasn't looking at her as she walked away from the creek. "Those girls don't know what they're talking about," Rina promised.

Toph shrugged. "It's ok. One of the good things about being blind is that I don't have to worry about my appearance." She was still frowning. "I don't care what I look like. I'm not looking for anyone's approval. I know who I am."

"That's what I admire about you, Toph. You're so confident and self-assured. And I know it doesn't matter, but you're really pretty."

Toph beamed. "I am?"