Katoph: In Between the Lines

The Serpent's Pass

[A/N] Heyoo! I know it takes me forever to update Katoph: In Between the Lines and to that, I apologize. But I swear I write on a regular basis. On top of that, I want to make sure I write quality chapters— and by that, I mean I want to make sure there's no typos and such.

Anyways, here's another chapter!

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After their departure from the sand benders, Team Avatar headed towards the suggested waterfall. They each found themselves wound up in their own thoughts, causing the trip to be almost dead silent, had it not been for Sokka. He made sure to point out his exhaustion and hunger as much as possible. The non bender felt as if this little getaway was a no brainer. They needed to flush their solemn thoughts away and relax for a little while. Of course, Sokka was okay. Nothing troubled him so far. He would have been more appreciative of this fact given the circumstance of his friends, but even he was caught up in his own thoughts. Thoughts about how to get to Ba Sing Se, how long it'd take, how many stops they'd need and so on and so forth. All he knew was that they had to keep going if they wanted to get the message out in time. Though he couldn't focus properly due to the melancholy vibe the rest of Team Avatar was emitting. Frequently, he worried about them taking too many stops— but this time it was necessary.

"We're finally here!" Sokka threw his hands up in excitement. Quick and brief, he took in the waterfall. It was a blue bliss shimmering in the light of day. Its walls barricaded itself from the treachery of the world in order to maintain its beauty. Though contorted, it was perfect— much like many thing things in life.

Aang and Katara were at awe. Not only was it mesmerizing, but it was also enough to, even for just a moment, drown out all of their problems. Toph just knew it was enormous though. The earth bender felt an ache in her heart about her disability. How, without sight, it prevented her from seeing the best things in the world... It didn't matter. At the very least, she felt the change in both Katara and Aang's attitude and demeanor. They were better. Not happy, but better. Any change in spirits within the Avatar and the water bender were good.

"Come on, let's hop in!" Aang shouted before squatting low and launching himself high into the air, leaving behind a cool breeze. Everything, except his trunks, fell off of him and landed exactly where he took off. Then, just as quickly as it started, the air nomad dove into the water. His landing created a forty-foot wave, rendering the non bender soaked in water.

"You're lucky I put my bag out by a rock," the water tribe boy suppressed his anger amidst being drenched. "Sorry Sokka," Aang called out as he resurfaced, scratching the back of his head.

"Don't worry," Katara smiled and reassured her older brother. Drawing her arms back, while ensuring a solid and steady base, she extracted all the water from Sokka. "Thank you Katara," he growled once dry, "try to control yourselves. I'm gonna figure out a way to Ba Sing Se." He silently made his way over to a huge rock and perched himself atop it.

"Are you sure you don't want to go for a swim Sokka? It's really nice in here," the air nomad inquired as he floated on his back.

"Thanks, but maybe next time," the non bender muttered, not taking his eyes off the map. He thought quietly to himself and rubbed his chin.

"Okay! Suit yourself!" Aang shrugged, "Come on Katara and Toph!" He shouted one last time before submerging himself in the water.

Katara grew ecstatic at the thought of jumping in. Just envisioning swimming in the waterfall refreshed her. She placed her hand on her coat, ready to strip down and jump in, yet she paused at Toph's silence. "You're not gonna go?" The water bender turned to her.