Love, Anonymous: Tokka

Part 8

Tensions grew, both standing still in fear. At this point they were preparing for the worst, definitely outnumbered they wouldn't be able to make it out of this one. If she was going out, she would go out with a fight regardless of the circumstances.

"Uh, excuse me?"

Before another word was spoken the same man from the previous night threw his arm around the girls shoulder, raising his glass into the air. Before she knew it the crowd before her began to chant in a song like manner.

"Oh, the filthy spies they spread the lies! Lies of the banished prince, we shut them down, hide like criminals! Together we stand, together we rise, our nation will rise back to its full glory!"

Toph and Sokka both stood in silence, bodies shaking from fear and confusion.

"Lighten up there kids, you're one of us now! Get used to it!"

Shaking in their skin they both tried to laugh it off , uneasy as ever. The group of men motioned them to follow, leading them into a small room towards the back of the bar. Slamming the door shut behind them they all took a seat at a long wooden table lined with wooden stools. At the head of the table hung a large map. The man they had spoken to the most , stood at the head of the table with a large grin on his face.

"All right guys let's settle down - settle down now. For our newcomers, I am The General. Thank you all for gathering here today, brothers and sisters, today we begin to shape history."

Quill in hand he smothered it in ink, drawing a large red circle onto the map, highlighting the great city of Ba Sing Se.

"Along with the help of our thousands of brothers and sisters across our great world, a week from today we will make a statement, showing the banished prince and our great leader Ozai that we mean business. Taking control of Ba Sing Se will not only let the world know we are serious, but will be the first step in reclaiming what is rightfully ours. We will face death and hardship, but we must do everything we can to win this war. Our spies have already infiltrated the city for these last few months, finding every great weakness we can use to our advantage. We will emerge on top!"

The room emerged in ecstatic cheers, Toph and Sokka unwillingly joining in, fear and worry heavy on their minds.

The meeting concluded shortly after, the two exiting the bar in silence. This was not a new group, they had months on them, months of careful planning. Even when they would warn the others, there was so much to do in so little time.

Walking down the familiar dark path, Sokka gently grabbed the girls hand as a signal to stop.

"Hey Toph, everything will be okay, we'll always stick together, alright? We knew this wasn't going to be easy, we're never that lucky."

"I know that it's just - I thought this was all over, I thought we were past this-"

"Like I said, nothing is EVER that easy for us, we fought this battle once, I'm sure we can do it again."

The rest of the gang wasn't thrilled nor surprised by the news. They had to act fast. Aang and Katara would travel to Ba Sing Se in the morning to warn them, they were hoping for a quiet warning. Zuko would stay behind with Toph and Sokka, there was still so much more information they needed. They also couldn't risk having themselves revealed now more than ever. With another meeting two nights away, they had no choice but to go along with it.