Four Elements High School: Junior Year

Chapter 11: Out of Hand

"Hello Mr and Mrs Beifong," said the woman whose name tag said Joo Dee on it, "It is such an honor to welcome you to Ba Sing Se high school," she turned to Toph. Thankfully the floors were made of earth, "And let me assure you, Ms. Beifong, despite your..." she gestured towards Toph's eyes, "...inadequacies, we will make sure that you thrive at this school."

"I don't need any special treatment," Toph said flatly. She had nothing left to lose, so she was going to be as rude as possible. 

"Oh, I beg to differ," Joo Dee said, "Now, if the two of you will follow me to continue the tour, Toph can wait here and meet the head of the student council." As Toph's parents walked away, A girl walked up to Toph, and put her arm around her shoulder.

"Hi!" she said, "My name is-"

"Shut up," Toph said, bending a pebble into her eye, "and go away," there was a pause. The girl sat there in complete shock, "Please." Toph stood up and examined her soon to be fellow classmates. They all walked silently through the courtyard, hardly ever stopping to talk. The only person who wasn't doing this was a boy sitting in a wheelchair. Toph walked over and sat down next to him. It was then that she recognized the boy as Teo.

"Your dad's the science teacher at Four Elements, isn't he," she said.

"Yeah," he said, "I heard that this was the best school in the country, and I convinced my dad to let me go here." 

"How is it?" Toph asked.

"The school?" 

"Yeah." Teo hesitated. He seemed to look around the courtyard before speaking in a low voice.

"I hate it here."

"It's that bad?"

"It's horrible. Expect to be treated differently than everyone else, and not in a good way. Do you notice those guys in the green and black uniforms?" Toph didn't see them, but she sensed them, all pacing around the courtyard in an ominous way, "They're called the Dai Lee, the disciplinarians of the school. You do NOT want to get on their bad side." Toph nodded. 

"Are you going to be here for the rest of the school year?" she asked. Teo shook his head. 

"I'm getting transferred back to  Four Elements next semester." Toph grimaced. So she would be all alone. She talked with Teo for awhile longer before her parents came back. 

"Please tell me that you see how awful this school is," she sighed.

"On the contrary, Toph," her dad said, "This school will be strict and disciplinary, which is exactly what you need right now." Toph sighed and continued with them outside. 

"So when will I move in?" she asked reluctantly as they got in the car, "It's a boarding school isn't it?"

"You'll move in as soon as winter break is over," her mother said, "You'll have no use for your phone or any of those audio books you're listening to."

"What?!" Toph said angrily, "You can't just cut me off from all my friends!"

"Toph, we can do whatever we want to," her father responded.

"But that doesn't mean you should," Toph muttered. 

~~~

Once they got home, Toph was sent straight to the older wing of the house. She sat in her bedroom with the wooden walls and floors for what was probably a few hours, playing with the metal bracelet that Katara had given her. She had really gotten the hang of metalbending, and now she could twist and distort the bracelet at will. There was a knock at her door.

"Toph, it's me," said her mother, Poppy.  Toph was about to tell her to just go away, when the door opened.

"Would you like to help me choose the theme for the New Years eve party?" she asked, clearly trying to extend an olive branch. Toph took that olive branch and snapped it in half.

"I will not be taking part in anything related to the New Years Eve party," she said curtly, "now please leave me alone."  

"You've got some nerve, you know that," Poppy said quietly, yet poisonously, "I don't know where... you went wrong, but we have done our best to raise you like a lady, and instead you're a disappointment."

"I've always been like this!" Toph yelled, "You don't even know me! Now Get. Out." The sound of footsteps, and then the door closing loudly behind her. Toph groaned and collapsed on her bed. And she thought for a moment about running away. After laying there for another hour or so, she finished all of her audio books. Than she talked to Katara for awhile, and planned a time to sneak out and see Mai and Suki, who would be coming back for winter break. Coincidentally, (not really though) this was planned to be at the same time as her parents' New Years Eve party. A thought crossed her mind. 

I could just run away. If I could somehow find a place to live. If I could somehow petition to get emancipation from my parents... But there were too many somehows. So instead, Toph concentrated on the metal window latch, unlocked it, and quietly snuck out the window. Once she reached the back gate of the estate, she called Zuko.

"Hey, can you pick me up and take me to the Jasmine Dragon?"

"Seriously?" he said, clearly annoyed. 

"I'll buy that white jade tea that your uncle keeps in the store window." Toph heard Zuko sigh. 

"Fine, but you have to actually drink the tea."

"Gladly. I just need to get out of the house." A few minutes later, Zuko drove up to the the back gate. 

"Just because I keep taking you places doesn't mean I'm your uber driver," Zuko complained as Toph stepped into the car. 

"If I keep bribing you, you're going to continue to be my uber driver," Toph smirked. 

"Whatever," Zuko said.

~~~

It was around 6 o'clock, and business was slow at the Jasmine Dragon. As soon as Zuko walked inside he immediately started ignoring one of the waitresses. Ty Lee and Azula were sitting at a large table, working on some sort of poster board. Toph went up to the counter.

"I would like to buy the white jade tea," she said to Iroh, who immediately burst into a smile. 

"Are you sure," he said, "This is a very rare tea, so it costs $125 for one box."

"I've always liked rare teas," Toph said, lying through her teeth. If it was even possible, Iroh smiled even more than he already was.

"Then I will go brew a cup for both of us to share." Toph walked over to Azula and Ty Lee.

"What are you doing?" she asked. 

"We're making signs for the winter semi-formal dance," Ty Lee said, bubbly as usual.

"Oh," Toph said, trying to hide her disappointment. She thought of all the things that she would miss during the next semester and beyond. 

"The tea is ready!" Iroh said. Toph mustered up a smile and joined him at a different table.  

"So I hear you're going to a new school," he said. Toph sighed. 

"Yeah, and before you tell me that I should go into it with an open mind-"

"I wasn't going to say that," Iroh said truthfully, "But... your parents made the decision, didn't they?" Toph nodded, "Well... you should talk to them," Iroh sipped at his tea contentedly, "Even if it doesn't solve all your problems, have an honest conversation with them, it might give you peace of mind." Toph smiled, for real this time. 

"I'll try that," she said. 

~~~

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