Avatar: Reborn in Ice and Blood

Chapter 110 110

She would say that she's not sure she'd want money if it meant people worked twice as hard to feed her, clothe her, allow her to afford luxuries that she doesn't need.

She would say that she now sees shame in making others work for her. She is ashamed of her own past ignorance and lack of empathy.

...

Zuko knows because he's heard her say it. It was to Ty Lee, but he knows all the same.

He doesn't know how to tell her that he still wants-

"I'm sure it would be better than what you get from that seamstress," he says instead, realising he was silent for too long.

"I don't know," she says, "Doesn't he have to get in business first before he can pay well?"

"As I understood it, that noble will give him enough to pay good wages even in the beginning. But he's got to pay it off and the noble will own part of the business."

"Ah," she says. "How much of the business?"

"Twenty percent."

"And he still has to pay it off?"

Zuko nods, reading in her expression that she thinks it's too much. She's probably heard Kaito say often enough that no profiteering is legitimate if the one making the profit doesn't directly contribute to the production or selling or whatever else the business needs. Zuko's even heard him say that it could be possible to own businesses collectively without somebody to lend money or profit off of labour that is not their own, if enough people believed in the idea.

Uncle had nodded along with his serious face on.

Zuko can't really explain the betrayal he felt at that. The kind of instinctive recoil he'd had to suppress. That sort of thing would only end in a big mess.

Mai takes his hand. The thrill he feels at that chases away the bad mood that was settling in on him.

...

TOPH

Toph observes the way Aang grows steadily more excited as the morning progresses. Twinkle Toes sure likes the idea of a school for everyone. He also likes Kaito a hell of a lot. If Toph couldn't sense the way Kaito never lied, and always easily allowed Aang close, she'd be more wary. She still is, but not that much. This guy was mentioned in every other conversation the others had had since she met them.

But the older boy – more of a man, really, and it's strange to think that of a person not much older than Sokka… Toph thinks briefly of Sokka and her, ah, crush and wonders if she'd ever realised that however… erm, cool Sokka is (not), however smart he is, and however often he actually saves her life – keeping her grounded on Appa's back or saving her from drowning… Sokka is sixteen and somehow, next to Kaito, it shows. She never thought she'd even care, but…

(In the back of her mind, a voice that sounds placidly like her mother – who would never actually say that to Toph's face – whispers 'You just want to distract yourself from your failures, Toph. It's alright. You're just a little blind girl, what did they expect? What did you expect?'

It's not like that. It wasn't like that and thinking about it won't make it any better, so.)

Toph feels weird thinking about boys, and she feels weird when she thinks about voicing her thoughts – because to whom would she talk? Katara is Sokka's brother. They… they can talk more easily now than they used to. Ba Sing Se means that Katara doesn't have to worry about food too much or who does which chore. Toph knows Katara's a worrier, but there's no point in worrying. There's also no point in waiting for the Earthking to have time for the Avatar, but they're doing something, thanks to Kaito.

Ba Sing Se also means a better focus, and if she's honest, having a real trail for Appa has helped.

She. Toph hates feeling powerless and weak. (There was too much of that before bending. Even too much of it while being capable and having to pretend for her parents.)

And she's been carrying that ever since the sandbenders stole Appa.

So, she practises. And she listened carefully to Kaito's heartbeat when he spoke about finding Appa. It's good to have help. It's good to have someone they can count on. Aang certainly does. Sokka does, too, but in a different way. Where Kaito acts more like an elder sibling to Aang that neither Sokka nor Katara really do because Aang so clearly can take care of himself- even if he is too naïve for his own good, Toph can see how Kaito slotted with the group before they met her.

Even Katara trusts him and by the Spirits, did Toph have a hard time convincing her that she didn't need to be mothered. She could see how with someone older and so clearly mature around, Katara would relax a bit. It'd be nice, that.

But there's no point in wondering about that, either. He might come with them wherever they go next, or not.

So she concentrates on what she can do now, as they wait. The sand feels too loose for Toph. It's not that she can't get a grip or move it, it's that it shifts around, slides and trickles and it makes everything fuzzy.

But just because something is hard Toph is not about to give up.

She's focusing so hard that the sudden shout of "Kaito's here! Let's go!" startles her enough to send the sand she was bending everywhere. Toph sighs. But then she notices it.

The scattered grains on the smooth stone tiles, she can pick them out.

She's been trying to move the sand like one mass – that's what it is, but also-

If she focuses, she can pick out each grain individually. Maybe that's the way to go.

"Toph! Come on," Katara calls from the front door.

Grumbling, Toph gets up. She'll just have to do it later. That's when she notices that Kaito isn't alone. She comes to the foyer and feels the new person out. As tall as Kaito, but stockier, and more tense.

"Good morning, Toph," Kaito greets. Toph sure has heard drawls enough for her lifetime, growing up where she did, but he somehow makes it sound genuinely friendly, which she thinks is weird. But then, he's a pretty weird guy.

"This is Gorou," he introduces, "A friend and ally, even if he's not the friendly sort."

Gorou shifts, looks at Kaito and asks "What kind of introduction is that?"

"An accurate one?" Kaito replies and ducks the casual swipe at his head. Seems like an established routine.

"I'm plenty friendly," he says and then actually hits Kaito in the upper arm.

"Ow," Kaito deadpans, even though he rubs the spot, so it must've hurt at least a little. "You're just proving my point here."

Then, too fast for Gorou to dodge, Kaito pulls on the man's bun of hair at the back of his head.

"Right," Toph says, before they can actually start a brawl. She can't believe she thought Kaito was mature. "Let's go, Friendly and Friendlier, before you hurt yourselves."

Both of them laugh, good-natured, easily letting the moments of teasing pass. There is none of the posturing that many young men engage in. nothing between them that needs to be proven. Toph wonders what that might be like. To not prove. To just be enough. To just be good enough naturally.

"Alright, don't want to keep our host waiting," Kaito says. They all follow him outside to walk to the station.

"So who are we meeting anyway?" Aang asks, sliding into place next to Kaito, closer than he tends to walk to anyone else, Toph notes. She can't read expressions, so she must read tones and body language and that's blatant. The only other person Aang would get that close to is probably Katara.

In response, Kaito puts a hand on his shoulder, leaning down to whisper low enough for nobody else to hear. Toph thinks that with Aang's reaction she sure would have liked to hear it.

...

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