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sokkabeifong · 4 years ago

Note

Toph moves in next door and and Sokka doesn’t realize she’s blind for a while?

Ooh la la. Oblivious Sokka is good Sokka. As always, let me know what you think and feel free to send in more prompts! For whatever ships, too, not just tokka.

Her window is closed. Again. Sokka sighs and stuffs his binders into his backpack. Hefting it onto his shoulders, he casts one last look at the green curtains that cover the window next door before going downstairs.

"Any luck today?" his sister teases as soon as he sets foot in the kitchen. Their father clicks his tongue at her from the stove, and their grandmother rolls her eyes over her steaming cup of tea.

He glares at Katara. "No, and I'd appreciate it if you went back to taking no interest in my life."

"Hey, I want to meet her too." She takes a bite of her pancakes. "I'd just prefer to do it in, you know, a non-stalker way."

"I am not a stalker," he counters. "I... I want to know what she does in there."

"What she does in her bedroom is none of your business, Sokka," his father says, sitting down beside their grandmother. "Surely you understand the meaning of privacy."

"Of course I do, I just..." he throws up his hands in frustration. "Look, I don't have to explain myself to you guys. I'm curious about her! She's been there three weeks, and those curtains haven't moved."

"She probably wants to hide from your ugly face," his grandmother says, but her eyes are smiling. He can't be mad at her.

"Ha, ha, Gran-Gran," he says.

"She's probably just waiting for the first day of school," Hakoda says. "Speaking of which, you two better hurry up if you want to get there on time."

He nods and grabs a piece of toast from his father's plate, shoving it in in his mouth.

"Wait for me!" Katara hurriedly swallows the last of her pancakes and grabs her own bag, sliding up into place beside him. "We haven't walked together since last year."

"There's a reason for that," he says, but allows her to walk through the door ahead of him. Hakoda and Gran-Gran call out farewells as it slams shut.

They make their way down the path from their front porch, and Sokka's eyes can't help but wander to the house next door. This doesn't slip past his sister.

"If you want to meet her so bad, just go and ring the doorbell," she says.

"What? No, I can't do that!" he snaps. "I don't-" Abruptly he stops and kicks her in the shins. She yelps.

"Ow! What was that fo-"

"Shhh!" he hisses in her ear. "Here she comes. Act casual."

She rolls her eyes but gets out her phone and pretends to check it. He does the same, but his gaze remains fixed on the opening door.

A girl about their own age walks out, but she's shorter than them both. Sokka thinks maybe she's around Katara's boyfriend Aang's height. Her black hair is in a bun at the back of her head, but pieces are tumbling down to her shoulders. She switches her bag from her right shoulder to her left as she walks out, and she doesn't even glance their way. Her eyes remain steadily forward.

"Hey, she's cute," Katara whispers. He barely hears her - the door opens again, and this time a middle-aged woman steps out. She fixes something on the girl's bag, but her daughter seems to be pulling away. He catches fragments of their conversation.

"- don't need your help, I've got it, Mom!"

The woman sighs. "Why must you be so difficult?"

"So I'm stubborn," she mutters. "Sue me." She begins walking toward a car parked in the driveway when the woman calls out again.

"Oh, Toph, I forgot. Your father has a meeting this morning, he needs to take the car. You'll have to walk to school."

As the girl protests, he registers Katara elbowing him in the side. "Toph," she says. "Her name is Toph."

"I know, I heard," he tells her. "I think she needs a ride."

"She can just walk to school, can't she?"

"I don't know, maybe if you would shut up we could find out." He tunes in to his neighbor's conversation once more.

"You know I can't do that, I don't know where I'm going!" Toph is saying.

"Just figure it out," her mother says, waving her hand vaguely.

For some reason this enrages Toph. "Are you kidding me? You know I can't!"

"I'm sorry, dear, you'll have to cope. The housekeeper is supposed to be here any minute and I have to show her how to do the basement steps." The woman promptly turns and slams the door in her daughter's face.

"Argh!" Toph angrily tears at her hair. The bun falls apart, but somehow this makes her even prettier. In her rage she turns to where they're standing, and he jumps at the sight of her eyes.

They're pure white.

"Oh, my goodness," he hears Katara breathe. "Sokka... I think she's blind."

"Yeah." Suddenly he feels himself getting angry along with his neighbor. "And her mom just told her to 'figure it out?' What the hell?" He begins walking toward Toph. "I'm going to offer her a ride. We can take the van."

"Okay," she says. "I'll go start it." She hurries off just as Sokka reaches the girl.

"Um." Hesitantly he puts his hand on her arm so she knows that he's there. Immediately she stiffens. "Hi there. Uh, I'm Sokka."

"Wha - where did you come from?" she asks, clearly rattled from her argument with her mother.

"I - I live next door," he says. "Me and my sister are going to school, and we couldn't help overhearing your conversation, and that you seemed to need a ride..."

She's calming down now, smoothing her hair and taking a few deep breaths. She faces him, and he gets a closer look at her eyes. He can't seem to tear himself away.

"That would be good, thanks," she says. "Where's the car?"

He points before remembering she can't see it. "My sister's getting it, she'll pull up in a minute."

"Okay." She holds out her hand. "I'm Toph. Toph Beifong."

"Cool name," he says, shaking it.

She grins, and he decides that he likes her. "Thanks. Yours is pretty cool, too. What's your sister's name?"

"Katara."

"Whoa." Her eyes widen. "Like katana? Like the sword? That's so cool."

He laughs at that. "Yeah. She's as sharp as one, too, and just as deadly."

"That sounds great. The deadlier, the better, I always say."

"As you should." He nods approvingly just as Katara pulls up with their family van. She beeps with good measure.

"Hi!" she calls to Toph. "I'm Katara!"

"Hey," she says back. Addressing Sokka, she says, "Um. I'm sure you've seen - I mean, you know about the whole blind thing?"

"Uh, yeah. Just... figured it out."

"Right, right. Well, seeing as I have no idea where the car is, I could use a hand."

"Oh. Um, right." He quickly grabs her hand and helps her into the van, which has its doors open. Her back is almost touching him, and his heart is pounding wildly, and he is willing himself to Not Freak Out, but it's hard when there's a really cute, really funny girl propped on your chest.

"Thanks," she mumbles when they're all seated. He turns back to see her in the back, and, just for a moment, her eyes seem to meet his. He smiles.

"You're welcome."

#atla #tokka #avatar the last airbender #sokka #toph #toph beifong #katara

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momsopposed2theoccult · 3 years ago

Text

Not Alone

So I wrote a thing. It’s Tokka-ish but could be interpreted as romantic or platonic. I’m currently waiting on an Ao3 invite so I’ll probably post it on there as well once I receive my invite, but for now I figured I would post it on here because I’m excited to share it with you all! Oh and here’s a friendly reminder that Post Plus is bullshit and you will never, ever have to pay to read my writing. Writing is something I do for fun, and I post it on Tumblr because I want other people who love these characters as much as I do to be able to share that experience with me. Not to mention that I’m not looking to get sued by Nickelodeon.

The first time that Sokka noticed there was something wrong with Toph, she had been six months pregnant.

The two of them were lounging around her living room, Sokka stretched out across the couch with his left arm dangling off the side and Toph relaxing in an oversized armchair, her swollen feet perched on the ottoman in front of her and one hand resting on her rounded stomach. It was an unusually hot summer’s day, and the two old friends had happily retreated into the sweet relief of Toph’s newly installed air conditioning.

“Sokka, do you think I’ll be an okay mother?”

Sokka was taken aback by his friend’s blunt question.

“Well, just as long as you pay better attention to the kid than you did to Appa, I think you’ll be golden,” he joked, reflecting back briefly on the memory from their war days.

The then-tiny girl had tried with all her might to prevent Wan Shi Tong’s library from collapsing under the weight of Sokka’s own impulsive curiosity, all while trying to rescue their beloved sky bison from his captors. He would never forget the look on her face after it happened, nor would he forget the months she spent perfecting her sandbending afterwards, determined that she would never make such a mistake again.

Perhaps that had been the wrong thing to say.

Toph’s eyebrows scrunched together in a look of concern as she rubbed absentminded circles on the curve of her stomach with a flat palm.

“Sokka, I’m serious. Do you think I’ll be an okay mother?,” she repeated, some anxiety creeping into her voice.

“Well, yeah. Sure. Why wouldn’t you be?,” Sokka replied, although he couldn’t ignore the uncertainty in his own voice as he attempted to soothe his best friend’s anxieties surrounding the tiny life growing inside of her.

Toph exhibited many admirable qualities, but she wasn’t exactly nurturing. He couldn’t help but recall all the plants she had failed to keep alive over the years, or the way Katara was constantly scolding her for swearing in front of Bumi and Kya, or the way she tensed up around babies, as if she were afraid she might break them.

Toph sighed, blowing her sweaty bangs out of her face.

“I don’t know, I’m just… not great with babies. I never know what to do with them, y’know? They’re just so tiny, I always feel like I’m gonna break them in half or something equally barbaric.”

“No, no, I’m sure you won’t-,” Sokka began to reply, but Toph had not yet finished lamenting.

“And most kids get to have their dad there, but, y’know, any hope this kid has of ever meeting that lousy excuse for a man is long gone,” she huffed angrily.

“Daddy’s an asshole, isn’t he! Just a big ‘ole deadbeat loser!,” she said in a mocking babyish tone, giving her swollen belly a little pat.

Sokka rolled his eyes at his friend’s dramatics, but he couldn’t help agreeing.

The guy’s name was Kanto. He had been a bartender at one of Sokka and Toph’s mutual favourite dives, and an okay enough guy depending on who you asked, but as far as Sokka was concerned, he was the scum of Toph’s beloved earth.

The two of them had been getting a drink together like they always did on Friday nights, when Toph had caught the bartender’s eye. And honestly, Sokka couldn’t blame him. He certainly couldn’t deny that she was no longer the grubby twelve year old he had met all those years ago. He wasn’t going to pretend like he didn’t notice the curve of her hips or the way her tank top rode up her waist exposing a sliver of stomach. And he couldn’t ignore the way that other men checked her out nor how weird he felt about it when they did. Kanto had been one of those men. After a round of free drinks and a disgusting amount of quite frankly obnoxious eyebrow waggling, Kanto had somehow convinced Toph to come home with him, much to Sokka’s disdain. The rest was history.

The two of them had been an item for a couple of months. Toph claimed that she was happy with him, but Sokka didn’t need his friend’s talents as a human polygraph machine to figure out that she was lying.

He wasn’t all bad, he really wasn’t. He never laid a hand on her or anything like that. But Sokka couldn’t help noticing the subtle comments he made about her weight or her outfit or how she spoke just a little louder than he thought a woman should, nor could he miss all the changes she made to her beautiful, wonderful, perfect self just to fit his mold.

Sokka hated that Toph’s signature confidence could crumble so easily under the will of a man like that. It made his blood boil.

Toph began to fall apart when he finally left. Then when she found out that she was pregnant, she broke, and Sokka had been there to help pick up the pieces.

So yeah, not exactly Sokka’s favourite guy.

“You know you don’t need him, right?” He assured her.

“Yeah, yeah. I know,” she replied, brushing him off with a faint smile that she didn’t quite put her heart into.

Picking up on his friend’s feeble attempt to mask her obvious worry, Sokka got up from the couch and walked over to where Toph was sitting. He placed one hand firmly in hers and the other gingerly on her stomach.

“Toph, you’re the strongest person I know. Believe me when I say that if anybody can do this on their own, you can. But you won’t have to do it alone, because I’m going to be here for you every step of the way. Do you understand me?” He assured her.

She nodded in reply.

“Yeah, I understand. And thank you.”

But he could tell she didn’t really believe it.

____________

The second time that Sokka noticed something was wrong with Toph had been two weeks after Lin’s birth. Four old friends had gathered on Air Temple Island for a belated celebration of the new mother and child. Aang had cooked noodles, one of Toph’s favourites, but Sokka couldn’t help noticing that the latter had hardly touched hers.

“What’s wrong, Toph? Normally you gobble this stuff up in under five minutes,” Aang asked, voicing Sokka’s thoughts exactly.

The earthbender continued to absentmindedly twirl a piece of noodle around her chopstick, never bringing it to her mouth.

“I’m fine. Just not that hungry,” she assured them.

Sokka caught Aang’s eye and they shared a skeptical look. Katara looked at Toph with concern and a vague familiarity, as if something had suddenly dawned on her.

“You know, if something’s bothering you, you can always talk to us about it, right? I know that this is a new experience for you, and I understand if you’re feeling a little lost-,” Katara started, but was cut off by her friend’s inevitable defensive reaction.

“Oh, so you think this has to do with Lin? You think there’s something wrong with me? You think I’m not fit to be a mother? Well guess what? Lin and I are doing just fine on our own!,” Toph yelled in response to her friend’s gentle attempt to help her.

“Toph, I don’t think that’s what she meant. What she was trying to say is that being a new parent is stressful enough as it is, and I can’t imagine having to do it alone. We’re here for you if you need our help or advice,” Aang tried to reason with his angry friend, but to no avail.

“You know what, Aang? You can take your ‘advice’ and shove it up your ass. I don’t need your help, I don’t need anybody’s help. I’m a great mother!,” she shot back in response.

Sokka sighed. There was no reasoning with Toph when she got like this. Her fits of defensiveness and anger usually masked deeper fears and insecurities that could be difficult, nearing impossible to coax out of her at first. It was usually best to give her time to herself to blow off some steam, and only then could she be convinced to admit the truth about what was bothering her.

“I’m gonna go take a nap. That is, unless Sokka here has some unsolicited advice for me too,” she voiced in a warning tone implying that if Sokka did happen to have any comments to make, he better keep his mouth shut about them.

Sokka threw up his hands defensively.

“No, no, by all means, go take a nap.”

“Great, at least one of my friends doesn’t fancy himself a shrink.”

Toph stormed off in a huff to the guest bedroom, and although her fit of anger concerned him, Sokka was glad to see her getting some much-needed rest. The dark circles under her clouded eyes implying sleepless nights as of late hadn’t escaped him.

“What was that all about?,” Aang wondered aloud. “I’ve never seen her get that angry over nothing. We were just asking if she was okay.”

“I dunno. She hasn’t really been herself recently, has she?,” Sokka replied.

“I mean, she called me Aang. Just Aang. She only does that when she’s really upset.”

“Well, it is your name,” Sokka reminded him, although he too couldn’t help noting with concern that Toph had neglected to make use of her favourite choice nickname for their airbending friend.

“You know, right after I had Bumi I didn’t feel like myself either,” Katara shared. “It was like, before that moment, all I had to take care of was me. But then all of a sudden there was this tiny little human being who relied on me to survive, and I wasn’t sure if I could do it. I felt like my heart was walking around outside my body, and if I made even the slightest mistake I would destroy it forever. I doubted myself a lot. Everything was just so new and overwhelming, and some days I didn’t even want to get out of bed.”

“So you’re saying that you’re pretty sure that’s how Toph feels about Lin?,” Sokka asked tentatively as realization dawned on him.

Katara nodded.

“I do. Sokka, I think you should be the one to talk to her. She always listens to you. I’m not sure how you do it,” Katara remarked.

Sokka couldn’t deny the truth of the statement. In their twenty years of friendship, he and Toph had sought comfort in each other’s presence countless times. They had a mutual understanding that the other members of their group had often tried to imitate but could never quite replicate. Sokka went to Toph, and Toph went to Sokka. It was an unspoken agreement.

“Don’t worry, I will. I just think we should give her a little time to cool down first.”

“Good idea. You don’t want her to bite your head off,” Aang chimed in with a laugh.

____________

About an hour later, Sokka made the journey down the hallway to the guest bedroom to check on Toph and hopefully coax her out of her mood. He opened up the door to find the room dark and Toph laying on her side on the bed. She was trying to feign sleep, but Sokka could tell she was wide awake. Baby Lin was in her crib whimpering, supposedly for her mother. Sokka picked her up in his arms and rocked her back and forth, cooing softly.

“Here we go, Linny. It’s okay, Uncle Sokka is here.”

The child began to cry. She didn’t want her uncle, she wanted her mom.

“No, no Linny, don’t cry. Shhhh, Mama’s right here, see?”

Sokka carried Lin over to the bed where Toph was lying and tried to shake her awake, but was met with Toph’s hand slapping him away and an irritated growl.

“Go away, Sokka.”

“Toph, I just wanna talk,” he tried.

“Don’t you understand the meaning of ‘go away,’ dumbass?” She snarked.

“You’re really going to swear in front of the baby?”

“Great. Now you think I’m a terrible mother too. It’s fine, join the party,” she said in a sarcastic, vaguely accusatory tone, followed by her best attempt at rolling her sightless eyes.

“Toph, nobody is calling you a bad mother. We know you’re perfectly capable of raising Lin on your own. All we’re asking is that you let us help you. You’re not invincible, Toph, despite what you may have led yourself to believe.”

Toph paused, letting Sokka’s comment sink in.

“I- I’m sorry,” she began. “I know I was being kind of a bitc- a jerk back there. And I know you don’t actually believe I’m a bad mother but, but I’m not sure if I believe it. I’m so scared, Sokka. I don’t think I can actually do this alone. I- I know I said I could, but- but I think I was just lying to you, and to myself,” she choked out as tears began to cascade down her face.

Sokka raised his eyebrows in alarm at his toughest friend’s unexpected breakdown. He pulled her close to his chest and began to rub her back.

“No, no, Toph, don’t think that. You can do it, you can. But you don’t have to, because we’re going to be here for you every step of the way. I’m going to be here for you every step of the way. You don’t have to do this alone, you hear me?”

“Yeah- yeah I do. I do hear you,” she replied with newfound confidence, wiping her tears on his shirt. “And- and you know I’m blind, right? Not deaf. Of course I hear you,” she joked with a familiar smirk.

Sokka chuckled, glad to see that he finally had his best friend back. He pulled her closer to his chest and just sat there for a minute, planting a kiss on the top of her head and burying his face in her hair. Their moment of peaceful rest was broken by Lin’s frantic crying.

“It’s alright baby girl, it’s alright. Mama’s here,” Toph assured Lin as she picked her up and cradled her in her arms. As she carried her sleepy child back to her crib for some much-needed rest, whispering to her in soothing tones the entire time, Sokka couldn’t help noticing how at home she looked all of a sudden. How safe and comfortable she was with her baby in her arms.

She was going to be just fine.

#fanfic rec #tokka #nora speaks #nora writes

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stitch1830 · 4 years ago

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Yeah like there’s so many possibilities when it comes to Kanto. Did Toph actually love him? Was he just a one night stand? A friend with benefits? Was their relationship unhealthy? Did he abuse Toph? Did he die while Toph was pregnant with Lin? Did he die when she was a baby? Did he leave her when he found out she was pregnant? Did he leave her sometime after Lin was born? Did he even know that Lin was his? Just... I need to know.

Oh my goodness G the POSSIBILITIES. I really like this part of canon because like, as much as I love the fact that almost every character can be paired off with another in the show, it probably wouldn't ever happen like that. So having Toph have a partner outside the Gaang is super cool and opens up story ideas (especially pining unrequited love stories *ahem Tokka*). And all the HC's are SO GOOD. I bounce around on them because sometimes I like the idea that they were happy together but then something happened to him, that they were just friends with benefits, etc.

I think the HC(s) that makes the most sense would be a friends with benefits situation where he left town after finding out, or them just breaking up and him never finding out. Because like, if she loved him and he died or something happened to him, I don't think she would hide who Lin's father was from her (but I also have issues with how it was just casually brought up and shit but whatever).

Back when I first started writing, I tried to make this elaborate story that fit in with canon and briefly looked at Toph and Kanto's relationship. And the idea that I kind of came up with was that Kanto lived in the Republic City area his whole life and was a metal bending officer, and he liked the idea of leaving the city to find adventure and travel around the world. And Toph still liked those things too, but her friends were all settled around the city and packing up her bags to follow a guy around the world wasn't really her style. She preferred to stay with her found family more than anything. So they got into a scuffle about it, and the next day he was just... gone. She encouraged him to leave and travel, but it still stung. Few weeks later she finds out she's pregnant.

Another idea I had was that they were together for a while and mutually broke it off, but they still worked together but tried to keep it amicable. They still bickered a lot and it was frustrating to work together, but then when they're out in the field Kanto pushes Toph out of the way and takes a fatal blow. She's a bit of a mess from it because like, yeah, they broke up, but she was with the guy for a while and cared deeply about him. But that fits in with the narrative of "Things didn't work out" because they didn't, but Toph decided to leave a few bits of information out.

I read this fic where Kanto is a criminal and I really like this story because of the interesting take. And because it's a good story; bits of Tokka too lol.

I'm not really a fan of reading fics about abuse, but I can see the appeal and the possibilities with that.

Some say that The Duke's name was Kanto, so that would be interesting.

I think it would be an amazingly angsty story if the two were actually in love and Kanto was super supportive and helpful when the baby was around, then he died when Lin was like 6 months old. Add tons of elements of grief and Gaang support system and that would be a story I'd like to read.

Gosh, Kantoph is such an interesting and mysterious couple and I wish there were more stories. They're like one of the only couples that I love reading about different takes or hearing about different headcanons.

Ope I've rambled too much my b lmao. Srsly though, SUCH and interesting discussion, I love it. Love to hear your takes too!

#atla #kantoph #toph #kanto #my asks #thanks for the ask!#Toph's hoes show yourselves #tell us what happened #kantoph headcanons #lin beifong #tell us about your dad #oh wait #lmao someone said that I shipped toph with everyone #and like... I don't but talks about kanto and other potential baby daddies is not helping my cause LOL #oh well

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guiltysecretpasttime · 4 years ago

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Happenstance

(title edited)

Note: Heads up – this is end game Linumi with a side of Tokka. With very very slight Pema / Tenzin bashing. Zuko and Katara will feature as well but will not be Zutara (nothing against it though haha). This is def not proofread. This is also definitely not my usual so let’s see. 🤓

---

One-shot, Linumi (Lin / Bumi II), pre-LOK AU

__________

Air Temple Island was lit up tonight and the noise level was way beyond its usual.

A slender woman sat at one of the tables set up across the courtyard, clad in a gray and cream hanfu, hair piled up in a bun. While her attire allowed her to blend in among the other guests, the surly expression indicated that she clearly wanted to be somewhere else.

Someone commented to her earlier about the decorations and how exquisite they look; the couple getting married was tasteful in their choices. She simply stared back blankly without responding until the person excused themselves, getting embarrassed.

Ha. That would teach them.

The lady sniffed at the glass that one of tonight’s waiting staff placed at the table. Their dinner plates have been cleared (not that there was anything she found substantial enough of the dishes served to them).

She threw back the glass, an ugly grimace on her face.

As expected, the drinks were bad.

She groaned, leaning back in her seat. When they had planned this day, she envisioned it going differently. For starters, there would have been meat.

Something has to be said about old friends and loyalty. If it weren’t for that, she would not have deigned attending today’s festivities.

She snorted.

Yeah, right. Politics and majority of her adult life spent on civil service practically ensured her attendance.

Most of the attendees were hypocritical brown-nosers. A while back, they had been clamoring and clapping for the union of an airbender and an earthbender. Today, they all stood by and cheered for the same airbender and his young bride.

A clatter and a huff from her side told her that she was not the only one not enjoying dinner.

“I’m going to find my sister.” Her companion announced, pulling back her chair.

She could distinctly feel the emptiness of the other seat at the table. The ceremonies were over and even dinner was nearly over, but the seat remained empty.

“She was not supposed to be on duty today.” Was all she could respond to that. “There were other people who can easily take the job; she insisted leading today’s security team.”

The younger woman simply shrugged. “Of course.”

Toph Beifong could only close her unseeing eyes as Suyin went off to find her eldest, who they last saw briefing the officers on duty some time before the start of the wedding ceremony of the last airbender.

The scraping of the chair and a thunk signaled her to the presence of another person joining their table.

“The food is a bust and the drinks are a flop. Wanna leave before they start dragging people to the dance floor?” The man nudged her shoulder. “I’d have you know that I smuggled in high quality booze on the island; I have bottles that my sister did not confiscate.”

She wanted to ignore the man but the promise of alcohol got her attention. “What kind of booze are you talking about, Sokka?”

The Water Tribe man told her what he had brought over; it was enough to convince her.

“Let’s go.” And she allowed herself to be dragged away.

---

Suyin Beifong had gone down to the docks and back up to the welcoming arc. Yet, she has not found any trace of her sister. All of Lin’s colleagues had told her that she had already gotten to the main courtyard an hour or so ago.

She was about to go back and report to her mother that Lin was missing when she saw that the table was empty.

Great, even Mom has escaped.

Truth be told, Su did not really have to go this hard in searching for her sister. A few months ago, they had not even been on speaking terms (her fault, of course, she admitted to Lin years late).

---

When she opened the newspaper weeks ago and saw the wedding banns announcing Tenzin’s marriage to someone who was not her sister, Su took the first ride to Republic City and boarded the ferry to Air Temple Island…

And promptly punched the airbender on his large and crooked nose.

Before leaving, Su, in true Beifong fashion, let all her power and anger loose and managed to wreck a sizable section of the island.

As she went her merry way in Republic City, towards the familiar path to the Republic City Police Headquarters, with the intent to seek an audience with her sister (hoping against hope that the usually irate metalbender will not throw her out), she spotted her unsuspecting target.

A young (too young! She thought) woman clad in orange and yellow was browsing some produce in one of the market stalls.

Without even looking around and without even a moment of indecision, Su slid her foot on the ground, commanding an almost imperceptible piece of earth to jut out in the direction of the woman.

The next moments of chaos would forever be imprinted in Su’s memory.

The woman she knew from the photos as Pema tripped as she moved to the next stall. Su quickly flattened the earth to avoid detection.

Pema attempted to regain her balance and ended up grabbing the nearest thing she could – which was a chopping board from the fruit stall. This resulted in the fruit on it (sliced watermelons) being flung off and hitting the stall owner across the street. Unbeknownst to them, the two stall owners (both selling fruit) already had an on-going and long-standing dispute.

The flying fruit was the straw that broke the camel’s back.

Chaos broke lose.

Fruits, vegetables, feathers and even animal blood started flying around.

Whistles and sirens permeated the air.

With a sense of schadenfreude, Su found herself paralyzed at the edge of the commotion, watching what she intended to be an inconvenience to an individual turn into a full-fledged market fight.

Before long, members of the Republic City Police Department started swarming the area and arrests were happening right and left.

“Little Suyin, is that you?”

Su stiffened, recognizing one of her mother’s captains approach her (Lin’s captain now, she supposed).

“Heeeeeeey, Captain Ryou.” It was all she could say with a smile too innocent to be believed.

“I don’t know why you’re back in Republic City but I have a strong feeling that you’re somewhat involved in this.” The metalbender shook his head.

Su froze her smile on her face.

“Can’t prove it though.” Captain Ryou gave instructions to his second-in-command before continuing the conversation with the youngest Beifong. “What brings you to Republic City?”

“Can you bring me to meet my sister – I mean – Chief Beifong?”

---

“Where is she?”

The door slid open revealing Chief Lin Beifong.

Su immediately stood up and quickly held up a hand to stop the older Beifong from talking. She offered her sincere apologies and she practically grovelled (grovelled! No Beifong has ever grovelled and here she was grovelling) at her sister. She even offered to participate in community service *and* shell out money to pay for damages and/or bail.

Lin looked stunned. It was apparent that it was not what she had expected of their first interaction since her sister was sent away to Gaoling.

To Su's surprise, Lin was quick to forgive. Then again, Lin always was the mature daughter of Toph Beifong (even more mature than she is). She was taken aback.

“But wait -there is something that you should know about what I did earlier today -.”

“I heard and I saw - I'll take you up on covering the damages of Air Temple Island. Tenzin was not pleased when he arrived at the station earlier to report you." Lin frowned. "Then we were both surprised to hear that his bride was in holding."

"Ah." This was Su's opening. "About that -."

"What on earth did you hit him on the face with?"

---

Earthbending.

Right. Kicking herself mentally, Su used seismic sense to look for her sister and quickly found her at the kitchen that the caterers had set up for the event.

Su was relieved to see Lin garbed in the form-fitting dress that she bought the other week specifically for the wedding (eat your heart out, Airhead).

“Finally found me, have you?” Lin lazily spoke, twirling a goblet of what could be that horrible wine being served earlier.

"Enjoying yourself?" Su thought it was a pity that Lin was all dressed up and there was no one to appreciate it.

A shrug. "No security breaches, no gate crashers - I'll say it was a job well-done for RCPD today."

Su rolled her eyes. "Well, of course, they practically hired the Chief of Police to provide security for their miserable wedding."

Another shrug.

“Oh come on.” Su petulantly pulled at Lin's arm, effectively sloshing the rest of her drink on the floor.

"Watch it!" Lin grumbled. "Is the party that good that you want me to share in their joy?"

"No, don't be daft. When was the last time did we have fun at a party that Tenzin threw?" Remembering that maybe her sister and the airbender actually had an engagement party in her absence, Su quickly added. "We are going to have our own beach party."

---

"We didn't do well, did we?"

"Excuse me?" The waterbender was startled from her passive people-watching, uninterested to join the festivities.

"This is the second wedding among our children that seemed to be under duress."

Katara did not deign to reply to the Fire Lord because she agreed.

"Izumi," Zuko nodded towards his daughter who was seated with other Fire Nation dignitaries and her husband, a Fire Nation nobleman who had a position in one of the older colonies. "At least seems to be getting along better with her husband."

Indeed, Katara noticed the difference in body language of the Crown Princess and her husband compared to how they were during their own wedding.

"Enough about my child -what about yours?" Zuko could not miss how stiff Tenzin was on the dance floor as he led his wife for their first dance.

Katara could only shake her head. "He has embarked on his own family life now - all I can do is support him."

They watched as Izumi laughed delicately while her husband whispered something in her ear and gently offered his hand before leading her to the dance floor.

Both of them sat in comfortable silence now when the waterbender's attention was caught by her brother leaving the head table from the other end.

"Are they going public tonight?" Zuko asked, surprise tainting his question as Sokka sat beside Toph and appearing to be wheedling her to stand up with him.

She sighed. "I don't know who they think they are fooling." When they were younger, she struggled to understand how her brother's mind works. Now that they were older, Katara simply gave up.

"Here's hoping they finally get their happy ending tonight." Was all she could say as Sokka was successful in prying Toph from being disapproving at her seat.

---

"I could have sworn there were more bottles of cactus juice." Sokka scratched his head when he got to their meeting place.

They parted ways when they left the reception. Toph had gone off in search for actual sustenance and had returned, clutching several pouches of jerky and fireflakes ("Where did you-?" "Don't ask. Can't tell you.")

"Meh." Toph tore open a packet of jerky, popping a piece into her mouth before grabbing one of the bottles and taking a swig out of it.

Sokka made himself comfortable at the stone bench that was situated at far from the courtyard, a slope semi-hidden by trees. Their seat provided them an excellent view of the bay and the shore below them.

There were well within the private area of the island where only family and close friends are allowed. Most guests probably did not know about the area itself.

…Which made it unusual for two individuals to be walking at the shore at this time.

Sokka struggled to identify them in the dark but snippets of conversation floated up to them.

"Lin -it's okay to be mad. This is the perfect time to let loose!"

"My daughters are down there, aren't they?" Toph's uncharacteristically whispered, holding Sokka's forearm.

Sokka swallowed a lump in his throat. "Yes, your daughters."

---

The older metalbender glared her sister, who sat down on a nearby rock.

Lin curled her bare feet on the sand, one hand holding her shoes and the other hand a bottle of the swill that airhead deemed to serve as wine.

It barely had alcohol in it.

Today was supposed to be her wedding.

But shit happens.

No one really knew the main reason of their falling out - except for her and Tenzin.

Good riddance.

She took another sip.

"Why are you forcing yourself with that? We got the good ones!"

Bumi and Kya arrived from beyond the greenery that hid the path to the beach.

Lin shot scowl at her sister looked as surprised as she did.

"I didn't invite them!"

Bumi guffawed. "No one invited us - we used to live here, you know."

He got a punch to his arm, care of his sister. "What he meant was we saw that the Beifongs had deserted their table and had correctly assumed that you would be here."

Here meant this short stretch of the shore which was inaccessible or unknown to most. Even acolytes who might have lived their entire life on the island were not aware how to get there. This became their go-to place when they were younger, a respite of sorts from their life. It seemed fitting now.

"Wouldn't you be missed?" Su accepted the bottle that Kya offered.

The waterbender snorted. "They're all enthralled by the program."

Lin tossed aside her empty bottle and Bumi handed her a newly opened bottle of cactus juice. "Fancy that."

---

"So that's where my drinks have gone!"

"Well, Snoozles, you probably did not hide them properly."

---

"Come on Lin, be petty! You get a free pass today!"

A cheer was heard from above, where the party was still on-going.

"Damn right you do."

Lin took another gulp. The more she drank, the more she felt relaxed.

The bickering of Bumi and Kya and Suyin goading her… It harkened to their childhood days.

The only one missing was, well, her best friend.

Ex-best friend.

Bumi tossed her a pack of fire flakes.

---

"So that's where you got the fire flakes!"

"I didn't steal it if that's what you think." A sniff. "I ordered boxes of it from Bumi; he did say they were docking at the Fire Nation before heading here."

---

"That's the spirit!"

"You're welcome!" Lin shouted to the bay. "You're welcome for planning all this," She waved vaguely around. "For the past months! This is the thanks I get for your instant wedding and reception!"

"What! No way." Kya's eyes widened. She thought her younger brother was full of it but this was beyond what she expected (and she had low expectations).

"What - why do you think that the color palette?"

"Tenzin said it's because Pema came from the Earth Kingdom…" Bumi said slowly.

Su snorted. "Earth Kingdom colors would not exactly match the Beifong family colors though. But they're quite close."

"The menu, of course, they had to scrap." Lin leaned on her sister as they had all now sat on the sand, facing the water.

"Mom was most disappointed at that; she took all the food tasting seriously."

"I told her we can still order our choices as a set menu one of these days."

"I heard Uncle Sokka griping about meat to Mom earlier as well." Kya added. "So, what else did they repurpose from your wedding plans?"

As if on cue, music was carried over to their spot.

Bumi saw Lin's lip twitch. "Your playlist, huh?"

Lin looked away, eyes glassy.

---

The military man knew what he needed to do. He usually worked on impulse and tonight was no different.

He got up, patted his hands on his pants to brush off the sand that had stuck to his sticky palms.

Bumi extended his hand to the still seated earthbender.

”May I have this dance?"

---

“What if the Chief of Police was never meant to be with the councilman?”

Toph remained silent. She sat straight, bare feet firmly on the ground, sensing with clarity how her eldest slowly stood up to accept the offer of the eldest of the previous Avatar.

What if indeed…

Had they all been blind blind?

Sokka was probably reading too much into the scene below them.

To her surprise, Lin and Bumi began to move in time with the music, more in sync with each other than they had ever been with anyone else. And that was saying something – both had been at the top of their respective classes in their academies. Both had passed team tactical tests with flying colors, where working flawlessly with their colleagues is imperative.

And yet…

“What if she was meant to be with the easily overlooked non-bender?” Sokka’s whisper was now much closer to her ear than it was earlier.

Toph's breath caught in her throat.

Was he still talking about her daughter and his nephew?

---

“I never knew Bumi was a dancer.”

“He isn’t.” Bumi’s sister confirmed. “He probably learned his fancy footwork from the military.”

“Lin always was graceful,” Su leaned forward, enthralled by the movements the pair did on the sand. “Grandma forced us to go to dance class."

---

“You know, Aunt Toph used to call Uncle Aang fancy dancer.”

“Excuse me?” Tenzin unwittingly echoed his mother’s words as he was caught unawares. He quickly faced the person who interrupted his solitude.

“There you are.” Izumi was leaning on the railing of the path that led to the shore. “Hiding out during your own wedding banquet?”

“I needed air.”

“You can create your own air.” The Crown Princess rolled her eyes. “Lin was right, you are an airhead.” She nodded to the group of four dancing, laughing and drinking by the bay.

The airbender let out a sound that was a cross between a snort and a scoff.

The two of them simply watched the group below, unmindful and unaware of their observers.

Izumi heard the man beside her gasp as Bumi suddenly dipped Lin and then lifted her up. “Don’t look like a kicked turtleduck. It's your wedding night. You made your bed and so you better lie in it." With that, she left the brooding groom.

With one last look at the group by the way, Tenzin soon followed, ready to plaster on a smile as he made his way back to the courtyard and guests.

---

Heaving in exertion of the dance, Lin found herself leaning forward, trying to catch her breath. “Where's Kya and Su?”

"They got bored. Maybe." Bumi noticed their sisters were nowhere to be found.

Before Lin could even respond, he let out a loud belch before excusing himself.

She laughed.

He reddened with embarrassment but quickly recovered. He scrambled to the pile of food that he and Kya had smuggled earlier.

Plopping beside him, sand disturbed, she took a drink and rummaged through the junk food (some of which she had vowed never to even touch, an influence of having a vegetarian partner for a long time).

She racked her memory as to the last time she felt this carefree and impulsive; she came up empty-handed.

Lin decided she liked the feeling.

---

"What do you have to lose, Lin Beifong?" He breathed against her lips.

"We don't do commitment well." As though that explained it all.

"You wore it well but he didn't. You would not need to worry about that with me - no strings attached."

That she could live with.

Sometimes things happen because they had to.

But maybe sometimes there was no reason why.

---

The next day had the makings of an auspicious beginning.

Tenzin felt he barely slept when Pema (his wife) began rousing.

Whenever the Fire Lord stays over, his father used to have meditation with him. The years had passed so did his father (and the Fire Lady). The children sought to continue traditions.

Each family would be represented during morning meditation. It just was their custom.

Tenzin thought this would be the best opportunity to introduce his wife to their family traditions.

Surely they'll remember that he would be bringing Pema over?

Apparently not.

When they reached the family pavilion, everyone was in place - Izumi beside her father and the two Beifong sisters.

The Beifong sisters who were bickering at this early hour.

“What are you doing here?” Su’s voice rang clean in the air, almost accusingly at her sister. Said sister simply shrugged.

“Hi Uncle Zuko.” Lin bowed before the Fire Lord.

“Ah, Lin, Suyin.” The old Fire Lord’s eyes twinkled happily. “Two Beifongs for the price of one.”

The older Beifong finally turned to her sister. “Mom told me.”

Su rolled eyes.

Izumi clicked her tongue. “Well, she tricked you both and just wanted to make sure that the House of Beifong is present this morning.”

Tenzin cleared his throat, diverting the attention to him. “Good morning.”

“Ah, the newly-weds.” Zuko remarked, inclining his head.

“I suppose you’re here because we can hardly expect Kya to be up.” Izumi observed.

“Same goes for Bumi.” Tenzin cannot help but quip, observing Lin’s reaction.

“Tenzin, we weren’t expecting you.” Zuko said not unkindly. “Specially for Pema to wake up this early. But it is appreciated. Let us begin.”

Tenzin’s mind wandered.

Pema was fidgeting beside him.

Had she always been fidgety during meditation?

At the opposite end, Lin looked calm and unbothered. He had supposed that she would be bothered by their presence but, she barely batted an eyelash.

And where was Bumi?

Maybe nothing happened…

He knew Lin would have taken the chance to sleep in if ever.

---

To Tenzin’s irritation, the first person they encountered upon reaching the dining area was his brother.

“I’m surprised you’re awake.” He bit out.

Bumi threw him an amused look as he placed a large platter on the long table. “Of course – were you expecting me to be hungover?” He smiled and greeted his sister-in-law.

“You cooked!” Pema exclaimed in astonishment.

Bumi blinked while other people started to filter into the room. “Someone had to help mom, and, no offense, I don’t fancy eating meatless grub.”

“I knew I liked you better.” Toph Beifong entered the room, punching Bumi’s arm, her hair all puffed up from being in bed. “Well done.” She yawned, walking towards the seat in front of her daughters.

Sokka lazily slid beside her, rubbing his eyes and pulling out the chair for Toph.

“Someone had a rough night.” Su snickered at the pair.

A smirk and a blush were exchanged.

“Did not.”

“Please, I sensed what you were up to.” Lin smirked at her mother. “Wanna bet?”

“No, thanks.” Toph ignored her daughter’s dare and reached over to get a cream bun.

Everyone started to dig in when Katara sat at the head of the table.

Bumi hesitated before sitting down at Lin’s other side.

Tenzin looked around the table to see if people noticed it.

No one was reacting.

Then again, he realized it was usually Bumi who picked up on undercurrents like that, being observant himself.

Well, Tenzin considered, Bumi, Toph and Lin.

He had fully expected either Bumi or Lin to give more credence to the night’s romp.

Neither seemed worse for wear though.

Unless…

He frowned.

Kya nudged him and whispered. “You’re a newly-wed, why do you look far too displeased?”

Tenzin then became a little bit more conscious and focused on his plate.

Pema was no help, who was simply quiet and seemingly in awe.

Belatedly, Tenzin remembered that this was the first meal that his wife would have with the entire extended family.

Just then, several acolytes entered the dining room, carrying trays of food.

Katara beckoned them over and asked them to place the food on the table. She turned to Tenzin and Pema almost apologetically.

“We didn’t expect you to be up and I had asked the acolytes to prepare food for you in bed.”

“That was thoughtful of you, Master Katara. Thank you.” Pema meekly responded, dipping her head in deference.

Something twisted in Tenzin’s chest.

It was not a well-kept secret that when Lin was over, they tend to eat breakfast in bed.

---

Tenzin felt everyone was waiting with bated breath.

Every time Pema would shake her head as her courses arrived – well, the airbender could only nod back.

They better try harder.

Tenzin did not know what else to do.

---

The first time was fun.

The second time was on a whim because why not?

The succeeding ones – they barely thought about it, making no more excuses other than that they enjoyed each other’s company.

They could live with this, they reckoned.

Two misfits, Bumi had said. Failures in the eyes of their parents.

Unfit to continue a legacy.

---

One night, Lin had opened up to him – to both of their incredulity.

It was painful to share but at the same time, there was something cathartic about having a non-judging listening ear.

It has been a long time since she had someone like that, Lin mused.

“You’re better off without him.”

The metalbender had looked up in wonder at that statement.

No one had ever told her that before. It was always in the vein of her deficiencies and how she did not measure up to expectations.

Surrounded by air acolytes and the White Lotus, their patriarchal stance and beliefs had woven its way into her previous relationship. Motherhood, apparently, was one of the few things that they see a woman’s way of self-actualizing. Never mind that the wife of the previously last airbender was a master healer and warrior in her own right.

“You’d think growing up under Mom’s parenting would disabuse him of those misconceptions.”

As much as he thought that his brother was spineless, Bumi would not dare disparage him in public. Blood is blood and truth be told, he would never know the pressures of being the last airbender (and the non-bender was forever thankful of that).

Family is family, just as Lin and Su fell into an easy kinship despite years of estrangement.

Nonetheless, the disgust he felt at his brother’s treatment of Lin was propelling him to head on to Air Temple Island to knock sense into him (albeit it would be too late). Lin managed to dissuade him stating that this was why she did not feel comfortable about sharing why it all ended.

“I know you don’t need protecting or saving.” Bumi scooted over the bed, tightening his arm around her. “But I want you to know that someone’s always got your back here.” He placed her palm on his chest (his heart, though he was not about to reveal that to her any time soon).

“I do want kids. I did. I probably still do.” It was a whisper. “I guess it wasn't meant to be.”

She held her knees to her chest.

Bumi moved closer, hugging her unmindful of the tears.

“Hey,” He gently tilted her chin up. “We can always be the cool uncle and aunt these brats have ever seen.”

Lin managed a weak laugh.

“After all, where else can they find an aunt who can rappel down a skyscraper without a safety net?”

---

He wondered.

When had it all changed to something more, something beyond friendship?

She certainly enjoyed his company, at least behind closed doors.

He let her be herself. And vice versa.

It wasn't meant to be a secret. He understood she was burned.

And so he let it be.

He admitted her one time that they were watching the dawn that he liked their arrangement - the thrill in hiding, of being caught.

He wondered if it was just the daredevil in him that sought this excitement in his life.

---

Slowly the press left her alone outside her capacity of being chief of police.

All focus was on the council and its youngest councilman.

She used to see his name on the papers and feel a stab of regret.

Then it dissolved into a twinge.

Then simply a phantom pulse of hurt.

Until it was nothing.

---

“You’re looking at the United Forces new liaison officer!”

It had taken a while but the powers that be had surmised that the overall situation has stabilized. No more pirates and, definitely (to his immense relief), no more cannibals.

“Seriously?” An arched eyebrow was the disbelieving response to his announcement.

He felt hurt but masked it with a grin. “Yes.”

“It wasn’t a jab at your capabilities.” Lin rolled her eyes. His façade did not fool her. Not one bit. “It’s just that – is this what you wanted?”

Bumi was taken aback. It has been a while since anyone cared to ask or know what he wanted.

“Yes, of course.” It was surprisingly sincere.

He didn’t mind that he would be staying put in Republic City for the time being.

He did not mind at all.

---

It has all hushed up.

The public relations guy that Lin hired at Bumi’s suggestion was wonderful at his job.

One of Lin’s trusted staff at her home placed a call to the Bumi’s direct line.

Bumi’s heart caught in his throat and he hurried home to the Beifong manor.

“I'm good.” Lin did what she did best – downplay her injuries or illness.

Leave it to a Beifong to hire a private nurse and doctor to see to her after a fainting spell at work.

Bumi approved of this. None of that hospital stuff – Lin’s reputation as the Chief of Police would suffer and the criminal underbelly might see it as an opportunity to wreak havoc.

Seeking to lighten the air and shake off his concern, “You may be good now, but after I'm done with you I don’t know if you’ll still be good.” He waggled his eyebrows, hinting at a naughty past time.

“Oh, I’m all yours – be as bad as you want to be.” To his delight, Lin quipped back. “I’ll have you know though that that’s what got us into this predicament.”

His jaw slackened, he noticed Lin’s eyes shining.

Could it be?

He gently placed his shaking hands on Lin’s still flat abdomen. He gazed at Lin’s face, a question unspoken.

She nodded, placing her hand over his, smiling.

“I’m going to be a father!”

The man’s howl echoed throughout the manor.

---

Bumi was a superstitious man.

Having encountered various peoples and learned different cultures in travels through the course of his military career, he had picked up practices and folklore along the way. He was adamant that where necessary, they will practice them if only for the health and safety of mother and child.

For the most part, Lin let him do what he wished. She understood at some level the trepidation that the man felt regarding their impending parenthood.

However, after the boisterous man had frightened yet another one of her household staff as he crept into the manor in the wee hours of the morning, carrying yet another exotic fruit for her, Lin had invited him to stay in.

She leaned at her windowsill, enjoying the breeze.

Bumi was chatting with her gardener, a kind old man hired by Toph when she first had the manor constructed years ago.

He had readily assimilated into the life at the manor.

And she, meanwhile, was contented, oddly enough.

---

From Su

It’s your ex’s birthday (Lin looked heavenward at her sister’s juvenile terms) next week and I received this gaudy invitation for his party.

I’d expect you’d be going too? As a family friend, I mean, and don’t you dare use the police card.

Anyway, sending you this book – it’s a good read. It helped me understand Baatar a little bit more.

---

From Lin

I intended to attend in my professional capacity, of course.

But some snitch sent a letter to Aunt Katara to request that I should not be part of the security detail.

And, Su – what is this garbage? This is not going to help me in any way.

---

The Five Love Languages

---

From Su

Oh come on. I’m sure there is someone special in your life. And before you even accuse me of sending spies (not that I didn’t think about that), it’s how you’ve been writing back to me.

You’re less acerbic. And the point is – you have been writing back!

Sweet Agni, even Tenzin wasn’t able to induce you to respond to any of my letters.

---

From Lin

Su: Mind your own business.

---

Nonetheless, she read the book.

---

“Whoa there! What was that?” Everyone paused to pay attention to the blind earthbender who raised a hand, requesting silence. “Who else is there? How many are we in the room?” She volunteered a number to be confirmed.

Sokka counted each individual.

Toph Beifong was off by one count.

---

Katara eyed Tenzin and nodded towards Pema.

The airbender shook his head.

---

Lin gripped Bumi’s arm in alarm.

This was not how she wanted it to be revealed. Not here, not now, not yet.

Not on Tenzin’s birthday.

Toph quickly shot a look at her daughter, no doubt feeling the increased (and additional) heartbeats. Her eyes widened subtly.

Lin and Bumi held their breath.

“I might have been mistaken.” She raised her glass. “Tipsy, you know.”

“Yeah, dear that's likely it.” Sokka laughed. “You must be getting old.”

Bumi saw his mother look shrewdly at their joined hands.

Of course. Mothers knew best.

And mothers knew all.

He caught her eye and nodded – a promise to speak later.

---

Then came the toast.

Drinks were provided around to the guests, save for the birthday celebrant and the air acolytes who were given another set of drinks.

“To good health!”

“Cheers!”

“Lin, why aren’t you drinking?”

Lin froze.

They had not counted on their uncle.

“You never passed up the chance for wine.” Sokka was oblivious to Toph pinching his arm to stop talking. “Is there something wrong with the selection?” He was taking offense at it since he was the one who provided the libation for the celebration.

“Uncle…” Bumi attempted to intervene.

“You took after your mama here – the only time she stopped was when she was carrying you or Su.”

There was a palpable shift in the room when comprehension dawned on all the guests.

Bumi’s proprietary and protective posture beside Lin did not go unnoticed.

All eyes turned to the airbender who had slowly approached Lin.

Tenzin suddenly hugged her and slid down, kneeling in front of her, causing the metalbender to gasp.

He shook as he had his arms around Lin’s legs.

“Leave us.”

Pema’s stony countenance clearly expressed her displeasure at the request but left nonetheless.

Bumi looked like he wanted to argue but he recognized wordless plea on Lin's face.

His heart sank.

---

I’m sorry.

It’s all my fault.

I was too weak.

I’m sorry Lin.

You did not deserve all that.

Not at all.

I’m the one who was not enough – I’m the one who failed you.

---

I know that now, Tenzin.

I must go.

---

Bumi tossed a rock into the bay.

This was where it all started. How fitting.

On the night of his brother’s wedding.

And maybe, as his hearing picked up the unique steps of Lin, this was where it will end as well.

And on the night of his brother’s birthday.

He sighed. It was good while it lasted.

He supposed he would always be the Avatar’s screw-up son.

“I thought I'd find you here.”

Before he could even form the words to ask how soon he needed to move out, Lin’s lips were on his.

Well, maybe Sokka was right - the Chief of Police was meant for the non-bender.

What do you think? 🤔💭

#linumi #linumi fanfic #lin beifong #bumi ii #toccatina's fanfics #toccatina completed

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tokkacelebration2020 · 4 years ago

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So here are the results guys!!💖

Here are the prompts and their respective days:-

12th Dec/Day one : partners in crime/rain

13th Dec/Day two : competitive games/cuddling

14th Dec/Day three : wedding/drunk shenanigans

15th Dec/free day : no prompts,your wish is my command! ;))

This is my first time hosting a week so I might need directions at times(sorry for the inefficiency). But this is a Tokka event for all of us and I genuinely hope that lots of us fans participate.❤️

To anyone who does not know this, it's an event to also celebrate the resurgence of ATLA and the influx of tokka fans that entered the fan base this year,thanks to everyone who's going to participate in advance!.

Thanks to @avatraang for motivating and supporting me in this!💖💖💖

#tokka celebration 2020 #tokka fanart #tokka fanfic #tokka #toph beifong #sokka of the southern water tribe #atla toph #atla sokka

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avatraang · 3 years ago

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Here’s an excerpt from an already completed fic for Day 1:

“My bad. Nobody ever sits next to me.” He mentally slaps himself. Wrong thing to say.

Sure enough, the girl’s brow furrows. “Why? You don’t smell.”

“Oh, y’know,” Sokka shrugs, “I’m a brooding mysterious angsty student, I guess I just radiate don’t fuck with me energy.” He gives her a winning smile, but she’s still not looking at him.

Her lips twitch, “I dunno. You’re probably just a loser.”

14 days!!

Tokka Week 2021 kicks off in just a short two weeks!!

How are y’all feeling about it? reblog and put in the tags how excited you are and a snippet of whatever you’re working on —if it’s art, the general concept, if it’s fic, any line you want, etc etc. Zoey and I can’t wait! Cheers to Tokka 🥂

#tokka #tokka week 2021 #yo i’m HYPED #day 1 has so much potential #all the days do tbh #this one and two other days are heavy on my mind i hope i can finish my fic for the motherland/traveling day

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casualdadnomad · 4 years ago

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modern hc for every possible atla ship

Alright, I said I’d do it and now I’m doing it. We will not be arguing over ships because it’s impossible to argue if I include..... all of them. I’ll include some nice ship things and then rate the likeliness of the ship happening in my au.

Kataang: my babies. soulmates. they would be that adorable couple that has been together since the eighth grade. they work well together because they’re both kind hearted and care about each other deeply. they hold hands in hallways, call each other pet names (the infamous “sweetie” that makes sokka want to die), and always try to give each other little surprises to brighten each other’s day. they’re very into valentines day. would it happen? yes. 100/10.

Sukka: my babies part 2. sokka comes to every football game to cheer her on during halftime. he also goes to every winter guard competition. Suki goes with him when he does his graffiti. she insists it’s to be a lookout in case the cops find them, but she just loves watching him make his art. they don’t go out much, and are just as happy watching anime in suki’s room as they would be on a date. would it happen? YES. 10/10.

Zukka: the hottest ship of the ATLA renaissance. probably the best ship of all time. they just have this perfect dynamic. sokka is a genius with terrible ideas and no impulse control. zuko is just a guy with anxiety. sokka would definitely help zuko come out of his shell a little bit. and iroh loves his nephew’s boyfriend. sokka helps out for free in the jasmine dragon if zuko is working. would it happen? maybe. i do love them a lot. 8/10.

Zutara: okay. everyone has an opinion on zutara. my opinion is that i don’t like it unimportant. they stay up late on facetimes and talk until like 3 am. they play a lot of games and katara is super competitive, so zuko lets her win a lot. she’s cute when she’s convinced she’s the king of gamepigeon 8 ball. would it happen? unlikely. 4/10.

Taang: i don’t hear about this ship a ton. it’s not one i ever thought about. they’re both super protective, even though neither of them really need to be protected. aang is definitely more affectionate than toph, but toph can and will beat the shit out of anyone that hurts aang. would it happen? they’re the only two freshmen, so maybe, but still unlikely. 5/10.

Tokka: i’ve always thought toph’s little crush on sokka was adorable. they would skip school, go break the law for fun, that kind of nonsense. this is one of those rare instances where sokka has the most common sense. they would be more of a “what’s up you ugly idiot” kind of couple than a “hey baby! :)” kind of couple. would it happen? I could see them getting along. it would be pretty chaotic. 6.5/10.

Mai Lee: MY GIRLS. they’re perfect for each other. Mai is peak alt girl. She’s a goth queen, eyeliner sharp enough to kill a man, chains, little shirt big pants, and a nose piercing. ty lee is the exact definition of cottagecore. strawberry dresses, lots of blush, makes her own earrings. ty lee even gave mai a pair of earrings she made to look like knives. they walk down the street holding hands. if anyone throws them a weird look, mai throws a knife right back. would it happen? HELL YES. 1,000/10.

Tyzula: here’s the thing. azula never did get that sweet sweet redemption arc, so in my au she’s still a bit of an asshole. if they got together, i can see azula really trying to improve herself as a person for ty lee. i see ty lee really trying to sell the idea of including azula to the rest of the friend group. i’m really into the idea of instead of ty lee “fixing” her, having azula work on herself with ty lee as some extra motivation. would it happen? if azula put in effort to be a better person, sure. 7/10.

Maitara: what, did you think i was going to forget maitara? i did say every ship. katara vibes with the softgirl aesthetic while mai is on the egirl side, and honestly i am living for it. would it happen? this one is definitely a rare ship. but i think it could work. 5/10.

Maiko: ah yes, the canon one. zuko’s not quite as edgy as mai is. he’s like, if you diluted the eboy aesthetic a little. but i think it would maybe work between my two emo babies. they’re a couple that you never really see engaging in any pda so you just assume they’re friends until someone tells you otherwise. they’re very cute together, but dare i say kind of boring...? would it happen? goth x goth solidarity is cool, so maybe. 6/10.

Azutara: dude, there’s not a lot to say for this one. it’s been a little while since i’ve even seen an azutara shipper. are they extinct? (azutara babes pls tell me if ur not extinct). yeah so if this happened i think it would be because azula put in the work to be a good person and was welcomed back into the group. once she was in the group, katara would have gotten to know her real personality and liked her. but katara also holds her accountable for her actions. she puts up with no bullshit because she knows her worth. would it happen? i don’t think so. 2/10.

Sutara: this seems like chaos. these ladies would be the power couple of the century. i think with two women so strong and powerful, they’d butt heads a lot. they would be out in the world and actively changing it. would it happen? they’re both badass awesome women, but i’m not sure. 3/10.

Zukaang: uhh... i can’t say i ever thought about zukaang before now. but i guess you would have this bright ball of energy and a dark brooding type, so i can see how it could be cute. would it happen? um... no. i’m not sure if opposites attract that much. 0/10.

Tophko: another one that has literally never crossed my mind! i’m not sure how i feel about angry + angry as a dynamic. i think they would make great friends. okay, i think they would be a couple you mostly wouldn’t want to mess with. they can mess with each other, but no one else is allowed to mess with them. would it happen? no. i’m a slut for height differences, but not at the expense of a good personality match. 0/10.

Jetko: ah, the infamous jetko. the thing about jet in my au is that he’s kind of a sports boy. jock vibes. i guess i haven’t thought about his personality much except that he’s, well, a cocky sports guy. even if mans was bi or gay, i think he would have too much internalized homophobia to openly be in an gay relationship. would it happen? here’s the thing. i could maybe see them having kissed once or something, but not together currently. 4/10.

Jetka: okay i see a handful of people saying jetka rights so i thought i’s include it. i think the most likely scenario would be, maybe, they kissed once or twice and then sokka got ghosted because jet was closeted and scared. since jet obviously didn’t try to burn down a village, maybe that could be the reason sokka doesn’t like him. would it happen? maybe they never got together but jet could have been sokka’s first dude crush or something. 2/10.

Jetara: my immediate thought was that jet asked her out and they went out for like a week but katara quickly realized hey, he’s an asshole. ALTERNATIVELY, katara recognized him as the guy who hurt her brother or zuko and never went out with him at all, because hey, i don’t need all that drama. would it happen? maybe awkward exes. 3/10.

okay these took soooo long! if you have another ship, questions, or headcanon ideas, my ask box is always open!

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wolfy2109 · 4 years ago

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Tokka Week 2020: Family💖💖

(just another one-shot)

It's been months since I've seen her, I left thinking it'll be a matter of weeks. The councils of both the tribes had agreed and even I didn't anticipate a resistance. I wondered from time to time how she felt when she got to know that I'll be kept longer and was in a civil war of sorts again,if she'll show up in her metal armour again. The thought of how that armour clings tightly around her upper body was enough to make a grown man day dream. He thought about how soft her cheeks and lips were,all he wanted to was kiss her, passionately. He thought about holding his baby girl in his arms and kissing her forehead,she was the brightest child in the world according to him. He hoped Toph hadn't been too hard on her.

By the time he reached the door step,his every muscle was torn from tiredness,his head hurt from the long hours of sleepless travel(troubles in the ship). But his heart was so full of happiness,his mind full of thoughts and activities to do with both of his girls. He knocked the door and one of his known servants opened the door, thankfully. "Bo, it's so good to see you. Can you get some guys to put all this luggage in my room?" Sokka said,he was the kind of guy who treated servants with more respect than anyone,water tribe had engrained these values of compassion for one and all in him well enough. However,Bo didn't match his enthusiasm,he looked rather flustered, uncomfortable. He didn't meet his eyes when he answered "Sure sir,welcome back. I'll get right at it. ". Sokka was a chief,a strategist and a warrior he knew damn well that something was going on,he raised an eyebrow at Bo,to which Bo replied "did the news reach you?". Sokka worriedly replied "what news?. Is Toph okay?. Is she gone for another dangerous case?. Is Lin-" ,he was then cut off by a "nothing, she's just in an important meeting and will be late,your daughter will be in the study as of now,you can meet her."

Bo then rushed off and Sokka knew something was off but he didn't care,he was seeing Lin after 6 months,he entered the study and saw her dedicatedly reading some book on the history of earth kingdom,when she looked at him,her eyes sparked up with excitement. She ran to him and hugged him,he picked her up. "You're getting bigger,young chief" he told Lin. She giggled and gave him the biggest kiss on the cheek. They spent the entire afternoon talking about how he had fought cleverly and bravely and stopped a civil war and how Lin had aced the basics of earth bending forms. They were laughing like two six year olds,one of them was and well the other was, let's just say not six at all.

Nonetheless they talked like equals,like a true father and daughter duo. They both were fascinated with each other's stories,proud of their achievements and blissful to be back together again. Sokka told Lin that she didn't have to go to any class today, she'll be home spending "quality time" with her father and Lin was more than pleased with this offer.

Sokka went to take a bath after his lunch with Lin and found the two servants who were supposed to bring his luggage up to his room chatting. "I don't know how it's going to be like when he finds out. He has no idea." .The other servant replied "only a matter of time before it all blows up in her face,the nasty attitude,the bringing a guy in the house a week after he left.". Sokka couldn't believe what he had just heard,his body was paralyzed. He felt like he could no longer function. When he had gotten together with Toph he knew it was real,she made him the happiest man on the planet,their comfort with each other was unparalleled. He had been gone longer and she too,why didn't she wait this time. He was no Kanto,he was Sokka,her long time friend,her colleague,her family. He immediately stopped the thoughts from going any further and consuming him. He believed in her and her love. After his bath,his distress had still not eased.

As much as he didn't want to involve Lin in this he had to. Reassuring and horrible thoughts kept gushing his mind,the thoughts had reached the brim of his mind. He went to Lin,she was in her room playing with some of the toys he had got from his home,her fascination with them lit up her face. She was the most adorable child he had ever seen and also the smartest,he took great pride in raising her.

Sokka taught her how to use some of the toys and after five matches of Pai-sho which he deliberately let her win,Lin was tired. Sokka sat next to her,he didn't want to involve her in this and get to know how insecure her father is being right now but he had no other choice. "Lin,has some man been coming home lately?." ,he asked. His tone was a semi-friendly one but it masked fear,a lot of it, nervousness and denial to believe anything other than no. "Yeah,there has been. He has been coming every week since you've left. He is amazing,he brings me these amazing gummies and-", before Lin could complete,Sokka got up and told her to go and play with some of her friends for a while,he had some work to do. Before Lin could stop him and cling to him,he stormed out of the room.

There was no servant in his sight or he would have beaten the truth out of them. His mind was now an utter mess ,"how could she?.We were so happy,we didn't give it the name of a marriage but we were one happy family. She couldn't. She wouldn't have. Maybe it was Aang,maybe he's in town. Maybe it's the servant who reads her notices and letters. It can't be, I trust her and her love for me." ,all these thoughts were enough for him to stop mid-way and rub his forehead that was still aching from the lack of sleep. He was angry at her,who was this man after all?. He was angry at himself,how can his trust in her be so fickle.

He entered his room,their room. And he saw her. Face turned the other side. She was in her armour but something seemed wierd. She wasn't standing in the attention position she had mastered,she looked fragile. He never thought a day would come when she looked…….weak. "Toph" his voice was full of emotions for a second his mind had forgotten all about this other man,his voice was soft, calming and on the verge of cracking. They both were always on duty,they spent months like these often,Toph would go off and Sokka would stay with Lin and vice versa. But every time they saw each other after their period of separation,they spent the whole night talking, hugging, being happy that they were safe, mocking each other and what not. These memories calmed Sokka down.

He heard a gasp,he could see that she had lifted one hand and probably put it at her mouth?,her face was facing the other side. "Wouldn't you turn around?" He asked her. It was obvious now,he was crying. He heard a muffled sob. "I'm sorry Sokka, I don't know what to do, I'm happy to see you, I am, I really am but I don't know how to say this to you",her voice was cracking after every five words. Sokka's heart sank,so there is another man,he thought. He took a step back,he felt devastated,angry, miserable, heart broken and it wasn't long before he would've started shouting at her,he couldn't handle it.

He did everything right,he loved her right,if she didn't want him home,she could have sent a letter. Hawkie was always here to deliver anyway. "Look me in the eye and say it,Toph.",his voice asserted dominance,she had only heard him talk like this on battle fields to the people who answer to him. But it was not only dominance,his voice sounded like he was repressing anger and pain,a lot of it. So he knew,she thought. She hated his reaction,as scared as she was,she didn't expect THIS.

"Oh, I'm sorry Sokka. It's all my fault,if it hurts you so much get out of here, I've done all this once and I'll do it a second time.",she turned around in fury. Sokka scoffed and was about to say something when he saw it.

Was it a baby bump?. He hadn't seen her in the nine months when she was pregnant with Lin but here she was, standing with one hand on her stomach and the other on her back. She continued in fury "do you know how it was like for me?. A week after you left I found out about THIS. But I thought it wouldn't be as hard for me because now you were here,you would look after our child,Sokka!!". She sat on the bed side and tried to continue screaming when Sokka came down at his knees and touched the baby bump. He kissed it,his touch was so gentle, she had missed it so much. Toph breathed sharply,the gesture came as a surprise to her. "What are you doing?" She said. "Why didn't you tell me Toph, I would've-" he was cut off by Toph,"come right away? That's why. I didn't want to put you in a situation where you had to choose between your duties and your family. Whether or not you would have liked this,you would've been effected by it. You were at war for crying out loud. I was so scared for you,so worried about you-". Sokka shut her up with a kiss that was filled with longing and love and an apology?. She thought. They both leaned in, losing themselves completely in this,cheeks wet from tears and eyes shut close. This moment lasted forever,they took moments off where Sokka stroked her hair and she kissed his hand.

They were then interrupted by a coughing sound and when they pulled away,Sokka saw a man at the door,he carried a small bag and had spectacles. "Sokka,this is my doctor. He makes sure of my health,my mom and dad send him in every 4-5 days because of their paranoia." Sokka kissed her nose and whispered "I'm sorry" in her ear. Before she could ask him for what,he bombarded the doctor with questions "is the child going to be healthy?. Is Toph fine?. Why is her bump still so small?. When is it going to kick?. Will it be a bender or a non bender,does it know that it doesn't matter?. Is it a boy or a girl?.". He spent hours getting filled up on her pregnancy months that he had not been a part of from the doctor, Toph just lay on the bed smiling and grinning. Occasionally saying things like "Meathead STOP,YOU ARE EMBARRASSING!!" and laughing at his replies that went like "then what are you?".

She adored him with all her heart,she finally was with the right man,this one would stick around,this one pushes her to be a better parent everyday,this one means the world to her. Her mind was at so much ease,sometime after the doctor left and Sokka had kissed her and hugged her and jumped around her in excitement and love and also explained what he had thought was going on and got scolded for it,Lin peeked through the door. She thought she was hiding properly but both Sokka and Toph knew she was here. "Lin!!!! Why didn't you tell me?!. You're getting a sister or a brother." Sokka exclaimed,"I'm sorry, I thought you already knew" Lin sounded overly apologetic. "No,no sweetie, it's fine,dad's here,come sit with us". He picked her up and placed her near Toph's belly.

There they were,three of them looking like a real family. No marriage,not even Sokka's biological child but he didn't care,Lin was hers and so was Toph. There was another baby coming and they were a perfect family. They spent the evening getting ready for a fancy dinner at Toph's favorite restaurant(cravings you know),Sokka kept obsessing about just how beautiful Toph was and she kept touching him whenever she could,brushing hands,nose rubs,hugs. Pregnancy had made her soft,she thought. No,it was Sokka,he always makes her this way and she loves it. As Sokka carried Lin on his shoulders,Toph brushed her hair with her hand. Sokka looked at her face with love and adoration, excitement for this new chapter of their lives and she knew he was looking. She even blushed a little. God,how Sokka loved making her blush. "Gonna stare at me all night meathead or are we ever gonna leave?." She smirked and they all went to have dinner. And so just an overly happy family at an overly expensive restaurant with an overly protective man who glared at every man who looked at his woman and kid who looked at his daughter enjoyed their meal in peace or their idea of peace.

#sokka #tokka #sokka of the southern water tribe #atla sokka #atla toph #tokka fanfic #toph beifong #toph beiphong #water tribe #otp ideas #tokka week #tokka week 2020 #atla fanfic #atla au

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avatraang · 4 years ago

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The Big List of Tokka Recs.

Hi! My name’s Rey, and I am bored. So I decided to make a Big List of Tokka Recs for all you Tokka shippers!! This list will ONLY include fics I found on AO3, because I haven’t been on FF.Net to read fics in YEARS and I’m scared to go back there. I have separated this list into two categories, one of which has two sub categories. The first category is “oneshots”. The second category is “multi chapters”; it’s sub categories are “completed” or “in progress”. I obviously haven’t read every Tokka fic out there; this is just what I’ve read and enjoyed enough to bookmark.

These fics are in no particular order; I made a Rec List, not a Ranking. My only intention is that this helps any Tokka shippers out there, and gives the authors some well deserved love!

Enjoy!

Oneshots:

Swimming, by melospiza. Focusing on the location of Sokka's feet, Toph reached out blindly and was gratified by the feel of warm, rough hands closing over hers.

Word Count: 1,881. Rating: Teen.

fortune telling, reincarnation, love, and other (somewhat dubious) forms of science, by avatraang. “Hey,” Sokka’s voice is soft. “Come with me. I’ve missed you.” Distantly, Toph supposes that even the earth moves unsteadily at times; after all, isn’t that how earthquakes are caused?

Word Count: 8,921. Rating: Mature. Notes: Slight AU from LOK. Aunt Wu tells Toph her fortune.

Tradition, by Loopy. Sokka and Lin have a tradition.

Word Count: 4,326. Rating: General. Notes: Not LOK Compliant. Major Character Death.

Life Choices, by TwentyFirstCenturyJane. The first few times they meet Suki thinks nothing of it. Toph is a child, and the world is burning down around them and Sokka will have to choose eventually but not right now and even if it happened tomorrow, even if it was all over by the time the sun rises, Suki is confident in the thought that Sokka will choose her.

Word Count: 1,769. Rating: General. Notes: Told in Suki’s POV.

jealous of the love, by avatraang. Every once in a while, when they’re out late, the moon will catch her in just the right way. Sokka thinks Yue is trying to tell him something. Yet as Toph sends him a beckoning smile over her shoulder, moonlight glinting against her skin, Sokka pushes the message away.

Word Count: 2,746. Rating: Teen. Notes: Slight AU.

It’s Us, Not Them, by Mey2. Yeah, Sokka's stuck in Toph's blind pregnant body. Sure, Toph can actually see things. But for a couple of people who had their bodies switched, they're acting surprisingly calm throughout the whole thing.

Word Count: 5,761. Rating: Teen.

as simple as breathing, by avatraang. Their composition is an easy one; as simple as breathing. Toph falls asleep with that knowledge, that their constitution is as set in stone as nature. In the morning, Sokka is still holding her, and it isn’t until he wakes up, complaining about a headache, that Toph detangles herself from his arms. They don’t mention how they wake up; they don’t need to. It’s another constitution that came as naturally as the first.

Word Count: 2,156. Rating: Teen.

still water, by summerofspock. Toph sagged against the railing and tipped her face to the sun. It was warm on her skin, but she could already feel the impending chill of the Southern waters. Why was she doing this? Right, because Sokka had asked.

Word Count: 3,073. Rating: Mature.

stagnant towns, by edeabeth. Unable are the loved to die, for love is immortality. University AU.

Word Count: 3,143. Rating: Teen. Notes: Trigger Warning - abusive relationships (tokka is not the abusive relationship).

purple lilacs and pilfered letters, by avatraang. Toph shoves the lilacs into his arms and then takes the letter, putting it in her pouch. “I should pound you into next week for that!” Sokka nudges her, “But you won’t.” She sends a glare in his general direction. “What makes you so sure?”

Word Count: 1,509. Rating: Teen. Notes: Pre-LOK. Very fluffy.

I’m Right Here, by Likesummerrainn. She finds him in her dreams, now, and tells him about her day.

Word Count: 1,095. Rating: Teen. Notes: Canonical Character Death.

not to us (our hearts beat in turn), by canonjohnlock. Toph is absolutely sure of two things in life: Sokka never lies and his heart is always steady.

Word Count: 10,038. Rating: Teen. Notes: One of the best oneshots I’ve ever read.

seen, by avatraang. Toph stills. “You did this for my baby?” Her voice is a whisper. Swallowing, Sokka nods. “So that they’ll have something to remember us by. So they’ll know how we felt.”

Word Count: 2,826. Rating: Teen. Notes: Canonical Character Death.

Innocent, by CameraLux(TinCanTelephone). While spending a week-long vacation at Katara and Aang's house, Toph realizes they have another houseguest she didn't expect. Or, although she’s almost twenty, Toph still thinks growing up is for suckers. Sokka thinks she might be right.

Word Count: 5,218. Rating: Teen. Notes: PTSD discussions.

Hide and Seek, by brightestmoony. During an intense game of hide-and-seek, Sokka and Toph end up in some close quarters.

Word Count: 2,816. Rating: Teen.

lunam et familia, by avatraang. Sokka turns away from him, illuminated by moonlight. “Yeah, well, what does she know?” He snaps, bitter. “She left her family for duty, too.” The waves crash. They sound defeated.

Word Count: 4,672. Rating: Teen. Notes: Canonical Character Death.

Multi-Chapters:

Completed:

But the Water is Still There, by CameraLux(TinCanTelephone). It begins with an innocent question from Lin, and Sokka carving a betrothal necklace. Over the years, Katara watches the story of Sokka and Toph and Lin and Suyin, trying not to feel caught between them.

Word Count: 17,790. Rating: General. Notes: Canon Compliant. One of the best fics I’ve ever read.

those quiet, chilly mornings, by autmndee. The day Suyin Beifong was born, told through the eyes of the water tribe healer who delivered her.

Word Count: 6,467. Rating: Teen. Notes: A personal favorite.

The Quest is a Metaphor, by CameraLux(TinCanTelephone). After a bitter end to his long-term relationship, Sokka finds himself directionless and alone. Luckily, soon after leaving Kyoshi Island he runs into an old friend. Or, in which Sokka finally learns to focus less on the where and more on the going.

Word Count: 38,312. Rating: Teen.

In Progress:

I’ll Be Seeing You, by CloverCreative. In which the timing is never quite right, until it is? Exploring a series of moments and conversations throughout the years, as Toph and Sokka help each other navigate life and love (and perhaps figure out their feelings for each other along the way).

Current Word Count: 157,646. Rating: Mature. Notes: Unashamedly realistic. Lots of smut. Very well written. Top tier Tokka fic.

Just The Tiniest Skip, by matchaforever. Ten years after the war, waves of oppression and rising bigotry intersect right where Toph and Sokka need to be.

Current Word Count: 11,565. Rating: Teen. Notes: Not LOK compliant.

The Morning After, by The_Clockwork_Monk. The morning after Zuko's bachelor party, a very hungover Gaang must retrace their steps before their antics from the previous night spark another war.

Current Word Count: 41,956. Rating: Teen. Notes: Inspired by Psych.

Until We Reach the End of the Road, by mayamylove. When you've been through everything together, it can only really end one way.

Current Word Count: 33,157. Rating: Mature. Notes: Canon Compliant. Trigger Warning - abusive relationship (tokka is not the abusive relationship.) Not updated regularly.

The Dark Kelp Liquor Diaries, by Superster. After two years apart from each other, Toph has a date with Sokka and she doesn't know what to do with her feelings. What could possibly happen?

Current Word Count: 16,881. Rating: Explicit. Notes: Amazingly written. Smut. Not updated regularly.

the taunting blue sky, by atumndee. Sokka remembered every sickening detail of that first day as though he were constantly reliving it. For a long while, he supposed, he did. Suki was gone, and everything was shit. A companion piece to "those quiet, chilly mornings.”

Current Word Count: 18,921. Rating: Mature. Notes: Follow up to “those quiet, chilly mornings”. Angst. Not updated regularly.

Winds of Rebellion, by doctorate_in_realology. It is the year 107 AG. Aang, Katara, Sokka and Toph are summoned to Cranefish City to help with the growing rift between benders and non-benders, but it becomes quickly apparent that something even more sinister is at play. The situation grows more volatile by the hour, and together, the four friends will uncover a plot that threatens the world with war. In a city gripped by corruption, bigotry and greed, where they can trust no one but each other, they will need more than vigilance to stay alive.

Current Word Count: 43,126. Rating: Mature. Notes: Extremely well written. Not Tokka-centric but has many Tokka moments. Canon compliant. Not updated regularly.

#tokka #atla #avatar the last airbender #toph beifong #sokka #tokka fanfic #tokka recs #tokka rec list #fics by friends #original post #yes i tagged my own fics #im trying to be more confident!!

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raindrops-and-tubestops · 3 years ago

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Can you do Sokka for the character ask? 😇

Of course @laviedeviv!

Sexuality HC: As a fellow bi I feel like he just gives off bi vibes, maybe with a touch of demi because he forms those strong attachments with everyone.

Favorite ships: Sukka, Tokka, and Zukka 💜

Brotp: if I’m not shipping them romantically, Sokka and Toph, buuuuuut of course Aang and Sokka 🥰

Notp: apart from the obvious (shipping him with Katara), I’ve seen him shipped with Lin before and that just gives me all kinds of heebie jeebies 🤮

Happy HC: Councilman Sokka had a habit of spoiling his friends and sister. Occasionally a new air bending or Avatar history scroll would end up on Aang’s desk, courtesy of his brother-in-law’s many journeys. When he was in town, he would show up on the island on random mornings claiming he was taking the ‘lemurs’ (Bumi and Kya) off Katara’s hands so she could have the morning to herself, sometimes that included a spa day in the city. Zuko has been on the receiving end of a ceremonial weapon or two to add to his collection in Caldera City. Suki is an avid art collector and was constantly receiving pieces, particularly sculptures, that ‘just reminded him of her.’ Toph would come home after a long week at work to a large arrangement of flowers, and each time it was different, different textures and smells, they would fill her apartment with something other than herself.

Angsty HC: as I’ve expressed in previous HCs (I think this one was for zaheer…not sure) Sokka was there and avidly defended Korra when she was attacked by the Red Lotus, everyone was in the fight Zuko and Katara included. While Korra managed to save him from Zaheer, Sokka’s injuries were too severe and he passed on before Katara could treat him.

Random HC: while traveling through the Earth Kingdom, about 6 years after the end of the war, he found a shop that specialized in unique antiques. And I’m sure you can guess what was hung on the wall in all it’s glory. Yes…he was finally reunited with his sword 💜

I love Sokka, he is without a doubt, one of my favorite people in the Avatar-verse. His heart knows no bounds, and he is as loyal as he is fierce. He also has a habit of putting his foot in his mouth, which I find infuriating as well as endearing 🥰

#character asks #thank you! these are so much fun!#sokka #avatar the last airbender #atla series

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sokkabeifong · 4 years ago

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20 Stories, 20 First Lines

Tagged by @cats-and-metersticks, thank you! I jumped right on this because I honestly love tag games haha

Rules: List the first lines of your last 20 stories (if you have less than 20, just list them all!). See if there are any patterns. Choose your favorite opening line, then tag 10 authors!

-> I'm just going to do 10, since 20 is kind of a lot haha

I don't have a lot of writer friends on here, so this is the best I can do, sorry if I forgot someone I'm so bad at remembering things

Tagging @chaoticnerdsstuff @praetorqueenreyna (I know we haven't talked much but you're such a good writer and I'd love to see you do this!)

1. The Element of Surprise (Tokka One Shots)

Toph Beifong is thirty-five years old, and nothing surprises her. Her seismic sense tells her where everything is, from the tiniest ant to the largest man. There is no such thing as being startled when you have that much power under the soles of your feet.

Except when there is.

2. The Game (Tokka One Shots)

Katara had just finished twisting the cap onto the nail polish bottle when her phone rang. She fumbles, hurrying to get through the mess of bottles and blankets that have piled up on her bed. The dark-haired girl sitting next to her snarls when she's hit in the leg with the sharp end of a pair of nail clippers.

"Watch it, Butter Fingers."

"Sorry, sorry," she says, not really meaning it. She finally grabs her phone delicately by the sides, squinting at the screen. "It's Mai. She wants to FaceTime."

3. All the Crooked Lines

Mai knows how to deal with many things, but grief is not one of them.

Growing up in the household of a Fire Nation noble meant sacrifices of all kind. Her father was an absent figure in her life, but she spent her days hearing about how important it was that she behaved for him. And so she did. She behaved, she kept quiet, and she coped. Coping has been in her vocabulary since before she could speak. When things become difficult, she retreats into herself, and she copes.

She's coping now.

4. The Butterfly Effect (Toph, Chp. 4)

Toph fiddles with the wires on her listening device. For some reason, the right one works while the left one doesn't. She sighs exasperatedly, makes a few more changes, then lets out a groan and tosses the whole contraption onto a nearby table. The clatter of it hitting the wooden surface is drowned out by her flopping down onto one of the couches in the Great Room. She buries her head in her hands.

Any minute now, someone will escort Prince Sokka into the room, and they'll be left alone to talk until their fathers come and fetch them for dinner. Alone. With Sokka. For several minutes. Not long, she supposes, but long enough. Will he try and talk to her? Will he try and make a move already? Is he as terrified as she is? She truly has no idea, and that scares her. What had her father been thinking, promising her to this stranger?

5. The Butterfly Effect (Sokka, Chp. 3)

Sokka rubs his hands together anxiously, pacing the rooms he's been assigned for his time in the Earth Kingdom palace. He glances up at the teardrop mirror that's now hanging above his bureau and takes a deep breath. That was the first thing he'd done when he had been left alone to settle in - hang up the mirror. If it was there, somehow he felt more at home, though it wouldn't really matter soon. After his marriage, he will be expected to live with Toph. At least she probably wouldn't care too much about the decor of their room, since she couldn't see it.

In a few minutes, one of his new Earth Kingdom servants - he, his father, and his sister had each been given two, though the latter were only staying for another three weeks - will be coming to he will be left alone with Toph while the kings arrange their lives like they were pawns in a chess game. And afterward, he'll have to get through his first dinner with King Lao. And Queen Poppy. And Toph.

6. Show It To The Sun (Tokka One Shots)

Katara told her once that love is blind. That when two people cared about each other so much, they ignored everything else, no matter what it was. Love, she said, guides all. But it didn't hurt to have a bit of guidance from others as well.

Toph replied by saying that love isn't the only thing that's blind, and waved her hand sarcastically in front of her useless eyes. Katara scoffed, saying that she never took anything seriously.

But Toph’s dead serious.

Katara can't know. Can she? No. They've been so careful, these past few months. Hushed conversations in dark corners, a small touch on the back now and then. But never more than that. When they are others around, they put on their masks. They bicker. They argue. They fight. They get on each other's nerves and act exactly how they're supposed to.

Distant. Detached. Indifferent.

7. The Butterfly Effect (Toph, Chp. 2)

"Sit up straight," Toph's father orders from his throne next to his daughter. "And smile. You look like a hooligan, frowning like that."

Toph obeys immediately and effectively, smiling however strained she's sure it looks. Her father grunts his approval. "Better."

Her mother, the queen, stops before her seat and smooths a strand of her hair back before quietly sitting in her own royal seat, on her husband's right. "You look lovely, dear," she says. "I'm sure the prince will love you. They'll be here any minute, now."

At that, she tenses. The prince will be here any minute.

8. The Butterfly Effect (Sokka, Chp. 1)

The mirror has hung on the northwestern wall of his chambers for as long as he can remember. It's a curious shape, like that of a teardrop. He likes it, anyway. It reminds him of the water surrounding his home, the islands of Esceania, and how much he loves it. When he was younger, if he tilted his head back as far as it would go, he could just catch a glimpse of his dark brown hair peeking up over the edge. As he grew, each time he passed the mirror he was rewarded by seeing more and more of himself.

9. But Lovers Hold On To Everything (Tokka One Shots)

"Okay, go."

Toph furrows her brow in concentration. "Okay. Two households, both alike in dignity. In fair Verona, where we lay our scene. From ancient grudge break new mutiny, where civil blood makes civil hands... er, something... shit."

"Argh. So close," Sokka says, laying the sheet of paper with his girlfriend's English homework on it on the table that separates them. "It's '...civil blood makes civil hands unclean.'"

"I know, I know," she says tiredly. "Good thing I only have to memorize half."

10. The Boy From District Three (TGWTB)

Aang has decided to trust him wholeheartedly. He knows this because as soon as the anthem finishes he snuggles up against him and falls asleep. Nor does he have any misgivings about him, as he takes no particular precautions. If he had wanted Sokka dead, all he would've had to do was disappear from that tree without pointing out the tracker jacker nest.

At the back of his mind, he knows they both can't win these Games. But since the odds are still against either of them surviving, he manages to ignore the thought.

#mostly tokka as per usual #tokka #atla #maiko

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