Hey all, long time now see. I apologize for the late update. I also wanted to thank my readers or the great reviews, you all rock my world.

Next day…

The sun wasn’t up yet as I awoke, which didn’t happen a lot. Firebenders would normally rise ‘with’ the sun, and not before it. I blinked my eyes as I tried to focus my sight in the dark, it worked after a few seconds and I could distinctions some features in my room. I sat upright slowly, my gaze now focused on my hands that lay in my lap.

Maybe it was more the way that guy reacted to my little outburst that Aang had affected that way yesterday. It wasn’t that bad, at least not for my standards. I shook my head and swung my feet from the bed to the ground, leaning on them with both my arms.

I raised my left hand to touch my scarred cheek that I had bandaged yesterday. I flinched at the contact and let my hand drop again, the wound must be deeper than I thought it was. I stood up from my sitting position and began searching for the rest of my cloths. My gaze soon fell on the little heap of my belongings on the floor and walked over to it. I crunched and took my boots and robe from the ground and walked back to the bed where I sat down again.

I slid my feet in the first boot and did the same with the other. I stood up again and did the robe around my upper body, neither to tight nor to lose, when done I knitted the waistband tightly around my waist. I stretch my arms and then my legs and sighed, I was feeling well rested even after what had happened yesterday night and even after awakening sooner than normal.

I walked to the door and opened it, observing the area as I did so before I closed it again behind me softly. I began jogging to the little fountain that was nearest to my room, intending to wash myself before confronting the gang again. Which wasn’t going to end smoothly, that was for sure.

I sank to my knees and splashed some water on my face where I had no bandage placed. I needed to be careful not to soak the fabric because it was my last one and I didn’t dare to ask anyone for something right now, not really in the mood to do so.

When I was done with washing myself, I stood up and walked to the little campsite. I hoped to confront the Avatar again when I got there. I still needed to know a few things to make sure, if I screwed things up. Was Aang really shocked at my reaction or was it more the reaction I got from the Earthbender? The same type of questions kept lingered in my mind as I neared the campsite.

I sat down on a log that lay the closest to the campfire, still a little warm as they were still smoldering from past fire. Everyone was still asleep so it seemed, and my body relaxed slightly at the thought, little relieved that nobody was up yet. After I had sat down, I send a small spark from my index finger to the black logs, which was enough to set them on fire again.

It was still night so it seemed, the moon was still in the air and the wind was still cold as it graced my sides. I shivered at the cold touch and warmed myself back up by concentrating on my breathing. I sighed in content as I felt my body warming up again.

Hours past, me not really thinking or doing anything as I sat there, I still felt numb to the bone. I really hadn’t expected for Katara to show up and take me on right then and there in my own room yesterday (or today, I didn’t know what time it was right now). I didn’t fight back, and how could I after all the things I had done to her, to her friends.

Crack…

I didn’t react to the sound of a branch cracking as I kept my gaze on the fire.

Step… Step…

The sound of someone nearing did get my attention and I shifted to look behind me. My good eye grew slightly larger in surprise as I saw Toph walking to my position. I stood up stiffly, my body was sore from sitting for so long on the log.

“Good morning Sparky.”

She greeted me groggily while waving her hand to me a little disorientated, yawing afterwards as she sat on the log I just had sat on. I sighed.

“I didn’t know it was morning.”

I said with little interest as I sat down again next to Toph. She gave me a smug smile and leaned on her arms behind her. I just kept my gaze on the small fire, which had lessened in size greatly.

“Been up for long?”

She gave me more of a statement than a question but I still nodded in reply. A few seconds passed and she punched me against my arm, I flinched at the sudden contact.

“Hello! Reply when someone asks you something.”

I raised my eyebrow as I nursed my sore arm. Stupid of me, I forgot she can’t see me actually nod. I had to resist the urge to smack myself against the forehead as I thought about that.

“Yeah, you could say that. I don’t even know how long I have sat here.”

I said, my face falling with each word I said. She just raised her eyebrow skeptical at me but remained quiet for a few seconds before she began to speak again.

“Has this to do with yesterday?”

I flinched as I thought back at yesterday but said nothing. She had to have picked up the movement I had made because she continued with talking.

“Aang told me about your outburst, but I think he overreacted. The way I heard it didn’t sounded too bad.”

My gaze was still fixed on the ground, now deep in thought. That what I also thought, but I think it was more how that Earthbender had reacted which had lead to Aang’s retreating from out training yesterday. Maybe I can ask Toph about this.

“Did Aang tell you anything else?”

“Nope, at least not to me he did.”

It was silent again between us but I didn’t mind, it wasn’t awkward like most of the time. It didn’t last long though.

“Did anything else happened Scarface; you seem too tense for such a small problem.”

I sighed – which I thought was becoming a habit for me now – as I leaned with my arms on my knees.

“You could say that. Katara had visited me yesterday night and…”

I stopped for a second, not knowing how to continue any further.

“Go on.”

She said, curiosity clearly shown on her face as she nudged me against the shoulder to go on with my story.

“…She attacked me. She slashed my cheek open with her water whip.”

I didn’t look at her for her response but I didn’t have to, her little gasp was enough for me to know she was surprised at this. I just looked away from her, slightly feeling guilty for an unknown reason now.

“She did WHAT!”

I flinched, not expected Toph to yell at all, and turned to face her again. She looked dumbfounded and angry at the same time, which was quite the comical sight if not for the situation.

“She had no right to attack you Sparky, not for such a dumb reason at least.”

I wasn’t sure if I could agree with her there, I had done Katara pain both physically and mentally when I was still hunting the Avatar. My good eye widened when I felt Toph her fingers brushing over my bandaged cheek and flinched away from her hand, pain shot through my cheek at the contact. I could see her hand retreating with fast reflexes at my movement.

“Sorry, didn’t mean to startle you. So you bandaged it?”

I nodded but hurriedly replied after, knowing she couldn’t see the movement I made with my head.

“Yeah, the wound is pretty deep so I had no choice but to patch it up.”

“Patch what up?”

My head shot to the direction the voice came from and I found Sokka leaning against a pillar not too far away from us.

“How long have you been there?”

I couldn’t help to feel slightly suspicious as I asked him the simple question, him being the brother of Katara and all, as I glared at him. He didn’t seem to mind though as he shrugged his shoulders.

“Not long.”

My one eyebrow shot up skeptically at the remark. The Water Tribe boy came closer and sat down on one of the logs that lay scattered around the campfire, which was almost out now.

“Whoa, how did you get that?”

He was pointing at my bandaged cheek as he almost yelled, which I found excessive. Talk about late reflexes…

“Your sister gave it to me.”

I replied sharply, slightly agitated now for being asked again about it again.

“Oh… Well, she had to have a good reason then. She doesn’t do such things without reason.”

I laughed dryly, humorlessly as I glared at Sokka.

“If you’d call a small little outburst to be enough reason to slash open my scar then yeah, she had enough reason to do that!”

I exclaimed sarcastic out of anger, resisting the urge to stand up as I did so. The boy seemed to shrink slightly at my outburst as he kept his mouth tightly shut. Toph placed her hand on my shoulder, trying to calm me down with the simple gesture as she shook me slightly. It worked a little bit but I still felt as if I could set a whole forest on fire by exploding out of sheer irritation.

“Err…Maybe not.”

Sokka said in a high, squeaking voice, almost sounding as if I had hit him in the balls. I snorted steam out of my nostrils, a little amused at the mental image of me hitting him in the crotch.

“Just calm down Sparky, just explain to Sokka what happened.”

“Easy for you to say, there is little to explain at all! I just told the Earthbender with the silly mustang to go away because Aang and I were busy with training and the idiot left in a way as if I had threatened him to burn his village down. And now Aang doesn’t trust me well enough to train with me or to explain anything because he’s so darn…”

I faltered in my speech as I searched for the right word to describe the Avatar.

“…Because he’s just too darn innocent to know the difference between yelling and a large outburst!”

“What you’re having right now?”

My eye twitched at the idiotic of the sarcastic question Sokka gave me.

“Yes!”

The campfire roared up for a few seconds before it died again soon after as I stood up, my irritation got the better of me as I stormed off.

“Hold it right there Sparky, don’t run away from your problems like that.”

I turned to her, my eyes narrowing and my anger now at a boiling point. I really felt as if I could burst into flames.

“Good, now come back here and sit down, we need to talk.”

I huffed smoke out of my mouth but came anyway but I refused to sit down stubbornly, crossing my arms over my chest to look more inflamed to the group.

“Well, spit it out then.”

I said sharply to the Earthbender as I glared at her, not caring that she couldn’t see my expression I was wearing.

“First, calm down. I’m not talking to you when you’re like that.”

I smacked my forehead, sighing loudly as I did. What’s with these people?

“That’s easy for you to say.”

Nevertheless, I tried anyway, telling to ten as I did. It worked a little bit and I sat down next to Toph again, now less irate then I was a few seconds ago.

“Now, tell Sokka what happened, and this time no shouting. I think you almost shredded my eardrums just now.”

I snorted amused at her frank sarcasm. I imitated the little Earthbender and placed my arms behind me on the cold logs, I tensed a little at the cold sensation of the cold wood below my touch. I warmed the lumber slightly with my Firebending until it felt warm enough for my likening. I sighed, now more relaxed and calmed as my sight felt on the Water Tribe boy who was looking at my with a skeptical look, his eyebrow was slightly raised as he watched me intently as he awaited for my explanation. A smirked tugged at my lips as a thought struck me.

“I would have won you know.”

His raised his eyebrow even more, the other relaxed as his expression chanced to that of confusion at my words.

“What do you mean?”

The grin on my face grew larger as I watched him taking the bait. The explanation had to wait after I was done with him. I raised my shoulders, faking innocents even if I took almost no effort to mask my smirk.

“That staring contest we held yesterday of course, or had you forgotten?”

I let the sentence hang as I observed the other, even more amused as I watched his face redden. If it was because of anger or something else, I didn’t know nor did I care.

“You’re a real sore loser you know that.”

He shot me back angrily. I resisted the urge to laugh mockingly at the weak comeback.

“Care for another round?”

I knew he wouldn’t wave the challenge off; every man had his pride to protect and running away from a challenge wasn’t an option. I watched him straighten himself, making him look more intimidating (which didn’t work at all) to me.

“You’re on, Jerkbender.”

Moreover, the small battle of willpower between two teenagers began. The smirk didn’t leave my features as I kept my hard stare on the Water Tribe boy, mocking him with my amusement. I saw his left eye twitch, mostly form annoyance at my mocking gesture. I thought entered my mind and I had to resist the urge to look to the blind girl as I started talking, addressing her.

“Toph, this time no Earthbending like last time, at least not if you don’t want to prove me right.”

I could hear her move beside me, most likely shrugging her shoulders at me.

“Yeah whatever, just don’t forget to tell him or I’ll still launch you, only this time a little harder.”

I could hear her smirk clearly but gave it no heed; I still had a staring contest to win and to keep my pride in check.

“Like you’d win fair from me anyway.”

I shrugged my shoulders as I kept my hard stare on him.

“There’s no way I could lose to a simple peasant.”

It was Sokka’s turn to smirk at me all of the sudden. I almost rolled my eyes if it wasn’t for the staring contest I was in. We sat there for another few moments before Toph yawned loudly and stood up. I could see that Sokka wanted to look to the sudden movement but restrained himself, not giving up just yet.

“I’m going to search for something to eat.”

Moreover, she left to search for something she could eat, leaving us to our staring contest. I could hear a fade “Boys and their games…” coming from her as she got out of my hearing reach. I shrugged it off, not really taking insult in the little statement she had made towards us.

“Getting tired of all this staring yet?”

I asked the other as I changed my position on the log, making my posture more relaxed to show the other that I didn’t had any problem with staring for so long. He looked skeptical at me as if he had taken offence at my question.

“No, at least if you don’t count the annoying ache I’m getting in my backside. But for the rest, I’m cool.”

I could almost see the sarcasm drip from his mouth when he said those words to me. The smirk returned to my lips and I could see his face darken at this, annoyed again at my amusement.

“You should really cut that out.”

I knew what he meant but played innocent as I raised my eyebrow at him, planning to play a small mind game of mine own.

“Cut what out?”

I wasn’t maybe as good as Azula when it came to irritating others and to manipulate them to do things my way as she was, but I still learned a few things or two from observing her as she always taunted me or others around her with her vocal skills. I saw Sokka’s frown at my question.

“You know damn well what I mean, that smirking you’re doing all the time. It’s freaking me out!”

“Oh? Well sorry for making you feel uncomfortable then. I’ll try to lower my amusement from your stupidity from now on.”

I replied with as much sarcasm I could think of. He was glaring at me now, which rather reminded me of his sister.

Step… Step…

I heard someone nearing our location, but I restrained myself from looking towards the source of the sound. Sokka, on the other hand, did look for a flash of a second before I saw him flinched, and knew I had won the battle between wits.

I gave the newcomer a sided glance before turning fully to Toph, who was holding a few berries in her hands and popped one right in her mouth.

“So, who’s won?” The question she had asked was in a bored manner, which told me she wasn’t interested in the result of our match, nor did she seem impressed with it.

“Me, of course.” I replied with pride, even though it wasn’t that big of a victory.

“Good for you, then.” She sat down next to me again, the way she had done a few moments ago before she had departed in search of food. “I think Snoozels is still waiting for your explanation Sparky.”

I pouted slightly, but gave a defeated sigh in the end.

“Well, it all started with…”

And of course, TBC!