“You idiot!" Katara screamed. "What on earth were you thinking?"

“Ok, so maybe there could’ve been a better way to cheer her up, but come on, everyone makes mistakes!” Sokka argued, pointing at his sister accusingly. "Besides, it's your fault she was upset in the first place, why did you wake her up so early?"

"Don't you dare try to blame me for this! You're the one who spiked her food with funky plant milk!"

"Well, you saw what it did to me! I was crazy happy on the stuff; I figured it would do that to her and make her bad mood go away," He bantered back.

"Hello? Anyone there?" She taunted, tapping on his head with her fist. "There was no way of telling how cactus juice would affect her! She could've gotten seriously ill!"

“I’m gonna go out on a limb here,” Zuko interrupted. “Cactus juice is that nasty stuff that you get in desert cacti, right?”

“Yes,” She replied, still glaring at her brother.

“Fire nation generals sometimes give it to the prisoners for a cheap laugh,” He stated very matter-of-factly.

Katara took a deep breath.

“Haru,” she calmly said. “You’ve obviously had a hard time today, so just chill here with the rest of us while Sokka sorts out this mess.”

“It’s okay, to be honest it was kind of fun,”

She smiled before turning angrily towards her brother.

“Don’t just stand there, go find Toph!” She shouted.

There was no need to be told twice. Sokka knew better than to get into a heated argument with his sister, she always won and made him look a total fool. The plan seemed perfect, he hadn’t told anyone, not even Haru who was there when he did it. He just said that it was a sweet flavouring that Toph had always liked. It wasn’t strictly true, although judging by the way her body reacted she certainly seemed to be enjoying herself.

And yet, as happy as she seemed, the guilt of deceiving her into being that happy crawled under his skin. Katara was right, she might have become ill, and then what? He pushed the sickly feeling away for the moment and tried to figure out where she went, but with so many places to hide he had his work cut out for him. The inside of temple was a maze of ancient structure and recent earthbending; pillars and posts and rocks protruding arbitrarily from the walls.

“Tag!” Toph bellowed, landing on his back and sending him crashing to the ground. She sniffed the air for a moment. “You’re not Haru.”

“No, it’s me-“

“I know it’s you Sokka,” She grinned. “You smell of meat and guilt.”

“How can someone smell like guilt?”

“I’ll tell you if you can catch me.”

She quickly scurried away, while Sokka got up and tried to follow her. She was certainly a lot more energetic than usual, a lot more playful too. When was the last time he saw her so full of energy and in such playful spirits? Perhaps when they'd been in Ba Sing Se and she was so sick of being ‘handled’ (as she’d so blatantly put it) by their overbearing guide Ju Dee that she knocked down the west wall of their temporary home. Or when she discovered a talent for scamming people and ended up on the Fire nation wanted list. Toph had a good sense of humour and was very quick witted, although she often preferred to be nonchalant about everything. But she also had a temper, a short temper with an even shorter fuse.

“Don’t feel bad,” Her voice echoed. “Haru couldn’t catch me either.”

“I’m faster than Haru…” He answered, looking around and trying to figure out where she might be. “…and I know you a lot better than he does.”

It was true, he knew Toph better than anyone, and if Haru knew her at all then he’d know that just chasing her wouldn’t work. Sokka realised that to catch Toph, he had to think like Toph. Well, as Toph-like as he could considering that she wasn’t exactly herself today. Regardless of her current state, one thing remained constant; she relied on her other senses to move around. So to get a better shot at catching her, he closed his eyes, stood dead still and listened.

He was greeted with total silence. The silence continued for a few minutes, before he heard something – or someone – shuffling some distance to his left. Slowly, he turned to where the noise came from. A small piece of rubble shot out of the darkness and connected with his ankle. That wasn't very clever was it? You just gave away your position... He grinned. The instant he turned toward the dark corner, Toph lunged out from the opposite direction, head-butted his right leg and sent him tumbling to the ground.

“Nice try,” She smirked and once again ran up the stairs.

He rubbed his sore hip and glanced up at the cheeky blind girl, grinning like a rabid polar wolf. She was totally messing with him, trying to wear him out the way she had with Haru; he clocked onto her little game and decided to play a game of his own. He made a feeble attempt to stand up, and fell back down again; holding his ankle tightly as if he’d sprained it. Toph, who felt the vibrations when Sokka had fallen over and wondered why, sneaked down the stairs and approached him – slowly at first – crawling as she had when she used to hang out with the badgermoles.

“Sokka?” She whispered, nudging him with her elbow.

He didn’t answer.

“You okay?” She asked a little louder, this time pushing at his shoulder with her head.

“Gotcha!” He howled, grabbing her before she could get away.

“No fair!” She squeaked as he started to tickle her.

Sokka watched her squirm and laugh at his tickling, and a broad smile stretched across his face. She was very cute from this angle. And the way she gave Haru the run around was pretty funny. He never stood a chance, not when he had no idea of who she really was and how she got things done. It was good to hear her giggling, especially after how snarly she had been this morning. He always preferred the fiery, headstrong and blasé yet happy behaviour that was the norm in her personality. It went without saying though, that he wouldn’t be slipping her any more cactus juice any time soon.

Toph reached her hands up and stroked his face. She followed the shape of his brow with her fingers, tracing the area under his eyes and the subtle curve of his cheeks. She giggled; his cheeks seemed to be getting warmer the longer she touched them, and his strong jaw line quivered slightly. Sokka watched as her marble coloured eyes, unmoving and unseeing, tried desperately to look back at him.

"I wish I could see you properly." She yawned.

Beside the fact that she had been woken up far too early so she was already feeling rather sleep-deprived, the effects of the juice were wearing off. All the running and jumping had taken its toll, now she just wanted to sleep. Plus, it was very warm and comforting being held in Sokka’s arms like this. He still smelt of meat, but the guilty scent had gone. She tiredly nuzzled into him and eventually drifted away into a peaceful slumber.

Unwilling to disturb her, he sat with her for a moment; glancing down at her sweet pale face. She still looked different. He couldn't figure out why and it had bugged him all day. Apart from her outlandishness as a result of the cactus juice, she seemed the same. She wore a cute little smile as she slept, strands of hair falling over her closed eyes and... wait, that was it! Her hair! She had left her hair down today! He hadn't noticed before how long her ebony locks actually were; she usually tied it back into the traditional bun.

She stirred, shifting her position and pawing at his shoulder with her hands. He carefully stood up. She stirred again, this time mumbling something into his arm. Looking down at her curiously, he gently stroked her cheek and ever so softly moved her head so that the next time she spoke he’d be able to hear it.

“Say that again,” He whispered.

“Mmm…” She stretched and nuzzled his neck. “…yummy Sokka…”

He didn’t really know how to react to such a statement, except to feel increasingly uncomfortable and blush several shades of red. Just what did she mean by that? For all he knew it was another cactus-induced slice of weirdness, nothing more. There was little chance she said it of her own choice, and it made him feel rather downhearted, they’d been travelling together for some time and in that time he’d grown more than just attached to her. He tried to put it down to the brotherly instinct he had for Katara switching to Toph, but he knew deep inside there was more to it than just that.

Walking back to where the others were, Sokka felt an unusual pain in his stomach. A pain which he had not felt since Yue had given up her life to save the moon spirit. He still thought about Yue, often during a full moon, when waterbenders like his sister were at their strongest, but hers was a different kind of strength. The kind that makes a person so sincere, so true to themselves and their family. Perhaps that’s why she was going ahead with an arranged marriage, or at least she would have, if certain events hadn’t happened.

His gut was full of burning sadness; he had been unable to protect her from leaving this world, and it worried him to think that he might not be able to protect Toph either. It wasn't as if she needed protecting, even if she did need someone to hold on to when flying on Appa, she always trusted him alone with the task.

All her life she had been treated like a helpless, fragile little girl because of her blindness, but it was quite obvious she was far from the weak and vulnerable female that everyone – especially her parents – seemed to think. He couldn’t deny that he was attracted to her; perhaps because of the indomitable strength she exuded.

Struck by a feeling of uselessness, he sighed; he couldn't bend water, he didn't know martial arts – he relied on his weapons and sense of direction, neither of which were without flaw. He would never know the strength that elemental benders had. Toph shifted again, clearly enjoying a much needed nap. Smiling, he realised that he did know that kind of strength after all; he held in his arms the most powerful earthbender in the world.

“That was fast.” Katara said.

“Shh!” He scolded as he cautiously sat between his sister and Haru. “She’s asleep.”

“I can see that,” she remarked, lowering the volume of her voice.

“I guess all that running wore her out,” Haru crossed his arms proudly.

“No, she was playing, trying to wear you out,” Sokka corrected, looking at Toph’s peaceful expression. “Didn’t you notice why shewas leading youall around the temple?”

“I knew exactly what was going on; she was hyperactive and needed to get all the energy out of her system.”

“If you really knew what was happening, then you would have known that to catch her you’d need to play her game and make it work to your advantage,” He said in a lecturing tone reminiscent of his sister. “And if you had any idea whatsoever of the way Toph thinks, you’d have known that she wanted to make you tired and that’s why she kept running from you."

“Wow Sokka,” Katara praised. “That’s the most sense you’ve made in ages.”

“Toph isn’t a difficult person to understand,” He smiled. “I’m sure you and Aang will agree with me on that.”

“Actually, I still can’t figure out why she does the things that she does,” Aang confessed.

“I know she acts out because of how strict her parents are, but honestly, I don’t know much beyond that.”

“So how do you know so much, Sokka?” Haru questioned, a hint of a grin played on his lips.

“Not sure…” He nervously answered. “Maybe she feels more open with me or something.”

As if on cue, she started moving around in his lap, trying to get comfortable, and eventually settled on her stomach with her arms draped over his knee. She yawned and nuzzled his leg. He put his hand on her back, subconsciously attempting to keep her from fidgeting again. She shuffled defiantly, growling as she wriggled herself out of his lap and out of her sleep. Lying on the floor, she opened her eyes slowly, while someone lifted her off the cold tiles and into a warmer place. A nice, cosy place that, when she leaned back against it, allowed her to breathe in the soft smell of meat…

“Sokka!” She wailed, falling on the floor again. “Ow, my head!”

“Toph, be careful!”

“I’ve got a raging headache,” she groaned.

“I’m really not surprised after what happened,” Katara empathised.

“Why? What happened?”

They all shared bewildered glances.

“You really don’t remember?”

“No, I don’t,” Toph growled. “Isn't someone going to tell me?”

One by one, all but Sokka got up and left, making their mumbled and half-baked excuses to depart from the awkward tension that had quickly built up in the few moments that Toph had been awake. Katara and Aang went in one direction, Zuko and Haru went in the other, leaving Sokka all alone to explain to Toph what exactly happened.

“Ok Snoozles, I guess it’s up to you,” She sat next to the nervous teen, still nursing her head.

“Listen, it’s kind of a sensitive subject, are you sure you want to know?”

“If you don’t tell me I will hurt you. Badly.”

“Alright, but you have to promise not to get angry.”

“I promise nothing.”

He sighed. This wasn’t going to end well for either of them. Once she found out what he’d done, she was sure to be furious and inflict such unspeakable pain on him that he might not see - or want to see - tomorrow, or worse; she’d never trust him again. He really didn’t think this through properly. He looked back to this morning when he first got the idea to slip her some cactus juice, it never occurred to him what would happen once she recovered from the effects of it; he was overcome with guilt, and he knew that Toph would be able to sense it.

“Remember this morning, when you were really upset and moody?”

“It’s the only part of today that I do remember Sokka.”

“Well, Katara made dessert for breakfast, but there was something else in yours…”

Toph frowned. She felt how nervous he was, shaking like a leaf in a sharp wind, she could smell the copious amount of guilt seeping from his pores and hear the regret that altered his tone of voice. Her earlier instinct was correct after all - he had plotted something, but she never suspected he'd do anything like this. It had been a sneaky, underhanded thing to do and she couldn't understand why he did it.

“You spiked my food, didn’t you?”

He fell silent. He didn’t have to say it, she’d figured it out all on her own, whether it was the guilt or the blatant shaking wasn’t important. The point was she knew, and now she was going to kill him - she was obviously feeling tricked and hurt, and as he looked at her stern, unmoving face, he knew that he was doomed to a most painful revenge.

But she did nothing.

There were no speedy pillars of earth booting him across the room, no springloaded tiles that would shove him over the edge of the temple, which had strangely been built under a cliff. She just stood up, shook her head and limped away. Her feet were unbelievably sore and every step was agony, but she had to go. Sokka wanted to run after her, beg her forgiveness and apologise until he lost his voice, but she would probably just push him away by moving the ground underneath his feet.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered sadly.

--

For the next two days, Toph stayed in her earth tent, never coming out. The pyramid shaped shelter stood as a testament to her complete disbelief of Sokka’s betrayal. At least, that was how Sokka perceived it. She ignored his countless attempts to apologise, and any food left by the earth tent went uneaten. He hadn’t seen her since she figured out that he put cactus juice in her food, even if it was to try and help her out of a bad mood it was also considered a breach of trust - he might have asked her first if she wanted to try it, she wanted to try it when they were in the desert but Katara thought it wasn't a good idea considering their circumstances.

"You okay?" Katara asked, watching her brother mope.

"I knew she'd be angry, but this is going too far," He said. "I mean, she's walling herself up in there, she's not eating, she hasn't come out in days. I'm trying to make it up to her, but she's just so angry."

"Maybe it's time we intervened," She patted his shoulder. "I'll get Haru."

He looked at the four earthen walls that separated him from Toph. He couldn't see why she hadn't cooled off yet, surely two days was enough. Apparently not, if he was reduced to using another earthbender to forcibly remove her from her hiding place. This was all his fault, it was up to him to fix it. When his sister came back with Haru, he would tell her that he could handle the situation himself, and that Haru's skills were not needed.

"I couldn't find Haru, so I brought Aang instead," She smiled.

"It's okay, I can get her to come out," He insisted, tapping on the north wall.

But something wasn't right, the tent sounded unusually hollow. Toph was small, but not so small that her earth lodge sounded empty when someone knocked on it. He really did need an earthbenders help. Aang took a wide stance, breathed in deep and stomped his right foot down hard. The miniature stronghold fell like a tree that had been struck by lightning.

"She's gone!"

--

Toph’s gone missing! Will he find her? Or has she gone for good?

You’ll have to wait for chapter 3 to find out, sorry! I know I said it would be a two shot, but it’s become a three-shot since the first chapter.

I don’t want the chapters to be too long, so once I reach about 3000 words I stop and move anything after the 3100 point into a new chappy. Hopefully it wont happen again, I wanna wrap this up and finish Tonsillitis

Also, thanks to Tokka Fun, arizony, and leadtaco for reviewing.

Enjoy!