Sifu Zuko

'Toph!'

Zuko ordered across the training ground, following the third tiny piece of rock that struck his head and back, tumbling with a small clatter to the stone ground. His flaming hands clenched tight at his side, making light scorch marks flourish against the pale stone of the courtyard.

'What? I'm boooored!' The young earth bender moaned, dramatically flopping backwards on the slab of rock that seated her.

'Do you guys really have to train all day? Aang's got the hang on the whole fire blasting stuff now.' Zuko watched as she spoke, but only saw her tiny porcelain arms shoot pointedly up as she emphasised her words. His amber eyes narrowed in annoyance, arms folded rigidly across his bare chest.

'It is getting quite late Zuko.' Aang muttered, rubbing the back of his neck in one nervous hand.

'Fine.' Zuko didn't look back to him. His arms shot to his side and he strode off across the courtyard towards the ornamental fountain.

'Toph? Wanna see how Katara and Sokka are doing with me?' The young Avatar's voice was weary but still as high and chipper as ever.

'snoozles is snoozin' and sugar queen's fussing over some food. I'm good. Knock yourself out.' Toph humphed begrudgingly, propping her head on bent elbows that dug sharply into her legs.

'Oh.. .Ok.' Aang smiled. Before shortly disappearing inside one of the cloister like buildings that surrounded the court yard.

Toph drummed her fingers strongly against her rock, sending small pillars shooting up from the contact and crashing back into place. She slid from her place, landing harshly, flat footed on the stone floor. She could feel him. Zuko was sat along the rim of one of the grand ornamental fountains, just having washed himself down from training.

'Sorry Sparky, I didn't mean to break you two up.'

'Forget it Toph.'

'What's got your royal breeches in a knot?' Toph puffed a straggling strand of jet black hair from her face.

'Nothing. I'm- I'm just a bit stressed out right now.' Zuko gathered his things' his outer robe, his pointed leather boots and a towel. He turned to look at Toph, stood squarely to one side of the courtyard. He sighed.

'What's wrong Toph?'

'I told you, I'm bored!'

'Then… go train.'

'Train?' Toph raised a quizzical brow before stomping one tiny foot into the stone, sending a rippling crack straight towards Zuko. It passed swiftly between his feet, ripping apart the thick stone. Zuko jolted and wavered off balance as the ground beneath him shifted.

'Ok! Fine! Enough!' He shouted.

'I don't know then Toph. Go play somewhere else.'

'_Play?_ What am I, five?'

'You're the one complaining that she's bored.' Zuko was not in the mood to argue, he regained his composure and walked straight passed the blind girl, heading inside the abandoned royal household.

* * *

Zuko sat alone, in a quiet, abandoned bed chamber. It was strange. A house that was once so bustling and loved. It had been his retreated from the harsh formality of living in the Palace. But now it was nothing more than his desperate safe holding. He breathed deeply, controlling each breath as if to stop himself from engulfing the place in flames. He screwed his eyes shut and pinched the bridge of his nose, muttering something incoherent beneath his hot breathe.

He had seeked this room out purposefully, out of all the many others in the grand house. This was his room… or had been his room. He glanced about the four walls, taking in its memories. It was adorned in the usual heavy crimson red, black and gold, fire nation flags and emblems emblazed in every possible situation, even on a lonely, empty water jug that stood stranded on the dresser top. The majority of the mostly well concealed scorch marks were made by him, either through training or frustration. They tore fiercely through the white wash paint, where they were attempted to be concealed. Pealing back a particularly heavy crimson, velvet drape, Zuko revealed the one he remembered most. He recalled sprinting back to this room, just 10 years old. Slamming the door shut and firing a blaze directly at this wall. He had argued with Ozai after once again asking when his mother would return to the palace.

Zuko sighed heavily, crouching on bent knees, running a gentle finger over the ashen scorch that marred the white wall. A nervous hand shot subconsciously to his left cheek, brushing the rough skin of his scar.

He jumped and scrambled to his feet as the doors behind him flew open and crashed into the surrounding walls.

'Sup Sparky?'

'Toph!' Zuko flushed half in anger and half in embarrassment at having been caught in such and awkward position.

'Don't you knock?' he snapped at the small girl.

'Oh yer sure Sparks!' Toph howled dramatically. 'why? In case I walk in an _see _something I shouldn't!?' The sarcasm in her voice has over bearing and she pulled down her bottom eye lids in emphasis.

Zuko huffed and rolled his eyes at her.

'You can still see Toph… not that that's the point here.' Zuko crossed the room and trued to look busy, organising his robes into order on a dresser top, folding each neatly and pressing it flat to the pile.

'What do you want Toph?'

'I told you, I'm bored!' Her arms heavily folded in exaggeration, the force of the movement making her black fringe jump and flop airily against her face.

'So?' Zuko glared at her across the room. He envisioned her as a young, stroppy Azula. The jet black hair was a dead match, as was the stubborn attitude. Although Azula would have been much more… firey….about it. Zuko glanced briefly at a certain scorch mark near the bedroom door that Azula had fired all those years ago, in an attempt to _persuade _Zuko to come play.

'What do you want me to do about it?' he angrily turned his attention back to the robes on the dresser.

'Forget it. You were supposed to be fun Sparky!' The young girl flung her arms in the air, but didn't proceed to leave the room.

'Can't you entertain yourself? This is a Royal House Toph; go explore or something!'

Zuko was losing his patience.

'I don't know, go….read a book or something!' As the words escaped him, he realised his mistake. He mentally planted a palm to his face as he awaited the indefinite, sarcastic back lash.

But there was none. Toph was silent, shuffling her feet awkwardly against the marble floor.

Zuko looked to her sheepishly,

'Sorry Toph, I didn't think.' He rubbed the back of his neck nervously.

'… i-it's ok Sparky….' Toph turned slowly and started to walk out of the room.

'Toph wait.' Zuko felt really guilty now. 'I really am sorry.'

Toph stopped in her tracks.

'What's it like?'

'Huh?... What's what like?'

'To read. To….see words. How does that work?'

'Oh um… I… I guess.' Zuko floundered embarrassingly, completely at a loss for words.

'It's like…. Seeing a story in your head… well, not exactly…. You can't _see _it, you just… Imagine it?' he offered the words hopelessly, not even fully convinced himself.

'Sparky, everything to me is imagined! I have no way to actually know what you guys look like you know!' Toph shook her head grinning at his feeble explanation.

Zuko realised something.

'Then really, you should be good at this.' He smiled. He walked over to a bookcase in the corner of the room. He browsed the shelves until he found something suitable.

'This will work.' He untucked a small scroll from its sheath and went to his desk. He gathered an ink well and brush before then proceeding to the window.

'Wait there.' He ordered back at Toph, who stood bemused in the centre of the room.

'Ooh-Kay…..' She replied, a quizzical brow raised in confusion.

Zuko hopped over the low sill of the window, into another bare and desolate courtyard. He dug a few handfuls of dirt from the beds that lined the house before climbing swiftly back into the room. He grinned smugly at his plan. Retrieving a small glass jar from a nearby shelf, he combined the fresh earth with a healthy glug of ink from the ink well and stirred the gritty mixture into a strange kind of paste.

He carried his concoction and scroll over to a very confused and baffled Toph. Setting the 'ink' and scroll down on the floor, he held her by both small hands, pulling her down to sit beside him.

'You'll like this' he smirked.

'Sparky what are you….?'

Zuko handed her the scroll. Toph felt the new object from top to bottom. It certainly felt like paper. She unravelled in and turned it over. Her face creased in annoyance.

'How many times do I have to tell you people?! I'm blind!' She snapped, pushing the scroll forcefully back at Zuko.

'Wait.' He said, grabbing her arm as she tried to rise from her kneeling position.

Zuko loaded a brush with the inky, earthy mixture, and traced over a few characters on the scroll. A few quick, warm breaths and the ink and earth were set against the smooth parchment.

'Try.' He said simply. Guiding her tiny hand over to the scroll, gently placing her finger tips poised over the first character.

Zuko smiled uncontrollably as Toph focused both her hands on the scroll. She gently ran both sets of finger tips along the raised lettering, her face brightening as she realised.

'These are words?' She asked.

'Yes' Zuko beamed. 'The first one you feel reads _The_.'

He gently placed his hands over Toph's and guided her as he read,

'_The… Tale… of…Love…Amongst…the….Dragons.' _he released her hands as they reached the end of the line.

Toph beamed and immediately ran her hands over it again and again.

'I think I get it!' She smiled. 'Could-…could you teach me some more words Zuko?'

Zuko jumped a little; _did Toph just use his real name? _He smiled, shaking his head.

Looking down on the young earth girl, he saw his tiny sister Azula. He remembered the time she first discovered her fire bending, how excited and proud she was. She had run to his room in the middle of the night to demonstrate how she could summon a few flickering flames. The gleeful grin on her little face strongly resembled in Toph's excited smirk.

'Sure' He smiled down at her. He scooted the scroll over from in front of her and started to write out some more of the story in the earthy gloop. He felt a light, little hand rest against his arm as he wrote. Stopping briefly he glance over at Toph, whose blank, misty eyes were set lazily somewhere in the middle distance.

'Thank you Zuko.' She smiled quite sweetly at him, before retrieving her hand and settling more comfortably in a cross legged position on the marble, bedroom floor.


End file.
