Avatar: TLA (Necro and Kuroi01)

"Fine, I'll make sure he doesn't die or get himself killed trying to catch up to me." She said egging on Zuko more and as he did every time he took the bait, it was far too easy to mess with him and she took great pleasure in pointing this out every time she could.


Zuko couldn't come up with a comeback so all he could do was nod his head and clench his teeth, she always got away with things and he hated it all. He wanted badly for her to just go back to being unable to talk, let alone fire bend and piss him off.

"I guess, that is as much as I can expect," sighed Ly, but shook her head from the idea.


"When I start with you - I'm not going to train just firebending. You'll learn how to use weapons, your hands, your mind and battle tactics. I'm going to show you how to best disable and kill an earthbender, waterbender and even a firebender. Teach you on locating the strengths and weaknesses of your enemies. And if you manage to keep up - you might learn how to command lightning, with a single hand; redirect the same force...and if you have the skill..."


Ly then clenched her fist tightly - and the air around them suddenly felt colder for a second. "...I might even teach you how to absorb heat - like our greatfather Sozin."

The girl nodded while Zuko was interested but not so sure that he would actually be able to keep up as much, still he knew he would do his best and he hoped one day that he'd actually be able to do the things that she described. Azula was confident though that she would be able to do all those things and more in time, she was naturally talented not to mention she trained many hours a day to make sure that she would stay far ahead of her brother.


When the air got colder both of them were surprised and wanted to learn how to do that though they knew it was extremely advanced.

"Well that concludes today' lesson. I'll see you tomorrow - but for now, I'm going to fit you with your personal weapon," said Ly - pulling the longblade that she carried on her hip and showing the two its edge.


"This is my personal weapon; when I first drew blood, I came to respect this thing as much as my firebending. When I couldn't act or didn't have a clear sight, I found how this little weapon inflicted the pain I couldn't deliver with my firebending. This won't seem much now - but once I am done with you, you'll learn to respect this as much as your firebending. Now, if you'd follow me, I'll see to you two getting outfitted for your own stuff."

They followed her Zuko extremely interested in learning how to fight with swords while Azula was much less keen, she didn't doubt that the woman would be able to take out many enemies with the blade it just wasn't the sort of thing she liked to use. If there was ever a need for blades she had Mai there though she guessed a dagger or something may be useful if she somehow ended up failing her which she didn't think was likely but it seemed like a foolish idea to take the risk.

The journey to get their weaponry took the towards the dock, an onboard Ly' personal ship. She didn't hang-out around the palace much - as she usually stayed aboard her ship, which housed some of 'friends'. Their journey took them into the bowels of the ship - as they went futher down, they could hear the sound of metal-on-metal bashing.


When their feet reached the metal floor - they could hear the sound of a giggle in the ship. "Princess, that you? Who are the two, your children?"


Soon enough, a girl appeared, about two years older than Zuko - she had brown locks that reached her shoulders, wearing a regular colonist uniform. What was suprising about the young woman, was that she was barefeet and that she appeared to be blind, judging the whiteness of her eyes.


"Make fun all you want Toph - your manners still stank for 'former' royalty..." replied back Ly, albeit it had a slight sarcastic and rather cheerful tone to it.


(Toph is here, and you'll never imagine how she is the friend of a Fire Nation princess)

They were both confused at why their cousin was a friend with an earth nation girl, she was blind too however Azula guessed that there was more to this girl than what they could see. Her senses must have been heightened considerably to know that there were children on board, whether it was by how they stepped making noise or vibrations she wasn't sure but she knew she'd have to be cautious.


Zuko however didn't get it and was confused at how the girl even knew that they were there, he waved a hand in front of her face and Azula rolled her eyes at her brother's stupidity.


(How did that happen?)

The blind girl in question, raised an eyebrow at this and looked directly at Zuko. "Seriously kid? That is so old..."


To reply to the comedic situation, Toph took a hold of said hand in front of her face - and pulled it against the hull of the ship. Infront of them, she then pulled the metallic sheet over Zuko' hand, with her other, trapping him there.


"That is for lacking a brain in that skull of yours, and because I need a good laugh..." said Toph, laughing as Zuko was stuck to the hull.

Azula laughed as well as her brother struggled to get his hand free, of course he wasn't stupid enough to try and melt the metal instead he ordered Toph to release him. "Next time Zuzu maybe think about how she knew that were kids without even hearin our voices." She said and he yelled at her telling her not to call him that.

Toph soon simply touched the metal around Zuko' wrist - freeing the kid, from the confinment. "Actually - judging by how you are yelling, I'd say that on some level you like being called that, Twinkle-Toe - you like the attention. And don't try denying it, I can tell when your lying."


She gave a hearty laugh at that, holding onto her sides. "Anywho - why did you bring Princess and Twinkles here? I assume, giving me good laugh wasn't part of it."


"Nope. I need to give these two some good weapons - firebending won't cut it," spoke Ly, pointing at the two as Toph scratched her head in thought.


"You know they are barely teenagers?"


"So?" replied Ly.


"Whatever - your fire-throwers are all crazy in the head in my opinion. All right - come on, and I'll see what I can arm you with," spoke Toph - as she took them into the armory of the ship.

Zuko pulled his hand free fast as soon as the metal was moved and he glared at the girl in anger thinking that she could 'see' the change in his expression like she had 'seen' his hand in front of her face and Azula sighed.


"Zuzu just give it a break you're embarrassing yourself." She said pullin him away from the girl so that he didn't do anything else stupid, even if he was an idiot he was still the prince of the fire nation. The girl's comment on fire benders shocked and aggravated her but she noticed that Ly didn't seem to even care.

As they entered the armory - the saw the rows upon rows, of weaponry adjorning the walls. Some of them were water tribe weapons, followed by several of earth kingdom make and finally fire nation weapons.


In addition, to those - there seemed to some rather burned and busted armor's on stand - some of which Zuko could easily recognize. One armor, that once belonged to Lu Ten, had been crushed in by the sides and his helmet crushed into splinters. His uncle Iron' larger form body-armor had a pierced chest plate. And finally the armor the Ly had shown of before, she followed them to Ba Sing Se - her helmet was crushed-in from the right-side and her armoring had a lot of blade cuts and dents on it; even a few scorch marks.


"Stick around - while I find something worthwhile around here..." said Toph, as she started rummaging through the place.

The children looked at the old armours able to tell how their owners had or almost had died, Zuko had loved his uncle Iroh though Azula thought that it was pathetic. He had been a great war hero and would be remembered for generations to come, though she didn't love the man as such she still respected the Dragon of the West. The man would forever be a legend remembered for slaying the last dragon and helping to conquer the great earth city of Ba Sing Se. Zuko hated to see the pierced armour though knowing that there was more to his uncle than just conquest, he'd been wise as well though most of the stuff he said made little sense.

"You'll get nostalgic if you keep starting at those," replied Toph, as she was currently in the process of examining a pair of dao swords and a three daggers. She had her own history with that city - and it did bring nostalgia to even her. It wasn't like she felt sorry that her home-city had fallen; she didn't consider it her home anymore after what her own people wanted to do with her.

Azula nodded a bit and started observing the other weapons seeing how they worked, each nation had their own weapons suited to the places they lived. The water tribe's weapons seemed to be adjusted from told used to hunt animals, spears for fishing, clubs for penguin seals and boomerangs though they were less common. Swords would most likely have been added a little later when fighting became a much bigger issue though that would've been way before this war.

"Alright - judging by your poise and posture; I think you should try these on for size..." spoke the blind girl - giving Zuko a pair of dao swords to try out and handing Azula two daggers to try out.


"Go on - give them a few tries..." she added, with encouragement.

"You're good at this..." Azula said when she was handed the daggers and Zuko agreed, then they started sparring finding that the weapons did suit their styles of fighting though in the end Azula still beat him.

"...I did fight in Ba Sing Se, with miss' Princess here..." spoke Toph, pointing at Ly - whom was eyeing everything with a keen eye.

"If you two were fighting how did you become friends?" Azula asked curiously, turning to face the girl as her brother had been knocked to the ground.

Toph face' turned sour at that question, sighing heavily - as she looked away from Azula. Albeit Ly' hand on her shoulder, soon dissipated that feeling. Ly herself however - left the room and closed the door. "...alright, fine...I'll tell the kiddies."


She bashed her foot on the floor, raising a metal pillar-up, upon which she sat.


"...well it wasn't much persay, on how it happen. Rather why. I was the number two, in the earth kingdom. Toph Bei Fong, my family was known thorugh the Kingdom as much as the Earth King," spoke Toph, albeit she soon followed with a gagging sound. "...and guess who was the daughter, ala me. Oh, the pampering, the servants, the well-take-care-of-everything, because your a blind little girl."


"...somehow, me and the family end up stuck in Ba Sing Se. And Princess over there is bashing against the walls, we didn't know it being her then - we...had heard, that the Dragon of the West had....died....and his son too..." said Toph, sounding rather sorry for their loss. "...but that didn't stop the army."


"Before long, every noble and general in the city is scared for their life - whoever replaced the Dragon, was ten times more ruthless. Firebenders storming in, unaffected by numbers; soldiers charging-in unafraid of death, as they took down twice their numbers in earthbenders. I saw her once...well...persay felt..." said Toph, shuttering at the memory. "A warrior with so much rage and anger, I couldn't tell if she was male, female...or something else..."


"...sure I got out alright. But then, somebody, had cometh up with the idea of offering parlay. And suprise, they decide cause they Earth King can't be handed over as a prisoner-of-spoil. They decided the next person is somebody of ours namely ME!" yelled Toph, before she dashed her fury. "Oh, the dignity. Having your family pamper, keep you in a gilded cage. Telling you, your their 'precious little girl' - yet when it came to saving their nation. They would sell out their own daughter!!!"


XXX


"...oh. I wanted to fight, to the last man. I even showed them what I got..." she added. "All of them suprised, 'oh my goodness', the blind girl can earthbend. I thought, that would be something. No! They chained me up in a metal cage and took me to your 'leader'. Haha, they were killed when they arrived. I bashed-out, when I 'discovered' an interesting ability. Namely I can bend metal."


"...princess there. Rather than kill me, was interested in me. Its was me versus well...seven hundred and her. I think she took pity....the woman, whom had leveled almost half of Ba Sing Se then..." she chuckled, albeit her tone got darker from there. "Easy to conquer an earthbender city, with a former earthbender alongside you. The time, when I got the scorched crown of the Earth King... I felt...satisfied. The moment, when she decided to burn everything..............I think she staged the hanging of the nobles...mine included...just for my pleasure..."


(Is that a grim-dark Toph enough for ya? Watching how the family who 'betrayed' her get hanged and she falt satisfied. Telling it to a pair of kids, while Ly is outside enjoying the sea air...)


(P.S - Toph is older here; during the Siege she was around 15. Now she is 17 years old)

The children listened closely and had very different reactions to it, Azula was deeply fascinated by this story and how the two had become friends. Not to mention her reaction to being sacrificed by the people who were always over protecting her calling her precious, to be turned over in a heartbeat like that must have been a terrible experience for her. Though she couldn't relate to the feeling she could understand why she would take such pleasure in watching her parents hang.


Her older brother however found the whole thing ghastly and he didn't want to hear about it, it terrified him the idea of his parents turning him over to such an aggressive enemy without even pausing once to think about it. Then the idea of someone actually enjoying watching their parents get hanged.. It was too much for him and he was relieved when the story ended.


(Yup, also how old was Toph when Aang met her?)

(I think she was 14...made her older here)


"So, yeah. That's Princess for ya," said Toph, speaking normally - as if the story, that she had told, never happened. ",,,and trust me. You do not, want to piss her off. She gets angry...and you'll wish you can fly like a turtle-duck."


"Anywho, that's all that - enjoy the weapons; Princess is on the deck - so you can head back now," she added, waving them goodbye.

Azula nodded and bowed quickly before going back out to see her cousin, Zuko was somewhat unsure about seeing her now now that he knew just how ruthless she could be. She'd changed so much since they were kids and now he was genuinely afraid of her.

Ly sent Azula ahead - as it was getting a little late and she had a few lesson with Ozai too, plus she would start teaching again tomorrow. So, after sending her ahead with the Royal Proceeding - she waited for Zuko to join her too. No doubt, he would have some questions to ask from her.


She only turned to face him, once he heard the door open behind her and reveal Zuko. "You okay?"

Azula did as she was told and walked off not caring that her older brother was so shocked, yes the fire nation could be ruthless even she understood that at her young age. But victories were still glorious and she knew a lot about how they rose to power, not once did she care if she was trampling others to get what she wanted.


When Zuko came out he was more pale than usual but he was trying to seem strong. "I'm fine."