A/N: Thanks to everyone to have read, commented, or voted on this book! Each time I get one, my confidence goes WAY up so I really just gotta say thanks.
Sorry for not updating as quickly, I've had lots of tests and exams and ya know how that is.
"Toph!" Katara screamed. "Toph where are you!" The waterbender desperately started racing towards where the voice had come from. Her heart was beating out of her chest, and her stomach felt like throwing up. She wasn't sure if it was from her injuries or her fear.
"I don't know!" Toph responded. "I'm blind, remember?" Even though she said it sarcastically, Katara could hear the panic in her voice. The waterbender raced through the trees and pushed herself through a bush. She saw in a mixture of horror and relief that Toph was caught in a net above the ground.
Katara rushed over and hastily started to untie the knots with shaking fingers. Another tribute's trap. After the final one was undone, Toph fell to the ground.
Katara wrapped Toph into a bone-crushing hug. "I was so scared," she murmured, before letting go. "We need to get out of here."
"Okay. Let's go back to the rock, you've gotta heal yourself," Toph said, gesturing to the blood on Katara's hands and face. "Let's-"
Toph's words were cut off as she yelped and slumped into Katara with a slight oomph.
"Katara-" Toph said weakly. Katara's horror grew in the pit of her stomach red started to blossom on the younger girl's chest. A slender knife was penetrating the skin. Katara recognized it from the night before. It was one of Mai's.
Katara's heart was in her throat and she felt like she couldn't breathe as she pushed the younger girl onto her back. "Let me get my water," Katara said quickly, trying to stop her voice from shaking. "You're gonna be okay." But as Katara watched Toph grow paler and more blood stained her clothing, Katara wasn't sure.
"Is it bad?" Toph asked, her voice quivering. "Can you heal it?" Katara watched as tears sprang to the earthbender's eyes, before snapping out of it and retrieving her water. Katara waited a few seconds, until the water was glowing blue, before yanking the knife out, eliciting a gasp from Toph.
"You're going to get better soon," Katara promised, pushing Toph's bangs out of her face with her spare hand.
Toph just shook her head slightly. "Katara- You have to win."
"Don't talk like that!" Katara chided loudly, before taking a softer tone. "I'm sorry. But you're going to be alright."
Toph was crying softly now. "No, I'm not, Katara. I think we both know that."
Katara just shook her head more vigorously, tears coming to her eyes too. "But- you were supposed to be the one to live," she cried. "You were supposed to go home to your family!" Katara's water was no longer a glowing light blue, but instead a dark pink. Katara knew blood was getting everywhere, but she didn't care.
"Katara, just stop. You need to get away from whoever threw that knife," Toph whispered, her voice growing weaker with each word.
"No!" Katara exclaimed, crying harder. "They can get me too!"
"Touching" A voice sneered. Katara whipped her head around and saw Mai, who was holding her knife threateningly in her hand.
"How could you?!" Katara snarled, her eyes wild. She continued healing Toph as she waited for Mai to make her move. Nothing happened, and the three tributes waited in deadly silence.
Katara had enough. "You'll pay for this!"
"Katara don't-" Toph started, but Katara didn't listen. She just grabbed the very knife that Mai had thrown and stabbed it into the girl's shoulder.
Mai screamed, before collapsing on the ground.
Boom!
Katara couldn't register what just happened. She wouldn't register what just happened. She pushed all thoughts of Mai and her body growing colder by the second and continued to heal Toph.
"Katara, stop," Toph protested. "Don't waste your time." She slowly pulled her headband off of her head, as though every movement hurt. It probably did. Toph placed it in Katara's hand weakly. "Here, so you can remember me. Just please, stay with me?" Toph's voice broke at the last part.
Katara closed her hand around the green and yellow fabric and stopped healing. Instead, she just held Toph's hand. Hot, salty tears ran down Katara's face as she knew she'd failed. "I'm so sorry."
"It's not your fault," Toph assured. "You did all you could."
But that wasn't enough.
"I know this sounds babyish, but can you sing?" Toph asked, her grey eyes wide and pleading.
Katara nodded vigorously. She remembered a song her mother would always sing her. Katara was never a singer, but she would try.
"Leaves from the vine, falling so slow. Like fragile, tiny, shells, drifting in the foam..." Katara started, her voicing breaking more with each word. Suddenly, Toph interrupted by grabbing her hand.
"Tell my family I love them," Toph muttered frantically. "Send them a letter. And thanks, you're the best friend I've ever had Sugar Queen." Then her chest stopped moving, and her cloudy eyes glassed over.
Boom!
The sound that came from Katara's throat was feral. She put her head in her hands as she sobbed, begging Toph to wake up.
Katara didn't notice as the helicopter came to take away Mai's body. Katara didn't notice anything as she clung to Toph's body. "This is all my fault," she mumbled, over and over. "I could have healed you, this is all my fault."
Minutes passed as nothing happened, and Katara felt the most alone she had ever felt in her life. Katara knew that any moment the helicopter would come and take away Toph's body, but she couldn't bring herself to leave.
Toph deserved some sort of memorial. Not just by being picked up and sent back to her family in a box. The thought made Katara cry harder.
Katara sent out prayers to Tui and La, to Agni, to any god. Anything that might help. But the only thing that would help would be to revive the earthbender. And that wasn't happening.
Toph was so young. She didn't deserve the hand that life has given her. None of us do, Katara thought bitterly, her mind flashing to Mai.
Katara's eyes wandered to a patch of wildflowers, and she staggered over. The next thirty minutes were spent picking the beautiful yellow plants. After she had armfuls, she wove the daisies into Toph's hair, and she covered her bloody and mutilated stomach with leaves.
Katara slowly closed the girl's eyes, looking at them for the last time. She forced herself to walk away, not looking back.
...
The sun was setting as Katara sat by the water, not doing much of anything except for watching the stream. She traced her finger aimlessly over some moss that had sprouted up on the rock she was sitting on. Each time she even tried to think her mind wandered back to a few hours ago. It was torture, having to relive the memories. Part of her just wanted everything to be over.
But then she thought back to home. Back to Sokka and Suki, to her father, to Aang. She knew they needed her back there. Katara ran her finger over her necklace, running her fingertip through the grooves of the water symbol she knew so well.
No, she couldn't give up, Katara decided. Katara made herself place Toph's headband into her backpack, and instead, she walked down to the river bend and started to heal herself.
Some healing abilities, Katara remarked sadly. What's the point when I couldn't even save one person?
She was still unable to believe she had killed someone. It scared her that she had taken someone's life so easily. She claimed that Mai was the monster, but she was just as bad. Mai had a family too, Mai was a girl just like her. Her mind remembered how she blushed when she was talking to Zuko. It was hard to believe either of them had done such horrible things.
The sound of tinkling bells broke her out of her thoughts. She glanced up and saw a silver parachute falling towards her. Picking it up out of the air, she cracked open the lid, and her breath caught in her throat as she read the note.
Thank you- The Bei Fongs
Fresh tears sprouted up at the short note and Katara saw that Toph's family had given her a whole meal. Actual, hot, food. But she just closed the box, shoving it in her backpack. As kind as it was, she couldn't bring herself to eat.
A/N: Wow, that chapter made my eyes kinda water. It hurts killing off one of your babies. Y'all can leave you angry comments here:
- *insert rants in slot*
Guess what though? The next few chapters will be HEAVY Zutara! Yay!
Sorry if Toph seemed a bit OOC, I figured that maybe dying could make someone act a bit differently, so I figured that Toph might act more...her actual age I guess. And the song isn't mine, it's called "Leaves From the Vine" and it's from the show.
And I have a question- Does anyone have a title idea for the book? Please let me know.