savedtheworld | Book 11: Memories Down the Stream [Voice/Action]

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Book 11: Memories Down the Stream [Voice/Action]

[By now, it almost seems like a way of Luceti - that whenever good news happens, it will be followed by bad before long. Just yesterday, Katara had come back to the house. As herself. But today? The house woke up to a different empty room. Toph's.

It seemed like so soon since she had given him his last metalebending lesson. He still had so much to learn. And he still remembered so clearly when she showed up, tunneling from the earth like the little badger mole she was. Her original presence in Luceti may have precluded his, but when she came back, she was from the same time as him. He know that aside from missing one of his best friends, he'd miss being able to relate to one of the few people from that time.

But in a way, Aang knew this could be for the best. He remembered how she had worried about her life, with everything the future had shown to them. The short time that her daughter was around. How Toph feared the possibility of having to live her life in Luceti without ever returning home, that she might not become the person she thought she was supposed to be. But now she didn't have to worry about that anymore. She could live that life for herself. And hopefully, she'd find peace and happiness in that life. They could all still be friends there, too, in that lifetime.

Aang spends a little time wallowing in his grief, first. After all, he misses her already. Then he remembers one of the first things she told him when arriving. "Missed me? After only a month? Come on, don't get sappy!" With a faint smile, he nodded before he rose to do what he had to do. Toph had put her hopes in him.

And he soon addressed the journals.]

Hi everyone. This is Aang. You should know that Toph Beifong is... She's gone back home. I guess our world can only go so long without its greatest Earthbender around. She left some letters to hand out, but everyone who knew her should know... She cared about you a lot more than she says. Even her punches had friendship in them.

[He grabbed the letters that she had left behind, knowing all too well what they all said. After all, he was the one who had to transcribe them for her.

And so, Aang starts to play the distribution game. He first gives out letters to those around the house. If there were any who did not find about Toph's absence at the same time as him, then he would give them the letter and the news prior to the journal announcement. Then, he seeks out Suki, Ion, Fenimore, Shikamaru, Masaomi and Saori to deliver their letters. If there's any he can't find, he'll leave the letter at the door of their house. Or in their mailbox. Do we have mailboxes?

He tries to go about his normal daily activities afterwards, showing few signs of anything wrong. Places to frequent include the Welcome Center, library, tea shop and item shop. And in the evening, after dinner, he takes some of the remaining metal sheets lying around the house out to the forest to do some metalbending practice on his own. Still, every time he messed up, he could almost feel the punches.]

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[He opens the door a little wider then.]

Aang's here.

Yeah, why?

[He's not getting up. Or stopping with the face-touching]

[He peeks from behind Shikamaru.]

Hey, Masaomi. It's about Toph. She - she's home now.

...Yeah? [And he turns his head now, Linda turning as well, curious. Masaomi just looks confused]

Yeah. [He confirmed before he reached for the letter and held it through the gap in the door.] She left this for you.

[Ehh. No sense making him get up to get it when there's two of them here. Shikamaru will take the letter from Aang and step over to Masaomi's bed to give it to him. They all might as will come in.]

[Masaomi sits up to open it, Linda now going to sit down next to her. and he looks at it, confused. That's... odd]

For me, huh?

[And he follows Shikamaru in, getting a better look at Masaomi.]

Yeah. She left ones for some of her friends. [He doesn't want to go into more detail and betray the details of the letter.]

[Shikamaru's still surprised he ranked up enough for that. He goes to lean against a wall.]

I'm not her friend though.

[With the little still in hand, looking at it like he's sort of expecting a bomb or something to be in it]

Trust me. You are.

[That earns Aang an odd look from Shikamaru's corner over here. That's said with confidence. He wonders if that was discussed between him and Toph at some point...

Ah. No, it clicks and that makes more sense.]

You were her penman, weren't you?

[He points two fingers at his eyes. She was blind, after all.]

[...What? His body straightens a bit more, and he looks down at the letter in his hands. He still hasn't opened it. What..]

[He blinks at the fingers with a meek smile. It isn't exactly supposed to be a secret, but it makes him feel nervous that the recipients could open their letters knowing the personal messages were also shared with him. Either way, there's no denying it.]

Yeah... It was me.

Makes sense.

[He still hasn't gotten his yet, so he sticks his unoccupied hands into his pockets. For his part, he doesn't mind that Aang knows whatever she had to say.]

I'll say I prefer a letter over a rock thrown through my window... Either could be a sentimental goodbye; she's that type.

[He frowns deeper, and given his mood declining further, Linda goes over to snuggle up next to his knee]

[He frowns at Masaomi's disposition before looking towards Shikamaru.]

She really is. By the way... here's yours. [Yep, he's holding out Shikamaru's letter the second he rested his hands in his pockets.]

[Wow, way to go Aang.] Thanks.

[But he takes it, completely casual and unreacting to Masaomi's declining mood other than a glance, in an attempt to offset it.

For that reason, he opens it too, instead of waiting until later.]

[Staring at the letter. Unopened. Staring. So much staring. Why would Toph make him a letter? They weren't friends or anything. In fact, she really didn't like him for the most part, right?]

[He looks between the two in confusion. He's not really sure what's bothering him.]

O-of course, you don't have to open it now if you don't feel like it yet!

But you should at some point...

[Lightly, as he trails off reading. It's a short message; he reads it twice to make sure he got it right... and snorts.]

[He just keeps staring at his own not open letter, until Shikamaru snorts and then he looks up-]

What, you got a joke?

[Aang raises an eyebrow and frowns slightly.]

It didn't sound like a joke...

She called me a 'weird kid'.

[This is obviously the part to take offense at!! But he can't really find it in him to be irritated. Someone who knows him better might call it fond frustration.]

A kid? [Okay, he can't help it, he bursts out laughing at that. Not a loud roaring laugh or anything, but a distinct laugh]

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