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“This is humiliating.” Toph mumbled as Zuko tore the sheets off of her temporary bed.
They had been at Ember Island only a few days now, and Toph had already managed to cause damage to his childhood home. Not that he minded, of course, considering he had done the same.
“...It’s not so bad. All girls go through it. You don’t have to be ashamed.” Zuko tried to awkwardly reassure her. He wasn’t an expert on the topic… or even an amateur, really, but he needed to say something .
“That’s not the part that’s embarrassing, doofus. It’s the part where I got blood stains all over your bed and now you’re the one whose cleaning it up!” Toph raised her voice as she spoke, but she wasn’t angry so much as annoyed and frustrated. Mostly with herself.
Ideally, Suki or Katara would be the one helping her in this situation. But everyone else was out at the market buying food and supplies, and unfortunately for Toph, Zuko heard her commotion upon discovering the mess she had made and insisted he’d help her.
Zuko was a gentleman, though, she’d give him that.
“Well, if it makes you feel better, it’s not my bed. It was actually my sister’s.” He carefully avoided eye contact with Toph as he brought the sheets to the water basin.
Toph hummed in thought for a moment. “Y’know what, Sparky, that does make me feel better!” Her signature grin was showing on her face again, and Zuko didn’t have to be looking at her to know it was there. He smirked; he was glad to help ease her discomfort.
“I mean, no offense to you, but she’s a total bitch.” Toph continued. She had such a way with words.
“Mm, none taken.” Zuko dipped the bloodied area of the sheets into the water and wrung it out. He knew Azula was a ‘total bitch’ as Toph so eloquently put it, but that wasn’t where his thoughts on his sister ended. Recently, he had thought about how his banishment may have been a gift, and how Ozai’s “love” was a curse. In that case, Azula got the short end of the stick. He chose to ignore his more complex feelings on the matter for now, though.
There was a moment of silence as Toph listened to his movements—the soft drip as the droplets hit the water, the squeeze of his fists as he twisted the rags. Her embarrassment began to ebb away.
“You seem really prepared for this. Did you do this for your sister?” She asked him, in a much softer tone than her previous comment.
“No,” Zuko responded, “but I did it for my girlfriend.”
“Oooh, that knife throwing girl? Sokka mentioned that you two dated.” Toph adjusted the fabric riding up against her legs, which currently made her feel a lot more like a baby in a diaper than a ‘blossoming young lady.’
“Yeah, we did… We didn’t end on great terms. That’s mostly my fault. Anyway, she got her period once and I dealt with it. We were here, actually, on Ember Island.” His voice was slightly melancholy, or perhaps nostalgic as he spoke. Toph didn’t have any romantic experience, but she knew that such matters were very difficult and messy.. Much like her current state, only metaphoric.
“Hmm. You seem like a good boyfriend to me, Sparky.” Toph commented. Most boys would avoid any menstrual event like the plague, and that in and of itself gave him points in her book.
Zuko snorted. “You’re the first person to say that.” He dried out the cloth one final time, and then grabbed a replacement sheet for the bed.
Toph decided to ignore that comment and changed the conversation to something less emotionally draining.
“So, this means I can have babies now?”
Zuko choked on nothing. “W-What?” He looked over to see her expression.
“Well, now that I’ve gotten my period, that means I can have babies, right?” Toph seemed very matter-of-fact on this topic. She was clearly over her earlier mortification.
“W-Well, um, yes. But don’t… Don’t have any.” Zuko stuttered. He was the one blushing now, specifically at his incompetence regarding the situation. Maybe he wasn’t as cool and collected about this as he originally seemed. Toph had gotten a surge of confidence, though.
“Well, duh. I don’t want any kids. Probably never will. That’s why this is so annoying. I mean, I need to bleed every month for nothing!”
“You’ll probably change your mind when you’re older. Most people do.” Zuko stated. He wasn’t trying to tell her what to do with her life, just the facts. When he was her age he’d thought the same thing, but he’d grown more accustomed to the idea of having children. Especially considering he was once in the line of succession and would need to produce heirs.
“No, I won’t!” Toph insisted.
“Maybe you won’t.” Zuko agreed, shrugging his shoulders, regaining his composure.
“Plus, that means I’d have to… Ugh! Ew!” She continued to protest, sticking out her tongue to emphasize her disgust. It was clear where her train of thought was heading.
Zuko stifled a chuckle. She reminded him of himself at that age; the childhood innocence and the fiery demeanor. He’d said something similar along those lines when he had first learned about the birds and the bees. But then puberty hit. That’s just how it goes; children become teenagers, and suddenly sex is much more appealing. That’s life.
“You might change your mind about that too.” Zuko sighed, a hint of amusement in his voice.
“GROSS, SPARKY!” She yelled, her eyes squeezing shut. Toph didn’t want to think about the implications behind that sentence.
“Sorry, sorry.” He laughed.
Toph groaned and let her head fall backwards. “Ow.”
“What’s wrong?” Zuko inquired. He knew that whatever the problem was, it wasn’t serious, but he couldn’t hide the tinge of worry and concern in his voice.
“...Down there. Hurts. Cramps.” Toph mumbled out. Zuko couldn’t tell if she was embarrassed again, or just tired, but had the same answer nonetheless.
“I have a remedy for that, actually.” Zuko responded. Toph’s ears pricked at that. He had her attention again.
“What is it?” She asked.
“Follow me.”
“We’re back!” Katara called out, opening the front door with a basket of vegetables in her arms. Aang, Sokka, and Suki trailed in shortly after her, each carrying produce. The market had been quite busy that afternoon and so they arrived a little later than usual.
Toph and Zuko were sitting at the living room table, calmly drinking tea. That was a little odd to see, Katara thought, because usually Toph was so rowdy she didn’t have a desire to sit down and enjoy a cup of tea. But it wasn’t all that strange.
“Welcome back,” Zuko greeted. Toph just waved her hand in their direction. “How was the market?”
“It was fine. The fruit was all ripe and fresh, but the lines were super long. And the mangoes were a bit expensive…” Katara commented as she set down her basket on the table. “What tea are you drinking?”
“Guelder-berry.” Zuko informed them, taking a sip as he did so. While the tea was meant to ease Toph’s pain, it also had a good flavor. Zuko was not missing an opportunity for good tea--his Uncle would be so disappointed.
“Ohhhhh.” Katara and Suki said knowingly.
They immediately sat down next to Toph and Zuko.
“Tea, please?” Katara requested, grinning a bit strangely. Zuko’s mouth formed into a small smile. He hummed and poured them each a cup.
Katara and Suki sighed in approval after tasting the tea.
“This is good, thank you, Zuko.” Suki praised.
“No problem.”
“Also, congratulations Toph.” She turned her head to the younger girl.
“It’s no big deal. Nothing’s any different.” Toph huffed, attempting to cover up the fact that she was appreciative of their acknowledgment. She failed at that, though Suki and Katara didn’t comment on it, and decided to let her be. For now.
Sokka and Aang looked at each other quizzically. What’s happening ? Sokka mouthed. Aang just shrugged in response.
“Come on, have some tea.” Toph called over to them with a smirk. The two boys obliged her, a bit wary of the liquid after hearing Katara’s laughter.
Zuko glanced at Toph out of the corner of his good eye. Earlier, when she had asked him if he had ever helped his sister like this, he had denied it. Now, Zuko wasn’t sure that claim would be accurate anymore, because he could no longer be certain he only had only one sister.