Connection||atla

42. It's just like picking up a pebble

I WOKE UP BRIGHT AND EARLY, JUST BEFORE THE SUN RISE. We camped at a canyon because we needed a good place to learn earth bending.

I decided to find some food at the nearby village and when I came back, I noticed Aang was getting up.

"Good morning, Aang." I smiled at the monk.

"Zora! Can you believe it?! Today's the day!!" he was jumping up and down.

Aang excitedly landed near a sleeping Sokka. "Can you believe it?! After all that time searching for a teacher, I'm finally starting earth bending!"

Momo chittered happily and landed on Sokka.

"And this place, it's perfect, don't you think? Sokka?" Aang asked. Sokka grumbled and glared at Aang with tired eyes.

"Oh, you're still sleeping, huh?" Aang said apolitically. Sokka again grumbled and put his head back down.

Aang whispers, "Sorry." to him making me chuckle.

"You need something to eat before you punch some rocks, Aang. Here." I said throwing two apples at him.

"Thanks!" he said happily, catching it.

I leaned over to Sokka and planted a kiss on his sleeping face. His tired eyes opened and gave a lazy smile, "I'm so tired..." he whined.

"Go to sleep then, I got some seal jerkies from the village. Eat them when you wake up." I kissed his cheek one last time.

The ground suddenly shook, causing Aang and I turn to look toward the source of the rumbling.

As the dust clears, Toph was standing in the middle with her left hand raised in the air.

"Goooood morning," she put both her hands on her hips, smirking, "earth bending students!"

She walked over to us. "Good morning, Sifu Toph." Aang said.

He bows slightly to Toph, when Katara sat up from her sleeping bag, "Hey, you never called me Sifu Katara." she said disappointedly and tiredly.

Aang scratched the back of his head, "Well, if you think I should ..."

"Good morning, Sifu Toph." I bowed to Toph.

Sokka suddenly sat up, grumbling at Aang. Aang looked down in wonder, and Toph has a smile on her face.

"Sorry, Snoozles, we'll do our earthbending as" Toph whispered slightly, though with amusement in her voice, "quietly as we can."

I giggled at how 'quiet' we'll actually be.

Toph then slams her left heel into the ground, creating a crack. An earth pillar rose up right underneath him, catapulting him screaming into the air.

"AAHHH!!" Soka screamed.

I used my air bending and caught the fall just a few inches before Sokka falls on his face. He stopped screaming and sighed in relief, only to me dropping him last minute.

"You good, Sokka?" I giggled.

He immediately jumped to his feet, still in his sleeping bag with only his head visible, and hops toward Aang while grumbling.

He stopped in front of the Avatar and grumbled to his face, before jumping toward Toph and doing the same to her.

Aang became excited again, "So what move are you going to teach me first?"

Aang stretched out his right arm, his fist clenched, and brought it down like a hammer.

"Rock-a-lanche? The Trembler? Oh, maybe I could learn to make a whirlpool out of land!" he made all sorts of moves in front of Toph.