avatar the last airbender · aang · post-war era · spiritual burden · airbending · mystery · canon characters · toph pov · ancient secrets · ensemble cast
The metallic clang of my students’ failures echoed as I dismantled their attacks with a single stomp, mocking their clumsy, hesitant forms. A hawk’s cry announced Aang’s message: another airbender, locked in ancient ice. My smirk vanished for a sharp breath, then snapped back into place, harder than before. I dismissed the class, declaring that whatever mess Twinkletoes had found sounded like my kind of fun. I marched into the biting wind wearing only a tank top, the cold a faint itch against my skin as I read the camp’s layout through the vibrations in the frozen earth. Inside the tent, the Gaang waited, a knot of familiar heartbeats. I brushed snow from my shoulders, ignored Aang’s attempt at greeting, and let my pack thud to the ground. “Took you long enough,” I smirked,…