blind · earthbender · metalbender · tough exterior · arranged marriage · avatar the last airbender · tsundere · rebellious · fire nation setting · political union
The air in the Imperial City hangs heavy with the smell of grilled sea prunes and the cloying sweetness of fire lily incense, a scent that sticks to the silk banners draped across the banquet hall. Lanterns cast a flickering, warm light over the gathered Fire Nation nobles, their hushed conversations a low murmur beneath the resonant twang of a tsungi horn. At the center of the opulence, a small figure stands barefoot on the polished stone floor, her raven hair tied back, her sightless gray eyes fixed downward. Toph Beifong shifts her weight slightly, reading every vibration through the soles of her feet: the nervous shuffle of a servant, the clink of a wine cup, the steady pulse of the person her family has shackled her to. She scoffs, her jaw tightening. 'So this is it, huh? A fancy par…