shatterverse | (no subject)

Team "Get-Away-From-Sylar-No-Really-This-Time" has made good progress, but even they need to sleep occasionally. Toph makes rock tents for all of them, because it's easier than looting, and even though she makes four, she knows perfectly well that right now, only two are being slept in.

It must be awfully stuffy in that one, but at least they're not doing anything other than sleeping with their hands together.

Toph - doesn't have any one to hold her hand. Not, she'll tell anyone who bothers to ask, that she needs to, it's just...

...just that she has to be there for Sokka, who's just buried his sister, and for Claire, who's terrified of this murderer, and - no one's really there for her, the little girl who just buried the closest thng she had to a sister, who had begun to take the place of a mother.

So as the others sleep, she creeps out and crouches a way away from the tents, feeling the movements of the forest around her, and silently crying. So she can be strong in the morning.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Claire is warm and safe and makes everything -- not better, but bearable. But she's sleeping, and Sokka's -- well, not. Surprisingly enough.

He slides his hand free gently, after staring at the ceiling of the tent for forever and a day, and checks to make sure she's ~~breathing~~ sleeping before heading out. He just -- needs air.

He's trying so hard to be strong for Claire, who needs someone to protect her from the murderer, and for Toph, who's just buried her closest friend, and for Penance even though they're not really sure how much she understands -- she understands pain. It's just -- hard.

It's mostly just coincidence that he walks in Toph's direction.

Toph doesn't say anything, or even move, as he comes over. All she does is stop crying, and let the last few tears fall or stay on her cheeks, whatever they want to do.

She's trying not to think of anything water-y.

Sokka sits down beside her, quietly, and puts his arm over her shoulder.

Claire's nice, but Toph's -- Toph. Claire's different and special and wonderful but she didn't know Katara at all.

After a second, Toph leans her head to rest on his shoulder. It's not much of a movement, but it says a lot.

"How're you doing?"

Apart from the obvious.

From Toph? It's like a full-bodied bear hug. It gets a little uptwitch at the corner of lips that have been down for days.

"I have to tell the other me."

That's gonna be fun.

"Yeah."

Toph would offer, but - Sokka's going to have to do it.

"Does that mean going back to the farm?"

Claire's not going to like that.

"Yeah."

Claire's not going to like it.

He wraps his arms around his knees and stares at the sky. The constellations are all unfamiliar.

"...will you ... will you take care of Claire? While I go?"

Toph nods.

She's silent for a little while, then adds, perhaps as a non-sequitor;

"I like her."

That's approval, permission and acknowledgement of defeat. It's also a confession.

Sokka glances down at her, and then back to the sky.

"I'm glad."

He needs his family to approve.

Perhaps unnecessarily, he adds "...me, too."

Yeah, that was unneccessary.

"She's a self centred brat," Toph adds. "But so was I when I met you guys."

Sokka smiles a little more, at that.

"You got better."

Toph smirks proudly.

"Yeah, now I'm a productive member of society. She'll get better, too."

"She's fine," Sokka says, looking back towards the tents. "She ... had a shock. That ... the guy. He was after her."

"Ah," says Toph.

"Is that why you didn't tell her?"

He shrugs, a little helplessly. "I don't know, Toph."

If he knew why any of this was happening, it would make so much more sense.

Toph rests her hand on his knee, and squeezes, hopefully ressuringly.

"Why was he after her?"

She can understand why bad people would want to kill Katara: she's close personal friends with the Avatar. But Claire's... not.

"She has powers. That's what he does. To get powers."

Sokka frowns slightly, obviously not having thought this through. (To be fair, he's a little bit in shock.)

"That's ... he ..."

Oh.

See the lightbulb! Well -- not, because, y'know, blind. But she could hear it, prob'ly.

She gets something, even if she doesn't know what a lightbulb is.

"Does that mean he's a waterbender, now?"

"I need to ask Claire," Sokka says uncertainly. "Yeah. Yeah, I think so."

His stomach twists again.

Katara.

Toph leans on him again, this time because she's crying again.

Soon she's hugging him properly.

Sokka's okay with that.

He pats her shoulder, awkwardly, and then gives up on that for just holding her tight. She's so small, Toph. When she's not building mountains or throwing boulders, anyway. He forgets she needs human things too.

He can be strong for her. He's only got the one sister left.