( action | arrival )

[seismos]

closed to zuko--

"...Sparky?" It comes out like a question, but Toph would know Zuko's heat signature and those solid, confident steps anywhere.

Of course, she hadn't taken too kindly to waking up in a strange city, plopped in a puddle on a metal cradle. All of those welcome goodies were left behind -- didn't really feel like anything important and she couldn't read it anyway.

Toph points in Zuko's direction before grinning and course-correcting him. "Hey! What's going on, here? Where is this place?"

And then: whack, she jabs right up at his shoulder. Because hopefully all of her questions could be answered now, and a preemptive thanks is in order.

open to all--

Running into Zuko meant having to trudge back and pick up all that junk that Toph had left in the Bay. Well, mostly junk -- the flimsy money was kinda nice to have.

She parts from Zuko eventually, to get a feel for the expanse of the city she can see spreading beneath her feet. As much as she appreciates the guidance a friend can provide, Toph wants to know if she can get up to a little trouble on her own. And she's not interested in learning how to use that video phone thing just yet, anyway.

For all intents and purposes, she looks like a lost barefoot runaway. Toph wanders around the city with ease that belies her complete lack of vision. Green and tan robes that are made for smooth movement (and could really use a thorough washing) adorn her stout form, leaving her to make confident steps to avoid collision.

Or, sometimes, to cause one. When she does bump into a stranger, it's a meek apology that squeaks out in a high voice, clutching at one of her feet. "Ohh, ouch! I'm sorry, I was trying to find 11th Avenue so I can find a friend of mine. Gee, are you OK?"

It's a good way to gauge how generally gullible a place is.

Comments

[addictedtojump]

It's just too bad that the person she runs into is also someone who tries to con others by faking injuries. Within a second of Toph bumping into him, Gintoki is on the ground, rolling around and holding his leg.

"I think my leg is broken!" He shouts dramatically, drawing suspicious looks from other people passing by.

[seismos]

Totally dedicated to her craft (and now spurred on by a challenge) Toph doubles down on the fragile little girl angle.

"How'd you break your leg on my foot, mister?" Above him, her face pops into view, as if she could be of any help by "looking" at his wound anyway.

[addictedtojump]

Gintoki refuses to be beat by someone younger than him. He's been playing this game longer than she'd been alive.

"I have extremely fragile bones, and your foot was like a rock!" If he wasn't so busy being a horrible person, he might have noticed her eyes looked strange. Although, to be honest, that wouldn't have stopped him at all.

[psychic_supremecy]

[As Toph roams, she might feel a rather odd presence. A large and decidedly inhuman figure sitting on a bench, with its tail wrapped around its lap, draped in a cape that would hide his physical appearance from most. What do?]

[seismos]

[ my, what ginormous legs you have, grandma... ]

Uhhh-- heh. Sorry. I didn't see you there.

[ she takes a step back, and without movement on this stranger's part, she can only go by what she's already felt -- and it's decidedly unlike anything she's ever encountered before. only her curiosity keeps her from moving along. ]

[alwaysgrounded]

[Would you look at that... If Toph could see, she might have noticed that Rapunzel also seems to be walking barefoot. And while she didn't "accidentally" bump into her, she might have caught tripping on Rapunzel's long here. She really needed to do something about that....]

Oh! I'm sorry about that!

[seismos]

[ where most people should have slammed into the ground (getting your ankles tangled up in hair is all kinds of unexpected) toph seems to be cushioned by it, before coming back up onto her feet. feet which she now gingerly moves in anticipation of another "attack." ]

Hey! Watch where you flick your tail, honey!

[frost_bitten]

[Unlike Zuko who seems to run warmer than most people due to his bending, Elsa is the opposite. She's trying to get used to this place, but it was a little hard to adjust. Surely living in an ice castle wasn't as cushy as actual beds, but she's saving her bills until she really needs to use them. Like say with getting food and what else.

When she was bumped into by the girl, her first instinct was to apologize until she heard her do it first. She should just believe it's all in good nature and it was just an accident, but there was something about how she said it that bothers her. Whatever it may be, it was irrelevant until she had something more substantial to go on.]

I'm fine, but how about you?

[seismos]

[ if toph had any idea that else had such good instinct, she wouldn't continue laying it on as thick as she does. in fact, elsa's own demeanor sounds familiar to toph in at least an aristocratic sense. this woman reminds her a little of home, which also contributes to toph's continued ruse. ]

I think you smashed my toes... [ she lifts one foot to begin inspecting it with her hands, foggy eyes blinking up to where elsa's voice had come from. ] But I'm blind, and I can't tell -- how do they look?

[onlythepinkest]

[So... it may have been out of habit or even reflexes but uhh.... Sorry Toph. You might find that you can't use your arm for a while.]

Oh! Sorry about that! I didn-- [Wait a minute...] Weren't you with the Avatar?

[seismos]

[ ;laskdjfasdf toph gets loud, fast, because WOW ty lee are you for real ]

Did you just whammie me? [ she stumbles back a few steps to try to get some space, her good arm coming up in what looks like a passive, waiting position. ] Zuko told me you could be trusted!

[ freaking fire nation people and their habits of accidentally messing with toph... ]

[respect_points]

[That's a smart plan except a thief is always ready for anything; Well.. Mostly anything... Using the situation to her own advantage, she may have grabbed a few of your bills discreetly.]

Oh, no! That was my mistake. So sorry about that, but I can help you find your friend if you'd like.

[seismos]

[ wow rude. and also rikku will totally have to teach toph that trick someday. as it is now, though, those bills are all hers. ]

Well, I just got here and it's such a big city for someone like me. I'm not even sure which way to start.

action;

[banishment]

The ground beneath Zuko's feet churns like the sea, grabbing hold of his ankles as the street surges up like a snake to usher him in a direction opposite of the one he'd been heading in. He's powerless to do anything about his predicament until the dirt releases him, sending him toppling across grass and gravel until he nearly bumps into a familiar pair of dirty feet.

If not for those feet, Zuko would've bent back at the person in retaliation, but the owner of those feet doesn't get the fierce master firebender poised to strike. They get a confused seventeen-year-old sitting back on his haunches, staring up at her in a mixture of confusion, wonder, and something akin to panic, because his well crafted jig just might be up.

"Toph?"

But then she's asking him questions, and it occurs to him that she's just as confused as he was — as Azula and Ty Lee were — when he got here. Likely even more so, since none of the things you find yourself with in the pod are exactly of any use to a blind girl.

"You're in—" He starts to answer her, but she cuts him off with a good whack to his shoulder. He yelps and glares, rubbing the spot where he's going to have a Toph-fist-shaped bruise later.

But the glare is halfhearted at best, because Zuko's honestly glad to see her, even if she's a part of the truth he's been hiding from Azula for months. She was the first member of the Avatar's team to give him a chance when he first approached them, even if he kind of sort of ruined that by burning her feet. (Never wake a sleeping firebender. Bad things happen.)

"Genessia. This place is called Genessia. I don't know why people are brought here, they just are."

Zuko gets up then, dusting off his rump and the backs of his legs.

"Please tell me you haven't done that to anyone else."

[seismos]

Toph's answer to his question is a shrug because what if she did, huh? What if she did?

Also, he can glare all he wants. Even if she could see it, she'd only relish it all the more.

"That sounds made up." The defensiveness comes out naturally, partially a mechanism built over years of living two lives and finally finding the moment to shrug the lie off. Being immovable is built into her heredity. It takes a lot to break through to an earthbender, though it's not impossible.

Now, though, her guard is up to keep the shock from fully setting in. Though it had been freeing and thrilling, it had been a culture shock when she'd run from her home to help the Avatar and his friends. And voluntary. This situation is wholly different, but she's not about to act like it's affecting her. There has to be an explanation.

"I have to hand it to you, I didn't think you had it in you." If she sounds amused, it's because she is. Hell, Toph is downright impressed at the idea that Zuko could pull off a prank of this magnitude.

[xuwu]

Ah, how amusing. Bei Dou is not unable to tell when someone is playing a trick, and it's easy to tell the girl is just asking. The shénxiān is, also, not above calling out lies.

He chuckles, a bandaged hand coming up to his mouth, while he pets a huge snake that suddenly just appears out of thin air. "I must say, I have seen better performances." A moments of silent consideration. "Although, I have also seen worse."

[seismos]

Toph considers trying to crank this act up to 11, but decides to drop it and level with this guy. Her arms cross, hip jutting out in as much juvenile sass as her 4'9" frame can manage.

"Whatever, it's worked before. Not my fault you're so cynical." But as unimpressed as she sounds, she's got near-instant respect. Toph can't help but smirk a little. "Too much of the innocence, huh? I knew I should've lead with the blind thing..."

[funlovinggirl]

Minori, completely unharmed thanks to her magical kimono, just laughs cheerfully. It seems pretty obvious that she's perfectly fine.

"Okay like it's okay to watch elephants bathe because they have their trunks on?"

[seismos]

That makes Toph pause, because-- what?

She takes a breath to spit out some sort of quick, witty comeback, and then shuts her mouth again. What?

"Guess that's a no, then. You're kind of a cuckoo pants, huh?"

[whiteas]

[ At the very least, Weiss didn't fall down (this time). It was a little easier to keep her balance when she wasn't barreling down an alley trying to stalk a boy with a tail because he might be a future opponent. Just bumping does make her wobble a little, but she catches her balance. Toph might feel something strange about her feet considering she wears significant heels, but despite that she manages to keep her balance.

As Weiss turns to see who bumped her as she turned the corner, completely ready to chew them out, she realizes that saying 'Watch where you're going' is probably a stupid idea. She might've been a little more concerned if she hadn't met Team CFVY's Fox before (at least she assumed he was blind, it wasn't like she actually asked, but his eyes were really white and they could do all sorts of stuff with semblances and aura and Weiss was learning great lessons like not pointing out peoples' physical situations. you know, sometimes), but if this girl was wandering out on her own she had to have some idea of what she was doing. Then again, not everyone is a huntress in training. ]

I'm fine. [ But there's something else that bothers Weiss. Something that makes her put her hands on her hips. Like seriously, what was the deal with this girl? Her feet were sporting some serious grime, and that is not something Weiss can excuse. ] Where are your shoes? If you got mugged, you probably should go to the City Guardian's office instead of 11th.

[ If anyone can get bossy with a little helpless-appearing blind girl on a street corner who she assumes got mugged, it's Weiss. ]

[seismos]

[ those heels are pretty stompy, lady. ]

I didn't get mugged. [ if anything, it could probably be argued that she's doing the attempted mugging -- of a sort, anyway. if weiss' stance didn't make it clear enough to toph that she wasn't going to get anywhere with this one, the tone does. defiantly, toph stomps her feet, scraping against the hard earth below and letting a few clumps of dirt fall out of her toes. that's gonna be good pickin' later. ]

And I don't wear shoes. What's it to you, anyway? Are you the foot police?

[sharingkindness]

Fluttershy fell backwards after bumping into the other, nearly falling onto some near by crates. Thankfully she managed to regain her balence before she actually fell into the pile of pile of boxes, but she couldn't help but feel really bad over what happened.

"Oh, I am so, so sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you." She quickly trotted over to check that they were okay, completely missing them asking about where 11th Avenue was. She was more concerned about how the other was.

[seismos]

"Oww..." Toph puts on the fake waterworks as soon as her butt hits the ground. She pulls a foot up into both hands, rubbing at the toes gingerly.

But as theatrical as she's acting, it only gets worse when she turns her head toward Fluttershy, blinking wide with her cloudy eyes. "My toes are smashed, but what about you? Are you OK?"

[luckymonster]

Of all people to run into on her way to 11th avenue, it was Princess Azula. The last memory she had of Toph, was when the little brat pushed her against the mountain cavern with those rock shackles when she had no bending. Well, that didn't last long soon as the eclipse disappeared.

Toph muttered an apology, but Azula didn't speak. She only swept the dust off her coat with a smug smile on her face. After a while, she finally spoke. "Look what the cat dragged in"

[seismos]

Well, there's an unmistakable voice -- one that Toph expected to hear eventually rather than the very day she'd become a resident. Consequently, her reaction yields a little more obvious surprise than she'd like, and it takes a few seconds for her to figure out how to proceed from there.

Considering the presence of Zuko and Ty Lee, Toph can't just fly off the handle -- and the strain of it is obvious. Her fists ball up, teeth grinding beneath flushed cheeks. Instinct tells her to attack, even as experience tries to remind her to wait.

"And smell what the dog puked up," she responds. Where Azula seems to wear her social position like armor, Toph tries her very best at the opposite. She even puts her finger in her mouth and makes a few impolite noises.