"Well, well…"

Aang kept his tongue bitten down, hoping he seemed bored and emotionless. Apparently it was working, because Koh simply stared at him, crawling around.

"I have been expecting you, my young Avatar."

I'm not yours, he longed to bite out, but continued to hold his tongue (literally between his teeth). Koh circled around him, hungrily, and Aang had to force himself to swallow before speaking.

"I have come to ask you about my friend."

"Ah, yes…" Koh's voice slithered out. "The young Earthbender… beautiful, isn't she…?"

Aang remained silent, hoping that his face was still stoic.

"She was such fun… such a strong, powerful bender… and yet, still, when you look at it…"

Koh suddenly whirled towards Aang, face morphed into a middle-aged woman.

"She's just a little girl!" he/she screamed, tears running down his/her face. "Why does she have to be hurt?!"

The Avatar remained quiet, but felt something akin to sickness in his stomach. He didn't even want to know the situation in which Koh stole the face of a sobbing woman.

"I'm sure you've come to ask me that," Koh said silkily, transforming back to his typical Noh mask. "Unfortunately, young Avatar, I can not tell you this."

Aang made sure to hide the disappointment and frustration welling in him. Was anyone going to tell him who the hell was bothering Toph?

"But… I can tell you where to find the person," Koh said casually. Aang kept his face blank, but his voice couldn't hide the suspicion.

"You would do that?"

"Of course," Koh's voice was too sly. "However… it wouldn't matter. Unless you figure out who it is, you won't be able to see her."

"Her!?"

Koh whipped around, but Aang had already pulled his surprised glance in, looking emotionless yet again.

"Hmm… I suppose I must call that being… 'her'… 'it' might offend that being, really…"

"All right. Where can I find her?"

"Follow the path," Koh nodded towards the exit. "When you reach the edge of the glen, fall off the cliff and you shall land in her garden. But… like I said. Unless you figure out who it is yourself, you will not be able to see her."

"How can I figure out who she is? Do I know her?"

Koh's mask almost seemed to be grinning.

"You know her… and yet you do not. She is the answer to all purpose… and purpose only answers to her. You control her, but she already makes her own decisions."

What does that even mean!? He wanted to scream, but he simply nodded.

"I thank you. I will return now."

He left, and it was just as well; he didn't see Koh switch faces into an old man who pulled it into a rather evil smirk…

Aang followed the path as Koh indicated, and finally came to a cliff. Momo chirruped nervously, and Aang was tempted to agree.

When he looked over, all he saw was pure, white mist, something that signified horror once he fell in. After all, he wasn't sure what was on the other side.

You know her…and yet you do not. She is the answer to all purpose… and purpose only answers to her. You control her, but she already makes her own decisions.

Aang puzzled over the hint Koh had given him. After half an hour of sitting there on the edge of the cliff while scratching his head, he finally threw his hands up in exasperation. He was frustrated and tired and getting irritated. He absentmindedly watched as Momo chased a flittering soul, the wispy cloud escaping the chirruping lemur's grasp.

He was tempted to simply give up and return home to try and come back another day, but then he remembered Toph's tear-stained face, her sobs, her pleads, and somehow, he couldn't bring himself to go back to the real world, go back to tell her how he had failed.

He took a deep breath. He couldn't figure this out, but… at this rate, he would simply wither away where he sat.

He looked down over the edge of the cliff. Somehow, the idea didn't seem so terrifying with his airbending, but he was in the Spirit World. He couldn't play with the air around him like he wanted. He cast a glance to Momo.

"You stay here," he said softly. "I'll be back, Momo."

Momo cocked his head to the side, wide eyes luminescent and blinking. Aang gave his pet lemur a soft smile before taking a deep breath and looking over the edge again.

At least now I know how Toph feels whenever she rides Appa, he thought rather dryly. Blind and no idea what's waiting as I zip through the open air.

He took a few steps back, took a breath, and ran.

He ran towards the mist, towards the answer, towards… towards…

And just as Aang flung himself over the edge, it suddenly seemed to make sense. Koh's voice echoed in his mind.

You know her…and yet you do not. She is the answer to all purpose… and purpose only answers to her. You control her, but she already makes her own decisions.

His eyes widened.

Of course… how could I be so stupid?

He began to fall at an alarming rate, but he wasn't scared anymore. He bellowed out the name of who he was supposed to see, and willingly dived down through the mist.

Toph clenched her fist, just as Zuko slammed his flamed palm against the boulder flying towards him. Toph smirked.

"Nice, but… what about this?"

She brought both fists low to her hips, elbows behind her, then brought them straight down, before slashing the air with her right hand. Zuko gracefully danced around each bump in the ground, looking like fire in a human form, teasingly avoiding all the clumsy lumps on the ground.

He then retaliated, roundhouse kicking the air, a streak of fire following it. Toph put up a wall, the fire harmlessly fizzing out against the barrier of earth. Zuko grinned, sweat rolling down his face and his bare chest.

"I think that's enough for today."

Toph gave him a strange look. "I think so too. Now quit it."

Zuko tilted. "Quit what?"

Toph's eyes widened in fear. Zuko sounded genuinely puzzled. Which meant…

Oh, no… it was happening again.

Zuko gave her a strange look… until he noticed something that made him freeze. The ground under Toph's bare feet was glowing. Glowing… orange. As if someone was lighting a fire right under the ground she was standing upon. She desperately moved away, her feet beginning to feel the heat, but the circle of orange light persistently followed her every time she took a step. She tried to punch herself up onto a pillar of earth, but the circle of orange just stayed right under her feet.

Toph couldn't help but to feel angry and betrayed. The earth was her element; her home. But it was rejecting her orders to stop burning her feet.

"Ow!" she cried as the heat began to increase, burning through the earth that caked the bottom of her feet. She desperately jumped up to get some relief, but it felt like stepping on a thousand lit candles whenever she landed back on the earth.

Zuko tried to bend away the fire under her feet, but it refused to respond to him. Whatever that thing was… it wasn't fire.

Make it stop… make it stop! Toph silently begged in her mind. She sat down and tried to lift her feet into the ground, but the circle of orange soon followed, encircling her feet and burning them as she screamed in agony.

Zuko ran over to the huge pillar Toph had made, desperately looking up. Toph was on the top, trying various methods to get the fire to stop burning her feet. She worked quickly, trying to ignore the scorching heat.

She tried cloaking her feet with cooled earth, tried parting the earth to see the source of the heat… she tried to focus, but the heat was blurring her 'vision' of the earth beneath her feet.

Finally, she couldn't take it anymore, and she tried simply running away from it… and ended up tripping over the edge of the pillar. All she could think of was the blessed swift moment of relief she felt, for her blistered, caked feet as she fell through the air. Zuko caught her with a grunt before he began to run towards the palace as fast as he could, the strange orange circle nowhere in sight.

"H- Help," was all Toph managed to say before she fainted from the sheer pain. Zuko ran faster, and when he passed a nearby servant, he snapped at him to immediately bring the court physician and Katara to Toph's room.

Aang felt shaken as he watched the scene. Toph's feet were basically her eyes; how could this sort of cruel thing happen to her?

"How could you do this?" he asked aloud, trembling in anger, before slashing at the tranquil pond he had just seen that horrifying scene. The beautiful woman standing behind him smiled, not the least bit fazed.

"It's my job."

Aang whirled around. "Just because you're Fate doesn't mean you get to do this to people!"

"Wrong," the spirit of fate sang. "It's in the job description!"

"Stop it!" Aang shouted. Toph had been living through hell recently, and this woman was laughing about it?

"Now, now, calm yourself, Avatar," the beautiful woman smiled at him. She tossed her long, dark hair behind her shoulder, before gesturing to a tea table that hadn't been there before.

"Why don't we speak over some tea?" she said cheerfully, as if she hadn't just tortured his best friend moments ago. Aang glared at her, but did as she said. If she was indeed Fate… he wasn't sure how powerful she was.

"Now, now, I don't bite," Fate smiled at him, a smile that looked mysterious, beautiful, and very dangerous all at the same time. Her blue-as-the-ocean eyes seemed to glitter for a moment before she began to fuss over the tea. "Sugar? Milk?"

"No, thank you," Aang responded, struggling to keep his voice under control. He was the Avatar… he couldn't let his anger blind him into offending a spirit, especially one that practically held Toph in the palm of her hand. Fate nodded, her billowing cream-white robes floating around her as she gracefully settled into her seat.

"Now, I assume you have questions," Fate smiled. "Ask away."

Aang gave her a wary look. "That's it? I can ask and you'll be honest?"

"Hmm… let's just say that I won't lie."

Aang nodded, his mind whirling with questions before he finally settled for one.

"Why did you ask Koh to target Toph?"

"Why, because he was free."

Aang gritted his teeth. So this was what she meant by honest. The gorgeous woman smiled mockingly at him, showing a row of pearly white teeth that looked just a little too sharp to be human.

"You're going to have to ask a little more specifically, Avatar."

Aang took a deep breath.

"Why is Toph getting attacked?"

"Because the forces of nature are grabbing her. Didn't you see that mud-?"

"Okay, okay," Aang hastily waved a hand. "Forget that question."

"You are missing the main question, Avatar," Fate shook her head. "The question is not 'why is she being attacked'. The question is…?"

She gave Aang an expectant look, and he slowly pondered it.

"…who is Toph?" he asked quietly.

Fate smiled. "Well, now, that is an interesting question."

"I already know you're attacking Toph. I already know you've gotten Koh to do it. But… you wouldn't just target Toph for fun. So… that means there's something about Toph she hasn't told us. Hasn't told me."

Fate smiled even wider. "Well done, Avatar! Almost full marks!"

"…almost?"

"That was the right question to ask, and you are right, there is something about Toph Bei Fong that you don't know, but she did not purposefully hide it from you," Fate explained patiently. "Toph herself does not know this about herself."

"…what… what is it?" Aang asked, almost afraid. Fate gave him a shrewd look.

"Are you sure you want to know?"

"…"

Do I really want to know?

The reasonable side of him practically screamed Of course I do! How could he not? His friend was suffering, was constantly tortured.

But…

Aang couldn't help but to feel that if he accepted Fate's offer, something would change. He would learn something about Toph that nobody, not even she herself knew.

He took a deep breath. He was such a coward. Toph was in pain, was constantly living in fear, and he was being hesitant just because he was too afraid?

"I want to know," he finally said. "Please… tell me."

Fate smiled at him.

"Well… our story starts a little while back."

"How far back?"

"Hmm… about 320 years."

Aang gave her a stunned look. "Toph wasn't even born then! None of us existed then!"

"Ah, how naïve you are, young Avatar," Fate shook her head. "You existed back then."

"As… As…" Aang did some quick calculations in his head. "As Avatar Kuruk?"

"Yes indeed," Fate smiled. "My, aren't you quick-witted."

Aang glared at her, not amused by her obvious teasing of time.

"One thing you should know about the strings of fate are that I don't actually affect them all that much. Fate is simply that: something that you create for yourself. I am the embodiment of that, of people's determination to create their own future."

Fate took a deep breath, a slight frown tugging at her perfect, rose-red lips.

"Avatar Kuruk and his fiancée Ummi… were fated to be together. The strings of fate said so; after all, Avatar Kuruk had given up his carefree ways and was dedicated to his new bride. But…"

Fate lowered her eyes. "Although they were fated to be together… they weren't destined for each other."

"…how is that different?" Aang shook his head in confusion.

Fate clicked her tongue impatiently. "Fate is the one that determined if they would be together. And they were, weren't they? They met. They fell in love. Kuruk gave up his horrid ways. He worked hard to win her heart. He fought off the other suitors. It was because he did all this that he wrote his own fate, by vying for the hand of Ummi of the Southern Water Tribe."

"However… Destiny is the one that decides if they end up together. After all, no matter how hard Kuruk works, it wouldn't work out if Ummi contracted some deadly disease, or got crushed by an iceberg, would it? Destiny is the one that determines those. And Destiny… decided that Kuruk didn't get punished enough for his past misdeeds. Destiny decreed for Koh the Face-Stealer to take Ummi's face. Kuruk went to argue his case, and… Destiny cursed him to forever wander the Spirit World, unable to find peace unless Kuruk finally killed Koh and reclaimed Ummi's face."

"Of course, it's too late now…" Fate said rather bitterly. "Ummi was already barely alive when she was dragged to the Spirit World, and too much time has passed. Kuruk, however, continues to search."

Aang silently sat there, slowly processing all the information.

"So… So, what you're saying is…" he struggled to finally reach a clear, final conclusion. "You're saying that Kuruk and Ummi were fated to be together, but they didn't end up together."

"Correct."

"But… But what does that have to do with Toph?"

And suddenly, it seemed very, very obvious to Aang.

"No…"

Fate gave him an unfathomable look. "Have you figured it out, Avatar?"

"It can't be," he shook his head. "It's not possible."

"But it is," Fate said, voice quiet.

"How… How…?"

He fought against the truth, but he grew dizzy just thinking about it. There was no other explanation. Fate gave him a single glance before finally voicing out loud the truth that had sank into his mind.

"Toph Bei Fong is the reincarnation of Ummi."

"What happened?!" Katara shrieked when she saw the state of Toph's blistered feet. She immediately grabbed the nearest water source (from a vase of fire lilies) and began to administer her healing to Toph's feet. Zuko grimly shook his head.

"I don't know… we'd better get her to the infirmary."

Katara nodded as Zuko carried the unconscious Bei Fong girl on his back, Katara close behind, still trying to heal her feet.

"But… that doesn't make sense!"

Aang knew he was shouting, but he couldn't care less. His heart was hammering, a strange taste filling his mouth.

"Why not?"

"W- Well… Toph is an Earthbender!" Aang shouted, vaguely aware that he was probably babbling. "And she's blind! And-"

"Of all people, I thought the Avatar would know," Fate interrupted. "That reincarnation does not mean you return as the same person. Tell me, Avatar, were you an Airbender in every past life?"

"N- No, but-"

"And were you male in every single one of those?"

"…no. But still-!"

"And were your principles always the same?"

Aang thought back to how the past Avatars had advised him to kill the Fire Lord, and how he couldn't bring himself to do it.

"…no," he admitted, finally falling silent.

Fate sighed, a note of sympathy crawling into her voice. "You are Kuruk's reincarnation. Toph is Ummi's. I think you know what that means."

"…I have to… I have to…"

Aang shook his head. "But she's my best friend! I don't love her that way!"

"You two will be together!" Fate said sharply. "If not, you are writing your fate in the wrong direction!"

"What…?"

"You care about her more than you realize," the woman said, expression softening. "You just refuse to admit it."

"That's not true," he said fiercely. "I don't love her that way. I don't."

"Oh? So does that mean you still have feelings for the Waterbender?"

"…"

Aang lowered his head. What could he say? He didn't know what he felt for Katara anymore.

"Choose wisely, Avatar," Fate's voice came out in a hiss. "Or you will regret it."

Aang hesitated.

"Zuko…? Zuko!" Katara screamed. "Stop!"

"Wh- What?! What is it?" Zuko whipped around, Toph still on his back. Katara's eyes were wide with fright.

"The blood… the blood isn't flowing in Toph's feet anymore!"

"…what?!" Zuko quickly lowered Toph on the ground, and he suddenly realized that the Bei Fong girl was quickly turning cold.

"What… What…?"

And Zuko and Katara both realized, at the same, heart-stopping moment, that Toph wasn't breathing.