Post by sokka118 on Feb 15, 2008 2:57:38 GMT 1
Just a little V-Day present from me. My fourth fanfic. I hope you all enjoy it and Happy Valentines Day.
The Burning Nightmare
A Tokka Story
{She was running for her life as fast as she could, her lungs expanding so much that her chest ached. Sweat was running down her face and all over her body drenching her clothes. She was out of breath and quickly tiring; she could not run forever. She knew that she was in terrible danger but she didn’t know from who or what and was too scared to care. All she could do was run. And she knew was that she had to get out of there as fast as she could. Unfortunately her trip would be cut short fairly soon and she knew it. Because ahead of her was the wide, broad, rocky side of a cliff. Her mind began to race in many different directions. What was she going to do once she reached the cliff, how was she going to escape? Even with earthbending it would take awhile to get through an entire cliff. Suddenly, like her thoughts, she came to a screeching stop; the cliff was only feet away from her face. She immediately planted her feet into the ground and slammed her fist into the wall of dirt. She then began shoving layers of dirt to and fro, tearing chunk after chunk out of the cliff side. But she wasn’t working fast enough, her foe would soon be upon her and she had barely made a dint in the wall of rock and dirt. At this point she began to panic, frantically pounding her fist into the cliff side trying to move the earth and rock in front of her as fast as she possibly could. Then all of a sudden, from behind her, there was a loud rush and she recognized the sound immediately. It was a terrible sound that she had heard all too many times. It was the sound of searing flames racing toward her from a vicious attack. She put her back to the cliff to face the wall of flames. She stood her ground and attempted to create a barrier of earth between her and the oncoming danger; but it didn’t work. She raised her arms imploring the ground beneath her to do the same, but it wouldn’t budge. She tried again, and then again but every time she got the same result. She just stood there in awe; she had lost her Earthbending. She was now not only tired and out of breath, but now she had no way of defending herself. Deep in this thought she gave up and lost hope. She considered trying to make the barrier again but she didn’t have the energy. She dropped her head and let her arms fall to her sides in defeat. It was over, she was done, and her time was up. She quickly looked back up; the sound of running feet had caught her attention. It couldn’t be…………..it was! She’d recognize those footsteps anywhere, it was Sokka. She had never been so happy to see him (through vibrations) in her life, she was overjoyed. She felt safe, no longer in any danger. Then she paused for moment and studied his footsteps more closely. There was something strange about his path. He was running in her general direction but not directly at her. She calculated his projection in her head. If he continued the route he was taking, it would put him dead in front of her, and in the path of the flames; but why? Why would he put himself in that position? Didn’t he know of the danger that was surging toward her? It didn’t make any sense. By this time he had reached his destination and firmly dug his feet into the ground, like he was bracing himself for something. She judged the way he was standing. He was facing the direction of the flames and had his back toward her; he knew the flames were there. So why was he putting himself in danger like that? The realization of what he was doing hit her like a landslide and she had a hard time believing it. He was going to take the brunt of the attack in order to save her. She just stood there motionless as all of it played out in front of her. She held back the tears that were forming in her eyes; she couldn’t let him do this. She tried yelling to him, to beg him to get out of the way so that he could escape unharmed. But no words came out. She tried again…………….but nothing. She couldn’t speak. She became angry and refused to let it stop her. She was going to save him one way or another. She had to……… she loved him. She tried sprinting toward him so that she could knock him to the ground and out of the fire’s path. But it only resulted in her flying face down into the dirt in front of her. Her feet were stuck in the ground. She tried desperately to pull them out tugging with all her strength, using every bit of energy she had left. But it was no use. She turned her head, facing him, and then began to cry; there was nothing she could do to help him. The flames reached Sokka and she heard him scream as they swirled around him engulfing him in an inferno. She felt the temperature rise all around her and knew that flames were close, but not close enough. The temperature returned to normal as the flames dissipated. She had survived unscathed and unharmed. But Sokka hadn’t. She felt his body hit the ground as if it weighed ten tons. They were the worse vibrations she had ever felt. She waited, hoping that he would move, talk, groan, anything that showed a sign a life. But it never came………………… he was gone.}
I woke up gasping for air, breathing as hard as I possibly could with my hand clutched to my chest. The nightmare had literally taken my breath away. My face was drenched in sweat as if it had actually happened. As if I had actually experienced it first hand and it felt like I had. It was terrible, the most horrific thing I could imagine. I tried to stop thinking about it, trying to remind myself that it was only a nightmare. But it had felt so real. I suddenly felt hot, like I was in an oven. I was burning up and the sweat that remained on my forehead proved it. I got up to get a drink of water. As usual we were camped out near a plentiful source of water, in this case a river. I walked as quietly as I could, tip-toeing away from the others hoping not to disturb their sleep. Not that I cared if I woke them or not, I just didn’t want them to see me like this. I was shaking, covered in sweat, and my breathing was still heavy. They’d know that something was wrong and would begin asking questions in concern. And I didn’t feel like answering any right now.Once I reached the river and knelt down at its side. I put my hands in the brisk, cold water and cupped them to trap the water I needed to drink. I took two or three drinks and then decided the heck with it. I put my hands back into the water only this time splashed it in my face. The cold, brisk water relieved me instantly. I repeated the process until the sweat on my face was completely replaced by cool, fresh water. I let out a deep breath of relief. I had finally begun to calm down and for the first time all night, felt relaxed. I sat down on the river’s edge and began thinking about the nightmare. Why had I dreamt it and what did it mean? I thought of the moment when Sokka was struck by the flames and remembered his scream. The sadness and deep sorrow I’d felt earlier suddenly returned and my stomach went into knots. It just played over and over in my mind like a never ending memory. Tears swelled in my eyes and I thought that they would rush out and roll down my cheeks at any moment; but they didn’t. I pushed them back and wiped what remained away.
Toph- “It was only a dream.”
I said out loud to myself, making sure that I heard it clearly. It made feel better for a moment. But the images of the nightmare kept coming back. They were just too powerful to force away. I still didn’t understand completely why it made me upset. Was I truly afraid of losing him, just like I had lost him in the nightmare? I cared deeply about Sokka and never wanted anything bad to happen to him. But until now, I’d never considered the possibility of it actually happening. It was scary to think about; I was afraid. I couldn’t stand the thought of him actually being gone or of anything that terrible to happen to him. The tears I’d fought back minutes before came rushing back and this time I didn’t try to stop them. I sat there and wept for fear of losing Sokka. For fear of losing a close friend, and for fear of losing someone that I loved. Several minutes passed and tears were still running down my face. They just refused to stop, as if they had been held back for so long, waiting to come out. I knew this to be true, I always hated crying and stopped myself whenever I urge came. Crying made me feel weak and vulnerable and I hated feeling that way. But this time I didn’t care. It wasn’t because no one was around to see me, but because I felt that this was worth crying about. That I needed to sob and release these painful feelings from inside me; so I did. I sobbed for what seemed like hours letting all of my pain and sadness out. A few more minutes passed and my tears finally dried up and ceased pouring from my eyes. I wiped away what remained of them off my face and let out a deep breath of relief. I felt better than I ever had before and I was overcome with happiness. I smiled and laughed. And again spoke to myself.
Toph- “There, now that wasn’t so bad was it?”
The smile remained on my face as I walked back toward camp. I felt relieved and replenished. I reached camp moments later and began walking back toward the spot where I’d been sleeping earlier. But then I stopped. I looked in the direction where Sokka’s light, restful breathing was coming from. A caring smile appeared on my face as I walked over to him. I knelt down next to him and just listened to his breathing, and felt his heartbeat. They were both calming and peaceful and soothing to me. Then I whispered something to him while he continued to sleep.
Toph- “I love you Sokka.”
I was pretty sure he hadn’t heard me for he made no sudden movements and showed no signs of waking up. I was glad to. I didn’t really want him to hear me. I just felt that I needed to say it out loud and to him for the first time. So that’s what I did. I had told him that I loved him and it felt just fine. I walked back to my resting place and lay back down on the ground. I looked his direction one final time and again a smile came across my face. Nothing was ever going to happen to him, I wouldn’t allow it. That’s what you do for someone you love, you look out for them. I closed my eyes and settled in. There would be no more nightmares tonight. I drifted away with this thought, and fell asleep.
THE END
The Burning Nightmare
A Tokka Story
{She was running for her life as fast as she could, her lungs expanding so much that her chest ached. Sweat was running down her face and all over her body drenching her clothes. She was out of breath and quickly tiring; she could not run forever. She knew that she was in terrible danger but she didn’t know from who or what and was too scared to care. All she could do was run. And she knew was that she had to get out of there as fast as she could. Unfortunately her trip would be cut short fairly soon and she knew it. Because ahead of her was the wide, broad, rocky side of a cliff. Her mind began to race in many different directions. What was she going to do once she reached the cliff, how was she going to escape? Even with earthbending it would take awhile to get through an entire cliff. Suddenly, like her thoughts, she came to a screeching stop; the cliff was only feet away from her face. She immediately planted her feet into the ground and slammed her fist into the wall of dirt. She then began shoving layers of dirt to and fro, tearing chunk after chunk out of the cliff side. But she wasn’t working fast enough, her foe would soon be upon her and she had barely made a dint in the wall of rock and dirt. At this point she began to panic, frantically pounding her fist into the cliff side trying to move the earth and rock in front of her as fast as she possibly could. Then all of a sudden, from behind her, there was a loud rush and she recognized the sound immediately. It was a terrible sound that she had heard all too many times. It was the sound of searing flames racing toward her from a vicious attack. She put her back to the cliff to face the wall of flames. She stood her ground and attempted to create a barrier of earth between her and the oncoming danger; but it didn’t work. She raised her arms imploring the ground beneath her to do the same, but it wouldn’t budge. She tried again, and then again but every time she got the same result. She just stood there in awe; she had lost her Earthbending. She was now not only tired and out of breath, but now she had no way of defending herself. Deep in this thought she gave up and lost hope. She considered trying to make the barrier again but she didn’t have the energy. She dropped her head and let her arms fall to her sides in defeat. It was over, she was done, and her time was up. She quickly looked back up; the sound of running feet had caught her attention. It couldn’t be…………..it was! She’d recognize those footsteps anywhere, it was Sokka. She had never been so happy to see him (through vibrations) in her life, she was overjoyed. She felt safe, no longer in any danger. Then she paused for moment and studied his footsteps more closely. There was something strange about his path. He was running in her general direction but not directly at her. She calculated his projection in her head. If he continued the route he was taking, it would put him dead in front of her, and in the path of the flames; but why? Why would he put himself in that position? Didn’t he know of the danger that was surging toward her? It didn’t make any sense. By this time he had reached his destination and firmly dug his feet into the ground, like he was bracing himself for something. She judged the way he was standing. He was facing the direction of the flames and had his back toward her; he knew the flames were there. So why was he putting himself in danger like that? The realization of what he was doing hit her like a landslide and she had a hard time believing it. He was going to take the brunt of the attack in order to save her. She just stood there motionless as all of it played out in front of her. She held back the tears that were forming in her eyes; she couldn’t let him do this. She tried yelling to him, to beg him to get out of the way so that he could escape unharmed. But no words came out. She tried again…………….but nothing. She couldn’t speak. She became angry and refused to let it stop her. She was going to save him one way or another. She had to……… she loved him. She tried sprinting toward him so that she could knock him to the ground and out of the fire’s path. But it only resulted in her flying face down into the dirt in front of her. Her feet were stuck in the ground. She tried desperately to pull them out tugging with all her strength, using every bit of energy she had left. But it was no use. She turned her head, facing him, and then began to cry; there was nothing she could do to help him. The flames reached Sokka and she heard him scream as they swirled around him engulfing him in an inferno. She felt the temperature rise all around her and knew that flames were close, but not close enough. The temperature returned to normal as the flames dissipated. She had survived unscathed and unharmed. But Sokka hadn’t. She felt his body hit the ground as if it weighed ten tons. They were the worse vibrations she had ever felt. She waited, hoping that he would move, talk, groan, anything that showed a sign a life. But it never came………………… he was gone.}
I woke up gasping for air, breathing as hard as I possibly could with my hand clutched to my chest. The nightmare had literally taken my breath away. My face was drenched in sweat as if it had actually happened. As if I had actually experienced it first hand and it felt like I had. It was terrible, the most horrific thing I could imagine. I tried to stop thinking about it, trying to remind myself that it was only a nightmare. But it had felt so real. I suddenly felt hot, like I was in an oven. I was burning up and the sweat that remained on my forehead proved it. I got up to get a drink of water. As usual we were camped out near a plentiful source of water, in this case a river. I walked as quietly as I could, tip-toeing away from the others hoping not to disturb their sleep. Not that I cared if I woke them or not, I just didn’t want them to see me like this. I was shaking, covered in sweat, and my breathing was still heavy. They’d know that something was wrong and would begin asking questions in concern. And I didn’t feel like answering any right now.Once I reached the river and knelt down at its side. I put my hands in the brisk, cold water and cupped them to trap the water I needed to drink. I took two or three drinks and then decided the heck with it. I put my hands back into the water only this time splashed it in my face. The cold, brisk water relieved me instantly. I repeated the process until the sweat on my face was completely replaced by cool, fresh water. I let out a deep breath of relief. I had finally begun to calm down and for the first time all night, felt relaxed. I sat down on the river’s edge and began thinking about the nightmare. Why had I dreamt it and what did it mean? I thought of the moment when Sokka was struck by the flames and remembered his scream. The sadness and deep sorrow I’d felt earlier suddenly returned and my stomach went into knots. It just played over and over in my mind like a never ending memory. Tears swelled in my eyes and I thought that they would rush out and roll down my cheeks at any moment; but they didn’t. I pushed them back and wiped what remained away.
Toph- “It was only a dream.”
I said out loud to myself, making sure that I heard it clearly. It made feel better for a moment. But the images of the nightmare kept coming back. They were just too powerful to force away. I still didn’t understand completely why it made me upset. Was I truly afraid of losing him, just like I had lost him in the nightmare? I cared deeply about Sokka and never wanted anything bad to happen to him. But until now, I’d never considered the possibility of it actually happening. It was scary to think about; I was afraid. I couldn’t stand the thought of him actually being gone or of anything that terrible to happen to him. The tears I’d fought back minutes before came rushing back and this time I didn’t try to stop them. I sat there and wept for fear of losing Sokka. For fear of losing a close friend, and for fear of losing someone that I loved. Several minutes passed and tears were still running down my face. They just refused to stop, as if they had been held back for so long, waiting to come out. I knew this to be true, I always hated crying and stopped myself whenever I urge came. Crying made me feel weak and vulnerable and I hated feeling that way. But this time I didn’t care. It wasn’t because no one was around to see me, but because I felt that this was worth crying about. That I needed to sob and release these painful feelings from inside me; so I did. I sobbed for what seemed like hours letting all of my pain and sadness out. A few more minutes passed and my tears finally dried up and ceased pouring from my eyes. I wiped away what remained of them off my face and let out a deep breath of relief. I felt better than I ever had before and I was overcome with happiness. I smiled and laughed. And again spoke to myself.
Toph- “There, now that wasn’t so bad was it?”
The smile remained on my face as I walked back toward camp. I felt relieved and replenished. I reached camp moments later and began walking back toward the spot where I’d been sleeping earlier. But then I stopped. I looked in the direction where Sokka’s light, restful breathing was coming from. A caring smile appeared on my face as I walked over to him. I knelt down next to him and just listened to his breathing, and felt his heartbeat. They were both calming and peaceful and soothing to me. Then I whispered something to him while he continued to sleep.
Toph- “I love you Sokka.”
I was pretty sure he hadn’t heard me for he made no sudden movements and showed no signs of waking up. I was glad to. I didn’t really want him to hear me. I just felt that I needed to say it out loud and to him for the first time. So that’s what I did. I had told him that I loved him and it felt just fine. I walked back to my resting place and lay back down on the ground. I looked his direction one final time and again a smile came across my face. Nothing was ever going to happen to him, I wouldn’t allow it. That’s what you do for someone you love, you look out for them. I closed my eyes and settled in. There would be no more nightmares tonight. I drifted away with this thought, and fell asleep.
THE END
