"You're up…really early," Toji looked at Toph as she spoke, just giving a slight nod before turning back to where he and Iron were pushing against each other.
The horn was digging into his skin and Toji knew the bastard was doing it on purpose as revenge for letting him be in that cage, but in all honesty, all it did was encourage him more to remind the beast who the master was.
Grinning with gritted teeth while digging his feet into the ground, Iron let out strained grunts as Toji pushed him back, the boy cackling with glee as he continued pushing until he had him over the finish line.
"And I win…again. You really need to get stronger before you can go against me, bud."
"You are abnormally strong for a kid only four years older than me," Toph said as Toji walked towards her and he blinked before shrugging as he stretched his body.
"Eh, it's more like my chi makes me far stronger than every kid my age. Also, what are you doing up so early, princess?"
"Don't call me that and I usually train at this time when everyone is still asleep."
"Really?", Toji asked, watching as the girl nodded before stomping on the ground with a frown. The earth around them cracked before she lifted her hand, rock spikes rising into the air before she cracked her neck and put them back into the ground.
"Huh, pretty neat," Toji murmured as he looked at her, to which Toph gave a smug grin as she crossed her arms while watching Iron scrape his horn against the ground.
"Hey, how strong is Iron?"
"I know what you're thinking and I know you're going to offer me cash for it, but I am in no way letting you push against Iron like I did. I'd rather not have your dad put me up for execution," Toji said with a smirk as he turned her by the head, Toph letting out a groan even as she followed the boy back to the manor.
"Come on, I'll even pay you."
"That's even more reason for me to say no. I'd rather not risk my life for a few gold coins and I already got a crap-ton at my disposal."
"How much is a crap ton?"
"Enough," Toji said with a smirk as he continued walking, Toph rolling her eyes as the two of them walked into the manor before Toji's gaze flickered to the stairway as Lao Beifong walked down the steps.
The lord paused at the middle of the steps as Toph walked up to him, smiling softly at his daughter while taking note of Toji standing at the bottom of the steps with his shirt stained with dirt and grime.
Toji could see the thoughts dancing in the man's mind as he looked at him, not saying anything as the man walked down with a smile and nodded to him.
"You are up early."
"It's an old habit in my line of work. I like to train and warm up every morning before breakfast."
"You talk like an old man," Toph said with a smirk and Toji rolled his eyes while taking the towel one of the maids gave him as he threw it over his shoulder.
"I am older than you. Anyway, what do you need me to do, Lao?"
"Well, my daughter may have informed me this morning that you may be inclined to stay for longer if we give you a salary that is worth your time?"
"I may, but I feel like you might feel that I'm robbing you."
"That depends. How much do you usually ask?", Lao asked and Toji smirked before raising up one finger, making Lao narrow his eyes while Toph blinked.
"One coin?"
"One hundred gold coins a day."
"…That is it?", Toji was confused at Lao's confusion, looking at Toph to see her crossing her arms and tilting her head while she looked just as confused.
"Is that too little?"
"Oh, I don't mind paying you that, but Toji, you have to understand that the Beifong Company owns 50% of all inland mines in the Earth Kingdom as well as 70% of the textile sector and 30% of the agricultural sector of Ba Sing Se. Our family could give you a thousand gold coins a day for the rest of your life and you would not even make the ever-so-slightest of dents in our reserves."
"…Oh, so you're like…at the top of the world, huh?"
"More like the top 1% of the world, but that is close enough," Lao spoke with a smirk and Toji just looked at the man before shaking his head with a sigh.
"I thought I'd be nice for once, but no~ I should have been greedy."
"That is on you. Now while you are busy washing off the sweat and grime from your morning training, we shall be waiting for you in the dining gardens."
"…Right, the dining gardens. Question, is that the one with the white and green flowers?", Toji asked, making Lao raise an eyebrow even as he nodded.
"That is correct, yes."
"…Iron may have eaten a few of your flowers. I'll pay for them."
"How many did he eat?"
"Like…seven, I think? Maybe eight. Why…How expensive are they?", Toji asked, already dreading the answer as Lao smiled before answering.
"Fifty gold coins for the jade lilies and twenty gold coins for the snow roses…and those are the prices for a singular flower for each."
"…Son of a-Argh, Iron!"
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"I swear, if I didn't needed you to travel everywhere, I would have sold your ass long ago," Toji grumbled as he handed the pouch of gold coins to Lao, glaring at the source of his irritation that was lounging peacefully in the hay.
"Hmm, you have quite the close bond with each other if I must say so," Poppy spoke with a soft smile from where she was drinking tea and Toji snorted as he and Lao sat down beside her while watching as Toph 'struggled' to follow her master's teachings.
"Well, he did belong to the Fire Nation soldier who killed my parents and the rest of my village so we have been together since that time."
"Am I correct in guessing that his previous owner is no longer with us?"
"Oh yeah, he's sleeping peacefully six feet under," Toji answered with a smirk, to which Lao just nodded before the boy furrowed his brow as Toph nearly slipped while punching the air.
He had to admit that she was quite the actor considering he was almost convinced that she was a bit lacking in the bending art had he not seen her use her bending before, a smirk on his face as he saw Toph swing a slow punch.
The rock in front of her floated for a few seconds before dropping, but it appears to be an improvement considering how her parents clapped while her master looked pleased.
"Well done, Lady Toph. A few more days of this training and you'll be better in no time."
"R-Really? Yay~", Toji knew that the confident girl was hating this timid image she was putting forward, watching as two guards helped her walk over to the table before he stood up and pulled the chair out for her.
"Toji?"
"Hey, you're paying me to protect her. I might as well start working."
'That and I want to see if I can't get her to break from her shell and show her parents what she's capable of,' Normally, Toji could care less about this shit, but on the off-chance that he does achieve this goal, he would have some of the richest and most powerful beings in the Earth Kingdom at his side.
Poppy didn't say anything as she simply sipped her tea with a faint smile and Lao gave a contemplative nod at his words, but Toph allowed herself to be guided into the seat like a delicate flower and Toji smirked when he saw the corners of her lips twitching.
"You keep this up and we might have to give you an award for your performance."
"And I'm going to bury you in rocks when that happens," Toph whispered back without turning her head, Toji not saying anything as he walked around and sat back down.
"Your continued service will be compensated as agreed, though I'm beginning to wonder if we're paying a bodyguard or an butler."
"Oh no, I'm just flexible. That and Toph is smart. She just needs a reason to show off."
"And you think you can provide that reason?" Poppy asked, Toji not saying anything as he saw her jaw tighten and her fingers tighten a bit too hard around the tea cup.
"No, I won't. Instead, I think the world is going to try its best to do so. The only question is whether or not she'll withstand what it throws at her."
"Well, you do not need to worry. Toph is protected by some of the best earthbenders and non-benders in the Earth Kingdom so if it ever comes to a battle, she will be well-guarded."
"Hey, I can tell you this right now. It would take me less than a few minutes to sneak onto the premises, take out Toph and be out before anyone would notice."
"You believe so?"
"I have killed men in broad daylight and no one noticed me doing so. Being an assassin is not about flashy moves or big fights. It's about making sure no one knows you were even there to begin with."
"Then it is fortunate that we have one as skilled as you on our side," Lao spoke with an even tone, but there was a tension in the air as Poppy slowly placed her cup down while Toph just looked on.
"For now, yeah. You are paying me, after all."
"And what if someone were to offer you more?"
"That you don't have to fear for. I don't think anyone can offer more and it's bad for business if a mercenary just abandons their job for the next big paycheck," That pulled some of the tension from the room as Poppy gave a smile in agreement, but Lao kept his even face as he spoke.
"It is good to see that you are an honest boy, Toji, but I hope you also understand that loyalty means more to the Beifong name that even the greatest mine that we have."
"Loyalty, huh? Guess we'll see if I'm the loyal type. Hey, maybe if I stick around long enough, we'll find out," Toji murmured, drawing the conversation to a silence before they looked at him as he grinned.
"Now with that said…you guys still have those dumplings, right?"
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"You really talk about anything on your mind with no worry about anything else, don't you?", Toph said as the two of them stood in the centre of the training room, Toji raising an eyebrow at her words before shrugging as he continued his training.
"I don't. I find that being polite is just people lying to each other's faces to try and look like the bigger person. I just like to speak my mind and if people are insulted by my words, then they didn't deserve to be in my presence."
"Oh, arrogant, huh?"
"No, just confident. So, what's little princess doing up instead of sleeping away her problems?"
"You call me little princess again and I'm shooting you with a boulder."
"Little…princess~", Toji whispered with a grin before leaping backwards as the ground in front of him shot upwards, hopping to the side with his grin growing as Toph stomped on the ground and fired a barrage of pebbles at him.
Yet, they didn't get close to touching him as the boy lunged at her , ducking in between the rock spikes she created from the ground before he stopped right as she put a wall up.
Not stopping, Toph punched the wall and sent a fragment at him, Toji raising an eyebrow as he dodged the seat and back as another barely clipped his right thigh.
"Huh, not bad," Toji murmured while rubbing the slight bruise forming on his leg, watching as Toph lowered her rock wall with a smug grin.
"Looks like you're not fast enough to take me out, huh?"
"More like I don't want to risk losing my paycheck. Otherwise, I wouldn't have just dodged your attacks. I would have actually tried to fight."
"Oh, please. Come on, then. No worrying about a paycheck or money. Just you, me and our fists," Toph spoke with a grin as she stomped on the ground, to which Toji raised an eyebrow before pointing to the side.
"Lady Toph! Are you alright?"
"Oh, I'm okay," In the blink of an eye, Toji was amused as Toph went from warrior to princess like it was nothing the very second her guards turned the corner. The group of armed men looked surprised to see Toji and Toph standing in the centre of a rubble-filled training yard before Toji spoke up while holding his arm out for Toph to take.
"Don't worry. There were these guys that were trying to kidnap her, but they're gone now."
"Gone as in they left or as in…?", One of the guards trailed off, the others looking just wary when Toji grinned before Toph spoke.
"Don't worry, I told him I didn't want to see anyone lose their lives these evening so they just ran away. I couldn't recognize who they were from their voices."
"You were most likely in shock, Toph. They did come out of nowhere. Anyway, I'll be taking the little princess back in and I'll leave you guys to search the perimeter and find these guys."
"Will do! Alright, men!", Toji ignored the guards going to search for their imaginary attackers as they walked into the manor, the girl immediately shifting from her dainty steps to her confident strides with a huff.
"Really? A group of guys trying to kidnap me?"
"Either that or we could have said that they were Fire Nation agents."
"And when they find out that there is no such group?"
"They won't unless you tell them yourself."
"Yeah, but now my parents are going to be even more overprotective than they already are."
"Sounds like a you problem. Anyway, here's your stop. Sleep tight and make sure to rest for your acting tomorrow," Toji said with a grin as he walked away before blinking as the ground spun and he found himself being grabbed by the chin by the blind girl.
"I want you to teach me how to fight like you."
"Double the pay."
"Double the pay?"
"Double the pay. I'm not working a charity here," Toji said as he stood up straight, Toph narrowing her eyes at him with a frown.
"You won't do this out of the goodness of your heart?"
"No. Double the pay or I'll just tell daddy dearest about your earthbending skills."
"He won't believe you."
"Not if I attack you with the intent to kill."
"I won't defend myself and then you'll have to deal with the wrath of my family."
"Eh, that's nothing compared to what I've been through and besides, all that means is that the entire family has to be eradicated then," Toph frowned at how easily the guy in front of her spoke of massacring her family, almost as if he wouldn't even need to try.
'Well, he did kill off the entire Crimson Sails Fleet so it would make sense that he could do it.'
"…Fine, double the pay," Toph murmured before flinching as he flicked her forehead with a grin.
"First lesson: Learn how to bargain. If you had gone 20% extra, I would have agreed."
"And that wouldn't be fair to you and your time."
"Second lesson: Your honor means nothing, neither on the battlefield nor in business deals. Use whatever you can to make a deal more profitable to you. Now, see you tomorrow morning for your first combat lesson."
"Should I bring anything?", Toph asked as Toji walked away, the boy stopping and turning to her with a thoughtful look before grinning.
"A new outfit for starters. We're going to make sure you can fight no matter what you're wearing."
A/N: And we're ending this here~! A bit more build-up on the relationship between Toji and Toph as well as some more words between the boy and Toph's father.
Next chapter: Training and a Large Timeskip.
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As always, read, enjoy, review and until the next one...
Ba-Bye~!