** Yes, of course I know that Toph can't write due to her blindness...but I figured Katara would be kind enough to help her out with that ;-) Don't worry, Toph. We all know your blindness makes you 100% more awesome XD**

I gotta say, Twinkle Toes really did pull it off. He was able to take down the Fire Lord, not to mention maintain a sturdy stance and fighting figure. And the best part is that he stopped being such a weakling and was able to stand his ground instead of being a scaredy-cat.

I'm not surprised though... I mean he did have the greatest earthbender in the world as his teacher.

And who knew running away from home would be so much fun? I got to kick some serious Fire Nation butt, go camping outdoors, do whatever I want, travel the world, and make some friends instead of being taken care of like some porcelain doll. I got to experience so many things that most kids probably won't be able to, and learned so much from what I saw. Even though I can't actually see.

But honestly, I really do miss my parents from time to time.

Growing up, I was always seen as some helpless and fragile blind girl that can't do anything for herself. I always had to be guarded, wear fancy itchy dresses, act like a proper lady, even have my food blown if it was "too hot". I was the blind one, yet my parents couldn't see that I hated living this life, always being taken care of and never expected to be something more. 

But I wanted to be something more. So much more.

My parents judged me by my weakness instead of judging me by my personality and opinions. And that was something that really bothered me.

When I was six, I ran away from home. I didn't know where I was going... it's hard to tell when the only thing you see is darkness. I ended up stumbling in some sort of tunnel, but soon discovered it belonged to a family of badger moles. Through them, I was able to learn earthbending. 

I learned how to feel the vibrations within the earth and visualize them in my mind, giving me a clear image of my surroundings, and even sense other people around me. I was also able to use this new skill to my advantage as an earthbender.

Unfotunately, I didn't spend to much time with the nice family of badger moles, because my parents found me. I continued to live my life as "daddy's little princess", only this time my mom and dad became more protective over me. 

But I was done taking baby lessons and breathing exercises from Master Yu. It was time to step up my game.

Living secretly as "The Blind Bandit" in the local arena in my hometown made me more self-confident, and made me feel fearless. I loved beating every opponent who was dumb enough to step in the ring, and I loved how the applause for my victories rang in my ears afterwards. This was my world, where I was Toph,  The greatest earthbending champion who could knock out her opponents in a matter of seconds, the toughest girl who wasn't afraid of anything. 

That was the title I earned while fighting for other's enjoyment in the ring, and boy did it made me feel special. It made me feel powerful...almost like I could do anything. And the best part? People out there saw who I really was, who I really wanted to be. I wanted to be able to stand up for myself and fight, not treated as if I were useless.

One day, some bald kid comes in with some fancy dance moves,  throws some air at me and knocks me clean out of the ring. The referee then says he's the winner, and I walked out being angry at myself for not being able to take him down. But I was also pretty annoyed that that kid thought he could just go around making everyone losers. Who did he think he was?

Little did I know that overtime, he would be my earthbending student...and one of my best friends.

I found Aang, Katara, and Sokka stumbling around my family's yard right after the match. At the time, I told myself that Twinkle Toes only wanted to rub his victory in my face, so I completely ignored them when they tried to explain how he's the Avatar and all, and that he needed an earthbending teacher.

Later, I was walking in the gardens with Aang and explained to him what the deal was... about my parents and about not being about to see with my eyes, but seeing with my earthbending. But then there some misunderstanding...Dad thought Aang and the others somehow risked my life when Aang and I were captured by Xing Fu, the referee. Long story short, Dad said that he gave me to much freedom, and also said I couldn't see my friends again.

Not only was I upset, I was hurt. Why couldn't neither my dad nor my mom see what  I was feeling? For the first time in my life, I finally made some friends who accepted me for who I was. They didn't care if I was blind. It was as if they just ignored that simple fact and treated me like their equal. 

And then my dad takes all of that away from me.

It was at that moment where I realized enough was enough. I would rather be with my friends who could see who I really was-- who I wanted them to see, instead of with my parents who were blind to really recognize my true feelings. As a rich only child, I had everything I could ask for, but I never had my parents understanding or their sympathy.

So I decided to run away again and be Aang's teacher. It took some getting used to being part of a team, but I finally was able to fit it just fine. And if you asked me, I'd say I fit in perfectly the moment I joined.

But while I was travelling all over the place and training Aang, I started to feel bad about running away. I guess you could say it was at this point where I realized that one of the reasons my parents were so overprotective of me was because they actually loved me. They wanted to keep me safe. Even though they didn't pay attention to what I really wanted, they tried to make me happy and content with what I already had. They really tried.

They hurt me by ignoring my feelings, but I probably hurt them more by running away and making it seem like I was ungrateful for their love, when really all I wanted was to be understood.

Somehow, Katara figured out how I was feeling. It was as if she could see right through me. When we got into a huge fight a couple of days before the invasion on the Day of Black Sun, she brought up the subject of me leaving my home and how I secretly missed my mom and dad, though I tried to hide it by being awesome. At the time, I was angry that she discovered what I was feeling, mostly because I didn't want to admit what she said was true. But now I'm grateful she was there for me, even when I needed her to be an extra punching bag.

Our little gang did have a few ups and downs... like when we were being chased by Azula all night long and didn't get any sleep. Katara and I were in a fight and we had to fly all over the place on Appa with his stinky fur (that fur did make good armpit hair, but still). Or the time when we were being hunted down by Dai Li agents in Ba Sing Se while flying on Appa bareback (It was bad when Azula took over the kingdom of course...but riding bareback while blind is definitely not one of my preferable ways of transportation). Or the time when we invaded the fire nation on the day of Black Sun and missed our chance of defeating the Fire Lord (THAT was annoying).

But it was nice when Zuko decided he wasn't gonna let his old man tell him how to live his life and join us. The guy had a hard time understanding who he is, and really went through a lot.

And yeah...I went through a lot too. I think we all did. But to me, the most important thing is that we're together, and we went through a lot together. I learned that in order to be in a team, you have to play your part. It's cool when you're the greatest earthbender in the world, and are able to be confident and be yourself, but it's also important to contribute to the group however way you can, as a team member and as a friend (even if it means dealing with Sokka's stinky socks and stupid jokes)