"We're going to be late," Katara sang, tapping her foot impatiently as she waited for her brother to get out of the bathroom.
"Give me, like, two seconds!" Sokka yelled back. Katara sighed and adjusted her backpack on her shoulders. First day of a new school - a nice, fancy, private school that they had won scholarships to - and her older brother was going to make them late.
"Okay," Sokka said, emerging from the bathroom, still patting his wolf-tail into place. "Let's go."
"I swear, if I had my license and a car, you wouldn't even bother getting up in the mornings," Katara grumbled. Sokka shrugged.
"I do have to eat," he commented, sliding into the driver's seat of his old, beat-up. 2007 Tiger Seal. Katara snorted. The family liked to joke that Sokka had at least two hollow legs, and maybe an arm as well - he was always eating. Even more so than your average 18-year-old boy.
"So, what's this job that Gran-Gran has lined up for us after school tomorrow?" Katara asked, changing the subject. A new school and a new job, all in the same week. She wasn't stressed at all. Sokka shrugged.
"Dunno. Some tea shop," he said, yawning as he pulled out onto the highway. Katara bit back a sarcastic reply, knowing that a) sarcasm was useless against the master, and b) he was still waking up and it would probably go right over his head anyway.
They pulled into the school's bustling parking lot and stared up at the towering four-story building for a moment.
"Aaand here we go," Sokka said, breaking the trance. He put a hand on Katara's shoulder to usher her in the doors after a group of giggly girls. Once inside, they reported to the main office like they'd been instructed to do and introduced themselves to the secretary.
"Ah, the new students, yes," she smiled. "Headmaster Pakku will see you shortly. I am Joo Dee, and if you need anything, just let me know - I'm here all day!" She laughed.
A minute later, the door to the headmaster's office opened. "Sokka? Katara?" a man called. Joo Dee made a little shooing motion.
"Welcome to Four Nations Academy," she called after them with a smile.
"And here's the cafeteria," the girl - Ty Lee? Yes, that sounded about right - chirped brightly, gesturing to a long, open room with lots of tables and large floor-to-ceiling windows.
"Cafeteria?" Sokka perked up noticeably. Their vivacious tour guide giggled at him. Katara rolled her eyes. She was seriously questioning the sanity of this girl. Nobody in their right mind would flirt with Sokka!
"When do we get our schedules?" she asked, hoping to distract the bubbly tour guide. "I'd like to see what classes I'm taking."
"Oh, you'll get those tomorrow," the pink-clad girl explained. "That's when the rest of the students will be here. Today is the freshmen and new student orientation day! And the Student Council - which I'm on! - is helping with that."
"This is the library," Ty Lee whispered. "You'll get any textbooks you need tomorrow, too." The siblings nodded their understanding and they moved on, occasionally coming across larger groups of chattering freshmen, headed by one or two upperclassmen. Ty Lee waved ecstatically to all the Student Council members. Some of them waved back; others looked too flustered trying to manage their unruly crowds of freshmen.
"Were we ever that small?" Sokka whispered to Katara, frowning at yet another group of incoming freshmen.
"You were smaller," she whispered back, elbowing him playfully. Sokka pretended to scowl at her.
"Eh-hem," said Ty Lee clearing her throat and looking at them severely. "If you guys get lost tomorrow, I hope you're not going to blame me, because that would put a serious damper on my aura," she said.
"Your... aura?" said Katara, confused. The other girl just laughed and continued on down the hallway.
"The gym is this way, up the stairs," she called as the Water Tribe siblings scrambled to keep up.
"How was school?" Gran-Gran asked, setting the pot of stewed sea prunes on the table next to the rest of the food.
"We didn't do anything," Sokka said, reaching for the ladle and eyeing the meal greedily.
Katara gave her brother a dirty look. "It was an orientation day. We got to meet the headmaster. Gran-Gran, did you know the headmaster is from the Northern Water Tribe? And he came all the way out to the Earth Kingdom, just to help with this school."
Gran-Gran shook her head, impressed. "That's very interesting, dear," she said, spooning a large helping of sea prunes onto Sokka's plate. "Anything else?"
"We got a tour," Sokka said through a mouthful of food. Grandmother and granddaughter made identical disgusted expressions.
"Say it again, without the food," Gran-Gran ordered, pointing at him with the ladle. Sokka swallowed the whole mouthful and grinned sheepishly. "We got a tour," he repeated. Gran-Gran nodded, approving. Katara smirked at her brother.
"Yeah, and our tour guide wouldn't stop flirting with him," she added. Sokka turned bright red; he liked to think he knew everything when it came to girls and relationships, but he'd never had a real girlfriend (despite the fact that he was a senior), and just the mention of girls flirting with him was enough to break his composure.
"Hey - !"
"Do you know what classes you have?" Gran-Gran asked, smoothly changing the subject. The siblings shook their heads.
"All we did was the tour," Katara explained. "Tomorrow's the first day of classes; that's when the rest of the students will be there."
"I see," Gran-Gran said, nodding. "Well, I was hoping that your first day of work wouldn't be your first day of school, but I am friends with the proprietor, and he is a very understanding man; I'm sure he won't make you handle anything too hectic."
"What exactly was this job again, Gran-Gran?" Katara asked, leaping at the opportunity.
"You will both be serving as help for my friend, Mr. Lóng, at his tea shop. Sokka knows where it is."
"I do?"
"He does?"
Gran-Gran sighed. "The Jasmine Dragon, Sokka."
"Oh, yeah! That one! Over in the Fire Nation district, I remember you pointing it out." Sokka looked ridiculously pleased with himself.
"Very good," Gran-Gran said, dryly. Katara stifled a laugh.
"Can you pass the sea prunes?" Sokka asked, oblivious.