A/N: One announcement: Although at the time I'm publishing this my penname is Twilight Dragoness, it will soon become Anti-Logic. Just in case anyone recognizes the old name later.

So I finally did it. I began writing the dreaded high school AU I've been threatening. Let's hope it doesn't turned out clichéd, eh? Haven't read many of these, I have to admit. I'll try to define the musical terms at the end of the chapter; ask me about it if you don't understand something. Just don't get upset if this doesn't conclude with the pairing you want. xP I'm trying an experiment. If all goes as planned, this story will be longer than my other ones, so I'm goint to force myself to not obsess over the finished product for half a week looking for ways I could better phrase things before finally posting it. I'm just going to...go. Wooo!

Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar, nor most of the songs and brand names littered throughout this thing.

May it be the shadow's call

Will fly away.

May it be you journey on

To light the day.

The chords swelled with a depth that went far beyond her high school choir room. She felt the clean sound travel through her throat, vibrating gently, like magic waiting to be released. It spun softly in her mouth, gaining its bell-like quality. Her eyes closed almost naturally as she reveled in the notes' liberation, the rich complexity of the chords, the climactic resolution at the end.

A promise lives within you now.

As the accompaniment faded into nothing, she slowly reopened her eyes, fully prepared to just revel in the moment. Or she would have been, if it weren't for the chaos that surrounded her as soon as the song ended.

"Sokka! Striking a pose at the conclusion is not necessary."

"Aw c'mon, Ms. Wu…"

"So guess what I got at the mall on Tuesday? Guess!"

"I'm just dying with anticipation, Ty Lee. Tell me."

"Well, it was the cutest, pinkest, fluffiest – Ouch! Azula, stop pulling my hair!"

"It was in my face. Besides, Mai looked like she was dying."

"No no, it's double-b-triangle-back-square-triple-a!"

"Teo, I distinctly remember you saying double-a-triangle-back-square-double-a."

"Well uh…you're a loser."

"Says the guy who can't tell the difference between an Xbox and a Wii."

"Hey, take that back you – whoa, sorry Katara."

Katara ignored the fact that her toe had narrowly escaped death-by-wheelchair in Teo's attempt to reach Haru for a punch on the shoulder, just smiling and turning to talk to Jin. She hadn't expected perfection when she joined the choir; they were only high schoolers. She had to admit that they sounded good, though – at least when she closed her eyes.

The bell gave a sharp retort and the students scrambled for their book bags, her brother making the fastest break for the door. Why he had consented to join the class with her she'd never know – probably something about cute girls, knowing him. She felt a hand on her shoulder as Ms. Wu pulled her from the current of students, leading her to the piano.

"Katara dear, here's some simple sheet music. Don't you need to practice sight-reading for that…oh, what was it…" she made a grand gesturing motion with one hand, the other massaging her temple.

"The solo and ensemble competition at Kyoshi High?"

"Of course. All of these competitions that we're joining get so cluttered in my mind…it obstructs my view of the beyond."

"…Right. Do you just want me to look over these and see if I can sing them on sight or what?"

"Yes. Just give yourself the first note on the piano and go. Have you picked the song for the solo portion?"

"Um…not yet. I've still got awhile, though."

"Make sure you find one. Have a good day, then, and be sure to practice! I'm counting on you to lead your section in the group number."

"Thanks."

She knew that the competition was still months away and so did her teacher, but they had something in common in that they wanted this important event to be perfect. She knew that most of her classmates wouldn't take it that seriously after all; she loved most of them, but it was still just another grade in their minds. To her, music just clicked. It was something to live, to breathe, something to be. She wholeheartedly approved of the number they had just been practicing – an Enya piece from Lord of the Rings. It wasn't like she was that into fantasy, but the music itself was very moving. She knew that if anyone could peer into her mind and see just how obsessive she was over the smallest things – the buildup of a chord, the steady crescendo of a note – they would probably think that she was insane. She did a good job of keeping it to herself, but sometimes it overflowed a bit, to the extreme annoyance of her rather tomboyish best friend.

As she made her way to the door, she noticed absently that she wasn't the only student still left in the room. One girl sat in the back row of the soprano section, scribbling frantically in a little white notebook. She hadn't even made an attempt to collect her things yet. Katara knew her by sight if not by name. She was one of the quiet, easily forgettable types, except for that she somehow seemed…off. Her long brown hair was pulled back and loosely braided, no bangs framing her face. It gave her a simple, almost pure look, she now noticed. Something about her appearance gave her further pause – a soft pink top, sandals, and a long white skirt that looked as if it would billow as she walked. That was a bit unusual; why hadn't she noticed how…different she seemed? Not really "off," not precisely, but…

She realized that she was probably staring. Not that skirt girl seemed like she was going to look up any time soon – didn't she have a class to get to? Come to think of it, so did Katara. Dismissing it as a random tangent of her mind, she turned and left the room.

She crossed the threshold of her biology classroom just before the bell rang, earning her a glare from the teacher. Not that he ever did anything but glare. She slid onto her stool at the lab table, pulling her notebook out of her bag.

"Get that boring stuff out of your system?" The voice came from the shorter girl sitting next to her.

"I don't do boring stuff, Toph," she smiled.

"Hey, that song you were blabbering about seemed pretty dull to me. Oooh, elves. I think I'm gonna faint."

"It's not the elves that are the important thing, it's the-"

"What about elves?" asked a new voice as its owner sat down on Katara's other side.

"Aang, tell Toph that 'May It Be' isn't a boring song. You've heard me sing it, right?"

"Don't listen to her, Twinkletoes. It's a snorefest and you know it."

"Uh…"

The debate was cut off by the teacher, who cleared his throat quite violently above Aang's head. He winced.

"Sorry I was late, Mr. Zhao. I was hanging up posters for the Save Ghost River rally at-"

"Can it."

As the grumpy man walked away, Toph made a face in his general direction and Katara laughed at Aang's obviously strenuous efforts not to do the same.

"You stay so nice to everyone, Aang. How do you manage?"

"Huh?" he looked pleased with the complement. "Why're you asking me? You're just as nice."

"Mm…not when I get mad. Like…I wouldn't be able to be nice to him." She nodded towards the back of the classroom. Toph sighed.

"Would you quit doing that?" She waved her hand in front of her sightless eyes for added emphasis.

"Uh…sorry. I meant" – she leaned in for a conspiratorial whisper – "Zuko."

Toph grinned wickedly, but Aang frowned.

"Katara, he's probably not all that bad."

"What are you talking about? Look at him, sitting back there like he thinks he's too cool for all of this. He probably got that scar on his face in some stupid fight; he keeps trying to pick one with you."

Toph snorted. "I doubt he wants to pick a fight with 'im for the hell of it; there's no pride in it."

"Hey…"

"Well, it's true. You have to admit that it's probably just because your family doesn't get along with his."

"Not my fault his dad wants to develop the river…" Aang mumbled a bit resentfully. "But I don't think that's his fault. Maybe…I dunno, maybe he just needs a release. I read in this psychology article-"

"Yeah, whatever. He's just mad at your gramps."

Gyatso wasn't technically Aang's grandpa; he had been adopted by the old man when he was young. But it was easy enough for Katara to envision them being related – both shared a passion for peace, the environment, and martial arts. They were like…deadly hippies. Zuko, on the other hand, lacked all of these qualities from what she saw of him, except for one. He and Aang were practically rivals in the martial arts arena. That had been how the two had first officially met – in a match.

"He's just trying to get under your skin," Toph assured Aang. "He won't do anything until the competition. Just thrash 'im there. Again."

Katara had to smirk at that. He was just sitting there, leaned against his lab table with his arms crossed across his chest, hair dangling into his eyes like he thought he was some kind of dramatic antihero. He glanced up just then, and sharp golden eyes accidentally met her own. His upper lip curled and they both looked away quickly. She was positive that her dislike was so strong that even Toph could feel it on her body without seeing her face.

"Yeah," she couldn't help but add, "again."

Three more grueling classes later and Katara was almost home free. Her last class was easy enough, and probably her favorite – Music. That had been the course title on the schedule, and that had been what it had been referred to for the entire year. She could see why; anything more specific wouldn't do it justice. The funny old teacher taught them everything from the names and styles of classical composers to the basics of writing their own songs. His classroom was brightly decorated and hung with artwork, most of it made by his students to remember them by. The desks were never in rows, just one giant circle.

She walked into the room and deposited her things at her desk, giving the man a greeting. He was the type of teacher who thought outside the box and let his students call him by only his first name, but somehow not many did. There was an element of underlying elegance to his antics that led to most of them attaching a "Mr."

"Hello, Mr. Iroh," called Meng as she scurried into the room, and he gave a nod and a smile in return. He was just a generally loveable, relaxed sort of person, one that students actually felt that they could talk to. No matter how much teachers pushed the idea that a student could talk to them about anything, it took a special one to actually make it true.

The casual ruckus of the classroom died down as the bell rang and Mr. Iroh stepped into the circle of desks.

"We're going to start on a new project today," he began, playfully shooing aside the over exaggerated groans. "It requires no writing, no memorizing. Not even much learning. I simply want you to discover the meaning of a single phrase for me. But what I demand could be exhausting – I want you to think on this phrase obsessively, as you eat, as you read, as you work, as you dream. Think until you discover for yourself what the meaning is."

He grabbed a hat full of slips of paper from the ground, offering one to each student while peering into each of their faces. As Katara reached in, she got the impression that his eyes lingered slightly longer on her's than the others'. Strangely familiar, they were gentle but crafty and wise, ready to issue a challenge that she knew went somehow far beyond schoolwork. She was being dramatic again, wasn't she? She looked down at the hastily torn paper she held in her hands, unfolding it almost reverently. The words seemed to lock in her mind, burning themselves into her consciousness.

Sing me down.

Terms

Solo and Ensemble - Choirs go to these to get critiqued by experts; the way of doing things differs a bit depending on which one you're at but they've got basically the same structure.

Crescendo - Steady increase in volume.

Soprano - A female singer on the higher part of an arrangement, usually the melody.

Drop a review on your way out? It would really make my day, and help me decide if this experiment is worthwhile.