Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar. Seriously.

A/N: I hope you like this.

"Why are we moving, again?" Her crossed voice stabbed at the silence that came with traveling a long distance, when no words were said. Katara's arms folded over her chest as she stared the car window with a huff. The reflection of her crystal blue eyes, mocking her agitation, looked back at her as the trees and grass zoomed past her, leaving a life of a too-temporary three months behind. After her mother's death, they had moved thirteen times within the past eight years. The only thing that kept Katara going was that boy. . .but for two years, she kept calling him. Never answered. After many nights of just wanting to put all the hurt away, the girl had concluded the boy was just an imaginary friend she used to have. It was almost like a curse, a face she couldn't remember, with memories she couldn't forget.

"I've already told you, Katara. I officially retired from the Navy, now, and I decided we should settle down here. Besides, I got a really generous job offer," he said, exasperated. "This is going to be permanent, I promise," Hakoda assured her.

Katara offered her sincere belief with a roll of her eyes. "Yeah, right."

"I am Principal Roku, the head of this academy," the elderly man with long, white hair greeted the siblings as he emerged from the back. The way he smiled, the soft glow in his eyes made himself appear a fair and understanding man, bringing comfort to the adolescents. "It's a pleasure to meet you."

"And I would be Assistant Principal Zhao," behind Roku, his younger male counterpart said darkly, authority solidifying his voice. Sokka shivered, the presence of the man sending chills down his spine.

"I have your schedules here." Roku handed them two different pieces of paper, the one in his left hand going to Sokka, and the other one to Katara. "They are based on your scores and classes from your previous school. If you need any help, or have any questions," Principal Roku continued, "you can ask Mr. Iroh or Mrs. Wu, our guidance counselors." He smiled at them, comforting them in a sense that coming to this school would not be as rough of a transition as they thought it would be. A woman behind him cleared her throat, motioning to the phone. Roku nodded, and looked at the two apologetically. "If you'll excuse me, I have to get back to my regular duties. I do hope you enjoy your experience here at Ember Island Academy." The principal turned and left the room, entering his private office.

"Follow me," Mr. Zhao ordered gruffly, taking immediate command. They followed in step behind him without hesitation. The siblings exchanged glances behind his back, words that couldn't be expressed with lips.

First, they dropped Katara off at her first class: gym.

Oh goody.

"Class," the teacher announced, eyeing the girl with suspicion as she stepped into the room, "we have a new student."

It was as if he had opened a meat buffet to a horde of Sokkas. Each and every student at that moment turned their heads to look at her. Gape at her. Scrutinize her. She fought off the frown forming on her lips, her body tensing under the visual dissection of the students.

"Well, go ahead, introduce yourself," the teacher prompted.

She met eyes with the students that continued to stare at her, then shifted her gaze toward the teacher. "My name is Katara," she replied.

After the gym teacher, known as Coach Pakku, so kindly introduced Katara, the rest of the class she was treated like a newly discovered disease. It had been mere minutes that these people had seen her for the first time, and rumors had already started, making some of the students snicker with mischievous delight, tossing odd looks her way. She grabbed a basketball and went off to play with others that didn't seem as cruel, ignoring the whispers behind her back.

There were three boys that did not laugh, however. Instead, they studied the enchanting young woman with an intense curiosity.

One boy especially in particular seemed interested in her. Wracking his mind constantly, an incessant pestering. She seemed so familiar to him. . .

"Zuko!" the gym teacher shouted, startling the boy out of his daze. Pakku spoke in a calmer, but icy, tone. "At the end of class, show our new student, Miss Katara, around school, would you?"

The young man sighed. After all this time trying to build up his reputation, he was lowered to helping out a freshman.

The bell rang threateningly at the students, startling the teenagers out of their sleepy reveries. Katara stacked her belongings into a drawstring bag, hair in a tight, high ponytail. Her white tanktop was not tight but not loose, peeking underneath her teal hoodie. Strong runner legs were hidden under light grey stonewashed jeans. She slung her bag over her shoulder, turning her face upward to see the guide standing in front of her. Something twisted in her heart at the sight of his face, something familiar. . .but she brushed it away. Katara had already begun to dislike this individual, who had looked at her so strangely.

The adolescent approached her with indifference. His dark hair was shaggy, falling over his face, hiding part of the redness that covered the left side of his face. Zuko was sporting a black t-shirt with silver mesh shorts, always in work out clothes. "Hey." he said, plainly.

She looked at him, and blinked. "Hey."

He met her eyes, a pair he was unable to read, slightly uncomfortable in the situation. "Do you, uh. . ." he trailed off, seeming to figure out what conversation meant.

"What?"

"I mean. . .do you really wanna see this school?"

"Uh, yeah, I guess. Why?"

He sighed, running his fingers through his hair. "Because it's a waste of my time." The tone of his voice was sharp, agitated.

Katara frowned. "I'm so sorry." She said sarcastically, putting her hands on her hips. "I didn't realize I would be such a burden to you."

"Whatever." He grumbled, shuffling out of the gym hallway. He stuffed his hands into his pockets, making his shoulders tilt forward.

They walked through the halls of the academy, neither one saying a word to the other. Unspoken frustration passed between them.

Who was she? he thought.

Who was he? she thought.

But both had one nagging question:

Why is your face so familiar?

In an effort to distract his mind and keep his temper in check, he tried small talk, which Zuko was never good at. Ever. "So, uh, you're a freshman?" he asked, keeping his eyes on the tips of his shoes.

Katara nodded. "Yeah. And what about yourself?"

"Junior." He replied simply.

"Oh," Katara said softly. "Do you like it here?"

"It's okay." He shrugged.

"Alright. . ." This conversation was getting them nowhere. "Do you have a girlfriend?"

"Yes, he does." A voice came from behind, deeper than a woman's voice usually was. Like a pebble washed by the river's caress, it had a coarseness to it, but it flowed smoothly from her lips. She wrapped her arm around his bicep, her eyebrows slightly furrowed at the new girl. He put his arm around her ribs, just above her waist, and leaned in, kissing the top of her head. Looking at Katara, he said, "This is Mai, my girlfriend."

She smiled at the very pale girl, with sleek, onyx hair that fell long around her face. "Hi, Mai. I'm Katara. It's nice to meet you."

"Cool." She drawled, detecting no threat.

People here don't really know what conversation is, do they? Katara thought, chewing the corner of her lip.

"I'm bored." Mai sighed, pulling Zuko's hand. "Let's go. They're probably waiting for us."

Katara wasn't quite positive, but she swore she thought she saw him cringe, ever slightly. "Sure." He looked at her. "I'll see ya later," and he walked alongside Mai, starting a conversation that was out of range of Katara's ears.

"See ya. . ." her mind scrambled for a name that she had heard earlier, one that Pakku had addressed him with.

What was his name?

Suddenly, she felt her book bag ripped off her arm and heard it as it smacked the ground, sliding against the smooth floor all the way down the hallway. Her journals and pencils fell and spun out in all directions, and she whirled around in surprise, her arms up, ready to fight.

"You shouldn't daydream like that here."

Katara's thoughts came in spurts, sudden and furious.

Dark.

Terrifying.

Her eyes, a sparkling gold, just like that boy's.

"Or act like you're going to fight me. You could get in some serious trouble, new girl," the stranger taunted her.

"I can do whatever I want," she spat back with strength hardening her voice.

The girl laughed at her, spitefully, not in the least bit intimidated. Her dark hair framed her flawless face, the rest of her hair pulled in a perfect bun on the top of her head. "You'll find out soon enough." A smirk festered on her ruby lips, "but I wouldn't try finding out, if I were you. Keep a low profile, and I'll consider overlooking your small, pathetic existence." Her darkened eyes narrowed to slits, enough to make the blood in Katara's veins go cold, speaking in a deceptively smooth voice, "Welcome to Ember Island Academy." She turned and walked away, a brunette bouncing up behind her. Wearing a combination of pinks and whites, her hair flowing in loose waves all the way down to her rear, she hiked up her backpack even higher.

"Azula wait!" She called, catching up with the girl who seemed to know every step she took, and every step she would take. Every move, calculated, and precise.

Flawless.

Katara sighed, rubbing her forehead. She turned to her scattered belongings, hooking her index finger around each pencil to clench it close to her palm. Her eyebrows were furrowed in frustration.

Who was she?

"Azula. ." she whispered. The name rung a dark bell for her. Something deep in the back of her mind.

Stay away..

"Don't mind them," a cheery voice piped beside her. He knelt down and picked up each of her journals, stacking them on top of each other and handed them over. He extended his hand out to her, with a smile bright as the sun "Hi. My name's Aang. What's yours?" he asked.

She smiled at her helper, who was probably a foot shorter than her. "Thank you, Aang. I'm Katara.

Sokka entered his least favorite class with a groan, apprehension building up in his throat. He tried to turn around, run out of the class, but Zhao stood in his way like a brick wall, with his arms crossed over his chest. Sokka whimpered, pouting, and with a turn of his body, he walked into the classroom, facing one of his worst fears.

Math.

"Welcome, Sokka," the teacher instructed, "take your seat next to Suki. Suki, raise your hand."

A peach-skinned girl raised her hand into the hair. She had dark brown hair, just like Sokka. Her eyes, which Sokka found utterly captivating, were a cool grayish blue. "Hey," she greeted as he put down his bags by his chair.

"Yo," he acknowledged in his very aloof manner; the fool-proof method in picking up chicks.

"Listen, students. If you'll pull out your journals, we'll begin taking notes now." He put a transparency on the overhead, turned it on. "Kota, turn the lights off."

Sokka took out his notebook, but at wasn't at all interested in taking "notes". Not on math anyway. In fact, he was still staring at this beautiful girl. He had never seen someone so cute as her.

He took out his pencil and wrote across the first line. Hey, do you know when lunch is? In a manner that expressed discreetness, he pushed the notebook over to Suki.

She blinked and frowned, looking at him with slight disapproval. She wrote back, It's 5th period. Two classes from now. Why, are you hungry?

Hell yeah. I'm starving! My sister made me a sub today. I could share some with you if you want ;)

This made her giggle. Wow. Shouldn't you be taking notes, though, Mr. Big and Hungry? It's your first day in class.


Oh believe me, I'm taking notes alright. He turned and wiggled his eyebrows at her, when he saw her eyes scanning what he had written.

She looked at him with confusion. What do you mean?


Oh noth- He stopped and looked up at the teacher that hovered over his desk, looking down at him with a friend. "Are you taking notes, Sokka?"

"Y. . .yes, sir." He started to take real math notes, but as soon as the teacher turned around, he made reindeer antlers with his hands on the sides of his head and stuck his tongue out.


After Class

"Hey, Suki!" Sokka waved to her, in the process of throwing his backpack over his shoulder. "I was thinking, maybe, if you wanted to, we could like. . .have lunch and stuff. . .notlikeadatereally, butonlyifyoureallywantedto," he blurted, "just like, hanging out. . .and stuff?" He gave her a goofy, hopeful smile.

Suki smirked. "Sure, Mr. Big and Hungry."

"So tell me, again, how it is that you are twelve, and still a freshman?" Katara wondered.

"I skipped a grade. Though I'm not alone; my best friend, Toph, who's blind, skipped a grade as well."
Her eyes widened in surprise. "She's blind?" Aang nodded. "Wow, poor girl."

The boy shook his head. "She doesn't like people taking pity on her because she's blind. Her parents do that all the time to her. Really, she doesn't care."

Her expression softened, and a warm smile lifted her lips. Aang's heart skipped a beat at the sight. "That's really, really cool. I'd love to meet her. Actually. . ." She should go looking for that guy from her gym class. She didn't want to get lost again tomorrow, and her tour kind of got interrupted. "I gotta go, but here's my number." They exchanged numbers, and she turned around, almost bumping into someone. "Oh, I'm so sorry-"

"Hey, Katara." An unfamiliar voice came from above, delivered by a wide, cocky grin.