Guitars and Stars: Chapter 4:

Guitars and Stars: Chapter 4: Morning Grins and Groans

A/N: Hi peoples.

In case you were confused:

Summer's just begun. I Hate Creepy Songs took place on a Saturday sometime in early June.

Aang/Toph- going to be 11th graders

Katara- going to be 12th grader

Zuko/Sokka- going to 1st year of College

That is all.

ATLA

SOKKA PoV

I looked down and blinked. Was I… was I wearing a coat? It obviously looked gray to me…but it also looked eerily familiar. Like…the one from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Hmm, interesting.

A swarm of Oompa Loompa's ran up to me. "Sokka Wonka!" They called. "Sokka Wonka! Sokka Wonka! The chocolate river is broken! Sokka! Sokka!"

Suddenly the Oompa Loompa's started sounding less like Oompa Loompa's and more like…Katara.

I opened my eyes and promptly shut them again. I rolled over. In the second my eyes were opened, I saw a sight I hated. My sister, wet and wrapped in a towel. I honestly tried to avoid seeing her like that…it was super gross. 'Cause under that towel she was…you know…naked.

She shook me. "Sokka. I know you're awake. You need to get out of bed."

I opened my mouth wide and groaned, covering my head with my blanket.

"Okay Sokka. Be that way. Just so you know though, Aang and Zuko will be here in twenty minutes."

Twenty minutes? Why'd she get me up! I could still be sleeping. I pulled the blanket further over my head. "Come get me in ten."

Katara's eyebrows just about shot off her head. "You're going to get ready and eat in ten minutes?"

"Yes. We don't all need to primp for an hour like you. Now, GO. AWAY. The sound of you're voice is making it hard to pretend you're not there."

"I don't primp for an hour. It's more like 40 minutes."

"Welllll, Excuse me for being bad at math. GO!"

"Fine!" Katara stormed out of my bedroom and slammed the door.

I yawned and sat up. She was gone, but there was no way I'd be getting back to sleep after that annoying squabble.

After lazily throwing on jeans, sneakers and a hoodie, I slumped downstairs and put on a pot of coffee. It was going to be a long day. I knew that besides me, Toph would probably...no, would… need some coffee too.

I reached into the refrigerator and pulled out one of my many already made PB&J sandwiches.

I took a bite and grabbed my cellphone. Zuko always had his with him, so I called him instead of Aang. "Hey." I said, smacking my mouth, trying to coax the Peanut Butter down.

"What?"

"You at Aang's?"

"Yeah…we're leaving now. We'll be there in five-ish."

"Cool."

I pressed the red "end" button. My next call was to Toph. I wanted to make sure she was close to alive by the time we got to her house. Needless to say, Toph was not a morning person.

Toph's family butler picked up the phone. "Bei Fong Residence, CEO's of Flying Boar Family Shopping Association and Store Chain. How can I be an assistance to you?"

"Er…Toph?"

"If you would hold for just a moment. Please. I will retrieve Miss Bei Fong."

"Uh…yeah."

Talking to her butler always made me feel weird. He was from Ireland and had a heavy accent. Plus he talked weird…

There was silence and then I heard, "I'm going to KILL who's ever calling me this early!"

Shit. "Hiya…Toph."

"Is this Sokka?"

I nodded. "I mean, yeah."

"Oh god. Did you just nod? Sokka! We're on the phone for Pirate's sake."

"Well…yah know… I'm really bad at-…Pirate's sake?"

"You're missing the point! It's EARLY!"

"Wait…I thought we were talking about my nodding problem."

"You're very frustrating. I hope you know."

"Katara tells me all the time."

"Well, that's one thing that Katara and I can- STOP DISTRACTING ME! I'm going back to bed."

"Toph! Wait!"

"…Fine."

"We'll be at your house soon. I'm bringing coffee."

"Good. Great. Awesome. Cool. BED."

I heard the dial tone.

"Well that was an effective conversation." I mumbled.

Katara entered the kitchen and began rummaging for something to eat, "What was an effective conversation?"

I set my phone down on the counter. "Nothing. Just talkin' to Toph."

Katara turned around just to glare at me. It was creepy. "Are you insane!? Do you have an early death wish!? You called Toph? At," She glanced at the clock. "7 in the morning! What the heck is wrong with you?"

"I just wanted to make sure she was ready when we got there."

I sat down at the kitchen table and started reading the business section of the Newspaper.

Katara sat across from me and grabbed the "Local Sports" section.

"Well Whadda ya know!" Katara squealed.

I scowled at her over the Paper. "What."

"Haru qualified for the Junior Olympics."

"How splendid for Haru…I don't really care."

"I think it's really cool. Someone from our school being in the Olympics."

"First of all, It's the Junior Olympics…and second, neh." I stuck out my tongue and continued reading.

"You're just pissed 'cause you used to better than Haru until you broke your leg last year."

I set my paper down and made a "Don't even" face at her. "No."

"Yes." Katara smirked. Her "I know more than you do" smirk.

"No."

"Yes."

"No."

"Yes. It is."

"No. It is not."

"Yes!"

"N-!"

I was cut off with a yell of, "Katara! Sokka! Shut. Up."

"Zuko?"

"Yes. Now quit fighting and load your stuff in the cars."

"Where are you?" I looked absently around the kitchen. "Hello?"

Zuko appeared in the archway. "Are you retarded? Where'd you think I was? Hanging from the ceiling?"

I chuckled to myself. "Ninja Zuko. Ha. Secret Agent Zuko. Ha. Spider Zuko. Ha."

Zuko looked over at Katara. "Is he always this weird in the morning?"

"Yeah." Katara smiled, slinging a backpack over her shoulder. "He's adopted or something."

Zuko looked at the still laughing me, then Katara. "I can understand that. Now come on you two. Let's go."

I grabbed my stuff off of the floor and on my way out of the kitchen, I ran into my grandmother.

She tilted her head and gave me a forceful smile. "Be nice to your sister."

"Yeah Gran. I will."

She arched her eyebrows. "You better."

"I said I-"

She put her finger to my lips. "Shh. No more. Just do it."

I nodded and pushing back a smile, acted frightened.

She removed her finger, "Go, have fun."

KATARA PoV

I slathered on some more lip-gloss and walked out the front door. Outside, leaning against his car, was Aang. He was twirling his keys on his finger, absent-mindedly. I smiled knowingly when I saw the orange converse on his feet. "Hey Aang!" I called, waving.

He suddenly perked up; the keys went flying from his hands and came to a crash on…Zuko's red Hummer. Aang's eyes went wide as he saw Zuko coming out the door behind me, Sokka in tow.

He scrambled onto the hood, desperately reaching for the keys. He grabbed the keys, and thankfully, there were no scratches on the paint. Still, he was sprawled on Zuko's hood…with Zuko looking right at him.

Zuko placed his hand on my shoulder. "What's he doing?"

I shrugged.

Zuko walked over to the Hummer, crouching over, his face right in front of Aang's. "What. Are you doing?"

Aang shoved his face into the car. He rubbed his cheek against it as if it were something fuzzy. "I'm just admiring your amazing finish. It's so precise. So smooth."

Zuko rolled his eyes. "Oh. Of course. …You're a strange Kid."

Aang hopped of his hood. "Thank you. Er…Katara?"

I was in a daze. "…Wha-Yeah?"

"You want me to take your stuff?" He pointed to my backpack.

"Oh…yeah, sure."

He took the bag and put in the trunk.

XXX-XXX

Sokka, Aang, Zuko and I all stood on the Front Porch.

Sokka broke our silence. "Sooo…should we go get Toph now?"

We all cringed, thinking of what that had in store for us.

"Well," Aang said, smiling vibrantly. "We should. We're gonna have to do it some time anyway. Better sooner than later…right?"

We slowly made our way to the edge of the road, by the cars.

Zuko took a swig of the Pepsi in his hand. "We leavin' or what?"

He carelessly tipped the can over, a drip coming out. He chucked the can into the road, and turned to go towards his driver's seat.

A hand shot out of nowhere and grabbed his sleeve. The hand was Aang's. "Zuko. You should really go get that and recycle it…it's soo awful for the environment, for animals…for everything."

Zuko sighed.

Aang continued, hoping to get to him somehow, "And if saving the earth isn't enough incentive for you…they just raised the littering fine to a thousand dollars."

Aang raised his eyebrows hopefully.

Zuko sighed again.

"Zuko," He pleaded. "Please? Do you even understand where I'm coming from? This could hurt the world!"

Sokka groaned. "Zuko! Just go get the damn can so we can leave."

"Fine," Zuko grumbled. "But only so we can leave."

Aang grinned contently. "Just think about it Zuko. Now you know, so you won't have to do it again! You'll just recycle it next time and all will be good."

"Right," Zuko mumbled. "Of course."

We got in our respective cars and headed for the Bei Fong Estate.

XXX-XXX

TOPH PoV

"Miss Toph. You're friends are here."

Fuck. "Okay."

I rolled off my bed, my feet making contact with the floor. I grabbed my pillow and threw on a pair of flip-flops.

I trudged down the stairs and could hear voices. My mother was questioning and lecturing my friends.

"Now, Children. How much time are you actually spending outdoors? Dear Tophie has a fragile airway and mustn't be around too much dirt."

There was a snort from Zuko. "Really? Dear Tophie has a fragile airway? Because some things that come out of her mouth aren't exactly delicate."

My mother gasped. "What do you mean by-?"

I yawned loudly, cutting my mother off.

Everyone's attention was now on me. "Are we gonna leave or what?"

"Aren't you…aren't you going to get dressed?" Katara asked me, almost in dismay.

I raised an eyebrow. "I'm wearing clothes, aren't I?"

"I suppose…but you look so…messy."

My mother had already left the room but was eavesdropping and called, "Toph! Go put on one of your pretty sundresses!"

I groaned, while the others giggled. "NO Mom."

I turned back to Katara, " I don't need to primp like you."

SOKKA PoV

Katara's mouth went wide; she looked at Toph, then me.

"Wha-How-You-…" She sputtered.

I shrugged. "We both have a distaste for your excessive grooming."

"You- you talk about me!?"

I shrugged once more. "We talk about everything."

"Well!" Katara huffed. "I'll be outside!"

"Great," Aang mumbled, rubbing his temples. "She's gonna be like that the whole ride now. Thanks Toph."

Toph grinned at him. "Hey, don't give me all the credit. Sokka helped."

Zuko covered his mouth and nodded.

Aang groaned. "Whatever. It's gonna be a long ride."

He slowly made his way outside, dragging his feet the whole way.

Zuko took his hand off his mouth and burst into laughter. "I really thought this trip was going to be an insane amount of lameness…but it might actually be ok…"

Toph laughed too. "Especially now that Katara's pissed as hell."

Toph's mother appeared. "Toph? Did you just say that? Those…those naughty words?"

I grabbed Toph's hand. "No Mrs. Bei Fong. That was… Zuko." I pointed sharply in his direction, as if I was tattling.

He slowly inched backwards towards the door. "Yes," Inch. "I did," Inch. "It was," Inch. "Me." On the last word, Zuko bolted out the door in a mad dash to his Hummer. Mrs. Bei Fong had strict policies for swearing in her home. Which was ironic because Toph's language around us was very…colorful.

So now it was the three of us. Toph; half asleep, holding my hand and her pillow, Mrs. Bei Fong; arms crossed harshly over her chest, tapping her foot in a very irritated manner, and Me; awkwardly shifting on my feet.

We stood like that for a moment; Mrs. Bei Fong staring at us and us (me) looking at our feet uncomfortably.

Toph then made a break for the door, but was stopped because she was still holding my hand. She gave a pull, jerking me forward. "Come on, you noodlecake. Let's GO." She motioned her head nonchalantly at her mother.

"Oooooh." I willingly followed her out the door.

The tables turned then, with me leading her to Zuko's hummer.

I sat next to Zuko in the passenger's seat and Toph layed down across the back seat.

She shoved her head into the pillow. "See ya in four hours!"

I spun around in my seat, facing her. "What? You're going to sleep the whole time?"

"Dufe. Soffa. If's Eighf. I life my sleef. Shuff your fafe and leaf me alone." Toph's head never lifted from the pillow, her words were muffled and hard to understand.

I looked at Zuko, confused.

He shrugged and I decided I didn't want to get into it. "Ok Toph. You do that."

"SHUFF YO FAFE!"

"Ok, sorry. Have a good nap."

"FAFE!"

XXX-XXX

AANG PoV

We'd been driving for about an hour and Katara's cookies had come in handy. But it turned out; I didn't eat a single one. Katara ate the whole batch, but I was still grateful. It lightened her mood, which was good for me.

It was a wonderful day. We couldn't have asked for a better one. The sun was shinning brightly, but it wasn't hot. It was sunny and a comfortable glowing warm. The clouds were puffy and soft looking. They were sprinkled across the sky, clumped together in some spots with clear, baby blue sky showing in between.

I was smiling; A wide and light smile that was hurting my cheeks. But it hurt in a good way, I was just…happy.

Since Sokka was our "Camping Plan/Idea-Guy", he had the directions. Zuko, Sokka and Toph were in the lead, my car following.

Ahead of me, I saw Zuko's hand pop out of his window.

A quick second later, I saw a brown wrapper go flying by my window.

I turned to Katara, trying to piece a sentence together. "Did you-…I just-…was that-…Eh, gosh…Zuko!"

Katara titled her head at me, a look of concern crossing her features. "Aang…What did Zuko do?"

"He…He…"

"Breathe Aang."

I took a hasty breath. "Zuko littered. AGAIN. This time it was his Snickers wrapper."

"Well…" Katara paused for a moment, thoughtful.

KATARA PoV

I wasn't sure what I could do to help Aang. When he got like this, I didn't know how to handle it. His passion for the environment was strong, something I didn't connect with. I understood it and respected it…but the same drive just wasn't there. "Why don't you call him…and talk…about it?"

He sighed, shaking his head. "If I tried Zuko would just shut me down without hearing me out. And plus, it's against the law."

"Oh. I see. Yeah. You're right."

There was silence between us. I was wondering what he was thinking. I really wanted to make sure he was okay. I didn't like the unhappy Aang.

I looked at him empathetically. "Aang, if anything's bothering you…Well, I know you and Zuko are," I thought for a moment. "Different people. You have different views on things and think in a diverse way. You're both great but…if anything about him is troubling you…let it out. Tell me. Now. Just, get it out of your system so there are no hard feelings between the two of you later."

He rubbed his hand across the top of his hair. "I don't know Katara. I guess it can't hurt…but…"

I looked at him softly. "You want to…and you should, do it."

"Fine…He just seems to have no passion. There's no fire in him. I look at him and see blah. He's just so…normal. He claims to live for diving, but he's never training…he…"

His voice trailed off.

Just when I thought he was calmed down, Aang started talking again. Faster and louder than before. "And…and he hurts the environment! I tell him! I tell him all the time! He agrees at the moment, but it's an on-going thing! I'm out all the time trying to make the world a better place. Zuko should start with himself. He should change himself! And plus. HE DRIVES A HUMMER!"

Aang looked furious. He began gritting his teeth and his face flushed with a boiling red. "It's INSANITY! What's the point of me having a hybrid, if there's people like Zuko who harm the earth with their fuckin' hummers!"

My eyes widened. Did Aang just swear? I've seen him get riled up about the environment before, but, gosh, he must be really angry to swear.

I chanced a glance at him. "That's it…isn't it Aang? His Hummer's been bothering you. It's brand-new…"

"I guess. I really haven't gotten used to it…that could be the underlying problem."

"Well…that's good. See? We made some progress. You won't be angry now."

Aang took a slow breath. "I…sure."

XXX-XXX

ZUKO PoV

I heard a groan from behind me as Toph woke up. She blinked her eyes and sat up. She sluggishly fastened her seatbelt. "How much longer…"

Sokka was enthralled with his map, and hadn't noticed her stirring. I replied for him, "3 Hours…it hasn't been that long. You should go back to sleep."

Yeah. That's good. That's what he'd say.

Toph rolled her visionless eyes at me. "Nah. I sat up for a reason. Are you having stupid problems?"

"Noo. Why?"

She shrugged. "No reason actually. You just sound dumber than usual, not that you usually sound smart or any-."

"TOPH! You're awake!" Sokka dropped his map on the floor, turned and smiled at her. "Have a good nap?"

"Remember my previous response Sokka."

He turned around.

"Good." Toph continued talking to me, "So…anything interesting around? What's going on in the world?"

I sped up a little, hoping Aang would get the hint and catch up. The kid was a good driver, but when he went into Daydream mode, he slowed down a bit. "We're passing a farm…"

"Boring."

"There's a dark brown cow…"

"And? Colors don't help…"

"It could be making chocolate milk."

"I'm not five Zuko."

"Well…there's a truck in front of us from "SOZIN'S CABLE TV"."

"Sozin…as in…you and Azula?"

"Used to be me…but Yeah… You can tell because it's got one of those obnoxious, "Want better Cable? Tell me how I'm driving." stickers."

A smile erupted onto Toph's face. "No. Frickin'. Way."

"Uh…yes?"

"LET'S CALL IT!"

XXX-XXX

A/N: SOKKA WONKA FTW!

Yes, The Bei Fong's own a Wal-mart-esk store chain, thus they are loaded.

Yes, The Sozin's (Azula, Ozai) own a Cable TV company, thus they are also loaded.

For the record: I think Zuko's fine the way he is…don't get all hatin'.

I'm going to have loads of fun writing the calling scene.

Katara ate the whole batch--Cookies do amazing, amazing things.

This is my re-write. I started this chapter and it was shit. Really, it was so incredibly suck-ish and I'm happy I did re-write it because this is definitely better.

So…everyone is different in the morning. I am very much like Toph. I'm like…LET ME SLEEP! I just…ugh. Morning.

Dude, I totally realized that there's an innuendo in there…two, if you have a nasty mind…can you find them?

Now that I finished this chapter, guess what I'm gonna do. Go watch DuckTales. I'm having this strange urge.

I just wanted to warn you: Time between updates might/probably will begin to slow down. Obviously school is coming up. And…I have swim practice 6 days a week…plus homework and Girl Scouts so… just tellin'. I will not abandon this story though; I lovez it too much.

(XX)

I be lovin' the reviews and any constructive criticism you have is also welcome. Thank you all so much.

-Mandi (Toruh)