What I Learned at SRU -36-

A/N: This will be the last chapter I write before I move from western New York to the San Francisco Bay Area. Expect a bit of a break - or at least a slowdown in chapter frequency. But, on the other hand, this Aang-centric chapter is twice as long as usual and focuses on a number of different characters.

What I Learned at SRU
Chapter 36 - Forceful

- Monday, November 29th, 2010 -

The bar was quiet, nearly empty on this Monday evening. His face was warm but he wanted more. He tapped the counter.

"Oy," bemoaned the bartender. "'Nother round? What's got yoose so wound up, eh, Longshot?" He grabbed the shot glass and filled it with care, eyeing his leader suspiciously as he slid the tiny glass back. Longshot's brows popped up and back down, and Sneers sighed. "I hear ya, Boyo. Times are nutso."

Longshot slammed the shot down his throat, coughing from the burn and pounding his chest.

"If I didn' know any bettah, I'd t'ink yoose was still 'ung up on a girl."

The corner of Johnny's mouth twitched as he stared, bleary-eyed, at the countertop below him.

"'Course, I know bettah den dat," Sneers facetiously added. "No woman's wort' dat kind o' trouble, am I right? Speakin' of, any word on how Cherry's doin'?"

Longshot nodded his head slowly with a gentle toss of the hand.

"Ah, so she's all right, den. Pretty banged up, she was. Good t'ing you wasn't 'ere dat night. Woulda been some hell."

"It'll come," Johnny sighed, fingers pinching his throbbing temples.

"Yoose know, Johnny..." Sneers turned up the volume on the TV at the end of the counter for the lone customer sitting at its edge. "Witchoo bein' so...not troubled by Smelly an' all, and very much troubled wit' dis Rhino problem...might be a good idea to see if she's int'rested in enlistin' again, huh? I ain't nevah seen such work wit' a knife. Da girl's a bonafied ahr-teest."

Johnny acknowledged Sneers' claim with a single nod.

"How's 'bout we get dat talent back up in 'ere, huh? She looked pretty broken up 'bout...ehm...dat, uh...break up. Could be just da t'ing to kindle dose fires, Longshot. Love on da battlefield, n' all dat. Yoose know what I'm talkin' about."

Longshot offered no response at all - not even any facial twitches.

"Just a t'ought, Johnny. Dose whackjobs she's runnin' wit' nowadays is makin' her soft. Nevah liked dat one girl - Jet's ex, I mean. Always rubbed me da wrong way. And look what she did to da poor guy. She's gonna ruin ol' Smelly, too. Just yoose watch. Dat girl's trouble."

Johnny sighed, rolling his eyes.

"Yoose t'ink I'm kiddin'," observed Sneers. "It's crazies like dat girl what makes people go all squishy."

Sneers was treated to a raised eyebrow from his leader.

"Ahhmmm...Meant, eh...like...She's all lollipops n' unicorns. Real pussy-like. I can jus' see it in Smelly's eyes, Johnny. She's goin' pussy on us. It's all dat one girl's fault. Puh." Sneers tossed up his arms. "But whadda I know, doh, right? Like I says: no woman's wort' dat kind o' trouble."

Johnny tapped his finger against the bar beside his glass, signalling his desire for more.

"This one is."

- Tuesday, November 30th, 2010 -

"I've got it, Twinkles." Toph set her plastic cup on the dispenser's drain, sliding her fingers across the brail print over the buttons. She aligned the cup with her desired choice and pressed the button down. As it dispensed her juice, she huffed out, "See? Under control."

"O-OK...You want me to, uhh...help carry your-?"
"No, Twinkle-Toes! I'm fine. OK?"

Toph set her plastic cup onto her tray and grabbed its edges with care, lifting it off the counter.

"Let's go," she announced with brisk determination.

Aang was perplexed as Toph marched right past him, heading out to the cafeteria floor. Aang followed her to where she had stopped, mere steps out.

"Um...So where are we sitting?" she wondered.

Aang cautiously grabbed her arm, easing her to follow him as he led her to the nearest table, where Katara, Sokka, and Suki sat. He noticed some of Toph's dark grape juice had splashed out of the cup and onto her tray, but dared not verbalize this.

"Hey, guys!" chirped Katara.

Aang waved to her with some reluctance while Toph set her tray down, sliding into the booth.

"Hi, Toph," greeted Suki - this being their first encounter since being back at school. Toph replied with a simple hum.

As Aang sat down beside her, a single bowl in hand, Katara shot him a concerned glance.

"So what's up with you guys today?" Sokka asked, his plate empty save for a couple of chunks of pizza crust.

"I've been getting a lot of practice done," Toph immediately replied, scooping up some mac and cheese. "Lot more work to do, though."

"There always is," agreed Suki, shuffling her salad around.

Aang shrugged, chewing into his vegetable sandwich - a concoction Sokka believed to be against the laws of nature.

"Speaking of..." Suki motioned her fork to Katara. "You should get in touch with Jane - we should all go through our set list this week. I'm going to try and get us a show somewhere soon."

Aang could swear he heard Toph, food in her mouth, huff through her nostrils while Katara agreed.

"Sure, that sounds great. Maybe Wednesday night?"

"That'd be good, Katara."

"Does that work for you, Toph?"

"I guess."

"All right. Yea, Suki, I'll find out if that works with Jane and get back to you."

"Great."

"That'd be sweet," Sokka chimed in. "You ladies have only had the one performance so far, right?"

"Mm-hm." Suki scooped up leafy greens and tucked them between her lips.

"You guys were so awesome," complimented Aang.

"We were OK," Toph muttered in dismissal.

"We've been practicing ever since," was Katara's optimistic approach. "If we keep at it, we'll sound better the next time we're out there."

Aang feared another negative reaction from Toph but was relieved when Sokka contributed, taking away any opportunity.

"Exactly. It's a process - you just keep at it."

"Speaking of," groaned Suki, "I have some calculus homework due tomorrow that I still haven't finished. And you...-" She stabbed his pectoral with an accusing finger. "-...have a research paper to do."

"Ehhhh..." Sokka's eyes spun around in their sockets. "It's not due until Friday."

"And you'd better start it now or else it'll turn out like garbage," Suki suggested.

"Just because you're right doesn't mean I have to agree with you," Sokka defied, kissing her on the cheek. "Let's head out, then." Chairs shuffled and trays were scooped up. "Have a good night, guys."

"Later." Aang tipped his head.
"Study hard, Sokka." Katara waved.

Toph fed herself another spoonful of mac and cheese.

"Uh...S-so, Toph," Katara mumbled, her fingers drumming along the table's surface. "Been spending a lotta time in the music building, I guess?"

"Yep."

"That going well?"

"Sure is."

"When's the big recital?"

"Dunno. Forgot."

"Oh. Well...I can't wait to hear it."

"I can't wait to get it over with."

"Heh...Y-yea, I bet."

Aang was thrown off by their imbalanced interaction. Katara must have been, as well, as she shifted her attention, biting her lip.

"And...that reminds me, Aang...Don't you have some stuff going up in the gallery soon?"

"I'm not sure," Aang confessed. "I'm gonna submit a couple of pieces to the show going on, but...we'll see if anything gets in."

"Oh. Right." Katara nodded quickly, the loops of hair on her head bobbing around. They were pretty adorable and suddenly hard to not notice. Aang couldn't recall the last time she had worn her hair that way, as it had been a while, but decided in that moment that they looked quite appropriate on her. "I'm sure you'll get something in," Katara assured. "Your stuff's really good."

"Thanks."

"It probably is," Toph grumbled. "But my opinion wouldn't do ya much good, would it?"

"Hey..." Aang slid his hand over her thigh and rubbed his palm across it. "I'm sorry, Taters."

"Don't be," Toph calmly insisted. "I'm not."

She patted the top of his wrist and eased his hand off of her, much to Aang's dismay. As she filled herself with more food, Aang followed suit, noticing Katara's empty plate. He met her eyes and she flashed him a look that read, 'What's going on?' Without really intending to, Aang's distraught eyes replied, 'I have no idea.'

"Um...I guess I should be going, too," murmured Katara, lifting herself from the table. "I've got a lot of reading, but...Toph, we should take a break tonight when you get back, don't you think? We haven't been able to spend time together since before break."

"We'll see."

Toph's nonchalant tone pricked at Katara's spirit - Aang could detect it in those sapphire eyes of hers. And here he had thought the two of them had been doing fine and it was just him Toph was acting weird toward.

"Y-yea, that sounds good, then," Katara managed. "I'll, um...See you later, guys."

Aang offered Katara a sympathetic wave, and she nodded in return, hurrying off. The couple spent a few minutes in silence focused on their meal.

"So...I'm guessing you're heading to the music building after this," theorized Aang.

"Yea. I was wanting to spend some time with you, actually."

"Oh...?"

"Yea. I'll take you to my practice room and show you the stuff I've been working on."

"Sure. All right." Perhaps some time together could help shed some light on what was going on.

Aang's heart was pounding in his chest, Toph's mischievous grin gleaming at him. She had him pinned on the floor against the wall in the corner of her tiny practice room, beside the piano. She was bent on her knees in the space between his spread legs, his hands latched around her waist. Their chests were pressed together, lips joined. As they kissed, Toph ran her hands from Aang's neck to his head, tossing off his newsboy cap when it interfered. Aang slid his fingertips around Toph's tanktop straps, massaging her bare shoulders.

Toph shifted her approach, kissing his neck and groping at his wrists. As she moved from his neck to his ears, she planted his palms against her bosoms before gripping his hips, leaning her weight to the side and in effect toppling the two of them to the ground. As Toph wrapped her legs around Aang's, he feared that his heart would burst from his ribcage, her abdomen beginning to grind against his own. His own abdomen, in turn, seemed to involuntarily reciprocate the gesture.

Aang's body was at once highly aroused and somewhat nauseous. By the time Toph had initiated french kissing on top of all of this, he couldn't bear the stimulation of it all, pulling his mouth away and removing his hands from her body. He lamented watching Toph's sneaky, satisfied smile wither into an impatient frown.

"What?" Toph growled with some irritation.

"Sorry," sighed Aang. "I'm...I dunno. I guess I'm not in the mindset for this..."

He flinched as Toph grabbed at his tingling nether region.

"Part of you begs to differ," was the sly counter Aang was given. This was entirely accurate, and Aang's blood still rushed through his body at the sensation of her proximity.

"I'm just not comfortable with...with doing that sort of thing today..." Aang wiped his hair back over his head, rubbing saliva from his ear lobe.

With a huff, Toph pushed her bangs from her face and sat up, thoroughly displeased.

"It's not like it's anything we haven't done before," she grumbled.

"I-I know..." Aang scrambled to sit back up, his back against the wall again. "But today you're just being kind of...-" He trailed off with a shrug she couldn't see.

"Spit it out," Toph insisted.

"K-kind of forceful," Aang completed his thought, dismayed when Toph's head sagged with an incredulous sigh. "I'm sorry," he added with haste. "I...W-we can still...do stuff, just, uh...mmmmaybe not stuff like that. Today, I mean."

"Whatever."

Toph crawled over to her piano bench and sat herself into it, tugging a displaced bra strap back into its proper allignment. She sat up straight, hands neatly folded in her lap, poised to begin playing.

"Uhh...Did...What did you want to...-?" Aang fumbled for some kind of resolution to re-establish comfort.

"I need to practice," Toph stated clearly and with some cold disappointment.

"Oh...Right. Yea, that'd be nice to listen to."

"No. I need to practice alone." Aang tried to study her profile to get a read on what was going on. She was certainly annoyed with him, though he didn't feel he was in the wrong.

"Huh?"

"I practice better when I'm alone."

"I-I'll be quiet, I won't say anyth-"
"Doesn't matter."

Aang paused, staring at her with furrowed brows, frustrated with her on/off demeanor that day.

"I thought you wanted to take me here so I could hear you practice," Aang pointed out, shoving his hat on. Toph didn't acknowledge this statement as Aang rose to his feet. "You didn't want to practice your music at all, did you?" Aang pieced her motive together, again getting no response. "You coulda just said so in the first place," he grumbled. "You know how I don't like just...just suddenly doing that kind of thing. If you just tell me that's what you want to do, at least then I-"
"Kinda can't practice with you flappin' your mouth," Toph briskly dismissed him.

"So that's it, then?" Aang tossed his arms out. "You're just gonna kick me out 'cuz I'm not in the mood for..."

"You're never in the fuckin' mood, Aang. How do you know if you like something when you never try it?"

"It's not so easy for me!" Aang defended.

"Nothing is, is it?"

"Wh-?" Aang was appalled at her stinging words.

"Everything's gotta be all nice and clean and simple or else it's too much for you to handle."

"You're obviously all cranky about stuff with your parents," concluded Aang, deciding right there that this conversation wasn't worth continuing at this rate. "I know things didn't go well, Toph. Not that you'll tell me about it."

"Maybe 'cuz it's none of your business."

"How is that none of my...-?" Aang wanted to explode at her with his pent up aggrevation but took a deep breath, clutching his hat tightly, and calmed himself. "Why won't you just talk with me about everything?"

"You're wasting my time. I have to work on my music."

"OK. Fine." Aang begrudgingly pulled on his winter jacket, a poofy white coat. He glared at the back of Toph's head as he tugged up the zipper. "I put your walking stick by th-"
"I know where it is."

Shaking his head, Aang dug one hand deep in his coat pocket and opened the sound-proof door with the other.

"Good night."

"Bye."

- Wednesday, December 1st, 2010 -

Sprawled across his bed, Aang diligently read through his art history textbook, phone at his side. It had taken all afternoon, but he finally got a response back to a message he had sent earlier. The girl in question was one he had met through Facebook, noticing the comments she'd periodically leave for Katara and Sokka. As it turned out, she was a family relation - an older cousin who lived in Toronto. The two had been exchanging Facebook quips for a month or so by now, and had recently exchanged numbers.

[From: Korra]
[ugh that sucks, man. sounds like she needs a punch in the face. anyway, i wish i coulda come to visit you guys over break.]
[Sent: 5:46pm]

[Reply]
[To: Korra]
[yea its too bad. maybe next time? sokka says he wants us to come again for xmas. if we do you can meet my gf too. maybe she'll be in a better mood. ]
[Sent: 5:47pm]

[From: Korra]
[my cousin says a lotta stuff, so i guess we'll see. how's uncle hakoda, btw?]
[Sent: 5:48pm]

[Reply]
[To: Korra]
[he seemed like he was ok. hes great. really like him.]
[Sent: 5:48pm]

[From: Korra]
[right? he's awesome. he seems lonely these days so that's cool he had company.]
[Sent: 5:49pm]

[Reply]
[To: Korra]
[well i gotta go to work now but good hearin from ya.]
[Sent: 5:53pm]

[From: Korra]
[peace out aang!]
[Sent: 5:55pm]

Aang was having trouble getting a good read on the girl. He felt like he hardly knew a thing about her, really, but was intrigued to learn more. So far, the Kesuks had a perfect track record for being people he liked, after all: three for three. Maybe this would make four for four?

After getting situated at his job managing the refreshment desk at the school's gym, Aang picked up on his reading, only to be greeted after a few minutes by a sweaty Haru who had just finished a session of simulated rock climbing, his hair pulled back in a ponytail. Aang couldn't help but grin at the mustache that had been gradually forming itself on his fello dorm mate's face.

"Hey, Leekpai, what's goin' on?"

"Hey." Aang closed his thick book and set it aside, focusing attention on the customer before him. "What can I get ya?"

"Like you gotta ask," joked Haru.

"Peanut M&M's, then..." Aang had already reached back for the yellow bag as he had asked the question in anticipation of the answer. After calculating the simple sale, Aang gave a "There ya go," but Haru lingered, tearing open his bag.

"So, Aang. Dude. Katara's been tellin' me your girlfriend's been actin' weird."

"She did?"

"Yea, man. Yea. What's goin' on there?"

"Oh, it...It's complicated."

"Ha. Always is." He popped some candy into his mouth.

"Toph's dealing with some family stuff, and then on top of that there's the end of semester, and...-" Aang waved his hand. "-...everything. Just a lot going on."

"Is she, like, pissed off at Kat or something?"

"What do you mean?"

"The way Katara told me, it sounded like Toph's being a total 'B.'" Another round of M&M's clattered from Haru's hand into his mouth.

"Oh. No, no...I don't think it has to do with Katara. She's acting like that to everybody."

"Mm." Crunching on his snack, Haru contemplated the situation.

"I wish I knew what the issue was," Aang lamented with a shrug. "She's starting to really get on my nerves..."

"Wow. That takes a lot," Haru observed.

A melancholy smirk wandered onto Aang's face and he nodded, cracking open his textbook.

"I guess. Yea."

"All right. Well...Just thought I'd check in on ya, Dude."

"Thanks, Haru."

"Seriously, man."

"Huh?" Aang looked up from his page. Haru shot him a solemn expresion, complimented by an equally serious tone.

"You look totally stressed and stuff. Try to take it easy, Bro."

"I will."

"Later!"

"Yup."

Some time passed during his evening shift, an after he had wrapped up his reading he moved onto web browsing, occupying his time with a physics-based, puzzle web-browser game.

"Hey, Aang!"

Aang glanced up to see Suki bundled in a winter coat smiling back at him.

"Hi, Suki..."

"Everything OK?"

Aang sighed to himself. Second person in a row now who seemed concerned just by looking at him. Did he really seem that out of it?

"Yea, I'm good. Tired."

"Stressed?"

"Oh yea."

"Sorry to hear it."

"It's OK."

Another student stepped up to the counter, and Suki and her exchanged greeting smiles.

"Could I get a Kit-Kat please?" the blonde politely requested.

"Sure."

Aang completed the transaction as Suki inquired about his girlfriend.

"So is Toph doing OK? We're supposed to be practicing tonight and I haven't gotten confirmation that she's actually going to show."

"Have a good day," Aang nodded to the customer, waving her off, before redirecting his focus to Suki. "Uhh..." He rubbed the back of his neck and shrugged. "Got me, Suki. I don't know. Honestly."

"That busy, huh?" She lifted a brow, the other furrowing in that same concerned way everyone's seemed to have been that day.

"Yea. Totally."

"She seemed...kind of off yesterday. Or was that just me?"

"Oh, no. It wasn't just you."

"What's going on? Sokka said she's going through some family problems...?"

"Basically," Aang shrugged. "She's being real quiet about it. Even I don't know the deal."

"Wow. Weird." Suki shook her head. "Sorry, Aang. I'm sure things will work out, though. Toph seems like the kind of person who just needs some time with this kind of thing."

"Yea. You're probably right..."

"Well...Good luck with your schoolwork, then. I hope you can get something in that art show! I'm sure I'll see you around."

"Definitely. Thanks. Have fun at practice tonight."

More time sailed by, more customers were served, and toward the end of his shift, Aang's attention moved to his Facebook page, only to notice a new request: Meng Beifong.

[Meng Beifong December 1st at 6:34pm]
[HEY! it's toph's cousin from the vid chat! how's everythin going? i hope toph's ok. even tho she been mad w/her parents i bet it's still hard to just leave like that you know? now she's on her own n stuff so you better take good care of her!]
[Confirm]

Aang puffed out a discouraged sigh, his chin in his palm, while he considered the ramifications of Meng's message. It made sense of her change of attitude and served to solidify his guess that Toph had shown some animosity. The whole "now she's on her own" bit didn't sound too positive, either.

[To: Meng Beifong]
[Hi Meng! Yea I remember you. Thank you SO MUCH for helping Toph setup her music on the internet! That was great. And I'm glad that she had you looking out for her last week. Shes acting pretty down lately. I guess things with her parents didn't go well huh? Hopefully she'll be feelin better soon...It's very crazy right now. Anyway. Thanks again!]
[Send]

"Damn. Looks like I came at just the right time."

Aang was startled by Sokka's words. Unaware of his arrival, Aang blinked rapidly, regaining his bearings. Sokka's head was covered by a winter hat with the House of Aqua's logo printed on it.

"Your shift is over any minute, right, Pal?" he checked.

"Oh. Yea. Yep, just a couple minutes."

"You look beat, man. What's goin' on?"

"Got a lot on my mind..."

"Like a certain finicky disabled person?"

Aang smirked at Sokka's blunt insensivity shrouded in humor.

"Yea, something like that."

Aang shut his laptop and stuck it in its bag, closing up shop as Sokka and he continued their discourse.

"What'd she do this time?"

"She's...being difficult lately."

"Even to you, huh?"

"Even to me."

"Hmph." Sokka shook his head, arms crossed as Aang locked up the desk's grate. "Ya know, Bud, sometimes a guy has to stick up for himself."

"Pardon?" Aang popped his winter coat on.

"It sounds like you're lettin' Dead-Eyes walk all over ya. With a girl like her, you gotta get some backbone, Aang. She pushes you? You gotta push her back."

"But...but I don't...push...really..."

"Maybe she wants you to learn?"

"Uhh...I dunno..." Aang adjusted his shoulder strap as he signed out on the wall-mounted punch-clock.

Sokka slapped an arm over Aang and let them out the entrance.

"Ya know what? Don't even worry about it right now. It's Man Time."

"I don't think my stomach can take that spicy nacho cheese stuff again tonight, Sokka..."

"Pff. Oy...But no worries, friend. We're gonna sit down, just us guys, and play some Gears of War."

"Blech. I hate that game. It's pointlessly gruesome."

"Not pointlessly grue-..." Sokka's snap defense was met with an unconvinced glance as they shuffled through the gently falling snow. "OK. Nevermind. Maybe this won't be Man Time so much as...Gentleman Time?"

"Haha. Sure."

"Get some Camomile Tea going? Bake some biscuits and talk about our emotions while watching Eat, Pray, Love?"

"Just because I am in touch with my sensitive side doesn't necessarily mean I like...-"

Now Aang was getting the funny look, to which he huffed begrudgingly.

"Yea, OK. I probably would like any of those things...Shut up."

"We can do whatever you want, Bro. I'm just joshin' ya."

"Let's play some Wii Sports Resort. That oughtta be nice and relaxing, right?"

"Err...Shhuuure, Aang. Whatever floats your boat, Pal."

"What?"

"Nothin'!"

"It's got Frisbee Golf~"

"...Are you for real?"

"..."

"C'mon, Aang. That's bogus. You're yankin' my chain."

Aang coughed, still wordless.

"They do have Frisbess Golf, don't they?"

"I didn't stutter," Aang cast out mock arrogance.

"OHMAIGAWD Aang, why did you not tell me this earlier?"

"I'm pretty sure liking Frisbee Golf should cost you some Macho Points."

"I will gladly take such a penalty!"

- Thursday, December 2nd, 2010 -

The sweeping vista overcame him, the lush jungle far below enriching to the eyes. The mystic temple that resided on the cliff's edge was blurry and out of focus in the distance. Aang stared at it with concentration, trying to make out the details. Once he figured those out, he could actually paint them in.

Aang was slumped before his unfinished piece of art, which had been untouched for five minutes now, his eyes glazed over in thought. His fingers were crusted in green and blue hues, dry remnants of a rainbow plastered to his white House of Aero shirt.

"Concentrating really hard on that piece?" The words were slow but with a sharpness - like a rusted knife.

Aang glanced over to his side to see Mai, dressed in a baggy, paint-smattered T-shirt with a picture of a menacing-looking raven printed on its front. She was dabbing her brush at an abstract piece full of reds and grays. At a glance it looked almost like a volcano rim, but the more Aang inspected it the less sure he became.

"Oh. Heh. Hi, Mai."

"You don't look so well, Aang..." The normally dry humor in her voice dropped for a moment as Mai dipped her brush into a tiny puddle of gray before pressing it against her canvas methodically. "What's going on?"

"Girlfriend problems."

"I figured as much."

Aang let a tiny frown slip at her words, frustrated with everyone seeming to notice his mood and butt into it. Mai, however, didn't ask for further clarification like most everyone else was. In a way, this actually threw Aang off and he felt compelled to explain.

"Uh...Yea, so...She's been ignoring me a lot since break..."

"Must be something difficult going on."

"For sure. I think she may have broken off from her family over vacation."

"Hm." Mai's tongue popped from her lips slightly as she examined her work. "Sounds serious."

"And she won't even talk with me about it!"

"Could just be busy. You try calling her?"

"I have been trying to call her, she's just ignoring me..."

"Hmph. Sounds like she's being a bit of a tool. And it sounds like you are pretty upset about it."

"Well, yea. She's hiding stuff from me, and just being a...a big jerk." Aang finally prodded at his painting again, picking up work on the temple's base.

"Wow," noted Mai with a sarcastic smirk. "Such language, Aang."

A few seconds of busy silence passed, the sounds of brushes padding on canvas comforting their ears.

"Hey, Mai," Aang called out, turning to her. Her back was turned as she had traversed the room to dump out her rinsing water. The word {Nevermore} was displayed in a scratchy font on the back of her shirt. She filled her container with some fresh water. "What do you do when you and your boyfriend have problems? Does he try hiding stuff from you?"

"He does," Mai admitted. "I think he does it because he doen't want me to worry, though."

"But it makes you worry more."

"Sometimes," Mai smiled at his prediction. "Yea."

"I don't think that's why Toph is doing it, though."

"She might need some space. Probably has a lot on her mind."

"That doesn't make it OK for her to just blow me off like that, though."

"It doesn't excuse it, but it might be the reason."

"Yea..."

"It's the end of the semester - everyone's pretty busy. My advice is that you should probably just focus on your work. Not like you can do anything else about it right now."

"I know..."

"I'll tell you what, Aang: why don't you meet with me and Zuko this weekend? We could get some coffee, maybe spend some time together...Just take a break from things. And you could get to know him a bit. I feel like you two would get along."

"Uh...OK. Sure. Is Zuko going to be OK with that?"

Mai shrugged, swishing her brush through her rinsing water.

"He'll need a break himself. I'll make him be OK with it," she coyly decided. "How does Saturday afternoon sound?"

"Yea, that'll work."

"Two PM?"

"Sounds good."

Aang gave Mai an appreciative smile for her concern. She was more of a colleague than a friend, but he appreciated her dry humor and decisive opinions. Getting to know her boyfriend better would be nice. Maybe he'd be someone Aang could get along with - it seemed like he was surrounded by women these days, which probably wasn't helping increase his "Macho Points," as Sokka would say. According to Sokka, Toph had more "Macho Points" than her boyfriend did.

"That's how I always deal with crazy people," Mai pointed out, seemingly out of nowhere.

"What's that?"

"I focus my energy somewhere else until they get the 'crazy' out of their systems."

"Oh. Right."

"When life gives you lemons...get out from under the lemon tree."

"Find an apple tree, or something?"

"Exactly."

- Friday, December 3rd, 2010 -

"I've been here tons of times, Sugar-Queen, I'm pretty sure I can go to the bathroom on my own."

"Y-yea, I...I know, I was just...-" Before Katara could explain herself, Toph was already wandering away, nearly intersecting a waitress who carefully steered around her. Katara snorted bitterly, crossing her arms across her chest.

Aang fidgeted with his white cap before finally removing it and stuffing it beside his coat in the booth, his head warm.

"What died and crawled up her ass?" Jane grumbled, nodding her head to the hall Toph had found her way into.

"Whatever it was," Sokka theorized, "I think that it was necromanced into a zombie and is crawling its way back out." Sokka's joke was met with perplexed expressions, to which he wrote off his reception with a shrug, munching on some bacon-wrapped chicken.

"Yea," Jane muttered awkwardly. "So, I'm gonna get that picture out of my head now. But seriously, what's her problem?" Jane directed the question at Aang, as if he knew - which was reasonable to assume.

"She didn't even show up for practice this week like she said she would," Suki tossed in her two cents from beside Sokka.

"And she keeps avoiding me," Katara snapped. "I'm just trying to help her out like I always do, and she acts like I'm being some creeper."

"Uh, er, yeeaa!" Sokka fumbled out with mock indignance. "She is totally...uhh...crampin' my style."

"Shut up, Sokka," Katara growled. "This isn't a joke. Something is wrong with her."

Aang felt his intestines knotting up as everyone's prying eyes glued to him.

"Wh-why is everyone acting like I know?" he balked. "She's doing the same stuff to me, too!"

Katara offered a sympathetic, "Sorry, Aang..." but remained frustrated with the situation.

"Hey, ya know, I've got an idea," said Sokka. "How about we get over ourselves and just enjoy our dinner, huh?"

"Why don't you tell Miss Pissy-Pants to do that, then?" Jane countered, rolling her eyes. "She's the one giving everyone shit."

"Oh, I see," Katara snipped. "We just pretend like it's OK for her to act like that, then. And it'll just magically go away."

"I didn't say that."

"No, but you don't even care. You'll just turn it into another freakin' joke."

"I'm trying to lighten the mood here, Sis."

"Yea, well...-"

"Come on, everyone," eased Aang nervously. "Toph's having a bad week, we're all getting grumpy with finals coming up...And-and the weather is all cold and affecting our moods, and-"
"Aang. Bud."

Jane's bony hand patted him on the back from his right.

"I know she's your girlfriend and all - she's great and all that. We all love her and shit. But you can come up with all the damn excuses you want, and it doesn't change the fact that she's being a bitch. Even to you, Aang. You don't deserve that. I sure as fuck don't deserve it," she said with a facetious grin. "I dunno if everyone else is with me here, but I'll try and play dumb tonight. But you need to figure this shit out, 'cuz I'm done. I don't need this right now. I don't think any of us do, and that includes her."

"If she keeps acting this way, Aang, I'm going to do something," Katara cautioned.

"Keep me out of it," Sokka warned. "You girls want to have a PMS party? Don't invite me."

"Hey," grumbled Suki. "I didn't even say anything, I just don't appreciate her attitude..."

"OK, guys, I get it," Aang insisted, noticing Toph exiting the bathroom down the hall. "I'm sorry. I'll talk with her about it, but...let's drop it for right now. OK?" He was grateful for the shrugs and nods he received in reply as Toph bumped into a stray seat.

"Shit," she uttered, right beside a family a table away. Gruffly shoving the chair aside, she pressed on, finding her way to the group's booth and shoving her way in besides Aang. Everyone had gotten down to eating, leaving Toph with a curious expression. "Why's everyone so quiet?"

"Guess we're hungry," Aang decided. Toph didn't seem to buy this but she sighed - somewhat loudly - and went about stuffing a crab cake into her face. Crisis averted.

The music hall approached, but Aang was planning to divert direction to the right, hoping to head up to his dorm instead.

"So, um...Why don't we go up to Aero?"

"Why would we do that?" Toph wondered, her demeanor shrouded in skepticism.

"W-well, Sokka's going out to see a movie with Suki tonight, and...I-I just thought that maybe we could...-"

"What?" Her grip on his hand tightened, her voice subtly intent and interested.

"You know..."

"Cuddle, or something?"

"Y-yea, like...like that."

"We're on the way to the Music Building. Why don't we just go there? I need to practice more tonight, anyway."

"I...I was...It'd just be kind of nicer if we had a bedroom to ourselves, and...-"

"What does that matter?" The interest from before had wilted to reveal irritation.

"I'd be more comfortable if we just went up to Aero to do that sort of thing..."

"Oh. Right. Wouldn't wanna get your rainbows tied up in a bunch, would we, Twinkle-Toes?"

Aang got the impression she was being maliciously sarcastic as opposed to just poking fun at him.

"Then we'd have to dick around for an hour before we could actually dick around, right?"

Yea. Definitely malicious.

"H-hey, calm down...You don't have to go...announcing it."

"Right. Like no one on campus does anything naughty."

"OK, just listen." He squeezed her hand. "We've been busy all week. I'm kind of in the mood to spend time with my girlfriend..." He ran his hand across her head, which was noticeably messy and unkempt compared to normal. "I thought you would be, too."

"I'm in the mood to actually do stuff, not Twinkle-Toe around." Ouch. That one stung a bit.

"OK, sure. I-I am, too..."

"No, you're not."

"What? Of course I am."

"Whatever. If you actually want to have some fun, then just come up to my practice room."

"But...But I don't really like it...there. It's uncomfortable, and...-" Aang's head was filling to burst at this point, the complaints and advice from his friends all piling up.

"Then I guess you aren't actually in the mood, like I said."

"How can you say that?" Aang burst out, screeching to a stop. "You're beautiful! I love you! I want to...do...that sorta stuff...I really do!" Aang's face was burning, and he was hopeful no one was overhearing their conversation. He reigned his voice back in. "But it's not so easy for me to just jump right in like it is for you, and I'm sick of you trying to make me feel guilty about it!"

Toph stood in irate silence, enduring his words, facing ahead, her lips propped out slightly.

"You told me that you would be patient. And I have been trying really hard to...to go forward here. But every time I take one step forward, Toph, you push me. Try to make me take two steps when I'm only ready for one. I can't do that. OK?"

Toph wiped her nose and sniffed, leading Aang to worry if perhaps he was being too harsh. He walked up to her and inspected her face - dry as a bone, other han a runny nose from the winter's chill.

"Do you get what I'm saying?" he checked, placing a hand on her padded shoulder.

"I guess," Toph muttered half-heartedly. She broke off from Aang's grasp, walking forward, tapping her walking stick along the damp, salted walkway.

"Toph?" Aang kept up her pace. "Do you want to talk about this? I don't know what's going on in your head..."

"I have work I need to do, Aang," she spat. "I don't have time to piss around right now. Don't you have work you need to do, or something?"

"I-I'm pretty much caught up, so-"
"Well, good for you! Some of us have to put extra time into our work..."

"Toph, what's wrong?"

"Nothing!"

"I know you had a falling out with your parents...What happened?"

"Oh, you know, huh? Snooping in my business?"

"Your cousin told me about it on Facebook."

"Ugh. Fuckin'...-"
"It's not like she gossipped or something, Toph. She probably assumed I already knew because I'm your boyfriend and that you'd actually, I dunno, tell me about it?"

"I don't get why all of you need to be prying into my fuckin' personal life, Aang! Quit it!"

"Are you-...?" Aang was staggered by her irrational defensiveness. "Listen to yourself! We're your friends. And I'm supposed to be the person you go to when bad stuff happens...We're supposed to be able to trust each other."

"Yea? Well...-"

"Well, what?"

"Just...Drop it, Aang! Damn..."

Aang's steps slowed to a stop, and he watched Toph proceed onward, seemingly apathetic to his presence. His mind whirled with anger and confusion until she finally disappeared into the music building up ahead. A couple of students had passed him by during this time, but a third student had come to a stop beside him.

"Whoa...What's up, Aang?" Jane's raspy voice peppered him with concern, catching him off guard.

Aang blinked at her, his vision blurred. He wiped the thick tears from his face in embarrassment and Jane chuckled with sympathy.

"What are ya doin' out here, ya idiot?"

"I was...-" He coughed. "Just, um...headin' back to the dorm."

"Aaaaand...you stopped partway?" Jane wasn't being fooled.

"I think Toph and I had another fight...Maybe?"

"Oh, boy," sighed Jane. She stuck her arm around his shoulder and nudged him along. "C'mon. I'll take ya back to your dorm."

The two of them walked in silence for a few moments, then hit a right at the intersection before the music hall, bound for Aero.

"What are you guys fighting about?" Jane wondered with casual curiosity.

"We're...having some difficulty with the whole...-" Aang poked his index fingers together awkwardly and Jane smirked.

"Ah. That. God damnit, Toph," she mumbled, shaking her head. "I've told her she needs to be patient."

"Right? We've been making progress but I need to go one step at a time. I don't think it's so much to ask..."

"It's not," Jane agreed, patting his shoulder, her arm still around him as they walked. "Your space is your space, and she needs to respect that. She should come in when you let her, not when she feels like barging in..."

"Mm..." Aang nodded.

"Don't you let her force her way in. I know how she is..."

"Heh..."

"What?"

"Katara says the same thing," Aang explained with a light laugh.

"Yea? Well, she's right. You've gotta look out for yourself, Bud." She worked her wrist under his hood and noogied her knuckles against his skull. "Or people will walk all over ya."

Aang grinned at her teasing and squirmed out of her grip.

"I'd prefer to not be walked all over..."

"Then you gotta keep your guard up, man..."

"I'd prefer...to not do that, either..." Aang sighed, trying to sort out his messed up hair.

"All I'm saying is that you seem to let people shit on you." Jane's olive eyes started at his gray ones. "And people as awesome as you shouldn't get shit on..." The red-head glared at Aang with comically wide eyes given the dark bags that hung underneath them. "Ever."

"Thanks, Jane..."

"Lookin' out for a brother, that's all."

"Taking your own advice, though, right?"

"Huh?"

"I mean, like...the Freedom Fighters. You're not...letting them bother you anymore, right?"

"Oh..." Jane scratched at a pimple on her forehead just to give her hand something to do. "Nah. Told 'em all to piss off..."

"Even Johnny?"

"Kinda..."

"It's not easy, huh?"

"Pff. Those guys are tools. Glad I'm done with 'em."

"Even Johnny?"

"That's...more complicated, but...he made his choice."

"Yea. He did."

"I've just been...trying to forget about...all of that. For right now, anyway."

"You still have feelings for him?"

Jane cleared her throat, sticking her hands into her winter vest's pockets with a huff of vapor into the cold air.

"Yea...He's the one who did the breaking, but...I think there's more to it."

"When life gives you lemons...you get out from under the lemon tree."

"Hmph." Jane showed him a raised brow. "Cute."

"Find an apple tree."

"Ha."

"Maybe Johnny just needs time?"

"I dunno. I shouldn't even...give a fuck right now."

"I know how you feel...My friends have been telling me that I should work on things I can actually do something about right now while I'm waiting for Toph to...well...turn around. I guess."

"Sounds like good advice."

"If I said Sokka was one of the people that told me that, would you still agree?"

"Sounds like horrible advice. Don't listen to that guy."

A pair of snickers preceded a thoughtful moment of tranquility in the dark winter evening, the walkway accented by periodic street lamps.

"But it's advice you've already been following," pointed out Aang matter-of-factly.

"Hm?"

"The Freedom Fighters are the lemon tree, and...we've been the apple tree. For you, I mean."

Aang saw a warm smile find its way onto Jane's face in the dim lighting.

"Heh. Yea, pretty much...I still would like a little bit of lemon, though...Ya know?"

"Yea..." Aang sniffed, rubbing snot from his cold nose. Aero was getting close, and the silhouette of a familiar figure drew near, earmuffs stuck on hehead.

"Oh, hey, guys!" Katara greeted, pleasantly surprised.

"Hey."
"'Sup?"

"Wow, I'm glad I ran into you, Aang. I was just looking for you..."

"Oh?"

"Did you get my text?"

"Oh. Uh...No, I left my phone at the dorm."

"Oh! Haha...I was just trying to see if people wanted to go catch a movie tonight. It's Friday, and everything."

"Sorry, Kat," Jane said with a shrug. "Like I said, I've gotta take care of some stuff..."

"Yea, no problem. I'm sure I'll see you tomorrow." Katara nodded her head back to Aero. "I just stopped by, and Sokka said he needs to finish a paper..."

"The one that was due today?" Aang theorized with amusement. "The one Suki told him to start back on Tuesday?"

"That's the one!" She grinned, rolling her eyes at her brother's folley. "What about Toph? You think she might be interested in going out? Maybe she's...-" Katara bobbed her head nervously. "I dunno, in a better mood?"

"Uhh...No. I'm not thinking so," Aang groaned, hands on his hips. He avoided Katara's ever-observant gaze.

"Oh. Sounds like you two had another...disagreement, huh?" Katara seemed to get the picture, anyway, though. "A-all right. Well, we can...-" She shrugged, her eyes bouncing from Jane to Aang. "I mean, we could still go. If you want."

"Sure." Aang nodded, lifting his palms up briefly in passing. "I could use a break. It's been a long day." Some time off of campus to forget about his problems, and some time to ask a good friend for advice: he couldn't really turn that down.

"All right." Jane nodded. She arced her arm to Aang, and when he accepted her hand shake she pulled him in for a tight, brief hug. "Take care, Bro."

"Hey, you, too."

They broke off, and Jane offered Katara a sheepish shrug.

"So...I guess I'll catch you tomorrow, then."

"Sure. I'll let you know when I'm ready for lunch."

"'Kay. So, eh...Night, then, guys."

"Good night."
"Night, Jane."

"So I'm just at my wit's end, and I'm trying to get her to open up to me, you know? I mean, say something, just...let me know what the deal is. And she's just...completely blowing me off. Seriously, I try to meet you at a middle ground, and you're gonna try and pull me over onto your side? Why? It's not good enough for you? What do you want from me?"

"Right..."

Katara courteously nodded, focused on driving but paying heed to every word, waiting for the storm that was Aang's frustration to subside.

"I don't think I'm asking for too much here. And she's just being such a jerk to everyone. It's like...It's like she's reverting back to how she was when we met her. You know?"

"Mm."

"Obviously something changed over break but...but that's no reason to start acting like such a...such a...-"

"A bitch?"

Aang stared at Katara with wide, startled eyes.

"Wh-! I just...She is," Katara defended her choice of words in a flustered rush, her cheeks pink. "I mean, I'm sorry, Aang, but...She is not on my good side right now. And hearing what you're telling me just...It doesn't surprise me."

"Yea..."

"And she wants to try to pretend like she's just too busy to give anyone the light of day. She totally stood us up Wednesday night for band practice. And it's been almost a week now, right? And every single day I try to spend some time with her she just blows me off. And then she's treating you like this, too? You know, if she really cared, she would make some time to at least talk with you about what her problem is..." Katara's tone was spiking with ferocity, her hands tightly gripped around the wheel. "She could maybe stop acting so stuck up while she's at it, too..."

"What should I do?" Aang asked simply, hoping to twist Katara's abnormally negative mind track toward a more positive direction.

"I don't freakin' know..." Katara flicked her head, bouncing her bang braids out of her line of sight. Aang couldn't help in that moment but wonder if he could convince her to give Toph those little hair loopies...when things were sorted out, anyway. "Honestly, Aang, I'd say you should just leave her alone for a while."

"Really?" That had not been the optimistic response he had been expecting.

"She obviously doesn't want anythig to do with anyone right now, so...I say give her what she wants. She can deal with her little temper tantrum by herself since that's what she wants, and when she's gotten over herself, I'm sure she'll let us know."

"Hm...You really don't think there's anything else I could do?"

"Aang," Katara sighed with sympathy. "Believe me, I wish we could help her. You know me. I'm...always trying to stay on top of everything. To...to fix stuff..."

"You're a fixer, all right."

"Exactly," she lamented, adjusted her hands as she steered the vehicle off to the Wayward exit.

"It's not a bad thing, Katara. If it weren't for you doing that, I mean...think of where Jane would be right now."

"Mm..." Katara nodded gently, a bashful and reflective expression emerging. "But with Toph, it's like...She doesn't want anyone to help her fix things. And I mean, that...that's fine, that's great that she's so independent, but...if it gets her acting like this? Then it becomes a problem. There's nothing you can do to help it. You can only open the door - they have to walk through it. You know?"

"Right." Aang stared out at the night lights of the town's streets as they cruised through. "It feels like I'm opening the door and she's, like...slamming it back in my face."

"I'm sorry, Aang..."

"Not your fault."

"I wish I could help."

"You are, Katara. Thanks. I'm sure Toph and I will get this...whole mess...sorted."

"OK..."

"With this going on this week, it's helped me realize how many people are there for me," Aang reflected. "Each in their own ways. And you...You've always been there, Katara. Right from the start when I got here. You even got Sokka to warm up to me when he wrote me off as an annoying freshman. And now he's one of my best friends. And even Toph: you got us together in the first place. And you convinced Sokka to give Suki another chance. And now Jane, too - I never would've thought we'd be friends, but...I dunno, since you got her to spend time with us, she's warmed up to me a lot. You're like...-" Aang melded his hands together. "-...the glue that holds the Fearsome Fivesome together."

"You really think?" Katara's face flushed from the compliments.

"Definitely! You're our...Canadian Eskimo Glue." Katara chuckled at the title he bestowed. "Our big sister. You're always there. For me, for everyone."

"Heh..." Katara shrugged, a gracious grin on her face. "Y-yea, of course I'm here for you guys...And I always will be, Hun."

"As long as we have our Canadian Eskimo Glue, we'll be fine."

"You bet we'll be."

A/N: The main idea I'm trying to illustrate here is that while this Aang doesn't bend elements, in a funny way he "bends" people. He can use all of the elements in the show, but here, he can seem to get along with all different types of people. He may not be the center of the universe, but everyone around him cares about him a lot.

I've been intending to incorporate Korra into this story for a while now, but it took some time to decide how I would do it. It's true that we don't know much about her yet, so in a way she will probably be more of a...kinda-OC, based more on a character concept than anything else (very much like Jane has been, really), but this is a total AU so I don't see the harm in playing with the idea. After all, by the time we actually start seeing Korra's story this tale will already be finished, most likely. I guess we'll see how close my interpretation comes to the original character, eh? In either case, she won't be a main character but will probably have a side story that ties into the main story in the same way other characters do, like Longshot, Zuko/Azula (eventually that one will more directly tie in), Meng, etc., all of whom I plan on developing more and connecting to the primary narrative in various ways.

I've been working hard to get a lot of content out this month before my big move. This will be the last chapter posted before I move from western New York to the San Francisco Bay Area. I will need to work hard to start a new life out there. I don't know how much time or energy I'll have for continuing this story for a while, but rest assured that I will certainly be working hard to keep up a decent pace - just don't expect this 1-2 chapters a week business you've been getting lately, at least not for a while. Thanks for all of your support, everyone. I look forward to continuing this and hope to finish it by the end of this year. Feel free to leave comments/well-wishes, after everything I've been through lately, I could really use some good luck for a change!