Avatar The Last Airbender Fan Fiction ❯ Merits ❯ Part Two ( Chapter 2 )

"Merits" -- Part Two

Three months earlier.

“You did.”

“Did not.”

“Did.”

“Did not! Toph, would you stop it! People are staring…”

“Katara, please, do you honestly think you can hide something like that? From me?”

The darker-skinned girl grit her teeth as she fake-smiled at her friend (not that her friend could see that, but the other patrons staring at them could), and tried to muffle their quarrel between the campus library's bookstacks.

“Toph…” growled Katara in warning, putting the next book she needed on top of her research pile.

“Oh my god, no! Staring at us! With their eyes!? What should we do!?” Eager to feed Katara's paranoia, Toph grabbed the nearest book off the shelf and opened it randomly before darting behind the massive cover. “Quick, act natural!” she stage-whispered, and started pretending to read aloud in a pompous lecture-voice. “… which is why the Genettian theory of adaptation of novel to film left much to be desired in the new age of technology-influenced media interrelations…”

Sighing at her friend's antics behind the (incredibly poor choice of) reading material, Katara rolled her eyes and decided to move on down the row to the next few items on her list. Toph kept up.

“So, was he any good?”

“Would you stop it!”

“Heh, I can't see you, but I know you're blushing.”

“TOPH!”

“Shhhh!”

“Sorry!” Katara went even redder as she whispered apologies to the people nearby who'd hissed the warning at her. Fellow grad students, but luckily not from her department. That was a small relief.

“So, you meeting him again?” wheedled Toph, now flipping absently through the book, holding it high above her head. A man walking behind them caught sight of the illustrations, paused, and skipped around them quickly, trying to hold his crimson-tinted colouring at bay. Katara didn't even notice him.

“… We'll be out tomorrow night. Studying…”

“Way to go, Katara! Score!”

“Shhhhhh!”

“Hey, she's finally dating again! She's just had a 2-year dry spell-- Come on, congratulate her!” volunteered Toph, cheering her mortified friend enthusiastically.

A number of catcalls and whistles serenaded them as they walked through a corridor, while others chuckled and a few even clapped. Two guys offered their phone numbers `in case things didn't work out'. Toph clapped the two brave guys on the back and confirmed she'd pass the numbers along. For a fee.

Katara shook with embarrassed anger as they approached the self-check out and security scan.

“Toph, I'm going to kill you…”

“So, do I know him?”

Katara nearly dropped her book in surprise.

Toph didn't know who? But she'd thought…

She handled the tome carefully as she waved it under the scan wand, thoughts racing as the delicate `beep' sounded, indicating the book was processed to her account.

“Oh, I've known him for a bit… I don't think you've ever met him, though.”

“As long as he's got you in this good a mood, I think he deserves a medal. So, did I tell you Sokka learned a new trick? The other day, when he and I were--.”

Katara's stack of books flew off the counter, nearly knocking her friend down in the process. “Toph!” OHTHISISSONOTHAPPENING. “We've known each other a long time, and you're practically a sister to me; but Sokka is a brother to me. That is way too much information. WAY TOO MUCH. Personal boundaries, ok? I don't need to know what you and my brother are doing. Please don't ever tell me anything about my brother… like that. Otherwise, I'm there for you whenever you need me.”

She kneeled to pick up the books, leaving Toph to scratch her head in confusion.

”I meant a new trick with his car - but thanks for exposing another weakness for me to exploit. Man, it's like Christmas today! You're the best, Katara!”

A few moments later, when they'd gained several pounds in reading matter, they made their way to the security station to have their bags checked then towards the exit.

One of Katara's professors walked in, just as they passed the magnetic bars - and the alarm started going off.

“Oh, hello, Katara! Already preparing for your presentation?” Her professor smiled cheerfully at her with all… eight of his crooked teeth.

“Just about there, Doc Bumi,” she agreed, already emptying her bag for the security personnel to check. “These alarms always get me, though - how about you?”

“You mean they don't just go off for me to welcome me to this wonderful building? I'll have to have them change the ringtone… I hear that Tustin Jimberlake's pretty popular these days…”

Katara chuckled faintly, unsure if he was serious or not. Strangely enough, it wasn't hard for her to imagine Bumi getting jiggy with it as he danced into the library to “Bringin' Smexy Back”… It wasn't hard to imagine it, but it was definitely going to take a considerable amount of brain-bleach to get it out.

She felt herself go pale.

“…Ma'am, you forgot to sign this one out,” said the security guard politely, trying to catch her disturbed attention. Something about the way he said it, though... He sounded odd. She looked over at him warily.

“Would you like me to… scan this one in for you?” he offered.

Her palor dissolved, Katara went as red as her t-shirt.

“Toph!”

“Oh! Katara, that's an excellent book! I hadn't realized you'd changed your topic though. Are you planning on giving a presentation with, ah, visual aids, too?” Katara wanted to drop into a hole in the ground, right then and there. Her professor, of all people, had seen her with this. She might as well have been walking around with a sign that read “Lend me your pr0n!”

Toph caught on to Bumi's enthusiasm, and for the first time in her life, took an interest in the written word.

“What did I pick up, anyway?”

“… The History of the Penis: Super Special Illustrated Pop-Up Version,” said the security guard in clipped tones. He was trying hard not to laugh. Really, he was. “Volume 8.”

Katara suddenly realized why the man had sped around them earlier.

Covering her face with her hand, she waved at the security guard. “No thank you…”

“It's like Christmas and Hannukah together!” whooped Toph. “Hey, come on, sign it out for me! Aang and Sokka and I can -.”

“Only if you promise me you are not going to go corrupting minors with it again.”

“… you know, I bet it looked fine on the shelf, too,” sighed the younger woman in disappointment.