'Noise'

By: lollipopkid/night-faery

Couples: Zutara, Sukka, Taang

Summary: AU Zutara, where the group discusses music….

DISCLAIMER: For ZUTARA-ETERNITY's prompt 'Noise'. I don't own A:TLA. Based off a debate my friend and I had concerning our tastes in music. Sorry if I offend.

"Fall Out Boy is NOT noise!" Katara pointed her finger across the table at Zuko, who shrugged and sipped his coffee. Aang sighed, and pulled his arrow-hat down over his eyes, and Toph bit into her cookie savagely. Sokka shrugged and ordered another frappucino from Suki, the on-duty cashier.

"Don't start this again. Please?" Aang asked, trying to get his two always-fighting friends to shut up. Especially since they were in The Jasmine Dragon, in front of many people, and he didn't feel like being kicked out again.

"Aang, Zuko and I are merely having another discussion about music. And how he thinks that Fall Out Boy is 'just noise'. Well I think that Dead & Divine is just noise as well!" Katara sat down, and gripped her hot chocolate, as the snow fell outside the window.

"They're just opinions." Zuko replied, smirking and sipping his coffee again.

"But obviously Dead & Divine is just noise! How can you call screaming alongside shredding guitar music? There's no meaning to the lyrics!" Katara furiously exclaimed as she smashed Toph's next cookie, that was innocently lying next to her.

"That was my cookie!" Toph lamented, her blind eyes blinking, as her hand felt for the cookie, but her heightened hearing had let her hear the crushing of said cookie.

"Why don't you two go for a walk, and settle this peacefully?" Aang suggested, ever the peacemaker. The young boy gripped the leash on his dog Appa tighter, when the giant dog heard the word 'walk'. Aang was only allowed to bring the dog in since he knew the owner, Iroh Lord, Zuko's uncle.

"Fine." Katara glared towards Zuko, and pulled on her warm blue winter coat, scarf and hat. Zuko reached for his coat, and pulled on his black leather gloves, and slapped two twenties on the table.

"My treat." He said, when Iroh came out from behind the cashier.

"No nephew, you and your friends are always welcome to food here, as long as there isn't a ruckus! Another tea Toph?" Iroh asked, as he brought the kettle around.

"'Course Uncle Iroh! You know this blind kid can't resist your tea. Two sugars please." Toph replied.

"You lovebirds, get out and on your walk, to 'discuss music'." The blind girl snickered and shooed the two out, pointing in the wrong direction.

"Continue." Zuko shrugged, as he held the door for her.

"That was uncharacteristically gentlemanly of you." She commented.

"Are we discussing music?" he smirked, shoving his hands in his pockets, the snow dusting his dark hair.

"Your screamo music is just that, screaming, with the occasional too-loud drum solo or guitar riff!" Katara eased into her debating position easily, facing the whole-foot-taller-then-her-Zuko fiercely, her eyes dancing.

"Really? And Fall Out Boy isn't another cookie cutter so-called 'indie' band?" He countered.

"What, like Boys Like Girls? No way! FOB is original!" she replied, throwing her hands up in the air.

"As original as chocolate chip cookies." Zuko threw a soft snowball at her, which she easily deflected with her arm, scowling at him.

"HEY! Chocolate chip cookies can be original." She defended, pouting cutely.

"Sure." He rolled his eyes and the two of them resumed walking in silence.

"So where're we going?"

"To enlightenment about music."

"WHAT?"

"You'll like my music."

"Zuko. Its just noise."

"So we're starting again?"

"When do we ever finish?" Katara sighed as they continued down the path towards the duck pond where they'd spent so much time as kids.

"Good point."

"Are we done?" she asked, smiling up at him as he crouched down by the pond, his shaggy black hair covering his scar, and the snow continued to fall.

"I guess. But you said yourself, when do we ever finish?" he smiled, a bit sadly Katara noticed, but she brushed the thought from her mind. Crouching next to him, she slung an arm around his shoulders.

"Brighten up Zuzu! We've got the future in front of us to duke it out!" her infectious smile, not to mention the nickname that his (evil) sister Azula had given him, made him smile, but mostly it was the comment about the future.

"We have a future?" he asked seriously, his golden eyes boring into Katara's.

"Of course! As long as one of us doesn't die unexpectedly, but you know…" Katara rambled on, growing nervous at the suddenly serious atmosphere.

"Katara." He spoke her name quietly, interrupting her ramblings.

"Yeah?" she asked, turning to face him, realizing they'd both stood up.

"I think we should put aside our differences, and agree to disagree about the 'noise." He smirked.

"WHAT'S WITH THE SERIOUS ATMOSPHERE THE-mmmph!" she began yelling, when his lips brushed hers in a simple kiss.

"What was that?" she asked, raising a hand to her lips.

"A way to shut you up. And because I wanted to." He ducked his head shyly.

"Then I want to do this." She threw her arms around his neck, crushing his lips with hers. He responded enthusiastically, and they stood in the snow together, not really caring about the 'noise' in the first place.

Two weeks later, Sokka was dating Suki Cashier-Girl as Toph called her, Toph had gotten revenge for the crushed cookie, Aang and Appa were still allowed in the Jasmine Dragon, and Katara and Zuko were dating as well, having mostly resolved the music differences.

"So Twinkles likes Lifehouse? The Killers are better." Toph poked Aang's shoulder, resulting in Zuko falling on the floor in uncontrollable laughter, and Katara trying to get him up again.

"What?" Toph asked, as Aang blushed.

"You two are going to end up like Katara and I if this continues!" Zuko laughed and Toph blushed as well.

"So, about that noise you call music Twinkles…"

FINITO