Sokka prodded the campfire with a nearby stick, watching the embers float up into the air with a grim expression. Around him, his sister and friends slept peacefully, unperturbed by the discomforting thoughts that had been nagging at him for several days. Sokka glanced over towards where Xiaodan was sleeping against Appa's side with Aang and the Duke across the campfire and started in surprise. Her orange eyes gleamed at him, reflecting the flames of the fire in an eerie way that caused his heartbeat to quicken slightly.

The two older teens stared at each other silently for several moments before Xiaodan began to carefully untangle herself from the Duke, who had begun to consider her an older sister figure in the few days they'd all traveled together. Sokka watched quietly as she walked over to him, nimbly stepping over the slumbering forms of their friends.

"What are you still doing up?" The female dualbender questioned softly as she sat down beside her friend, a concerned expression on her own weary face.

Sokka shrugged one shoulder, "Just thinking."

"About?"

Another shrug followed by a weary sigh, "Everything. How my dad's doing, if the others are okay. If we did the right thing by running away." He hesitated a moment then he turned towards Xiaodan abruptly, startling her slightly, "And then there's what Azula said to you down in the tunnel."

The fire flared sharply at his statement, flashing white for only brief instant before settling down again. Sokka held his breath and waited in expectant silence, watching the girl beside him as she stared blankly into the fire. Cricket-hoppers chirped faintly, their music mingling with the sound of the crackling fire and the deep, even breathing of the other sleeping teens.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity to Sokka, Xiaodan spoke.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Wha-!?" His jaw dropped and he stared at her incredulously as he sputtered nonsensically for several moments. Xiaodan seemingly ignored him, picking up the stick he'd set on the ground between them and using it to prod the logs in the fire.

"That's a lie and you know it, Xia!" Sokka hissed when he finally regained his ability to speak coherently. When she continued to prod at the logs and ignore him, he snatched the stick from her hand and threw it into the fire.

"Just let it go, Sokka." Xiaodan scowled at him and rose to her feet, stalking away from the camp, "It's none of your business anyway."

"No, no, no," Sokka chanted as he jumped to his feet, running after the speedwalking dualbender. He grasped her right shoulder, intending to turn her around to face him, but he quickly released her when she hissed sharply in pain.

She whirled around to face him with an irritated look, her hand cupping her burned shoulder. Sokka stared back at her apologetically and held his hands up in submission, "Sorry. You know, you really should let Katara heal that."

"It's fine." Xiaodan muttered and she let her hand fall from her shoulder, crossing her arms instead. Unconsciously, she shifted her weight into a defensive stance and frowned, "She fought hard during the invasion and she's still tired from healing Hakoda. It's just a little burn anyway."

Sokka shook his head in equal parts exasperation and amazement at her stubbornness. She'd refused ever attempt his sister had made at healing the burn she'd received from Azula, stating that Katara need to regain her strength. Shaking his head again, Sokka returned his attention to the matter at hand.

"Look, I get you don't want to talk-" He began lowly, but Xiaodan cut him off sharply.

"No, I really, really don't want to talk about it."

Sokka ignored her and continued as if she hadn't spoken, much to her annoyance, "But you really need to. What Azula said clearly got to you. Like really got to you. I don't think I've ever seen you look that angry before and I want to know why. What happened between you and the angry jerk before Ba Sing Se?" He quirked a brow and crossed his arms over his chest, staring at her expectantly.

Xiaodan stared back at him defiantly for several seconds then she sighed, uncrossing her own arms and hanging her head slightly. She closed her eyes and rubbed at them as she finally gave in, "Fine."

"Finally!" Sokka exclaimed and he threw his hands in the air triumphantly. He chuckled nervously and cleared his throat when Xiaodan gave him a dirty look and shushed him sternly.

"If you really want to know what happened, then youbetter not interrupt." Xiaodan hissed at him, poking him in the chest firmly and frowning at him severely, "'Cause I'm only gonna tell this to you once. Got it?"

"Yeah, yeah, I got it." Sokka agreed impatiently and he eagerly followed Xiaodan when she walked a bit further from the camp and sat down.

Sitting down heavily on the ground and crossing her legs, Xiaodan opened her mouth then clicked it shut with an unsure expression. Sokka was about to impatiently demand for her to start talking when she finally spoke.

"Please don't hate me for what I'm gonna tell you." She blurted out in a whisper, looking at him with such a pleading expression, it stunned him into silence for several seconds.

"Xia," He said in a voice equally as quiet as hers had been. He grasped her hands and held them tightly in his own, staring into her eyes sincerely, "I could never hate you. You're my sister."

"I know." Xiaodan replied quickly then she looked away from him, almost shamefully and muttered lowly, "I just hope you still feel that way when I'm done..."

Sokka was about to tell her that nothing she said couldn't make him think that badly of her, but before he could even open his mouth, she began talking again.

"It was just after you guys left that abandoned town where Azula shot Iroh..."

Silence. Complete and utter silence.

Xiaodan fidgeted uncomfortably, fiddling with a loose thread hanging from the bottom of her tunic. She'd stared at that piece of thread determinedly since she'd begun telling Sokka exactly what he'd wanted to know and several minutes had passed since she'd finished her tale.

And Sokka hadn't said anything. He'd been completely and utterly silent. And not the stunned speechless kind of silent, but the kind of silence you fell into when you had absolutely no idea what to think or how to feel about something someone just told you. Frankly, his silence unnerved Xiaodan.

The thread finally broke and she froze, staring at the little piece of string wrapped around the index finger of her right hand. A sudden sense of foreboding filled her and Xiaodan swallowed thickly, praying fervently to every deity and spirit she knew that the friendship she shared with Sokka wasn't about to break like the thread did.

"You and Zuko..."

Xiaodan jerked her head up and stared with wide, hopeful eyes at Sokka's voice. Her hopeful expression fell when she saw the disbelieving and fairly outraged expression on his face.

"You dated that-that stupid, conniving, evil...jerk?!" His voice rose to almost a shout at the last word and he leapt to his feet, beginning to pace frantically.

"Shhh!"

"I will not shush!" Sokka squawked and he whirled around to face her, "This is-that is-mffpt!"

Xiaodan tackled him and slapped her hand over his mouth, muffling the rest of his rant. Sitting up slightly on Sokka's chest, she stared intently over at the campsite where the others seemed to still be sleeping peacefully. She looked away from the camp and glared down at Sokka, using her free hand to point at his face, "Listen, you're mad, I get it. Aang was too, but you-"

Sokka wrenched her hand from his mouth, "Aang already knew?! And he didn't say anything?! Why that little-mmfph!"

"Would you keep your voice down?" The dualbender hissed after slapping her hand back over his mouth. She glowered at him for several seconds, "If you'd just shut up for two seconds, I can explain."

Sokka glowered heatedly back up at her then reluctantly nodded his assent. Xiaodan eyed him warily and slowly removed her hands from his mouth, climbing off his chest and moving to sit crosslegged beside his sprawled out form.

"Look, what happened between me and-" She choked off and made a strangled noise before continuing in a strained whisper, "What happened between me and Zuko wasn't...It just happened, okay? And if you didn't notice, it didn't exactly turn out all that great!"

"But still!" Sokka whined as he sat up and rubbed the side of his head, "Did it have to be that jerk? I mean he's so-so-so.."

"Irritating, pushy, overbearing, mean, persistent, and let's not forget, angry?" Xiaodan deadpanned.

Sokka gestured wildly with his hands, "Exactly!"

"I don't know." She said quietly and she shrugged slightly, "Truthfully, he wasn't always so horrible to be around."

"N-not horrible?" He gaped at her in disbelief, "Are you-are you kidding me?"

"No, Sokka, I'm not." Xiaodan retorted and she threw her hands in the air in exasperation. She rubbed at her eye with a fist and sighed, "Sometimes he was actually, a little bit...well nice."

"Nice? Nice? Are we talking about the same person here?"

"He took me to the zoo outside of Ba Sing Se once. Let me drag him around for hours and he didn't complain. Not really at least."

Sokka gawked at the wistful expression on her face, the reminiscent smile that pulled at the corner of her mouth forcing him to realize something his outrage and disbelief had blinded him to while she'd been talking about her time with the banished prince and his uncle. She didn't just like the Prince of Jerks, sheloved him. Sure, she was no doubt furious and hurting over his betrayal at Ba Sing Se, but Sokka could see that she was most definitely in love with the Fire Nation prince, even if she couldn't see it.

"O-oh man..." Sokka muttered incredulously as the implications of this revelation hit him, "You actually love him."

Xiaodan jerked as if she'd been struck by lightning and she flailed for a moment before turning to look at her friend with an offended expression, "Excuse me?!"

Sokka giggled almost maniacally, his mind still spinning, "Y-you're in love with the angry jerk."

Xiaodan's eyebrow twitched when he began to cackle madly, falling onto his back and clutching his stomach with the force of his laughter. Clenching her teeth, she balled up her fist and punched him roughly in the arm.

Sokka yelped and stopped laughing to grab at his throbbing appendage, cringing sheepishly when he caught sight of the evil look Xiaodan was leveling at him. Clutching his arm, he struggled back into a sitting position, the two sitting beside each other quietly.

"Son of a bleeding hog-monkey." Xiaodan groaned after several minutes of silence at passed and she covered her face with her hands. Wrenching her hands from her face she slammed her palms against the ground on either side of her, "No, no way. I can't possibly be in love with that-that pig chicken!"

"Uh huh, sure." Sokka replied with amused nonchalance, quirking a brow at her knowingly.

Xiaodan twitched and glowered at him, "I don't love Zuko."

Sokka's other brow joined the first and he smirked at her silently.

"I don't!" She raged, lurching to her feet and gesturing wildly with her hands, "He's a stupid, pigheaded, fire shooting, backstabbing insect that helped his crazy sister try to kill my brother! He betrayed his uncle, the person who was always there for him! He betrayedme! And I hate him for that!"

Sokka watched quietly and, surprisingly, patiently as the female dualbender panted heavily, her fists clenching and unclenching at her sides as she glared up at the night sky. He waited until her breathing evened out then asked quietly, "Do you really mean that?"

"I-" She sighed sadly and her shoulders slumped forward, "No, no, I don't." She gave a humorless laugh and sat down beside Sokka again, "How can I? I hate when you're right. It's weird when you start making sense.

"What? What was that?" Sokka asked teasingly and he cupped his ear with a hand, leaning towards her, "I don't think I heard you, could you repeat what you said?"

Xiaodan laughed and shoved him away from her, "I said you were right, you jerk. I am possibly," she stressed the word and ignored the way her friend rolled his eyes, "Possibly in love with the Prince of All Angry Jerks."

"Well at least you admitted it. Now," He turned towards her and looked at her expectantly, "What are you gonna do about it?"

"I have absolutely no idea." She replied with a shrug and she sighed for what felt like the hundredth time, "Ignore it? Hope it goes away eventually? It's not like I can do anything about it, he's the enemy after all."

Sokka looked at her doubtfully then patted her on the back, "Well, we'll figure something out eventually." He yawned widely as he got to his feet, "As fun as this has been, I'm exhausted. Let's get some sleep."

"Alright." Xiaodan agreed with a small smile, taking the hand he held out to her and allowing him to pull her to her feet. Together they walked back over to the camp and parted ways at the campfire, Sokka tiptoeing to where his sister was sleeping and Xiaodan moving quietly over to Appa. She carefully climbed onto the sleeping sky bison's side and settled down between Aang and the Duke, smiling slightly when the young Freedom Fighter rolled over and rested his head against her shoulder.

Tilting her head back, Xiaodan stared up at the starry sky until sleep dragged her into its warm embrace

Zuko folded his hands behind his head and stared up at the moon and the stars contemplatively, his thoughts whirling on how to get the Avatar's group to let them join them. And how to get a certain Airbender to forgive him.

"This is humiliating."

Xiaodan glanced tiredly over her shoulder at Katara, her brow quirking at the younger girl's grumbled statement. The group of teens had been walking all morning and their exhaustion was beginning to show with each dogged step.

Sokka glanced over at his sister in tired amusement as he walked beside her, "You mean getting thoroughly spanked by the Fire Nation or having to walk all the way to the Western Air Temple?"

Katara glanced at him contemplatively for a moment then answered with dry humor, "Both."

"Sorry, guys." Aang said to the siblings from where he was walking at the back the group and he reached out to scratch Appa's cheek affectionately, "But Appa gets tired carrying all these people."

"It's fine, Aang." Xiaodan yawned, swinging her staff up onto her shoulders and hanging her arms off it, "We've been in worse situations." She directed this comment towards Sokka.

"Yeah, not really." He retorted lazily and the dualbender rolled her eyes at him.

"I wonder how the rest of the troops are." Teo wondered idly as he wheeled his chair along beside Haru.

"They're probably on their way to a prison." Haru stated flatly and he glanced off to the side dejectedly, "Seems like my father just got out and now he's going back in."

The Duke sighed, "I miss Pipsqueak."

Glancing down at the youngest member of the group, Xiaodan handed her staff to Sokka, scooped the Duke up, and placed him on her shoulders. The Duke mumbled gratefully and folded his arms on top of the older girl's head, resting his chin on them.

"I miss not having blisters on my feet." Sokka whined as he passed Xiaodan her staff back.

Xiaodan rolled her eyes, "Keep whining, and blisters are gonna be the least of your problems, Ponytail."

"Hey," Sokka protested and he pointed to his helmeted head, "It's a warrior's wolf tail."

"Yeah, and it tells all the other warriors that you're fun and perky." She quipped back, sharing a laugh with Katara at the old joke. Sokka glowered at the two girls and crossed his arms, pouting petulantly as they continued to laugh at his expense.

Walking at the front of the procession, Toph came to a stop and stomped her foot. Her sightless eyes widened and she smiled in relief as she exclaimed, "Hey, we're here! I can feel it."

The rest of the group reached where she was standing near the edge of a cliff. Katara furrowed her brows and peered at the vast empty space filled with white mist between the cliff the teens were standing on and cliff on the opposite side.

"Uh, I think your feet need their eyes checked."

Xiaodan walked towards the edge of the cliff, lifting the Duke from her shoulders and placing him on his feet beside Teo as she passed. She peered over the edge and laughed slightly, "No, Toph's right. We're here."

"The Western Air Temple." Aang sighed in relief as he stood beside his sister.

Sokka glanced around and shrugged in confusion, "I don't see anything."

"Wow," Toph commented in awe, "It's amazing."

Xiaodan laughed again and spun around to face the others, "Meet you guys there!" She shouted then let herself fall backwards off the cliff's edge. The others laughed and quickly climbed into Appa's saddle, Toph and Haru assisting Teo into the saddle.

Xiaodan twisted around mid-air and snapped her glider open, smiling slightly as the upside down pagodas of the Western Air Temple came into view. A low growl reached her ears and she glanced to the side, her smile widening when she saw Appa flying beside her. Aang waved and grinned mischievously before urging the sky bison to fly faster, initiating a race.

Laughing merrily, Xiaodan pushed herself faster to keep pace with the sky bison.

Zuko tied the rope he'd brought with him to a rock and tossed it over the side of the cliff before slowly sliding down the rope. He turned slowly to face the cliff face and stared at the statue of a female Airbender. He swung forward slightly then jumped, landing in a crouch on the platform the statue was on. Zuko straightened and stared up at the statue, remembering the last time he'd been at this temple.

'"What a stunning view." Iroh commented as he stood behind his nephew and stared out at the mists covering the vast space between the cliff the Western Air Temple was built under and the cliff opposite it.

"The only view I'm interested in seeing is the Avatar in chains." A thirteen year old Zuko growled, glaring out at the emptiness with his unbandaged eye.

"You know, the Avatar hasn't been seen for a hundred years." Iroh said gently, "The chances of finding him here are very slim."

Zuko scowled determinedly, "First we'll check each of the air temples, then we'll scour the world, searching even the most remote locations until we find him."

"Prince Zuko," The older man looked at his nephew imploringly, "It's only been a week since your banishment. You should take some time to heal and rest."

"What else would I expect to hear from the laziest man in the Fire Nation?" Zuko whirled around and snarled at his uncle furiously. Iroh sighed and bowed his head while his nephew turned away from him, "The only way to regain my honor is to find the Avatar, so I will."

Iroh shook his head slightly and turned, walking away from his nephew...'

Disappointed in himself and his treatment of his uncle back then, Zuko exhaled heavily and closed his eyes, pinching the bridge of his nose.

The familiar rumbling growl of the Avatar's sky bison suddenly filled the air, followed by even more familiar laughter. Zuko jerked his head to the left, towards the sounds and gasped in surprise. He quickly darted towards a nearby pillar and ducked behind it, crouching down and watching as first the Avatar's sky bison then a white-haired figure on a glider soared past before disappearing behind another of the upside down pagodas.

He waited a few more moments then stood up and backed away from the pillar without taking his eyes away from where he'd seen the sky bison and female Airbender disappear to. Shaking his head, Zuko spun on his heel and raced towards a flight of stairs.

Teo and the Duke stared up at an hour-glass shaped fountain in the middle of the courtyard Appa had landed in.

"It's so different from the Northern Air Temple." Teo commented and he grinned eagerly, "I wonder if there are any secret rooms!"

Haru ran up from behind the two younger boys, gesturing for them to follow him as he ran towards a set of stairs, "Let's go check it out."

The Duke and Teo grinned enthusiastically and raced after the older Earthbender. Aang went to run after them, but Katara stopped him by blocking his way with his staff. She turned to address Haru, the Duke, and Teo as she handed the glider to Aang and placed her hand on his shoulder, "You guys go head, I think we need to talk about some things."

The three boys nodded in agreement and Teo grinned over at the young boy after Haru had helped him up a set of stairs leading to a bridge.

"I'll race you, Duke." He chirped and quickly wheeled down the bridge.

"I told you," The Duke exclaimed in annoyance as he followed the older boy with Haru right behind him, "It'sThe Duke."

Xiaodan shook her head slightly in amusement and called after the three, "Be careful you guys!"

"We will!" Haru shouted back before disappearing into one of the corridors that led into the cliff face.

Aang looked at Katara in confusion, "Why can't I go?"

"We need to decide what we're gonna do now." Katara replied with a small frown. She glanced over at Xiaodan as the older girl walked up to stand beside her before continuing, "And since you're the Avatar, maybe you should be a part of this."

Aang huffed and walked over to a piece of a broken stone pillar. He leaned his staff against it and sat down, crossing his arms grouchily in front of his chest, "Fair enough. What's the plan?"

The four followed him, each sitting down on another piece of the broken pillar. Sokka rubbed at his chin thoughtfully for moment then shrugged, "Well, if you asked me, the new plan is the old plan!" He grinned widely at Aang, "You just need to master all four elements and confront the Fire Lord before the comet comes."

"Oh, yeah, that's great." Aang drawled sarcastically and he picked up a pebble off the stone, tossing it into the air and catching it nonchalantly, "No problem, I'll just do that." He rolled his eyes and laid down on the broken pillar, flicking the pebble away from him with a scowl.

"Hey," Xiaodan chided gently as she moved from her position leaning against the only part of the pillar that had remained upright and sat down beside her brother, "I know this is hard, but there's not much else we can do."

"Yeah," Katara agreed with a short nod, "No one said it's going to be easy."

"Well, it's not gonna even be possible!" Aang exclaimed, leaning back on his elbows and staring at Katara questioningly, "Where am I supposed to get a firebending teacher?"

Katara's brows furrowed as she thought then she grinned excitedly, "We could look for Jeong Jeong."

"Yeah right." Aang scoffed and laid back on the bench, covering his eyes with an arm, "Like we'll ever run into Jeong Jeong again."

"Who's... Oh never mind." Toph mumbled and crossed her arms irritably, "If it's important, I'll find out."

Aang abruptly leapt to his feet and grabbed his glider, "Oh well, guess we can't come up with anybody." He grinned and jumped over the stone block Sokka was sitting on, "Why don't we take a nice tour around the temple?" He snapped his glider open as he ran towards the edge of the courtyard then leapt off, Momo following after him a moment later.

"What's up with him?" Toph asked drily and Xiaodan sighed.

"He's just having a hard time right now. Give him some time."

Sokka tapped his chin, "There's gotta be someone who can teach him firebending." He looked over at Xiaodan and eyed her thoughtfully.

"Hey, don't look at me." She held her hands out in front of her defensively, "I'm lucky if I don't accidentally setmyself on fire."

"Hello..." Zuko said slowly and he raised his hand in greet with a smile, "Zuko here, but...I guess you probably already know me, sort of." He winced and rubbed the back of his head nervously, looking off to the side as he let his arm fall back to his side, "Uh...so, the thing is I have a lot of firebending experience, and I'm considered to be pretty good at it. Well, you've seen me, you know, when I was attacking you."

His eyes widened and the smile disappeared from his face as he pressed his fingers against his forehead in embarrassment, "Uh, yeah...I should probably apologize for that. But anway," He shook his head and waved an arm to the side dismissively, "I'm good now. I mean, I thought I was good before, but I realize I was bad and that I hurt a lot of people," He fidgeted uncomfortably and his shoulders slumped dejectedly, "But-but anyway...I think it's time I joined your group and taught the Avatar firebending." He straightened with a sincere expression on his face.

The badgerfrog perched on the log in front of him croaked loudly. Scowling, Zuko leaned forward with a frustrated expression on his face, "Well?! What's you're answer?"

The badgerfrog hopped onto his head then jumped away and Zuko hung his head with a sigh.

"Yeah, that's what I'd say too...How am I supposed to convince these people I'm on their side?" He muttered and he straightened, grabbing his head in despair. He paused and stared thoughtfully at the ground, "What would Uncle do?"

Pacing a few steps, Zuko pretending to stroke an imaginary beard as he imitated his uncle's voice, "'Zuko, you have to look within yourself, to save yourself from your other self.'" He turned and paced in the opposite direction and pretended to be lecturing himself, "'Only then will your true self reveal itself.'"

Sighing, Zuko pressed his hand against his forehead and shook his head in exasperation, "Even when I'm talking for him, I can't figure out what he means. What would Azula do?"

"'Listen, Avatar, I can join your group,'" Zuko drawled in a high-pitched voice and he crossed his arms arrogantly, "'Or I can do something unspeakably horrible to you and your friends. Your choice.'" He groaned and covered his face with his hands before letting them drop to his sides, "What would Xia do?"

Zuko cleared his throat and propped his hands on his hips then began speaking in a slightly feminine voice, "You need to lighten up, Firebug. If you keep stressing like that your head is gonna explode." He scoffed at himself in frustration and sat down on the ground heavily, "I guess I'm not that good at impersonations..."

He stared in surprise when the badgerfrog leapt in front of him and croaked loudly. Zuko rubbed his temples then hung his head dejectedly, "If only I hadn't screwed up in Ba Sing Se..."

Xiaodan directed Appa after Aang as he flew around the upside down pagodas of the temple. Katara crawled towards the front of the saddle and leaned against the rim, calling out to the younger Airbender, "Aang, can we talk about you learning firebending now?"

"What? The wind is too loud in my ears. " Aang shouted back, feigning deafness, then he grinned eagerly, "Check out this loop!" He maneuvered his glider into a loop while Momo mimicked him simultaneously.

"Aang, stop avoiding the issue!" Xiaodan shouted at him in exasperation.

"I'm not!"

"You kind of are!" Sokka hollered as he moved to lean against the font of the saddle beside his sister, "I think we should be making plans about our future!"

"Okay," Aang agreed as he flew back towards the courtyard with the hourglass fountain, "We can do that while I show you the giant Pai Sho table." He landed beside the fountain and snapped his glider shut, grinning at his friends and sister as they jumped off Appa, "Oh, and the all-day echo chamber, you guys will love that!"

"I think that'll have to wait." Toph commented seriously and the others looked at her quizzically. She turned towards Appa and pointed behind him, just as the sky bison shuffled to the side, revealing a shadow.

Xiaodan sucked in a sharp breath and narrowed her eyes, "You!"

"Hello," Zuko said awkwardly and he raised his arm in greeting, "Zuko here."

"What are you doing here?!" Xiaodan hissed furiously as she shifted into an offensive stance, her staff pointed threateningly at the Fire Nation prince with Aang, Toph, Katara, and Sokka taking similar stances on either side of her.

"I heard you guys flying around down there, so I just thought I'd wait for you here." Zuko replied and he shrugged slightly, his gaze never leaving Xiaodan. Appa stepped towards him with a growl and he took a cautious step back, covering his face with his arms. He grunted when the sky bison proceeded to lick his back happily.

Aang stared in surprise and lowered his staff slightly, watching as Zuko lowered his arms and Appa licked his face affectionately.

"Ick." Zuko grunted again and wiped the slobber off his face with his arm then he looked over at Xiaodan and the Avatar, "I know you must be surprised to see me here."

"No, not really." Sokka snapped and he let go of his boomerang, "Since you followed us all over the world."

"Right..." Zuko coughed uncomfortably and glanced to the side, "Well, uh...anyway, what I wanted to tell you about is that I've changed, and, I, uh, I'm good now." Xiaodan scoffed loudly and he faltered, looking over at her with a slightly hurt expression. He cleared his throat and looked away from her hostile face as he addressed the Avatar apprehensively, "Um, and, well, I think I should join your group. Oh, and I can teach firebending...to you. See, I, uh..."

"You want to what now?!" Toph interrupted sharply while the others just stared at Zuko in dumbfounded disbelief, Aang lowering his staff even further in confusion.

"You can't possibly think that any of us would trust you, can you?" Katara demanded angrily and she glared at the prince, "I mean, how stupid do you think we are?"

"Pretty stupid apparently." Xiaodan commented flatly as she straightened from her fighting stance and leaned against her staff.

"Yeah!" Sokka agreed and he frowned, "All you've ever done is try to hunt us down and capture Aang!"

"I've done some good things." Zuko replied defensively and he took a step forward, gesturing towards Appa with his arms, "I mean, I could have stolen your bison in Ba Sing Se, but I set him free. That's something." Appa rumbled and licked his back again, much to Zuko's surprise.

Xiaodan scoffed again and shook her head in disbelief while Sokka and Katara continued to glare at him venomously. Toph tilted her head slightly, "Appa does seem to like him."

Katara and Sokka looked at her in surprise then turned back to glower at Zuko again.

"He probably just covered himself in honey so that Appa would lick him." Sokka stated and he swung his arm out, "I'm not buying it."

Zuko closed his eyes and bowed his head for a second then looked at the five friends remorsefully, "I can understand why you wouldn't trust me, and I know I've made some mistakes in the past." He looked to the side and closed his eyes in shame.

"Like when you attacked our village?" Sokka snapped then he threw his arm out and gestured towards a silent Xiaodan, "Or when you kidnapped Xia?"

Katara took a step forward and clenched her fists, "Or when you stole my mother's necklace and used it to track us down and capture us?"

Zuko flinched and looked over at the dualbender, but she merely narrowed her reddish-yellow eyes and gave him a dark look, "I admit that I've done some awful things. I was wrong," He lowered his head and pressed his palm against his temple, "I was wrong to try to capture you, and I'm sorry I attacked the Water Tribe. And I never should have sent that Fire Nation assassin after you, I'm gonna try to stop him-"

"Oh you have got to be kidding me." Xiaodan exclaimed loudly, interrupting Zuko as she threw her arms in the air and began pacing behind Katara, Sokka, and Toph.

Sokka unsheathed his boomerang and pointed it threateningly at Zuko, "You sent Combustion Man after us?"

"Well, that's not his name but-"

"Oh, sorry." Sokka growled sarcastically, "I didn't to insult your friend!"

Zuko reeled back and shouted in frustration, "He's not my friend!"

"That guy locked me and Katara in a jail!" Toph snapped angrily and she pointed an accusing finger at the prince, "And tried to blow us all up! Twice!"

Zuko closed his eyes and sighed softly as he opened them a moment later. He turned his head towards Aang, who had remained silent the whole time, "Why aren't you saying anything? You once said you thought we could be friends." He watched as Aang looked down and stared at the ground. Zuko turned his gaze away from the young Avatar and stared at Xiaodan, "You know I have good in me."

Xiaodan pursed her lips and looked away, her jaw clenched stubbornly. Aang frowned and glanced towards his sister, then towards their friends. Sokka glanced at him and shook his head slightly. Turning his head, Aang stared at Zuko with furrowed brows, "There's no way we can trust you after everything you've done. We'll never let you join us."

"You need to get out of here." Katara spat, "Now."

Zuko looked at them in surprise then closed his eyes for moment. When he opened them, he stared at them with determination, "I'm trying to explain I'm not that person anymore." He raised both arms in frustration and he walked towards the group, but Sokka and Xiaodan took a step forward and pointed their weapons at him warningly. He flinched and took a step back, a shocked and dismayed expression on his face.

"Either you leave, or we attack." Sokka stated grimly.

Zuko closed his eyes, "If you won't accept me as a friend, then maybe you'll take me as your prisoner." He kneeled and held his arms out with his head bowed submissively.

Xiaodan recoiled slightly and lowered her staff, stupefied shock etched onto her face. Katara scowled viciously and bended the water from her canteen, launching it at Zuko with a furious shout, "No, we won't!"

Zuko grunted when the water struck him, knocking him back a few feet. He laid facedown on the ground in a puddle of water for a moment then slowly rolled onto his back, propping himself up onto his elbow.

"Get out of here," Katara barked and she crossed her arms as she stood between Sokka and Aang, "And don't come back. And if we ever see you again...Well, we'd better not see you again!"

Water dripping from his hair, Zuko looked away from the furious Waterbender and at Xiaodan. She stared back at him for several moments then looked away, turning her back on him. Closing his eyes, Zuko bowed his head in defeat then he pushed himself to his feet and walked away, Aang and Katara watching him go with irritated expressions.

Xiaodan exhaled shakily and closed her eyes, a single tear escaping and sliding down her cheek before she brushed it away.

"Argh!" Zuko growled and grabbed his head as he paced around his camp in the forest on the cliff above the air temple, "I can't believe how stupid I am! I mean, what was I think?" He slapped his forehead and shook his head, horrified at himself, "Telling them I sent an assassin after them? Why didn't I just say Azula did that? They would've believed that! Stupid!"

He groaned and slapped his forehead again. The badgerfrog sitting on the log in front of him croaked and Zuko slouched forward. He dropped to his knees in front of the log and bowed his head, groaning in frustration.

"I am such an idiot..."

"Why would he try to fool us like that?" Katara ranted as she walked into the pagoda that led to the hourglass fountain courtyard, a sleeping roll in her arms, "I mean it doesn't make sense!"

"Obviously, he wants to lead us into some kind of trap." Sokka stated as he followed his sister with another sleeping roll while Xiaodan and Aang walked after him with some other supplies in their arms.

Katara turned towards her brother, "This is just like when we were prison together in Ba Sing Se. He starts talking about his mother, and making it seem like he's an actual human being with feelings."

"He is an actual human being with feelings." Xiaodan snapped irritably as she stalked past the younger girl and dumped the pack she was carrying on the ground.

"How can you say that?" Katara demanded, whirling around to face the dualbender with an affronted expression, "After everything he's done to us? You can't possible believe he has feelings?"

Turning to face Katara, Xiaodan propped a hand on her hip and scowled, "I can believe that because it wasn't you, who spent weeks as his prisoner or months as his traveling companion!"

"No, no, no." Sokka chided and the two girls turned to look at him, "See, he wants you to feel sorry for him and trust him, so you let your guard down, then he strikes." He punched his fist out to the side to emphasis his point then he pointed towards Xiaodan, "You know that better than anyone, Xia."

Xiaodan threw her hands in the air and spun around, crouching in front of the pack she'd brought into the pagoda. She began to rummaging inside of it as Katara started speaking again.

"Yeah well, the thing is, it worked on me." Katara kneeled and set her sleeping roll down, "I did feel sorry for him. I felt like he was really confused and hurt."

"Because he was." Xiaodan muttered under her breath and she hunched her shoulders, her lips pressed into a thin line.

Katara looked over her shoulder at the dualbender with frown then stood up, "It doesn't matter though. Obviously when the time came, he made his choice, and we paid the price." Her expression became angry and she scowled, "We can't trust him."

"I kind of have a confession to make." Aang said suddenly and Katara turned her head towards him in confusion. Xiaodan tilted her head slightly and stared at her brother from the corner of her eye as he turned slightly towards them, "Remember when you two were sick and I got captured by Zhao?"

"And you made us suck on frozen frogs? How could I forget?!" Sokka asked rhetorically and he threw his sleeping bag down in outrage, "I had a wart on the flap that hangs down from the back of my throat for a month!"

He stepped forward and opened his mouth wide, pointing a finger into for emphasis. Aang stared at him strangely and Katara rolled her eyes in exasperation.

"Sokka, I looked at it and told you there was nothing there."

"I could feel it!" Sokka retorted petulantly, "It's mythroatal flap."

"Anyway..." Aang drawled, recapturing Xiaodan's and the two siblings' attention, "When Zhao had me chained up, it was Zuko who came in and got me out. He risked his life to save me."

"No way." Katara stated as she took a step towards Aang and made a slashing motion with her arm, "I'm sure he only did it so he could capture you himself." She crossed her arms and frowned in consternation.

"Yeah," Sokka added as he moved to stand near his sister, "Face it, Aang, you're nothing but a big prize to him."

Xiaodan pursed her lips even tighter and stood up slowly, turning to face them. She stared at Aang as he hung his head and sighed, "You guys are probably right."

"And what was all that crazy stuff about setting Appa free?" Katara demanded with a skeptical scoff, "What a liar."

"He wasn't lying about that." Xiaodan stated flatly and the Waterbender whirled around to face her. The dualbender crossed her arms and stared at the younger girl challengingly, "I saw him do it."

"Oh, hooray!" Sokka exclaimed sarcastically and he threw his arms up with false cheer, "In a lifetime of evil at least he didn't add animal cruelty to the list."

Katara whirled around to face Xiaodan and pointed at her accusingly, "Why are you even defending him! He helped Azula hurt Aang, remember?"

"I know what he did Katara! Aang is my brother! I don't trust him, I don't even really like him right now, but I'd say I have more experience dealing with him than you!" Xiaodan snapped back and she pointed at the younger girl, "Sure, you spent a few hours in the Catacombs with him, but I was with him and his uncle for months."

"Oh so you think we can trust him, is that it?!"

"Weren't you listening? I just said I don't trust him!"

Katara ignored her and continued rage, "Honestly, Xia, after everything he's done?! I can't even believe you!"

"Hey, considering his messed up family, and how he was raised, he could've turned out a lot worse." Toph commented, finally speaking up for the first time since the conversation had started, and successfully interrupting the argument brewing between the other two girls.

"You're right, Toph, let's go find him and give him a medal." Katara spat scornfully as she spun around to face the blind Earthbender and she threw her arms out to the side, "The 'not as much of a jerk as you could have been' award!"

Toph scoffed and rolled her sightless eyes at the Waterbender, "All I'm saying is that while he was talking to us, he was sincere." She gestured towards them, "You're all just letting your hurt feelings keep you from thinking clearly."

"Easy for you to say, you weren't there when he had us attacked by pirates!" Katara exclaimed and she took a few steps forward, crossing her arms furiously.

"Or when he burned down Kyoshi Island!" Sokka growled, clenching her fists in remembrance.

"Or when he tried to capture me at the fire temple." Aang added with his own scowl.

Xiaodan frowned and crossed her arms, "Hey, I think my feelings have a right to be hurt by what he did! I thought he was my friend after all."

"Why would you even try to defend him?" Katara demanded, gesturing wildly with her hands as she spoke. She flung a hand out towards Xiaodan, "I get why she's doing it, but why you?"

"I already said I'm not defending him!"

"Argh!" Toph growled and stomped towards Aang, "Because, Katara, you're all ignoring one crucial fact! Aang needs a firebending teacher." She grabbed Aang and jabbed him in the chest repeatedly to prove her point, "And we can't think of a single person in the world to do the job." Pushing Aang away from her, Toph walked away then spun around to face the group again with a frustrated expression, "Now one shows up on a silver platter and you," She stomped her foot and pointed at Katara accusingly, "Won't even thinkabout it?"

"I'm not having Zuko as my teacher." Aang stated as he walked towards Xiaodan and stood with his back to Toph. The blind Earthbender's expression became surprised and she turned her head towards Aang in shock.

Sokka stepped up to his sister's side and crossed his arms, "You're darn right you're not, buddy."

"Well," Katara smirked smugly and crossed her arms, "I guess that's settled."

Toph groaned in frustration and turned her back on her friends, "I'm beginning to wonder who's really the blind one around here."

Xiaodan pursed her lips and crossed her arms tightly, glaring at the ground as Toph stormed out of the pagoda. She rubbed at her forehead and sighed reluctantly, "You know, she might have a point."

"Don't even start, Xia. " Katara snapped at the older girl, "Zuko is not teaching Aang firebending and that's the end of it!" She jabbed at finger at the dualbender, "You're infinite wisdom isn't needed."

Xiaodan gritted her teeth and glared at the younger girl, smoking beginning to curl up from her clenched fists. Whirling on her heel, she stormed out of the pagoda, snatching her glider up as she passed the pillar it was leaning on. Aang glanced between his sister's retreating back and the quietly fuming Katara unsurely before deciding to give his sister some obviously needed space.

Zuko slept quietly beneath the war balloon's tarp he'd tied up between a couple of trees as a makeshift tent, a campfire blazing a few feet in front of his shelter. Soft rustling filled the air and he awoke with a soft groan, groggily pushing his upper body off the ground and peering out behind his campfire.

"Who's there?" He called out then he swung his arm out, sending out an arc of fire, "Stay back!"

"It's me!" Toph cried out as she quickly earthbended a rock pillar in front of her to protect herself from the flames. The fire circled around the rock pillar and Toph stepped back into the flames. She tossed her head back in pain and fell onto her backside with a yelp, "Ow!"

Zuko gaped and rubbed his eyes quickly, taking a good look at who he'd just accidentally burned. He sucked in a harsh breath when he saw Toph sitting on the ground, the soles of her bare feet red and raw.

"You burned my feet!"

"I'm sorry!" Zuko apologized hurriedly and he leapt to his feet, "It was a mistake!"

Panicked and afraid, Toph used her hands to push herself away from the prince, "Get away from me!" She threw a rock at him then rolled onto her hands and knees, hurriedly crawling away from Zuko while earthbending rocks at him.

Zuko dodged the rocks deftly, jumping from side to side as he followed after the young girl as quickly as he could, "Let me help you!" He begged when he caught up to her, dodging another rock she flung back at him, "I'm sorry!"

He dodged another rock and reached out, laying his hand on Toph's shoulder.

"Get off me," Toph shouted again and she rolled onto her back quickly, pushing Zuko away from her, "Get off me!" She thrust her palms out and a column of earth shot up from the ground, slamming into a surprised Zuko's chest and throwing him away from her.

Zuko groaned when he landed on the ground and he quickly sat up, "I didn't know it was you!" He tried move, but a sharp pain caused him to gasp and clutch his side with a grimace of pain. Still holding his side, he called out pleading, "Come back!"

He watched helplessly as Toph disappeared into the dark forest. Zuko groaned in frustration and fell onto his back, clutching his head in despair as he rolled on the ground slightly.

"Why am I so bad at being good!?" He yelled and threw his arms and legs out with a sigh, "I am such an idiot."

Taking the bowl Katara held out to held to her, Xiaodan gave a strained but grateful smile then moved around to sit beside the Duke.

"Has anyone seen Toph?" Katara asked as she filled another bowl with rice and handed it to the Duke.

Sokka yawned, "I haven't seen her since she stormed off yesterday."

"Maybe she's just exploring the air temple." Haru suggested with a slight shrug and he smiled, "There are some pretty fun spots to practice earthbending."

Katara frowned worriedly, "I think we should go look for her."

"Oh, let her have fun with her rocks." Sokka stated drily as he sat on the other side of the pot of rice, "I'm in no rush to have her yelling at us again."

"We can go check for her." The Duke said with a grin, handing his empty bowl to Xiaodan when she held her hand out for it.

"Yeah, I want to ride that tunnel down to the hall of statues again." Teo added and he reached down to his brake stick, "It'll be a lot better now that I fixed my brakes."

"Just be careful." Xiaodan called out after him as he rolled away, kicking up a cloud of dust. The Duke waved a hand at her as he and Haru followed after him. Shaking her head in amusement, she moved from the block of stone she was sitting on to sit on the ground between Aang and Sokka around the urn.

A loud rumble echoed through the courtyard and the ground shook, causing the four friends to flinch in surprise. They turned towards the sound just in time to see a large cloud of dust erupt from the wall a few yards away from them. Xiaodan leapt to her feet and rushed towards the dirt cloud, quickly blowing it away and revealing a large pile of rocks beneath a newly formed hole in the wall.

"Toph!" The dualbender exclaimed in worried shock as the blind Earthbender crawled out of the hole, sliding down the rock pile to the floor with a pained grunt. Xiaodan kneeled before the younger girl, her hands hovering unsurely above her, "Are you okay? Nevermind, stupid question."

Katara ran towards the other two girls and dropped down beside Toph, "What happened?"

"My feet got burned."

"Oh no!" Katara gasped and she began examining Toph's feet, "What happened?"

Toph scowled in annoyance, "I just told you, my feet got burned!"

Katara looked at the back of the blind girl's head irritably, "I meant how?"

"Er..." Toph hesitated and chuckled nervously, "Well, I kinda went to see Zuko last night."

"You did what now?!"

"You what?!"

"Zuko?!"

"Ugh!"

Toph rolled her eyes at her friends reactions, "I just thought he could be helpful to us. And if I talked to him, maybe we could work something out." She sighed in relief when Katara bended the water from her canteen around her feet to heal them.

"So he attacked you?" Aang asked, wanting to clarify what exactly happened.

"Well, he did and he didn't." Toph replied with a small shrug and she rested her head against Xiaodan's leg, "It was sort of an accident."

"But he did firebend at you?" Aang persisted and Toph sighed.

"Yes."

"See," Sokka said emphatically and he gestured wildly with his hands then crossed his arms, "You trusted Zuko and you got burned...literally!"

Katara shook her head and bended the water away from Toph feet, back into her canteen, "It's gonna take a while for your feet to get better. I wish I could have worked on them sooner."

"Yeah," Toph sighed as she lifted her head up from Xiaodan's leg, "Me too."

"Zuko's clearly to dangerous to be left alone." Sokka stated thoughtfully and he tapped his chin, "We're gonna have to go after him."

"I hate to go looking for a fight, but you're right." Aang agreed with a disappointed shake of his head, "After what he did to Toph, I don't think we have a choice."

Xiaodan rolled her eyes and moved to crouch in front of Toph, "Katara, can you help me get Toph on my back."

Katara nodded and helped Toph manuever onto the older girl's back while her brother continued to think aloud.

"Zuko's crafty, but we'll find a way to capture him."

"Maybe just invite him back here." Toph suggested as Xiaodan hooked her hands beneath her knees and stood up easily, "He's already offered himself up as a prisoner once."

"Yeah..." Sokka agreed slowly, following Xiaodan as she walked over to the fountain with Aang, "Get him to come back and say he'll be our prisoner. Then we'll jump him and really make him our prisoner. He'll never suspect it."

Katara rolled her eyes as she followed the other three, "You are a master of surprise, Sokka."

Xiaodan snickered and turned around once she reached the fountain. She carefully released Toph's legs and, with Sokka and Aang's help, sat the young girl on the edge of the fountain, letting her dip her feet in the water.

"Ahh," Toph sighed happily and she leaned back against Xiaodan, "That's the stuff. Now I know how the rest of you guys feel. Not being able to see with your feet stinks."

Katara sat down beside Toph on the fountain's edge while Aang hurried over to their supplies and grabbed a towel, bringing it over to the Waterbender. Suddenly, the ledge above the fountain exploded. Katara gasped and swung her arms, bringing the water from the fountain up to shield the five friends from the falling rocks. Sokka and Aang quickly picked Toph up to take her away, but stopped when they heard Zuko's voice.

"Stop! I don't want you hunting the Avatar anymore."

Xiaodan gawked at Zuko as he ran towards Combustion Man, standing in front of him with his arms spread out to keep him from attacking, "What is that idiot doing?!"

"The mission is off!" Zuko shouted at Combustion Man, further shocking the group by the fountain, "I'm ordering you to stop!"

Combustion Man shoved him to the side and fired another blast, hitting the top of the fountain and destroying it. Aang, Sokka, Katara, and Toph ducked behind the fountain's edge and covered their heads while Xiaodan flung her arms out to the side and bended a shield of air around all of them, the falling debris flying harmless away from them.

She looked up just in time to see Zuko rush towards Combustion Man with his hand pulled back and covered in flames.

Zuko charged towards the Fire Nation assassation with his flame-covered fist pulled back, "If you keep attacking, I won't pay you!" He shouted as he ran.

Combustion Man didn't even glance at him as he grabbed the prince by the shirt. Zuko grunted and threw the fireball in his hand, but missed. He struggled against the assassin's grip on his shirt, "Alright! I'll pay you double to stop!" He quickly swung his arms down, finally breaking Combustion Man's grip.

Zuko turned on his heel and slammed his foot into the assassin's gut just as Combustion man fired another shot, knocking his aim off and pushing Zuko away with the force of the kick.

Aang peered over the edge of the fountain and stared at the incoming shot with fright before Xiaodan forced him back down just as the blast hit the pagoda below the fountain, destroying it.

Zuko grunted as he landed on in a crouch and he whirled around when he heard the assassin step towards him, staring at him in shock. He lurched to his feet and turned fully, creating a shield of fire in front of him just as Combustion Man fired a blast at him.

The blast hit the shield and exploded, pushing Zuko across the ground and over the edge of the platform.

"Zuko!" Xiaodan screamed after she'd lifted her head and saw the cloud of smoke on the platform. Her chest tightened and her heart pounded furiously against her insides when the smoke and there was no sign of the prince.

Aang leapt to his feet and ran towards the edge of the courtyard, executing a quick spinning back kick that kicked up the dust around him and jumping straight up just in time to avoid another blast from Combustion Man. He spun in mid-air and airbended a mini-tornado then kicked it at the Fire Nation assassin.

Combustion Man leapt over the tornado and fired another blast at Aang as he descended. Xiaodan bended a spout of air beneath herself and surged towards her brother, throwing herself from the air spout as the bottom of it took the brunt of Combustion Man's attack. She hit the ground on her back and skidded backwards several paces before coming to a stop beside her brother. Aang hurriedly helped her to her feet and the two rushed back over to their friends, all of them watching as Combustion Man slowed his fall by catching a small ledge with his clawed, metal hand. He landed on another ledge and rolled forward, launching another blast at the five friends a moment later.

Xiaodan threw up another air shield as the blast struck the fountain water, throwing up a cloud of steam and smoke. She quickly cleared the air as Katara ran forward, bending the water from the fountain into a huge wave between the five teens and the assassin. Jumping upward, she raised her arms then brought them down in and crossed them in front of her. The wave matched her arm movements and icicles shot down at Combustion Man from both directions, but he merely brought up his metal arm over his face and lifted his metal leg to shield himself from the attack.

The icicles shattered against him and he lowered his arm, narrowing his eyes as he shook the ice from his body. He scanned the courtyard below, but there was no sign of the Avatar or his friends.

Xiaodan panted heavily as she pressed her back against the pillar they had all taken cover behind. She flinched when a pillar a few feet from them exploded and she turned her head away from the explosion. Sitting on the ground beside her, Toph covered her face with one arm and pressed the hand of her other against the ground. Her eyes widened in urgency, "He's going to blast this whole place right off the cliff side!"

Katara peeked out from behind the pillar and recoiled quickly when another blast struck the ground, exploding mere feet from them. She shook her head slightly, "I can't step out to waterbend at him without getting blown up! And I can't get a good enough angle on him from down here."

Sokka paused and thought furiously then he grinned, "I know how to get an angle on him!"

He gently pushed Katara aside and pulled out his boomerang, pressing his back against the pillar. He peeked out from behind the pillar just as another blast caused the ground the explode a little bit a ways. Sokka furrowed his brow in determination and the pillar again as smoke billowed passed him then he watched as two more blasts of energy shot out from behind another stone pillar and hit the ground in a loud explosion.

Sokka raised his boomerang towards the source of the blasts and mentally calculated the blasts' trajectory. He smirked when he figured out the right angle and pulled his boomerang back, "Alright buddy, don't fail me now." He threw the boomerang forcefully and watched with his sister and friends as it flew through the air and curved behind a stone pillar.

Standing on a different platform, Combustion Man inhaled deeply and prepared to fire another blast when a sound reached his ears. He turned towards the sound and the boomerang hit him in the middle of the forehead. He grunted and stumbled back, falling to the ground.

Sokka cheered and darted out from behind the pillar with a triumphant grin with the other following him. His boomerang flew back towards him and he jumped, catching it happily, "Yeah, boomerang!"

He and Katara looked up with wide grins that quickly turned to frowns when they saw Combustion Man struggling back to his feet, his hand to his forehead. Sokka looked down at his boomerang disappointedly, "Aww, boomerang..."

"Let's go!" Xiaodan ushered the others back behind the pillar just as Combustion Man stood completely upright. She pressed her back against the pillar and closed her eyes tightly.

Combustion Man growled silently as he swayed slightly on his feet. He turned towards the fountain courtyard and reared his head back, his vision blurring. He inhaled deeply and tried to fire another blast of energy, but sparks began to fly from his forehead then a small explosion erupted from his head. The assassin put his hand to his forehead.

Xiaodan flinched as the sound of a massive explosion filled the air and she peered around the pillar, gawking as the pagoda Combustion Man had been standing on fell into the misty chasm below the temple. A glint of light among the falling debris and smoke caught her eye and she watched as the assassin's metal arm flew through the air, landing at the edge of the courtyard with a clang. Behind the group, Teo and Haru peeked out from behind a pillar with perplexed expression while the Duke poked his head out and stared in awe.

"Whoa..." She muttered and she ran towards the edge of the courtyard, looking down in shock. When Aang, Katara, and Sokka ran up to stand beside her, she looked at Sokka in astonishment, "You just took out Combustion Man with a boomerang."

Sokka smiled smugly, "Yeah, I know I'm awesome."

The dualbender laughed incredulously and looked over towards the remains of the pagoda, her eyes widening when something caught her eye. Her jaw dropped in disbelief and a small amount of relief, "Zuko!"

Aang, Katara, and Sokka jerked their heads towards her then followed her line of sight, staring in amazement as Zuko climbing up a vine that was hanging under the ledge he'd fall off of. They watched as he pulled himself back onto the ledge.

Xiaodan sat beside Toph on a piece of rubble, watching with Katara, Sokka, and Aang as Zuko approached them.

"I can't believe I'm saying this..." Aang commented as he lifted his head and stared at Zuko gratefully, "But, thanks Zuko."

"Hey," Sokka whined slightly and gestured with his arms, "I did the boomerang thing."

Xiaodan glanced at him sardonically, "What? Do you want a cookie or something?"

"That would be nice, yeah." He sniffed snootily and she rolled her eyes.

Zuko stopped a few feet from the group, "Listen, I know I didn't explain myself very well yesterday. I've been through a lot in the past few years, and it's been hard. But I'm realizing that I had to go through all those things to learn the truth. I thought I had lost my honor," He bowed his head slightly and closed his eyes for a moment, "And that somehow my father could return it to me. But I know now that no one can give you your honor. It's something you earn for yourself, by choosing to do what's right."

"All I want now is to play my part in ending this war." Zuko said sincerely and he stared at Aang with an earnest expression, "And I know my destiny is to help you restore balance to the world."

Aang stared back at Zuko for a moment and his expression softened. He inclined his head slightly and Zuko looked over at Toph.

"I'm sorry for what I did to you." He bowed lowly to her then straightened, "It was an accident. Fire can be dangerous and wild. So as a Firebender, I need to be more careful and control my bending so I don't hurt people unintentionally."

Aang blinked in surprise and he stared at Zuko in realization. He looked over his shoulder at Xiaodan, who was staring at the prince with an unreadable expression then he looked at the ground. He stared at the ground intently for a moment then turned his gaze back to Zuko.

"I think you are supposed to be my firebending teacher." He said and he took a few steps forward, "When I first tried to learn firebending, I burned Katara and almost burned Xia. After that, I never wanted to firebend again. But now I know you understand how easy it is to hurt the people to love." He walked up to Zuko and bowed, "I'd like you to teach me."

Zuko smile warmly and bowed back to the young Airbender, "Thank you. I've so glad you've accepted me into your group."

"Not so fast. I still have to ask my friends and sister if it's okay with them." Aang said and he looked over at Toph, "Toph, you're the one that Zuko burned. What do you think?"

Toph shrugged, "Go ahead and let him join." She grinned and pounded her fist into her palm jokingly, "It'll give me plenty of time to get back at him for burning my feet."

"Sokka?"

"Hey, all I want is to defeat the Fire Lord." Sokka replied with a dismissive shrug after a moment of thought, "If you think this is the way to do it, then, I'm all for it."

Aang nodded and approached Katara cautiously, "Katara?"

The Waterbender glared at Zuko for a moment then answered reluctantly, "I'll go along with whatever you think is right."

Aang smiled at her then turned towards his sister, who had remained studiously quiet during the exchange. He walked over and stood beside of her, "Xia?"

Zuko swallowed thickly as she stared at him with an inscrutable expression. Sweat beaded at his temple and rolled down his cheek as he waited anxiously for her to reply.

Exhaling forcefully, Xiaodan looked away from Zuko and met her brother's eyes with a strained smile, "I don't like it, but if you think it feels right," She placed a hand on his chest over his heart, "Here, then I won't say no."Aang smiled gently and inclined his head gratefully, murmuring under his breath, "Thank you."

"I won't let you down." Zuko said excitedly as he took a few steps towards the group, "I promise."

"I find that doubtful for some reason." Xiaodan commented flatly as she stood up swiftly and walked away, disappearing around the corner. Zuko flinched at her words and stared in the direction she'd gone in while the others quickly dispersed as well. Sokka picked up Toph and followed after the dualbender while Katara and Aang went towards the chamber they'd made camp in, leaving Zuko alone in the ruined courtyard with his thoughts.

"So here you go," Sokka drawled uncomfortably after leading Zuko to one of the rooms in the temple. He gestured towards the inside of the room and Zuko walked inside, "Home sweet home, I guess. You know, for now. Unpack...lunch soon." He rubbed the back of his head awkwardly, "Uh...welcome aboard?"

Zuko turned towards him and smiled slightly. Sokka returned the smile awkwardly and shuffled out of the room. He walked over to where Aang was leaning against a pillar a little bit a ways from the room, "Yeah, okay, this is really, really weird."

Aang smiled in amusement and the two walked away, heading back to the courtyard for lunch.

Zuko sat on the bed in the room and rummaged through his pack, pulling out the small portrait of his uncle. He stared down at the painting for a moment then closed his eyes.

'"If I have to, I will spend every day of the rest of my life hunting the Avatar." The newly banished Zuko stated determinedly, "I know it's my destiny to capture him."

Iroh chuckled slightly and placed his hand on his nephew's shoulder, "You know, Prince Zuko, destiny is a funny thing. You never know how things are going to work out. But if you keep an open mind and an open heart," He smiled and squeezed Zuko's shoulder, "I promise you will find your own destiny someday."'

With his eyes still closed, Zuko smiled down at the painting in his hand, nodding his head in agreement. A soft scuffling sound caused him to snap his eyes open in alarm and he turned his head towards the door, staring in surprise at Katara leaning against the door frame.

He stood up and faced her, opening his mouth to say something but she cut him off.

"You might have everyone else here buying your'transformation'." She spat venomously as she glared at him, "But you and I both know you've struggled with doing the right thing in the past." She stalked over to Zuko and leaned towards him threateningly, "So let me tell you something right now. You make one step backwards, one slip-up, give me one reason to think you might hurt Aang...and you won't have to worry about your destiny anymore."

"Because I'll make sure your destiny ends, rig-"

"That's enough, Katara."

Zuko flinched and looked away from the Waterbender, staring over her head at Xiaodan. Katara whirled around and narrowed her eyes at the older girl angrily. Xiaodan stared back at her impassively as she spoke, "Threatening people is not a good way to make friends."

Katara opened her mouth to retort, but the dualbender interrupted before she could even get a word out.

"The boys are looking for you, I think you should go see what they want."

The Waterbender sent a spiteful glare over her shoulder at Zuko then stalked towards the door. Xiaodan stepped aside nonchalantly and tilted her head when Katara stopped beside her, leveling an angry expression on her. The dualbender quirked one brow and stared at the younger girl challengingly, daring her to pick a fight with her at that moment. Scowling fiercely, Katara stormed away from the room, leaving Zuko and Xiaodan alone.

Zuko swallowed thickly and gazed at Xiaodan as she watched Katara walk away. He took a cautious step towards her, "Xia, I-"

"Don't."

He froze where he was, watching her anxiously as kept her back to him. He was about to take another step towards her when she glanced at him over her shoulder and he inhaled sharply at the grim expression on her face.

"Xia," He breathed when she looked away again, "I am so sor-"

"I said don't!" She spat and whirled around to face him, walking towards him with a dangerous glare, "I didn't come here for an apology. I came to warn you, that if you do anything to put my family in danger." She shook her head and crossed her arms, "Let's just say, Katara will be the least of your worries."

Turning on her heel, Xiaodan walked calmly towards the door but she froze when a warm hand touched her right shoulder. A sharp hiss escaped her and she jerked away from Zuko, turning to glare at him, "Don't touch me!"

"Xia, wait, please." He asked imploringly, but she ignored him and he all he could do was watch helplessly as she disappeared down the hall. Closing his eyes, Zuko closed the door and let his shoulders droop dejectedly. He let his head fall forward, smacking it against the wooden door with a sigh, "I'm sorry."

Breathing heavily, Xiaodan stopped at the end of the hallway and leaned her head against one of the pillars. Pressing her forehead firmly against the cool stone, she closed her eyes and took several deep, cleansing breaths. Abruptly, she snapped her eyes open and slammed a fist against the pillar with a growl.

"Stupid, stupid, stupid." She turned and pressed her back against the pillar, sliding down to the ground and pulling her knees up to her chest. She wrapped her arms around her legs and hid her face against knees, "I am such a stupid idiot. Agreeing to this was a horrible idea..."