The sky was starting to glow orange as the sun got ready to set. Zuko sat perched atop a large rock as he watched the waves crash against the shore of Ember Island. He sighed, blowing aside a rogue strand of hair that fell across his face. There was no easy way to do this, and he wasn't looking forward to it.

Ginny Apparated onto the beach, spotting Zuko almost immediately. "Hey," she called, lifting one hand to shade her eyes from the sun as she looked up at him.

He leapt off the rock, landing ever so gracefully on all fours. After brushing the sand and dust off he walked over to her and smiled. "Hey..." He tried his best to cover up his surprise to see she was already starting to show that she was pregnant. Had he really been away that long?

She beamed and hugged him. She was in a good mood today. "Hi!"

He hugged her back for longer than he normally would have. There was a sad gleam in his eyes when he pulled away, still smiling almost half-heartedly at her. "Look, um...." Zuko said quietly, running his hand through his hair. "There's a few things I should tell you.... Before...you know.... Yeah."

She tilted her head and blinked at him, frowning slightly. Something was wrong. He looked sad. "What's the matter, love?"

"...This is it," he sighed, then hesitated for a moment, biting his lip. His hands slipped into his pockets as his gaze drifted to the side for a moment before he resumed looking at her. "It's nothing like before. This is all or nothing. No more second chances. There's a chance... and it's more likely now than it's ever been.... that I won't come back. This might be the last time I ever see you." It was obvious he had attempted to rehearse earlier, as more effort was put into not letting his voice falter. He was trying not to cry.

Ginny opened her mouth, then closed it again. She really had no idea what to say. "...I refuse to believe that," she finally said, her voice shaking slightly. She would not entertain the possibility of losing him. He meant too much to her, and to too many other people as well.

"I know I'm not facing my father...." he told her, his expression remaining the same. "But Azula is just as bad, if not worse. In case you haven't noticed, so far I've barely been able to match her, let alone beat her. Mostly it's just been luck and getting my ass out of there when it looks like I'm about to get destroyed. But I can't run to fight another day anymore. That day is now." Zuko trained so hard over the years not to let weakness show. He hadn't felt this stressed, this worried, since he left Mai to join the Avatar. It took most of his willpower to keep from breaking down. "It's for a good cause. The best in the world. If I died, it would be with honor. I'm doing the right thing." Finally his voice cracked, and he covered his face with his hand. "But I'm still afraid..."

"Oh... oh, Zuko." Distressed, she sat down, pulling on his arm until he sat next to her. "C'mere." She wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tightly. "I know you're scared," she said. "Frankly, I'm kind of glad you're scared. It means you'll be more careful."

"There's so much at stake..." he said quietly. "It's not killing her I have a problem with, I could do that with a smile... But the chance of losing is so high... Even though I know the comet will make me just as strong as any of them... But she's vicious. If she pulls a cheap trick I don't know how to expect... That's it. I'm dead."

"Please stop saying that." She leaned forward, peering at him through his hair. "You've got to be more optimistic, Zuko. If you go after her thinking you can't win..." she trailed off.

"I don't think I can though!" He looked at her, wide-eyed. "I haven't had years of hard training drilled into me. I wasn't an obsessive perfectionist. I'm good, but compared to her I'm mediocre at best. I can only hope she's as messed up in the head as I've heard and her emotional distress screws with her skill...."

She offered him a small smile. "I believe in you."

That caught him off guard. His expression lit up for a moment. "...You do?"

"'Course," she said.

"You know..." Zuko's gaze shifted to the side. "You don't have to pity me or anything. Or worry... I kinda uh... Yeah. I'm over everything. Nothing against you. You're fine." He gave her a sheepish smile.

Ginny shrugged. "I still believe in you. And I'm still going to worry."

"Thanks." He smirked. "You're a good friend."

She leaned her head on his shoulder. "I'm not losing you," she said confidently. "I refuse to allow it. You are going to beat your sister, and you'll be Fire Lord."

He gently held her with one arm and sighed, "Yeah...Maybe...But what I was trying to say was... Remember last year?"

She rolled her eyes. "Don't be idiotic, Zuko. Yes."

"I'm over all that." His tone was firm.

She looked up at him in surprise. "Really?"

He nodded. "Yeah."

"Good." She put her head back on his shoulder, genuinely relieved. Hopefully now they could go back to being real friends, like they had been before.

"I've got better things to seek now anyway," he shrugged. "Also I have my Mai back. I'm good."

"Better things? Oh thanks," she teased.

"Ten times better." he replied with a faux serious face.

"Berk." She grinned.

"Berk?" Zuko raised a brow.

"Berk. Arse. Idiot. Prick," she offered.

"I am not," he replied indignantly. "Cruel woman."

"Bah. You love me."

"Maybe," he said teasingly, laughing.

"Maybe nothing," she giggled. "I missed you," she said after a moment.

He hugged her closer to him. "Did you now?"

"Yes." She snuggled up against him. "I'm glad you Mai are all right again," she said after a moment.

"It's only been a year," he laughed. "...Guess I deserved it."

"Yes. You did," Ginny agreed, very seriously.

"...I can hear some hate there..." He frowned. "What?"

She shook her head. "Not at all. You deserve to be happy. You and Mai are good together."

"You think so?" He smirked.

Ginny nodded. "And she'll be a good Fire Lady."

"Pffft. I'll have to start using that term," he chuckled. "My mother was still a princess."

"Oh." She blinked. "Well. Whatever. You know what I mean."

"I know," he smirked. "...I missed this."

She smiled again. "Me too."

He grinned at her. "You are quite the conversationalist today."

She looked at him sideways, eyes narrowed. "I can't tell if you're trying to be funny, or..."

"I'm joking," he pouted.

She halfheartedly smacked his leg. "Be nice."

"Why?" He continued to pout.

"Because I'm pregnant!" she chirped.

"That doesn't mean I have to be 'nice'," he grinned.

"My hormones are unbalanced." She gave him her best puppy-eyed look, pouting. "If you hurt my feelings I might start to cry."

"But then I'd have to hug you," his grin turned to a cocky smirk. "And is that such a bad thing?"

"You are completely incapable of dealing with me crying," Ginny retorted.

"How do you know?" He frowned.

"Because I've known you for almost two years."

"But I've changed." Zuko pointed out with a raised finger.

"That doesn't mean you're any better at dealing with crying women," she said, amused.

"Try me," he looked slightly indignant.

"Contrary to what you may believe, not all women can cry on command," she told him dryly.

"You're fat," he said sharply, trying desperately hard to keep a straight face, only to dissolve into laughter seconds later.

Her response was to raise an eyebrow at him. "Wow."

"What?" He managed to calm down after a minute.

"You're ridiculous," she said fondly, reaching out to ruffle his hair.

"Hey..." He ducked down and pawed her hand away. "I was trying to prove something."

"What's that?" she asked, still grinning.

"That I can handle you," he replied.

"Oh, yes, and you've proved that admirably," she said, her voice sarcastic but her expression amused.

"You're mean," he pouted.

"Pregnant!" she said again. "I'm entitled. So ha."

"Mai wasn't this mean," he frowned. "She just made me get her shit."

"Well, when I hit eight months and I can't see my feet I'll make you my errand boy, too, will that make you feel better?" she joked.

"Right like I can be your errand boy from a whole 'nother world." He rolled his eyes.

"So then being mean to you now is my only chance!" she said loftily.

"...Right." His gaze shifted to the ground.

"Hey," she said, dropping the act. "What's wrong?" She nudged him with a foot.

"I'm just thinking." He forced a smile.

Ginny scooted over until she was sitting next to him again and rested her chin on his shoulder. "What." She blinked up at him through her hair.

"I can't help but think...." He sighed. "That.... I might not be here."

"I still refuse to entertain the possibility," she said softly.

"What would you do if it were reality?" Zuko frowned and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"I told you," she said firmly. "It isn't reality. It won't be reality. You are going to win, and you'll be Fire Lord." She folded her arms and glared at him, daring him to disagree with her.

He shifted slightly. "What makes you so sure?"

"What is this, the third time I've said it?" She raised an eyebrow. "I believe in you. I know you can do it."

"But why?" he pushed, not understanding how she could just believe in him for no reason.

She shrugged. "You're you. You're an intelligent man, you stand firm in your convictions, you don't give up on things you really believe in. And as far as your sister goes," she added, knowing that would be his next argument, "she may have an edge on you as far as your Firebending ability, but for one, you're not insane--" she gave him an amused look. "And for another, you have friends, real friends who are going to stand by you. Your sister can't say that of herself."

"Friends are good..." He agreed. "But....not when it comes to this. I have to face her alone. She's ruthless. Vicious. I don't want to risk anyone's life with her."

"That wasn't my point, Zuko," she said gently.

"I don't know..." He sighed, flopping back on the ground.

"Stop trying to avoid me, Zuko." She pushed at him with her foot.

"....What?" He pouted. "I'm not avoiding anything...."

"You are so. Stop it." She smiled at him. "You'll be all right. I have faith in you."

"Hm...." He looked to the side. "Maybe."

"Zuko, look at me."

"What?" He looked at her, pouting.

"You'll be okay," she said with conviction.

"You're not psychic," he pointed out.

"You're still not getting it."

"Still not getting what?" He frowned.

"It's not complicated, Zuko. I believe in you, so I know you'll be all right."

Zuko continued to frown at her. "...Fine."

Ginny sighed. "Why are you looking at me like that."

"Because you seem so sure."

"Because I am."

"So if I died tomorrow. Like, got hit by a train...." he offered. "What would you do?"

She blinked at him. Well, that was an odd question. "I'd be upset. I'd grieve for you. What else would I do?"

"Now.... Let's say this train were Azula..." He gave her a sheepish half-smile.

"I'd remove her spine through her nostrils," Ginny said cheerfully.

"Like you could," he chuckled.

"Oh, damn straight I could. I'd kill her." She meant it, too.

"Yeah, right," he stuck his tongue out.

"You've never seen me really angry, Zuko," she reminded him. "I fought in a war. I can stop Maru when he's gone evil dead in his tracks. I'd take your sister down in an instant if she -- if I had to fight her."

"She's not your responsibility!" he snapped.

"If she killed you, I would kill her," she snapped back. "I'd kill her and I'd laugh at her corpse."

"Someone else would get to her before you," he smirked.

"Like who."

"Mai."

Ginny grinned. It was not a happy expression. "Somehow I think Mai and I combined could do more damage than even Azula would be able to take."

"Glad to hear you so confident," he laughed.

She shrugged. "Like I said. You've never seen me fight before. And if Azula hurt you, she wouldn't get away with it."

"I've fought you before," his eyes narrowed.

"Nooo, you've had me throw things at you before. Big difference."

"You've thrown spells and shit at me too," he reminded her.

"Not when I was really trying."

"I don't want to kill you," he said airily.

"What has that got to do with the price of tea in China?" she asked.

"If we were to fight, I'd kill you," he shrugged.

She smirked. "Are you so sure of that?"

"Highly."

"And what makes you so sure, hmm? I mean really."

"Because you wouldn't have the heart to kill me," he grinned.

"No," she agreed. "But I'd kill Azula."

"Psh." He rolled his eyes.

She shrugged. "If you don't believe me, you don't believe me. You asked what I'd do. I told you."

"I have to sneeze." he said quietly.

"...Okay?"

"Thought you should know."

"Zuko, I don't care." She giggled.

"Did you know there are venemous lobstershrimp on this beach?" he asked.

"Venomous what?" she laughed.

"Lobstershrimp."

"...Are you sure you don't have attention deficit disorder?" she asked, amused.

"No, I do not." He didn't want to admit he just wanted to avoid finishing the previous conversation.

She gave him a Look that indicated she knew exactly what he was doing but she was going to let him get away with it. "Sit up. My back hurts, I want to lean on you."

"Fine," he sat up, bracing himself with one arm behind him. "Go ahead."

Ginny turned and propped herself up against his side. "Ohhh," she sighed with relief. "You wouldn't think this'd be enough to affect me, but apparently it is," she said, resting one hand on her stomach.

"You wanted it." He smirked.

"I did," she said softly, a small smile crossing her face.

"Then you're not allowed to complain."

"Damn straight I am, it's my prerogative as a pregnant woman," she said haughtily.

"Psh." He rolled his eyes.

"Don't try to pretend like you don't know all this, I'm sure you went through it with Mai."

"I did," he said. "But it was different."

"Hmm? How's that?" she asked, tilting her head back to look at him.

"She was terrified." He lowered his gaze.

"Because of her parents?"

"Many reasons."

"Poor thing," she murmured, looking down at her stomach again. She'd been ecstatic when she found out she was pregnant. She couldn't begin to imagine how Mai must have felt.

"You've got a lot more security than she did," he said quietly.

She nodded. "I'm lucky," she said, her voice soft.

"I feel terrible," he admitted. "I can tell it's difficult for her."

"Don't worry," she said suddenly, twisting around to hug him. "You'll be good parents."

"I'm terrible with kids," Zuko confessed. "I can barely tolerate Aang sometimes."

She wriggled around until she could hug him again, properly, resting her head on his shoulder. "You'll be a good daddy. I know you will."

"Maybe," he sighed.

"No maybe."

"Yes maybe," he replied flatly.

She shook her head as she turned to look at him. "No, Zuko," she said, reaching up to cup his cheek in one hand and force him to look at her. "You're a good man. There's so much love in your heart. You'll be a good father." She smiled.

"If you say so," he shrugged. His biggest worry was the stress of life would turn him into his own father. He'd already seen signs of it several times, and it frightened him.

"I do say so." She grinned and patted his cheek. "And we both know I'm always right."

"Not always." He smirked. "No one is."

"I'm trying to be funny here." She pushed him away from her, though not with any real force. "Don't ruin the funny."

"You're terrible at that," he laughed.

"Oh, screw you," she laughed, picking up a handful of sand and throwing it at him.

"You are!" He laughed again, throwing some back at her. "See, I guess I could be funny. Because apparently, half the universe finds me ridiculous. And I rant a lot. 'Maru's funny because he's a man and wears makeup, not to mention he's a 'mommy' and fucking crazy to boot. Your husband is funny because he takes himself way too seriously. Despite having a good sense of humor, I don't think you have the ability to be intentionally funny."

"Oh, no?" She grinned at him. "No? Okay. Hold that thought." She scooped up a huge handful of sand, stood up, and poured it all on Zuko's head. "Now that's funny," she said, laughing.

"You got sand in my hair," he said flatly, scowling.

"I did," she said, giggling at him.

"Awww, poor Zuko."

"You can wash it," he folded his arms.

"Naahhhh. This is a good look for you." She reached out and mussed his hair, scattering sand onto his shoulders. "Very... grunge."

"I worked real hard to be all clean and handsome for you." He was sulking.

"That must have taken hours," she taunted him.

"It is!" He pulled his knees to his chest. "There's always a mess, and dirt and mud flying everywhere."

"Can you tell my heart is breaking for you? Because it is. What a hardship that must be!" she cried, throwing her arms in the air and laughing.

Frowning, he shuffled himself so he was turned away from her. Then he tried to brush himself off. "...You're still not funny."

"Well, I think I'm funny, so bugger you." Still giggling, she flung her arms out to the side and started spinning in circles.

He glanced over his shoulder. "You look like a psychotic freak."

"I don't care!" She kept spinning.

"Tch. Whatever," he rolled his eyes.

Still giggling, she stopped twirling and dropped down onto the sand, flopping onto her back. "This place is beautiful," she said.

"You think so?" He peered at her.

"Mhm. There are so many stars." Night had long since fallen, and thousands of tiny lights twinkled in the sky.

He shifted so he was on his knees and crawled over so he could hover over her and look at her. "Are you on something?"

"Don't be silly. That would be bad for the baby."

"You never know..." He smirked.

She reached up to smack him. "You know me better than that. Would I do anything that might endanger my baby's life?"

"You're abusive," he whined, rubbing where she hit him.

"Whine, whine."

"Shut up," he pouted.

She closed her eyes, her lips curving in a smile. "I like this place."

"I think you've already established this," Zuko said, smirking. He lay on his side beside her.

She opened one eye and squinted at him. "Thank you."

"What?" He laughed.

She just smiled and closed her eyes again, wriggling a bit to settle more comfortably into the sand.

"What are you doing?" he asked quietly.

"Mmm. Enjoying the sea air."

"Have you never been to a beach before?"

"'Course I have. I love the beach. I can surf you know," she said.

"What's that?" He arched a brow.

"What's what, surfing? Ooohhh, it's fun. You have a surfboard, that's a big board shaped like this--" She held up her hands. "And you balance on it and ride the waves."

"And then you fall?" He made a face.

"Well. Yes, sometimes. That's part of the point, is to learn how to balance so you don't fall," she told him.

"Oh," he shrugged.

"It's fun. And lots of lovely muscly boys do it." She waggled her eyebrows and grinned mischeviously.

"Muscly boys, eh?" He smirked. "What're you implying?"

"That I like muscly boys." She giggled at him.

"Your husband isn't all that 'muscly', fit at most," he shrugged. "What'd you do there?"

"Oh, he does all right." She gave him a Cheshire grin.

"If you like muscle so much, take a look at this..." He undid the sash and pulled apart the folds to his shirt to expose a six-pack. "Training for killing the baddest people in the world is a lot of work."

"Yes, you're very impressive," she said, not even bothering to look. "I know what you look like, I was sleeping with you for four months."

"I look better now," he replied defensivley. "My lifestyle's been better."

"Okay."

"You're no fun," he said, leaning back slightly.

"I'm loads of fun. Just not when I'm four months pregnant," she countered.

"Oh whatever." He rolled his eyes at her.

Ginny sighed happily and closed her eyes again. "Where are we, exactly?" she asked after a minute. "I wasn't terribly clear on that."

"Ember Island," he replied. "One of the smaller islands. It's mostly a vacation retreat for the wealthy."

"Oohhh. Resort island. Does that mean there's a big fancy house here somewhere?" she wondered.

"Mine's at the top of the hill," he pointed behind him.

"Oohhh, really?" She sat up and turned around, peering up the hill. It was too dark to see anything more than a bulky shape at the top. "Is it all locked up?"

"Not right now," he shook his head. "Everyone else is up there. We cleaned it up some."

"Everyone else?"

"Yeah," he nodded. "Aang, Sokka... We kinda, erm....had to leave the Air Temple."

"Oh okay." She looked back up toward the house again. "How big is it exactly?"

"Pretty big," he shrugged. "It's been in the family for years. The biggest on the island, at least."

"I imagine so, it does belong to the royal family." She gnawed on her lip for a moment. "Think we could sneak in without bothering anyone?"

"We can try." He shrugged.

"Hurrah!" She climbed to her feet. "C'mon!"

"Shhhh!" He frowned. "If we're sneaking by, you have to be quiet." He then took her by the hand and led her up the dirt path up the hill, dodging large rocks along the way.

"Okay, shhhhhing," she whispered, following him.

Zuko managed to guide her to the top of the hill without making a lot of noise. He then took her around towards the back where there was a small door. It appeared to have been put there as a servants' entrace, but hadn't been used in nearly a decade. Wincing, he grabbed the handle and shoved the door a couple of times before it burst open. He leapt back, paranoid someone heard, but when no one came running, he took her by the hand again and guided her inside. Through the dusty kitched, down a hallway to a staircase, and then up the narrow wooden steps to a narrow hallway. Along the hall the walls were littered with paintings of previous Fire Lords and their families. As they neared the end the paintings showed more familiar faces. He brought her to a door near the very end and opened it. "This is my room."

"You know, I could have magiced the door open for you," she pointed out as she stepped into the room. "Ooooooooohhhh. Zuko, this place is gorgeous!"

"Whatever," he muttered, locking the door behind them. "And...yeah.... I guess. Pardon the mess. We only just settled here. I haven't actually stayed in this room since I was a little kid... Back when my mom... Yeah..."

"Wow," she said, wandering over to the massive bed that dominated the room. She traced the carvings on the posts with a fingertip. "This thing is gorgeous. And definitely an antique."

"I think my dad slept in it when he was my age," he grimaced. Zuko did not want to think about what the teenaged version of his father did in that bed.

"Eeeeuuurgh," Ginny said, and took three large steps away from it.

"Eh.... Whatever." He shrugged and then proceeded to flop back on it.

She grinned. "How often you bounce on that thing as a kid?"

"You bounce on beds?" He raised a brow.

"Of course!" She gave him a scandalised look. "What kind of six-year-old doesn't?"

"I wasn't allowed to do that when I was a kid," he replied. "Actually, I couldn't do a lot of things. It was a strict and regulated life."

"That's horrible. I demand that you bounce now to make up for it."

"Oh there's a certain kind of bouncing I'd like to do," he chuckled. "But sadly, you're not a candidate."

"Har, har, Zuko. Ooh, you have a sword on your wall!" She crossed the room and took it down out of the mounting brackets. "Heavier than mine," she commented, holding it out in front of her.

"Well," he sat up slightly. "It was made to be handles by someone of my build."

"Mhm." She waved it about a bit to get a better idea of its weight and then ran through one of the drills he had taught her.

"Careful...." He cautioned.

"Quiet, I'm practising. And besides, I know how to handle a live blade without hurting myself." She did another of the drills, then paused, frowning. "Hmm. My center of gravity's off."

"Gee, I wonder why," he said dryly.

"You should be proud of me for being able to tell and also for remembering my drills," she said.

"I am. He nodded. "I'd be careful if I were you, though. You look damn hot with a lethal weapon."

"Really?" She smiled.

"Yeah," he smirked.

"Well, hurrah me," she said, pleased with herself. "I can still be attractive while I'm pregnant. Good to know."

"You can't not be attractive." He rolled his eyes at her.

"Awww. Thanks, Zuko."

"Did you just want to come here to play with my sword...?" He then flopped over and burried his head in his pillow. That sounded so wrong.

"...I'm going to ignore the obvious really awful joke there, and put this back where I found it," she said, amused, and hung the sword back on the wall. "You have any other neat toys in here?"

"I don't know," he replied. "Dig around..." He didn't hear footsteps approach outside the door.

"'Kay." Given free reign to indulge her nosiness -- or at least, free reign she decided to interpret it -- she started opening random drawers. Mostly they were full of clothes or unidentifiable junk.

There was a knock on the door. "You in there?" It was Suki.

"Shit..." He grumbled. "What?"

Ginny looked up from the drawer full of knives and throwing stars she had just discovered. "Who's that?"

"Suki," he replied before opening the door. "What?"

"Wow, someone got bit by a sandcrab..." Suki rolled her eyes and peered in. "Oh. New girlfriend?"

"She's not my girlfriend!" he snapped.

"Be nice, Zuko," Ginny said, waving a throwing knife at him. "Hi. I'm Ginny."

"Hi," Suki waved with a small smile. "I just came to tell you dinner's ready. But uh... I see you're busy here. Or about to be. So I'll just go tell Katara you'll be late..." She made an awkward face.

"Whatever." He rolled his eyes.

"I mean it, Zuko," Ginny called. "Hey, look what I can do." She threw the knife, embedding it in the center of a wooden scrollwork wall hanging.

"Ack!" Zuko shrieked and ran to retrieve the knife. "Are you crazy? This shit is like five hundred years old!"

"Careful," Suki chuckled, leaning against the doorframe. "You might make him explode."

"Eh, making him explode every once in a while is fun." Ginny grinned.

"He explodes often," Suki sighed. "It's not fun for us... Hey, aren't you the girl Sokka hates?"

Zuko snickered behind his hand.

"You just have to know how to handle him. And yes, that's me." She rolled her eyes. "Though honestly, I forget what the last thing he got mad at me was about. Something idiotic, knowing him."

"I remember why," Zuko said and then fake-coughed.

"In any case..." Suki shrugged. "Yeah. You guys aren't as quiet as you think. We were wondering why you were sneaking around. Go figure he'd be up here with a girl." She hid a small laugh behind her hand.

"See, Zuko, this is why I said you should've let me magic us in," she said, turning back to the drawer full of pointy things. "Maru would be ashamed."

"It's an old house," Suki pointed out, even though she wasn't really sure what "magic" was. "No matter what you would've made noise. I heard Aang try to sneak cookies last night, and Toph calls him 'Twinkle Toes'."

"I don't want you using magic here anyway," Zuko said quietly.

She looked up, blinking at him in confusion. "Why not?"

"I don't want anything drawing attention to us." He then got down low and said softly in her ear. "Sokka's the only one who knows about your abilities. Katara and Toph don't remember. And Aang never really learned much about you. We need as little commotion as possible."

Suki had sense not to ask anything. "Should I leave you two be? Felt like I was interrupting something."

"Ohh," she said softly. "Well, I can just not until I have to leave. No, it's all right," she added, raising her voice.

"It's funny," Suki smirked. "I wouldn't think Zuko had many friends. But in the last week he's been running off all over the place. Aang's been kind of worried."

"I'm sorry..." Zuko didn't want to bother explaining that he wanted to tie up loose ends and make amends with certain people before they went off to fight the Fire Lord. "I'll be around the next couple of weeks. I promise."

"I'll make him be good," Ginny assured Suki, winking.

"No, sorry, you no longer have that power over me," he teased.

Suki looked confused for a minute before snickering.

"Oh, yes I do," she said.

"No you don't," he said dismissively.

"Do you argue often?" Suki quipped.

"I always win," Ginny said smugly.

"Not today," Zuko smirked.

"You're worse than Toph and Katara..." Suki rolled her eyes.

"Aww, Zuko's known me long enough to know I don't really mean it, don't you, love," Ginny said, digging in the drawer again.

"How long have you two known each other?" Suki asked.

"A long time," Zuko replied, leaning against the bedpost with his arms folded across his chest. He did a quick once over of Ginny's but before looking towards the wall, sulkily.

"Two years, give or take," Ginny clarified. "Zuko, why are you pouting?" she asked, without even turning around.

"Because he can," Suki teased.

"Shut up..." He grumbled. "Stupid girls..."

"Ooooo." Ginny pulled a throwing star out of the drawer and held it up to the light. "This is pretty. Zuko, stop pouting. You have nothing to pout about."

"I'm not pouting..." He looked at the floor.

"You're going to make him worse..." Suki started snickering. "Hey, let me see that..." She stalked over and took the star from her.

"Hmmm. He's definitely been known to be worse than that." She tilted her head curiously. "What about it?"

"Wow...." Suki's eyes widened. "This must be a good couple hundred years old. And it's still as sharp as ever. This could sell on the market for five hundred gold, at least. Maybe even more because it comes from this house."

"This shit belongs to my family,"Zuko said huffily. "If I find anything missing, I'll tear a few limbs."

"You will do no such thing," Ginny said, eyeing him.

"It's not your stuff," he replied sharply. "I can do as I please."

"Wow..." Suki frowned. "What'd you do to him?"

"I don't know," she said, bewildered. She crossed the room to stand in front of him, peeking up at him under his bangs. "Zuko. What's the matter?" she asked softly.

"Nothing.." He sighed, looking away from her. "Just thinking is all."

"Zukooooo." She reached up and brushed his hair out of his face. "What is it."

"I told you," he grumbled. 'It's nothing." He then walked over the the window and leaned against the windowsill, overlooking the ocean.

"It is not nothing," Ginny disagreed, following him. "Zuko, come on." She stuck her chin over his shoulder, looking sideways at him.

"Should I go now?" Suki asked, biting her lip, feeling awkward. "I'm sure Sokka is wondering what's taking me so long..."

"Uhm--" Ginny hesitated for a moment, then went back across the room to speak to Suki. "I'm going to try to... un-sulk him," she said softly. "Usually, it works, but only if I can get him to talk to me alone..."

"Okay, I'll go back then." Suki nodded. "I don't want them worrying about me anyway. Nice meeting you." She then stepped out and closed the door behind her.