"I'm so excited to spend the weekend on Ember Island!" Ty Lee announced, watching the waves splash around the sides of the boat. "It's going to be great to hand out on the beach and do nothing." She said happily.

"Doing nothing's a waste of time." Zuko snapped. He stood, walking over to the edge of the boat. "We're being sent away on a forced vacation. I feel like a child."

"Lighten up." Azula spoke. "So, Dad wants to meet with his advisors alone, without anyone else around. Don't take it personally."

"Doesn't your family have a house on Ember Island?" Ty Lee asked, turning to Azula.

"We used to come every summer when we were kids."

"That must have been fun!"

"That was a long time ago." Zuko muttered, looking away.

"Welcome to Ember Island, kids." Lo and Li greeted simultaneously as the boat docked. They led everyone into a small house further up the shore.

"It smells like old lady in here." Zuko whispered, stepping inside.

"Gee. I wonder why." Mai deadpanned.

"Who are these two beautiful women?" Ty Lee questioned, pointing at an image on the wall.

"Can't you tell?" Lo asked sweetly.

"Lo and Li." Li informed, as they struck the same pose.

Zuko held his hand over his mouth, trying not to throw up.

"Ooh! I love the seashell bedspread!" Ty Lee exclaimed, leaping onto a bed along the wall.

"Are you serious? It looks like the beach threw up all over it." Mai noted dryly.

"We know you kids are upset that you were forced to come here this weekend." Lo said.

Zuko looked around, eyeing all of the grotesque pink.

The color was everywhere.

"But Ember Island is a magical place." She continued. "Keep an open mind."

"Give it a chance." Li added.

"And it can help you understand yourselves and each other." They both informed.

"The beach has the most special way-" Lo began, picking up a stone from a nearby table and passing it to her twin.

"-Of smoothing even the most ragged edges." Li finished, stroking the smooth surface of the stone to further emphasize her point.

They both clapped. "Time to hit the beach!" They announced, pulling open their robes and revealing swim suits underneath.

Mai lifted her hand over Zuko's eyes.

"Aang!" Toph yelled. "I know swimming is fun and all, but do you really think you should be exposing yourself like that?! Cover up!"

"What? I'm wearing trunks." Aang defended as he floated by, Momo on his stomach.

"I know! It's your tattoos that I'm worried about! What if someone sees you!?"

"There are walls all around us." Katara reminded, hands on her hips. "It's completely safe."

You crossed your arms. "Fine, but don't blame us if someone spots you and tells the Firelord that the Avatar's alive, ruining our plan that we've worked so hard for!" You called as Aang drifted farther away and out of your sight.

Zuko's gaze landed on a shell that rested alongside him. He picked it up, handing it to Mai, who sat on his right. "Here. This is for you."

"Why would I want that?" She asked.

"I saw it and I thought it was pretty. Don't girls like stuff like this?"

She looked away. "Maybe stupid girls."

"Forget it!" He yelled, throwing the shell. He stood, walking away to calm himself. Why was Mai so hard to please? He paced back and forth, continuing to seethe. Zuko stopped, hanging his head. He probably shouldn't have yelled. Zuko lifted his head, spotting an ice-cream server. Maybe he should try to make it up to Mai. He walked up, got two ice-creams, and made his way back to Mai, still sitting under the umbrella. "I thought since it's so hot… here." Zuko held out one of the cones to her, the ice-cream falling off and landing on her skirt.

"Thanks. This is really… refreshing."

"Hey, beach bums. We're playing next." Azula spoke up. "Ty Lee, get over here now!"

Ty Lee stood, walking on her hands over to Azula, leaving the four boys that surrounded her.

Zuko stood, taking off his robe before approaching his sister to see what her plan was.

Azula summoned everyone inside the volleyball circle, joining together to whisper. "See that girl with the silly pigtails?" They all looked over, seeing the juggling the volleyball between her feet. "When she runs towards the ball, there's just the slightest hesitation in her left foot. I'm willing to bet a childhood injury has weakened her. Keep serving the ball to her left and we'll destroy her, and the rest of her team. Dismissed."

Everyone separated, taking their places in the court.

Azula tossed up the ball, jumping and hitting it with her foot.

With incredible speed, the ball zipped by, landing in the sand on the girl's left.

No one had time to react.

They served the ball, Zuko lunging forward and hitting it up with his leg, while Azula backhanded it, landing it on the girl's left again.

She dove to try to save it, but she couldn't make it in time.

They kept playing like that, with incredible speed and ferocity.

Azula leapt off of Zuko's back, kicking the ball so hard that when it collided with the sand, it exploded, setting the net on fire and knocking the other team over.

"Yes. We defeated you for all time! You will never rise from the ashes of your shame and humiliation!" Azula yelled at them before turning back to the others. "Well, that was fun." She said calmly.

Two guys suddenly approached, standing by Ty Lee.

"I'm having a party tonight." The bigger one said. "You should come by."

"Sure! I love parties." Ty Lee told him, smiling.

"Your friend can come, too." The other one said, looking at Mai.

"Uh, what about me and my brother?" Azula asked, walking forward. "Aren't you going to invite us?" She questioned, crossing her arms. When the two shared looks, Azula spoke again. "You don't know who we are, do you?"

"Don't you know who we are?" The first one asked. "We're Chan and Ruon-Jian." He said, smirking.

"Yeah." Ruon-Jian spoke.

Zuko marched forward, about to pummel them into the sand, but Azula held her arm out, halting her brother.

"But, fine. You're invited. Just so you know, though, some of the most important teenagers in the firenation are gonna be at this party, so try and act normal." Chan informed.

"We'll do our best." Azula told them, grinning almost wickedly.

"Why didn't you tell those guys who we were?" Zuko asked Azula as they all sat around the table, eating.

"I guess I was… intrigued." She offered. "I'm so used to people worshipping us-"

"They should." Ty Lee piped up after swallowing a bite.

"Yes, I know. And I love it. But for once, I just wanted to see how people would treat us if they didn't know who we were."

"Like waves washing away the footprints on the sand, Ember Island gives everyone a clean slate." Li voiced.

Zuko rolled his eyes, frowning as he picked at his food. He wished they'd shut up about that.

"Ember Island reveals the true you." Lo added as they both stood.

"To the party!"

Azula stepped forward, knocking on the door.

The door opened, revealing Chan on the other side. "Um. You're a little early." He muttered. "No one's here yet."

"I heard you telling someone that you'd be partying from dusk till dawn." Azula looked over her shoulder briefly to glance at the sky. "It's dusk, so we're here."

"But that's just an expression."

"We are the perfect party guests. We arrive right on time, because we are very punctual."

Chan shrugged, gesturing for them to follow him inside. "Alright listen, my dad's an admiral. He has no idea about this party, so don't mess anything up." He warned, stopping to turn and look at the group. He turned, about to walk away, but Azula speaking stopped him.

"That's a sharp outfit, Chan. Careful. You could puncture the hull of an empire class firenation battleship, leaving thousands to drown at sea…because… it's so sharp."

"Um. Thanks." He replied, walking away.

The teens ventured farther into the room, seeing Ruon-Jian looking at himself in the mirror.

He spotted the group and turned to face them. "Hey. First ones here." He greeted.

Zuko scoffed. "He thinks he's so great." He turned to Mai, who was walking alongside him. "Well? What do you think of him?"

"I don't have any opinion about him. I hardly know him." Mai told him, shrugging slightly.

"You like him, don't you?" Zuko asked as he watched Mai walk away. He sighed, looking back at Ruon-Jian over his shoulder. He scowled. What was so great about him?

Zuko sat next to Mai, his arm resting behind her on the bench.

"I'm bored." She mumbled.

"I know."

"I'm hungry."

"So what?"

"So, find me some food."

"Sure." Zuko stood, walking over to the table. Couldn't Mai get her own food? He never asked her to get anything for him. He placed some food in a bowl, beginning to return to Mai when it was knocked out of his hand by a boy gesturing to something. "Hey, watch it! That food was for my cranky girlfriend!" Zuko yelled at him, pointing to the side towards Mai. He looked over, seeing Ruon-Jian talking to her.

The boy looked over at Zuko in concern.

Zuko rushed forward, grabbing the Ruon-Jian and spinning, taking his place.

"What are you doing?" Ruon-Jian asked, adjusting his hair.

"Stop talking to my girlfriend!" Zuko demanded, face set into a scowl.

"Relax. It's just a party." He said, walking back over.

Zuko hit his open palm against Ruon's chest, sending him into a large vase along the wall.

"Zuko!" Mai scolded, standing and turning Zuko to face her. "What is wrong with you?"

"What's wrong with me?"

"Your temper is out of control! You blow up over every little thing!" She yelled, though it sounded strained because she didn't often raise her voice. "You're so impatient, and hot-headed, and angry!"

"Well at least I feel something!" Zuko retorted, placing a hand on his chest. "As opposed to you! You have no passion for anything! You're just a big 'blah'!"

Mai turned, facing away from him. "It's over, Zuko. We're done."

"Who broke my nana's vase!?" Chan yelled, hands on his head in panic. He rushed over to Zuko. "That's it, you're outta here!"

"I was just leaving." Zuko shot back, walking away.

"Have fun by yourself, looser boy!" Ruon-Jian called after him.

Zuko walked out, slamming the door behind him. He walked along the beach, letting muscle-memory guide him in the dark. He came to a stop alongside a rock formation, seeing a house at the top of the hill. He looked to the side, getting flashbacks of playing with Iroh and his son.

Zuko stepped up to the double doors, eyes downcast. He pulled on the handle, finding it was locked. He stepped back, kicking the doors off of their hinges and walking inside. He stopped, his gaze settling on the family portrait on the far wall. He picked up a circular slab from the counter with his hand print from several years ago in it. He rested his hand over it, discovering that his hand was bigger than the slab. He stared down at it.

Toph sat up. "Guys, you're all gonna think I'm crazy, but it feels like a metal man is coming."

You wiped the sleep from your eyes. "What?"

Aang groaned, rubbing his eyes as well.

You looked over at him, seeing a beam of light on his face. You followed it, seeing a figure standing on the mountain. The ground next to you suddenly exploded, sending you all flying.

Toph recovered quickly, shooting several rocks at him.

Those exploded, and Aang rushed forward, airbending them away so that they didn't hit anyone.

Katara rushed forward, drawing the water up and sending it at the figure.

Another explosion.

Mist formed from the fire and water disturbance.

Appa roared in distress.

"I thought I'd find you here." Azula said softly, one hand on her hip.

Zuko looked down at his tiny handprint. He was outside, leaning on one of the support beams as he sat on the porch. "Those summers we spent here seem like so long ago." He muttered. "So much has changed."

"Come down to the beach with me." Azula offered, gesturing to the side. "Come on. This place is depressing." She muttered, walking away.

Zuko watched his sister's back for a few moments before placing down the slab, following her.

She led him by the water, where he saw Ty Lee and Mai.

"Hey." Mai greeted.

"Where's your new boyfriend?" Zuko asked, walking passed her. He paused, turning back to her. "Are you cold?"

"I'm freezing." Ty Lee piped up.

Zuko smiled softly. "I'll make a fire." He looked up to the house. "There's plenty of stuff to burn in there."

"This is crazy!" Sokka yelled as another explosion landed in front of you. "How do we defeat a guy who blows stuff up with his mind!?"

You were all pressing your backs against a wall, trying to avoid getting blown up.

"We can't! Jump on Appa! I'll try to distract him!" Aang instructed, rushing out from behind the wall.

"Aang!" You hollered.

"There's no time!" Sokka shouted, grabbing your shoulder.

You looked over at him, eyes boring into his as Katara helped Toph on Appa. You nodded, climbing on Appa's head and grabbing the reigns. "Yip yip!" You requested once Sokka was on.

Appa flew into the air.

"Do you see him?!" You shouted.

"Over there!" Sokka yelled, pointing at a sudden burst of light.

Aang flew into the air, landing on Appa's saddle and hugging Katara. "I'm okay." He muttered.

"Well, that was random!" Toph voiced.

"I don't think so. I get the feeling he knows who we are." Katara admitted darkly.

"What are you doing?"

"What does it look like I'm doing?" Zuko asked as he tossed the family portrait onto the fire that he made.

"But, it's a painting of your family." Ty Lee tried to reason as she watched the flames engulf it.

"You think I care?"

"I think you do." She muttered, trying not to test his patience.

"You don't know me. So why don't you just mind your own business?"

Ty Lee sighed. "I know you."

"No you don't." Zuko snapped from across the fire. "You're stuck in your little 'Ty Lee' world, where everything is great all the time!"

"Zuko, leave her alone!" Mai instructed.

Zuko turned, walking towards the ocean as he began to imitate Ty Lee. "I'm so pretty, look at me! I can walk on my hands! Woo!" He moved into a handstand for a few seconds before falling on his back, looking up at the sky. "Circus freak!"

Azula chuckled, but was cut off by Ty Lee.

"Yes, I'm a circus freak. Go ahead and laugh all you want. You wanna know why I joined the circus?"

"Here we go." Azula grumbled.

"Do you have any idea what my home life was like? Growing up with six sisters that look exactly like me?" She stood. "It was like I didn't even have my own name!" She collapsed onto her knees. "I joined the circus because I was scared of spending the rest of my life as part of a matched set. At least I'm different, now." Her face hardened slightly. "Circus freak… is a compliment!"

"Guess that explains why you need ten boyfriends, too." Mai muttered.

"I'm sorry, what?"

"Attention issues? You didn't get enough attention when you were a kid, so, you're trying to make up for it now." She surmised.

"Well, what's your excuse, Mai? You were an only child for fifteen years. Even with all of that attention, your aura is this dingy, pasty, gray-"

"I don't believe in auras."

"Yeah. You don't believe in anything." Zuko muttered, standing.

"Oh, well, I'm sorry I can't be as high-strung and crazy like the rest of you."

"I'm sorry, too. I wish you would be high-strung and crazy for once, instead of keeping all of your feelings bottled up inside." He gestured at Ty Lee. "She just called your aura dingy. Are you gonna take that?"

Mai leaned back on the rock. "What do you want from me? You want a teary confession about how hard my childhood was? Well it wasn't. I was a rich, only-child who got anything I wanted. As long as I behaved… and sat still… and didn't speak unless spoken to… my mother said I had to keep out of trouble. We had my dad's political career to think about."

"Well, that's it, then." Azula piped up. "You had a controlling mother who had certain expectations, and if you strayed from them, you were shut down." She deduced, shrugging. "That's why you're afraid to care about anything, and why you can't express yourself."

Mai sat up suddenly. "You want me to express myself? Leave me alone!"

"I like it when you express yourself." Zuko admitted quietly.

"I'm still mad at you!"

"My life hasn't been that easy, either, Mai." He reminded, jerking a thumb at his chest.

"Whatever. That doesn't excuse the way you've been acting."

"Calm down, you guys!" Ty Lee voiced. "This much negative energy is bad for your skin. You'll totally break out."

"Bad skin? Normal teenagers worry about bad skin. I don't have that luxury. My father decided to teach me a permanent lesson, on my face!" He yelled, pointing at his scar.

"Sorry, Zuko." She whispered, looking away. "I-"

"For so long I thought that if my dad accepted me, I'd be happy." Zuko ranted, turning away again and facing the ocean. "I'm back home now, my dad talks to me." He let out a sharp laugh. "He even thinks I'm a hero! Everything should be perfect, right? I should be happy, now. But I'm not! I'm angrier than ever, and I don't know why!" He yelled, turning back to the others.

"There's a simple question you need to answer, then." Azula spoke. "Who are you angry at?"

"No one." He denied quickly. "I'm just angry."

"Yeah. Who are you angry at, Zuko?" Mai asked.

"Everyone! I don't know!" He clutched his head, closing his eyes.

"Is it Dad?" Azula questioned.

"No, no."

"Your uncle?" Ty Lee offered.

"No, n-no, no."

"Then, who? Who are you angry at?" Mai asked.

"Answer the question, Zuko." Azula commanded.

"Talk to us!" Ty Lee requested.

Zuko's head was spinning. It was full of their questions. Full of his own questions. Why was he angry?

"Come on, answer the question." Mai told him.

"Answer it." Azula agreed.

"I'm angry at myself!" Zuko shouted, flinging his arms down.

The campfire roared, shooting fire several feet into the air.

Sparks flew by Zuko's face, but he didn't flinch.

"Why?"

"Because I'm confused." He admitted, turning back to the ocean as the fire died completely. His golden eyes raked the ocean. His mind flashed back to Ba Sing Se. The crashing waves reminded him of the ball that you had formed around him, begging him to reconsider. Begging him to do the right thing. His eyes squeezed shut as he pictured the look on your face as Azula, his sister, shot you in the back. The pained look on your face as he betrayed you. The only person who believed in him besides Iroh. The other person he betrayed heartlessly. "Because I'm not sure I know the difference between right and wrong anymore." He muttered.

"You're pathetic." Azula said.

Zuko clenched his fists.

"I know one thing I care about. I care about you." Mai voiced, stepping forward.

Zuko turned away, his back facing her.

Mai got the hint, walking away and sitting on the rock again.

Zuko looked to his right, seeing Azula clapping slowly.

"Wonderful performances, everyone."

"I guess you wouldn't understand, would you, Azula." Zuko challenged, narrowing his eyes. "Because you're just so perfect."

"Well, yes. I guess you're right. I don't have 'sob stories' like all of you. I could sit here and complain how our mom liked Zuko more than me, but I don't really care." She insisted, eyes falling to the pile of wood. "My own mother… thought I was a monster." She paused. "She was right of course, but it still hurt."

"What Lo and Li said came true." Ty Lee noted. "The Island did help us learn about ourselves." She picked up a rock, stroking the surface. "I feel all smooth. I'll always remember this."

Azula stood. "You know what would make this trip really memorable?" She smirked wickedly.

Chan opened the door.

"We've got bad news, Chan." Azula said with a grin.

"Party's over." Zuko told him sharply.

They pushed their way inside, breaking vases.

Zuko brought his leg down on a table, breaking it in half.

Mai threw some knives, slicing some wall decal as Ty Lee swung from the chandeliers, sending them to the floor.

Chan cried, watching the chaos.

So much for not breaking anything.