Disclaimer: I do not own the world of Avatar: The Last Airbender

Opame wrapped an extra cloak around her sleeping brother, leaning down to press a kiss to his forehead. When she looked up, she found Zuko staring at her, though he looked away quickly, rubbing the back of his neck. She stood, joining him at the edge of the basket. "You came for me."

He looked at her again, gold eyes sorrowful. "Yes, I did."

She looked out at the scenery around them, amazed. She had never been this high up but . . . it felt natural. Zuko had secured the air balloon for them, rather stealthily, she thought, and they trailed behind a massive furry creature that was carrying the Avatar and his friends. Zuko insisted he knew where they were going so he made sure not to follow too closely.

Opame knew Ceba was still very suspicious of this whole thing, but she felt in her gut that this was the right thing to do. Still. . . .

"I must admit, I'm surprised," Opame told him. "After our last conversation, I never thought –"

"I'm sorry," Zuko interrupted. "The things I said, that wasn't – I shouldn't have –"

"I know." Opame looked out at the clouds in front of her. "I wasn't very kind to you either."

"But you weren't wrong. . . . You could have told me."

"Could I have?" she asked.

Zuko hesitated, looking down at his hands. "I don't know. I'd like to say that you could have but – I would have done anything to impress my father. You – you've had to hold onto this secret for a while, huh?"

"All my life," Opame explained. "That's how I was raised. We never practiced Airbending in public, barely practiced in private. We moved three times, three different colonies, and we stayed to ourselves. If anyone asked, my mom was Earth Nation. 'Protect our heritage'. That's what my mom would always say, especially after Ceba was born. There have never been two of us born before. And then, dad died. Then mom. So, it was up to me."

"I imagine it must have been hard."

Opame looked back at Ceba. He was still sleeping, thankfully. "I've gotten used to it."

"Your dad was Fire Nation?" Zuko asked, to which Opame nodded. "He must have really loved your mother to not turn her in, to protect her."

She smiled softly. "Yes, he did."

"How did that work though? You said he fought in the war. Didn't it feel . . . wrong?"

"I think he knew that, pretending to go along with the Fire Nation's war was the only way he could keep our family alive. That's why I moved to the Capital . . . to give Ceba a good life. I won't miss it," she added with a shiver.

"Was it easier in the colonies?"

"A little. My dad was stationed in Yu Dao, and, when I was born, he wanted to make sure that we weren't in crowded colonies, make sure we were as out of the way as possible. That's why I barely know Izuma. Oh!" Opame turned to Zuko, eyes wide. "Izuma and Razo. I feel horrible. Are they – okay?"

"My father had them thrown in prison for harboring you and your brother," Zuko told her. "I'm sorry."

Opame nodded, lacing her fingers together. She took a deep breath before turning to face Zuko again. "So what's your plan?"

"My . . . plan?" Zuko asked, confused.

"To get the Avatar to let you train him. It's not going to be easy. You said you chased him all over the world. They're going to think you're there to capture him again."

"Well . . . I could just explain to them that, you know, that's not the case, and I can introduce you and Ceba –"

"Nope."

Zuko looked at her, frowning. "What do you mean 'nope'?"

Opame crossed her arms. "Your plan is to present Ceba and I to the Avatar as a peace offering?"

"That's not what I meant!"

"That's what it sounded like. And if that's the only reason you broke me out of prison, well then –"

"That was not the reason I did that, and you know it," Zuko cut her off, glaring. Opame didn't back down though and Zuko growled a little bit, turning away from her. "I – you're my friend and I wanted you by my side. . . . But, of course it crossed my mind that Aang would trust me more if you were there. I've – I've already betrayed them once. They'll think I'm trying to do it again."

Opame sighed, gripping the edge of the basket. "A peace offering doesn't inspire trust, not always. It feels more like a bribe. If Avatar Aang doesn't trust you, training him will be difficult. You'll have to figure out how do that on your own merit. Trust is," Opame started, looking out over the clouds, "rickety and easily frayed. It's going to take much more than me and Ceba to heal the wounds that are there between you and the others. It's going to take time."

Zuko didn't respond but he nodded, taking a breath. He looked back at her, a small smile on his face. "I'll do my best."

For a moment, the two of them stared off over the clouds, lost in their own thoughts. Occasionally, Opame would glance back at Ceba, make sure he was still sleeping.

"Hold on," Zuko said suddenly, standing up straight. He turned to look at her, his good eye wide. "You know how to fight."

Opame shrugged. "Barely."

"Barely? You took down two trained guards, like it was nothing."

"That wasn't –" Opame stopped, not really sure to explain that particular moment. She hadn't felt like herself in the throne room. It felt as if someone else had taken over for a moment, helped her move the way she did. She shook her head. "I did go to school like a normal kid, you know. I learned how to fight just like the rest of my peers."

"That wasn't like any moves I've seen a Fire Nation solider do."

She shrugged again, glancing at him out of the corner of her eye. Moving over to the satchel by her brother's head, she slid out one of the scrolls, unfurling it as she walked back to Zuko. He stared at the figures on the scroll intrigued, before looking back at her. "Airbending scrolls. I used to sneak the scrolls out at night, study the motions in the candlelight. I'd do my best to mimic them without causing to much noise. In the throne room, with those guards, I don't know – it was like I had been doing that all my life, like muscle memory. It just – happened."

"Well, whatever it was, it was impressive." The look in his gaze turned contemplative as he met her eyes. "You're . . . always surprising me."

A slight smile came to Opame's face as she rolled up the scroll. "Good."

It felt like forever before Zuko was landing the War Balloon in a forest he said was near the Western Air Temple.

"Can we go see it?" Ceba asked as they set up camp.

"Not yet," Opame told him, earning a glare from her brother. "The Prince has to go on his own."

"You don't have to call me that," Zuko responded, as he gathered nearby wood for fire. "I'm not much of a Prince right now."

"Old habits," Opame nodded, hanging cloth for their tent over a low branch. She took a quick look around before she took a deep breath, blowing dust off the cloth. She caught Zuko watching her and she tilted her head. "What?"

"It's still . . . strange," he admitted. "Airbenders existing and seeing it up close. Fighting with Aang was always strange too. Also, I thought you'd be a little bit more – relaxed, especially now that we're out of the capital."

She gave him a sad smile. "Old habits."

Zuko watched her for a second before he looked off into the distance. "I'm going to go scout. You two stay here."

Opame nodded and Zuko scooped up a rope, heading off into the woods. Ceba scowled after him. "Who put him in charge?" the little boy muttered.

"Well, he does know a lot more about camping and being on the run than we do," Opame reasoned. She looked down at her brother. Since he had woke, he had been in a foul mood, shooting loathsome glances at Zuko and snarky responses to her.

"I still don't trust him," Ceba said. "And you shouldn't either," he added before Opame could respond. "This could all be a trap. He's Fire Nation!"

"Now, what sense would it make to take us out of the Capital if he were trying to trap us. What's gotten into you?"

Ceba crossed his arms, glaring at the ground. "Nothing."

"Obviously it's something. You're never usually this moody."

"You don't know that." Ceba stood up, glaring at her. "You're busy swooning after the Prince."

"Swooning!?" Opame placed her hands on her hips, frowning. "I have not been –"

"You have! You have, you have! Everything he does is right! He rescued you but he's also the one that let you get turned in and you just trust him like that? It's not okay! Mom and Dad would be so ashamed!"

"Ceba!" Opame gasped.

The little boy's eyes widened and filled with tears. Turning, he dashed into the forest, disappearing into the foliage. Opame stared after him in shock.

What in the world was that?

Opame waited a bit before she ventured to look for her brother, hoping that it had given him the chance to calm down. Zuko probably wouldn't be happy to find them gone but she figured he would understand. She followed the area that looked the most windswept.

"Ceba?" she called out softly. A small sniffle caused her to look up. Ceba sat in a high tree, legs curled up to his chest. He snuck a glance down at her before pressing his face to his knees. "I'm going to join you, if that's alright."

When Ceba didn't respond, Opame took a slight step back and then jumped, launching herself into the air. She lightly bounced from branch to branch until she reached her destination, letting herself float down next to her brother. There were too many trees, the leaves too thick, but she could imagine the Western Air Temple just off in the distance.

"I'm sorry," Ceba whispered.

"I know," Opame said, turning slightly to face him. "Do you want to tell me what that was about?"

Ceba rubbed at his eyes. "I – I wanted to be the one to save you! You're so brave and always looking out for me and you're always so strong, but the one time I was supposed to protect you I couldn't do it. And then you show up with him and I just. . . . I should have saved you, but I hid in a cave like a coward."

"Hey." Opame reached out to cradle her brother's face. She often forgot that, no matter how smart her brother was, he was still so young. "You are not a coward. You're nine-years-old and you did what I asked you to do. I am so proud of you. And, I have a secret. I'm not really that brave. I was terrified when we were caught because I didn't want anything to happen to you. Knowing that you were safe and that you had gotten away was the only thing that kept me going. So, if I am brave, it's only because of you."

Ceba placed his hands over hers. "Really?"

"Yes, little brother. I know I say I've got you all the time, but . . . you've got me to, right?"

The little Airbender wiped his face, smiling at her. "Right."

Opame wrapped her arm around her brother

"And as for the Prin – as for Zuko, he's not so bad. Hear me out," she said, when Ceba frowned. "I've gotten to know him a bit these last couple of months and . . . he's kind. I think that's still new for him, so it makes him a bit awkward, but he's different from the rest of the Fire Nation. There's a goodness to him that just needs, some kindling. I think he honestly cares about making sure the two of us are safe and that Avatar Aang is successful."

"I just – don't like the way he looks at you," Ceba muttered grumpily.

"What do you mean?"

Ceba shrugged. "I don't know. When you're not looking, he's watching you. Like there's something he's trying to figure out. You look at him the same way," Ceba added with a frown.

"Hey." The siblings looked down. Zuko stood below, frowning up at them. "I thought I told you to stay put."

"Sorry," Opame called down, with a soft smile. "We wanted to see if we could forage."

Looking back to find her brother watching her, she shook her head, tapping him on the nose. Jumping off the branch, she gracefully bounced down, the leaves rustling as Ceba followed her down. She landed directly in front of Zuko and he reached out to steady her as she stumbled a bit.

"Find anything?" she asked as he dropped his hands and Ceba landed beside her.

"The Avatar and his friends are there," Zuko responded as they walked back to their camp.

"What did they say?"

"I, er, didn't really stay to talk to them."

"What are you waiting for?" Ceba asked him.

If Zuko thought it odd that Ceba was finally talking to him, he didn't acknowledge it. "I – don't know what to say."

"Sure you do," Opame assured him. "You have a lot of things to say. Just – figure out what order you want to say them in."

"Maybe practice," Ceba offered.

Zuko made a face but he took a breath, shaking out his shoulders. "Hello, Zuko here – but you guys you probably already know me, sort of. . . . 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? Uh, yea, I guess I should apologize for that – but anyway I'm good now. . . . I mean I thought I was good before but then I realized I was bad. . . . But anyway I think its time I joined your group and taught the Avatar Firebending."

Ceba, who had been doing his very best, burst into a fit of laughter, falling onto his back as tears streamed down his face. Opama cleared her throat, biting her lip as she patted her brother's leg, looking away from Zuko's glare. "It was a decent try."

"How would you do it then?" the prince growled.

"I couldn't say. Based on what you told me, there's a lot you're going to have overcome with the Avatar and his friends."

Zuko groaned, pacing. "How am I supposed to convince these people that I'm on their side? What would Uncle do? Zuko," the prince started, changing his voice to sound like his Uncle, "you have to look within yourself to save yourself from your other self. Only then will your true self reveal itself. . . . Even when I'm talking for him I can't figure out what he means. . . . What would Azula do? Listen Avatar," Zuko said, his voice sounding scarily like his sister's, "I can join your group or I can do something unspeakably horrible to you and your friends. Your choice."

Ceba was still cackling as Zuko plopped down on his bottom, sighing deeply. "I'd probably laugh at me too."

"Zuko," Opame said, his name coming out like that still feeling a bit wierd. "It's not a matter of being someone else or thinking about how someone else would say all the things you're thinking. You just have to be yourself . . . and stop putting it off. The longer you wait, the harder it's going to be for you to approach them."

Zuko sighed again, getting to his feet. "Fine, fine. This time," he added before he left, "can you promise to stay here?"

On cue, both siblings put their right hand over their heart and held up their left hand, nodding. Zuko rolled his eyes and shook his head before he hurried off into the woods.

"How do you think he'll do?" Ceba asked.

"I guess we'll have to wait and see."

Truth was, she wasn't feeling very optimistic.

That evening, Opame lay on her back, staring up at the stars. As she suspected, Zuko's initial meeting with the Avatar hadn't gone very well. He came back to camp, soaking wet and she wondered if the Avatar had attacked him or if it were the Waterbender he had told her about. Either way, he hadn't said a word, instead laying down on his sleeping mat and rolling over.

Next to her, Ceba snorted slightly in his sleep, rolling over. A soft smile came to her face as she rolled over to face her brother. She moved his hair out of his face and he smiled a little back before settling back into sleep. He had never not known comfort so sleeping on the ground was something she thought he would have complained about it. She knew this was an odd experience for him but she was so very proud of him for taking it in stride. Hopefully, soon, the two of them wouldn't have to run anymore.

"Who's there?" Zuko's voice startled her. She sat up quickly, ready to fight. Zuko stretched out his towards the fire, bending the element so it went in the direction of whatever it was he heard. "Stay back!"

What's happening?" Ceba grumbled, sitting up straight.

"It's me!" came a young girl's voice. The ground rumbled and the light from the fire illuminated a girl in green clothing. The fire rushed towards her and she cried out as she fell to the floor, the wall of rock following down in front of her. "You burned my feet!"

"I'm sorry!" Zuko cried out hopping to his feet to run after her. "It was a mistake!"

"Zuko!" Opame yelled.

"Get away from me!" The girl got onto her hands and knees, began crawling away, flinging rocks at Zuko as he followed behind her. Opame grabbed Ceba and pulled him towards her as a rock came flying in their direction.

She could hear Zuko calling after the girl before he grunted. Opame hopped to her feet as he landed near their campsite, holding his stomach where a boulder had hit him. She rushed forward as he sat up, still calling after the girl. "I didn't know it was you! Come back!"

But the girl kept crawling away, disappearing into the dark woods. Zuko flung himself back onto his back. "Why am I so bad at being good!"

Opame stared sadly in the direction of the young girl. This was not going to plan at all.

A/N: Hope this makes up for the wait! i'm off work for a while so hopefully I can give you a few more updates :)