A/N: Hello all! Here is a long one to thank you all for your patience. My goal is to finish this story by the summer. Keep me honest lol.

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

The sun was setting and Opame flew around the temple, keeping her eyes open for anything suspicious.

Well at least, that's what she told Sokka she would do. He and Zuko had left a few days ago on a hunting trip and, because she was the oldest, he asked her to keep an eye on the place. Opame was taking it as seriously as she could but she found, now that she could do it, that just being in the air was so peaceful.

She was feeling so much more confident as a Bender, spending much of her waking time training, even when Aang was busy. She worked hard, practiced with Ceba and the scrolls, and in the weeks' time since her journey to the Spirit World, she found herself matching her very skilled little brother. It was definitely as if a weight had been lifted or cleared and it was much easier to manipulate the Air the way she was meant to. If someone were to attack the Temple, she felt she could protect them, but she doubted it would happen. Besides, it was quiet and calm. Nothing out of the ordin –

Opame nearly fell out of the sky at the sight of a Fire Nation Imperial War Ship flying over the horizon. She straightened out, flying to the nearest piller, perching on it as she watched the ship fly closer. Her heart in her throat, she wondered what she should do. She could fly down, warn the others; it may take her too long to get around to that side of the temple. She could attack the balloon, take them down . . . but she couldn't bear it if someone died because of her.

Maybe steering them off course, getting them to touch down in the forest, would be enough for her to rush back to the temple, get the others out. If she moved fast enough, she could take them by surprise, knock out the captain or knock them off course or something.

The windows on the side of the carriage were open.

Steeling herself, Opame jumped from the pillar, gliding into the air current towards the balloon.

This was a bad idea.

Opame flipped herself over so that she could enter feet first, pulling her legs and arms flush together as she entered. As soon as she landed, she swung her staff at the closest person, twirling it overhead, before swinging it low, blasting another person back.

"Opame, Opame!"

The Airbender swung back around, gasping as someone grabbed her staff before it could come down on their head. "Zuko!?"

Zuko was staring at her with wide eyes. "Yes! Could you stop attacking!?"

Opame spun back around, looking around the carriage. A large man she didn't recognize groaned as he got up off the ground, rubbing his ribs. He wore a ragged looking garments, the same Zuko was wearing, she realized. Near the steering wheel, Sokka stared up from her where he lay upside down, dressed in a fire nation guard's uniform. "Nice to see you too, Opame," he moaned.

Her heartbeat was still calming down as she stood up straight, Zuko letting go of her staff. "What – what is happening?" she asked. "I thought you were going fishing."

"We made a bit of a detour. Wait," Zuko started, frowning, "were you going to try and take us all out on your own?"

"From the looks of her, she could have," an older man said as he and an auburn haired girl helped Sokka up. He smiled as he held out a hand to her. "She's quite the force. I'm Hakoda, Sokka and Katara's father."

She could see it, she realized, as she shook his hand. Even with the beard and slightly shaggier hair, she could see Sokka's blue eyes, his curiosity. "Nice to meet you. I'm still very confused."

"I'll explain later," Zuko said, glancing over Opame's head. "But I should tell you –"

"You flew through the window." Opame spun in the direction of the voice, nearly dropping her staff. Izuma was staring at the window, eyes wide. She was wearing the same ragged clothing as Hakoda and Zuko. She looked back to Opame, smiling slightly. "You really are an Airbender."

"Izuma." Tears built up in her eyes as the older girl walked towards her. Opame had thought hard about what she would say to her cousin when she saw her again but nothing good ever came to mind. She wanted to explain. She wanted to apologize. She figured it would only be right to let Izuma yell at her. If she never forgave her, it would be alright, so long as Izuma and Razo were safe, eventually. "Izuma, I –"

Izuma threw her arms around Opame, holding her tight. "I'm so relieved to see you safe."

Opame blinked a few times before wrapping her arms around Izuma as well, holding her just as tightly, crying softly. After a moment, she leaned back, still holding on to Izuma's arms as if the other woman would disappear, her eyes scanning over her. "What happened? Are you hurt? Why are you dressed like this? Where's Razo? How are you here?"

"You can thank the Prince for that," Izuma answered.

Opame turned back to Zuko, who blushed lightly crossing his arms. "I told her she doesn't have to call me that," he muttered.

The Airbender reached over, taking Zuko's hand and giving it a squeeze. "Thank you."

Zuko hesitated a moment, as if there was something that he wanted to say, but instead he nodded, giving her a small smile. Opame looked around at the other people onboard the air ship, giving them a wide watery smile. "Welcome home, everyone."

Moments later, the group had made their way to the temple. Opame had flown ahead to warn the rest about the appearance of the Imperial ship. The others were, rightfully, confused, but that confusion soon turned to delight when Hakoda and Suki appeared. Their evening turned into a small reunion as the the Water Tribe siblings spoke with their dad, Aang and Suki, while Toph peppered the large man, Chit Sang, with questions about his time in prison. Zuko helped Haru, the Duke and Ceba pass out bowls of soup where they sat in the main atrium.

The happiness at seeing family and friends didn't keep Zuko and Sokka from being scolded though. What they had done had been crazy and a bit reckless, no matter the end goal. Maybe that's why Zuko was being so helpful, Opame thought, ruefully. Still, she couldn't help but admire how brave the two boys had been.

Opame sat on the edge of the fountain with Izuma, running her hand through the water as Izuma fussed with her hair in the reflection. "They could have at least given me a brush," she muttered.

Opame smiled wryly, looking back towards Ceba as he bounced around. Izuma looked in that direction as well. "Ceba seems different. Happier."

"Being here has been such a good change for him," Opame agreed.

Izuma looked at her, curious. "Good for you too, it would seem."

Opame nodded, looking back down to the water. There was so much that needed to be said, but she wasn't quite sure where to start. She took a deep breath. "I, um – what about Razo?"

Izuma shrugged, a sad smile on her face. "They separated us. I'm not sure where they've put him. I think they thought I was the bigger threat, since you and I are actually blood related."

"Izuma," Opame started, "I'm so, so sorry. For all of this. I never meant for you to get dragged into any of it."

"It explains a lot you know," Izuma said, looking up to the sky thoughtfully. "My mom always said Uncle's side of the family was odd. She figured it was your mom who made him move so much, made it stay so distant from the rest of the family. It explains why you didn't want to come live with us. . . . I was angry, at first. I'll admit it. I felt lied to and a bit betrayed but . . . but then I realized how absolutely terrifying that all must have been for you," she said, looking back to Opame, tears in her eyes. "You must have felt so alone, with something so big to hide. And I practically shoved you under those people's noses. If I hadn't insisted that you move to the Capital than maybe –"

"Izuma no." Opame reached forward and grabbed Izuma's hands. "None of this is your fault. In fact, I'm grateful. If we hadn't come to the Capital, Ceba and I would have continued to live in hiding and nothing would have changed. Look at him," she said, gesturing to her brother. She couldn't help but smile at the large smile on his face as he laughed at something the Duke said to him. "He's never been like that. He's never been so happy. We've found more pieces of ourselves than we never would have if things had remained as they are. You're part of that Izuma."

Izuma sniffed, wiping her tears as she gave Opame a watery smile. "Then I'm glad."

The two girls smiled at each other before Opame looked back towards Zuko again. "I'm still rather surprised that Mai helped you all get free."

Izuma shrugged. "Whenever the Ladies would hang out with the Princess and Prince Zuko was there, I noticed that Lady Mai spent more time with the Prince. She's always rather sullen but when she was with him, she seemed to loosen up a bit. I think they were close friends."

"I see." Opame looked down at her lap but couldn't help her eyes flitting back up to Zuko. His golden eyes seemed to flicker in the firelight. Once (or twice) she thought she saw him look over to her as well but she figured it must be her imagination. She also couldn't help but think about the fact that Mai had risked treason for Zuko and, for some reason, that gave her a weird feeling in her stomach.

Izuma's lips tugged up into a smirk. "You know what really surprised me was that the Prince recognized me. All those servants, all of those Handmaids that he probably saw daily but he saw me and knew my name. He said that he knew you would never forgive him if he came back without me."

"I suppose he's rather thoughtful that way." A slight smile came to her face as she looked in that direction again. This time, her eyes met Zuko's. He gave her a smile back.

"He's something special," Izuma said. "That Prince of yours."

Opame blanched, looking away from Zuko to her smirking cousin. She could tell by the glint in the other woman's eyes that she had seen the exchange between her and Zuko. Opame waved her hands frantically. "What!? No – I, er – I don't – he's not – why would you say – it's not like – there's nothing –"

Izuma giggled, reaching up to tug lightly on Opame's ponytail. "Yea . . . a definite change. But a good one. . . . So, what happens after all of this?"

Opame cleared her throat, willing her face back to normal. "What do you mean?"

"That boy, Sokka, was it? He was explaining to me that the whole point of this was to – to take down Fire Lord Ozai, to restore balance to the world. What does that look like for you?"

"Well," Opame started. It was taking everything in her not to look over a Zuko, because she supposed she knew what she wanted it to look like. But she also knew that that vision wasn't possible. "For me, I suppose, I follow the path of my ancestors. Become a Nun. Travel the world and teach people about the Airbender culture."

From the look on Izuma's face, that wasn't the answer she had been expecting. "Is that something you want to do?"

Opame shrugged. "It may be nice to see the world I hid from my whole life. Besides, someone has to do it. Don't they?" she added at the dubious look on her cousin's face.

This time, Izuma looked to Zuko, frowning slightly. "I suppose."

The two of them lapsed into silence, each in their own thoughts.

Opame woke slowly the next morning, turning onto her stomach. Everyone was still sleeping around her, in their own sleeping bags. Chit Sang was snoring loudly on his back but, thankfully, it didn't drown out the chirping of the birds. She looked over to Aang, who was lying on Appa's leg, looking as if he'd just woken up as well.

The two of them smiled at each other, sharing a quiet giggle at all the snoring. The birds at the fountain took flight and Opame watched them leave . . . and watched a canister fly over the edge of the cliff.

Appa growled and Aang hopped up, swinging his staff and knocking the canister away. It hit the roof of the temple and exploded. Opame scrambled out of her sleeping bag as two more canisters came over the edge. Aang dashed forward and Opame swung her arms over her head, pushing out her hands in front of her, blasting at least one of the bombs away. The other hit the side of the cliff near where she was standing, blasting her off her feet. She hit the ground but nearly as soon as she did, Aang was grabbing her arm, pulling her up and back towards their friends, who were getting up out of their sleeping bags as well.

"Opame!" Ceba cried, reaching out for her as she drew near.

"I'm fine, I'm fine!" Opame reassured, snatching her own staff up from the ground as she reached her brother.

Aang swung his staff, closing blast shields around them. The explosions kept coming though, shaking the roof, breaking it apart.

"Watch out!" Zuko cried, diving forward and snatching Katara out of the way as part of the roof fell down where she had been standing. Opame briefed a sigh of relief when she could hear the two of them mumbling.

Towards the back of the courtyard, Toph and Haru blasted a tunnel. "Come on, we can get through here!" Toph called.

Everyone made a dash for the tunnel, except Aang, who was pulling on Appa's ropes, but the bison was resisting. Opame's eyes were drawn past the two of them to where Zuko was staring, his back to them. "Zuko, what are you doing?!"

"Go ahead," he replied. "I'll hold them off. I think this is a family visit."

"Zuko no!" Aang cried as Sokka and Katara ran to also grab Appa's ropes.

"Come on, we've gotta get out of here," Sokka told Aang, placing his hands on the younger boy's shoulders.

Opame watched as Zuko leapt over the crumbling barricade, tightening her grip on her own staff. She wanted to help . . . but she couldn't leave Ceba. She turned back to her little brother, who was watching her closely. "Let's go," she muttered, ushering him towards Izuma.

The once beautiful courtyard was crumbling. They wouldn't have much time before the whole thing collapsed around them.

"You're not going after him?" Ceba asked.

Opame glanced over her shoulder

"He needs you," Ceba said back.

"You need me," Opame responded.

"No. I mean yes, I do, but, I'm okay. You always have my back, Opame, but I have to learn to watch out for myself too. I've gotten stronger. We've gotten stronger."

"I know, but we -" They had never been apart. This felt as if they were saying goodbye. She had a feeling that if she went after Zuko, she wouldn't see her family again for a while.

"I know." Ceba reached over and grabbed Izuma's hand. "We'll be okay."

Opame looked up at her cousin who nodded. "I'll watch over him. I'll keep him safe."

"Ceba," Opame started. Could she really just leave her little brother? Her whole life had revolved around protecting him. What if something happened to him? But still – looking at him, she could see the confidence in his gaze, in his stance. He had grown up so much. He wasn't just a little boy any more. Quickly she hugged Izuma. "Thank you."

Dropping to her knees, she threw her arms around her brother. "I love you."

"I love you too."

The siblings smiled at each other, before Opame grabbed her staff, darting towards the entrance. She heard her friends call her name as she leapt forward, just before the walls collapsed behind her. She extended her glider and leapt into the air, flying through the smoke. There was no sign of Zuko, just the four airships hovering ominously in front of her.

Opame let herself free fall as a blue burst of flame flew over head. She flipped in the air, opening her glider again as she soared back up, glaring at a smirking Azula.

"Well if it isn't my little pet!" Azula called. She was standing on top of one of the war ballons, fire blazing in her palms. "I see you've learned a few new tricks!"

Gritting her teeth, Opame flew in Azula's general direction, dodging the fire that was being shot at her. She needed to draw her attention away from her friends, give them a chance to get away.

Give Zuko a chance to come back from wherever he was.

"I don't belong to you or anybody!" Opame called, flipping on her glider and using her feet to blast the Princess back. Azula grunted as she flipped over, jumping back to her feet and firing off another shot. Opame carened to the side, flying between two ships to avoid the blaze.

There was a rumbling from what remained of the courtyard and Appa burst out, rocks covering his face to protect him from the blaze. He flew past Azula, her fire bouncing harmlessly off the rock shield. Opame pushed forward, flying up and closing her glider as she dropped into Appa's saddle, startling Sokka, Suki, Katara and Toph. "What were you doing!?" Katara asked.

"Did the others get out?" Opame asked.

Sokka nodded. "Dad will watch over them," he assured her. "Where's Zuko?"

"I'm not – I'm not sure." Opame looked back, trying to see through the smoke as they put distance between themselves and what remained of the Western Air Temple. Where was he? Had he fallen? Was he hurt? She leaned out over the back of Appa's saddle as another Airship rose up.

Zuko standing on top.

The group couldn't help but watch as he rushed forward, towards Azula's ship, engaging her in battle. Suddenly, Appa jerked to the side avoiding another fireball, shot from a ship above them.

"Opame!" Katara called, as she stood, drawing water from the waterskin on her side. Opame nodded, grabbing her staff and hurrying to her feet as well.

Opame twirled her staff over her head, creating drafts to diminish incoming fireballs as Katara's water twirled around them. The two of them protected their group from above as more fire was shot in their direction. Appa grunted and Opame hooked one arm around his saddle and grabbed Katara's tunic with her opposite hand as the sky bison flew straight up, past the ships.

"Aang!" Sokka yelled, as he braced himself against the back of the saddle, arms around Suki and Toph.

"Hold on!" Aang gritted out.

Appa straightened out just as a huge explosion happened on top of Azula's ship. The smoke cleared and Opame could see both Azula and Zuko slip off the sides of the Airship, falling towards the clouds below. Aang pulled on Appa's reins again and he flew down, avoiding more blasts of fire sent their way. Opame stood up again as they neared Zuko, holding up her hand.

Come on.

The relief she felt was palpable as his long fingers wrapped around her hand and she pulled him towards her. The two crouched low in the saddle, sharing a quick look before the group turned to look at Azula, watching her fall. Zuko shook his head. "She's not going to make it."

Opame couldn't tell how he felt. That was his younger sister; she was sure some part of him still cared and worried about her, but at the same time, she made their lives a nightmare. If she didn't make it, maybe they could rest for a time. . . .

Azula kicked her feet, blue flames jet propelling her to the nearest cliff wall. She gripped it tight, her hair loose, blowing in the breeze. As they flew farther away, Opame could still see the smirk on her face. Zuko frowned. "Of course she did."

It was evening by the time they landed and unpacked, the seven of them decompressing by the fire. Despite their daring get away earlier that day, there was something nice about relaxing by a campfire and enjoying each other's company.

"Wow, camping," Aang said as they were eating dinner. He grinned. "It really seems like old times again doesn't it?"

"If you really want it to feel like old times," Zuko started, a slight smile on his face, "I could, uh, chase you around a while, try to capture you."

"Was that a joke?" Opame giggled as everyone laughed.

Next to her, Katara mumbled, "Ha ha."

Sokka raised his cup. "To Zuko. Who knew after all those times he tried to snuff us out, today, he'd be our hero?"

We all raised our glasses in the air, shouting. "Here, here!"

"I'm touched," Zuko said, looking down. Opame smiled at her suddenly bashful friend; she wondered how many other friends he had had like this before she knew him. She liked that he was healing. "I don't deserve this."

"Yeah, no kidding," Katara replied, this time loud enough so that everyone heard. We stared at her as she got to her feet and walked away.

"What's with her?" Sokka asked.

Zuko stood. "I wish I knew," he answered, moving off in the direction Katara had gone in.

"What's with him?"

Opame frowned lightly, still looking in that direction as everyone went back to their food. It seemed that there were still some things left to heal.

Opame sat a ways away from the camp, eyes closed and palms resting face up on her knees. She took a few deep breaths in and focused. She could feel the grass beneath, how it brushed against her ankles, how the wind brushed across her face and danced through her hair. She could hear the lapse of the water against the rocks of the cliff below her. She could hear footsteps –

"Zuko?" Opame turned, the prince's eyes wide in surprise. "Everything okay?"

"How did you know it was me?" he asked, still shocked.

Opame shrugged, a slight smile coming to her face. It embarrassed her to admit that she recognized the way he walked now. "Call it a guess. What's up?"

Zuko hesitated but he held out a hand to her. "Take a walk with me?"

"Always," she responded, placing her hand in his and she floated up to her feet. The two of them walked even further away from the rock tents Toph and Aang had created, letting the moon light their path. She glanced at Zuko out of the corner of her eye, this walk reminding her a bit of the one they had taken when leaving Iroh's prison cell. Again, Zuko felt a bit preoccupied and heavy. She reached up and tugged on his sleeve, making him meet his eyes. "I was worried about you earlier."

"When?"

"When you went after Azula. I followed you out there, when you left."

Zuko frowned and stopped walking. "What were you going to do against Azula and all those airships?"

Opame frowned back. "What were you going to do?"

Zuko opened his mouth and closed it, crossing his arms. Opame waited to see if he would continue to argue but when he didn't, she took a breath. "Anyway. When I couldn't find you, I was scared. I just wanted to tell you that I'm glad you are okay."

"Well, thank you for coming after me." The two of them shared a smile before continuing on their walk. "How are you doing? Without Ceba?"

"I'm surprisingly okay," Opame answered. "I mean, I'm worried, obviously. But I know now he has the skills to protect and take care of himself. Plus Hakoda and Izuma are watching out for him. I'm trying to also be okay with the fact that it's okay to just be 'Opame'. It's always been 'Opame and Ceba', so this is a change."

Zuko nodded. "I can understand that. But I'm sure you two will see each other again."

The two of them continued to walk for a moment, around their camp. Opame glanced up in his direction again. "Is there something wrong?"

The Prince was quiet for a moment. "I asked Sokka about what happened to his and Katara's mother."

"Oh. . . . Why would you want to know that?"

"Because Katara hates me and I think it's because of the Fire Nation and her mom."

"Oh," Opame muttered again.

Zuko turned towards her. "Did you know?"

"No, not really. I had a feeling that she lost someone to the Fire Nation but I didn't know who. . . . So, what does that have to do with you?"

"I know who did it, who killed their mom. I can take her to him."

"And then what?"

"She can get justice."

"You mean revenge."

"It's the same thing."

"No, no it's not."

"Isn't that what you wanted?"

"I did and you saw it tore me up inside. That anger and pain, it's rotten and it doesn't do anyone any good. Now all I want is to be able to fly without hiding, to Airbend in public without being in danger. I just want freedom."

Zuko's eyes bored into hers, as if he were trying to see if that was really how she felt. She didn't look away and eventually he sighed. "So, what do you think I should do?"

"I can't tell you that," Opame answered, smiling at Zuko's deepening frown. She stepped forward, placing a hand over his heart. "I can tell you that I know you're a good man, with a good heart. That doesn't always mean you are going to make the right choices. But I trust you."

Zuko hesitated for a moment before placing his hand over hers. "I think I know what I have to do."

Opame nodded. "I trust you."

The next day, Opame stood by quietly as Zuko, Katara and Aang had nearly an identical conversation the next morning. She had gotten up early to learn how to feed and brush the bison, her and Aang having a pleasant time with Sokka sitting nearby. She could practically feel Zuko trying not to meet her eyes as Aang also pointed out that this sounded more like a revenge plan than anything else.

"Fine," Katara said,angrily, her back to Aang, "maybe it is. Maybe that's what I need. Maybe that's what he deserves."

"Katara, you sound like Jet," Aang responded.

"It's not the same," Katara said, spinning around. "Jet attacked the innocent. This man, he's a monster."

Sokka took a few steps forward to stand next to Aang. "Katara, she was my mother too but I think Aang might be right."

"Then you didn't love her the way that I did!"

"Katara," Sokka said, sounding as if he had been slapped.

"That's not fair at all," Opame spoke up softly. Katara turned her glare on her. "I think you know that."

Katara looked away from them all, staring at the ground. Aang hesitated a moment before he said, "The Monks used to say that revenge is like a two-headed rat viper. While you watch your enemy go down, you're being poisoned yourself.

"That's cute," Zuko said, "but this isn't airbender preschool. This is the real world."

Opame frowned at Zuko but he wouldn't meet her eyes.

"Now that I know he's out there," Katara started. "Now that I know we can find him. . . I feel like I have no choice."

"Katara, you do have a choice," Aang said. "Forgiveness."

Zuko took a step forward. "That's the same as doing nothing."

"No it's not," Aang argued. "It's easy to do nothing, but it's hard to forgive."

"It's not just hard," Katara responded. "It's impossible."

The Water Tribe girl walked away. Zuko finally looked at her before he too walked away. Opame turned back to Appa, resuming her brushing. "Not always the right choice," she murmured.

"Opame."

It was the middle night when Opame heard someone whisper her name. She didn't open her eyes or answer because she could tell who it was. Yes, she trusted Zuko, knew he was trying to do right by Katara; it was hard for them to be a team when one person couldn't stand another. But she would be lying if she said her feelings weren't a little bit hurt by some of his thoughts.

Also, she thought this would be good for both Katara and Zuko and maybe she didn't need to butt in on that. Some one-on-one time might help shift their relationship.

Opame curled up tighter into her blanket as the sheet covering the entrance to her rock tent was gently pulled aside. She could tell Zuko was right there, that he was trying to decide if he should wake her up. So it came as a shock to her when he placed a hand on top of her head, his fingers lightly brushing her bangs aside.

"I know you don't agree with me, but we've got to do this," he murmured. "We'll be safe."

He withdrew, the sheet falling back over the entrance. Opame opened her eyes, lifting her hand to rest against the place where his hand had been. Her face grew warm and she drew her blanket up to nose, burrowing further down.

"So, what happens after all of this?"

"For me, I suppose, I follow the path of my ancestors. Become a Nun. Travel the world and teach people about the Airbender culture."

"Is that something you want to do?"

No, Opame realized, I want to see what it would be like to feel normal. I want to be free, to do what I want, to go where I want . . . to be with who I want.

But Zuko was royalty and Opame was just . . . an Air Nomad. Whose main purpose in this world was to teach other people about the Air Nomad culture, to show them that they were still here, still alive despite the efforts of the Fire Nation.

Besides, who was she to assume that Zuko felt the same way? She thought he may but, what if she was wrong?

She wasn't, she could tell.

And, maybe she was thinking too far ahead, but Zuko was a Bender. What if the children they had weren't Airbenders? Could she justify being responsible for ending her family's long line of Airbenders.

Maybe what she wanted . . . wasn't important, in the grand scheme of things. Teaching the world about Air Nomads was. Continuing her family's line was.

She squeezed her eyes shut tight again, trying to make herself go back to sleep.

"Opame?" Opame looked up from where she sat, stirring the broth for tonight's meal. Katara stared down at her, looking a bit uncertain. "May I join you?

"Of course," Opame responded, scooting over on the log she was sitting on. The Waterbender sat with her, picking up a carrot to chop it into the soup.

The two girls sat in silence for a moment, cooking together, Opama adding in the spices they had while Katara added some potatoes. Katara took a breath. "Zuko told you about our trip?"

"Yep," Opame said. She smiled at the younger girl. "I'm proud of you. You got your anger out and you made the right choice."

"I'm still not sure," Katara admitted. "But it did help open my eyes. You were right," Katara responded, looking at Opame. "I understand you a bit better now and why it was easy for you to forgive Zuko. He's – a good person. . . . I think you might have influenced that a bit."

Opame shook her head, with a soft smile. "Nope, that's all him. It just takes a little while for it to dig to the surface. I hope that means we can become closer now," she added, hopefully.

Katara grinned. "I'd like that. I was thinking about it. I lost a lot. We've all lost a lot . . . but we've gained a lot too. A found family," Katara said softly, looking around at the rest of their little ragtag group. Toph was casually chatting with Suki and Sokka while Aang and Zuko ran through some drills. "I'm lucky to have gained some great sisters."

"I've always wanted a younger sister," Opame told her. "So I feel lucky too. Dinner's ready everyone!"

"Finally!" Sokka cried, leaving the other two girls behind to dash over. He grabbed up a bowl holding it up towards Opame and Katara, who giggled.

A found family.

Opame liked the sound of that.