Zuko stares at the fire for a while after sharing his shameful life history, and no one says anything. He's not sure if they're waiting for him, or if this is the silent treatment, or what, but it's slightly unbearable. His story brands him as a traitor - makes him the enemy. That he had Zhao come over is humiliating, that he didn't say anything until now is painful. He struggles to look up, because how can see their faces? How can he, knowing that only disgust and anger will be there?
When he finally does, because the silence is getting to him, and he needs to see something, he does not just find anger, though it is (obviously) there. Katara is looking at the fire. When she sees him look up, she meets his gaze. She wears the face she wore that afternoon when she heard about her brother. "So," she whispers, "you were one of them?"
Zuko clears his throat. "Yes. Was. I'm not that anymore."
And somehow that breaks the silence. Sokka laughs, and it's almost funny, how angry he sounds. Which. He should be, because Zuko wasn't able to save him right, and he knew the man who sent the order to shoot him in the first place. "So that guy. That guy who we shot at, who shot me full of whatever this is. You know his name. You ate dinner with the enemy. Am I… am I catching your drift? You're one of them. You're a crigel?"
And. Zuko shrugs. "Yeah, I guess so." Because it's no big deal if these guys hate him (except it is he needs this - ).
He glances at Toph, to see how the youngest in their group (minus Aang, but he's Riha, plus, - he has to stop thinking that way - he's not looking at him right now) is taking it. She's grinning. "I don't think he sinks quite that low - though it's what I'm gonna call you, crigel. Still - I think this is awesome. Somehow, with all our talk of safety and freedom, we converted you. You're a big time bad guy, and we got you on our side." She smiles, which is slightly less terrifying than her grin. "I wish you were over here so I could punch you. It takes guts to leave your parents like that."
Next to her, Suki nods. "Yeah. Not only did you agree to leave your family, and potentially die for them, you agreed to potentially bomb them, or someone you know. That's… I don't know if I could do that."
Sokka snorts. "Even if they were pure evil? I bet you could."
Suki shrugs. "I don't know, Sokka. Sometimes, I think of all those crigels, and how they could possibly think killing an entire ethnic group is ethical, or even acceptable. I think it's just the way that they're raised. They can't help it. But somehow, Zuko could."
Zuko nods, because… because. "I told you, I knew Riha people. It wasn't too hard." Her small accepting approval is enough for him. Hesitantly, he turns to the (Riha) last member of their group. "Aang? Do you… do you want me to leave?"