Author's Note: Hello, I have decided after a decade to come back to writing and in that last decade I have READ a lot more and hopefully developed better storytelling. I am working on mapping out the rest of this series and revising the current chapters. But please be patient, I am an adult now with adult life problems and many other fanfics that I am considering writing for. As always, please leave comments and correct me where I might be wrong.

Disclaimer: I do not any of these characters.

Thx, much love MidnightsWater. Please enjoy.

Katara had just finished threatening Zuko's life. Even if Zuko was accepted by the rest of the gang, Katara held the group together and her judgment alone was enough to make Zuko feel excluded. He couldn't feel upset or angry, everything Katara had said was true and he could do nothing to change that. The truth was he failed, multiple times; it's why his uncle was upset with him, angry with him. There was nothing more he could do than try to help Aang master firebending. He owed his life to Toph and Aang; Katara would have killed him if she could. She threw water at him while he offered himself as a prisoner. Her dislike of him was obvious and her threat was not empty; he felt his blood run cold for once not from his sister or father but from a waterbender.

This was familiar for him even if it still hurt; he was never first choice, never strong enough, never evil enough, never good enough, constantly swayed between good and evil. But this time he was going to do everything he could to prove himself to everyone…including Katara.

She was different from that girl he saw at the South Pole when he first found the Avatar. She was no longer a girl, but a woman and a waterbending master. Katara was truly one of the strongest benders he had ever known and she scared him to death, truly scared him. Maybe more than Azula. Her blue eyes held only pain and anger, she was willing to do whatever it took to win this war and keep Aang protected even if it took a life. He had to find a way to redeem himself after Ba Sing Se but truly how? Would he forgive himself for all he had done? Probably not.

He shook his head to clear his thoughts, night one was already off to a rough start with the gang. He could hope that dinner went well and no one else hated him as much as Katara.

That evening, the gang sat around the fire Zuko made…well insisted he made for the group. He felt like he needed to pull his own weight. If anything, it proved he wanted to be there and be helpful and useful. He saw everyone help set up dinner, Katara made the food, Sokka and Aang called out to the others to join. Tao, The Duke, and Haru helped bring the utensils and bowls to everyone after Toph made them out of the stone from the Air Temple. He tried helping Katara by creating a fire for the stew, she snapped at him and told him that she didn't need his help. Toph had called him over, "Ice Queen does not let us help, don't take it personally." He tried a small chuckle but nothing came out. He knew it was more than that.

Things were never easy with Katara, Zuko concluded. Zuko sat between The Duke and Toph. "You can lighten up, you know," he heard Toph whisper to him.

"Are you sure? I feel like Katara will bite my head off at any moment. I don't want to cause any problems," he whispered back. Hopefully low enough no one else overheard. He tried his best to keep any emotion out of his voice, but Toph caught the hint of regret maybe fear, Katara had threatened him. She knew Katara would, she felt Katara's footsteps enter his small room in the air temple. Katara wasn't very quiet with her threat until she mentioned killing or death, who knows. Toph couldn't make out the words with Aang and the others yelling and screaming. Katara knew Toph could only hear from a certain distance and used it to her advantage.

"She won't do anything with Aang around. ANyways Aang likes you. He says you saved him before but you weren't yourself." Zuko thought back to the night when he had disguised himself as the Blue Spirit. He had saved Aang from Zhao, but not out of kindness. He still wanted to be accepted by his father and he needed Aang. Again, he shook his head to clear his mind of the memory, while it wasn't painful, it wasn't a good memory for him. Just another reminder that he was lost and unsure of who he was and how he failed to make the right choice. In that moment, he met Katara's gaze; her blue eyes still icy and cold. He hated that feeling, but why did it matter to him. Why did her approval matter to him.

Aang nudge Katara to get her attention and said, "Katara, stop staring at Zuko. He already feels out of place." Katara shot Aang a glance, he felt out of place…good. He didn't belong here anyways.

"Fine."

Katara finished eating, rather than sit around the fire and talk with the gang, she opted to rinse her bowl and check on Appa. She couldn't stand being near Zuko and she wouldn't pretend she liked him or accepted him to the group. He had proven he could not be trusted especially with Aang's life. She couldn't understand how the group could just move on and not hold him accountable for all he had done. In the South Pole, he terrorized her people. At the North Pole, he took Aang out into a blizzard and nearly got them both killed. And countless more times; he stole her mother's necklace and used it to track them down. He lied to her! At Ba Sing Se, he made her feel something for him. And then he attacked them. He could have killed the world's last hope and then he decided he was ready to be good. She wouldn't accept him, not in a million years. Not after all he had done to her. All that his people had done to her and her family. The Fire Nation was pure evil and did nothing but burn everything to the ground and hurt others.

Her rage was getting the best of her, she could feel the water in the air and could nearly touch it. All she had to do was manipulate it and small little daggers would form on her fingers. She could feel the blood running through Appa and how it shifted as he slept. She had to calm down, her bending had become more erratic since the eclipse. She turned and walked away, hearing the laughter from the group.

She returned to her room that she was sharing with Toph. Great. An earthbender who could quite literally feel her emotions. She grabbed her things to rinse in the river not far from the temple.

As she walked past the rooms, she noticed Zuko's room and peered inside. He had a picture of his uncle, he was much younger with a small boy by him. She figured that was Zuko even though his uncle seemed so much younger. Maybe the artist had forgotten a few wrinkles to help the older man feel younger in the photo. Next to that photo was a woman with long black hair, her small smile didn't reach her eyes. Zuko had her eyes, that must be his mother. He never told her much about his mother other than the fire nation had taken her. Ha whatever Katara thought. She scoffed at the thought, oh boo hoo Zuko.

Katara heard footsteps coming towards her and continued past his room. As she past Sokka, he grabbed her upper arm. "Katara where are you going?"

"To the river. To wash up. Is that okay with you oh might warrior?" She snapped at him. Her eyes pierced into his blue ocean eyes. He knew he wouldn't win this fight but he needed to try to reason with her or at least warn her about the severity of the situation.

"Can you lighten up with Zuko? He is trying to help us even if you don't believe him. We need Aang to learn fire bending and we don't have time to go hunting for another one. He came to us to help Aang. You already threatened his life and don't deny it. Back off." She shook her arm out his grasp.

"We don't need him. He is worthless and useless to us. Aang doesn't need him." She said through gritted teeth. She brushed past his shoulder. Sokka knew his sister and knew this was far from over.

Little did Katara know, Zuko was just around the corner and overheard everything. He was grateful that Sokka stood up for him but he couldn't shake the feeling that Katara's words left him. She truly thought so little of him and he deserved it. How could he prove to her that she was wrong, that he was worth something even if it was just to teach Aang firebending and then leaving once he mastered the element. Still, why did her judgment of him even matter, he had a job to do and it was to teach the avatar. If Katara didn't like it, oh well. She would have to move on.