Now that Katara had forgiven him, Zuko was officially one of them. His redemption of himself to Aang and his friends was completed, they trusted him.

Zuko should have felt nothing but relief. But when Sokka announced you're one of our family now he remembered his uncle, how he'd betrayed the man who'd been more of a father to him than his real father ever was.

He took care of me, supported me through everything even when he didn't agree with my goals...after all we'd been through together, I repaid him by stabbing him in the back.

It hadn't even been worth it. It was like digging through layers of earth and sharp rocks to find a rare jewel, only to discover a brightly colored glass orb that was cracked and broken and didn't even look pretty anymore.

Or throwing away a tired old wooden statue because the paint was fading and the surface was scratched, only to realize underneath it was as strong and sold as ever, in no danger of breaking.

"I'm such an idiot."

"Zuko?"

He turned to see Aang approaching him.

"Guess you couldn't sleep either, huh?" He smiled sadly. "What's on your mind?"

"Too much," Aang sighed. "What about you?"

Zuko sighed.

"I threw away a perfectly good statue for a glass orb I didn't even want."

Aang blinked, taking a moment to proccess that, then nodded sagely.

"I'm sure the statue will forgive you, though," he said.

If only I could believe you, Aang, Zuko thought, sliding his arm around Aang's shoulders as they fell into silence, watching the last traces of daylight leave the sky.