"Wow, this place is great Zuko!" everyone looked around the private beach that he had shown them to.

"You must have loved coming here as a kid." Suki pointed out.

He shrugged, "There were... some good times that were spent here." He thought back to building sandcastles with Lu Ten and Uncle Iroh.

"And you're sure no one will find us here?" Katara asked cautiously.

"This beach is only open to members of the royal family." He pointed out. "Can you really picture my father or sister going on a summer getaway?"

"Fair point."

"Alright enough chatting!" Aang jumped up and used the air to blow his tunic off, leaving him in his shorts. "Let's have some fun!"

"Hold on." Zuko wagged his finger at him. "Hot squats first."

Aang grumbled but got to work. "One Flamin' Tiger-Bear. Two Flamin' Tiger-Bears. Three Flimin'..."

"Ok, we get the idea!" Zuko glared at him.

"While Aang is... occupied, why don't we set up the blankets?" Katara laid the supplies on the ground.

"But first, a moment of silence for our fallen comrade, who cannot join us in this time of merriment." Sokka hung his head.

Suki smacked him, "He's not dead! He'll be done in a few minutes!"

"Ow..." he rubbed his head. "Everyone is abusing me. First the soup, then Momo bit me, now this! What next, is Appa going to try to eat me?!" he glared over at Appa who was sunning himself by a sand dune.

"Maybe if you weren't so overdramatic all the time," Toph stomped her foot and a pile of sand landed on his head, "Stuff like this wouldn't happen."

He sighed, and rubbed the sand out of his eyes, "I'm starting to think, that perhaps, the universe hates me."

"Well, the universe wouldn't be the only one." Katara joked.

They all laughed as Sokka laid down in the sand and started to cover himself. "Please, just leave me here to die."

"Twenty Flamin' Tiger-Bears! Ok, Zuko I'm done!" Aang ran back over to them. "Now let's hit the water!"

They all cheered and started taking off their outer layers of clothing. "Zuko, aren't you going you going to change?" Suki looked over at him as she helped Katara tie her hair back.

"Um well..." he looked down, "I would... but it's kind of embarrassing..."

"Zuko we're your friends." Katara encouraged. "We would never make fun of you."

"Unless it was because of your stupid ponytail." Sokka pointed out. "Because I reserve the right to make fun of that until the day I die."

"Yeah, that was pretty bad." Aang laughed.

Katara glared at them, "Not. Helping."

"Come on Sparky, let loose a little! We won't make fun of you, even if you are as bony as an elephant snake!" Katara shot her a glare as well, even if it was totally lost on her.

Zuko sighed, "Fine. But you have to promise not to freak out ok? You all can be a little... overdramatic..."

"Us? Dramatic?! Never!" Sokka leaned against Appa's nose before immediately getting snorted off. "Ew! Bison snot! Bison snot! Ew! Ew! Ew!"

They all rolled their eyes, but Zuko proceeded to pull the top of his tunic, off over his head. As soon as he did, they all stopped smiling. All of them had their fair share of scars. It comes with the job of being Earth's protectors. But Zuko... he was on a whole other level. The entire top half of his body was covered in various types of scars. Some were clearly from swords or knives, others looked like they were from bones that had been broken but had since healed. However, the most concerning, were the sheer amount of burn scars. They ranged in size and age. None were as deep as the scar on his face, but they obviously would have been very painful. The most tragic thing was the amount of them that were clearly shaped like handprints. When he turned his back, they could also see markings that looked almost like he had been whipped.

In the moment that he had turned around to fold his clothes, the others (minus Toph) made eye contact. They formed a silent agreement that they wouldn't bring the scars up now, but it would be discussed eventually. For right now, they were just supposed to be having fun.

Zuko turned back around and looked at them skeptically. He seemed to be on pins and needles, expecting them to say something. "So, who's ready to swim?!" Aang yelled and they all cheered. Zuko visibly relaxed, and a smile fell across his face. "Last one in is a platypus-snail!"

(A/N - Hey guys! Thanks for reading! Flamio hotman!)