Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender or The Legend of Korra, but damn those first two episodes were awesomesauce!
A/N: Hello everyone. Nothing much to say this time around except that the first two episodes of Korra were great, and that I hope you enjoy this little fic. I wrote it before the episodes aired and was pleased that I didn't have to tweak it all that much in order for it to remain consistent with the show.
Readers away!
In the Storm
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"Whoa! It's really coming down," Mako said, shaking the rainwater off his collar as he turned to close the door.
"Here," Korra offered. Mako was just slicking back his wet hair when he felt the water being pulled from his clothes and skin. He looked up at Korra as she bent the water off of him, creating a long snake of the liquid to balance between her outstretched arms. "Where can I put this?"
"Oh," he said, moving quickly, first to drop his bag of groceries and then to unlatch a window. "Might as well bend it out there where it belongs." She sent the water out the window and back into the heavy storm, taking a moment to bend her own self dry before Mako locked the shutter again. "I'll get some blankets," the firebender offered. "Make yourself at home."
Korra never noticed the charming hue of rose that colored Mako's cheeks as he left the room, quickly ascending a long, narrow set of wooden stairs to a higher platform. Korra eagerly took in her surroundings. It was the first time she had been invited to Mako and Bolin's apartment in the pro-bending arena attic, and she was curious.
Overall, the layout was simple and open. There was a tiny kitchenette with a few cupboards and an icebox. Korra was standing in the sunk-in main room. Cushions were piled generously along the floor and an old chest that sat in the middle of the room appeared to be utilized as both storage and a table. Off to the right, Korra spotted a door which she suspected was a water closet, and the stairs Mako had climbed led up to a loft where she guessed the brothers slept. The comforts of this little attic dwelling were minimal, nothing compared to the luxury Korra had known in her South Pole compound or the air temple.
And she loved it.
"Here." Mako jumped down the last few steps, a blanket slung over his arms. "It can get a bit damp up here when it rains," he explained.
"Thanks for letting me stay," she said softly, wrapping the blanket around her shoulders, cringing when another crack of thunder boomed around them. "I, uh…heh, I don't really like storms," she admitted sheepishly. Korra hated that something so silly bothered her, mortified as she recalled practically begging Mako to leave the market when she saw the tell-tale grey clouds rolling in quickly over the city.
"I'll make some tea," the older teenager offered.
Korra fidgeted for a moment before another reverberating growl of thunder had her seeking the comfort of the cushions. Pulling her legs in close to her chest and tucking her bare toes under the blanket, Korra listened to the scuttling sounds of Mako making tea.
She needed a distraction.
The top of the old chest in the middle of the room was overflowing with magazines and newspapers. Grabbing the first one she could reach and blindly opening it, Korra was relieved. It was a pro-bending periodical, Benders' Best. It was an edition from last year and it featured stats, biographies and fighting tips from many elite champions. The magazine had obviously been well-read, dog-eared, crinkled, and stained with tea marks. There were even several articles circled and little notes in the margins. Korra recognized Mako's rushed scrawl and she bit her lip to keep from laughing.
He was such a dork.
She scanned through her friend's notes, most of them his own commentary on other players' tips to winning, or training routines, even nutrition. Each memo was like looking at a small piece of the clockwork that made Mako tick. His dedication, his confidence, his respect for the sport, his focus, even traces of his arrogance could be found in the blunt scribbles. It only made Korra realize just how important pro-bending was to Mako, although she'd already concluded the guy was manically devout to the game, and to the prize. A lot like how she was obsessed with her bending.
"Here you go," Mako said.
Korra looked up from the magazine and accepted the cup of steaming tea. Letting the warmth burn her numb fingers, Korra took a deep breath and sighed.
"What tea is this?" she wondered
"Panda Lily."
Mako placed the teapot in-between them on the floor, sipping his tea stoically.
"This is a nice place you got here," Korra said conversationally.
"It's nothing much," he replied, but he could feel the tips of his ears burning. He and Bolin had been living in the attic of the pro-bending arena for nearly three years. While the loft wasn't anything fancy, or beautiful, or even all that comfortable, it was still home.
"Well I think it's great!" Korra exclaimed. "You're really lucky."
Mako shot the Avatar an insulted glower. He'd known that the girl had been surrounded by privilege growing up, a far cry from the poverty of his own youth. How could she, even in her naivety, think a barely furnished attic apartment lucky? He was about to gruffly demand that she explain herself when he noticed the sincerity twinkling in her eyes.
"How do you mean?" he asked instead.
"Well, all this space and it's just the two of you. No one breathing down your neck to sit up straight or pick up your mess. No one to report to when you come and go. No one watching you all the time."
That last comment came out softly, a bit bitter, and it drew the firebender's curiosity. Before he could ask Korra what she meant, another crash of thunder echoed throughout the attic, the spastic flash of lightning slicing through the slats in the shutters. The lights pulsed for a minute or two before dying, casting the loft in darkness. Mako heard Korra choke on her tea, shifting just a bit closer to him. He knew the girl beside him wasn't afraid of the dark, that was impossible. So it had to be the storm, the howling gales and hard rain and cacophonous thunder that was riling her up.
"You really don't like thunder, do you?"
Korra shook her head furiously.
"I read once that Avatar Aang got caught in a storm; that that was how he disappeared for a hundred years."
Korra let Mako's voice wrap around her as snugly as the blanket, finding comfort in his even tone and low note.
"Yeah. He and his sky bison fell into the ocean. That's when he used his Avatar powers to freeze himself in an iceberg," she answered.
"And then wasn't he saved by two Water Tribe kids?"
"One of them was my waterbending sifu," Korra revealed. The thunder boomed again, and Korra swallowed, focusing instead on Mako and the cup of tea in her hand. "When I was little, I used to have nightmares about a thunder storm chasing me. I'd try to run away but it always caught me, and then I'd fall into the ocean and get swallowed up. Master Katara said Avatar Aang used to have the same nightmare."
She held out her empty cup, silently asking for more tea. Mako poured the hot, fragrant liquid, careful not to drip, refilling his own cup before shifting closer to Korra.
"What was it like?" he wondered. "Growing up in the South Pole, I mean."
Korra knew what he was doing and she almost threw her arms around him in a grateful hug. He was keeping her mind focused on things other than the harsh weather.
"Well, I'm not sure if you know this, but the South Pole is pretty desolate."
"No way," he teased, wondering if she could see his good natured smile in the dark. Holding up his free hand, Mako bent a small flame, controlling it to hover safely over his palm.
"I know, right? Hard to believe," Korra mocked, her eyes trained on the flame. Letting the magazine fall out of her lap, she scooped the fire out of Mako's hand and held it in her own. "I suppose it's more bustling than before the war ended, but that's not really saying much. I grew up in a village further inland from the main tribe and then when I had to start my Avatar training, the White Lotus brought me to the compound."
"Compound? Sounds like a prison," Mako joked, imagining the grand ice fortress she had called home before coming to Republic City. When Korra didn't laugh, his small smile turned down into the serious line. "Really? They kept you locked up?"
"Not locked up, just…closely supervised. It wasn't so bad," she excused, throwing the fire back to him. Mako caught it effortlessly. "I mean, I had the best benders in the world come to train me, and it's not like I was all alone. I had Naga."
"But what about other kids? Friends your own age?" Mako asked.
Korra looked down at the floor and shook her head. For the first time since meeting her, Mako felt a wave of sympathy for Korra. She might have had privileges as the Avatar, and she had certainly wanted for nothing her entire life, never knowing what it was to struggle just to survive until tomorrow, not the way he had…
…but he hadn't had to do it alone.
Bolin had always been with him, attached to his side like a shadow. His little brother was his best friend, his partner in crime, his teammate, his sparring buddy, and more often than not, his reason to keep on trying. Korra hadn't known that kind of support, that close camaraderie. Having always assumed that the life of the Avatar was filled only with privilege and power, he'd never once given thought to how very lonely it must be.
How lonely Korra had probably been.
"So you were hidden away," he whispered.
"It wasn't like there was much of a choice. I was bending water, earth and fire before I was three years old. That's really unusual for an Avatar. When the White Lotus found me the most logical thing to do was to start training me immediately. Most of the Avatars before me had their identity kept hidden even from themselves until they turned sixteen. It really wasn't that different with me, I've just known for longer."
"Doesn't mean they should have kept you trapped," Mako argued.
"Whether they started training me early or kept my Avatar identity a secret until I turned sixteen, it wouldn't have made much difference," Korra defended.
"But at least then you would have been free."
Korra was quiet.
That struck a nerve.
Ever since the White Lotus had moved her into the compound, no matter the way they catered to her bending training and need for physical activity, or how they showered her with all of her favorite foods, or how they created a comfortable pen for Naga, or how they revered and even pampered her, all she had wanted was for them to let her go.
"You'd never left the South Pole before you came here, did you?" Mako asked, slicing through her thoughts of rebellion and resentment.
"No. I'd actually run away when I came here. I left in the middle of the night, stowed away on a merchant ship with Naga." She knew she was supposed to be ashamed for having deceived her guardians, but she couldn't find it in her to be guilty. Leaving the South Pole and coming to Republic City was the greatest decision she had made in all her seventeen years.
Well, that and joining the Fire Ferrets. That was a pretty amazing choice as well.
Mako bent the fire back to Korra, watching as she caught it, twisting the flames to take on the shape of a little dragon which she then encouraged to circle her cup of tea, warming it. She really was an astounding bender, but he supposed that if he had been secreted from the world for seventeen years with nothing to do but bend, he'd be a master as well.
No wonder she was so impulsive, so excitable, so curious, she'd never been allowed to be free. Now, roaming the streets of Republic City, fighting in the pro-bending matches, standing up to the Triple Threat Triad and Equalists, Korra was actually experiencing life for the first time. For the past month, the girl's constant string of questions and headstrong enthusiasm had grated on his nerves. Now he understood, and promised himself that he would try and be a bit more patient with her.
"You've been here a month," he started, "have you had a chance to explore the city?"
"Bits and pieces," she answered. "Why?"
"Well, I was just thinking, there's probably some things I could show you."
"Oh I bet there's a lot you could show me," she teased, blushing herself as she saw his own cheeks tinge red.
"Ha, ha, whatever," he grumbled, nearly recanting his offer.
She smiled at him, her big blue eyes shining, mirthful…beautiful.
"Are you offering to give me a tour?" she asked.
"If you want."
She nodded, her face beaming, and not for the first time, Mako felt his heart thrum just a little faster, pleased that he had done something to make her happy.
"I think the storm's letting up," he said, creating his own fire dragon to bend alongside hers. Korra chuckled, bending her dragon to chase tails with Mako's, liking how the flames cast the most fascinating reflections in his honeyed eyes.
"Yeah," she agreed. "I think so, too."
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'Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves'
— C.G. Jung
Smell that? Smells like Makorra :)
As always, I hope you enjoyed this read and I invite you to leave a review. No flames, please and thank you.