- Better Than Me -

"I think you should know this...

You deserve much better than me"

- Hinder

Disclaimer: I own nothing but my writing.

"You...should have someone better than me. That can do better by you than I do."

The city was pretty much dead at this time of night, and of all people, the Avatar happened to be sitting on a curb. A large white ball of fur sat beside her, grunting in disapproval at her master's damper mood.

The polar bear dog nudged her owner's arm in a fleeting attempt to garner her attention and up her mood, but the Avatar simply sniffled and patted her head.

"Thank you, Naga."

Naga emitted a soft whine before lying her head back on the street where she lay.

As of lately, it seemed that Naga was the only being that sincerely cared about her. Tenzin and his family had somewhat been forced into dealing with her, Bolin acted cheery and appreciative, but she knew he was still wary after what had happened not too long ago...

And Mako. The fire bender seemed to have grown more distant than ever lately, and while Korra attempted to see his apologetic words as good intentions, she could not help but feel he only said them to ease his own guilt.

Then again, how that would come as a surprise, she was unsure. Asami was the only girl he cared about.

The rush of emotions had overtaken her enough to allow Korra to let her guard down. This emphasized by her unaware of any presence near her, aside from Naga, until the bear dog shifted her attention behind them.

Snapping her head around, Korra took in the sight of a not-as-dishevled-as-before Tahno, looking at her curiously.

"Since when are you so depressed, uh - vatar?" The former water bender drawled, arching an eyebrow at her. Korra muttered something unappreciative and foul under her breath before turning around to keep the boy from seeing her face.

"I'm not." The statement was nowhere near convincing, but there was no way Korra was about to admit she was falling apart. Wiping away the tears that had been slipping relentlessly from her eyes, she attempted to keep her focus anywhere but on the male standing behind her.

"You're a poor liar," he informed her, taking a seat on the opposite side of her, Naga still watching him suspiciously. Korra patted the dog's head, and she lie back down, eyes fixed on the boy sitting beside her master.

"So?" Korra challenged. Even if she was a poor liar, she had no desire to acknowledge the feelings overpowering her. It was enough that she had given in to them. Talking about them would only crush her and drag her down further.

"So, what's the matter?" He inquired, leaning back on his palms. "You look like the world is at its end."

"Since when do you care?" Korra asked bitterly, looking at him out of the corner of her eye. Tahno sighed.

"Look, I may be a douche bag, but I'm not completely inhuman," he stated pointedly, watching her all the while. "You don't have to like me, you don't have to trust me; but there's obviously something eating at you, and I don't see either of your buddies sitting here with you."

A tear crept from her eye and leaked down her face. That statement was pushing her towards a breakdown more than the thoughts swimming through her own head.

"Yeah, no kidding."

"Which one of them made you like...this?" he asked, gesturing at her with a hand. Korra swiped angrily at the tears that had successfully leaked from her eyes.

"Does it matter?"

Tahno looked skyward, contemplating her bitter words for a moment. "No, not really."

"Then don't ask."

"Then explain why you're out at an odd hour of the night, crying on a curb outside of the Noodle shop. Either, or go home. This isn't a place for a girl at night."

"I can handle myself, thank you!" Korra spat, infuriated, leaping to her feet. Tahno stood as well.

Naga had yet to push herself off the ground, but a low growl was emanating from her throat. Korra made no effort to stop her animal companion from making the unspoken warning.

"I'm not saying you can't," Tahno offered, contradicting the assumption Korra had jumped to make. "At the same time, you aren't paying much attention to anything around you. That dog was the only reason you even knew I was standing there."

"Naga," Korra corrected firmly, reaching to pat the now-standing dog's head. "Her name is Naga."

"Sorry, Naga was the only reason you knew I was there. You're so buried in your shit you cannot see anything else around you, Korra."

The use of her name startled her. There had been more than one occasion that she had encountered the malicious male, and it was unusual for him to address her by name. Korra had almost gotten accustomed to being recognized by him as the uh - vatar.

"And it matters to you why?" She spat, emphasizing her words the way he had been doing. Tahno laughed, shaking his head and rolling his eyes.

"You're far too difficult, Korra," he stated, emphasizing his words once more, this time to mock her. "Accept that someone is trying to help you. You and I don't have to be friends, but again, I don't see your friends helping you right now."

Korra could feel her lip beginning to quiver at that statement, contemplating the sour truth behind those words. He was right; not one of her supposed friends were here to help her, to comfort her while she was falling apart.

What a shock. It was a new low for all of them, especially Mako.

"You're right, they're not," she agreed, voice alternating from its normal pitch to a distinctly higher one. It was taking all she had not to completely fall apart in front of this kid, and with every word, every sentence, she was rotting away even more.

A hand lightly rested on her shoulder, and a tear pulled from her eye and slithered down her cheek.

"Why don't you let someone care for a second?

Korra snorted, not caring that it was a very unladylike thing to do.

Asami wouldn't snort.

"Really, why do you care?" She asked, unable to keep the venom from her voice. "Mako doesn't, so why do you?"

Tahno's face went blank for a moment, and that expression alone was enough for her to realize her mistake. A hand flew to her mouth, and before she could stop it, she was crying.

Stupid. So, so stupid.

"Then screw him," Tahno told her boldly, placing his other hand on her shoulder as well. "He doesn't know what he's missing."

Choking on tears, Korra found herself accepting the weakness that had taken over her. She was actually buying into his words, whether they were sincere or complete bullshit.

"You think?" She asked, looking up at him with reddening eyes.

"Yeah, I do."

A soft laugh slid from her lips, sounding more like a gargle than anything. This made her laugh a little harder.

"Go home," he told her suddenly, hands slipping from her shoulders, one catching her cheek as he ran his thumb across the smooth skin. "You need sleep. You need something."

Korra nodded, head ducked. He was right as far as that went.

Turning to leave, she thought better of it and spun around, throwing her arms around him and burying her face into his neck.

"Thank you."

He laughed, wary of the dog watching him, and lightly looped his arms around her waist. "Don't worry about it."

She pulled away and looked up at him, offering a weak smile and pushing herself up on her toes to kiss his cheek.

The former water bender looked shocked, and the expression on his pale face made her laugh. With his reputation for being such a player, the look did nothing for him.

He watched her run off, Naga trotting at her side. That girl was something else, alright.

Dumb kid...he'll regret it someday.

Hooray for Tahnorra fluff? xD

I've recently become fond of this pairing, crack ship or not. I think in some form I appreciate many of the Korra pairings (Makorra, Borra, Tahnorra).

Well now, seeing as I'm pimping out our newest Avatar...

Review?

I love reviews, and I'll love all of you for reviewing ^^

Hope you enjoyed~