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Wants and Needs

"Korra? You're still up?"

"Couldn't sleep. You?"

In earlier days, Tenzin might have berated Korra for addressing him so informally. In earlier days, he might have berated her for being up in the middle of the night and simply helping herself to the temple's rapidly diminishing supply of seaweed noodles. But those earlier days had come and gone, and in these darker days, informality was something he was quite comfortable with.

"Ikki had a nightmare," the airbender commented, walking over to the dining area. "Too much of listening to Jinora's stories I think."

"Well, could be worse," Korra mused. "In a few decades time, she might have to worry about coloured moving pictures as well."

"Hopefully by then, nightmares won't be an issue."

It was a joke. A joke made at his younger daughter's expense. It was a combination that Tenzin half expected to get a reaction from, but again, the earlier days had gone. Now all was left was night, a father who'd spent the last half-hour assuring a seven year old that a badger mole wasn't going to eat her up, and a teenage girl who looked emotionally and physically exhausted.

"I see you're on the seaweed noodles," Tenzin said eventually. "Bolin seems to like them."

"Yeah…they're good…" Korra mused.

"Not sure about your other friends…I'll ask Pema if she can whip something special up. Spirits know they need it."

"Yeah…"

"And you might need it too. Not to mention Mako and Asami-…"

The Avatar slammed the table, sending the seaweed noodles into the air before succumbing to gravity in a most ungainly manner.

"Or…we could talk…"

Tenzin took his place at the other side of the table. Part of his instincts told him that it might have been best to leave then and there-he wasn't blind to the Avatar's problems, both occupational and emotional. On the other hand, he supposed everyone right now needed a shoulder to lean on. Certainly he'd offered his own to Lin only a few hours ago, even if she'd insisted she didn't need it.

"You've been talking to Pema…" Korra mused, scooping up the noodles into her bowl and refusing to meet her elder's eye. "Haven't you?"

"No. But I heard my daughters talking. Or rather, giggling that 'mister fire guy' is now living on the island with us."

Korra muttered something under her breath that sounded like something out of an old Water Tribe dialect.

"And since 'mister fire guy' is now with…well, Asami-…"

"Least they didn't give her a nickname…"

"I can only imagine that this might be hard for you. That you might feel…awkward…"

"No. I don't."

Tenzin remained silent, and remained so as Korra slid the bowl towards the table's centre. The food was out of the equation, and with nothing going into the mouth, it seemed that the time was ripe for words to come out of it.

"You know, it's funny…" Korra mused. "When I discovered Mister Sato was an Equalist…I almost wished…that Asami was one too."

Tenzin stared at her.

"I know!" Korra exclaimed. "Those thoughts were…horrible. But if she had been, if Mako had been forced to pick a side…then…"

"You might…have had a chance."

"I know," the Avatar said, lowering her head in shame. "But that's not all that's bothering me. On the airship, when I told Mako that Asami needed her, when I stepped aside in every sense of the word…"

"Yes?" Tenzin asked.

"I…don't regret it."

"I see…"

In actual fact, the airbender didn't see at all. Or at least he was confused, because going by Korra's account, moodiness didn't seem like the expected reaction. Should she have been ashamed of her earlier thoughts? Yes, but she was only human, as was himself-he couldn't claim to have not been a selfish individual at times. But he had to approve her earlier choice to let her friends be. It was a choice that showed how much she had grown. So why would this be bothering her?

"And that's not all that's bothering me," Korra continued. "It got me thinking…"

"Yes?" Tenzin asked.

"To think that me…someone like…well, me…would step aside. To do the right thing, even in a situation like that." For the first time in minutes, she met Tenzin's gaze. "Is this what I always have to do, Tenzin? To step aside? The world comes before me, whether it be the Equalists or some Ozai-wanabee. But…"

Tenzin sighed. So there it was. The burden of every Avatar.

"I don't know…" Korra sighed. "I don't know anymore…"

Tenzin knew though. Or at least he knew at least some of the twisted emotions his apprentice might be going through. He knew because his father had told him of the same emotions he'd gone through. How he could be the Avatar, a champion of the world, when the Air Nomads stressed the importance of distancing one from it. How he at first refused to unlock his final chakras because doing so would mean giving up Katara. How at times, he just wanted to enjoy his time with his family and not worry about every crisis the world through his way.

But Aang had managed, Tenzin reflected. Had managed to end a century of war, forge peace again amongst the Fire Nation colonies, keep the peace and still be a father and husband. And while Aang was no longer among them, the airbender liked to think that he'd learnt the secret of balance well.

"Look…" Tenzin began. "I won't lie to you, Korra. Being the Avatar is a gift…and some would call it a curse as well."

"Tell me about it."

"Years spent learning the elements. Bridging this world with that of the spirits. Serving the needs of this world. It's a burden. My father realized that the moment he was told he was the Avatar and I'm willing to guess that you're realizing that as well."

Korra scowled. "If you're trying to make me feel better-…"

"I am. But I'd like to remind you that no ideal is ever absolute. The duty of the Avatar is to the world. To serve its needs. But that duty doesn't exclude wants. "

Korra raised an eyebrow. "Wants. Needs. I know the difference Tenzin."

"Of course you do. That's why you stepped aside when you did. And why you're not stepping aside now when Republic City needs you."

Republic City…the world. The two might have been one and the same, Tenzin reflected. And neither his father nor Korra had the opportunity to master all four elements before having to save them.

"But for what it's worth…wants can play a role in your life," Tenzin said. "Wants can still be indulged. Even for an airbender like myself, who's meant to distance himself from worldly affairs."

"And how would you know?" Korra snapped. "How would-…"

"I know, because my father managed it. I know, because many Avatars before him also took partners and even raised families. I know, because at the end of the day, after dealing with everything from the Council to the Equalists, I can still find the time to watch my children grow and spend time with my wife."

Tenzin stood up. "I'm not the Avatar Korra. I won't pretend my responsibilities come close to the ones you'll face later in your life. But for what it's worth, I promise you…you can still enjoy your life. The world asks much of you, but that doesn't mean it doesn't give anything back."

Korra remained silent.

"And in this case…" Tenzin said, making his way to a cupboard. "I'm going to let you have the last of the seaweed noodles."

Korra snorted.

"That is, if you want them."

And for the first time that night, the Avatar smiled.

"Yeah…" she said. "I'd like that."

A/N

There's a bit of a story behind this...story. And while I apologise in advance if this comes across as a waffle, I may as well get it out.

Somewhat obviously, this was based on the events of Aftermath. Good episode IMO, and part of what made it so because to me, it was the first episode where Asami came across as a character in her own right rather than as just a character distinguished by her relationship with Mako and unofficial rivalry with Korra. Granted, those dynamics exist to certain extents, but I think it served as good character development. So with Korra stepping aside at the end, it was that moment that sparked this oneshot.

Problem is however, I'm not good at writing teenage angst in the realm of relationships. So over the course of writing, I admit it took an unexpected path, namely to what I'm guessing has been done to death in the Avatar: Last Airbender section, namely burdens of being the Avatar, etc. Still, new to both fandoms-LoK got me into it and I finished watching the three seasons of ALA recently (insert extremely high praise for the series here), and a lot of it is still fresh in my mind. So yeah. Basics, but hopefully better than romance angst. ;)