Fire and Ice
Summary: There's a costume ball for Korra and when she arrives, no one recognizes her. Mako attends with Asami, but only has eyes for Korra. One dance with a certain council man seems to be too much for poor Mako and he whisked her away for a dance, but everything goes south when Asami sees. Will Mako win back Korra before she's gone for good?
P.S. If you want to see what inspired Korra's dress, check out the link on my profile.
Disclaimer: Never owned, never will.
I fidgeted as Katara hemmed my dress, and she gave me a light tap on the ankle, murmuring around the needle in her mouth. "Orra, top oving." I locked my muscles, trying my best not to sway. This was worse than my first meditation, and I had been standing here for far longer than that. Jinora squirmed on my shoulders, piling my hair higher and higher. Curls cascaded down from the simple twist she had teased my long hair into, already dusted with powdery snow.
Ikki raced around, grabbing scissors for Katara and pins for Jinora. "Why don't you just go?" I wheedled as Katara appeared from underneath the kimono's translucent billowing folds. I reached up to brush the curls away from my face, no easy feat with my draping sleeves, only to have my hand slapped away. I scowled at Jinora's stern face in the mirror. A similar sight greeted me as Katara moved to get up. "You're the wife of a past Avatar. Doesn't that count for anything?"
She chuckled, and waved Pema forward, who was carrying a box bearing the Southern Water tribe's crest. She opened it slowly, and a beautiful hairpiece lay in soft blue silk, looking as though it was made out of ice. It was beautiful, more unique than any snowflake, sparkling like the winter stars and as luminous as the full moon. Jinora floated off my shoulders, carefully as to not wreck my hair. Katara looked nostalgic, the moment seeming bittersweet for her. She gently picked it up, arranging it in my hair just so.
Even Ikki was silent, knowing better than to speak and break the fragile silence. I looked at Katara in the mirror, seeing her ageless eyes brim with tears. She smiled sadly, placing her hands on my shoulders. "I was given this on my wedding day. Pema wore it on hers. Now it's your turn."
My eyes were wet, and I sniffled, whisking away a tear that threatened to fall. "Katara-" I whispered, holding trembling hands over my mouth. She smiled through her own tears, and ushered the rest out to finish my costume. Bending only the tiniest trickles of water, we wove intricate lace patterns of frost on any exposed skin. As soon as the last drop was frozen, she stepped back to admire her work.
Her gaze dropped to the hollow of my throat, and her fingers reached up to her own, taking only a moment to decide something before reaching behind her and unfastening one of the most beautiful necklaces I'd ever seen. It was simplistic but somehow elegant, all the lines finding another across its smooth surface.
"This was my mother's." she murmured, tightening it around my own neck. I stood, frozen as I took in the unearthly sight in front of me: I was pale as snow, my dark hair sparkling with tiny snowflakes, my kohl lined eyes wide and calculating. The kimono spilled in soft silky folds down the length of my body, one layer of color blending into the next. When I moved it looked as though I was the very ocean itself, awash in moonlight.
I turned, and for a moment, I saw what Katara looked like through Aang's eyes the day they were married and felt a deep resonating joy that lingered for a moment before slipping away. Her kind eyes sparkled, and I wrapped my arms around her, hugging her tightly before drawing back.
"Thank you," I whispered, and she nodded. The clock rang out the hour, and she started.
"You're going to be late," she scolded gently, ushering me out of the room.
Everyone was waiting for me, Tenzin already dressed in his finest robes, blue arrows painted on his skin to honor the past traditions of the Air benders. Meelo and Ikki were tugging on his robes, asking why they couldn't go.
As soon as Meelo caught sight of me, he screeched, hiding behind his father's billowing robes. Ikki and Jinora gasped, gushing with compliments. Pema merely smiled and shifted her new baby girl to her hip to reach out and squeeze my hand in her own.
"You look lovely Korra," Tenzin rumbled and I blushed at the compliment. I murmured a small thank you, and made our way to the waiting ferry. The journey to the ball was made in silence, and my stomach had somehow relocated itself to somewhere on the floor in-between my silk slippers. This was my first formal event I had attended in Republic City as the Avatar.
Finally, the satomobile stopped outside a brightly lit building, light and laughter pouring out of its open doors. Tenzin got out first and offered to help me down, but I simply shook my head and told him I'd meet him there in a minute.
I breathed in the air blowing off of the bay, taking comfort in its familiar, calming scent. I squared my shoulders, fixed my expression into somewhat serene and glided inside. I was at the top of a sweeping staircase, casting my gaze over the now silent ballroom. I ignored the others wide awestruck eyes, only searching for one. As I glided down the staircase, I paid no heed to his curvy dark haired date, only to the spark in his eyes that threatened to turn into the fire I knew so well. I had felt their heat many times, both in and out of practice, but never so intensely. I allowed myself a small smile as the murmuring resumed, and I slipped through the crowd, never once feeling the coldness of the frost on my skin, only the warmth that meant he was still watching me. Maybe this party wouldn't be terrible after all.
Okay guys, if I get ten reviews on this chapter, I'll post the second one. And as always: reviews are loved, the people who write them even more so. :D
SNOGIRL.