Korra's Point of View

Tenzin was staring out into the distance again. Again! We were traveling on sky-bison to the old Southern Air Temple, and despite his orders to meditate, I'd done anything but. Tenzin, on the other hand, could just stare off into the abyss of clouds like nothing was wrong! Meditation is so boring. I wish I was back in Republic City with Mako and Bolin. We could be having fun, beating up other benders, joking around, you know, the works. But instead Tenzin deemed it more appropriate to just stare off into clouds like 'Ooh! I'm going to bore poor ADHD Korra out of her mind' and take me on an educational trip to the Southern Air Temple. He claims it's historic. It has some special meaning to the Avatar. Yea, well this Avatar likes the City. Holy firebenders, I am bored.

I looked up from the journal entry and off into the clouds, I still could not see what was so appealing to Tenzin about staring into nothingness. I sighed, and went back to my writing.

I am so frustrated, all the time. Usually everything comes so naturally to me, it just happens, but now airbending is just causing me so much trouble! Well, at least I can bend. Non-benders seem so down. But they are nasty, too. The whole non-bending revolution thing that's happening is really throwing me off. I am soooo glad I am a bender, even if I have to learn to airbend. I wish I was back in the City with Mako and Bolin. We could have a fight, them against me. And I could get my tail whooped while having fun. Those guys are really good benders. And Tenzin says I also have to work on my spirituality. He says my bending is only half-complete if I master bending; I have to be all airbender spiritual about it. Damn. I really just wish I could have a break. Beat up some fighters.

"Korra." I jumped at Tenzin's voice. Damn. He'd stopped his staring thing. He sighed. "Korra, Korra." I opened my mouth to speak, but his sharp glare shut me up pretty quickly. "Korra. You need to start focusing on the spiritual side of your bending, and meditation is the gateway to that." He sighed, frustrated. "Sometimes I just can't believe you! You must learn airbending, but you resist all attempts to do so. I hoped this trip would help, bring out some of my father in you, but all you have done the entire way, despite my wishes for you to meditate, is write in that wretched journal of yours." He glared at me some more and I looked ashamed at my hands, in which the said journal still lie. Suddenly, a gust of wind ripped it out of my fingers, and sent it catapulting into the seething ocean below.

"You did not just do that." I glared at Tenzin, furious.

"Meditate, and I will get you a new one." He got up and went to the head of his sky-bison to take the reins. Usually Ammo just drove himself, but there were black clouds on the horizon and Tenzin didn't want to risk anything. I sighed and went back over to the corner of the large saddle, as far away from Tenzin as I could, and sat down, facing away from the angry man and towards Ammo's large tail. I closed my eyes and tried to clear my mind.

I am calm, like the gentle wind. I… calm…gentle…wind…I…wind… My thoughts drifted away softly as I attempted to achieve a state of mediation.

Crack! I startled awake from the trance as a bolt of lightning zipped through the sky like a vicious spear. Lighting was one of the forces of nature not even a bender could tame, not anymore. Bending lightning was a lost art. I was caught up in the beauty of the bolt, but was snapped out of it by Tenzin's rough growl.

"Damn storm!"

I looked up, and the black clouds that had only been in the distance what seemed like a few seconds ago were now above us, below us, and around us, threatening to dump water all over us. And those nasty clouds carried out that threat. Tenzin was trying to weave his way through all the wind patterns that only a master airbender could see when the first droplet fell. And not far behind that was the second, pretty soon I'd lost count of the number of wet pellets stinging my skin. Tenzin was having a hard time bending the wind away from Ammo, and when I tried to create a shield of water around us to help keep us dry, it failed. My bending wasn't working right, I couldn't feel the water. What was happening?

"Tenzin!" I called out at the top of my lungs. "I can't bend right!" He didn't hear me. "Tenzin!" I yelled louder.

Tenzin's Point of View

"Tenzin!" I heard Korra scream my name, it must have been as loud as she could manage, but it was still as faint as a whisper to my ears. Why wasn't she bending us a water shield? I turned around trying to catch a glimpse of the girl. She was unfolding her legs from a meditational pose and trying to get to her feet. I shook my head as vigorously as I could manage, and she got the message. The wind was too strong, it would strike her off her feet. Instead, she got down onto her belly and started crawling her way towards me. The idiot. I shook my head again, but she just kept crawling. I turned my face back to the wind patterns in the sky, and ducked under a strong bit of wind that would have blown me off my perch.

After a few minutes of precarious flying, I felt a tug on my robe. Korra. I turned to see her struggling upwards, trying to come closer. To me, her mouth was working, but the syllables were being taken away with the wind. She hoisted herself up, and made a lung for the spot beside me. I reached out my hand to catch her as she flew over… over… and too far to the side. With a furious scream, Korra was taken by the wind and pulled away from Ammo. Away from me. Into open air. Without a glider and airbending skills. The look on her face was one of shock and surprise as she began to sink into the black clouds.

Korra. Korra. Korra was gone. She was falling. And the sky was clearing up. The clouds were floating away and dissipating, the winds calming rapidly, giving me a view of the Air Temple in front of me. Korra was gone.

I landed as quickly as I possibly could, then ran to the sanctuary of the Avatar. I threw open the doors and ran up to the statue of my father, and did the only thing I could do. I prayed. I prayed the Avatar State would have kicked in and allowed Korra to live. I prayed she would come here safely. I prayed she would listen to me in the future. Please let Korra be alive. Please let Korra be alive.

After a few minutes, an eerie blue glow filled the room. I looked up to find the statues all glowing along airbending marks. Aang. Roku. Kyoshi. Kuruk. Yangchen. They were all there and more. Then a detached figure stepped from the statue of my father. It was no more than a ghost. A spirit.

"Tenzin." It was in the shape of Avatar Aang, but it spoke with the voices of all the Avatars. I looked up into its eyes, which were the same glowing blue as the rest of the being. The Avatars. All of them. All of them but Korra. I nodded. "Korra is alive." I let out a breath I had no idea I'd been holding.

"Th… Thank you." I stuttered.

"We said alive. Not here now. She is in a new place, learning to be a better Avatar." I started and opened my mouth to say something, but thought better of it. "We guarantee she will be worthy of becoming a fully realized Avatar when she gets back." The being murmured again. It's voice was powerful, yet soft. It spoke to the soul gently. "Do not fear for her, Tenzin." I nodded again.

"Do not fear for her." But where was she?