Author's Note: Thank you for taking the time to read this! I'll try to update regularly.

I'm planning for this to be long, so I hope you enjoy the ride.

Disclaimer:I don't own anything or anyone except Hikari.

Things that are italicized are Hikari's thoughts.

I watched silently as the young avatar faced her three opponents. Today is a special day for her as it was her firebending exam. The elders of the Order of the White Lotus would be the ones judging her to see if she either passed or failed. If she passed, that would mean she would finally get to start her airbending training. There was no doubt in my mind that my student would pass with flying colors, but unluckily for her it wasn't up to me. There would only be one problem that I could foresee: Korra could get carried away at times. But that is something she will have to overcome in her lifetime. Even if she was headstrong at times, that was absolutely nothing to fail the girl over.

Korra was beating the White Lotus soldiers easily as if they had only started bending a couple of days ago. Not a moment of hesitation was neither on her face or in her movements. She took down each of her opponents with confidence. Her stances were perfect as was her execution of each technique. The elders could not deny that firebending was almost her most comfortable element to bend. In my opinion, I liked to think it was her preferred element. Overfilling with pride, I continued to watch my student finish off the last of her opponents. In her nature to do, she started jumping up and down in excitement. If I wasn't standing by the elders, I would have been jumping right along with her. I could hear the grunts of disapproval coming from the old men. But I had also caught the sound of Master Katara trying not to laugh at the young avatar's enthusiasm.

She came over to where we were all standing underneath the pergola. I figured she noticed the sour expression on the other's faces since she started to look more serious.

"Hey, why all the doom and gloom, people? We should be celebrating! Three elements down, one to go!" she remarked happily.

The elders started to tell her what she was doing wrong. Her face started to falter from the negative comments. I did not want to see her getting berated by these pompous twits when she did so well on her exam. I spoke up before they could further damage her spirits by telling her she wasn't spiritual enough.

"I'm sorry for interrupting what I am sure is a speech filled with wisdom. Yet, I wish to point out that Korra was flawless in her techniques. This is her firebending test, not some lecture on how she should be trying to connect to her past lives. For that reason, I believe we should focus on that for the time being." I quipped.

I winked at Korra and her face instantly brightened up. The four elders whispered among each other. I didn't know it took this long to tell the girl that she passed. Sometimes I wished the Order of the White Lotus wasn't involved with her training or with her life in general. However, they did protect her from people that wanted to use her. But they were still always difficult to deal with and were constantly putting the poor girl down. Even when she was a child, they would never say one good thing to her. They didn't even want me to teach her, but thankfully I came highly recommended by someone they couldn't say no to and Katara. The only reason I accepted them was because it was Avatar Aang's wish for them to protect and train the next avatar. But because it was his wish, did not necessarily mean I had to put up with their crap at times. They knew better to mess with this firebender.

They finally announced that she had passed her exam, which meant she would soon begin her airbending training. They continued to glare at her. Of course she would express her excitement about the ordeal, that was just how she acted when she was happy. These old men needed to loosen up and treat her with respect even if she isn't an adult yet. She respectfully bowed to us and ran off towards her polar bear dog's pen.

"When should we be expecting Master Tenzin's arrival?" I asked out of curiosity.

"He should be here by this evening. I sent word to him yesterday that Korra would be ready to start her training with him, Hikari." Katara replied with a smile on her face.

Ah… Sneaky Katara. She knew Korra would pass. Well, everyone knew that, but still. The sooner Tenzin gets here the better.

I nodded my head in approval and went back to my room. The wind has started to pick up, so that meant my long, auburn hair was flying into my face and into my mouth. Since I didn't like the taste of my hair, I pulled my hood over my head. In hopes that my hair would stop blocking my view and flying everywhere. Luckily, since I was a firebender, I only had to deal with the wind and not the cold. We firebenders didn't get cold easily unless it was an extreme cold. Only parts of the Southern Water Tribe ever got to those extremes.

When I had first came to the Southern Water Tribe, there were some people here that still did not trust firebenders. It was mainly the older ones, but that did not stop some of the hate and treatment I got from them. I was the only firebender that would go into the capital. The members of the White Lotus that were also firebenders, never left the compound. So, the watertribe members took it out on me. I didn't like someone glaring at me for no reason, so there would be times where I always put up my hood even if there was no wind. Only when my hood was up, did I not get glares and was treated like a person when I went to the city. At one side of the coin, I could understand the dislike for my people. But on the other side, I did not. They did not know me; all they knew was that the old fire nation was bad and hurt many of their people. That is all they saw when they looked at me. The older people were waiting until I started acting like the old fire nation. They wanted any excuse to kick me out of their nation. I sometimes thought that I should have just lived with it and to somehow make amends for what my people had done. Looking back at that idea now, it was a ridiculous idea for a person to somehow make up for 100 years of wrong doing. But sometimes when one feels excluded, they only see it as their fault and no one else's.

It did not get any better until some of the people saw me helping Katara. There were some men that went on a hunting trip. Unfortunately two of their members had been badly injured. If the master healer trusted a firebender to help her, then they could trust me as well. Only then did the older people's treatment lighten up.

When I had finally gotten to my room, I decided to start packing my belongings up. I started pulling out my robes and other items of clothing, not bothering to fold them. They were instead thrown on the bed. I would only bring along some of my winter apparel, which I was secretly happy to not wear all the time. That would mean no more heavy clothing and more light, airy clothing. It would be nice to get back to wearing just my regular red robes and black leggings.

I sighed as I ran my hand through my long hair. I had no idea what to do now that Korra no longer needed me around. Should I try to go back to the Fire Nation? Maybe travel around the world and see the sights it offered. There were days when I could never make up my mind on what I should be doing once Korra's training ended. Lucky for me it came faster than I thought it would.

There was a knock on the door that disrupted my thoughts. The door slid open and Katara came through. She took one look around the now messy room and the bags that were being unceremoniously tossed out of the closet.

"I didn't think you would be packing so soon, dear." She said as she walked into the room, closing the door behind her.

"Well, there isn't any reason for me to stay now that Korra no longer needs me." I mumbled sullenly.

I continued to pack my bags, but all I really was doing was shoving the clothes into the bags. Usually I would have folded them nice and neatly, but today was different. It was hard to ignore Katara watching me in amusement.

"Who ever said that Korra wouldn't need you?" she chuckled. "Besides, someone needs to make sure she doesn't get into trouble, and no one knows how she can be more than you do."

I had momentarily stopped packing while the old healer spoke, not missing the small note of worry in her voice.

"Katara, if you wish for me to watch over her, you only need to say so." I said with a smile. "We both know that I don't know what to do with my life."

She knew that she couldn't get anything pass me very often. I had spent many a night talking with her over some tea, discussing what we had on our minds.

"Thank you, Hikari. I have a feeling that she will need someone to watch over her soon." She answered in a serious voice.

I bowed to her as she left the room. It seemed as if Katara had a feeling about something, but I didn't know what it could be. Oh well. No use dwelling on it. I looked at the mess I had made when I was attempting to pack. Feeling very lazy, I decided to leave my room and try not to think about the mess that waited for me when I returned to it.

It was perhaps a good time to meditate since Korra was not around to bother me. Usually I would meditate on the mountain that looked over the compound. Yet, today I decided to stay in the icy walls. I jumped onto the main building's roof, using fire propulsion to make sure I made it to the high roof. Once up there, I got into the half-lotus pose.

Like Korra, it was difficult for me to meditate at first. When I was younger, I couldn't sit still for more than five seconds. Even though firebenders didn't meditate nearly as much as airbenders, my Master wanted me to do it. I slowly inhaled through my nose and out of my mouth. Tiny, orange flames escaped my mouth as I did so. Relaxing my body, I continued to breathe. If one wanted to be a master firebender, they had to learn how to control their breathing. When I first started with my training, I had to do hours upon hours of breathing exercises. So naturally, I made Korra do them as well when she began her training. I smiled as I remembered our first day of breathing exercises.

"Korra, now listen carefully on what I am about to tell you." I said to the eight-year-old avatar.

She looked up at me, eyes sparkling with eagerness at being able to learn firebending. Today would be our first time training together. We were both sitting across from each other, just the two of us outside on the training field.

"We are going to be doing some breathing exercises this week-"

"Aw come on, Master Hikari! I want to do some real firebending stuff!" Korra exclaimed as she jumped up. She started kicking around with fire coming out of her feet with almost every kick. I let her do a couple more kicks so that she could burn some of her energy. Once fire stopped coming out of her feet, it was a good time to start the lesson.

"This is real firebending stuff, Korra." I said slightly annoyed. "Would you like me to show you something cool? You could be able to do this if you do these exercises."

She immediately stopped what she was doing and sat down. She nodded her head in interest. Standing up, I turned to face the three wooden dummies in the corner of the training field. I slowly inhaled through my nose, then with quick controlled breathing, exhaled from my mouth, bright flames bursting out as I did so. Within seconds the dummies were nothing more than ash. Turning to my pupil, I watched as she got up, opened her mouth wide, and started to try and replicate what I had done.

"RAWR!" she cried as she continued to try to make the flames come out of her mouth. Instead of flames, spit came out. Once she noticed that it wasn't working, she sat back down across from me looking slightly defeated. She still had spit on her chin, so I reached over and wiped it off with my sleeve.

Hmmm… Maybe this wouldn't be as bad as I originally thought. She's a funny girl that's for sure.

"Don't worry, you will be able to do that soon enough, kiddo." I reassured the little girl.

That seemed to do the trick and once again she perked up in excitement.

"Korra, do you know where one's firebending power comes from?" I asked.

"It comes from how hard you kick and punch!" she said confidently.

"Not quite. I'll tell you what my master told me when I was around your age." I said to her. Smiling fondly at the memory, I recited what my master told me. "It comes from your breath. When your breath is in your body while you inhale, it changes. It becomes energy. When your breath is released, that energy becomes fire."

I looked at the avatar as I said this. I knew she understood what I was saying by the little nods she gave me. I continued.

"It is very important for all firebenders to know proper breath control. Without it, one cannot control the fire that they make. It may hurt someone important to you or yourself when it is out of control. I'm sure you wouldn't want that to happen. Now, sit up straight and close your eyes."

Korra did as she was told and closed her big blue eyes.

"Good. Now breathe in through your nose, then breathe out of your mouth slowly." I instructed. "Be conscience of the fact that you need to control your breathing and that it needs to be slow."

Once she did it a couple more times, I joined her. Neither one of us payed any attention to what was going on around us. Both of us focused on our breathing, the feel of our lungs expanding and collapsing continuously with each breath we took. After a couple more minutes, Korra was in rhythm with me. I opened my eyes after a little while longer and realized that we had been sitting there for a couple hours. I was shocked at how calm looking she was. It didn't even look like she moved even an inch this whole time, which seemed new for the little girl. I didn't even think she would sit for this long. Considering all we were really doing is breathing exercises. That sounds like something she would totally want to do. It seemed as if she mastered this exercise, but, we would be doing it a few more times just to be sure. At this rate, she would be able to master firebending in a couple months. Luckily she wouldn't be taking her exam until after her earthbending one. That was good for me, since that meant I could stick around for a couple years.

"Well done, Korra. That is all we will be doing today." I told her.

Her eyes quickly opened then she stood up and bowed.

"Thank you, Master Hikari."

I observed her as she stretched a little before running towards the main building in the compound. A smile tugging on my face as I watched her go. Korra seemed to be a good student. She was a child, so I expected the short attention span. However, she knew when to be serious. Even though this was my first time being a teacher, I couldn't have asked for a better student. Katara had reassured me that we would get a long just fine. I knew we would now after this training session. She acted almost exactly as I did during mine. It would be a fun next couple years.

I opened my eyes just in time to see a flying bison land right in front of the building. Tenzin and his family were finally here. Katara and Korra were already down there, ready to greet the airbender family. I stood up and jumped down from the roof. I could hear children's voices before I even saw them.

"Gran Gran, why are you so old?" a little girl's voice asked as she continued to ask more question. Not pausing for an answer back. There was no doubt in my mind that it was the middle child, Ikki.

I stood next to Korra as Tenzin and his family greeted Katara. We both watched as the very pregnant Pema tried climbing off the sky bison until Tenzin helped her. I observed the children make snowmen. Every time they came to visit, they would spend their first day building snowmen. Katara and Korra would use their waterbending to play with them as well. I could tell Korra was happy to finally have her new airbending master here to teach her. She couldn't produce even a puff of air, so I knew she was more than eager to start. Hell, she might even ask him to teach her something tonight.

Tenzin noticed Korra and I. "Ah. Hello Avatar Korra and Master Hikari."

As soon as Korra's name escaped his lips, the three young airbenders stopped building snowmen and rushed to Korra. All three of them gave her a hug at once. Jinora and Ikki gave me a hug, but Meelo didn't. He wouldn't have remembered who I was.

"Hello Master Tenzin. I hope the journey went well for you." I said in acknowledgement.

He glanced down at the three children then back to me.

"It could have been quieter."

I smiled knowingly. If it had only been Jinora with them, it would have been. Since the two youngest children were with them also, it wouldn't have shocked me to learn that Meelo and Ikki talked the entire time.

"You need to tell Korra, Tenzin." The mother of the three airbenders said from beside her mother-in-law.

Korra looked at Tenzin in confusion. I didn't know what he wanted to tell her, but I had the feeling it wasn't something she wanted to hear.

"I was just getting to that, Pema." Tenzin said with a sigh. "Korra, I won't be able to stay here. Republic City needs me and I have a duty to- "

"You have a duty to train me." Korra said cutting him off.

Oh boy. Here we go.

I did not like where this was going. Korra would not be happy with delaying her training. I know I wouldn't be.

"Korra, we can resume your training when I am done." Tenzin tried to convince her.

"How long will that take?" The avatar questioned.

Pema and Tenzin shared a knowing glance between themselves.

"Maybe more than a year…" he trailed off.

Before Korra could say something she might regret, I interjected.

"Why doesn't Korra just come with you to Republic City?" I offered. "She gets to do her training and you get to stay in the city, It's a win-win situation."

Korra face instantly lit up with the idea of escaping the icy walls of the compound once and for all. She had always wanted to leave the compound, but the White Lotus would never allow it. I had tried to convince them once to let her go on a trip to the Fire Nation. That idea ended quickly with a unanimous 'no'.

"No, she is not leaving." Tenzin said, killing Korra's hope. "She is safe here, and that is final."

Hearing that she wouldn't be leaving, Korra ran off to Naga's pen in frustration. Both Tenzin and Katara sighed.

"I think she should go with you. It would do wonders for her, Tenzin. I will come along to look after her as well, if that would help." I said, trying to convince the airbending master.

I already planned to go with them. Tenzin hasn't known that, but maybe it would sweeten the deal.

"You know as well as I do that the White Lotus leaders will not allow her to go, Hikari."

"I would like to see them try to stop her." Katara commented.

Once she had her mind set, Korra was unstoppable.

It was nightfall now. The stars looked beautiful in the sky and the moon was full. It was the perfect time for the waterbenders to use their bending.

Tenzin and his family had already left the compound and were heading back to their island. Korra, Katara, and I had seen them off.

I was currently looking for the avatar. I had a sneaking suspension she would try to follow Tenzin and his family. When I had checked her bedroom and found it empty, I knew she had to be with her polar bear dog. While walking towards Naga's pen, I saw Katara. She nodded to me knowingly. Apparently we were the only two who knew what Korra was planning to do. That was a good thing. It meant we wouldn't have to deal with the elders.

We both stood in the entrance of the pen, watching the young girl get Naga ready for the long trip. She hadn't noticed the two of us until Naga started barking. Korra whirled around, ready for a fight until she realized that it was just her teachers. She relaxed. She looked extremely guilty. Whether that was from being caught or her not telling us about leaving, I didn't know. Katara was the first to speak.

"I know this is something you have to do, but I will miss you."

Korra walked over to Katara and gave her a hug.

"Thank you. I'll miss you too." She looked up at me. "Both of you."

"You're not getting rid of me that easily. Someone needs to make sure you don't get into trouble, ya little knucklehead." I said to her while laughing.

"Thank you, Hikari. I don't know what I would have done without you." She came over to me and gave me a hug.

"Probably would have died by now." I teased.

She laughed at me then we started to discuss how we would get to Republic City. She had already packed and I had a mess of clothes still waiting for me. It would also be suspicious that we would both be missing during dinner. I would tell them that she wasn't up to eating. So that meant she would be leaving by herself tonight. While I would be leaving early in the morning by another boat. After that, we would both meet up at Air Temple Island by noon tomorrow.

I kissed Korra on the forehead as she and Naga left. I also said my goodbyes to Katara before I left to continue packing. My nerves were starting to start up. I had never been to Republic City either. This would be as much of a new adventure to me as it was for Korra. It couldn't be that bad, since she was only going to be training.

Boy how stupid I was to think that.