DISC: I DO not own any of the characters from LOK. They belong to Brike. I do however own the idea for this story.
Enjoy!
A/N: This came to mind while listening to Civil Wars Part 1.
"A Family Divided"
Senna sighed as she felt her husband move beside her for the tenth time in one hour. She wasn't frustrated exactly, more concerned. She had seen the once loving relationship between Tonraq and their daughter slowly crumble like a pile of pebbles into a raging river right before her eyes. The sight broke her heart. She loved both of them and she wanted to help them repair it if she could. The only problem was, they both were as stubborn as the thickest wall of ice. This meant she hadn't been able to get Korra to sit down and talk to her yet. Thanking the spirits that she and Tonraq had such an open and honest relationship, Senna decided to try him instead. They had always been able to help each other in the past. She figured this time wouldn't be any different.
Reaching over to her left, Senna gently placed her hand on her husband's shoulder.
"Tonraq?"
"Huh?" he opened one eye, then the other. As his gaze locked with his wife's, for a minute all of his frustrations caused by his brother seemed to melt away. Senna always had that effect on him.
"Honey, what's going on between you and Korra?" she bluntly inquired. She started rubbing his right shoulder slowly, hoping it would relax him enough so he would open up to her.
Tonraq sighed.
"Senna, Korra and I will be all right. Everything will work out in time. She's just testing the waters of independence."
Senna shook her head sadly.
"Tonraq, it's more than that," she countered. "Korra already did that when she left for Republic City close to seven months ago. It has nothing to do with that."
Tonraq sighed.
"What do you want me to tell you?" he asked. He tried his best to control his own frustration. He was well aware the damage he could cause if he let his anger towards his brother get the better of him now.
"I want you to talk to me openly and honestly," his wife answered. A little of her own frustration coming out. Heaving a sigh, Senna calmed herself. "Tonraq, we've always told each other everything. That's why our marriage is so strong. Please…don't shut me out now."
"I'm not trying to," it was Tonraq's turn to put his hand on Senna's shoulder. "Honey, that's the last thing I want to do."
"Then tell me what's going on. Why did Varrick want to have that meeting at our house of all places? And why is he pushing for war?" she shivered as the word left her mouth. While Senna hadn't been around for the last hundred year war, she had heard plenty of stories about it from Katara and Sokka to last her a life time. She didn't wish to live through one now.
Tonraq sighed.
"The truth is, I'm not really sure what Varrick is planning. I know he wants to rebel against Unalaq. He's made that clear."
Senna gasped.
"If he talks the other rebels into joining him that could cause another war. Tonraq, you have to talk him out of it. Make him see reason. I know everyone's upset by Unalaq's invasion, but war isn't the answer."
"Don't you think I know that!" Tonraq retorted. His voice rising to match his frustration and his tone harsher than he had intended. He rarely yelled and never at Senna. He regretted his tone when she shrank back in fear. As he watched her body tense and more tears stream down her face, Tonraq's heart broke right there. He had to fix this. He had never meant to trigger her. "Senna, I…I'm sorry. I didn't mean to speak to you that way. You know I would never hurt you. I'm just really…" his voice trailed off as a sigh of frustration escaped his lips.
"I know," Senna softly replied. After a few tense minutes, she slowly resumed her earlier position and placed her hand over her husband's.
Tonraq frowned when he felt how badly Senna's hand was shaking.
"Senna, honey, I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to scare you…"
"I know," she assured him. She wiped at a few remaining tears as she spoke.
"And I'm worried about Korra," he continued.
"I am too," his wife agreed.
'I've tried to talk to her, but she won't listen. She walks away from me every time I try to warn her against listening to him. I don't want to see her get hurt. Despite what he might have told her, I love her."
Senna sighed.
"Honey, Korra knows that."
Tonraq locked eyes with his wife, searching her cyan depths for reassurance.
"I hope you're right."
Senna just wrapped her arms around her husband's neck and rested her head on his shoulder. Closing her eyes, she felt him start to stroke her hair. A few minutes later, she lifted her head from its resting place and turned away. She closed her eyes as a new set of tears welled up.
"Senna?" Tonraq grew concerned when he heard her quietly beginning to sob. He tentatively reached out and gently guided her back to her previous position. Relieved when she didn't fight him, he ran a hand through her hair and tried to calm her down.
"Hey, hey, sweetheart, talk to me," he gently coaxed.
"this is all his fault," she whispered, "he has no right to be here. He comes here and turns our family upside down."
"Senna…" Tonraq sighed. He hated seeing his wife in any type of pain. "Remember what you told me when he first arrived? He'll be gone before we know it."
"I was wrong," she quietly admitted as more tears came, "this time I was wrong. I want our family back and I want him gone."
Tonraq nodded in agreement.
"I want both of those things too. I'll go and talk to him tomorrow. First I want to try and talk to Korra."
"Honey, Korra's out with her friends," Senna reminded him. She let the remaining tears fall as she spoke. "Please tell me you didn't agree to any of Varrick's plans."
"Senna, I told you, I didn't agree to anything," Tonraq assured her.
"Did he say anything else before he left?" she persisted.
"Just that if Unalaq doesn't leave soon, there'll be consequences," Tonraq revealed.
Senna sighed.
"I hope you told him you didn't want any part of it," his wife said softly.
Tonraq was silent as he continued to comb a hand through his wife's hair.
"Tonraq?" Senna tried again. After another short stretch of silence, the young water tribe woman tried one more time. "Honey, I don't want you to get hurt. Please, don't do anything reckless."
Still, Tonraq was silent.
Realizing she wasn't going to get anywhere with her husband, Senna decided to try her chances with someone else. The only problem was, this particular person wasn't home yet. She would have to wait until Korra came back.
"I love you," she softly declared as her eyes closed for a well-deserved rest.
"I love you too, sweetheart," Tonraq replied.
*******
Senna tried to fight back tears as she reentered the home she shared with her family. She washed her face before rejoining Tonraq in bed. She knew he would wonder where she had been. She decided to be truthful with him. He had never given her a reason to lie to him in the past. But upon entering their room, she gasped when her eyes scanned the space only to find it empty.
"No," Senna softly murmured. Not having any other choice, she went to wait for either her daughter or husband to return. She had been hardly sitting there for less than ten minutes when the front door opened and a familiar tall figure entered the house.
"Tonraq!" Senna was at his side in seconds. As she felt him pull her in for a hug, she let the tears fall and buried her face in his shoulder. "Tonraq, I was so worried!"
"Senna, I'm okay. I'm okay…" Tonraq assured his shaking wife. "I'm sorry I scared you. I woke up and you weren't there. I figured you went to check on Korra, so I got up and went to make sure everything was okay outside. I thought I heard someone walking around out there after you left."
Senna nodded. She sighed with relief as the last remaining tears fell.
"I was so afraid you had left to help Varrick and I wouldn't see you again!"
"Senna, sweetheart, I told you I wasn't going to help him and I meant it. I would never go back on my word to you or Korra," he planted a loving kiss on her head. "Come on, let's get some more sleep." With that, he pulled out of the embrace and took Senna's hand in his. He lead her into their bedroom and climbed in on his side of the bed. Once they both were comfortable, he pulled Senna close and planted a kiss on her cheek. "Did you talk to Korra?"
Senna nodded against his chest.
"How did it go?" he inquired.
"Not well," Senna softly answered. "I tried to explain to her that it's not her job to fix problems that have been around since before she was born, but she wouldn't listen. She ran out on me before I could finish."
"Well maybe she'll be more receptive when she gets back. Did she say where she was going?"
"No. But I think she went to help Unalaq."
Tonraq sat up, nearly pushing Senna away.
"Sorry," he apologized.
Senna waved his apology aside. She too was worried about their daughter. She just prayed Korra returned to them safely. She also prayed that their family would be back to normal soon.
"Korra, please stay safe," Senna whispered as she laid back down and closed her eyes. "I love you."
THE END