Companion piece to Green Flashes.
Korra wasn't believing what she had seen. She had seen Aang, her past life, Spiritbend his own children, making them turn on eachother. Aang himself, in spirit form, watched the memory as well, in shame. As soon as her Master Tenzin's siblings fell onto the couch, she let Aang have it.
She turned to him, anger and sadness for what she knew would come of the actions her past life had done, "why would you do that to them, Aang? Why?"
Aang, the spirit form standing beside her, sighed as the memory faded. "I have my reasons."
"What were they, Aang?" Korra said, glaring at Aang.
The 'last' Airbender sighed. "I will not tell you.."
"But why-"
"Until I have shown you one of my biggest regrets." Aang finished, before pulling Korra onto Appa. The spiritual sky bison flew up into the air in the spirit world, and on he went.
The three of them were taken into another memory. This time, it was one of Aang- looking younger-, a younger Kya and a younger Bumi. Kya was bending water in a stream, making a hoop, smiling at her accomplishment. Kya then turned to Bumi.
"Do it, bro."
Korra's eyes widened when she noticed the ensemble that Bumi wore. It was the attire of an Airbender! She gasped, seeing Bumi create an Airball, and throw it into the hoop. Bumi and Kya cheered, Bumi laughing and snorting his traditional laugh. The Aang in the memory looked on, his expression hard. Bumi formed an Air scooter and zipped around, laughing and saying that he and Kya were the unbeatable duo.
She heard the younger Aang sigh as he was looking at Bumi, thinking hard. He was just staring, until Bumi's Airscooter exploded out from beneath him, sending him face first into the shallow stream. Aang, using airbending, pulled Bumi out of the water and to him. Bumi was unconscious, but otherwise looked okay. Kya ran to them, looking worried.
"Is Bumi gonna be okay?"
Aang nodded to Kya, "yes, sweetie. Daddy just has to heal him." Aang turned back to Bumi, and put one hand on Bumi's chest and the other on his forehead, and then there was a green flash.
"That's not the healing that mommy uses." Kya said, looking at her brother. She looked up to see Aang's hand going for her forehead, feeling one on her chest, and then seeing the green flash.
When the memory was over, Korra had a few choice words for Aang.
"What did you do to Bumi?" Korra asked, turning to Aang and gesturing to the fading memory, "what did you do?"
"What do you think I did? I took away his airbending." Aang turned away from his current life.
"You're no better than an Equalist."
Aang didn't retort, didn't argue to defend what he did, all he said was, "I know, I knew."
"Then why did you do it?" Korra asked, following Aang onto Appa's saddle.
"Because Bumi was too cocky of an Airbender when Kya wasn't around." Aang said, not letting Korra talk, before continuing, "I couldn't let him continue to be an Airbender, he was too unstable."
"So you just took his bending away, just like that? What is wrong with you!?" Korra was angry beyond belief.
"If Bumi continued to be an Airbender, he would have hurt someone, or himself, accidently, or not. I was not about to have an heir with that type of power. That was impulsive, raw, uncontrolled." Aang snapped the reins on Appa, having him fly forwards.
"So you took away his only connection to you, to Tenzin, because you didn't want an unstable heir?" Korra yelled, half tempted to shove her past life off of the bison.
"It is because I took away Bumi's bending that Tenzin was born." Aang said, looking at the landscape that was changing around them.
"So you trained Tenzin, spoiled him, took away his closest friends, because you wanted a trained, obedient, powerful heir that followed you without question?" Korra snapped, looking over the side of the saddle, "I was wrong about Tenzin. He isn't a terrible teacher, or father." She turned to Aang, "you are." She stood up and walked to the edge of the saddle, before turning to Aang, "and we're done here."
She fell down over the side of the saddle, closing her eyes, feeling the wind pushing past her, and opening them as she fell into a bright light. She found herself sitting in her room. Her first words were, "I have to tell them."