Prompts: Happiness, P'Li, "We come to beginnings only at the end". Word count: 1,778
He tapped his foot impatiently as he waited outside the open door of the restaurant. He had been outside for 10 minute. Although it normally wouldn't bother him, since it was night time and he could keep a low profile but he had a sensitive document to give her and the longer he held it, the more likely something could go wrong.
He had his head low with his hood covering most of his vision. He didn't notice she approached him until he saw her shoes on the ground.
Korra was dressed in a black hooded cloak. It wasn't really like her to sneak around and hide her identity, but she needed to get this done without knowing of her intentions. Her eyes were staring at the green-eyed man before her.
"Did you get it?"
"Did I get it?" He said as he pulled a folded piece of paper from his sleeve. "Of course I got it. It was a lot of work. This had better been worth it."
"I hope so too." She mumbled under her breath as she took the paper from him.
"Why all this secrecy? President Raiko allowed you to see him before. I'm sure he would have said yes again."
Korra sighed and fidgeted underneath her cloak. "I….It's just complicated. I need to do this by myself. I appreciate you not telling anyone about this and going through all this trouble."
"Hm. Whatever." The male hesitated for a second. "Don't you think these garbs makes us stand out more?"
"Maybe." Korra shrugged before walking away from the male.
"Korra, are you alright? You've been distant for a few weeks now."
She stuffed her mouth full of the rice Pema had prepared as she, Tenzin, and Pema had a quiet dinner. With the air bending kids off with the other nomads, it'd be a lot more peaceful around Air Temple Island. She was grateful for it, knowing how nosey the kids are but she still had to deal with Tenzin prying. He meant well, though. She knew that.
"I'm fine. I just have a lot on my mind." She responded a few moments after swallowing her food.
"Are you sure?"
"I said I'm fine. I just need some time to myself."
Tenzin nodded and decided not to press the issue further. "How's Asami doing?"
"As good to be expected. She's…still taking his loss pretty hard. I'm doing all I can, but I'm not sure I can help her." Korra sighed.
"It'll take time for her to mourn. The best thing you can do for her is just be there when she needs you."
Korra nodded but said nothing. She only pushed the vegetables on her plate around with her chopsticks.
It was a clear, bright day, but Korra felt as if it were foggy and gloomy. On days like this, she wanted to stay in bed. She would have if she didn't have anything to do that day, yet the defeat of Kuvira didn't give her the free time she expected. Still, she made time to see him one final time. She wasn't even sure if her plan would work or not, but when she approached the guards with the folded piece of paper, they looked it over, nodded and granted her entrance. A breath of relief washed over her when they lead her inside and moved the metal walls to allow her in. Her heart was race as the wall in front of her slowly rose.
He expected her. Perhaps not that particular day but at some point.
"Avatar Korra. A surprise to see you." Zaheer said. He watched her enter further into his underground cell, dressed in black robes that hid her body and her face. "I never pegged you as one to hide your identity."
She said nothing as she pushed back her hood. He was surprised by her face. She looked aged, oddly enough. Her eyes looked tired and her skin looked dull and worn. Kuvira was defeated. Why did she look so stressed? Did she relapse again thinking about her near-death experience by his hands?
"Don't tell me the mighty Avatar still fears me." He said almost in a mocking tone. She would have rebutted with something smart or tough if she had the energy.
"I'm not afraid of you anymore."
He floated down on his feet while cocking his head to the side. "Then what are you afraid of?"
"Do you regret your choices?"
The question caught him off guard, though he didn't show it. Had she come all this way to ask him that? The look in her blue eyes gave him mixed answers. Why would she even care? He had a life sentence. None of it mattered. "Is the question of any importance?"
She stared at him with a tired expression. He knew she wouldn't leave him without getting some answers.
"It doesn't matter. What's done is done and I stand by what I believe." He responded.
"Your beliefs cost you someone you love. Do you regret not being able to save her?"
Zaheer's eyes narrowed. "This isn't about me. Where is this coming from?"
Korra's eyes stayed locked on his. She could be just as stubborn as him under normal circumstances but she was slowly breaking and he knew it.
"Why bother coming all this way just to listen to my thoughts? Your problems aren't going to go away if you keep using me as a crutch." He turned around with the intent of ending their conversation.
"Kuvira killed Asami's father and I couldn't stop her. Everyday I have to watch her struggle with his death and I wonder if I did the right thing in letting her live. At the time, I knew I couldn't let Kuvira die but.."
"You want some kind of reassurance that you did the right thing. From someone like me, no less."
Korra's eyes fell to the ground. It did sound weird. She had been thinking about this for a while but she wasn't sure what she would get out of it. To go to her enemy and ask for some kind of closure? Anyone she loved would tell her she did, but an enemy was honest. She knew what his answer would be, though. Any political leader would be dead if Zaheer had his way.
"Do you regret not being able to save P'Li? Or are you so disconnected from the Earth that her death means nothing to you?" He could hear the challenge in her voice. When he turned around, he could see the desperation in her eyes as she looked for any kind of answer in his.
'P'Li…'
"I just want you to know that whatever happens today, I love you."
Zaheer and P'Li were in the cold tundra, inside an igloo somewhere in the Southern Water Tribe territory. Today was the day they would launch their attack, despite Unalaq seeming to be a no-show. Ghazan and Ming Hua were in their own separate igloos but of course, P'Li and Zaheer wanted to be with one another before their mission. As they laid in one another's arms, they thought about how the following night could go down.
"And I'll always love you." He said.
They shared a kiss. A kiss so full of passion and warmth that he remembered it for years in his lonely prison cage.
"Bringing P'Li into it isn't going to make me have an emotional outburst, if that's what you're hoping for." He could almost see her face fall. She was struggling to keep a plain face plastered on. "You can't keep focusing on what could have been. Is that not what caused your problems in the first place?"
"You and your Red Lotus gang caused my problems in the first place." She said as her eyes narrowed.
"Are you expecting me to say sorry? Do you want me to pat you on the back and assure you that you did the right thing like everyone else does? Or maybe you want me to express some kind of admiration for whatever you do."
Korra approached him until she was a foot away from him. She hadn't purposely gotten so close to him since their fight. A part of her wanted to run and hide but an even bigger part told her that she was done being afraid. "I just…I just want to be able to forgive you. I don't care if you're sorry but I just need to feel like you're…."
"And you think if you can forgive me, then your friend can one day forgive the dictator for killing her father. I'm suppose to be hope for you? Our interests may have aligned at one point, but the world will still be out of balance as long as the Avatar still exists. Chaos is the only way."
"I understand."
"What?"
Korra stepped closer to him. He had expected her to get in his face or even try to hurt him. The minute he felt her arms around him, he went into shock. His face didn't show it but every part of his brain was trying to figure out why his enemy was now hugging him.
They stayed connected for a few minutes. He made no effort to hug her back or even acknowledge that she was touching him. Finally, she let go. No more words were exchanged and she left him to his thoughts.
'We come to beginnings only at the end.' Korra thought to herself as a smile graced her lips.
The Next Day
Korra leaned against one of the outside walls of Asami's warehouse. The day was particularly sunny for her, not that she minded. The day just felt lighter than her past few days.
"How's Asami doing?" She heard Bolin ask her from behind. She turned around to see the green-eyed male.
"Hey. She's still grieving but I think she'll be fine, eventually. I just wish there were something I could do to ease the pain. I thought you were going traveling with Opal?"
"I was but I thought I'd continue helping out in Republic City since I did have a hand in Kuvira's dominance. Maybe even help Asami so she's not so stressed."
Korra smiled. "That's so sweet. I'm sure she'd appreciate it."
"You seem to be a lot happier lately. Anything new?"
"I just got some closure is all."
"Closure? What do you mean?"
Korra smiled, patted Bolin on the arm and walked away.
He tried to wrap his head around what she meant but couldn't figure it out. He simply shrugged as he put his hands in his pockets and headed off down the road.