A/N: So, this is going to be my Round 2 entry for the Pro-Bending Circuit.
My challenge: Write in a No Avatar AU (this means no Avatar EVER).
Additional Prompts: Include; the word 'kick', the emotion anger, the quote "Walking with a friend in the dark is better than walking alone in the light." -Helen Keller
Word Count: 1695
Warning: Korra is not the Avatar in this because there is no Avatar, but she moved to Air Temple Island anyway to train with Master Katara as a waterbending prodigy.
"Sifu Katara?" Korra asked towards the end of one of her bending sessions, mindlessly manipulating the water she was streaming as she spoke.
"Yes Korra." The old master smiled, gently bending her own water back into the fountain they were using.
"Do you think I could spend the night camping with my friends? They invited me to spend the weekend with them, but I told them I couldn't because I have waterbending lessons. I figure if I just go overnight I could be back for bending in the morning."
"Camping with your friends hmm?" Katara laughed a little, remembering all the fun she and her friends had camping when they were young.
"Please? I promise I won't be late!" Korra's bubble of water almost fell in her excitement but she caught it, regaining her composure, earning another laugh from her instructor.
"You've worked hard all week Korra, you've earned some fun. Why don't you tell your friends you can spend the entire weekend with them?"
"Woohoo!" Korra jumped up in excitement, water flying everywhere. "Thank you Katara!" She wrapped her arms around her old friend, barely able to contain her joy.
"Go. Have fun!" Katara watched as Korra ran off, almost knocking Tenzin over as she ran to her room to get her bag. She had already packed, hoping that Katara would grant her permission to go.
"Sorry Tenzin!" She yelled back, waving to him. She ran through the house dodging Pema then jumping over Meelo in the hallway.
"Korra, slow down! You're going to break something!" Pema warned. Life with four kids plus Korra got to be an awful lot sometimes.
"Sorry Pema!" Korra raced up the stairs and slammed her door open. Smiling, she threw a few extra items in her backpack since she'd earned the entire weekend off and raced out to the water.
"Hello Korra. Where are you off too in such a rush?" Jinora looked up from the book she was reading when she noticed Korra.
"I'm going camping with some of my friends!" Korra smiled, looking around for the boat that was usually sitting on the dock.
"The next boat won't be here for an hour. Ikki borrowed your canoe." Jinora closed her book, keeping her place with a dried leaf.
"Who needs a boat when you've got perfectly good water?" As if to prove her point, Korra jumped off the dock, creating a disc of ice before she could fall in. Jinora shook her head.
"You need to learn patience. I know you aren't an airbender, but I think meditation would do you some good."
"Yeah, yeah Tenzin." Korra rolled her eyes at her young friend before waving and using her bending to push the ice to the other side of the water. Once she got to land she raced up the streets to Asami's house, where she'd agreed to meet up with the rest of her friends. She knocked on the door, resting her hands on her knees, breathing hard after the long run from the pier to the Sato's mansion.
"Korra?" Asami looked shocked at her friends disheveled appearance. "What happened to you?"
"I was running… hey do you have anything to drink?" Korra pushed her way inside and found Bolin sitting in front of a Pai Sho Board across from Opal. Mako was sitting on the couch waiting to leave. Asami came into the room with a bottle of water a few seconds later.
"Here Korra."
"Thanks." She smiled, taking a small sip.
"Glad you could make it." Mako smiled, standing up he grabbed his bag off the floor.
"What time do you have to be back." Opal asked, capturing Bolin's last game piece, effectively winning the round. Bolin groaned.
"Actually, Katara said that because I've been working so hard I can have the entire weekend off!"
"That's great!" Bolin jumped up, knocking the board over. Opal gave him a look and he started cleaning up. Asami laughed and knelt beside him helping to clean up.
"We can leave now. We'll want to get to our camping spot before it gets too dark." Asami looked out the window and grabbed her bag before looking to the four of her friends. "Ready?"
"I can't wait!" Korra clapped her hands, excited. "This is my first time camping!"
"Is it really?" Bolin smiled, an evil glint in his usually cheery green eyes.
"Bo." Mako warned as the group made their way outside. The woods behind Asami's house was pretty deep once you hiked through it far enough. After about three hours of walking the five friends finally decided to set up camp, it was just barely dusk.
"Who's doing what?" Asami asked, setting her bag down in the dirt.
"I'll collect some wood and start a fire." Mako offered, putting his bag down beside his brother's.
"I'll start dinner." Bolin smiled. "I make the best campfire stew you've ever tasted. Opal can help me."
"Perfect! Korra, why don't you and I set up the tent?" Korra nodded at Asami and started pulling out the tent. Within the hour the sun had fully set and the camp was up and fully running. The friends sat around the fire together and ate their soup.
"So! Who wants to tell ghost stories?!" Bolin asked, looking around the group.
"Ghosts aren't real." Korra laughed.
"Don't tell me you haven't heard the stories…" Bolin plastered a horrified look on his face, the same evil glint from earlier shining through in his eyes again.
"What story?" Opal asked, playing along.
"The Legend of the Avatar!" Bolin whispered, the light from the fire flickering across his face eerily.
"Bolin, you're going to scare her." Mako chastised, Korra not wanting to be thought of as scared little kid spoke up.
"You aren't going to scare me! There's no such thing as an Avatar! People can only bend one element!"
"Okay. But don't say we didn't warn you Korra." Even Asami was playing along now. "You don't want to get caught in the woods alone… that's the only thing you need to remember. Well, that and you should never bend in the presence of the all powerful Avatar."
"Why?" Korra asked, her eyes going big.
"Asami! Let me tell it!" Bolin complained.
"Oh, sorry. Go ahead." Asami sat back, letting Bolin tell the story.
"The Legend of the Avatar goes like this. A long time ago, there was a greedy bender who wanted to be the most powerful man in the world. He made it his mission to steal the elements from the lion-turtles. He stole fire, air, water, and earth." He gestured from Mako, to Opal, to Korra, then himself for dramatic effect. "As the story goes, the lion-turtles found out that he'd deceived them and decided to punish him by making him live for all time. The Avatar can never die, even if he wants to. Nobody can kill him and nobody's ever survived a fight with him and lived to tell about it." Bolin paused, working hard to keep from laughing when he noticed Korra biting her nails. "So every year, the Avatar, in an attempt to gain the lion-turtle's forgiveness, steals the bending from a young bender in the exact order of how he stole the elements."
"Wh-what element is next?" Korra managed to get out, her face pale.
"WATER!" Bolin yelled, bending a rock towards her feet with a kick. At the same time he did Opal sent a quick blast of air towards Korra, making the back of her sweater blow up and cover her eyes. Korra screamed, falling backwards off the tree root she'd been sitting on. Quickly she fixed her sweater. Opal, Bolin, and Asami were rolling on the ground laughing. Mako tried to stifle his own laughter, failing when he met Korra's eyes.
"You should've seen the look on your face!" Asami choked out. "There's no such thing as an Avatar, Korra!" Korra bit back angry tears.
"You guys are jerks!" She got up, storming off into the woods, causing more laughter from everyone in the group.
"That was priceless!" Bolin cackled, wiping tears of joy out of his eyes."
"Avatar! Yeah right! There's no such thing!" Opal shook her head. "She believed every word!"
"Yeah…" Mako frowned. "She did… You guys I think we really hurt her feelings."
"She'll come around. It's like initiation!" Bolin sat up, finally calming down a bit.
"I'm going to go talk to her." Mako got up, heading in the direction Korra had stormed off in. It wasn't hard to find her following the path of destruction she left behind, he found her sitting at the base of an old Oak tree, crying. "Korra." He crouched down in front of her.
"Go away." She wouldn't look up at him.
"Korra, I am so sorry." Mako frowned, he didn't like seeing his friend so upset. He sighed.
"I never want to talk to any of you again! What you did was mean!" Korra finally looked up at him, wiping her tears away so she wouldn't make an even bigger fool of herself. Her pride was hurt.
"I know and I feel really bad about it. We do it to everyone the first time they go camping with us. It's fun."
"Fun for you guys maybe!" Korra screamed. "I was so excited for this trip Mako and you guys made it awful!" Mako sighed in frustration.
"It's not too late to have some real fun, we just got here. Come back with me." He held his hand out for her but she made no move to take it.
"Why should I?"
"Because." He smiled. "Walking with a friend in the dark is better than walking alone in the light."
"What?"
"It means, you'll be happier if you forgive us and have a good time this weekend than if you stay mad at us and go home early. Do you really want to go home to practice more bending?"
"Well, when you put it that way…" She sighed, taking his hand. "You promise no more Avatar stories?" Korra raised an eyebrow, waiting for his answer. Mako laughed.
"I told you Korra, there's no such thing as an Avatar!"