Posted originally on the Archive of Our Own at works/4341707.

Rating: Mature Archive Warning: Choose Not To Use Archive Warnings Category: Multi Fandom: Avatar: Legend of Korra, Avatar: The Last Airbender Relationship: Korra/Asami Sato Character: Korra (Avatar) Stats: Published: 2015-07-14 Words: 2615 Takaani Legends

by LeoAries

Full Summary

This is a story about Takaani, a 19 year old girl and student at Seishin, an academy located in the Earth Kingdom. Seishin strives to reconnect benders with the spiritual aspect of bending. When Takaani escapes with the help of an air nomad named Kavi, the academy is in an uproar. Along the way they meet and discover many things, including a rogue firebender named Maia. On their journey of self discovery, hiding, and secrecy; Takaani fails to mention to her new friends that they are not assisting just another student, but the academy's most important prodigy: the daughter of Avatar Korra.

Notes

This is a work of three original characters with the appearances of previous, canon characters. This is a work of fan fiction, written because the author has an abiding love for the works of AVATAR and LEGEND OF KORRA. The author will not receive any money or other remuneration for presenting the work on this archive site. The work is the intellectual property of the author, available solely for the enjoyment of A03 readers, and may not be copied or redistributed by any means without the explicit written consent of the author.

**RATED M FOR LANGUAGE AND SOME VIOLENCE. SUBJECT TO CHANGE AT ANY TIME.**

I thought for sure nobody noticed my absence from class. I mean, really, why the hell would I need to attend a lecture about spirits? The Spirit World isn't my cup of tea. It never was, actually. I hated the Spirit World and frequently had nightmares about it. When the academy wanted to take a class trip I feigned illness and made one of the academy nurses stay with me until they came back.

When I heard a knock at my door I knew I was busted.

I looked into the mirror and kept my composure. My skin was relatively dark, a great indication that I had heritage in the water tribes. Not like that was really any surprise to me, but it was a dead giveaway to others about waterbending. I studied my features carefully, noting how heart shaped my face was and how small my green eyes were. Ah, there it was. Green eyes on someone from the water tribe? A lot of people would do a double take at that. I inherited those crystal green eyes from my mother, but everything else was straight out of a magazine for the water tribe.

My dark hair was twisted around my neck carefully, braided to a messy perfection that nobody (and I mean nobody) around here could duplicate. I've seen other students try, but trust me, they couldn't get to my level of hair braiding. It was cut short for the summer and I had pulled the rest of it backward like a ponytail.

Short hair always looks good on short girls, which is where I was. At 5 foot 4 inches, I was the shortest person I knew around here.

When I opened the door one of my instructors were there, the very instructor that I had deliberately skipped. I assumed because nobody came looking for me two hours after class ended, nobody really cared. Big mistake. "Yes?" I insisted.

He was a tall man with non-bending heritage, something everyone made fun of him for. But I didn't. "You weren't in class today."

It wasn't an assumption, or a question. A statement. I toyed with the edge of my tank top. "I know."

"Dare I ask why?"

I huffed loudly and started tapping my foot. "I didn't feel good and I decided to lay down." My eyebrows raised in challenge, knowing I was being quite a bitch. Oh well.

"You look fine now." He grunted, looking at my outfit. I was wearing plain cream colored clothing, a tank top and tight black pants. They were fighting clothes, something you would wear to a chi-blocking class. Busted, again. I was about to leave for chi-blocking class.

"Yes, and your point? I got better. I'll get to your class next time, but for now…" I quickly shoved my way through him, slamming my dorm room door with a lot of muscle. My instructor reached out to grab me by the wrist. I turned around and held back from punching him in the jaw, which I usually did when boys grabbed me without my consent.

"Your little fear of the spirit world needs to come to an end. You, of all people, should know its importance." He scowled, tone dark and warning. "Your mother-"

"Is not here!" I interrupted, staring into his dark eyes. They widened in surprise. "Do you really think I care? I'm not her, and I hate the spirit world. There's no law that says I have to like it." I tugged my wrist out of his clasp and he let me have it.

"You're right, but there is a law that says you have to attend your classes. Miss another one and I'm writing you up. Don't think for a second I won't." With that, he turned and stalked off. I stared after him, a great fire burning in my veins from our altercation.

When I showed up for chi-blocking class, I felt ready to beat the shit out of someone. My sparring partner was a girl named Miki, and I felt bad about what I was about to do to her. She handled herself well, but my skills were too great. Okay, okay, not bragging. It's true! I knew how damn well of a fighter I was, making up for everything else that I lacked. My chi-blocking class was my favorite; I was the top student and ready to advance to the next level.

She threw a hard punch at me, aiming for my left shoulder but I dodged and grabbed her by the back of the neck and slammed her against the mat. She was good, too. Miki reached for me from under and snagged my ankle. Foreseeing what she wanted to accomplish, I threw my body into an intense flip, using her as an anchor I had to chuck. Mimi's thin, but larger, body flung over my head and she slammed against the hard mat. Her eyes widened in surprise and she choked, an attempt to recover the air I had knocked out of her lungs.

I stood over her, sweat pouring down forehead and waited for her to make another move. "I don't," she rasped. "understand…why you're still..here."

I felt surprised. A bit. "Yeah, I know."

Miki got to her feet and shook her head. "You're good."

"So are you. Besides…I lack in 'spirituality' or whatever. The teachers around here act like punching someone in the face is equivalent to being able to meditate."

"Isn't it?"

I eyed her curiously, reaching for one of the towels that the instructor had lined up on the edge of the room. Around us people continued to sparred, and I realized that our sparring had ended quicker than most. Miki was a non-bender, and I knew that because only non-benders took chi-blocking. It was the substitute where, if we were a bender, there would be a specialized class in either fire, water, or earth. So why did Miki think fighting was the same as meditating?

"Both take a lot of strength," she continued. I was losing my interest in her fast. "You can't fight without a clear conscious."

Before I could reply, the instructor blew a whistle. I hurriedly grabbed my belongings and headed back toward my dorm before Miki could ask to eat dinner with me. It wasn't like I was antisocial, but I did not particularly like making friends with the academy. Not when I had something planned.

My mind had made a decision weeks ago, when I thought I would die if I heard one more person try to lecture me about spirits. I just didn't think being spiritual was the same as having hardcore ability to get what you wanted, with the passion to do it. I felt trapped here at Seishin, like I wasn't learning anything useful to my character besides how to spar (which I exceedingly could do, and more) but then kept me at the same level because I couldn't pass a test on why spirits and connection were important. I knew I was being petty, but there are no words to explain the way the academy can make you feel like you don't matter. Non benders were not forced to go to the academy, only if they came from families of high importance and felt as though the academy could teach them to be "like" benders.

I've been here since I was 15. That was 4 long, long years. And I couldn't take it anymore.

My mind whirled when I was back in my dorm, feeling sore at the ankle where Miki had grabbed me. I knew what I had to do, but I had no idea how I was going to do it. Another knock at my door jerked me out of my thoughts, and I swear, I almost ripped the door off the hinges. "What?" I hissed.

It was someone I didn't know. He was bald, but he couldn't have been older than me. In fact, he was pretty cute. I could see that even though he shaved his head there were still traces of dark fuzz that indicated his hair was brown. He had bright blue eyes and a polite smile that didn't show his teeth, but I assumed they were pearly white. The most interesting thing about him? He had a blue arrow tattooed on his head, and I knew enough to know what that meant.

"Y-yes"? I stammered.

"Hello!" He greeted me, nodding. "My name is Kavi. I'm the spiritual supervisor here, in charge of keeping track of the class material taught here."

I almost choked. This kid looked like he still attended the academy, if he weren't an airbender. The airbenders were trained at the assigned temples, so he must be pretty good if he was assigned at the academy. Or maybe he did something bad. "Oh." I said weakly. Shit. Was I in trouble?

"I was wondering if you had time to chat. I'm interested in some of the students' opinions about Seishin, and its ability to communicate the spiritual aspects of living connected through chi-blocking and bending." His tone was so important, so friendly, so...

Annoying. "I-I can't," I managed quickly. "I don't know much about that." Before I could close the door, he frowned. God, how could I turn down an actual airbender? It felt so rude. They were always nice.

"Oh. Okay, I understand." He sighed, turning back around. Ah, here it goes...what makes me so great. My sympathy, my pity, my inability to let anyone down. Well, wait. If this was an opportunity to rat the academy out about their need to push spirituality on people like me who would care less, this might change things. He was a supervisor, after all.

"Wait. Why don't you come in? I can help."

Kavi turned around, shocked. And also embarrassed. "Wonderful! But, actually, why don't you come with me instead?"

I felt a bit tired, sore, and sweaty. I really wanted to clean up in my dorm but I think inviting a supervisor into a girl's dorm was on the top of the list of the forbidden things here at the academy. I nodded anyway and followed him, stepping in stride with him while he walked. If he walked, that is. He almost seemed to float and, again, I felt a bit shy around him. Airbenders were notoriously skilled, and they trained at their own temples because there was never any actual need to attend an academy like Seishin. They were also super spiritual, which frightened me. He had the ability to literally project his own soul, right? I shivered.

Kavi looked at me. "What's wrong?"

"What? Nothing."

"I can sense your unease." He replied honestly. "It's okay, just relax."

I gave him a sharp look. I wanted to snap at him and tell him I was relaxed, but instead I shrugged and looked forward. He took me to one of the open yards we had here at the academy, usually for study sessions or hanging out. Right now it was abandoned, probably because classes were still commencing and the only people free were non-benders. The airbending master took a seat in the grass facing away from the school and I balked when he sat cross style. He was wearing traditional airbending robes, but it was so sunny and hot out I wondered if he would get overheated. I kneeled down beside him. "Okay, shoot."

He turned to me, smiling. Where were his notes? This was, like, a survey right? "What's your name, firstly?"

"Takaani." I answered.

That pleased him. "Thank you. And how many classes here do you take pertaining to the spirit world?"

Ones I took? Or ones I attended? One number was higher than the other. "I take two classes."

"Does that include spirit creatures that live in the spirit world?"

"That would make three classes."

He nodded, and closed his eyes. "What do you think of these classes?"

"They're..." I struggled for the right word. Do I tell him that I hated them? That the Spirit World scared the hell out of me? That I hated it? I decided not to play coy. "They're my least favorite."

He opened his eyes again, resting their blue gaze on me. "Oh? Why so?"

"I just don't like them. I feel forced to take them, even though I do the worst in them. I am better at physically fighting and I'd rather learn about the Fire Nation or Water tribes instead of the Spirit World."

At first I thought he was going to scold me, but he merely nodded as though my opinion actually mattered. Like fighting and spirits actually weren't the same, despite what everyone else had been insisting. "Have you been to the Spirit World?"

The breeze picked up, blowing my hair around despite its braid. Did it make a difference if I was there or not? "No."

"Tell me, what elements do your parents specialize in?" He asked suddenly, regarding me with curiosity that I was sure had nothing to do with his little survey. I grew wary.

"Water and a non-bender."

"Your mother the waterbender?"

"And the non-bender."

His eyebrows shot up. Gotcha! "Both?"

"I have two moms." I explained quickly, but my tone was tight that I didn't want to talk about it. Not that I was ashamed, I just hated having to explain how two moms had a kid. A lot of people didn't think it was possible, but Kavi's expression told me that he knew it was.

"I see." He said politely. He closed his eyes once more. "Any final thoughts? Or questions?"

I thought for a second, then decided to be daring. "How old are you?"

Kavi didn't open his eyes. "21." Damn. That was only two years older than me.

"And you already work here?"

"I work for the Nomads that sent me here. Particularly my instructor. I took her place because she was busy."

Oh. Of course. Air nomads weren't just cattle you can raise and ship away. They worked for themselves and by themselves. I felt stupid, but I felt warmed by the breeze that was blowing. It was diminishing my fear, unease, and wariness. "When did you finish...school? Training?"

He opened his eyes now and smiled at me politely. "When I received my tattoos, you mean. I became a master bender at eighteen. Most do."

"Oh, yeah. They don't teach much of the nomads here." I said quickly, hoping he wasn't thinking I was prying. "What do you think of the spirit classes here? Do you think they help?"

His smiled faltered. "They don't send nomads here unless there's a reason," he pointed out.

That caught my surprise. Was the academy really under scrutiny? There was no way that I was right all along, that they were shoving spirit down people's throats and not actually touching on the important stuff. Whatever that important stuff may be. "So you don't approve?"

He didn't answer, but shrugged nonchalantly. I took that as a no. "You're free to go now, Takaani. Thank you for your time."

I nodded and stood, ready to finally - finally! - head back to my dorm to change and take a shower. Before I could get out of earshot I heard Kavi declare, "Takaani, you're unhappy here."

Surprised, I looked back to look at him. He was still facing away from the academy, and probably with closed eyes. "What makes you think that?"

"Sadness radiates from the soul, just as happiness does."

I didn't answer, only turned back and kept walking.

*To Be Continued*

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