Korra hummed to herself as she walked out of the library. She and Tenzin had made good progress today in Avatar training. A soft sniffle caught her attention and as she turned she saw Asami sitting on a bench in the hall.
"Hey Asami." Korra waved and walked over. Only then did she notice the other girl looked like she had been crying.
"Oh, Hi Korra." Asami wiped her cheeks and tried to smile.
Korra cocked her head wondering if she should ask, then sat down. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing. Well, nothing major. It's just….my mom."
"Your mom?"
"When I turned on my dad and left home to come here I left everything of mine there. Including a special locket; it was my mothers. She gave it to me because I liked it so much. After she died I kept a picture of her in it. I left the locket behind too. I don't' mind leaving everything behind but…..that was something special." Asami's voice cracked and she couldn't continue.
Korra glanced away for a minute then looked back up her eyes full of resolve. "You know what? We're going to get it. You and me." She punched her right fist into her left hand.
"What?" Asami sputtered. "My father will have guards out by now. We won't be able to just walk in!"
"I know. We'll figure something out."
They slipped off Naga a few blocks from Hiroshi's house. "Stay put Naga." Korra ordered. Quietly they slipped down a few back alley ways till they could peek out at the massive front gate of the house. True to Asami's prediction two large guards stood there scanning the street. Asami nudged Korra and indicated a small space of wall that they could scale and get over, without being seen. A large tree was growing on the inside of the wall which would provide cover once they reached the top. They slipped by using a conveniently placed cart for cover and quickly leaped to the top of the wall. They quickly jumped into the tree before they were seen.
"There and there. Those guards won't be too hard to take down. And once we get past them, we should have access to the main hall. It will take us directly to my room. Right in and out." Asami whispered in Korra's ear. "I don't know if there will be other guards inside or not. I wouldn't think so since there aren't that many out here. But they shouldn't be a problem for both of us. You ready?" Korra gave a quick nod and they both descended. They ran up behind the guards simultaneously knocking them out. Korra gave a triumphant smile to Asami and they ran up and pried open the door slowly so as not to make any noise. There were no guards inside and they crept down the hall. Asami waved her hand and motioned to a very ornate door. She opened it and they slipped in. Asami's room was lavishly decorated, but had a good balance of her life experiences. Several defense practice uniforms lay neatly folded next to several mint condition dolls. Asami walked over to her dresser and picked up a gold locket and chain. She looked at it for a moment then opened it. Inside was a picture of a woman who looked very similar to Asami but clearly a bit older and mature.
"Do you want to take anything else?" Korra asked looking around.
Asami glanced at a few trinkets and clothing items. "No. I'll earn money to buy anything I want. The Air temple acolytes have been very kind. I have all that I need"
Korra nodded. "Alright. Let's go."
They slipped out and Asami pocketed the locket. They ran back down the hallway only to be halted by a voice.
"Asami…." Hiroshi's voice came from behind a door.
The two girls froze and looked at each other eyes wide with fear. Asami moved first peeking slyly in the door. She breathed a sigh of relief and motioned to Korra that it was ok.
Sitting by his desk, back towards the door Hiroshi sat and spoke out loud to a picture of Asami. "I miss you. I don't understand how you could betray me like this. Those people killed your mother. But I will show you…in time. I love you." He closed his eyes and sighed.
Asami squeezed her eyes shut against his words. The girls quietly backed away from the door and the private moment. They continued their flight and made it out the door.
"Wait…." Korra held up a hand for them to stop. "What's that?" a large truck was backing up to the building out back. Buzzing around it were several heavily armed dangerous looking men.
"I guess we know where the rest of the guards are." Asami whispered to Korra.
Keeping low they crept up and hid behind a bush to observe what was being loaded onto the truck. Many small machine parts were carried out. Several large pieces were covered with cloth but the outline was clear.
"He's building more robots!" Korra whispered to Asami.
Asami nodded. "Let's get back to the temple! We need to tell Tenzin and Lin!"
They rushed to retrace their footsteps and almost made it to the tree.
"Halt! Who's there?" One of the guards called after them. They both squeezed behind the large trunk of the tree and tried not to breathe. The guard called to someone else but after a few moments he brushed off his concern as the wind moving the bushes. Both girl anxiously looked at each other then scrambled up the tree and jumped over the wall. They hurried back the alley ways and made their way back to where Naga was vigilantly waiting. They leaped onto her back and sped off to the Air Temple.
Korra patted Naga thanking her for carrying them, the glanced over at Asami. Asami was sitting on a hay bale, staring at the picture in the locket.
"She was beautiful." Korra broke the silence.
Asami looked up at Korra her eyes glassy. "My mother would hate what my father has become. Just like I hate him." Asami's hand closed around the locket and pulled it close to her heart.
Korra sat next to her and placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. "Don't hate your father. I mean, don't misunderstand me, I think what he's doing is wrong. But I can also understand why he's doing it. When people lose someone very close to them they often fell like they're losing control. And to get that feeling of being in control back, they often do desperate things. Your father is just very lost. But he loved your mother, and he loves you. So don't hate him. Maybe we can change his mind!"
Asami looked up at Korra, her eyes brightened with hope. "Thank you Korra, for everything."
Korra smiled. "You're welcome, for everything."
They sat there quietly looking at the locket.
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"Mako, you need to come out with me tonight! I need my wing man!" Bolin's voice blasted across their room at the air temple.
"I already told you. I just want to stay here and relax." Mako leaned back and closed his eyes. "Why don't you ask Korra? I'm sure she'd love to go."
Bolin crossed his arms. "Korra's great and all, but do you have any idea how long it's been since the two of us did anything fun?" He planted a foot causing a small tower of rock to shoot up through the floor forcing Mako to sit upright. "We used to do stuff all the time!" He spread his arms wide eagle to emphasize his statement.
Mako gave a snort. "Yeah when we were kids, and living on the street. We're grown up now Bolin; time to act like it. We're not the street rats stealing money from vendors and swindlers."
Bolin rubbed his hands together excitedly. "Yeah those were the days. Sure we didn't always have a place to go and it wasn't always fun. But you have to admit, we had some good times too! We need that again."
Crossing his arms Mako glared at his brother. Bolin gave him big puppy dog eyes, and with Pabu on his shoulder the effect was doubled
Mako groaned then stood up. "Fine. But nothing too big."
Bolin leaped to Mako's side. "Of course not! You know me."
Mako stared wide eyed at the large bustling bar full of vending patrons, each one involved in a busy operation. "I told you not too big!" he protested.
Bolin looked him innocent. "What? This is much smaller than where I wanted to go. Now come on! Bending darts is this way!"
Bolin and Mako spent a large part of time trouncing their opponents in a variety of games, earning a small fee for their efforts. This did not go unnoticed by a seedy looking man in the corner. He called to them.
"Gentlemen! I have a proposition for you!" He waved a long sinewy arm at them.
Mako cocked an eyebrow at him. "I don't think we're interested." He started to walk away but the man yanked him back.
"You haven't even heard my offer yet!" he wheezed out.
"Yeah, let's hear what he's got." Bolin stated happily.
"Good boy. You're a smart one!" the man breathed in Bolin's direction. Bolin started coughing at the horrid smell of the man's breath.
"Alright what do you want?" Mako got to the point.
"Oh nothing a too fancy…..just a little wager…."
"Wager? Sounds fishy." Mako stroked his chin contemplatively.
The man frowned at him. "And here I thought you two were the amazing Fire Ferrets. Everyone knows about you. You would have won if the Wolfbats hadn't cheated."
"Yeah that's us!" Bolin thumped himself on the chest.
Mako listened to the flattery then, made up his mind. "Fine, what's the wager?"
The man cackled and rubbed his hands together. "Nothing much. You place your winnings against…..a guessing game."
Mako started. "A guessing game? I don't know…."
The man snatched the sack of gold out of Bolin's hands, setting it to one side. "Excellent! Let us begin. It's very simple. This pebble…" he held up a small smooth stone. "Will be hidden somewhere in one ….." he swirled his other hand water bending water out of a nearby bowl wrapping it around the stone and making it disappear into one of three small piles of frosty looking ice on the floor in front. "…Of these ice blocks. You choose the right one you keep your gold. You chose wrong…" he chuckled in anticipation. "I keep your gold."
Mako was about to demand he give their gold back they weren't playing when Bolin plopped down on the floor and began to star intently at each stack of ice. He started tapping his fingers on the floor gently as he thought. Mako noticed this and suddenly realized what Bolin was doing. As an earth bender Bolin could sense the pebble, so choosing the right column wouldn't be a problem. All he needed to do was distract the vendor.
Mako slapped a big 'I'm an idiot' grin on his face, and began to talk. "Soooooo…let me get this straight. Whichever one we choose, if we're right we can keep our gold?"
The man glanced away from Bolin to stare at Mako. "Yes. That's what's I just said." He snapped before looking back at Bolin who hadn't ceased his concentration. Suddenly Bolin's face cleared.
"I choose that one!" he pointed to the one in the center.
The man chuckled."You chose wrong!" He started to wave his hands to water bend and melt the ice. Before he could Bolin reached up a hand and clenched a fist in mid air.
"Oh no, I think I'm right." The small rock punched through the ice at Bolin's bending, coming from indeed the center column.
"Hah!" Bolin stood triumphant.
The swindler looked at both of them angry about being swindled himself. "You cheated!" He accused loudly getting the attention of the other patrons in the room. Although almost everyone there cheated, and everyone knew it, if you were caught, said cheaters could be stripped of everything all in the name of "fair play". Even if you did play fair there was a possibility you'd be accused if you got too successful.
Mako noticed the situation they had gotten into. He leaned close to the old man confronting him. "We didn't cheat! If you didn't want bending used maybe you have said so before asking an earth bender to look for a stone! Beside you were going to move it any way weren't you? Is that what you always do? Water bend it around so no one will ever guess right? How many others have you ripped off!" The rest of the room started murmuring in agreement for most had played the guessing game and lost.
The man slowly stood and motioned for a big burly man to step forward. "This is my money. No one's getting it!"
"Oh really?" Bolin snapped the man's coin bag from his belt, ripped it open and started throwing coins all over the room inciting excitement. "Here ya go! Whose' lost money to this man?"
The swindler shrieked and lifted his hands to send shards of ice after them but was knocked unconscious by a former, disgruntled customer. The swindler's henchman reached for the brothers but they raced away ducking under his swinging arms. They bolted by the bar and crashed into a waitress. "Hey watch it!" she snapped.
"Sorry!" Bolin turned to apologize and backed into an intense game of Pai Sho,tipping the board and scattering the pieces. The players all glared at him and started to stand, but Mako grabbed his brother's collar and hauled him away. They Pai Sho players yelled for them to stop but they rushed around several tables moving chairs to block the path behind them. Mako turned to look behind and crashed into a small man seated by the fire. The man hollered and took a swing. Bolin spun the dirt under the man's feet so his fist connected with another man sitting behind him. This had a domino effect of one man pushing into another and a brawl broke out. Mako and Bolin thoroughly enjoyed ducking and fire/earth bending and yelling, all the while inching their way toward the door. Taking an opportunity while everyone was distracted that both dropped and rolled out the door. They stood and quickly slammed the door behind them shutting the noise in. As they took off running down the street Mako glanced over at his brother and saw a look of happiness he hadn't' see for a while. When they reached the water's edge, they paused to catch their breath while waiting for a boat to take them across to the air temple.
"So…..just so we're clear…..we are NOT going to keep doing that to get money." Mako grinned over at his brother. "But you were pretty awesome back there."
Bolin flexed his muscle ad admired them. "The tricks never change. The merchants just get easier to escape from!"He clapped his brother on the shoulder and gave him a wide smile.
"You know what Bolin? You were right. I needed that. It was fun." Mako waved over a nearby boat.
"Oh, I know. You always try to be so 'grown up' and responsible. So that makes it my responsibility to make sure you cut loose sometimes." Bolin started laughing and Mako joined in.
They both hopped on the boat and gave directions to the temple.
