Korra awoke to the familiar feeling of cold, set deep into her bones.
She sat up slowly, her neck and back aching. She'd been sleeping in the same deserted alleyway for four days now.
It wasn't too bad - it was a thin alleyway, between two restaurants that only opened in the early evenings. The closeness of the buildings offered better shelter from the snow and it reduced the harshness of the icy winds.
The alleyway was much more sheltered than where she had previously been sleeping. The last alleyway had been full of tiny mole rats, that stunk of disease. It hadn't offered much shelter from the rain and snow either, since the buildings it was between were so far apart. Those nights she spent there had been really cold.
Sure, she was born in the Southern Water Tribe and lived there for a few years, but it didn't mean that she didn't get cold. Her self warming powers from bending could only do so much, too.
Korra sighed as she stood up, working out the kinks in her neck and lower back. Sleeping against a hard, stone wall wasn't the most comfortable thing, especially when you didn't have a lot of padding to work with.
Korra's thoughts shifted back to Asami, the woman she had protected from the brutes trying to-well, whatever they were trying to do.
It sickened Korra how people could even imagine attacking someone, especially a young woman all alone at night. It made her sick to her stomach, and it angered her so much that sometimes she worried she'd accidentally trigger the Avatar State.
Huh, like that would ever happen, Korra thought bitterly to herself.
She'd mastered all four elements - but she was still struggling to connect with her spiritual side. She'd never entered the Avatar State and never ventured into the spirit world, or made contact with her past lives. She was a spiritual failure, and she knew it. She'd eventually mastered airbending, but because she wasn't in touch with her spiritual side, she struggled a lot.
Korra sincerely hoped that Asami made it back home okay. She presumed she'd never see the woman again but it didn't matter - Korra knew she had helped that woman and that was enough for her.
Korra had desperately wanted to say yes when Asami offered her money. She wanted it so badly; to fill her empty stomach, to buy an extra blanket or a new parka for when the weather got even worse.
But Korra wouldn't just take advantage of someone when they were vulnerable, especially when they'd just been attacked in the middle of the night.
Korra slid down the wall where she had been sleeping and just sat for a while, thinking. She wrapped her arms around her legs, bringing them close to her chest, hoping to preserve warmth. Winter mornings at Republic City were always cold, and Korra dreaded waking up to them.
She thought about everything, her life, her decisions and choices, her duty as the Avatar.
Huh, Korra thought bitterly, her eyes narrowing; how could she even call herself the Avatar when she had no stability in her life.
She was homeless, had no family, no friends, no money. Only Naga.
Sweet, loving Naga. The only one who had been by her side through everything. Through homelessness, pain, the cold, everything. Naga was the only thing that remained constant in her life. She loved her. She may only be a polar bear dog but their bond was strong, unbreakable.
The World didn't need their Avatar anymore, since Avatar Aang had fixed everything, ending the horrid hundred year war. The nations were united once again, working and living together in peace and happiness. The Avatar? Well, they were irrelevant now, according to newspapers. Avatar Aang had done his job.
True, she had saved Asami last night. However, it didn't make her any more the Avatar. Helping people may be the Avatar's job, but it shouldn't just be their duty - in Korra's opinion, you should help those in need whenever you can, whoever you are.
Korra remembered Asami's genuine kindness and appreciation. It made her smile, just the slightest.
The smile didn't last very long, however. They never did.
...
Asami had called in to inform her staff she couldn't make it to work this morning. She'd informed her assistant about the attack the previous night and told her that she just needed time to herself and would be back tomorrow.
Asami knew it probably wasn't a good idea to be taking days out, especially this time of year when business was at its peak, but she needed a day to herself where she could think of last night and come to terms with everything that had happened.
She was still slightly shaken by the firebending. She hated how the orange flames instantly forced painful memories to the front of her mind; she'd much rather have them hidden in the back of her mind, where she would never think of them or see the flames ever again.
Suddenly, the telephone rang. Asami sat in front of the phone and glanced at the number quickly. It wasn't one she recognised but she assumed it could just be a business call. She didn't usually give out her private number, usually only to potential business partners. She picked it up and held it to her ear, "Asami Sato here."
"Asami?"
The raven haired girl felt the urge to slam the phone down. Spirits, why was her father calling her?
She'd made it very, very clear to him when he was taken to prison that she wanted no contact with him.
"What is it?" Asami hissed down the phone, wishing she could airbend the whole thing out of the window.
"Asami," Hiroshi sighed happily, "I'm so happy to hear your voice. I-I've missed you, sweetheart. I haven't heard from you since-"
"Since you sided with the Equalists, who, may I add, are a group of terrorists. Can you blame me for not wanting to speak to you?" Asami yelled down the phone, almost shaking in anger. She had specified that she wanted absolutely no contact with him - not after what he did, what he stood for.
"Asami," He said gently, his voice choked. Asami knew he was crying. "I never meant to hurt you, you know that. You're the only thing I have left. Please, sweetheart, just hear me out."
No matter how much Asami wanted to hate her father, she couldn't help the way his choked up voice bought tears to her eyes, or the the guilt that bubbled in her stomach. "No, Dad. I can't."
She slammed the phone down, fearing that if she held the line for even a second longer, she'd give in and confess how much she missed his company, how much she missed her father.
She knew she shouldn't feel like that, but she couldn't help it. He'd been her only family since the death of her mother fourteen years ago.
When Asami found out the truth, that Hiroshi had been working with the Equalists, making them weapons and supplying them money, Asami had broken down in tears. She'd felt numb for so long after that, but her emptiness soon turned into bitter anger.
She was angry, furious that her father hadn't even considered her while he was galavanting around with the terrorist group. Angry that he hadn't considered her mother and his own deceased wife - Asami knew she would never let him do what he had been doing. Never. Her mother had been a kind woman, who loved everyone and saw them all as equal, bending or no bending.
Asami choked and let out an agonising sob. The tears came soon after, streaking down her cheeks and dripping onto the table. Small streaks soon became rivers, and her glistening eyes became flooded.
She was all on her own now. She didn't have her family to comfort her when was upset, not anymore.
She was alone - and it hurt like hell.
Sure, Mako and Bolin were still her best friends. But Mako was busy being a detective and Bolin was in the police force.
The three of them occasionally met up for lunch, or pro bending practise. The brothers liked to keep fit and learn more skills and techniques. The Fire Ferrets were still active, but they were currently missing a waterbender, and so didn't play the tournament the previous year.
This had given the brothers time to focus on the careers, both of them had managed to save up more than enough money to move out of Asami's and into their own respective apartments.
Mako lived alone, but was very close to both Asami's and Bolin's apartments. Bolin lived with Opal, his girlfriend.
Asami wiped her eyes quickly, almost stubbornly. She wasn't all alone - she had Bolin and Mako and Opal. They all loved her and cared for her and had been there for Asami after it was revealed what her father was doing. They'd supported her massively when Asami took over Future Industries.
She wasn't all alone.
So why did she feel so lonely?
...
A/N 1: So, we know Asami's story. (It's practically the same as the series, anyway.) But there is so much about Korra we don't know yet.
A/N 2: Hopefully next chapter or the one after we'll be going into more depth for Korra's character. She will be OOC in this story, considering her past is so different from the series. However, I will still try to keep her personality in character. It might take a while to shine through the depression she's in at the moment, however. Also, I'm hoping to make the chapters longer. Since I write my stories on my phone (got no laptop), I don't actually know the word count until I post the story.
A/N 3: Thanks for reading! I'd love it if you could leave a review or whatever! Suggestions are welcome, since I only have three more chapters written up so far! Thanks, friends!
