Chapter 2.
It was late. He could see the moon overhead, wreathed in a white halo against the dim sky, though he could no longer feel her pull. There was a strangeness inherent in gazing up at the glowing orb without his body reacting to her power—and not for the first time, Tahno lamented to himself that he paid it far more attention these days than he ever had as a functioning waterbender. In the weeks since the championship game he had struggled; perhaps moreso than Ming, or even Shaozu, to accept his plight and adapt to this new life as a non-bender…but having the proverbial carrot dangled before his eyes and choosing-by his own design-not to grasp it, had plunged the young man back into a state of confusion. It would be so easy just to give in and do what the Triads wanted. Throw a couple illegal icing moves, knock a few heads, rig a game or two…and then hand three quarters of his winnings straight over to Pebble Po or risk having both his legs broken with a particularly heavy boulder. But at least he'd have his bending back…right?
Tahno slouched forward against the railing of the fire escape, resting his elbows on the cold steel as he craned his neck to peer down at the streets below. Satomobiles puttered along; their headlights casting ethereal beams against the dense nighttime fog. Every now and again a pedestrian would dart through the traffic, though most stuck to the safety of the sidewalks. United Forces soldiers patrolled the streets, though their numbers had dwindled in the past weeks since Amon's coup had fizzled out. Their crimson uniforms were a common sight in the city now and most of the citizens had come to regard them without the same trepidation that they initially held; some even welcoming the peacekeepers now that the City's metalbending police force had suspended operations. His eyes fell upon the passing figure of a pretty young woman in a long white coat. She looked lost; turning her head this way and that and backtracking two steps for every one she took. If he had been in a better mood he might have shouted down an invitation to his apartment…or at least a dirty cat-owl-call. But he wasn't, so he contented himself to watch in silence. That was when he noticed the massive fellow in the dark green jacket heading down the street and in the direction of his apartment building. Even from six stories up, there was no mistaking Pebble Po.
"Shit…" Tahno murmured to himself, ducking low on the metal grating to hide his form in case the Triad strongman bothered to look up. A momentary rush of panic set in, and he could feel his heart hammering in his chest. Nothing good would come of a visit from him, friendly or otherwise, but the timing did not sit well. The former Wolfbat once again found himself questioning his resolve to find an out from his dealings with the Triads. "Shit…Shit…" he cursed again through gritted teeth, softly banging the back of his head against the railing of the fire escape. The green jacket disappeared from view as Po entered the lobby of his building.
"Um, excuse me!" he heard the voice of a woman carry faintly from the street below, "Does anybody know the way to Ember Boulevard? I must have taken a wrong turn…Please? Anybody?"
Even back home in the Foggy Swamp village, where folks were generally neighborly and eager to lend a helping hand, Tahno had never been known as a particularly accommodating individual…but ever had the young waterbender been an opportunist. And when those dulcet pleas echoed into his ears, it was not the thought of a woman in distress that spurred him into action, but the natural instinct for self-preservation. As quickly and quietly as his boots could carry him, he bounded down the metal staircase of the fire escape and leapt the last flight to the bottom. Taking a moment to comb his fingers through his tousled hair, he caught his breath and strode out into the beam of the streetlight. Plastering a debonair smile across his handsome face, the former pro-bender bowed and offered his arm to the young woman in white. "You're looking a little lost, Doll…" he smiled, allowing his drawl to drip into every word as he poured on the charm, "…and I couldn't help but overhear that you're headed over to Ember Boulevard? Just so happens I was on my way there-It'd be much faster to take a cab. Alas, I seem to have left my wallet at home…but if you'll grab the tab, I'll take care of the rest."
"Oh, Spirits! Thank you! Thank you so much!" The pretty young thing grasped his arm enthusiastically, her painted lips instantly parting into a picture perfect smile. "My name's Uyen…I'm an actress…"
"You don't say…" He answered simply and tugged the woman along, feigning interest as he glanced up toward his apartment. There was a light lit in his bedroom that hadn't been before. Stepping to the curb and holding his hand out impatiently, he managed to flag down a passing Taxi.
"Yes, well, I want to be one, anyway! Came here all the way from Omashu to be in the new Moving Pictures…", She giggled, and if he hadn't been so preoccupied with avoiding Pebble Po the former waterbender might have marveled that the stupid girl hadn't been mugged yet. "In fact, I'm late for a very important audition!"
"Well then…" Tahno muttered and grabbed her by the wrist, resisting the urge to outright shove her into the waiting vehicle, "I guess we'd better hurry." He slid into the seat beside her before risking one last glance up at his home.
Pebble Po stood outside on the fire escape, scratching his bald head and gazing down at the streets below.
"Ember Boulevard." he said to the driver, only the slightest waver to his smooth voice evident. "And step on it."
There was a dull ache in her chest, like the feeling left in the wake of a horrible bruise. Nothing she did would make it go away. She drank tea, wrapped her breast bindings particularly tight, and even held a bit of ice over it; but still, it hurt in the place where her heart was supposed to be. It wouldn't get better…but it definitely got worse. It got worse when Asami had cried on her shoulder, confessing her fears and worries. It got worse when Bolin had pulled her into a platypus-bear hug and told her how excited he was to become an uncle. It got worse when Ikki and Jinora had asked if they would be able to babysit in a few years. It got worse when Mako had shut himself away in his cabin, refusing to open the door for anybody—not even her. And right now, as Korra stood withering under Tenzin's questioning gaze, it was getting much, much worse.
"…acting yourself since we left the South Pole yesterday, and I know that you don't like to be coddled but Pema and I are worried about you. I know that you're anxious about everything that awaits once we get back to the city, and everyone's been a bit distracted what with Mako and Asami's little surprise….Korra? Korra, are you even listening to me?" The stern airbender held his hands on his hips and raised a bushy eyebrow, clearly awaiting an answer.
"Yes. I'm fine." She replied in a rehearsed tone.
"You're fine?" he asked more gently than before.
The Avatar nodded, taking a deep breath that made her want to cringe as her lungs expanded against the ache in her chest. "Yeah. Fine."
Perhaps realizing the futility of the endeavor, Tenzin pressed his lips together and shook his head. "I'll take your word for it, Korra." Then, almost as an afterthought, he shifted his robe aside and reached out to lay a reassuring hand upon the young woman's shoulder. "But if there's something you need to talk about, you know that Pema and I are here for you. Now, you'd best get some sleep…we should be sailing into Yue Bay by sunrise tomorrow." He offered a genuinely sympathetic smile, and cleared his throat before turning away and heading back down the hall toward the cabin that he shared with his family while on the ship.
Korra watched quietly as the tangle of orange and yellow made its way around the corner, and only then did she turn and head in the opposite direction. It was late, so she kept her footfalls light so as not to wake the slumbering crew and passengers as she passed their cabin doors. It was this careful silence that permitted her ears to pick up on the quiet voices emanating from Mako's cabin—voices that were unmistakable as she drew nearer to the steel portal.
"…just so afraid. We're so young…I'd never even held a baby before Pema let me hold Rohan. What if I'm not ready? I don't think I can do this, Mako!" Asami's soft voice was strained and choked with tears; much as Korra remembered it from earlier.
"You're too strong to talk like that. And you won't have to do this alone…I promise."
"Thank you…I don't know what I would do without everyone right now. Tenzin, Pema, Korra, Bolin…you…especially you. Mako, I know we've been going through a rough patch lately, but now all of this just makes that seem so insignificant. I'm sorry…I'm so sorry for our stupid arguments. I was just feeling insecure, and I was wrong to accuse you and Korra-"
"Asami," Mako's voice cut in, though he hesitated before continuing once she had quieted. "I'm sorry, too. Look, it's…Things were complicated. But now-now they're not. I lost my father when I was young, but I always swore that if I ever had kids I would put them first, like he did….So no matter what our troubles were before, I want to put them behind us. I want us to be the kind of family our child needs."
"You're a good man, Mako…I'm so fortunate to have you—we both are." In the silence that followed, Korra knew that Asami was smiling her beautiful, perfect smile. And then, "I love you…"
"I….Love you, too…"
It wasn't until the first tear dripped off her cheek and fell to the back of her shaking hand that the Avatar realized she was crying. As she slowly backed away from the door and turned to make her escape to anywhere else but here, she felt the familiar pain in her chest-only it was stronger; sharper. It stole her breath away, each step making her lungs burn. And it was only when she had finally closed her own cabin door behind her and collapsed into a sweaty, sobbing heap upon her bunk that Korra understood.
That was the feeling of her heart breaking.
There wasn't very much by way of subtlety along Ember Boulevard. Every building and shop façade was ornately adorned to mimic the somewhat garish opulence of the famous Ember Island; Jewel of the Fire Nation. True to its inspiration, this was also Republic City's theater district…and also the center of operations for the small but blossoming film industry. Tahno had been to see a picture show once, sort of. Shaozu had dragged him and Ming to the place along with a bunch of dames they were trying to impress, and it had worked pretty well. The waterbender hadn't gotten to see much of the movie; though he had gotten to enjoy the attentions of the busty brunette who'd straddled his lap and blocked his view of the screen with her giant breasts. That had probably been more entertaining than watching the grainy, silent film adaptation of The Legend of Oma and Shu, anyway.
He was shaken from his pleasant memory as the taxi cab lurched to a stop. "There's the place you're looking for, Lady. It'll be thirty Yuans." The driver grumbled, not even bothering to look back as he held his hand out to receive the fare.
Uyen fumbled through her fancy handbag, making a little squeak of triumph when at last she found her cash and deposited the bills into the waiting palm. She scooted across the back seat with some difficulty in her ankle-length white coat and daintily took Tahno's hand as he impatiently waited to help her out of the vehicle. "I just can't thank you enough for helping me find my way…"
"Don't mention it, Doll." He muttered, anxious to ditch the woman and figure out where to lay low for a while. Shaozu's place wasn't far from here; and as much as Tahno didn't relish the idea of crashing on that particular sofa, it was better than a park bench. "Good luck with your movie."
"Audition, you mean! "
"Huh? Well, whatever."
"Hey!" She exclaimed suddenly, clasping her hands together dramatically in front of her ample bosom. "I remember your face…I know it from somewhere…I mean, you are really good looking…"
"…I have that familiar quality, I guess." Tahno considered himself very capable of accepting praise, but for the life of him couldn't quite figure out what this bird was getting at. It was making him decidedly uncomfortable.
Uyen batted at his arm playfully and laughed—it was a high pitched, hideous sound and it was all the former Wolfbat could do to school his features into a blank expression and hide his cringe. "Oh, you are SO funny! I mean it, though! Haven't I seen you somewhere before?"
Tahno forced a shrug and painted on his best modest expression. "Beats me, Doll."
"Yeah-I know I have. You're that pro-bender who was all over the papers! From the Moose-Lions…"
"Wolfbats." He murmured, glancing down at his boots.
"Yes! The Wolfbats! How could I forget, with the big masks and capes and everything…You're the waterbender!"
"I…Not anymore."
"…Oh….Right." To her credit, Uyen had the decency to flush with embarrassment. "That must have been awful. But I heard Avatar Korra can fix everything now, so I'm sure you'll be good as new in no time, huh?"
A pair of soldiers passed behind him and Tahno's eyes flicked up to meet the backs of their red coats. "So they say."
"Don't worry, even if she can't I'm sure you'll be just fine. I mean, with a face like yours, you ought to be in pictures!" She seemed genuine enough in her strange conviction, and clasped her dainty hands under her chin imploringly. "Why not come and audition with me? I hear they still haven't cast a leading man…"
His sudden bark of laughter must have startled her, because the woman's mossy green eyes widened to the size of saucers and her lips parted into a little ring that made her look like one of the inappropriate life sized dolls that one could buy over in the red lantern district. "Lady, the last thing I need right now is for my mug to be plastered on every movie screen in the city. In fact, I should probably be on my way. Thanks for the lift." The former bender didn't bother with any further cordialities. He turned away from her and stuffed his hands into his pockets before starting off down the sidewalk.
A half dozen blocks and a turn or two later, Tahno stood at the door to Shaozu's apartment. He knocked twice and waited. As he raised his knuckles to knock again, he at last heard the resounding 'click' of the locks being turned. When the door swung open, though, it wasn't the former firebender's face that greeted him.
"Been a busy night, eh?" The man asked, and straightened the collar of his green jacket. "Best come inside and have a chat."
Tahno swallowed, biting back a string of curses as he stepped through the doorway and followed Pebble Po into the room.
A/N: So it's been a solid two weeks and I am just now getting chapter 2 up. Sorry about that—I honestly had been aiming for "once a week" updates with this story, but I'm apparently a much busier person than I thought I was. Still, I promise they will be regular, if not frequent.
I want to take a moment to thank those of you who have added this story to your alerts/favorites, and especially the readers who took the time to leave a review! It is fascinating to hear what your thoughts are and as I said before, they will hold some influence over the way this story unfolds. So thank you!