A.N. :The story will now be told in Tarrlok's point of view unless stated otherwise.
He woke the next morning before the sun rose, before the underground received any form of sunlight. Around him, the Avatar's friends slept soundly in a circle around the rubble of fire and he could only watch them because even the mere act sitting up took too much out of him; the earthbender had thrown off his pillows and the fire ferret was sprawled all over his chest, his firebender brother beside him was completely obscured from view behind his mountain of blankets and the nonbender girl, her head was framed by her dark hair. Another man slept close to her, with dark hair and pale skin; he wore the torn uniform of the United Forces yet Tarrlok couldn't recall hearing his name as the blur and muddle of the escape yesterday still clouded his mind.
'Where do you think he'd go?' the Avatar's voice rang in his head quietly and he forced his gaze to her sleeping form, her lithe body clustered inside the polar bear-dog's nuzzle, her brown hair contrast against the animal's fur. He sighed and clenched his fist, trying to feel the energy that came when he bent water, trying to feel its coolness when it danced between his fingertips; he was numb and only the thought of his brother plagued his mind. Where do you think he'd go, Tarrlok?
His eyes snapped back to Korra when he heard her hushed whispers muffled through her animal's coat. He closed his eyes, dismissing them initially as incoherent mumblings as they faded into the silence. He was jolted awake as they grew louder. "Where are you, Noatak?"
She sounded afraid, she sounded as though she'd been left by a friend, by a brother. Tarrlok turned back over in his cot as her voice died down, and his closed his eyes again, hoping to get some more shut-eye. He could still snippets of hear her voice as he dozed off, asking where, where was Noatak, where was his brother, where was Amon? He found himself dreaming about it as the sun gradually lit the underground.
His sleep felt only like minutes when he was jostled awake by the Avatar's light slapping on his arm. He opened his eyes to see her apologetic face, sorry for waking you, they would say silently to him, and his eyes drifted to the commotion behind her, to see her friends packing supplies on the polar bear-dog as it sat patiently. The earthbender boy smoothed down its fur while the fire ferret clambered onto the dog's head, nestling itself on it.
He found himself holding on to Korra's arm as they walked towards the group, each of them giving him looks that spat apprehension (the firebender boy) to pity (the uniformed man); he would have none of it and he turned to Korra instead, watching her as she boarded the polar bear-dog.
"May I ask what's going on?" he forced out weakly, his throat parched and dry. Korra held out a hand for him to take as he found himself sitting behind her, the dog rising beneath them. Before he could answer, Tarrlok found himself sandwiched between Korra and the earthbender, Bolin. He was stiff and uncomfortable behind him, and Tarrlok could see both of them awkwardly holding on to each other as they moved away from others. He heard the nonbender girl's good-bye to them as they disappeared in the tunnel.
"We're meeting them at a rendezvous point at the docks," Korra began as her pet began running through the sewer tunnel, and Tarrlok cussed mentally as his arms curled around her waist in a vice-like grip, he was starting to feel nauseous and Bolin's uncomfortable musings behind him did nothing to help. Soon, and Tarrlok was glad, that they found the end of the tunnel that faced Air Temple Island,; the sun remained low behind the band of dark clouds, trying to push its way through the grey. Korra turned back to them with a warning. "Ready for a swim, boys?"
"Born ready, Korra-" Bolin began behind him.
Tarrlok didn't get to answer and his clenched his eyes shut as the dog jumped into the cold, cold sea, but as quickly as the water drenched his tattered robes, it disappeared from them. He sighed as he opened his eyes, seeing the Avatar bend the water from them, her sinewy arms rippling subtly as she bent the water from her pet's head as it swam through the depths of the bay. The water was dark around them, and the air cold as the dog continued to swiftly paddle its way towards the docks. He watched large hulls jutted through the water above their heads, chains of anchors dangling dangerously close to them.
They emerged drenched from the water, the ringing in his ears was deafening as the sounds of soldiers and soldiers bustled on the runways of the docks, wearing the same United Forces uniform that the man they left behind wore, and he watched the soldiers bending barriers of rock around the runways, for safety, for refuge. He leaned his head lightly against the broad of Korra's back, the nausea making its way back into his gut.
The dog was padding its way around the soldiers and Tarrlok only knew that they were being led somewhere when he heard a familiar voice greet Korra in concern. He looked up as Korra jumped off the dog and into Councilman Tenzin's arms, behind him Bolin had already got off and was close to giving the airbender a hug as well.
"Thank the spirits, you two are alright-" Tenzin halted halfway at the pathetic sight of him trying to support himself of the polar bear-dog. His hair was limp as it hung wet and plastered on his face and he found it hard to hold Tenzin's gaze. Was it apprehensive, pitying? Tarrlok never found out because immediately he was taken off the dog, his fatigue clouding his mind. He heard Tenzin's afterthought chasing after him as he was put on a stretcher. "Get this man a bed, some water and food, he's requires it!"
Tarrlok only knew of what went on outside during the rest of the day when Korra came around to finish what she'd started, healing him and helping recover his scattered chi, but there wasn't much avail to it. Instead, she talked to him while placing her watered hands on his back, telling him of how the United Forces led by Commander Bumi easily overthrew the weak hold the Equalists had on the city, and he listened as she told him of how she fought the Lieutenant, subjugated him personally, seeing in his mind the man's faltering form, at a loss without his leader; and he listened at how unsettled she was, the fight she waited for with Amon delayed only for the spirits' ears.
He closed his eyes at the feeling of the water dancing on his skin but he could sense her frustration as she worked, even as the water eased the knots his body's sustained in the past few days her healing provided flat results; his bending was still lost. She cleared her throat and rose from his bed, forcing the water back into a flask she'd brought along. He sat up and grabbed one of the folded shirts that had been provided for him while she headed for the door uncertainly. She gave him one last glance, to which he responded in quiet gratitude, inclining his head at her. She left him with one last thought to think about. "Sleep well. Tenzin wants to see you tomorrow."
He didn't sleep well, in fact, he couldn't sleep at all. It had been hours when she left him, and the loud thrum of the ship's engine from somewhere nearby had quieted, and he could just imagine the fleet quieting down into their rooms as the moon rose. He was exhausted, yes but his mind was abuzz with thoughts, as if a barrier that held them all back these past few days had broken down.
What would Tenzin say to him? Would he be scorned, condemned of what he's done or would he be treated like an invalid? He scowled as he lay on the bed, looking up at the rivets and screws on the ceiling, having counted them more times than necessary. He knew he was a criminal, half the city's population was completely aware of it. They might as well decide to lock him up and give him a life sentence; there wouldn't be any other way to atone for what he's done, to the people, to Korra.
Korra.
"Still think I'm a half-baked Avatar?" After what he'd done to her, to her friends, how was it that she considers him an ally, how was it that she would still go out of her way to heal him when there were other healers around, to make sure that he was alright? Tarrlok sighed and stood up, heading for the door as he slipped on a light jacket, another one of the Forces' provisions for him.
He was glad that he easily made his way to the deck. Though poorly lit in the foggy moonlight, he could still see her in the middle of it all. With Naga crouched around her, the Avatar sat in the centre of the deck, arms lax and her back straight as she breathed evenly. He retreated, feeling as though he'd intruded on something private, on something beyond his own comprehension and yet the floor creaked underneath him, forcing the polar bear-dog's gaze on him.
Korra broke off from her peaceful trance, forcing her eyes on him as he emerged from the dark of the stairwell. He walked over to her, his feet padding lightly on the metal before taking a seat across her. He bowed his head. "Forgive me for interrupting you."
Unsure for a moment, Korra only gave him a curious stare before waving his apology off. "It's all right."
Silence. Tarrlok looked around, towards the sea, the clouded night sky, the darkened city, the moon. Had he still possessed his bending, he would feel its power, he would feel everything, the sea ebbing underneath the ship, the mist that hung low over the water, the blood pumping through the veins of the Avatar; now he only felt numb, as if he was breathing smoke. He was only aware that he'd his fists clenching on his lap when he saw Korra's uncomfortable stare. She cleared her throat and lied back down against her polar bear dog. "Can't sleep?"
"Yes." More silence, though it wasn't awkward, merely a comfort, and no trace of the tension in the past was between them. "Am I right to assume that you can't sleep either?"
She snorted. "No, I just woke up. I would've stayed in my room to meditate but I didn't want to bother the girls and Asami."
"Meditate."
"What?" her indignant look amused him, yet he hid the grin that began to pull at the corners of his mouth.
"You meditate?"
"It was Tenzin's idea."
"Of course."
He found himself lying down against the floor of the deck, looking up at the dark sky, trying to discern the stars behind the clouds. Korra's voice jolted him. "I had a vision."
A vision. "Amon?"
"He was running from something."
Tarrlok tried to imagine the head of the revolution running, tried even to imagine Noatak running from something. Noatak as a child did not flee, so why would Amon, they were no different merely the mask was the difference. Korra read the disbelief on his face but before he could dismiss her claim, that it merely had been a dream, because Amon didn't run–
"He looks a lot like you," she mumbled as she brought her knees to her chest, settling her face behind her arms. "It was like seeing you, but not really – there's something different about him but I knew he was your brother straight off."
"Different?"
"He didn't have that sleazy, politician's smile that you wore-" he scowled as she chuckled behind her arm. "In all seriousness, you both have that look about you, the past."
He looked up, trying to follow the clouds that drifted by before snapping his attention back to her. "Did you see where he was? What he was running from?"
She curled up further, her fists clutching onto the fabric of her pants. Her eyes betrayed frustration and shame as they flicked to him before looking away. "No, I didn't."
He closed his eyes, and though disappointment bloomed in his chest, he put it away. It wasn't her fault that she wasn't attuned to the spiritual side of the whole Avatar business, everyone had been different, and all that mattered was that they were treated fairly. Tarrlok shook his head free of the thought, hearing young Noatak and Amon's voice ordaining things in his mind. He felt Korra prodding him on the arm and he cracked open an eyelid to look at her.
"You should probably go back to bed in your room," she began. "I don't think Tenzin and Bumi are going to make much sense of why ex-councilman Tarrlok was asleep on the deck of the ship."
"Yes, of course." He stood up and dusted himself off, letting his sleep-encrusted body move on its own volition towards the stairwell. Before he went down, he turned back to see her, cracking the best sleazy, politician's smile he could muster, making Korra unsettled as she stared at him. "Am I still to meet Tenzin tomorrow?"
"Yeah, suit up too. I think he misses the bickering you two have all the time." He laughed before disappearing from the moon's light. "Sleep well, Tarrlok."
"You too, Avatar Korra."