Makorra Week 2015

June 17-23

Author's Note: Hey, guys, I know this is late and I apologize. I've been busy catching up on my reading and updating my wardrobe (you wouldn't believe how much I tossed out!). I chose the prompt "Healing" because it just sounds promising. It's a continuation of prompt # 2: "Lightning". After this I'm going to start the 5th prompt, so forgive me if this feels rushed. It's a continuation of prompt 2: Lightning.

Day 4: Healing

Korra watched from afar as the fire balls whipped towards their target, a moving puppet of rubber and thick hide, partially hidden by a bar of metal. The mechanical mannequin was a new product of Future Industries, nearly indestructible to spiky ice, tearing winds, scorching fire and crushing earth. Whatever materials it was constructed of, it was a step into the future of weaponry and defense.

The fire bender assaulting the puppet was getting tired, Korra observed. He grimaced with every movement, crouching in on himself after every blow. Occasionally, one bandaged hand found its way to his chest and clutched there, lingering as the aching pangs passed.

"Mako, that's enough," the Avatar announced, flicking the switch that operated the puppet. The latter slowed its horizontal, left-to-right motions until it eventually halted, leaning forth as if tired.

Wiping the perspiration off his brow, Mako huffed, "I was doing fine!"

Korra reached for a discarded towel, used a nearby bowl of water to dampen it, and tossed it to the detective. "You were getting tired, Mako. You have to let your body heal," she responded, keeping a straight face. She eyed his bandages, pleased to see no blood or drainage seeping from the fabric.

"I have to get stronger," Mako returned, swiping the towel over his face and neck. "Beifong won't let me return to work until I'm better."

The tribal woman rolled her eyes in response. "Are you going to run yourself ragged doing it?" She replied. There was no malice in her voice, just exhaustion and concern.

Locking his amber eyes on Korra's sapphire, Mako conceded, "Alright. I'll stop driving myself into the ground. Happy?"

Korra's lips turned up in a tired smile, replying, "Yeah."

"Speaking of driving yourself into the ground, you don't look so good, Korra," he observed aloud, eyes roaming her body. Truth be told, Korra looked just as ragged as her male counterpart-sweaty, pained, and fatigued. He began reaching up to touch her face.

The Avatar whisked herself away, replying quickly, "I'm fine! Let's get you home!"

They drove in silence for a long time. The evening sky had just set, the pinks and oranges of the sunset fading rapidly into dark purples and blacks. Korra noted that Mako had spent four and a half hours training today, longer than yesterday—he'd only been able to tolerate three.

The detective tried to jump out of bed every chance he got as soon as he awoke in the hospital. Whenever the nurses and healers weren't hovering over him or when Lin and Korra weren't demanding he stay the fuck in bed already, Mako would lift himself out of bed despite the constant agony in his chest, and wobble around the room.

Korra had to admit it—Mako had a will of steel. She only wished it would act like actual metal so she could bend it enough to make him rest.

But Mako refused even that. He forced himself out of bed every morning and practiced his fighting moves for hours on end, vowing to make it back on the police force as soon as he could. He'd tried many times to enter the precinct, only to have Beifong scream at him to go home. He would do as he was told, albeit head hung low in despondence.

Seeing as the young man was difficult to keep in check, Korra made it her mission to heal him. As it were, he'd been the one to save her. That near-fatal lightning shot was meant for her, after all. She owed him her life. And this wasn't the first time Mako had risked his life for her.

Four years ago, when the anti-bending movement was at its peak and Korra had been kidnapped by Tarrlok, Mako wasted no time trying to find her. Tenzin had recounted to her how they combed the city, searching. The detective had been ready to lose his mind. And when she lost her bending to Amon, Mako risked his safety to incapacitate the blood-bender. And when Mako voluntarily faced civil war, imprisonment, and worse, he helped Korra free her father from prison. He even fought deadly spirits, assassins, and the Red Lotus to keep her safe. And in the face of an explosive death, Mako bravely took down the Colossus, destroying the gigantic, death-ray wielding robot and chalking up a point for the good guys. If he hadn't done that, Korra and the entire Republic might've fallen to Kuvira. He did it all without question.

Because he loved her.

Guilt often crept over Korra when she looked at Mako. The scarred flesh on his left arm was forever a reminder of his never-ending devotion. Nightmares of Mako perishing from a blow directed towards her terrorized Korra more and more these days. After what'd recently happened to him, Korra vowed to watch over him day and night, to take better care of him, and to let him know how much she cared for him at all times. Because she didn't know what would happen in the future...if she or he would be gone in moments was completely up to the spirits of time and fate.

Mako must've sensed the Avatar's gaze on him because he cracked open an eyelid and muttered, "You okay?"

The stinging sensation in Korra's eyes intensified as she whispered, "No, but as long as you are, I'm fine."

The fire bender sat up, confused, hand over his wound. "Korra, I..." He trailed off, not sure what to say.

Korra turned her attention back to the road, scoffing, "It's okay, really."

"No, no it's not," Mako murmured, reaching over to clear some hair away from her eyes. "You're not okay."

She shuddered at his touch, which, after four years, still felt electrifying. "I'm just so worried about you, okay? You're so stubborn and you get so worked up about not being able to do things! I feel like if I leave you for one second, you're going to get your head stuck in a jar trying to open it for me!"

Frowning, the detective responded, "That's a little insulting..."

Sighing, Korra retorted, "Oh, you know what I mean! You've spent so much time and energy fixated on me, and you get hurt every time! I'm so sick of it! I wish you would just..."

The air was thick and tense as she said it.

"...Leave me alone."

Slowing to a stop, the car found its way to the front of Mako's apartment. Korra didn't say anything as she put the gear shift in park and turned the keys slightly. The detective sat silently in his seat, one hand clutching his chest, the other pressed against the door. He was thinking, obviously, but of what, Korra could not be sure.

Fearfully, she uttered, "Are you okay?"

Amber eyes once again fixated on her and she resisted the urge to burst into tears. He said it, clearly, "No, and I won't be until you are."

"...What?"

Mako wrapped his long, fine fingers around hers and said, "I don't want you to worry, that's my job. And I worry about you because you're just as stubborn and determined as I am, oh don't look at me like that! You're also the Avatar, so of course I worry. I want to protect you and I want to help you."

"So why do you throw yourself in harm's way for me?" She breathed, eager to hold onto his hands forever.

As if reading her mind, the detective tightened his grip on her hands and continued, "You're so important, Korra. So important! If the world lost you, we'd all be lost. I know you were gone for three years to get better, but all that time I was lost. I was so worried that you weren't going to get better, that you'd stay in the South Pole and leave us for good."

Korra shook her head vehemently, "I would never do that. This city is my home."

Mako smirked, "Well, good. I'm glad."

They went quiet again as the fire bender settled back in his seat and sighed, wincing as the movement irritated his wound. Korra hurriedly bent some water from her pouch and brought it up to Mako's chest, weaving her cooling fingers below his heart.

For a few moments, they lingered. Korra could feel his heart beat, the reason for his breathing, and listened with content. This heart beat for one person, and that was Korra. The Avatar relaxed her muscles and fell against the detective. Mako made a noise of surprise before wrapping his arms around her and kissing her hair.

"I'll always love you," she whispered, the weight of the words falling off of her like barbells. Four years of holding these words back on her tongue. Four years of not being able to, not knowing how to say them.

Mako's breath hitched as he replied, "And I'll always love you."

Korra smiled as the weight inside of her was gone. She pressed her ear against his heart, not caring that the gear shift was currently digging into her hip. As long as his heart beat like that, strong and steady, she would be okay.

Author's Note: AHHHH! FINALLY! Now I gotta start the 5th prompt...yeesh. Wish me luck, ya'll. Thank you for reading!