Hello guys, I'm back and as I said on my other story, What the Heart Wants, during the last update, I'm sorry for the delay. Book stuff had demanded my attention. So, I hope that this update is good enough to please you until next time.

Thank you all for the love that you always show me. It really keeps me excited to keep going. I'd like to think that seeing my updates puts a smile on your faces, a least, a little. I really do this for you guys.

Chapter Six

The ground begins to shake as tiny pebbles float into the air. I force my growl back down and keep my back to her in irritation. The other three all take a step back, unsure of how this will play out. Their hearts *thump thumpa thump thump* in their chests. They're indecisive, so I make the decision for them.

"Leave us. We need to be out of here in ten. Get everything ready."

"But, Asami," Bolin begins.

I feel Korra stand up and make a motion toward me. I let Bolin see the resolve burning behind my eyes. If Korra wants a lesson, I'll be happy to oblige.

"Come on, guys, let's go," Bolin tells them.

Mako sighs and looks at us before running back through the tunnels.

I finally turn to Korra who's panting heavily from using her magic when she's still so new to it. Her fists are clenched to the sides. She reminds me of myself when I tried to attack Zara.

Irony.

With two punches, Korra shoots balls of flame at me. I easily lean out of the way; the heat of the attack never even reaches me. The fire slams against the wall behind me. I cross my arms and roll my eyes. Normally, I have more patience than this, but people could be coming for us soon. She tries to attack with earth and air next. I block and dodge, amazed at the speed at which Korra's learning how to manipulate the elements.

It's to be expected from the Avatar, I guess.

I kick Korra's next attack back at her, a piece of rock hitting her squares in the chest. She hits the ground, landing on her back with a grunt. Her arms are sprawled out wide. I step over to her and lift her up by the neck. I lift her in the air, squeezing just enough to let her feel my strength.

"Are you done throwing your tantrum?" I ask, shaking her for good measure.

Korra stares me down, enraged. Her beautiful blue eyes shine at me with hate and confusion. She bites her lower lip in an attempt to hold back her tears. I refuse to allow her to see my sympathy. I don't like that I'm the reason for her pain.

I drop her down forcefully, allowing my gaze to remain steely. She coughs and grips the dirt under her hands. Her body shakes from anger and crying.

"They were my family. My only cousins!"

"They were trying to kill you, Korra."

"They were my family!" she roars. Her eyes flicker, her pupils disappearing under a white glow.

I stop short at her burst of emotion. Now, on guard. She breathes heavily, head down and speaks quieter as she tries to compose herself. "You murdered them without a second though."

"They would have killed you."

"You don't know that."

"No, Korra, you don't understand what I just did was to protect you."

"I didn't ask for your protection!" Korra stands up and looks me in the eyes. "Maybe I could have reasoned with them. Maybe I could have-,"

"Stop lying to yourself. Your family, your cousins at least, didn't give a damn about you. They would have cut you open, bled you dry, and unleashed hell on earth while they spit on your remains. I saved your life."

"You should have let that be my choice! Mine. My parents took my choice away when they sealed my magic and you took my choice away by not letting me try to help my cousins. Is that what you're going to teach me? To kill first, ask questions later?"

"If it keeps you alive, then yes."

"You're a monster."

Her words are like a slap, but I refuse to let her see how much it affected me. I've spent months watching and waiting to keep her safe. I'm the monster that I need to be, for her. How can I explain that?

"Someone has to be."

Korra looks at me in disgust and this time, I can't hold back my frown as my fangs drop in defense. Too bad my instincts don't know that this attack isn't a physical one.

Korra pushes past me, bumping my shoulder with as much force as she can muster. "Stay the hell away from me. I'll take my chances with the other three."

I stand there, stunned. After all I've done, how could she? I watch as she walks back down the tunnel, creating a stone wall and locking me out. I hear her footsteps echo in the distance as I stand there alone with the bodies of her dead relatives. Their glazed over eyes seem to mock me.

Once again, no matter what I do, that's how it seems to end. Alone. It's always just me when it's all said and done. I walk away, never glancing over my shoulder as I find a spot in the shadows to watch over my friends and Korra. She doesn't want me around, but at least I can keep watch to make sure that they get out safely. Five minutes later, I watch Mako scan the darkness as Opal and Korra speak in hushed tones, clearly arguing. Bolin stays back, feeling the ground around him, but once he shakes his head, they take off into the night.

Asami, we'll talk to Korra. She's just upset, she doesn't know how much she needs you. A text message from Mako says. I look at my phone, but don't respond. Instead, I slip deeper into the shadows where I belong.

#

It's been two days and Korra has been training constantly with the three of us. Luckily, my mom and aunt were able to secure us in an underground training facility. It was actually seized when my aunt raided an group of humans' hideout. They were hoping to expose supernaturals to the rest of the world. Each human had to have their blood drained and then glamoured by vampires so that they would forget what they were doing. They all had a drug in their system so that they weren't susceptible to vampire compulsion. It took forever to get them all contained. Exposing all of us would have been horrible. It would have started a war.

Asami had spent countless , sleepless hours searching for and tracking down any extra humans that may have been involved, including going through each person's contacts and files. I may be new to this world, but I can tell that Asami has dedicated her life to protecting humans and awakeneds. Sometimes, that means doing things that seem cold-blooded. But what Asami isn't is, is thoughtless. She calculates every move she makes. Korra needs to know that.

"Hey, how's Korra's training with Mako?" I ask my boyfriend who is now panting from his times with the feisty avatar.

"She's good, Opal. Really good. And angry. Not a good combination for us. My poor hamstrings are burning."

I give Bo a sympathetic pat on the back. "Have you heard from Asami?

"No," he whines. "She's not answering. I was going to try to track her down later. Maybe you should try to talk to Korra, female to female. Estrogen bonding."

I roll my eyes. "Sure, estrogen bonding." I kiss him on the cheek. "Send her my way after she's done with Mako."

"What are you about to do now?"

"I'm going to get some rest. After you narrow down some locations where Asami might be, I'm coming with you."

"Do you think Mako will be enough to keep her safe? I mean, I completely trust my brother and all, but what if something really bad happens?'

"Bo, he can handle it. Besides, I'm sure that the anger Korra is holding onto is more than enough to protect them both. We're Asami's friends, she needs us too."

"You're right, Opal."

"I usually am," I say smiling.

#

Korra sits across from me, arms crossed, glaring. She didn't like what I had to say and frankly, I don't care. I don't give a shit what she has to think right now. Her opinion matters not when she doesn't like the truth.

I told her that if I had to choose between her and Asami, that I would choose the person that I've known the longest, the one that healed me without a second chance.

"She gave her blood to me without question. She saw that I needed her and she jumped right in."

"She also killed without thought."

"That's where you're wrong. Because of the fact that she thinks things at least five steps ahead of the rest of us, the way her mind works, how she weighs her options, is exactly why she never kills without thought. She kills with no remorse. There's a difference. Because of how much she thinks is why she can have no regrets in battle."

"She has given up more than you'll ever know and the fact that she chose to walk away and give you your space is why she should be respected. She could have just knocked you out and drug you back to us, but she didn't. She cares about you."

"She doesn't even know me. And I don't want to know her. She killed my cousins."

"They needed to die."

"What!"

"I said it. We all know it but you. Actually, I think that you know it too, but deep inside, you're afraid to admit it because it will make you just like the rest of us. News flash, you are. You're one of us. You're the sum of us. You are the avatar. And you need to start thinking like the avatar or we will all die to protect you for nothing. I don't give a damn what the rest of them think, Korra. I won't let my friends die for nothing and I won't let you take Asami from us. I won't train with you until she comes back. And, I'll never forgive you if she doesn't come back. She's been left alone too many times already."

"What do you mean?" Korra's eyes narrow and she leans forward.

"That's her story to tell. The life of a vampire can be long and filled with more pain than you can imagine. She's one of the good ones. Don't you ever forget that." I stand up to leave when Korra grabs my arm. I look down at her and try to stop frowning.

"Opal, I'm sorry. I can't just pretend that what she did didn't affect me, but I'll try to understand it better. We were never close, but in my tribe, you honor your family."

"In that case, they broke that rule long before you. Surely, you can see that. The apology isn't mine to take. Bolin and I are going to look for Asami tonight."

"I'll- I'll keep training."

"Good idea."

Notes:

I love the back and forth between them because Korra's screaming at Asami and Asami's just keeping her tone even the whole time, even though she knows that it's pissing Korra off even more.