The Solution to All Our Problems - Ch 7

By SharkAria


Korra's stuffed an armful of tabloids into a public wastebin on the street. She had purchased them all when she had hit the docks in the city, and she had scoured them as she rode the public steam-car to the pro-benders' practice gym to meet up with Tahno. He hadn't totally been able to keep his promise that she wouldn't read any gossip about their latest date - word of his visit to Dragon Lounge had made it into the papers - but as far as she could tell, no writer had detected that she had met up with him there.

However, Korra reflected, the lack of coverage was probably because all the reporters were too busy covering Shady Shin's unbelievable break-out from jail. Just hours after his escape, he'd led the Triple Threats into a turf war with the Red Monsoons that had resulted in several violent confrontations in seedier neighborhoods of the city. The conflict had taken up much of Korra's time for the last couple days, although she couldn't do much to help the police until they pinpointed Shin's hideout. Nevertheless, Tenzin and Lin had dragged her into enough "tactical meetings" and "strategizing sessions" that she hadn't had the opportunity to call Tahno as he'd requested of her. And if she were honest with herself, she had been too nervous to ring him up anyway. It had come as a great relief when Pema had given her a message from Tahno inviting her to come watch the Wolfbats train today.

As Korra stood on the sidewalk in front of the practice gym, anticipation to see Tahno again fluttered through her. Even with a dangerous criminal on the loose who she was supposed to help catch, she had found herself distracted by memories of her unplanned makeout session. More than once during meetings about the jailbreak, Lin had jabbed her sharp, armor-clad elbow into Korra's ribs to snap her out of her daydreams.

Korra stepped through the double doors into the gym. The space was set up more or less the same as she remembered it from when she had used it a few weeks ago to get ready for the exhibition game. It still smelled musty and teammates' voices echoed off the high ceilings and bare walls, although Cabbage Corp had clearly purchased naming rights to the practice space, as its ten-foot high logo adorned the far wall. They had also installed a couple rows of bleachers stamped with their company logo. Now that they were the official sponsors of the once-again popular Wolfbats, the company was very obviously doing everything it could to maximize its new investment in the pro-bending sport. Korra walked along one wall, nodding to practicing players who caught her eye, and climbed up to the top row of the bleachers to get a better view.

Up above the floor, Korra could see that three teams were already working out or running drills, but the Wolfbats hadn't arrived yet. Korra let out a breath she'd been holding, feeling a little disappointed and relieved at the same time. She noticed a couple refs sitting together down on the first row of bleachers. The younger ref - a curvy, round-faced Earth Kingdom woman with thick black hair tucked under her official's cap - glanced back at Korra coldly, but she turned away when Korra made eye contact. Korra shifted on the hard bench uncomfortably and wondered when Tahno would show up.

Finally, Tahno and his teammates strutted onto the floor and took their places in the designated target practice area directly in front of the seating. Ming and Shaozu went straight into their bending forms, but Tahno gave Korra a quick jerk of the chin acknowledging that he'd noticed her.

Korra raised her hand to respond, waving back at him uncertainly. His cool reception confused her. She had expected at least a smarmy wink now that he knew without a doubt that she was attracted to him. She had assumed that a guy like him wouldn't be able to resist some gesture reminding her of their mutual interest, given that he'd gotten so close to her just a few nights earlier. She feared that Maybe she had misread him once again.

Tahno crouched into a stance that would allow him to make rapid, direct hits. In spite of her concerns with Tahno's tepid reception of her, Korra admired his lithe form as he eviscerated the target in front of him. He was taller and slimmer than Mako - more so than she'd even realized until she'd had the opportunity to run her hands across his long arms and lean torso. Korra flushed remembering how she'd briefly felt the taut muscles of his lower back when she'd grown confident enough to run her fingers under his shirtm . She shook her head and forced herself to focus on the bending forms.

Despite the effort it took to concentrate, Korra was pleased that she now had the opportunity to observe Tahno's water bending style more closely; it was different than the way she'd learned to bend her native element. His movements were less smooth, and he incorporated more straight-armed jerks that resulted in more forceful hits to the targets. His style must be reflective of some kind of regional variation amongst the Swamp Tribe. Maybe sometime she could convince him to instruct her how to do the moves. Korra imagined Tahno standing shirtless in the swamp garden stream, gliding through the special forms to teach her. Maybe he would need to correct her stance a bit, pressing his chest up against her back as he adjusted the way she was holding her hands...

A shrill whistle from in front of her jarred her from the fantasy. The female ref who had given Korra the fish-eye earlier jumped off the bench and yelled across the gym, "Tahno, I saw that! Just because this is a practice doesn't mean you can use illegal icing moves!"

Tahno quickly melted the ice shard that he had hurtled into a target and turned to the ref. he gave her one of his signature smiles and a wink. Korra couldn't quell the sharp, sudden stab of jealousy over his gesture. Why hadn't he given her that treatment when she walked in? Korra stared at the ref, who was giggling musically in response. She seemed annoyingly cutesy in a way that Korra hadn't noticed when she'd first walked in, and her black tunic seemed clingier than the standard-issue official's uniform.

Ming held his earth disks hovering in the air and Shaozu extinguished the flames in his hands. Tahno gestured to them to carry on with their practice, then returned his attention to the irritating ref. "Wu, sweetheart, we go way back," he said in a low, oozing voice. "Promise you won't tell on an old friend?"

Wu smiled back, her incisors gleaming. She glanced over her shoulder at Korra, a corner of her mouth twitching upward. She looked back to Tahno and beckoned him to join her on the sidelines.

"Why don't you come over here and we'll discuss it." Korra gritted her teeth but forced herself to stay seated. The other ref, a short man with grey hair, threw his hands in the air and stood up stiffly. He huffed out of the gym, evidently exasperated with his colleague.

Tahno sauntered over and patted Wu playfully on the shoulder. Wu giggled and stood on her toes to whisper something in Tahno's ear. He leaned down to hear better - or to get a look down the woman's shirt, Korra thought while red threatened to overtake her vision. Tahno's eyes flicked to Korra as Wu whispered into his ear, his smirk still plastered to his face. Wu slipped something into Tahno's hand, which he transferred smoothly to his pocket. She smiled widely at him again, raised one infuriating eyebrow at Korra as though she knew something Korra didn't, then slunk off toward the exit to the street. Tahno's eyes didn't leave the ref until the door closed behind her. Rage spun through Korra's gut, a whirlpool of anger that twisted Korra straight out of her seat.

Tahno looked up again at Korra, his smile erased. Korra, standing with her hands fisted against her sides, glared back at him.

"Avatar Korra," he called out loudly, his voice projecting across the room, clearly seeking the attention of the other teams. Several nearby benders held their elements and looked over to see what Tahno was up to. Tahno glanced around as if to make sure that all eyes were on him before he spoke again. "What a pleasure to see you again. Dare I hope that you're here to visit me?"

Korra's eyes widened in disbelief. After the way he'd checked out the flirty ref in front of everyone, he was seriously addressing her this way? She wasn't about to let him use the opportunity to embarrass her publicly once again.

"Keep dreaming, jerkbender," she growled, then leapt from the top row down to the floor. She cushioned her drop with a gust of air and without looking back stormed out of the gym, through the exit that led to the locker rooms. She thought she heard Shaozu's guffaw echo across the space, which got cut off by the door whooshing shut behind her.

Korra stomped down the hall and pivoted the corner into the mercifully empty main locker room. A river of jealousy and humiliation coursed through her. She swung a fist as if to drive a hole straight through one of the lockers, but she halted herself half an inch away from the intended point of contact. Instead she placed her palm on the panel, then leaned in and rested her hot forehead against the surface. The metal felt cool and calming; she inhaled deeply to release the tension in her stomach. She knew her actions out there wouldn't do her any favors with the media, and she'd probably get an irritated call from Asami asking her why she was drawing attention to the gym sponsored by Future Industries' main business competitor.

Tahno's behavior mystified her. Why invite her out just to blatantly flirt with someone else in front of her? Maybe he was planning to tell her that he didn't feel the way she did. Perhaps he'd been using her all along, and now that he had acquired the sponsors and the publicity that she provided for him, he was done with her. And he even got the bonus of an ego boost in the form of Korra's misplaced attraction to him. Now he'd be able to point to the incident with the ref as proof that he was a desirable playboy once again. She covered her face with her hands and stuck out her tongue in disgust.

The door from the gym squealed open. "Korra, are you still here?" Tahno's voice echoed down the hall. His voice sounded strained, devoid of the liquid sensuality that poured out of him when he was speaking with Wu. She heard his boots clacking against the concrete floor toward the locker room.

"Korra," Tahno addressed her from the entryway. Korra looked up and narrowed her eyes at him, but she remained silent.


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After several anxiety-ridden days of contemplating how to get out of his promise to help Shin fix the bending matches, Tahno had finally worked out a scheme to get the gangster off his back once and for all. He needed Korra's help, so he'd invited her to practice with the intention of explaining his plans afterwards. But then he'd seen Wu in the stands, lying in wait like an unlucky black catgator just looking for the perfect opportunity cross his path and ruin his fortune. Of course Shin would have recruited /her/ as his contact. She was as crooked as a serrated blade, and just as dangerous. And unlike most of the refs who had been caught up in the bribery scheme, she had been sharp enough to avoid any charges. Tahno had had no choice but to play on her vanity and pretend to go along with Shin's wishes, in spite of Korra's presence.

The layers of intrigue wearied Tahno to his core. Now that he was just steps away from Korra, he wanted nothing more than to forget everything and press her up against the lockers and bury his face in her hair - but Korra's stony expression stopped him in his tracks. She was clearly angry with him, but even her vengeful visage could not hide the deep pain in her eyes.

"Korra," he repeated, and took a cautious step forward. She broke eye contact and grunted, but said nothing further.

It had pained Tahno to flirt with Wu in front of Korra like that, but it couldn't be avoided. He only hoped that Korra would give him the chance to explain. He approached her and placed a hand lightly on her shoulder, which she quickly shrugged off. He got another whiff of the temple incense from her; the scent took him straight back to the alley with his lips against hers and her hair sticking to his cheek. Again he fought the urge to grab her around the waist and pull her to him.

He sighed, pushing the pleasant image from his mind. "I think I owe you an explanation," he said softly, trying to catch her eye.

"More like you owe me an apology," Korra huffed. She folded her arms in front of her chest, accentuating the curve of her bust.

Tahno tried his best to keep his eyes on her face. "That too," he conceded.

Korra pressed her lips into a thin line. She still appeared serious, but her eyes told Tahno that he was reaching her. She bit her lip, then spoke with less acid in her voice. "So who was that girl anyway? You seemed pretty -" she paused and coughed, "- familiar with her."

That was one way of putting it, Tahno thought. "She's an arrogant bully who should have her referee status revoked," he spat. Korra's brows furrowed in confusion. "Actually, I need to talk to you about -"

A buzzer blared from the main gym, and a gruff voice crackled over the loudspeaker. "Morning practice has now concluded. Please exit the gym."

Tahno cursed under his breath, exasperated. Would he never get the chance to talk with Korra uninterrupted? He looked over his shoulder, then grasped Korra's forearms. Her nostrils flared, but she did not pull away. "We can't talk here. I know you're still angry, but it would be easier to discuss this someplace private, like my apartment."

Korra scoffed. "You have got to be kidding me. After the way you flirted with that girl right in front of me and everybody else?"

The door from the gym whooshed open again, and the sound of several benders filing through clattered down the hall. Shaozu's laughter, distorted by the echoes, rung out like a warning. Tahno knew that the locker room would be filled with teams in less than a minute. He had to make his point quickly.

"Korra -" he whispered harshly. He put one hand on the back of her head and the other on her chin and lurched toward her, pressing his lips hard against hers. Her eyes popped open in surprise, but he pulled back before she had the chance to react. He clasped her hand in his and urged her toward the back exit that led to a side street. "We gotta go."

Korra's eyes flicked down to Tahno's mouth, then back behind her, where the benders were steps away from entering. She nodded and squeezed his hand. The two slipped out just as Tahno's teammates crossed the threshold into the locker room.


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A/N: A little shorter than planned, but I wanted you to know that I am still continuing this fic. Got some good stuff going for the next chapter. Thank you to everyone who has reviewed and read so far, and an especially big THANK YOU to Ranger of the Forest, who has been kind enough to encourage and critique just about every chapter. Til next time - SA