Several classes go by in a hurry. Korra is learning fast. She knows this. It's somewhat heartening.

But the Equalists have been more public. Bolder. Korra fears it's not fast enough.

The green-eyed friend of the brown-haired girl never looks at Korra, but that's okay. She's willing to leave him be if it'll avoid picking wounds. So she sits in the corner as the last class packs up, and joins Master Chuang when they are gone.

"What're we working on tonight?"

"The usual," he says.

Which they do. First, two hours of punching. Korra's fists have hardened and they no longer bleed, but it's still soothing to bend water over them when she's finished. One hour of blocking drills. She's much more capable of turning aside Chuang's strikes now. She might miss one every now and then, and that frustrates her, but Chuang reminds her nothing is perfect.

"I make mistakes as well. Some of your blocks are made possible by my mistakes, just as some of my blocks are made possible by yours."

Korra nods. It's a wise lesson, she knows. But for her it's a matter of taking it to heart. "Everyone makes mistakes."

"Yes. I've already told you of mine."

Korra tries to focus on the drills but they are mundane now, and her mind wanders. Block. What mistakes have I made? Slap. Who have I hurt? Turn. How can I fix them? Block.

The answers don't want to come – she has to force them. She's been reckless. Beifong. Tenzin. She's hurt her friends. Bolin. But she's fixed those mistakes too, at least partially. I'm sorry. I'll be a better student. I'll be a better friend. I promise.

Doubts linger. When can I not afford to make mistakes?

This is the question that bothers her. People make mistakes. But in the stories, heroes don't. In the stories, Aang never did. He always did what was right and he did it well, because the fate of the world was in his hands. And now, Republic City is in Korra's. And she doesn't know if she can afford mistakes.

She and Chuang close the evening with self-defense, and they run through the basic and advanced sets. She can do most of them without a second thought, and Chuang seems satisfied, if his slight nod notes acceptance. He's a hard master to please, and different from Tenzin in many ways.

Before they finish he teaches her something new. "Kick me," he says.

She throws a roundhouse, as quick as she can. Chuang catches her foot and holds her leg against his stomach, but Korra gets a bit of satisfaction out of seeing him shudder from the blow.

"Your kicks are formidable, and they are easily your greatest weapon after your bending. If that is taken from you, though, there is away to turn it to your advantage."

Korra hops to keep her balance. "How?"

"Jump off of your other foot and sweep that leg behind my knees. At the same time, apply pressure with the leg I have, and bring me down."

She tries. It's awkward at first, and she only manages to land hard on her back, Chuang still standing, but she understands the principle. A few more tries and she has Chuang on the ground. They practice it over and over until she can reliably sweep him and take control of the situation. Korra knows she'll need to practice it more, but she recognizes it as a handy tool.

"Good. When you've brought your opponent down with you, you must be ready to finish the fight. Don't give them time to recover."

Korra rolls away and sits up, and Chuang does the same, crossing his legs. Korra adjusts her waist fur. "Finish them, huh?"

"Yes."

She sets her elbows on her knees and rubs her temples. "I don't… I don't want to make any mistakes."

"You will make mistakes. We went over this-"

"Yea, but… listen. Sir. I know I'm going to have to fight Amon at some point. I mean, maybe I won't, but he's made it clear he wants to bring me down. And the feeling is mutual." She sighs and looks away. "He's crazy and dangerous, and he needs to be brought to justice, or he needs…"

There is a pause. Chuang adds, "Or he needs to be removed."

"Yes."

Silence.

Korra sits there, inspecting the mirrors. She looks at her reflection, and she sees one person: Korra of the Southern Water Tribe. But she knows there are two: Korra and the Avatar.

I have a duty.

She stands and turns to Chuang. "What if I had to remove him? Kill Amon? Do whatever was necessary to make sure the city is safe?"

Chuang stands as well. "I would say that is a wise decision."

"And what if… what if I had to kill those who used to be your friends? The students you trained. Whoever they are. What if they're in the way, and I need to make a decision about them, too?"

This Chuang doesn't answer. Instead he too looks at the mirrors. It's so hard to read him, and Korra doesn't have a gut instinct to play off, like she did with Hiroshi. She steps closer, trying to read his expression. His face is pocked and pitted. It's not a feature she's used to seeing, and she's never really paid attention to it on Chuang, so the extent of his scarring is… awful, to say the least. She wonders how he got it…

That's when he strikes.

He's upon her before she can even think, and he slaps her arm away and his knuckles shoot explosions of pain down her side. For once the instinct to bend isn't there and Korra swings, but he ducks and does the same under her other arm.

So her bending is gone. It takes her a moment to realize he deliberately neutralized it. Panic sprouts.

Shit.

The punches come, one, two, three. She blocks them all and counters with her own. The first misses, but the second palm crunches into Chuang's ribs, and the third connects with his jaw. He grunts and backpedals. Korra keeps the pressure on, hopping forward and pummeling his head with more strikes, even as he guards his face. She uses the opportunity to throw a snapping kick into his gut, but her foot meets hard muscle.

A haymaker rushes for Korra's temple, and she gets inside the swing, knuckling his inner arm and throwing an elbow into his neck, but it only clashes with his collarbone. She feels a punch slam into her ribs. Then another. She spins away into a roundhouse kick that connects with his shoulder, and then pushes off with that foot and throws another into his chest. Chuang grunts again but barrels forward, trying to throw her off with a flurry of strikes to the face.

Korra wants to try her bending but there's no time. Chuang grabs her wrist and she twists her hand and slips out, and at the same time blasts a punch into his solar plexus. Chuang isn't ready for it. He stumbles. Korra follows up with a side kick to the gut.

But he catches her foot scant inches before it connects, and twists. Korra yelps and plummets, slamming into the wood floor. Instinct kicks in and she tries to bend, and-

"Augh!" A small flame spouts from the sole of her boot. Chuang covers his face and staggers, falling on his rear. Korra is on her feet in an instant, ready to bring it to a close. Finish the fight.

But she stops. She summons flames, but makes no move.

"I don't want to kill you."

Chuang's breath comes in ragged heaves. "I hope not. I don't want to die yet." For the first time in front of Korra he laughs, and then grimaces.

"Why? Don't tell me it was a test."

He laughs again. "But it was! It was a test. And you passed."

A test. Korra doesn't know if she should believe him, but she knows she can't bring herself to kill him. She swallows. Her fire sputters out, and she closes her eyes. "No, I didn't. You would've had me if your chi-blocking hadn't worn off."

Chuang is still clutching his face with one hand. He waves at Korra with the other. "That wasn't the test. I wanted to see-" He coughs. "I wanted to know if you'd fight back. If you'd give it your all."

Korra grits her teeth. "What good is my all, if I couldn't win without bending?"

Chuang drags himself to the wall and takes a drink from a skin. When he turns back his face is no longer covered. It's not bad – rather, it could have been worse – but there's a fat streak of ugly red across his chin and cheek, and his left eyebrow is singed off. "Bending, non-bending, it doesn't matter. What matters is you were able to prove you are willing to do what is necessary to succeed. And in this battle – this struggle for the city – success is everything." He takes another swig of water and gingerly touches his face, scowling in pain.

Korra looks at the ceiling. She knows she should be excited. She knows she should be proud for performing so well and learning what this man has to offer. She shakes her head anyway. "How can… how can you accept this? I came into your school with demands, and you took me in. But you lost a student, and now your face…"

Chuang takes a deep breath. He shuffles to lean against the wall. "I would only feel regret if I'd sent the Avatar to her death. The world is rarely black and white, remember that. I fear some of my students believe it is. I will have failed if you do too." He drinks again.

Black and white. Yet another important lesson. Korra's been learning so many lessons lately, but she doesn't want to learn them by hurting others. Especially those close to her.

The room is silent for some time. Eventually, Chuang says, "Thank you for sparing my life."

For some reason this makes Korra laugh. It probably isn't appropriate, but she can't help it. It lets some light back into her soul. "I don't think…" She clears her throat. "I don't think I'm going to kill a master who gave me a fighting chance." She grins. Maybe it's a day of firsts, because Chuang smirks back.

Korra walks over to him and sits, bowing from a kneeling position. Then she bends water from his drinking skin. "The wound's still raw. I might be able to help."

Chuang looks at her, and then the globule of water floating between her palms. He stares at it for a long time, as though it contains life's greatest mysteries. But Korra is patient for once. She waits, water in hand.

After a while, he says, "Yes. Thank you."