Wow, I didn't know anyone wanted this story back. I'm glad I have been able to give a few of you something to enjoy! And by earlier comments, I didn't think you guys wanted much smut. This story was originally nothing but, but I promise there will be more shortly if that is in deed what the majority wants. Not in this chapter, but soon. This chapter was rushed, so forgive it.
I don't own Legend of Korra, just a computer and a sad little story.
The Complete Story
Ch. 11
Lightning
After their … edible... dinner with Gommu, he quickly ran off to "take care of official business". Korra began to fill everyone in on what had happened at the rally as they prepared their bedding in the usual spot in the center of the undercity. She basically stated that they learned nothing with the exception that bending is now illegal and that Amon was prepared to fight the United Forces.
"We have to find a way to help them. My father will be prepared with his inventions. The tanks will be able to stop the ships from porting."
"We'll be there to help," Korra tried to sound reassuring.
A small girl, no older than 8 years, ran up to the avatar and hugged her. The girl had tattered cloths and no shoes, but her eyes sparkled. Korra smiled slightly and patted the girl on the head.
"No you don't!" Mako grabbed the hand of the little girl's twin who pick-pocketed Asami and was making away with her pendant. The one hugging Korra had been a decoy to distract from the other. The second girl pulled away from Mako and both ran quickly back through the tents.
Korra sighed and shook her head. She knew the last thing on her mind should be the welfare of the homeless in Republic city, what with the Revolution taking over, but she couldn't help the constant sight of people who needed her help. She had done what she could for now and marked several tunnels leading out of the city and was about to spread the word around for what to look for in case of an emergency evacuation.
"That doesn't explain why you were gone so long," She snapped mostly at Mako. Apparently saving her necklace didn't absolve him from her anger.
"We followed the tunnels outside the city to get some fresh air," He said nonchalantly.
Bolin whined, "You could have came back for us! I would love to be outside again!"
"It isn't safe, Bo. Besides, it is almost dark!"
"Well, I'm going. Just for a moment to see the sun set! I promise to be careful."
Mako knew there was no arguing with him. Asami spoke up that she would go with him to watch him back. Mako shrugged his shoulders and muttered "whatever". He noted the sly glare and grin Asami gave him before falling into an unusually close step behind Bolin.
He turned to Korra, "Maybe I should just let her go to Tahno."
Korra knew he wasn't serious, and just smiled. Asami would probably have a better time with Tahno, seeing as how the other three quarters of Team Avatar liked to accompany Gommu, she had no choice but to put up with him. Tahno would probably have better food, in which Korra sorely missed. She had stomached the hobo's gruel better than Asami, but barely. She liked Asami, and although she wasn't sure how things would work out between all of them, but she wanted them all to still be together at the end of it. She tried to think of the future. Every ending she could envision always had the outcome with someone being hurt… She quickly changed the subject.
"So, where did you learn to bend lightning?"
The fire bender bit the inside of his cheek. He could tell her that he just learned it on the streets, which would be true enough. But he felt the need to tell her everything about him. He was aware that he needed to know if she would still think as highly of him if she knew…
"Remember when Bo got kidnapped by the equalist? We were in the park and I told you about why he was running around with the Triple Threat Triad?"
"You said you use to run numbers for them, 'back in the day'. That you needed to do what you could to keep you and Bolin safe," She left out the part about her erroneously calling him a criminal.
"That wasn't the complete story. I worked directly for Lightning Bolt Zolt."
"Lightning Bolt Zolt. He was the guy, the first one at the rally that got his bending taken."
Mako nodded, "He got his fortune by loaning people money. What I heard was that he was honest when first started, giving people fair chances to pay back their debt to him. But he quickly realized that he could intimidate people with his bending. He started striking deals that he knew the other person couldn't hold up to. It was six months after my parents died that Zolt saw me on the street. I was begging anyone I could for money to help my sick little brother. Bolin had came down with some sort of pocks, and I was desperate. Zolt must have saw I would do about anything to take care of my brother. He loaned me the money to see a healer and get the medicine if I agreed to work for him and keep my mouth shut. In the beginning I just ran the books that recorded the deals. If someone missed a payment I would tell him. I knew he was a crooked man, but he had gotten the medicine Bolin needed and paid me just enough to keep us from starving. He even let us sleep in a shed he had behind his headquarters."
"Why would he hire a kid?" Korra asked. It didn't sound like responsibility a kid could handle.
"Several reasons actually. A kid's testimony wouldn't hold up in trial if I ratted on him. A kid couldn't overthrow him, or have the guts to cheat him either. A kid could be easily scared, which I was when he told me what happened to the last guy who worked the books and was taking money that he didn't think Zolt would miss. But I think it was mostly that he knew I was desperate. I watched him do his deals, the beginnings and the ends, neither were pleasant by any means. He dealt with desperate people every day, he knew how to read them. He knew I would never put Bolin at risk. Myself yes… but I would do anything to take care of my brother."
"Let me guess, you realized at one point you were doing the wrong thing because you were working for a hoodlum. You turned your life around and somehow managed to land at the arena?"
Mako snorted, "Hardly. I wish it had been like that," He looked back down the pipe. He wished he could see the sun. He got his strength for his bending from the sun and often found emotional strength as well, " As I kept up with the books, Bolin kept the members of the gang entertained while they come and went. Part of the Triple Threats split off and formed their own gang, the Red Monsoons. Zolt was furious. He turned his rage on Bolin. He said Bolin should have seen this coming with as much as he talked with everyone. I ran in front of my brother before he could get off to many shots. He decided I was just as guilty as my brother and hit me with several bursts of lightning. I screamed, but didn't pass out like he expected. After he stopped I just stood up and continued on to the books. That's when he realized he could use me for other tasks. Instead of putting himself in harm's way with his deals, he would send me. He knew I couldn't refuse. He saw it as another deal, where I did what he wanted and he let my brother live."
Korra tried to restrain herself. She was working hard on controlling her temper. She understood him protecting Bolin but, even if he had been forced into it, there was no excuse for hurting innocent people. With difficulty, she let him continue his story uninterrupted.
"He started my 'training' every afternoon after I did my book keeping. He would take me outside and shoot bolts at me. He did this every day until I learned to redirect it. Some days he lost patience with me, those were the days I ended up unconscious. He didn't teach me how to conjure it, instead he gave me a small igniter," he held up his hands, "That is when I started wearing gloves, so I could keep it concealed. It was enough to scare people into thinking I could bend lightning. He encouraged it, but I never hurt anyone. I would redirect the bolt to scare them, but never once hit anyone. The scare tactic had always been enough."
Korra couldn't keep quiet any longer, "Did it hurt?"
"Every time," his eyes were a mask of pain. Images of his past danced in front of him. He had to tell her… if anything was to happen to him, someone should know.
"I have to tell you something that I have never told anyone before this, Korra. Bolin can never know, no one can. Do you understand?" She nodded, afraid of what he would tell her next, "I had been working for Zolt for three years when one day he asked me to look up an old record on a boy's uncle. He had hurt the uncle so bad in his confrontation to get his payment, that he had put the man permanently in the hospital and unable to repay his dept. The nephew was now looking to do a deal. Zolt was going to hold his uncle's debt above his head as well. It took me a while to go back and find the paper because it was before I started keeping record for him. As I was searching, I found a page that had my father's name and title. It was a record of the order to rob him. It had deceased written across it and a list of items that was taken from him."
Korra's jaw dropped. "Oh Mako, I'm sorry."
Mako shrugged, "I went straight to confront him. He told me that it wasn't anything personal, that he had known of an official coming from Yu Dao and just sent his guys out to get some quick cash for a big deal that was going on. He didn't order them to kill him, but that sometimes happens when the mugged fight back. That's the exact moment I learned to bend lightning myself. I shot a bolt straight for Zolt. He was surprised and barely redirected it. The fight lasted only long enough for him to get two shots at me. I was down and couldn't get up. He should have killed me that day, I still don't understand why he didn't, I was too dangerous to trust from then on. He dismissed me with the threat that if I ever came near him, Bolin would be the one to suffer. So we left and I told Bo to never deal with the Triple Threats, or any of the gangs. It wasn't long before I was fighting the other street kids again for the rights to a dumpster to keep us fed. A man showed us how to get to the undercity. For the next year we lived in a run-down abandoned building. I got lucky that one day I was going through a dumpster trying to find cloths that would fit us when I got into another fight. Toza, the owner of the arena, came to break us up. He told me I had spunk and then asked me to lift and toss some heavy boxes around for him in exchange for a meal. He was looking for someone to tend to his building and move heavy equipment and offered me the opportunity. I agreed instantly, worked hard, but still couldn't get us off the street. After his arena made probending a recognized sport, he was able to move into his own house and I was able to talk him into letting us pay rent to live in his apartment over the arena. Bolin and I trained in our spare time since we had free access to the gym. I decided to try our luck at the tournament this year. And that's pretty much where you came in."
Korra could only stare at him. It was a lot of information to process.
"So you and Bolin weren't born in Republic City?"
Mako shook his head. "No, we are from a town that both fire benders and earth benders have lived since the beginning of the hundred year war."
"Didn't the Harmony Restoration Movement make all the fire benders move back to the Fire Nation?"
"Not from this town. So many of the fire nation were married to earth kingdom citizens and they were living together, intertwined."
That is why Mako could fire bend and Bolin Earth bend. Their parents must have been different benders. Mako's parents had been rich or Zolt wouldn't have bothered to specifically rob them, or even remember them. She opened her mouth to voice the thousand questions rushing into her thoughts, her curiosity was fighting to find out more. But she saw the weariness in those amber eyes she loved so much. She took his hand in her's and squeezed it. Questions could wait. She leaned in with every intent of letting her kisses comfort him. But he pulled away just before their lips met and ran after a little girl who was finally successful in getting a tiger's eye pendant that didn't belong to her and trying to hock it for a new pair of shoes.
When Mako came stomping back, amulet in hand, he barely had time to huff his annoyance when Bolin and Asami came running back, looking for the lost piece of jewelry. Comfort would have to wait.
That night, Mako took up his usual position against a far wall to keep his usual watch. He couldn't sleep even if he had tried. All he could think about was Korra's unknown thoughts about his childhood. He had only told her what had happened after his parents death. Before seemed to much like a dream from another life. He wanted to tell Korra of that, of the good times. But even those he couldn't bring himself to confide in her just yet. He watched the silent actions of the homeless at night as he guarded his family. That is how he saw all of them now, as his family. As hard as he tried, his thoughts kept returning to Korra. He would have given anything to continue their time alone that afternoon. Korra could wind him up the way no one else could, even the most beautiful and rich heiress in town. She had felt so good against him, and he wanted more. He got to his feet and walked silently over to the Avatar, who he found awake and propped up against Naga.
"Can't sleep either?" He asked her, approaching silently at her side and taking a seat next to her.
"No. I have this awful pit in my stomach."
"Me too."
She wanted to talk with him about what he had confided in her earlier, but Bolin was close and she didn't want to chance him overhearing. Instead, she went with the only other thought that was on her mind.
"It's so crazy. a few months ago I was in the South Pole practicing for my fire bending test, and now I'm in the middle of an all out war…" It was an awkward statement, but she went with it.
"I know. We didn't even know each other then. And now, I can't imagine my life without you in it. You're the most loyal brave selfless and loyal person I've ever known." His words came easily, and honestly. He wanted to tell her more, but Asami was probably awake and hanging on every word they say.
Even through all they had been through, Korra couldn't grasp that he really felt this way about her. She thought to herself, more times than she cared to admit, that he only endeared her for her destiny. She was born special, and was tied and obliged to lead this life. He didn't know that she thought perhaps even more highly of him, even knowing his past. She wanted him to know.
"I think you're' pretty incredible to… but you already knew that,"
Mako felt the weight of not knowing if she held his wrongs against him. He read the truth in her voice. The spark that passed between them outside the city was there again and without realizing it, he moved closer to her.
But Korra realized what was happening, resisted the urge to continue, and pulled away.
"I should probably try to get some sleep,"
"Me too. Goodnight."
And with that, Mako's insecurities returned. And Korra's resolve strengthened.
"Goodnight" she whispered. Korra realized, just before sleep took her, that history was repeating itself. Mako was Tezin, but she wasn't sure whether she could honestly say she was Pema. She was in the position where Mako was with someone and she was fighting for him… or maybe not… maybe she seemed more like Beifong in personality and in growing apart. Asami in every way seemed Pema-ish.
She hoped that the conclusion would come before Amon could get his hands on her?
