A/N: Chapter ten now up! I hope you all enjoy, and remember to leave a review. I saw the beginning of the real S2 of Legend of Korra, and it looks good! So just to clear things up, this story is a bit AU, and happens sometime between spirits and air. Oh, and in response to krikanalo, you're right, no one in the avatar world has blonde hair. but I thought it would be a unique feature b/c of that.
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Chapter Ten: Aftermath
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Korra took a deep breath as she rode Naga up to the brothers' apartment. It had been four days since councilman Yi Ming's murder, and the Arbiter had made no announcment pertaining to whom his next target may be. She welcomed the temporary peace, hoping that the Arbiter's shoulder injury was enough to silence him for a long time. But the Arbiter wasn't what Korra was worried about, at the moment. It was Mako.
Ever since the Arbiter had revealed she and Bolin's secret, Mako seemed to have dropped off the map. He hadn't visited her at the airtemple, hadn't gone to work at the power plant, and hadn't been answering a single one of her calls. It was as if he had cut her off completely. Up until now, she had felt to nervous and too guilty to visit him at home, but aafter four days of silence, she couldn't wait any longer.
Nervously, she hopped off her giant polarbear dog and walked up to Bolin and Mako's doorstep. "Okay, Korra, you can do this," she told herself. Korra gave the door a few hesitant knocks and then waited outside with baited breath.
Maybe Mako's been resting this whole time. Maybe he just hasn't left his house and was too tired to take calls!
Her optimistic and confident thoughts quickly fled as the knob turned and the door cracked open. Korra looked through the small crack and saw a single green eye staring back at her.
"Who goes there?" a suspicious voice asked Korra
The avatar glared and rolled her eyes. Bolin was not who she wanted to see right now. "Bolin, you know it's me. Is Mako home?"
"Go away you… you… sabertooth moose lion!" Bolin shouted back at her. She heard a purr through the door, and then Bolin added, "Pabu doesn't want to see you either!" The door slammed shut and the avatar heard the lock click into place.
Korra face-palmed in frustration. "Bolin, if you don't open this door, I'm breaking it down!" she threatened angrily. But the door stayed shut. "BOLIN!" she tried again, stomping angrily to emphasize her point. Yet again, there was no response.
That's it. I warned him.
Korra stepped backwards, away from the door, and sent a huge gust of wind through it, knocking the door right off its hinges and across the brothers' room. Bolin's head peeked in from the side of the hole that was once his door, and glared once he saw Korra. "Pabu told you to go away."
Korra stormed in uninvited and stomped right up to Bolin. She jabbed him in the chest with her finger, accusingly, and demanded, "Where's Mako?! I need to talk to him!"
"Of course you do," Korra heard him mutter under his breath, in a voice that almost sounded hurt. "He's been gone for the past three days," Bolin told Korra as he stooped down to clean up the mess she had made, "Came in here after getting fixed up, grabbed his bag, and then left. Never said a word to me."
So Bolin doesn't know where he is either? A lot of help this visit was.
"UGH!" Korra groaned. She turned to Bolin, who was still picking up pieces of broken wood, and shouted, "This is all your fault, you know!"
"My fault? What did I do?" He responded angrily, "YOU kissed me!"
He does have me there. Korra wouldn't let him win, though, she had too much pent up frustration to just give up. "Yeah, but you seduced me!" Okay, weak argument.
Bolin threw his hands up in exasperation, "Fine Korra, I seduced you. Can you please leave Pabu and I alone? He was in the middle of breakfast." Korra looked over to the fire ferret, which had his tiny head buried in a little bowl of chow. The ferret looked up at her and let out a low coo, and then went back to eating.
"Yeah, you did…" Korra didn't know why being right didn't make her feel any better. She looked around at the messy room and saw that it was strangely empty. Most of the pictures Mako and Bolin had hung on the wall were gone, as well as the sheets on Bolin's bed. The kitchen was unnaturally clean and on the table was a large bag overflowing with green t-shirts and snack bags.
"What's going on?" Korra asked in a less upset tone.
Bolin turned around to see what she was referring to, and saw that she was pointing at his duffel bag. He shrugged nonchalantly and answered, "I'm moving out of Republic City for a little while."
"YOU'RE WHAT?!"
Korra was shocked. Bolin, out of all people, was moving out of Republic City? She stared at the earthbender, completely flabbergasted. What could have possibly caused him to make such a decision? I know he's upset, but moving out? Isn't that a bit extreme?
"Why?" she asked him, "Why would you leave your home?"
"My brother abandoned me, Korra. You're going to abandon me. The Arbiter is going to throw this city to the dogs. There's just nothing left for me here," he told her shakily. Even though she couldn't see it, Korra knew that Bolin was holding back tears. This wasn't the hopeful and optimistic Bolin that she knew. This was… someone else.
Bolin picked Pabu up and stuffed the ferret in his shirt, then grabbed the bag from off of the table. He slung it over his shoulder and turned to her. Korra felt her spirits break as she saw his hopeless expression. The Arbiter had done it. He had broken the best of them.
"I was planning on going this morning," he told Korra solemnly.
Korra crossed her arms and glared at him. "So you were just going to leave without telling me?"
"Why would I? You and I aren't on the best terms right now."
The avatar winced at his words. He's right, I probably would have just yelled at him…
"But I… we… You can't just run away! We have to face th-"
"Korra," he cut her off, putting one hand on her shoulder. Once he was sure she was listening, he continued, "I'm not going to act like I think what we did was a mistake. I care about you more than you can ever imagine, but you chose my brother and I respect your decision. But for so long I've been following you two around as some kind of unwilling third wheel."
"Bolin, you can't leave us! Mako and I need you if we're going to beat the Arbiter!"
"You guys are fine without me!" he yelled back, "I'm sure you two will get over this quickly and go back to making kissy face in no time!"
Korra's face turned bright red at Bolin's remark. "Is that what this is really about? Me and Mako? Is that why you're leaveing?"
"In a way." He took a deep breath and pulled out a small box from his pocket. Korra watched as he opened it and revealed a large beautiful sea pearl, something that would have cost him two years of salary. "I was going to give this to you after our first date, but never got to because of… obvious reasons. Here." Bolin handed her the box.
Korra took the box in her hands, staring at the pearl with wonder. It was one of the nicest gifts anyone had ever gotten her. She felt her anger and resentment melt away as she held the gem of the sea. "Where will you go?"
"To Ba Sing Se," he answered, "I've heard it's incredible, that anyone can start anew there. Hopefully, I can make a life for myself in the walled city."
Korra looked up to him and smiled wryly. His face was red, his mouth was twitching, and his eyes were damp. No matter how hard he tried, he could never hide his emotions. Bolin was too… Bolin.
"I hope you find what you're looking for." Korra threw her arms around Bolin and hugged him tightly, not wanting to let go. Bolin began to shake as he hugged her back, his breaths growing heavier.
"Bye Korra," he sniffled goofily. Korra hugged him tighter as a tear rolled down her cheek. That's the Bo I know. The two friends released each other reluctantly. Bolin wiped the tears from his eyes and gave her one last nod before heading out the door. Right before he left, though, he called back, "Make sure to lock the door behind you. If Mako finds out I left it open again, he'll hunt me down for sure."
Korra giggled softly. "No problem Bo."
The earthbender waved a final goodbye and walked off with bag, ticket, and ferret in hand, leaving Korra all alone in the empty apartment. "Bye Bolin…" she whispered to herself as she slumped down on the brothers' couch. Korra felt as if part of her had just walked out with him.
"In other news, a woman was saved this morning by what she claims to be a shadow bender, more on that after the commercial break. Oh, and don't forget to stay tuned, at twelve PM, we have a special guest coming to discuss councilman Yi Ming's death!"
Korra looked over to the radio on the kitchen counter, which was playing the Republic City news. I guess Bolin forgot to turn this off on the way out. She stood up to switch the radio off, when she heard the phone sound. Korra froze when she heard the ring. Could it be Mako? Shit, what do I say?
She ran over to the phone and picked it up. Hurridly, she put it to her ear and answered, "Hello?"
"Korra!" she heard Mai Lee respond.
Korra sighed in dissapointment, "Hey Mai Lee."
"Tenzin told me that you'd be here. Hanging out with Mako's brother already? Oh this is just like a play I saw! Is Mako going mad with jealousy? Are they fighting for your honor, brother against brother? This is so exciting!" Korra clenched her fists angrily. The girl obviously hadn't heard of bounderies.
Finally, after hearing Mai Lee ramble on for too long, Korra snapped. "SHUT UP!" she shouted over the phone, "This isn't some drama! How can you be so bubbly when a terrorist is killing this city one leader at a time!"
Mai Lee was silent for a bit, but soon spoke up again. "Sorry Korra… I guess I was just trying to brighten the mood," she apologized.
Korra felt a twang a guilt tug at her gut. "It's fine Mai Lee, just tell me what you want."
"Oh, well I was wondering if you and I could meet up at the Jasmine Dragon tea shop! Since my sisters are still recovering from their injuries, I thought that maybe we could get to know each other a little better."
Korra thought some time to clear her head might be a good thing, so she accepted. She had never been to the Jasmine Dragon, but she heard it made the best tea in the entire Republic of Nations. I could use some tea, and maybe Mai Lee's company might not be too bad. I do still need to ask why the Arbiter saved her.
"Great!" Mai Lee cheered, "I'll see you in a bit!"
Korra hung up the phone and lay back down on the couch in exauhstion. Maybe Mai Lee will know where Mako is, she told herself as she closed her eyes, ready to take a quick nap before meeting with the kyoshi leader.
Korra arrived at the Jasmine Dragon a half an hour before the twelve o'clock lunch. Because most people were not yet on their break, the teashop was fairly empty, with the exception of a few elderly gentleman and Mai Lee, who was practically bouncing in her seat. Korra laughed to herself a bit, wondering if the girl ever ran out of energy.
When Mai Lee spotted the young avatar, she smiled brightly and waved excitedly. "Hey Korra, over here!" she yelled a tad too loud. The rest of the costumers turned their attention to Korra and simply glared, as if she had committed some sort of heinous crime. Annoyed costumers would not deter Mai Lee, though. "Korra, c'mon!" she shouted again. Does she think I can't see her?
Korra smiled and walked over to Mai Lee's table to sit down with her. "I'm glad you came," Mai Lee said as Korra took her seat.
"I can't say I've ever been here before." Korra looked around and saw that the old men and women were still glaring at her hostily, even though Mai Lee had lowered her voice. "What's their problem?" she asked.
Mai Lee leaned close and whispered back, "I think they're upset with the pile up on mainstreet. A lot of these people probably have sons and daughters on the police force."
"But I'm with the police? Why would they be upset with me?" It suddenly hit her.
The Arbiter! He's convinced them that I'm failing my duties! Damnit, he's actually getting to people! Korra glared back at the angry elders. Who were they to judge her? I'd like to see them try and be the avatar…
"Don't worry about them. Those senile old men don't know a thing," Mai Lee assured her, hoping to cheer up her friend.
Korra smiled thankfully to the bubbly kyoshi warrior. "You're right. Thanks, Mai Lee."
The two waited patiently until a waitress approached their table holding a small booklet. "Good afternoon, what will you two be having?" she asked politely, taking out a pen and preparing to write their orders.
Korra looked through all the different teas, but couldn't manage to distinguish one from another. Tenzin was a bit of a tea aficionado, and had tried to teach Korra about the different types of leaf juice, but she never managed to get a hang of it. It wasn't that she didn't like tea; in fact it was one of her favorite beverages. But most brews tasted the same to her. She hadn't found one that had distinctly caught her interest.
"I'll have Maojian, please," Mai Lee told the waitress. The woman scribbled it down and then looked impatiently at Korra.
"Um," Korra said, still trying to think of a tea to order, "I guess I'll just have what she's having."
The waitress nodded and walked off to go give the tea maker their orders. Korra sighed with relief; she hated being put on the spot like that. "So Korra, do you think the Arbiter will leave us alone, now? He hasn't been heard from in four days now," Mai Lee asked as she played with her braid, coiling her brown hair around her index finger.
Korra shrugged, "I don't know what he's doing. Hopefully that shoulder injury put him out of commission."
"Yeah!" Mai Lee cheered, pumping her fist up in the air. "I really got him with that knife, didn't I! You know, Zula's mom taught she and I all about throwing weapons. Apparently she had learned it from her mom, Fire Lady Mai."
"Fire Lady Mai was Fire Lord Zuko's wife, right?" Korra asked, "I heard she could stare a sabretooth moose lion into submission."
"Yep, that was her! She was also my grandma's best friend."
Korra couldn't imagine how someone like Mai Lee could get along with someone like Fire Lady Mai. I guess opposites attact. Just look at me and… me and Mako…
Mai Lee noticed Korra's expression darken and her gaze drop to the floor. "Korra," she said in a concerned tone of voice, "I'm sure Mako's fine. He's old enough to take care of himself."
"I'm not worried about his safety," Korra explained, "But Mako can get pretty brash when he's angry. I just hope he doesn't do anything stupid…"
"He's a smart guy, cool and collected. I seriously doubt he'll do anything too dumb."
She's right, Mako is one of the smartest guys I know. He'll come back; I know he will.
"So how about Bolin? How's he holding up?"
Korra looked away guiltily. "He's fine," she lied, hoping that Mai Lee wouldn't pick up on her sudden change of pitch, "Bo just needs some time to himself. He's Bolin, after all, his spirit's almost as uncrushable as yours."
Mai Lee nodded. "Well my spirit, along with the rest of my body, almost got crushed last night."
"I've been meaning to ask you about that," Korra said, eager to change the subject, "Do you have any idea why he might have saved you?"
"I don't know, Korra. The only reason I can think of is that he felt guilty for all those officers and councilmembers he had killed," Mai Lee answered truthfully.
"I don't know…"
"Your tea," the two heard their waitress say as she bent over with the tea tray, placing it perfectly in the middle of their table. Korra nodded a thank you to the woman and took a sip from her tea. The drink was extremely sweet, almost too sweet, just like Mai Lee. But Korra didn't mind, a little sweet is what she needed at the moment.
"I'm surprised you like this flavor," Mai Lee commented as she took a sip from her own, "Zula hates the stuff. But then again, she never was one for sweetness."
"I guess it runs in the family."
The two began to drink their tea, enjoying the peaceful quiet in the teashop. Korra felt her troubles almost wash away as the hot liquid traveled down her throat and warmed her stomach. It was nice and relaxing, a perfect way to calm her nerves. For ten whole minutes, neither of them talked, focusing on their drinks and their thoughts. The silence was only broken when the bell at the front door rang.
Korra turned around and saw the only blonde she knew walk up to the counter.
"Maya? What's she doing here?" Mai Lee wondered out loud
"Maybe she just wants some tea?" Korra suggested as she took a sip from her china cup.
Mai Lee shook her head. "No, Maya hates tea. I'll call her over and ask." She cupped her hands around her mouth and called out, "Maya! Over here!"
The blonde took her cup from the tea maker and looked over to the two of them. Mai Lee smiled and waved, beckoning Maya to come and join them. Korra could have sworn that Maya looked a bit hesitant just before she made her way over to their table.
"Hey you two," she greeted, standing next to their table.
"Why are you just standing there?" Mai Lee asked. She motioned to one of the chairs and said, "Come on, Maya! Sit with us."
"Sorry, I can't. I have to deliver this tea to my friend," Maya told them. Korra wondered why she was in such a rush. "In fact, I should probably head over-"
The avatar suddenly noticed that Maya's right hand was wrapped in medical tape, and that she was doing her best to hide it away from them. Curious, Korra asked, "What happened to your hand?"
"Oh, that?" Maya laughed guiltily, eyes darting towards the exit, "I just burned myself on the stove this morning. You know, clumsy me."
Mai Lee looked at her skeptically and responded, "But Maya, your coordination was always spot on. I can't see you making a slip up like that."
Korra could see that Maya was now sweating ever so slightly. She's hiding something, but whatever it is, it probably isn't important right now. She decided to change the subject. "So, Maya, what type of tea do you have there?"
"Oh, this?" Maya held up the cup of tea, "This is kuding tea."
"Kuding tea! You mean bitter nail tea?" Mai Lee gasped, looking at the beverage as if it was poison. Korra had heard of the famously bitter tea as well. Not many liked the taste, including her. It was one of the only flavors she absolutely hated.
Maya nodded, "Yeah, it's for my friend."
"Your friend has strange tastes," Korra gagged, disgusted by the thought of stomaching such a harsh drink.
Maya laughed at the avatar's reaction. "He's a pretty weird guy."
Mai Lee smiled slyly and gave Maya a slight nudge with her elbow. "So… this friend is more than a friend, right?"
"Don't get your hopes up, kiddo," Maya retorted, blushing a little bit at the thought. Korra was surprised at how well she took the accusation. Most girls, including her, would have fervently denied such a relation. She remembered how flustered she had gotten when Ikki had hinted at her relationship with Mako, right in front of Asami no less! "Well, I hate to leave so soon, but I really should be getting back to him. I'll see you two later."
With a wave, she left as soon as she came, taking the bitter tea with her. As the door was about to close behind her, someone pushed by, bursting loudly into the teashop. It was Asami, who had a panic stricken look on her face. Asami frantically scanned the tea shop, and when she finally saw Korra sitting with Mai Lee, she yelled, "Korra, we have a really, REALLY big problem!"
Korra gave the heiress a quizzical look. "Asami? What's wrong?"
"You!" she shouted at the store manager, who looked pretty peeved so many people were yelling in his shop, "Turn on the radio, right now!"
"Mam, that would disturb the peaceful atmosph-"
Asami interrupted him by slamming a thousand yuans on the counter as if it were nothing. "Turn on the damn radio!" The teashop owner quickly rushed in the backroom and came back with a radio. Korra and Mai Lee walked over to Asami, who was drumming her fingers nervously as the manager set up the radio. "Stupid, stupid, stupid pride…" Korra heard her muttered to herself.
"Asami? What's wrong?" Mai Lee asked curiously.
"Mako needs to be put on a leash, that's what's wrong."
"What? What do you mean Mako needs to be put on a leash?"
"Just listen," Asami ordered them. Korra had never seen Asami so nervous, she wondered what could possibly be eating at her.
The manager finally turned the radio on just in time to hear the news show host say, "Now these are some pretty bold accusations you're making, and against a pretty dangerous man. What do you say, Mako?"
Korra froze. No… No, he was not stupid enough to…
Sure enough, Mako's voice responded, "The Arbiter is a coward. He hides behind a mask because he is too afraid to face justice. When cornered, he lies and cheats to save his own skin. He is a monster whose only motive is destruction, no matter how many times he says otherwise."
"Don't do anything brash, Mako, please…" Korra begged him.
"Well, you seem very much opposed to the masked terrorist," the host laughed, obviously not aware of how serious Mako's words were, "could it be because of his recent accusation, per chance?"
"I'm not here to talk about that," Mako growled, Korra could here the resentment and anger in every syllable, "I'm here to send a message."
"A message?"
No, Mako don't say something you'll regret…
"Yes, a message, to the Arbiter."
Asami gasped, "He can't be doing what I think he's doing…"
"What?!" Korra demanded, now afraid for her lover, "What do you mean? Asami!"
But before she could answer, Mako began his address. "Arbiter," he spat, as if the word was bitter as the Kuding tea. "You have terrorized the people of this city for too long and killed far too many. This whole time, you've been challenging Korra to stop you, to do something. Well now I'm doing something. Your venomous words have ended one of the happiest relationships I've ever had, and for that you will pay. I won't let you hurt anyone else, especially those who I care about. Today at one o'clock, in the pro-bending arena, this ends. No more hiding. No more games."
Asami looked as if she was about to have a nervous breakdown, while Mai Lee looked just as confused as Korra was. What was Mako doing? Did he seriously think he could bait the Arbiter out into public? Korra knew if there was one thing the Arbiter wasn't, it was stupid, and revealing himself just because Mako was trash talking him was… well, stupid. What is he doing?
After a couple second pause, Mako spoke the six words Asami had been dreading. "I challenge you to Agni Kai."
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A/N: Well I hope you all enjoyed! Please leave a review, it really helps with the creative process!