Dragon Flats District, Hu Apartments.

Tarrin stopped in front of the simply made brown door, the old floorboards underneath him finally stopped squeaking. He put his ear to the door, listening for the sound of anyone moving inside.

He lingered, unsure it was her or possibly...

No. Just in case it was the Dai Li, he reached a hand to the closest saber, wrapping his fingers around the handle and getting ready for anything that was on the other side of the door. The thought that the Director had sent his men anyway had constantly plagued his thoughts on the way back here, and even while on Air Temple Island.

He shouldn't have gone there first. He should have come straight back, to make sure that she was safe before he agreed to any- Again, Tarrin closed his eyes and focused on what Amon- Noatok, taught him. Patience and control. The instant that went away you couldn't be certain of anything.

It paid off as he calmed down, enough to clearly hear something being knocked over onto the cheap wooden flooring of the apartment inside. Keeping alert he closed a hand around the door handle and slowly pulled it down to mask the noises it would try to make. Feeling the door being released from the frame he pressed a hand against its surface and pushed so that it swung inwards with the barest squeak.

"Yem?" Caution followed his steps as he moved in, taking in the spartan furniture and openness of the room. His eyes immediately focused on the glint of light on the edge of Yem's tanto, slashing towards him from the side hidden by the immediate wall.

Just as it was about to tear through his hood it halted, shakily hovering inches from his left cheek. He breathed a sigh of relief as he stepped in further, seeing her on-edge expression and her completely bandaged arm holding the tanto. "It's me, Yem."

Her breathing was heavy as she stared at him for a few seconds, then at the small square blade she clutched onto with whitened knuckles. A twinge in her shoulder forced her to drop her arm down. "Right." She stood straight and nodded at him, brushing a loose lock of black hair out of her eye while sliding the tanto back into the sheath sitting over her hips.

"Has anyone else-" Yem breathed a sigh of relief as she moved forward and hugged him with her good arm, eyes closed.

"No." She muttered into his collar, the word muffled. "Just me." Yem punched his chest. "I haven't seen you since forever! I've been worried sick!"

She stepped back after a few seconds, bracing the back of the cheap wooden couch nearby. He flipped down his hood with a worried expression. "I know. Any better?"

"Every second." Yem muttered, biting down a little every time she experimentally rolled her shoulder. "I just need time to recover." she shifted upwards on the table, sitting on it instead of just leaning against it. "Heard something about your brother on the radio. Can't believe it."

Tarrin narrowed his eyes. "The Earth Kingdom Secretary claimed that he watched Tai put a sword through Councilman Tenzin. I paid him a visit."

"What? You know who he is-"

"Yem." Him saying her name stopped her immediately. She closed her eyes and shook her head before looking at him, seeing a strange almost... regretful look on his scarred features. "I struck a deal with him."

"A deal?"

"Yes. He said that if I deliver Avatar Korra to him, in exchange he'll clear Tai's name and release Councilman Shizu."

"Wait, the old man.. he was last seen at City Hall during the-"

"Yeah. Looks like the Earth King's Secretary wasn't kidding. He must have taken Shizu when Telei was distracted." Tarrin guessed, not liking where all this was headed.

Yem nodded, not realizing that she was tapping her fingers on the table. "You said yes, didn't you?"

Not even hesitating for a second he answered, a smirk on him. "If he thinks I'm going to do his dirty work for him, then he's soft in the head." he shook his head. "No. I can take him and his men by surprise and rescue the Councilman. Simple."

"What! You can't. Tarrin, you can't go alone." She shook her head and grabbed his hand. "You need backup."

"What I need is to protect you and my little brother." Tarrin answered calmly and resolutely, feeling nothing but certainty this is what he had to do. "He has a family know. Doesn't need me around." he finished with a murmur.

"Tarrin-" he smirked and leaned forwards, locking lips with hers and his hand gently touching her hip. Despite his best intentions he began caressing her hip, looking straight at her.

She couldn't wait anymore.


Tarrin sighed and sat up, a sad look in his eyes. He glanced over at her, before reaching over and brushing a few tangled strands of black hair out of her face. He managed to steady himself and got up, eyes already searching for his sheaths and coat.

He soon found it and a twisted shirt on a nearby table. Tarrin pulled it over his head and shrugged on his coat, before moving over to the nearby couch and picking up both of his sheaths, staring down at them and wondering if he really should-

"You're still thinking about doing it. Should have guessed." He glanced over his shoulder at her, unable to help himself from staring at the clean white bandages hiding covering her shoulder.

Tarrin couldn't lie to her. He nodded, his thoughts turning to that of his little brother and his new family. He heard movement behind him as she sat up and clambered off the bed, gently touching his back.

Once again he couldn't help himself from turning around and looking at her, at the vulnerable expression and her wet eyes. Tarrin wrapped her in a hug. "I'll be back before you know it." he whispered in her ear, warm breath tickling her lobe. Slowly but surely he took a step back from her and the little table, floorboards squeaking as he moved towards the door, not even lingering at the threshold as he left with sureness.

Once she could no longer hear his footsteps going away from her she heaved a gasp and shook her head, holding a hand over her eyes and shaking her head. The idiot. She found panic overtaking her as the worst thoughts clawed at her. "Its not that simple, you'll-"

Yem regained control of herself and took a deep breath. She needed to tell her about this as soon as possible.


Avatar Road, Republic City.

She ran a hand along Naga's flank, rubbing and scratching her fur while whistling a tuneless tune. Naga made a approving noise as she scratched a certain spot just behind the Polar-Bear Dog's right shoulderblade. A small smile dawned on her, glad to be doing something so simple for once.

"You know, there's something I don't understand..." Tai said, currently separated from her view by the most good-natured mountainous mass of sharp teeth, heavy claws there was.

Korra rolled her eyes, her gaze briefly flicking upward to bask in the warm orange swirls covering the sky before answering him. "Hmm?"

"Of all the choice locales this bustling metropolis has to offer, of all the places with the best views, the funnest things to do... Why did you pick the street that has your name on it?" he directed a complete look of utter seriousness at her over Naga's neck, not realizing until it was too late that his hand was in striking distance of Kaze's paw. The spirit wolf barked from his position on top of Naga's saddle, batting his masters hand with wild abandon until the boy grunted and pulled out of his reach.

She chuckled at the sight before a easy and very well-placed smirk came to be on her. "Well, being the Avatar, I felt that it was only fitting to find a place with my name on it."

"Funny." Tai shook his head, knowing she was just egging him on like usual. As they continued walking down the footpath, the large throngs of people around them making space for the large Polar-Bear Dog plodding along, he found himself wondering why so many people were out and about. Everything looked so... normal.

A loud rumble, like the warning bellow of a boarcupine shook his thoughts apart and sent them scattering to the corners of his mind. He realised that the sound originated from Korra. And for a second thought he knew how earthquakes began.

"Man... I'm kinda starving." Korra chuckled, embarassed as she scratched the back of her neck. Naga glanced at her with a tilted head and a curious whine.

"What was that?" He said, his mouth agape for a few seconds before he held a hand up to his mouth to stop her from hearing his snickering.

"Wh- hey! Don't laugh!"

"Korra, you managed to scare Naga with that- that... that roar!" His shoulder shook with the effort to stop from laughing too much, laying a hand on Naga's side to steady himself a bit. As he calmed down he noticed a few strange looks coming from the crowd around them, all of them directed at him with accusatory tones. He dismissed them and focused on Korra. "Now that you said it so clearly before, I'm a little hungry as well. I'm paying. Where do you want to-"

It was only just know that he clearly heard and saw Naga's huge black nose sniffing, the Polar Bear Dog lifting her head up to get a better sense of where the smell came from. After a few seconds she barked and turned sharply, nearly knocking Tai over as she lumbered onto the street, her noise pointed straight at a crimson colored stall set up on the other side of the street.

Tai rubbed the top of his head as he got to his feet with a groan. "Guess the decisions been made for us."

She stood there, hands on her hips with a smirk and a smug look in her eyes. "Race you across!" Her shoulder crashed into him as she ran past, spinning him about and making him stumble near the edge of the footpath for a few moments shaking the stars away.

"Could have framed it as a question at least." he muttered, before giving chase after her, trying and failing to get any of his bearings as his head continued to spin.

Incredibly enough he made it across the two-lane street unscathed, and came to a stop beside Naga and Kaze poking their heads underneath the back flap of the crimson colored stall. Naga stuck her head down too low, resulting in a yelp from Kaze as he slipped off her face and nose and tumbled through the flap.

Immediately afterwards he ran back out, hiding underneath Naga's bulk from the vicious swinging of a black fry pan being held by the snarling visage of a old woman.

Naga moaned and backed away a few steps, careful not to trample or step on Kaze as he huddled behind her rear leg. He moved out of the way, sitting by the Polar-Bear Dog's flank as she sat on her haunches and waited, knowing what happened last time.

The smell reached Korra first. It carried a thick smoky sensation up her nostrils, not enough to be unpleasant, and had a definite hint of spice to it. She almost licked her lips just hearing spit coming from the meat as it sizzled at a slow cook, rotating endlessly in a hypnotic rhythm that called her hunger to it.

Korra stopped in front of the stall's counter, and cleared her throat to get the large old woman's attention. "Excuse me, can I-"

"You!" The old woman spat out, stabbing a sausage-finger at her. "Your dog nearly ate all of my product LAST TIME!" she nearly bellowed. "AND NOW THERE'S TWO OF THEM!" Sheactually bellowed.

Korra held up a finger while scratching the back of her head again, unable to listen to anything but the sounds of her own growling stomach. "If I could just buy-"

"With what?" The old lady simmered down surprisingly quickly, folding her arms and regarding the Avatar with a potent stare. "The yuans you had last time?"

"I-" Korra faltered, realizing she didn't have any money on here. She cleared her throat and held up her hands in apology, stepping back next to Tai. She didn't even think for a moment about getting any money, she just-

"Here. twenty bronze in the bag, old lady. Give us everything."

She blinked twice, tracking a little brown pouch sailing through the air and landing with a thud on the stall owner's wooden counter. Tai folded his arms and waited patiently for the old lady as she swiped the bag with a meaty hand, looking at him suspiciously. "I remember you too, boy." her gaze swung to Korra. "The Avatar's lucky you're actually paying this time."

The old woman grumbled as she turned away from the two of them, expertly unfolding a brown bag and grabbing a bunch of kebabs in one swipe and placing them in the bag with surprising gentleness.

Soon she was done, thrusting the bag into Tai's hands along with the empty pouch. "There." She stated gruffly, pointing out into the street with a clear want for them to leave.

"Well.." Tai glanced at Korra with a confused expression as he led the way down the footpath, stopping a distance away from the stall to wait for Korra to bring Naga and Kaze over. "I'll say it again: she is a mean old witch."

Korra shook her head with a little smirk as she reached him. She jerked her chin towards the footpath ahead, away from the old vendor lady. "Come on." This time she led the way while keeping close to Naga, making sure she didn't decide to go leaping out onto the road.

Tai walked on Naga's opposite side, keeping the bag of meat-sticks, curls of delicious steam wafting into his nostrils and leaving a tempting savoury sensation, in his arms.

It was then that he felt a bump against the back of his knee, and at the same time Naga got a strange look in her eye. Looking back he just caught the tip of Kaze's tail swishing left and right, just as Naga grunted and tore the bag from his arms. He yelped and let go, not wanting to have his hands torn off by a furry monster the size of a large model satomobile and weighing about the same.

The bag covered Naga's nose and the Polar-Bear Dog lifted her head upwards so that it wouldn't fall off. Naga and Kaze both took off again, bounding across the clear street and into a side-alley where a large expanse of trees could be seen at the far end.

Tai blinked twice as he tried, failed, to grasp what just happened. His fingers closed and opened at thin air for a few moments as Korra groaned. "Guess they're hungrier then we are." he said in a small voice.

Korra nodded wordlessly and grimaced as her stomach rumbled again, she looked across the street at the alley they ran into, noticing that there was a park on the other side. "Even so... I know a great fishing spot."


Shōu Kǒu General Hospital, Room 36.

No matter what, every time she had stood in front of this door, no different from the twenty others lining the walls of the ward's hallway, she always hesitated to bring her hand up to the handle, to get a grasp on it and enter into the room.

The thought of seeing her childhood friend... and for a long time the love of her life... and for a equally long time after that a cold acquaintance... She had shared most of her life with him, told him some of her deepest fears. And the thought of seeing him lying so still in that hospital bed always barred her first attempt to go into the room.
But like every other time in the past week, she somehow managed to find that iron core of hers and hold onto it with a firm grasp, giving her the renowned Beifong stubborness to bullrush past her doubts and fears and just... open the door.

Lin made as little sound as possible when she opened the door, making sure her game face was well and truly on in front of the sole visitor sitting by Tenzin's bedside. Already she noticed the absence of Jinora and her siblings, with only Rohan present, held in Pema's arms.

"Where are the kids?" she quietly asked, just loud enough for Pema to notice her presence. She tightened the waistband on her dark trenchcoat and moved across the room, standing at the foot of the bed. Not once did she tear her gaze away from Tenzin's peaceful features.

Pema barely glanced up at her. "Where they should be. Tenzin wouldn't want me forcing them to stay here by his side every day. He wouldn't want them to sit still just for his sake."

She nodded. "How is he doing?"

The younger woman answered by closing her eyes and shaking her head. "Kya, she-" Pema gritted her teeth and didn't speak for a few moments, before holding her chin up and opening her eyes again. "Kya said this is the stage where all I- all we can do, is wait."

Lin lifted her gaze from Tenzin to the wall above him, recalling a old memory where her and Tenzin's positions were reversed, with him saying those words and her lying in the bed because of a bloodbending madman. "He said the same thing to me during a similar sitation, you know." she murmured, prompting Pema to look at her. She kept going. "I was working on a case against the Red Monsoons, back when they were hardly anything more than thugs with fur coats and he and I..."

Her eyes softened as Pema grimaced."What happened?"

"I got bloodbent. Just like my mother did at the hands of Yakone." Lin said. "He got me out of there. And hardly left the room I recovered in. I called him a idiot the instant I woke up." She shook her head, knowing there were a lot of times she could have shown him the same dedication. "He's stuck by me and refused to let me quite so many times I can't count them." Lin hung her head, dropping her gaze away from the man in the bed. "I owe him so much. And I've given him so little."

Her gloved hands tightened around the guardrail at the foot of the bed while her gaze darkened. The metal protested and squealed underneath her grip, making her stop with a start and stare down at the tops of her hands.

"Lin. You've given him everything already." Pema said quietly, prompting her to look up.

"How-"

"By protecting our family. Meelo keeps calling you a hero every time you're mentioned." Pema said, looking down at Rohan with a little smile. "I'm pretty sure that Jinora wants to write a book with you as the main character. And Ikki... she wants to be like you when she grows up." Pema looked up at her and smiled. "You've done enough."

Lin could do nothing but nod.


Central Park, Republic City.

Tai sighed and picked at a blade of grass just in front of his boot. Kaze barked, keeping his head just above the water level as his paws splashed about in the water, paddling in a endless circle and looking entirely happy.

Near him the water rumbled and shook as Naga's head broke the surface with a roar like a mighty sea leviathan. She rolled over onto her back, floating aimlessly across a section of the pond.

He pouted. "Look at the two of them. Look at how satisfied they are. I actually paid for those."

"Would you quit complaining already? I'm nearly done." Korra rolled her eyes as she jabbed towards a fish speared on a stick planted in the ground. A small gout of flame puffed from her extended index and middle fingers, briefly enveloping it and cooking the meat. She repeated the motion with the second fish next to the first, then moved on to the third and fourth in quick practiced succession.

"Smells driving me crazy..." Tai muttered, stretching out on the embankment and putting his arms behind his head, settling in to look at the clashing streaks of warm orange and pale yellow painting the clouds overhead in dizzying patterns. There was always something strange about the sky after a large storm had passed... he had seen it countless times as a kid living on the farm.

He looked over at Korra, noticing that as she applied hefty amounts of fire to the already crispy fish she had a...primal... look in her eyes and a wide toothy grin on her. It looked a little creepy, actually. But he kept that to himself.

"There. All done." Korra beamed at him, licking her lips as she extinguished her flames and grabbed the four fishes. She stood up and moved to where he was sprawled out, sitting down next to him and holding out two of the fish-on-a-sticks. "My own special recipe. Flame-grilled fishsticks!"

Gingerly and a little warily he took the two 'fish-sticks' from her, transferring one to his other hand as he sat up. He turned the other over, almost ready just to tear into the tender and succulent meat right there and then, his stomach quickly overriding any suspicions about Korra's skill at burning things.

He tore in just as she had devoured her first one, quickly laying into the second with wild abandon. Tai worked the chewy meat around to tender it up before swallowing, and finishing the fish entirely with a few more bites.

Tai wiped his mouth with the back of his sleeve before starting on the next fish, this time taking it a little more slowly to savour the smoky flavor before it was gone entirely.

A contented sigh floated out of him as he patted his stomach and laid back on the grass again, just as a loud roiling noise erupted from Korra. "Nice one."

"Oops. Sorry." Korra wiped her hands on her sealskin waistwrap, and brought her hand up to wipe her mouth and a few drops of glistening oil from her chin. Rubbing her hands together to clean them somewhat, she laid back as well, extending her arms well above her head and clasping her hands together before stretching with a drawn out groan. "How were they?" she asked, resting her head against the grass and looking sidelong at him.

"Good... they were good."

She nodded, soon falling quiet and shifting her gaze to the furious streaks of orange and yellow painting the sky above. After a while of just lying there staring upwards she turned to look at him again, curiosity fueling her. "Hey... back at the old woman's stall, she said something about you 'paying this time'. What did she mean?"

Tai didn't answer immediately, shifting uncomfortably and making sure he continued to stare upwards rather than look at her. "I...I needed something to eat, to steady my nerves I guess before I went to Amon's warehouse."

"You stole?"

His gaze flitted down from the sky and settled on his own rising and falling chest. "Yeah... obviously it was something my parents never wanted me to stoop to." he finished, his voice small and strained. "Didn't have much after what happened to my home."

Korra answered with a small nod, once again put in the uncomfortable position of being unable to understand what that must have been like. "You don't talk much about what happened."

"Because there's nothing worth bringing up." He said, hardly above a whisper as he struggled with his own thoughts and memories.

His thoughts threatened to drag him inwards with every passing moment, only to be dashed by the appearance of a bright orange ball of light whizzing towards him from across the pond, coloring the water underneath it with ruddy tones.

Both Naga and Kaze barked at the little ball of light as it crossed the embankment. The closer it got the easier he could discern its furiously beating wings, glowing a complete and furious orange, the same as the back half of its body did as well. The little insect landed on a knuckle on his right hand and in wonder he brought it up for closer examination.

A foggy memory of his father came to mind, and despite the internal struggle he went through a small smile dawned on his lips. "Huh." he expressed in wonder, watching as it crawled up and down the length of his finger before returning to where it first landed and shaking its glowing wings.

"What is it?" Korra asked, getting to her knees and coming over. Her blue eyes completely fixed on the little insect. "Some kind of bug?"

"These little guys were all over the place where I lived. My dad called them Fireflies. Said that they're attracted to firebenders and the warmth they create."

"Looks like they have a little fire themselves." Korra pointed out, a giddy smile on her just watching the Firefly move about on his finger.

"He told me its because they can firebend themselves. Probably just trying to trick me though. Its actually something to do with their bodies. They just... light up."

She nodded, holding her hand next to Tai's and extending a finger for the Firefly to hop onto. "Whatever the case, they're beautiful." Korra whispered in complete amazement.

Tai nodded as he craned his neck, peering across the lake and spotting glowing spots coming from the trees and bushes on the opposite bank. He glanced at Korra and grinned, getting to his feet and cracking his fingers. "I'm gonna try something."

"Like what?" she said, bringing her free hand closer to the firefly sitting inside her palm and lighting a tiny flame over her pinky. The Firefly buzzed and immediately took flight, hovering over the top of the flame and flitting around it in a enchanting display.

A voice, a old voice, intruded in her thoughts with a strong presence. The people of the Fire Nation call them liú yíng, and believe them to be Agni's helpers from the Spirit World.

The voice was gone. Korra blinked twice, unused to hearing Roku in her head as opposed to Aang or Kyoshi. She shook her head and looked at Tai, watching as he stood on the bank looking out over the water.

She watched as he opened his palm, letting a compact ball of fire float for a second before aiming his other hand at it and making small wavy movements. The flames briefly tilted from being gently blown by the wind pushing it out over the lake. She heard a grunt as he stopped in place once it was out far enough.

For a few moments nothing happened and the crickets in the rushes and birds in the trees made their noises. But then... her eyes widened and she drew a sharp breath in awe as the softly glowing parts of the forest on the other side suddenly came alight with life and light, and in the hundreds small balls of furious orange light flew out over the lake, attracted to the single blazing fireball hanging in the air.

Korra watched the amused smile on Tai as he moved his hand, manipulating the fireball with his airbending and making it whizz back and forth through the air, up and down, giving the Fireflys a bit of trouble in trying to get close to it. They unknowingly formed into a twisting stream of brightly glowing dots while tracking the fireball, their collective buzzing loud enough for her to hear them from the bank.

He continued to move the fireball all over the place, giving the Fireflys a challenge in trying to reach the coveted heat source as they gave chase. The dizzying display of lights held her complete attention, for once pushing out all of her other thoughts, her fears, her doubts... leaving in their place a simple feeling of wonder.

She heard a small laugh from Tai as he finally stopped moving the fireball around, letting the fireflys completely swarm it in a growing collection of orange lights. He sighed as he let the ball extinguish itself and break down into wisps of flame, hanging in the air and confusing the Fireflys for a second before disappearing entirely.

The Fireflys only stayed like that for a moment before realizing that the heat source was gone, and quickly fled back to their respective hiding places in the opposite bank's treeline.

"Quite a lightshow, huh?" Korra nodded, unable to form any words for the moment. He smirked at her face and sat down on the grass again, drawing his knees up close and clasping his hands over them. With a heavy exhale he watched as the water returned to a calm color once more. "My dad taught me that one." he said quietly, a soft look in his eyes.

"He sounds like a good guy." Korra sat down right next to him. She looked down at her boots for a few seconds.

"He was awesome." Tai looked down as well, and sighed. A short chuckle came out of him as he held a wry grin. "I always looked like a chump next to him whenever I tried firebending."

Korra smiled and giggle as she thrusted a thumb at her chest. "Hey now, you look like a chump whenever you firebend next to me as well."

That made him burst out in laughter. He held his sides to stop them from shaking as he nodded. "You'd probably make him proud with how you show me up, actually."

"You saw me flailing trying to catch the fish with waterbending before. My dad is a pro at showing me how its done."

"Well now, I never expected the Avatar to 'fess up to not being good at something. Quite a surprise." he smirked, then yelped as she punched him in the shoulder. "Alright, two things you're better at then me."

Her features darkened a little as she thought about her father.

"What's wrong?"

Korra chuckled to herself and gave him a smile. "Nothing... its..." The smile slipped a little. "I found out that my dad was the one who wanted me in that compound. Tenzin as well?"

"Really? That's- why?" Tai asked quietly, seeing the saddened look on her.

"He said it was for protection. But my uncle told me that all of the other Avatars got to travel the world for their training. I don't know."

Tai didn't know what to say, especially when his own father was the kindest and lovingest one he could have. He knew that a gentle giant like Tonraq would never have made the decision lightly. "It sounds to me like he was just looking out for you. I think if he could have done differently he would have made the exact same choice. Fathers are supposed to protect their kids, right?"

Korra found herself slowly nodding. "Yeah." She brightened up a little as a thought popped into her head. "And its not like the world's going to go anywhere. I can travel it anytime I want."

"Yeah? Sounds like something I can get used to doing too." He grinned at her and she grinned at him.

She shook her head in amusement, looking out at the water with a smile. "This is nice, you know?" Korra loosed a quiet breath. "Not having to worry about the spirits, or the city, or Telei. Just having some fun. Thanks for doing this. I really needed it." Her features softened as she looked sidelong at him, taking a chance and closing her hand around his with a gentle squeeze.

"Its uh- its nothing. Really. Yeah." Tai's cheeks looked like they had been set on fire. He rubbed the back of his head. "I think Pema's probably wondering where we are-"

"Excuse me.. you're the Avatar, right?" Korra almost gasped as she quickly let go of his hand in complete surprise. He and Korra turned around, seeing a young woman and a older woman standing there. Two kids hiding behind them. The woman held a baby in her arms.

The older woman laid a hand on her shoulder and stepped forward. "I don't know if you remember me from the non-bender protest against Tarrlok's stupid laws last year... but we were walking by and... my daughter wants to ask you something. She's a huge fan of you."

Korra briefly threw a confused look at Tai before standing up and clearing her throat. Korra could recognize her face anywhere. She was the one in the crowd who spoke out the loudest against Tarrlok's methods, and got through to Korra about her role as the Avatar."Um... sure. What do you want to ask?"

"Well... my son and daughter saw you and your Polar-Bear Dog earlier and..." The young woman nearly closed up completely for a moment before her courage shone through. "I was hoping you would let them have a ride on her back? Sounds silly but-"

Korra stopped her with a simple smile. "Sure. Its no problem." The young woman's brown-skinned features lit up with a big grin at the same time as her children's did. "Naga. Come!" The Polar-Bear Dog's head poked up from where she was laying on the bank with a huge yawn. She got to her feet and padded over. Her head tilted.

Tai grinned as he stretched along the grass again. "How long you gonna be? Its starting to get dark."

"Won't be too long!" She called to him as she lead Naga over to the family. The two children stared up in awe at Naga, and they both giggled as Korra earthbent the ground they stood on, lifting them up on a column that allowed them to hop onto Naga's saddle.

The older woman bowed to Korra with a appreciative smile. "Thank you, young lady."

Korra beamed at her as she began to lead Naga across one of the bridges leading to the rest of the parklands. "Its nothing, ma'am. She needs some exercise anyway."

"Are you certain, it looked like we were interrupting something-"

"Wha- of course not! I've got time for everyone!" She glanced back at the bank where Tai was. "I'll be back in a few minutes!"

He grinned again. "I'll probably be asleep by then!" he called back, seeing the back of her hand wave at him before she disappeared over the bridge with the family following her.

The boy breathed in deeply as he shifted a little, expelling it as he got comfortable enough and closed his eyes.

A few minutes later, he opened his eyes and heard growling coming from Kaze.

He turned around, getting to his feet and thoughts slowing to a crawl at the sight of the grey-eyed man standing there with a sword in his hand.

Telei leveled him with a look someone gives to a insect and lifted his sword, pointing it at the bridge Korra and the family had headed over not a few minutes ago. "She's quite something isn't she? A true example of what a Avatar should be." He tilted his head and looked at the Spirit Wolf. "I see your pet has a liking for me, student."

"You left him out in a blizzard."

"... I knew I recognized it from somewhere. It's grown."

"You looking for a fight?" Tai murmured, slowly opening his hand and readying himself.

"Just here to observe the young Avatar. That's all."

"If you try anything..." Tai growled, ignoring the chills going up his spine just from the old man being present.

"There is not much you can do. You've always been unable to stand up to me, student. Your lessons made that painfully obvious. If I did decide on a course of action involving her... you will not be able to stop me. Unless..."

Tai's blood froze.

"Remember my lessons on the Air Nomads and their culture, student? The tiān shàng plateau. Only a couple hundred miles northwest. A good place for the Avatar to... learn... of her purpose in the world."

"The heavenly plateau..."

"I see you still do not use the proper names of these places. Always a shame." Telei's eyes turned cold. "She will be there."

And with that he turned around and started walking up the bank, until the long shadows cast by the trees swallowed him up. He could have sworn that everything went lighter as soon as he lost sight of his old master. He stood frozen to the spot, Kaze's growls reflecting his own thoughts.

"Tai? Hey, I'm back! Let's get going, its pretty dark out here!" Tai's eyes widened as Korra rode Naga across the bridge, leading her down the bank towards him. "Whats wrong? You look a little spooked."


Dragon Flats District, Canal-8.

With a old sports bag slung over his shoulder he spied a lever nearby.

The sound of him pulling down on the heavy lever carried down the dark yawning staircase as a meaty thunk. Each time the current ran down the thick cabling bolted to the walls and connected to a knobby conductor fixed in place, a audible click was heard.

Tarrin grimaced at how old the wiring down here was. He took each step carefully as he heard each successive click running down the wiring, going slowly until suddenly a old light winked on overhead and illuminated the entire narrow space, including the sheer brick wall at the bottom.

He reached the dead end and waited before the brick wall. Tarrin stomped his foot down twice on the old floorboards.

The brick wall in front of him shuddered and grinded as it swung open before him, revealing a large and cluttered room within completely made of cement. Purified to the best possible degree so any earthbenders looking for it would inevitably fail.

His boots sent slight echoes bouncing off the sheer grey walls and inbetween the racks and shelves clinging to the walls of the room. He stopped and looked over the nearest shelf, seeing row upon row of discharger gloves marked with the blood red circle of the Equalists, next to them silver smoke canisters glistening in the light. Above them were poles stretching from either side of the rack, at least twenty bola pairs slung over it.

These kind of shelves lined the room, offering enough arms and equipment for hundreds of non-benders. Meant for hundreds of non-benders. This cache was among the last still undiscovered by the triads, Telei, or the metalbending police. He narrowed his eyes when he spotted a completely empty shelf in the midst of it all. But didn't dwell on it.

He nodded to himself, knowing exactly how much gear he was going to need. Taking the sports bag off his shoulder he placed it on the clear table in the center of the room, zipping it open to reveal a pair of brass rectangles that were definitely sharped then they looked. Once again he really appreciated the technology and craftsmanship Hiroshi packed into his twin sabers.

Moving away from the table, he went to the nearest shelf, grabbing a cluster of smoke canisters strung together with metal wiring. He also took few wound-up bolas from the hanger pole, carrying them over to the table and dropping them in a pile before moving back to the shelf.

He grabbed one of the discharger gloves, slipping it on and flexing his palm to activate the pressure sensor that in turn charged up the core. The green core hummed softly and glowed. He nodded and took it off, placing it next to the sports bag.

Scanning the room, he spotted a row of lockers at the other end next to a thick metal door. He moved towards them, opening the one on the far end and poking through the Chi Blocker uniforms kept inside. He didn't even bother grabbing the suit, instead going for one for a pair of green-lensed googles with brass casing on a top shelf. His hand went back up, grabbing the brass rebreather sitting next to it and closing the locker.

Coming back to the table, he crammed everything in as fast as possible.

Finished he zipped it up and grabbed the handles, grunting slightly as he lifted it off the table and moved towards the thick metal door. He grabbed the wheel on it with one hand and turned it clock-wise, releasing the lock with a mechanical click and letting the door swing outwards to reveal a sewer tunnel, which soon branched off left and right after a short distance.

He moved forwards, footsteps echoing off the curved walls as water drips punctuated each breath he took. Turning the corner he immediately spotted a speedboat the far end, quietly bobbing up and down before a huge grate barring access to the foggy nighttime harbor outside.

Stopping near the post the speedboat was tied to, he dropped the sports bag onto the storage compartment at the back of the boat, thankful that the black paint should at least keep his visibility down to any patrolling boats out in the harbor.

Tarrin was about to step down onto the boat's deck when he heard something scraping against a wall. He turned around, his eyes narrowing at the ponytailed youth leaning against the wall with his arms folded, his usually wide green eyes narrowed and his mouth drawn. "Its been a while, Tarrin."

"Ling. Why are you here?"

"You're planning to take on Director Kao and his men. He's got my uncle. Simple to work out." Ling answered, stepping off the wall and approaching him.

Tarrin narrowed his eyes as he spotted the pair of mini crossbows in a holster on each of Ling's hips, and spotted a thin quiver poking above his back. "I see you've already gone through the cache."

Ling nodded as he dragged his rock-glove from his pocket and slipped it on, flexing his fingers. "It never hurts to rely on something apart from bending."

Tarrin answered by moving towards the driving pedestal at the back of the speedboat, turning on the ignition. "Hop in."