It was ten days after they arrived at Korra's childhood home that a certain event was to take place. They had seen the excited preparations throughout the preceding days and Noatak began to notice that Korra seem to become more and more excited, almost like a small child, as the day drew closer.
He knew what the event represented, of course- it was the Equinox and the day the sunset would truly set for the first time in weeks. It was a time to feast and share in the bounties of the hunt, it was a time to be thankful for the abundance of nature and to praise the achievements of the community.
The Northern Water Tribe celebrated the day as well and Noatak could remember enjoying such events as a child, simply because on those days he had been free to do what he wanted with his mother and brother, on those times there would always be a reprieve from their father's training and he and Tarrlok could just be kids again. After he had left his family the joy of those days had faded, they became nothing but superstitious wastes of his time, no matter what country he was in; he could understand how such celebrations could aid in raising the moral of his followers when he became a leader but even then he had despised the downright uselessness of it all. Perhaps he had simply become far too much of a workaholic to accept wasting time on a spiritual event, or maybe it was just the memories of better times that he had wished to block out.
However, seeing Korra so excited and free led him to slowly change his perspective. He suddenly wanted to see what all the fuss was about and he craved more of that self-assured and rebellious smile of hers almost like a drug that warped his vision of the world.
He wondered what the event would entail. Back in the north, it would mostly include a festival market, prayers, official nominations of new waterbending masters, feasting, the popular blanket toss in which those with higher achievements- hunters, fishing captains, warriors, new masters, village leaders- and their wives would be tossed in the air by means of a gigantic mammoth-whale skin blanket. It was generally a rowdy but well organized event that gathered hundreds upon hundreds of people from different villages.
The prospect of being surrounded by many people, among which possible members of the White Lotus, was not entirely pleasing to Noatak but Korra told him the people from the compound had their own celebration, in fact, unlike the North Pole where everyone gathered in one place for each event, here there would be many different festivals all over the Pole but only five very small sister settlements would be gathering for theirs. The information was appeasing enough.
Senna and Tonraq seemed to be part of the organizing force that year and everything would be taking place in a large open ice plateau not very far from their sheltered village. Korra and Noatak were mostly kept in the dark about the preparations but as people began arriving the day before the Equinox, Korra became more animated, chattering about nonsense and fidgeting with every little task, she reminded him of a very little three year old Tarrlok running around the house on the eve of his birthday, day dreaming about a present that was hardly worth all the anticipation but that still sparked childish joy in his eyes when he got it. The mere memory was bittersweet and Noatak wondered how that innocent, clumsy and warm-hearted little brother of his had turned in such a cold, greedy and power-hungry man with no scruples at all…
He forced himself away from the thoughts, he found it disturbing that Korra's reactions could so easily bring forth unrelated memories from his past but he assumed it was the familiarity of the Water Tribe home that got him thinking about Tarrlok and his old life so often those days.
Finally the morning of the big day arrived. Senna had attempted to wake them earlier, but was surprised to find them already dressed and ready when she allowed herself into Korra's tiny room; of course the older woman didn't know that Noatak often woke Korra out of her dreams far before anyone else in the residence even began to wake so it was no wonder she would be surprised.
Their clothes had been supplied by Tonraq and Senna since semi-formal wear was in order. Korra was wearing an outfit that was incredibly reminiscent of Senna's usual style, but they it obviously couldn't belong to Senna herself since it fit her daughter like a glove and Korra was much taller and strongly built than her mother, still the outfit was lovely with its cerulean slacks and long sleeved top overlapped with an indigo fur-trimmed long skirt and a heavy half-sleeved and equally fur trimmed indigo coat that paired up with grey boots, mittens and a wide brown leather belt with designs of Tui and La circling each other in a display that curiously matched the symbolism of Noatak's new mask.
Noatak, on the other hand, was wearing an outfit that had obviously belonged to Tonraq, leading him to once again contemplate the irony that often flooded his daily life- once he had worn the man's name, now he wore the man's clothes. Other than a slight looseness at shoulders, the ensemble fit well; it was composed by indigo pants, a heavy cerulean overcoat with a side breasted line of bone buttons and a darker cobalt shoulder wrap with a cowl, which he was thankful for as it worked inconspicuously well with the mask and was as equally fur trimmed as the rest of the coat, to finish off he had brown furred gloves, boots and also a leather belt, though his was unadorned. He didn't find the garments to be extraordinary but they were comfortable and Korra seemed to enjoy the sight of him so he found himself relaxing despite the colossal urge to return to his usual city clothing.
Breakfast was an abundant but quick meal since Senna had gone all out to prepare a celebratory meal but they needed to rush to the event site so there really wasn't as much time to savor the food as there should be to do it justice, and yet Korra ate with that gleeful expression of an eager child that was almost addicting in its excitement, albeit a tiny bit annoying too since she wouldn't stay still for more than five minutes.
Korra and Noatak left shortly after her parents. The older pair had many things to attend to for the preparations and since there was Niko to carry the younger couple, there wasn't any problem with the ride. The humongous polar bear dog seemed glad for the exercise and they reached the open plateau in less than thirty minutes, with plenty of time to spare, as many of the visitors were still just beginning to gather.
"I guess this is kinda like a date, huh?" Korra's words were a little on the joking side as she dismounted Niko but she looked at him with a hopeful smile.
"Kind of?" Behind his mask Noatak smiled at her expression, but decided to give her that little innocent joy. "I would say this does most certainly qualify as a 'date'."
"In that case, what are we waiting for?" Korra was once again grinning from ear to ear without a care in the world as her steps crunched in the snow- the sound seemed to give her some sort of little pleasure.
It seemed a big group of waterbenders had cooperated together to raise and enormous ice structure that resembled a simple open-roofed amphitheater whose purpose was mostly to break the wind and contain most of the celebrations; however it was opened to the side where the sun would set and there were many typical Water Tribe tents all around the vicinity. Women seemed to be cooking and talking together in a particularly prepared area from which many delectable scents began to float from; the center of the structure was obviously ready for a bonfire while one of the edges held a raised icy dais.
Niko was left with other travelling animals in yet another well prepared area and as soon as they walked into the crowd there were people greeting Korra. It wasn't that they all knew she was the Avatar, some simply seemed to be aware of who she was because they were distant family friends, and yet the news that the Avatar was attending their little celebration soon spread like wildfire, igniting the mood further until the sleepy haze of early morning dissipated completely into an excited thrum of joy. Noatak tried to remain on the sidelines as much as possible but Korra seemed unwilling to let him out of her sight and apparently his mask wasn't really gathering as much attention as he had feared initially.
As soon as everyone had gathered, and Noatak could more or less ascertain that there were little under two hundred people in the vicinity, there was a collective prayer to the Spirits led by a decrepit old priest up in the platform. It wasn't much different from the northern traditions though but Noatak went along reluctantly with everyone else for the sake of respect. It wasn't that he was faithless or anything regarding personal philosophy, it was simply that he didn't feel like that was his place, he still believed he had no right to walk among the innocents and pray for things he didn't deserve, not to mention that after years of ingraining into his mind that prayer was a useless waste of time it was not easy to suddenly join a pious crowd as if he belonged.
As soon as the prayers were over, the families gathered together and the 'division of the wealth', as they called it, began. It was a simple tradition with which all the meat and furs left from the season were divided among all the present families, with special treatment awarded to those who could not easily provide for themselves such as a widow and her two young children that had greeted Korra earlier or the old man with a missing arm and a sickly wife to care for. It was a lengthy activity but tradition nonetheless and people didn't seem to mind the wait as they chatted amicably and exchanged products- that seemed to be norm here, since they lacked the traditional market that Noatak was used to seeing in North Pole festivals.
By the time the division was over, Korra's parents had snagged a rather large pot of fishopotamus oil, preserved mammoth-whale meat cubes, a pile of elk-hound furs and some penguin-ostrich down. Korra and Noatak had politely declined any offers though, stating that would be travelling back to the United Republic soon and could not carry the load, so their share was divided among those in bigger need.
Shortly after the division came the feast and what a feast it was. There was enough food to feed an army but the guests were fed first and this time neither Korra nor Noatak nor the dozen or so other outside relatives of the many clans could refuse the offer since it would have been exceptionally rude, yet that little moment in the limelight didn't affect Noatak since no real questions were asked and his hood hidden mask was mostly ignored, people simply assumed that he had his reasons wear and since he seemed to know the Avatar nobody questioned his choices. He did, nevertheless, allow everyone a glimpse of his scarred flesh as he ate by readjusting the mask to reveal his mouth, it was a casual move but done entirely on purpose to silence some of the whispering that had begun to spread discreetly around them; one look at the hint of scars and nobody wondered anymore why he was hiding and why he tried to stay out of the way, of course the majority just assumed he was scarred and ashamed of his appearance, not a single person even considered that his identity was the real secret and that he didn't feel ashamed in the least, not for his appearance anyway.
«Perhaps this deformity may be useful, after all.» He mused to himself as he noticed the curiosity of the onlookers dispel in haste. Only a man with Noatak's calculating mind could even take his own disfigurement in account as useful tool, then again hadn't he used the ruse of deformity before to his own gain? The only difference was- this time the scars were real.
Korra seemed to be having fun. Even though she had been born there and therefore a local she as treated with the reverence of a visitor and that meant all she had to do was relax and enjoy the entertainment, which she seemed happy to do without a second thought. During the meal many people asked her for tales of her adventures and very few had actually heard of the war, being so remotely located and all, so when Korra began an exaggerated, summarized and a even comical explanation of the how the events of the Equalist War had developed, all eyes of those gathered around were on her. Noatak wasn't really paying much attention to the tale, he rather not recall the memories in which he had been the heinous villain, but he did watch Korra, enjoying how she would gesture, make angry and determined faces as well as victorious glares as she simulated fighting stances. He was even amused by the way she posed and jokingly mimicked his typical stance and speeches, though he did notice that she made no reference to his mask and was very shallow regarding their final battle though he couldn't easily assume why- he wondered if it was to keep a secret about his true origins or if perhaps the situation had been too traumatizing to explain accurately; he decided he didn't wish to know.
The feast dragged on until music had begun to play, ale and multiple liquors began to flow and the noise grew as people became more and more excitable. By the time everyone was stuffed there were many people calling for the 'wishing poles', Noatak had absolutely no idea what this meant since the concept was foreign to his native tribe but it was quickly explained and this time Korra joined in to help.
All the adult waterbenders present with the exception of Noatak, who weren't really more than twelve even with Korra's aid, joined outside and together they rose a massive amount of thin translucent ice pillars from the ground, that stood at ten feet tall and couldn't be more than an inch in thickness, it was like a miniature forest of ghostly branchless trees. Thin strips of some sort of parchment were then shared among all those present, even the children, and each person was instructed to write a wish and tie it to one of the pillars.
"It's southern tradition." Explained Korra with a wide grin. "You can write any wish that you have for the time until this festival happens again next year and just tie it in a knot to the ice."
"Yes, we do this every equinox." Senna joined the conversation already holding her written wish. "If by sunset the pillars have melted then the Moon Spirit is on our side and the wishes of the girls have better odds at coming true, if the pillars stay solid then the Ocean Spirit will be blessing us and the men's wishes will be in luck."
"What happens to all the parchment once this is over?" Noatak asked with some amusement.
"It takes a few weeks to decay but it is quickly returned to the earth." Senna was smiling at his question, obviously impressed by his foresight.
"Of course." Noatak nodded.
It was obvious that people who worshiped nature as deeply as the Water Tribes would never risk polluting unnecessarily. After all, they even thanked the Spirits for every animal they killed for survival, always with the utmost respect, so of course they wouldn't risk offending any Spirit by making a mess. The people of the Water Tribes were warriors, hunters and healers, as was necessary to survive in such a harsh environment, but they never disregarded their origins in nature. The philosophical point of view was refreshing to Noatak after so many years living in a highly industrialized society.
Korra actually used his back to scribble her wish before handing him the little piece of charcoal that he was supposed to use before handing it over to the next person. He had no idea what to write, he wasn't a man to make wishes, he was a man to take action and get what he wanted whether the Spirits were on his side or not. Yet, he figured that joining the tradition wouldn't hurt and scribbled the most important thing that came to mind before passing over the charcoal.
Korra waited for him and tied her wish with a single knot but was far too forcible and ripped the edges with her clumsy strength- she blamed the mittens for her lack of dexterity. Noatak didn't share the problem and quickly wrapped the scrap of paper in a perfect one sided bow that made Korra pout a little jealously.
When all the wishes were up, someone suddenly screamed 'BLANKET TOSS'- now that was one of the traditions Noatak understood and, immediately, everyone was running to join the fun. Unlike in the northern tribe, the blanket here was made of a tightly sewn collection of furs rather than stretched mammoth-whale skins, but it was still a massive thing that took two dozen people to circle around and lift the edges; another difference with the northern tribe was that every adult could participate and Noatak noticed everyone lining up with hands full of hard star-shaped candy that as being distributed to all the grown-ups. He soon discovered the use of the sweets.
The 'toss' was a simple game- the selected person would be thrown onto the blanket and tossed five times in the air while throwing the candy at the surrounding children. Once the five tosses were done, another person was tossed in and the blanket holders were often replaced so everyone might have a chance to go without the holders getting too tired.
Someone tried to pull him into the commotion but Noatak politely declined and merely handed his candy to the nearest children, not really interested in joining the crowd. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Korra stuffing her pockets with ludicrous amounts of sweets and, before he could stop her, she rushed forward and was immediately picked out for the toss. He didn't really think she should be joining in, he didn't want to curtail her fun but given the pregnancy he didn't think playing 'let's toss the Avatar higher than the others' was a very good idea; still, Korra was Korra and he wouldn't be able to stop her if he tried so she was soon getting thrown in the air repeatedly and enthusiastically (and by her height he could assume some rogue airbending was involved) showering the children with colorful bouts of sugary candy.
By the time she got down, Korra was panting with adrenaline and gave Noatak a challenging one-armed hug, prodding him into the joining the fun.
"Come on! Don't be such a sourpuss!" She chided, punching his shoulder playfully.
"I'm afraid you already stole all the thunder from the others, it would be a shame to have to outshine you now." He replied with his own brand of smugness, merely to rattle her cage.
"Right. Like that would ever happen." Korra laughed defiantly and it was a beautifully stress-free sound. She then popped a leftover candy into her mouth and sucked casually.
"I thought those were for the children." He beckoned at the candy as she popped a second one into her mouth, already crunching the first one between her teeth.
"So? I have a child right here that deserves some." Korra commented with casual rebellion, already sucking on a third sweet as her eyes gazed down to her abdomen.
The simple comment was a gust of warm air in Noatak's chest; it swelled his heart to hear her speak so naturally and happily about the pregnancy, showing signs that she was finally becoming comfortable with the idea, despite all the impediments in their lives. He wanted to give some sort of witty retort but he was simply too cheerful to manage any sarcastic reproaches or intelligent remarks, though he would never willingly admit it to her, so he remained silent as they watched Tonraq get tossed in the air after being replaced as one of the blanket holders.
Noatak couldn't recall the last time he felt so relaxed and unusually happy. It was an odd and slightly guilt-ridden sensation, especially because he was forced to admit to himself that he was actually enjoying all the silly traditions, but the joyful atmosphere was contagious and he suspected not even a blizzard would dampen the moods of all the those celebrating so he couldn't avoid joining in on the fun.
There was dancing and games; Korra seemed to clumsily attempt to dance with Tonraq only to accidentally step on his feet…repetitively. After that she surrendered and joined a game that seemed to consist in knocking down a set of ten clay pins with only three snowballs, she was actually a surprisingly good shot but Noatak joined the game too and broke her record by knocking all the pins down with a single snowball, it was all a matter of aiming at the right spot that would trigger a chain reaction. Korra didn't take the loss lightly and ended up challenging him to several games of skill and strength which actually gathered a crowd of onlookers who began placing bets by the third game.
Korra won the maze game, the blind catch and the ice endurance game (though given her firebending skills, Noatak suspected some foul-play), while Noatak won the balance challenge and memory game besides the pin knock. In the end they were reduced to simple game of arm wrestling as a tie-breaker: Korra had muscle power and resistance but so did Noatak whose muscle injuries he had long since recovered from, he also had the upper hand in sheer size but Korra attempted to distract him with little lewd murmurs that made her own cheeks color up but were inaudible to the watchers. In the end the winner was…neither. They were both so stubborn that it was most likely their hands would freeze together before either of them gave in, so the temporarily appointed referee declared a draw which was greeted with groans from those who lost their bets and with cheers and applause from those who enjoyed the show and commended Noatak's resilience at facing the Avatar herself.
All during the event, be it between games, during the meal, after the toss or even during the wish making, people would approach Korra with respect asking for her blessing. It made Korra a little bit uncomfortable since she didn't feel she had the right or power to bless anyone, but the people had bestowed so much faith on her as Avatar and a bridge to the Spirits that she had no way of refusing anyone's wishes, she simply didn't have the heart to say no. It didn't affect her mood though, the blessings might have made her uncomfortable but she was still glad for the chance to boast about being the Avatar, not in any arrogant way but simply because it was her identity and it felt good to be recognized, especially after all the slander she had been through before and during the war.
As for Noatak, he didn't know when he had stopped caring about the staring crowds and foreign customs but all he knew was that he felt younger and happier than he had in many years and all thanks to Korra and her boisterous attitude.
At some point the sun began to set for the first time in weeks and everyone gathered outside to watch the slow descent into darkness as the last dying rays of orange and gold light faded beneath the horizon, staining the sky with purple, pink, orange, green and blue before the deep indigo of the starry night blanketed the pure white lands and the bright pearly light of the full moon began to bathe them all in its empowering glow. Noatak felt it, all the present waterbenders could feel the strength of the full moon rushing in their veins, but he was sure that even the non-benders could feel the mystical wave of power from their beloved Moon Spirit.
The night grew darker and darker but the reverent silence of the gathered mass of people still hung in the air and nobody moved as many sent their private prayers to Tui and La.
There was a sudden shout of astonishment and all heads turned the sky. No one could have predicted or expected what was coming but if they had been awed before now they were all stunned and frozen in place with excited whispers beginning to echo through the crowd.
The reason for such a reaction was simple- the dark star-dusted sky was suddenly glowing with the aurora lights. Impossibly beautiful waves of green, teal and the occasional red and blue flowed through the sky like translucent rips in the fabric of space itself. Every Water Tribe native had seen these lights before, Noatak even remembered training under them as a kid, but every single person in attendance was still completely and utterly humbled with amazement and respect at the gorgeousness of the spectacle.
A warm mitten clad hand wrapped with Noatak's and he glanced to his side to see Korra looking up at sky with admiration and delight written all over her features. The shimmer of the aurora lights was mirrored in her lovely almond-shaped turquoise eyes and, Avatar or not, she looked lovelier than ever.
Korra leaned on his left shoulder, still watching the slow flowing ripple of the lights and Noatak knew she had him in the palm of her hand, whether she knew it or not. Noatak hadn't thought he could love her any more than he already did but at that moment he saw that the closer he got to her the more he became irrevocably enchanted and unwilling to ever let go. He had never held such strong feelings for any human being in his entire life, not a single one, and the sheer enormity of his emotions for Korra, his previously sworn enemy who he had seen as a rebellious brat, was absolutely staggering and overpowering. He was determined to never lose sight of that feeling and never forget that single moment in time where she looked so beautiful under the ethereal aurora with her hand in his, he refused to forget it for as long as he lived.
As for Korra she might be the Avatar but even she had to bow down to power of nature itself. The show they were being rewarded with was beautiful and filled her with blissful humility and awe regardless of her naturally self-assured personality, but what made it truly special for her was that Noatak was right there by her side, publicly holding her hand and showing a warm carefree side that she was sure he hadn't let out in years, possibly decades. At that single moment in time she saw that her real victory had not been unmasking Amon and foiling his equalist plot, her real victory had been getting him to kill Amon himself and return to his real nature as Noatak, her true triumph had begun when she picked up the most broken man she had ever met and managed to put the pieces back together, falling in love had only a mere side-effect of that victory but it was the most rewarding thing she could ever had dreamed off. She knew those thoughts were embarrassingly sentimental and she swore never ever to reveal them out loud but at least in her head she could freely acknowledge that her heart was Noatak's and that that single aurora colored day of her life would be burned into her memory more brightly even than the day she was first called 'Avatar'.
A teenage girl that neither Noatak nor Korra had noticed before, suddenly pointed at the ice pillars, stealing the attention from the otherworldly sky lights. The pillars had only half melted into stalagmites of ice and the majority of the wishes either became a sodden pile on the snow or was whisked away in the freezing wind.
"I guess everyone has a good chance of luck this year." Someone whispered in front of them.
The whispers spread like fire, nobody seemed inclined to speak any louder under the brilliant and almost supernatural spectacle of the lights but many people were excitedly discussing their wishes and hopes for the new season, even Tonraq and Senna who were just a mere few feet to Noatak's right. From what he could hear from their whispered conversation, Senna had used her strip of parchment for the common but welcome wish that Korra would have a safe delivery, while Tonraq wished she would continue her path as Avatar with a strong heart. They obviously knew their daughter well enough to know she wouldn't wish for things that ahead in the future and it warmed Noatak that he now knew her that well too.
"So, what did you wish for?" Korra whispered with a grin. She couldn't really hear her parents but it seemed to be the general topic among the people around them.
"We northern people believe that only the secret wishes can come true." Noatak lied with casual simplicity. He refused to admit what he had wished for no matter how much she asked; he had originally considered selfishly wishing that Korra would never stop loving him despite his past and appearance but he had decided he could achieve that himself and instead opted for a much more important wish.
"Always a kill-a-joy, aren't you?" Korra rolled her eyes dramatically. "Well then I won't tell you my wish either." She had never intended too anyway, it was too embarrassing.
"I don't think you really mean 'always', do you?" The mocking tone of his whispered voice was enough to rile her up.
"You know what I mean!" She pouted and it was obvious her mind was slipping into the gutter again just by the way her cheeks pinked up too fast to be a reaction to the sub-zero cold.
"Always do, Korra." He mocked playfully.
There was a sudden burst of orange light behind them as the gigantic bonfire was lit. It was mostly fueled by fish oils rather than wood (which was obviously rare in the Poles) but even in small amounts such oil fuelled fires could burn on and on without a problem and assured that the celebrations would not end anytime soon. People started returning to the vicinity and the music slowly resumed as more dancing, laughing and singing began to erupt; there was even a small group of youngsters up in the platform about to perform some sort local dance. In the end only a few randomly spaced couples were left outside admiring the sky in all its glory, even Tonraq and Senna joined in the partying leaving Korra and Noatak outside.
It took a long time but eventually Korra, with a little secretive smile, leaned close and whispered into his hood- "Let's go back to the house. If I'm asked to give one more blessing I'll go crazy."
Noatak could only vaguely gauge what she had in mind but he agreed that he had handled more than enough people for one day and the idea of being alone with Korra sounded more appealing than anything else.
As walked to retrieve Niko and start the ride back to the village, they were completely unaware of two little strips of parchment not that far away. One floated in the wind, with ripped edges and large bold script on it that greedily requested:
'I wish for answers to my dreams. And I wish that Noatak never lets go of me. And that he finds peace.'
The other piece of paper was half buried in the snow which soaked it, causing the messy uneven scribbles to blur the message:
'May Korra always be able to keep the smile of today.'
~~~~~~.:oOo:~~~~~~
(Author's Note: The Festival was LOOSELY inspired in an Inuit (Eskimo) spring festival that is held to this day in Alaska and in a Japanese wishing tradition.
Also, I find it ironic that the aurora australis could happen at any time of the (long) night in the South Pole even though 'aurora' just means dawn. I just liked it too much not to include it. ^_^ So…many…fluffy…feelings…!
On a side note- I've already thanked my reviewers many times but I'd like to thank mintography for all the ff and tumblr support (THANK YOU SO MUCH!). I'd also like to give a special shout out to DazzlingAmethyst: I have no idea who you are but I officially LOVE you! Can I kiss you?! *I actually shed a tear for the sheer amount of reviews you left* Your reviews made my night month, I totally loved every single one of them and they inspired me like crazy, I have a whole pile of ideas planned up thanks to them.
Sorry for the huge note xP I know most you readers must hate them ^^')