This fic is also on my tumblr blog where my username is Kuno-chan and my blog name is Dragoness Ramblings.

Disclaimer: Legend of Korra belongs to Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko

Mistakes

"No!"

Dan slammed up against the doors just as they shut.

Damn her, damn her, damn her.

Why did she go back in there?

No, he knew why. He just couldn't understand why.

Icho did not, in any sense of the word, deserve to be saved. Not after what he tried to do. But he couldn't believe it had escaped himself to think that Nima might not think about going in after him. Then again, of course he didn't think about it considering the immediate threat of the beast that decided it wanted lunch.

"Where did she go?" Hyun demanded. He beat on the door. "Why is she in there-"

"You know why, Hyun," Koika growled. He was still carrying Foba. "We need to get back to the ship, let someone look at Foba. Then we go back in for her."

"No." Dan was already looking up at the castle walls.

Hyun looked at him with outrage bubbling. "No?"

"Go back to the ship. I'll go."

"By yourself?"

Dan didn't even look at him. "There doesn't need to be too many people in there. It's more trouble than help. And this thing is a predator. The person who goes in should be the person who knows how a predator thinks. I spent my childhood hunting game. I'll go."

He didn't stay to hear anybody argue with him about the matter. It wasn't up for discussion as far as he was concerned. Around the castle, he searched. With haste, he rounded and looked up and down the walls. This place was falling apart everywhere. There had to be a place he could slip through.

Anywhere, anywhere, anywhere.

There. Right there. A balcony. Maybe some high ground advantage if he could just locate Nima and get her there.

Could he go through it? Would this place let him? And if he got in, could he get out…?

He considered it for a minute, but… Nima. That damn girl was in there.

He scaled the wall using the crumbling places in the stone and climbed through the balcony. That damn girl, he swore to the gods he ought to- Why couldn't she just come through the doors with him? Why?

He kept all his swearing to himself - at her - as he entered the castle.

-:-:-:-

Nima went in before she could stop herself. Would she stop herself if she'd had more time? She didn't know. Not now, not in this dingy castle with a giant snake woman thing on the loose and maybe looking for her? She didn't know that either. The naga may or may not have seen her come back in after getting her eye shot at.

She tread around like a mouse scurrying from the snake possibly looking for her. At the very least, she probably knew the other human was in there. Circling back to where they encountered the naga, Nima found Icho in the same corner that the naga had left him. He hadn't bothered to get up and find a place to hide. Gods, he was easy bait.

"Get up," Nima dug her nails into his arm and hauled him to his feet. "Get up if you don't want her to find us."

Icho looked at her, red eyed like he'd been crying. He was perplexed as he got up not quite as quickly as Nima wished he would. Looking around, she dragged him to a room whose door was ajar. Inside, aged, ancient books were loitered on the floor and the smell of dying paper and death languished together. She threw Icho against the wall closest to the door and stuck herself on the other side when she heard movement outside.

The naga moved with a slow, sickening slick sound, debris being pushed aside as she hissed and cursed over her ruined eye and lost meal. When the sound faded, Nima let go of her breath although she nearly gagged sucking in that air.

They dared not go outside, both of them too scared to actually see if the naga was gone. Icho kept glancing at her and every time he did, Nima looked at him. She didn't like being stuck in this room with him and, gods, she questioned her very actions being here, but…

Then, the naga flashed in her mind and her words about being hungry and she remembered why she had turned around. But then there was also Dan's face and her reluctant feet paced to see if there were any other openings around the room. Some other means of escape. There wasn't. After another ten minutes, Nima couldn't take it anymore.

"Explain something to me," Nima turned to him, books at her back. "Something I don't understand. Why would you try to hurt Ranka the way I know you were going to? The way you tried to do to me. What gave you the right?"

Icho frowned. "What? I don't see what I did wrong. Why shouldn't I have tried to see her? It's a small ship. Maybe I would have gotten lucky. Maybe you would have, too, if it hadn't been for your bodyguard."

Nima's lip curled in disgust. "And if she had said no? If I had said no? I never said yes. I didn't want you to touch me. I don't understand what made you think I did. Either of us."

Icho shrugged and glanced out the door again. "It wouldn't have hurt. If you had let me just go ahead and do us both a favor. You would have liked it. I'm sure I would have made you."

Nima took a step back from him. "I wanted to cry when you tried to touch me."

"I don't mind the crying, sometimes. It mixes things up a bit."

Her brain stopped.

It sputtered and tried to gain traction again.

I would have made you.

I don't mind the crying, sometimes.

How could anybody be like this? She couldn't understand this. Her mind flashed back to the day Nima had met Captain Quil and how he pinned her to the wall before her family had saved her and she nearly threw up all over the floor.

Right now, Icho seemed like he would fit perfectly on one of Quil's ships.

What had she done? What was she doing in here?

One part of her humanity told her that she knew why. That it was wrong to leave someone to die. The other part of it told her that she had made a huge mistake.

She couldn't help, but feel like the latter part had a sincere point.

Nima shook her head, her face and fingers numb. "You're a disgusting human being. I don't… I don't even know why I'm in here with you."

Icho said nothing to her, his eyes only flickering over her face once before looking back out the door. She'd had enough of being in this room. With this terrible stench and this god awful man. Outside, it was silent. The naga had moved on to a different part of the castle and Nima took that as her cue to skedaddle on somewhere maybe a little more safe. If there was any place safe so long as they were trapped in her. She spotted a set of stairs.

Upstairs there were windows. She wasn't exactly sure how high those windows were, but she did know how to climb.

She could feel Icho following her as she climbed the stairs. It wasn't something she welcomed, but she didn't stop him either. As long as he didn't touch her, she would probably be fine. Still, his very presence now gave her sickening chills and she was going to make note of the first thing that could be used as a weapon.

The room at the top of the stairs was a ransacked bedroom. Sheets and curtains had been torn, the desk had been overturn and nothing was in its place. Not to mention, it was covered in years of dirt. Many years longer than she'd been alive. On the ground, there was the broken piece of wood. Nima immediately picked it up. It might not kill the naga, but it could hurt a human being.

That's when the comet stone hummed. She grabbed it from inside her pocket, feeling it warm against her palm. Whatever it was they had come all the way here for was sitting in this room right now. Nima searched for who's life properly depended on it.

Where?

Where?

What was it?

The stone hummed more or less as she moved around, humming at its zenith in one particularly trashed part of the room. Nima moved the rubble around until she perhaps had found something. A sword? No, the end of it. She clasped the broken hilt. It was somewhat plain, but just the hilt of a sword. Nothing even wrapping around the hilt for the wielder's hands.

Was this it? Was this what she was looking for? The stone's humming had stopped entirely. She took that as her signal that, indeed, it was. Good. She allowed herself a drop of relief for that much, at least. Gods, at least.

Now, to focus on getting out of there without anymore trouble, maybe. As if some displeased higher power heard her, a hand clamped down on her shoulder-

Nima spun, throwing her weight into her swing. "Don't-"

Dan caught the wood before it hit his head. Nima held the wood over his head, frozen at the sight of his face. She could have cried seeing him even as he let go of the wood and put a finger to his lips, his other hand firmly over Icho's mouth. She got closer to him so he wouldn't have to speak too loudly. "We're leaving. Now."

"The way you came in?"

Dan nodded. He grabbed her wrist. "Come on."

Before he moved, he gave Icho one long meaningful look. One that Nima knew promised death. Even her word wouldn't stop Dan from killing him if he did anything too stupid. In all honesty, she wasn't entirely sure if she should stop him. If she would.

They moved like shadows, sticking to corners and never keeping in plain sight longer than a second. Dan was an expert at being so damn quiet despite his size. He led them to a room on the upper level, the room just as torn as the rest of the castle, but it had a balcony. Bless everything, it had a balcony. And she didn't need to be told twice by Dan to go ahead. She neared the balcony -

And then an arm shot through the room. Nima screamed as the naga's arm blocked the way to freedom. Dan yanked her back into a corner.

"Where do you think you're going?"

"Move!" Dan pulled her down into the corner and through a hole in the wall just big enough for a human being to fit through. Icho scrambled through the hole after them and they ran out, not stopping for anything and Dan's hand clamped down on her wrist. They shot down the stairs, around the corner into the very large area that might have resembled some kind of socializing or party hall if what intact furniture or decoration aside from the half hanging chandelier was any evidence. Nima leapt in, keeping to the walls despite the fact that the actual ceiling of the room had been torn clear off.

If they kept low, the naga wouldn't see them.

Nima's heart pounded so hard she thought it might stop. She put a hand over her mouth, eyes gliding over Dan who was staying tight against the wall, but looking up and listening for the naga that was going to come around the corner any minute. Icho was again in a corner, watching them both.

She could hear the naga cursing and grumbling and still apparently upset about her eye. Nima could almost see her. Almost. Her shadow roved over them and that slithering sound was close. How had it come to this? A year ago, she never would have thought they would be trapped by a literal giant snake woman.

Mistake, mistake, mistake.

So many mistakes had led up to this. All of them her own.

As the naga moved a little farther away, Nima moved to cross the room. A better position so the naga couldn't see her would be-

Nima squeaked too loud as she was pushed out the door.

And right into the open for the naga to see. Nima scrambled faster than hell back into the doorway on her knees, ignoring Icho who leapt over her and out the door. Dan got on the ground and dragged her back inside quicker than the naga could turn.

Mistake.

Icho had actually pushed her out the door- truly, actually pushed her out the door as if the naga would ignore him running and go for her instead while she was down.

For the flash of a moment, it might have worked. Maybe.

That would have perhaps depended on what kind of predator this thing was. Did it like to eat or play with it's food first? Nima didn't get a chance to process it. She turned just in time to see the naga whack Icho. He went flying into the wall, his scream cut short by the sick impact. Blood painted the wall where he slid down.

Nima's heart stopped.

Mistake.

On her knees, she held her breath as the naga slithered over to Icho - Icho's body - and picked him up.

Nima's eyes widened. She could hear Dan hissing to her.

"Don't look at them. Look at me."

Mistake.

The naga lifted Icho to her face and she opened her mouth wide.

Nima's eyes stung.

Mistake, mistake, mistake.

Dan snatched Nima into him, pressing her face into his chest and wrapping his arms around her so that her ears would also be covered. She shook so hard in that corner of the room even though she couldn't see or hear what was happening.

The naga was eating Icho. Those moments with Dan against her were left to her imagination as to what was happening to the world outside his arms. When she pulled back, she trembled so violently that Dan had to hold her hands just to get her to be somewhat steady.

"I-I-I did this. She's going to eat us," Nima began to cry as quietly as she could. "I-I don't want her to eat us. Dan-"

Dan put a hand to his lips to quiet her, but didn't let her go. He was watching the outside - had he been watching the entire time?

Nothing could compare to the fear of actually possibly being eaten. Eaten alive was very possible, too. In those brief passing seconds, Nima knew that even the strongest, bravest men were forfeit to this kind of fear. She could feel it against Dan' chest, beating much faster than it should have been.

Still, he held her and he did not release her even as he seemed to be thinking. Finally, he looked down at her. "I have a plan," he whispered.

She nodded, listening.

"Run," he said. She nearly opened her mouth to say that might not work, but he continued. "There are holes all over the ground level of his castle. If I'm mapping the outside correctly, then there are a lot down the hall to the right of this room and around the corner. But you're going to need to trust me and run when I say run.

"And will you leave me if I slow you down? You'll go, right?" she asked him.

He didn't answer her.

"Dan, please tell me that you'll run ahead if I can't run fast enough. If she gets me, then you can get out of here."

He still didn't answer her plea. Instead, he let her go. "We don't have much time for this. She's going to find us eventually."

Nima hated his evasion, but didn't press it. Not here, not now. She only prayed that he wouldn't let himself die for her. Some part of her knew that he would have stared death in the face if he deemed it his mission to.

The naga never left the room. Not entirely. She roamed there. Perhaps this was where she spent a lot of her time. What luck that this was the spot they chose to hide, then. The naga was turned away, picking through debris and scratching at the blood Icho had left on the stone wall. She was tasting her claws stained with his blood.

She and Dan kept her eyes on her the entire time as they inched their way out of the room. Inch by little inch, trying not to move too suddenly. Just a little more and they would be around the wall.

A little farther. A little more.

The naga turned. She looked right at them.

Dan grabbed Nima's hand. "Run!"

Sword hilt in one hand and Dan's hand in her other, Nima picked up her feet and lurched down the hall faster than she'd ever been. She kept up with Dan, pounding the pavement as she heard the naga screech some curse or otherwise and barrelled down the hall after them. Debris could be heard flying against the walls and the naga's snake tail raking against the stone.

Dan wrenched her along, an iron grip on her fingers. Nima ran faster, keeping up with him even as her lungs were ready to break open. They both had the same idea as they got to the end of the hall and took that sharp left. The naga screamed and could be heard crashing into the wall, but picked up her momentum a second later.

There.

There, at the end of the wall, was a dead end. A dead end with an opening just big enough for a person to pass through.

Nima looked at Dan as his grip on her loosened. "Go," he could barely say through ragged breath. She didn't argue with him, but stayed reaching to him for a moment before letting go and sending that last burst of speed through her legs. Her feet hit the stone so hard it hurt as that light came came closer.

Faster.

Faster.

Nima let her body hit the ground and slid through the opening. She twisted and could have expired on the spot seeing Dan gaining on the hole, the naga right behind him ready to snatch him up. He ran and ran and ran. She held her breath as he got closer.

There he was. He was just there, if he could make it-

He broke through light, sliding through the opening as the naga slammed against the wall in his wake. Whatever held her in the castle wasn't allowing her to break the walls or even so much as reach a claw through. She screeched and scratched and snarled against the hole in the wall, her eye a glowing obsidian abyss when she looked through with nothing but hate and frustration.

Nima and Dan looked at her, closing the distance between each other and turning to run down the hill. Neither of them opted to stay and be mesmerized by that terrible black eye. They ran until they hit the beach, The Sea Viper never leaving their view. Nima could hear the crew yelling for them, Hyun especially was calling for them to hurry.

They stopped at the beach, gods knew her chest was burning and her lungs themselves had to be on fire. From the looks of it, Dan wasn't exempt. She didn't know what hit her, but when he straightened up, dying of exhaustion or not, Nima threw herself into him.

"I'm sorry," she couldn't stop her voice from breaking. "I'm sorry…"

She nearly pulled back when she realized what she was doing, but Dan put an arm around her shoulders, never having bothered to stop her as they steered themselves toward the ship.

Aww, man I am super tired right now, but I am sorry it's taken me a long time to get this out. Between school and other things I've picked up, it just took me a minute. Next chapter already has a decent chunk done though.

As always, you know that those reviews are what keep these chapters coming. Hearing what you guys actually think and reading your comments give me the motivation to keep going even in times like this when it's hard to get around to them. Thank you so much for sticking around and telling me what you think. Thank you for reading! Tune in for next chapter!