AUTHOR'S NOTES: And now we deal with the aftermath of the gala. Also, Korra meets more of her past lives, since I did promise that that would happen more here. Another unusual dynamic is that Tenzin and Asami form a relationship—nothing romantic. Tenzin's a loyal and loving father and Asami's loyally in love with Korra—but a friendship; a mutual desire to help Korra recover from this crippling trauma she's trying to battle on her own; to help her get back up and help her stand taller than before. Also as a side note, it's my birthday today. Fitting that Korra meets her 28th past life on my 28th birthday. That said, any feedback and other remarks would be especially welcomed today, both on this chapter or any/all previous ones as well.
Thanks to anyone who still reads this, and Happy Reading!


BOOK TWO: CHANGE

CHAPTER FIFTY-THREE: A DELICATE SITUATION

Tarrlok returned to the party without incident, and not even Tenzin, Hiroshi, or Lin had noticed his brief disappearance. With how elusive Korra had been at the party thus far, few people thought much about her leaving, and figured she was just playing hard-to-find after the whole debacle with the media. On the other hand, that would also make for quite the headline in tomorrow's paper, for better or for worse.

Incidentally, the first two people to notice that Korra had vanished were in fact Tenzin and Asami, and both of them had the same idea regarding what to do about it. As such, two of them crossed paths at the same exit Korra had taken several minutes earlier.

"Oh," Asami turned to the older man, "After you, Councilman. Leaving early?"

"Asami, correct?" Tenzin had not formally met Asami up to this point.

"That's me," Asami indicated with a little smile, "I'm just trying to find Korra. You haven't seen her anywhere since her outburst, did you?"

"No, and that's what worries me," Tenzin admitted, "I was coming out to search for her for the same reason."

"Is it alright if we search together?" Asami offered. She didn't exactly think Korra would be picky about who came to her aid, but she knew Korra well enough that the Avatar was likely in dire need of someone to talk to—or perhaps cry on. She had been rather enjoying herself up until Tarrlok and confronted her, and was surely not doing as well now.

"It may be for the best," Tenzin admitted, "Korra speaks very highly of you to me."

"Really now?" Asami mused as they started scouting the perimeter for any sign of Korra. "What kind of things does she say? Has she told you about… us?"

"In passing," Tenzin admitted, "And it is not my business to pry into her love life, so I accept what she says without seeing a need to intrude on her personal life."

"Well, it's not too public other than that we love each other," Asami shrugged, "but Korra does tend to be very sensitive about things she doesn't want shared."

She thought back to all the times Korra had been hostile or confrontational about her secrets, and briefly frowned. She knew Korra was a good person, but her trauma had a powerful grip on her emotions, and Korra tended to be very emotional when she thought she was being perceived as being weak.

"She was extremely defensive when Tarrlok mentioned you by name," Tenzin warned, "I know the man well enough that while he would not harm you publicly, that he may not be above underhanded tactics. Still, I also don't imagine he would sacrifice his political career to endanger a Sato. He is definitely trying to get under Korra's skin though."

"That's what she's told me," Asami sighed, "poor thing… she had to have been just holding all of this inside until now. She's… a sight when she's upset."

"That's putting it lightly," Tenzin mused, thinking back to the occasional outburst Korra had at Air Temple Island. He listened to Korra vent a lot just as Asami did, and with how passionate Korra was about everything she did, she sometimes went a little overboard in her expression of her frustration, which usually resulted in fire or explosions—often both.

"I want to throttle that councilman though," Asami's fists clenched slightly, "He set her up for it, knowing she wouldn't be able to take the heat."

"Precisely," Tenzin lowered his head, "She was still remarkably patient, but it was clear that they were not going to relent until she snapped. I don't imagine he was too happy about her still-adamant refusal to join his task force though."

"Korra's stubborn to a fault," Asami chuckled.

"Don't I know it…" Tenzin sighed. "Teaching her has been… training for us both."

"Oh?" Asami looked curious as the two of them still found no sign of the Avatar.

Tenzin explained his perception of Korra's thought process and how other than a few traditional and practical airbending tricks; most of his lessons were about patience, meditation, and emotional control. It was a struggle, but it was also a learning experience for them both for different reasons. Korra was such a radical departure from Avatar Aang that it was a test of Tenzin's patience a lot of the time. Her new and inventive ways of doing things often challenged traditions, and yet Korra was open-minded enough to

"You've got some serious patience if you can deal with her then," Asami admitted, "Don't get me wrong; I love her to death, but I don't think she's as patient with other people as she is with me."

"She's gotten better over the months," Tenzin hummed, "I fear that Amon and now this, however, might be setbacks to her emotional stability. There's something… off… about her."

"So you notice it too then?" Asami actually stopped walking for a moment.

"I do." Tenzin frowned, "Her mother Senna referred to it as stress-induced trauma and while I believe that theory, I don't think any of us fully understand what Korra's experiencing because she refuses to open up about it to anyone—unless she has shared it with you?"

"No," Asami lowered her head, "I want her to, but she's particularly vehement about that subject, so I've stopped trying to bring it up. She used to get defensive about her every flaw though, and so while she's gotten better, that's one of those walls that even I can't break."

"It's very unhealthy for her," Tenzin shook his head, "Korra is very… particular about her fears. She's admitted many of them to me, but even I only made the mistake of trying to get her to open up about her trauma once—and ultimately fared no better than you. I cannot make that mistake again—for my own safety, and more importantly, the safety of my home, family, and culture."

"It's not your fault," Asami reassured him, "and it's not even Korra's fault. I don't understand her motives, but I'm sure between us, we can find the behavioural pattern that causes her to get so defensive like that. I don't want to sound like I'm conspiring against Korra because obviously that's as far from the truth as anything… but I can imagine you understand why I would want this endeavour to be a secret from her, yes?"

"Of course," Tenzin nodded, "admitting your fears is the first step to overcoming them."

"And when horrific events happen," Asami added, "accepting that they happened and then getting back up is the key to overcoming them. I think Korra's using Nakkoa as a crutch to make herself feel better… and as much as I hate to say it, I think that's part of what's preventing her recovery."

"You seem particularly learned about this matter," Tenzin pointed out. "Your mother's…?" he trailed off, figuring Asami would get the hint.

"Yes," Asami closed her eyes for a moment. "And so seeing Korra the way she is… with how strong and how proud and confident she is… but to know that she's just trying harder and harder to suppress her own pain. It hurts to watch her sometimes, Tenzin."

"I understand," Tenzin sighed. "It will be a difficult battle for both of us and for her… but you have my support in this endeavour of yours. I will inform you when I can of any changes that I see whenever applicable."

"Likewise," Asami smiled. "Thank you for the cooperation, Tenzin. I don't know how important Korra is to you… but I love her… and so she's very important to me."

"She is the spiritual successor to my father," Tenzin reminded her, "but even if she weren't, it is not like an Airbender to turn away someone in need. Whether or not Korra realizes it, there is a part of her crying for help that she refuses to let people see."

"I'm scared of what will happen when she breaks." Asami subconsciously leaned against Tenzin with a dismayed frown on her face, "because she will break if she doesn't let this out… and I don't even want to fathom the consequences of that…"

"No one does," Tenzin sighed as put an arm around Asami as a form of reassurance. "I don't imagine Korra does either, but I fear she sorely underestimates her own power and destructive capacity—and short of letting her cut loose, there's no way to show her that."

Asami sighed, and for a moment the two starkly different individuals simply stared out into the bright lights of downtown Republic City. It was poetic in a way: an old bending master dedicated to preserving the traditions of his people, side-by-side and with the same goal as a young industrialist woman devoid of any bending abilities, dedicated to modernizing the world and improving lives with science and technology.

Society would have dictated they be enemies; or at the very least, fiercely clashing rivals. And yet in the short time they had formally gotten to know each other, a young but solid friendship had formed between Councilman Tenzin and Asami Sato.

Both of them appeared at a loss as to what to say, or what to do after scouring the perimeter of the building and not finding Korra. As such, they were both surprised when Korra came and found them. Her eyes were red and so were her cheeks, but it seemed she had (mostly) composed herself in spite of whatever had happened since she exited the building.

"Tenzin?" Korra spoke first, "Asami? What are you guys doing out here?"

"We were looking for you," Tenzin replied, "are you alright?"

"Were you crying?" Asami popped the question more in hopes of finding out why she had been crying, because Korra's face betrayed that she had been doing exactly that.

"NO!" Korra barked defensively, before sighing. "...yes. Tarrlok threatened me… said I made a new enemy today and to stay out of his way. He's furious at me, and I'm worried as to what that means… I don't want to put you in danger, Asami… and I really don't want to put you and your family in danger on my account, Tenzin…"

She sighed, gripping her hair. "Can I just kill him and we cover this all up?" She sighed, "No? Ugh… that guy though, seriously…"

Asami and Tenzin both exchanged concerned looks when Korra casually threw around the threat of murdering a man in cold blood. Korra was seldom one for idle talk, and when she made an actual threat, she did not hesitate to carry it out. Incidents such as her destruction of the Southern Water Tribe compound and her fearless challenge against Amon were examples.

With a sigh, Korra threw her arms around both of them and didn't say a word. It only took them both a few moments to realize that Korra was softly sobbing again.

"Can…" Korra sighed, "Can I go home now? Please?"

"I'll see what I can do," Asami offered, "I came with my dad so I'd have to make sure he was ready to leave. If you wanted though, I could stay out here with you?"

"Nah, you can go in," Korra sat down by the steps, "Enjoy the party a bit, or maybe convince your dad to leave early? Don't worry about me; I'll be fine."

Asami saw right through this lie, but rather trying to provoke Korra when she was in such a visibly distressed mood, she decided to find her father and see if they could return home. Hiroshi had a few interesting remarks about Korra's display of power as they drove home, but otherwise, the trip was silent, and Korra sighed with relief as she threw herself onto her bed and let a great deal of pent-up emotions out. It had been a very taxing day.

Korra ran away again for another week without warning, much to the annoyance of Tenzin and Asami, among others. This week-long vacation was spent at the Western Air Temple, which unbeknownst to almost anyone save Tonraq and Senna, was Korra's 2nd-favourite place in the world behind Republic City. Naga seemed to like it as well, because every time Korra went she brought her trusty companion with her, and Naga never seemed upset as long as Korra brought snacks (although the two occasionally did go hunting on the grounds above the temple. Korra kept up her skill with a bow for this exact reason).

Most of the time she was there though, she was trying to connect with her past lives. She meditated on her issues, and while she tried to make more contact with Avatar Aang in particular, she ran into several of her past lives, including a Water Tribe woman outside the Interregnum Cycle named Zulera who had spent almost her whole life trying to find out who her father was—and ultimately having no success. It was a simplistic lesson, and made Korra realize that perhaps she had taken for granted the fact that both her parents were alive, well, and loved her dearly. The idea that a parent could show so little interest in their child, even if said child was the Avatar, made Korra grateful for what she had. Zulera was quite the interesting story all on her own, and Korra made a mental note to delve deeper into that part of her past when she could find the time.

She also learned of the struggle of Avatar Xilingshi. A deadly, powerful Air Nomad warrior in a time when airbenders were much different than they were today (or 170 years ago, at least), Xilingshi had been revered as a hero and a legend.

"I was just as passionate as you, Korra," Xilingshi explained, "and yet, even with the world revering me as a hero, I lacked confidence. I feared that I was not skilled enough; not powerful enough; that I was never enough. My teachers disavowed my efforts; I was told I was worthless… that I was nothing—and I was the Avatar. The world saw me as a hero because of my deeds—they did not care about Xilingshi. They cared only about "Avatar Xilingshi". Or even just 'The Avatar'."

"That sounds a lot like my situation," Korra sighed. "Except no one's really referring to me as a hero. Councilman Tarrlok hates my guts, the Chief of Police wants to arrest me, the city says I'm shirking my duty and that I'm a coward for trying to take a rational approach in this anti-bender revolution, and to the Equalists I'm Public Enemy #1."

"Korra," Xilingshi frowned, "You aren't going to like what I'm about to say: but I think you are becoming one of us—and that you will go down in history as an Interregnum."

"Seriously!? NO!" Korra screamed, "That's the last thing I want; I can't…"

"Those who have researched what little history we have left are finding many similarities," Xilingshi warned, "but for how much I lack confidence, I can tell you this much: The Interregnum Avatars, despite our grey morality, were some of the most powerful Avatar incarnations to ever live. You certainly fit right in on that front. But more than that… we were the ones that whipped the world into shape when everything was a mess. The world always cries out when the Avatar does not do their job. When we do that job, they always complain it's never enough. When some of us decided to crack down and ensure that balance was kept, the world cried out that we were evil; that we were villains."

"So what about the crimes against the Spirit World?" Korra asked, "or Zeruda?"

"Zeruda is the result of the Avatar being pushed to political and social limits that no person should have to face," Xilingshi warned, "and as for the Spirit World… many of them are overtly hostile, and would love little more than to wreak havoc in this world. Some of us took the fight to them, putting them in their place. These too were ranked as crimes, and we were villainized."

"Anything I thought I knew about you guys no longer makes sense," Korra sighed.

"I may have diverged from my original intent," Xilingshi clarified, "the point is, Korra, is that you will always have enemies, and even when the world reveres you as a hero, you may still find that you struggle. This is normal regardless of if you become an Interregnum or not. And even if the rest of the world hates you… you're being backed by 21 of the most powerful men and women who were ever the Avatar. Stay confident—your fights are not over, and you are far from lost…"

Interactions like these were part of why Korra loved the Western Air Temple as much as she did. This Avatar Chamber was her favourite single location in the world—more so than anywhere in Republic City even. If she could transport this place to Republic City she absolutely would, but that was not possible. Korra had connected with more of her past lives in this chamber than any other place in the world, and while Tenzin's lessons were extremely useful, it was here that Korra felt more spiritual than anywhere else. It was nice to come here sometimes and just talk with some of her past lives; to get an insight on the men and women who had been in her shoes before, and how the world had been while they were alive. See wondered if her successor would do the same for her after her time on this earth had passed.

The night before she returned to Republic City, she saw Zoroka again—that sinister looking grey spirit that still greatly resembled her in shackles.

"Still following me, eh?" Korra grunted, massaging her shoulder just in case she got dragged around by the arm again. To her surprise, Zoroka simply gave a curt nod.

"You about to drag me off somewhere again?" Korra pouted. Zoroka actually shook her head. She pointed at Korra, before nodding approvingly, and then lurching off to wherever she went when she wasn't stalking Korra. Korra had no idea what the spirit wanted or what had just happened beyond a brief interaction that at least felt like the case, Korra felt like she had needed this vacation, and so while she was expecting problems upon returning to Republic City, she would at least be able to approach them with better confidence this time.


PAST LIVES DISCOVERED:

Zulera (Water Tribe, Female): A wild and freewheeling woman raised by her mother alongside 6 younger brothers. While originally something of a renegade in her early life, she matured and eventually became a very wise and formidable Avatar, although a certain nemesis of hers kept her on her toes, and she never managed to stop this entity before it escaped into the spirit world again. She spent her entire life trying to learn of the identity of the father she never knew, but all of her endeavours turned out fruitless. She later became nicknamed "The Fatherless Avatar" as a result.

TOTAL PAST LIVES MET: 28