Here's the official first chapter; enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own anything from The Legend of Korra, or the Avatar series in general; just my OC Xiang.
Sixteen years had passed since the birth of Xiang. In that time, Pema gave birth to three other children, and was expecting a fifth; Jinora and Ikki, her two daughters, and Meelo, her youngest son. Unlike Xiang, his siblings were all Airbenders, Jinora being the most promising of them. Despite this, Tenzin did not treat or love his son any differently than his other children; and considering how fun-loving and funny Xiang had become, all three of his siblings adored him.
For the most part, Xiang kept to the Air Nomad culture as much as he could. He meditated like his family, sought spiritual enlightenment in his own way, and kept to the belief all life was sacred. Though, unlike his siblings, he often ventured out into the city, but not for the reasons one would expect. Xiang was many things, but rebellious was not one of them. He had a deep respect for his parents and rarely disobeyed them. His reasons for going into the city were personal; a form of therapy he put himself through to cope with a moment from his past. Even though Tenzin did not completely approve, even he could not deny it was helping his son. Nor could he deny Xiang was actually helping people in the city, and making the reforming Air Nation look good. One such instance was his usual meeting with a certain citizen of Republic City.
Dressed in a black Hanfu with white collars and belts, and pants that started from white and blended into black instead of yellow and red Air Nomad robes, Xiang carried a large sack over his shoulder while walking through the city's park. Since it was the beginning of winter, he was also wearing a pair of leather gloves, and a black coat over his traditional clothing. Coming to the park was a routine of his, stopping by every week to meet up with an old friend by the ponds. "Hey, Gommu? You out here?" he called out.
In response, a messy hobo with the friendliest smile a person could have popped his head out of the bushes near the pond. "As if I'd miss our weekly get together. How you been, youngster?"
"Oh, just fine. Did a little meditating here, chased some lemurs around with my siblings there; you know, the usual Air Temple Island stuff. Speaking of which, I have gift for you and your fellow vagabonds. Two dozen fruit pies, Southern Air Temple style, straight from Air Temple Island."
"Hey, hey! Much obliged!" the hobo gratefully thanked as he was given the bag. After rummaging through it, he pulled out a single pie with gooey, green filling. "Mmm, kiwi-lime; my favorite!" he said before taking a giant bite and munching on the pastry. "You know? Had the Fire Nation tasted these works of art, I think they would've thought twice before wiping out all them Air Nomads all them years ago."
"'Open up line of pastry shops to prevent a second genocide.' Got it." Xiang joked as he wrote down the joke on a piece of paper. After earning a hearty laugh from his friend, the young man got up from his spot on the ground. "Sorry to cut things short, but my family and I are headed to the South Pole today. Just wanted to stop by and give you these before takeoff."
"Well, as much as I enjoy our weekly chats, I understand. You're quite lucky to be able to travel such distances with your family. Best part of being a nomad: the gift of experiencing and seeing wondrous places. Stay warm down there, my young friend." Gommu cheerfully said.
After a quick ferry ride back to the island, Xiang found himself back home, deeply inhaling the familiar, calming scent in the air. Even though he was gone just a little over an hour, it felt refreshing to be back. As he was walking towards the temple, he heard the familiar sound of laughter and powerful wind current off to his left. Knowing fully well what was about to happen, Xiang stopped in his tracks with a smirk on his face. Sure enough, all three of his little siblings came spinning around him on their air scooters, laughing without a care in the world.
"Xiang's back! Xiang's back! Xiang's back!" Ikki cheered as she circled her big brother.
"The hairless sky bison has returned!" Meelo cried, his own bizarre imagination showing itself.
"Indeed, it has!" Xiang playfully exclaimed before stretching out his arms, allowing his youngest siblings to grab onto them and repeatedly flip over them. "And it has come to take three, silly Airbender children to the South Pole to visit their Gran Gran. All aboard!"
Laughing happily, Jinora jumped onto her brother's back while Ikki and Meelo continued to dangle. "Yip-yip, you hairless beast!" she giggled. In response, Xiang roared out his best impersonation of a bison and leaped forward, only to fall flat on his stomach in a heap.
"Gah! Airbenders too heavy! Irony's weight crushing me!" he teased, pretending to choke while the others continued to laugh. As this was going on, the quartet's parents were getting ready on the family's actual sky bison. Even though Tenzin had become a bit of a no-nonsense kind of man, even he could not keep from smiling at his children's carefree behavior.
"Alright, you three. Best get off your brother so we can get going." he instructed in a fatherly voice. Obeying his words, the younger Airbenders got up and headed towards their parents. While Ikki and Meelo raced over to Oogi, Jinora walked by her brother's side to chat.
"I can't believe we're finally going to visit Gran Gran at the South Pole; and we're going to meet the Avatar, too!" she said in excitement.
"Yep. Have you been practicing your breathing to keep yourself warm once we're there?" Xiang asked.
"Mm-hmm." Jinora cutely nodded. "You've been down there and met Korra before, right?"
"Once. It was just after the White Lotus found her and sent word to Dad. I met her with him before she started her training."
"What's she like?"
"It's hard to say. I was like three or four when I met her, so I don't remember much. The only thing I can recall is she liked to show off her bending in front of everyone. The only thing she couldn't do was Airbend."
"Since we're not going to be moving down there like Daddy originally said, will Korra come live with us here?"
"I don't know, Jin. Dad's a little concerned with everything going on in the city, right now. We'll just have to wait and see." he replied, bringing her in for a side hug. Over by Oogi, Xiang helped the acolytes load the last of the luggage onto the saddle. Meanwhile, Tenzin was fussing over Pema, again, as he escorted her up Oogi's rising tail.
"Alright, is everyone ready?" he asked from his perch on Oogi's head.
"All passengers and cargo are accounted for, Captain." Xiang said in a funny accent with a salute.
"Right." he chuckled before flicking the reins. "Oogi, yip-yip!"
With a heavy groan, the massive puffball lifted them all into the sky and flew south. While Tenzin was no stranger to the long journey to his mother's homeland, it had been the first time he made the trip with all four of his children. Needless to say, it did not take long for them to get antsy and begin pestering them. At first, it started out with a simple round of making up stories to pass the time. Eventually, Ikki and Meelo broke away and scrambled about on the saddle. When they got bored of that, Meelo perched himself on his father's shoulders, pulling on his beard, ears, and eventually began to gnaw on his head. As her brother was doing that, Ikki, ever the chatterbox, fulfilled the tradition of children on long trips repeatedly asking if they were there yet.
"Are we there yet? Are we there? Are we there yet? It looks like we're there. Xiang, does any of this look familiar? Are we here yet? Are we here yet? Oh, please tell me we're here!" Ikki rambled as Oogi made his descent by the White Lotus compound.
With a deep, tired sigh, as Meelo continued to gnaw on him, Tenzin gave his response. "Yes, Ikki, as I have been telling you for the last fifteen minutes, we are finally here."
"Whee!" she giggled as she and Jinora air scootered off Oogi. "Look at all this snow, Xiang! We never get this much back home!"
"It's a vast, swirling wonderland of sparkly, white pleasure. Let it fill your senses with cascading, fluffy pillows of excitement and comfort, as you've never felt before." her brother said.
"Wow, Xiang," Jinora said in awe, "that was beautiful!"
"What? I was just reading the back of this rice ball wrapper I brought from home." he bluntly replied, earning a deadpan look from his sister.
"Hello, Mother." Tenzin greeted in exhaustion as Meelo yanked back his ears. "I can't tell you how happy I am to see you. Please, help me." he begged as Katara laughed and plucked Meelo away.
"Unhand me, strange woman!" he fussed in her arms.
"That's your grandmother, Meelo." Tenzin reminded as his son flipped over her head.
"It's so good to see all of you." she said happily.
"Gran Gran, I've been reading all about your old adventures. I've been dying to ask you, what happened to Zuko's mom?" Jinora asked.
"Well, Jinora, it's an incredible tale." Katara replied. But before she could begin, Ikki literally jumped in and bombarded her with questions.
"Gran Gran, you look old. How old are you? And why is it so cold in the South Pole? Can we make a campfire and all huddle around it and tell scary stories and make snowmen? And then can you make the snowmen move and chase us around with Waterbending? Wouldn't that be fun? Huh, wouldn't it?" she rambled while jumping up and down. Jinora was a little disappointed and irritated by the interruption, but Xiang quickly swooped in to assure her.
"I'll keep her occupied later so you can hear the story. You're in for a treat; it's a good one!" he whispered, earning a smile in return. Happy to see his grandmother, the eldest sibling came over and gave her a big hug to make up for lost time. "Good to see you again, Gran."
"Still the doting, big brother I see." Katara laughed as she hugged him back. "My goodness, you'll be as tall as your father before long."
"Hey, as long as I keep my sense of humor instead of his, I have no problem with that." he teased as his parents came over. After Katara gave Pema a hug, she rubbed her hands over her swollen belly to get a feel of the baby's chi.
"The baby's strong. I see another Airbender in your future." she said, earning a tired look from the younger woman.
"All I want is one child like me; a nice non-bender who doesn't blast wind in my face every five seconds." Pema moaned, simultaneously jinxing herself.
"Mommy, look!" Meelo called from a pile of snow he blasted off himself. "I'm a Snowbender!"
After shaking the snow off her head, still wearing her tired expression, Pema looked for answers. "Were Tenzin and his siblings this crazy when they were kids?"
"Kya and Bumi certainly were. But Tenzin has always been rather serious." Katara playfully replied.
"Mother, please." Tenzin groaned before taking notice of another member of the tribe behind her. Dressed in dark-blue furs, a tall, beautiful young woman was eagerly smiling at him. "Korra?" he asked before she came over and gave him a hug. "Look at you. So big and strong and beautiful. You've grown into quite the young Avatar."
"Master Tenzin, I'm so glad you're here. I can't wait to get started." she greeted with excitement.
"Yes, well…" Tenzin trailed.
"You're going to have to tell her sooner or later, Dad." Xiang pointed out.
"Wait, tell me what? And who is this?" Korra asked.
"Korra, this is my eldest; Xiang. You two met when I first came to see you when you were a little girl."
"Oh, yeah! You were that shy kid with the funny eye. I thought I made you up." Korra bluntly replied.
Not taking offense, but also not one to miss out on dealing a funny retort, Xiang gave his reply. "That's okay. I honestly didn't recognize you, at first. Last I saw you, you had a big ol' Buddha-belly with a massive outie sticking out."
"Alright, before this escalates any further," Tenzin intervened, knowing fully well how short-tempered Korra could be, "To answer your other question, Korra, things have changed. We're only visiting for the night. Then I have to return to Republic City."
"But you're supposed to move here so I can begin my Airbending training." Korra reminded in disappointment.
"I'm sorry, Korra. But your Airbending training will have to wait." Tenzin replied before turning to his children. "Kids, please unload Oogi and help your mother inside."
"I don't wanna!" Xiang exclaimed before grabbing the majority of the bags, "Okay!" he finished with a mock salute. Later that evening, as everyone was sitting down for dinner, Korra continue to press Tenzin for teaching her Airbending.
"So, how long until you're ready to teach me? A week? A month?" she asked.
"It could be much longer." Tenzin replied.
"I don't understand. Why are you making me wait?" she asked in hurt confusion.
"I have a responsibility to Republic City. I'm one of its leaders, and the situation there is very unstable right now."
"But you also have a responsibility to teach me." she argued. "Believe me, I'd be happy to find another Airbending master if you're unable to, but you're the only one. Unless you think any of your kids are up to the job?"
Taking a quick glance at his two youngest playing with their food, and his two eldest dodging and retaliating, Tenzin gave a curt, "No." as his response.
"So, there you have it; we're stuck with each other."
"I wish there were another way, Korra."
"Wait. There is." she realized, "If you can't stay here, then I'll go back to Republic City with you. It's perfect!"
"Absolutely not." one of Korra's White Lotus teachers dismissed. "The city is far too dangerous. It is the duty of the White Lotus to keep you safe while you master the four elements."
"I get that, but I don't think keeping me locked up in this compound like a prisoner fits in with my duty to protect the world." Korra argued.
"I know this is difficult to accept, but it's not the right time for you to come to the city." Tenzin said, trying to settle the debate. Needless to say, Korra did not take well to this, and decided to leave in a huff. For the rest of the family's stay at the compound, Korra avoided Tenzin. When morning came, they all left as quickly as they came. As they were putting distance from the compound, Xiang decided to speak up to his father.
"You know, she could've come with, right?" he asked.
"There is too much going on right now in the city. Between the growing issues with the triads, this new Equalist movement, and the standard public issues that need handling, I don't have the time to train the Avatar." Tenzin stiffly defended.
"But you have time to train the three most rambunctious kids on the planet?" Xiang countered.
"That's different, and you know it."
"I'm just saying, that was a pretty big hole in your argument. And if time is what you're concerned about, why not just make it joint training with the others? Jinora's at a pretty good stage in her training to help out, and Ikki and Meelo are close enough to the beginner's level so Korra won't be too far behind."
"Son," Tenzin sighed in frustration, "there's more to running Republic City than you know. I'm the only member of the council who isn't a pushover to that arrogant Snake-Weasel Tarrlok."
"You can't say she was wrong, though. Unless you wanna wait until one of those three get their arrows, you two are stuck together." Xiang reminded before crawling away to take a nap.
When they returned to Republic City, things remained the way they were. No Avatar to train, no exciting discoveries with Airbending. Just the same old thing. Two days after they returned, Xiang had ventured out into the city again for his little therapy walk. "Okay, so far so good. Just gonna spend a few minutes down this next street, then head home. You can do this, Xiang." he whispered to himself, trying to remain calm. As he rounded the corner, he saw a pair he did not expect to see: Korra and her pet polar bear-dog, Naga.
"Excuse me," she said to an elderly couple on the street, "I think I'm lost. How do I get to Air Temple Island from here?"
"Korra?" Xiang called out as he approached her.
"Xiang, hey!" she casually waved.
"Oh, Dad's not going to be happy about this." he cringed as he came face to face with her. "What are you doing here? When did you get to Republic City?"
"I hitched a ride on the closest ship headed here. If Tenzin wasn't willing to stay or let me tag along, then I was gonna come to him. Now he has no choice but to teach me." she proudly replied.
"Well, you're persistent, I'll give you that." he remarked. "Still, I don't think that conversation is going to go as smoothly as you would like."
Before either of them could continue the conversation, a red, gilded Sato-Mobile sped down the street and came towards them. "You two better get out of here. It isn't safe." the old woman Korra was speaking to before warned.
When the passengers came out, the pair saw they were three, sinister looking thugs approaching an old man shining a phonograph. "Mr. Chung, please tell me you have my money. Or else I can't guarantee I can protect your fine establishment." the apparent leader, dressed in gray all but threatened as his associate summoned a flare in his hand.
"I'm sorry. Business has been slow. Please, take one of my phonographs." the frightened man pleaded, only to watch the Firebender smash it to pieces.
"My friend here is not much of a music lover. Give me the money, or else-"
"Or else what, hoodlum?" Korra asked, gaining everyone's attention. Taking one look at her, the trio of gangsters nearly busted a gut laughing at the obvious challenge.
"Since you're obviously fresh off the boat, let me explain a couple of things. You're in Triple Threat Triad territory, and we're about to put you in a hospital."
"You're the only ones who are gonna need a hospital. And, for your sake, I hope there's one nearby." Korra retorted smugly.
"Who do you think you are?" the leader sneered.
"Why don't you come find out?" she replied, ready for a brawl. With a swift swing of his arm, the thug tossed a blast of water at Korra, only for the Avatar to send it right back in his face, and freeze it around his head before kicking him into the hood of his car. When the Earthbending thug tried to take her on, Korra sent him flying with her own Earthbending and watched him flop onto the ground. When the Firebender took a swing, she easily countered his attack and sent him hurdling through a shop's window.
"Got an idea about who I am now, chumps?" she smugly asked. While her back was turned, the Waterbender gathered the Earthbender and tried to get away in their car. After snatching the Firebender, it looked as though they were about to get away. But just before Korra could Earthbend a barrier, Xiang stopped her.
"I got this one." he calmly halted as he took off his left glove. Much to Korra's surprise, she saw in place of a hand of flesh, Xiang had a mesh of woven branches in the shape of a hand, which he somehow shot through the ground and erupted into a large tree at the end of the street, stopping the car, and pushing it back towards them.
"How did you do that?" she asked as he severed his "fingers" and returned them to their previous state.
"You're looking at, quite possibly, the one and only Plantbender, Avatar Korra. Surprise!" he joked before police sirens filled the air. Following his panicked gaze, Korra and Naga saw a massive, black and yellow air ship directly above them.
"Police; freeze where you are!" an officer ordered over the loudspeaker.
"Cool! Metalbenders!" Korra said in awe as the metal-clad officers descended on their cables.
"Aw, crap!" Xiang groaned as he smacked his forehead.
"What? They're probably here to thank us. Don't worry, officers, they're all yours." Korra proudly puffed.
"Arrest them!" the sergeant ordered before his men wrapped the thugs in cables. After they were incapacitated, the sergeant approached the pair with a stern frown. "You two are under arrest, as well."
"What?!" Korra exclaimed. "What do you mean? Those are the bad guys over there! They were smashing up a shop!"
"From the looks of it, you did some smashing, too. And trees in the streets again, Xiang?!" he snarled at the teenager.
"Well, it's not like I was gonna grab their bumper and get my arm ripped off; again!" Xiang retorted.
"No excuses. You know the rules. Now, both of you, come quietly." he ordered before trying to snatch them in his cables. A gesture Korra did not appreciate or allow to happen.
"Wait. You can't arrest us. Let me explain."
"You can explain yourselves all you want, down at headquarters." he shot back as he tried to wrap them up. The second time this happened, Naga decided to intervene and slam the cop out of the way.
Taking the opportunity, and Xiang along for the ride, Korra pulled him with her as she climbed onto Naga and made her escape. "Sorry, Sgt. Don't take it personal!" Xiang shouted as they whipped around the nearest corner. Even though Korra was determined to escape capture, she was a stranger in a strange city, thus had no idea where she was going. She was only able to make it a few blocks before the Metalbenders caught Naga in their cables and hauled them off to headquarters.
"So, tell us, Avatar, how you liking your first day in the big city?" Xiang playfully asked, pretending to sound like a stereotypical reporter.
"Oh, shut up." she grumbled as cables wrapped around them both.
Once they were brought to the precinct, the pair were brought forward to a tall, imposing desk with a Metalbender eating a donut sitting behind it. "Welcome to RCPD Precinct 1, if your detaining officers have read you your rights, please turn over any and all loose belongings, not classified as clothing, in this bin." the man recited in a bored tone as he bended out a metal bin right in front of them. Since Korra had nothing like that, she had nothing to throw in and walked ahead. Xiang tried to do the same, but was blocked by a metal floor slab rising in front of him. "Come on, kid, you know the drill."
"Oh, come on!" he complained in exasperation, "Do you really think I'm going to try and escape or attack anyone?"
"You use it as a weapon all the time, Plantbender. Either detach it, or we cut it off." the fat cop retorted.
"Fine." Xiang huffed in annoyance. Pulling his left arm out of his sleeves, Xiang revealed that it was not just his hand that was made of wood. Instead, his entire left arm was made up of woven branches; some of which had sprouted tiny leaves. With a series of grunts, Korra watched as the fake limp detached itself from his shoulder and pulled out of his bare socket. "There. Happy?" he asked in irritation as he dumped it in the bin.
"Move along." the cop said nonchalantly.
"Hurts every time." Xiang grumbled as they were taken away. Korra was the first to be taken away to interrogation. In the meantime, Xiang chose to wait patiently by meditating in his cell. Eventually, he was snapped out of his concentration when he heard his cell door open. When he opened his eyes, he saw his fuming father glaring down his sharp nose at him. "I know, you're mad. I'm not going to make excuses, but I'm not going to apologize for stopping those punks, either."
Deeply inhaling to calm himself, Tenzin gave his reply. "Do you have any idea how nerve wracking it is for me knowing you allow yourself to walk about known Triad territory? Then, I get a call from the police saying you were in a street fight with members of the Triple Threats? Why are you so incessant with forcing yourself through this self-imposed therapy, son?"
"I don't want to live in fear for the rest of my life, Dad. Nor do I wanna live with the regret of not taking action when I see something wrong. That's just not me." Xiang defended.
Doing his best to control any further arguments, Tenzin just sighed again before swiftly turning to leave. "Come along. We're going home, and I'm sending Korra on her way back to the South Pole, immediately."
Staying behind his father, Xiang tried to keep up with Tenzin's irritated speed walking through the building until they came to Korra's interrogation room. When the Metalbenders opened the door, Xiang saw Police Chief Lin Beifong alone with Korra.
"Hey, Tenzin." the Avatar sheepishly greeted. "I got a little sidetracked on my way to see you."
Doing his best to stay calm, Tenzin directed the best smile he could put on to the stoic chief of police. "Lin, you are looking radiant as usual."
"Cut the crap, Tenzin. Why is the Avatar in Republic City? I thought you were supposed to be moving down to the South Pole to train her."
"My relocation has been delayed." Tenzin replied, dropping his nice-guy act. "The Avatar, on the other hand, will be heading back to the South Pole, immediately, where she will stay put."
"But-"
"If you would be so kind as to drop the charges against my son and Korra, I will take full responsibility for today's regrettable events and cover all the damages." he negotiated.
"And that eyesore of a tree in the middle of the street?" Lin asked.
"My son will remove that, himself; under direct supervision." Tenzin sternly replied as he glared and Xiang.
"Fine." Lin sighed, already wishing for things to be over with. "Just get her out of my city."
"Always a pleasure, Lin. Let's go, Korra." Tenzin ordered as they left. As Korra was leaving, Lin made sure to give her a gesture that she was watching her; something Korra was more than willing to give back. After she did, Xiang took the chance to give the chief of police one last bit of trouble.
"Bye, Auntie!" he teased while laughing, earning a flustered stutter and embarrassed blush from the chief.
After Xiang reclaimed, and reattached, his arm, Korra did her best to persuade Tenzin while they waited to get Naga back. "Tenzin, please, don't send me back home."
"You blatantly disobeyed my wishes and the orders of the White Lotus; and got my son arrested within the first hour of your stay here." the monk sternly pointed out.
"Okay, I'm sorry about that. I really am. But Katara agreed with me that I should come. She said my destiny is in Republic City." Korra gently argued.
"Don't bring my mother into this!" Tenzin warned, his head turning red at the mentioning of his mother.
"Look, I can't wait any longer to finish my training. Being cooped up and hidden away from the world isn't helping me become a better Avatar. I saw a lot of the city today, and it's totally out of whack. I understand why you need to stay. Republic City does need you, but it needs me, too."
Struggling to further continue the argument, Tenzin was left as a stuttering mess. Even though he respected his father, not even Xiang could deny Korra raised plenty of valid points. "You know, she's probably just going to run off again if you send her back. Better to keep her nearby and know where she is than assume where she is and be proven wrong." he reasoned.
Even though that was another valid point, Tenzin said nothing. In fact, he said nothing the whole ride back to Air Temple Island as he contemplated everything he heard and knew. When they reached the island's dock, and saw members of the White Lotus waiting for Korra, Tenzin knew he had to make a choice soon. But before he could, his other three children came swooping down on their gliders, happy to see the Avatar.
"Korra!" they cheered.
"Are you coming to live with us on the island?" Ikki innocently asked.
"No." Korra sadly replied. "I'm sorry, Ikki. I have to go home now."
"Aw." the little Airbender said in disappointment.
As he watched the Avatar and her animal guide walk towards their escort, Tenzin finally spoke up. "Wait. I have done my best to guide Republic City towards the dream my father had for it. But you are right. It has fallen out of balance since he passed. I thought I should put off your training in order to uphold his legacy, but you are his true legacy. You may stay and train Airbending here with me. Republic City needs its Avatar once again."
"Yes! Thank you! You're the best!" Korra cheered in gratitude as the children happily joined in. In the excitement, Korra scooped all three of them up in a hug and pulled their father in to join them.
Still being silly, and not wanting to be left out, Xiang managed to squeeze in with the rest of his family. "I want in the hug, too!" he laughed while his father sighed. The next day, after approval from the rest of the council, Korra was allowed to introduce herself to the city in a massive, public, press conference.
As the camera flashes sent spots into her eyes, Korra did her best to remain composed before giving her announcement. "Hello, I'm Korra, your new Avatar."
"Does this mean you've moved to Republic City?" one reported asked.
"Were you trying to send a message to the Triads yesterday?"
"Will you be fighting crime, the anti-bending revolution, or both?"
"Will you be working with Chief Beifong and the police?"
"Uh," Korra staggered after the barrage of questions, "yes, I am definitely here to stay, but, honestly, I don't have a plan yet, exactly. See, I'm still in training, but, all I know is Avatar Aang meant for this city to be the center of peace and balance in the world. And I believe we can make his dream a reality. I look forward to serving you. I'm so happy to be here. Thank you, Republic City."
Throughout the entire city, Korra declaration was broadcasted over the radio. Both friendly and non-friendly ears heard it, and even ears that thought nothing of it. One such pair of ears belonged to a beautiful tanned-skin girl with short, black hair and jade-green eyes. Dressed in a green dress with decorative, metal accessories, the beauty stepped off one of the trains and breathed in the scent of the city.
"Opal, come on!" a pair of twin, muscular, teenage boys, slightly younger than her, groaned in annoyance. Like her, they were dressed in green and metal, but seemed more anxious to get where they needed to be. "The longer we take, the longer it will be before we get to the hotel. What if we miss the match tonight?!"
"Will you two calm down?" she sighed, rolling her jewel-like eyes. "We have plenty of time. Get the luggage, and I'll make sure the car is here."
"Fine." they both groaned.
After they left her alone, Opal gazed out at the bustling city, eager to explore its wonders; and hopefully meet a particular individual. "Maybe our paths will cross again, Xiang. I can't wait to see you." she thought as she clutched over her heart.
So, there you have it. You know what teenage Xiang looks like, his persona, how he dresses, what he can bend, and who his obvious love interest is! Thoughts?
For those of you who firmly ship Bolin and Opal, sorry :/ They did have their cute moments, but not nearly enough to where I was gonna keep them together in this fic. Besides, I'm kinda on the fence about a lot of the relationships our members of Team Avatar had. For the other pairings, it's either going to be Mako and Asami, or Mako and Korra. If I do Mako and Asami, I'll probably pair Korra with Bolin. I know Korra/Asami is the confirmed end result, but it just wasn't believable to me. To be honest, not even her relationship with Mako was all that believable. Each season felt very rushed and before anyone starts to rant about me not knowing what I'm talking about, I just binge watched all four books on Netflix. It was rushed. So, with that in mind, I'm going to try and expand on some things that could have been included in the show; and I'm going to include a lot of original material involving Xiang and Opal, along with the other Airbenders (which will include Pema for those of you who enjoyed her character and always wanted more).
Anyway, I hope you liked what I've written so far, and if it matters to you, this will also be posted on AO3. I'm very busy during the week, and am usually exhausted after work, so updates may take awhile. I'll try and get the next few chapters done soon. You guys are great, thanks for reading! Flameo, my good hotmen!