A/N: Hi there, just to let whoever reads this know: I will upload new chapters every week on Monday, sometimes also on Thursdays if the chapters are short.
Hope you enjoy the story so far, and would love to hear oppinions/suggestions.

Korra woke up to two crystal blue eyes looking at her with curiosity. Forgetting about the child on their bed, she got startled and knocked her head against the wooden headboard, eliciting a sly smile from the girl.

Korra rubbed the back of her head and returned the smile, amused by the girl's reaction. She decided to try her luck and walk towards the doors, wondering if the girl would dare to follow.

She did not. Instead she chose to remain seated on the bed next to Asami who still slept peacefully. Korra waved a hand at her, and the girl's eyes clouded with doubt, looking at Asami and then at Korra. The Avatar took a finger to her lips, telling the girl to be quiet, and again prompted her to follow her lead. The girl climbed down the bed and walked up to Korra, taking the woman by surprise when she held her hand.

Outside the bedroom door laid Naga, snoring quietly. The girl took a few steps back and threatened to return to Asami, freaked out by the sight of the massive polar bear dog, but Korra held onto her hand.

"Don't be afraid of Naga" she said still with a sleepy voice "She only eats fish and kibble, wouldn't hurt a fly, certainly not you" Korra said, patting Naga with her free hand. The girl followed suit. "See? You can play together later if you want, but now we need to sort some things out" the girl looked alarmed but followed the motions along with Korra, who went downstairs and served her breakfast.

Korra noticed how tiny the girl looked seated at the table, even the bowl of rice seemed too big next to her, Korra was sure she wouldn't be able to finish it all, but was quickly proven wrong. The girl not only ate every single grain but she then asked for the apple Korra was eating. While the girl munched at the slices, Korra spoke.

"You hungry, huh?" The girl kept chewing as a response, holding her hand out asking for another slice "Later we can go get some Seaweed soup, if you'd like" The girl stopped eating and looked up, confused. So, she is not from the north then Korra kept prodding: "How about two-headed fish soup?" The face of disgust told her she wasn't familiar with southern water tribe cuisine either.

Korra wasn't surprised, the girl had blue eyes, but she didn't look entirely water tribe. Her complexion was tanned but a tad lighter than Korra's, and her dark black hair, even if tangled up, was partially gathered in a topknot, in Fire Nation style.

"We'll stick to apples for now, then" the girl didn't seem to complain, and kept chewing. They looked at each other for a while when breakfast was over, neither of them quite sure on what to do next, Korra secretly wishing Asami would wake up.

But before giving up and going up to wake her wife, she noticed the scorched brown garments the kid was wearing.

"Would you like a bath?" The girl shook her head side to side, and stayed hunched over in her place, looking at Korra, whose mouth was agape. What now? She knew how to deal with Meelo or Rohan not wanting to take a bath. She would waterbend the bath onto them, and done deal, but she didn't think that strategy would go over well with the girl, neither with Asami for that matter. "Would you take a bath over some lychee nuts?" Korra was onto something.

The girl thought it over and decided it was a fair trade and stood up, taking Korra's hand again, waiting to be led to the bathroom. Korra did so, quite impressed with herself, a smug smile on her face.

She filled the tub and gathered some towels and a Future Industries t-shirt for the girl to wear as a dress. But when she was about to leave the bathroom, she heard little steps following close behind her. She turned around.

"Go take your bath now, I'll be right here if you need me" the girl blinked and held her hand out. This little rascal. Korra couldn't help chuckling at her nerve. "Okay, wait here" she ran to the kitchen and returned with a bunch of lychee nuts. "You can have one" as soon as she placed it in the girl's open hand, she cracked the skin open and started sucking on the fruit, provoking another laugh from Korra "You can have the rest after your bath" with that said, the girl marched towards the bathroom, closing the door behind her.

She waited seated on the ground right beside the bathroom door, listening carefully for any mishap. Naga came and waited with her, her big head resting on her lap. But the longer the girl took to come out, the more concerned Korra grew. Especially when steam started to slip from under the door.

"Is everything alright?" she knocked, but no one responded. "Oh, for Raava's sake, I'm coming in!" She warned before sliding the door open. She saw the girl with her hands up to her elbow in the tub, heating the bubbling water. "What in the-" Korra rushed to pull the little girl out, who looked more annoyed than in pain.

"What were you doing?" She couldn't conceal the astonishment in her voice. She kneeled in front of the girl, taking her hands in hers, checking for any burns. They seemed intact, the blue tint to her scars coming down to the usual pink, Korra exhaled, relieved.

She looked up at the girl. She was wearing the t-shirt she gave her, only inside out with the logo facing backwards. She had also tried to recreate the topknot, but it had come undone and now hung sideways on her head. Only then Korra came to terms with how young the little girl actually was.

"Do you need help?" she asked instead. The girl came closer and spoke in a whisper near Korra's ear:

"Can you make these better?" She was referring to her scars, Korra comprehended. She was trying to make the water glow blue as she had done the day before, cure her hands as Korra had.

"Sorry, tiny, I can't do that" Korra read the implicit question in the girl's frown: But why?

"Because I can only cure injuries" she kneeled beside the girl "Your scars are already healed" Korra removed her bicep sleeve and showed the scar that laid on the skin below. "Scars are like the story of our own strength, written in our skin" she now showed her the faint markings in her wrists from Zaheer's restrictions so many years ago "They tell us just how much we are able to endure and overcome" she looked up at the girl. "And no matter how ugly we think the story is we have to learn to love it, cause it makes us who we are"

The girl didn't seem as convinced as Korra.

"But until you learn to love them, you can have my gloves" Korra removed her fingerless gloves and helped the girl put them on. They looked way too big on her, covering almost her entire arm, but she seemed happy with them "Is that better?" Korra smiled at the girl's enthusiasm. "Now, you can keep them as long as you'd like, but Can I have something in return?" The girl nodded absently as she fidgeted with her new piece of clothing. "What's your name?" Korra held her breath, not really expecting a reply.

"Akemi"