In Hiding

Summary: Korra tried hard not to think about Kuvira living in a jail cell waiting for her trial to start – until she finds her sitting on her bed, looking for a place to hide. Set after series finale.

Chapter 18

"We should probably come up with new names with our disguises," Korra suggested. She waterbent sweat off of her forehead and from her midsection. The green clothing was instantly seeping with perspiration the minute it brushed against her abdomen.

"Do you have any suggestions?" Asami asked.

"None whatsoever," she sighed. "I've been thinking about it since we left this morning. Our names don't really work," she explained. "I mean, what name can you get out of Korra?"

"You're…a bore-a?" Kuvira cracked. Asami snorted but quickly covered it up with a coughing fit. The metalbender couldn't help but smile to herself as she continued to follow behind the two woman. She grimaced as Ayaka let out a loud scream directly into her ear.

"Is there any way you can make her stop crying?" Asami asked, rubbing her temples. The small group had been walking through the desert, following the train tracks for a long time. The little girl would fall asleep, waking up crying, scream her throat raw, and then fall back asleep. Kuvira would keep her cool by pouring little bits of her water onto the girl's head. They had decided to walk along the edge of the forest for some shade and to have a place to hide just in a case a train would pass by.

"I've been trying for the past…" Kuvira paused. "I don't know how long, but for a long time."

"Why don't we stop here for right now," Korra suggested. She dropped her pack and plopped to the ground. Her shirt was drenched with sweat and made a sucking sound as she pulled the material away from her body. "I should have packed better clothes," she muttered. "It's a good thing I'm not wearing my usual water tribe stuff."

Asami sat down next to her, placing her pack on the ground before kicking off her shoes. She sighed in content when her feet touched the cool ground. Kuvira gently placed Ayaka onto a nearby log, and winced in pain as the little girl tightened her grip around the collar of her clothing. The minute she wrenched the girl's hands off of her, she burst into a fresh set of tears.

"She needs to eat something," Kuvira muttered. "Who knows how long she's been out here."

"Asami, will you pass me a snack pack?" Korra asked.

The engineer looked at her bag before shifting her gaze over to the Avatar. The bag was sitting in between them near their feet. Asami clenched her jaw before exhaling sharply through her nose. "My bag is right there, Korra," she said lightly, tapping it with her foot."

"I didn't want to rummage around in it without your permission," she answered with a shrug.

Silence instantly covered the four of them. Kuvira knew immediately that Korra had made a wrong word choice when Asami remained silent, the only sound coming from her was her smacking a spider ant off of her pant leg. The metalbender held her breath, waiting for words of retaliation from the engineer, and was happy to find that nothing came from it.

"Well, thank you for asking," Asami finally answered. Korra pulled the snackpack out of the pack and poured water in to the pack. Kuvira sat near the little girl, whispering soft and gentle words into her ear as she continued to cry. When the snack pack was finished, Korra pried open the bag and stuck the fork into the food. She held it out towards the little girl, who turned her head away.

"I know you're hungry," Korra said in a sweet voice. Asami looked over at her, watching as she carefully fed the child. Kuvira noticed the movement out of the corner of her eye. Her green eyes were filled with compassion, a gentle smile accompanied the look.

Kuvira watched, her heart soaring with happiness as the child continued to eat. In between bites, she would use the sleeve of her clothing and wiped the snot and tears off of the little girl's face. However, once the snackpack was empty, and the girl drank some water she started crying once more.

"Let me try something," Korra suggested. Kuvira moved out of the way, getting to her feet, as the Avatar crouched down low, making sure she was eye level with the child. On her left hand, she curled her pointer finger around her thumb. With her right hand, she curled her fingers into a fist, pressing the two ends together. "Watch this," the Avatar prompted. The little girl watched as Korra pretended to pull her thumb apart and put it back together. The girl covered her eyes and let out a shriek.

"Korra!" Asami and Kuvira shouted. They glanced at each other before glaring at the Avatar.

"What?" she asked in confusion. "It works with Rohan all the time," she said defensively. "Asami, why don't you try?"

Asami's eyebrows rose as she pointed towards herself. Korra nodded and pushed her forward. "You can do it. I know you can. You can do anything," the Avatar said. Asami smiled warmly at the compliment, her green eyes softening. A few seconds later her smile disappeared and her green eyes turned a harsh shade of gold.

The engineer stepped up to the child, who's crying had quieted a bit, but not by much. Asami reached out and stiffly patted the girl on the head. The child looked up into Asami's face, breathing deeply with tears streaming down her cheeks. Kuvira and Korra took a small step forward, waiting for Asami to make a move. They flinched, moving backward as the engineer abruptly got to her feet. "I don't know what I'm doing," she announced in a monotone.

Kuvira sighed deeply before gently pushing Asami out of the way. She got onto her knees in front of the little girl. Taking a deep breath, she puffed her cheeks out and crossed her eyes, before holding onto her ears and pulling them out wide. The little girl instantly stopped crying, confusion evident on her face. She then reached out and pinched the metabender's nose close, who sputtered letting go of the breath she was holding. The little girl burst into giggle as Kuvira rubbed the tip of her reddening nose.

"What?" Korra exclaimed.

"How?" Asami wondered.

"Don't ask," Kuvira muttered. She reached out and gently placed her hands on the girl's cheeks, wiping away the tears with her thumbs. "What's your name?"

"Ayaka," the child whispered.

"Well, Akaya, it's nice to meet you," Kuvira said. She held out her right hand. Ayaka sniffed, wiping at her eyes with the back of her hands, before placing her small hand into Kuvira's. The earthbender shook it gently before scooping the little girl into her arms. "I'm…" Kuvira trailed off. She looked up at the bright sky in through, her lips moving silently as she shuffled through various names. "Rika," she announced.

"Rika?" Korra repeated. Asami slapped her on the arm before shushing her.

"These are my…friends," she said slowly, looking Korra's and Asami's direction. The engineer raised an eyebrow before crossing her arms over her chest. Korra took a small step forward and offered the little girl a gentle smile. "…Ami and…and…"

"Rora," Korra answered. Asami slapped herself on the forehead as Kuvira looked at her dumbfounded. "What?" she demanded

"Nothing." Kuvira returned her attention to the little girl. "Why are you out here all alone?"

"I was chased," she answered, her voice raspy from all of the screaming and crying. "My mommy said…when chased…to run…so I did." Her eyes began to well up with more tears.

"Where is your mommy?"

"I don't know."

"Do you have a daddy?" Korra wondered.

"Or any brothers and sisters?" Asami asked. Her voice wasn't as high or as patient as the two benders. She frowned, biting the inside of her cheek. "Maybe an uncle or a…auntie," she said, wincing at the cute tone she had tried to take.

"No. It was just me and mommy," Ayaka answered, snuggling deeper into Kuvira's chest.

"Well, we're heading to Ba Sing Se ourselves, so how would you like to come with us?" the metalbender asked, her voice low and soft. Ayaka's eyelids began to close. She nodded before drifting off to sleep once more. "Okay, she's asleep. We should keep out voices down so we don't wake her up. She probably needs it more than we do."

"So, what now?" Asami wondered. She bent down and picked up her pack, slipping it onto her shoulders. She tugged on her ponytail, pulling it free from the space between her back and the bag. "We continue to follow the train tracks?"

"A split in the road will be coming up soon," Kuvira answered as she peered out across the desert. "If I remember correctly, there is no sign so we're going to have to choose a direction."

"You don't remember which way it is to get there?" Korra asked.

"It's been a while since I've been to Ba Sing Se."

"Korra you decide," Asami suggested.

"Why me?"

"You're the Avatar," she answered, lifting one shoulder. "You seem to know what to do."

"Not necessarily." Korra shook her head. She slowly clenched her lower jaw. "I just go with what I think is right."

"So what you think is right is having us walk in the desert with our rations of food and water lowering by day, until we strike land?" Asami pressed.

"No," Korra said firmly. Ayaka shifted in Kuvira's arms. The Avatar covered her mouth her hand, watching as the young child fell back asleep. She cleared her throat and spoke quieter, her words hissing past her lips. "What I think is right is we continue on into Ba Sing Se to get Kuvira someplace safe and try to restore order in the Earth Kingdom." She crossed her arms over her chest. "Do you have any better ideas?"

"If given a proper notification, we could be taking an airship instead of sweating to death in this heat," Asami answered. "However, we'll just have to make due with what we have."

"With all due respect, no one forced you on this trip."

"Okay, I can't take it anymore," Kuvira snapped in a harsh whisper. Asami and Korra looked at the metalbender, who was rocking back and forth, rubbing Ayaka's back. She glared at the two of them before stomping her foot into the ground. Four pieces of rock sprouted from beneath their feet, locking them in place around their ankles. "You're polite arguing is getting on my nerves, if you can even call it that. Whatever it is you two have to say, just say it," she demanded.

"You know I can easily break out of this," Korra pointed out.

"Do it, and I'll crush your ankles," Kuvira answered.

The Avatar bit her bottom lip before turning back towards Asami, who was staring at her strangely. "She could actually do it, and I don't know how to heal bone," the Avatar answered.

Asami nodded before looking in Kuvira's direction. "You want us to talk? Fine. Are you in love with Korra?"

Kuvira's eyes widened. She gasped in shock and quickly tightened her arms around Ayaka as she began to slip down her chest.