Korra was out of bed early that morning, bouncing around the house and cheering. "I'm finally gonna learn waterbending!" She could hardly sit still as she shoveled the food in her mouth and her mother sighed. "I'm gonna make a tsunami today! And arm tentacles like dad does!" She was waving her arms around, making her father Tonraq chuckle.

"That's going to take some time Korra." A drowsy voice spoke up as Hattak, Korra's older brother, finally woke up. "Even I haven't gotten to that point." Hattak was four years older with dark tan skin and his black hair pulled back in a traditional wolf's tail. He had only just started to wear after his tenth birthday and was still getting used to it. Despite his young age however, Hattak was surprisingly mild mannered and mature. He gave his mother a warm, sleepy smile as he sat beside her and began to eat his breakfast.

"Yeah, but I'm the Avatar, so I have the advantage!" Korra countered, fully convinced that she was going to have a natural talent for it. Hattak simply nodded, allowing her to believe whatever she wanted for now. "And Dad! I wanna spar with you after I become a master!" Tonraq laughed, pulling Korra into his arms and giving his little girl a big squeezing hug.

"I'll be glad to take you on whenever you're ready!" Tonraq felt her little arms wrap around him as well, trying to hug him just as tightly before letting her go and standing up. "Alright, I need to get going. I have some work to do. Hattak, could you make sure Korra gets to her class safely?"

"Of course, dad." Hattak nodded, still eating slowly. Once he was finished with breakfast, Korra was already dressed and pulling on his arm.

"Let's goooooo!" She yelled. "I don't wanna be late!" Hattak pulled free of her little hands so he could get his coat on and waved goodbye to their mother. "Bye mom!" Korra yelled and dragged her brother out the door. Southern Waterbending School was on the outskirts of the capital, near where the sea met the land. Off in the distance Korra and Hattak could watch as ships came and went with new goods for trade. Katara was waiting in a small hut, smiling as Korra ran to her at full speed. "Hello Master Katara!" Korra shouted, waving her arms and jumping up and down excitedly.

"Hello there, Avatar Korra." Katara stood up and smiled at the young and bright-eyed Avatar, remembering how cheerful Aang had been at their first encounter. "Are you ready to begin your water bending training?"

"Yes mam!" Korra gave a little salute, waiting to hear what she would be learning first.

"Thank you for teaching her yourself Master Katara." Hattak bowed to the old master, showing more proper respect for her. "I hope she doesn't annoy you too much. She can cause a lot of trouble when- OW!" Hattak's insult was interrupted by a swift punch to the arm from Korra. He growled at her, ready to start a fight before Katara diffused the two siblings.

"I'll take special care of her, don't you worry." Katara promised him before stepping between them. "Hattak, you're welcome to join us if you would like."

"Oh um…" Hattak hesitated, thinking of a good excuse. "That's very nice, but I already have a master and…" Hattak enjoyed going to school with his other friends and didn't want to give that up to be part of Korra's private lessons. Katara nodded, understanding without him saying a word. Hattak smiled up at her, letting out a silent sigh of relief before turning his attention back to Korra. "I'll come get you after school ok? Have fun!" Hattak ran off for school, leaving Korra to her first few lessons.

The sun was setting, filling the capital with the final rays of warmth. Everything turned a bright shade of orange, red, and yellow as the snow and ice reflected the sunset in a dazzling display. Korra was marching right beside her brother in a huff, clearly frustrated about something, but too angry to talk. Once they were home, Senna greeting them both, but Korra flopped on her bed, ignoring her. Senna looked to Hattak, who just shrugged his shoulders, not having the slightest clue what was wrong.

Sighing, Senna walked in, seeing Korra's face buried in a pillow. "How did your first lesson with Master Katara go dear?" She asked, sitting on the edge of the bed. Korra turned over, staring at the ceiling as she yelled.

"I couldn't do any of it right!" The anger finally began pouring out. "We spent all day pushing back waves, moving water in circles, and trying to make our own waves, but I kept messing up! The waves went in the wrong direction, my water bubbles kept splashing in my face, and I couldn't make a wave no matter how hard I tried!" Korra felt her mother scoop her up, holding her close in her lap as Korra fought back tears of frustration. "I don't get it either… Katara said it wasn't just about manipulating the water, but to move with it. I don't get what that even means though! I was moving with the water!"

"I'm so sorry dear…" Senna spoke soothingly as she listened. "It was just your first day though. Everyone has a hard time when they first start out."

"I couldn't make my first wave for three months." Hattak had been listening to her from the door and walked over to sit on the floor. "Don't worry about it! You got the best teacher in the whole world! I'm sure you'll figure it out!" Korra wiped the tears from her eyes, thinking about her family's words. She was still upset, but felt a little better knowing that nobody was mad at her. "Hey I know. Let me show you something my friend taught me." Hattak took his sister by the hand, taking her outside. Summoning a bubble of water, he knelt down and showed it to her. "Alright. Try making this bubble spin around in my hands."

Korra nodded, beginning to swirl her hands clockwise faster and faster. It moved some, but not enough. "I can't do it!" She pouted, giving up.

"Hold on." Hattak bent down, picking up a pebble and dropping it into the water. As it hovered in the suspended orb, Korra watched it closely. "What direction is the pebble spinning?"

"To the left?" Korra tilted her head, wondering where he was going with this.

"Try swirling the water in the opposite direction this time. Match the speed of the pebble." Korra lifted her hands, slowly following his instructions. "Slowly." Hattak reminded her, watching her try to go too fast. Gradually, the pebble picked up pace and Korra's movements became faster and more fluid. Korra's eyes brightened as the water took shape, looking like a snake chasing its own tail.

"I'm doing it! I'm doing it!" Korra giggled gleefully, not even noticing when her brother stepped back, letting her bend completely on her own.

"There you go!" Hattak cheered her on. "Waterbending isn't only about moving the water wherever you want it to go. It's about being flexible. Once you know the flow of the water, you can start to move it any way you want." Korra looked up at Hattak's warm, encouraging smile, and got an idea. "Think fast!" She yelled, throwing the water right at him, the pebble in the front. Hattak yelped in surprise, but caught it, spinning around and launching it right back at her. Very quickly it turned into a game of back and forth, trying to knock the other over as the sun vanished completely.

"Try blocking THIS!" Hattak was too caught up in the moment when he threw the water whip back at full speed. Realizing she couldn't catch it, Korra moved her hands up swiftly, redirecting the water over her head and-

SPLASH!

"Gaaah!" Tonraq had turned the corner just in time to be slammed in the face with icy water and a rock. He rubbed his head as both children panicked, thinking they were in trouble, a welt already beginning to form on his temple. "Uuuugh... What were you two doing?!" He asked, a little snippy.

"S-Sorry..." Hattak mumbled, shuffling his feet. "I was helping Korra with her waterbending and well..." Tonraq sighed, nodding.

"You need to be more gentle next time." He said, a little calmer now as his vision cleared, seeing their guilty expressions. "And no more rocks either alright?" Both children nodded and he smiled tiredly. "Come on. Let's eat dinner and you can tell me how your training went today." He put his arms around both kids, the incident already in the past as the three of them headed inside for the night.