"What's that?"

"I don't know," the White Lotus guard spoke. "I think it's another letter from one of the Avatar's friends."

The older guard nodded briefly. "Just leave them there with the rest."

"They keep on getting more and more," the younger one said. "Don't you think it's time we tell them?"

"That's not our decision, son." He looked over his shoulder quickly, flinging his gray hair.

"I know, but if one of my friends were missing I would have liked to know."

"Especially if it was the Avatar."

"Exactly!" the younger member exclaimed. "I just don't get why they're keeping this a secret."

"I don't either, but it's none of our business, son."

Flakes of snow were riding on the coming breeze. Avatar Korra caught one on her tongue and it melted instanly, vanishing on her bright red tongue. Naga looked out across the wasteland, raising her head high to capture a scent. Sensing the salty skin of an otter penguin meant there was food. Naga made a beeline for the icy shore, making sure to alert her companion of the close proximity of nutrition.

"No thanks Naga, I have my own food."

The polarbeardog made no hesitation as she plunged into the sea, surfacing soon enough with at least three successful captures. The watertribe girl was seated on a bank overlooking several icebergs traveling along the mild, barely flowing stream. Fish and beef jerky were no match for the two friends' ferocious eating habits and were devoured in seconds.

"Alright Naga, I guess we gotta go back. Unless we want the White Lotus to send out a search party."

Naga whimpered in response and took in the young girl's warrior tail with her mouth.

"Stop that!"

The polarbeardog puppy kept tugging at Korra's hair, beckoning the Avatar onto her back.

"I'm sorry girl, I can't ride you. You're too small."

"Korra, there you are!" said a gentle voice.

"Master Katara!"

The elder was approaching patiently. Her steps weren't heavy but they were slow, trudging through the snow. She kind of believed she would at least find some trace of the Avatar. Unfortunately they were only dreams of a time past. This was one of the spots she had found Korra and her companion after one of their almost daily escapes. That was before security became even stricter and the young Avatar became even more isolated. She was surrounded by people all the time, never gaining any privacy, or any free time. Her one place of solace had been taken away from her.

"Come now, Korra. We have to go."

"Please Master Katara, we just got here! Can't I stay a bit longer?"

"I'm sorry Korra, if I let you stay then it will be even harder for me to convince the White Lotus to let you be."

Truly, Katara was sorry for her. She had failed in keeping her promise to the precocious master of two elements at the time. However, this time there would be no failure. For she would forewarn the CEO of Future Industries, the two bending brothers, the sisters of Zaofu, and her own childen. Lastly, she would make sure that the White Lotus would regret it if they did not give the Avatar the space she so sorely needed. For wherever Korra was, Katara knew this was a journey the One had to take by herself.

"Guys, check this out!" The young industrialist was rushing down the hallway to the boys living quarters. "It's a letter from Korra!"

Three pairs of eyes — one amber, and two matching green ones — popped out of the doorway.

"What?" the trio sputtered simultaneously.

"Come on," Asami said as she bursted into the room. "I'll read it to— what happened here?"

Opal came up behind her and laughed. "Oh that was just an intense game of Pai Sho between me and Bolin."

"Who won again?" Mako joined the two women.

"I don't think that matters while the rules are still wrong," Bolin interjected. "Let's see what you've got there, Asami."

The airbender rolled eyes at her boyfriend. "I won," she whispered behind his back.

"Alright," the earthbender began as he almost sat down on Pabu who quickly rushed up to his neck. "It says it was sent more than a week ago."

The four of them eyed each other. "Well, maybe the weather was bad or something," Mako stated.

Asami sat across from Bolin and pushed away the pile of unfinished letters. "Let me see that," she said grabbing the envelope from his burly fingers.

As newly manicured fingers got to work on unraveling the piece of paper trapped within, some nervous pacing was taking place. The sundial outside the temple showed five-o-clock. It was closing time for the factories, and their CEO got out of work early as soon as a call came about the arrival of a particular message that was now held in her hands. Shaking hands that is. The four of them hadn't heard from their friend in more than a month, haven't seen her in three, and anxiety was beginning to creep into their lives. Now that an answer might be here regarding the delay, none of them were so sure they wanted to hear it.

An hour earlier the message had arrived in the great, all-metal construct of a city; Zaofu. Equally unsteady hands opened the delicate piece of parchment and two pairs of curious yet weary eyes studied the unusual form of communication, since their city was a fortress with a strong radio connection.

The two guards that held the post office in the morning were called to a meeting of atleast a hundred other members to discuss this peculiar message. Although the short distance between its sender and reciever, it had taken more than a week to arrive. Extremely unusual by itself, but even more so considering it was from the most powerful waterbender in the world, accompanied by the most powerful earthbender in the world.

A trio of beds were occupied by the sons and daughters of the first and only airbending master of the previous generation. They had been sent to sleep shortly after Pema realized what she had been holding so carelessly in her hands, next to a boiling pot of tea. The leader of the Order of the Airbenders rushed home to his wife to find her holding the unraveled parchment, signed by his mother and Toph Beifong. Tenzin called out to his siblings to read it together, and when they did they knew that its information must never leave this house. Unbeknownst to them, there existed three more letters in the world, ready to be broadcasted to all the nations.