"So, are you coming back to Republic City with us?" Korra asked Kai.

The two girls were now walking around the festival area waiting to meet up with Mako and Bolin for dinner. "Yeah," Kai replied, as if it were obvious. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"I don't know," Korra shrugged, "I figured you may go back to Orta to be with your friends." She muttered.

"You, Mako, Bolin, and Asami are my friends too, you know." Kai told Korra pointedly, "And besides, we've all got lives outside of Orta."

"Really, what do Troy, Dimitri, and Azule do?" Korra asked, having never thought about that possibility.

"Troy took over the family business from his father when he was seventeen. He was in Republic City trying to merge the company with Future Industries." Kai told her.

"That's cool," Korra replied, understanding now how the waterbender and Asami had gotten together.

"Yeah, and Dimitri has a band he's the drummer and singer for. They travel around the Earth Kingdom giving concerts, and Azule is coming with us." Kai continued to tell Korra about her childhood friends.

"She's going to be staying on Air Temple Island, too?" Mako asked with a tone of disapproval as he and Bolin walked up to them.

"Um…No." Kai replied awkwardly.

"Where's she going to stay then?" Bolin asked, casually taking Kai's hand into his own.

"Well…" Kai rubbed the back of her neck while simultaneously threading her fingers through Bolin's. "Um…actually…We're going to share an apartment in the city together."

"What, why?" Korra asked, "You have a place at Tenzin's."

"I'd always planned for that to be a temporary situation," Kai explained. "I didn't even plan on staying with them as long as I had. I mean, they offered for me to stay with them only because I saved Jinora and Ikki that one night. I just…I don't want to come off as entitled by asking Tenzin and Pema if she can stay, when I could have over stayed my welcome."

"What?" Bolin exclaimed in shock of Kai's insecurities. "You aren't coming off as entitled."

"Bolin's right." Korra spoke, "And, anyway, how do you know you're going to find an apartment? We could get back to Republic City and they could all be full."

"I already found and bought one." Azule spoke up from behind them.

"Whoa!" Bolin exclaimed, startled. "Where did you come from?"

"I've been at the noodles stand." She replied with a shrug, "But I haven't come over here to discuss that." Azule waved him off. "Do any of you know who he is?" Azule pointed at a set of twins wearing large, floor-length Water Tribe coats with dark hair hanging on the sides of their faces.

"Um…Azule," Bolin spoke, "I don't think those are–"

"Oh, that's Eska and Desna, my cousins. Desna is a guy." Korra told Azule, "Why?"

"No reason," Azule muttered and walked off.

"What was that about?" Mako asked.

"Azule has a weird taste in guys." Kai remarked offhandedly, facing the disturbed expressions on her friends faces. "What, you really think she was curious for no reason?"

"For the sake of my sanity," Korra replied as she and Mako headed towards the restaurant they had reservations at, "Yes." Kai laughed at her friend as she and Bolin headed off on their own.

There was a lull in conversation between her and Bolin as Kai's laughter died down, but as soon as it did Bolin spoke. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm good," Kai asked confused, "Why would you–"

"I mean really, Kai." Bolin told her, his tone serious. "How are you feeling?"

Kai's face fell slightly, "I suppose I ought to ask what you mean, about the fight or my eye?" She spoke bitterly.

Bolin's face fell at her tone, "Both," he replied.

"I'm pissed about the fight," she muttered. "I'm pissed that I let myself and Lin get captured. I'm pissed that every one of my old classmates got involved!" Her voice rose in anger.

"Why?" Bolin asked, "I'm sure they wanted revenge on Min Chang as much as you and Azule and Troy and Dimitri did."

"Because what if one of them had gotten injured?" Kai asked, rhetorically, "or worse?" she continued.

"They didn't though," Bolin replied.

"No, they didn't, did they?" Kai retorted kicking the leg of a bench made out of ice they had stopped by, "It was just me, because that psychotic man had been brainwashed by his mother to think my family and I were the root of all their problems!" Kai was about to go and punch a tall wall of ice, but Bolin caught her elbow from behind her. He took her other arm in his other hand, struggling to keep them down as she struggled to get out of his grip. Tears started to run down her face as she gave up.

"It's not your fault that Azula hated your dad for no apparent reason," Bolin spoke calmly, trying to get her to calm down. Kai paused.

"I wasn't talking about my dad," she spoke behind a broken sob.

"What?" Bolin asked, confused, as they both took a seat on the bench.

"I've never mentioned this," she replied, "But I never knew my mom. She left before she even named me, leaving that to my great-grandmother. Then, I was raised by my great-grandparents for two years before my dad found out and fought for the custody of me."

"Okay…" Bolin remarked awkwardly, not understanding why this was relevant.

"Up until my tenth birthday, I had no idea that that had happened, and no idea who my mother was." She continued.

"But…" Bolin prompted as she tried to swallow another sob. He took her hands in his, squeezing them, telling her it was okay. Okay to cry, and okay to confide in him.

"But then, the day of my tenth birthday, I received a package from my great-grandmother. A package that held a letter telling me the circumstances under which I was born, why my mom gave me up, and tried to reassure me that everything with the Min Chang incident would get better." Kai told him…

Kai sat on her bed in her father's house. Around her sat the large packages containing gifts from him and her uncle. Amongst the larger gifts had been smaller ones, the ones from her friends. She didn't want to open her gifts from her father or uncle, because she didn't want the large gifts. She didn't like the extravagance they lived in and tried to force on her. This is all my mother's fault. If she hadn't left, my dad and uncle would actually care and pay-attention.

Kai had just finished that thought when there was a knock on her door. "Ms. Kai?"

"Yes, Jin-Lee?" Kai asked the woman that was essentially her nanny.

"A package just arrived for you," Jin-Lee replied.

Kai stood and walked over to the door to her room. She opened it up and looked up at the tall, older woman and saw the small box in her hands. Kai furrowed her brows, confused as to who had sent such a small gift. She had already received all of her gifts from her friends, so who was sending her this one? "Thank you, Jin-Lee." Kai told the older woman, and then took the package from her.

"Of course, flower." Jin-Lee smiled down at the girl with a mother-like affection.

Kai nodded at the woman and then shut the door. She walked back over to her bed and opened up the box. In it was a letter addressed to her in beautiful calligraphy.

Dear Kai,

I'm sure you're wondering who sent you this. Well, I'm your great-grandmother, and in these last couple of days I wasn't sure if I'd ever get the chance to actually see you again. You see, dear, I'm very sick, and although the doctors and your great-grandpa keep saying I'll get through this, I'm pretty sure I'm not. But that's not why I'm writing to you.

I'm writing to you, because I won't be able to ever tell you this in person. What I want to tell you is: Don't blame your mother. The circumstances under which you were born were hard ones. Circumstances a woman like your mother didn't deserve to go through, nor does any woman for that matter.

You see, your mother and your father were only just barely friends. Your mother was his body guard, and one time she was supposed to be making sure he didn't do anything stupid at a party, he convinced her to have a drink with him. It was that that led to everything. In the drink was strong alcohol that your mother easily got intoxicated by.

I'm told she doesn't actually remember doing the deed that created you, but she remembers the moments right before and the moments right after. At that point in time she was just starting to rise up in her career, and was under the strict, unwaveringly scrutinizing eye of the public as well as her mother's.

She came to your great-grandfather and I as soon as she could, not wanting anyone in Republic City to know about what had transpired on Orta Island, because it made her feel degraded and weak that she had let that happen to herself. She really did love and want you, but the circumstances that she was in wouldn't allow for the outcome of her keeping and raising you in a healthy home environment, not that the one you're in is anything close to that.

So, please dear, don't blame her for your father's actions and society's relentless judgment of public figures.

Love,

Your great-grandmother,

Poppy

P.S.: Happy birthday! I hope you enjoy your gift.

Kai reread the letter three more times before she was able to fully grasp that it wasn't her mother's fault that her father acted the way he did towards her, that she wasn't the reason that her mother had left; that her mother had never intended for her to be raised by her father, because her father had always been an awful man. It wasn't long after that that tears and quiet sobs followed. How could she have been so quick to blame her mother? Why couldn't she have seen it?

Questions about things that were impossible for Kai to have known before now filtered through her head until she remembered the box the letter had come in. She took the box in her hand and reached inside, pulling out a stuffed flying boar. Her mouth formed an 'O' shape in shock, as she made the connection between the name Poppy and the plush-toy gift…. She was a Bei Fong.

"Wait, so your mom is…" Bolin trailed off in shock, not wanting to believe it.

"My mom is Chief Lin Bei Fong." Kai told Bolin. "I- I understand if that scares you away." She muttered insecurely.

"What, why would that scare me away?" Bolin asked confused.

"Well…I mean…before the trip you said she was scary." She muttered, rubbing her arm.

Bolin laughed, "Yeah, but that doesn't mean I don't still like you now." He told her as if it were obvious. Realizing what he just said, Bolin's cheeks turned a bright red.

Kai grinned at what he said though, and before she could stop herself she grabbed him by the collar of his coat and pulled him into a kiss. For a moment, he didn't respond, making Kai think she had made a mistake in kissing him and went to pull away. But, she was stopped by Bolin wrapping and arm around her waist, an arm around her shoulders, and kissing back.

They both smiled into the kiss, before slowly pulling away. Bolin couldn't help but laugh, part triumphantly and part in giddiness. He quickly stood and lifted her to her feet. Kai, surprised at the abruptness of his actions, stumbled slightly. Bolin quickly caught her, though, steadying her with a cherry red blush across his cheeks. "Sorry," he muttered.

Kai laughed, "It's fine," and for the first time in a long time, things actually were for her.

A/N: "This is the end if you want it! This is the end!" ~Relient K, This is the End (If You Want It)

But seriously guys, this is the end of the story. This being the end of the story, though, means it's time for shout outs!

I'd like to give a shout out to the writers DAve and Bob, Kookie-Tan, ForLoveofFanFiction, 21, sophiathesofa, and the Guest who reviewed on chapter 6. Thank you for reviewing; I loved hearing all of your comments and suggestions.

I'd like to give a shout to Aryabloodlust, Syloth, BlackHamster96, CatchingRainbows, Fairy-lover123, 21, MoxxieRusso, Oceanlynn, Twistergirl14, angryHarlequin, dawn08, and hungergamespettalover. Thank you for favoriting my story; I'm glad to know you liked it enough to favorite it.

I'd also like to give a shout out to Aryabloodlust, BlackHamster96, Buzooka Zooka, DAve and Bob, Elementi3197, ForLoveofFanFiction, KilljoysMakeSomeNoise, Lov3for3va, 21, Mizuki-the-dead, Tachi Tsuki un, Twistergirl14, WebOfSmiles, WelshGirl4Life, angryHerlequin, hungergamespettalover, and smg55. Thank you for following my story; I'm glad to know you thought my story was interesting enough to want to know what happens next.

Now on to a few things that are always asked at the end of the story:

Will there be a sequel?

Maybe. If so, it may not turn out the way many of you think, because the way I've developed Kai in my head, her relationships with the other characters change drastically during Season 2. If you want to know what I mean by that, or have any other questions about what happens to Kai, you can PM me and ask, but I'm not revealing them here. I fear it might scare some of you away. ;)

Don't forget to review and favorite!

Post to ya later,

~Wrote Too Soon