DISC: I DO NOT own any of the characters from LOK. They belong to Brike.

Enjoy!

"You Can Always Come Home"

Chapter 2

Korra's eyes opened a few hours later to the sensation of someone shaking her right shoulder. Starting awake, she gasped before getting her breathing back under control. Glancing to her left, she saw Ikki's concerned face gazing back at her.

"Korra, are you okay?"

"Yeah," Korra said as the nightmare faded into the recesses of her mind.

"Are you sure?" Ikki frowned. She climbed onto the bed and put a hand on her older sister's shoulder.

"I'm sure," Korra insisted. She ruffled Ikki's hair, "What's up?"

"Dinner's ready," Ikki announced.

"Okay," Korra stretched, stood and followed Ikki downstairs. Entering the kitchen, she was hugged by Jinora. She assured her younger sister she was okay before helping Pema and her own father set the table. As she set a cup at her own place, she noticed kierna sitting in a booster seat. Approaching her slowly, Korra knelt down and smiled at the toddler.

"Hey, sweet girl. I'm not sure if you remember me. I know it's been a long time. And I know I look a little different than I did the last time we saw each other…" Korra's voice trailed off as she waited for Kierna's reaction.

The little girl gazed at the person talking to her for a few minutes. She looked familiar, but the three-year-old couldn't remember her. She heard her parents and siblings talking about someone named Korra and she knew they loved her, so she must love her too. But she couldn't remember her. But when she heard the person in front of her call her sweet girl, something clicked in her mind. Nobody she lived with ever called her that. There were only two people who did that. One was her Aunt Senna. Squinting hard, Kierna knew the person in front of her wasn't her Aunt Senna. The person had the same eyes as Aunt Senna, but that was it. Shaking her head again, she could feel tears of frustration begin to fall from her eyes. As they fell, the person in front of her reached out and patted her shoulder. When she spoke to her next her voice sounded a lot like Aunt Senna's, but Kierna knew this person wasn't Senna.

"Shh, Kierna, it's okay. You'll remember me in time. I missed you a lot," with that, Korra stood up and went to help with dinner preparations. She frowned as she set a cup in Ikki's spot. "I'm sorry I made Kierna cry," she apologized to Pema.

"Honey, it's okay. She'll remember you when she's ready," the older woman assured her.

Before Korra knew it, they were all sitting down to dinner. In the time Korra had been away, she had forgotten how good Pema's food was. She ate two plates before forcing herself to stop. She joined the airbender kids in dessert and listened to jinora tell stories about training the new airbenders. After spending some time with her Dad and siblings, Korra went up to bed. As she fell asleep, she thought of her mother. She wondered if her father had called to let her know she was okay. Knowing her father as she did, Korra knew he had. She hoped she would see her soon.

*****

Much later that night, Korra awoke to a sound she hadn't heard in a very long time. Sitting up, she strained her ears to make sure she was hearing right. Sure enough, Kierna was crying. Waiting a few minutes to see if anyone else would go to her, Korra prepared to do it. Swinging her legs over the side of the bed, she stood and went in the direction of her baby sister's room. Entering it, she cautiously approached the upset child. She didn't want to scare her.

"Hey, hey," she softly said, all the while getting closer to the bed. She stopped a few feet away so that Kierna wouldn't feel cornered. Edging a little closer once Kierna was glancing at her, Korra sat down beside the bed. "What happened, sweet girl? Did you have a bad dream?"

Kierna nodded as more tears came.

Korra sighed. She reached a hand out and gently placed it on the child's right shoulder.

"I know all about that. I've had them for a long time now," she confessed. To her surprise, she found it just as easy to talk to Kierna now as it was when Kierna was a baby. She was about to say more when a small, soft voice met her ears.

"Why?"

Korra smiled a little. She was glad Kierna was talking to her.

"A mean person hurt me," Korra explained as simply as she could. "And I had bad dreams about it afterwards."

Kierna nodded. She stared at the person sitting by her bed for a minute or so before something clicked in her brain.

"Korra," she said.

"Yes, that's right," Korra smiled, "do you remember me now?"

Kierna nodded. She moved closer to her as thunder was heard in the distance. As another clap sounded, her lower lip started to quiver.

"Is it okay if I hold you? I won't hurt you," Korra assured her.

Kierna thought about this just as more thunder rumbled. Making her decision, she launched herself at Korra, burying her face in her chest as she felt the older girl wrap her arms around her.

"Aw, there you go. I have you now, sweet girl. It's okay. The thunder can't hurt you," Korra soothed. She ran a hand through Kierna's long, brown hair and kissed the top of her head.

"It's loud!" Kierna whimpered.

"I know, sis," Korra rubbed calming circles on the three-year-old's back, "but since we're inside, it can't get us. And besides, I'll protect you."

"You will?" Kierna asked.

"I will always protect you," Korra planted another kiss on Kierna's head. "I love you so much, Kierna. I missed you."

"Why did you go away?" the little girl asked.

"I had to take care of some things," Korra explained.

"What things?" her baby sister asked.

"I had to get better," Korra answered.

"Oh," the little girl said. She closed her eyes as Korra started to sing. "I like that song."

"I'm glad," Korra smiled. "I used to sing it to you all the time when you were a baby."

Kierna frowned.

"I'm not a baby anymore," she stated.

"No you're not. You're a big girl now," Korra complimented. She continued to hold Kierna and sing to her until the toddler was fast asleep again. "Sweet dreams, sweet girl. I love you," with that, Korra tucked Kierna back in, gave her one more kiss and left the toddler to sweet dreams. She gasped when she almost ran into Pema on the way back to her room.

"I was just going to check on Kierna," Pema explained.

"She's asleep again. She had a bad dream, so I stayed with her and sung to her until she fell back to sleep."

"Thank you," Pema said gratefully. "Did she remember you?"

"Yeah, she did," Korra smiled. She bade Pema good night and went back to her room. Lying down upon her bed, she smiled to herself. She was glad Kierna had remembered her. As she drifted off to sleep, her thoughts floated to her own mother once again. She really missed her.