A/n: Here it is, the long-awaited chapter seven. It's twice the length of the past few chapters and I'm still working on chapter 10 right now. To be honest, I'm really excited about updating that chapter when it comes because I put a lot of work into it, but it means nothing if I wasn't able to get a rise out of you, my readers. I have a history of making my readers cry, so chapter ten comes with a tissue warning.

Also, I didn't see until this morning that we hit seventy. Honestly, I work part-time and after the closing shift, I just want to go to bed. I'm glad that you guys hit my goal though, because reviews are really the only way I know if I'm doing this story and the characters justice. And there was some concern about whether I was holding this chapter hostage or not if my goal wasn't met and let me say this now: I would never hold a chapter hostage just to feed my own ego. I update regardless of the goal because it seems stupid to do that. The point of being on this site is to share a story and that's what I came to do, regardless of the number of reviews I get. Okay, enough talk. Story away!

Chapter 7: Soldier

As she sat on the plush chaise against the wall under the window, it occurred to Korra that Tahno had a nice room.

Actually, all his rooms were nice, and everything that was in those rooms was nice. He lived in a penthouse not far from the docks; from his window and his balcony, one could see clearly Yue Bay and the statue of her past life. Satins and silks decorated his home in boldly rich colors and Korra was surprised to find his deep fondness for maroons and purples.

He also had an affinity for gold and one could find it stitched into every throw-pillow and vase, hidden from view until it sparkled in the sun in threads finer than spider's silk. Every detail in his throw-pillow cases and the blanket draped over the arm of his wooden bench was hand-stitched, he told her. The bookcase by the window and the low table were both handmade using some of the finest dark wood in the world, guaranteed to last a lifetime; and it was clear that Tahno enjoyed artisanal items. The only thing he seemed to enjoy more than owning the items seemed to be explaining them, and every step around his home during their tour seemed to make him glow with a subdued pride that Korra never thought possible of him.

Idly running a finger over the smooth fabric of the chaise beneath her, the young avatar let her eyes wander over the room. He had invited her for tea at his home after meeting her for lunch in the city. The last time she had been here, she had been too drunk and too tired to pay attention to her surroundings, but in the light of day with her head clear and sober, she had to admit Tahno's home was quite beautiful.

"Tea is ready," he announced quietly, a tray in his hands.

Padding over the throw rug, Tahno nudged aside the small vase of orchids on the tabletop and set the tray down. On it were two small tea pots, a kettle of hot water, two small porcelain cups, and three small nondescript cans. With a practiced hand, the former bender opened one of the cans and prepared the tea before pouring it into the two cups and handing one to Korra. As Tahno set aside the tea pot, Korra took a sip and swallowed as best as her scrunched-up face would allow.

"You don't like it?" Tahno asked, part-curious and part-amused.

"I'm…not a huge fan of jasmine tea," she admitted slowly, "We drink it all the time at the Air Temple, but I just can't get over the taste. It's too floral for me and it just coats my tongue. Honestly, I prefer the seaweed tea we drank back at the compound in the South Pole."

A pause settled over the two and for a brief moment, Korra was afraid she had insulted her host when he sucked on his teeth. "Hold on, you might like this one better."

He opened another canister and threw a spoonful of the contents into the other teapot before chasing it with a flow of steaming hot water.

"Try this," he told her, offering her cup back to her.

Apprehensively, Korra took it and stared at the bottom of the porcelain, watching as the bits of plant matter swirled at the bottom of her tea. The color was a bit darker than the last tea, and the aroma was different. While there were still floral notes reaching her nose, there was also an underlying earthiness as well and something else that she recognized that was on the tip of her tongue.

"I didn't poison it or anything, Uh-vatar. Stop hesitating and drink it before it gets cold."

Indignant, Korra summoned her most withering glare she could manage at Tahno's (stupid) head as she raised the tea to her lips.

"It's good!" she exclaimed with surprise. While the tea still has floral notes in it, it seemed a much lighter flavor than the jasmine tea she drank, lending a clean crisp note to the other earthy flavors she tasted. Searching her mind, she could recognize a few of them: the earthy taste of a young green tea, the cool note of a white tea, the deeply rich satisfying astringency of a black tea, finished with a slight kick…peppercorns, maybe?

There was something else in there too though that rounded off the flavor. It wasn't seaweed, but it gave a similar clean, savory note to the tea that struck a chord in her. She was sure that she had it before, but where…? Where…?

"It's tree moss," Tahno told her, "and the spice comes from a species of peppercorn native to the Foggy Swamp region."

Setting down his cup, he picked up one of the teapots and opened the lid and Korra watched as the reddish-pink peppercorns tried to float over their mossy barrier.

"It's my own special blend of tea," he explained with a note of pride, "Costs as much as a rim off of a Satomobile just to get the moss—not to mention getting those peppercorns fresh—but it's worth it to get a taste of home."

Korra blinked in surprise. "You're from the Foggy Swamp region?"

Tahno shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "Yeah, I'm from there—and before you ask, I'm not going to do that dumb accent. I spent years trying to get rid of that stupid thing when I left eight years ago—best decision I ever made."

"Oh come on, it couldn't have been that bad."

The look Tahno gave her suggested quite the contrary. "Little girl, if you thought your training compound was bad, you haven't seen those boondocks."

"I'm not a little girl!" she bristled before moving to play with her tea cup. "But don't you have family there? Have you ever gone back?"

Tahno shook his head. "I have my mother, four younger brothers and sisters, two older siblings, and my grandmother there, but I left that all behind to live with my aunt here years ago. I haven't been back once—not when my father left the family, not even when my aunt died. I mean I write—I'm not so ungrateful that I don't write and send money once in a while—but I can never bring myself to go back there. I come close, but I always stop myself. I don't belong there, and I never did; so you're not going to hear me say that 'I miss it' or something, you got that?"

"But Tahno," she said without raising her eyes from her cup, "you just did."

And for a minute, Tahno was silent as he lost himself in a sea of memories and stared regretfully into the pot of his specially-blended tea, watching as the peppercorns twirled in the pot as if dancing.

"…I guess I did, Avatar Korra. I guess I did…"

"Tahno, why do you act so cold all the time when you're really a nice guy?"

The question was posed by Korra as she sat on his bed. Tea had ended a while ago, and the two had settled into a bit of quiet reading to pass the time. However, despite both of them grabbing books, it was only Tahno who actually read. Korra had been staring at him intermittently for the past twenty minutes and while he was glad that she finally voiced what was on her mind—because really, that staring had been as annoying as it had been rude—he wished she had asked something else.

Still, he felt compelled to answer her question. "It's a great defense mechanism against pity," he answered succinctly as he casually turned the page. He wasn't stupid; he knew she was asking about his "return to normalcy," or whatever the hell the tabloids called it nowadays. Regardless of what people called it, Tahno had spoken the truth. He hated being pitied by other people—to be looked down upon like a broken toy that was too stupid to know it was broken—just as Korra was doing now. The way she was looking at him now made her want to snap her pretty little neck.

"So why aren't you still a mess then if it's all an act?" she asked. She had gotten off lightly compared to Tahno and she still had nightmares about her meeting with Amon, but Tahno seemed completely unperturbed by the situation. It was if he had never gotten his bending taken away, like everything was normal. What was his secret?

The Wolfbat member snorted softly behind his book. "Well, I couldn't just sit and mope the entire time. I have an image to uphold," he replied, glancing up at her before returning to his book with a shrug. "Besides, I had to move on eventually."

And across the room, Korra could only blink in surprise. She had never imagined Tahno capable of being so mature, and satisfied with the sagacity of his words that her former incarnation would undoubtedly be proud of, she picked up the book in her lap and immersed herself in its pages at last.