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TonraqxKorra

Father & Daughter

Korra wasn't just The Avatar.

He was her daughter.

So it hurt to watch her in that moment. The questioning stare in her eyes as she watched Northern Tribe soldiers march along the docks of home, their uniforms dark and unfamiliar, like a virus or a shadow against the backdrop of the sun and the glare that danced across the wet planks.

"Opening the spirit portal was only the first step in getting The Southern Tribe back on its righteous path." He could never say that Unalaq spoke with brightness in his tone, but there was no denying the slight levity in his tone at this moment. "There's more difficult work to be done before our two tribes are truly united."

He watched Korra look down, and then he saw them lift and meet his.

She wasn't just The Avatar; he was her daughter, and her being a teenager—so much like and yet so different from the four-year-old girl that had stood in front of him with fire coming from her fingertips and palms, too impressed with herself to notice of the traces of awe and fear in his gaze—hadn't stopped those beautiful eyes of hers from being like a window to him.

There was confusion. Confusion at what she was seeing, confusion about what was going on—she had experienced the feeling of accomplishment on their way back home. She had performed a duty as The Avatar; she had been allowed to handle things the way she thought were best and had brought back a balance to the world and now it showed across the sky. It was more than he had been capable of doing twenty years ago; her power, as always, surpassed his own. But now…

There were faint traces of anger because maybe she had finally seen what he had, that his brother had had ulterior motives. He could see it in the crinkle of her brow: she had just realized that she had again been moved as a pawn on the chessboard of a political game. That she had been seen as only part of what she was, The Avatar, and her power was going to be channeled and manipulated by yet another politician—by her own uncle at that.

And finally, betrayal and regret. It was fleeting, a quick darting of her eyes to the left. The soldiers had made their way closer to their chief. Unalaq walked towards their commander, shoulders relaxed ever so slightly, and Tonraq wondered if her mind went back to Tenzin, to conversations about his past…the things he had done.

Her eyes, full of emotions, found his again. And he knew they recognized him as both a banished prince and her father and ally. And they questioned him, silently:

What did I do?

Did I do something wrong?

Is this wrong?

What should I do?

He wanted to give her an answer. He wanted things simple: to keep the story of his past in that time before Korra had been born; to be strong enough, politically powerful enough, to keep Unalaq from coming any further into their home; for her to be four again and be back from the White Lotus compound for the first time, excited to see him, sniffing his clothes because she missed his smell and pleading to go out and find otter-penguins to sled because that's what Master Korra told her she and Avatar Aang did.

But Korra wasn't just his daughter.

She was The Avatar. She had wanted to be trusted to make decisions that would benefit people in need and would bring balance throughout all the world's nations. And he had to trust that she would be able to find her way in doing that. Without him.

So, even though it hurt, he didn't do anything except watch as her brother led her away, and talk in vague sentences about his plans of unity and spiritual enlightenment.

Now that the second season is here, I'm going back to writing ficclets. I feel like there is going to be a lot of interesting stuff that happens, and Tonraq is going to be a major player throughout it all. Plus, it's just great to have an opportunity to write something with Korra's parents.

RxR