Chapter 5

It was hardly past sunset when the night guard came in and shook him roughly awake. "Howl. Your shift." He hissed, putting his hands on his hips. Howl grumbled inwardly, his head aching as the guard returned to his game of Pai Sho. His stomach growled. Howl frowned and searched his mind back to when he had last eaten. He hadn't; Korra had stolen it. Even if he liked her, that was his lunch.

Grabbing his breastplate and thick cloak, he walked to the small kitchen that most of the guards used for their alcohol smuggling. His eyes glanced over and he found a banapple. Frowning, he took and bit into it, the juices streaming down in a single line out of the corner of his mouth. The tangy but tart fruit stung the back of his throat and he struggled to swallow. He grabbed a bottle of frozen water and pulled on his helmet. He sighed, inhaling the most pleasant scent that he'd ever smelled; Korra.

He grabbed a book from his locker and his long sword, attaching it to his belt. He cracked his neck and popped his knuckles, before opening the door into the snow. Shockingly enough, there was no wind or clouds. The moon was almost full and massive, not a cloud in sight. Howl exhaled softly. Korra always felt strongest at a full moon and seemed to think it as more of an advantage. He climbed up the ladder and found his sentry, sitting down in the single chair set out with him. With a single sweep of the snowy landscape, Howl saw no danger. He picked up his book.

It hadn't been more than twenty minutes when he heard snow crunching under foot. His breath caught and he glanced up at the lantern. A slight breeze had made the flame waver ever so slightly. He slowly set the book onto the table beside his single chair and stood. The camp was silent; not a single soul moved. The lights in the barracks shone on the snow, but an eerie fog had formed on the ground. He drew his sword, slowly, so that it didn't make a noise against the metal. Still he focused on the fog, confused.

"Pst." He heard, turning quickly with his sword raised. A line of fog approached him slowly. His heartbeat quickened at the unnatural force coming straight for his sentry. "Howl." He heard the fog whisper. His breath that had been held up tightened, his chest feeling like it was about to explode from lack of air. He readied his stance, ready for the fog's attack.

Suddenly, a big blue shape lunged from the thick fog and tackled him. His sword went flying across the small sentry. They hit the ground with a loud thud, Howl wrestling against his opponent's grip. The table hit the ground and sent his novel flying across the tower. His sword cut into his arm, stinging like fury, but ignored it. He wrapped his leg around his enemies and flipped them over, his hands pinning shoulders to the ground. His breathing was fast paced, uneven, when he realized who it was.

"Spirits, Korra, you scared me." He exhaled, shaking his head and sitting up, his head thudding uncomfortably. Her vibrant blue eyes danced as she smirked. Slowly, he removed his hands and pulled off of her. She giggled. "What's so funny?" He questioned, setting up the tipped over chair and table.

"Whatcha been up to?" She questioned, pushing herself off of the ground with a bit of waterbending. He frowned as she picked up his book and glanced at the cover. "Night Play." She read.

"That's mine!"Howl's cheeks burned fiercely as he struggled to grab it back, but he winced when his cut arm hit the clothes on her skin. He bit his tongue from the pain and stumbled back in a chair, letting out a terrible whimper. Shyness had nothing to do with his fear of injury. He had joined the White Lotus to protect, not harm. Which was why he was thankful Korra had grown up here, in confinement, during a time of peace. He couldn't stand to think of her hurt. It took too much of a toll on his mind then imagining her injured… or worse.

Without a second thought, he pulled his sleeve down to hide the wound from her. Korra crossed her arms as he tried to ignore her, shutting his nose in the book. He heard her huff in annoyance and barely held off a smile before tuning back into his story. Korra leaned against the wall, her head tilted.

"Surely you can't enjoy reading." Korra grumbled, glancing over. Howl peeked over the nose of his latest book, cocking a silent brow. "What's it about?" She questioned, reaching for the book again. This time, though Howl saw her and dodged her fingers, trapping her hand between his chest and the book. She struggled to get it away but failed. He sniggered uncontrollably. Finally, she gave up and, much to his surprise, sat in his lap. Her fur pelted clothes rubbed soothingly against his cheek as she snuggled in between him in the book.

Howl couldn't believe what'd she had done until she'd done it. "Will you read it to me?" She asked innocently. "I'm not very good at it." That's awful. He thought, trying to regain his smooth breathing but finding it harder than it seemed. She's trained so much that she hardly knows how to read.

"Aren't you supposed to be in bed?" He questioned, trying not to imagine the things the others would suspect if they found him here, with her, in his lap.

"I don't want to sleep." She whispered. "Please, Howl? I may go to sleep better if you read to me."

He knew it was a ploy, honest, but he couldn't accept that the innocence in the young Avatar had chosen him to hang out with. As lonely as he had been, eating lunch in a corner while the others busied themselves with work. He'd heard from the other guards that she had been rambunctious. He'd expected that attitude to be more like his home life. He'd been used to that attitude.

Then he'd seen her. He'd been sixteen and she had just turned fifteen, her long brown hair back in a braid. She and Master Katara were busying themselves in water bending a massive ball back and forth. He'd read stories about the Gaang when they had been at their prime but he had never known how talented the Master was. He found his gaze falling between the water and the two girls bending back and forth so smoothly it almost made him want to be a bender.

The young Avatar took the water she had gathered while shooting it at Katara and did a fancy trick by making the water go around her back and through the bending platform. It went straight to Katara's feet and froze expertly. The old woman glanced up in pride and Howl turned to see the Avatar. He had frozen when he spotted her brilliant smile and something had soothed his cold heart to fall hard for her.

He wished he didn't feel like that about her. Not that he didn't want to like her; he was one hundred percent infatuated with her. He could watch her every movement and tell you exactly what she liked or hated. The way her brows scrunched with the slightest hint led him to believe she was annoyed. The crinkling of her nose; embarrassed. The sad glint in her eye whenever he prodded at her that he was busy was loneliness. He hated that one the most and it was always that that made him fall victim to her every want and need. She didn't know how badly he was wrapped around her finger. He supposed she thought that was what best friends did. After all, he and Naga were the only people who she could talk about anything.

Korra waited expectantly for him to read to her and when he started, she closed her eyes. "There was a time in the old world…." His voice had been so childish when she first met him. He'd been so skinny, so lanky. "… when the dragons still existed and thrived…." At the time, he'd had short hair like the other new shipment of guards. Pale as the snow on the ground. Shy and jumpy as a mouse-rabbit. "…when the strongest fliers were air bison…." He wasn't used to what the other guards were taught. He talked to her like she was a human and not a piece of glass. He shared his lunches with her whenever she asked.

"…and there was a fair daughter, with eyes as blue as the sea…." He had trembled every moment near her and sometimes still did, although she didn't understand why. He had always taken care of her when she needed it. "…she was the prettiest thing a man could lay eyes on…." She felt her eyes growing heavy, but there was no way she could fall asleep now. She wanted to listen to his voice continue. When he had turned seventeen two months after he had arrived, she had wanted to get something for him. It was the first time they snuck out. He was tired, and she was eager, so she grabbed his hand and threw him on Naga and ran.

"…unfortunately, the king of this land didn't want his daughter to be married to any peasant boy. So he requested a guardian to protect her, to put her in the highest tower of a fortified tower…."

She snuggled closer to him. Though there was no wind, she wanted to feel his warmth. He hardly ever let her in this close. Maybe it was because the guards were all busy with their games inside the barracks. Howl's chest plate was uncomfortable, but she didn't dare ask him to take it off. He was supposed to be protecting her, like the guardian in his precious book. "… and while protecting her, the guardian fell in love with the daughter. He made his advances in secret, so that the father couldn't tell he felt that way…." She pushed down a yawn, too entranced by his magical words.

After a while of reading to her, he felt her breathing slow and he smiled inwardly. "The fair daughter begged him to take her away, because she, too, was in love him." His heart beat became slower with realization. His arm ached, but it wasn't important enough for him to move. "So they escaped together on a dragon named Sorzoa. The father found out, eventually, and sent for the man to be put to death." His words began to fade. "The guardian fought and fought for his lover, but in the end it was too much. The daughter was returned and was forced to watch him be put to death."

He was tempted to continue, but he figured Korra was already asleep. He sighed softly, hesitating, before he kissed the top of her head. "That's why I'm afraid to fall for you." He whispered, his words tearing with the wind. He leaned back in his seat and continued to read.

However, Korra heard.