A/N: Hello, update here. I actually have a good excuse this time. My friend in Kung Fu thought it would be funny to move the punching back making my fist collide with the wall at an alarming velocity, thus bruising my knuckles and rendering my hand useless. I wrote the chapter down but typing was nigh impossible and, since my parents think I'm straight, there was no one to type it for me. So, without further excuses, enjoy, review!

Disclaimer: Same as usual.

Previously on Events Unexpected…

Korra's body wrapped around Mako's so that she could deepen the kiss, opening her mouth to allow him access. She hated what Asami had done to him; hated that she had just thrown him away when he had left Korra broken for the nonbender. It was as though her heartbreak had been trivialized with that act and Korra wanted revenge. Revenge on everything and everyone.

Kaji's eyes could only pick up the small orange couch tucked to the right side of the far end of the room; or rather, what was currently on the couch. Bolin had had his back to everything until he noticed that Kaji wasn't moving and her eyes were the size of saucers. His ears picked up the muffled moans and some mumbled words coming from behind him and, by the expression of the girl standing to his side, he had a good idea what was going on.

"Let go of me Korra," she commanded. Her voice was smooth, back to the nonchalance she had become so familiar with in the past yet had never resorted to when speaking to the younger girl.

"No," Korra shook her head violently.

"I'm sorry for everything," Kaji whispered. And then, remembering something she said on that far off night when it had all begun, she repeated in a hushed voice, one used when expressing the most guarded secret, "You are deserving of the most love in this world. If you forget everything else, don't forget that."

Bolin was in a very compromising position, of that he was positive. His forehead was beaded with sweat, so much so that he could feel the slight breeze freeze against his sideburns and hairline. The eyes boring into him held him fixed to the spot in the chair where he had been placed. In all honesty, it was not fair that Korra had put him in the middle of this horrible situation. He wanted to keep her secrets but it was obvious that he was not going to be allowed to leave until he spilled. By the looks on some of the faces of the people sitting around him in the small, or at least it definitely seemed smaller now, room he would have to start talking fast or be privy to the modern styles of torture no doubt used to break the hardiest criminals.

It had all happened the day after he and Mako had found Korra on the floor of the small room with Kaji nowhere to be found. The Avatar had awoken early, the sun just dawning over the eastern horizon. Bolin had not been able to get a wink of sleep so he had offered Mako his own bed since Mako's had been occupied. As such, Bolin had been the only one up when Korra had snuck down from one of the ladders and attempted to leave the premises without being noticed. Bolin, it appeared, had not been a foreseen obstacle by the quiet squeak Korra gave off when she saw him- not to mention the skidding to a halt and the arm flailing until she got into an instinctual defensive stance with her palms protecting her centerline.

"Don't tell me," he beat her to the punch. "The less I know the less they can get out of me when, and I have no doubts about this, I get strapped to a metal chair by Lin Beifong and get put through unimaginable pain for covering you."

The last bit was said with a sad smile and wink. Bolin could tell that his friend was on the verge of mental collapse which made it his honorary duty to help her in any way. Korra looked at him with a mixture of gratitude and guilt. Guilt seemed to be the overbearing theme on everyone's minds lately, Bolin sadly thought.

"Thanks Bolin," Korra whispered, going past him to reach the door. His hand on her wrist stopped her and she was forced to look into her friend's deep green eyes, almost evergreen in the faint light.

"One thing," the earthbender pulled her into a bear hug. He had no idea what was going to happen, but the future seemed anything but sunshine and daisies at the moment and he was afraid he would have to wait a long while before being able to hold his best friend like he was now. "Are you going to go after her?"

Korra stiffened, her hands clenching into fists as though she could fight against all of the regrets and uncertainty that plagued her. She really had no idea what she was going to do. She had debated running away to the North Water Tribe- find her parents or something- but that had been scrapped when she recalled that the Earth Kingdom was preparing a siege on the nation. Her thoughts had gone to scouring the city to find where the elusive Fire Nation royal had escaped to; even the shadow of a thought, a whisper of an image had been like pouring salt in deep wounds and she had given up on that notion as well. Kaji would probably not want anything to do with her at that point anyway and Korra was certain that the only person who hated her more than herself would have to be Kaji. What she had done had been reproachable, unforgiveable, incorrigible. The simplest option she had come up with had been to return to the island temple and flop onto her bed. The morning had yet to dawn so she had a chance of slipping through.

"I don't know what I'm going to do Bolin," Korra finally sighed. Bolin gave her one last squeeze before letting go and holding her at arm's length.

"Well, I guess it's for the best anyway. Just… be careful out there okay?"

"Okay," Korra's tone was anything but reassuring what with the hollowness of her eyes and the way her skin seemed to have turned a faint shade greyer. Still, it was the best that he was going to get so, with a wish of luck, Bolin let Korra go out of the door and returned to his resting position on the chair, waiting for the dawn and what lay ahead with it.

Apparently when Korra had said that she hadn't known what she was going to do, she had meant that she was going to pack up some things and fall from the face of the Earth. Not even one hour after the sun had risen fully from its watery slumber, Bolin had been practically bowled over by a frighteningly stressed out Mako asking where Korra was and saying some kind of unintelligible jargon about being the biggest moron on the planet. And while Bolin wanted to fully agree with his brother on that subject, he had become preoccupied with the sudden appearance of a very upset Tenzin, a stoic Lin, and about ten officers of the police force in his living space. After he had explained that 'no' Korra was not currently there and that 'no' he had no idea where she was, his oaf of a big brother- even though he loved the firebender dearly sometimes he just wanted to pummel him- had observed that Bolin had stayed on the landing and must have noticed her leave. Being the horrible liar that he was, Bolin had turned completely red and stuttered out some failed excuse of going to the bathroom and getting lost- to which it was pointed out that the restroom was located not even three doors down.

So that was how he had come to be sitting in a very uncomfortable chair- as it had been the one that he had been sitting on for the past few hours before hand and really wanted to get off of- being interrogated on where the M.I.A. Avatar had gone and why. Lin had bound his hands to the rickety chair where he had spent the night with thick bands of metal. It had not been tight enough to hurt but kept him completely secure to his seat. Her hands were folded over her armor and she was waiting patiently behind a fuming Tenzin who was pacing in front of the prisoner. The air nomad turned to face the earthbender and gave him a cursory stare before pacing again.

"And you say that she left without telling you why or where she was going?" he restated Bolin's former statement, one he had said repeatedly for at least an hour already.

"Yes," Bolin affirmed. He glanced over to Mako, hoping to the spirits that the firebender would not mention Kaji's appearance. Thankfully his prayers were heard and Mako, whether from pure shock at what was happening or having seen Bolin's mental signal, stayed tightlipped and to the side.

"She must have said something to you," Tenzin returned to his pacing, keeping an eye on Bolin as he waited for the answer but also feeling an inexplicable urge to walk a hole into the floor.

"She didn't tell me anything, honest," Bolin reiterated. "All she did was say goodbye and go out the door. I thought she would go back to her room in the Air Temple and she's a waterbender so I didn't really think to question it. It's not like she had to wait for the ferry in the morning."

"But why would she leave?" Tenzin mused aloud. "She left to confront Fire Lord Kaji about the Fire Nation's involvement in the hostilities between the Earth Kingdom and Northern Water Tribes. She looked like it hadn't gone down well when she returned but," at that moment he turned to Mako who looked like he wanted to spontaneously combust or become transparent, "she looked ecstatic to go out and spend a day with you, Mako. So what happened? Korra isn't one to just up and leave for no reason."

Lin's face, which had been a blank wall throughout the monologue, turned into a more thoughtful complexion. Her hand moved to prop up her chin and her lips pursed in her usual contemplative state. She had seen only brief exchanges between the two girls, on the arrival of the, then Fire Princess, when they had been taken into custody for breaking and entering. The second had been when the party that had set out to rescue the captives from the holding cells in the Northern Water Tribe had returned. She had held her suspicions on the exact nature of the relationship between Kaji and Korra though she had attributed her conclusions to mere coincidence or unstable inference. Now though… Korra going to the Fire Nation to confront the girl herself-though not necessarily all that suspicious considering Korra's usually attitude of 'seeing for herself'-paired with the description she had garnered of the girl's return only helped to solidify her previous intuitive conjectures. They had hidden it well enough to fool Tenzin, but the man was quite blind when it came to romantic matters as Lin had experienced herself in the days of their youth. No, her more skeptical side was slowly coming to terms that she was indeed on the mark with her evaluations which only meant that Korra had not only felt betrayed by a close personal friend, but also someone dear to her heart in a romantic way.

Pushing the overwhelmed airbender out of the way, she made to stand before the bound earthbender boy who looked like he was about to imitate the skin tone of a snowman. She bent down at the waist so her eyes were looking straight into his, leaving Bolin nothing else to focus his pupils on. "Korra was affiliated with Kaji as more than just a companion wasn't she?"

Bolin's Adam's apple bobbed as he gulped. In a voice barely intelligible over his stuttering he was finally able to get out a shaky "N-n-no, w-what are y-y-you t-talking about?"

"Don't lie to me boy," Lin whispered dangerously low. The empty threats lacing her voice were nothing to be trifled with even if they were just bluffs. "I can tell with most everyone and you are not a very good liar."

Bolin was ready to be sick. On the one hand, he knew that the truth would be found eventually and he dearly wanted to keep his body intact and away from an upset Lin Beifong; on the other there was Korra kicking his ass and crushing his bones to dust in the Avatar State. Mulling it over for a good five seconds, he opened his mouth and replied in a hushed breath of air so only the metalbender would hear, "Yeah," and chose the Avatar State he would no doubt encounter at a later date.

Lin nodded and continued with her interrogation, "So she went to the Fire Nation on more than just a political visit?"

Bolin nodded weakly. He hated betraying his friend like that, Korra was going to pulverize him, but it was really the best thing he could do. Keeping her relationship with Kaji a secret was only detrimental and she was hurt, alone, with no one to help because no one knew that there was even a problem to begin with. At least this way Lin would think up of a plan… hopefully.

"What I want to know is why she decided to return. If Kaji's involvement with the Earth Kingdom upset her to such a degree, she should have run away already. She had the means. Was the motive enough for it though? It seems it wasn't upon her return here," Lin's voice died to a string of muttering as she stood from her bent position to return to her thoughtful position.

"Hrrm," Bolin cleared his throat. If he was going to be truthful, he might as well just spill it all. He was much more comfortable with just Lin as his audience however and motioned for her to come closer so he wouldn't have to out his brother to Korra's virtual 'father' and ten other strangers. Not that saying it was any less awkward when it was to the chief of the police force, but he would take what he could get.

"Kaji sort of came here last night and, well, I took her to the apartment because she wanted to find Korra and I thought that she would be here with Mako and," Bolin took a breath after the long string of events that had left his lips, "Kaji sort of saw Korra and Mako… umm, together… in… bed… and she kind of… ran away… and Korra chased her… and then we found Korra on the floor… and Kaji left at some point before that…"

Lin's eyebrows rose slightly at that. She had known Korra for only a short period compared to some but the jubilant Avatar had wormed her way into her heart. Hearing that Korra had been so hurt was enough to melt through the cold façade of the metalbender; enough for the older woman to feel an unfamiliar constriction in her throat. Whatever had brought on the events of the night before, it must have been pretty awful to cause such a lapse in judgment on Korra's part.

"So Korra left. It is understandable considering what occurred. When?" Lin asked. She knew that she would have to relay the information to Tenzin so she saw no point in keeping her voice low anymore.

"Early this morning. The sun was barely even on the horizon," Bolin answered.

"And you have no inkling as to where she might have gone?" Lin knew Bolin's response before he even had a chance to give it. The boy had not been lying about that part.

"Why did she leave?" the hysterical rhetorical questions of Tenzin reached her ears. She had been focused on the interrogation and had largely ignored him before. Now Lin felt sympathetic to the man's plight. Korra was more than just some tenant or pupil living under his roof. She was as close to the airbender as the rest of his family and he was as worried as any father would be had it been his own flesh and blood.

"Tenzin," she snapped at him. The social graces necessary for softness were still somewhat too subtle for her. The best way to break it to the man was straight and concise. "I'm going to tell you something and you are going to promise me that you will not freak out. Deal?"

It was a command if there had ever been one. The airbending master had frozen mid-pace and was looking at her like some lost child, eyes large and mouth slightly open. It took a second but his brain kicked in and he straightened his back into a formal stance. His features looked slightly frightened, as though not completely sure that he was ready to hear what it was she had to say, but determined. His head dipped in a slow nod before he turned to face her completely.

"Korra and Kaji were having a love affair," Lin's subconscious wondered whether she might have put it some way that didn't sound like a scandalous confession on some soap opera but it had been said and the damage done. Mako and Tenzin wore expressions that, had it not been such a dire situation, would have been described as beyond comical. Both men were gaping at the policewoman as though she had just gone completely insane or they had lost their auditory faculties.

"She was having what?" they both said in perfect unison. Bolin's shoulders stiffened behind the back of the metalbender. Mako's disbelief was evident in his eyes before a cold sense of understanding and dread washed over him. He vaguely remembered the girl standing in the doorway the split second before she was gone and Korra was racing after her. Tenzin recalled all of the instances where the two girls would run off together somewhere and didn't know whether he should string up the firebender or thank her for returning a smile to his adoptive daughter's face. The former seemed more applicable in the present instance when he thought about the fact that Kaji was the reason Korra had left him… again.

"Korra was together with Kaji," that time it was Bolin saying it. His tone was far less assertive than Lin's as he said it. Two heads snapped to him, grey and bronze eyes boring down on his own green.

"You knew?" Mako was the first to speak. "You knew and you didn't tell me."

The firebender's mind was telling him that he had no one to blame but himself. He had been wounded by Asami's obvious discard of his feelings and sought a refuge in someone familiar, that someone being Korra. It had been wrong even without her involvement with someone else. Had he known though, perhaps he wouldn't have done it. Mako felt shame burn through his veins. He hung his head in defeat, hating himself and the small hope that Korra would one day be able to forgive him for his transgressions.

Tenzin felt really feint all of a sudden. The earthbender had known. It seemed that everyone had known but himself. Korra hadn't trusted him enough to tell him something so important. It was biting, stinging to his heart and- slightly- his pride. True, he probably would have sent a tornado plowing into the Fire Lord had he known it, but that was beside the point and something any normal airbending father would do for his daughter. It was not an excuse for her to keep it a secret from him. But Korra, together with Azula's granddaughter, that was shocking to say the least. Tenzin had always pictured himself as an open-minded individual; he was only too happy when it came to people finding what brought them happiness. And yet, he was fairly unsure as to how he was feeling about Korra being involved with that girl. If he was being honest, any girl. There was nothing wrong with it, just, it came as quite a sucker punch. And that was when he sank to the floor just as an in case his knees gave out from under him.

Lin was not done yet. She knew that, after Tenzin came to grip with the new revelations, he would be back to pacing and debating on whether it was prudent to send all of Republic City out in search of Korra. And if there was one thing Lin was positively certain of, it was that Korra needed space above anything else at the moment. Coming to stand in front of Tenzin and looking down at him with her hardest gaze, she stated, "Now, you are going to leave Korra alone. This is something she has to figure out by herself and she doesn't need the extra pressure of having to avoid search parties. Got it?" and then softer, "She'll come back to us when she is ready Tenzin. You just have to believe in her."

Kaji strode into the throne room with her head held high. Her absence had been noted by the court but, through extensive threats and bribes- more of the former than the latter if anyone was counting which she certainly was NOT- had secured that no one was made aware of her true whereabouts and purpose over the short two-week hiatus. Well, almost everyone she noted as she walked to the dais and noticed the figure hiding in the shadows cast by the light filtering past the columns through the open windows to the far side of the room. Nothing got past the person concealed in the veil of darkness it seemed. It was one of the reasons Kaji had kept her around so long, but it was also an inconvenience at times.

"You have nothing to worry about Kain," she drawled, moving to unceremoniously splay herself over the cushions of the throne. She really wanted to invest in something a bit more grand than the assortment of pillows. She was the fucking Fire Lord and even the Earth King got to have his made out of gold and jade. The least she could do was sit on something garnered with rubies and glistening with the wealth she held at her fingertips.

"Don't I," the sharp reply cut through the room in a resounding echo even though it was said at a level intensity. The chambers were not built for secrecy in particular Kaji sighed in a bemused huff. Izuru was apparently not done with her small tantrum and continued. "I have put my entire life on the line for this plan to work and I am sorry if I don't like it when you go gallivanting to Republic City after some Water Tribe whelp-"

"I do not 'gallivant,'" Kaji said touchily. Her mood was souring quickly. She had only just returned a few days prior and the last thing she wanted to have on her plate was an unnecessary argument with the Dai Li agent.

"Whatever it was you were doing, the method is not what is important here," Izuru groaned exasperatedly. "I know you were having an enjoyable little fling with the girl but if you're getting so attached that you are willing to throw away everything that we have worked for, then-"

"I am not throwing anything and I am most certainly not attached to Korra," Kaji interjected. Her anger was broiling underneath her skin though her voice was kept level by years of practice. Korra's infidelity was still an open wound and Izuru was currently digging her perfectly manicured nails in it with no reservation.

"I am starting to have my doubts," Izuru continued, unaware or not caring about how close to the edge Kaji was with every word that came from her lips. "Was she really that great of a fuck that you are willing to forsake world domination?"

The last bit was meant to be a smart-ass insult to get the Fire Lord riled up for the earthbender's amusement. What Izuru got was definitely not what she had expected. Before she had any chance of moving a finger, much less moving out of the way, she was pinned against the cool marble surface of the pillar behind her. Her wrists were held over her head in the vice grip of Kaji's right hand, razor talons buried into the tender flesh above her bones and a hard pressure cutting into her circulation. Her pulse increased exponentially at how close she was to the firebender. Kaji's eyes glistened with a feral light that- paired with the distortion of the blue flames springing to life to Izuru's left and the light coming from the outside casting shade on Kaji's face- made her seem Draconic in all sense of the word. Her blood-red lips were twisted into a slightly unhinged smirk, causing a sharp shiver to run down Izuru's spine. Kaji's left hand trailed along her captive's open collarbone, Izuru having conveniently put on a robe that showed quite a bit of skin as it dipped low over the contours of her body, before moving up along the artery on the left of Izuru's neck. The nail's graze left a slightly pink trail over the pale skin of the other girl. Izuru wanted to hold in her gasp, but it was like trying to control a tempest. Her body was on fire, unsure whether it wanted to break away or push in closer to the marvelous sensations. Kaji's hand moved to spread its fingers over the throbbing pulse, hammering under its thin sheet. Her eyes flickered down to the milky expanse before moving back to the jade eyes so full of fear and lust. Her tongue poked out of her mouth to run along her lips, tasting the flaky cinnamon of her lipstick. Izuru's pupils followed it with rapt attention, her lips inadvertently parting. Just then, Kaji drew up and crashed her lips into the earthbender's flushed ones. Her kiss was rough, nearly bruising with the force behind it. There was no love or tenderness in it, only pure unadulterated desire. Her tongue pried open Izuru's already open lips, exploring the cool expanse within without restriction. She dug her fingers into the girl's neck until she felt the wetness of ruby rivulets run along them. Izuru moaned into Kaji, her mind trying to escape the painful hold of the vice grip on her throat but also wanting so much more of the searing pressure on her lips. She couldn't contain the small whimper of disappointment when Kaji finally broke away from her. Before they were apart however, Kaji bit into her tongue hard enough to draw blood. When Izuru saw the firebender's lips painted an even darker red with her blood she knew that the only thing holding her up was Kaji's hand shackling her to the marble behind her.

"How is that for attached?" Kaji growled. She hated herself for her actions but the rage at seeing Korra with someone else was so fresh that she could almost picture tasting his blood where she tasted Izuru's and she wanted more. She wanted to make someone scream in pain and writhe under her touch.

Lemon. You have been warned.

Izuru did not get to reply- not that she could have as, for probably the first time in her life since the night her family was killed, she had completely lost all ability to speak. Kaji's ravenous lips were burrowing into her, her hand exploring her body from above the fabric. The feeling of silk pressing and rubbing against her sensitive spots had her growing extremely wet between her legs. She wanted to yell for Kaji to stop almost as much as she wanted to moan for her to keep going. The shame she felt was lost to the waves of eroticism rushing through every pour. Kaji's hand reached her right breast, kneading the pert nipple underneath. Izuru groaned into her mouth, lifting one of her legs up to circle around the firebender's waist and pull them flush together. Kaji moved her hips into Izuru's, causing vibrations to run through her loins. The dress was slipping off of her shoulders; the sash holding the fabric together had loosened with Kaji's movements enough for the opening above Izuru's chest to widen. Izuru wanted nothing more than to grab onto Kaji's hair or rake her hands along her back. The fact that she was still pinned in a position where she had no way of exploring the Fire Lord in return was infuriating at best. She growled and tried to push her arms away from Kaji's strong hold. The only effect was for her to get a warning bite on her bottom lip and a painful and erotic squeeze on her waist. Her hands were effectively kept above her head with nothing to do but clench with each movement that brought unimaginable seismic waves of pleasure coursing through her. As Kaji's lips left her mouth and started to trace along her jaw line, Izuru arched her back so that her head could fall back against the hard stone. Her neck was stretched out before Kaji's wandering tongue, igniting every nerve cluster along the sensitive pressure points. Kaji's teeth left myriads of purple marks along the expanse of skin, so much lighter than the skin she had come to be accustomed to. She snarled as though trying to frighten the thoughts away. Korra had cheated on her- or she had left- both of which gave her ample justification for what she was doing.

Izuru felt Kaji's grip tighten even more as she was ripped away from her support and literally swept off of her feet. Kaji had spun her around and tripped her over an outstretched foot so that she had fallen off balance. A small part of her was terrified that she held so little control in the situation she was currently in. The cognitive abilities she had regained in that second were completely blocked out as Kaji straddled her stomach. Izuru could feel Kaji's enthusiasm in the warmth that seeped through her clothes from the girl's nether regions. Her arms were still, frustratingly, pinned above her head, which gave her a spectacular view down Kaji's loose shirt. The rise and fall of her chest as she breathed laboriously made Izuru even more slick, if that was even possible at that point. Blowing caution to the wind she pulled her hands down hard enough to give her leverage to bring her mouth into contact with the shirt. She allowed her head to fall back against the floor, bringing the torn fabric down with her. Kaji's taut stomach and breasts lay expose before her, covered in gooseflesh caused by the change in temperature and elation. Kaji lowered herself so that Izuru could take her breast into her mouth. The feeling of electricity running through her was definitely one that had been sorely missed. She moaned and arched her hips to grind into the girl beneath her. Izuru reciprocated the sound against Kaji's nipple making the firebender squirm with the pleasure. Kaji's hair had long ago fallen loose of its tie and now hung around them like an ember curtain. Izuru felt Kaji's hand lessen its iron grip under the more prevalent muscular spasms running along her body. Using it to her advantage, she pulled her hands violently to her sides. Kaji caught herself from falling but was unable to keep the lock on the girl's wrists. Giving her no time to recover, the Dai Li agent flipped them over so that Kaji was lying underneath her. She wasted no time in removing the baggy pants Kaji had been wearing and used her teeth to rid her of the panties hiding the last vestige of flesh from her sight. Kaji bucked her hips into her lips as Izuru took her into her mouth. The sweetness was undeniably something she had not expected. Something more fiery, more hostile. But the juices flowing forth were as inviting as any nectar. Kaji cried out, burying her hands into Izuru's hair as she bit into her clit and inserted two fingers. It took longer than Izuru expected, given the amount of foreplay they had done, for Kaji to finally reach her climax. She more than happily rode out the girl's explosive orgasm, taking in everything that Kaji would give her.

What she did not account for was how quickly the firebender recovered. Before she could even analyze how their positions had come to be reversed, Kaji had already stripped her of her dress and plunged into her with a vicious intensity that left her crying out in both pain and want. Her hips moved with each thrust of Kaji's fingers, the girl implemented her own hips to push further into Izuru than she thought was possible. Her walls clenched with such violent force that she felt every muscle clench with her orgasm. Coming down from it left her feeling a raw, throbbing ache in ever part of her body especially her thighs and what lay between them.

Alrighty, those who skipped can continue reading.

Kaji lifted herself up and wiped her fingers clean on Izuru's discarded garment. Her eyes looked upon her with something like triumph and a hint of condescension. Izuru was too spent to think about it at the present. Her eyes closed but she was still able to hear the firebender say in her usual cold manner, "I will begin to send troops at your King's request. I also want negotiations for the conversion of Omashu into a Fire Nation trading station to commence. That will be all."

And then she was gone, leaving Izuru to pick herself up after a time and slip out of the palace and onto the air vessel awaiting her.

In the frozen wastelands of the Southern Water Tribe, Korra sat on Naga's back as the polar bear-dog raced over fields of snow and ice. Her eyes never left the small necklace that lay in her palm. Her fingers had long since lost their feeling and she knew that she should have been worried about that but she could not bring herself to. Her eyes had dried of all tears on the way there even though her sorrow seemed boundless. She had not known why the Southern Water Tribe had drawn her to it. In all honesty it was still somewhat of a wasteland, inhabited but poorer than the rest of the nations even after years of commerce and reparations. The people living there had been forgotten by the rest of the world eventually, happy to fall into infamy once more. Korra had thought about seeking out Katara, knowing the Master had returned a while back, but something kept her from going to the largest city of the tribe. Something kept her heading south. Or at least she thought it was south. Her sense of direction had been lost some time ago along with the ensuing numbness of her extremities. Naga whined at her, stopping in her tracks to take in the scent in the air. Her fur bristled as she caught the smell of something in the distance. It was actually starting to feel like it was a lot of 'something's, and all of them were hungry.

A low growl turned into a feral snarl as five wolf-foxes came out of the downpour of snow. The mists swirling around them kept Naga from seeing if there were any more. She barked a warning to her mistress but received nothing in return. Her instincts screamed for her to fight them off. Had Korra been at her best fighting prowess, they would have easily dealt with the scavengers. As it was, Korra was in not fit state to be in combat with anything. Taking that into consideration, Naga did the only thing her adrenaline left her with. She ran.

The wind rushed past them at alarming wails. It was as though the land itself was trying to deter their escape. Naga's paws hit the ground with an urgency that was only brought about by desperation. Still, the wolves were desperate as well and they had kept pace with her easily. What was more; the polar bear-dog had not eaten well in a few days and was starting to feel the fatigue of carrying her friend on her back in her legs. She rushed through a pile of ice, feeling the crystals sink into her fur before being blown free by the swirling forces of air currents howling around them. A snap to her left hind paw brought a sharp piercing pain that spurred her to go faster. Her tongue lolled out until it was covered in frozen ice particles and she had to retract it. She swerved to try and shake the beasts in pursuit of them to no avail. Her heart thundered in her chest, failing to keep the oxygen levels to the necessary quota for her body. Her lungs heaved as the icy air was sucked in by her nose and mouth.

A well placed bite snapped the poor animal's tendon running along the lower part of her right hind leg. Naga used the rest of her strength to skid over instead of rolling so as to not dislodge her precious cargo. Korra swayed in the saddle but thankfully kept erect and on balance. Her hand clenched around the fragile little necklace as though she could care less about her life but could not afford to lose the small piece of jewelry. In a way that was exactly how she felt.

The wolf-foxes closed in on them. Naga growled threateningly and lunged at them a few times but the pack worked well, instinctually knowing how to wear out their prey for easier feasting. Naga felt the warm blood spilling out of her leg and howled in anguish. Her cries rang out for miles around but there was no one to hear and thus they were useless to them. Her big eyes moved to take in the oncoming onslaught of feral canines. She braced herself for whatever it was that she would have to do.

The first wolf-fox pounced from behind them. It was barely even a centimeter away from the polar bear-dog's rider when a sudden violent force knocked into its chest. The rest of the pack had not noticed the unfortunate fate of their compatriot. Instead they all went in for the attack. A stick whistled in the air and struck the starved animals down with almost deft ease. After the first few went down the rest got the message and began their retreat. Korra, having been snapped out of her stupor by the near-death experience, looked around to locate her savior. To her utter disbelief, and the chagrin to a few of the laws of the universe, her eyes landed on the nearly naked form of an old, tanned man with a bushy beard reaching to his chest and a flimsy toga as his only article of clothing sitting criss-crossed on the ground with a staff across his lap.

"Hello Avatar Korra," he smiled at her in such a friendly way that seemed not at all out of place despite the fact that he should have been dying from hypothermia. "I am the Guru Pathik and I do believe that you are in dire need of my services."

P.S: I am so late so please review and until next time. I know most of you want to murder me for what I am doing to poor Korra and Kaji but please refrain. It is appreciated.