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Korra
Republic City is crowded, massive and brilliant. Buildings dominate the landscape with people and Satomobiles filling in the space between.
After docking, I start walking straight for the city. Straining my neck, trying to see over the crowd, Naga diverts my attention by almost yanking the reins out of my hand, nipping at someone who came too close.
"Woah Naga! You must be pretty hungry huh?" She nods and nuzzles me pitifully. "Alright," I try not to look longingly at the city and focus on my friend. "We'll go get you some food first."
To keep her away from people, I get us running towards the forested mountain slopes. This only half works, as there are houses everywhere down by the docks and more then a few people scatter when they see us coming, but Naga behaves for the most part.
Once in the foothills, I'm amazed by how lush this area is. There are streams everywhere, with mud and rocky shoals announcing the presences of enough game to feed a pack of Polar-Bear dogs. Naga's adapted quite well to hunting in the forest so I let her take off while I scout out a good spot in the surrounding landscape to make a temporary home. Occasional rustling and the sound of swift padded feet reassure me that she's still nearby. Trekking through the dense undergrowth, I start to get sweaty, the air feels wet and heavy as the sun reaches it's zenith. I slap at my neck when a sting marks the presence of yet another bite and I growl. "Uggh, why can't all bugs die."
Only recently learning about the ubiquitous nuisance of insects, I can't for the life of me understand why they exist. Those tiny devils seem brought to life solely to irritate—buzzing and biting constantly.
Moving in the general direction of up in a small valley, I follow a stream, letting the pleasantly cool water run over my feet and calves until I come upon the perfect place. A beautiful secluded hollow with easy access to water and inclosing rock outcrops on either side. The whole place looks quite magical, deep green and secluded, reminding me of all the Earth Kingdom legends from my childhood. Picturing hunted heroes taking refuge beneath the massive vines and large leaved trees, I decide it will be our new home.
A hut made of earth; an icebox for Naga's extra kills and a lovely grass bed dominate the now claimed space. I nod to myself as satisfied as a ground squirrel in a pile of nuts. Now that Naga is fed I can finally head into the city.
She's fearsomely adorable as I approach. Snuggled up with a bloody muzzle and the scattered remains of countless kills surrounding her. "Naaaga" I coo in a singsong voice, as I bend over her, a hand on her head, "ready to go?"
She twitches a little, but that's the extent of a response I get from her.
"Naga come on, I don't want to walk all the way back to the city!" I heave against her side with all my weight and she huffs at me a bit, shifting into a more comfortable position, promptly falling back into a content slumber.
"Fine! Sleep all day you lazy puppy." Hands on hips I sigh to myself, turning to gaze back down in the direction of the city. Airbending would be the fastest way to get there…
That thought hangs over me like a noose. At this point, it's almost terrifying to me that I can't airbend. Not even a little!
But this city holds more than just diverse people, color and bending. Tenzin is here somewhere. If I approach him right, maybe he will teach me. But if I mess things up, he'll report me to the White Lotus. I think I could take most of them, and a part of me even relishes the thought, but we're all on the same side. I won't fight them unless I have to.
Fists tightening at my side, I realize I'm going to have to be careful about going into the city. I'll need to really know the terrain before I go see Tenzin. It's probably better if Naga stays, no one would forget her.
Crouching into a powerful bending stance, I launch myself forward on a thin column of earth, repeating the process until I'm winded and close enough to the city to walk.
I still can't believe how beautiful and full of life the earthkingdom is, the fresh warm air and vibrant growing things. My mood brightens even further as I move into the city proper and the sound of car horns and shouting accost my ears.
"Watch out!"
The call comes just as a padded ball is about to strike my face, but it doesn't matter. I heard it coming and shift subtly letting it just barely miss my face, then jerk my elbow up catching and sending it back in one, efficient motion. Grinning proudly at my impromptu return sequence, I see the ball I launched back at the sender; smack the stupefied boy straight in the face.
"Oh shit," I curse to myself as I run over to help with his bleeding nose. He gingerly holds his head back as a crowd of dirty boys moves in.
"I'm really sorry about that, kid, let me help."
"Nuu nuuu em OK" It was hard to understand the words behind the gargle but it was clear he was trying to be tough as he rushed to stand, clumsy hands attempting to wipe away too much blood. I know the feeling. I always do that too.
"Oh shush," I say firmly grasping his shoulders and shoving him down, "Sit still and let me help." He swipes at my hands, surprising me with his wiry strength. I blink but quickly just seal everything but his head in a little earth cocoon. "Too bad if you don't want my help, I'm doing it anyway!" Then I close my eyes and use the water in his blood to find the fracture in his bone.
Mending it quickly, there is a brief light and a gasp from the gangly group of boys. I open my eyes and see the boy blinking in surprise, the pain gone from his face. But his nose is still bleeding freely. "One second," I mumble, reaching out with my chi to find the breach in his flesh and seal it, stopping the flow of blood.
I release the encasing earth and he sits forward bowing his head, letting the last of the blood drain out then wiping vigorously at his nostrils.
"How did you do that?" He asks shrewdly looking to me where I crouch, hands on knees in front of him.
"That looked like water healin." Another boy butts in with a slight, suspicious frown. I'm surprised, these boys don't look like their more than ten, and they're very direct. So I blab out the first thing that comes to mind, shrugging my shoulders, "It was."
"But you used earth to send the ball back at me." The first boy says, squinting, assessing. "Yep." I say standing up to leave, "Your welcome!" I call over my shoulder as I walk away, before a tremor in the earth alerts me to jump back as a large rock wall rises in my path.
"Look lady, I don't much like secrets, so your gonna tell us what you just did"
Part of me is impressed with their assertive action and boldness, working together to move the rock wall, but that part is shoved aside by the startled outrage at being challenged by children.
"I don't have to tell you anything, you little punk. Be grateful that I healed your nose and move on." I stare into his remarkably calculating face, taking note of the tense boys behind and flanking him. If they want a fight they'll be in for a rude awakening.
Instead, he surprises me again by asking, "Will you teach us how to do that trick where you reversed the ball?"
I spent the next two hours going through some of the fundamentals of earthbending with the group. None of them had been formally educated and had developed most of their bending skills for playing earthball and dreaming of competing in the probending arena.
We were talking about the current game standings when Jamie, face still bloody from early, says matter-a-factly, "That's the only way to get out of here ya' know." while moving through one of the harder sequences I was teaching them. "You have to get real good at bending if you wanna be somebody."
"What do you mean?" I asked startled, "You're not happy living here? And surely there are other things you could do"
The other boys glance among themselves seemingly at a loss for words, but not Jamie. He gives me that shrewd look again and asserts, "You're not from around here, are you?" He doesn't wait for an answer before continuing on his unsettlingly mature way of speaking.
"I don't know what it's like where you're from but here people don't have money. And if you want to get money you go to the probending arena." He says simply with a shrug. "That's all there is."
He's thirteen. Thirteen and already such a bleak and serious outlook on the world and this city.
I wanted to change that… but I was completely out of my depth. For me, there was no experience that could act as a guide to understanding the political or ecological problems of the time. And unfortunately, my first reaction when confronted with this massive problem was denial.
"That can't be true! This city is full of diversity and opportunities, yo—
"That's what the people with money say." Jamie declares quietly, accusation in his voice and the angry tilt of his eyebrows.
I'm completely deflated. "Oh." is my inarticulate reply. But I don't want him to feel like he won this argument. And I really, really don't want him to be right about something so disturbing. So I cover up my uncertainty by saying firmly, "Then lets do something about it."
This time, I think I surprised him. "What?"
"If the situation is as bad as you say then lets do something about it."
Instead of rallying at the idea like I'd hoped, he just scoffs and challenges me again, "Yeah like what?"
His smug posture makes me want to prove him wrong, so I start babbling,
"Well… Um… We-We're doing it right now!"
His smug skepticism hasn't left, but I'm excited by the idea. "I don't know how I'm gonna solve this whole problem but I can start by teaching you all earthbending! And you don't have to pay for it. That can help balance out the money thing." I'm looking around at their faces that are starting to look more animated and it spurs me onward. "And you can bring anyone you want. We'll meet here everyday and I'll teach people who cant afford to learn at a real school."
When I finish I'm rather proud of my idea. Jamie still looks skeptical. I wonder if that's just how his face is. But I stare at him with what I hope is convincing sincerity until he nods his head. "Alright I guess."
Late in the day at an agreed upon time, I'm back in the same empty lot between single story houses as yesterday with the same group of boys. But now, we have some spectators. "No one else wants to practice?" I ask Jamie quietly as we begin. The small crowd is a mix of young kids and a few older men and women, the former of which seemed to be itching to try the forms we were moving through. Jamie shrugged. "No one seemed to believe us when we told them about you yesterday. It's surprising they're here at all."
By the end of the practice session, four girls and two new boys had joined our small group and were working through some basic sequences, with minor pointers from me now and then.
These kids were attentive and tended to be rather serious, but they learned fast and worked hard. Most of them it seemed worked in one capacity or another, in shops and cafes or begging. The idea of begging shocked me. In the water tribe if someone was starving we would take them into our home, feed them and eventually find work for them. But according to Jamie, "None of us has money to spare."
The next day I brought meat with me, leftovers from Naga's latest kills. Wrapped in leaves, it waited at the edge of the clearing for the kids who had nothing.
My congregation grew. After a few days, the class had at least twenty kids in it. I had to separate them into groups to work on different levels of forms. And every once in a while an older man or woman would come and stay for a lesson—but they usually didn't came back every day like the kids did. The little ones especially seemed to have boundless energy and were always looking to learn the next level.
Watching them discover the feel of bending, fail, try again; it was so fun! It reminded me of my own excitement and love for bending.
But they can definitely be little shits sometimes. And unfortunately, I had no idea how to handle children. Ignoring them only worked about half the time, sometimes I'd just shove them away with bending. Sometimes I'd just stick them in a cage.
I wasn't a very good teacher but they seemed to like it. After a few days, they eyed me less and joked around more. We started getting a good rhythm going, working for them and hunting for me in the day and practice for us all at night. I made sure to always bring extra food. Once a Hobo stole all the meat I'd brought. The kids who noticed wanted to chase him down, but I closed off their view of his retreating back with an earth wall.
A few of the older boys were furious, but I was adamant. "No, let him have it. I bring you all meat everyday. Who knows when the last time he ate was?"
"But it was for us." One insists with a rabid hatred I don't understand. "Sometimes, being like a rock means knowing when to slide." I say, quoting one of my old teachers. It was a saying I'd never fully understood until then.
"Korra, you haaaaave to take us!"
"Hmmm, I don't know… what times is it at?"
"Tomorrow at 7"
"What, that early?! We'll still be practicing."
"Korra, come on. We know you want to go too" Jamie chimed in with that sly look in his eye.
For quite a few nights after practice now, we'd been going back to Jamie's mom's soup shop and listen to that nights match. Tomorrow our favorite team was competing again, the street orphans turned pro-benders: The Fire Ferrets. I'd been coming up with different ways to sneak us in, exploring and scoping out the area at night, for days now.
But they didn't know that.
Leaving them in suspense seems cruel but it's actually really fun. I grin, "Maybe if everyone can do Dragon Stance by the end of the day, we can go." Fists are thrust into the air accompanied by shouts of excitement, their skinny limbs thrashing wildly.
Bolin
"Umm, man I can feel it tonight! It's gonna be great, can you feel it Mako?"
"I'll feel it as soon as our third member gets here." He says, antsy.
"Lighten up, we can pick up his slack,"
"Yes but I'd prefer not to have too."
"Fine. You wait here and be grouchy, I'm gonna go find us some fans."
"Bolin, no, why? Please don't. They always drool all over my stuff"
"Oh shush, you love the attention."
"Wooh! Wooooh! That match was awesome! We did great." I say to my brother as we exit the arena.
"Yeah we did," He says with a brief smile at me before it falls as his eyes fall on our waterbending teammate.
"Or we would have done great if someone had been training with us or even shown up on time." Mako's angry words and frustration are understandable. I don't want to have an argument but we do have a lot riding on these matches.
We haven't known the guy long and he seems surprised by Mako's anger "Hey man, this is supposed to be fun, we're doing fine."
Before Mako can let off the steam that's rising off his head, I jump in and say,
"Look, I know it's a game to you but for us… it's dinner." I try to explain casually with a little smile, shrugging my shoulders. He seems confused. It's a look that often accompanying the face of privileged people when they're confronted with poverty.
Waterbenders usually have it pretty good in the city. There are so few of them here that they're kind of a hot commodity.
Before I can explain further, in a reasonable, un-fiery manner, Mako starts yelling.
Our financial situation is a delicate subject for him.
And just like that, we're out one waterbender.
He just walks out, probably not realizing that an inattentive waterbender is better than none and how it will be practically impossible for us to find a replacement.
Mako sits on a bench dejected, hands clenched in his hair.
"It'll work out. We'll find someone who takes this seriously. But maybe not too seriously, you'll see" I put a hand on his shoulder and squat down.
"You've still got me," I say half joking, getting a snort out of him and he looks up with a half smile.
There's a light knock at the door and before either of us can do anything but look up, a young woman with a gang of younger dirty boys enters.
"I hope we're not bothering you," She's got an incredibly inviting smile,
"The boys love you both and really wanted to say hi." Perfectly at ease, she says this as if it's normal, as if she didn't' have to sneak past a pack of guards and two arena directors just to get to the upper floors.
Her bearing is as almost as stunning her sudden appearance. And her appearance is striking too. White smile, framed by tan skin and wisps of dark brown hair that have escaped from her high tail: sleeveless earthkingdom coat, tied around the waist with a sash, lending some definition to the otherwise plain outer layer. It has slits up the side with short pants underneath that reveal her calves. It's an outfit ideal for unrestricted movement. The eyes are the most stunning though: burning, bright blue eyes in a sea of light brown skin.
I jump up to greet them, not missing an opportunity to receive a fan.
"No bother at all," I said jovially, "I'm Mako and this is my brother Bolin"
"But, I thought you were Bolin?!" One of the boys blurts out, as I'd hoped.
"What!" I exclaim, looking back and forth between my unimpressed brother and the boys."I must have gotten us mixed up again!"
It's not that funny, but the girl and all the boys crack smiles and a few laugh, so who cares.
She nudges one forward saying, "Go ahead, ask"
"Umm… Would you, could, umm, would you show us some moves, earthbending moves?" He gets out, breathlessly hopeful.
"Of course," I say with a huge grin, looking from them to the girl who smiles back happily.
They all seem a bit surprised that I agreed. There's a since of nervous excitement about them that is easily recognizable to anyone who grew up on the street. It's a mixture of fear, readiness and hope, and fear of that hope—a very tension inducing combination.
Mako stands and we share a glance of understanding before he gestures for the door and says, "The practice gym is up stairs, if you want to see how we train?"
We head up to the small gym where competitors in the games practice between matches. The walk is a little quiet and awkward but I try to dispel that by asking all their names and giving them compliments on their proud titles and strong muscles. Then I look at the dark skinned woman and without any prompting she says, "Korra. And I already know I have nice muscles but you can tell me anyway."
This comment receives the first true laugh I've heard from the group of boys and a weary, amused look from Mako. I realize my mouth is slightly open, I snap it shut and fire back with, "Well I was going to say something else looks nice but your muscles do too." Before they can figure out what that means, or how much of an idiot I am, I hurry the whole group along into the gym but not before Mako shakes his head at me, grin on his face.
The group wanders freely around the gym seeming at ease, one quietly approaches Mako to ask a question, so I head over to the far wall and take off some of my heavier gear and set it aside. Mostly because it's bulky and uncomfortable, but also mostly because I'm well aware of how large and impressive my muscles are but it's more important that other people are aware.
"All right, Lady and gentlemen gather round and watch closely." I say rubbing my hands together, eagerly. Dropping into my light stance, I do a showy jump; flipping in mid air and kicking two discs, one at the arc and one right before I land. It's a eye-catching trick, not very practical but it's fun to see the looks of awe and admiration on their faces. Well the boys anyway, Korra, looks as if she knows exactly how useless that move would be in a real fight.
"COOL! Can you show us how to do that?" A boy exclaims.
"Are you all earthbenders?" I ask a little surprised, I thought they were just fans.
"Yep" One says, his chest puffing out slightly, "We are and Korra has been teaching us" He says gesturing to the dark skinned girl proudly, who glances at him fondly before gently shoving his head forward.
"Well this is kind of a tough one, so may—"
"Korra can do it." One boy says with calm confidence, which is fallowed by raucous agreement from the others.
Korra just scoffs. "We came here so you could learn from him. I already know I can do that."
"Well," I say, "Since you're so unimpressed … maybe you have something better?" I ask tauntingly. I can't resist an opportunity to test my skills/show off. A slight smile is pulling on her lips but her eyes are rather serious, as she looks at me then the boys.
"Come on Korra! Show him!"
"I've been teaching you earthbending so you can help yourselves and you're family. That's what this is really about. Not showing off." The boys look unexpectedly abashed, it seems like a similar conversation has been had before.
"However," Grinning she says stepping up next to me, and the boy's heads all perk up. "If it's for a good cause."
She locks eyes with me briefly before sinking into a lithe crouch—I move out of her way.
Then she moves. No, moves is to common a term, she glides through a series of mildly challenging poses, hands slip to the floor, legs up and twirling then landing. Simple moves really, but all done with such a grace, control and power that the simple and familiar moves become alien and striking. It's over in seconds and I'm left dumbstruck, staring like an idiot with my mouth open, again, as she grins and gives an exaggerated bow to the kids.
Mako also notices her control but instead of going slack jawed, like an idiot; he looks at her with calm appraisal.
"Wow, that… Wow" I fumble, and she looks at me grinning, then all innocent modesty says "What? Those weren't advanced techniques" as if she has now idea the lithely power contained inside her.
"Yeah but I bet you could perform much higher level moves with just as much ease. Where did you learn how to bend?" Mako asks critically, walking over to stand next to me, arms crossed.
"South," Is her intentionally vague and almost smug reply before she says quickly, "You still wanna show the boy's something, or you all worn out?"
I tell her no, I can still show them something. With a nod in appreciation and a too fast "Great!" she moves out of the way.
Sharing a look with Mako, there's an understanding between us that we need to find out more about this girl.