Thank BG-13

Korra's POV

I was running. I was running through a forest, the undergrowth trying to snatch my feet, make me trip. But I was too agile, too full of fear to let that happen. I could hear someone's even breathing not too far behind me. Whatever was chasing me wasn't getting tired. I, on the other hand, could feel the sweat starting to slide down the back of my neck, and my lungs about to burst from my labored breathing. I felt like I'd been running for hours, but the distance between me and my pursuer never closed or lengthened.

Finally, I couldn't take it anymore, my body was aching for rest. I stopped and leaned over, my hands coming to rest on my knees as I gulped down lungs full of air. I looked over my shoulder and saw nothing. I felt a quick sliver of relief. Perhaps I had managed to outrun them, perhaps they had given up. I'd been wrong.

When I turned back around, I saw a flash of steel before I was knocked to the ground. I hissed as I felt a sharp pain at my side and my hand went instinctively to it. I felt something wet and didn't have to look to know my hand was now covered in blood.

I got back to my feet and started to run once again. The figure kept after me, I could hear its footsteps splashing through a puddle here and there and knew it was gaining. The forest was getting denser, harder to navigate until finally I came to a dead end. Adrenaline still pumping in my veins, I started to climb. The figure followed. I panicked and started to climb faster, using any of the notches to help me ascend quicker.

I felt it grab my ankle and I screamed.

I took a big gulp of air, as if I'd been holding my breath as I sat up on the floor. My breathing came in pants and my entire body was covered in a sheen of sweat. I placed my hand to my side but there was no blood. I pulled my legs close to my chest, trying to calm my rapidly beating heart.

I heard the squeaking of the bed and then a flame appeared before me. Mako's concerned face visible due to its glow. "Korra, what wrong?"

"Nothing," I replied, closing my eyes tightly. Steady breaths, in and out. Just breathe.

"Korra," he began gently, sitting next to me. "You can tell me."

"Just leave me alone!" I snapped, standing up and running out of the room.

I didn't want to be here anymore. I didn't want to go to that stupid swamp. I ran to the back of the boat and made a move to jump off. We weren't too far from the city and I was pretty sure I would make it to shore. But when I tried jumping off a pair of warm arms wrapped themselves around my waist.

"Let go!" I yelled.

"No," he answered, not letting go until I was far from the back of the boat. "What were you thinking?"

"I don't want to go on this stupid trip!" I said.

"Why?"

I shook my head. I couldn't tell him about my dream. He'd think I was nuts. "Spar with me," I said.

"What?" Mako asked, no doubt surprised by the change in subject.

"I can't sleep. Spar with me."

The Firebender sighed before nodding. "Fine," he answered. "But after this you're going to sleep on the bed."

Mako's POV

It had taken a sparring match and another half hour of arguing to get Korra to lie down in the bed. I couldn't help but noticed how even in her sleep, her expression was controlled. Even her breathing seemed to be regulated.

My mind started to drift, going back to a few nights ago, to what she'd said; us being attracted to one another. For some reason, I thought perhaps she didn't want anyone because of the damage and mutilation that had been done to her body. I'd seen how she'd tensed when my hand had hovered over the pink lines, her scars.

But she was right. I was attracted to her and my respect for her had grown since she'd come back to Republic City. Truth be told, I thought she was still pretty, beautiful even, despite the damage done to her skin.

I shook my head of these thoughts, remembering the words that had followed. There could never be anything between us, intimately at least. But that didn't mean we couldn't be friends. Korra was hiding something, I knew she was. The trick was figuring out what.

Korra's POV

After the guy dropped us off, he high tailed it out of there, muttering something about that place giving him the creeps. I raised a brow at this before shaking my head and continuing onward, toward the Swamp. My traveling companion followed close behind, and I could sense his unease when we finally stood at the Swamp's border.

I paused, momentarily feeling disoriented. I could hear whispers coming from within the thick foliage of the trees, mostly incoherent, but occasionally I heard my name among the chorus of voices. I had the weirdest sense of déjà vu but shook my head. I myself had never been here, but I remembered reading that Aang had.

I pressed forward. The Swamp itself was thick with trees and vines. The ground squished beneath our feet, slick and unsteady in some places. "Watch your step," I said over my shoulder. "The nearest hospital is miles away." Great pep talk, I know.

As we continued, the fog that had been merely wisps earlier was now thick, the moisture actually clinging to us. It would only be a matter of time before we couldn't see at all.

I considered climbing up one of the trees but they were too tall and too smooth. There was nothing for me to climb. I could always Airbend but...it wasn't an option.

I kept looking over my shoulder periodically to see if Mako was still with me. He was. We couldn't risk being separated.