Korra wonders why her mother was so determined for her not to know. Does she not want me to go? "Why didn't you tell me?" She asks. Senna glances at her with a stern look, "Because I don't think you should go, not yet."
"WHY NOT!" Korra speaks with a slightly raised tone. "Don't question me!" Senna replies. "But MOM, this is good for us, I need to continue my training! I can't even find a good earthbending teacher here!" Korra says to her.
"Not like this, not this far away." Senna responds, matching Korra's tone. "How am I supposed to be the Avatar when I'm bundled up in this place! Huu says I have a duty to the world. If I don't ever leave, I'll never be able to find my own path as the Avatar!" Senna furrows her brows intensely creating a deep crease between them, "Huu?! Is this what he's been teaching you all this time? To leave and abandon your own family?!"
"You're the one who asked him to be my mentor!" Korra responds angrily. "Heh, he was going to teach you anyway, whether I asked him or not. This Avatar stuff is right up his alley." Senna says, and their arguing is starting to alert everyone outside. Korra interrupts, "Avatar stuff... It's not like I can understand any of this stuff! Everything he says has been nothing but nonsense to me. I'm much better off leaving, maybe I can finally learn something new. You clearly don't care about my destiny!"
Senna's demeanor turns cold as she stares at her daughter and proceeds to slap her in the face, "DON'T CARE? How dare you!" Zia's mother, Tala, quickly walks in as Korra places one hand over her cheek, "That's enough you two!" Tala says to them.
Korra immediately runs off, shoving anyone in her way. Senna glances as she leaves, with the same hand clutched over her chest. This was wrong, she thinks to herself that she shouldn't have hit her, ugh Tonraq would hate me for this. Senna knows that her daughter is right about her training. Staying in the swamp won't do her much good in the long run. If the Fire Nation already knows about our whereabouts, surely the other major world governments know as well. What am I doing, we've been here too long, everything is changing outside, and all I want to do is hide in here. She starts to tear up as the rush of the moment dies down, what did I do, what do I do. "Senna," Tala speaks softly, gently placing her hands over her shoulders, "Shhh it's gonna be okay, hey now."
Senna speaks to her while sobbing, "Don't say this to me, say it to my daughter. Tala, I did something wrong." More tears flow down her face as she covers it with her hands. "She's gonna come back and you two will talk it over, you've always been close, she'll forgive you." Tala tries to comfort her.
The sun sets and Korra hasn't returned yet. Senna wants to go search for her, she wants everyone to join her, but she also realizes the magnitude of her action. She thinks it best to give her daughter time and space, she knows Korra needs this at least, she's been bottled up in this swamp for too long. Tala comes over to Senna with a worried face, "They haven't returned yet," she says to Senna. "Who's they?" Senna asks. "Your daughter and mine!"
Zia ran after Korra when she left the camp, they've been gone ever since and their whereabouts are unknown. Senna thinks they might be at the banyan-grove tree where Huu usually stays. At night, she sets out to that location. She calls out for Korra and Zia as she ventures deeper into the swamp, but all she can hear are the sounds of crickets chirping, frogs croaking, and the occasional screams of the screeching dodo. The sound of the night intensifies as she nears the center where the tree is. She climbs up and meets Huu sitting cross-legged underneath the vines. His skin is weathered and earthy in hue, showing the many years he has spent in meditation and communion with nature. His hair is no longer bushy and grey, but white and wispy, flowing down to his shoulders and blending with the mist that swirls around him. His beard is equally long and tangled, resting on his chest. He wears simple, tattered loincloths made from swamp materials, and moss and vines adorn his body.
Senna approaches him. His eyes are closed, and his face is serene, reflecting a deep inner peace, something which Senna longs for. "Hello, Senna." He says to her, "Come sit with me." She glances at him, "I came here looking for Korra. Have you seen her today?"
"She will be fine, she's not alone." He answers. "I know, Zia is gone too. They must be together somewhere. They haven't come around here at all?!" She asks him.
"You tell me." he speaks. She frowns at him, thinking now she understands what Korra meant when she said she could barely understand anything Huu says. "Ugh, you're no help at all." She says to him. "What do you mean?" He asks her.
She glances at him again with a scowl on her face, "What exactly have you been teaching my daughter?" she asks him. "Nothing that you didn't ask me for. Senna, you know her destiny," before he could continue, she stops him, "Yes, I do! I know she'll face so many challenges if she leaves. I wanted to leave this place once, and I did, and look what it did me. I don't want her to have to come back here disappointed like I did."
"But you're not disappointed," Huu says to her, "you found what you were looking for and," Senna stops him again, "and he's GONE. He was taken from me. Sometimes I wish I never left home, maybe then I wouldn't be feeling how I feel now."
Huu speaks softly, "Senna…" she doesn't interrupt him this time but sits with her back facing him. He continues, "what happened was meant to happen. You can't keep looking back, it's all an illusion now, part of a long gone past. The love you had for him has taken a new shape in her. Don't cloud those feelings with anger. You must separate the two. You must let go and look to the future."
Senna's eyes gaze out over the vast expanse of the Foggy Swamp below. The swamp stretches endlessly, a sea of mist and greenery punctuated by the occasional glimmer of water reflecting the dim light filtering through the dense canopy as the fog shifts and swirls. The future, she thinks back to when she was her daughter's age. She was just as stubborn and headstrong, and desperately wanted to venture out into the world. She left just before turning 19 and didn't know a single soul out there. She wasn't afraid however, she was more than capable of protecting herself, and she wanted to learn more and improve her waterbending. She was hopeful and determined, and never really had a set clear plan. Her destination was the Southern Water Tribe and didn't care much as to how she would get there. She never really expected she would meet someone and fall in love, that was always a back thought for her. When Tonraq showed up at that harbor that day, it was as if fate brought them together by force. She was leaving her home for adventure, and he was exiled from his home. His background was so different from hers, and yet they bonded so easily, like two liquids pouring into a bottle, mixing and becoming one.
She loved him dearly, and he adored her. They both viewed one another as an equal and constantly worked together. Their love was blossomed tenfold when Korra arrived. Korra's birth wasn't an easy one, she was stubborn even before she came out of her mother's womb. The birth unfolded over the course of several grueling days, during which the air inside the hut was filled with tension. The midwives were experienced and moved with practiced urgency, offering soothing words and practical aid as the wind howled outside and a blizzard raged. Hours turned into days and the strain on Senna became more pronounced. Katara would usually lead the midwives in such situations, she was the most experienced out of all of them and the best healer in the world, but she left days prior to attend her husband's funeral, Avatar Aang. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, a tiny wail pierced the air – a sound so delicate yet powerful that brought a wave of relief and joy. Korra emerged into the world, drawing her first breaths with a strong, clear cry.
"I remember when she was born," Huu spoke. "How do you remember; you weren't even there?" Senna asks. "A strong presence shifted through the air, being carried by southern winds. I believe that was her spirit. Of course I didn't know it was Korra, but I certainly knew the next Avatar had just been born in the south." He answers her
She perches back and sits across from him, "It took days for her to come out. It was the most grueling thing I've ever been through in my life, even worse than my encounter with Unalaq." She tells him and grins, her blue eyes start to water, "We were so happy to finally see her. I was tearing and laughing as I held her in my arms. She stopped crying as I nestled her against me. I guess her spirit took too long to arrive for her to come out?"
"Maybe so…" Huu grins, "She reminds me a lot of you when you were her age."
"I know, I was foolish and adventurous, wanting to leave and see the world. This is why I don't want her to do what I did. I'm afraid she'll do the same mistakes I did!" Huu interrupts her, "But you didn't do anything wrong, Senna. You found the most amazing thing one could find, you found love in the most unexpected way. You experienced so many new things and learned and improved and became a lot stronger than you were. Korra will need to embark on her own journey just like you did. She'll need to do this alone and navigate through it in her own unique way."
"But, what if Unalaq finds her? What if what happened that day happens again?" she confides in Huu.
"Unalaq will not dare. He has already seen the wrath of the Avatar once. He's a calculated man. He won't try what he tried that day. If he has another plan, it'll be different. That is why Korra must be ready. But you must know this, the path of the Avatar is one of selfless duty. Her spirit will not resonate with any selfish desires. If she does her duty for personal gain, she'll never be able to control herself in the Avatar state, and only anger will take the lead."
Senna listens to Huu and nods in agreement, but she also believes that their ultimate personal gain is justified and is tied to her daughter's duty as the Avatar.
"AAAAAAAH." The screeching dodo lets out a scream while standing on a branch on top of Korra and Zia as they are sound asleep. "Woahhh!" Korra fumbles, breathing heavily, "THAT BIRD, I SWEAR I'M GONNA KILL IT!"
Zia awakes too, "Is it weird I've gotten numb to its screams…" Zia says. Korra tries grab it with a vine, but the bird flies off. They've spent the night together far away from the camp's location within the swamp. The air around them is thick with humidity, and all sounds have disappeared. They start walking in the labyrinthine network of roots and branches, slowly going further deep into the misty depths of the swamp. Neither is afraid; they've ventured into these parts many a times before. "If you're trying to leave, I think you're going the wrong way." Zia says.
"I'm not really trying to leave. There's no point in trying anyway, Mom would probably come looking for me. Also is that what YOU'RE trying to do?" Korra says. Zia shrugs, "Nah, I just wanted to make sure I can say goodbye to you if you actually do leave."
"Do you ever want to leave?" Korra asks her. "Honestly, not really." Zia answers. "Why not?" Korra asks.
"I don't have some big destiny waiting for me, I'm better off staying here and helping our family. They'll need a healer." Zia answers. "You're not the only healer though." Korra says to her.
"Yeah, I know, but I still have a lot to learn from Tal and Huu. The herbs found in the swamp have so many special properties, I want to learn everything about them and how to apply them when I use my waterbending to heal." Zia says. Korra frowns, but Zia continues, "Korra listen, we're not the same. Your path is different than mine. I want you to stay with us, I really do, but I also believe that eventually, you'll have to set out into the world. This isn't a bad thing."
"I know, I was conflicted on whether I should leave or not, but I feel like I must. Yesterday, we argued about this. She doesn't want me to go to the Fire Nation." Korra says as her brows contract. They continue to wander around.
"I think she does! I mean, if she really doesn't want you to go, she would've kicked that guy out of the whole swamp before everyone woke up. I think she's just… not ready to see you go. We all aren't."
Korra struggles to accept Zia's words after what transpired the day before. They sit in silence for a while, and Korra thinks back to when she observed her mother kill for the first time. She remembers waking up early in the morning that day, excited to go hunting for the first time with her father. She was seven years old, but already showed so much promise as a waterbender. She put on her fur coat and tied her hair in a warior's wolf tail, a hairstyle common with males of the Water Tribes. Today, I'll become a warrior! she thought. Tonraq was absent that morning, but he came back rushing. "Good morning, Dad!" She said to him. "Morning, sweetie. Senna, they're here!" Her memories become vague after that moment. Everything happened so suddenly and quickly. She remembers her mother's heavy breathing, and her father running in the opposite direction. The last thing he said to her was I love you. She remembers the moment when her mother said hold on to me, and the five clean kills.
"I know she loves me," Korra says to Zia, and before she could continue talking, a pack of skunk monkeys leap over to the branches above them. "Oh, this is just great." Korra says.
The skunk monkeys begin to screech louder as the girls attempt to walk away slowly. "This won't do, we must've stepped into their territory." Zia says. "Yeah, I can smell their stench everywhere."
Zia, though less confident in her combat skills, stands by Korra, ready to support her. One monkey lunges at them, claws outstretched. Korra responds swiftly, sending a jet of water, striking it mid-air and sending it tumbling into the underbrush. Two more leaped down from the branches, aiming for Zia. She stumbles back, trying to form a protective water barrier. Korra quickly stomps her foots on the ground causing a pillar of earth to shoot up and knock the monkeys away.
"Stay close to me," Korra instructs her. Zia nods. The skunk monkeys regroup, circling the girls with angry, chattering noises. Despite her skill, their sheer number and the awful stench made it a difficult fight. They attacked from all angles, forcing Korra to constantly pivot and defend. Zia did her best to help, occasionally sending streams of water to knock back the advancing monkeys, but her lack of combat training was evident.
Arrows came flying out of nowhere, striking two monkeys. Korra turns to see Vek standing at the edge of an uproot, a determined look on his face. "Need a hand?" he calls out, already picking out another arrow. Tadashi swoops into the fray, using his agility to dodge the monkeys' attacks. Korra observes him as he moves with grace and precision, using chi blocking techniques to incapacitate the monkeys swiftly and efficiently. He targeted their pressure points with quick, accurate jabs, causing them to collapse. Korra and Zia redouble their efforts, and they successfully fend them off.
The girls thank them. "Where were you two?! We've been looking all over for you!" Vek shouts.
"Can't we take a walk?!" Korra says. "A walk? You've been gone overnight!" Vek says.
Tadashi's expression is calm and focused, "Are you both alright?" He asks. "Yes, but we'll need to head back. We need to wash the smell off or it'll cause stomach pains." Zia says.