Before we begin, a small announcement to be made.
A while back (3/20/25 to be exact) I re-activated my P*treon (* = a) account, with an all-new page since I'm more-established as a writer and have a better idea of what the heck I'm actually doing.
While I doubt I have the sort of fanbase that'd enable me to make my Hobby into my Day Job like some authors can, I'd think that if I were able to draw in enough "unrelated fiscal gifts", I'd at-the-least be able to commission artists to bring bits and pieces of my long-standing works to life with greater frequency.
SO! If any of my faithful readers out there have a smidgen of disposable income you'd be willing to send my way for matters "unrelated" to certain copyrighted works, maybe hit up my P*treon page ("NewMystery356", same as here), see if anything on my Tier list catches your interest; like a Sneak Preview of future chapters since that seems to be the popular thing nowadays and that's the most I feel I can offer.
Also, there is currently the Next Chapter posted on P*treon if anyone is interested. It'd have felt disingenuous to make this announcement but not have anything to show for it beyond a modest art gallery.
With that piece said, let's hit up that fanmail section!
*RECONSTRUCTION*
To LoamyCoffee, it was always planned that Zhu would make his way back to that Spirit Oasis; the crossover with Danny Phantom just expedited the process. Before this, Zhu getting to that point was going to be way more convoluted.
To Lucius Walker, yeah, the "hollow victory" angle was what I was angling for. Korra was able to unlock her Chakras and re-awaken her Bending by her own efforts, but Zhu being gone because he was trying to help her put a damper on it.
To Infinite Khaos, humans in Avatar the Last Airbender/Legend of Korra are "made of different stuff" than humans on Earth (least of which is tanking hits from Earthbending that'd kill an ordinary person), and Zhu's exposure to Ectoplasm was second-hand anyway, so no, he won't be getting a "Spirit Form". If he did get one, hypothetically, it'd have looked like Naruto's [Nine-Tails Chakra Mode, just with different colors and markings.
To Blaze1992, I haven't thought ahead to what that exposure to Ectoplasm would do to Zhu's descendants, but it'd probably give them a proficiency in Energybending.
As an aside, I don't think it'd give the mother of his child(ren) Cancer like what Peter Parker's "fluids" did to MJ because, I mean, Aang was basically an actualized Buddha, and his kids weren't automatically super-powered. Heck, one of them started out as a Non-Bender until the Material World got a huge burst of Spirit Radiation.
To YoshiEsJESUCRISTO, wild name by the way, the Danny Phantom crossover was more meant to play on the idea that the Ghost Zone was a "space between spaces" and show some level of interconnectivity between Nickelodeon-adjacent worlds. Also, I wasn't actively thinking of the Jimmy Neutron & Fairly Odd Parents canon crossovers, but memories of those may've been in my hind-brain when I came up with the idea of having Danny & Sam meet Zhu in the Spirit World.
As for whether or not this story becomes a Harem… Honestly, there are times where my work "writes itself" to the point that I go on a completely different trajectory than what I originally planned. Heck, I never planned on there being a Danny Phantom cameo until I was writing in Zhu's adventure through the Spirit World.
So yeah, it's up in the air, but I do enjoy it when people get so-invested in non-Canon pairings.
*RECONSTRUCTION*
The ice cave that Zhu, Danny, and Sam ventured into collapsed in on itself only upon their departure, resembling little more than a snowy hill on the endless tundra, mirroring countless other of its kin as far as the eye could see.
"Well… Glad to know all that magic water won't be just… lying around," Sam hummed, thinking back to all those movies where the magic McGuffin was left unguarded in a cave that anyone and everyone could stumble upon.
"Hey, you won't hear me complaining," Danny said as his mouth stopped spewing blue fog. "So, what do you think that McGuffin does?"
"The heck's a 'McGuffin'?" Zhu blinked.
"A plot device. Don't you listen to radio dramas?" Sam asked.
"Why would I listen to fake dramas on the radio when I star in the real deal?"
"You know what, completely fair," Danny said as the three of them slinked back into the Specter Speeder, lifting off the ground before shooting into the wild blue yonder. "So… where to next?"
"Hmmm…" Zhu said as he spread the Infi-Map open wide. "Well, your Infi-Map is certainly more-detailed than all the other world maps I've seen," he said eyeing the equirectangular spread of the Four Nations. "Oh, and look there; there's the moon," he said pointing past the edge of the world to the sea of stars just beyond and the pale blue orb floating in the heavens. "What's that green swirl on the dark side?"
"I think that's out way back home," Danny hummed drinking in the details. "Or at least home-adjacent."
"Guess this is where we part ways," Sam nodded. "After we drop you off at least."
"Any special requests?" Danny asked.
"No, just… I'd rather just go straight home," Zhu sighed as a knot of tension came undone. "Time isn't always completely linear in the Spirit World, so I'm just hoping I haven't lost entire years in there."
"What, like Urashima Taro?" Sam blinked.
"Wait, you have that story on your Earth too?" Zhu blinked.
"You can talk about similar folktales between worlds on the way; can I please get a bearing?" Danny asked.
"As long as your Earth has two magnetic poles like this one, just head for the southern pole and I can eyeball it based on Earth Kingdom landmarks," Zhu said looking at the Infi-Map, which in of itself didn't indicate its own location in what was being shown.
*RECONSTRUCTION*
Elsewhile at Air Temple Island, Lin had taken a knee before Korra. The Avatar pressing one thumb to her Air Chakra and the other to the Light Chakra, her eyes snapped open to a radiant white, small halos of light shining from her extended digits. Those in attendance feeling their neck-hairs tingle, after several long moments the glowing subsided, Lin almost sleepily opened her eyes before getting to her feet.
Looking out at the large stones amidst the zen garden, with a traditional Earthbending stance she rooted her feet to the ground before lifting two massive boulders before setting them back down; only slightly disturbing the meticulously-raked grains of sand.
"Thank you," Lin said gratefully, Korra bowing her head in turn.
"I am so proud of you, Avatar Korra," Tenzin smiled approvingly, Korra returning the expression at being called the Avatar unironically.
"So, you can give people their Bending back now," Mako hummed. "Where will you take it from here?"
"Well, I mean…" Korra hedged, buying herself a little extra time. "Some of the people that got their Bending taken away probably left Republic City anyway; especially after people kept kicking them while they were down."
"Sad, but true," Bolin nodded sagely.
"I guess the best place to start would be with the Metalbending Police, White Lotus, and United Forces members who got their Bending taken away," Korra went on to say. "We get our law-enforcing strength back up, and we can more-easily handle what comes after. Going in the opposite direction is just begging for trouble."
"Smart," Lin nodded.
She was also happy Korra was able to figure that out on her own, but kept that one to herself.
"Of course, as soon as it gets out that you can do this, the real Equalists might come out of the woodwork," Mako hummed.
"I still don't get how they can believe in him after Noatak ousted himself like that…" Lin hummed thoughtfully.
"If Zhu were here, he'd say they can believe in his message, if not the man himself," Korra stated matter-of-factly.
"That really does sound like something he would say," Asami sighed wistfully
"Hey, speaking of which, where is that guy?"
"AAUGH! Where did you come from?!" Korra cried out when Varrick spoke up behind her.
"Since your whole magical girl light-show," the shipping magnate said making wavy motions with his fingers. "So Lin, you got your mojo back. You ever think of going into politics?"
"Where in the world did that come from?" the Police Chief deadpanned.
"From me. I only said that, like, five seconds ago," the shipping magnate said with backhanded condescension.
Before Lin could give the man a piece of her mind, Akamaru suddenly bolted into the clearing and cut through the lot of them, star-shaped snout snuffling in a frenzy as he coiled around everyone's feet, knocking more than one person over.
"Akamaru? What is it, boy?!" Korra asked worriedly as the Shirshu continued to sniff about, Naga coming into the garden a moment later and bowling a few more in attendance over, her own not-insubstantial olfactory senses working overtime as she and Akamaru sniffed around in circles before headbutting one another.
"Dang it. If only I had my new mover camera…" Varrick pouted with a snap of his fingers.
Of course, what the downplayed genius said was largely ignored by Akamaru and Naga looking up to the northern horizon, a beaming silver glint descending from the wild blue yonder right toward them.
"INCOMIIIING!" Bolin cried out, getting flashbacks of Hiroshi's biplanes completely wrecking the Republic Fleet.
The Earthbenders in attendance whipping up earthen walls and utterly ruining the garden in the process, when the thing coming toward them didn't violently crash or drop bombs on them, Lin reached out with her Seismic Sense, only to blink confusedly.
"There's… something over there, but I can't get a clear picture of it…" the police chief muttered.
"Looks like a big fish!"
"Meelo, get down from there!" Tenzin cried out as his eldest son peered brazenly over the wall.
"A big fish?" Korra blinked as she palmed out a brick-sized hole in the wall and peered through.
She supposed if you tilted your head and squinted, that the thing that pulled up for a non-landing could've been described as looking like a big fish. Though in all honesty, it was closer to an airship gondola, sans the balloon.
The side of the otherworldly craft suddenly opening up with a *hissssss* and pouring light, when a flowing mane of crimson hair pierced through the radiant halo, Korra kicked down the wall she was hiding behind with a cry of- "ZHU!"
"Hey, I'm baAAAACK!" Zhu cried out as Korra scooped him up in her arms, spinning him about, Akamaru and Naga excitedly galloping around them.
"Zhu! I thought I'd never see you again!" Korra sobbed, holding him like he'd disappear if she let go.
" . . . I'm sorry," the red-head replied as he stroked her back.
"D-Don't be 'sorry', you dummy!" Korra hiccupped. "Just let me know if you're going to vanish like that."
"I can only promise to try," Zhu smiled, the others slowly coming out from behind their earthen walls, staring at him and his arriving vessel with wide eyes. "Hey, could you back me up a bit?"
"Hm? Oh, sure," Korra acquiesced, backing away until Zhu's back was almost pressed to the shiny shell.
*Thump*Thump*
Zhu's palm smacking twice on the chromed exterior, a moment later the glowing door slid shut. The vessel rising into the air above the tree line heedless of things like gravity, the gleaming vessel suddenly shot off into the sky faster than any flying machine or creature any of them had ever seen. Moments later, it had vanished completely from view.
"Zhu, what on earth was that?!" Tenzin gasped, eyes torn between the returned Bloodbender and how he'd returned to Republic City.
"It's how I got home, and that's all you ever need to know," Zhu replied as he proceeded to rest his chin on Korra's shoulder, basking in her warmth as he held her back.
"Let's give them some space," Lin suggested -read: ordered-. "We can grill him for details later."
Korra of course heard every word Lin said, but paid it no mind, instead choosing to bask in Zhu's own warmth in turn, finally letting him onto his own two feet.
"I missed you… I missed you so much," Korra sniffed as she adjusted her hold on his slender frame. "I thought… I thought I'd never see you again."
"You never left my thoughts, Korra. Not even once," Zhu said in turn. "So… What all have you been up to while I was away?"
"Well… It kinda started after you left…" Korra began as she finally set him down. "So… Long story short, you inspired a cult. Short story long…"
*RECONSTRUCTION*
"Why is it that nobody expects the Northern Inquisition?" Zhu deadpanned after Korra got him caught up on everything he missed.
"I mean, the last time someone from the Theocracy took a swing at you and you sent them packing, I thought you made your intentions very clear," Korra shrugged, she and Zhu conversing as they fixed up the garden; the big stuff, Korra fixed with her Earthbending, but the vast majority she used normal hand tools.
"I see your time without the bulk of your Bending has been enlightening," Zhu hummed idly.
"Yeah, it… definitely opened my eyes a bit," Korra hummed as she dabbed her forehead. "I mean, sure, every Avatar before me started out with just one element, and I may've jumped the gun a bit by having everything but Air by the time I was out of diapers… but when has an Avatar ever had to backpedal like this?"
"You'd definitely be the first, yes," Zhu nodded.
"I mean, sure, I had my Airbending, but just the… feel of all my life's work until that point being rendered meaningless…" she said looking down at her clenching fist. "I guess I can understand what the other Benders that Amon targeted were feeling after he got to them."
"Yeah, that's as good a lesson to take away from all this as any," Zhu nodded. "So, is it just the other three Elements you got back?"
"Actually, right before you got back, I gave Lin her bending back!" Korra said excitedly. "We were in the middle of planning where to go from there when you came back."
"That's great to hear," Zhu nodded. "I actually found a workaround of my own in Wan Shi Tong's library, buuuuut… I'll have to actually put it into practice to know for sure," he said scratching one cheek.
"Well, at least that splits the workload," Korra smiled. "I really am glad to have you back."
"Sorry I left you hanging like that," Zhu apologized.
"Hey, shit happens. No need to apologize," Korra waved off. "I'm more worried about you. What the heck happened back there?" she asked coming over, carefully brushing her fingers though his shock of white hair.
"Oh, uh… The Spirit World gave me a bit of a parting shot on the way back," Zhu answered as a strand of snow white fell between his eyes. "This… is not going to help the comparisons to Princess Yue…"
Cults were bad-enough when their leader of personality was full of processed lunch meat, but being legitimately touched by the Spirits…
"Hey, that reminds me for whatever reason; what's up with those duds you have?" she asked looking him up and down, taking in the unfamiliar weave.
"Oh, uh… I happened upon some travelers. They gave me something to put on given…" he trailed off embarrassingly.
"Yeah… Yeah, when you left your clothes behind, we did kind of freak out a little," Korra hummed, remembering the pure shock she felt finding his rumpled clothes in a pile on the floor, sans the promise of more… inappropriate conduct.
"Honestly, I was in such a rush to get back, I forgot to return these," Zhu said tugging at his white-and-red shirt, and then at his pants. "Not that the friends I made were especially opulent. They were actually a lot like us."
"Us?" Korra blinked.
"Teenagers with way too much responsibility on their shoulders," Zhu hummed, having pieced that much together.
When that green tendril of… whatever-it-was… passed from Danny and through him before lancing out into the Spirit Portal like a bolt of lightning finding ground, Zhu had seen… a great deal.
Technology beyond his understanding that made the best of Future Industries' catalogue look like earthenware… Spirits echoing the egos and sentiments of Humans long passed… Spirits taking the form of nature's wrath… The greater heavens beyond even the moon itself… Worlds within worlds…
Most-terrifying of all was… that monstrous colossus within his floating castle. With face as white as bone and armor the ebony of pure darkness, the sheer power rolling off of him eclipsed by far anything Zhu could comprehend, let alone what little he'd seen. And Daniel had faced something like that? Conquered, what was essentially a god of comparable if not greater power than a fully realized Avatar?
For maybe the first time since he'd dedicatedly studied that Avatar, present, past, and further passed still, he truly understood why Avatar Yangchen separated the affairs of the Material and Spirit worlds…
True, there was a great deal that hadn't been recorded. Secrets that had died with Yangchen. But what was undeniable was that Spirits, when enraged and whipped into a frenzy, could be incredibly dangerous.
Then again, as "Amon", Tarrlok, Yakone, Sozin, and so many others had proven, Humans could be equally dangerous to one another as well; it was just that the Spirits had so many more tools in their arsenal to inflict harm if not mischief upon others.
Not to mention with their nigh-unlimited lifespans, a Spirit could be incredibly patient, as well as petty. It wasn't uncommon for a Spirit to exact vengeance on an entire bloodline, if only out of pure spite.
"Zhu…? Zhu, you're spacing on me."
"Ah, I was lost in thought," Zhu said brushing his white hair back among red. "I've… I've learned a lot while I was away. Some of it I'll have to take to my grave."
"What? Don't you trust me?" Korra pouted with her hands on her hips.
"The less people that know a secret, the fewer holes there are to plug," Zhu replied. "Besides, don't you have one world to worry about?"
"Yeah, I guess," Korra sighed. If Zhu felt it was important-enough to keep from even her, she'd trust his judgment.
That was just what you did when you were in love.
"The plan we were coming up with before you crashed the party, was we were going to focus on giving the Metalbending Police and the United Forces their Bending back. After that, we'd hit the civilian sector."
"It's a good idea. Going in the opposite direction is just begging for trouble."
"Yeah, I figured that much," Korra hummed before reaching over and hugging him again. "I really did miss you."
"Well you're being awfully clingy~" Zhu teased, even as he held her back, relishing the feel of her muscular-and-feminine curves against his leaner frame. "So… You wanna finish up with the garden, orrrrr…?"
"Well, I think we've left the others waiting long-enough," Korra said as she pulled away, but holding tightly to his hand while looking at the half-completed garden. "I'll come by your room… later~" she whispered huskily into his ear.
*RECONSTRUCTION*
"Oh, you're back," Lin hummed from her place in the dining hall as Pema served tea. "For a minute I was worried we'd need to send a search party~"
"Day's still young, Lin~" Korra quipped back with a smile. "So, I take it you have questions for my fiancé, here?"
"Yes. Most-pressing is-"
"WHAT ARE THOOOOSE?!" Varrick cut Tenzin off, pointing dramatically at Zhu's feet.
"Varrick, nice to see you too," Zhu hummed. "Also, what're you up on?"
"Those," Varrick said pointing insistently at Zhu's feet.
"Ah, shit…" Zhu swore as he realized he was still wearing the anachronistic footwear he'd only meant to borrow from the other-worlders. "I… got these sneakers from some passerby."
"Sneakers... Sneeeeakerrrrs…" the shipping magnate rolled experimentally off his tongue as he popped a squat and took out a magnifying glass.
"We can talk business after I'm settled back in-"
"Well, if that's what the kids are calling it nowadays," Varrick hummed causing Korra to blush and look away.
"-but…" Zhu said feeling his brow twitch, "it'd be better to get the boring 'grown-up talk' out of the way while the details were still fresh," Zhu replied, drawing a hand-bound journal from his borrowed/stolen jacket.
"Is that-"
"Only my own notes," Zhu cut Tenzin off. "Wan Shi Tong still isn't very fond of outsiders. Only reason he gave me the time of day is because I'm basically part-Spirit," he said raking his fingers through his red hair.
"Hey uh, you've got a little something right there," Mako hummed pointing at his left eyebrow.
"Yeah, I noticed. I was there," Zhu said in a half-deadpan, half-sigh. "I don't know if the change is purely cosmetic, but when I find out, you'll be the first to know."
"Him or Korra," Asami giggled.
"Yeah. Yeah, that's also a possibility," Zhu returned with a small blush. "Soooo… Yeah. I found that 'special sauce' I've been missing," he said showing off some hand-drawn illustrations of Meridians in the Human body, a myriad of notes dominating the margins. "I'm fairly certain I can un-do what Noatak did to all those people… but given Korra can do the same thing without the stigma of being a Bloodbender, it might be hard to find volunteers."
"Which reminds me, how many killers did you kill in my building?" Varrick asked shamelessly.
"No-one died that wasn't going to die eventually," Zhu replied. "But… yeah, I'm back. Any questions?"
"Why-"
"Why did you leave your clothes behind?" Ikki asked excitedly, cutting her sister off.
"I… didn't really have a lot of choice in the matter," Zhu answered awkwardly.
"Wait, does that mean you were streaking through the Spirit World~?" Mako chuckled, hiding his grin behind his hand.
"Other than the Painted Lady and the other Avatar Spirits, when have you ever seen a Spirit wear pants?"
"He raises and excellent point," Varrick nodded sagely.
*RECONSTRUCTION*
After fielding a few questions of a more juvenile nature, Tenzin finally got to have his say.
"What was the Spirit World like? More specifically, what was it like after taking your material body with you?" the man asked trying to hide his excitement while holding up a notepad. "My father always astral projected, which probably painted how he interacted with the immaterial world."
"Honestly, it kinda sucked," Zhu deadpanned. "Rain and snow aren't your best friend when you're hoofing it barefoot through the… Spirit Wilds…," he groused experimentally, trying to find a word to describe what he saw and experienced, "with no map."
"Well, obviously," Mako chimed.
"Also, it was kinda hard to tell time on the other side because at one point, the sun went up and down two times in the same hour."
"Was it like Urashima Taro?" Asami inquired. "How much time did you spend in the Spirit World? Because for us, you were gone for around a month."
"I… I honestly gave up on measuring time fairly quickly," Zhu sighed raking his fingers through his hair. "You would too if the sun decided to fu… flake on you," he amended when Pema gave him a look, "every ten minutes."
"Fascinating…" Tenzin said, scribbling his words down like they were gospel.
"Did you actually meet any Spirits?" Pema asked.
"A few, apart from Wan Shi Tong," Zhu answered, deciding to go into the specifics with Korra and Tenzin alone. Not that he didn't trust the others, but Ikki and Meelo were children with a propensity to run their mouths, and if word got out that he me the Iroh, the 'Dragon of the West', there would be a tidal wave of inquiries, if not people wanting to make their own expeditions to the Spirit World. "Also, if any of you do find yourself at his library, just… ignore the dead body."
"Dead body?" Bolin balked.
"Dead body? Do you mean… Do you mean Professor Zei? He's still there?!" Jinora gasped, torn between shock and revulsion.
"If it makes you feel any better, I don't think they let him starve to death," Zhu said soothingly. "Those 'foxy' Knowledge Seekers of Wan Shi Tong's did give me some snacks while I worked."
"W-What kind of snacks?!" Tenzin asked eagerly, pencil at the ready.
"Just… fruit, I guess," Zhu answered leaning back a little. "I mean there was that time I had cake, but-"
"CAKE?!" most-everyone gawped.
"It was 'Spirit Cake'. It barely counts," Zhu waved off, realizing he may've said way too much.
"Zhu… You ate cake! In the Spirit World!" Bolin and Asami both gasped, the two shaking him by a shoulder apiece.
"Aaaand I regret letting that one slip…" Zhu deadpanned, looking to Korra for some form of aid only for the Avatar to shrug her shoulders and look away, whistling 'innocently'.
*RECONSTRUCTION*
"Feels good to be back home…" Zhu sighed as he got changed into his own clothes.
Not that he wasn't grateful for the clothing that Daniel had lent him, nor for the lift back to the Material World. If he'd had to hoof it back on foot, the trip might've very well made him the next Urashima Taro. It was just… The feel of the "modern" textiles that they took for granted was so alien against his skin, Zhu was rendered a little uncomfortable by it.
And of course, then there was Varrick's interest in what he'd brought back. He'd been by many cobblers in his travels, a good pair of shoes being the most-important apparel for someone hoofing it through the Earth Kingdom; but he had never seen another pair of shoes like what Daniel wore. Sam's boots were closer to what he usually saw, but they too had an element of… "newness" to them; like a top-of-the-line Satomobile placed next to a museum piece. And then there were the "blue jeans" he wore, made of a weave called "denim". Most clothing was made of silk, cotton, wool, and occasionally fur, but Zhu had never worn something like denim. The blue color, upon closer inspection, was actually a mix of indigo-dyed and un-dyed threads with a diagonal webbing, and it was just… different. The closest he could compare it to were the canvas cloth working wear when he worked odd jobs between bounty hunting gigs, but it was way less comfortable than denim.
Knowing that Danny and Samantha came from a world of wonders like this, of technologies like something from a fiction novel where writers could take liberties with what was and was not possible… That was probably the reason the three of them had agreed not to share the whole "Other Earths" idea with anyone else. Because if Humans couldn't get along on the same Earth, there was no way people from different Earth would be any different.
Wars were fought over things like disagreements over resources, territory, political ideologies, or some combination thereof where the perceived benefits of an actual armed conflict outweighed the cost in a way that was deemed "acceptable". Hell, the Fire Nation went to war for a full century, and that was only on "the one Earth". If it ever got out that there were more Earths, more worlds, not only would it mean inviting disaster, it would also mean getting the Spirits caught in the crossfire because the Spirit World…
The Spirit World as Zhu knew it no longer represented another place with set boundaries. The Spirit World now represented an intermediary between potential worlds. And while he'd only held the Infi-Map for a small amount of time, the idea that there were infinite places out there…
Sure, eventually someone would put the idea to pen and paper, but only in the pretext of it being fictional. If it were ever confirmed to be fact, even if the leaders of the other Nations agreed to keep a cool head, there was no way criminal organizations like the Triads wouldn't take the opportunity to rape and pillage their way across other worlds. Especially if "power" like the Bending arts was such a rarity as Daniel and Samantha framed it.
Of course, it wasn't like he could keep his other-worldly apparel a secret. Not with so-many witnesses, least of all were Twi & La's Interpreters who pawed over him with a disturbing intensity as soon as they realized he'd returned.
The one that he suspected was a girl got way too handsy with his hair; especially the loch that had been dyed white after getting dosed with Daniel's "Ectoplasm".
It was probably for the best that he hand the stuff over to Varrick, let everyone else think it was another of the man's wacky innovations that basically printed money.
Varrick may not've been the sort of genius to create everything his company produced, but he was willing to innovate, to try things no-one else has tried and also pay other people to try new and untested things for him. True, most of his ventures flopped before hitting the open market, but the ventures that did succeed turned lead into gold. And eventually the awe over the comfortable denim and the comfortable shoes would give way to the next shiny spoon bandied about in the endless march of consumerism.
'Danny. Sam. Wherever you are now, I hope you never, ever, come back here…' Zhu sighed to himself as he finished bundling his wares.
"So, how does it feel to be back with us mere mortals?" Mako asked from outside the doorway.
"I mean, at least the weather makes sense," Zhu shrugged. "Has it really been a month since I've been gone?"
"A little more. A little less," Mako shrugged. "How long was it for you?"
"Like I said, I stopped keeping track after a while."
"I had to ask; see if your story stayed the same," Mako shrugged.
"How has your police training been going?"
"There… have been some obstacles," Mako said as he let out a long exhale, a tongue of flame spilling into his palm before he snuffed it out. "No-one was exactly keen on a Firebender being there, but it's not like we were glut with volunteers, and it's not like there was any law saying an officer had to be a Metalbender."
"Yeah… How do you think Korra fixing things will change that?"
"I mean, most of the people that were going to wash out already have," Mako shrugged. "I'm going to stick it out."
"What, you not going to go back to Pro Bending?" Zhu said stepping out, flattening the creases in his more-local clothes.
"I mean, if it weren't for that crooked ref we would've won the whole thing. We got our share of the money, if not a little less," he said giving Zhu a pointed look. "And there's no telling when the League will start back up again. Gotta do something to make end's meet."
"And the power plant?"
"I was only a temp, and there are old timers there who can pump out more volts on their worst days than I can my best. Not that the life hasn't been hard on them."
"Well, I can think of worst ways to contribute than to be a cop," Zhu hummed, he and Mako walking down the hall. "What about Bolin? What's he been up to?"
"Helping with construction mostly, but he hasn't been able to sit still in any one place. I'm worried what he'll think when he realizes we don't want to go back to Pro Bending."
"Yeah… Yeah, after fighting in a civil war, it's kinda hard to go back. Not that I was a Pro Bender anyway."
"And yet, you have a quarter of a mill' in your bank account."
"A quarter of a mill' more than the rest of you would've had if not for me," Zhu quipped back.
"Yeah, that's fair," Mako sighed. "So… When's the wedding?"
"I'm surprised you care."
"Hey, you're my friend, and Asami won't stop gushing over the two of you," Mako said poking Zhu in the cheek.
" . . . It'd be in bad taste to do it before everyone gets their Bending back. Or at least the vast majority," Zhu answered. "Now that Korra can give people their Bending back… I feel kinda silly, going off into the Spirit World like that."
"If you hadn't, Korra would've kept spinning her wheels, focusing on just her Airbending," Mako said in return. "It all worked out for the best."
"I suppose," Zhu shrugged, adjusting his hold on his parcel. "Not like we can go back in time and… change things."
"Things like you and that Metal Clan princess~?" Mako asked waggling a brow.
"Opal's a good girl. She'll find someone great she can spend the rest of her life with," Zhu replied. "What about you and Asami?"
"We're… We're trying to make time, now that there isn't a civil war to worry about. Asami's trying to keep Future Industries from going under, and I can't help her myself, so that's why I became a cop; so nothing like the Equalist Uprising ever happens again."
"You mean becoming a cop."
"Oh, bite me."
*AN*
Bringing Danny Phantom back into the fray would completely throw off the power scaling as seen in Legend of Korra, which I'm not planning to majorly deviate from like I have in my RWBY story, Giant-Slayer, so it's doubtful I'll feel the need to bring him back.
As for Zhu's sneakers catching Varrick's eye, I think in my hind-brain, I was remembering how anachronistic it was to see a now-modern footwear in then-modern 1969 Jumanji. I mean, Legend of Korra is framed as taking place in a time like the 1920s-1930s, back in the times of vacuum tubes and radio dramas well before televisions, so obviously more-modern clothing would stand out.
If you want a Sneak Preview of the next chapter, "Power to the People", there's always my P*treon page -don't know why FF dot keeps erasing that word-, and every little bit helps.
Not that I'm ever expecting to be able to pay Rent with that money, but being able to commission Art more-frequently will be more than enough for me.
So until the next time I see you, either in the Reviews section, P*treon, or Discord.