I'm back! :D And this time I've got another Makorra fic for you all! ^_^ This story is a companion fic to my first Makorra story "A Magical Evening". I suggest you read that first before you read this one. :P Anyways, enjoy and review! :D
DISCLAIMER: I do not own "Avatar: The Last Airbender". The show and its characters belong to Mike and Bryan, the brillant geniuses behind one of the greatest cartoon shows in the history of cartoons. Their work is legendary, and I salute them for it. I also do not own "The Legend of Korra" or any of the characters associated with it. I am merely a fanboy who is eagerly awaiting the return of one of the greatest shows ever created.
A Magical Evening
Bolin jumped back into his bed the moment Korra and Mako parted ways, the Avatar heading back to Air Temple Island with Naga and the Probending Firebender heading back to the Arena. Even as the Earthbender tucked himself in and turned his back to the attic door, Bolin couldn't contain the estatic, giddy smile on his face. His brother and Korra had just shared their first kiss! Just the very thought that Mako had finally found someone to call his own sent endless, vibrant waves of happiness roaring through Bolin's heart.
He finally managed to settle himself down just as the attic door opened, followed by the sound of Mako's footsteps echoing throughout the attic. Bolin closed his eyes, trying to settle into what he hoped was a convincing sleep-like position. He was more than willing to try and relax; his ordeal with the Equalists had left him bruised and battered, but otherwise unharmed.
"I know you're not asleep, Bolin," said Mako as he sat down on his bed, the springs loudly creaking under his weight.
Bolin quickly sat up in his bed, turning towards his brother with a surprised expression as he asked, "How did you know I was still awake?"
"You've always been terrible at faking sleep," replied Mako, lying back on his bed and folding his arms behind his head, staring up at the ceiling with soft amber eyes. Bolin curiously quirked his head at his brother, noticing that something seemed to be missing from his attire.
"Where's your scarf?" asked Bolin as he got up from his bed, moving over to Mako's bed.
"Gone," simply replied Mako as Bolin crouched down by the bedside, never removing his stoic gaze from the ceiling.
"Well, I can see that," sarcastically drawled Bolin as he rolled his eyes, unamused by Mako's usual nature of pointing out the obvious. "But why is your scarf gone? Did you lose it or something?"
"Nah," nonchalantly shrugged Mako, closing his eyes, "I just gave it to Korra, that's all." Both of Bolin's blocky eyebrows raised up in astonishment, his jaw going slightly slack. Mako never gave his scarf to anyone he wasn't close to. Growing up on the streets, Mako had often given Bolin his scarf in order to keep warm on frigid winter nights; other than that, absolutely no one touched Mako's scarf, not without getting their fingers singed. Tahno had learned that lesson the hard way when they first met.
"What made you give Korra your scarf?" asked Bolin as Mako slightly opened his eyes, the moonlight that was streaming in from the window just glancing off of his amber irises.
"I just felt like it, okay?" The words came out harsher than intended, and when Mako looked over at Bolin, he could see a small amount of hurt enter his brother's eyes. Hating himself for making Bolin feel bad after such a traumatic evening, a guilty look plastered itself on Mako's face as he said, "I'm sorry, bro. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings."
"C'mon, Mako," jokingly said Bolin, all hurt gone from his face as a smile blossomed on his lips, "you and I both know you could never hurt me, not after everything we've been through together."
"True," smirked Mako, glad that Bolin hadn't been adversely affected by his sudden harshness. After a few moments of uncomfortable silence, Mako heavily sighed, knowing that he was going to have to tell his brother about him and Korra. "Bolin, there's something I need to tell you."
"Yeah?" Bolin had to fully restrain himself from just blurting out what Mako was about to say, allowing his brother to truthfully speak his mind.
Mako braced himself, his heart rapidly pounding in his chest, swallowing down a nervous gulp as he said, "Korra and I…we kissed-" As soon as the words left Mako's mouth, Bolin immediately grabbed his brother, heartily laughing his young heart out as he gave Mako an all-enveloping, massive, almost bone-crushing hug.
"Way to go, Mako!" cheered Bolin as he tightly squeezed his brother, every ounce of joy and gladness pouring from his heart into his muscular arms. "I'm so happy for you, bro!"
"Ack!" Mako managed to get out in a choked, constricted gasp. "Bolin, you're crushing me!"
Bolin's eyes widened a little in surprise as he let go of Mako, letting his brother drop back on the bed and raggedly pant to regain his breath. "Sorry," sheepishly chuckled Bolin, twiddling his fingers together in an anxious fashion.
"It's fine," assured Mako with a dismissive wave of his hand as he finally regained control of his lungs, steadying his breathing until it was back to normal.
"So what was it like, kissing Korra?" asked Bolin, resting his elbows on the mattress, holding his chin in the palms of his hands.
"Well," began Mako as he sat up on the bed, rubbing the back of his neck as he glanced away from Bolin, "she actually kissed me first." Looking back at Bolin, he slowly added, "And, well…I kissed her back."
"Atta boy, Mako," proudly said Bolin, giving his brother a friendly punch in the arm. "Show her what you're made of, y'know what I mean?" Bolin slyly smiled at his brother, suggestively wiggling his eyebrows. Mako's pale cheeks flushed crimson at his brother's teasing, awkwardly glancing away from Bolin, trying to cover up his own embarrassment. Seeing his brother's discomfort, Bolin put a hand on Mako's shoulder, sincerely saying, "I really am happy for you, bro. I think you deserve someone as special as Korra."
Mako was genuinely surprised by his brother's sincerity, looking back at Bolin with an amazed expression of befuddlement. "You do?"
"Yep," quipped Bolin with a cheerful smile. "Ever since we were kids growing up on the streets, you've always done without so that I wouldn't have to. You've always been so focused on taking care of me that you never really take anything for yourself."
"What does that have to do with me and Korra?" dubiously asked Mako, not getting what Bolin was trying to say.
"What I'm trying to say," explained Bolin with a broad smile, "is that you deserve to be happy with Korra after everything we've been through growing up. It's about time you did something for yourself, to do something you want to do." The Earthbender's voice grew quieter as he said, "I know it was hard having to deal with me getting kidnapped by the Equalists, and that's why I'm glad Korra was there to help you through that. She's like a sister to me, Mako, and I love her because of that. You guys are my family, and all I want is for you two to be happy with each other."
Mako softly smiled, deeply touched by Bolin's words, placing his hand on top of his brother's as he said, "I appreciate that, bro. I'm glad that you approve of Korra."
A bark of laughter erupted out of Bolin as he removed his hand from Mako's shoulder, moving back over towards his bed as he said, "How could I not approve of Korra?" Jumping onto his bed, he added, "She's the most awesome girl I've ever met!" Covering himself up, Bolin gave his brother a teasing wink as he jokingly said, "Good night, lover boy." Mako merely rolled his eyes as Bolin rolled over, watching as he brother settled himself in for a well-deserved rest.
Mako looked out towards the open window, finding himself moving towards the open portal, compelled by some unexplained force to gaze out over Yue Bay. He placed a hand on the wall as he stared out at Air Temple Island, the peaceful sanctuary blissfully aglow with the benevolent light of the moon. Mako warmly smiled as he reached up to his neck, placing a hand where his scarf used to be, recalling his last moment with Korra before she left for the Island:
"Why are you giving me this?" she asked with a chuckle, wrapping the crimson cloth around her neck, snuggling her face into the warm fabric.
"A little something to remember me by," he replied with a smile as he stuck his hands in his pants pockets, watching as she looked up at him with gleaming eyes of pure cyan, a bright smile adorning her young, tan face.
"I'm surprised this thing even comes off of you," she teased him, running her fingers along the length of the scarf, admiration in every finger stroke. "You're more attached to this scarf than Bolin is to Pabu!"
"Well," he said, stepping up to her so that all distance between them was gone, "I only give my scarf to people I really care about." Taking the scarf in his hands, he wrapped it around his own neck, tightening it just enough so that he was drawn in closer to Korra's smiling face. Reaching up to cup her cheek in his hand, he said, "I hope you like it."
Korra chuckled, resting her forehead against his as she softly said, "I do like it, Mako. Thank you for giving it to me."
"You're welcome, Korra," he warmly replied, closing his eyes and leaning in towards her until his lips met hers, feeling her hum with pleasure through the kiss, her arms wrapping around his neck as their hearts joined together. "I love you, Korra," he whispered against her lips as he momentarily broke the kiss, suddenly overwhelmed by a plethora of torrential emotion. This was a new sensation to Mako, loving someone outside of his family, but somehow…it felt right to say those words, to speak what his heart was saying, unafraid to declare his feelings for another human being.
"I…I love you too, Mako," she whispered back to him, her voice choked with emotion and turbulent feelings, as if she had longed to say those words. He felt her cheeks light up with heat as blood rushed to the surface of her skin, warming his face as he leaned in to kiss her again, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her closer to him.
"She really is something special," he quietly mused to himself in a silent, ghost-like whisper, smiling as he longingly gazed out at Air Temple Island, knowing that there was a certain Avatar who was undoubtedly thinking about him. Wherever the future took him and Korra, he was determined to face it with her, to fight side-by-side against the forces of the Equalists, united in both heart and spirit, forever bound together by blood…and by love.
"Good night, girl," Korra affectionately whispered as she fondly hugged Naga, giving her a kiss on the snout before the Polar Bear-Dog drifted off to sleep near the stables where the Sky Bison were housed. Patting Naga's head one last time as she smiled, Korra stood up and turned around, only to find Tenzin standing behind her, his arms folded in front of his chest behind the folds of his robe. "Oh hey, Tenzin," greeted Korra. "I didn't know you were still up."
"Where have you been, Korra?" demanded Tenzin, clearly displeased and irritated but still managing to keep control of his temper. "You should have been back hours ago."
"Yeah…" apprehensively began Korra, nervously rubbing the back of her neck, "funny reason for that. You see, one of my friends, Bolin, got captured by the Equalists and Mako and I had to go rescue him-"
"The Equalists?" exclaimed Tenzin, his entire head glowing bright red with anger.
Korra winced as Tenzin snapped, knowing that his anger was justified, but nonetheless, she pressed on. "And then I had to disguise myself and sneak into an Equalist rally where Amon was at to save Bolin-"
"You did what?" bellowed Tenzin, every speck of his pale skin consumed with blood-red crimson, the cauldron of his anger boiling over. "That was incredibly foolish of you, Korra! You know how dangerous Amon is!"
"Well I had to do something, Tenzin!" shouted Korra, standing her ground against her mentor. "My friend was in danger! There's no way I could have abandoned him to the Equalists!"
"Did you even consider what would have happened if the Equalists had caught you?" demanded Tenzin, furious with what his student had done. He could already tell that her impatience and recklessness was going to be the end of her, and what she had done tonight was a prime example of what he didn't want her to do: to go chasing off after the most dangerous criminals in Republic City who were more than capable of overpowering her and any bender they came across.
"Yeah, I did," shot back Korra, firmly putting her hands on her hips, "and I would do it all over again if it meant saving one of my friends!"
Tenzin was about to erupt on Korra again when he noticed something wrapped around her neck, something he hadn't seen until now because of the darkness around them: a crimson scarf, wrapped ever so carefully around Korra's neck. The Airbending Master stopped himself short, feeling his eyes become fixated on the piece of cloth as he asked, "Why are you wearing Mako's scarf?"
Korra looked down at the scarf, nearly forgetting that the precious piece of cloth that she had wrapped so lovingly around her neck was still there. Her cheeks erupted into a violent blush as she looked back up at Tenzin, her voice tinged with nervousness as she said, "Umm, well…the thing is…I kinda kissed Mako, and, well…now we're sort of together, and…yeah…" She bashfully glanced off to the side, afraid to meet her teacher's gaze, knowing that all she would see was an admonishing look that would soon be accompanied by a harsh scolding.
What surprised her, however, was when she suddenly felt Tenzin's hands on her shoulders. She quickly looked back up at Tenzin, astonished by the soft, caring smile that adorned his face. "That's wonderful news, Korra," he sincerely and truthfully said, making the Avatar's eyes go so wide that she was sure they were supposed to pop out of her head by that point.
"Wait, you're not mad?" Korra asked him, stunned and shocked that Tenzin would actually approve of her being with someone.
"Well, I am mad about you going after the Equalists," stated Tenzin, clarifying himself, "but I'm not mad at you for being together with Mako. Jinora and Ikki have told me of what you think of him, and it seems to me that this young man means a lot to you."
"Ugh," Korra groaned as she hung her head down in defeat, "why did Jinora and Ikki have to blab to you about that?" Looking back up at him, she added, "It was supposed to be a secret!"
"A very poorly kept secret if you ask me," jokingly said Tenzin, eliciting a childish pout from Korra. Heavily sighing, Tenzin lightly squeezed Korra's shoulder as he said, "I knew it was only a matter of time before you showed Mako how you felt about him, but I want you to understand the dangers of being together with someone when you're the Avatar."
"I know what the dangers are, Tenzin," assured Korra, "and I promise I'll be careful."
Tenzin carefully studied Korra, trying to discern the truthfulness of her statement. Satisfied, he drew her into a hug as he said, "I only want what's best for you, Korra." Feeling her hug him back, he added, "You mean a lot to me and my family, and we would all be devastated if something horrible happened to you because you were hurt by a boy who you cared about."
"I know," said Korra, smiling as she hugged her teacher, "and I'm glad your family cares that much about me."
Tenzin deeply chuckled, the two of them coming out of their hug as he said, "You've always been a part of our family, Korra, and you always will be." As he began to walk off, he said over his shoulder, "Good night, Korra."
"'Night, Tenzin," she called after him. "Airbending practice in the morning?"
"The same as always," Tenzin replied over his shoulder, heading off towards his house. Korra smiled at Tenzin's back as he walked off, glad that he approved of her and knew that Mako would do everything in his power to protect her.
Just as Korra began to walk off, she spotted something shining across the bay. Stopping herself, Korra looked out at the city to see an incredibly bright, flickering light emanating from the upper part of the Probending Arena, right around where the attic was. Korra gasped with glee when she realized that the light was actually a flame, produced by none other than her Mako.
Holding her palm up, Korra ignited a fireball in her hand, intensifying the flame with an incredible influx of her chi, making it shine even brighter than the lights of the city. Korra's smile grew as she saw Mako's light glow brighter, and she knew that he could see her flame. With her free hand, she twisted the scarf around in her fingers, rubbing the soft cloth against her cheek as she recalled her last moment with Mako before she left:
"You really love me?" she amazedly asked him as they came out of their kiss, a breath-taking experience that she never grew tired of.
"I've never felt this way about anyone before," explained Mako, his forehead resting against hers. With a tiny smile, he added, "You make me happy, Korra." She smiled up at him, her heart aflutter with so many feelings that she could have sworn that she was dreaming.
"You make me happy too, Mako," she confessed, lightly pecking him on the lips. After a few silent, tender moments of them staring longingly into each other's eyes, she softly whispered, "I want this to work, Mako. I want to be with you, even if we're still fighting the Equalists."
"And we'll make it work," assured Mako, giving her a warm smile that set her heart at ease. "We always have a plan, don't we?"
"Yeah," she agreeably said with a respondent chuckle, running her fingers through his hair, enjoying the feeling of being so close and so connected with someone she truly and deeply cared for. "I bet you I'll beat Amon first," she teasingly prodded at him.
"Not if I get to him first," he wittily shot back at her, deviously smirking down at her. The two of them ceased talking as they kissed once more, simply letting the wonderful, cosmic ambiance of the night envelop them with its warm embrace.
"See you tomorrow, Mako," she softly whispered to the wind, knowing that someway, somehow, he knew that she was thinking of him and the magical moment that had joined their lives together. Whatever the Equalists would throw at them, she would take it all in stride with the Firebender that set her heart ablaze every time she looked into his strong, confident amber eyes.