Safe and Sound

Tahno/Korra one-shot.

I got this idea from a lot of the fandom on tumblr, particularly. The idea that Tahno finds Naga alone and without an owner- and takes him to find Korra. I haven't read through this so please excuse any typo's repetitions. I just have a lot of feelings for Tahnorra and I'm SO EXCITED FOR SATURDAY!

The image on this fic doesn't belong to me. It's by the artist ' RizCifra' on dA.

I DON'T OWN THE LEGEND OF KORRA OR THE CHARACTERS. THEY BELONG TO BRYKE. K. COOL.

The sun had fallen in Republic City and green mist was heavy over the heads of benders. Right now, Tahno was out after curfew, but he didn't care much. As darkness closed around Tahno he felt no different. He didn't feel the chill of solitude inch up his spine, his eyes didn't dart to the shadows for worthy opponents.

He walked. His feet ached. His hands fell into his pockets without purpose. I'm nothing now. Just another person.

"Grrrrrowl-" Tahno flinched at a noise that was far too familiar to him for his liking. With the noise, came a picture in his head. A dark skinned girl with brown hair and arctic blue eyes, her lip jutted out and chest puffed like she had never lost a fight. Korra.

Wondering why he felt his pace quicken, Tahno turned a corner to see it- huge and shaggy and white and angry. The polar bear dog that had embarrassed him the day he met the Avatar.

His first instinct was to run. His second was to punch the creature in the nose. The third, well. The third was exactly what he did- freeze in place and wait for the Avatar to appear. Jump from the rooftops with a bunch of Equalists at her heels. Maybe swing around the corner with her little friends, joking about this and that, soaking each other's coolness because they could bend and needed no other explanation.

But no-one came. In fact, it was completely deserted. The only sign of life was the bright polar bear dog, which was now trailing its nose up Tahno's leg and whining softly. He stared at it, wondering where she was.

And then the beast had a chunk of his clothes in its mouth, and to say Tahno panicked would be an understatement. He recoiled away, swiping wildly with useless arms and sprinting backward on tired legs. The dog didn't relent, though. It moved tentatively- as not to startle him again. Tahno thought for a moment that he had really lost his mind.

"What do you want?" He asked irritably, his voice gaining some of its former strength. The polar bear dog just looked up at him with wide, dark eyes. "This is crazy. I'm talking to a dog. Much less; the Avatars dog."

Her title tasted sour on his tongue, though he wasn't sure why. Because she didn't help me.

Tahno clenched his fists, and turned to walk away- back into the shadows from where he came. But the beast started whining. It was such a desperate, woeful sound he couldn't help but stop. Behind his now tightly closed eyelids he saw the image of a man with hair like his own. A wad of cash in his hands and a crumpled, slender body before him.

"Go away." Tahno hissed at the dog, pushing the image from his mind. "Go back to your precious owner."

But the beast didn't leave his side. Instead, it moved toward him and pushed its nose into his arm. It was strangely comforting. He lifted his hand to touch it- when a deep, authoritative voice came from the dim lights of the street.

"You there! T-" Tahno stiffened, the voice couldn't possible know who he was. "Tahno! You are a known non-bender out past curfew-"

Oh great, he thought. I've been caught.

He didn't expect to feel anger when this happened- and he knew very well that it would. But he had primarily thought that he would avert his gaze and allow himself to be thrown in jail. Now, he felt defiance strongly in his veins. It was hot and bubbling, seething through him like some ugly raw power he had been granted.

It was this feeling, which made him leap onto the polar bear dogs back, saddle and all, and allow it to take him away with huge galloping strides.

It was unknown for a polar bear dog to be trained- let alone ridden. The animals were usually very aggressive to humans, and attacked without provocation. But as Tahno felt the air whip past his hair and his numb fingers wrapping around the reins, he had never felt more at home. The night seemed to blur into a haze as the man's shouting voice dulled out, the buildings on either side of him melded into one and all Tahno could see was the road ahead of him, stretching and coming toward him faster than he could have ever imagined.

He wondered why the beast was still running- they were far enough away from the cop to be perfectly safe. And then, it hit him. Hard and fast and he couldn't deny the pang of pure terror followed by a growing sense of fear. The beast only proved Tahno's point more as it sniffed into the wind, changing its direction and bounding down another alleyway, this one far more twisting than the one before. The dog was leading him through a labyrinth, and there was only one reason.

Korra had been taken. She had been stolen from underneath this animal's nose and by the looks of it, the beast was losing it. As soon as Tahno realised what was going on, he seriously considered jumping from the back of the beast and scarpering into the shadows.

Is that what you've become? He thought, feeling his heart thump sickeningly. A useless human, and a coward?

Tahno's brows knitted together, he knew that someone was in danger, yet he immediately thought of himself. But, then again, isn't that how it's always been? Think of yourself, Tahno. Nobody else gives a damn, so why should you?

But Korra did. She promised vengeance. And she seemed like the sort of girl who didn't break her promises. Tahno isn't the man he used to be, that much was true. He had a chance to change, and even if it meant risking his life for the headstrong Avatar, he should do it. Tahno realised then, what he needed was a reason- a drive to do something, to be something, and this is what it was. Help others, even if it means you can't help yourself.

The beast ran through the streets like it had been born there, its mind set on one thing and one thing only. The walls seemed to get closer and the gap tighter, but it only quickened in its stride- we must be close.

Tahno was jolted from his seat often enough, the polar bear dog must have known that if it were to slow down he probably would have ran away. He wondered why the dog thought that he of all people could help. Maybe it didn't know. Maybe it just wanted someone to save its owner.

"I'll help you," Tahno uttered under his breath so quietly he was sure the beast couldn't have heard. But its ears piqued back ever so slightly and it seemed to sag a little, perhaps in relief, Tahno couldn't be sure. "I'll at least try."

The dog chirped a strange noise, and turned such a sharp corner Tahno gripped his arms around its neck and squeezed tightly with his legs. His efforts, however, weren't enough. He tumbled from the beasts back and rolled into a sharp curb. The concrete jabbed into his spine and Tahno cussed. "You stupid mutt."

The dog only tilted its head at him, its eyes as dark as ever. Tahno shook his head and sat up- something caught his eye, though. The glint of a door handle that looked too clean and sparkling in this grimy back alley of Republic City. Come to think of it- Tahno wondered if they were even still in Republic City. They had been moving quite a while, and at quite a pace. He picked himself up from the floor and didn't bother brushing the dirt off, it probably didn't make much of a difference, anyway.

"Where have you brought me, huh?" Tahno asked the dog, not taking his eyes off the door. The beast whined again, and looked at the glinting handle with predator eyes. A growl erupted through its body, hackles raised and all. He frowned. It didn't seem as if it were an Equalist hideout, but, who knew? Who's to say that Korra was captured by Equalists at all? Maybe she had pissed off some official, and was locked away for her political crimes. He highly doubted the latter, and was almost certain that Amon had got his filthy grip on her. Tahno felt his blood cool at the image of the man in his head. Sucking in a deep breath, hanging onto it like it was his last, he put a hand on the handle, and tugged.

Nothing. No movement. Tahno wanted to swear and rage and kick the door so hard his foot would break. He swung round to the polar bear dog, its eyes wide and full of wisdom, its face as blank as the vast tundra he remembered from the Northern Water Tribe. "So this is it? We come all this way and the door is locked? This is crazy, even if we could get in, I wouldn't be able to fight! I can't waterbend! I'm useless!"

The last two words of his sentence resonated through the dark alleyway, bouncing off the walls and coming back to him, slapping him in the face so hard it stung.

You're useless, child. You couldn't even save your own mother.

You can't even waterbend properly!

Stupid, why bother coming to school?

Cheater, liar, player, you're a waste of space!

No.

Tahno staggered against the wall, his head thrumming with memories he had done so well to block. You can only ever take so much, until you crack. He had always found solace in his bending. If people said he was useless, he would freeze their mouth shut, (and ask with a mocking smile how useless am I now?) if they said he was a waste of space, he would waterwhip them so hard they saw stars.

He found power in his bending. Power over people who were weaker than him and still had the audacity to say he was useless.

"I'll show them," Tahno felt the growl of his words, rather than heard them. He rolled up his sleeved and slammed his body against the door. It budged, even if only the tiniest of bits. He did it again, and again, and again until his arm numb and spiking with pins and needles. I'll help you, Korra.

On each slam, he felt the door yield. He heard splinters from its sides rising. He saw the dents in the wood where his arm had been repeatedly smashing into the wall. Finally, when he thought his arm was about to fall off, he took seven strides away from the green, broken door and looked at the polar bear dog with a smirk. "Watch my back."

Tahno shook his shoulders out, cracked his knuckles, and ran full pelt, into the door. It shattered beneath him and he fell on sharp wooden debris. Unfortunately, he had completely misjudged the door, and a splint of wood shot through the palm of his hand. Tahno screeched out as the pain honed in. It was so sheer, so blinding that he thought if he even tried to move his hand it would fall right off. The polar bear dog walked over with slight trepidation, and lowered its head to Tahno's injury.

"Argh, spirits! Oh Koh that hurts."

He peeked at his hand with one eye, and grimaced when he saw it. The wood was relatively lithe, but covered in blood. He guessed that no major damage was done because blood wasn't spurting everywhere. Tahno wanted to curl on the floor there, then, and just wait to be found. Wait for the stupid mutt to go off and find someone else to drag here, to bring them into this whole mess.

Then, he heard a shriek. So loud and so desperate that he felt it shoot through his bones.

"HELLLLLLP!"

"Korra!" Tahno yelled back, fraught in his dilemma. The scream was Korra's, that he was sure of. It held the same annoyance, the same sound of frustration that he had heard in their probending match. She was no damsel that needed to be saved, but Tahno almost smirked when he imagined her face when he walked in. Relief, mixed with shock, and probably a lot of embarrassment. The polar bear dog howled so loudly, it ripped through the silence and practically deafened him. He struggled to get up and run to her- but then realised that with this chunk of wood in his palm, he wasn't going anywhere.

Without wasting any more time, Tahno reached down with his able hand to his lower abdomen and ripped off a loose piece of cloth. He shoved it into his mouth and with one last horrible sinking feeling of dread, yanked the wood from his hand. He writhed on the floor and kicked loose bits of wood away from his legs, screaming in pure agony. The polar bear dog had been loyal, standing by his side and staring down at him with anxious eyes even though its owner had been screaming "HELLLPP!" for the past four minutes.

He took the cloth from his mouth and wrapped it tightly around his hand, stopping the blood from seeping out his wound anymore. He looked toward the dog, then to the sound of Korra. All he saw was another endless corridor, darkness seeping toward him and threatening things that he wasn't too keen on finding out.

"Okay, let's go." Tahno said, using his good hand to hoist himself onto the beast. It was kind enough to stay still whilst he struggled on, and when he was secure, bolted once more into the darkness.

Tahno quickly made the deduction that this was no Equalist den, and that it looked far more like an abandoned warehouse. The dark corridor soon opened into a large hall, with strips of moonlight shining in through the wooden boards along the windows. The polar bear dog seemed to know quite easily where it was going, there were only two occasions where it doubted itself, sniffing the ground same ground twice and then running off in a different direction.

"Korra!" Tahno yelled, his voice somehow vicious. He was still in extreme pain, and annoyed at the fact the beast couldn't find its damn owner quick enough. When her voice came again- it was thick in her throat and much closer than he would have assumed.

"Help! Tahno? I'm down here!"

Tahno jumped from the dogs back and paced the hall, coughing as dust swirled into his lungs and clouded his judgement. He dropped his eyes to the ground and knelt down. "Where are you, Korra?"

"Right underneath you!" She replied, her voice almost sour.

He felt smug as he kicked away the carpet from beneath his feet, and stared down at the Avatar below, helpless and bound. He knelt to the ground and peered down at her. "We really need to stop meeting like this."

"Quit with the stupid jokes, you jerk. Help me!" Korra's voice was shrewd, she had obviously been here a while, judging from the bags under her eyes and the mess of her hair.

"Alright, alright. We look quite alike, now." Tahno teased, kicking his foot at the wood of the floor without prevail.

"That isn't going to work, pretty boy. You'll have to ben-" she stopped herself, staring at him for a moment. Tahno's eyes board into hers, waiting for her to continue. She faltered, and at least had the decency to cast her eyes down.

"How are you tied up?" He asked, changing the conversation.

"He has me in this weird fabric, I can't burn it away, trust me I've tried."

"Did you burn yourself?" Tahno asked. Korra sighed.

"Yes. And I can't even heal myself! He won't let me!" The look in her eyes scared him- like she had already lost a fight, and there was no more hope left for her.

Tahno looked around him for something, anything that would help him get to her. He searched around the empty hall for ages and found not a thing. He felt harsh, empty, defeat swamp him. He had come all this way and there was no way that he could help her. At least not alone Tahno moved back to Korra, feeling his feet dragging along the floor, ashamed.

"There's nothing here. I've got to go back and get help," Tahno said, putting his hands against the plank, wishing that he could melt through the confines of the wood and get to her. Her eyes widened and she almost threw herself from the floor.

"NO! Don't leave Tahno, you can't go!" Korra begged. Tahno shook his head sullenly.

"I'll be right back, I promise." And he had never promised anything so truthfully, so passionately. He honestly would return, even if it killed him.

"Please, Tahno, please." Korra's voice sounded heavy and thick with tears. He even felt his own throat tighten at her anxiety. He then realised, as he remained frozen to the floor, that he couldn't leave her now. Not now after she had begged him. Even if he wanted to.

"Okay," he whispered. Relief flooded her features. "I've broken through wood once before, I can do it again."

Tahno straightened out and walked to the wall closest to him. He trailed his eyes along its side and caught the sheen of something too bright to be concrete. It was a metal pole; Tahno guessed it was something that kept (or had kept) the wires for the huge generator in the corner of the room. Wrapping his good hand around it, he tugged and tugged, he thought it was going to be another rerun of smashing down the door again, but it came loose after the third pull.

He moved back to Korra swiftly and jammed the pole deeply into the crack of the wooden floorboards. He looked up at the polar bear dog and smiled. "Korra, does your polar bear dog have any rope on it?"

"She has rope in her pack behind her saddle," she said, astute. Tahno inspected the pack and found a long piece of rope, curiously white and blue. He paid it no attention as he had a job to do, tied it around the pole, and then attached it to the beast. He moved back toward the pole, and wrapped two firm hands around it, despite the ache in his injured hand.

"Ready, girl?" Tahno said to the beast that he had become quite fond of, "after three."

The dog blinked as if it understood, and after Tahno's countdown, ran full pelt in the opposite direction. Tahno may as well have not done anything, because as soon as the rope tightened to fill the distance, the plank broke away and shattered into two.

Tahno wasted no time in jumping down toward Korra, and undoing her bindings. He did her feet first, looking at her with cautious, careful eyes. Even the Avatar breaks. She looked at him, not with shock, or embarrassment, but with a look that Tahno couldn't quite detect. Was it affection? No.

It was soft, yet quizzical. He touched her shoulders lightly and turned her around, fixing her eyes with his own stare. Not a word was exchanged between them. He undid the ropes around her wrists and saw fat, red welts. He sucked air past his teeth and trailed his fingers across the mark.

Korra brought her hands to her front and stared at them. Tahno saw, from over her shoulder, that they were darkly puce and wrinkled around her fingers. It didn't look like the creation of healthy, new skin, but like some terrible battle was taking place beneath.

Feeling the strange urge to comfort her, he touched her shoulders lightly once more, and she shivered ever so slightly.

Then, she was on him. Her arms wrapped tightly around his chest and her hands gripping his shoulders. Her hair smelt of sweat and dirt, and something cool like sapphire. He didn't stop his hands folding tightly against her shoulders, feeling her wrack with silent cries. She inhaled and her breath was so ragged and uneven it was like she had been drowning. He held onto her because she needed support. Despite her headstrong nature, she was just a girl, a girl who can't fight the world alone and a girl who needed someone even if she stressed that she didn't.

"I was so scared," she gasped, holding onto him so tightly he thought he might snap beneath her grip. "Please stay. Oh spirits, don't leave."

"It's okay," Tahno whispered, unsure of himself. Korra melted into him even further, and he could have sworn that he had never in his life felt so fiercely protective. "I won't leave."