The day Tenzin planned to ship his family off to the North Pole was a somber one. Korra hated to see them all go. They were her family now too and she would miss them. But Lin was right; they needed to be protected and Korra would give anything to see them safe. She watched as the Air Acolytes loaded the few provisions and belongings they would be taking with them onto the three Bison and sighed heavily. The airbending children stood around her sadly. Jinora had taken her hand and was clutching it tightly.

"Do you think we'll be gone long?" She asked quietly. Even Meelo and Ikki were quiet now, the mood weighing heavily on them all.

"I hope not, Jinora." Korra looked down at the younger girl and smiled sadly. "I'm going to miss you guys." Ikki stepped up to hug her tightly and Korra had to swallow past the lump in her throat.

"You gotta beat the bad guys, Korra," she said seriously. "Then we can come home and everything will be ok again." Korra chuckled and nodded, slipping her free arm around the little girl to hug her firmly.

"Don't worry," she said as Meelo hopped up onto her back, determined not to be left out of the group hug. "Amon doesn't stand a chance. I'll whip him in no time, I promise." She glanced over at Mako, Bolin and Asami, all of whom had gathered with her and the children to say goodbye. Her friends all looked as determined as she felt and she nodded to them. They had a lot of planning to do once Tenzin and his family were gone. She hadn't had the time to really sit down and talk to them about what needed to be done. In the days leading up to their departure, Tenzin had spent every spare moment he had training Korra in her airbending forms. And when he wasn't around he had Lin working with her on earthbending. Her inability to free herself from a metal prison had almost proved fatal, but the rough and tumble ex-chief believed Korra had what it took to be a metalbender. According to Lin she had the raw power and was certainly stubborn enough but the training was exhausting. Bolin had joined her for these sessions but neither had moved even a single coin thus far. She had found the training about as frustrating as her airbending had been before.

What little time she had that wasn't devoted to bending and training was spent meditating. Aang had told her to find balance within herself. To find inner peace. So she sat for what felt like hours in the morning, trying to center herself and find that mystical inner-balance that her past life had urged her to find. As if somehow mastering inner-peace could be done in just a few days with minimal effort and maximum reward. But she had no idea how to do that. She may have finally made contact with her spiritual side but that hardly meant she knew what to do with it now that she had it. All she ever saw when she closed her eyes was devastation. The city was falling into civil war. The antagonism between benders and non-benders was growing and she had to find some way to fix it before it all escalated beyond her control. And on top of all of that her love-life was a colossal mess that she was doing her best to shove aside in favour of the greater good. For some reason.

When all was packed and ready, it was with a heavy heart that she parted with the children to bid Tenzin and Pema goodbye, the elder woman hugging her tightly and tearfully pleading with her to stay safe.

"I'll be back as soon as I am able," Tenzin said from atop Oogi's back. "Once I have the White Lotus moving I will make for the island. Keep each other safe until then."

"Don't worry, Tenzin. I ran an entire police department, I'm sure I can handle four teenagers," Lin replied with casual confidence. Pema and Tenzin eyed each other awkwardly at this.

"Uh…sure. Thank you, Lin. And…good luck." After a few final goodbyes the Bison were coaxed into the air and they were gone. Korra watched them go until the last Bison disappeared into the clouds above and bit her lip. The temple wouldn't feel quite right until they were back. Lin turned to them all then and frowned, crossing her arms seriously.

"So, I expect all of you to fall in line," she said curtly. "I won't have you all running off playing the heroes while I'm in charge, understood?" She eyed them all furiously, her hip jutted out and legs spread in a stance that brooked no arguments. The teens all glanced at each other again and Mako gave a casual shrug of one shoulder, grinning lazily.

"Sure, no problem." Lin glared at them suspiciously and her frown deepened.

"I'll have my eyes on the lot of you," she hissed, using that old motion she had used on Korra the day they'd met. The memory made her grin and Korra was half-tempted to return the gesture as she had done that day.

"Don't worry, Lin. I give you my word, as the Avatar, that we won't get ourselves killed." She bowed to the older woman, partly to emphasize her point and partly to hide her smirk. Lin huffed.

"Aang said the same thing to Katara once when they were children. You better not follow his example young lady." She leaned in close when Korra straightened and pressed a finger to the Avatar's chest. "I do not tolerate insubordination." When she turned on her heel and marched back into the temple, Korra chuckled and turned to her friends. First mistake when watching rebellious teenagers: never turn your back on them.

"Ok, let's go." They all nodded and Bolin pumped a fist into the air.

"Alright! Team Avatar is back in business!" He cried out enthusiastically. Mako made a grab for his younger brother and pulled him down into a headlock, slapping a hand over his mouth.

"Would you keep it down. Or do you want Lin to put us all under house arrest?" Bolin wrestled his way out of Mako's arm and shuffled back, his hands pressed over his mouth.

"Sorry, that's my bad," he mumbled awkwardly. "I'll just stand over here…quietly." Korra chuckled and rolled her eyes.

"Come on, we can't talk about this here. The White Lotus sentries are crawling all over the place." It was true. The sentries prowled the temple at all times. Ever since her capture they had become far more vigilant and it was rare not to see one or two moving along every walkway or patrolling the temple's perimeter. It reminded her strongly of her training compound in the South Pole. They had been everywhere. Always watching. It had felt like a prison of sorts and the island was starting to feel the same. She lead them all away from the courtyard and out onto the cliff sides overlooking Yue Bay and Aang's statue. The spot had quickly become her favourite on the island. A sanctuary away from all the people and guards and training. A place where she could feel the sea breeze, taste the salt on the air, hear the rush of the ocean as it beat against the cliffs far below. She felt at ease there, clear headed. She needed that now. They all did. When they cleared the thick brush and gathered on the grass just short of the cliff's edge Korra turned to her friends.

"Ok, you guys know why we're here. It's time we got serious. We need to take this war into our own hands and fight back." Bolin cleared his throat hesitantly.

"Isn't that what we've been doing? I mean we did the whole 'Team Avatar' thing when we were patrolling the streets didn't we?"

"Yeah," Asami agreed. "And it pretty much just got us all arrested." Korra shook her head at this.

"I'm not talking about driving around looking for trouble and listening to police scanners. I'm talking about getting organized. About strategy." Mako grinned at this. Play-making had always been his job. "I know I'm not exactly the think-ahead type," she continued. "But we've all seen what that's gotten us. Gotten me. We need a plan here and I think I have one."

"Does it involve looking for Equalist hideouts? Because I don't think I can deal with any more tunnels," Asami muttered, shuddering lightly at the thought. She'd dealt with enough of those to last her a lifetime.

"Hey, between me and Korra we could probably find a whole bunch of those secret lairs," Bolin said with a triumphant grin. "Lin has been teaching us to do that 'see with your feet' thing. We could just stomp around and find them all without going underground at all!" Mako sighed and shook his head.

"She's not talking about hunting down Equalists, Bo." Korra let out an impatient huff, hands planted firmly on her hips.

"If you guys would let me explain," she said, giving them all a look to shut them up.

"Sorry, sorry. Please continue," Bolin said, all overblown gallantry as he swept his arm out and bowed dramatically.

"Right," she said, grinning lightly at his antics. "This isn't about hunting down the Equalists. Not exactly. When I spoke to Aang," she paused here and gave Bolin another look when he opened his mouth, one finger raised in the air in question. The finger dropped and he zipped his lip with it. With a nod Korra continued. "When I spoke to Aang, he pretty much said that the real problem isn't just the Equalists. It's everyone. Benders and non-benders."

"What do you mean?" Asami asked. "Are we talking about civilians here?"

"Sort of," Korra replied. "See, the problem is that people don't understand what's going on. They're scared and confused. They have Amon and the Equalists telling them one thing and benders and the council telling them something else. People are flocking to Amon because they're afraid. Aang said we need to unite the people if we want to stop that masked freak show. At first, I thought he meant uniting the benders against the Equalists. But that's not right either. Even if we did defeat Amon with some big bending army, the non-benders would still hate us because we'd be doing exactly what the Equalists have been saying all this time."

"They'd see it as us oppressing them and Amon would win anyway," Mako agreed. He frowned and folded his arms pensively. Korra could practically hear the gears turning in his head, analytical as always.

"So how do we stop him? Tenzin is bringing an army of benders back here to kick Equalist butt. Shouldn't we have stopped him or something?" Bolin asked.

"No, we're gonna need the Order of the White Lotus. But we're also going to need to do more than just fight back. We need to unite the people," Korra said, slamming a fist into her palm. "Everyone." Asami nodded, a smile of understanding tugging at her lips.

"So you're saying we get benders and non-benders to work together against Amon. That way it won't be about benders oppressing non-benders," she said brightly. "It'll be about people fighting together for peace."

"Exactly," Korra said with a grin. She could feel the thrill of anticipation building up inside her like a roaring inferno. They were finally going to do something again. The fact that Asami seemed to be on the road to forgiving her only fueled that flame.

"But how are we gonna get the non-benders to listen to us?" Bolin asked. "I mean getting benders to rally against him will be easy enough, but Amon has pretty much made us out to be the enemy." Mako looked up then.

"We already have a non-bender against, Amon." He glanced towards Asami, who refused to meet his eye. "Asami can't be the only rational person in the city that sees Amon for what he is. Korra was right about people being scared. They're siding with the Equalists because they don't know what else to do. He's claiming to be on their side and with all the benders riled up the way they are, the non-benders probably feel threatened. You guys saw what happened when Tarrlok arrested all those people. He only made things worse."

"That's true," Asami agreed, if a little grudgingly. She was loathe to agree with Mako on anything right then. "It's not going to be easy to get them to listen, but if we can just talk to people and get them to understand…" Korra hesitated for a moment as she looked between her friends. They were all risking a lot. Risking their lives. Part of her wanted to tell them not to get involved. She wanted to ship them all off to some faraway place just like the airbenders. Because the three of them were her family now and she loved them all. But she knew better. They'd all been through too much together. Seen and done too much to back out now. And, despite her fear that they'd get hurt, she had never been more grateful to have them with her. Looking at them all, she wondered how she had ever managed without her friends before.

"Guys, things are about to get dangerous. I know this isn't exactly what Tenzin had in mind but we need to have each other's backs in this. We're gonna have to work as a team if we wanna get this done." She turned to Bolin. "Bo, I need you to hit the streets. Get as many people as you can find. Benders, non-benders, I don't care who they are, just get them to come." He gave her a stiff salute, his entire body snapping to attention.

"Sir! Yes, sir!" She grinned at him and then turned to Mako.

"Do you think you could get the pro-benders together?" She asked. "Even the ones who've had their bending taken away. Actually, especially them." Mako cocked an eyebrow at this but nodded.

"I'll get Toza to spread the word. The guy is old and cranky but he knows pretty much everyone in the game." Korra smiled appreciatively and then, finally, turned to look at Asami. The older girl was watching her expectantly.

"Asami, you and I are gonna go to everyone else." She hesitated and glanced at Mako. "I know things are a little awkward right now but -" Asami cut her off with a casual wave of her hand.

"No, you're right. Non-benders will be more likely to listen to us if they see the Avatar is on their side too. We'll make it work." There was a determination in the older girl's eyes that gave Korra hope that things between them really were on the mend. After two weeks of silence and cool detachment Asami's almost friendly civility and willing co-operation was a huge step. She smiled happily and shifted to look at her three friends. They all looked ready.

"We can do this, I know it. If we can get everyone together we can take out Amon's biggest advantage." She frowned then and looked out over the city. "You guys know the city better than I do. We're gonna need a place to get everyone together."

"Oh, oh!" Bolin jumped up, waving an arm in the air. "What about the pro-bending arena? That's pretty big."

"It's a good thought, Bo, but Amon probably has that place crawling with Equalists by now," Mako said. "If we got a bunch of people together there he'd know. Actually, I think we're gonna run into the same problem pretty much anywhere we do this." Korra bit her lip in frustration.

"There has to be somewhere we can go. The city is huge; Amon can't keep track of everything that goes on all the time." Mako shrugged lightly in response.

"That's true but we have no idea where he is looking and there's no way for us to find out. At least not without us doing something insanely reckless that'd completely ruin the entire operation." He was right, she knew, but that didn't take away the sting of having their entire plan ground to a halt because of a venue issue.

"What about my house?" They all turned to look at Asami and she smirked. "The estate is pretty big and no one is there right now. The police collapsed the tunnel leading to the underground workshop and the staff have all been dismissed so there's no trace of the Equalists left. And obviously my dad hasn't set foot in the place since…" She hesitated and frowned slightly. "Anyway, it'd be pretty easy to fit that many people there."

"I dunno," Mako said hesitantly. He hated to be the one to shoot everyone's ideas down but strategizing had always been his role in the team, even when it had been as the captain of the Fire Ferrets. "Gathering that many people at your estate out of the blue would look pretty suspicious."

"What if we threw a party?" Bolin piped up. "There's nothing suspicious about a party."

"A party?" Korra asked skeptically.

"Yeah!" Bolin replied, building up steam. "Think about it! We could do invitations and stuff so that only the people we talk to can get in, just like the Equalists did at that rally you guys saved me from! And even if the Equalists do try to bust up the party, we'll have a ton of benders there to kick their butts."

"Actually…that's genius, Bolin," Asami said, her eyes wide. "It's a perfect cover. We wouldn't have to be covert about getting the people into the estate and if we work off a guest list based on the people we talk to, we could pretty much dictate who we let in."

"Not to mention we'd have an excuse to get out of the temple that night," Korra agreed enthusiastically. "We could get Lin and the White Lotus sentries to come too. That way they wouldn't try to stop us from going and we could get them involved once we get everyone together. They might even be able to help us convince everyone to work together. After all, the Order of the White Lotus isn't made up of just benders. There are non-benders too and they fight just as well as any bender I've ever seen." Mako was silent for a moment, running the idea through his head. Korra knew him well enough to know he was looking at the idea from every angle, weighing the pros and cons.

"It's risky but it's the best idea we've got," he said at last. "All we need is to find some reason for Asami to actually want to throw a party at a time like this so the whole thing won't seem so random." Asami rolled her eyes at him and scoffed.

"I'm the only living heir to the Sato fortune, Mako. All I need to do is spread a rumour that I'm throwing a party to help rebuild the Sato name after my father pretty much ran it into the ground and no one will bat an eye. He used to throw frivolous parties with exclusive guest lists like that all the time. He called it 'networking'." Deciding to ignore the older girl's poorly hidden antagonism toward the firebender for now, Korra turned to Asami.

"How long would it take to get a party like that set up?" She asked, glancing guiltily at Mako's sour expression. Korra hadn't liked Asami's tone any more than he had but she needed to be the bridge-builder and try to stay neutral if they were ever going to work as a team.

"Well, without the Future Industries PR team and the estate's staff it'll be a little difficult. The ballroom isn't exactly small and we'd need to make the party pretty big if we want it to pass for a networking ball." She paused, trying to tally up everything they'd need but the list was far longer than she'd be able to think of on the spot. "Give me a week or two and I should be able to organize something passable. It won't be anything too fancy on such short notice but I'm guessing we want to do this as soon as possible, right?"

"Right," Mako agreed. "The sooner we get organized the better. Amon has a huge head start and there's no telling what he'll do next."

"So it's settled, party at Asami's house!" Bolin laughed, slugging his arm over the heiress and swinging a fist in the air. Korra chuckled and punched him playfully on the shoulder.

"Don't get too excited, Bolin. We have a lot of work to do before then."

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They'd slipped away from the island by splitting up and travelling in two directions. Bolin and Mako had taken Naga across the bay with the intent of separating once they reached the main land, each with his own task to complete. This had left Korra and Asami to travel underwater. They walked in silence, Asami holding up a lantern a few steps behind Korra, who bent the water around them in a large bubble. With an entire ocean of water around them it was quiet and pitch black despite the sun shining somewhere far above them. Asami's lantern only lit the confines of the bubble and a very small area around it, the rippling water casting ever-moving shadows across the two girls. The sight was a little unnerving. If Korra slipped up just a little they'd be buried under a ton of water, the pressure of which would probably crush them in seconds. Asami hadn't realized how deep Yue Bay really was until she'd been forced to walk along the bottom. She watched as Korra moved her arms about in graceful arcs, focusing entirely on her bending. The younger girl had removed her shoes in order to keep her bearings by following the distant vibrations of the city. It had seemed a little dangerous to be travelling blind on the bottom of the ocean but she'd explained to a worried Mako that, even though she wasn't practiced in the technique, it was hard to miss an entire city when you knew what to look for. It would take them longer to get to shore than the boys but Naga had made it clear that she could not carry them all. Besides, they were far less likely to be noticed in smaller groups.

They hadn't spoken since they'd ventured into the water and the silence had started to grate at Asami's nerves. There was tension in the air so thick she could practically taste it. But how did you start up a conversation with the girl who had stolen your boyfriend? She wanted to give Korra a chance. Wanted to try and be her friend again. It had been a shock to wake up one morning only a few days ago and realize that, at some point, she had forgiven Korra. She was still furious with Mako. Would still be furious with him for a long time. But she had come to realize that she didn't blame the younger girl for the break up. As much as she hated to admit it, Mako had been right. Despite her feelings, Korra had never purposefully tried to get in the way of her relationship with the idiotic firebender. It had taken almost two weeks of wrestling with herself but she had gotten over her misplaced bitterness toward the Avatar. She had already made amends with Bolin for being so hostile and distant and, true to form, the earthbender had forgiven her instantly, claiming she had nothing to be sorry for in the first place. Now it was time to do the same with Korra. But they had barely said two words to each other before that morning and now she wasn't sure what to say at all. So she walked and she watched Korra bend and she bit her tongue, trying hard to find the words she needed to breach the silence.

In the end, Korra broke first. She had never been the kind to hold back what she was thinking and Asami had been truly shocked that she had managed to hold her tongue for the past two weeks. The sound of her awkward throat clearing was sharp against the muffled silence of their bubble and Asami suddenly felt an anxious pit form in her stomach. She fought it back, reminding herself that the response was unnecessary when she had already forgiven the younger girl.

"So, um…" Korra hesitated and Asami could see her glance back at her, biting her lip. "I guess now is as good a time as any for us to talk, right?" That almost made Asami laugh. It was so typical Korra. Straight to the point.

"Yes," she agreed. "But you might not want to stop bending." She smirked and motioned up at the bubble that had shrunk a little when Korra had momentarily forgotten about it. With a visible flinch, she forced her arms outward in a sharp motion and the bubble expanded once more.

"Oops," she said with an easy grin, glad that at least the metaphorical ice had broken. There was a short pause before Korra glanced back at Asami again. "Asami, I don't know how to tell you how sorry I am…." She paused again and Asami watched as she swallowed thickly, surprised at how sincere the younger girl really was. She could read the shame on her face as plainly as if it had been tattooed on her forehead. "I never meant to ruin things between you and Mako," she said when she found her voice again. "To be honest, I'd sort of resigned myself to you guys being a permanent thing. I never planned on him actually, you know, liking me too." She tried to hide her grimace at the memory but Asami caught it before the younger girl could look away. "I just…Mako and I…." She grit her teeth and shook her head quickly. "I really am sorry that I hurt you. I never wanted to, especially after everything that's happened." Asami glanced away then and sighed. Korra really did love Mako. She wasn't blind. It was clear in the hesitance in her words. In the way she looked at him, her expression longing but resigned. And Mako had already confessed that he loved Korra too. Maybe not to Korra but it had been said and there was no taking that back.

"You didn't hurt me, Korra," she said at last. "Mako did. I was angry at you for a while but, I guess I got over that. I know it wasn't your fault. Not really. I may not be ready to forgive him but I don't want to fight you over this anymore either. I want us to still be friends." She smiled lightly at her and Korra grinned in return.

"That means a lot, Asami," she said genuinely. They were quiet for a moment, both happy to have gotten past at least the start of really mending things between them. But there was still one thing that had been bothering Asami since the whole mess had started. She frowned then and looked back at the younger girl. Korra was looking straight ahead, careful not to lose focus on her bending again while they spoke.

"I'd like to know why you guys haven't actually…started dating." She grimaced, in much the same was Korra had and swallowed the sudden bout of jealousy that rose up her throat. She could see Korra's shoulders tense up and the movement of her arms suddenly seemed more rigid. "It wasn't out of some twisted need to make me feel better was it?" She wasn't really sure why the idea bothered her so much. If anything Asami figured it should make her feel a little better that Korra would want to respect her feelings like that. But at the same time it seemed almost a little insulting. Patronizing even. They had already hurt her, what difference would it make if they waited a month or a minute? The damage had been done after all.

"That was part of it," Korra admitted awkwardly. "I didn't want to make things harder than they already were." She glanced back at Asami for a second and the shame was obvious in her eyes again. It made Asami feel a little guilty for snapping at her. "But, it was also because I have duties I can't ignore right now. The war is more important than my selfish personal needs. Republic City needs me to be focused and balanced. I can't let myself get…" she paused and Asami could see her tossing around for the right word. "Distracted." She nodded, as if satisfied with that and it made Asami frown. It made very little sense to the older girl. If the situations had been reversed she doubted very much that she would put off being with the person she loved. She watched Korra for a long while as they walked in silence mulling over what she'd said. They had only been walking for about two or three hours but she could already feel the wet sandy ground start to angle upwards slightly. It was still a long way to the surface, deep as the bay was, but they were close to the other side now and, if Korra had calculated it right, they would emerge on a quiet beach somewhere to the north east of the island. They had decided to surface further inland than the bending dome, where the boys were headed, to avoid attracting attention. From there they would make their way into the city proper to start appealing to the people. When Asami focused on Korra again she could see a faint sheen of sweat coating her copper skin and her breathing sounded a little laboured. The effort of bending water under such heavy pressure for so long was starting to take its toll on the young Avatar. She held the lantern up a little higher and jogged a few steps to catch up with Korra so that they were walking side by side.

"Are you ok?" She asked hesitantly, noting the strained set of her features. Korra nodded tersely, not daring to look away from the water and break her shaky concentration. Asami imaged it must have weighed a ton at this depth. They fell quiet again, the slope of the sand becoming steeper and Korra's breathing a little heavier with each step. With any luck they would reach the surface soon. Asami bit her lip as they walked and glanced at Korra again. Her comment about duties and distractions was still playing in Asami's mind and she felt the sudden need to voice her opinion, despite how she felt personally on the matter.

"You know," she started slowly, eyeing the tired younger girl wearily. If Korra's arms gave out they would both be dead. "What you said earlier, about why you're waiting, I think you're being stupid." Korra's eyes widened at this and darted to Asami for a second before focusing on the water once more.

"What do you mean?" She asked, her voice heavy with confusion and strain.

"Well, if it were me," Asami paused and cleared her throat. Saying this felt like rubbing sandpaper on an open wound but Korra deserved it. She'd sacrificed enough. "If it were me, I wouldn't wait. If I had the chance to finally be with someone I loved, I wouldn't let anything stop me." Korra's breath hitched a little and Asami wasn't sure if it was from exhaustion or shock. Probably a little of both.

"But…Aang said I need to find balance in myself before I can fix the city. I need to think about my responsibility to the people. And you…." She sounded like the idea hurt more than she wanted to let on and Asami shook her head.

"Think about it, Korra. I'm not exactly what's important here. We've already established I'm not mad at you anymore. But if you're always thinking about wanting to be with Mako and forcing yourself to focus on your duties, you're pretty much always going to be torn, right? It makes sense that if you can balance your needs with the needs of the people, you're more likely to find balance in yourself." It had gotten much lighter and Asami knew they were almost at the surface. "Just think about it, ok? Don't worry about me. For once, be just a little bit selfish and let yourself have something. Because none of us know how this war is going to end. Maybe you should take into account that there may not be a 'later' to work things out." They were quiet then. There was really nothing more that needed to be said. When they could finally see the surface looming only a few feet above them, Korra stopped and stomped one foot hard into the ground, her eyes shut tight in concentration. When she nodded and started to move again Asami knew that the beach was clear. At this close range, even with her minimal skills in the technique, Korra could at least tell that much from the muffled vibrations of the sand.

It was a huge relief when they finally broke through the water into the open air. They took the last few steps out of the water at a stumbling run and, when they were completely clear of the waves lapping at the shore, Korra dropped like a stone, falling heavily to her hands and knees, arms shaking. Asami gave her space, knowing she just needed a moment to rest and catch her breath. She had kept them dry right up to the last second and for a moment Asami was confused. They had both donned dull, modest clothing that wouldn't look out of place in the urban parts of the city. It had been a precaution Mako had suggested they all take to avoid being spotted in the crowds. Nothing any of them had worn was really worth worrying about getting a little wet or dirty. But then Korra sat back on her heels, brushed her shaking hands off on her brown coat and reached carefully into a deep pocket. When she pulled her hand out again Asami felt her breath catch in her throat. She watched as Korra delicately wrapped Mako's red scarf around her neck, pulling the material up around her face before slipping a simple woolen cap over her head. He had given her his scarf. The one thing he treasured above anything. The one thing he had said made him feel safe. And he had given it to Korra to keep her safe. The implication was as blindingly obvious as it got and in that moment it was clear. There on the abandoned beach, with Korra exhausted and shivering in the sand, clutching Mako's scarf to her chin, Asami knew. There had never really been any hope for her and Mako. He had always been Korra's. And somehow, suddenly, it didn't seem as utterly devastating as it had before.

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(Ok, so the stage has been set and things are finally in motion now. This chapter was sort of a filler but it was necessary. We've gotten a look at what they're planning now and, of course, Korra and Asami needed to talk. I know it may seem like Asami was too quick in forgiving Korra but I tried putting myself in her shoes and it made more sense for her to want to push past the issue, at least with Korra, rather than isolate herself entirely. Especially considering the danger factor. Also, to clarify Korra's exhaustion in the end there: The maps I've seen of Yue Bay have the water looking pretty dark, which implies its deep as crap. And the deeper you go, the more pressure the water exerts. So if they were walking along the bottom of the bay to avoid detection, I imagine the water would be pretty resistant to bending with all that pressure. As a reference, the beach I'm referring to is an imaginary one that I figure must exist in some way very near the bridge to the north of Air Temple Island (in relation to true north according to the maps of the Avatar world).

But yeah, things are gonna get more actiony from the next chapter, which I promise will be longer and updated faster than this one was. I've been monstrously sick for the past week. My one-year-old niece gave me her flu and eye infection all at once and I, being the stubborn idiot that I am, decided I didn't need to see a doctor because I very rarely get sick. That'll teach me. This past weekend was the first time I felt healthy enough to actually look at my laptop and I worked hard to get this chapter out as fast as possible because I love you guys!)