A/N: dialogue is as it was from the show, which obviously isn't mine. Spoilers for the S1 finale.

There was only so much running from your past you could do before it caught up to you. The irony of the situation didn't escape him. It was chilling. He had tried so hard not to become his father that it'd become a self-fulfilling prophecy.

He used to be so full of anger. Angry with Noatak for leaving him and his mother. Furious at his father for forcing blood-bending on them. And most of all, angry at himself. He was angry for not being strong enough, for not doing the right thing and most of all, for believing that things would (or even could) have been different.

But now he just felt empty.

Noatak's words flittered in his mind. Tarrlok wondered if his older brother really believed what he'd said. The small whispers of hope in Noatak's words made him want to believe.

But maybe they were always meant to be this way. To find each other like this again. Even after all these years they were still the same. They may have changed themselves but they couldn't change their heritage. Their destiny. They were still haunted by their father's shadow. But the shadow of Yakone's was now matched by their own.

He was saddened by what they had become. And what they could have been.

With a calming breath, Tarrlok made a decision.

Noatak's words rang through his head. A second chance where they could start over together…It sounded tempting. But he knew that no matter where they went, no matter how many times they started over…When he played it over in his head the result was the same. Yakone's legacy would always follow them. He knew that now.

He sat silent on the boat watching his bother.

"The two of us together again! There's nothing we can't do." Noatak sounded wistful.

"Yes, Noatak," The words sounded hollow and defeated even to his own ears.

"Noatak…" his brother hummed thoughtfully. "I'd almost forgotten the sound of my own name."

Tarrlok's eyes wandered over to the Equalist gloves lining the shelves on the side of the boat. He grabbed the nearest one and slid it on. He then carefully unscrewed the gas container and paused his gloved hand over the canister.

He turned his attention back to his brother but Noatak gave no sign that he knew what Tarrlok planned. Tarrlok knew better—his brother could sense his movements with his blood-bending abilities. It seemed that Noatak was just as resigned to their fate as he; his brother understood.

"It'll be just like the good old days."