In tears, Korra sprinted to the cliffs edge where she instantly fell to her knees and sobbed. She pulled her legs up and buried her face into her baggy pants, the drips of water turning sections of the fabric dark.

In frustration, she ripped the clips out of her hair and threw them into the bushes, once again allowing the bubbling sob to wrench from deep within her.

She was a failure. A failure to Republic City. A failure to her loved ones. A failure of an Avatar. And a failure to herself. She hated failure. She was so confident about being the Avatar, a special individual. Someone you could rely on, someone who would always be there to give the world hope. Now, everytime she hears the word, or speaks it, it sends acid to her stomach and a bad taste to her mouth. She's not so confident about that anymore...

Her hair whisps around her face as a slight breeze comes from the East. She had almost forgotten what her hair felt like...

Her sobs have calmed but waterfalls of tears still pour from her eyes as she stares out into the vast land filled with her born element.

A noise comes from behind her, sounds like someone yelling from a distance, but she doesn't move.

As the sound gets closer, it gets clearer, someone is calling her name.

"Korra!" the voice echoes through the air and it is one she would recognize anywhere.

The bushes behind her russel then she hears a sigh of relief.

Mako walks towards her and gently sits down on her left. He doesn't say anything, but his presence makes more tears.

He takes both her hands in his and squeezes. "Korra..."

She shakes her head and makes a choking noise as another cry makes its way to the surface.
Suddenly she is in Mako's arms, her face pressed into the light fabric of his scarf. His hands smooth over her hair andd rub her back, his lips pressed against her head. Her arms lock around his torso like a vice and grip the back of his jacket with such force, she fears she will tear it. Still, her fingers never loosen.

He moves his head to kiss her temple lightly. "Korra, shh. It's alright. Everything will be alright."

She shakes her head and manages, "No, no it won't."

They stay wrapped up in each other for a while, until Korra's tears have stopped spilling over. She lightly disengages herself from him and looks down. She feels his hands brush her hair out of her face and tuck it behind her ear.

"How can you stand to be here?" She whispers, not looking at him.

His brow furrows. "What do you mean?"

She sits up. "How can you stand to be here? Next to me. How can you not look at me with disgrace and digust in your eyes?"

"Because you did nothing wrong."

"I failed!" She yells. "I let them get away! They even killed some non-benders, Mako! And I couldn't save them! It's my duty to help people, and I couldn't help them in time..." She sends a rock sailing into the air so fast it starts to burn until it hits the lake. "Im a failure. I don't deserve to be the Avatar."

Mako's eyes go hard and he grips her chin tightly, turning her face to look at him. Her eyes have guilt, sadness and anger written all over them. "You are anything but a failure. Yes, you couldn't save them all, but you did save most of the city! No one coulf have saved everyone. You can't think of the ones that lost their lives, you have to think of the ones that still have theirs. Thanks to you, Korra." he says then adds gently. "All thanks to you. No onee is perfect, not even the Avatar."

She closes her eyes. "I should be. I should have tried harder."

Mako lets go of her chin, but moves to cup her face. "Korra, I was there with you. I saw you try, you fought with everything you had in you. The non-benders were too far behind, even if you had a Sato Mobile you wouldn't have made it in time. You can't blame yourself." he looked at her with such intensity that she couldn't look away. He believed in her more then anyone, made her keep going, kept her on her feet even when she knew she couldn't. Somehow he always made her get back up. Which is why, at this moment, her hands clung to him, holding his jacket with dear life.

Another tear slipped from her eye and Mako brushed it away gently. "You're never alone, Korra. No matter what, me, Bolin, Asami, Tenzin, everyone, will always be there. We believe in you."

At this, she flung herself into his arms, her hands trembling. He hugged her tight then playfully tugged a strand of her hair, letting it slide between his fingers like silk.

Her fingers traveled up his back, to slowly move into his hair. She pulled back slightly and looked at him in the eyes. His were soft and gentle, covered in affection.

A small smile tugged at the corners of her mouth and she glanced at his lips, which wre smiling too, then back to his eyes.

"I love you," she said, her little fingers playing with some of the short hair at the top of his neck. "So much."

He smiled some more. "I know."

She started to glare but he chuckled and leaned forward to brush over her mouth with his. "I love you too."

"You better." She leaned into him and his lips caught hers in a passionate kiss. Her mind, for the moment, completely distracted.