Chapter Text
Warm days at the South Pole weren't exactly what Asami was accustomed to. Still, there certainly wasn't any lack of beautiful views, and when the sun was shining, Harbor City was always lively.
It was a good day. They had experienced more good days than bad lately, which had Asami feeling better in general.
"Mako sent a letter." Asami said, staring off at a few kids throwing snow at one another.
Korra groaned. "His letters are so boring." She laughed slightly. "I'm glad he writes but I don't care about the weather."
"Sunny," Asami began mimicking his voice. "Seventy-four degrees. Possible chance of rain tomorrow, according to the radio."
"We shouldn't poke fun," Korra laughed. "We both dated him." She groaned as she strained to look up at Asami above her. "You know, the worst part about all this is that we can't talk to each other."
Asami stopped pushing and glanced down. "We're talking right now." She grinned.
"I know, but it's…awkward." With a shrug, Korra reached down to shift one of her legs a bit.
"I thought awkward was your specialty?" Asami teased, leaning down to whisper into Korra's ear. "I mean I did catch you staring at my butt when I was cooking you dinner last night."
Korra's face went completely red. "I—I wasn't."
"Oh Korra," Asami kissed her cheek. "Your mom saw you doing it too."
"Spirits." Korra buried her face in her hands and Asami continued pushing her towards their destination. "You know I'm sitting down all the time so I'm like…always at eye level with butts!" Korra defended. Asami bit her lip to keep from laughing. "Just butts, all the time. Right in my face."
"Yes, but Korra, I was halfway across the room when you were looking at my butt."
With a huff, Korra crossed her arms and pouted. "Fine, then I'll never look at your butt again."
As they reached a newsstand, Asami stopped pushing again and squeezed Korra's shoulder. "We both know that's not true," she said, but was a bit distracted by the varying newspapers and magazines staring back at her.
Asami felt Korra grab her hand and give it a soft squeeze. Her grip was nothing compared to what it used to be. Once strong enough to hold the world together, now barely enough to keep a tight hold on her utensils when she ate. It was little things like that which always brought Asami back down to earth when it came to Korra, reminding her how far Korra still had to go.
Korra said something, but Asami didn't hear it. Instead, her eyes dropped to the latest newspaper from Republic City. There was a picture of a man standing proudly next to President Raiko in front of a very large construction site.
REPUBLIC CITY RECONSTRUCTION — OVERSEEN BY NEW CEO OF FUTURE INDUSTRIES
It would have been easier to turn around and keep moving, but Asami couldn't stop herself. She reached out and grabbed the paper, reading the short teaser article on the front page.
President Raiko has been singing the praises of Future Industries for weeks leading up to the start of reconstruction within the city. Newly appointed Future Industries CEO Ken Hayashi has been given the president's full support — cont. p7
Asami knew it was fruitless to give any thought to this. It's not as if she could go back and reclaim her—the company. She didn't want to; her life was different now. Everything was different now.
She put the paper back on the newsstand and refocused on Korra. "Any magazines you want?" Asami asked, looking down to see that Korra was staring at the same paper Asami had just put back on the shelf. "Korra?"
"Hmm," Korra snapped out of her trance. "No, I—I'm okay."
Asami smiled brightly. "Great, let's go get some breakfast."
Kumagoro was one of the more popular places to eat in the South. They served a wide variety of foods, mostly specializing in fish and noodles, the latter of which was Korra's favorite meal at any given time in the day.
As they stepped inside, Asami scanned the area. It wasn't overly crowded but it would be nice to sit Korra somewhere out of the way, so no one tripped over her chair. She found a place toward the right side and stepped around Korra to move a chair out of the way. She then slid Korra up to the table before pushing the metal brakes into her tires.
"Do you want to take your jacket off? It's kinda warm in here," Asami asked, taking her own coat off.
Korra looked around a bit. Asami followed her gaze and saw another customer, an older man, glancing at them from across the restaurant. Asami made it a point to take a step between Korra and the man's eyes.
"I'm okay," Korra said softly.
Asami smiled down at her. "Korra, you're a human heater. I know this place is too warm for you."
"Oh alright." Korra couldn't help but smile at Asami's stance above her, a hand on her hip, knowing that Korra was lying. She lifted her arms and started pulling one out of the sleeve.
It was a delicate balance, to decide when to let Korra do things on her own and when to step in and help her. Korra was getting stronger, no doubt about that, but she had such a long ways to go. Asami wanted Korra to feel independent as often as possible. So she reached down and grabbed the end of the sleeve, holding it up as Korra slowly tugged her arm free.
Once the coat was off and Asami draped it across the back of Korra's wheelchair, she turned back to see that the man was still sending glances in their direction. Satisfied he wasn't, she sat down.
Oftentimes people would recognize Korra but then immediately brush it off because Korra was the Avatar, and the Avatar couldn't possibly be in such a state. It drove Asami crazy. It was the hardest part of going outside, for her: this idea that Korra wasn't the same person because she was in a chair, and the audacity of some people to think less of her for it.
If Asami had to hear one more phone call on the radio about the world needing a 'proper' Avatar, she was going to lose her mind, because as she sat down across the table, she could only see Korra. Beautiful Korra, whom she cared about so much, sitting in her chair, reading through the menu even though she knew exactly what she was going order. Korra, just a girl, dealing with so much and fighting so hard, with the understanding that the world was merely waiting for her so they could throw her to the wolves again.
Asami forced herself to stop, to focus on today and the fact that Korra wanted to go out to eat with her. It was a good day and she needed to treat it as such.
Just as Asami was about to announce her breakfast choice, Korra set her menu down and sighed.
"'Sami?" She was hesitant, her voice barely carrying across the table. "I saw the paper you were reading. The stuff about Future Industries."
Asami smiled, laying her menu down on the table. She shrugged. "It makes sense. The city needed refurbishing even before we left. Future Industries has the capability to do that."
A sorrowful expression crossed Korra's face, one Asami knew all too well. Hair cascaded down her face as she lowered her head and sighed.
"Asami," With shimmering eyes, Korra looked up. "Can I ask you a serious question? No brush off, no white lies. Just…tell me the truth?"
"Of course,"
Korra nodded, taking a deep breath. "Do you have any regrets about coming to the South with me? About giving up so much…for me?"
Asami gave a thoughtful look, staring into the blue eyes she'd come to know so well over the last six months.
"Korra?" Asami found herself chuckling. "What happened the last time we had this conversation?"
She blushed as she hid her face behind her menu. "We almost had sex," she mumbled.
"We almost had sex," Asami repeated a bit louder, and she could hear the man across the restaurant who'd been staring start choking on his water. "I promise you, no lies, no excuses to make you feel better. I am right where I want to be. Okay? You don't have to worry anymore. We're in this together."
Korra grinned bashfully over her menu and nodded. There was something in her eyes that Asami couldn't quite recognize, though she found it very playful.
They ordered food and Korra made a joke with the waitress about not tripping over her chair tires. It was funny, not dark like Korra's humor had been in the past about her disability. Once their orders were in, Asami felt Korra watching her and returned the favor.
"Whaaaatttt?" Asami teased, her own smile growing. Korra blushed again. "What has gotten into you?"
"I—I'm ready." Korra's voice was a bit shaky as she spoke, but she nodded to push her point across.
However, Asami had no idea what that point was. "For what? We can't leave, we just ordered our food!"
Korra rolled her eyes. "No! I'm ready to…you know—" Korra raised her eyebrows up and made some kind of gesture with her head. Asami followed the direction of her gesture, which was clearly not the intended purpose, and picked up a salt shaker.
"Do you want the salt? I don't think that will go well with your pancakes."
"Asami," Korra groaned, now pouting adorably. "Are you really going to make me say it?"
She continued to feign ignorance. "You want the pepper?" Asami picked up another shaker and held them both up. "This won't go well with your pancakes either."
"You're the worst," Huffing, Korra crossed her arms with a frown. Still, there was a glint in her eyes and Asami couldn't help but laugh.
"I'm sorry, you're going to have to be more specific." Just say it, Korra. Asami wasn't sure why, but she needed to hear it. Even if Korra wasn't fully comfortable saying it in a public restaurant, she needed the verbal confirmation that it was mutual.
Still, Korra continued pouting. "I want—" she sighed, staring at her lap. "I want to make love to you." Asami heard her, just barely. Certainly nobody else did. It made her heart leap into her throat.
The moment was so perfect-Korra was so cute, Asami couldn't help herself. "Right here?" She widened her eyes in shock. "I mean, I can lay you on this table but I think that man over there is going to start staring at us again."
"Asamiiiii," Korra whined, glaring across the table. "I"m serious! This is a big deal for me. I want…you."
Asami decided to give up her teasing and reached across the table with her palm facing up. Korra immediately laid a hand into her own. "I want you too. What do you say we eat first, then do the session with Katara, and after you take those steps today, I'll reward you for it."
Korra flushed again and Asami loved how easy it was to make that happen. "That would be nice. Though I can't promise you anything. I don't know what I'm doing at all or…what I can do."
"It's okay, we'll figure it out. We're good at that. There's no pressure." Asami felt herself giggling a little. "Well, maybe a little pressure, just in the right place." Again, Korra blushed, and she felt a little guilty. But it was so easy.
"Will you stop!" Korra cried, still trying to whisper as she sent Asami a look.
"Alright," Asami put her hands up as she saw the waitress coming over with their drinks. "I'll keep it in my pants."
Another heavy flush came and Korra glared at Asami, burying her face in her menu again.
By the time their food came, both of them were relaxed and Asami was watching Korra pour syrup over her pancakes in bulk.
As the tin of syrup nearly emptied, Korra peeked up at Asami guiltily. "Oh…did you…want some?"
"No, I don't need syrup on my eggs. I just…don't know why you ordered pancakes at all." Korra rolled her eyes before sliding her finger into the tin, dolloping a bit of syrup on her finger, and sticking it in her mouth.
Asami laughed, but the truth was, it was nice to see Korra eating so well. For a while she had lacked any real appetite, but that had seemingly passed as she shoveled a healthy amount of pancake into her mouth and smiled.
"What?" she mumbled, mouth full.
Asami shook her head with a grin. "Oh, nothing."
—
Asami couldn't help herself from being nervous. It was hard to watch Korra struggle so much. Her arms were shaking as she pushed up against the bars, trying desperately to stand. With her paws clattering against the wooden floor, Naga whined. Both of them were eager to see Korra do this.
"Close your eyes," Katara said, standing beside Korra who was taking slow, deep breaths. "Visualize yourself, walking over to Naga and Asami." Come on, Korra. Come on, Korra. Asami closed her own eyes for a moment, trying to see it as well. "Can you see it?" Katara asked and Asami again looked at Korra.
"Yes," she answered quickly, her face calm.
Katara smiled slightly. "Now, take that first step."
Korra started to shake even more, beads of sweat building on her forehead and trickling down her face. She pursed her lips, and Asami could see she was digging deeper within herself. Perhaps deeper than she ever had before. It took everything Asami had not to scream encouragement at the top of her lungs.
Watching Korra try and take one step was agonizing; her whole body was putting in effort for just one step. Her foot started to move forward, falling softly against the floor. Asami knew that Korra was still holding most of her weight with her arms. She'd have to use her legs eventually, since her arms were starting to give out.
After a few more pained breaths, Korra planted her foot more firmly on the ground and lifted the other. Soon, they were falling one in front of the other, slowly, but they were holding weight. Her eyes were still closed, solely focused on each muscle in her body.
Once the steps became more prominent, Asami felt tears spring in her eyes. Korra was doing it, she was actually taking steps on her own. She stifled a gasp when Korra nearly fell. She jerked forward, but stopped herself when Korra seemed to hold on and rebalance.
"Come on, Korra," Asami whispered. She couldn't help herself. Korra's eyes opened, staring at her with gritted teeth as she pushed up and moved another foot forward.
Three steps later, she was at the end of the bars and falling into Naga's large body.
Katara was beaming, Asami was crying, and Naga laid her head across Korra's back comfortingly. Asami couldn't resist-she hugged both Naga and Korra, burying her face in Korra's shoulder.
"You did it, I'm so proud of you," Asami whispered, kissing Korra's cheek and down her jaw, kissing any part of Korra's face she could find.
When her eyes opened, tears streamed down her cheeks and Korra smiled. "I love you."
"Spirit, Korra I love you too." They kissed and after a few moments, Katara cleared her throat. Asami pulled away swiftly, certain her face was as red as Korra's. "Sorry," she mumbled, her body tingling.
"I should…sit," Korra said, her voice ragged as Asami raced over to get her chair. She helped Korra sit. Since most of the Avatar's energy went into those few steps, Asami did a lot of the work putting her in the chair.
Katara walked over and put a hand on Korra's shoulder. "That was a big first step, Korra. We'll continue this every other day—"
"No," Korra shook her head, wolf-tails swaying back and forth. "Every day. I'm ready. I want to be myself again."
Asami could see a bit of hesitation in Katara's face, but she nodded all the same. "Alright, we'll see how you feel in the morning. If you're okay, we'll go again."
Korra absolutely glowed, her smile as wonderful as Asami had ever seen it.
After a few more goodbyes and Katara hugging them both, Asami pushed Korra back to the palace. The more they moved together in silence, the heavier the air between them felt. Asami knew that Tonraq and Senna were going to be out all day. Tonraq had had a visit to the Northern Water Tribe planned for a while, which meant they were free for the rest of the afternoon.
Since breakfast this morning, Asami knew what they were headed towards. It was exciting and scary. It felt like the start of something new, maybe something forever. She wanted it to be that, despite the lingering fears in the back of her mind. There was so much left to do, so many more agonizing days of healing. Korra's body was getting better, but the rest of her was not. Not yet. It would be a fight, but Asami was ready for it, even if she had no idea what that might entail.
By the time they reached Korra's room, Asami was ready. She'd been ready for a while, but now it was real and they were ready to take this step together. Korra was ready.
Asami stopped, just inside the room and put her hands on either side of Korra's face, tilting her head back. She bent down and kissed her. It was an awkward position, but the kiss was deep and Korra was smiling against her lips. When she pulled back, the shade of blue staring up at her was darker.
"How do you want to do this?" Asami stepped around the chair, kneeling down in front of Korra. It brought with it a strange sense of deja vu, like a time warp to before Jinora's ceremony and how quiet Korra had been then. This time, Asami touched Korra's leg and felt the Avatar twitch slightly. Korra was definitely ready. "What do you want?"
Korra blushed slightly. "All of it, if—if you're up for it."
With a nod, Asami stood up and hooked her arm under Korra's leg, then one around her back. This felt different, not like before. The way Korra sank into her arms, nestled into her body, was a reminder of all the struggle before. Of quiet nights carrying Korra to the bathroom when she couldn't. That was all penance for this moment now, for how special it felt. Like they'd earned it, both of them, together.
Once Korra was settled onto the bed, she scooted herself back against the pillows and Asami started to unbutton her jacket. She let it fall off her back and to the floor, never taking her eyes off of Korra. A moment later, she untied her ponytail and flipped her hair, making Korra chew on her bottom lip.
"That hair," Korra sighed, smirking a bit.
Asami couldn't stop herself from chuckling. "My secret weapon."
Slowly, Asami crawled back onto the bed over Korra's legs. She leaned in on all fours and kissed her again, feeling Korra's hands go into her hair. When her arms started to tire, Asami sat back, still straddling Korra, and she reached for the tie of her fur pelt.
When it fell off, settling on either side of Korra's body, Asami ran her hands up under Korra's blue vest. Korra hissed at the contact; Asami's hands were no doubt cold against her always warm skin.
"Sorry," she said, though she wasn't all that sorry because Korra was suddenly panting, fighting to keep her eyes open. Removing her hands, Asami gently tugged the vest upward and Korra raised her tired arms up. Soon enough, it was gone.
Asami exhaled slowly, soaking in the sight of Korra sitting in front of her. Topless and unashamed, she was beautiful, despite the smatterings of small, faint scars. Just above her hip, Asami could see the deepest of them, and she reached out and traced her thumb along it. Each touch and sound Korra made nearly suffocated her.
It was hot, too hot, and Asami pulled her own top off, throwing it on the floor before she pushed forward and captured Korra's mouth with a searing kiss.
"I want," Korra settled back a bit, "You. Let's do it."
All pretense faded with those three words. Asami smirked with a quick nod before dropping her lips to the valley between Korra's breasts. The Avatar cried out, tangling her fingers in Asami's hair and very gently guiding her downward. Asami settled her hands on Korra's hips, carefully pulling her out from the pillows so she was lying more on her back. She peeked up for a moment.
"This okay? You want me to fix the pillow or—"
Korra rolled her eyes with a grin. "Take my pants off, please."
Asami found herself laughing and slipping her fingers beneath the hem of Korra's sweats. She slid them off slowly, intentionally slow to grate against the slight impatience that was radiating from the girl she loved. Once they were gone, Asami laid a hand across Korra's ankle.
"You feel that?" she asked, rubbing her thumb back and forth. Korra nodded, wiggling her toes around. "Good." Asami then replaced her hand with her tongue and slowly dragged it up Korra's calf and onto her inner thigh.
"Ah!" Korra moaned, giggling a bit. "You are evil," she teased and Asami stared up at her, still continuing the assault on every inch of Korra's skin she could find. Once she was satisfied, she stopped, suddenly met with the most intimate part of Korra's body. That was when the wave of nervousness hit her, along with the anxiety that this was Korra's first time and how much it mattered to Asami that it be perfect.
A lump built in her throat. She tried to swallow it down and that gave her away.
"You okay?" Korra asked and Asami glanced up at her. "Is it…am I—"
"It's not you," Asami started, her heart racing. "It's just a little overwhelming, because it's you and me and it's…us. You know?" Korra nodded, still looking a little unsure. "Tell me if I'm doing okay."
Korra's eyes widened a bit. "Asami, I—I've never done anything like this before. Right now I'm just holding my breath and hoping I don't have a heart attack."
The relief those words gave her was more than she expected. Asami wasn't sure why she expected Korra to be any less afraid than she was. It was as if she needed to be reminded that they were in this together, like they had been through everything else together.
The fear washed away.
Korra didn't last very long, and Asami hadn't expected her to once she started. This was new to them both and Asami was not a very skilled lover, but she knew enough to make Korra squirm and shudder. It was more pleasurable to give than she expected. Hearing Korra call her name, grab her hair and swivel her hips at certain actions was intoxicating.
The pants and gasps that accompanied Korra's release sounded like music, and it was Asami's favorite song. As Korra came down, Asami kissed her pubic bone and dropped kisses all the way back up before stopping just before her lips.
Korra's eyes were heavy, her chest rising and falling and her face sated with satisfaction. A smile twitched in her expression, she blinked slowly. "Wow," she gasped, making Asami chuckle.
"Yeah?" Korra nodded, a strangled groan escaping.
"You were—that was—"
"Wow?" Asami smiled and Korra again nodded. She then dropped a kiss on Korra's parted lips and rested their foreheads together. "Good, I wanted you to enjoy it."
"Now you," Korra said and Asami was taken back a bit. "I want to do the same for you. I need to know that I can."
This was unexpected. Asami wasn't going to say no, though-spirits, there was no way, but she had only thought as far as being there for Korra. "Okay, what…what do you want me to do?"
Korra smirked. "Is this a serious question or do you want me to give you a dirty answer?"
"No, you brat!" Asami swatted her playfully. "How do you want me?" she asked the question before she thought about it and suddenly flushed furiously, burying her face in Korra's shoulder. "I can't believe I just said that."
Despite the laughter from Korra, she could feel a pair of hands sliding up and down the bare skin of her back. "Take your pants off for me." Korra whispered, into her hair, removing her hands as Asami rolled off the bed.
Doing as directed, Asami stood up and pushed her pants down and glanced back to see Korra struggling to sit herself back up.
"Oh, will you let me help, you've done enough today, Avatar." She pulled Korra up to the pillows, her pants half off, and rolled her eyes. "If you want to do more with Katara tomorrow, you'd better not wear yourself out."
Korra grimaced. "Can we…not talk about my past life's wife while we're naked."
The awkwardness bled over. "Okay, yeah I can get on board with that." Once her pants were gone, Asami stood awkwardly at the side of the bed. "Now what?"
"Like before," Korra patted her lap. "I—I have an idea." Asami quirked a brow and did as asked, straddling Korra's lap with a leg on either side. "Asami you're so…amazing. I can't believe I get to see you like this."
Asami grinned and grabbed one of Korra's hands. "Not just see, you can touch to." She pulled the hand to her breast and Korra's breath caught in her throat. "Now…what did you have in mind?"
"Right," Korra nodded, sliding her hand down Asami's stomach. "Just…hold yourself up a little." She said, and Asami lifted up onto her knees as Korra's hand started to shake the lower it reached.
Reaching out, Asami planted her hands on the headboard of the bed to stay upright and her face was inches from Korra's. "Go ahead," she whispered, feeling Korra's fingers on her stomach. A moment later, they trailed down and found the moist, slick petals of Asami's lower body.
"T—tell me what to do?" Korra breathed, and Asami felt her eyes clamp shut, the sensations about to consume her.
"Just move, soft and steady. I won't be long."
Korra nodded and leaned in, clamping her mouth on the juncture of Asami's neck and shoulder. She did as directed, just moved, and eventually her fingers found the right spot and a good enough pace to drive Asami over the edge.
Her moans were much louder than Korra's-she couldn't hold them in. They were strangled cries as Korra pulled away and look into her eyes, making sure she was okay. They stared at one another as Asami came, her body a quivering mess as wave after wave of pleasure settled over her. Korra removed her hand just in time to catch Asami as she slid down and laid against her. Korra cradled her close and Asami kissed Korra's bicep close to her face.
"Korra," Asami said finally, "I love you."
Fingers played through her hair. "I love you too."
—
If she had to guess, Korra figured it had been four hours now since she and Asami had decided to go to sleep. Their day had been seemingly perfect. She took steps, her first real steps in months, and it felt so wonderful. What followed might have been better. Sex was never something Korra considered much, not even when she was with Mako. Asami was different, though. She was soft and constantly doing little things that sent images and desires into Korra's mind that she didn't expect.
The experience itself was not at all like she expected, that feeling of control when Asami was hovering over her, as Korra manipulated her with nothing more than a few fingers. It was incredible. The best element she'd ever mastered was those sounds and looks Asami gave her.
Which was why she felt so miserable now. Lying awake in the middle of the night, listening to the soft breathing of the girl next to her, fast asleep. Korra wanted to be asleep with her, cuddled up next to her. Like it was supposed to be.
She wasn't though. Instead she was awake, trying to pretend that those glowing eyes in the corner of the room weren't staring at her. That they hadn't been staring at her for the last few hours now. She was exhausted, and she was trying to remember how great of a day she'd had. The breakfast she had with Asami, the steps she took with Katara, the bliss she'd felt just a few hours ago. None of it came, though; all she could feel were those eyes, staring through her from the corner of the room through the darkness, reminding her of how far she'd fallen. Showing her the loss of control she felt, the fear she'd faced, the pain she'd suffered. It hurt, the poison and the fight, it hurt so much.
You would have been better to die on that rock. Korra closed her eyes, fighting those thoughts away. She looked to Asami next to her, a lifeline. Asami needed her, loved her, and she had to stay strong for her.
You'll get her killed too. Everyone wants to hurt the Avatar. Because you don't matter anymore. The world doesn't need you. You can't save anybody. Not her, not the air nation. You can't even save yourself.
Tears started to fall again and Korra loathed them. She was tired of crying. Tired of falling back into this same pit over and over again.
With all the energy she had, Korra pushed herself up and tried not to wake Asami. Her chair was close enough to reach out and grab. She pulled at her legs and swung them over the bed. They had feeling and could move, but they were heavy, like the chains that were latched to them when she was carried away from her father. Away from everyone she loved and brought into that cave to be hurt, tortured and killed.
Korra jerked as the glowing eyes in the corner seemed to be moving in closer. She looked over at the figure standing watch over her. It wasn't real. She reminded herself this over and over again.
She pulled the chair close to the bed and used all her upper body strength to swing herself into it. Plopping down into the seat, Korra continued to stare at the floor. She suddenly felt less vulnerable out of bed. As if she could defend herself more.
You can't defend yourself at all.
Putting her hands on the wheels, she pushed out of the bedroom and towards the balcony at the back. Air was all she needed, a little fresh air and a reminder that she was safe. She pushed right past the figure, glowing eyes staring down at her. Korra ignored it as best she could. They weren't real, none of it was real. She was safe and Asami was waiting in her bed. Nobody was coming after her, nobody was going to hurt her.
Pushing the balcony door open, Korra rolled out into the chilly night air. Her simple white tank top and shorts were hardly enough cover as the cold air settled in. Still, she welcomed it. The sensations it brought bit away the nightmarish thoughts that never seemed to stay gone for long.
Her body was healing, her strength was returning. Just the fact that she was out here was a testament to how much she'd overcome.
Yet, as she stared off at the beautiful night of the place she grew up in, the safety of it all vanished as the figure stalked up next to her, standing at her side. Korra glanced over, seeing the chain wrapped around its wrist, dangling to the floor. It felt so real, she almost thought she could reach out and touch it.
The fear returned, and Korra refocused on the lights dancing in the sky.
You're not the Avatar anymore.