A World Of Grey (Legend of Korra)

Chapter 27

Pema and her daughters, gathered around the low coffee table, burst into laughter when Rohan clapped his little hands to Korra's cheeks and pressed a full kiss to her mouth. Korra, who had picked the boy up and was holding him against her hip, reacted with a muffled squeal of surprise, her eyes bugging out of her head.

"Rohan!" she admonished him after pulling away.

"It was only a kiss!"

"I know what it was. Why are you kissing me like that?"

"I just wanted to see what it was like," the boy whined. "Mom and Dad always do it."

"That's different. They're allowed to kiss each other like that. You, on the other hand, shouldn't be kissing me like that."

"Oh, why not, dear?" Pema asked sweetly, sitting with her knees folded beneath her next to her youngest daughter. "I'm sure the gesture was perfectly innocent."

Korra arched her brow as she turned her gaze to the smiling woman. "Don't you even start, Pema, before I mentally scar your son with the particulars of what his parents get up to at night."

Rohan twisted around in her arms to look down at his mother, whose cheeks were tinged pink. "What?"

"Never you mind," Pema told her son quickly as Korra smirked her mischief.

"You're not old enough to know yet, Ro," Ikki said brightly, wearing an expression of supreme smugness as her brother began to whine.

"But I want to!"

"That's too bad, little guy," Korra spoke, drawing his attention back to her. "I'm putting you to bed."

"Why? It's not my bedtime yet," the agitated boy cried, turning to look for help. "Mom!"

"This is your punishment for kissing me without permission," Korra replied in a no-nonsense tone as she moved away with him in tow, heading for the door of the living room. "I thought you were a polite young gentleman, Rohan."

"I'm sorry, Kor," he said earnestly just as she set a foot across the threshold of the room. "I didn't mean to make you angry, honest. I just really like you," he finished softly, his young little voice brimming with innocence.

Korra, who had paused when he began to speak, looked Rohan in the eye and smiled warmly when he shyly averted his blue-grey gaze.

"Hmm. I'll let you off the hook this time, little guy. Apology accepted." She set him down on his feet again. "And for the record, I was never angry at you."

When she lifted herself up after leaning down to kiss him fondly on the forehead, Korra chuckled at the explosion of sheer relief and joyfulness in Rohan's eyes. Ruffling his thick, dark hair, she turned to his mother.

"I'm sorry, Pema. I think I'm going to end up spoiling your son."

"Well, at least I'll know he'll be in safe hands," the older woman replied.

Korra returned her smile and ushered Rohan back into the room with a hand between his shoulders, afterwards declaring her intention to go for a walk around the island and get some fresh air. Jinora asked if she wouldn't mind some company. Korra didn't suppose she did, even if she had been planning on taking the walk alone and mulling over her thoughts.

They crossed paths with several acolytes as they left the main building and headed up towards the plaza overlooking the bay, met with warm greetings and small, respectful bows. Korra noticed how Jinora held herself, her posture relaxed but yet graceful as she returned the acolytes' greetings. Jinora was almost as tall as she was now, wearing a tastefully modified version of the robes Korra had eternally seen her and her siblings dressed in, and which for a short time she had donned herself.