Emerald and Sapphire

Chapter 2: Nothing But Strangers

Summary:

Everything is over. Tonight they are nothing but strangers. And perhaps they will remain so for the rest of her life.

An outtake between Asami and Korra from Book 1 shortly after Amon's defeat.

Nothing But Strangers

Korra can't remember a time when she ever feared the sea.

In her deepest memories, life-giving water wraps her in a protective embrace. It gently carries her mother's lullabies to her unborn ears and swirls ever so gently in response to her unconscious little kicks. Even in her mother's womb, Korra is already a waterbender.

As a child, the sea becomes her playground. Water is her best friend and her partner in crime. The sea doesn't judge or scold her. It does her bidding and plays the games she tells it to play. On the sad days it comforts her with the same protective embrace she's known since the day she was conceived in her mother's belly. It is the one place where she feels truly safe.

When Korra grows into a teenager her love for the sea grows with her. Despite her brash exterior, she has a deep appreciation for the elegance of waterbending. The movements come naturally to her, like a dance etched into her soul. She begins to understand that this element, more than any other, is truly a part of who she is.

Korra sneaks out of the White Lotus compound whenever the full moon rises. She steals away to meet the waters of the Southern Sea and glides on the waves, playing out fantasies that she never admits to anyone else. Korra reenacts the old tales from foreign nations; the ones about princes and princesses that meet in fancy ballrooms and dance in extravagant galas. She's never left the South Pole, so she imagines what such things are like. The cresting waves take on the roles of her imaginary dance partners. They bow and curtsy, then dip and spin at her command.

On those nights, away from the prying eyes of the White Lotus, the fantasy makes her forget that she is the Avatar. Surrounded by the sea, under the full moon's light, she is just a girl dancing the night away with her closest friends.

When they lower what is left of her mother into the ground, Asami clings to her father like a lifeline.

At six years old, tragedy teaches her just how easily the things she loves can be taken away. She cries into her father's shoulder and begs him to never leave her. He soothes her with soft reassurances and heartfelt promises.

You're the best thing that's ever happened to your mother and me. I promise I'll always be here to protect you. They'll never tear us apart.

For a long time all they have is each other. It is Asami and Hiroshi against the world. And little by little they conquer it together. She is confident that even if everything falls apart, they will still have each other.

Asami follows in her dad's footsteps without him having to ask. Engineering comes as naturally to her as it does to her father. They spend long days and nights working together and bonding over how to improve their inventions. They share in each other's failures and triumphs. She remembers each time her dad picks her up in his arms and spins her around in celebration, congratulating her on a job well done. Whenever he puts her back down, his eyes beam with unshed tears of pride. These moments are sacred treasures that she locks away in her heart.

When Korra first accuses her father of being an Equalist supporter, all of her positive feelings about her budding friendship with the Avatar evaporate into the ether. Korra's allegations awaken a vicious, protective instinct inside of her. She will not let this impetuous young girl (Avatar or not) smear the name of the one person she holds most dear.