Chapter Text

The memory haunted her. Asami always managed to forget for a time, but it took so little for the whole sequence to unfold once again in her mind's eye. She had been young, so young and so bored. While the freezing air had been so different to the more temperate Republic City, she soon became used to the cold. The lack of others her age however was not something she ever got used to. Finding a friend in such an desolate place had been a big deal, but it was not the sole reason the memory remained vivid.

The research station the Sato family called home was nestled against a small cliff, the natural formation blocking the majority of the wind blasting down from the North. Each day Asami watched as the swirling snow was swept over the cliff edge, the flakes dancing in the faded light. The sight, while beautiful and new, could only hold her attention so long. Asami was bored. The ground sloped up at either side of the camp, allowing a determined child a route up onto the cliff above. It only took a few days before she clambered up and stared North; into the forbidden lands none would tread without a good reason. There was almost nothing to see. White emptiness stretched on until it was swallowed by falling snow. Some days it was clearer, but all she could see were distant mountains. Asami still persisted in climbing up, day after day. There was nothing else to do at the camp. There was nothing for her there besides books she had read time after time and toys no longer capable of holding her interest. Maybe it would have been better to bring new things, but what else could she bring with such limited space than her absolute favourites? So young, and with no concept of true boredom. The North offered at least something new, even if it remained empty. Until one day.

Asami wandered up the slope as always, almost not bothering to check if there was no one to see her sneaking away. As she clambered up a new noise reached her. Sqwaking, slithering and the hiss of something skidding across the ice. Asami moved faster. Otter penguins called to each other as a pack careened across ice and snow. They moved like lightning across the ice, the available area a little too limited for their movements. All too soon they hit a snow bank forcing them to clamber to their feet and waddle back to a new starting position. Without another thought, Asami ran forward into their midst. The otter penguins squawked as she ran amongst them, the creatures eyeing her with nervous glances as she shrieked and blundered on the ice. The animals were new, exciting and different. They never stayed quite where they were; the group always shifting and milling around. Soon just watching the otter penguins sliding was not enough. As one threw itself forward, Asami grabbed hold of its back and rode the creature as it hurtled over the ice. This was the best day ever.

Asami was not sure how long she played until she glanced back to check how far she had moved from the research station. A strange weightless feel settled into her stomach as she saw nothing but swirling snow behind her. Not a problem - the station was hidden by the cliff. Asami starting heading back the way she came. The cliff did not come into view. She walked on further, still unable to see home. Asami glanced around in increasing panic. The otter penguins were somewhere behind her; nothing around her but snow. Asami kept walking forward. There was nothing else she could do. She stared around, searching for something familiar. Her shivering was becoming more and more painful, her face freezing, her ears burning. The wind howled around her. And something else? There was a new noise. Not an otter penguin; what animals could be found in the area? Was she about to become a meal for a predator? The wind swirled around her, nothing visible. Wait. There was a shadow to her left. She stared at the vague shape. To keep going forward towards where home might be or veer away from the threat?

Was that another child? The figure drew closer; it was a girl. Her skin was darker than Asami's and she wore a dark blue parka. The girl held her hand out as she approached. Asami dithered, uncertain, the girl shielding her eyes from the snow. She clutched hold of the girl's outstretched hand and the light faded. The freezing wind was gone. Asami looked up in surprise. They were standing in what looked like an ice tent. Two massive frozen slabs met above her head, an ice wall to her left in between the slanted sides. The right side remained open to the air. No, there was something there. Asami reached out, her fingers hitting an almost invisible barrier. It was freezing beneath her fingers; a sheet of crystal clear ice.

The girl looked away as Asami met her gaze, and eyed her with nervous movements. A polar bear dog peered out from behind the girl, looking between her and the stranger. Asami waved to it and since the other girl was reluctant to speak, she took the initiative.

"Hi, I'm Asami. What's your name?"

The girl glanced at her, fidgeting and shuffling her feet. She licked her lips and spoke in a soft voice. "I'm not allowed to tell outsiders." The girl looked up, holding Asami's gaze for the first time. "Sorry," she added.

"Is it a secret?"

"Yes." She looked a little annoyed. Asami was unsure how to proceed, thankful when the girl continued. "Hey, how old are you?"

"Five years and four months," Asami replied, a note of pride entering her voice. "Can you tell me how old you are? Or is that a secret as well?"

The girl shook her head. "Not a secret, but I don't know. Sorry."

"Oh." They both fell silent. "Are you lost too?"

"Lost?"

Asami nodded, trying to hold back the tears she could feel welling up. "Uh-huh. I tried riding on an otter penguin. It went so fast. But I don't know how far we went and I don't know how to get back."

"I'm not lost," the girl replied. "I come here a lot. But I've never tried riding the otter penguins." She patted her companion. "Naga moves faster than I've ever seen them go."

"Wow," said Asami, marvelling at the polar bear dog. "Naga must be faster than a car."

The girl frowned. "Car?"

Asami nodded. "My dad makes them. They're still new so not many people can afford them. But it means my family is really rich." Asami sighed. "Daddy and Mommy will be looking for me. I hope I don't get in too much trouble. Is... Are you worried about that too?"

The girl shook her head. "My Mommy and Daddy are dead." She lapsed into silence and Asami wondered what to say next. "But... Yeah, I might get scolded too. Especially if I did get lost."

Asami frowned. "But who scolds you if you don't have parents?"

"My teachers." There was another awkward silence. "What's it like?" The girl looked at her again.

"What's what like?"

The girl bit her lip. "Having parents." She glanced out through the ice wall. "Living somewhere else." The girl looked back to Asami who was unsure what to say. "Oh. What's the name of the place you live?"

"Republic City," Asami replied.

"'Republic City'," the girl echoed. Asami nodded. The girl frowned. "And you like it there?"

"Yup. I live in a big house with a pool." Asami found herself smiling. "Oh! We could go play there."

"What's a pool?"

"It's like a big bath. We have a big bath too, but the pool is bigger. And there's one even bigger in the city." The girl looked confused. "It's fun," Asami insisted.

"Are there a lot of people there?"

"Lots and lots."

"How many?" The girl was watching her.

"I don't know," Asami admitted. "More than I could count. Its like a million times more than at the research station."

"How many are at the research station?"

Asami thought for a moment. "Maybe thirty?"

"So, there's thirty million in Republic City?"

"Probably!"

"But how can so many people live in one place?"

Asami reflected on home. "Well, some people live in big houses like ours. And some live in smaller houses. And some people live in houses on top of other houses."

"What are houses?"

"It's where you live with your mommy and daddy." Asami gasped, covering her mouth with her hand. "Sorry."

The girl shook her head. "It's okay. So, a house is where people live? Where they eat and sleep?"

Asami nodded. "Yep."

"And there are lots of different kinds of houses?" Asami nodded. "But what do the people do in them?"

"Do?"

"They use them as somewhere to sleep and eat. But what else do they do? Do they train all day?" The girl's hand clutched at her elbow.

"I think some do. But a lot have jobs."

"'Job'?" The girl looked baffled.

"Yeah. All the grown-ups have them." The girl looked blank. Asami worried at her lip with her teeth. "It's something you do and get paid for."

"'Paid'?" Asami sighed.

"Do you not have money?" The girl shook her head. "It's..." Asami frowned. "You get it for doing jobs. And you need it to get other things. Like cars. Which is my daddy's job to make. And that gets him loads of money."

The girl's mouth opened and closed her mouth a few times. "That's the second time you mentioned 'cars'. What are they?"

"It's like sliding on otter penguins. Or it might like riding on Naga. But lots of people can ride on cars. And they have wheels and make a noise like this." Asami pursed her lips together and performed a passable imitation of a Sato-mobile.

The girl started laughing. "How do you do anything with all that noise going on?"

Asami was smiling. "You get used to it. And it's not that bad. And not everyone has a car." She studied the girl. "You should come with me. There's loads of room at home. And you can see the statue from my window."

"Statue?"

Asami nodded. "It's huge. It's of the Avatar."

"The Avatar?" The girl looked curious.

"Yep. He helped start Republic City. And he saved the world."

"I'd like to see that," the girl said, her voice slowing as she spoke. She frowned, staring down towards the ground. Asami looked through the ice; the snow had stopped, but the sky was growing darker. The first stars were visible high overhead. In the silence, Asami realized just how cold she was, everything around her frozen. She shivered, her teeth clicking together as her body shook. Wrapping her arms around her torso she started jigging on the spot and trying to warm up.

"Cold?" The girl was looking at her with concern. Assam nodded, wondering how the other girl seemed so unaffected by the low temperature. The girl crouched and cleared a hollow in the snow in the middle of the shelter. As she sat back on her haunches, she moved her arms with deliberate yet uncertain motions. Fire leapt from her hands, pooling into the hollow, the depression growing deeper as the snow melted. Asami started forward, enjoying the warmth as she neared. The wracking shivers vanished as heat seeped into her frozen form.

"I had no idea you were a fire bender," she exclaimed.

The girl allowed a tight smile to appear on her lips. "I'm still not that good at it. This is the most fire I've ever produced."

"I'm glad you can do it at all." Asami stretched her hands out as close to the flames as she dared. She looked at the girl opposite her. "Do you want to come back to the station with me? Then we can both go back to Republic City and see the statue."

The girl smiled, but it did not seem a happy expresson. "I really would like to. But I can't. I really can't. I'm not allowed to."

"Why not? My mommy can talk to your teachers if you like. There are more teachers in Republic City for you to meet if that helps. And it would be better than living up here in the cold."

"I do... want to. Its just-"

"Asami!"

Asami sat upright, listening. The call came again. "That's my mommy!" She raced to the ice wall peering outside.

The girl joined her. "So they came looking for you..." she murmured. "I'll get this out of the way," she added in a louder voice. With a sweep of her hand the wall dissolved. Asami took a few steps forward and turned as her mother called her name once more.

"Can I come see you again tomorrow?" Asami asked. "You can meet me here if you like. I'll remember now to get here when we head back."

"Asami!" The voice was close. Asami turned and ran forward before the girl could reply. She just needed to see her mother first. Let her know everything was fine, then get her to talk to her new friend. The rescue party crested a near invisible ridge in the snow a moment later and her mother crushed Asami in an embrace. It took a long moment for her mother to release her hold. Asami turned to call the girl over, but her shout died on her lips as she looked back. There was no sign of the girl or the shelter. Asami frowned, looking around the desolate area, seeing no disturbances other than her own tracks. They seemed to originate from nowhere.

"Asami? What is it?" Her mother looked concerned as she turned back to face her.

"My friend. She was just here and she helped me stay warm. But I can't see her anywhere."

"Friend?" Her mommy blinked, looking past Asami. "Honey, there's no one here."

"But there was," Asami insisted.

Asami never saw the girl again. Both her mother and father forbade her to ever leave the camp without them, and she now had to spend all her time with them both. She hoped the girl was not waiting for her out in the snow. Or had been, but now concluded Asami did not want to see her again. If only she could see her once more, explain what had happened. Now she worried that the girl thought her a liar. There had been a grudging belief from the adults that Asami had indeed met someone, but several searches failed to turn up either the girl or a settlement she might have originated from.

Time wore on and the Satos returned to Republic City. But no matter how much time passed, Asami never forgot the curious girl in the snow. The one who had bent fire. But it had been more than that. She had bent water too; the shelter was proof of that. It had not been so important when she was younger, but as she grew older, she realised those actions told a vital story. A girl who could bend more than one element. Someone like the Avatar. Not once in recorded history had anyone other than the Avatar manipulated more than one element. The time frames matched well enough. And the search for the Avatar had been going on for years now. The thought haunted Asami in the dead of night: what if that girl had been the Avatar? Could the everything have been different if she had told others about the girl who bent ice and fire?

Korra lay out in the snow. The night sky was studded with stars, her breath visible in the freezing air. She would need to head back soon to avoid getting in trouble again. After a few more seconds of blissful isolation, Korra clambered to her feet. Naga caught the movement and raised herself up. Korra allowed herself one last backward glance before she mounted the polar bear dog. A deserted research station lay just beneath the cliff she had been lying on. It had not been easy to find and there had been so many delays in starting the search. But she had found where it was after months of searching. And it was too late; Asami, was not there anymore. Had not been here for a long time. Korra came back whenever she could, hoping against hope she might one day find her only friend waiting for her even as years passed.

She had been worried that day they met, reluctant to even contemplate letting Asasmi's mother meet the her teachers. So she hid, waiting under the snow and ice until the search party left. And every day since she wondered what it might have been like if she had not hidden. What if she had gone with Asami to Republic City? Left her guardians and escaped out into the world? Korra sighed and spurred Naga onwards. She could day-dream all she liked, but it would not change her current circumstances. Now she had to worry about getting back before another scolding.