write to me

"write to me please, as much as you can"

Asami-

It's weird not being in Republic City. I know I grew up here but I don't really feel like I've come home. I feel like I'm existing on a mover set, like some director built a set of the South Pole based on my description of it, but never visited. I don't know why. It's bothering me. And I've been so focussed on why the South Pole no longer feels like home that it's interfering with me getting better. Katara thinks I might be subconsciously distracting myself, that it's easier for me to think of this than it is to confront what happened.

I don't need to confront anything. I know what happened. I was poisoned, but at the end of the day I lived, and the Air nation is safe. What is there to confront? I just want to get back on my feet and get back to Republic City.

I'll see you soon,

-Korra

Korra,

Maybe the South Pole doesn't feel like home anymore because it's just not home for you, now that you've grown up and started to build a life in Republic City. Or maybe your attachment to it has changed. I know the feeling, it's exactly how I felt about my house after the break-in all those years ago. It didn't feel the same without my mother. And it felt like less of a home, I guess because a home is somewhere you're supposed to be safe, somewhere you can retreat to. It was hard for me and my dad to feel like we could really relax at home again afterwards, and so it just felt like a place instead of a home. Just a location where I happened to sleep and bathe and eat.

That feeling only got worse after my dad's arrest. I still have never set foot in that secret workshop of his. I think I'm scared that once I truly confront it, I'll never feel good about my house ever again. If I never go down there I can pretend like it doesn't exist, that my dad isn't in prison, that this is still a home. But it still feels so...empty.

Take care of yourself, okay?

-Asami

Asami-

I had no idea that's how you felt about your own home. I assumed, hey, you've got a mansion all to yourself, complete with a swimming pool and a race track, so you must be living it up. It must be really hard to enjoy those things when it feels like hallowed ground.

That's sorta how the South Pole feels to me now. Empty. It's frustrating because I know that it's not, so why does it feel that way? My parents are still here. All my favorite places that I miss when I'm gone, I can go to. I can eat all the Southern Water Tribe food that I miss when I'm in Republic City but it still feels just, not the same. I wish I could come up with a better word, but I'm really tired. I've been working hard to get back on my feet but I'm not a hundred percent yet. Katara has been doing everything she can and I can't even walk. I'm starting to think I might be gone a little longer than just two weeks.

-Korra

Korra,

Honestly, it's really hard to enjoy those things without Team Avatar. Maybe the empty feeling isn't just about my parents. Now that I'm thinking about it, the only time that my house felt like a home again after the break-in was when Mako and Bolin stayed for a while, and you'd come to visit. I can't wait to take you on the race track once you're back in Republic City.

It's okay that you're not at a hundred percent yet. It's only been a few weeks since everything happened. It'll take some time for your body to recover. Don't be too hard on yourself, okay?

-Asami

Asami-

Your last letter had me up late the other night thinking. Maybe we don't feel at home anymore because Team Avatar is our home now. The last time I was in the South Pole was with all you guys, and it felt like home then, even with the civil war and Harmonic Convergence. I kinda felt at home when we were travelling through the Earth Kingdom to find more Airbenders. I think I actually felt more at home then than I do now. Is that weird?

Maybe inviting Mako and Bolin over would help you feel more at home. How are they doing? I haven't really been keeping in touch with them. I feel bad about that. Please don't tell them I've been writing to you. I don't want them to feel left out. I'm just so tired that I don't have the energy to write back to everybody, and it's easier to talk to you.

-Korra

Korra,

I don't think that's weird at all. In fact, I think you might be right. Team Avatar is our home now, and maybe that's why we both feel so off. Maybe if home is safety, it doesn't have to be a place, just people you feel safe with. Even when you and I got trapped in the desert I felt safe. I never thought I could make a home out of people after what happened with my parents, but it just happened. I can't help but kick myself for taking it for granted while I still had it. I guess sometimes you don't realize how important someone is until they're suddenly not there anymore.

I don't think it would be the same if I were to invite the boys over without you. To be honest, I don't see them much these days. Mako has thrown himself into his work and Bolin spends most of his time with Opal. I won't tell them about your letters, though, if I do see them. I think spending time with them would feel empty, too, if you weren't there with us.

Miss you,

Asami