it's locked, stupid

ch. 5

I woke up, feeling a rush of coldness enter my very bones. It's going to snow today. I love the snow. I remember all the mornings I spent dragging my parents out of bed to make/airbend the biggest snowman ever. I always got sick since I refused to put on any real clothes, but it was always worth it to see my parents so happy at my happiness. Things used to be so simple.

The day was boring, considering the fact that everyone seemed to be busy except me. I would've just left to Mo's place, but my dad would flip. I'm still technically a kid so, I still technically have to tell my parents where I'm going. It wasn't until the snow startled to settle it's icy touch onto the earth that I gathered the courage to just go and deal with the consequences later.

I got dressed in the uniform Mo provided me with yesterday, putting my brown locks into a loose ponytail, allowing the short pieces in the front to frame my face delicately. I put on the headband he gave me— and the fingerless gloves that I just really, truly noticed— to cover my airbending tattoos.

I walked out of my room carefully, making my way to the shore of the island to airbend my way to the mainland. The sun was beginning to set which meant I probably was going to be stuck helping with the dinner rush and closing like the night before. It also meant I spent the whole day afraid to ask if I could leave the Temple. Feels like old times.

"So, how's it going with the tall, dreamy firebender boy? You've been spending a lot of time together lately," I heard Jinora say from a distance, I looking over, seeing the bright light of one of our gazebos along with my two little sisters and Korra by a tree.

I saw Korra put fruits in the cage that hung from the tree. We have a ton of lemurs on the island, and that's how we feed them a lot of the time. I remember all the days I spent putting the fruits in myself. Today has really been reminiscent, hasn't it?

"Oooh, yeah! Tell us all about the magical romance," Ikki added. I rolled my eyes, allowing my curiosity to get the best of me. With gentle steps, I made my way over to the three, picking up on their conversation.

"What?" Korra laughs nervously. "Listen to you two, I-I'm not interested in Mako or any romantic stuff," she says, letting out some coughs that give her away so easily. I know I should be happy for her, but I really, really just want to wish Mako out of existence right now. Which isn't even fair because it's not his fault, it's mine. "Besides he's all into that prissy, beautiful, elegant, rich girl," she trails off a little as she talks about Asami. Spirits, I hope I don't sound like that. "But let's just pretend for a second I am interested in him. What would I do?"

There it is.

"Ooh! I just read a historical saga where the heroine fell in love with the enemy general's son, who's supposed to marry the princess. You should do what she did!" Jinora said, giddy about her story.

"Tell me!" Korra responded, just as giddy.

"She rode a dragon into battle and burned down the entire country." Korra frowned being to see how unrealistic the story is. Maybe not unrealistic. Maybe more insane. "Then she jumped into a volcano. It was so romantic!"

"Uhh," Korra said. I couldn't help, but laugh at Jinora's wishful face and Korra's own confused one. When she heard my laugh, she turned, letting a smile replace her confused expression. "Hey-" She started before being cut off by my youngest sister.

"No, no, no!" Ikki speaks as rapidly as ever, grabbing all of our attention. "The best way to win a boy's heart is to brew a love potion of rainbows and sunsets that makes true lovers sprout wings and fly into a magical castle in the sky, where they get married and eat clouds with spoons and use stars as ice cubes in their moonlight punch. Forever and ever and ever," she said, airbending in a circle in the air above before landing back down in her feet.