The Waterbender's Love and the Mechanic's Passion (Korrasami fanfiction)

Ch 0.18 Wife Knows Best

The air acolyte sighed at the crashing sound down the hall. She continued washing the dishes from dinner as her kids ran amuck. She glanced at the clock when she noticed the setting Sun. Her concern for her husband grew. She finished the dishes and wandered towards the noises of destruction. Her two middle children were wrestling in the dirt, while her oldest was on the porch reading a book with the youngest of them in her lap.

"Kids? Has anyone seen your father?"

Meelo paused to respond, but then Ikki shoved him to the ground. "Ow!"

"I saw Dad grumbling through the halls earlier. I think he's in his study." Jinora replied shortly from behind the book.

Pema scowled. "He didn't even come eat dinner." She sighed again as the other two continued to wrestle. "Go get ready for your baths!" The children groaned and disappeared inside.

The air acolyte followed them, greeting other airbenders on her way to find her husband. As she approached the man's study, she heard quiet grumbling. She giggled and slid open the door. "Sweetie, is everything okay?" She asked gently.

The incense of Desert Sage was slowly burning out in the corner of the room. The airbending master was hunched over tiredly in a meditation pose. He glanced behind him and motioned his wife to sit with him. "Oh, nothing new. It's just these meetings with the president seem futile."

She quietly chuckled and held his hands. "So I've heard."

"The man is just so...insufferable! It's like he's doing everything to halt progress with anything." Tenzin complained. He began rubbing his forehead to get rid of his headache.

Pema smiled at him with a brow raised. "Is that the best you got? I've heard much worse things about him from Korra."

Tenzin chuckled. "That woman could go on forever about how awful President Raiko is. However, I can't say I blame her. They have never really been on good terms."

Pema started rubbing her thumbs into his palms. "Maybe you should let some of it out, too. I can tell you're stressed since the first thing you did when you arrived back was hide away in here."

Tenzin jumped up in slight panic. "O-Oh! Did I miss dinner? I'm so sorry, sweetie. I just lost track of time. I though meditating would help."

"And did it help?" The airbender frowned and looked away. "You know, in life, as in chess, forethought wins. I think you need a better plan than just mediating with the president."

Tenzin huffed. "Korra already has the intimidation down and the president still doesn't budge. I have to be the calm, steady person to facilitate them."

"Speaking of Korra..." His wife simply pulled him to his feet. "C'mon. I have an idea."

Tenzin rose a brow at first as his wife pulled him out of the room, then he chuckled happily and followed her outside. The woman carefully led them to the cliffside by Korra's favorite meditation gazebo. The Sun was nearly set. A faint line of pink and orange fizzed out on the horizon.

"Pema, hun, what are we doing out here?"

The air acolyte smiled and motioned to the ocean before them. "I want you to release some of your stress out here. Practicing your airbending might do just that."

Tenzin gaze out at the water in thought. "I don't know. This seems like something Korra would do."

"Yes, but do you see her still stressed out afterwards? No. It's worth a shot, Tenzin."

The airbender sighed and stepped forward. Pema leaned against the gazebo to watch. The man hesitated at first, simply drawing out a weak gust of wind. He looked back at his wife, who eagerly motioned him to continue.

He huffed before getting into a more serious pose and propelled a powerful wind out into the water. He continued the motion to form more gusts of wind. Pema smiled behind him as he switched forms smoothly.

A smile crept up onto Tenzin's face, which he hadn't even realized. He happily continued shooting balls of air out into the openness of the ocean. He felt himself starting to sweat and paused to take a breath. He glanced back at his wife, who was beaming brightly. She nodded her approval and went to hug him.

He laughed and swung her in the air. Pema giggled as she was lifted off of the ground. He carefully set her on her feet again after a minute and let out a happy sigh. "Surprisingly, I feel a lot better now. Now I understand why Korra works out so much."

Pema grabbed his hand and began walking back to the temple. "Then you should do it more often when you get stressed out."

Tenzin chuckled and swung an arm over her shoulder to pull her closer. "I will try, dear."

As they approach the hallway, they heard giggles nearby. The couple looked around and saw four heads disappear from around the corner. The duo glanced at each other curiously. Then the airbender, suddenly feeling young again, swooped up his wife in his arms and airbended a ball to fly around on.

Their children screamed giddily and dashed back towards the dorms. The family laughed as they raced down the halls.

A/N: Not so much Korra or Asami but I thought I'd share my submission for round 2 (chess) of pro-bending circuit. Prompts: Bishop - A bishop is placed next to the King and Queen and moves diagonally. Task: Write about someone who is close to a leader or important figure. Easy: clock. Medium: incense. Hard: In life, as in chess, forethought wins. - Charles Buxton