[She wishes she could believe him, but she doesn't know who that person is. She's never been anything but the Avatar. If she's not the Avatar anymore, who is she?]
I can airbend. [She admits softly, when she finds her voice again.] I don't know why or how, but when he took away my bending, I was suddenly able to airbend.
[And suddenly she's giggling hysterically, because she, Korra, an airbender. That was as ridiculous as a platybus bear with no beak!]
[The giggling is probably due to a combination of things he'd rather not think about or probe too deeply, because they're on thin ice as it is. Instead, he puts his hands on her quaking shoulders and draws her back enough to look at her, eyes shining.]
He didn't take it all. He tried to, but you bit back because that's what you do, even when all the chips are stacked completely against you. Korra, this is huge!
[Nope, not gonna sway him. He is determined to remain cheerful about the whole thing.]
You did have training, though. Master Tenzin and the kids showed you a few tricks, right? Yeah, I'm not an airbender but I'll practice with you every day. We'll figure it out!
A few tricks isn't enough to master! And no offense, but earth and air are complete opposites. You can't approach airbending the same way you approach earthbending.
[IT TAKES SO MUCH EFFORT TO NOT ROLL HIS EYES HEAVENWARD AND THROW HIS ARMS DRAMATICALLY IN THE AIR. So. Much. Effort. But he manages somehow.]
They aren't as different as you think. [he removes hands from her shoulders and crosses his arms.] Look, Korra- you're still pretty new to the probending scene, but I've been following it a long time. I started off as a traditional earthbender, and I fall back on that style outside the arena if the situation calls for it, which you know. But inside the arena? You can't rely on traditional earthbending, not if you want to succeed. You've gotta be light on your feet. You've gotta flow, like the air. You've gotta know, instinctively, the course the discs are gonna take before you send them out or you'll get sloppy. You'll lose control.
[He pauses, both to catch his breath and to grin at her.]
Master Tenzin and his family may be the last airbenders, but their teaching spread. We can do this. We are going to do it, period. I won't accept any answer other than yes.
[She hadn't thought about it like that. Looking back at the matches she'd witnessed, she felt stupid for not realizing it sooner. A lot of Mako's best moves had been circular in motion, like a tornado.
Maybe it was because she so rarely saw Tenzin airbend that she didn't see it before. But now it gives her hope. Maybe Bolin can teach her. And maybe she can adapt the techniques she already knows, the way she adapted Tenzin's airbending technique to water. Maybe...just maybe...this can actually work.
A smile spreads slowly across her face, shining as brightly as the snow at high noon. She launches herself at him, wrapping her arms around his chest in a bone-crushing hug.]
[Yeah, bone-crushing is a pretty apt description of this hug. It knocks the wind out of him, mostly because he didn't get the chance to prepare for it. Once he can breathe again, he returns the hug, laughing. Words aren't really necessary at this point.]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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I can airbend. [She admits softly, when she finds her voice again.] I don't know why or how, but when he took away my bending, I was suddenly able to airbend.
[And suddenly she's giggling hysterically, because she, Korra, an airbender. That was as ridiculous as a platybus bear with no beak!]
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He didn't take it all. He tried to, but you bit back because that's what you do, even when all the chips are stacked completely against you. Korra, this is huge!
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[She is less than impressed with herself.]
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You did have training, though. Master Tenzin and the kids showed you a few tricks, right? Yeah, I'm not an airbender but I'll practice with you every day. We'll figure it out!
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They aren't as different as you think. [he removes hands from her shoulders and crosses his arms.] Look, Korra- you're still pretty new to the probending scene, but I've been following it a long time. I started off as a traditional earthbender, and I fall back on that style outside the arena if the situation calls for it, which you know. But inside the arena? You can't rely on traditional earthbending, not if you want to succeed. You've gotta be light on your feet. You've gotta flow, like the air. You've gotta know, instinctively, the course the discs are gonna take before you send them out or you'll get sloppy. You'll lose control.
[He pauses, both to catch his breath and to grin at her.]
Master Tenzin and his family may be the last airbenders, but their teaching spread. We can do this. We are going to do it, period. I won't accept any answer other than yes.
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Maybe it was because she so rarely saw Tenzin airbend that she didn't see it before. But now it gives her hope. Maybe Bolin can teach her. And maybe she can adapt the techniques she already knows, the way she adapted Tenzin's airbending technique to water. Maybe...just maybe...this can actually work.
A smile spreads slowly across her face, shining as brightly as the snow at high noon. She launches herself at him, wrapping her arms around his chest in a bone-crushing hug.]
Thank you!
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