Protect Me - Part 2 - Makorra

~P~

Protect Me - Part 2

~P~

"How long will she need to stay here for?"

"The rest of the week – she could start hemorrhaging again... it's completely unpredictable. She can return to the Island after that, but I'd like her to be kept under close watch. We can't have this happen again – next time, she won't be so lucky. Also, Tenzin, I must inform you that because of this, the birth will be even more difficult. It could have similar effects to the degree of this – anything could happen, but we'll do our best."

"I understand. Thank you, Saiyu."

Korra awoke to two voices conversing somewhere in the room she was in, one of them a familiar, gruff voice and the other a hushed, whispering tone. She kept her eyes closed, a headache splitting through her head, and heard footfalls as one of the two left the room. She suddenly heard more footsteps, some further away, pacing, frantic, quick. Some more then as someone approached her.

"Oh, Korra," she heard the familiar voice say, and with much difficulty, did she manage her eyes open, instantly regretting it as light poured into her vision and magnified the intensity of her headache.

She heard a clamour around her as she blinked, sensitive eyes adjusting to the light.

"Korra!"

"She's awake!"

"What? Oh, my...!"

"Mom, mom!"

"Oh, Spirits, Korra..."

As she sat herself up, she felt her incredibly weak and the simple gesture was very difficult for the young Avatar. Her limbs felt sore and her entire body ached and breathing was difficult and she was lightheaded.

"Hm?" she managed out as her eyes focussed on the blurry image of a human being in front of her. Slowly, she made out the scruffy beard and unwavering grey eyes of her Airbending master, whose eyebrows were contorted in an extremely worried fashion, but for the life her, she didn't know why. Come to think of it, though, she didn't even know where she was and why she was there.

Blinking, her eyes focussed to the bright light of the morning filtering in through the window beside her, flooding the white room and making it seemingly illuminate, causing her to turn her eyes to the side to stop the piercing, stark contrast that flashed before her, before adjusting painfully once again.

Looking around the room, she saw the entire Airbending family, Asami, Bolin, and beside her, a bloodshot eyed Mako. Inspecting the room around her, she noticed how sanitary and sterile it seemed – cleared of the previous night's events, of which she was still not aware – and all the tools and medical supplies around her. Concluding she was in a hospital, she still lacked a reason as to why.

Looking down at the foot of her bed, she saw a pile of white towels gathered around her lower half, and quirked an eyebrow at the tightly-packed mass. Turning to the right, she became aware of the tight grip Mako had on her hand. Looking at the boy, eyes brimmed red, she wondered what had him so stirred up.

Peering up at Tenzin, she saw him wearing the same worried expression. Finding her voice, she spoke, her voice surprisingly raspy and quiet. "What... what's going on, guys?" She noticed the faces of the others – even the kids' faces were a mix of worried and relieved. "Why am I here?"

She heard Tenzin speak before he looked over at Mako. "Korra..." The Avatar cast a glance at him before directing her gaze to her boyfriend's, and noticing that his jacket was absent, his hair a mussed mess, eyes unblinking... she finally made the connection, and tears sprung into her eyes as she pulled her hand away from his and brought them to her face, a horrified expression breaking out on her features.

"No," she said loudly, forcefully, as if trying to convince herself otherwise. "No, no, no." She didn't try to stop the tears that ran down her cheeks, and the others backed off, letting her have some time alone to comprehend everything before informing her of the news.

The memories hit Korra light a shock of lightning – jolting, unpleasant, and ungodly. She remembered blood – oh, there was blood – and she remembered her mind glazing over in her own internal panic. She remembered telling Mako she loved him before passing out and the frantic screams of the nurses and that was it.

Korra looked up frantically then – if the situation was as she thought, then she should be feeling something – incomplete? Like something – someone – very dear to her was gone, missing, never to have been in her life. But she didn't feel the loss she knew she should have been feeling.

Flushing with newfound panic, Korra threw the blinding white covers off of her bottom half and saw, much to her surprise, that the bump she had sported just hours before was still very much so there. Placing her hands on it, she looked around the room, thoroughly confused.

But... shouldn't it be... gone? Korra hated to think of that possibility, but after what had occurred the night before, she had every belief that she was no longer going to be a mother and was horrified. But the little life was still growing inside her, as proved by the bulge of her tummy.

Though confused, now tears of happiness instead of fright poured from her eyes. She smiled, before feeling a pressure over her hand again and knew instantly it was Mako's. Turning her head, she saw a small smile forming on his face, and she would have turned and thrown her arms over his neck in sheer glee if not for the lack of strength she possessed.

Squeezing his hand, she used the other one to wipe away her seemingly never-ending tears and asked the question on the tip of her tongue. "W-what happened?"

Tenzin, who had water building at the corner of his grey eyes, smiled before sighing at her. "You gave us quite the scare, and rightly so, Korra," he explained. "Bolin came to us at around four in the morning going off about how you were bleeding and how Mako had taken you here. We didn't understand at first, but didn't care about that, either – all we needed to hear was that you were in trouble and we were off the Island in seconds. When we got here, you were unconscious, and while you had stopped hemorrhaging significantly, there was still a, um..." the man paused, composing himself as he remembered the horrifying hours that unfolded before him just hours before, "...a steady stream going. Mako was... Mako was..." Tenzin looked over at the Firebender, whose eyes were wrought with emotion, before deciding he could tell his own side of it – that he could inform her of the medical half of what happened. "Mako was hysterical, I'll just say that. We couldn't get him to leave your side and he hasn't since. You've been here for a few hours now – it was only around two hours ago that you were stabilized, though, Korra." He sighed before continuing, giving into his emotions, letting a single tear fall as his wife joined him by his side. "We were just so worried about you, Korra. And the baby. We... we thought you were going to die."

The tone of Tenzin's voice dropped significantly as he said the last part, and Korra realized how difficult it must have been for him to have been faced with the possibility of watching a second Avatar – loving both herself and the previous – dying. It had been too much for the older man.

Reaching her hands up, she smiled at the man. "But I didn't, Tenzin," she reassured him, before his repressed sobs bubbled over, as did Pema's, and she embraced the two. Squeezing them as tightly as she could, she closed her eyes and just held them there for a long, unspecified amount of time. Eventually, she looked over at Mako, who was smiling at her, eyebrows upturned in a sign of relief.

Soon, the couple retreated from the Avatar's arms, and Tenzin, upon seeing Mako's expression, realized he needed to speak to her alone. Ushering his questioning children and Asami and Bolin out of the room, the door clicked shut, signifying that Mako and Korra were finally alone.

Breathing in shakily, he looked at her again, and forced out a wheezy, "Hi."

Relaxing into the plethora of pillows behind her, Korra greeted him back softly, "Hey." The pair sat in comfortable silence, staring at each other, for what seemed like forever, but both were more than content with it.

Soon, though, Mako's resolve for staying composed broke and his own tears strayed down his cheeks as he stood up and embraced her, squeezing her as though she would disappear at any given second in his arms. After pulling back, he placed a hand on her stomach, and Korra asked shakily, having not received a direct answer from Tenzin, "So he's okay?"

"Thankfully, yes," Mako sniffled, rubbing his hand into the stretched flesh affectionately. He looked at the floor then. "I don't know what would have happened if I hadn't gotten you here in time though – Saiyu, the head nurse here, told me that if... if..." Korra simply embraced the tearing up Firebender softly, holding him closely.

"Like I told Tenzin," she whispered in his ear. "I'm here now, Mako. I'm not gone, and neither is he. That's all that really matters." Mako breathed unevenly against her neck, before nodding and pulling away again. He then answered the question that hung on Korra's lips, the medical reasoning behind what had happened.

"Spirits, it was awful, Korra. Like Tenzin said – blood, oh, Agni." He stopped and looked away, as if reliving the painful memory, before continuing, "After you were stabilized, Saiyu told us that you were hemorrhaging. I-I know you thought... thought you were miscarrying – I did, too – but no, hemorrhaging." The word – miscarrying – was forced off the Firebender's tongue, and Korra noticed, taking his palm in hers and squeezing it. "But still, you lost so much blood and it was pretty severe. But, thank Agni, she told us that, if kept under a careful watch, you and the baby should be just fine. But she said that the birth could be just as bad if not worse, and so we'll have to be extra careful around the due date. You'll have to be in here a few days prior, probably."

Korra was silent as she took in the information – blood, hemorrhaging, birth, due date, herself, baby, fine. All that mattered to her was the she hadn't lost her baby – that he was still okay. Tears of utter relief and happiness brimming in her eyes, she leaned forward and embraced Mako suddenly, wetting the flesh of his arm with the fresh waterworks. He wrapped his strong, lean arms around her weakened frame, and whispered into the crook of her neck, "I love you, Korra. I don't know what I would have done if I had lost you." Pulling back, he gave her a long, hard, serious look, before crumbling into his own currently unstable emotions, feeling tears tug at his own eyes, as well. "I-I wouldn't – I was so damn scared, Korra, you have no idea. It was unbearable. You passed out and I thought I had lost you and I couldn't breathe and I thought I was going to die, too, and-and—" Mako had already begun to accept what had happened so early that morning, but a new fear had washed over him before she had woken up when he was informed that a similar incident could possibly occur again in just a few months' time. It was rattling and unsettling for the Firebender to hear. "Korra, I-I—"

Korra muffled her boyfriend's frenzied rant with her lips, pressing her mouth to his softly, but firmly. Mako took a few seconds to adjust to the sudden feel of her lips, but upon re-familiarizing himself with the flesh he had missed so dearly, did he give her a response, which she relished. They held their lips together for a long, unbroken moment, the lovers suspended in their sweet lip lock. The kiss reminded Mako that she was there, beside him, kissing him and that she wasn't gone from his grasp for forever.

When they pulled back, they smiled at each other, and Korra placed her hand on Mako's cheek to comfort him further. Pulling her thumb against the skin comfortingly, she whispered to him, "I love you, too, Mako. And I'm here. I'll always be here." And it was kind of the truth, considering after her death, that the Avatar spirit would simply be reincarnated, like it had so many times before...

But that didn't matter right then – only that they were together, their fragile family still intact and safe. So as the Firebender leaned over and murmured the words, "I know..." to her before planting another fluttering kiss atop her lips, did he promise himself that he would do anything and everything to ensure her safety, just as he did with Bolin. He was going to tell her this, but by the look in her livening blue eyes, he knew that she knew, and that it was a mutual arrangement and agreement.

~P~

Korra spent the rest of the week at the small clinic, slowly gaining back her lost blood supply and strengthening her body again. Mako virtually didn't leave her side, only leaving to go home to clean up before returning. At one point, Saiyu got annoyed with his constant presence, although Korra didn't mind it one bit, and so the nurse shooed him off, telling him to go get at least one night of proper rest. Korra, though enjoying his company, agreed he should – he had been sleeping in broken periods upon constantly staying with her, and by the fifth day there, he looked as rugged and broken down as she once had.

Mako left the facility reluctantly, but not without a verbal fight and having to be escorted by Tenzin. Bolin reassured the distressed Firebender that all would be okay, but couldn't blame his brother's apprehension. There was nothing preventing the same accident from happening again, but if it did, the consequences would surely be graver than the first time. And so the Earthbender spent the night at the clinic with Asami by his side, both watching the resting Avatar intently, allowing his brother a much deserved night of full, undisturbed slumber.

The next week, Korra returned to Air Temple Island, never happier to see the sun directly. Much to her chagrin, she wasn't allowed to spar or train in Pro-Bending anymore, not at least until a few months after the baby was born. Mako and Bolin postponed their Pro-Bending participation in order to spend more time with the girl, which she was incredibly appreciative of, knowing how much both of them loved Pro-Bending. Meditation was encouraged, but nothing physically strenuous, and so for the next few weeks, Korra, bored without her regular training, ventured in between the arena, the Island, and the Satos' mansion listlessly, itching for a good fight that did not come.

Mako would scold her when she came to the arena and tell her how irresponsible she was being, but she barely paid his rants any mind. Half the time, she just wanted to see him, ridiculous hormones driving her to the man. One time in the upcoming months, she tripped and narrowly missed falling, earning a justifiably worried talking-to from Mako.

At one point that the Avatar couldn't point out directly, the Firebender started to act oddly, avoiding her or making up lame excuses to leave her be, acting flustered and concealed when in her presence. Korra's unrealistic emotions caused for her to get angry at his leaving her, but he could easily cease her yelling with a simple touch and kiss, calming the young pregnant woman.

His blocked off, awkward behaviour continued on when he asked her to go out with him one evening. While she was annoyed by it, as the evening continued on, it lessened and he relaxed (but still remained a little tense) and she began to find it adorable and endearing. Eventually, they branched off from the restaurant they had been having dinner at and found their way back to the arena.

Korra wanted to hold hands with the man, but every time she reached for one, he would pull away and place the hand in his trouser pocket. After several unsuccessful attempts at trying to grasp at his fingers, Korra stopped and turned to him, emotions and hormones flaring.

"What is your problem?" she asked him in a harsh tone.

Mako turned to her, wiping his sweaty palms on his pants for the umpteenth time that night nervously. Surprised by her words, he opened his mouth to answer, but she didn't allow him to as her emotions flew out of control and she started to rant.

"I don't get you, Mako!" she went on and on, and Mako stepped back. The Firebender, after dealing with quite a few of these hysterical emotional fits over the past few months, knew it was better to just let her run her mouth off and tire herself out or let her own body get its chemicals back in balance before speaking to her. She carried on and on about things not relevant to the situation at hand, and after several minutes of bombing the boy with barrages of words, did Mako pull her down one of the many piers that jutted off the harbour in front of the arena.

"Korra," he squeezed her hands, which were resting in his. Korra looked up at him with questioning, still-slightly annoyed irises, quirking her eyebrow up. He looked around – anywhere but her – before taking one of his hands and brushing it through his hair nervously. Next, his hand travelled to his pocket, where, deep inside, a glittering ring sat.

Korra watched, getting over her childish anger and beginning to become worried about his current, overly quiet demeanour. "Mako?" she brought her hand up to his cheek and touched at it gently. "What's wrong?"

Fingering the metal object in his pocket, Mako started at the sound of her soft voice in his ear, turning his distracted thoughts back to the woman in front of him. Breathing in deeply, he caught her confused gaze and gathered all the courage he could, beginning his extremely practiced speech, but finding himself forgetting phrases and words left, right, and centre.

"Korra," he began, wrapping one arm around her and pulling her close to him – as close as possible, considering her protruding stomach. "We've been dating for a while now – we've loved each other for a while. And now – soon – we'll be starting a family together – we'll be parents. I, uh-h—" He forgot his words, then remembered them to the best of his ability and continued, "And every day, I think to myself how lucky I am to have you in my life. What did I do you earn you, Korra? I honestly don't know, but I won't argue with whatever brought you to me because now that we're here, together, I plan on protecting you and doing everything in my ability to keep you by my side.

"Korra... that night... I realized just how precious life is. I mean, you could have been taken from me so easily in that moment and I don't want that to happen again if I can prevent... which... which I know I can't. It's happened to me before, and it's not going to happen again if I can stop it. W-what I'm saying, Korra, i-is it made me realize just how much you mean to me, and I know that I should have done this sooner, but I was just so scared of the consequences, that'd you say no, and I—"

Mako was rambling, Korra knew, but she didn't interrupt him. She could see something glowing in his amber eyes that signified that all this talk would culminate in something staggering. As he continued to speak, she became nervous for some reason and to distract herself, put her hands on her stomach and played with the fabric splayed over it, but still held eye contact.

"B-basically, Korra, I-I love you, you know that, an-and—" He took one of his hands and dug into his pocket, and Korra's heart stopped. Kneeling down slowly, he continued to speak, "I don't know how you do this in the Southern Water Tribe, but in Republic City, one usually proposes with a ring." He revealed the gorgeous, silver, glittering band to the pregnant woman, and indescribable emotions swept over her. Taking her other hand, eyebrows upturned and a genuine, but nervous, smile stretched out on his angular features, Mako asked whisperingly, "Korra, will you marry me?"

For a few minutes, no words were exchanged, no movements made. The moment was suspended in air, and Mako waited eagerly, impatiently for her response, unfaltering, unmoving, and damn near not breathing.

Swallowing to wet her suddenly dry throat, her mind and heart racing a mile a minute, Korra regained her wits and nodded, slowly at first, then quickly as the question sunk in and a smile extended over her face, her cheeks flushed rosily.

A wide, bright smile like none other spread across Mako's face, and he shot up quickly, slipping the ring on her finger and wrapping his arms around her. Placing a sweet kiss on her lips before she could say anything, such elation had flooded through the Firebender that he thought he was floating for a second, before coming back to reality.

When he pulled back to study Korra's expression, with a jolt, he noticed she was crying, but instead of the tears being of happiness, they were quite clearly frantic.

"K-Korra," he started, placing a hand on her cheek to wipe away the tears. The Avatar brought her hand to rest atop his, and began to spout nonsense again.

"Mako—" She peered down at the ring on her finger and felt a fresh bout of tears hit her, biting her tongue before continuing, "—you... you shouldn't have to do this."

Mako blinked at her, raising an eyebrow. "What are you talking about?"

"This," she whispered harshly, eyes motioning to the ring on her finger. Her heart was beating, so overwhelmed, so happy, but she couldn't help but voice her feelings to him. "All of this." Next she motioned to her stomach. "Y-you're so young, Mako, both of us are. You should at least get to live out your dreams before you're forced to take on this responsibility. I want you do be able to go off and do what you want, but I'm just dragging you down at this point. This kid is. But... but at the same time, I don't know what I'd do without you, Mako. I'm in too far, I know, but I love you and want to spend the rest of my life with you. I want you to go out and live your life, but at the same time I selfishly want you by my side, all to myself. That's what I'm talking about – you shouldn't have to sit here with be, but at the same time, I want you to."

Mako blinked at her, knowing that half of what she said was true, the other half another hormone-induced spiel. His surprise fading away, his eyes softened, and he smiled at her before rubbing circles on her temples. "You silly girl," he murmured. "Do you not realize that my dream is that I want to be with you, to start a family with you? I can still accomplish things and be here for you and the baby, Korra. I love both of you so much – I could never just leave you like you think I should. And I never want to. It's not selfish of you to want be to be with you, because that would make me a greedy idiot for wanting you by my side constantly, too. Realize this, Korra—" He kissed her nose. "I love you and I always will. I proposed to you tonight not because I feel like I have to or because it's required, but because I wanted to. Because I want to call you my wife soon, along with the mother of my child. This is what I want in my future, Korra. You."

Korra didn't make eye contact with him, refusing his searching irises, processing his words. Some were the obvious – like how he loved her, she knew that – but how fervently he wanted her in his future took her by surprise a bit. But she didn't complain – both were going to hold onto each other for as long as they could, and Korra would ensure that.

Sniffling, she raised her head and peered at him, eyes half-lidded. Shaking her head, she bit her lip. With a smile, she whispered, "How did I end up with a guy like you?"

"I could ask you the same question – how the hell did I manage to snag you, Korra?" he blinked, lips curling up in his own charming grin. At that, he repeated his question from earlier, now that their minds were clearer. "So, you'll marry me?"

"Yes, Mako!" she laughed, planting a firm kiss on his lips.

Mako had never loved another word in the English language more then, and feeling it surge through his veins once again, he wrapped his arms around her to the best of his ability, kissing her passionately. Korra easily fell into the kiss, having not been in a lip lock like it for a while. Eventually, the pair pulled back, annoyed by the impassable distance between them, but eyes and hearts glowing with a noticeable fervour and love for each other.

Glaring down at her large stomach, Korra growled out, "I wish it would just be born already." She heard Mako laugh, and she looked up at him then, eyes soft. "You're going to be a great dad, Mako." Her tone was clear and genuine.

Mako returned her look, placing his hands on the round bump. "And you're going to be an excellent mother, Korra." Her heart swelled at his statement.

A few seconds of silence passed between them before they embraced. "Thank you, Mako," Korra breathed into the nape of his neck, his scent calming her down even further until her eyelids began to lull heavily.

"Thank you, too, Korra," he whispered back, stroking her hair back tenderly. The Firebender had closed his eyes when he felt a strong kick in his abdomen, sending him back. He blinked at his new fiancée's stomach, tears welling up in his eyes. Korra smiled at him as he stepped forward to her again, and when his hands touched her stomach again, she placed hers on top, feeling the lively life within.

Mako couldn't help but shed a few tears at the life that he was being presented with. It was something that he had helped create, something that he loved so much yet had never even seen before. "He's going to be a strong little bender," Mako whispered. "I can feel it already." A comfortable pause stretched between them. "I can't wait until he's born. I'm excited, Korra, seriously. I agree with you – I just want to be a dad now. But I guess I can wait a few more months."

Korra swallowed the justified fear in her throat, feeling love and reassurance well up instead at the look he was giving her. And for the first time, she admitted her growing feelings on the subject. "I'm excited to be a mom, too."

~P~

The next day, Asami visited the arena, and nearly fainted when she saw Korra's engagement ring. She began to babble about wedding plans – how it would be the biggest, most extravagant wedding of the century – while Korra sat there, nodding every few seconds to show she was acknowledging the girl's thoughts. Korra, while happy and eager to be engaged to Mako, did not understand the woman's – or any woman's, for that matter – fixation and hype on marriage. It was something special, sacred, pure and lovely, sure, but the months of preplanning didn't make sense to the Avatar. She would probably just have a small ceremony, consisting mostly of friends and family. Quite honestly, she wanted the thing to be as private as possible – hell, it could even be kept secret for a few months afterwards so that she and Mako had some time to adjust to their new lifestyle together. She wondered faintly if she'd be allowed to move in with Mako, or if he'd move to Air Temple Island with her, or if they'd be separated as per the usual for the beginning of the marriage. She didn't really know at that point – she'd cross the bridge when she got there.

After spending the morning with the brothers and Asami, did Korra travel back to the Island and inform them all of her new engagement. Tenzin was shocked, then irritated at the suddenness of it all, but at the same time, you could see how happy he was that Korra herself was so cheerful, and just the slightest bit relieved that she and Mako were a bit more serious than they had originally let on. Pema began to cry as though she were her mother – she practically was – and began to go off about the wedding like Asami, telling the Avatar that they would have to begin making plans. Jinora and Ikki were expectedly excited, while Meelo was both not interested and typically-little boy disgusted by it.

The last few months passed easily, leisurely, with Mako and Korra making the mutual decision to tie the knot after the arrival. Mako became increasingly nervous and doting as the due date – as determined by Saiyu to be August 14th – approached and barely let Korra out of his sights. The Avatar no longer found it irritating, but endearing. He just wanted to be a father so bad, but at the same time, he wanted to preserve the short amount of time he had left of just it being him and Korra. Soon, their nights would be filled with the soft, constant cries of a baby, of which would keep them up regularly.

So when a week after her due date passed, Mako was a bit more than annoyed and confused, while Korra just wanted to birth the thing in favour of having her mobility back and the ability to wear normal clothes and to just be comfortable. Where was their baby? Mako just wanted to hold the little life – right then! He stayed by her side at every waking second – what if she went in to labour when he wasn't around? What if another hemorrhaging episode took place and no one was there to help? Mako couldn't even bear to think of what the consequences could be if he left her alone! So after a few more days passed, Asami waved the man away – she needed some time alone with her friend, too, and she insisted that Korra needed some time away from Mako. She advised the Firebender to go home and get some sleep and stop worrying – it's not like that night was going to be any different than the rest. In the morning, Korra would still be pregnant, and he would still be able to see her. Nothing would change. Mako was, obviously, reluctant, but after some arguing with his brother's sort-of significant other, he caved in and left the Island and returned to the arena, expecting that Asami was right: nothing of significance would occur. Oh, how wrong the non-bender was.

To quell Mako's fears and to finally get some talk time in with her friend, Asami was staying with Korra on Air Temple Island. Korra enjoyed spending time with her – she could be a ridiculous, normal teenage girl for once, instead of an impending mother. They talked about trivial things – Korra teased her about Bolin and they giggled about how stupid Tahno's hair was. They even went over baby names for a short bit – something that Mako and Korra had neglected up until then. While Korra liked some of the names she could think of – mostly of Water Tribe origin – and a few Asami proposed, none of them struck her. She decided that she'd just have to see the baby first to make the final decision on a name – that's what her parents had done with her, after all. And discuss it with Mako, of course.

After a while, the pair crawled into their beds, murmuring gently until sleep overrode their brains and caused them to fall into a slumber. Asami fell into an easy sleep, but Korra, unable to get comfortable and grumbling about the size of her stomach, laid on her side and closed her eyes. She began to speculate how the child would look and be like – first off, would it be a boy, or a girl? She and Mako had been unanimously referring to it as a boy up until then, but neither of them really had an idea. They'd just have to wait and see. Second, would it be a bender? Korra suspected so, having such a prevalent bending bloodline behind the child. Would he or she be a Firebender or a Waterbender? Would they have her aquamarine eyes or Mako's ochre ones? Korra knew that it didn't matter in the long run – she'd love the child unconditionally either way.

As the thoughts raced through her head, Korra's exhaustion finally weighed down on her eyelids heavily enough that she was able to overlook her discomfort and lull to a gradual sleep. But as Korra's luck would have had it, just as her mind began to succumb to the tempting darkness of sleep, did she suddenly feel something wet between her legs.

With a jolt, she sat up and threw the blankets to the side, observing the liquid. Much to her delight – and deeply-instilled fear – there was not a spot of blood in the liquid. It was clear, it was water. And then it hit Korra – oh, Spirits, it was water. Her freaking water had broken.

Her heart beating wildly, it took Korra a few minutes to find her voice before she called to her friend frantically, "Asami." No response – the raven-haired non-bender simply flipped over, facing the wall. "Asami." Still nothing. "Asami!" Korra shouted, and the girl shot up.

"What? What is it?" she asked, looking at the Avatar.

Korra swallowed, and pointed to the end of the bed. Eyes widening, Asami jumped up. "Oh, Spirits, Spirits, Spirits... I, uh, I'll go get Tenzin or Pema or whoever—just stay here!" Korra could see that Asami was just as flustered as she was, the only difference is that in a few hours, she wouldn't be having a baby.

"I wasn't really planning on leaving," Korra called sarcastically as she lay down, trying to grasp the situation. Of course, this would happen when Mako wasn't around. Of freaking course. She felt useless as she lay there, and after a few moments passed, she began to feel faint. She then heard a series of footsteps, and then Pema, Tenzin, and Asami entered her room.

Pema immediately went to the girl, who sat up with much difficulty. "Remember, Korra, to breath evenly," she directed. The woman kind of liked to think she was an expert in this – she'd done it four times before, after all.

Korra nodded, breath laboured, and Tenzin joined his wife by the Avatar's side. "We need to get you to the clinic," he told her quickly, not inexperienced in this at all, either.

Korra groaned. "Seriously? Can't I just stay here – we have everything to successfully complete this. Pema was allowed to have Hakoda here!"

"Pema didn't have a hemorrhaging incident six and half months in," Tenzin told Korra bluntly, helping her to stand up. The Avatar glared at the man, but knew this was true. As much as she wanted to lie down, she couldn't take the chances of having the child on the Island. They'd have to get to the mainland, and Korra judged, having read a plethora of birthing books out of fear of "screwing up", soon.

Pema and Tenzin led Korra out of her room slowly, Asami following behind, completely out of her element and trembling as a result. As they arrived outside, towards the dock of the Island and to a small boat – it was the best they could do, no ferries were running at that time in the morning – Tenzin turned to Asami and directed her, "You should go and get Mako and Bolin as soon as possible and tell them to meet us there when we get to the mainland. The sentries can look after the children for a short bit - they're sleeping, anyway. Then, if it's not too much trouble, would you mind, if they want, bringing them to the clinic? They'll be a bit alarmed by our whereabouts, and will want to see Korra."

Asami nodded, joining the three other people in the boat. Fuelled by a fatherly sense, Tenzin rowed the boat furiously, making the usually leisurely, long trip in ten minutes. Pema and Asami tried to make Korra as comfortable as possible, which was proving difficult to do. The Avatar had grown grumpy, quickly. Tenzin quickly docked at one of the piers, and pulling Korra out of the small rowboat with his wife, headed in the direction of the clinic, knowing hailing a cab would be useless. Asami quickly bolted in the direction of the arena, slamming on the doors furiously.

"Dammit, Toza, open up!" she whispered harshly, irritated that the doors were locked. After a few more loud, raucous bangs, she saw the older man waddle out from the dark, rubbing his eyes, equally as annoyed as she was.

Yanking open the front door, he glared at the non-bender. "Whaddaya want?"

"I need to speak to Mako," she breathed.

Toza's glare intensified. "He's asleep. Leave 'im alone. It can wait 'til tomorrow."

"Korra's having the baby! Get out of my way!" Asami pushed the crabby older male out of the way, his eyes widening at her words. He blinked at her, shook his head, and then muttered something to himself as he allowed the door to shut and lock, returning to his room.

Asami ran down the many corridors of the impossibly large building and after what seemed like forever, arrived at the staircase that led to Mako and Bolin's attic apartment. Catching her breath, she ascended the long set of stairs, huffing along. Upon seeing the front door of the cramped apartment, she raised her fist and knocked obnoxiously until she heard some stirring from inside and it opened, revealing a sleepy Bolin.

Upon seeing the girl, his green eyes brightened and he held out his hands. "Asami!" he said her name cheerily, but then it sunk in. "Uh, not that I'm not glad to see you, but why are you here? It's, like, three in the morning."

Asami stepped into the apartment and looked around frantically for the Firebender. She spotted Mako sitting up from his bed, groggily staring at his brother and the girl, not quite comprehending the situation. Turning back to Bolin, she crossed her arms. "Think, Bolin. Why would I be here at three in the morning?"

Bolin blinked, clueless for a second, before it hit him like a ton of bricks. Eyes widening to the size of saucers, he jumped over to his dresser and began to pull on some half decent-looking clothes.

Mako was rubbing his eyes, and Asami walked up to him. He blinked at her. "Don't you understand? Korra's having your kid! Get the hell up!"

At these words, Mako's heart seemed to jumpstart and he felt like he was having a momentary cardiac arrest. Bolting up, he collected his everyday clothes and pulled them on like his brother did, his mind spinning. This was it – he was going to be a father, responsible for another human being, another life, in just a few hours. And honestly, he was so scared it was almost debilitating, and he had to stop to catch his breath a few times, flitting in between his utter incomprehension and his fear all at once.

He tripped on his own two feet and fumbled a bit, but his brother caught him, and finally grasping the situation a bit, they all bolted out of the apartment. They were still caught in between sleep and shock, and so it was some work to exit to building, especially for the extremely flustered Firebender.

Upon exiting the building, Asami turned to the pair. "I've got to go get the kids," she explained, and Bolin took her hand, nodding at her and causing her to blush despite the situation.

"I'll go with you."

Both turned to Mako. "You should go – we'll meet you there with the rascals in a half hour, okay?" Bolin told him, and when he saw the concern swimming in his brother's pupils, he smiled good-naturedly and wrapped his arm around his brother's shoulders. "You're gonna be a great dad, bro. And I can't wait to be an uncle – so go!" He shooed Mako off then, who stumbled a bit. "Go on! Go to Korra for us!"

Mako breathed in, centering himself – he had prepared himself for this mentally beforehand, had read about it, but nothing could really prepare one for the birth of their child – before smiling nervously at his brother and nodding, before taking off.

Bolin grinned back at his brother's minimizing form, before turning to Asami and nodding, both entering the docked rowboat and returning to the Island.

~P~

Korra grumbled, stretching out to the best of her ability and laying uselessly against the pillows placed behind her. Pema sat beside her, giving her an all-knowing smile, and telling her about how she would be fine. Korra knew she was inclined to trust the woman – she had more experience that the Avatar really ever wanted to have – and so she listened somewhat intently, before another contraction shook her weakening frame.

She clutched Pema's hand, whom squeezed it back. Tenzin felt useless as he paced at the other end of the room, feeling guilt pass through him as he watched the poor girl in pain. He wished he could prevent her from feeling it, but it was inevitable. He also felt bad that the Avatar's actual parents couldn't be there to help their daughter through such a significant milestone in her young life – but they were so far away, and Korra had insisted that they didn't need to visit her during the pregnancy, that they could afterwards. They had reluctantly agreed, and even though Korra denied needing them, he knew she wanted and needed them there just as much as she needed himself and Pema.

Sighing, he pinched the bridge of his nose. There it was – the feeling that in a few hours, he'd technically be a grandfather. The thought terrified him, but then he looked at Korra and remembered she was only eighteen and that she must extremely frightened at the moment. Unable to bear watching her be in pain, he joined the pair on the other side of the room, and walking to the opposite side of the bed, took her hand and squeezed it life his wife was doing.

Korra relaxed as the contraction disappeared, blowing hair out of her sweaty forehead. Almost immediately upon arriving at the clinic and getting placed in a room by Saiyu, did the dreaded contractions rock Korra, shaking her to her core and renewing her fear, rooting it deeply.

The horrid things had simply gotten worse and longer as time passed, and though Korra was undoubtedly a strong-willed person, they were riding on both her patience and her body. She was exhausted, having gotten no sleep since the day before, and all she wanted was for Tenzin and Pema to tell her that she didn't have to do this and to see Mako. She knew the former, however, wasn't going to come true.

Biting her tongue, she wondered where the hell her boyfriend – no, fiancé, she still hadn't adjusted to that! – was. She was beginning to hate him for putting her in this situation, and she was going to let him know it when he arrived.

As though Mako had heard her mental pleading, he entered the room frantically a few moments later, huffing heavily. He leaned against the wall to regain his breath, before he looked up and saw Korra, and his breath was taken away all over again.

Wandering over to the girl, she smiled at him slightly. Pema moved away from the Avatar to allow him closer access to the woman he loved, and with a shaky smile, he bent down to her and was about to place a light kiss on her mouth when he was grabbed by the scarf and yelled at. "How could we be so stupid, Mako?" Korra shouted at him, tugging at the red material. "Why would we even do this? Now I... now I have to push this thing out! Ugh!"

She threw her arms out, exasperated, hormones fluctuating. Mako blinked at her, before smiling softly and sneaking a kiss onto her forehead. "Love you, too," he whispered, taking a seat beside the bed. Korra crossed her arms and turned away from the man, and his smile widened before he turned to Pema. "S-so," he began, "any news on how much longer?"

"She's barely dilated," Tenzin spoke for his wife. "This could take until tomorrow if the baby feels like being difficult."

Mako nodded, frowning. He just wanted to meet their baby now – not in another day, now. Sighing, he frowned and stood up, squeezing Korra's hand. Korra's eyes drooped and then closed, and her head turned a bit, noticeably drifting off.

Mako blinked down at her form, before walking over to Tenzin. The pair stood by each other quietly, before Mako placed a hand on the older man's shoulder. The intense look in the Firebender's eyes told Tenzin it was important, and so they wandered out of the room, despite wanting to constantly be watching the Avatar.

Upon shutting the door, the two men stood silently, unmoving. Swallowing, Mako spoke up. "Did—" he coughed, clearing his throat, before continuing, "Did you ever feel nervous, Tenzin? Like, when Jinora was born?"

Tenzin stared pensively at the ground, but upon hearing his words, smiled slightly and looked up. "You have no idea," the older man nodded at Mako. He sighed, chuckling to himself a bit as he remembered his first daughter's delivery. "I was already so old, but still, nothing can prepare you for your first child – it doesn't matter how old or young you are. Either way, you're going to be undeniably scared, Mako. It just comes with being a father, it's natural. But it gets easier, I promise." Mako blinked at the man, wide-eyed, and Tenzin guffawed. "Not that I expect you two to jump on having more immediately after this one," he gave the boy a dark look then. "No, seriously, I expect you to wait a few years."

Mako nodded hastily. "I have no plans about rushing into another kid, Tenzin. I just want to appreciate this one first."

Tenzin smiled, placing a hand on the young man's shoulder. "You really love her, don't you?"

Mako smiled genuinely. "What was your first clue? The engagement ring or the baby?"

The Airbending master let out a noise between a sigh and a laugh, shaking his head. "I didn't use trust you, Mako, but now I do, because I see how genuine you are and how much Korra loves you back. You've been incredible to her, and I just... I just wanted to thank you for that," Tenzin looked away, not used to speaking his feelings to anyone besides his wife.

The scene was awkwardly quiet for a few seconds afterwards, before Mako broke it, sheepishly rubbing the back of his neck. "Thank you, too, Tenzin," he admitted. "For just... being there. For all of us." He spied the man then, whose perpetually serious grey eyes had softened.

They stared at each other for a short bit, before nodding. The silence between them was broken by Korra's shout, and Mako tensed and immediately made for the door, Tenzin following swiftly and shortly afterwards. The Firebender saw tears of frustration and pain running down Korra's face, and he made his way to the side of the bed Pema wasn't on, clutching her hand, trying to comfort her to the best of his ability. Placing his other hand on her stomach, he gave her a reassuring, soft smile. "Just a bit longer, Korra," he promised whisperingly.

Biting her tongue as the contraction, stronger and more excruciating than the last one, rocked her body, Korra managed to choke out, "Easy for you to say! You don't have to give birth to it. Dammit!" She clutched at her stomach as it became unbearably painful to deal with.

Mako kneeled down and wiped the sweat off her brow and the tears from her cheek. "You're right," he frowned, "I'm sorry. But... but just think, Korra, it'll all be worth it in the end, won't it?"

Korra, through the curtain of pain in her mind, focussed on his words. He was right – it would be all worth it after it was all over. They'd have a little baby to call their own in the end of it. And that thought made Korra more scared and elated than any other in her entire life.

Petting back her hair, he turned around to Tenzin. "Is there anything they can give her to lessen the pain?" he asked, wanting to relieve Korra's tension as much as possible.

Tenzin shook his head sadly. "Unfortunately, no," he answered. He looked to the ceiling then, rewording his answer. "Actually, Korra's already taken some basic painkillers, but that the extent she's allowed. Saiyu doesn't want risk giving her something heavier when it could react adversely – she's still weak from the hemorrhaging, and most of the more potent medicines here will help momentarily, but have long-term, unpleasant side effects later on. We're just not willing to take the risk."

Mako nodded, he understood. But as he heard Korra whimper from beside him, he wished he could take her pain away. He then got an idea, and standing up, he instructed Korra to sit up a bit and lean forward to the best of her ability, which wasn't much considering the literal ball in front of her preventing her from enjoying anything at the moment. Korra groaned, disliking all the movement, but when she felt Mako's fingers gently, but firmly, knead into her tense back muscles, did she let out a little contented sigh.

The Firebender smiled at her reaction, knowing that a good massage would do the trick to relax her a bit. Pema looked at her husband from across the bed and smiled at him, signifying they should leave the couple be for now. Tenzin nodded and the husband and wife pair left them.

Mako worked from her shoulders downwards, and talked to her casually to soothe her even more. "So, now would be your final chance to put down whether or not you think it's a boy or a girl... I'm still going with girl."

"Boy," Korra countered, "definitely a boy."

Mako grinned behind her, leaning forward then and placing a tender kiss on her shoulder and collarbone. "Soon, Korra, soon."

Korra placed her hand on top of his, which was resting on her shoulders. Curling her fingers around his, she whispered with a faint smile, "I know."

Just then, another contraction hit her, and her fingers dug into his hand and she clenched her mouth shut, fresh tears rolling down her cheeks. Mako wrapped his arms around her and held her back flush against his chest, swaying back and forth comfortingly.

Korra contained her pained cries this time, and it eventually ended. Turning to Mako, she gave him a pointed, unimpressed look. "Soon isn't fast enough, Mako." He laughed.