Won - Makorra fic

~P~

Won

~P~

Korra bent some water into her hands from the vents underneath her and shot it fiercely towards the Pro-Bending competitor in front of her, sending them into the last Zone of the arena. Mako was on her right, sending a ferocious, unrelenting barrage of Firebending attacks at his own foe. Bolin was to her left, blasting earth disks at the competitor she was also trying to knock off. This was the final round of their championship match, and they had already knocked off the other team's Waterbender, and the other members of the team were quickly tiring out. There were only two more members to knock off the platform and the Fire Ferrets would win the championship!

This thought made Korra smile to herself as she collected some more water and continued to shoot it at the panicking team member. He was trying desperately to stay on the platform, to avoid falling into the water below him. It was futile, though – her and Bolin's synced attacks were too much for him to handle at the same time. He couldn't even defend himself, instead running back and forth between the small Zone space, barely avoiding the assaults.

Her and Bolin's moves interchanged effortlessly. The Fire Ferrets had trained mercilessly for that moment, going through trying emotional hardships and physical limit-pushing. Every little tuff she had been in with Mako, every Equalist fight, every sparring session she had been through with both brothers... had contributed to this moment. It helped her sync with her partners, her teammates, her best friends. They had been through too much together to ignore. And this connection that they had all built and shared was what would land them that winning position, and Korra knew that.

Within a few more moments, attack after attack hitting the opposing team member, did he trip over his own two frantically-moving feet, sending himself one hundred feet down to the water below. He shrieked as he fell, and Korra wanted to run over and high-five Bolin, but they weren't done yet. Even though the last team member was no match for Mako, he was still holding up a fair fight, which meant that they hadn't quite won yet.

Turning her head and nodding at the Earthbending brother, they ran to the Firebender's side and began to add in their own elemental assaults. For a brief second, Mako broke his concentration on the competitor, looking over at the other Fire Ferrets. He caught Korra's blue eyes, and she smiled and nodded at him before turning back and shooting some water at the other man.

A confident grin broke out on Mako's angular features at this, and he also diverted his attention back to the triple assault they were all managing. Shiro Shinobi was shouting something about the Fire Ferrets as he felt his hand heat up and he sent a flaming flare at the other team's Earthbender, and the crowd around him was shouting and cheering hysterically. But he couldn't hear any of it – all he could hear was the blood and adrenaline pounding in his ears as he continued to shoot flares at the man.

The last few seconds of the round seemed to suspend and it made the entire moment seem longer than it was. The other's team Earthbender was sent back into Zone Two, Zone Three, and then the right off the back of the platform. It seemed to happen in slow motion, and the Firebender caught his breath and stared at his heavily breathing teammates beside him, as if trying to gauge whether or not it was all real – if they had really just won the Pro-Bending championships.

Suddenly, his pulse slowing, Mako's ears allowed him to register the blaring din around him of cheering fans, and Shiro's commentary.

"And that's it, folks! The Fire Ferrets have won the Pro-Bending championship for this year! What an amazing match that was – not one second did they hold back! Incredible!" Shiro called out loudly, and the cheers' noise level rose at this.

Mako pulled off his helmet, as did Bolin and Korra. They peered all around the stadium, trying to take in the whole situation. Korra's breath was staggered and her heart was beating erratically as she processed it all – they won the championships. The championships... they won the championships!

She and Bolin turned to each other at the same time, and he was grinning widely, eyes closed in his excitement. They high-fived and hugged quickly, trying to shout above the screeching, but their words went unheard, and so they just laughed instead.

Upon being released from Bolin's strong arms, so that he could make a winning lap around the arena to his appease his fan girls, Korra turned to Mako, who was just standing there, stunned. The Avatar was surprised that his gaze wasn't directed back at his girlfriend – who was probably cheering the loudest of them all – at the little team docking station, but she couldn't help but feel a bit gladdened, too. This was their team victory – Asami had nothing to do with it, because her father was the one who was sponsoring the team. Korra and the brothers had gotten through the championship by their own talent, though, and so this was not Asami's moment to share with Mako. It was Korra's for once.

Sensing as though someone was staring at him, Mako's shock subsided and he looked across the expanse to see Korra looking intently at him. The pair blinked at each other, and the look of sheer happiness of his face was enough to send Korra flying at him. His eyes were shining brightly and a large grin spread across his face as he dropped his helmet and opened his arms wide to embrace the enthusiastic Avatar.

Her arms flung around his neck and pulled the pair close together. Mako's arms encircled her waist tightly, pressing their faces together. Korra's laugh chimed in his ears as he spun them around. Setting her on the ground, he directed his grin towards her and took in her features. Her hair was mussed up in areas, her cheeks were flushed and her skin was slicked with sweat, but her aquamarine eyes were wide and bright and her smile was glorious and infectious, radiating her obvious joy. To the Firebender, she had never looked more beautiful. Pressing their foreheads together, he leaned closer to her face as she spoke something to him, struggling to hear her but also wanting to be closer.

"We won," she whispered simply. Her eyes seemed to twinkle as she said this, and she reiterated herself. "We won, Mako, we won!"

Mako nodded at her, his own ochre eyes brimming with pride, his heart thudding quickly in his chest. "We couldn't have done it without you, Korra," he admitted, squeezing his arms around her and pulling her closer. The Firebender knew that his girlfriend was somewhere in that very arena, watching his actions, but he could barely focus on that right then. He was in the moment, and with Korra. And that's all that mattered to him right then.

He watched as the Avatar's cheeks flushed at his words, and in that moment, all he knew was that he wanted to kiss her. He didn't know what it was that was compelling him – was it the excitement and enthusiasm of their win? Was it his furiously thudding heart and close proximity for her? Or was it his heavily shielded and hidden feelings for her coming forth again? That's what it had been the last time...

Mako decided he didn't really care, and without any consideration for anything else, took the moment as his own when he pressed his lips against hers. Once again, all Mako could hear was his pulse in his temples as he felt her respond with the same fervour he was. His hands held her steadfast against him, and her arms tightened around his neck and pulled his mouth closer to hers.

She tasted sweet and Mako felt as though a weight was lifted from his shoulders as he indulged in her lips, his mind spinning. Korra felt as if she was going to fall apart in that moment from all that was happening around her and that the only thing keeping her together was Mako's hands at her waist. A fire had been released in her veins upon feeling his lips on hers, setting her mind and heart aflame. Her hands travelled in his black hair and latched onto the short locks, and the Firebender groaned into her mouth when she tugged at them a bit. One of his hands went to her face, holding her chin and tilting her mouth against his, before caressing her cheek.

When they pulled back, the arena was booming with whoops, causing both two flush, though it went unnoticed as their faces were already red from the lack of air received during the intense lip lock. Korra pulled away from Mako a bit, looking at the ground and trying to suppress her embarrassed grin. Bolin blinked at his brother, and the Firebender could see the conflicting emotions in his eyes. They were both scolding him for kissing Korra in front of his girlfriend, but also gleeful at the fact that both had finally accepted their feelings for each other. Along with his bright green eyes, a lopsided smile sat on Bolin's lips.

Korra remained turned away from Mako for longer than he liked, and he took her hand, squeezing it and pulling her back to face him. When he saw her expression, eyes eager, he felt desperate to kiss her again, but held back as his mind was reminded of Asami. He looked in the direction of the woman he was dating, but didn't love, and saw her blank face.

The Firebender felt guilty, his moment of pure happiness having gone and passed. Korra's gaze had followed his over to Asami, and suddenly, her heart dropped and she wrenched her hand from Mako's, instead returning to the other side of the platform with Bolin.

Mako blinked at her form, but she would not make eye contact with him, and his guilt and dread simply grew. This was supposed to be a great, joyous moment for them, and while the kiss kiss it had simply intensified these initial feelings, now that it was over and the consequences had hit him, his happiness had quite a damper put on it. He hated that he had let his usually well-controlled feelings take over and make the decision for him – but he didn't regret it, and that's what struck him.

He wouldn't go back on kissing Korra right there and then.

~P~

Korra held a hand to her burning lips as she stepped from the arena platform to the smaller, moving, metal one in front of her. As it carried her and her teammates back to the preparation room – to Asami – she felt her stomach drop. She refused to make eye contact with the man she had kissed, instead sticking to the side of the moving contraption, almost tempted to jump off and into the water below just to avoid the tension between them.

When they arrived at the docking station, they slowly removed themselves from the platform, and Korra immediately made for the door. There was no way she was going to stay there for the inevitable fight or awkward conversation that was going to take place between Mako and Asami. If she was going to have a confrontation with the woman, it would happen later, without the Firebender or anyone else around to observe.

As she turned at the doorway, Korra regretfully caught Mako's eyes on her, and looked away quickly. She could talk with the Firebender later – after things were sorted with his girlfriend... Spirits, Korra hated that word when used to describe Asami with Mako.

As she walked back to the change room, Korra felt a peculiar twisting in her stomach when she thought about the kiss. It hadn't been all that sudden, despite what other people thought. She knew it was coming when she saw the intense look in his eyes, leering down at her, glowing with happiness, brimming with pride. And, despite her knowledge of Asami somewhere in the arena, watching them intently, she kissed him, because she had held back for so damn long and it just wasn't fair anymore. She needed some kind of escape, no matter how disastrous or temporary it may be.

But Mako and her feelings for him were more than just an escape – they were the real thing, unfortunately. Korra originally saw them as stupid and a weakness – she didn't understand why her heart beat just a little faster when his eyes lingered on her, why she felt her pulse rush and her throat tighten with jealousy when he was around the non-bender. She hated them back then because they simply hindered her bending abilities, making them sloppier and less powerful. But as they grew, she found that her feelings for him actually helped strengthen her bending and intensify the force of her attacks. It also, to an extent, also helped with her meditating and spirituality. She was more relaxed when she thought about Mako, making the long hours of meditation Tenzin put her through easier. To put it simply, Mako made her happy, and this joy translated into a passion that easily helped power her bending and put her at ease when it came to her troubled spirituality.

She knew that she had tumbled head first into something with him that could not be ignored, and she didn't mind it. Though she still felt burning, biting jealousy when Asami had her arm tucked around his own, she knew that she held a place in his heart, too, by the secrets he would share with her and the way he would look at her, the priceless time spent together. He made her mind frazzle and her heart beat erratically – and it finally surpassed emotional boundaries just a few minutes beforehand, culminating in that very kiss. They could no longer hold in what they felt, could no longer convey it through simple looks and touches – there needed to more, and it needed to happen as soon as possible. And so it had.

And despite the fact that it had to happen with an audience... Korra didn't regret kissing him.

~P~

Mako stood on one side of the small, open space, waiting patiently for his brother to filter out so he could talk to Asami. Things needed to be clarified, then and there. Bolin sensed the tension between the broken couple and easily left the room, happy to be rid of the suspense as he went his way down the hallway.

Mako broke eye contact with Asami briefly so that he could shut and lock the door, before placing his helmet down and turning to the woman. Her blank expression from before had turned annoyed – the slight furrow of her brow and her crossing her arms signified this, and Mako sighed. He deserved the yelling he knew was going to take place.

However, Asami remained quiet as the moment stretched on, and the Firebender began to become flustered. He felt odd under her intense gaze and looked away, rubbing the back of his neck. Was she going to speak first, or was she going to make him suffer by doing it?

When it became obvious that she was not going to speak first, he forced out, "Look, Asami, I'm sorry that you had to see that."

"But you aren't sorry you did it," she returned quickly, and he looked at her with wide eyes. How did she know? Her green eyes were narrowed at him, waiting for him to either disprove or agree with her question, and when Mako's head hung low, she had her answer.

"You're... right," he admitted. "I am sorry, Asami, I really am. But... Korra..."

"You love her," Asami finished for him bluntly. She was barely holding back the emotions bubbling inside her – a mix of envy, anger, sadness... all of it. Normally, she was calm and sensible when it came to situations. But this was no normal situation – one did not just react rationally when they witnessed their boyfriend kissing another woman right there in front of them.

Mako stared at her, and slowly, he nodded, swallowing. Was he that easy for the non-bender to read? At this physical conformation – even though she already knew he did – did Asami's emotionless shield break, and she turned as she felt a tear fall down her cheek.

Mako blinked at her reaction, watching her shoulders shake, her back to him. Despite his feelings for Korra, he still cared about Asami, and so he walked across the short expanse that separated them and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Asami..."

"I just don't understand why you couldn't at least break up with me first, Mako," she murmured under her breath. "That would've saved us the embarrassment. Now everyone just knows, because they watched it happen!"

Mako huffed. "I know. I swear... it just... happened."

"No, it didn't!" she turned around sharply to face him. "The kiss may have been, but for the past few months, everything between you two has been bottling up, leading to this... this breaking point! It was going to happen sooner or later!" The Firebender stood his ground – he was going to let her be angry at him, because she deserved that much from him, a tentative ear to listen. She balled her fists out of her frustration, holding them to her sides firmly. A few quiet moments passed between them, and another tear fell from her eyes, something she regretted heavily as she raised a hand to wipe at her eyes fiercely. This wasn't fair to her – for Korra to just swoop in like this on their relationship, but at the same time, Asami knew it was a long time coming. She saw the longing looks that Mako would give the Avatar and the charming smile he would direct at her – Mako was never in love with her, because he had been falling for Korra the entire time he was in a relationship with the Sato heiress, he just wouldn't admit it up until that moment. It was a stinging realization that made her heart thump painfully, but it was the complete and utterly honest truth.

Throwing her hands up suddenly, she choked out, "I... I just—"

Mako didn't say anything in that moment and took a few seconds to decide what he was going to do. He could embrace the woman – he still cared about her and her feelings, and he hated seeing her so despaired, so used to her sweet, confident demeanour... or he could just stand there awkwardly. He really didn't know what to do – did he even have the right to touch her anymore in that moment, after what he had done? Or had he broke some unspoken line of trust? He decided that he didn't care, and stepping forward, folded his arms loosely around her frame, pulling her to him. The least he could do now that he had broken her heart was give her comfort, if anything at all – even if he wasn't inclined to be the person to give it.

Asami froze at this action, before relaxing in the familiar hug. She hesitantly lifted her arms and draped them around his torso.

They stood there in silence – or as much as the constant din of the arena around them provided – taking in the entire situation and accepting it slowly. They needn't speak the words – they knew that their now-virtually nonexistent relationship was over. Eventually, Asami pulled back from his embrace and smiled up at him shakily. "I... just want you do whatever you feel is right. And I know that being with me isn't that for you anymore."

Mako nodded at her, feeling a small smile grow on his face at her understanding. She was still flustered, still taking in the situation, but at least she was accepting it for what it was. "Thank you, Asami," he muttered whisperingly, wiping away one of her tears with the pad of his thumb gently, holding her in his arms for a few seconds longer before releasing her and stepping back.

He watched as she looked up at him, pulling a small silk handkerchief from her pocket and dotting her cheeks with it daintily. Blinking at him, she shooed him off. "Go, now! Go see her, Mako." She couldn't believe she was encouraging her now ex-boyfriend to go and see Korra – but she knew it was for the best, what was right, and besides, she wanted some time alone to truly grasp and accept everything. She didn't like it when people saw her cry, either – she was a controlled, calm young woman, and so it was discerning having someone watch as her emotional walls tumbled.

Mako peered at her, trying to gauge whether she was okay or not. He knew that she wasn't really all that okay, considering the entire situation. But he did know that she would be okay – she was strong Asami Sato. It was one of the things that had attracted her to him – her emotional capacity, how strongly she felt about things, how compassionate and understanding she was. It would take time, but she would get over him eventually, because she was Asami Sato and she didn't need a man to make her happy.

Nodding at her, he quickly pulled off his gear and placed it in the closet beside him, taking his previously discarded helmet and placing it inside, as well. At this, he made his way to the locked door and unlocked it, and giving her one last look, exited the room and closed the door behind him.

Asami stood there, staring at the passageway, before slumping against the railing of the little room, looking down into the water of the arena. She smiled sadly to herself, before folding up her slightly mascara-stained handkerchief and placing it in her pocket.

She'd be okay, she knew that. It would just take some time. But this didn't take the edge off of her newly broken heart as she thought of the Avatar and the Firebender together.

~P~

Mako walked past the gym, wanting to get to the change rooms as soon as possible so he could catch Korra before she could get away. If he didn't talk to her that night, then it would be a painfully long time until things got clarified between them because the rest of the week would be hectic with interviews and parties and the awarding of their trophy to them. Besides, there would be some ridiculous press speculation on his and Asami's now broken relationship and what exactly the context of their kiss was, and he wanted Korra to get the proper information directly from him.

It took the Firebender a few seconds to notice that the Avatar was sitting on the floor in the middle of the gym, and he wheeled backwards, confused as to why she was sat there in the dark, quiet room. He approached her slowly, cocking a small smile.

"Hey," he offered as he arrived at her seating place, standing a foot back from her, staring down at her. He wanted to scoop her up into his arms and kiss her, but he knew that she was still confused to the situation right then, and so decided against it, despite how much he wanted to.

Korra looked up at him, her bright blue eyes unblinking. "Hey." She had been waiting for what felt like forever for the Firebender to finish talking to Asami – she didn't want to go and interrupt the discussion between them, and so decided to just sit and think while she waited for him.

She came to the easy conclusion that she loved him, but that he might just pass off the kiss as a mistake. Who was to say that he and Asami hadn't just made up and he was just there to deny Korra all over again? Remembering their first kiss together and how he had responded, but then rejected her, made the Avatar frown. He had already done a number on her heart, both in pain and jealousy and pure love and adoration, and she wasn't sure she could handle this possibility if that were the case. She couldn't hear him tell her no all over again. She wondered how she had affected him – did he feel as strongly as she did? Did he love her, too?

The Avatar decided that she shouldn't get her hopes up like she had the first time, and so gave him a rather emotionless expression as he greeted her. Mako was a bit put off by the indifference on her face, and sat down beside her, a short distance away.

A few moments of silence passed, and Mako said, "So, I talked with Asami."

Korra, suddenly embittered at the thought of being rejected, blew a piece of hair out of her face nonchalantly and rolled her eyes. "That's good."

Mako's eager grin fell at this, "What's wrong, Korra?"

The Avatar shook her head then. "You know, if you've come to tell me it's not going to happen, you should just get straight to the point. Just be your usual blunt self instead of lovesick with Asami, please."

Mako's eyebrows furrowed at this, and watching as she tried to stand up, he grabbed her wrist and forced her back down, and she glared at him, despite the fact that she was happily embracing and kissing the young man less than a half an hour beforehand. "Korra, I broke up with Asami. I came here to tell you that, so stop being petty and listen for once."

At this, Korra stop trying to wrench her hand from his grasp, and her shoulders relaxed a bit. Her throat went dry and her heart beat erratically. "Y-you did?"

"Why wouldn't I, Korra?" he gave her an odd look. "I kissed you. That doesn't really signify a healthy relationship with another human being."

Korra, trying to figure out her flustering emotions, began to ramble. "B-but I thought that was just a spur-of-the-moment thing and that you were... well, don't you love Asami?" The words left a funny taste in her mouth – she didn't like thinking about the man she loved herself loving another person.

Mako cracked a smile at her, scooting closer as he wrapped an arm around her waist. He understood why she had been acting bitterly – she was confused, jealous of what she didn't know. Well, he was about to set her straight. "Korra, I love you."

At this, the Avatar's heart stopped momentarily and then restarted, thumping along wildly at his confession. She tried to take in his words, her mind spinning, but she didn't allow herself to as she leaned forward, and tugging on the collar of his shirt, kissed him.

The same searing fire shot through her veins when their lips collided, and it intensified when his other hand snaked around her waist and pulled her against him. She eagerly kissed him back, feeling all her happiness at winning and his reciprocity fuelling the passion of the lip lock even more.

Feeling the need to specify just how she felt about him, too, she whispered against his lips, "I love you, too." Mako's heart soared at this, and one of his hands came up to the back of her head to cradle it. He held her gently against him, but kissed her fiercely, wanting to convey as much of his love as possible into the kiss. A short while of broken kissing later, he pulled away and with half-lidded eyes, admired her flushed face.

"I'm sorry for making you wait," he whispered, pressing a kiss to her nose and enjoying the soft laugh that escaped her lips, before capturing them again. He really was – what he had put her through just to get to this point in their relationship was unfair, and he felt like he didn't deserve to be there with her. But he'd be damned if he let someone take her from him.

"All that matters is now," she answered back, smiling against his mouth and caressing his features with tender, exploring fingers. Intertwining their fingers, Korra pressed more of her weight against him, causing him to fall to the training room's floor with a soft thud. "Besides, we have all the time in the world to catch up with each other."

He chuckled at her, but she silenced him with another impassioned kiss. Putting her head against his chest, she heard his steady heartbeat, and sighed, and he wrapped his arms around her.

A few moments of silence passed, and Korra whispered out, "We won." He knew that she was implying more than just their winning the championships – they had finally revealed their feelings and had won each other in return.

Squeezing his arms around her, Mako smiled and said, "Yes, we did."