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Characters: Korra, Mark
Date: December 16th
Location: EA-2A
Situation: Mark's a new egg momma
Warnings/Rating: N/A
The egg had been one of Korra’s main sources of comfort in the wake of Eshai’s passing, the other being Mako, so it was without much surprise that the Avatar was always a bit let down when the egg was ready to go to its other caretaker: Temeraire.

Feeling the tranquility fade along with the light, Korra awoke from her light doze and she lifted her head from Naga’s fur. A yawn from her stirred the polar bear dog and Korra rose up to her feet to take off the tribble blankets from the egg. Rubbing the egg fondly, Korra began to walk towards the door. The stone that the egg was clutched in followed after her, sliding soundlessly on the floor.

Once they were outside, Korra got onto Naga and took the reins so they could go to Temeraire’s suite in the Fire Sector. At least, that’s what she was expecting to do. The egg on the other hand wanted to seek out another direction entirely.

At first Korra thought the egg was trying to seek out Victoria, but the little girl had gone back home. Not only that, but she lived in the Water Sector and the egg was more set on the Earth Sector.

Confused, but curious, Korra let the egg guide her. Eventually they wound their way to a unit in Earth where the egg stopped, content at this location. Enough to being glowing and radiating off that serene aura once more and Korra merely stared in surprise that it chose another caretaker.

She knocked on the door to EA-2A.

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For a while now, Mark had felt restless. Though he couldn't put his finger on why, all he wanted to do was to leave his suite and go... somewhere. He had to keep fighting the urge, reminding himself that there really was no reason to go rushing off, especially considering he had no form of precognitive abilities, and managed to remain "home" with a little bit of difficulty.

He was surprised when he heard a knock at the door. Did he have some sort of newfound ability after all? ...Crazy talk. He crossed over to the door and threw it open.

"Korra? What are you doing here?"

When the door opened, Korra just stared at Mark. Not exactly the person she was expecting to see, but really, she didn’t know who to expect at all.

“Mark?” Looking at the egg as if it would explain what just happened, Korra placed her hand on it. Now the tranquil feeling around it was just as strong as when she had it at her suite.

“Our egg. It picked you…?” Really, she was just as lost as he was.

Mark looked out past Korra at the egg behind her. All he could think about at the sight of it were the Emperor's fears, that they were trojan horses sent by Malicant. He wanted so badly to believe that it wasn't true, but she had a point: how did they get here?

"The egg... picked me?" He wondered who had gone home that the egg felt compelled to replace with him. Why did the eggs require a three person team anyway? ...There was so much about this he didn't know, but he figured he was about to get a crash course in one way or the other.

"Wouldn't have put on the light show otherwise." She smirked and gave it a gentle pat, but she held her arm out and the earth that was clutching it receded back into the ground; albeit a bit messily.

"Want to carry it in?" Normally, Korra would have approached the subject of what she learned while her memory was gone with a bit more abrasiveness, but the giant egg's emotionally soothing aura kept that to a snarky and playful level.

Why him? He didn't know the first thing about the eggs. Heck, this was the first time he'd actually seen one in person. He hadn't felt particularly compelled to go seek one out... well, he supposed that he did in hindsight, just before Korra showed up, but nothing before that.

Mark looked between Korra and the huge egg. He could lift that thing with ease, but he knew Korra didn't know that. She was his protector and all that, even if the fact she was convinced he needed saving made him feel guilty. But he had a secret identity to protect, in case someone like Angstrom Levy showed up. He was protecting her, right?

"Uh... Korra that thing is huge."

Even with the serene aura of the egg, Korra managed to give Mark an incredibly flat look. It hadn’t hit her that she just asked him to display his superpowers outside of his suite, not until a few moments later.

A forceful movement of her foot brought the clutch back from the ground to carefully close around the egg. "It needs your care right now too." Pushier than normal, Korra began to walk into Mark’s suite with the egg sliding on the earth behind her.

Though Mark could be thick from time to time, he would have to be blind to have missed the look Korra shot him when he hinted that he couldn't handle it. Did she know? How did she know? Did someone tell her? Why isn't she saying she knew? Maybe... maybe he was just reading too much into this. Maybe she still didn't know, and she just... didn't want to bring it into his house or something.

Hopefully.

"...So what do I do?" He stares at the egg in his living room. Just being that close to it lessened the anxiety of having to care for it. For the first time since Korra showed up, he felt confident that he could help her and... whoever until it hatched.

As much as she wanted to pin down Mark with just how she knew, Korra had to give him the basics of caring for the egg.

"You have to keep it warm, but not hot. I usually cover it with blankets, and Naga likes to curl around it." There isn’t an electric blanket on the turtle that could compare to the body heat of a furry polar bear dog. "Don’t move it too much, only when it needs one of its other caretakers."

Korra gave a pause at that. "It shouldn’t be too hard. A little girl was one of the ones before you." She really did miss Victoria. "When it’s ready, it’ll probably want to go to Temeraire."

Beat.

"Do you know him?"

Mark stared at the egg, nodding as Korra gave the instructions. That... seemed simple enough. Except the part about it not being too hot. He hadn't properly been able to gauge the temperature around him since his powers emerged, instead relying on the cues of the seasons and the clothes of everyone around him to dress appropriately. There were no cues, though, with an egg, and the egg clearly had no way of telling him if it was too hot...

Then she made the comment about the little girl, and he made a face. "Was that an insult?"

Mark shook his head at the mention of some guy name Temeraire. "Never heard of him."

Edited 2013-12-27 17:44 (UTC)

Korra blinked.

"No, seriously. Victoria was taking care of the egg too before she left." Once the egg was settled, Korra undid the earth around its base. "It was her, Temeraire, and myself before. But anyway, Temeraire's a dragon; you can't miss him." Said casually, Korra was getting used to the crazier things on the turtle and both him and Iskierka were becoming a regular thing for her to see.

"He'll come looking for it if you don't want to fly it over to him." Her eyes wandered from Mark up to the ceiling where she noticed the burn marks when she first came in. Somewhat similar to the ones that were on the floor of her practice area at her suite.

Oh, well that was a little easier to--of course Temeraire's a dragon. Wait, a dragon? How had he not seen this guy yet?

Damn it, Korra, stop that. "Fly?" Mark wasn't sure if he should even try and deny it. She knew. But how?

Mark.

Maaaark.

Sighing, Korra rolled her eyes before fixing an unhappy look on him. Either he was really reaching or he didn't remember talking to her on the network when she had amnesia.

Did he think she wouldn't remember that?

"Yeah. Back when Zatanna's spell went haywire you got my bending." A casual point to the burn marks on the ceiling.

"And I was Invincible."

When she said "Invincible," he knew the jig was up. He had messed up big time somewhere, and all he could do now was hope she wasn't too pissed.

"...When did I slip up?"

Mark honestly never thought that was easy before, especially since it had cost him friendships, as well as his relationship with Amber, for both keeping it from her and confiding in her. But it was nothing compared to trying to figure out who of the same people he saw day in and day out, as both Invincible and Mark who should know what (or even who did know what). He had never noticed how his social circles back home so vastly differed before, and the few that overlapped knew his secret anyway. Before arriving on Keeliai, he never really had to watch his words with people, or remember "who" said what to whom, and now that he's been here a while, he only continues to screw it up. Maybe he should give up the idea of having a secret identity all together, and just go public. But then, what about his friends that didn't have powers? What if the guy who killed Hayley killed one of them too, because he knew they were friends? He couldn't live with the knowledge that he was responsible for yet another friend dying because of him. And--

Mark, focus. One problem at a time.

Acknowledging the truth and that he slipped up in one go made Korra ease back and she folded her arms; still visibly put out.

"When we were flying. Invincible told me he had my powers and almost set his suite on fire. On the network when I was trying to get my memories back you told me you had my bending when Zatanna’s magic shook everything up."

At this point she did kind of feel sorry for him. He really was trying to help her remember by answering her questions.

"…which you forgot to encrypt by the way." She added that last while looking away. Something she would have done if she could remember that she had an unhackable encryption set up by Tony.

Crap. How many time had he used his console as Mark instead of Invincible? That couldn't have been the only time, especially since he doesn't remember it. He has got to get his act together.

"I'll... see if there's anything I can do about that."

And then he looked up at Korra. She was mad at him. Of course she was, why wouldn't she be? He had lied to her face.

"I'm sorry, I had to lie to you." He paused, trying to figure out how best to explain this. "How many other superheroes do you know?"

The apology squinched her mouth over to one side of her face, but it was something other than the pissed off pout she was giving just moments before. They both missed their families and she knew he was just doing that secret identity stuff that Spider-Man had told her about; so it was hard to stay mad at him for long.

That didn’t stop her from trying.

"Secret identity wise? Just you." said as she unfolded her arms and went over to the egg to help her calm down some.

"But I know there’s Spider-Man, Aquaman, Superman, Iron Man, and Green Lantern. Take your pick on the last one."

A beat before she acidly spat out: "And Batman."

Okay good, so she at least knew superheroes. This would (hopefully) make explaining things easier.

"Wait, did you say Batman?" Why did he feel like he knew that name from somewhere? Like... he met a Batman before. "Never mind, I totally forgot where I was going with that."

After shaking the threads of a thought from his mind, he focused back on what he actually wanted to say. "See, when you put on a mask, you have to take steps to protect your family. Some people are apparently open about it, but people like me have to worry about my mom and when he was younger my brother.... or my best friend or my ex-girlfriend. People try to hurt them to get to you, because they're cowards and they know they're weaker. You get to a point where you hold your identity close to your chest, even to your friends."

Mark sighed. He really wished he was just better at it than he apparently was... "But I keep slipping up here. I'm used to my two social circles not overlapping like this. In hindsight I should have been honest with you upfront, because technically you're like a superhero with those powers of yours, but you seemed so excited about protecting me... I'm sorry."

It was almost identical to the way Spider-Man explained it to her, though Mark gave exact reasons on who and why he needed to protect them. Of course he could, Korra already knew about them from both Invincible and Mark himself.

If there’s one thing Korra’s a sucker for, it’s sincerity. More so if an apology follows it. She wants to stay mad, it’s familiar territory, but she closes her eyes and sighs; her shoulders slumping.

"I’m not a superhero." According to what he just explained and what her duty as the Avatar entailed, he was right. She technically was.

"I know how important your family is, Mark." Hers had been threatened in her future and she saw how desperate she was to help them. If putting on a mask would have saved them sooner, Korra wouldn’t have hesitated.

"I’m just- lying is a thing." How did she even pick up the thing phrase from Jim…

"Don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone." She looked over at the egg for a moment, and did her best to not give a small grin. "Present company excluded."

If Mark tried to be anything, it was upfront. This whole thing just proved just how awful he was with secrets, even if that didn't stop him from trying to have them. He just... believes that (for the most part) honesty is the best policy. As is apologizing when you get caught lying, even if you were for the right reasons.

"I know, I don't like people lying to me either..." His father immediately sprung to mind. "But I had to. You understand that, right?"

He sighed, actually grateful for the egg and the feeling of content that it seemed to give off. For a brief moment his thoughts turned to what he had spoken to Eshai had asked of him, but then the thought passed as the feeling of calm grew stronger.

"Speaking of my family... Would you like to see them?"

Now that Korra knew his secret, he could actually pull out his newly acquired family photo album. As much as he'd love to leave it lying around for anyone to leaf through, there was no way to explain why his little brother had gone from purple to blue to a purplish red... or why only Oliver got older in the pictures. And at the same time, he couldn't bear to hide just the pictures of Oliver... it wouldn't be fair to his brother. So he had opted to hide the album and only pull it out when he thought it would be safe. He had, however, taken one of his older family pictures out, from before Mark was Invincible and before his father had become public enemy number one, got it framed, and had it sitting on the little table by the door. He had another one in his bedroom of him, his mom, and Oliver as a baby, back when he had first brought Oliver back from Thraxa. He figured no one should be going into his bedroom unannounced, so it was safe.

Before Korra could say anything he was going into the room where he had kept Eve's things (he really should put some more of this stuff out now that it wasn't as painful to see them) to go grab it. Clearly he wasn't taking no for an answer. While in the room he called back: "And you're totally a superhero. You have powers and you save people. All you're missing is the costume and the codename. Though I guess you have that too--Avatar."

Giving weathered nod, Korra agreed. She did understand that he had to, it was just that she didn’t like that he had to. Reasonable as it was. Korra liked being the exception, even if she would never admit such a thing.

Family. Yes, Korra definitely wanted to see the family both Mark and Invincible had told her about. While he was getting things from Eve’s storage room, Korra placed her hands on the egg and put her ear against it.

Instead of hearing the turtle, she heard Mark from the other room.

"No, I’m not! …and it’s not a codename!" she called back.

When he came back, Korra balanced on the front of her feet so she could be just a bit taller to look at the cover of the album.

Mark returned with the album just in time to hear her yell that the Avatar wasn't a codename. He was about to ask what it was, then, when she seemed more interested in the book itself. The cover was non-descript, it was brown with the words "Family album" on it in English. He motioned to the couch, pushed the egg closer to said couch, and sat down. Mark didn't know why, but he wanted the egg to see his family too.

"Promise me you won't laugh at my baby pictures." This was serious. There were naked tub pictures in here.

Mouthing the words as she looked over the old cover, Korra followed Mark over to the couch and gave a small smile when she saw him bring the egg in as well. Partially because it was cute, she liked having the egg nearby at all times too, but also because she did kind of miss being able to casually use that kind of strength for something like that.

"…Okay, I won’t laugh." Said with a completely neutral face, though a corner of her lips twitched slightly.

"I don't believe you." But he flipped open the album anyway. On the opening pages were various pictures of a young couple, some faded, some not on various dates. The woman is in typical 80s clothing and the man seemingly dressed in the same all-white outfit and rocking an epic mustache. In the background of each are various famous earth landmarks--the Eiffel Tower, the Pyramids... you get the idea. "This is my mom and dad... Debbie and Nolan." Wow that felt weird, saying their actual names. "Back when they were still dating."

He turned the page, and now there were yellowing clippings of various newspaper articles about Omni-Man between various pictures of him and Debbie. Nolan now has his blue-and-red costume. At the bottom of that page is a photo of the Guardians of the Globe and their significant others posing together at their New Years party from 1983... as evidenced by the banner "Happy New Year 1984" behind them. "My dad was a superhero too. These guys were the original Guardians of the Globe.... my dad didn't join them, but he worked with them a lot." ...And he killed them all. Looking at that picture made Mark realize just how much he missed them. They were good people, and his generation could have learned a lot from people like Darkwing and War Woman.

As if the turtle could pick up on his discontent, Mark felt a wave of calm wash over him. Thanks, turtle.

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