(no subject)

[amonfire]

Characters: Amon, and YOU
Date: Dec. 23
Location: Keelai, general
Situation: Around Earth Sector + various in the wake of current events
Warnings/Rating: n/a (as of yet)

[ Amon had little recourse left open to him in the wake of the loss the Eshai in inclusion to his own return to the turtle beyond his own clinic. It was now a small, dark corner of the Earth sector reduced to threadbare refuge to the poor natives with some shred of trust left to spend on foreign presence.

While most spent their days off-shore, Amon returned to his former clinic. He spent the hours wiling away on the task of bringing the place back up to stock. Simple but time consuming tasks like moving equipment and furniture, or seeing to people that could do with some simple waterbending to alleviate chronic conditions such as arthritis or the like. It kept him busy, or at the very least, distracted from his disquiet with the recent upheavals of the world. Something told him the turtle wasn't quite ready for his particular brand of revolutionary response. ]

Comments

SABRIEL;

[amonfire]

[ Amon was loathe to spend his time here ignorant to the diversity amongst the cultures falling into each other on the turtle. So as a result, he vaguely became aware of the concept of Christmas. Or at the very least the idea that gifts were given amongst friends and loved ones around this time of year; its dogma didn't concern him so much as the practice.

Between his hours at the clinic he found the time to gather the right materials. Hav ing access to her apartment, Amon felt is right to work there for the time being. With hands recalling a craft long since forgotten to him, He crafted a beautiful wind chime made from seal and whale bones collected from the edges of the shell.

It felt appropriate. Sabriel was a soul that loved music, but was inextricably tied to Death. Both the gentle, ululating sounds of the wind passing through bone and its macabre origin appealed to him, and his idea that it would be the right sort of gift for a girl such as the like of Sabriel.

When it was done, he hung it on her windowsill before waitng for her return and inevitable reaction. Only to guess that this was how Christmas was carried out. ]

Re: SABRIEL;

[bindsthedead]

[Christmas was a somewhat foreign concept to Sabriel as well, though she was familiar with midwinter celebrations. So when she saw the windchime, and Amon through the window, she smiled, and hurried inside to examine the windchime.]

I don't recall seeing anything like that in my suite before- or in any of the shops before. [It almost reminded her of the wind flutes, though the sound this made could be heard in Life instead of Death. Sabriel couldn't help smiling softly.]

Thank you.

[amonfire]

[ Amon idly struck a piece of green-blue seaglass hanging amidst the collection of bones and metal of the windchime. He seemed to pay Sabriel no mind when she returned home, instead concentrating on how the seaglass reverberated against bone to produce and sweet, bell like noise. ]

I had hoped to see a strong breeze roll through here before you returned, but it looks as if you'll have to manage with silence for the time being.

[ With the mask it was difficult to tell if he was looking her way, but the dark slits cut into the wood were pointed in Sabriel's direction. ] I believe it goes- 'Merry Christmas.'

[bindsthedead]

If I need to, I'll whistle one up. [It's only half serious, and Sabriel laughs at what Amon says next.]

Merry Christmas. I- well, I and the Sending made something for you. Wait just a moment.

[Sabriel darts down the hallway, and there's the sound of rummaging about before she returns. When she does, she's carrying a dark blue scarf and a sheathed dagger.]

The Sending knitted the scarf, and I enchanted the blade. It should be sharper and more durable than is... entirely natural, and effective against spirits and the Dead.

[amonfire]

[ Amon laughed low, deep and humorless. ] Worth a try.

[ He fell silent when the blade and scarf where dropped in his waiting hands. The scarf he threw over his shoulder; it was soft and weighted against his shoulder. The dagger he unsheathed and inspected closely, even through his mask his eyes were quick and curious even hungry. ]

It's beautiful. [ Amon commented looking to Sabriel. ]

[bindsthedead]

Do you like it? Hopefully you won't have any cause to use it, but- just in case. [The marks flowed over the blade like water, constantly shifting and rearranging themselves.

Sabriel turns her attention to the windchime.]

Yours is wonderful too.

[amonfire]

[ Amon went back to running his fingers over the blade, mesmerized despite himself and his well-known...'bias' when it came to the magical and enchanted. ] Is it meant to be used on the Dead? I recognise some of these marks.

[ Finally he tore his attention away from the dagger. ]

Unfortunately, it doesn't have any hidden properties or any more practical uses aside from a little music when its warm enough to leave the windows open again.

[bindsthedead]

Yes- or creatures of Free Magic, though I doubt there are any on the turtle. And of course, it works as well as any dagger against ordinary people. [Which to Sabriel is a broader category than just 'people without any powers'.]

Sometimes, music is enough- Particularly on days when the weather is pleasant enough to keep the window open.

KORRA;

[amonfire]

[ His pride fell long before a dangerous sense of curiosity became his undoing. Outside of Korra's apartment he sat; bent in supplication in the lotus position just outside her door, assured she would have to come out sooner or later for whatever reason.

He knew from the natives that Korra had seen the Emperor before her untimely fall, and that meant only one thing. That she had seen their future whether he was alive to see it or not. Korra had answers he was in desperate need of, but now unable to obtain. Not since Aang had he felt hopeless and utterly at the mercy of the Avatar's discretion, but he could not go to his brother. That Korra was his only option was both logical as it was unfortunate. ]

Avatar Korra! [ He called to her door, ] I think you and I are overdue for a talk!

[alphatar]

[Ever since her last visit with Eshai, getting up early in the morning has become a new routine for Korra. Because of it, she’s been able to work at the Welcome Center and just as she way on her way through her living area towards the kitchen does she hear Amon’s voice.

Instantly she’s on guard and quickly falls into a defensive Earth stance. She never thought Amon would have been reckless enough to try and attack Korra in her own suite, and she’s waiting for him to break in.

But it doesn’t happen.

Carefully, she moves towards the door. Naga’s barking can be heard as the polar bear dog makes its way down the stairs.]

What do you want? [Her demand is clear and precise, talking isn’t something they’re good at; so she’s playing it safe for now.]

[amonfire]

Answers! [ Amon shot to his feet in a final moment of pride he long since thought broken; he having no intention of giving Korra the last word even when it was he who came to call at the end of his rope. ]

I have friends among the kedan, and I know you were one the last people to speak with Emperor. Whether you like it or not, I have a great need to hear the details of what vision had given you.

[alphatar]

[Puzzled at first, since it's usually her who has the questions, Korra waits to hear the rest. Hearing mention of the Emperor beckons her forward and she waits at the door, thinking whether or not to open it.

Her eyes fall to the door knob and then they narrow.]

You died, remember? What do you care about anything after that. [She isn't even phrasing it as a question. Korra's convinced that after deceiving his entire Equalist regime that Amon doesn't think of anyone but himself.]

[amonfire]

Think [ Amon challenged, imagining the strange waters the Emperor held in her power to show both the past and present. ]

I was as much a child of the North as you were the South. Alive or dead, I have much a bargaining chip to place on the table of fate as you do; I must know where my world stands in the currents of changes as you do.

[Maybe he was desperate, or maybe he wanted this exchange to end as quickly as possible, but it showed in tenor of his voice. ]

You wouldn't deny the opportunity to gloat now; I need to know where my fate lies in the North. I had a family there, wart and all, I had a family. And my brother isn't speaking much of it.

[alphatar]

[That forces Korra’s own family into the forefront of her mind. How bittersweet it was to see them, but not talk to them, touch them; but just knowing about them and her home.

A very long, silent pause passes. One long enough that one could think the suite was empty, save for the consistent low growl from Naga.

Finally, the doorknob turns slowly and the door opens just enough so a sliver of her baby blue eye is seen, narrowed; focused on Amon.]

You try anything at all and I will make you regret coming here. [Her threat is vitriolic and she puts weight behind those words. Ever since seeing her future, Korra’s dedicated her time and energy to prepare for what she knows she’s going to face.

Once said, she walks away from the door; leaving it open just that small bit.]

[amonfire]

[ Amon pushed through the threshold without any care or preamble. Briefly he regarded Naga and her rumbled growls in the corner with some disquiet, but his own discomfort around dogs could be pushed aside for the matter at hand. ]

I can assume, [ He started reaching for his mask pushing it up over his brow; his voice became clearer with his mouth unhindered ] That you will be more open to discourse if I'm not wearing this.

[alphatar]

[Fighting off the urge to cross her arms wasn't easy. Not because she wanted her body language to display her displeasure (that was hardly necessary), but because she wanted to be free to flow into a fighting position should she need it.

Under a stern brow, her baby blue eyes flicked from Amon to Naga and back again; though she said nothing on it.]

It doesn't hurt your chances. [Though she did finally blink.]

In the future, dark spirits attack the South Pole during the Glacier Spirits Festival.

[A deliberate pause before she continued.]

When the Chief of the North is there.

[amonfire]

[ When Korra creates a lull between them, Amon fills in the quiet void where he places his mask and the dagger Sabriel had given him on a nearby table with soft clack of wood hitting wood. The mask was simply to get Korra to cooperate, and the dagger (while he never used weapons) was just a formality. If she saw it without his mention, then he just knew she would assume he planned on using it. ]

Dark spirits? [ His voice hitched with genuine confusion. The idea of dark spirits had always just been a matter of philosophy and conjecture. ]

...Unalaq. [ He sighed with an annoyed air, sounding as if he just confirmed some rather unpleasant news. ]

[alphatar]

[Fingers twitched at seeing the dagger, but Korra’s face remained the same. The constant growling from Naga was enough to get Korra to say something without taking her eyes off Amon.]

Naga, hush.

[It quieted, but the growling was almost an aggressive hum that one could hear if they were listening for it. The recognition in his tone forced Korra to quickly lift her head up a little. The North wasn’t her home, she hardly knew it at all or how Unalaq handled its citizens.]

What did you know about my uncle? [Giving away her lineage and status didn’t concern her nearly as much as it normally did right then. It wasn’t something she talked about often, if ever. But this was something she wanted to know more of before continuing.

After all, she didn’t owe Amon anything and she wasn’t thrilled to have him in her suite. Family was the only reason she was going this far.]

[amonfire]

The chief of the North is hardly a secret, and you'll recall my brother was his representative in the Republic City; I knew my fair share about the Chief's...keen interest in spirits, and obsession with the spiritual well-being of the tribe since that little stunt with a certain forest twenty or so years ago. [ Amon crossed his arms over his chest tightly; he looked rather irritated, which was certainly saying something as he loathed giving even a hint to whatever he was feeling. ] Unlike you, I didn't live under a rock.

And I had no idea I had been speaking to his niece this whole time. Imagine that.

[alphatar]

[Somehow it seemed fitting that Unalaq would pick Tarrlok of all people to represent the Northern Water Tribe on the council. It made her wonder if her uncle was aware, or even concerned, about the Equalist revolution.

But she knew the answer. He was probably too wrapped up in obsessing over freeing Vaatu.

Korra looked away for a moment at the mention of the forest. What caused her father to be banished and lose his birthright to becoming Chief. She looked back with a hard glare at his inflected tone. Grudgingly, she went on so she could turn that back at him.]

Unalaq was controlling the dark spirits. He wanted to open the portal to the Spirit World in the North. I thought he was trying to unite both tribes by doing it, but that was a lie. Unalaq invaded the South and took it over with the North’s military, all so he could get to the Southern portal.

[Her upper lip stiffened.]

Not being able to tell we’re related, I’ll take that as a compliment.

[amonfire]

That you were related to someone so spiritually gifted that it was something of great renown? No, of course I wouldn't have guessed you were related. [ His frown only deepened. ] Did I strike a nerve, Avatar?

[ That was pushing it with a polar bear dog only a few from him itching to sink its jaws in him, but he wasn't prepared to appear too civil in front of the girl that ruined him. ]

I'll tell you a secret: The only time I considered turning around and going home was when raiders attacked the capital, and then I hear the forest was destroyed. Funny to hear it was your uncle behind it; it's almost ironic, really. Tell me he's dead.

[alphatar]

[Knuckles bulged as she tightened her fist, but Korra didn’t rise up to what she saw as bait. It was almost as if her gaze was forced to the ground to hear that Amon, Noatak, would have helped her father.]

…He is. [Her lips thinned as she looked back up to see his face.] The tribes are independent of each other, but are still allies. The Southern Council of Elders made Tonraq chief.

[Crossing her arms over her chest, Korra silently dared him to comment on her royal status being made proper.]

[amonfire]

[ His cheekbones went bone white while the back of his neck flushed an ugly red. To say he took umbrage with her raised status would be a monumental understatement. ]

I suppose I should congratulate you on your restored legitimacy, princess

[alphatar]

[In the same instant that her eyes narrowed, Korra moved forward so she was directly in Noatak’s face and able to see nothing but her unless he looked away.]

Do you want to say that again? [The sudden movement got a loud bark from Naga and the polar bear dog got to it’s feet at the tone of her master’s voice.]