I try to understand you girl

[alphatar]

Characters: Korra, OPEN
Date: Randomly throughout March.
Location: Fire Sector, one of the abandoned warehouses used in the underground fighting ring.
Situation: Blowing off steam and earning money in her equalist uniform.
Warnings/Rating: Violence, Blood, Broken Bones, etc.

The cage rattled before the raucous crowd surrounding the arena, the clanging metal was lost in their yelling. Inside was a bald, large, shirtless kedan with tattoos covering half his body and he had just thrown a much shorter female wearing a brown uniform mixed with maroon and a mask that had green goggles over her eyes. Both gloved hands gripped into the openings of the cage and she began to climb up, scaling with incredible ease.

The kedan didn’t even try to reach up for her even though he was almost tall enough to simply reach out and grab her. "There’s no getting out unless they unlock the door. And that ain’t happening until I knock you out." A curled sneer came across his face. "Or worse."

It would be near impossible to tell if she was listening, the mask with the large red circle on her forehead hid her expression, but she did stop when he was talking and looked over her shoulder at him. Pushing off the cage with her legs, she turned in the air to build momentum and thrust the heel of her boot into the back of his head. The kedan whirled around and went to push some distance in between her. But he was off from the blow, stunned and she had a window to work with now.

Dashing in under his arms, the female in the equalist uniform dug her knuckles into his side for a kidney shot and followed through with a strike from her elbow in the same spot. Thick muscles she could work through, it was something she knew rather well. The retaliation was coming and she was ready for it. When his punch came down towards her, she reached under his arm to grab the outside of his wrist and she twisted it so his elbow was exposed to her. Hoisting up her folded arm next to her head, she struck it with her own elbow forcing his arm to bend inwards.

Ignoring his howl of pain, she lashed out a kick straight to his knee to do the same and it brought him down to her level. Putting her hand on the side of his head, she slammed her knee directly onto his ear and only retracted her leg to do it again. And again. Blood was getting on her suit, but she didn’t stop until he went limp and she dropped the unconscious brawler to the floor; trickles of red coming out of his ear.

There was an explosion of sound from the crowd and the spot lights danced around the walls at the victory. Cheers from those that bet on her and jeers from the ones that bet against her.

"Nobody blink! The Green Eyed Monster is on a winning streak!" As the announcer spoke, she gave an expertly executed saifa kata. "Hey, can somebody stop this fighting machine? Anyone who thinks they’re up to the challenge, step in the arena and go for broke!"

This was the first time Korra had a chance to flex her martial arts prowess since learning from some of the greatest Keeliai had to offer, and a great way to blow off steam with the adrenaline that was pumping through her. All anonymously and without any bending.

Comments

[alphatar]

When she looked at Raphael directly, Korra thought she missed a spot on her face from healing herself earlier and that he was piecing everything together. Then he grinned, or as best as he could manage, and the knot from thinking the jig was up untied itself.

"I don't know, I think this could be an improvement." She started to smile as she said it. Those kinds of marks meant something after a fight. Proof that you got just as much as you gave, and the large bruise on her side where she took his kick was silently throbbing as she stayed up straight.

"Beats make up if you ask me." Half joking. If there was one thing Korra skitted away from, it was the girly things other females her age were into. She brought the water up to his face, leaving perfectly shaped opening for his mouth and nose so he could breath.

The blue glow lit up the features on her face as she peered through the water to focus on the cut. Probably from her headbutt. "But I think you should stick just one application for tonight. If you think I'm going stay up late into the night just so you can go back there, you got another thing coming." That smile didn't leave her and she swirled the portion of water over the cut.

[meanandgreen]

"Hey, even I got my limitations," he laughs. "Think I'm good until tomorrow, at least."

He's joking. Honestly, he is. The fight he just had was more than enough to satisfy him for a while, and even after Korra's healing, he'll need to rest up. Then, he'll try to find his Green Eyed Monster. And every day after that, he'll be waiting and watching, ready for his rematch.

But it's funny, because there really is something fishy about this whole situation. Now that his brain's stopped trying to crawl out of his skull, it's all starting to piece together. How The Green Eyed Monster dumped him in the alley. How Korra just happened to find him after that. How she seems to know so much about the fight ring, didn't even question him about it...

When his face is healed enough to swing it, he teasingly quirks a brow. "You gonna be there?"

[alphatar]

She gave an approving nod at that, because Korra would have let him suffer until after she got some shut eye if Raph decided to go back for another round. Especially when she really wanted to go home so she could finish healing herself.

The cut was healed up easily enough, the blood and sweat made it seem a lot nastier than it was. The swelling went down without much of a fuss so he could fully open his eye, only to see blurry water, but all that was left was simple clean up.

That was until she froze and the water stilled at his question. Narrowing her eyes to give him a look somewhere between suspicion, curiosity, and apprehension, Korra lifted her chin slightly.

"If you mean am I going to heal you back up tomorrow, that all depends on if I'm in the sector. Fighters would pay good money for a healer. You're just lucky I'm doing it for free." It wasn't a lie exactly and sounded good enough in her head.

[meanandgreen]

"So that's what you were doin' out here tonight. Healin' people." If that's true, he'd be more than a little disappointed.

But he's not so sure he'd even believe that. Not after the talk they just had. She's not the kind of girl who'd be happy just sitting back playing nurse while everyone else had all the fun.

So he just crosses his arms and waits stubbornly for what he only hopes is the truth.

[alphatar]

There was a reason she was set on healing his head last, so that he would hopefully just give up on thinking about it too hard; but that didn't go as well as Korra was hoping.

Wordlessly, she sent the water that had his sweat and blood to the sink with a wave of her hand without taking her eyes off him. That look he had was one she'd seen before, the one Korra got when she was caught. So she crossed her arms as well and winced slightly from doing it too quickly.

"No." Her lower lip stiffened, protruding as she pointed at him. "You don't tell anyone and I don't Leo." They both wanted to keep what they were doing a secret, because they both knew about the concern that would come. Along with the scolding and offering of help or alternatives.

"Deal?" The jig was up, all she could do now was hold out a bargain over the one thing they both needed.

[meanandgreen]

"Deal," he says, a mischievous grin sweeping across his face. "But you owe me a rematch."

Go ahead. Just tell him he's right.

[alphatar]

"All right, fine." She grumbled it, but the deal was set.

"And wipe that look off your face before you go."

[meanandgreen]

Holy crud he is right! No one can measure his level of smugness right now. No one.

Carefully, he pulls himself to his feet, giving her an innocent expression that hardly seems to belong on his face. "What look?"

Then the smugness is back tenfold. He might've lost the fight, but he won this round. All that's left is to gloat in the victory.

"C'mon, I know you're not stayin' here," he says, nodding his head toward the door. "Do what you gotta do and let's blow this popsicle stand."

They're both sore and exhausted, and this is a rough part of Keeliai. So consider this his own peace offering. They'll walk home together, at least until it's time to part ways, and they can watch each other's backs while they're at it.

There's no telling how many enemies they've made out here, waiting like vultures to get their hits in while they're weak. It's one major downside to mopping up creeps in the fight ring. You tend to make a few unsavory friends while you're at it.

[alphatar]

That unassuming look got a weathered, audible straight from her nose, and Korra unfolded her arms to put a hand on her hip. "Yeah, give me a second."

She went over and got on her haunches to lift up the floor trap. There was there mask with goggles sitting atop her folded uniform. After she got the string of juulan coins from it, Korra stood up and sucked in a breath between her teeth at the sharp pain from her side.

"Let's go. The fights will be over soon and I don't want to deal with the mess that's going to come out of there." It's an offering she's willing to take so she can get home and finish getting herself back in shape.

And crash. None of her fights went that far and she was feeling the after effects of it.

The one corner of the Fire Sector that's actually rundown and old, used by some of the gangs, is of course the only place to find the one of the fighting rings. And the abandoned shed's not too far from it. "I didn't bring Naga, so we're going to have to walk back to the Metal Sector." It never even occurred to her that Raphael had no idea about her polar bear dog.

Beat.

"And the Water Sector."

[meanandgreen]

He bobs his head once in agreement, but otherwise says nothing. Still, there's an obvious change in his demeanor compared to the weeks before. Even when they were living with each other, Raphael had done everything to keep Korra at a distance. Never saying more than two words, never making eye contact. And half the time, when she'd enter a room, he'd get up and move to another one just to get away. Until tonight, he'd been nothing but the grouchy, moodier version of a brick wall.

The fight changed all that.

Before then, Raphael did have a grudging respect for Korra, but he always had a hard time with new people. Maybe shy wasn't the word for it, but he does everything possible to keep people at arm's length until he's ready to accept them into his inner circle.

Tonight, it's like a switch flipped inside him. He even holds the door for her as they file out, smiling that crooked smile of his as he talks.

"Gee," he jokes teasingly, "I usually take the bus."

Welcome to his inner circle, Korra. There's no getting rid of him now.

[alphatar]

Seeing Raphael smile, in any manner, was completely new and Korra was still lingering on the fact that he knew exactly why she was doing what she did. Because he was right in that same vein; had she only known that when she was staying with them while moping and beating herself up over Mako.

Remembering that made her tighten up her sleeved gloves.

"The bus?" The words squeezed past her half smirk as she walked past him, out into the cool night. "Fastest ways to get around town are by polar bear dog or roof tops, haven’t you heard?"

Korra never used the rooftops, not until she met Leo, and she knew if both him and Leonardo used it then so did Raphael. As soon as she cleared the doorway Korra put those leg muscles to good use and jumped up to grab a hold of the shed’s roof, stiffening her lips at the pain on her side as she hoisted herself up. She looked up to the taller building nearby and then back at Raph. "Let me know if it’s too tall for you." Of course she doubted it, but it was an offer all the same. And slight ribbing.

Another jump, boosted by a gust of air at her feet that sent loose rust and dirt off the top of the shed, vaulted Korra into the air and instead of a hard landing she touched down like a feather.

Her airbending technique was becoming more refined.

[meanandgreen]

"Can't say much for polar bear dogs," (whatever the heck those are) "But rooftops? I know rooftops."

It takes some maneuvering, but he flips himself up onto the shed roof after her, using the window ledges of the adjacent building to propel himself upward in swift, quick movements that contradict his bulk. He lands in a crouch shortly after her, rising slowly with a roll of the shoulders.

Climbing rooftops is as easy as breathing for Raph and his brothers, but his muscles are still pretty tired and sore. Though he's gotten around this way in a lot worse shape than that.

"Like to see you do that without cheatin'," he says, flashing her a cocky grin before he rushes forward and hops the next few roofs in the direction of home, not forgetting to make a show of his impressive parkour skills. He might not be as good as Mikey, but he's nothing to blow your nose at, either.

His muscles pull and his bones ache for rest, but there's no way he's gonna let her show him up twice in one night. Not on his own turf. Not ever. Because when he gets his rematch, he's gonna win.

[alphatar]

Korra crossed her arms and shot him an amused, wry look. Bending being called cheating wasn't anything new to her, but she accepted his challenge now that she'd seen him in motion. It was a good thing she didn't bring her jacket,

"Can't handle the heat?" No, she wasn't even the least bit sorry and that her smirk parted to share the smallest bit of her teeth was proof of that. "All right, Raphael. Hope you can keep up with the Avatar."

Without a another second wasted, Korra turned and burst into a run; her back and arm muscles tensing up with each motion for use. Right before she hit the ledge Korra placed her palms on it, shifting her weight downwards and lowered herself before pushing off with a grunt. She somersaulted into the air, spinning once and a sharp stabbing pain hit her side. At the last moment, her hands caught the ledge of the next building like clockwork while she was facing out. She intended to land on the roof top, but this was close enough. To her it was nothing more than a pull-up and she lifted her lower body over the ledge, flipping onto the roof.

From there the buildings were more similar in height, so it would be endurance and a bit of flashy movement from there on out. After all, this was the perfect way to flaunt one's agility and physical coordination.

"No cheating." Oh she was going to be insufferable about it.

[meanandgreen]

Korra misses her mark, and it doesn't go unnoticed. Farther up ahead, Raph stops, crouching on a building ledge in the dark. He watches her catch herself, but he doesn't move to help her. Silent. Korra's strong; he knows this from experience. But they've just walked out of one hell of a fight, and he can't blame her for slipping.

Much as the urge to taunt her rises in his throat, he knows better than that. So he keeps a lid on it, waits just a second for her to pull herself up again. Then takes off into the night, flipping between the gaps of buildings.

Closer to the center of the city, the buildings get more unpredictable. Steeply pitched roofs rise into multi-level spires full of intricate designs. One roof slopes enough to skate down the side like a skateboarder grinding a rail, then pitches up sharply, launching him upward, the cool night air prickling his skin as he tucks into a double flip. The clay tiles crunch under his weight when he lands heavily on the other side. Then he's off again, heading toward the highest, most elaborate tower of them all, marking the very center of Keeliai.

Race ya.

[alphatar]

The last time Korra had raced someone on the roofs was against Leonardo, and she wasn’t about to turn down another chance to get in some freerunning. When she saw just where he was headed, Korra didn’t even hesitate in jumping over to the central tower and began to fluidly scale up towards the highest point; occasionally looking over to see if she could match or beat Raphael’s pace.

Her hair caught on the wind as she found suitable footing and looked down at where all the sectors connected. Landmarks like the Brazen Turtle and Welcome Center stood out the most aside from seeing where the differences between each sector became more apparent off in the distance.

It was a rare thing for her to see without being in motion from this high up.

But that was all the time she could afford before she had to continue towards the very top of the city itself. How they were going to get down wasn’t even a worry of Korra’s, heights were hardly a bother to her even before she unlocked her airbending.

"You better not fall." The warning was hardly serious as she continued her way up.

[meanandgreen]

"Speak for yourself!" He taunts, sparing her a wry grin as he hangs from a rail a few feet overhead.

High above the city, the wind whipping cold on his face and the lights stretching out in all directions, Raphael feels more at home than anywhere else. So he climbs with a determined smile and new-found energy, lightning-quick, scaling the levels with a grace he could never be capable of except right in this moment. Right now, he could almost close his eyes and feel the city stretching out beneath him, smell the exhaust on the air, hear the blaring of sirens casting blue and red light on the building sides.

Still, there's a challenge to be won, and no sense of home and longing can make him forget. So when he gets the chance, he slips silently to the other side of the building. Into the shadows he knows so well. It's like he's vanished into thin air.

Though as soon as Korra reaches the top, he's there, crouching like a gargoyle on the highest point of the tower. Waiting for her with a smug sort of sideways smile.

"'Bout time! I been waitin' up here forever."

That's a lie. He just got up there about a half a second ago. Not even enough time to catch his breath.

[alphatar]

For Korra, this was practice just in case something took her bending away again. And a good exercise to use her sore limbs. When she lost sight of Raphael, Korra clambered onto the top and kept an eye out for him.

The suddenness of the voice nabbed her attention and she looked up. In that split second of seeing a shadowy figure, catching only the glint of his white eyes, Korra’s fingers tensed and teetered on summoning her bending. But in that same instant common sense struck her that it obviously wasn’t Batman, not when Raphael’s voice registered.

A light snort escaped her nose as she gave an amused smile. "Forever, huh? Could have just said you needed a breather, I would’ve waited."

She looked over the edge at the city below them. "Climbing back down, or do you want take the fast way?"

[meanandgreen]

A Cheshire Cat grin sweeps over his face at her reaction, but it's quickly traded for something quieter, more solitary.

The view of the city from here is breathtaking. Lanterns cast a warm glow like fireflies along the veins and arteries of roads. Lamplight shines golden from scattered lighted windows through each sector. An orangeish smog haze hangs in the sky over the Fire Sector. And farther in the distance, the black abyss of the wastelands and the sea, with only the palace's hulking shadow and lights to break it.

With all of it stretching out around them, the wind at his back and the world so open to him, the quieter parts in Raphael stir inside him. Only during times like this, soothed by fresh air and fading adrenaline from a fight well fought, that he can forget the usual bullshit and just feel good about existing. About getting the hand that he was dealt.

Tonight he got the fight he'd been hoping for. Tonight, he might've even made a friend. Maybe, just maybe things aren't so bad after all.

It takes a half a second of quiet to drink it all in before he answers, the same teasing, with lopsided grin from before.

"What, like the cheatin' way?" He jabs, not even trying to keep the smugness out of his voice. "Gotta admit I usually like doin' things the old fashioned way."

[alphatar]

Keeliai seemed so small to Korra from that height, but for a split second she could pretend that it was Republic City below her. The architecture of the buildings lent to that and she put her foot on the edge to look out over it all, particularly the next building down below that was in the direction of Metal.

But that wasn’t the only thing she had seen in a different light. Right now, Raphael was nothing like the surly, virulent turtle she found half frozen that refused her help. But she didn’t know anything about him then, and now she related all too well.

Korra’s eyebrows simply pushed the jab up and over her head as she gave a simple, yet slightly mocking grin. "You should try it. New things can be kind of cool, especially if old fashioned can’t keep up."

As she said the last sentence, Korra crouched down and then sprung forward into the air; wisps of dust swirled in her wake. The jump had her far out past the spire and soaring forward.

But airbending wasn’t flying and she was controlling her descent through her outstretched hands that were thrust behind her. She looked over her should to see just how Raphael was going to get down.

One thing she was sure of, he wouldn’t need any help down.

[meanandgreen]

As she leaps off the building and into dead space, his heart plummets to the pit of his stomach, the sudden gust of air and grit making his eyes water. This is no swan dive, but it takes his reflexes a good second to realize it before he can swallow again.

He hates magic. Always has, ever since his tussle with the Shredder's elemental ninja. But there's always something hauntingly ethereal about a person flying through midair.

It's not something he plans on trying any time soon.

No, he'll stick to the old-fashioned way, what he trusts and knows like the back of his hand. It takes him just under a minute to monkey down from stories of sloped roofs and window ledges until he can spring toward the nearest rooftop. From there, the Water and Metal sectors sprawl out in stark contrast. The tall, sharp angled towers make an almost too-modern mockery of the elegant simplicity of Water.

It's not home. Far from it. There's times when he hardly even feels safe there. But the suite is where his family is, and that's all he ever really needs. So it's where he goes, never bothering with a goodbye. He'll see her again soon enough.

There's an old saying Splinter always tells them: Change is the only constant. Though Raphael has always been resistant, stubborn, too set in his ways and in love with what's familiar. Too wary of anything new to ever be trusting.

For Raphael, trust is hard-earned. Takes time. It's something that just doesn't exist until that one defining moment when it does. It just does.

Something's changed between him and the girl with the healing magic, the girl that inserted herself into his life so boldly, all he could do is shove her back.

But in the same weird flash-bang instant of understanding that drew him to Casey, she's changed completely in his mind. All that old disdain is washed away with a new sense of respect. A new secret sense of knowing he hopes they'll never speak of again.

As they wind their separate ways through the network of buildings, he thinks, maybe sometimes change isn't so bad after all.