A/N: Written for the LoK mini bang on tumblr! Art for this fic by exactlykainora coming soon! :D

I do not own The Legend of Korra.

The White Lotus knocks on her door at midnight, and when they breathlessly tell her why, she doesn't know what to feel at first.

"How are you sure she's the right one?" she asks slowly. Many claims have been made from both tribes, yet all turned out to be hoaxes. "Did you test her with the toys?"

The blue-robed men exchange glances. "No—"

"Then how do you know?" her daughter asks, her signature skepticism leaking into her voice. "That's how you tell if she's a reincarnation or not."

"Master Katara, Master Kya, you'll know when you see her." Mother and daughter exchange looks at the confidence in the man's tone.

"Please, come with us!" Katara glances over to her middle child, and she sees hesitant eyes clouded with guilt. It saddens her, but she knows the unresolved issues between her husband and daughter were not things she could heal.

"I'll see her in the morning, Mom. You go ahead," Kya says. The slight note of uneasiness in her voice is almost impossible to detect, but it does not escape her mother's notice.

Katara looks into the blue eyes that are just like her own, and nods, understanding. Kya gives her a tiny, grateful smile before leaving to fetch her her parka and boots.

—-

She trudges through the snow with mixed emotions, accompanied by the White Lotus members. Everything happening is so … surreal. The world has been without an identified Avatar for four years, and it has been more than a century since the world had known one besides Aang.

She feels a pang of grief grip her heart as the memory of her late husband resurfaces, and she touches her hand to the betrothal necklace he had given her decades ago. Four years has not been enough to ease the longing for his strong arms around hers, the goofy grin on his face. Even now, she still misses the love in the way he would just look at her, how her heart would flutter when they would touch, the slow but steady fire she felt whenever they kissed.

Sometimes, she tries to deny it—sometimes it was like he was just on another of his trips, trying to maintain the fragile peace that the world was still getting used to. That any day now, she would hear Appa's familiar roar announcing his arrival, and he would nimbly airbend himself off the bison, giving her the special smile he reserved only for her.

Seeing the new Avatar would be the ultimate confirmation that he is gone, and she isn't sure if she could handle that. Yet, seeing the newest reincarnation would also be one of the closest reminders she would have of him, besides their children. She loves the Avatar part of him just as much as the Aang part, and seeing the slightest bit of him reborn into a new body, knowing for sure that his spirit would live on in someone she could physically see …

"I'll love you in my next lifetime, you know? Not the same way, of course." He chuckled, and even that sounded like coughing. "But I'd adore you all the same."

"Don't talk like that," she chided him, trying to blink back the tears that were building up in her eyes.

"But it's true, Katara. You're special not only to me, but to the Avatar spirit as well. You got me out of that iceberg for a reason." He reached up feebly for her, and she took his hand, holding it to her cheek.

"Why does it feel like you're saying goodbye?" she whispered. He didn't answer her question. "Just look after the next Avatar, okay? And if you still can, maybe you could teach him or her waterbending? I'd love for you to teach me again." The skin around his eyes crinkled, and his argentine orbs shone just as they did when they first went penguin sledding together.

Her eyes sting at the memory, and she plods on through the snow, ignoring the creaking of her bones.

They finally arrive at a simple residence on the edge of the main city. Through the window, she sees that a light is on—the inhabitants are obviously awake.

When they reach the entrance, she raises a hand to knock, but hesitates. For a second, the grief rises up again, but she swallows it back down. She should be excited. This is going to be like seeing him again. The world is going to have its peacekeeper once more, so how could that be anything but good? She summons up her will, and gently raps on the door.

There's scuffling inside, and something that sounds like a chair being overturned. She smiles, thinking fondly of her dear airbender knocking down furniture in an effort to catch their frisky children before bedtime.

After a few seconds, the door opens, revealing a young couple, both distinctly Water Tribe. They bow to her in greeting.

"It's an honor to have Master Katara visit our home," the man says, and the humility in his deep voice is impossible not to notice.

"The honor is all mine," she assures them with a smile, bowing in return. "I would introduce myself, but it seems like you already know me."

The couple smiles, ushering her and the White Lotus members inside. Katara does a quick sweep of the house—it is small, but cozy, warm, and well-lived in. "I am Tonraq, and this is my wife, Senna." He looks over at the woman next to him. "You must be here to see Ko—"

"I'M THE AVATAR!"

A piece of the wall goes flying, and Katara takes a step back in surprise. "I'M THE AVATAR!" the young voice repeats, and she turns her head to search for its owner.

She's a chubby little thing with short dark hair in pigtails and a tan belly peeking out under her shirt. Her cerulean eyes have a sort of fire to them, and the expression on her face tells Katara that she believes she's ready to take on the world.

The little girl shoots a small spurt of fire out of her fist, and Katara raises her eyebrows in surprise.

"She's shown proficiency for three elements already, Master Katara," she hears one of the White Lotus guards say. "We didn't need the toys to test her."

The newest host of the Avatar spirit bends a little puddle of water at her, and Katara catches it with ease, bending it into a ball. Obviously not having expected it, the child blinks, and she looks up at Katara with eyes of wonder as the master waterbender turns the water sphere to ice.

Their eyes lock, and something in the four-year-old's eyes shift. For a moment, she seems older, wiser beyond even Katara's years, and she knows she recognizes her. It's probably just in her mind, but the little girl's eyes flash silver for the slightest moment, and the grin on her face is the happiest in the world, like she's seeing an old friend.

"Korra," Tonraq starts. "This is Master Kat—"

Korra runs up to her even before he finishes his sentence, wrapping her arms around Katara's legs tightly. The former Avatar's widow blinks for a second, and tears pool in her eyes as she kneels down to hug her back tightly.

"She usually doesn't trust strangers easily," Senna remarks, obviously surprised by her daughter's reaction.

Katara only smiles, for she's no stranger. And she knows Korra knows that. The old waterbender's connection to Avatar Aang is not one that faded with time, and he lived through the young girl in front of her.

She pulls back and looks the young Avatar in the eye. "I'm Katara," she says. There was no need for titles between them. "I'm going to be your waterbending master."

"But I already know how to waterbend," Korra says innocently.

Katara chuckles. "I know you do. I taught you last time, too." It's curious how she doesn't show any explicit signs of understanding, but she doesn't show any confusion, either.

"Will I learn how to make that?" she points to the ice in Katara's palm.

"Yes, you will, Korra." she says, melting the ice and willing it to coat her hand like a glove. "That, and much, much more." She places her hand over a small cut on Korra's arm. The water glows, and when she pulls away, there's no sign of the injury.

Korra's eyes are wide with amazed admiration, and when she beams at her, Katara can't help smiling back in return. It's going to take a bit getting used to—Aang was always gentle and mild-mannered, but even at such a young age, Katara can tell that Korra is fiery and aggressive. And yet, she senses they are the same, that just like him, there is a part of her that she just knows is destined to save the world. As the master of all four elements, as the keeper of balance, as the Avatar.

And helping the Avatar save the world once more is an honor and responsibility she is more than happy to take.

I've always wanted to write a feels-inducing Katara and Korra fic since these two have one of my favorite dynamics in the show. I hope I did them justice! xD

Constructive criticism/comments are always more than welcome!