Fate

She left to protect him — and herself. Even after six years it still seemed like the best choice for everyone involved. But Korra should have known better; Fate has a funny way of making things work — no matter how hard one tries to change it.

Fate is inspired by and based upon a story by another writer whose story I read three to four years ago now; While the original story is written using different characters and settings as to Fate, a lot of the inspiration was taken and ultimately resulted in the writing of this story. A big thanks to Sam who, in her own way, is responsible for the production of Fate.

Fate is set about six years after Book 4. Mako and Asami are aged 28, Korra 27 and Bolin is 26. I'm doing this after the three year time skip in book 4 and adding on another six years, hopefully that makes sense. Read and and let me know what you think!

Chapter One

Mako stared at the pieces of paper in front of him in sheer disbelief. There was no way, no way in hell that he could be reading this correctly. There had to be something wrong with his eyes, there just had to be.

"Something wrong Chief?" One of his supporting officers piped up, having noticed Mako's bewildered state. Mako shook his head slowly, still staring at the pieces of paper, trying to process the inked in words written on them.

"As of today Avatar Korra will be stepping down from her position on the Council of Republic City, taking up leave of absence until further notice. Her destination is, as of yet, unconfirmed," he murmured out loud, as if that would help him figure out the situation somehow. "No… She can't be gone…"

Mako was oblivious to the concerned looks of his subordinates who were just as dumbfounded at the situation as he was. What in the world could have upset the Chief of Police this much?

"Sir? Sir…wake up, you have a meeting to attend. Come on Chief…"

Mako's head snapped up, as a gentle hand roused him from his slumber. "What…?" he muttered, rubbing the sleep from his eyes and raising his head to look into the eyes of Lin Beifong whom, since her premature retirement as Chief of Police, had taken up a position on the Republic City Council. "Oh, sorry Beifong."

He grabbed the meeting brief that had, at some point during his nap, been placed on top of the never-ending stack of paperwork domineering his desk, pulling it closer to him and opening it. Beifong's lips quirked into an understanding smile as she turned away from the exhausted Chief, making her way to the Council meeting room, to prepare for the meeting later that day. She could tell, by the dark circles that stood out in stark contrast to Mako's pale skin, that Mako hadn't slept the night before. That wasn't a surprise though. There were many nights he didn't sleep, and many more when he drank. But that was another story entirely.

By the time noon rolled around, Mako had managed to get through about half the pile of the mountain of paperwork that currently dominated his desk; Quite an impressive feat for someone who was never particularly good with reading or writing.

Two of his subordinates left the office, muttering something about heading out to grab something to eat. Mako didn't bother joining them; he wasn't hungry. He raised an eyebrow when he saw Lin Beifong re-entering the office.

"You should go and eat, Chief." Beifong suggested, noticing that Mako was looking not just exhausted but rather gaunt as well.

"I'll go in a few, I just want to finish reading through this report." Mako raised his eyes to meet with those of Lin Beifong's, whose gaze had turned rather scrutinizing. "Is something wrong, Beifong?"

"No, Chief," Lin snapped, realizing she'd been glaring at Mako. "It's nothing." Nothing she was comfortable on revealing to Mako at any rate.

Asami Sato was not a happy person. Not that Mako really blamed her. He supposed he wouldn't have been very happy either if a crazy person had suddenly stormed into his factory and started shouting at him as he demanded answers. "I'm sorry, Chief," Asami growled, putting a heavy, sarcastic emphasis on the last word, "I didn't quite catch that. Do you want to repeat what you just said without yelling at me?"

Mako swallowed a few times, as if to swallow his anger. When he realized he probably wasn't going to be able to speak, he held out the letter he'd received earlier that morning in regards to Korra's leave of absence. Asami didn't take it; no doubt she already knew what it was. "So that finally found it's way to your desk?" she asked, her voice flat, portraying no emotion. "Well, what do you want from me?"

"A location." Mako's words received a blank stare. "I went to Air Temple Island but neither Tenzin nor Pema would tell me anything. Asami, where is she?"

Asami sighed heavily, shaking her head. "I don't know Mako, but even if I did I wouldn't tell you. If Korra wanted you to know where she is or where she plans to go she would have told you herself. She obviously has a good reason not to." If ever there was an answer Mako wasn't expecting, it would have been the one he was just given.

"What?" Asami turned away from him, closing her eyes. "Why wouldn't she want me to know?"

"I can't say," Asami muttered, looking a bit resentful as she started to turn away to return to work on the latest Sato mobile. Mako narrowed his eyes, noting that Asami was avoiding going into detail on the subject. Mako wasn't one to normally flaunt his title and use it to his advantage but he was desperate and wanted answers. So he figured he'd make an exception.

"Asami Sato, I order you to tell me where Avatar Korra is and the reason behind her leaving Republic City."

To his surprise, Asami laughed humourlessly. "Chief Mako, no offense but a promise to my best friend means a damn lot more than any order from you. So short of having me arrested, you're not getting any answers from me. Sorry."

She picked up a wrench when she heard him mutter, "Was it me?" Mako asked out of sheer desperation. He had to know. Was it something he had done? Had he been the one to drive Korra out of the city?

Asami stopped, looking halfway over her shoulder. "Kind of," she admitted. "It's sort of you…but mostly her. Don't think on it too much."

As if that was possible.

Wham!

Mako, as lost in thought as he'd been as he'd dragged himself from the office and out to find something to eat, didn't see where he was going before it was too late and he'd walked into someone carrying several large boxes that were obstructing their view.

"Oof!"

Crash!

"Oh damn it…" Asami Sato moaned as she stared at the mess of nuts and bolts that were spilling out from the boxes that had just tumbled to the floor. "A pleasure as always, Chief Mako."

"Asami." Mako sighed as he knelt down to pick up the nuts and bolts. After a moment Asami joined him on the floor. "Sorry about that, wasn't paying attention to where I was going."

"Clearly." Asami snorted, not taken by Mako's less than heartfelt apology.

Well, like the old saying goes, speak of the devil, and the devil shall appear. Mako shook his head as he dropped a handful of bolts into on of the open boxes. "Where are you going with all of this anyway?"

"The latest Sato mobile has really taken off, problem is demand is greater than what Future Industries is capable of supplying right now. It looks like I'm going to be out until midnight making my way from one factory to the other, dropping off supplies and checking shipping schedules. I'll probably be occupied with this again tomorrow, despite it being my day off. Heck, sometimes even the boss needs some time to chill, you know?" Asami explained, as she struggled with the weight of one of the boxes.

"Must keep you on your toes. Do you want some help carrying this stuff to the factory?" Mako regretted saying the words as soon as they were out of this mouth. Damn him and his gentlemanly ways. Knowing Asami, she'd probably take that as him trying to imply that she was just a weak woman who wasn't even capable of carrying a few boxes, but of course that was far from the truth.

"No thanks, I won't keep you from your lunch." Mako was surprised when that was all she said on the subject. She must have been really upset about losing that day off.

Mako rocked back on his heels as they collected the rest of the nuts and bolts in silence. After a moment he stood, holding out a hand for Asami as well. Asami took his hand, allowing him to pull her up from where she'd been sitting on the floor. "So…" Mako started to say, trying to figure out how best to word the question weighing heavily on his mind.

"Korra's doing fine." Mako blinked. What the hell, was Asami now a mind reader too? Asami laughed dryly at the look on his face. "You're very predictable Chief. Every time you want to ask about Korra you get this really far off look on your face and start off saying 'so…' like you're trying to be casual."

Mako scowled. He hated being predictable. "So she's doing…alright?" He asked, noting with a tinge of annoyance that he'd started that sentence with 'so' as well. He was going to have to try and break that habit. Asami nodded slowly. "What's she up to now, I mean, seeing as she's not on the Council anymore…"

He really was just curious. But the way Asami smiled at him told him that she thought he was trying to pry answers out of her. Not that he didn't do that whenever he got the chance. But really, the fact that she accusing him of such a thing now was rather insulting. "I have to get this stuff down to the factory," she said as she piled the boxes on top of one another, picking up the bottom most one. "Chief." Her voice was muffled as she clumsily rearranged the boxes to salute Mako.

"Asami." Mako sighed as he nodded at her, and watched her walk away. He hated how she was his only connection to Korra. It just wasn't fair.

"Ugh." Asami huffed as she dropped the boxes upon entering her factory. She made her way over to the phone located in her factory office. Taking it off the receiver, she dialled a number and waited for a response from the other end of the line.

The phone rang three times before somebody answered. "Hello-"

"Hey Bolin, it's Asami." The woman rushed out hurriedly, not wanting to give Bolin any chance to ramble. There was a pause.

"Hey Korra, it's Asami!" Bolin shouted down the receiver of the phone, causing Asami to grimace while she waited for a response.

Bolin laughed at something happening on his end of the line and replied a short while later, "Korra's busy at the moment, can I take a message?"

Asami sighed wearily, "Just let her know I won't be able to make it tomorrow. The factory is swamped with orders and I'm needed here in case anything goes awry." Bolin whistled, clearly amused by Asami's stressful situation.

"Sucks to be you. I got to tell you, I really don't miss that part of being in the city, never a moment to just chill. Though I got to admit, I do miss listening to you and Korra yelling at Mako for not doing his paperwork, he always did put it off…"

"I saw him today." Asami mumbled as Bolin's voice drifted off, his mind taking him away to happier times.

"Mako?"

"No, Santa Claus." Asami rolled her eyes.

"Great, tell him for Christmas I want a Team Avatar reunion."

"Bolin…"

"Sorry." Asami could tell that Bolin was grinning. "So how's my bro holding up? I haven't seen him since…"

Bolin didn't need to finish that sentence. Asami already knew. "He's okay…I guess. Misses Korra like you wouldn't believe. He asks me about her every time we run into each other, which thankfully isn't that often. Sometimes I think he corners me on purpose just so he can ask me about her. He looked tired today, which is better than the alternative, I suppose. From what Beifong has told me he gets drunk a lot, comes hung-over in the morning. He's really changed Bo."

"He's a bitch to deal with when he's hung-over." Bolin muttered. "Right after Korra had left he went on this huge one night drinking binge. From what I've heard, not even Beifong bothered to try dealing with him when he made it into work the next morning. He probably would have snapped her head off if she had, of course, she would have just whipped him or something but that's not exactly the point…"

"You know I almost feel sorry for him, sure we've had our ups and downs but I'd never wish him any harm. I mean, he's lost pretty much everyone he's ever cared for or loved. That can't be easy."

"Yeah, I guess I'm partly to blame."

They both sighed, losing themselves in thought for a moment. "So ugh, is Korra still busy?" Asami asked suddenly. It usually didn't take this long for her to come to the phone.

"Oh, she's not actually here. I just pretended to yell at her earlier cause I knew it would annoy you."

"Bolin! I swear…" they both laughed. Asami decided to end their conversation when she noted a couple of factory workers coming back from their break. "Anyway Bo I need to get going but make sure to pass on my message, I'll come by as soon as things have settled down here." She hung up the phone and headed over to the Sato mobile she'd been working on earlier in the day, Bolin's amused laugh still ringing in her ears.

By the time the lunch hour had ended, Mako still hadn't succeeded in grabbing anything to eat. He'd spent most of the time just wandering the streets aimlessly, thinking about his earlier conversation with the Sato heiress. He half-considered making his way to the Future Industries factory on the other side of town to check on the progress of the Sato mobile shipments but he knew that Asami would have it all under control and that his concern really wasn't needed.

He returned to his office, Beifong and a couple of other council members, including Tenzin were already there, waiting for him so they could begin the afternoon meeting. They made their way to the meeting room, passing pleasantries amongst one another. When they arrived they each took their seats, Mako staring at Beifong for a minute. It was so wrong, seeing her sitting there in what was Korra's seat.

Mako stared at the paper in front of him in disbelief. After a moment he raised his eyes to look at the woman who was standing before him, a woman who he'd come to know quite well over the years. Lin Beifong stared him down, waiting for his response.

It took a few minutes for Mako to process the information and gain composure. "Very well then Beifong, if that is what the Council has decided would be best then I must comply."

Tarloq and Tenzin exchanged looks, both deciding it best not to comment. They knew that delivering the news of Korra's place on the council being replaced, by none other than Lin Beifong wouldn't be easy, but were surprised just how 'well' Mako had handled it.

Beifong turned away from Mako, who glared at her back as she exited the room. Mako, in his anger, had to keep reminding himself that it wasn't Beifong's fault Korra had taken off and that, essentially, Beifong was simply a stand in until Korra returned. If she returned.

Mako was glad when five o'clock rolled around, as it signalled the end of the days meeting. He really just wanted to go home. He had a bottle of Vodka waiting at home and it had his name on it.

Korra sighed as she closed the bedroom door, backing away and turning to find Bolin standing in her hallway, leaning up against the wall. "What are you doing here?" she mumbled, walking past him as she started to make her way towards the living room. Bolin followed her silently.

"I have a message for you. By the time I finished up at the store it was too late to call so I figured I'd just come by to deliver it in person." Korra nodded wordlessly as she took a seat on the couch. Bolin gave a small smile and sat in the armchair opposite Korra. "Anyway, Asami called earlier, she said something about her being swamped with work back in Republic City, apparently her latest Sato mobile has been a real hit. She just said to let you know what with everything going on that she won't be able to make it tomorrow."

"She must be loving that."

"Not half as much as Mako's going to love it when he's swamped with reports of people speeding down the streets of Republic City in their new Sato Mobile." Bolin grinned, hoping to illicit some form of a smile from Korra. No such luck. If anything, her already formed frown deepened at the mention of Mako's name. "Remember the time that Asami was in charge of designing new Airships for the Earth Kingdom and she was so in over her head that she asked us to help out with the shipping schedules, we were working until, what? 3AM?"

"If my memory serves me correctly, you and Pabu ran a muck in the factory, causing such a mess that it took almost an hour to tidy up and get things back on track." Korra pointed out dryly.

"Hey, don't just blame Pabu. Naga was in on it too you know." Bolin said in a matter-of-fact tone.

"Oh please." The sarcasm in Korra's tone was not lost. "So is that all you came down here for? You know, you could have told me this tomorrow morning."

Bolin sighed. He was pretty transparent when it came to Korra; she could always tell when he had an ulterior motive. "Honestly, I just wanted to come by and see how things were going. So I figured I'd walk that little bit further and check in on you and my favourite, well my only, Godson. How's he doing anyway?"

"Well, I finally got his fever to break." Korra sighed wearily as she leaned her head back against the couch, closing her eyes to block out the bright living room light. "I was up with him all last night, he kept coughing and he just couldn't sleep…"

"You should've called me Kor," Bolin said with a frown as Korra's voice drifted off. "I would've come by and stayed with so you could get some sleep."

"He was being clingy last night, so I doubt he would've stayed with you. Besides, it was late."

"And you hate asking for help." Bolin stated, shaking his head. "Do you want me to stay tonight? You look like you could use a good nights sleep."

"I'll be fine." Korra refused, of course. Bolin raised his eyebrows, taking note of her paler-than-usual skin and the dark circles that had been many a sleepless night in forming under Korra's otherwise stunning turquoise eyes.

"Oh come on Kor, there's no shame in admitting when you need someone to lean on." No answer. Bolin sat up slightly, getting a better look at Korra. Her face was insanely serene and peaceful, her breathing deep and even. She'd fallen asleep. Bolin he wanted to move her to her bed so she was more comfortable he just wasn't able, after a slight kerfuffle a few years back when battling against mad woman Kuvira and her personal army in Zao Fu, Bolin had been left a little worse for wear and to this day he felt the effects of it in his bones. So instead he stood, moving Korra so she was in more of a laying position (She must have been tired if that didn't wake her, she was usually such a light sleeper). He ventured into her bedroom down the hall where he grabbed a blanket and pillow from her bed, bringing them back to the living room. He slid the pillow under her head and placed the blanket over her, smiling slightly when she stirred in her sleep, muttering something under her breath.

Mako should be here, he reflected dryly as he switched off the living room light and made his way out of the house, locking the door behind him. Mako should have stayed up with her and Koda last night, Mako should be carrying her to bed because she fell asleep on the couch. This should all be Mako.

Bolin had never really agreed with the choices that Korra had made, but he wasn't one to question them either.

Bolin stared at Asami in disbelief, trying to process what the raven-haired woman had just told him. "Are we talking about… the same Korra here?"

Asami's response was to slap him on the back of the head. "Come on Bolin, this is serious. Korra's in a hard place right now and she needs our help. She handed in a letter to the council notifying them of her wish to take a leave of absence, it'll reach Mako by the end of the week. She wants to be out of Republic City and as far away from Police Headquarters as possible by then. But you know Korra, she refuses to ask anyone for help and thinks she can handle this on her own. But I know otherwise, so this is me, coming to you and begging you to help the girl who you always say is like a sister to you. Please Bolin. Help her."

Bolin sighed, as if Asami need ask. "She can stay with my family in Ba Sing Se until we find her a place of her own. I'm sure they'd love to entertain the Avatar for a little while." It was quite a fall from grace, although it wasn't the first time people had disapproved of Avatar Korra's actions and decisions.

"I'll let her know." Asami smiled weakly. "She's going to kill me for going to you."

"We'll deal with her later." Bolin assured Asami despite the fact that he was still in shock. Two words kept playing in his mind over and over.

Korra. Pregnant.

"Just answer me something, is Mako the father?"

Asami bit her lip. "She won't tell me," she admitted after quite some time. "But come on, unless she was raped, who else would it be?" Bolin's eyes widened, he hadn't even thought of that…"She wasn't raped. Mako's the father. Trust me."

Bolin made his way down the street and to his own home, frowning. There were times, plenty of times that he had thought about calling Mako and telling him everything. But he really had no proof that Korra's son was Mako's son. The child was the splitting image of his mother. But if Bolin had to point anything out it was that Koda's skin was somewhat lighter than Korra's, but that didn't mean much. And anyway, Korra would hate him for life if he outed her secret. And Mako wouldn't go well hearing from his estranged brother that the Avatar had been pregnant with his child and had run away, hiding it for six years.

Either way Bolin would lose out. Korra would kill him, or Mako would.

He'd rather just let fate play out. If Mako was meant to find out, he would, if not, then he wouldn't. But boy oh boy did Bolin hope he would.