A/N: After constant badgering from my dear friend, Mel, I decided to post this. Initially it was going to be one great, long one-shot but I decided to split it up because - well, I just did. So I hope you enjoy the first part!

Babysitting Blues

Compared to learning and mastering all four of the elements, anything was easy, especially something trivial like babysitting.

As far as Korra was concerned, there was nothing difficult about it. Being paid to play with kids for a couple of hours before they fell asleep? That was far easier than pushing yourself until your head was dizzy with exhaustion and the muscles of your body all but gave out. No, babysitting would be a slice of pie compared to the rigorous training sessions she'd had to endure over the years.

Or so she thought.

In all fairness, Korra had never looked after children on her own. She was always too busy with her training; she didn't even get to associate with other children her age all that often and when she did, they were either too intimidated by her to play or too jealous to even bother. And when she finally was old enough to look after the younger children of the tribe, her training had been kicked into high gear, especially since there was talk of politic unrest in Republic City. The only time she'd ever had one-on-one time with a baby was when her mother's friend brought her newborn over and even then, Korra had only wiggled her finger in front of the baby's face and smiled when it giggled and tried to grasp it.

Beyond that, the only thing she knew about kids were that they liked to talk and tended to shut up when you shoved a treat in their general direction.

So when Korra had overheard Pema grumbling to Tenzin that she was sick of having to stay home because they couldn't find a sitter to look after their children, Korra offered up her services with a smile. She was, of course, completely ignorant of the real reason why the family couldn't keep a sitter to save their lives, but she was eager to return the favor. After all, they were providing her with free room and board while she continued her airbending training. So, really, it was the least she could do.

As a sound of something expensive shattering echoed in the background, Korra groaned, lowering her head into her hands. If only she'd known then what she knew now.

If only, if only.

"Well, maybe if you weren't so pushy –" Ikki aimed a kick at her sister, but was thwarted yet again by the Avatar, who pulled her backwards with a quick jerk of her collar. Of all the things to use against her, Korra just had to go for her clothing. Twisting in the older girl's grip, she glared up at her. "Hey! I almost had that one!"

"I don't care!" Korra said, the coloring rising to her face as Ikki tried to kick out again. She tightened her grip on the girl's collar, sending her (what she hoped was) a threatening look. "You're not even supposed to be fighting anyway!"

"But she ruined my book, Korra!" Jinora cried, thrusting out her hand in which a ball of air had been swirling. The gust blew back Korra's bangs, but she raised a flat of earth with a lazy flick of her wrist, dispelling the ball. Jinora made a noise of protest while Ikki giggled. "Did you even see what she colored in the margins?"

Korra blinked, alarmed by the distress in Jinora's voice. She prayed to the Spirits that it wasn't something wildly inappropriate, but knowing Ikki, it was probably a bunch of otter penguins. The girl had a weird obsession with them. "Well, no, but –"

"Just because you don't understand my point of view as an artiste, 'Nora, doesn't mean it's not important. Besides," she added with a haughty sniff, "it's just a stupid book!"

Unleashing an unholy scream of frustration that echoed in the rafters and woke all of the wildlife on Air Temple Island, Jinora surged forwards, a tangle of awkward arms and rage and –

"Meelo!" Korra shouted, completely abandoning her hold on Ikki when, in the corner of her eye, she caught sight of the youngest of Tenzin's children reaching for what looked to be a very old, very important airbending relic. "Put that down!"

As she ran towards the boy, a smug smile curled his lips and he wiggled his thick eyebrows. Korra's stomach dropped out as he snatched up the vase and, smiling wickedly, dashed away at top speeds. She was beginning to regret showing him how to manipulate the air to propel himself faster, even if she had done it as a bribe for his silence.

The less Tenzin knew about her Pro-Bending activities, the better.

"No, Meelo, don't -!"

"GIVE IT BACK, IKKI, OR ELSE!"

"OR ELSE WHAT? YOU'LL THREATEN ME WITH – ACK!"

Barely able to make sense in all of the commotion, Korra whipped around at the sound of Ikki's cry just in time to see the girl fall onto her backside, the older of the two girls covering her mouth as she giggled. She opened her mouth to call out a reprimanded (even though she knew they wouldn't listen to her because they never did) but Ikki kicked out with a gale of air, which swept the legs right out from underneath Jinora, and she joined her sister on the floor. Korra debated going over to the sisters to pull them apart before anything else could happen, but then she heard Meelo laughing.

Her stomach bottomed out.

"That can't be good," Korra mumbled to herself, pushing her fingers through her hair. Her blue gaze shifted from the girls, who were now using their bending to take their aggression out on each other, lips curled back in equally intimidating sneers, and Meelo, who was still laughing as he pattered around the house, and back again. Neither situation was dire, but both had the potential to lead to something disastrous. She was completely torn, knowing that if she abandoned one situation in lieu of the other, it would end horrifically.

Either way, this was Definitely Not Good.

She felt sick, but mostly she felt like crying. Big, ugly, body-wracking sobs.

And she almost did, but then she heard Meelo cry out in panic, which in turn made her suck down an embarrassingly loud gasp of air and tear down the hall after him, worrying biting at her stomach.

Korra would much rather clean up the wreck the sisters left behind for hours on end than explain to Tenzin why yet another one of his precious relics was ruined. It had been difficult and awkward enough the first three times, and she doubted it'd be any better after a fourth.

Besides, the girls could use a bit of practice anyway, even if it meant the living area would be a complete and utter mess. She could handle that.

Or at least she hoped she could.

"Give it back, Meelo."

The boy crossed his arms over his chest, looking every bit the defiant little devil she knew him to be. "Why should I?"

She gnashed her teeth together, her vision turning red. As the Avatar, she wasn't supposed to use her bending unless the situation called for it. And while it was her own personal opinion that this moment called for it, she knew it didn't. Not really. On the flip side since she wasn't anywhere near mastering airbending, she was hardly a fully-realized Avatar…but no, he was only five years old – a demon in disguise, yes, but also just a child.

Still…

Pulling a deep breath through her nose, calling her nostrils to flare, she said, "Because I told you to."

"So?" he prompted, raising an eyebrow in challenge. "You don't listen to my papa when he tells you do things."

That was so painfully true that if she had any sense of decorum at all, she would have blushed. But she was too consumed by her irritation with the little pipsqueak in front of her, a gloating smile on his lips and an evil glimmer in his eyes. This kid knew exactly what he was doing, and it made her blood boils.

"Yeah, well," she replied, mimicking his stance and folding her arms over her chest, cocking her left hip. "He's not my dad, is he?"

"And you aren't my mom, so I don't have to listen to you," countered the five year old, jutting out his chin triumphantly, all but rocking back on his heels in self-satisfaction.

Korra's mouth flopped open and shut, but eventually she settled on narrowing her eyes into a glare and putting her hands on her hips. As a child, she had always been intimidated by her superiors when they'd assumed the very same stance, so she hoped it would have the same effect on him.

"Meelo," she began, adopting what she thought was her most intimidating voice, "give it back. Now." It wasn't as impressive as the collective voice of all the Avatars, but she thought it did the job, for the boy in question snapped his mouth shut and pushed his lips into a pout.

The familiar tides of victory lapped at her feet, Korra allowed herself a small smile and a self-satisfied nod. "There," she said, dropping her hands from her hips. "Now just give the vase back to me and –"

"Never!" the boy all but screamed, rushing at her so quickly, it caught her off-guard. He barreled into her, shoving her knees with his left hand and ducking under her outstretched hands. She didn't fall over, but she stumbled into the wall upon which she banged her head. Before she could right herself, however, the boy had taken off down the hall, cackling at the top of his voice.

"Na na na na na!"

"Damn it, Meelo!" she cursed, pushing away from the wall and running after him, though her feet slipped on the rug and she nearly fell down again. Another much more colorful string of curses fell from her lips as she resumed her chase, lifting a hand to rub the bump on the back of her head as she went.

As she rounded the corner, Korra called out, "Spirits be damned, Meelo, I am going to kill y-" Digging her heels into the wood, she skidded to a spectacular halt at the sight of him. "-ou. Oh," she finished, licking her lips, not quite sure what to do with her. Her hand leapt to the back of her neck, massaging the knot of tension. "Hi."

He was dressed in his usual attire, though the vibrant burst of red that livened up his rather dreary wardrobe was missing, which made her frown. He looked distinctly out of place in the ornate living area, his dark clothes a shock against the brightly colored walls. It was easy to see that he was uncomfortable amongst the splendor; he shifted his weight from foot to foot, his gaze consuming each opulent detail with a hint of revulsion and an underlying jealousy. When his ocher eyes locked with hers, he offered a weird almost-but-not-quite half smile.

"Hi," he returned lightly, giving her appearance a minute inspection before his gaze swept over the room, taking in the state of it as well as the three children occupying it.

Jinora and Ikki were on opposite sides of the room, the space between them strewn with cushions, leafs of paper, and, if Korra wasn't mistaken, several broken plates. Both girls were crouched in defensive stances, a ball of air swirling madly in their respective hands. Their attention, however, was focused on the newcomer: Jinora looked awestruck whereas Ikki's head was cocked, her face a perfect mock-up of curiosity. Meelo was, for all intents and purposes, absolutely transfixed by the dark stranger, having stopped his frantic jumping on top of the table to gap open-mouthed at the tall boy.

"Whoa," he whispered reverently, blinking slowly. "Who are you?"

Korra rolled her eyes. Really? Even Meelo?

She could understand the reasoning behind the girls unabashed staring, but Meelo? It's not like he was that awesome. It's not like he was the Avatar or anything. She was way cooler than stupid Mako.

"I'm Mako," he introduced himself, the friendliness in his tone catching her by surprise. She didn't know he was capable of being personable, let alone friendly. Well, that wasn't entirely true; he had shown his nicer side after she'd taken a particularly nasty hit and almost broke her wrist, but that was one of those one-time things. "What's your name?"

"Meelo!" the boy squeaked, beaming up at the tall bender like he was the coolest thing to ever exist. "Your gloves are really cool!" In the entranceway of the hall, Korra pouted. His gloves were not cool at all. They were lame. Her armbands were way cooler.

"Thanks." A small smile touched the corner of his mouth. "Nice to meet you," Mako said, holding out his forearm for the little boy to grasp. Eagerly, Meelo surged forward, latching into Mako's arm and gripping tightly, his blue eyes alight with pride and awe. As the boy started asking him about his gloves and why he wears them because they are so cool, Mako surreptitiously eased the vase from his small hands, sending Korra a look over the top of the boy's head to come and take it.

Speechless, Korra tip-toed behind Meelo and held out her hand, taking the vase from him and cradling it to her chest. Silently, she prayed to the Spirits that there was nothing wrong with it, that Meelo hadn't done any noticeable damage to the invaluable relic. However, even if she didn't notice anything off it didn't necessarily mean that Tenzin wouldn't. Tenzin noticed everything.

Their eyes met for the briefest of moments and Korra nodded her heads in thanks as she backed out of the room, tearing her gaze away from the curiously golden depths and focusing them on Meelo. Should he suddenly realize that she was in possession of the vase, she was prepared to make a run for it. As it turned out, her exercise in caution was entirely unnecessary as the tiny Airbender couldn't tear his eyes away from Mako, who had taken off one of his gloves and had handed it over to Meelo for him to inspect and try on.

Even Jinora and Ikki eased out of their defensive stances, the charm of the new mysterious stranger strong enough to put an end to their stand-off.

A frown toyed at the corners of her mouth, but Korra pushed it away, letting her annoyance at the situation overpower her wounded ego. She didn't even like kids and yet it bothered her that they had taken to Mako so quickly. After all, what did he have that she didn't?

By the time she found a suitable hiding place for the vase and went back into the living area, Jinora was sitting on the floor next to Mako, a bunch of scrolls unrolled on the rug in front of them. She was pointing something out to him, her dark brown eyes wide and her thin lips moving fast as she explained something to him. Though there was a mark of confusion in his brow, Mako nodded along and pointed to a bit of text, which engaged Jinora in another long explanation that had her gesturing wildly with her hands.

It was strange, seeing him so candid with someone he hardly knew. She was used to him standing to the wayside, a disdainful look on his face as Bolin turned on the charm – usually for a girl. That was how it had played out when she was first introduced to the older of the two brothers; he gave her a quick once over, raised his eyebrow, and muttered a quick hello. He didn't offer a hand and when she tried to clap him on the shoulder as a way of thanking him for letting her join their team, Mako had dodged her hand, rolling his shoulder as he took a step away from her. So watching him interact with Jinora, the way he leaned over her shoulder and nudged her with his elbow when he laughed – it made her feel like she was seeing Mako for the very first time. It left a bitter taste in her mouth.

Korra knew she was being completely irrational, but she had been trying for weeks to break through his cold exterior and get him to open up, to see the lighter side of him that Bolin claimed was there and worth the wait. She tried charming him with her wit, impressing him with her bending, and making him laugh, but nothing worked. The only reactions her attempts seemed to elicit were blank stares and arched brows, sometimes an occasional throwaway comment that buried itself under her skin and agitated her. After weeks with no progress, Korra gave up, abandoning all attempts at friendship and letting her true feelings reign – feelings of annoyance and disdain, which crackled and fizzled and clashed with Mako's, leading to many pointless arguments that turned to stony silences.

Jinora had only spent five minutes with him and she was already making more breakthroughs than she had made in as many months! It was infuriating, mostly because he always accused her of being exceedingly childish and here he was, catering to the whims of a nerdy Airbender and her siblings, who were currently shadowboxing on top of the table, each wearing one of Mako's fingerless gloves.

Even though she wanted to be irritated, she couldn't bring herself to feel that familiar wave of aggravation that she associated with Mako. Sure, Korra was frustrated that a ten year old had succeeded where she hadn't, but she wasn't angry. Not in the slightest.

In fact, she was relieved because for the first time all evening, the kids were calm and under control. Fake sparring on the top of a table and shouting about the constellations, yes, but settled down all the same.

Releasing a shaky sigh of relief, Korra collapsed onto the cushion in the far corner of the room. "Finally," she breathed, leaning her head back on the pillow and relishing the way the plush molded to her muscles.

A/N: So that was part one! The next chapter will have more Makorra interaction, I promise. I love feedback, so if you'd be so kind to leave me some, I would love you forever.