Hey, everyone! Man, it sure has been a while since I was last on here. Sadly, school's been a pain in my rear. Anyways, I was listening to "Once Upon a December" earlier today and I got inspired to do this little ficlet. This is my first story in a few months, so hopefully you'll like it. Enjoy and review!

DISCLAIMER: I do not own "Avatar: The Last Airbender". The show and its characters belong to Mike and Bryan, the brillant geniuses behind one of the greatest cartoon shows in the history of cartoons. Their work is legendary, and I salute them for it. I also do not own "The Legend of Korra" or any of the characters associated with it. I am merely a fanboy with a passionate love for this series.

Once Upon a Golden Sunset

"Are you sure this is a good idea, Korra?" asked Mako warily, watching as his girlfriend sat down and took her meditative posture in the Meditation Pavilion. The cold, icy winter air stung at them like needles, but their inner fire staved off the bitter cold. "I mean, shouldn't we have Tenzin out here to help guide you into the Spirit World or something?"

"Relax, Mako," replied Korra with a reassuring smile, her cyan eyes warm as she looked up at her boyfriend. "I've gone into the Spirit World plenty of times without Tenzin, and nothing bad ever happened during any of those times." She could see that Mako's face was burdened with worry, and she let out a heavy sigh. "Would I ever lie to you, Mako?"

"No," was the Firebender's earnest reply as he leaned against a post of the Meditation Pavilion. "You're not one to lie, Korra."

"Then trust me when I say you have nothing to worry about," said Korra as she closed her eyes, letting her breathing fall into a slow, quiet rhythm. "If it makes you feel any better, you can stay here with me until I get back."

Without waiting to hear Mako's response, she let her spirit become free like a leaf in the wind and drift off to the Spirit World. When she opened her eyes, she found herself standing in the midst of tumbling clouds and fog, as if she were high in the sky.

"Welcome back, Korra," greeted a strong voice from behind her. Recognizing the voice immediately, Korra turned around to see Aang standing behind her, looking the same as he had the day he and all the past Avatars restored her bending: a wise, kind-hearted man with a friendly smile. Aang's smile widened as Korra smiled back at him, the young Avatar bowing out of deep-seated respect for her most recent past life. "I believe I know why you're here." He waited until Korra came out of her bow to explain. "You're here to further strengthen our spiritual connection by reliving the most important moments of my life."

Korra chuckled lightheartedly as she crossed her arms in front of her chest. "You know me too well, Aang. Though I really shouldn't be surprised; we practically are one and the same."

"Avatars tend to be like that," joked Aang with a small shrug, causing both of them to chuckle at the same time. "Anyways," said Aang as Korra let her arms fall by her side, "we should go ahead and get started. What important moment in my life would you like to see, Korra?"

"I'll let you decide," replied Korra with an honest smile. "It was your life, after all. You know better than I do which moments in your life were the most important."

Aang hummed thoughtfully as he held his bearded chin in one hand, his gaze drifting downwards as he contemplated which moment that Korra would see. After a few moments, a knowing smile came to Aang's face as he looked up at Korra. "Close your eyes," he instructed as he dropped his hand, and Korra did as he said.

"Now open them," he added almost immediately after she had closed her eyes. When Korra opened her eyes, she couldn't stop the delighted gasp that sprang out of her mouth.

Looking skyward, Korra saw the heavens painted a golden-orange, the colors of a magnificent sunset. The summer air was comfortably warm, and the atmosphere around them seemed to be relaxed and peaceful. "Where are we?" she asked Aang as she looked back at the past Avatar.

"Ba Sing Se," replied Aang, his eyes full of remembrance, "just before Earth King Kuei announced the Harmony Restoration Movement that would remove the Fire Nation colonies from the Earth Kingdom." Looking off to his right, Aang smiled warmly and added, "And right at the moment when the lives of two young people changed forever."

Following Aang's gaze, Korra's eyes fell upon a sight so wondrous and amazing that she swore that she stopped breathing.

Standing there at the edge of the balcony were two young kids, a boy and girl, wrapped up in each other's arms, their mouths connected in a kiss so passionate and heartfelt that Korra couldn't help but smile. The girl's arms were around the boy's neck, and the boy's arms were around the girl's waist, both of them holding on to each other tightly, as if they were afraid of being separated in this one wonderful moment. The majestic setting sun illuminated the couple, the rays shining on the girl's light green kimono and the boy's light orange robes. Looking more closely, Korra saw that the girl was obviously from the Water Tribe, as indicated by her darker skin tone, but the boy she recognized immediately.

"Aww," cooed Korra sweetly as she clasped her hands underneath her chin, "you were so short!" She didn't notice the twitch of irritation on Aang's face, for she was too transfixed on the young couple in front of her.

"Yes," said Aang as he cleared his throat, as if to compose himself, "I was short when I was a kid, though I grew up to be the tallest out of all of us." He smiled tenderly at the sight of his younger self kissing Katara, remembering all too well how it had felt that unforgettable evening when he held her in his arms and kissed her with all the love in his heart. "Out of everything that happened in my life, this was one of the most important: the moment when Katara and I accepted our love for each other and decided to finally be together." Looking down at Korra, he was surprised to see tears leaking out of her eyes. "Are you alright, Korra?"

"Yeah," sniffled Korra, still keeping her hands clasped as she smiled tearfully. "It's just…so loving and romantic and perfect." She finally wiped away her tears, sniffling a couple more times before looking up at Aang. "Just like how Katara described it to me." She and Aang smiled in unison before returning their gaze back out to the young couple.

"Katara always did vividly remember that evening," chuckled Aang with an eloquent smile. "Even when we were married, she would always say 'Remember that evening in Ba Sing Se, when we kissed on the balcony?', and I would always reply-"

"'How could I ever forget that evening, my Forever Girl?'" finished Korra, looking back up at Aang as he looked down at her. With a smile, she added, "And then you would kiss her just like you did that evening, and she would fall more in love with you than she already had."

With tears falling down his smiling face, Aang bowed to Korra as the image of the past around them shimmered and disappeared along with him. Closing her eyes, Korra let herself drift back to the human world, where the love of her own life was waiting.

When Korra opened her eyes in the human world, she was surprised to see that Mako wasn't standing where she had left him. Instead, she felt his arms wrapped around her waist, his forehead resting against the back of her head as he murmured, "Welcome back."

The young Avatar couldn't help but smile as he kissed the back of her neck, whispering back, "It's good to be back." She wondered if her story with Mako would end up as happy as Aang and Katara's had.

One way or another, she was going to find out, and with Mako by her side all the way.