April Katara Catch-All

[oceanblue]

[Closed to Zuko ]

…Look, it was a lot warmer in the fire nation than it is here. We really should get something with sleeves.

[Maybe a weak argument to pose to the grumpy fire bender trailing behind her after waking him up from a long night, but she had to keep adding to the list to…sort of justify her actions. He hadn’t been all too keen on her waking him up so early to go shopping, but she didn’t want to go alone, and… well. Now that they had finally found a place to stay- a nice place to stay, thanks to Zuko’s keen eye- they really did need to get some shopping done. It didn’t seem all that fair for her to take over the shared space.

Not that she really expected a boy to have a lot of opinions on the matter.]

Besides, I don’t want to just keep washing the same clothes over and over again… They won’t last that long. [Sure, she had fixed his tunic as best she could given the situation, but Azula had really done a number on it, and as hard as she tried, she was sure it was going to be impossible to get the smokey smell out of her own traditional blues…

Plus it was… kind of weird to be in such close quarters without much else to wear while she did her laundry.

She turned a corner, looking down the line of shops with piqued curiosity. Sure, it was still a bit cool (cold) out, even for someone who had grown up in the snow, but it was a nice enough day (except the rain). Surely this wouldn’t be an awful outing….]

------

A) Mid-Day (Shopping! OTA)

They’re visiting a variety of shops in search of clothes and home-wares to fill their new space. While Zuko might not be entirely thrilled with the whole ordeal, Katara’s as curious as ever as she checks out the different styles and unfamiliar objects in the stores.

(Say hello?)
____

B) Dinner (Zuko/Katara- OTA!)

Later in the evening, one might find the two seated at the end of a long table near the window of one of the local restaurants in Genessia, shopping bags tucked against the wall and settled about their feet.

It’s been a successful shopping day, and Katara’s even sporting one of her new outfits. ‘Skinny jeans’, the woman had called them, a comfy looking sweater to fight off the chill, and a pair of flats to replace her tired old shoes. It felt odd, not wearing her traditional blues after all this time, but… there was simply something empowering about a fresh change of clothes and trying something new.

It also looks like trying something new is their only option for dinner tonight, as she pours over the menu.

“…what the heck is a cheeseburger?”

(Feel free to join their table!)

____

C) Fayren, Ivory Tower- Katara only

Despite working far later than she had expected to today, Katara’s in fairly high spirits as she leaves for the day, if a little tired. She’s learning quite a lot at her new job; not only is she able to heal those she’s assigned to with her water bending, but now she’s properly being taught traditional medicines as well. It’s exciting, but… she’s definitely walking a little slower than usual as she heads home alone, despite the darkness and the clouds threatening to burst.

That in itself is a bit thrilling, though.

She’s got her waterskin hidden below her new coat. She’ll be safe enough, right?

—

((Create your own! I’ll roll with it))

Comments

[lordhotman]

Shopping.

She woke him up early to get shopping

Couldn't they do this another time? On another day? Well.. maybe not. It was his day off, but that didn't mean he wanted to spend it being dragged around a bunch of stores. He had been off doing a job hunting some creature when he ended up getting chased by a whole hoard of them.

Needless to say it didn't end well and he came back late empty handed and exhausted.

And she wanted to go shopping.

Good points or not, Zuko spent the entire morning sulking and grumbling as he followed along.

"Why not? We did that all the time back home."

She should be used to roughing it. Nevermind that they didn't really need to now.

[oceanblue]

"We didn't have real jobs back home," she chided, shrugging and peering up at the sign above the entrance to the store closest to them. There's a somewhat sheepish sag to her shoulder as she realizes that... well. Maybe, yeah, they sort of did. Saving the world was a pretty big job.

"At least here we're not trapped in the middle of a raging war. Don't you think we should... I don't know, relax a little?"

Big words for a girl who's still really freaked out about not being back home with her friends who... may or may not be in imminent danger. Not that they could do anything about it.

B!

[minenameis]

[He's not quite sitting at their table, but close enough to hear them. Even so, Frog doesn't seem able to offer much of an answer to her query... in fact, he looks just as confused at the menu in front of him.

Turning to her, he speaks:]

Were I able, I wouldst fain answer thee... However, I find myself instead pondering the exact form of 'pepperoni' and 'pizza'.

[Which he most certainly didn't pronounce properly!]

B...2 >>

[guitar_hero]

I do believe it's rather ghastly regardless.

[he parks himself next to the frog, flipping one end of the long scarf over his shoulder]

Hallo, I'm the Doctor. May I borrow the menu? [takes one anyway] Much obliged...

[lordhotman]

Zuko has been less than enthralled with the shopping trip. But hey at least they were going to eat now, and he could stop carrying all the bags. At least for the moment.

“No idea,” Zuko said back to Katara while squinting at his menu. “What are French fries?”

He continued to puzzle over this until he heard a voice and looked up. His eyes going wide as he saw a giant talking frog.

“What is that!”

And then his menu was yoinked from his hands, successfully diverting Zuko’s attention to the strange man.

“Hey!”

[oceanblue]

[Yeah, french fries don’t seem to ring a bell either, and she’s shaking her head before someone speaks up nearby. Luckily for them all, Katara has enough common sense not to let her surprise go any further than widened eyes at the sight of the human sized frog sitting there. Never mind the fact that it can talk.

She does snap out of it quickly enough to snap at the fire bender-] Zuko! [before something else takes her attention. She blinks up at the man who’s taken the menu from Zuko, then turns back to Frog.] Uh….

[There’s a lot happening. Where should she even start with this???]

A

[goestoextremes]

Soooooo... Korra should probably stop being in vacation mode and move on to figuring out what she's going to do as her job here, then she would maybe have some kind of an idea of where she and Asami can afford to live.

Nope, they still haven't decided anything but that doesn't mean that Korra can't go around to look at all the familiar and mostly unfamiliar objects in stores. They'll have to know what to get later or start with little steps towards -- everything, whatever they happen to want!

And that's when she sees something far more interesting than anything else except Asami has been in Genessia so far. Namely a girl, who looks strangely familiar with her long hair and clothes, that look like they could be from her tribe. Korra stops completely for a moment, ignores whatever she's reaching out to right after it and it's funny how part of her seems to know who that girl is but part of her is not letting her get her hopes too high... Not to mention it'd be her first time even finding out that timeline stuff like this can happen here.

But she can think of only one way to find out right now!

Korra, who is wearing her water tribe outfit and has no interest in shopping new clothes for a while, rushes over to her as if the girl might disappear if she'd just walk.

Wait, now she's supposed to say something, isn't she? Ummm, right, should have thought of that... You know, instead of looking like a stalker, who is giving a weird look at her back.

"Excuse me..." No, she could be talking to anyone when she says that and some stranger thinks she is talking to them. Ugh, no, come on Korra, it's not like that girl's going to bite her head off. Nope, be brave and she'll go right next to her as if she's there to look at the same shelf / thing / whatever Katara happens to be looking. Except Korra is side-eyeing the girl and not interested in anything else here at all. "...ummm, do the words water tribe sound familiar to you?" Nailing it by going straight to the point then, okay.

Straight to the point. APPROVED!

[oceanblue]

Katara's just minding her own business, until the other young woman approaches from behind. She hasn't said anything yet, but she can feel the other girl's eyes following her, and she's suddenly very glad she hasn't dropped her habit of carrying her waterskin around. Sure, waterbending might be frowned upon in a store like this, but it's always nice to have the edge, right?

She minds her own business until the girl steps up beside her and finally speaks. It's only then that she turns to get a proper look at her.


Unmistakable blue eyes widen exponentially, both at the young woman's appearance and the question. It takes a second, but when she finally speaks, its with hopeful enthusiasm. "...Yes! I'm from the Southern Water Tribe!"

She can't help it, getting so far ahead of herself, but there's no mistaking Water Tribe style. The girl's skin, her eyes... Far too many similarities for it to be a coincidence!

[goestoextremes]

It's always good to have the edge and especially in new places where some weird stranger is staring like she could be some creepy danger, yes! Korra has her own on all the time too considering who she is and how she looks like she could throw people far away from her.

She knows those eyes. Sure, she might be younger now and Korra knows her far away from the future but there's really no mistaking them for anyone else. Not after knowing Katara through her whole life, learning so much from her about everything and going through so much with her by her side... This young lady is her hero and one of her biggest supports and like family to her back home. Somehow she just hadn't thought about this being possible here. Which is why Korra is staring at her very young waterbending master with some kind of a shocked surprise on her face at first like she still can't believe that this is real and happening.

She's so cute!! Not that it's surprising but somehow her sudden enthusiasm still manages to hit Korra like a giant wave... What should she say? 'I know, master Katara' is a no, not yet at least even if she'd tell her anything that the girl wants to know later. "... Hi. I-- My name's Korra and I'm from there too."

She'll stop being like a deer in the headlights soon enough, right? This is the most amazing thing happening here ever.

[oceanblue]

Yeah, forget just introductions. Katara's so overtaken with excitement that- yep, those are arms going up and around Korra's neck for as big a hug as she can manage.

"This is incredible! I didn't think I'd actually see anyone else from home here!" Except Zuko, but he had come here with her and he definitely wasn't water tribe. She glances over the other girl's shoulder for a moment, doesn't spot him, but marks to find him as soon as possible for introductions.

Oh. Introductions. She should probably do that.

She lets her go and takes a step back, now grasping the girl's forearms and not at all sheepish that she's just hugged a stranger. They're Water Tribe. They might as well be sisters, right? "I'm Katara. I.... uh... when are you from there?" That's the only sheepishness she'll offer, in the form of a soft laugh. She's sure she hasn't met this young woman before... "This place is kind of weird like that."

[goestoextremes]

If Korra wasn't so damn stunned in her surprise to see her right now, she'd possibly be the first one going for that hug. Or no, no she wouldn't be because Katara and hugging is even more of a thing than Korra and hugging. The hug feels amazing and it also makes this all, including Katara, make completely real though. It works perfectly for melting her away from that surprised state and Korra's fast to return the hug, squeezing Katara tight into it like an old friend (haha) or sister.

"I didn't know there'd be anyone else besides me and Asami either." Right, speaking of introductions, she should introduce Asami and speaking of introducing Asami to Katara reminds her that that's still a thing that she needs to do back home in the we're together way now when they're together but Korra had stormed out of there before that could happen. So as if she isn't getting emotional over everything else here, there's that adding to the feelings pile too. It's so extremely rare for her to cry in front of anyone but she sure is close to tearbending right now and she's not even going to try to stop it whenever that happens.

She's almost really hesitant to let go as if Katara might disappear if she lets go but she doesn't try to stop them from letting the hug go either. No sheepishness for hugging a stranger here either, Korra hugs a lot too, some of her hugs go to strangers and besides Katara's not a stranger to her. She's smiling like a dork at Katara. She knows her name already, Katara would possibly find that out soon too. "...After Aang's time."

That's possibly a strange way of putting when she's from but considering how their world works with the Avatar cycle, maybe she'll be (somewhat but not even close to) ready for the reaction this time when she believes that Katara can connect the dots to what that means.

[oceanblue]

She's almost ready to ask who Asami is - is she watertribe too?? - but then Korra drops that all-too-familiar name, and those blue eyes go wide again as she tries to process it.

"After Aang? So... then..." It's a lot to think about, and while she doesn't quite connect Korra with the avatar, it's still... unsettling at best to think of an 'after' Aang. She braces herself before she even asks the next question.

"How long....after the war?" Did they all make it out okay??? Its the last thing she knows from home. How many generations later is this girl? If Aang was the last avatar... This girl is from long after, then.

[goestoextremes]

Ooops... Maybe she shouldn't have said that. Then again, it's part of the natural circle of reincarnating life for her and she's had time to think about it and for people to kick her fierce spirit back whenever she feels bad about it. But oh spirits, sometimes she should remember those moments when she used to overthink about what the Katara in her time thought about Korra being the new Avatar after all of her years with Aang. Or the whole thing about how she's like the opposite of him... Because wow that lady is surely the nicest lady, that Korra has ever met whenever she needs someone to talk sense about it to her.

And oh gosh, Korra is so used to Katara being the amazing old lady, who tells her about the past, gives the best life advice and everything and now this is suddenly some kind of an opposite situation when she's from... Somewhere much earlier, is the war even over for her?

"It's been over 70 years after you guys won the war with everyone surviving alive from it, I'm 21 now but I'm also the next one right after him. .... ... I.... see you whenever I have time to be home for a while, master Katara." Definitely not a stranger to Korra.