all night I dreamt of bonfires and burn piles

[unlimitable]

In all the time that Korra's been in Darrow, she's pretty sure that her nerves have never felt quite so frayed. Hearing announcements about the upcoming Purge all over the news, on the radio, even in advertisements at the movers — it serves as a constant reminder of the terror that's about to come, and how utterly unequipped Korra feels to stop it. She doesn't understand how the majority of a city can be okay with this. She doesn't understand how they feel that it's acceptable for people to get away with anything, even if it is only for one night.

That it's okay for people to steal. Cheat. Murder.

The only saving grace about the whole situation is that Korra herself wouldn't get in trouble for whatever lengths she might have to go to in order to protect everyone. If she breaks a few buildings, upends several cars, none of that billing will arrive on her doorstep.

So that means she needs to train, and brainstorm, and figure out a plan for everything.

Of course, there's only so long that one can think in isolation, and it's for that reason that Korra decides to still move on ahead with her lessons. Her reading's come a long way under Aurora's tutelage, and most of the time she's able to get through all daily errands without literacy being a problem. (Paying bills is still hard sometimes, but if there's any confusion, it can generally be taken care of with a call.)

These days, spending time with Aurora is more a matter of friendship than anything else. She's taken the time to plan out a picnic for today, out in the countryside where bonfires are permitted this time of year. The weather's gotten colder, but the skies are often still blue, and the air fresh and brisk. Korra hopes it isn't too much of an imposition for them to spend time eating outdoors. Her firebending skills are fine-tuned enough for her to adjust the temperature with the small bonfires she's strategically built in a circle, warming their backs from behind.

"Hey," she waves when Aurora arrives. "I hope this place wasn't too hard to find."

Comments

[literaryimmortality]

I'm realizing what a privileged life I've led up until now. I've always had some idea, growing up with a famous and somewhat rich father, but I've also never really encountered certain danger like I am right now.

Well... that's not entirely true. In space, I had almost died along with the ship but that had been a mechanical threat. This is people. Human nature gone mad. Some strange declaration has made it so that on Halloween, people will be allowed to kill each other. To steal. To hurt. To wreak havoc.

I don't have a plan. I know if I survive it I'll be sure to write about it but for right now I can't seem to find the words. I just want people to be safe, and I don't know how to guarantee it. I'm not brave. I never have been.

All I know to do is what I already do. I go ahead with my lesson with Korra. Maybe she'll have some better idea of what to do than me. It wouldn't take much to one-up me at this point.

"Not at all," I say. "How are you? With... everything."

[unlimitable]

"Freaking out," Korra answers honestly. There's something about her friendship with Aurora that makes it easier to expose her vulnerabilities. Maybe it's the fact that Aurora's seen Korra stumble through something that should be so basic, that most people take for granted by Korra's age. Maybe it's the fact that some of the stories they've talked through, though fictional, are so relatable that Korra can't help but open up and empathize.

Whatever it is, Korra's glad to have a friend that she can be blunt and honest with, though she smiles apologetically a second later. She doesn't want to heighten the anxiety, but...

...well, there they are.

"I mean, things are fine, I guess. Your tutoring has been of so much help to me that I've been able to pick up odd jobs here and there. Like, I'm not... wanting for anything. I've got a roof over my head, I'm able to buy Naga the good stuff to keep her fed and happy," Korra lists off, trying to remind herself that things could be worse. Things have been worse. "But I can't help but fixate on the whole Purge thing. I think those of us from outside are the only ones really freaking out about it all, but seriously, I haven't been able to get a full night's sleep since they announced the day over the news."

[literaryimmortality]

I nod as Korra talks, pleased to be speaking with someone who understands how I do – even if it doesn't do much to help either of us in the long run. We can't stop it.

At least, it hasn't occurred to me yet how we might. Maybe that's cruel, maybe that's settling, but with so many people accepting this as the norm it's hard to imagine our protests making much of a difference. I'm sure smarter, stronger women than me wouldn't be content with that, but I had no choice but to be content since arriving in Darrow.

"I would judge anyone who is sleeping soundly," I say. Plenty of them are. They have their security systems, their panic rooms. It wouldn't take much strength to kick down my apartment door and even less to kick me down. I don't have any weapons, save for a handful of kitchen knives. "How does it make sense to anyone?"

The same way war does, I guess.

[unlimitable]

"I guess if you grow up with something, it doesn't... it doesn't feel as wrong," Korra says, her voice still full of disbelief that people are so accepting of the Purge. She shakes her head, squeezing her eyes shut and rubs the bridge of her nose. "If you grow up with this idea that everyone gets a free pass one day every seven years, then I guess you wouldn't be as scandalized as those of us from outside are. But man, it feels like a human rights problem. We should never have a day where it's okay to just take another person's life outside of self-defense."

She sighs, letting out a small huff of an exhale as she lays back.

"Sometimes I just want to punch my way into City Hall and demand these answers of the Mayor. But I've been kind of known for being too, uh, direct with questions like this," she says with a wry grin. "I've heard that there have been some protests over the Purge, but nothing seems to be enough to get the government to question whether or not this day really should exist."

[literaryimmortality]

"I don't see anything wrong with directness at times like these," I say, managing a smile in turn. Korra's passion and compassion both give me hope that... well, that not all hope is lost when things like this happen. It's hard to have hope, sometimes, but I think it's the people we met that keep it from fully fading.

Assuming those people are the right kind of people, and I've certainly met those that aren't. I'm certain that those who are behind the Purge aren't the right kind of people. There's no way that this can be acceptable to a kind heart and mind. I don't care about population control. I don't care about fulfilling urges. Assault is assault. Murder is murder.

"I just wish more people would be. It seems like it's only ever the minority that speaks up and... well, it makes it a lot harder to change things. Not that I've really done anything."

[unlimitable]

"Yeah," Korra murmurs softly, reflecting on politics back in her own world. "I guess sometimes it's hard to feel like it's important to get involved in policies like this when you're so focused on making sure you get by. For some people, it's hard enough to survive day to day, let alone spend time petitioning. And then there are some people who might be afraid of getting on the wrong side of the government. You always hope that everyone gets a voice, but put the wrong person in power, and suddenly disagreeing makes you a target."

She groans, squeezing her eyes shut and rubbing her forehead with her hand. "I've known a lot of really terrible leaders. There's this one woman who was queen, and she thought that made it her right to take whatever she wanted from the people. Any time people tried to protest her taxes, she just sent her police force to silence them, threw them in jail. So lots of people just kind of dealt with it, with her rising taxes. But that's why I feel like I have an obligation to say more, do more, because I'm in a position where I can speak up." She glances over with a widening grin. "I mean, not to toot my own horn too much, but I'm... pretty strong. And slippery, when I have to be."