need the sun to break

[resistivity]

Who: mako, ota otherwise! please bring me your babies c:
Where: various places
When: throughout the sickness event, the last prompt can cover any time period in it as mako won't progress past the first stage.
Rating pg for now! will update if it changes. some mention of a lightning-based injury tho!
What: settling in and maybe trying to mother-hen other sick people who need it. please toss me a pm or hmu on discord (violynnist#8733!) if you would like something custom for you, or to try another situation/scenario also! This was my intro post on the CR meme as well if that's easier to poke at c:

𝐏𝐑𝐄-𝐒𝐈𝐂𝐊𝐍𝐄𝐒𝐒;

𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐚;

( he's no stranger to the fey and fantastic. being friends with the avatar has meant years of encountering things that might have otherwise been beyond belief. he has a healthy threshold of tolerance for the scope and scale of strange than most people would probably expect of a no-nonsense cop.

his first thought is spirit wilds. even astoria herself sort of seems like one, though she looks human (he's heard stories of koh) and the misty phantasms that roam the temple grounds certainly don't disabuse that notion. mako is. quiet. taking it all in, listening, learning. he jots down notes, which is difficult to do when one arm is an out-of-commission ruin, strapped into a sling that pinions it to his body. he sort of rests the notepad in the hollow of his wrist, over the fabric of the sling and scribbles everything in police short-hand.

thrown into a new situation? doesn't know anyone or anything beyond astoria's welcoming spiel? time to wander the grounds of the temple. when he runs into other people, he'll approach them politely and introduce himself, )

I know it probably doesn't matter here, but I'm a Detective with the Republic City Police back home. My name's Mako. I'd like to ask you a few questions, if that's all right?

( he gestures with his notepad, obviously intending on writing things down. feel free to talk with him, refuse a statement, agree but only off the record, etc. he's a mostly-amicable (if. sometimes humorless) guy! )

𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐛;

( he can't feel the sun. it's there, visible, a low-hanging presence on the cusp of dawn. it's a slightly different color than the one he's used to, and he can feel its rays on his skin, but there's. nothing. no energy, no... deep, abiding warmth that sinks down into the bones and drags the life and breath of fire to life through the conduit of his physical body.

it lends further credence to the thought he must be in the spirit world, or something very like it. he finds his way to the fighting ring and, still with his left arm in its sling, he tries a few right-handed jabs at one of the training dummies. nothing. nothing. he's stayed calm through everything else, being recruited — kidnapped, essentially — to someone else's fight, the whole thing. but this? it reminds him too much of amon.

out of frustration, he kicks at the air, the sort of slicing motion that would have swept fire away from him in an arc. and.

to his complete and utter surprise, a column of rock juts up out of the earth and launches the dummy several yards away. mako, instinctively, turns to look for bolin or korra or even beifong, the earthbenders whose company he spends the most time in, but. he's alone.

except, perhaps, for your character. mako looks a little sheepish at having been caught unawares — he's usually a little harder to sneak up on, so he's rubbing the back of his neck as he asks, )

Did you do that?

𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐔𝐗𝐓𝐀'𝐒 𝐒𝐈𝐂𝐊𝐍𝐄𝐒𝐒;

( he hates getting sick. firebenders are pretty hardy, all things considered. they tend to run hot. mako isn't used to feeling ill, it's only happened a couple times in memory, and. his default state is ignore all physical discomfort. he doesn't seem to be badly off, either, given what everyone else is going through.

so. a case of the sniffles. he sucks it up. pitches in around the kitchens, makes himself available to anyone who seems to be suffering. he even tries to go out into the forest of the fey to see if there is anything out there, some plant or herb that can be used as a remedy.

if your character needs some looking after during the event, mako's your guy. he will dutifully help total strangers, tuck people in, carry them off to a bed and help them through the loss of their senses should it come to that! let him big-brother you. it's the squishiest you'll ever see him. )

Comments

[array]

( uhhhhhhhhh

maybe it was a fluke? she's not entirely sure how that makes sense in her brain, but it's the path of thought she chooses to go down, because. because. lightbending is not a thing. it can't be a thing, that's like - raava's thing, and she's a spirit.

fluke. right. in one hop, she's up on her feet, fighting stance at the ready. she moves her hands for all of a second, before she turns to look at mako, nodding her head. )

Brace yourself, just in case.

( she has good inclination towards maintaining the elements - she's a master of all four, and with that comes an inherent knowledge of how to move, how to be flexible with nature. so. she's got a pretty good idea on how to man this, moving her hands like a waterbender, stance strong like an earthbender. heave ho. her hands give a swift, elegant strike to the side, the way a water whip works, but it's just - light, like a flashing blade, rustling the dummies.

okay. not a fluke, then. korra looks down at her palm like she's seeing it for the first time. )

Lightbending ... ( her fists clenches and then she just - laughs, head tossed back. ) Cool! Did you see that Mako? Lightbending!

[resistivity]

( he gets to his feet as well, a few cautious meters back from her in case things go awry, hand splayed off to the side so he can raise a mound of earth to protect them. but she does it again and this time it does work, and when she laughs he lets out a triumphant whoop, dashes in to pick her up one-armed in excitement. hope u like being swung around like a princess, korra.

at least he doesn't kiss her. )

What did I tell you! That's the coolest thing I've ever seen!

( korra's greatest cheerleader reporting for duty, hello. )

[array]

Woo hoo!

( she lets herself be lifted, knowing mako can support her, one handed, at least long enough for her to toss both fists up in the air, and praise the spirit raava herself. thank all the spirits, really. at least she has something - it really didn't matter what it was. she has a thing now, and feels immediately less useless than she did five minutes ago.

her hands settle on his shoulders as he sets her down. korra debates punching his arm again for lack of proper affection, but. she's gotten better. she hugs mako tight once more, up on her tiptoes. )

Thanks for not giving up on me.

( she doesn't think there's ever been a time when he has, but. still. she's always somewhat winded by mako's devotion, or any of team avatar's devotion. she hardly thinks she's worth so many good, compassionate friends. it's a wonder how someone as selfish as korra has been able to maintain them, but. for a time, really, she didn't.

it's a good thing that's over. ( although asami's not here. maybe she should write her letters for - when, if she ever arrives. ) she squeezes mako's biceps as she leans back, dancing eyes bright. )

It's not half as cool as your earthbending! I'm serious. You're, like, a legend.

[resistivity]

( ow, korra. pls watch the bum arm. mako grimaces faintly when she squeezes the left, though he'd never honestly complain about it. pain doesn't mean a lot when stacked up against friendship, anyway.

at the commentary about his earthbending, all he can do is laugh. )

Seriously? I moved one rock. ( and like, a handful of pebbles. ) I don't think that qualifies as legendary.

[array]

Pff, yeah, but. ( she's waving her hands around like it's obvious. ) You only just started. The big deal is — two elements!

( minding the wounded arm, korra tugs his shirt sleeve until he's more in the middle of the platform, giving a big gesture outwards. do it again! it's show off time. )

You're gonna see, it'll help your firebending, too. Please get a little excited, Mako? It's cool!

[resistivity]

( he doesn't do excited. at least not on his own behalf. mako rolls his eyes a little. see, his opinion on showing off has shifted over the years. with the fire ferrets, it used to be... you know, part of the show. he had a public persona to maintain, and people liked the illusion of attention. mako was never really comfortable in front of a crowd, but he knew how to work them. that was all street-kid, you learn how to manipulate people to get what you want out of them. looking sad and miserable was a better way to get a couple yuan out of someone than if you seemed tough and competent.

but ever since he hung up his pro-bending gear, he's been. a lot more reserved in his personal life. a lot less willing to show off, even if there's a shy part of him that still likes the praise. more-so from korra, who he knows isn't saying it with any sort of ulterior motive.

he'd never admit that it sort of. bolsters up that inner kid who never really had the validation, who grew up pretending he wasn't interested or didn't need it. but everybody likes to hear they're good at something once in a while.

so although he's not going to cut loose enough to get excited, he does sigh in an exaggeratedly put-upon way and takes himself through a half-dozen earthbending forms. the earth obeys unquestioning. it's not quite as natural to him as firebending, but it's a warm stranger in its place, he can feel the solidity of the earth, striations and structure, the way it anchors him. he misses the lick of flames, conjured into being by instinct and breath, but. he meant it when he said he'd get used to it. mako, as a person, rebels against the idea of helplessness or ineffectiveness on an intrinsic level. there is no possible way he could gain another element and leave it unmastered. rocks lift and scatter, form and precision marrying into a decent show of competence. he's no avatar, but he's still someone who has paid more attention than most to the bending arts. )

There. Happy?

[array]

( honestly, it is impressive. there isn't a fraction of korra that's being overly flowery or facetious about it. she was bending rocks when she was a kid, but she didn't have the form the mako does, the naturally built up muscle strength to maintain moving big bodies of mass. mastering water first built up her body to withstand the weight of the earth, and it was a smooth transition from there. she didn't just - hop out into the world, pulling out the moves mako is displaying. she knows it's a product of having been born half earth kingdom, having a baby brother with that rugged, dirty talent. but, still. in an ordinary person, it'd take at least a day to move mountains.

then again, mako has never been ordinary, so maybe it's not surprising.

her expression is entirely eased, lips pulled up in a small, soft smile, giving a look that says i told you so, although mako never really voiced any doubt. likely, he didn't have any. no one is more aware of his talents than him, but - he questions himself often enough, sometimes, for all the times korra doesn't. her arms are crossed, approval marking her stance.

she shakes her head. not happy, no. )

Proud.

( and then her grin cracks, teeth shown. )

You look just like a badger mole.

[resistivity]

( it does something funny to his innards. a hook and a twist at his gut that feels like falling in love all over for the first time. they're past that now — well past it, but. it's a little reminder, something solid and settled, about how much, how deeply she can still affect him. how she'll always affect him.

she's proud of him. it means the world, somehow.

even offset as it is by that badger mole comment. mako rolls his eyes. )

As long as Wu doesn't try to serenade me, I think I can live with that.

[array]

Ugh.

( just. the mention of the once prince makes korra do a full body shudder, sticking her tongue out in evident disgust. )

Thanks to whatever spirit that didn't kidnap him too. Knowing our luck, he'd show up and be the Avatar.

( more cringed, displeased faces, before korra just bursts in a fit of laughter, trying to imagine their royal boy as any kind of bender. he's also just an easy target to make fun of, although korra is softer on him now since he announced his plans to abolish the monarchy - most of her teasing comes from a place of casual endearment, and the rest of it is indisputable annoyance. )

How'd you put up with him for so long, again?

[resistivity]

( thank you for that rather vivid mental image. mako has entered an indisputable realm of horror. he shivers, makes a face that almost mirrors her obvious dislike. no, thank you. avatar wu?? barely knew 'er. )

Let's do my psyche a favor and not joke about that.

( please. never again. he may have endeared himself to korra, but mako... well. he's not going to admit to having slightly more affection than 'annoyed tolerance' for him, but. either way, it's a narrow margin. )

It was just the job. Trust me, I wasn't hanging around with him for my sanity or well-being. Do you know he once got stuck in a shirt? And he wouldn't let me cut him out of it because it was 'rare elephant island silk', which I still think was just a sales pitch? Darkest day of my life.

( and, you know, it's mako, so... that's a pretty significant thing. )