Spirit World
“Ouch Mako that was my foot!” Korra snapped to the darkness.
“Sorry.”
They pushed their way past more brambles. All four of them had to be extremely careful though; if anyone saw them with scratches on their faces from the woods they were sure to get in trouble. The group ducked around another set of branches and found a clearing.
Asami’s fingers “accidentally” brushed Korra’s.
“Fuck… no…. now’s not the time Korra.”
“Hey, what’s that up there?” Wu said, squinting at the shape in the darkness.
They stumbled forwards— clinging onto each other. It wasn’t as though they could bring flashlights with them.
“It looks like a building. Do you think we’re on camp property still?” Mako asked.
“I’m pretty sure there’s a fence going around the whole place. But I’ve never seen this building before,” Asami answered, tripping over Wu’s leg.
He helped her up, “Well come on, then! Let’s go check it out!”
The two boys and two girls peered into the dusty windows— there was absolutely nothing in there. Not even a box or two? Weird.
“One, two, three… PUSH!” Mako said, as they all piled against the door.
The four teenagers were all it took. A loud groan resonated through the woods as the door managed to open. Hopefully nobody would hear that.
“Oh.”
“Yeah, there’s not much, is there?”
“Is this, like, a store room?”
“Who knows? But they didn’t leave it locked, so it’s our hideout now!”
Too bad there weren’t any couches, but in the corner they managed to find two dozen cinderblocks. Mako and Korra moved them to make something for everyone to sit on. Korra noticeably sat across the room from Asami.
The four of them talked and joked all night— which was way more fun away from Kuvira’s prying ears. Korra got to learn about Wu’s shitty situation back home and how Mako lost his parents in a fire. She told them about her uncle and Hopah.
“Oh, girl, that fucking sucks!” Wu said, leaning back against the wall.
Korra shrugged, and looked at the ground. She could feel Asami’s eyes drilling holes into her.
“So what should we do here?” Mako asked.
“We should make a hideout here! A place to get away from all that Vaatu and “straight” shit,” Wu said excitedly.
Asami folded her arms, “What is there to do here? There’s no alcohol and no cellphones and honestly I’d rather be sleeping.”
“I think I know how to get us some alcohol, but you have to be patient,” Wu said smugly.
“How!?!”
“Now, now, mustn’t reveal all my secrets, Asami,” he answered.
“We can’t talk about this place around the other campers and counselors,” Mako noted. “What about a code name?”
They all sat and thought about it. No one came up with any ideas for a few moments.
“I’ve got it,” Korra laughed with a sly grin.
“What?”
“The Spirit World.”
“Sounds perfect,” Asami said.
. . .
“You all look tired,” Kuvira commented, setting her plate down at their regular table.
“The beds are so fucking stiff, I couldn’t get any sleep,” Korra yawned.
“Yeah, same.”
“I had a bad dream. Like, three different times.”
“Oh, I got plenty of sleep last night. I just have to deal with teenage angst and homophobic bullshit, so the bags under my eyes reflect my constant state of internal death,” Wu said sarcastically.
Kuvira choked on her eggs.
“Goooooood morning Camp Amon!” Noatak said, walking up to the stage. “Who’s ready for our all-camp activity?”
No one cheered, but Kuvira was still coughing from the eggs— so that had to count for something.
“Any-who, we’re going to be out in the lawn today, and don’t forget your journal for your classroom activities after lunch!”
Mako thumped the counselor on the back. She finally stopped coughing.
“Uh… thanks, Mako.”
“Don’t mention it.”
“We have a surprise for you tonight!” Noatak continued cheerfully, “We’re going to have a guest speaker!”
The dining hall murmured with confusion and interest. Noatak grinned at finally getting a reaction out of the audience.
“A very motivational speaker, to say the least. But I won’t ruin the surprise for you! Wouldn’t want to distract you from the lesson today!”
He stepped down and moved to sit with his brother.
“I wonder who it is,” Korra pondered.
“You’ll find out,” Kuvira said, continuing on her breakfast.
“Ooh, maybe they brought in an exotic male dancer!” Wu said excitedly. “That’s what I would have done!”
Mako had to thump poor Kuvira on the back again.
. . .
“Alright, so we’re going two split into two groups. It doesn’t matter what gender you are this time,” Tarrlok said.
Fifteen kids (including Wu and Asami) walked over to Noatak’s side of the lawn, while the other fifteen (which had Korra and Mako) joined Tarrlok.
“Alright, everyone let’s have a seat,” he said to the group.
“Today we’re going to be talking about the likely roots of our individual cases of homosexuality. Why don’t we start with… Lu! Would you like to talk first?” Tarrlok asked. Unlike his brother, the man radiated a cold and commanding aura.
A frightened-looking boy (who couldn’t have been a day over fourteen) scooched forward and twiddled his thumbs. “Uh, w-what do you want me to say?” he stammered.
“Well, let’s start with the basics. Do you live with both of your parents?”
“Yeah, my dad works at a factory and my mom stays at home.”
“Do you have any siblings?”
“I had an older sister. She’s away at college.”
“How is your family? What are they like?”
“Um… they’re normal?”
“Come now, surely you have more to say than that,” Tarrlok said coolly.
“Mom’s really into reading and my Dad likes football?”
“How is their marriage?”
“What?” Lu asked with a trembling voice.
“We’re all friends here, Lu! Don’t you want to cure yourself of your homosexual demon?” Tarrlok inquired.
“Um… I guess?”
“Well, then, how is your parent’s marriage?”
“Uh… strained?”
“Really?” Tarrlok asked with feigned interest, “Please, tell us more.”
“D-dad comes home from work… drunk… and he’s usually m-mad at Mom and… he….”
“What does he do to your mother, Lu?” Tarrlok’s voice was growing softer and softer.
“He hits her!” Lu shouted, tears streaming out of his eyes. “He fucking hits her and I can’t stop him!”
“Why can’t you stop him?”
“Because I’m weak!”
Tarrlok stood up, “Well we’re going to solve that, Lu! We’re going to make you strong!”
“Really?”
The camp director nodded, “Mako, Korra, could you come help us?”
The two teens shot each other looks and stood up.
“Perfect. We’re going to reenact a scene. Mako, you’re going to be Lu’s father coming home from work, and not sober. Korra, you’re going to be Lu’s mother. Lu, this is your chance to say everything you’ve ever wanted to say to your father!”
Mako awkwardly stumbled across the lawn.
“Where’s that wife of mine?” he yelled, so loudly that the other group looked over.
“Uh… welcome home sweetie,” Korra said, hesitantly.
“You fuckin’ bitch!” Mako shouted at her, even slurring his words for effect.
Mako pretended to slap Korra, but kept weakly hitting her shoulder— which she found amusing because she was extremely athletic and could probably meet him equally in a sparring match.
“Dad! Stop it!” Lu yelled.
Mako was at least a foot taller than the poor boy, but in that moment he looked pretty small.
“I’m not going to let you hurt her anymore! You can hit me all you want. But. Leave. Her. Alone!”
“Yes!” Tarrlok cheered, “Take action Lu. Show your Dad you mean business!”
He tossed Lu a foam baseball bat.
“Go on! Show your Dad what’s what! He’s the one who made you weak, and that’s what invited the dark homosexual spirit into your soul!”
Lu gulped and looked up at Mako. Korra awkwardly stood to the side.
“What the fuck, Tarrlok. This is some sick bullshit. Just leave the kid alone.”
To everyone’s surprise, Lu took a swing at Mako— who just stood there, taking each hit.
“Yes, Lu! Get your anger out!”
For a few minutes, Lu was trying not to hurt Mako, it seemed. But as Tarrlok kept encouraging him, Korra watched as something snapped inside the boy.
Lu began to take really hard swings at Mako.
“Keep going Lu, you’re doing perfect!”
Lu paused for a moment, and it seemed like he was done hitting Mako. His eyes were filled with rage. Suddenly, he leapt forward— wildly swinging the foam bat.
“I— “
Another hit.
“hate— “
Two more swings.
“you— “
Ow! Mako was sure to have a buise after that one.
“so much!”
Before Lu could hit Mako again, Tarrlok pulled the older boy out of harm’s way and substituted him with a punching bag.
The group winced as the little fourteen-year-old got all of his anger out on Tarrlok’s dummy. It was heartbreaking. Eventually, Lu ran out of energy and needed to go sit down. Tarrlok sent him over to the steps of Cabin 4A with a counselor. Lu had his head buried in his hands and was sobbing, but Tarrlok didn’t seem fazed.
The morning continued on like that. A girl or a boy would talk about their family life, or how they were raised. Tarrlok would have them reenact scenes from their childhood. Some of the kids would hit others with the foam bat, and sometimes the scenes were more peaceful. More depressing.
Mako’s scene was horrifying. Tarrlok made him reenact his family’s murder. Two of the campers laid face down in the grass, pretending to be dead, while Mako had to hit another kid with the bat. It was obvious Mako was trying not to give the camp director the satisfaction. He was hitting the other boy as softly as he could. Tarrlok looked disappointed at this.
“Mako! Try and get your emotions out! What do you really feel for the gang member who did this?”
Mako took another pathetic swing at the boy. His teeth were bared and his eyes held a fiery amount of anger. It was obvious to Korra that he didn’t want Tarrlok to win. Eventually, the poor teenager lost his enthusiasm for the activity and walked away from the group. Tarrlok didn’t stop him.
“Uh, sir, was that really necessary?” Korra asked. Surely this could be traumatizing?
Mako sat down at Cabin 2A, silently wiping the tears from his eyes with a red scarf. The counselor sent to talk to him stood up and jogged over to the kitchen. After a few moments, Bolin scurried out of the dining hall and made his way over to the front porch where Mako was sitting.
“Well, Korra, it most certainly was. Mako internalized his anger from that incident. All of those emotions bottled up inside him over time, and he used his homosexual spirit as an outlet for his anger, guilt, and grief,” Tarrlok said, his brow furrowing.
Korra glanced at Bolin, who had a hand on Mako’s shoulder.
“Since you were so kind as to speak up, perhaps you would like to go next?” Tarrlok continued.
“Raava help me.”