[TLOK] | To Feel The Heart Of Steel » A Lin Beifong Tribute
Watch in HD + Headphones for the best experience : ) (Don't pay too much attention to my mistakes with the dialogues, I'm tired after several hours of cutting/editing I was too lazy to fix them.)
"In metal chains, her enemies bind, A force of nature, a rare, rare find. Through turbulence and strife, she'll endure, A leader, a captain, steady and sure. In the city's skyline, a silhouette bold, Lin Beifong's story, forever told."
Song used : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bY18nh9Akg4 Character : Lin Beifong
Fandom : The Legend Of Korra / Avatar The Last Airbender (TLOK / ATLA)
Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for 'fair use' for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair
Of Pleasant Dreams and Vicious Reality - Chapter 4
Fandom: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Relationship: Korrasami
Rating: Mature
Summary: Modern-ish AU in which Korra, a personal trainer, and Asami, a hotel manager cross paths at the Hotel Double Helix. In this era, bending is a rare gift: an art soon to be forgotten.
Word Count: 3,470
Take Me For a Ride On Your Fancy Steed
“So what’s the plan again?”
“I’m just going to pick her up.” Korra responded as she threw a hoodie over her head. I caught her in the lobby Monday morning as she was leaving.
“You can do that?”
“She’s my polar bear dog. Of course I can.”
“Ok and then where are you going to put her?”
“Well I was kind of hoping since I knew the manager…maybe she could pull some strings?”
“You want me to allow your polar bear dog to stay in your room with you? An 8-foot-tall, 900 pound, part bear, part dog….”
Korra looked so desperate and excited and hopeful all at the same time. I wanted nothing more than to give her what she wanted but this was an impossible request. I was more than happy that Korra was getting Naga back but there wasn’t anywhere to put her. None of the rooms had enough space, the other guests would most certainly complain…
“I take that as a no?” Korra asked, looking like she had lost Naga all over again.
“I really want to say yes. And maybe if she were smaller…but honestly there just isn’t room for her.”
“There isn’t room for who?” Bolin entered, slightly wet from the drizzle of rain.
“Naga.” Korra answered. “The vet called me and I can go get her now but-“
“But there’s just no room for her?” He asked, mimicking my words. We both nodded and he put his fist under his chin.
“What are you thinking ab-“ I started but was interrupted by a single finger covering my lips.
“Shh!”
“Bo, what-“
“I said shush!”
I furrowed my brows and looked to Korra who just shrugged. We waited for him to finish thinking, it seemed like it took forever for the light bulb in his head to go off. He clapped his hands together and grinned widely.
“Mako!”
“Mako?” I asked.
“Yeah! Unlike us, Mako lives in an actual home.” Bolin answered. I didn’t miss the tone of his statement.
“That may be true, but Mako is almost 29 and we’re only 25. He’s an old man, he’s supposed to live in a house.”
“Mhm, but you’re loaded so you have no excuse, Sato.” I wanted to protest but Bolin continued before I could. “A grassy backyard is good for a polar bear dog, right, Korra?”
“Well yeah.” The blue eyed girl answered apprehensively. “But I can’t ask a stranger to let my half a ton pound pet stay at his house.”
“You don’t have to. I’m going to ask my big brother to do me a favor.”
“Are you sure?”
“Completely. It’s been really rainy lately, she wont get sick will she?”
“Uh, no. She’s made for the snow. Rain is nothing.”
“Great! Then it’s settled. You go get the pretty poochie, I’ll text you Mako’s address.”
“Thank you so much! I’ll figure out how to pay you back!” Korra exclaimed as she threw her arms around the shorter boy. I made a mental note to tease him about both me and Korra being taller than him.
“Well?” I asked. “What are you waiting for?! Go get your baby!”
Korra grinned and ran out the front door.
“Someone’s excited.” Bolin said sarcastically.
“You should send her that address. At the rate she’s running she’ll get there in no time.”
“Or…maybe…not.” Bolin pointed towards the door and my eyes quickly followed. Korra ran back in at full speed towards us.
“Korra, what are you-“ I started but couldn’t finish as a hand was wrapped around my wrist and I was being dragged out the door. I yelped as my feet struggled to catch up with my upper body. Thankfully I had chosen to wear flat boots and pants instead of heels and a skirt. I didn’t have anything on me: no phone, no wallet, no keys. Everything was in my office.
“Ok, then. I guess I’ll see you later!” Bolin yelled as we left the building.
“Come on, slow poke!” The darker girl called out.
“Korra! I can’t run that fast!”
We slowed to a walk and I was pathetically trying to catch my breath while Korra wasn’t winded at all.
“How far did we run? Like half a mile?”
“More like a block.” Korra snorted.
“Close enough.”
“Not really, but I’ll let it slide this time.”
“How generous of you.” I laughed. “So I guess I’m taking the morning off.”
“Crap. I didn’t even think of that. Do you want to go back?”
“It’s fine. They managed two months without me, what’s an hour or two?”
“Perfect. Because I feel like if I met your mom, you should meet Naga.”
“Oh, because that’s the same thing.”
“She’s just as important to me as any of my family. Naga’s the sister I always wanted.”
“So you’re an only child?”
“No, I have a sister. She hates me though.”
“I’m sure that isn’t true…”
“It is. We fought a lot as kids and I thought it was just regular sibling banter. We grew up and I got over it, but Kayla didn’t. She’ll try to act nice but even my parents can sense the animosity radiating off of her. You’d think I did something.”
“And you have no clue why she feels that way?”
“I’m two years older, so everything she does is compared to me. But she’s more successful than I am now so I don’t get it at all.”
“I’d love to shed some light for you but I don’t have any siblings.”
“I’m not too worried. I always ask her what her deal is, maybe one day she’ll actually tell me.”
“Fingers crossed.” I said and glanced down at my feet as we continued down the sidewalk. I liked being able to splash my feet in the little puddles left behind by the morning rain.
I could see Korra glancing at me from the corner of my eye. She was hesitating. It was a pattern I’d picked up on in the past 24 hours. She would just look at me while she gathered the courage to ask me something personal.
“Can I ask you something?” she said quietly.
I forced a smile that didn’t reach my eyes. “You can ask me anything you want but I can’t –“
“-Guarantee an answer. I know.”
This time my smile did reach my eyes, and I turned my head to look directly at Korra. “Ask away.”
“Why are you sad?”
“What?”
“I’ve noticed….”
“Noticed what?”
“I can see pain in your eyes. It’s always been there but today it’s worse.”
“You know.” I started. “It’s amazing how well you can read me. Most people don’t notice anything about me. I’m a master of the poker face. But with you it doesn’t work.”
“That’s funny because I’m generally terrible at reading people.”
“Never would have guessed…”
“Are you avoiding the question because you don’t want to answer?”
“Yes and no. Another thing you’re good at is making me open up. So I don't want to talk about it but for some reason I feel like I should."
My feet were getting tired and I dreaded having to walk all the way back. “How much further?”
“A little over a mile.”
“Over a mile?! Korra! I could have driven us.”
“You really can’t walk two miles?”
“I haven’t done anything active since high school. I’ve had nearly a decade to turn into a blob of nothing but bones and feeble flesh. I struggle to pick up a gallon of milk.”
“Alright, alright. I get it.” Korra laughed.
I noticed a bench by the bus stop on the corner and breathed a sigh of relief. “My feet are killing me. Can we sit for a couple minutes?”
“Nope.” Korra said and she jumped in front of me, her back facing me. “Hop on.” She wiggled her hands toward me to indicate she’d catch my legs.
“Korra…don’t you think we’re a little too old for piggy backs?”
“Absolutely not. Get on.”
“People are going to stare.”
“If they stare it’ll be because they’re jealous that they aren’t getting a turn on the Korra Express.”
I stood for a moment longer contemplating.
“Come on, Sato! We don’t have all day!”
I rolled my eyes and placed my hands on the shorter girls shoulders before jumping up and wrapping my legs around Korra’s waist. She held on to the back of my knees and I slipped my arms around her neck leaning forward. My cheek brushed softly against hers and we stayed silent and unmoving for a moment too long. Korra cleared her throat and took a deep breath. “You all set back there?”
“Yeah…I’m good.” I responded, and the darker girl started walking.
“Was this really necessary? I can walk I just needed a minute.”
“You take your minute. I’ll cover a little more ground.”
“How are you walking faster while carrying me right now?”
“I was walking slow for you. And you aren’t heavy, I lift more than twice your weight every day.”
“You realize you’re going to have to carry me everywhere now, right?”
“Works for me. You know I was going to buy a weight vest, but I don’t think that’s necessary anymore.”
“Oh really?” I giggled.
“Yeah. I could just run stairs with you on my back. And as a bonus I’d have someone to talk to.”
“You can’t talk while running up stairs, Korra.”
“Challenge accepted.” She responded, and I could hear the grin in her voice.
The rest of the way we argued about whether or not what I said was actually a challenge of her strength, which it wasn’t, at least from my end. But Korra seemed hell bent on proving me wrong so she decided it was going to happen. I’ve dismissed the whole thing.
The blue eyed girl finally sat me down in front of a dark blue building decorated with white bubbles called ‘Puppy Suds’. Once inside, Korra told the receptionist she was there to pick up her polar bear dog and the woman went to the back to alert the on call doctor.
“Korra! It’s good to see you!” Said the vet.
“Hey, Dr. Janson.” She smiled and turned around to look at me. “This is my friend, Asami.”
“Just call me, Rose. The whole ‘doctor’ thing is so formal.” The woman said. “Come on back, you two.”
As Korra and Rose began talking about Naga I couldn’t help but feel nostalgic looking at the vet’s face. Her skin was dark, just a tad lighter than Korra’s. Her mouth was small, but her lips still full. What really struck was those eyes. A piercing crystal blue. Sharp and intimidating but warm and familiar.
Rose reminded me of someone I loved a long time ago. Someone I still love…Someone I’ll always love. And it could be a coincidence or it could be the universe trying to mess with me, but running into someone that has an almost identical face to Yue at this time of the year made the pain in my gut just a bit more excruciating.
“-other than that she’s perfectly fine.”
“Thank you so much, Rose.”
“It’s no problem, Korra. You can take her home now. If you have any concerns you have my number.”
Somewhere in the back of my mind I caught the end of their brief conversation. Coming out of my thoughts I noticed we were outside, not even realizing how far we’d walked or where. Dr. Rose approached me and stuck her hand in front of my torso. It took me a little too long to realize she wanted me to shake it, and it took me even longer to accept the gesture. I still did, as not to appear rude. Though it was already made awkward by my delayed reaction.
“It was nice meeting you, Asami.”
“Uh, you too.” I croaked out.
The vet went back inside and Korra looked at me with those skeptical eyes again.
“So, where is she? I can’t imagine an animal as big as Naga could hide very easily.”
Korra swiveled her body around a bit as to gesture behind her, and sure enough a large fluffy white ball was curled up and leaning against a fence. And I must really be losing it, because how could you possibly miss that?
“I thought you’d be all over her by now.” I stated
“You really missed the part when we came out here and I was instantly tackled and covered in slobber?”
“Oh…I guess I did…”
“…Ok…I’m going to skip asking you a question that I may not get an answer to, and just put it out there that you can talk to me about whatever is bothering you. If you want to vent, or a shoulder to cry on…judgment free, safe zone.” The darker girl gestured to herself and gave me a reassuring look to which I only nodded.
“Now I want you to meet my other half.” Korra waved her hand and Naga stood up, towering over me. “Naga this is Asami. Be nice….Asami this is Naga. You be nice, too.”
I chuckled throatily before taking a tentative step forward. “Can I pet her?”
“Yeah, of course.”
I took another two steps forward to really take in the creature and get the full experience. Her fur was long and more of an off white color. She had muscles rippling all over her body, and the most adorable puppy dog face.
“Well you are just gorgeous.” I cooed and slipped my hands up to scratch either side of Naga’s neck. “And soft.” I added. I moved my fingers up behind the polar bear dogs ears and they immediately perked up and she whimpered in approval. Naga suddenly started bouncing on her front paws excitedly and before I realized it I was on my back under her crushing weight. My face was licked mercilessly and I squealed while trying to squirm away. I was thankful my makeup was waterproof.
“Naga! Down girl.” Korra commanded. “I told you to behave.”
After I was released, Korra helped me to my feet and helped me dust off my clothes.
“I’m so sorry!”
“It’s fine. She’s sweet.”
“She only gets this excited when she really likes someone.”
“Ahh. So I’m in her good graces?”
“Most definitely. Are you ready to go?”
“Yes.” I nodded. Korra turned to Naga who was sitting quietly next to us and pointed. “What about you? Ready to go home?”
The white haired beast started bouncing up and down on her front paws again and I flinched because her sights were set on me. Naga craned her neck down and shoved her nose between my legs: I was lifted off the ground and slid onto the creature’s back. I yelped as I held on and tried not to fall off.
“Wow, she really does like you. She wants to take you home.”
“Well I’m flattered. A pretty girl hasn’t offered to take me home in a long time.” I stated as I grabbed the reins attached to the brown saddle.
Korra stepped onto one of Naga’s paws and said “up” and she was lifted high enough to get onto her back. Somehow I didn’t fall duing all of the maneuvering.
“I’m sure pretty girls want to take you home plenty.”
“You don’t know that.” I argued. And Korra gave me a stern look that said she wasn’t buying it. “Uhuh.” She grumbled. “Well are you going to turn around? Or do you want to ride back facing me?”
“You really expect me to ride back on her?”
“Yes. Now turn around and get in the saddle.”
“You want me to ride in front?! I don’t know the first thing about-“
“I’ll be holding the reins and you’re safer if I hold onto you. You’re a first timer – Can’t have you getting hurt.” She smirked.
“Alright.” I said simply and turned around. I decided to play along because it was actually quite ridiculous but I wasn’t about to complain. Korra wrapped one arm around my stomach and raveled the straps attached to the saddle around the wrist of her free arm a few times.
“Ready?”
“Yup.”
I felt Korra’s right leg lightly kick against Naga’s side and we started moving at a mild pace. Two girls riding down the street on the back of a polar bear dog was a bit medieval, and we got the looks to confirm that it was just a little strange.
I tried not to be too affected by the feel of Korra's body pressed into the back of mine. I could smell the faint hints of her powder fresh deodorant and her pheromones. Even through my coat I could feel the heat radiating from her body. I felt the urge to place my bare hands on her skin.
“Do you know where you’re going?” I asked as I noticed we were heading in the opposite direction of Mako’s house.
“Yep. Little detour, if you don’t mind.”
“A detour?”
“Yeah. You took me for a ride in your fancy car, I’ll take you for a ride on my fancy steed.”
“She’s not a horse.” I giggled.
“Close enough.” She shrugged. Naga soon started trotting, forgoing the pace of a brisk walk that she kept before. It was an odd feeling: My body bouncing of it’s own accord.
“We’re close to the trail. She’s excited to go for a run.” Korra explained.
“...You mentioned before that Naga was almost as fast your motorcycle. How fast exactly can she go?”
“I think we should run first and then you can try to guess.” She said as we came to a dirt trail. The city was behind us and there was nothing but trees and dirt hills ahead.
“Let er rip, girl!” Korra called out before I could protest. We took off and I was immediately pressed harder into Korra’s front. If I weren’t being held I would surely have fallen off already and I thought that maybe sitting in this position actually was the best place for me. Everything whipped by us so fast, it was a blur. My eyes watered from the intense wind and if my hair weren’t up in its usual bun it would be flowing wildly.
Korra whooped and hollered behind me. Clearly having the time of her life. How she was able to hold both of us steady at the same time was beyond me.
----------
“So? How fast do you think she was going?”
“Well. I’m estimating that Naga ran roughly 6 miles. And since it took about 5 seconds I’m gonna guess 60 miles an hour.”
“That sounds about right. She wasn’t even at top speed.”
“Seriously?”
“Yeah. She tops out at 80 with me and the saddle on her back. I assume she can go faster weight free.”
“That’s crazy! And kind of cool.”
“Ahh. The C word again.”
“Well if you don’t want me saying it then you shouldn’t tell me ‘cool’ things about you or Naga.” I said as I entered the hotel. We’d been gone for about 3 hours.
“Hopeless.” Korra grumbled. “Did you have fun at least?”
“I did….Once I got past the initial shock and learned the hard way to keep my mouth closed.”
“Ha. Sorry, I should have warned you about the bugs.”
“Hey guys!” Bolin shouted as he ran over to us.
“Were you waiting for us or something?” I asked.
“No. I’m on break. So how’d it go?”
“Great. No hiccups.” Korra answered.
“Good.” The greeneyed boy huffed. “Oh. Korra, a girl came in looking for you about an hour ago.”
“A girl? What was her name?”
“Uhhh. Luna…no maybe Laura…no no, definitely Lisa.”
“I don’t know anyone by those names. What’d she look like?”
“Uh blonde hair, brown eyes, pink tattoo on her hand?”
“Oh. Lucy?”
“Yes! That’s it.” He snapped.
“That’s weird.” Korra said and furrowed her brows. “I wonder how she found me…Bo, where is she?”
“I don’t know. We couldn’t give her your cell or room number. She could have been crazy for all we know. And why couldn’t she just call you?”
“Probably because she doesn’t own a phone and therefore doesn’t have my number.”
“Who doesn’t own a phone?” I asked incredulously.
“Lucy comes from a place where technology basically doesn’t exist. I think there’s one computer in her entire town.”
“Wow.”
“I know it sounds like the dark ages but it’s actually really nice there.” Korra rushed out. “I’m sorry to cut this short but I’ve gotta find her.”
“How ya gonna do that if she doesn’t have a phone?” Bolin asked.
“Because I know where to look. I’ll see you guys later ok?” The darker girl walked out with her hands in her pockets and it was weeks before I saw her again.
Of Pleasant Dreams and Vicious Reality - Chapter 3
Fandom: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Relationship: Korrasami
Rating: Mature
Summary: Modern-ish AU in which Korra, a personal trainer, and Asami, a hotel manager cross paths at the Hotel Double Helix. In this era/universe, bending is a rare gift: an art soon to be forgotten.
Word Count: 5,389
Mrs. Sato
My back hurt...horribly. I couldn’t figure out why until I remembered that I was on a couch. The worst couch in the world. The smell of something sweet tickled my nose and I heard paper rustling. I cracked an eye open and took in the surroundings of the basic hotel room. Korra was sitting at the small desk with a to-go coffee cup in her left hand and a news paper in her right. Her hair was pulled up in a messy bun on top of her head, and she wore yoga pants and a baggy sweatshirt. Glasses. I internally smiled. I hadn’t seen those before; they were so cute.
I stretched my legs out and sat up. Sensing my movement, Korra turned to face me completely and beamed a huge smile.
“Good morning, sleepyhead.”
“Mmm. Morning. How long have you been awake?”
“A little over an hour.”
“Oh. Why didn’t you wake me?”
“Because you always look so tired. I thought you needed some rest.”
“Always? When have you seen me?”
“I see you in passing all the time. You’re always running around with papers in your hand, or you’re on the phone, or you’re telling someone what to do, or you’re dealing with a ridiculous guest...”
I guess I wasn’t paying as much attention as I thought.
“Well thanks. For letting me sleep in. What time is it?”
“It’s about 10:30. Did you sleep ok?”
“I’ve had better nights, but it was fine.”
“You could’ve had the bed.” Korra stated. We had a little disagreement about who would sleep on the couch and I reasoned that I was the one crashing with her and it wouldn’t be right to take her bed.
“I didn’t want it.”
“You are so stubborn.”
“I know. I can’t help it, and I don’t really want to.”
The darker girl rolled her eyes and got out of her chair, moving to the makeshift kitchen.
“I went out earlier and I got you a hot chocolate. Is that ok?”
“I haven’t had that in ages. Sounds good.” I smiled.
Korra brought the white to-go cup to me and I was surprised to find that it was piping hot. “Did you just go out?”
“I got back 10 minutes ago, why?”
“It’s still hot.” I said as I put the lid to my lips: it was good.
“They’ve got good cups.” she said plainly.
“Mind if I use your phone again? I want to call Bolin and see if he’s up and then contact the taxi company to see if they have my stuff.”
“Sure, no problem. I’m going to take a quick shower.” The blue eyed girl tossed her blackberry towards me and retreated into the bedroom area. I still couldn’t believe she had this 8-year-old phone.
Bolin was first on my list: he had a spare key to my place. The phone rung 8 times before I heard a muffled ‘hello’ come through.
“Good! You’re awake.”
“Mhm. Korra?”
“No, it’s Asami. You still have the extra set of keys to my place, right?”
“Of course.”
“Great. I need them. I left all my stuff in the cab last night and I was locked out.”
“What? Why didn’t you call me then?”
“I did. You didn’t answer, and neither did Mako.”
“So what’d you do? Stay in a room at Double Helix?”
“Yeah, I stayed with Korra.”
“What do you mean ‘stayed with Korra’? Did you two...”
“No! Of course not. I was with her when I realized I didn’t have anything and she kindly offered her couch to me.”
“Oh…Well you guys seemed so close last night, it wouldn’t have surprised me if you did bump uglies.”
“That makes it sound so dirty.” I scrunched my nose.
“It is dirty. That’s why they say ‘do the dirty’ or ‘do the nasty’”
“Ok, anyway. I’m coming to your apartment, I’ll be there within the hour.”
“Ok. I’ll try to stay awake long enough to let you in.”
We hung up and I dialed the cab company. The driver found my stuff when he got back to HQ and apparently my belongings were delivered to the address listed on my license early this morning.
“Just what I needed.” I groaned as I hung up the phone.
“Did you say something?” Korra shouted from within her room. That was pretty quick, I thought to myself.
“Just talking to myself.” I shouted back.
“Should I be concerned?” she asked as she made her way back into the front part of the room. She was wearing sweatpants and a long sleeved shirt (no glasses, sadly). I wondered why she always kept her arms covered.
“Ask me again in 12 hours.” I smiled and finished the last of my hot chocolate.
“Did you find your stuff?”
“Yep. They dropped it all off at my mother’s.”
“Well that’s good!” she cheered. “Right?”
“Could be worse.” I shrugged and stood up. “Do you want to come with me? I could use the company.”
“To meet your mom?”
“Yeah. If you have plans or don’t want to, that’s fine.”
“I don’t have to work so I don’t see why not.”
“Awesome. It’ll be an adventure.”
“So are we going right now?”
“Yep. I need to go to Bo’s first and I want to go home to shower and change. You don’t mind walking do you?” I stood up and motioned for us to head towards the door.
“Not at all, I walk most places anyway.”
Korra slipped on some running shoes and threw her wallet and room key in the pocket of her baggy sweats. Before we made it to the door my stomach growled loudly and Korra chuckled at me: remembering she’d gotten me coffee cake she handed it to me and I graciously stuffed my face and finished it right before we stepped out of the hotel’s double doors.
“You don’t have a car?” I asked.
“No: Everywhere I go is only a mile or so away. I also could never really grasp driving a car but I do have a motorcycle. It’s almost as fast as Naga, I used to take her everywhere. I’ve always been better at riding things I can straddle.”
I stopped dead in my tracks and raised my eyebrows in amusement. Despite her dark complexion, Korra’s cheeks burned a bright red as she realized what she just said. I figured she was mortified enough so I just cleared my throat and continued on like she didn’t just inadvertently admit that she’s a top.
“A motorcycle, huh? That’s so cool.”
Korra scratched the back of her head and took some deep breaths to get rid of her red cheeks as we continued to walk down the street. “You think everything about me is cool.”
“Who wouldn’t? You’re so well rounded.”
“I’m glad someone thinks so.”
We made it to Bolin’s apartment, which was only 5 blocks away, and luckily he answered the door right away. He was pleasantly surprised to see Korra, and launched into all of the ridiculous things they did last night. Well, all he could remember: both of them had a little too much to drink. Bo laughed about the destroyed bar that I had to pay for and poor Korra who didn’t even remember, felt horrible when she found out she’d taken part. But in all honestly all she did was get water everywhere and poke a few holes in some walls, easily fixable with a a mop and a little plaster. Bolin on the other hand pulled the floor up.
By the time we left my friend’s small apartment, Korra was almost cherry red from embarrassment.
“Tell me honestly. How much of a jackass did I make of myself?”
“Honestly speaking: I wasn’t really around you too much to notice. But all that I did see wasn’t that bad.”
“That isn’t comforting.”
“You kept your clothes on and you didn’t puke. I’d say that’s a win.”
“That’s true. I usually don’t drink so much. Especially around a bunch of people I don’t know. Bolin is just so...persuasive.”
“Oh yeah, that sounds like him. I’ll have to tell you about the year we turned 21 some time. It was quite the shit show.”
“Shit show?”
“Mhm. Being wasted enough to put on a very entertaining performance for anyone sober enough to remember it.”
“Sounds...entertaining.”
“Trust me, it is. If you stick around long enough I’m sure Bo will have you participating.”
“I’m a little terrified of that.” The darker girl laughed as we continued down the street. “Where do you live anyway? Close to the hotel?”
“Actually, I live at the hotel.”
“You really are a workaholic.”
“No.” I snorted. “It’s just convenient.”
“So you stay in the presidential suite I’m assuming.”
“Wrong again. I live in the penthouse.”
“There’s no penthouse.”
“You sure about that?” I asked: glaring through squinted eyes.
“Uhh. Yes? I mean I never heard of it.”
“That’s because there’s only one and it isn’t for rent. It’s where I’ve lived since I got this job.”
“Wow. You get a penthouse as a manager? And I’m sure you get paid well. Maybe I should go after your job.”
“Really? You want it?”
“Well I want the benefits: I don’t know the first thing about doing what you do.”
“It’s simple. Keep the guests, the owner, and corporate happy. In that order.”
“That’s a lot of people. Maybe you can train me and then be my reference for another hotel.”
“Sure. As long as I get to see your bending.”
“Oh crap. I completely forgot. Bo and I were supposed to go to the park to spar today. I’ll see if he’s still up for it.”
As Korra pulled out her phone and started texting, we made it back to Double Helix and headed towards the elevator. We got in and, having lost my key card, I stuck a small key into the key hole that was in every elevator that seemed to be attached to nothing. After turning it, I pushed a code into the keypad by the emergency phone and we made our journey to the top floor.
“Wow. Secret keys and codes. Should I call you James Bond?”
I simply laughed and explained. “I have a key card that I can swipe that automatically takes me up, but I don’t have it with me. Long complicated spy way it is.”
“You know: you need a key card to get to any floor, but us ground floor people are left to fend for ourselves. What’s that about?”
“I honestly never thought about it. I’ll look into it and get back to you.”
The magic flying box came to a halt and opened to an entry way directly in front of a gold framed door. It was just paint, but was still fancier than it needed to be. Grandma Sato went overboard. She oversaw the building of this place and she too lived here once upon a time.
“Why do I feel like I’m about to walk into the royal palace?”
“Because you kind of are. The person that lived here before me was very ostentatious.”
For some reason, the spare key didn’t work as well as the original so it took a minute to get into my home. But when I did, Korra walked in and stared slack jawed. It was a big place. There were book shelves lining the walls, a mahogany table in the dining area under a chandelier, a large black leather couch in the living area and a TV bigger than necessary.
“Most of this stuff was already here. I brought my bed and the books on the bookshelves. The TV is mine too, I spend lazy days watching Netflix or cable and I like having the movie theatre experience.”
“Holy crap. Asami this is amazing! Do you watch boxing? The definition would be incredible on this thing!”
“Actually I don’t. But you can feel free to watch whatever you want while I shower and change.”
I threw the remote at Korra and mentioned that the one remote controls everything, including the surround sound. She flopped on the couch with the largest kid grin.
“I’ll be out in 30 minutes.” I said, but it fell on deaf ears.
What was supposed to be a half an hour turned into a full one. I couldn’t help but want to look good before seeing my mother. It was a nasty habit that I just couldn’t get rid of. I went with a burgundy theme with gray undertones. A burgundy hair band held my hair back and I put on full makeup. When I walked back out into the living area Korra was yelling at the TV, she was watching some kind of fight.
“Enjoying yourself I see.” I chirped from behind the darker girl.
“I forgot this fight was on today and you have the MMA package, did you know that?” She stated, not once tearing her eyes away from the large screen.
“I didn’t know. I just pay for every channel so I’ll always have something to watch.”
“Ha. I usually just illegally stream to my laptop.” As soon as she realized what she said, Korra slapped a hand over her forehead. “There I go again, putting my foot in my mouth.”
I bit my lower lip in amusement. “You know; I can teach you how to illegally stream to your TV.”
The darker girl jerked her head around at that statement: her eyes nearly bulging out of her head. “Really? – Whoa, wow. You look – wow. Should I go change? I feel under dressed.”
“Thank you.” I started. “And no. That isn’t necessary, I just…my relationship with my mother is-weird I guess. So I always -” I cut myself off and sighed. I didn’t know why I started to ramble like that.
“I get it. You want her to be proud of you and acknowledge your success.”
It was surprising how well Korra picked up on that. It was true: there was a huge part of my heart that ached for my mother’s approval. Seems like it’ll never happen though.
“So um. Are you ready now or do you want to finish watching your fight?”
“Oh um. We can go now, I’ll watch this later.”
“Okay. Do you want me to record it for you?”
“You mean I can come back?”
“Of course you can.”
I Picked up the remote and pressed the little R in the bottom right hand corner. After making sure it was recording, I went in search for my spare car keys. I smirked as I picked up the key to one of my fancy cars. Not the fanciest of my collection but definitely top 3.
We walked down to the parking lot in silence. I kept my cars where the service trucks were kept to avoid tampering since they often just sat in the same place. In the very back corner was a covered car and I internally bounced with excitement at the look that was sure to take over Korra’s face.
“Would you do the honors?” I asked motioning to the covered vehicle.
“Oh. Um sure, I guess.”
She moved to the front of the vehicle and whipped the cover off quickly. I was thankful that it was still really clean and backed in to the parking space so the front was completely visible.
“Holy shit.” Korra gasped. “I didn’t think cars like this even existed!”
I smiled widely and unlocked the doors. “BMW silver i8 Coupe. I just got her 5 months ago.”
“This must have cost an arm and a leg! Asami, this is crazy. I’m afraid to touch it.”
It cost over 100 grand but I didn’t mention it, just opened the passenger butterfly door and moved to the driver’s side.
“What do I do with this thing?” Korra asked, motioning her head towards the large white cloth.
“Just throw it on the steps over there. I don’t want that thing in my car.”
She nodded and did as I said before tentatively getting into the passenger seat. She had a look around and refused to close the door so I did it with the remote control car key. Of course she freaked out a little.
“I’m sorry. I’ve just never been in anything this expensive.”
“That’s a lie. You’ve been in the hotel, Dave and Busters, the building you went to get our breakfast. All of those are hundreds of thousands.”
“You know what I mean.” She whined and I giggled before starting my vehicle and revving the engine. Once out of the hotel’s parking structure, I took off onto the streets driving just a little faster than necessary.
“So um. How far away is your mom’s place?”
“35 minutes for the average driver…” I started.
“I take it you aren’t the average driver. So how long for you?”
“20 minutes. Give or take. I like the thrill of a race against time.” I switched gears as we merged onto the freeway and sped up considerably.
“I don’t know if I’m more turned on or scared right now.”
It was barely audible but there was no mistaking those words. I peaked over at Korra momentarily and she was staring straight ahead with reddened cheeks. “Did I really just say that out loud?” She whispered.
“You did.”
“I am so sorry. I don’t know what’s wrong with me today. It’s like I have diarrhea of the mouth and I keep saying all the wrong things.”
“Don’t worry about it. I take it as a compliment.”
The thrill of the road and Korra’s slip of the tongue raised my spirits considerably. She was so different from anyone else I’ve ever met or dated. People I’ve gone out with are completely put together, smooth, dashing, and just a little stuck up. But Korra…adorable, shy, dorky, kind hearted, humble Korra. She made my heart swell and it was exciting. This was only our fourth encounter but each one had been better than the last. Talking to her was the easiest thing in the world.
“Soooo.” Korra said, breaking the awkward silence (made completely awkward by her). “You…like cars?”
I laughed fully and nodded my head. “I love cars, well driving them. I know very little about what’s under the hood. Just enough to take good care of it. In another life I think I’d like to be a mechanic or an engineer. Something about machinery just really fascinates me.”
“But you like what you do now, right?”
“It has its perks.”
“Ah. So it doesn’t suck but it isn’t fulfilling: or maybe it isn’t what you’ve always dreamt of doing.”
There she goes again, reading me like an open book.
“More or less.”
“Why not do something else? I mean you’re just in your mid 20s.”
“It isn’t that simple.” I stated flatly. “Maybe one day I can, but not yet. Not for a while.”
“Oh…”
We weren’t too far away now, and we rode the rest of the way in silence. I noticed Korra was playing with her fingers a lot: eyes glued to her lap. Something must have been running through her mind.
After parking in the driveway we approached the front door and I couldn’t help but feel a little nostalgic. I haven’t been to this house in almost 6 years, and I’ve only visited a handful of times since first going off to college. It was small and a light yellow color: wind chimes hung from the edges of the roof and there were countless flower pots full of orchids and other flowers. I didn’t know why but I was nervous. No use in holding off any longer so I rang the door bell and bounced from foot to foot.
“Are you alright?” Korra asked. “You’re a little jumpy”
“I just haven’t seen her in a while.”
“How long is a while?”
Before I could answer, the door swung open and there she stood. Yasuko Sato, looking as flashy as ever even wearing nothing but a bathrobe. I don’t think I’ve ever seen her without her hair in a perfect chopstick bun up do or without a full face of makeup.
“Asami, dear. I haven’t seen you in years, looks like you’ve gained quite a bit of weight.” She stated. “What brings you by?”
“Hello, Mother. Did someone bring a purse here earlier?”
“As a matter of fact, yes.”
“Great…” I paused waiting for my belongings to be retrieved, but my mom just stood there. “Can I…have them?...Please?”
“You never come to see me, the only times you ever talk to me over the phone is to let me know that you’re alive, and you aren’t even going to come inside? I thought I raised you better than that.”
The older woman went into the house, leaving the door open. When she didn’t return right away, I assumed she wanted me to come in. I glanced at Korra and she looked stunned at the brief interaction.
“I- uh. We have to go in.”
“I’m sorry, what do you mean ‘we’ have to go in? Asami, your mom didn’t even acknowledge my presence, I can’t go in her house. I’ll wait in the car.”
“Well technically my name is on the deed, so it’s my house.”
Korra didn’t see too amused by my technicalities.
“It’ll only take a few minutes, please don’t leave me alone with her.” I pouted.
“Oh come on, that isn’t fair. You can’t make a polar bear puppy dog face at me, I have Naga, that’s a weakness of mine.”
This only made me pout more. When the darker girl sighed and dropped her head I knew I had won.
“Fine. I’ll go in with you, but you owe me big.”
“Thank you thank you thank you!” I said in relief. I ushered Korra in first and shut the door behind me after I crossed the threshold.
“I see you finally decided to come in. Took you long enough.”
I rolled my eyes and ignored the snipe behind the older woman’s tone.
“Mom, this is my friend Korra.” I gestured to the girl standing awkwardly beside me. “She’s running errands with me today.”
“Friend, huh? I like this one Asami, she’s cute. Cuter than the last one, but then again I never actually meet your girlfriends in person, I only see the pictures you send me.”
“Can we not do this, please?”
“Do what, dear? I’m simply catching up and inquiring about your life. I gave your girlfriend a compliment, did I not?”
“Yes, but we aren’t dating. She really is just a friend.”
My mother turned to Korra and looked her up and down before asking. “Is this true? You aren’t dating my daughter?”
“Uh, No ma’am. Just friends.”
“Perhaps you should reconsider. My daughter isn’t getting any younger, it’s about time she’s settled down with a nice girl. You seem to be well mannered.”
“Mom!” I shrieked. “Just stop. I didn’t come here to get criticized and belittled. I came for my things. Can you just go and get them?!”
I didn’t mean to get so worked up, but it always seemed to happen when I talked to my mother. Even over the phone she was just so infuriating. It made my blood boil.
“Very well, dear.” The older woman said and retreated towards the back of the house.
“Are you ok?” Korra asked. It was the second time she’s asked that in that past 10 minutes.
“I’ll be fine. You can go to the car now if you want. She’s probably going to ask for money, and she hates begging in front of strangers.”
“Are you sure? I can stay if you need me to.”
“No, don’t worry about it.” I fished the key out of my coat pocket and handed it to Korra. I ushered her out the door right before my mother came back, purse in hand.
“Where’s your friend going?”
“Korra is waiting in the car. You made her uncomfortable.”
“You kids are so sensitive these days.”
“Or maybe you’re just rude. Did you ever think of that?”
I grabbed my bag out of her hand and searched the inside, making sure all of my belongings were present. Once satisfied, I walked to the front door and stepped outside. I saw Korra standing by the passenger side of the i8 just staring down at the key. I’d forgotten to tell her how it works and she had the cutest look on her face trying to figure it out.
“Asami?” I heard from behind me.
I turned around and my mother’s demeanor had changed from confident and snooty to sad and helpless. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen it but I knew that look.
“I hate to ask but...Um.” she started, and I rolled my eyes because I decided to put her out of her misery and not make her even ask.
“How much do you need?”
“Well… I have a few bills to pay off…”
“Ok.” I pulled my checkbook and a pen out of my purse. I thought about how much she might need and began scribbling across the small rectangular piece of paper. “I’m assuming you need food too.” I said and gave her the check. “Just try not to spend it all in one place ok?”
“I won’t. And I promise this is the last time.”
“No it isn’t.” I grumbled and walked away.
“So I was going to make a bad joke about you being too trustworthy and me being able to steal your car. But then I realized that I told you I couldn’t drive, and then I couldn’t even figure out how to get the stupid door open.”
I laughed out loud as I continued driving down the freeway. I had been a little down since the visit and Korra was succeeding in cheering me up.
“Hey, I’m sorry about that whole thing. Maybe I should have taken Bolin instead. He at least would have known what he was getting into.”
“Well he seemed like he’d rather sleep than step outside in the daylight. I didn’t mind.” Korra paused, as if she was contemplating adding the next part. “Can I ask you something? It might be a little personal.”
“You can ask, but I can’t guarantee I’ll give you an answer.”
“Fair enough.” She said. “What’s up with your mom?”
I quirked an eyebrow as if to ask her to be more specific.
“She was kind of…I don’t know.”
“Judgmental and bitchy?”
“I wouldn’t say bitchy.”
“Eh, I would.”
“Ok.” She laughed awkwardly. “All the backhanded remarks and that little comment about your weight?”
“Well she isn’t wrong, I have gained weight. I don’t workout at all and I haven’t exactly been pristine with my eating choices lately.”
“Even so. It isn’t like you’re over weight or chubby. Not even close. There wasn’t a need to say anything. And don’t think I missed the way she was constantly looking both you and me up and down.”
“Look I know how she is. When I was really young we didn’t have any money, but when I turned 12 my dad got successful and we were suddenly rich. We moved into a mansion, mom made new snobby friends and she was just different. And then some things happened a few years later and we were suddenly stuck with that house. Mom stayed the same.”
“I’m sorry…”
“Don’t be sorry. I know she rubs people the wrong way, especially me.”
“So you gave her money?”
I nodded “Mhm”
“How much?...if you don’t mind me asking?”
“A lot…ten thousand.”
“TEN THOUSAND. You just have ten thousand bucks sitting in your bank account?!”
“I have a little more than that.” I smirked.
“Why are you so calm about this?! Asami you gave your mom ten thousand dollars!”
“Korra, do you realize this car cost One hundred and thirty thousand dollars?”
“Wh-oh my god.” The darker girl whispered.
From her reactions I guessed she’d never had any friends with money to spare before. If she thought this car was fancy and expensive I couldn’t wait to drive her around in the Rolls. I chuckled to myself and drove with only the soft sounds of the radio as back noise for a couple minutes before Korra asked another question.
“So your mom thought we were…a couple?”
“She thinks any girl I come in contact with is my girlfriend.”
“Oh. So you’re…”
“Gay. Yes.”
“Oh...Ok good to know.” She said blandly.
“Are you ok with that?”
“Oh of course! In the southern water tribe, we don’t really label sexuality. We’re raised to believe that you marry the person you love, we don’t have gay, straight, or bi. Of course you know some people prefer men, some prefer women, and some both but it wasn’t anything we put thought into. To me, preferences in romantic partners is comparable to preference in what type of food you like. You like what you like.”
“That’s amazing. In this country it’s kind of a big deal.”
“I know. When I moved here it was a huge shock, I didn’t understand it at all. Labels are so important here, it’s like I have to walk on eggshells. One of the guys I train, his name is Wu, and he freaked out because I said something that didn’t specifically identify him as gay. That’s why I was asking, I wanted to know so I didn’t offend you.”
“I appreciate that, thank you. People are pretty fixed on the labels. We have an LGBT community and then subsets of that community.”
“That’s another thing I don’t get. People are just people: why do we have to be separate at all?”
“It’s hard for you here isn’t it?” I asked.
“Sometimes” she sighed. “You know I didn’t even know judging based on skin color was even a thing until I experienced it first hand. It blew me away.”
My heart clenched at hearing that. Of course I knew that racism was a huge issue in the past and still is one. But it was different for someone that didn’t even know it was coming. Korra’s eyes looked so sad at the thought of it. I couldn’t help but wonder why she stuck around if it was so different.
“I’m so sorry you have to go through that. It’s stupid to think any less of a person based on their outer appearance.”
This made her perk up and smile a little. Maybe she thought that I thought her beneath me: and that just made me angry. She was forced to be cautious and assume the worst because of an encounter with some idiot…or maybe more than one. There was no telling how often she experienced this type of thing.
“Don’t apologize. It doesn’t make me upset anymore. I’m just going to keep being me and prove that I’m not what they think I am.”
“If anyone can do it it’s you.” I smiled.
Once I got my car back into it’s space and recovered it, I invited Korra back up to my penthouse to finish watching her fight. She gladly accepted the invitation and while she was on the couch yelling at the fighters I ordered some Chinese thinking she might be hungry, because I sure as hell was.
Korra tried to explain the techniques being used and why they worked but all I really got from it is “hit – don’t get hit” and she laughed at how simply I it broke down.
Just as we were about to start eating Korra’s phone started ringing, and she yanked it out of her pocket frowning at whoever’s name was on the caller ID.
“Hello?” she answered. “Yes, this is Korra.”
Her blue eyes lit up but there was also a bit a worry behind them. “What do you mean he isn’t answering?” She began biting her nails. “Two weeks?! Are you kidding me? Why didn’t you me call sooner?” I stared on, wondering what was happening, I was concerned. “Yes, Yes of course. How’s right now?”
“Ok. Tomorrow morning?...Great, see you then.”
Korra hung up the phone and took a deep breath.
“Are you alright? What was that about?”
“I just got some news.” She said with a smile stretched from ear to ear.
my appa plush is officially for sale! for all those dreamers who really wanted to have a plush like the one is this episode of legend of korra can now live happily.
