Chapter Text

(Book 4, episode 13)

Korra glared into the mirror, futzing with the pins in her hair. Afraid that she was ruining all the work that Asami had put into styling it. But this one stubborn tuft of hair insisted on sticking out, and Korra vowed that she would tame it. She didn’t have Asami’s knack for presentation or finesse. The last time Korra had decided on a change in her look, she’d just lopped off her hair with a sword. She still hesitated asking for help, though.

Since the night of the battle, everyone had been walking on eggshells around Asami. With the wind knocked out of her by the loss of her father, she was only just starting to recover. Korra hadn’t been surprised when Asami retreated back into her work. She had a company to run, after all, and arrangements to make for her father’s funeral.

The service had been small and quiet. Few people had attended, despite the media making sure that everyone in the city knew of Hiroshi Sato’s valiant sacrifice. However, Asami had not found herself alone that day. Korra had clung to her side. Their friends had all stayed well into the night to pay respect to her father and her family.

Afterwards, Korra had tried to give Asami all the space she needed as she buried herself once more into work.

Republic City was recovering as best it could, as well. Refugee zones were established in neighborhoods with the least amount of damage. Many of the wider streets and massive mansions of the high end districts now housed people from the inner city. Everyone was trying to figure out how to return to normal.

Varrick and Zhu Li’s wedding was going to be a welcome distraction for everyone.

After the date had been set, Korra and Asami had chatted on the phone about the ceremony and reception. Korra couldn’t remember who had brought up the idea of going to the wedding together, but they had both agreed that getting out of the office would be good for Asami. No doubt Varrick would throw a heck of a party.

“Would you help with a chain on the back of my dress?” Asami asked suddenly. She had slipped behind a paper screen in Korra’s bedroom to change.

“Sure.” Korra finally lodged the damn bang behind her ear and sighed. “Just remember,” she called back, “the only solid plan for today is the ceremony.” Hopefully Asami was up for such a busy public event. She hadn’t much cared for crowds lately.

“And a dance,” Asami reminded her with a light laugh.

The sound was unexpected, and Korra smiled, blushing at the promise she’d made over the phone. “Yes. Right. But after that, if the reception’s a bust, I don’t want you feel pressured to stay. If you don’t feel comfortable, or you want to leave, stand over by the front temple gate and I will come get you.”

“Korra, I’ll be fine, I promise.”

A troupe of rabbits were thumping in Korra’s chest right now as she studied herself in the mirror. Varrick had invited a team of seamsters and seamstresses from the Southern Water Tribe to design his groom’s suit, and they’d been gracious enough to make something new for the Avatar to wear as well. In fact, they'd been downright delighted.

Korra stared at the fabric of her dress. It reminded her of the South Pole, and the style her mother wore. It was pretty. Traditional patterns in sea blues, though she’d made some adjustments. Her shoulders were bare, showing off her tone. She’d agreed on more ornamentation than she was used to. Korra didn’t wear jewelry, typically, but Asami seemed to like that sort of thing. And Korra wanted to look...special. She had consulted only Zhu Li on the dress, hoping to keep it a small surprise. Just like Korra had no idea what Asami would be wearing tonight.

She wanted to do everything she could to make the night memorable, even if Asami ended up calling it a night earlier than planned.

Behind her, the curtain shifted aside.

“You look beautiful,” Asami said.

Korra smiled, turning around to show off the dress and find out what Asami had picked out for herself. “Thank you. You-”

Every word at that moment decided to drop out of her brain.

Asami was draped in flowing red silks. Sheer and lovely. The gown touched the floor, swaying with every step. Her hair fell past her shoulders in dark waves. Her lips a familiar, elegant red.

“Do you like it?” Asami asked, the question not quite reaching her eyes, which were gleaming. Her hands traced each other as she watched Korra’s face.

Korra was supposed to answer. She had to say something. But her brain was having trouble restarting. Asami always managed to make a statement with everything she wore. Korra didn’t quite know what she had expected. Perhaps a dress that said, ‘I am finally feeling ready to move on and find some happiness in my life.’ Instead, Korra was frozen in place, staring dumbfounded at her best friend whose dress announced, ‘I could eat you alive and you would enjoy every single minute of it.’

Swallowing, Korra began to remember how sentences worked. “You look...”

Say something better than snazzy, say something better than snazzy…

“...you look stunning,” she got out. Asami’s answer was a sweet, happy smile. Korra savored the little victory, and felt like she could finally breathe.

“Thank you,” Asami said, stepping forward. Gold bangles at her wrists chimed gently. Folds of gorgeous red silk drifted with the motions of her walk. “Would you mind getting that latch for me?” She pulled her hair to the side, exposing her neck.

Korra’s mouth had gone a little dry. This girl was trying to kill her. “Yeah,” she said quickly. She shuffled around her, following the path of sheer silk revealing her arms, to the chain at the base of her neck. Asami had already managed to fasten it, but Korra impulsively reached out. Just to double check.

The silk was cool beneath her fingers, smooth as bare skin. Lush. Korra imagined it had to feel just as decadent to wear as it was to touch. “You really look amazing,” she breathed, relocking the chain and pressing it flush against Asami’s neck. Small gentle bumps broke out along her porcelain skin.

“I’m just trying to keep up with you,” Asami murmured, smiling back at her. Korra blushed uncontrollably.

Taking a small step back, Korra took them both in at the mirror. Asami’s expression was calm. At ease. That smile had been buried for so long. Korra wondered what exactly had happened to unearth it.

“Are you ready to go?” Asami asked. She offered her hand and Korra instinctively took it. Warmth spreading up her arm.

Korra could not imagine what sort of night lay ahead. Her brain swam in the scent of flowers and spice as Asami led her down the hallway.

Zhu Li and Varrick’s wedding ceremony was beautiful, heartfelt, and bizarre. Rather perfect for the happy couple. As night fell, the party grew into a storm of laughter and dancing. Drinks poured like fountains. Jazz lilted through the air and drew the party onward. Happy smiles told stories and shared in a night of precious normalcy.

Though she reveled with her friends, Korra tried to stay at the edges of the blur, remaining mindful of Asami. Checking her mood, confirming that she still wanted to stay, making sure she was enjoying herself.

Late in the evening, in one of the rare moments she’d let Asami out of her sight, Korra took a seat at their assigned table for a breather. Bolin and Opal were chatting, chairs pulled close and laughing softly to each other, in that intimate way that a couple could close themselves off from the outside world.

Korra grabbed a spot several seats away from them and sipped water. She needed to pace herself. Didn’t want to edge too close to her limit on plum wine.

After a moment, she caught an eye from down the table. “Hey you,” Opal said, her smile bright.

Bolin perked up and waggled his eyebrows at Korra. “How goes Operation Party Your Blues Away ?”

Opal ran a hand through his hair. “Keep working on it, honey.”

“I think it’s going well,” Korra said, watching Asami in the distance, drifting into small talk with another guest. The girl’s smile was polite and, more importantly, sincere. “I think she’s having fun.”

“That’s great!” Opal chimed in. She took a sip of champagne. “I really love it when first dates go well.”

Korra blinked down at her water. “Not a date,” she insisted. “I just want to make sure that Asami has fun tonight. After everything that’s happened, we owe her that.”

That got a suspicious look from Opal. The young airbender leaned closer, resting her face against her palm. “Did you come to the wedding together?”

“Yes,” Korra said slowly.

“Are you planning to dance with her?” Opal asked.

Korra shrugged. “I promised I would try.”

“And you two haven’t stopped staring at each other all night.”

“What?” Her eyes darted towards the crowd, but quickly snapped back. “We haven’t been-”

“No,” Opal said lightly, “not a question.” Smirking, she reclined in her seat, staring out at the sea of party guests. “For a non-date, that is some suspiciously date-like behavior.”

Bolin scooted his seat closer to Korra, hushing his voice under the rush of the crowd and the music. “I’m usually really, really bad at reading stuff like this,” he murmured, “but she’s got a point.”

“Oh.” Korra’s eyes went a little wide. “What do I do? I didn't want to put pressure like that on her tonight…”

Fighting a chuckle, Opal nodded towards the crowd. “She seems perfectly fine with it.”

Korra followed the look towards one of many bars and saw Asami walking towards them, red silk waves cascading with every step. Korra was pretty sure she was never going to get tired of that view.

It was totally possible that Asami began speaking to the table at some point, chatting with Opal and Bolin about the ceremony and all the pageantry at this ridiculously nice wedding. But Korra had refocused her attention on the table. Staring at her water glass in a horrible attempt to look relaxed and not at all startled by how she had managed to stumble into a date with Asami Sato.

A delicately manicured hand drifted into to view, and Korra glanced up to find Asami smiling down at her. “Shall we?”

The jazz band perked up, pirouetting through songs, dipping in and out of rhythms, all the while filling the air with a lightness, an energy. Asami showed Korra all the steps. They stumbled through the footwork together, catching grins from each other and laughing the whole way. Korra may not have known how to dance to this kind of music, but she was an enthusiastic student. At some point, she even managed to switch lead on Asami during a song. Spinning her by the hand, Korra drew out another bright laugh from her.

It was the first time in weeks that Asami had felt remotely normal. There was still a quiet emptiness in her head, clouding the sun. Reminding her of everything she had lost. But she’d resolved to distract herself with music, food, and drink. Korra being so close helped to take more of the edge off than anything, though, and hopefully she knew how much tonight meant.

A high hat cymbal crashed on a final trill of horn, from Tahno of all people, and the crowd roared with applause. Asami let go of Korra’s hand, and they drifted apart. Korra, flushed and grinning like a child, clapped along, throwing a whistle to the band with her fingers.

The band milked the final grace notes of the number for as long as they could. Asami knew all too well the ebb and flow of these sort of events. What the musicians would do to keep the crowd active on the dance floor. How not to overwhelm with too many high-energy songs. She was fairly certain of what was coming next.

Sliding a step closer to Korra, Asami leaned in to combat the noise. “You catch on quick,” she chuckled into her ear.

Color began to bloom across Korra’s face. “Never hurts to have a good teacher,” she said.

Their hands slowly settled into each other.

Asami’s smile grew. “As a reward…”

And as if on cue, the drummer tapped his brushes into a smooth, slow rhythm.

“...how about we try something a little easier?” She pulled Korra by the hand, closing the space between them. At the bandstand, piano began to lilt through the applause as horns, winds, and strings settled into a gentle melody just shy of a slow dance.

It couldn’t have timed out better if Asami had actually planned it. Moreover, she couldn’t think of a prettier sight than a blushing, flustered Avatar. Guiding Korra’s other hand to her shoulder, Asami slowly palmed the small of her back. And suddenly the air felt sharper. Her brain swam in the music and the sensation of her partner braced against her.

Same as with the peppier songs, Asami talked Korra through the steps. “Just the opposite of what I do,” she instructed, Korra shuffling along with her. “When I go back, you come forward, just like that, right.” Asami casually turned them. “And when I press you forward, you step back…” Korra was a little slow catching onto that one, and Asami barely managed to stop before colliding into her. “You step back,” she repeated, smirking as she waited. Eventually they fell into sync. “There you go.”

For a long time, they danced silently. Asami tried to focus on leading. Just slower than the beat, savoring each turn, each step. Being so close in public was a new sensation. Asami felt exposed out in the middle of a crowd like this. But when Korra would catch her eyes for a moment, unable to hide a smile, it was easy to forget about anyone else on the dance floor.

Korra quietly studied the sheer fabric against Asami’s collarbone. “So Opal asked me how our first date was going, and I didn’t know how to answer.”

As she spoke, warm air spread out along Asami’s neckline. She squeezed Korra’s hand. “Everything’s been lovely so far.” Realizing her eyes had drifted closed, she opened them to find Korra suddenly more alert.

“So this is a date?”

Asami fought a smirk. Had she not been shamelessly flirting, complimenting, and wooing her way through this entire night? Or was Korra really so nervous that she hadn’t picked up her signals? Maybe she hadn’t been putting in as much effort she’d thought.

The Avatar kept stumbling through her excuse. “I wasn’t sure if we should call this a date,” she shrugged, “or if it would count as our first, or if you were even ready to-”

“Korra,” Asami said politely, “I would like this to be a date.” She pressed forward, and it took a moment for Korra to back away in rhythm with the song. “Our first, in fact.”

“Me too,” Korra said in a rush. She visibly exhaled, her body relaxing back into the dance. “I’m glad tonight cheered you up.”

“You cheered me up.” They slowly drifted closer, holding each other, and Asami rested a cheek against Korra’s temple.

Korra’s eyes shot to the ground, studying their feet with rapt attention. “Careful. I’d hate to step on your dress,” she murmured.

Asami chuckled against her hair. “I’m glad you’re so fond of it.”

“It’s the prettiest dress I’ve ever seen now that you’re wearing it.”

Hook. Line. Sinker. Asami couldn’t hold back her quiet, kind laugh. “Wow...”

“Oh. I said that out loud.” Korra’s hand slipped from its perch and masked the bright pink that had flushed her face. “I’m sorry,” she groaned, “Wu didn’t write my lines tonight, I promise.”

“I liked it,” Asami said. She tightened her hold on Korra’s hand, urging her to come back to her. For a moment, she thought about kissing it, but instead traced the smooth, bare skin of Korra’s knuckles. She spoke softly beside her ear. “Thank you for being patient with me.”

Korra leaned into her cheek and sunk into the rhythm of their swaying. “You’re welcome,” she said. “You’ve always done the same for me.”

Well, you should do just about anything for the people you love. The words still clung to Asami, even now. Holding back.

For the first time that night, Asami noticed everyone carrying themselves with more ease. As though the entire city had just been permitted a long exhale. The immediate danger had passed. She and Korra were, at last, not running headlong towards their likely deaths. A moment of desperately needed peace, and they were both here to enjoy it together.

Weeks ago, they had crossed a line. The memory of Korra’s touch was smudged with the violence of that day. A glimmer of hope amid all the fear, and loss, and pain. Asami tried to distill the kiss in her mind. On her harder days, when her father’s face haunted her, she’d felt such guilt taking time to think about kissing Korra that day. Holding onto her the night of the battle, her body gentle, her words kind. Everything Asami had needed in that moment. Alone with Korra, she had felt free to break. She was safe, and loved. It was never a question.

Only music filled the air between them, and she breathed Korra in. She felt like home. The world around them may have turned soft and quiet, but her heart was racing and never wanted to stop.

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Horns came in on another ballad, and some of the couples on the dance floor stepped away in the break between songs, while others finally joined in. After a moment, Asami realized that she and Korra had lost all sense of momentum. They had begun to only shift back and forth, barely moving their feet.

“We stopped dancing,” Asami whispered. Smiling against Korra’s cheek.

“Hm?” Korra seemed unwilling to wake up from whatever dream they’d slipped into.

“Nothing,” she chuckled. “Never mind.”

Holding one another through the next few songs, they continued to sway to the music. Never quite dancing.

Clutching Korra’s hand to her chest, Asami clung to this feeling. Memorizing every detail. They had finally found that moment for breath they’d been longing for. That quiet space they had needed to latch onto each other. Asami wasn’t sure how she had earned the right to be here in Korra’s arms, but she never wanted to leave.

Eventually, the ache of their feet got louder than the music, so a break was in order. Both Korra and Asami were tired, but relaxed, still holding hands as they wandered back towards the dining tables scattered across the promenade.

They only had a few moments together before Korra was led away by a very enthusiastic Meelo. Asami caught whispers of some plan involving tracking and catching an AWOL Rohan. She shared a final look with Korra, who was all blush and uncontrollable grin, and let them run off to play.

Asami stood casually at the edge of the dance floor. The mood in the air brightened as Tahno put the jazz band through its paces. The energy of the crowd picked up.

She felt a nudge at her shoulder, and found Bolin lifting a dramatic eyebrow at her. “And what was that shameless display, young lady?”

Asami smirked, shushing him. “We were just dancing.”

“Uh huh.” Bolin eyed her. “The blush really sells it.” He laughed when she bumped him back in the arm.

“You made quite the pair out there,” Mako said, following behind his younger brother. He was nursing a glass of water with his free hand.

“How are you enjoying the party?” she asked Mako.

Adjusting his sling with a shrug, he gave her a tired smile. “Wu finally hit his limit. So, he’s asleep, and I am happy.” Mako gestured with his glass in a toast.

“Korra said that he’s going to abdicate the Earth Kingdom throne,” she said. “That’s remarkably mature of him. You should be proud.”

“Surprised, more than anything. But...yeah, I am. He’s starting to actually think about his people and what’s in their best interest.”

Feeling Bolin’s eyes on her, she sighed. “What, Bo?” she said, still grinning. It seemed she couldn’t rightly stop.

“You look happy with her,” Bolin said.

Asami hugged her arms, trying to bring back the sensation of holding Korra. “I am.”

For a moment, though, her smile flickered. She’d been positively drunk on hope all night. Asami was finally getting exactly what she’d wanted for years; the chance to be with Korra, with no wars or mistakes keeping them apart. The cold realism that had kept Asami’s heart safe for so many years had long since thawed. But could she trust the universe to behave, to let her keep this one shred of happiness, after it had already taken so much away from her? Korra was the Avatar. This peace would end someday. Their lives were going to be one battle after another. The portal to the Spirit World, shining brightly at the center of the city, was bound to attract more confusion and calamity than they knew how to deal with.

Chewing her bottom lip, she barely managed to find the boys’ faces. “I'm worried if-”

Bolin flashed a hand up at her. “Nope, don’t want to hear it.” He reached down and latched onto her hands. Meeting her eyes head on. “You deserve this.”

“You both do,” Mako said.

Asami had to fight the pressure of tears behind her eyes. Since the beginning, Bolin had been in her corner. He was one of her best friends and biggest champions. And he was, she suspected, one of the reasons she’d managed to hold herself together all these years. He and Mako were some of the few people in her life to knew how it felt to lose so much family, but to soldier on through it.

Her friendship with Mako had become tempered steel. Through pain, passion, lies, war, and hard work, they had learned to trust each other to the core. They’d grown into adults together, forged lives, took on more responsibility than they had believed they could handle. But through it all, they’d been each other’s confidant, and sounding board, and support.

Softly squeezing Bolin’s hands back, she cast a smile between him and Mako. She would never be able to fully express how important their friendship was. They had grown into such good men. Tremendously kind and understanding. Two of her favorite people. Family.

Asami wrapped her arms around both of them at once and hugged tight. “I love you guys.”

“Hey now,” Bolin chuckled, “easy. I’m not sure if Opal’s the jealous type.”

“Don’t care,” she muttered into his shoulder.

“Alright, then,” he sighed, answering with a bear hug of his own. His voice was gentle and sincere. “I love you, too.”

Mako patted her back gently, balancing his water glass. He set it down quick on a table before fully committing to the hug with his good arm.

After a moment, Bolin looked down the rows of tables and slipped out of the embrace. “I must be off,” he announced, bowing dramatically, “for I am being beckoned by a fair and lovely maiden.”

“Go on, then,” Mako teased. He offered a wave to Opal across the room.

“Have fun, Bo.” Asami took a seat on the edge of the nearest table. She felt Mako sit next to her and they watched the playful and increasingly exhausted dancing of wedding guests. After a while, they fell into a comfortable quiet.

Mako eventually looked up from the water glass on his lap. “So...you and Korra, huh?”

Asami’s expression warmed. “I think so,” she said. Her mouth fought against a smile, but lost. “Yeah.”

Mako nodded. “I want you two to be ridiculously happy together.”

She laughed quietly. “I’ll do my best,” she promised.

“Good.”

It was her turn to stare at her hands. “Mako, when you and Bolin started on your own,” she said carefully, “how long did it take for you to feel...” She couldn’t quite form it into words. That sad quiet that she had carried with her since her father had died in the battle downtown. Even through tonight.

Mako watched her patiently. Never pressing. He knew how fresh her wounds were.

Taking a breath, Asami finally managed, “...for you to feel like there was solid ground under you?”

“A long while,” he nodded, chewing on the question a little. “Having people makes it easier. There were plenty of distractions at our age: I had to work, Bolin needed looking after. But having people you care about to share the load; that’s better, I think.”

Even on her good days lately, Asami could feel the sudden sensation of drowning. The memory of her father’s death taking over her lungs and gripping them in a vise. But Korra seemed to calm that feeling. No matter how long it would take to pull herself back up to dry land, Asami knew she wouldn’t have to do it alone.

“Thank you, Mako.” Her voice caught in her throat.

He rested a hand on hers and held on. “I love you, too,” he said, his smile warm. “I hope you know that.”

“I do,” she said. Grateful, not for the first time, that they had managed to stay in each other’s lives for the last three years.

“Asami!”

Varrick’s voice rang out across the sea of guest tables.

She barely managed to stand and turn before she was set upon by their eccentric groom. Hand raised to his eyes as he scoured the promenade.

“Where’s Tenzin?” he asked briskly. “I need to pitch an idea to him. Groom’s request of the host, and if he doesn’t follow through with it he has no honor whatsoever and he’ll be hearing all about it on my comment card.”

Asami blinked. “Pardon?”

“Varrick,” Zhu Li droned, following her new husband patiently in her gorgeous white silk, “you cannot jump off the building,”

“Of course not, darling. I wouldn’t never do something like that without proper safety precautions.” Propping his hands on Asami’s shoulders, he looked her dead in the eyes. “Do you know if the airbenders have a spare wingsuit lying around?”

Her eyes cast over to Mako to make sure she was sane right now, but only got a shrug from him. “I’m not sure that’s such a great idea,” Asami muttered.

Varrick waved her off. “Never mind, I’m sure there’s a fellow my size who’d be willing to let me borrow one. I’ll make it work!” He wandered back into the crowd, Zhu Li casually following him the whole way to make sure he didn’t get himself killed.

Mako leaned in to Asami. “Maybe you should go find Tenzin before something bad happens.”

Asami nodded, scanning the wedding for any sign of the airbending master.

“Over there,” Mako said, pointing out towards the front gate of the Temple. Korra stood there against a pillar, looking out at the bay with Tenzin.

The gate that had been meant as Asami’s signal for when she wanted to leave the party. How long had Korra been waiting there?

Sliding off the table, she turned to Mako. “Try to slow Varrick down a little, will you?”

“Sure. You go cut in,” he smirked, squeezing her hand quickly. “Maybe you two can make a break for it while Tenzin’s distracted.”

There were times, despite all evidence of his premature grumpiness, that Mako revealed himself for the hopeless romantic he really was. Asami kissed him on the cheek and shuffled through the thinning crowd.

As she approached the Temple gate, her steps slowed. Korra looked so beautiful. And she had taken such time and care to make sure Asami had enjoyed the evening. The Avatar, Master of the Elements, had decided that there was nothing more important tonight than making Asami feel safe and happy.

How much more could Asami fall for this girl? This bright and playful, strong and powerful, force of nature of a girl.

She kept her pace casual, letting Korra and her master share their moment. The two had not seen much of each other since getting back to Republic City. Asami never wanted to deprive her of quality time with her loved ones. Family had become a vibrant beacon of light in their lives. Vital to cling to and keep close.

Admittedly, the prospect of a quiet sanctuary from the wedding crowd and the looming threat of Varrick attempting a nose dive off the temple both quickened her steps a bit. She cleared her throat gently as she got closer.

“Excuse me, Tenzin…”

“I've always wanted to see what the Spirit World's like.”

“Sounds perfect.”