Author's Notes: Hello again folks! I'm here to share this little(ish) piece I've been working on for the past couple of days.
This is a companion fic to my previous Legend of Korra fic, "Chosen's Chosen." If you have not read that fic, you might find yourself a little confused at times in this story. Maybe it's possible to read this as a stand-alone piece, but I'm just warning you that there are references to things in "Chosen's Chosen" that will be major spoilers for that fic. So if you haven't read that one, you may want to head on over there and do that first.
Anyway, this story takes place in the exact same universe as "Chosen's Chosen." It fits in to the time line after the climax in the spirit world, but before Korra's return to Republic City (so right in between chapters 27 and 28). This is going to be a one-shot, so don't expect any updates.
I wrote this story because I wanted to explore one possible answer to one of the biggest questions I still had by the end of Legend of Korra: In book 2, why did Korra decide to leave the spirit portals open after Harmonic Convergence?
So with all that said, here we go!
Divisions
Asami leaned back in her chair and stretched her arms way above her head, feeling a satisfying crack from the joints in her shoulders. She'd been sitting in her office at Future Industries for almost ten hours now, and she could feel a familiar ache behind her right eye that would surely lead to a migraine if she didn't nip it in the bud, so she stood and headed to the kitchenette to retrieve a painkiller. Surprised to see the light in the small room already on, she entered to see her foreman Lee Shun standing in front of the stove and staring blankly out the window as he waited for some water to boil. His teacup sat next to him on the counter.
"You look about as tired as I feel," she said by way of greeting, and he blinked and turned his bloodshot eyes to her.
"Hate to break it to ya, boss, but you look pretty darn beat yourself," Lee replied. "How many hours is this for you?"
"Only ten," said Asami as she swallowed two pills.
Lee gave a little snort. "Only ten," he repeated teasingly.
"Hey, I think this might be a pot-and-kettle situation here. I thought I told you to go home five hours ago."
"I can't help it if my boss leads by example. I thought ten hour days are what all the upper management is expected to do."
Asami smiled affectionately at him. "Lee, you've got a family to go home to. I have a big empty mansion."
He frowned at this, sensing the underlying sadness that seemed to follow Asami around lately. Though Asami was not especially open about her personal life, he was aware at least that Asami had recently entered in to a pretty serious relationship with the Avatar, and that the Avatar was currently stationed full time in Ba Sing Se. This was perhaps why Asami was spending almost as many hours in her office as she was in her home.
"I'll make you a deal. I'll go home if you do," he said.
Rolling her eyes, Asami said, "I should have seen that coming. Alright, fine. I just want to finish with the Di Shi bridge contract before I head out so that we can focus on the gory details at the survey tomorrow. It's almost finished; I just have two or three more sub-clauses to tweak."
Lee knew that this was about as good an answer as he could hope for. Besides, it really would be helpful to get that contract finished tonight. It would make their survey easier, plus it would probably shorten their on-site day tomorrow significantly—with the contract in a completed form it wouldn't be necessary to go back to the office after they were finished.
"That's a deal," he said, and the two of them headed back to their offices.
Asami sat back down at her desk and picked up her pen, immediately leaning over the pages spread out before her. This was a contract for a bridge over a small creek that had accidentally been formed in the city when Kuvira had recklessly fired her spirit gun towards the bay. The blast had dug a trench almost a mile long and roughly ten feet deep, and its mouth opened right up to the water. Immediately following its creation seawater had flooded in to the trench, becoming a haphazard new canal right in the middle of the downtown shopping district known as Di Shi, its location making it extremely inconvenient for people and cars to get around.
Even worse was that the minute the spirits had returned to Republic City following the end of the battle with Kuvira, many of them had begun setting up homes right along the "canal's" edges. Most of the spirits didn't seem to mind the hustle and bustle of the area, and Asami (with backup from the Republic City Balance Task Force) had been completely unable to negotiate a relocation with them. It looked like those spirits, and the new canal, were here to stay.
The compromise that she had come up with was a two-lane bridge so that cars and pedestrians could still get around the district, and they would only have to oust a couple of spirits from their new homes. Tomorrow, she and Lee would meet up with President Raiko and Bolin, who would be serving as a member of the BTF, at the proposed bridge site to begin planning the specifics. She expected there to be resistance from the spirits, but she hoped they would be able to work it out with minimal fighting.
True to her word, Asami stayed at her office only twenty more minutes, and then she and Lee walked out together. Asami bade him goodnight and went home to her mansion.
She had just changed in to her pajamas when her telephone rang. "Sato residence," she said when she answered, even though she knew who was calling.
"I'm in shock," said Korra. "I tried your office first; I can't believe you're home this early."
"You can thank Lee for that. He pretty much guilt tripped me in to leaving."
"Good man. Sometimes you have to fight dirty to win."
"Maybe, but I've never been good at that kind of thing. My stupid morals always get in the way."
"Hey now, watch your mouth. That's my girlfriend you're talking about. They're not stupid, they're lovely," chided Korra. Then her voice lost its levity as she said: "Seriously though, Asami, I think you're working too much. The other day Pema told me you haven't come around for dinner in over a week."
Asami winced, knowing she'd been caught. She should have known that Pema would mention that to Korra. "It's just a busy time right now. With Sen Inc out of the picture Future Industries has doubled its workload. Plus we're making satomobiles again, and I've been trading in a ton of SUMs. There's so much to do and so little time to do it."
"What are you talking about? There's plenty of time to do it," said Korra. "It's not like you have a deadline. Nobody expects Republic City to be rebuilt overnight. You don't have to rush, especially not now that you don't have any competition anymore."
There was a long silence over the line. Korra suspected that Asami was probably frowning and trying to think up another excuse. "Tell me the real reason, Asami. Why are you working so much?"
"Come on, Korra," replied Asami weakly. "I love my work, you know that. Can we just move on?"
"Is it because of me?" asked Korra bluntly. "Is it because you're trying not to think about me?"
Another long silence was all the answer Korra needed.
When Asami finally did speak, her voice wavered as if she was dangerously close to tears. "I'm trying not to think about us," she admitted. "I'm trying not to think about the fact that we have no idea how long this is going to go on, and that for the foreseeable future all we may have is nightly phone calls and monthly five-day visits. And most of all I'm trying not to make you worry about me, because I don't want you to feel like I'm sitting here in Republic City pining over you."
"If that's the case, then you're going about it the wrong way. You working thirteen hour days doesn't make me feel happy about your state of mind. What would make me happy is if you would spend time with the people who love you, instead of burying yourself under the rubble of Republic City. Don't shut everyone out, that's only going to make it worse."
She makes a good point, thought Asami. For the past week Asami had been feeling too morose to want company, but now she realized she was just going to have to force herself to move past it. Korra was probably right, anyway. Visiting Air Temple Island would be absolutely essential for keeping her sanity in the coming months. Without her adopted family, she might end up becoming a total hermit, and that wasn't something that Korra would let slide.
"Alright, I get it. Consider me chastised," said Asami with a sigh. "I'll go to Air Temple Island tomorrow after work. I'll even ask Bolin if he wants to come along."
"Good," said Korra. "Now that that's sorted out, tell me about your day. Did you finish the contract?"
"I did. Everything looks good, but the hard part will be tomorrow. I don't know what we'll do if we can't find anywhere to put the bridge." As she spoke, she moved the receiver to her bed-side table and climbed in to bed. "Haku said that once spirits have nested somewhere they really don't like to leave, and the spirits along the canal are all pretty settled in by now. It's possible that we waited too long on this one."
"I'll believe that when I see it," Korra said. "Everyone there has gotten so good at dealing with the spirits. I bet you'll find plenty of volunteers for the relocation. Where are you planning on putting the ones who are willing?"
"We have a couple of options to offer them," Asami told her. "I have four different locations in mind throughout the city based on what the spirits say they want out of a home. Two of them are waterfront locations, and one of those is also a very busy area of the city. My hypothesis is that if they like living in Di Shi, it's probably because they want to be somewhere where there are a lot of humans."
"That sounds reasonable," agreed Korra. "Well, I wish you luck. I know the spirits can be a real pain in the butt sometimes, but there's no one better for the job than you."
"Thank you. I'll let you know how it turns out. What about you? What did you do today?"
"Same old convention stuff as yesterday, pretty much. Although Mako, Genly and I went down to the lower ring for dinner and someone tried to mug us."
"You're kidding!"
"Nope, dead serious. We were cutting through a dark alley so he couldn't see our faces. He threatened us with his earthbending, but we drew the fight out in to the street and when he saw who we were, he took off so fast it was like he was airbending." Korra laughed, but it died off quickly. "Poor guy. I wish he'd stuck around a little longer so we could talk to him. He was probably only trying to steal from us because he had no other options. Maybe I could have helped him somehow."
Asami felt a familiar golden warmth rush through her. It seemed like every time she talked to Korra, there was a new example of her compassion and selflessness to add to the list. She'd never known anyone so unfailingly virtuous. "I love you so much, Korra," she said sincerely. "The world is so lucky to have you as its Avatar."
"And I'm so lucky to have you as my partner. Let's not forget who once confronted a mugger in the lower ring and sent him away with only minor injuries and some cash."
Smiling, Asami said: "I wasn't sure you remembered that story."
"Of course I remember. I remember every instance of your awesomeness."
"You're such a sweet-talker."
"I know."
They said goodnight not long after that, and Asami hugged a pillow close to her body, imagining that Korra was there with her in her bed. She remembered how she felt when her lover's arms were encircling her, holding her close and making her feel safe and treasured. In just a few minutes she had drifted off to sleep, where her dreams seamlessly took over the job of her imagination.
In the morning Asami dropped by the office to pick up Lee and the completed contract, and then the two of them headed to the Di Shi district for their survey. They headed towards the center of the city, where the new canal finally ended just under a mile from the bay-side. They would begin here and work their way down towards the bay, talking to spirits all along the way in the hopes of finding a place where they could be convinced to give up a few precious feet of their real estate.
Raiko and Bolin were already waiting for them. Even from a distance it was obvious that Bolin was scrounging for conversational topics. He was shuffling his feet nervously with his hands in his pockets, and Raiko was standing with his arms crossed over his chest in what was clearly an annoyed posture. Asami and Lee took a minute to laugh at the sight from the privacy of Asami's satomobile; they both had frequently dealt with the President and were well aware of how ornery and difficult he could be. Once Asami had even overheard him say to a member of his staff that he couldn't believe how many "children" were in the BTF, and that he didn't think it was a good idea to entrust the future of the city to so many kids.
Well, thought Asami as she and Lee collected their things and exited the car, he was going to need those "children" if anything was going to get done here in Republic City. She just had to hope that Raiko would eventually come to understand that they were absolutely the best people for the job.
"Good morning," Asami greeted them. "Are we ready to get started?"
"Yes," said Bolin immediately. "Please, let's go talk to some spirits." As the group headed towards the canal, he added under his breath to Asami: "At least they know how to hold a decent conversation."
Asami stifled a laugh, glancing over at Raiko and Lee, who were walking a few feet ahead of them. Lee was explaining to Raiko some of the finer points of the bridge contract, a job Asami had delegated to him in the interest of appeasing Raiko's aversion to anyone under the age of 30.
In the days after the creation of the Di Shi canal, while Korra and Asami had been in the spirit world on vacation, spirit vines had extended themselves all along the perimeter of both sides of the newly formed creek. In these, the spirits had made their new homes. The combined scent of the vines and the water brought Asami a sudden and unexpected wave of sensory nostalgia that almost caused her to stop walking; she had always associated the smell of the vines with Korra, and periodically when near them she would find herself drowning in the physical ache of missing her girlfriend. She sighed heavily. But the ache reminded her of her promise to Korra, and she brought it up to Bolin now. "Hey, I'm going over to Air Temple Island after we're done here. You want to come along?"
"Sure," he agreed cheerfully.
The district of Di Shi was separated in to neat blocks, and for the most part the spirits had followed this example in their habitation of the area. This was a detail that Asami was pleased to see; often times, a small acquiescence to the habits of humans by the spirits was indicative of a larger willingness to comply to other such habits. She hoped that the fact that the spirits were settling in the same pattern as the city around it meant that they would be willing to work with them on the bridge.
They stopped at the first of one such city block and Bolin stepped up to the precipice of the canal, standing among the tangled spirit vines that lined its lip. Now, he would summon the local spirits in the manner in which he had been taught by Haku and Jinora. He raised his hands to his mouth, cupping them to amplify his volume, and he shouted: "HEY SPIRITS, COME OUT HERE!"
His three companions winced. So maybe that wasn't exactly the way Haku and Jinora had taught him, thought Asami.
But it was effective. Four or five glowing spirits emerged from the brambles around him. "What's the big idea?" said one grumpy-looking raccoon-dog spirit, rubbing sleep from his eyes.
Bolin addressed this spirit directly. "Sorry to bother you, but we're part of the team rebuilding Republic City…"
The spirit cut him off before he could even finish. "Not interested." Then he turned around and went back in to the knot of spirit vine from which he had come.
"You have to talk to Houzi," explained another spirit apologetically. "He's down there." She pointed to a particular section of the canal, and then she too went back to her home.
Bolin returned to the rest of the group. "They say we have to talk to someone called Houzi. My guess is they've elected a representative."
"A representative?" said Raiko with skeptical surprise. "I didn't know the spirits had political minds."
"It's not politics, it's just unity," replied Bolin. "The spirits like to stick together when they can. Lots of times when you're dealing with large groups of spirits, you end up talking to just one. It's pretty rare for there to be fighting among the spirits. They're not like humans; generally, they're all on the same page."
"So let's go find Houzi," said Asami. "If what Bolin says is true, then it's a waste of time for us to try talking to any of the other spirits here."
The area that the spirit had indicated was only two blocks further down the canal. "This is actually the block where we thought the bridge would work best," said Lee as Bolin once again picked his way through the vines to the edge of the canal. "It's the easiest location for travelers to reach from basically anywhere in Di Shi. I wonder if it's just a coincidence that Houzi lives here."
Asami considered this for a moment before saying: "I doubt that."
"Why would you doubt that? How could the spirits possibly know that you wanted to put the bridge here?" asked Raiko.
"With all due respect, sir, I've noticed that you have a tendency to underestimate the spirits," said Asami in as kind a tone as she could muster. "A basic understanding of downtown Di Shi traffic would lead anyone to the same conclusions that Lee and I have reached. The spirits live here too, now, and chances are they're well aware of what's happening in their neighborhood."
Raiko pinned her with an unhappy look, but Asami refused to feel intimidated by him. Time and again Raiko had failed to see the importance of a city that was balanced between the humans and the spirits. His requests to Asami and Future Industries were often less about sharing and more about making demands of the spirits. Since the reconstruction had begun, Asami had been standing her ground about what she believed to be right for the city, and thus far she'd only gotten away with it because the Balance Task Force, which was advised by the Avatar herself, had taken Asami's side every single time.
Meanwhile Bolin had reached the lip of the canal, and he once again cupped his hands around his mouth. "GOOD MORNING SPIRITS, WE'RE LOOKING FOR HOUZI! IS THERE A SPIRIT HERE BY THE NAME OF HOUZI?" he bellowed.
A glowing spirit appeared on the opposite side of the canal. The spirit was nearly as tall as Bolin, and he looked like a large ape with white, snowy fur. As they watched, the ape spirit used his powerful back legs to bound from one side of the canal to the other, landing with negligent ease in the brambles around Bolin. "I am Houzi," he said in a deep, rich voice. "I speak for all spirits in this area."
"Great!" said Bolin. "Then you're just the guy we're looking for. Would you mind speaking with us for a few minutes?" He indicated the other three members of the group. "We'd really appreciate it."
Houzi grunted a surly affirmative and the two of them returned to the group. "This one I know," said Houzi as he studied Asami. "You are the Builder."
"Yes," answered Asami with a friendly smile. "My name is Asami Sato. It's lovely to meet you."
The spirit repeated his affirmative grunt. "And this one is the Naysayer," he continued, his eyes on Raiko.
Knowing the angry reaction this would provoke from Raiko, Asami raised a hand bracingly to head off any negative things he may be about to say. She was grateful when he managed to hold his tongue.
"This one I do not know," said Houzi as he sized up Lee.
"My name is Lee Shun. I work with Asami at Future Industries."
"And you are a Bridger," said the spirit to Bolin.
"I'm Bolin. But technically I think we're all Bridgers today," replied Bolin.
"That's right," said Asami. "We're here today to discuss the possibility of building a bridge over the Di Shi canal. It doesn't have to be a large bridge. At the maximum it would only take up about one block, and the rest of the canal would be free for the spirits to live in."
Houzi looked at her with his deep, black eyes. "We like you, Builder. You are a decent and trustworthy human. You are a pleasant human to talk with and in general, we are happy with work with you. However, your president is not so beloved."
"What's that supposed to mean?" snapped Raiko. "I have been agreeing to every insane solution to our situation. I've given you plenty."
"You have given us nothing," said Houzi. "Your city has given us plenty, but you have sacrificed nothing."
"Why should I have to sacrifice something for you? We didn't ask to have you and the rest of your kind come and occupy our city. If you don't like all the free homes we've given you, you're welcome to go back to your own world at any time."
"Woah there," interjected Bolin. "There's no need for hostility. Houzi, what does President Raiko have to do with us wanting to build a bridge? If his being here is making you uncomfortable, you can just do what I do and pretend he's not even here."
Asami stifled another laugh. Though his expression didn't change, Asami could have sworn she saw a glimmer of mirth behind Houzi's eyes.
But his voice was firm when he said: "We will not work with the Naysayer."
"You wouldn't be working with him, you'd be working with me," said Asami. "It would be just like any other project we've worked together on."
"All leaders are a reflection of their people. If your leader in this city is, as you say, hostile to us, then perhaps it is time for us to end this façade of friendship between our two races."
"It's not a façade!" objected Bolin. "Who said it was a façade? Raiko is just one dud human in a city of great humans." Raiko glared at him, but Bolin ignored it.
"We've made our decision. We will not work with you again until there has been a change," declared Houzi. Then he turned abruptly and headed back towards the canal. In seconds he had bounded back across its width and disappeared among the vines.
Lee heaved a great sigh. "That went well," he said sarcastically.
President Raiko was fuming. "All of you are flirting with treason right now. How dare you speak so disrespectfully of me in front of that spirit?"
"Look, Mr. President, we're just trying to get the city rebuilt," said Asami wearily. It was disappointing to hear that the spirits were going to fight on this bridge, and even more worrisome was the implication that the spirits may not be willing to work with her again at all. "We know what we're doing."
"And I gotta say, you don't exactly have the best track record for spirit relations," added Bolin.
It looked like Raiko wanted to say something else, but Asami decided to try Bolin's tactic and ignored him. "What do you suppose he meant when he said there needs to be 'a change?'" she asked Bolin.
"I'm not sure," replied Bolin, raising his hand to his chin as he thought about it.
"It could mean he wants us to elect a new leader," suggested Lee.
At this point Raiko's face was turning red, but the three of them wandered away and got in to Asami's satomobile, leaving him standing by the canal, completely forgotten.
"I doubt he means anything so literal," said Bolin. "If there's one thing I've learned in the BTF it's that the spirits rarely say exactly what they mean. They always have to talk around their point before actually making it. Haku says it's because they want us to have a deeper understanding of their reasoning by leading us to the conclusion instead of just putting it right out in front of us, but personally I think most of them are just doing it to annoy us."
"Well it certainly worked on Raiko," said Asami as she checked her rearview mirror. Raiko was quickly shrinking away in the distance, but she could still see that he was now ranting and raving to one of his aides.
"So call me old-fashioned, but why exactly aren't we worried about how badly we just treated the President of the United Republic?" asked Lee.
Both Asami and Bolin laughed at this. "You obviously haven't spent enough time with him," said Asami. "He's well-intentioned and he does care about the city, but he isn't part of Team Avatar."
"Yeah, when you spend a large amount of your free time risking your life to save the world, you kinda start to get a feeling about what kinds of people you can rely on, and that guy isn't one of them," said Bolin.
"His whole way of thinking is outdated," explained Asami. "The reason why the BTF was created was because our two worlds are completely different now. Raiko told Houzi that the spirits are welcome to go back to 'their world' at any time, but the truth is that this is their world now. The boundaries are gone. Those spirits who live in the Di Shi canal? That's their canal."
As she spoke, a little turtle spirit appeared on her right shoulder. This was one of her most loyal companions; there was never a day that went by where she did not see her little turtle friend at least once.
Lee looked at it as if seeing it for the first time. Of course he had noticed the spirits around his boss before, but he'd never really given it any thought. Houzi had even had a special name for her: the Builder. She was obviously very well-known to them. And there had been that whole altercation with Sen Inc in the spirit world a couple of months back; when it had happened he'd chalked it up to Asami's loyalty to the Avatar, but now he suspected that it had come from Asami's own understanding of the new world order. "Wow," he said. "I truly never thought of it that way before." As they drove along, he looked out the window at one of the buildings that he and his crew at Future Industries had recently completed. Asami had designed the building so that its front entrance arched gracefully around a spirit vine that came up from underneath it. At the time he had thought that the design was clever in that it worked around the vine, but now he realized that it also showcased the vine, putting it front and center for all to see. "I guess my own thinking is a little outdated, too."
"But it's okay for you to be behind the times," said Bolin consolingly. "You aren't the President of the United Republic."
And I'm not the president of Future Industries either, thought Lee as he observed Asami and the turtle spirit. "Thank goodness for that," he said out loud. "I'm not very photogenic."
"In any case, I suppose we'll have to think of a way to somehow knock some sense in to our dear friend President Raiko," said Asami as she pulled the car in to the parking lot of Future Industries where Lee had left his own vehicle.
"No problem," said Bolin with a little flip of his hand. "We can just toss him in to the spirit world and let him wander around for a while. I'm sure he'll figure it out."
Privately, Asami thought that might not actually be such a bad idea. But she said: "We'll have to keep our eyes open. Maybe something will come to us."
After they had dropped off Lee, Asami and Bolin continued on to the docks where they sent for Opal via an airbending courier who was there for just such a purpose. Bolin and Opal now shared an apartment in the city, but during the day she was usually on Air Temple Island with the rest of the airbenders. As part of their network of communications, young airbending acolytes were stationed at various places in the city to carry messages. In just a few short minutes, they could see Opal approaching on her air bison Juicy.
"I think it might be time to give Juicy a bath," observed Bolin, crinkling his nose at the bison's smell as it landed.
Frowning, Opal replied: "He just had one earlier today."
Bolin patted Juicy's nose affectionately. "Good old smelly Juicy. Some things never change."
They flew over to the island on Juicy's back. As they passed the air bison stables, Asami squinted down at the beasts grazing there. "Isn't that Oogie?" she asked, pointing to one of the bison.
"Is it? I can't tell from this distance," said Opal absently.
"I think it is. But shouldn't he be in Ba Sing Se with Tenzin?"
"It must not be him," was all Opal said.
Their landing point would be the front courtyard, and as Juicy lowered his altitude they flew right past the window to Tenzin's office. Through the window, Asami was absolutely certain she'd seen a very familiar bald man seated behind the desk. "That was Tenzin!" she exclaimed as they landed. She spotted Pema coming out of the house towards them and she leapt out of the saddle to meet her. "What's Tenzin doing here? Is everything okay?"
"Everything's fine, dear," said Pema, but there was an extremely odd expression on her face. Asami turned back to Bolin and Opal and saw that they were both suddenly acting pretty strange. Neither of them would meet her eyes.
"Okay, you guys are freaking me out. What's going on here? What's wrong?"
"You need to quit worrying so much," said a very familiar voice from behind her. "Nothing's wrong."
Asami spun around so fast she very nearly lost her balance, her heart suddenly pounding in her throat. Her eyes confirmed what her ears had already told her; Korra was standing on the front porch, grinning that mischievous grin that Asami loved so very much.
"Korra!" she gasped.
"Hey there, pretty lady," said Korra. She opened her arms and Asami rushed into them, crushing their bodies together in an embrace so tight it nearly knocked the wind out of them.
"You're here," Asami said quietly in to her ear. "You're actually here!"
"I'm here," confirmed Korra, putting a hand on the back of Asami's head as if to keep her in place. It wasn't necessary; Asami had no plans of moving from this spot for the foreseeable future.
"What are you doing here?"
"I'm not allowed to visit my girlfriend?"
"Oh you're allowed. You can do whatever you want to your girlfriend." Asami drew back to look her in the eye. "But what about the convention?"
Korra grinned at her again. "It's a holiday in the Earth Republic."
"What holiday?"
"Avatar Kyoshi Day," laughed Korra. "I think it's kind of unfair that she gets her own day, but I'm not complaining. The whole convention has the day off, and tomorrow is our rest day. So you've got me for two whole days."
Returning the smile, Asami said: "Thank you, Avatar Kyoshi, for this awesome surprise." She twisted around awkwardly to look at Bolin, Opal and Pema without breaking the embrace. "How long have you three known about this?"
"Way too long!" exclaimed Bolin. "You have no idea how hard it was to keep this a secret. I wanted to blab it out every time you looked sad."
"I'm glad you didn't. This makes it all worth it." After thinking about it for a moment, Asami said to Korra, "And I guess this is why you decided to get on my case about working such long hours last night."
"Bingo," said Korra, clearly pleased with herself. "I needed to make sure you'd come here today. Bolin was my backup plan. If you hadn't invited him here, he would have invited you." She lowered her voice so only Asami would hear when she added: "But that doesn't mean you can keep working thirteen hour days. I was serious about that. I still want you to spend more time here."
Asami nodded. "I'll do anything you want me to do, just as long as you kiss me right now."
Korra was happy to comply.
After several more minutes the two of them finally separated, although Asami kept a tight grasp on Korra's hand as they headed inside the house. They found Tenzin just as he was exiting his office and Asami gave him a friendly hug. Then the whole group, along with Tenzin's children, headed to the dining room for dinner.
Everyone listened attentively as Asami and Bolin explained the situation they had run in to with the Di Shi canal and the spirit Houzi. After they had finished, Jinora spoke thoughtfully: "Houzi really called him 'the Naysayer?'"
"Yeah," confirmed Bolin. "Have you ever heard any other spirits call him that?"
"No," said Jinora. "And Haku has never mentioned anything like that either. It must be a recent development."
"But what could have triggered the spirits to suddenly start disliking Raiko so thoroughly?" asked Asami. "Raiko has been a part of this process from the very beginning. I don't think the spirits have ever been his biggest fan, but they don't really have to deal with him. They only deal with me and with the BTF."
"Tell me again what exactly Houzi said about Raiko's leadership," said Korra. "I think I might have an idea."
"He said that all leaders are a reflection of their people," answered Asami. "He thinks that if Raiko is hostile, then the city must be hostile."
Bolin raised his hand as if asking permission to speak, and everyone looked at him. "But the word 'hostility' came from me," he said. "Remember? I said there was no need for hostility, and then Houzi sort of fixated on that."
"But Raiko was being hostile," said Asami, picking up her steaming tea mug and cupping it between her hands. "He was saying that the spirits should go back to their own world."
"You said you have an idea?" asked Tenzin to Korra. "What is it?"
"It's complicated," replied Korra. "And I don't want to say anything in case I'm completely off-base. But I will say this: As arrogant as it sounds, I think the spirits picked today for a reason. I think they picked today because they knew I was going to be here."
Asami raised her eyebrows at her. "Really?"
"Yeah. I think you and I should go down there after dinner."
"Just you two?" asked Jinora.
"Yes, just us two."
"Alright," agreed Asami, "if you think it would help."
The conversation moved to other topics and Korra leaned over to speak very quietly in to Asami's ear. "And I don't plan on coming back here tonight. Since we're going over to the mainland anyway, we may as well spend the night somewhere a little more private, don't you think?"
Asami hid her smile behind her teacup, but Korra could plainly see the little twinkle in her green eyes.
After dinner they borrowed Juicy from Opal and headed across the bay. It was growing darker and chillier by the minute, but Asami snuggled up against Korra's side and rested her head on her shoulder. Somehow, Korra always seemed to radiate warmth. With the stars above them and the bay below them, Asami couldn't believe how happy and lucky she was. "This is one of the best days of my life," she said to Korra, who looked at her and smiled.
"And why is that, Miss Sato?" she said teasingly.
"Because Opal finally gave Juicy a bath," quipped Asami sarcastically, and Korra laughed. "You know why, Korra."
Korra used a gentle hand under Asami's chin to tilt her head up before placing a gentle, slow kiss on her lips. "I know. I feel the same way," she said softly. "Every day that I'm with you is one of the best days of my life."
"Will you still feel that way when we can be together every day?"
"I think so. I felt that way before I left for Ba Sing Se, I can't imagine it changing any time soon." She gave Asami another loving kiss. "I know it's hard, Asami. What we talked about last night is still true. We don't know how long this is going to be and it won't ever get any easier. But that's why I came to Republic City today, and that's why I wanted it to be a surprise. I love you so much, and I would do anything just to see you smile the way you did this afternoon. But I feel the same way about you when I'm in Ba Sing Se that I do when I'm here in Republic City. When I daydream there it's about you, and whenever something happens, I always think of you first. No matter how far apart we are, you're always right here." She took Asami's hand and placed it over her own heart. "Okay?"
"Okay," whispered Asami, pulling Korra close for a longer, deeper kiss. As they parted, she made a happy humming noise, her lips tilted up in to a lazy smile. "I've missed this so much."
"So have I," replied Korra. "But this is really dangerous. If we keep this up, we'll never get to talk to that spirit tonight."
Setting her face in to a determined, resolute expression, Asami nodded. "You're right. I have a city to rebuild. Fun times with Korra can wait."
"You're so cute when you're acting all responsible."
"Thank you."
They landed the air bison very close to the place where Asami had met Houzi earlier that day. Wordlessly, they dismounted and walked towards the spirit vines. As they approached, they saw the snow-white form of the large ape spirit emerge from the opposite side of the canal and bound towards them. He approached and studied them silently. He did not look the least bit surprised to see them there. Then he put his fists together and bowed. Korra and Asami returned the respectful gesture.
"Do you know what today is, Avatar?" asked the spirit in his deep, slow voice.
Korra nodded. "It's Avatar Kyoshi day."
"That's correct. On this day many years ago, Avatar Kyoshi used her bond with Raava to separate the island of Kyoshi from the rest of the Earth Kingdom. Do you know what else today is?"
"It's the solstice," said Korra quietly.
"Yes," said Houzi. "For two days each year, this world and the other are aligned with one another. On this day, ten thousand and four years ago, the first Avatar used his bond with Raava to separate the two worlds. For ten thousand years, spirits alone inhabited the other world." He looked at Korra steadily with his coal-black eyes. "Until Avatar Korra used her bond with Raava to unite the two worlds."
Korra stared right back at him, her blue-eyed gaze unflinching.
"Ten thousand years of Avatars have concerned themselves with divisions. They protected the four nations as just that—four different nations. Even Avatar Aang, who created this wonderful city of unity, was first faced with a war that, in its essence, threatened to unite the four nations," continued Houzi. "And yet the cycle begins anew with an Avatar who would unite us. Why did you do this, Avatar?"
"Because I met Avatar Wan," answered Korra. "I learned a lesson from an event that happened so long ago that no Avatar in recent history could remember it. No Avatar I've ever consulted knew this lesson because no Avatar that he had consulted had known it, and on and on down the line for thousands of years."
"And what lesson is that?"
"That boundaries do not exist except in our minds," replied Korra. "The world that Wan lived in, the world that I saw, was this world. He stood on this very same earth. He breathed this air. And yet somehow, his world was also the spirit world. It was like it was both at the same time. The humans lived in lion turtle cities, and those looked like typical human settlements. But outside those cities, the spirits also made their homes."
"We tell tales of those times," said Houzi. "We have not forgotten."
"I know. I know you haven't. Raava remembers them too. But then Avatar Wan closed the portals because he believed that the humans and the spirits would always fight. He believed it was safer to separate the two worlds. He made the spirits leave, thinking it would end conflict in this world. But instead, he spent the rest of his life dealing with human fights, and then the next Avatar did too, and the next, and the next, and on and on. I respect Avatar Wan and what he tried to do for humanity, but I don't agree with his choice. The last ten thousand years have shown us that fighting will always exist. And all the Avatars before me have proven how powerful a bond with the spirits can be.
"So that's why I left the portals open," concluded Korra. "This separation has gone on long enough. It's time for us to find out what we can do together. Wan made you leave your home, and now I'm giving it back."
In the silence that followed, Korra and Asami watched the spirit's face carefully, trying to figure out what he was thinking. But for an agonizingly long time, his face remained a calm, stony visage, completely impassive. When he finally spoke, he said: "Except those of us who happen to live on this block." And then he tossed his head back and laughed. "Alright, Builder. We will work with you. We will allow your bridge."
Asami's face broke in to a huge smile. "You will? That's so wonderful! I promise you don't have to leave the city if you don't want to. There are plenty of awesome places I think you might really like."
"Personally, I'd like somewhere with something to climb," said Houzi amiably.
"We can definitely work that out," replied Asami.
"Thank you so much, Houzi," said Korra.
"Thank you, Avatar Korra. We spirits will never forget what you have done for us." The three of them all bowed. When he straightened up, Houzi added: "But we still don't care for your president. Perhaps you should tell him what you've just told me."
"Fair enough," said Korra with a nod. "We'll try to get through to him."
Sensing that Houzi was ready to take their leave of them, Asami asked: "Before you go, I was wondering what you meant when you said that there must be 'a change?'"
Smiling, Houzi said: "I needed to hear that your leader was sincere about the desire to integrate us in to the city."
"But you didn't hear that," said Asami. "Raiko still doesn't really like you guys."
"Your president is not the leader we care about," responded Houzi with a significant glance at Korra.
Asami was thoroughly confused. "But if you didn't care about Raiko, then why did you make a big deal out of him being there and call him the Naysayer and all that other stuff?"
Flashing a mischievous smile, Houzi said: "I just like seeing his face turn all red." Then he turned and bounded back across the canal, where they quickly lost sight of him among the brambles.
After he had gone, Asami threw her arms around Korra's shoulders, hugging her fiercely. "My hero! You did it, Korra! Thank you so much!"
"You're welcome," replied Korra with a chuckle.
"How can I ever repay you for this?"
"I have a few ideas, but all of them involve us getting to your mansion as soon as possible."
"Then you'd better enjoy your last few seconds of breathing through your nose, because Juicy will get us there a lot faster than walking."
Korra sighed dramatically. "The sacrifices we make for love."
Asami was smiling before she even opened her eyes. She could register the morning sunlight falling over her closed eyelids, but she was much more interested in what was going on a little farther down. Korra was tucked up behind her, her front flush against Asami's back, and she was running a hand up and down Asami's bare sides, lightly tickling her. Two nights ago Asami had fallen asleep imagining that Korra was there with her in bed, but her imagination could never quite do justice to this feeling.
"Are you awake?" Korra breathed softly, pressing soft kisses on the bare skin of her shoulder.
"Mmm hmm," purred Asami, that same sleepy smile still on her lips.
The hand stopped tickling, instead moving to wrap firmly around her midriff. "Finally. I thought you were going to sleep until sundown."
One of Asami's hands came to clasp Korra's where it lay against her stomach. "Someone kept me up half the night," she teased. "I needed my beauty rest."
"No you didn't," replied Korra. "You could stay up for an entire year and still be the most beautiful woman in Republic City."
"Sweet-talker." Asami turned in Korra's arms and cuddled up to her, absorbing her lover's warmth and solid presence. "I wonder if I'll ever get over how amazing it feels waking up next to you."
"I suppose anything's possible. I do tend to wake up obscenely early. It's possible there could come a day where you want to sleep in."
"And miss your early morning snuggles? I don't think so." For a long time after that, there was comfortable silence between them. They both tried to memorize everything about the moment, to store it away for their upcoming separation. Some time later, Asami murmured: "When are you going back?"
"Tonight," said Korra with a sigh. "We'll take an overnight flight and sleep on the airship. That way we'll be back in time for the convention in the morning."
"What about Oogie? Is Tenzin leaving him?"
"For now. That's part of the reason why he decided to come. He's letting Oogie spend some time with his family here."
Eventually they got out of bed. Korra offered to make breakfast while Asami prepared for the day ahead. They had decided that it would be a good idea for Korra to visit Raiko before she left town. In her office, Asami made a phone call and set up a time. Then she went downstairs to where Korra was poking eggs with a spatula with one hand and keeping a fire going on the stovetop with the other.
Asami laughed at the sight. She wrapped her arms around Korra from behind and rested her chin on her shoulder. "Korra, did you forget that I'm not a bender?"
"Huh? What do you mean?"
One of Asami's hands reached out to gently slap away Korra's and the fire under the pan went out. "You see, not everyone is a firebender. The rest of us have to make fire the normal way." She turned a knob and another fire appeared under the burner.
Korra stared at it, and then laughed at herself. "You know, it looks like Amon was right. We benders really don't understand what it's like to be a non-bender."
"Yeah, and in this case the non-bender solution was even easier than firebending. Plus, now you can have your hands free to do this." She turned Korra in her arms, took her hands and placed them on her own shoulders. Then she ducked her head down for a kiss.
"There is definitely something to be said for the convenience of non-bender ingenuity," said Korra with a smile.
"They do say that necessity is the mother of invention," agreed Asami. "Having your hands free to pursue other, more fun activities is just an added bonus." As if to prove her point, she engaged them in another slow, leisurely kiss.
"I guess I did forget that you aren't a bender," said Korra once they'd parted. "You always come across as so confident and capable. And while I'm over in Ba Sing Se, you're here doing a job that any other Avatar would have believed they ought to be responsible for. But not me, because I know I wouldn't be doing nearly as good a job here as you've done."
Asami frowned at her. "You don't know that."
"I'm pretty sure I do. Bending doesn't determine our world any more. People like your father and Raiko have changed that. And you've changed it, too, Asami. Since Harmonic Convergence, the spirits here in Republic City have been your responsibility. After I was poisoned and I left Republic City, you took over the job I should have been doing." When Asami opened her mouth to protest, Korra placed a finger on her lips to stop her. "Don't. You know it's true. Being the Avatar just doesn't mean the same thing as it used to. It was something I'd started to understand when I learned about what happened ten thousand years ago, and I gained a deeper understanding of it by watching you."
"I didn't mean to steal your job," said Asami apologetically.
Korra laughed. "You didn't steal it. You just took away certain aspects of it, that's all. You and the BTF both did. It's actually a relief to know that there are so many other people I can rely on." She reached up and brushed back a strand of Asami's hair. "Seeing you grow in to this role has convinced me that I made the right decision by leaving those portals open. It brought you closer to me, and it showed me this side of you that I might never have seen otherwise. It's what made me realize how special you are, and how much I love you."
"I love you too, Korra. I think that everything that happened during Harmonic Convergence is what made me realize how just how much I love you," mused Asami. "After it happened I realized just how courageous you were to leave the portals open. You changed the whole world that day. You saw an opportunity to right a wrong that had been done so long ago that everyone had forgotten it, and you took it. Even knowing how hard it would be, and how unpopular it would make you, you still did it. And even when your approval ratings were somehow lower than Raiko's…" Asami paused to grin roguishly at her. "…You still stood by your decision. You never even considered closing those portals again."
"And during those times, you stood by me. You were right there offering me the support I so desperately needed. And you let me drive your satomobile, even though you knew I'd probably crash it," said Korra teasingly.
"Yeah… If you'd actually crashed it, I doubt I'd be standing here thinking about how much I want to kiss you right now."
"That would have been a dealbreaker, huh?"
"It's a really nice car."
"It's the one parked right outside, right?"
"That's the one."
"And it's still totally intact. So I guess you're free to give me that kiss, if you still want to."
Asami did.
Later, they headed out to meet with Raiko at his office. Korra noticed that Asami did not offer her the driver's seat. "I guess your offer of driving lessons was a one-time deal," she teased.
"In this car, yes. But I've got plenty of extra SUMs at my factory you're welcome to crash."
"Such generosity!"
"Hey, I hear those cars are very safe. It's something about their unbendable metal, I believe."
Korra cracked her knuckles. "We'll see about that," she joked. "What are you going to do with all those cars, anyway?"
"I haven't decided," admitted Asami. "Lee suggested that we use the metal for something else. He said we could melt it down and re-form it using molds, like they did back in the days before Toph Beifong invented metalbending. But I don't know how I feel about the idea of using that metal for anything."
What Korra said next practically caused Asami to drive off the road. She flippantly suggested: "What if you used it to build something in the spirit world?"
"Excuse me? Build something in the spirit world?"
"Yeah," said Korra. "Why not?"
"Why not?" repeated Asami incredulously. "Because of Sen Inc, that's why not! Because we put our lives in danger to keep them out of the spirit world! To build anything there would make us no better!"
Korra placed her hand over Asami's where it rested on the gear shift. "Weren't you listening when I was talking to Houzi? Remember when I said that the two worlds were as one before Wan closed the portals? Wan put the spirits in the world we now call the spirit world, but it could just as easily have been this one. No one owns either world now."
Asami could barely believe what she was hearing. "It's like I'm driving around with Ron Regent," she said.
"Ouch," said Korra. "That hurt."
"I'm sorry, but it is. You're saying exactly what he said; that the spirit world belongs to no one and therefore, he had a right to it."
"Look, we both know that what Regent was doing was wrong. He was destroying sacred ground, and would have destroyed a precious spiritual focal point. But building something with metal that came from the other world in the first place is totally different from that. Asami, the spirits trust you. You don't have to do anything you're uncomfortable with, but I bet they fully understand the give-and-take between these two worlds. If this world is no longer only for humans, then the other world is no longer only for spirits."
They stopped at a red light and Asami turned to meet her eyes. "Do you really think that?"
"I know it," replied Korra definitively. "There's got to be some amount of exchange. Otherwise this new partnership is one-sided, and if that's the case then it's destined to fail."
As Asami considered this, the light changed and they continued on to the parking lot behind city hall. "Chief Beifong has been saying how difficult it is to communicate within the spirit world. They've been relying on sending messages via couriers, but a radio tower would help a great deal," she said thoughtfully.
Korra beamed at her. "That's an excellent idea. I doubt any spirits would object to that." She patted Asami's hand affectionately. "Did we just have our first fight?"
"That wasn't a fight. That was a disagreement."
"Darn. I was hoping to be able to tell our grandchildren that I won our very first fight."
"Don't be too sure about that," said Asami. "I'm not completely convinced yet."
"But I thought this wasn't a fight, so what does it matter who won?"
Asami rolled her eyes at her. "Come on," she said dismissively. "We'd better not keep the President waiting."
They entered the antechamber of the President's office where his secretary sat behind a huge, messy desk. "Good afternoon," she said. "You can go right on in; the President is expecting you."
"Thank you," replied Asami politely, and they continued on to Raiko's office.
President Raiko stood when they entered, coming out from behind his desk to clasp both of their hands. "It's good to see you again, Avatar Korra."
"You as well, sir."
"Have a seat." He gestured to the couches in the center of the room. Korra and Asami sat side by side, and Raiko sat across from them. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"
"Asami told me about the problem you ran in to with the Di Shi canal yesterday," began Korra. "I happened to be in Republic City for a couple of days, so we went down there last night to talk to the spirit Houzi again. Fortunately, I was able to talk him in to working with Asami on the bridge."
"That's wonderful news!" exclaimed Raiko. "I'm so glad to hear it."
"I'm glad I was able to help. But the fact is the issue of your relationship with the spirits is still a major problem. So I am here today in my official capacity as the Avatar to encourage you to re-think your stance."
Raiko looked annoyed. "This again? I've been complaint to every recommendation on this matter. I'm not sure what else the spirits want from me."
"Mr. President, I'd like to tell you a story," said Korra. "It's something I think it's important for you to hear."
She could tell that Raiko wasn't particularly interested in listening to stories, but he said: "What story?"
"I'd like you to hear the story of the very first Avatar, Avatar Wan. This is a series of events that took place over ten thousand years ago, a story that over time all of humanity had forgotten about until I re-discovered it four years ago."
For the better part of an hour, Korra spoke the tale of Avatar Wan. When she had finished, the President sat in silence and considered everything that he had just heard.
"That is a fascinating story," he said. "Obviously you must have some reason for sharing this with me. Would you care share that with me?"
"Avatar Wan kicked the spirits out of this world ten thousand years ago. He did it because he thought it would help maintain peace and balance, but actually all it did was sever a connection that could actually have been quite strong. Raava is a spirit who gives me my Avatar powers; who knows what other benefits we might reap in unity?"
Asami spoke up before Raiko could. "Tell him what happened with Houzi last night, Korra."
Nodding, Korra relayed the conversation between herself and the ape spirit. "Houzi wanted to hear that my intentions were sincere," she explained once she had finished. "He wanted to know that I was undoing what Wan had done out of a desire to right a wrong."
"This world is only our home because we've lived here for a long time. But before Wan, it was home for the spirits, too," said Asami. "The spirits want you, as the leader of this city, to treat them with the respect they deserve in the home that is rightfully theirs."
For once, Raiko didn't look like he had anything to say. He stared out the window next to him with a pensive expression on his face. The two women waited, but no comments seemed to be forthcoming.
Korra broke the silence in a calm, confident voice. "If you do not care for the direction this city is going, you are welcome to go somewhere else."
The President's head snapped up to look her in the eye. He knew that it was an allusion to the similar comment he had made to Houzi the day before. For a moment Korra thought he was going to yell at her, but when he spoke his voice was just as calm as hers had been.
"What can I do?"
Puzzled, Korra raised an eyebrow at him.
"Republic City is my charge, my love, and my destiny. I suppose it's finally time for me to accept that this will not ever go away. Before, I had hung on to the hope that the spirits may one day once again be gone from us. But now I see why you did what you did, Avatar, and I can see that it is a false hope." He took a deep breath as if to prepare himself to say what he was about to say. "So I will move on. I will make amends to the spirits. What can I do to help?"
As she reached over to squeeze Korra's hand in silent celebration, Asami said: "I think I may have an idea about that."
Sunset sent an orange light all across the tarmac where the airship sat waiting to take its passengers back to Ba Sing Se. Korra, Asami and Bolin stood together exchanging last-minute conversation about the events of the past two days. "Man, Korra, I don't know how I'll ever be able to thank you for this," Bolin said. "If this makes it easier for the BTF to deal with Raiko, then there never will be a way to thank you enough."
"I concur," said Asami with a laugh. "You can't imagine just how much easier you've made our lives here in Republic City."
Puffing up her chest with arrogant pride, Korra said: "You're welcome, peasants. Just doing my Avatar job." Then, with a little wink at Asami, she added, "Well, part of it anyway."
Asami looked over the city around them to where she could see the tall bell tower on top of city hall. Even from this distance, a snow-white figure could be seen perched on its very tip. Over the last couple of hours since Korra and Asami's conversation with Raiko, the spirit vines which weaved up and down the stone pillars at the front of city hall had grown to extend over the entire building, including its roof and its massive bell tower. These vines were the new home to the ape spirit Houzi, who had been personally invited to live there by President Raiko himself. Asami had to admit that she was pretty proud of herself for the solution that she had come up with. Houzi perceived city hall as the personal domain of the leader of Republic City. In inviting Houzi to live there, Raiko had made a personal sacrifice that appeased the spirits. She suspected it would indeed make their dealings with the spirits much easier.
Knowing that his two friends would want to say a private goodbye, Bolin hugged Korra and headed over to where Tenzin was saying goodbye to his family, leaving the two of them alone.
Korra looked at Asami and opened her arms, and as usual, Asami rushed right in to them. Their embrace was warm and familiar, and Asami closed her eyes to fully appreciate it.
"Here's another thing that will never get any easier," murmured Korra in to Asami's ear. "Saying goodbye to you is always so painful."
"Yes, it is," replied Asami. "But if I get to spend time with you, it's worth it." She placed a soft kiss on Korra's forehead. "Thank you for these last two days. This was a wonderful surprise."
"You're welcome. You know I'd do anything to make you happy."
"I know."
Looking Asami in the eye, Korra said: "Avatar Kyoshi used her power to divide the island of Kyoshi from the Earth Kingdom. Wan used the same power to divide the humans and the spirits. But now I'm using it to bring us all back together. I may be going to Ba Sing Se, but I promise you that this this isn't a division. It's impossible for us to be divided. You're just as much a part of me as Raava is, and you always will be."
Asami nodded, once again overwhelmed by how happy and lucky she was to know and be loved by this woman. "I love you, Korra."
"I love you, too." She reached up for a kiss, tasting Asami's salty tears on her lips. "And I know I don't say this enough, but thank you for all your hard work here in Republic City. I honestly don't know what I would do without you."
With a wry, watery smile, Asami said: "Without me you'd probably have crashed a really nice satomobile by now."
A few weeks later, construction was completed on Raiko Tower. This new metallic structure could broadcast radio signals for hundreds of miles in every direction. It stood deep inside a forest near Xai Bau's Grove and was shaped to look just like the tall trees around it. Immediately upon its completion, a flock of birdlike spirits moved in to it, using its sturdy prongs as a base for their nests. Their pleasant singing made the tower a popular destination for travelers both human and spirit alike.
THE END