Pauley: I've just finished LoK and this fic jumped into my head and wouldn't leave me alone.
Completely Un-BETA'd so all mistakes are mine (And I know this chapter kinda sucks, I'm real sorry but I couldn't think of a good way to open this fic! So I powered through writers block in order to get this, hence it's sucky nature! Promise next chapters should be better!)
"So, have you any experience in caring for someone who is paralyzed?" The elderly lady asked from the other side of the table to Asami.
"No, my work with the disabled has been mostly with those who have learning difficulties." Asami explained, fidgeting slightly. Her last job had fallen through when her patient had passed sadly. She needed a steady job in order to fund her research and inventions and when she'd seen this one advertised, it seemed far too good to be true.
"Right. And how are you at handling High Profile patients, Miss Sato? Should you get this job, you will not only have the duties of a carer, but you will also have to help fend off Paparazi when you go out." Asami frowned slightly. Who was this patient?
"I know how to avoid the press Ma'am. My Father, as I'm sure you're aware, was sent to prison a few years ago and I spent a lot of my time avoiding news crews and journalists, I'm sure I could cope." The lady smiled, her soft blue eyes crinkling kindly.
"Wonderful. Well, Miss Sato, you are certainly our most capable applicant for the position right now. I shall contact you in a few days to let you know if you've gotten the job."
Asami now stood in front of the large gates of the home that belonged to her new patient. She'd grown up in an impressive house herself, but this was something else. She still didn't know who her patient would be, but by the look of things, and the question about the press, this was someone who was very high up in society.
She rang the buzzer, shifting from foot to foot.
"Hello?" The elderly woman that had done her interview spoke through the speaker.
"Hello, it's Asami Sato, I'm here for my first day..." She tried not to let her statement sound like a question but the longer she stood before the gates, the more nervous she became.
"Oh yes, come in." A harsh noise eminated from the speaker as the gates slowly slid open, allowing Asami access to the grounds. She was thankful, at least, that the main house wasn't miles away from the gate. All the land seemed to be behind the imposing building.
Asami was greeted at the door by the woman that had interviewed her, her face kinder and smiling a little more than it had been the last time they'd spoken.
"Good Morning Ma'am." Asami greeted, bowing slightly. The elderly lady chuckled.
"Please dear, call me Katara." She reached out and took Asami's arm, leading her into the house.
"The young lady you'll be caring for is my Granddaughter and I feel it safe to assume you'll have at least heard of her. She recently had some trouble with an over eager fan that has ended in her getting seriously injured." Asami's brain clicked into place as she listened to Katara. Could it really be Korra? The only professional fighter to cover Boxing, MMA, Kickboxing and Judo? Asami had watcher her career with great interest, barely able to believe that one person could win so many fights in different styles. But then she'd gone missing for almost a week. Once she'd been found, she dropped off the map completely, no-one knew exactly what had happened to her.
"She's a very proud girl, very stubborn, so I apologise for the fact you may end up fighting with her in order to be able to help her. Normally, I would stay myself and help her heal, but I'm afraid an emergency has arisen back within our tribe, so I have no choice but to return there, which is why I am hiring you." Katara explained, leading Asami towards the kitchen, where she'd left all the paperwork she needed the young woman to sign before she could leave.
"I've written up the schedule we agreed upon in order to help her heal. A new physiotherapist should be arriving within a few weeks to hopefully help her regain some movement, but for the moment she is completely paralysed from the waist down. This does mean you shall have to help her change her Cathater, since she hasn't fully mastered that skill yet, along with helping her bathe and get around, though she does have a worker dog to help with the getting around a little. A chef will arrive once every three days and cook all the necessary meals, setting them aside in clearly marked boxes in the fridge or freezer depending." Katara stopped in front of a wooden worktable that sat in the middle of the kitchen, currently covered in paperwork.
"Due to the status of my granddaughter, I've had her lawyers draw up some contracts for you. They simply state that you are not allowed to discuss her with anyone other than her own doctors and you cannot tell anyone who you are working for, nor discuss her injuries." Katara explained, motioning to the papers.
"Feel free to read through them before you sign, but you must sign before I can truly welcome you as her Carer." Asami noticed that Katara was being very careful to avoid using the patients name. She was almost certain it was Korra, but, naturally, she could be wrong. But she did understand. Especially if it was Korra, she was very well known and the knowledge that she was now paralysed and therefor completely unable to continue her career would ruin her. Asami didn't want to be the cause of that.
She lifted the papers to read them, fishing her glasses out of her bag as she began to skim the pages. After her Father's incarceration, Asami had gotten rather good at understanding Lawyer Speak, as she had dubbed it, so she had no trouble with the contract. It did just say what Katara had said. She couldn't reveal who she was working for, or why she was working for her. Couldn't tell anyone anything without express written permission from the patient, other than to her doctors, and if she did break the contract, she would be sued.
"Do you have a pen?" She asked once she was certain there were no hidden holes that could entrap her. Katara smiled and produced one from her apron pocket, holding it out to Asami. Asami signed quickly, nodding as she set the pen down, certain she'd made the correct decision in doing so.
"Now, I will be phoning every sunday, and I do expect a report from you on her condition before I speak to her myself." Katara said as she gathered up the paperwork spread out into a neat sheaf.
"Of course." Asami dipped her head, beginning to smile slightly. She'd gotten herself a new job that paid impressively well.
"Now, we're still looking for a night carer, so I was wondering if you would be willing to move into the property, on a temporary basis, until we are able to find one? You, of course, would be paid for the extra hours at an improved rate, since this wasn't mentioned in the original contract." Asami was nodding before Katara even mentioned the money.
"Of course, I don't mind. I will need to collect a few things from home, however, if you want me to do that." She explained and Katara grinned, reaching for Asami's arm again.
"Naturally. Now, come along. I believe it's time you met your new charge."
Pauley: This is just the Prologue, the other chapters should be longer.
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