The Legend of Korra belongs to Nickelodeon.
"Time for bed, everyone!" Four heads swiveled simultaneously, a collective groan rising above them. Pema's lips quirked but she maintained an authoritative stare, ensuring that her children obeyed. Asami's hugs were quick, though Meelo and Jinora lingered, the former with a blush, the latter with a soft smile. The Avatar found herself surrounded however, Meelo and Rohan shoving each other in their attempts to hug Korra. Asami stood away from the giggling, vibrating group, her eyes briefly meeting the Air Nomad matriarch's.
Korra knelt to hug each of the kids in turn, rubbing their backs and squeezing them, whispering jokes and silly things in their ears. Asami leaned against the doorframe, a smile crossing her features as she watched her girlfriend interact with the kids. Her mind wandered as a mini wrestling match broke out before her. Korra would be a wonderful mother, kind, funny, caring, direct. In all honesty, the only hindrance to her parenting skills has nothing to do with her personality or temperament, but her position. Avatars do not make the best parents. It is not their fault, simply the way the world is, the nature of their role. Korra belongs to the world first and those she loves second. The heiress' gaze wandered the bender's grinning face, her eyes alight with joy as Ikki pinned her. If Korra was not the Avatar, she would be the best mother. Asami had no doubt, but the fact remained that she was and though she was her own person, was Korra first and the Avatar second, she would not be the same without that influence, without the weight of the world on her shoulders. Korra herself confessed in the dark one night that what Zaheer did to her led her on her path to becoming the best person, the best Avatar she could be, cloaking herself in the compassion she had not so highly valued in the past.
Asami slid away, walking into the brisk air blowing off of Yue Bay. She found herself, unsurprising, in the gazebo. Her fingers trailed along the wood of the railing, her skin buzzing at the memories trapped inside the grain. Her thoughts shifted from her girlfriend to herself, green eyes losing their focus. She could not be a mother. There was no grand excuse, no magnificent sacrifice on her part. She simply was not cut out for motherhood. Tenzin's children had of course grown on her. She had watched them mature. She loved them, each and every one, but she did not connect to kids the way Korra did. There was no ease of communication between her and them. She could hold conversations with Jinora but that hardly counted. They talked shop and very rarely, of the young master's love life. She was a friend, not a mentor or a guardian.
Her work required odd hours and commitment that even Korra could not stand at times. She did not know how to hold a baby or comfort a child. She understood machines and heartless metal, not skin and feeling. She could fix a combustion engine in seconds, but a cut, a bruise, a broken bone? Asami barely knew what to do for herself, nonetheless another human being, one smaller and reliant on her. She watched Korra and the kids spill out into the courtyard, shouting and grinning. Ikki sat on the waterbender's shoulders, Rohan hung from her neck, the other clinging to her arms and legs laughing. There was an ease there that made Asami's heart ache. She wondered what it was with her that had prevented this "motherly instinct." Was it her mother's death and lack of such an influence? Was it her father? Or was it just her? What made good and bad mothers? What made mothers at all?
Pema, soft and sweet but firm. She was everything a mother was supposed to be, the mother Asami wished she had had the chance to have. The kids dispersed with final hugs and goodbyes. The heiress had missed the command from Pema.
"Bye, Asami!" The chorus of voices broke her from her reverie. She managed a smile and a wave as the children disappeared, Jinora walking calmly as the others raced.
"Are you alright?" Korra wrapped her arms around her waist, pressing a soft gentle kiss to her cheek.
"I'm fine. Just thinking." Asami toyed with the fingers splayed across her stomach.
"Something good I hope."
"Not quite." The arms tightened.
"Do you want to talk about it?"
"Not sure yet. I'll let you know." The Avatar sighed but pressed a kiss to the heiress' shoulder. They stood in silence for several minutes, watching the sea, until Asami turned and leaned down, placing a kiss to her girlfriend's jaw. "Let's go." They departed the island hand in hand, the engineer piloting their craft with one hand. She had managed to convince the stubborn bender to take it instead of the ferry for the first time in weeks. It was nice not having to plan their visits around the ferry or have to swim home.
Asami did not speak until she had to, when they picked up their late dinner from one of the rare open-all-night restaurants. They were becoming a trend but there were still only a few. The heiress wished they had driven to the dock so she would have something to do with her hands, not that holding her girlfriend's hand was in any way unpleasant. For some reason, when Korra sticks the key in the lock, the word tumbles out in a gasp.
"Kids." The shorter woman freezes.
"What?"
"That's what I had been thinking about earlier. Kids." They are frozen in the hall outside of their apartment, staring.
"What about them?"
"What?"
"What about kids?"
"Us."
"What?!" Korra felt a headache developing behind her eye.
"Us having kids. Being parents."
"And?"
"We'd be awful." The young tycoon was not sure what she had been expecting but laughter had definitely not been it. Not just any laughter either. Korra was bent over and practically wheezing, her laugh coming straight from her gut. Asami stood awkwardly, absently wondering if they were disturbing their neighbors. When Korra straightened, she was wiping tears from her eyes.
"You're right. We'd be such terrible parents. CEO. Avatar. Could there be a worse mix?" Asami found herself laughing as well.
"I think there are some criminals out there who would do better." They both laughed as they finally entered the apartment, shedding jackets and dropping keys.
"Were you worried?"
"Hmm?" Korra rolled her eyes at her girlfriend. The Avatar often found herself chided for being distracted, particularly about food and here the heiress was deeply engrossed in her dumplings.
"Were you worried that I wanted kids?"
"I…I guess so. You'd be so much better at than me."
"You'd at least be around more. There's no telling where I'll be from hour to hour."
"But you're good with kids."
"You could make them toys or something."
"Are we actually arguing about who would be the worst parent?" They laughed again between bites.
"I'm glad we're on the same page about this though, 'Sami." Korra spoke around a large mouthful of noodles but hearing her name still sent a shiver through the nonbender.
"Did you think I wanted kids?" Korra burst out laughing, nearly choking on her food. Asami was not sure if she was supposed to be offended or not.
"Oh, no. I just didn't want you to think I wanted kids and for you to stress out about it or something."
"Well you weren't wrong." They finished their dinner in companionable silence, looking up at intervals and giggling at the other's antics and the conversation from earlier. They fell into their usual routine, showering and preparing for bed. They spoke about inconsequential things until Korra moved to join Asami beneath the covers.
"Let's be the fun aunts, Asami. Like Kya." The abrupt topic change gave the engineer pause for a moment but she quickly grinned and brought her girlfriend close.
"The fun aunts. Sounds perfect."
"We'll spoil them."
"We already do."
"We'll spoil them more."
"Well, let's not incur the wrath of Pema."
"Oh. Right. Let's avoid that." Korra grinned against Asami. "Y'know, Bolin and Opal are bound to have a kid any time now."
"They're not even married yet, Korra."
"Well isn't someone old fashioned." Her girlfriend's sputtering and blushing only widened the bender's grin.
"You…you know what I mean!" The ribbing and talk of future children to spoil continued well on into morning, stopping only when the couple finally fell asleep, their self-proclaimed roles having given them a brief burst of energy in their excitement.
A few weeks later, Pema had to chase Korra and Asami from the island with the toy rifle the engineer had designed on accident during the development of new equipment for nonbending police officers.