Earth… Fire… Air… Water: Only the Avatar can master all four elements, and bring balance to the world.
"This is Shiro Shinobi reporting! Scant weeks after the Battle of Republic City and the defeat of Kuvira's Earth Empire forces, the metropolis lies in ruins! Before beginning the daunting task of rebuilding, Avatar Korra and industrialist Asami Sato step through the brand-new Spirit Portal to begin a well-deserved vacation, together!"
BOOK FIVE
GROWTH
CHAPTER ONE
FACING THE FUTURE
Walking hand-in-hand with Asami, feeling the soft, warm miracle of her smooth skin against her own; Korra felt her heart lift with excitement, anticipation, and… joy, like music. It seemed like forever since she'd felt pure joy, but here it was, welling up inside, and pacing beside her.
As though choreographed, they turned towards one another while stepping into the Portal and now clasped both hands between them as they looked into each others eyes. Korra, looking up at the taller woman through the shimmering green and yellow spirit-energy, found herself breathless and mute, and strove to communicate her feelings through gaze alone.
Asami must have understood, or felt similarly overcome, because she answered without words. She bent to Korra, emerald eyes shining, and Korra felt herself rising on her toes to meet her, closing her own blue eyes as their hands gripped tighter.
Their lips met softly, and Korra felt as though she were dissolving into Asami even as the power of the Portal took hold, dissolving them both together.
It was not quite like what she had imagined. In her occasional fantasies and dreams, this first kiss was to have been a thing of searing passion and desperate urgency, an unstoppable avalanche of sensation. But this was… gentle. The contact was almost chaste… but not quite. Their mouths touched and sealed, and after a short eternity Korra felt Asami slip her satiny tongue just slightly past her own barely open lips. This new touch was electric, but all too brief as Asami withdrew and the two stepped slightly back from one another, still grasping each others hands.
Past Asami's head and shoulders, Korra saw that the landscape had changed, and she recognized the surreal terrain of the Spirit World. Those same strange barren trees circled around them near the rim of the flower-carpeted meadow that surrounded the Portal, but as the Avatar watched the bare branches suddenly erupted into color, the trees instantly blooming in ones and twos and threes until the whole encompassing grove was alive with vivid blossoms of every imaginable hue.
Looking back to Asami, she saw that her flawless porcelain face, framed in ebony, was luminous with wonder and happiness. Still, Korra was moved to ask:
"H-how are you feeling?" Her voice shook, ever so slightly.
Asami spoke, having never once taken her eyes off of Korra's. Her voice was soft as snowfall, but trembled not at all.
"Like I'm in a new world."
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Air Temple Island, a few hours earlier…
"So, what now? Back to the dance floor?" Korra attempted to inject some enthusiasm into her voice, with only slight success. She enjoyed parties and socializing, but actual dancing often seemed more like bending- practice set to music.
"I'm kind of all danced out." Asami loved to dance, and was good at it... but this and her beauty had made her a very popular partner on the floor and her feet were starting to really ache. "Honestly, after everything that's happened the past few months I could use a vacation."
Except for Naga dozing nearby, the two young women were alone at the top of a steep stone stair on Air Temple Island, looking out over the bay at the wreckage of Republic City, now eerily illuminated by the glowing column of the Spirit Portal lancing up into the clear night sky. Behind them, this part of the island was more festive than either of them had ever seen it: lit with multitudes of paper lanterns and with various spaces divided by tall hanging 'curtains' of tiny strung light-bulbs in vibrant blue. Blue cloth streamers and floral bouquets adorned the usually austere wood and stone Temple structures. Jaunty, happy music faintly filled the air: Varrick and Zhu Li's wedding reception was still going strong.
"Let's do it." Korra was suddenly animated, her face brightening. "Let's go on a vacation… just the two of us! Anywhere you want."
"Really?" Asami kept her composure with an effort: inside she suddenly felt like her heart was suddenly trying to fly away and fly apart, like a runaway dragonfly-hummingbird mech. So unexpected, so spontaneous, so selflessly generous… but that was Korra all over, wasn't it?
"OK. I've always wanted to see what the Spirit World is like…?" To her own ears Asami's voice sounded flat, and she prayed that Korra wasn't offended. What if she was angry? What if she changed her mind?
"Sounds perfect." Warmth filled the Avatar's reply. And also… anticipation? For the adventure, and maybe something else.
Asami felt like a starving woman used to subsisting on crumbs and morsels, now invited to a banquet. No, not a banquet: dinner. Dinner for two. A romantic dinner for two. A romantic dinner for two with candles and a little wine to loosen up and later an intimate flower-strewn bower where the two could sink down together and—
"Asami? Hello, Earth to Asami!"
The heiress realized she had completely tuned Korra out for several seconds. "I'm sorry. I'm just really excited. About the trip, I mean."
"Me too. I said: when do you want to go?"
Thinking about how often crises, disasters, and unexpected reversals-of-fortune seemed to crop up in their lives, Asami shivered.
"Now. Right now. This minute, if we can!" Korra laughed.
"Whoa, slow down there, ball-of-fire!" Korra grinned with delight at Asami's impetuosity. It was a side of her that had seemed to peek out less and less often lately. "Don't you want to get some sleep, start in the morning maybe?"
"No. I'm suddenly not tired, at all. I want to go right away. Tonight. Can we? Please?"
"Alright." Korra's smile faded a bit at Asami's unexpected intensity. "Tonight. But first, let's talk to some people, let them know. Otherwise, they'll be worried. And I've already had enough people getting hacked-off at me recently for vanishing those six months. I don't want airbenders out scouring the world for us."
"You're right, of course." Asami nodded. "You go tell whoever you think best. I should radio my people at what's left of the business, tell them I'm going, and leave some instructions."
Korra gestured at her own and Asami's formal gowns. "And… we look good – you look gorgeous –"Asami blushed like a sunset and looked down. "– But these outfits aren't going to cut it in the Spirit World. It's mostly wild land of one kind or another, so we'll need to change to our normal travel wear."
"OK. Let's split up and do our talking, then hit our rooms to change and pack. Meet back right here in an hour." Asami let a teasing note enter her voice. "Don't keep me waiting."
Korra stood to attention, saluting sharply. "Ma'am, yes ma'am!"
Giggling, the girls parted ways.
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Korra found Tenzin nearly at once, standing alone by the podium where the nuptials had concluded earlier and looking serenely at the painted polar backdrops. The master-airbender noticed her walking down the blue-carpeted center aisle and turned.
"Korra. This all turned out very well, didn't it? I was a bit skeptical at first, but Varrick has made a believer out of me. We should have more weddings here, don't you think?"
Korra raised on eyebrow skeptically. "I guess… Opal and Bolin seem to be going great, but who knows… and Jinora and Kai are still a bit young, aren't they?"
"I suppose so," said Tenzin, smiling benignly. "All things in due course."
Korra glanced around. "Where is Varrick, anyway? Did you rescue him from self-destruction?"
"I believe that's Zhu Li's job, now more than ever. Besides, Varrick was never in any danger." At Korra's puzzled frown he gestured to where Asami was vanishing through a side door into the Temple, and added dryly "Airbenders aren't the only ones who know how to sweep aside obstacles."
"You mean she- ?"
"Lied to send me away on a wild hamster-goose chase? Yes. But I wasn't fooled, and I forgive her. She has a good reason to want you alone, I'm sure." His tone grew concerned. "Is everything all right?"
"Sure… well, mostly. That's why I was looking for you, actually. With her dad dying and everything else recently, and with all of that—"she gestured at the ruined city and vaguely at the whole world beyond it, "waiting for us, she's feeling the strain and needs a break. She wants to take a vacation for a little while."
Tenzin waited silently, and Korra went on.
"And I'm going with her."
Still not speaking, Tenzin glanced towards the dance floor, where Mako and Bolin were visible twirling around with Opal and Jinora. He raised an inquisitive eyebrow.
Korra answered his unspoken question indirectly with one of her own. "Will you tell them and the others after we've gone? And my parents? We still have to get ready and Asami's all 'let's leave right away!' and…. Tenzin, will you please say something?"
The older man remained silent a moment longer, then nodded, smiling. "I think this trip is a fine idea. You can use the time off, too. Enjoy it together. I'll take care of everything for you here. Don't worry about a thing."
Korra found herself gawping a little at her mentor's easy acceptance. She had more-than-half expected to have to argue about shirking her Avatar duties, but Tenzin had all but offered to carry her bags and buy her an airship ticket. She was curious why… but also knew enough not to look a gift ostrich-horse in the mouth.
"Thankyouthankthankyou! You're the best! I'm going to go now… not sure how long we'll be gone: a couple-three weeks or so, I guess. Thank you!" With that, the most powerful mortal in the world scampered off gaily, almost skipping as she followed Asami's route into the Temple.
Tenzin stood for a few moments more, shaking his head, then sighed and went looking for Pema. He suddenly felt the need to dance with his wife again.
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In the Spirit World, Present Time:
"Do you want to rest a minute?" Korra knew from experience that the transition to the Spirit World could be a bit disorienting, even draining. At the distant, indefinite horizon the sun began to rise like a ball of molten rose-gold.
"No, I'm fine." Asami finally released Korra's hands and stepped back, and began to turn in a slow circle, glancing up once as a huge vaguely oceanic-looking creature swam by far overhead. Silently she took in the bizarre scene, so alien yet strangely familiar. "This is amazing! Is it all like this?"
"No, some places are very different, and the spirits too. I've haven't been everywhere or seen everything…. But I think the variety is basically infinite."
"Then let's not waste any time: let's start exploring!"
For hours, it seemed they walked and climbed and jumped and swung; through forests and prairies, deserts and seashores, crystal caverns and steaming jungles. The landscape changed and morphed without apparent rhyme or reason, causing the two women no end of delight and consternation.
All the while they chatted lightly and easily, with the comfort of old friends. They pointed out sights of particular interest, and shared impressions of all they saw and experienced together. It was a time for the simple, uncomplicated pleasures of companionship.
By unspoken agreement, neither mentioned their kiss upon entering the Spirit World.
Sometimes they drifted apart to inspect some feature of particular interest, but always came together soon enough; usually pacing side-by-side with clasped hands. While traversing a hillside covered with spirit-flowers, Asami noted the blooms glowing softly and then beginning to sing some low, murmurous choral symphony.
"Why does that keep happening?" asked Asami, pointing.
"What?"
"The singing flowers. Stuff like that has been happening the whole time we've been here. It started with those dead trees back at the Portal. And it's not just flowers and trees and such… those crystals started sparkling for no reason, those spirit-monkeylizards doing a ballet, that waterfall that started spiraling and glowing just as we passed it. And the sky; sometimes it's cloudy everywhere but just over us: there's always at least one sunbeam shining right on us. Is this normal for the Spirit World?"
Inexplicably, Korra looked embarrassed, almost sheepish. She blushed and looked away, rubbing the back of her neck with a free hand.
"Uh… actually, I think we're doing that. Or I am, at least."
"What do you mean?'
"In the Spirit World, our emotions can actually change the world around us, and affect the spirits too. This seems to be especially true for the Avatar."
Asami gave this new information due consideration, then raised one perfect eyebrow.
"So, everywhere we go the world just gets a little brighter, happier, more interesting, more surprising, and extra beautiful and mysterious and wonderful? Because…?" Asami thought she was beginning to understand, but she wanted to hear Korra say it. She didn't want to jump to any wrong conclusions.
Korra looked up and met Asami's gaze. "Because that's how I'm feeling."
Asami smiled dazzlingly, and took hold of Korra's hand again. 'We should get moving again."
Korra nodded meekly, and the two resumed ascending the hill with Asami a pace in the lead. After a few seconds, she looked back.
"Korra…"
'Yes?"
"It's not just you."
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At last the sun began to set, and Korra and Asami found their energy flagging. They had both been awake and active for well over an entire day: it was plainly time to rest. They found a forest clearing by the bank of a stream and began to make camp. Golden fish with huge ruby-like eyes immediately began shoaling and leaping, whistling musically… the women glanced sideways at one another and began laughing until they were out of breath.
Asami gathered an armful of fallen twigs and branches for Korra to ignite into a campfire, while Korra began to brew tea and set out some of their concentrated rations. Apart from some trail mix, they hadn't eaten anything since the reception and were ravenous. Soon, the two were sharing their meal, watching the crackling flames.
Korra held up her bowl of noodles approvingly. "This is pretty tasty for dried camping food. Cabbage Corp. can do some things right, I guess."
'Their line of kitchen appliances isn't bad either. Sometimes I think that food must be the real soul of the company. But, good as it is we only have enough for a few days. If we want to stay longer – "Asami glanced inquiringly at Korra, who nodded vigorously. Smiling, she went on."—we'll need to find more food. Can we hunt here? Or gather wild fruit or berries or something?"
'If we do, we'll have to be really careful about it." Korra had turned serious. "Nearly anything here can turn out to be… well, a spirit. A person. So, picking an apple from the wrong tree… not a good idea. And I'd say let's not even think about hunting."
"So we'll have to leave when we run out of food?" The disappointment was plain in Asami's voice.
Korra grinned, and there was mischief in her eyes. "No, I think I know somewhere we can stock up when we need to."
"Really? Where?"
"Not telling. It's a secret."
"Oh? Ancient Avatar secret, huh? I guess I'll have to torture it out of you— "A gigantic yawn suddenly erupted from Asami's mouth. Korra viewed the sudden huge expanse of dark red lips. pink tongue and palate, and pearly teeth with fond amusement. "—first thing in the morning. Let's wash up and turn in, OK?"
At the stream, the two cleaned their bowls and chopsticks. Then, with studied nonchalance Asami removed her black-and-maroon jacket and began unbuttoning the red silk blouse beneath. Enough milky skin began to appear that Korra was sure Asami wore no breast bindings. Korra turned away to hide her suddenly flaming face.
She had seen Asami nearly nude many times, such as in the brief swimwear the heiress favored. And it went both ways, as Asami had helped her in the bath several times while helping her convalesce in the weeks after Zaheer had poisoned her.
But that had been over three years ago. And… things were different now.
She heard more rustling behind her, the zipper of Asami's backpack working and then her voice. "Korra? Aren't you going to change for bed?" Korra turned, eyes down.
Asami's jacket, blouse, trousers, and boots were laid out on the stream's bank. So were what were obviously her scarlet, almost filmy underpants. Delicate high-arched feet with deep-red painted toenails peeked into her peripheral vision. Korra felt a little dizzy. Slowly she looked up.
Asami had changed into a knee-length black silk nightgown trimmed with red lace. It was sleeveless, showing the young woman's toned arms to good effect. The plunging neckline framed her creamy décolletage beautifully.
"I'm going to wash my things as best I can and hang them to dry overnight. If they're still damp in the morning can you waterbend them for me, please?"
"Sure. I – I guess I should do the same."
"I think that's best. Did you bring something to sleep in?"
Korra though about her old 'Fire Ferrets' jersey and bending-practice shorts stuffed hastily into her pack, and sighed ruefully. "Nothing like what you've got. That's beautiful!"
"Thanks. I bought it in Ba Sing Se a few months ago. Actually…I bought you something then, too. I brought it with… I had been saving it for your birthday, but when we decided on this trip I tossed it in my pack." She held out a small package wrapped in shiny gold gift-paper, smiling shyly.
Korra unwrapped her present eagerly: she had always enjoyed getting gifts. Inside was a two-piece set of sleepwear in white satiny fabric trimmed in blue.
"Thank you, thank you! You're wonderful; I don't know what to say."
"You're welcome. Now get changed before we both collapse, fall into the water, and drown."
Korra stripped and quickly drew on the new clothes while Asami politely turned her back and began washing her own things. The Avatar was nearly completely certain that Asami almost probably didn't peek at her.
The shorts were what Korra had heard called "boy cut", although she'd never known a boy who would want to wear these. They covered her hips and behind modestly enough, but left a lot of leg bare. Korra had to admit that the white set off her dark skin very nicely.
The matching camisole bared her shoulders and arms, and was just long enough to meet up with the top of her shorts without a hair's-width to spare. Korra knew that anytime she bent, stretched, twisted, or basically moved in any way that she would be exposing a significant swathe of her midriff.
She loved it.
"Oh, this is wonderful!" Korra enthused, and Asami turned to see.
"I've never had anything so fancy just to sleep in! Thank you, again!"
Asami just stared at her, and Korra was suddenly unsure and self-conscious. "What's wrong? Doesn't it look alright?"
The young industrialist shivered once and shook her ebon-tressed head as though snapping out of a trance.
"It's... better than alright. When I saw it in the store I imagined you wearing it. But I never could have… Korra, you are so very lovely."
Korra turned away, hiding her face. "Let me wash my clothes. Why don't you lay out our bedrolls?"
The Avatar with her waterbending made short work of her chores, hanging her clothes to finish drying on a thorny bush next to Asami's garments.
Korra turned to find that Asami had neatly arranged their bedding side-by-side near the fire. Less than a hand-span separated the two sleeping mats with their light blankets.
Asami was watching her with a neutral expression. Korra swallowed thickly.
"Great, thanks. Let's… let's."
Without further comment, the two sank down on their respective mats. For a minute or so they lay on their backs, silently looking up at the moonless sky of the Spirit World. Overhead, various stars twinkled and brightened, and began to arc around one another in graceful and elegant pas de deux.
Finally Asami snorted, muttering "Pfft! Overkill!" and rolled over onto her side, facing out and away from Korra. Suddenly agitated, she found herself clenching her fists and relaxed them by sheer willpower. After a few moments, she heard Korra shift her position.
"Asami? Please turn around."
Asami flipped over briskly onto her side, with a caustic and unwise comment ready on her lips. "What, Korra? I—"
Korra captured her mouth firmly with her own, showing enthusiasm and resolve if not great skill. This kiss went on and on and on, until Asami felt she might pass out from lack of air and surfeit of feeling. Korra's hand had buried itself deep in her black hair and gripped deliciously, and Asami sent her own fingers roaming up and down the Avatar's back and neck; relishing the feel of Korra's spine arching under her touch.
Eventually it had to end, as all things must. Asami and Korra drew apart; groaning and gasping for air and composure. Eventually, their ragged breathing quieted. The Avatar tenderly caressed the heiress's cheek.
"Asami…"
"Hmmmm…?"
"I might be naïve in some ways…but never think, Asami Sato, that I don't know what we're doing, or where we're going. And never think, Asami Sato, that you'll get to make all the moves, or spring all the surprises... OK?'
"…. Oh….OK… I'm so glad."
And with that, sleep claimed them both.
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Korra woke alone, instinctively clutching for Asami's warmth but ending with empty hands. She sat up swiftly, scanning around. No immediate danger loomed.
On Asami's mat, her nightgown lay in a puddle of silken darkness.
"Korra!"
Orienting on Asami's hailing voice; the Avatar saw that last night's stream had become this morning's broad river, and that Asami was in the midst of it. In the half-light of dawn, Korra made out her soot-black hair plastered wetly to her head and neck, and trailing midway down her naked back. Korra ogled her discreetly while folding her blanket.
"Good morning! How's the water?" Good! She sounded almost nonchalant.
"Warm! And… getting warmer, actually. I wanted a wash before getting dressed. How about you?" Asami's voice was playful, but unmistakably challenging.
Korra sighed with mingled exasperation and titillation. She raised her arms to shuck the lovely camisole. "I'll be right there!"
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After breakfast and suitably attired once again, the two began to follow the river downstream at Korra's suggestion. The brunette girl was uncharacteristically silent; seemingly intent on every zig, zag, and loop of the waterway.
"Korra? What are you looking for? Is everything alright?"
Korra glanced at her with a reassuring grin. "Just fine. But ancient Avatar secrets require concentration, though."
"Are you telling me to be quiet?"
"Yes. Beautiful girls don't need to talk anyway."
That earned the Avatar a soft punch on the arm and a swift kiss on the cheek. But after that they both were silent as Korra led the way.
An hour or so later the river widened to a mouth and joined a vast ocean. Nearby, just above the high tide line was what appeared to be a perfectly ordinary (if old-fashioned) Earth Kingdom shop-building such as one might see on any street corner in Republic City or Ba Sing Se.
"Yes! I knew I could find it if I just looked." Korra exulted, pumping a fist in the air.
"What is it?"
"Where we'll get our supplies, I hope." said Korra, leading them towards the door. As they approached, several spirits of differing sorts exited and just as many entered. Whatever it was, this shop was apparently busy at this hour. She turned to Asami with a serious expression.
"Only… watch your step. This place can be a little rough."
Asami viewed the tidy, well-kept, and cheerfully decorated exterior doubtfully. "Really?'
Korra's stern demeanor dissolved into laughter. "No, not really. Actually, I think this is one of the safest places I know. You'll see."
Korra marched to the door and threw it open. As Asami followed, she noticed the discreet sign-plaque over the entrance; apparently they were going into "The Ethereal Dragon."
Inside, they found a tastefully furnished teahouse, harmoniously blending traditional elements of style from all the Earth's nations with some admixtures that must have been particular to the Spirit World. Nearly every table was full, the patrons comprising a dizzying array of spirits of every size, shape, and description. Diverse servers likewise moved around the great room, bearing trays laden with steaming cups and small platters of food. The clean, rich aromas of a hundred or more varieties of tea filled the air.
Asami felt herself relaxing almost at once; this seemed like a place where anyone could feel at home.
Korra scanned the room intently, then grabbed Asami's hand. "This way," she directed, and took them both to a corner alcove where an old, apparently human man was playing pai sho with what looked like a humanoid quartz formation.
To Asami's shock Korra bent over the board rudely, scrutinizing the arrangement of tiles, and then sneered at the old man.
"Geezer, don't you ever play any opening but the White Lotus Gambit?"
Without any apparent rancor, the elderly gentleman replied in mild tones "Experience has taught me to usually play to my accustomed strengths. Unless my opponent can counter them, of course."
Golden-brown eyes met blue unflinchingly. Then both Korra and the white-haired man broke into undignified hoots of laughter, to the bemusement of Asami and other nearby patrons.
"Iroh! It is so good to see you again!"
"And you, Korra. And who is your lovely friend?"
Blushing faintly for no apparent reason, Asami stepped forward as Korra replied.
"Asami Sato; owner and CEO of Future Industries, may I introduce you to Iroh; General and Prince of the Fire Nation, the Dragon of the West, Grand Lotus of the Order of the White Lotus, pai sho master, master firebender, and Liberator of Ba Sing Se… and I've heard he can also brew a decent pot of tea."
"Your Highness." Asami bowed deeply in respect, and Iroh laughed from deep in his ample belly.
"The Avatar gives me too little credit. Actually, my tea is often more than adequate! But you can call me Iroh, if you will allow me to call you Asami, Miss Sato."
Asami nodded mutely, and Iroh turned to his patient mineral opponent.
"Gei-ri, I have a new friend to meet and an old friend to catch up with… will you excuse our rudeness? We can finish this game later."
"Sure thing, Iroh." The quartz-spirit fluted in a voice like wet fingers on wine-glasses. 'If I have some time to think, I might actually win this one."
"Hope is a wonderful thing: never relinquish it."
Gei-ri withdrew gracefully, and was immediately hailed by other spirits and joined their table. Iroh returned his attention to Korra and Asami.
"Please sit. May I offer you some tea? Will you honor me by accepting my selections for you?" At their nods, he bellowed across the room at an unseen server, "Two pearl teas: Omashu Black!" Smiling genially, he turned back to the two women.
"Now, please tell me, what is going on in your lives? And, in the human world? And, what brings you to the Spirit World?"
Speaking in broad terms, Korra sought to bring the old man up to date, with occasional additions and clarifications by Asami. He frowned sadly as they briefly recounted the rise and fall of Kuvira, "The Great Uniter."
"Yes, I have seen it before. The desire to pacify chaos becomes the need to enforce order, and then the need to enforce order becomes the lust to crush dissent. Most unfortunate."
At last their tea arrived. Korra was immediately struck by the waiter, who unlike the rest of the teahouse staff and patronage appeared to be entirely human. She studied his profile as he bent to serve their drinks: he was a handsome young man just a few years her junior, with tousled collar- length dark brown hair, and a leanly muscular body apparent even under his old-fashioned Fire Nation robes. She was just beginning to question why he seemed so familiar when he turned to face her fully, and she saw the extensive and distinctive burn-scar on the left side of his face and head.
"Lord Zuko?!" Korra exclaimed, incredulous. Asami gasped as well.
"Hello again, Korra." said Zuko.
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"But how? I mean, you look young. You look good… really good!"
At her side, Asami frowned briefly. Korra noticed, and began to babble uncontrollably.
"I mean… you always looked good in a mature kind of way but now you look so much younger and sound like your grandson and now that I'm thinking about it it's obvious that it's because you're in the Spirit World too like us and one time when I was in the Spirit World before I got younger too except I turned into a toddler and that's really kind of embarrassing in hindsight and I should probably just stop talking right now." Korra fell abruptly silent.
Asami spoke up.
"Lord Zuko, we weren't expecting to see you here. We don't mean to pry, but why are you in the Spirit World?" The young/old man smiled cordially at her.
"Miss Sato, it's nice to see you again, too. I had heard that you and Korra were 'vacationing' here in the Spirit World: so am I. Actually, I tried to make it to Varrick's wedding but bad weather delayed my trip and I arrived too late to attend. However, my main mission is to act on behalf of the Fire Lord, my daughter, in coordinating and overseeing our nation's humanitarian aid and relief efforts for the Republic. But, I also plan to take advantage of the new Spirit Portal to spend as much of my free time as I can here, with Uncle. I came through yesterday afternoon; about half a day after you, I guess."
"And you're serving tea, and…" Asami didn't quite know how to finish that sentence.
"I'm serving tea because Uncle's shop is busy today and one of his regular servers is absent." replied Zuko evenly. "And also because I wanted to. In my life I've had both good times and bad, but one of the best times was as a young man serving tea in my uncle's shop… even though we were technically fugitives and living incognito." Zuko waved a hand. "Those were… complicated times. But I'm glad to relive them-" He gestured around at the inhuman teahouse customers. '— in paraphrase, anyway. And the work keeps me young, too."
Korra had by now regained her equilibrium. She bowed before speaking.
"Iroh, Zuko, I see that your shop is very busy, and also that we are intruding on your family reunion. I apologize."
Iroh spread his hands expansively. "No apology is needed. Please, try your tea. It is a variant of my own invention."
Korra and Asami obediently picked up their cups (actually tall glass tumblers furnished with drinking straws) and sipped the black tea, which had small spheres of what appeared to be cooked tapioca in it. After a few seconds they looked at each other, then turned to Iroh and gave him two synchronized "thumbs-up" gestures. Iroh beamed and addressed Zuko.
'You see, nephew? I was just ahead of my time… with the passage of decades even the Avatar's palate has matured!"
Zuko rolled his eyes and said nothing. Iroh continued.
"You see? This is why I always welcome new guests. Every one is a fresh opportunity to share happiness. I cherish all my patrons…. Of course, it is easy to enjoy the company of two beautiful young people in love."
Korra and Asami had each just taken a large gulp of the tasty "pearl tea." At Iroh's conclusion, Korra made a strangling sound and clutched at her throat as though drowning; and the normally unflappable Asami emitted a geyser of tea that drenched Iroh's pai sho set. Both of them looked quickly and repeatedly back and forth between each other and Iroh with expressions close to panic.
Iroh, eyes wide, waved his hands in obvious distress, "I'm sorry! I'm sorry! Was I not supposed to notice that? I apologize if I have caused any discomfort. Please, let us forget, put this incident behind us, and change the subject."
Zuko had watched this whole exchange with his mouth hanging a bit open, and then lowered his face into one spread palm, his shoulders shaking with suppressed mirth. "Oh, how I've missed this. And watching it happen to someone else is even better than having it happen to me."
"Nephew! Make yourself useful and fetch some cloths to clean the table and the game board."
"Yes, Uncle." Lord Zuko: dragon-rider, master firebender, and ex-ruler of the Fire Nation, retreated to perform his busboy tasks.
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"Perhaps we should withdraw to give Zuko room to work. Will you join me outside? We could look at the sea, since we have one today; and I find that very calming."
On the verge of the sandy beach, Iroh turned to the two women with a serious expression.
"Actually, Avatar; I am glad you stopped by for more than one reason. My shop has been very busy recently. It has become a popular meeting place for many spirits, and now everyone wants to talk about the new Spirit Portal."
"What are they saying?" asked Korra.
"Opinions vary, of course. Some spirits were against you leaving the Portals open years ago, and now they are angry that humans now have yet another way to enter their world. But, other spirits are glad… although perhaps not all are glad for good reasons."
"What do you mean?" asked Asami.
"Most spirits are peaceful creatures, but a few are quite malevolent. Still others are not evil, but are capricious or like to play tricks, using humans as toys. They all have been able to enter the world freely through the polar Portals for some years now… but now they have direct access to one of humanity's largest cities. I fear that trouble and mischief, being quicker and easier, may increase."
Korra frowned. "You might be right. Beifong has said the same thing. She wants me to start teaching some of her waterbender officers the spirit-cleansing techniques I learned from Unalaq. She's even talking about trying to recruit some spirits to actually be police, to help deal with their own kind if they break the law."
"That might be a good idea. I am glad to hear that you and the authorities are thinking ahead. Ah, now Zuko is waving to us. I believe we can return to our table now." He and Korra turned toward the teahouse, but Asami raised a hand to stop them.
"Actually, Iroh, while we still have a little privacy I have a question I want to ask." The young engineer seemed uncharacteristically tentative, almost afraid.
"Certainly. Do not be nervous, please. We are all friends, yes?"
"Thank you, but this is really awkward. I'll just say it: it is well known that you… well, passed away over forty years ago."
"That is not a question, Asami."
"I know it isn't. What I mean is… you're here, now, in the Spirit World. Does that mean that if I looked I might find…. my father?" Her voice broke slightly and her eyes grew wet. "Or my mother?"
"Oh, Asami..." Korra put her hand on the girl's shoulder.
Iroh face had softened with empathy. "I'm sorry, Asami, but that is very unlikely. I am here because I was blessed with a talent for spiritual arts, and because I received special training that is not available to many people. When I became ill for the last time, I made the decision to extend my span by projecting myself here and abandoning my body to physical death. This is not something that anyone can do. The Spirit World is not an afterlife for humans, not even for me: one day I too shall move onward to whatever awaits me next."
Asami said nothing, but looked down at the sand with tears trailing down her cheeks. Iroh continued.
"I'm sorry, Asami." he repeated. "But I will tell you something else. I can sometimes hear the voices of my old friends and my family when they recall and speak of me, and feel the love that they send to my memory." Iroh glanced back toward the tea-shop with a faint smile, then continued. "I do not believe that this is a special ability unique to me. Wherever your parents have gone to, I believe that they must know the love you still hold for them."
Asami lifted her gaze, smiling through her tears. "Thank you so much for saying that. Can I have a minute, please? I'm not quite ready to go inside yet."
"Of course. I will go ahead, and prepare us all some nice fresh tea." The old man turned and strode back towards The Ethereal Dragon.
Korra remained and hugged Asami, holding her tightly for several moments. As the bereaved heiress regained her customary aplomb, she stepped back and released her.
"I'm so sorry Iroh couldn't give you the answer you wanted, Asami."
Korra's sympathy sounded totally genuine, but Asami was becoming more attuned to the Avatar's moods by the day and could tell that she was tense and unhappy about something, but doing her best to conceal it.
"It's alright, Korra. Iroh took away one hope but gave me another, so that's fine. But, what's wrong with you?"
"Nothing."
"Korra... please?"
The shorter woman turned her back and walked a few steps down the shore before stopping. Overhead dull-feathered spirit-birds wheeled, giving voice to ugly and raucous calls.
"Was that the reason you wanted to come to the Spirit World?" Asami was shocked to hear pain in Korra's voice; pain and fear. "The real reason, I mean?'
Asami was confused. " No, I—" Then horrified realization swept over her as she understood the Avatar's meaning.
"Oh NO, Korra! " She closed with the shorter woman and took her muscular shoulders into her hands. They were stiff and unyielding, but Asami was able to turn the Avatar to face her with gentle pressure.
"I never even thought about any of that until just a little while ago, when we first met Iroh! It just popped into my head then: that I was having tea with a dead man, that's all. It made me wonder, and then get the idea."
Korra relaxed, and Asami was relieved to see the expression of misery beginning to depart her dark face. She went on earnestly.
"Korra, the Spirit World is as wondrous as I could ever have hoped for. But, I am here now because of you, and only for you. You mean everything to me."
Without further words, the two embraced there by the ocean, as out to sea a giant waterspout began to spin into the air, the sun casting myriad tiny rainbows through the spray.
It went unnoticed.
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Korra and Asami lingered at the teahouse until afternoon, sipping more tea and chatting casually with Iroh and Zuko, and with several of Iroh's spirit friends. They watched Gei-Ri go down to defeat when he and the old man resumed their game (Iroh showing impressive mnemonic skills in recreating the tile-patterns on the newly cleaned board). A vaguely parrotlike avian spirit called Mohoni showed off some juggling tricks he had recently mastered. The girls, Iroh, and three others played a story-telling game by going around the table, each taking turns adding a sentence to what turned into a hilariously absurd 'epic' about a bumbling hero saving a horrible monster from a peaceful village. Asami challenged Iroh to pai sho and beat him: the ex-General's feigned outrage not concealing his obvious delight. Later, Zuko had everyone laughing with funny stories about his daughter Izumi's childhood, which Korra privately thought the current Firelord would rather have been forgotten.
Finally, after a delicious lunch of soups and salads, the two set off again after saying their farewells. Iroh had pressed two net-bags full of provisions on them: sturdy buns, fresh fruits, rice, and a variety of tea-packets; along with a promise to re-supply them whenever necessary.
After they had walked for a time in silence, Korra suddenly spoke up.
"Asami, about what Iroh said earlier… about us. About how we were in—"
"I'm sorry, but I am not ready for that conversation, yet." Asami's voice held no heat, but was unmistakably firm.
"Really? I am so glad you said that!" At the businesswoman's raised eyebrows, Korra hurried on. "I just mean: I agree. We should take things slow, and just enjoy… what we are having now. But, I just didn't want that whole thing hanging there unspoken between us."
"Korra? A wise woman once told me: beautiful girls don't need to talk."
Neither woman noticed the stealthy figure that had shadowed them since leaving the teahouse.
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Hours became days, and days piled up to make up a week. Every day brought new adventures.
Discovering a 'spirit-spa' high in some mountains, the two soaked for an hour in a deliciously-hot mineral spring, and then received massages from an octopoid masseur who proved capable of working them both over simultaneously with his many hands as they lay on adjacent padded tables. Asami melted into bliss at once, but Korra could not completely relax as she proved to be quite ticklish. This brought out Asami's wicked side; and for the rest of the day she proved again and again that she could instantly put the Avatar to squealing flight simply by wiggling her fingers near Korra's waist and hips.
Entering a small spirit town, they found the annual grand picnic-festival in full swing and were invited to join the fun. Asami placed second in a foot-race, and Korra won hands-down in a pie-eating contest; raising her hands over her head in victory with her face half-covered in berry-juice
Once, they accidentally disturbed a hive of spirit insects, like normal bumble-boars but each the size of Asami's fist. Hundreds of them swarmed about the women, and to avoid their stingers and slashing tusks Korra and Asami had to dive under the surface of a nearby lake. There, the Avatar air- and waterbended breathing-bubbles around their heads to enable a trek across the bottom so as to slip away unnoticed on the far shore.
Climbing Mount Hai-Riyo once again, Korra introduced Asami to her onetime ally; a great golden dragon-bird spirit. It allowed the women to mount its back, and for hours they enjoyed the swooping and banking of the majestic being in flight, and also the panoramic views of the Spirit World as seen from high aloft.
If the two had had less to occupy their attention (not least of which: each other) they might have noticed how often the same shrouded figure came near them: as at the spa and in the picnic crowds. But, they did not.
One night before drifting off to sleep, Asami muttered to the Avatar, "You know, I have had worse vacations than this."
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Korra and Asami had dressed after finishing their now-customary morning swim, and now the heiress was sitting on a smooth boulder and singing softly while Korra combined fire- and airbending to finish drying their hair.
"Give me a kiss to build a dream on/ and my imagination will thrive upon that kiss./Mmm, sweetheart, I ask no more than this:/ a kiss to build a dream on!/
Give me a kiss before you leave me/ and my imagination will feed my hungry heart./ Mmm, leave me one thing before we part:/ a kiss to build a dream on!/
When I'm alone with my fancies, I'll be with you/ Weaving romances: making believe they're true!"
The song went on, expounding on helpless devotion coupled with hopeful yearning. When music and bending had both concluded satisfactorily, and Korra had stepped back to their packs to start on breakfast tea, the brunette said, 'Nice! Was that Dee Zei?""
"No, Lu Wei."
"The guy with the big arm muscles?'
"Yeah."
"Oh, I like him! Wasn't he was the one who—"
In the blink of an eye, Asami was gone. Korra barely saw a blur as a vast dark shape reached out of the surrounding forest and yanked the black-haired woman into the shadowed gloom with half a dozen grasping limbs.
"Asami!' screamed the Avatar in sudden heart-scalding terror. But for Korra, fear did not often equal paralysis: she was charging forward almost instantaneously, sweeping aside barriers of bush and branch with her bending and the sheer adrenaline-fueled strength of her body.
"Korrrrrrrraaaaa!"
It was probably no more than a century or two before she caught up to Asami and her assailant in another small clearing. Korra saw her enemy, and felt a thrill of visceral horror.
Koh, the Face-Stealer.
More massive than the largest sabertoothed moose-lion, the evil spirit's segmented body was thickly serpentine and covered in chitinous plates. Down the length of his body sprouted many hard-shelled and razor-tipped limbs.
Where a head should be on a sanely-arranged creature was instead an eye-shaped opening in the armor; out of which through a fleshy membrane poked a human visage: a young epicene man with long greasy hair and wire-rimmed spectacles.
Korra had grown up on stories of Koh, and instantly recognized him from his description. The ancient spirit was amongst the most malicious known. Although Avatar Aang had faced him and even gained his help in dire straits, Avatar Kuruk had become his lifelong foe after Koh had doomed Ummi, the only woman that feckless man had ever—
"Asami! Let her go, monster!"
The Face-Stealer had reared up onto his hindmost sets of legs, and was clasping the struggling form of Asami Sato in his numerous forelegs nearly ten feet off the ground.
Koh was nearly invulnerable and physically possessed of great strength. But his most fearsome power was the ability to rob a person of their very face, and with it most of their identity. Koh's victims lived on, but as listless and will-less shells of their former selves. However, the spirit could only have his dreadful way when his target showed emotion – any emotion – on his or her face. Korra knew that she could shield herself from this power by assuming a stoic, impassive mask.
But Asami did not know this, and there was no time to tell her. No time, because Koh was already lifting and turning her to face him, and her own beautiful face was contorted in a mixture of fear and anger that made her the spirit's easy prey.
There was no time, so Korra did the only thing she could.
A stamped boot popped a fist-sized rock up out of the ground to her chest-level, and an uppercut motion of her strong right arm sent the stone, propelled by earthbending, streaking up and forward at an angle to strike Asami Sato in the head.
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The Avatar saw the impact, and heard the sickening thud, and seemingly felt the pain throughout her own body. She and Asami voiced almost identical cries of anguish as the young woman's form sagged and went limp in the cruel grasp of Koh.
But now her face was also slack in unconsciousness, showing nothing at all.
"Avatar. How nice to see you again, for the first time."
Looking up to meet the creature's gaze Korra forced her expression into one of total neutrality, despite the white-hot rage that surged through her. She wanted to crush Koh between mountains, drown him, burn him to ash, and then scatter the ash across the world with cyclonic winds.
Instead, she spoke to him in the flat, affectless tones of complete disinterest.
"Koh. Put her down. Now."
"What, this?' The spirit shook Asami lightly, making her head loll limply. Korra saw a fleck of blood drip out of her hair onto the ground. She ground her teeth, behind her firmly-pressed lips where Koh could not see. "Is this yours, Avatar Korra? You really shouldn't leave your things lying around where anyone can pick them up. Not if they are valuable to you."
"Asami is not a thing. She is a person."
"But personhood implies identity, does it not?" Abruptly, Koh's eye-shaped orifice blinked, and the young man's face was replaced by that of a fat-jowled woman of early middle-age. "I find identity to be a nebulous and frankly questionable concept. Myself excluded, of course."
"She has identity. She is a person."
"Truly? But, if she is a person then she cannot be a thing. And one can only own things. And without ownership, one can assert no claims and exercise no rights. And, if you have no claim and no rights to this one, why should I surrender her to you?" Blink. Korra now saw the bearded face of a baboon-beetle.
Her head began to ache with tension and frustration. She knew she wasn't stupid, but logic-puzzles and debate had never been her best thing. Suddenly, Iroh's words came back to her: Experience has taught me to usually play to my accustomed strengths, the pai sho master had said.
"Asami is a person, and I am the Avatar. I will fight you to save her."
Koh's beast face laughed like glass being ground with a mortar-and-pestle.
"Ah, now we come to it. She whom reason humbles seeks victory in might. You Avatars are all the same. Hmm. Come to think of it, that is literally true." Blink. Now, an infant's tiny face, oddly tattooed on its smooth cheeks.
"Koh, why are you doing this? You aren't really the Avatar's enemy. I know the stories. You punished Kuruk because you thought he was arrogant and selfish. But you helped Aang when he needed it, because it served the interests of the whole world - both worlds. And entire cycles have passed without you appearing at all. Why attack now?"
"How fitting that you mention Kuruk. Your arrogance dwarfs his, and your selfishness beggars imagination."
"What do you mean?"
"What do I mean? Korra, you opened the Spirit Portals which had been sealed for ten thousand years and left them gaping wide on a whim. And, not content, now you have torn another hole in reality with this new Portal of yours. Even I, half as old as Time itself, cannot guess how that may affect the balance of the worlds."
Korra remembered Tenzin's praise of only a week before: Korra, you've transformed the world more in a few years than most Avatars did during their lifetimes. It had seemed like a good thing when he said it, but... And her own words to Kuvira, earlier: We're both fierce and determined to succeed… sometimes without thinking things through.
Was Koh right?
The monstrous spirit continued. "You have earned punishment ten times over. Destroying your beloved will be only the beginning, and not the worst of what I will do."
Asami groaned in Koh's grasp, and Korra saw the blood flowing more freely. She was running out of time. Moral introspection could wait.
"I'll say it again. Let Asami go. Or I'll destroy you."
"Fool. I do not fear you, Avatar. I have fought you many times down through the ages. Your fire can scorch my shell, but your little rocks will shatter, and neither wind nor water can disturb me... And even though I cannot take her face, nothing you can do will stop me from rending this girl to rags right in front of you. And then let us see how your mask of indifference holds." Blink. A beautiful woman's face: hair, skin, and eyes in all the colors of Korra's own Water Tribe. "You… are….powerless."
And again, Iroh's voice came to her, but more completely. Experience has taught me to usually play to my accustomed strengths. Unless my opponent can counter them, of course."
Slowly, Korra turned her back to Koh.
"Do you mean to flee, girl? How disappointing."
"I'm not running from you, Koh. I don't believe I ever have. I just don't want you to see me smiling."
"And why are you smiling? Have I driven you mad already?"
"No. It's just comforting for me to know that even for a being as old as you, life can still turn up surprises."
"What—"
Korra whirled to face the Face-Stealer, and performed a short, sharp series of bending moves. Her eyes glowed white and her hair was lifted by intangible wind as the Avatar State transformed her. Her right hand shot up, ending in a palm strike as if aiming to shatter the sky.
BZZZWOUMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM!
A throbbing bass-note shivered the air for miles around as an incandescent lance of pure cobalt spirit-energy shot into the heavens. Above Korra's head all the tree branches and foliage in the forest canopy were instantly disintegrated. The very clouds recoiled from the beam, withdrawing in a cleared circle revealing the stars beyond.
The irresistible power of the display was beyond denial: this was utter destruction, cupped in the palm of the Avatar.
After an endless second, the awful light and sound faded.
Korra spoke again; this time with the deeper, blended tones of the Avatar State.
"Release her, spirit. Or I will END you for all time."
For moments, nothing happened.
Then, moving with exquisite care, Koh bent and placed Asami gently on the ground. The injured woman lay supine and unmoving. Rising again to his full height, Koh regarded the Avatar.
"Do not believe that you have won. You have only traded one peril for another. I will not face you again… but the apples fallen from my trees will poison you and all that you care for. You will wish I had killed you both right here."
"Go. Now."
Without another word, Koh stalked away and vanished into the dark forest.
When the monster had gone, the glow faded from the Avatar's eyes, and the eternal cosmic champion of all worlds was replaced by Korra: the frantic young woman.
"Asami! Asami!"
Rushing forward to kneel by the stricken heiress, the repressed emotions of the past few minutes came flooding out as rivers poured down Korra's face. She cradled Asami in her arms.
"Pleasedon'tbedeadpleasepleasedon'tbedeadplease.! Please, please, don't die! Oh, Asami, I lo—"
With a sudden convulsive movement the black-haired woman sat up in Korra's embrace, groaning.
"Asami!"
"Korra….? What happened?... Did we win?" Her voice sounded horribly weak.
"Yes. Never mind that now, just lay back and rest. I can heal you."
Korra dispensed and bended two spheres of water from her canteen, and then pressed the glowing fluid up against either side of Asami's head. Soon her bleeding had stopped, her breathing returned to normal, and her emerald eyes cleared and regained their focus.
The brunette sagged in relief, limp with reaction.
"Korra?"
Asami was looking at her, most earnestly.
"Yes?"
"This has been lovely… but I think I've had enough of the Spirit World for awhile. Can we go?"
The Avatar smiled. "You rich girls are so demanding."
Whatever Asami's reply might have been, it was stopped by Korra's kiss.
ROLL CREDITS
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Author's Notes:
Welcome to BOOK FIVE: GROWTH. This is my first fic in quite a long while, but I was SO enthralled and elated by ATLOK in general and its epic and groundbreaking finale in particular that I am happily shaking the dust of eons off of my creativity.
With any luck, I will be able to post a new chapter about once a month, so stay tuned.
As regards CHAPTER ONE: FACING THE FUTURE, I hope that most of you will like my rendition of Korraasami. But let it be said that this ship, while important, will NOT be the focus of the season/book as a whole. There will be a lot of it in the first few chapters, but too much sugar is bad for you :) , plus I have a lot of other characters to deal with (you'll see much more of "everybody else" in CHAPTER TWO: MOVING FORWARD), and an actual Avatar-style action/adventure plot to advance, so eventually the Korrasami-ship will recede into the background as a (significant and fun) subplot.
Please review, if you would care to. Please, no flames.
"A Kiss to Build a Dream On" is a song composed by Bert Kalmar, Harry Ruby, and Oscar Hammerstein II in 1935. Many singers have offered their versions: the author is partial to Louis Armstrong.
I own no part of Avatar: The Legend Of Korra or associated properties, and presentation of this work is in no way meant as a challenge to any established copyrights. I realize no material or monetary gain whatsoever from the presentation of this work. It's all for the love, folks!