Written for lahkesis16 on tumblr. Happy Birthday again! Also written a few weeks before the series conclusion.
Asami felt warm. Well, at least it was a change from the last two months when every day had been freezing cold. Feeling warm on her slim bunk was a nice change from wrapping all her blankets as tight as possible around herself. She fidgeted, her knee pressing against something firm yet soft. That was unusual. Opening her eyes she saw the other girl. Oh. Oh, yes. Her. That had happened. Her new friend - Korra - lay facing away from her, still dozing. The warmth was glorious under the sheets like this, but Asami was more or less wedged against the metal wall of her cabin. The matter was somewhat complicated by Korra lying on her arm. Asami was not sure how she had wound up like that, but it was too late to wonder about it right now. So either risk waking Korra up, or enjoy some more stolen minutes of warmth and skin contact. No contest. With awkward movements she used her other hand to inch the blankets further up her body, rolling over so she faced towards Korra. Were all water-tribe members this warm? It was like a hot bath. Korra stirred and for a moment Asami was both hopeful and fearful she might be able to extract herself from this predicament. But with a snort and an almost coherent word, Korra's breathing became regular once again.
It had all seemed like such a good idea yesterday, on her last day in the South Pole with the Southern Water tribe. As nice as the area was it had not been on her list of must see locations. This had all been in aid of a needs must circumstance. And all because Varric had decided to take his luxury cruiser and live down South for the last year. If she had had complete freedom, Asami would have nothing to do with the man. Desperation forced a compromise; she was in charge of Sato Industries and without a new partner the company was liable to fold. Of course it is one thing to go to the Southern Water Tribe with the intention of talking to Varric, it is another thing to locate him. And then yet another to talk to him for a length of time without him getting distracted. Asami lost month one on the first issue. A bewildering chunk of the second month passed by due to the other. But she had gotten through - just about - and Varric offered some much needed capital. If nothing else she was going home with a way to pay her staff. Everything was looking up. And then she met Korra.
After agreeing the contract with Varric, Asami found herself at a loss of what to do. She had expended so much of her time on both Varric and Zhu Li in attempts to either discuss the deal or arrange meetings to discuss the deal. Now she no longer had to worry, she found herself at a bit of a loose end. With five days left before the ship headed back to warmer climes, Asami took to exploring the city, taking long strolls out into the frozen wastes around, and then on her last day, helping an attractive girl a little younger than herself slip out of the area undetected. It had been a chance encounter, seeing what was around this frozen hillside, coming face to face with Korra and her polar bear dog. The initial meeting was not promising; the girl looked panicked at seeing her, seeing anyone. Korra tried to be cool at first, Asami playing along even as she wondered at the lack of subtlety in the attempted change of subject. As soon as Asami mentioned her home and the planned return, Korra begged her for aid.
Asami was still vague on just why Korra needed help with this. She knew of water benders who excelled in forcing bubbles of air around themselves to slip along bottom of a body of water. Her new friend was adamant that as soon as anyone knew she was missing they would be checking beneath the water just like that. If she could stay hidden on a boat it would take them much longer to puzzle out just where she had gone.
Asami mentioned her cabin almost before her brain caught up with her mouth. She had just met this girl and already she was offering to help smuggle her out of the country? It seemed so. Asami could not deny the thrill of excitement that swept though her at the idea of such a clandestine operation. Just the minor problem of where to hide the polar bear dog. One girl, and by her own admission, a water bender would not be hard to hide on a ship. Even if they went cabin to cabin, there were plenty of options. Hiding Korra's mount was an order of magnitude more difficult.
Various water tribe members roamed the docks asking after someone matching Korra's description. At least no one there had seen her boarding. A few of the more canny searchers asked if anyone had seen a polar bear dog. That at least also got a negative. Korra had stowed Naga in the hold with an anesthetic to keep her out of the way and quiet. And that had required some ingenuity on Korra's part. Asami's first thought was for Korra to bend the water around Naga and hold her beneath the bow. Korra was less than enthused about the idea and the amount of effort it would need. The second idea was to claim Asami had acquired the animal for her own personal use. Money was not a problem - not anymore - but there were not a huge numbers of specimens around. Even one would be noteworthy.
If only Naga could fly, Asami mused. That had made Korra's eyes light up. She stared down at the ship from a vantage point close to the docks and asked for a few curious requests. One - a place to hide Naga onboard. Not a problem, there were a few partioned sections of the hold large enough. Two was to have a crane break-down half-way between the docks and the gaping maw of the hatch into the hold. Three was to turn the ship's engines on and spread as much smoke as possible.
Asami did not know just what Korra had done after that - she had been too busy running around and sorting the requests. Later there was some talk of odd shadows, something flying overhead, a strange wind and a sudden, brief, fire. Quite what it all indicated remained a mystery, but Korra assured her everything had gone to plan and Naga was in the hold. Asami found her a good deal later, relaxed and smiling as she entered her cabin. They spent a pleasant evening holed up on their own, sharing the limited supplies Asami had left there. Korra was talkative but cagey on certain subjects. She drank in every conceivable detail about Republic City; what life was like there, where things were and what people did. It transpired there was someone Korra wanted to meet in the city, but that detail was unimportant right now. Getting out undetected took priority.
As they left dock and night came, Asami resolved to make a nest on the floor, but Korra refused to let her do that for her benefit. And yet, Asami did not want to let Korra sleep in such an awkward way either. And so, sharing the bed became the best option, each trying not to crowd the other out of the narrow padded area. Which had in turn lead to the current predicament. Korra stirred again, fidgeted backwards and pressed against Asami. Their bodies were together, and Korra let out a quiet murmur of contentment. Her eyes flicked open for a moment.
"Is this okay?" she asked.
"Yes," Asami replied, only realising she had a moment later. And she was. It felt good. With a bit of nervousness, Asami let her hand settle onto Korra's hip, and then slide onto the other girl's belly. She felt odd, excited, nervous and happy all at once. Korra murmured again, putting her hand on top of Asami's and settling back against the pillow. Asami pressed her cheek against Korra's shoulder. She could get used to this.