A live jazz band performed on a stage covering the indoor pool of the mansion, surrounded by a dancing crowd of young socialites of Republic City. The kitchen had been transformed into a bar, tended to by friendly servers who served mixed drinks and champagne. The hallways were filled with the echoes of music, laughter, clinking glasses, and the conversations of content guests.
Asami Sato stood at the top of the main staircase for a few moments, eyes closed. Her hand rested on the guardrail above the stairs. She breathed slowly for a few moments, taking in the sounds of her successful social gathering. She wore a black dress with a plunging neckline that ended just above her knees, partnered with a long pearl necklace. Her eyes were adorned with the usual purple shadow and mascara. A smile hid behind her scarlet lips, held involuntarily in place from the joy of receiving a letter from a good friend in the United Forces earlier that day.
"Asami!" a familiar voice called from the base of the stairs. The heiress' eyes fluttered open to meet Bolin's wide grin. "Swanky party!"
"Thanks, Bo," Asami replied and walked down the stairs in heeled feet. In the years since the downfall of the equalist revolution, the young queen of industry had developed a reputation for throwing great parties. "When did you get here?"
"Fifteen minutes ago or so," Bolin answered, taking Asami's hand and guiding her the rest of the way down the steps.
"Are Korra and Mako coming, too?" She posed, readjusting her grip on the earthbender's hand and pulling him down a hallway.
"Korra had to go to the Southern Water Tribe for some festival they have every year," Bolin started, "but Mako's coming in a little bit." Asami sighed. Even though they had managed to become friends, and she no longer had romantic feelings for her ex-boyfriend, their relationship still remained tense. She knew he had the best intentions, but his overly controlling nature drove her crazy, especially when he gave her advice on how to handle her life. She was too independent and too vocal to not give him a piece of her mind every now and again.
"Two whiskey sours, please," Asami told a server, upon arriving to the kitchen. "Make one a double-shot," she added.
"Asami, I don't want to start out drinking that much fire whiskey," Bolin interjected, throwing his hands up in the air.
"The double shot's for me," she explained, smiling as she was handed their drinks. After examining which glass contained the darker colored beverage, Asami handed Bolin his drink.
"How is it that you can handle more alcohol than me? It doesn't make any sense," the earthbender commented before taking a sip of his beverage.
"When you're under the scrutiny of the public eye, you tell me how you handle the pressure without the daily medicinal cocktail," Asami mused, adjusting the feathered headband she wore in her hair. Bolin pondered this for a moment as his friend quickly consumed her drink. She ordered a glass of champagne.
"Well if it isn't Miss Future herself!" a voice shouted from behind the heiress.
"Tahno!" Asami turned and greeted her friend with a hug. Bolin crossed his arms. After Korra restored Tahno's bending, he'd warmed a bit to team avatar. Bolin still had his doubts about the waterbender. Asami didn't blame the earthbender for holding a grudge, seeing as how she witnessed the fire ferrets on the receiving end of Tahno's rule-breaking fury. She, however, had gotten close with the wolfbats team captain after he became a regular at her parties. They discovered they had similar taste in films, and went to see a moving picture the third Wednesday of every month.
"How have you been, darling?" Asami coined, grabbing her full champagne glass from a server.
"Well, and you?" Tahno responded, and raised his hand to order a drink from a server. Bolin patiently sipped his drink as he tolerated Tahno's presence.
"I'm doing particularly well, actually," the heiress returned, with a grin spreading across her face. "I received a letter from my pen pal today."
"Oh really? You two still write each other quite frequently, don't you?" The waterbender raised his eyebrows. He accepted the gin and tonic set on the counter in front of him and sipped it casually. Asami simply smiled and patted Tahno on the shoulder.
"I'll see you later, my dear, I promised Bolin I'd dance with him for some portion of the night," she said and put her hand on Bolin's arm. The earthbender finished his drink before raising his hand and signaling, through a combination of pointing and dramatic facial expressions, his desire for a glass of champagne. After he was handed his glass, he tapped it lightly against Asami's glass and the pair took a sip together.
There were many rumours going around that there was a budding romance between Bolin and Asami. The heiress and the earthbender were known for drinking and dancing together until the early hours of the morning. Two months after jokingly telling Bolin that he ought to take some dancing lessons after he accidentally stepped on her feet during the ball Councilman Tarrlok had thrown for Korra, Asami found herself enrolled as the boy's partner in a modern dance class. Bolin proved to be a fast learner, and the heiress found herself enjoying the bonding time with her friend. On the dance floor, they moved together in perfect harmony. She had to admit, there was definitely some physical attraction between the two. But the green-eyed pair agreed that no one was to know about the three or four times they had indulged in their carnal desires. They didn't want to deal with Mako's jealousy, or the pressures of being in a relationship with each other. Bolin enjoyed his reputation as a ladies' man, and Asami had kept a soft spot for her friend in the United Forces.
Bolin had discovered the opportunity to meet willing coeds when the tabloids first started publishing stories about the possibility of their relationship turning romantic. Asami and the earthbender laughed at the headlines of the newspaper and had been joking about it all day. They drank and danced, maybe a little closer together than usual, but nothing out of the ordinary for the pair. The heiress decided to go get another drink and had left her friend on the dance floor when the young man was approached by two very friendly, very handsy young women. Asami noticed their discreet exit from the dance floor and laughed to herself. She discovered the perks of being a "taken" young woman as well: men respected her and left her alone unless they were her friends. And so, the pair agreed to play the part just enough to each get what they wanted out of the deal. Aside from a few rare nights where the pair ended up in bed together, Asami enjoyed dancing and drinking without getting hit on and Bolin enjoyed finishing his evenings with interchangeable women.
Tonight was a night like most others for the earthbender and heiress. They drank champagne and danced in sync. After spending a few songs out on the dance floor, the pair agreed to return to the kitchen to get another drink. They found Mako nursing a fire whiskey on the rocks before ordering drinks of their own and going to sit in on a couch in the entry room of the mansion. The trio chatted for 15 minutes before Asami decided the only way to deal with the stress of talking to her ex-boyfriend was to have another drink. She excused herself and wandered into her kitchen, stopping to greet the occasional friend along the way.
"Can you make me something with some sort of juice in it?" Asami asked a server across the counter of her kitchen.
"Of course, Miss Sato," the server replied.
"Great. Make it strong, please," she requested and leaned against the counter as she waited, idly drumming her nails.
"A strong drink? Is something wrong, Miss Sato?" A familiar masculine voice registered in Asami's ears. Her lips involuntarily curved upwards as a result. "I've heard that your tolerance for alcoholic beverages is rather impressive."
"Perhaps you'd like to spend the evening with me to see it for yourself, General," Asami cooed, accepting the fruity drink that had been handed to her before turning around to face her surprise guest. Iroh smiled softly and offered her his arm, which she took with one hand as he led her to a quiet, uncrowded hallway.
Author's Note: I couldn't not write another Irosami fic... I love my OTP too much to ignore them for very long. Anyways, I enjoy the concept of Asami being a badass queen of industry who can handle her liquor. I also like Bolin and Tahno too much to not give them sweet roles in the story. Please read and review!