Title: Fleeting
Description: Many a time would he stop and think about what Zhu Li truly meant in his life. A serious of oneshots, mostly Varrick-centric, about the moments before the proposal. Zhurrick.
I'M SO EXCITED YOU GUYS I LOVE THIS COUPLE SO MUCH AND IT'S LIKE, THE FIRST CANON COUPLE I'VE HAD IN A VERY LONG TIME!
That being said, I don't own Legend of Korra, Varrick or Zhu Li. I love them though!
The liquid turned a murky green as Varrick poured another, more milky white substance into it before stirring it gently with a small wooden stick.
"Interesting reaction…" he muttered to himself, stroking his chin as he tapped the stick on the side of the glass. "But what does it mean? Zhu Li, where's the thing!?"
In a moment, his assistant was right behind him, a tray with an assortment of different liquids clutched in her hands.
"Here, sir." She announced herself plainly before balancing the tray in one hand and adjusting the goggles on her face.
Her rubber gloves squeaked against the metal as Varrick placed the container carefully amongst the others, watching closely as the bright green mixture continued to cloud over.
"Follow me." He motioned quickly, putting on goggles of his own and stepping hastily to another workbench where a large amount of small instruments lay scattered around. Without need for any kind of instruction, Zhu Li set the tray on a platform and hooked it in place, securing the liquids before stepping back a pace.
"This invention's gonna glow like fireflies, Zhu Li!" He told her, picking up another vial full of a clear substance and swirling it around. "Imagine – Varri-light! No child will ever have to be afraid of the dark again! We'll be able to mix it with solid cloths and metals to make things glow even in the darkest of darks!" He grinned back at her, grabbing a deep blue substance without looking and pouring the clear vial into it.
"Sir -" Zhu Li's voice grew worried, pointing to what he had done.
"In a moment, Zhu Li – just think of how many people will be carrying this around at next year's Glacier Spirits Festival! It'll be the talk of the whole tribe!"
"Sir, the mixture!" She called out, pointing to the now-foaming solution, which was glowing a bluish-purple color. Varrick smiled and turned his head back to the glass jar, his expression quickly fading. The light emitted even brighter, trembling in his hand.
"Spirits -!" he cried, tossing the container out of his hands and pivoting on his heels, grabbing his assistant and wrapping his arms around her before throwing them both to the wall.
An ear-splitting blast caused his grip to tighten around his assistant, shielding her with his body. Debris from other glasses as well as ashen remains of paper flew, some hitting the inventor in the back or the back of the head. The smoke was a thick blue color, making everything in the room relatively imperceptible. His ears rung and his eyes stung – all he could feel was Zhu Li shaking slightly against his chest.
A moment passed, Varrick still holding tightly to his assistant. In his haste, his nose had buried itself in her hair – and only now did he notice the wonderful hint of lilac that accompanied it. It might have been just the chemicals in the air, but the scent of lilac seemed to bewitch him in a way that he hadn't felt before…
He cleared his throat.
Well, that was enough of that.
The man pulled away, dusting off his coat and looking about the room. The smoke was beginning to clear, revealing that much of his research had been destroyed in the burst. Luckily, no walls were damaged and he could just as easily start again tomorrow.
He turned to his assistant who, much to his surprise, seemed a bit rattled. The look in her eyes glinted with something that he couldn't exactly put his finger on – something that he was sure he'd seen before, but wasn't positive what it was or why. Her face looked flushed, ear tips reddened as she carefully removed the goggles from her face. A strange ghost of a smile perched itself on her lips for the briefest of moments, then passing as he continued his bout of silence.
Varrick ran a hand through his thick brown locks, glancing between his assistant and the ground. He sighed, placing a hand at his hip.
"You…" she took a hesitant step towards him, watching him intently. "You protected me from the explosion, sir."
His throat felt barren, as if it were devoid of words. He could sense a strange feeling creeping into him, filling his being with a weird sort of elation that he only felt around his assistant. Maybe it was the science, or perhaps even the strange mix of chemicals that made him dizzy with this wide array of odd new feelings, but if it was one thing Varrick knew, Zhu Li had a hand in it.
"Thank you." Came her reiteration, shooting her employer back into the real world. She bit her bottom lip, looking away from him and towards the mess now littering the counters. He almost jumped before turning his attention to her.
"Well," he started, shifting his weight onto his heels and avoiding eye contact. "It was nothing, Zhu Li. Must have been some kind of jerk reaction; you know how it is..."
The silence filled the room with just enough awkward to unsettle them both.
The heat surging through Varrick's veins became more than he could bear.
"Are you…all right…?" he asked quietly, almost inaudible if it weren't for the complete silence surrounding them.
She seemed to let out an airy chuckle.
"I'm fine, sir." She nodded.
For some reason, looking at her right now made him want to jump headfirst out the window and jog a thousand miles. The room felt very small in this one instant – his mind was closing in on him and soon he felt like he'd be unable to breathe.
He needed to get out of here before he made a fool of himself.
"Clean this up, Zhu Li – I'm done working for the day. Also, make sure you write some inconclusive results on the Varri-light. I want that on my desk by morning."
"But sir -"
The door had already closed shut, leaving a confused assistant behind.
Varrick's study locked with a subtle yet still recognizable click, affirming that the inventor would not be taking guests for the remainder of the day. He drew the curtains to the window, leaving the small room in shadow as he took a seat at his desk.
His heart pounded within his chest, causing him to lift a hand to calm it. What was he thinking? Why didn't he pay attention to mixing those chemicals? He was so busy staring at her that he didn't take his eyes off to make sure he was mixing the right ones…
A small look of realization crossed his face, his breath catching in his throat. It couldn't be, could it? After all this time? Color drained from him until he felt like he was a ghostly presence haunting the room instead of occupying it.
It was going to be a very long evening alone.