A/N: In this story, Korra and Asami still went on their Spirit World vacation but remained friends instead of becoming lovers, in case there's any confusion during the story.
It had been 3 months since the defeat of Kuvira. Republic City had begun expanding and cleaning up the damage. With her vacation over, Asami had gone right to work at Future Industries and with the help of Varrick, had begun developing equipment, materials, and tools to use for the city's expansion and clean-up. Varrick, after fooling around with some new materials he found, had come up with a new idea for armor. Asami was skeptical at first but she helped build the first prototype to keep Varrick happy. After rigorous testing, they were both impressed with how well the armor withstood the elements and absorbed impacts. Varrick insisted on gathering the world leaders to show them his new invention and after a week's worth of debating, he finally managed to get them all to agree to a meeting, despite their busy schedules.
The day had come for the meeting and Varrick was more than excited. He stood outside the doors of the meeting room while Zhu Li primped his hair. Asami stood next to him, holding a clipboard.
"Asami, today is the day we make history. Imagine going down in history as the makers of the modern armor. Along with that whole defeating Kuvira thing and everything but that's not important. What's important is that we pave the path for stylish yet highly functional armor. And why stop there, let's put armor on cars and boats too. Handling bandits and other criminals will be a snap for law enforcement from this day forward."
"That's if they're actually interested in listening to us." Asami sighed.
"Of course they're interested! We just had to make them interested! Zhu Li, do the thing!"
Zhu Li gave Varrick's hair one last stroke with her comb before opening the door. Varrick strutted in with Asami following.
Inside the room was a table that was shaped like a U. Sitting around the table were Tonraq, Desna, Eska, Firelord Izumi, and President Raiko.
"Ladies and gentleman, I'm sure you're wondering what I made that's so fantastic that I couldn't wait to gather you all and show you."
"This better be good." Izumi said. She had a slightly irritated, yet professional look on her face.
"Yes, you mentioned you made something 'revolutionary'?" President Raiko said.
"That I did, Mr. President, that I did. I imagine most, if not all of you, are tired of criminals injuring your guards, police force, and even soldiers." As Varrick talked, Zhu Li dragged a mannequin covered with a sheet close to Varrick. "But what if I said there was a way to reduce injury and casualty count among said groups? Fellow world leaders, I present to you-" Varrick pulled the sheet off of the mannequin to reveal a brown vest armor. "-the Sarrick armor!"
"Sarrick armor?" Tonraq raised an eyebrow.
"Well I wanted to name it the Varrmor but Zhu Li insisted Asami's name be honored too, so I combined Sato and Varrick. Personally I think Varrmor sounds cooler."
Asami groaned.
"And what makes this armor any different from what's used now?" Izumi asked.
"And that's where it gets interesting! This baby does it all. It has enhanced fire-proof abilities for 75% less burns, resistance to the cold so when they find themselves enclosed in ice from a water bender, the last thing that'll freeze is their hearts, and the best part is the shock absorption. Now I know what you're thinking, how much impact could this stylish yet comfortably thin vest take? Surely it can't be more than what we're currently using."
Zhu Li stepped next to Varrick holding a large mallet. "Zhu Li, do the thing!" Varrick said as he took the vest from the mannequin and slipped it on himself.
"Wait a minute, I thought we were going to demonstrate the shock absorption on the mannequin?" Asami said.
"Asami, my dear, the best way to demonstrate things is with a live demonstration. Zhu Li!" Varrick commanded.
Zhu Li took a step back and swing the mallet as hard as she could. The first initial shock didn't seem to bother him, but after a few seconds, he stumbled back. "Zhu Li sweetie, you hit like a satomobile. Now you see, not a bruise. Not even the slightest scratch. Anyone else want to take a swing? Don't be shy. This baby is durable!" Varrick wiggled his eyebrows.
"I have to admit, that is quite impressive." Raiko said to Izumi and Tonraq.
"We would to test said material by hurting the man wearing it." Eska said as she and her twin stood up.
"Waterbenders, excellent! Forget the mallet, bend your best attack at me."
Zhu Li and Asami looked at each other with concern. "Are you sure that's a good idea?" Asami asked.
"Of course it is, I have total confidence in this armor!" Varrick responded.
"It's not the armor we're worried about." Zhu Li said.
Desna and Eska stood in front of Varrick, who was grinning ear-to-ear. The twins' arms moved in such a fluid motion. Water rose in the air and mimicked their movements before rushing at Varrick's chest. He flew halfway across the room and hit his back against the door. Zhu Li ran over to him with a worried expression on her face.
Varrick just smiled and stood up. "Now that's what I call a hit. See? Completely intact! No bruises, cuts, marks or anything aside from the bruise forming on my head." Varrick strolled over to the table again. "I'm telling you, you're not going to find safer armor on the market."
"And what exactly do you want for the armor?" Tonraq asked.
"Why, for you to use them of course. Think of it as advertising. The Earth Kingdom states sees all the major nations wearing these babies and they'll come crawling to daddy Varrick to buy them by the shiploads."
Asami sighed again. She wasn't sure why she was there. He was perfectly capable of showing off the armor without her but he insisted she be there. He said business partners always stuck together, unless a golden opportunity came through, then they fought each other for said opportunity.
'I need to stop answering phone calls from him.' She thought. From the corner of her right eye, she felt a gaze on her. She turned her head and saw Desna staring at her. Or maybe he wasn't staring at her. Maybe he was looking past her. Her eyes locked with his. No, he was definitely staring at her, which made her feel anxious. She could never tell what emotions Korra's cousins were feeling, except for the time Eska chased after Bolin liked a madwoman. Maybe she just had something in her hair or on her face. Great, now she was feeling self-conscious about her looks. She turned her head from him and tried to focus on what Varrick was saying.
"We can also customize them based on said culture's style. Asami, how long will it take to get these bad boys shipped out?" Varrick turned his attention her.
"Oh, um, I can have a full shipment of them ready within 3 months."
"I wish to have 100,000 by next season." Eska said.
"Excellent! Now we can get down to business."
Asami had finally been able to relax at her estate. She didn't bother putting on pajamas, doing her hair, or taking off her makeup before she plopped on the bed. Varrick was a good guy but his energetic antics usually left her drained. The sun hadn't even finish setting and she was already ready for bed. She laid in bed, staring at the ceiling for a few minutes before she found her eyelids starting to feel heavy. It wasn't long before she started dozing, but only for 10 minutes. Her butler knocked on the door.
"Come in." She called in a groggy voice.
The door squeaked open and the butler poked his head in. "Forgive me for bothering you, Lady Sato, but you have a visitor."
Asami sat up. "A visitor? I'm not expecting anyone tonight."
After reluctantly getting up from the bed, she made her way to the large doors of her estate. When she opened the door, she had expected to see Korra, Mako, or even Varrick. Nothing prepared her for the shock of seeing Desna on the other side, without Eska. Even more shocking, he was holding a bouquet of assorted flowers.
For a minute, she couldn't find any words to say so they just stared at each other. No matter how long she stared, she couldn't find any hint of emotion on his face. Not even in his eyes.
"Um, did you lose Eska?" She finally said.
"No." He said before handing her the flowers and walking inside.
"Come in?" Asami shrugged and closed the door.
"I wish to court you." Desna turned to her.
"Uh…what? Court me? Why?"
"To see if you would make a good bride and possible mother to my children."
"Wait, what?"
"I will pick you up tomorrow evening. We shall dine."
She had to be dreaming. That was it. She was having another weird dream and she'd wake up any minute and laugh about it with Korra, Mako, and Bolin. She remembered the whole fiasco with Bolin and Eska. She wasn't about to be dragged in a similar situation.
"Listen, that's really sweet but-"
"What is your favorite color?"
"I guess maybe red or brown. Listen, I can't go out with you. I don't even think we're compatible. I have a life here in Republic City running my company and you have a life in the Northern Watertribe running..everything. It'll never work."
Desna walked past her and opened the door. "We will see. I will send you something for tomorrow evening."
Before she could say anything, he left. She has a date with Korra's cousin tomorrow. She has a date with Desna tomorrow. She couldn't even process the words in her mind. Why her of all people? Surely there were plenty of females up north. Quite frankly, Asami wasn't even sure he was into women until now. What was she suppose to do? What if he was anything like Eska when it came to relationships? Sure, she wasn't suppose to assume twins would have the same personality but Desna and Eska always seemed to have the same thought and opinions from what she could tell. Her eyes fell on the flowers she was still holding in her hands. He did seem sweeter than Eska, although flowers hardly meant anything. She received a lot of flowers from a lot of jerks in the past.
'Maybe I'll just give him this one chance. He'll quickly see we won't work, anyway.'
"Is something wrong, Ms. Sato?" She heard her butler call out to her.
"Yes. I have a date tomorrow."