Yes, so you can say I believe that Asami doesn't get enough love. She's a great character that got the short end of the stick throughout the season.
Plus, Mako's a butthead. :P
Written in about 45-ish minutes, so don't expect perfection. Thanks.
Future.
Sometimes, she felt broken. But, if there was one thing she knew, it was how to build-and to rebuild when necessary. She was a Sato, after all. Behind her green eyes hid the mind of an inventor, a thinker, someone with great vision, talent, and the means to bring about her ideas in a way most would never even dream.
Asami Sato, brilliant as she was, knew that Mako was long-gone from her grasp and she had accepted that. Not out loud, perhaps, but she knew, in her heart, that no matter what, she could never hold a candle to the Avatar in his heart or even, for an instant, make it seem like Korra wasn't someone important to the world. So, Asami moved on.
Seeking purpose, the young woman reclaimed her father's company, Future Industries, and threw herself into her work. Asami dug through her father's things, finding schematics and plans for weapons and machines that-thank the Spirits-he had not had time to complete.
The plans that interested her the most, however, were the biplanes. Spreading the plans out over a previously cluttered workdesk, Asami poured over the engineering that went into making a machine fly. It was unheard of and just having the blueprints at her fingertips threw Asami's mind into a tizzy. The gears turned.
In vibrant, red ink, the Sato Heiress went to work, copying and changing the plans her father had laid out. The missiles were no longer needed in her eyes. That space below the pilot could be used for much more useful things. There was also the possibility of making the machine larger…
Grinning, Asami flicked her gaze over the plans again. "Yes," she said, after a moment, "That's it."
. . .
Asami emerged from her workshop with a grease smudge across her cheek, feeling accomplished.
Since the defeat of Amon, her thoughts on how she lived had changed. She decided the Sato Estate felt less like home and more like a reminder of the atrocities her father had done, and saw it fit to move elsewhere. The Sato Estate, now, was being transformed into a new hospital, built from the ground up. It also served as a base for planning the restoration of parts of Republic City that were destroyed by the Equalists. Asami herself funded the entire thing.
Asami, now, lived in a much smaller scale home closer to Yue Bay and just a speed boat's ride from Air Temple Island, where Korra was still trying to master the element of air and Master Tenzin and Pema were raising their family (if memory served, and it usually did, today marked five months since Rohan's birth).
After getting cleaned up and doing about her usual routine, Asami strode out of her home, moped helmet in hand. Revving up, she darted out into the street, zooming toward the bay and the private dock area used specifically for Future Industries.
Leaving her moped in one of the nearby garages, Asami ran a hand through her hair as she hopping lightly into her motorboat and turned the ignition. The engine purred to life, rumbling; Asami smiled. All her life, she had been surrounded by machines. She couldn't imagine life without them now.
With a few button clicks, she sped into the bay, expertly avoiding cargo ships that could easily destroy her speedboat. Those boats were slow and weighed down by tons of goods, anyway. She felt smug just thinking about it.
The ride to Air Temple Island was always a short one; a few minutes at most, cutting through the swells of the bay. The boat's engine sputters softly lets up on the gas pedal, cutting it off completely with a twist of her wrist and removal of the key.
"Asami!"
One foot on the dock, and, right on queue, Bolin was running towards her.
"Hey, Bo," Asami said sweetly, with a soft smile. The Earthbender happily drew her into a hug, lifting the small girl off the dock by a few feet. "You act like I haven't seen you in ages."
Bolin pulled back, grinning. "Sorry. I mean, come on-you're the only one around here who's not a kid that's not a parent that's not Mako or Korra! You're like the only sane person!" He gestured behind himself, to make a point.
Asami waved. Down, at the beginning of the dock, to where Korra and Mako, Naga in tow, were walking toward them. Asami smiled at them.
"Hey Asami," Mako greeted first, his hand holding Korra's affectionately.
"Hey, you're late," Korra pointed out, flatly, point at her accusatorily. "And this was your idea, anyway." Her lips twitched into a smile.
Asami laughed. "Yeah, I got caught up in the workshop. Sorry about that. I didn't miss dinner, did I?"
"Nope," Korra replied with a grin. "But come on. I'm starving!" To make her point, both of her hands went to her stomach, rubbing it with a sad expression on her face.
"You're not the only one, Korra," Bolin turned to Asami. "Come on. Everyone's waiting to see what your big announcement is!" Gently, he pushed Asami toward Tenzin's home.
"Okay, okay," Asami said. "Let's go. I didn't mean to keep everyone waiting."
Once inside, Asami was herded into the dining room, where Tenzin, Pema, and the children all sat in waiting.
"Its lovely to see you, Asami," Tenzin greeted first, rising to his feet and giving the non-bender a respectful bow.
"You, too," Asami replied, barely holding back a grin. "Its great to see all of you. Pema, how's the baby? Any trouble?"
Pema smiled kindly, Rohan in her arms. "Oh, you know. This is the easy party. Just wait until he's two." She chuckled and glanced over, proudly, to the rest of her children.
Meelo waved excitedly to Asami. "Hi, pretty Asami!"
"I'm really looking forward to your announcement, Asami," Jinora cut in, a small smile on her face. On the edge of the table sat a book, a well-worn bookmark peeking out from between the pages.
"Are you getting married, Asami? Ohh, I bet its to the General from the United Forces!" Ikki suddenly spouted, earning a frown from Jinora. "Or maybe you've invented a portal into the Spirit World! Can we go visit Grandpa Aang? Pleeeease?"
Asami, ever surprised, looked startled a moment, processing the child's questions. "Uh, no. And no. Sorry, Ikki."
The second oldest pouted and sighed.
"Please," Tenzin said, then sweeping a hand over the table before himself. "Sit. Let's have dinner."
"You don't have to tell me twice," Korra said, plopping down on the floor beside Jinora. "I could eat an ostrich-horse."
"I wouldn't suggest that," Mako said, eyeing Korra as he sat beside her. "What did the ostrich-horse ever do to you?"
Korra stuck her tongue out at him indignantly.
Bolin, it seemed, had become a favorite among the Air-kids. As if by routine, he was seated between Jinora and Ikki, across the table from his brother.
Asami couldn't help but smile. It was nice seeing things be normal for once-if you could ever call this normal.
Food was already being passed around before Asami decided to speak. She was formulating how exactly she wanted to say it but then remembered she wasn't doing a pitch to investors; these were her friends-her new family.
Taking some rice and passing the bowl to Korra, Asami raised her eyes. "So, I've been doing a lot of tinkering recently," she began. All eyes turned to her. She didn't fidget or squirm under their gazes. "Remember those biplanes my father used?"
A few grim faces nodded, others sighed.
"Well, I found the blueprints," Asami continued, undeterred. "I modified them a bit. A took out the weapons and expanded it. I'm in the process of putting one of the new ones together, but…"
"But?" Bolin motioned for her to continue. "Don't leave me hanging, Asami."
Asami grinned. "I think, with some time and modifications… we could use the biplanes for faster, more convenient shipping of goods around the world."
"Whoa, really?" Korra gawked at her. "That's… great. Its gotta be way faster than cargo boats, right?" She looked to Tenzin.
The Airbending master gave a nod. "That could very well be a great application for them."
"That's… AWESOME!" Bolin grinned. "I mean… it takes forever to ship things from one place to another… you could possibly be the smartest person in the world, Asami."
She colored slightly. "Thanks, Bo, but its still in testing. It will probably be another year or so before we actually see the biplanes carrying goods from, say, the Capitol City of the Fire Nation to Ba Sing Se."
Mako smiled a bit, watching Asami. There was pride in his amber eyes. "That's great, Asami. But… what about the Satomobiles? Switching fully to shipping?"
Asami smirked, shaking her head and her dark hair. "No. I know Satomobiles like the back of my hand. Those I can handle second-nature."
So, yeah. Much love for reviews. :)