Note: Second and third chapters are basically just build-ups for later chapters.
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It was a great time in the spirit world. Both Korra and Asami did not think or talk about all the things that happened in the material world or what will they have to do after coming back. Both wanted to disassociate from all the things that were in the physical world including the emotional side. They just wondered the spirit world, went to see Iroh, Tree of Time, went out and back in trough both the Northern and the Southern spirit portals just because they could and just because they wanted to see if it would be any different from the new spirit portal. Korra had some doubts about Wan Shi Tong's library, because of all the stories she heard from Katara and needed to learn in school from Sokka's books. But then Asami asked what she was thinking about and, like always, she answered without thinking. As a result, Asami insisted they would go there and, of course, they did. Korra was in her "prepared-for-anything-to-protect" mode. While the not-so-fond Wan Shi Tong talked with Asami and, after five minutes, was impressed by her intelligence, especially after she started to talk about the possible constructional improvements to his library. Korra was impressed too. Although she wasn't sure was it Asami's ability to impressed the scary knowledge spirit or Asami's intelligence in general that affected her so much at that moment.
"Both." - Korra though to herself and silently followed the Knowledge human.
It was the good days. They talked about the spirits, the spirit world environment, how it changes, how it reacts to emotions, to Korra (she even wanted to show that, but it was hard as all the avatar felt was peace and comfort). Nights. Nights were... good too. They would put a camp. Korra sometimes would start a fire. Somehow they always ended up putting their sleeping bags very close to each other. After few days into the vocation, they got used to occasional hand holding during the day, but the nights were different. They felt more intimate. And Korra was a little bit confused about that (in a good way though!).
Asami, similarly, enjoyed the nights. The days were always full of experience and in the evenings felt exhausted. Even though she very much enjoyed THAT kind of exhaustion. It was so nice to be able to have a good sleep. And she noticed that her sleep was much better when Korra was laying next to her in a closer proximity.
It was during the nights when one or the other "accidentally" reached out for the other's hand and hold it until the late morning.
And it was during the other nights that one or the other "accidentally" wrapped the other one in a gentile, fragile yet firm embrace. It was during the mornings that one or the other woke up and was too afraid to move so she accidentally wouldn't brake the fragile-yet-firm entanglement of the other. Somehow they often ended up sleeping in the spoon position...
If Asami was the first one to wake up and Korra would be the one to hold her, she would open her eyes, trail the holding hands with her eyes carefully, trying not to move a muscle and resisting the urge to fondle Korra's hands with hers. She would carefully inspect every pico-meter of the avatar's skin. She would watch the pattern of small skin patches, interrupted with a seemingly never-ending natural lines.
Often she would caught herself inspecting Korra's knuckles. The same ones that punches hot, burning fire. The same ones also may punch a gust of air - refreshing or deadly.
"How many times were they scraped? How much blood had they seen? How many times was it hers? How many times did she needed to rise them to protect others? How many times did anybody else raised theirs to protect her?" - She found herself trying to answer the last question - "Not often enough."
Asami often inspected all irregularities on Korra's skin and then she thought if it could be scars from her previews fights, how did Korra get them, what kind of enemies she was fighting, did she got hurt and if so, how badly. A feeling started to emerge inside of her. She did felt something similar before, but it was different this time. It was stronger. It was like an oath. She wanted to protect Korra. Even if she was the 'little spoon' now, she wanted to protect Korra so that the avatar would not have to fight ever again.
"But I guess this is impossible. The Avatar belongs to the world. And without her fights, she wouldn't be who she is. But still..." - an image of Korra's glowing eyes in her father's arms emerged in front of her. And she could not control the urge to squeeze Korra's hands any more.
Korra woke up right after it. The edges of her lips lifted just slightly. After few more moments she opened her eyes. A back of a head with black shining hair lightly falling on one of Asami's shoulders was right in front of her. Korra could smell the engineer. She wanted to take a few deep breaths of the scent, but she didn't: "Asami may have done this during her sleep. I better control myself so I wouldn't wake her up." Korra closed her eyes again to better feel the body she was holding in her hands. She studied every breath Asami took. Every time Asami breathed in, her chest lifted. For that peak of a moment, Korra's hands could slightly feel Asami's diaphragm. Every time she exhaled, Korra's right thumb, the tip of her index finger would end up on Asami's lower ribs and the rest of her palm - on the engineer's stomach. Her right hand was stretched under Asami's neck.
Asami thought she felt Korra's smile. She also noticed that her breathing was a bit deeper and rarer. "She's probably awake... Did I wake her..? Crap. I need to learn to better control myself." She decided not to move and continued to investigate Korra's hands. She liked how the touching surface of the avatar hand increased when she breath in. She unconsciously tried to take deeper breaths. Asami closed her eyes again when she breathed in a little deeper than usual. She concentrated on Korra's left hand fingers. It felt like an incoming tidal wave. The thumb pressed to her breastbone. The tip of the index finger almost touching the base of her left breast. Just like the water of a tide comes and gently touches the beach sand. And just like that, it went back.
Korra noticed a change in Asami's breathing. "Oh, shit. I woke her up." Her eyes widened on this thought and her body tensed a bit, so slightly that even she didn't fell it.
"So... I guess you're awake too..." - Asami said after few minutes of hesitation. She felt that the light, blissful feeling that was brought by intimate yet almost inevident touch of Korra's hand on her stomach, was leaving her and a heavy one was falling onto her. She wanted to preserve the previous sense, but with her rational mind part, she knew she couldn't - the spirit world was too big and the vocation time was too short.
"Am...yeah..." - Korra answered sadly that this conscious shy intimacy will have to end - "sorry about that..." - she added with a slight move of her right hand fingers.
"You don't have to apologize for anything. I had a very good sleep." - Asami answered closing her eyes and trying to suck, to remember the soon-gone cautious touch of the person behind her.
But this happened every morning. The one who was holding the other started to apologize for doing so. And then the other one said that the first one have nothing to apologize for. It started to be their vacation ritual.