Chasing The Sunset Chapter 1: Crescendo, a legend of korra fanfic

Greetings, readers! This first chapter was written with the Legend of Korra Finale song in mind. Each section corresponds to a specific part of the song, but the chapter in its entirety is a nice backdrop to read to. But if we wanna get technical...

Piece 1: 0:00-0:47

Piece 2: 0:47-1:16

Piece 3 and 4: 1:16-1:41

Piece 5: 1:41-2:05

Piece 6: 2:05-2:16

Piece 7: 2:16-3:04

Feel free to read it any way you like, but I encourage you to envision the scenes with the specific music in mind. :)

Chapter 1: Crescendo

Korra was...confused. Perplexed. A bit bewildered, she had to say. Here she had thought...and here she had hoped, and here she had wished, and no….here she was. Sitting at a table, deep in the mansion of Asami Sato, her expectations turned entirely upside down.

Her fingers tightened, ever so slightly, on the wooden chopsticks in her hand. They were roughly cut, cheaply produced and manufactured, Cabbage Corps. A flint of wood snagged on the left one, either from natural error or from Korra's unconsciously tight grip. They certainly weren't made of porcelain or glass, as she had thought. The noodles (steaming hot, seaweed-spiced, and arguably her favorite plate from Narook's Noodles, on account of their Water Tribe heritage-) felt a lot like her insides today.

Korra had arrived at this mansion, 10 AM sharp, with a temper and gaze just as keen. She had expected a living space of grandiose proportions, of ornate paintings and gilded stairs. It had been silly. No doubt she had stepped into luxury, but it was a luxury of function and purpose. The chair she sat on was of beautifully crafted mahogany, but strong and sturdy all the same; the table of cherrywood, deeply varnished and polished to a sheen; the floor a rosewood so shiny Korra caught herself staring at her reflection. The dining room was much different than the rest of the house (mansion, Korra corrected), in both color scheme and use. It was brown, while the entire estate gleamed chrome (though the space did have red accents here and there). But where the mansion boasted luxury at its finest, the dining area offered bare comforts. A place to sit down and enjoy the joys of food over light conversation and good company. More coziness than coldness, more simplicity than elaborate decorum.

Asami had given her a tour. Through the maze of bedrooms and gyms and powder rooms, Korra had expected to end up somewhere she would not enjoy, either from own smugness or true dislike, she did not know. Then she'd stepped outside onto a racetrack.

A racetrack.

Korra had never gone racing. At least, nowhere other than the back of a polar bear dog.

And Asami had given her one, in a Satomobile, an exhilarating ride in 60 seconds of heart-thumping throttle.

Korra had had fun. She frowned. Too much fun?

She looked up, to Asami sitting across. One hand delicate against her chin, another on her forearm, both resting on the table. The pose could've said boredom and inattention, but Asami's eyes gleamed at the tet-a-tete flitting between the two brothers.

"You'd spend it on a vacation?" Mako's brow curled in confusion.

"10,000 yuans, I think we deserve a rest!" Pabu squeaked in support. Bolin nodded emphatically. "It takes effort to be a mascot, you know."

Asami's eyes sparkled. They turned toward hers.

Korra blinked, slightly startled. Then she smiled. Asami smiled back.

There might be something good here, Korra thought.

"Korra?"

The voice floated to her on a chilly breeze, but it wasn't the weather that made her cold. Her bones froze to the core with the remnants of angry words. They warmed, only slightly, with the hand on her shoulder.

Asami sat down, wrapped in a lilac robe and ringed eyes. Not much sleep there, either.

Korra sighed, heavy with exhaustion. Not many angry words traveled between her and her father-ever, even-, but the argument was a fresh sting to already open wounds. She winced, feeling her hands pull the robe closer around her body.

"You okay?"

She turned bleary eyes on imploring ones. "I don't know."

Asami tsked, drawing herself closer. She smelled of perfume. Jasmine. No, lily. Korra didn't know, anyways.

Wait, no one wears perfume at night.

"What's on your mind then?"

Korra shrugged. Asami gave her a pointed look. Korra returned her a guilty smirk.

"Lots of things," she said, intent on the rippling, sucking water. "The spirit attack. Leaving Tenzin. Dad." Her lip curled, wry more than bitter. "Mako."

"We both have that in common."

"What, problems?"

"Boy and father ones."

"O-oh. Mako's just, y'know...Mako," Korra said, because she didn't really know what else to say.

That drew a laugh from Asami though. "Don't we both know it?" And out came a laugh from Korra too.

She sighed, leaning forward to elbows on the balcony. Asami waited patiently on this moonlit night, staring out at frost-tinged roads and glacial seas.

Indecision tore through the Avatar. "I don't know if I made the right choice, Asami. I've both known them for all my life, and of course I'm closer with Tenzin. But Unalaq's my uncle. If I'm going to become a spiritual leader, he's the one to teach me. I know I haven't seen him in years, but he's my family. Surely that counts for something too?" She looked up, seeking solace in the moon. It stared back cold comfort.

Korra was looking in the wrong place though. Asami tilted her head, dark hair swaying in waves. They were uncanny to the actual ones beneath them. "I used to think that family meant blood, especially after Mom died. I had only lived with the two of them when I was young. My relatives all lived in the Fire Nation-" Korra threw her a look that Asami answered in a split-second gaze ('Tell you later'), and Korra relaxed in an instant- "so my father was the only family I had."

Six months ago, this conversation would not have been possible. Korra marveled at the fact, as well as her friend.

"For years, it was just me and my father and that was fine. He would come home from work and it's not like we wouldn't spend time together, but I definitely missed my mom." Again, the bitterness had long drained away, because it had drained Asami too; all that was left was remembrance, because that was all Asami could muster. "All that changed when I met you."

Korra threw her the most puzzled look and Asami crinkled her beautiful eyes. "Yes, Korra, you changed my life, get over it," she rolled her eyes, seriousness and sarcasm as brothers. "Seriously, though. Meeting you and Mako and Bolin was one of the best things that happened to me. I'll never regret running Mako over with my Satobike." And there, the earnest deception blew away to reveal a radiant smile. "You guys are my family now."

That made Korra beam. "You guys are my family too." She continued to stare, out over the moon-washed ocean. The smile faded.

Asami's still stayed. "But that doesn't answer your question, does it?"

Korra bit her lip.

Asami pursed hers and laid a hand on her forearm. "You need to trust yourself, Korra. Being the Avatar isn't easy and it requires lots of decision-making. Decisions that you won't know the outcome of. If you felt it was the right choice, then it was the right choice." Her voice brightened. "Besides, the future can't be accounted for. Best to make do with what we have."

Korra stared at her, eyes wide, but crinkled in a soft grin. "How do you know all that?"

Asami shrugged, innocently. "Being the CEO has its perks."

Certainly, it did, Korra agreed, as she shook a slow, knowing, smirking roll of her head. Certainly it did.

The volcano appeared, at first a dot that jutted out from the sprawl that was the Earth Kingdom, then as a towering hill as the airship descended through the clouds. Korra was practically bursting by the time Asami killed the engine, hopping on her feet: "Asami, come on, the market closes in a few hours!" She bounced, eager like a pup.

Asami, herself, could use that much rest. She'd been flying for well over many hours now; not that she minded, but a break would be much welcome.

Just not one that included a bed, she sighed, half-wry, half-earnest, as Korra led her through her own airship, a grin on her face.

"What...is that?" It was a few hours later and Korra was poking at fruit.

"Less profit for the market stall because you're prodding at it," Asami said, examining the red object, not unaware of the owner's eyes.

Korra was not not-unaware, so she continued to poke. The fruit caved in at her touch, puckered, then plopped back out. Korra's eyes bulged. "It's so...squishy. It's not as red as a tomato, but also not hard like an apple." She straightened, ignoring the glaring owner, and turned to Asami. "Do you think it's rotten?"

"I think," Asami said, pulling out a coin from her pocket and dropping it into the woman's hand, "it's the texture." She strode away, pulling Korra with her, their leave accompanied by a huff that bordered on relief and indignance.

"Oh. Must've been a bad farming season then." Korra's eyes went wide and she zipped across the dirt street. "No way! Asami, check this out!"

Asami, either out of friendship or humor, of course, did. She crossed her arms, perusing the assortment of knickknacks that the shopkeeper had displayed.

"Is that...a wooden lollipop?" She peered at Korra's hands; the object was brown, carved roughly, but not lovingly.

She scrunched her face. "A lolli...no, Asami, this is a hand drum!" Korra whirled it in front of her, the double clackers colliding in the center. "I haven't seen one of these since I was, like, four. Katara gave it to me, a few days after I realized I was the Avatar." Asami's eyes crossed, zipping between the two balls, and Korra thought she'd never looked more adorable.

Her hand dug into her trousers and out shined four Earth Kingdom coins. Asami handed them to the shop-owner before Korra could say anything, and walked away, a smirk curved on her lips.

The Avatar gaped after her before a grin split her own face. She bounced after Asami, twisting the drum happily in her hands.

Asami had opened her door to claims of 'special, best friend access' and Korra had entered with nary a sheepish grin. She settled into the co-pilot's chair, Turi given a rest from her hours of solo flying. Her fur boots (despite the fact, Asami insisted, that it was one month into spring) were propped up on the control board, as if she owned Asami's airship.

Clearly, she was comfortable, Asami smirked.

"Hey, what's that?" There was a gaping hole to their right, 45 degrees off their path, take them about 9 miles per min-Asami shook herself. She looked at the world map plastered on the cockpit wall. "Hungzhou Crater. 300 B.G. One of the biggest in the Earth Kingdom." She remembered reading about it on a twilit evening, surrounded by her other birthday gifts of a telescope, a beautiful velvet robe, and a sapphire bracelet.

She felt the pause, then the smirk. "Nice to see my book put to good use."

Asami shrugged light shoulders. "A Geography of The World has proved useful in developing Future Industries' tech." She grinned, swiveling to the Avatar. "I'll credit you in our upcoming technology."

Korra huffed indignation. "I don't see you wearing my sapphire bracelet."

Asami feigned umbrage. She indicated her black-and-red pilot outfit. "Does this look like it goes along with the color blue?"

"I think anything goes with the color blue," came the affront.

They were about 50 miles from Ba Sing Se, near Makapu Village. 2 hours at the most until the landing dock, Asami surmised. Airship technology hadn't been on her mind lately with the reconstruction going on, but future behold it or not, these ships would soon be traveling to the Earth Kingdom in under a day.

"Tell me about the crater," popped up Korra, leaning keenly over the board, hands carefully placed on the blank spaces.

Luxury seating and entertainment? Such for 'best friend access.'

"Well," Asami hummed, blinking to the memory. "It was created when a meteor slammed into the ground. I'm pretty sure the diameter of the crater is, say," she knitted her eyes, "half a mile? I remember this one so well because meteors rarely happen in the Earth Kingdom. Hungzhou was a deserter one from the Lyra Showers. Don't know how it came all the way from the Northern and Southern Tribes, but the book wouldn't have been written if nature was so predictable."

"Lyra Showers?"

"Mhmm. Beginning of spring each year. Have you ever seen them?"

A puff exhaled as Korra plopped back into the chair. "Nope. But you can take me."

"Korra?"

The voice floated to her through broken air, vanishing against the wooden door. Asami hesitated, her hand against the opening pane. Silence bade her entry and she slid the door, stepping inside with a gentle click.

"Hey. Thought I'd bring you some food." She looked out the window, onto raindrops and wind, then back to Korra. "Can't beat chicken dumplings on a cold day, right?"

Korra didn't move as Asami approached her in her wheelchair. Her hair tumbled down, hands in her lap, upright but not anywhere near right, a very, very tired face looking out the window. Rain pounded a rhythm. Asami set the tray down onto the table, next to Korra's hand. It twitched, imperceptibly. Asami saw unseeing eyes. They blinked suddenly when she touched her hand.

"You hungry?"

Her hair bobbed as Korra shook her head. Asami swiveled to the pouring rain. Dreary, but not loud like a hailstorm. A lonely, quiet thing; out of your way, but direct enough to toy with you if circumstance dictated so.

"I never liked the rain much," Asami chuckled, firm enough to fake sincerity. "Gets in the way of my workers' morale or production tests sometime. Trying a new engine without temperate weather, although we do expect our Satomobiles to work in rain, can be dangerous in the prototype days." She actually appreciated the rain. Good background to draw blueprints in.

Korra nodded, offering a smile that didn't reach her eyes. "Thought you liked working with it though."

Oh. "Depends."

Silence ensued. The rain pattered. Asami took her hand. "Korra, you know you're my best friend, right?"

Korra knew and nodded to say so.

Her hands felt cold. "We are going to get through this. Me and you. Together. Wherever you are, I'm at your side. I'm not leaving anytime, Korra."

Korra turned, and Asami couldn't tell if it was out of surprise (for surely she knew this already) or acknowledgement. Whatever the conflicting case of emotions, Asami squeezed her hand, willing her warmth. "I'm here for you. Always." Asami smiled and Korra gave her one in return, maybe not all the way to her eyes, but enough to know it was real.

They sat, staring out over the violet waters towards Republic City. The portal was golden against the night, beautiful, bright. Asami had never seen her city like this. Half of it decimated, okay, but all of it hopeful.

She smoothed out her dress. Remarkably, it'd come out of Varrick's wedding unstained and spotless (as of yet-Rohan was unpredictable and Meelo to a lesser degree) Good thing too. She sensed it would become one of her favorites.

Korra sighed, content with the world. "I would've never thought a Spirit Portal could light up a metropolis. Always seemed like a barren, wilderness decoration."

"Decoration?"

"Aesthetic, then." Korra swished her hand, throwing away the statement.

Asami chuckled. She sighed and it melted into the breeze. "Thank you."

One eyebrow raised. "For?"

"This." Asami swept her hand towards the glowing city. "Making this. All of this. This city wouldn't be here if it weren't for you. This portal isbeautiful,Korra."

Korra grinned, cupping both hands under her chin. "It really is, huh?" She turned to Asami. Her stomach churned and her heart flipped, but she said it anyway. "You look beautiful, by the way."

A shy blush tinted Asami's gorgeous smile. "You too. I dig the Water Tribe...aesthetics." She winked, the last word chosen with deliberate care.

Korra crinkled a smile, then sighed again. Midnight mountains guarded the golden beam, the buildings below like jagged rock. Yue Bay was the only thing blocking them from beauty.

"So, what now?" she started. "Back to the dance floor?'

"I'm...kind of all danced out." Asami shifted, her hand brushing Korra's, flaring a brief warmth where it touched. "Honestly, after everything that's happened in the past few months, I could use a vacation."

Korra lit up, the Spirit Portal seeming to do the same. "Let's do it! Let's go on a vacation, just the two of us. Anywhere you want."

"Really?" Asami seemed unsure, so Korra nodded, eyes sparkling. "Okay. I've always wanted to see what the Spirit World's like."

Korra grinned. The words eased out of her, as easily as this moment. "Sounds perfect."

They crested the ridge and two breaths shimmered in the air. Korra let go of her pack-straps. Asami stood still, her grip loose on her own.

They were staring at flawed perfection. At a city that had been wrecked three times in the same amount of years. A nation pieced back by slow, broken shards. A shore of four waters, of millions. A metropolis that was Asami's home, more than the Estate had ever been. Her heart lay in it, amongst infinity streets and crystal towers. Silver skyscrapers and stout storefronts, curving bridges, Yue Bay blue. Cherry trees, ashen mountains, viridescent valleys. Republic City pulsed with an invisible light, not seen, but felt. You had to be in it to feel it, and Asami didn't plan on leaving.

Korra saw something different. She saw two worlds, merged as one, connected evermore, by her. The Portal vibrated something alive, an energy that traveled between realms and, Korra knew, into forever. The world was changed and though the future was uncertain, Korra could say, with certainty, with every beat of her heart, that it was, for better or worse, a good change.

Her eyes met Asami's and her heart soared. Asami's rose to the stars.

They had both created this city, separately, at different times. Now they had the chance to create something new, something fresh.

Blue eyes sparkled. Ready?

Emerald green twinkled back. I think I am.

Korra walked forward and Asami followed, the first of many slow, steady steps to creating them.