Note: This chapter has been edited as of 7/16. Some moderate changes, which will affect the story.

Asami was usually good at keeping her emotions in check. But as of right now, she was crying.

And crying hard.

The tears flowed freely down her cheeks, plunking onto the grass slow drip after slow drip. She watched them fall, peripherals full of a hazy blue tensed with concern.

These same tears had not come easy for her father. They had been built up, corked and stoppered, trickling and weak, then released in a burst, and, suddenly, hastily patched up.

Well, they were out now, and Asami just realized how long she'd been holding them in.

Korra touched her cheek. She thumbed away a tear. "I missed you. So much. "I guess that spirit was right," she chuckled.

Asami laughed. It came out watery.

Korra smiled. "I don't really like making you cry, but there's three years worth of unsaid things. And you might cry at some of them."

Asami laughed again, and wiped the remaining tears away. "Save them for the rest of our vacation."

Korra grinned, and brushed the last one away, with a gentleness that belied her strength.

"You okay now?"

Asami nodded, composed, and smiled. It trembled, but all the more strong for it.

"Good." Korra pulled herself close, and wrapped an arm around Asami. Asami settled into her, her hair spilling softly onto Korra. She was still looking at the ground, but at least she felt at ease, somewhat.

And the fact that Korra made her feel that way- melted her, and sent her own heart racing like a Satomobile.

She used her free hand to prop Asami's chin up. "Crying's good and all, but I don't really want you to miss this through your tears." She pointed. Asami's eyes followed, and widened.

Ribbons of light pulsed, sprinkled with stars throughout. They shimmered emerald green, not so far off from Asami's eyes (the fact of which Korra absolutely loved.) The light washed over the Spirit World, flowing like liquid, as if it was not an otherworldly phenomenon. Green and blue eyes traced the patterns; their owners amazed and content.

Korra looked sideways, at Asami's awestruck face, and smirked.

Asami's words were synonymous. "Korra, there are so many of these...lights? Stars? I have no idea what they are!"

Korra chuckled, tremendously enjoying the weight of Asami on her arm. Asami tilted her head to lay against her shoulder, and Korra did the same.

"And the stars too! I wonder if there's a machine strong enough to project images that high up."

Korra blinked.

Asami was thinking again.

"Our industrial lights in the factory only extend a few hundred feet into the air, on ground level. We've only used them to signal at night, but I wonder... If we put them somewhere pedestrian, say- Harmony Park, then the public could really have some top-notch entertainment! I'd have to design a projector screen of that size, but think of the advertisements Future Industries could show-!"

Asami sputtered to a halt. Korra's finger was pressed into her lips.

"Shh. No thinking. Watch."

"But I am watching! Observation is the first step to inventing."

"Non-thinking watching only. Genius-ness needs a break from time to time."

Asami laughed, but relented. She gasped suddenly, shooting a finger out to her left. "Korra!"

What both women had mistaken for stars were now moving. They bloomed, to a radiant yellow.

Asami breathed. "Fireflies."

"Fireflies."

They buzzed around, in windless patterns, as if a child was directing them through the air. The ones farther away were fuzzy, orb-like; the ones in front, a dazzling delight. Around and around they flew, bright as their namesake. Then, with a collective shudder, the bugs scattered to the right, blown away as quickly as they had materialized.

"This doesn't happen while I'm not here, by the way," Korra whispered, knowing full well that was not the case.

Asami laughed. Her breath tickled Korra's neck. Korra shuddered.

"Just, you know. Avatar Korra, bridge between two realms." She threw a hand

into the air, and twirled it magnificently. "She has some sway in the Spirit World." A comet streaked past at that exact moment, a cosmic approval of her point, and she finished the flourish with a grin.

Asami rolled her eyes. "Is there anything you don't have an effect on?"

Korra just laughed.

The two fell into a comfortable silence after, silently searching the sky for far-away lights. Nearby, trees rustled; a ring, around their meadow, as if to shield any intrusion on this moment.

And indeed, it was a precious moment.

Asami closed her eyes, just. She'd hoped Korra couldn't hear how hard her heart was beating, but now she wanted it to burst through, envelop them both.

She nestled into Korra's shoulder, and nuzzled, there.

Korra breathed. She hardly dared to; a breath felt too powerful for a moment like this; a glass castle, balanced on stilts. Precious, and priceless.

But it only reminded her of how alone, how just-the-two-of-us, they were, and affection swelled like a wave.

Korra looked at her, and resisted the urge to plant a kiss. That wouldn't be right, to do that so unassumingly, with Asami's eyes closed.

Their first kiss should at least be seen by both of them.

She stopped.

Their first kiss?

She blinked, again. Slowly, she raised her hand, gently resting in the nook between Asami's waist and torso, to her hair. She stroked, making sure they were light, and soft.

Asami hummed, to her ear. Korra felt her both lean into, and relax, underneath her fingertips.

"You want to hear a tale about these Lights? Mom used to tell them to me all the time."

Her head moved, barely.

"Okay. There was once a god named Tian, who ruled the Northern Water Tribe. He protected his people from disease and invaders, and they loved him. For eons, he ruled over his land, and watched how a couple of tiny huts expanded into a village, then into a tribe, and then to a nation. And that was when Tian realized the one thing he was missing."

"A staff?"

"What? No. Gods didn't have staffs, they had super powerful bending."

"A Sato-owned conglomerate?"

Korra smirked, and flicked her ear. "No. He was missing love."

"Ah."

"Ah, indeed." She took a deep breath, because Asami lying next to, on, her, like this, was making her…

She continued.

"Tian was pretty lonely, up in his little Northern Tribe. Poor guy. Then, one day, he saw a goddess on the other side of the world, in the Southern Water Tribe. Tall and beautiful, flowing black hair. Gentle. It was love at first sight. But Tian was too far away to talk to her because, well, they were halfway across the world. Frankly, he wasn't even sure if she had even seen him, but he was determined to find out."

"And then what happened?"

"The sky erupted with light, one day. Just thousands of waves shimmering across the night, like the sun had exploded. Illuminating the world all the way from the North to South, and this gave Tian an idea. He used the light to create a path, shaping them into stepping stones to walk from his corner of the world to her's. And the funny thing is, they met halfway."

"So, she did see him."

Even pressed to her as she was, Asami's breath was whisper. And yet, it crawled all over Korra.

"Yup. Her name was Tsuki, and she was just as shy. But, for that one day, Tsuki and Tian got to spend all the time they wanted with each other. But, by the end, the lights were fading fast. So, they made a promise to each other. Every year, on the day of the Spirit Lights, they'd walk across the world from their tribes to be with each other."

"It wasn't enough, was it?"

"No." Korra shook her head. "No matter how hard they tried, Tian and Tsuki couldn't be together on the other days of the year. They weren't supposed to. That's why the elders say the Spirit Lights randomly show up sometimes. Just, flashes whenever one or the other's love is so strong, it just slips past the laws of nature." She grimaced.

"That's all they could get. One day a year, in return for eternal love." She shook her head. "How tragic is that?"

"It's, very sad, yes."

"Yeah. It is."

Korra curled a strand of hair, behind her ear. She shifted, suddenly, and Korra made to loosen her arms. Asami stopped her.

"It's fine," she said.

Korra, nodded, swallowing, and settled back down.

Silence did the same.

"I missed you, so much."

"I missed you too."

"I'm…" Asami started, then stopped, as Korra's hand just touched the back of her head. She breathed, then started again.

"Not a day went by that I didn't think of you. Not one."

"I know, Asami. Me too."

Asami shook her head. "I don't think you do. It hurt, waking up every day, wondering if you were getting better or not, and not able to do a single thing about it. It was all I could think about. My best friend, hurting, all alone." She closed her eyes, shivered. She didn't mention the nightmares.

"I wasn't alone though. I had my parents," Korra muttered. The tremble in her voice showed otherwise.

"I know. But I wanted to be there, Korra. I needed to be there. At first, I thought if I focused enough on my company, then maybe the pain would go away. It didn't. It just numbed. Some days, I felt as mechanical and cold as the machines I was making."

Korra's heart clenched. A lump formed, in her throat. The thought of Asami, hurt and aching, because of her…

It tore

Asami's voice shook. "It was the guilt that hurt the worst. I felt horrible, trying to move on with my life, when such a huge part of it was falling apart." Her voice trembled. "You were falling apart."

Korra wiped her face, the tears, burning. She was suddenly aware of how tight she was holding Asami.

"But then you came back. Alive, and maybe a little hurt, but alive. Back at Kwong's, when I finally knew that you were okay…"

Asami smiled, tearfully. "That was the first time I'd felt anything in years." She reached for Korra's hand, squeezed it.

"Thank you for coming back," she whispered. "I don't know what I would've done if you didn't."

If you didn't…

If you didn't...

If you didn't.

Korra rose, and pressed her lips to Asami's.

They stayed there, hearts beating in tandem.

Korra pulled away. She breathed.

Asami smiled. "I was wondering when you were going to do that."

She looked away, burning. "Sorry you had to wait so long."

"Only three years," Asami murmured, and rose up for another.