Asami had her stitches removed two weeks to the day after her surgery. She hadn't complained, but Korra knew they had started getting really itchy based on the way Asami would unconsciously scrub at the skin above her cast. Korra managed to talk her into a blue cast, saying it it would make it easier for people to sign. Asami had shot her a look of disbelief—obviously people signing her cast was not high on her priority list—but had relented, if for no other reason than to shut Korra up. The x-rays looked good, and Dr. Varrick anticipated only an additional four weeks of Asami wearing the cast.

Halloween was a few nights later, and Korra committed herself to getting Asami to come to the track house for their annual party. It took a lot of wheedling, but Korra was able to convince her to dress up as Leia to her Han. Korra was a huge fan of the original Star Wars Trilogy, so she'd made Asami watch them and made her promise to watch the new one when it came out in December. Asami had admitted they weren't half bad.

Korra should have known better than to force Asami to attend an event with a bunch of drunk college kids who were less than concerned about maintaining personal boundaries. Needless to say, it didn't go well. For most of the night, Asami sat on a chair in the corner of the room, looking uncomfortable. The only time she moved was when Korra dragged her around to introduce her to members of the track team. It was probably pointless because they were all too drunk to have any hope of remembering anyone's name in the morning.

Korra thought things would improve when she convinced Asami to hang out in the kitchen with Opal and Bolin who had crashed the party. If anything, though, it was worse because Bolin was trashed. While Korra and Opal found it amusing, Asami became angry and stormed out. Korra found her ten minutes later, sitting against a tree, watching the beginning of the first real snowfall of the year.

"What's wrong with you?" Korra demanded. "I get that parties aren't your thing, but you like Bo and Opal! Why couldn't you just hang out with them?"

Asami jumped to her feet and faced Korra. "I don't want anything to do with people who are stupid enough to get drunk," she stated hotly. Before Korra could process her words, Asami was gone.

Korra hung around at the party for a bit longer, but without Leia, being Han was pointless. She made her way back to her dorm feeling dejected. She'd yelled Asami for no other reason than selfishness. It was no surprise when she got back to their room and Asami was sitting on her bed, reading. Her Leia costume was carefully folded over the back of her desk chair.

Asami didn't even look up when Korra entered the room, which didn't bode well. "I'm sorry," Korra said. "I shouldn't have yelled at you."

"It's okay." Asami's voice was flat and her eyes didn't leave her book.

Korra sighed. So this wasn't going to be as easy as she'd hoped. "No it's not. Can we talk about this?"

Asami put her book down and looked up expectantly. "What is there to talk about?"

"Why do you hate drinking so much?"

Now it was Asami's turn to sigh. "You want the truth?" When Korra nodded, Asami said, "I fought for control over my life for years. I can't understand why someone would give it up willingly. It's so unfair that they have control and throw it away for something so stupid. It's just—I can't imagine ever feeling safe enough to just trust the world to take care of me and it seems so unfair that other people do."

"And I yelled at you for that." Damn. Korra won the award for the jackass roommate of the year. "I'm sorry."

This time Asami offered a tentative smile. "It's okay." Korra got ready for bed and asked permission to turn out the light. When they were in bed, Asami asked, "Why weren't you drinking?"

"I don't really have one reason," Korra answered. It wasn't something she talked about often, but if Asami was asking, she kinda felt like she owed it to her to answer. "I don't like the taste, first of all. I'm also afraid of getting caught and losing my scholarship or getting suspended from the track team. But it's also because Alaska natives are prone to alcoholism and I'd rather not go down that path. I've had several relatives who have and it's not pretty."

"Oh." Asami didn't seem to know what to say, which seemed fair because Korra almost never knew what to say to Asami.

"So I get it. I'll be more understanding from now on."

"You don't have to be. I know it's weird," Asami said.

"I know I don't have to, but I want to."

...

Because the world is an unfair place, Korra got roped into attending the high school state cross-country meet, which took place about thirty miles from campus. A cross-country team member should have gone to meet with high school recruits, but they had their conference meet that weekend and couldn't attend. Thus, the track team was asked to step up and take their place. It wasn't ideal, but at least their school would have some representation present to show recruits they cared.

Korra was assigned to a girl from Asami's high school. Or, well, if she were being completely honest, Korra made sure the recruit she got was from Asami's high school. A week before the state meet, Korra called the girl, Kate, to let her know she was coming. After they had sorted out the details, Kate asked tentatively, "Do you know Asami Sato?"

"Oh my God! Yeah! She's my roommate!" Korra told her, excitedly. It was always interesting to learn about your friends' pasts, especially when the friend in question was particularly elusive.

Kate remained hesitant, however. "Does she—I mean, is she doing okay? I haven't heard from her and her dad keeps saying she's busy with school so we should wait for her talk to us."

Korra didn't really know what to say. She didn't know how much Kate knew about Asami's relationship with her dad, but she was guessing it wasn't much. That meant she would have to tread carefully. "Do you want me to try to bring her to the meet this Saturday? I'm sure she'd love to see you."

"Yes!" Kate blurted out, suddenly animated. "She was like my best friend before she went to school and now we don't really ever talk!"

Korra smiled into the phone. "I'll see what I can do. Do you know if her dad's coming?"

"I don't think so. He hasn't mentioned it at least. Do you want me to try to get him to come?"

"No!" Korra exclaimed more forcefully than she intended. "Do me a favor and don't tell her dad she's coming, okay?"

"Okay, but why?"

"It's a long story. Bye, Kate."

"Bye!"

As soon as she hung up, Korra ran back to her dorm, her backpack flapping on her back. She was so excited she nearly forgot to sing to signal her approach. "Asami!" she said as soon as she burst through the door, albeit not as dramatically as she wanted to, lest she frighten her roommate. "What are you doing on Saturday?"

"Uh…homework?" Asami said, unsure of where this was leading.

"Come to states with me! I have to go to help recruit Kate Matthews, your friend from high school. She really misses you."

Asami gaped at Korra, and Korra couldn't help but gape back, though she thought her reason was markedly different than her roommate's. Asami's hair was pulled up in a messy bun and she was wearing her chunky black-framed glasses and she had a pencil tucked behind her ear and she looked so beautiful! Korra put a halt to her thoughts just then before they could spiral down even more inappropriate paths. "She said she misses me?" Asami finally asked.

"Yeah! She said she hadn't heard from you and that your dad basically told them all you were too busy for them." Fuck. That was about as insensitive as Korra could have phrased it.

Asami drew her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them, defeat obvious in her expression. "He always wins," she murmured to herself.

"What?"

Asami glanced up fleetingly, but quickly looked away from Korra as if she were ashamed. "He told me I should let them move on with their lives –that I didn't matter to them as much as they matter to me. He said they'd be better off if I didn't talk to them anymore. Now I know that wasn't true. Now they think I hate them."

"I'm sure that's not true. And even if it were, you have time to make it up to them. Start by coming to states."

"Do you really think Kate wants to see me?"

"I know she does. She sounded really excited!"

Asami caught sight of her casted arm and nearly panicked. "But what if my dad's there? He'll see my arm and know I told someone what happened! I can't go! I can't face him!"

"Relax. Kate said your dad's not going and she promised not to tell him you might. I didn't tell her why, so she was confused, but she went along with it."

"You're sure?" Korra could tell she was starting to waver.

"Yeah."

"Okay. I'll go."

That was how Korra found herself at the New York state cross-country meet on a cold Saturday in mid-November with her roommate. The snow that had fallen a few weeks earlier had not been replaced by a new blanket, so it was packed down and possible to run on. On the way to the meet, Asami told Korra about the previous year when a fresh powder covered the course. Some of the slowest times in state history were recorded that year and everyone she talked to had fallen at least once.

They arrived on the later side, just as Kate's race was starting. Korra followed Asami to all of the best spots to cheer on the runners that few spectators knew about. When Asami shouted to Kate, she turned her head and grinned widely at Asami. Kate wasn't a great cross-country runner, Asami told her as they ran to the next outlook. She was more of a track star.

After the race, the met the team back at their school tent. As soon as they were in the vicinity, a short kid ran out and nearly tackled Asami to the ground. "Asami!" he shouted, his voice cracking.

Korra tensed, ready for Asami to panic at pretty much being assaulted, but to her astonishment, Asami laughed and hugged him tightly. He was a half a head shorter than her, so Korra guessed he was a few years younger. While Asami and the mystery kid had their reunion, she found Kate and congratulated her on her race. They chatted about college for awhile, and Korra invited her to stay with her during the recruitment weekend. When the conversation lagged, she asked, "Hey, who's that with Asami?"

Kate glanced over at her best friend and smiled widely. "That's Kai. He was a freshman when she was a senior. He got into some trouble at the beginning of the year, but once Asami talked with him, he settled down. She cemented herself as his favorite person in the world when she took him to prom last year."

"She took him to prom?" Korra asked. It was such an incongruous match that she was almost certain she'd misunderstood.

"Yeah. He was the only one on the team not going and he was so sad about being left out that Asami asked him." Kate shook her head. "It was crazy. She could have had her pick of people who were crushing on her, but she went with Kai. I'm pretty sure he was a little in love with her, but now he thinks of her as a big sister."

Korra smiled as Asami walked over to them, her arm still around Kai's shoulders. "Hi Kate," Asami said softly. Korra remembered her fears that Kate would hate her since she didn't stay in contact with anyone.

Kate smiled back and stepped forward to embrace Asami, who momentarily let go of Kai. "I missed you. I missed you so much!"

"I missed you, too," Asami sniffed into Kate's blonde hair. As Korra looked around, she noticed that Kai and Asami were the only two non-white kids on the team. Asami was Japanese and Kai looked like he was maybe Indian.

Kate stepped back and clasped her hands together, discomfited. "Why didn't you talk to me then?"

Korra saw Asami glance in her direction and she knew her roommate was deciding whether or not to tell the truth. Korra offered a nod, for whatever that was worth; she had no idea how Asami would interpret it. "My dad said you didn't want me to."

"But in class he said the same thing to us—that we should leave you alone!" Ah, so that was why Kate was in contact with Mr. Sato: he was her teacher! Suddenly a bunch of pieces of the puzzle fell into place. Mr. Sato hadn't just become a high school science teacher; he'd become a science teacher at Asami's school. Talk about unfair! Asami could never escape him!

"I don't want to be left alone," Asami said sadly. "I really, really don't."

"Then why did he say you did?" Kai chimed in.

"H—"

"Asami!" A voice from outside the tent cut her off.

They all spun around to see a man standing at the tent door. A glance at a suddenly motionless Asami whose blood had drained from her face told Korra it was her father. "Dad!" she exclaimed.

"What happened to your arm, sweetie?" he asked, rushing forward to examine Asami's cast. Korra's first look at an abuser was underwhelming. He looked just like anyone else. If she had to make a list of the top thousand people who looked threatening, Hiroshi Sato wouldn't even come into consideration. His black hair was streaked with gray, and he was one of those people whose beard/mustache made him seem more approachable rather than less. Fuck, he was even wearing those round Harry Potter glasses! This was the man who had terrorized Asami for years? The man who had broken her arm and ribs?

Korra's musings lasted no more than a second, which was good because she quickly noticed that Asami was floundering. Obviously Asami hadn't expected to see her dad today (which was kind of Korra's fault), so she didn't have a story ready. Korra jumped in to save the day. "Dude. It was insane. Asami was walking to class and this guy on a skateboard plowed into her and broke her arm."

Mr. Sato's bushy eyebrows shot up. "Really?" He turned to Asami for confirmation. Asami managed a nod. "What was this boy's name? I'd like to complain to the school if this is how careless the students are."

"Mako," Korra blurted out without thinking. Hopefully Mr. Sato wouldn't actually complain because as often as she was annoyed at Mako, it didn't mean she wanted him to get into trouble. "But it really was an accident. Plus, he broke his board and has been on foot ever since."

Mr. Sato shook his head, but held out a hand to Korra. "I'm Hiroshi Sato, Asami's father. I'm guessing you're her roommate, Korra?"

"Yes, sir." Korra shook the hand solemnly and fought off the urge to look at Asami. When she let go, she glanced around and saw that all of the runners had started to pack up the tent, so the three of them went back outside where they would be out of the way. Asami hadn't said much. The girl who had come alive in the presence of her friends had returned to the dormant state in which she sometimes dwelt.

"Can I take you girls out to lunch? I'd love to get to know you better, Korra, and to spend more time with my daughter. I haven't seen her since I dropped her off at school!"

Without even a glance in Asami's direction, Korra knew her roommate was panicking and that there was nothing she would like to do less than have dinner with her father. "Maybe another time. We have to get back to school to go to a study session for our Intro to Business test on Monday." That seemed like a good reason, right?

"That's a shame, but school always comes first. I wouldn't want you to miss out on studying with your friends," he said gamely.

Korra wasn't sure, but she thought she might have heard something menacing in his words. Or maybe she was just looking for it. It was hard to tell. On the surface he seemed nice, but Asami's story told her otherwise. Either way, she wanted him to know just how awesome she thought Asami was, so she said, "Asami's leading the study group," Korra bragged. "She knows the material inside and out, so she helps us get ready for exams."

Mr. Sato gave Korra a tight smile and said, "Asami, can I talk to you in private for a minute?"

Shit. There was nothing Korra could do to prevent this situation. She knew that he couldn't hurt Asami physically; they were in public after all. But he could say horrible things to her, which was just as bad. Shit. Korra watched Asami and her dad walk fifty meters away. Shit. Shit. Shit. Maybe it would be okay? But what if it wasn't? Just as she was about to go after them, Kate and Kai came up beside her and distracted her. "Will you make sure she knows we really want to stay friends with her?" Kate asked.

Without taking her eyes off her roommate, Korra nodded. "Yeah, of course."

Kai caught the direction of her gaze. "Things aren't so good between them, are they?"

"Huh?" Korra was only half-listening.

"I grew up in an orphanage in India. I know what fear looks like. She's terrified of him," Kai said softly. His words tore her attention from Asami and she really looked at him for the first time. Knowing his background certainly explained his slight accent and fit the story about his misbehavior when he started school. Korra shrugged. She didn't know what to tell him. "You don't have to say anything," he said. "I can see it. You can count on Kate and me to have her back."

Kate nodded, though she didn't speak. Korra could see a thousand memories in Kate's eyes as she put together the signs she had missed until this point. If Korra ever had any doubts about what happened to Asami, they were swept away after talking to her friends. "Thanks, guys." Asami made her way back over to them then, her father heading in the direction of the parking lot. "I'll make sure she stays in touch."

After they said their goodbyes, Korra and Asami walked slowly toward the car Korra had borrowed from Tenzin. Neither of them spoke until they were halfway back to campus. "My dad said one of my professors contacted him and told him I'm struggling in their class," Asami said finally, breaking the silence. She rested her head against the window and closed her eyes. "It must have been Tenzin. I have over a hundred percent in all my other classes. I only have a ninety-eight in his." She let out a defeated sigh at yet another betrayal. "I thought he was safe, but I guess not."

"It wasn't Tenzin," Korra told her. So maybe she hadn't been reading too much into Hiroshi's tone and expressions. She would have to watch herself; it was so easy to be swayed into believing him. Korra couldn't let Asami think Tenzin would go behind her back, not when he was a guaranteed support if she ever needed him. "I know it wasn't. You know how your dad tells you lies sometimes? I think this was one of them. I don't think any of your professors contacted him. It doesn't make sense."

"Why?" Asami asked heavily.

"Well, first of all because you're doing really well in all of your classes. I'm pretty sure you have the highest grade in Tenzin's. Second of all, I don't think professors are allowed to contact your parents without your permission. They mentioned something about that during orientation."

Asami raised her head and watched Korra closely as if trying to determine from the side of her face if she was telling the truth. Korra could feel her gaze and if she weren't afraid of crashing and killing them both in a fiery wreck, she would have met it head on. Eventually she nodded. "Okay. I can accept that. It's just hard for me to tell whether or not he's lying."

"I'll be your touchstone," Korra offered. "You can run things by me and I'll let you know if they sound wonky."

"Thanks," Asami murmured. She turned her attention to the loose padding on her cast. "He also said he didn't want me to be friends with you anymore."

"What?!" Korra exclaimed, tearing her gaze from the road. "Are you serious? Why?"

"He said you were a bad influence, that you were taking away from my studies."

Korra shook her head in disbelief. "Damn. I guess I won't be receiving a Christmas card from him them."

The corner of Asami's mouth quirked upward. "Definitely not. We're Jewish."

At that incongruous response, Korra burst into laughter. Of all the things she expected Asami to say, telling her she was Jewish had not occurred to her. Once she started laughing, she found she couldn't stop. Even Asami joined in. This day had been filled with the unexpected, not least of which included Mr. Sato's appearance at the meet. Korra couldn't blame Kate for getting it wrong; it was difficult to make sure someone didn't come to an event without tipping your hand.

"Hang on. I thought you were Japanese. You're Jewish, too?" Korra asked. She supposed it wasn't unheard of, but…well, she'd never heard of it.

"My mom's mom was Jewish. She raised my mom as Jewish, so my mom did the same for me. My dad converted when he married my mom."

"That's awesome! My family is technically Russian Orthodox, but in the past couple of generations, my people have tried to return to the old ways. We still celebrate Christmas and Easter and stuff, but we've started to become more traditionally spiritual. I love it so much! We've also reinstituted the potlatch for special events. It's basically a gift-giving feast." This was all the stuff Korra couldn't talk about outside of Alaska because nobody cared. When Asami mentioned her heritage, it was like the floodgates opened.

"What's the name of your people?"

"Lingít. You'll have to come visit and I can show you around and stuff!"

Asami gave Korra a shy smile. "That sounds nice."

"Great! We'll make it happen!"