Dazzling, blue eyes stare into hers, framed with messy strands of damp, brown hair, encasing a beautiful, bronze-skinned face. It's someone new, a mysterious stranger.
The woman's name, Bolin says, is Korra.
Asami's intrigued, and more than a little drunk. She wants to introduce herself right away, but tumbles forwards from her stool, falling almost headfirst onto the floor, and somehow crashes into Korra's blue kimono. A hand grabs hers, and she notices that the skin's calloused and rough in places. It's a fighter's hand, tough from holding a sword, and dry lines of skin at the fingertips from where one would draw a bow.
She moves her lips close to Korra's ear, an inch away from a very temping, tan neck, close enough to feel heat radiating from the pulse within. She holds onto Korra's shoulders to steady herself, and can't help but notice how they're solid and… strong, unusual, for a woman. She leans in closer still, about to whisper some drunken slur about sake, but instead, she closes the inch-gap, places her lips against that warm, inviting flesh, and revels in the scent and taste.
Korra gasps in surprise and pulls away, bright, blue eyes wide with confusion. But thankfully, after a moment's pause, Korra's expression softens, a warm hand glides behind her neck, fingers splaying into her black strands, and their lips come together… slowly, in a gentle kiss.
It somehow feels like the most right thing Asami's done in a long time. She returns the kiss, sighing against Korra's lips as arms close around her waist, pulling them closer.
She wants more, so much more… She slides her hands under the blue Kimono, where there's surprisingly warm, smooth flesh beneath. Everywhere that her hands roam, she finds feminine, gentle curves fused with firm muscles, in all of the right places. She gasps in surprise when Korra interrupts her searching hands, grabs her from behind, and hoists her up onto a nearby table.
Korra displays a confident, lop-sided grin, before lunging forwards into another kiss, this time prying with a hungry tongue, which she accepts into her mouth without a moment's pause. She hasn't kissed like this before. It feels unusual, but exhilarating, and she's surprised at how good Korra's body feels against hers, like it belongs there. She wraps her legs around Korra's waist, pulling herself against a firm abdomen, finding much needed friction against her now-aching centre.
Korra shifts position, trailing kisses and gentle bites across her neck, and she curls her fingers into Korra's still-damp hair, groaning, losing herself.
"More... Korra…"
She's about to surrender herself to anything and everything that Korra wants to do to her, but a nagging thought suddenly takes form. Wait, weren't Bolin and Mako here? She starts to lose focus at the notion, feeling suddenly dazed and confused. Korra begins to fade away, and entrancing lips and warm flesh became nothing more than a memory. She reaches out to try and grab Korra, to keep her.
"No! Don't go!"
Despite her wishes, her thoughts shift to a different memory. Korra, laughing and cheering, drunkenly stumbling across the floor of the bar, re-enacting a battle with the famous Yada brothers, leaders of their clan at the time. Even intoxicated, Korra's body moves with a grace beyond anything she's seen before. Invisible swords slash around with skill and ferocity, and blue eyes pierce into her, sharper than a needle. To move like this, even after so much sake, Korra must be an extremely skilled samurai.
Suddenly, Asami's mind rudely awakes the rest her body as the by-now obvious realisation hits.
"It's her!" she says out loud, to nobody in particular, sitting bolt upright. She winces, her head sore from the second bout of Sake she'd been bullied into drinking before heading home late last night.
Of course it's her. Asami feels frustrated at not seeing it sooner, but then again, her brain had been addled with a fuzzy layer of alcohol for most of the day, evening and then night.
Now what?
Her head pulses with another sharp throb of pain, and from the darkness outside, she knows it's too early to discuss things with her father.
She heads downstairs to get a cup of water, her mind racing as she walks. Korra's the samurai? She did all of that, single-handedly? And what was with that dream anyway?
Asami pauses in her tracks at the last thought, feeling heat rise to her cheeks and a thump in her chest. She's never dreamt about being with another woman before. Not in that way. Whilst such matters are acceptable in her stature, they're still considered unusual, and she's honestly never considered that she could feel attraction to another woman. If this even is attraction, she muses.
But then she remembers the dream in vivid detail, and her cheeks flush for the second time as she shakily pours herself a drink from a jug on the counter. It's probably best to just forget about it, she thinks, as she heads back upstairs, determined to sleep off the rest of her hangover.
::
Korra snaps awake at the sound of Naga, neighing and grunting downstairs. She quickly tightens her night robe, grabs her daisho, and runs downstairs two steps at a time. She sprints past Mako and Bolin without saying a word.
She's greeted with the sight of Pabu, laying on his back, with his belly exposed, as he playfully bats away Naga's nose with his large ginger paws every time she nudges it against him. He pats the massive snout again, and Naga snorts loudly then licks him, with a tongue almost as big as he.
She laughs loudly as she moves to greet the two.
"So you two are friends now, huh?"
As she strokes Naga's fur, memories of last night flood back, causing an almost painful whiplash in her mind.
Bolin had been relentless. No sooner had they finished their meal, than he'd dug out another two sacks worth of sake which just had to be tasted there and then, no waiting, no recovering, and no sobering up allowed.
Korra groans as she feels the start of a hangover creep into her temples. She closes her eyes, and tries to focus her thoughts.
They'd laughed, and they'd joked. The other three had even convinced her to talk about her previous adventures, and if she recalls correctly, she'd done just that, with great gusto.
At the memory of her antics, she pushes her forehead into Naga's fur, trying to wish away the stupidity and brazenness of her actions. She isn't sure how much she's revealed, but she's fairly certain she had the sense to stick to her older adventures, rather than mention the more recent one.
She walks back inside, determined to question the brothers about their night.
"You okay?" Mako asks, and Korra feels a little bad that she rudely dashed by them just now.
"Yeah, sorry. I heard Naga, and… reflexes, that's all."
"Samurai reflexes!?" Bolin asks, energetically.
"How the hell can you not be hungover?" she snaps, and holds one hand to a still-throbbing temple.
"Ohhh, I have my ways," Bolin says, wiggling an eyebrow, before taking out a muck-coloured flask, "Hangover remedy. Guaranteed."
"I'm not drinking that." She states, folding her arms.
"Good call." Mako says, dryly, as he busies himself tidying the bar.
"Suit yourself. You were more fun last night," Bolin pouts.
"So about that…" Korra attempts to smile, "What exactly… did I do?"
Mako laughs, "You were bragging, Korra. About your amazing swordplay, and how you've taken down some of the most feared bandits in history. You even acted some of it out! I tried to stop you."
She groans, bangs her head on the hard, wooden surface of the bar, and then immediately regrets her action as a fresh bout of pain throbs through her temples.
"So, she knows?" she mumbles.
"Knows what?" Bolin asks loudly, then flinches as the other two shush him.
"Well, she was pretty wasted. So who knows?" Mako shrugs, and she's surprised to sense no anger in his tone. After all, if she's exposed her involvement in any of this, then there'll surely be no payment, for either of them.
She hopes that Asami won't remember much, or put two and two together, otherwise she'll be in breach of contract, and still in debt to Mako. Then I'm stuck here, unless… She grunts in irritation, as the thought of sneaking away creeps into her head. She's a wanderer, a Ronin, but she'd never go back on her word. But still, her feet itch at the thought of staying here for much longer.
"Korra, I think you can relax." Mako says, as if he senses her anxiety, "From what I've heard, if… you did save Asami's life, I doubt Mr Sato would refuse payment, whatever happens."
"But I just… I don't usually mess things up, and he was very specific about Asami not finding out!" she exclaims.
"He's like that sometimes, but it's only because she scares him a little," Mako laughs, "He's a good guy, a fair guy, honestly… I think if she knows, then she knows. She tends to work these things out anyway."
Korra thinks on this a while, in silence. She welcomes a fresh glass of water and a roll from Mako, and eats whilst contemplating her options. Eventually, she makes up her mind.
"If you're sure he'll pay, I'm just going to leave today."
"Awww!" Bolin exclaims, "Come on, we only just met!"
"It's just not my thing Bolin," she sighs, "I don't stick around, otherwise trouble finds me, and then people get hurt."
"But aren't you due to meet Hirosh… err I mean, Mr Sato?" Mako asks.
"You don't need to pretend anymore, Mako", she rolls her eyes, "we've already discussed how you all know each other so well."
Actually, quite a lot about their past was revealed last night. Korra hadn't been particularly surprised to find out that Mako and Asami used to date, it makes perfect sense given that Mr. Sato invested so much in their bar, and she wonders if the old man was disappointed when it hadn't worked out between them.
Pabu jumps on the bar, and she strokes him, lost in thought. He purrs happily.
"So, you're just gonna abandon Asami?" Bolin asks, out of the blue.
"What?" Korra gawps, "What does that mean?"
"Well she's the one you were showing off to all night," Mako smiles smugly, "And she's the one you took home atop Naga."
"WHAT?"
"You really don't remember!?" Mako exclaims, and starts to laugh incredulously, with Bolin soon joining in.
She digs her thumbs into her temples. There's blank spots, sure, but she'd remember something like this. And yet, the more she thinks about it, the more she remembers. Hooves, thudding into the ground. Laughter from behind, and arms tightly holding her waist. Stopping, in case a suddenly-nauseous Asami needed to empty her stomach, then waiting the longest time only for her to realise she didn't. And finally, dropping Asami off, just outside of a ridiculously large house.
Well… Shit.
"So, you love the layyydeees?" Bolin rolls his tongue on the word.
"Ugh, whatever. I was drunk," she pouts, "I can't believe I barely remember this."
"Oh yeah, there's a teeny, tiny chance I gave you the stronger stuff," Bolin grins.
"You did WHAT?" she has to bite back the brunt of her sudden anger, the thought of drinking something whilst being unaware reminding her of a bad place, and a bad time.
"Well you were almost sober compared to the rest of us!" he defends.
"Well… that's not a bad thing! I'm tolerant to alcohol for a reason!" she's shouting now, "What if someone had come in here to attack me, and I was all over the place? You could have gotten me killed!"
"Korra, we wouldn't have let that happen." Mako says, giving her a suddenly stern glare.
"Ugh, I'm sorry, just… you guys have no idea how many people want my head. And Bolin, don't ever, ever hide anything like that from me again." She rubs her stiff neck, and starts to feel a little guilty when she can see that Bolin's almost in tears from her outburst.
She sighs. Her feet are definitely itching now.
"Look, Mako… can you talk to Mr. Sato and get the money? I don't really need it, and I owe you anyway."
"What? Wait, Korra…"
"I insist. Maybe I'll come back one day, you can put me up again. Deal?" she tries to smile, though it's an effort. She just wants to get out of here.
"I uh… I guess so?" Mako seems hurt, and Bolin looks even closer to tears.
"Look, I like you guys, I like all of you, I just don't do the whole make friends and settle down thing," she explains, though she feels like she's trying to convince herself more than anybody.
She storms upstairs, angry at herself more than anyone. Angry that let herself get into such an intoxicated state after all of her strict training. Angry that she still can't remember everything from last night. Angry that she drank without knowing what was in her drink, and after everything she's been through.
It's definitely time to get out of here, she thinks, as she packs up her belongings and changes into her outdoor garb.
::
Asami coaxes her steed into a gallop, heading towards the Drunken Dragon at full speed. She winces with every thud of hooves against the ground, and desperately tries to ignore her sore head. She thinks back to her conversation with her father a little earlier.
"Dad…"
He's sat in his favourite, comfy armchair, looking at her with tired, almost sad eyes. The painting of her mother is still there, on his dresser. It's never moved, and his heart's never been the same since she died.
"Dad… I know what you did." She's speaking softly. Wants him to open up.
His face crumples, looks like he's about to cry. Her heart melts at the sight, and she pulls him into a tight hug.
"I'm sorry, Asami." His voice is deep, tinged with emotion, "I had to at least try to protect you. I can't lose you…"
"It's okay… you did the right thing. She saved me, Dad." She pulls away from the hug, musters the biggest smile she can manage.
"So… I don't have to deal with angry-Asami today?" he chuckles, and she laughs, as the tension between them evaporates.
"I'll only be angry if you don't pay her well, she did an amazing job."
He nods in agreement with a big smile, wipes a tear from the corner of his cheek.
"I'm going to go visit her now, I want to thank her in person. Do you want me to pay her?"
"No… I'd like to thank her as well. Ride safely, sweetheart."
She kisses him on the cheek, and ruffles his soft, grey hair before heading out.
"Love you, Dad." She says, just as she leaves.
As she rides onwards, she remembers fragments about last night, like how a rather intoxicated Korra had ever so sweetly insisted on riding her home, and how she'd almost puked right in front of her. She winces at the thought… so elegant… well done, Asami.
She also recalls that she'd wanted nothing more than to kiss Korra goodnight before entering her home, but hadn't. She'd regretted the choice, with every step she'd taken towards her bed.
She still regrets it, now, and she isn't sure why she feels this way. With Mako, she'd developed a crush pretty early on, but back then, she'd been a child… about seventeen years old. She's twenty-three now, an adult. She doesn't do crushes. Yet every time she thinks about those blue eyes, firm shoulders, or the not-insignificant fact that Korra's possibly the most skilled warrior she's ever met, she finds herself feeling a little… overwhelmed. Flustered, even.
She approaches the Drunken Dragon and pushes those thoughts to the back of her mind, reassuring herself that it's likely hormones, and that she should ignore such ridiculous impulses. If nothing else, she owes the woman a debt of gratitude, and it will be paid. And that's all there is to it.
She breathes a sigh of relief to see Naga still tied up outside. She had an awful feeling that Korra might already be gone.
"Hey Naga," she says quietly, introducing her own horse, "This is Aiko."
The two mares grunt, rub noses together and seem to be agreeable with one another, so Asami ties Aiko up right next to Naga, and then heads inside.
"Asami!" Bolin shouts with a grin, but seems somehow nervous.
"Hey Bolin, what's up?" she waves, takes a stool beside him and tries to casually ask, "Where's Korra?"
"Hah straight to the point, eh?" Bolin elbows her.
"Ow! Ugh! Don't, Bolin, I'm still a little… rough from last night," she winces. She's in no mood to play fight.
"She's upstairs." Mako says, looking glum.
They're interrupted with the sound of Korra's footsteps thumping down the stairs rapidly. Asami catches her gaze as she walks briskly past them, but feels her heart sink as she realises the truth. She's leaving.
She gets up from her stool and strides outside, where she finds Korra attaching several belongings to Naga's saddle. The Samurai's back is turned from her, and she has to suddenly restrain herself from running a hand down Korra's back.
Instead, she coughs.
"Korra."
Korra pauses in her fervent actions, and turns around. Their eyes meet, and her breath catches in her throat. She's surprised at just how beautiful those eyes really are, even in contrast to her dream.
"Hey Asami, what's up?"
"So, you're leaving?" she manages.
"Yeah, I generally don't stick around in one place too long." Korra smiles.
"Why? I mean… why go, so soon?" she's hurt, and she really can't explain why, "Korra, I know… I know it was you."
"Yeah… Mako said you'd figure it out," Korra chuckles.
"You saved my life. You saved more lives than you probably realise…" she reaches her hand out, and grabs Korra's palm, searching into blue eyes with her own, "Why are you in such a hurry?"
She pauses, suddenly lost for what to say next. Then, before Korra can answer, she has an idea.
"Did… did the guys even show you around town?" it's a long shot, but it's all she can think of.
"I uh…" Korra seems hesitant, with eyes cast downward, focusing on their joined hands.
"I'll show you around" she quickly adds, "I'll buy you lunch, it's the least I can do. Then you can leave. Deal?"
Korra stares down at their hands a few moments longer, then finally meets her eyes, and she thinks that she can see a blush forming against those tanned cheeks.
Suddenly, Naga snorts, and nudges a large snout against Korra's back.
"Okay… Naga says yes, so deal," Korra laughs.
Her heart thumps against her chest at the response. She throws open the bar door and shouts, "We'll be back later, can you guys tend to the horses?"
Mako smiles and raises an eyebrow, Bolin gives a thumbs up, and as they head out together she's feeling strangely elated that she'll get to spend just a little more time with this mystery woman… with Korra.
