I do not own any of the characters in the following chapter apart from Zhan Fang (still hate him) and Kojiro. All credit for Asami, Korra, and supporting characters go to Bryke. Read and enjoy, leave a review if you feel like it.
Chapter 8: The Comfort of a True Love
Asami almost immediately regretted waking up. Her mouth was dry and tasted like sandpaper. Her head pounded as though gongs were being played next to her ears. Her face felt stiff and there were trails of salt running from her eyes. The room was flooded with light. Or at least that was how it seemed to Asami's eyes. More than anything her stomach growled at being deprived of food and yet there was a sickening pit that she was now all too familiar with. Movement was difficult as her limbs felt as though they were made of lead. She felt a comforting weight on her abdomen and when she looked down she saw Korra asleep half falling off the chair she was sitting on.
Her hair was a spiky, tangled mess and her clothes were rumpled and looked like they hadn't been washed in some time. The weight of Korra on Asami made the dreadful feeling in her gut and her mind fade slightly, but it was nowhere near enough to make her forget what had happened.
She thought about the meeting and how she had been so powerless to stop what had happened. She thought of each of the directors and found that most of them were just meaningless faces in the mire of her memories. The face that truly stood out was that of Zhan Fang. As much as the verdict of the directors was she could somehow still remember the smug smile on Zhan's face. The though made her vision go red with rage. Then she thought of the older Kojiro. She should be furious with the old man but somehow found it difficult to do so. Her memories did little to abate the confused feelings she had. Part of her wanted to claw and tear at the old man for being the turning vote that had her removed from her position in the company. The other part was trying to reconcile the tired sad look the man had when he had made the fateful decision.
Before her thoughts could confound her any further she felt Korra groan and shift. Her eyes flickered open and Asami saw just how red they really were. She looked exhausted in more ways than one. Her eyes were bloodshot and carried heavy bags and dark circles. The moment they made eye contact Korra visibly relaxed and a huge sigh escaped her mouth. Before Asami could say anything Korra pulled her up out of the bed and hugged her so tightly Asami swore she felt several joints pop under the pressure.
"Don't EVER do that again," said Korra. Her voice sounded muffled but that might have been due to the fact that Asami was buried deep within her muscular arms and her ears were pressed up against Korra's chest. Asami could hear Korra's heart beating rapidly like a frightened rabbitsquirrel.
She tried to respond but found that her voice got caught in her throat. More than that she found she was far more content just absorbing the warmth around her letting the comfort try and wash away the pain she felt in her heart. Korra pulled back, her red eyes concerned and questioning. Her words only echoed what her eyes had already screamed.
"What happened?"
"I—" started Asami. It was hard to talk. Her throat was parched and talking felt like her vocal chords had been replaced with sandpaper. Wordlessly she gestured at a nearby pot of tea. Korra poured her a cup not noticing that it was cold. Asami didn't mind. She downed the transparent brown liquid and swallowed. It wasn't much liquid but the effect was immediate. Her throat sucked the liquid down as a desert drinks in the rain. She poured another cup and downed it just as quickly. It took her four cups of overly saturated, bitter tea before she was able to croak out an answer.
"I… lost the company." The realization hit her hard as her words confirmed to her heart that which she had already known in her mind. Her stomach lurched threatening to expel the recently acquired tea. She felt nauseous and wobbled. She was steadied as Korra caught her gently and reassuringly holding her up. Her eyes were as confused as her next word.
"What?"
"The directors of my company took it away." Asami sniffed as she fought back the tears that threatened to pour out of her already dry eyes. "They took away the thing that I had dedicated my life to. My father's dream… everything I'd been working towards is just… just… gone." At that point she couldn't hold the tears any longer and they came rushing out. She was thankful when Korra said nothing and simply held her tightly. Confirming the tragedy to herself threatened to break her into a thousand pieces that would never be reassembled. She cried softly as Korra simply held her. The silence was only broken by her muffled sobs.
Korra held Asami not knowing or even caring how much time passed. Seeing Asami as helpless as she looked ripped Korra's heart open and set it bleeding. She was never one for the wise or comforting words. But she knew that no words would fix this so she simply resolved to be there for Asami. So she held the sobbing woman in her arms and hoped that her presence was enough to soak up some of the grief and pain.
Eventually Asami stopped crying. Her eyes were dry again having cried out all of the water she had gotten from the tea. She pulled away from Korra, not because she didn't find the embrace comforting, but more so that she could begin to piece herself together. Her mind was in tatters and her heart was a pile of shattered glass each piece threatening to slice deeper if moved in any way.
"I need a bath," she croaked.
"I'll get it ready." Korra got up and moved towards the nearby door but stopped when Asami grabbed her wrist.
"Can you stay?" asked Asami, "I'm not sure… I'm not sure if I can be alone right now."
Korra saw the earnest pain in Asami's eyes and decided that preparing a bath could wait. Asami needed her now. So she nodded silently and sat down on the bed. Asami moved over and gave Korra a little more space to sit. She lay her head against Korra's chest listening to her heartbeat. It had slowed considerably and the strong consistent thumps calmed Asami. The gentle pulse of her breathing lulled her and eased the pain. Asami closed her tired eyes and was only vaguely aware that someone had come in and spoken with Korra. They had just as quickly as they had come but that was of no concern to Asami. She was simply glad that in all the pain and suffering she had Korra to rely on. In a way she felt a strength through Korra that she knew she could not have alone. Korra was her buffer, her shield against the storm, her lifeline and she was happy to stay in the safety of her shadow. She drifted off to sleep still feeling the sadness and pain but knowing that she would never be alone and that if she fell, Korra would help her up.
Asami's breathing became deep and relaxed. Her body slumped and Korra lay her back down on the bed taking care not to wake her. Just before she had fallen asleep again Pemma had slid the door open carrying a new batch of tea and wearing a worried face. They exchanged a few words and Pemma visibly relaxed as Korra reassured her that Asami had awoken. Pemma asked if there was anything she could do and Korra simply asked for a few towels and that one of the larger tubs be filled with hot water for a bath. Pemma hurried off to see to those things leaving Korra alone with nothing but her thoughts and the sleeping Asami.
Korra felt the ache of exhaustion upon her eyes. She had been awake for what felt like days consuming nothing but tea and cyclically pacing worrying meditating worrying and pacing some more. Her every thought had been consumed by the mystery that had been the cause of Asami's collapse into her arms the previous night.
Korra felt a cacophony of emotions roiling within her body. She felt anger at the directors of Future Industries for having ousted their own leader in favor of another. She had felt fear in thinking Asami would not wake from her trauma. She had felt anxiety when she had not known the reason for her pain and overwhelming sadness.
She toyed with the idea of leveling the temporary headquarters of Future Industries and forcing them to take Asami back. It was an entertaining thought but not at all a practical one. Making any physically aggressive move towards the company would simply secure their assumption that Asami was not fit to lead the company. They would see Asami as a spoiled girl that would resort to violence in order to get her way and that would in no way help.
Korra tossed around several other ideas, many of which were simply fantasies involving skills that Korra had never learned of much less mastered. Before she could fully submerge into a brooding mood Pemma opened the door again and let her know that the bath had been drawn and that it was ready. Korra was pleased for the distraction and roused Asami who blinked tiredly but nodded when asked about the bath.
Korra helped Asami out of bed and walked her down the hall to the bathing room. The two of them stripped their clothes off and threw them into a basket which Pemma quickly confiscated and saying, with a smile, "the two of you should just relax. I'll get this taken care of." With that she disappeared with the wrinkled pile of clothes that had seen better days.
Korra and Asami wrapped themselves in the thick towels Pemma had given them and walked into the steaming bath. Korra felt her exhaustion slip away as the steam enveloped her. She looked over at Asami who looked a thousand times better as the humid air served to relax her as well. At Korra's insistence Asami sat on a stool near a large mirror. Korra waterbent some of the steaming water from the bath and gently let the water run over Asami warming her and wetting her skin. She found a flowery scented soap and began to gently scrub at Asami's back.
With each scub Asami felt her pain ease just a little. She knew it was a temporary solution but the relief was welcome none the less. She undid her towel and lay it across her lap letting Korra wash every inch of her back. Asami took care of the parts she could reach. She used a slightly abrasive block to scrape away some of the tougher skin that had decided to take residence on her elbows and knees. The faint smell of flowers reminded her of the vague memories of her mother and they relaxed her.
She flipped around and gently demanded that it was Korra's turn. Korra frowned but turned as she realized that Asami would not stand for being the only one to be taken care of. Asami filled a shallow bamboo bucket with water and grabbed the same bar of soak Korra had used earlier. She turned back to Korra and dropped the bucket in shock. Korra jumped slightly at the noise.
"What happened?"
"Your… Your back… why is it all bruised?"
"Oh… damn I thought those would have faded by now."
"What do you mean?"
"It's nothing really."
"No, tell me."
"You're not going to like it."
"Tell me anyways."
Korra sighed, she had really hoped to avoid this. She partially wanted to lie but knew that Asami, no matter what, would be able to see through it. She took a deep breath.
"You probably don't remember this… but you did this."
Asami drew back horrified. Korra sensed her departure and turned to face her eyes filling with concern.
"Asami, it wasn't your fault."
"Of course it was! How could you say otherwise?"
"Because you weren't in your right mind. You were crying and flailing and I had no idea what had happened or even what to do. So I… I held you."
"And I did this?"
"It's really not as bad as it looks."
"It looks pretty bad."
Korra turned back around showing the purple bruises again. "You're surprisingly strong Asami. But at the time I wasn't worried about that. I was just worried about you."
"But you could have stopped me!"
"And what good would that have done? I didn't know in the slightest what had happened. The best plan I could think of was simply being there for you. Sure you wailed on my back a little and, while it did hurt, I knew it was nothing compared to what you were feeling."
"But… I…"
"'Sami. If this happened again I would do the exact same thing. I wouldn't stop you from trying to hurt me, spirits know that I heal quickly. I would take every lash, every strike, and every punch you could throw at me if it would help you even in the slightest way."
"Korra… I'm sorry."
"Don't be, because I'm not." Korra faced Asami again and smiled warmly. "Now you were about to clean my back?"
Asami was speechless. She was so lucky to have Korra. She could think of no one else who could easily shrug off a dozen dark bruises and simultaneously set her heart at rest with one smile. Mutely Asami picked up the soak and lathered up a nearby sponge. She poured the hot water on Korra's back and started scrubbing.
To her credit Korra hardly flinched. Asami could tell that the bruises were deep but that Korra was doing her best not to worry Asami. Once or twice her face grimaced as Asami pressed against one of the deeper bruises, but the look quickly faded.
After had scrubbed one another they settled down into the bath together lounging and soaking in the heat. This was no hot spring but it was almost as good. The hot water and steam distracted Asami so much that she almost felt normal again. The pain was just an ache now. She knew that in the coming days the pain would come and go in waves. She knew that some days the pain might even overwhelm her. But she took solace that Korra was going to walk the path with her every step of the way and that, if and when she fell, that Korra would pull her to her feet, dust her off, and help her along.
They had stayed in the bath until the water had run cool. Asami and Korra vigorously toweled off wiping away the traces of water that still stuck to their bodies. A new set of clothes had been laid out for the two of them. Pemma had gone to lengths to provide the two of them with some comfortable sleeping clothes so she could wash their other garments.
They quickly dressed and returned to the room. Korra walked in but Asami stood outside the room.
"'Sami?"
"I just wanted to say something."
"What?"
"I just want to let you know that since I'm no longer head of the company… I'm broke."
"And?"
"Well I thought that would matter…"
"'Sami," Korra grabbed Asami around the waist and pulled her into the room and held her tight against her body, "You're an idiot for thinking that." Her eyes were deadly serious but her smile was sincere. "I never thought about your money when I fell in love with you. Never once."
"Yeah but now I'm completely broke. I mean, no airships, no Satomobiles, no fancy restaurants."
"'Sami, look at me. Do you think I want or need any of that? The only one I want and need is you. Everything else is extra. Sure things would be nice but they wouldn't make me happy. You Asami, you make me happy. And I will make you happy even if it is the last thing I do."
"And you say you don't have a way with words."
"I don't, I just say the things that seem like a good idea."
"Well don't change that about yourself ever." Asami gave Korra a quick kiss. The rush of emotion further dulled the pain. "C'mon, let's sleep. We've got a long day ahead of us."
Whoooo boy... I REALLY REALLY hope this chapter works out... honestly after last week's chapter I was certain I had dug myself a hole that I wouldn't be able to climb out of. If you readers can't tell I get self-conscious about my writing. Anyways I hope this chapter is a worthy follow up to the chaos and darkness that was last week's chapter.
I initially had these grand plans of doing a 5 part stages of grief chapter. You guys have no idea just how many drafts I went through before finally settling down and simply letting my imagination do its work. After all the pain of last week I felt that you guys as the readers (as well as myself) needed something comforting. No the challenges aren't over yet and Asami will have to come to terms with no longer being the President and CEO of Future Industries. But she needed a hug and I wanted to give her just that. So yeah... I hope this chapter was a sufficiently satisfying "hug".
As always thanks for reading. I'm overjoyed by the amount of support I get from you readers, it keeps me going. I do read all of your reviews and, though I don't respond to all of them, I do take notes on your suggestions. I want to write something that you are all eager and happy to read but I will stay true to my own plans. I'm working on a stand alone story for Korrasami and will post it when I have decided it is worth reading, look forward to it. In a way the stand alone happens in line with the overall arc of this fanfiction, its just set in the future so I'm sort of playing catch up with my chapters. Thank you again for all your support, I will keep writing and working on my narrative skill.
NEXT TIME ON THE FUTURE IS WHATEVER WE WISH (that is a silly name... taking suggestions now) - Asami figures out how to live like Korra did upon arriving in Republic City four years ago... penniless. Also one hell of a satisfying punch. The triumphant return of Varrick (okay triumphant is just something he wanted put in). And slowly letting the cat out of the bag (several of the women already know, cause hey they're awesome like that).
