A/N: Written for the Probending Circuit.
Prompts:
Word- Triple
Smell- Peppermint
Object- Tricycle
Third Person Restriction
Word Count- 2,467
Mako scowled, crossing his arms over his chest, and glancing over at his two companions as he walked along through the parking lot.
"Tell me again why it's so important that I'm here while YOU two shop for baby stuff?" He raised a questioning eyebrow at the two women on his left.
The two women in question being Republic City's dynamic duo, and most famous couple, Asami and Korra Sato, turned and gave the moody firebender their most charming smiles.
"Because," a very pregnant Korra told him sweetly, as she waddled along next to her wife. "You wanted to hang out today. We told you we had this trip planned for a while and you agreed, so this is what we're doing. Deal with it." She stuck her tongue out at him and he scoffed, turning away and scowling deeply.
"You deal with it," he muttered under his breath.
Asami chuckled lightly, patting the young man's arm affectionately. "Come on Mako, it'll be fun. Besides, what if we need someone to do heavy lifting? Korra's pregnant and I'm in a dress, so that's where you come in Mr. Manly Man." She reached up and poked him on the nose with a long, pale finger. "Don't you want to be a gentleman and help us poor innocent, helpless womenfolk?" She batted her eyelashes dramatically at him, and she and Korra shared a laugh.
He rolled his eyes. "Yeah," he spoke, sounding utterly unconvinced. "Innocent and helpless. Right." A long-suffering sigh escaped from between his lips. "Whatever. Let's just get this over with."
"That's the spirit!" Korra exclaimed. She thrust a fist in the air enthusiastically, her other arm locked with that of her wife. " Now onward to adventure! Team Avatar's finest conquers the mall! The Avatar, the Beautiful badass and their trusty pack mule!"
"Ooh, Beautiful badass," Asami giggled. "I like that." She gazed lovingly at her wife.
"Hey!" Mako protested his new title. The women ignored him.
Korra smirked back at her. "Does that mean I get brownie points?"
"Hmmm," Asami pretended to contemplate, running a finger down the Avatar's cheek. "I suppose it does." She leaned in, pecking Korra's nose with her lips, causing the Avatar to giggle and blush.
"Uggh," Mako complained. "Could you two be any more disgustingly adorable?" He realized his mistake almost immediately when the two women shared a look, their eyes glinting dangerously with something that had spelled doom for numerous opponents on the battlefield.
They turned to him with innocent smiles on their faces, but a look in their eyes that screamed out, "Challenge accepted."
Asami turned to Korra, and brushed some of the dark skinned woman's hair behind her ear. "How are you feeling SWEETIE? You're not too hot are you BABE?"
"No," Korra returned, barely concealing her growing smirk. "I'm great 'SAMIKINS. Though I could use a milkshake at some point POOKIE."
Asami gave her a radiant smile. "Whatever you want SUGAR."
The two leaned in, exchanging a series of increasingly loud and obnoxious kisses, giggling the whole time.
Mako kept his gaze forward the whole time, resolutely trudging forward despite the display going on adjacent to him. He couldn't help catching glimpses out of the corner of his eye, and the smacking of lips was loud in his ears.
Luckily for the distressed male, the trio entered the mall at that moment, the cool relief of the building's air conditioning washing over them. The girls, thankfully for Mako, halted their display.
Almost immediately two mall attendants stationed at the doors rushed the trio.
"Hello and welcome to Avatar Korra Shopping Mall!" one spouted off loudly.
"Is there anything we can assist you with today?" the other continued just as loudly.
Then it happened. Mako could see the pause then the flash of recognition in the two ladies' eyes as they recognized Korra.
"OH MY GOSH, AVATAR KORRA!" Both women were screeching now, and Mako was surprised that the windows didn't shatter along with his eardrums.
The two uniformed women swarmed Korra talking a mile a minute. "Oh my gosh I can't believe you're really here!"
"Can I have your autograph!?"
"So you really are pregnant! Can I touch your stomach?!"
"Is it a boy or a girl!?"
"What are you going to name it?!"
"Can you name it after me?!"
"Can I pick a name!?"
"Can I babysit?!"
"I have a cousin who's pregnant. You two should totally set up a play date for your kids!"
Korra, to Mako's worry, was becoming steadily more and more annoyed with the unwanted attention, her expression changing from one of annoyed tolerance to irritation.
"Ladies," he tried intervening. "I think we're good here. If you would just…" but he didn't get to finish, his statements being totally ignored. Then disaster struck. One of the mall workers reached out and laid a brazen hand on Korra's swollen stomach sending the irritated pregnant Avatar in to full blown anger.
"Hey!" she shouted indignantly. "Hands off!" Korra then preceded to airbend the woman in to the nearest fountain, her body landing with a tremendous splash. The woman's companion, with a quick bow and apology, beat a hasty and wise retreat.
Asami moved in to attempt to placate her fuming wife. "Hey," the CEO spoke softly, rubbing the Avatar's arm. "You ok?"
"Can you believe them?" Korra exclaimed indignantly, turning to Asami. "I'm the Avatar, not a petting zoo!"
Asami pressed a soothing kiss to her wife's forehead. "You sure are babe, and you showed 'em that."
"You never seemed to mind when Bolin and I did it," Mako put in, perhaps foolishly. "And Tenzin and his family are all over you whenever you visit."
Korra's steely gaze turned to him and he had a moment where he feared for his life.
"That's different," Korra told him bluntly. "All you guys are like family, and when you do it, it makes me feel loved. When strangers do it it's just annoying. Besides, you guys always ask if it's ok first." She turned her attention away from the firebender and walked on with Asami.
Mako opened his mouth to say something else, but quickly thought better of it and closed it, following meekly behind the two women.
"'Sami," Korra spoke after a while, having calmed down. "Did you really have to name the mall after me?"
Mako shook his head. It amazed him how Korra could go from loud and angry, to meek and bashful so quickly. He'd blame it all on the hormones if he wasn't so familiar with Korra.
"Of course I did," the engineer told her as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "After you defeated Kuvira, I figured you deserved something to reward you."
"You're reward enough for me beautiful," Korra answered instantly, making the dark-haired woman blush.
Asami shoved her lightly. "Stop it."
Korra pulled her in close. "Never." She planted a loud wet kiss right on her wife's lips.
Mako rolled his eyes.
Their first stop was not, in fact, a baby store at all, but a popular clothing boutique.
"Uhhh," Mako let out in confusion. "Girls, what are we doing here?"
Asami looked back at him with an eyebrow raised. "Shopping obviously," she told him as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
"I thought we were shopping for baby stuff." He scratched his head.
Korra answered him this time. "We are, but there's no reason we can't have a little fun looking in the meantime."
"But you hate shopping!" he said with confusion.
Korra laughed at this. "Oh Mako," she said shaking her head as if in disbelief. "That's the old Korra. You are so behind the times."
"Korra!" Asami shouted from further in. "Come and smell this perfume! It would be perfect for you!"
"Coming!" The Avatar waddled off, leaving a confused Mako alone amongst the frilly ladies wear.
Going a deep red, he quickly averted his eyes from some of the more intimate clothing items and forged ahead after his female companions. He found the two women hovering over a table filled with perfume bottles, heads pressed together, speaking in the language of women. A foreign language to his male ears. In hushed tones, the ladies were pointing at a perfume bottle, and talking about things like depth, and tone and texture. All he could get from it when Korra sprayed a sample on her wrist was the smell of peppermint.
"That smells nice," he volunteered. The two women turned to him and stared long and hard with unreadable expressions, and he worried he'd interrupted some sacred female ritual. "Uhhh," he scratched his head in confusion and looked at the ground. "Sorry," he mumbled. The chatter resumed almost instantly.
The trio spent what seemed like hours in that one store, the firebender wandering behind the women as they went from rack to rack, looking at clothing, debating, testing, and speaking that same foreign language. And then when it came time to check out, Mako was surprised when the two women shoved all the bags they had bought in to his arms as they left the store. With a wink and a, "Thanks Mako," from the girls, he fulfilled Korra's nickname from earlier.
Next stop, an actual baby store, not that they had intended to visit it immediately but Korra froze when walking by the window.
Asami and Mako turned to find her plastered up against the glass, staring intently in to the store. "Asami," she whispered breathlessly. "Look." Eagerly, she pointed at something and the CEO wandered over to investigate.
Mako trailed behind her and looked over the couple's shoulders. What had caught Korra's attention was a bright red tricycle, streamers coming from the handles, and a shiny metal bell attached to one of the handlebars.
Before he knew what was happening, Korra had grabbed his wrist, along with that of her wife and dragged them both through the doors.
After talking animatedly with one of the store clerks, both women eagerly pointed at the tricycle and then at Mako, who paled once he realized their intent.
Before he could react, Korra and Asami had grabbed him, and forced him on to the tricycle, looking at him with hopeful smiles. He pouted, crossing his arms. "No," he said defiantly. "No way am I doing this."
Korra rolled her eyes. "Oh come on Officer Killjoy. Like we said before, I'm pregnant and Asami's in a dress. This is why you're here." She placed a thoughtful finger to her chin. "That and carrying our bags for us." Her lopsided grin took over her face.
Mako let loose an almighty sigh. "Uggh. Fine." Korra beamed at him and Asami giggled. He gripped the handlebars through his own legs, his long legs ridiculously bent on the tiny machine. He felt like a ridiculous pretzel as he peddled the tiny bike around the store like a fool, the women giggling madly at him the whole time.
After perhaps the tenth lap around the store, he decided that he'd had enough, and climbed off the bike, looking around. He frowned. Korra and Asami were nowhere in sight. Angrily, he stomped up to the store clerk that had been with them earlier. "Have you seen my so called friends?" he asked the man.
"The Avatar and Mrs. Sato?" The man thought for a moment. "Ah yes, they told me to tell you, and I quote, 'Mako, 'Sami and I are going to the food court. Whenever you feel like you're done having fun, bring the tricycle and the bags there Sharkbrows.' End quote."
Mako scowled at the man, running an exasperated hand down his face. "I'm gonna kill those two, seriously." He collected the bags and the tricycle and, after the man assured him the bike was already paid for, waddled off towards the food court.
It didn't take long till he found the women sitting at a table.
"Oh, Mako!" Asami waved at him. "Over here." She smiled at him as he dragged himself over and deposited their purchases next to the table.
"Hey guys," he said, not bothering to conceal his irritation. "Thanks for ditching me back there with the tricycle."
"Well," Asami attempted to placate him. "Korra got hungry and ya know, she is eating for two now." She beamed at her wife. "Besides, I just can't say no to this cutie pie, especially when she pouts like that." She poked said woman on the nose.
"'Sami," Korra whined, rubbing the back of her neck, her face red. "You're embarrassing me."
Asami patted the pregnant woman's shoulder affectionately. "Ah babe you know I'm just teasing." She turned to Mako. "So how bout it Mako?"
He raised an eyebrow in question.
"Mind getting us some food?" Asami batted her eyes plaintively at him.
He plastered a hand over his face. "You mean, you guys have been here the whole time and you haven't even gotten food yet?"
"Well, Korra got tired, so we sat down. Not only is she eating for two now but walking for two as well." Asami smiled disarmingly at Mako.
The firebender let out a long suffering sigh and shook his head. "Yeah, whatever. What do you guys want?"
"Burgers!" Korra said immediately, licking her lips. "With mustard, and ketchup, and mayonnaise, and chocolate sauce! Ooh and pickles! Lots and lots of pickles!" She clenched her fist and glared at Mako. "Raava save you if there are no pickles on my burger!"
Mako waved his hands defensively in front of his face. "Ok ok! I'll make sure they drown it in pickles…but,"
Korra raised an eyebrow. "But?" she questioned.
"Why chocolate sauce?"
"I'm pregnant and needy ok?" she pouted, looking away from him. "I get cravings. Shut up and get me my burger."
"Fine, fine," he agreed, starting to walk off.
"Oh, Mako!" she called after him.
He looked over his shoulder at her.
"Make it a triple patty!" She was practically dripping saliva already.
He gave her a thumbs up, and went to get their food.
Mako didn't take long to return with the food and the three wasted no time digging in. Korra ate three triple patties and put away several shakes and orders of fries. Asami and Mako watched her in fascination.
After the last bite went down her gullet, Korra sat back and sighed in content. She sat a moment before a curious expression passed over her face. "Hey guys," she spoke up, gaining her wife's and Mako's attention.
Both of them looked at her. "Hmm?" they spoke in unison.
"My water just broke." She rubbed the back of her head and gave them a lopsided grin.
As Asami went to attend her wife, Mako dropped his head in to his hands and groaned.