Chapter 13
Sounds of soft laughter filled the hotel room, changing the heavy atmosphere the room had been emitting to that of warmth and friendship. It was weird to think a serious conversation took place in the very same room just moments ago. Korra was delighted to see Kuvira was enjoying herself, despite dislike having her short hair being brushed. The metalbender was very against it when she first started. She would admit it was quite adorable seeing her squirm from her touch.
They sat in a comfortable silence as Korra kept brushing Kuvira's hair. The young metalbender had just finished regaling a humorous tale from her childhood. Based on her interactions with the older woman, she didn't picture the woman to be so mischievous as well as her younger brother, Wei, being a bed-wetter.
Though she does wonder what her friend would do once they save the Earth Kingdom. Kuvira has dealt with a lot during her journey of degradation. Thankfully she has taken the first step on the path of recovery by accepting to come with her.
"Hey, uh, I got a question."
"Korra, I just finished telling you a story." Kuvira said with a humorous glint in her eyes. "We agreed to go back and forth about talking about ourselves."
Korra chuckled, delighted to hear the happiness in her tone. "No, I'm not gonna ask you to tell another story. It's about something else." She placed her brush down, already feeling a lump in her throat. "I, um... what are your plans after this situation with the Earth Kingdom?"
She noticed her friend tensed up slightly from the question. "I'm...not really sure. Haven't thought about it." She twisted to face her with a smile, though it was fake and strained. "How about you?"
"Actually, I thought a lot about it. Besides the date you owe me." She said with a giddy grin. Korra moved in front of Kuvira and started filing her fingernails. "I'm going on a nice long vacation."
"Vacation?"
"Yup, vacation." She blew off the shavings before working on the other hand. "I'm thinking about going to the Fire Nation. I have never been there and I already told you how attuned I am to firebending, so I might really like it there."
"The Fire Nation?"
Kuvira started to giggle, then it turned to chuckling, and finally full blown laughter. Her laughter was contagious and before Korra knew, she was laughing along with her. It wasn't really a girl's night if there was no laughing.
"You know what; I think I will join you. If you don't mind, that is. I never travel outside the Earth Kingdom."
"O-of course I don't mind." Korra stammered before clearing her throat, blushing lightly. "We can go to Ember Island. Heard it's a great vacation spot." She blew the last of the shavings off. She inspected her handiwork with a satisfied nod. "Okay, now on to the polish. Which do you want?"
Kuvira eyed the small selection with mild surprise. "You really came prepared, huh?"
"Would it be weird to admit I was really looking forward to this?" She asked with a sheepish grin.
"No, not at all." Kuvira shook her head with amusement. "I believe the dark green would be a good color for me."
"Good choice, it matches your eyes." Korra picked up the nail polish started working on her friend's hand. "After I'm done, we should head to bed. We have a lot of traveling to do in the next few days."
"Good idea." Heat slowly rose to her cheeks, smiling softly. "Thank you for this, Korra."
"What are friends for, and like I said before, you desperately needed this."
Kuvira took another swig of her drink, satisfying her unquenchable thirst. She was about half-way through with her flask. She has not left the spot since Korra and she shared their kiss. She bit her bottom lip thinking about that special moment, heart aching remembering the woman's face. The metalbender was not one to believe in fairy tales or that farfetch'd tale of one true kiss. She grew out of that phase a long time ago.
But that kiss she shared with Korra, well, only one word can come close in describing it.
Magical.
Kuvira took two hearty gulps of her strong liquor to forget.
Why did she let it go this far? She knew the young avatar's feelings for her and yet she still stringed her along. She saw the way her cyan eyes shine when she spoke to her and yet Kuvira stared at them mesmerized with how beautiful they were. So vast and deep like the ocean waters she has control over. She even let her graced her body with gentle and caring touches whenever she felt down, and craved the warmth it brought her when she let go. She felt loved.
"So cute to see you think someone can love a failure like you."
The metalbender squeezed her eyes shut. There goes that voice again. She missed the silence that filled her head. Now it was back with vengeance, twisting a knife into her already breaking heart.
Kuvira knew she was right with her decision. After the dust has settled, the people will demand justice. They will want blood after what has been done to their land and people. Baatar and her will be placed on the pedestal and be weighed for the sins they have committed. It will be an ugly spectacle and she doesn't want Korra to witness any of that.
The young woman sipped the last of her poison, savoring every last drop. She closed her eyes and leaned her head against the cold metal wall. Kuvira cannot get Korra's look of betrayal and heartbreak out of her head.
Maybe she was overreacting. Maybe she should give Korra a chance. Maybe they can actually make it work after whatever judgement the law rewarded her with.
When Kuvira opened her eyes her breath hitched at the sight of her mother. There was something different about her this time though. Her eyes do not have their usual cold disappointed heat in them. In fact, she looked quite angry, livid even.
The young woman's expression morphed from shocked to quizzical. Throughout her travels, her mother never had an angry expression. Sadistically gleeful about her downhill spiral perhaps. Sometimes a disappointed glare here and there, but never angry. Why now though? Why here? Was it because she stopped drinking?
"What's wrong, Mom?" Kuvira asked.
She knew her mother wouldn't respond. She never does when she was this far in with her alcohol. Yet something in her told her to continue prodding her with questions.
"I thought you would be happy that I started drinking again."
She noticed her frown deepened. Her eyes narrowed, glaring daggers at the drunken woman. It seemed Kuvira hit a nerve.
So that is it huh?
Kuvira chuckled, "guess hallucinations get lonely too."
She wished she had more liquor. It was definitely a better pass time than moping about Korra. Her mother snarled and actively held herself back from pouncing on the woman, shredding her apart like a feral hog-monkey.
Kuvira jumped from the sudden movement. "You're not angry at me for not drinking," her eyes widened as the realization dawned on her, "you're angry at Korra."
It made sense to the metalbender now. Korra was the one who silenced the voice that plagued her. She filled her body with hope and loved when she was wallowing in self-pity and walked the path of self-destruction. She made her believe she had a destiny and more importantly, Korra proved the voice wrong.
"I see now. You're afraid." Kuvira inspected her flask. She saw her warped face reflected from the metallic object. "In the short span of three days, Korra completely undone everything you have done to me." No, that was not entirely correct. She rubbed her thumb against the smooth metal flask, seeing a perfect reflection of herself. "I'm afraid of Korra."
She looked up to gauge her mother's expression. The hallucination gritted her teeth as she snarled like a rabid pygmy puma. Guessed she hit the nail in the coffin with her assumption. Kuvira chuckled, then it turned to full blown laughter, covering her face with one hand, trying to settle down before she woke someone up.
"I'm afraid of a twenty-one years-old girl." She said in-between her laughing fit.
She can imagine Suyin laughing her ass off if she heard such a thing. Her mentor's husband would no doubt try calming her down from her laughing fit, trying not to embarrass the metalbender any further. Huan would probably paint the scene and be frustrated because of how they ruin his art with their constant movement. The twins, Wei and Wing would tease her to no end, making fun of how much in love she was with the water tribeswoman. Her baby sister, Opal would probably chastise them all but still join in on the fun. Lastly, Baatar would…
"Baatar."
The thought of her most trusted friend dampened her mood. Does she love him? Korra asked her that but she doesn't have the answer. He had left his family for her and their cause. Even picked up where she left off with unifying their nation in her honor. He has been there when no one of the Beifong would. At the end of day, she knew that she would give up her own life if it meant he would live. But does that necessarily mean she loved him as a man or as a brother?
That being said, Korra has sacrificed the world to find her and bring her back from the depths of her own personal hell. She motivated her to push past the hardships with her letters. She has this calming aura surrounding her that made her want to talk to her about everything that troubled her. But does she love Korra as a woman or as a friend?
The drunken woman looked up at her mother. She still looked like a cornered mad animal. "But you already know the answer to that, don'cha Ma?" She asked with a smirk.
Kuvira crushed her flask with her hand and tossed it at her mother, causing the hallucination to disappear. With a heavy sigh, she stood up. She has to make things right with Korra. She started making her way to Korra's little room. Her legs swayed as she took each step to her goal, using the cold metal walls as her guide. Her vision was a bit blurry from her drinking, having her to blink a couple of times to see clearly.
With a bit of a struggle she finally reached Korra's quarters. Her mouth suddenly felt dry, causing her to lick her lips. With everything she has been through, Korra deserved an answer. She gave three hearty knocks on the door. Kuvira heard the muffled shuffling inside through the thin walls. After a moment, Korra opened the door dressed in a simple baby blue tank top and puffy dark blue capris.
The avatar sighed at the sight of her. She noticed how red her eyes were. No doubt from crying from their earlier interaction. Korra leaned against the door frame, resting her head in her hand.
"Kuvira I told you-" She stopped, sniffing the air. She reeled back slightly in mild disgust, covering her nose with her shirt. "Have you been drinking?"
"A tiny bit." She emphasized by bringing her pointer finger and thumb close together.
"Why did you-? How did you even-? I thought-" Korra let out a frustrated groan, burying her face in her hand. After a minute and a calming breath, she looked at her once more, disappointment vividly in her eyes. "I just do not understa-"
"My Dad died when I was young," she interrupted, "it was a mugging gone wrong. He told me to run away and get help, and when I did, it was too late."Korra's expression softened and gave her her full attention. "My Mom," she ran her fingers through her short hair, chuckling like she knew an inside joke, "didn't take it so well, and turned to alcohol. She actively blamed me for it since I am an earthbender and he was not. After a year of abuse, she abandoned me on the streets like I was trash. Then I thought I found a new family with Suyin but she kept me at an arm's length when I grew older, then she exiled me without a second thought when I left to help my nation."
"I'm sorry to hear that. You didn't deserve what your Mother and Su did to you." Korra got off the door frame and watched her with a sympathetic expression. "But why are you telling me this?"
"Well, other than me being drunk," she said a grin but wiped it away once seeing how Korra didn't find humor in it. "I wanted you to understand where I came from. That, whenever it felt like I belonged somewhere or loved by someone, it seemed like fate just wants to see it taken away from me." She reached out and took hold of Korra's hand, gently rubbing her thumb across them. "I'm afraid that if we were together, fate would do the same to us." She squeezed her hand, gazing into her lovely blue eyes. "I don't think I can bear the thought of you hating or leaving me."
"Spirit's you're a dumbass Vira," Korra let go of the metalbender's hand and hugged her, squeezing her tightly. "I will never leave you, and I will definitely never hate you."
Kuvira tittered from the comment, accepting the warmth the woman brought. She pulled Korra into a deeper hug, smiling at the words. "Glad to hear that."
Korra let go of the woman and coughed awkwardly. "So," she twiddled with her thumbs, blushing extremely hard.
She grinned at her nervous form. She never notice how cute Korra was she was blushing. "So?"
"Spirits, you really gonna make me ask, are you?"
"Ask me what?" Kurvia feigned innocence.
"I take back what I said earlier, I hate you." Korra said but there was no heat to it. She inhaled then exhaled all her jitters out of her body. "Are we, you know," she bit her bottom lip, "together?" She asked with a sheepish look.
Kuvira closed the tiny gap between them, placing her hands on her waist. "Only if you accept a redo of our kiss earlier?"
Korra giggled nervously, blushing even harder at the request than her being so close. The avatar wrapped her arms around Kuvira's neck, smiling lovingly at her. They can feel each other's breath as they inched their lips closer.
Korra's face suddenly twisted in disgust from a foul odor. She instantly pushed Kuvira and pinched her nose.
"Maybe we can do the redo after your breath doesn't reek of booze."
Kuvira blinked in surprise. She blew her breath against the palm of her hand and took a tiny whiff of it. She grimaced at the strong smell. "I think that is a good idea."
"But I guess this should do for now." Korra stood on her toes and gave a tiny peck on her cheek. "To hold you over until our redo. Night Vira."
She closed the door on a stunned Kuvira. A grin slowly formed on the woman's face as she touched the spot her new girlfriend kissed.
"I can't wait for our date now."
Author's Note: It is official now, Kuvira and Korra are together. It wasn't the original idea when I wrote this story. I wanted Korra to have a one sided crush while Baatar and Kuvira end up together. Then the more I thought about it, the more I thought it made sense the two women end up in a relationship due to Kuvira being raised in the Beifong family supposedly like one of their own. Anyways, with this chapter, ends the second act. I hope you will like the next chapter. So far, as I'm writing it, is probably going to be my top five chapters I wrote for this story.
Next update is October 24th.
Till Next Time