Model Behavior


Summary: Modern/AU. Korra thought it was an ordinary day of art class at Republic School for the Gifted. But then, the art model Asami Sato walked into the room... Korrasami


Chapter 34: Here Comes the Hurricane (II)

"Hey Korra, it's good to see you," Pema greeted her upon opening the front door to her house. She readjusted her hold around Rohan, who was sleeping against her chest, before holding her other arm out, pulling the Avatar into a hug.

"Sorry that I haven't come to visit sooner," Korra said, placing a light kiss on Pema's cheek. She then lightly ran one of her knuckles against Rohan's cheek. He cooed slightly in his sleep, burying his face deeper into his mother's chest.

"How are you doing, Asami?" Pema reached out and cupped Asami's cheek with the palm of her hand, before placing a light kiss on her forehead. "Everything okay?"

"I'm good, Pema, thank you." Asami smiled brightly.

"Would you like some tea? I made it a few moments ago, so I hope it's not too cool." Korra made a sound of agreement while her eyes shifted quickly around, glancing down the hallway, into the living room, and towards the staircase. Pema giggle softly before lightly tapping Korra on the arm. "Tenzin's upstairs, along with Lin and Bumi."

"I'm surprised he'll allow Bumi and me in the same room," she snickered. Her eyes suddenly widened as she sucked in a sharp breath. Pema and Asami shared a look of confusion. Korra cleared her throat, before propping her elbow up on the banister of the stairs, smiling innocently. She reached up and rubbed the back of her neck as Pema titled her head to the side. "Pema, would you boil some of the tea for me?" she asked.

"…Can't you do that, Korra?" Asami pointed out. Korra rolled her eyes, before running a hand over her face.

"That sounds familiar." Pema reached out and pinched Asami lightly on the arm. "I'll be right back," she said with a small laugh. Korra breathed a sigh of relief once Pema entered the kitchen. She waited until she heard the sounds of dishes being moved around before facing Asami, who was glancing at her with a raised eyebrow.

"What's up?" she asked slowly.

"…Do…do you remember that party we had after New Year's?" Korra hissed, wringing her hands together. "For the defeat of Amon?"

"Yeah, you and Bumi disappeared for the night." Asami nodded. "After that, when you came back to the apartment you complained about a pain in your thigh muscle and everything tasted weird for about a week."

"…Okay." Korra held her hands out in front of her. "…don't judge me," she quickly added. Asami crossed her arms over her chest, lifting one shoulder. "Bumi and I had Cactus Juice," Korra admitted.

"You what?!" Asami exclaimed. Korra quickly reached out and slapped a hand over Asami's mouth.

"Shhhhh!" Korra insisted. She glanced down the hallway and heard Pema talking and laughing with Kya before slowly removing her hand from Asami's face. "Will you be quiet? I don't want Pema to know." Glancing down at her hand she winced at the red lipstick stain on her palm. "You need to cut back on the makeup, Sami."

Asami reached into her pocket and pulled out a handkerchief. She then began to scrub roughly at the red stain. "Korra, that's an illegal substance," she scolded.

"I know…it just happened," Korra sighed. "I didn't plan on doing it…it just happened."

"You already said that," she pointed out. Asami frowned at the red mark on her friend's palm. She dabbed the handkerchief on her tongue to wet the cloth. Korra made a sound of disgust before ripping her hand out of Asami's grip.

"Ew, I don't want your spit on me," she cried, rubbing her wrist.

"Something tells me you didn't complain when it was Mako," Asami snickered, folding up her handkerchief and placing it back into her pocket.

"Jealous?" Korra asked with a smirk.

"Why? I dated him too," Asami reminded her. "…so…"

"So?" Korra repeated.

"What did you do?" she pressed. "People always do crazy stuff when they drink Cactus Juice."

Korra bit her bottom lip. "…I got a tattoo."

Asami's eyes widened as her jaw dropped in shock. She quickly regained her composure, brushing some of her dark hair out of her face. "You…got…got a tattoo?"

"Aang had tattoos." Korra said defensively.

Asami rolled her eyes. "They were for his culture and to show that he had mastered airbending," she pointed out. "Tenzin has them, and Jinora will have them soon."

"Thanks for the history lesson, professor," Korra snapped. "Anyway, why did you sound so shocked?" Korra asked with a laugh. "It's not like you haven't checked me out before," she pointed out. "I'm surprised you haven't see it by now. Quite frankly, I've been waiting for you to ask."

"That's not…" Asami trailed off. "I don't…"

"I don't blame you," Korra said with a lift of her shoulder. She licked her lips before smiling smugly. "I mean I am a fine specimen."

"Yeah…you're right," she blurted out. Asami forced herself to remain calm and stoic while the her inside saw the eruption of Mt. Makapu. She knew that with her pale complexion and blush would be hard to hide. She took a deep breath in through her nose, remembering some of the meditation techniques Korra had taught her, to calm herself.

"I am?!" Korra asked, a look between shock and smugness settling on her face.

"Yeah, nothing can match up against the Avatar," Asami answered with a sweet smile. "Master of all elements and the ability of getting on every single one of my last nerves," she added with bite.

"Nice save."

"Be quiet, Korra," Asami laughed.

"The tea is ready," Pema announced, walking up to the two of them. She passed Korra a teacup wrapped in a koozie. "Here you go, Korra. I thought you'd like to take yours upstairs with you."

"Thank you, Pema," Korra said graciously before running up the stairs two at a time. Pema ushered Asami to the kitchen and into an empty chair. Kya looked up from playing with Rohan, who was seated in a chair connected to the table, giving her a warm smile.

"So, Asami, how have you been?" Pema asked when she took a seat next to the engineer. Kya slid a bowl of sugar across the table before taking a sip from her cup. Rohan smacked his hands against the tray in front of him, happily kicking his feet. Asami pour a few teaspoons of sugar into her tea before picking up the cup.

"I've been pretty good," Asami sighed. She blew gently on the hot liquid, watching as the steam danced around in the air. "Busy, like usual, but things have been a lot easier since Xu became my vice president."

"I'm sorry you had to go through all of that." Pema plucked Rohan from his chair before holding him in her lap and draping a blanket over her chest. Asami turned her head away, not wanting to intrude upon the private moment. She then smiled softly at her shyness since Pema elected to feed her baby at the table instead of leaving the room.

"I've been through worse."

"I didn't mean to bring it back up."

"It's okay." Asami shrugged. Kya circled a finger over her tea cup, bending the tea so that it spun in circles. The spoon sitting in the tea began to move around in the current. "How will I be able to go through life if I were to deny my past? Things have happened and I need to understand it and try to make the company as great as I know it can be."

"How are things with you and Korra?" Pema question. Kya's eyebrows rose a few inches but she remained quiet. However, a smile did begin to form on her face.

"Great," Asami said slowly, glancing over at Kya. "Things couldn't be better."

"I'm actually surprised you two are able to live together so well," Kya gently commented. "You're polar opposites."

"We're not that different." Asami dipped her teaspoon into the tea and lifted it up her mouth. She stuck out the tip of her tongue, flinching as the drink burned her tastebuds. Frowning, she went back to blowing over her teacup. "Besides, she's still recovering from the fight with Vaatu, so things have been easy going to say the least."

Pema nodded once before clearing her throat. "So, how are things really going with you?"

Asami paused, looking over her teacup at Kya, who leaned back in her chair giving her an amused look. Asami then glanced over at Pema who was smiling gently. Asami straightened in her seat, clasping her hands together and placing them into the table top. "Fine, I guess?"

"Are you asking me or telling me?" Pema questioned.

"Well, I am having problems telling Bolin that Opal isn't coming back," Asami sighed. "Plus, I'm re-working my Senior Project so that's taking a lot of my time and-"

"And…how are things with Korra?" Kya interrupted.

Asami blinked before inhaling slowly. "I only, really, just gained friends at the beginning of fall semester, so I'm not really sure how this works," she muttered. "I assume, Senna may have talked to you when we were in the South Pole for the festival?" she asked.

"Yup." Kya nodded.

Asami turned towards Pema. "Do all girls do that? Tell each other what's going on?"

"Only when they care, so that way they can get someone else's opinion."

"You were right, when we talked back around Thanksgiving. I really do just admire her," Asami answered. She glanced down at her hands. "A lot," she quickly added, before brushing her hair out of her face. "But what isn't there to admire about her? I mean, hearing about her childhood and she's so strong and secure about herself and her responsibilities-"

"If Korra were ever secure about her responsibilities then she wouldn't have that scar," Kya snorted.

"What scar?" Asami and Pema asked.

"That's a story I'll tell you about later." She winked. "You know, Asami, if you ever need to talk about something Pema and I will gladly listen."

"Why does everyone keep thinking that something is wrong?" Asami snapped. "Everything is fine. Sure, I have a lot on my plate, but when do I ever have a free schedule? I've been busy before, and yeah everything has been even busier since Korra and I became close but that goes with the property."

"It doesn't hurt that Korra can be kind of slow when it comes to social interactions."

"What do you mean?" Asami questioned.

"You mean aside from the fact that you both just flirted with each other?" Kya asked.

"Kya!" Pema reached out and slapped her on the arm.

"Hallways are tunnels of sound, so there's no point in beating around the bush, it's obvious," Kya answered, rubbing the spot on her arm where Pema had struck her. "Besides, I need some entertainment." Pema raised an eyebrow. "Don't get me wrong I love you, and my brother's, and my nieces and nephews," Kya explained, before turning back towards Asami, "but taking it from experience you need to stop lying to yourself." Asami's eyebrows furrowed when she noticed Kya's expression becoming softer, traces of sadness lining face. "Unless, of course, you want to miss your chance."

Before Asami could answer Lin, Tenzin, Korra, Jinora, and Bumi traipsed down the stairs and into the kitchen. Asami used the distraction to drink more of her tea, ignoring the hot liquid scorching her tongue.

"What's going on?" Pema asked. She adjusted the blanket covering her chest, before tilting her head back and kissing Tenzin when he walked over.

"We've decided to find the new airbenders," he announced. Asami swallowed hard around the tea in her mouth, while Kya's eyes widened in shock. She ceased stirring the tea in her cup, the spoon clanging against the rim.

"Many reports are coming in by the day," he added. "The nation will be revived."

"What makes you think they'll come easily?" Kya questioned. "I'm not trying to burst your bubble, but I know you Tenzin. When you get stuck in your ways, it's hard to change. How will you convince people to actually leave their families?"

"A majority of these places are in the Earth Kingdom, and it's kind of in disarray right now under the rule of the Earth Queen," Lin commented. "Some people will see this as an escape to their realities."

"In that case, we're going to have to move to Air Temple Island for the time being to accommodate everyone," Pema pointed out.

"Plus, I just gained my bending as well, so I can help persuade people." Bumi puffed his chest out with pride. Kya smiled gently before getting up out of her seat and giving him a tight hug.

"Kya, will you stay here and help take care of Pema and the rest of the children?" Tenzin asked.

"Of course, Tenzin," she agreed, pulling out of her hug with her oldest brother. Kya punched Bumi lightly in the arm before placing an arm around his shoulders. "And maybe Lin will patrol around as well, you know, for extra security."

"I'm going with them." Lin shook her head.

"Why?" Pema questioned. "Kya's right, your place is here in Republic City. I know I would feel safer with an extra set of eyes around."

Lin looked uncomfortable. She crossed her arms over her chest, before clenching her jaw. "…I just need to make sure the Avatar doesn't get into any trouble," she answered with a raised eyebrow.

"Oh, Lin, I didn't think you cared," Korra said, placing a hand over her chest.

"I don't."

"If we're going to the Earth Kingdom Kai should come as well," Jinora suggested. The corner of her eye twitched slightly when everyone turned to look at her. Except it was the smirk Korra was wearing and the smile Kya was trying to hide that stood out to her. "…since he's from the area and all," she added with a shrug." It would be beneficial since he'd know where to start."

"This is turning out to be a lot of people," Tenzin commented. "How will we find an aircraft big enough?"

Asami cleared her throat, directing all the attention towards her. She half-smiled, slowly raising her hand in the air. "…I know where."


AN: Many thanks to my beta, Rubiks