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. First in "Model U.N." series


Chapter 39: Assassination Classroom

Kiyoko closed her locker and sighed hard before reaching into her pocket for her vibrating cell phone. She glanced down at the display on her cell phone, even though she knew it would be another message from Asami. She was the only person from Team Avatar who tried to get in contact with her. While Mako was her boyfriend, she quickly discovered in the beginning of their relationship that he only sent her a message if there was something to talk about. Otherwise he would only send stagnant messages about the weather and what the local food is like during their travels.

"I'm sorry, Asami, but I'll respond soon. Just not now," Kiyoko whispered as she replaced her phone into her pocket. She lifted her head and watched carefully as Rika and Manami walked down the hallway. Kiyoko's eyebrows rose in surprise when she noticed that Rika looked much happier than before.

Manami was loudly talking about some party she had wanted the two of them to attend. She didn't notice that Rika wasn't paying the least bit attention, instead, being absorbed in a yellow pamphlet. A large red and black circular symbol filled the cover. Kiyoko squinted, hoping to try and read the details on the front as the two passed. She jumped when the bell rang. Movement erupted in the hallways as students picked up their pace to make it to their classrooms on time before the late bell rang.

"Rika, here's our class," Manami pointed out. She grabbed her friend by the elbow and pulled her to a stop. Rika looked up from the pamphlet and glanced at the classroom door. She then snickered, reaching behind her to try and stuff the pamphlet into a pocket of her backpack.

"Who cares?" she asked.

"You do!" Manami pointed out. "If it wasn't Asami talking about school all the time, you were right there behind her," she added.

"It doesn't matter anymore." Rika cried out triumphantly when she placed the pamphlet into her backpack. It hung halfway out of the pocket, folding over in the middle.

Manami pulled Rika to the side, near a water fountain. She looked to the left and the right, satisfied with only seeing a sea of students. Kiyoko crept a bit closer, straining to hear among the sounds of the hallway. "What's going on with you?" Manami asked.

Rika chuckled a bit before biting her lip. "There are more important things than school. I'll see you later."

"You're ditching?!"

"Yeah." Rika nodded before smiling. "I have to prepare for tonight. There's something I need to do. Something more important than RITA and becoming the top of the class."

"Rika-"

"You're welcome to come." Rika reached out and grabbed Manami by the shoulders. "It would be so much fun. You'd enjoy it. I finally feel like people are listening to me. They take me seriously."

"You want me to skip school and hang out with your creepy, older new friends?" Manami asked in disbelief. "No way."

"They're my Uncle's friends."

"He's not your uncle."

"He's as good as," Rika insisted. "He is close to my family. I need someone."

Manami reached up and pried Rika's hands from her shoulders. "What about me?" she asked. "I'm the one who has stuck by you through everything."

"You're still my best friend," Rika insisted. "Are you sure you don't want to come to the rally tonight? It's great. We work to make a difference, for non-benders everywhere."

"You sound like those Equalists."

"This is different. This will bring a new world order."

Manami took a long glance at Rika. She then sighed and slowly shook her head. "You're on your own with this one. This is too over my head. Let me know when you want to talk more on the Asami plan."

Rika threw her head back and let out a loud laugh. Manami raised an eyebrow but waited for her friend to regain composure. "…This whole thing helps with the Asami plan. On a bigger scale." She then patted Manami on the arm before heading down the hallway. "I'll see you later. Take good notes."

"Yeah, yeah." Manami waved her hand before walking into the classroom. Kiyoko ducked behind a row of lockers as all the classroom doors began to close. She then heard the click of every door lock.

"This is the break you were waiting for, Kiyoko," she whispered to herself. She adjusted her school bag on her shoulder before walking down the hallway at a fast pace. She knew at any moment she could be caught by a teacher roaming the halls. Upon making her way towards the main hallway, she spotted a piece of paper on the carpeted floor, folded in half down the middle.

Kiyoko sped up and picked the paper off the ground. Unfolding it she discovered it to be a yellow pamphlet. "If this is Rika's, there should be a black circle on the front," she said to herself. Kiyoko wet her lips with her tongue, before turning the pamphlet over. Right on the cover was the black and red circle, like she had seen. Upon closer inspection, she discovered it wasn't a circle but a symbol. The thin red and black lines formed a delicate shape that it reminded Kiyoko of a mandala. "This is what Rika was reading earlier," she whispered. Kiyoko ducked into a bathroom, and began to carefully scan its contents. "It looks like some type of gathering."


Kiyoko glanced up at the night sky, the moon began to be covered by a large cloud. She pulled a scarf up from her neck, to cover her mouth and nose. She reached into her pocket bad pulled out a wool knit hat. Placing it on her head, she made sure to tuck all her long hair up underneath the brim. Kiyoko reached into her pocket once more and removed the crumpled-up pamphlet. It had rips and tears, indicating she looked at it the information numerous times.

She turned the pamphlet to the back side before flipping it upside down in her hands. Kiyoko then opened the paper and squinting at the small font along the edge. "This looks to be the right address," she said quietly. Kiyoko refolded the paper and placed it into her pocket before stepping out from the alleyway she was hiding in. She quickly fell into step with a large crowd of people and walked with them into an old building on the corner of the street.

Kiyoko pushed herself to the middle of the group as a police car drove down the street. Upon seeing the group, it had slowed down considerably. The two occupants of the vehicle sat up taller in her seat, eyeing the group as they drove by. Kiyoko turned and faced forward, entering the building.

She felt uncomfortable in the large group. She could feel their body heat radiating around her. There was also some type of electricity in the air, a feeling of excitement. The group soon funneled down into two lines as it made its way down a flight of stairs. Kiyoko was pushed from behind. She reached a hand out to grab onto a nearby railing to stop herself. She soon felt a pair of hands on her arms, catching her before she fell. Kiyoko glanced over her shoulder and gave the person a gentle smile before facing forward.

After walking a narrow hallway, everyone soon stepped into a dimly lit room. Two to three torches casted light on a stage at the back fo the room. Four people stood on the stage facing the audience. All talk in the room was quickly hushed. Kiyoko pulled out the pamphlet once more, glancing at the cover, recognizing the figure staring back at her as Zaheer, the leader.

"Today…is the start of change," Zaheer called out. Kiyoko forced herself to join in with the cheers of the other occupants in the room. She looked up at the stage, shivering as a cold chill raced down her back upon looking at a tall, muscular man with a long goatee. Kiyoko stiffened when she spotted a woman with no arms, dressed in water tribe clothing standing next to the two. She jumped back in fright as a third woman, with an eye tattoo on the center of her forehead, lit up the more torches on the walls around the room.

"It is a new beginning. Soon, there will be no Order of the White Lotus. There will be no hierarchy of benders and non-benders." He paused, allowing for more cheers to fill the room. "We will not follow strict ruling. We will be able to choose to how we want. We will be free." He glanced around the room, making sure to focus on everyone in the room. Kiyoko felt another chill rush down her spine as their eyes connected. She refused to blink as he continued to stare her down. She let out a sigh of relief as Zaheer shifted his focus to others. "The balance of the world will be restored to its proper state."

The woman dressed in water tribe clothing and the woman with the eye tattoo took a few steps back, to allow room for someone dressed in dark robes to walk onto the stage. The guy with the goatee walked over and rolled up the right sleeve of the robes. The woman with the eye tattoo walked up with a small box in her hands. She opened the lid. From the torches on the walls reflecting off the surface, Kiyoko could see that the box contained dark ink.

Zaheer handed a hammer and a metal instrument to the man with the goatee. The metal instrument was long and thin. The end was circular but had numerous small, sharp needles covering the surface. Each needle glittered underneath the lighting. The man dipped the circular end into the ink and held it up next to the hooded figure's pale arm. The man glanced over at Zaheer, who nodded in return. He then quickly pressed the metal instrument against the figure's arm before striking it with the hammer, causing it to pierce into the pale skin, branding them.

"I am proud to present to you all, for the first time, the new member of the Red Lotus." Zaheer triumphantly lifted his hands into the air. "The icon of change in Republic City. Rika Gan-Lan."

The room erupted into deafening applause as Rika reached up and removed the hood from her head. She smiled proudly at the crowd, before glancing down at her arm. Ink and blood dripped down to her fingertips, dripping off onto the floor. She wiped some of the liquid off of her arm, glancing at it underneath the light of the fire, before sticking her finger into her mouth, sucking it off.

"Your target is Asami Sato, traitor to her father, the Equalist movement, and non-benders alike. You're going to hit her where it hurts the most," Zaheer explained. A wild smile forced its way onto Rika's face. "As for the rest of us…"

Kiyoko strained to hear the rest of what Zaheer was saying but got roughly jostled by the large crowd heading for the exit. Their excited chatter drowned out his voice, but she could catch various snippets of "Earth Kingdom", "one who can see all", and "earthbender".

Kiyoko grunted as someone harshly ran into her side. She turned to say something to the person, but quickly found it futile. She then shifted her focus back to the stage but found it empty. Kiyoko then moved with the flow of people out of the building and onto the streets of Republic City. As soon as she walked down the stairs of the building she ran all the way back to her home. She didn't stop to greet her parents as she barreled through the door. Throwing and excuse about homework over her shoulder, Kiyoko ran all the way up to her bedroom and slammed the door shut, making sure to lock it.

She leaned up against the door, panting heavily, trying to catch her breath. Wiping her forehead free of sweat, she crossed her room and pulled an encyclopedia from her bookshelf, a gift from her parents for getting into RITA. Kiyoko tossed her cell phone onto her bed, ignoring it as it bounced off and clattered to the floor.

"One who can see all," Kiyoko mumbled to herself as she flipped through the pages. Her hands shook, causing the book to clatter to the floor. She let out a soft curse as she dropped to her knees. Her cell phone lit up and began to ring. "Earthbender…" Kiyoko ignored her phone and dragged the book closer to her. She rapidly slapped at the pages, turning them in chunks.

Kiyoko finally reached a page with Toph Beifong's picture. She swallowed hard and began to scan the text, looking for information. "Here it is! Toph Beifong is the only known living bender who can use her earthbending to detect those who tell lies. Her location is unknown." Kiyoko reached up and brushed her hair out of her face. "That means," she panted, "there's someone else."

As if hearing her phone ringing for the first time, Kiyoko dove to the floor and picked up the electronic device. She quickly read the screen, seeing Asami's name flash, before swiping the green phone button and pressing her phone to her ear.

"Asami," Kiyoko cried.

"Kiyoko!" Asami greeted her happily. "I was beginning to think you were ignoring me. How-"

"Asami, listen," she interrupted, "this is important."

"What's wrong?"

"…You all need to get out of the Earth Kingdom…and fast!"


Many thanks to my beta, Rubiks!