Korra was sitting next to Asami's bed, holding her hand, stroking the back gently with her thumb. She could hardly contain her excitement, or her joy at having her returned to her. If that was all that had happened, then that would have been enough for her. But it was what Asami had said afterwards that had made this one of the greatest days of her life, even given the current surroundings.

She couldn't stop smiling as her friends gathered in the room. They were a little surprised that Asami had insisted on seeing them all so soon after regaining consciousness, but they were all pleased to see her.

"You always were a tough one." Mako said with a smile. "Possibly the only one here with a head harder than Korra's."

"Yeah, I'd really rather not try that theory out again." Asami conceded. "I'm...still missing a whole bunch of what happened before that blast."

"If you're meant to remember it, then it will return in time." Tenzin said sagely, trying to reassure her. Being an Air Nomad, and sworn to the protection of others, injuries were just a fact of life. He had some experience himself with head injuries, and knew all too well the realities of the long term effects. There were more than a few days in his past he had blocks missing from as a result of his many battles.

"I'm just glad the rest of my team got out alright." She told them wearily. "I'd have hated to think that anyone else got hurt or...you know..."

"No, you managed to save them all." Tenzin told her. "We did a thorough investigation to find out what happened, and..."

"It's...it's alright, I already know." Asami admitted. "I figured it out pretty fast. I just hope the guy's not feeling too badly."

"You get blown up...and you feel sorry for the guy who blew you up?" Bolin asked.

"It was an honest mistake." Asami assured them. "I don't blame anyone. I just wish I'd been able to figure out what to do before I ended up in here."

"That's my girl." Korra said, grinning brightly. "Compassionate, forgiving and beautiful, what more could anyone want?"

"We're all just glad you're back with us." Bolin assured her. "Now, we should probably be letting you get some rest or something..."

"Actually, if you don't mind, I have a huge favour to ask you all." She told them, looking to Korra. "And you're all going to have kind of a busy day I hate to say."

"Whatever you need, we're here." Mako answered.

"Well, firstly, we kind of have some news." Asami told them. Korra held up her left hand, showing them the ring. They all stared at her in shock.

"She just asked me!" Korra said excitedly. Opal launched forward, grabbing Korra in a tight hug.

"You guys, this is amazing news!" She screeched. "How...when...how did you...?"

"I've...actually been carrying it around for a while." Asami admitted. "I was waiting for a good moment to ask her, to make it all perfect, but after this, I guess I learned that any moment is perfect, because you don't know what the next one will bring."

"Congratulations!" Tenzin declared as he came over to the side of the bed, placing a hand on each of their shoulders.

"But, Korra, weren't you going to..."

"Yeah, turns out that great minds think alike." Korra interrupted Mako. "Asami just beat me to the punch."

"I'll definitely be wearing the necklace proudly." Asami added. "You know...once I'm able to of course."

"I couldn't be happier for you both!" Bolin gushed, tears beginning to run down his face. "This is the most romantic thing I've ever seen!"

"Well, like I said, I have a huge favour to ask." Asami told them, looking once more to Korra and gripping her hand tightly. "We want to get married."

"Well, yeah, we got that part." Mako chuckled. "That's kind of what the whole getting engaged thing means..."

"No, I mean...we want to get married." Asami clarified, taking a deep breath. "Today."

There was another stunned silence in the room. They all just stared at her.

"You want to do what now?" Bolin asked.

"We want to get married, today." Asami confirmed.

"As soon as possible." Korra chipped in. "I know, I had some concerns too, but..."

"Asami, you literally just woke up." Opal interrupted her. "You're...you're nowhere near back on your feet, you need to rest, you need..."

"I've been resting more than long enough, Hell I've literally been asleep for days." Asami reminded them.

"But, Korra, your parents are still in the South Pole, even Kya and Katarra are on the ship, it'll take days for them to..."

"We know all that." Korra assured them. "Look, I was concerned too when Asami told me what she wanted, but after talking to her, I agree; this is something we both want."

"This has shown us that we never know what's going to happen. Something like this or something worse could happen any time." She reminded them. "The only thing we both know for sure is, we don't want to spend another day not being together."

"My parents, my family, all our friends, of course I want to do something that they can all be there for." Korra continued, running a hand through Asami's hair. "We can do all that another time, but for now, all we want is to get married."

They all looked among each other; they weren't sure at all about this idea. Even having regained consciousness, she was still in critical condition. Between her multiple fractures, burns and spinal injuries, it was likely going to be months before she was able to leave the hospital. They still weren't sure how much she would recover.

Tenzin looked over both Korra and Asami though, and something in him relented. He took a deep breath.

"Come, we have a lot to do." He declared.

"Wait, what?" Bolin asked. "We're seriously doing this?"

"All that's really needed for a wedding is a marriage licence, someone to officiate and witnesses." Tenzin stated. "I'm sure if I called Zhu Li, she could fast-track a licence if we explain the circumstances."

"And we're all here." Opal added. "That's witnesses covered, all we need is someone to officiate."

Korra and Asami looked on hopefully, hearing their friends rally around them. As he saw how happy they both looked, Bolin finally realised the final piece of the puzzle.

"I officiated Zhu Li and Varrick's wedding." He recalled. "I...I should still be ordained! I can officiate! You know, if you let me!"

"Let you?" Korra screeched, launching herself at him and picking him up in a bone-cracking hug that everyone in the room could hear. "Bolin, you'd be amazing! If there's anything I can do..."

"Let...me...breathe..." He groaned. She finally put him down.

"Alright, then I suppose all that's left to do is put in a couple of calls." Tenzin answered. "I'll call Zhu Li."

"I'll call Lin" Opal added. "I'm sure she'll want to be here."

As they all left to gather everything they needed, Korra just looked to Asami.

"It's really happening." She told her. "It's finally going to happen."

"We really do have some amazing friends." Asami agreed. "What else do we really need?"

***Six months later***

The time had passed quickly for Asami since she had made the single best decision of her life. She wore the betrothal necklace proudly from the moment she was allowed to medically.

Kya and Katara had arrived and been working with doctors to help her heal. The main benefit of the Sato fortune was that she didn't need to stay in the hospital too long. Once she had regained consciousness, she could organise having the equipment and the care she needed to be delivered at her home. She had also seen fit to make a large donation to the hospitals of Republic City to thank them for taking care of her.

The road was a long one, one which she hadn't fully walked yet. She still used a wheelchair to prevent over-taxing herself, but she was undergoing regular therapy to regain her strength and was able to walk for relatively short periods. Kya and Katara had worked wonders on some of her injuries with their healing, and she had been assured that she would make a full recovery. She still didn't remember everything about the day of the explosion, though given how little of the day was a blank, it seemed like it was only the moments immediately surrounding the blast, and so she wasn't too upset about the thought of never getting those memories back.

She'd managed to keep busy in business as well. Almost as soon as she was able to use a computer, she had been back to work on the designs for the reactor, refining it along with her team. The new technology had been presented at a huge press event a couple of months ago, and now Sato Industries were well underway with their move to roll out the technology wholesale. It would, of course, take a while to phase out the older alternatives, but they were confident in having a full roll out into all public transport, energy suppliers and all new Sato mobiles within the year.

At home, things had been magical. She and Korra had never been stronger. She had been living with her for some time already, but somehow, waking up with her every day, with her wife, and knowing that it would be that way every day for the remainder of their lives was just the most amazing thing she could imagine it would be.

She was sitting in her wheelchair, staring out a window, gently stroking the betrothal necklace. She was smiling brightly, waiting for her moment. She heard the door opening behind her.

"Kya and Katara said you were looking for me." Tenzin said as he arrived. Asami turned the chair towards him, at which he pulled back, smiling brightly. "Asami, you look beautiful."

"Thank you." She answered.

"So, what can I help you with?" He asked her. She just looked to him. "They're all waiting for you. I should really be out there with the others."

"Tenzin, you're exactly where I want you to be." She told him. She took a deep breath. "I don't think I could have made it all these months if it wasn't for you and the others."

"I think you underestimate your own strength." Tenzin told her. "You walked all these roads yourself."

"But not on my own." She concluded. "Tenzin, I know Korra's out there with her dad, waiting on me, and if he was...if he hadn't..."

Even now, it was still painful for Asami to talk about her father. She was grateful that they had started to mend fences towards the end. For many years, his position as an Equalist leader had put an incredible strain on their relationship. For many years, they didn't even talk, but in the end he had mended his ways, and they had finally started to reconnect. She was proud of him for his efforts to help defeat the Earth Empire army, but that didn't mean she still didn't miss him or regret the fact his redemption had cost him his life.

"I'm sure he would have been very proud." Tenzin assured her.

"Thank you." She whispered. "Tenzin, if he was still here, it would be him, obviously, but after everything, after all you've done for me, I was wondering if you'd give me away."

Tenzin's eyes started to sparkle as he heard this. He wiped them with his sleeve, before nodding.

"I would consider it my great honour." He told her. He took his place behind her chair. "Now, the others are waiting for us."

"Don't worry." She told him. "I don't want to keep them waiting any longer than absolutely necessary."

Out the front of the building, out in the main plaza, at the archway overlooking the Spirit Portal, Korra was waiting for her beloved wife. They had chosen this place because it meant so much to them both. It was where they had both been when they decided to take their trip into the Spirit World together. It was the beginning of the path they both knew they wanted to walk together the rest of their lives.

She was fidgeting nervously, pulling at her clothes, eagerly awaiting Asami's arrival. Her father just laughed.

"Korra, have a little patience." He teased her. "She'll be here soon."

"I seem to remember you were a little impatient on our wedding day." Korra's mother reminded him. He just smiled at the recollection.

"Korra, its fine." Opal assured her. When it was announced that the Avatar and Asami Sato were getting married, most of Republic City had showed up to wish them well. All of Korra's friends and family were up at the archway with her, while the well-wishers were waiting behind for the ceremony to begin. Bolin was standing ready to read the ceremony.

"What's taking her so long?" Korra asked. "Is something wrong? Should I go back there?"

"Korra, everything's going to be fine." Mako answered. "Kya and Katara would never have left her if anything was wrong."

"Maybe I should just check..."

Just then, the music started up. Korra noticeably breathed a sigh of relief, turning to the front to wait for the ceremony to begin. Her heart started racing as she waited. Her friends all turned to the back, looking to see Asami arriving. She could only see the looks on her friends' faces, and even though she'd always told herself she would wait, she just couldn't wait any longer.

Turning to look back, Asami was simply the most beautiful thing she'd ever seen. Wearing a white dress, Tenzin wheeled her just to the end of the aisle, at which she insisted he stopped. Shakily, she steadied herself on him and let him help her up onto her feet. Tenzin positively radiated pride as he walked down the aisle with Asami on his arm. By the time she got to the front, and he let go of her arm, the music stopped and she took Korra's hands in hers.

"Asami, you look...wow!"

"You look pretty amazing yourself." She returned the compliment, before looking to Bolin and nodding. He took up the microphone.

"Citizens of Republic City. We're here today to celebrate the love of Asami and Korra. They are two of the most amazing people I've ever met, and I'm sure we all wish them both nothing but the best."

Korra looked to Asami, trying to hold back her tears of joy.

"Asami, all my life I've been raised to be The Avatar. For a long time, I thought that was all I was destined to be." Korra told her. "But meeting you, seeing you every day, and the things you do for this world that I never could, I'm just humbled. That you chose me is something I count my blessings for every single day, and I'll be doing that every day from now on."

"Korra, a lot of people know you as The Avatar. Those on this stage here today are blessed enough to know you as a member of their family." Asami answered, trying to keep her tears in check. She reached for Korra's face. "To me, you were never The Avatar. You were always Korra. My friend, my rock, and most importantly, the person who captured my heart."

"If anyone here knows of any reason these two should not be married, please speak now or forever hold your piece!" Bolin called out. No one expected anyone to answer this call, but Mako and Opal both tensed up. If anyone dared to speak up, they would have to hope it was a damn good reason. When no one spoke, and Bolin was satisfied he had given ample opportunity, he just smiled. "Opal, the rings."

Opal put the rings onto the book in his hands, which he offered to Korra and Asami. They each took it in turns, taking the rings and slipping it onto the others finger.

"Then with the exchanging of rings and vows, and with the power invested in me by Republic City, it is my great pleasure to present to you, Korra and Asami!"

There was a huge cheer as they kissed, embracing each other tightly. The world was a harsh place at times, full of unexpected dangers. No one knew that more than Asami and Korra.

But together, they knew that there was nothing they couldn't face.

Fin.