Korra ran. She shoved past Amon's stunned Lieutenant and threw herself over the balcony. Asami should've waited. Korra only needed a few more seconds and then she would've been down there, fighting with her. So why hadn't she waited?
Fire rocketed out of the Avatar's feet a second before she hit the ground and propelled her forward. The stadium was in chaos but she ignored it, hurtling across the arena to where Asami was held; suspended above the ground.
She fixed her gaze on the engineer as Asami screwed her eyes shut in pain. The space between them seemed to stretch as Korra reached out her hand in a desperate attempt to close the distance.
And then? Asami opened her eyes- and the air caught fire.
A burning line tore through Amon's chest and exploded across the floor.
Korra threw her hands up to shield herself from the blast. Through squinted eyes, she watched as the engineer fell and lost whatever temporary control she'd had. Asami dropped and hit the ground hard, not moving an inch from where she lay sprawled across the floor. The fire that had only danced around her body erupted out in an uncontrolled wave.
As the wall of flame reached her, Korra shifted her stance. She had no time to think, she just stepped forward- mind pushed aside as she acted on an age-old instinct.
The outpour was contained in a cyclone of air that stretched into the sky. That day, the Avatar State was nothing short of a force of nature.
_
~Two Days Later~
_
When Asami needed to think, she built something. She went down to her workshop, tipped a bucket of scrap metal onto the floor, and made something, anything, with the pile of busted parts.
The hospital was not her workshop.
Without the threat of death; civil war or spontaneous combustion to occupy her mind, Asami had a lot of time to think. It wasn't something she was particularly happy about. Processing emotions had never been her strong suit, and it was rather hard to lock away memories of 'chronic illness' when stuck in a hospital bed.
The sharp smell of disinfectant was persistently distressing. The itch of constant, illogical panic was just another thing to add to her building frustration with herself. Asami fiddled with the edge of her bedding, she desperately needed something to occupy her hands.
The healers had done a good job at least; her burns were faded with minimal scarring. Her chi pathways would take longer to repair, but that was her own fault for abusing the only blocking techniques she knew.
Asami rubbed her eyes and groaned, fatigue washing over her. It had been a long day. After tonight she would be cleared to leave the hospital and, she supposed, return to her estate. Asami hadn't been to her estate since her father's arrest. Asami hadn't been to her estate since it became her estate.
Neither of those thoughts were comforting so she didn't dwell on them. The engineer's chi buzzed like radio static over her heart. It was an odd, new kind of warmth but she found it to be not entirely unpleasant. It was at the very least an improvement from the past few days.
A knock interrupted her thoughts. "Mis Sato? You have a visitor."
All of a sudden Korra was in the room and pulling her into a crushing hug. Asami made a rather undignified noise as all the air was expelled from her lungs at once. "Korra-"
"I'm so glad you're okay!" The Avatar pressed her head into Asami's chest.
"Korra I can't breath-"
"Oh-" She relaxed her grip, "sorry."
Asami looked up and smiled briefly at the nurse still standing at the door; he hesitated a moment longer before nodding and walking away. "How are the others?"
"They're fine, the city is rebuilding." the Avatar softened, "you're the only one who got seriously hurt."
"Well, that's bloodbending for you." Asami winced, "I don't recommend it."
A dam seemed to break and Korra started tearing up. "I'm so sorry, this is all my fault- I should've been there faster, I could've-"
"No, you couldn't." the engineer's brow furrowed, "It would've been so much worse if you had been the one in danger."
"How could you say that?"
Korra had her head tilted to the side, her mouth slightly open and oh, nobody had ever looked at Asami with such emotion in her life. She swallowed, suddenly at a loss for words. The engineer wasn't used to vulnerability, but the Avatar seemed to have her frozen at a glance.
She reached out with heat buzzing in her ears and quietly took Korra's hand. "I might," Asami paused. "Care about you. More than I should, maybe more than myself. I'm not quite sure what that means yet."
It appeared it was the Avatar's turn to be lost for words. The pause went on too long and Asami pulled her hands back, eyes flicking to the floor. "I-I'm sorry. That was, I shouldn't-"
Korra cupped her cheek and tilted the engineer's head back. Asami looked up and met her gaze, lower lip trembling slightly. The Avatar's eyes were so soft.
Her heart dropped as emotion welled in her chest, tears forming in her eyes. Korra pulled her forward and Asami let her, leaning into the touch until her whole body ached. She tucked her head into the crook of Avatar's neck and let out a shaky breath, "please don't leave."
"I won't, I swear I never will." Korra brought a hand up to caress her hair. The engineer melted, heat rolling off her in waves. Something about the other woman's body against her own, her touch, sent her reeling in the gentlest way.
The promise to stay was all she needed. The pain and exhaustion remained, as did the burden of responsibility and newfound power. Hardship would always be a part of their lives, but perhaps that weight could be shared now- perhaps neither of them had to be alone.