This might be the last chapter for a while, not sure I'll be much up for writing tomorrow after ringing in the new year.

Keep the comments coming they help

Also I know I went overboard with the nerdyness in this one. I'm not even sorry.

Asami didn't want to think. She didn't know what she was doing was impossible or wrong, she just wanted to do it. She'd waited so long to kiss Korra, it didn't matter if it was in this dark place.

Korra had taken them to an apartment overlooking the harbour in the south of the city.

It was already Asami's, she had bought the property last year upon the insistence of her father. Find a new hobby, he'd insisted, you'll run yourself ragged otherwise. Advice croaked through prison bars lost its value. Real estate quickly ran its course anyway. She kept this one though, because of the view. Yue Bay was a ferry ride away. She had also bought it with the intention with sprucing it up in her free time. So far she'd managed to store within it old summer clothes and Future Industries prototypes as a promise to herself, and the old tenant's mattress and ratty coffee table was all that remained of the furniture. She didn't ask how Korra knew about it. She didn't care.

A storm had taken hold on this edge of the city. Sleet rain and snow slapped harshly on the windows, mopping and skewing the city lights with a thick brush. As beautiful as it was it was also pretty inconvenient. The power was out. Korra sat on the bed and watched Asami untangle herself. She padded to a kitchenette and pulled out some candles from a cutlery drawer.

"Damn I don't have a light."

"I do." Korra whispered. "C'mere." Asami had imagined Korra saying that with that voice and look so many times. She urged her heart to still.

"And yet you were freezing out on the street." Asami flung her coat on the counter, arching her back after being relieved of its weight.

"I wasn't exactly in a public park. I didn't want to incur the wrath of Future Industries." She sat beside her and watched as Korra lit a wick with the end of her finger.

"What the-?"

"Molecules. Move them fast enough something is bound to combust." Korra twisted and started melting and setting up candles on the coffee table.

"Don't start quoting Varrick to me, I had enough of that maniac when I met him at the galas and now I have to deal with him with this."

"That was probably a spoiler anyway. I think we need to lay down some ground rules Sato."

"Oh yeah?" by the time Korra turned back to her after absentmindedly picking at the wax and varnish behind, she found Asami straddling her and softly kissing her lips.

"Yeah." she whispered against her jaw, letting her hand paw a warm path up her thigh, "No more spoilers. You can't ask me," smeck, "how we get together. And you can't tell my other self about this. You have to let me get there on my own. It could have massive implications for reality not to mention I'll think I've gone crazy and well I can't even begin to think of how I'd act around you."

"So I'm essentially having an affair with your future self?"

"We're not dating yet." Korra reminded, "And I don't know how long it'll be before I can figure out how to get back. It could be a day. A week."

"A year?" Asami leaned forward, tracing lips beneath Korra's jaw and feeding her fingers in her short hair which she'd decided she loved.

"That is plan B." Korra whimpered arching her throat to give her more for a moment, and then re-wrapping her hands around the heiress' to push her back gently.

"Ok what else?" Korra's face twisted a little, somewhere between a smirk and grimace.

"You're gonna hate me."

"What is it?"

"No sex. I can't ruin our firsts with this, it seems so unfair." Asami let out a laugh as she sat back in her embrace.

"What kind of girl do you think I am?" The way Korra's skin lit up with embarrassment was deliciously hilarious. For a moment she seemed legitimately frozen in fear as she contemplated whether or not reality was about to implode around them, only relaxing again when Asami took her face in her hands. "Korra, it's fine. I'm too tired to think about that anyway. Right now I just want to hold you, and fall asleep with you on this old itchy fucking mattress…and I reserve my right to debate about the sex later. "

"We could get take out?" Korra smiled hopefully at her, finally feeling the stark hunger pangs after realising she hadn't eaten since Gaza. She rolled her shoulders and began to peel off her stolen jacket, making herself at home under Asami's warming gaze.

"I'd like that." Emerald eyes traced over Korra's flickering form, warm and tantalising by candle light. She reached an exploratory palm over her throat, and shoulder, her fingers ghosted over a litter of scars that puckered in strips over her collar bone and Korra caught her hand from the seam of her shirt. It was more of an involuntary jerk than a genuine reaction of fear. Theses came and went for years after the accident, after therapy, physical or otherwise still the ides of twisted metal and seething foam lingered in her peripherals. Just as Asami had evoked them however, she was the only person who could calm her.

"You've seen those." she crooned as her fingers knitted through hers.

"Three years and you're still touchy about it." Asami teased before leaning down to kiss them gently, smiling against them as Korra fed her fingers into raven locks.

"Technically for me its four." A loud growl jolted Asami out of her sensual assault. She laughed placing her hands on her stomach. She didn't think much to Korra catching her hands and pulling them away.

"Alright I'll feed you," Laughed the heiress, swinging her leg off of Korra's and pacing back to her jacket to find her phone.

"This is not a date."

"Where was that by the way?"

"We had it right at the corner of 14th and Nunya. Nunya Business."

"Damn so close."

"Nice try Sato."

Asami marvelled as they settled into an easy groove. Korra rolled off the bed and began pawing through boxes for things that resembled bed sheets and spare clothes, she stopped mid sentence on the phone to Narook's Noodle Emporium, watching and imagining Korra unpacking their things. Like the ghosts on the beach she saw her putting up her Water Tribe family shield over the faux fireplace, and Asami would accessorise with the first Sato blue prints that were essentially just as valuable heirlooms. In that instant she knew why Korra chose this place. It wasn't Asami's, it was theirs. She mumbled the address automatically on the phone, tasting her future on her lips. When the line went dead, she continued watching.

Sheets over her shoulder, Korra was now fumbling in boxes that clinked and rustled with an excited inquisitorial glint in her eye. She pulled out a shoe box with a contraption and scrolls of notes inside.

"What's up with this Electrified glove? It's huge."

"Those are my dad's old prototypes from before the coup. I've never really looked at them. How do you know what it does?"

"Spoilers." She mumbled pressing her fingers to the bridge of her nose as she silently chastised herself. "I really need food."

Asami was entranced by the technology as well, since her Father's shame because public knowledge she'd veered away from allowing the company to create anything that could be seen as a weapon. But in the light of Korra's new calling maybe some specialised equipment to keep her girlfriend safe would be the perfect next step. She took it limp from Korra's hand and slipped it on as if by instinct, plucking aimlessly at the dials until she was sure it would work. She clenched her fist and bright blue sparks circled wildly around the leather and copper.

"You're scary when you do that." She looked up at a smirking Korra. She heard her phone buzzing in the kitchen and splayed her fingers threateningly towards the Jumper.

"Don't you dare teleport anywhere while I get the food."

"Wouldn't dream of it!" Korra gulped.

Asami sprinted to the elevator and twitched nervously all the way down. She jammed the money in the poor delivery boy's chest so hard he nearly fell of his Satocycle. She hoped the fifty yuan tip would compensate for the bruised ribs. When she got back she heard the most delightful music playing from Korra's phone, that she had plopped in a tumbler to amplify the sound in a low-tech upgrade.

"Who's playing?"

"…Your favourite band."

"I've never heard of these guys, but they do sound pretty good."

"Crap."

The meal lasted all of thirty minutes. Korra inhaled two portions with ease and couldn't help but play with Asami's hair while she finished her firsts. All the while pouring over her father's old designs. It felt so normal, and while they had acted this intimate at other times in their lives, never had it felt this tender, for Asami at least. She felt like she was holding her breath for a lot of it, waiting to wake up or fade into yet another daydream. Unperturbed by the notion of washing up, Korra swept the containers from the mattress and dressed the sheets around her, finally picking her up to cover the whole bed. She lost her pants in such a flash Asami felt that if her eyes had followed them she'd definitely have gotten whiplash.

"You want help with yours?" she grinned at her and Asami blanched at her flirtatious tone.

"I think I'd like to keep my toes," She stood and balanced awkwardly on the mattress, unbuttoning her jeans and leaning her hand on Korra's shoulder as she worked them past her calves. She looked down on her with hooded eyes, Korra couldn't keep eye contact without her face illuminating the room. "Would you like to start that debate now?" she teased.

"I'm sorry I can't hear you beyond the Sun Warriors playing drums between my ears."

"God you're so fucking cute." Asami sat behind her but was blindsided as she hastily tossed bedsheets over her legs.

"Keep it in the safe zone Sato." Her threatening tone was swallowed by her gulp and breaking voice. "Sleep. Please." Asami smiled at her, taking a lock of umber hair in her fingers at the end before using the hand to push her back on the makeshift jacket-pillow. Korra brought a strong, possessive arm up her back and Asami settled into her side, head on her shoulder, hand on her clavicle, thumb tracing idle circles on delicious mocha skin.

"You were amazing today Asami, and that's coming from both of me." Korra's hand fed back into Asami's hair at the nape of her neck. Asami couldn't say anything as she felt a lump welling in her throat, it was a bitter sweet mix of hope and dread. "It might sound odd saying that we love you, but don't worry we're good people."

The lump shrank and Asami snickered in her girlfriends embrace, feeling her lips grace her forehead. "I love you Asami." She reiterated.

"I'm not going to ruin my first time with you Korra. I promise."

Asami woke alone. Face pressed painfully into the zipper of Korra's bomber, she whirled searching the room frantically. She was getting all too used to the awful mantra that came with negativity and Korra. No no no no.

She felt her breath leaving her lungs in sharp shattered blades. She tried to piece together her yesterday, how wonderful, fantastical and utterly heartbreaking it was. She was in the apartment facing the Bay, there was no other way she could have landed here if not with Korra.

"You've got my zipper printed on your face sweet." Asami nearly flipped herself completely as Korra sipped a coffee cup and titled another towards Asami.

"Oh you cow!" Asami seethed. Covering her watery eyes with her palm and twisting the bedsheets beneath her as she brought her panicked breathing back down. "I thought you'd left me." She felt the steam waft beneath her lips but Korra wasn't pushing at her anymore, she merely placed them on the coffee table and took Asami back into her arms.

"I wouldn't have would I?"

"I'm getting whiplash with all the different you's you know."

Korra pulled her up and into long languid and lazy kisses. She hoped it would translate into all the different versions of her I'm sorry's. She lifted her into her lap, regretting putting her jeans on at all to go out as she ghosted her fingers up her thighs. Not pressing for anything more just enjoying every comfortable inch of Asami against her, forgetting that they were in the wrong time altogether and naturally stripping her of her blouse. Korra didn't think about the implications of what her own shirt would reveal beneath it. Swept up in a tender moment she raised her arms and allowed the heiress to tug it off. As Korra bent forward to reclaim her lips Asami's head twisted and her mouth hit throat before being shoved back.

"Oh my god…" Korra made an attempt to recover her shirt, only Asami's dominating position allowed her to pry her hands away from a scar on her stomach. New to the heiress, as wide as her palm and twice as tall, it marred the left side of her abs. "This wasn't the crash."

"It happens Asami, but everything will be okay."

"Kuvira said you could regenerate."

"Kuvira is wrong about a lot of things. You're right not to trust her. But don't try to pull me away. If this is going to work. I have to be close."

"You won't give me spoilers but you'll give me crazy cryptic bullshit?"

"I know you didn't ask for it."

"No but I'll have to white knuckle the entire fucking situation not knowing what moment you'll be impaled."

"It's fine. It won't kill me."

"And what makes you think I can bear to see you hurt again? How long did it take you to learn how to walk this time? How can you be okay with this amount of pain when we can clearly prevent it now."

"I'm not risking this. Not for some chicken scratch."

"So this chicken scratch directly relates to you A saving the world and B the beginning of our relationship?"

"It's complicated!"

"Why did I think in a year's time you'd be any less infuriating?" Asami heard her phone buzzed and stomped towards it, whipping up her jeans and doing a funny angry dance as she tugged them on and spied the text.

"Where are you going?"

"To deal with the other you!"

"What? Now?"

"You tell me! And I'm taking your coffee!" She snatched up the cups and ripped up her coat from beneath Korra's elbow.

She just reached the door when Korra snapped into existence in front of her, trained hands cupping her neck and cheek and kissing her silent. She pulled away and sidestepped, slightly less angry, slightly more giddy and whispered through her teeth.

"No more teleporting. I want to argue with you later. There's a spare key in the reception. Be back by five." and with a flip of semi braided, yet still near perfect hair she shimmied towards the elevator.

"I love you!" Korra called after her, her blush was a thumb print on the prettiest picture Korra had ever seen.

"I know." Asami called back, throwing herself into the metal box that sealed her in with a pleasant ding.

After a shower, a moment screaming into goose feathered pillows and a reapplication of her war paint Asami was ready for the next curveball this world was about to throw at her. She finished her cup without paying much attention to the scribe on the sides of either of them. Deciding once again to meet at Kwong's she got there early, as usual and ordered Kwong gruffly to give her the same again.

There wasn't a breath of time between receiving the new cups and Korra arriving with another, casual, irritably oblivious, "Hey you,"

"Hey Korra." Asami pushed her cup towards her and Korra lifted it to inspect the script on its side.

"Who's Forever Girl?"

Asami blanched, snorting into her drink with embarrassed surprise.

"Wrong one!" She lied, "I don't think Kwong is much of a barista."

Korra smiled sweetly at her as she gratefully took in the warmth of the gesture. Asami swallowed, this was going to be a long day.