174 AG
Outside the dome it was too sunny and cheery. It was the kind of day that was perfect for hiking up in the mountains, not making war. Kuvira's army were congregated in an almost straight line on either side of the railway and Opal followed the line into the distance. It took her about twenty minutes to reach the main camp.
Most of the soldiers didn't do anything as she approached and subsequently passed them, they just watched her walk by. It surprised Opal; the red of her uniform probably warded them off. However, by the time she neared Kuvira's tent a few soldiers had finally broken formation and grabbed her, holding her with harsher force than was necessary.
"Let me go," she snarled at them. "Let go of me!" There were three of them with their hands on her and they refused. Opal yanked her arms out of their grasps but they held her fast, uncertain with what to do with her. Then, to brighten her day further, Bolin came plodding on up to them.
"Hey, let Opal go!" he said, physically disentangling the soldiers from Opal. He was the last person Opal wanted to see and the last person she wanted to help her. She folded her arms.
"She's trespassing," one of the other soldiers said.
"We don't own this place," Bolin said, brow wrinkling in confusion. "She can go wherever she wants. And she's an Air Nomad, you can't just - " While they were talking another soldier had seized Opal, pissing her off even more.
"Stop it, Bolin," she said, pausing her struggle for a moment to snap at him. "Don't defend the enemy." Bolin looked like he'd been slapped. Opal felt a little guilty but she bit it down; she had nothing to feel guilty about. At that moment, Kuvira came pacing up to them and Bolin almost unconsciously stepped back to make way for her.
"No, no," Kuvira said authoritatively. "Let her pass." Her soldiers let Opal go just as Opal wrenched her arm back from them. "Come on, Opal," Kuvira said, posture relaxed. "Let's talk in private." Kuvira knew what she was here for. Bolin looked after Opal with confusion and she fixed him with most withering expression she could muster. She glared at the soldiers one last time and followed Kuvira into her tent.
As soon as Kuvira shut the door Opal turned on her. "Get out of Zaofu," Opal said, voice shaking with barely controlled rage. Seeing Bolin defer to Kuvira so obediently even, after he'd witnessed Kuvira threatening Zaofu directly, had only gotten Opal more furious. She couldn't stand to see Kuvira so in control like this.
"I'm not in Zaofu," Kuvira said, a little smirk touching on her lips. The implication hung heavy and threateningly in the air. She was gloating.
"Why are you doing this?" Opal hissed.
"Zaofu has abstained for long enough," Kuvira said, losing her good humour. "It's time this city acts on its responsibilities to the Earth Nation."
"So you're going to force us to work for you?" Opal asked. "Why do you want to turn Zaofu into another factory for your Empire?"
"I don't," Kuvira said. "Opal, what you've seen, what you've been calling slave labour, I hope you realize that I'm not the only one that will benefit from what they produce. My people's service to the Empire is only temporary until the entire nation has been stabilized. Everything we're creating is for the Empire's benefit, including the workers."
"What about your dissenters?" Opal asked, unwilling to let Kuvira's justifications distract her. "You're doing just what the Earth Queen did. You're not a real leader. You're just another coward that got a hold on some power."
Kuvira sighed, discontent. "It disappoints me that you think like that."
"It disappoints me that you want to do this to Zaofu," Opal said. Kuvira looked at her coldly.
"You had a problem with me long before this," she said. "Tell me what's really bothering you, Opal. Is it that your little boyfriend knew that the only way he could help the world was through me? That all your training was essentially useless because in the end I'm going to be the one who changes this world, not you, and not your Avatar." Kuvira's eyes were bright with cold excitement.
"Perhaps you could still rally the troops, but I don't see them coming to your aid," she added. "From where I stand the only way you can be of any use to the people of this Nation is by joining us. But you're too proud to do that." Kuvira was one to talk about pride but Opal held her tongue even while she was shaking with rage. Kuvira smiled at her as though she'd just realized something.
"Opal," she said patronizingly, a grin growing sharper on her lips. "Don't be upset that you didn't come with me three years ago. You could still -" Opal reeled her arm back and landed her fist down on Kuvira's jaw, punching her so hard the thwack of Kuvira's head on the wall behind her sounded through the air.
Opal fell off Kuvira, clutching her hand that stung with a jagged, crawling pain. Kuvira turned to her side and spat out blood. Kuvira hadn't seen it coming; she must have bit her tongue. She looked up at Opal cautiously, wiping her mouth. Opal had never hit anything so hard in her life. Opal felt horrified and disgusted.
"I'm sorry," she blurted, stepping away from Kuvira and turning to run.
"Opal, wait," Kuvira said, stepping off of the wall and walking over to Opal. Opal paused, running her fingers along her stinging knuckles. "I don't blame you for being angry with me," she said even while a little blood seeped out of her mouth. "You don't understand yet."
"You shouldn't," Opal said quietly. She turned around, all feelings of remorse burning away. Hitting Kuvira was childish but Kuvira held thousands of lives in her hands so Opal didn't have time to feel bad. "And I don't! You have my brother, my boyfriend, you're trying to invade our city, and youlied to me!" Kuvira looked at her with a soft expression, feeling her jaw with her gloved hand. She wasn't even listening to Opal.
Opal advanced on the metalbender, determined on making her hear what Opal was saying. "You betrayed me. You lied to me after you said that you wouldn't, and you took those I love from me!" Opal's hands were shaking. "And I admired and cared for you so much and you still did those things, you're still going to take Zaofu and destroy it for your own goals! How could you do this? Why are you doing this?"
"Opal," Kuvira said, voice breaking. She wanted to defend herself but she knew that if she tried lying again Opal was going to leave. Instead she cupped Opal's face in both palms and Opal shuddered. She hadn't expected this. The material Kuvira's gloves were soft on her cheeks, and her hands felt so strong. This wasn't good.
Opal was always forgetting how much she craved this kind of attention when she was a little younger. How could Kuvira use that against her? "No, don't touch me," she whimpered. Kuvira held her in place with her hands, trying to get Opal's attention. "No, let go," Opal begged. Kuvira refused to; instead she tilted Opal's face towards her and tried to make eye contact.
Kuvira couldn't possibly know how easy it would be to get Opal to crumble. With all her righteous anger Opal's oldest memories of Kuvira were kind ones. She knew, rationally, that Kuvira was a horrible person, a dictator, a liar, and even now she had acted vindictive, manipulative, and arrogant. But Kuvira only had to look at Opal with the same gentle expression she'd worn in Zaofu and all Opal realized that Kuvira's insinuations weren't entirely unfair.
"Opal," Kuvira repeated. "Please, listen -" Opal couldn't wrench out of her grasp by herself, but she needed to get Kuvira to let go of her face. Kuvira grabbed her hands. Opal needed to get out. This was a mistake, she needed to leave, but Kuvira wasn't letting her go and was holding her tighter. This had to stop and impulsively, out of options, Opal gripped Kuvira's uniform and pulled her against her, leaned up and tasted blood.
Kuvira let go.
Opal flushed. She didn't know why she'd kissed Kuvira, but it had worked. Kuvira, who'd been gripping tender bruises into her wrists, was standing a few steps away from Opal and staring like she was looking at a stranger. Opal felt viciously glad that they shared that feeling. Kuvira looked at Opal, chest heaving, and the feeling evaporated.
For some reason Opal couldn't move. She was free to run now but something kept her there, waiting, even while Kuvira stayed still. Opal felt self-conscious in Kuvira's gaze. Her own breathing was heavy. She wanted to push her hair behind her ears but her hands were still shaking. Kuvira's blood was on her lips. It tasted like metal.
Suddenly, Kuvira had walked up to Opal again and pressed her mouth against the airbender's, pulling her into her arms. Opal balked but Kuvira held onto her, moving her lips against her in a way that made Opal gasp out loud. Kuvira pressed Opal against the metal wall of her tent and continued to kiss her like she couldn't think of an alternative.
Opal couldn't think at all, her mind had gone blank. She could scream for help but she wasn't sure she wanted to. She wasn't in danger, even as Kuvira moved closer against her, one hand sliding down her side and resting on the small of her back. Her hands were free, she could blast Kuvira across the room and run away and she knew Kuvira wouldn't try to capture her but . . . she didn't. She was letting Kuvira, her future sister-in-law, the Great Uniter, kiss her. And suddenly, she was kissing her back.
Opal moaned into Kuvira's mouth when Kuvira bit her lip and she pressed herself into Kuvira, her arms wrapping around the taller woman's waist. Kuvira's mouth tasted like blood, and her mouth was harsh on Opal's. She wasn't angry or forgiving about the injury, but Opal knew it must hurt Kuvira to kiss her. She was actually kissing her.
Opal couldn't think about it. She didn't even know what she was doing. The more she and Kuvira kissed, the less Kuvira tasted like blood and pain and the more she tasted like something familiar, something human. Beneath the tangy taste that Opal's anger had left in her mouth, Kuvira tasted sweet and clean and somehow perfect.
And it shouldn't have felt right, Kuvira's bloody teeth and smooth gloves and hands tugging on Opal's waist, bringing her closer, pressing her into the wall, drawing Opal's will to leave out through her mouth, but it did. It felt so right. Kuvira's lips were softer, and her kisses were harder, than what Opal had imagined. She was gutted with the realization of how often she had imagined it.
Opal tugged Kuvira closer, desperate for a deeper kiss. Pulling Kuvira against her caused the metalbender's knee to slip between Opal's legs and knock against the wall. Through the thick layers of her Air Nomad uniform Opal could feel Kuvira's thigh beneath her. Kuvira kissed her and unintentionally moved her leg, setting a spark burning in Opal's stomach. Opal's hips jumped, and Kuvira noticed.
She thrust Opal against the wall, sliding her leg between Opal's again, and Opal couldn't help but move on Kuvira's thigh, her breathing cutting off and restarting sporadically. Her cheeks were hot; she felt dizzy. Kuvira held Opal's hips, guiding her movements on her leg, continuing to kiss her. Opal felt herself getting increasingly shameless, dangerously slow. She could feel Kuvira's chest pressing tightly against her own, flattened in the confines of her clothes.
Kuvira's hand hoisted up Opal's leg and she pressed herself down onto Opal's thigh, still kissing her. Opal's hands tightened on her Kuvira's waist; she could feel every roll and twitch of the taller woman's hips and Opal whimpered. Kuvira put her palm on Opal's chest and kissed her deeper, moving up and down Opal's leg, nudging Opal into the wall. Her hand on Opal's breast was massing it gently, thumb flicking against her nipple. Opal's legs were losing strength but Kuvira was there, holding her up, crowding her against the metal wall, and kissing her like it was the only thing keeping Opal in place.
But no matter how good Kuvira's hand felt on her, Opal wanted it out of the way. She wrapped her arms around Kuvira's neck and kissed Kuvira as hard as she could. Kuvira grunted and her mouth fell open, surprised at Opal's forcefulness. Opal trailed her tongue across Kuvira's lips, making a little noise at the back of her throat. Kuvira's hand stopped moving, it just gripped Opal's possessively. Opal traced Kuvira's lips and bit her lower lip as gently as she could, pulling it into her mouth. The breath stuttered in Kuvira's lungs. Opal knew that Kuvira could feel her heart beating against her bones. She couldn't tell if she was excited or afraid.
Kuvira's hand finally abandoned Opal's chest, leaving Opal free to press herself against the metalbender. They were both wearing so many layers but Opal could swear she felt every inch of the older woman. The hand the Kuvira wasn't using to support Opal's thigh found the small of Opal's back and stroked her there. The move sent chills across Opal's body, it felt unfairly intimate.
Kuvira kissed her slower now, guiding Opal's movements on her leg. It drove Opal past the point of thinking when she felt Kuvira's hips twitch when she rode her thigh; and Opal's hips twitched so often now. Her lungs felt heavy with, with something, with Kuvira, Opal's head was growing light and her vision was spotting. She couldn't stop kissing her. She'd forgotten everything else; it just felt so cathartic to kiss Kuvira, to be kissed by her.
Kuvira was the first to pull away. Opal leaned automatically forward, chasing Kuvira's lips, and finding only air. Kuvira pushed her back against the wall, breathing shakily. Opal opened her eyes a little. Kuvira's lips were puffy and Opal nearly moaned again. Kuvira's mouth was no longer bloody, and Opal could barely see the red mark from where she'd struck her. This was so wrong.
Opal put her hand on Kuvira's jaw, trying to apologize wordlessly; she couldn't speak yet. Her lungs were raw, lips swollen. Everywhere Kuvira had touched her seemed to sting and ache for something. Kuvira pressed her forehead against Opal's, breathing heavily. Opal would wonder later if Kuvira was manipulating her but Kuvira was trying to hide her hands from Opal. They were trembling.
"Opal," Kuvira said, voice hoarse. The moment shattered and Opal realized what had just happened. She pushed Kuvira off of her and did what she should have in the first place. She ran away, gathering speed until her heart felt like it was bruising the inside of her ribs, until her lungs shuddered in her chest, until she reached the domes of Zaofu.
No one pursued her, Kuvira must have given orders for them not to. It seemed like not even Bolin had noticed, something Opal couldn't express her gratitude about. She sought the dome she'd come from and Huan was there where she'd left him, waiting to let her in. He didn't ask her questions, he knew that whatever she'd tried to do wasn't successful but she'd survived. Opal was up in her room before she wiped her mouth and found flakes of red and brown coming off on her hand.