"It is a glorious day my Equalist brothers and sisters." Hiroshi Sato, clad in a brown bomber jacket, threw his arms up in the air and grinned as his eyes scanned the massive crowd gathered around his stage. "Amon has torn down the tyrannical bending government. He has declared bending illegal. And he has the avatar on the run."

Korra was almost thankful cheering erupted; it drowned out her curse. Her blood was boiling. If Amon thought slapping a mask over Avatar Aang's statue meant he'd seen the last of her, he was dead wrong. Korra was just biding her time until she and the United Forces could do some major butt kicking.

There was a gasp to her left, loud enough to make a couple, standing a few feet in front of her, eye Korra and the other masked figure before turning back to the still raving Hiroshi and the stupid, grand banner of Amon rippling in the breeze behind him.

Though she couldn't see Asami's face behind the chi blocker mask, Korra didn't need to to know her friend was distressed. There was an insistent pushing behind her ribs, like the torment was her own, though it wasn't her father up on stage, spewing hate. Allowing Asami to come on recon was a mistake. It was killing her to see her father like this, and Korra suddenly wished Mako or Bolin came instead.

But Asami had argued she had to go because the last time Korra attended an Equalist rally, she almost got caught. The same could be said for the last time Korra ran into Hiroshi. Yet, no matter how many times Korra assured Asami this was a safer mission thanks to the chi blocker uniforms and masks, Asami continued to quarrel with her. Korra suspected there was an ulterior reason, though. There were rumors that Hiroshi would speak at this rally, so Korra asked if that was really why Asami was so intent on tagging along.

There was no outright denial, and Asami repeated she wanted to back Korra up, but she finally admitted she needed to see Hiroshi's face, hear his words, because maybe he wasn't completely lost to anger and grief. Hearing him now though, seeing him smile around the insufferable words he shouted into the microphone, Korra doubted he could be swayed from Amon. Asami obviously came to the same conclusion. Korra felt it.

It was risky—they were supposed to just stand stiff, alert, like good, disciplined soldiers—but no one appeared to be paying Korra or Asami any attention, and they were at the back of the sea of bodies anyways, so Korra reached down, pried loose one of Asami's clenched fists, and threaded their hands together. Asami jumped beside her but after a second, she squeezed back and Korra thought she might've turned to look at her, the sun glinting off her goggles. But Korra kept looking straight ahead into the face of the man responsible for Asami's pain.

Hiroshi wrapped up his speech with a cry of, "But we will prevail!" The ovation reminded Korra of the probending stadium, except this time the shouts of jubilation and thunderous applause made her sick. How could so many people want to erase half the population of the world?

The celebration started to break up as Hiroshi left the stage, so Korra decided it was time to go. She jerked her head to the side and barely got a nod back. She guided Asami back to a boulder behind the bushes and only let go of her hand to bend the earth aside to open their escape route. Korra dropped down in the dark, waited for the sound of Asami landing behind her, then closed the gap above, encasing them in darkness. Korra pulled off her mask and she could breathe again. How did people actually stand wearing these things? A palm full of flame lit up her immediate vicinity, casting everything in a flickering, dim orange glow.

"I can't believe him! I'm not on the run from anyone!" Anger made her voice shake and she would've continued ranting if she hadn't looked to her friend. "Uh, Asami?"

Asking if she was okay would be stupid; Korra knew—felt—the truth. She stepped closer though, and she couldn't tell if the dark rings under Asami's eyes were shadows from the poor light source or if she was that exhausted. It had been a hard three days in the underground homeless camp.

Asami was staring intently at the Equalist mask in her hands. Korra cleared her throat and Asami stirred, as if waking from sleep. Her green eyes blinked and she tried for a smile but it looked like she was about to cry. "I can't believe him, either." Her lips mashed into a hard line and Korra flinched at the frigidness settled in Asami's eyes. "He's taken everything from me. He ruined our home with his lies, and just when I thought I could move on without him, he takes Air Temple Island, too. Now's he's taking control of the city, our city.

"He's capable of so much love. I've seen it! I've felt it. But this? This prejudice, this violence… He wants to hurt innocent people. He's using his ingenuity to aid a madman. To think he actually wanted me to join him. To wear something like this."

The mask hit the floor and Asami stomped on it. The glass in the goggles crunched under her boot heel. Asami shook from head to toe and she looked ready to beat up someone, but just when Korra thought Asami couldn't look any scarier, all the anger fled from her features and instead crumpled into a deep sadness that resonated through Korra's core. "Oh, Asami."

Korra's heart beat harder and she dropped the flame in her hand in favor of wrapping her arms around Asami's middle in a tight embrace. Lithe arms were quick to return the hold and Asami's chin pressed into her shoulder. Hitched, hard breaths made Asami's back jump under Korra's hands. Black hair, smelling faintly floral (Asami missed her shampoo dearly over the past few days but the scent seemed to cling to her in recompense) tickled Korra's nose but she didn't move or try to blow it away. She'd hug Asami for as long as needed and, uh, was Asami crying?

Asami sniffled and yep, she was definitely crying, though quietly. Korra rubbed a hand up and down her friend's back but didn't say anything, hoping she could convey enough support through her hug. They stood in the dark for who knew how long before Asami finally spoke. "I keep hoping I'll wake up in my room at my house, down the hall from my father, and he'll knock on my door, in his workshop clothes, smiling, and ask if I want to go work on a car with him but," she hiccupped, "that's never going to happen again, is it?"

"No," was the first answer that popped into Korra's head, but that was too harsh. "Who knows? He might surprise you." It was a stupid response but Korra didn't know what else to say.

Asami pulled away a few seconds later. "Has anyone ever told you that you give really good hugs?" Asami laughed weakly and wiped a stray tear from under her eye. "Because that was nice."

Korra blushed, shrugged, looked to the floor. "Well, your hair smells nice." Korra kicked a loose pebble down the tunnel shaft.

She was never very good at complements, so she glanced up to see how Asami took it and was pleased to find a small, embarrassed smile on her lips. Still painted lips. How did she get the mask off without smearing her lipstick everywhere? Maybe Korra would ask her about it later.

"Thanks," Asami said. "We should probably get back to the others. Tell them what we found out."

Korra nodded. A war was coming and the Equalists were getting stronger by the day. She wanted to tell Asami not to worry, that they didn't have to rush and could stroll leisurely down the tunnel, back to their ramshackle base camp, but they needed to come up with a plan. The United Forces were supposed to arrive tomorrow. "Right. Let's go."

Sensing Korra's urgency, Asami walked briskly with her. The route back to the base camp was short and soon they were both breathing in the stale air of the open chamber, where over a hundred homeless people lived in makeshift tents and shacks. Korra spotted Bolin and Mako by a fire pit, sitting on empty crates and playing with Pabu, so she and Asami jogged over to them. Korra caught Asami wiping her face before they came in range of the boys.

Bolin saw them first and sprang up. "You guys were gone for a long time. We were starting to get worried!" He crushed both of them into a hug and Korra laughed a little when she felt both hers and Asami's ribs protest.

When he dropped them, Mako looked them over. "You're okay?" When he seemed satisfied with their answers (or at least Korra's; he kept eyeing Asami's red, puffy face), he said, "Okay, what did you find out?"

They settled around the fire, Asami and Korra taking turns injecting different pieces of information. Korra spoke mostly about Hiroshi's speech, trying to summarize it quickly as Asami's eyes got lost in the flames of the campfire. Just as Korra finished, Gommu, the man she'd met in the park her first day in Republic City, and who graciously welcomed her and her friends when they stumbled upon the underground site, bustled forward with a large pot of something tan and chunky. Steam rose from the top and the scent alone made Korra's stomach grumble loudly. Asami chuckled at the sound.

"Of course you're starving," she said, elbowing Korra.

"Hey! Recon is hungry business." Korra rubbed her stomach and leaned forwards, watching Gommu ladle whatever it was into mismatched set of chipped bowls.

"Dinner is served!" Gommu smiled as he held out a bowl for Bolin.

The earthbender took it eagerly. Then Gommu passed a bowl to Korra. As hungry as she was, she gave it to Asami, sitting on the crate beside her. She had a rough day and probably needed something warm to eat, even if it was just a distraction.

"Thanks," Asami said, though she took the bowl into her hands as if it were a wild animal that might bite her.

Korra got a bowl for herself next and shoveled a few spoonfuls into her mouth. It was gruel and it was watery but had a nice tang of salt and some other spices that made it more palatable. It burned her tongue though and Asami sighed, throwing a knowing look at her. "Sorry," Korra said.

"How is it, besides hot?" Asami asked, dropping her voice as she stirred her spoon through the lumpy, beige liquid meal.

It occurred to Korra then that Asami had probably never eaten anything like this before. "It's uh," she wracked her brains to think of a positive way to spin it when Bolin started talking animatedly across from them.

"Mmmm! This is the best tasting street gruel I've ever had. Seriously!"

Korra wanted to laugh at the frown on Asami's face, but all of this was new to her. It wouldn't be kind. She watched as Asami raised a spoonful to her lips. She just put it in her mouth when Korra caught on to what Gommu was saying. "…culled it from the finest dumpsters the city has to offer!" He looked rather proud of that fact.

Asami did not. Korra bit her lip as Asami actually turned green and spit the gruel back into her bowl. She set it aside and Pabu began to lap it up. Bolin, Mako, and Gommu began discussing some of their more interesting meals while living on the streets, so Korra turned fully to Asami. Seeing as the White Lotus took care of her for her entire life, Korra didn't have anything to add to the conversation (and she couldn't entirely squash the guilt rising up inside her; her friends had been through so much she couldn't understand).

"It doesn't taste dumpster-y," Korra offered.

Asami hugged herself and looked at the ground. Okay, that didn't help at all. "I must seem like a spoiled brat," Asami mumbled. "I can't even stand a bite of street gruel."

Korra bumped her knee against Asami's thigh until green eyes met her gaze. "You're not used to it, that's all. I'm not used it either. All of my life, I've had White Lotus guards, Pema, or my mom cooking for me. Caring for me. And if I'm totally honest," Korra leaned in so Gommu wouldn't hear her and whispered, "I'm kind of put off by the dumpster thing, too." She'd seen spider-rats avoid some of the dumpsters in the city, which said a lot.

Korra still planned to eat it, of course. She was hungry and she needed the sustenance to fight tomorrow. Plus, she'd eaten some weird things back home that even Mako and Bolin might cringe at. She vaguely remembered something about drinking tiger-seal blood at the start of the hunting season, though the White Lotus chefs hadn't followed all of the Southern customs and traditions.

"I just," Asami paused to push a strand of her hair behind her ear. "I'm trying, but all of this is a lot."

Asami had been jettisoned from every stable situation she entered over the past few weeks. Her mansion with a supposedly loving father. Her new home on Air Temple Island with Team Avatar. Now, she was being forced to live underground in her birth city. So Korra would ease Asami's mind, distract her until tomorrow, when hopefully they would take Hiroshi down and get closure. She filled her spoon with gruel and held it in front of Asami. "You should eat something. Really, you don't want to be starving tomorrow." Asami tried to hide her grimace, but Korra still saw it. "Pretend I made it. Don't want to hurt my feelings, do you?" Okay where was she going with this?

Asami was confused, too. "Can you even cook?" The surprise in her voice was mildly insulting, though Korra did just say people usually cooked for her.

Korra dropped her spoon back into the bowl and pretended to look offended. "I can, actually. Though the last time I did, I suppose the fish was a little well done. Grilling with two fiery fingers doesn't cook the fish evenly unless you burn it a little." And it had been totally illegal; apparently you weren't supposed to eat the fish in the park pond.

Asami laughed and had to cover her mouth with her hand when Bolin and Mako eyed them. Korra shook her head when Mako looked like he was about to ask what was going on. He stared at Asami, then Korra, and gave a brief nod before telling Bolin to show off some of Pabu's tricks to Gommu.

"Sorry." Asami's laughter died down but there was still a playful spark in her eyes. "But that doesn't sound like cooking so much as burning. I can't talk though because I've never really cooked before. And that makes me wonder what that means for our future."

Korra shifted in her seat a little. Soul mate stuff was still weird to talk about, and Korra had been doing her best to ignore it, though moments when they just clicked made it hard. Like the hug they shared in the dark tunnel. She hadn't allowed herself to think about it at the time, because Asami was upset and that was far more important, but in the back of her mind, she noted how their bodies fit together kind of perfectly. Now, scenes of her and Asami eating together on dates and anniversaries came unbidden and made her head swim. Though, a small part of her thought, not in a bad way.

"Lots of take-out food," Korra finally suggested.

Asami smiled. "You think we're both that hopeless that we can't figure out how to cook together?"

Korra rolled her eyes and said the first response that popped into her head. "Or we'll burn down the house together." She liked to think they'd have a house one day, er, not that she thought about her future with Asami a lot or anything.

Asami's smile faded and she hugged herself harder. "I'm going to go for a walk, I think." She stood and Korra made to follow but Asami motioned for her to stay. "I just need a minute alone."

Korra frowned. "I'm sorry if I said something wrong. I didn't mean to—"

"No, I know. It's just…houses mean families and I…" Asami trailed off. "I'll be back soon, I'm just going to walk around a little bit."

Without another word, Asami walked away, skirting campfires and shelters.

Needing a minute turned out to mean needing a couple of hours. Korra would've been worried if she hadn't seen Asami on the opposite side of the space from time to time, chatting with a stranger or just surveying the area. It was well into the night when she finally came back, walking up to Korra, who'd settled against Naga's side.

"Can't sleep either?" Asami asked.

Korra tried not to linger on the fact that Asami seemed disappointed she was awake. What she said really must have gotten to Asami. "No." She paused. "I'm sorry."

Asami's eyes widened. "Oh, Korra, no, don't apologize. I'm overwhelmed and I'm worried and I feel kind of trapped down here but it's not because of what you said." She sat down next to Korra. "Actually, it was nice. Imagining something happy like that. But it felt wrong with everything that's happened and I didn't know how to process."

Even if Asami wasn't upset, Korra still felt guilty. "Okay."

Silence engulfed them and though Asami had no trouble getting lost in her thoughts, Korra fidgeted beside her. The United Forces were coming tomorrow, which meant she finally got to do something and that meant facing off against Amon and what if she wasn't ready? What if he took her bending?

"Tomorrow's a big day," Asami said, making Korra jump.

"Yeah."

Asami stared straight ahead, her chin held high. "I have to face my father. I have to stop him. What he's doing is wrong and I can't sit back and do nothing."

She sounded so sure of herself. Korra wished she felt that brave about dealing with Amon. "Aren't you scared?"

Asami turned to her and smiled, though it wasn't happy. "Terrified. You? "

"Yeah, I'm afraid." Korra half buried her face into her arms so only her eyes and forehead were visible. "What if I fail and Amon takes my bending? I won't be the Avatar anymore. There's a lot at stake here, Asami."

"I know there is." Asami's hand rested on her arm. "But you'll be the Avatar no matter what happens. And besides, I'm going to be right there with you and I'll do everything in my power to make sure Amon doesn't take your bending. After all he can't use his powers on me. I've got nothing to take away."

Korra knew Asami was referring to being a nonbender, but Korra thought there were a few things Amon could still take away from her. She didn't dare voice them aloud. Amon didn't hesitate to take people out. He bombed an arena full of innocent people after all. She hated to think what the leader of the Equalists would do to Asami if she got in his way.

"Thanks. I know you've got my back." Korra searched for something else to talk about as her thoughts turned down a dark path. "Hey, how did you keep your lipstick from smearing when you took the chi blocker mask off?"

Asami raised a brow at the sudden change of conversation, but she didn't object. The lighthearted talk was enough to help Korra relax and soon, both she and Asami were yawning and wishing each other goodnight.

Asami wondered when she'd have a day that didn't leave her with a case of whiplash.

This morning, she awoke against a twitching Naga and a snoring Korra inches from her face. Somehow they'd shifted to face each other in their sleep. The sun was barely up, or so the little light from above made it seem. Normally, she would have been annoyed at being up s early, but Korra looked so cute, fingers threaded through Naga's fur, a line of drool trickling from the corner of her mouth, her legs curled close to her body. She was completely relaxed. The opposite of how she was last night, when Asami thought neither of them was going to be able to fall asleep, consumed with their own worries. It was incredibly peaceful, pleasant even.

Then, after daybreak, when Team Avatar assembled and snuck aboveground to overlook the bay, and they were barely able to see through the thick fog clinging to the shoreline, everything went from nervous anticipation to sheer panic as the first wave of the United Forces fleet drifted into a sea of underwater mines. Before she could utter a word to stop Korra, the Avatar was off, plunging into the water and rocketing away.

Asami took Bolin's spyglass and alternated between searching for Korra among the blasts and ship debris, and hunting the skyline of the city when she heard that menacing buzzing grow into a dull roar. When the first squadron of planes emerged from the clouds, she shivered. After all the damning evidence she'd seen for herself, she shouldn't have been surprised her father would create something so useful and innovative and turn it into a weapon.

Everything after that was a blur of bomb, explosions, plumes of water. And then Korra was hauling an injured General Iroh onto the platform as the fleet sunk to the bottom of Yue Bay. It was horrific, knowing how many people had been on board, but Asami pushed it aside, helped bear Iroh's weight as Korra urged them to get out of sight before the planes, her father's planes, could drop anything on them. They retreated, regrouped underground, and talked for hours, pouring over maps, drawing up battle plans. Iroh did most of the hard work but, as the sunset, Asami felt a grim confidence settle deep inside her. They had a plan.

Iroh would lead Team Avatar into the mountains, where they would take out the Equalist base, clearing the path for Bumi and his reinforcements. Korra remained unusually silent and stone faced as they tied up the loose ends of the plan, and Asami assumed it was because their situation was grave; they suffered a devastating blow today. But then, as Iroh, Mako, and Bolin drifted apart, Korra cleared her throat and said something that made Asami's heart drop.

"I'm not coming with you guys tomorrow."

"What?" Asami was too shocked to get anything else out.

Korra's blue eyes set on her as she explained that her gut was telling her to settle things with Amon. Now was the right time. Asami wasn't sure she agreed, recalling every concern Korra voiced the night prior, but, as Iroh said, she was the Avatar. She needed to make her own calls. But that didn't mean Korra had to face Amon alone. "Then I'm coming with you. You're not going to do this alone."

Korra looked like she was about to protest, her eyebrows slanting down sharply, her mouth curving into a near frown, but she stopped, shook her head, then sighed. "If you go with me, there's no guarantee your father will be there. He's probably at the camp in the mountains. You said he was flying a plane and I bet that's where the airfields are."

The logic was infallible and it forced Asami to make a hard choice. She wanted to be there for Korra, to help her face Amon because he terrified her, was dangerous, and she would want (maybe even need) support. But Asami also wanted to stop her father herself. Maybe it would help restore the shame her father brought to the Sato name. And she was the best one to try to stop him because he wouldn't hurt her; he loved her. She could end his reign of terror and wound Amon's resources significantly.

She grit her teeth and swallowed hard. She wanted to help Korra but she needed to be the one to take her father on. Maybe she could do both? Stop her father and help Korra? "Fine. I'll go into the mountains. But you're not fighting Amon alone."

"But it's okay for you to take on your father by yourself?" Korra's eyes narrowed.

"I'm not going to be alone. We're all going to the base to take it out. I have three people supporting me. You could make it four." She nearly tacked on a please, but Asami didn't want to sound desperate.

Korra shook her head and looked at her with a serious expression. "Asami, I have to take Amon down and it has to be tomorrow. I feel it. It's my duty as the Avatar. And I'm not going to put anyone else at risk."

"I'll go with her."

Asami turned to see Mako stepping between them. She felt as surprised as Korra looked, but Korra recovered much faster. "No, Mako. I can't ask you to—"

"You didn't ask. I volunteered." He crossed his arms and glared at her. "Korra, I'm your team mate. I'm your friend. I'm not going to sit on the sidelines while you go do something ridiculously risky and dangerous alone. I'm going to have your back, whether you want it or not."

Thank you, Mako, Asami thought as a tiny wave of relief swept through her. Mako was strong. He was a good fighter and a talented bender. He ran the risk of losing his firebending by joining Korra but he didn't appear to care about that so much. He'd help Korra, protect her if necessary, and though Asami wished she could be in two places at once so that Mako wouldn't have to be put in danger—she really didn't like the idea of him being within Amon's reach either—she knew he was just as stubborn and there was no point in talking him out of the plan. So she allowed herself to feel somewhat comforted that Korra wouldn't be standing up to her fears alone.

Korra begrudgingly accepted Mako's offer a few minutes later, after they shouted their points of view at each other. Then everyone drifted away to sleep for the night. Korra slumped against Naga and Asami tread lightly over. She hovered, waiting for her friend to say something, but Korra just pat the ground beside her.

Asami sat down and leaned back against the already snoozing polar bear dog. She and Korra didn't say anything for a long time. A million thoughts ran through Asami's head. The change of plans shook her up. She wanted to believe Korra and her friends would be all right but…What if Korra and Mako didn't make it back? What if Amon took them, stripped them of their bending, and then…she wouldn't think the word. Because thinking it made it seem more real, like it could actually happen.

She was eighteen. Korra was seventeen. They were both so young. None of this was fair. Asami swung her gaze to Korra only to find her friend already staring at her intensely. Their plans could go awry so easily. One slip up and Korra could be gone. She could be gone, though that felt less likely. Fate wouldn't be that cruel to Asami, would it? It took her mother, warped her father. It wouldn't seize her soul mate, too, would it?

Asami's heart hammered harder with every passing second. Her eyes traced Korra's wolf tails, eyes, cheekbones, jaw, neck, bare arms, every inch of her until Asami thought she could probably do a decent sketch from memory. Korra looked like she was doing something similar. But Asami couldn't take it anymore. "Korra."

"Asami." The voice matched her own; fragile, sad, full of longing.

They both moved at the same time, sitting up, throwing arms around each other in a tight hug despite the awkward. Korra buried her face in Asami's shoulder and Asami's left hand found the back of Korra's head, keeping her in place.

"Remember our signal," Asami whispered into Korra's soft, brown hair. "Three squeezes to ask if someone is okay. And to respond, two for yes, one for no." Asami didn't dare talk about what no response meant.

Korra nodded against Asami's neck, then tilted her head to the side so her mouth was free to speak. "It'll be okay. We can do this. We're going to win. And then maybe we can celebrate at that sweet shop."

The confident tone almost made Asami believe her. Almost. "I'd like that." Asami tightened her hold around Korra before finally letting her go.

They stared at each other again, arms length apart. "We should sleep," Korra said, finally looking away and leaning back against Naga.

Asami copied her, but scooted close so their sides pressed together. She took Korra's right hand into her left one. Korra didn't protest. In fact, she surprised Asami completely by leaning into her, resting her head on Asami's shoulder. Asami's heart sped up and she didn't care if Korra could hear it. Tomorrow could bring victory, or some horrible, painful future, but tonight she and Korra were alive and they had each other. She tried to dream of tomorrow night, of rice cakes and sweet rolls.