If Mako had been angry about coming to Air Temple Island, he was nothing short of a raging lunatic when Asami told him what was coming next.
"Absolutely not!" he roared. "Are you insane?"
"I'm starting to think that might be the case, yes," Asami said, calmly packing her bag as Bolin tried to calm his brother down.
"At least it's a solution, Mako," the younger brother said, moving between the two of them so that Mako couldn't just grab Asami and carry her back home as he seemed on the verge of doing. "You saw what happened in there, bro. What other choice is there?"
"Don't you dare condone this!" Asami had seen him angry before, but this was something else entirely. She would have been scared if it wasn't Mako. His words grated on her, though – he sounded far too like Hiroshi had back in the council room.
She turned and rounded on Mako, livid. "And don't you dare think that you have any right to tell me what to do and what not to do!" she snarled. "You think I'm going into this without a second thought? I'm terrified, Mako! I'm about to go marry Tonraq's smug-ass daughter! You think I'm looking forward to presenting her to my father? Besides, she could change her mind halfway there and just do away with me! You really think I want any of this?"
"Sorry to interrupt," a voice said from the door, and they all turned to see Korra standing there. "We should be going as soon as possible. A lot of ground to cover, you know." There was something strange about the look she was giving Asami, but it was indecipherable, at least to her bride-to-be.
"Before your father finds out what happened and comes running back to drag you home?" Asami asked good-naturedly. Korra still set her on edge, but she'd come to the conclusion that trying to get along with her would make the entire process a lot easier.
"I'm amazed he hasn't figured it out already," Korra said dryly. "Kuvira was watching me like a damn hawk every second until they left. They know something's up, they just can't figure out what."
"Probably just as well," Mako muttered.
Korra smirked at him. "Well you're not wrong."
"How did you convince them to go on ahead of you?" Asami asked.
"I told them Tenzin invited me to stay a little while longer and I took him up on it. Dad knows how I get when it comes to the war. It's not the first time I've had to take some time away from it."
"Were you eloping then, too?" Bolin asked with a grin.
Korra seemed surprised by his good humour, but her answering grin was genuine. "Oh yeah, didn't I mention? This is my third attempt."
Bolin seemed satisfied with the reciprocation, and he gave Mako a rather pleased look. Mako ignored him, glaring at Korra.
"I wouldn't get too used to not having Kuvira around," Asami said, casting Mako a pointed look.
He flushed slightly, but stood his ground. "I've every reason to be wary."
Korra shrugged. "I mean you're welcome to continue hauling those prejudices around, but whatever you think, it doesn't change what's happening."
Mako's jaw ticked and Asami laid a hand on his arm. "Mako."
He tore his eyes off Korra to look at her.
"You need to trust me," Asami said, her voice soft. "I know that what we're doing isn't exactly safe by anybody's standards, and a lot of people aren't going to like it. I need you on my side."
Mako's expression became pained, but he finally gave in with a weighted sigh. "Alright," he said, "but I'll go ahead and continue to worry quietly to myself, if it's all the same to you."
Asami laid her hand on his cheek with an affectionate smile. "You're stupid," she said.
"I know."
"Well, at least you can admit it." Korra jerked her thumb back over her shoulder. "I'll be waiting by the airship when you're ready." The southerner turned and left them to their packing.
Asami turned back to her bag, and while Mako started shoving his own belongings away, Bolin sidled up beside her. "Are you sure about this?" he asked quietly.
Asami sighed. "No," she whispered back, "but it's a chance, at least."
Bolin just nodded and Asami found herself profoundly grateful for his easy acceptance. It provided a nice counterweight to Mako's constant fretting.
As promised, Korra was waiting by the anchored airship when they made their way out to the edge of the island. "Need a hand?" she asked Mako, who always seemed to insist on carrying everybody's luggage, for some reason.
"I'm fine," Mako said shortly, but Korra rolled her eyes and took one of the bags from him anyway. "Alright, tough guy," she said, slinging the bag over her shoulder before turning and making her way up the ramp and into the ship.
Asami answered Mako's bewildered look with a shrug and followed Korra inside.
Things were more than a little awkward after they took to the air.
Korra insisted on joining Asami, Mako and Bolin as they sat at the table in companionable silence; Mako had his nose stuck in a book (and he wasn't being very subtle about watching Korra over the top of it) while Bolin played with Pabu and Asami leaned over her sketchbook, absorbed in her work.
For a while Korra seemed content to just sit, staring out the window with her chair pushed back onto its rear legs and her fur boots resting on the table. Asami hardly noticed her; as long as nobody was bickering or exchanging snide comments, she was happy to concentrate on the page in front of her and the streamlined race car she lovingly sketched.
"What's that?"
Asami started violently. She hadn't even noticed Korra moving to take up the seat beside her and peer over at what she was drawing.
"Uh... it's a car."
Korra rolled her eyes. "No, really?"
Asami flushed, irritated but strangely flustered by Korra's sudden attention. "It... it's just a concept. Something to do in my spare time."
Korra arched an eyebrow, lifting her eyes from the page to give Asami an almost quizzical look. "I'd say it's more than a hobby," she said. "It's really good. Do you have any others?"
Asami tore her gaze away, her lower lip catching between her teeth as she flipped through the pages of her sketchbook, angling it toward Korra slightly. She had no idea how technically minded Korra was, and some of the designs were complex, but for her part she at least acted like she understood. "Impressive," she said eventually. "That's quite a talent."
"Thanks," Asami said, keeping her eyes on her book and trying not to think about how hot her ears had grown.
The sound of a forcefully turned page made both of them look up at Mako, who was peering at them over the top of his book with narrowed eyes.
Korra snorted loudly, but moved away from the table, leaving the three alone.
Asami waited until she was gone, then tore a blank page from her book, screwed it up, and hurled it across the table at Mako. He hid behind his book with a startled yelp. "What?" he demanded.
"This is difficult enough for everybody without you being weird about her talking to me," Asami said flatly.
"Seriously," Bolin piped up, staring at Mako. "She was just being nice. What gives?"
"Nothing," Mako grumbled. "You just... you never show anybody your sketches."
Asami flushed but did her best to disregard it. "Considering we're going to be married, I kind of thought she might as well be an exception," she said scathingly. "What does it matter who I show them to?"
"It doesn't," he said shortly, slamming his book closed and getting to his feet. "Forget I said anything." With that he stomped out of the room, leaving a bewildered silence in his wake.
"Seriously, what's his deal?" Bolin asked.
Asami could only stare at the door, baffled.
Asami was making her way to her room for the night when she found Korra waiting outside her door, leaning casually against the wall as she idly examined her nails. "Hey," she said when she saw Asami. "Can we talk?"
Something about being alone with Korra raised a red flag in Asami's head despite herself. She almost hated herself for it. Korra hadn't done anything to deserve her suspicion, outside of being far too confident (the word 'arrogant' popped into Asami's mind, but she quickly dismissed it).
She must have taken too long to reply, because Korra was speaking again. "I'm not going to 'do away with you', if that's what you're worried about, Princess."
Asami cleared her throat awkwardly. "No, it's not..." She stopped herself before she could finish the lie. "Never mind. Come in." She opened her door and stepped inside, waiting for Korra to follow before closing it again.
Korra moved to the middle of the room, casting a disinterested glance about her surroundings before facing Asami. "Look, I know this is weird."
Asami arched an eyebrow, but said nothing, waiting for Korra to continue.
"I thought joining you and your friends might not be such a bad idea. I mean, marriage –" she choked on the word a little, but pressed on "- is one thing, but we'd be a better example if all of us could get along."
Asami vaguely recognised an apology in there somewhere, and she shook her head. "Don't worry about Mako," she said, folding her arms. Korra's eyes followed the motion, but she said nothing. "He's just... stubborn. Set in his ways. He'll come around, I'm sure."
Korra didn't respond immediately, her lips forming a pensive sort of pout. Asami found herself distracted watching the shifts in Korra's expression; her thoughts were almost tangible, scrawled plainly across her face, but it was like reading another language. It was right there in front of her but she couldn't make sense of it.
"I want to spend time with you."
She was so occupied with her thoughts it took a moment to process what Korra had said. "What?"
Korra smirked. "I said I want to spend time with you." She reached up to rub her hand awkwardly over the back of her neck and Asami was surprised to find the gesture endearing. "Look... this isn't exactly what either of us had planned when we tried to force peace down our parents' throats. But that doesn't mean we can't make the best of it. You seem like a decent person, and even if... even if ours will be a political marriage, that doesn't mean it has to be an unhappy one."
It took Asami several moments to gather her confused thoughts, but when she did, she couldn't really find any reason to disagree. "You're right, it doesn't."
Korra smiled at her then, and the expression was so warm and so inviting that Asami couldn't help matching it. "It would also help if we could convince people that we're not doing this only for political reasons," Korra added.
"Wait, what?"
"It's not going to be enough if people think this is all political." Without invitation, Korra moved to sit down on the edge of Asami's bed, an ankle perching atop the opposite knee. "I've been thinking about it, right? We're supposed to be setting an example, and 'grin and bear it' isn't a particularly convincing one. But if we can persuade everyone that we're really, genuinely in love... it might make the concept of peace between our people that much easier to swallow."
Asami had fallen into the chair in front of her vanity while Korra spoke, partly stunned, but mostly thoughtful. "And if we can at least become friends, it'll make it that much easier," she said.
Korra grinned. "Exactly."
Though it made sense, there was something about lying to her people that made Asami more than a little uncomfortable. "Do you really think it's a good idea to found a peace based on deception?"
Korra's expression fell slightly, but there was understanding in it. "I don't like the idea of lying about it to my parents or my friends," she admitted, "but like you said, if it can keep even one child from becoming an orphan... I think a little deception is worth it."
Asami drew in a breath before nodding firmly.
Korra's features split into that crooked grin again. "Bet you anything you won't be able to convince Mako of it, though."
Asami made an indelicate sound. "He's stubborn, but I assure you, I could convince him that the sky was purple, given enough time."
Korra rose to her feet. "You convince him that we've genuinely fallen in love, I might even consider giving you a kiss for the trouble." She winked and then she left, leaving Asami to gape after her.