The group finally arrived at the Air Temple Island. Pema and the Air Babies greeted them. "You can gather your belongings tomorrow morning," said Tenzin. "Mako, Bolin, if you can follow me, I will show you where you will be staying. Korra, you can show the ladies quarters,"
The groups separated. Korra led Asami to the guest house where she herself was staying. It was hard for her, she cherished her friendship with Asami; Korra was afraid, yes, she was deeply afraid that Asami wouldn't be her friend anymore. Yes, Asami was a good person, and yes, she joined the right side, but that didn't mean that Asami would remain Korra's best friend. For sure Asami would be her ally, but Korra was extremely worried that her actions that day had just destroyed their friendship. And Korra knew that any chance Asami could have liked her romantically were destroyed. It was hard for Korra to do what she did; Korra felt she had no choice, even if she wanted, she really wanted for Hiroshi to be innocent.
"Here is your room, Asami," said Korra, opening the door of one of the guest rooms. The room had a single bed, a small table with a chair standing next to it, and a window. There was a small wardrobe in the corner. "I know it's not much, especially compared to what you are used to –"
"Korra, I am grateful for your hospitality. Yes, I prefer a certain lifestyle, but I made my choice. If I have to sacrifice my name and my family's fortune to help you defeat the Equalists, I will," said Asami, smiling weakly.
"I guess we are now in a similar situation, yet in reverse. It's my time to be a host," said Korra. She saw that Asami approached her, placing her arms around Korra's back.
"I lost everything. I don't want to lose my best friend," said Asami.
"You won't lose me," said Korra. "Honestly, I was afraid of us losing what we have. Our bond is strong."
Asami took a step back. "Yes. Well, I am your master. Speaking of Master, you haven't called me Sifu lately," said Asami.
"Ha-ha, you are so funny, Sifu Hotlady," said Korra.
Asami chuckled. "I know that I am hot, and many people told me that, especially in bed, but I never felt emotional connections with them. Anyway, thank you so much for making me laugh when I just experienced such a traumatic event. Thank you, Korra. You truly make me feel happy," said Asami, smiling at her friend.
Korra breathed with relief. While she still knew that Asami didn't like her, and as much as it pained her, she would help Asami find someone she liked, even if it wasn't Korra, at the very least, their bond, their deep friendship would still remain intact. And that was all that mattered to her.
"Korra, can you show me where the shower area is? I wanted to take a shower after having such a difficult day," said Asami.
"Sure, sure, I can help," said Korra. "Come, I will show you the showers."
Korra led Asami to the shower room. The area was empty; apparently Tenzin and his family, and the Air Acolytes have gone to sleep. "The dressing room is there, the showers are there, and we do have a sauna. The sauna adjacent to this dressing room is for ladies," said Korra.
She saw that Asami took off her boots, jacket, and pants. Strangely, Asami didn't take her underwear. "My clothes are filthy," said Asami, approaching the shower in her bikini, and turning on the water. Strangely, she wasn't showering; instead, Asami sat on the floor, and let the water drip on her body. Asami extended her legs, sitting on her the cold tiles of the floor.
Korra approached Asami. "Asami, are you okay? Asami!"
"No. My father, my father is an Equalist. He joined Amon to fight the benders. I … I am afraid I will become my father's daughter. I don't want to become an Equalist, but the universe hates me," said Asami. A tear escaped her eye.
Korra sat on the floor. She put her legs around Asami's waist, and hugged Asami's back with her hands. "It's okay, you have me. I will protect you. Believe me, you are a great person, and you will not become your father. You are Asami, a beautiful and kind and badass Asami, you can do anything. Together we will defeat the Equalists," said Korra, smiling. Yes, she would protect Asami. She would even lay her life for her, or worse, if she would even lose her bending if it meant that Asami would be safe.
Asami smiled weakly. "Korra, you … I feel so weak. Oh Korra, you are so selfless, and brave, and strong, and kind. You are Korra, you are my friend," said Asami.
"Yes, I am you friend, your best friend," said Korra.
"My father … I lost everything. I … I can ask you anything, right?" Asami asked, tears escaped her eyes.
"Of course. I will do anything for you. Asami, I am the Avatar, but I will exchange my bending, I will willingly go to Amon to remove my bending if it were to keep you safe and make you happy," said Korra. She knew she meant every word she just said, she would do anything for her Asami, even if she had to lose her bending, or find Asami a girlfriend or boyfriend.
Korra noticed that Asami weakly laughed. "No, no, don't do any of that. I know that bending is important for you, and we will defeat Amon, as the Avatar and her non bender best friend, but … we did a lot of practice and pretend kisses, Korra. While yes, we fooled my father, at the end of the day, those kisses felt nice. I … I need … I feel weak, Korra. Please hold me," said Asami.
Korra leaned closer and hugged Asami tighter. It was strange for her to see her friend being so vulnerable. She knew that Asami could physically defend herself, and yet, seeing Asami in such a state … Korra felt protective.
"Korra, you are my best friend. I know it might sound strange, but can you kiss me? Please don't pretend, please kiss me. I feel so week, I need some emotional support right now," said Asami.
"Of course," said Korra. She leaned towards Asami, who placed her hands around Korra's neck. They briefly kissed. Asami then put her head on Korra's chest. Korra continued to hug Asami; she knew that Asami needed comfort. Water continued to drip on them, but Korra didn't care. She was helping Asami when her best friend was so weak and needed comfort. And Korra would provide that comfort.
Half an hour later, they stood up, turned the water off, dried their clothes, and returned to Asami's room. Before Korra was ready to leave, Asami gently touched Korra's hand.
"Korra, can you stay with me? I know that the Air Temple is probably well defended, and it's unlikely that the Equalists would attack, but … I just need someone to hold me right now. I am so sorry, you must be thinking that I am so weak, but –"
"Asami, it would be my honor to stay with you tonight," said Korra. She then looked at the bed. "Hmm, it's quite small for two people. But we will manage,"
Korra took off her clothes, leaving only her underwear, and climbed in the bed. Asami followed, laying on top of Korra. As soon as Asami lay in bed, Korra put her hands around her. No matter how much Korra wanted to just drive Asami wild right now, especially with them being in only their underwear, laying in the same bed, yet again, Korra knew that what Asami needed was comfort. And Korra would provide that comfort.
Next morning, Korra woke up, and saw that she was laying on her left side. Asami lay on her right side, facing her. With their bed being so small, their lips were inches apart. Asami was already awake, she was looking in Korra's eyes.
"Morning, Korra. I hope you slept well, since today is a good day, the weather is sunny, which means that we will practice," said Asami, rolling to the edge of the bed and sitting; her feet reached the ground.
"But Asami, mornings are evillll," said Korra. She didn't want to get up, no, Korra wanted to lay in bed, hugging Asami. But she knew she needed to practice.
"Korra, we should practice. The Equalists are growing bolder, so we need to practice your non bending skills more. Also, I think you should ask Mako to teach you lightning bending. And maybe we can help Bolin with his difficulty of learning Metal Bending," said Asami, standing up, and starting to put on clothing.
"A group training exercise! I like it. Yes, that sounds fun. But I would like to spar at some point, just the two of us," said Korra. Yes, spending time with their two friends would be nice. She could help Bolin understand Metal Bending better. But Korra also wanted to spend some alone time with Asami. Maybe they could dance, yes, that would be a good idea. They should dance, dancing would surely lift Asami's spirits and make her happier.
Korra and Asami dressed and went to eat breakfast. They saw Mako and Bolin there. Mako was reading a newspaper while eating some sandwich, while Bolin was eating what appeared to be a third plate of noodles. "Korra! Hey. I love being here. People are so generous with their food, and I am a growing boy," said Bolin, continuing eating his meal.
"Guys, Asami suggested we train today. We can also exchange thoughts on what happened recently," said Korra, sitting at the table. Asami sat on her right.
"I could use some physical exercise," said Mako. "Bo, do you think you can do some training after how much you have eaten?"
Bolin finished eating his dish. "I think so? Hmm, perhaps … can we meet in like thirty? Yeah, I could use the bathroom, and I think after thirty minutes I should be in decent shape to train," said Bolin.
"Sounds good," said Korra. She grabbed some food; Korra saw that Asami was eating a salad and drinking some tea. The group remained silent for the remainder of the breakfast.
When Korra and Asami finished, they stood up. "We will see you guys soon. We will be in the garden. It has some metal objects, some large boulders, and a lot of grass to sit on," said Asami. Mako kept reading the newspaper, while Bolin was sitting on his chair, apparently resting after the amount of food he just consumed.
Korra and Asami arrived in the garden. The sun was still not high up in the air. "Asami, while we wait, would you like to dance? I know you like dancing," said Korra. Asami smiled.
"Sure. I really enjoy when we dance, together," said Asami. They approached one another, Korra put her hand around Asami's back, and the two began dancing. They were moving slowly, Korra didn't want to exhaust herself before her training, and slowly dancing with Asami was just relaxing. When they finished dancing, the two young women sat on the grass. Mako and Bolin soon arrived.
"Since we are facing the Equalists, who are so good at melee combat, I think I should practice with you all, not just Korra," said Asami. "It would take a lot of work, but at least you should be able to have some rudimentary defenses in case you get chi blocked."
While Korra agreed with Asami's idea, she felt jealous. Sparring with Asami often felt like dancing, which was an intimate activity that just the two of them engaged in. And now Korra had to share. Korra shook her head, she was being silly, no, well yes, Asami was her Asami, but right now Asami would help her friends learn basics of melee combat.
Bolin jumped at Asami and instantly fell on the ground. "You are a scary woman," said Bolin. He lay on his back, not moving.
Mako chuckled and jumped at Asami, who easily dodged his attacks, and then sent him on the ground as well. "Okay, I must admit, you are pretty badass, Asami," said Mako.
Korra smiled. She saw how the two brothers stood up and sat on the grass. Korra ran towards Asami, and while Asami managed to land a few hits, Korra successfully blocked them. Asami kept throwing punches, however, and eventually Korra fell.
"Not bad. You lasted much longer than that Lieutenant guy," said Asami.
"Yeah, the scary mustache guy," said Bolin.
Korra was glad. She was improving. While her fighting technique wasn't perfect, she felt that she could take any Equalist one on one in close combat, except perhaps Amon and his Lieutenant. She would still need to come up with a way to take down those mecha tanks.
After they stopped sparring, Korra and Asami joined Mako and Bolin on the ground. "Asami is such a great teacher. You know, these lessons, they help me in my air bending training. Of course, I still suck, and cannot air bend, but at least, I managed to perform all Tenzin's exercises," said Korra.
"I am glad I could help, Korra. I know that Iroh, uncle of Lord Zuko, learned how to redirect lightning by studying the water benders. Apparently, all elements are interconnected, and understanding them all helps bring balance," said Asami.
"Yeah, I met Lord Zuko several times, and I learned lightning redirection; it's just … I never actually learned how to direct lightning," said Korra. She looked at Mako. "Speaking of lightning, Mako, can you teach me how to generate lightning?"
"Hmm, I can try. From what I learned, one needs to focus on something. Back in the day, a Fire Bender needed to find their inner peace, and that would allow to create lightning, but people later learned that focus on something, and desire to act to achieve some specific goal allowed more people to lightning bend. It requires deep concentration," said Mako.
"Teach me, Sifu Hotman," said Korra. She noticed that Asami frowned. Korra thought maybe she shouldn't have called Mako in that manner, yes, Asami had to have liked Mako. Korra remembered how Asami was asking about her kiss with Mako, which felt really weird. She didn't like Mako that way; he was a good friend for sure, but he was her friend. Asami on the other hand, yes, she was Korra's friend, and Korra called Asami her friend, but Korra wanted more. The only reason Korra called Asami her friend was because she was afraid that Asami wouldn't see her the same way. No, Korra wouldn't jeopardize her strong bond with Asami by acting on her feelings. And she shouldn't in any case, cause Asami clearly wanted to be with Mako. Why would she be even interested in Korra?
"Alright, so you take this stand, you move your hands in this way, while concentrating on something," said Mako. Korra took the same stand, and moved her hands, but was unable to bend lightning. "Concentrate, Korra. Think of something that gives you strength. Find your inner fire, and focus all your fire on that thought, and then move your hands to generate electric currents."
Korra tried again, but failed. She then looked at Asami briefly. Asami was such a good friend. She didn't judge Korra for being a failure at Air Bending, and apparently at Lightning bending also. Korra didn't notice how she started moving her hands, until sparks began to appear on her fingertips.
"Woah," said Korra as electric currents formed at her hands, and flew at a nearby tree. "I did it? I did it!"
"Congratulations Korra, but you need to refine your technique," said Mako. "But maybe another time. Lightning is a difficult technique to master –"
Korra was now moving her hands. More and more lighning began to appear around her hands. She ignored what Mako was saying, and was only thinking about Asami, her Asami, and how she loved spending time with her. She adored all their kisses, even if they weren't real. Yes, the comfort kisses were not pretend once, but Asami was very vulnerable, and just wanted comfort, no, Asami needed comfort, and Korra obliged. Asami didn't really mean to kiss her, no, she just needed comfort, and that was something Korra was willing to provide her.
Korra then pointed her hands in the air, releasing all the lightning that was floating around her hands. "Oh wow, you are a natural, you picked up lightning as easily as you picked up Metal Bending. Oh, speaking of Metal Bending, can you demonstrate again how you did it? I just cannot Metal Bend," said Bolin, frowning.
"It's alright. You will do it," said Korra. She pointed her hands at a small metal object in the corner and changed its shape, before returning it to how it looked before. Bolin tried to repeat it, and failed. "Bolin, you must feel the small earth particles inside the metal. Those particles are rare and spread thin, you need to really concentrate to feel them."
Bolin tried once again and failed. "Nope, can't do. I can feel all the rocks around us, all the earth underneath our feet, but not the tiny particles. It's okay," said Bolin.
"I am sorry, I believe you will get it," said Korra.
"Yeah, don't worry about it, Bolin. It took me years to become good at hand-to-hand combat," said Asami, sitting closer to him, and putting her hand on his shoulder. "You just got to practice, that's all."
"Bolin, I am sorry to say this, but maybe … not every Earth Bender is a Metal Bender. I believe in you, just, perhaps it's not something you can do," said Mako.
"Mako, stop being mean to your brother," said Asami, glaring lightly at him.
"It's alright Asami. I guess I will just give up. I just wish I could do something else besides Earth Bending, you know? Korra mentioned how Lord Zuko's uncle came up with that redirection thingy by studying the water benders, imagine if I could do the same but using earth?" Bolin stood up and waved his hands. "Yeah, imagine, waves of mud only consisting of earth and rock flowing like the water."
Bolin waved his hands. "Is it just me, or is it getting hotter in here?" Korra asked. She then looked at Bolin; Asami and Mako also noticed, and looked at Bolin.
"Um, Bo?"
"Mako, let me enjoy this fantasy. Look at me, I am a mud bender of mud that has no water," said Bolin. "Hmm, it does feel hot."
"Bolin, look behind you," said Asami. Korra laughed when she saw Bolin's mouth drop almost on the ground. She herself was amazed at just what Bolin has accomplished. Behind Bolin was a small pool of magma rock. Lava.
"Whaaa?"
"Bolin, you just bent lava. Congratulations, you just discovered a new subset of Earth Bending," said Asami.
Korra was happy. Bolin deserved this. On numerous occasions, he expressed his interest to bend metal, only to show being incapable of doing so. But now, he discovered a completely opposite style of Earth Bending, something Korra herself would want to study. She probably could bend lava if she used all her elements, well, a least earth and fire at the same time, but she now knew that Earth Bending alone allowed to bend lava. This would provide a useful benefit in fighting against Equalists.
"I can bend lava!" Bolin said. He waved his hands a bit, and bent some more. "Um, it's kind of destructive, but it's so fun,"
"You moved like Korra when she uses Water Bending," said Asami. "I guess Iroh, uncle of Lord Zuko was right. The elements are interconnected, and understanding other disciplines allows people to discover new possibilities."
"Yes, but we will need to be very careful. Bolin, you need to practice restrain. The city might not be able to sustain all the damage you could potentially cause with lava bending," said Mako.
"I agree, but we can work on that. Bolin, I am sure you will improve your new skill with time," said Korra.
"Yes. We, all of us can learn something from one another. But we need to figure out how to deal with the Equalists. I … I am sorry to admit, in my moment of weakness, I was tempted to join my father, but I realized that he presented a false dichotomy. Yes, Tarrlok is corrupt, and oppresses non benders, and yes, Amon and his people want to take everyone's bending away, but we have more than two choices. We have us. Korra, you are the Avatar, and it doesn't just mean the master of the four elements. No, you are also a person who can bring balance to the world. But you don't have to do it alone. You have us. We will defeat the Equalists together. We will bring balance to the world, even if we have to simultaneously deal with both Tarrlok and Amon,' said Asami.
"You are so sweet," said Korra, sitting next to Asami. "Yes, I agree. We will resolve this issue. I don't know how, but we can do this. We will save the city, our way. We are the new Team Avatar,"
"Korra, I need to show you something. Let's play a game. Do you have Pai Sho?" Asami asked.
"Not on me. Let's ask Tenzin," said Korra. The four of them returned back to the dining hall. Korra asked for a game set, and played a game with Asami. Korra quickly lost. "Wow, you are good."
"Your playstyle was strange. It took you ages to make a move," said Bolin. Asami and Bolin briefly argued about how to play the game. Korra noticed that Pema seemed to overhear their discussion.
"You are both right. Pai Sho has multiple styles, different people play it differently," said Pema. She then went to grab some tea.
"Well, that resolves our little dispute," said Bolin, jokingly. "Korra, you need to form universal rules."
"Yeah, sure, after I am done with Amon and Tarrlok, and become a fully realized Avatar who knows Air Bending," said Korra.
"The reason I wanted to show you this game was because the game requires strategy," said Asami. Korra realized what Asami was trying to tell her.
"I need to use strategy when dealing with our problems, and not just rely on my bending, just like using the melee combat techniques, well, and dancing, you taught me," said Korra.
"Precisely. Remember how you tricked my father into not bothering me? Yes, you told him that we are together, and at least it got him off my back. We don't need to pretend anymore, of course, but it helped. That was brilliant thinking, Korra," said Asami.
Korra smiled, she really enjoyed when Asami praised her. Yes, she would find ways to turn difficult situations in her favor in case her bending wouldn't be sufficient. She wanted to kiss Asami so much, but she just couldn't; her heart felt pain, but she had to be strong. She needed to save the city, and she needed to be strong, for Asami's sake. Asami could fight the battles; she was fully capable of defeating numerous Equalists. Heck, Korra thought that perhaps Asami could even take down Amon. And yet, Asami still needed her comfort, Asami just lost everything in her life, and Korra would be there for her. And if it ever came down to it, she would sacrifice anything, even her bending, to keep Asami safe and happy.
"Alright. How about we practice some more," suggested Korra. The four adults stood up, and spent several hours practicing. Mako and Bolin got slightly better at fighting Asami, but they still felt within five to ten seconds. Korra was improving, albeit slowly. And Bolin now managed to bent larger areas using his newly found skill.