Love in the Knight

But The Sun Continues Rising

Korra groggily opened her eyes as her internal clock woke her up at the same time it did every morning. It took her a moment to remember where exactly she had fallen asleep. She looked around as everything that happened the previous night slowly came back to her, silently she prayed that it wasn't a dream. She peered down to see the expected beautiful woman still fast asleep inside her arms, and was slightly surprised to see her still resting so peacefully. After everything that had come to the surface with Hiroshi. She had expected the princess to be awake all night, with Asami's analytical mind constantly working overtime Korra assumed that she would be up running her mind in circles to the point where Korra would inevitably have to try and come up with a plan to get Asami to sleep for at least a few hours. By some gracious miracle, the inventor had managed to fall asleep on her own, and without any trouble, by placing herself inside Korra's firm hold. It had certainly been unexpected, but far from unwelcomed. Being able to hold Asami in such an intimate manner gave Korra an overwhelming sense of warmth and pride. Especially because that hold had put Asami to bed in an instant. The heiress hadn't woken up the whole night, and the knight was thankful for it. Asami needed the rest, especially if she really wanted them to go back to the underground workshop tonight. She wished she held the courage and resilience that Asami currently carried with her, but she had to admit that she was more than hesitant to head back down to the undertaking depths of that horror shop. The adventure tonight wouldn't be as taxing as it was yesterday now that they had some idea of where they were going and most of what was down there. Most of the Equalists and their allies had probably cleared out now that Lin knew of their base of operations, but that didn't mean there weren't a few people or secrets lurking about. Korra herself felt uneasy about everything, she couldn't possibly imagine how the princess was feeling. Although the request to go back seemed odd in Korra's opinion. To jump so quickly to breaking down completely to finding the resolve to go back and search everything more thoroughly seemed like quite the switch. Asami had taken a night to be remorseful, to let herself feel, and then she was ready to tackle the problems that lay hidden beneath the ground. Korra didn't know how Asami found the courage to go back to that place for a second time. A hint of worry made itself known in Korra's mind that Asami could very well by pushing all her feelings down and repressing them instead of actually working through them. This all had the potential to be very unhealthy, but if Asami said that this was what she wanted, and she was confident that she could handle the horrors that they might find below, Korra was going to trust and support her every step of the way.

She watched as Asami's body slightly rose and fell with each deep breath she took while peacefully asleep. Korra tried not to move in fear of waking the princess up to face the horrible reality she had been thrown into just the night before. It wasn't fair that she had to go through all of this. Asami had tried to justify being left alone, to go through this on her own, without anyone's help, but Korra couldn't fathom the thought. She wasn't going to deny that the heiress had been rather harsh. Yes, Asami had given her a smack on the cheek, and her words still left Korra's heart aching when she thought about them. But Asami had been hurting too. Korra could certainly imagine that it was difficult for her  to accept that her only blood family was an evil terrorist supporter. Korra would be in denial too. It wasn't like Korra had been around all that long, despite how close they were. Her worst didn't hold as much weight as Hiroshi did. Korra couldn't say the same for her situation, but she couldn't definitely understand wanting tangible proof. She'd find every reason she could to ignore the accusations until she had solid evidence proving otherwise, and that's exactly what Asami had done. In a truly shocking turn of events last night, Asami had refused to join her father. She instead helped the mages defeat him by taking him down herself. They all watched as the former king's body writhed on the floor before making a run for it. That couldn't have been an easy feat, to turn on the only parent she had. Korra's heart went out to the woman, she genuinely had to be the strongest person Korra had ever had the honor of meeting. She was glad Asami had seen the evidence, and trusted Korra's judgment in the end. After all, nobody could deny evidence once it was presented to them. It was certainly beneficial to have Asami on their side. If the skilled, genius, inventor was working for the enemy, they didn't stand a chance at taking the Equalists down.

Korra had been completely knocked out in that workshop, she only started to gain her senses when Asami found the courage to walk up to her father. She hadn't expected the onslaught they found when they entered, and she didn't know when Mako and Bolin had shown up to her rescue but she was forever grateful that they did. The brothers had saved them from the whatever fate that Lin's officers were being subjected to right now. Asami's sacrifice had bought them time to escape, and Korra was more than thankful for it. It really had been the saving move of the night. She saw Asami hurry away, back to her room after everything and was fully prepared to follow her, but Tenzin and the brothers made her go see Kya again before she was dismissed back to bed. Besides a few scuffs and scratches there was nothing noteworthy. The healer had instructed her to try and stay awake for a bit after she had passed out, so Korra used the time as an opportunity to check in on the princess. Asami had been hanging on by a thread, it was clear to see that she was trying to hold everything she felt back, but it wasn't healthy. Korra had thankfully managed to get Asami, after much debate about what she did or did not deserve, to let down the wall she had put up to hold her rocky emotions inside. After one final speech Asami let out a choked sob that shook her body to its core. She had never seen the heiress this distraught, but she silently swore she was going to do everything in her power to make sure those eyes never shed that many unsavory tears again. Korra wasn't sure how long she held Asami as her body shook with sobs and tears, but Korra didn't mind. She'd do it as many times as she needed to until the princess felt right again. Although she really hated to see Asami in such a stage, it did provide an inkling of hope.

The fact that Asami had let down her guard enough to let Korra in, to rely on the knight, was promising. It meant that maybe there would be a chance for them again, because Asami did still trust her. She just needed time, and Korra was willing to give that. She certainly wasn't going to bring up their feelings or unknown status at a time like this, that would be selfish. Asami had quite enough on her plate, reassuring Korra was not a priority right now. No matter how Asami felt about it, Korra would continue to treat the princess with the same unconditional patience and respect that she had been giving thus far. They'd figure it out eventually, Korra wasn't set on giving up and running away just yet. The princess had lost enough, she didn't need anyone else abandoning her. Korra knew from experience how wretched the feeling was, she'd never wish that upon the princess.

The pale beauty was still safely tucked away in the home of her arms. One woman carried so much weight on her shoulders, and Korra herself knew the feeling. However, today, she would find enough strength to carry both of their responsibilities. She wanted to do something for Asami this morning, maybe make the princess her favorite meal. Food had always been a comfort for Korra herself, maybe the heiress could share the feeling. Based on the way Asami was still heavily asleep and would be for a bit, by the time she woke up she'd be ready for lunch instead of breakfast. The issue was that Korra didn't really know how to cook. She had always asked the chef when she wanted something, and the few recipes her mom had taught her did not include fire nation cuisine. However, she couldn't ask the chef, because most of the palace staff had left after last night. She hadn't broken the news to Asami yet, but Korra had seen many of the staff members and soldiers packing to leave when she made the walk back from the med bay. It was just another thing to add to the list of duties Asami now had to take over. Asami loved fire nation food, Korra knew that much, she also happened to remember that Asami's favorite dish was the traditional flaming dumplings and sweet sauce.Again, Korra had no idea how to cook, but she was prepared to learn. Issue one that she would need to conquer first was wiggling her way out of Asami's grasp without waking her. Asami was a light sleeper, it was truly astonishing that she hadn't woken up yet. Even when they were younger, Asami would catch the small southerner sneaking away before she could actually cause any trouble. Korra needed to be extremely careful with how she maneuvered herself out of the bed. This whole plan would never come to fruition if the princess woke up early. She gently pulled her arm out from underneath the heiress and removed the other arm that had been gently wrapped around Asami's waist. She delicately and slowly removed herself from the bed and stood up. She watched Asami shiver through a cold chill now that Korra had moved away. The princess stirred slightly before she settled back down with her head resting on the pillow Korra had used. She took the covers and carefully pulled them up to lay over Asami form once again. The heiress slightly wiggled as she pressed her face further into the bed, warm and comfortable. It was an utterly adorable sight. She moved a few of the strands of untamed waves that were covering the princess's face and leaned down to place a kiss on Asami's forehead. She caught the heiress' smile in her sleep as Korra pulled back to leave. She didn't know where they stood, but her own feelings were still persistent. She couldn't help leaving a chaste kiss of comfort atop Asami's head. Asami probably wouldn't even remember it when she woke up, but Korra didn't care. She could only hope the gesture seeped in through Asami's mind to fill her dreams of reminders that she was loved. As if the action would subconsciously keep the nightmares at bay while Korra was gone.

Korra tiptoed her way out from Asami's chambers, softly shutting the door behind her as she made her way down the hall. She was still in her pajamas from last night where she had changed before visiting the heiress, as unprofessional as it was, the halls were eerily quiet compared to the normal hustle and bustle of soldiers and staff running around. It seemed like nobody would be seeing her in such a sloppy state as she made her way to the kitchen to try and learn how to cook dumplings. How hard could they be? It was just mushed together dough and sauce. Surely there was a recipe book somewhere around the palace. She made her way inside the kitchen to set to work. Nobody else was inside, it was cold and dead compared to the lively atmosphere her and Asami had trapeezed through the other day. Korra began searching for the recipe she needed. She looked through the shelves for a book that would hopefully reveal the recipe she wanted to find. She searched and scanned the leather-bound books, there was one red dyed leather book that caught her eye on the top shelf. Korra wasn't exactly tall, whoever had decided to put the book she wanted all the way on the top shelf was a menace for doing so. She climbed on top of the counter and carefully grabbed the item that had enticed her. She plucked it from the shelf and blew the dust off of the cover. It was old and worn on the edges. Korra delicately flipped the book open and began to search page after page until she found what she was looking for. Near the end of the booklet was the perfect recipe for the dumplings. She didn't know if these ones were Asami's favorite, but they were dumplings, and Asami would most likely appreciate the gesture nonetheless. Korra propped the book up and set to work, hurrying around the kitchen to grab everything she would need. She had to make the dough from scratch using flour, water, and salt. Easy enough. She then split the dough into little sections and rolled them out into circles (kind of, they looked more like random splats with how uneven they and misshapen they were) before she moved onto the filling. She mixed together pork with various seasonings before adding in some mushrooms and peppers. She stirred the filling in a bowl until it was mostly mixed together. She then plopped little portions of the meat and veggies into the (kind of) circles and used a fork to seal the edges. That's where Korra's plan started to go wrong. She had filled some of them too full making the filling ooze ooze out and explode, and some she didn't fill enough so they were small and sad. Once she finally made enough usable dumplings she plopped them into a pot of boiling water above the fire pit. The water had gotten way too hot at some points and overflowed over the edge of the pot, and then Korra would have to build the fire up again to cook them once more. She didn't really know how long she cooked them for, she had lost count of the clock after the third time she had to start the fire. By the end of the fiasco she was left with a decent amount of slightly overcooked dumplings, but they would have to do. She still needed to make the sweet sauce that consisted of ginger, vinegar, and a hint of sugar. She was covered in flour, the kitchen was a mess, and the dumplings were sloppily thrown on a plate. It wasn't exactly pretty, but she was out of time. Asami would surely be up any minute now, Korra couldn't let her sleep all day as much as she was tempted to do so. She carefully balanced the hot plate in one hand and a  cup of grape juice in the other as she made her way up the stairs to Asami's room.

She pushed the door open gently with her hip and stepped inside. The heiress, to Korra's astonishment, was still asleep in the same spot she had been left in. Her body clearly needed more time to recover from the emotional stress she had been in yesterday, the knight felt a little guilty waking her. Korra set the plate and cup down on the nightstand before she sat down on the edge of the bed. She delicately ran a hand through Asami's raven locks. "Asami," Korra sang sweetly in a whisper. "It's time to wake up." she added on. The princess stirred a bit and opened her eyes, blinking the sleep out of them with a yawn before she focused her eyes on the knight. "Good morning sleepyhead." Korra teased as she let out an airy chuckle.

Asami smiled, a sight Korra had dearly missed these last couple days. "Morning.” she mumbled. “How long was I out?" Asami asked as she became more alert.

Korra wasn't too keen on admitting how long the princess had actually been asleep for, knowing Asami she would be upset with herself for letting herself rest for so long. Especially now that they were nearing the afternoon. "Not too long, I just woke you up for an early lunch." Korra answered as she removed her hand from Asami's hair to reach for the plate.

The princess sat up and began to stretch. "It smells good, who made it? I figure most of the staff would be out of here by now…" she trailed.

This is what Korra had been afraid of, having to go over the damage after everything Asami had already gone through. Korra wasn't going to answer Asami's silent question about who had left, instead she would take this chance to brag that she had successfully made a handful of actually edible food. "I made them." Korra said happily as she handed the plate to the princess. "It's those fire nation dumplings you like. They aren't perfect, probably a little overcooked, but they're not too bad for my first time making them." Korra stated proudly.

Asami looked between the plate and the knight. "You made these for me?" Asami questioned.

"Yeah, like I said they're not perf-" Korra started before Asami cut her off.

The princess was shaking her head looking slightly caught off guard by the whole event. "They're more than perfect, Korra. You're so sweet.” she complimented. “I haven't had these in forever. How did you even find the recipe?" Asami pried as she cut up one of the dumplings.

"I searched the recipe books in the kitchen. There was this pretty red one on the top shelf. I found the recipe inside there." Korra explained.

Asami smiled as if she were acknowledging a secret only she herself knew about. Korra’s curious look apparently caught her attention because she spoke up soon after. "You must have found my mom's old book." she claimed.

The knight froze. Korra hadn't meant to touch such a delicate item, if she had known it was Yasuko's she wouldn't have touched it, probably wouldn’t have even looked at it in fear of damaging the contents it held. "I'm sorry, I didn't know." Korra apologized. On a day where Korra was supposed to be distracting Asami from her loneliness, she truly hadn’t intended to bring up Yasuko.

Asami shook her head. "No, Korra, I'm not upset. I'm glad someone's using it. I never had the knack for cooking, I could bake pretty well though. She used to make these all the time. It was her favorite to make, and my favorite to eat. Let's see if you'd make her proud." Asami chided as she bit into the dumpling. Korra watched to gauge Asami's reaction, after a moment her eyes lit up. "Korra, this is incredible!" Asami praised. The princess cut a bite and shoved it toward the knight. "Here, try some." Asami offered.

Korra shook her head defiantly. "Mm-mn. Those are for you, you need to eat." Korra argued.

Asami rolled her eyes. "You need to eat too, there's plenty. Come on." Asami pushed. Korra stood her ground. "Just one bite, for me?" Asami added.

And how was Korra supposed to say no? She would give Asami anything she wanted on a silver platter. Korra sighed in defeat. "One bite." she agreed. The princess pushed the fork into her mouth with a giggle.

"See? Not that bad for your first try. It's certainly better than I could do." Asami fought.

Korra pouted as she chewed on the food, anyone could tell it was a little overcooked, but at least the flavor was there. "It's not terrible, but they're chewy. I'm sorry." Korra frowned.

"They are not. You're just being too hard on yourself, they're perfect. They taste just like my mom used to make them." Asami praised. Korra still wasn't convinced that Asami was telling the truth, the princess simply didn't want to hurt her feelings. Asami tipped the knight's chin up. "Korra, I promise they're great, and even if they weren't, the fact that you went and did all of this for me means more than you possibly understand. Thank you, everything is amazing. You are amazing." Asami encouraged her. Asami set the plate to the side and took Korra's hand within her free one. "You didn't have to stay, the fact that you're still somehow here is a miracle on its own. I was fully prepared for you to leave, and I wouldn't have blamed you if you did. I don't know why you're choosing to stay by my side, but for selfish reasons, I'm really glad you did. I know my actions lately haven't shown how much I appreciate you, but I swear I'm going to find a way to make it up to you." Asami confessed.

Hearing those words fall from Asami's lips went a long way in healing Korra's emotional scars from everything that had been said and done these last few days. Although Asami's words had taken her slightly aback. Korra would never, could never, leave the princess. She wouldn't even dream of it. Asami didn't understand why, but Korra did. She loved Asami, and while love was a heavy word, a big word to drop especially in a time where she didn't know where Asami stood about her own feelings anymore, Korra knew that's what it was. She loved the beautiful woman that sat before her. The feeling of home and comfort radiated off of the princess like a healing balm for Korra's heart. She didn't know at what point she had fallen so deeply and passionately in love with Asami, but she didn't really care either. She couldn't help the way her heart sped up and her mind was sent spinning every time the heiress spoke to her. All she knew was that being with Asami, in any way possible, was right. As if it were inevitable, always meant to happen.

"You don't have to make it up to me, I already forgave you." Korra chided.

Asami shook her head. "I need to earn that, you can't just let me off that easily." Asami fought.

Korra was tempted to argue again, but she knew that even if she tried Asami would still put up a fight, they'd be here going in circles for ages. "If you say so." Korra conceded.

Asami smiled. "I do. I'm going to earn your trust and forgiveness back. I don't want to just have it, I want to be worthy of it." Asami spoke softly.

The admission tightly tugged on Korra's heartstrings. Asami was worthy of more than Korra's forgiveness, and it hurt that Asami didn't believe she did. The real problem was that trust and forgiveness were all things you gave to people, especially when you loved them, and Korra would never make the princess earn love. The knight already loved her, and that wasn't going to just disappear or fade because the heiress had reacted poorly. Asami had already gained Korra's love, she didn't have to earn it back. However, Korra was wise enough to know that Asami wouldn't see it that way, so she saved her breath for the time being. "Okay, but for now," she started before pointing to the plate. "You need to get some food in you. Eat before it gets cold." Korra suggested.

"Alright, alright I'll eat." Asami picked up her dumpling and continued to eat. The knight busied herself with tidying up the room while Asami ate. After about halfway through the princess cleared her throat and looked at Korra. The knight focused her attention back to the woman sitting in bed ready to give her full attention toward whatever Asami had to say. "You know it's a lot colder when you're all the way over there." she chided as her cheeks turned pink.

At first Korra was incredibly lost. It was nearing the end of summer, but it was still extremely hot out. She didn't understand how the princess was suddenly cold now that Korra wasn't over there. And that's when it clicked, the subtle implication of Asami's admission. Korra gave a dopey grin and walked over the bed. Asami patted the spot beside her and scooched over a bit to make room for the knight. Korra let out an airy chuckle as she sat down shoulder to shoulder with the princess. Asami laid her head on Korra's shoulder and continued eating her meal. The woman was an anomaly. She was going to be the Queen of an entire kingdom, she was a brilliant inventor, and the strongest person Korra knew, but was scared to ask the knight to sit with her. "You know, if you wanted me to sit here you could have just asked." Korra teased lightly.

Asami smiled. "I didn't want to bother you, I don't think I'm in a position to ask things of you, not right now at least. You've been doting on me all night and morning. But I'm glad I still got you over here anyway." she remarked.

Korra couldn't help the small smile that splayed across her face. "You're allowed to ask things of me, I am your knight after all." Korra reminded her.

"Yeah, but you're much more than that now. Even with everything that's happened and all that's been said, my feelings haven't changed. I don't know where we stand as of now, and I can't say that I'd blame you if you want to be done with me…romantically. It's going to be difficult to balance everything as soon as we get through my coronation. I'm sure this place will be a madhouse, and then I have to take over the company too. I don't want you to have to feel like you're fighting for my time until I figure this out. That's not fair to you." Asami admitted.

The knight hadn't planned on bringing up the courting issue, but if Asami wanted to talk about it then Korra wasn't going to fight it. She similarly wanted some sort of clarification on where they stood. Korra had also been worried about balancing her job and her love life problem just the other day. She didn't want Asami to be an afterthought to her Avatar duties, she wanted Asami to be a priority, and finding a balance in that was going to be difficult. "Well, I think we're both busy people, we have duties and responsibilities that we need to take care of. But, I'm willing to try if you are. It'll definitely take some trial and error. These first few weeks might be difficult to figure out, but I can be patient sometimes. At least I can when it comes to you." Korra confessed lightly.

Asami seemed to think about it, running the calculations and outcomes through her head like she always did. For a moment Korra fretted that Asami had changed her mind, that she had come to the conclusion that they would never work because of their responsibilities to everyone else. Luckily, that never happened.  "I want to try to make it work, pick up where we left off. I don't necessarily know what all that entails as of right now. However, I'm willing to work to figure it out as long as you are." Asami agreed.

A weight lifted off her chest at the confirmation that they would continue to work towards building their relationship. "So back to unofficially courting?" Korra clarified.

"For now, but after my coronation maybe we can find a way to make it official courting. I want to change the rules. I have to try and find a way to actually stop the Equalist issue, but if I'm going to be stuck taking over this place at its worst, I think I should be able to make it what I want. I'm going to flip this kingdom around, make it a better place for everyone. No matter what it takes. I'll be a better monarch than he ever was." Asami spoke with passion.

Korra smiled. "There she is, there's the Asami I know." Korra praised. "I have no doubt that you can pull it off, you won't stop until you do." Korra stated.

The princess was quiet for a moment. "Thank you, for believing in me." Asami confessed as she snuggled further into the knight.

"Always." she reminded. They didn't say much after that, Asami was content to soak up all the warmth and comfort Korra was offering. All things considered, Asami was handling this better than expected. She was proud of the soon to be Queen. She watched as Asami finished her plate and set it to the side before she let out a sigh of contentment. The two spent the next few minutes basking in the quiet peace this moment offered them before they had to face the reality of the situation tonight.

The silence was ruined by a knock on the door. Nobody should be here today, especially not for Asami. It was strange, even Asami looked at the sound with confusion written all over her face. Korra stood from the bed and moved to open the door, when she did she was greeted by three unexpected visitors. Pema stood with Jinora and Ikki flanking her.

"What are you three doing here?" Korra questioned as she shut the door behind her.

"Well I was originally coming over to check in on Asami, but it seems you have it covered." Pema joked lightly. "These two decided to tag along at the last minute." she added.

"Me and Jinora brought presents for Asami! Is she awake? Can we see her?" Ikki bounced up and down as she waited for a response.

"Um, let me ask." She opened up the door and turned to Asami. "Feeling up for a little company?" she asked.

"Who-" Asami started before Ikki pushed past Korra, going under her arm and running to see the princess at the sound of her voice.

"Asami, look what I made!" she cheered as she climbed into the bed to show off her work. She held up a piece of paper with a small drawing of the air mage family and the words "We love you!" written at the top.

Pema walked in followed by Jinora who looked disappointed with her little sister. "Ikki get down, give her space." the maid scolded.

Asami smiled. "It's okay Pema, it's very sweet. Thank you Ikki." Asami said, wrapping an arm around the little girl to hug her.

"I did it just like you taught me. I started with the basics." Ikki announced with pride.

"It looks great, you did amazing." Asami praised.

Jinora walked up and handed Asami a rectangular object wrapped in paper and twine. "This is for you too. It's from Mom and I." she claimed.

Asami looked at them curiously before delicately undoing the twine and tearing the paper open. Her face lit up when she opened it and recognized what it was. "They made another one?" Asami asked excitedly.

"Mhm. I saw it in the shop the other day when I went with mom, I begged her to buy us each a copy." Jinora admitted.

The princess held the book tight to her chest. "Thank you, all of you." Asami confessed, looking between everyone in the room.

Pema sat down on the bed and looked at the princess. "I just want you to know that we aren't going anywhere, we know you aren't him. You did a very brave thing yesterday, and I'm so proud of you." Pema praised.

Asami smiled slightly before it slowly faded away. "Everyone's going to be leaving. I'm basically going to have to start with a completely clean slate." she sighed.

Pema grimaced. "I won't lie to you. You're not wrong. Many people are packing their things to go, but sometimes a fresh start isn't a bad thing. And maybe with just a little time and luck you'll be able to win them back over. You are not your father Asami, those that know you best will understand that. Just give it time." Pema suggested.

"That seems to be a common theme for me right now." the princess let out an airy chuckle.

Pema quirked a brow. "What do you mean?" she asked.

Korra may have admitted to Pema that she and Asami had kissed, but Asami didn't know that Pema had been made aware of that. She looked back and forth between Korra, Pema, and the air mage kids. Her eyes finally settled on Korra's slightly asking for help. The knight just shrugged, she had no idea how to address this without coming clean about their agreement.

"Nevermind, I know a lot of things are going to take time to figure out. There's a lot to balance, but I'm going to try my best, that's all I can do right?" She quipped.

Pema looked to see where Asami was focused, when she found the target was Korra she turned back to the heiress with a smirk. "I see. Well, if anyone can do it, it's you and your brilliant mind. Just know you aren't doing this alone, all of us are right behind you." Pema reminded her.

"Thank you for staying Pema." she turned to look around at the air mage kids. "And thank you two for the presents, I love them." Asami smiled.

"And we love you." Pema said as she wrapped Asami in a motherly embrace. "But I'm sure you have things you need to get situated and figured out, so we'll leave you to it. Just don't push yourself too hard." Pema lightly scolded.

"I won't. I'll see you guys later." Asami waved to the family as they left.

Korra closed the door behind them and turned back to the princess. She walked over and sat back down on the bed. "What's that?" she asked, pointing to the book Asami received from Jinora.

Asami's cheeks turned pink and she looked embarrassed. "Just a book series I like." Asami said casually.

She looked at the title. Ember Flames: Volume twelve. "Isn't that the series Jinora was reading at dinner when we went to the island?" Korra questioned.

"Yeah, I liked to read them when I was her age." Asami said simply as she set the book off to the side. The princess was very clearly embarrassed and unwilling to talk about it. Korra was tempted to tease her, but she figured she would save it for another day. "I think we need to start getting ready for later." Asami admitted.

"We still have a bit before the officers leave." Korra stated.

"I know, but I want to get a bag ready with some supplies. I don't know what's still lurking down there. I want to take some tools and weapons in case we need them." Asami responded.

She was truly glad that Asami was a genius that loved to plan. Korra hadn't really thought about what all they had the potential to find lurking beneath the ground. They had only walked through a segment of the entire place, there was a lot of ground to cover. It would be nice if they could have a couple more people to help them search and sort. And Korra happened to know two perfect boys for the job. "Would you be okay with Mako and Bolin joining us so we can cover more ground?" Korra asked.

Asami mulled it over. "It certainly wouldn't hurt, if they're willing to join that is." Asami sighed.

Korra went over and wrapped the princess in a tight embrace. "Not everyone is as closed minded as you think, yes a lot of people are leaving, but there's still people who are sticking around. They saw what you did last night, they understand the impact of what you sacrificed for everyone. You've earned their respect, I'm sure they will be happy to help. Why don't you stay here and get whatever you need ready while I go talk to them?" Korra suggested.

"Alright." she said, pulling back and looking at Korra. "Will you come back after you talk to them?" Asami asked softly.

Korra smiled up at her. "Yeah, I'll come back and grab you so we can all head out together." Korra's confirmed.

Asami nodded. "Alright, I'll see you later." she said before leaving a small kiss on Korra's cheek and walking to the closet to change for their adventure.

With a dopey grin, Korra left to fetch the brothers. She had to admit that since the whole place was now desolate and open, she could get from place to place significantly quicker than before. She had made it from Asami's room to the soldiers quarters in record time. To Korra's surprise it was probably the busiest place in the whole palace. It seemed like most of them had stayed, despite everything. Korra made her way over to the brothers room and knocked on the door. Bolin was the one to open the door and let her inside.

"Wow, there are a lot more people still here than I expected." Korra stated as she pointed a thumb toward the bustling hallway behind her.

"Actually, most of them were ready to go as soon as dawn broke." Bolin responded.

"What changed?" Korra questioned. It made sense that everyone was ready to leave. If Korra hadn't seen Asami shock her father, and if she had heard that Hiroshi was a supporter of the Equalists without being as close to Asami as she was, she would have probably ran too. Although it was unfortunate, Korra couldn't exactly blame the mages for wanting to get out of here.

"We did!" Bolin cheered.

Korra's confusion must have been evident because Mako soon stepped in to clarify.

"We talked to everyone last night and explained what happened. Me and Bolin have quite the network between us. We told everyone what Asami sacrificed in the garage, and clarified that she didn’t hold the same beliefs as Hiroshi, that she was on our side. Word seemed to travel fast and before you know it, almost everyone was still here in support of Asami's time as Queen. Seems everyone's really hopeful that she'll turn things around." Mako explained.

Korra was thrilled to hear that Asami had one less department to worry about being short staffed in, especially considering they were the Armed Forces and Defenses. If there were ever two departments you needed to have scads of, those were the ones. Especially when it was a sad truth that not all soldiers made it back home. She was extra grateful for the brothers at this moment, Korra had been so focused on Asami that she hadn't thought of trying to calm the sea of people wanting to leave.

"Would you guys be willing to help with one more little mission?" Korra started vaguely.

Both brothers looked at each other and then back at the knight with a confused look. "What exactly is the mission?" Mako asked intrigued.

"Asami wants to go search the workshop. We saw only a fraction of the place, there's no telling what else is down there, and if you're willing, I was hoping you'd join us so we can cover more ground." Korra explained.

"Oooh. Like detectives! What are we searching for?" Bolin chimed in.

"That, I don't know. My guess is any evidence against Hiroshi that exposes him further, and I think we should look to see if there was anything that shows us where Lin's officers might have been taken." Korra stated. Lin had been decently injured in the fight, and she continued to beat herself up over the fact that she had failed her officers. She even claimed she was resigning first thing this morning. Any lead they could manage to get on the missing soldiers would hopefully bring Lin back. The chief was amazing at her job, best in her field by far. The longer they could keep her there, the better.

"Alright, I'm in." Mako announced.

"Me too." Bolin agreed with a firm nod.

Korra appreciated that the boys were willing to help, it certainly wasn't going to be an easy feat going down and seeing what despicable crimes and atrocious acts Hiroshi had committed himself to. Especially for Asami. The knight had to admit that she was worried Asami was pushing herself a little too hard. She needed time to grieve and come to terms with everything. Last night she had broken down completely, after some sobbing and comfort she was ready to tackle whatever tragedies lay beneath them. It didn't seem like enough time to truly be ready to face the reality of Hiroshi's acts, but Korra wasn't going to tell Asami she wasn't allowed to cope the way that she was. That wasn't her place to do so. If Asami felt that she was prepared to face whatever was down there, then Korra was going to support her every step of the way. Maybe, with just enough luck, it would be enough to help begin healing some of the damage that had been dealt.

The two boys hurried to put their more tactical gear on and followed Korra out of the soldiers quarters and back to Asami. She led them deftly through the halls until she reached Asami's room once again. She knocked a few times before pushing the door open to find the princess ready to go in black cotton pants and a loose red shirt. Her hair was pulled back into a low ponytail and she had a seemingly full bag slung over her shoulder. But what was very out of place from the entire getup was the lightning powered glove that encased her right hand. The same one the Equalists had used.

Korra raised an eyebrow at the weapon before making eye contact with Asami.

"I figured if they're going to use them against us, we might as well be allowed to use them too. They stole my capsule to make them anyway, it only seems fair that I get to use it to undo the evil that they've sent spreading through the village." Asami reasoned.

Kill the enemy with their own weapon, it seemed like an efficient plan to Korra. It would make it all the more embarrassing for the Equalists when they were defeated by their own tools. Especially when the person wielding that weapon was both the person who found a way to power the glove, and the daughter of their former weapons supplier.

"Sounds like a reasonable plan to me." she agreed. "The boys are waiting outside the door. Are you ready to do this?" Korra asked one last time, giving the princess a chance to turn around.

Asami nodded. "Ready as I'll ever be I suppose." she replied with a sigh. She walked forward and entertwined her fingers with Korra's as if she were trying to take all the strength that she possibly could before facing the dark workshop below them. Korra didn't mind, she was content to have Asami lean on her for support.

They walked out the door together to join the brothers. Mako seemed to notice their joined hands and gave a curious look, but thankfully, to Korra's relief, didn't comment on it. Asami had enough on her plate, trying to explain to everyone else precisely what they were to one another didn't need to be added to that load. The group made their way through the empty palace halls and out the back door until they stood in front of the faux workshop door that would inevitably lead them to the horrible lab below.

She heard Asami suck in a deep breath and let it out. While she had to commend Asami for the emotional lengths she was going to in order to face her father's misdoings, Asami looked far from ready to deal with them. She could feel Asami's hand shaking within her own, and her skin was even paler than usual. She truly didn't need to go down there yet, the officers would be able to get everything handled and situated without Asami having to leave ft so much as a finger until she was prepared to do so. "You know, you don't have to do this if you're not ready yet." Korra offered from beside her. She sent a small pulse of a squeeze through their hands and Asami looked at her.

"I have to do this. I need to know what's down there, what he's done. I need to see it for myself." Asami admitted. "There's no telling what he's been keeping down here, a multitude of things he never wanted me to uncover I'm sure. If I'm going to be better than he was, I need to know what happened. I have to see what caused him to spiral into the monster that he is. I have so many questions that I know will never be answered truthfully even if I could ask him." she added. "There's only one option if I want to find the answers I want. The answers I deserve." she said with a new found resolve. She placed a pale hand on the handle and turned it. She pushed the door open and headed straight for the stairs. Speeding and careening herself down the hallways in search of the main section of the building they had found themselves in yesterday night.

They all stepped foot into the large metal cavern together. It looked like a tornado had entered the room. Tools, tables, chairs, papers, and many other various items littered the floor around them. The whole place was a disaster from the small battle that they had all faced. It was eerily quiet, not a soul sat in sight anymore. The giant machines that Hiroshi had brought out on them were gone. Which couldn't possibly be a good sign. Hiroshi had gotten away along with Amons errand boy. There was no doubt they'd report the events to him, it would surely spark another riot. They were probably planning for another attack using those dreadful machines they had met with last night. There were many doors and hallways that spread out from this main room. There was no telling what laid behind those heavy metal doors. Asami began picking up the papers that littered the floor and investigated them. Korra and the boys soon followed. Most of them were schematics and plans that had been drawn up by Hiroshi. After they were all collected and handed to the princess, she stuffed them inside her pack. She turned to the group. "I want to start seeing what's behind these doors, but I think it'll be easier if we split up. Each of you pick a room. Look for any papers or pieces of evidence against him that you can possibly find. Any notes, papers, schematics, transfers, everything that shows what he's been dealing out." Asami instructed. Everyone was off in a flash to follow orders.

As Korra turned away Asami's hand slipped its way into hers. She turned to fix the inventor with a quizzical look. She had said she wanted everyone to split up and cover ground. Without a word she led Korra down ons of the hallways where two doors sat across from each other. Asami turned to the southerner. "I'll look in this one. Will you look in that one?" she asked. Korra nodded, but her confusion seemed to show because Asami hesitated as she supplied another response. "I can do this on my own, but…I want you to be close by. Just in case." she started before looking down at the floor. "I don't know what I'm going to find. I'm sure there's a million gut wrenching things laying tucked away behind these doors, but I don't know what I'm walking into. And if something sends me spiraling or into a daze that I can't shake…I don't want to be alone." she admitted quietly, screwing her eyes shut as her head stayed dipped toward the floor in what appeared to be shame. "I know it's stupid because I'm the one who wanted to come down here so I should be able to handle this. I should be strong enough to do this on my own, and I shouldn't be asking for help, but I just-" Korra cut her rambling off as she raised the heiress's chin up to look Korra in the eyes. Familiar jade orbs opened themselves to look into earnest pools of blue.

"I'll be right here, I'm not going anywhere. If you need me, don't hesitate to come get me. I'll check in on you every so often while I work. And if something happens…then we'll cross that bridge when we get there." Korra reassured her gently. Korra opened her arms just slightly, allowing Asami to step in between them. The knight wrapped the princess in a comforting embrace. Asami had her chin ducked down to hide her head in the juncture between Korra's chin and chest.

"Thank you." she said in a whisper. "I'm really glad you're here." she admitted honestly.

"Me too, 'Sami." Korra echoed the sentiment before taking a chance and placing a kiss on the crown of Asami's head.

The princess hummed in contentment, before pulling away to face the door. Korra followed her steps and stood outside the opposite doorway, bracing herself for what she was about to witness. She threw a glance back at Asami who was already looking at her. With a final synchronized nod they each pushed open the heavy metal in front of them and walked inside.

Korra didn't know exactly what she had been expecting when she walked inside, but she was met with a small closet sized room. It was filled to the brim with boxes, toys, and miscellaneous items. It looked like a storage unit full of typical children's items. There were old baby and toddler clothes, toys, painted pictures, and other various items floating around. It had to be Asami's things. Part of Korra wanted to investigate and snoop the boxes for any adorable baby paintings of the princess. But the respectful and rational part of her said that Asami should be the one to go through her own things. She should probably go see what Asami was about to dive into anyway. There wasn’t much she could clear on her own inside of here.

She crossed the hall and pushed open the slightly ajar door. Inside was a small office, the real office, of Hiroshi's business things. Papers and desk items had been thrown around everywhere most likely in the former King's frantic search before he went on the run. Asami was scouring through the books on the shelves, inspecting each one closely. She finally noticed Korra standing in the door.

"You're done already?" she asked as turned to face the knight.

Korra shook her head. "No, but I don't think those items are mine to look through. It's a small closet full of your childhood things." Korra explained.

"I always wondered where all that stuff had disappeared to." Asami replied. "How many baby pictures did you try to peek at?" Asami teased with a smile while quirking a brow.

Korra chuckled. "None, but I think for my good behavior I should be rewarded by being allowed to see at least one." Korra said playfully.

Asami rolled her eyes with a bright smile before walking over to Korra. "Alright, you can see one photo. After that it's back to work." she quipped as she walked past Korra and into the closet. The knight followed close behind. Asami searched and scoured through the boxes in search for the perfect photo to present to the southerner. "Oh, this is a good one." Asami announced as she pulled out a canvas that had her painted baby portrait on it. Tiny Asami was curled up asleep with nothing but a red blanket wrapped and draped over her. She had a white ribbon tied in her already long dark hair and a small smile plastered on her face. It was the pinnacle of adorable. Korra took every little detail in

"You were such a cute baby!" Korra gawked as she viewed the piece.

Asami chuckled. "I'm sure you were just as cute, Korra. All babies are cute when they're so tiny." Asami spoke.

Korra shrugged. "I wouldn't know, I never got to see my portraits." she replied as she sat the picture gently back in its box.

Asami paused. "You've never seen your baby photos?" Asami asked, looking quite stunned at the notion. Korra shook her head. "You didn't keep them?" she pried further.

"Nope. I got dropped off with clothes and one portrait. Other than that, I've got nothing to remind me of home or my childhood. It's all back at the palace I assume, if it hasn't been thrown out that is." Korra replied casually. It was sad, but it was the truth. She really didn't have anything that reminded her of her childhood or the home she grew up in. Nothing but the memories at least. Even if she had brought more, the compound unit would have confiscated it anyway. They didn't even want to let her have the one family photo she kept, that was its own battle. They didn't want the Avatar to have any earthly attachments. She was shocked they even let her receive the letters her parents continued to write. She didn't mind though, it's not like she wanted any reminders of the home she wasn't allowed in anyway. She didn't need any other mementos of the people who abandoned her. She didn't even know why she kept the letters in her drawer anymore.

Asami stared at Korra with a frown, seemingly disappointed that Korra had no possessions from her childhood while they stood in a closet full of Asami's baby things. Korra was going to speak up and reassure the princess that it really didn't bother her, but Asami seemed to suddenly remember something. She started digging through boxes like a madwoman, frantically searching for whatever item she had in mind.

"Um, Asami? What are you doing?" Korra asked as she watched the woman spin back and forth as she dug through the items surrounding them.

"He took it from me and hid it away, my guess is if it's anywhere it's going to be in here somewhere." Asami explained vaguely as she continued her hunt.

"Took what?" Korra pried again.

Asami finally seemed to find what she was looking for as her eyes lit up and she quickly grabbed the item and held it behind her back to surprise Korra. When she revealed it Korra gasped. "This." Asami said smiling as she held out the item for the knight to hold.

"I can't believe you kept him." Korra chuckled as she cradled the small hand sewn polar bear in her hands. It looked just as she remembered.

Asami's own smile faded. "I tried to, but he took it from me. I cuddled and cradled it every night for a week when I slept. It smelled like you and it made me think of all our sleepovers in your room. When my dad found it he threw a fit and took it away. I always wondered what he ended up doing with it. I'm glad he didn't throw it out, although I am surprised he didn't." admitted. "He took you away from me because he knew you were the Avatar. It makes me sick just thinking about it. He told me to lie to you, to tell you that I would be back. And now it all makes sense. He did plan on sending me back, but it was to destroy you. That was his goal all along, to raise me into a soldier to fight in his bullshit movement for false equality." she announced angrily. "I was so lonely, I missed you so much over those years. Everytime I finished another test I desperately hoped he'd change his mind and let me go visit you, but he never did. How did I not see the signs? Why did I ever take his side? How could I have let this happen? I was so blind to everything and it was entirely too obvious!" Asami berated herself again and again.

Korra set the stuffie down on top of a nearby box and took Asami's hands in her own. "This isn't your fault. You didn't know, and even if you had there wouldn't have been much you could do without putting yourself in danger." Korra rationalized.

"Stop making excuses for me." Asami said bitterly, turning her head away in frustration.

"Asami, they aren't excuses. They're truths." Korra pushed, but Asami still didn't seem convinced. Maybe a different approach? "Maybe you didn't stop it as soon as you would've liked, but look at what you're doing to fix it now." Korra stated. That seemed to catch the princess's attention. Asami turned her head to reveal her eyebrows bunched in confusion as to where this was going. "You're down here going through everything because you want evidence against your father, you want to bring him to justice. Fix his wrongs. Maybe you couldn't stop it earlier, but you're doing everything you can to amend the damage now. That's all that matters." Korra explained.

Asami mulled it over, seeming to truly reflect on the knight's words. After a bit of thought she finally sighed and the tension that had built in her body released. "I guess…" she trailed.

"But?" Korra pried.

"But what if that's not enough? I need to be doing more. Looking through his things and gathering evidence won't bring back those innocent people he killed, it won't stop what's already been set into motion, it won't stop Amon." Asami argued.

Her whole life Korra had been told she was stubborn, brash, and hardheaded, but she had officially met her match. Asami needed proof, evidence, and actions. Things that would show progress, empty words and unsure promises of hope didn't work for her. Any claims she made that things would be okay and get better would be futile. Which gave Korra an idea. "You're right, nothing can be undone, and this won't stop Amon right away either." Korra started. "But, now that we've temporarily stalled Amon with this bust, we have time to regroup and make a plan. We have an even greater chance of getting to him than before, we can talk with Lin and Tenzin to try and get a plan made up to strike." Korra offered. Asami nodded her head in agreement with Korra's words. "It still isn't your fault those people in the arena were killed, but if it would make you feel better, maybe you could hold a grief ceremony of sorts. Make an announcement, give a speech, and give everyone time to grieve the loss of their family and friends. Sometimes the best thing you can do is give people a place to remember, to heal." Korra explained.

Asami stared at Korra for a second with an unreadable expression plastered on her face. "That's…a great idea. It wouldn't fix everything, but it's at least something I can do to try and make this right. I'll need to find a date, sometime soon, and then write my speech, and pick a place, and…" just like that Asami's brain was moving a mile a minute to put the plan into motion.

"Woah, slow down a second." Korra gently stopped her with an airy chuckle. "One thing at a time, we can work out all the details later. Right now, we need to get everything situated down here." Korra reminded her. As much as she hated to admit it, they still had quite a few rooms to get through. Asami's sorrowful look as she was brought back to the reality of where they were made Korra feel terrible forever suggesting they get back to it.

"Right. Maybe I can just help you search through here for now, then we can go back to that office. I think it's going to be easier to work though these two rooms together." Asami offered.

"Sounds good to me." Korra responded. They each set to work digging through the boxes, just to make sure that Hiroshi hadn't left anything of importance behind in here. When Korra tried to argue that Hiroshi probably didn't hide incriminating evidence in her childhood things, Asami only narrowed her eyes at the boxes and claimed that she didn't know what Hiroshi was willing to do anymore. That was the end of that debate. As the knight dug through a box of Asami's old clothes she noticed something shimmer in the darkness. In the corner of the room on a shelf laid a small intricate box. Korra walked closer to the item to see it better. She could see a small, shiny, keyhole on the outside of the wooden puzzle box. "Hey, Asami." Korra spoke in an attempt to get the woman's attention.

"Hm?" she asked as she continued to rummage through the things in front of her.

"What's that up there?" the knight questioned as she pointed to the box.

The inventor turned to look at where Korra was gesturing, when she noticed the box she gave a puzzled look. And stepped over toward Korra. "I've neve seen that before." she spoke as she stood on her tiptoes to retrieve the delicate box. She blew the dust off of it and began to turn it around in her hands. "It looks like it needs a key. I'm sure my father has it hidden around here somewhere." Asami stated, setting the box next to the polar bear from earlier.

After a few more minutes of searching they had successfully gone through every box and crate that had been piled inside the tiny space. They never did find any incriminating evidence against Hiroshi, nor the alleged key for the box.

Asami picked up both the bear and the box. "Ready to scope out the next room?" she asked.

Korra gave her a curious look. "You're taking the stuffed bear with you too?" she asked with a small laugh.

Asami failed to hide the heat that rose to her cheeks. "He was actually the best present I ever received. Still my favorite to this day. I think he'd be much happier upstairs rather than shoved in a dingy closet." Asami defended.

Korra simply smiled and shook her head, she wasn't keen on arguing with such an adorable admission. And with that, they entered Hiroshi's real office once again. Asami sat the items she was holding onto a table in the corner before resuming her earlier thorough investigation. Korra for her part decided to start by picking up the scattered papers and putting them into a pile for the princess to sort through as she pleased. Asami finished her search through the bookshelves and took a deep breath before diving into the desk drawers. Korra watched intently for a reaction as Asami carefully pried open each one.

Asami blew a harsh puff of air out her nose. "Figures this would be here in his prized possessions." she chided as she pulled out a bottle of whiskey and a single glass, setting them both atop the wooden desk. Asami continued prying through the drawers, most were full of documents, feather pens, and ink. However, when Asami went to pull open the main drawer in the center of the desk it was sealed tightly shut. Asami swiftly grabbed her tools and began to use tools to pick the lock on the front with the adroitness of a rogue bandit. When the drawer finally opened with a pop Asami peered inside, shuffling things around. There was a small box of various keys and a few letters inside. Asami took everything and shoved it into her bag before picking up the items from the table.

"You have everything you need?" Korra confirmed one last time as she opened the door to head out and find the boys.

Asami walked over and slid her hand into Korra's own. "I've got everything that's important. That's the best I can do for now." she answered as she turned to the knight with a bright smile.

Korra returned the look and held the door open for the princess to lead them to their next stop. They would have to see what trouble the boys had managed to run into within their individual searches.

They found the brothers exiting their respective hallways at the same time as the women. "Did you guys find anything?" Korra was the first to ask.

"The room I went into had been completely cleared out. I think it's where they stored some of the weapons. They probably took them when they left. Other than that, nothing on my end." Bolin reported.

Mako locked eyes with Asami, he wore an unreadable expression that Korra didn't like. "I think you guys need to come see this for yourselves. I don't even know how to begin explaining this." he announced grimly as he led them down a darker hall.

Mako pushed open the door to reveal a horrendous sight. Korra didn't know what she had expected, but this was far from any prediction her mind could have conjured on its own. A large tank full of dark purple liquid greeted them. Various tubes and wires were intertwined and poking out of it, leading to other smaller funnels and containers. Korra dropped Asami's hand and stepped forward. Somewhere, in the back of her mind under hazy and blurry memories she recognized the small purple syringes that sat in a line on one of the metal tables of the lab. It was the same concoction Hiroshi had injected her with for her loyalty test at the time. She picked one up and inspected it closely. As she focused her eyes she caught the little flakes of shimmering sparkles nestled within, and Korra gasped at the realization of what was inside.

Magicreature blood.

Even a drop injected or consumed by the average person would be lethal. The blood was rare, special, and deadly on its own. That's when the more sickening part of the discovery hit her, she felt as if her whole body had been dipped in ice.

"It was never a test." she whispered.

"What? What is that?" Asami pried.

Korra looked at the princess who was rushing over to meet her. "It's Magicreature blood. Hiroshi had two guards inject me with one of these," Korra held up the syringe. "Before he sent me off for what I thought was the loyalty test, but it wasn't." Korra admitted.

Asami looked confused, but Mako was the first to speak up. "You mean he put that straight into your bloodstream?" he asked with panic evident in his voice. Korra simply nodded. "How are you even breathing right now?" he questioned.

"Alright, what's going on? What does Magicreature blood do exactly?" Asami pushed for answers.

"It's deadly if you push it or inject it into your system. Touching it with your bare hands would be fine, but putting it inside your body would kill you within seconds." Mako explained.

Asami quickly whipped her head back around to fix her eyes on Korra. "And he injected you with this?" Asami asked as her eyes narrowed at the vile of purple blood inside her palm. Korra was hesitant to answer. The heiress didn't need any more reason to dislike her father, this admission would only be adding salt to the wound. "Just tell me the truth Korra. What did he do to you?" Asami asked, sounding both exhausted and frustrated at the same time.

Korra let out a deep breath. "Yes, this was what he injected me with that night. He had two of the guards outside the door push one of these into my neck. I blacked out for a while after." the knight confessed.

Asami's fists clenched in anger so tight her arms were shaking, and Korra hadn't even gotten to the worst part. "What else?" Asami pried.

Korra shook her head. "It doesn't matter, it won't-" Korra tried to dismiss before she was cut off.

"It does matter! I need to know what all he did to you." Asami fought.

Korra could tell Asami wasn't going to let this go, and if Asami really wanted to hear everything, then the knight would articulate every miniscule detail that she could remember from the admittedly hazy memories. "When I woke up I was in a dark room underground. I was tied up in a chair in the center of everything. The soldiers said I needed to stay away from you, then threw a couple of punches and kicks to try and knock me out further. But they didn't chi-block me so I still had my magic. I burnt off the ropes, fought them, and then made my way back through a forest, I think. That's the last thing I remember before I woke up sick that morning." Korra explained simply. Leaving out the more gruesome details like the way her face was dripping blood and her ribs flet cracked when she woke up with a splitting headache.

Asami still looked caught somewhere between horrified and irate. She didn't have a chance to get a word out before Mako spoke up. "Those purple sticky bombs the Equalists threw at us when we went to rescue Bolin, do you think Hiroshi made those too?" he asked aloud.

Korra shrugged. "I'd say it's highly likely. You can mix Magicreature blood with a lot of different things to make it extra reactive. The real question is where is he getting it?" Korra let the question hang in the air.

This time it was Bolin to speak up. At some point he had apparently split from the group and wandered toward a door on the other side of the lab. "I think I just found the answer." he announced as he looked through a small barred window.

The group rushed over to see what the earth mage had found. Korra couldn't believe the grisly sight before her eyes. There was a large, now dead, creature chained to the wall. The monster was the size of a whale, its skin now wrinkly and dried up like an old prune. Korra couldn't see exactly what creature it was from this angle, but she could see tubes and wires running out of the beast's veins that were actively transferring blood into a large container inside. The smell alone was rancid. Korra felt sick to her stomach at the scene.

She saw Asami's face going through a sea of various emotions as she stared into the dark cell. And Korra, like the anchor she decided to be, walked over to try to calm the storm that was roaring behind the young woman's eyes. The knight stood between Asami and the cell to obstruct her view. "I think this is all the evidence we're going to be able to get for now, it's probably best if we head back up for the night." Korra stated as she took one of Asami's hands to run soothing circles with her thumb, the same way Asami often did for her.

Asami snapped out of her angry daze and focused her gaze back on the southerner. She blinked a few times trying to process what Korra had said. "Right. You're right. This will have to be enough for now." she agreed.

They all careened and navigated their way back through the maze of hallways and back to the outside of the false workshop. The boys took their leave to head back to the soldiers quarters for the night.

The two women made their way back to Asami's quarters in relative quiet beside the occasional owl or cricket outside. As they entered the room Asami set her pack of things on her bureau and flopped onto the bed.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Korra decided to open the conversation. While it definitely wasn't necessary for the princess to confess her secrets and inner turmoil, the knight wanted to make it known that the option was there.

"I don't know. What's there to say?" Asami asked the ceiling.

Korra sat down on the bed and faced her. "What did you think about everything we found?" Korra offered a starting point.

Asami let out something between a scoff and a huff. "What did I think? It was awful, and sick, and outright disturbing. He had my things hidden down there, he had his secret office, weapons, and a lab where he snatched the blood of a chained up beast that made vials of purple blood that he tried to kill you with!" Asami shouted in frustration.

"Asami…" Korra started but trailed off. What was there to say to that? It's not like she could deny it.

"And out of all of that, the secret drawers and papers, the hidden lab, and the chained up creature didn't bother me. Not in the way that discovering he tried to kill you, to take you away from me, again hurt me. The day you came back you were so proud of yourself, thinking you had won some trial he had put you up against. You were so happy that you survived whatever hell he put you through. You were so sick, practically unconscious when I found you. I knew something had happened, that something was wrong, but I didn't look into it. I should have known when he took you to his office that he was going to pull something. That he was going to hurt you." Asami spat. She turned to look at Korra. "Out of all the things he's done, that is something I can never forgive him for." she whispered with teary eyes full of hate for Hiroshi, the man that had betrayed her far too many times to count.

Korra crawled over near the princess and ran a soothing hand through her hair in an attempt to calm her down. Asami's eyes fluttered closed and she let out a shaky breath. There was nothing to say, the only thing the knight could do was show that she was here for support in whatever way she was needed. She tried to whisper quiet admissions that it wasn’t Asami’s fault, and that everything was okay now. If Asami actually believed it she made no effort to show it. After a few minutes of quiet Korra finally broke it as her stomach reminded her that she hadn't had anything to eat today. "We should probably eat something. Anything sound good?" Korra asked quietly.

"I already had the most amazing lunch brought to me by a beautiful cook this morning. I think you can pick dinner." Asami smiled, but kept her eyes closed as her body relaxed from Korra playing with her hair.

Korra was glad Asami's eyes were shut, because she couldn't hide the darkening of her cheeks or the wide grin that split her face at Asami's comment. "How about some soup?" Korra suggested. It was one of the more simple recipes that she remembered making with her mother.

"Sounds perfect." Asami hummed.

Korra hated having to leave this beautiful sight to go cook, but they desperately needed to eat before they went to bed for the night. Korra delicately removed her hand from Asami's raven waves and slowly stood up to make her way to the door.

"Can I come with you?" Asami asked hesitantly. It always boggled Korra's mind how the strongest and possibly the most influential woman on the planet got worried about asking for things that she wanted. Asami could be confident and powerful when she needed to be, but other times, like right now, she was scared to ask the knight if she could tag along.

Korra smiled. "I don't see why not. It's your palace after all, and I could use some company." Korra smiled warmly.

Asami returned it and got up to follow Korra. The southerner opened the door and let the princess out before following. As they made their way down the halls, Asami's hand found hers for the umpteenth time today. Yet, no matter how many times it had happened, it still sent butterflies fluttering in Korra's stomach.

While the touch wasn't unwelcomed, Korra couldn't help but notice the recurring theme. Asami had been somewhat…clingy today. As if she didn't want Korra out of sight for more than a minute. The knight didn't mind, but it was definitely odd for the princess. She wasn't the kind of woman that liked to be touched without permission, that notion had been reinforced at the lake when Asami admitted not wanting to feel exposed. However, all day she had been grabbing Korra's hand or wanting Korra to sit close by. Korra wasn't by any means complaining, if Asami was comfortable, that was what mattered. If Asami truly just craved touch and connection because it was Korra, then Korra would never pry. However, she wanted to make sure there were no underlying reasons the heiress was so attached.

After they traversed through the hallways and into the kitchen Korra set to work grabbing everything she would need. She started a small fire under the pot full of water before glancing over her shoulder to see what Asami was doing. She did have a tricky relationship with fire after all, and while she didn't expect this small flame to trigger anything, she wasn't willing to risk it. After seeing that Asami was perfectly content to sit and watch Korra move about, she set to work gathering everything she would need. She pushed up her sleeves and pulled her hair back before diving in. She proceeded to put a pile of flour on the counter and made a little divot in the center that she then expertly filled with eggs. She took a fork and began to whisk it a tiny bit before using her hands to knead the dough. After everything was thoroughly mixed together, she took a rolling pin and pushed to mash the dough flat. She saw Asami shift to cross her legs in front of her while clearing her throat. Korra raised her head and gave the princess a quizzical look. "Everything okay?" the knight asked.

It took Asami a moment to pry her eyes away from Korra's sculpted arms to focus on the knight's question. "Hm?" she replied dazily, before she realized Korra was looking at her. "Oh, yeah, everything's great." she recovered as her cheeks turned a bright shade of red. Busted.

Korra had never been ashamed of her body, she knew her strong arms and muscular physique were something to be proud of. But watching Asami get so flustered over seeing her arms flex just a smidge had a new sense of confidence bubbling up from within her. She lifted up the hem of her shirt to wipe the sweat off her forehead, and reveal her well defined abs, before letting the clothing drop back down with a smirk. It had the effect she desired as she watched the heiress subtly squirm. As fun as the teasing was, they really needed to eat. Korra quit her shenanigans and cut the dough into strips before placing them in the water to cook.

She then began to stir the broth, carrots and ginger that the noodles would be dumped in after they were done. Korra looked up to see the heiress still staring at the knight's every move. "I'm surprised you haven't tried to help yet." Korra teased.

Asami splayed a sweet smile on her face. "I want to, but I know better. You'd just tell me to go sit down anyway." Asami fought with a playful roll of her eyes. But the smile gave away just how much she enjoyed not having to worry about anything and just relax for a bit.

"So you've finally learned my stubbornness will always beat yours." Korra joked.

Asami shook her head. "Is it really beating me if I'm letting you win?" Asami asked with an eyebrow raised.

Korra chuckled and shook her head. "It's always a win if I can get you to relax instead of working your brain a mile a minute as you run around like a madwoman." Korra argued with no malicious intent behind it.

Asami hummed her agreement as she wore a guilty look. "I'll admit that it is nice." Asami smiled before her look turned more sorrowful. "But it also feels like the calm before the storm in a way." Asami confessed.

"How so?" Korra asked as she sat down the towel she had been using to wipe down the counter in favor of leaning against it.

Asami shrugged. "I don't really know, it just seems like today's been too…easy? I don't know. It just seems like even though everything fell apart yesterday, I don't feel as terrible as I thought I would." Asami said before adding. "And I think it has something to do with you." Asami smiled sweetly.

"With me?" Korra questioned.

"With you. You've been patient with me all day. And you've been taking care of me, making sure I eat and sleep. It's just nice to be cared about like that sometimes." Asami started. "But sometimes I wonder when the trapdoor is going to fall from beneath me and reveal that it was all a trick. Like I'm waiting for you to disappear again." Asami confessed quietly. "You're constantly doing all these little things to make my day easier, but I feel like I haven't been giving you that in return." Asami admitted.

Korra was around the counter in a flash to stand next to Asami. "I can assure you there's no trapdoor. I'm not going anywhere. Not until you tell me to." Korra reaffirmed her earlier statement. The one truth that she had said, and would continue to repeat a million times, if that's what it took for Asami to understand.

Asami began to fidget with her hands like she often did when she was nervous. "But I feel like I should be doing something, you're just…caring about me because you can. I feel like I should be doing something to earn it." Asami fought.

If Korra was understanding Asami correctly, it sounded like what the princess was describing was conditional love. Only being appreciated and cared about if you followed certain steps and rules. She felt she had to earn love, and that couldn't be further from the truth. But Korra couldn't exactly fault her for the troubling mentality. Asami's father had been a vile man, there was no doubt he had asked Asami to do things she didn't want so that she would continue to earn his love. It was how she was raised, she didn't know any different.

"Asami, you know love isn't conditional right?" Korra pried.

Asami gave her a curious look. "What do you mean?" she asked for clarification.

"When you care for someone…you just care, no matter what. You don't have to follow a set of rules or preset conditions to receive love. There's no expectations for you to follow or requirements that need to be met in order for someone to love you. I…care about you, but not because you meet all these expectations and rules that I have for you, but because you're just…you." Korra tried to explain. She was treading lightly and trying to make the term love sound more broad and not directed from Korra herself. They weren't at that point just yet. Love was a big word, and while Korra did love Asami, it was one thing to feel it, and a complete other to say it allowed.

Asami seemed to genuinely take in the information and let it sit. Tossing it and turning it about in her head to try and make it make sense. When she was done she lifted her head and fixed Korra with an appreciative look. "Thank you. I think I needed to hear that." Asami began. "I guess I've always been taught that love was something you earned. If I wasn't following his rules or his orders, then he didn't care about me. He'd make a big show about how I was disrespecting him and I needed to stop being selfish. I don't think anyone's cared about me just because they feel like it before." Asami admitted sorrowfully as she stared into the floor.

Korra lifted her chin to make their eyes meet. "Think about it this way. Even if I wasn't always taking care of you, or doting on you, would you still care about me?" Korra asked.

"Of course." Asami answered without hesitation.

"You deserve that same kind of treatment. You don't have to work to earn love, you get it because you're you. Sweet, kind, and beautiful you. You're quite the charmer." Korra said with a smile.

Asami matched it with pink cheeks. "You're pretty amazing yourself." she replied.

Korra turned away to begin pulling the noodles from the pot to mix them with the broth and put them in a bowl. She slid it over to Asami and took a seat atop the counter herself.

"And apparently quite the chef." Asami complimented after she took a bite. "These taste just like the ones your mom used to make when we were little." Asami praised.

Korra laughed. "I'll take that as a compliment. It's one of the few things I can remember how to make." Korra stated.

"Well, it's delicious. If I wasn't so set on having you around as much as possible I'd make you the chef instead of my knight." Asami joked.

And the admission had Korra's heart skipping in her chest. Asami wanted her around, wanted her to be close by. It was yet another healing sentence that washed away the previous doubts that had infiltrated her mind when Asami was upset the other night. The rest of the meal was eaten in a comfortable quiet. Korra washed the bowls and dishes she had dirtied before they both made their way back upstairs. Korra walked Asami to her room and helped to get everything ready for the princess to sleep. She turned to leave before the heiress stopped her.

"Do you want to stay again?" Asami asked bashfully.

Of course Korra wanted to stay, what kind of question was that? However, she was in desperate need of a quick shower before she was able to lay down for the night. "Do you want me to stay?" Korra questioned.

Asami quietly nodded. "I think last night was the best I've slept in a long time. You make me feel safe." she confessed.

Korra knew the feeling. Last night's sleep was the first in a while where she hadn't woken up by Amon's face flashing into her dreams. It was like she was protected by the beautiful woman before her. Asami made her feel safe and comfortable. She always pulled her out of her head when it was needed and sat by her side through everything. "Alright, let me shower and then I'll be back." Korra smiled.

"Sounds perfect." Asami agreed as she grabbed her own pajamas.

Korra rushed off to clean herself up. One hasty shower later she stood in her undershorts and chest wrap. While this is normally what she slept in, sleeping like this next to Asami felt scandalous. Although the extra material would no doubt make her hot, it was necessary. She threw on a sleeveless shirt and some cotton shorts before making her way back to Asami. She walked in to find the heiress already laying down, but fighting sleep. She clambered over to the bed and laid down in the same spot she had the night before. Once again Asami wiggled her way over to lay her head on one of the knight's arms. She grabbed Korra's other arm and wrapped it around her waist.

"You're so warm." Asami sighed in contentment as she wiggled impossibly further into Korra's skin.

Korra only smiled bright like a fool. "Goodnight 'Sami." Korra whispered into the quiet.

"Goodnight, Korra." Asami mumbled, already halfway asleep.

She tightened her grip on the lithe figure that rested on her arms. There was still a lot to work on. Amon was running around and planning something, Hiroshi had escaped, and the Equalists were still far too quiet for her liking. But here, with the world laying between her arms, she was sure she would find a way to fix all of that in time. Although they hadn't said it, Korra felt that she was loved by the most amazing woman in the world, and she was determined to keep it that way.

___________________________________

Asami was cozily surrounded by warmth when she opened her eyes. It was early, it seemed her internal clock was back to work after giving her one solid day to sleep in. She tried to will her brain to go back to sleep and enjoy the quiet time while she still had it, but it was to no avail. As her brain ran through the events of yesterday, she turned to look up at the heater that was currently holding her. Asami had her head laying on Korra's shoulder as both the knight's arms wrapped around to keep Asami secured in a cocoon of safety. She felt Korra's chest gently rise and fall with each slumbering breath she took. Asami gently untangled herself from Korra's limbs to get a propped look at the younger woman. Korra's face was relaxed, almost blissful as she snored lightly. It was an utterly adorable sight compared to the strong stoic knight Korra always made herself to be. She reached out to trace the bottom of Korra's jaw with one pale finger. The knight released a tiny hum as a small smile graced her face. Maybe waking up early had its perks.

Yesterday had been something of an emotional storm, throwing Asami from side to side as she desperately tried to navigate her way back to safety. It felt like a blow after blow came to hit her in the gut as she opened the door to each room underground. They had collected piles of scattered papers, those alone were enough to put Hiroshi behind bars for a lifetime. She planned on handing everything in for the barron and officers to use as evidence, but first she wanted to look through it herself. That was probably where her time would be best spent today. She slowly and carefully made her way out from the covers and slipped away to change into some more comfortable clothes before she left for her study. She quietly picked up her pack and moved to stand next to Korra's sleeping form. She smiled as she peered down at the beautiful southerner, moving a couple stray hairs from her face. Asami leaned down to place a kiss right on the knight's temple before heading out the door. Korra didn’t even so much as flinch with how heavy a sleeper she was.

While yesterday had been quite painful to go through, it certainly had some pleasant moments too. Most of them were related to a certain tanned skinned woman that was sleeping peacefully in Asami's bed. The dumplings had been just one of the little gifts from the knight that made Asami swoon. Having Korra's support through this nightmare that Asami found herself in made the process significantly easier. The knight had been a patient and sturdy beam for Asami to lean upon when she needed yesterday. It didn't matter how many times Asami stole her hand or asked to stand beside her, the knight never wavered in her support. Asami was beyond grateful, and she was determined to repay Korra tenfold for all the care she had shown the heiress yesterday. However there was one small problem, or rather, a very large problem that Asami didn't know how to address.

Korra had mentioned conditional love. A term that Asami had never heard before, but after Korra's explanation she couldn't help but see why it had been brought to attention. Asami hadn't even realized that her father's love was conditional until the knight pointed it out. And as much as Asami wanted to push that revelation away and pretend it wasn't true, she simply couldn't. It was out in the open and poisoning her thoughts. She hadn't really paid it any attention until now, but it all made sense. She had always felt that her parents' love had been…different from one another. Her mother had always been proud of her, cheering her on and loving her even when she didn't get things quite right. Her father, on the other hand, was only happy and proud when Asami got every miniscule detail perfect. It always made her feel small, like she had to work twice as hard to receive his love and attention. It made her wonder if her mother was treated the same way, had her parents truly loved each other, or was it based on a set of rules and rewards? She had always been more like her mother in both looks and talents, but when it came to mentality…she was her father's daughter.

And that's what terrified her.

Asami was a genius. She had a brain that could pick things apart and analyze them, study each component until she fully knew what they were capable of. Her mind ran in circles all throughout the day and all through the night, this need for understanding, the need to know why things worked the way they did. There wasn't a single thing that happened just because it did. There was always a reason. Her brain loved to pick machines, texts, and people apart to understand everything about them. It was a brain, a way of thinking, that derived directly from Hiroshi Sato himself. While she had always been proud of her intelligence, it made her incredibly powerful. It also had the potential to be her greatest downfall.

Ever since Korra had brought it to her attention, her mind had been slithering into the more poisonous thoughts. The ones that filled her with fear and dread.

What if Asami loved like her father?

It was like a punch to the gut every single time she thought about it, everytime it popped into her head uninvited. It made her sick with worry as she spent minute after minute trying to untangle it and reassure herself that she didn't have to be like him. That she could change things. There was a desperate need to do so, more than before. She needed to make sure she broke the little cycle that Hiroshi began to pass on. Because now there was Korra.

Sweet, kind, honest Korra. The woman who had completely spun Asami's world on its axis. There was a desperate need to make sure she didn't ruin this, this new relationship that they were just dipping their toes into. It was so fresh, and simple, and delicate, and Asami was terrified, petrified, of demolishing it by accident. She was waiting for Korra to vanish. Like a mirage in the desert when she got too close, Korra would disappear for good. She'd realize that Asami was too much to handle, that she was too needy, destined to die alone. Because nothing good in Asami's life ever stayed good, it always fell apart at some point. And Korra was going to figure it out soon enough, Asami was waiting for it to happen.

Which is why she had to do everything she could to stop it before things got to that point. She refused to lose Korra again, even if it wasn't her fault the first time, she was determined. A good way to start seemed that she needed to be actively making sure Korra didn't feel like Asami's love was conditional like her father's was. Asami knew firsthand how disgusting and exhausting that kind of love could make a person feel, and she made a personal vow that she did not want Korra to ever feel like that because of her.

The issue was that Asami had never trusted easily, she had been betrayed far too many times for her to willingly open her heart to just anyone. She had built a secure and sound wall around her heart, protecting it from any harm or danger that could come crashing in. And she was successful in her endeavor, that was until a certain knight in shining armor appeared.

Korra was so patient and kind with Asami. Loving Asami like it was the most mindless thing in the world. And she couldn't deny that she had fallen for Korra's charm in turn. It wasn't that she expected Korra to do the many things she did. Korra didn't have to give her gifts, carry her things, or make breakfast in bed in order to receive Asami's love, that didn’t mean they weren’t appreciated. Korra deserved to be showered in all the love and affection that Asami had to offer. Asami would make sure to show how much Korra meant to her, how much she was loved. Even if Asami refused to say it aloud just yet. She wanted Korra to understand, to feel how much Asami wanted this to work, to feel how much Asami cared for her. Because Asami refused to be just like her father, she would not let herself go down that road.

She was determined to keep and hold on the fragile and dainty pieces that made up her and Korra's relationship. She was going to make them work, she had to. And it all started by amending the damage she had done the other night. No amount of words could tell just how guilty and utterly awful she felt for how she had treated the knight. It was entirely wrong and unfair for her to have acted the way she did. It didn't matter if Hiroshi was family or not, she should have trusted the one person who had stuck by her side all this time. She had been so gullible when it came to father's tricks, but she wouldn't let it happen again. She would fix what she had broken between her and Korra, and that all started with her carefully cultivated plan that she had created last night as she fell happily asleep in Korra's arms. Actions always said more than words, and Korra had said a lot these last couple nights as she held and comforted Asami through her sea of anger and sadness. Her actions spoke of nothing but security, patience, and most importantly love. Asami hadn't ruined them. Not yet. And just like Korra she intended to show just how much the knight meant to her. How much Asami loved her.

She walked into her study and closed the door softly behind her. Although Korra slept like the dead, Asami refused to take any chances on Korra walking in and spoiling her surprise. First she needed to clean up her study, she forgot she had left it such a mess when Lin had come to get her. She picked up all the scattered brushes that had been strewn across the floor and placed them back in their proper place. Those were the most essential part of this gift after all. She had a plan, it would take her at least a week or so to get this done, and that was if she wasn't weighed down by the other responsibilities that were just past the horizon and waiting to take over her schedule. But this was the course of action she had decided on. It was the most genuine and heartfelt gift Asami could think of. It was something personal, special, one of a kind, just like Korra was to her.

It would take time, especially because Asami wouldn't hand this over until she had every miniscule detail carefully imprinted on the canvas, but she would get it done. It had to be perfect, this was for Korra after all, and she deserved nothing but the best handed to her on a silver platter. Asami grabbed a freshly prepped canvas and carefully set it on the easel by the window. She sat on the wooden stool and rolled up her sleeves before tying her hair back in a low ponytail to keep it out of the way. After a deep breath, Asami carefully picked up one of the paint brushes and laid a slow delicate stroke across the canvas. Nothing was perfect between them yet, not until Asami had paid her dues for all she had damaged, but this was a solid start.

♦️

Asami wiped her brow, maybe sitting in front of the window when it was still so hot out wasn't her best plan. She had just finished the first part of the canvas and was ready for a break. Now would probably be a good time to check on the knight before she found Asami had wandered off. That's when a dreadful few knocks sounded at the door, she knew exactly who it was. She quickly fumbled and maneuvered to get the painting off the easel and sat it in a corner before throwing a sheet overtop of it. As Korra pushed open the door Asami shuffled as she tried to find the least incriminating spot to stand. She landed sitting on the front of her desk with her legs crossed and grabbing a book.

Korra found where the princess was perched and gave a dopey smile. "Good morning." she hummed as she rubbed the remains of sleep from her eyes. "What are you up to?" Korra questioned.

Asami shrugged. "I've just been up reading." she replied with a smile. If Asami could distract Korra with a dazzling smile, maybe she could get them out of here before the knight uncovered her present in the corner.

Korra quirked a brow and stifled a laugh. "Just reading, huh?" Korra asked amused.

"Yeah, why?" Asami shot back as her smile slowly faded to confusion.

"Well I know you're a genius, Sato, but most people don't read books upside-down." Korra chuckled.

Asami looked down to see that the book was in fact upside down in her hands. She'd been caught. "Um, right. I just put the book in my hands, I was getting a head start on some of the paperwork." Asami tried to recover. She shifted on the desk to uncross her legs and move her arms as she defended her point.

"Right." Korra laughed once again as she walked over to stand right in between Asami's legs. She took Asami's chin between her fingers and looked the princess in the eyes. Asami had done this to the knight plenty of times, but Korra doing it to her had her heart thundering in her ears like a war drum. Korra's face was mesmerizing, even her eyes were captivating on their own. Her bronze skin shone with freckles and scars, her eyes were bright and blue like the ocean, and her smile was bright enough to put the sun to shame. She glanced down at the southerner's lips that were parted into a smile, they looked perfectly kissable right now. Korra definitely wasn't all human, she certainly had the beauty of a spirit. The knight licked her thumb and swiped it across the heiress's forehead. "I didn't know paperwork required painting." she smirked as she pulled back her hand that held Asami's chin, and her other thumb to reveal a blue streak of paint running across it.

That wasn't what Asami had expected. She closed her eyes and shook her head, throwing out the wonderful thoughts that had been running through her mind. There was no recovering from getting found out twice. "Okay, okay. You caught me. I was working on a…personal project. But you can't see it yet!" Asami quickly threw out there. Practically pleading with Korra not to pry any further.

Korra seemed to understand how desperately Asami was trying to keep this little project a secret. "It's alright, I get it. Art's extremely personal. I won't see it unless you decide to show me yourself. You'll see no snooping around from me." Korra affirmed. Her smile never wavered as she spoke.

Asami let out an internal sigh of relief. "Thank you, I promise I'll show you when it's done." she swore.

"I can't wait," the southerner responded. "But for now, I was wondering if you'd like to go out. After breakfast of course." Korra offered.

Leave it to Korra to always be thinking about food. "Where do you want to go?" Asami questioned.

"Anywhere. I just think it would be good to get out of the palace a little bit, away from…all of this for a minute." Korra suggested.

Asami couldn't deny that she agreed completely. She was tired of being constantly surrounded and engulfed in reminders of her father and his heinous actions. It would be refreshing to step out and away. The last two days, hells, the last week had been awful. It was filled with twists and rabbit holes that she had never expected to be going down in her own home. That was what really hurt in all of this. The palace wasn't just a place for her. It was her home, every room, closet, and hall was well stocked with memories both good and bad. This was the only place she had ever known. A home where she played with dolls, and learned makeup, and read in the library with her mother, and built inventions with her father. It was her home. And now it was tainted with slimy, vile memories of her father and his involvement. It was a really blatant reminder that she was never enough for him, that she wasn't worth it.

No matter how many rules she followed, or tests she passed, or schedules she followed, it wasn't enough for him. He'd forced her to live alone, essentially isolated, from everyone except for the palace staff. The only times she ever got to interact with other people her age were the balls, but even then she hated those girls. They were all so fake, talking about each other behind their backs. It was never really Asami's crowd, but she did it all to please him. She sat in her study, she did her work, she stayed inside the lines, followed the straight and narrow path. She did everything he said without argument, until she became an adult at least, but even then she really pushed back. Yet it still wasn't, never would be, enough for her father. He wouldn't be happy until she was his perfect clone. A heartless, evil, copy of Hiroshi Sato. She refused to ever let that happen.

All her life Asami had grown up wanting to be just like her father. She wanted to be a brilliant inventor and a spectacular ruler. Protecting and serving the people who relied on her. She wanted to be a bright businesswoman and a powerful ally to the village people. That's how she had viewed her father. She had gotten her mother's love for creativity and reading, but she had inherited her father's passion to create and rule. And now, as she sat nineteen, with no family, a secret workshop under her childhood home, and in charge of a kingdom plummeting further into madness by the second, she discovered the truth. Hiroshi Sato was not the man she wanted to be, he was the evil she wanted to destroy. He was a murderer, a madman, and a heartless human. He had tried countless times to force her away from the one person who made her life so bright. He was a wicked soul plaguing the planet with his very name. He needed to be stopped. And Asami planned to do it herself, somebody had to.

But right now, she just wanted time to forget. Time to ignore the fact that she was taking over a kingdom, to forget she had a whole business to run, to forget that Hiroshi had betrayed her, and to forget that he had ever made her feel so small, so alone. Because right now she had a beautiful bronze skinned woman asking to go out together, to enjoy the day. Because Korra loved her, and she loved Korra. It didn't matter how many times her father tried to rip them apart, they would rise hand in hand in the end.

"Alright, let's figure something out after breakfast. We could use a little break from the palace." Asami smiled. It really didn't matter where they went, as long as Korra was there, she'd be perfectly content.

♦️

"What if we went into town for a little bit? There's supposed to be a small lantern festival tonight in the village center." Korra suggested.

When she had said she would go anywhere, she was thinking maybe somewhere more quiet and less...crowded. Asami had to admit that she was a little terrified to go anywhere in the public right now. News about her father had surely gotten out by now, which meant that people would most likely be going after her in the aftermath of everything. It was his mistake, and yet she would be the one paying for it. She was surprised there weren't villagers with pitchforks and torches standing outside her door as they spoke. As much as she wanted to get away, maybe it would be best for them to stay. She didn't want to risk putting Korra in danger too, surely people would try to attack Asami and Korra would no doubt step in to handle it. "I don't know Korra, the whole village is probably in an uproar right now. If they see me out there enjoying my life when I should be fixing everything, there's no telling what they'll try to do." Asami argued lightly.

"If they try anything, I'll handle it." Korra retorted, confident as ever that she could handle what these people were about to throw at her.

"But-" Asami was going to push again, but Korra didn't let her.

"You don't have to get all dressed up, you'll blend right in. We can get you something with a hood that'll cover your face so that people won't recognize you as easily. And even if they do end up seeing you and trying to start a fight, I'll be right there. They won't lay a finger on you." the knight stated firmly.

"Korra, you're really sweet, but I don't want to put you in danger either." Asami tried again with a different approach.

"I don't care, you deserve to go out and have fun. I'm not going to let a bunch of stuck up assholes convince you otherwise. If they don't take the time to see that you aren't him, then that's their fault. But you can't let it stop you from doing things you want to do." Korra replied.

Asami should have known telling Korra her own life would be put in danger would never change her stance. The soldier was always throwing herself into battle for everyone else, this was no different. "You're not letting this go, are you?" Asami finally sighed as she looked directly into Korra's eyes.

"Not a chance." she smirked victoriously, knowing Asami was about to cave.

"Alright, but only if I get to pick our outfits. And if anyone attacks, we are immediately leaving after it's been dealt with." Asami offered. It was the only option that would keep them safe. Especially if she was going to have to disguise herself, she didn't trust Korra with subtlety.

Korra narrowed her eyes, thinking the proposition over. "Deal." she agreed with a bright smile. After cleaning up yet another meal made by Korra, which Asami didn't dare complain about when she got to watch Korra's muscles flex and stretch in the light, they finally head upstairs to get ready.

She led them both to her closet to look around. She was starting to realize just how many of her clothes reflected her status. Even the general shirts and pants that the knight's typically wore were made of quality silk and cotton. Anything she wore was no doubt going to give her away, but she had made a deal, and there was no turning back now. Not when Korra looked so bright and happy because they got to have a night out together, and Asami herself desperately wanted a moment with the knight where she wasn't needing to be comforted and coddled. She just wanted a normal night for the two of them, as normal as it could be for a soon to be queen and her knight. Even if Korra was so much more than just a knight to Asami, the world would only view her as one of two things. Asami's knight, or the Avatar. Nobody really knew just Korra, but Asami did. And it was a wonderful feeling to know she was one of the only people who saw Korra for who she truly was.

Everyone else saw Avatar Korra as this omnipotent figure. An all powerful spirit with infinite skill and stamina. And she was definitely those things, but there was so much more beneath that. Korra was a knight too, a soldier. But then, if you dug even further, underneath all the tough skin, and fighting, and need to protect, that's where Korra was. The dorky, sweet, loyal, loving woman who had stolen Asami's heart like a rogue in the middle of the knight. She had never seen it coming until it had already happened. Asami didn't mind one bit. It was a glorious feeling to be cared for, especially when Asami cared for her just as much. Without Korra is her life it would go back to feeling dull, empty. There was no doubt Korra processed the light spirit, it shone in every aspect of her personality as if she were the sun herself.

She looked over to see that very woman now. The southerner wasn't looking at all the dazzling clothes, the mountains of sparkling jewelry, or the mountains of bright accessories that littered the room. No, she was looking at Asami, as if nothing else in the room existed. Asami couldn't help the bright smile that spread through her when she noticed. Korra gave her a curious look, but Asami shook her head and waved it off. It was even better that Korra didn't even know she was doing it, it was done so earnestly that it made Asami's heart swoon. She finally turned back to the current dilemma, there was no way they were skipping this festival, not when Korra looked at her like that. She settled on one of her older cotton shirts and a pair of worn pants that she had scuffed up while out with the horses one day.

She gathered the items and walked behind the screen to change. She decided on leaving her hair down, it would cover her face better. The good news was that it should be dark outside by the time they went besides light that illuminated off the lanterns.

Asami stepped out and looked at Korra. "What are you going to wear?" she questioned.

"Whatever you pick out for me, that was part of the deal." the knight smiled.

Asami may have forgotten that she said she would pick out both of their outfits. It didn't really matter all that much, Korra could wear just about anything and look like the pinnacle of beauty and brawn blended together perfectly. "Right, let's take a look at what you've got." Asami recovered as she led them down the hall to the knight's room. Korra pushed open the door, but as soon as Asami went to step forward Korra pulled her back.

"Wait!" the knight yelled before letting Asami go and carefully maneuvering her way past the entrance. Korra bent down to start picking little pieces of something up. Asami bent down to take a look at what was lying all over the floor, and when she finally figured it out, her heart sank so low it might as well be swimming in the underworld. The little pieces of white and blue were unmistakably the same from the vase that she had gifted Korra not so long ago. Asami had heard something shatter after she slammed the door, but at the time she didn't pay it any attention, too blinded by her own rage to even consider what had broken. And now looking at the delicate pieces or porcelain that were now scattered across the floor, Asami felt wracked with guilt.

"I'm so sorry…" she said bending down to help pick up the broken pieces, it was the least she could do.

"No, no. It's alright, I've got it. Sorry, I meant to pick it up the other night, but I got distracted." Korra smiled.

It didn't take a genius to know what distraction Korra was referring to, the princess was the distraction, plain and simple. She had asked the knight to stay the night, twice. Of course Korra didn't have time to clean it up, not when she was so focused on Asami instead. It only added self loathing fire that was burning in her chest. "No, don't apologize. I didn't realize, I should have turned around to check, I just didn't think…I'm really sorry. I'll fix it." she announced.

"Asami," Korra stilled the princess's hands that were full of tiny bits of glass and porcelain and carefully began to pull the pieces away from her palms in an attempt to keep her from cutting open her skin. "It's not a big deal, it was an accident. I'll clean it up." Korra tried to reassure her with a sweet tone and calm demeanor.

"Where are you going to put it?" Asami asked.

"In the trash? I don't want anyone getting hurt from it." Korra stated.

Little did Korra know the broken, shattered, miniscule pieces already hurt the princess without even touching her. Her heart was heavy as she took in the damage she had done. It might not seem like a big issue to the knight, but Asami was heart broken just looking at it. It was the first gift Asami had ever given to the southerner, a show of appreciation and admiration. She knew Korra loved it too, the knight often made remarks about how looking at it reminded her of home. And now Asami, in extraneous anger and futile frustration, had knocked it over to send it shattering to the floor right in front of Korra's eyes. As if yelling at her, hitting her, wasn't enough for Korra to hate her, then she had gone and done this. And yet somehow, the woman was still right in front of her, and in love with her. It was unfathomable. Asami needed to amend this, she needed to undo the damage. There had to be a way to fix this.

"No, you can't throw them away!" Asami quickly stopped the knight.

"What? Why not?" Korra, patient as ever, tried to understand what Asami was saying.

"I have to fix it." Asami declared.

Korra's gaze got impossibly soft as she met eyes with the princess. "It's okay, it's pretty shattered. I doubt there's any way to fix this." Korra tried to push lightly.

Asami shook her head. "There has to be a way to fix it. I have to put it back together. It won't look the exact same, but it'll still be in one piece." Asami fought, pleading with Korra to let her try and amend her mistakes. If not, the guilt would eat her alive.

Korra seemed to have an idea. "That's it." Korra announced.

"What's it?" Asami gave a quizzical look. She was open to ideas on how to patch this predicament, any suggestion was better than nothing at all.

"Kintsugi." Korra answered.

"Bless you?" Asami responded unsure.

Korra shook her head. "No, kintsugi. It's a type of art form in the fire nation. They take broken pottery and paste it back together with gold. It doesn't look the same, but it's still beautiful." Korra offered.

Asami stared at the knight. That picture Asami created in her head was a sloppily strewn together vase with highlighted flaws and imperfect lines running through it. It didn't sound beautiful at all. "Are you sure?" Asami asked.

"Mhm, positive. You don't have to fix it, but if you really wanted to, that's probably the best way to do it." Korra suggested.

Asami was most definitely going to repair it, there was no doubt about it. She didn't care what it took, she was determined to set things right. Put things back the way they were so that she and Korra could move on from the tragedies that had taken place that night. If this is what Korra wanted to do, then Asami wasn't going to even consider denying her. She probably had everything in the workshop. She definitely had gold and some more precise tools. "Alright, let's take it to my workshop. We should have everything we need in there." Asami offered as she stood up.

"Right now?" Korra asked, seemingly confused.

"Yes, right now. I have to fix it." Asami reaffirmed her earlier statement for the umpteenth time.

Korra looked like she was ready to argue, but ended up deciding against it with a sigh. "Alright, let's go." Korra conceded.

Together they set out for Asami's workshop, Korra carrying the shattered pieces in a bag she grabbed before she left. It was only just afternoon, they'd have plenty of time to fix this and still make it to the lanterns tonight. It would be her most productive day since her father disappeared. She set to work grabbing all the tools she would need. The gold, tweezers, and a magnifying glass were essential.

Korra gently set the pieces down on top of the table and spread them out. Asami grabbed the gold and paused. She hadn't thought about it before, but she needed a way to melt it so that they could actually spread the gold around. She turned to Korra.

"Any ideas on how to melt this down?" she questioned.

Korra carefully picked up the piece and placed it in a bowl that was sitting nearby. She held the metal bowl in her hands, staring intently at it. Asami watched the gold bar, waiting for something to happen. In the blink of an eye the solid bar was turned to a yellowy liquid soup. Korra hadn't even moved a muscle. She stared in awe as she watched the gold swish back and forth inside the container. Asami began to reach for the bowl so she could set it on the counter, but Korra held it away.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Korra chided.

Asami pulled her hands back. "Why not?" she questioned. Asami didn't understand why Korra had to be the one to hold it. It's not like she cared, it would just be easier if someone set it down.

Korra gave her a look. "What's the melting point for solid gold?" she quizzed.

"Almost two thousand degrees Fahrenheit, a little over a thousand degrees Celsius, why?" she answered

"So what you're saying is this bowl is scalding hot?" Korra led.

That's when she understood. She looked at Korra's hands that should be red, burning, and blistering right now. Yet they weren't. Her hands looked perfectly normal, besides the fact that Korra's hands were rough and calloused, but that was how they regularly stayed. "How…?" she began as she inspected the knight's palms and the burning bowl.

Korra shrugged. "I'm not really sure how all fire mages can do this. You definitely can burn yourself, it's actually very easy to do, especially when you're first learning. If you channel it the wrong way or let it get out of control you can blister your hands pretty bad. I've done it enough to where it's pretty easy now. I used to have to reheat my food all the time from where they would forget to bring it to me on time, or I would just get back to my room way too late. Anyway, I've gotten really good at it, but you probably should be careful and avoid touching it." Korra stated simply.

There were so many things Asami wanted to discuss within that little admission. Fire mages could get burned by their own magic if they weren't careful. Anywhere the fire came out didn't burn the wielder's body, but yet it could still burn the other surrounding them. It was a marvelous discovery that Asami desperately wanted to play, and test, and tamper with, but that would have to be saved for another time. The other part that Asami didn't like Korra glossing over so casually was the fact that the Academy used to forget to feed her, or work her so hard she didn't get to eat at the same time as everyone else. Both were sad for so many different reasons. Korra didn't seem to care, but the more Asami learned about how the Academy treated the Avatar, treated Korra, it made her sick. She had gone through all of that work to train, learn to fight, and learn how to properly protect everyone, especially the princess. It made Asami feel dirty in a way, the school had been created for the very purpose of producing soldiers for the royal guard. In a way, it felt like Asami had a responsibility to make sure the soldiers were properly taken care of, the Academy sounded so strict and corrupted. But Korra seemed almost unphased, as if that were completely normal. What had these people gone through in order to serve her? If this is how they treated the Avatar, a beloved and prized symbol to the kingdom, then what did that mean for everyone else?

What was there to say? Clearly Korra didn't seem phased by it. Until Korra decided to bring it up or press the issue, then Asami was going to keep that little detail in the back of her mind for now. "I'll grab us some gloves." was all she offered in response. She hurried away to search her drawers for the protective clothing they needed. Not only was the bowl hot, but they were about to be touching sharp shards of porcelain. Once she found the items she needed she put a pair on as Korra set the steaming bowl of liquid gold down on the table to put her own accessories on. Asami then handed Korra a pair of glasses to shield her eyes.

Korra eyed them. "Don't you think those are a little excessive?" she asked.

Asami gave a look that showed this wasn't up for debate and Korra took them from Asami's hands. "No, I don't think it's excessive, not when it comes to you. For an almighty spirit you're quite clumsy." Asami teased lightly.

Korra looked at her with a pout. "I am not! Everything just likes to get in my way." Korra retorted. "I don't get hurt that often." she argued.

"How many times have we gone to see Kya since you've been here?" Asami pried.

Korra scowled playfully. "Okay, that's not fair. Half of those times you made me go see Kya even when I wasn't sick. You just worry too much." Korra tried to push.

Asami had no defense for that. She did worry, but she worried because it was Korra, and when it came to the knight's safety Asami refused to take any chances that would put her in danger. "I worry because I care, it's when I stop worrying that you know I've given up on you. I'm not willing to take chances on your safety, I don't care how many times I have to escort your stubborn ass to Kya if it means you stay healthy." Asami responded honestly.

Korra didn't seem to have an argument for that. She put the glasses on and began to mutter under her breath about how she could handle herself, but Asami was going to choose to ignore it. They had other matters to attend to as of right now.

She turned to the pieces that were scattered across the table and stared at them. If she were honest, she didn't know where to start with this. She wasn't exactly a potter, she didn't know how to mend these shattered pieces back together. The best place to start would probably be to find the pieces that created the bottom of the vase. Together she and Korra searched to find the pieces that made up the went together and interlocked to make the bottom. When she first declared that she wanted to fix this vase, she didn't acknowledge the fact that she would have to sort through every tiny bit and piece to solve a puzzle that she couldn't quite picture. It was like trying to find treasure without a map, but she was committed to figuring it out.

After scavenging around the table and a good test of patience they managed to locate the parts that made up the bottom. She carefully dipped the edge of each piece into the golden glaze and used her tweezers to carefully piece it back together. She held her breath as she delicately put each piece down and gently smooshed it together. When she finished about a quarter of it she took a step back to look at it. The disappointment must have shown on her face because Korra came up from behind and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"What's wrong?" the southerner asked sweetly.

"It looks so…different." Asami searched for the right word. It wasn't really ugly, it just didn't look the same as it did before.

"Yeah, but different isn't bad. It's still beautiful." Korra tried to argue.

"But now you can see all the cracks in it so clearly, like the flaws are on display." Asami said dejectedly.

"What's so bad about that?" Korra questioned.

"It just doesn't look the same." Asami fought again.

"That doesn't mean it's a ugly." Korra pushed.

"But you can tell it's been broken." Asami sighed.

"And yet it'll still be standing when we fix it. Isn't that amazing?" Korra asked. Asami turned to the knight slightly taken aback. No, it wasn't amazing, it was absolutely depressing. The vase would never be the same, it would forever have scars and cracks filling it, it would never be the same again. How could that be beautiful? "Look, you can see everything it's gone through to get to where it's at. And yeah it has flaws, but why should we try to hide them, we know they're there, we know they exist, why try to cover them up?" Korra began. "Yeah it won't be the same, but it'll still be here, just different. A new look. And that's not always a bad thing." Korra announced.

Asami had to stop and stare at the knight completely stunned. Korra had made such a good point, Asami couldn't help but look at the vase from a new angle. Broken things weren't always ugly, they weren't always bad. Broken things had so much potential to grow, to be changed into something new, something better.

The vase had shattered, it was in a million pieces going so many different directions. When Asami saw it, all she could focus on was how she ruined everything, broken everything. Between the vase, her tantrum, her rage, and her words she was sure Korra was going to leave. Confident that there was nothing she could do to save their new and delicate relationship, couldn't bring back everything they had just started to build between them. She was sure it was gone. And yet, Korra was still here. Sturdy and sure, she never disappeared. She never gave up.

From the outside, the pieces that held them together looked…different. Their delicate bond wasn't the same as it was, it had news scars and tales to tell. And while Asami would have liked to avoid them, they were there, and she couldn't hide them. But maybe that wasn't such a bad thing. Now, she knew what to do, the whole event had been the perfect lesson on trust. Asami wasn't the same as she was a week ago, and neither was Korra. They were different, but not bad. It was just a new look, a new them.

And just as she and Korra would sit here for hours using a plethora of patience and tender care, she intended to do the same with their new relationship. She was going to carefully pick up the pieces and put them back together, not the same way, but it would still be a beautiful sight to behold.

♦️

Asami took off her gloves and wiped her sweaty hands on her pants. After a solid 4 hours of sorting pieces, finding their matches, dipping them in the gold, and carefully holding them in place, they had managed to put the vase back together. It had been no easy feat, but nothing beautiful was simple. It had taken time, patience (so much patience), communication, and teamwork, but they had done it. The vase was put back together with little veins of gold running through it. It was such a beautiful piece, even now. Asami wished she knew the story behind it, supposedly the pottery like this was normally handed down from generation to generation to keep stories alive. That's what Korra had told her once. Although when Asami asked if the knight knew the story Korra did her typical nervous scratch of the nonexistent itch on her neck and claimed she didn't have a clue. Asami had put it on her list of things to look into, surely she could find a book or two on the southern tribes hieroglyphics somewhere around this kingdom.

Asami slid her hand into Korra's, if the knight was surprised by the act she didn't show it. They stood still staring at the newly decorated vase. They would need to take it back to Korra's room once it dried, but that would take a day or two. For right now, maybe it was time for them to get Korra dressed and ready for the festival. They had spent quite a bit of time out here, and the knight wasn't nearly ready to go out.

"Ready to go get changed?" Asami questioned.

Korra looked confused. "Huh? Oh right, the festival. I almost forgot." Korra started with a small laugh. "Yeah, I'm ready." she agreed.

Together they made their way back to Korra's room. Korra sat down on her bed and looked at the princess.

They really didn't have time to dally. "Aren't you going to pick out some options first?" Asami asked.

Korra shook her head with a smile. "Nope, it's all up to you. You can pick whatever you want." she claimed.

Asami gave her a devilish grin. "Anything?" she asked.

Korra rolled her eyes playfully. "Yes, anything. I'll wear whatever you want, no complaints." the knight said confidently.

"What if I put you in something ugly?" Asami pried.

Korra shrugged. "You're the most beautiful and best dressed woman in any crowd, I highly doubt you'd pick something unflattering. And even if you did, I'd still wear it because you picked it." Korra declared.

Asami's heart gave a little flutter at the compliment. Months later, and still Korra's honest remarks made her heart dance in her chest. Despite the distracting knight that was staring at her from the bed, Asami focused her attention in the closet. A lot of Korra's clothes were casual, which was perfect for tonight, but Asami made a small mental note that Korra would need more fancy clothing in the future if she intended to drag Korra to all the balls and outings with her. She finally pulled out a baggy navy blue shirt, a small brown vest, and a pair of khaki bottoms.

"Does this work?" Asami quizzed.

"Looks perfect, princess." Korra chided with a bright smile.

Korra dutifully took the pieces Asami had picked and set to work getting undressed. No matter how many times she had seen the sight, the heat still rushed to her cheeks. Korra was undeniably, very attractive. A strong face with a sharp jawline, broad shoulders that often carried Asami from place to place, sculpted arms that led to calloused hands. Her abs were fully on display as she twisted and maneuvered to put her shirt on. The beautiful six pack led to the small V that dipped into her boy shorts that very tauntingly displayed Korra's perfectly round ass. It was like the spirits and the gods had come together to sculpt Korra by hand, she was a living statue, a work of art.

And she had caught Asami staring based on the shit eating grin that was currently plastered on her face as she buttoned her pants. Asami cleared her throat and looked away, quickly willing her brain to forget the bronze skinned woman next to her and come up with something else to distract her thoughts.

"So how did you hear about this lantern festival anyway?" Asami asked, staring at the wall.

"Oh! The kids at the Academy would go every year. It was a big tradition." Korra said.

"That's cool, what's it like?" Asami pried.

"I don't know, I've never been." Korra replied simply.

Asami turned her head to find the knight. "But you just said that it was a tradition for you all to go." Asami replied confused.

"I never got to go with them. They always made me stay behind because they said it was too distracting to my end goal. They just made me do some extra workouts while everyone else was gone, it was actually pretty nice to have the training grounds to myself." Korra smiled.

"So you never got to go with everyone else?" Asami asked to make sure she heard everything correctly.

"No, but it's alright. The extra training was good for me anyway. Besides, now I get to experience it with you, which is way better than going with the Academy students. I would have basically been going with strangers besides Mako and Bo." she shrugged.

Asami truly was at a loss for words. The way it sounded Korra should be upset, angry even, that the Academy had made her work when everyone else got to go out and play. Just because Korra was the Avatar and part spirit didn't mean she was unbreakable. She was part human too, and it sounded like the Academy wanted to neglect that part of her. It was painful just hearing about it, and yet deep down, part of Asami knew she hadn't even heard the worst of it all. Korra had been mistreated, it was glaringly obvious from Asami's standpoint, but it seemed like Korra was finding the best in it all. How did she do it?

"Doesn't it bother you that you didn't get to go with everyone else?" Asami asked the question that was most prominent in her mind.

Korra's face scrunched up like she truly had to think about the answer. "Not really. It's my job, I don't really have a choice. It's my duty to keep everyone safe and protected, to restore balance to the world. I needed to learn everything that I possibly could while I was there, taking days off like that would have just been distracting. I'm the Avatar, I don't have time to do what I want to do all day." Korra stated.

While it was true that Korra had a duty to the world, why did that mean she couldn't have fun every now and then? Just because the Avatar had a job to do didn't mean that she shouldn't have time for herself too. "Sure, but you have to make time for yourself too." Asami argued.

"I know, that's what I'm doing now. I'm going with you to see the lanterns, and I haven't been doing anything the last couple of days besides hanging out with you. I can't complain too much." Korra smiled.

Asami wanted to argue again, to push the point that Korra had essentially still been working these last couple of days. Even if she wasn't out doing her Avatar duties, she was still here and taking care of Asami. It wasn't like the knight had really taken a couple days off. She had still been working hard by helping to investigate underground and taking care of Asami's every need and request. That wasn't leisure time, not even close. However, Asami knew that any attempt to get this point across to Korra simply wouldn't land. But she made a silent vow to look into the compound part of the Academy where Korra was raised. She was decently good friends with Lin, or at least she was before she had yelled at the baron. She suddenly realized she had more people to apologize to for her behavior than just Korra, even if Korra was the most vital, that didn't mean everyone else's apology could be ignored. Once she made it up to the baron, maybe she could ask a few questions about the compound. She knew Korra's view on the whole situation would be slightly skewed considering she didn't see the problem with how she was treated. She needed honesty, no sugarcoating the words, just a straightforward answer whether it was good or not. And who better to ask than Lin Beifong?

For now, however, she was going to push what Korra had said to the side and let them both enjoy their night. "Alright, are you ready to head out?" she asked standing up.

Korra crossed her arms and looked at the heiress. "I am, but you forgot something." Korra claimed. Asami gave the knight a curious look as she went over to the closet and pulled something out. She brought it back over and wrapped it around Asami's shoulders. It was a beautiful blue cloak, and the best part was it smelt perfectly like Korra. "You said earlier you wanted something to cover your face. I think that should work pretty well." Korra added.

Asami gave a quiet thank you before Korra opened the door for them to head out. They made their way down to the courtyard and to the stables. While Asami would normally get a carriage for a more comfortable ride into town, being discreet was crucial if they wanted to avoid a fight. Naga would be the perfect temporary ride into town. Asami loved the snowy white steed and her silly personality. Watching Korra and the horse act like siblings often made Asami smile too.

They both took their turns climbing up the steed. Asami dutifully placed her hands around Korra's waist and put her chin on the knight's shoulder. It had become the natural position for them to fall into when Korra was taking them places. Asami certainly didn't mind, she could feel Korra's muscled stomach tense and fall underneath her crossed arms.

The dame led them down the path and into the main village. The scenery was beautiful. Candles lined the edges of the walkways, paper lanterns sat everywhere waiting to be lit, the food and trinket stalls were set up everywhere, people played music as a dance circle formed in the middle. It was so lively, Asami couldn't help but smile even though she hadn't gotten off the horse yet.

Even after the tragedies that had occurred, everyone was still having fun. It helped give her hope that things would be better despite everything. She was going to do everything in her power to keep the people safe, that's what mattered. She would work alongside Korra to defeat the Equalists, but for tonight, like the rest of her kingdom, she was going to let herself enjoy whatever the night had to offer.

"What do you want to do first?" Korra asked as she tied Nagas' lead to a nearby post.

What did she want to do? There were so many options. She wanted to participate in absolutely everything she could, but where to start? For once, it was Asami's rumbling stomach that told them it was time to eat. "How about food?" she giggled as she took Korra's hand and led them to the aisle of various food stalls.

"You read my mind." Korra chuckled.

They walked around the stalls sampling different bits of food, well, one of them  was sampling. Korra, however, was delighted to try and toss her portion in the air and catch it, which worked about fifty percent of the time. It was an old trick of Korra’s, she used to play with her food in an attempt to make Asami laugh all the time when they were younger. That was until Senna would find her daughter wasting half her plate and scold her shenanigans. Despite the fact that Korra was being childish and playing with her food, Asami didn't have it in her heart to ridicule the knight. Not when they were both smiling and laughing so hard. And yet the night had just started, it could only get better from here.

After they had filled their bellies, Asami walked them over to a booth with free booze and grabbed them each a mug. Korra eyed the drink wearily, and then looked back at the heiress. "Are you sure I should be drinking? I am still technically on duty. This is a lot stronger than a simple glass of wine." Korra stated.

Asami rolled her eyes playfully. "Drink up. Everything's fine, we're here to have fun. You're not actually working, you're just here with me so we can spend time together." Asami argued.

Korra looked between the mug and Asami's face a few times. Asami nodded her head toward the drink a final time, and the knight finally caved by taking a sip. Her eyes lit up as she tasted it. "This is amazing!" Korra complimented before putting her lips to the glass once more.

"It's just simple mead, nothing fancy." Asami added with a smile.

"I've never had anything like it." Korra said, wiping the little bubbles of foam off her mouth.

Asami had a feeling what Korra really meant by that statement was that she was never allowed to have anything like it. Asami could only imagine what the compound had told Korra about drinking affecting her mental state and ability to fight. Asami wasn't going to bring it up though, it was a topic for another day. Instead she settled for a more lighthearted answer. "Well, I'm glad you like it. You have always enjoyed the simple things." Asami teased.

Korra shrugged. "Guilty." she chided with a grin.

Asami looked towards the many tables that held the lanterns for everyone to decorate. She turned to Korra and took the knight's hand to tug on it. "Why don't we decorate one together?" Asami pointed at one of the tables.

"Sounds perfect." the knight smiled.

Together they walked to one of the more secluded benches that held a few different paints and brushes on top. They sat down across from each other before turning to look at their options.

"Which lantern do you want?" Asami asked.

Korra looked over the various options before finally settling on an average boxy lantern and placing it in front of Asami. "I like this one, it gives you more room to paint." Korra stated.

Asami gave her a quizzical look. "Aren't you going to help me?" Asami asked.

Korra shook her head. "I'll help by not picking up a brush and ruining it." Korra chuckled.

"Oh come on, you can't be that bad. Besides, it's not a contest. It's just for us, it can look as horrible or amazing as we want." Asami argued.

Korra gave Asami a look. "You really want me to try?" Korra questioned.

"Yes, I want you to try. It doesn't have to look perfect. Here," Asami said as she handed the knight a brush and some blue paint. "Start with that. You can paint one side, I'll paint the other, and we can do the rest together." Asami planned.

"Alright, that works." Korra agreed. "I'm warning you this isn't going to look good." Korra said once again.

"Whatever you make will look perfect." Asami reassured as she began to open her own paints.

Korra focused intently on the plain white space. "What if I leave it blank and call it a polar bear in a snowstorm?" Korra asked as she peeked around the lantern to look at Asami.

"Korra." Asami deadpanned

The knight gave a small laugh. "Alright, alright. I'll try to actually paint something." Korra sighed as she once again focused on the blank spot in front of her. Asami herself did the same, she didn't know exactly what she wanted to do. The only thing running through her mind was Korra, which made it very difficult to focus on anything else. She sneaked a peek around the side of the lantern to look at the knight. The southerner had her eyes narrowed in focus and her tongue barely peeking out from her lips as she raised the brush to the blank canvas. After two strokes she let out a breath that she had been holding and turned to look at Asami. "Look at it." Korra pointed with a face of disapproval.

The heiress turned the project to look at Korra's work. It couldn't be that bad, Korra was great at interpreting art and finding the hidden meaning of it. Asami looked down to see a small, very lopsided, and shaky blue heart globbed onto the side. Asami was trying to hold in the laugh that was bubbling in her throat. "It looks great, I don't see why you're so upset." Asami encouraged as a small smile made its way into her face. Korra gave her a pointed look that showed she really wasn't pleased. "Okay, it's not perfect, but it doesn't need to be." Asami fought.

Korra put her chin in her hand and stared holes into the paper. "But I'm ruining it." the knight argued.

"No you're not. Just have fun, mine isn't going to look perfect either." Asami pointed out. "But I'm still having a good time sitting here with you." she added on sweetly.

Korra softened her gaze a little bit after that. "That's a good point." Korra stated. "What are you going to do on your side?" she asked as she flipped the project back around to its original spot.

Asami shrugged. "I'm not sure yet. I'll surely think of something." she replied. It wasn't completely truthful. Korra's little heart had actually given her an idea for a theme to this little lantern. Korra was going for hearts on her side, Asami wanted something that represented them as a unit. Like a symbol that had aspects that showed off each of their personalities while also showing how beautiful they looked together. She just needed to find little pieces of each of them to put on there, something to symbolize them as people.

She grabbed a brush and set to work. She started off by drawing something to represent her. She wanted something besides royalty or the crown. She ended up deciding to paint a half of a bright red gear. Inventing was one of her favorite things, despite the way her father had tainted some of the memories. The real issue was deciding on what to paint for Korra's side. Of course she was a knight and the Avatar, and a mage. But those all seemed like such degrading things to label her. She was so much more than just those things. She was funny, and dorky, and sweet. A pretty decent cook for someone who claimed they didn't know how. She was strong in a fight, but loving to her friends and people she considered family. She was an amazing protector, and a loving partner. That thought gave Asami an idea.

On the half that didn't have the gear, she painted half of a shield. It wasn't the only thing Korra was, but it was a large part of her. Something besides being the Avatar or a knight. She was a loyal, fearless, and loving protector. Especially when it came to Asami. As the heiress finished up her piece she finally looked up to catch the knight staring at her with a smile.

"What?" Asami asked.

Korra shook her head. "You're just extra beautiful when you're focused on something so intensely like that." Korra admitted with her cheeks darkening just a tad. Apparently that little comment wasn’t supposed to slip out, but mead worked fast.

Asami giggled at the honest admission as her own checks turned pink. "Are you done with your side?" Asami asked, changing the subject.

"Yep. Here, take a look." she said as she flipped the lantern around.

Korra had painted tiny alternating red and blue hearts all over her side. As she progressed down the rows her hearts kept getting cleaner. "This is really cute, Korra. See, you didn't ruin it." Asami teased. The heiress looked up to see that the knight wasn't paying a bit of attention to her compliments. Instead she stared at the side Asami had painted with eyes full of awe.

She finally looked up to meet Asami's eyes. "This is amazing! Everything's so neat and tidy. The colors compliment each other so well. You're really talented 'Sami." Korra praised.

Asami had to admit that she would never get over that little nickname, it always made her swoon. "Thanks, I also have some ideas for the other two sides, but I'll need your help." Asami said as she turned the lantern to a blank side and patted the spot on the bench next to her.

Korra dutifully stood up and moved to sit next to her. "I don't know if I'll be much help, but I'll try." Korra offered as she sat down.

"I promise it's not that difficult, all you have to do is listen. On second thought…" Asami giggled as she teased the knight.

"Hey! I'll have you know I'm great at following orders." Korra argued.

"Something tells me Tenzin would disagree." Asami chuckled.

"That's different, all the things he tells me to do don't actually work. He keeps telling me to breathe and be the leaf. I can't be a leaf, so I try to do things my way instead. I'll get through those stupid gates eventually." Korra fought.

Asami wasn't going to tease the knight anymore, but truthfully this was evidence that Korra had no patience. "If you say so." Asami agreed. "Now let me see your hand." the heiress announced as she held out her own palm for Korra to place her hand in.

"Uh, okay?" Korra did as she was told with a curious look. Asami dipped a large brush in the blue paint and began smothering Korra's hand in it. "That's cold." Korra pouted.

The Avatar, the almighty spirit in charge of balance, the woman who could break mountains with a snap of her wrist and take a knife through her shoulder like it were nothing more than a splinter, pouting over a little cold paint. Korra truly was an enigma.

"You'll be fine, here. I want you to leave a handprint on that side." Asami instructed.

"Alright." Korra agreed as she moved her hand to hover over the lantern. "Right here?" she asked, looking worried she was about to mess everything up.

Asami nodded. "Anywhere on that side is perfect." she offered. Once Korra placed her hand down, Asami helped to try and smoosh the knight's hand down to get more of the paint off. After holding it for a few seconds, the knight pulled her hand back and observed her work.

"Hey, that looks good!" Korra pointed at her splotchy handprint with pride. "Do I get to paint your hand now?" Korra asked excitedly.

Asami had originally intended on just painting her hand herself, personally she liked having control over the project. If she were being honest it took all her willpower to let the knight paint one of the sides, but Korra's enthusiasm over being able to help Asami stopped her from fighting for control. The knight was too cute, and her smile was too bright for Asami to say no. "Alright, just be careful, don't get it on your clothes." Asami instructed. She didn't care if the paint happened to drop onto her own outfit because of how old and worn it was, but Korra's clothes were too new to be destroyed.

Korra nodded her acknowledgement and set to work dipping a new brush in red paint and lathering Asami's hand. Once she had covered every possible crack and sliver of hand, she set the brush down. "There, all done." Korra announced.

The heiress took her hand and placed it next to Korra's previous handprint making their thumbs overlap on the canvas. Korra smashed Asami's hand into the paper, much like she had previously done to Korra. They both removed their hands and looked at the finished product. "It looks perfect!" Asami cheered as she took in their work. It wasn't anything fancy, but Asami quite liked it. Lately she had loved holding onto Korra's hand. The rough calloused palm that slid right into her own always made her feel grounded, safe. Their hand prints permanently etched into the lantern made it so they would be holding hands forever.

"So what are your plans for the last side?" Korra questioned as she spun it around.

Asami handed Korra a paint brush and turned to the last side. "I think we should paint our initials on it, to sign our masterpiece." Asami claimed.

"Okay, you go first." Korra suggested.

Asami delicately wrote a large red A in the top left corner before handing it over to Korra who smoothly drew a blue K in the bottom right. In the middle Asami used purple to draw a little plus sign. "Perfect. I'd say we're all done." Asami cheered.

"And just in time too." Korra said as she looked over to the people all piling together to release their decorated lanterns up into the air.

Asami picked up their masterpiece and took Korra's hand in her free one. Together they walked over to the center of the village where everyone was gathered to light and release their lanterns. Korra was about to use her fire magic to light the center before Asami stopped her. The knight furrowed her brow in confusion.

"There could be Equalists around, we shouldn't risk it." Asami explained.

Korra nodded. "Right, sorry. I wasn't thinking, it's just habit." she said.

"It's okay, you don't have to apologize. I'm just not willing to risk you getting attacked over something so small." Asami smiled. She had some understanding of how important magic was to most mages, especially Korra. It was something that was so natural that having to hide it would take an active effort to remember. Once they quelled the Equalists, the riots, and Amon, then Korra would never have to worry about hiding her magic again. Asami was determined to make that happen, and soon.

They were handed a candle that was being passed around to light everyone's lanterns, Korra rook the waxy stick and gently maneuvered it to light the candle inside their own lantern. After the wick was lit she gently pulled the candle back and handed it to the next person who needed it.

After all the lanterns had been lit everyone stood crowded in the center waiting for the signal to let them go.

An older woman, most likely the lady in charge stood on a pedestal with her own lantern in hand. "Alright everyone, before you let your lanterns go, you must make a wish. Let the lantern know your intentions, speak from the heart, and let it float into the sky to speak with the spirits." the woman closed her eyes as she made her own wish. Asami watched as Korra closed her eyes too, the heiress followed suit shortly after. Her last wish had already been granted, but she was willing to make another. There were many things she wished for, but the one that rang most clearly in her head as she stood hand in hand with Korra, was that she wished the world would never take the knight away from her. She wished to keep this one good thing that she had, she was so far past wishing, she was begging, pleading, that the universe let her keep this one thing. The one, loving, kind, and amazing woman that stood next to her. That's what she wished for.

As Asami opened her eyes she watched Korra's beautiful blue orbs as the orange of the candle light flickered in their reflection. The southerner was absolutely beautiful, all the time. Asami had to admit she was jealous that Korra could simply wake up looking like the epitome of beauty, while she herself needed a fifteen step routine to look merely decent. But she wouldn't complain too much, after all the last few nights she had the privilege of falling asleep in the strong arms of the gorgeous southerner. She wouldn't trade that for anything.

"You may release your lanterns." the woman on the pedestal broke the quiet that had settled over the crowd.

She and Korra had their hands intertwined between them, but they each took their free palm to gently hold the delicate item. They each looked at eachother, and with a nod, they pushed the floating lantern into the dark night sky. It floated up and away, dancing with the many various lanterns that surrounded it. The whole sky was filled with many different shapes and colors as the creations floated away to deliver their wishes. It was absolutely stunning. She peeled her eyes away from the sky to look at Korra. The knight stared in awe as she watched the lights float above them.

Asami was thrilled, elated, practically floating. The moment was so pure and perfect. She was thankful that Korra had brought her to experience such a glorious sight. It wasn't fair that this was the first time Korra got to go on her own, but Asami had to admit that she was proud to be the person the knight wanted to bring. The person Korra wanted to experience this magical sight with. The last week had been awful, absolutely devastating. The night they went through that workshop, Asami was sure that she would be losing everything. Her family, her friends, her staff, and most importantly her knight. She was fully prepared to leave and hand the kingdom to somebody more capable. Someone who deserved it, because spirits knew she didn't. Yet, here they stood now, hand in hand, side by side as they watched the glowing lanterns travel into the air. Korra was still here, and as long as that truth remained, Asami didn't care what tragedy the world tried to put her through.

As the lights floated away the small dance circle began to form once again. Happy and bright music began to fill the space as everyone clapped and cheered to the beat. Asami turned to Korra as people began to move around, finding somewhere to stand and watch. "Dance with me?" Asami asked. She knew her smile was far too wide and her eyes were practically pleading, but she couldn't help it. She loved to dance, to be free.

"You know I don't dance." Korra argued with a grin that showed she was already close to caving anyway.

With all the confidence in the world Asami responded the same way she did Korra first tried to use that excuse. "You will for me." Asami claimed as her smile got impossibly brighter.

Korra playfully rolled her eyes and gave a sigh that let Asami know she had won. "Well I can't argue with that." Korra chuckled.

They started off in the middle, dancing with each other. They spun around and around, following the flow of the people as they spun and twirled to the rhythm of the music that surrounded them. Asami looked at Korra to see the knight focused on her footwork as the orange candle lights of the lanterns shone onto her bronze skin. Asami placed Korra's hands on her hips as Asami's arms wrapped around the knight's neck. They still continued to spin and step their way around the circle, but Asami wasn't focused on a single thing that was happening around them. For the first time since everything had blown up, she didn't feel so distraught and broken. Everything was going to be okay. Because when she was this happy, and the most amazing woman in the world was still by her side, nothing could possibly go wrong. She would fix all the wrong her father had done, she would make it up to the people who had lost their family and friends. She would amend the broken pieces of this kingdom and put them back together. She refused to let Hiroshi's actions send the kingdom to ruin. They would all be able to heal and move on.

Or at least that's what she wanted to believe, that was until her hood fell down to reveal her face and the crowd all gasped as they turned to her. She could feel their eyes burning holes into her as murmurs and shouts of surprise filled the crowd. Surprise quickly morphed into anger and resentment as the circle slowly closed in on her. She could see the crowd slowly pulling out lighters and small daggers in their hands, preparing to attack.

A tall, bulky man with a long braided beard stepped closer to her, but Korra was quick to throw herself in between.

"Tsk. Get out of my way, I've got business to handle. This doesn't involve you short stuff." the man said with a snarl

Korra didn't so much as flinch. Her hand was already on the handle of her sword and ready to unsheath it. Not a word came out of her mouth, but the look in her eyes left no doubt that the man would not be getting near her, not without bloodshed.

The man turned his attention away from Korra and peeked around to look at Asami instead. "Well, well, well. If it isn't the Equalist King's little girl. Are you here to kill us next?" he asked, taking another step forward.

Asami felt frozen in place. She had been trained her whole life how to react in these situations, giving diplomatic answers until she could diffuse the situation or remove herself from it. However, she didn't have a clue what to say. Even if she said she was innocent, what proof did she have? She would forever be labeled as Hiroshi's daughter, a Sato. The name was attached to her like a ball and chain that trapped her, she couldn't escape it. No matter what she believed, no matter what she did, no matter what she changed, Hiroshi's blood still coursed through her veins, and that affiliation alone would be enough for the village to forever hold a grudge against her. She could change the way she looked, the way she dressed, change the way things were right now, but she couldn't change her DNA. There wasn't a word she could say to change the minds of the people. Not when she was out enjoying her night when she should be planning a grief ceremony and stopping the Equalists that were taking over the town. She had ignored responsibility for as long as she possibly could, but she had to face reality at some point. She stood, frozen in thought, digging and shuffling through her mind for the right thing to say, but there was nothing. Not a word that would change what was about to happen.

The man shook his head. "That's what I thought. You won't get the chance you little Equalist loving bitch!" he yelled as he pulled a dagger from his sleeve and took a large step forward.

Within seconds Korra had the blade of her sword to his neck, ready for a lethal blow to swipe straight through his jugular. The crowd took a step back before they changed the direction of their weapons from pointing them at Asami to pointing them at her knight. Korra didn't so much as spare a glance in the heiress's direction. "Go. Take Naga and run." Korra instructed.

"I'm not leaving you here." Asami's voice fought through the shouts and screams of the crowd that surrounded them.

Korra proceeded to let out a single whistle, high pitched and eerie. Nobody moved, everyone looked around at one another confused. It only took ten seconds for a white blur to come crashing through the crowd. Naga stood right behind Asami waiting for her next orders. Somehow the steed had broken away from her lead to follow the whistling signal Korra had just blown.

"Go. You have to leave. Now." the knight persisted.

Asami shook her head. After everything, the knight just expected her to leave and make a run for it while Korra threw herself into danger. She had said if anything happened that they would both leave, she would not be going home without the southerner. "I'm not leaving." Asami stated firmly once more.

Korra finally pried her eyes away from the man in front of her. "I'll catch up. You need to go." the knight winked. Korra had a plan, most likely a messy and horrible plan, but a plan nonetheless. Asami was all out of ideas herself, so she was left to trust Korra's instincts and judgment on this one.

Asami swallowed the protest that had begun to bubble in her throat. "Fine. I'll see you at home." she announced as she climbed onto the steed.

As soon as the princess was atop Naga and snapped the reins sending the horse sprinting, the man lurched forward, but he didn't get far before his body fell to the ground. A pile of blood surrounded his head as his neck was sliced open and spewing little drops of maroon into the cobble. Asami focused her attention back on the path where Naga was taking her. She spared a glance behind to see Korra in the middle of the crowd as blades clanked and crashed against one another. A small portion of the group removed themselves to begin chasing after Asami instead. She began ducking and dodging the stones and blades that were launched at her head. Korra noticed immediately, rolling out of the way to deflect yet another lethal blow to her chest. She sprinted, boosting herself with a little bit of fire to make her way over to Asami. She landed to the right of Asami, flanking the steed. With one arm she pulled herself up by one of the dangling straps on the side of Nagas saddle, and with the other she sent a wall of earth shooting up from the ground blocking the people from sending any attacks their way.

Korra rode with her back to Asami's own, facing behind them as the few straggling villagers that managed to get around the wall came up behind them. Asami could hear bursts of different magic that Korra was projecting towards the enemy. The light of flames that shot out of her hands was flickering around them in bursts of orange, and the ground shook and rumbled with every flick of Korra's wrist.

With one last grunt from Korra and a shake of the earth beneath their feet the yells of rage from the villagers went silent. Korra turned around to face the correct way and gently tore the reins from Asami's hands to take control. Neither of them said a word, opting to focus on the path ahead of them.

When they arrived at the gates Korra hopped off the steed and led Naga toward the stables while staying vigilant. As she focused on getting the horse inside her stall and refilling her water, Korra finally decided to break the silence. "It's dangerous for you to stay here, you know. Word travels fast, I'm sure they'll be ready to break down the palace gates by tomorrow morning if you aren't careful." Korra stated.

"Yeah, I know. This is what I was afraid of. Despite my father and I being two different people with different beliefs and values, not everyone will see it that way." Asami sighed in frustration. She needed a plan to diffuse the situation, but all of the effective options she could think of involved taking out Amon and the rest of the Equalists. And right now, they didn't have a single clue as to where any of those people were. She had a feeling that going out tonight after not having said a word these last couple days would cause problems, but she selfishly wanted a night for her and Korra to relax. She should have known the world wouldn't tolerate such a desire.

"I'm sorry." Korra announced, still focusing on putting her animal companion to bed. She was busying herself with mindless tasks, refusing to look at Asami.

"Sorry? For what?" Asami questioned. As far as she was concerned Korra had nothing to apologize for.

"For asking you to go out with me tonight. You said it would be dangerous, and I should have listened. It's my fault." Korra said dejectedly. Her hands were balled into fists as her face looked toward the ground in shame.

Asami was over in a flash to take Korra's hands and slowly unball them until their fingers could interlock. Korra still didn't look up. "It wasn't your fault. You wanted to cheer me up, and I wanted to go out with you. The universe just had other plans." Asami soothed.

Korra shook her head. "You said that this would happen, and I didn't listen. I put you in danger because I wasn't thinking. I was arrogant and reckless." Korra scolded herself.

Asami's heart went out to the young woman, she knew that deep down this went beyond not listening to Asami. This was something deeply rooted in Korra's brain, a need to protect. She was taught to never put Asami in danger, she was taught not to want things for herself, and she was taught to obey orders. In Korra's mind she had broken all three of those rules. She was beating herself up, punishing herself for what she considered to be mistakes. Just like The Academy had taught her to do. Asami hated it. Korra would have never suggested going in the first place if she hadn't been trying to cheer the heiress up. She truly had no ill intentions of putting Asami's life at risk or throwing them into the chaos that ensued. It certainly wasn't the knight's fault that people were so closed minded and hotheaded. But even with all of that, one truth remained.

"We're both okay, that's what matters. You still protected us. And for the record I had a wonderful time before everything else that transpired. I was able to forget all that had happened for a little bit, so the trip was most definitely worth it. And in my opinion, overall a success." Asami reassured before she gently used a set of their held hands to tip Korra's chin up a little bit. Forcing blue eyes to meet green.

Korra still continued to try and avoid the heiress's gaze, but after a minute of seeing Asami wasn't changing her stance, she finally spoke up. "Did you really have a good time?" Korra asked.

Asami noded. "I did. I think we should go again next year, we could make it a tradition." Asami offered.

Korra gave a weak side smile. "Yeah that'd be nice…if we can ever get the Equalist fights to settle down." Korra said dejectedly.

"We will. Tomorrow the new barron is going to be indoctrinated. I think you should go, maybe take Tenzin with you just in case." Asami suggested. "But seeing how we can all try to work with the new chief might help us get a little further in tracking Amon down." She added.

"Yeah, I'll see if Tenzin wants to go with me tomorrow. But if you're staying here I'm leaving Mako and Bolin with you for protection. If anything happens while I'm gone, those are the people I trust to fill my spot." Korra stated firmly.

It wasn't really Korra's place to say what soldiers got to be stationed where, but she wasn't going to argue. If that's what it took to aussage Korra's worries then so be it. As much as she would like for Korra to be by her side at all times, especially because there would no doubt be riots outside the palace gates when word spread, she knew it wasn't possible. The world needed its Avatar, despite how Asami wished they didn't. She knew Korra had a job to fill and she wouldn't keep her away from fulfilling that duty. They needed to pick up the pace on fighting these riots, for everyone's sake.

"Alright, I'll keep them with me tomorrow. But I think for now it's best we get some rest. Schedules go back to normal tomorrow." Asami tugged on their hands a little bit to try and pull Korra away from Nagas stall and back toward the palace.

"You're right, I forgot I have to wake up early tomorrow. Mornings are evil." Korra pouted as she dropped one of their intertwined hands and let the heiress drag them down the path with the other.

Asami giggled at Korra's adorable face. "Oh come on, mornings aren't that bad. You get to see the sunrise, it makes the sky all bright and beautiful." Asami argued.

"I can see the brightest light when I look at you, I don't need to wake up early for that." Korra continued to grumble like she hadn't just said the smoothest compliment in existence.

Asami for her part stumbled a bit at Korra's honesty. She should have known to expect it by now, but it never failed to catch her off guard. Korra said such earnest words and gave priceless compliments to Asami like it was the most natural thing in the world. She had a feeling that the alcohol that had made its way into Korra's system only made the knight more prone to admitting her inner thoughts aloud.

Asami didn't say a word back after that, only letting the wide smile that had broken out on her face reflected how she was feeling. As they made their way up to the quarters Asami slowly began to realize a problem with this night. Lately, she had been using any excuse she could to ask Korra to stay the night with her. However, she didn't have any reason for the knight to stay again. She couldn't admit that Korra's warmth, her strong embrace or even her quiet snores were like the perfect recipe to put Asami to bed. That definitely had to be crossing a line in this new romance of theirs. That didn't stop how desperately she wanted Korra to stay anyway. She shook her head. She was being ridiculous. Asami was a royal, soon to be queen. She could sleep by herself just fine, Korra would be right down the hall.

After they exchanged goodnight's, Asami closed the door behind her and got herself ready for bed. When she went to pull off her clothes and put on her pajamas she realized she still had Korra's cloak, and it still smelled exactly like her. Asami set the article to the side, neatly folded for safekeeping. Korra wouldn't mind if Asami stole a little something that reminded her of her favorite woman, especially if the knight had let her borrow it anyway. She finally put on her pajamas and climbed into her bed. She closed her eyes and willed herself to go to sleep, hoping for dreams of love and comfort with her favorite dame.

She should have known that wasn't going to happen. She laid there for two hours. Tossing and turning, squeezing her eyes shut, and trying to force herself to relax into a peaceful slumber. Of course that didn't happen. Her eyes shot open as she sighed in longing. Asami had never been this helpless before. She was a very capable woman, authoritative, and powerful. And yet this one young woman, this one amazing knight, and almighty Avatar had taken control of her heart to the point where she was incapable of falling asleep without her.

The knight was right down the hall, it wasn't like she was even very far. And that thought gave Asami an idea.

Korra was right down the hall, and a very heavy sleeper. She'd hardly even notice if Asami decided to sneak into bed to lay beside her. Part of Asami knew this would hurt her pride, she shouldn't be this weak. She should just push through it until she went to bed on her own.

But her heart wanted Korra.

And her heart got what it wanted.

She snuck her way down the hall, pride screaming at her to turn around, and gently pushed open the door. As she saw the sleeping southerner lying peacefully in her bed, all of her worries of wounded pride and royal expectations washed away. When she went to shut the door it slipped from her hands and closed louder than she had intended. Korra began to stir in her sleep.

The knight gently lifted her head to squint through sleepy eyes at the figure standing in her doorway. She turned the lamp next to her bed on just a bit to help her see. "Oh. 'Sami? Is something wrong?" Korra asked, slowly beginning to sit and wake herself up.

Asami shook her head and made her way over to stand in front of the dame. She shook her head as her pride and her heart fought for a response that would suffice. "I missed you." Asami finally confessed. Clearly, her heart had won the battle.

Korra, still half asleep, moved over to lay down and opened her arms without a word. Asami quickly buried herself in the familiar spot. Korra wrapped her arm that wasn't trapped by Asami's head around the heiress' waist. It wasn't two minutes before Korra was back to sleep. Surrounded by warmth, quiet snores, and the familiar scent of forest and saltwater, Asami was quick to follow.
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Korra slowly opened her eyes to see that it was still dark out, it was about the normal time she would be getting ready to go see Asami. However, it seemed the goal had already been completed before she even got out of bed. Slowly her sleep-addled mind began to catch up with the events that had taken place. Asami had snuck into her room at about midnight to tuck herself into Korra's arms. Although Korra enjoyed her sleep, she certainly didn't mind being awoken by a beautiful goddess climbing into bed to lay with her. Asami's only reasoning was that she had missed the knight, and Korra couldn't argue with that. She had missed Asami too, secretly hoping that the heiress would ask her to stay again. And even though Asami had originally gone to bed in her own room, she had still made her way back into Korra's embrace, and the knight would never complain about that. She'd swear just holding Asami in her arms would resurrect her from death itself.

The one difference between the other times they had slept like this, and their current position, was that Asami was already awake and staring up at the knight. Sleepy jade orbs looked up at her from where the heiress’s head lay on her shoulder. Her raven locks were a tangled mess. Korra began to run her fingers through them to try and gently untangle them as best she could, but once she started it took all but a few seconds for Asami’s eyes to close again. As much as she wished to stay here in bed like this, they simply couldn’t lay here all day. There was far too much that needed to be done, despite what Korra herself wanted. After Lin had both stepped down and been ridiculed by Tarrlok, a new chief was taking her place. Korra absolutely hated it, loathed the idea of anyone but Lin being in the position, but there was nothing that could be done about it. Though she had to admit, watching Lin give up was a punch to the gut in a way. The chief was the strongest, toughest, and fiercest woman that Korra knew. If her stubborn old self was giving up, what did that mean for everyone else? She had always looked up to Lin in a way. The baron was resilient and she had made quite the reputation for herself. People often were intimidated by the chief, and Korra couldn’t blame them, but she also knew Lin was the type of leader to do everything she could to make this village safe and liveable. She wasn't scared to put the enemy in their place, and she was constantly cleaning up the streets to try and keep the city safe. She always stood for what was right, and often people would follow her orders without a second thought. Whether it was because they were scared of her or because they actually wanted to do the right thing Korra wasn’t entirely sure, but either way Lin had become a highly respected figure and someone that Korra took inspiration from. If she were being honest, she was terrified as to what this meant for the fight against the Equalists. If the new officer was a lazy, good for nothing, scumbag her job as Avatar was going to get even more difficult than it was before. She needed more allies in this fight, not more enemies. She hoped going over to see the new officer get initiated would put her on his good side.

Asami’s groggy voice suddenly spoke up to break Korra’s thoughts. “What are you thinking about up there? You’re awfully quiet.” she pointed out.

Korra took a second to gather her thoughts. "A little bit of everything I guess. I hope Lin returns as chief, I really hope this new guy isn't awful. I'm ready to be done with all these Equalists so I can finally focus on…" she glanced down to look at Asami still staring up at her. "Other, more important things." she admitted.

That's truly why she was ready to be done with Amon. Yes, the threat he posed to the village was terrible, and many people were in danger. She knew she needed to bring balance to the world for them, it was her job above all else. While that was all important, and that was a large part of why she was continuing to fight, another significant reason was because she desperately wanted to focus on the heiress. More specifically, building their relationship. As of right now, they were just kind of coasting along in an awkward state of being more than friends but not exactly together either. After all the world saving was done, she could spend more time with Asami. Taking her out on proper dates and such. She'd make sure to leave quite the impression. They were still fresh, new, and delicate. She wanted to build their relationship up, make it strong. If her hard efforts paid off, then Asami would agree to be her girlfriend by the end of it all. As much as she wanted to be official with Asami right this moment, she knew it didn't work that way. They needed to be courting for a little longer before she could ask Asami to make their relationship official. None of that, none of the things she wanted, could happen until she put an end to the Equalists. She wanted to be able to give Asami her undivided attention. She just needed to hold out a little longer.

"Well, I think you going out to see him today should be a good start. But with or without his help we'll find a way to stop Amon and shut down all the riots." Asami assured her.

Korra sighed. "I really don't wanna get up." she admitted.

Asami let out a small laugh. "Me neither, but as we’ve established before, we're busy people. Sadly, we've got jobs to do, and people that need us." Asami reminded.

"I know, but I just want to stay here with you. Why is the world so needy?" Korra pouted.

Asami gave a dazzling smile as she sat up on one of her elbows and looked at Korra. "I'd rather stay here too, but we don't have a choice." Asami argued. "What if I give you a little goodbye present before we start the day?" Asami offered.

Korra continued to frown as she answered. "A present isn't going to make the day any easier." she fought. That, and Korra had never been one for material possession, if Asami was handing her yet another tangible gift then Korra’s guilt would only grow.

Asami playfully rolled her eyes. "You don't even know what it is yet. How do you know if it'll help or not?" she questioned.

"Because either way we still have to leave." Korra sighed.

"True, but this will make you feel better until we come back." Asami tried again.

Korra wasn't impressed. Whatever gift Asami wanted to give simply wouldn't be enough to change how she felt about going out. She knew it was needy, and probably a little clingy. She also didn't care, her feelings for Asami ran deep into her core. She couldn't help just craving a little more time to sit here with the person she loved before she had to get back to the real world. But if Asami was insisting she accept this supposed treat because it would make the day easier, then Korra was curious enough to find out what it was.

"Alright. What is it?" she asked.

"Close your eyes." Asami requested.

"Okay?" Korra did as she was told before she felt Asami's weight shift on the bed.

The heiress raised herself up until her face was closer to Korra's. She could feel Asami's breath tickling her skin. Before she could even process what was about to happen, the princess's smooth lips found Korra's own chapped ones. The kiss was short, simple, and yet it was enough to leave Korra with a large grin on her face. Another small thing that Korra had noticed was that Asami had apparently woken up to brush her teeth and then climbed back into bed because her breath smelled perfectly of mint. Korra decided not to comment on it for now, but the fact that Asami was scared that morning breath would scare her away was an adorable thought.

Asami pulled back and slowly climbed out of bed with a matching smile on her own face.

Korra couldn't help but follow the heiress's every moment with her eyes. The woman could put her in a trance with a single look. "I stand corrected." Korra admitted.

"I thought that might be the case." Asami chuckled. "You ready to start the day now?" she asked.

"Yeah, I think I'll make it." Korra said playfully.

"If I leave and get ready to head to the study, can I trust that you aren't going to go back to sleep as soon as I leave the room?" Asami accused.

Korra gave a small laugh. "Yeah, I'll get ready and then head to the soldiers quarters to send Mako and Bolin your way. Then I'll be heading for the village center." Korra explained as she began to stand up and do her series of morning stretches.

"Alright. I'll see you later then?" Asami quizzed.

Korra smiled, knowing that she would in fact be seeing the princess later. "Yeah, somebody had to be here to drag you out of that office of yours." Korra teased.

Asami rolled her eyes but gave no argument, knowing she didn't have one. "Bye Korra." she said with a small wave as she opened the door to leave

Korra returned the gesture. "Bye 'Sami." she replied before she set to work getting dressed.

She ended up her usual blue cotton shirt and some brown pants. She slipped on her leather boots and the sheath for her sword before sliding the blade inside. She tied her hair up in its usual wolf tails and headed for the door. She didn't know if she was supposed to dress up or bring something as a peace offering, but she had decided on doing neither. This new baron would just have to accept her as she was because she had no intentions of changing for his sake.

With one last look to make sure she had grabbed everything she needed, she closed the door behind her to make her way to the soldiers quarters. She was desperately hoping that even though she hadn't hung out with the boys much as of late they would still be willing to help do this for her. Realistically when it boiled down to protecting the last blood relative heir to the throne, they couldn't exactly say no. She hastily made her way up the stairs and to the boys room. They came to greet her after a single knock.

"Korra? Everything okay?" Bolin asked as he let her inside.

She really did have a habit of coming over here just to deliver bad news and devastating messages. She didn't want the boys to think she only kept them around to help her every need. She needed to make sure the next time she showed up it was for something good. "Yes and no," she admitted. "There was a bit of an issue at the lantern festival last night. The villagers attacked Asami. I have a feeling that they won't stop there. There's probably riots outside the gates as we speak. To make a long story short, I need to go see what this new baron is about. Could you just stay by Asami until I get back? I know there's soldiers outside, but if anyone breaks through, I'm scared she'll be too engrossed in her work to notice somebody made it inside. You two are the only people I trust to keep her safe right now." Korra confessed.

"We've got it." Mako declared for both brothers.

"We can walk you out of the gates, and then we'll go find her." Bolin offered.

Korra sighed in relief. "You two are the best." she praised. "I promise I'll make it up to you, I just need to get all this Amon business figured out." she added.

"Don't sweat it, we understand. We'll make sure to keep her safe while you're gone." Mako reassured her.

"You can count on us!" Bolin added as he threw an arm around her.

"Thank you boys. As much as I'd love to stay and chat, I don't wanna be late for this initiation." Korra stated as she made her way toward the door.

Together they all walked down the halls and out the door to the front gates. Korra's assumptions had been proven correct as they turned the corner. A mob of angry mages and anti-equalists were gathered outside the gates with daggers and pitchforks ready to strike. Guards stood behind the gate, swords ready, just in case they needed to push back.

"Shit. This is exactly what I was afraid of." Korra grumbled.

"It's alright, I'm sure this is all just a big misunderstanding. Maybe if we explained that Asami wasn't the enemy they'd understand and leave." Bolin offered.

"Not everyone is as open minded as us Bo. They aren't going to believe a word without evidence. Maybe now's a good time to make an Avatar appearance. My word may just hold enough power to hold them off for now." Korra suggested. "Bo, will you go grab Naga and bring her up while I talk to the people?" she requested.

"You got it." Bolin replied with a salute before taking off to the stables.

"Why does Bo have to go get Naga? I can do it." Mako offered.

"Naga doesn't like you as much, she probably wouldn't have listened to you." Korra explained.

"She likes me. She let me ride with you when we went to save Bo." Mako argued.

"That was an emergency, trust me she was annoyed with you the whole time." Korra fought as she started to lead them toward the gates.

"Whatever. I think we've got bigger problems to solve right now." Mako replied.

"This should be easy. A little Avatar magic and I'll have these guys outta here in no time." Korra stated confidently. She walked up to the gates and made a small earth podium for her to stand on, raising her above the crowd. The angry yells and comments quieted down as they all saw her rise.

She didn't exactly know what to say, she was just hoping that it would come naturally. However, now that she was standing here, she wasn't at all sure of what the right words were. What would assure the villagers that Asami wasn't a threat, while also making sure they'd leave as soon as possible? She had to think of something, the stares and prolonged silence was making this more awkward than it needed to be.

"Hey everybody," she started off. The best place to start would be to acknowledge the problem. "I know you're all here because you're upset with Hiroshi Sato and his actions as King. What he did was devastating for all mages that live in this kingdom. However, targeting his daughter will only harm you further. She's not the enemy, she's on our side." Korra explained.

A young woman stepped forward to shout. "Says the traitor. You're the Avatar, you're supposed to protect us! Yet, you killed one of your own kind just last night! Now you expect us to trust your judgment?" she yelled in accusation.

"I was protecting the princess, the future queen. That is my job, just as much as being the Avatar. That man last night had every intent to kill, and I was not going to let him get the chance." Korra argued.

"And how do we know you're not just saying all this to protect that Equalist Kings little girl?" another villager spoke up.

"Because she's currently working to undo Hiroshi's work and set things right. She's devastated and hurt by this betrayal just as much as the rest of us." Korra fought.

"Well you certainly haven't been doing much to help. Hiroshi's currently running free because you failed to catch him, and Amon is still leading the fight. Who knows when he's going to attack again? You've failed us all time and time again! You can't possibly expect us to trust your word!" a man in the front yelled.

"I'm trying my best, I just need more time-" Korra started, but was inevitably cut off.

"We don't have more time! You need to do something now!" someone shouted.

Muffled grunts and quips of agreement rang through the crowd.

"Just give me a little longer-" Korra tried before she was shot down once more.

"We won't wait any longer. We're tired of your false promises to fix things. You're just as bad as the enemy at this rate! Maybe you're letting him get away on purpose!" someone accused.

"I'm not-" she called before angry arguments spread through the crowd like wildfire.

"Traitor!"

"Useless!"

"You're getting in the way!"

"Pathetic excuse of an Avatar!"

One after the other the blows kept coming. As if throwing words wasn't bad enough, daggers and rocks started being pelted at her full speed. She quickly hopped down from her pillar and ran back as the other soldiers began to try and push back the crowd. Bolin arrived back just in time to hand off Naga. Within a flash Korra was atop her steed and ready to make a run for the town center.

"Go out the side gate. Bo and I will help cover out here until you get out, then we'll head for Asami." Mako instructed.

With a firm nod Korra took off for the side gate. The guards that were stationed there opened them for her before quickly shutting them back. Naga was bolting for the path, once they were far enough that she couldn't hear the crowds protests and irate retorts she began to try and calm her racing heart.

Of all the reactions she had expected, the paths that she expected that speech to take, being the enemy had not been one she planned for. Is that really how the whole village saw her? Worthless and weak? Neglectful? A traitor?

Those had never been her intentions. She'd been working day and night with Tarrlok to fight the small groups of Equalist goons that were popping up all over town, that was until Tarrlok had denounced Lin. Up until the attack on the arena she thought she had been doing a spectacular job at quelling the riots and minimizing the damage. But maybe she hadn't been doing enough.

She was the Avatar after all, she was supposed to be powerful and mighty. The villagers had a good point. She had let both Amon and Hiroshi get away. She had failed them time and time again. How could she expect them to believe that she was going to make this right when she had broken every promise up until now? She was insane to ever think her words carried any weight to the people. Not when she was absolutely neglecting and failing them like this.

Her mind was in a whole other place as her body moved on its own to lead Naga towards Air Temple island. She needed to find a way to fix this. Going to have a word with the new baron would hopefully be the right start. Sitting here and brooding over her failures wouldn't change anything, she couldn't give up yet. There was still a chance to fix everything, starting with today.

As she arrived at the island the air mage kids were quick to greet her. Just like always they tackled her into an embrace that never failed to make her feel better about herself. At least someone was happy to see her, despite all her mistakes.

"As much as I'd like to stay and play with you guys, I really need to talk to your father. Do you know where he's at?" she asked.

"He's in his study." Jinora replied. "Come on, we can take you to him." she added.

They all made their way over to Teniz with Jinora leading them, Ikkin tugging her forward by the hand, and Meelo riding on her shoulders and pretending to give orders.

Jinora knocked and pushed open the door. "Korra's here to see you." she announced.

"Korra, it's good to see you." Tenzin stood up to greet her. "You three go play elsewhere for now. Korra and I need to talk." he instructed.

With a few whines and pouts the three mages did as they were told and left the room.

"I wanted to ask if you'd go with me to see the new chief get initiated." Korra started. "I don't think it's safe for me to go by myself." she added.

"I see. I'll attend the event with you. As much as I hate seeing anyone but Lin take that position, I understand why you're going. It's probably best to get on this new baron's good side as soon as possible." Tenzin stated.

"I hope so, I don't think I can afford to make any more mistakes." Korra sighed.

"Is something the matter?" the air master pried.

"No, it's nothing." Korra shook off her spiraling thoughts and set her focus on what needed to be done. "We need to leave as soon as possible to make sure we get there in enough time. It'll look bad if we show up late." she added.

"Alright. Give me a few minutes to sort some things out and get ready. I'll meet you by the air bison stables." Tenzin instructed as he set off to get prepared.

Korra followed the path down until she reached the bison stables. Before she went inside, she stopped in front of a small statue. There was a miniature stone statue of Appa, Aang's animal companion. As she stared at the memorial she couldn't help but let her mind wander again. Did Aang also have this problem? Everyone hated her, she just couldn't seem to get it right. It felt like everything she did was wrong, one giant mistake after another. Every move, every plan, every action had only crashed and burned. The people had completely lost hope in her, and she couldn't even say she blamed them. She didn't even trust herself to be able to fix the Equalist problem anymore. She was still trying, she hadn't given up all hope yet. But when would that fall apart too?

"Korra." Tenzin walked up behind her and looked at the memorial with her. "Are you ready to go?" he asked.

She couldn't help but feel the strange pull of sadness that led her to the grave in the first place. Like she had known the creature personally, and technically in her last life she had. Her heart felt a twinge of grief as she looked at the urn full of Appa's ashes. She knelt down and picked up a piece of incense. She then used a touch of fire magic to light it. As the smoke began to swirl through the air she sat it down on the small tray and stood back up. Her heart felt a tad lighter as she paid her respects. "Yeah, let's go." she declared, turning to Tenzin.

The air master led them inside and began to saddle up Oogie to prepare for their departure. She climbed up his tail, she still hadn't made any progress on her air magic, despite how much she practiced. She couldn't just lift herself into the saddle like everyone else could, like Aang could. The more she thought about it, she and Aang couldn't be more different.

Everyone loved her predecessor. Nobody ever questioned his judgment or had reason to believe that he would continuously let them down. As the world's Avatar, she needed to be more reliable and fulfill her promises to everyone. She had to admit that she had been slacking these last couple of days while she took care of Asami. She was currently working to make up for it though, it all started with meeting this new chief.

As they flew over the various homes and shops that covered the city Korra couldn't help but notice how small everyone looked from up here. Each one of those people had their own lives, troubles, thoughts and feelings. Each person, each life, looked so small from up above. Each person so delicate and tiny. And she was in charge of the safety of every single one of them. From here they may have looked small, but in reality when you added all the lives she was in charge of together in one place the weight of responsibility became far more evident and overwhelming. She was in charge of keeping balance in each and every life that laid below her. She could barely balance her own life. How had Aang ever managed such a feat?

She saw the crowd of villagers gathered together to watch the new baron's initiation. There were hundreds of people filling the streets, patiently waiting for the mystery officer's appearance. As they got closer, something strange caught her eye. Tarrlok of all people was standing on the stage. Although she had been working with him on his task force, he was a major pain in the ass. He was shallow and twisted, and there was this uncomfortable feeling in her gut that he wasn't exactly who he said he was, like he was hiding something.

She climbed down from Oogi and brushed herself off. She and Tenzin made themselves blend in with the crowd as the new officer stepped forward. An older, stubby, balding man stepped forward. "It was an honor serving under chief Beifong for so many years, and I wish her a speedy recovery. It is with great humility that I take her place as the new chief of police." he started.

The fact that this guy had trained under Lin gave her hope that he wouldn't be too difficult to work with.

“Republic city is facing a threat like none the world has ever seen. But there is one man who has been effective against Amon’s revolution: Councilman Tarllok. That is why for all matters involving the Equalists, I will report directly to him.” Saikhan announced.

Both Tenzin and Korra’s jaws dropped open in shock. This guy couldn’t possibly be serious. How did Tarrlok possibly manage to get this guy in his corner? It was absolutely mad. She hated the sickening smug look on Tarrlok's face as he saw Korra's reaction. She was ready to cause a scene. She turned to Tenzin to gauge his reaction over the situation, he looked just as displeased as she herself did.

“The police department will lend any and all available resources to the Councilman and his task force until we quell this insurgency.” Saikhan finished.

“What is that snake Tarrlok up to now?” Korra quipped as she stared down the councilman on the stage. Tenzin didn’t provide a response. He merely shook his head in disapproval at the entire situation that had begun to unfold. Nothing about this could possibly be good. At the end of the ceremony, they met Tarrlok on the stage.

“Tarrlok I don’t know what you did to get Chief Saikhan in your pocket, but I highly doubt it was legal.” Tenzin scoffed.

The shit eating grin that the councilman wore spoke for itself.”Oh Tenzin, always the conspiracy theorist. Did you ever consider Saikhan simply recognizes my talents and wants what's best for this city?” Tarrlok mused. Tenzin grumbled in response. “Well, Avatar Korra, long time, no see. Now that your little pro magic distractions are over, I look forward to your return to my task force.” Tarrlok said.

Korra merely scoffed in response. “Forget it. There’s no way I’m rejoining your vanity project.” Korra fought. The only reason Tarrlok had created the task force was to make himself look good by getting his heroic acts put into the papers.

“That is unfortunate to hear. But I’m sure you’ll come to your senses as you have in the past.” he responded.

“Don’t hold your breath, bub. You know Tenzin’s been right about you all along. You played me, you played Beifong, and now you’re playing the new chief too. Well I got news for you.” she walked up with a pointed finger in his face. “You need me, but I don’t need you. I’m the Avatar.” she retorted confidently.

“You’re not, in fact, the Avatar. You are merely a half-baked Avatar in training. Which reminds me, how is your air magic going? Made any significant progress with that?” Tarrlok said with a sly grin. Korra’s head dropped in defeat. Of course she hadn’t made any progress with it because no matter how hard she tried it simply wasn’t good enough, much like everything else she did these days. Her spiritual side simply refused to awaken, and it wasn’t for lack of trying. Sometimes when she was standing guard outside Asami’s room she would try to meditate there, but nothing happened. Same for air magic, it simply didn’t come to her. Her failure to master all four magics was always on her mind, and it was one of her most disheartening topics to think about. “I didn’t think so. If you will not be part of my task force, then you had best stay out of my way.” Tarrlok turned and left with that.

Korra continued to let her head hang low in shame. Why was this so difficult? Although Tarrlok had a point. Could she even go around boasting that she was the Avatar when she hadn’t even mastered all four magics? It didn’t matter how much time she had dedicated to being the Avatar and mastering all the other elements if in the end she couldn’t complete them all. It was like all her work amounted to nothing. It was the same situation as this morning. Her efforts had all gone to waste because she was continuously failing. It was an endless cycle of trying and failing. Maybe if she didn’t try at all, there was no chance for defeat. Perhaps that was the best option at this point. If she didn’t keep trying to solve everything then she wouldn’t keep letting everyone down. It seemed like a logical solution to her.

Tenzin placed a hand on her shoulder and led her back to Oogi to take them to the island. After a prolonged period of silence Tenzin finally spoke up from where he sat atop the sky bison steering him through the air. “What’s wrong?” he asked.

“I don’t understand what’s wrong with me. I’ve memorized nearly all of the practice forms. But I still can’t produce a single measly puff of air! I’m a failure.” she claimed as she shrank into herself.

“No you’re not. You just need to work through this air magic block.” Tenzin offered.

“Amazing advice. I’ll get right on that.” Korra retorted dryly.

“I wasn’t finished yet.” Tenzin replied. “You see, Aang not only had his magic teachers, but also his past lives to call upon for guidance. Have you ever made contact with your past lives?” he asked.

Contacted her past lives? Yeah right. She couldn’t even meditate properly. All of this air magic and spiritual training was a total waste. They would have more luck teaching a pig to fly. Add that to the list of failures that were continuously piling up. “No, of course I haven't. Didn’t you get the memo from the white lotus? I’m a spiritual failure too.” she bit back.

“You may have made a connection without realizing it. Perhaps something you mistook as a dream.” the air master offered.

“Maybe. I had a few weird hallucinations.” she admitted as she recalled the little snippets that had infiltrated her mind at the arena and in front of Amon. “But I hardly even remember them.” she added. They were more like hazy memories if anything. Like something whispering to her, but she couldn’t quite hear it.

Tenzin suddenly turned around. “And did you see any of the previous Avatars in these visions?” he pried.

‘I saw Aang. It seemed like he was in trouble. What do you think it means?” she quizzed.

“Hmm, I don’t know. But I urge you to meditate on these visions. I believe Aang’s spirit must be trying to tell you something.” he answered.

Korra was feeling more defeated than ever. The rest of the ride back to the island was in complete silence. Korra had no comments to give on the situation, not any that were helpful anyway. Her mind couldn’t help but keep finding its way to the dark thoughts that plagued her. She needed a place to think, somewhere she could be alone for a bit. When the bison finally landed, she hopped down without a second thought and ran. She didn’t exactly know where she was going. Somewhere far, quiet, and empty. She picked a path and started running without a second thought. She climbed over a fence and headed up to the mountain’s edge, moving the earth to meet her feet as she lept and weaved up the rock. Despite the ache in her hands from climbing and the sweat that covered her, she had made it to the edge. She sat down with her legs dangling just off the edge as she stared at the open world around her. The world that she was supposed to be balancing. This was what she had been raised to do after all. To be a fighter, a weapon, and shield for everyone else. But what happened when the weapon broke down, or the shield broke? No matter how much effort she put in, nothing ever turned out how it was supposed to. The people were angry, and rightfully so. What had she even done for them besides get in the way?

They all hated her, that was a fact. Not a single soul in that village would care if she disappeared right now, in fact they might jump and rejoice knowing that she wouldn’t burden them any longer. Everything was in shambles, and it was all her fault. If she could learn air magic, if she could open up her spiritual side, if she could defeat Amon, if she had caught Hiroshi, and if she wasn’t so worthless and pathetic , then maybe, just maybe, she could be worthy of her title. But as it stood, she didn’t deserve it. It was absolutely disgraceful for her to go around claiming it.

She wasn’t the Avatar, she couldn’t be. The Avatar was an all powerful being. A strong spirit of light that infused itself into her core, that gave her infinite power to bend the world to her will. That wasn’t her. She was an eighteen year old girl who was abandoned by her parents, hated by the very people she fought to save, and a failure to the world. She wasn’t powerful or strong. If she was then Hiroshi would be behind bars, Amon would no longer be in charge, and she wouldn’t be considered a traitor to the world. No matter how hard she fought or how desperately she desired to fix things, she couldn’t. She would let everyone down every single time. Where had everything gone wrong?

The answer was quite simple really. Raava had made a mistake. Korra was’t the Avatar, she was an imposter. She simply couldn’t be the almighty being that everyone praised. The Avatar was a hero, a peacebringer, and stoic figure for the world to admire. Korra wasn’t, and never would be, those things. Not in this lifetime at least.

She was wracked with guilt as she stared out into the beyond. She was letting everyone down. All of this was her fault, it all boiled down to her not being good enough. She had nobody to blame but herself. She needed to try harder, to be better, to take action.

She just needed to find a way to do more, to be more than she already was.

But Korra wasn’t a genius either. She didn’t know how to be anyone else, she didn’t even know how to be herself.

She mentally added another tally to the list of failures.

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Asami's head was starting to throb just looking at the stack of letters and papers that now littered her desk. Every square inch of the flat wooden surface was covered in towers of requests, blueprints, order forms, payment histories, notices for people quitting, and letters detailing why she shouldn't be allowed to take over the company. She hadn't even sorted through the mountains of paperwork that related to the throne. Surely there were people that were requesting supplies, making reports, requesting aid, and begging her not to take the throne because she didn't deserve it. She didn't even want to think about the other kingdom's that were probably ending their alliances with her right now.

She sat in her chair with her head in her hands. This was all one giant disaster. It felt like she was being punished for something she didn't even have control over. She didn't ask to be put in charge of the company so soon, she didn't want to be taking over the throne at the same time, and she certainly didn't want her father involved with terrorists. However, none of that was her choice. What she wanted, the outcome she desired, simply didn't matter. No matter how hard she wished for something the universe would laugh at her for even trying in the first place.

She didn't understand, that's what really bothered her. As much as the betrayal, the association with the enemy, and the many attempts on Korra's life were painful to accept, what really irked Asami was that she didn't know how things got to that point. She desperately wanted to understand, she was stockpiled with burning questions that she felt she absolutely deserved an answer to. If she was going to have to pick up all these responsibilities that her father so kindly shoved onto her, she deserved to know what had driven him to the point of no return in the first place. What had turned him from her supportive, caring father, to the monster that was currently on the run from the police?

She desperately wanted to know how a man like Hiroshi could fall like that. From what she could remember before the incident with her mother, Hiroshi had always been a doting, kind, and loving man. He was constantly finding ways to make her and Yasuko smile with flowers, gifts, and improv dances when music rang through the halls. No matter how busy he was, he'd always find time to remind them how much they were loved.

Then the world might as well have flipped on its axis after her mother passed. There were no more flowers or random dance parties. Hiroshi was constantly burrowed in his office, never coming out unless he absolutely had to. Any time he spent with her was out of necessity for the kingdom's future, and not because he wanted to see her. It was as if a completely different man had worn Hiroshi's skin and called himself her father. But he certainly didn't act like it. It was like they were on two completely different planets, sometimes crossing each other's path for only a moment before going back their separate ways. She had always called him father, biologically he was the man she shared DNA with. But was he really her dad anymore? Could she really say that this man, the monster that had betrayed her, the guy that left the maids to raise her, the king that buried himself is his office with whiskey and work, the man who had never truly treated her like more than a business partner since she was six, should hold the title of father? No. She couldn't. She didn't know why she had for this long. It had taken her 13 years, but she finally discovered the truth. Her father had never been one at all, he was nothing more than a human she shared some genetic information with. That was all he was and ever would be from here on out.

Because if his daughter, his only child, the little girl he was supposed to protect and hold and cherish, wasn't worth fighting for, why should she ever fight to keep him in her life? She was done trying to make space for herself in his life, never again would she try to force him to show her just an ounce of love. Not when she wasn't enough for him now, and she never would be in his eyes. Maybe she'd never understand how it had all reached this point, and it would sit as a mystery in the back of her mind itching to be solved for years to come, but she would never truly know the answer. Was it really the case that losing your lover could send someone spiraling to such insanity? It couldn't be, could it? She tried to think, really put herself in Hiroshi's shoes. If she lost Korra today to a terrible accident or tragedy, Asami would be divested for sure. She knew she was head over heels in love with her knight, and losing the one person that outshone everyone else, the one person that brought a light to her life would ruin her. She was able to admit that. But she truly couldn't see it being enough to help spread terror and bloodshed across her own kingdom. Especially when she knew Korra wouldn't want that. She'd say she wanted Asami to be happy and to go on living her life to the fullest or something cheesy like that. Asami simply just couldn't see herself wanting to end an entire group of people for the sole purpose of avenging her lover. It was a mystery she didn't think she'd ever uncover.

She finally picked her head up to stare at the towers of various papers. She didn't even know where to start. The amount of parchment that surrounded her was enough to make it feel like she was trapped. In a way, she was. There was no escaping this threat of responsibility and work that could crush her. Already exhausted, she grabbed the first paper she could reach. It was a request for more supplies in the workshop, they required more metals and tools to work with. It would be a simple request, if she knew where she was supposed to import the supposed tools and metals from. But she didn't. She didn't know a damned thing about how to handle this part of the company. She had been handed paperwork that dealt with the money and sales, papers that told her what supplies were needed for specific inventions, and she was a genius inventor. That was as far as her experience ran. Nobody had ever taught her the intricate ins and outs of how to run everything. Was she really fit for this position? It was a spot she had been told she needed to prepare to take over for years now, and yet now that the time was finally here, she really didn't know if she was the right fit. But did she really have any other choice? She could sell this part of the company off, hand it over to someone more experienced than she was. Part of her simply just couldn't, for various different reasons. Number one among them was because she wanted to prove all of the people wrong. There were many people that doubted her skills and abilities to take over, she herself was chief among them, but she desperately wanted to prove everyone wrong. Something inside her was bubbling, urging her to stand up and fight. A voice reminding her that Asami Sato never gave up. Another reason was that she felt responsible for taking over the entirety of the company. It was her father's fault that all of this had happened, but if she had just caught it sooner, maybe, maybe she could have done something. And if she had said the right words, or maybe if she had done more to pull him from his office, then maybe they would have never ended up like this. Maybe her father wouldn't be on the run. Maybe she wouldn't be forced to take charge of everything all at once. And maybe there wouldn't be hundreds of people without jobs. That was the real problem. Asami couldn't bring herself to let the innocent workers, the ones who didn't have a clue what they were involved in, be unemployed because of her father's mistakes. It simply didn't feel right to make all of the hard workers leave because she wasn't ready, it wouldn't be fair to them. She had to stay in charge for herself, and for the people. In the end, she truly didn't have a choice. Like many of the problems in her life.

It went on like this for a few hours. Documents, letters, and delicately sealed envelopes for requests. She started sorting and making piles. There was a spot for all of the more technical pieces like sales and profit documents, letters begging her to step down that she planned on responding to, and the requests that she knew she could fulfill if she got just a tad of help from a more experienced person within the company. Speaking of, her father should have had an assistant. Maybe they would be able to help guide her through this disastrous storm. By the end she still had half a desk full of parchment to sort through, but she really didn't have the energy to keep pushing forward. Especially not when Korra should be back. Although, if she had come back already she normally would have opened the door to let Asami know she had arrived. It was possible she hadn't wanted to bother Asami, knowing the heiress had an unending list of things she needed to get done. Asami stepped out from her study and peeked her head out to find that Korra definitely wasn't here, but there were two brothers in her place.

"I forgot you two were taking over today. I'm sorry she made you stand out here and bore yourself for hours, I really would have been fine if you guys wanted to go do something more important." Asami laughed.

"It's no problem at all. We figured if Korra was asking us to guard you then there must be a good reason for it. This morning was proof that you probably should invest in some more security around here." Mako offered.

"Yeah, that was a mess. But, Korra was able to get out without a scratch. A win is a win." Bolin cheered.

"Wait. What happened this morning?" she pried. She really had been lost in her own thoughts while inside that office. She had forgotten both the brothers were going to be taking over, she probably should have checked in with them earlier.

"After Korra came to get us we were walking her to the front of the palace. There was a huge crowd gathered outside. They were all trying to storm the gates, waiting with weapons and stones. Korra decided to try and stand up to them, but it was pointless. She was trying to defend you, but in the end it just led to her getting ambushed with whatever the crowd could get their hands on." Mako explained. "She was able to make it out through one of the side gates though," he added.

"And she's still not back?" Asami asked.

Bolin shook his head. "We haven't seen her. She should have been back by now, the initiation ended a while ago. Where could she have gone?" Bolin stopped to try and think.

"She left with Tenzin right?" Mako spoke up.

"As far as I know. She said she would take him as extra security while she was in the village." she confirmed.

"Do you think she's still on the island?" Mako suggested.

It was their best shot. "We can try there first, even if she's not there. Tenzin might know where she is." she said.

"Then to Air Temple Island it is." Mako led the charge.

"Quick question. How are we supposed to get around all those people that want the princess dead?" Bolin spoke up before turning to her. "No offense, we think you're great." he recovered.

"None taken. You make a good point." Asami replied. They could probably make it out the side gate, but once she got out, if they saw her then it would be a free for all on who could get to her first. Although, it didn't seem like they really had any other option at the moment.

"We'll sneak through the side gate, Air Temple Island isn't a very far walk we should be covered for most of the path too." Mako offered.

"Seems like our only option. I wish we had a better way to sneak across, but it'll have to be what it is." Asami sighed.

Bolin stopped. "Wait! What if we wear disguises?" he cheered.

Both she and Mako gave him a look and shook their heads. That wasn't happening, for starters it would mean they had to make an even longer trip to go get the supplies for a faux look. It also wouldn't matter, once someone got close enough to see who she was a disguise simply wouldn't hide anything. Although she could go grab Korra's cloack from her room, but they probably shouldn't waste time with it. If Korra really wasn't at the island, then they needed more time to search before nightfall. They continued marching forward and left through one of the doors on the side of the palace before sneaking over to the gate nearby. The guards let them through without a word. Asami could hear the yells and irate retorts of the crowd. She couldn't make out precisely what they were saying, but she knew it couldn't possibly be anything positive. Instead of focusing on that, the trio snuck their way over to the tree like that would take them down the path to Air Temple Island.

Despite the angry riot outside her home, the day was actually quite peaceful. The light shining through the leaves of the trees painted the dirt path is a beautiful light. It was relatively quiet beside the muffled voices that slowly grew more quiet as they made their way further down the path. Every once in a while they'd hear a bird or rustle in the leaves that would startle them, but in the end their trip was safe and short.

They walked over to one of the row boats and piled in. Bolin, waiting to show off his strength, was the one to row them across. He and Korra were much more alike than Asami thought. The more time she spent around the boys she could see why the three of them got along so well. It was strange not to have the kids buzzing around them like they normally did. They walked up to the house to find Pema in the kitchen.

"I was wondering if you three would show up." she smiled at the trio.

"Does that mean she's here?" Asami asked.

Pema nodded. "She's on the island somewhere, but we don't know where she disappeared to. Tenzin said she ran off without a word as soon as soon as they got back." she explained.

That seemed strange. Korra typically tended to hide when she had a lot on her mind, but she had seemed fine yesterday. What all had happened this morning? If the crowd truly was upset with Asami, then Korra shouldn't be internalizing it.

"So she's here, but nobody knows where? How do you guys know she's still here then?" Mako asked.

"The kids were playing with Naga earlier. I highly doubt Korra left without her." Pema offered.

The trio nodded their agreement. "Alright, what's the plan then?" Bolin asked to the group.

"Split up until one of us finds her?" Mako suggested.

"It's probably best if at least one of us gets to her. If we don't find her in an hour we can meet back up here and look together." Asami instructed.

With a nod, everyone split off to tackle a section of the island. Asami went for the hidden rocky area she had found Korra at last time. It seemed like a good place to start. She looked around as she walked down the route, just in case Korra was hiding somewhere else. When she reached the rocks it was clear Korra wasn't there, which meant she was truly secluding herself somewhere unknown.

Asami's next stop was the pagoda she had found Korra on top of one time, but she had no luck there either. Korra never seemed to hide in the same spot, not after Asami discovered her secret places. She walked around the training grounds, the shore line, the air bison stables. Korra was nowhere to be found. Asami was almost ready to throw in the towel and wait for the boys at the house before she saw three tiny airbenders. All three of them were leaned up against a fence post that separated them from the more mountainous part of the island.

She had a feeling her question wouldn't produce a helpful answer, but she was out of options.

"What are you three up to?" Asami asked them as she went to lean against the post with them.

"Asami! When did you get here?" Jinora broke away and came over to give the heiress a hug.

"Just a little bit ago, I came to look for-" she was interrupted.

"Look she's moving!" Meelo pointed to the top of the mountain.

"What are you talking about?" Asami questioned as she tried to pinpoint what exactly the little air mage boy was pointing at.

"Look Korra's moving! Are you here to save her?" Ikki turned and asked.

"Wait. Korra's up there?" Asami said in shock as she turned to focus harder on the mountain. Sure enough, there was a small blue blob high above near the mountain's edge. Korra looked like she was pacing as she moved back and forth across the ledge.

"We can't go up there, it's a restricted part of the island. Only the adults are allowed past the fence line." Jinora spoke up. "She's been up there for a while now." she added.

"Will you three go find Mako and Bolin? Let them know where Korra is, and tell them that I'm going up there to get her." Asami instructed. The air mages dutifully did as they were told, racing off to find the brothers.

Asami didn't waste another second, she was over the fence and climbing her way up the jagged path. It was extraneous, and Asami had to remind herself multiple times not to turn around. Many times her foot stepped on an unstable rock and her foot would slip, other parts of the path were so steep they were practically vertical. Despite the exhaustion, her sore legs, and the way her hands were cut in certain areas from having to grab on to nearby ledges and pull herself up, she finally made it to the top. She began cutting through the line trees that stood in her way. She didn't precisely know where she was going, but she wasn't climbing back down until Korra was right there beside her. She finally made it to an opening and pushed past the branches that blocked her path to reveal her knight sitting down with her arms encapsulating her legs that were scrunched to her chest and her head resting atop them. She didn't even seem to notice Asami's presence.

She quietly sat down beside the southerner without a word. It took Korra a couple minutes but she finally turned her head to look at Asami.

The shock was evident, apparently she hadn't expected company. "What are you doing here?" Korra asked with surprise.

"I was looking for you. You've got quite the hiding spots you know. I think this one was the most complicated yet." Asami joked.

The dame turned back to look over the cliff's edge. "Yeah, I was just thinking." Korra stated plainly.

"You've been up here for a while, what's on your mind?" Asami pried. Korra shrugged, but kept quiet. "Korra, you've been hiding away up here for hours now. And don't tell me there's just a lot on your mind." she pushed.

Again, Korra initially didn't seem to have a response. After a moment she let out a sigh that was tinged with exhaustion and concession. "My whole life I've been told I was training to be the Avatar. I had no idea what that title meant, or what kind of weight that it held. I thought I was prepared, I thought I'd get through air magic training and go on saving people and bringing balance just like I was meant to do. I was so confident that I knew what I was doing. Every enemy I've ever fought before was effortless, ever since I was little I could defeat the staff at the academy within minutes. I thought this would be just like that. I love being the Avatar…" Korra started.

"But?" Asami chimed in.

"But now, I don't know if I'm even worthy of it." Korra admitted quietly.

"What? That's ridiculous, of course you're worthy of it. Raava chose you for a reason." Asami argued.

"Maybe she made a mistake. It would explain why I keep making thousands of them. No matter what I do, I do it wrong. Everyone hates me because I keep messing up. They've completely lost faith in me, and I can't even blame them for it. I don't even believe in myself anymore either." Korra scolded herself.

Why was Korra suddenly so upset with herself? It was like she had done a complete 180 from this morning. She had woken up not wanting to leave, but she seemed otherwise happy. Especially after Asami had left her with a kiss before disappearing to get ready. What could have caused such a change? And that's when it hit her. "Is this about what happened this morning? Korra, if this is because people are upset with me, that's not your fault." Asami tried to press.

Korra shook her head as her hands balled into fists. "They aren't as upset with you, not in the way they're upset with me. I've failed them, let them down countless times since I decided to step in. I just can't get anything right!" she growled as she buried her face in her arms.

Asami laid a hand on her shoulder. "You're doing your best-" she started before she was cut off.

"Well maybe that's not good enough. I need to do better than my best. I need to stop making mistakes, and start producing some kind of results." Korra argued.

Asami was slightly taken aback by the cold tone. Korra couldn't really believe what she was saying. Or maybe she did. She, like the rest of the world, didn’t see herself as human. Despite what Korra herself believed, she was still part human. Oftentimes she seemed to fail to remember that small detail. She was putting a heap of pressure on herself by believing that she couldn't afford to make mistakes. It was impossible, everyone made mistakes, everyone failed sometimes.

"They said I was worthless. An ally to the enemy. More of a problem than a solution. And I can't help but think that maybe they're right. What progress, or positive change have I made since I left the Academy? None. I've been out for months claiming I was going to save the city, and I have nothing to show for it!" she yelled. "They called me a traitor. A pathetic excuse for an Avatar. And they were right. I mean look at Aang and everything he accomplished. He practically helped to build this land, he saved the world, he stopped a 100 year war. Then there's me. The girl who can't even stop one lousy leader. It's not fair to the people, and they have every right to be upset." she added.

Asami for her part was seething. Angry, because how dare the world make Korra feel like she wasn't enough? How dare they demand she solve everything in the blink of an eye? And how dare they accuse her of not caring enough when Asami had watched with her own eyes how often this very issue ate away at Korra. It simply wasn't fair. If she saw those people when they went back to the palace they should be finalizing their last wishes because they would not exist another day if she had any say about it.

"They're wrong. You have to know that they're wrong." Asami finally spit out. Korra clearly hadn't expected the anger that laced her voice. "I've seen how much this means to you, how badly you want to fix everything. You can't please everyone, and you certainly can't expect yourself to never fail. Everyone makes mistakes Korra. No human, or spirit, or ethereal entity doesn't mess up every now and then. You just have to keep trying until you get it right. Aang wasn't the perfect Avatar the first day, or even the first year of his life. He made mistakes too. You can't keep comparing yourself to him. That's not fair to yourself." Asami unleashed all the thoughts that were swirling around inside her head.

From behind Asami heard a rustle in the trees and two familiar faces appearing to let her know that the Airbender kids had passed on the message.

"But how am I supposed to save the city when I can't even learn air magic? I'm the worst Avatar ever!" she yelled. She visibly shrink into herself before she added on. "I just feel alone." she admitted quietly.

"That's nonsense." Asami cut through the dark cloud of sorrows that Korra presently held herself in. "You're amazing. I've seen how powerful you are, even without air magic. You just need to give yourself some time. And we'll all be right there to fight beside you. You're far from alone Korra." Asami smiled.

"You have to remember, Aang hadn't even mastered all the elements when he was battling the fire nation. He was just a kid." Mako spoke up from behind.

"Yeah and he wasn't alone. He had his friends to help him. The arena might be shut down, but we're still a team." Bolin chimed in. "The new team Avatar!" Bolin cheered.

"We've got your back Korra. And we can save the village, together." Mako encouraged.

She turned to the knight. "So what do you say? You still have some fight left in you?" Asami asked.

"Yeah. Let's do it." Korra announced confidently.

They all huddled together on the mountain watching as the sun set low beyond the horizon.

"Where do we even start?" Korra asked.

"It's probably best if we start searching in the city. We can take down some of the smaller groups and try to get more information that way." Mako suggested.

"Sounds sane enough. We should be able to find a few Equalists that aren't entirely loyal to the cause." Asami offered.

"We start tonight. The sooner we get this over with, the better." Korra said the last part as she met Asami's gaze. Like it was a personal matter. She wasn't going to question it. Whatever reason Korra had to pick herself up and keep going was good enough for Asami. As long as the knight didn't give up, everyone was happy.

Even better, this was a solid first step in ending the riots that plagued the village. The sooner everything settled down, the easier Asami would be able to breathe. Having a moment to focus on something other than her father or the Equalists would be quite the relief. She couldn't wait for the day that this was all over, and she could just spend time with the woman who had stolen her heart so casually. Korra gently took Asami's hand as they walked toward the rowboats.

It was time to get a move on with everything, it was time to stop moping over the betrayal of her father and the doubts that plagued her. It was time to fight, to push forward for a better future.

A future with Korra standing right beside her, just like this, holding her hand forever and never letting go.