storypaint (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
storypaint) wrote2015-02-10 12:15 pm
storypaint) wrote2015-02-10 12:15 pm
[Legend of Korra] where the fruit is (Asami/Korra)
Title: where the fruit is
Fandom: Legend of Korra
Length: 2001 words
Prompt:![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
shipswap 2013 for Themistoklis.
Pairing: Asami/Korra
Other: Also at AO3. This fic is set directly post S1 and is not canon compliant past that point.
Summary/Excerpt: Korra needs to learn to be vulnerable. Asami can help. Asami drove like she had a grudge against the world. Korra loved it. She hadn't at first, but she was used to it by now. The rush of the air through her hair made her feel more alive. And Asami always sparkled when she took the curves hard. Korra could hardly take her eyes off her. So the drive was pretty short.
When we hit our lowest point, we are open to the greatest change, Aang had told Korra. It was on this theme that she meditated, for a long time after they returned from the South Pole, as things slowly returned to normal. It was in her vulnerability that Korra had found strength, and no matter how she thought about it, the idea still scared her to death. She had been weak because there was no other alternative; she had nothing else she could do. She couldn't imagine choosing weakness, or seeing it as an opportunity to grow.
One morning she burst out with it. Asami was the only one still lingering over breakfast with her. Most days Asami didn't get the chance to come out to Air Temple Island at all, since she was so busy rebuilding her father's company. When she came, she stayed as long as possible, but she had risen to her feet, ready to start her day, when Korra grabbed her arm.
"How do you get past being scared?" she said, without any context, and Asami re-seated herself at the table, smoothing down her skirt. She looked at Korra for a long moment. Korra tried not to squirm.
"Do you trust me?" Asami asked, and although Korra's first instinct was to laugh and make a joke about the question, she stopped mid-smile as she saw the way Asami was looking at her, with utter seriousness, her brows a bit furrowed with uncertainty.
Korra didn't know why Asami would ever think that she didn't trust her. Yeah, there was that time when they were first getting to know each other, and Korra thought that maybe Asami was in league with her father's plans. But all of those doubts had long vanished. Asami was as important to her life as Tenzin was, or her parents, or Mako and Bolin. No matter what, Asami had stuck by her, even when it hurt her to do so.
"Of course I do," Korra said.
Asami bit her lip and then said, "Okay. Come on."
She got to her feet again, and Korra followed her to the car. She was dying to ask what it was Asami had in mind, but maybe it would work better as a surprise, if she wasn't anticipating anything in particular.
Asami drove like she had a grudge against the world. Korra loved it. She hadn't at first, but she was used to it by now. The rush of the air through her hair made her feel more alive. And Asami always sparkled when she took the curves hard. Korra could hardly take her eyes off her. So the drive was pretty short.
She was surprised when they stopped in front of the Sato mansion. She knew Asami wasn't living there any longer. She had a little apartment near Sato Industries. But she couldn't sell the place, not until her father's trial was over. So Korra was surprised when Asami unlocked the door, and the place was still immaculate. It felt empty, though. Their footsteps echoed on the floor.
"What's here?" Korra finally burst out.
Asami smiled, but she didn't answer. She took Korra's hand and led her upstairs to her former bedroom. This was the only room that looked to have been disturbed since her father's arrest. There were a few bare rectangles on the wall from removed photographs, and a half-empty closet. Korra resisted the urge to poke around. Instead, she turned toward Asami expectantly. Asami ran her fingers across the top of her dresser, her face turned away from Korra's.
"It's weird being here," Asami murmured.
"I bet," Korra said. She felt pretty weird being here herself. Did Asami still have someone come in and clean the place? Is that why it wasn't dusty? Just knowing -- or at least, assuming -- that they were the only two here made it feel like a ghost's house. She half-expected to hear a tinny phone ringing from down the hall in Hiroshi's office.
"I thought it would be the best place. The most private," Asami said, turning to look at Korra. She seemed almost nervous, but she offered Korra a chair with the wave of her hand. Korra sat.
"You know that I had no idea what my dad was up to. Right?" Asami asked. She seated herself just out of Korra's reach on the very edge of her bed.
"Of course!" Korra answered, frowning with confusion. "What does that have to do with anything?"
"It's because I've never told anyone this," Asami said, her hands twisting in her lap. "He wanted me to be safe. Wanted me to be able to defend myself. So... he had someone teach me chi-blocking."
Korra flew up out of the chair as if on fire. Asami didn't shrink back. It was something that Korra liked about Asami, whenever she was thinking clearly, anyway. Asami knew that Korra could be really dangerous, but she trusted her. She wasn't scared. Whenever she'd followed Korra out to the cliffside and seen her bend all four elements for the first time, she'd been amazed, not horrified.
So amazed that she'd kissed Korra, in fact. They hadn't talked about it afterwards, not between themselves or with anyone. It was as if the act had never happened. Korra still couldn't quite figure out why Asami had done it. All she knew was that she enjoyed it more than she'd expected it. But now was definitely not the time to be thinking about that.
"Chi-blocking?" Korra clenched her fists at her side and paced back and forth in front of Asami. She wasn't angry at Asami, honestly, just surprised. She was more angry at Asami's father and what he intended his daughter to do with those chi-blocking abilities.
"Sit down, Korra," Asami said, and Korra didn't, but she at least stopped her pacing and looked at Asami.
Asami sighed. "Chi-blocking isn't just an Equalist thing, you know. The Kyoshi Warriors have been practicing it for quite some time. Since they don't take benders, it's a really good way to even a fight. My dad asked a former warrior to teach me."
Korra was quiet for a moment. "Why didn't you say anything?"
Asami tossed her hair, an irritated gesture. "Because you'd react like this?"
Embarrassed, Korara sank back down into the chair. "Yeah... sorry."
"It's okay," Asami said. "Anyway, I wasn't as good at it as Amon's goons were. They would have knocked me flat if I'd tried anything. But I can use it well enough to block a bender."
She looked at Korra. Korra blinked.
"You want to chi-block me?" Korra asked. She could hardly believe she was saying it.
"You wanted to know how to not be afraid," Asami said. "The secret is, you have to trust somebody. Usually yourself. But sometimes, someone else too. You have to trust them to help you."
Korra breathed in, breathed out. The house was silent. Asami waited.
"What do you want me to do?" Korra asked.
Asami got up off the bed. "Come sit down here. That'll be easiest. The kind of chi-blocking that I know is different than the kind the Equalists used. It paralyzes you for a little while."
Of course it did. That would be the only way to make this worse.
Korra got up and took the few steps to the bed. It seemed to take her forever to travel the small distance, and she was uncomfortable the moment she sat down. Asami loomed over her. Korra knew she wasn't trying, but she loomed anyway.
"Ready?" Asami asked, and before Korra could reply, her hands were on her. Korra could have blocked and her muscles were tense with holding herself back. Asami moved swiftly, and her touch was very light. A few strikes at her shoulder, and Korra's arm fell limp. She shut her eyes as Asami touched her, sliding back onto the bed. She wanted to move, she wanted to get up. There was nothing. She couldn't feel the earth, or fire, or water, or air. For a moment, her breath caught and she panicked. Then she let her air out slowly.
She could smell Asami's perfume. It was light and floral. She could tell that Asami was still leaning over her, making sure she was okay.
"You could do anything to me right now," Korra said, and then blushed furiously -- she could be glad that her blood was still flowing properly but mostly she was embarrassed and her cheeks were warm.
Asami giggled.
"You know what I mean," Korra said. She opened her eyes and managed a smile.
"Are you scared?" Asami said, looking down at her.
Korra wanted to shake her head, but she wasn't sure her neck would respond. She could still feel the gentle pressure of Asami's fingers on her body.
"Not really," Korra said.
"I could be dangerous," Asami said, a smile tugging at the side of her mouth as if she couldn't believe it herself.
"I know," Korra said. "Good thing the Equalists couldn't paralyze people with their chi-blocking. The revolution might have ended differently."
That did worry her more than a little. She'd have to train even harder to avoid being struck in a fight. She'd always hated that aspect of airbender philosophy. Korra liked to confront an opponent head on. She was getting better at the spinning gates, but she still thought it would be easier to blaze on through without a concern for the way that they were moving.
Then again, she'd never asked Asami about that kiss. They were silent together for a moment.
"It doesn't last very long," Asami said. "You should be able to move again."
Korra tested her fingers, but realized she couldn't see them to know whether or not they were moving. She craned her neck and shifted an elbow. Everything seemed to be in working order, although she felt a little stiff still, a little disconnected. But the air was there. She could feel its current, barely moving in the closed room. The other elements would respond to her, if she asked. Asami sat down next to her on the bed, and Korra slid into her weight a little. She lifted a hand behind Asami's back, wanting suddenly to tangle it in Asami's hair. Instead she sat up, pressing their shoulders together.
"That wasn't scary," she said, and then, before she could talk herself out of it, "but this is."
She leaned over and kissed Asami's cheek, and Asami turned her face so that their lips met. Asami's hand landed on Korra's, and she squeezed their hands together.
When their lips parted, Asami's gaze had that sparkle that Korra recognized from her driving -- a spark of happiness.
"I didn't bring you out here to seduce you," Asami said, but she smiled.
Korra shrugged. "I'm not very good at the spiritual stuff, what can I say?" Her lips were warm. This kiss had been just as nice as the first one. It was as if the gulf that had leapt between them in the intervening months had suddenly shrunk to nothing. It was as if that second kiss had directly followed the first. They did have a lot of catching up to do.
"You did help, though," Korra said. "Really. I was -- yeah, I was scared." She bit her lip, defensive elbow cocked out so that Asami couldn't come any closer. "You could have done anything. That could have been it for me."
"You know I wouldn't," Asami said. Her eyebrows are furrowed in concern. "Obviously."
"I know," Korra said, "but I gave you the chance."
"Maybe you should give me another one," Asami said. She smiled again.
"I think I will," Korra said. She leaned in again, and they forgot about the chi-blocking exercise entirely.
Korra would have to learn a different way to deal with feeling vulnerable, but she didn't really mind. She'd taken this chance, after all. Maybe that was how you learned.
There were certainly worse ways.
Fandom: Legend of Korra
Length: 2001 words
Prompt:
shipswap 2013 for Themistoklis.Pairing: Asami/Korra
Other: Also at AO3. This fic is set directly post S1 and is not canon compliant past that point.
Summary/Excerpt: Korra needs to learn to be vulnerable. Asami can help. Asami drove like she had a grudge against the world. Korra loved it. She hadn't at first, but she was used to it by now. The rush of the air through her hair made her feel more alive. And Asami always sparkled when she took the curves hard. Korra could hardly take her eyes off her. So the drive was pretty short.
When we hit our lowest point, we are open to the greatest change, Aang had told Korra. It was on this theme that she meditated, for a long time after they returned from the South Pole, as things slowly returned to normal. It was in her vulnerability that Korra had found strength, and no matter how she thought about it, the idea still scared her to death. She had been weak because there was no other alternative; she had nothing else she could do. She couldn't imagine choosing weakness, or seeing it as an opportunity to grow.
One morning she burst out with it. Asami was the only one still lingering over breakfast with her. Most days Asami didn't get the chance to come out to Air Temple Island at all, since she was so busy rebuilding her father's company. When she came, she stayed as long as possible, but she had risen to her feet, ready to start her day, when Korra grabbed her arm.
"How do you get past being scared?" she said, without any context, and Asami re-seated herself at the table, smoothing down her skirt. She looked at Korra for a long moment. Korra tried not to squirm.
"Do you trust me?" Asami asked, and although Korra's first instinct was to laugh and make a joke about the question, she stopped mid-smile as she saw the way Asami was looking at her, with utter seriousness, her brows a bit furrowed with uncertainty.
Korra didn't know why Asami would ever think that she didn't trust her. Yeah, there was that time when they were first getting to know each other, and Korra thought that maybe Asami was in league with her father's plans. But all of those doubts had long vanished. Asami was as important to her life as Tenzin was, or her parents, or Mako and Bolin. No matter what, Asami had stuck by her, even when it hurt her to do so.
"Of course I do," Korra said.
Asami bit her lip and then said, "Okay. Come on."
She got to her feet again, and Korra followed her to the car. She was dying to ask what it was Asami had in mind, but maybe it would work better as a surprise, if she wasn't anticipating anything in particular.
Asami drove like she had a grudge against the world. Korra loved it. She hadn't at first, but she was used to it by now. The rush of the air through her hair made her feel more alive. And Asami always sparkled when she took the curves hard. Korra could hardly take her eyes off her. So the drive was pretty short.
She was surprised when they stopped in front of the Sato mansion. She knew Asami wasn't living there any longer. She had a little apartment near Sato Industries. But she couldn't sell the place, not until her father's trial was over. So Korra was surprised when Asami unlocked the door, and the place was still immaculate. It felt empty, though. Their footsteps echoed on the floor.
"What's here?" Korra finally burst out.
Asami smiled, but she didn't answer. She took Korra's hand and led her upstairs to her former bedroom. This was the only room that looked to have been disturbed since her father's arrest. There were a few bare rectangles on the wall from removed photographs, and a half-empty closet. Korra resisted the urge to poke around. Instead, she turned toward Asami expectantly. Asami ran her fingers across the top of her dresser, her face turned away from Korra's.
"It's weird being here," Asami murmured.
"I bet," Korra said. She felt pretty weird being here herself. Did Asami still have someone come in and clean the place? Is that why it wasn't dusty? Just knowing -- or at least, assuming -- that they were the only two here made it feel like a ghost's house. She half-expected to hear a tinny phone ringing from down the hall in Hiroshi's office.
"I thought it would be the best place. The most private," Asami said, turning to look at Korra. She seemed almost nervous, but she offered Korra a chair with the wave of her hand. Korra sat.
"You know that I had no idea what my dad was up to. Right?" Asami asked. She seated herself just out of Korra's reach on the very edge of her bed.
"Of course!" Korra answered, frowning with confusion. "What does that have to do with anything?"
"It's because I've never told anyone this," Asami said, her hands twisting in her lap. "He wanted me to be safe. Wanted me to be able to defend myself. So... he had someone teach me chi-blocking."
Korra flew up out of the chair as if on fire. Asami didn't shrink back. It was something that Korra liked about Asami, whenever she was thinking clearly, anyway. Asami knew that Korra could be really dangerous, but she trusted her. She wasn't scared. Whenever she'd followed Korra out to the cliffside and seen her bend all four elements for the first time, she'd been amazed, not horrified.
So amazed that she'd kissed Korra, in fact. They hadn't talked about it afterwards, not between themselves or with anyone. It was as if the act had never happened. Korra still couldn't quite figure out why Asami had done it. All she knew was that she enjoyed it more than she'd expected it. But now was definitely not the time to be thinking about that.
"Chi-blocking?" Korra clenched her fists at her side and paced back and forth in front of Asami. She wasn't angry at Asami, honestly, just surprised. She was more angry at Asami's father and what he intended his daughter to do with those chi-blocking abilities.
"Sit down, Korra," Asami said, and Korra didn't, but she at least stopped her pacing and looked at Asami.
Asami sighed. "Chi-blocking isn't just an Equalist thing, you know. The Kyoshi Warriors have been practicing it for quite some time. Since they don't take benders, it's a really good way to even a fight. My dad asked a former warrior to teach me."
Korra was quiet for a moment. "Why didn't you say anything?"
Asami tossed her hair, an irritated gesture. "Because you'd react like this?"
Embarrassed, Korara sank back down into the chair. "Yeah... sorry."
"It's okay," Asami said. "Anyway, I wasn't as good at it as Amon's goons were. They would have knocked me flat if I'd tried anything. But I can use it well enough to block a bender."
She looked at Korra. Korra blinked.
"You want to chi-block me?" Korra asked. She could hardly believe she was saying it.
"You wanted to know how to not be afraid," Asami said. "The secret is, you have to trust somebody. Usually yourself. But sometimes, someone else too. You have to trust them to help you."
Korra breathed in, breathed out. The house was silent. Asami waited.
"What do you want me to do?" Korra asked.
Asami got up off the bed. "Come sit down here. That'll be easiest. The kind of chi-blocking that I know is different than the kind the Equalists used. It paralyzes you for a little while."
Of course it did. That would be the only way to make this worse.
Korra got up and took the few steps to the bed. It seemed to take her forever to travel the small distance, and she was uncomfortable the moment she sat down. Asami loomed over her. Korra knew she wasn't trying, but she loomed anyway.
"Ready?" Asami asked, and before Korra could reply, her hands were on her. Korra could have blocked and her muscles were tense with holding herself back. Asami moved swiftly, and her touch was very light. A few strikes at her shoulder, and Korra's arm fell limp. She shut her eyes as Asami touched her, sliding back onto the bed. She wanted to move, she wanted to get up. There was nothing. She couldn't feel the earth, or fire, or water, or air. For a moment, her breath caught and she panicked. Then she let her air out slowly.
She could smell Asami's perfume. It was light and floral. She could tell that Asami was still leaning over her, making sure she was okay.
"You could do anything to me right now," Korra said, and then blushed furiously -- she could be glad that her blood was still flowing properly but mostly she was embarrassed and her cheeks were warm.
Asami giggled.
"You know what I mean," Korra said. She opened her eyes and managed a smile.
"Are you scared?" Asami said, looking down at her.
Korra wanted to shake her head, but she wasn't sure her neck would respond. She could still feel the gentle pressure of Asami's fingers on her body.
"Not really," Korra said.
"I could be dangerous," Asami said, a smile tugging at the side of her mouth as if she couldn't believe it herself.
"I know," Korra said. "Good thing the Equalists couldn't paralyze people with their chi-blocking. The revolution might have ended differently."
That did worry her more than a little. She'd have to train even harder to avoid being struck in a fight. She'd always hated that aspect of airbender philosophy. Korra liked to confront an opponent head on. She was getting better at the spinning gates, but she still thought it would be easier to blaze on through without a concern for the way that they were moving.
Then again, she'd never asked Asami about that kiss. They were silent together for a moment.
"It doesn't last very long," Asami said. "You should be able to move again."
Korra tested her fingers, but realized she couldn't see them to know whether or not they were moving. She craned her neck and shifted an elbow. Everything seemed to be in working order, although she felt a little stiff still, a little disconnected. But the air was there. She could feel its current, barely moving in the closed room. The other elements would respond to her, if she asked. Asami sat down next to her on the bed, and Korra slid into her weight a little. She lifted a hand behind Asami's back, wanting suddenly to tangle it in Asami's hair. Instead she sat up, pressing their shoulders together.
"That wasn't scary," she said, and then, before she could talk herself out of it, "but this is."
She leaned over and kissed Asami's cheek, and Asami turned her face so that their lips met. Asami's hand landed on Korra's, and she squeezed their hands together.
When their lips parted, Asami's gaze had that sparkle that Korra recognized from her driving -- a spark of happiness.
"I didn't bring you out here to seduce you," Asami said, but she smiled.
Korra shrugged. "I'm not very good at the spiritual stuff, what can I say?" Her lips were warm. This kiss had been just as nice as the first one. It was as if the gulf that had leapt between them in the intervening months had suddenly shrunk to nothing. It was as if that second kiss had directly followed the first. They did have a lot of catching up to do.
"You did help, though," Korra said. "Really. I was -- yeah, I was scared." She bit her lip, defensive elbow cocked out so that Asami couldn't come any closer. "You could have done anything. That could have been it for me."
"You know I wouldn't," Asami said. Her eyebrows are furrowed in concern. "Obviously."
"I know," Korra said, "but I gave you the chance."
"Maybe you should give me another one," Asami said. She smiled again.
"I think I will," Korra said. She leaned in again, and they forgot about the chi-blocking exercise entirely.
Korra would have to learn a different way to deal with feeling vulnerable, but she didn't really mind. She'd taken this chance, after all. Maybe that was how you learned.
There were certainly worse ways.