Chapter Text
Asami tugged the neckline of her dress, coaxing more air beneath its collar. Her trusty jacket usually accompanied her everywhere, but with the hot afternoon sun beating down, she regretted wearing it today. She ran a hand through her hair as she descended the courtyard steps, lifting the strands that clung to the back of her neck. If I spend too much longer outside, my jacket’s going to end up tied around my waist whether it stretches out the sleeves or not.
A shout from the courtyard ahead offered a momentary distraction. She paused at the edge of the bridge, smiling fondly as she glimpsed a blur of blue amidst the dust. Apparently, Korra was enjoying her metalbending lesson. Her alpha scent was stronger than usual, sharp with sweat and determination. Still, there was something comforting about it. Asami liked Zaofu, but she'd spent her whole life in Republic City. It was nice to have someone familiar like Korra around to remind her of home.
She got a better view of the action as Korra sprang away from a rippling wall of earth, launching herself into the air with her hands. Her feet kicked out, and Asami's smile became a grin as the sharp gesture sent Wing's metal cable lashing back through the air. She'd only caught a few seconds of the match, but Korra seemed to be putting her teacher through his paces.
“Are you all right, Asami?”
Asami turned, more than a little embarrassed that Mako had caught her staring. Normally, she could smell him or at least hear him before he managed to sneak up on her, but she'd been distracted. On closer inspection, Mako's brow was furrowed even more than usual, and he seemed concerned.
“You look uncomfortable,” he said.
"Uncomfortable? No." Asami shook her head, brushing a lock of hair away from her temple. "I'm fine, promise. I was just watching Korra."
Another loud, unhappy cry interrupted their conversation. Asami and Mako turned in time to see Bolin dodge a flying chunk of metal. It zoomed harmlessly past his head, shattering the stone pillar behind him.
"Maybe it's time to call things off," Mako suggested. "We need to get ready for dinner anyway." He gave Asami a long look, as if unsure whether to believe she was really all right, but didn't say anything else before heading across the bridge.
Asami followed him, shielding her eyes against the sun's glare bouncing off the courtyard's decorative metal plates. Still, she couldn't help squinting to catch the last few seconds of the Avatar's sparring match. Korra fought Wing for control of the metal cable, letting it wind harmlessly around an arm or a leg whenever he sent it whipping toward her. Her movements were hypnotic, smooth as water, and Asami continued watching the rolling of her body until Mako spoke again.
“Whoa! Nice shot, Bolin. But I thought you were supposed to be practicing metal-bending, not earth bending.”
"Yeah," Wei muttered, rubbing the middle of his forehead. "Cheater."
Bolin dropped out of his stance and headed toward them, rubbing his shoulder in embarrassment. “Mako, metal bending is extremely difficult," he said, trying and failing not to pout. "No one gets it right away, if they can get it at all!”
As one, they all turned to watch Korra and Wing finish their match. Asami sucked in a quick breath, trying not to look too awestruck. Korra's abilities were always impressive, but they had never been so visually captivating before. She seemed to float over the ground, and her smile was dazzling as she danced away from one of Wing's missiles. Her body twisted and arched, moving with the same dexterity as the metal cable coiling around her waist. A split-second later, it was over. The cable shot back toward her opponent and caught his ankle, toppling him to the ground.
Korra leapt into the air, twirling in triumph and flexing her arms. “Woohoo! Metal-bending champion.”
“Oh, sure," Bolin muttered. "She’s the Avatar.”
The tension snapped Asami out of her trance. “Guys, it’s time to get cleaned up," she said, struggling to remain focused on Bolin as Korra trotted over with a proud skip in her step. The uncomfortable warmth at the dip of Asami's neck crawled all the way up to her face. She had no more excuses to stare, and she couldn't figure out why her eyes kept wandering in Korra's direction. "Tonight's Opal’s farewell dinner...”
It was the wrong thing to say. Bolin's face fell, and his shoulders slumped in disappointment. “Ugh, and now I gotta say bye to Opal? This is the worst day ever.”
Before Asami could reframe the situation in a more positive light, Mako stepped in. "It's all right," he said, clapping Bolin's back. "Think of it as an opportunity. Opal will get to see you all dressed up."
"Hey, yeah." Bolin's face brightened. "Maybe if I clean up nice enough, she'll have a reason to remember me while she's gone."
"You do know that's our sister you're talking about, right?" Wei complained, folding his arms across his chest. Wing picked himself up off the ground and joined him, shooting a matching frown in Bolin's direction.
"Then your family’s lucky." Korra aimed a friendly punch at Bolin's shoulder, and he perked up a little more. "Bolin's one of the nicest omegas I know. If your sister's interested in him, it shows she's got great taste."
"Come on," Mako said, glancing back across the bridge. "We should head inside and get ready." The group followed him away from the training grounds, talking amongst themselves.
Asami lingered behind, hesitating. Her friends' chatter was a dull roar in her ears, and she couldn't focus hard enough to separate the words. Only one voice lingered inside her head, low and forceful, but bright with laughter. Korra. Her voice is so... She couldn't think of the right word to describe it, but something about the timbre made her overheated skin prickle.
"Asami?"
She blinked in surprise at the sound of her name. Korra had stopped and turned to look at her, but the wide grin hadn't faded from her face.
"Aren’t you coming with us?"
Asami tried to form a response, but couldn't find her words as Korra jogged back toward her. Unfortunately, the sight of the alpha's shirt pulled tight across her abdomen did nothing to loosen the lump in Asami’s throat. Why can't I stop staring at her? She's always looked this way, hasn't she? But there's something different. Something...
Realization hit as soon as Korra stopped in front of her. There wasn't anything strange about her friend at all. The only difference was with her. Rising body temperature, racing heart, the strange pull Korra seemed to have over her... Asami felt like a fool for taking so long to put the pieces together. Her heat had come ahead of schedule, and her body was showing an interest in the last alpha she had expected.
Well, perhaps not the last alpha I expected.
She'd always admired Korra’s appearance, but she had thought it was only for comparison’s sake. Both of them had shown an interest in Mako around the same time, after all. Later, when she and Korra had become friends, she'd thought the delight she felt at seeing Korra’s smile was simply a result of their growing closeness. The flutter in her chest was only because Korra was the Avatar, a spiritual being with powers beyond anyone else’s comprehension. She was a hero who had saved the world twice already, and would probably do so many more times.
But none of that explained the way Asami's heart pounded, the quickness of her breath, or the heavy ache that dropped right through her stomach to settle between her legs. The curious fullness there coiled tight, tugging at something deep inside her.
“Asami? Hellooo?”
She started, gasping a little when she noticed Korra’s eyes peering directly into hers. The soft blue irises seemed to demand something. Their locked gaze broke as her attention flicked down to Korra’s lips. Had they always been so full? So close to hers? Water rose in her mouth, and suddenly, the only thing she could think of was how much she wanted to lean in and taste them.
“Korra…”
“Oh good, you’re awake,” Korra laughed, giving her a friendly nudge. “I thought I’d lost you to the Spirit World. You looked like you were meditating while standing up or somethi...” Her voice trailed off, and she stopped in the middle of her sentence.
Asami saw the precise moment Korra picked up on her scent. The alpha's eyes widened, her nostrils flared, and her smile turned into a glassy look of desire. A primal shudder surged through the muscles in her arms, and Asami fought the urge to soothe it by stroking those well-defined triceps with her hands.
They stared at each other for several moments, silent and unmoving.
“Hey! Korra, Asami, are you two coming?”
Bolin calling from the bridge broke the tension before either of them could reach out. Korra stepped back, and Asami let out a deep sigh. She removed her jacket, unfastening the belt and slipping her arms free. Once it was off, she looped it around her waist and tied the sleeves together. “Sorry,” she mumbled as she slid a hairband off her wrist, pulling her hair back into a messy ponytail. Korra continued watching, and the heated stare made Asami's flesh burn. “I should… I mean, I need to…”
Korra gave a stiff nod. "Go," she said, but her voice cracked.
For a moment, Asami was tempted to stay. It wouldn’t take much. She scanned the training grounds on instinct, searching for opportunities.
“Or, uh, maybe I should… I’ll just go ahead of you," Korra muttered. "Wait a minute and go in by yourself so they don’t smell you. I’ll make up an excuse.”
Before Asami could protest, Korra was sprinting off toward Bolin and the others. She didn’t cast a single glance back over her shoulder, and Asami found herself strangely disappointed.
Once she was alone, Asami pinched her forehead and sighed. She couldn’t decide whether to be upset or relieved. Her mind was a tangled mess of confusion and lust, and although the logical part of her brain knew that this had been the best possible outcome, every inch of her ached with disappointment. She hung her head, folding her arms around herself and shivering as she watched Korra and the rest of her friends disappear up the courtyard steps.