Korrasami in the Spirit World (or, “I suck at titles.”)
“Brace yourself.”
In the past few years, Korra had many occasions to pass through a Spirit Portal, so she was well-accustomed to the peculiar sensations accompanying the transition to the Spirit World. Bending was the outward expression of manipulating one’s inner chi, and this feeling was not entirely dissimilar: Like a pulling at the soul, and time would seem to slow down for just a moment, before everything snapped back into position.
But this would be a brand new experience for Asami. Korra was uncertain how a non-bender might react.
Even facing each other and holding hands like this, Korra’s vision of the other woman was mostly washed out by the growing intensity of golden energy swirling around them. Asami’s raven hair, painted lips, and heavy-lidded eyes contrasted enough in the glare that she looked like a being made of light.
Korra’s heart skipped a beat.
The grip of Asami’s slender hands tightened in Korra’s as the ‘pulling’ strengthened. The taller woman’s eyes and mouth ringed into little o’s of surprise. Then came the SNAP. Asami’s knees buckled and she pitched forward, but for this at least Korra was ready, catching and holding her friend in a steady embrace. Threshold crossed, Korra supported Asami back out of the portal and into the parallel realm of spirits.
“My goodness, that gave me a start. I suppose I shouldn’t have expected that to be like just walking through a door,” Asami was saying, her voice trailing off.
Seeing the Spirit World for the first time had that effect. Whereas the Spirit Portals corresponding to the North and South Poles came out on roughly opposite sides of the Tree of Time, Korra had no idea where exactly this new one opened to. Geography was at best a suggestion in this realm and she hadn’t exactly been surveying the landscape when facing Kuvira previously.
It wasn’t the first thing on Korra’s mind right now, either.
Upon regaining her balance, Asami marveled at the alabaster cliffs, gnarled baobab-like trunks, and unbroken field of curious pink-and-turquoise flowers. She stepped away from Korra and their fingers slipped apart. Asami spun slowly, bright green eyes settling here and now there, trying to take it all in. A laugh like the tinkling of a bell rose to the sky.
“So lovely!”
“Yeah,” Korra agreed of the view.
Clearing her throat, The Avatar adjusted the pack slung over her shoulders and pried her feet out of their frozen place, to catch up to other woman. Asami was now kneeling in the flowers, hands cupped around one, but she did not pick it.
“Are these…? These aren’t all spirits too, are they?”
“No, at least I don’t think so. I don’t know whether anyone really knows all that much about the Spirit World. But there might be one person we could ask, if we find him here. Did I tell you—”
A sharp gasp from Asami made Korra cut her sentence short. The taller woman doubled over and her shoulders shuddered, accompanied by the sound of a deep sob. Going cold inside, Korra hastened her pace and crouched beside her friend.
“Asami! What’s wrong?”
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to frighten you.” Asami was wiping tears from her cheeks, but she was smiling. “For just a moment, the fragrance of these flowers. They reminded me of my mother. But that impression is gone now. I don’t understand.”
Relieved, Korra settled down next to Asami and placed a reassuring hand over hers.
“A friend once told me that the Spirit World is a place where emotions become reality. With your father gone, you’ve been thinking about both your parents a lot lately, huh?”
The other women nodded. A less-than-delicate sniffle was covered by her other hand, making Korra giggle. She absently ran a thumb over Asami’s knuckles, feeling the tension in them slacken.
“Maybe this place heard your feelings and gave you something sweet to remember them by. Would you tell me about your mother? She must have been one incredible lady to raise someone as great as you.”
Korra’s face grew hot and she knew she was blushing.
The taller woman looked down at a particular flower at her knees and touched each bright turquoise petal in turn, eyes growing distant with memory.
“Both of my parents came from poor families, you know. Mother liked to mix her own perfumes from various things. It was a thifty habit from her own youth. Her favorite was jasmine and lily-of-the-valley, with a touch of something mysterious that she … never got to tell me. Mother always said she would teach me to make a unique fragrance of my own for the day I got married.”
At this, Asami raised her head and gazed into Korra’s face. They were very close like this, sitting with bodies curled to face each other. The Spirit Portal’s now-distant golden light spilled across Asami’s back and her eyes were two glittering points of jade.
After a pause, Asami continued, “That aroma was never too strong, but it meant I always knew when Mother was near. Whether I was playing in the baskets of fresh laundry, or hiding from the dark night under my covers, smelling Mother’s scent was instantly reassuring. Even Father, after working hard in the factory or office, would say that all his stress disappeared when he came home and smelled that fragrance.”
Asami let out a deep sigh that sounded like satisfaction.
“I feel somehow lighter now. Thank you for giving this memory back to me, Spirit World.” Asami’s eyes then narrowed, looking at Korra, down at the flower, and back up. “And I should thank you too, Korra, for listening to me ramble on.”
“Oh no, not at all! It was—it was a pleasure, really!”
Ignoring Korra’s flustered reply, Asami picked the strange flower, which seemed to glimmer and chime faintly at this disturbance, then reached up and threaded the stem through Korra’s hair so that it stayed in place over her right ear. Those fingers lingered in Korra’s chestnut brown hair, then finally came down, lightly tracing her jawline.
“Mmmm, yes. This look suits you too,” Asami insisted, though Korra wasn’t sure if she meant the flower or the ever-deepening shade of scarlet that her face must surely be turning.
C'mon, Korra, get it together! is what The Avatar was thinking, but what came out sounded more like: “D-Does it? I never really felt like this sort of elegant look was for me. I was too focused on bending and being The Avatar. My mother must have been so disappointed to not get a precious little girl she could dote on.”
“It’s never too late to treat yourself, you know. When we get back to Republic City, I’ll take you to my favorite spa. You deserve to feel as beautiful as you are, Korra.”
Korra swallowed hard. Her heart was racing a mile a minute. Asami’s bright eyes were intense, hungry even. Her warm, sweet breath blew softly over the younger woman’s lips. Korra blinked rapidly and took a deep breath.
“Asami, I—”
But it was Asami whom was more bold in that moment. She leaned in and planted her lips over Korra’s.
One hand combed into The Avatar’s hair and held her tight at the nape. As if knowing just the right place to touch, Asami’s thumb found a sensitive spot behind Korra’s ear that elicited a deep-throated moan. Mouths opening, tongues darting, they kissed like no one was watching.
In the Spirit World, no one was. No humans, anyway.
Korra’s arms, which had been like limp noodles, felt their strength return in a rush. They encircled Asami, pulling the woman bodily so that she and Korra were pressed against each other, shoulder to waist. A tangle of limbs, the two women rocked back until Korra found herself on her knees and Asami was held almost parallel to the ground.
Off-balance, the kiss broke with an “Oh!”
Asami leaned onto her elbows, hair mussed, chest heaving. She ran a finger around her lips, clearing away a smudge of lipstick.
“I’ve been waiting to kiss you for three years, Korra.”
The Avatar couldn’t think of what else to say but, “I should have come back sooner.”
To be continued… <<Read Part 2>>
((It gets decidedly salty after this, so I’ll be posting the rest separately.))