Chapter Text
Asami stared at the non-disclosure agreement in front of her with interest.
Remember when you had everything? She thought bitterly to herself, picking up the pen and signing her name. She always looped the ‘o’ back to cross the ‘t’ in her last name.
Now what are you getting yourself into?
She pushed the paper across her desk, and her Chief of Staff, Zhu Li Moon, looked at her inquisitively.
“Would you like me to deliver this to the President, ma’am?”
Asami shook her head, “I’ll do it myself.”
She took one last sweeping look at her office, for this was now her office, and not Hiroshi Sato’s. As of last month, he had been locked away for life for his crimes against the United Republic on charges of domestic terrorism.
The board members of Future Industries had an emergency meeting when the news broke out, and while political leaders were keen to search for another scapegoat in the aftermath of the Equalist Revolution, having the Avatar’s backing and standing up against her father had been enough to clear Asami’s name.
Not that Asami was on speaking terms with Korra since Mako left her for the Avatar.
In the chaos that ensued among Republic City’s leadership, when Raiko had emerged on top, he also threw his weight behind Asami’s innocence, and the rumors quickly died down.
The Future Industries board members, some of whom had watched Asami grow up, did not want to shut her out of the company. After all, like her father, she had intimate knowledge of the company’s operations and all of her father’s technical prowess. The company needed her, but the family image had been more or less shattered.
Asami now served as an advisor; the board members didn’t want her to take on a public image and garner further attention as a leader of Future Industries.
“Besides, you’re so young, Asami, and you’ve been through a lot. Why don’t you accept this special advisor position while the rumors die down, and when the timing is right, if you’d like, we can bring you back on board to the design team or engineering department or even the C-suite,” Varrick, the Chairman of the board, had insisted a few weeks ago.
He wasn’t wrong. Asami could use a break. And perhaps Raiko’s request to meet could provide her with a more meaningful mission.
She tucked the form into a folder, slipped it into her bag, and prepared to close up her office.
“Do you need anything else, ma’am?” Zhu Li asked, peeking in from outside Asami’s door. Zhu Li’s desk was right outside Asami’s, and the woman had proved to be a very competent Chief of Staff. Privately, Asami thought Varrick had planted the woman right outside her office to keep an eye on her. Nonetheless, Asami enjoyed Zhu Li’s no-nonsense attitude, and she appreciated that the woman made no effort to strike up a relationship outside of work.
Asami was done with friends.
“No, Zhu Li. Thanks for the hard work, as always. Enjoy your weekend.”
Asami shut her office door behind her, and made her way to the elevators. The doors opened on several floors before she reached the lobby, and she noticed with annoyance how everyone who entered the elevator would quickly shuffle as far away from her as possible.
It was as if they were afraid of ruining their careers by mere association with Asami.
She walked over to City Hall in a brisk 10 minutes, looking over her right shoulder every other minute. She had a bad habit of checking her surroundings now, nearly consumed by the paranoia she felt after the Revolution.
When she arrived at Raiko’s door, she took a deep breath. The last time she was here a few weeks ago, he had informed her personally that she would not be held accountable for any of Hiroshi’s actions, and the city owed her a debt of gratitude for her heroic actions during the battle.
She closed her eyes, counted to three, then plastered a pleasant expression on her face, shaking away the dark thoughts that clouded her mind since the Revolution. Nothing any man threw at her would ever catch her off guard again.
“Asami, welcome. Please, have a seat.” Raiko gestured, pointing at the couch to the right in front of his imposing oak desk.
She noticed immediately that Varrick and another stoic, scowling man were sitting on the loveseats opposite the couch. They both stood when she opened the door, and everyone sat down when Raiko did.
“Asami, glad you could make it on such short notice,” Raiko began. “Do you have the, uh-”
Asami wordlessly handed over the non-disclosure agreement. She read through the fineprint, and it seemed to be quite standard. Essentially, she was not allowed to tell anyone, namely, the press, that she was having this meeting with the President, nor was she allowed to disclose any of the topics that this group planned to discuss.
“Excellent,” Raiko placed the document on top of identical papers already piled on the table.
“Well, no point in pleasantries since we all know one another,” Raiko began, “Let’s get down to the matter at hand.”
Asami glanced up. Did she know everyone in the room? She looked at the solemn man sitting across from her curiously, then she immediately recognized him.
General Iroh, the man who joined her and Bolin to storm the airplane hangar during the battle. This total stranger who had been there during a pivotal moment in Asami’s life, right before she stood against her father.
They locked eyes in recognition, then Asami looked away.
She hadn’t recognized him without the standard red of the United Forces uniform. She supposed if he, too, had to sign a non-disclosure agreement, wearing his uniform would have given away his identity almost immediately. These days, Iroh was a popular name in the press along with Asami’s, though Asami noticed the press enjoyed painting Iroh as a tragic hero while they painted Asami as a tragic victim.
She snorted to herself. What more did she expect? That was how things played out. Men got away with everything.
“My campaign manager, Joo Dee, recently informed me that my ratings are low. Though I am only into the first one hundred days of my term, I have already made strides to repairing the city. We’ve established a civilian focus group to address the damages and assess priorities in rebuilding parts of the city, which General Iroh here is graciously leading, and we’ve charged and imprisoned Hiroshi Sato, and received generous voluntary reparations from Future Industries,” Raiko began.
Asami stifled a yawn. Did Raiko bring all these people here to chat about political campaign strategy? This is why Asami stayed out of politics and preferred business. At least in her world, things could actually get done. So why was the chairman of her board here?
“Let me cut down to it,” Raiko stated. “Joo Dee said that I need at least an 80% approval rating to win my next term, and I currently stand at 20%. Why is that?”
Asami opened her mouth to respond, but quickly stopped after noticing Varrick’s imperceptible head movement, signaling “no.”
“The people are deeply unhappy. And why wouldn’t they be? Crime-ridden streets, high tax rates, lack of resources, and slow progress to fix the damages caused by the Equalist Revolution. The people need to rally behind a positive cause, or even better, they need a distraction. What’s the best way to distract people with happiness?” Raiko asked.
Varrick looked like he had plenty of entertaining options in mind, but he held himself back.
“A romance.”
Asami was fairly certain Raiko was married, even if his marriage was more than likely a political one. His campaign manager, Joo Dee, must have done enough research to convince this man of her findings.
“The public would rally behind a once-in-a-lifetime dreamy romance,” Raiko explained, then quickly added, “Her words, not mine. Imagine, the beloved war hero, struggling to come to terms with his guilty conscience, and the city’s queen of industry, struggling to save her company and deal with family betrayal, a bender and a non-bender, find solace in one another, peace with their demons, meaning in life and Republic City!”
Varrick gleamed. “I’ve always wanted to make movies, and that is one compelling plot line.”
Raiko beamed at Varrick. “I knew you’d be on board. This would be excellent for Future Industries. As my special advisor of the industrials sector and the Chairman of Future Industries, I thought you would be the perfect witness to this contract, ensuring that it is legally binding.”
Varrick and Raiko looked at Iroh and Asami expectantly, as Raiko slid two thick contracts across the table.
Asami glanced down at the thick stack of paper in front of her and for the second time that night, she thought to herself, Now what are you getting yourself into?