Chapter Text
Asami hugged herself as she stepped off of the ship, her breath clouding in front of her from the cold. She had visited the Southern Water Tribe with Korra before, of course, but every time, the icy air hit her like a slap in the face.
Korra reached for her gloved hand, and a shiver that had nothing to do with the temperature ran through her body. The engineer had always liked Korra’s parents and believed the feeling was mutual, but she wasn’t sure how they would feel about her this time around. The avatar had told her parents in her letter that she was bringing a “special friend” home to meet them, but Asami might not be who they had in mind.
Asami had gotten to know Tonraq better when Korra had asked her to take him to a healer. It was clear from their conversation that his relationship with Korra was built on love and mutual respect, and she had told him that the avatar was lucky to have such a caring father. She remembered feeling hollow inside when she thought of her own father, a feeling that had returned after his death and tormented her when she was alone.
Senna had always been kind to her daughter’s friends from Team Avatar. When she visited Republic City after Korra’s injury, she had pulled Asami aside to talk to her and thanked the young engineer for being so patient and caring with Korra. Asami insisted that she didn’t mind and admired Korra’s self-sacrifice, but she decided not to mention that seeing Korra collapsed on the ground, her glowing eyes blinded by pain, had made her realize just how much Korra meant to her, or how terrified she was of losing her.
Korra wrapped her arms around her girlfriend’s waist, sensing her unease, and pulled her into a tight embrace. “Don’t worry,” she insisted. “I’m sure they’ll love you.” She stood on her toes to kiss Asami on the cheek. The nonbender did feel a little reassured - after all, what she cared most about was how Korra felt.
They took their time strolling through the Southern Water Tribe, walking alongside Naga instead of riding her. The polar bear dog was clearly delighted to be home and eagerly ran around, jumping in the snow and stretching her legs after the cramped journey. She paid little notice to the luggage tied to her saddle. Several of the people they passed greeted Korra warmly. Worried about the gossip they might cause, Asami started to let go of Korra’s hand, but the avatar held onto her. “It’s not like Republic City here - we don’t have to worry about ending up on the front page of the paper. Besides, this is my home and we shouldn’t have to hide.” It felt refreshing, in a way: the couple had grown so used to downplaying their relationship in public, she had almost forgotten what it felt like to be free of the Republic City paparazzi.
A smile spread across Korra’s face when they reached her house. Naga ran ahead of them, barking happily and sniffing around the doorway. Whoever was inside must have noticed because the front door opened and Naga immediately jumped on her greeter. “Korra!” a familiar deep face called, laughing. “Yes, good to see you too, Naga!”
A smaller figure sidestepped the commotion and ran down the front steps to greet them. Korra leapt forward too, pulling Asami with her. “It’s so good to see you, sweetie!” Senna told her daughter, wrapping her arms around her and kissing her on the forehead.
“It’s good to home, Mom,” Korra responded. She noticed Asami standing shyly next to her, but Tonraq caught up to them before she could say anything.
“There’s my girl!” He pulled his daughter into a tight hug.
Korra embraced him, then pulled away to put her hand around Asami’s shoulders. “Mom, Dad…. You know Asami.” The engineer raised an eyebrow at her girlfriend, who, despite her bravado earlier, had grown stiff and seemed to be at a loss for words. “She and I… Well, we think it’s important that you know… Ummm…”
Surprisingly, Asami found that she herself was the composed one. “Korra and I - we’re together,” she stated bluntly.
Senna understood instantly and rushed forward to hug the young businesswoman. Tonraq took a second, then went, “Oh, so you’re the special friend she mentioned.”
“Well, maybe ‘friend’ isn’t quite the right word,” admitted Korra. All of the nonbender’s nervousness from earlier suddenly returned as she waited to see how he reacted.
Suddenly, she found herself swept off her feet in a bear hug. “That’s wonderful!” he told her. Asami couldn’t help but break into a huge grin. It was okay, she told herself, it was more than okay.
The four of them headed into the warm house, Korra leading the way. “Mmm, something smells amazing!” she called out, immediately heading off to investigate what traditional Water Tribe food awaited them. Tonraq stopped Asami in the doorway, putting his hand on her shoulder, and for a second, she froze.
“Welcome to our home, Asami,” he told her. “We’re delighted to have you.”
Despite the snow outside, she felt warmer than she had in a long time.