DISCLAIMER: Korra and the rest of the Avatar franchise are not mine. 'Nuff said.

WARNING: This fic contains mature content and depicts an intimate relationship between two women. If that's something you can't quite handle, then I suggest you find something else to read.

Written for day 1 of Korrasami week. Prompt: Beach.

Spoiler Warning: Takes place between Book 2 and Book 3.

/

"Wait, how can the South Pole have a beach?"

Bolin shrugged. "I don't know, Mako. Korra told me that we should grab bathing suits and towels and then go meet her by the eastern gate."

"You didn't ask about it?" Mako rummaged through his belongings and pulled out an old pair of shorts.

"She didn't really give me the chance," said Bolin. "She just stuck her head in the door and told me we were going to the beach. I don't know anything else about it."

Mako raised a brow and looked at his brother as if waiting for him to spill the beans on some crazy secret. "This isn't a prank, is it? Because I really don't feel like being stuck outside in nothing but a pair of shorts."

"Mako, I swear. No funny business." Bolin hesitated. "That I know of," he added.

"Great."

/

Korra and Asami were already at the gate by the time Bolin managed to drag Mako out of their igloo. The two women were chatting amiably. Korra said something Mako couldn't quite make out, but Asami's laughter told him it must've been something funny. He stopped, then took a step back.

"What's the deal, Mako?" Bolin asked.

The firebender ran a hand through his hair and suddenly found the compound's watchtowers very interesting. "I dunno," he said. "I.. uh… Look, I don't think they've seen us yet. I'm just going to go back inside. Tell them I'm going over some old case notes or… something."

Bolin rolled his eyes. "Seriously? You just got done helping the Avatar save the world, and now you're worried about going swimming with two ladies?"

"Bolin…"

"Besides, they're friends."

"… Bo."

"Pretty friends."

"Girlfriends, Bolin. They're my ex-girlfriends."

Bolin shrugged. "Fine," he said. "Have it your way. You can go mope in our igloo. I'm gonna go."

"Fine."

"Fine!"

"Fine."

An old fisherman shuffled by, stopping to stare at the brothers. Bolin gave him a friendly wave and Mako turned away with a huff, hurrying off before anyone else could see him. The earthbender shook his head and ran up to the gate.

"Hey, Bolin. Where's Mako?" Asami asked, peering over his shoulder.

"He's not feeling well." Bolin watched Korra from the corner of his eye and waited for her reaction.

"Oh well," said Korra. "His loss."

Bolin eyeballed her with curiosity. For someone who had recently gone through a break up and had a habit of acting on her emotions, she seemed to be handling things unexpectedly well. Asami seemed to be relatively unperturbed, too. Weird.

Korra led them through the smaller human-sized door next to the much larger gate. "Anyway, I'm glad at least you two could make it. This used to be one of my favorite places as a kid. You're gonna love it."

/

Huff. Puff. Huff. Puff. Crunch. Munch. Crunch. Munch.

Bolin smiled as he listened to the sounds of his own breathing and his heavy steps through the snow. They sometimes got snow in Republic City, but it was nothing like this. Even though Mako ceased to be amazed within a couple days of their arrival at the South Pole, Bolin couldn't get enough of it.

Crunch. Munch. Crunch. Munch. Crunch… Squish?

Bolin glanced up and realized that both Korra and Asami had already come to a stop. There was a slight rise ahead of him where the snow appeared to be little more than a dusting and dark rock peeked out now and again from underneath. Korra eagerly kicked off her boots and began working at the buttons on her parka.

Asami looked at Korra with mild confusion, then amusement. Understanding brightened her face and she quickly followed suit. "Now it makes sense," she said as she undid the fastenings on her parka.

"I don't get it," Bolin mumbled as he pulled off his sweater. "Man, is it cold out here!"

A flash of dark skin and white wraps caught his eye as Korra whooped and sprinted up and over the rock. She jumped and disappeared. Bolin heard the loud splash over the clattering of his own teeth. He stumbled up the rise and looked down to see Korra floating on her back with a grin so wide he could see all of her teeth.

"Welcome to La Tan Hot Spring - the largest hot spring in the South Pole!" she shouted. She splashed around and gestured around her. "Or as I like to call it, the beach."

Bolin laughed and launched himself off of the rock, curling into the perfect cannonball. Asami was already in the water by the time he resurfaced and something about her grabbed his attention. Her hair was piled on her head and a few loose tendrils curled against her neck. That was normal. She wore a simple bathing suit that was modest, but not prudish. That was normal, too. He narrowed his eyes, struggling to figure out what it was.

Korra chuckled at something Asami said and casually leaned against a nearby rock. Bolin studied their interactions. Laughter. Smiles. Eye contact. Casual touching. Lingering looks.

"No way!"

Conversation between the two women stopped and they both looked at him with concern. Korra cocked her head. "Is everything okay?" she asked.

"Uh… yup. Yeah! Everything is a-okay. Hah. Just, you know, taking the sights. All the snow and the… water…" Bolin trailed off and smiled. Maybe it was a good thing that Mako didn't come along.

Korra gave him a funny look and conversation picked up where it left off. Asami inched closer and leaned forward ever so slightly. Neither one of them reacted to it. Neither one of them really seemed to notice. Bolin swam over and tried to listen, tossing in clever one-liners whenever possible. When he wasn't talking, however, he was paying close attention to their casually intimate interactions.

After a few minutes, Korra hopped out of the water and used her bending to create a huge pile of snow. Careful hand movements - a wave here, a flick there - and it became clear what she was doing. "No trip to the beach is complete without a sand castle. Though I guess it's a snow castle in this case."

Asami's eyes followed every graceful move. Bolin even caught her staring at Korra's strong, lean legs. He nearly rolled his eyes. It was so obvious. But the only indication he received that either one of them knew what was going on came when Asami brushed a piece of hair from Korra's face. A splash of red warmed her cheeks as she struggled to appear unaffected.

Bingo.

Bolin laughed inside and closed his eyes. He resolved to corner Korra later that evening. Water splashed his face and he sputtered. He wiped the water from his eyes and grinned. "No fair," he said. "You attacked me while my eyes were shut."

"That was kinda the point."

/

Dinner was over and conversation around the table was loud and lively. Bolin noticed Korra glance around before casually slipping away. He waited a few minutes before excusing himself. He ignored Mako's questioning look, wrapped his borrowed furs tightly around his body, and stepped out into the freezing night. It dawned on him that he didn't know where Korra went, but he knew where to start looking.

Bolin took off for the oversized igloo Korra had made for Naga. As he approached, he heard a soft voice and the occasional whine and huff. He peeked inside and saw Korra stroking Naga's broad head.

"There's no way it would work," Korra told her animal companion.

"Why not?" asked Bolin. He ducked his head and entered, stepping aside to avoid a couple of burning torches. "Why won't it work?"

"Why won't what work?"

Bolin gave her an incredulous look and smirked. "Don't play dumb, Korra. I'm the master of playing dumb. I always know when someone's doing it and you are especially bad at it."

Korra sighed and slumped against Naga. Bolin crouched, then took a seat next to her.

"It'll never work because as soon as we get back to Republic City, she's going to run off and get back to her own life. She has no reason to stick around." Korra groaned and rubbed her face with her hands.

"So give her a reason to. To stick around, I mean." Bolin made a small snowball. He tossed it against the igloo wall and felt altogether pleased with himself when it smacked against the middle of a brick and stuck to it. He placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Asami isn't the kind of person who just stops being someone's friend for no good reason."

Korra hesitated before responding. "But… what if I don't want to be her friend?"

"Tell her."

"But what if she doesn't feel the same way?"

Bolin raised an eyebrow and stared. "You're kidding, right?" He sighed and stood. "If you don't ask, then you'll never know."

"But what about Mako?" asked Korra. "He's… I don't want to make things worse between us."

"Mako's a big boy. Moody, but still a big boy. He'll get over it," Bolin assured her. He struggled not to laugh. It struck him as oddly funny that one of the most powerful people in the world was so lost and naive when it came to romance. He offered her a hand and pulled her up.

A long shadow filled the igloo door. "Korra?"

Korra blushed and wiped her hands on her pants. "Hey, Asami. Come on in. Bolin and I were just checking on Naga."

Asami came into view, somehow managing to look elegant even with layers of heavy furs and a thick scarf. "Hi, Bolin."

"Hiya." Bolin waved and pointed to the door. "I'm gonna go hit the hay. I'll leave you two. Alone." He turned to leave and didn't bother to hide the smug smile on his face.

"Bolin?"

He threw a glance back over his shoulder at Korra. "Yeah?"

"Thanks."

"Don't mention it."

It took a moment for Bolin's eyes to adjust once he was back out in the open. He lingered for a short while and listened closely.

"What was that about?" asked Asami.

"Nothing. Actually, I'm glad you're here. I wanted to talk to you about something."

Bolin's smug smile grew wider and he walked off, whistling as he shuffled through the fresh snow. Crunch. Munch. Crunch. Munch. Oh yes, this had been a most productive day.

/

Bolin was already stuffing his face with seaweed toast and prune jam when Asami entered the dining hall. Her hair - though still sleek and wavy - had a hint of unruliness to it and there was a light bounce in her step. He nodded at a nearby bowl of fruit. "Good morning," he said. "You should have some of this fruit. An airship came in yesterday and they had a whole basket of this stuff on board."

"Good morning," she echoed. She reached for a piece of lychee fruit and stopped when a booming voice filled the hall.

"What is that?"

Bolin swiveled his head and saw Korra pulling on a scarf, trying desperately - and failing - to cover a faint bruise on her neck. A hickey, Bolin noted with a grin.

"It's nothing, dad," she said.

Her father loomed protectively over her. "Who did that to you?" He straightened and turned the full weight of his glare on Mako. "Did you do this?"

Mako held up his hands and cringed, wide-eyed and doing a darn good job of mimicking an antelope deer caught in a pair of headlights. "No. Nope. I had nothing to do with that."

"Who did this?"

"Dad, calm down."

"No, I want to know!"

Bolin looked over at Asami. The tall woman hadn't budged an inch, but her face was a shade of red he hadn't thought the human body could produce. Gradually, he realized he wasn't the only one who noticed Asami's guilty expression. All eyes slowly turned to her.

"Um… Ooops?"

/

A/N: I didn't know this was Korrasami week until about two hours ago, so have mercy on my poor, wretched soul. I'll do my best to write an installment for each prompt this week. Stay tuned for more details.