Day 7: Age Swap AU

Warnings: Smut.

Rating: M

Word Count: 7k words

Prompt: Birthday

~~~~~~.:oOo:.~~~~~~

How do things change so fast? How is it that you can postpone something for a decade before you've noticed how long it's been? How can you visit a place after a few years and find it completely different?

I sigh and look into my glass of dark purple liquid before I take a quiet sip. I've been sighing all evening but I really can't help myself today, I'm just having a gloomy phase, it will pass.

I wonder what I'm even doing here alone, I could be at a party full of people, my people, my friends, but after all the hard work Asami put in to organize my birthday I just skipped out after half an hour and ended secluding myself here. They are probably pretty offended, I'll have to apologize tomorrow but right now I'm not in the mood to even talk to them… It's not that I'm angry, I'm not even though they threw a party to celebrate my fortieth birthday when I specifically told them not to, no I'm not upset about that, the only thing that ticked me off was that every single one of them showed up with husbands, wives, lovers and even their kids while I just stood there surrounded by love and feeling old and lonely.

I'm not one to care about age and I'm not desperate for a husband, mind you, but suddenly hitting the big 4-0 has made me think about my life from a rather depressing point of view- I'm the Avatar and unless I fall ill or get killed I'll likely have a longer than average life ahead of me, already I'm seeing my friends start to gain wrinkles and turn grey when I'm still as fresh as thirty year old and not only does that make me a little depressed it also makes my love life a mess, not many guys want to stick around with a woman who will always end up looking younger than them, a woman who has to pay her work more attention than them.

One of my former lovers is one of my best friends and married to my other friend, they have two kids already and each day that passes I wonder if I could be the one in Asami's place if I haven't screwed up so spectacularly, I don't love Mako that way anymore but I envy what the two of them have…

My last boyfriend was actually the longest, nobody really expected me to end up with Tahno after so many years of enmity but what can I say? I like guys that are challenging, I like bad boys who I can butts heads with and who are different enough from me that we can complement each other. It really didn't work out though, as soon as he started getting grey hairs he decided he couldn't handle a girlfriend that would be rebellious and juvenile even in his old age, I think the arrogant narcissist was just jealous but it still pissed me off and we broke it up for good a month ago which was a good thing seeing as things hadn't been going well for a year now.

I can't really blame him that much about how bad our relationship got though, neither do I think it's that much my fault either, it's just that ever since I returned to Republic City I've been under far too much work stress to handle Tahno's demanding ways.

I hadn't been in this city for well over ten years, I visit the Air Temple Island sometimes when I'm passing by on my trips elsewhere but I kept postponing coming back here because I was sure I wouldn't want to leave if I did, still I came back almost eleven months ago because a situation was brewing that required my attention- there's this militant group around called the Equalists that have been making a mess, they are trying to start a revolution to take down the government and de-power all the benders in the world since they claim there's a huge gap in social rights between benders and non-benders. The equalist leader calls himself Amon, he's this creepy guy in a mask who can actually block people's bending permanently and he is immensely charismatic and a strategic genius… Unfortunately for him I'm a fully realized Avatar and I'm used to dealing with much more dangerous foes than some social revolutionist so I don't fear him in the least, I know how to energy-bend after all so even his little block doesn't scare me.

I've been taking down their little plans and coups for months, I even discovered that Asami's retired and estranged father had been sponsoring them and I put him out of the picture as well, I could have already squashed the group completely if that sleazy little politician didn't keep trying to steal my thunder with his task force! I don't care that Tarrlok's the youngest politician to get a seat in the senate, I want to slap him for getting in my way just for a little extra credit, if not for his constant need to show off and recurrent habit of proving Amon right by abusing his power over the population I could have already have ended this skirmish.

Nonetheless, it's only a matter of time before the Equalists fall completely and they know that just as much as I do, they know it so well that they've begun to try and compromise with me and form a truce but I won't budge on it, I'm not the sort of person to give in when I have the upper hand, I won't waste time trying to be diplomatic, I'll defeat them completely and be on my way because all this sneaky fighting and stupidly delicate social balance is getting on my nerves and I'm depressed enough with my private life without having the stress of my Avatar duties wearing me down too.

I sigh again, I wish I could just go home to the South Pole and curl up with Naga and hibernate for a year. That's how stressed I am and I can't even talk to my friends about it because they just call me foolish, they'll remind me that I've faced worse enemies and they'll tell me to enjoy single life.

This speakeasy is surprisingly empty, it's actually quite the popular little place near the Republic City Theater but at the moment the slow twangs of some musical instrument roll in the background and only half a dozen people other than myself pepper the large dimly lit establishment, I guess since it's a work day there aren't many people free to hang around bars. I'd actually like the place to be crowded, that way I could blend in better and maybe even get into some tavern brawl as a distraction but instead I'm left to my thoughts, sitting in my little corner of the bar sipping on some strange drink that is way too sweet for my tastes but that burns in my stomach like molten lead.

I swirl my glass and peer into the last dregs of pink liquor. I've never been a light-weight and I only feel mildly buzzed but I might drunker than I thought- wasn't my drink purple just moments ago? Actually, wasn't the stuff I started with blue? I recall that I just asked the bartender for the strongest thing he had around, his grin made his long thin mustache twitch and then he served me something that I had never tried before but that now leaves me wondering just how strong it really was.

"You're not as drunk as you think." A young voice startles me and I turn to my right towards it.

A young man is sitting two stools down from me, I can't really tell how old he is but he can't be much older than his mid-twenties. He's very tall and built as delectably as any warrior I've ever known; by his short wolftailed hairstyle, the cinnamon hue of his skin and the pallor of his icy eyes I'm guessing he's as Water Tribe as I am but what really catches my attention is that snickering smirk that lifts one of the corners of his lips and makes him surprisingly handsome and irritatingly smug.

"Excuse me?" I enquire carelessly.

"You're staring into your glass with a puzzled look on your face and probably wondering how drunk you really are, right?" He chuckles, it's a deep rusty sound that I find quite lyrical. "Likely because you're asking yourself if you drank too much to remember colors of if you switched drinks and can't remember it."

"How do you…?" I trail off looking from him to my glass and back at him.

"Liu likes to prank newbies like that." The young man nods at the barman on the other side of the counter who has his back to us as he cleans the counter. "It's kitsunebi, a local beverage with very high alcohol content and a curious little chemical reaction. When it's cold, straight out of the ice box, it looks dark blue but as it warms it turns purple and eventually pink when it hits room temperature."

"Oh." I mutter at the explanation, it certainly makes sense now.

"So if you're not seeing double or feeling giggly or something of the like then you are likely not that drunk yet." The man next to me smiles charmingly, it's still that crooked grin but softer now.

"Thanks." I nod and swallow down the last dregs of the drink.

"No problem." He grins further as well and waves at the bartender. "Hey Liu, get some saké for the lady, it seems more up her alley. Put it on my tab."

The mustached barman nods curtly and retreats in search of the requested beverage.

"Aren't you a little young to run a tab in a speakeasy?" I accuse without any bite.

"Aren't you a little old to be drinking alone?" He shoots back at me nonchalantly.

"Since when does age have anything to do with how a person drinks?" I frown at the question, no woman likes being called old even in this context.

"Exactly." He replies with yet another chuckle and I realize he's just answered my question.

"…Good one." I admit reluctantly. He's sharp, I'm not sure if I like that or if I find it annoying.

"So, how come such a fine lady as yourself is wasting time alone in this little joint on a week day? Given that you didn't even know about kitsunebi I doubt you're that much of a liquor enthusiast." He enquires, sipping on a clear bluish drink I hadn't noticed before.

"And you are?" I snap back to avoid replying. It's none of his business really.

"Hardly, I just happen to have friends here." The young retorts and stares at me, still expecting an answer.

"If you must know I'm…" What am I supposed to say? I don't want to sound weak or whiny if I admit to drowning my petty sorrows so I better just stick with… "Celebrating, I guess."

"Celebrating?" He asks skeptically and I notice that his brow raises slightly at the topic.

"It's my birthday and I'm celebrating it the way I want- independently without any silly fancy parties." I think I sound too snippy and not at all convincing but who cares?

"My, my… It's a special day then." Both his brows raise this time and he turns to the bartender that is already approaching with a bottle of the previously ordered drink. "Liu, cancel the saké. Bring us beer with emberglow shots, it's more celebration worthy."

"Sure, kid." The mustached man pauses with a questioning look on his face and then shrugs, he puts away the white ceramic bottle and starts to filling mugs of frothy golden beer.

"You don't have to buy my drinks, I'm not that kind of woman." I tell my unexpected conversation partner, hoping that he's not getting the wrong message.

"Relax lady, I just find you interesting enough to kill some time with." He replies as charmingly as he has been so far and pushes a mug and a shot glass my way once they are placed on the counter. "So why don't you just stop worrying and accept the free booze, no strings attached?"

"Fine then." Why the hell not? It's free drinks and guy is nice so what's the big deal about accepting? I grab the beer and bring it to my lips but he raises a hand to stop me.

"Ah, that's not how you drink that." He chuckles and lifts up the small shot glass then drops it in his beer mug, the tiny glass sinks in and the drink starts to fizz as if it's boiling. "This is how you drink it."

The guy quickly proceeds to gulp down his beverage before all the fizzing dies out, I follow his lead and drop my own shot glass into the narrow mug before starting to guzzle down the booze much like my companion and once we're done he turns to me with a smug toothy grin. I have to gasp for air, I can feel my head spinning a little, there's a sensation like soda bubbles in my throat and my whole body feels warm but that was likely the most amusing thing to happen to me tonight.

"Ok, that was fun." I admit with an embarrassing giggle.

"Want another?" He's already ordering another round even as he speaks.

"You trying to get an old lady drunk?" I ask jokingly.

"You're not that old, ma'am." He replies just as playfully.

"You think? Want to guess my age?" This is actually a favorite game of mine, nobody ever gets my age right and when I tell them the exact number the slack-jawed look on most people's faces is always priceless.

"I doubt I'll get it right, I've always been lousy at judging appearances." He dodges tactfully.

"That so?" I snicker, aware that he's trying not to offend me though I doubt he could.

"Yes, I rather judge people on standards much more important than age or appearance, I'd rather judge people by their actions and opinions." The reply is surprisingly mature but naïve enough that I can't help but chuckle.

"You say that now, wait until you're a few decades older with a pile of bad experiences on your back. You won't be so virtuous then." I tell him, perhaps a tad too bitterly.

"What makes you think I'm that virtuous now?" The young man wonders with a squid-shark like smirk.

"You're young." I retort confidently.

"Who's judging whom now?" He counters mockingly.

"Ugh, the way you twist a conversation is really infuriating." I grimace, he caught me again. His skill at twisting my words reminds me of someone, of a little arrogant politician I know, but somehow I find this guy a lot more intriguing and easy to talk to than Tarrlok.

"I apologize, I didn't mean to sour your mood." He backtracks at once, looking truly apologetic.

"You didn't." I wave the matter off. I'm curious about him now, rather than brag he apologized, why would he do that? I wouldn't do that. "What's your name?"

"My name…" He appears to hesitate slightly but then just smiles again. "Noatak."

"I'm Korra." I announce, waiting to the usual inevitable spark of recognition.

"Nice to meet you." The young man bows his head respectfully but isn't fazed in the least.

"That's it?" I wonder, more than a little surprised.

"What is?" He tilts his head, looking a little baffled.

"Just 'nice to meet you'?" Does he not know who I am? Really? That's… new.

"What else should I say?" He asks innocently.

"Nothing, never mind." I shake my head. I'm just not used to being treated so politely by people who don't know I'm the Avatar, I'm not used to anyone being this easygoing around me.

Suddenly, I'm getting a lot more interested in this guy.

"Well then…" He trails off, drops a second shot glass into a second beer and raises his mug. "A birthday toast. May you have many more, Korra."

I mimic his actions with the drinks and raise my own mug, clinking it with his. "Thanks."

I practically race him to see who can finish this round the fastest, we finish our drinks practically at the same time and bicker about who finished last only to realize how silly it is and break into laughter.

A few rounds later I find myself outside sitting under a full moon on the ledge of some strange balcony, eating fire flakes and sharing not alcohol but iced ginger tea with the guy from the bar. I vaguely remember leaving the bar with the young man and getting invited to his house, I don't recall arriving or deciding to sit on the balcony with yet another type of beverage but here I am and the tea and snacks are soothing my stomach and helping me recover some of my precious sobriety.

Nonetheless I'm still giggling at his anecdotes about city life and drunken adventures with other people from the bar we were just at, apparently this guy is friends with the barman himself and has seen a lot of unusual reactions to drunkenness in the establishment. Noatak is just about done telling a story about an old balding police officer that drank too much emberglow, mistook him for a girl and kept flirting in the most outrageous manner, saying he looking as pretty as the Painted Lady if only he'd grow out his hair- I can't help but burst out laughing at the story and nearly fall off the ledge, it would be just a few feet fall but he grabs me around the waist anyway and pulls me back before I slip.

I end up falling over him in the balcony and apologize between giggles that refuse to go away but he just laughs along with me and doesn't bother pushing me off his lap at all as he calls me 'ditzy birthday girl', I counter by saying that right now I'm actually a 'birthnight girl' but I think he's laughing more at the stupidity of the remark than at the actual inebriated joke I'm trying to make.

"I like you, Korra. You're more amusing than I expected." Noatak states between bouts of rumbling laughter that vibrate through my body in the most delicious way.

"I like you too, kiddo." I grin, goofily I'm sure, and lean closer to him, practically crawling over his body. "I like you a lot, actually."

"Careful, Korra." He teases, bopping my nose with the tip of his finger. "It almost looks like you're coming onto me."

"Is that a complaint I hear?" I wrinkle my nose at the touch and then rub it to his in a playful little display of affection. I can almost taste the tea and alcohol in his breath and he's been getting more and more touchy-feely so I know he's not averse to this, he invited me to his house, for crying out loud.

"Not at all, ma'am." Noatak appears to glance at my lips and then back at my eyes with a predatory smile. "But are you sure an old lady like you can keep up with me?"

"You sure a kid like you has enough skill for a woman like me?" I mock, licking my lips with growing anticipation.

"Oh, I'm sure you'd find me pleasing enough." He snickers cockily. "But I thought you said you weren't that kind of girl?"

"I'm making an exception." I kiss him way too hard but I was losing my patience with his little hard-to-get act, I'm too old to waste time dancing around what I want, then again it might have nothing to do with age since I've always been this way.

Noatak kisses back with just as much fire and passion, I've had eager partners before but the way his tongue snakes into my mouth and his lips crush mine in a bruising mash is almost too delicious to describe, I even like how our tongues battle each other in a slippery fire-flake flavored dance for control.

I break the kiss to gauge at his reaction but I don't even get a chance to look at his face because he's already planting kisses down my jaw and throat and murmuring into my ear something about his bed being a lot more comfortable than the concrete of the balcony. What a forward guy… I really do like him.

He actually carries me to bed, I'm not that drunk anymore and could have walked myself but I didn't expect him to be so strong and that surprises me enough to make me forget about objecting. Noatak was right too- he's bed with its down comforters is so fluffy that I almost feel like I'm sinking in clouds but I don't get to think about it too much because suddenly I'm tangled to him again, rolling all over the mattress until I'm straddling him and kissing him heatedly again.

I practically rip his shirt open, popping a whole lot of buttons in the process but he doesn't seem to mind at all and keeps kissing me back and practically sucking my tongue into his mouth while my hands roam on his hard muscular chest, tracing over the occasional little scar as his own hands take their sweet time slipping under my shirt and gliding up my body.

In yet another bout of impatience I sit up and toss off my shirt and bra altogether, watching the impressed and mildly stunned expression on his face as he admires my naked torso and generous bosom- they always stare, I'll never get the deal between guys and boobs but they always ogle mine like they're rare gems… I can't say I don't like the attention though.

I bend down to kiss him yet again and I feel his hand caress up my spine, it sends a slight shiver down my back and I don't complain at all when he pulls my hair loose of its main ponytail so it falls around me in a messy mane of chestnut locks, in fact I'm really that drunk anymore but I'm still all giggly and start to kiss along the strong line of his collarbone while I press to his delectable body.

The night is hot, my birthday falls right in the middle of one the hottest summer months and so the air around us is balmy and humid even with the slight breeze from the balcony but I can't unglue my body from his even when perspiration starts to dew on our skin, I actually feel the slightly salty taste of sweat as I lick down his chest in the most mesmerizing manner and the way he gasps when I slip off his pants makes me grin.

I like teasing my partners, I like how they fall apart so easily from something as simple as my mouth on their body, I like the way I can make strong proud men pant, moan, whimper and even beg just by licking and sucking the right spots in the right way but Noatak appears to have the same idea because he doesn't let me get that far. I'm not sure when he turned tables on me, I'm still a little woozy, but I find myself lying on my back in that cozy bed while he slowly slips off the rest of my clothing in an almost reverent way.

His hands gliding up my strong dark legs make me bite my lip with anticipation and the way he licks up my inner thigh with his eyes locked with mine is almost too sensual to describe, he's so slow and teasing that I almost want to feed myself to him and hold him to my crotch by his hair but I hold back because I know these ideas might just be the alcohol talking.

He was right when he said I'd find him pleasing enough, by the Spirits was he right! If I hadn't just met him I would have sworn that we've been together for years, he knows just what makes me tick, his tongue has a life of its own and although slightly sloppy and overly enthusiastic it is still talented to always stroke just right on that little spot that makes my legs quiver and rips moans from my throat.

My fingers tangle in his hair out of instinct when his suddenly explore my slippery depths, moving in time with the caresses of his skilled tongue. I cling to him and feel that tingly coil of pleasure growing stronger and stronger until it snaps, leaving me breathless while choked cries spill from my lips as my whole body twitches in his grasp, I can almost see stars behind closed lids that I can barely open even when I feel his weight crawling onto me and his hand cups my cheek softly.

"My, my… You are shockingly beautiful when you come, Korra." He purrs the words in the most outrageous tone, that voice makes me crave so much more and the sudden butterflies his little comment left in my stomach are making me self-conscious about the heat of his body pressing to mine.

"More." I demand, speaking into his lips as I pull him into a heated kiss.

"More?" Noatak murmurs between wet kisses, tracing up my flat stomach and flicking the dark pebbles of my nipples just hard enough to make me whimper. "More of what exactly? What would like, Korra?"

He's mocking me, apparently he gets has much pleasure from teasing his partners as I often do and I'm not sure whether that makes us incompatible or if it makes us even more perfect together than I thought, so far I'm leaning towards the latter option, I never knew not being the one in charge could be so… Satisfying.

"Take me." I plead on tenterhooks, wrapping my arms around his neck and my legs around his narrow waist for some shred of control.

"As you wish." Noatak retorts with a conniving smirk that could easily make me swoon if I were a teenager again. Scratch that, it makes me swoon anyway.

He kisses me again, I'm starting to like the shape of his lips pressed to mine a bit too much and the way his hands frame my hips to hold me in place makes me feel overpowered but I like it far more than I'll ever admit. I can feel him invading my body and I'm only vaguely aware that there's a condom between us, I didn't even think about the need for one until now but I'm glad one of us did; I'm shocked by just how well-endowed he is but I can't complain- I love the tight stretch and I revel in the sensation of every little ridge of his length grinding so deliciously to sensitive spots inside my body that I often I forget exist.

The pace is slow but he's not really gentle at all, he pushes into me deeply and hard enough that I feel the heated velvety tip of his shaft slam to the end of my channel and it makes a shudder crawl up my spine with every single thrust; every time his hips are flush against my body I can't help but let a moan slip out and every time he retreats little whimpered gasps dance on my lips. Noatak seems to like the sounds and when his hands crawl up to grope my generous breasts, making them change shape like dough in his large hands, and pinch my hardened nipples I can't help but let the noises spill out even louder.

I feel like I'm melting, sweat is starting to slide between my breasts and down my neck and the area between my legs is so sodden with slippery fluids of arousal that I can hear the wet sounds of our bodies smacking together all too lewdly. The rhythm is starting to pick up and I'm starting to become aware of the delicious sounds he makes too- he lets out the faintest panted moans that could easily be mistaken with pain if it were not for the intense way his face twists and look of utter passion in his icy eyes. I like that look, I like it so much that I'm sure I'll be thinking about it for months.

My nails start to rake down his back and he bites into my shoulder in return, I end up crying out as the dull pain of his teeth mingles so deliciously with the mind-numbing pleasure, it's rare to find a partner that won't mind the stinging pain I often inflict in the throes of passion but rather than complain or pin my hands down like so many others he actually appears to enjoy the scratches to his back, I'm pretty I'm clawing hard enough to break the skin but it just spurs him to quicken our pace and the bites and sucked bruises that he plants on my body in return are just this side of too painful and perfect to make everything else feel all the more intense.

He's a perfect match for me but I want some control back, the way he's delaying this to drive me insane is starting to do just that and my impatient self can't take it anymore. I hold onto Noatak tightly and without breaking our contact I roll onto him, straddling his hips and sitting up to ride my young lover almost frantically. My body undulates over his like wild waves during a storm and his hands are clinging to my thighs so tightly that I'm sure I'll have finger-shaped bruises in the morning but that doesn't stop me from moving faster and faster.

I toss my head back to get the hair off my face and let out delighted moans, that delightful peak is so close that I can almost taste it and this fast pace that makes sweat drip between my shoulder blades and down my cleavage is making dizzy but I just crave more and more of it.

Noatak suddenly shifts and sits up, he wraps his arms around me and forces me to slow down. I whine and barely register the words 'be patient' before I see him burying his face in my breasts; I can feel him kissing and biting just right to make me practically squeal in his arms for the several long minutes of slow lovemaking and teasing that he's subjecting me too.

I'm practically begging him to give me more, I'm pretty sure I order him to fuck me senseless but it just makes him laugh and lie back down, grinning mischievously though his hair is plastered to his perspired face and he's panting along with me.

"If you want it so much then go right ahead." Noatak snickers breathlessly as he allows me to pick up the pace again.

My hands are on his shoulders for purchase as I make the thrusts so much deeper and faster that I'm practically on the razor sharp edge of desire and the grinding of his steel-hard length in my heated core is wiring me so tightly that I'm sure I'm breathing out sparks of wayward bending.

"Fuck, Korra… At this pace…" He trails off in a teeth-grinding groan. Apparently I'm not the only one at my limit and that knowledge makes me glow with the strangest sort of vanity.

The sneaky bastard suddenly turns the tables on me again, he doesn't really move from his position but he's meeting my strokes to perfection and his hand slips between our bodies to rub my swollen little pearl with his thumb.

It's far too much to endure and I end up clinging to him as I try to ride out the mind-blowing climax that shoots through every nerve in my body like the waters over a broken dam washing me away, it makes me see white and causes me to lose control over my own muscles that spasm automatically so that I collapse over him in a shivering mess of sweaty limbs. I can see now why he touched me and practically forced the orgasm out of me- he wanted our timing to match and it did, I can't remember the last time I came at the same time as my partner but damn… It's amazing.

I can't get enough of the way he clings to me, the way his spams match mine, that look on his face, those heavy lidded eyes with dilated pupils, those parted lips from which unrestrained groans slip out, that flush on his beautifully sculpted young face and the way he holds me in a mess of sweaty tangled limbs as we catch our breaths and enjoy the almost intoxicating high. I could get addicted to this, to him.

"You… You really are beautiful when you come…" He murmurs out between pants and his hand tiredly runs through my damp hair. "But you're even prettier like this, Avatar Korra."

I want to answer, I want to tell him that I find him just as handsome right now but as I prepare to reply, the playful giggle dies out on my lips and I finally register his words and look at him with a slight frown starting to form on my face.

Avatar Korra. So he knew who I was from the start.

"So now it's Avatar, huh?" I mutter a little sourly. I don't know why I'm feeling hurt, I guess I just hoped he had liked me for me and not because of my title, maybe he does but now I can't be sure.

"You thought I didn't know?" He sounds amused and his breath is starting to come more evenly. "I suppose you also thought it was a coincidence that I was at the bar?"

"What are you talking about?" I want to sit up but I'm feeling too sluggish so I just lie next to him with suspicious eyes.

"I was after you from the start, I have been for a while now but you are hard to catch alone." Noatak smiles charmingly and faces me without a shred of shame.

"That so?" Now I'm even more wary. "Why not just talk to me?"

"I tried but you weren't open to negotiation." He shrugs slightly but that smile is still there.

"Negotiation?" My surprise shows through and my eyes narrow with further suspicion. "…Who are you really?"

"I was surprised you didn't recognize my voice right away." Noatak chuckles and traces his own face to emphasize his next words. "Perhaps it's just not the same without the mask."

"… You're Amon?" I smirk skeptically. I was actually afraid of the masked man at first but I eventually just became irritated with his scheming and intrigued by his powers, now… Well, I can't believe the leader of a massive revolution is so young and easygoing. "You? Seriously?"

"Is that so hard to believe?" He's almost nonchalant about it but I'm starting to recognize the voice, it's softer and more jovial without the mask but quite the same.

"What do you want?" I finally sit up and cross my arms, I'm not ashamed of my nudity or angry as I should be, I'm actually weirdly curious. Maybe it's just because the afterglow of delicious sex is keeping me from thinking rationally.

"As you know, I've been wanting to discuss a truce with you. I had planned to do so tonight whether you wanted or not." Noatak's reply is so dark that now I'm really sure he's Amon but I'm still unfazed.

"And how would you do that?" I ask defiantly.

"Oh, we had a plan feed you a spiked drink and carry you to our base where we would discuss the matter with force if need be." He retorts so casually that I almost don't believe him but then I remember the confused look on the barman's face when he changed the order from sake to beer and it starts to make sense- they were in it together.

"Why didn't you?" I want to get defensive but instead I'm curious as to what changed such a competent plan.

"You didn't recognize me. And you were… different from what I expected." For the first time he looks away and a slight flush colors his ears pink, I wonder what he means by all this. "So I changed plans and decided that we could do this amicably."

"You call sleeping with me amicable?" I almost want to laugh.

"Isn't it?" He does laugh and I find it hard not to smirk as well.

"Well, as amusing as it was I'm not about to give in to Equalist demands." I state, trying very hard to sound serious and unmovable.

"Aren't you?" Noatak doesn't seem worried and that innerves me.

"No." I state with finality, ready for all his arguments.

"Alright." He smiles yet again, it's so carefree that I frown suspiciously again.

"That's it? Just 'alright'?" I wonder, this can't be all there is to it, he's up to something.

"Yes. If you refuse to compromise I won't force you." His words are perfectly polite.

"You won't?" I'm so suspicious now that I can feel an odd tingle on the nape of my neck, a tell-tale sign that something is wrong.

"No." He shakes his head and then makes a phony pensive expression. "However…"

"However what?" I snap a little impatiently.

"Avatar Korra, what exactly is the age of adulthood in the United Republic?" Noatak asks.

"Twenty-one." I reply, wondering where he's going with this. In the Water Tribe it's sixteen so I kind of wonder if he's asking because he really doesn't know or if he's up to something, I'm sure it's the latter.

"Oh my… We are in a rather awkward situation then." The fake air of surprise he puts on ticks me off a little.

"How so?" I insist, I'm starting to get annoyed.

"I'm not even twenty yet." Noatak smirks at me, it's that predatory squid-shark grin again but now it makes me nervous rather than makes me swoon. "Oh dear, very awkward indeed. The Avatar sleeping with a minor she picked up in a bar, of all places? I wonder what would happen to your reputation if this little escape of ours became public…"

"Son-of-a-bitch." I'm trying to stay angry but to be honest I'm impressed, I never imagined someone so young could lead a whole revolution and the fact that he's trapped someone as powerful and experienced as me so well is pretty impressive. He has a huge pair of balls to do this to someone as fearsome as me yet he's not being arrogant but confident to unusual heights and he was willing to risk himself like this and do everything for his cause… Somehow I'm starting to respect this guy in some twisted way.

"Come on, Korra. Don't be stubborn, we could end this war in a way that would benefit us both." He pleads with that charming tone that makes my insides do flip-flops. "And you know you liked what we had tonight, I did too. We can be a phenomenal match together and nobody would have to know so long as you agree to compromise with us."

"You used me and you still think I'll let you come near me again after tonight?" I shoot at him acidly even though he's right and I really do wish I could repeat the night again… It's not about a relationship of course, not after a single night, we're just such a good match and this is a guy that probably won't complain about looking old before me so it could be fun to explore this strange chemistry of ours.

"Yes, I did use you but it was for a higher cause and I truly enjoyed it nonetheless. I could have gone with the original plan but I liked you enough that I opted for this route." Noatak defends rationally.

"I could just shut you up right now and nobody would know." I counter a little darkly, I wouldn't ever kill a person for such a selfish reason but the threat has worked well in the past.

"You could but there are witnesses that you left with me, the scandal would affect you anyway and wouldn't it be easier to avoid the drama and just enjoy this peaceful solution?" He offers, completely unfazed by the menace.

"And what exactly are you asking of me?" To be honest I'm starting to cave, I know I've been stubborn about this matter for months but that's just how I am- I want to win it all rather than compromise but perhaps this time being a little humble might work out for the best.

"You know the answer to that, I've sent you that information time and time again. I'll cease blocking people's bending and my troops will retire but in return there have to be bigger penalties for bender criminals who abuse their skills, there has to be an equal number of non-benders and benders in the senate, social equality between both sides and redistribution of wealth must be promoted and so on." He recites and then waves the matter off because he's right, I do know all this already.

"…" I hesitate and my lips quirk. I'm too stubborn to admit it but I want to accept his offer.

"Well…?" He enquires when I take too long to reply.

"I'll consider it." It's the best I can manage. If only I could agree and still have the upper hand and feel proud I'd definitely just accept and put this matter behind me.

"What about the rest of the government?" Noatak doesn't seem satisfied yet.

"If I accept the deal so will they. I've gained enough respect as Avatar over the years." I snicker because it's true, they called me to fix this matter so they have to bow to what I decide concerning it.

"I need more than just a maybe." He's so serious that it's annoying me, I want that cocky smirk back. Actually, I want it enough that I've decided what I'm going to do- he can get his little truce but in return I get him.

"I'll accept it to avoid bloodshed and if you keep your mouth shut about tonight and… If you can prove to me just how much you like me." I grin and move close, tapping his nose much like he did to me when I was so inebriated earlier.

"Hm…" The smirk starts to spread on his face and he pounces and pins we down under his body with his hands lacing into mine. "That shouldn't be a problem at all, Korra."

~~~~~~.:oOo..~~~~~~

(Author's Note: I finally managed to finish this! Family illnesses and work have been getting in the way so I haven't had time to do anything for myself lately.

This is the last one-shot for my Amorra AU Week submissions, the remaining two (Crossover AU and Historical AU) will be posted on tumblr as fanart.

This one-shot works under the fandom headcanon that Avatars can live longer lives with extended youth such as Avatar Kyoshi who lived to be 230. It's not a theory I usually accept in my stories at all but I figured it would be fun for this one so I adopted it just this once.

And since people have been asking- yes, I might continue the College AU and the Sci-Fi AU after I finish my "Sugar Momma" story.)