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The first thing Korra became aware of was the sounds of fighting and indistinguishable shouting. Her eyes refused to open but her ears picked up the thud of a large body slamming into something hard. There was a grunt and a few seconds of someone breathing heavily. She felt a pair of rough hands lift her from the ground and gently place her against the wall. Korra's eyes felt so heavy and every part of her body felt icy with pain.

"You traitor." She heard Zaheer growl somewhere nearby. The fighting started again, with awful thuds echoing in her brain like bricks. With one final crack, Korra heard a body drop heavily to the ground like deadweight. There was heavy silence until the hands returned, poking parts of her face and pushing gently on her nose.

"Wake up," A deep voice instructed, "Come on." Korra slowly forced her eyes to open. The world spun dangerously and the light from an overhead light made her eyes sear with pain. Ghazan kneeled in front of her, a nasty cut on the side of his cheek was dripping blood. Korra gazed at him in bleary confusion, eyes lolling around until they landed on Zaheer's unconscious body lying next to her. Her stomach clenched and the she snapped out of confusion.

"Asami!" Korra choked out, nearly jumping up from the ground. Ghazan held her back gently.

"Hold on," He said, "You're pretty banged, up just breathe for a minute."
"I don't have a minute," Korra croaked, her throat felt like it had been stepped on, "They took Asami." Ghazan sucked in a deep breath, cursing quietly.

"If that's true…"

"What? Have you seen this before?" Korra asked wildly.

"A couple times," Ghazan sighed, "I've never seen a girl come back from it." Korra shrugged his hand off her shoulder and stood up with immense difficulty.

"They're not getting her," She vowed ferociously, "Come on I need your help." Her swollen wrist dangled uselessly by her side and every breath felt like she was being stabbed, but they weren't getting Asami even over her dead body. Of course she had no idea where they even took Asami and there was no time to wander around aimlessly in search of her. Korra turned and gave Zaheer a swift kick in the ribs. He coughed and groaned, rolling over onto his back. Ghazan grabbed him by the collar and forced him against the grimy dumpster. His nose was turned completely to the side and gushing relentlessly.

"Where did they take Asami?" Korra yelled forcefully, jabbing a finger into his chest.

"Bet you'd like to know." He panted with a laugh, "She's probably in a million pieces by now." Korra swung her knee mercilessly into his gut, eliciting a horrible wheezing noise from Zaheer.

"You've got five seconds or you're the one that's going to end up in pieces." Ghazan said menacingly, pulling a switchblade from the front of his jacket.

"You think that tiny thing scares me?" Zaheer sneered, spitting a mouthful of blood onto Ghazan's coat, "I'm afraid of nothing." Korra looked helplessly at Ghazan as precious seconds ticked by. Korra's agitation skyrocketed and she began to punch Zaheer anywhere she could reach, ending with an elbow to the temple.

"Don't knock him out, knucklehead!" Ghazan shouted sternly, tugging Korra back by her jacket collar.

"I need answers!" She groaned in exasperation.

"I don't know for sure," Ghazan said after a moment of thought, "But I think they took Asami to basement."

"What makes you so sure?" Korra said, "I can't take the chance that you're wrong."

"I've seen Zolt take problematic customers and employees down there," Ghazan mused, "But I've never seen them come back out."

"I need you to be positive." Korra said slowly, trying to emphasize how important this was.

"It's the only lead you've got," Ghazan said tensely, "You're gonna have to trust me."

"Them I'm going there." Korra said, "Thank you for everything." She wrenched open the back door and was prepared to break into a mad sprint.

"What are you thinking?" Ghazan called, "You can't go alone in that condition."

"We can't leave him here either." Korra sighed, "You're gonna have to trust me." She winked and bolted down the dim hallway. Korra peaked around the end corner before inching into the maintenance hallway. Three identical gray doors circled the end of the hall, only one of them leading to the basement. Korra gritted her teeth, knowing she already wasted way too much time interrogating Zaheer with Ghazan. She gave an adrenaline-fueled snort and charged into the far left door, nearly losing her balance on the concrete stairs.

"Wow lucky me." Korra muttered, tip-toeing down the staircase and trying to calm her erratic heartbeat. The temperature dropped with each step lower into the moldy smelling basement. Korra finally reached the bottom and jumped behind a stack of boxes when an overhead light clicked on. Zolt, two of his remaining bouncers, and a struggling Asami were bathed in the dusty yellow light. Korra sucked in a nervous breath, wincing slightly at the stabbing pain in her chest.

"Go watch the door," Zolt barked at one of his thugs, "Not that you'll have any problems unless that girl turned came back to life."

"You're lying!" Asami yelled, struggling even harder against the grip on her arms.

"Look at the phone missy." Zolt chuckled, holding the bright screen up to Asami's face, "Zaheer's message is bright as day." Korra looked on in confusion, wondering what Ghazan had done after she ran off.

"Let's get this over with," The bouncer said, forcing Asami into a rickety chair. She slumped over forward in defeat, letting out a few sobs while Zolt pulled on a pair of black gloves.

"Oh honey don't cry," He said in mock concern, kneeling down, "We'll make it quick I promise." Asami mumbled something under her voice. Zolt huffed in confusion, leaning closer and asking Asami to repeat. Korra was about to jump from behind her stack of boxes when Asami whiped her head upwards, effectively smashing her skull into Zolt's vulnerable face.

Zolt screeched in pain, clutching his now pouring nose. Asami lept up and kicked her leg heavily into the side of his head. He fell straight to the floor, knocked out cold. The bouncer lept forward, sweeping Asami's legs out from beneath her. She hit the floor hard and rolled out of the way of another kick.

"Asami!" Korra yelled, jumping from her hiding place with her good fist raised.

"Shin get down here!" The bouncer bellowed, taking advantage of Asami's shock to grab her neck.

"What is with you guys and choking?" Korra yelled, jabbing her knee into the bouncer's kidney. He released his hands from Asami's neck and fell to the floor, rolling in pain. Asami coughed and clutched Korra's face in her hands.

"They said you were dead." She whispered, eyes wide and soaking in every fiber of Korra they could see.

"I'm barely breathing." Korra said with a lopsided grin, pulling Asami up from the floor. With no time for more interaction, Shin came bolting down the stairs. He jumped right into action, aiming a kick for Korra's injured ribs. She dodged and used her good hand to try and uppercut Shin who grabbed her fist and threw it sideways. Asami was busy with the other bouncer who had recovered very quickly from Korra's attack, though he was moving much slower than before.

Korra could feel her adrenaline fading as her body became more and more resistant to movement. She gave a rolling dodge to one of Shin's kicks, legs giving out underneath her. Korra struggled to get up, every part of her body screeching at the strain.

"Looks like your body is ready to quit on you." Shin sneered, glaring down at Korra. He lashed out and hooked his fingers around her broken wrist, twisting it roughly. Korra gave a high-pitched shout, writhing her body against the dirty floor. She dug her nails into the concrete, not daring to try and pull her hand out of his grip. Korra looked past Shin to see Asami struggling with the other bouncer, now resorting to dodging his blows instead of returning them.

"Fuck you." Korra wheezed strenuously through her teeth. She used her now broken fingernails to claw the side of Shin's face. Long jagged tears cut into his skin, making him release Korra's wrist and cry out in agony. She swung her arm back around, smashing it into the side of his head, making him drop almost comically to the floor. Korra used the last of her strength to charge at the other bouncer.

Apparently she and Asami had the same idea.

Korra's knee landed deep in his back and Asami's foot pulverized his face.

The bouncer gave a moan, knees buckling dangerously, and crashed to the floor. Asami caught her breath, realizing she was no longer in danger, and ran to Korra. Korra buried her head in the crook of Asami's neck, too exhausted to say anything. They fell to their knees, not breaking the embrace, and sat there for a very long time, just breathing and accepting the fact that they were alive. Korra's heartbeat refused to slow down and she could feel herself slipping into something unknown. Unconsciousness? A coma? Death? She was too tired to make heads or tails of it.

"Hey 'Sami," She mumbled, "I think I'm dying." Then she felt nothing but two hands squeezing her shoulders impossibly tight.

/

Korra awoke what seemed like hours later. She was being dragged down a dark hallway by two people talking frantically. Her body reacted aggressively, thinking she was being taken by Zaheer again. She lashed out at the body to her left, aiming to break his nose.

"Hey hey it's okay!" Ghazan said, "You're okay."

Korra gagged as pain rocketed through her body at the sudden movement. Flashing red and blue lights seared at her eyes and she was dragged closer and closer to the exit. Cool night air washed over Korra's face and she gratefully took in deep breaths, trying to ignore the staggering pain in her throat chest. Her eyes dropped closed again as she felt herself being passed off to another pair of arms. This time the voices were gruff and authoritative, barking orders left and right. Out of all the noise, there was a sweet, calm voice calling out to Korra.

"I'm here," It said, and she would feel a soft hand grip her arm.

"Ma'am we have to sedate her." A man's voice interrupted the chime of the woman speaking. The urge to sleep clutched Korra's brain and she fought until the very end, trying to reach for that sweet sound.

/

Korra finally awoke for good. She gazed blearily around the hospital room, finding it completely empty. She tried to sit up but exhaled forcefully at the sharp pain in her ribs. Korra fell back against her pillows, wondering what was going on. She remembered getting the shit beat out of her, the alleyway with Zaheer (the thought sent a pang of panic through her stomach), finding Asami in the basement, fighting side by side and kicking ass. Everything after that was pretty much a blank space. Korra reached over and pushed the aid button. A nurse came bustling in with a wide smile.

"I'm glad you're finally awake." She said, "Your friends were getting worried."

"How long have I been out?" Korra asked, observing her heavily casted wrist.

"About a day and a half." The nurse said, "You're parents are on the way from the Southern Water Tribe."

"What did you tell them?" Korra said with a grimace, knowing they wouldn't be happy to learn about her involvement with a strip club gang.

"We had to tell them everything." The nurse said with a compassionate smile, "They're not angry. Just relieved." Korra sighed and leaned her head back against the pillows.

"Was a girl here?" She asked, sitting up too fast once again.

"Easy on those ribs," The nurse advised urgently, "Three of them are broken."

"What about the girl?" Korra asked again, ignoring her advice.

"You haven't had any recent visitors except your friends Bolin and Opal." The nurse said, "I can go get them if you like?"

"Sure." Korra muttered, feeling deflated. Why hadn't Asami come to see her? Korra would've thought that the one person to be here by her side would be Asami, considering everything they just went though. After a few minutes, Bolin came bursting through the hospital door, followed by Opal. He practically fell over on Korra's bed, sobbing.

"Korra!" He cried, "You've returned from the freezing clutches of death!"

"I wasn't going to die," Korra said with a gentle smile, patting him on the back.

"When we got the call we rushed right over here!" Bolin sniffled, "Why would you go and do something so risky like that?"

"I didn't want to drag anyone into my business Bo." Korra explained, "We would've been sharing a hospital room right now."

"And I would've happily done so," He said, snapping to a salute.

"So what's the damage?" Opal asked, cutting into the conversation.

"Broken wrist, broken ribs, bruised throat, I'm not really sure what else." Korra said, ticking the injuries off her fingers, "Is there anything on my face?"

"You're eye is black," Opal said, tilting Korra's face back and forth, "Lotta bruises on your cheeks and a split lip."

"Oh Opal, tell me I'm still beautiful." Korra wailed mockingly, "My looks are all I have!"

Bolin and Opal stayed in the hospital room up until the nurse announced that Korra's parents had just arrived. They gave her hopeful looks and left to give her some space with her mother and father who nearly came sprinting into the hospital room. They fired a barrage of questions at Korra immediately, not giving her any chance to give a straight answer. After they calmed down, she gave them a watered down version of the story, trying to make is sound less intentional than it was.

They accepted her version with a simultaneous sigh of relief when Korra told them that all the people involved had been arrested. She was hugged over and over, feeling slightly guilty that she had put them through so much worry and stress.

The number one thing nagging at Korra's mind was Asami. Where was she? Neither Bolin nor Opal had any idea where Asami had gone after Korra had been escorted to the hospital. It was such an odd thing not seeing her after all they had been through. Korra felt like she was missing a chunk of herself in a way.

She was finally discharged from the hospital two days later when the doctors decided she was healed enough to get around on her own. A nurse wheeled her to the automatic front doors, chattering away about wrist exercises Korra could do to speed up the bone healing process. Her parents stopped at the front desk to discuss medical insurance with the receptionist while the nurse wheeled Korra out the front entrance. Korra gave a grateful inhale of fresh air.

"Looks like you've got a friend waiting for you." The nurse said. Korra looked around in confusion, heart nearly exploding when she saw Asami waiting on the sidewalk. Her face was knotted in concern and her arms were crossed tightly across her chest. Korra hopped out of the wheelchair, stumbling slightly and grunting in pain. The nurse politely but firmly told her to take it easy before turning back into the building.

Korra ignored her and hobbled as fast as she could up to Asami whose face darkened.

"Asami!" Korra called, raising her good hand in a frantic wave. She launched herself into Asami's arms, squeezing her in a tight hug.

It wasn't returned.

Korra pulled back and looked quizzically at Asami's face, feeling the sting of apprehension. Asami gazed at the sidewalk, apparently chewing over her choice of words.

"Korra…" She started. Korra immediately knew where this was going to go.

"Asami stop," She interrupted, "I know what you're trying to do."

"Then why are you trying to stop me?" Asami's voice trembled slightly, "This is my fault."

"No, just no. They would've killed you if I hadn't shown up right?" Korra said firmly. Asami gave a small nod, still looking at the sidewalk. Korra reached up and brushed Asami's hair off her neck, revealing a string of faded bruises.

"This," She continued, "Is nothing compared to what they would've done if I decided to bail." Asami grabbed Korra's hand and held it close to her chest, trying to squeeze back tears.

"I was too afraid," Asami said with a shuddering breath, "Too afraid to see you lying there. They didn't know if you were going to be okay." Korra stepped forward and leaned into Asami's embrace, closing her eyes and wrapping her other arm around securely around her.

"It's over now." Korra mumbled, "We don't have to be afraid anymore."

/

"I can't believe how white my hand is!" Korra whined, looking at every inch of her now cast-free wrist, "Can you believe this?"

"That's what happens when you're skin is kept in a cast for eight weeks." Asami said matter-of-factly, "Hey watch where you're flinging those skin flakes!" Korra had begun scratching at her arm, sending a flurry of peeling skin onto Asami's pants.

"Wow that is disgusting." Korra said, holding her arm at length, "Remind me to not break anymore bones."

"Maybe if you stop falling for strippers it won't happen again." Asami teased, laughing at Korra's spluttering.

"I'm just glad to have it off," Korra sighed contently, "It got in the way of everything I did. I miss punching Bolin, he's been getting away with too many smug remarks lately."

"Well then here's your chance to get it out of your system," Asami said, pointing forward, "There's Bolin and Opal." The couple was standing outside of a burger restaurant, Bolin waving frantically to the pair.

"Guess we're right on time then." Korra said, cracking her knuckles mischievously. She rushed forward with a loud boom of "Bolin!" and sank her knuckles into his shoulder. He screeched loudly, then lowered his voice to a deep wail, and rubbing his arm with a painful expression.

"What's up with them?" Opal asked Asami as Korra chased Bolin around the parking lot, laughing evilly at her prey's fear.

"Korra's just really excited to have her cast off." Asami remarked casually.

"-This is for the fish jokes- This is for the scissors jokes-" Korra was relentless in her attack on Bolin, chasing him in laps around the parking lot.

Asami reached out and tugged Korra's wrist when the two zoomed by again. Korra yanked to a stop, nearly losing her balance at the sudden force.

"Asami you almost tore my arm off!" Korra said, rubbing her wrist.

"If you'll stop trying to murder Bolin we can go inside and get food." Asami replied, kissing Korra's wrist as an apology. Korra immediatly brightened up and peered around the lot.

"White flag!" Korra bellowed. They all heard a loud sigh of relief as Bolin wriggled out from underneath a car.

"Thank you." He bowed humbly to Asami, "Now let's eat I'm starved!"

/

Later that night, Korra and Asami lay cuddled up in Korra's apartment; Bolin and Opal had run off to some new water attraction that involved giant Turtleduck boat rides. Korra had her arms wrapped around Asami's shoulders, humming quietly under her breath and rubbing her now cast-free hand up and down Asami's arm. Things had been so peaceful lately and Korra was definitely grateful. Asami was done stripping, working instead at a small building design company a few miles down the road. Korra still worked at the music shop but didn't really mind it. Whatever got the bills paid was fine with her.

"You know what I miss a litte?" Asami said. Korra hummed contently in response, "I miss giving lapdances to you." That got Korra's attention.

"Uhh-I- you do?" Korra stuttered in surprise. Asami sat up, purposely dragging her hands across Korra's chest and stomach. She grabbed a remote from the end table and got up to fiddle around with the sound system, finally stopping on an R&B station. The music was slow with a heavy beat that vibrated under their feet. Asami crawled into Korra's lap, wrapping her hands around Korra's shoulders.

"I can't believe I've never brought this up before." Korra practically moaned, "Now I can let my hands wander all I want."

"As if you had any restrictions in those private rooms," Asami said, laughing at Korra's blush. She ground their hips together along with the beat, hands roaming freely and her lips sucking gently on Korra's collarbone. Asami was definitely at master at her craft, knowing every possible thing that could make Korra's melt in her seat. Asami's pulled off Korra's t-shirt and ran her hands over her black sports bra, trailing down to the waistband of her boardshorts.

"I don't even care what boxers I'm wearing anymore," Korra said confidently, waving her hand for Asami to continue. Asami happily obliged and shimmied down Korra's shorts, letting out a whistle.

"I actually really like these." Asami said, snapping the elastic band against Korra's hips, "Where did you manage to find boxers with pickles all over them?"

"I've got my ways," Korra said, pulling Asami down for a deep kiss.

"By the time I'm done with you, you'll probably need a new pair." Asami whispered against Korra's ear, sending a pleasant shiver up her spine.

"Maybe we should do this lapdance thing more often," Korra said against Asami's neck.

"What's in it for me?" Asami asked teasingly, running her fingers up Korra's thighs in quick, feather-light strokes.

"Anything you want if you keep doing that," Korra nearly hyperventilated, fingernails scraping at Asami's back. Asami laughed breezily and brought her lips back to Korra's, kissing her slowly.

"I love you." She said with her lips pressed against Korra's cheek.

"I love you too." Korra said gingerly.

"What do you say we go meet Bolin and Opal out at the Turtleduck pond?" Asami said, pulling Korra's shorts back up on her legs.

"Fine," Korra groaned, buttoning her shorts "But you owe me big time when we get back."

Asami leaned down and gave Korra another sweet kiss before pulling her up off the couch.

"You ready for the ride of your life?" Asami asked, squeezing Korra's hand.

"Sounds perfect." Korra said, giving a squeeze back. She let Asami lead her out the door and into the rest of forever.