Muscles

Summary: Modern/AU. Kuvira and Korra meet up in the gym. Oneshot for kuvirasenpai's birthday!

Korra let out soft grunts with every arm curl, silently thanking those who avoided the gym like a plague. She was lifting two sixty-five pound dumbbells, watching her muscles flex in the mirror; smiling at every ripple and tremor. She looked up as someone entered the room. She spotted a long black braid and rolled her eyes. Korra easily carried the two sixty-five pound dumbbells. She walked over to a bench, before plopping herself down. She looked over at the other girl, who had just jumped up onto a treadmill, before frowning.

The two were roughly the same size, height, and build. Korra instantly felt her competitive side rearing its ugly head. She watched as the other girl quickly picked up her pace to a sprint. She held the speed for a good minute and a half, not looking winded or tried at all. Their eyes locked in the mirror.

Korra quickly ducked her head and continued to work on her rep. A light beeping sound filled the room as the other girl slowed down her treadmill to a walk. She jumped of before picking up her water bottle and squeezing a stream of liquid into her mouth. She swallowed loudly before walking over.

"Are you sizing me up?" the girl asked. The darker girl picked her head up, still pumping her arms, to look at the other girl. "Not that I mind, but you could do a better job."

Korra bit the inside of her cheek to bite back a response. She slowly placed the two dumbbells onto the ground before straightening up and glaring over at the other girl. "What makes you think I was sizing you up?"

"The fact that your eyes didn't leave me, not once, since I entered the room," she answered with a smirk. She held out her hand, and looked pointedly at the other girl. "I'm Kuvira."

Korra stared at the pale hand in front of her. She looked up at Kuvira and then back down at the hand a few times before filling grasping it firmly. "Korra."

"I know."

"Oh, wait." Korra tapped her chin with her finger, tilting her head to the side. Kuvira's eyebrows raised in surprise as a smile formed on the other girls face. "I know who you are. You're the dancer who always blasts their music in the room next door." She snapped her fingers.

"Yeah, I'll admit to that." Kuvira released her grip before brushing her braided ponytail off of her shoulder. "I get lost in the music sometimes."

"And you're also the one who stays and stares at me when I work on my yoga," Korra chuckled. Kuvira's eyes slowly widened as the words

"…You noticed that

"Let's just say I'm connected to people's spiritual energy." Korra picked up the two dumbbells from the ground. She sent Kuvira a cheeky smile before walking over to the rack where the rest of the dumbbells were. She dropped them in place before stretching her arms over her head.

Kuvira cleared her throat before reaching up and rubbing her glabella. "You have an interesting nickname for an MMA fighter, Avatar Korra," she said, quickly changing the subject.

Korra looked at her out of her peripheral. "I'm just that good," she said while flexing her arm muscles.

"So you say." Kuvira answered. The light and airy tone of her voice caused the darker girl to turn face her. Korra tried hard not to lash out and physically wipe off the smirk from her face. "Let's put that to a test."

"What kind of test?" she demanded.

"How about pushups?" Kuvira shrugged. She reached out and poked Korra in her bicep. "With your form it shouldn't be too hard for you," she added.

"You're right." Korra placed her hands onto her hips. She puffed up her chest, before lifting her right arm and pressing her lips to the bulging muscles. "I hold the pushup record for this gym."

"Then how about we make things harder?" Kuvira suggested. She walked across the room and grabbed a few mats. Korra watched with a raised eyebrow as she pulled the mats with ease. Kuvira dropped them in the center of the room and quickly moved them side by side. "Add weights," she explained once she caught a look at Korra's expression. "The more your muscles work to push the extra weight, the easier it is to do once it comes off." She nodded down at the mats before shifting them a bit with the tip of her toe. "Get down on the ground into position," she ordered.

Korra shrugged before dropping down onto her stomach in the middle of the mats. She shifted her gaze to a few feet in front of herself. She moved her arms into a wide stance, palms flat onto the mats. "How do I know when to start?" she asked without lifting her head.

"You'll know." Korra couldn't help but grunt when she felt pressure being put into her back. It was redistributed so that a majority of it was near the middle of the back, and not too far back near the base of her spine to become a potential injury. "Go ahead," Kuvira ordered her voice all of a sudden closer.

"Yes, general," she muttered. Korra caught a little bit of her reflection in the mirror .Her eyes scanned the dips and curves of every arm muscle. She smirked at her reflection before rolling her eyes. She firmly planted her hands onto the ground and pushed. She gasped in shock when she didn't move an inch. She frowned and tried again with the same result. Korra tensed up, and counted to three in her head, before flexing her muscles and pushing.

A few seconds later she felt her elbows lock at a ninety degree angle. She exhaled sharply and held the position before dropping down again.

"That's one," Kuvira said while poking her in the back of her head. "What was your record?"

"A lot," Korra muttered. She lifted her head and caught her reflection in the mirror. She couldn't help but smile when she noticed Kuvira seated cross legged on her back, with one elbow resting on her knee, and her chin propped up in her palm. "Are you enjoying yourself?" she asked.

"A bit," she answered with a shrug.

Korra started to laugh a bit, causing her arms to quiver. She lowered herself fully to the ground, careful to keep Kuvira balanced on her back. "Why do I get the feeling you're using this as an excuse just to get near my muscles?" she asked.

"Keep your friends close and your enemies closer," Kuvira answered stoically. "How else will i beat your record?"

"You keep telling yourself that," the darker girl muttered in response.

Kuvira reached behind her and slapped Korra on her right ass cheek. "You only did one. You have plenty more to go, Avatar."