Chapter Text
How It’s Going...
Asami
Asami laughed, and swatted the drunk old lecher’s hand away from her skirts. “Just wait until I tell your wife!” she exclaimed, as she passed pints of beer to the various old fools around the table.
It was loud in the tavern, between the sounds of voices talking at or over one another, and live music being sung and played by a guitarist in the corner. Sometimes, the tavern would get quiet, for one reason or another, and the customers would realize how talented the musician actually was.
Most of the time it was so loud that they could barely even hear her.
In the month she had worked at the tavern, she had more than gotten used to the habits of the patrons of The Loft, as the place was called. When she had first started working, she had asked the owner who hired her why it was called that, when there was no loft in the building that she could tell.
“There used to be,” the bald man had replied, a little wistfully.
He had said no more, though, so Asami had put the information aside, and quickly learned the ins and outs of being a tavern wench in a small, rundown town. It was not particularly onerous, most of the time, though some customers got mean when they drank, and others, like the old man she had just passed another beer to, got adventurous in ways that they shouldn’t.
She had quickly learned to deal with unwanted advances with a laugh and a smile. None of the regulars ever took it further than an occasional attempted feel, as they did not want to be banned from the tavern.
Her partner had taken the boorish behaviour of some drunks with more anger than Asami did, in fact, but had not acted on that anger.
The two of them had a job to do, after all, one that the tavern’s owner knew nothing about.
“It will be our little secret!” the old man yelled loudly as he leaned back towards Asami, his hands outstretched once more.
The guitar music and singing from the corner of the tavern faltered slightly, but then resumed instantly.
“Really?” Asami replied, with a fake look of surprise on her face. “But isn’t that her there?” she asked, gesturing towards the door.
“Wait? What!” the old drunk yelled, as he looked frantically towards the door.
She laughed, finished putting the drinks on the table, and headed back to the bar. She had only taken a few steps when the old man’s friends started laughing, as well, as they realized they had all been fooled.
She got back to the bar without further incident.
“They bothering you?” the bartender asked, a scowl on her face. A large, muscular woman with scarring on the left side of her head, the bartender may not have owned the tavern, but she was the one truly in charge.
“No more than usual,” Asami replied with an only slightly forced smile.
She faced the bartender at an angle, so that she could both converse, and keep an eye on her tables. It was rare that she got more than a few moments to stand still on any evening during the rush, so she enjoyed the short break while she had it.
It also gave her an angle to see the guitar player, who looked at Asami briefly, then went back to her playing without any further acknowledgement. The job came first, after all.
Even if it was not the job that the owner had hired them each for.
“You are way too pretty to be working at a place like this,” the bartender said. Her eyes drifted over to the musician, and then back to Asami. “Not that I blame them, in some ways,” she said, “I might have taken a shot myself, but I can see what’s up.”
Asami smiled again, and her smile was more genuine this time. She looked the bartender up and down. The woman was, somehow, packing even more muscles than Korra was, and was, as Asami had learned over the course of the previous month, an absolute sweetheart.
Unless you fucked with the staff. Then you had better run.
“You definitely would have had a better chance than the drunks do, Maellara,” she said.
“Ha!” Maellara laughed. “I’d be insulted if I didn’t!” Once again, she looked over at the musician. “You two are both overqualified for this place. Why are you here?”
“We like to travel,” Asami answered honestly, “and that takes money.”
It wasn’t the complete answer, of course, but it was true. The people the two of them did “jobs” for tended not to be able to pay very well, after all.
Maellara’s demeanour shifted instantly, and she glanced quickly at the giant axe hanging horizontally behind the bar.
Asami had wondered what the story behind the axe was, but had never felt comfortable enough to ask. She knew that there was a crossbow behind the bar, as well, so it was interesting that Maellara’s eyes had flickered to the axe and not the ranged weapon.
“Fuck,” the large woman snarled. “They’re early. You weren’t supposed to be working the day they showed up.”
“Why not?” Asami asked, though she was pretty sure she knew the answer. She appreciated the woman’s concern, as unnecessary as it was.
“The Viper gang. They are takers,” Maellara replied as people started noticing the newcomers. “Takers of wealth. Takers of lives.”
The tavern got quiet, and more than a few people started making for the exit. The musician’s music trailed off.
“Takers of people,” the bartender finished.
“I see,” Asami said softly.
“We’re not ready with this month’s payment yet,” Maellara muttered.
“Is the head of the gang part of this group?” Asami asked as she watched the gang members kick a group of travellers out of their table, and took it over for themselves.
“Wench!” one of the gang members yelled out. “Beer!”
“Zolt?” Maellara scoffed. “Nah, we never see him. Don’t even know what he looks like.”
“Pity,” Asami said. She looked back at Maellara. “Better get pouring. We wouldn’t want to keep our new customers waiting.”
“Beer!” the man yelled once again.
“Coming!” Asami called back.
“And what happened to the music!” another one yelled. “Keep playing!”
Asami looked over at the musician, and gave a small nod. Patience, Korra.
Korra started playing and singing again, and Asami gathered up the mugs of beer for the new table. The old timers had sneaked out without paying, she noticed, but their tab would still be there when they came back.
And they would come back, she had no doubt. The old-timers fit under the description of “fun guys to have a beer with,” but having a beer with someone did not make them useful. Most of the old guys were drinking their family’s hard earned money, whether the family knew it or not.
One of the gang members whistled as she approached.
“Where have you been all my life, beautiful!” he called out.
“Fucking your mother,” she replied as she handed out mugs of beer. “Are you paying right now, or starting a tab?”
The entire table went silent for a moment, and then burst into laughter. “Oh, I like this one!” the original yelling man exclaimed.
“Starting a tab!” another spat out, while laughing.
The final gang member punched the one she had mocked in the shoulder. “You better check up on your mom, Ping, it sounds like she is getting way more action than you are!”
“Any at all would be more than Ping gets, with his fucking “lucky” toes!” the first replied. He looked Asami up and down. “You’re our wench now, baby. These village idiots can fend for themselves. Got it?”
Asami smiled at the man, and if the gang member didn’t notice that the smile never reached her eyes, that was his problem, not hers. “Of course. I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
-------
Korra
“It will be our little secret!” the old drunk yelled, as he reached out to make a clumsy grab at Asami’s skirt.
Korra’s playing faltered ever-so-slightly, then resumed as if there had never been a pause at all.
She had known when the two of them had accepted this job that there would be risks. There were always risks, it was the nature of the work.
So as she sat off to the side of the tavern, and sang and strummed songs of love and loss, good times and hard times alike, she was mostly able to ignore the attention that Asami drew as Korra’s partner did her job, serving tables and collecting payment.
Asami could handle herself.
Korra knew that very well, and had known that for years now, almost as long as she had known the other woman.
The atmosphere of the tavern changed dramatically as a new group walked in. Loud and obnoxious, these were not everyday patrons.
Hmmm.
Korra paused her playing as she looked over at Asami, who was with the barkeep. The newcomers objected loudly to the silence, and Asami gave a nod to Korra.
Korra breathed out, and resumed playing. This was probably the right bunch.
Not yet.
One of the gang members whistled as Asami approached the group.
“Where have you been all my life, beautiful!” he called out.
“Fucking your mother,” Asami replied as she handed out mugs of beer. “Are you paying right now, or starting a tab?”
Korra grinned. Asami’s wit was just as topnotch as every other part of her.
Absolutely fuckin’ perfect.
“Oh, I like this one!” another of the gang yelled.
“You’re our wench now, baby. These village idiots can fend for themselves. Got it?” the one who looked like he was in charge said.
“Of course. I wouldn’t have it any other way,” Asami responded with a smile.
Korra winced. She knew that smile, and it was definitely not the prelude to a good time.
Well, not for the person Asami aimed it at, anyway.
The night wore on, and the crowd continued to thin as the gang members got louder and rowdier. Korra’s eyes narrowed as the size of the group grew.
Four would have been easy, but nine... that could be a challenge.
Still, Asami kept the beer coming and the patrons happy, until the leader got up and made his drunken way to the bar.
Korra could see that the barkeep, Maellara, said something to the leader, who apparently did not like what he heard.
The outlaw pulled out his sword and pointed it at the larger woman, at the same time as one of the gang members made a grab for Asami’s arm. He missed as she ducked out of the way, but another one managed to get his hands on Asami’s sleeve.
The sleeve ripped as Asami pulled away, and revealed the knife hidden underneath it.
“Boss!” the outlaw yelled.
Asami smiled, and Korra knew the time had come.
Here we go.
“You cannot blame a girl for being able to protect herself, can you?” Asami asked with a shrug.
The leader looked away from Maellara. “What the FUCK sort of barwench carries assassin’s blades?” he asked.
All of the gang members pushed back from their chairs as Asami sent her serving tray slicing into the head of the nearest criminal.
“Great question!” Asami called out as knives appeared in both of her hands. “Why don’t you sit down and think about it for a while?”
Korra dropped her lute into its case as she stood up. She clapped her hands in front of her.
“Naga, come!” she called out.
The room glowed eerie blues and purples as a hole formed in the air. Korra could see the gang leader’s mouth open in surprise as he turned towards her.
A snarling beast of the abyss came bounding out of the hole in the air. All tentacles and teeth on one side of the portal, Naga looked completely different as she entered their realm. Huge and furry, Korra knew that with a proper cleaning the beast would look white, but that anytime she came from her homeland she was dark with blood and soot.
Korra did her best not to think about what her favourite hell-creature got up to when she was not with Korra.
The closest outlaw to Asami died from two stab wounds to the chest, and a slice to the throat, then Asami leaned backwards horizontally as a sword went over her.
“Naga, protect!” Korra ordered. Naga knew who Asami was almost as well as she knew Korra, and with a bit of the pressure taken off of Asami, there was a better chance that they would take one of the bandits alive.
Not that they were unable to get information from the recently departed, of course. But that was a whole other process, with its own difficulties.
Naga slammed into the nearest bandit, and wrapped her jaws around his shoulder. Then she tossed him to and fro like a ragdoll, until she bit too hard and the man’s body went flying, his arm still in Naga’s mouth.
Asami flipped over another gang member, hair trailing and her legs kicked out in each direction, with her skirts in no way hindering her movement, as Korra reached into a different instrument case.
She pulled out a different stringed instrument, and grinned as she played a chord.
A blast of dark energy emanated from the instrument, and struck a different bandit in the back. He dropped after only a couple of more bursts, shaking like he had been electrocuted the entire time.
So far, none of the three of them had gone after the leader, which was good, because – Korra watched helplessly as the giant axe which had hung behind the bar, untouched previously for so long, burned with a magical fire and cleaved down into the leader’s skull.
The barkeep screamed a battle cry as she pulled her axe out of the leader’s smoking corpse.
Korra sighed. Never mind.
The dead were always so annoying to talk with.
She looked back at the main fight. There were only two bandits left now, and both were backed against a wall.
Their short swords crashed to the ground as the raised their hands in the air.
“Naga, stop!” Korra called out.
This was always the test. Korra’s companion was loyal, but also had her own desires. And those desires usually involved eating people.
This was a good day, apparently. With a quiet (quiet for a giant beast, at least) woof, Naga dropped the corpse she had been tossing around, and came back to Korra.
“Good girl!” Korra said as she gave the blood-covered monstrosity a good petting. “Who’s a good hell-spawn? Naga is, that’s who!”
She watched as Asami prodded the two living bandits towards the bar, then followed along behind them, her knives at the ready.
“As I said,” the barkeep said as she poured Asami an ale and passed it to her. “Overqualified.” She looked around the tavern sadly, then grabbed a towel and wiped blood off of her face.
There were broken tables and chairs strewn everywhere, and scorch marks from where some of Korra’s blasts had gone astray.
And blood and bodies, of course.
“Fuck my life, what a mess,” Maellara muttered softly, before looking at the two of them. “Tell me everything,” she ordered.
Asami looked back at Korra. “Well, it’s a long story...” she began.
Maellara poured another ale, and gestured for Korra to come over.
“I’m going to close up, while you tie our two new friends up. Then,” and she picked up her giant axe once again and pointed it at the two of them.
The magical flames had gone out from the axe when the barkeep had put it down, Korra noticed.
“Then,” Maellara repeated, “I want to know everything. That’s my price for this.” She gestured at the mess.
Asami looked over at Korra, who grabbed the offered ale.
“Like she said,” Korra said, “it’s a long story.”
Maellara just raised an eyebrow, before she headed towards the door. “Everything,” she repeated.
“Everything, huh? Well,” Korra started as she took a swig of ale, “it all started near the town of...”