Chapter Text
“So then he asked me if I was into stocks. Stocks, Korra!”
Korra laughed, lying face-up on Opal’s bed with her eyes shut, enjoying some much-needed rest in an actual bedroom before her uncle called her insisting that she return home. “And what’d you say?”
Opal scoffed and Korra heard her spin around her desk chair aimlessly. “Well, obviously I told him that I didn’t feel like talking business on a first date and that he could talk to my parents or brothers about that if he really wanted to.”
“Good answer,” Korra said.
“And then I grabbed my purse and left.”
Korra sat up, throwing one of the many plushies on Opal’s bed in her direction. “Opal!”
Opal blocked the Hello Kitty doll with her hands and laughed, picking it up from the floor and giving it a soft hug before saying, “What? He wasn’t even that cute to begin with.”
“My God,” Korra said, flopping back onto Opal’s bed with a sigh. “If I had rich guys lining up to date me, I’d propose to the first one I met.”
“Korra, you don’t understand.” She was right, Korra didn’t understand how Opal could be so dismissive of her lavish lifestyle when Korra would give anything for it. Opal went on, “These guys my parents keep setting me up with absolutely suck. The one girl they picked for me that time was such a brat too.”
“You sure you’re not talking about yourself?” Korra teased.
Opal ignored her. “Aish, you should meet them for yourself, then you’ll know.” They fell silent for a moment and Korra’s mind drifted to the laundry she’d have to do tonight, remembering that Desna had gone to the gym this morning and grimacing at the thought of his sweaty clothes. She’d get that over with once she got home before heating up her dinner.
“You know you could meet them if you wanted to.”
Korra tossed another plushie into the air above her head and caught it in her hands smoothly. “I can’t exactly go to all your rich, fancy events and meet these people. Besides, none of your friends would like me anyway.”
“That’s not true,” Opal protested, jumping up from her desk chair. She paced around the room excitedly. “And I can get you into one of these events, oh it’s perfect!”
Korra rolled her eyes. Opal was shy and soft-spoken around others, but with Korra, her best friend’s wild side showed through. And Opal was always one to come up with crazy ideas that (most of the time) ended up working out. Korra smiled fondly when she remembered their senior year prank in high school and how school closed that day to clean out the thousands of full cups of paint lining the hallways. Her and Opal had never even been suspects.
“What’s perfect?” Korra humored her.
“So, there’s this debutante ball thing coming up for this guy. Stupid old tradition, I know,” Opal talked animatedly, still pacing around the room. “The point is, it’s a masquerade ball. The guy wanted to be special or something, don’t ask me.”
“Okay, and?”
“You could go with my invitation, and no one would be able to tell!”
Korra hummed thoughtfully, pretending to mull it over. “And what if I don’t want to go to this masquerade ball?”
“Korra, you just said you want to meet rich people so you can date them.”
“I could just date you.”
They both burst out laughing. Over the course of their decade-long friendship, they had kissed and experimented further with each other, especially in college, but it just never seemed to work out. They were always meant to stay friends.
“Other rich people,” Opal stressed. “You can meet them in the ball, and plus,” Opal leaned over the bed to whisper in her ear, “I really, really don’t want to go to this.”
“Ooh, does that have something to do with Mr. Struggling Actor?” Korra asked, a teasing lilt in her voice.
Opal blushed. “Bolin is not a struggling actor,” she rushed to defend him. Korra grinned and Opal exhaled in frustration, knowing she had fallen into her trap. She sunk back into her desk chair sullenly. “Okay, the ball may or may not be on the same day as his show. I promised to go.”
“Opal,” Korra said. “You know my uncle will never let me.”
“I’ll have my parents talk to him. We’ll make something up, say they need you to help fix some plumbing and that you should stay the night.” Opal waved her hand dismissively. “They adore you, Korra. If I tell them you need some cover for one night, they’ll gladly help.”
“I take it they don’t know you’re sending me to the ball instead of going yourself?”
“Oh, hell no. We’re not telling them that,” Opal said immediately. “I’ll say you need a late night in the library studying for your driver’s test or something and they’ll make something up for your uncle. And then you and I sneak out, get you all dressed up, and I send you off to the ball while I go see Bolin perform.” She sighed dreamily, a smile plastered stupidly on her face.
“Foolproof plan,” Korra said sarcastically.
“No one will know,” Opal said. “I promise.”
Korra stared up at Opal’s sage-green ceiling, enjoying her final moments of freedom before her phone buzzed with the inevitable phone call from her uncle. She’d always lived right under his thumb, doing everything he wanted, never being allowed to explore on her own. Her days were taking up by his chores, jobs, and errands. She was legally an adult – she could move out. But she had used up all of the money her parents had left her before they died on college tuition and was now slowly saving up the scraps she earned from her waitressing job to do just that. It was just taking longer than she’d like.
Either way, her uncle didn’t control her, and she could go to this ball if she wanted to. Her rebellious side suddenly itched for it, and a smile crawled onto her face at the thought of sneaking out. Opal was providing everything – it would technically be free – and a fun time. And maybe she’d even find some rich sugar daddy and the rest of her life would be set. A girl could dream.
“Let’s do it.”
.
.
.
Korra picked at the hem of her short navy-blue dress, the expensive fabric hugging her figure and rubbing against her dark skin. “I don’t know, Opal…” She turned around in the mirror, twisting back to look at herself from a different angle. “I don’t usually wear stuff like this.”
“That’s the whole point.” Opal smoothed the edges of the dress out and adjusted the halter top at her neck. “It looks gorgeous on you.”
“You mean it?”
“Yes,” Opal said, clapping her hands excitedly. “Stunning.”
Korra blushed and looked away from the mirror to the woman waiting at the nearby vanity to do her makeup. Opal had taken her to some high-end store right before closing hours, but the manager was her friend, and she had smooth-talked her into letting her style Korra before the masquerade ball.
“Do I really have to do my makeup? I’m going to be wearing a mask the entire time.”
“Yes, of course, you do,” Opal clicked her tongue at her and grabbed her by the shoulders to sit her down in front of the brightly lit mirror. “What if it falls off, hm? Plus it’s fun, so sit.”
Korra sighed in defeat and let her face be bombarded by poofy makeup brushes and powders. After she was done, she blinked at herself in the mirror, surprised at her transformation. Her eyes looked big and cartoon-like, her eyelashes long and black. “I’m like a different person.”
Opal’s arms wrapped around Korra from behind. “You look like a princess.”
She pursed her lips, studying herself more before exhaling hot air in a “hmph.” She might as well take advantage of tonight’s makeover and pretend to be a princess, even if she was the furthest thing from it. Korra watched as Opal thanked and paid the makeup lady, grabbing their purses and leading Korra out.
“I’ll drop you off in my car. It’s nice enough.” She started the engine of her Mercedes and merged into traffic, eyes occasionally flicking to the GPS.
“Where’s the party?” Korra asked, fiddling with the expensive gold Tiffany’s bracelet Opal had let her borrow.
“Ball,” Opal corrected.
Korra rolled her eyes. “My bad, where’s the ball?”
“The Country Club,” Opal shrugged, eyes on the traffic ahead of her. “You have the invitation?”
Korra opened her purse, making sure it hadn’t disappeared from the last time she had checked inside. “Yeah. But are you sure no one will recognize me?”
Opal laughed at Korra’s worried tone. “It’s just to get inside. Once you’re in, you can be Korra. And Korra’s never been to one of these before, right?” She glanced over at her and smacked her arm playfully. “Listen, just have fun tonight, okay?”
“I’ll try.”
“That’s the spirit!”
They drove in comfortable silence the rest of the way, listening to Opal’s new favorite indie band, and when they arrived at the hotel, she dropped Korra off at the fancy driveway.
She lowered the window right before leaving. “Have fun, Korra!”
“You too!”
Korra turned to face the looming building before her, lights highlighting the intricate façade of the front and giant royal palm trees lining the driveway. This place was no joke. Remembering that she was a princess tonight, she took a shuddering breath in, squared her shoulders, and tried her best to strut confidently inside, giving up at the first few steps when she almost twisted her ankle and wobbled dangerously on her heels. Walking normally would have to do.
She followed the trickle of nicely dressed young adults with sophisticated masks on their faces to the ballroom, remembering to put hers on in the process. It was the same shade of deep blue as her dress with peacock feathers decorating the top. A little too flashy for her normal taste but this was no normal event. She nervously handed the invitation reading Opal’s name to the bouncer who barely spared her another glance and grunted to let her in.
She took in the bustling party scene before her, bracing herself against the loud music. It was a masquerade party, but that was the only “old-school” thing about it. Clearly, the kid hosting didn’t want this to be boring. House music blasted through the speakers near the crowded dance floor, reverberating in her bones. The bar against the wall was also crowded, and empty glasses littered the neat tablecloth-clad tables. This was just a bougie house party set in a country club instead of a high school jock’s home.
Korra snacked on some hors d'oeuvres and danced for a bit with some strangers, having dry conversations with some boring guys and hot girls. An hour or so passed by like that, overall, an uninteresting time that Opal would not have fun hearing about later. Sighing deeply, Korra navigated the maze of people, waiters, and tables on her way to the only thing she could think of doing to have a bit more fun: getting herself a drink. She wasn’t planning on getting wasted but being a little buzzed never hurt in having fun, which is what Opal told her to do in the first place.
“A coke with rum, please,” Korra told the bartender, taking her seat at the only available stool. The bartender nodded as he got to mixing her drink and Korra rested her chin on her hand against the bar, patiently waiting.
“Like me,” a voice spoke beside her. Korra turned to face a beautiful woman around her age, dressed in a bright red, off-the-shoulder dress that contrasted brightly with her cascading jet-black hair. Her mask was mostly black as well, decorated in specks of silver accents. She smiled at Korra and lifted her own drink, also a coke with rum.
“Oh, guess I copied you,” Korra chuckled, reaching for her finished drink from the bartender and taking a sip. “My bad.”
“No need,” the woman said, shaking her head, black curls that framed her face bouncing slightly. “That just tells me you have good taste. I’m so sick of the champagne they serve at every one of these parties. This is a nice change.”
Korra nodded as if she was also sick of the champagne that they served at all these parties. “So I take it you come to these a lot.”
The woman huffed and rolled her eyes. “I can’t go a weekend without one, though this one intrigued me because of the masquerade theme. Wu is also an old friend of mine. He never would’ve let me miss his ball.” She smiled at Korra, eyes flicking up to study her mask. “Your mask is beautiful, by the way.”
Korra looked away, tucking a strand of loose hair behind her ear shyly at the compliment. “Thanks, my friend let me borrow hers.”
“I’ve never seen you at one of these before.” The woman kept looking at her intently, and Korra shifted in her seat under her heavy gaze.
“Yeah, this isn’t my usual scene. I’m normally doing ch–” Korra stopped herself. She didn’t want to sound like a complete loser at this party with this gorgeous woman and say that she was usually doing chores her uncle made her do on the weekends. She settled on, “I’m normally hiking.” Technically, not a lie. She just didn’t do it as often as she wished.
“Oh really? Me too!” The woman’s eyes sparkled excitedly behind her mask, and she turned toward Korra. “Where do you hike?”
“Uh, Devil’s Peak is my favorite,” Korra said, listing off the first one that came to mind.
“That one’s insane.” She scooted her stool closer to Korra. “It’s taken me half the day just to get to the top.”
Korra hummed in agreement, taking another sip of her drink. “That’s why I like it. There’s no one around at the top, it’s peaceful, and the view…” She trailed off and put her glass down with a sigh. “I wish I could hike there more often.”
“We could go together some day. What’s your name?”
Opal had told her that she only needed to pretend to be her to get inside, that she could be Korra for the rest of the night. But in this new environment, she wasn’t sure if she was willing to risk it. What if someone heard her name and told Desna or Eska, which would eventually reach her uncle? She couldn’t let that happen.
“Hm, doesn’t me telling you that defeat the whole purpose of a masquerade ball?” Korra said teasingly, narrowing her eyes. She rested her chin on her hand and glanced at the woman, gauging her reaction.
“That’s true,” she laughed, drumming her fingernails on the bar's smooth surface. “Then you aren’t getting my name either.”
“Who says I wanted it?” The teasing flirt in Korra had somehow reared its head now that she was dressed this way, anonymous in a strange environment. She might as well have fun with it.
The air around them shifted, and the woman leaned forward, whispering close to Korra’s ear, “The look in your eyes tells me everything I need to know.”
Though her heartbeat quickened, Korra didn’t back down. She fluttered her long eyelashes through the mask at the woman, leaning even closer to whisper back, “You like the look in my eyes?”
“I’d love to see even more.” The woman’s breath lingered on Korra’s skin even as she pulled back, taking a sip of her drink. “If that’s fine with you.”
Korra downed the rest of hers and licked her lips when she finished. She could see where this was going, and she wasn’t against it. She was here for a good time. “We can go somewhere more private.”
The woman smirked, sending butterflies up Korra’s stomach. “Yes, I’d like that.” She stood up and offered Korra her hand, which she gladly took, and led her through the party and down the hall to the one-stall bathroom. The loud party music dampened to a dull rumble when the door slammed shut behind them.
“How glamorous,” Korra chuckled as she looked around the room and hung their purses on the hook on the door. She was acutely aware of how warm her hand felt in the woman’s.
“Mm, got any better ideas?” The woman tugged on Korra’s hand, pulling her close against her body, their faces an inch apart. “Thought you wanted privacy.”
“Yeah,” Korra breathed, heart beating out of her chest.
The woman’s eyes stared deeply into Korra’s through the mask. “You look beautiful.”
Korra reached up and kissed her, hard and deep. She let her eyes flutter closed when the woman reciprocated it, the taste of lipstick bitter and sweet on her mouth. She leaned into the woman’s body, both stumbling until the woman’s back hit the wall. Korra pressed herself closer, hands reaching for her shoulders, holding herself up.
The woman’s fingers brushed past Korra’s face, cupping it softly. Korra relished in the feeling of the woman moaning into Korra’s mouth when she nibbled on her bottom lip and pulled away to admire her beautifully flushed face and perfectly plump red lips as she heaved for breath against the wall.
“You look beautiful, too,” Korra said, equally out of breath.
The woman smirked. Her hand moved from Korra’s face to the nape of her neck, pulling her in again for another kiss, open-mouthed and sloppy and wet. Korra threw her head back when she moved from her lips to trailing kisses down her jawline and neck, biting down on the space between her neck and shoulder and sucking until it hurt enough for Korra to see stars. The woman’s hand closed around her breast through the dress and squeezed, forcing a soft gasp out of Korra as she leaned closer into her, the woman’s teeth still on her neck. Her lips left Korra’s skin with a pop and she kissed the skin there soothingly as Korra’s hands traveled down her body, resting on her waist, anticipating what was to come.
“You or me first?” the woman asked, eyes glazed over with desire. She rubbed her thumb over Korra’s breast, feeling her nipple get hard underneath the fabric. She hadn’t worn a bra tonight with the dress, and she was glad for it.
“You,” Korra said, already tugging up the fabric of her dress. “Let me, please,” Korra begged in a breathless whisper against the woman’s lips.
“Of course.” She kissed her again, smiling into her mouth as she allowed Korra to pull the dress up over her arms, leaving her only in matching black undergarments. Korra’s mouth was practically watering as she undid her bra, letting it fall to the floor softly. “Like what you see?” the woman asked, a teasing lilt in her voice.
“Yes,” Korra said honestly in a hoarse voice unrecognizable to her own ears. She traced her fingers down the woman’s body, fingertips catching on her hard nipples, the sound of the woman’s small gasp piercing her skull. She pinched softly, earning her another breathless inhale. Korra continued playing with her right nipple when she leaned down to take her left one into her mouth, sucking and biting and licking until the woman was squirming and keening against the wall. Then she switched to the other nipple, enjoying the way the woman’s nails dug into Korra’s back through the fabric of her dress.
She heard the woman’s heavy breathing over her head when she released her nipples and trailed more kisses down her chin, neck, breasts, and stomach until she reached her panties. She pulled them down slowly, the woman’s heels tapping against the tiled floor as she stepped out of them, now fully naked for Korra to admire.
“Turn around.”
Korra’s voice was low, but the woman heard and obeyed, turning to face the wall, ass in full view for Korra who kneeled and kneaded her hands into the soft skin, loving the way the woman moaned and how her smooth skin felt as she stretched her out, watching her pussy open up hungrily for her. It was glistening with desire, the husky smell enticing Korra. She dragged one finger over her folds, eliciting another moan and observing how it came away wet and sticky.
“Wet already,” Korra murmured, taking this moment to dip a finger into the woman’s warm pussy. She arched her back and keened above her when Korra crooked her finger inside her, feeling around her walls. After a few more moments, she allowed another finger to enter, stretching her out, and with her free hand, she started rubbing small circles on the woman’s clit.
“Oh– oh!” the woman gasped above her, hands splayed over the wall to hold herself up, tits bouncing with every sharp inhale, nipples hard against the cold air conditioning. “God, yes, like that, please.”
Korra pumped her fingers in and out of her pussy faster, smirking at the obscene squelching sounds coming from how wet she had become. The woman was a mess of gasps and whimpers, starting to shake uncontrollably above her as Korra quickened her pace, bending her fingers inside her and hitting that sweet spot.
The woman calmed down for a second when Korra removed the fingers rubbing small circles on her clit, her other fingers still pumping in and out of her. She exhaled deeply and leaned against the wall, but gasped suddenly when Korra adjusted her mask so it wouldn’t interfere and leaned forward to press her tongue against her clit, flicking it lightly.
“God!” the woman breathed, bucking her hips into Korra’s mouth. “Yes, yes yes yes.”
Korra smiled against the woman’s pussy, working on bending her fingers in and out of it and licking her clit left and right, even as the woman stumbled forward onto the wall, barely holding herself up and inadvertently pushing her pussy deeper into Korra’s face. She kept at it for a while longer, loving how the woman’s moans and whimpers turned into gasps and screams, hopefully, muffled outside by the heavy bathroom door and loud party music.
Korra sped up her movements when the woman’s moans caught in her throat and her legs shook around her head, pelvis convulsing against her face. She let out a strangled moan, heaved for breath, and collapsed against the wall as Korra let her ride out her orgasm, slowing down her fingers and removing her tongue. She pumped them in softly a few more times before pulling them away and wiping her mouth with her hand, both slick with her arousal.
The woman righted herself against the wall and breathed deeply. “That…was great,” she whispered, her back still to Korra.
“I’m glad,” Korra said, grabbing the woman’s hips and spinning her around to face her. The mask had fallen off one side, revealing most of her face already, and Korra took the liberty to remove the rest of it, fingertips brushing the flushed, hot skin on her face. She was beautiful, with high cheekbones and piercing green eyes that were half-lidded with lust as she stared at Korra and let herself be touched. Korra kissed her, feeling herself go hot from knowing she could taste herself on her lips.
“Your turn,” the woman mumbled against Korra’s lips, playing with the zipper on the back of Korra’s dress and simultaneously slowly lifting her mask over her face. “I want to see you.”
“Mm,” Korra hummed half-intelligibly, lost in the woman’s touches. She wanted to stay like this with her forever, kissing and licking and touching. She didn’t care that she’d see her true face in a moment, not when everything felt too good to resist, but she was forced out of her heavy daze when a phone began ringing insistently from their purses hanging on the door.
“Ignore it,” Korra whispered against the woman’s neck, sucking on the skin there.
“Mm, we can’t,” the woman seemed to force out as she stopped playing with the zipper and Korra’s mask came back to cover her face. Her voice was slightly raspy. Korra wanted to hear it screaming again. But instead, she felt herself be gently pulled off her body, hearing the woman’s heels clicking against the floor as she moved to their purses. She rummaged around hers for a bit before saying, “I think it’s yours.”
Korra groaned, leaning her forehead against the wall. “Great, who is it,” she muttered to herself as she dug into her purse and pulled out her phone, eyebrows knitting together in annoyance when she realized it was Opal calling. She declined the call, ready to get back to business with the still naked woman in front of her when her eyes caught on the dozens of frantic messages.
korra i need to pick you up
it’s an emergency
your uncle found out
kinda
just come out quick i’m almost there
are you outside
i’m here
come quick my parents are pissed now too
your uncle is calling me korra COME ON
korra
KORRA
istg you better come outside now or i’m barging in
KORRA
ANSWER MY CALLS
Korra’s eyes widened with panic as she scrolled through the messages. “Oh no,” she said in a low whisper.
“What’s wrong?” The woman seemed to sense Korra’s panic and apprehension and started putting her clothes back on, the mood clearly ruined.
“Oh, God– I’m so sorry, I gotta go,” Korra said in a rush, texting Opal a quick going now and stuffing her phone into her purse. Her hands were still sticky with the woman’s wetness from before and she hurriedly washed them, ignoring the imploring eyes staring at her the entire time.
“You have to go?”
“I’m so sorry, yeah, it’s an emergency.” Korra tripped over her words, frantically drying her hands and grabbing her purse. She was about to push open the door when the woman stopped her by placing her hand on the door handle instead and looking at her intently.
“Can you tell me your name now, at least? I’d love to see you again.”
A single messy lock of hair covered one of her bright eyes. All Korra would have to do would be reach out and tuck it behind her ear and-
“I–” Korra panicked instead. Her uncle already seemed to know she was here, but maybe she could still smooth it over with him. It would be better if fewer people knew in general. Her phone buzzed dangerously a few times in her purse. She had no time. No time to think about the woman’s hair, frizzy and messy and probably so soft despite that that Korra didn’t know why she didn’t touch it beforehand.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered, breaking her gaze and pushing the bathroom door open. The onslaught of loud party sounds followed her as she half-ran, half-walked her way out of the party, careful to not twist her ankle on her heels. She didn’t look behind her, hoping the woman wasn’t following her or looking at her longingly or any of those things that just thinking about made Korra’s chest hurt with guilt.
The cool night air greeted her with a rush, and her eyes darted around the crowded country club driveway until she caught Opal, waving at her frantically from the front seat of her car, the windows lowered.
“Korra! Come on!”
Korra walked as fast as she could to the car, slamming the passenger door shut loudly and panting for breath as Opal quickly merged into traffic. Both were silent for a bit until Korra asked simply, “He knows?”
Opal stared at the road, her lips pressed together. “He knows you’re not at my parents.”
“Fuck.” Korra stared out the window, focusing on the rushing city landscapes and bulbs of light and trying to ignore the tightness in her chest. “I’ll figure something out,” she said after a few more moments of silence.
Opal nodded stiffly, hands gripping the steering wheel. “I’m sorry.”
Korra sighed. “It’s not your fault, Opal.”
“It was my idea.” She spared Korra an apologetic glance and said gently, “I’ve said this a lot, but really. I can’t wait ‘till you get out of there.”
“Me too.”
Korra leaned her head against the window, feeling the cool glass seep into her skin. She’d deal with this like she always had. She had years of practice at this point.
.
.
.
Korra braced herself for the barrage of yells and insults and everything short of physical hits from her uncle the moment she gingerly snuck in through the front door of the large house and heard Opal’s car engine rumble away. But the house was eerily quiet and dark. Too dark.
The sound of someone clearing their throat made Korra jump cartoonishly high, and she smacked a hand over her mouth to stifle a yelp. Her uncle was usually obvious about his presence, large and overbearing and frequently accompanied with the chandelier lights of the entryway on blindingly bright. Which they were not.
So when she turned to where the sound came from she was not surprised to see her cousin Eska lounging lazily on the grand armchair in the sitting area, her piercing cold eyes staring straight through Korra.
“You’re home late.”
Her voice was icy and detached, much like her father’s. She must’ve learned that from somewhere is what Opal reasoned whenever they had escaped from their company during family dinners and shook out the shivers that always seemed to follow their presence. Everything about this family and home seemed to be cold and unwelcoming, including the smirk unfurling on Eska’s lips now.
Korra straightened her spine. She wasn’t a kid anymore, and Eska was her age. She had no logical reason to back down. “I was with Opal.”
“No, you weren’t,” Eska said immediately, eyes scanning her outfit. Korra shrank against her gaze and suddenly wished it was darker so that Eska’s eyes couldn’t catch on the gold bracelet on Korra’s wrist. “Dad figured that much out when Baatar Jr. came by and slipped up. Something about helping out with Opal’s love life.” She leaned forward, her eyes glinting menacingly. “Admit it, you weren’t at Opal’s.”
Korra resisted the urge to retort and fight back and do something to wipe that shit-eating grin off Eska’s face. But that never worked with her or her uncle, and they thought and talked the same. She managed to keep her composure and spit out instead, “It’s none of your business where I was, Eska.”
“It is when I can tell Dad the truth about where you really were.”
Korra froze. How would she know that?
Eska’s smirk grew, hooking uncomfortably in Korra’s stomach. “Now, I can keep the masquerade a secret from Dad if you cooperate or…” She cocked her head to the side somewhat playfully, gaze never leaving Korra’s face.
Eska had always been like this. Calculating and mean, she used every bit of information she gathered on anyone to her advantage, and it was no different with Korra, especially when she knew how bad it would be if her uncle found out about the ball. She was banned from sneaking out of the house, but that was a flexible rule, and as Korra grew, she learned to get around it. But showing up at high society events without permission was enough for Korra to earn a year’s grounding and so many chores she’d be forced to quit her job and never be able to escape.
Korra’s silence seemed to confirm something for Eska, who sank back into the armchair with a sigh. “You don’t want to know the end of that sentence, Korra.”
Korra’s blood roared in her ears. She had no control in this situation and it made her furious.
“Fine,” Korra forced out because she knew she had no other choice. “What do you want, Eska?”
Eska smiled more genuinely and stood up, dusting off her hands on her pajama pant legs. “Think of it as an IOU. I’ll let you know when I need something.”
“Seriously?” Korra heard her voice rising and fought to keep it level to not wake up her uncle. Who was on the other side of the mansion, but whatever. “That could be anything.”
“That’s the point.”
“Eska–”
“I’ll talk to you when I figure it out. Goodnight.” And with that Eska disappeared up the stairs into the darkness, and Korra was left alone with another debt hanging over her head, the warmth and heat coursing through her earlier that night entirely forgotten and replaced by an icy feeling of dread.