“Why would you want to talk with me? Haven’t you caused enough damage already, pig?” Avani shouted, but Kasai turned and left the room. She tried to spit at her and missed, hitting the table instead. Her aim was way off.

The first reason her drunken and drugged mind could come up with as to why Kasai wanted to talk with her was nonsensical. “Are you pregnant? I never fucking touched you.” She began to move back and forth, swinging from her fastened feet like a pendulum. Her drunken mind eventually remembered that they were both girls. “And that is not how it works. No one is gonna believe you. Dumb pig.”

Avani was left to her own devices as the door shut. She wondered how long they could keep her hanging like this. It hardly seemed legal in the first place. She had committed no crime prior to being bothered by the police, which they would know about. In retrospect, she probably should have let them bring her in, because obviously she was in more trouble for resisting arrest.

The only crime she could think of was what Kasai had said in the spirit world, about how Avani had seduced an officer of the law and she had implied it was a crime then. She groaned at the thought that it may have been an actual crime after all.

Avani would have to claim that she had been framed if that was the reason she was hanging here. Kasai had practically begged her to touch her and then even invited her inside her apartment for sex when they had met in Republic City. She was so glad she hadn’t accepted now.

As the hours passed, Avani thought of a number of bizarre theories as to why she had been sought by the police at all. The only one that seemed plausible was that she had attempted to seduce an officer. Maybe it was considered a form of bribe? She did entertain the idea that Kasai had lied to get to her as well.

By the time the door opened again, Avani had fallen asleep or perhaps passed out from being upside down too long. Either way, the sound of the door opening awakened her. She saw Kasai enter the room once more, alone, to finally have that talk with her.

“Fair enough.” Avani said, keeping herself calm despite feeling the urge to strangle Kasai. “You better have a damn good reason though. If I don’t like what you are about to say, then I will tell your superiors, I will tell the papers and I will tell everyone about this.” Avani betted everything she had on the idea that Kasai had been lying to others and had no justifiable reason to arrest her. “I’m sure you understand what that would mean for your future.”

There was hesitation in Kasai, but she must have realized that keeping Avani hanging any longer would make the situation worse if she had no justifiable cause in the first place. Avani thought about grabbing Kasai by the shirt and lifting her up, or kicking her leg again, but she decided to sit down at the table instead.

“So what does the proper straight girl want to tell the promiscuous lesbian?” Avani snorted and rolled her eye.

Kasai let Avani down and out of her restraints, pleasantly surprised when she decided to sit at the table and not bolt out the door at her first chance. Kasai sat down at the other side of the table and folded her hands in front of her.

"First of all, you weren't supposed to be arrested," she pointed out. "However, you decided to run, and then fight with the officers. Which just made this situation a whole lot more complicated than I had intended."

Kasai sighed and looked down at her hands, piddling her fingers before she looked back up at Avani with a genuinely sorry expression.

"I wanted to apologize for earlier and explain a few things to you." It occurred to her how silly that must sound. The fact that she had the police haul Avani in was not going to give her any brownie points, and it probably seemed like extreme measures just to apologize. Then again, maybe the fact that she had gone through so much effort to talk to Avani again would prove to be in her favor.

"I didn't mean to upset you earlier, nor was I leading you on." She frowned for a moment when she remembered the sight of Avani walking out of her apartment and slamming the door. "Look, the fact is that I'm an idiot. And I'm sure you'll agree with that..." Kasai paused briefly, to read the expression on Avani's face and gauge whether she was even listening to what she was saying or just hearing words.

"When you said that thing about fantasizing, and I didn't drink... I should have explained right then and there why that was." This was nerve wracking for her. Never before had she felt the need to explain herself to anyone, and Avani's stare that bore straight through her soul was not making it any easier.

"Not that you would know, but I was unconscious for my first three days in the hospital. When I woke up... I had no one. My two best friends are gone, and that hit me like a freight train. But you know how that feels too." She sighed and fought off the tears at the thought of her friends again. "But I did have something. I had the memory fresh in my brain, playing over and over." She looked at Avani and smiled ever so slightly.

"You saving me."

All of this probably seemed like bull to Avani, but Kasai wanted to finish what she had to say. Then, she would let the other woman decide if she ever wanted to see Kasai again or if she wanted to disappear into oblivion. Kasai prayed for the former.

"That was the only real thing I had to hold on to. So I guess in a way, you could say I did fantasize about you, just not in the way that I thought you had implied." Kasai smacked her palm to her face and squeezed her eyes shut, "I. Am. An. Idiot."

"But if you hadn't done what you had, I would be a skeleton in the spirit world right now. Not here, going through hoops just to apologize to you because I feel like I may have fucked up something great." Kasai pointed towards the door and the people bustling around outside of it. "I've put my neck on the chopping block just so I could see you again. And I'll have to do it again to get you out of here without jail time."

"But I'm more than willing to do that." She realized she had began to ramble on with seemingly no end in sight, so she sighed and looked at Avani. "All I'm trying to say is that I'm sorry. I'm so so sorry. I never meant to hurt you, and I wasn't leading you on. I like you, okay? And I don't want to just let you slip through my fingers." The words were hard for Kasai to say, she had never really been one that expressed herself outright. For some reason though, she wanted to for Avani.

"I understand if you never want to see me again. But please, forgive me. I'll go tell my superiors that I was mistaken and that you need to be released." She looked at the door, wondering if Avani was going to leave and be gone forever, or if when Kasai returned she would stick around. Hesitantly, she stood and grabbed her crutches, walking out the door to find the lieutenant and the captain.

“I don’t even know what you expected to happen when you sent cops after me in that case.” Avani said and scoffed. "It seems like sending cops to retrieve anyone with a shady background would be a bad idea.”

She decided to shut up and listen though. Kasai probably didn’t know the reasons for her hatred of cops, and the details of her past anyway. It wasn’t like she could hold that against her.

Avani was surprised by how nervous and uncomfortable Kasai appeared to be while trying to explain herself. She did withhold a smile as Kasai confessed she had been thinking about her in the hospital, that she had been reminding herself of Avani saving her when every other memory from the spirit world had been horrible. It made her feel less like a fool for trying to pursue their relationship further once Kasai had gotten out of the hospital.

She would have told Kasai that she was being too hard on herself when calling herself an idiot, but a part of her felt like she deserved it after what Avani had been put through and another part enjoyed seeing her beat herself up over Avani. No one had ever done that regarding her before, at least not as far as she knew. It made her feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

It was nothing compared to how she felt when Kasai said she had done all of this just because she thought she would miss out on something great with Avani. She wanted to not let that show either before Kasai was finished talking, but she sat with her mouth slightly agape and her one eye wide open. It was one of those moments that would grow greater with time. She imagined that depending on how it all turned out in the end, she might see this as the moment she began to think of Kasai as the one for her.

She truly regretted resisting arrest now, not because of herself, but because she had put Kasai in some deep shit. Avani had no power here though. The only thing she could do was let Kasai try to work out the situation or go to jail. She was not all that against the latter idea, but who knew when she would be released then. Maybe by the time she got out Kasai would have moved on with her life, so no, she didn’t say anything in response to that either.

Kasai didn’t need to say that she liked her or make Avani think she meant it anymore. Her actions tonight had proven it beyond any doubt, and actions generally spoke louder than words ever could.

Avani was left sitting dumbfounded in the chair, staring in front of her at the wall. It wasn’t until she heard the door opening that she realized Kasai had gotten up and was leaving the room. Of course, she couldn’t allow Kasai to go and beg for mercy from the pigs.

Avani rose and hurried over to the door, fearing it may lock itself when it closed. She picked Kasai up and pulled her back inside the room. Her crutches fell to the floor outside. She doubted it would be long before the real pigs came bursting in.

“Seems the proper straight girl is a lot more bi-curious than I gave her credit for.” Avani gasped, put Kasai on top of the table and kissed her fiercely on the mouth. She took of her jacket and threw it on the floor. “I need you now, but damn is this the worst possible time and place you could have chosen.”

Avani crawled on top of the table, forcing Kasai to lie down underneath her. She slid her good hand up under Kasai’s shirt, and caressed her stomach while continuing to kiss her on the mouth and the neck with an ever increasing need and force.

“You don’t need to tell them the truth if it will get you in trouble. I’ll go to jail if you promise you’ll wait for me. I did resist arrest at the very least.” Avani grinned as she paused her ravaging of Kasai’s body for a moment to look into her eyes. “Maybe I’ll get to see some old friends or mom again.”

She could hear footsteps coming from outside the corridor now. Right before the door was flung open; Avani rolled off of the table onto the floor and raised her hands towards the roof.

“I surrender. I surrender.”

Her back hurt like hell for a brief moment after falling from the table onto the hard floor, but she didn't move at all, keeping her hands raised above her.

Footsteps could be heard coming from behind Kasai. Assuming that Avani was coming to either hit her from behind or bold out of the door before her, she stiffened. It took her more by surprise to find herself being pulled back into the room, and Kasai was sure that Avani was going to strangle her to death right there.

The next thing she knew, she was sitting on the metal table staring straight into Avani's face as she leaned in and kissed her. It was sudden and unexpected, but Kasai pushed against her lips with equal ferocity and sighed.

"C'mon, Avani. Haven't you ever wanted an office romance before?"

Kasai was forced down as Avani crawled onto the table and on top of her. Wrapping an arm around her, Kasai pulled Avani down further and met her lips. A shiver swept over her as she felt Avani's hand over her abdomen, and she wished now that this could have taken place earlier at her apartment. She couldn't complain though, because now Avani was on top of her and not walking out of the door.

Kasai looked up at Avani when she pulled away, her amber eyes blazing with desire. Her head shook and she frowned.

"No, it's my fault you're in here. I've got to make this right."

Avani's last comment made Kasai curious, but before she could question her, Avani had rolled off the table and a pair of officers had barged through the door. Kasai sat up and straightened her shirt. At the sound of her surrender, one of the officers cuffed Avani and picked her up, leading her away towards the holding cells.

"Wait!" Kasai shouted at the cop, but his partner was already hovering over Kasai and asking her a million questions. She shoved him away and told him to get her crutches so that she could walk. Walking out of the interrogation room, she started to follow the other man towards the cells, but she was stopped in her path by the lieutenant, who immediately asked her what had happened.

"Sir, we need to talk. My information was wrong, this woman is innocent." Kasai stated.

"What? Kasai, it is highly unlike you to order an arrest without proper evidence and probable cause." His tone was disappointed, but he shook his head. "Regardless, she attacked the officers at that bar. We've got her on resisting arrest and assaulting a police officer." The man started to move away but Kasai stepped in front of him, unsteady on her crutches.

"Sir, she was drunk and felt threatened when Tai and Zari approached her." She could tell he was not amused with this defense, but Kasai wasn't going to let Avani rot in a cell for things she didn't do. "Look, she just watched two of her closest friends die. She entered the spirit world under the orders of the mayor. She fought off things you could not imagine. And then, she saved my life."

The man looked stunned at the last bit of information, but he shook his head. "My hands are tied, Inoshi. She still assaulted two officers despite what she's been through." Kasai held her stare, it almost appeared like she was looking through him. He sighed and looked down at his feet, "I'll see what I can do. But I'm going to have to write you up for this, Kasai. This whole situation has caused the PD too much trouble."

Kasai breathed a sigh of relief, though she knew she would probably be restrained to desk duty when she returned to work because of her actions. It didn't matter though. She headed towards booking to find out how long Avani would have to stay in the cells.

About an hour later, Kasai arrived outside of Avani's cell. She approached and looked through the bars at the earthbender.

"Okay, well I've got some sort of good news." A small smile played across her face. "The PD and the DA have agreed to let you out after three days if you agree to plead guilty to assaulting those two officers. Then, you'll be released on probation, which will last a month." She frowned, knowing it was all her fault that Avani was in this situation.

"You'll avoid a court hearing though, and a longer sentence of up to six months... I'm sorry, it's the best I could do." Kasai exhaled slowly and looked down at the ground, knowing that she was the real guilty one here. It wasn't fair, but it was the best she could manage without overstepping her boundaries and getting fired.

Avani said nothing as she was taken away and heard Kasai trying her best to defend her. She walked on calmly to wherever the pig was leading her. As they passed a few doors she lost the ability to hear Kasai and the others talking. She focused on the desire she had seen in Kasai’s eyes to keep herself from doing anything stupid again.

What had that been anyway? The woman had been little else than cold and distant when they had been at her apartment. If she’d seen anything like that back then none of this would have happened.

The pig removed the cuffs from Avani as he got her into a cell instead. She still kind of wished Kasai would put her into handcuffs, especially now after listening to her confession. Avani sat down on the bed and waited. She figured Kasai would show up soon enough.

She was right, Kasai showed up an hour later at her cell. Avani was very hesitant to pleading guilty because the pigs had promised to let her go after three days if she did. She had no trust or faith in them whatsoever. Avani could get someone to defend her she supposed, but then Kasai might take more of a hit to her reputation and maybe even get fired.

“You should be, but cool anyway, I can do three days.” Avani sighed.

It was a bit of a let-down that this was how she ended up in jail for the first time though. She had done actual crimes and gotten away with them. Now she couldn’t brag about how she had never served time, and that was just because of some girl. Well, not just any girl.

“However, now you are mine.” Avani said and leaned against the bars, looking Kasai in the eyes. “None of this would have happened if you had told me earlier today even half of what you said in the interrogation room.” She grinned. “In three days, when I get out of here, I will come to your apartment so you better be ready and waiting.” She reached her hand out between the bars and pulled Kasai towards her so she could whisper the rest without the nearby guard hearing. “I will break in your body as my own and make you forget any encounter you ever had with a man. You will be wearing something hot, something you’d not usually wear, but which you think I’d enjoy tearing off.” Avani let go off Kasai when the guard noticed she held her up against the bars and shouted at her. “Also, I need you to find someone that could bring my motorcycle to this building.”

Avani stepped back, turned her back on Kasai and lay down on the bed. “We’ll call it even if you follow my instructions satisfactorily. You can leave now, and you don’t need to visit me again. It’s only three days if they are telling the truth. Take care of your leg, hun.”

Avani pleaded guilty like Kasai had told her to the next morning, after getting some sleep in the cell she would be spending the next three days. There was no need for them to move her to another prison as it was such a short sentence. She wouldn’t be getting to meet her friends in prison or her mom in high security. She was quite shocked to find that the pigs hadn’t made her confess so they could put her away for a few years. She passed the three days’ time by exercising inside the cell.

Once Avani was released, she found her motorcycle outside the police department. Kasai had followed that instruction well, and Avani drove back home to pick up some stuff before she could head to Kasai’s apartment. She put the box in the sidecar and drove to Kasai’s apartment. There she took the elevator up to Kasai’s floor, carrying the box under her right arm. Avani tried the door to her apartment, found it was unlocked and pushed it open.

“Kasai?” She called out, with her sly smile on her lips.

Kasai left the police department with a heavy mind. She wasn't used to taking orders from anyone but her superiors, but more than anything Avani's demands made her nervous. The motorcycle was taken care of easy enough, left outside the PD for Avani when she got out.

The next day, Kasai put on her official Republic City Police uniform and joined her fellow officers to honor their fallen brother, Barron. The funeral service was held by the PD, with a sea of decorated officers mixing with friends and family. Kasai was called upon to say a few words, Barron was her friend and partner at the department.

Kasai did her best to not choke up during her turn to speak. Memories from the academy and silly stories from their time as partners were told before she went on to explain that Barron died trying to save her and fellow task force members from an unimaginable force within the spirit world. Most did not understand this, as they could not imagine anything other than the bubbly spirits that lingered in the spirit wilds within town. Nevertheless, she told of his heroic efforts and spoke of his valor before again taking her spot among the other officers.

The funeral ended and Kasai was dropped off at her apartment by a friend. That day was spent reminiscing about times spent with both Barron and Kieron. Her mind wandered to the alcohol cabinet in her kitchen, but she staved off any desperate attempt by her brain to drink it all away. The day turned into night and she woke the next morning on her couch.

That morning, the words Avani had whispered to her back at her cell ran through her mind. It was an intimidating task, and Kasai had never entertained the idea of pleasing someone in that way before. Yet another reason that she may have had few real relationships. It scared her, though at the same time it sent a spark through her at the thought.

It took some thought, but an idea was forming in her head. She took the time that day to clean her apartment, straighten things up although she figured it may all get trashed the next day anyways. The bedroom was separated from the living room by a wall, the entrance to the room was simply a break in that wall that allowed for an arched entrance. The wall of windows continued on the other side of the wall from the living room into the bedroom, filling the space with the same light all around.

On the third day, Kasai made herself some coffee in the morning to calm her nervousness a bit. She figured Avani would be released by mid morning, so she wasted no time in taking a shower and getting ready. She let her dark hair fall in long waves down her back, and then stared at her closet as she decided what to wear. It was difficult enough getting sweatpants around her cast, so she decided on slipping on a pair of tight black shorts that left little to the imagination.

As for the top, she opted for a red bandeau, which left her abdomen exposed. She slipped on her rookie police jacket over that, leaving it unbuttoned. Lastly, she put on her police belt and made sure that her handcuffs were visible hanging off of her hip. Kasai went to sit on the couch and wait for Avani to arrive, a bottle of sake and a shot glass full in front of her.

The longer she sat there, the more ridiculous she though she looked. Sexy cop, really? Just as she was about to get up and change into something else, the door to her apartment opened and she could hear Avani calling out for her. A look of embarrassment flooded over her before she quickly replaced it with a more appropriate smile as Avani walked in.

"Come on in," she said with a grin, trying her best not to show how nervous she was. Hoping that Avani wasn't going to find her foolish looking, she stood from the couch and leaned against just one crutch to help with her balance, the shot of sake in her other hand.

"Never have I ever wanted anyone in this room." She said as Avani entered her apartment, then she downed the shot and put the glass on the table, smiling at the other woman.

Avani awoke in a bed next to the slumbering Kasai, so it had to be her bed. She felt a bit dizzy and uncertain about where she was, until the memories came back to her when she saw the empty box on the floor. She had used everything inside throughout the weekend, at least once, sometimes more. Still, she would have gone on had her body been able to do so, but she was exhausted and sore beyond belief.

She looked at the sleeping Kasai next to her and ran her hand through her black hair. Avani thought she was beautiful, so much so that it was almost painful to look at her. It was a beauty that went beyond mere appearances, which she had discovered and accepted this past weekend. She had been allowed to do everything she had wanted too with her body, but now she feared that what should have been nothing more than physical was developing into something else.

Avani feared the thought of what others may think if it got out, how vulnerable and weak she would be. She didn’t particularly like the idea of having feelings for a cop either, even if it was someone as pure and good as Kasai. No, pure wasn’t the right word after what she had let Avani do the past days. She was special though, no doubt about it, and now Avani felt a growing need to distance herself from Kasai for real before she became too deeply entangled.

She would have gotten up, packed her belongings and disappeared before Kasai woke up, but as she tried to move her legs out of the bed she felt the sore pain at its greatest and doubted she would be able to get anywhere. It was a problem, because if she couldn’t move she couldn’t leave.
Instead, she did what her mind was screaming at her not to do. She leaned over to Kasai and kissed her on the lips, then shook her gently to wake her up. Avani could try to escape the grasp of what was pulling her to Kasai now, but it was unlikely she could do it without hurting herself in the process. The physical attraction was already becoming an emotional attachment that she wanted and welcomed despite her better judgement.

“Good morning, Lady Sergeant.” Avani smiled at Kasai when she saw her eyelids opening. “I would like to turn myself in for breaking the law of seducing an officer, but I am afraid that I may be put away for life as I lost count of how many times I did her.” She laughed and grinned, back to her usual self like nothing. “Maybe it’s enough of a punishment that I can’t move without some part of my body aching. I’m sore in places I didn’t know I had.” Avani joked. “How are you feeling, babe?”

She kissed Kasai again, and slid her hand over her body with the intention to caress her stomach, but her body protested, resulting in her hand lying motionless on Kasai. “Yeah… The mind is willing but the body is dead.”

Kasai was fast asleep, exhausted from the weekend activities. Her body had been wrecked repeatedly, not against her will though. It was definitely unlike any experience she had had before, both terrifying and electrifying. But it was something she was not likely to forget anytime soon.

Not much had crossed her mind over the last few days other than the woman lying in her bed next to her. Kasai was fixated on Avani, somehow captivated by the woman who had invaded her bedroom. For what reason, she still did not know. All she did know was that she was sort of drawn towards her, ever since they were pitted against each other so many days ago in the spirit world, despite her annoyance with the woman at first.

Kasai felt something shaking her, and she grumbled. Slowly, her eyes peeked open and she saw Avani leaning over her. A smile grew on her face and she laughed lightly before rubbing her face to wake herself up. She started to stretch, attempting to wake her muscles up.

"I'm great, how about-"

Her eyes squeezed shut again and she winced, stopping mid-stretch as her muscles cramped up. A groan slipped out and she went limp, smiling weakly as she kissed Avani back. Physically, she was just worn out and her body didn't hesitate to tell her so.

"Trust me hun, I fell your pain. You know, I have these wonderful pain pills the doctor gave me."

She laughed again and laid her head back on her pillow, looking over at Avani with a smile. The sheets of her bed were a tangled mess, and she assumed the rest of her apartment was as well. It wasn't like they had stayed in one place for three days. Eh, it could all be cleaned in due time.

"So, how about after I learn how to move again I cook you a real breakfast? Not that canned crap I made us last time."

Kasai smiled at the memory in the spirit world, when all she had to feed them was some government issued mystery meat from a can. Granted, it turned out to not be as bad as expected. Still, she had far better ingredients in her own kitchen and much better means to cook it with. Kasai sat up a little in bed and slowly tried to keep her body from rebelling at the notion of activity.

Kasai’s laughs made her smile and feel warm on the inside. She wanted her to be happy, and she was glad she could be the source of some of her happiness. At the same time, Avani didn’t like feeling that way about someone who might not feel the same way about her.

“Oh? Is the officer offering me drugs?” Avani laughed and arched her eyebrows. “I thought that was a real crime, unlike seducing you.”

Avani was hungry though, no doubt, as she could not remember when she had eaten last. It had to have been a couple of times this weekend or she wouldn’t have been able to perform like she had.

“That sounds great, Kasai.” Avani said. “I hope you can manage without your crutches if you can’t find them. Sorry about kicking them about and what not.”

She shouldn’t have done that in the first place. She wouldn’t have had it occurred to her that she wouldn’t be there to support Kasai because her body was numb. She had carried Kasai the first day whenever they wanted to move from the sofa to the shower to the bedroom to the whatever, and the other days she had at least let her support herself on her as they moved.

Avani rolled over on her side, pulling one of the covers above her with the intention of taking a nap until Kasai had made them both breakfast.
She felt a bit selfish at the action, as if she was intruding on Kasai’s domain since it wasn’t actually her bed or bedroom. What else was she supposed to do though? She had awakened Kasai so she could hardly leave without her noticing anymore. It would be dishonest to say she wasn’t hungry, and it might be rude to turn down Kasai’s offer for breakfast.

“I guess I will pay for that dinner we were supposed to have in return, and I did walk out on you so while I didn’t lose I kind of forfeited.” Avani mumbled, smiled and pushed her head against the pillows. “I’m not all that confident in my cooking skills.”

She closed her eyes, and heard Kasai exit the room. Hopefully the woman would not fall or anything like that, Avani would do her best to come to her aid if she did, but she wasn’t confident in her moving skills either at the moment.

"Yes, well, just remember that if you want to turn me in, I'm the one with the handcuffs."

Kasai smiled again and chuckled at the joke. Though she was far from being a corrupted cop, she knew that some in the city were. Those were the types of officers whom she looked to overtake and fire if she ever got her way. Disrespecting what the badge stood for just didn't do for her. Unfortunately, most matters like that never made it all the way to Chief Beifong unless they were serious.

Kasai winced a bit at Avani offering to pay for dinner, considering she walked out the other day. Technically, it was Kasai's fault she left in the first place, and the comment was like rubbing salt in a wound that she'd soon rather put past her. She lay there a moment more, garnering the strength to get up. Once she did, she cautiously stood and put weight down on her injured leg. Much to her relief, it didn't hurt any worse than the other.

"Breakfast shall be served."

Steadily, she made her way into the living room and scanned the floor for her crutches. Though she wasn't in any great pain, she didn't think it wise to go walking around on her leg any further than she had to. She found one lying on the other side of her living room and retrieved it, then made her way to the kitchen.

From the fridge she pulled out everything she would need to make them a decent breakfast. The stove was already heating up a couple of pans, and Kasai got to chopping up the ingredients she laid out on her counter and started throwing them into their respective pans. A batter was whipped up, as well as several eggs. Kasai grabbed spices and herbs from a cabinet, but refrained from adding as much heat to the dishes as she normally would. Fire nation cuisine tended to be a little on the spicy side, and she didn't want to scorch Avani's palate right off the start.

A few minutes later, the smell of her cooking filled the apartment. Kasai retrieved a couple plates and utensils, setting them before adding the food to the table. It wasn't a five star meal, but she had the ingredients to make eggs, sausage, fried dough, and tea. Kasai walked back to her bedroom and found Avani bound up in the sheets again. Smiling, she went over and kissed her head, waking her from her nap.

"Wakey wakey, eggs and bakey Avani."

As if Avani needed to be reminded that Kasai was the one with the handcuffs after how she had used them on her these past days, she smiled at the thought before falling asleep for a short nap until breakfast was ready. It didn’t take long before she was gently awakened out of her slumber by the smell of Kasai’s cooking filling the apartment. She could feel her mouth watering at the sense of the smell. Soon she heard Kasai’s clunky movements coming towards her and entering the bedroom. She kept her eyes shut as Kasai moved over to her and kissed her on the forehead.

“I hope it’s not as cheesy as that sentence, Kasai.” Avani joked. “I’ll be kind of disappointed if it doesn’t taste as good as you. No traces of Kasai? Aw, what a shame that would be.”

She grinned, but stopped when she had to move her body out of the bed. It still hurt. She wasn’t sure how Kasai was able to do it. Avani eventually did it by just toughening up and pushing through the pain, the numbness. She stumbled towards the other room and the table with the food, supporting herself by grabbing walls and furniture whenever she needed too.

Avani sat down at the table with a groan. She looked at the food for a while before taking anything. She was trying to size up how much she could take if she were to take half of it, then she did just that and put half of everything on her plate in a pile. She poured herself some tea as well, and drank a few sips. It was hot, but she was thirsty.

She ate in silence for a while, feeling every movement of her body twice as much as usual. It was uncomfortable. The breakfast that Kasai had made tasted great though, so it was worth suffering a bit for. It was a different kind of great taste than the woman herself.

“So what are you going to do now?” Avani asked between chews. “Did I satisfy your bi-curiosity and make you long for more, or…?”

She kept her voice calm and collected, as if it was just an ordinary question for her. It did make her a tad more nervous than usual though. She didn’t know what would happen now. They had no reason to continue seeing each other if physical attraction and curiosity was all that had been there. Avani should move on to new pastures for her own sake in that case.

“Do you still want to have dinner with me?”

Kasai laughed and followed Avani back to the table, where she took her seat and leaned her crutch against the wall nearby. She poured herself some tea and popped a pill out of the bottle that the doctor had given her, placing it on her tongue before washing it down the hatch. Kasai put the bottle back down on the table and motioned towards it while she swallowed.

"Seriously though, if you need one of those go for it."

A playful smile worked its way across her face again as she piled food onto her own plate and licked her lips in anticipation of a real meal. Eagerly, she began to eat. It didn't occur to her just how hungry she was until she took that first bite. Then, she had to control her table manners to keep from looking like a pig, as Avani so lovingly called the members of the police, as she ate.

Kasai had brought her cup to her lips again and was taking a drink when Avani commented on her satisfaction of the weekends events and such. She nearly choked on the liquid and sat the cup back down on the table while she laughed and coughed at the same time.

"Such lovely table conversations you have."

Kasai gathered herself and cleared her throat before speaking again. "Well, I think it's safe to say that after this weekend I could definitely get used to cooking you breakfast." She smiled and shrugged her shoulders. She hadn't really thought about what would happen next, but considering all she had done to see Avani again those days ago and to keep her from going to prison Kasai figured they would be having that dinner after all.

However, she did sit there for a moment in silence to think while she chewed. After what had happened the other day over a few shots, she had to make sure her feelings were in the right place to avoid a similar situation. It was true that she liked Avani, differently than she had liked any woman before. And it was also true that the past weekend was definitely an effective experience. Kasai came back to the way she had felt when Avani had walked out of her door, when she thought she wouldn't see her again.

"Tell ya what. Give me a week to get out of this cast, that way I can keep up without these stupid things," she poked the crutch and made it fall over to the floor. "Then, I'd be more than happy to have dinner with you. So long as you don't mind being seen out with a cop." Kasai grabbed her tea and sipped on it again, wondering if Avani truly minded the fact that she was a police officer or if it was just a point for teasing with her.

“I aim to please.” Avani grinned as Kasai choked on her tea and had to put it back down on the table. “Oh, could you now? Even though I’ve got the raunchiest topics at the table, huh, but maybe you’re into that kind of thing to start the day with.”

Avani ate as Kasai went silent, which worried her a bit. What was she thinking? She tried to enjoy her meal rather than let her thoughts bother
her too much. It didn’t matter all that much if all they became were friends with benefits, but of course that would make Avani’s feelings complicated at some point or another no matter what.

“That sounds fine.” She said. “I don’t mind being out with you on a date as long as you’re not actually wearing a uniform. Perhaps I should give you a couple of weeks though, so we could have that physical competition where I beat you up like you me wanted too.”

Avani laughed, then went back to finishing off her breakfast and tea. She was curious how Kasai would be if they didn’t speak or see each other for that amount of time. Probably she would regret anything that may have happened between them, but she liked the thought that Kasai may be left longing for her.

“I guess we better get a last quickie in, eh?” Avani smiled and moved over to Kasai, kissing and caressing her.

---

Avani spent the following weeks taking it easy until her arm had healed, at which point she returned to work at the harbour. Her regular job was a simple and boring one, where she mostly helped moving cargo in one way or another. She had contacts that could provide her with jobs that would earn her quick cast though, if she needed or wanted it.

Before the day that they had decided to go out on a date together, Avani did carry out one of these jobs so that she could take Kasai out to some fancy restaurant. It was simple enough, all she had to do was provide backup to some carrying out a robbery. She didn’t get much closer than keeping an eye out for any cops and driving one of the getaway vehicles.

The next day, she pulled up to Kasai’s apartment during the afternoon and honked the horn on her motorcycle. She had brought the sidecar with her, in case Kasai would rather ride in it than sit behind Avani on the motorcycle. She figured she could detach it and leave it at Kasai’s place if she wanted to ride behind her.

“Afternoon, Lady Sergeant.” Avani greeted Kasai when she came outside. “Ready to get your ass beat?” She laughed, but when looking Kasai over she had to wonder if the woman had dressed appropriately. “I thought it could be fun to spar some to build up an appetite, if you agree that is.”

The first week Kasai spent bored in her apartment, meandering around and cleaning things that she had already cleaned three times by now. It wasn't particularly easy for her to mope around lazily for such extended periods of time, since she was used to such an active lifestyle. Soon enough though, the aching in her leg was quelled and she returned to the doctor.

Lucky for her, the break was healed enough that the cast could be removed and she could walk without crutches. The doctor instructed her to ease back into vigorous activity though, to avoid re-injury. She listened to his instructions but by the time she was able to walk out of the doctor's office on her own two feet, she was already throwing a few kicks around with her leg. There was a slight soreness, but she figured it would have time to heal the following week.

Kasai gladly returned to work, though when she arrived she was met with a written warning on her desk and instructions that prohibited her from field work for two weeks. Great, she always wanted to be a desk jockey. Her boredom continued as she shuffled papers and signed off on reports that landed on her desk. Each time a call came in she jumped up, ready to head out. But she was always met with a cold glare from her lieutenant, so she would sit back down.

The day before she was supposed to go out with Avani she spent doing the same thing. The boring empty thoughts in her head were this time replaced with thoughts of Avani, the weekend they shared together and what would come next. Just before she clocked out she had to sign off on a robbery report, with two unidentified accomplices to the gang in question. Just another day as a pencil pusher, she signed off and handed it over to the investigating officers.

The next day she woke and spent part of the morning stretching and loosening her muscles, remembering how Avani planned on having that bet like they talked about. It was weird to her, but she was excited to see Avani. Kasai took a shower and changed into some casual clothes, not knowing what the other woman may have planned, and then waited about.

Soon enough she heard a horn honk outside of her apartment, and she looked out the window to see Avani on her motorcycle. Luckily, she wasn't dressed up either so Kasai grabbed her things and headed downstairs, greeting Avani with a smile.

"Well, hey there hot stuff." She looked over the motorcycle and noticed the sidecar. "No need for that, I've got my legs back." She said with a smile, which soon turned to a smirk. "Oh, you think you can beat me huh? Big talk, let's hope you aren't all bark and no bite." Kasai waited for Avani to detach the cart before climbing on the motorcycle behind her, this time not worried about a helmet.

"Off we go then, hope you're ready to lose that bet." Kasai said as she grinned and wrapped her arms around Avani's torso, holding on as they began to move.

“I thought you knew by now that I like to bite as well.” She joked. “I’m a wild beast after all, not some pet.”

Avani climbed off the motorcycle to remove the sidecar, pulled it up next to Kasai’s apartment and hoped that no one would steal it if she left it there. She could get it back if they did, but she had to wonder who would be brazen enough to steal from a cop to begin with.

She got back on the motorcycle, waited for Kasai to grab onto something and pushed the gas pedal down hard when she had. She drove above the speed limit for a while, keeping to empty roads and streets, for fun and to scare Kasai, but she slowed down when she figured the woman might arrest her on the spot if she kept it up for too long.

“Oops, pressed it down too hard.”

She laughed, feeling the wind running through her hair and stretching out. Unfortunately Kasai got most of it in her face as she was sitting behind her. Avani didn’t think about it. She drove them towards the gym she usually went too. Not that she went to gyms often as she enjoyed exercising outside or at home more, but when it was bad weather she came here.

It was located close to the harbour, in a district that probably saw more criminals than she’d like to admit. She may have reconsidered brining Kasai there if she had put some more thought into it, but as it was she knew the owner of the gym. She knew her because they had been close once, very close, hopefully the woman wouldn’t be here today though.

Avani parked outside the gym, waited for Kasai to get off the motorcycle and then got off herself. There weren’t many vehicles around where she parked. Maybe business was bad or it was just one of those days.

“I guess this is where you’ll fight your superior then, Lady Sergeant. I hope you’re not too bad a loser.” Avani grinned. “I wouldn’t want our date to turn sour because you can’t handle losing.”

Maybe this had been a bad idea if one of them got angry at the other after they lost. Maybe she wouldn’t have considered this a fun activity if she had taken that into account. Oh well, now they were here. Avani was genuinely curious if Kasai had any reason to be so cocky, or if she would defeat her like she expected too.

“Let’s go inside and get ready, yeah?”

Avani smiled and locked the motorcycle. She headed inside, got changed in the locker room and stepped out into the gym before long. She headed over to the ring they used for sparring matches normally.

She was wearing shorts and a top more fit for fighting now. It was easier to move in, throwing kicks and punches. The black leather of her jacket and pants was left in the changing rooms.

The week so far had gone by slowly, each day dragging on into the next. Kasai had returned to work at the PD, her probation was finally lifted and she was allowed to go back out on patrol instead of spending her days drowning in endless oceans of paperwork. Of course, this excited her. After she was allowed back on field duty the days seemed to move quicker, keeping up pace with her job.

It had been nearly a week since Avani had taken her to that fancy restaurant, wine and dine in an exclusive manner. The next morning Kasai had woken up to a headache, courtesy of the wine. In her mind she had recalled the prior day's activities, and a blush fell upon her when she realized her slight intoxication may have influenced her actions in a risqué way.

However, she couldn't help but smile at the fact. There was nothing to regret about it, in fact it was a rather fulfilling night. The only thing that seemed odd to her was what appeared to be an enormous amount of money that Avani had handed over as they left. It wasn't that she thought Avani didn't have the money, it just seemed to be a rather large amount to just be carrying around. More than Kasai herself could afford to spend on one night out. But in the end, she also attributed her interpretation of the amount of money to her drunken state.

One thing she was keen on looking into was the mayor and checking in with local newspapers. Kasai hadn't had any plans to follow through with their little "blackmailing" idea, but when the Captain called her in earlier that week to ask if she would like to have a new partner assigned to her she changed her mind. 'I shouldn't have to have a new partner...' The loss still weighed heavily on her, and the least she could do is earn the fallen friends the recognition they deserve.

Kasai intended on scoping out some of the local news businesses after work today, then discussing it further with Avani. For now, she sat alone on a bench down the block from a well-known gang hang out. She was on surveillance duty, this gang was under investigation for several heists and robberies, some where there were civilian injuries. The department feared they may be going for bigger targets, so Kasai was sent to observe if they were bringing in anything that would suggest it.

The scene had remained fairly quiet, nothing too suspicious going on. Soon enough, her relief arrived and she stood from her seat. Shaking the other undercover officer's hand, she gave him a nod and then headed to her car that was parked a couple blocks away. All she had left for the day was to go back to the PD and file her surveillance report and then she was free to go, so off she went once she reached her car.

The week after her date with Kasai, Avani had spent trying to find more honourable work, and by trying she meant that she had considered the idea while lazying about in her apartment. She didn’t feel all that comfortable with her current job situation if Kasai was going to be a part of her life from now on. She had eventually returned to work at the docks though, but the fact that she had beaten a cop in hand-to-hand combat gave her another idea. Maybe she should start participating in serious matches for money. Maybe that could be a way to make more money with time if she got popular.

Once her arm had healed more or less, Avani decided to get it tattooed to cover up the horrible scarring, as she had planned to do all along. She spent quite a bit of money on the tattoo, because she wanted to get the best work she could possibly get. The tattoo should improve on her body and beauty, not take away from it, though that would be hard considering what her arm looked like with the bandages removed.

It took a couple of days to finish the tattoo, as it was large and covered her whole arm. The pain didn’t bother her as much as she had feared it would. In the end, she did get a work of art as part of her arm. Two jade dragons were depicted as intertwined and slithering around her arm, with the tip of their tails in the palm of her hand and their heads on her shoulder. One of them was black with spikes and larger than the other, while the second one was done with several different shades of red.

Avani spent a lot of time after getting her tattoo just admiring it. She would find herself distracted by it, and she found her new appearance cooler than she had ever looked before. The eye patch and the tattoo added a new dimension to it. She wondered if she should do something with her hair as well, but was quite low on money by then so it would have to wait either way. She certainly had a unique appearance that an audience would remember if she did decide to try her luck at some kind of professional fighting.

She wanted to show Kasai her new look, but at the same time she didn’t want to come off as needy or anything either. She thought back to their last encounter, or the weekend they had spent together, whenever her desire grew too large. Avani hoped they would meet again soon, but she didn’t like the feeling of vulnerability that came with wanting a specific woman in her life.

Avani’s dreams often featured Kasai too. She very much enjoyed the scenarios her mind came up with when she was asleep and wondered if she would get a chance to play some of them out, but it also contributed to the growing feeling of longing that she had to find ways to deal with. She played with toys more than usual.

Kasai had made her way back to the police station, set to fill out her report and get to work on finding a reporter willing to listen to her rather insane story. As she placed the paperwork down on her captain's desk, he turned and looked at her.

"How did it look out there? Anything big seem to be in the works?" He questioned her. She gave a sigh, the last thing she wanted to do was stick around to entertain his mini-interrogation of her observations. In the end though she remembered to remain respectful and cleared her throat, shaking her head.

"No sir. Place was pretty quiet, just a few of the regulars mingling about. They didn't even seem to be organizing at the moment, Niko is out there now continuing surveillance." She gave her verbal report and waited for him to dismiss her, which he did after giving a nod and a grunt.

She gladly and quickly exited his office and grabbed her things to leave for the day. Now she was on another mission: to find a newspaper willing to do an interview and tell their story. That could prove difficult due to the fact that the paper will willingly have to speak against the mayor in a way, make sure the people see his fault in ignoring the severity of the issue.

Kasai set out with a few news outlets in mind, but she was promptly turned away from each of them before they even heard what she wanted to tell them. After a few arguments and some unkind words, she was back out on the street thinking up a plan B. A tapping on her shoulder made her turn around, a dissatisfied look still donned her face. A thin man with a card in his outstretched hand stood behind her.

"I recognize you, you're an RCPD officer." Kasai slowly nodded her head, unsure of what that had to do with anything this stranger could want. "I work for the Republic City Times. I saw them turn you away; we don't interview anyone that isn't well-known and promising of a headliner." Kasai was quickly getting annoyed with the man, and went to turn away.

"No, wait! I know this is all stuff you already know. But here," he handed her the card that was in his hand. "This is someone who can listen to what you have to say. They work independently of the big papers, but they can get your story out for you if that's what you really want." He gave her one more nod and turned to go back to his place of work.

Kasai looked down at the business card, with nothing else written on it than a phone number. She shoved the card in her pocket and marched down the sidewalk again, frustrated by the numerous rejections she had received so far today. It had been a long day, and she was ready to head home to have a drink and relax. She got in her car and drove to her apartment.

Once inside, she tossed her keys on the table along with the card while she went to pour a drink. When she returned to sit down on her couch, she stared at the card. Should she even trust the guy? Why did he care enough to even give her a number? And why the hell wasn't there a name to go along with it? She sipped her drink while she pondered the validity of it all, willing her body to relax from the long day.

When she finally started to relax, she thought of Avani. She wondered when they would see each other again, but she knew better than to be pushy. Avani was the type of woman who would make her presence known when she wanted. For now, she enjoyed the whiskey in her glass and watched the sun set across the harbor.

Avani had decided early on in the week that she would not contact Kasai, rather she would wait and see if the other woman would bother contacting her at all. If she didn’t, well maybe she wasn’t as into her. It was silly after what they had done, and she knew it, but now she had gone several days with that mindset without giving into temptation. The fact that her previous relationships hadn’t gone all that well may have influenced it too.

As the tattoo was finished and she had put off the idea long enough by then, she left her apartment to look into what possibilities there may be for her to pursue fighting for money within Republic City. She had heard that her home city of Ba Sing Se may have more opportunities for that sort of thing, but she wasn’t all that eager to move back. She may have been born there, but Republic City was much more like her actual home. It wasn’t like she had had any chance to choose home city, so in a way it was strange to put any weight behind the concept of having a home city for her.

Avani got on her motorcycle and drove off. She made sure to drive by Kasai’s apartment, where she stopped for a second only to rev her engine and make herself heard before she took off. It was even sillier than not contacting Kasai, and she did not know what she hoped to accomplish with the action. Maybe she just wanted to tease Kasai, make her wish that she had stopped by for some fun. Maybe Kasai wasn’t even home.

After a couple of hours of driving around and asking those she thought may know something, she had at least one promising lead. She wasn’t certain how legal said fighting ring was, but it seemed to attract a fair bit of spectators and betting. Nevertheless Avani decided to sign up, only to be told that she needed to sign a few papers that would waive the organizers of any responsibility for sustained injuries, and that she would need to provide them with a fee for membership before she could partake in any fighting.

All she wanted to do was earn some more money without literally robbing anyone, but if she wanted to join anytime soon she would have to ask the criminal element for another job. She didn’t have the money for the membership fee at the moment. It annoyed her, but she wouldn’t let it stop her and waiting for her salary from the docks was not an option if she wanted to join that week.

Avani took the papers with her home, telling them that she would take some time to think it over. She didn’t feel like being honest enough to tell them that she was more or less broke. Once more she took the longer route and drove by Kasai’s apartment, slowing down and honking when she was outside.

She got home fairly late, parked her motorcycle and went inside. She cleaned herself up a bit, but didn’t wait long before retiring to bed. Tomorrow, she would have to ask for another job from her contacts, and considering that she was dating a cop it didn’t come with the thrill it once had. Obviously some part of her had enjoyed taking from the rich and giving to herself, but what would happen if she was ever caught again? Perhaps it would be best to make it clear to herself and them that it was the very last job she would do for them.

Kasai had finally decided to move from her spot on the couch to her bed long after the sun had set over the city. Nestled into her bed, she had just about found sleep when a loud rumbling and a honk came from the street outside. A smile played across her face before she even opened her eyes. She made it to the window in time to see the tail lights disappear down the block.

The next morning Kasai woke and put on some tea to brew before she would need to get ready for work. The card with the number on it still sat on her coffee table, staring her in the face. What was the big deal? She should just call the number and find out if the person on the other end of the line can give her what she wanted. Unfortunately, Kasai was more skeptical than that.

She drank her tea and picked up the card again. That was that. She decided she would call the number today when she got off work. Afterall, the worse thing that could happen is she gets rejected from yet another news reporter. Nothing she hadn't experienced already. And after Avani's little drive by last night, she decided to go ahead and try to see Avani today as well.

Kasai groaned and stood up from the couch, placing her cup in the sink before heading to get dressed for the day. She would be stuck on surveillance again, which meant she needed to be wearing civilian clothing. Well, it wasn't as protective as her police uniform was but she couldn't complain as it was certainly more comfortable to sit around in. Kasai grabbed her badge and the rest of her things, shoving the card from the table in her pocket before heading out the door to her car.

She made it to the station, where the captain briefed her on what the previous officer had observed. Apparently the place was seeing a little more action than it had yesterday. She was told to keep her radio handy and keep her eyes peeled. Satisfied with the information she was given, she headed out towards the gang's hangout.

Kasai parked her car a couple blocks away as to not raise any suspicion on her part. She slipped her radio onto the waist of her pants and covered it up with her shirt before making her way to the bench where she would unfortunately spend the next several hours of her life. Taking a seat, she sighed and faced the building across the street to look for any signs of illegal activity. All was clear for now, so she got comfortable and settled in for the job.