well that got awkward fast

[pabulously]

WHO: Hei and Bolin, later Korra & Hei
WHAT: Bolin’s come to tell Korra about rumors he’s heard on the streets. But Hei’s the only one home.

[Strangely enough, Bolin's never been to Korra's house. Well, okay, maybe it's not so strange, considering he's broken his heart twice over her and while she's still one of his best friends the idea of being near both her and a bed is just...not a thing he wants to be happening. Particularly when it's a bed she's sharing with another dude. The same dude she'd been seeing before sleeping with him.

That's really the part that Bolin's still struggling with. He doesn't regret the affair or how it ended; he's made his peace and come to appreciate the idea of "sexbuddies." But the idea that he took another guy's girl is deeply uncomfortable, as is the idea that he made Korra a cheater. Luckily he doesn't have much reason to worry about it — Korra's boyfriend is so rarely seen he might as well be a myth. It's not the kind of relationship Bolin would want for himself, but Korra seems happy with it. And after losing her for those months, and the sheer chaos that followed her return, he's just happy that she can be happy.

Anyway. Yadayada, the past is the past, Bolin's perfectly happy to just catch Korra at pro-bending matches and grab lunch or dinner every so often. Why bug her at home?

Except he's started hearing things, whispers on the streets, about Amon and the spirit world and the possibility of a lot of trouble. This is stuff that Korra needs to know, now. Which brings him to her door.

Knock knock.]

Comments

[pabulously]

[Bolin salutes him with his chopsticks.] You are a gentleman and a scholar.

[He looks at the other man. Nice. Attractive. Can cook. No wonder Korra likes this guy. It's kind of hard to believe that this nice, perfect guy is a demon in the sack.]

[mortemscintilla]

[ Isn't that what all the girls want, though? A doofus in the streets and a freak in the bed? Minus the doofus, anyway. ]

[ Of course, Bolin doesn't realize Li -- sweet, harmless Li -- is just a reflection of his world. The image of a man for the civilian realm. His sunny articulation has a darker root system; and the Reaper is always deeply rooted in there. For a moment -- just a moment -- he wonders how Bolin would react if he knew the truth. But such speculation is dangerous and unnecessary. If Korra's friends ever find out she's riding the wild pony with a killer, he doubts they'll sit around playing canasta and chatting about it amiably. They'd do everything possible -- short of maybe murdering him -- to pry him off her. Hell, the only reason Tenzin & Co tolerate him right now, is because they're convinced he's a bumbling wuss. ]

[ At Bolin's compliment, he blushes with becoming modesty. ]

Well. I try. [ There's a beat, before he admits, more sheepishly, ] I'll be honest. Sometimes I worry a go-getter like Korra will get tired of a boring guy like me.

[ Of course she would. Praise the gods Li is no realer than he needs to be. (Although sometimes he does wish Li was real. He'd treat Korra far better than Hei ever has.) ]

[pabulously]

You don't have to worry about that. Korra's not that type of girl. And, I mean, she's told me you are — [Really, spectacularly amazing in bed okay no she never said that she's not that insensitive but it was very clear from how good she was that Li is something else]

really important to her. [Yeah, let's go with that. Still true, less embarrassing to admit.]

[mortemscintilla]

[ Hei blinks, oddly discomfited. There's a stuttering subtext in Bolin's remarks that makes him wary. What exactly has Korra told him? If it's something as gossipy and trivial as his dick, or how he likes to fuck, he doesn't care. But if their talks have scratched anything below the surface, he needs to be cautious. ]

[ It makes him realize that he's fallen out of habit with having the intimate aspects of his life routinely breached. The Syndicate's clearance teams were very thorough about their ops' personal habits. Especially Contractors whose bodies were considered property. Even so, Hei tends to guard the heart of himself, because others in his profession did the same. A man carries himself a certain way, walks the walk and talks the talk; but what the hell does anyone really know about him, about what he's thinking. Mere guesswork. And the domestic flipside of a his public life -- that territory should be zoned against trespassing. ]

[ He prefers to keep his private life private. Ironic, coming from a spy. But who else would understand the value of boundaries? ]

[ Li, though, just smiles at Bolin, a look of sincere gratitude that conceals the fact that he's either internally rolling his eyes or frowning at the boy. ]

That's ... wow. That's good to know. [ Bashfully, (calculatedly), ] I didn't realize she talked about me with her friends.

[pabulously]

She doesn't actually talk that much about you. It's kind of weird. [Wait, that came out wrong. Weird. Something.] I mean, it's not like she avoids talking about you, or we're not interested in hearing about you because we are! We totally want to know more about Korra's Man of Mystery! But you know she's so busy with her Avatar duties and this whole spirit crisis thing.

It's obvious, though, in how she talks about you. Doesn't talk about you. [GEEZ BOLIN GET IT TOGETHER. He takes a deep breath.] Just... she's with you. Korra doesn't waste her time on people who don't matter to her.

[mortemscintilla]

[ It's funny how you can read everything on Bolin's face; his worry, his guilt, his super-charged cheer. The quintessential problem of normal people, Hei thinks: where he is not all there, they are way too much there. And with that endless stream of chatter, this is Bolin to the max, a heavy presence at Hei's side of wide-eyed looks and stumbling chatter and frittering energy. While he babbles, Li nods understandingly, and thinks sourly, This is the impromptu mid-supper pep-talk that is my hell. Nodding, smiling. ]

[ Still, one thing is clear. Whatever Bolin's hiding is of minimal importance. Probably he's embarrassed by intimate details he's learnt during his fling with Korra. By proxy, if nothing else. Everything the boy's trying not to think about, trying to keep hidden and repressed, rushes across his face as he chatters in a full-immersion sensurround. ]

[ When Li speaks, his words come with quiet ease. ]

She matters to me too. [ The one truth in this entire conversation. ] That's why I worry so much, I guess. Especially with how dangerous things are lately.

[ A beat, before he drops his voice confidingly, ]

I keep hearing all these rumors of something bad brewing. Something after her.

[ A subtle prodding for Bolin to share whatever he knows. Or thinks he knows. ]

[pabulously]

YOU HAVE TOO?!

[Wait.]

How?

[Bolin has his street contacts. Who does Li know?]

[mortemscintilla]

[ The lie slides off Li's lips as smoothly as the heaping of seconds he offers Bolin. ]

Well. My fruit-vendor knows a guy in the police who knows a guy who lives in the slums who knows a guy who deals with one of the triads. At least, that's what he tells me.

[ There's a beat, before his face puckers into a disgruntled moue. ]

I don't spend all my time cooking stir-fry.

[pabulously]

Wooooooooow. Nice connections!

[Bolin inhales the rest of his rice before leaning in.]

So does Korra know that people are saying Amon didn't really die and he's leading the spirits in a revolution against the Avatar and that's why the vines are destroying Republic City?

[mortemscintilla]

[ Well. That was anticlimactic. ]

[ Hei is tempted to dismiss the whole thing as absolute garbage, and a waste of time and oxygen to boot. He knows -- for an irrefutable fact -- that Amon is dead. But it's also true that every rumor is shaped by a kernel of truth, hidden beneath the layers of unsubstantiated fiction. His mind conjures up an absurd image that is nonetheless chilling: the reanimated corpse of Amon clawing itself up from its murky grave, mask chipped, blood dripping from its mouth, its scummy teeth snap-snapping. Except, in this case, he knows which stirrings -- deep in the underworld's belly -- are feeding that slim fragment of truth. Secret meetings. The mysterious rash of deaths among the high-ranking leaders of the triads. A dangerous masked man. ]

[ So much for discretion. ]

[ He shakes his head at Bolin, a small, comforting smile sitting on his face. ]

The only rumors I've heard are that the vines signal the end of the human age. That the Lion Turtles will return -- and demand the Avatar's blood as payment for protecting us again.

[ The amount of bullshit in that sentence could feed the entire Dragon Flats Borough. ]

[pabulously]

[Ohoooo? And how do you know that, Hei? Amon's "death" was well before your arrival in this world. UNLESS — no I got nothing.]

What? [Bolin is equally unimpressed with Hei's rumors.] That's ridiculous. Why would the lion turtles want Korra's blood? They're supposed to be HUUUUUUUUUUGE. Like, all the blood in her body would be nothing more to them than this stain is to my shirt. [He gestures emphatically to the stain.] Man, people are so stupid. They'll believe anything!

[mortemscintilla]

[ Considering he's used every ounce of his extant resources to follow leads on Amon -- alive or dead. And that every one of those leads has categorically yielded nothing but baseless drivel ... Yeah. He's sure Amon has kicked the bucket. The man has, however, left behind a large, if directionless, following. People who still exhale ideas of revolution with every breath. Who are desperate for someone to fill the void Amon left behind. ]

[ Politely, he offers Bolin a napkin for said stain. ]

I know what you mean. I guess when people are that frustrated and scared ... they'll look for any way to take their minds off the present.

[pabulously]

[That stain's been there awhile...it's not going anywhere. But thanks for the napkin anyway. Bolin uses it to wipe his mouth.]

So you really think Amon is gone?

[mortemscintilla]

[ Hei would suggest a soak in cold water and vinegar for the stain. That's what he uses for bloodstains. But he'll never say that, because the last thing he is is a sweet little hausfrau, despite the placid domesticity oozing from 'Li's pores right now. ]

[ At Bolin's question, he pauses a beat, his expression teetering between confidence and self-doubt ]

I hope he is. I mean, no one's heard a peep from him in ages, right? [ He hesitates, his voice dropping to a whisper reserved for all things cloak-and-dagger and grandma's-secret-recipe-esque. ] Even if he is alive ... He won't be too much trouble for Korra, right? She's faced bigger baddies than him.

[pabulously]

Well yeah! Of course! I mean, she took down Dark Avatar Unalaq and he was literally bigger than Amon by like a lot. Korra could take him easy.

[Still, while Unalaq was physically bigger and more powerful and his plans for world destruction more crazy, Amon is still, to Bolin, the scariest villain. Sure, Korra had beaten him, but that victory had tasted like defeat.]

Does she know about all these rumors flying around?

[mortemscintilla]

[ Hei hears so much anxiety congealing in Bolin's voice. Not the rational anxiety of an adult, but that formless terror of a little boy, who has just peeked under his bed to learn that the monster hiding below is real. Real, and reaching out for him with its gnarled, claw-like hands. Blinking, a part of Hei looks at the boy from a secluded cell in his brain, faintly pitying, an emotion trapped under a foot of ice. His heart's in the right place. But he's too sheltered and gullible, even for someone his age. Even for a former street kid. His brother must've made all the tough calls. ]

[ The thought briefly hits him where he lives, in that tender, aching place beneath his ribs. It's not entirely inconceivable that if Hei had a little brother, if he'd grown up on the streets, he'd have taken care of Bolin the same way Mako did. Except he'd had a sister, not a brother. That had changed the rules of the literal war. Made him more ruthless, but perhaps also more barbed and brittle. ]

[ Shaking it off, he offers Bolin a reassuring smile. ]

Remember: they're just rumors. So there's no need to unload them on Korra. She has enough to worry about. Why add to it unless we know for sure it's the truth?

[pabulously]

Ooooooooh, I see what you're saying. We should launch OUR OWN PRIVATE INVESTIGATION!

[mortemscintilla]

[ Hei resists the urge to both facepalm and smack the boy upside the head. A strange impulse that should be named after this kid. How's your day going so far? Meh. A little Bolin. ]

That's not what I ... [ Oh screw it. Anything that'll stop his ever-running mouth. ] I guess that's a good idea. Tomorrow we'll go scope whichever Triad hangouts you know about. See if someone's heard anything.

[ And he can knock you out fifteen minutes into the investigation and haul your ass home. ]

[pabulously]

ALL RIGHT! [Bolin pumps his fist in the air. This is what he's needed — a plan! Something concrete he can do to help Korra since, you know, he's pretty useless with all this spirit stuff. But he can totally do investigation stuff! He's picked up a ton of stuff from Mako's policework!]

[mortemscintilla]

Great. Tomorrow afternoon, then.

[ Li smiles with bright, faux interest -- while privately wondering how best to shoo Bolin off before Korra gets here. Threading his growing weariness into a blanket of bonhomie, he drifts to the dishwasher. Carefully begins unloading the crockery -- and a number of implements that look like restraints for kinky bondage games. (They're actually equipment for his trapeze rigging, but Bolin doesn't need to know that.) ]

[ Almost to himself, he murmurs, ]

...I wonder when Korra will get back...

[pabulously]

[Those restraints — and the mental image of being alone with Korra and her sexgod boyfriend — are enough to prompt Bolin out the door.]

Thanks for the food, Li. It was truly awe-inspiring. And say hi to Korra for me!

[There are a few places he can hit up tonight, actually...]

[mortemscintilla]

Will do. And it was my pleasure.

[ Li offers a ditzy grin of cheer and a wave, one of the weird restraints still flopping from his hand. ]

Feel free to drop by whenever you like.

[ Except on days ending with Y, and the hours between 12 AM and 12 PM. ]

[ (If he spots Bolin at any of the shadier venues in the city, later tonight, he'll deal with the boy as required. Until then, though, he still has the steamed fish and honey-walnut shrimp to contend with.) ]

[anatural]

[Bolin is pretty much the last person Korra expected to see on her way back home. Even weirder is the fact that he wouldn't stop to chat — just "Hey Kora gotta go let's catch up later all right bye!"

Seriously weird.

She's pulling out her hairties as she comes through the front door, sticking them in Naga's saddle pocket so Hei doesn't steal them like he's taken to doing. She toes off her boots.]

Hey! What was Bolin doing here?

[mortemscintilla]

[ He's set the table by the time Korra comes in -- a pretty crime-scene of sharp-smelling aromas. A plate with pale fat slashes of fish wrapped in translucent slices of ginger. Another with plump little morsels of shrimp, verdant sprigs of broccoli, and a sauce with a dark sticky density. The stir-fry -- despite Bolin's effusive praise -- tastes overdone to him; he's appropriated the entire pot to finish by himself, perhaps in perverse punishment. ]

[ He glances up when Korra enters. His features, downturned by the pull of either contemplation, hunger, general dissatisfaction or all three, smooth into something more pleasant. ]

Just shooting the bull.

[ Until it was staggered, bloody and riddled in holes. ]

[anatural]

[Korra arches an eyebrow and settles down at the table to start piling up her plate. She is starving — she's spent this entire day trying to negotiate with the spirits, to no avail.]

I didn't know you guys were so close. [Come on, Hei. Spill the beans.]