Fate ◇ Desna x Reader

Chapter Five

"Where's Varrick? We should have closed our deal an hour ago."

You nodded in agreement to Asami's statement, stretching as you paced idly around the eccentric office of her latest business partner. You were leaving for the North Pole with Desna any day now, so you were determined to be there with Asami and participate in one last meeting for the company. She was beyond happy for you, as she knew how much you cared about Desna, but you still felt bad to be stepping down from Future Industries. Varrick financially stabilizing her business was the only thing that eased your guilty conscience – which was why you were really wondering where the heck he was.

"Would you relax? This place is great! And the best part about it? Eska doesn't know I'm here," Bolin stated, lounged across the couch.

Just then, the doors to the office were burst open by Northern Water Tribe soldiers. Joining them were none other than the aforementioned Eska, and Desna.

As he leapt up from his seat, Bolin nervously said, "I wasn't hiding. Hey. He-ey. Hey."

"I am not on the hunt for you... currently," Eska responded.

You shot Bolin a disappointed look. He definitely should have dumped her already.

"Hi, Des. What are you guys doing here? Did Varrick get double-booked?" you inquired, walking over to him and exchanging a quick kiss.

"We search for Varrick. Our father wishes him to stand trial," Desna responded, and your eyebrows raised in surprise.

"What did he do?"

"He is a traitor to the Water Tribe, along with our aunt and uncle."

"What?" Asami asked, now wearing the same expression as you.

"Korra's parents were arrested?" Mako asked.

"Yes. Your powers of deduction are impressive," Desna answered with a dry, sarcastic tone. You rolled your eyes slightly.

"Be nice," you whispered, and he shot you an apologetic look.

After the twins and the soldiers determined Varrick was not in his office, Eska stated that they should look elsewhere. You waved at Desna as they left, and once they were gone, Varrick revealed himself, hiding inside the platypus bear of all places. Mako left to check on Korra, and when Varrick began to convince Bolin to bribe the judge, you decided to head out after Mako.

During the trial later that day, you opted to sit by Desna. With your fingers intertwined, you watched as the judge led the hearing. Desna was unbothered by the situation, which you couldn't blame him for, considering the fact that he wasn't close with his aunt, uncle, or cousin at all, and he remained loyal to his father – whereas your loyalty lay with Korra. Still, he sensed your discomfort, and occasionally rubbed your hand with his thumb in a silent effort to soothe you.

After the judge left to deliberate over his convictions, you chatted with Desna for a bit, before deciding to sit with Mako and Asami for the remainder of the trial. You sensed that the outcome would not be in Korra's favor, so you wanted to be with your friends when the judge delivered that news. As the hearing resumed, you noticed that Bolin sat with Eska, which you found peculiar but you didn't think much of it.

As you had guessed, the verdict was unpleasant. Korra's mother was found not guilty, but the others, including her father, were found guilty. When Judge Hotah declared that the punishment would be death, Unalaq stepped in to request a less harsh punishment, and the judge agreed to change it to life in prison.

The rest of the day seemed to pass by in a blur. You stuck with Asami and Mako after the trial, but Korra disappeared, only to join you three a couple hours later and reveal that Unalaq had been conspiring against Tonraq for years, orchestrating his banishment, and convincing the judge to sentence all of the 'traitors' to life in prison. Mako and Asami both agreed to help Korra free them all, and you followed suit – as did Varrick, still in the platypus bear. You didn't have time to ponder over how this heist would affect your relationship with Desna, being that you were technically about to become a traitor to his father, before Bolin swung open the door to Varrick's office. And for some hellish reason, he was wearing an outfit identical to Eska and Desna's, with his hair slicked down, and some sort of collar around his neck. Arguably more horrifying was the fact that Pabu matched him, aside from the jewelry.

"The honesty thing worked out great. So great that she decided we should get married!"

Bolin's tone was anything but excited. He then turned to you. "This isn't fair! Why aren't you being forced into marriage too?!"

"Uh... because my relationship isn't horrendously toxic, so he doesn't have to try to trap me," you responded, and he merely groaned in exasperation.

Varrick then began to formulate a plan, and all of you sprang into action.

While Korra, Mako, and Asami headed to a local prison in an attempt to find and free the rebels, and Bolin helped a still-disguised Varrick get to his ship, you opted for a different route – something you knew you needed to do before leaving.

As fast as you could, you ran to the palace, knowing time was of the essence. Hair a mess and out of breath, you found Desna in the throne room, and you were thankful that Eska was nowhere in sight – most likely preparing for her wedding, which wasn't actually going to be happening. His eyebrows raised at the sight of you, and you ran to embrace him, burying your face in his neck.

"Des, I... I have to go. Please don't try to stop me. There's nothing I want less than to leave you, but my friends need me, and this has to be done. I'm sorry. But we'll be together again soon, I promise. I love you."

Desna placed his hands on your shoulders to move you back a few inches, so he could look at you. You could see the sadness in his eyes, and it broke your heart.

"I understand, and I respect your loyalty to your companions. Although it pains me deeply to see you go, I will not stop you. But please, be careful," he said, then placed a firm kiss on your forehead. "I love you."

With that, you ran back out of the palace, toward the dock, and boarded Varrick's ship at the same time as Korra and the others. After Asami, Korra, and Mako took off in a plane to clear a path through the Northern navy, they took off to locate the ship holding Tonraq and the others. Varrick caught up to them momentarily, and they climbed aboard just in time to make a speedy getaway.

After the lot of you escaped the Northern troops, and a positively livid Eska, you headed back to Republic City, the weight of missing Desna beginning to sink into your heart.