Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

'You want me to what?'

'You heard me, (Y/N).' Chief Beifong sighed from behind her desk. 

'Why does it have to be me? There has got to be some 'non-bender' employee which you can send to do this, right?', (Y/N) whined back at her.

'You are smart enough to understand why I can't do that (Y/N)', Beifong responds while standing up from her desk. 'The Equalists have been gaining too much influence on the people of Republic City. Sending in a 'non-bender' would be far too dangerous, as they could sympathize with their cause and jeopardize this whole operation. Because you are a bender, you won't be swooned by their ideology, hence why we've decided to send you in.' 

'Yes, obviously I get that', (Y/N) rolls her eyes. 'I'm not stupid.'

Chief Beifong rolls her eyes right back at her. 'Your mission will be to gather information on the plans of the organization, and if any illegal activities are conducted at their 'rallies'. Try to uncover as many members of the organization as possible, it is important to know who we need to be watching closely.'

'Wait, how are you even expecting me to pull this off? I can't just waltz in there, walk up to that 'Amon' guy, and ask him for secret information? You know how these people think Chief, they think benders are the scum of the world. You really expect them to trust me?'

Beifong frowns and folds her arms together. 'You once told me you refrain from using your bending abilities in everyday life, right? Just use that as a basis for a lie. You are a... charming, young woman. You should be able to convince them you agree with their cause.'

'But I really don't.' (Y/N) says, annoyed.

'Well, I think none of the benders in the world do.' Beifong says dryly. 'But you're our best shot, you're going in.'

'But I don't know how to even get in there! Do I just walk up to someone or-' (Y/N) protested. 

Her protests fell on deaf ears when Chief Beifong turned around to grab something from the large, overfull bookcases that lined the Chief's office. She grabbed a folder from the cabinet and tosses it onto the desk in front of (Y/N).

'This is a new contract' Beifong explains. 'This mission comes with a raise, because of the risk factors.' 

'How big of a raise are we talking?'

'Just read the damn contract, (Y/N).'

(Y/N) sighs and picks up the folder, flipping it open. Her eyes skim over the words, but she already knows the contract is full of the usual legal jargon. The important part—the number—should be near the bottom.

She flips to the last page and spots it. Her eyebrows shoot up. "Damn. You must really want me to do this."

Beifong smirks. "It's a fair offer, considering you’ll be putting yourself in a room full of people who hate your existence."

(Y/N) leans back in her chair, tapping a finger against the paper. 'Still not sure if it’s worth it.'

Beifong raises an eyebrow. 'Oh? And what number would make it worth it?'

(Y/N) clicks her tongue, pretending to think. "Triple this."

Beifong snorts. 'In your dreams. But hey, if you pull this off, maybe we’ll talk about bonuses.'

(Y/N) exhales sharply through her nose, shaking her head. 'Fine. Guess I have no choice.' She grabs the pen from Beifong’s desk and scrawls her name across the signature line. 'But if this goes wrong, I expect a damn statue in my honor.'

Beifong smirks. 'We’ll put it right in front of City Hall.'

(Y/N) put the roasted meat sticks she'd bought at a stand while walking home on the counter as she entered her apartment. She was tired from work, and already dreading the mission, without even knowing where to start with it. When walking over to the sink to get some water, she noticed some letters on the mat in front of her door which had been delivered. Walking over to pick it up, (Y/N) immediately recognized the sigil with which the letter was sealed. The sigil of the Southern Water Tribe, a letter from home. 

Three letters, one from mom, one from dad, and one from Korra. 

Korra wrote her a lot, mostly because her little sister didn't have much to do in that training facility other than, well, train. 

She decided to read Korra's letter first-, because that was always the most interesting one. 

She sank onto the sofa and opened the envelope.

Hey (Y/N)! 

She hardly manages to read her sister's messy handwriting.

Guess avatars don't have much time to practice their calligraphy, she thought.

I hope you're not too busy with your big-city life to read this!

She was not.

You should tell me everything that has been going on at work and in the city with you. How did that kidnapping case you worked on turn out? I was so invested!

She smiled. Her sister has absolutely no contact with the outside world, thanks to the White Lotus. So she was always extra interested in the part (Y/N)'s letters where she writes about her job, because this was kind of the only way Korra could keep up with world affairs. 

My fire-bending training has been going amazing so far! I've been crushing it- if I may say so myself. Just this morning I beat up two masters, it was great! The White Lotus masters say I should be patient, not 'rush'  my development. But this element is so easy for me, and I just want to get started with air-bending! 

I just know that once I start airbending, I’ll master it in no time! Then, finally, I can get out of here and start my real Avatar journey. I can’t wait! Write back soon, okay? I miss you!

Korra

At the bottom of the paper was a drawing- a very bad one- of Korra fighting the two firebenders. (Y/N) smiled. 

'I'll write back tomorrow,' she mutters to herself while she stands up to grab the food she'd placed on the counter earlier. 

(Y/N) eats the roasted meat, which had grown cold by now while listening to her old radio, which was reporting on some high-stakes pro-bending match. 

She finishes her meal in silence, barely registering the commentary from the pro-bending match crackling through the radio. Normally, she might have cared about the game—maybe even placed a bet with some of the officers at the station. But tonight, her mind is elsewhere.

Once the plate is empty, she takes it to the sink, rinsing it off before leaving it to dry. She glances at the stack of letters again, Korra’s words still lingering in her head. Almost finished with fire bending...

Shaking the thought away, (Y/N) changes into her sleepwear—loose, comfortable clothes that are a welcome contrast to the stiff uniform she wore all day. She pulls her hair back, washes her face, and brushes her teeth, moving through the motions without much thought.

By the time she finally collapses onto her bed, exhaustion is already pulling at her. She stares at the ceiling for a moment, letting the distant sounds of the city filter in through the window.

Tomorrow I'll figure out how to proceed with the Chiefs' mission, right now, I just want to sleep. 

With that final thought, she shuts her eyes, letting the weight of the day sink into the mattress as sleep slowly takes over.

Chapter Text

'This is killing me already', (Y/N) complains loudly at her desk, hoping Chief Beifong would hear it. She had been reading all available casefiles on the Equalist organization but didn't go one step further in the problem of how to get in there. All files mentioned the same thing: disturbing public order and noise complaints from people who live around the places where they demonstrate.

She groaned, flipping through the files again, as if the words would suddenly rearrange themselves into a perfect plan.

They didn’t.

Beifong didn't respond to her complaints, not that she expected her to do so. Chief was probably ignoring her on purpose. She sighed and bent over to the other side of her desk to grab a new file. The case described a preacher-like guy who protests for the Equalist cause all day long in a park at the edge of the city. Some benders had gotten agitated and destroyed his stand and more of his property. 

Well, that guy won't feel any better about benders anytime soon, (Y/N) concludes. 

Still, that park wasn't far away from her route home. Maybe she could stop by and see if this guy would be willing to tell her something about joining the organization. 

She closed the file with a snap and stretched her arms over her head. Sitting at her desk all day, drowning in paperwork, wasn’t going to get her anywhere.

'Guess I’ve got my after-work plans sorted,' she muttered to herself.

Chief Beifong finally walked out of her office, raising an eyebrow. 'Don’t do anything reckless.'

(Y/N) grinned, already grabbing her coat. 'Me? Never.'

Beifong’s unimpressed look followed her to the door.

As (Y/N) stepped outside, the crisp evening air hit her, cooling the frustration that had been building up all day. The park wasn’t far, just a few blocks away, nestled between old apartment buildings and a tram station.

With any luck, the preacher would still be there, shouting about Bender oppression to anyone who would listen. And if she played her cards right, maybe she’d finally get the lead she needed.

(Y/N) heard the guy before she saw him. 

''Are you tired of living under the tyranny of benders? Then join the Equalists!''

He was saying exactly the kind of thing she expected him to say.

''For too long, the bending elite in this city have forced non-benders to live as lower-class citizens!

The man’s voice was raw with passion, his fist clenched as he gestured wildly. His makeshift stand was barely holding together— weathered posters with Amon’s masked face were taped haphazardly to a wooden board, and a few scattered pamphlets sat in a crate beside him. He was working with scraps, but that only made him seem more dedicated.

The crowd wasn't big, probably because it was around dinnertime by now. (Y/N) walked over to his stand. She stands there with four other people who are listening attentively. She nods her head in agreement with them, as the guy preaches on. 

I'm gonna try and talk to him when these others are gone.

Before that happened, at least half an hour passed by, while (Y/N) listened to the protestor drag on about the corrupt bending governments of the world. One by one, the others left, leaving (Y/N) alone with the preacher. He stepped down from his crate with a grunt, rolling his shoulders as if he'd carried the weight of his words on them. When he finally turned to her, his eyes held suspicion.

'You're still here,' he finally said, not particularly welcoming. 

(Y/N) shrugged. 'Don't like audience?'

'Not if they're a bender', he answered while gathering his things into the very crate he was standing on before. 

'How do you know I am one?'

He scoffed. 'Your Water Tribe-getup doesn't make it hard to guess.'

(Y/N) looked down at her clothes. He was right, blue fabrics and Southern Pole sigils made it pretty obvious.

'I'm interested in Amon's cause', she replies. 

The preacher let out a dry laugh. 'Right, and I'm the Firelord.'

'I'm serious.'

The preacher paused in his packing, eyeing her with caution. He wouldn't easily trust a bender, especially not someone standing so confidently in his space.

'Sure, you’re serious,' he said, sarcasm dripping from his voice. 'And I’m sure the Equalists are just the thing you want to align with. What’s next? You’ll tell me you ‘don’t use your bending’ and that you want to help free us from bender oppression?' 

(Y/N) crossed her arms, trying to keep her tone calm. 'Maybe. But what does it matter to you? I’ve seen what your group stands for. I’m not exactly thrilled with bending elites either.'

The preacher stopped moving and looked her over again, his eyes narrowing. 'What makes you think we need your help?' You benders think you can just waltz in and play at being on our side. You think a few sympathetic words are gonna change anything?'

(Y/N) didn’t flinch. 'I’m not here to play. I just want to know more about what Amon stands for, how far this goes. And maybe... see if I can help.'

His skepticism hung in the air for a moment before he finally responded.

'You’re either brave or stupid', he muttered. 'Or both. Amon doesn’t trust benders easily. He certainly doesn’t just let anyone walk in and join the cause.'

'I understand that. I just want to know if there is anything I can do to help the organization.'

'But why would you fight against a system that systematically works in your favour? 

'Because I have morals and a sense of justice. Look, every bender knows their privilege, and they are not willing to help those who don't have it. I've heard them talk about non-benders as if they are biologically inferior.'

Laying it on thick won't hurt, she thought.

(Y/N) looks the man in his eyes, trying to put on her most convincing expression. She just hoped he would buy her 'moral high ground' excuse.

The preacher studied her for an uncomfortable moment. His gaze was sharp, searching for any sign of deception.

'Hmph.' He exhaled through his nose, shaking his head slightly. 'Talk is nothing. You want to help? Prove it.'

(Y/N) raised an eyebrow. 'And how exactly do you expect me to do that?'

'There’s a rally tomorrow night. Private. Invitation only.' He tapped a finger against the crate he’d been standing on earlier. 'Show up. No bending. No tricks. Just you, standing with us, proving that this isn’t some sick joke.'

(Y/N) nodded, as if considering. In reality, she already knew her answer. This was exactly the kind of opening she’d been looking for.

'Fine,' she said. 'Where?''

The preacher pulled a slip of paper from his pocket and pressed it into her palm. When she glanced down, she saw an address scribbled in rough, slanted handwriting.

'Be there an hour after sunset,' he instructed. 'And if you try anything… you won’t be walking out.'

(Y/N) met his gaze. 'I wouldn’t dare.' She steps towards the man, stretching out her arm to try and shake his hand. 'Thank you, mister.. uhh..'

'Gaoshun', he shook her hand briefly.

Without another word, she turned on her heel and walked away, tucking the paper into the folds of her coat. She forced herself to appear calm, but inside, her mind was already racing.

Tomorrow night, she could get started on her mission.