Chapter Text
Some people grow up in riches, much like Asami Sato, Kuvira Zaofu, and Opal Beifong. Asami's parents were best friends with Opal's parents who together built a fashion empire that changed the trajectory of fashion all throughout the country. Hiroshi Sato and Suyin Beifong ran the business and took care of Asami and Opal and Suyin's other sons after both Yasuko Sato and Baatar Sr. died in a terrible accident. So Asami and Opal grew up in wealth, never catching a glimpse of the outside world. Stuck in their shallow, spoiled ways along with Asami's best friend Kuvira, where everything and everyone was beautiful.
They were in all the magazines. The hottest family in Republic City. Their company EcoFashion had locations all over the world and when Hiroshi and Suyin decided to retire, they knew they had to leave it in capable hands. Asami and Baatar Jr, Opal's eldest brother, competed like mortal enemies for the spot. The shareholders voted into a tie and the tiebreaker was based on a vote from Opal. Would she vote for her brother? Or would she vote for her girlfriend?
When Asami proposed, the choice was easy. Of course neither one of them loved each other. Well, at least Asami didn’t love Opal, and they both knew it. Asami was the biggest player in the city, second only to Kuvira who was her permanent wing woman. Opal knew it but her stubborn pride and her jealous obsession with Asami didn’t allow her to end the dysfunctional relationship. They were the model couple, and much like their lives, everything had to be perfect.
Then there’s those people who live in absolute poverty much like Korra Avatar and Bolin Ferret. Tonraq and Senna, Korra's parents, had found Bolin and Mako, Bolin's older brother, as a young children, completely alone, sleeping in a gutter. They took them in and gave them a home. The three of them, Mako, Bolin, and Korra, became like siblings and grew up together. Mako found good work in Ba Sing Se and moved after turning 18 and dedicated himself to sending money to Bolin every month, especially after Tonraq and Senna retired and moved to the Southern Water Tribe.
One would think that’s a great life, but poverty made it very difficult for them. Tonraq and Senna knew that the only way for their kids to get out of poverty was to get degrees and become executives. They knew that for Mako it was too late since he went right into the workforce right after high school, so their hopes laid on Korra and Bolin.
Tonraq would tell them a mantra everyday since they were children. "It didn't matter what clothes you wore, or what your appearance was, all that mattered was that you have the brains to make it in the world."
As they grew older though those mantras changed in their heads. Of course Tonraq never said those things, they were creations of insecure teenaged minds saying, "You are ugly. Your appearance doesn’t matter. No one will ever love you. No one will ever marry you. So instead of having impossible dreams, study and get your degrees. You don’t have beauty to get you anywhere, so you have to build a brain."
Korra and Bolin believed those mantras regardless of Mako, Tonraq, and Senna's protests and instead buried themselves in books and separated themselves from the world.
Their eyes got so messed up from reading thousands of books and looking at computer screen constantly they had to wear giant bottle cap glasses. Both of them being finance majors and poor, they knew that they had to economize by buying hideous, mixmatched outfits shack-looking thrift stores in Republic City. They studied so much they never had time to brush their hair and they couldn't afford a proper dentist so Korra ended up with not well done thick braces and Bolin with cheap retainers.
They didn’t snap back to reality until they were adults. They had their three doctorates and super brains, but they were too hideous based on society standards to get a job. The neighborhood gang, run by that asshole Zaheer and his Red Lotus friends, would terrorize them and beat them up all the time for it.
It was after years of terror that had brought light to the fact that their mantra had been wrong all along. They were indeed too "ugly" to get anywhere, and even with all their brains they couldn’t get anywhere.
So Bolin, with three doctorate degrees, worked as a stock boy at the back of a market where no one could see his "ugliness," and there was a job waiting for Korra, but there was one job left to apply for.
EcoFashion.
The financial secretary to the president. She knew she was too ugly to get the job, especially since the job was in the fashion industry. But she wasn’t one to give up before even trying.
The EcoFashion building was enormous. There were models and beautiful secretaries everywhere. Korra stuck out like a sore thumb as she walked around with her knotted, nappy hair, big bottle cap glasses, giant stress pimples all over her forehead and cheeks, thick braces that made her top lip pop out unnaturally, a hideous brown tent dress with orange and yellow flowers, and black open flats with thick pink socks with fuzz balls on the top.
She stopped at the reception desk first, where a handsome young man looked at her in complete and utter shock. She cleared her throat and said, "I’m Korra Avatar and I’m here for the job interview."
He stuttered a bit then pressed a button on his phone and said, "Mr. Bumi sir, this is Wing from reception, Ms. Korra Avatar is here for her interview."
"Send her up," Bumi's low reply was.
Wing hung up the phone and said, "Just a warning, he can be a sleezeball," he paused to look Korra up and down and added, "you shouldn’t have a problem."
Korra knew what he meant and slouched slightly. Wing gave her an apologetic look and said, "good luck."
Korra smiled the best she could and walked to the elevator.
When she reached the top there was another secretary who was running around copying some papers and nearly ran into her. He was an exact replica of the receptionist downstairs but he had a more joyous smile.
He didn’t seem to be stressed out by the obvious amount of work he had in his hands, nor was he in any way phased by Korra's lack of beauty. He smiled kindly at Korra and said, "hi, I’m Wei Beifong, part owner and secretary of the Vice President of Commerce Kuvira Zaofu. You new here?"
"Yes," Korra said, "or well I hope to be. I’m interviewing for the president’s financial secretary. My name is Korra Avatar."
Wei smiled and said, "I'm assuming you've met my grumpy brother Wing, don't take him seriously. Anyways, I hope you get the job Korra."
"Thank you," Korra said waving at the man who went back to her work, then moved to the room where she was supposed to go. There was another candidate sitting there. She was a beautiful red-head with short hair and a killer body. Korra sighed as she sat down next to her.
She knew she didn’t stand a chance.