"We have a sponsor?" Korra asked, grinning brightly at the news.

The Fire Ferrets would get to join the tournament after all!

While Bolin was as enthused as she was, Mako seemed a bit less giddy over it as he broke the news.

"Uh, yeah. Someone came up to me with the offer, and it was impossible for me to refuse it."

Wariness suddenly flashed across Bolin's face. "Uh, what kind of offer are we talking about…?"

The hidden meaning behind the question was lost to Korra, but whatever trouble he expected was not present here because Mako shook his head firmly.

"Don't worry, we're not working for any betting rings."

Bolin's relief was sincere as he slumped a bit from the hidden tenseness leaving him. "Oh, whew. That's good to know. So, who's bailing us out?"

Mako frowned at his brother. "We are not being 'bailed out'. Future Industries is sponsoring our tournament run."

"Whoa, Future Industries…"

"Yeah. Asami Sato's a fan of pro-bending, so, uh…she's happy to get us into the tournament, but in exchange she might come by to watch us train or such. At worst, we might have to do a few exhibition shows to impress some people." He gave Korra a nod. "You might have to do a few interviews, apparently there'd be people interested about the Avatar being a pro-bender."

"Oh, that doesn't sound too bad," Korra remarked, she'd be more than happy to talk to people and show off her bending. If anything, it was good to know that her presence could help the Fire Ferrets with their monetary issues.

Korra would be smiling wider, but she was still trying to figure out what was causing Mako to be so…concerned.

"So…what's the catch?" she had to ask, unwilling to keep puzzling it out.

"Huh?"

"Come on, you should be jumping for joy right now. We're going to the tournament, right?"

Mako's gaze shifted away with…embarrassment? Guilt? "Well…Asami's coming over later," he deflected instead of answering. "We best clean up the gym and get ready to greet our sponsor."

Korra glared at her teammate for a moment, but he simply walked off in a hurry.

"Don't worry," Bolin said, "Mako's not gonna put us up with any bad deals. He wants to win this tournament as much as we do."

"Bad deals?"

The earthbender nodded sourly. "Yeah, some teams get paid by the triads' betting rings. They give good money, but…every now and then you'll have to, well, throw the game."

Korra's eyes went wide with astonishment. Match fixing? But the news reported that they cleaned up the sport!

"It only happens in the lower circuits," Bolin explained with a shrug. "It's kind of an open secret. You don't see those teams making it up to where we are because otherwise it'd draw attention. There are still a few teams being funded by the triads at the top level, but they're supposedly not meant for betting…not sure how that works though."

"I see…" That was quite a bit to take in. "Well, Future Industries is not a triad, right?" she asked half-jokingly, and barely hid her relief when Bolin confirmed it.

"Yeah, the worst I've heard is them and Cabbage Corp feuding over a tramline, but it's nothing like a gang fight."

The way Bolin worded it so plainly and like it was nothing at all piqued Korra's curiosity.

"You make it sound like the triads are everywhere."

"Eh, not everywhere," he replied with a shrug, "but they're around if you know where to look for them."

The Avatar frowned with growing indignation that gangsters could run so rampant. She should go to Tenzin about this, or maybe intervene herself…if not for Amon and the Equalists still lurking out there. Korra had to focus her attention, one issue at a time, as Xi-

Korra's mood immediately plummeted at the thought of her minder. Her former minder. It's been a week already and Xing still hasn't returned as she'd expected him to, nor has Tenzin heard anything about him. He probably has left Republic City, as Tenzin had suggested. Well, all the best to him then. At least it's a win-win that he doesn't have to act as a deadweight to Korra anymore…

The Fire Ferrets gathered in the gym later in the afternoon, which had been rented out by their wealthy sponsor for the occasion. Korra had done enough meet-and-greets with Katara in the South Pole to know how to put on a good first impression; the sponsors wanted to see a pro-bending Avatar, so it'd be an easy thing smiling and bending three elements together to show off. If anything, they'd probably be easier to impress than fishermen who didn't appreciate earthbending dams to make catching fish easier.

It annoyed Korra to remember Xing being the one to calm them down. Guess the dumb fishermen needed an equally dumb minder to communicate clearly…

Before her thoughts could stray further, Korra heard footsteps echoing outside as no doubt Mako was guiding Asami Sato in. She and Bolin exchanged grins before they gave cursory checks on their pro-bending uniforms, and then Korra struck a confident pose just as Mako appeared through the doorway.

"'Sup Mako?" she greeted with a big grin, but the guy was being overly nervous.

For a moment, Korra was almost peeved enough to voice her question, but then the girl that must be Asami, dressed in a simple coat of brown and red, appeared from behind him.

The girl that looked very, very familiar to Korra.

Wasn't that the girl Xing had been talking to before?

A small gaggle of more sharply dressed people appeared from behind her, all older adults with a hint of haughtiness about them. Mako coughed into his fist before he straightened and put on a more confident mask. "Um, may I present to you, the Fire Ferrets."

There were more than a few excited looks directed straight at Korra's way. She was used to such attention by now, but what caught Korra's own attention was the mysterious smirk she most definitely saw lingering on Asami's lips before it melted away.

"Heya!" Bolin greeted with his usual cheery tone. "Welcome to, uh, the training gym!"

"Thanks," Asami replied with a warm smile that somehow seemed directed only to Bolin and Mako. "I've always enjoyed pro-bending, and I've followed the Fire Ferrets' team progress this season, what you've all accomplished is quite remarkable." Her gaze shifted to Korra and then that smirk flashed again. "I'm glad the Avatar decided to help you out after your waterbender left."

"Yeah, me too," Bolin obliviously replied, while Mako seemed to be holding back a sigh. "Korra's been a great help to us, I'm sure with her help - er, and yours, of course - we can win this tournament, and more besides!"

If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it's taken without permission from the author. Report it.

"I'm glad to hear it," the green-eyed girl said with a slight nod. "Now, I've been briefed on your team's situation by Mako, and frankly I find it wrong that you two brothers aren't properly housed, or that you're not getting the training time you deserve."

An older man stepped up to offer Asami a sheet of paper, which she then passed on to Mako. Korra watched curiously as he read the document in silence, and then seemed to boggle at the contents while Asami looked pleased with herself.

"What are- Are you joking?" he half asked, half demanded as he stared at the piece of paper in his hands.

The heiress' smile was kind, yet smug at the same time. "I try not to take business transactions lightly."

"What's wrong Mako?" Korra had to ask.

Not lifting his gaze from the paper, he simply answered, "We now own a house?"

"What?" Bolin exclaimed as he rushed over to his brother's side to read the document as well.

"Not yet," Asami corrected lightly. "We still need your approval before we make the purchase."

Bolin squinted at something before he raised his head towards her. "Wait, that's a shophouse just across the stadium! I thought that place is prime property?"

The wealthy, grinning girl gave a quick shrug. "Thanks to…certain contacts, I found a lot owner having some trouble - a bad marriage, she wants a divorce but didn't want to divide her property. So we stepped in and she officially donated the whole lot to Future Industries."

"Huh? Won't she be homeless?"

Asami shrugged, though some of her lackeys seemed to take on the smugness she once wore. A spectacled, older man beside her with too much grease in his hair spoke up. "As thanks for her donation, Future Industries is gratefully offering her free stay in one of our vacation homes in the town of Zilang. It's a far from even trade, to be sure, but she seems amenable to moving out."

Korra frowned, finding the whole affair shifty.

Asami seemed to have caught her misgivings and shrugged again. "Once her divorce is settled, we'll transfer ownership of the home to her later, along with an additional gift of more money."

It still sounded shifty to Korra. "What did the husband do?"

Another lackey responded, a spectacled woman with her hair tied back a bit too tightly. "From what has been alleged, Missus Shimei's spouse has been, and still is being unfaithful, and is a notorious drunkard with several charges of public misconduct already."

So, cheating and being a drunk nuisance or something, right? Korra winced as she instinctively recalled the wordy euphemisms Xing had once unraveled for her.

"Anyway, to not fly off the tangent," Asami said, reeling the conversation back in and glancing back at Mako and Bolin. "Renovations will only take a while and then you're free to move in. The ground floor will be owned by Future Industries as a store. If you agree to the terms, you'll get the three floors above it. One floor will be converted to a gym, then one floor for each of you as an apartment. Or if you like, you can share a residence and convert the other floor into whatever you want."

Bolin again spoke up for the team. "Wow, that sounds very generous…"

That earned a sweet but hollow smile from Asami. "It'd reflect badly if the talented pro-benders sponsored by Future Industries remain essentially homeless, wouldn't it?"

"I guess…?"

Oh, right. Korra almost forgot. 'Public relations' as Xing put it before. One of his more eye-rolling lectures, though there were bits in it that Korra had to admit were useful.

"Anyway, the earthbenders should be done with the whole building in a couple of days time. We're ready to provide basic furnishings for your new home and base. In exchange, we ask that the Fire Ferrets make an appearance at a party to announce our partnership, wearing new uniforms of our design."

"What's wrong with our current outfit?" Korra asked.

Asami threw her a weird look, as if trying to hold back on a joke, as she tapped at her lips with a finger. "Future Industries has access to prototype materials that might be far more suited for protective gear than vehicle upholstery. I have a small team who might have some ideas on how to improve the existing pro-bending kit. Within current pro-bending regulations, of course."

That made sense. If they could even upgrade the protective padding, that'd be a great improvement.

Asami's smile became softer as she addressed the Fire Ferrets as a whole.

"Beyond the first party, you shouldn't have to worry about having to waste more time making other appearances. And don't overwork yourselves for the tournament, I just want to make sure the Fire Ferrets get their fair attempt at the trophy. Win or lose, Future Industries will continue to support the team so long as it does its best."

While benefiting somehow through their association with the Avatar, Korra understood. She kind of got it, and the team was in no position to refuse the offer.

"Well, I don't see much of a problem with the deal," Bolin said, by now having the agreement in his hands while Mako simply looked…resigned as he nodded.

Korra gave the brothers a look before shrugging. "If you both think it's fine, then I'm good as well."

Asami clapped her hands together as she smiled with satisfaction while one of the men in suits stepped forwards with a pen in hand. "Excellent. Please write your names on the dotted line."

The trio inked their name on the document, and light applause broke out from the people on Asami's side as the heiress shook hands with each of them. "I look forward to seeing how far the Fire Ferrets will reach in the coming tournament, with proper training and rest," she grinned, which honestly was a sentiment that Korra could agree with, so she returned it with a grin of her own.

"We'll not disappoint you."

"I'm sure of it." With a final nod, Asami stepped away from the Fire Ferrets with the signed contract in hand, and then spoke in a tone that immediately raised Korra's hackles.

"We'll leave you to your training then. I'll send some prospective managers for you to choose from later. In the meantime, if you have any concerns, you can bring it up with me…or my assistant." The way she glanced over her shoulders to the doorway made Korra tensed.

And then Asami said a name.

"Xing?"

And out stepped a familiar face, his stoic expression and alert posture immediately identifiable despite the new clothes that he was wrapped in.

"Wait, aren't you…weren't you…?"

As Bolin stammered and Korra's jaw dropped, Mako let out a weary sigh.