Korra blinked, stunned. She couldn’t understand why Nadia was reacting so strongly. It was just gossip, just venting.

Nadia too realized how she had reacted. Her face flushed slightly. She scrambled to cover it up.

"I mean...you shouldn’t bad-talk others, no matter who they may be. That boy may have his own circumstances for the way he’s acting."

"Y-You shouldn’t speak ill of others behind their backs!"

Korra rolled her eyes, but there was no malice in it.

"Here comes that upright angel of yours, Nadia."

She said, shaking her head before giving her a dry glance as she said,

"And you know, when women are gossiping, you really don’t have to think about such things."

She sighed, but a small smile crossed her face.

"But that’s still the same old you, Nadia. Wanting to be as virtuous as ever."

Her expression grew more serious as she then quickly asked,

"So, what is this friend of yours going to do?"

Nadia hesitated. "Honestly, I really don’t know. That’s why I’m asking you. What do you think she should do?"

Korra answered instantly, pushing her entire face into the camera.

"Of course, it’s obvious, Nadia. She should completely break the relationship off!"

"Push that brat aside. He’s taking advantage of her—she deserves better!"

But Nadia shook her head adamantly.

"No, no, no! There’s no way she can do something like that."

She placed a hand over her heart, her expression tender.

"The boy is just too important to her. There’s no chance in hell she’ll ever give him up. No matter what he does, that can never happen."

Korra raised an eyebrow, surprised by the intensity of Nadia’s response.

But she assumed Nadia was just being a loyal, caring friend.

She smiled and nodded.

"Well, if she’s not going to break up the relationship, then she should most definitely put a complete stop to the boy’s advances."

She put on a serious expression on her face and sagely said,

"She needs to have a proper talk with him. Make him understand that this is not a relationship they can have. Revert it back to what they once were."

Nadia nodded vigorously. "That’s what I was thinking as well. That’s the most optimal route."

She paused, worried.

"But what if the boy doesn’t accept it? What if he still wants to maintain that same relationship?"

Korra’s expression grew strict.

"Don’t even think about that, Nadia. This is something you just can’t allow to happen."

"No matter how adamant he is, you have to find a way to completely push against it."

Her voice was insistent. There was no other option.

Seeing her friend’s determination, Nadia felt her own resolve strengthen. She realized this was the route she had to take.

"Okay, Korra. I’ve got it now. I was thinking about it earlier and wasn’t exactly clear, but now that you’re saying it too..."

She nodded firmly. "I’ll do the same."

But hearing this, Korra raised her eyebrows in doubt.

"We’re talking about your friend, Nadia...So, why are you talking about yourself?"

Nadia blushed in embarrassment. "Yes, yes—of course. My friend. I slipped up."

Her eyes grew fierce as she said,

"I’ll tell my friend make sure that boy understands his mistake, correct him, and bring back their previous relationship."

Both women nodded in agreement, as if they had reached a solemn accord after this gossip session.

Nadia had found the determination she needed.

Korra felt genuinely happy that she could help her friend and earn some goodwill after the embarrassing scene she had just witnessed.

But despite her current happiness, Korra had no idea that in the future, when Mika discovered she had tried to sabotage his entire plan and thrown him under the bus—

—he would be furious enough to spank her repeatedly until the scales on her buttocks peeled away.

She would cry and beg for forgiveness, but he would not stop there.

No.

He would go further.

He would knock out her husband right in front of her, a final humiliation for the cowardly dragon king and then he would fuck her so hard that he pumped a copious amount of semen into her belly.

He would even take her on the floor of her own throne room, in front of the portraits of her ancestors, while her unconscious husband lay nearby.

It was meant to be a punishment.

But Korra would end up thoroughly enjoying every moment!

She would become addicted to being fucked in front of her despised husband, almost as if gloating over all the years of mistreatment she had endured.

She would beg for more, plead for him to come back, to punish her again and again.

And in the end, she would fall in love with Mika even more.

But that was all in the future.

For now, Nadia had made up her mind.

She was going to confront Mika.

And nothing was going to stop her.

But despite pumping herself up, Nadia’s heart raced. Her palms were sweaty.

This was because she was actually nervous, something that hadn’t happened to her in years.

She could stand before world leaders without a single note, negotiate treaties that shaped the fate of millions, face down the Eternal Queen herself without flinching.

But talking to her son about...this? About his hands on her body, his lips on hers, his fingers inside her?

She was a mess.

Korra, meanwhile, was slowly observing Nadia’s face through the screen with a thoughtful, almost analytical look.

She stared and stared, her crimson eyes tracing every micro-expression, every subtle twitch, every flicker of emotion that passed across her friend’s usually impassive features.

Finally, she called out in a peculiar tone.

"Nadia...you’ve changed quite a lot, haven’t you?"

Nadia snapped back to reality, blinking. She raised a brow.

"What do you mean by that, Korra? We literally met maybe five days ago. We even had a video call three days ago. It’s not like we’re companions who haven’t seen each other for years."

She crossed her arms. "So how exactly can you say that I’ve changed?"

Korra shook her head, a small smile playing on her lips.

"No, Nadia. You most definitely have changed."

She leaned closer to the camera, her voice insistent.

"Unless my eyes are playing tricks on me, you’ve become much more expressive than you were before."

"...Really?"

Nadia touched her face, genuinely surprised.

"My face, the same face that everyone calls a slab of ice, a brick wall is showing more expressions?"

She shook her head. "I doubt it."

But Korra leaned forward even more, practically pressing her nose against the screen.

"No, Nadia, I’m really not lying."

She picked up her phone and settled back against her bed, as if trying to get a better angle.

"Ever since we started talking, you’ve shown all sorts of emotions. Anger. Embarrassment. Shame. Sadness. All the feelings anyone should have."

She ticked them off on her fingers, before continuing in a thoughtful manner,

"Normally, you would never actually express them. You’d just say the words, and it would be my responsibility to interpret them since your face would be completely the same."

"I’d have to figure out if you were being sarcastic or serious, if you were joking or angry."

She rolled her eyes like she was tired of that responsibility before she pointed at the screen excitedly.

"But right now, I saw so many different expressions on your face!"

"Even though they weren’t huge, they were still there. Like how I saw you pouting your cheeks. Or how your lips were curling up."

"I also saw how your eyes became much brighter when you talked about something passionate, and more sullen when you became downcast."

She shook her head in wonder.

"You really showed more expressions then you ever did before in our two decade long relationship."

Hearing this, Nadia touched her face again, her fingers tracing her own cheeks, her lips, the corners of her eyes.

"Wow. I never expected that...I don’t know what to say."

She genuinely was surprised, since she wasn’t the type to stare at mirrors all day.

Unlike Yelena and Fauna, who had also noticed her changes, Nadia herself had been completely unaware.

Too caught up in the chaos of the day, too overwhelmed by Mika’s actions, to notice her own transformation.

Korra, equally baffled to see her best friend of so many years actually show emotions to the extent that she didn’t even know how to react, couldn’t help but ask quickly.

"Has the area around you been affected by any earthquakes? Maybe you’ve been shooting out tremors without even knowing it?"

She smiled, trying to lighten the mood.

But Nadia shook her head.

"No. I’m quite hyper-aware of my blessing. It hasn’t activated at all. I don’t think I caused any changes."

Korra frowned.

"Then how are you showing so many expressions without causing any reactions all over?"

Nadia’s brow furrowed. She was equally confused.

"I honestly don’t know. Today..." She paused, searching for words. "A lot has happened. So many crazy things that honestly are putting me through more turmoil than I went through during the war."

Korra perked up with interest, her tail curling behind her.

"Maybe because of that, something has changed."

She leaned closer. "What happened today? Tell me about it!"

But Nadia quickly shook her head in a fluster.

"No, no....There’s no way I can say anything about today."

Korra insisted. "What? Come on, we’re best friends. There’s no need to hide anything from me!"

But Nadia’s expression grew solemn.

"Just trust me, Korra, when I say I can’t speak of this matter. It’s not something I can tell you, or my sisters, or anyone else in the world."

"It’s something I need to handle on my own."

Korra stared at her for a long moment. Then she let out a sigh, a soft, understanding smile crossing her face.

"Alright, alright. Don’t take it too seriously."

She reached toward the camera as if to pat her friend’s shoulder.

"Whenever you want to talk about it, please come to me. No matter what, I’ll be ready to hear you out."

Nadia felt a warmth spread through her chest. She smiled, a genuine, appreciative smile realizing how lucky she was to have such a friend.

And Korra who saw this, immediately pointed at the screen excitedly.

"Look, look, Nadia! You’re even smiling right now! That’s exactly what I’m talking about!"

Nadia touched her lips, surprised to find them curved upward.

"Oh my...I really am."

She was baffled. How was she showing so many expressions without any reaction?

Without any earthquake, any tremor, any sign that her emotions were leaking out?

Korra watched her friend, and a mischievous glint entered her eyes. She couldn’t resist teasing her.

"I honestly don’t know how you’re showing so many expressions right now, but I’m really happy for you."

She paused, her smile widening.

"But more than happiness, I really want to know...if you would finally show any emotions when you’re in bed or not."

Nadia’s eyes narrowed dangerously.

"What do you mean by that, Korra? Watch what you say."

But Korra completely ignored the warning, her voice playful as she explained,

"The truth is in the past, I always wondered how you would react if you had a partner and were doing...intimate things."

Nadia’s gaze became even more colder, but Korra completely ignored her and continued saying,

"I thought that no matter what your partner did, you would have the same face the whole time."

"And seeing such a emotional reaction, no matter how confident your partner may be, he’d completely lose all his bravado."

"You’d destroy his ego on the spot with how emotionless you can be."

She chuckled to herself, clearly picturing the scenario.

"But right now? Since you’re finally capable of showing expressions...oh, it makes me wonder."

"If someone’re to actually take you from behind, pinning you down and giving you the absolute ride of your life, would you finally let go and show a dozen wonderful, beautiful, flushed expressions in the heat of the moment?"

Nadia’s glare turned icy enough to freeze a volcanic eruption.

"Why on earth are you bringing up such incredibly vulgar, dirty topics right now? Control yourself, Korra!"

"Oh, please! We’re both fully grown adults with children of our own, Nadia."

Korra simply scoffed, waving a hand dismissively.

"There’s absolutely zero need to act like a shy, cloistered maiden regarding the mechanics of the bedroom."

"Seriously, you desperately need to loosen yourself up." She pouted. "You’re always down for standard teasing and dry sarcasm—that’s your preferred way of telling jokes."

"But the absolute millisecond any dirty topic’s brought to the table, you completely shut me down."

She tilted her head thoughtfully as she said,

"As I suspected, when it comes to relationships or intimacy, you’re completely ignorant. You don’t have any personal experience at all."

She leaned closer, her eyes sparkling with mischief.

"I really do wonder how you were able to get pregnant with Astrid when you’ve never had a partner in your life."