The Head of the Healing Department
Lin woke up the next morning and looked at her sleeping lover. Kya was still clad in only her hoodie, making her smile. She pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead, not wanting to wake her up. She put on her wraps and clothes, deciding to start on the tea. She grabbed Uncle Iroh’s tea blend, preparing the tea.
Kya walked up and circled her arms around her girlfriend’s muscular waist. “Good morning,” she said, pressing a gentle kiss to her shoulder, still clad in only her hoodie.
“Good morning,” she replied. “You go get dressed, I’ll get breakfast today. Even if you don’t hear the results today, you should be at the station. I have so many meetings today and I need you to stop me from committing murder,” she said dryly.
Kya snorted. “What are they going to do, arrest you? I mean, half of your officers are scared shitless by you and the other half respect you too much to even try and arrest you.”
Lin laughed. “I mean you aren’t wrong. Still, I work to stop crime not cause it.” Kya smiled and headed back to their room to change. Lin continued to focus on making breakfast. A few minutes later, Lin plated breakfast while Kya walked out, clad in her standard dress. The two ate and washed the dishes.
Kya locked the apartment behind them as they left. The two walked down the street, casually talking about Lin’s job and stress. “I should get you lunch, you never remember to pack any,” Kya said.
“Well, at least I eat breakfast now. I used to skip and just drink some tea to wake me up,” she admitted. “I haven’t been very good about getting a consistent eating schedule.”
Kya gently swatted her arm. “Babe, you need to eat. That’s it, I’m either making you lunch or I’m buying it for you every day, you need to fuel that sexy body of yours,” she said.
Lin chuckled and pushed open the doors to the station. The two walked to her office and Kya immediately threw herself on the couch in her office. “Woah, this couch is comfy.”
“Yeah, this couch is one of the few pieces of furniture I splurged on. I knew that I would spend many nights sleeping there, so I made sure to get a nice one. It’s surprisingly comfortable,” she said, shuffling the papers.
“So, who’s your first meeting with today?”
“President Raiko. The people elected him and I’m supposed to fill him in on what exactly the RCPD does.”
“Won’t he find it odd that I’m here?”
“He might but I highly doubt that he’ll care. I mean, I did have an ulterior motive to bringing you in today,” she admitted. “If you pass the medical exam, you won’t just be a healer. You’ll be the head of the department. We’ve been needing a position after our last one retired and I knew you would be perfect.”
“Is that why my exam was so intense? I had thought that it was odd for a rookie exam to be so thorough.” At her nod, she sighed. “I’m not mad you didn’t tell me, just surprised.”
“I’m sorry, I was afraid you wouldn’t accept otherwise.”
“Baby, it’s okay. I’m not mad and I’m really happy that you trust me so much,” she said, pressing a kiss to her cheek. “I know how important your officers are to you and I’m glad you trust me to oversee their healers,” she said, pressing a kiss to her cheek.
Her girlfriend smiled. “I’m glad,” she said softly. “The good thing is today is just full of meetings. Normally, heads tend to spread their meetings out over several days. I just try and cram them all into one day so my schedule stays free. You’ll get thrown into it at the most extreme level. If you can deal with a day this hectic, you’ll be fine.” She squeezed her hand, offering silent reassurance.
Kya sat back down on the couch and sipped on her tea as they waited for Raiko. The two chatted easily until the man walked into the room. “Chief Beifong,” he greeted with a nod. “Who is this joining us?” he asked, glancing at Kya with thinly veiled suspicion.
“President Raiko, this is Kya. She will be the head of the healing department, providing her medical exam deems her fit to serve. I figured it would be important to introduce you two and have her see what it’s like with a day full of meetings.”
“Pleasure to meet you,” she said standing up to greet him, extending her hand out. Raiko shook it with thinly veiled distaste.
“What qualifications does she have?” he asked unimpressed.
Lin opened her mouth but Kya shot her a glance. “Well, I’m trained under my mother, Katara. I’ve served in many hospitals and helped a lot of people. Frankly sir, you shouldn’t question my credentials in the first place. Chief Beifong cherishes her officers and would only let someone she fully trusts handle their healers. I understand your skepticism, but I can assure you it’s not necessary,” she said, shooting him a cool glare. She barely resisted the urge to strangle him but instead took a deep breath and faked a smile.
He nodded. “Of course. Let’s get straight to business Chief. Crime rates have drastically gone up due to Amon, I want it handled.”
“With all due respect, I can’t do anything about that. After a life altering event like Amon and the Equalist movement, crime rates will go up. My officers are working on keeping the citizens of the city safe, but even they can’t stop crime,” she said.
“If we continue on the path that we’re on, crime rates will stabilize. They tend to skyrocket after these events but they always recede. I’ve been on the job for decades, I can assure you it’ll right itself out.”
He gave a frustrated sigh and forced a smile. “Well that’s lovely to hear.” He spent the next thirty minutes discussing funding, applications of the force, and general business with Lin, Kya silently observing. He then left and Kya wrapped her in a hug.
“I know you wanted to murder him and I’m proud of you for letting him live,” she said, pressing a kiss to her girlfriend’s forehead.
Lin sighed. “This is why I do all of my meetings in one day, so that way I only spend one day dealing with this bullshit.” She sighed in frustration. “Next, we have to deal with the new organization under Raiko and figure out how to schedule guards at public events. His head of security Rahu seems to believe that I’m incompetent, but I disagree,” she said dryly.
Kya laughed. “Rahu is more idiotic then you then, and that’s saying something,” she said, sticking her tongue out.
Lin slapped her on the arm. “Stop being an idiot,” she said, voice soft and full of love.
Rahu decided to burst in the door, making the two women raise an eyebrow at the young man. “Alright Chief, here’s the plan since you didn’t tell me one. So at public events we-”
Lin held her hand up. “I’m going to stop you right there. If you had bothered to read the material I sent to your office, you would have seen my detailed plan. Maybe your secretary misplaced it, but it’s been sent. Thankfully, I have copies,” she said, handing him a thick folder.
“Each appearance will be cause for at least two of my metalbenders, provided they aren’t on a mission. There will be at least ten other cops in the crowd, disguised as regular civilians and keeping an eye on things. I’ve been doing this longer than you’ve been alive kiddo,” she smirked.
Rahu rolled his eyes. “Thank you, I’ll make sure to read this over.” With that, he turned and left, probably so Lin wouldn’t continue to belittle his abilities. The two laughed, unable to believe that he was head of security.
The rest of the day passed in a blur of meetings and observation. Kya groaned, throwing herself on the couch. “Meetings are stupid.”
Lin chuckled. “I’ll agree with you there,” she said, feeling a stress headache come on.
She looked up at Saikhan, who popped his head in. “Hey Chief, can I steal you for a minute?” At her nod, he dragged her into the hallway. “Okay so Kya passed her exam. I do have to caution against her appointment though.”
Lin raised an eyebrow at him and he sighed. “Look, I can tell that you care about each other a lot. It makes me happy to see that but I’m concerned that your feelings might cloud your judgment. If she got into a hostage situation, how do I know you won’t let your feelings guide you to make the wrong choice?”
She sighed. “I don’t know what I’d do. That’s why I don’t make solo calls, I always consult with you or someone else on the scene. I only make solo calls in those situations if there is no option. I’ve been serving well for decades, I’m not planning on letting Kya mess that up, even if she is amazing.”
She grabbed his hand. “I know it’s hard for you to be open with me like this, since I’m your superior, and I appreciate it. I may love Kya, but she understands that my loyalty is to the city first.”
He nodded, placing a hand on her shoulder, knowing she wasn’t huge on affection. He gave her a simple nod and left.
Kya looked up from the couch to see Lin pop her head in. “Hey, I have some news,” she said with a smile. “You passed the test, welcome to the force.” Kya wrapped her in a hug and gave her a kiss, full of happiness.
“Come on, let’s go home. I just want to snuggle with you right now,” she said softly. “My head hurts and I just need you.” Kya nodded and the two left the station.
Kya unlocked the apartment and walked into the kitchen. “Go shower baby, I’ll get dinner ready.” She quickly heated up some leftovers while Lin quickly showered.
Kya walked into the bathroom, undressing as she talked. “Hey, I know today was stressful for you. I set some tea out on the stove for you. Just pour a mug while I shower,” she said softly, not wanting to aggravate her headache.
Lin smiled and put her wraps on while Kya stepped into the shower. She sighed and decided to put on some loose sweatpants and a tank top. She poured the tea and looked up at Kya walking into the room, wearing an almost identical outfit. “I stole your pants, they’re comfy,” she said with a smirk.
Lin rolled her eyes and handed her a mug of tea. “Thank you for making dinner.” The two ate in silence. They tended to stay silent during dinner at home, just enjoying the other’s presence.
Kya picked up the dishes. “I’ll get these. You go lay down on the bed,” she said, washing the dishes. Lin quickly laid on the bed, curious what her lover was up to. Kya walked in with a glass of water, placing it on the nightstand.
Kya sat against the headboard and put Lin’s head in her lap. She bent the water, causing her fingertips to glow. “Just relax my love, I’ll help ease your headache.” She pressed her fingers to her temples, gently easing away the pressure. She ran her fingers through her hair, simultaneously playing with her hair and helping ease the headache. She continued this until Lin was limp in her lap, just full of contentment.
She quietly laughed and pulled her under the covers. “Goodnight babe,” she said, crawling on top of her and placing her head on her chest.
Lin smiled, pulling her tight. “Goodnight my love.” The two fell asleep cuddling, just happy to be with each other.