Do Not! Do So!
Everyone enters the room for dinner talking about the events of the day, the food is set out and everyone sits in the same seats as before, which unfortunately for Lin means conversing with Meelo. A light chatter remains but most people are eating. In Meelo’s case more of the food is falling on the table and being smudged across his face than what he is actually eating.
“Aunt Lin, since you’re my hero and I love you the most, can you pass me a serviette to wipe my face.... and the table.” He adds the last part with a shy giggle causing the rest of the table to laugh, except Ikki.
“Hey! I love aunt Lin more than you!” Ikki speaks up angrily, staring at her brother.
“Naaaa! Aunt Lin’s my hero so I love her more!”
“She’s my hero too!”
“I said it first!”
“Well, I meant it more!”
Jinora being older than her siblings is more mature in such situations and avoids conflict, in true Airbender fashion she cuts and runs.
“Don’t worry Aunt Kya I love you the most.” Jinora reaches for Kya’s hands and the older woman wraps her niece in a hug.
“I love you too little lady, so much.” She says as she squeezes the young girl.
Lin looks to Kya for help but soon seeing the display of affection decides to wait before asking for Kya’s help.
“I love Aunt Lin more!”
“Do not!”
“Do so!”
“Do not!”
“Do so!”
Lin, unaware of what to do, looked to Kya with a pleading look on her face.
“Help me!” She whisper shouted to Kya who just giggled at the woman.
“It doesn’t matter which one of you loves Aunt Lin more cause I love her the most!” Kya declares wrapping her arms around Lin pulling the metal bender closer.
Lin’s eyes went wide as Bumi spits out his water as Izumi chokes on her breakfast and Su stifles a laugh.
The air bender children go silent as they stare at their Aunts trying to figure out a response.
“Meelo I think Aunt Kya wins...” Ikki says to her brother.
“I guess she does, she’s known Aunt Lin longest, even longer than daddy so she has to love her the most.” Meelo looks over to his father who audibly chokes on his food.
“I suppose you kids forgot that I used to date aunt Lin so I think I could win this one,” Tenzin says, a proud look plastered across his face as if he’d won.
“I don’t know tenny, I’ve got a pretty good feeling that I win this one.” Kya looked back towards her brother pulling Lin impossibly closer.
“I dated Lin for nearly ten years!” Tenzin says, raising his voice in confusion as to how Kya could possibly win.
“And then broke up with her! After ten years! AND THEN not even two months later you’re dating Pema who just miraculously happens to be two and a half months pregnant!” Kya raises her voice more than Tenzin but instead of confusion, her voice is filled with pure rage and disgust.
At Kya’s words, the entire table went silent. All eyes fell on Tenzin who was shellshocked, he had no clue his sister resented him for how things ended or even that she knew how far along Pema was and that it didn’t fit the timeline of when he broke up with Lin.
“Kya-I uh... Lin...well..I-“
“Tenzin I don’t wanna hear it, not right now....excuse me everyone I’ve got to go.” Without another word Kya got up, gently pushing Lin away from her right embrace, and left.
Tenzin looked from his wife to Lin, to Kya who was furiously storming away. He went to get up but Lin looked him dead in the eyes and waved him off with her hand, motioning for him to sit back down.
“I’ll go, it’s my fault this even happened.” Lin got up ruffling Meelo’s hair as he looked up at her confused.
“Thank you for breakfast Su, it was amazing,” Lin says half-heartedly as she walks past Su, stopping to put an arm on her shoulder, easing the younger Beifong’s concerns.
With that, both women had left the room and all eyes fell back onto Tenzin who awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment and shame.
“Daddy, did you break up with Aunt Lin?” Ikki asks, looking towards her father with confusion.
“Daddy, why would you leave Aunt Lin?” Meelo asks a similar expression crossing his face.
But Jinora’s face tells a different story, the other two children may not be able to put two and two together but she can subtract two and a half months from not even two months and something there just doesn’t add up.
Jinora’s face changes from a look of contemplation to one similar to Kya’s face before she stormed out.
“Dad, say it’s not true! Mom?!” Jinora asks, looking angrily between her parents.
“Honey it’s not like that-“ Tenzin tries but is cut off by Pema.
“Sweetie you get to feel however you want to feel about this but I’d- we’d like the chance to explain,” Pema says trying to balance being a good mother and being a good person.
Jinora gets up and leaves in the same direction as Kya. The table is once again silent and confused.
Outside Lin has finally caught up to Kya as they reach the river that flows through Zofu. Kya takes a seat at the riverbank allowing her feet to fall in the water and Lin mimics the action.
“I’m sorry,” Kya says, her eyes finally chancing a glance at Lin but when they lock eye contact there is nothing but love.
“It’s...uh it’s fine, it’s nice to know that you um -that you felt so strongly about everything.” Lin awkwardly playing with the hemp of her shirt looks up at Kya who is now smiling at her like a newborn puppy.
“Aww! Lin of course I do, you were my best friend growing up... and then I uh- I left... and I always felt bad that I wasn’t there when you and Tenzin got together or when you broke up, you know I didn’t talk to him for months after I heard, I know that you did some serious damage to Air Temple Island but I actually sunk the island a good two meters.” Kya says laughing at the memory.
“You didn’t!”
“Yup, sure did. Dad was so mad! It was hilarious though, Bumi still talks about it I’m surprised you haven’t heard all about it.”
The two women laugh before falling into a comfortable silence. Lin looks up into the sky seeing the full moon, everyone knows that water benders are more powerful during the full moon but what few get the privilege of knowing is that the water benders are so linked to the moon that the full moon amplified their emotions. That’s why she shouted at Tenzin, Lin thought as the watched the clouds slowly cover part of the moon.
Kya didn’t know what to say, she’d almost revealed her feelings for Lin in front of everyone but now it was just them. A cold breeze went past the women, goosebumps appearing on Lin’s exposed arms as she hugged herself for warmth. Kya couldn’t help but melt at the action.
“You cold?”
“Na, it could be worse.” The metal bender shrugs as the looks away, back towards the sky.
“Lin,” Kya says using her index finger to guide Lin’s face towards her. “Just admit that your cold, it’s not a weakness, not when you’re around me...” Kya holds the eye contact she’s created, waiting for the younger woman’s response.
“I’m cold,” Lin mumbles quietly.
“Did you hear something?” Kya asks playfully looking around.
“Kya, I’m cold.” The earth bender says, a little louder this time.
“I’m sorry, did you say something, couldn’t quite hear you?” Kya’s smirk grows as she raises an eyebrow in question.
“Dam it Kya, I’m cold,” Lin says looking directly at the water bender.
“Well, what do you want me to do about it?” Kya asks, her smirk growing impossibly smugger.
“Hold me...” Lin says so quietly she’s not sure she ever said anything.
But she did and for a moment it felt as if the world had stopped spinning. Kya was shocked, Lin Beifong, daughter of Toph Beifong, Chief of Republic Cities MetalBending Police Force, was asking to be held. Kya must’ve been consumed by her thoughts for longer than she thought as Lin began to visibly harden up once more.
Before Lin could build her walls back up Kya leaned over and pulled her close. To everyone’s surprise, Lin wrapped her arms around Kya as the water bender put a hand around her neck pulling Lin impossibly closer in the hug.
Lin had to stop her mind from thinking about the fact that her face was resting just above Kya’s breast and her hands were just inches above the water benders hips.
“Comfy there Chief?” Kya asks as she gently runs her fingers up and down Lin’s biceps.
Goosebumps once again cross Lin’s skin but this time for an entirely different reason. They stay there like that for what felt like hours, completely content until Kya notices a bruise on Lin’s arm.
“What’s this from?” Kya asks, gesturing to the purple skin.
“Dunno.” Lin shrugs.
“Let me heal it,” Kya says looking into Lin’s eyes.
“No, it’s fine Kya, it’s just a tiny bruise-“ Lin tries but before she can continue she sees the look on Kya’s face and knows she’s getting healed whether she likes it or not.
Instead of fighting Lin opts to extend her hand so Kya can work her magic.
“Good.” The water bender hums as she bends the water out of the flowing river next to them.
The water begins to glow as Kya gently places it over Lin’s bruise. They both know that the ‘wound’ would heal within a week without Kya’s assistance and wouldn’t cause any major inconveniences in Lin’s life but neither one of them was about to say that.
Kya loves the look of peace and tranquillity that so rarely crosses Lin’s face but it could always be seen when Kya was healing her. Lin loved the way it felt and the entire process fascinated her.
Bending had always been a point of fascination for Lin, the way her mother couldn’t see so she used her element of earth to help her not only ‘see’ but go on to become the mother of metal bending and the self-proclaimed world’s greatest earth bender. The way that ancient earth benders learnt from the badger moles just like her mother had. The way fire benders learnt from dragons, air benders from the flying bison and water benders from the moon herself.
Obviously, Lin understood earth bending the best but it was always water bending that fascinated her the most, the element that should’ve scared her instead enticed her. The way people observed the moon and it’s relation to the ocean and then learnt to do the same. And then healing with water, that was entirely different but somehow only fascinated her more. The glow of the water was so relaxing that Lin hadn’t even realised the deep through she’d slipped into until Kya had finished.
“All better.” The water bender said with a smile before placing a gentle kiss the were the bruise once was.
Lin’s heart began to flutter at the simple action and before she knew it she found herself leaning in towards Kya. The two locked eyes and held the eye contact as they both began to slowly lean in allowing the other enough time to pull away.
They were just inches apart, their noses practically touching when Kya spoke.
“Are you sure?”
Without even a second of hesitation, Lin leaned in kissing the water bender passionately. Kya’s hands snaked around the back of Lin’s neck pulling her impossibly closer as the metal benders hand found their way the Kya’s hips, gently squeezing her.
“Aunt Kya? Aunt Lin? Are you guys out here?” Jinora came down towards the riverbank shouting for the two before she saw them kissing.
She stood there shocked, it had never occurred to her that the reason her Aunt Kya had gotten so mad and said she loved Lin more was that she loved Lin in this way but the more the young air bender thought about it the more it made sense.
They lived together, they would always show up to events together, they always sat next to each other, in fact, Jinora couldn’t remember the last time she’d seen one of them without the other except for earlier that day.
“Oh, my spirits Jinora!” Kya shouts quickly pulling away from the kiss.
“How long have you been standing there?!” Lin asks her face Turing a bright shade of red.
“Long enough!” The young girl giggles rocking back and forth on her feet. “So are you two like dating now or what?” She asks looking between the two women.
“Well that’s something your Aunt Lin and I might need to discuss later,” Kya says bending down so that she is level with her niece.
“And for now maybe we could all keep this to ourselves, huh?” Lin suggests placing a hand over Jinora’s shoulder.
“Ok!” The young girl says far too enthusiastically for Lin’s liking.
“We should head in it’s getting kinda cold don’t you think?” Kya says to Jinora, the air bender just nods before running ahead.
Kya looks up at Lin who is smiling back down at her and at that moment they knew things would be ok.
“Well come on, you weren’t kidding, it is getting cold,” Lin says taking a few steps forward before looking back to see Kya still bent down.
Lin laughs as she realises what’s happened and Kya pouts, looking up at the metal bender with puppy dog eyes.
“You’re stuck aren’t you?” Lin laughs.
“No, it’s just comfy down here.” Kya deadpans.
“Yes, I’m stuck now help me!” The water bender laughs as Lin extends a hand for her to grab.
Once Kya is back on her feet they begin to walk back inside, this time with their hands linked.