Author's note: I don't own Legend of Korra or any of the characters. A little fic surrounding the Beifong women, enjoy!
7 year old Opal sat on her grandmother Toph's lap.
"Can you tell me a story, Grandma?" the child looked up at her grandmother with big green eyes.
"Would you care for tea, Mother?" Suyin interjected.
"Jasmine would be nice," Toph said. Turning her attention back to her granddaughter she said, "What do you want to hear?"
"Tell me a story about Aunt Lin,..please," Opal added after receiving a stern look from her mother.
As Toph regaled a tale about Lin, Suyin headed to the kitchen to make tea for her mother. She thought about the strained relationship she had with Lin. There were unresolved issues between the two. Being raised by a single mother who happened to also be the Chief of Police hadn't given Su or Lin a conventional childhood. The two constantly fought for their mother's attention. Lin had followed in their mother's footsteps and became Chief of Police while Su was the delinquent. Since those days Su was a changed person. She and her mother had sat down to talk about those issues, Lin was invited to come but hadn't shown up. Su wished that Lin was a part of her life. She had made various attempts to contact and get in touch with Lin. When Suyin and her husband were engaged she extended an invitation to Lin to come to their wedding. Other various family events Su tried to contact Lin but to no avail. At least Su and her mother were on the same page now. She doubted that Lin knew she had a niece and nephews and a brother in law. Once Suyin was done making Toph's tea, she headed back to the living room. After handing her mother the tea, she settled down on a nearby couch and listened to the story. Suyin hadn't been in contact with Lin in many years, although she tried to get in touch. If Lin was still bitter about what happened in Toph's office all those years ago, it was now her problem. Su had repeatedly tried to reconcile with Lin.
After the story was done, Opal turned to her mother, "Mommy, why does Aunt Lin never visit?"
Su exchanged a glance with Toph.
"Darling, it's complicated. It's not comfortable for Lin to be around us," Su explained hoping this would suffice as an answer.
"Ok," Opal said, "Can I go play now?"
Su breathed a sigh of relief, "Yes, run along."
She gave her daughter a kiss on the head before the little girl ran out.
"Someday you'll have to tell her," Toph said.
"I know, but I want to wait until she's a little older," Su said reclining on the couch. "I hope Lin comes around. It does know good to be bitter about something that happened a long time ago."
Suyin could only hope that one day Lin would be willing to repair their relationship. Her present life was a blessing but Lin wasn't a part of it. She hoped that Opal would meet her aunt someday because whether Lin liked it or not she was a part of the family.