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Kya stood on the steps of Lin Beifong's small single bedroom townhouse. The street was dimly lit and water hung in the air, forming a mist. She had been waiting there for a few hours, a small rucksack in her hand, her coat wrapped tightly around her and was close to falling asleep, when she heard the familiar steps of steel coming her way. She didn't have to look up to know it was her. "Deputy."

Lin sighed, she knew that voice anywhere. She looked up from the keys in her hand, to the woman with long brown hair, which was sporting a few greys here and there, and frowned. "What do you want?"

Kya flinched at the harsh tone. "To visit my fr-"

"Cut the shit Kya. I haven't seen you since your father's funeral last year, what are you doing here?"

"We finally heard about you and Tenzin." The waterbender's smile had disappeared, replaced with a frown. "I came to see how you were."

"You're a bit late. Eight months too late."

"And I'm sorry about that but I'm here now. Can we go in and talk?"

"We can talk out here."

Kya sighed. "Look, it's cold and I don't feel like contracting pneumonia anytime soon." Nothing. "Do you want your neighbours to hear?" Instead of waiting for an answer she took the keys from Lin's hand. "I don't think it's a conversation we should have outside." Kya pushed open the door and went straight to the kitchen to put the kettle on the stove, leaving her rucksack on top of the kitchen table.

"I don't seem to remember inviting you in."

"Do you want Jasmin or Assam?" Kya was looking through cupboards, which were surprisingly stocked.

Lin put the bag of groceries on the table and pulled out a box before sliding it over to the waterbender. "Neither."

Kya picked up the box and inspected it. "Chamomile? Sure, if you want to sleep."

"I do want to sleep but thanks to you, I fucking can't."

Kya ignored the tone from the overly tense officer. "Yeah, why are you on night shift anyway? I thought you only did days."

"I wanted a change."

"I see." Kya was quickly reminded that Lin was never one for small talk, so it left her asking all the questions, practically carrying the conversation. "Are you going to take off that trench coat?"

"No," Lin tightened the sash around her waist slightly, "it's warm."

"It could be warm in here too if you lit that nice fireplace of yours."

"I'm going to bed anyway, so what's the point?"

Kya smiled when she saw the metalbender move over to the fireplace, from the corner of her eye.

Lin put her hands on her thighs as she slowly knelt down to the wood pile to place a few blocks into the earthen crevice. She struck the fire rocks and watched as the flames quickly grew.

Kya grabbed the two cups and set them down on the coffee table and observed as Lin stoked the fire with a piece of steel. Kya sat down on the couch and curled her knees up to her chest. "Are you going to join me or are you just going to play with fire all morning?"

"Hmph."

Kya frowned when she heard Lin grunt as she got up off the floor, surprisingly slow for someone her age. "Did you pull something in your legs? You sound like mum whenever she gets up."

"I'm fine, just, tired."

Lin sat on the opposite side of the couch, as far away from Kya as she could and put a pillow behind her lower back.

"Back problems too?" Kya reached for the other cup of tea on the coffee table and passed it to Lin.

"Comes with the job. Thanks."

"I could heal it for you if you'd like."

"It's fine."

Kya sighed. "Can you actually talk to me? I feel like I'm having a conversation with myself."

Lin scowled. "Oh I'm sorry, I hadn't realised this was difficult for you, unlike me who loves the idea of talking to my ex's sister, over a nice hot cup of tea in my home, which she practically forced herself into."

"Hey, I'm here to help you. Tenzin doesn't know I'm even here."

"And what are you trying to help me with?"

"Lin you have no one to talk to. The only members of our merry little band left in the city are you and Tenzin. Bumi being the exception whenever he pulls into port and he isn't exactly someone you can talk to about breakups with."

"And you are?" Lin's voice grew slightly in volume. "In the thirty one years I've known you, not once, have I seen you with a guy. You've only ever mentioned one night stands and even then you can't remember their names and you want to talk me through my twelve year relationship with your brother?"

Kya took a deep breath. "Lin, I'm gay." Silence. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you. I don't exactly go around shouting it from the top of mountains... except for Rainbow Mountain outside of Omashu. That was a fun night. Say something please."

"I am the worst detective in the world." Lin finally gave Kya a small smile.

"I think you're pretty amazing Deputy Beifong." Kya inched her way closer to Lin.

"Stop trying to flirt with me." Lin noticed the older woman flinch. "Sorry, I meant that as a joke."

"It's okay. I've always been rather tense after telling people. It takes me a while to trust that they don't feel uncomfortable around me."

"Trust when I say, you don't need to worry about me."

"Yeah, I've been disappointed in the past. How is your mum?" Kya was quick to change to the subject to anything other than her sexuality.

"I haven't seen her in a year. She called yesterday and said she's coming into town, so she should be here next week, she wasn't really clear on the details."

"I haven't seen Toph in two years. It's going to be good to see each other again."

"She's blind."

"Hardy ha ha." Kya took a small sip of tea, taking solace in the warmth Lin's presence was providing. "So have you had any relationships since Tenzin?"

"Just one night stands." Lin rubbed the back of her neck. "Spirits, this feels wrong."

"Why?"

"You're me ex's sister. I shouldn't be telling you about people I've slept with."

"I was your friend first and we used to talk about boys all the time growing up. Remember the sleep overs?"

"I remember being dared to do stupid shit and thinking back on it, you never talked about any boys."

"I promise I won't dare you to do anything stupid if you tell me who you've shagged. Do I know them?"

Lin sighed. "I slept with my fellow deputy the same day Tenzin and I broke up."

"Oh spirits." Kya's mouth was slightly open in pure shock. "I have to say, I didn't think you would go and shag someone right out of the gates like that."

"I wanted to hurt Tenzin, so I thought sleeping with her would be the best way to get revenge."

"Her?" Kya asked incredulously.

"I told you, you could trust me and I have to admit, it was some of the best sex I've ever had."

"I am the worst gay in the world. I knew you had a gay streak in you."

"It was just once." Lin tried to hide the smile gracing her face with a sip of her tea. "Or a few times."

"Scandalous. So what happened to her?"

"She wanted a relationship, I didn't. We're still friends though. Bumi actually introduced me to someone."

"My brother Bumi," Kya cocked an eyebrow, "set you up?"

"Yeah, with a guy called Kento." Lin placed her feet back on the floor and leaned forward on her knees slightly, her cup still in her hands. "He was a nice man, casual. We saw eachother whenever he was back in the city."

Kya set down her cup on the table and moved closer to Lin so that their thighs were touching, and placed a gentle hand on her friend's back. "Lin, what happened to him?"

"He sacrificed himself for people he didn't know. Bumi told me that they were rescuing people from a cave that had collapsed. Kento was trying to hold up the ceiling on his own, he was the only earthbender around, and just as they got the last person out, he couldn't hold it anymore. He died a hero, or that's how Bumi and Iroh tell it. You know how those two like to embellish a story."

"I'm sorry to hear that Lin, even though it must have been a short relationship, it clearly meant a lot to you."

"It did. He was funny and sweet and he taught me that I could let people in again. It's a shame I will never get a chance to thank him."

Kya gently stroked her back soothingly. "I think he knew."

"This got depressing." Lin sat back and rested her head on the older woman's shoulder.

Kya let out a small laugh. "I think this will always be our life. One depressing situation after another."

"That's very positive thinking coming from you. I think I'm ready to talk about Tenzin now."

"Whenever you're ready."

Lin took a deep breath. "It was doomed from the start. The universe is cruel in ways you can never imagine. Back in the metalbending academy, you have to pass a test to see if you have the potential to be a part of the metalbending squad. I was doing too well and the test became aggressive. I got hurt and at first I thought I was fine. It was only a couple years later when I was twenty five when it became apparent it was so much worse.

"It took me a while but I finally agreed to have children because I knew it was the only way Tenzin and I could be together, so Tenzin and I began trying and we got pregnant within a month. He was so excited when I told him I could feel the heartbeat of our child. I never wanted the feeling to end. We waited until the third month to tell anyone but before I could, Chief pulled me aside and told me the beating had stopped. She knew from the beginning that I was pregnant.

"It was hard but Tenzin and I moved forward and in a few months we tried again and I got pregnant and lost it again within a couple of months. By the fifth miscarriage, we knew something was at play and I saw Katara. Turns out that accident I had, was a lot more serious than the healer had said it was. Katara told me that one of my ovaries had ruptured and my uterus had sustained trauma and was weak. She said that we could keep trying and hope for the best, which is what we did.

"We had gone through ten miscarriages before we called time on our relationship. I understood why Tenzin had called it quits but I wasn't ready, even though I knew that if we did have a child, the chances of the child being an earthbender was quite high, given my genetics. Tenzin couldn't risk it and I would feel guilty for letting our child be treated like you and Bumi. That's the reason we split."

Kya was silent. She couldn't believe what her friend had just told her. She had no clue her brother and friend had gone through such hardship together. Her mother had never told her what had happened and she was off trying to find herself, so there was no way she would have found out. "I am so sorry."

"You and everyone else."

"Is there anything I can do?"

"If Katara can't fix me, no one can." Lin leaned back against the couch and began to laugh. "The funny thing is, I never even wanted kids! Su took care of the need as soon as she was born."

"Lin, there's a difference between wanting kids and not being able to. Having that decision taken away is something that is hard to deal with."

"Like I said, the universe is cruel." Lin pushed herself off the couch and moved to the fire, extinguishing it.

"You could have taken off the trench coat instead of putting out the fire."

"Why do I need to take it off?"

"Why do you have to fight against everything?"

Lin relented as slowly removed the belt and pulled off the coat gradually, leaving her clad in steel. She shut her eyes, waiting for the onslaught of questions to come, but they never did, instead she felt arms wrap around her ribs from behind. "I am the worst gaydar slash healer in the world. How did I not notice?"

"No idea why you would have noticed."

"Are you kidding me? You struggled to squat and get back up, your back is hurting you, you have an uncharacteristic glow, and you waddle slightly. Not to mention your boobs are bigger than the last time I saw you."

"Of course you notice my boobs." Lin chuckled.

"What can I say, I'm a boob kinda gal." Kya took hold of Lin's hand and sat them back on the couch. "So is this why you're on night shift?"

"It is. The press can be very slimy in the morning. Chief Suko has been very nice about it, so has everyone else on night squad. They all know that I am pregnant and they know that one day I won't be anymore. We're like a family, the squad and I."

"What if the baby survives though?"

"I don't think about it. I don't give into false hope anymore."

They sat in silence, both trying to figure out what the other was thinking, when Kya spoke softly. "Can I feel?"

Lin nodded and removed her armour, she took Kya's hand and placed it on the side farthest away from the waterbender. "I'm only five months, you may not feel it."

"I do. It's soft but I can feel it. It's amazing."

"Um, thanks." Lin blushed.

Kya had more questions but the sounds of the Republic City hustle and bustle reminded them it was getting rather early. "We should get you to bed."

"Yeah, the couch isn't great for me anymore. Are you going to Air Temple Island?"

"Nah, I wanna stay here. Lin, I want to be here for you, for when it's..."

"Over?" Lin supplied. "Thanks Kya. I appreciate it." Lin stood and walked to her bedroom upstairs, Kya close behind her after having retrieved her bag from the kitchen table. "I can manage to get upstairs on my own."

"I know but the bed is up there."

Lin turned on her heel once she reached the top. "What?!" She asked incredulously.

"Hey, I'm not sleeping on that couch of yours. It's far too small. I thought you wouldn't mind sharing like when we did when we were kids."

"Yeah, but, you were straight when you were seventeen."

Kya couldn't help it, she laughed. "Lin, I've been gay since I cartwheeled out of the womb. Now stop being insecure and let's go to sleep."

Lin sighed as she watched Kya walk into her bedroom and strip, leaving her long smooth legs bare. Kya noticed her looking and smirked. "Stop drooling, Deputy."

"I, I'm not. It's just hormones."

"Sure it is." Kya gave Lin a wink as she bent over seductively and pulled out a long T-shirt from her bag, that hung at her mid thighs and off one shoulder lazily.

"Go sleep on the couch." Lin said with a deadpanned look on her face

"Oh come on, I was just messing around." Kya crawled under the blanket on the right side of the bed and starred as Lin pulled off her tank top and pants, leaving her in her bindings and underwear. She went to her tallboy and pulled out a pair of identical black pants she had just been wearing and white tank top. "Can you turn around for a second?"

Kya did as she was asked, putting her hands over her eyes in a childish manner. She peeked through them and blushed when she saw Lin remove her bindings and slip the shirt over her head before coming to stand in front of her. "This is my side of the bed."

Kya chuckled but moved over as Lin slid into bed next to her and laid down. "I know you peeked by the way, you are still blushing."

"Sorry but it's not like I haven't seen them before."

"I know, you're a boob lady after all." Lin shut her eyes, taking comfort in having the left side of her bed occupied for the first time in five months.

"Hey Lin?"

"No, I don't wanna cuddle and I had better not wake up to find you spooning me."

"I just wanted to know, if I stayed and asked you out before Tenzin, would you have said yes?"

Lin's eyes shot open.

"You know what, never mind. Sorry I asked." Kya rolled to the edge of the bed and fell asleep within a few minutes, not even realising what she had done to her friend.

Bitch.