Author's Note: I've never written from Lin's POV before, but one of my friends asked me to write a one-shot in which an OC based off of her gets intimate with her favorite character, Lin, so I did. I hope this lives up to your expectations, DeeDee!

When I walk into my apartment for the first time in what seems like forever, I can't help but be a bit surprised by how empty it is. I can recall the night I threw all of Tenzin's belongings onto the front lawn with annoying clarity, but I would've sworn that I owned more than a coffee table; a couch with two small, green throw pillows on it; and a small, framed picture of me taken the morning I graduated from the Metalbending Police Force Academy.

I suppose I shouldn't be surprised that my office at Headquarters is more welcoming than my actual home, considering the facts that I all but "moved in" to the office after I was promoted to Chief of Police following Mom's resignation fourteen years ago and that I—.

… have I really been the Chief for fourteen years already?

I walk into the bathroom and glance at the mirror. Yep, I sigh silently, staring at the mess that is my reflection.

I scowl upon seeing that what was this morning a wavy bob has since become a group of knots, save for a couple of strands that have come loose and are falling onto my forehead in a way reminiscent of Mom's characteristic bangs. The sight of a dozen or so gray strands sprinkled throughout my otherwise black hair reminds me that I'm no spring chicken anymore, and so I turn my attention to my light green eyes.

It's times like this that I wish I had inherited Mom's blindness, I muse, staring at the lime-colored orbs that are my eyes and remembering how they used to sparkle twice as brightly as metal in the sunlight at the mere idea of a challenge. The bright, effervescent eyes I see in my mind contrast starkly with the dull, red-rimmed eyes I see in the mirror, and it is not without a great amount of distress that I realize that vibrant, vivacious eyes can't belong to a woman like me — an embittered, middle-aged woman with a weathered face and a virtually perpetual frown.

I stare at my reflection, scrutinizing my pale face. It's covered with dirt — or, as Mom used to say, "a healthy coating of Earth" — but it's still wrinkle-free. I do, however, have two scars on my right cheek: a pair of pink lines that resemble the wrist veins that reveal themselves whenever I ball my hands into fists. The scars are located about halfway between my ear and my mouth, and the one closer to my ear creeps a couple of centimeters higher than the one nearer my mouth.

I raise one hand and lay my fingers against my right cheek. I can still recall the afternoon I got these scars. I had run to Kya Memorial Hospital and demanded the woman at the front desk call Aunt Katara, and as soon as she appeared, I fell into her arms and started sobbing because I knew that Tenzin had accompanied her to the hospital that morning and I was afraid to let him see me — to let him see the marks that would forever mar what he had declared a "pretty face," the marks that would forever try to peel back my proverbial mask and reveal my insecurities to the world. When, after a couple of hours, he finally saw them, he wasn't disgusted, like I had thought he'd be; rather, he was upset, for the scars on my face were as much a symbol of undeserved and unprovoked violence as the scorched remains of his ancestors, the Air Nomads.

What's the likelihood that Taiyan will be disgusted by my scars once he sees them up close? I wonder. I mean, Tenzin wasn't disgusted by them, so maybe…

"Stop it," I command myself once I realize I'm crying. I wipe the tears from my cheeks and blink back the rest before returning my gaze to my reflection.

I often found myself at odds with the Air Nomad adages that Uncle Aang and Tenzin attempted to promote due to the facts that I'm an earthbender and, more influentially, a Beifong, but there's one proverb I agree with wholeheartedly: "Hope is a distraction." I've never seen the logic in hoping that something will or won't happen. If you can influence someone or something, do so to your favor. If you can't, you should direct your attention, energy, and time to something more productive.

There's no sense, then, in hoping that Taiyan will not be disgusted by my scars once he sees them up close and that he won't — or maybe that he will — be anything like Tenzin.

This is what I tell myself before I metalbend my armor off, strip down to my birthday suit, and step into the shower to wash the filth and ridiculousness of Republic City off of me so that I can go into this meeting with this handsome, young Future Industries-employed engineer calm, clean, and as refreshed as can be, given the current state of my life.

"Chief Beifong!"

I shoot Taiyan a cordial smile, then, at his behest, step in front of him and walk into the bar. He walks in after me and, as I'm surveying the area, wraps one arm around my waist. The semi-intimate contact makes my breath hitch and reminds me that, contrary to what it sometimes seems like, my nerves are far from numb.

I glance at Taiyan out of the corner of my eye, and he notices. He smiles at me, and I watch as crinkles — the first sign of age — appear at the corners of his seaweed-colored eyes. He has gorgeous eyes… but his white smile draws my attention to his mouth — in particular, to his lips, which are as pink as the petals of the cherry blossoms that are so common in Republic City and which look as soft as his wild mess of black hair…

"I'm glad you were able to meet with me tonight, Chief Beifong," Taiyan says, his voice somehow both as gravelly as sandpaper and as sweet as syrup. "I don't even want to imagine how busy you are, being the Chief of Police and all," he adds, leading me up to the bar. He gestures for me to take a seat, and I do. He then claims for himself the barstool next to mine.

"It's a… demanding position, that's for sure," I say. The bartender collects a couple of coins from another customer sitting at the opposite end of the counter, then starts towards us. "I apologize for speeding through our conversation earlier," I add, recalling how, just after Captain Saikhan, my right-hand man, had introduced Taiyan to me, a subordinate officer approached us and informed me that Tenzin was waiting for me outside my office.

"What do you mean Councilman Tenzin is waiting for me?" I demanded.

"Well, I… uh… Councilman Tenzin showed up and demanded to see you. I told him you were in a meeting, but he insisted on seeing you, Chief. He said it was urgent."

He was mad that I had arrested his adolescent, homewrecking whore.

"What in the world are you doing, Lin?!" he shrieked. "I didn't do anything when you destroyed Air Temple Island, but you've gone too far now! Do you realize how foolish you look, arresting Pema for no reason? She's innocent, Lin! I order you to release her immediately!"

I attempted to justify the arrest, but after a couple of minutes of arguing, I angrily conceded that Pema's name and record were as clean as a bar of soap.

"She's only innocent because she hasn't been alive long enough to commit any crimes!" I shouted. "She's a child, Tenzin!"

It's been two and a half months since Tenzin left me for that Air Acolyte sixteen years his junior, but it still hurts. I mean, she's barely in her twenties, for Agni's sake! I just… I don't understand how he could leave me, who he started dating when he was seventeen, for a child!

"Chief?"

"What?" I growl.

"What would you like to drink?"

"Oh. I'll have a… uh… a whiskey sour, on the rocks, please." I glance at Taiyan again and, seeing the giant grin on his face, shoot him a look. "What are you smirking at?" I demand.

"I'd pegged you as a whiskey-drinking gal," he answers. "I'm glad to see I was right."

The bartender serves us our drinks, and I quickly take a sip of mine so that I can blame my blush on the liquor.

"Anyway…" Taiyan takes a sip of the bourbon he'd ordered, then continues. "It's okay. I just want to confirm that you're satisfied with the upgrades the crew and I made to the airships." He drops a couple of yuans on the countertop and, upon catching the bartender's eye, gestures for seconds for both of us, even though neither of us has had more than one sip of our drinks yet. "If there's anything else you want my team to look at or upgrade, just let me know. We're more than happy to—."

"The airships are spectacular, Taiyan," I interrupt him, breathing a sigh of relief because having to participate in a conversation will keep me from thinking about the way the engineer's muscular forearms peek through his rolled-up sleeves. "The alarms and sirens are louder thanks to the new sound system you installed, and the retractable underside you added to all the airships is sure to prove convenient."

"I'm glad the upgrades are to your satisfaction, Chief Beifong."

He takes another sip of his bourbon, and as he downs the contents of his glass I can't help but admire the shape of those thick lips of his. I'm glad… your satisfaction…

I'm drawn out of my reverie when Taiyan sets his hand down on my thigh, as the green dress I'm wearing does nothing to attenuate the intimacy contained within that touch. I can see the imprints of his fingers on my skin through the thin fabric that sheaths my body, and it excites me almost as much the way he looks at me with those gorgeous green eyes of his, those eyes that sparkle like the ice in my whiskey. He looks at me like the world outside could crumble and he wouldn't even blink.

"I can fix more than airships, y'know," he smirks, his voice gruff. "I studied engineering at Ba Sing Se University, after all. I'm quite handy."

I ignore my racing heart and guide Taiyan's hand back to the counter. "I think you mean handsy," I retort, shooting him a knowing look before downing the remainder of my drink.

He tilts his head back a bit and lets out a hearty laugh. "You're funny," he comments. "I can't believe that rumor has it you've got no sense of humor." He takes a sip of his second glass of bourbon, then runs a hand through his dark, wild hair and shoots me another easy smile. He's got adventure written on his youthful face, and the promise of a good time lurks in every glance he shoots my way from over the rim of his glass.

I could use a good time… I think.

I down the contents of my second glass of whiskey in one swig, then request a third — and as I sip my third whiskey sour, I flick my index finger down, unzipping Taiyan's pants via metalbending.

"Did you just—?"

I take another sip of my drink, and the liquor tugs the corners of my lips upwards into a smile — and before I can even swallow the next bit of whiskey, Taiyan's hand is on my cheek, his calloused palms contrasting starkly with my soft, tender skin.

He guides my head towards him, then leans forward and plants his lips on mine. He grabs a fistful of my dark, wavy hair and wraps it around his fist like he wraps his tongue around mine. He tugs my hair gently and kisses me so deeply the air disappears from the bar, leaving me able to breathe only the air that I can suck up from and out of his lungs.

I don't withdraw until I remember that we're in public, and even then, I'm reluctant.

He slides his hand up my thigh, towards my groin. "My place or yours?" he asks.

"Mmnn… whichever's closer," I answer, smirking as we slide off our barstools because his lips are colored the same shade of pinkish-red that my lipstick is.

Taiyan wraps his arm around my waist again, then guides me out of the bar and down the street that, according to him, will lead us to his apartment — and I can't help but smile because I get to relinquish control tonight and, consequently, drive the dark, exhausting thoughts that have been suffocating me ever since Tenzin left me out of my mind. If I just give in to my baser urges, maybe Taiyan will guide his cock so far into me the fact that Tenzin's dick called my vagina home for more years than that adolescent, homewrecking whore — and Taiyan, probably — has even been alive will become irrelevant.

There's a distinct contrast between the feeling of Taiyan's fingernails pressing against the soft skin of my thighs and the sensation of Taiyan's tongue circling my clitoris, and I can't help but inhale sharply as the vaginal pressure intensifies. He hears this and lifts his head up to see if I'm alright, and grins upon seeing that I've contorted my lower body into a W shape, with my legs spread wide and my groin thrust forward to give him easy access, and that I am impatiently waiting for him to go back to eating me out.

He tilts his head down again and plants a soft, tender kiss on my inner thigh, then, with all the directness of an earthbender and all the finesse of a metalbender, works his way from my lips to my clit. He gently sucks on it for a couple of seconds, then lets it go so that he can let his tongue work its magic. I get wetter and wetter with each passing second, and the transition from tongue to finger is smooth.

He goes slow at first, easing his index finger in slowly and then guiding it out even more slowly, but he quickly picks up the pace — and when Taiyan slides his middle finger into my vagina, too, my breathing quickens to a pant. The faster he finger-fucks me, the more frequently the squishing sounds associated with being gleefully wet come.

He grabs one of my breasts with his free hand and starts fondling it. He massages my nipple until it's as hard as his dick, which I can feel pressing against my pelvis, and my vagina continues to tingle as the orgasmic pressure intensifies. My body aches to let go… but my broken heart won't let me relinquish control to another man — to any man — so I ease my pelvis down and back, which forces Taiyan's fingers to slide out of my pussy. He shoots me a confused look, but I quickly lean in for a kiss and seize control of his mouth to let him know that the night isn't over yet.

When I withdraw — just far enough to rest my forehead against his chin and my hand on his sculpted abs — I whisper that it's his turn to receive oral. He removes his underwear so quickly he puts a hungry wolf to shame, which just reminds me that, despite his appearance and skill when it comes to the… intimate arts, Taiyan is just an energetic boy used to sitting at the metaphorical kids' table.

I don't think he has a lot of experience playing with the "big kids," but what Taiyan lacks in experience, he more than makes up for in raw talent — and size. The dick he unsheathes is bigger than the bulge in his underwear let on, and it's definitely bigger and thicker than Tenzin's.

I spread Taiyan's legs further apart, then climb in between his tan, toned thighs and, once he's drawn my hair up so that it can't get in the way, go down on him, circling — slowly at first, then progressively faster — the head of his cock with my tongue. I give each side of his shaft some attention, caressing his balls as I do so; then I return to the head. I've got the upper half of his dick in my mouth when he, with one hand on the back of my head, starts guiding my head downwards. He doesn't stop until I can feel his balls against my lips and the tip of his cock against the back of my throat.

I withdraw a bit so as to focus on the head again. I circle the very tip with my tongue, then suck the whole head for a couple of seconds before deepthroating his dick once again; and because Taiyan's giant cock all but fills my mouth, I can't do much more than swirl my tongue around it as if it were an ice cream cone. He releases a gruff, grunt-like moan — not unlike that of a wild animal — though, and this contented moan simply becomes more guttural when I allow him to guide my head so far down his pubic hair tickles my upper lip. I can't help but gag a little bit as his impressive length presses against the depths of my throat, but I've always enjoyed challenging myself, and I suck Taiyan's dick like I would a lollipop until he loosens his grip and, slowly, guides my head back up. When he turns his gaze to me, the expression on his face appears downright feral.

He raises one eyebrow, and after I nod, he grabs his penis — and with my eyes closed from satiation, my forehead about level with his stomach, and my heart racing, I feel Taiyan cum. When I open my eyes, I see cum in between my breasts. I watch it drip down my cleavage, towards my navel, for a couple of seconds, then smile and, still kneeling between the handsome young man's bare thighs, lean forward to kiss him.

I surrender to the pressure that's been building up in me all night and orgasm — not because I want to, but because Taiyan deserves to know he's done well and because I simply cannot help myself. I can't control my body's reaction to sustained sexual stimulation — but I'm glad I can't because if I could I wouldn't have orgasmed, and as soon as I let go, a sense of peace washes over me, allowing me to fall asleep without crying myself to sleep for the first time in months.

I wake up a couple hours later, at a quarter past 2:00 AM, to see Taiyan sleeping beside me, completely nude. I smirk at the sight, then start gathering my clothes from where they're strewn about the bed. I get up once I have them all and, after dumping my jewelry into my bag, get dressed, then grab a piece of paper and a pen from atop his desk and scribble the following note:

Taiyan,

We were both right. You're handy and handsy.

Thank you for a great night.

Lin Beifong

I leave the note on his desk, then see myself out of his house. The night air stings and reminds me of Tenzin's cold demeanor when he broke up with me at the beginning of the year. He didn't give me a legitimate explanation, and he threw the past twenty years — literally! — of our lives away with all the sentimentality he would've shown an old pair of pants he'd found stuffed in the back of his dresser drawer.

When I was younger, I was convinced that Tenzin and I would spend our lives together — and we did spend our lives together, in a sense. We gave our youth to each other… which means that I'm destined to face middle age alone, without anyone or anything to keep me company at night, save for dismal memories of the crumbled family I want to forget ever existed and a gold badge signifying the power I have over something greater than myself.

I didn't want to become a cop, but there's something about the Chief of Police's badge that gives me confidence and, as weird as it sounds, calms me. The badge I wear daily reminds me that just like how I have complete control over the Republic City Police Department, I have complete control over my life… and that fact appeals to my inner control freak.

I've been depressed ever since Tenzin left me for Pema, but my little rendezvous with Taiyan has rejuvenated me, just like the warmer, springtime temperatures have brought life back to Republic City. Yes, I wasted my youth with Tenzin, but I will be reborn, just like the flowers that are starting to appear in the cracks in the sidewalks — small, sweet-smelling reminders that no one can stop a flower from blooming, just like no one can stop a Beifong from thriving.