For sailorlock (of Tumblr).
This is also a personal headcanon!
—
The day Lena comes home from school with the newest edition of Zaofu's history textbook in her arms, a bookmark stuck near the very end, Kuvira frowns. She wasn't surprised—destiny had it's own special way of returning to sour her mood. While her past as the Great Uniter was long forgotten, the testaments compiled in bound pages and scrolls lining bookshelves across the Earth Kingdom would never fail to remember.
She eyes the book after her daughter drops it on the counter to do her homework. Curiosity quickly burrows in the metalbender's mind and she ponders reaching out to see what's written for herself. What marked those last several pages? Did they at least mention the good deeds she had done aside the conflict that aroused from her rule? What if there was something published that had been completely false?
Lena catches her mother's gaze and she sets down her pen, smile falling. "We talked about you at school today, mom."
And for reasons she cannot comprehend, Kuvira feels hurt. Lena's expression nearly mirrors her own, understanding that regardless of whether or not she could be strong and stand against the comments at school, it was the sad truth for her mother.
"Did you?" Kuvira forces herself to say.
"Yeah. Everyone keeps asking about you."
~F~
"Kuvira was a model stateswoman prior to 170 AG; she served as the interim president for three years, and on more than one occasion was an elected candidate for the chief of state. From the civil wars of Ba Sing Se until the forced seizures of earth kingdom states in 171 AG, she was an nationally-recognized ministerial figure with great influence in our nation's political responsibilities."
Their eyes turn away and Lena finally sinks into her seat, pencil jabbing into the hole of her notebook. She mindlessly stares at the text of her page, countless pictures of her mother and her former conquest on every other page. There are incriminating lines, factual paragraphs, and a sentence that she swears nearly sympathizes with the "militaristic dictator" who "tossed dissenters into prison camps" and "expunged those who did not agree with her empire".
She sighs as two more eyes turn her way, returning their gazes with a sharp, decided look.
"Taro, Mei! Please pay attention." Rei straightens, her eyebrows furrowing upon the sight of two students faced opposite of the board. "You're here to learn, not play. Leave it for lunch."
The last phrase stings. Lena knows they will bother her about Kuvira and they will ask a thousand questions that press all of her buttons as soon as the clock strikes eleven.
The teacher continues her lecture and as more students send Lena sporadic glances, she can't ignore the hurt that burrows in her chest. Understanding that this is the way her mother was portrayed in the eyes of history was incredibly painful to listen to. Kuvira's good deeds were not forgotten, although the world seemed to prefer touching on more sensitive topics that reflected the woman's regrettable decisions. Her position now was simply "an extra hand lent to reforming the world" and not entirely the loving mother who genuinely turned over a new leaf. Kuvira's origins and childhood were hardly elaborated in respect to why she did the things she did, and the last few lines of the chapter ended with Lena's name.
Everyone turned their eyes. Everyone.
"Your mom is Kuvira?"
"No. Way."
"You're famous!"
"Is she still evil?"
"Why would she fight Republic City? And the Avatar? No wonder she didn't win."
Lena's gaze turns cold, the thin wooden pencil in her grip nearly snapping in two. "If I throw a stick, will you leave?"
"Alright, students!" Rei says loudly, eyes narrowed. "That's enough."
—
"I don't get it."
Lena peers up from her noodles, arriving face-to-face with one of the school's most troublesome students: a girl named Seitsu, black of hair with icicles in her jade eyes. She had the reputation of a viper, her sharp stare full of mischief when she rules out her victims. The other girl's arrival never went unnoticed by those close enough to hear.
"Why is everyone okay with what she did?" Seitsu asks, crossing her arms over her chest as her shadow towers over Lena.
"They're not." She scowls, narrowing her eyes and lowering the bowl. "It's history. Maybe not good history, but my mom isn't like that anymore. People change, Seitsu."
"I doubt it." She sneers. "I'm surprised Kuvira isn't in jail. It's sad."
Lena raises an eyebrow, shrugging as she lifts the bowl to her lips again. It hurts (although she would never show it) to hear others say these things, and Seitsu was not the first. "I never asked for your life story."
The other girl's eyes widen and she raises a hand, mouth agape. "What—you're more blind than Toph!"
"Is that supposed to get on my nerves or something? Because it's not working."
It takes more effort than she assumed to get rid of Seitsu, although once the other girl leaves, Lena sighs in both relief and exasperation.
Her noodles had grown cold.
~F~
"What did they say about your father?" Kuvira asks, leaning against the edge of the counter. The metalbender's curiosity peaked when her daughter mentions that they discussed Baatar in class.
Lena shrugs from her spot at the table, entirely abandoning her homework. "Not much. The book talks about how his inventions 'changed the world' and that how much the colossus ruined Republic City started a new—" she pauses, touching a finger to her chin, "what's it called when you and other nations compete for who can make the most weapons?"
"An arms race." Her mother answers, eyes downcast.
"Yeah, that one. They didn't say a lot of bad things about dad, though. Just his inventions."
Kuvira nods. She was more than aware of this battle for who can create the most weapons in one sitting. In a way, she was proud that Baatar had caused a shift in the field of science, effectively turning heads in light of his inventions. Although, an arms race wasn't the idea they had in store when the colossus was under construction. Using spirit energy as an instrument of harm had been officially outlawed, but to weapon engineers, it was no hinderance. They would find alternative methods to manufacture new weapons as quickly as Hiroshi Sato build the first flying aircraft, and out of materials that were certified for this specific purpose.
Kuvira is drawn out of her trance when she feels something gently touch her upper arm and turns to find Lena curling her fingers around her triceps, a small smile on the young girl's face.
"I had good comebacks for everyone who didn't say nice things."
Kuvira chuckles, placing her palm along Lena's upper back and pulling the girl to her. "Please don't tell me you used any of your father's."
She giggles, wrapping her arms around her mother's waist. "No. Better than dad's."
—
Baatar drops down onto the bed beside Kuvira, heaving a sigh as he rubs his eyes under his glasses. "She's officially asleep." He says, turning to his wife.
Kuvira is seated with their daughter's history textbook in her lap, knees up and attention centralized on each word of every page. Her lips are pursed in concentration, eyes moving along the lines with a determination he'd only recently witnessed when she rehearsed dance routines or contacted Korra over the radio once in a great while.
Baatar's eyebrows furrow and he sits up, craning his neck to see what has completely stolen the metalbender's attention.
He sees her image pasted near the corner and the engineer registers the textbook with a silent "oh".
Kuvira briefly turns to him. "Thank you for checking. I just…I had to read this."
"I know." He squeezes her shoulder, expression understanding. "It's okay. What does it say?"
"Nothing that we haven't already told her." She answers, flipping past another page. "I'm worried something will show up that she isn't ready to hear. You know how rigorous school in Zaofu are."
Baatar nods. "She's incredibly smart, Kuvira. It won't be that long before we let her in on more."
She turns to him fully now, closing the textbook in her hands with a quiet puff of air. "I don't know if whether or not that's supposed to make me feel better about all of this."
Baatar chuckles, wrapping an arm around her and pulling her close. He grasps her hands with his free one, pressing a kiss to Kuvira's cheek. "You worry too much."
—
Sorry for the crabby ending. I'm not very good at these things.