Title: Helping Hand
Fandom: Legend of Korra
Rating: K+
Characters: Bumi, Lin Beifong
Spoilers: for the finale, I suppose
Pairings: None
Summary: Bumi was always better at coming up with invention ideas than she was. He'd always said that her idea to change the metalbending rig had been a fluke.
A/N: Was thinking about writing this one for a while. Finally did. (Un-beta'd.)

Bumi kept military hours. He did not like it, but after nearly three decades in the United Forces, it was what his body was used to. He woke without an alarm in the wee hours of the morning, laying back in bed of what had once been his room, back when he had lived on Air Temple Island. After several minutes of staring at the ceiling and willing himself back to sleep, he swung himself out of bed, stretched mightily, and headed towards the kitchen area for a cup of strong black coffee.

The light in the dining room was on, which Bumi found odd. Unless the Air Acolytes kept new hours that he was not aware of, there should be nobody up but him. He crept up to the dining room and peered in, ready for intruders—but there was no intruder, just Lin, sitting cross legged at the table, chewing on the end of a pencil.

"Whatca doin' up so early, Linny?" he asked, hiding his relief as he came into the room.

Lin glanced up at him briefly; she nodded her head the slightest bit in acknowledgement then looked back down at the papers in front of her. "Never went to bed."

Bumi frowned and bypasses his coffee to peer over her shoulder at the papers. "Whatcha workin' on so hard, then?"

"New metalbending uniforms," Lin replied, sketching something before scribbling it out. "Damned if I'm going to let my men have their own uniforms be used against them again."

"Butcha can't get anything?" Bumi asked. Lin shook her head. "Gimmie a minute ta get some coffee an' I'll see if I can help ya out."

Lin opened her mouth to argue then remembered the contraptions Bumi had made as a child and shut her mouth. If anybody could solve her problem, it was the Commander. She reached for her tea and took a sip, scowling almost immediately. It was cold.

Ten minutes and a fresh pot of both tea and coffee later, Bumi settled down beside Lin at the dining room table. "Now what was yer problem with the uniforms?"

"They conducted electricity," Lin said with a scowl. "So did our cables. The equalists barely had to touch us to send us down."

"Hrm." Bumi looked at her sketches. "What were ya hoping ta do ta solve it?"

"Insulation of some kind," Lin replied. "But there can't be too much. Our uniforms are heavy as it is."

Her old friend 'hrmmm'd' again and reached for her pencil. She gave it to him, and he quickly started to sketch. "Yer biggest problem is that metal conducts electricity big time. So ya need ta think of things that don't. Cork is an example, an' so is rubber."

"Rubber?" Lin frowned.

"The stuff they make Satomobile tires outta," Bumi explained. "Ya want ta make it hard fer the electricity ta travel over the metal and into yer bodies. I'd insulate yer armor with a thin layer of either cork or rubber. As for yer cables, do some cork linin' in the housin' and ya might want ta try interspersin' rubber rings on the cables to make it harder fer 'em to conduct electricity. Also ya want to put rubber on the soles of yer boots. Trust me on this one. It'll help ground ya."

"Are you absolutely certain this will help protect us from future attempts to use electricity against us?" Lin queried intently.

Bumi nodded and took a long draught from coffee cup before respond. "'Course. If ya don't believe me, ask tha' Sato girl. Run some tests. I'm right. I'd wager ya a hundred yuans I am."

Lin rolled her eyes and began to collect the papers, Bumi's sketch on the top. "Well then. If it's wrong, you owe me a hundred yuans."

"An' if it's not?" Bumi asked.

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it." Lin shook her head, almost fondly, and stood. "I have to go into work. Lots to do to get this city back in order." She headed for the door then paused, looking back at him. "…Thank you for your help, Bumi."

"Don' mention it," the Commander said into his coffee cup. "Didna spend my years tinkerin' as a kid for nothin'."

"Yes. It's good to know that the years you spent nearly blowing up this island and torturing Tenzin weren't all for naught." Sarcasm was heavy in her voice. Bumi stuck his tongue out at her, just like he did when they were children. Lin rolled her eyes and left the room, closing the sliding door with a 'bang'. The General Forces Commander simply chuckled and finished his coffee.