Mirrors – Lin and Suyin

Coming to Zaofu, the sister's reunion didn't go as smoothly as hoped. Here's my take on the psychological evolution.

The morning was chill. The steel domes were brought down like each morning, letting the sun enlighten Zaofu city. The metal clan was waking up and the guards started their morning routine. Making sure the city was safe and sound. The citizen of Zaofu started their chores. Taking care of the city was of the upmost importance. Some were cleaning it. Others were preparing the dance show. Some were even practicing metalbending, even this early in the morning.

Suyin, the matriarch of the Metal Clan was starting her day. She couldn't believe her sister – well, half-sister really – was in Zaofu. It was the young Avatar that had brought her to the city. The Avatar and her friends were there for Opal, her daughter, newfound Airbender. Suyin had mixed feeling about this. She knew at some point, Tenzin would want to see her, at Air Temple Island. Or at some other temples Aang used to tell story about when she was at his home, while her mom worked.

She knew this was probably best for her daughter but, saying goodbye was hard. She would keep Opal near her as long as she could. But in heart mother's heart, she knew at some point, she would have to let go. But not now, it was too soon. She was just about to reunite with her own sister. Then, her family would be whole. The Avatar wasn't going to take Opal she decided.

She was watching herself in the mirror while brushing her messy hair, family inherited. How would Lin deal with all of it? She had not seen her in 20 years. Still, with all this time passed by, Su could tell her sister was still the same: still arrogant and lonely. Of course she was lonely with that attitude, she thought. She was cold and didn't let anybody get close and personal. Since the Tenzin episode, Lin had not unearthed her heart and she remained like metal, cold and hard. Nothing melted her.

Suyin had seen Lin. In fact, she would never have known Lin was in her City, if it wasn't for her Truth seer, Aiwei. He was the one to tell her the Avatar had lied and that obliged the young girl to reveal Lin's presence.

Suyin was both glad and disappointed. Glad that her sister had made the trip even if she hadn't actually set foot in the City. And disappointed that she had not made that step.

It was mixed feeling that loomed over the soon to happen reunion.

Lin had made a scene. She had started this fuss, this fight. And she was still lingering on old conflicts. She hadn't change a bit. She had still that look on her face when looking at Suyin. That disgusted look. This superior air she took. She was being the ''adult''.

Lin had always looked for Lin when they were younger. With their mother working so much, Lin had step up and made sure her sister wasn't harmed in anyway. But as the years past, Lin also followed her mom's footstep. And even when they were both, Lin and her mom, not there, Suyin was always watched somehow.

Their mother had gave them so much freedom. ''Find your happiness'' kind of education. And that had brought the sister to a rift. One was like her mother more or so. Straight, followed the law to the coma. The other, Su, was the rebel always looking for trouble. She always seemed to stay in line whatsoever but she had crossed a point of no return when she had helped her friends do small business for the Terra Triad. At this point, Lin and Suyin were too far one another to reconcile. Toph had said the final verdict, and Suyin was to leave the city for the Bei Fong estate.

Lin and Su had not seemed one another from that moment on.

Now, Suyin was with her sister. To say it was tensed was the least of it. In fact, there probably was an inner bomb about to happen. Lin was mean. There was no other way to say it. She was mean to Opal, to her city, to her citizen. One guard had actually been scared by her jumpy comment about their work.

But Suyin had not helped. Well, in the beginning of their stay, she had try to open her sister heart, but as hours became days, she understood her sister wasn't about to forgive. And she made it pretty clear; she wanted to stay as far as possible from this place.

Suyin felt jealousy. Lin was envious maybe of her wealth. Of her family perhaps. She wouldn't know.

At some point, while Su was showing the avatar some metalbending moves, Lin a came by the practice field and had started a fight. Yielding was the appropriate word to say. She was so angry. Frustrated. She stood tall. And Su instead of calming her sister had put oil to the fire. She knew her sister wouldn't talk. She never talked. Like their mom, she was not good with words. And so Suyin said something to make her angry, maybe by fighting each other's, they would find peace.

Talking about Tenzin was the way to make her go berserk. She knew how Lin had really felt about it and how she had let no emotion show. She teased her hard about that Tenzin comment. And the earth underneath them both became turmoil of unfelt emotions from Lin, from Suyin.

The fight stood has the argument they never had. Steel and earth flew by. The Avatar, Suyin saw, was about to interfere. But Bolin had stopped her.

Suyin and Lin were fighting, not paying attention to the now growing crowd. Nobody knew what was going.

Lin had a lot of repress feeling to fight like she was. She was so deep in her emotions that she didn't even notice Opal stopping both of them with Airbending. Lin flew to the ground and while she tried to regain her earthbender stance, she felt weak and her world became darkness. Bliss.

Korra had caught her, thanks the spirits. The Chief of police had been brought to her room where a healer had made sure she was alright. The acupuncture man had made a great progress nonetheless.

There was nothing more to do for Suyin. She had to wait for Lin to wake up, and maybe hope she had come to her senses in this fight. To wait and see.

.

Lin woke up. She felt like she woke from a very long dream. Fog in her vision was gone. The acupuncture man had done a poor job so poor he had made worse her sickness. Lin had always been good had denial. And she was denying that the needles had made their ways to her blocked and stubborn mind. She was Toph daughter through and through. And so, she had inherited the character of the Bei Fong.

When she first learned they were setting sail to Suyin's city, she wanted it off. But her responsibilities had tied her to this trip. She didn't want to be there nor let Su she was in her city.

Suyin had grown up. It was a fact. She was a important woman in her field of work. She had created her Clan. In some way Lin was jealous, not that she allowed herself to feel it. It was a bit of self pity as well. How come she had the pretty life. It was unfair. In her eyes, Lin had work her way out to make a good living, to be good too. To impress her mom at first, to make a difference when she understood what her destiny was.

Suyin had a family, a big one,5 kids and a loving husband. A City to herself. A matriarch, a artist. Lin couldn't lie to herself, her half-sister had had more success than her.

She seemed happier too. Lin envied her. She had to work hard every day to make ends meet. She was always fighting mild criminals. There was no place for family in her life. No place for happiness either. She didn't allow herself to be happy. She hold grudge on so many things her mind was always angry. Always looking for some relief. But she couldn't find it. There was no ways Lin Bei Fong was going to be at peace with her self.

She was now wide awake and she felt…empty. But strangely calm. She was at peace. For a brief moment, Chief Bei Fong wasn't the lonely bitter woman but an accomplish one. She was whole again.

She look beside her bed. Her armor laid on a chair. It had been place with upmost respect by herself a few days ago. She was proud of her job. Even if she had no time for fun or family. Her mother had never been impressed by her efforts, but Lin had learnt with time to not look for her mother's approval. She'd never received it. And she had taken a resolution, she didn't need it. Much to her sister sorrow. Suyin had never ceased to get her mother attention. Attempts after attempts, she'd never stop. Lin at let go.

She took the clothes place for her on a chair nearby, and got dress like a Zaofu Citizen. She looked at herself in the mirror. It felt weird to wear that kind of cloth. It was much lighter than her metal suit.

In fact, she felt much lighter. She wasn't heavly burden anymore. Her conflicts had found resolution and so, she had find peace within the steel walls of the city she had hated the most.

Now, she looked at the city in a brand new perceptive. Maybe Korra had been right to force her to come to the city that had brought more good than bad.

Since she was groaning at every other words, people talked to her, her nephews, her niece….Oh right Opal. She had to make it up to her. She had been plain mean with the girl. Too deep in her hatred to see of much the young one was really genuinely happy to see her aunt. So she stepped on her too big of an ego for one time in her life and went to apologies.

Maybe there was hope that Lin Bei Fong wasn't the big heartless woman she showed the world after all.