A/N: Please forgive me...

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Footsteps running down the hall toward her office alerted Toph before the door burst open.

"Chief," the woman said, panting a little. "We just received a distress call. There's a massive riot at Earthen Fire Industries. Maybe that entire industrial block. Mr. Satoru called us from his office. He's had to barricade himself inside."

Toph was on her feet before the woman had finished. "Radio every broadcast station in a ten-block radius of the area! I want every officer in range on the scene!"

"Yes, Ma'am."

She strode down the hall barking orders at every officer she encountered. Having found about a dozen to accompany her, they sped through the city on cables to the city's main industrial sector in what was now Cranefish Junction– one of Sokka's new 'boroughs'. The thought made her toss her head in annoyance.

She was sure the recent spate of seemingly senseless riots had to be related to the way the city was being parceled up; there was no other explanation. It was stirring up the gangs, making relations between benders and non-benders worse than ever.

What they found at the refinery – which was much more than a refinery these days, and covered a huge area – was far worse than what she was expecting. Hundreds, if not thousands, of people were swarming, fighting cops, fighting each other. They were smashing windows, flooding into the buildings, and destroying whatever came into their path.

Toph dropped onto the ground, sending a ripple out in every direction to stagger the mass of people. She fell into a deep stance and raised her arms, palms down. Her senses traveled outward to every inch of ground occupied by the rioters. Earth and stone shuddered, a rumble from the deep, radiating out from where she stood.

Many began to scream and flee in fear as she shook the area, though not strongly enough to damage the buildings. Soon, only about a third of the rioters remained. With a satisfied smile, she lowered her arms and headed for the main entrance; sometimes intimidation was the best weapon in her arsenal, and certainly the one that required the least amount of effort.

It soon became clear that Satoru was, indeed, in his office– along with around two dozen others. There didn't seem to be anyone trying to get in at the moment. She left her officers to deal with those who remained outside while she made her way through the building, tossing chunks of the floor at anyone who got in her way.

"Satoru?" she called from outside his office doors. "You okay?"

"Yeah, we're fine. I'm glad you made it, but don't worry about us. No one's tried to get in. I'm more worried about the generators. If they're tampered with, they could explode."

Toph heard the sounds of several gasps and fearful noises, the heartbeats of most people in the room stuttering sharply.

"Okay. Just stay put. I'll deal with it."

With that, she sprinted away, chasing down anyone who was being destructive. There were a dozen people in the generator room, she realized as she got closer, most likely completely clueless about what they were doing.

"Hey, dumbasses!" she yelled, shooting her cables out to round them up. "That's how you get yourself blown up!" Those that weren't caught by her cables ran from her, while the rest got cuffs on their wrists and ankles. "I'll deal with you lot later!"

As she went along, Toph tried to figure out what was going on. None of these people put up any real fight. Most were non-benders and ran when they realized who they were up against. They were just regular people causing trouble for… what? That was what she couldn't figure out. Why here? What was the point? What did they want?

It didn't take much longer to clear the building, and when she made it outside, she found that the crowd had dispersed. Many arrests were made that day – almost too many for the available jail space – and the entire block was a complete disaster, but the real toll was the injuries and deaths. A lot of the workers who had been in the building but not participating in the riot had gotten caught in the crossfire, and several officers had been overwhelmed by sheer numbers before she had shown up.

All told, it was the worst day Toph had experienced in a good, long time. But she didn't have time to dwell on it, to think of the losses. There was still work to be done.

"I- I don't know what caused it," Satoru said in an unsteady voice when she got around to questioning him. He sat in a chair in his office, leg bouncing anxiously while he sipped a glass of water. Sokka had shown up by that time, too, always needing to butt into her business. "It was just a normal day," Satoru continued. "People working, going about their tasks. Then Hau came in and said there was something happening outside. After that, things spiraled out of control. People were rushing in and I barricaded myself in here with as many workers as I could find."

"So you didn't hear anything?" Sokka asked. "Any hint as to who they were or what they wan-?"

Toph rounded on him angrily. "Excuse me? Are you the police? I don't know what you're even doing here!"

"I'm just trying to–"

"Well stop! Let me do my job!" She turned back to Satoru and realized with great irritation that Sokka had asked what she wanted to ask. "Same questions."

"I don't have a clue what they wanted or why they came."

"Do you know if any of your workers were involved?"

"Not that I know of."

She just nodded absently, thinking. "We made a lot of arrests. Looks like I'll be living at Headquarters for the next week or so to get through all of the interrogations. And paperwork. Gah. So much fucking paperwork."

"What about Lin?" Sokka asked.

"What about her?"

"You said you're going to be staying at Headquarters for a while."

"I didn't mean I was literally going to live there," she said with exasperation. "I might send her to the Island for the weekend, but I won't do it any longer than that. Spirits, what kind of mother do you think I am?"

He didn't say anything – though he did sigh heavily – then took her aside before they left, speaking quietly but maintaining an appropriate distance. "Listen, I know you're super stressed out and going to be really busy, but I think we should try to carve out at least one night this week for us to spend together. Get your mind off the stress."

"Sokka, I'm barely going to have a chance to eat and sleep. I'm not going to have the time or energy to get you off."

"That's not what I meant," he said with thinly veiled frustration. "What if I come over to spend the night on the weekend, while Lin is on the Island? I'll get some takeout then we can go to sleep."

"Fine."

For two weeks, Toph spent most of her time at work. She saw Lin in the mornings, took her to school, and didn't get back until after she was asleep. Then there were several more hours of her working in her home office, usually until two or three in the morning. Many of those late nights were spent writing condolence letters to the families of the officers who had lost their lives in the riots.

On the weekend, Sokka came over while she allowed herself a few hours of sleep. Having him there was the only thing that got her through another week. She missed Lin. She hated how much of a shit parent she was being, but what choice did she have? And Sokka was there, soothing her, validating her. She didn't deserve that man.

As she and her officers waded through the many interrogations, a pattern began to emerge. The non-benders said they were being discriminated against in their workplaces. The benders said they were being targeted by the far more numerous non-benders, claiming to be victims of hate crimes. But most importantly, a few people cracked and admitted they had been paid off to stir up trouble, either to spread rumors or work people up into a violent frenzy.

"You have one more chance to give me a straight answer," Toph said during one of the last remaining interrogations, her patience nearly gone. "Why did you go to Earthen Fire Industries?"

"Like I already told you, it all happened so fast. I don't know what else to say. I was with some people, and we were all riled up, and I just went along."

Toph kicked her chair over and stormed out. When people talked like that, it was impossible to determine innocence or guilt. Nato was in the observation area waiting for her.

"I know you don't want to hear this, Chief, but you need a break. You're not asking the right questions, getting in their head like you usually do. You're tired and frustrated. You need more sleep."

"Get fucked," she grumbled, leaving to get a cup of tea from the staff room. He was right, of course. Four hours of sleep just wasn't enough to function through that many consecutive twenty-hour days.

But the truth was, they had already gotten enough information out of the rioters; Toph was just stubbornly determined to squeeze every last bit out of them. By now, it had become pretty clear that Earthen Fire Industries had been targeted because of her ties to it.

Yakone was back at it, screwing with her. That was the real reason for her frustration, and why she couldn't let herself take a break and get real sleep. What if he goes after Lin again?

Unfortunately, that was only the beginning.

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"God-fucking-damnit," Toph breathed, knuckling her forehead where it was propped up on her desk. "When I find out who leaked this I'm gonna fucking...ughhhh!"

"It could've been the victims themselves," Yachi said. "I don't think anyone here would risk double-crossing you, not with the routine internal investigations we do."

With six new bloodbending incidents in the last three days – the first in years – Toph was nearly ready to throw in the towel. And now everyone knew. The press was in a frenzy.

"It doesn't make sense," she muttered, half to herself. "In the past, we were able to keep it quiet. None of the victims said a word. I don't think any of them even realized it was bloodbending. What's changed?"

The question went unanswered for another two days, at which point Nato barged in without knocking.

"There's another protest in progress, Chief. This one's nearby. It hasn't turned into a riot yet, but it's probably only a matter of time."

"I don't have time to deal with this," she groaned. "Take everyone in the building that can sling a cable. If it escalates, I'll come, but for now I'll leave it to you." Either way, it looks like I'm spending another weekend here.

An hour later, she got a telegram from Sora's roommate: Sora has come down with something and can barely get out of bed. I don't think she'll be able to work for a couple days.

"Fuck." As if things couldn't get worse. After a minute or so of thought, Toph got up to use the telephone.

"How may I connect you? " the operator asked.

"City Hall. Councilman Sokka's office."

"One moment, please."

There was a brief silence with intermittent static followed by, "Councilman Sokka."

"Hey, it's me. I really need you to get Lin from school today. Sora's sick."

"Can't Katara get her when she picks up Tenzin?"

"What? Tenzin's off with Aang this week and Katara's busy at the hospital in the afternoons. I'm sure you knew that."

"Ah, fuck, I forgot. I'm really sorry, T, but I can't get away. This bloodbending business has got me swamped, too."

"Ugh, just forget it!" She slammed down the mouthpiece and receiver and stomped back over to her desk. "I've got a meeting in ten minutes. I know this isn't part of your job, but do you think you could pick Lin up from school and watch her in here for a little while?"

"Of course," Rinna said.

"Thanks. She'll be bored, but at least she won't complain that I'm trying to make Katara be her new mom. Fuck, was that brutal. Why, why, why did I have a kid?" She puffed her cheeks out as she exhaled, trying to calm herself. "Don't answer that."

Though the protest turned out to be small and lackluster, it had unfortunately drawn a lot of media attention, being downtown. It was on the front page of every paper the next day and broadcast as breaking news on every radio station: 'Waterbenders, go home!' That was the message, and it was spreading like wildfire. Everyone knew bloodbenders were waterbenders. It was yet another wedge of division between the citizens of Republic City.

"I think it's pretty clear now what's going on," Yachi said.

"Is it?" Toph mused, her tired mind elsewhere.

"All these protests, the bloodbending getting out. We've suspected for a while that Yakone might be behind it. It seems obvious now that he's trying to divide people to cause chaos. Getting people up in arms against waterbenders. He's probably the one responsible for the public finding out about the bloodbending in the first place, whether he's got control of the bloodbender himself or is just taking advantage of the situation."

The explanation made so much sense. It really was obvious, wasn't it? Toph felt like an idiot for not seeing it sooner.

Sokka went to Toph's house again that weekend, Lin once again on the Island. They hadn't spoken since Toph had hung up on him a few days ago and it didn't take long for them to start fighting about it.

"You know I would do anything for Lin," he said, "but she's not my responsibility, so stop trying to make me feel like crap because I can't drop everything to help you. Everything I do for you – and her – I do because I want to. Because I choose to."

"That's my point! You don't understand what it's like, being in this position. I am a parent twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. I don't have a choice."

"You had every opportunity to live child-free. You chose to add intimacy to your life, knowing the potential consequences." And you did it with someone else.

"Oh, give me a fucking break!" she shot back, indignant fury written all over her face. "You are such a self-righteous jackass, acting like you didn't spend two years fucking your way around the world in an attempt to forget about me, almost certainly leaving a trail of fatherless bastards in your wake."

"You don't have any right to make those assumptions," he growled, deeply resenting her for seeing the truth and speaking life into one of his darkest fears. There was nothing he was more ashamed of than the very real possibility that she was right.

"Really? Are you saying you didn't?" She leaned in threateningly, arms crossed. "Go on... Go ahead and say it. I dare you."

He couldn't, of course, so he remained silent.

"That's what I thought," she spat. "Fucking hypocrite. Lecturing me for being with a man that I actually cared about while you make no attempt to take any responsibility for whoring yourself out to random-"

"That's over the line, Toph!" he yelled, a second away from reaching out to shake her, the anger fueled by hurt from her admission. "If I had even the slightest hint that I had a child out there and knew how to find them, I would take responsibility without hesitation! You know I would! And I offered to be a real father to Lin, from the very beginning, but you wouldn't let me. Any time I do anything that you think undermines your authority with her, you jump down my throat. You bitch and moan about being a single parent, but you are incapable of letting anyone try to share in that role except when it's convenient for you."

There was no bed-sharing that night, angry or otherwise. She threw him out, and a small part of him acknowledged that she hadn't been totally wrong. He knew he was right, too, but all he wanted was for things to calm down between them. He was so tired of fighting all the time. So tired of the fear of people finding out, and wishing things could just be easy and simple like they once were.

The next night, he discreetly let himself into her house before she got home, slipping in the back door again. He had it all planned out: a home-cooked meal, incense, a slow but happy song ready to go on the gramophone, and a bottle of the finest sake.

By some miracle, Toph arrived before the food went cold. He lit the incense and turned on the music as soon as he heard her coming up the stairs.

"Sokka? What–?"

He crossed the room and took her hands in his. "Listen. I know things have been rough lately, and I'm sorry for what I said last night. I was out of line." He was hoping for reciprocation but wasn't actually expecting any, so he wasn't too disappointed when it didn't come.

"What is all this?" she asked instead, her neutral tone indicating perhaps a hint of unspoken remorse.

"I made dinner. It's not much, just some skewered teriyaki chicken. I just…want us to have a nice night. Relax for a little while and forget everything else."

He held his breath, wondering what she would do. Then she slumped against him and they stood there for a while, gently swaying to the music while he supported a good deal of her weight.

Apparently, he'd done something right, because she silently took off her armor. Then she took off everything else. Dinner was, unfortunately, stone cold by the time they got around to eating it – not that either of them cared – and they fell asleep in each other's arms, desperately holding on.

The following weekend – the fourth one in a row Lin was spending on the Island – Sokka came over once again. It had been another week of frustration for Toph. Every time she thought she'd found a lead, it went nowhere. Every witness had clammed up or disappeared. Normal, everyday crime wasn't letting up. She was nearing her breaking point and it only took the smallest thing to tip her over the edge.

"Don't you dare fucking criticize me for how I feed my kid!" she screamed.

"Would you calm down? I wasn't–"

"Yes, you were! You're not her parent. I am. And I'm tired of you trying to make me feel like shit about the choices I make for her."

"I'm not trying to do that! Spirits, it was just a suggestion! We're in a relationship, T. These things are going to come up–"

"That doesn't mean you get a say!" There was no rationality left, no trying to see his perspective. Just blind, exhausted fury.

"And what about down the road? When we finally dig ourselves out of this 'secret affair' situation? What then?"

"Stop trying to create problems that don't exist yet–"

"It's a problem right now!" he shot back. "You jump down my throat almost every time I open my mouth, whether it has to do with Lin or not."

"You're exaggerating."

"No, I'm not! Do you have any clue how fucking miserable I am?"

It was like a physical blow. "I didn't, but thanks for clearing that up for me," she spat, deeply hurt.

"You know what I meant! It never used to be like this before. This isn't right."

"We're older, Sokka. We have different lives. I have a kid. You're my fucking boss. What made you think it would be like it was before?"

"I don't–" He sighed and groaned softly, then continued in a calmer voice. "I don't know. I obviously wasn't thinking. I saw that you finally wanted this and I jumped at the chance to have it all. To set aside contentment and chase happiness again. But I think–" His voice caught, full of emotion. "I think, deep down, I knew it wouldn't work. I was just lying to myself."

The silence that his words left filled the room, making it hard to breathe.

"Are you– Are you...breaking up with me?" Toph stammered, completely dumbfounded.

"Wait. Just– Just hold on," he said in a pained voice. "Things were actually good before all of this mess. We argued sometimes, but not like this. We had a good balance, and I took it all for granted. But all this sneaking around, and– and expecting things for the future, it's tearing us apart. Maybe we can go back. Reset. Find that sweet spot again. I'm terrified that if we keep going like we are, things will get so bad that it completely explodes in our faces."

He had spoken so quickly and forcefully that she couldn't get a word in edgewise, but it had given her enough time to work up a fury.

"I can't– I can't fucking believe this. I held myself back for years because I didn't want to get hurt again. You knew that!" she seethed, jabbing her finger into his chest. "I was very clear! Then I finally convinced myself there was nothing you could do to hurt me, so I let my guard down. And now, after only a couple of months, you want to give up?! Because we argue?! And you think things can just go back to how they were like this never happened?!" But that little voice in the back of her head piped up: I told you so.

"Can you honestly say you're happy right now, with the way things are?"

She couldn't answer. It wasn't about being happy. It was about needing him the way she needed air. And clearly, he didn't need her that much, enough to see past their issues. "You've already made up your mind, haven't you?" she choked out, voice cracking.

"I love you, T. You know I do. But can you plea–"

"No. Just– Just go."

"T–"

"Get out of my house!" She was going to cry. It was inevitable, and she didn't want him to witness it. He'd lost that privilege.

"Alright. Fine. I'm sorry. I hope–" He made a frustrated noise and left without another word.

The second the door clicked shut, Toph strode to the kitchen and went straight for the whiskey that had sat untouched in her pantry for Spirits knew how long. She didn't want to cry. It was stupid and pointless and gave her a headache. Maybe alcohol would dull the pain just enough.

Unfortunately, there wasn't a whole lot left in the bottle, and it was gone long before she was sufficiently drunk. I guess I'll just have to go get some more, then.

It took a little while to find a liquor store that was still open so late but she finally managed it and found herself wandering around the city, bottle in hand. It was somewhat less than full when she became aware that the refinery was nearby, and that there was someone inside.

"Good ol' Satoru," she mumbled to herself. "Hasn't changed a bit since the day I met him." Without really thinking about it, she headed inside.

"Who's there?" he asked as she got closer.

"Jus' me," she slurred, swaying a little.

"Toph? Wh– What are you doing here? It's late."

"I know, dummy. I was walking by. Could tell someone was in here. Figured it was you."

"Wow… You are...really drunk, aren't you?"

"I may be a little tipsy. So whatcha up to, huh? Got anything for me to smash up?"

"Bad day, huh?"

"Oh, you know, the usual. Let my guard down, got my heart ripped out. Same old shit, amirite? What about you? Don't tell me you come here this late because you love tinkering so much and everything in your life is just peachy."

Satoru sighed heavily. "No, you're right." He sat down on some steel beams. "I have my own troubles."

Toph joined him and offered the bottle. "Here. It helps."

"I'm...not much of a drinker."

"Suit yourself," she said with a shrug.

But he took it anyway. "Ah...what the heck. Why not? If nothing else, it'll keep you from drinking the whole bottle yourself. That can't be safe."

"So what's yer deal, huh? Still shaken up over the riot?"

"A little. But that's not really why I'm here. To be honest, I don't want to talk about it."

She punched him on the shoulder. "You and me both."

The first thing Toph noticed when she woke up was that she was still very drunk. The second thing she noticed was that she was lying naked on cold stone.

"What the fuck?" she said, trying to figure out where she was and how she'd gotten there.

"Oh, Spirits," Satoru mumbled. "I think I'm going to be sick."

His voice was a bit of a shock. Naked usually meant Sokka was nearby. But...no. They'd had a fight. But it was worse than that, wasn't it? They were done. It was over. Or was that just a bad dream? What had happened next?

"T–Toph?! What– What are you–? What am I–? Oh, Spirits... What– What have I done?" His voice had taken on an edge of panic and she could feel him scrabbling around for his clothes. "I have to get home! I have to–" He cut off and started retching, vomit hitting stone with a sickening splash.

Her head thick and fuzzy, Toph was only just now starting to fully comprehend the situation. She was at the refinery. With Satoru. Naked.

"Why–? I can't– I can't remember anything."

"Get dressed," he said shortly, tossing her clothes at her. "You can't be here. Liu will come when she wakes up and realizes I didn't come home last night."

"What the fuck happened?"

"What happened? You came here and got me drunk and I did something remarkably stupid. Spirits, I've never had a headache like this before."

"Wh– I got you drunk?" she snapped, struggling to dress in her inebriated state. "Fuck's sake! I didn't hold you down and make you drink it!" I didn't, did I?

"Oh, Spirits," he whispered, as if to himself. "How could I have–? Why did you come here?!"

"I don't fucking know, okay? I don't remember anything! Fuck, I don't think I've ever been that drunk in my entire goddamn life. Ugh. I'm still fucking drunk! Did we– Did we actually–?"

"Yes. I'm a horrible human being. I cheated on my wife. Now you need to go before she gets here. Oh, Spirits, what is wrong with me?! Why– Why, of all nights, did you have to come here last night?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Ugh. Nothing. Just– Please, just go."

"Yeah, I heard you the first time!" she growled. "I couldn't very well walk out of here naked! I'm leaving. I promise I won't fucking bother you ever again! As far as I'm concerned, this never happened!" She stumbled out a side door into an alley and immediately spewed up the contents of her stomach. "What the fuck?" she groaned, slumped against the wall. "Why? Why?! Toph, you're such a fucking idiot."

But deep down, a small part of her knew why. Sokka had hurt her, and she wanted to hurt him back. It didn't make any sense, of course, because she would never, ever tell him about this.

How did I let myself get that drunk? she complained to herself as she trudged home in the pre-dawn stillness. Ugh. Fucking Sokka. I can't believe what an idiot I was, thinking we could keep that up. Thinking he wouldn't rip my heart out again.

It wasn't a train of thought she wanted to indulge, but it was too late. The pain she had tried to hold back with booze was bubbling up, threatening to overwhelm her. As soon as she pushed through the front door of her home, she collapsed in a miserable heap and let it take her.

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Toph smashed her alarm clock and groaned. Fuck mornings. And fuck this heat. "Up an at 'em, kid," she mumbled to Lin. They were so sweaty that they were stuck together. Lin whined feebly while Toph sat up and rubbed her tired eyes. With a deep sigh, she got up and began dressing for the day.

The last piece of her armor clicked into place but Lin had yet to move. "You better get up," Toph said sternly. "I don't want to be late dropping you off."

Two little feet hit the floor and began dragging themselves toward her. Lin just leaned against her hip and whimpered.

"Why so sleepy? You went to bed early last night." She reached down to Lin's face, suddenly realizing it was very warm. Crouching down, she put both hands on her daughter's cheeks. "Hm…"

"I don't wanna go to school," Lin said, starting to cry.

"No school today," Toph confirmed. But what to do? Sora had other obligations during the day now that Lin was in school, so that wasn't an option.

After a moment's thought, she put Lin back to bed and went to the telephone to find out if Katara was home. No answer. Next, she called Headquarters. "This is Chief Beifong. When Rinna gets in, tell her that Lin's sick and I'm staying home until I find someone to watch her. Oh, and have her send some paperwork over with an officer."

It did occur to her that she could call Sokka. The bastard. I'll have to be really fucking desperate before I do that.

Instead, she took her armor off, got back in bed with Lin, and waited for an officer to arrive with her paperwork. It came about an hour later and as she came back upstairs, the sound of a wet, rattly cough reached her ears.

"Lin?" Toph asked from her bedroom door. "You need anything?"

She coughed again and whimpered. "Will you stay with me?"

"Well…alright. I guess I can try and do my work in bed."

For the next couple of hours, she tried to focus on reviewing a detailed expense report, comparing it to the new budget she was working on, and trying to figure out where she could trim the fat. It wasn't easy; Lin tossed and turned next to her, the coughing tugging at her attention every few seconds.

"Mom…"

"Hm?"

"It hurts to breathe."

Toph put down her work and laid her hand on Lin's chest. She could feel the loose phlegm rattling around with every breath. What was she supposed to do? I don't know how to take care of a sick person!

"Are you thirsty?"

"Yeah."

"I'll get you some water." When she returned and tried to sit Lin up, her head flopped back and she drew a raspy breath. A lump formed in Toph's throat, her chest suddenly very tight. "Lin?"

The only response was a faint whine. Toph let out a shaky breath and tried to think. Hospital. She needed to go to the hospital. Maybe Katara was there. She wrapped Lin in a blanket, picked her up, and rushed out the door.

The streetcar ride seemed endless, listening to Lin's rattly, labored breaths. An anxious, sick feeling settled over Toph. How had things gotten so bad so fast? She should have known something was off when Lin went to bed early last night after a tantrum halfway through their training session.

They had just reached the hospital's entrance when Lin roused and started sobbing. Suddenly she was gasping for breath. Toph's anxiety peaked to blind panic and she ran to the first person she found.

Things started to get a little hazy after that. Someone pried Lin from her arms, then she found herself in a room that she didn't remember walking to. Everything sharpened without warning when a horrible choking noise started up from the bed Lin was lying on. Toph rushed over, completely overwhelmed with terror. She had never felt so helpless.

"Don't worry," a woman's voice said. "I was just clearing her lungs out. She'll be able to breathe better now."

"Mom," Lin sobbed, one of her hands reached out to grab Toph's wrist, though her fingers barely closed around it. "Don't go."

She squeezed Lin's hand between hers, tears streaming down her face. "I'm right here."

"Toph!" Katara said behind her. "Someone said you were here. What's wrong?"

Toph just shook her head, unable to speak at the moment.

"Get her a chair."

For a little while, no one said anything, though she could hear the sound of water being bent in Lin's vicinity. Toph sat there in silence, clutching Lin's hand, riding the fear and trying not to let it overwhelm her again. Katara was there. She was the best healer in the world. She would know what to do.

"She's going to be fine, Toph."

The words broke a dam inside her; she dropped her face into her hands and sobbed with relief, not caring at all, for once.

A familiar hand rubbed her back gently. "I'm not sure what this is, but we've got two dozen people here with the same symptoms, almost all of them children. It's all happened in the last twelve hours. There's obviously something nasty going around. You did good, bringing her here."

Toph forced herself back to something resembling calm and found Lin's hand again. It was clammy and limp, but she could feel her pulse and hear her breathing. The peaceful rhythm of sleep.

"Have you had any symptoms yourself?" Katara asked. "Any fever or coughing?"

"No, nothing."

"Please tell me if you do. In the meantime, I want to keep her here for a couple of days, just in case."

"I thought you healed her?"

"With a sickness like this, there's no immediate fix. Healing and medicine help, but the body still has to do most of the work. It's going to take a couple of days for this to run its course and I want her to stay here in case her fever goes up again."

Toph rubbed her thumb on Lin's hand and bit her lip. "If I hadn't come…" She couldn't finish the question in her mind.

"Don't do that to yourself," Katara said gently. "She's here. She's okay. You did the right thing."

But her assurance was exactly what Toph didn't want to hear. Lin had been in dire condition, and it had almost been too late for her. "I should've come sooner," she whispered.

"Most sicknesses aren't like this one, so rapidly progressing. Most kids get sick all the time and usually get better on their own with rest. No sane parent runs to the hospital every time their child coughs or sniffles. Stop beating yourself up."

Needless to say, it was a rough few days. While Toph never developed any symptoms herself and Lin bounced back quickly, there was inevitable drama. Toph spent as much time at the hospital as possible, only leaving to attend a couple of important meetings. But each time she left, Lin cried and begged her not to go.

On top of that, neither of them slept well, both tossing and turning on the narrow bed, waking each other up. Toph was plagued with hazy dreams that she couldn't quite remember, though some part of her was actually grateful for that. It was the vivid ones she dreaded.

And then there was Sokka. With this unexpected downtime from her busy life, she was forced to confront her thoughts and feelings regarding him, and eventually – reluctantly – she came to the conclusion that he had been right. It didn't make it any easier, or make it hurt any less, but there was no way around it: She had been unhappy. Their affair had been making her life harder, and it had been affecting Lin.

He came by that first afternoon. Reclining on the bed with Lin curled up next to her, Toph had no warning of his approach. When the door opened, she assumed it was just someone coming by to check on them.

"Er, hey," he whispered, jolting her out of her reverie. His voice sent a stabbing pain through her chest. It was the first time hearing it since their fight the previous week.

"Hey," she replied dully.

"I came as soon as I heard. Just wanted to see how she was doing."

"She's asleep."

"Is she okay?"

"Yeah."

"Hey, uh...can– can we talk for a minute?" he asked hesitantly.

Toph clenched her jaw stubbornly; she couldn't do this right now. "I don't want to wake her up."

"Somewhere else, I mean."

"She'll wake up if I move."

There was a brief pause, then he sighed softly. "Okay. Well, tell her I said hi. I'll come see her tomorrow."

He made good on his promise, stopping by the next morning when Toph was on her way out.

"Hey," he said, stepping in front of her in the hallway. "Before you go, can we please talk?"

"I don't have time."

"Five minutes. Not even. Please."

Toph gritted her teeth, knowing she wouldn't be able to avoid him forever. "Fine," she grumbled, beckoning him into a nearby empty room. She crossed her arms, head tilted down to ensure that her hair covered most of her face. "What do you want?"

"Look, I know you hate me right now, and I'm not going to ask you not to. But I want you to know that…I'm here, alright? I'm not going anywhere. I'm still here, for you and Lin. Always. That'll never change."

"Why can't you get it through your thick skull that saying shit like that only makes this harder? It hasn't even been a fucking week."

"I know, I just–"

"And you know what the worst part is?" she continued, bowling right over him. "I don't even have the luxury of being able to avoid you, thanks to our jobs. So I'll do my duty to this goddamn shithole of a city and pretend like things are okay for the sake of secrecy. Who knows– maybe one day I'll convince myself. But I want you to stop trying so hard to 'fix' it. Because you can't."

"I– Okay. I won't bring it up again. Is there anything I can do for Lin right now?"

"Just go be with her. Katara's in there, but I'm sure she would rather see you." With that, she stalked away, unable to stand being in the same room as him for one more second.

The next afternoon, Lin was deemed healthy enough to go home, which everyone involved was grateful for.

"Finally," she complained. "If I have to stay here another minute, I'll lose my fucking mind!"

"Lin!" Katara shrieked while Toph cackled, the sudden burst of amusement a huge relief after such a heavy couple of days. Lin didn't swear often these days, but it was always a treat when she did.

"Now, Lin," Toph said mildly. "You know you can't say stuff like that around Aunt Katara or she'll have a stroke." That earned her an annoyed huff from her friend. "Go wait in the hall for a minute, I'll be right there." When Lin was gone she cleared her throat and braced herself for a moment of sentimentality. "Uh, listen… I just wanted to say, you know, thanks. For taking care of her."

"You're welcome. I'm glad she's okay and that I could help."

"Anyway," Toph said briskly. "See ya round."

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A/N: I knowwwww, I'm sorryyyyy! Yes, they're idiots. Fools in love who just keep coming back for more. The next couple of chapters will be full of juicy drama, as I'm sure you can guess based on canon events XD