The next few months passed by very fast, at least Lin thought so. She just wanted time to slow down so she could enjoy the small moments before Haru got older.
They celebrated Bolin's 18th birthday early spring, followed by Lin's 52 birthday just last week. Both had been spoiled by their family, which Bolin loved, and Lin tried to pretend she wasn't happy about it. Emphasis on tried. Lin couldn't remember the last time she had spent her birthday with anyone other than her officers, and she felt a little emotional. Though she definitely blamed it on lingering hormones from pregnancy when someone, Kya, teased her.
Bumi and Lin couldn't believe Haru was almost 7 months old now. He was now sitting up and almost crawling. They had also started him on some solid foods a few weeks ago and his current favourites were rice cereal and mashed banana. They had spoken about whether or not to keep him on a vegetarian diet, since Lin hadn't had any meat since her early pregnancy - fish had also been a no-go shortly after finding out she was pregnant - or if they should start introducing it in the next few months. Bumi was all for having him try it, but Lin was hesitant.
"What if he turns out to be an airbender Bumi? I would prefer to wait till he starts showing what bending he has or if he is not a bender. I know you aren't a vegetarian, but you are an exception. I would rather give him the choice when he is older if he would like to continue or not."
"I guess you make a valid point, love." Bumi had replied, agreeing with her logic. As such, Haru would be raised vegetarian until he either showed he was not an airbender, or that he asked for meat instead.
Haru was also now only at the precinct with her for half-days now, usually in the afternoon. Since he went longer between feedings and was eating some solids, Bumi had started taking him with him while he went to Air Temple Island in the morning.
As Lin watched her son do an interesting worm-like motion to try and move towards his toy across the blanket that he was put on to play in her office, she couldn't help but smile. She stood up and sat next to the toy he was aiming for, work forgotten for now.
"Come on little badgermole, on your knees." She gently helped him into the correct position to crawl and scooted a little further back, holding the toy out in front of her. He gummily smiled at her and started unsteadily crawling towards her, hands smacking against the blanket. So he only moved one leg in a crawl and scooted the other, but it was progress. When he reached her, she pulled him into her arms and raised him in the air. "Good job! Look at you crawling. A true badgermole in the making for sure." He waved his hands, gurgling happily at her attention.
She noticed his cheeks were a little more flushed than usual, but upon feeling them, they didn't feel too hot. He had just cut his first tooth a few weeks ago and the second one had followed shortly after. His cheeks had flushed then as well. "You cutting another tooth love?"
Haru snuggled into her shoulder and she cuddled him closer as she stood up off the hard floor. She made her way to her desk chair and adjusted him so she could continue paperwork. Haru ended up falling asleep against her, burrowing in as close as possible and holding onto her uniform shirt tightly.
An hour passed, when Haru woke up. Lin looked down in time to see him start to vomit all over himself and her. She was glad she had a steel stomach from so many years on the force. "Shh love, it's alright." She rubbed his back, waiting for him to finish. When he stopped she stood and headed to her attached washroom. She laid him down on a soft towel before stripping him of his clothes, leaving him in his cloth diaper.
She quickly stripped herself of her uniform leaving her in her tank top and underwear. She grabbed a washcloth and wiped his face and neck. Lin noticed his cheeks had gotten even redder since earlier.
"Okay badgermole, let's get you and Mama redressed and then we are going to go home early, alright?" He just answered with a whine. "Shh love, I know."
She quickly put him into a sleeper she had in the diaper bag and slipped on a sweatshirt and sweatpants herself. She left him in the crib for a moment to quickly speak with Ju to ask them to get a cleaner to clean the office and that she was leaving early.
"I may not be in tomorrow, depending on how he is doing. I'll keep you updated though. Please let AC Saikhan know."
"Yes, Chief. I hope Haru feels better quickly."
"Thanks Ju. You and me both."
She went and wrapped the sling around her and placed Haru in, he snuggled right up to her immediately, letting out small whimpers. She decided she would have one of her officers drive them home as it would be quicker than calling Bumi to come get them. She slung the diaper bag over her shoulder and made a quick glance that she had everything, before grabbing the bag she had shoved their clothes into so that she could wash them.
She opened her office door to the bullpen and she ignored the officers who glanced up at her and looked slightly shocked to see her in sweats; as even when she had been going into the field, she would still wear her uniform in front of her officers. She closed her door and locked the platinum lock with her keys. She was thankful to note Mako was in his shared office.
Lin quickly walked over to his office. "Mako."
Mako looked up quickly, and stood. "Chief. What can I do for you?"
"I need you to drive us home. I'll explain on the way."
"Yes Chief." He quickly got up and followed her to where his department vehicle sat. "Something wrong?" He asked softer now that they were away from prying eyes.
Lin sighed and hugged Haru a little closer as she sat in the old Cabbage Corp Wagon. "Haru threw up all over both himself and me. I think he is running a bit of a fever too. I thought he'd be more comfortable at home."
"Of course. I'm happy to drive you both home if it makes him feel better quicker."
Mako drove as quick as the speed limit allowed, and made it to the house in a fairly decent amount of time considering the house was on the outskirts of the city. The only downside was the vehicle was old and the ride was bumpy, causing Haru to whimper into his mother's chest.
When they arrived, Lin turned to Mako. "Thanks kid. I'll keep you posted on how he is. Oh and remind me to set up a meeting with Asami. Perhaps the Police Department can make a deal with Future Industries. These old wagons have been around for too long."
"Bye! I will try and pop by after shift. Let me know if you need me to pick up anything on my way over. I'll also let Asami know as I am sure Bolin will find out from Bumi when you call the Island."
Lin thanked him again and made her way into the house.
"Okay little badgermole, let's get you settled and call Daddy."
She set him in the crib in the living room and went to the phone in the room and dialed Tenzin's private line.
"Tenzin speaking."
"Hey Tenzin, can I speak with Bumi please."
"Oh Lin, hello. I am not sure where he is at the mo-"
"Tenzin, please just go find him. Have him call me back as soon as you find him. I'm at home, so he can reach me here."
"Is something wrong?"
Lin tried not to growl into the phone. "Just find him," she said before hanging up on him.
She went to the kitchen and pulled out a baby facecloth from the stack she left for cleaning his face during meals and wet it with cold water. She reentered the living room and dabbed at Haru's face with it after feeling for his temperature.
Lin was humming to him to try and keep him calm and relaxed, when the telephone rang and startled the feverish boy. He started crying, so she picked him up trying to sooth him as she quickly went to the phone.
"Bumi?" She asked into the receiver.
"Linny, Tenzin said you called asking for me? Wait, is Haru okay? I can hear him crying"
"I'm not sure, Bumi. He has a fever, he is flushed, and he vomited all over the both of us in my office. I had Mako take us home." Lin said, concern bleeding into her voice as she rocked the crying infant.
"I'll talk to Pema or Kya before heading home okay? I'll be there as soon as I can. I love you both."
"Love you too." She hung up the phone before continuing to try and soothe Haru. "Come on little badgermole. You're making yourself feel worse by crying." She went and grabbed the washcloth and went into the kitchen to wet it again with fresh water. She dabbed it against his face again, wiping the tear tracks away. He started to settle down, whimpering every so often with his head resting on her shoulder and buried into her neck, fist clutching the sweatshirt she was wearing.
She continued to walk around the main floor as they waited for Bumi to arrive home, hoping the movement would help him fall asleep. He didn't but he settled a little further
Finally she heard the grunt of Bumi's borrowed bison. She went and greeted him at the back door.
"Hi my love's. How's our boy?" He asked, taking in Haru's flushed and feverish state.
"He's calmed a little right now, but I'm not sure it will last."
"Pema thinks it is probably an upset stomach or something. She said he should feel better by tomorrow."
Lin frowned in concern. "I sure hope that's it."
"She also said to keep him hydrated, and to probably stay away from the solid foods until he is feeling better."
She nodded. "I guess I will go see if he'll nurse then. Would you make some tea? I think we're going to need it. Make sure it is strong."
Bumi placed a kiss on her cheek, and then one to Haru's hot one. "Of course love. Anything else I can do to help?"
"Would you mind throwing our clothes in the wash? They are in the bag near the door. Better to get the vomit out now. Though I have a feeling it won't be the last load today."
An hour later found Lin grimacing at the feeling of being vomited on again. She held Haru from her a bit, before putting him into Bumi's arms. "You clean him up and I will grab a quick shower. Twice in a few hours is making me feel grimy."
Bumi nodded, but as he headed up to the nursery to change the infant, Haru noticed he wasn't in his mother's arms anymore. He had already been crying from being ill, but it got progressively worse the longer he was away from Lin.
Bumi did his best to try and keep Haru calm while he cleaned him up, but it seemed to just make things worse. "Come on buddy, it's just Daddy. I promise Mama will be back soon." He picked the now clean baby up and tried different known ways to soothe him, but nothing was helping. "Alright, Mama should be out of the shower now, let's go meet her huh?"
Lin was toweling off when they entered the bedroom; she'd had a quick shower as she could hear Haru's cries over the running water. Upon seeing Bumi with the red-faced, screaming baby she dropped the towel and quickly pulled on the pajamas that were the closest when she opened the drawer, not caring that they were mismatched. As soon as Haru was placed into her arms, he stopped crying and now just whimpered every so often. Bumi grabbed a clean face cloth from the bathroom and handed it to Lin to wipe his face.
"Sorry love, he was not happy that it was me holding him. I tried everything that usually works to calm him, but nothing worked." Bumi said, slightly upset with himself for not being able to care for Haru.
Lin looked up after finishing cleaning up Haru's face. She was swaying a little, in hopes it would help him calm down further. "It's okay Bumi. There is nothing wrong with what you did, I promise. Why don't we go downstairs and see if we can get him to calm down more?" They ended up on the couch, with Lin and Haru cuddled into Bumi's arms. The two parents breathed in relief when Haru settled down and drifted into a little nap, exhausted from his crying.
A few hours later, Lin had taken him up to the nursery and started rocking him with the light off. He did nurse a little, but it was more like he was soothing himself than actually drinking. Finally he seemed to have drifted off again, however every time she thought he was sound asleep though and stopped rocking, he would startle awake. She resigned herself to be rocking for the next hour at least, hoping he fell into a deep enough sleep.
She looked up as Bumi quietly entered the room. He brought over a new cup of tea, which Lin gave him a tired, but thankful smile.
"Still won't fully go down?" He whispered.
Lin shook her head, glancing down at the infant on her chest. "I have a feeling it will be a long night." She whispered back.
"You sure you don't want me to try for a bit?"
"It didn't work well earlier. I would like to keep what little of my eardrums are left." She attempted a smile at him. "We'll try again tomorrow. I just hope he falls into a deeper sleep. Speaking of, why don't you head to bed, then you will have had some sleep if we need to switch."
"You sure, love?"
"Yes. I will call for you if we need you. But, I would prefer one of us to not be completely sleep deprived tomorrow. Plus I already told Ju I probably wouldn't be in tomorrow, so I will call them in the morning to confirm that."
Bumi kissed Lin's head, not wanting to disturb their lightly sleeping son, before heading to their bedroom. He knew it would be a long night for all of them. He had gotten too used to sleeping beside Lin for the last year and a bit, that it would be weird to fall asleep without her beside him.
Bumi found Lin and Haru passed out on the couch early the next morning. He was happy to note that they were both sleeping at least, but he could tell Haru was still feverish, if his reddened cheeks were anything to go by. He silently walked over and gently fixed the blanket that was falling off them.
He then went to the kitchen and put the kettle on the stove. He decided to leave the two to sleep as long as Haru allowed them, sure that the day would be a long one.
He grabbed a sketchbook he had been using to work on some prototypes of new outfits for the airbenders. He and Asami had been brainstorming ways to possibly combine their gliders with their clothes inspired by the winged lemurs. The airbenders were almost ready to start heading out on peace missions in the Earth Kingdom.
Bumi thinks he finally has something viable and is sketching away, only pausing to pour the hot water in the teapot and strain the tea leaves.
He is almost finished with the pot of tea and the sketches when he hears whimpers starting from the other room. He quickly gets up and walks into the living room.
Lin is already awake and hushing their upset son.
"Anything I can do?" He asks softly, coming to stand beside them.
"Can you grab me new clothes for him, he's sweating through this sleeper." She focused again on Haru. "It's alright badgermole." He whined as he clung to her.
When Bumi reentered the room, Lin looked at him worriedly. "Should we call Kya? His fever hasn't dropped. I don't know what else to do."
"Let's get him changed first. Maybe see if he will nurse, then we'll call Kya. I think it's better to make sure he is hydrated first, especially with all the sweating and vomiting." Bumi placed a calming hand on her shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze.
Lin took a shaky breath and did as Bumi advised. Haru thankfully nursed a little bit, but he didn't take a lot. She tried to set him down in the crib, but he clung to her, crying out when she tried to remove his grip. She gave up and just held him close as she went to the phone to dial the Island.
An acolyte answered and went in search of Kya. It was a few minutes later that the waterbender answered the phone.
"Kya speaking."
"Kya, it's Lin. Haru is sick. At first I thought he may be teething again, but he's had a high fever for the last 15 hours and he has vomited several times. He barely eats when I can get him to nurse. I-I don't know what to do."
"It's okay Lin. Keep trying to get him to have fluids, keep him as hydrated as possible. If he won't nurse, try some cool water. Don't bundle him up in too many layers, he will overheat much quicker that way. Try to keep him as calm as possible. Most likely this is a virus. His body is doing the right thing; the fever is the body's way of showing that he is fighting the infection. Let me finish getting ready and I will have Tenny fly me over."
Lin breathed a little easier hearing they had been doing everything right so far. "Thank you Kya."
"I'll see you soon."
Lin hung up and quickly called the precinct. She left a message with the night supervisor to provide to her assistant, as it was still too early for them to be in yet, that she would not be in for today or tomorrow at least.
Kya, after looking him over, confirmed that he had internal inflammation caused by a virus. She advised Lin and Bumi that they may also feel ill as it could be contagious, but as they didn't seem to have symptoms yet it was unlikely. But she told them they were doing everything they could at the moment. Kya then gave them a tincture to rub into his skin to help reduce the fever.
"Try giving him a lukewarm bath an hour after putting the tincture on. It should help further bring down his fever." She said before washing her hands to disinfect herself and left to head into the clinic she works at downtown.
Lin and Bumi followed her directions to a T and were relieved when his temperature did go down a little and he took a full feeding.
It was early afternoon when there was a knock at the door. Bumi answered it to find Mako on the other side.
"H-hey is Haru okay? I was on my break and wanted to stop by." He asked.
"He is doing better, but it'll probably take a few days to fully go away. Some type of stomach bug apparently." Bumi noticed that Mako's own cheeks seemed a little flushed. "Are you doing okay yourself? You look a little flushed."
Mako nodded, but that seemed to be a bad idea as it made his head pound and he stumbled forward a bit. Bumi grabbed his arm and pulled him into the house fully. He helped him remove his standard issued boots, and guided him to the living room.
"Mako? What are you doing here?" Lin asked, Haru still in her arms; even with the fever being more manageable, he was still clinging only to her. She frowned when Mako didn't seem to hear her, and she took in his dazed and flushed appearance. She stood, holding Haru to her with one arm, and felt Mako's forehead. "He's as hot as Haru was before the tincture." She looked up at Bumi with a concerned look on her face.
"I'll take him up to the room he's been using. I think he has some spare clothes from last time, if not, I'll put him in some of mine."
Mako looked up blearily at them. "M-fine. I need to get back to the station." He said, batting Lin's hand away gently.
"You're not going anywhere, and that's an order detective." Lin said, using her Chief voice.
Mako saluted her, "yes, Chief." He stumbled as Bumi helped him up and the two made their way upstairs.
Lin sighed. "This day keeps getting better and better," she mumbled to herself as she made her way to the phone.
She called Saikhan's direct line and he answered on the second ring.
"AC Saikhan speaking."
"It's Lin. Mako will not be coming back into work today. He's as ill as Haru. He'll be out for a few days at least."
"I'm assuming he's with you then?" She could hear the slight humor in his voice.
"What are you implying?"
"I know you see him as another son, don't deny it. Make sure your boys are well before you come back. Chief." And with that he hung up.
Lin scowled at the phone before setting it back on the hook. "Nosy bastard." She looked at Haru. "You didn't hear that from me. But Saikhan is right. Let's get your brother some water huh?"
In the kitchen she filled a pitcher with cool water and placed it and a glass on a metal tray. She also made a special blend of tea that was good for reducing fevers and helping with nausea. The steaming cup of tea was placed alongside the other two items on the tray. She used her bending to levitate the tray up the stairs to the room Mako had stayed in previously.
She grimaced as she heard retching coming from the attached bathroom. She placed the tray on the bedside table and bent the metal wastebasket over to the side of the bed, so it was there if he needed it later. She then held Haru closer as she bent slightly to pull back the bedding with one hand.
A few moments later, Bumi half-carried Mako in from the washroom. He was undressed to his undershirt and boxers. Bumi helped him lay on the bed, propped up by the pillows. He then went and grabbed a damp washcloth from the washroom.
Lin took it from him and sat on the bed beside him, dabbing his face to wipe away the sweat and cool his face. "Mako, I have some tea here that will help you feel better." He groaned and attempted to turn away, but Bumi stopped him. He sat on Mako's other side and took the cup when Lin offered it to him.
"Come on hotstuff, drink the tea." Bumi coaxed, holding the cup to Mako's lips. Somehow he drank the whole thing before sighing and leaning into the pillows, eyes closed. Bumi discarded the teacup to the side and helped Mako get more comfortable.
Lin placed the wet cloth on his forehead. She then pulled the sheet up to his shoulders, tucking him in.
They thought he had drifted off to sleep, but before they got up they heard his quiet voice. "Mom?… Dad?…" He mumbled, searchingly.
Lin's face softened. She wasn't sure if he was truly calling them mom and dad or if in his feverish state he was looking for his real parents. But she was going to comfort her boy anyways. "Shh, Mako. We're here. We're not going anywhere. Just rest." She said brushing his hair from his forehead with her free hand, the other tightening just a little more on Haru, needing him a little closer.
His body relaxed at her words, and he finally drifted off.
She felt Bumi's hand on her shoulder and looked up at him to find an equally soft look on his face. She knew he felt the same as her at that moment.
"I'll stay with him, and make sure he is okay. Haru looks like he is going to fall asleep soon, why don't you go lay down in our bed this time. Try and have a nap yourself." Lin didn't have the energy to argue with him
They shared a brief kiss, and she headed to their room. Both herself and Haru were asleep within minutes.
After a few days, both boys were feeling much better. Mako attempted to go back to his small apartment, but they insisted he stay for a few days more just to make sure. He didn't argue as he didn't really want to leave yet. Haru also got over his clinginess to Lin and allowed both his father and older brother to care for him so Lin could have some much needed alone time. As Lin enjoyed her hot bath, she couldn't keep a small smile off her face as she thought over Saikhan's words from the other day. Her boys. She liked the sound of that.
