Korra grinned as she watched the landscape zip past them. They were so high in the air, it was almost like they were on another planet entirely. She would never admit to anyone, except maybe to Lin and Asami if they asked, but the first time she ever traveled by airblimp, she nearly clawed into her armrests. Each bump felt like a promise of a terrifying death. Now though, Korra could look out the window all day. She knew Asami would never let anything bad happen to the three of them.
Korra hugged the glass as she caught the sight of a spirit sleeping on the soft grass below. It appeared tiny to Korra from her vantage point all the way up in the airblimp so it must be at least the size of a Satomobile. She had been spotting more and more spirits the closer the trio flew to Zaofu. Almost like Naga could sense the exclusion, she nudged Korra's arm with her snout as a long whine escaped her mouth. Korra reached down to scratch under Naga's chin, her eyes not leaving the countryside. "Almost there, girl," Korra promised. She turned her head to look for more spirits and spotted two more walking across the landscape. "Su was right about the spirits, at least."
Despite the letter, Korra was surprised to see so many spirits far away from the three portals but in a way it made sense to her. Zaofu was far enough away from other cities that it must seem like an oasis of activity to the spirits. And the people there were probably much kinder and understanding of the spirits than the people in Republic City.
Korra turned her attention to Naga once more to scratch behind her ear. "Just half an hour more, Naga. You can make it." Naga whined in response.
Lin must have hear her because she gave a loud and annoyed grunt. "Why are you so excited anyway?" she asked. "It's not like you haven't been to Zaofu several times already."
"Because it'll be good to see Su again," Korra must have said those words at least ten times by now. Lin was adamant on staying in Republic City, even after saying she would go to Zaofu, right up to the moment they boarded the airblimp. Korra and Asami had to 'convince' her several times before they took off, but neither of them complained. Korra looked over her shoulder to see Lin slouched and glowering on the couch. She left the window to sit by her side, laughing when Naga followed and rested her head on Korra's lap. She played with the polerbeardog's ears as she kissed Lin's cheek. "It'll only be for a few days."
"It'll feel like a few years," Lin muttered on her breath but she didn't pull away from the quick kiss or Korra's head resting on her shoulder. She was glad she no longer had to wear her usual armor, the warmth from Korra was too good to pass up on.
Korra glanced up at Lin's face. "Tell Asami to turn around and she will." It was a bit of a dirty trick, but the way Lin huffed and said nothing made it worth it. "Besides, Su might drop by Republic City if we don't go to Zaofu."
Lin sighed and rubbed her temples. "True." She wrapped an arm around Korra and pulled her closer. Naga gave a grumble of discomfort as her heard was jostled but she settled back in soon enough. "Still, I don't like her meddling into my private life."
"Meddling?" Korra repeated. "We've been together before she knew about us. How is she meddling?"
"She's going to make a big deal of me dating two women half my age!" Lin said, exasperated.
Korra looked up at her. "Does it bother you that me and Asami are less than half you age?" She pressed their lips together for a quick kiss. "Because I can tell you it doesn't bother me or her."
"Of course not," was Lin's immediate response. She gave her own kiss, rubbing soothing circles into Korra's hips. "You two mean so much to me, more than anyone else in my life." Her eyes flitted away. "It still doesn't mean that I'll enjoy Suyin teasing me."
"Asami and I tease you plenty," Korra chuckled, relaxing into Lin's touches. "We care about you and you care about us. Suyin will see that." The two stayed like that for the rest of the trip, in companionable silence as Asami flew them to Zaofu.
Once they landed, Naga bolted out as soon as there was an opening big enough for her to squeeze through. Korra might have gotten used to flying, but the polarbeardog still disliked it immensely. Naga rolled onto the grass like she parted from it for years instead of hours.
Korra laughed at the sight and tossed a few pieces of jerky for Naga to chew on. She waited until Asami joined her and Lin before bowing her head in respect to the three guards that met them at the airblimp pad. "Thank you for having us," she said.
"Where's Su?" Lin asked impatiently. She didn't like how her little sister wasn't there to greet them. Lin especially didn't like how the guards shared a glance at the question.
"Suyin Beifong is busy preparing your suites Ms. Beifong," the lead guard said. Korra vaguely remembered interrogating him after Zaheer first tried to kidnap her. The guard turned and lifted an arm to gesture at the waiting vehicle. "If you would, we can drive you to the train station which will then take you to Ms. Beifong's estate." He glanced at Naga who was tearing into her treat. "We can have someone escort your, er, pet to the estate."
Korra shook her head at the offer. "No need. I know how to get to the place." She gave Lin and Asami a quick peck on the cheek before getting up on Naga's saddle. The polerbeardog rose to her feet, swallowing the last bit of jerky. Korra pointed at Lin, "Behave yourself." She quickly pushed her ankles into Naga's sides to get her to start running away from the group, laughing at Lin's angry retort, the words being lost in the wind.
Lin glared at the retreating form of Korra and Naga before narrowing her eyes at Asami who was giggling lightly. "Come on, the sooner we get there, the sooner I can have a few words with Korra." She threaded her arm with Asami's and walked her to the vehicle. Just because she was agitated with her lovers doesn't mean she had to stop having manners.
"Whatever you say," Asami said with another giggle. She rested her head on Lin's shoulder once they sat in the car and sighed in content at the arm that wrapped itself loosely around her waist. A part of her was a bit worried that once they arrived at Zaofu, Lin was going to revert to her old ways of only being affectionate behind closed doors. "You know Korra was just teasing you right?"
"Of course I do." Lin took some of the bite from her words with a soft squeeze of Asami's hand. "I still don't like it."
"Suyin is going to be worse," Asami cautioned.
"I know she will," Lin grumbled. She looked out of the window to watch the world sped by. It'll only take another five minutes before they reach the station. "Maybe I shouldn't have made that promise to her."
Asami lifted her head from Lin's shoulder, her eyebrows furrowed. "What promise?"
Lin turned her head to look at the young mechanic. "That I wouldn't attack her when I visit her."
"Don't," Asami said at once. She frowned at Lin. "I would hate to lose a possible contract because I got into a fight with one of my girlfriend's sister."
The mental thought of Asami charging in to help Lin against Su made Lin chuckle. "Just try not to leave any permanent damage. A bruise or two is fine. Anything worse, my mother may have a few words with you."
Asami shrugged at the words and relaxed against Lin once more.
When the two arrived at the train station, they were greeted with another of Su's guards that ushered them into a private cabin of the train. "Avatar Korra had already taken the first train to Suyin Beifong's estate," the guard explained.
The two nodded and settled in before the train took off. They said nothing on the way but Asami didn't miss how Lin's leg began to bounce. She tried to soothe her lover's nerves by talking about her possible contract with Baatar Jr.
"If this goes well, I might be able to implement Future Industries' tech into Zaofu's infrastructure. Varrick was telling me how there were some areas that he didn't have the time or motivation to upgrade like the mines or the powerplants."
Lin cocked an eyebrow. "Wasn't it Varrick's brilliant idea to use the spirit vines to produce energy?"
Asami nodded, glad that Lin was responding. "Yes, but it did give me an idea." At Lin's frown, she quickly added. "I'm not going to use the spirit vines of course. I want to research possibly using the sun to produce energy."
The younger woman went into detail about using specialized panels to harness the energy from the sun and convert it into usable energy. Lin understood some of the process but most of the jargon Asami was using went right over her head. That didn't matter though, Lin was more than happy to listen to Asami and see that glow in her eyes as she went into more detail about the panels.
"We've arrived at Suyin Beifong's estate."
The announcement caught both women off guard. Asami let Lin help her out of the car and the two saw Korra already talking to Suyin with a guard standing nearby. Both women were grinning but there was something in Suyin's smile that Lin didn't like. It was as if her little sister had some scheme in her head as she talked with the Avatar.
"You two finally arrived!" Suyin said when she spotted Lin and Asami near the car. She hurried over and surprising the two women, pulled them into a hug. Lin was still but Asami returned the hug after some hesitation. When Suyin pulled back, Lin noticed that the gleam in her eye was still present.
"I was just telling Korra about how close I was to take a little vacation and visit you in Republic City," Suyin said. She looked over Lin's attire and gave an approving hum. "Retirement looks wonderful on you, Lin. Although, I had assumed now that you're not Chief of Police, you would have visited me more often."
"I was busy," Lin said cautiously. She felt the trap closing around her but she didn't know how to avoid it.
"Oh, I know," Suyin said with a grin. "I had tried to retire myself from being matriarch several times before to spend more time with my darling husband and my children but the other advisers wouldn't hear it." Suyin shrugged. "I'll have to try again in a few years" she turned her attention to Asami, "but before then I do want to see how you will improve my dear city."
Asami nodded and patted the satchel bag at her hip. "I didn't have much time to develop solid blueprints but I already have some ideas to imp-"
Suyin waved away Asami's words. "Later. I must admit that I wouldn't be able to appreciate your work as nearly as it deserves. Baatar Junior will though when you two discuss the contract between Zaofu and Future Industries." She gestured to one of the apartment houses, her eyes alight in mischief. "I'm sure you're all tired from your trip. I've had three separate rooms prepared for you and some snacks to hold you three over before dinner."
Korra and Asami shared a quick glance, both of them wondering if it was smart for Suyin to provoke her sister like that.
Lin's left eye twitched, feeling the trap snap shut. But she wasn't going to take it without a fight back. "We only need one room for our stay, thanks."
For her part, Suyin feigned shock although they could easily see past her mask. "Oh? I just assumed you would want to at least pretend to be taking things slow." She shrugged again, "But I understand, I don't think I waited for a week until I first asked Baatar to stay the night." Before Lin could retort something back, Suyin turned to start heading towards the main house. "I'll see you three at dinner."
Lin clenched her teeth at her sister's antics but she followed the guard to the guest house without a retort. She snatched up the newspaper, thinking that reading the happenings of Zaofu would calm her until dinner. That plan was thrown out the window at the gasp Asami gave when she opened the door to the master bedroom.
Korra was laughing outright and clenched at her sides. "Lin, you gotta look at this."
"What now," Lin grumbled before heading to where Korra and Asami were standing in the doorway of the master bedroom.
The bed was covered in rose petals, only allowing the three sparse glimpses at the green covers underneath. There was a little note in the middle of the bed. Korra was quick to grab it and read the contents, laughing once more as she read.
"She's even worse now than when I was with Tenzin," Lin growled.
Korra shook her head. "Not Su," was all she said before handing the note for Lin.
Lin held it out so Asami could read over her shoulder.
I'm so happy for you, Aunty Lin!
-Opal.
"Aunty Lin?" Asami repeated.
"I told her not to call me that," Lin said, tossing the note to the vanity desk on the side of the room. She gave the bed one more distasteful glance before going back to the living room. She sat down on the chair and snatched the newspaper once more. Lin could hear Korra and Asami follow her out but she kept her eyes locked on the article in front of her.
A hand gently pushed the newspaper down and Lin was forced to look up at her two lovers. "What?" she asked, making it clear that she was annoyed at the two for disrupting her reading.
"You're not that mad at Opal for giving us those rose petals, are you?" Asami asked, moving her hand away once she was sure Lin wasn't going to pull the newspaper up to ignore the two.
"It was romantic," Korra offered.
"It's going to be days before that room doesn't have the stench of roses," Lin shot back.
Asami raised an eyebrow. "Roses don't smell that bad." Although, she could see Lin's point. Opal definitely went overboard with all the rose petals but she did appreciate the gesture. When Lin said nothing, Asami plucked the newspaper out of Lin's hands and tossed it away before sitting down in Lin's lap, loosely wrapping her arms around the older woman's neck. She ignored how her skirt rode up her thighs and how Lin's eyes flashed down for a split second before focusing elsewhere. "It really was a sweet gesture."
Korra went behind Lin and leaned down so she could nuzzle against the top of Lin's head. "At least we know for sure that Opal's cool with us being together. And I can always air bend the smell of roses out of the room."
Lin hummed in response, unable to stop herself from relaxing from Korra's and Asami's touches. After a bit, she shrugged. "We can write her a thank you note." She pointed a finger up in the air for both of them. "But we are not going on a double date with her and that blabbermouth Bolin."
Asami pouted a bit but Korra shrugged even though she did want to show off this side of Lin to Opal and Bolin. The two wanted to argue more but Lin looked too peaceful at the moment and they wanted to relish in the moment. They both assumed that Lin was going to be tense for most of the trip.
"How long do you think we can stay hidden here?" Korra mused, kissing the top of Lin's head. One of Asami's hand reached out to rest on Korra's back and she grinned at the slight pressure.
"An hour at the most," Lin answered, reaching up to run her fingers through Korra's short hair. She used the other arm to keep Asami in her lap, to make sure the woman didn't slip off of course. She didn't miss Korra's sound of content at the touches and the way Asami's eyelashes fluttered for a moment when Lin pulled her closer. "Not long enough," Lin lament.
Korra sighed at that but she would take as much as she could. She met Asami's eyes and the two glanced back at Lin. Their eyes met once more and they knew they were in agreement.
Asami removed her hand from Korra's back and slowly pulled away from Lin, her hands slipping from Lin's shoulders and down to her lap. Confused, Lin loosened her grip but soon understood why.
"Already?" she asked, slightly amused at the hungry look in Asami's eyes. She felt new hands gently grip her shoulders and start to knead the tense flesh. Lin lifted her chin to look at Korra who had much the same look as Asami. Lin was about to retort that the two were insatiable but a gasp escape her mouth as she felt a pair of lips kiss the hollow of her throat. Her eyes closed shut as the kneading increased in pressure slightly and Asami continued to pepper her neck with kisses. Lin rested her head on the back of the chair, muttering softly at the two but neither paid attention.
Asami continued to kiss Lin's neck as one of her hands sneaked under the older woman's shirt. She teased the skin she found with feather touches, grinning against Lin's neck at the shiver. She murmured encouragement as she felt Lin's hands move to grip her ass. Asami slowly made her way up the woman's toned stomach, feeling several lines of puckered scars that Lin had gained in her service to Republic City. She could not count how many times she kissed those scars but she knew she would kiss them a thousand times more if given the chance.
"Korra," Lin gasped, getting the Avatar's attention. She removed one of her hands from Asami's ass to cup the back of Korra's head and pulling her down to kiss her. She moaned into the other woman's mouth as Asami's fingers finally reached her breasts. "Good, Asami," Lin said against Korra's lips.
The door to the apartment opened and Suyin strode in with a casual grin. She halted when her eyes trained on the trio in front of her.
At once Korra pulled back and coughed into a fist, her face quite a few shades redder. Asami removed her hands from Lin's shirt and sat up from her lap, crossing her arms and trying her best to act as if she wasn't just fondling Lin's breasts. Lin fixed her shirt from Asami's hasty retreat and glared at her sister for barging in.
Suyin blinked once and the three could see that she was physically restraining herself from laughing. "Dinner is ready," she said, as if she didn't just catch Lin in between two women less than half her age. Suyin turned on her heel and walked out. Before the door closed, she called out loud enough for the three to hear in a very cheerful tone, "Don't be late!"
"She's a little shit," Lin growled when the door closed. She got up from her seat and readjusted her shirt. She looked at the other two and rolled her eyes at the red cheeks they both had. "Well? We might as well get this over with."
Asami cleared her throat while Korra laughed awkwardly.
The three left the house and walked to the Beifong mansion. There were two guards stationed at the door and they let the three in without question. Lin noticed how they glanced at one another at the sight of the trio and she fought the urge to snap at them to mind their own business. The silent walk to the dining room was broken with Korra and Asami chatting about what they might eat while Lin just offered grunts to the conversation.
When they entered the dining room, they were surprised to find only Suyin and her husband, Baatar Sr.
"The kids are out and about," Suyin explained when she saw the confused looks on Korra and Asami and the suspicion on Lin's face. She gave a slightly smug grin as she met Lin's eyes. "I figured that the adults should have a friendly chat."
Lin grumbled as the three took their seats. She sat to the left of Suyin with Korra on her right and Asami taking the seat to the right of Korra. When everyone was settled, the chef entered the room, metal bending several trays, each one holding a plate and a small bowl. He set a tray in front of each person and bowed humbly. Lin couldn't deny that the food smelled and looked delicious.
"In honor of Lin Beifong's, Asami Sato's, and Avatar Korra's return, I have prepared a meal for you that has both earth kingdom and water tribe elements. The main dish is braised turtle duck with meat that will melt in your mouths. Your side consists of tentacle soup that has been carefully prepared with the freshest squid. I hope you all enjoy." He bowed once again and left the room.
Lin raised an eyebrow at Suyin who was sipping at her soup. "What gives?"
Suyin tilted her head and lowered the spoon back into the soup. "What do you mean, Lin?"
"You know that braised turtle duck is one of my favorite meals." Lin crossed her arms over her chest.
"Is it wrong that I want to treat my sister and her girlfriends to a delicious meal?" Suyin asked.
Lin narrowed her eyes but the sound of silverware clinking against a bowl and Korra humming soon afterwards brought her attention to the Avatar. She shrugged and took another sip of the soup. "This is the best tentacle soup I ever had."
"And this turtle duck is very delicious," Asami added with a grin towards Suyin. "Do you think I could borrow your chef from time to time? None of mine has ever cooked as well as yours."
"You certainty can try," Suyin laughed. She nudged Lin's arm and nodded towards the two women. "They have great tastes. I wonder how you ended up with them."
"Suyin," Lin began with a warning tone.
"I'm just kidding!" Suyin said, holding her hands up in surrender. "I haven't been able to tease you about your love life since Tenzin. I have to make up for lost time."
"Or we can just enjoy this meal," Baatar Sr. suggested. He laid a hand on his wife's thigh and gave it a small squeeze.
Lin nodded and finally started to eat the turtle duck. She tried to hide how delicious the meat was but the smug look on Suyin's face said that she failed. She glanced at her lovers and saw how they had devoured most of the meal. Korra had eaten every drop of her soup and was already half-way through her turtle duck. Even Asami who had the most manners out of the three was eating with gusto. Lin couldn't help the grin at seeing their satisfied faces.
"Are you going to finish that?" Korra asked Lin, pointing at her tentacle soup and doing her best subtle polarbeardog puppy eye look.
"Yes," Lin said, taking a large sip from her soup. "I'm sure the chef is more than happy to make you another bowl." She lightly slapped Korra's hand that was ever so slowly creeping on her turtle duck. "You're not even done with your own turtle duck!"
Not discouraged, Korra turned her attention to Asami and asked for some of her soup. Asami relented with a roll of her eyes and Korra dug in into the new soup.
"You certainly must have your hands full, Lin," Suyin teased.
"What is that supposed to mean?" Lin shot back.
Suyin sighed and gestured to Korra. "You might want to ask my chef for his water tribe recipes." She looked at Asami. "And some dishes from Republic City too. It seems to me that the best way to anyone's heart is through their belly."
"I don't have to feed them to have them be with me," Lin huffed.
"It wouldn't hurt if you learned how to make the soup though," Korra added with a light prod at Lin's arm. "Asami and I could help you cook it too!"
"You?"
A light flush spread on Korra's cheeks as she gave an embarrassed chuckle. "Asami could help you cook." She finished off the bowl that Asami had given her and patted her belly. "It would be really amazing to have some authentic water tribe food at the house."
"At the house?" Suyin repeated at once. She stared at Lin and then at the other two women. "You three already live together?"
Lin almost choked on her soup as she waved away the question. "No! We don't live together. We haven't even been together for a year!" She gave a glare to Korra who was too busy trying to keep the blush on her face in check. "We just spend a lot of time at my house, is all."
"Oh well, just give it time," Suyin said, clearly disappointed at the turn in events. "I had been with Baatar for less than a month before I asked him to move in with me."
"And," he spoke up at once, grabbing Suyin's hand and giving it a squeeze, "I turned her down. It was only after we built the first few homes a year and a half later did we move in together." He grinned at the trio, "Go at the pace you three are most comfortable with." He kissed his wife's hand when he noticed the slight pout on her face.
Lin grumbled under her breath and looked down at her meal. It looked far less appetizing now than it did a few minutes ago. The three of them have been spending many nights at her home and she couldn't remember the last time she slept over at Asami's mansion and visiting the temple was clearly not an option. Were they living together? Was it going too fast? She glanced at the two who went back eating. Or rather, Asami was trying to fend off Korra from taking some of her turtle duck. Korra was trying to bargain with Asami but the other woman kept shaking her head and telling Korra to ask Lin for some food.
"Here," Lin said, pushing her turtle duck and the last third of her soup towards Korra.
Korra accepted the food with a concerned frown. "Oh, uh thanks but don't you want to eat more?"
Lin shook her head and pushed her chair out from the table. "I'm fine. I need some fresh air." She left the dining room before anyone could reply.
Asami and Korra shared a quick look and pushed away from the table. "Thank you for the meal," Asami began.
"But we gotta make sure Lin is okay," Korra finished.
Suyin watched the two walk out of the dining room, their food unfinished, with a small smile playing on her lips.
"Was that wise, dear?" Baatar Sr. asked. He worried that his wife had gone too far with her teasing. It was not as bad as when Opal started dating that Bolin boy but if anyone else had said the things she did to Lin, he doubted the table would still be intact.
Suyin nodded as she stirred the remnants of her soup. "I wanted to see how they would react to my teasing and Lin leaving. I'm actually surprised she lasted this long." She sipped her soup, humming at the different tastes dancing on her tongue. "Lin is lucky to have them in her life."
"Sometimes you play too many games," Bataar sighed but he couldn't deny that he was impressed with how cool-headed Lin was, especially afer hearing how quick to temper she was from Suyin.
She shrugged. "I just want the best for my sister. I'm glad its with those two instead of Tenzin. At least they know how to have some fun." Suyin kissed her husband's hand and held it to her cheek. She nuzzled against his palm when he cupped her cheek. "Besides, I could have been a lot worse." She grinned at the chuckle Baatar gave to that. "Remember what mom did when I first introduced you to her?"
The smile on Baatar's face curdled at the memory. "Please don't do that to any of our kids."
"No promises," Suyin whispered as she leaned forward to kiss Baatar.