Chief Beifong was busy until midnight. And no, Zhu could absolutely not squeeze in a minute long meeting with her. No, it didn't matter that she was her mother. No, it didn't matter if it was urgent and that the information was only for Chief's ears.
Zhu clicked her tongue, walking towards the arena. Since she had nothing else to do until midnight, Zhu decided to check up on Mako and Bolin. The sun had already set, but if the Fire-Ferrets won the ongoing match today, they'd have to play another before midnight.
On the market streets, people huddled together around fires, listening to the radio. Zhu shoved her hands into her coat, warming herself by regulating her breathing. It seemed that the Fire-Ferrets had the match in their favour today.
It was a long walk to the arena. What came as a surprise was Bolin standing at the florists'.
"Fancy seeing you here." Zhu smiled, "How was the match?"
"Well, well, well. If it's the friend I see once every 84 years." Bolin launched himself at her, engulfing her in a platypus-bear hug. "Man, I missed you. Don't go disappearing on me, Zhu."
She patted him on the back as she let go first, "I'm swamped with work, Bo. You know I can't go without seeing your face." Zhu nodded at the flowers he had in his hands, "Are those for Mako?"
The boy blushed a little, "No...they're for Korra."
Zhu's eyebrow ticked, "What?"
"I like Korra." Bolin grinned. "Like, like her, like her."
"But...why?" Zhu could absolutely not wrap her brain around why someone like Bolin would like Korra, of all the people.
"She's strong. She's brave. She's funny. And she saved me from the Equalists."
"I saved you too."
"Yeah, but you're taken."
Zhu sputtered, "What?"
"Just kidding." Bolin looked...chirpy. "But, yeah, I'm gonna ask her out on a date. I mean, we've been on dates before, but y'know. Real dates. The ones which end in me walking her to the door of her house - in this case, the Air Temple - and she kisses me goodnight and says that she'll dream of me when we're apart." Bolin sighed dreamily.
"Hey, could you say that again? I think I didn't throw up completely." She teased him as they walked further down the road after Bolin had paid the florist.
Rolling his eyes, Bolin asked, "Doesn't Liang walk you home all the time?"
"That's…" She trailed off, not knowing what to say.
"Aha! Hypocrite." He stuck his tongue out at her.
Zhu let out a chuckle, "I don't think you should aim for a relationship like ours, Bo." She ignored the curious look he sent her, as they walked to the back of the arena building, "It's not always romantic walks and goodnight kisses - What the fuck?"
The duo had walked in on Mako and Korra kissing. They had immediately broken apart at Zhu's cursing. Mako had a horrified look as he looked from Zhu to Bolin and back. His brother stared at the two with big, watery eyes, and let out a cry before throwing away the flowers in his hands. The boy turned around and fled.
"Bolin, this isn't what you think!" Mako called after his brother, but the boy was too far away to hear. Turning to Korra angrily, he snapped, "Great, look at what you did!
"You're blaming me?" Korra yelled back in incredule.
"You kissed me!"
"You kissed me back!"
Mako straightened his back, "No, I really didn't. Korra, I don't see you that way. I'm sorry." He shifted his gaze to Zhu, who was glaring at him, "Zhu, I-"
"I don't want to hear it." She brushed him off, "I have too much on my plate to handle this as well. Whatever your excuse is, keep it to yourself." Taking a step towards where Bolin had fled, Zhu looked over her shoulder, "Help me find him."
They searched for an hour, without saying a word to each other. Every time Mako would try to initiate a conversation, Zhu would propel herself to the roof of the closest building. After the third time, Mako just wanted to run into a wall multiple times until he fainted.
Bolin had faceplanted himself on a table at Narook's. He looked like he had eaten noodles made in alcoholic broth. She watched as the boy whined and scowled and complained at his older brother. Sighing, Mako tossed him over his shoulder and struggled while walking out of the store.
"A little help?" He looked expectantly at Zhu.
"No." She walked past him, back to the golden building, "Good luck for your match."
"Zhu, wait!" Mako shuffled towards her, trying to steady his brother who was mumbling under his breath. "You gotta listen - Zhu, it wasn't like that. I don't - It's not Korra."
"Yes, it's Asami. I know."
"No, I-"
Zhu turned around, not letting him finish, "I won't tell her. This is none of my business. It's between the four of you."
"Why are you mad at me?"
"What does it matter?" She hissed, "How I feel - What does it matter? When has it ever fucking mattered?"
Mako's face twisted in rage, "Don't project your anger at me just because things are bad between you and your boyfriend. Maybe if you'd actually valued someone in your life, you wouldn't be screwing up so often."
Zhu let out a loud, mirthless laugh, "I screwed up? Bold of you to say that without knowing anything." She sneered at him, "I hope Asami finds out what you did."
She wouldn't let him have the last word. No matter how below the belt she'd attack, Zhu would never let anyone say that she had been the one to mess things up. It wasn't her fault that she was an illegitimate child. It wasn't her fault that Lady Chiaki decided to, time and again, humiliate and punish her for no reason. It wasn't her fault that Grammai died. It wasn't her fault that she was kidnapped.
It wasn't it wasn't it wasn't it wasn't -
The detective fled.
Zhu wandered around Republic City in a daze, contemplating Mako's words.
Had she really never cared about anyone but herself? But that's not true, wasn it? If it weren't for her, Mako and Bolin would have starved. Or maybe they would have figured something else out. But Zhu couldn't really say that, could she?
She bumped into the passersby, murmuring an apology. Before Zhu could realize, she was at Central Station, staring up at Grandpa Zuko's statue.
Had she failed at learning the very basic thing that he had tried to instill in all his children and grandchildren? To love and cherish the ones whom you held close to your heart?
But I did. Why does Mako think that way about me? Because I couldn't make time for him? If I loved Liang a bit more, would he not have been an Equalist?
Because no matter how much she loved Liang, Zhu didn't feel that anything about their relationship could change. Perhaps Liang had been Amon's follower since before they met. That's why he had chosen to become a police officer. To act as a double agent.
Zhu froze in the middle of the now barely empty street. Her thoughts, once again, merged into one another. Her feet automatically walked towards the bend of the road and soon, she was running as fast as she could towards the police headquarters.
She'd make Chief Beifong listen to her, even if it was the last thing she did.
There were still officers working overtime. They were running around trying to verify anonymous tips, filing away paperwork and mulling over various cases. Zhu ran past them, up to the top floor.
Saikhan and Chief Beifong were looking over something when Zhu burst into the latter's office.
"Sorry, Saikhan, sir. I need to have a word with the Chief. Alone. Please." She was breathing hard.
Lin glared at her, "Officer Zhu, what is the meaning of this?"
"Please, sir."
At the Chief's gesture, Saikhan quietly walked out of the office and closed the door behind him. Lin sat back at her table, hands supporting her chin.
"Well? Hurry up. I don't have time to spare."
Zhu closed her eyes and slammed an open palm on the floor of the office. A ring of blue fire spread and disappeared. Liang was nowhere within the three kilometer radius of the Station. Nobody was listening to their conversation either.
"Liang's an Equalist." Zhu revealed, "I have proof. It's not with me yet but I found it in his apartment. A uniform. And weapons."
The woman's eyes widened in shock, "He's one of our best detectives."
"Because he's the one with the most leads and tip-offs. How much evidence has gone missing that has been labelled as sabotage while he was working the cases? How many times has that guy said that he was out on patrol when it was really someone else's shift? He showed up bruises the day after we got back Bolin, and said that he chased a pickpocket."
Lin considered the arguments for a while. Then she asked, "When did you find out?"
"A few weeks ago. Way before the Gala. But I confirmed it yesterday."
"Why didn't you come to me immediately?"
Zhu didn't like the suspicious tone her mother was using. "No," She smiled humorlessly, "No, you don't get to suspect me when I whored myself out for the evidence. It's because you never have time to listen. You prioritize your work over your family so you never know what's going on. Or maybe it's because you make it look like you're busy. Is that why Tenzin left you?" She regretted the words the moment they left her mouth.
The metal window panes rattled as Lin's breath hitched. With her jaw clenched, the woman tried to brush it off, "I'm going to assume you're emotionally compromised because of what you found out."
"I'm sorry, mother."
Lin looked away, "What do you think we should do?"
"I don't know anymore." Zhu fidgeted with her hands, "I tried seeing it from different perspectives but I came up with nothing. The longer he stays in the police force, the more information he can pass off to Amon. But if we blow his cover, it might trigger a large scale attack and we'll lose leverage. We can't keep him away from cases nor can we ignore his tip offs because he'll get suspicious."
"I can gradually reduce his work load by assigning him cold cases. We'll make up some excuse to take him off patrolling. We'll still believe his tip-offs, because I don't believe anything can be done about that." Lin thought hard, "I suppose we must keep it between us." She looked at her daughter who was standing across her, looking blank faced. Never in the past 19 years had Zhu talked to her the way she had.
It was then that Lin realized the toll the revelation took on Zhu. "Zhu, I'm sorry things turned out this way." Her eyes softened, "You really loved him, didn't you?"
Zhu hadn't hiccuped in a long time. Hearing her mother say such things made her want to collapse. "Can - *hic* we not talk -*hic*- bout this here?"
"Of course," The woman stood up, gathering her things, "Let's go home."
The detective refused, "It's - *hic* - fine. You stay he - *hic* -er. You have work -*hic*"
"Let's go home." Lin repeated.
To their surprise, Chen was home as well. He had laughed awkwardly at the feast he had cooked up out of guilt. The boy had finally made significant progress with his work and decided to award himself by going home and changing out of the sweaty clothes.
"I made all your favorite side dishes because I missed you and Zhu, mom." He grinned, leading the two of them to the dining table.
Zhu, with wobbling knees, grasped the top of the chair. The first signs of weeping made Chen and Lin stop their conversation and turn towards her.
The girl tried to stop herself from crying but everything came crashing down. She first sniffled a little and before she knew it, Zhu was wailing at the top of her voice. It hurt inside. She had never felt pain like this before. It hurt less when I burnt my shoulder during training.
Chen stumbled towards her, "Zhu, what's wrong?" He wordlessly looked towards their mother as Zhu slid to the floor.
The girl continued to mumble something incoherent through hiccups and loud breaths. It wasn't my fault. Why am I the only one in pain? Why did he have to lie? It wasn't my fault. This isn't fair.
Zhu made another promise to herself, once her tears had dried. She swore to herself as Chen lovingly ran his fingers through her hair to comfort her, that she'd make Amon and Liang pay. And that this would be the last time she cries over a broken heart.