Chapter 28

Kuvira hated being couped up in the house. It had been a week and her leg still hurt, but she was excited to be getting back to work on Monday. Korra had been coming to spend some time with her during the day and brought some work for her to do. Both Asami and Korra loved the jewelry that Kuvira had made for them. "I saw the jewelry that you made for Suyin. It is stunning. She was upset Bataar couldn't or in this case wouldn't give her the name of the jeweler." Korra stated. "What was I supposed to do, make something for everyone except for her? That would have made Bataar look bad. Besides she doesn't know anything about my bending abilities." Kuvira responded. "I don't know…. she made a point to tell me that she hasn't seen any jewelry that detailed except in metal jewelry that was bended." Korra confessed. "That may be true, but she would never suspect that someone would be able to bend platinum." Kuvira stated.

"I spoke with Lin this morning and she says there has been some activity in the city. There have been rumors about your new abilities, but it is a good thing the notion is a little far fetched." Korra stated. "Let's hope it stays that way." Kuvira hoped.

Bataar had a lot of work he had to catch up on, but he spent less time at the factory and elected to bring work home with him, so he could spend more time with Kuvira while she was recuperating. "I am so bored." Kuvira complained. "You can go back on Monday, but you still have to take it easy." Bataar stated. "In the mean, you have to put up with me. If you want something to do, let's go to the bedroom." He smirked and picked her up. They spent the rest of the day in bed.

Bataar didn't go to work on Saturday or Sunday. Kuvira invited Lin over for dinner. She never did a lot of cooking so, she was worried that she would ruin the meal. She had the number for Ming's Palace just in case. She was a perfectionist and couldn't stand when things were less than perfect at least when she was doing it. Korra gave her Pema's recipe for steamed buns. She made those with soup, rice, steamed vegetables with tofu and dumplings. She made Bataar taste everything before Lin came over and apparently, she was a pretty good cook.

When Lin came over she was raving about the food. "You never told me you could cook." Lin accused. "That's because I don't cook. I figured it was about time I started." Kuvira laughed. "You could have fooled me kid. This is absolutely delicious. Much better than Suyin's chef, that's all I've got to say. That guy's food is too rich and fancy for my taste buds." Lin commented. "Kuvira always did complain about his cooking." Bataar joked. "Especially the lack of dumplings. She insists on eating them for breakfast, lunch and dinner."

"At least I get different kinds. I'm not picky when it comes to dumplings." Kuvira smirked. "Sweetheart that's the only thing you aren't picky about." Bataar joked.

"On a more serious note. I know that Korra has been giving you my reports on the Great Uniter activity in the city, but according to Wu it is getting worse in outlying areas around Ba Sing Se. He wanted me to ask you to help with the riots. I know Raiko wasn't too happy when I told him I'd ask you, but that guy is driving me crazy. The only thing he cares about is his political career." Lin commented.

"Korra told me about the riots and everything that has been going on. Do you really think it would be appropriate for me to take an active role in this?" Kuvira asked. "To be honest, probably not, but only because of your safety. Just so we are clear, we all trust you. You had your reasons for doing what you did and even though you took your ideals too far, I know that you've learned from them. You haven't necessarily had an easy life, and I think that a lot of what caused you to do certain things weren't your fault. You took responsibility for everything you did and furthermore, you were prepared to suffer the consequences and didn't even want to accept help. That alone speaks volumes about your character." Lin added. "What about Raiko and the council….do you think they would be okay with me helping?" As far as Raiko is concerned, he goes up for reelection next year and I'm certainly not voting for him. Don't tell anyone I told you this, but the council isn't happy with Raiko's views and with his polls this low, they are counting on him not being reelected. They aren't really taking him seriously. I don't think there is anything for you to worry about if you decided to help Wu. I certainly know he would appreciate it and I think you would do a good job." Lin asserted.

Kuvira wasn't sure she should be taking any political positions with her past, but Wu has done so much for her. She didn't know if she should refuse. "What do you think Bataar?" Kuvira asked. "I honestly think it could make a big difference. It has already started getting out that you want nothing to do with the Great Uniters and you're against them. They aren't too happy about that. You have the skills to lead people and with Wu backing you, I think it might be good for the world to see who you really are. At the same time as Aunt Lin mentioned, you would be in constant danger which worries me. At this point in time, there has only been that one isolated incident where we were attacked, but it will probably be much worse once your supporters find out that you've really betrayed them. I will support you no matter what you decide, but if you do this, I am going with you." Bataar confirmed.

"Okay, I'll do it. Tell Wu that I accept his offer." Kuvira announced. "He'll be very pleased. Korra was also hoping you would agree to help, but she didn't want to push you after everything you've been through in the last few months. She'll be happy as well and will be travelling with you guys." Lin exclaimed. "When are we going to be leaving?" Bataar asked. "I think Wu wanted to leave next month. There are a lot of preparations that must be made especially if we are going to keep the two of you as safe as possible. There are a lot of people who won't be too happy about this and we don't want any issues. It is better to wait and make sure things go as smoothly as possible than to jump into it." Lin affirmed. "Though Bataar, I have to admit when I told your mother about this, she was livid. She is worried especially after what happened after your honeymoon. She is worried about Kuvira. If your mother had her way, Kuvira would be living in a bubble right now. You know how she gets, but I can't blame her because you understand how dangerous this could be even with all the preparations."

"I know my mother. She is overly cautious when it comes to us. I think she would have liked to keep us in a bubble." Bataar agreed.

"I just don't know why she doesn't leave me a lone. You would think I was clear enough on how I feel about her. Any civility that I show her is only for Bataar, she has no right to be trying to get involved in my life. I really don't care how worried she claims she is. It's of no concern to me." Kuvira stated. "Look kid, I'm not going to tell what you should do or how you should feel, but my sister does have a lot of faults. Even with all that, I am telling you there is no doubt in my mind that she regrets what happened between the two of you. I have never seen her this regretful. This is killing her. She loves you more than you could ever imagine. Don't forget that we didn't exactly have a good role model to follow. Toph may have been an excellent bender, but she was a crappy mother. Give her a chance." Lin stated.

"That ship has sailed. I will not get involved with her again. I don't care about her and want nothing to do with her." Kuvira affirmed.

"Kuvira, you're my niece and I love you, but we both know that that is a lie. You do care for Suyin. I know you claim you did it for Bataar, but I saw that necklace you made her and don't tell me that you didn't make it specifically for her. That is exactly the type of jewelry she loves to wear and it looks like it was made for her by someone who knows her very well. I have never seen such carefully detailed work. Even if that was metal, it would have taken even the most advanced bender a lot of focus to make something like that. I can only imagine how difficult it was to do that with platinum. What's even more impressive is that you are still relatively new at it. I know you better than you think. I am going to tell you the same thing I told Suyin. You couldn't be more like her if she had given birth to you. She told me that out of all her children, she loves you the most and her greatest regret is that she didn't recognize it sooner. I normally don't get involved in these matters, but Suyin is driving me crazy. She's always asking about you and she is conflicted because she wants to respect your wishes for space, but at the same time isn't her abandoning you what caused this in the first place. Please Kuvira just think about it. Until the two of you work this out, you will both be unhappy no matter how much you try to hide it. I can see it in your eyes how much you miss her and Suyin has been an emotional wreck since you almost died. She blames herself. She said she as good as killed you and she can't live with herself. Suyin told me that the day you got drunk and slept in her bed, you wouldn't let her go. That the more she moved, the tighter you held on to her. Sometimes our truest feelings are those that come out when we lose control of ourselves. As I said I am not going to push you. I have said what I have to say and the rest is up to you. Just know that I am here for you either way and your secrets are safe with me." Lin comforted. Kuvira couldn't stop the tears that came streaming down her eyes. Lin had seen right through her and she couldn't deny it anymore, but she couldn't open herself up to Suyin to be hurt again. She wouldn't be able to handle it. Lin took her in her arms at seeing her cry. This was Suyin's daughter…there was no doubting it. They were so much a like. The same firy passion and stubbornness.