Dislcaimer: I don't own lok or atla.

Toph slumped farther down until her back was flat onto the ground. She felt the vibrations of the commotion just a couple feet away.

"So…when did this exactly happen?"

"We've been seeing each other for two weeks now, Dad."

"Are you guys officially…?"

"Yes, Aunt Katara."

"Does your mother know, Lin?"

"Why don't you go ask her?"

The next minutes of awkward silence made Toph snicker in her little hiding spot. She closed her eyes and thought of sleep but was interrupted by the light footsteps of her former student coming towards her. Nonetheless, she continued to act asleep, glad that it was just him and not Sugar Queen as well.

"Did you know about this?"

Toph snored several times.

"I know you're awake. Just be glad Katara didn't come and follow me. She's still scolding the other two."

She stayed silent.

"At least move over."

Toph thought for a couple of seconds before deciding to shift her body over making room for the avatar in her make shift cave. Nonetheless, she still refused to answer any of his questions.

Aang crouched down and sat down next to his former Sifu. His long legs scrunched up and he was forced to lay his head atop his knees. He wrapped his arms around his legs and sighed loudly. His gray eyes observed the current sleeping quarters. "When was there ever a cave here?"

Her nose crinkled. "Just made it today. Perfect place to take a nap. It also makes the best place to listen in on conversations in the kitchen."

It was true. If he had never developed his seismic sense, he would have never found Toph. After talking with Tenzin, Lin, and Katara in the kitchen, he focused into the ground and was surprised to find an indent into the rock right outside the kitchen accompanied by a heartbeat. Aang slipped out of the conversation quietly and out the back door. He explored the mounds of rock and found the small cave that he was now sitting in. The location had placed them a few feet away from a window going into the kitchen and there was no doubt that Toph's sensitive hearing was able to pick up on Katara talking to the teenagers in house. Even Aang could hear the murmurs.

"But really," He shifted slightly to try and get comfortable. "Did you know about Lin and Tenzin dating?"

The chief of police scoffed as if she knew everything. "Of course I did. It's exactly why I've been making extra eggs in the morning."

She kept her laughter inside when she felt her friend fall to the right in surprise. "W-Wait. What?"

"You know exactly what."

Silence.

"I'm assuming your mouth is gaping and your eye is doing that twitchy thing that Katara's does when she is pissed. So I've heard." Her ears heard the avatar gulp nervously. She finally let out her laughter.

Aang turned towards her, sweating slightly. "How is this funny? What exactly about our kids fucking is funny?"

This time, Toph sat up so fast that she hit her head on the top of the cave and instantly fell back down. Aang shrieked when she didn't wake back up. After five minutes of healing her obvious concussion and a few punishable punches and kicks, the two were back sitting up. Toph scowled hard at the open air. Aang frowned while holding some ice on the chief of police's head.

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but will you watch your language? Such impure vocabulary can cause a heart attack coming from the sweet avatar's mouth."

"Toph, we are both forty five years old. It isn't the first time I've cursed and on most occasions I don't."

She quirked an eyebrow. "Don't even try. You feel bad about saying it."

"Well, of course, considering you hit your head in reaction-"

"Before that."

Aang pondered on the couple of seconds before Toph sat up and hit her head. He slumped and let his icy hand come to his lap. "Yes. I do."

"And that's why," She grabbed his hand back and placed it on her head. "I am always right."

He looked over at her with an expression doubting her words. "Well, nobody can always be right. That's just impossible."

"Is the reason you are being difficult is because you want to avoid having a conversation about our children's sexual activity? Because it's not working." Toph scratched her nose indifferently.

"Please explain to me how you are so calm about this. Do you not realize that our kids are…you know."

"Is that supposed to be a problem?" The metalbender rolled her eyes. "I thought it would have been Katara hounding me about this."

Aang shoved her slightly. "You better believe that Katara is going to be barking at you about this. She was already iffy about the kids dating. Not that we didn't see it coming."

"Even I saw it coming."

"Exactly."

"I'm going to give you a couple of seconds to think about what I said."

"I already realized after I responded." Aang stared out of the cave not even fazed about her blind joke. If he wasn't used to it by now, then he really had to question his friendship with her. He sighed before talking once more. "Anyways, now that it's actually happening, I don't know what to do."

"Kya and Bumi have had relationships. I don't understand why Sugar Queen and you are so freaked out about this."

"Well, there is a difference between Tenzin and the other two: she's dating one of your daughters."

Toph shifted her head slightly towards him which made him stiffen. The suspicious smile on her face didn't help ease his heart. "Oh, Twinkle Toes. Aang buddy old pal of mine, you better explain yourself before I send this precious little island of yours underwater."

The avatar gulped and mustered as much confidence that was left in his body. "Lin and Suyin are lovely girls, Toph. I love them to bits. But this is different. We know each other."

"And?" The tone in her voice was the definition of irritated.

"We're friends. We're family, actually. We grew up together. What if...things don't work out?"

She would be lying if she had not thought about the new couple breaking up. Being only at the tender ages of fifteen and sixteen, Lin and Tenzin still had a lot to learn about relationships. If anything, they were total opposites. It had stumped Toph along with the other adults to why the earthbender and airbender were interested in each other. Sure, the two have been best friends since their birth. Sure, they share a common obsession with following in their parent's footsteps (much to both Aang and Toph's concern). But did opposites really attract?

Toph and Aang didn't have an answer.

But of course the chief of police wasn't going to tell him that, the existence of her doubt. "Twinkle Toes, they're kids. If they end up happily married with little airbenders and earthbenders running around, that will be great. If they end up splitting up...that will be okay too. There is just no way of telling at the moment. Important thing is to let them have their fun."

"I don't think this is just fun and games, Toph." She was surprised to hear a sense of fear in his voice. "Tenzin and Lin. They are something else."

"They click. What are you gonna do?" Her hand bent into the side of the wall. Aang couldn't explain what he was feeling when he watched her reveal a bottle.

He sighed. "You've had this cave of yours for awhile now, huh?"

The cork was tossed out of the mouth of the cave. "Maybe. Sleeping around solid earth is much more comfortable than you think."

"What do you have?"

The bottle came down from her mouth and she handed it to him. "Just some wine."

Aang glanced at the label. He complained immediately. "Toph, this is my wine. It was in the kitchen yesterday."

"And I built a police force free of charge for you. Your welcome."

"The taxes pay-"

"I said built. Didn't say maintain."

In reality, the avatar wasn't all too mad about the stolen alcohol. It would have probably been he and Toph drinking the bottle anyways. He drank the liquid and waited for his body start to warm. "But be honest with me. What do you think about Lin and Tenzin together? Be as selfish as you want, I understand."

"Selfish?" Toph shook her head. "No, no, no. Always. Lin is always going to come first. Her happiness and Tenzin's is what matters most in this situation. I'm offended you'd even think I'd have selfish thoughts about this whole thing."

"I wasn't." He smiled. "I just wanted to hear you say something nice about the kids for once. Maybe I'll get to hear 'I love you' if I play my cards right."

"Idiot." Her hand grabbed the bottle and she sipped obnoxiously. However, there was something about her face that looked bothered.

The avatar fussed with his robes. "But...?"

Her answer took a number of seconds and a few sips of wine. Maybe she was going to tell him after all. "No jokes or anything...but...Tenzin makes Lin really, really happy."

"That's good, right?" There was still a sense of hesitancy that he was getting from her.

"Of course that's good. It's fantastic. That stick in the mud needs Tenzin. If not, she may become a very bitter woman. Spirits knows we only need one bitter Beifong in the family."

Aang took the bottle to refuse her a sip to her comment. "Hey, you aren't bitter."

"Oh excuse me." Her hand was to her heart. "I meant to say bitter and lonely."

He set the wine bottle to the side seeing that he needed Toph sober for this conversation. "This is exactly why you are not always right. You are definitely not bitter. You're abrasive and that's not because of some dreadful past you've had, well partially. You've always been like that. It's your personality. As for the other accusation you put on yourself, now I'm the one offended."

"Because...?"

"The last thing you are is lonely, Toph. You have me, Katara, your girls, my kids, Sokka, Suki, Zuko-"

"That's not what I meant you dim wit. I meant romantically."

Aang rubbed the back of his neck. "Well, you have Sokka."

Her blind eyes skillfully made eye contact. "We are not discussing that right now."

His hands went up in defeat. A sign that also meant for her to continue.

Toph turned her head back in the direction of the mouth of the cave. "Let's just say that they did break up, please tell me I didn't jinx them. Anyways, I don't want Lin to end up heartbroken. It hurts way too much. I don't want Tenzin to be the first and last person she holds dear to her heart. I was lucky. I had you guys. Lin? She'll shut everything out. Everything. Everyone. She'll create this hard shell that you think is impenetrable, but it is the most breakable thing in the world. Trust me. I know both physically from training and being her mom. She needs someone. I'm just afraid that if that scenario does come true, she won't have anyone."

Such pessimistic thoughts had never crossed his mind regarding his own children. Aang had assured both them and himself that they always had people there to care for them. They had their aunts and uncles. They had their childhood friends. He expected that the children's friendship would stay strong as they got older just like his own group of friends. But hearing Toph's observation and inferences regarding her own daughter was a new kind of animal. The Beifongs gave some hard reality checks.

Lin had always been the toughest to talk to. Self driven and determined, traits admirable but also cursed. It seemed that Toph's stubborn attitude and fierce loyalty was inherited by the oldest Beifong and turned up to max.

This thought had taken several seconds too long and Toph shoved him slightly to get him back into the conversation. "Don't feel bad about it. It's just how Lin is. That's why this whole thing with Tenzin is a huge risk."

Aang shook his head and questioned her. "Risk?"

"Yes, ginormous." Toph put both her hands up, faced towards the ceiling, mimicking a scale. "On one side of the scale you have Lin learning to be more caring, compassionate, and more willing to let people in. Tenzin is the perfect person that draws these qualities out of Lin." Her speech directed her other hand. "On the other hand (see what I did there?), Tenzin and Lin break up resulting in my little badgermole burrowing herself deep into the ground until no one else is there. Which risk tips the scale?"

"Hold on." Aang furrowed his eyebrows. "What about Tenzin?"

The smirk that crossed her face. "Twinkle Toes Jr. is capable of lowering his standards."

He didn't know why he laughed. If it were anyone else new to Chief Beifong's humor, they would be outraged by the comment. But Aang had known his Sifu a long while, literally growing up together, and he understood what she meant. It was nice to know that Toph had full faith that Tenzin would find happiness again.

"Anyways, you didn't answer. Which risk tips the scale?"

He thought carefully before shrugging his shoulders. "I don't know. It's too soon to tell."

Her finger came up to his forehead and she poked his arrow. "Exactly."

The avatar's head cocked to the side. "Okay?"

"It's too soon to tell. So we shouldn't worry about it just yet."

"But, what if later on we can tell and it's too late?" His concern had spiked exponentially.

Toph took a sip of wine and handed it to her friend. He took a turn as well. "Then it's too late."

"Well now you've made me question them even starting a relationship now."

"I've made my decision. Now I just wait and watch the scales play out."

He didn't speak, expecting her to tell him immediately exactly what she meant. The avatar should have expected her to take the bottle back and take more drinks. He nudged her with an elbow. The chief of police just swallowed and spoke soft and clear. "There is a chance. May it be slim or wide, there is a chance that my daughter will end up absolutely happy."

Aang relaxed finally after the build up of Toph's speech. "So that's what drove your decision."

"Yup." She popped the P at the end of the word. "And what are you gonna do?"

The avatar thought carefully about his answer. Everything Toph had said went into consideration. In the end, the earthbender once again had to repeat herself.

"Lin and Tenzin should try to find happiness in each other themselves. It may be a risk, but things...they'll end up okay. Eventually. I believe that."

"Damn straight. I told you I was always right."

"Sure." He chuckled while rolling his eyes.

Their intense conversation had finally halted for the first time since Toph had hit her head. The two enjoyed the sound of the waves crashing against the island in the distance. They finally noticed that conversation in the kitchen had disappeared.

Aang held the bottle and crawled out of their shelter. "Well, we better go talk to Katara. I'm sure she has a lot to say to you out of the two of us."

"Great." The chief of police followed and the two were making their way to the house.

"Oh man, how am I going to tell her what Lin and Tenzin have been doing behind our backs?"

"I have no idea. How are we going to tell her that Tenzin has been joining Lin, Suyin, and I for breakfast every morning before they go off to school?" She faked gasped.

Aang halted his steps digging his heel into the ground. "WHAT."

Toph's impish laughter got the attention of everyone in the house as she entered. "I can't believe you thought our kids were fucking."

The avatar's eye twitched.

Lin and Tenzin dating. My takr on how Aang and Toph came to accept it. I'm sure they had their doubts, but in the end, the two just wanted their kids to be happy. I'm sure they were just as devastated when the two split up (if aang was still alive that is). Thanks for reading! Let me know your Linzin thoughts with a review!