Requested by Anonnim.
Lin scratched the nape of her neck and stood in the hotel foyer. She switched her weight from her left leg, to her right, and scoped around the hotel.
"Chief." Mako approached followed by his Prince.
"Ooo! It's mean lady!" Wu hunched his back and hid behind Mako, hissing and clawing at the air with his right hand.
Mako glanced at him then turned back to Lin. "Um, Sorry."
"No. I'm sorry." She truly sympathized with him. "What's up?"
"Well, firstly, you look really nervous. You okay?"
"No, I need to find the bathroom."
"Oh. It's over there, then you make a left." He pointed with his left arm.
She nodded. "Thanks."
"Also, Bolin and I just had a major fight." He shook his head. "He said that Kuvira is just like Korra."
Lin's eyes widened. "I would have smacked him across the face."
"I wanted to."
"Makooo! Take me shopping now!" Wu jumped up and down and held onto Mako's right bicep. "Ooo!" He squeezed it. "Look at my strong man!"
"I will in a minute." He pried Wu's hands from his arm.
"He's making a big mistake." She shifted her weight once more, then bounced slightly. "I just hope no one has to get hurt for him to realize that."
"Oh, you mean like Suyin?"
"What about her?" Lin crossed her arms and tapped her right heel on the marble floor.
"Kuvira is coming for Zaofu, apparently."
"No, way…"
He nodded.
"I need to talk to her."
"She's in a suite. Room 302."
She placed her right hand on his left shoulder and squeezed it. "Hang in there, kid."
Mako nodded. "I'll try."
"This is the worst day of my life, Mako! Take me shopping! I need to…"
Prince Wu continued to unrelentlessly nag Mako, and Lin walked off to the bathroom.
She dried her hands off and stared into the mirror. She turned her face to the right and stared at her scars, running her fingers over them. She sighed, then exited the bathroom to find her sister.
Once on the third floor she looked around to find 302. Once she spotted it, she walked over and knocked on the door.
"Who is it?"
"It's me."
Su rushed to the door and opened it, welcoming her sister inside.
Lin slid passed the door. "Wow, nice place you got here." She planted herself on the red leather couch adjacent to the large bay window.
"Yes, it's beautiful." Su joined her.
"Mako told me about what Kuvira is planning."
Su's face twisted. "I'm so angry."
"Talk to me."
She rotated her body so that she was facing Lin. She crossed her legs and hunched her back, resting her intertwined fingers in her lap. "I just don't understand. Baatar Jr...I just feel so betrayed and hurt." She wiped her right eye with her hand.
Lin removed her hand from her eye and held it. She nodded.
"I worked so hard to make Zaofu. It took Baatar and I years. I just wanted a safe place to raise my family. I put so much effort into being a good, loving mother." She turned her head and began to sob into her left hand. She shook her head and faced Lin again.
Lin's heart was breaking for her sister.
"I was always there...Always gave them the attention they needed, I loved them with all of my being...and then my first son betrays me. He's in love with the tyrant who is trying to steal everything I worked for."
"Are you mad at Baatar or Kuvira?" She leaned forward and wiped Su's tears away with her thumbs.
Su put her hand on Lin's thigh and looked down, biting her bottom lip. She gently shook her head while staring at Lin's leg. "I don't know." She muttered, "I really don't know."
"Both?"
She nodded. "I've never felt like this in my entire life. You have no idea what it's like to be hurt by someone you love so much."
Lin stared at her.
Suyin stared back.
Lin looked down at her feet.
"Oh, Lin. I'm so sorry." She slid in closer and wrapped her arms around her.
Lin hugged her back. "No, it's okay. You have a right to be upset. I would be too."
Su bit her ring finger nail and gazed out of the window. "If Kuvira comes to Zaofu- If she has the nerve to come back to my city...I'm ending her. Right there."
"Su...you can't do that."
"What are you going to do? Arrest me?" She laughed and wiped her eyes on her sleeve.
Lin stared at her once more.
"Too soon?" She half smiled.
Lin smiled and looked out the window. She shook her head. "You're something else."
Su smiled. "But really though. I don't want Opal out and about with this evil woman around."
"She would never touch Opal. That's the least of your problems."
"How can you be sure?" Su's face returned back to its original panicked state.
"Because she's engaged to her older brother."
"She is in complete control of that relationship. I bet she's using him."
"I think so too, honestly."
"I can't even bear the thought of her having our mother's name. Kuvira Beifong." She shuttered.
"Ew, don't even say that." Lin stretched her back and slid her body down into the couch.
Su turned around and rested her head on Lin's lower stomach, in between her legs. "Remember when we used to lay like this?"
Lin smiled. "Yeah. During thunderstorms."
"It always made me feel safe." Su confessed. "You always made me feel safe."
Lin's heart dropped and she bit her left inner cheek. "Wow."
Su rolled her head to the side and tapped her left fingernails on Lin's metal boots. "I need you."
"I'm here." She hesitantly rested her left hand on Su's head.
Su closed her eyes and smiled. "What would mom say? If she saw us like this."
"I don't know...I like to think she'd be happy." She shrugged.
"I think she would be."
"Do you miss her?"
"Yeah." Su admitted. "She wasn't the best mother, but she was ours, and I love her for that."
Lin nodded.
"I guess it just goes to show that you could be any type of parent, and your children will still disappoint you."
"What do you mean?"
"I tried to model my parenting after what I felt we didn't have. That sense of protection and constant support."
"You don't think Mom protected us?"
"No, of course she did. Only when it really mattered, though. Other than that we were always on our own." She scratched her left eyebrow and continued, "She never really had expectations for us to live up to other than for us to be happy. But that made it so much harder. I just wanted her attention."
"Me too."
"And then I have kids, and I give them everything. But I'm still betrayed by Baatar. No matter what you do as a parent, or how hard you work, your children will always disappoint you."
Lin was silent. "I don't know about all that, Su. We all make mistakes. You know that better than anyone."
"Well, ouch."
"It's true. We make mistakes, we hurt people, it's a part of life. Baatar is just making his a bit later in life."
"I guess. What about Bolin?"
"Good job raising Opal, by the way. She doesn't take any crap, does she?"
Su chortled. "Of course not."
"Good. Think she's going to leave him?"
"I don't know. I think she needs to so he can realize that Kuvira is going to pull him away from the people he loves, but in my heart I really care about him, and I know she makes him so happy. He needs to become aware of what he's co signing on to."
"I'm sure he will."
"Is there anything you can do to stop- no. Of course there isn't."
Lin shook her head. "I really can't do anything for Zaofu. I just don't understand how she plans on taking over. She has no leverage."
"I know. That's why I'm scared."
"Well, when she comes, you tell me."
"Huh?"
"Call me when she comes, and I'll be there. If she wants a fight- if she initiates, we can take her out."
"Really?"
Lin nodded. "You feel genuinely threatened by her, don't you?"
"Yeah...not for myself but for my family and city."
"Then I have no problem defending that. Your family is my family, technically. We have to look out for each other."
Su smiled wide. "I love you so much, Lin. I never appreciated you."
"Yeah, yeah." She smiled back. She sat up with Su's head still laying on her, and slid her arms in between Su's. She lifted her up and gave her a warm embrace from behind.
Su broke down laughing. "Lin! What are you doing?"
"Something I've wanted to do for the last thirty-or-so years."
Su spun around and hugged Lin back, giving her a kiss on the cheek.
"Agh!" Lin cringed and swatted Su away, wiping the lipstick from her cheek.
Su had a cackling fit and rolled off of the couch and onto the carpet. She sat up. "You want a fight? I'll give you a fight." She cracked her neck.
"Oh, come on, Su." She rubbed her shoulder and looked around the room. "We aren't doing this."
"Yes we are."
"No we aren't. We're too old."
"Psft! Too old!? I really want to fight you now."
"If I do humor you, will you never bring this up again?"
Su nodded.
Lin stood up and bent her uniform off.
"You should have kept it on! Then you might have actually stood a chance!"
Lin cracked her knuckles. "What are the rules?"
"Grappling into submission. No scratching or punching. Sound good?"
"Sounds good." Lin squatted down and stood on her knees.
Su reciprocated the action. "You ready?"
"Yep."
"Go!"
Su pounced and tackled Lin down onto the ground. "One!"
Lin rested on her elbows, wrapped her legs around Su's abdomen and flipped backwards, landing on top.
Su laughed and sprawled her arms out.
"Are...you okay?" Lin grabbed her back and arched it. "Ow, it's been a while since I did that one." She laughed.
Su held out her hand.
Lin pulled her up.
Su pounced again, rolling Lin across the floor.
"You cheated!" Lin laughed. "That's why I hate playing with you!"
Tenzin entered the third floor to talk to Su. Upon hearing yelling he ran to the source: Room 302. He stopped before the door and listened.
"I'm the baby! I'm allowed to cheat!"
"Yeah, no you're not!"
There was a loud thud.
"Su, watch it!"
Tenzin smiled, shook his head and walked away.