Prompt: Rook - Can move any number of spaces in a straight line. Task: Write about a person who thinks in straight lines and not laterally.

(character) Opal

(AU) different element bending - must be a bender who's element is known

(dialogue) "You can't rush these things"

Include your element in your fic. It does not have to be bent but the element must be plot-relevant

Word count: 1324

Bolin sat on the dusty ground, trying his best not to, yet again, beg Opal to make a move. The sun shone brightly, the shade they sat in only slightly shielding them both, and a light breeze moved through the air and around them. After eight minutes of sitting still and only complaining twice, his resolve broke and he let out a groan.

"Come on Opal! What's taking so long? This is pai sho, it's supposed to be fast paced and exciting! You pay like Asami," he said with a pout. His fingers played with a frayed strand on his shirt, and his foot tapped the ground impatiently.

His girlfriend looked up from the board and smiled at him adoringly. She calmly took a sip from her glass of water, and slowly put it down again, enjoying Bolin's impatience a little too much. "You can't rush these things Bo. And Asami has the right idea. This is a game of strategy, you can't be stubborn with this."

"Why do you all say that? Yes, Asami beat me like a billion times, but she doesn't count! I always beat Mako, and Shady Shin lost to me all the time when I was still his friend."

"And do they play like you do? Fast and straight to the point?" Opal said in amusement as Bolin blushed heavily.

"…Maybe. Are we talking about the same thing here, because I'm talking about pai sho Opal," he said her name pointedly while the girl across from him laughed. "But this isn't fun! How is this supposed to be fun?! We've been sitting here for like an hour and only made like ten moves," he said in a grumble, finally ripping the piece of lint from his shirt and tossing it away.

"Okay, fine." She looked over the board one more time and moved a tile forward. "Happy now Nuktuk?"

"Yes, yes I am Miss Beifong." One of his tiles was already in a new spot by the time the sentence was done. He sat smugly, staring Opal down while she sat there looking back at him incredulously.

"Really Bolin? You're not even going to think about it?"

"Think about what? I've been waiting your entire turn to move this piece."

"You literally just made me win." His eyes grew wide as he scanned the board trying to find how exactly where Opal's winning move was. After a few moments his confusion increased since there were no pieces that could take the Lotus tile from Opal's side.

"I don't get it," he said dumbly.

"I'll win in the next eight moves because you moved that exact tile." Loud laughter resonated through the room as Bolin's bellowing voice filled every corner, startling Opal. He wiped a tear from his eye and looked back at Opal as he tried to calm his lungs from lack of air.

"Oh Opal, oh my sweet, innocent little flower petal. How could you possibly know what will happen eight whole turns later?"

Opal narrowed her eyes at him and pushed his shoulder reprimandingly yet gently. "Don't make fun of me, I'll kick your ass."

"No, seriously though, how do you know? I mean I get knowing a move or two ahead. That's how I play. But eight? And you even know you might win then? Like how do you figure out which move I'm going to make?" he asked curiously, with childlike wonder.

"Okay, I'll tell you, but in return, you must promise me to try my way afterwards."

The glee in his eyes shone bright as he excitedly flailed his arms. "Yes! Okay, I'm listening!"

He sat forward in his spot, and excitedly eyed Opal as she began explaining. "Okay, you know how when you were a pro-bender, you had certain strategies and plays for different opponents?" He nodded eagerly. "Well it's the same here. I know that you don't plan ahead, you just play in a straight forward fashion. That lets me use a lot of different plays without you figuring them out because you're too focused on what your next move will be and not what I'll do. Most pai sho players know the basic ways of combining tiles to create a really good offense. For example, if I use the dragon tile and move it here, and then bring the white lily over, then no matter where you put your piece, if it's next to them I'll be able to take it from you."

"Well I know that one, but by the time I set it up, you always manage to already be away from it," he said in exasperation.

"Bolin, honey, everyone and their mother can see what you're trying to do before you even start. Your moves are too obvious. You know how you couldn't tell why I'm going to win soon? It's because I'm setting up my final play. In seven turns it will be set up, and on the eighths the lotus will be captured by me because I would have effectively cut you off at every corner and be free to get to it whenever I feel like."

"Oh…but-but how do you know?"

"It's just experience really. I always played with my dad and at first I copied his strategies but then after a while I started to try my own."

"But what if I make a move that messes everything up for you?"

Opal sat still for a moment, trying to find the best way to explain it to him. "I got it!" she exclaimed. She moved her wrist and the water from her glass rose up in a tendril. "Okay try to stop the stream from getting to you." She let it flow over the floor and watched as Bolin raised little barriers from little mounds of dirt block Opal's advance. Every time the stream reached an obstacle, the water floated around it. Bolin, his frustration becoming obvious, tried making wider blockades, and then he tried making many in succession, but the stream kept flowing around them. Just as it was about to reach him, instead of raising yet another little barrier, he made the earth sink and the water poured down into the miniscule moat.

"Yes!" he shouted and threw his arms in the air pumping his fists and simulating a crowd's roar.

"That was great Bo! See the water moved around and adapted to the obstacles, and only stopped when you managed to find the correct way to beat it. If this was fire then your blockades would have worked and the trenches wouldn't. It's all about knowing your opponent and finding the most effective way to outsmart them. So if you make a move that hinders me, I'll have to try and adapt to it, and even use it to my advantage if I can. Now move back the tile you just played and then really think about your next move."

"Okay." Bolin sat there for a few seconds contemplating his next move. He looked up at Opal who was looking at him lovingly, and an idea hit him. He leaned over the board, leaving a gentle kiss on her lips, and watched as her eyes drifted closed in content and she let out a sigh as he moved back to his spot. She slowly opened her eyes, as a grinning Bolin stared back at her mischievously, and looked down at the board. Everything looked the same, except for one empty spot where the lotus piece used to be. She whipped her head back to Bolin who flipped the missing tile once in the air and caught it before showing the piece to her.

"Hey! That's cheating," she exclaimed while giggling.

His grin softened to one of adoration and he looked deep in her eyes while tracing the intricate design with the pads of his fingers. "What?! I used the knowledge of my opponent to my advantage like you told me to."