Lin hadn't been expecting Kya to greet her at the dock in some grand romantic gesture, but she certainly hadn't expected to find her in the lotus position—on a dais surrounded by half a dozen new air benders.
"I don't know. Graphite and some . . . iron."
When she wasn't immediately corrected and told to concentrate harder, Korra followed Lin's distracted gaze.
"Been like that for an hour."
Lin looked back at her new pupil with a start. She didn't appreciate being caught.
"Bumi's asleep," Lin noted dryly.
"I've had some of my best naps while meditating with Tenzin."
########################
"Gold?"
"No."
"But it's sparkly."
"Concentrate."
########################
"How was your metal-bending lesson, Korra?" Kya asked.
The entire family—Lin and Korra included—were seated around a long table in the dining hall.
"Looked about as interesting as my 'journey to inner-tranquility,'" Bumi answered for her.
Kya elbowed him in the ribs and Korra snorted her drink before she could stop herself.
She looked at Lin and said quickly—a bit too enthusiastically, "I can identify four different types of meteorites."
Even Lin had to laugh.
########################
Dinner turned into a chaotic affair as more and more of the new air benders joined them.
Meelo had insisted on sitting next to Lin and bending his baby brother, up and down, up and down, through the air.
She had narrowly missed being vomited on.
"I think he has a little crush on you," Kya teased. "He draws pictures of you and an exploding airship."
Lin noted that her admirer was currently picking his nose and quickly looked away.
A green dragon-fly bunny spirit was sitting far too close to her plate, putting his foot into an oversized ear and scratching.
She looked across the table to Kya for help.
"Does it have to sit at the table?"
"Are you talking about Bum-Ju or Meelo?"
########################
Kya found Lin outside after dinner looking out over the bay. She settled next to her on the steps and watched the moonlight slowly rippling across the shallow waves, such a stark contrast to the bustle of the ever-expanding household inside.
"It's late."
The observation—and its implication—made Lin smile in the faint light, made her lamely admit, "Last boat's gone."
"One of the acolytes could take you to the mainland."
"I wouldn't want to inconvenience anyone."
"All the guestrooms are full of new air benders."
"That's unfortunate."
"Guess we'll have to share."
"How hospitable of you."
########################
Lin yawned.
Kya stopped unwinding the binding around her breasts. She put her hands on her hips, feigning offence. "Well, I know they aren't what they were when I was 20 but-"
"I'm sorry," Lin laughed and drew Kya closer, close enough to rest her hands on soft hips and nuzzle her cheek against a tanned stomach.
Kya dropped the pretend pout.
"You know," she offered. "I won't be offended if we just sleep."
A soft bed, cool sheets, and a warm Kya—Lin wouldn't take much convincing. "That might be nice."
"Aunt Kya?" A soft, but persistent knock followed the voice.
Lin groaned. Tenzin and Pema needed to stop multiplying.
"Just a minute, Ikki," Kya called. She rested her forehead on Lin's and explained, "She has trouble falling asleep."
Lin didn't have to wonder why—Equalists, the Red Lotus—"Go ahead."
"Give me half an hour." Kya dropped a kiss to Lin's cheek. "Unless you want to go tell her all about meteorites and then it might be faster."
Kya herself didn't move fast enough to avoid the pinch that dug into her hip. She slapped Lin's hand and grabbed her robe—"Half an hour."
"Bumi was snoring."
########################
Over an hour later, after listening to Ikki talk about someone named Blueberry Spicehead until she wore herself out and her sleepy ramble turned to a soft snore, Kya found Lin fast asleep in her bed.
Sprawled.
She looked so damned cute.
Lin would be appalled.
########################
"You arrested Kya!?"
All eyes were fixed on her, Korra's the widest.
Lin looked down at the rice on her plate.
Why were they talking about this?
"It's not a very exclusive club," Pema teased.
And why did she have to keep bringing that up?
"She arrested me too-the first time we met," Korra added.
Where was the little vomiting one when you needed him? Lin thought.
"Fine. Yes," Lin said. "It was during her extended 'finding herself' phase." The exaggerated air quotes spoke volumes. "Failure to disperse and destruction of private property."
"It was a peaceful protest," Kya argued. "The runoff from that factory destroyed an air-bison habitat."
"She threw paint at the CEO of Cabbage Corp's car," Lin clarified.
That dinner after Korra's second lesson wasn't measurably better than the first but at least she was still awake when Kya came back to her room later.
########################
Nor was dinner any better when Korra's friends joined them the next week.
"What do you think Opal's favorite color is?"
Not only had they distracted Korra from doing anything other than showing off, but the Bolin-boy had been pestering her all night.
"The fan comes in green—and her eyes are green—but it also comes in blue. She's an air bender now and air benders have blue tattoos."
"You've known her for exactly as long as I have," Lin snapped.
Her mood was not made improved by the fact that she had to present evidence at a trial first thing tomorrow morning. She'd have to inconvenience one of the acolytes after all.
########################
In all the times she'd visited Air Temple Island—as far back as she could remember—Lin had never gotten used to the air-acolytes being underfoot. Her mom had referred to them as lily livers but not in the affectionate way she had referred to her own students.
"They forget my name sometimes," Kya whispered, though there was really no need to as the young man wasn't paying them the slightest attention as he prepped the boat for a return trip to the mainland.
########################
"Did you keep any of the things I sent you?" Kya asked just before she left.
"A few."
########################
In the middle of that trial which threatened to stretch on for weeks, Kya surprised her outside headquarters, drug her out to Narook's for dinner where the noodles really were as excellent as Kya said they would be and, better yet, no one threatened to vomit on her or asked her for advice about wooing her niece.
And no one interrupted when they'd fallen into bed that night and slept, or when she'd woken up early the next morning and kissed Kya awake.
"I like coming home to you."
"I can tell."