Work Text:
“Miyuki, have you got the files on that triad case?”
Lin’s assistant sounded immediately nervous, “Uh, no Chief, I don’t think so. You were still looking it over when I left last night, I assumed you might have taken it home with you.”
The metalbender pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration as she realised that her assistant was exactly right. Except her bag full of paperwork had been abandoned at the door when she got home, and that was exactly where it had stayed this morning when she left in an exhausted daze, forgetting to pick it up on her way out. She always worked too hard when Kya was away, often slipping back into old habits and ending up getting overtired to distract herself from the emptiness of their apartment.
“Can you push my one o’clock back an hour then, please? I’m going to need to run back home for those files.”
The sound of paper rustling could be heard from the other side of the desk and Lin knew without looking up that Miyuki was checking over her schedule. “You have that meeting with President Zhu Li and Miss Sato scheduled for two — I’m not sure that can be rearranged so easily, but I could make some calls.”
The chief shook her head immediately; Asami had been working incredibly hard on her ideas for the city and Lin couldn’t bring herself to disappoint her by bailing on her big pitch meeting. Which only left her with one option, loathe as she was to admit it.
“No, leave it be. Could you just find someone vaguely capable who isn’t working an immediately pressing case? I’ll have to send them instead.”
Miyuki let out a knowing little laugh, “I’ll ask Mako.”
“Thank you, that will be all.” Lin responded as her assistant nodded and stepped back out of the chief’s office. She refused to acknowledge the slight relief she felt that Mako would likely be the one to carry out the task, since he was one of the few officers who already knew where she lived. The last thing she wanted was some rookie rifling around in her apartment.
The universe, however, had other plans. A disturbance at the spirit portal required the attention of almost all of her officers, meaning that the only person the department could spare for the task was a timid looking rookie who trembled slightly as he stood opposite her. Lin restrained herself from rolling her eyes as she scribbled down her address and handed the paper to the nervous officer.
“My doorman will be expecting you and is under strict orders to forcibly pull you out if you are in my home for any longer than five minutes.”
Once he had assured her that he would step into the apartment only to retrieve the bag from the hallway and progress no further into her space, she dismissed him and prayed to the spirits that there were no issues.
If you had asked Officer Renshu what he expected of his first week on the force, being sent to the Chief’s apartment would never have even come close to being on the list. He had only met her once briefly during his orientation and had since spent his working hours in quiet awe of the woman and her command over the station. She was unquestionably intimidating, but obviously well respected by all of the officers who worked underneath her. It seemed that, despite her seemingly unapproachable and aloof manner, no one in the station had a bad word to say against her; she didn’t rule by fear, as he had expected, but rather through mutual respect and trust. She trusted her officers to do their jobs and in return they respected her enough to do just that.
That thought spurred him on just slightly faster, his chest puffing out with pride as he thought of how he had been trusted with such an important and personal task. Realistically he knew it was because he was the most expendable officer in the station, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t embrace the opportunity to prove himself. He glanced down at the paper in his hand, now slightly crumpled by his fist, and back up at the building in front of him to ensure that he was at the correct address. The doorman glanced up at him as he entered and he smiled,
“I’m here to collect something from Chief Beifong’s apartment?”
The doorman nodded and stood, directing Renshu to the elevator,
“It’s on the top floor. You’ve got five minutes, don’t think I’m not counting.”
Though the words seemed somewhat harmless coming from the older gentleman, Renshu still gulped nervously. Even though he had ascertained that the Chief was not as terrifying as she had initially seemed, he still wanted to avoid ending up on her bad side.
Though he was no earthbender, Renshu knew someone else was there the second he stepped into the apartment. He immediately panicked. Chief Beifong was publicly single, had been since her well publicised breakup with Master Tenzin, so it stood to reason that whoever was present was, in fact, an intruder. The banging noises coming from within the apartment stopped as the door swung shut behind him, causing him to freeze. His next moves had to be careful, calculated, or he ran the risk of escalating the situation.
“Lin?” A female voice called out, accompanied by the sounds of footsteps coming closer, “You’re home earl- oh!“ The owner of the voice came into view, stopping when she saw that Renshu was obviously not who she was expecting. Panic surged through him, all of his training abandoning him right at the critical moment, so he did the only thing he could think of and raised his voice,
“Freeze, Police! Don’t come any closer.”
The woman, who he deduced from her clothing was definitely from the water tribes, cocked her head in confusion and scoffed,
“In my own home, really? You can stand down, kid.”
Renshu frowned as he took stock of the situation. This woman seemed far too relaxed for someone who had just been caught in the Chief of Police’s apartment — she didn't even have any shoes on. Perhaps there was some truth to her words? But then again, if the Chief had a roommate at home, surely it would have made more sense to have her bring the files she needed to the station as opposed to sending an officer. It was then that he remembered something Mako had told him when they were out on a stakeout — that there was a large number of women across the city who had a crush on the metalbender — and it came to him; this woman was a stalker! He supposed that she might be living in her own fantasy that she lived with the Chief and that was why she was so calm. He almost let a smile slip onto his face as he silently congratulated himself for figuring it out, but he coughed and managed to maintain what he hoped was an intimidating frown.
“I’m afraid you’re going to have to come with me, ma’am.”
She scoffed at him again, “Oh yeah, for what?”
Panic seized him again, but he shook it off, “Breaking and entering, ma’am. You’re under arrest.”
“Breaking and en- I live here! Get your chief on the line, she’ll tell you.”
She was calling his bluff, Renshu knew better than to fall for it. Still, it did give him an idea, “I’m sure she’d be more than happy to talk to you at the station, if that’s the case.” There, two could play at that game. He had her, of that he was sure; either she was about to panic that he’d caught her in a lie, or the temptation of seeing the object of her affections in person would persuade her to follow him.
Her mouth suddenly twisted into a disarming smirk, “You know what, you’re right. We can see how this plays out.” The response was confusing, as was her sudden willingness to comply, but Renshu tried not to question it. If it meant that he would have no further troubles getting her down to the station, he would count it as a blessing.
Renshu’s first clue that he was wrong should have come when the mystery woman tossed a wink to the doorman on their way out. The older man had frowned in confusion, but eventually shook his head with an amused chuckle. His second clue should have been when she leaned forwards from the back seat of the satomobile to give him directions to the station, claiming that she “knew all of the shortcuts.” The officer at the bookings desk spitting out their coffee when they saw who he had brought in really should have tipped him off as well, but Renshu just had tunnel vision at that point; his mind was reeling at the thought of being the one to save the Chief of Police from a crazed stalker in her own home.
“Are you sure you want to do this, kid?” The mystery stalker asked as he guided her into a holding cell. She had called him “kid” every time she spoke now, much like the Chief did to everyone, and it was starting to get on his nerves.
“Sure I want to do my job? Yes, I am,” he responded through gritted teeth before he slid the doors shut between them and turned on his heel to find someone to help him with his new case.
Once back in the bullpen, he found Mako sitting at his desk,
“Detective, are you busy?”
The firebender barely glanced up from the file in front of him, “Aren’t I always? What’s up, Renshu?”
The rookie cop settled himself into the seat opposite the desk, “Well, you remember how you told me about all of the women with crushes on the Chief? I caught one! In the Chief’s apartment! I booked her in and she’s downstairs, I’m gonna need help interrogating her though.”
That certainly got Mako’s attention, “You arrested someone in the Chief’s apartment? What did she look like?”
“Water Tribe, definitely. Long silver hair in a ponytail…” Renshu trailed off when he noticed panic flaring in Mako’s expression, “What, who is she?”
The detective didn’t answer. He stood up and took off towards the elevators, barely allowing time for Renshu to scramble after him.
“Why didn’t you call anyone? You know you shouldn’t be making arrests by yourself!”
Renshu deflated a bit, losing his bravado, “I panicked in the moment and I didn’t want her to get away. She seemed harmless and came willingly too, so it’s not like I was at risk.”
Mako just shook his head as the elevator doors opened and he marched towards the holding cells.
The recently incarcerated woman looked up at the sound of their footsteps, “Mako! What took you so long?”
He winced apologetically, his suspicions confirmed, “Kya, I am so sorry for the trouble.” The firebender reached for his keys and Renshu let out an indignant whine,
“You’re going to let her go, just like that? She was in the Chief’s apartment!”
Mako shared a disbelieving look with Kya, who quirked an amused eyebrow in response.
“You know, I think he might be right,” Kya said, feigning stupidity, “we really ought to get the Chief to look into this.” She winked at Mako when the rookie wasn’t looking.
Renshu nodded enthusiastically, “Yeah!” After a few seconds however, his frown returned as he became suspicious of how cooperative his prisoner was being. That was rapidly pushed aside when Mako sighed and put his keys away.
“You’re right, ma’am. I’ll send for the Chief, she should be out of her meeting by now. Come, Renshu.” The rookie happily followed and Kya sat back down on the bench behind her, trying and failing to contain her laughter.
“You’re evil,” the officer at the booking desk, Aoi, informed her over their shoulder, “She’s going to eat that poor boy alive.”
Kya simply laughed again, “Serves him right, I didn’t even get a chance to drink my tea.”
They didn’t have to wait long before the elevator chimed again and the frowning face of Chief Beifong was revealed by the sliding doors. Kya grinned at her as she came into view, “Hello love.”
“Kya!” Lin’s eyes immediately went wide and Kya instantly knew that Mako hadn’t told her the whole truth in order to maximise her reaction. It took all of the waterbender’s strength not to burst out laughing once more as she watched her partner turn on the rapidly-paling rookie officer.
“You went to my home for one tiny, miniscule task, and instead decided to arrest my wife?” Her voice was deadly still and calm, alerting Kya that she was seething beneath the surface. Lin could yell and scream as much as she wanted, but her quiet rage was the one that really signalled danger.
“Your- yo- I-“ Renshu stammered out in complete shock, flustered by how quickly his heroic deed had turned into his downfall. “I didn’t know!”
“Let me guess, you didn’t call for back up, or ask the doorman for any information. Or, I don’t know, use any kind of common sense? No sign of forced entry, the doorman hadn’t seen anything suspicious, or how about the fact that your suspect is calmly telling you that she lives there!” Lin ranted as she hurried to unlock the door to Kya’s cell. The healer happily stepped out and stood at her side, her fingers subtly ghosting against her wife’s elbow. As much as she wanted to interlock their fingers and never let go, she knew Lin needed her to keep PDA to a minimum while they were at her place of work. The metalbender relaxed almost indiscernibly at the contact, so much so that only Kya, who was so attuned to her body language, noticed. Lin’s softness felt like their little secret, and she always marvelled at how lucky she was to be the only other person who was in on it.
“I- I’m sorry! Just, I didn’t know anyone would be home, so I assumed-“
Lin let out a low growl, “Never assume on this job, kid. One more assumption and you’ll be on desk duty for so long your hand will fall off from all the paperwork you’ll be buried under, is that clear?” Kya caught Mako’s line of sight with humour dancing in her eyes and the detective had to choke back a laugh.
Renshu hurriedly nodded, “Y- yes, ma’am. Uh, sir- Chief! Yes, Chief.”
The metalbender turned to Mako, “See to it that he’s put into the relevant extra training courses so this doesn’t happen again. Dismissed.”
Mako nodded and all but dragged Renshu out of the room before the rookie said anything else that would get him into more trouble. As soon as they were out of sight, Lin turned to face her wife, speaking in hushed tones so that no one but Kya could hear,
“Are you alright? I wasn’t expecting you home until tomorrow! I never would have sent him there if I’d known.”
Kya smiled softly, leaning in close so that they were almost touching, but not quite. Lin huffed out a little sigh, frustrated to finally have her wife this close and not be able to kiss her due to the public setting.
“I managed to get away a day early, I wanted to surprise you. Though this wasn’t quite what I had in mind.”
Lin hummed, “Damn rookies.” She glanced down at Kya’s lips for only a fleeting second before her mind was made up, “Aoi, could you please phone my assistant and tell her that I’m taking the rest of the afternoon off.”
Aoi quickly coughed and sat up straight, in the hopes that it might cover up the fact that they had been watching the couple with interest, “Of course Chief, enjoy the rest of your day.” Lin nodded at them as Kya grinned, trying to tamp down her excitement at the prospect of a free afternoon with her wife. Perhaps a little bit of jail time had been worth it.
They spent the drive home in quiet companionship, with Kya telling Lin all about her trip to Ba Sing Se and the metalbender content just to listen along as she drove. She always needed time to allow herself to shrug off her work persona before she was able to be fully receptive and as loving as she believed Kya deserved, and her ever-patient partner was always content to fill the silence with the reassuring sound of her voice. It soothed Lin, lulling her into the feeling of safety that she only got from Kya’s company.
As soon as the door to their home swung shut behind her, Lin reached out to wrap her fingers around Kya’s wrist and pull her back towards her. The waterbender giggled and spun around with a graceful flourish, pulling herself flush against her wife’s body and leaning down to finally capture her lips in a kiss. Kya’s kiss was soft, loving and gentle, but Lin deepened it and tugged her closer with strong hands on the waterbender’s hips, eliciting a moan which was happily swallowed. It felt like the solid wood of the door against her back was the only thing stopping Lin from melting into a puddle in Kya’s embrace, since the healer was able to affect her just as powerfully as she did her element.
They barely moved apart when their lips eventually separated, foreheads leaning together and noses brushing as they shared the same puff of air.
“I missed you,” Lin whispered against Kya’s lips, delighting in the grin that spread across them at her words. Now smiling too much to continue kissing her wife as much as she wanted to, Kya ducked her head into the crook of Lin’s neck,
“I missed you too. So much.”
Mako stepped out of the elevator into the bullpen with Renshu hot on his tail, his head still hung in dejected shame. The firebender sighed and turned to face the rookie,
“Look, she’ll get over it. Just be more careful before you try arresting anyone next time.”
“I just really didn’t know the Chief was even married! And to a woman!” Mako’s eyes immediately narrowed and Renshu hastened to add, “Not that that’s an issue! I just…didn’t know.”
Mako slumped back into his desk chair with a groan, knowing that the other officer was not going away any time soon. “It’s more of an open secret. Most of us know, since Kya is always here for lunch or to pick the Chief up, but we know she doesn’t want it to be public knowledge.”
Renshu considered this for a moment, filing that information away for when it became useful. It showed a great deal of mutual trust, that the Chief didn’t hide her relationship from her officers and in turn they all kept her secret. Trust that he had broken before he’d even earned it.
“I’m never going to live this down, am I?” The rookie lamented as he dropped his head onto the desk in front of him. Mako thought about how long it had taken for his colleagues to stop mocking him after his breakup with Korra and almost felt pity for him,
“Not for a long time, no.”