Short fic about pre-LOK Lin and Tenzin as teenagers and the antics that ensue when they visit Lin's grandparents at the Beifong estate.

Many thanks to my beta, PlainSimpleGarak.

cover art by Minuiko on deviantart.

Chapter 2

"Mom, do I have to go visit my grandparents?" thirteen-year-old Lin Beifong sulked as her mother prepared her suitcase. "I mean, I love them and everything, but Grandma always tries to put me in dresses and frilly outfits and she doesn't understand the joy of running barefoot."

Toph paused for a second while packing a valise for her daughter's trip to her parents' home, suddenly questioning if sending Lin there by herself was a good idea. While Toph certainly had a strained relationship with her parents as a child, in recent years things had been remarkably better. Her parents sought her out soon after The War ended. Their tearful reunion and promises to be more accepting of Toph's lifestyle marked the turning of a new leaf for the relationship. However, that didn't mean Toph's parents weren't disappointed when they learned of her unplanned pregnancy; or that her mother stopped trying to introduce her to well-to-do noblemen, despite Toph's protests otherwise. Her parents definitely tried to be agreeable, but Toph could see clear as day that her lifestyle was still hard for her parents to accept. The silver lining was that her parents adored their granddaughter. While she and Lin had visited Lao and Poppy Beifong on multiple occasions, this would be the first instance where Lin would be going alone. Toph worried that her parents would find Lin difficult to handle, especially since Lin took after her mother in many ways. Toph turned to her daughter with a nod of reassurance. "I know Grandma Poppy can be overbearing, but she does love you, kid."

"Mom, I just don't know if I can handle being with them for an entire weekend by myself! What if they don't want me earthbending?"

"Oh, suck it up, Lin. It's just a weekend and your grandparents have been insisting on this for years. You may as well go so they quit bugging me about it."

Lin was about to protest again when Tenzin burst in the door of the Republic City apartment. "Kya brought a boy home and dad's freaking out. He even called Uncle Sokka over. Can I hang here for a while?"

Toph and Lin didn't hide their amusment at the situation. With the beauty of her mother and the charisma of her father, Kya certainly didn't make Aang's goal of isolating his only daughter from the male species easy.

"I hope for that boy's sake that Twinkletoes goes easy on him. He nearly interrogated the last one to tears," Toph joked. Chuckling, Tenzin relaxed a little. Lin motioned for him to sit next to her on the bed. Sitting down, Tenzin's eyes darted toward the suitcase that Toph had just finished packing.

"Are you going on a vacation, Aunt Toph?"

"I wish, but nope. Lin here is going to visit her grandparents for a couple days."

Tenzin's eyes widened in surprise. "Lin, you didn't tell me you were going away for the weekend."

Lin frowned and let out an exasperated sigh. "I didn't say anything because I was hoping I wouldn't really have to go."

Tenzin lowered his voice to a whisper and leaned closer to Lin- "It's times like these that you should be glad your mom's blind and can't see you shooting daggers with your eyes," he joked, hoping to coax a smile out of his friend.

Lin stifled a laugh and dealt Tenzin an affectionate elbow-jab. "Well you got me to smile, but I'm still miffed about going."

"Maybe it'll be fun. I mean, your grandparents have visited before and they seem like genuinely nice people."

Lin sighed. "You don't get it, Tenzin. They're nice, but they don't know me at all. Grandma Poppy is going to make me dress in the most froufrou outfits. Lace, Tenzin. Have you ever seen me in lace? And if I know Grandpa Lao, he's going to make me accompany him to a fancy dinner party with all the big-shots of the Earth Kingdom."

Tenzin cringed. Elegant and graceful really weren't adjectives that anyone who knew Lin would use to describe her. Lin at a high-society function was no doubt a disaster waiting to happen. "Maybe it won't be that bad?" he weakly offered his support.

"No, Tenzin. Don't try and downplay it. It really is that bad."

"Lin, maybe you'd like to ask Twinkletoes Jr. here if he'd like to go with you." Toph suggested.

Lin's eyes immediately brightened. "I don't know why I didn't think of that, Tenzin, you have to come with me."

"I don't know, Lin . . ."

"Tenzin. Don't make me beg. If you're my friend at all, you'll come with me and ease my misery. How am I going to get through an entire weekend without my best friend and favorite punching bag?"

Lin grew increasingly frustrated at her friend's unwillingness to just shut up and go along with it.

"Okay, I guess, only since you're begging and all." Tenzin smirked, amused at Lin's desperation.

"Don't make me earthbend you out the window," Lin threatened, with the slightest hint of a smile in her voice that let Tenzin know she wasn't serious.

Tenzin arose from the bed and nodded toward the door. "I'd guess I'd better get home and pack for the weekend then."

Toph shoved the suitcase toward her daughter. "You might as well take Lin along. We were going to head over to ask your dad for a lift to the Earth Kingdom anyway," she reasoned. Lin shrugged and followed Tenzin to the door, suitcase in hand.

"Go easy on your grandparents, okay?" Toph warned Lin.

"Yeah, yeah, mom. I'll try." Lin gave her mother a quick hug before heading out the door with Tenzin.

Tenzin whistled to call Oogi and airbended Lin's suitcase onto the bison's saddle. As Tenzin got settled behind the reins, Lin took a seat next to him and asked, "Are your dad and uncle still at home with Kya and her new fling?"

"Yeah, probably, why?"

Lin shrugged. "No reason, I just want to see if this guy cries like the last one."

Tenzin rolled his eyes with a tiny smile. "Glad to see you're back to your old self."

Thanks for reading, and thanks again to my wonderful beta PlainSimpleGarak.

Constructive criticism and thoughts are always appreciated :)

Chapter 3 should be up soon.