In Sickness and in Health (Kyalin)

They Can Wait

For the entire day of their anniversary, Kya and Lin spent it quietly enjoying each others company until they had to get ready to go to dinner.

Lin looked in her closet and grabbed one of her white tank tops neatly folded on the top shelf to put it on. She also took a pair of baggy black pants. When Kya's back was turned, she took the thin, square gift box and slipped it in her pocket, making sure it was concealed by the folds in the fabric. Satisfied with how it looked, she went back out to the living room to wait for Kya to finish getting dressed.

A few minutes later, Kya emerged from the bedroom in a blue dress and two different shoes on.

"Which one matches this dress better?"

"They both look good," Lin shrugged.

"Hmm... well I kind of like the blue ones but I don't know. Definitely not these ones, though." Kya held up a third pair of shoes in her hands before throwing them back into the bedroom. "Oh, I know!"

She ran back and Lin heard her jumping around on one foot trying to get off her shoes. She returned a moment later wearing brown shoes that matched her belt.

"How about these?" She posed dramatically and waited for an answer.

"They look good."

"Lin, you're impossible. Oh, whatever, I need to go pick out some earrings that'll match the shoes. The ones I'm wearing now go with the shoes I just took off."

Kya disappeared back into the bedroom, and after what felt like an eternity, she had finally settled on an outfit. And with that, they set off for Air Temple Island.

The closer they got to the docks, the happier Kya became. Lin always noticed how her girlfriend lit up when she was near her natural element. They climbed aboard the ferry and soon arrived on the island where Tenzin and his kids were waiting for them.

"Aunt Kya! Aunt Lin!"

The four kids bounded towards them, leaving their slow walking father in the dust. Ikki quickly threw her arms around Kya who returned the hug as Meelo rode an air scooter in circles around them. Rohan ran right at Lin and airbent himself onto her shoulders. She momentarily stuttered on her crutches under the new weight but was otherwise okay.

"Rohan! Get down from there!" Jinora said while giving Kya a side hug.

"No, Aunt Linnie likes it when I sit up here," he protested.

"Listen to your sister, Rohan."

Tenzin, who had finally caught up, created a swirl of air around his son to gently carry him back to the ground. Rohan airbent himself onto his father's shoulders instead, still not wanting to be the shortest person there, and grabbed onto his ears for support.

Tenzin sighed. "Sorry about that, Lin. Happy anniversary to both of you. The food is ready if you want to head inside now."

"Sure," Kya smiled.

They all walked toward the temple as Meelo used his air scooter to speed up ahead. He dismounted in front of the door and shouted back to his family, "What's taking you guys so long?"

When Lin got to the temple, she could smell the food from the entrance and her mouth was already watering. As she entered the dining room she saw the table laid out with a variety of Air Nomad dishes, including her favorite mushroom and barley soup.

Pema came in from another door, and she and Lin greeted each other politely before sitting down. Once everyone was seated, they served themselves food and began to eat.

"Kya, Lin, what'd you do to celebrate your anniversary today?" Tenzin asked. "I remember before Pema and I had kids we would go visit one of the other Air Temples every year."