Who the F*** is Kanto?

Chapter 15 - Guardian

"Mama, Su's awake again." Lin stood at the entrance. Kanto couldn't see any of it, but he could hear just as well as if he was there in front of her. He was so close to his daughter, it woke up an old ache in his chest.

"So what? Ignore her, she'll drift back to sleep."

"She says she's hungry."

"Then feed her."

"Yeah, and what? You'll do my homework?"

Kanto smiled wide, wanting their exchange to last forever. He was pretty sure then he'd wanna grow old listening to their daughter try to get out of helping around the house.

"Can you just do it for me, Linny?"

A deep sigh. "Yeah, okay."

"I bought bread today."

"Doesn't matter. Su only eats animal crackers anyway." Kanto felt Lin shift at the door. "Is that blood?"

"I have a nosebleed. What's it to ya?"

"It's not on your nose."

"Lin, who's the detective, you or me?"

"You're a police chief."

"And now she's a lawyer!"

"What's up with the wall?

"I'm redecorating..."

"You're being weird, Mom."

"Go feed your sister, kiddo." With that, Toph closed the door. Then she locked it with metalbending and lowered the wall separating Kanto.

"Quit your snickering, I'm usually better at this mom thing."

"No, you're... You're both perfect." By that point Kanto had forgotten all the pain completely.

"Mom, Su's up on the rail again!" They heard Lin yell from outside.

"So, get her the fuck down!" Toph yelled back without moving.

"Su, get the fuck down!" Lin echoed her mother's command. Kanto laughed wholeheartedly.

"Lin, I said no fucking swearing until you're ten!"

"But you said—"

"I'm older than ten!"

Silence. Then a thud.

"So you're saying he bloodbended you during the day?" Toph asked.

"Shouldn't you ask about that?" Kanto gestured to the direction the noise came from.

"Why? She caught her."

"I got her, Mom!" Came from outside a moment later.

"I'm confused by Yakone's skills too." Kanto attempted to stand on his own again. "But you learned how to bend metal. Maybe it's possible he's you just for waterbending."

"Maybe. I still don't see what this's got to do with me, Kanto. It's not like he'll do it in front of me, even if he can do it."

"True, but you gotta prove it somehow. Toph, his hold over me, it was..."

"What'd he do to you?"

"I don't even know... I'm bleeding from everywhere, my eyes, ears, nails... There's no fighting him! He had my whole team immobilized, I fought as hard as I could, but he's just... It's like trying to take control of a piece of metal from you."

"Impossible, yeah... Maybe for you, Hotshot, but I..." He saw it on her face that she regretted using the nickname. "I'm different."

"Listen to me, Toph. The second he sees you, he can lift you up in the air, and you won't be able to see, then, trust me, it's all pain from there." Kanto didn't like the face Toph made next. It was half complete terror, half terrifying defiance.