Maintaining the Balance: Ch. 36

Egged on by Akua, the thirty or so people making up her Resistance forces eagerly joined in to celebrate Kahn's and Korra's engagement.

Though the United Republic had set the drinking age at 14, the law only applied to public gatherings. If it was a private party, the general rule of thumb was that it was okay to consume alcohol so long as you didn't later venture out and cause a scene. Public intoxication incurred a fine of 3,000 Yuan for adults and 5,000 Yuan for the parents of minors, so most people had enough sense not to go out when they were drinking.

For a variety of different reasons, Korra had been prohibited from drinking during her training. Now that she was publically perceived as an adult, the only thing preventing her from doing so were her individual inhibitions and sense of responsibility as the Avatar.

After consuming six frothy glasses of beer in less than an hour, Korra was red up to her ears as she systematically crushed every single member of the Resistance in a series of arm-wrestling matches. The only person who could even put up a bit of resistance against her was Bolin and a similarly muscular girl named Ming, both Earthbenders. They had learned a similar body-strengthening technique as Korra, but due to the latter's monstrous control and even greater base strength, neither endured more than seven seconds before she sent them crashing through the crate they used as a support.

To celebrate her victory, Korra picked up the peacefully drinking Kahn by his collar and kissed him in front of the entire group. Her actions caused a cheer to spread through the underground warehouse, nearly goading her into further action. Kahn anticipated this, however, so, before Korra could do something they would both regret, he overwhelmed her with a much deeper kiss before promptly picking her up and carrying her off in a bridal carry. His actions caused quite the misunderstanding, but Kahn had never really concerned himself with the perceptions of others...

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Becoming uncharacteristically meek and markedly more sober than she had been moments prior, Korra whispered, "We shouldn't..." shortly after Kahn carried her up to a loft-like area located on the ground floor of the studio.

Resisting the urge to roll his eyes, Kahn set Korra down on a small white sofa, saying, "Stay here. I'll get you a glass of water." before walking over to a nearby sink. Korra extended her hand to try and grab the back of his trousers, but her inebriated state made it difficult for her to sit up straight, much less grasp a specific target.

Upon returning with two cups filled with water, Kahn was unsurprised to find Korra staring at him with a pouty expression on her face and a throw pillow crushed between her arms and breasts. Despite her protests, she had fully expected Kahn to do 'something' once they were alone. Getting her a glass of water wasn't among the possibilities she had in mind.

Returning a faint smile, Kahn set the two glasses on the adjacent table before plopping down on the sofa. Korra retreated to the opposite side, but it was the type of sofa meant for two people. All she accomplished with her actions was giving him a better view of her toned, well-shaped bottom.

As if he was oblivious to Korra's pouty behavior, Kahn reached out to give the bulbous mound a soft caress. The clothes of the Southern Water Tribe were traditionally fabricated using Snow Leopard Caribou hide, a material renowned for its heat-retention properties and velvety texture. Touching it was like gliding your hand across a silk sheet, an experience made all the more pleasant by Korra's warm and pliant posterior.

"..."

Though she was momentarily tempted to kick Kahn in his 'smug' face, Korra ultimately decided against it. Instead, she squeezed the pillow in her arms and closed her eyes, enjoying the sensation of his warm palm against her butt. Now that she was beginning to sober up, she realized she was probably in the wrong for expecting him to do something when dozens of people were nearby...

Realizing that Kahn probably wasn't even drunk, Korra exhaled a hot, alcohol-laden sigh before reversing her position, lying her head on the former's lap, and muttering, "Pet my head..." in a soft tone.

"Sure..."

Recalling how he would often caress Korra's head back when he lived in the South, Kahn gently caressed the blushing beauty's fringe, the backs of his fingers periodically grazing her cheek.

Seized by the peculiar notion that Korra had suddenly become even more attractive than usual, Kahn voiced his thoughts aloud, whispering, "You're so beautiful, Korra..."

Pulling in her legs and arms, Korra squeezed her pillow even tighter as she replied, "You're just saying that..."

Without missing a beat, Kahn gently kneaded the lobe of Korra's ear with his thumb and index finger as he casually rebutted, "Only because I was thinking it..."

"..."

Feeling her face heat up for reasons other than alcohol, Korra rolled onto her back, her hand guiding Kahn's to cup her cheek as she said, "If those are the types of things you're thinking about, I wish you would speak your thoughts more often..."

"Mmm...I'll think about it..."

Leaning down, Kahn planted a chaste kiss on Korra's lips. It was a difficult angle, but he was flexible enough to pull it off. As for the whole 'speaking his mind' thing, he would rather not. Voicing his thoughts aloud generally created more problems than it solved. Still, if that's what Korra wanted, he would at least make an effort around her...

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"So? What does my cute little kitten think about my darling baby brother?"

Though she had also consumed a fair amount of alcohol, Asami managed to keep a level head as she replied to Akua's question, saying, "He is like the complete opposite of you..."

Nodding her head in agreement, a soft titter emanated from Akua's throat as she mused, "You can blame our space daddy for that..."

Hearing Akua mention Vahn, Asami was tempted to ask more about the man known as the Sage Dragon Emperor. Whenever Akua talked about him, she always gave off the impression of a star-struck maiden. Almost as though the very thought of Vahn was enough to make her happy.

Preempting Asami's questions, Akua's expression softened as she ran her fingers through the beautiful young woman's hair. Similar to the scene of Korra and Kahn, Asami was currently lying with her head in Akua's lap. In a more private setting, they would have taken turns sitting in each other's laps, but the potentiality of someone walking in on them had made both girls significantly tamer than usual.

"We can talk about Vahn later...for now, we need to address the matter of Kahn and us. You know you make my lady boner go bonkers, but I'm not a lesbian. You know I want to experience being pushed down by a muscular man, getting fucked silly, getting pregnant, the whole shebang. Mako and Bolin might have been good alternatives if Kahn hadn't shown up, but now that he's here...well, let's just say it's a good thing I decided to wear black pants today..."

Though she was pretty good at suppressing her instincts, Akua was still fused with the Primordial Spirit of Water; a True Dragon named Kelvin. As much as she loved and enjoyed playing around with Asami, her mind and body craved a strong mate, someone that could either subdue her or, at the very least, withstand her more animalistic urges.

Exhaling a sigh, Asami curled up into a ball as she muttered, "Then you already know my answer...if it lets us stay together, I don't mind putting on an act. At least Kahn seems pretty sensible...unlike those old creeps who work for our fathers and the hormonal brats running around here."

Recalling how nearly every boy at the party had been trying to get her and Akua blackout drunk, Asami's expression morphed into a scowl. She doubted any of them had the courage to try something, but it would only take a few permissive words from Akua to turn the entire lot into a bunch of hungry wolves. After that...well, she would rather not think about it. All she knew for certain was that the Resistance would no longer exist...

Deciding not to point out that she was interested in Kahn precisely due to her hormones going haywire, Akua continued caressing Asami's hair as she said, "You're too good for me, kitten...however, if someone ever tried to take you away from me, I would freeze the very marrow in their bones."

Feeling comforted despite the severity of Akua's words, Asami nestled a bit closer to her best friend turned lover. She had been crushing on Akua even before the latter saved her mother's life. After that, Asami swore that she would never leave Akua's side. It didn't matter which path the silvery-white-haired woman took. Asami intended to follow her till the end...

"I love you, Akua..."

Adopting a tender smile, Akua's fingers gently traced the line of Asami's jaw as she whispered, "I know, kitten...that's why I can't help loving you in turn..."

Punctuating her words, Akua bent down to kiss Asami. Her six-year stint as a ballerina made her even more flexible than Kahn, so, unlike the latter, Akua could practically contort herself into a ball. If she channeled Water Elemental Chi into her body, even her bones would become flexible and elastic, a peculiar trait she intended to employ against Kahn at the earliest opportunity...

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With the glow through the windows switching from natural light to street lamps, Kahn gently pinched Korra's nose, just like he used to when they were kids. Fortunately, while time tended to change some things, others remained relatively the same. Korra still only breathed through her nose when she slept, so she awoke with a start whenever something blocked it.

"What tha-!?"

Jerking to a seated position, Korra quickly recovered from her momentary panic, a threatening smile on her face as she looked toward Kahn, popped her knuckles, and asked, "Any last words...?"

Pointing to the windows, Kahn said, "Tenzin wanted us to be back before it got dark. We also need to feed Naga, pick up your things, and get ready for our evening rendezvous. It's okay if you changed your mind, but I was kind of looking forward to it..."

Regaining her panic, Korra rose from the sofa a little too quickly, shouting, "Oh crap, Naga...!" before promptly losing her balance. Fortunately for her, Kahn had already predicted this, his body briefly crackling with electricity as he darted around to her front and caught her, whispering, "Water first."

Though she was momentarily confused by Kahn's words, his intentions became pretty obvious when he gestured toward the glasses still present on the nearby table. The water tasted a little dirty and metallic, but Korra managed to gulp down both glasses as if it was the most refreshing thing in the world. It helped that she could cool it down at will.

"Haaaaaa...that helped a lot, thanks."

While nodding his head in affirmation, Kahn began guiding Korra toward the nearest bathroom. She hadn't said anything, but he knew she had to go pretty badly. His nose was very, very sensitive.

Blushing slightly due to being seen through, Korra thanked Kahn before entering the bathroom, slamming, and locking the door behind her. She had few inhibitions, but she wasn't quite at the level of wanting Kahn to see her pee. At the very least, she had outgrown such a phase. There was a time when her unconstrained curiosity made her 'very' curious about the differences in the way boys and girls peed.

Fortunately, while Kahn tolerated just about all of Korra's inquisitiveness, he never compromised when it came to matters of a 'private' nature. This only served to stir Korra's curiosity even further, but he managed to deter her without too much trouble. Now, nearly seven years later, Korra's ears turned red just thinking about her past behavior. Akua's had reallly helped to put into perspective...

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