Maintaining the Balance: Ch. 25

Feeling partially responsible for Ethuza's decline in health, Kahn told her about the extra ingredients and spices he kept in his room before writing down a few easy-to-follow recipes. He knew she would have preferred it if he prepared it directly, but Kahn wasn't willing to ruin Jinora's mood just to fix Ethuza's mistake.

As cold as it sounded, Ethuza was singularly responsible for her decision to study and live as a prospective Air Acolyte. If she wanted to secure a place to stay on the mainland, her mother would assuredly fork over the funds for a small mansion. Instead, Ethuza was determined to remain on the island to prove her resolve. Kahn didn't really agree with this decision, but it was ultimately Ethuza's to make.

Fortunately, Ethuza's health and nutrition had been excellent before her departure from the Fire Nation. She may have spent much of her free time in the royal library, but her youth had revolved around Bending, etiquette, and other forms of training. A few of these included lessons the Order of the White Lotus had emulated by observing Kahn, so her foundation was much more stable than the average person's.

With a proper diet and a bit of exercise, Ethuza would quickly recover to her optimal condition. Kahn even incentivized her by promising he would help out once Tenzin and his family returned. Korra's arrival was bound to derail things, but Ethuza had known about her existence and impending arrival for months. She chose to remain despite this, so Kahn was willing to lend a hand so long as helping her didn't interfere with his other duties and responsibilities.

First and foremost, Kahn began to prepare an additional serving whenever he cooked for himself and Jinora. Rindo had shown a bit of compassion after his 100th consecutive defeat, so Kahn could now store and preserve up to 100 dishes and ingredients in his Inventory. While 100 slots may not sound that impressive, it was substantial since 999 of the same dish could be stacked in the same slot. As for ingredients, they stacked by volume or weight depending on whether they were liquid or solid.

Since Ethuza was going to come around regardless, Kahn began providing food for her in the evenings. He denied her request to dine inside, so Kahn would typically sit with his back to her while Ethuza practically engorged herself on the food he had prepared for her. Then, once she was finished, they would sit and chat for a few minutes before Kahn would send her on her way. She had asked him to escort her, but even if there was less than a 1% chance of something happening, Kahn wasn't the type to neglect his duties. He was tasked with watching over the Airbending family residence and keeping Jinora safe, so, for the seventeen days the family was gone, that is precisely what he did.

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With only a few hours remaining in their journey, Pema, seeing the brown-skinned teen fidgetting a short distance away, asked, "Are you nervous?" with a knowing smile on her face.

Hearing Pema's question, the visibly agitated teen snorted through her nose, brows creased as she asked, "Why would I be nervous? If anything, I'm excited. Once Naga arrives, I can finally set out on my journey as the Avatar."

"Oh? And here I thought you were gripping your pendant because you were anxious about your reunion with Kahn. Silly me, it must have been my imagination."

Realizing she was gripping her pendant tight enough to exhibit the whites of her knuckles, the young Water Tribeswoman, Korra, promptly released it from her grasp. Then, in an attempt to change the subject, she hurriedly inquired, "So, what's Republic City like? I hear it's like the most advanced city in the whole world."

Shaking her head, Pema maintained a motherly smile as she explained, "I can't really say. I spend most of my time on Air Temple Island. When you live an ascetic lifestyle, the hustle and bustle of city life can be incredibly stressful."

Though Pema had answered with a similar response every other time she asked, Korra exhaled an annoyed trill before remarking, "I could never live like that. Now that I'm finally free from the South Pole, I intend to explore the city before traveling the entire world. The quiet life just isn't for me."

Shifting the conversation back to the original topic, Pema teased, "That sounds like a lot of fun. If you take Kahn along with you, I imagine it will be pretty romantic as well..."

With her left eye twitching, Korra looked away from Pema, muttering, "It's none of your business..." in an audibly huffy tone.

Amused by Korra's reaction, a soft chuckle emanated from Pema's throat. Before she could continue teasing her, however, Ikki asked, "Does Korra like Kahn? Then what about Jinora...?"

Interrupting before Pema could answer, Korra asked, "What do you mean, Ikki? What does Jinora have to do with Kahn?"

Without any hesitation whatsoever, Ikki revealed, "Jinora likes Kahn." with a massive smile on her face.

Though common sense told her she shouldn't be worried about a seven or eight-year-old girl, Korra's brows creased into a glower. It didn't help that Ikki immediately added, "There's also this girl named Ethuza. She's a Princess from the Fire Nation. During Kahn's birthday, she even asked him to marry her!"

Covering her daughter's mouth, Pema's smile appeared visibly strained as she said, "Don't let Ikki's words bother you. While it is true that Jinora and Ethuza have a crush on Kahn, he hasn't really shown any interest in things like dating. He views Jinora as a little sister and has continuously rejected Ethuza's attempts to court him."

Calming down a bit, Korra asked, "What's she like, this Princess Ethuza? Is she pretty?"

Breaking free from her mother's hand, Ikki answered, "She smells really good and has super huge-"

"Ikki!"

After shouting her name, Pema silenced Ikki with a warning look before returning her attention to Korra and explaining, "While appearances are important, they aren't the deciding factor when it comes to love. Ethuza may not be the most attractive girl in the world, but she certainly has her charms."

Preempting Korra's follow-up questions, Ikki nodded her head, willfully ignoring her mother's previous warning as she said, "I'll say. Her boobs are super huge."

Though he was doing his best to ignore the conversation taking place a few meters behind him, Tenzin shouted, "Ikki! That's quite enough, young lady!"

Laughing like a child that had just succeeded in a prank, Ikki was about to say more when she noticed the rather grim expression on Korra's face.

Fortunately, while Korra wasn't particularly enthused by Ikki's words, she wasn't too upset. She had overcome her body dysmorphia a few months ago after learning that she was ranked number one among all the girls her former classmates wanted to date. The only reason no one asked her out was because of her betrothal necklace.

Since her admirers even included girls that Korra thought were more attractive than herself, her confidence had received quite a substantial boost. She had come to learn that pretty much everyone was jealous of her physique, so instead of feeling concerned about the size of Ethuza's bust, Korra was feeling competitive as she grumbled, "You think you can take what's mine? Just you wait, Princess..."

Though Korra had whispered her words, discretion had never been one of her strong suits. Pema was easily able to make out her words, a wry smile developing across her face as she internally mused, ("You really have your work cut out for you with this one, Kahn...")

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Since Tenzin had sent a transmission informing the Air Acolytes of their return the previous day, Kahn, Jinora, Ethuza, and more than a dozen monks had gathered atop the large, overhanging platform that served as a landing station for Flying Bison and small Airships.

Sensing Korra even before he had spotted Oogi on the horizon, Kahn's expression became serious as he stated, "It looks like my free time just flew out the window..."

Understanding the meaning of Kahn's words, Ethuza's exhaled a sigh while Jinora, worrying that he wasn't going to be teaching her anymore, asked, "What about Ikki and Meelo? You can't just-"

Before Jinora could finish, Kahn explained, "We've been over this. Now that Korra has arrived, I have a responsibility to look after and keep her safe. I will still offer advice and spiritual guidance, but, from this moment onward, it is your duty as the eldest to help guide your younger siblings."

Turning towards the young Airbender, Kahn's expression softened as he softly appended, "I believe in you, Jinora. Ever since you first exhibited your tremendous potential, I have always thought you would, one day, become a great Airbending Master. Now is your chance to prove it. After all, it is only when we are capable of passing on our teachings to others that we can refer to ourselves as True Masters..."

Though she really wanted to cry, Jinora forced a serious expression on her face as she nodded her head and answered, "I understand...I won't let you down..."

Adopting a far more sincere smile, Kahn extended his right hand to gently caress Jinora's head as he whispered, "You never have...not even once..."

Feeling an even stronger urge to cry, Jinora's eyes began to water while Ethuza, seeing the rather intimate and heartwarming scene, couldn't help feeling a little envious. She felt like writing a strongly worded letter to her mother and grandfather complaining about their failure to introduce her to Kahn earlier.

If she had gotten to Kahn sooner, Ethuza was confident she could have claimed his heart for herself. Now, she had to compete against one of the most powerful beings in the entire world and one of Kahn's most precious proteges.

It was incredibly frustrating.

Interrupting the tender moment between Teacher and Student, Ethuza adopted a slight pout as she questioned, "Don't I get a few inspirational remarks? My heart is breaking..."

Annoyed by Ethuza's interruption, Jinora was half-tempted to tell her to leave. Before she could, however, Kahn retracted his hand from her head, stating, "Unless you antagonize Korra, our relationship shouldn't change all that much. I've been watching over Jinora since she was a toddler, so Korra's arrival is bound to have a greater impact on her than you. Besides, you're a lot stronger emotionally. If you were the type that needed to hear such things, you wouldn't be here right now."

Adopting a far more sincere, slightly hurt expression, Ethuza stated, "That may be, Kahn. However, sometimes we say nice things, not to make other people feel better, but to prevent them from feeling worse..."

Though she was tempted to just walk away, Ethuza had resolved herself to meet with Korra. The way Kahn had described her left Ethuza feeling as though Korra was a beautiful and proud young girl.

If she determined that victory was impossible, Ethuza was prepared to move back home. She wasn't going to give up, but there was no way she was going to sit around and pretend to care about being an Air Acolyte as Kahn and Korra slowly fell in love with one another.

Fortunately, Kahn had revealed quite a bit of juicy bits of information to Ethuza during their discussion. He had never revealed anything explicit, but Ethuza had managed to piece together enough consequential details to form a roadmap of the next couple of years. She also knew that Kahn didn't understand things like love and romance, so even if he did end up with Korra, there was a fairly high probability they would break up. When they did, Ethuza intended to be in a prime position to strike.

No matter how long it took, Ethuza was determined to be the ultimate victor in the battle for Kahn's heart. It didn't matter if who her opponent was. Unless they made a concerted effort to try and understand him, she was confident that no one would be able to comprehend Kahn as well as herself. They were, after all, soulmates...