This is the first part of the Thanksgiving arc thing I want to do. Let me know what you think — criticisms or compliments are always appreciated. Apologies for the slowness in writing.
It was the first day of fifteen of the Festival of Yangchen, and the extended family had piled into the apartment, though Toph and Katara had yet to arrive. The large dining table at the center of the apartment was cramped from all sides with people and covered with food and drink.
One end of the table was occupied by Bolin in an arm-wrestling tournament with his in-laws — Wei, Wing, and Kuvira — accompanied by Bumi and Meelo. Nearby, Opal and Jinora argued about the meaning of some verse of The Poetry of Laghima. Opposite them, Su, Pema, and Tenzin were discussing something boring about the upkeep of large estates. Without Jinora's supervision, Kai had snuck off to the pantry, accompanied by Pabu, to stuff his face with sweet buns. Huan and Ikki, along with her sugar glider Nutmeg, had withdrawn to the balcony to paint Yue Bay at night. The two Bataars were busy disassembling the radio. Near the ceiling, Bum-Ju and Poki played some strange game of aerial wrestling, watched from a corner of the room by Aput and Atka, the Beifong twins' huskies.
Flanked by Lin and Kya, Mako planted his feet firmly apart, standing before the head of the table and narrowly dodging a fork launched from some crossbow contraption Meelo had assembled from radio parts stolen from Bataar and Bataar, and waited until he'd be allowed to speak. The arm-wrestlers ignored him.
"Hey, Nuktuk, Hero of the Mouth." Lin glared at Bolin, who was excitedly explaining something to Wing. "Shut up. Thanks, I appreciate it."
"Now, I will say this only once because I don't want to explain sleeping arrangements to everyone multiple times. So, for starters, Lin and Kya's bedroom is off limits. Clear?" There was a general nodding and Mako continued.
"The bedroom that is on the left in that hallway will be Tenzin and Pema's. The central bedroom will be Su and Bataar's. The right bedroom is mine."
Mako consulted the notepad in his hand and went on. "So, Ikki, Jinora, Meelo, and Rohan will be in the first one, Bumi and Bolin will be in the third, Opal will be in the third — no, the second; Kuvira will be in the third — no, the first — no, actually the second; Wei and Wing will be in the second unless they don't want to, in which case they'll be in the third; Bataar will be in the third, or maybe the second — I'm talking about Junior, not Senior; Huan will be in the second room unless either Wei or Wing accompanies him to the third; then, depending on the number of people in each room, we might have to move one of the occupants of the second room to the third so Toph can stay there and one of the inhabitants of the first room onto the living room couch so that Katara can stay in the first room. Actually, the first sounds crowded at the moment so Tenzin will sleep on the balcony. Any questions?"
Having finished this speech, Mako looked around the room to find confusion on every face. After a second, the questioning began.
"So I'll be separated from Su?"
"Who's sleeping on the living room couch again?"
"So you're in the second room?"
"Where will Kai sleep?"
"What about Poki?"
"What about Bum-Ju?"
"What about Nutmeg?"
"What about Pabu?"
"What about Aput?"
"What about Atka?"
"Do I have to reassemble the radio?"
"So, Wei is in the second room but I'm in the third?"
"No, dumbass, I'm in the third room and you're in the second. Right, Mako?"
"Where did Kai go?"
"Rohan will be sleeping in Kuvira's room?"
"Can I eat these sweet buns in the second room?"
"What about the fourth room?"
"Can I sleep in the third room?"
"I was planning on sleeping in the third room's bathroom. Is that ok?"
"Remember that time Eska said Desna sleeps in the tub?"
Mako's eyes widened in surprise and confusion. He turned to face Lin and Kya, a pleading look on his face. The Chief patted him on the shoulder reassuringly and faced the rest of the family. "Scratch all that and work out the bedroom thing yourselves. I imagine world leaders and their families can make it work." The group exploded back into a cacophony of voices.
"How do we know it'll work, Chief?" Mako was surprised that the woman would let such chaos reign in her household.
"We don't know if it'll work, kid, but it doesn't matter." Lin smiled at Mako softly. "They'll either work it out or they'll fall asleep here at the table. They'll be fine, and we — you and me and Kya — we'll be fine."