Chapter Text
The man or woman who follows the Way of Air should not eat the flesh of any sentient being, for by eating such flesh we violate the principle of compassion for all life
- Guru Rinpoche, ‘The Way of Air’
‘What’s wrong, sweetie. Are you sick?’ Xuan is tempted to smack her mother’s hand away before it touches her forehead. She’s read about the virtue of patience, but she still struggles a bit when it comes to putting it into practice.
‘No, I just…’
They’re all looking at her now. She hesitates for a moment, then continues. Being resolute and true to one’s principles, that’s another of the main virtues after all.
‘I don’t want to eat meat any more. Guru Rinpoche teaches that the flesh of all sentient beings is the same, and that therefore we shouldn’t eat animals’.
Dad lifts a chunk of braised pig-chicken to his mouth with his chopsticks, spits out the bones, and swallows. ‘Still at it with the Air Nomad thing, I see? Well, my father always said that braised pig-chicken was essential to a long and happy life, and personally I prefer his teachings.’
The silence that follows is interrupted only by the clattering of chopsticks on bowls and the occasional sound of swallowing. Xuan tips her bowl almost on its side to get at the last few grains of rice. She’s not had anything to eat other than rice with soy sauce and a few stir-fried greens, and she’s trying very hard not to look at the last few pieces of meat still in the serving-bowl. Braised pig-chicken is her favourite. Was her favourite. Does Guru Rinpoche say whether followers of the Way of Air were allowed to want to eat meat? Is just abstaining from it enough, or do you have to find it disgusting too?
‘Are you really not going to eat that?’ Lei points his chopsticks at the bowl. His mouth is still full of half-chewed rice and meat. Xuan grimaces and shakes her head, and Lei – who at seventeen is more garbage-disposal system than human – reaches across and transfers the remaining pieces of meat to his bowl one by one, leaving a trail of red sauce on the table. Once Mom is done scolding him, the conversation moves on to Lei’s progress with his earthbending classes, and then to the funerary stele that a local merchant commissioned for his pet catowl and the latest rumours from Ba Sing Se about the King’s health.
Amid the local gossip and the news of the wide world, Xuan’s moment of rebellion appears to have been forgotten, but as they get up from the table Mom touches her shoulder gently. ‘I’ll make you some tofu tomorrow, sweetie. And I’ll put it next to you, so Lei doesn’t inhale it before you get a chance.’