The three of them weren't stupid. They knew that informing the Northern Water Tribe, as well as the rest of the world, of the unusual structure of their relationship would cause a great deal of discomfort, confusion, and potentially some uproar. But the three of them loved each other tremendously, so all of that was beyond worth it.
Kaida had told the twins when they first began their courtship that it was entirely up to them when to make their relationship public; she would never pressure them or reveal anything to anyone before they were ready. One evening, when Desna and Eska had a long conversation about their relationship with Kaida and agreed that they wished to propose to her sometime soon, they decided it was best to rip the bandaid off and tell the North about their partner. They discussed it with Kaida first, to ensure she was still comfortable with it, and then called for a meeting with the councilmen, knowing the news of their abnormal affiliation would spread naturally to the people of the tribe beyond that point.
The room fell silent out of respect once the Chiefs and Kaida entered, and a few moments after the three of them sat down, Kaida between Desna and Eska. As always, as if testing the loyalty and respect of their councilmen, they waited a full minute before speaking – and got straight to the point when they did.
"We wish to inform the council that we are both courting Kaida, and intend to do so indefinitely."
The silence was deafening as each of the old men processed what had been said. And then, the bedlam.
"Chiefs, with all due respect, surely you must be joking."
"This is entirely improper!"
"She's nothing more than a concubine."
"Nationless, non-bender scum."
"Enough!" Desna bellowed, the first to lose his patience, although Eska looked equally irate. The council quickly fell silent, abruptly reminded of who was truly in charge in the room, and Desna waited until then to continue. "None of you know a thing about her, therefore you have absolutely no room to speak to her character."
"And if you did know her, you would know that both her mind and soul are unmatched in quality," Eska added.
"We have no quarrel with her courtship with Chief Desna, but the two of you sharing her...?"
"More importantly, Chief Eska should not be courting a woman. That is grossly inappropriate and wrong."
Kaida rolled her eyes before glaring at the last man who'd spoken. "With all due respect: get with the times. Women date women; it's not that big of a deal. There are worse problems in the world. Besides, you've been harping on them to find someone to settle down with and produce heirs with since they became Chiefs eight years ago. Now they've found that. I would have expected you all to be thrilled."
"She does have a point," one of them noted, and every other councilman in the room slowly turned to stare at him. He bristled at the clearly judgmental looks, then explained, "While it is strange that they are sharing a partner, at least that means she and Chief Desna will one day conceive heirs. Additionally, if Chief Eska were to have children with a separate suitor, her children could one day choose to pursue the throne. The two Chiefs sharing a partner prevents any strife from occurring between their successors. Regardless of everyone's reasons for disagreeing, their decision is not disadvantageous for the tribe."
The rest of the council grumbled various sounds of agreement, at which point Desna and Eska spoke up again.
"The fact of the matter is: although we value the council's input on matters associated with the tribe, your opinions are irrelevant to our courtship," Eska stated matter-of-factly.
"Trust that we would never court someone who posed any degree of danger to the tribe," Desna requested. "Eska and I swore oaths to ensure the tribe is protected and prosperous, and that is forevermore our obstinate and unyielding goal."
"Not only do we have the tribe's best interest at heart, but we have chosen a partner who shares the same sentiment," Eska added, to which Desna nodded in agreement. "The Northern Water Tribe would be immensely lucky to have her as Chieftess one day."
Kaida couldn't help but smile at Eska's words, and the thinly-veiled alternate meaning that they intended to marry her one day. Little did she know, they had already decided to propose; they just had yet to complete her betrothal necklace.
The room fell silent for several, very tense minutes. Finally, one of the head councilmen spoke up.
"Chiefs, while this arrangement is certainly not what any of us had in mind when we urged you to choose a suitor, there is truth in our fellow councilman's statement: this decision is not harmful to the tribe. So, being that your conjunction poses no threat, and it is a choice made of sound mind and body by our leaders, it is our duty to simply accept it."
The declaration was met with a soft chorus of "aye" from all the other councilmen. Being that she was always skilled in noticing the minute details of the twins' body languages and moods, the way the Chiefs' shoulders subtly released the tension they'd been holding didn't go unnoticed by Kaida, although no one else seemed to take note of it. She discreetly held their hands under the table, and gave each a gentle squeeze of reassurance.