My character, Princess Liling, whose name translates to 'sound of the white jasmine'. She is the daughter of General Iroh. She has pale, white hair and bright blue eyes and is an incredibly talented firebender who can also skillfully wield lightning and lava. She willingly goes into exile with Iroh and Zuko to help them find the Avatar and restore Zuko's honor.
Chapter 1: Setting Sail
Disclaimer: I own nothing except my OC
Lightning clashed with lightning as the sound of grass frying and laughter filled the air. "Nice try, Azula, but you'll have to try harder than that to beat the daughter of the Dragon of the West!" Liling shouted, pulling out of the pose she had struck upon dodging yet another ball of lightning.
"You mean daughter of the man who lost during the siege of Ba Sing Se? I wouldn't be comparing myself to a loser if I were you." Azula retorted as her hair was nearly singed by a well thrown lightning strike.
"He lost only one of his hundreds of battles. I'm honored you'd compare to me to a man of such achievements." Liling replied, simply ducking out of the way of the blow Azula aimed at her. Rather than return the blow, she continued to dance out of the way of Azula's blows.
"Of course you would say that. He's nothing more than a coward. After all, he did retreat." Azula taunted with a smirk.
"A man who knows he's been beaten and retreats is smarter than any man who knows he's been beaten and continues to fight. Maybe you should take this advice." With that, Liling swept Azula's feet out from under her and pointed her lightning lit hand at her neck.
Azula glowered up at her for a moment before breaking into a smile. Liling unlit her hand and held it out to Azula who gladly took it and was helped to her feet. "It's nice to finally be given a challenge by somebody around here."
"I wasn't trained at the Royal Fire Nation Academy for Girls for nothing." Liling modestly replied, dusting herself off, before adding as an afterthought, "And you're not so bad yourself."
The two beamed at each other when a messenger rushed into the courtyard. He bowed before announcing "Princess Liling, Princess Azula, General Iroh's ship is pulling into the harbor as we speak." Liling grinned gleefully while Azula glowered.
Not sparing her sparring partner a second glace, Liling raced off towards the beach, literally bouncing off the walls to increase her speed. Guards who got in her way were completely outmatched and toppled over. Arriving at the docks, she saw the familiar figure of her father and quickly enveloped him in a hug, pressing her face against his chest. Iroh wrapped his arms around her in reply and the two silently hugged her. After the hug, the two pulled apart and looked each other in the eye, tears glistening from them. Holding them back, Liling pushed her head back into his chest.
Iroh smiled slightly and suggested "Let's head inside. First order of business is to make a nice cup of tea."
This got Liling to smile. "I actually started brewing a pot of white jasmine tea upon hearing of your arrival."
Iroh reciprocated the smile and said "That's my girl." The two walked towards Iroh's chambers, Iroh shooing away his fellow soldiers and guards, placing a hand on his daughter's shoulder. Once in his chambers, Iroh shut the door behind them as Liling picked up a kettle from the fire and poured two cups of tea, handing one to Iroh. He smiled appreciatively at her and took a long drawl. "Ah." he moaned happily, smacking his lips. Upon opening his eyes to look down on his daughter, he noticed a pained look on her face.
"He's really gone, isn't he?" Without her having to say his name, Iroh knew she was talking about Lu Ten, Iroh's deceased son and Liling's deceased brother. She looked into his eyes and continued "I know he is but I feel like he's going to just show up any minute. It's crazy, I know, but I can't just accept that my brother, one of the greatest firebenders on the planet, is dead."
"I know it's hard to accept he's gone. I'm sorry he's gone." Iroh replied, reaching for her hand.
"No. Don't apologize. It's not your fault and I'll never think it was. Azula's blaming you enough for the both of us." Liling mumbled bitterly.
"Azula?" Iroh mused, thoughtfully stroking his beard.
With a disgruntled sigh, Liling explained "She believes you to be a disgraceful coward for retreating from Ba Sing Se. We were sparring and I know she was simply attempting to bait me, but it worked. It infuriates me the way your brother and his family treats you so poorly. And the fact that he was made ruler of the Fire Nation even though you were next in line baffles me. You don't know how awful it was being here without you."
Iroh had been frowning but after the last bit, he smiled. Scooting closer to his daughter, he informed her "I was actually planning on going on another trip soon. Would you be interested in joining?"
"Anything to get me out of here." Liling sighed gratefully. "When are we going?"
"Tonight."
"And why?"
At that, Iroh glanced away. Gently, Liling placed the tips of her fingers against his cheek and turned his face towards her own. "Your cousin Prince Zuko has been banished by his father. He may not return home. And since I'm not very welcome here, I've decided to go into exile with him."
Liling had not been expecting that. "What? Why was he exiled?"
"He… spoke out of turn at a war council meeting so his father challenged him to a duel. Zuko refused to fight so he was scarred and thusly banished." Iroh said, heaving a sullen sigh.
"Zuko…" Liling mournfully trailed off. Shaking her head as though to clear it, she said "I don't care why he's banished, even though that's a horrible reason. I'm coming with you. I won't be separated from you ever again."
"Never again." Iroh agreed, hugging her. The two pulled apart after a moment and polished off the tea.
Setting her cup aside, Liling proposed "I suppose we should get packed if we're indeed leaving tonight."
"Of course. I'll leave you to your packing." Iroh replied, taking leave of the room.
As he pushed back the curtain, Liling pulled out a rucksack and filled it with several outfits, as well as a couple provisions in cause they needed to make a quick escape. Looking around the room, her eyes fell on a picture of her brother. Choking back a sob, she grabbed the picture and hugged it to her chest. After a moment, she rolled up the picture and slid it into a side pocket of her bag. She was shouldering her bag when a voice called "And just where do you think you're going?"
Turning around, she saw Azula. "Azula. So nice of you to drop by. Won't you come in?" Liling greeted, denoting to the empty space Azula was welcome to fill.
She haughtily pushed the curtain out of the way and demanded yet again "Where are you going?"
"I'm leaving with Iroh. We've decided to go into exile with Zuko." Liling explained, adjusting the strap on her bag.
Azula looked astonished. Placing her hand on top of Liling's, she pleaded "I can understand Uncle going with Zuzu but why are you? Liling, you're a great bender. Stick with me and we can crush the other nations."
Liling looked away from Azula as she replied "Azula, you're my best friend, but Iroh needs me." Sparing a glance at Azula, Liling caught her glower, and added "Besides, you don't need my help. Not like Iroh anyway. I mean, he did just lose a major battle, did he not? But you, Azula, you will never lose. Please allow me to leave with him."
Azula pondered this request for a moment, Liling unconsciously chewing on her lip as she waited for the dreaded reply. After a moment, Azula laughed. "You're right, the old fool does need your help. You're probably the second best firebender here, right after me of course. So go. But you know Zuko's never coming back, right?"
"What do you mean he's never coming back?" Liling interjected.
Azula scoffed. "You mean Uncle didn't tell you? Zuko can only return home if he finds the Avatar."
"But the Avatar hasn't been seen for a hundred years!"
Azula smirked. "That's the point. So you make sure you don't end up stuck with him. You'll be welcome whenever you decide to come back, the sooner the better, I might add."
"Azula…" Liling trailed off but was cut off.
"No, I know what you're going to say but there's no need. You're welcome." With an eye roll, Azula pulled Liling into a hug. Liling gladly returned the hug, which ended just as quickly as it began. Azula gripped her by the shoulders, pushed her back, and said "You should go. Your ship will be leaving soon."
Liling's face softened as she replied "Good bye, Azula. I know we'll be reunited soon." Liling hugged her tightly before making her way to Iroh's room. Azula watched her go before heading off in the opposite direction.