This is a world, where it's possible to find your soulmate, though not many do. they give up hope, and marry someone they love, knowing it's not their 'true love'. Many believe, that it's a lie, that there is no such thing as true love, soulmates, and happily ever after. How, you ask, can you find your other half? Well, everyone has a gem embedded in their skin. It is a magnet, in a way. The closer you get to your missing puzzle piece, the hotter it gets. But, as I said before, many give up, because they have to travel the world in search of a single person. Years would go by, and their gem wouldn't even reach a luke-warm temperature.
Another matter is, they aren't born with the gem within them. It is an ancient ceremony, very similar to that of the choosing of the Avatar. A child, around the age of three, would be placed in a small room with beautiful artifacts placed on the floor. Diamonds, gold, emeralds, pearls, rubies, amber, sapphires, amethysts, turquoise (the stone), onyx, opal, topaz, etc. The gemstones somehow represent your most, lets say, present quality. Each one has different, meanings? Like a pearl can be purity, patience, beauty, etc. Anyway, after the child chooses the stone, the priestess, preacher, whatever it is for that region or village, will firmly press it directly under the collar bones. The stone will painlessly imbed itself into the flesh. No one really knows how it attracts you to 'the person' it's not because they have the same stone or anything, it's a mystery. but, you don't immediately fall in love randomly. They may be your soulamte, but you have to fall in love with them before they can actually be your soulmate. The person who is closest to you in the world,who will love you, no matter your flaws. You can't just feel your stone get warm, walk up to them and say. "hey, you're my soulmate, let's get married!"
But there are a rare few, that have their chosen stone reject them, and doesn't melt its way into the skin. These people are the ones who destined to be truly alone. All throughout life, alone, they will die alone too. In this world, it is, in a way, dishonorable to you and your family to be barren of any rock, stone, gem etc. It is common that those people are locked away, and not known to exist in the world. This is usually the treatment given to those from royal and/or prestigious families.
It's strange, but it's just the way the world is.
The Princess of Ice
Today, she had turned three, she would choose her precious stone and be given her name.
The queen gently lowered her second child into the room and slowly closed the door. She looked up worriedly at her husband, and fingered her ice cold stone. the heat doesn''t fade even if you find them, it will continue to cool and heat the closer and farther away you are. Sorrow filled her eyes, and she glanced away from the king. The grey sapphire stone was smooth beneath her fingertips and, though no one else had put together the pieces, it represented her selflessness. Hakkoda's was a diamond, it could mean many of his traits. strength, reliability, wealth, the list goes on. Kya had married into royalty, and Hakkoda born into it. She averted her eyes to the door which had the cycle of the moon carved into it.
"What should we name our daughter?" The man she had once thought she loved asked from beside her.
"Katara." Her eyes lit up at the thought of this. Katara. She imagined her daughter to be a beautiful young woman with eyes like the sea on a clear day and with a heart as strong as the diamond in her fathers chest. Yes, Katara would do nicely for a girl like her daughter.
"Well chosen."
"Mamaaaaaaa!"
"What is it Sokka?"
"The others are making fun of me!"
"Why would they do that?"
"They say my gemstone is silly. That no one's chosen it for a hundred years.'
the six year old cluched at his mother's leg and stained her elegant dress with tears.
"NOw Sokka, I think your copper stone is beautiful."
"I don't want it to be beautiful! I want something like Dad's!" Kya picked up her son and looked him straight in the eye.
"Sokka," her voice now stern "It is very rare to have chosen copper. Do you no why that is?"
"No…"
"It is because copper often represents pure creativity. No one knows why, but all who have chosen it have become magnificent artists-"
"but mom-"
"And brilliant fighters. They have invented new bending techniques, sword tactics. All sorts of things. Sokka. You must always be pround of the gem that you bear, no matter what everyone else says, alright?"
The young boy nodded, the tears now having left his eyes. Kya had calmed down as well and set down her son.
"Would you like to stay with us while we wait for your sister to chose?"
"Yeah!"
The young princess stared with wonder in her eyes at the glimmering objects before her. Her grandmother sat quietly with closed eyes next to her. the three year old wandered through the randomly placed shiny spheres, squares, triangles, etc. (all of the things are in shapes, like, hearts and stuff )
She passed silver, gold, copper,iron, steel, opal, diamond, etc. She finally made it to the last object, the farthest thing away from her original place. It was tucked into a dark corner, but shone all the same. she clumsily picked it up and rolled it around in her hands. It was a teardrop shaped, in a way transparent, color splashed stone.
Kana strode towards the toddler and picked up the fragment from soon-to-be-named-katara. She let out a sharp gasp. Sh didn't even know that this stone was here, she had no idea why this little girl would pass all of the other beautiful pieces to go to a dark corner and discover this. Well, actually, it was a beautiful stone, the most beautiful thing the old eyes had ever seen.
Kana took the rare gemstone and placed it against the small girl's chest. (don't you even dare think about it that way you dirty perverts) It sunk in without hesitation, like a boot into freshly fallen snow. The princess clapped her hands and giggled. She began to crawl towards another stone, wanting to play with it.
Katara's grandmother quickly snatched her yp and carried her from the room.
Kya's worried eyes were filled with relief when she saw the stone glittering from within her daughters relief was soon filled with confusion though.
"What type of gemstone is this, mother?"
"It is a moonstone. ONe of the rarest stones of the world. It is said to represent strong will, beauty, royalty," she glanced at Hakkoda," and the trait of a very powerful water bender."
Pride lit up in Hakkoda's eyes, tears of joy sprung into Kya's, and Sokka glared jealously at his sister.
'What will you name your child Kya?"
"Katara, her name is Katara." She knows she has chosen the perfect name as she sees her daughter's eyes.
The Prince of Fire (Two years earlier than katara)
Ursa placed her son into the grand room, it was much larger than required, but the Fire Nation liked to go overboard with things like this. Azula, her one year old, tugged on her husbands goatee. Ozai grinned down at his daughter. She was a prodigy, it was already clear she would be a magnificent fire bender. She could bend before she could walk, and she hasn't learned yet. So, Basically she can currently bend. It only comes out in little spurts of sapphire flame but, still, it's there. Ozai was a caring man. He would do almost anything for his family, and he loved Ursa very much.
They loved each other very, very much.
Usra rubbed her fingers across the pearl that and fused itself into her many years ago. As cold as a corpse. She sighed and glanced up at her husband's grinning face. His amber eyes matched the gem in his chest as he gazed at Azula. Though it was customary to be given one's name at the ceremony, the Fire Lord and Lady had chosen to name her after fFire Lord Azulon.
"Servant!" The man beside her barked out. though he was a sweet and loving man, he was still a born and bred Fire Nation noble.
"Y-y-yes Prince Ozai?" This maid was obviously new, and shaking underneath her red and white robes.
"Take my daughter to the nursery." He placed the 14 month old being into the young woman's arms and gave his attention to the door.
The door, like everything in the palace, was unnecessarily showy. It was a dark mahogany wood with a large sun in the very centre, said carving was surrounded by two dragons blowing fire into the sun.
Ursa fidgeted, wondering what was taking place behind the extraordinarily elegant door.
"Don't worry Ursa, our son won't be rejected."
"How do you know Ozai? How do you know we won't have to lock him away from the world?"
Ozai could obviously see the distress in his wifes eyes, If it wasn't obvious enough by her tone of voice and the questions she was asking.
"What do you want to name him?"
Ursa gave a smile small, thanking her husband for the distraction. "Zuko." Her worry washed away with the simple word. She planned for her son to be a brave and strong warrior of the fire nation. But, she didn't want him to be a voiceless idiot; she wanted her son to be a brave, strong, intelligent, well heard. She wanted Prince Zuko to be his own person.
"A perfect name for a son like ours."
Ursa gave a sad smile and once again let her fingers dance across the pearl in her chest. It was like a piece of ice. Cool to the touch, solid but soft, and smooth to the touch.
She only hoped her son wouldn't have to go through the pain of knowing he is not with the one he was meant to be with. No matter how much he loved that said person.
The young fire prince toddled his way threw glimmering artifacts. He passed dull volcanic rock and shimmering crystal quarts. He cycled the room many times, passing gem after gem, stone after stone.
His golden eyes scanned the room for a more entertaining item. The flicked over opal, topaz, turquoise, obsidian, amethysts, amber, ametrine, etc, etc.
The twins sitting in opposite corners of the room, Lo and Li, worriedly glanced at the prince.
"Why hasn't he chosen?"
"He's looked at everything."
"Should we just choose for him?"
"We can't,"
"He's taking too long."
"Patience, sister." Li went back to staring straight ahead while the patter of the young boy's chubby feet continued as he wandered around the room.
Lo internally fumed and she too looked straight ahead, trying to ignore the amount of time that had passed since the un named boy had been placed next to the door.
Lo and Li looked towards the small boy when the slap of bare feet on hard floors halted. All of the three year old's attention was directed on a red six pointed star. The twins looked at each other, then the toddler. The got up in unison and matched steps as they made their way towards him.
Lo snatched the stone away from his hands and Li held him up.
Lo pushed the sunset colored stone right under the collarbones of the boy with her index and middle fingers and he squirmed around in the other twin's grip as the sinking artifact tickled him.
Li let soon-to-be-named-zuko rest on her hips as the two elderly women walked out of the glittering room.
Ursa's eyes lit up as the stone in her son's chest glittered in the firelight. Ozai's, however, clouded with confusion.
"What type of stone is that?"
"Sunstone." THe twins said in unison, their voices monotone.
"What-"
"You'll find out Ozai. Just be glad he has a giant block of minerals in is flesh." Lo spat out, frustrated that he couldn't just find out what his son was like on his own. The Fire Prince huffed and crossed his arms.
Li directed her attention to Ursa. "What will you name your child?"
"Zuko." Ursa's voice cracked and the beginning of tears popped into her eyes. She took her child away from the ice cold woman.
The toddler, exhausted, fell asleep in his mother's arms.
"Yes, Zuko will be the perfect name for him."
A/N K, so I don't own avatar or any of it's characters. Only this story's plot and stuffez. Umm, I'm up for constructive criticism and I would love some reviews! I NEED MOTIVATION TO WRITE!
ugh i suck at this.
so umm, enjoy, have fun, feedback, what would you like in the future, etc.