Notes before the beginning…
This story is AU and thus the characters may be found in different cultures, performing different tasks. While I have not changed much, some times had to be changed in order for the story to flow how I would like.
Disclaimer:
Avatar: The last Airbender characters are owned by Nickelodeon. I am in NO WAY making money off of this story or any artwork that may come along.
Miao Shan is owned by the Chinese religion and I mean no disrespect in using her. Most idea's formed around her are the creation of the authors.
Inspiration:
While the story is created by me I have had influences from books, movies and fairytales. If something sounds familiar it is because I have most likely read the book, seen the movie or told the fairytale and felt it deserved a place in my story.
If this offends anyone please remember that I am NOT making money off of this.
About the Puca:
Miao Shan kingdom is made up of creatures from all the four nations. Much like in Avatar, the world is divided into Four Nations, each resembling the elements. But what the nations do not know is that there is a fifth nation, one that combines all in one.
Miao Shan is made up of all nations. They came to this hidden kingdom to escape the horrors of what would happen if their people found out about them. It once was illegal to be Púca and now the world thinks them dead. It is why the household of Miao Shan is made up of the four cultures.
This of course causes many clashes. Katara is of the Morpheus family, their bloodlines trace back to every animal and through careful breeding they have produced the first Chimera that has survived past two years. While Katara can only change into four forms it is enough to grant the title.
Each culture has its own primary animals. Through the breeding some have mixed, but the Morpheus family is pure.
Fire Nation – jaguars, serpents, and cranes.
Water Nation – Artic Foxes, Swans, and polar bears.
Earth Kingdom – Wolves, Crows, and Red Fox
Air Kingdom – Tanuki (raccoon dog), Hawks, and Puma's.
Púca's can only change into ONE of the animals of their race and sometimes their children (if out of culture breeding occurs) has two forms until the age of thirteen and then they must choose.
Katara is different in that each animal has a different strand of DNA in her body.
Characters :
roles, animal form)
Katara - jaguar, a swan, wolf, and a Hawk. Princess to the Miao Shan Kingdom.
Sokka - Polar Bear (Suki's mate) Was going to be the next ruler but gave it up to marry Suki.
Suki – Wolf (Sokka's mate. Katara's Guard)
Toph – Crow. Head of the Royal guard.
Haru – Red Fox (one of the Suitors for Katara)
Aang – Lives in the fire nation. Anthropologist and the only living person who knows the tale of the Púca
Zuko – Prince of the Fire nation, cruel hearted. Loves the hunt and will soon be the Fire Lord.
Azula – sister to Zuko
Iroh – Uncle to Zuko and Azula. Is second in command and also known as the wise-one. People come to him for advice as well as insight. He is the one that warns Zuko of the Púca but more specifically the Fox fairies. Taught Aang everything he knows
Jet – He is both a member of the Fire Nation (Friends with Zuko) and a Púca. He seperates his life by the cycles of the moon and his dissapearence is never questioned; many saying that he is visiting his dying mother. His form is a Cobra and he is also a suitor for Katara.
Hahn – Swan (Suitor for Katara)
(There is no Air Kingdom Suitor for Katara since the only one is Aang, who is the Fire nation)
More Things:
You cannot be turned into a Púca! You are only born one. The Púca do have followers who are people of olden times and tribes who worship them, they perform tasks for the Púca when they cannot get into a city. Púca choose mates and that is the only way to gain some of the traits of a Púca. When you are mated to a Púca (human or other Púca) you gain enterence to the mates mind, there is also a chance that you can live longer then a normal human due to the special abilities Púca have.
This is why many of the human followers are older, because when accepted as a follower they are 'wed' to the Puca (much like a nun in Catholism) and thus gain the ability to live longer.
(Foxes are traditionally creatures of cunning, and according to Northern Chinese myth, when a fox reaches fifty years of age, it will be able to turn itself into a woman. At the age of a hundred, it will be able to transform into a young girl. At a thousand, it will become a celestial fox, and will have grown nine tails. They often appear in the form of girls to scholars studying in the evening, and seduce them. The scholar makes love to the girl, and finds that she has disappeared in the morning, but she returns once more in the evening to do the same thing. The scholar finds himself getting weaker and weaker, until he learns from a Taoist that the girl is a fox who is sucking him dry to obtain the essence of immortality. In case you find yourself in a similar position, other signs that the girl is a fox fairy are her surname, which she will say to be Hu, meaning fox, and the fact that she never changes her clothes, but they never seem to get soiled. Fox fairies also lived invisibly with people in houses in old Beijing, with a fox official keeping watch in the tower at the eastern side gate of the city. Families who share these houses were to put out food for them and not complain when they made noise at night, or else the foxes would put filth in their food supply.)