Sorry for the delay, things just kept coming at me these last two years. And I had to rewrite much of what I had already written because I realised I will latter need some background for some characters so I thought it best to add that now instead of earlier. I promise I will finish this story if it's the last thing I do... And I'm still looking for a beta.
Do not forget to keep checking the updates of the map at undeclinable D OT deviantart D OT c om. And to consult the Map of the World of Avatar at the Avatar Wikia for further details.
(Modestinus libro quarto differentiarum). In sponsalibus contrahendis aetas contrahentium definita non est ut in matrimoniis, quapropter et a primordio aetatis sponsalia effici possunt, si modo id fieri ab utraque persona intellegatur, id est, si non sint minores quam septem annis.
In contracting a betrothal the age of the contracting parties has not been defined as it has in the case of marriage. Therefore even from the earliest age a betrothal can be made, as long as it is understood by each party that this is happening, that is, as long as they are not younger than age seven. – D.23.1.14
(Pomponius libro tertio ad Sabinum). Minorem annis duodecim nuptam tunc legitimam uxorem fore, cum apud virum explesset duodecim annos.
A girl married when she was less than twelve years old will be a legitimate wife at the time when she has completed her twelfth year at her husband's home. – D.23.2.4
(Paulus libro trigesimo quinto ad edictum). Nuptiae consistere non possunt nisi consentiant omnes, id est qui coeunt quorumque in potestate sunt.
Marriage is not able to occur unless all consent, that is, those who join together and those in whose power they are. – D. 23.2.2
(Iulianus libro sexto decimo digestorum). Sponsalia sicut nuptiae consensu contrahentium fiunt: et ideo sicut nuptiis, ita sponsalibus filiam familias consentire oportet.
Betrothal, like marriage, occurs by the consent of those contracting it: and just as in marriage, it is necessary for a daughter under paternal power to consent to her betrothal. – D. 23.1.11
(Ulpianus libro singulari de sponsalibus). Sed quae patris uoluntati non repugnat, consentire intellegitur. Tunc autem solum dissentiendi a patre licentia filiae conceditur, si indignum moribus vel turpem sponsum ei pater eligat.
But she who does not fight against her father's will is understood to consent. Moreover, the liberty to dissent from her father is only allowed to the daughter if her father chooses for her a shameful fiancé or one of unworthy habits. – D.23.1.12
(Paulus libro trigesimo quinto ad edictum). In sponsalibus etiam consensus eorum exigendus est, quorum in nuptiis desideratur. intellegi tamen semper filiae patrem consentire, nisi evidenter dissentiat, Iulianus scribit.
Even in betrothal consent must be demanded of those whose (consent) is desired in marriage. Julian writes, however, that the father is always understood to consent to his daughter's (betrothal), unless he clearly objects. – D.23.1.7
Iustum matrimonium est, si inter eos qui nuptias contrahunt conubium sit, et tam masculus pubes quam femina potens sit, et uterque consentiant, si sui iuris sunt, aut etiam parentes eorum, si in potestate sunt.
Legitimate marriage (iustum matrimonium) occurs, if the right to marry (conubium) exists between those who are contracting marriage, and the male is as mature as the female is capable (of intercourse), and they both consent, if they are legally independent, or their parents also consent if they are in (paternal) power. – Rules of Ulpian 5.2
(Ulpianus libro trigensimo sexto ad Sabinum). Nuptias non concubitus, sed consensus facit.
Sleeping together does not make marriage, but consent does. – D.50.17.30
(Ulpianus) Si mulier et maritus diu seorsum quidem habitaverint, sed honorem invicem matrimonii habebant (quod scimus interdum et inter consulares personas subsecutum), puto donationes non valere, quasi duraverint nuptiae: non enim coitus matrimonium facit, sed maritalis affectio.
Indeed, if a woman and her husband have lived apart for a long time, but kept the honour of marriage on both sides, which we know sometimes ensues even among consular persons, I think that donations (between them) are not valid, just as if the marriage has lasted. For sexual intercourse does not make a marriage, but the marital frame of mind (affectio maritalis) does. – D, 24,1,32,13.
"Roman law did not require the performance of any ceremony, religious or secular, for validation of a marriage. There were ceremonies connected with betrothal and weddings, but there is no mention of them in the legal sources [...] because they were not relevant to the legal validity of a marriage […] (Page 82). An absent father might not even be aware of his child's marriage arrangements until presented with a fait accompli. But in this case, his lack of active objection implied tacit consent." (Page 89) – J.E. Grubbs. Women and Law in the Roman Empire. London & New York: Routlege, 2002.
The sunlight had just begun to shower the garden and Lord Bei's tulips the morning that his son's Komodo rhino rode through the entrance to his villa. Lady Ta Jing, Lord Bei's wife, and her daughters saw their beloved son and brother arrive from the window of the main house. They immediately ordered the servants to fetch Lord Bei from the garden where he was tending to his pond and barely had time to order a great feast to be made for the occasion. It was the first time in almost three years that Yuan Bei returned to the home islands. He had been at the front lines serving as commander of one of Gral. Bujing's elite squadrons.
Lord Bei came running and passed through the bushes, stepping on his beloved collection of daffodils. He threw himself into his son's arms in tears. The poor man had been worried sick. The family spend the next hours in merry conversation and enjoyed the sumptuous dinner Lady Bei had organized at the last minute.
Commander Yuan Bei the twenty one year old son and heir to the Bei's Lordship spent a better part of the day playing with his sisters and a the whole evening entertaining the family with stories of his exploits on the front.
Much to Lord Bei's pride, his son took the bother to greet the servants and actually asked about their affairs and thanked them for their loyal and efficient work in his absence. Lord Bei had raised his son to be upright and respectful even to his inferiors and to care for his vassals as befit a young lord.
As the night approached and Lady Bei and her daughters took their leave. Lord Bei thought it proper to speak with his son of more pressing matters.
"How long will you be staying with us?" He asked.
"I've been granted temporary leave for just a week father." answered the young commander. "I was tasked with escorting the wounded back into Pohuai and from there I was granted permission to visit you. I've been ordered to take command of two squadrons and march them north to join with Gral. Bujin in Najuan."
"Did you happen to run into Gral. Iroh?" Asked his father, waiting for an opportunity to finally let him on one if his most guarded secrets.
"I did not have the honour father, but I did get a look of prince Zuko before I left Pohuai. The colonies are in uproar about him, I've heard his name everywhere I went."
"Indeed, the court is bussing about news from him. Were you formally introduced to his majesty?"
"I did not have the honour father, he was just arriving the day I was supposed to set out." Answered the young commander. "But I most admit I'm a bit sceptic about some of the things they say about him".
"Such as?" Inquired the old lord.
"I'm ready to believe that he somehow managed to stop a moderate amount of lava from destroying the village, such things have happened before." He paused before he formulated his doubt. "But I simply cannot conceive a way in which a man could even touch lava without getting burned. I mean I saw his majesty and he was in perfect health. I do not understand how many honourable and trustworthy people claim to have seen him swim in lava".
"Do not torture yourself over it, it's very likely an exaggeration". Answered Lord Bei calmly, he didn't know the details of course, Gral. Iroh had deemed necessary to keep him at a safe distance from his plans. Most probably to protect him, but the old lord knew enough to suppose that this sudden fame that had engulfed prince Zuko was Iroh's doing.
"What have you heard father?"
Lord Bei took a deep breath, he knew the moment had come, he just needed to find a way to tell him, he trusted him, he was an honest and loyal son, he was sure he'd understand the decisions he'd taken over the years, but that did not prevent his position to seem seditious at best.
"You are aware my son, of the many ties we have with the royal family, and specifically with General Iroh."
Commander Yuan nodded in understanding, he knew that it pained his father when he spoke about his passed daughter. And yet his father's relationship with general Iroh went deeper than that. Despite being ten years older than Iroh, they had both studied laws together under late Lord Sun as well as the art of ruling, their friendship was very similar to that between late the Fire Lord Azulon and the late Lord Sun, many whispered that it was only in that account that Iroh had assented to marry the much younger Lady Quiao Bei, a lady that was in no way objectionable on account of her appearance but nonetheless unequal to her peers at court in that regard.
"Then you must know the many debts of honour we have to Gral. Iroh, he and the late Fire Lord Azulon always honoured us with their friendship and attention despite of the low status of our family". Admitted Lord Bei.
Once again the young commander simply nodded in response, he knew that his father exaggerated when he qualified his own family as low, but it was an undeniable fact that their family, much like that of the late Lord Sun had risen to prominence by virtue of the talents of their leaders and Azulon's politic of favouring and elevating competent men to high posts, not because if the splendour of their linage or the power they held over many vassals. If they were to compare their possessions, history and lineage and riches to those of the Lee family for instance, they'd be forced to admit a significant difference in status, theirs was a modest family, and there were others that dwarfed them completely, like the Shang family, or the Jing's and above all the Kang family and the Royal Family itself.
"I'm not entirely sure of his reasons, but I suspect the General is trying to regain his influence over Ozai using prince Zuko".
"What?" Asked the commander prompting a disproving look from his father to which he immediately reacted. "Forgive me father, my tone was inappropriate, but I do not understand".
"Do you remember the aftermath of Fire Lord Azulon's funeral?" Asked the old Lord with a dark tone.
The commander gulped, of course he remembered, he had been a sixteen year old officer cadet then. But he still remembered the commotion that had ensued when Azulon's testament was read, nobody could believe that he had relegated Iroh in favour of Ozai. He knew his fathered still held suspicions as did everyone with a brain.
Everybody knew that Azulon had been preparing to abdicate in favour of Iroh, he had even appointed Iroh's close friends and allies to prominent positions after prince Lu Ten's dead in order to calm the uneasiness and demoralisation that the prince's death had caused. Iroh's sudden disappearance a few days before Azulon's death had triggered all alarms, the capital had been boiling with discontent and suspicion. Iroh and Lu Ten and Azulon were well loved, whereas Ozai was pretty much unknown to the population and his immediate actions after Azulon's death had been severe and disproportionate, it was obvious that he had been trying to secure his throne.
It was whispered that Lord Sun had secretly planned to speak to the Fire Council before Ozai had the chance to gain control over it and appoint himself Lord Commander and Protector, a title reserved for national emergencies when the Fire Lord was unable to react to a crisis and a man was named supreme commander of the Army and invested with unlimited authority, until the situation was properly cleared up. There were those who secretly claimed to have received Lord Sun's preliminary instructions for an investigation that was to take place.
And yet Lord Sun had suddenly died before he could act, his medics claimed that he had died of natural causes, but the whole thing was undeniably suspicious. It was an undoubtedly fact that he and his dear friend Azulon had been very old, both over ninety years old to be accurate, and yet they both had been the pinnacle of health and lucidity.
Princess Ursa had mysteriously disappeared the very same day when Lord Bei was found dead in his chambers, apparently he had collapsed while reading his correspondence. His lasts orders had been to his guards to be on high alert and hawks had been sent with instructions to his close subordinates and loyal vassals to arms themselves. Admiral Jeong Jeong had jumped from his ship never to be seen again and was now treated as a deserter, rumour had it that there had been an attempt on his life.
Ozai had marched what troops he could trust into the capital and done everything to prevent the Fire Council from meeting, his coronation had taken place while his troops harassed those noble whose loyalty to Iroh was unquestionable. Iroh's army had prepared to march into the home islands. Civil War was at hand. Iroh's sudden reappearance a few months later served only to rally three thirds of the nation behind him, everybody expected him to storm the capital, he had all the military and popular support behind him.
Commander Yuan would never forget the pale stunned face of his father when Iroh acknowledged Azulon's testament and recognised his younger brother as his sovereign. Despite Iroh's support of Ozai's claims of innocence and the subsequent investigations that confirmed the natural death of both Lord Sun and Fire Lord Azulon and the late Fire Lord's will, the suspicion still hung in the air, and the many slights that both sides had inflated upon the other as well as Ozai's severity had divided the nation, that wound had not even begun to heal.
"I do father". Finally said the young commander, noticing that he had begun to sweat and that an impetuous fear had taken hold of his heart.
"It is no secret that our family, just like that of many other noble houses took a very clear stand behind the General, and it is for that reason that many competent and capable men have been replaced by idiotic sycophants." Lord Bei looked at his obviously stunned son and gave him time to breath and regain his composure before continuing.
"I do not know the details but I think I have a clear picture of what the General is intending". Lord Bei took a sip of his tea before continuing, with an exhalation he prevented himself from torturing his son with his own firmly held doubts about Ozai's ascension, they would do him no good, as long as Iroh himself recognised Ozai's claim and innocence no man would dare to openly question what had transpired in those fateful days.
"For the last three years I have been continuously questioning the General's decision of following Prince Zuko into exile. But it became clear to me a few weeks ago when the General asked me and a few other loyal lords to operate in order to bring about prince Zuko's return." Lord Bei looked at his son intensively before asking.
"Do you understand why he might do such a thing?".
"He's his nephew and the only male heir of Ozai, and I heard that prince Zuko's exile was completely unjust, he was ordered on an impossible task, is only natural that he…"
Lord Bei cleared his throat in disapproval. "Yes, those would be perfectly valid reasons for wanting to help prince Zuko return. Everybody knows that the general has always been very fond of the boy, the general is a just man, it's only natural that he'd try to bring about justice. But then again, why do so in secret? Why not openly oppose Ozai in the Fire Council?"
Commander Yuan took a moment to reflect. "It'll be counter productive, Ozai would take it as challenge to his authority."
Lord Bei sighed. "Yes, it's true, but have you ever wondered why he didn't intervine when Ozai exiled the prince? Why did he choose to follow him in exile? What do you think he has been doing all these years? Do you honestly believe the general has done nothing but chase a legend?"
"He's been training him?" Asked the younger Bei.
"Yes I suspect he has been grooming him to rule. And this whole volcano business must be nothing than a stunt to increase Prince Zuko's popularity" Concluded Lord Bei.
"Do you see why he might want to do such a thing?"
"Because prince Zuko has a legitimate reason to influence the court." Answered the commander as the sudden realization hit him. "General Iroh is incapable of openly acting against Ozai's wishes without sparkling a war, but prince Zuko is no threat to Ozai, he can influence the Fire Council and even attempt to influence the designation of key ministers".
"Yes". Said Lord Bei in approval. "Do you understand what that would mean to you?"
"Me?"
"Of course! I'm far to close to General Iroh to hope to reach a high position ever again. But the new generation is not conditioned by its closeness to General Iroh or Prince Lu Ten. Now I see it clearly, the General has been teaching prince Zuko how to be a proper ruler, away from Ozai's influence and the court sycophants. He's taking advantage of the fact that prince Zuko's relationship with his father is strained." Lord Bei was about to further explain himself when his son interrupted him.
"Does that mean that General Iroh intentionally did nothing to prevent prince Zuko's banishment in order to sever the prince's ties with his father?" The implication did not escape Lord Bei.
"My son, it's not what you think. It's true that General Iroh is a very cunning and he probably planned this stratagem to regain influence through prince Zuko the moment the boy was exiled, but he's an honest and honourable man, if he'd had the chance to prevent such an outrageous act he would have done so, but under the circumstances doing so would have further provoked Ozai's rage. Anyway it's Ozai's responsibility alone if he decided to banish his own son, the General merely acted based on the circumstances to the best interests of the nation. Now the prince is passing his military trials, I suspect that when he passes the tests, we'll see a motion in the Council to appoint prince Zuko to a position of command, General Iroh will keep his position as prince Zuko's personal advisor and direct the war efforts through the prince." Explained Lord Bei.
"It will take long before the Fire Lord approves such a motion". Exclaimed commander Yuan Bei in astonishment.
"Yes, perhaps, but if in the mean time Iroh will direct the prince in claiming the his rightful position as crown prince."
"But father, if Prince Zuko is aiming for a position of command why did he joined the special forces?" Asked Yuan.
"He joined the special forces?" Was the sole answer that Lord Bei could muster. There was no rational explanation for it, the special forces operated undercover, there was no way the prince could make a show of his skills as commander from a unit that was based on secrecy. "I'm sure Gral. Iroh has a plan". Lord Bei knew he didn't sound very convincing, but it was the only thing he could think of.
"Any way" continued the old man "I'm telling you this so that you put extra effort and discipline, it could take a couple of years until Prince Zuko is appointed to a high position and when he does the first thing Gral. Iroh will counsel him to do is to surround himself with competent and capable men, I'm sure that Gral. Iroh will think of you when the time comes".
"I will father, I won't disappoint you". Answered the commander excitedly, the bad taste of that the memories of darker days had evoked evaporated as this new ray of hope illuminated them, they were finally get out of this humiliating ostracism in which they had been trapped since Ozai assumed the throne.
Lord Bei lovingly caressed his son's hear, like he used to do when he was a child. For the first time he noticed a scar above his son's right ear, the sight brought him back to more present matters.
"Was it as horrible as it seems?" Asked the old man, his son merely sighted, hopeless, there was no need for the old Lord further inquire.
"It was worse father". Began the commander. "I hope you won't think of me as a coward". He paused and looked at his fathers eyes. "I'm ready to day any day for my nation, but I doubted on many an occasion if my sacrifice was worth it. You should see how demoralized the men are. Even before we began the campaign we had trouble while we camped near Gaipan, the population there hates us, Gral. Bujing had to whip to death some rebels that wouldn't stop harassing us, he gave free reign to Colonel Mongke and his Rough Rhinos to burn all the villages to the ground where the slightest amount of resistance sprouted." He paused to take a deep gulp of wine before continuing with his reminisce.
"After we left Gaipan we marched towards Najuan. The first few weeks we didn't encounter much resistance, but we found no source of food, all the villages and citied had been turned to dust and the fields put to the torch, we were completely dependent on our supply line." He took another gulp.
"Gral. Fong's army never presented battle, he just kept harassing our supply lines with small attacks with their cavalry, mostly by night. During the day we met nothing but steppes, hundreds and hundreds of kilometres of steppes father; the wells and rivers were poisoned or filled with corpses of the dead or the carcass of livestock, on the abandoned towns we found nothing but the heads of our comrades." The commander didn't notice that his hand had begun to tremble.
"We became infested with lice and fleas, half of my squadron became ill with typhoid, cholera and dysentery after two months march. And then the bloody rains came, the earth dissolved right under our feet. The mud was almost half a meter deep and so sticky and disgusting that one of my lieutenants actually drowned in it when he lost his way during the night. We had to leave a third of our tanks stranded when they gut stuck. Father, we could advance almost a hundredth kilometers a day during the dry season, bur after the rains came we could barely reach ten even despite Gral. Bujing's severity."
Lord Bei sighted in desperation, his son had confirmed his worst expectations. He signaled a servant to pour more wine for him.
"I heard Bujing took Langlung three days ago. Ozai had declared a national celebration is in order."
The commander's chuckle interrupted the old man.
"The Fire Lord doesn't seem to realize what a costly victory that was, if we can call it a victory at all. We outnumbered the enemy three to one, we had the better technology and we had tanks, and we still lost a third of our men taking that rat's hole, we got lucky that Gral. Fong did not arrive with reinforcements on time or we would have lost much more; and our strategic situation has gotten actually worse, we gained absolutely nothing from that mountainous fortress. Only Gral. Fu dared to openly plead to Gral. Bujing to bypass Langlung and head directly to Najuan but he wouldn't listen, I'm sure that even his officers and generals realized that this detour was folly. Now the army is stuck there licking it's wounds and hoping to reach Najuan before winter arrives. But with Gral. Fong guarding it with his two hundredth thousand savages and his elite guards it will be a carnage."
"He should retreat." Whispered Lord Bei and his son looked at him, a couple of tears escaped his eyes, it was humiliating to hear that all those sacrifices had amounted to nothing in his father's eyes but deep down he knew his father was right, it was to risky. They could not hope to make it trough the winter if they remained in Langlung, if they failed to take Najuan they'd be forced in an even more painful and humiliating retreat. If they took Najuan they would be dependent on the Navy breaking through the blockade between Xixuan and Nixuan and suppling them via the Wu river. There were too many ifs.
"What if our campaign fails?" Asked the commander. Lord Bei wanted to reassure his son and tell him that everything would be alright, but he knew that the campaign had already failed, it was just a question of finding out how costly it had been for them. Even now he had to fight the impulse to take his komodo rhino and march into the palace to beg the Fire Lord to stop this madness, but Lord Kang's warning clinched in his ears like an agonizing screech, he simply embraced his son and told him with a hopeless voice.
"Then that is the future we must accept".
Eight years ago.
"Come on guys, we're gonna get caught". Said Ty Lee exasperated as she turned to pull the sleeves of her friends, young Lady Mai and Prince Zuko. She guided them through the big streets around the palace from which they had temporarily escaped.
As they blended in with the crowds Ty Lee kept looking back at her two curious friends, unlike her, they had never stepped outside the palace without guards accompanying them. Zuko seemed the most insecure as they entered the market and the intense racket of the thousands of voices of merchants and locals intertwined with the bustle of people transporting merchandise or passing by. Ty Lee noticed with a smile that Zuko was not used at all at being pushed and shoved around by people larger than him. His indignant face when a fruits dealer scream at him "Watch where you're going kid!" was priceless.
They continued through the stalls of the fruit vendors and turned right to towards the clothing stands at the end of the street, Mai's voice stopped them in their tracks.
"I'm not going through there" said Mai suddenly but firmly as she realised that they had to cross through the fishermen alley. "Uggg... it stinks".
Ty Lee knew that there's was no arguing with her on such matters, so she guided them back from where they came in order to go around that particular street.
"Remind me again why are we here..." came Mai's annoyed voice as they made their way through the baker's street.
"We're here to buy a gift for Azula's birthday Mai". Said Ty Lee in her usual cheerful voice. "We agreed to get her a hair pin that does not obstruct her when trading."
"I don't remember agreeing to any of this..." Stated Zuko. "And I do not see why can't you ask a servant to fetch one for you..."
Ty Lee turned a little aggravated, it had taken her weeks to convince them to go with her on her little mission. "It's not the same Zuko, the whole point of it is choosing something that Azula will like, it supposed to be special". She said for the eleventh time.
"I'm sure that she has a hundredth hair pins better than we could ever get her". Came Mai's dry and unequivocal voice.
"It's not about that, it's about we getting her something nice." Countered Ty Lee. "That's what being friends it's about".
They kept arguing about the subject while they searched over the market. Though they did have a point, Ty Lee admitted to herself, it was dumb to think that they could find anything for Azula that she could not get herself and they ran the risk of her disliking their gift, as Zuko often pointed to them. She was however adamant that they should do something special for Azula this year. They would be going to the Fire Nation Academy for Girls this summer and Azula was going to spend more time there only coming back over the weekends, much to Zuko's satisfaction, whereas Mai and Ty Lee would remain living in the Palace.
After half an hour of rummaging the stalls they finally found something that filled Ty Lee's expectations and hopefully would please princess Azula.
"Why don't we take a stroll and go by the river before returning?" Suggested an exited and much pleased Ty Lee.
"What? Have you any idea in how much trouble we'll be if the servants notice that we went outside the palace unguarded?" Exclaimed the young prince.
"Come on it'll be fun! We can grab some fire flackes and look at the fishermen!"
"And why would we want to do that?" Asked Mai coldly.
"Because it's fun!" Screamed Ty Lee as she hugged her friend and led her away. With a sigh Zuko followed suit, he liked fire flakes anyway and he knew that he could not force the two girls to return without causing a scandal which would give away their scape. After getting the fire flakes they strolled along the river and watched the children play along the shore line.
"Awww we should have brought our swimming suits…" Said Ty Lee with a pout that made her cheeks turn pink.
"That water's disgusting Ty Lee" Said Mai with a grimace. "and those people stink of fish, if you want to swim you can always go to the lagoon near the palace tower or you can ask your father to take you to Ember Island".
"You're no fun!" Accused Ty Lee with her best attempt of a frown. Zuko simply chuckled at how she looked when she tried to look angry. They were about to enter the small grove that marked the end of the river shore and paved the way to back to the city and the palace itself when something caused Mai to squeal.
"Ewwww…. what is that!" She said as she pointed to a small screeching ball of black fur.
"Awww… it's a cat owl" said Ty Lee as she picked it up. "it must have fallen from its nest".
"Ewww… you're touching it." Exclaimed a disbelieving Mai as Ty Lee passed her and began climbing to a tree in order to search for the cat owl's nest.
"Poor thing" She whispered to the trembling kitten. "Look there's your family!" Ty Lee pointed towards a small hole in the trunk. She carefully placed the small creature among its siblings. "Zuko, Mai come up here! They're adorable!"
"I'm not going anywhere near those things." Answered Mai firmly and looked at Zuko for support.
"Ty Lee get down here we have to get back!" Said Zuko.
"I'm not going down until one of you comes up!" Ty Lee crossed her arms in stubborn defiance.
"It's not funny Ty Lee, it's already been two hours. Azula should be back from her lessons any minute now, if she doesn't find us she's gonna tell."
"I said I'm not coming down until…" A loud crack cut her reply short.
"Ahhhh!" Screamed Ty Lee as the branch gave in under her weight and she fell. She closed her eyes and covered her head and waited for the impact. To her utter surprise instead of the hard floor she felt contact with a body.
"Ughh" Heard Ty Lee as she opened her eyes. Mai and Zuko were under her, they had somehow managed to jump and catch her in midair breaking he fall. Unfortunately they had not been able to avoid the branch itself which had fallen on top of them, along with Ty Lee herself.
"Spirits! Are you guys hurt?" Asked Ty Lee worriedly.
"We'll be better the moment you get off our backs". Replied Mai.
"Ohh! I'm sorry". Ty Lee quickly got of her friends and helped them up. After ensuring that nobody was hurt they began their way back to the palace despite Ty Lee's protests.
"We should go back here to check on them next week!" Suggested Ty Lee suddenly as they climbed the wall back into the palace.
"No". Came the simultaneous answer of Mai and Zuko.
"Come on it'll be our secret, with Azula gone we'll have more time to check on them". Continued Ty Lee excitedly. "Besides you still haven't seen how cute those cat owls are".
"Nor do I want to". Replied Mai.
"Aww Mai, why doesn't anybody like to have fun around here?".
Lady Ty Lee woke up with a gasp and instinctively looked around, she was in the same abandoned barn where she had sought refuge the night before. It had gotten incredibly cold after she had descended from the boat that took her across the Daquin River; she had wished to avoid being seen anywhere in town and she had wanted to spare what little money she had left, going to the local inn was out of the question. She had walked well into midnight regretting with every step having only taken her light clothes and nothing warmer for the travel, luckily she had come upon an abandoned and half burned farm a few kilometres from the city, she had fallen asleep like a rock. She tossed about and looked at the ceiling, it was a wonder that the thing had not fallen down. She sighed as she sought about her recent dream, this only added further doubts in her hear towards her decisions, after all they had gone through, would prince Zuko help her?
Does he even consider me her friend anymore? With another heavy sigh she tried to think about the nice moments they had sent together with Mai and Azula. The sunshine glittered as it caressed her exposed calves and tights, the sigh made her concentrate on her own appearance, it was truly no wonder that men kept coming after her. It brought her no pride nor joy the knowledge that she was probably the most beautiful woman in the world.
Along with my sisters… She thought, and her mind wandered again to a sad reminisce.
Lady Ty Lee was a beautiful woman, she had been told so since she could understand human speech. You are as beautiful as your mother. Was perhaps the most common phrase ever directed at her, and yet the compliments had lost almost all their charm, specially since the same endearing words would be used in all of her six sisters, sisters that happened to look exactly like her. Ty Lee was only one of the seven daughters of Lord Shu Lee and Lady Xiao Deng, and this young noble girl had come to believe that fate had decided that she'd be perennially involved in gossip and scandal.
The beauty of Lady Xiao had been proverbial since she was first introduced to the court, it was no secret that even the stern, harsh, dutiful and focused Fire Lord Azulon had always welcomed her presence and flattered her with his personal sympathy and partiality. Azulon, whose almost complete lack of interest in women had prompted a few loose tongues to slander, had obviously enjoyed her company; but even that fell short of the scandalously unconcealed solicitations and displays of interest of Crown Prince Iroh.
Just as Prince Iroh had forged himself a reputation as a womaniser, Lady Xiao was the embodiment of a prim and proper lady; graced with a sharp wit and an amiable personality as well as beauty; the many suitors she had in her sadly short life agreed that even rejection was like divine nectar when uttered by her lips. Even the most strict and staunch defenders of property and decorum had to admit that Lady Xiao was as tactful and respectful in avoiding misunderstandings and suspicions as she was at staying away from trouble and scandal. This concession had all the more value because it was confirmed and endorsed by very jealous ladies of the court, including Azulon's own wife Lady Ilah, and the ever unforgiving princess Quiao Bei, Iroh's very wife, and her father, the punctilious and hard up Lord Bei.
Lady Xiao Deng had had that strange and charming ability to endear herself to whomever she met, and her very beauty was enough to intimidate those who approached her with dishonest intentions. Rumour had it that a simple smile and a shake of her head were enough to halt Prince Iroh's overtures. And there had been talk that her father had begun negotiating a future marriage with prince Ozai, only to be abruptly halted by the appearance of Lady Ursa, an inconspicuous lady from a secluded noble family that had fallen on hard times.
Whatever the case, Lady Xiao had fallen in love with a much older man with a sinister reputation, Lord Shu Lee. This man, twenty seven years her senior could boast that he had served with distinction in in the army and that he and his brother proved to be very capable administrators of their inherited fortune. But this particular Lord had always been very withdrawn and taciturn, he was not handsome at all, nor was he particularly fun to be around with. He had however been married twice in his life, but the Spirits had not seen fit to bless him with children, three stillborn babies and four miscarriages had brought enough pain to his already shaky marriages to force both parties to a divorce.
Lord Shu Lee had apparently resigned himself to die without experiencing the joys of fatherhood and leave all behind to his younger brother and his nephew when Lady Xiao came along. In a few months they were married, and the couple was blessed to live a few months of blissful joy and sincere love; something that was incredibly rare among nobility in the Fire Nation, for marriage was first and foremost an instrument of social status and political alliance with only one true objective: reproduction.
"Love is for the poor" or "Love is for the pleb" was a common saying among the Fire Nation's elite. All noble marriages were arranged in some way, the nobility had even found a way to overcome one of the most revolutionary, and ironically, old, innovations or the Fire Nation law: the right of every citizen, specially women, to reject any suitor, regardless of any arrangement.
But then a tragedy had occurred, Lady Xiao had almost lost her life with a miscarriage, her health had deteriorated so much that doctors advised her never to get pregnant again, something that brought even more pain with the knowledge that she had been carrying triplets. It was never known if it was her or her husband that had chosen to disregard the medics' recommendations and try once again to have children. Those efforts had borne fruit in the persons of Lord Lee's seven daughters, but they had come at a very high price, Lady Xiao Deng had lost her life during childbirth. Her husband had been so thoroughly devastated that he had retired almost completely from public life. Many said that he harboured a concealed resentment against his daughters, and for that reason neglected his role as a father, leaving them in the care of nurses, servants and a governess. Others were convinced that he blamed himself for his wife's death and did not dare to enjoy even an ounce of happiness with his daughters as a way of atoning for his mistake. A third group simply thought that his daughters reminded him too much of his deceased wife and he could not bear to even hear them.
Undisputed is the fact that Lord Shu Lee was considered a cursed man by the lowborns and plebs; and an irresponsible father by his noble peers. Only the death of his younger brother had pulled him out from his agonising depression. Reality had once again hit him in the face and Lord Lee had been forced to acknowledge that he had a single heir to his title: his nephew. And even if his daughters had a right to his fortune, he knew how unstable human life was and how foolish it was to take it for granted. Thus he began to strengthen old alliances and friendships and forming new ones. He quickly arranged marriages for six of his daughters and his nephew, he had been on the process of finding a match for his last daughter, Lady Ty Lee when the match came to him.
Princess Ursa was looking for a bride for his son, the young prince Zuko and had chosen two possible candidates from the many noble girls in the Fire Nation: the granddaughter of Fire Lord Azulon's closest friend and most trusted advisor, Lady Mai Sun; and Lord Shu Lee's own daughter Lady Ty Lee. As was the usual costume among the nobility, Lord Shu Lee had signed the authorisation for the engagement and the eventual marriage and sent his daughter to live in the Royal Palace in the hopes that the prince would eventually choose her.
For such was the law in the Fire Nation any citizen was free to choose his husband or wife freely but, like everything in the Fire Nation, there were certain restrictions specially for the nobility. The father or legal tutor of the bride and the groom had to authorise it, or in the case of the Royal Family, the Fire Lord had to approve all marriages, regardless of the sex, and both bride and groom had to be citizens of the Fire Nation.
But there was more to it, in the Fire Nation legal tradition no son or daughter could posses anything as long as his or her father lived, for they were within the realm of parental power. This was an ancient legal figure in the Fire Nation, originally granting even the right of life and death over one's children. With time it had diluted but it still held enough power for a father to practically control his children's lives; since they had legally nothing, and whatever they earned with their own work belonged automatically to their father, the father could easily compel them to his will. To put more limits to this sort of extreme power was the objective of the law that allowed for rejection of the suitor. A child simply had to say no to easily thwart his father's arrangements, once rejected the suitor was forbidden from further courtship, so despite his control over his children's material world a father would be forced to acknowledge his children's will when arranging a marriage.
But like any law, it was possible to evade it. In order to keep control over the marriages along with their the social, economical and political implications, the nobility devised a clever, although slow, method: The prolonged courtship, which basically meant that marriages were arranged as soon as possible, at birth if necessary, then the fiancés would be raised together, taught from their very infancy who the future bride or husband would be, thus ensuring an acceptance of the marriage in almost all circumstances. After heirs were produced, if the couples were unhappy, divorce was always a possibility, and both would be free to do with their lives as they pleased. A happy solution to everyone, or so it was believed.
Since she was five years old, Lady Ty Lee had lived in the royal palace, along with the other candidate Lady Mai Sun; both had developed a very deep friendship with each other and with princess Azula, but it seemed that neither had caught the prince's attention. Many feared that Zuko would turn out to be like his forefathers, prince Ozai and Fire Lords Azulon, Sozin, Zhan, Taishi and Zhou before him. Men who where notorious for their almost complete lack of interest in women. Aside from Ozai and Azulon, all of them had had a single child. With many of their cousins lost to the war or far too separated from the main family; many worried about the health of the current dynasty, it was disturbingly unusual for the Royal Family to have so few heirs, specially considering the notorious reputation of many previous Fire Lords and princes as licentious men. If one took into account prince's Iroh's inability to produce more than one heir, and prince Lu Ten's reluctance to take a wife, or even to meet with candidates, it became easy to understand the fear that many important nobles, merchants and scholars had for the stability of the current monarchy, with a costly and prolonged war in their hands that had already claimed the lives of so many distant members of the Royal family, the lack of heirs was bitterly evident.
Only now, nine years after she had been sent to the Royal Palace did she understand why her father and her governess sent her so many expensive and conspicuous clothings, why did the Royal tutors insisted so adamantly on her and Mai spending as much time as possible with prince Zuko, why did princess Ursa always asked for Zuko to give his opinion whenever they and princes Azula received new clothing, why did the servants always did their best to force situations in which they'd be forced to pass by or run into prince Zuko, and why did they not live in the Royal Academy for Girls and always returned to the palace after they were done with their lessons. It had been foolishly obvious, but then again they used to be foolishly innocent, and prince Zuko's obsession with training and firebending, along with his notorious and eternal strife with princess Azula, which ofttimes extended to her friends, did not make things any easier for the many matchmakers.
Still it had been a very happy time for Ty Lee, she had escaped from the shadow of an unloving and thoughtless father, and better still, she had escaped from her exasperating sisters and the unbearable burden of being unnoticed by the world around them. It's not that Ty Lee was at loggerheads with any of her sisters in particular, but the fact is that not one of their servants or governess, not even their own father could tell them apart from one another. No one ever got her name right, the servants would always get confused and bring her the things that one of her sisters had ordered, visitors would end up chatting with all of them in a day in the belief that they had been talking to one of them since the very beginning.
She'd never really know when a gift was really sent to her, or when summoned she'd have to wonder if it was truly her that they wanted to see. In short, it was a torturously invisible existence where no one really acknowledged her, no one cared for her, no one saw her. In an effort to call for attention Ty Lee had begun to make acrobatics all around, in front of visitors, in the gardens or even in the street; she had sometimes broken things, accidentally or not, if only to be sure that the scolding was actually directed at her. But to her utter dismay and horror each and every one of her sisters had been scolded or punished by her doing, for no one had been able to identify her.
The invitation to the Royal palace had been a blessing, in there she was Lady Ty Lee, the candidate, no one confused her and everybody would acknowledge her, it did not matter to her that the servants referred to her, in whispers of course, as the "weird girl of the acrobatic gimmicks", as long as Ty Lee had the certainty that it was her they saw. Being known as princess Azula's lackey was a compliment for her, specially since Azula had always acknowledged her and her abilities and talents, not openly or in words mind you, but in actions and attitudes; whenever the princess needed to train she'd order her to help her; when she needed to get something done, she'd command her to do the task most suited to her skills. It was even at Azula's suggestion that Ty Lee had received training in anatomy and chi blocking, the princess had recognised her natural talents for precisely identifying veins, muscles, bones and nerves. It was a very subtle and implied way of assertion and respect to her as an individual, but Ty Lee treasured it with all her heart and was therefore a staunch and loyal friend of the princess despite the princess' constant bullying and subtle cruelty.
Ty Lee could say in all honesty that the years she spent in the palace were the happiest of her life, even if her purpose there could be considered a failure, she would have gladly stayed there, it did not matter to her if the prince did not chose her as his wife... she'd have Azula and she'd have Mai, she'd have happiness, but fate did not have it so. After four years in the Royal Palace, tragedy struck; first prince Lu Ten died in battle on the siege of Ba Sing Se, a catastrophe that shocked everyone in the palace deeply, specially prince Zuko and princess Ursa, although Azula proved indifferent to the whole business. A few days later Fire Lord Azulon passed away in his sleep appointing prince Ozai as his successor, no one had even time to be surprised about it, princess Ursa disappeared mysteriously the same day and Mai's grandfather, Azulon's long time prime minister and closest friend, died mysteriously the following morning.
These events threw her perfect world into total chaos, talks of civil war sprung out of nowhere, a general sense of terror and suspicion arose in the hearts of nobles and peasants, servants and masters, even she had her questions about the whole affair, but she did not dare ask aloud. Soon the news reached them about prince Iroh's disappearance, Ozai's and even Azula's utter surprise and disbelief seemed to put them out of suspicion, but their palpable uneasiness and outward indifference towards the search efforts made people raise their eyebrows. Many peasants protests were mercilessly squashed, Ozai proceed to purge the Fire Council and the home army from people that had been close and open allies of Iroh and Lu Ten, but it was obvious that he didn't dare to move against Iroh's army on the colonies and in the front lines.
Prince Iroh reappeared a few months later and returned to the capital with three armies at his back, Ty Lee had never felt more tension as when she heard that her own father had marched to join prince Iroh on his landing in the home islands, nor did she feel more relief as when Iroh recognised his younger brother as Fire Lord and civil war was avoided. The chaos passed, but all the while it had changed everything, men who had been ready to jump against each other with knives on their hands were now in a very shaky peace, and the discontent, the suspicious, the slights, injustices and grudges kept rankling.
Prince Zuko had been affected by all of it, specially the loss of his mother, before he had been unruly, pigheaded, impatient, reckless and intemperate but still open enough to allow for some interaction, the ordeal had made him distant, cold, angry, distrustful, harsh and sharp tongued. Ty Lee and Mai had tried their best to console him and support him, but the prince's original disinterest had now transformed into open aggressiveness and indifferent contempt. He wanted to be alone, and she and Mai had been forced by his irreclaimable attitude to leave him be, no one else had attempted to help him, no one else had cared.
For two years this situation had endured, becoming more stiff and uneasy the more they grew and became aware of their social position, slowly realising what it truly meant to be promised in marriage, what the practical consequences of Zuko' eventual decision would be. Their slow entering the threshold of adulthood and their changing bodies did little to reduce the awkwardness of their situation, but even so, Ty Lee hoped and believed that eventually the prince would come out of his shell and take a decision about his future wife. Once again destiny thwarted Ty Lee's wishes and expectations, in a more radical way. Despite the intense criticism from the court, heated complaints by her and Mai's families, Fire Lord Ozai banished prince Zuko.
Suddenly Ty Lee found herself back home in her father's province. Only then did she become conscious of the extent in which her life had been dependent on Zuko, how her very existence had been justified by one purpose, without it there was no need for her to remain in the Royal Palace.
She was welcomed coldly, her only respite came from the fact that all of her sisters were away living with their future husbands, waiting to reach the legal age to be finally married. The only thing Ty Lee saw of her sisters in those first months at home were letters, they were sympathetic to the fact that she had probably lost a fiancée, and the best chance anyone could have at attaining wealth, power and prestige. And Ty Lee just couldn't bring herself to accept the injustice done to Zuko or the fact that she had been treated almost like cattle. She had not studied with the princes in the Fire Nation Royal Academy for Girls everyday since she was sent to the Capital to remain blind to the reality she was in, and the way her own family had manipulated her and taken advantage of her trust and innocence; but she was far too weary and emotionally bruised to fight, so Lady Ty Lee did what she had always done: she smiled and hoped for the better, at least they now could tell her apart as the failed suitor of the banished prince.
The reunion with her sisters brought about a greater scandal for her and her family. Her father had wanted a last reunion before the twelfth birthday of his daughters and their coming of age, so he organised a farewell celebration. Lord Lee hired the most famous painter in the Nation to make a portrait of his seven daughters, a man called Lu Gong, The Eunuch. He came from the colonies and as a child had been captured and sold into slavery in the Earth Kingdom, there he had been castrated and forced to guard the Royal Harem of the Kingdom of Jing, there he had learned to paint and had won the affection of the old King Mu. Lu Gong spent twenty years painting the women of the harem until prince Lu Ten reached Jing and forced the King to a peace agreement, one of the conditions was to free any slave with Fire Nation origin.
Lu Gong's story was meant to be part of the propaganda that displayed the atrocities committed by the Earth Kingdom and the results of the war conducted by general Iroh. Sadly two months latter prince Lu Ten was killed in battle and the siege of Ba Sing Se was broken, but Lu Gong's fame had already risen, his skills were so impressive that none could refrain from commissioning paintings to him. Lord Lee was one of them.
As soon as the Lu Gong saw the daughters of Lord Lee he lost his breath in admiration and had to rest for a while before he could begin to work, the man wept each time his brush stroke the canvass, and often stayed enormous amounts of time simply contemplating the beauty of the girls, enough to make it obviously uncomfortable that he felt attracted to them. The next morning they found him hanged in his room.
The Eunuch left a letter which explained his decision to end his life, and a poem dedicated to the beauty of the Lee sisters. Though most of what was written in the letter was embarrassingly flattering and would have passed as an acceptable although bold and daring compliment had he not suicided, there were many obscene and lecherous remarks and descriptions that only served to fuel the scandal.
In summary, the letter explained that he had never seen such beauty in his life and that despite having observed and painted naked women for twenty years he had never felt so much frustration and anger on account of his robbed manhood, and went on cursing the spirits for giving him the chance to contemplate the most beautiful women on earth but denying him the possibility of any sexual satisfaction, and thus his decision that life was not worth living if he could not enjoy the pleasure of such beautiful women.
The poem was shamelessly lewd, outrageously libidinous and downright improper and indelicate. Among many licentious things the poem described the perfection of the girls' bodies. For instance he dedicated many verses to comment the faultless symmetry of the face and limbs and extremities of the maidens, the poet explained that normal people, no matter how symmetric they are, always have at least one detail that differentiated one side from the other, one eye would be slightly smaller than the other, a hand or a leg larger, one of the cheekbones would elevate more than its twin, a birthmark would be present in one side of the neck, or shoulders, anything. But the daughters of Lord Lee had no such distinction, they were perfectly symmetric, abnormally immaculate, unnaturally unblemished, terrifyingly untarnished. Lu Gong ended that passage in a masterful way, he proceeded to describe the girls' tender legs, as a recount of the material already exposed, then he'd describe the girls' breasts, each curvature and each swelling point with such acute detail that one could think he was describing the orbits of a star or the shape of the moon, he compared those young unblossomed breasts to the eyes of the girls when they slept, already perceiving the coming sun, wishing to open and contemplate nature's eternal harmony, like sunflowers; finally he asked forgiveness for daring to contemplate such beauty, and described the torment that signified his punishment: the inability to ever dance the loving song of passion with them.
The form of the poem was on par with its enchanting subject, when describing the symmetry and the girls' even members, the verses would be entirely symmetrical, adjectives would be at the end and begging of the verse, nouns after them, verbs in the middle. The constituent members of a metaphor would balance the verse. And when Lu Gong described himself or his sufferings, the verses would be purposely asymmetrical, the imperfect form of the verse would match the imperfect subject described, thus making a new daring and subtle symmetry.
The letter, the poem and the painting left behind were to cement Lu Gong's fame as the greatest artist of his generation, his story was to inspire the secret compassion and admiration of thousands. And his erotic verses, his behaviour and tragic death were to submerge the Lee family in an unprecedented scandal. For months they were the talk of the nation, theatres would display the events that led to the sad end of the Eunuch, scholars wrote lengthy treatises on beauty and human passion and suffering; bards would sing stories of the girls whose beauty was so overwhelming that men would die just by contemplating them. Across the nation Fire Sages preached against incontinence and condemned unvirtous, unchecked desires. Street performers would make coarse and lecherous songs. The phrase "beauty that kills" became a cliche, as well as the saying "beautiful as a Lee girl".
In this situation, made even more delicate by the fact that six of his daughters were engaged, and all of them still a few months short of proper marrying age, Lord Lee was forced to hurriedly sent his daughters back to their fiancés, seeing as how his home entrance became filed with curious villagers and travellers who wished to see the girls whose beauty had caused a man to kill himself.
The exasperated Lord was able to somehow keep the agreements standing and the engagements going. Now he had to focus on his one unengaged daughter.
Ty Lee found out that his father had offered her hand to an old Lord from a neighbouring province, she had never met the man, but she did know that the man was a widow, he had lost his sons to the war and found himself heirless; Ty Lee did feel some compassion and sympathy for the man, but the suffering and shock that that year had brought her reached a boiling point, she determined to recover the happiness she had lost and she was sure she'd never find in a marriage.
Another thing that must be remarked about the institution of marriage in the Fire Nation was that, unlike marriage in the Water Tribes, it was not a contract, it was not an oath, not even a promise. It was an alliance, a friendship, a socially acceptable means of reproduction and above all, it was a defacto situation. For a marriage to be valid in the Fire Nation, a part from the permission of the father of the bride and groom, two elements were needed: the cohabitation of the parties, provided that they regarded themselves as man and wife, and the consent, which derived from the first one: both parties had to be willing to be wedded. This willingness could be expressed with the betrothal, a dowry, a religious ceremony and public displays of affection, but none of these per se formed or validated a marriage. And the marriage could potentially be dissolved just as easily as it formed, thus if not handled with care, all marriages were extremely fragile in essence.
In order to bring about more stability to the marriage without changing the law and old traditions, the previous dynasty of Fire Lords hatched a ruthlessly effective method of manipulation. Since it was an obvious fact that the most common reason for a divorce was infidelity, that is, one of the two partners becoming attracted to a third party. They thought it wise to promote a bigger age difference between the groom and the bride. Their logic was this: women had an expiry date, soon after their thirties they lost the ability to reproduce, which was the whole point of the marriage, whereas men didn't. On the other hand, they firmly believed that, while young, men were not only more lascivious as compared to old men, but more irresponsible and reckless, they were more prone to think with their penis and forget their status, reputation and the wellbeing of their patrimony.
Their solution was simple, allow the men to enjoy their youth and indulge themselves in mundane pleasures and, only when they became older, calmer, wiser and more responsible were they to marry. A recommended age was forty.
For their part, women, seeing as they had time against them, were to marry young, so that they'd quickly have children. Youth had also the advantage of inexperience and of lack of judgment and less independence of thought, thus they'd be easier to control. Additionally, since it was also a known fact that men, all men, preferred younger women, their husbands would be less likely to be unfaithful if the brides were young and beautiful. In a hypothetical situation, a marriage between a forty year old man and a girl between twelve and fourteen, could have ten to twenty years of duration, more than enough time for children to be begotten and raised. After that time the man would be between fifty and sixty years old, tired, lacking in libido and very likely sick, or dead or dying, whereas the woman would be between her late twenties or early thirties, young enough to enjoy the rest of her life and whatever fortune and advantages she obtained from her marriage in whatever way she saw fit. It was an arrangement to the convenience of all parts, the groom, the bride, the children and the families and the interests they represented. The method was so effective that it was the standard procedure in all cases of arranged marriages in the Fire Nation and specially among highborns.
Ty Lee knew all this, and she truthfully understood the logic and reason behind it all, she even understood that her courtship with prince Zuko was a necessary exception to the normal arrangements, in as much as urgent heirs were needed for the Royal Family and there were no older candidates than Zuko, since prince Lu Ten refused to consider marriage.
Had princess Ursa not chosen her as a candidate, chances were that Ty Lee would have spent the last four years in the house of the old Lord whom her father now wished to marry her, getting slowly and inevitably accustomed to her new husband, accepting him. But it was not so, fate had had her live and grow up thinking and hoping that she'd one day marry the young and handsome prince Zuko, now she was too old to be deceived and manipulated by the highborns' tricks.
In the cover of the night Lady Ty Lee escaped from her home before she could even meet her second suitor, she escaped to the colonies and eventually she joined a traveling circus, where she could fully employ her abilities and natural talents, it turned out to be the place of her dreams, because not only did she get to travel through the colonies and know the world, but she also got the attention and recognition she had yearned for, the public loved her and she loved to be loved, Ty Lee was happy again.
Until the day her father finally found her whereabouts and send her governess and some men at arms to bring her back home, to her new old fiancée. She knew she could have turned down this suitor, but another would come after him, and then another. Ty Lee had no wish to play that game anymore, she wanted freedom.
Her growling stomach brought her back to reality. Ty Lee gobbled up the last piece of hard bread she had in her traveling bag and went to look for water. She needed to concentrate, whatever her misgivings the fact remained that her former almost fiancée remained her only hope. She was so desperate that she never even stopped to reflect that there was relatively little Zuko could legally do for her.
Sokka had never been so happy to see a storm. All of his life he had lived in constant fear and dread of storms, they were a sailor's doom, and particularly dangerous in the South Pole, rarely did they not cause serious damages to their homes and ships, ofttimes they forced them to stay inside for days.
But this time the storm was to be his deliverance. In such a storm not even his captors were to risk letting him work the fields, so he and the rest of the slaves were to peel potatoes or pluck wool in one of the lice infested warehouses.
Sokka was grateful enough for the respite the indoor work brought him, he would gladly peel potatoes for a year if it meant he could seat in the shadows and it meant that he could talk with Yong.
"So who did you say was in charge again?" Asked Sokka to his newfound "friend". Old Yong had been a slave on this island for almost forty years, before that he had actually been a travelling scholar from Ba Sing Se University, whatever the hell that was.
"I told you it all depends on what you are referring to, the leader of the Kyoshi Warriors, Warrior Suki is in charge of guarding the peace and order, but it is chief Oyaji that proposes to the Women's Assembly any decision regarding inner or foreign policy and who represents the island among foreigners." Answered the old man with a cough as he threw a peeled potato to the barrel in front of him.
"I thought you said that this island was ruled by women!". Said Sokka looking up from his task, careful not to be noticed by any of the so called Kyoshi Warriors, another beating was the last thing he wanted.
"It is a matriarchal culture yes".
"A what?"
The old man sighted. "The men are slaves and the women are the masters". He explained.
"Then how come that guy Oyaji is the chief?"
"He defeated a Kyoshi Warrior in combat".
"So if I beat one of them..." Began Sokka excitedly.
"Don't even think about it". Said the old man calmly as he picked up yet another potato to peel. "The Kyoshi Warriors are among the most elite warriors ever to walk on earth, they are trained to fight since they can walk".
"They're still just a bunch of girls". Countered Sokka nonchalantly.
"A bunch of girls that defeated and enslaved you, and any other man that has set foot on this island since Chin the Conqueror tried to conquer them".
Sokka simply grumbled in shame, if only the old man wasn't the only other slave that had even a ounce of personality Sokka would have long ago tried to befriend someone else, but alas, the rest of his companions had all the will of a scared mouse, Sokka had never seen anything like this, some three hundred cowed men at the service of a village full of women, he didn't know if it angered him more his situation or the complete lack of will of the other slaves.
"I can still take on them in a fair fight". Said Sokka.
"I'll put flowers on your grave". Yong didn't even look at him.
"Why are you all such pussies?" Sighted Sokka.
"You're Water Tribe you don't understand that for us the relationship between master and slave is sacred. You also don't know how dangerous the women of Kyoshi island are".
"Well why don't you explain me?"
Yong grabbed another potato and looked at Sokka directly in the eyes. "You ever been to the Earth Kingdom?"
"No".
"It's just like here, but backwards. Back home all women are per definition slaves and the men are the masters... I mean there's male slaves as well, but they can be freed. The thing is some women didn't really like that state of things and escaped into the mountains and taught themselves how to fight, after a few hundred years they had become the dominant force in their region, luckily for them, Avatar Kyoshi was born from among them just at the time Chin The Conqueror was beginning his attempt at reunifying the Earth Kingdom. Avatar Kyoshi killed Chin and separated her territory from the continent, this island used to be attached to the Earth Kingdom, now it belongs to the women you see here".
"That doesn't explain why non one stands up to them!"
"Yes it does, these women have embedded in their culture a deep sense of superiority towards men, as well as a dominating desire of freedom, they see all men as a threat to their status and would sooner die than allow a free man or a man with dangerous ideas to roam around them".
"Then what about him? Why is he free?" Sokka pointed angrily out of a window were chief Oyaji was walking with a few other women in the middle of the rain.
"He isn't free, you know. He just has a more privileged position than us... and he won the right to perpetuate his seed with a woman of his choosing".
"What does that even mean?"
"It means that he can't leave nor do as he wishes, he's bound to obey the council of women, he just happens to be an important tool for them. They know no man in the Earth Kingdom or the Water Tribes would take a woman seriously or negotiate with one, so they use him as an intermediary and allow him to express his opinion".
"That's interesting but I meant the perpetuating stuff".
"Oh don't worry, if you behave well I'm sure that some women will want your seed". Explained Yong with a consolatory tone.
"You mean one of the warriors?". Sokka asked terrified.
"No, the warriors have taken a vow of chastity, it falls on the women who were unable to become warriors to bear the pain of motherhood. If you want to lay with a Kyoshi Warrior you'll have to risk your neck like Oyaji did and defeat one, of course if you fail you'd better hope she kills you on the spot, otherwise you'll get skinned alive and crucified". Old man young Young emphasised his point by gesturing with his peeling knife towards his palm. Sokka couldn't help but gulp. After a moments hesitation he decided to drop the subject and ask about something that bothered him.
"How can you just accept to live in slavery?".
"See that ostrich horse?" Young pointed towards the window were a couple of Kyoshi Warriors were guiding a very scared ostrich horse towards the stables. Sokka looked at him and nodded.
"He's a smart animal unlike you. He doesn't want to be free, he knows he'll be taken care of, fed, and cleaned if it obeys its master. It will have a roof over his head on the rain, a warm fire in the winter and he'll be protected from dangerous predators, it'll pay for all that with his loyal service. And the same thing for its master, he has to take care of his property if he's to have any advantage of it. Both parties get a benefit from this relationship, it's the way it's meant to be, it's the law of the Earth Kingdom, no matter how different the women of Kyoshi may be, they're still daughters of the Earth Spirit and bound by its laws".
Sokka could only slap his head his head in frustration.
"If the relationship is so beneficial why did Oyaji risk his life fighting a Kyoshi Warrior?"
"Oyaji is a special case, he used to be a general in the Ji Kingdom, rumour has it that he was sent on a diplomatic mission when a storm sinked his ship. He ended up here just like you. After a few years of calculating, he decided that it was worth a shot to challenge a Kyoshi warrior, they didn't know who he was so they would underestimate him. He knew that if he won he would never again have to work the fields, he'd be assigned duties more suited to his taste and he'd be allowed to lay with the warrior he defeated instead of being randomly chosen by one of the village women".
"I thought you said they disliked men".
"They do, but they can't make babies on their own can they? And like I said, the women of Kyoshi are much more similar to the Earth Kingdom than you'd think. They both respect strength above all. You are either a master or a slave. If you're strong you rule, if you are weak you obey. They just happen to be stronger than most men, but if defeated they're honour bound to obey, they become slaves themselves, or they can kill themselves. We're all children of the Earth and were bound by it's universal laws".
"If Oyaji was so strong why didn't he try to escape?"
"He's strong but not stupid, he understood perfectly that escape was impossible, but it's perfectly legit to try and improve your position and still serve your master. Oyaji is also a son of mother Earth and he's bound to her laws. If you want my advice I'd suggest to imitate the ostrich horse instead of Oyaji, if you behave well and have some talent you'll get another less tiring job, and if you gain the trust of your masters maybe they'll even let you live in the village, and who knows, maybe a women will want to lay with you someday". Sokka signed in defeat, it was no use, not even Yong would help him if he thought he was seriously trying to escape; Sokka would have to do it on his own. Night was approaching, soon they would be sent back to their barracks.
"What happened to the warrior Oyaji defeated?" Asked Sokka out of curiosity.
"She couldn't stand the shame of having to give up her status as a warrior and her maidenhead, to become the slave of a man... she hung herself a few weeks after her defeat".
For the first time Sokka realised that escaping these Kyoshi Warriors might be more complex than what he thought, but he needed to to it, he needed to save his sister.