A/N: So I'm just working on building Orora up before everything. You know her personality, her appearance and stuff. I just think that developing an OC helps to connect them with the overall story. And yes, there will be romance along the way fear not! I hope you guys are enjoying the story so far! Lemme know your thoughts!
She had parted ways with her tribe.
Not for good, Orora figured she would return someday, or at least run into someone who was from the Northern Water Tribe, still it was sad to see the last of her home sail away without her.
While the Aang and his friends had departed a day earlier to meet up with some General Fong, the small ship had made port to a nearby harbor, wanting to restock supplies. It was here, while wandering the village that Orora had decided that perhaps she should explore the world a little. Being on sea for days or even weeks sounded tedious and boring. And she had had enough of that to last a lifetime.
She wanted adventure and excitement and maybe get into a little trouble. Hopefully not too much though. She had no desired to be robbed or captured by the Fire Nation. She had enough trinkets she could pawn to get money along the way, and she was fairly decent when it came to her fighting skills. They were still mostly centered around using ice as a weapon, and despite the training Master Pakku and Katara had given her during their few short weeks on the boat, Orora had decided that she needed to test her skills in the real world.
Master Pakku had not been happy with her detour, saying she had a duty to their sister tribe to help, she had countered that how could she help them when she didn't know the full potential of her water bending capabilities. He had tried to argue, but he knew it would be of no use. He had learned his lesson that when it came to stubborn teenage girls, they were hard to break.
He had given her his blessing, which had meant a lot more to Orora then she cared to admit. As a parting gift he had given her a smile white tile with a lotus, telling her that should she ever need help she should find someone with the similar emblem. It didn't even have to be on a tile. Doorway, tattoo, carving, anything would do. So long as she showed them the tile, she would have help.
Orora had never before bowed so low to another elder as she had done the old yet wise Master.
Before she had parted he had told her a little story. Of how there had been a girl and a boy, both from the Northern Water Tribe. Engaged to be married despite not being soulmates, the boy had loved the girl, and he had thought the girl loved him too. And yet, she had wanted to find her soulmate and live her days with him. She did love the boy, but not enough.
The girl had left, leaving the boy heartbroken to pick up the pieces and rebuild his life without her. She had found her soulmate and had lived a happy life, but now? The boy, now an old man, was going to find the woman he had loved, and perhaps they could be together now?
"So, you loved her, despite her not being your soulmate?" Orora questioned as she stood in front of him. The rest of her tribe were loading everything back onto the boat while she spoke to Master Pakku.
The old man gave a sage nod. "Being a soulmate does not mean you will end up together. Just as Avatar Aang said, people do fall in love with someone else." He placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "It is up to you who you want to love. The thread is just in place to help you find that someone if you do not have anyone else. We are all beings of free will Orora, and no one can force us to fall in love." The girl tightened her hand on her strap before giving a small nod.
"Thank you for your words of wisdom Master Pakku." She bowed in the fashion of her people. "I hope to become a Master waterbender just as you are." He gave a small chuckle before patting her on the head. "My dear girl, no one can be as good as I." He stated with a grin of faint arrogance that had her matching his posture. "Then I shall have to become better then you." His loud laugh of fond amusement had echoed in her ears as she stood at the dock, waving farewell until the small boat disappeared from view.
Orora was absolutely amazed with what lay before her.
Land. Brown land. And trees. So so many trees. All green and bursting with life. The very air was alive. She had never once ventured outside of the Northern Water Tribe, and seeing the unfamiliar landscape around her was a little nerve-wracking sure, but it was also exhilarating.
And the scents! Every single thing had it's own scent. The dirt. The leaves. The flowers. Oh she loved the flowers the best! Then there were the streams and ponds she would find. Small natural bodies of water. Everything at the Pole had been created by the Benders, and yet here was a little stream, carving its way across the land and traveling beyond her line of sight.
One thing was for sure. She definitely preferred the Earth Kingdom over the North Pole.
Her first run in with trouble came in the form of slavers.
In her excitement of going out to see the world, Orora had forgotten several significant details. One of which was that she was a girl. A young teenage girl who men would consider easy pickings. When she had been made aware of just how much attention she attracted, the girl had bought herself a nice long hooded cloak. For one it would keep her features hidden, and for another it kept her warm at night. She didn't dare make a fire for fear of being noticed, and only ate her food cold. If she happened to pass through a village she would manage to grab a hot meal but that was it.
It didn't seem to be enough since she had to evade her would-be-captors while passing through a small fishing village. It was ridiculous just how persistent they were. If she had been a boy, she mused angrily to herself afterwards, they wouldn't have bothered her much.
Orora had managed to leave the village quickly, forgoing a hot meal and finding refuge by a small stream. The flowing water calmed her she had found earlier during her initial travel days, and she had stuck to it for as long as she could. Where there was water, it would always have people living nearby.
Reaching down she cupped some water in her palms and washed her face. She'd thrown her hood back, her hair was tied back with the comb she loved. It looked much too fine to belong to a simple traveling girl. Maybe she should take it out. But what would she tie her hair back with? Orora sighed, lifting a lock of hair where it had escaped from her bun. An idea flitted across her mind.
Why couldn't she? Cut her hair! It was brilliant! People would dismiss her being a young boy. Her still developing figure was hidden under a cloak, under which she wore loose baggy water tribe clothes.
Pulling out the small dagger she had stolen from her brother's room before leaving, Orora removed the comb, allowing her waist length hair to tumble down her back. With one last look at her thick gleaming locks, she lifted a huge chunk and began to cut.
A few minutes later she rose, dusting off the hair as she examined her reflection in the water. Well, her hair was sheared as close to her scalp as she could without cutting her skin. It stuck out at odd angles, giving her an even more rough look. Her tanned skin was tanner then ever from walking under the sun the past two weeks or so. The short hair and tanned skin allowed her ice blue eyes to stand out even more, but she didn't mind. Easy to intimidate people with just a glance.
Orora smiled in satisfaction. She could easily pass as a boy.
Along the way she began to use her healing abilities to heal people. If she happened to come across anyone in need, she would try and help them however she could.
Orora had been aware of the devastation caused by the Fire Nation, yet seeing innocent people suffer first hand just made her hate them more.
"There, that should heal." She muttered, keeping her voice a little deep so as to keep up her persona of being a smooth skinned young boy. Did boys even possess the ability to heal? The people weren't complaining though. The merchant gave a small nod in thanks.
"My gratitude boy, blast these bandits. They seem to be everywhere today." The old man groaned as he rummaged in his purse to take out a few coins and give it to her. "You'd do best to avoid the roads at night, boy. There is a Spirit lurking around, stealing from whoever it comes across." The man warned her, already standing up and shuffling off after giving his warning.
Orora stared after him, biting her lower lip. She had been sleeping in the darkest and the remotest places she could find. Sometimes in a cave, if she were lucky. Humans she could avoid easily. But Spirits!
She hoped she never run into one.
It seemed luck wasn't on her side. Or in a twist of fate, maybe it was?
She had been sound asleep underneath and old tree, huddled against the roots and nearly invisible. But the Spirit that approached her could see her perfectly. Another target. Someone it could steal from.
The Spirit crept forward, eyes on the prize, ignoring all other feeling.
Orora, however, was woken by a sudden yank. Her eyes snapped open, instantly falling on the her hand where the string was so tightly taut she was afraid her finger would be cut off.
A twig cracked, and the sound echoed in the clearing where she slept and chaos broke loose.
The Spirit attacked her by leaping into the air. She retaliated by throwing her arm out, water whipping out of her canteen and forming several icicles that flew towards her would-be attacker. Several of her ammunition managed to snag the black clad figure, cutting through fabric and skin in several place. The assaulter had not been expecting her to attack back and fumbled. As the figure fell to the ground, Orora wasted no time in creating a wall of water and threw her arms out. The figure flew through the air, slamming against a tree, a solid wall of ice forming all around, leaving only the head able to move.
Just then the moon came out from behind the crowd and Orora was able to see her attacker. A blue mask stared back at her, blank and looking even more horrifying in the shadows cast by the branches of the tree. She didn't bother masking her voice as she pulled out her dagger, ready to attack the figure if need be. "Who are you!?" She demanded.
Suddenly the figure stilled, the mask covered face facing Orora, allowing her to to assess it quickly. It didn't...look like a spirit as the merchant had claimed. She frowned a question forming on her lips when she suddenly felt that yanking feeling in her finger again.
"What?" She glanced down, just in time to see a string appear out of thin air, taut as it stretched across the distance between her and the...Spirit. Her eyes widened, and her heart leaped in her throat and her gaze became fixed on her prisoner.
Her feet seemed to move on their own as she slowly walked to stand in front of the figure. They were almost eye to eye, given that she had pinned her attacker a little lower against the tree. The string shortened with each step she took, her heart picking up speed as she finally stood before the would be Spirit.
Fingers trembling, eyes still wide, she reached up, grasping the mask from around the edges and lifting it away from the skin. She paused, as if allowing them both a moment to gather prepare themselves before she slowly lowered the blue mask to reveal the face that lay underneath.
Bright gold, a color she had never seen in eyes before, stared back at her. They were intense and seemed to hold a fire within. There was something...powerful behind the gaze. Though that power was subtle, almost as if it was hiding. It didn't take long for her to break the intense stare and slowly begin to take in the rest of his face. He was just a boy. Perhaps a year or so older then her, but still. There was nothing much to see since half his face was marred by a scar. Her lips parted in silent horror.
Her Healer mind kicked in, informing her that this was a scar left after a severe burn of some kind. But who would do something so cruel?
Involuntarily, her hand lifted, fingers only barely brushing along the edge of the rough skin of the scar. Her gaze flitted to his eyes once more which had a sudden sheen in them that had her pulling her hand back, and tripping over her feet as she backpedaled. A sudden burst of light didn't help her startled situation as the boy melted away her ice with a blast of fire and dropped to the ground.
Unfortunately, the fire blast was just powerful enough that she couldn't manage to catch herself. Her ankle twisted and she fell.
A sharp pain bloomed at the back of her head.
And everything went dark.
He had his eyes on the prize. The figure was alone and would be easy to rob. Zuko had barely been able to see them given how cleverly they hid in the shadows, but the moon had decided to come out from behind a cloud just at that moment, allowing him to see the figure.
What had didn't understand was, how had the figure been able to sense his presence. He had been careful with his every move and silent. His entire concentration had been focused, perhaps this was why he didn't feel the insistent tugging at his finger.
But when he was pinned to the tree and was struggling against the ice that suddenly encapsulated him, he was able to see the error of his ways. For one his hand felt like his finger was being pulled off. For another he recognized the figure as she stood in front of him. His eyes widened behind his mask and he stopped struggling.
It was her!
The watertribe girl he had saved during the Seige. Sure she looked very different from their previous meeting, her long hair was completely gone and there was no blood on her. Yet he remembered her eyes. He had never forgotten them. They haunted him in his waking hours, and lurked in his dreams when he would sleep. And seeing her, standing in front of him, his body forgot to fight. Forgot to struggle and forgot to escape.
All he could focus on was her eyes.
She asked him a question, he barely heard her.
Zuko watched as her eyes trained at the thread that connected the two of them. Her entire demeanor changed as she came to the realization. He had no idea when she began to walk, but suddenly she stood in front of her, lifting his mask away from his face.
She stared at him, and he stared back.
He allowed himself to assess her as he hadn't done so when he encountered her in the past. Her skin was brown, a stark contrast against his pale complexion. Her features were soft and her short hair seemed to make them stand out even more. Her eyes were a blue he had only ever encountered when he dealt with ice. They were blue yet they held a certain coldness in them. It wasn't like Azula's, no this was different. Calculated, suspicious yet... understanding and kind.
But then he felt her fingers against his scar and whatever spell had been cast was broken. He grunted as he escaped her trap, dropping to the ground expertly and shaking out his hands and feet. It only took him a few seconds, but by the time he looked up, the girl was falling to the ground, followed by a dull thud before she fainted.
He strode over to her, wincing as he caught sight of the rock she had hit her head against. She wasn't bleeding, a quick brush of his hand against the back of her head proved as much, which was a good sign. He should leave. Leave and not look back. He had managed to dodge her during the Seige, perhaps he could do the same now?
Nodding to himself he quickly retrieved the swords he had stashed near a tree and began to walk off. He had only taken a few steps when he paused. He glanced back. She laid there in the clearing, helpless and defenseless. His mind flashed back to just a month or so ago, when he had saved her from that Fire Nation soldier from...finishing her off. The more stubborn part of his mind urged her to leave and just go.
But the part that thought with his heart, that always seemed to speak to him in his Mother's voice, gently reprimanded him for leaving her like this when it was his fault she was hurt. The thread had disappeared, yet he could still feel the tightness of it around his finger. Zuko didn't know how long he stood there, raging inwardly.
Finally, he let out a small growl.
Quickly picking up her fallen dagger and pack, he pulled her up, securing her arms around his shoulders and with his arms under her legs, he managed to hoist her behind his back and began the trek back to where his Uncle was.
The small puffs of breath that fell from her lips was the only indication to him that she was alive.
A/N: Woohoo! They meet! Please leave a review and let me know what you think! - Hestia28